A Pick Me Up

Reblogged from twonest:

What does your coffee say about you?

Don't drink coffee.....
it's better than the kool-aid, so give it a go.
Seriously. Just read why coffee is GOOD FOR YOU!

Read more… 2 more words

Ahhhh, I love coffee.

Altered by Jennifer Rush

“Altered” by Jennifer Rush

4 out of 5 stars.

Sam, Trev, Cas, and Nick live in Anna’s basement; no it is not what it sounds like. The four boys have lived down there for five years. Anna’s father “improving” and “altering” them, and she can only assume that the boys are a part of some secret government project that is trying to create super soldiers. Harmless, right? But Anna is in for a ride when the “government” comes for the boys, and they escape. The only person they haven’t hurt is Anna, and she is grateful for that but her father makes an unusual request of Sam, the leader of the pack: take Anna with him and keep her safe. But safety is elusive with this band of friends and danger, even death, is following close at their heels, and though Anna cares deeply for Trev, Cas, and especially Sam, she wonders if she made the right choice by going with them. Can these boys, who have had their memories wiped, save themselves and Anna? And will Anna be able to survive the truth about herself she never knew even existed?

“Altered” was a new kind of book for me and I really enjoyed it; it isn’t the kind of book I would own but it was very interesting. “Altered” was an easy to read, fast-paced book that is apart of what I would assume in another trilogy, but it ended on only a slight cliffhanger that wasn’t even a real cliffhanger; it is nice not to have a peptic ulcer by waiting a year for the other book to be released.

“Altered” has quite a few characters in it, so even if you are not in love with the “hero” and “heroine” of the story, there are still quite a few to love. I was not a huge fan of Sam (the hero), but I found him to be a nice guy, and though he wasn’t for me, I know a lot of readers really like that kind of character; he just wasn’t my cup of tea/joe. Although I wasn’t a huge fan of Sam, I really enjoyed two of his friends, Trev and Cas. Cas was a crack up and Trev was really nice and I think he was my favorite.

“Altered” was also very enjoyable in the fact that there was never really any down time, so it went quickly. Normally that would bother me, but I think Jennifer Rush did a good job of developing good characters despite the “always” on thing. I will say that I was thrown for a couple of loops (very interesting ones), but I did peg one thing; I just knew it was going to happen even from the beginning, and it made me quite sad while reading “Altered”. I was prepared, but in a way, completely unprepared; I just wish it would not have happened. the only thing that did bother me a bit was the end and the relationship with Sam and Anna. I thought it was a bit lame and I never got attached to either of them, and I thought it kind of turned into sloppy seconds, if you know what I mean. But all in all, I think that Jennifer Rush created a very interesting and suspenseful book. I am looking forward to her next installment in this trilogy.

This was my reaction to what I knew was going to happen, but had hoped wouldn’t.

The Elite: My Nostalgia Afterwards

Okay, school is really boring and I am procrastinating; instead of studying, I am going to relive “The Elite” by Kiera Cass with pictures. Join me in my boredom and let’s go into depth on my feelings after “The Elite” and alleviate some of my nostalgia/boredom! And awaaaaayyyy we gooooo!

The first page is delightful; actually it’s more than delightful, it is magical…

further into the story, I am still loving it…

something happens about halfway through that I was not expecting (I am a little gullible)…

 noooooooooooooo, Maxon, no!…

I still want to believe in Maxon, but what is going on. Where is my Maxon from “The Selection”? What are you doing Mrs. Cass…

this is me holding onto the hope that MY Maxon will return…

Yay! He’s back…

“The Selection” Maxon goes away again, and I’m angry…

this just about describes the rest of the book…

Where’s MY Maxon?!!!!!!!! Rise above it, Maxon, rise above it!!!

I love Maxon, but I was a little disappointed in him in “The Elite.” I hope Cass will change that in the next book. Please, God, let the Maxon from “The Selection” come back to me.

Baby, come back to me, in my heart I still believe… Cooooooommmmmeeeee baaaaaaack!

Let Me Wiiiiiiiinnnnnnn!!!!

“Deception” by C.J. Redwine

Okay, so I am kind of having a cow (hypothetically, of course) because C.J. Redwine (one of my favorite authors) is giving away a copy of the next installment in her Courier’s Daughter Trilogy. To gain ten points towards this giveaway, I must write on my blog, thus I am here!! On the raffle-thingy, it says “create a creative post.” Yeah, well, not all of us can create a “magical” and “imaginative” post after a long day doing school and then having your mouth drilled upon by a dentist! Maybe I’m just weird, but I can’t do that. If you think about it, weird is just a relative term; who really gets to say what is weird and what is not? I’m might think something is weird, and yet, someone else may find it perfectly logical, as well as normal. So howdy there, I come to an impasse: those people who are always energized (without coffee I might add) ARE weird. Bam! Sorry, my jealousy was showing, and now I write onward!

Okaaaaaaay, now that I have stated my dilemma, I shall allow pictures to declare my feelings and response to the possibility of receiving this blessed copy of “Deception”, from my favorite author (hint, hint),  in the mail. I pretty much have no hope of getting this raffle of “Deception” (I never win giveaways!!), but here goes nothin’.

Soooo, now that I have completely wasted everyone’s time (mine included) I bid you adieu, and say “Au revoir” to my dignity! Thanks for reading.

It is Finished!

Reblogged from Ashley Townsend:

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AND THE LORD SAID IT WAS GOOOOOOOD!

Last night, I pulled a Joan Wilder from Romancing the Stone, sans the smashed plate against the fireplace, and finished Chasing Shadows. Huzzah! Yes, like any well-rounded, eccentric author who is in love with fictional people, I drowned my sorrows and my tears in a bowl of Ben and Jerry's frozen yogurt. The past week of ups and downs, running from the royal guard, being stabbed, hand-to-hand scuffles and knife fights in the snowy woods, time travel, whirlwind romance and twisted triangles, secret hangings, and mysteries solved has looked a little something like this:

Read more… 151 more words

The Elite by Kiera Cass

“The Elite” by Kiera Cass

5 out of 5 stars.

“The Elite” is begins with America and Maxon enjoying a picnic outside; for America, it’s just about as perfect as you can get. But despite the fact that she has deep-seated feelings for Maxon and knows he has already chosen her, America still has feelings for her old flame, Aspen. How can you forget two of the best years of your life? You can’t, and that’s the trouble. Maxon makes her feel loved, cherished, protected, beautiful, and when he is near, Maxon is all America thinks about. But she cannot discount Aspen’s love for her and the love that still burns in her heart even after he rejected her; she also never wanted to be  princess. She could have what she always wanted with Aspen now, nothing is stopping her. Nothing but her own heart.

The decision seems to have made itself for America, and it looks like everything will be okay, better than okay, actually. But then all hell breaks loose. Everyone America thought she could trust turns out to be hiding secrets that hold many lives in the balance, quite possibly even her own life. America doesn’t know who she can trust anymore. Can she make it through the Selection as an Elite or is she doomed to fail Maxon, Aspen, and quite possibly all of Illea?

“The Elite” was a great read and Kiera Cass did not disappoint, instead she surprised me. “The Selection” is what my sisters and I classify as “fluff”. If you hear the word fluff come out of my mouth, it is not an insult; on the contrary, it is a compliment. I absolutely loved “The Selection.” I thought that it was very well written, well paced, and that Cass’ characters were not only wonderful and endearing, but also felt very real; they had emotions that were more true to human nature than the usual teen novel. I love the first one, and “The Elite” is not exception.

“The Elite” is basically about America’s struggle in choosing between Maxon and Aspen. Both love her and want her, but she just can’t decide. There are almost the same amount of pros as there are cons in each relationship. America doesn’t want to be a princess or a One, but she really likes Maxon and it is getting harder and harder to imagine her life without him; it’s almost unimaginable. But she still loves Aspen and he has always been there for her, and now that he is a Two, nothing is holding them back. I’m sure you can see her dilemma already; old love doesn’t go away all that easily, but this newfound thing with Maxon is wonderful and America wants to pursue that.

But there is more to “The Elite” than meets the eye. The rebels are getting more aggressive, more persistent in their attacks, and so many secrets are kept that America doesn’t know which way is up and which way is down; she even begins to doubt Maxon (egad!!!). Despite her turmoil, I was a little peeved with America.  Her indecision was kind of annoying in the fact that Maxon has told her MULTIPLE times that he will always choose her, she is the only one he wants and that he will give her time to choose to stay or go. Then she talks with Aspen (who is only an “s” away from what he truly is) and is confused about what she should do. Maxon and America will have these wonderful moments and she’ll promise him she’s going to stay, and then at the first sight of Aspen she goes off and kisses him. Really!! Then she gets all jealous that Maxon spends time with the other girls in the Selection. She does not have the right to judge, and on top of that, Maxon has to make a decision at the end of the Selection about who he will marry. If America backs out and leaves, the poor guy still has to marry someone even if he couldn’t have the one he truly loves. In my opinion, America played Maxon and Aspen very unfairly. She used them (not always intentionally) for her purpose, and then went to the next guy when one upset or disagreed with her. It was a little frustrating. *sighs*.

Okay, besides the America debacle, the rest of the book was really good. I was surprised at how different, though, it was from ”The Selection.” I still felt connected and like all the characters were still the same people, but the book itself was much darker than the first; there was more drama in “The Elite” than just the occasional cat fight in a ballroom. Lots of crazy, awesome things happened (but I won’t spoil it) in “The Elite” that I think were very interesting. It was also well paced liked the first book, and I never felt bored even when there was down time. I am kind of excited as well as worried what Kiera will do to wrap this trilogy up. It was delightful, and now I have to be patient. Noooooooo!!!!

Erasing Time by C.J. Hill

“Erasing Time” by C.J. Hill

3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

“Erasing Time” by C.J. Hill was a very enjoyable read. It starts right off with Sheridan and Taylor, Sheridan’s older twin, getting thrown four-hundred years into the future. The twins were never meant to be taken from what is now the past, instead a man named Tyler Sheerwood, an ingenious scientist, was meant to be brought to the future for some reason unknown to  the girls. Everything has changed four-hundred years into the future, and the world Sheridan and Taylor knew is now gone. English is no longer English, the government rules everything, and the people themselves are completely changed. The sisters wouldn’t even be able to communicate if it hadn’t been for Echo, the boy with blue hair.

After only a being in the future a little while, Sheridan and Taylor find that they will never be able to go back to their time again; you can take something from the past, but you can’t put it back. Ever. Their future is bleak, in this new, unknown world they were forced into, but neither Taylor nor Sheridan are willing to give up, especially when the stakes are so high, not just for themselves, but for the past and future.

“Erasing Time” was different for me; I’ve never encountered a time travel book as well as a dystopian, and I liked the change of scenery. Sheridan and Echo are the two main characters whose perspectives you read from; both were good sides to read. Sheridan was a pleasant female character to be inside of, and I didn’t ever really dislike being inside of her head. One of my favorite things in this book, though, was how Taylor and Sheridan talked to each other; the two of them begin hatching a plan to get out of the big city, but the government is always listening. It’s hard to do an escape plan when people hear every word you say.  But since the language barrier is so great between four-hundred years and the time they are stuck in, Taylor and Sheridan come up with a funny slang that is quite hilarious to read.

The time travel aspect was also interesting and I enjoyed it a lot, as well as C.J. Hill’s society. One area I thought this book was lacking in was the romance. I didn’t really care all that much about Echo, so it just didn’t elicit any emotion from me, and when a book doesn’t span over more than a week, it’s a little hard to believe in the romance. Other than that, “Erasing Time” was a well written, and enjoyable read.