Wednesday, December 31, 2014

December Wrap Up!

Happy Holidays!

Viviane of Hebel Designs & I at YALLFest 2014

   December was definitely one of the busiest months I've had in a while, obviously because Christmas but it was among a few other things. Being broke from YALLFest did not help make Christmas shopping any easier, but in the end I think I did well. Signed Maze Runner for one sister, and America's Songbird necklace (The Selection) for the other.  I bought the necklace from the lovely Hebel Designs, I adore Vivane's  jewellery! (Viviane is the owner and designer of the website.)  I also got a few of her things for Christmas as well, I got Layla's Necklace (Dark Elements) and an Obsidian Necklace (Lux Series).  I actually got to meet Viviane at YALLFest 2014, she was such a sweetie. I think I may have actually surprised her when I asked for a photo aha. Alongside the jewellery I also got a stack of books! (Obviously) Besides all of that nothing really happened this month, next month on the other hand....
   The 3rd of January is my blogiversary! This past year I've been terrible when it comes planning things a head of time, BUT I for sure will have at least one pendant giveaway going! I'm trying to go for one on my blog and one on Twitter! So we'll see how that goes! New Years is also here and I can't wait to see what 2015 has to come! I hope you guys all enjoyed 2014 as much as I did!                                                                                       That's all for this month! Now for the bookish stats! 



Books Read in December:



January Books I'm Excited For:



Book Haul for December:

Books Reviewed:




Movies Reviewed:



   What does your month look like? What are your plans for the new year? I'd love to hear from you!




Waiting on Wednesday (24)


The Ruby Circle

Author: Richelle Mead
Bloodlines #6
Razorbill
Expected: February 10th, 2015


Description from GoodReads:


    Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

   After their secret romance is exposed, Sydney and Adrian find themselves facing the wrath of both the Alchemists and the Moroi in this electrifying conclusion to Richelle Mead’s New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series. When the life of someone they both love is put on the line, Sydney risks everything to hunt down a deadly former nemesis. Meanwhile, Adrian becomes enmeshed in a puzzle that could hold the key to a shocking secret about spirit magic, a secret that could shake the entire Moroi world.


Why I Want It:


     I NEED ME SOME MARRIED SYDRIAN! asdfghjkl


Why You Should Want It:


   This series, along with the original series, Vampire Academy will have you on your toes at all times. Both are some of my favourite series ever, and I can never get enough of them. Richelle Mead is an automatic buy in my book.



   That's my Waiting on Wednesday for this week! Will you being picking up The Ruby Circle? What are you waiting on this week? Let me know in the comments!



Sunday, December 28, 2014

Book Review: The Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Lux: Beginnings


Release Date: June 3rd, 2014
Read: October 26-29th, 2014
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Series: Lux #1-2
Format: Paperback, 800 pages
Source: Bought



Description from GoodReads:


   Obsidian
   There’s an alien next door. And with his looming height and eerie green eyes, he’s hot…until he opens his mouth. He’s infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, he marks me. Turns out he has a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal his abilities and the only way I’m getting out of this alive is by sticking close to him until my alien mojo fades. If I don’t kill him first, that is.

   Onyx
   Daemon’s determined to prove what he feels for me is more than a product of our bizarro connection. So I’ve sworn him off, even though he’s running more hot than cold these days. But we’ve got bigger problems. I’ve seen someone who shouldn’t be alive. And I have to tell Daemon, even though I know he’s never going to stop searching until he gets the truth. What happened to his brother? Who betrayed him? And what does the DOD want from them—from me?


Lux: Consequences


Release Date: June 3rd, 2014
Read: November 2nd- 9th, 2014
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Series: Lux #3-4
Format: Paperback, 800 pages
Source: Bought



Description from GoodReads:


   Opal
   After everything, I’m no longer the same Katy. I’m different... And I’m not sure what that will mean in the end. When each step we take in discovering the truth puts us in the path of the secret organization responsible for torturing and testing hybrids, the more I realize there is no end to what I’m capable of. The death of someone close still lingers, help comes from the most unlikely source, and friends will become the deadliest of enemies, but we won’t turn back. Even if the outcome will shatter our worlds forever.

   Together we’re stronger... and they know it.


   Origin
   Daemon will do anything to get Katy back.

   After the successful but disastrous raid on Mount Weather, he’s facing the impossible. Katy is gone. Taken. Everything becomes about finding her. Taking out anyone who stands in his way? Done. Burning down the whole world to save her? Gladly. Exposing his alien race to the world? With pleasure.

   All Katy can do is survive.

   Surrounded by enemies, the only way she can come out of this is to adapt. After all, there are sides of Daedalus that don’t seem entirely crazy, but the group’s goals are frightening and the truths they speak even more disturbing. Who are the real bad guys? Daedalus? Mankind? Or the Luxen?

   Together, they can face anything. 

   But the most dangerous foe has been there all along, and when the truths are exposed and the lies come crumbling down, which side will Daemon and Katy be standing on? 

   And will they even be together?



Lux: Opposition


Release Date: August 5th, 2014
Read: December 26th-26th, 2014
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Series: Lux #5 ( + Prequel Novella) 
Format: Paperback, 534 pages
Source: Gift



Description from GoodReads: 


   Katy knows the world changed the night the Luxen came.

   She can't believe Daemon welcomed his race or stood by as his kind threatened to obliterate every last human and hybrid on Earth. But the lines between good and bad have blurred, and love has become an emotion that could destroy her—could destroy them all.

   Daemon will do anything to save those he loves, even if it means betrayal.

   They must team with an unlikely enemy if there is any chance of surviving the invasion. But when it quickly becomes impossible to tell friend from foe, and the world is crumbling around them, they may lose everything— even what they cherish most—to ensure the survival of their friends…and mankind.

   War has come to Earth. And no matter the outcome, the future will never be the same for those left standing. 


Review:


   You do realize I love a challenge.
   I first heard of the Lux series from my friend Jessica over at Stuck in Books, at one point she had spiked my interest to an extreme. I had to read Obsidian, there was only one problem. I could not for the life of me find it in any of my local and non local store, it seemed that fate did not want me to find a copy. That was perhaps a year and a half ago. In I believe was March 2014 the publishing announced that they were going to take the already published books in the series and bind them up into two separate books, two books in each bind up. This was to pump readers up for the finally book in the series that was going to be released August 2014. I thought this would be my chance to snag myself a copy! Of course I could only ever find the second bind up, it was until 2 weeks before YALLFest 2014 was I able to find both bind ups. (Jennifer was to be at YALLFest that year) I had bought the first and the second one separate, but I adored Obsidian so much that maybe 5 days after I finished it along side Onyx that I rushed out and snagged myself a copy of Consequences.
  I loved Katy within seconds, for a couple of reasons. One, she was a book blogger like me, two her personality reminded me of me. I guess you could say I could easily relate to her. Her blogger activities were almost the exact same as mine right to the point where she gets ancy when she doesn't get a post published. Then when it came to her in general her habits were the same as well, and example would be all ways worrying about her friends and family. Katy was my favourite character throughout the whole series, one because of of who she was as a person and second for how much character growth we saw from her in the five books.
  Daemon...hmmmmm.... hot dang. That boy was steamy. He was a character Katy would have been able to pluck right out of one of her YA novels. His looks, his arrogance and finally when he's with the right people he's the caring and adoring boy everyone wants to have a piece of. He was fictionally perfect, his need to protect Katy was the most flawless of it it. Every girl should have their own Daemon to trip over themselves for. I know I sure do, my heart beats out of control just at the thought of having my own Daemon.
   Besides characters, the storyline for the Lux Series was incredible. The Luxen, The Arum, the obsidian, the opal, I can go on forever. The world building was one of the best I've seen in a while, it was all so simple and sweet. It pulled me in immediately. Not too mention having it alongside Jennifer's writing style. Jennifer used sentences that you think would be unprofessional to have in a  novel but they were exactly what the story needed. I don't think many people realize that yet.
   So much happens in all of the different Lux books, but Onyx would definitely have to be my favourite. Katy and Daemon are just on the verge of realizing that they have a thing for each other, so obviously cute little things happen. From Daemon going out of his way to bring back old traditions of Katy's from when her dad was still alive to beating up Katy's bullies. My all time favourite scene ever. EVER. Was when Daemon slept over night in Katy's bed and promised to be gone in the morning but got a little too comfortable and forgot to leave. So Katy's mom walked in on them sleeping in the same bed together, the giggle fit I had after that was uncontrollable.  I could not stop until my sister finally hit me, telling me to shut up!
   The Lux series has without a doubt become one of my all time favourite series ever, I'm still dying inside at the thought of it being over. Jennifer sure knows the way to my heart, with the Lux series being over I'll just have to settle for her Dark Elements series or anything else she writes in the future. Obviously I won't actually be settling with any of her other books, because they are all fabulous. It will be an honour to have these books on my book shelves to admire for the rest of eternity. *Swoons*

   Thank you so much Jessica for introducing me to the series, introducing the Lux series into my life was one of the best decisions I've made in a long time.


Overall Rating:



Favourite Quotes:


   "I was always able to lose myself in reading. Books were a necessary escape I always gladly jumped into headfirst.” ~ Katy, Obsidian

   " He throat worked slowly. "Can I just hold you?" There was a pause and my heart stuttered. "Can I just hold you? That's all... That's all I want." ~ Daemon, Onyx

   "I love you, Katy. Always have. Always will.”  ~ Daemon, Opal

   "I really liked this form of punishment." ~ Katy, Opal

   " I think you’re drooling a little." ~ Origin

 

Recommend to People Who Enjoy:


Young Adult, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Aliens



   What did you think of the Lux Series? Did you adore it too? You just have to let me know what you think about it! Either here or on Twitter, I'd love to have another person to talk about the series with!




Friday, December 26, 2014

Book Review: Eternal by C.C Hunter

Release Date: October 28th, 2014
Read: December 2nd- December 24th, 2014
Publisher: St. Marten's Griffin 
Series: Shadow Falls: After Dark #2
Format: Paperback, 386 Pages
Source: Received from publisher in exchange for honest review.



Description from GoodReads:


   All her life, Della's secret powers have made her feel separated from her human family. Now, she's where she belongs, at Shadow Falls. With the help of her best friends Kylie and Miranda, she’ll try to prove herself in the paranormal world as an investigator—all the while trying to figure out her own heart. Should she chose Chase, a powerful vampire with whom she shares a special bond? Or Steve, the hot shapeshifter whose kisses make her weak in the knees? When a person with dark connection to her past shows up, it’ll help her decide which guy to choose–and make her question everything she knows about herself. 


Review:


   Ready or not, here we come.
   After Shadow Falls ended, I was heartbroken. I needed to know how their lives went on, Kylie and Lucas, Miranda and Perry, Holiday and the baby. Shadow Falls: After Dark was another chance at living the lives of those wonderful characters. Everything we wanted more of, we got.
   The only thing with both Reborn and Eternal, was that I felt like I couldn't connect with Della as well as I did with Kylie. There was too much tension going on that I felt like there was a barrier between Della and I. I did enjoy learning more about Della's secretive family, she just does not click with me like Kylie did.
   In the first Shadow Falls we had Kylie uncover secrets and work a bit for the FRU. Eternal was almost all of FRU rather then about the camp. To be exact it felt more of a crime mystery than a supernatural book. Sure they had their powers shown here and there, but that's not why I wanted to read Eternal for. I wanted the magic and teen angst, not a cop book.
   No matter the problems I had with the book, I was still delighted by the story that is of the people of Shadow Falls. I look forward to Unspoken when it releases July 2015.

Rating:


Favourite Quote:


“Della's heart did a dip, feeling the emotional tug of seeing two people who were so right for each other." 



Recommend to People Who Enjoy:


Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Supernatural, Romance, Vampires, Ghosts, Witches





Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Waiting on Wednesday (23)

Shutter

Author: Courtney Alameda
Expected: February 3rd, 2015
Feiwel & Friends


Description from GoodReads:


   Micheline Helsing is a tetrachromat—a girl who sees the auras of the undead in a prismatic spectrum. As one of the last descendants of the Van Helsing lineage, she has trained since childhood to destroy monsters both corporeal and spiritual: the corporeal undead go down by the bullet, the spiritual undead by the lens. With an analog SLR camera as her best weapon, Micheline exorcises ghosts by capturing their spiritual energy on film. She's aided by her crew: Oliver, a techno-whiz and the boy who developed her camera's technology; Jude, who can predict death; and Ryder, the boy Micheline has known and loved forever.

   When a routine ghost hunt goes awry, Micheline and the boys are infected with a curse known as a soulchain. As the ghostly chains spread through their bodies, Micheline learns that if she doesn't exorcise her entity in seven days or less, she and her friends will die. Now pursued as a renegade agent by her monster-hunting father, Leonard Helsing, she must track and destroy an entity more powerful than anything she's faced before . . . or die trying.

   Lock, stock, and lens, she’s in for one hell of a week.


Why I Want It:


   Creepy things, that is what i've heard from my fellow bloggers. Some very creepy things, but definitely worth it. I enjoy reading creepy books when I'm camping in the summer, it freaks me out, but Shutter will be the perfect book for me.


Why You Should Want It:


   If you're a horror movie person, or a ghost person then I can't see why you wouldn't want to read Shutter. Reading Shutter will give you the chills worse then when you see a horror flick in the movie theatre.


   That's my waiting on Wednesday for this week! Will you be picking up Shutter? What are you waiting on this week? Let me know in the comments!



Monday, December 22, 2014

Christmas/Sick Hiatus

   Hey y'all,


   So I am currently on Christmas break which means I should have a bunch of posts planned and ready right? Wrong, apparently I was destined to catch a cold and not be able to form the proper thoughts to read and write. I'm hoping that I will be up and about at the end of the week or the beginning of next week. 
   Sorry about that everybody! 

   I hope you all have a happy holidays! And I will see you after Christmas!




Friday, December 19, 2014

Book Review: Invisible by Dawn Metcalf

Release Date: September 30th , 2014
Read: December 8-9th, 2014
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Series: The Twixt, #2
Format: Paperback, 380 pages
Source: Author in exchange for review/book pendants



Description from GoodReads:



   Some things lie beneath the surface. 

   Invisible. 

   With the power to change everything. 

   Joy Malone wants it all—power, freedom and the boyfriend who loves her. Yet when an unstoppable assassin is hired to kill her, Joy learns that being the girl with the Sight comes with a price that might be too high to pay. Love will be tested, lives will be threatened, and everyone Joy knows and cares about will be affected by her decision to stand by Ink or to leave the Twixt forever. 
   Her choice is balanced on a scalpel's edge and the consequences will be more life-altering than anyone can guess.

Review:


Contains Spoilers:

   A life that burns twice as hot burns half as long.
   I had originally won Indelible in a giveaway and didn't read it right away. Later when I did I just adored it. You can be as creative as you'd like when you use fairies. The worlds, the characters, and even the magic. Which is exactly what Dawn has done with Indelible and Invisible.
The Twixt fascinated me, the laws, creatures, all of it. My favourite being the signatura. To think that each thing a person has done is marked on their bodies showing what the've done. Besides protection, I think being able to see the signatura would be very helpful to helping one protect themselves by staying away from the wrong kinds of people. It would definitely protect people from rape, or maybe even a simple heartbreak.
   Joy frustrated me so much in Invisible. She held back so much information, (The unknown tattoo on her back, her working for Graus Claude) from Ink that it was obvious that she was going to get in trouble from him. Which she did, all her secrets whiplashed right back at her. I understand that Ink was new to the whole human thing, but her keeping secrets that could hurt her would obviously make him mad as well as get her in trouble. Especially when it went against the rules of The Twixt for one part. All Ink wanted was to keep her safe. Joy's actions in Invisible made Ink discover the human act of betrayal.
   The big reveal that happened in the book that Joy was part Twixt was understandable, but what intrigued me was, what did Joy give up of herself to get her true name? Filly said to become part fey there was a few things Joy would need to do. Giving up a part of herself was a major one, so it pains me to think of what it was. Dawn left us with so many options that I wouldn't know where to begin.
Finally my favourite scene in the book was the epilogue. It was the cutest thing ever, and it certainly played with my heart. All Joy wanted through out the book was to finally be able to be truly with Ink, as well as have everyone see him. She got her wish, and it made me feel all touchy feely.
Many secrets were uncovered in Invisible, along with many joyful and scaring moments. I will never be able to get Invisible out of my head, it's left a scar so I'll unquestionably be counting down the days until Insidious releases.


Rating:




Favourite Quote:


"There is an innocence in not knowing what you can loose." ~ Indelible Ink 

Recommend to People Who Enjoy:


Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance, Magic, Fairies




Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Waiting on Wednesday (22)

I Was Here

Author: Gayle Forman
Viking Juvenile
Expected: January 27th, 2015


Description from GoodReads:


   Cody and Meg were inseparable.
   Two peas in a pod.
   Until . . . they weren’t anymore.
   When her best friend Meg drinks a bottle of industrial-strength cleaner alone in a motel room, Cody is understandably shocked and devastated. She and Meg shared everything—so how was there no warning? But when Cody travels to Meg’s college town to pack up the belongings left behind, she discovers that there’s a lot that Meg never told her. About her old roommates, the sort of people Cody never would have met in her dead-end small town in Washington. About Ben McAllister, the boy with a guitar and a sneer, who broke Meg’s heart. And about an encrypted computer file that Cody can’t open—until she does, and suddenly everything Cody thought she knew about her best friend’s death gets thrown into question.


Why I Want It:


   I really enjoyed Gayle's If I Stay, and I've heard so many more great things about the rest of her books. But so far I've heard that I Was Here is her prized jewel. So obviously after hearing that about I Was Here I just had to jump onto the band wagon.


Why You Should Want It:


   Gayle has beautiful written and touches you on a inner level with her stories. If you'd like a unique and exhilarating experience, Gayle's books are definitely for you.


   That's my Waiting on Wednesday for this week! Will you be picking up I Was Here? What are you waiting on this week? Let me know in the comments!




Sunday, December 14, 2014

Ohana Talks: German Edition Covers


German Edition Covers


   Like I said in my International Cover post, the first thing that normally catches people's eyes with books is their covers. Blogger's tend to see a lot of book covers in their lifetime, but with me I try to take some extra time to check out the German editions of covers as well as their English ones.
    I took 9 years of German in school, most of the time classes would do book reports. German class was not an exception. So when I got sucked into YA, I also got sucked into the german editions as well. So here are some of my favourite German editions!


( These are in no particular order.)

Steinerne Schwingen

White Hot Kiss

Jennifer L. Armentrout
MIRA Taschenbuch


What I Love:

   If you've read White Hot Kiss then you'd know that Layla's necklace has a big part in the story. So having the cover focus on the necklace then have Roth and Layla inside the necklace is perfect!



Von Der Nacht Verzabuert

Die for Me

Amy Plum
Loewe Verlag


What I Love:

   The uniqueness of the cover is inspiring. It's different from having a real life person on the cover and I find that the cover totally captures how I picture France to look. It also has artifacts from Vincent's era.


Falsche Versprechen

Bloodlines

Richelle Mead
Lyx Egmont

What I Love:

   I find the design of burned edges beautiful, So this cover automatically draws me in. Between the model on the english covers and this one, but this model is how I picture Sydney. I don't know it is about her, but she's Sydney in my eyes.


Unsterblich. Tor Der Dämmerung

The Immortal Rules

Julie Kagawa
Heyne fliegt

What I Love:

   This one just calls to me.


Gefährten des Zwielichts

Night World: Soulmate

L.J. Smith
CBT


What I Love:

   The covers for this series have been with me a while, so because they are dear to me they of course are one of my favourites. It doesn't help that I actually have 2 different copies of them on my shelves.



   What are some of your favourite German book covers? Let me know in the comments, I'd love to hear from you!