Friday, August 30, 2013

Book Review: Reign of Blood by Alexia Purdy

 

Reign of Blood (Reign of Blood #1) by Alexia Purdy

 

"Never tease anything that wants to eat you. My name is April Tate and my blood is the new gold. Vampires and hybrids have overrun my world, once vibrant with life, but now a graveyard of death shrouded in shadows. I fight to survive; I fight for my mother and brother. The journey is full of turns that I am quite unprepared for. And I'm just hoping to make it to the next Vegas sunrise..."

In a post-apocalyptic world, a viral epidemic has wiped out most of the earth’s population, leaving behind few humans but untold numbers of mutated vampires. April is a seventeen-year-old girl who lives in the remains of Las Vegas one year after the outbreak. She has become a ferocious vampire killer and after her family is abducted, she goes searching for them. What she finds is a new breed of vampire, unlike any she has seen before. Unsure of whom she can trust, she discovers that her view of the world is not as black and white as she once thought, and she's willing to bend the rules to rescue her family. But in trying to save them, she may only succeed in bringing her fragile world crashing down around her.







Reign of Blood captured my attention from the beginning. Alexia Purdy has really created a creepy, post-apocalyptic Las Vegas. The cover is marvelous and it fits perfect with the story.



April can kick some vampire butt.
April is an awesome main character. She and her family have learned to adapt to a world now overrun with blood-thirsty vampires. Taking survival seriously, she collects weapons and knows how to uses them.

And when her family goes missing suddenly, she stops at nothing to find them. This leads to her taking on the role of hardcore, vampire slayer.

The Action
The action scenes keep the reader intrigued during her "solo" period. I enjoyed her survival mode because so much was going on when she would venture into the city hunting. Warning some of the scenes are a bit gruesome and bloody. Nothing overly terrible, but it did make me cringe every now and then. But hey-- what else do you expect from a vampire slayer?

The Vamps
The city (and world) is desolate because of a disease that has swept through changing people into almost zombie-like vampires. And April and her family are the only known humans that have survived. But not every person affected turned to a blood-thirsty, mindless vampire. Some turned to hybrids vampires, who have more humanlike qualities.

Enter the vampires that aren't (only) bloody thirsty and they know about her missing family, and cue the MC's love interest. And sadly, cue some instalove. The love interest was hard for me to buy, since April is always talking about how she hates vampires. But after I let go over the quick attraction bit, Rye really grew on me and I liked him with April.

Standing Up For Herself
I love that April doesn't change or lose sight of her goals even though she met Rye. She still carries her weapons around, still willing to do anything to get her family back, and still takes down vicious vampires.

The dinning hall scene, where she stands up for herself, is one of my favorites. At first, I thought she had slacked off because she was with the hybrids, but then she proves once again how tough she really is. It earns her respect and I loved every minute.

The Ending.
The beginning of the book slowly hashes out all of these problems (and more that I didn't want to spoil), and we see countless scenes of April slaying vampires. It builds pretty well, but the ending felt rushed and abrupt.

I wanted so much more from those next scenes. And when I started the next chapter, it wasn't there. The characters had jumped like a week in to the future. It left me clueless how everything went down. And it wasn't fulfilling. It left many, many questions.

So...
Reign of Blood was a solid three star read for me. Even though the ending threw me for a loop, I still enjoyed the plot and want to read the second book.

If you enjoy post-apocalyptic settings, vampires, action, a cute relationship, and a tough, loyal main character than you should definitely give this book a shot.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book, which was given in exchange for an honest review.

 

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Teaser Tuesday: Reign of Blood & Between the Devil and Deep Blue Sea

 

This meme is hosted by Should Be Reading. If you want to join, jump over there for the rules and to sign up.

 

My Teasers:

Just finished: Reign of Blood by Alexia Purdy
"The city was desolate graveyard everywhere I went: a graveyard of people, planes and automobiles. The entire Earth was a graveyard."

How lonely it must be to stare out across the city, and feel like you are looking at a graveyard.

"His eyes were so black they seemed to swallow the gold ring that hugged his iris, like a full solar eclipse in the black holes of his sockets."

This paint such vivid image in my head. I can almost see his creepy, black eyes staring at me. *shudders*

 

 

I just finished this one and really enjoyed all the action. The main character is a total badass vampire slayer and she will stop at nothing to find her family. Review should be up in a couple days.




Fixing to Start: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke
 

""It's all right," I said. I waved my free hand like I was shooing a fly. "He always talks like this when he sees one of us. I'm used to it."

River shook his head once, fast. "You should never let yourself get used to someone talking about you like that.""

This is sweet and this River character is making a good point.

"I put my hands on my hips and swayed them a little so Freddie's yellow skirt would move against my legs in an engaging sort of way. Then I realized it was something Sunshine would do, and stopped."

Hahaha, us girls and our flirting ways.

 

These both are sorta random and fun, but I like them. As soon as I finish the other two books I am reading, this is going to be the next one I pick up. I've been wanting to read this book for a while now and I hope it doesn't let me down. I heard it gets sorta creepy.

 

What books did you tease this week?




 

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Bout of Books 8.0: Wrap-Up

Bout of Books

 

I didn't really meet my goals. I wanted to read about 100 pages a day, which would make for 700 total. I ended up being about 80 pages short. So, overall, I'm very happy with the outcome. I ended up making some great new friends, and got to chat with some older ones. I chalk this read-a-thon up to be a success. Did you reach your goals?

 

Book List:

Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker (Finished -- 40 pages): Review

Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor (Finished--398 pages): Review

Reign of Blood by Alexia Purdy -- 130 pages

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks -- 60 pages

Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout -- none

Predestined by Abbi Glines -- 13%

 

Total:

Pages Read: 628 pages

Kindle Percentage: 13%

Book Reviews: 2 books

 

 

 

Saturday, August 24, 2013

Book Review: Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Daughter of Smoke & Bone #1) by Laini Taylor

 

Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

 

 

“Wishes are false. Hope is true. Hope makes its own magic.”

This book is a trip and the very reason that I love picking up the fantasy genre. The world building, plot expansion, characters, and plain-out uniqueness makes this book a fantastic read.

The Plot.
I had no idea what to expect when I opened this book. It had been on my TBR list for a while and I finally got a copy from my library. The synopsis shares a little, but doesn't give a way a lot. That fact that I didn't know a lot about the plot made the story even better for me. I got to experience the plot and things unfolding along with Karou and the other characters.


The words flow across the page with ease weaving an intricate story. Laini Taylor plots a point here and then there, and then she slowly strings them together. Events start coming together while Taylor fleshes out different details, and then suddenly you realize that you are seeing part of the grand picture.

The Pace.
This story is paced really well. I usually like something that is quick and easy. But sometimes, it pays off to slow down and really dig into a certain book. That was this book for me. This story slowed me down and I loved it.

It starts from the beginning and builds slowly, and it is perfect. Perfect for world building, perfect for growing with the main character, perfect for the overall mood of the book. It was like savoring a perfect bite of chocolate cake.

The Writing = mindblown
The way the writer writes captivates me. There is something almost lyrical and dreamy about the way by Laini Taylor forms here sentences. And they bleed together so effortlessly. It's magical. She easily joined my list of favorite writing styles that I've read. Never have I been so easily captured and enthralled by the sentences, structures, descriptions, plot expansion, etc.. Maybe this makes me a nerd, but I wish I could take a writing class taught by Taylor. She's that awesome.

I have included some quotes below because of how much I love the style. Some of them may include minor spoilers and are marked. Read them at your own risk.

1. (highlight here): They stood like that for a long time and they were quiet but their blood and nerves and butterflies were not --- they were rampantly live, rushing and thrumming in a wild and perfect melody matched note for note

2. “Have you ever asked yourself, do monsters make war, or does war make monsters?”

3. "She would have thought an angel would have something of air, but he didn't. He was all substance: powerful and rugged and real."

There are many more, but I just wanted to give you a taste.

Journey
A journey into this book should be open-minded. It is little bit strange, but it is beautiful at the same time. And the author's writing style is beautiful, making this book almost feel like poetry. It is a book that slowly builds and pulls you farther in with each page. I loved every minute of The Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and I'm excited to pick up the second.

There is so much more that could be discussed, but as mentioned, I think this book is better with a clean slate. So I'll leave you here with the first section title (very first thing you see after the title pages) and with the hope that you'll give this book a chance:

Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.”

 

Friday, August 23, 2013

Stacking the Shelves [11]

 

This meme is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

 
I had a pretty big haul. I found a couple good deals on amazon. And then I also went to a bargain book store and Barnes and Nobles this week. Guess I made up for not going to a book store last week. I'm really excited about all of these. I don't even know which one I want to pick up first. Probably Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea because I have been itching to get my hands on that one for a while.

Bought & Borrowed:

For Review:

 

Check back over the next few weeks for reviews on these different books.

Last Review: Ten Tiny Breaths

Next Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

I should have the review for Daughter up later today. Thanks for stopping by haul. Which of these books do you think I should pick up first (after the read-a-thon, of course, ;p)? What books did you get this week?

Have a good weekend :)

 

edit: I finally finished writing up the review for Daughter of Smoke and Bone. So I added the link in case any of you all were curious. Thanks again for stopping by and happy reading!

 

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Book Review: Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker

Ten Tiny Breaths (Ten Tiny Breaths #1) by K.A. Tucker

 

Kacey Cleary’s whole life imploded four years ago in a drunk-driving accident. Now she’s working hard to bury the pieces left behind—all but one. Her little sister, Livie. Kacey can swallow the constant disapproval from her born-again aunt Darla over her self-destructive lifestyle; she can stop herself from going kick-boxer crazy on Uncle Raymond when he loses the girls’ college funds at a blackjack table. She just needs to keep it together until Livie is no longer a minor, and then they can get the hell out of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

But when Uncle Raymond slides into bed next to Livie one night, Kacey decides it’s time to run. Armed with two bus tickets and dreams of living near the coast, Kacey and Livie start their new lives in a Miami apartment complex, complete with a grumpy landlord, a pervert upstairs, and a neighbor with a stage name perfectly matched to her chosen “profession.” But Kacey’s not worried. She can handle all of them. What she can’t handle is Trent Emerson in apartment 1D.

Kacey doesn’t want to feel. She doesn’t. It’s safer that way. For everyone. But sexy Trent finds a way into her numb heart, reigniting her ability to love again. She starts to believe that maybe she can leave the past where it belongs and start over. Maybe she’s not beyond repair.

But Kacey isn’t the only one who’s broken. Seemingly perfect Trent has an unforgiveable past of his own; one that, when discovered, will shatter Kacey’s newly constructed life and send her back into suffocating darkness.

 

Just breathe. Ten tiny breaths … Seize them. Feel them. Love them.”

 

Meet one of my new favorite books. This book is amazing. And powerful. And moving.

And a must read.

And if you've not picked it up yet, trust me on this, give it a chance. It delivers an impacting read that will definitely make you feel, think, laugh, hurt -- and yes -- breathe.

The Plot.
This book is fast paced. The chapters are broken down into different sections, like: numb, acceptance, or denial. And it was an amazing to slowly journey through each of these categories with the main character, Kasey.

Kacey is suffering from some major PTSD, but she blocks out all of her issues, and tries to focus on caring for her sister, Livie. She's numb and callous, but also as tough as nails. Now enter Trent -- the one person that is able to see the real Kasey and break through her outer shell. And together, they slowly start finding happiness. But Trent is dealing with some serious issues of his own.

The Romance.
Trent is an awesome male lead. He is strong, sweet, and has a hot bike. And even though he comes off a little overbearing at times, I still really liked him. I love that kickboxing, say what she is thinking, Kasey can't think straight around Trent. It is realistic and relatable -- I know I turn into a blubber fool around the guy I like. Plus, I could see myself asking my date if he was going to feed me to the crocodiles at the marsh. I'm just quirky like that and apparently so is Kasey, and it cracked me up.

The Characters.
The characters in this book break stereotypes. And I love how the author shows a character and describes them pretty honestly, but then zooms in on their actual personality. This changes the way you see them. It is actually pretty phenomenal and leaves a cast of memorable characters.

Favorite?
I couldn't decide. So many stood out to me and I loved almost all of them. Storm. Kacey. Livie. Trent. Dan. Such an outstanding group of characters.

Seriously, I went on vacation for a week to the beach (and since this is a kindle book and I didn't want to get my reader full of sand and ocean water) and didn't get to read very much. It was like I was missing my friends -- cliche, I know -- but I kept thinking back to the book and wondering what was held next for the characters.

The Last Half Crushed Me.
The whole book is emotional. Heck, even the blurb on goodreads is emotional. But something about the last few chapters really, really gutted me. (I blame the full moon). Tucker has a way of describing anger and pain and regret and guilt. It captured me and moved me.


Summary

Ten Tiny Breaths is a quick read that will restore your faith in the power of love, and maybe even leave you speechless.




Need more? Recommend For?

Fan of Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry or Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles will love Ten Tiny Breaths. They are not exactly a like, but feature from similar aspects.

 

Also, the cover is fabulous.

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria Books for the chance to review this book.

 

Monday, August 19, 2013

Bout of Book 8.0: Progress

 

Bout of Books

This is my third read-a-thon of the summer. And hopefully, I've learn a few things from the past two. Instead of making seperate post for updating my progress, I decided that one post is easier to manage. At least, that is the theory. We shall see :)

I hope I can put a big dent in my reading list. Join me in tracking my progress through this read-a-thon. Link up your progress post in the comments, and I'll be sure to drop by.

To see my goals post -- jump here.

 

Monday

Pages Read Today:136
Pages Read Total:136



Random Thought: Daughter of Smoke and Bone is so strange, yet beautiful. It's like poetry.
Books:



 

Tuesday

Pages Read Today: 106
Pages Read Total: 242

Random Thought: This description struck a chord with me for some reason. Had to share: "She would have thought an angel would have something of air, but he didn't. He was all substance: powerful and rugged and real." (p. 207)

Very beautiful. Love how the author describes an angel here.

Books:


Wednesday

Pages Read Today: 79


Pages Read Total: 321
Random Thought: Didn't reach my goal of 100 pages today. But I did make it to the cinema to see The Mortal Instruments.
Books:




Thursday

Pages Read Today: 166

Pages Read Total:487

Random Thought: Finally finished Daughter and it was marvelous. Just started Reign of Blood and it is really interesting so far. I mean she chopped of a Vampire's head. Ack!

Books:

Friday

Pages Read Today: 67

Pages Read Total: 554

Random Thought: Didn't met a hundred again today. But I have been spending a lot of my time studying CSS. It is so interesting and I'm hoping some of it will actually stick, so I can reformat and design this blog. And I went to a couple of bookstores today (even though I haven't met my goal). If you'd like to see my haul: jump to my StS page here.

Books:

  • The Notebook 25-60 (35 pages)
  • Reign of Blood 32-64 (32 pages)

Saturday

Pages Read Today:7

Pages Read Total: 561

Random Thoughts: I'm sorta embarrassed to put that I only read 7 pages. *facepalm* Fail.

Books:

  • Reign of Blood-->65-72

Sunday

Pages Read Today: 65

Pages Read Total: 626+ pages

Random Thoughts: I'm happy with getting two books read. And that I got a pretty big jump on the next three.

Books:

  • Reign of Blood---> 73-138 (65 pages)
  • Predestined --> 12% in
Hopefully I can do a round up post that is much prettier than this one turned out to be.

 

Books:Book List:

Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker (Finished): Review

Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor (Finished): Review

Reign of Blood by Alexia Purdy

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Predestined by Abbi Glines

 

Vampire Academy Teaser: The Journey from Disappointment to Acceptance

I wrote something similar to this yesterday and it was deleted.

Don't know how or why blogger picked that exact moment to inflict its wrath. But it did.

And I was angrier than a power hungry Strigoi about that missing post. (See what I did there? Eh?) *slaps head* See?? See what you get since my original post was lost to cyber space? Stupid humor. Just pay that one forward.

Now really moving forward and away from that rant ...

Let's get to the real issue at hand here. The Vampire Academy teaser.

First, let me just point out (which you've probably already figured out) that I love the VA series. Team Dimitri all the way (I mean come on that Russian accent... *sigh* ) Erhmm...anyway, I did not realize the first teaser was out till I stumbled upon it yesterday.

Totally unexpected.

And a total internal fangirl freakout happened in my kitchen. Internal because nobody else in my house understands the awesomeness that is Richelle Mead.

Zoey Deutch will be playing Rose in the movie.
But then.....

First Reaction: What the heck was the that? THAT is nothing like the book!

Yea, I was upset. Quite a bit actually.

Everything just felt wrong.

After a break, I finally convinced myself to rewatch the trailer.

And guess what, it actually grew on me.

Second Reaction: That wasn't as bad as I first imagined. Okay, okay, I admit I still cringe a bit when Rose gives Lissa blood and then says, "What are friends for?" But that aside, I realized that scenes showcased sorta DO parallel the book. The fight scenes might actually be pretty B.A.

But overall, the teaser made me excited for the movie.

And *gasp* that means that it is doing its job.

Do I think they could have chose different music? Chose a different scenes? Portrayed the book in a bit of different light? Sure. But at the same time --- and this is key -- it is just a short teaser.

And that is what I need to remember. I was judging short clip too harshly. I am still excited for the movie in Feburary. Maybe a bit nervous, but pumped to see all my favorites on the big screen.

Who knows? I may watch it a third time and move from acceptance to fangirl agian.

Come on VA, don't let me down.

edit-- The trailer has now officially grown on me. No, it wasn't what I first expected, but that doesn't mean that it is bad. In fact,  it means the director and writers had some new inspiration, interpretations, and thoughts about the movie then me. And that's okay. This movie still promises to be awesome and I cannot wait till February 2014.


Have you watched VA teaser yet?





Sunday, August 18, 2013

Book Review: Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Starting over sucks.
When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.
And then he opened his mouth.
Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens.

The hot alien living next door marks me.
You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.

If I don't kill him first, that is.


Everybody Loves It -- but Aliens? Really?

I never thought I'd love a book about Aliens. And when this book first started becoming big, I put it off for that exact reason. In my mind, I was all: give me wizards, werewolves, and vampires OR give me death. Actually I was just imagining way too many three headed, slimy aliens (too much Scooby-Doo as a kid, I guess)

But after hearing some great reviews and knowing most of my bookish friends loved it (and Daemon) -- I picked it up.

No big ET phone home moments in this. Actually these aliens are nothing like the ones I pictured in my head. Instead they are border line super models with cool powers.

The Plot --

Kat moves into a new town with her mom. Only this West Virginia town is nothing like her old home in Florida; it is not as hot weather wise, but it is smoking hot when it comes to her next door neighbor Daemon (and his twin sister Dee, and all the other aliens that are running around).

Of course, she doesn't know they are aliens, and she is trying to figure out why all this weird stuff is happening (and why they hate her). Throw in some bad guys -- and we have a quick paced, action filled story with some budding romance (and a lot of sexual tension). It builds well and hooks you from the start.

A new take on an forbidden love paranormal style.

Daemon the king of the jerks.

Okay, ladies...don't freak out. He kinda annoyed me -- like a lot. And I couldn't really understand why everyone LOVED him. He is your typical bad boy, and I Iove that he cares for his sister, but he is just plain mean.

I finally saw some redeeming qualities in him, that kinda helped me lean more towards Daemon. But he really won me over at the school dance. Simply put, he was dapper and classy. And I loved it (and his green eyes)!

Katy is fierce.

Finally, a girl heroine with some backbone. JLA has created a real winner here. I love that she sticks up for herself and will call Daemon out on all of his crap. And best of all, even though she is attracted to her neighbor, she resists the instalove bologna.

And then there is the whole pasta lunch room thing -- winner in my book.

Bonus -- Katy is a book blogger like most of us. #relatable

Final Thoughts:

I am excited to see Daemon act (hopefully) more like a gentlemen at least to Kat in the next books. | What the heck happened back there? | Minor Spoiler here (highlight) --> And I am kinda hoping that Dawson isn't actually dead

And if you haven't tried this book yet, do so soon because it is a quick, enjoyable read with a snarky male lead and an awesome, fierce female heroine.

 

Have you read this yet? What were your thoughts? Feel free to leave your review link below and I'll drop by.

 

Friday, August 16, 2013

Stacking The Shelves [10]







This meme is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.
I am back from the beach. And now I can only think about what joys actually lovimg there would be like. Operation move to the beach is now in the planning phase.

Bought: True by
On Kindle Loan (BookLending.com): The Boy Who Sneaks in My Bedroom Window by
That's my haul. I didn't go to one book store over vacation. Yes, yes, I'm very disappointed in myself too.



What did you bring home this week?




Read-a-thon: Bout of Books sign up and goals

Bout of Books

 

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 19th and runs through Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 8.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team
Yeah, I am definitely joining in on this read-a-thon. I have so many books that I need to tackle and get knocked off of my TBR list. Goals to follow.

 

My Goals

  • Read at least 100+ pages a day
  • Write a review for every book that I finish
  • Finish my resume (personal goal)



Books to Read

If I could actually get all of these read, I'd probably go on a book shopping spree just to celebrate.

 

 
 
 

 

 

What are your goals?

 

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Follow Friday [6]: learned about blogging?

 

This meme is hosted by Parajunkee & Alison Can Read.

Q: Share something you’ve learned about book blogging or just blogging in general in the last month.




A: I know this may sound basic, but I've learned the joys and ease of pre-making post. Less stress and when you are in the creative mood, you can knock two or three different post out.

This blog prefers bloglovin' follows or GFC.



Follow on Bloglovin