Red Queen (Red Queen #1) - Victoria Aveyard

Description:  

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of
those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win? 

Review: 

BEST BOOK EVER....For now!!
Kinda predictable... But oh so good!!
There were signs everywhere pointing to what would happen, but hoped it wouldn't happen. While reading there was always that nagging feeling things were not right but always hoped it wasn't going where you know it was going. (Did that even make sense? Lol)
When does the next book come out? Argh can't wait!!

Neverland - Shari Arnold

It’s been four months since seventeen-year-old Livy Cloud lost her younger sister, but she isn’t quite ready to move on with her life — not even close. She’d rather spend her time at the Seattle Children’s hospital, reading to the patients and holding onto memories of the sister who was everything to her and more.But when she meets the mysterious and illusive Meyer she is drawn into a world of adventure, a world where questions abound. Is she ready to live life without her sister? Or more importantly, is she brave enough to love again? In this modern reimagining of Peter Pan, will Livy lose herself to Neverland or will she find what she’s been searching for?

My thoughts...

Neverland took me on a journey through the aftermath of a devestating experience in one families life - their grief and, eventually, their acceptance.  With poignant emotion, honesty and child-like innocence, the author has written a story of loss and how, sometimes, it's the ones who have been left behind who must choose to live.

Forsworn (The Oracle Series) - Emily Wibberley

Description

Clio can see the future, but what she doesn’t know about her past could destroy her.

It’s been a year since Clio made her sacrifice to the Deities and embraced her destiny as the Oracle to save her people. The only family she has left is a brother who wants her dead. The prince, her oldest friend, is a king with his own agenda. And the man who once loved her, now hates her.

All she can do is try to forget about Riece, the enemy commander whose heart she broke to save his life, as she serves the Deities. Her days are filled with Visions and bloodshed in a never-ending war against the Untouched. To add to her problems, she must pose as King Derik’s mistress to conceal her forbidden powers from the Emperor’s spies.

When Riece unexpectedly returns to Sheehan with a new and beautiful ally, Clio knows she must put him out of her mind once and for all, but first, they are thrust together into battle against a mysterious Untouched warrior with otherworldly power. To reclaim her city, she must team up with the man she hurt, the man she still loves but can never be with, and finally confront the questions about her origin—questions with answers that Clio may not be prepared to face.

Review

This book began with a bang.  We were placed in the midst of a war and the Oracle had done some growing up in the meantime.  Now 16 years old, with vessels of her own, Clio’s birthright is hidden from all but her closest confidants.  Her sole purpose is the defense of her king and her people.  The man who stole her heart marching back into her life with an army - and a beautiful princess, to boot! - is the last thing Clio wants or needs.  But her family’s past and its secrets are placing the people she loves in danger and Clio is not the type to back down from a fight.

The constant back and forth, angst and passion, and self- sacrifice on the part of the characters in this book - why can’t people ever be selfish?!!  But it kept me on the edge of my seat.  I found myself rooting for love to triumph, all the while knowing that, if it did, it could mean the end of them all.

Emily has done it again!!! With Forsworn, I was taken on an emotional roller-coaster and I did not want to get off.  This book was food for my angsty, romantic, book-loving soul.

Dear Emily, please do not wait too long for the next book.  I am impatiently waiting!!

Buy Now:

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Buy Forsworn between July 21^st-July 28^th to receive an exclusive short story: The Commander, by Emily Wibberley, which gives you a peek at Riece’s feelings when he first met Clio in Sacrificed.

Email your receipt to thelastoracleseries(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize.

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Forsworn Blog Tour:

July 21, 2015- Tour Kick Off: http://sassyanddangerous.blogspot.mx/?m=1

                           Forsworn Playlist Part 1: http://never-anyone-else.blogspot.com/

                         
July 22, 2015- Forsworn Review: http://bookishrandomz.blogspot.com

                            Forsworn Excerpt: http://jeanzbookreadnreview.blogspot.com

                            Q&A with Emily: https://readbycarolllina.wordpress.com/

July 23, 2015- Forsworn Review: https://thebookettte.wordpress.com  

                            Forsworn Playlist Part 2: www.readwithroyella.weebly.com

                            Forsworn Review: http://rachybee-the-rest-is-still-unwritten.blogspot.com.au

July 24, 2015- Forsworn Review: http://eatandsleepandread.blogspot.com  

                            Forsworn Dream Cast Part 1: http://rachybee-the-rest-is-still-unwritten.blogspot.com.au

                           Forsworn & Sacrificed Review: http://ponderingtheprose.blogspot.mx/

                           Forsworn Excerpt: https://bookgatherer.wordpress.com/

                           Forsworn Playlist Part 1&2: http://www.booksablog.com/

July 25, 2015- Forsworn Review: http://lydialeighslibrary.blogspot.com

July 26, 2015- Q&A with Emily: https://motherofbookdragons.wordpress.com

                           Forsworn Excerpt: http://blackteaandmilk.co.uk/

July 27, 2015- Forsworn Review: http://bookblitzer.blogspot.com/?m=1

                           Forsworn Dream Cast Part 2: http://lovelyparanormalbooks.blogspot.co.nz

July 28, 2015- Forsworn Review: http://thereadingtaco.blogspot.com
                           Forsworn Review: http://cyberbookwall.blogspot.com

About the Author

Emily grew up in the South Bay where she spent her formative years battling zombies on her Xbox, watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and voraciously reading everything from The Hunger Games to Jane Austen, where her love for feisty young heroines was born.

After graduating from Princeton University Magna Cum Laude in 2014, she began writing. Her debut novel, Sacrificed, was named a finalist in the Young Adult category of the 2015 International Book Awards, the Young Adult category of the 2015 Beverly Hills Book Awards, and in the Young Author category of the 2015 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. Since its release, Sacrificed has spent more than four months as a Kindle Top Ten Teen and Young Adult Bestseller.

When she isn’t reading the latest YA book, Emily enjoys watching kick-butt action movies with her two rescue German Shepherds, Hudson and Bishop, named after characters from James Cameron’s Aliens.

Sign up for her mailing list to hear about exclusive giveaways and news about the upcoming release of The Last Oracle III as well as other young adult books she’s writing.

Connect with Emily

        

Sacrificed (The Last Oracle) - Emily Wibberley

Description

Knowing the future can save her city – but not her heart.

Born to serve the merciless Oracle, Clio wants nothing more than to break free. But when her entire family is murdered by Mannix, the king’s adviser, Clio inherits the Oracle’s power, a power she never wanted and doesn’t understand.

Hunted by Mannix, Clio is forced to flee her home in Sheehan and seek refuge in a foreign city where oracles are forbidden. If she’s found out, she will be sacrificed atop its great pyramid.

Clio has no choice but to win the trust of Riece, an enemy warrior. Despite the undeniable attraction between them, Clio knows that if he finds out who she really is, he won’t hesitate to execute her.

Clio tries to hide her budding powers, but the Visions she keeps having of Mannix and his barbarian army slaughtering her people torture her conscience. She alone has the strength and foresight to stop him, but only if she can embrace her destiny and sacrifice everything.

Review

I’ve been seeing pictures of this book on social media and loved the cover.  What caught my eye was the blood red cloak and the scar above the lips on a half hidden face.  I’m all for mystery, but I was surprised at how dark the first few chapters were.  As I continued to read, I encountered my new book boyfriend, Riece (who had me swooning and giggling like a lovesick teenager), and a kindred spirit in the young, inexperienced and, yet, incredibly determined Clio.  It was easy to feel sorry for this young girl who had an unwelcome destiny thrust upon her and, when she finally accepted her birthright and purpose, to cheer her on.    

Emily Wibberley is rare find.  The way in which she weaves a tale and totally takes her readers along for the ride is nothing short of magical.  Her characters are believable, her imagery vibrant and the relationships depicted had my heart racing.  I could not get enough!

Buy Now:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Book Depository

About the Author

Emily grew up in the South Bay where she spent her formative years battling zombies on her Xbox, watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and voraciously reading everything from The Hunger Games to Jane Austen, where her love for feisty young heroines was born.

After graduating from Princeton University Magna Cum Laude in 2014, she began writing. Her debut novel, Sacrificed, was named a finalist in the Young Adult category of the 2015 International Book Awards, the Young Adult category of the 2015 Beverly Hills Book Awards, and in the Young Author category of the 2015 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. Since its release, Sacrificed has spent more than four months as a Kindle Top Ten Teen and Young Adult Bestseller.

When she isn’t reading the latest YA book, Emily enjoys watching kick-butt action movies with her two rescue German Shepherds, Hudson and Bishop, named after characters from James Cameron’s Aliens.

Sign up for her mailing list to hear about exclusive giveaways and news about the upcoming release of The Last Oracle III as well as other young adult books she’s writing.

Connect with Emily:

     

Divergent - Veronica Roth

Description:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Review:  

I read this book a couple of years ago and here is my review from Goodreads in 2013.  

I don't know why it took me so long to pick this book up. I guess I was just tired of the same old YA formula and I thought.."oh no not another Hunger Games type book." (I loved the HG series). And it's also like Matched by Ally Condie, which no offense, but I hated. Instill haven't read the last one. 
But let me say I was pleasantly surprised with Divergent! I would have finished it sooner only the kids kept on interrupting me (how dare they, don't they know that when mommy has a book in her hand that means "do not disturb"!! Haha jk). 
So let me say that I absolutely "LOVE this book thank you very much!" 
So I now need to get the next one.

dEaDINBURGH: Vantage (Din Eidyn Corpus #1) - Mark Wilson

Description:

Edinburgh, 1645:
The bubonic plague rages. In a desperate attempt to quarantine the infected, the city leaders seal the residents of Mary King's Close in their underground homes.

2015:
Mary King's Close is reopened, unleashing a mutated plague upon the city residents.
The UK government seals the entire city. Declaring it a dead zone they seal the survivors inside alongside the infected. dEaDINBURGH is declared a no man's land, its residents left for dead and to the dead.

2050:
Joseph MacLeod, born onto the cobbles of the Royal Mile and stolen from the clutches of the infected is determined to escape the quarantined city. Under the guidance of former marine Padre Jock, he leaves the confines of the city centre and hones his archery and free-running skills.
Alys Shephard, born into an all-women farming community believes a cure lies in the south of the quarantined zone. The finest combatant in the dead city, Alys burns with anger. The anger of an abandoned child.

Something much worse than the infected waits for them in the south, in the form of a religious cult led by a madman named Somna who collects gruesome trophies and worships the dead body of a former celebrity. Added to this the enigmatic Bracha, a supreme survivalist and sadistic former Royal with his own agenda, stalks the teenagers.

A self-contained story, dEaDINBURGH is a character-driven Young Adult/Horror/Dystopian novel exploring the human capacity for good, evil and for survival. 

Review:  

I enjoyed this book very much. It was a fun and easy read. 

I am a huge fan of YA books and a Jonathan Maberry fan as I see Mr. Wilson is as well. 
I'm always in the market for new books and authors and dam very happy to have found this series. 

I do like the main characters and their friendship with each other. I appreciate that they are more down to earth characters that they can admit their weaknesses. 
There are parts of the book where you knew what was going to happen but I was still surprised by it. 
I was so very pleasantly surprised (and abhorred) with the end and how humanity is. I really did not have any expectations of what would happen so I was very surprised. 
I recommend this book and I am looking forward to the next book!! Let me know when it's ready. 
Great book!!

inFinity - The Chronicles of Nick

Description:

At fourteen, Nick Gautier thinks he knows everything about the world around him. Streetwise, tough and savvy, his quick sarcasm is the stuff of legends. . .until the night when his best friends try to kill him. Saved by a mysterious warrior who has more fighting skills than Chuck Norris, Nick is sucked into the realm of the Dark-Hunters: immortal vampire slayers who risk everything to save humanity.

Nick quickly learns that the human world is only a veil for a much larger and more dangerous one: a world where the captain of the football team is a werewolf and the girl he has a crush on goes out at night to stake the undead.

But before he can even learn the rules of this new world, his fellow students are turning into flesh eating zombies. And he’s next on the menu.

As if starting high school isn't hard enough. . .now Nick has to hide his new friends from his mom, his chainsaw from the principal, and keep the zombies and the demon Simi from eating his brains, all without getting grounded or suspended. How in the world is he supposed to do that?

Review:

This is another young adult book. But as young adult books go I think this was one of the better. The main character is a typical boy. I was getting frustrated with the other teen books and how the boy or girl would find their true love at the age of 14 and how they just can't live without them. With Nick he is the typical boy who likes girls in general and is sometimes to shy to talk to them. I liked the fact that there was more to the book than romance. The story was more about Nick and the struggles that a teenage boy and his mother go through. I do recommend this book because it is a quick fun read. Nick's sarcasm is a nice refreshing attitude to all the bad things that are going on in his life.

The Summoning - Kelley Armstrong

Review:

My name is Chloe Saunders and my life will never be the same again.

All I wanted was to make friends, meet boys, and keep on being ordinary. I don't even know what that means anymore. It all started on the day that I saw my first ghost—and the ghost saw me.

Now there are ghosts everywhere and they won't leave me alone. To top it all off, I somehow got myself locked up in Lyle House, a "special home" for troubled teens. Yet the home isn't what it seems. Don't tell anyone, but I think there might be more to my housemates than meets the eye. The question is, whose side are they on? It's up to me to figure out the dangerous secrets behind Lyle House . . . before its skeletons come back to haunt me.

Description:

Let me say that I LOVE this book series!

This book is a refreshing change from all the other young adult books that I have been reading lately.

All the other books are fun reads, but this book actually scared me a few times. I like all the characters and from the beginning really liked Derek. He was very protective in a "mean" sort of way but you can see through all that. (I guess I just love the lone brooding type) For some reason the person I kept on picturing as Derek was Tom Welling. I never bought into the whole ugly, pimply and smelly guy. I also liked Chloe because she was a strong person and tried her best to deal with the changes in her life. She was loyal always looking out for her friends to make sure that they were all right. This was a fun and easy read. I highly recommend it.

City of Ashes - Cassandra Claire

If you haven't read the first book yet STOP READING! :D (Unless you don't mind spoilers lol)

Description:

Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go—especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil—and also her father.

To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings—and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?

In this breathtaking sequel to City of Bones, Cassandra Clare lures her readers back into the dark grip of New York City's Downworld, where love is never safe and power becomes the deadliest temptation.

Review:

This book took a while for me to get into, but once I got into it it was hard to put down. It did take more than half way through for me to get there.

I guess I really grossed out with the whole brother/sister romance thing and I had a hard time trying to understand it. I also have to say that Clary tends to REALLY irritate me. I really dislike the fact that she is extremely stubborn and will put everybody in danger just so she can have her own way. It may be because I am a cautious person myself. All the characters have issues of their own but Clary does not seem to care. Her agenda is her only priority. I like ALL the other characters. They are all fighting their own demons but yet can put that aside to help others. Jace was going through too much finding out that his father was Valentine and trying to cope with that. The inquisitor really had it in for him and I felt really angry with the Inquisitor for her heartless way of treating Jace.

There were a lot of teenage angst that kept the reader entertained.

When I finished the book I couldn't wait to read City of Glass.

My Sister's Keeper - Jodi Picoult

Description:
New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult is widely acclaimed for her keen insights into the hearts and minds of real people. Now she tells the emotionally riveting story of a family torn apart by conflicting needs and a passionate love that triumphs over human weakness.
Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate -- a life and a role that she has never challenged...until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister -- and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves.
Review:
I've been afraid to read this book because I knew it would make me upset. But then I saw commercials on TV showing that the book had been made into a movie. So I figured I should read the book before the movie comes out. When I started reading it I was expecting a tear jerker. What I didn't expect was it being a tear-jerker from beginning to end. I was so angry and in the end of the book was absolutely devastated.
I am forever afraid to read anything from Jodi Picoult, only because I know she will rip my heart out and stomp on it before giving it back. The writing described everything that was going on perfectly sucking me into the story. It was as if I was living the turmoil and sorrow that family was going through. The movie was good until the very end. I was really really disappointed with the end of the movie. Not sure why they had to change it!!!
I highly recommend the book.

Thank you for being a fan.

The Wizard Heir - Cinda Williams Chima

Description:
Sixteen-year-old Seph McCauley has spent the past three years getting kicked out of one exclusive private school after another. Unfortunately it’s not his attitude that’s the problem. It’s the trail of magical accidents—lately, disasters—that follow in his wake. Seph is a wizard, orphaned and untrained—and now that the only person who could protect him has died, his powers are escalating out of control.
After causing a tragic fire at an after-hours party, Seph is sent to the Havens, a secluded boys’ school on the coast of Maine. At first, it seems like the answer to his prayers. Gregory Leicester, the headmaster, promises to train Seph in magic and initiate him into his mysterious order of wizards. But Seph's enthusiasm dampens quickly when he learns that training comes at a steep cost, and that Leicester plans to use his students' powers to serve his own mysterious agenda.
In this companion novel to the exciting fantasy The Warrior Heir, everyone's got a secret to keep: Jason Haley, a fellow student who’s been warned to keep away from Seph; the enchanter Linda Downey, who knew his parents; the rogue wizard Leander Hastings, and the warriors Jack Swift and Ellen Stephenson. This wizard war is one that Seph may not have the strength to survive.
Review:
This is book two in this series (see The Warrior Heir for my review on book 1). Again, there is a lot that needs to be explained regarding the Rose wars and the Weirlinds. So far I like these series. The reading was really fast (it took me 2 days because I still needed to work). When SephSeph because he was a loner and did not know who to trust. I was especially happy when the characters from book one was introduced to Seph and I liked seeing Jack from a different point of view. goes to the special school I did feel for
Let me know what you think of the book.

Thank you for being a fan.

The Warrior Heir

Description:
Before he knew about the Roses, sixteen-year-old Jack lived an unremarkable life in the small Ohio town of Trinity. Only the medicine he has to take daily and the thick scar above his heart set him apart from the other high schoolers. Then one day Jack skips his medicine. Suddenly, he is stronger, fiercer, and more confident than ever before. And it feels great - until he loses control of his own strength and nearly kills another player during soccer team tryouts.
Soon, Jack learns the startling truth about himself: he is Weirland, part of an undergrond society of magical people who live among us. At their helm sits the feuding houses of the Red Rose and the White Rose, whose power is determined by playing the Game - a magical tournament in which each house sponsors a warrior to fight to the death. The winning house rules the Weir.
As if his bizarre heritage isn't enough, Jack finds out that he's not just another member of Weirlind - he's one of the last of the warriors - at a time when both houses are scouting for a player.
Review:
I must admit I got this book because I liked the cover. As you can see I have been reading a lot of Young Adult books lately. But as young adult books go I really enjoyed this one. There could be a lot more added to the books (they are a series) because there were a lot of questions about the Weirlind. The author could have gone into more depth about the Roses and the war that they have been going on for hundreds of years. I also felt that "the Game" was an easy way out for the "war". But other than that, I liked the characters and the potential was there. It was a fun and easy read if your in it for something to read.

Wicked Lovely

Description:

Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries.

Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in mortal world. Aislinn fears their cruelty—especially if they learn of her Sight—and wishes she were as blind to their presence as other teens.

Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries.

Now faeries are stalking her. One of them, Keenan, who is equal parts terrifying and alluring, is trying to talk to her, asking questions Aislinn is afraid to answer.

Rule #1: Don't ever attract their attention.

But it's too late. Keenan is the Summer King who has sought his queen for nine centuries. Without her, summer itself will perish. He is determined that Aislinn will become the Summer Queen at any cost—regardless of her plans or desires.

Suddenly none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe are working anymore, and everything is on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.

Review:

I enjoyed this book. It was different and a refreshing change from the normal vampire/werewolf theme. I love a good vampire/werewolf book but sometimes we do need a break. Check out the book and tell me what you think.

City of Bones

Description:

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. Clary knows she should call the police, but it's hard to explain a murder when the body disappears into thin air and the murderers are invisible to everyone but Clary. Equally startled by her ability to see them, the murderers explain themselves as Shadowhunters: a secret tribe of warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. Within twenty-four hours, Clary's mother disappears and Clary herself is almost killed by a grotesque 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...

Review:
I enjoyed the read. It is unique and well written.
There is a twist to the book that is quite unexpected that makes you wish it wasn't true.
The twist has a yuck factor to me.
I'm currently reading City of Ashes and hope things get better from there.

Dead Until Dark Book 1 of the Sookie Stackhouse series

Description:

Meet Sookie Stackhouse, a plucky waitress working in the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana. She’s thrilled about meeting her first vampire but this is short-lived because someone (or something) has started killing several of the local women in the community.

Review:

Please keep in mind I read these books AFTER I read the Twilight series and seeing the first few episodes of True Blood. I couldn't watch the show only because the person portraying Sookie, Anna Paquin, bugs me to death. So when I read the books I had the vision of Paquin's horrible accent and acting in my head. I may be the only one who feels this way because Paquin did go on to win an Emmy. The books were better than the series. They were very fast to read through. My personal opinion (contrary to other's opinion) is that I didn't care too much for the character so I really could not connect.

Please let me know what you think of the books. Let me know why you like/dislike the books.

Angel's & Demons

Description: An ancient secret brotherhood. A devastating new weapon of destruction. an unthinkable target. When world-renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is summoned to his first assignment to a Swiss research facility to analyze a mysterious symbol - seared into the chest of a murdered physicist - he discovers evidence of the unimaginable. This book is full of intrigue and adrenaline pumping action.

Review: Angels & Demons is like riding a roller coaster. I could not put down this book until I was done reading it. The Da Vinci code was a great ride and I had high expectations for Angels & Demons as well. I was not disappointed. The read was so much better than the movie because there was more going on in my imagination that made things more heart-pounding. A great entertaining read.

The Da Vinci Code

Description: The Da Vinci Code follows symbologist Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu as they investigate a murder in Paris's Louvre Museum and discover a battle between the Priory of Sion and Opus Dei over the possibility of Jesus Christ of Nazareth having been married to Mary Magdalene.

Review: This book really blew me out of the water. I read it a few years ago and heard so many people talking about it. I wouldn't let them tell me what the book was about so there were no spoilers etc. I picked up the book and did not put it down until I was done reading. I had no idea what the premise of the book so as the book progressed it was surprise after surprise. It was a fun read. Highly recommended.

The House of Night Series books 1-4

This is the first four books from the House of Night series.

Description: 16-year-old Zoey is "Marked" to be a fledging vampire. She is taken by her grandmother to the House of Night, which is a school for fledglings to learn about becoming a vampire. At the school Zoey goes through the trials of the new kid trying to fit in. Zoey is blessed with extra-ordinary powers gifted to her by the vampire goddess. These talents alienate Zoey because she does not know who to trust including her close group of friends.

Review:

With all the vampire books that are out right now I was getting a little vampired out.

But a very good friend of mine got me a four book set of the House of Night series.

So I started to read them. I was very pleasantly surprised. I read the first four books in less than a week.

The books are easy to read and very entertaining.

I just want to say that although I really enjoyed the book I do not recommend them for the age group that they are targeted. The target is young adult and I feel it is inappropriate because there is some sexual content and language.

Twenties Girl

Description: Lara Lington has always had an overactive imagination, but suddenly that imagination seems to be in overdrive...or is it? She is visted by her great aunt Sadie, a feisty, demanding girl with firm ideas about fashion, love, and the right way to dance. Sadie has one request: Lara must find a missing necklace that had been in Sadie's possession for more than seventy five years, because Sadie cannot rest without it. In the process she finds new love and uncovers an incredible mystery in the process.

My Review: I LOVE Sophie Kinsella. She never ceases to make me feel very uncomfortable with her character's high jinx and hilarity. I enjoyed this book very much. I did laugh out loud that my family thought I was a bit crazy :)
The writing style is easy to read and understand. A very good book.

The Help

Over the summer I have read a few books that were really good.

The first one I want to talk about is The Help.

Description:
Enter a vanished world: Jackson , Mississippi, 1962.
Where black maids raise white children, but aren't trusted not to steal the silver...

There's Aibileen, raising her seventeenth white child and nursing the hurt caused by her own son's tragic death; Minny, whose cooking is nearly as sassy as her tongue; and white Miss Skeeter, home from college, who wants to know why her beloved maid has disappeared.

Skeeter, Aibileen and Minny. No one would believe they'd be friends; fewer still would tolerate it. But as each woman finds the courage to cross boundaries, they come to depend and rely upon one another. And together they have an extraordinary story to tell..

My Review: I really enjoyed reading this book. It really was a page turner and I could not put the book down. There was a lot of times where I had to continue reading (even if it was 2am) because I was so worried for the characters that I had to find out what was going on. There are aspects of each character that I could relate to. I highly recommend this book!

Have you read this book? What do you think?