The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
"The day Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London marks a memorable occasion. For Rory, it's the start of a new life at a London boarding school. But for many, this will be remembered as the day a series of brutal murders broke out across the city, gruesome crimes mimicking the horrific Jack the Ripper in the autumn of 1888.

Soon "Rippermania" takes hold of modern-day London, and the police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man police now believe to be the prime suspect. But she is the only one who saw him. Even her roommate, who was with her at the time, didn't notice the mysterious man. So why can only Rory see him? And more urgently, why has Rory become his next target? In this edge-of-your-seat thriller, full of suspense, humor, and romance, Rory will learn the truth about the secret ghost police of London and discover her own shocking abilities."- summary from Amazon

I loved this book. Reading it made me realize how much I had missed Maureen's writing- I don't think I've read anything new of hers since Let It Snow (despite having both Scarlett books and I did also re-read 13 Little Blue Envelopes a few months back). Despite the creepy cover and premise, the book is pretty funny, especially in the beginning before the Ripper action gets involved, though the book does still have some humor throughout the rest of the book. It's still Maureen's style, but a bit darker than her previous books and it works really well.

I really enjoyed Rory as a main character- she's relatable as she tries to make her way in a new place and the voice is just done really well. Her sarcasm was my favorite part, as it usually is since that's my main form of humor. The interactions between all the characters was great and Maureen has a great touch for dialogue because it was always fun and interesting to read and kept the story going. Rory and Jerome were a great little couple too and I liked seeing their romance blossom throughout the book. They're a great match.

I really liked the concept of the ghost police and reading about the history was really cool. The book ended really interestingly and with a twist (actually, two) I hadn't seen coming. Maureen also knows how to work this trilogy by ending the main storyline here but keeping some loose threads open to make the reader want to come back when the next book releases. Although I'll read anything by Maureen because she's an awesome author so I don't necessarily need the loose threads!

Overall, a fantastic start to a ghost thriller trilogy and I can't wait to see where it all goes next!

FTC: Received ARC from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.

Cover Reveal- Last Rite by Lisa Desrochers!

So are YOU all excited to see the cover for the final book in the Personal Demons trilogy? Well, today's your lucky day! The cover is being revealed on quite a few blogs today and, not only that, each of us is holding a contest to give away an ARC of Last Rite! Also, even better, there's an even bigger contest being done on Lisa's blog for some major prizes! More details on my contest though after the cover reveal...


The cover is coming...


It's very hot...


Probably the best cover yet...


You excited yet?


Getting a bit annoyed at me?


OK, here it is!

Isn't it awesome? The guys are so hot! I hope Lisa or Tor makes posters of the cover because I'd love to have it on my wall next to my other book cover posters.

OK, now let's go over contest details. For my contest of the Last Rite ARC, all you have to do is just leave a comment on this post by Wednesday, October 5 at 9pm EST. ARCs will be sent out as soon as Lisa gets them, which should be sometime in November (release date is May 2012). The contest is only for US/Canada residents! Sorry international readers!

Now, for the big contest that Lisa's running, each one of the blogs participating has a word or two from the cover tagline and you all have to unscramble the words and put it all together. Then, go to Lisa's blog and write the tagline into her contest form. Lisa's post should be going up around 9am PST (12pm EST). Now, I have two words, but I couldn't fit the second one into the post subtly, so I'm just going to make it easy for you guys and give it to you. The word is ONES. The other word is also in all caps so look through the post and find it!

Here's a list of all the blogs participating:

http://naughtybookkitties.blogspot.com
http://agoodaddiction.blogspot.com/
http://bloggers-heart-books.blogspot.com/
http://bookalicio.us/
http://booksoverboys.blogspot.com/
http://justcallmebookworm.blogspot.com/
http://harmonyradiantreads.blogspot.com/
http://mundiemoms.blogspot.com/

Good luck to all! If you have any questions (this may be a bit confusing), leave a comment and I'll address it as soon as I can!

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

"Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness. Elisa is the chosen one. But she is also the younger of two princesses. The one who has never done anything remarkable, and can’t see how she ever will.

Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs her to be the chosen one, not a failure of a princess. And he’s not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies, seething with dark magic, are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people’s savior, and he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.

Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.

Most of the chosen do."- summary from Amazon

I simply adored this book. Once I found out that Tamora Pierce had blurbed it and that it was being compared to her novels as well, I knew I had to get my hands on this book. It really is very Tamora-ish but of course Carson makes her unique style and amazing ability for world-building shine through. I only have an ARC so it doesn't have this but it would be really cool if a map of Elisa's world was included, just like with Tamora's books because I could easily see a map being made. Elisa winds up in a ton of places throughout the book and Carson did a great job with detailing how the world was set up and where lands were. The mythology of everything was explained really well and was interesting, and I also liked how Carson handled the faith aspect. While God is a big presence in the book, it never feels overwhelming or preachy; it feels right.

Now, on to Elisa. I loved her- she's just such a wonderful main character and one that a lot of readers could identify with. I personally identified with wanting to eat awesome things all the time and also not wanting to walk in the desert preferring instead to sit on my butt at home. Of course, Elisa perseveres and, like I said before, travels to a variety of places, which makes the book more interesting than if she had her (and my) way. Other characters really stood out- Ximena, Rosario, Humberto, Father Nicandro, Lord Hector, and so many others; Carson made sure to flesh out these characters and get the reader really involved in their story.

Overall, a compelling fantasy debut and I cannot wait to read more from Carson, both the next books in this trilogy and also anything else she writes. She also continues the awesome trend of completing an adventure in the first book while leaving the reader wanting more, instead of basically splitting up one story into three books and having a huge cliffhanger in each book. Keep doing this, authors! It's much better for all involved.

FTC: Received ARC from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.

In My Mailbox- Aug/Sept Edition

FINALLY! Another In My Mailbox vlog! This contains over a month's worth of books and I managed to contain it within 7.5 minutes, which is a feat for me. So here we go!



Books Shown:

The Postmortal by Drew Magary
Archipelago Books catalog
Love Lies Bleeding by Jess McConkey
Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay
The Dream Catchers by Jennifer Ann Kogler
Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
Without Tess by Marcella Pixley
Between the Sea and the Sky by Jaclyn Dolamore (not shown, but talked about)
This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel
You Against Me by Jenny Downham
Underdogs by Markus Zusak
Supernaturally by Kiersten White (signed!)
Between by Jessica Warman
The Shattering by Karen Healey
Wintertown by Stephen Emond
Everneath by Brodi Ashton
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King
The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
Tunnel Vision by Susan Shaw
The Fine Art of Truth or Dare by Melissa Jensen
Love and Leftovers by Sarah Tregay
The Invisible Tower by Nils Johnson-Shelton
Kiss Crush Collide by Christina Meredith
Emily the Strange: Piece of Mind by Rob Reger
The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers by Lynn Weingarten
The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff
Red Phoenix by Kylie Chan
Falling Together by Marisa de los Santos
signed copies of What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen and Bliss by Lauren Myracle

Blood Wounds by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Blood Wounds by Susan Beth Pfeffer

"Blood can both wound and heal . . .

Willa is lucky: She has a loving blended family that gets along. Not all families are so fortunate. But when a bloody crime takes place hundreds of miles away, it has an explosive effect on Willa’s peaceful life. The estranged father she hardly remembers has murdered his new wife and children, and is headed east toward Willa and her mother. Under police protection, Willa discovers that her mother has harbored secrets that are threatening to boil over. Has everything Willa believed about herself been a lie? But as Willa sets out to untangle the mysteries of her past, she also keeps her own secret—one that has the potential to tear apart all she holds dear."- summary from Amazon

I was really excited for this book when I first got it. I loved Pfeffer's Life As We Knew It and so really wanted to read this book. It turned out a bit different than I had expected because I thought the whole book would be about the father on his way there and secrets being revealed during that wait, but that was just the first (of three) part. The other two parts deal with Willa going to Pryor where her other family died to go to their funeral and then coming back home as a changed woman and dealing with some big reveals. The whole book though was very good and compelling and I do think that maybe having it just be about the father on his way may have been a bit boring, so I like how Pfeffer did this.

Willa is a great character and a perfect protagonist; she really changed over the course of the book and that made me really happy. It was uplifting reading her story and getting involved with her life. The other characters were interesting too and seeing them change or stay the same over the course of the novel was fun.

Overall, just a really great book and it makes me want to read more from Pfeffer, so I may go back and finish the Moon Crash series (apparently, a fourth is being released next fall!) sometime soon!

FTC: Received ARC from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.