A Look Back At February

KINDLY Taken FROM JAMIE AT THE PERPETUAL PAGE-TURNER

IMAGE FROM FebruarY

January In One Word

Vegas

5 THINGS THAT HAPPENED IN January:

1. Went To Vegas for the 1st time!
2. Valentine's Day!
3. Two Business Strategic Meetings, very fun!
4. Met Authors Ally Carter and Gail Carigger
5. Disneyland with My Friends Kim and Jillian and Kim's daughter and Jillian's Friend

5 SONGS THAT WERE MOST POPULAR ON MY IPOD THIS MONTH:

1. Bright Lights Big City/Magic From Pitch Perfect
2. Thrift Shop By Macklemore
3. Scream & Shout By Britney Spears & Will.I.Am 

4. I Love It By Icona Pop

5. One More Day By The Cast of Les Mis'

 

TOP 2 BOOKS I READ THIS MONTH:

1. Paper Towns By John Green

2.The Strange Life of Copernicus H. Stringfellow

MOST POPULAR REVIEW THIS MONTH

(I do this based on Stats)

Double Crossed: A Spies and Thieves Story By Ally Carter

 

MOST POPULAR 4 BLOG POSTS OVERALL THIS MONTH

1. In My Mailbox (51)
2. Challenges (2)
3. In My Mailbox (50)
4. Double Crossed

3 NEW OBSESSIONS IN FEBRUARY

1. VEGAS!!!

2. Shark Tank

3. Worlds Worst Tenants

2 THINGS I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO IN March

1. Going to Nor.Cal to have a Mini Vacay with the Husband and his grandparents

2. Going to San Jose to see my friends Play.

The Nightmare Affair

Summary:

"Sixteen-year-old Dusty Everhart breaks into houses late at night, but not because she’s a criminal. No, she’s a Nightmare.

Literally.

Being the only Nightmare at Arkwell Academy, a boarding school for magickind, and living in the shadow of her mother’s infamy, is hard enough. But when Dusty sneaks into Eli Booker’s house, things get a whole lot more complicated. He’s hot, which means sitting on his chest and invading his dreams couldn’t get much more embarrassing. But it does. Eli is dreaming of a murder.

Then Eli’s dream comes true.

Now Dusty has to follow the clues—both within Eli’s dreams and out of them—to stop the killer before more people turn up dead. And before the killer learns what she’s up to and marks her as the next target."

So, here is the deal. Throughout this story I had 2 feelings about this book. One being, this is really mediocre and obvious and the other being "wow, this is some great writing". I think the idea although, pretty original in general was just overdone. The whole magical boarding school thing, just bored me. Although, there were times where I was intrigued. I mainly found myself scanning through the book to get the gist of the story. I'd personally tell you, to pass on this book.

Top Ten Tuesday: Auto-Buy Authors

 

Hosted By The Broke and The Bookish

Well, this more like authors who I will read and if I had the money to buy their books, no questions asked.

1. J.K.Rowling

 Really, I don't care. It is JK Rowling. She could write a book about grass and I'd still buy it.

2. Emily Giffen

 I know a lot of people don't like her writing. But I find her stories to be heart wrenching and beautiful. Whenever, she has a new book, I make sure to buy one. (unless they come out in Hardcover first)

3. John Green

 Paper Towns and The Fault In Our Stars. Enough Said.

4. Libba Bray

 Well, only her Historical Fiction. I have found that I am not a fan of her contemporary works, but I adore Bray's Historical Fiction and she simply cracks me up in real life.

5. Richelle Mead

The Vampire Academy Series was an emotional roller coaster and I am enjoying The Bloodlines series. So, until Mead writes a real sucky book, I am hooked!

6. Karen McQuestion

I love how real and indie her books are and I never hesitate to read one of Karen's books.

7. Stephanie Perkins

 I LOVE Anna and The French Kiss and Lola and The Boy Next Door, So... I am not going to hesitate when Isla and The Happily Ever After comes out.

8. Chelsea Handler 

This may be because, I already own the first four, so why stop?!

9. Ally Carter

Love both her series. So regardless, if it was another book in her series or a new book. I'd buy it.

10. Melissa DeLaCruz

After reading the first book of the Blue Bloods series I bought the boxed set. I am quite committed to her writing.

Paper Towns

Summary:

"Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life - dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge - he follows.

After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues - and they're for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer Q gets, the less Q sees the girl he thought he knew."

I am OBSESSED with this book! I started reading Paper Towns on my last night in Vegas and instead of going out and enjoying the city, I was sucked into this book and couldn't leave. I could relate to Paper Towns and its characters in so many different ways it was ridiculous. This was my anthem.  John Green writing was just beyond amazing and I personally loved this book more than I loved TFIOS. Which says a lot since I have two copies of it. I will say the ending is a little frustrating, but it is a beautiful story.













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The Secret Life of Copernicus H. Stringfellow: Surreptitious Superhero

Summary:

"Copernicus H. Stringfellow, a.k.a. Nick, is not your run-of-the-mill genius. His mind is so powerful it can stop a speeding automobile or stem internal bleeding. As Nick goes about quietly doing good, he discovers that his powers are greatly enhanced by the nutrients present in Twinkies. Follow Nick on his amazing adventures in this humorous and exciting action-packed book for all ages."

The Strange Life of Copernicus H, Stringfellow is a strange book indeed and when I say that I mean it entirely has a compliment. I have not read a book like this pretty much ever. The writing style is very different and quick. You quickly read through several peoples past and present lives and watch as it all begins to intermingle with each other and creates the tale of the very mysterious Copernicus H. Stringfellow. If you want to read a book you haven't read before I HIGHLY recommend this book.

 

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Mockingjay (The Hunger Games #3)

 

Summary:

"Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she's made it out of the bloody arena alive, she's still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what's worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss's family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins's groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to be one of the most talked about books of the year."

Plot: Personally, I felt that Mockingjay lacked the shock and awe that the previous two books did. Everything seemed predictable to me and overall frustrated me.

Characters: FINALLY Gale steps up the plate and becomes a character, but still he lacks enough depth for me to have feelings for him. I cannot even comment on Peeta. Cause really WHY?! Take the one thing I love about this series and change it. UGH.

Final Thoughts: Personally, I was really disappointed with the series. I was iffy about book one, book two made me obsessed and book three made me think it was a fluke. The book was all gore and no real context. I didn't even feel like the ending was right. It was almost like Collins gave up and just gave us all the ending we wanted, without really taking us from A to B. Yes, there were some clever moments, but overall I wasn't impressed. Too Predictable and Infuriating.

Attacha Backpacks 500 Follower Giveaway

I know it has been almost a week since I have posted a review, but I promise I will be posting quite a few very soon! BUT, Before that I would like to tell you all that my Mom and I's Company is Having a Giveaway.

We are giving away one of our 1st Generation Tinsley Backpacks once our Facebook reaches 500 "likes" and our Twitter reaches 500 followers.

"Create your own personalized backpacks by zipping on changeable pockets in many colors and patterns. Change your backpack to match your outfit! This backpack is the first of its kind and is Made in the USA!"

Your Support is MUCH appreciated. Thank you!

Speechless

 

Summary:

"Everyone knows that Chelsea Knot can't keep a secret

Until now. Because the last secret she shared turned her into a social outcast—and nearly got someone killed.

Now Chelsea has taken a vow of silence—to learn to keep her mouth shut, and to stop hurting anyone else. And if she thinks keeping secrets is hard, not speaking up when she's ignored, ridiculed and even attacked is worse.

But there's strength in silence, and in the new friends who are, shockingly, coming her way—people she never noticed before; a boy she might even fall for. If only her new friends can forgive what she's done. If only she can forgive herself."

1st off. Speechless obviously reminded me of Speak. Yet, I preferred this story better. I found Speechless to be an actually sweet tale of not only learning your lesson, but being the bigger person. I was so happy when Chelsea made the decision to be a bigger person and to do the right thing. Since, nothing drives me more crazy than when I watch a Lifetime movie about teenagers who constantly makes stupid decisions, that could have been prevented if they had talked.

As for the Speechless part and the revenge part. I actually wish this would have gone on longer. It would have added more to the story all around. Especially since the friendships and relationships that Chelsea does form most likely would not have occurred in a months period and that part just seems unrealistic to me.

However. I do find Chelsea's relationship with who I will call Mystery boy to be adorable and it did warm my heart. Besides wishing the book was a longer, I did enjoy it and this could be a universally liked book.










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Charmed Thirds (The Jessica Darling Series #3)

Summary:

"Jessica Darling’s in college!

Things are looking up for Jessica Darling. She has finally left her New Jersey hometown/hellhole for Columbia University in New York City; she’s more into her boyfriend, Marcus Flutie, than ever (so what if he’s at a Buddhist college in California?); and she’s making new friends who just might qualify as stand-ins for her beloved best friend, Hope.

But Jessica soon realizes that her bliss might not last. She lands an internship at a snarky Brooklyn-based magazine, but will she fit in with the überhip staff (and will she even want to)? As she and Marcus hit the rocks, will she end up falling for her GOPunk, neoconservative RA . . . or the hot (and married!) Spanish grad student she’s assisting on a summer project . . . or the oh-so-sensitive emo boy down the hall? Will she even make it through college now that her parents have cut her off financially? And what do the cryptic one-word postcards from Marcus really mean?

With hilarious insight, the hyperobservant Jessica Darling struggles through her college years—and the summers in between—while maintaining her usual mix of wit, cynicism, and candor."

Plot: I thought it was very interesting that McCafferty choose to write Jessica's all four years of college in one book. Personally, it didn't work well for me, since I felt it just confused me more. Although, McCafferty did a decent job at giving Jessica college experiences it just didn't feel authentic enough for me.

Characters: I only liked two characters in this book and that was Bridget and shockingly Bethany (Jessica's Sister) . Jessica was beyond annoying and I felt made no personal growth and then there is Marcus who is basically non-existant.

Final Thoughts:  WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO YOU JESSICA DARLING?! The girl who was witty and sarcastic became way too crude for my liking. Overall, it was hard for me to sympathize for Jessica and her actions and frankly at time immature. Than the author did something I personally don't like in books. Sh brought in politics / political party bashing. If it isn't really important to the the characters, character; than it just rubs me the wrong way. I was really beginning to enjoy the Jessica Darling series, but I just could not get behind Charmed Thirds.




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Meeting Ally Carter and Gail Carriger

On Sunday, I went to Mysterious Galaxy (an Independent Bookstore) In Redondo Beach to see Ally Carter for a book signing for Pretty Scoundrels.  It also ended up being a book signing for Gail Carriger, whose name didn't ring a bell until I saw that her book was Etiquette & Espionage. Which I ended up getting along with Pretty Scoundrels.

Redondo Beach is about 30 minutes from where I live, I timed it out so that I would get their about an hour ahead of time. Unfortunately, we hit traffic and we got delayed. We made it just before they began, however, the place was packed and it had turned into standing room.

I managed to get a decent enough view and listened as the author answered a few questions and made us all laugh. The whole thing went by SO quickly. Or maybe, it was just shorter than I am used too but we soon were ready for the book signing part of the day.

Even though it seemed like most of the questions were asked to Ally, it turned out Gail has quite a loyal following which resulted in a REALLY long and very slow moving line. A weird quirk of mine is that I like to be close to the very end of the line, this is usually because I have a lot of books with me and it usually gives me more time to talk to the author.  This was the wrong time to make that decision A) because I only had a total of 3 books and B) I started to get hungry and that dazed and confused feeling you sometimes get when hungry, started to kick in. Luckily for me they decided to take people who were there for Ally and put them in their own line. Thus, I met Ally Carter.

 Ally was beyond nice and really knows how to make people feel comfortable around her. She started by complimenting my scarf and then asking about myself. I bullet pointed it out for her 23.Married.Book Blogger and Co-Owner of a Backpack Company. She asked about the backpacks and was pretty impressed. I than asked her how she got the idea for the crossover (Double Crossed: A Spies and Thieves Story) and she gave a really in depth answer about how it was a question that was asked a lot during her last book tour and so on and so forth it came together. Although, she was hesitant about it at first. Apparently, there are a lot of people who are really into one series and anti the other.

After, my lovely meeting with Ally I was prepared to get into the back on the line for Gail but they pulled me aside and basically allowed me to cut the line and meet Gail. At this point I was on a high from meeting Ally and my hunger dizziness had hit an all time high, which means my brain had no function and it resulted in an mumbled attempt at conversation, Gail saying "would you just like me to sign the book?"  Me: "oh yea..." and a semi awkward photo. 

Born Wicked (The Cahill Witch Chronicles #1)

 

Summary:

" Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they’re witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave.

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word... especially after she finds her mother’s diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family’s destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren’t safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other."

Born Wicked was not exactly what I thought... For some reason the cover made me think it was a book that took place in the south. However, the New England / Salem Witch Trial esque setting worked nicely too. The thing is I just wasn't entirely moved by the plot line and I felt it dragged on. As for the romantic interests, I like both equally but felt no strong loyalties or pull to one or the other. Overall, I won't make reading the rest of the series a priority.








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In My Mailbox (51)

Hosted By The Story Siren

Library

Paper Towns By John Green

Shadow and Bone By Leigh Bardugo

Mockingjay By Suzanne Collins
City of Lost Souls By Cassandra Clare
Cloaked By Alex Flinn

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