Review: The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan

Synopsis:
Nick and his brother Alan are on the run with their mother, who was once the lover of a powerful magician. When she left him, she stole an important charm - and he will stop at nothing to reclaim it. Now Alan has been marked with the sign of death by the magician's demon, and only Nick can save him. But to do so he must face those he has fled from all his life - the magicians - and kill them. So the hunted becomes the hunter...but in saving his brother, Nick discovers something that will unravel his whole past...





Review:
OK so I thought after reading about Guardian Angels I would go to the opposite end of the spectrum and read about demons...lol.

Written in 3rd person narrative but has the feeling of a first person narrative as it is mainly focalized from Nick's point of view.

Really interesting and well developed plot. Clever plot teasers are placed throughout the story, although there is a major plot twist it does not come as a complete shock, all the indicators are there for you to pick up on.

Fabulous Gothic imagery entwined with modern appliances/architecture. Very easy to have the movie version playing in your imagination while you read this. The snake imagery at the beginning made me cringe (how I hate snakes!). The description of the shadows brought to mind those in Fallen.

I found it rather a strange coincidence that this book as well as Heavenly both state the evils of alcohol and how due to the lowering of inhibitions it is easier for evil to take hold and consume. The idea of being branded for demon possession is truly frightening, I did find it hard to believe that anyone would be stupid enough to let a demon into their bedroom in the middle of the night. The saying 'nothing is what it seems' kept running through my mind.

The theme of nature versus nurture throughout the plot is similar to that running through Beastly but this takes it to a whole new dimension. The ending was surprisingly touching and tender.
An action packed debut novel for urban fantasy fans. I think Sarah Rees Brennan is one to look out for in the future ;)

Juiciliciousss Reviews Random Giveaway

Such amazing giveaways at the moment, for me this would be Christmas in a box :)

Click here to enter :

Post taken from Juiciliciousss Reviews

Well, I thought having another giveaway might be a good idea so...here it is! I have an idea but it's more of a spur of the moment one, so it might be kind of rough. Anyway, so since you guys seemed to enjoy the surprise pack that I had in my previous contest/giveaway, I thought I'll do the same but better. This time, I'll have two winners and for both of them, I'll basically stuff as many YA books as I can or a limit of 8-9? books (haven't decided on how many books should be the limit but...) whichever comes first into a USPS ReadyPost Medium Box. This means that for both winners, they'll each receive about 8-9(!!!) newly released or not-even-released YA novels. Of course, they won't know what they get until they open the boxes but that's the whole gist of it. Sounds great, right?


Open to: US, Canada and International readers! :)

Deadline: April 21st, 2010

Good luck!

Review: Heavenly by Jennifer Laurens

Synopsis: Taken from the back of the book.
I met someone who changed everything.
Matthias.
My autistic sister's guardian angel.
Honest. Inspiring. Funny.
Hot.
And immortal.
That was the problem.
What could I do?
I did what any other girl would do - I fell in love with him

***

Zoe's sister darts in front of cars. Her brother's a pothead. Her parents are so overwhelmed; they don't see Zoe's lost in her broken life. Zoe escapes the only way she knows how: partying.

Matthias, a guardian sent from Heaven, watches over Zoe's autistic sister. After Zoe is convinced he is legit, angel and lost girl come together in a love that changes destiny.

But Heaven on Earth can't last forever.

Review:

It has taken me a while to write this review as this book really touched me and I feel like I am about to bare my soul to the world in this review.

I have to say the synopsis leaves a lot to be desired and should not put you off reading this book. I am not going to gush as this goes far beyond gushing. I feel as if this book was written for me personally, that is how much it has enthralled me.

Written in first person narrative from Zoe's point of view. She is the oldest of 3 children, 17 years old, dealing with the traumatic diagnosis that her adorable little sister, Abria, age 5, has severe autism.   

The book shows the effect on the entire family having to cope with this disability. It is written with insight as the author, Jennifer Laurens, has an autistic child. I was able to relate completely as my oldest child has dyspraxia, although her physical skills are significantly improved to when she was diagnosed, the emotional aspect is a constant challenge and on occasion still hard to deal with. As in the book, Abria is the person  the family revolves around, so it is in my house with the oldest having the main focus of attention. It is not something that is intentional that is just how it happens. I sincerely hope that it is not disturbing the other girls emotionally or mentally.

The story deals with how the family cope with the added stress of having an impaired child in their lives. Zoe turns to alcohol while her brother, Luke, turns to drugs. The feeling of turning to any thing that will block out the reality of their stressful lives is something I can relate to. My own family (not the one with my children the one when I was a child) is completely dysfunctional and imploded on my mothers death. Believe me I would have done anything to get away from that reality if it wasn't for my children. However, the story goes on to show how these methods are just means of avoiding the problem and they generally add more problems than they solve. The best way to deal with problems is head on and with open honesty to the other people involved. it also brought to mind the therapies and developmental skills mentioned in Beautiful Dead: Arizona whose brother was also autistic.

Amazing use of the white space within the narrative adding impact and intensity to the storyline.
Although the theme of the books refers to God, Heaven and Angels, it is of a non-denominational nature, therefore open to your own interpretation/beliefs. Being of a non-overtly religious nature myself, I have my own beliefs which are just that my own, I found the ideals within the story easy to relate to. The idea of a life after death brings great comfort to anyone that has lost someone close to them.

The thought that each of us has a Guardian Angel trying to guide us and keep us safe is reassuring, although the idea that they are responsible for keeping us safe when we purposefully expose ourselves to danger/evil is quickly and powerfully dispelled within the narrative. The adage 'you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink' comes to mind. The emphasis that Angels cannot enter a place that contains evil is powerful and we as people are responsible for the decision to enter the nefarious circles is thought provoking. The imagery used to describe evil spirits was chilling, giving me goose-bumps. The addition of alcohol/drugs lower your inhibitions and therefore making it easier for evil spirits to take over gave me shivers.

Instead of making the Guardian Angel into a virtuous, moral, pure, spotless person, Matthias has his own past to contemplate and in some aspects repent for. Making him human and easy to relate to. The use of 'cool' or 'slang' words from the modern era side by side with those of the 1920's was rather amusing but added depth to the storyline.

This book invoked such powerful emotions within me that I just did not want to let it go. Normally I pick up another book straight away if I get the chance, on this occasion I had a 2 hour time slot to fill while waiting for one of my children and I just could not bring myself to pick up another book as I did not want to lose the feeling I had when I finished this one. The ending was bitter-sweet but gripping.

This is one book that I would recommend the entire world to read. Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime. I am keeping it on my bookshelf and will be passing it down to my children when they are old enough to read it. It is the whole kit & caboodle....touching, inspiring, heart warming, thought provoking....do I need to go on ;)

I was a Teenage Book Geek Follower Giveaway

Another chance to win some awesome books just by following a lovely person like Lauren.....easy peasy and enjoyable. Thanks Lauren.

To enter click here.

Post taken from Laurens Blog : I was a Teenage Book Geek

I Was A Teenage Book Geek's 300 Follower Contest

When I signed on today, I was super excited to see that I had reached 300 followers. For me, this is a pretty huge deal. So first, I want to thank Jenny from Take Me Away for being my 300th follower, and another thanks to April of Good Books and Good Wine for the twitter shout-out yesterday.

Secondly: contest time! Woo-hoo!

As I'm from the UK, it's often the case that we have to wait a little while longer here for the big US releases. However, we sometimes get a British-author-penned gem way ahead of the rest of the world. Since I have blog followers from all over, I've decided the best option this time round is to have a choice of prizes.

So here's how this one will work. There'll be one winner, who will get to choose three books from the two lists below. Mixing and matching is most definitely allowed.

UK Editions:
Nearly Departed by Rook Hastings (pb, reviewed by me here)
Sapphique by Catherine Fisher (pb, sequel to Incarceron)
My So-Called Afterlife by Tamsyn Murray (pb, currently reading this one so review coming soon!)

US Editions:
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead (hb, reviewed by me here)
The Compound by S. A. Bodeen (pb, reviewed by me here)
Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder (pb, firmly on my own wishlist and due for publication before the contest ends. Yay!)
Want a shot at it? Just fill in the form below.

But first, please read my privacy policy and check out the contest rules:

Contest is open internationally.

There will be one winner, chosen at random.

Entrants must be aged 13 or over.

Entrants aged under 16 must have permission from their parent or guardian, and must provide an email address for their parent or guardian - not their own!

Multiple entries will be disqualified.

Contest closes at midnight GMT on the 6th April 2010.

Winner will be chosen, announced and contacted by email on the 10th or 11th April 2010. If no response is received after 48 hours an alternative winner will be chosen.

Details provided will not be used for any other purpose, and I will delete all entry information once the winner has been picked and the prizes sent out.

Steph Bowe's Amazing Giveaway

Open Internationally.

Post taken from Steph's Blog : click here to enter.

Massive Book Giveaway! Win, win win!

In celebration of Hey! Teenager of the Year's 1st birthday (two weeks from now, more competitions to come!), I have books to give away! Lots of them! To enter, all you have to do is follow the blog with Google Friend Connect, and fill in the form below! Here are the prizes:

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Dreaming of Amelia by Jaclyn Moriarty

Blue Plate Special by Michelle Kwansey

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

World Shaker by Richard Harland

Exposure by Mal Peet

Sprout by Dale Peck

Panama by Shelby Hiatt

Plus...

Every winner will get lots of book swag - bookmarks, postcards, badges, etc...

And if you're an aspiring YA author, you'll also get a query critique & first five pages critique of your YA manuscript from me!

Here's how the contest will work: I'll close entries on April 30th, and depending on how many Google Friend Connect followers I have I'll give away more prizes - if we have 800 followers, there will be 2 winners, who will each win two books of their choice from the above list. 850 followers means 3 winners, 900 followers means 4 winners, 950 followers means 5 winners & if I reach 1000 followers there will be 6 winners!

So, quick! Enter! By you spreading the word, the number of people following the blog will increase and the number of prizes will increase - increasing your odds of winning! Hooray!

Open internationally and entries close midnight April 30th, AEST.

Beautiful Creatures Music Video

Check out this awesome Music Video from YouTube for the song that is featured in the book Beautiful Creatures.

Some peoples talent just amazes me :)

Beastly The Movie

I am now going to show how old I really am. No longer being of the MTV generation age, I was unaware the Beastly was going to be made into a movie until I saw the photos of Vanessa Hudgens alongside the cast of Twilight (yes, I was feeding my Twilight habit!)

Then I found the trailer on YouTube.
Needless to say I will be dragging the girlie's off to watch this as an excuse to watch it myself :)