Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Book Review: Another Little Piece by Kate Karyus Quinn

Another Little PieceAnother Little Piece by Kate Karyus Quinn
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pub Date: June 11, 2013
Hardcover, 432 pages
ISBN: 978-0062135957



My Review:

Another Little Piece sounds like a very different and very thrilling/scary book from it's description. And it does deliver on being different. It also has moments where I was flipping pages like crazy to find out exactly what was going on and what would happen next. But it's the in-between that had this book at less than a 5-star book for me.

Let's start with the good. The premise, while sounding kind of exciting, yet been there done that, you know girl goes missing, girl comes back a year later. It's anything thing but been there done that and you get that from the first page. I actually had to go back and read the description because I thought I missed something. So the premise is great, there is some definite excitement to trying to figure out just exactly what is going on with Annaliese. I also enjoy the character of Annaliese, though she can be a little hard to like at times, but I stuck with her and she was interesting. I also liked some of the supporting characters and things going on around Annaliese. Most added to the story, some not so much. It's a different book and I think as long as you understand that going into it you will get enjoyment out of the book. It's kind of an Anna Dressed in Blood yet different.

Now onto what I (that means me personally and I'm not a paid critic) had problems with. First I thought the beginning was a little slow. I kept wondering when I would understand what the heck was going on. But that was probably all part of the author's plan. A good build-up and maybe the day I was reading I wasn't feeling patient. Second the transitions between past and present were a little jerky, but I feel that was part of the story too, and some people may really get the feel of it and go with it, it was just a little off to me, but like I said it may not be to you. Finally I thought there was just a little bit missing, but maybe I just missed it. I felt like some things were gone into in too much detail while leaving some important stuff out.

However even with the things I had problems with I thought this was a very interesting and different book to read. When I write an iffy review I always remind myself of my review of The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff several years ago. I couldn't wait to read it, there were rave reviews everywhere and I felt it was very ho-hum (I think I gave it 3-stars), but it seemed like everyone else loved the book. So sometimes it's just the book and the person. I think there are very good things about this book and definitely think it should be read. I will try another book by Ms. Quinn any day.

My rating: 3.75/5.0

About the Book:
 
The spine-tingling horror of Stephen King meets an eerie mystery worthy of Sara Shepard's Pretty Little Liars series in Kate Karyus Quinn's haunting debut.

On a cool autumn night, Annaliese Rose Gordon stumbled out of the woods and into a high school party. She was screaming. Drenched in blood. Then she vanished.

A year later, Annaliese is found wandering down a road hundreds of miles away. She doesn't know who she is. She doesn't know how she got there. She only knows one thing: She is not the real Annaliese Rose Gordon.

Now Annaliese is haunted by strange visions and broken memories. Memories of a reckless, desperate wish . . . a bloody razor . . . and the faces of other girls who disappeared. Piece by piece, Annaliese's fractured memories come together to reveal a violent, endless cycle that she will never escape—unless she can unlock the twisted secrets of her past.



***I received this book from Amazon Vine for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any other way except receiving the book for free.  ***

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Book Review: The Girl in the Wall by Daphne Benedis-Grab

The Girl in the WallThe Girl in the Wall by Daphne Benedis-Grab
Publisher: Merit Press
Pub Date: Dec. 18, 2012
Hardcover, 256 pages
ISBN: 9781440552700



My Review:

If you are looking for a non-stop thrill ride in the YA category, then this is just the book for you. I love YA, but I love my suspense/thrillers in the adult category. I never have found too many YA thrillers, so reading this one really had me enthralled.

Told from the point of view of both Sera and Ariel, two girls who were best friends until 9 months and 4 days ago, makes the book very interesting and adds to the suspense. From chapter-to-chapter you know what each girl is doing in an attempt to save her and her classmates from the people who have taken them all hostage. There is some belief that you have to suspend, but when don't you in a thriller? I really didn't have a problem with any aspect of the book, in fact I just couldn't put it down. The action is center-stage, but there is also character growth in both characters and very interesting secondary characters as well.

I read The Girl In the Wall in just a few hours. It was hard to put down, had me fully invested in the plot and had me really liking Sera and growing to like Ariel. The fast action combined with the need to find out just what happened to Sera and Ariel's friendship will have you turning pages as well.

My rating: 5.0/5.0

About the Book:
Ariel's birthday weekend looks to be the event of the season, with a private concert by rock star Hudson Winters on the grounds of her family's east coast estate, and all of Ariel's elite prep school friends in attendance. The only person who's dreading the party is Sera, Ariel's former best friend, whose father is forcing her to go. Sera has been the school pariah since she betrayed Ariel, and she now avoids Ariel and their former friends. Thrown together, Ariel and Sera can agree on one thing: this could be one very long night.

They have no idea just how right they are.

Only moments after the concert begins and the lights go down, thugs open fire on parents and schoolmates alike, in a plot against Ariel's father that quickly spins out of control. As the entire party is taken hostage, the girls are forced apart. Ariel escapes into the hidden tunnels in the family mansion, where she and Sera played as children. Only Sera, who forges an unlikely alliance with Hudson Winters, knows where her friend could be. As the industrial terrorist plot unravels and the death toll climbs, Ariel and Sera must recall the sisterhood that once sustained them as they try to save themselves and each other on the longest night of their lives.


View all my reviews

***I received this book from Amazon Vine for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any other way except receiving the book for free.  ***

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday 8/14/13

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.  It's been awhile since I participated but in an effort to rekindle interest in reading and blogging, I thought I would join back in.  Last week I saw this offered in one of my publisher review copy newsletters and it sounded interesting.  I'm still a sucker for the dystopian genre and love reading a new author.  So check it out:

Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books 
Pub Date: September 24, 2013
Hardcover, 320 pages
ISBN: 978-0062198501

Regret was for people with nothing to defend, people who had no water.

Lynn knows every threat to her pond: drought, a snowless winter, coyotes, and, most important, people looking for a drink. She makes sure anyone who comes near the pond leaves thirsty or doesn't leave at all.

Confident in her own abilities, Lynn has no use for the world beyond the nearby fields and forest. Having a life means dedicating it to survival and the constant work of gathering wood and water. Having a pond requires the fortitude to protect it, something Mother taught her well during their quiet hours on the rooftop, rifles in hand.

But wisps of smoke on the horizon mean one thing: strangers. The mysterious footprints by the pond, the nighttime threats, and the gunshots make it all too clear Lynn has exactly what they want, and they won't stop until they get it. . . .

With evocative, spare language and incredible drama, danger, and romance, debut author Mindy McGinnis depicts one girl's journey in a barren world not so different from our own.

So what are you waiting on this week?



Sunday, August 11, 2013

15-Day Book Bloging Challenge: Day 4

April at Good Books and Wine is hosting a 15-Day Book Blogger Challenge which can be completed at any time in the next 5 1/2 months or so.  Here are the prompts and you can go here at Good Books and Wine to link up your posts if you decide to participate.


It's Day 4 and the prompt is: What is the last book you flung across the room?


Fifty Shades Darker.  I liked the books okay, at least the first two, I never have finished the third.  But midway through the second one I was so tired of her "inner goddess" that if the book hadn't been on my Kindle I would have thrown it across the room.  But I love my Kindle and can't buy a new one, so I abstained, but even my hubby knows I was ready to throw it across the room.

Saturday, August 10, 2013

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge: Day 3

April at Good Books and Wine is hosting a 15-Day Book Blogger Challenge which can be completed at any time in the next 5 1/2 months or so.  Here are the prompts and you can go here at Good Books and Wine to link up your posts if you decide to participate.


It's Day 3 and the prompt is: Who are your blogging BFFS?

Well this one is easy, I don't have any.  It is something I really need to work on and with that I think I would become more engaged in my blog.  So it's my goal in the next month to get out, read blogs and make comments.  All bloggers love comments and maybe I'll find a new blogging BFF.  Anyone looking for a blogging BFF?




Friday, August 9, 2013

Like New Adult? You will want to read this: The Guys are Props Club by Ingrid Seymour Tour (+ Giveaway)




Title: The Guys Are Props Club
Author: Ingrid Seymour
Date of Publication: July 15, 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance

Blurb:

During her senior year in high school, Maddie Burch promised herself not to ever fall for a cute guy – or any guy – again. Cute guys are players and not to be trusted, a fact she learned the hard way when her first boyfriend ran her heart through a paper shredder. Two years later, her promise is still intact, and she’s determined to make it through college without falling victim to another creep. She has her job, school and The Guys Are Props Club to keep her mind and hormones in check.

The club was founded by Jessica, Maddie’s best friend. It is a sisterhood of girls who have fallen prey to heartless jerks and who have vowed to turn the tables. Once a semester, Jessica requires members to “do onto others as they’ve done unto you.” Setting the example, Jessica’s next play is Sebastian Capello, a theater major with heartthrob looks and a flair for Latin dance, whose heart she plans to break the way hers was once broken.

What the friends don’t know is that Sebastian is different. Despite his perfect looks and popularity, he’s not a jerk. He doesn’t play games to get his way. Instead, he keeps it real and goes after what he wants with honest intentions. And what he wants is not a bombshell like Jessica, but a down-to-earth girl like Maddie – even if it causes a riff in the girl’s friendship. Even if it means getting Maddie to break her personal vow.

*** Due to language and sexual situations this book is recommended for ages 17 and older.

Goodreads linkhttp://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17936834-the-guys-are-props-club

Excerpt:
 “Of course it is. Friends,” again he gave the word a deeper meaning than it should have, “are honest

with each other. Right?”

“Yeah, honest,” I said under my breath. No one was being honest at this table. I worked on my meal,

trying not to look like I was hurrying. I needed to keep my exposure to Sebastian as brief as possible.

Rule No.9: Recognize when you’re in over your head.

Purchase links: 
The book is only on sale an Amazon for eBook and print http://amzn.to/163x7F0
And for print also on CreateSpace https://www.createspace.com/4283057

About Ingrid Seymour

Ingrid Seymour loves, loves, loves to write. Her favorite genres are Young Adult and New Adult fiction.  Her debut novel “The Guys Are Props Club” is an NA contemporary romance which she immensely enjoyed writing.  Her favorite outings involve a trip to the library or bookstore where she immediately gravitates toward the YA section. She’s an avid reader and fangirl of many amazing books. She’s sure that one day she’ll see one of her books made into a movie. She likes to dream big ;)

Tour Giveaway:
Grand Prize: Kindle Fire (US/Can/UK only) with The GAP Club / Equivalent Amazon GC if INTL
Second Prize: signed paperback (INTL)

a Rafflecopter giveaway
  


15-Day Book Blogger Challenge: Day 2

April at Good Books and Wine is hosting a 15-Day Book Blogger Challenge which can be completed at any time in the next 5 1/2 months or so. Here are the prompts and you can go here at Good Books and Wine to link up your posts if you decide to participate.


It's Day 2 for me and the prompt is: What is your bedtime reading ritual?

We cut the tv off by 8:30 to 9 so I can decompress and unwind.  Hubby and I usually watch one or two episodes before then of whatever show we are engrossed in at the moment (we just finished Spartacus until the final season comes out and now we're trying out Dexter).

When the TV goes off, my book comes out and I usually read in my chair for about 30 minutes - 1 hour and then go to bed. During the winter I will have a cup of hot tea while reading.  During the summer I finish up my water for the day.  Depending on how tired I am I will read anywhere from 5 minutes - 1 hour.  The book does not make a difference because I take a sleeping pill so I can still be engrossed in the most awesome book and have it fall flat on my face while reading in bed.  Ask my husband.  He used to make a game of catching my book or my Kindle for me. :)