BkRv: Forget the name, but forget not the smell

Book Review / Forget-Her-Nots / Amy Brecount White

YA | Girls | Fantasy

First Line / A flash on the brown carpeting caught Laurel's eye, and she jumped mid-step to keep from crushing it. "What the -"








The What About / from the author's website

When someone leaves three mystery flowers outside her dorm door,Laurel thinks that maybe the Avondale School isn’t so awful after all — until her own body starts to freak out. In the middle of her English presentation on the Victorian Language of Flowers, strange words pop into her head, and her body seems to tingle and hum. Impulsively, Laurel gives the love bouquet she made to demonstrate the language to her spinster English teacher. When that teacher unexpectedly and immediately finds romance, Laurel suspects that something — something magical — is up.

With her new friend, Kate, she sets out to discover the origins and breadth of her powers by experimenting on herself and others. But she can’t seem to find any living experts in the field of flower powers to guide her. And her bouquets don’t always do her bidding, especially when it comes to her own crush, Justin. Rumors about Laurel and her flowers fly across campus, and she’s soon besieged by requests from girls — both friends and enemies — who want their lives magically transformed — just in time for prom.

The Review / Don't be fooled by the simplistic cover - there is a lot going on in Forget-Her-Nots that will keep you turning the pages to see what exactly is going on with Laurel and the flowers. From the jacket summary (different from the synopsis above), I completely did not pick up on the "magical" vibe - I just figured that the flowers were more like the coffee drinks in The Espressologist and the matchmaking went from there. How far from the truth was I! Laurel comes from a long line of Flowerspeakers with exceptionally sharp noses and magic to transform flowers into charms for love, good luck, memory, and even hate. Without anyone really to guide her properly, Laurel tries to make do with what she knows about the language of flowers but finds herself over her head as some of the bouquets backfire on her classmates - or simply not work as expected.

Forget-Her-Nots proved to be a delightful read full of interesting flower facts. I knew there were meanings behind flowers - but there were tidbits on flower names (e.g. Did you know the flower that Narcissus turned into is now called a daffodil?) and smells of flowers (e.g. Modern breeds of flowers are more on color and size, but wildflowers have more potent smells). I've never been much of a flower person (sheepishly, I will admit that I am more about the colors), but I am actually curious to find out more about flowers after reading Forget-Her-Nots.

On the other hand, I found myself a little frustrated with Laurel - it seemed that she had blinders on when she made her bouquets and never seemed to get the consequences - so enthralled she was with appeasing her classmates or simply thought she knew better. Then when things went horribly wrong, she hid in her bed and alienated the few true friends that she had. I suppose I should be more sympathetic, but I had higher expectations of Laurel to figure it out after the first few mistakes and make more of an effort to learn her powers properly.

I'm not sure if enough time was spent on the Laurel's relationships with the other characters. There were brief glimpses, but nothing that I felt really solid. Perhaps that is indicative of Laurel's introverted nature, but the other characters seemed to have more story to them - and it would have been interesting to catch more than a glimpse! Especially Laurel's grandmother.

Forget-Her-Nots would probably be good if you are looking for a cozy read to curl under the blankets with, but not if you're expected a page-turning action-packed magical mayhem.

---Disclaimer / Library

Friday Friendly Finds (3)

I've really slacked off on anything non-review, but I really wanted to share this awesome blog post that I just read because I think it harbors a lot of interesting thoughts on how our reviews may come across to others without meaning to!

So go check it out!

Ten Cent Notes - Please Be Nicer

BkRv: I don't like violence. I'm a businessman; blood is a big expense.

Book Review / MOB RULES / Cameron Haley

Fantasy | Series Book 1

First Line / Jamal James had been skinned and crucified on the home-built bondage rack in his living room.








The What About / from Publisher's Weekly

Haley's zippy debut introduces Domino Riley, the tough, streetwise lieutenant to 6,000-year-old gang boss Shanar Rashan. ("The LAPD thought he was Turkish. He was actually Sumerian.") When Domino investigates the grisly murder of a low-ranking graffiti mage, a conversation with the victim's ghost reveals that this is no standard gangland rivalry and the sorcerous gang world shadowing the real world is not the only magical game in town. In order to protect her relationship with Rashan's handsome son, Domino is forced to break the careful balance of mob rules, putting herself in increasing danger. A wise-ass jinn in a TV set, a hippie Vietnam vet werewolf, and a warrior-princess piskie round out the highly entertaining cast. Much of the story is series setup, but fast pacing, pungent wit, surprise twists, thoughtful discussions of morality, and escalating, cinematic battles keep the pages turning.

The Review / Okay, dear Readers, I'm not going to lie: While reading MOB RULES, I could not help but picture Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas if magic got thrown in the mix. I used to watch Mr. Z play GTA all the time and sometimes still wonder what it would be like to jump out of the car and into another's as part of hijack hijinks - but I digress. MOB RULES reminded me of the Dante Valentine series and the Merry Gentry series. Domino had Dante's hard-shelled personality and sarcasm by the dozen, while operating under a magical world similar to Merry's with heavy political undertones. Let's face it - the cover pretty much says it all: Doesn't it look like Faith of BtVS fame? 'nough said then.

I never thought long and hard about the gangster's way of life - and it seemed pretty interesting to follow Domino as she went from gangster to private eye to hardcore commander in an all-out gang war.

From page 21 / I'm not a detective. Most gangsters have it in them to do a murder, but it's a rare thing if one of them is clever about it. Elaborate plots and cunning schemes are for normal people. A gangster usually kills a guy because someone else told him to and he thinks he's covered. Mistakes get made - gangsters are prone to them - and that's where I step in. There isn't a mystery to solve, just an error to be corrected.

From page 74 / Those were the rules of the underworld. Mob rules. Good and bad, right and wrong - those are problems for other people, normal people. Strong or weak? That was the question that mattered for a gangster. Survive. Pick a side and do whatever it takes to win.

MOB RULES was not what I expected - I think I was looking for more Raine Benares light-hearted fun, but Domino did not seem to be a marshmallow-on-the-inside sort of person. She was pretty straightforward, knew her job and knew how to survive on the streets where drugs and death seemed commonplace. It was actually fun to see how her magic functioned! She would use Wikipedia or FriendTrace.com to search for unknown magical items or connect with dead for further interrogation. She would use a famous quote or saying to make things happen like find a parking spot or weave through traffic.

In the end, MOB RULES surprised me though - always a plus - and I am a little curious to see where the sequel will take Domino. Yet I am not sure if I want to be friends with Domino just quite yet - perhaps I'll warm up to her in a month or so...

---Disclaimer / Library

BkRv: Fangs you for not sucking!

Book Review / Still Sucks To Be Me: More All-True Confessions of Mina Hamilton Smith, Teen Vampire / Kimberly Pauley

YA | Girls | Vampires | Series Book 2

First Line / I, Mina Hamilton, am officially dead. Officially, officially. You name it, I've got it: death certificate (which I'm not allowed to keep in a scrapbook, per the Vampire Relocation Agency rules), obituary in the paper (depressingly short, if I do say so myself, and ditto on the scrapbooking), and a funeral. A funeral, in which, incidentally, my family's personal VRA goon, Josh, would not let me attend.









The What About / from the publisher

With vampire boyfriend George and best friend Serena by her side, Mina thought she had her whole life—or rather afterlife—ahead of her. But then Mina’s parents drop a bomb. They’re moving. To Louisiana. And not somewhere cool like New Orleans, but some teeny, tiny town where cheerleaders and jocks rule the school. Mina has to fake her death, change her name, and leave everything behind, including George and Serena. Not even the Vampire Council’s shape-shifting classes can cheer her up. Then Serena shows up on Mina’s doorstep with some news that sends Mina reeling. Mina may look a lot better with fangs, but her afterlife isn’t any less complicated!

The Review / After having such fond memories of Sucks To Be Me, I kind of put off the sequel for fear of being let down - to me, Mina seemed like a one-book wonder and I wanted to remember her as the teenager with a biting sense of humor on the brink of turning vampire. I was also afraid that I'd have trouble with jumping back into Mina's world after being out of it for so long.

Imagine my delight to see that Mina - though 100% vampire now - still is her rockin' snarky self! and provides such hilarious lists of sucky things as well as those debunked vampire myths with those adorable illustrations!

Still Sucks To Be Me is such a fun book, much like its predecessor, although the supporting cast did not seem to have much presence in this book. The new characters, especially the dreamboat Cameron and tightly-wound Kacie, proved to be quite the troublemakers in Mina's world! What is it with gorgeous boys who have mysterious pasts, smells all too delicious, and helps a girl out? Too bad Mina already has George - though a long-distance relationship was not how she pictured them to be!

Without question, Kimberly Pauley has created Mina with such spunk and lovability that I will not hesitate to pick up the next book (if there is to be one!) - Still Sucks To Be Me continues to not suck and rather demands to be enjoyed down to the last bite!

---Disclaimer / Library

BkRv: Hex is SOOOOO fetch!

Book Review / Hex Hall / Rachel Hawkins

YA | Girls | Fantasy | Series Book 1

First Line / Felicia Miller was crying in the bathroom. Again.









The What About / From the publisher

Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It’s gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie’s estranged father—an elusive European warlock—only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it’s her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

The Review / Hex Hall - how do I even begin to describe it? Like Mean Girls if the witches were actually witches. And, since I was fresh from reading My So-Called Death, the story seemed vaguely familiar - main character befriends outcast schoolmate who might be the murderer and crushes on a boy who might be the murderer instead - but Hex Hall still sparkled on its own and charmed the reading daylights out of me!

Sophie has got to be one of my favorite characters - she said the most hilarious things that made me chuckle! If anything, I would highly recommend Hex Hall for all the tongue-in-cheek humor that will surely tickle you silly :)

Page 8 / after Sophie's attempt to turn Felicia's misery into a Cinderella prom
"It's okay, baby!" [most popular guy] shouted after her. "I don't need eyes to see you! I see you with the eyes of my heart, Felicia! My HEART!"

Great. Not only was my spell too strong, it was also lame.

Page 33 /
The "Holy-crap-that's-a-lot-of-pink" Zone would have been a more accurate description.

I don't know what I was expecting a vampire's room to look like. Maybe lots of black, a bunch of books by Camus...oh, and a sensitive portrait of the only human the vamp had ever loved, who had no doubt died of something beautiful and tragic, thus dooming the vamp to an eternity of moping and sighing romantically.

What can I say? I read a lot of books.

But this room looked like it had been decorated by the unholy love child of Barbie and Strawberry Shortcake.

Page 52 /
"Whoa!" I held up my hand. "Necromancers? Like, power over dead things?"

All three girls nodded eagerly, like I'd just suggested going to the mall instead of raising zombies.

"Ew!" I exclaimed without thinking.

If the tickle-me-humor doesn't convince you, then let me say that Sophie and Archer (said gorgeous warlock) promises to scorch your socks off! I cannot wait for the sequel to see how these two will butt heads even though their hearts want to beat as one! While their interactions are far and few between - and occasionally I would like more explanation as to why Archer chose to be engaged to the Queen Mean Girl, I still believed the delicious tension between Sophie and Archer that Rachel Hawkins created!

Page 118 /
On the upside, my crush on Archer was totally gone. Over. Once a boy has slammed his kneecap into your rib cage, I think any romantic feelings should naturally go the way of the ghost.

Page 154 /
"Archer isn't hot anymore," I'd fired back. "He tried to kill me, and his girlfriend is Satan."

But I have to admit that as we stood beside each other on the cellar steps and listened to the Vandy ramble on about what we were supposed to do down there, I couldn't help but sneak sideways glances at him and notice that, homicidal tendencies and evil girlfriends aside, he was still hot.

And if the humor and romance does not intrigue you, let me say that the Hex Hall definitely has a whole lot going on in the Department of Intrigue. Just who exactly is out for blood - and how many more people will die before Sophie can uncover the culprit? In retrospect, I think I sorta knew what was coming, but gladly went along for the ride as Sophie figured it all out.

In short, I totally loved Hex Hall - not what I expected from its rather blah cover - and cannot wait for its sequel Demonglass (which has a totally awesome cover, by the by)!

---Disclaimer / Library

BkRv: D-lightfully d-licious

Book Review / The Dark Divine / Bree Despain

YA | Girl | Fantasy | Series Book 1

First Line / prelude

Blood fills my mouth. Fire sears my veins. I choke back a howl. The silver knife slips - the choice is mine.

I am death or life. I am salvation or destruction. Angel or demon. I am grace.

I plunge in the knife.

This is my sacrifice - I am the monster.

The What About / from the publisher

Grace Divine, daughter of the local pastor, always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared--the night she found her brother Jude collapsed on the porch, covered in blood--but she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night held.

The memories her family has tried to bury resurface when Daniel returns, three years later, and enrolls in Grace and Jude's high school. Despite promising Jude she'll stay away, Grace cannot deny her attraction to Daniel's shocking artistic abilities, his way of getting her to look at the world from new angles, and the strange, hungry, glint in his eyes.

The closer Grace gets to Daniel, the more she jeopardizes her life, as her actions stir resentment in Jude and drive him to embrace the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind the boys' dark secret...and the cure that can save the ones she loves. But she may have to lay down the ultimate sacrifice to do it--her soul.

The Review / How about that opening passage? Definitely whets my appetite and made my curiosity devour the book whole! Again, another book where I was not sure what was going on from the summary (what gives, publisher, what gives?!) - and not only that, but the cover does not give any clues except I can expect something gorgeous to unfurl within the pages.

Which something gorgeous definitely came in by way of The Dark Divine. Full of tantalizing romance, mysterious danger, and a holy-cow-what-an-ending ending, I think Bree Despain has made werewolves the new "it" supernatural. Why did I not read this sooner?! Probably because I knew there was a sequel and could not bear it if I had to wait long to find out what happens (not really, but seriously I seem to read certain books right before their sequels come out).

I would not have guessed the supernatural nature of The Dark Divine during the beginning parts of the book. For all I knew, it was simply about the pastor's girl falling in love with the town's black sheep despite the warnings from everyone including her parents and brother. I was a little confused on how this all related to the cover and my impression that this was a fantasy sort of book. Yet I fell in love with Grace and her thirst to redeem Daniel without knowing why he left town and why her brother absolutely hated him now when they used to be best friends.

From page 24 / [B]ut I was sick and tired of excusing his behavior. Like when he'd steal food out of my sack lunches, or whenever his teasing got too intense, or when he'd forget to return my art supplies - I'd chalk it up to all the stuff he'd been through in his life and let it slide. But I wouldn't excuse how he'd crept back into my life just long enough to cause me to disappoint my parents, upset my brother, ditch out on Pete, bomb a quiz, and potentially fail my chemistry test. I felt so stupid, wasting my time thinking about him, and now he didn't even have the decency to show up. Now I really wanted to see him one more time. Just long enough to tell him off...or smack his face...or something worse.

But that is only half the tale, dear Readers. Werewolves, in case you did not know, is what The Dark Divine champions with alluring grace. How so, you might ask? I won't spoil the story any further, but trust me, The Dark Divine is not simply about a good girl/bad boy romance - it gets more intense than that! Try soul-challenging, ultimate test of love and faith, salvation and damnation, and all that good stuff that we like in books!

Long story short, The Dark Divine is so deliciously devourable that I'm still dreaming about Daniel and how perfect he is and wondering anxiously about how Grace's life will be changed in The Lost Saint.

Furthermore, if you have an e-reader (or I think you can read e-books on your computer still), you can check out The Dark Divine for less than $3 until 11/22! Definitely a consideration if you're not sure that you'll love it (but I'm fairly certain you will!) :)

---Disclaimer / Library

BkRv: Hush, little Nora, don't you cry

Book Review / hush, hush / Becca Fitzpatrick

YA | Girls | Fantasy | Series Book 1


First Line / from Chapter 1

I walked into Biology and my jaw fell open. Mysteriously adhered to the chalkboard was a Barbie doll, with Ken at her side. They'd been forced to link arms and were naked except for artificial leaves placed in a few choice locations. Scribbled above their heads in thick pink chalk was the invitation: WELCOME TO HUMAN REPRODUCTION (SEX)

The What About / from the publisher

For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along.

With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

The Review / I have mixed feelings after reading hush, hush, and I will refrain total judgment until I read its recently-released sequel Crescendo. I loved Patch - and Patch definitely nails "mysterious bad boy" with flying colors. He is like Buffy's Spike with potential redemption written all over his gorgeous self!

From page 305 / I knew Patch lived a life of closed doors and harbored secrets. I wasn't presumptuous enough to think even half of them revolved around me. Patch lived a different life outside the one he shared with me. More than once I'd speculated what his other life might be like. I always got the feeling that the less I knew about it, the better.

[Patch:] "Keep in mind that people change, but the past doesn't."

Moving past the gushiness, I think there was too many evil villains running amok - which is the point, I admit - but all had backstories that I would've liked to have time to digest before dodging the next bullet. I'm sure Nora probably felt the same way! From one death-defying experience to the next, everyone started to look like they were out to get Nora for one reason or another. But as far as how villainous the characters were - Becca Fitzpatrick had quite a diverse crew!

I think the tricky part about hush, hush was that I didn't know what I was getting myself into exactly. The publisher summary feels like a generic anything-could-be-happening promise with no mentions of angels - which surprises me since the cover practically screams it to the high heavens. So I knew the story involved angels somehow, but Patch and Nora's involvement was a long and drawn-out process of uncovering. It was different to read about high school this-or-that and not jump immediately into the fantasy portion - at least, that's how it felt for me.

My favorite parts of the book was when Patch was driving Nora nuts. Tickle me silly, but I absolutely love it when the boy and girl bicker at each other, but deep down they loooooooooove each other. Or it could be that I just like the bad boys who can get under the skin so easily! And perhaps I'm speaking from a green-eyed perspective, but I don't think Nora deserved to have Patch and his awesomeness - at least, not in this book!

Anyhow, going to check out Crescendo for sure and see if Nora has earned Patch's devotion! ;)

---Disclaimer / Library