Secret Society by Tom Dolby

Secret Society by Tom Dolby 5 of 5 stars.

Once you get in... You can never get out.
Do you ever wonder how some people have it all? The best schools, the hottest parties, the priciest clothes, the easiest jobs? Maybe it's not because they work hard or get a lucky break every once in a while. Maybe it's because they're part of a secret group. A secret society.

Secret Society follows four teenagers as they sink deep into a society made up of the most powerful people in the country. You watch through the eyes of Nick, a rich party kid who is deeper than you would think. Pheobe, an artsy and willful girl moved to NYC from LA. Lauren, a fashionista with a drunk mother and a lowlife dad, the party girl with all the best clothes. And Patch. Patch who is not chosen to join this secret society but who's history is embedded deep within the group.

Secret Society is a uniquely written story that shows how far people are willing to go to succeed. It isn't something I would usually read, but it is good to read outside of your comfort zone (genre wise) once and a while. Honestly, I don't know what genre I would mark this book under. I suppose good will just have to do for now. It is exciting and refreshing, but I wouldn't call it great.

For fans of: Twilight, Alex Flinn

In My Mailbox (1)

I am SO excited! I finally got my copy of Graceling by Kristin Cashore. I've been wanting to read this book for like ever. I've read some great reviews on it and hope to soon add mine to the pile.


Much Love!
Arya

The Princess and the Bear

The Princess and the Bear by Mette Ivie Harrison 4 of 5 stars.



He was once a king turned into a bear as punishment for his cruel and selfish deeds.

She was once a hound turned into a princess, now living in the form of a hound again.

Wary companions, they are sent--in human form--back to a time when magic went terribly astray. Together they must right the wrongs caused by this devastating power-- if only they can find a way to trust each other.

But even as each becomes aware of an ever-growing attraction, the stakes are rising and they must find a way to eliminate this evil force-- or risk losing each other forever.



The Princess and the Bear, though beautifully written has a painfully slow ending. This is something I usually cannot stand in a book but after reading the second half and the ending it is absolutely worth it. The beginning sets up the rest (the best part) of the book perfectly. It is written in a classic, melodic fairy tale style that is fits it nicely. It is supposed to be the sequel to The Princess and the Hound, but if you have not read the first do not let that deter you from reading the second. It is perfectly capable of standing on its own.



For fans of: The Princess and the Bear, Mette Ivie Harrison, Fables, Fairy tales

Waiting on Wednesday!

Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore- to be released Winter 2009
Magic steeps the gas-lit lanes of New Sweeling, where Nimira is a foreign singer, paid barely enough to survive. When wealthy sorcerer Hollin Parry hires her to accompany a piano-playing clockwork automaton, she thinks her savior has arrived.

Hollin may treat her with the kindness and respect she’s yearned for, but buried secrets stir–including a rumor he may have murdered the former head of the Sorcerers’ Council on the brink of a peace treaty with the fairies. Nimira discovers the spirit of a dashing fairy gentleman named Erris is trapped inside the automaton’s stiff limbs, waiting for someone to break his curse. As Nimira and Erris fall into a love that seems hopeless, Nimira must uncover the truth behind the councilman’s disappearance, or not just her fate, but all the magical world may be in peril…

Why I want to read this book- It sounds like a wonderful fantasy and the cover looks absolutely awesome. What more is there to say?

Teaser Tuesday!

Its that time of week once again! Open the book you are reading to page 33, pick out the 2nd and 5th sentences(Or you can cheat and pick out the two best sentences on the page. =)) and post them, along with the book title in the comments!

The Princess and the Bear by Mette Ivie Harrison

The animals were afraid of the cold death.

Fear alone would not protect them if the cold death spread farther into the forest.



Much love!
Arya

In My Mailbox (2)

Yup, I got Secret Society by Tom Dolby and Rebel Angels by Libba Bray in the past few days. I am so excited about reading them. Secret Society isn't really the kind of thing I would usually read but it sounds great nonetheless. I've been dying to read Rebel Angels since I finished A Great and Terrible Beauty.

That's about it.

Arya

Allan Frewin Jones Fan Club

For those of you who, like me, are huge fans of Frewin Jones and his Faerie Path and Warrior Princess books you should definitely check out his new fan club. It was created by a fan and he supports it completely. They are even doing a writing contest right now where the prize is a signed copy of The Enchanted Quest (2nd in the Warrior Princess Series)! Join up and show your support for Mr. Jones and his wonderful books!
http://greatbooksrock.webs.com/

Waiting on Wednesday!

Dreaming Anastasia by Joy Preble. To be released Fall 2009.

Sixteen year old Anne thinks her life is pretty ordinary – until she smacks into handsome, mysterious, and okay, annoying Ethan on her way to chemistry class. Now Anne has powers she doesn’t understand, a history altering mission she may not want, and a growing attraction to this blue-eyed stranger. And Ethan – who at eighteen made some choices he’s starting to regret – realizes that Anne is the girl from whom he’s been searching – for a very, very long time. Stir in doomed Russian Grand Duchess Anastasia – who is definitely not quite as dead as the history books say – and Baba Yaga, the legendary witch from Russian folklore, and you’ve got DREAMING ANASTASIA, a contemporary YA fantasy that alternates between the voices of Anne, Ethan, and Anastasia as Anne and Ethan join forces to battle the bad guys and save Anastasia. Only problem is – no one’s quite sure who’s really bad and who’s good. And everyone has some secrets
Why I want to read this book: The cover looks awesome, the synopsis makes it sound totally cool. Plus, I love the stories about Anastasia. I can't tell you how many history channel shows I've watched about her.



The Season by Sarah MacLean. To be released Spring 2009.

Seventeen-year-old Lady Alexandra Stafford doesn’t fit into the world of Regency London – she’s strong-willed, sharp-tongued, and she absolutely loathes dress fittings. Unfortunately, her mother has been waiting for years for Alex to be old enough to take part in the social whirlwind of a London Season so she can be married off to someone safe, respectable, wealthy, and almost certainly boring. But Alex is much more interested in adventure than romance.
Between sumptuous balls, lavish dinner parties and country weekends, Alex, along with her two best friends, Ella and Vivi, manages to get entangled in her biggest scrape yet. When the Earl of Blackmoor is killed in a puzzling accident, Alex decides to help his son, the brooding and devilishly handsome Gavin, uncover the truth. It’s a mystery brimming with espionage, murder, and suspicion. As she and Gavin grow closer, will Alex’s heart be stolen in the process?

Why I want to read this book: Because is sounds absolutely amazing. Duh.

In My Mailbox (1)

The Princess and Bear by Mettie Ivie Harrison. I'm really excited to read this book. The Princess and the Hound was wonderful, and I am sure this book will be too.

A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn

A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn 5 of 5 stars.

Talia fell under a spell . . . . Jack broke the curse.


I was told to beware the accursed spindle, but it was so enchanting, so hypnotic. . . .


I was looking for a little adventure the day I ditched my tour group. But finding a comatose

town, with a hot-looking chick asleep in it, was so not what I had in mind.


I awakened in the same place but in another time—to a stranger's soft kiss.


I couldn't help kissing her. Sometimes you just have to kiss someone. I didn't know this would happen.


Now I am in dire trouble because my father, the king, says I have brought ruin upon our country. I have no choice but to run away with this commoner!


Now I'm stuck with a bratty princess and a trunk full of her jewels. . . . The good news: My parents will freak!


Think you have dating issues? Try locking lips with a snoozing stunner who turns out to be 316 years old. Can a kiss transcend all—even time?



A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn was a wonderful read. There were times where I was laughing so hard a cried. The characters are believable and the situations hilarious.

Talia is a selfish and sheltered princess with a curse on her. Jack is a typical American teenage boy with stuffy parents who only worry about him getting into college. When he and his friend decided to sneek away from their tour group, a European tour being another thing Jack's parents are supposedly torturing him with, they get the wrong directions to the beach. They end up in a thick forest. After fighting their way through a thick, evil, prickly hedge they find a sleeping town. Everything resembles Colonial times. The even stranger thing is that every one is asleep. They then stumble upon a sleeping princess, and in the tradition of Sleeping Beauty Jack kisses her and makes her wake up, and her kingdom becomes visible to the outside world once again.

Now is the hard part. Talia's father is angry with her for touching the spindle and ruining his kingdom. Jack is nothing more than a commoner that has taken advantage of a sleeping princess and is thrown in the dungeon. Despite Jack and Talia's dislike of each other, they have to work together to get what they want. But, when the witch Malvolia turns up, angry that her enchantment was broken unfairly, by a commoner rather than a prince and certainly not by true love's kiss, can Talia make Jack fall in love with her and save herself and the kingdom from another three hundred year sleep?

Teaser Tuesday (Week 3)

Okay, you know how this goes by now. Pull out the book you are reading and open it to page 88 then pick out the 11th and 8th sentences ((or the two best sentences on that page)) and post them in the comments box!=)

I am reading A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn

8th I've tried it now it's sort of gamy and ough, like duck in a really bad Chinese restaurant.
11th We have peacocks, we don't eat them, though.



Arya

Waiting on Wednesday! (Week 2)

Okay, so here I will let you know about a couple of upcoming novels I'm looking forward to.


The wheel of burning light divided and pulled back, and suddenly Branwen was staring up into Blodwedd’s two golden eyes.

“What did you do to me?” Branwen shouted as the world slithered and writhed around her.

“I showed you the future that will be forged if you forswear your true calling,” said Blodwedd. She angled her mouth in a sharp grin. “Did you like what you saw?”

“Lies!” shouted Branwen. “It was all lies!”

A look of disdain crossed Blodwedd’s face. “I do not lie,” she said.

Her Destiny Must Be Fulfilled!

Branwen refuses to take orders from anyone – even the Shining Ones, the ancient gods whose power is feared throughout the land. They want her as their Chosen One, destined to save her country from the Saxons. But Branwen doubts she’s truly ready to be a leader.

Then a messenger from the skies shows her a vision of a bleak and violent future, a future in which Branwen has abandoned her destiny, and those most dear to her suffer unspeakable horrors. There’s a blurry line between good and evil, and those Branwen trusts the most are capable of the greatest betrayal. The Shining Ones have spoken. Will Branwen answer their call?

Why I want to read this book: Because the first one was absolutely AWESOME! Frewin Jones is one of my all-time favorite authors. This book is sure to be just as great or BETTER than the last.


It’s a fight to the death—on live TV—when a gladiator’s daughter steps into the arena

Lyn is a neo-gladiator’s daughter, through and through. Her mother has made a career out of marrying into the high-profile world of televised blood sport, and the rules of the Gladiator Sports Association are second nature to their family. Always lend ineffable confidence to the gladiator. Remind him constantly of his victories. And most importantly: Never leave the stadium when your father is dying. The rules help the family survive, but rules—and the GSA—can also turn against you. When a gifted young fighter kills Lyn’s seventh father, he also captures Lyn’s dowry bracelet, which means she must marry him... For fans of The Hunger Games and Fight Club, Lise Haines’ debut novel is a mesmerizing look at a world addicted to violence—a modern world that’s disturbingly easy to imagine.

Why I want to read this book: It just sounds really good! I haven't read the Hunger Games yes, sadly, but I've heard that it was a great book. Anything compared to it has to be wonderful.

Teaser Tuesday (Week 3)

Okay, you know how this goes by now. Pull out the book you are reading and open it to page 32 then pick out the 4th and 8th sentences ((or the two best sentences on that page)) and post them in the comments box!=)

Again, I am not reading anything right now so I am going to pick out an old favorite.
Eyes of a King by Catherine Banner

His hands were so cold--as if he were dead--and so small.

"He didn't have to hit you three times..."




Arya

A Great and Terrible Beauty

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray 4 of 5 stars.

Gemma Doyle isn't like other girls. Girls with impeccable manners, who speak when spoken to, who remember their station, and who lie back and think of England when it's required of them.
No, sixteen-year-old Gemma is an island unto herself, sent to the Spence Academy in London after tragedy strikes her family in India. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and pron to vision of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma finds a chilly reception. But she's not completely alone... she's being followed by a mysterious young man, who warns her to close her mind against the visions.
For it's at Spence that Gemma's power to attract the supernatural unfolds; there she becomes entangled with the school's most powerful girls and discovers her mother's connection to a shadowy group call the Order. It's there that destiny waits... if only she can believe it.

A Great and Terrible Beauty was a surprisingly dark story. There were moments of humour, but they did little to lighten the plot. Gemma is a strong, stuborn, and daring character. Her friends at the Academy all have their own personalities, they see themselves as being similar because they all feel unwanted, and trapped within the role they were born to. They all have dreams, but feel they must push them aside for the duty of a woman. The story also has a very strong message to it. That temptation challenges all of us, and that no matter how strong you think you are power can corrupt your mind; can change you into a whole different person. You can loose yourself to it, no matter what you thought before hand.