Review: Jack's Dreams Come to Life by Sara Jackson

Jack's Dreams Come To Life by Sara Jackson

My rating: 4.0/5.0

Publisher: BookSurge Publishing
Release Date: July 28, 2009
Pages: 26
Binding: Paperback
Children's Book

A cute children's book where a dog named Jack (who is no longer a puppy) gets tired of playing and falls asleep. While asleep he dreams of various things that he plays with becoming bigger. Thankfully he wakes up and finds it was all a dream.

I received this for review and read it to my boys last night. I have an 8-year-old and a 4-year-old and they both enjoyed it. The oldest said "that was a good book Mom" and the youngest said "Can you read it again?" So I would say it won them over.It reads well for an adult (I like kids books that read easy) and the kids seem to enjoy it. The oldest got the point about it being scary but the dog waking up to find out it's a dream. The youngest just enjoyed the story.

A great book for kids younger and a little older and great for parents to read to their kids. Wonderfully illustrated and well-written, we, as a family, really enjoyed this book.

About the author:

Professional author Sara Jackson is a graduate of San Francisco's Academy of Art University, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in screenwriting. After graduating, she became a freelance writer for The American Canyon Eagle. Ms. Jackson is a regular contributor of Gorezone Magazine, and she has written numerous book and movie reviews for Scars Magazine. She has also written opinion articles for the Times Herald, most of which address the issue of animal rights.

Additionally, Ms. Jackson won first prize in the January 2007 Soul Making Literary Contest with her non-fiction story, Necessary Procedures. She has written two screenplays that have been viewed by numerous readers in the Los Angeles area.

ARC Arrival: Wanderlust by Lucy Silag

Wanderlust by Lucy Silag (A Beautiful Americans Novel)

Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: 24 December 2009
Binding: Hardcover
Pages: 288
Young Adult


I received this from Gillian Levinson from Penguin's Young Readers Group.






About the Book:

Will they save their lost friend before it’s too late?

Angst and betrayal abound as teens search the French countryside for their missing classmate in this exciting sequel to Beautiful Americans.

The book opens with PJ on a train, racing toward Rouen to meet her sister, Annabel. But Annabel’s life may be fraught with troubles far worse than her own.

Alex persuades Jay and Zack to hunt for PJ at one of her absentee father’s ritzy estates in the country. But a painful encounter with her dad leaves Alex weeping—on Jay’s shoulder. Three’s a crowd for Zack; he heads to Amsterdam seeking an old friend, and a place to belong.

Back in Paris, Olivia’s escapades with Thomas are interrupted when they discover reason to believe PJ is in more peril than she knows. Will the crew find PJ in time? Have they lost themselves along the way?

ARC Arrival: The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove by Lauren Kate

The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove by Lauren Kate

Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: 12 November 2009
Binding: Paperback
Pages: 248
Young Adult


I received this from Gillian Levinson from Penguin's Young Readers Group.








About the Book:

A steamy Southern beauty makes one fatal mistake

Natalie Hargrove would kill to be her high school’s Palmetto Princess. But her boyfriend Mike King doesn’t share her dream and risks losing the honor of Palmetto Prince to Natalie’s nemesis, Justin Balmer. So she convinces Mike to help play a prank on Justin. . . one that goes terribly wrong. They tie him to the front of the church after a party—when they arrive the next morning, Justin is dead.

From blackmail to buried desire, dark secrets to darker deeds, Natalie unravels. She never should’ve messed with fate. Fate is the one thing more twisted than Natalie Hargrove.

Cruel Intentions meets Macbeth in this seductive, riveting tale of conscience and consequence.

Review: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare


My rating: 4.5/5.0

I didn't know what I would think of these books once I started them. I actually went in knowing little about them. I just saw good reviews for them and people anxiously awaiting the newest book so I decided I would get the first from the library and try the series out.

About the book:

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder - much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing - not even a smear of blood - to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know....

My Review:

It's an excellent book. I loved the world building, it wasn't too much or too little. I loved learning about it as Clary learned about it. The characters were fascinating. I really liked Clary and enjoyed her wit and sarcasm and her realistic feelings. She has to deal with a lot of new things in this book and she starts to just roll with the punches and I like that. I enjoyed Jace - he's a very interesting character and Luke, Clary's best friend. Alec and Isabelle round out the cast of teens and then add in various people that help them and try and kill them and you have a wonderful cast of characters.

The conclusion of this book is great, but I am anxiously awaiting the next one at the library. I almost bought it the other day but decided I could try and be patient and wait at the library.

Challenges:
100+ Book Challenge
Support Your Local Library Challenge
Fall Into Reading Challenge 2009
Countdown Challenge 2010

Waiting on Wednesday - October 28

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

In honor of my author interview that will be posted later today with the amazing Irene Hannon my "can't-wait-to-read" selection for this week is:

Breathless by Dean Koontz

Release: November 24, 2009


I can't help it - I still read all of his books and I'm working on his backlist. My absolute favorite of all of his is Twilight Eyes and that is an old one. I read the last one he put out and enjoyed it and I'm sure I'll enjoy this one too.



About the Book:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz delivers a thrilling novel of suspense and adventure, as the lives of strangers converge around a mystery unfolding high in the Colorado mountains—and the balance of the world begins to tilt….

In the stillness of a golden September afternoon, deep in the wilderness of the Rockies, a solitary craftsman, Grady Adams, and his magnificent Irish wolfhound Merlin step from shadow into light…and into an encounter with enchantment. That night, through the trees, under the moon, a pair of singular animals will watch Grady's isolated home, waiting to make their approach.

A few miles away, Camillia Rivers, a local veterinarian, begins to unravel the threads of a puzzle that will bring all the forces of a government in peril to her door.

At a nearby farm, long-estranged identical twins come together to begin a descent into darkness…In Las Vegas, a specialist in chaos theory probes the boundaries of the unknowable…On a Seattle golf course, two men make matter-of-fact arrangements for murder…Along a highway by the sea, a vagrant scarred by the past begins a trek toward his destiny…

In a novel that is at once wholly of our time and timeless, fearless and funny, Dean Koontz takes readers into the moment between one turn of the world and the next, across the border between knowing and mystery. It is a journey that will leave all who take it Breathless.

So what are you waiting on this week?