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Showing posts with label Amulet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Amulet. Show all posts

Sunday, 27 May 2012

Book Angel Book Love List - May 2012


These are the books that are being published this month that I would love to and intend to read. My TBR pile is a thing of joy I adore all of my fabulous books. 

Image from Goodreads
Title: Until I Die
Series: Revenants #2
Author: Amy Plum
Publisher: Atom
Publication Date: 3 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love.

As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy.

In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series.


I have this to read. *pushes up pile* Check out this terrific review HERE from Daisy Chain Books

Image from Goodreads
Title: The Anti-Prom
Author: Abby McDonald
Publisher: Walker
Publication Date: 3 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Popular girl Bliss Merino is ready to have the perfect prom. But when she catches her boyfriend making out with her best friend in the back of the limo, she has only one thought: revenge...Bad girl Jolene Nelson is the last person anyone expected to see at prom. Yet here she is, dressed in pink ruffles and feeling like a fool for believing that he would actually show up...Meg Rose Zuckerman is ready to stop being a wallflower and start experiencing life firsthand. But when her date stands her up, she finds herself on the outside yet again...Three unlikely allies team up for a night of rebellion, romance, and revenge in this high-stakes dramedy from acclaimed young author Abby McDonald.

Love the sound of this one. My 11 year old has swiped it and is currently reading it along with telling me how much I'm going to enjoy it, lol.

Image from Goodreads
Series: The Mortal Instruments #5
Publisher: Walker
Publication Date: 8 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees.

No magic the Clave can summon can locate either boy, but Jace cannot stay away—not from Clary. When they meet again Clary discovers the horror Lilith’s dying magic has wrought—Jace is no longer the boy she loved. He and Sebastian are now bound to each other, and Jace has become what he most feared: a true servant of Valentine’s evil. The Clave is determined to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. Will the Shadowhunters hesitate to kill one of their own?

Only a small band of Clary and Jace’s friends and family believe that Jace can still be saved — and that the fate of the Shadowhunters’ future may hinge on that salvation. They must defy the Clave and strike out on their own. Alec, Magnus, Simon and Isabelle must work together to save Jace: bargaining with the sinister Faerie Queen, contemplating deals with demons, and turning at last to the Iron Sisters, the reclusive and merciless weapons makers for the Shadowhunters, who tell them that no weapon on this earth can sever the bond between Sebastian and Jace. Their only chance of cutting Jace free is to challenge Heaven and Hell — a risk that could claim any, or all, of their lives.

And they must do it without Clary. For Clary has gone into the heart of darkness, to play a dangerous game utterly alone. The price of losing the game is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she even still trust him? Or is he truly lost? What price is too high to pay, even for love?

Darkness threatens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.


I have a confession - I haven't read any of the series yet. I am, desperate to and plan on having a Cassandra Clare marathon in the Summer holidays.

Image from Goodreads
Title: Fated
Series: Soul Seekers #1
Author: Alyson Noel
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Publication Date: 24 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Strange things are happening to Daire Santos. Crows mock her, glowing people stalk her, time stops without warning, and a beautiful boy with unearthly blue eyes haunts all her dreams. Fearing for her daughter’s sanity, Daire’s mother sends her to live with the grandmother she’s never met. A woman who recognizes the visions for what they truly are—the call to her destiny as a Soul Seeker—one who can navigate the worlds between the living and dead.

There on the dusty plains of Enchantment, New Mexico, Daire sets out to harness her mystical powers. But it’s when she meets Dace, the boy from her dreams, that her whole world is shaken to its core. Now Daire is forced to discover if Dace is the one guy she's meant to be with...or if he’s allied with the enemy she's destined to destroy.


I have this to read. I adored The Immortals series. 



Image from Goodreads
Title: Adorkable
Author: Sarra Manning
Publisher: Atom
Publication Date: 24 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Jeane Smith is seventeen and has turned her self-styled dorkiness into an art form, a lifestyle choice and a profitable website and consultancy business. She writes a style column for a Japanese teen magazine and came number seven in The Guardian's 30 People Under 30 Who Are Changing The World. And yet, in spite of the accolades, hundreds of Internet friendships and a cool boyfriend, she feels inexplicably lonely, a situation made infinitely worse when Michael Lee, the most mass-market, popular and predictably all-rounded boy at school tells Jeane of his suspicion that Jeane's boyfriend is secretly seeing his girlfriend. Michael and Jeane have NOTHING in common - she is cool and individual; he is the golden boy in an Abercrombie & Fitch T-shirt. So why can't she stop talking to him?

Doesn't this just sound brilliant. It's in my pile [ : D ] and I will be reading it in celebration of Sisterspooky's Geek Week

Image from Goodreads
Series; Theatre Illuminata
Author: Lisa Mantchev
Publisher: Square Fish
Publication Date: 22 may 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

All Beatrice Shakespeare Smith has ever wanted is a true family of her own. And she’s close to reuniting her parents when her father disappears. Now Bertie must deal with a vengeful sea goddess and a mysterious queen as she tries to keep her family – and the Theatre Illuminata – from crumbling. To complicate it all, Bertie is torn between her two loves, Ariel and Nate.

I love this series. I've been waiting ages for the last book to be available in paperback so I could afford it. You can see the trailer HERE

Image from Goodreads
Title: The Peculiars
Publisher: Amulet Books
Publication Date: 1 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

This dark and thrilling adventure, with an unforgettable heroine, will captivate fans of steampunk, fantasy, and romance. On her 18th birthday, Lena Mattacascar decides to search for her father, who disappeared into the northern wilderness of Scree when Lena was young. Scree is inhabited by Peculiars, people whose unusual characteristics make them unacceptable to modern society. Lena wonders if her father is the source of her own extraordinary characteristics and if she, too, is Peculiar. On the train she meets a young librarian, Jimson Quiggley, who is traveling to a town on the edge of Scree to work in the home and library of the inventor Mr. Beasley. The train is stopped by men being chased by the handsome young marshal Thomas Saltre. When Saltre learns who Lena’s father is, he convinces her to spy on Mr. Beasley and the strange folk who disappear into his home, Zephyr House. A daring escape in an aerocopter leads Lena into the wilds of Scree to confront her deepest fears.

Sounds so interesting, although it has received a mix response so far.

Image from Goodreads
Title: Legacy
Series: Wintercraft #3
Publisher: Headline
Publication Date: 10 May 2012

Synopsis from Amazon

The veil which marks the division between life and death is falling. Lost souls are seeping through to roam Albion's graveyard city of Fume.

Kate Winters' recent memory is lost. Relieved to be heading home to Albion, Kate can't shake the feeling that Dalliah Grey, the woman she's supposed to be working for, is not to be trusted.

Disgraced warrior Silas Dane plans to rescue Kate and save Albion from the advancing armies seeking to profit from the confusion. But the veil will not be easy to repair and Silas knows sacrifices have to be made.

Kate must return to the dark secrets detailed by her ancestors in the ancient book of WINTERCRAFT and learn from their mistakes to save herself.

This is another series I have on my shelf and am planning a reading fest in the Summer holidays.

Such gorgeous books *sigh* Have I missed any you think I would like???

Tuesday, 15 May 2012

Spotlight: Guest Post: Comfort Foods by Chloe: Queen of the Universe

As part of her whistle stop blog tour, it's with great pleasure I welcome Chloe: Queen of the Universe to Book Angel Booktopia today. Chloe's going to talk about comfort food.


Review HERE

Chloe: Queen of the Universe – Comfort Foods 

Welcome bloggers, this is Chloe, Queen of the Universe. Normally you can find me on the air at 88.8 The Edge, a high school radio station broadcasting from the campus of the Del Rey School in Tierra del Rey, California. But this week I’m touring the blogosphere in celebration of the release of my YA contemp book, WELCOME, CALLER, THIS IS CHLOE. Glad you stopped by!

Today we're going to talk about the food you love and need when life gets rough…when you get a Rudolph-size zit on the end of your nose right before the big dance…when you get into a fender-bender with Daddy’s new car. Visualize with me, bloggers, you’re down, you’re beaten, and you need munchies to make it better.


In the queen’s castle, the royal comfort food is Twizzlers – soft, sweet, and oh-so comforting. The last time I had more than the recommended daily allowance was the day a certain guidance counselor disemboweled my Junior Independent Study Project, a story that deserves its own radio show. But back to comfort foods. I want to know what food soothes your battered heart and calms your soul.

At the radio station, news director Clementine loves beets. You heard right: beets, as in purple, bulbous root vegetables. Duncan, who runs the radio boards and wears the cutest scarves, likes eggs and cheese on toast. Haley from the arts and entertainment desk finds comfort in anything with watermelon, and our music guru, Taysom, can find his inner bliss with a hot fudge sundae.

Now it's your turn. What food do you turn to when you need a little comfort? 

One commenter will receive a WELCOME, CALLER, THIS IS CHLOE swag pack, which includes a pen, bookmark, bottlecap necklace, mousepad, and Twizzlers.

Good luck!



To learn more about young adult author Shelley Coriell and Chloe’s high school radio world, visit www.shelleycoriell.com. 


Tuesday, 1 May 2012

Musical Moments: Song of the Month: Chosen by Shelley Coriell


To celebrate the publication of Welcome Caller, This is Chloe today who better than to pick the Song of the Month than the author of a book about a radio show (among other things). It is with great pleasure I introduce Shelley Coriell with the song to go alongside the book. Enjoy.


Publisher: Amulet
Publication Date: 1 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Big-hearted Chloe Camden is the queen of her universe until her best friend shreds her reputation and her school counselor axes her junior independent study project. Chloe is forced to take on a meaningful project in order to pass, and so she joins her school’s struggling radio station, where the other students don’t find her too queenly. Ostracized by her former BFs and struggling with her beloved Grams’s mental deterioration, lonely Chloe ends up hosting a call-in show that gets the station much-needed publicity and, in the end, trouble. She also befriends radio techie and loner Duncan Moore, a quiet soul with a romantic heart. On and off the air, Chloe faces her loneliness and helps others find the fun and joy in everyday life. Readers will fall in love with Chloe as she falls in love with the radio station and the misfits who call it home.

REVIEW HERE


Lenka's music is quirky, textured, and upbeat. A perfect fit for irrepressible Chloe. "Everything's Okay" is a song about a girl whose life comes crashing down on her, and like Chloe, she admits she's responsible for the "messy life I made for myself." I love this bold truth. And I love her response. She crawls out of bed and looks for "a little sunshine," seeking love and hope from those around her. Chloe does the same thing, turning to guarded-heart Duncan, spunky Grams, and the radio station staff.

There's such a lovely whimsy and joie de vivre in this song. Of course songs like this risk the chance of being too sugary-sweet, but the bridge in "Everything's Okay" slows down and becomes almost quiet, which mirrors Chloe's story journey. At its heart, WELCOME, CALLER, THIS IS CHLOE is the story of a bubbly, chatty radio talk show host desperately needing to connect with others but who finally learns to be okay with silence and being alone without being lonely.

Don't you just love it [ : D ]


Monday, 30 April 2012

Review: Welcome Caller, This Is Chloe by Shelley Coriell


Publisher: Amulet Books
Publication Date: 1 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Big-hearted Chloe Camden is the queen of her universe until her best friend shreds her reputation and her school counselor axes her junior independent study project. Chloe is forced to take on a meaningful project in order to pass, and so she joins her school’s struggling radio station, where the other students don’t find her too queenly. Ostracized by her former BFs and struggling with her beloved Grams’s mental deterioration, lonely Chloe ends up hosting a call-in show that gets the station much-needed publicity and, in the end, trouble. She also befriends radio techie and loner Duncan Moore, a quiet soul with a romantic heart. On and off the air, Chloe faces her loneliness and helps others find the fun and joy in everyday life. Readers will fall in love with Chloe as she falls in love with the radio station and the misfits who call it home.

REVIEW

Returning to school after Winter break Chloe finds herself outcast by her friends. The subject of rumors, gossip and maliciousness, even her best friends turn against her. Not only does Chloe have to cope with the dramatic change in her social status but to top to all off she has to find a new Independent Study Project (ISP) or fail the course.

At first Chloe comes across as completely self absorbed and shallow. Although I have to mention that I adored her vintage shoe fetish, this alone sets her apart from your average teenager. She has a larger than life personality, easy to understand as she is the youngest child with 4 older brothers. As the story progresses insight into Chloe's attitude generates a degree of understanding. She has been spoilt although she is no where near a brat. She is used to getting attention and being adored by everyone. Disputes really upset her so she has developed a mechanism of deflecting tension by means of humor. 

Sometimes Chloe's use of humor can be seen as insensitive. She is oblivious to the need for tact and diplomacy in certain situations, although her interest in making others feel better is genuine and this shines through the narrative. Such an admirable quality even if it doesn't translate well with Chloe's larger than life personality. The radio show Chloe undertakes as part of her ISP is the perfect platform for her. Her self depreciating humor can be misinterpreted as narcissism until you really get to know her. 

High school cliques and prejudices are in full force within the plot. The superb use of the 'frenemy' added to dynamics of the story. There are incidents within the narrative that can be picked up on showing the level of jealousy and deceit with regards to one of Chloe's 'friends' inducing protective feelings for Chloe.

Chloe's journey of self discovery via what can be classed as a 'right of passage' was fabulous to follow. Lessons we can all learn - listening is an important skill [ : D ] Learning not to judge people by the way they look is something we should all aspire to.

Family problems, teen issues and a touch of romance are brought together with a quirky sense of humor providing a very individual and refreshing contemporary story.

Friday, 23 March 2012

Guest Review: The Storyteller by Antonia Michaelis


Title: The Storyteller
Publisher: Amulet Books
Publication Date: 1 Jan 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Anna and Abel couldn’t be more different. They are both seventeen and in their last year of school, but while Anna lives in a nice old town house and comes from a well-to-do family, Abel, the school drug dealer, lives in a big, prisonlike tower block at the edge of town. Anna is afraid of him until she realizes that he is caring for his six-year-old sister on his own. Fascinated, Anna follows the two and listens as Abel tells little Micha the story of a tiny queen assailed by dark forces. It’s a beautiful fairy tale that Anna comes to see has a basis in reality. Abel is in real danger of losing Micha to their abusive father and to his own inability to make ends meet. Anna gradually falls in love with Abel, but when his “enemies” begin to turn up dead, she fears she has fallen for a murderer. Has she?


Ana has fallen for the ultimate bad boy, Abel, 'polish peddler' drug dealing total bad boy, but Anna sees a different side to Abel. The kind storyteller that looks after his little sister, Micha, it is this side that draws her to him. When the people from Abel's stories turn up dead Anna questions whether Abel is responsible.

The story revolves around the fairy-tale Abel is creating for his sister, Micha. When people from Abel's story turn up dead and Abel has been out on his own at night with no witnesses, no-one knows what is going on. 

Anna is my favorite character, she is so innocent and understanding, her kindness shines through the narrative, she is always there for Abel and Micha when they need her. 

My favorite part was when the three of them went ice-skating, showing a happy day in comparison to their usual dreary/unhappy existence. Although I disliked the scene in the boathouse because I thought it was cruel (no spoilers) it was a necessary element to the story as a whole. I would really have liked to have seen Abel enjoy himself more, especially with Anna.

This book was amazing and I highly recommend it.

Tuesday, 20 March 2012

Guest Review: Misfit by Jon Skovron


Title: Misfit
Author: Jon Skovron
Publisher: Amulet Books
Publication Date: 1 Aug 2011
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis from Goodreads

Jael Thompson has never really fit in. She’s changed schools too many times to count. The only family she’s ever known is her father, a bitter ex-priest who never lets her date and insists she attend the strictest Catholic school in Seattle. And her mother—well, she was a five thousand year old demon. That doesn’t exactly help.

But on her sixteenth birthday, her father gives her a present that brings about some unexpected changes. Some of the changes, like strange and wonderful powers and the cute skater boy with a knack for science, are awesome. But others, like the homicidal demon seeking revenge on her family? Not so much.

Steeped in mythology, this is an epic tale of a heroine who balances old world with new, science with magic, and the terrifying depths of the underworld with the ordinary halls of high school.


With a demon mother Jael never really fit in. Due to the need to constantly move to get away from unknown threats she has been confused throughput her life. After turning 16 she finally understands the jumbled up mess of her life. As well as dealing with terrifying things Demons and Superpowers.

The main character, Jael is a half breed, her mother is a demon and her father human. It is due to her half-breed status that many people hate her; especially Great Duke Belial who is seeking revenge after Joel's mother humiliated him prior to her death. Now Jael has to fight not only for her own life but also for the people around her.

I really liked Jael's characterization and how all the elements that created her combined together at the end. She was undoubtedly my favorite character. Not only because she was strong and powerful but she was also persistent in her quest to uncover the truth. Alongside her bravery I really liked how she managed to do the right thing. The one thing I didn't like was the fact that Jael didn't confide in her best friend, Britt. I think it would have been nicer if she could share her secrets along with her adventures with someone other than her Dad or Rob.

There is one aspect of the book that I would have changed and that would be to lower Britt's religious beliefs. It is for this reason that Jael is unable to confide in her.

The writing style was incredible, the action was fast paced and exciting. Apart from the religious aspects it was a really good book.
 
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