Sunday, February 6, 2011

Winner: Little Princes by Conor Grennan


My winner of the hardcover copy of this wonderful book, Little Princes by Conor Grennan is:


Click on her name and make sure you check out her blog.
The winner has been notified and has 72-hours to respond or I will draw a new name.
Thank you to all who entered and if you get a chance to read this one I highly recommend you do.



Saturday, February 5, 2011

Series Spotlight: Temperance Brennan Series by Kathy Reichs

Since my husband and I have been watching Bones on Netflix (just finished season 1) I thought I would tackle the Kathy Reichs Tempe Brennan series.  I started this series several yearls ago and just recently started trying to catch  back up on the series by getting the audio books from the library.  The audio books are very well done - the reader does an excellent job and I love the voices I hear if I read a book now.  I am currently on Devil Bones which I will listen to as soon as I finish Twelve Sharp by Janet Evanovich.  Coming later this year, the next in the series will be Flash and Bones which will be out August 23, 2011.

So here is the series in order:


Deja Dead: 10th Anniversary Edition (Temperance Brennan Novels)Death du Jour (Temperance Brennan Novels)  Deadly Decisions (Temperance Brennan, No. 3)  Fatal Voyage (Temperance Brennan Novels)  Grave SecretsBare Bones: A Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels)  Monday Mourning: A Tempe Brennan Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels)Cross Bones (Temperance Brennan Novels)Break No Bones: A Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels)  Bones to Ashes: A Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels)Devil Bones: A Novel (Temperance Brennan)206 Bones  Spider Bones: A Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels)



The series Bones does not have much to do with the books beyond the character of Tempe, who really is not like Tempe in the book, yet it is a very enjoyable series.  I try not to compare it to the books at all and just enjoy it for the interplay betweent he characters and the science they use to solve the cases.  The show is great on it's own and we will continue to watch it and I will continue reading the books.

So what do you think of the books, have you read them, do you have a favorite, does the series lag at some point or is it great all the way through?  Do you enjoy the show as well?  Who is your favorite character?  I really enjoy bones and her team along with Booth.

Comment on this post and be entered to win a book up to a $10 value at the Book Depository.  I really enjoy hearing from my readers about series.  For an additional entry suggest a series for me to feature in the next few weeks.

Thanks for joining in - I'll draw the winner next Saturday so I'll close entries on Friday 2/11/2011.


Winner: Book value to $10 from Book Depository





Thank you so much for your overwhelming positive opinions about the Septimus Heap series - I have the first downloaded on my Kindle and I'm going to encourage my older son to give it a try.  In the meantime the winner of the book with a value of $10 or less goes to:

BJ (Beejee77)

I have notified the winner and if they do not contact me with 72-hours I will draw another winner.

Thanks to all who commented - I enjoyed reading how many of you have or know kids reading these books (or have read them yourself). 




Friday, February 4, 2011

48-Hour TBR Read-A-Thon

Wallace at Unputdownables is hosting a 48-hour read-a-thon starting today and I'm going to participate some.  I really need to get some review books done and my tbr cleared a little.  However I am home with a sick 5-year-old and I'm not sure if I'm not getting sick myself.  So I will try really hard to participate.

What do I have on my list?

The Demon Trapper's Daughter: A Demon Trapper Novel  These Things Hidden  The Werewolf Upstairs

Those are the main things I would like to get through, I'm not sure how much I'll read, but I want to participate.  Are you joining?  If you are wonderful, if you are thinking about it, go here and find out more.


Thursday, February 3, 2011

Book Review: The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern




The Book of Tomorrow: A NovelThe Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern
Publisher: Harper
Publish Date: January 25, 2011
Hardcover, 320 pages
Fiction





My Review:
Why I read this:The premise sounded good and I have never read Cecelia Ahern despite hearing wonderful things about her books.

How is the novel driven: Primarily character, this is about Tamara learning about herself and her family.  But there is a great suspense plot as well.  Both move the book along smoothly.


My thoughts: So this is my first Cecelia Ahern book and it definitely won't be my last.  There is something about her writing in this book that just grabbed me and wouldn't let me go and if her other books are anything like The Book of Tomorrow I have a new author to add to my list of auto-reads.

The Book of Tomorrow starts us off meeting Tamara, a teenager who seems rather self-absorbed and unlikable.  She and her mother have had to move in with relatives in the countryside because her father killed himself and left them with a lot of debt.  Tamara hopes that this situation is just for the summer because she misses her friends and her old life and she's not too crazy about her aunt or the fact that there is not much to do where she is.

One day she meets a boy who runs a book-mobile and she finds a book with a lock and takes it after spending the afternoon with this boy.  Then she meets a nun who opens the book and Tamara finds that the pages are blank.  She plans to use it as a diary of sorts, but when she wakes up the next day she finds her writing in it and it's what will happen that day.

At first she is confused and then she battles with whether to change the future (avoid mistakes she writes about) or just let things happen.  I found this part of the plot to be fascinating and while all of this is going on, Tamara begins to grow and become a more likable girl.  None of this happens overnight.  She still acts like her spoiled self through the book.  But all she really wants is her mother to become like she use to be instead of the somewhat comatose grief-stricken woman she is right now.

Mistakes ensue and a mystery opens up.  Just what is Tamara's aunt up to and what is she hiding.  The novel has a nice gothic feel to it and I loved the mystery as much as I loved watching Tamara grow and change.

The Book of Tomorrow is captivating both through the characters, the scenery and the plot.  I found it to be a fascinating book which is wonderfully written and held my attention very well.  This was one of those I could read while my children wrestled and played on the floor in the same room with me and that says a lot for holding my attention.

The Book of Tomorrow is a must-read in my opinion if you already enjoy Ms. Ahern's books or have not tried them yet.  I found it to be an entertaining read and one I would consider reading again and again.


My Rating: 4.75/5.0


About the Book:

Born into the lap of luxury and comfortable in the here and now, spoiled, tempestuous Tamara Goodwin has never had to look to the future—until the abrupt death of her father leaves her and her mother a mountain of debt and forces them to move in with Tamara's peculiar aunt and uncle in a tiny countryside village.

Tamara is lonely and bored, with a traveling library as her only diversion. There she finds a large leather-bound book with a gold clasp and padlock, but no author name or title. Intrigued, she pries open the lock, and what she finds inside takes her breath away.

Tamara sees entries written in her own handwriting, and dated for the following day. When the next day unfolds exactly as recorded, Tamara realizes she may have found a solution to her problems. But in her quest to find answers, Tamara soon learns that some pages are better left unturned and that, try as she may, she mustn't interfere with fate.

About the Author: 
Cecelia Ahern is the author of the international bestsellers P.S. I Love You, which was adapted into a major motion picture starring Hilary Swank; Love, Rosie; If You Could See Me Now; There's No Place Like Here; Thanks for the Memories; and The Gift. Her books are published in forty-six countries and have collectively sold more than 11 million copies. The daughter of Ireland's former prime minister, she lives in Dublin, Ireland.


***I received this book from the publisher for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any other way except receiving the book for free.  I do not receive money for my amazon links since I live in NC (something about some law), so they are up purely for my readers to have a place to check out the book.***