BkRv: Heart, stars, and horseshoes, clovers and blue moons

Book Review / 

Ultraviolet
by R.J. Anderson - @rj_anderson




YA | Supernatural

First Line / Once upon a time there was a girl who was special. Her hair flowed like honey and her eyes were blue as music.

 








Summary / from the author website

Sixteen-year-old Alison has been sectioned in a mental institute for teens, having murdered the most perfect and popular girl at school. But the case is a mystery: no body has been found, and Alison's condition is proving difficult to diagnose. Alison herself can't explain what happened: one minute she was fighting with Tori -- the next she disintegrated. Into nothing. But that's impossible. Right?

Review / I have not read R.J. Anderson’s Faery series yet, but if it is anything like Ultraviolet, I may finally get around to it sooner than later because Ultraviolet really blew my mind away and I desperately need more!

The start of Ultraviolet reminds me of The Summoning with a set-up where the main character ends up psych institute that may not have her best interests in mind. However, there are no ghosts or werewolves or witchery – only real people with real mental conditions with a dash of the extraordinary. Right from the start, readers get immersed in Alison’s story and follow her as she tries to piece together what happened and understand why no one can see and taste colors like she can.

I love how the chapters got labeled like in a special spectrum that pertained to Alison’s progress – and it heightened my anticipation for what happened next.

Everyone in Ultraviolet had a secret or two, and just when you thought you had people figured out and characters you just can’t live without, R.J. Anderson pulls the rug from under you and throws you in a few loops! She does it in such an way that, even though certain characters may have fallen out of favor, these same characters still have redeeming qualities. Alison may not trust them any longer, but she knows that they mean well – just stay far away from her!

By the time I reached the ultimate truth about Tori’s disappearance, R.J. Anderson had me so invested in the story that I was able to suspend reality and believe anything she dished out – no matter how far-fetched! This may sound rather vague, but trust me – Ultraviolet may seem nothing out of the ordinary at first, but it will sneak its way into your brain and throw all your beliefs to the stars!

Amazing. Flavorful. Colorful. Like a bag of Skittles, Ultraviolet will taste like a rainbow.

---Disclaimer / NetGalley
---RELEASED SEPTEMBER 2011 BY CAROLRHODA LAB (LERNER PUBLISHING)

Monday Mini(BkRv) :: 71 - 72

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Book Review /  Legacy
by Cayla Kluver - @CaylaKL




YA | Fantasy | Series Book 1

First Line (eARC) / The first boy disappeared on the day of his birth, on a night when the pale yellow moon that ruled the sky turned red and bathed the heavens in the ghastly color of blood, the same night the Empire of Cokyri abruptly ceased its merciless attack.

Princess Alera is too young to recall a time when her kingdom had not been at peace, but when a Cokyrian breaches the castle grounds with questionable motives, she gets a quick history lesson about the horrific war 16 years ago that ended with the death of newborns. No sooner was the Cokyrian captured, however, did the enemy manage to escape! Alera wants to find more about it, but her father feels that she should focus her pretty, little head on deciding which suitor to marry and leave all the war concerns to him. Too bad all the suitors are either boring or full of themselves – and the only boy that Alera finds remotely interesting is the Narian who had been kidnapped by the Cokyrians during the war and recently escaped from their clutches.

Review / I have mixed feelings on Legacy – on the one hand, the story has much potential and piqued my curiosity for the world that Carla Kluver created; on the other hand, I did not particularly care for the characters themselves. Told from Princess Alera’s perspective, I did not connect with her and she came across as a little immature to expect herself able to run a kingdom, despite her father’s misgivings. If she had demonstrated more efforts to prove her worth as a ruler instead of simply resisting her father’s approved suitor, I would have seen more reason to her reluctance. I wish that we had more of Narian - the enemy who challenges Alera to fight against the norm of thinking women as the weaker sex. The ending is quite abrupt – I thought it was a rather awkward point of the story to end on - just when Alera's heart begins to break! I hope the characters kick it up a notch or two in time for the sequel because, if not, I don’t know if the story will be enough for me to continue on.

---Disclaimer / NetGalley
---RELEASED JUNE 2011 BY HARLEQUIN TEEN (HARLEQUIN)
---OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES: ALLEGIANCE, SACRIFICE

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Book Review /  Pies & Prejudice
by Heather Vogel Frederick - @none found




MG | Series Book 4

First Line / Jess stares at me in disbelief. “What do you mean, you’re moving to England?”

The mother-daughter book club goes international with one of its duo goes across the pond for a year. What better book to discuss than Pride & Prejudice – and what better way to hold weekly discussion than webcams? In the States, Jess, Cassidy, and Megan must face freshman year with a pining heart, figure skates instead of hockey sticks, and an anonymous Austen-esque fashion blog, respectively. The 2 British boys who replace their friend are NOT making high school any easier. Emma, on the other hand, is making the best of her last-minute move to England, but the queen bee Annabelle is set on making it memorable in the worst possible way. Will the book club survive the distance – or will they crumble like pies topped with shaving cream?

Review / Pies & Prejudice sounds cute and it IS cute, but if you are expected a modern-day P&P this is not that sort of book. It is actually a 4th book in a series, although I felt that it could stand on its own merits. Previous books would simply serve to build relationships with these girls and their family. What threw me off was the story was told in 4 different voices. They didn’t seem very distinctive from each other, so I had to go back to the chapter heading to double-check the narrator every once in a while. I also found myself favoring certain storylines over others, which doesn’t allow for a smooth reading in case you are wondering. Pies & Prejudice definitely works to stimulate discussion between mothers and young daughters, especially in a book club, and I think this series is a neat idea!

---Disclaimer / Bought
---RELEASED SEPTEMBER 2010 BY SIMON & SCHUSTER'S CHILDREN

---OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES: THE MOTHER-DAUGHTER BOOK CLUB, MUCH ADO ABOUT ANNE, DEAR PEN PAL

BkRv: Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go unscrew my smile!

Book Review /  Beauty Queens
by Libba Bray - @libbabray




YA | Girls

First Line / This book begins with a plane crash. We do not want you to worry about this.

 








Summary / from the B&N website

From bestselling, Printz Award-winning author Libba Bray, the story of a plane of beauty pageant contestants that crashes on a desert island.

Teen beauty queens. A "Lost"-like island. Mysteries and dangers. No access to emall. And the spirit of fierce, feral competition that lives underground in girls, a savage brutality that can only be revealed by a journey into the heart of non-exfoliated darkness. Oh, the horror, the horror! Only funnier. With evening gowns. And a body count.

Review / Wow. I may not have been a crazy stalker fan of Libba Bray beforehand (the Gemma Doyle series didn’t do anything for me – yes, you may duct-tape me now), but I think Beauty Queens has me wondering what crazy schemes this author will cook up next because I’m pretty sure that I will be in that serving line! Even if it is chicken-tasting grub from some random island.

I realize that this book may not be for everyone – I wasn’t even 1% sure if Beauty Queens would be my cup of tea. Yes, I was that uncertain of it. I kept glancing at the book in the bookstores, admiring the lipstick bullet belt concept, but unsure if I was ready for a leap of faith. So I borrowed it from the library and took the book out for a spin…

And holy smokes! Did Beauty Queens grab my attention from the get-go and shook me silly in a similar fashion that Miss Congeniality did? Except 200% more to the power of infinity and whatever goes beyond that? I think flying toasters might be involved in the beyond.

As far-fetched as Beauty Queens may sound, Libba Bray really applies her witty parody quite liberally like sunscreen – and I loved all her shout-outs and snark-outs that celebrated (or eulogized) all things pop culture. Everything was outrageous – everything, that is, except the message that it is okay to be yourself, even if that includes a little crazy or ugly or random. I cannot imagine how much FUN Ms. Bray had with re-inventing the world of pop culture because they are truly quite clever!

What really impressed me with Beauty Queens is how the girls were introduced to the readers via pageant bios and then the next chapter focused on digging deep into what makes them tick, even though everything was told in third-person. It really gave me enough time to connect with each girl and then gradually tie them as one large group into the main story arc. With so many characters to juggle around and decide who gets centerstage for certain moments, I give props to Libba Bray for managing to find a way to make it easy for the readers to befriend the characters. It almost felt like 4 years of high school with a class of 200+ individuals – you start off as strangers, but leave as one big family.

I think Libba Bray may very well be the next Douglas Adams or Joseph Heller in my book. Not a whole lot of authors can serve such a ridiculous dish of random that makes me clutch my stomach from laughing too hard and yet I couldn’t stop from devouring the pages!

And for your reading pleasure (in truth, this is for my own because I probably inhaled a pepperoni up my nose when I read this snippet), bar none my favoritest quote from the book because the delivery is GOLDEN:

”I count the time like my hemorrhoids.”
”TMI, MoMo.”
”TMI to you, too, my darling.”

Please excuse me while I ROFL with pepperoni up my nose. (Dear Readers, you may just want to go out and try this random slice of paradise.)

---Disclaimer / Library - but SO going to buy my own copy - and maybe a spare :D

---RELEASED MAY 2011 BY SCHOLASTIC PRESS (SCHOLASTIC)

BkRv: The most powerful force in the universe is gossip

Book Review /  The Babysitter Murders
by Janet Ruth Young - @JanetRuthYoung




YA | Contemporary

First Line (eARC - from Chapter 2; Chapter 1 is MyFace profile) / Dani Solomon babysits for a boy named Alex Draper three times a week.

 








Summary / from the Publishers Weekly

In this provocative exploration of a community's response to the mere possibility of a horrific crime, Young employs elements from her first book, The Opposite of Music: the present-tense narrative; the Hawthorne, Mass., setting; and the reassuring presence of Gordy Abt, who appears as the boyfriend of 17-year-old Dani Solomon, who is worried because she has TMI—Too Much Imagination. It comes out in daydreams about mocking (and harming) her mother, outing her best friend, and even killing the little boy she babysits. Dani both wants reassurance that she's not a murderer at heart and to escape these frightening, persistent thoughts, but she can't find the words to explain how she's feeling to the people closest to her. When her secret does finally emerge, the repercussions change many lives, even those of people Dani has never known. Young's writing style is assured, and the tension stays high throughout, as local reaction escalates, complete with tabloid headlines, a cesspool of Internet commentary, and the threat of vigilantism. It's a realistic and disturbing look at our cultural response to mental illness.

Review / I have to be honest and say that I was a little nervous about reading The Babysitter Murders – the title alone makes one come to an abrupt stop when browsing the bookshelves. What a daring and startling story that Janet Ruth Young has written! To be sure, The Babysitter Murders still continues to linger in my mind and has changed how I read or watch the news – for the better.

The story concept is unquestionably disturbing as readers get a look inside Dani’s head, but it is obvious that Dani also finds her thoughts unsettling and prefers to not have them in the first place. This slows readers down from casting Dani into a villain’s role and wonder what exactly is going on. The constant debate of whether Dani will be innocent or guilty keeps the pages turning – and the curiosity nearly explodes as Dani tries to figure out how to avoid the inevitable temptation.

I cannot go into too much detail without destroying the carefully-knotted story, but when Dani finally faces the point of no return, what happens next makes me sick to my stomach. Oh, how quickly the media pounces, how swiftly the cry for justice sounds, how wildly the panic spreads, how prematurely Chicken Little runs about before the sky actually falls… If there had been any hope for Dani to get help for this sickness, assuredly it has been crushed by the bloodthirsty public who wants her head on a platter.

In her defense, Dani does attemp to reach out to those closest to her for help – which is incredibly brave on her part – although she does not spell her concerns out explicitly. The Babysitter Murders makes me wonder how I would react if Dani had told me what was going on. What happens if my best friend confides in me about thoughts on wanting to murder someone – seriously – and needs my help to stop her from doing so? I am ashamed to say that I would probably back away slowly and hightail it to somewhere safe. How else does one react? How does a PARENT react when their child approaches them? Obviously I am out of my depths, but if someone I loved had this issue, I should be able to acknowledge their cry for help as a GOOD sign and not ditch them.

The Babysitter Murders reminds me a little of shine where a singular news event affects the entire town and the truth is not as black-and-white as the typeface on the paper wants you to believe. It definitely cautions readers from jumping to conclusions and reminding them that even the worst stories have two sides to them.

---Disclaimer / GalleyGrab

---RELEASED JULY 2011 BY SIMON & SCHUSTER BFYR

Monday Mini(BkRv) :: 69 - 70

:: 69 ::

Book Review /  crazy beautiful
by Lauren Baratz-Logsted - @LaurenBaratzL




YA | Contemporary

First Line /
[LUCIUS] My arms rises toward my face and the pincer touch of cold steel rubs against my jaw.
I chose hooks because they were cheaper.
I chose hooks because I wouldn’t outgrow them so quickly.
I chose hooks so that everyone would know I was different, so I would scare even myself.

Sophomore year should be a piece of cake –not quite the upperclassmen, but no longer the underdogs – but for new boy Lucius, the cake may very well end up on his face. His parents thought a new school would give him a fresh start, but if his hooks don’t scare his classmates away, Lucius expects his closed-mouth personality would do the job. On the other hand, he cannot help but envy new girl Aurora who seems to be getting cake served on a platter. She is like a Disney princess with bluebirds singing and silverware dancing, and what’s more is that Lucius wants to be her Prince Charming for no other reason except that deep down he knows her even though they’ve never crossed paths before. The only problem with the whole thing is: Will he ever get sha-la-la-la close enough to kiss the girl before she runs away screaming at the sight of him?

Review / I remember when crazy beautiful was first making the rounds through the blogosphere (has it really been 2 years?!) and falling in love with the cover – but after reading it now, I have a small wish that the hooks had been included somehow. They symbolize so much for Lucius – the boy he had been, the anger, the turmoil, the reminder of all he has to live with and come to terms with – shouldn’t that be cover-worthy? The dual perspectives worked for the story. It was mostly Lucius’s story – but I think that Aurora’s interjections softened up the story, and it helped to make her more relatable and less “vision of perfection.” crazy beautiful was crazy-short, crazy-sweet, and crazy-simple – but it totally works and makes me want to cuddle with it for a while longer!

---Disclaimer / Library
---RELEASED SEPTEMBER 2009 BY HOUGHTON MIFFLIN (HMH)

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Book Review /  By His Majesty's Grace
by Jennifer Blake - @jenniferblake01




Romance | Historical | Series Book 1

First Line (eARC) / Braesford was finally sighted in late afternoon.

Those who court any of the 3 Grace sisters also court Death, so goes the rumored family curse. Lady Isabel thought herself safe from unwanted suitors until King Henry VII gives her away to Earl Rand Braesford as a reward for his loyalty. Blessings seem to be raining upon Rand it seems – the king’s high favor, a well-dowried marriage, and a most beautiful wife. As the couple start to warm up to each other, they are torn apart again as Rand gets arrested for murder and thrown into the Tower. Will Isabel and Rand’s love manage to conquer the curse – or will Death win this round?

Review / By His Majesty's Grace spent more time on historical than romance, or so it seemed to me, like a historical fiction with sexy times sprinkled throughout – instead of the other way around. I had glimpsed at the connection between Isabel and Rand when they first meet each other, but lost sight of their passion and personality as the story became immersed in court intrigue. I am used to reading Regency romance, so I was curious to see how things heated up during the Tudor era. A little awkward at times when it came to passion (a few creative "strutted" descriptions that I had to pause and wonder about). I did find it rather cute to learn how the color of clothing can be used to indicate one’s affection.

---Disclaimer / NetGalley
---RELEASED JULY 2011 BY MIRA BOOKS
---OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES: BY GRACE POSSESSED, SEDUCED BY GRACE