Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

January 27, 2011

Hiatus for a couple of days!

Probably you notice that I haven't been at my blog lately. Or at my twitter / email. There is a reason. A HUGE reason.

I'm moving to Chile. That's right. All my family is from Chile but my parents moved to Venezuela and I was born here. I'm Venezuelan and Chilean.

So, I'm going to be living at Chile for a couple of months because I'm going to do my veterinary practice at an Animal's Hospital. :) Yeah, I just finished college!! Yay! (well, my classes. I still have to do my thesis).

I've been super busy these days getting ready for my trip. I'm very nervous and excited. Also happy and sad. It isn't the first time I'm going to Chile, or traveling alone, or being so many months away from my home. But I'm very sad about leaving my boyfriend.....I'm going to miss him very very much.

So, I'm taking a few days off to settle things when I arrive at my new home. I'm not sure if I'm going to have enough time for my blog, but I know I'll keep posting and visiting your blogs when I can. My TBR lists has grown out of control so I'm going to take this chance to read the books on my Kindle and I won't receive any more books for review. Maybe this way I can read some books that has been waiting for me forever, and finally write the reviews I keep forgetting to write.

Anyway, I hope you understand. This is very important to me, and I want to spend the last days with my boyfriend and family. This is an amazing opportunity for my future but I know I will miss them very much.

Thank you for reading! Be sure to come back here soon since I'm planning a giveaway!

January 26, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday # 35 - The Locket


"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick:

Summary from Goodreads.com
On her seventeenth birthday, Katie discovers a locket and decides to wear it for good luck. But when her boyfriend Isaac finds out she cheated on him— with their mutual best friend Mitch, no less—he dumps her, leaving her devastated.
And then a miracle happens. The locket burns on Katie's chest and she feels herself going back two weeks in time, to the night she cheated with Mitch. At first, Kate is delighted to be a better girlfriend to Isaac this time around. But as other aspects of her life become inexplicably altered, she realizes that changing the past may have had a dangerous effect on her present.
Can she make things right before the locket destroys everything—and everyone—she loves?
Stacey Jay
February 3rd 2011 by Razorbill
Paperback
Amazon / The Book Depository

Lovely cover, time traveling and a girl that looks a lot like Emma Watson?

January 24, 2011

Review: The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Iron Queen
Author: Julie Kagawa
Series: Iron Fey #3
Release Date: January 25th, 2011
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Age: Young Adult
My name is Meghan Chase.
I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron fey that will drag me back, kicking and screaming. Drag me away from the banished prince who's sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of conflict so powerful, I'm not sure anyone can survive it.
This time, there will be no turning back.
The Iron Fey became easely my favorite series. It contains an intelligent heroine, a sexy Ice Prince, and cool fairies. The Iron Queen is the third book of this series, and I absolutely loved it.

Meghan and Ash are together in the "human world". Meghan is excited and scared to come back with her family, but she also knows how difficult it's for Ash to be here with her.

It's almost impossible for them to be there. Ash is very in love with Meghan but also feels sad about leaving his world. But just when Meghan is about to reunite with her family, they are thrown again into the fairies world.

I was looking forward for them to came back. I knew it was impossible for them to live the happily ever after with the humans and I was expecting more of the Iron Fey.

There was a war waiting for them at the Faeries world, and the Summer court and Winter court have made an agreement to fight together against the Iron. But they are loosing, and Meghan might be the only one to save them

I'm going to focus more on the characters before I give more spoilers. I have always been Team Ash (maybe I waver a little bit at The Iron Daughter) and of course I loved Ash and Meghan's relationship. Finally they could be together! But I was still missing Puck and I was happy to see him again.

Also, Meghan has become one of my favorite heroines. At first she was naive and sometimes too weak, but in this book I met a new Meghan, who grew up and was brave, smart and strong, and finally took the reins of her life.

I read this book fast, and I would have read it faster if I didn't have to study. The journey Meghan, Ash, Puck and even Grimalkin (I love you!! *fan mode*) had to made was epic. I knew it was difficult and someone was probably going to die. It was funny and sad, I laughed and cried, and I couldn't believe the ending (perfect but still unbelievable). Obviously I can't wait to read the next one, The Iron King, Ash's story.

Overall, it was amazing! I can possible express how awesome is Julie Kagawa's story, and if you haven't read this series, you should! You are going to love it.


January 23, 2011

In My Mailbox # 24



In My Mailbox is a weekly bookish meme hosted @ The Story Siren

WON:







That's all for now. I'll try to post soon all the books I have bought for my kindle. What did you get? Leave your links in the comments!

January 20, 2011

Review: Penitence (Heavenly #2) by Jennifer Laurens


Title: Penitence
Author: Laurens, Jennifer.
Release Date: April 29th 2010
Publisher: Grove Creek Publishing
Pages: 322
Age: Young Adult
Book Two. Seeing good and evil spirits is a gift Zoe guards with her life. Despite her guardian angel's disappearance, Zoe forces herself to accept that she still has a purpose-but how does she carry the weight of her brother's drug abuse, the hardship of living with an autistic sister, and a best friend who's obsessed with a guy who only wants Zoe? She's never felt more alone. When a mysterious spirit appears, Zoe thinks she has a new guardian angel. Instead, her brother's addiction worsens, her parents are on the brink of separation, and her best friend tries to kill her. The spirit she thinks is her new guardian isn't there to protect her: he's out to destroy her family and seize Zoe's soul. . . for Hell. Will Matthias' return mean that he is Zoe's guardian angel again? Or is their love the reason the jaws of Hell now gape open?

After reading Heavenly, the first book of this series, I was very excited to read Penitence.

I just began reading it and things I wasn't excepting were happening. Zoe is taken from Matthias's arms to start over again, with lots of suffering. But pain isn't the worse part, Matthias is gone.

Personally, this part of the story was very important to me. I started reading it after being in an accident (not exactly as Zoe's) and I thought the author did a great job writing about it. The feelings, the pain, the people around you.

It was awful to read Zoe missing Matthias. In these moments she needed him the most, and he wasn't there. And then she understands Matthias isn't going to be her guardian angel anymore. But I was glad that even when being so sad, she understood that she still had to live, and they will see again when it is time.

But Zoe's problems doesn't end here. Albert is visiting her. He seems good, but he's causing pain to her family and Matthias comes back to protect her.

 was loving the book. Zoe was a much better person than in Heavenly, although she was always sad. But then Weston came.

If you read the first book, you know Weston is the bad guy. He wants Zoe to forgive him, but I don't understand how she starts spending more and more time with him until suddenly, there is a love triangle!

I'm not a fan of love triangles, and I really don't like them when there is someone as Weston, that I really hate. He tried to hurt her in the first book, and now being with him is making worse her relationship with her "best friend".

I was really mad about this, because Zoe has grown up and matured, and I don't understand why she is attracted to him. I understand she missed Matthias, but she kept saying she was so in love with him but then desired another one?

Anyway, I'm curious about what is going to happen in the next book, Absolution. I want to know more about her brother and parents, and I really hope Matthias and Zoe can find a way yo be together.


Mas sobre este libro en heavenlythebook.comAmazonGoodreads y The Book Depository

January 19, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday # 34 - Instructions for a Broken Heart

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick:

Three days before her drama club's trip to Italy, Jessa Gardner discovers her boyfriend in the costume barn with another girl. Jessa is left with a care package from her best friend titled "Top Twenty Reasons He's a Slimy Jerk Bastard," instructing her to do one un-Jessa-like thing each day of the trip. At turns hilarious and heart- wrenching, Instructions for a Broken Heart paints a magical Italy in which Jessa learns she must figure out life -and romance- for herself.
Kim Gulbertson
May 1st 2011 by Sourcebooks Fire
Paperback, 320 pages

Sounds very cute and heart warming :) What are you waiting for? Leave your links!

January 18, 2011

Book Review: The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern

The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern
Author: Cecelia Ahern
Release Date: January 25th, 2011
Publisher: Harper Collins, Inc.
Age: Young Adult
Born into the lap of luxury and comfortable in the here and now, spoiled, tempestuous Tamara Goodwin has never had to look to the future—until the abrupt death of her father leaves her and her mother a mountain of debt and forces them to move in with Tamara's peculiar aunt and uncle in a tiny countryside village.
Tamara is lonely and bored, with a traveling library as her only diversion. There she finds a large leather-bound book with a gold clasp and padlock, but no author name or title. Intrigued, she pries open the lock, and what she finds inside takes her breath away.
Tamara sees entries written in her own handwriting, and dated for the following day. When the next day unfolds exactly as recorded, Tamara realizes she may have found a solution to her problems. But in her quest to find answers, Tamara soon learns that some pages are better left unturned and that, try as she may, she mustn't interfere with fate.
I've read a couple of Cecelia Ahern's book and always loved them.  The Book of Tomorrow wasn't the exception.

Since the beginning Tamara gripped me. She's a lonely teenager, bored and spoiled. She was rude, had bad attitude and language, but also was intelligent and sensible. Her father has just died and she's still trying to understand why. Her life changed so much, now she has to live with her uncles. When things started to get weird with her aunt, she takes the matter in her own hands and starts to investigate.

At first, I wasn't sure what to expect about this book. It started with Tamara, trying to deal with her new life and growing up, but then things started to get weird and became a mystery. It also has magic, when Tamara found a book written by her and telling her about her future.

Cecelia Ahern's writing is, as always, excellent. The story and realistic characters involved me so much that I couldn't stop reading. It wasn't fast or slow, and always interesting. I only wished she would have explained more about the book.

Overall, The Book of Tomorrow is a gripping and original heart warming story about love, betrayal and family secrets for all ages that you will enjoy reading.


January 17, 2011

Book Review: A Werewolf in Manhattan by Vicki Lewis Thompson

A Werewolf in Manhattan by Vicki Lewis Thompson
Author: Vicki Lewis Thompsion
Series: Wild About You #1
Release Date: January 4th, 2011
Publisher: Penguin
Age: Adult
Emma Gavin writes about werewolves, but that doesn't mean she believes in them-not until a pack of real-life New York weres decide to investigate the striking accuracy of her "fiction".
When Aiden Wallace, son and heir of the pack leader, tries to sniff out Emma's potential informant, he discovers something even more dangerous- an undeniable attraction to her.
Since the moment I saw this cover and read the synopsis, I wanted to read this book.

Emma is a best-seller writer. Her book? Paranormal romance, including werewolves. She's funny and sweet, but her life is very different from the heroines in her books. She just has a boring boyfriend and spends her days in her house, writing and drinking coffee.

The werewolves exists, and Aiden Wallace is determined to find out how Emma knows so much about them. So he starts to investigate her and just when he's about to leave her alone, a rouge wolf starts to contact her.

A Werewolf in Manhattan is one of those books that starts so good but in the end I wanted more. I was really enjoying the story and the relationship between Emma and Aiden. They were very hot and both had strong personalities...Emma being intelligent and free spirited, and Aiden being the alpha male. Their world was very described and the plot good until Emma discovers the truth about the wolves. She turns to be very stubborn and Aiden turns out to do whatever his father said.

After everything is discovered, I felt like the plot was too fast and the conflict wasn't really resolved. They couldn't be together and suddenly then they were madly in love and thinking about binding. She was in danger and practically kidnapped, but her only worry was her laptop.

Still, I enjoyed the werewolves and Emma being a writer. I think it's the first time I read about a protagonist being a writer. Also, I liked that Aiden was more than the hot alpha male in the story. He sometimes was the narrator and it was great to understand what he was feeling.

Overall, A Werewolf in Manhattan was a sweet story with hot scenes and a cute couple. Even when I wished more of the plot, I still enjoyed it and I recommend it if you want a fast and light reading.


January 16, 2011

Book-Trailer: The Violets of March

I discovered this book thanks to the author, and I loved the trailer so much that I want you to watch it:
In a mystical place where violets bloom out of season and the air is salt-drenched, a heartbroken woman stumbles upon a diary and steps into the life of its anonymous author, and so begins the story of The Violets of March, Sarah Jio’s debut novel, to be published by Penguin (Plume) in August of 2011. More about the story: In her twenties, Emily Wilson was on top of the world: she had a bestselling novel, a husband plucked from the pages of GQ, and a one-way ticket to happily ever after. Ten years later, the tide has turned on Emily’s good fortune. So when her Great Aunt Bee invites her to spend the month of March on Bainbridge Island in Washington state, Emily accepts, longing to be healed by the sea. Researching her next book, Emily discovers a red velvet diary, dated 1943, whose contents reveal startling connections to her own life.
April 26th, 2011. Pre-Order: The Book Depository, Amazon.

January 13, 2011

Book Review: Second Hand Heart by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Second Hand Heart by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Author: Catherine Ryan Hyde
Release Date: September 2nd, 2010
Publisher: Black Swan
Pages: 460
Age: Young Adult
Vida is 19 and has never had much of a life. Struggling along with a life-threatening heart condition, her whole life has been one long preparation for death. But suddenly she is presented with a donor heart, and just in time. Now she gets to do something she never imagined she'd have to do: live.
Richard is a 36-year-old man who’s just lost his beloved wife, Lorrie, in a car accident. Still in shock and not even having begun the process of grieving, he is invited to the hospital to meet the young woman who received his wife’s donor heart.
Vida takes one look at Richard and feels she’s loved him all her life. And tells him so. Richard assumes she’s just a foolish young girl. And maybe she is. Or maybe there’s truth behind the theory of cellular memory, and maybe it really is possible for a heart to remember, at least for a time, on its own.
Second Hand Heart is both a story of having to learn to live for the first time, and having to learn to live all over again.
Vida is a 19 years old women who is going to die soon. All her life has been about dying, so she isn't really afraid. But suddenly her life changes when she gets a second chance.

Richard's wife is dead, and a girl named Vida received her heart. He miss her very much, so he made the decision to met Vida. But as soon a they met, Vida knows she loves him.

Cellular memory is a theory that says a person's memories aren't only storage in the brain but in every organ, and when a person receives an organ transplant, they can feel what the other one felt. So, it's true? Is Vida really in love with Richard? And what about Richard and his feelings?

Vida is an amazing character. At first she was a sick girl waiting for her death and wondering about it, but when she receives the heart she becomes afraid of life and confused. She's 19 years old but acts like a kid, just discovering life. The only thing she was sure about it was her feelings for Richard. She knows she's in love with him.

It was sad to read Richard. He just lost his wife and it's scared for his wife's heart, now in Vida's body. The sudden death of his wife made it difficult for him to move on, he couldn't say goodbye. Even when he doesn't want to take a part of Vida's life, it's impossible not to feel drawn to her...or to her heart?.

Cellular memory is the biggest theme in this book, but not the only one. It's about Vida finally being able to grow up. It's about appreciating every minute of your life, and learning about real love. Both of the main characters had extremely difficult journeys in this book, but when they stopped struggling, it's when they both could finally move on.

The author made a good job writing realistic characters. I could feel their feelings, even when I haven't had the same experiences. Sometimes the story was a little bit slow, but I think it was necessary for this kind of story.

Overall, Second Hand Heart is a heart warming story about love and life. Beautiful written, it's a book that I'd recommend to all.


January 12, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday # 33 - The False Princess


"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick:

Summary from Goodreads.com
Princess and heir to the throne of Thorvaldor, Nalia knows her role in life. But everything changes when she learns, just after her sixteenth birthday, that she is a false princess–a stand-in for the real Nalia, who has been hidden away for her protection. Cast out with little more than the clothes on her back, the girl now called Sinda must leave behind the city, her best friend, Kiernan, and the only life she’s ever known.
While struggling with her new peasant life, Sinda discovers that magic runs through her veins–long-suppressed, dangerous magic that she must learn to control. Returning to the city to seek answers, she instead uncovers a secret that could change the course of Thorvaldor’s history forever.
Eilis O'Neal
January 25th 2011 by EgmontUSA
Hardcover, 336 pages
Amazon / The Book Depository

A princess, magic....what else could I want? ;)

January 10, 2011

Book Review: Firelight by Sophie Jordan

Firelight by Sophie Jordan
Author: Sophie Jordan
Series: Firelight #1
Release Date: September 7th, 2010
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 323
Age: Young Adult
A hidden truth.
Mortal enemies.
Doomed love.
Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki—a descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.
Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping away—if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy.
Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide.
I totally love dragons, so when I heard about Firelight I easely decided to read it. It actually took me some time with my always-growing TBR pile, but I was happy I finally decided to read it.

Jacinda is a draki, a descesdant of dragons, and a very special one. She loves to be a draki, but her mother isn't so happy about it, and her sister either. One night she's forced to leave her home, her best friend, and Cassian, to move away to the dessert, where her drake is sure to die.

It has been a while since I loved a character so much. She was very strong and never accepted to let her drake die, as her mother and sister wanted to. She refuses to forget who she is and where she has come from. And she isn't dramatic! With the drastic change of life, she decided to fight for herself instead of crying or surrender.

I wanted her to escape her mother and her sister, who were very cruel to her and never thought about her feelings about then I remember she was also young, and at that age it's difficult to choose. But she's intelligent, and she isn't blind about her family. She loves them, but also knows they are being cruel to her.

About Cassian...he's another draki, and destined to become her mate. He's very strong, and is very attracted to her, so at first I wasn't sure why she wasn't so sure about him. But every time I read him I couldn't stop thinking, does he really likes her or her special power?

Of course, Cassian is not the only boy for Jacinda. There is also Will. She should really stay away from him, because he's way more dangerous than Cassian. She tries, but Will also wants her. He was a great character as well. He's dangerous, has a lot of secrets, but has a sweet and open heart (one of his many differences with his family).

Sophie Jordan's writing was perfect for me. Since the beginning I could understand Jacinda, and she transported me into the world she created, where draki exists and are always in danger from the humans hunters. She created real characters, selfish, in love, dangerous, liars; that made this book much more interesting than just a dragon's book.

Overall, Firelight has become one of my favorite reads. Original and with a cliffhanger ending, I really can't wait to read the next book, Vanish.


January 9, 2011

In My Mailbox # 23

In My Mailbox is a weekly bookish meme hosted @ The Story Siren

Ok so I was lazy most of December and haven't done any IMM post for a while. So this is going to be my first IMM of 2011 and it's long!! My TBR pile is growing out of control!

FOR REVIEW:


Sleeping Beauty: Vampire Slayer (Twisted Tales) by Maureen McGowan (Netgalley)
Delivered With Love by Sherry Kyle (Netgalley)
Second Hand Heart by Catherine Ryan Hyde (Random House UK)


Boyfriends with Girlfriends by Alex Sanchez (Simon & Schuster)
Haven by Kristi Cook (Simon & Schuster)


Small Acts of Amazing Courage by Gloria Whelan (Simon & Schuster)
Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz (Simon & Schuster)
The Summer of May by Cecilia Galante (Simon & Schuster)


 Stayby Deb Calleti (Simon & Schuster)
Wither by Lauren DeStefano (Simon & Schuster)
Ten Miles Past Normal by Frances O'Roark Dowell (Simon & Schuster)


Darkness Becomes Herby Kelly Keaton (Simon & Schuster)
No Cure for the Broken Hearted by Kenneth Rosenberg (Author)

FREE / LENT BOOKS:




Always the Baker, Never the Bride by Sandra D. Bricker
Wish by Alexandra Bullen
The Healer's Apprentice by Melanie Dickerson


A Taste of Magic by Tracy Madison
The Darcys & The Bingleys by Marsha Altman

WON:


Airhead by Meg Cabot
Hunted (House of Night, Book 5) by P.C. Cast, Kristin Cast
Signed bookmarks from Angela Morrison