Book Review: The Crown of Embers by: Rae Carson

My Rating: ★★★★★
Date Published: September 18th, 2012
Publisher: Greenwillow books
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 410
Do I own it?: Yes. I received this book as an ARC from my local public library. (I do still want to own this book in hardcover because the cover is so gorgeous) 

Synopsis: (Taken from Goodreads)

In the sequel to the acclaimed The Girl of Fire and Thorns, a seventeen-year-old princess turned war queen faces sorcery, adventure, untold power, and romance as she fulfills her epic destiny.

Elisa is the hero of her country. She led her people to victory against a terrifying enemy, and now she is their queen. But she is only seventeen years old. Her rivals may have simply retreated, choosing stealth over battle. And no one within her court trusts her-except Hector, the commander of the royal guard, and her companions. As the country begins to crumble beneath her and her enemies emerge from the shadows, Elisa will take another journey. With a one-eyed warrior, a loyal friend, an enemy defector, and the man she is falling in love with, Elisa crosses the ocean in search of the perilous, uncharted, and mythical source of the Godstone's power. That is not all she finds. A breathtaking, romantic, and dangerous second volume in the Fire and Thorns trilogy.

Review:

Is it possible to love this book more than the first one? Do I really have to wait a year for the third book. The one thing is that I'm so scared for the next book two... I really hope that Rae Carson lets Elisa have her happy ending. With the man she loves... Because in the first book love screwed her over... Twice. So in conclusion, if she doesn't get a happy ending, the author might just receive a very angry letter from me...

Apart from that, I enjoyed every minute of this book. Literally! I stopped at every chapter to see where I was in the book, and I was disappointed every time I got closer to the end:( This book on the other hand, did no disappoint! The Crown of Embers was full of magic, palace intrigue, romance, action, mystery, and more! It was everything you could possibly want in a wonderful fantasy book.

There was action in every chapter. This book really did keep me on my toes! It kept me guessing, and anticipating what will happen next! There were so many things that I didn't expect! I won't name any of them, because I want this review to be spoiler free!


Seriously though, if you haven't read The Girl of Fire and Thorns, go read it now. It was so amazing. It made my favourites list!:)

Book Review: The Girl of Fire and Thorns (LOVE THIS BOOK) by: Rae Carson

My Rating: ★★★★★
Date Published: September 20th, 2011
Publisher: Greenwillow books
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 424

Do I own it?: No :( I will buy it ASAP!

Synopsis: (Taken from Goodreads)

Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.

Elisa is the chosen one.
But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can't see how she ever will.
Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.
And he's not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people's savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.
Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.
Most of the chosen do.

Review:

I cannot love this book more than anything right now. I first found out about this book through the second book. My local library has a program where you can basically get an ARC for free. I grabbed this Arc called The Crown of Embers. It had an amazing cover, and I was in a rush. It's only that when I got home, I found out that it was a sequel to a book called The Girl of Fire and Thorns. I decided to check out the first book from the library. When I received it, I wasn't sure if I would like it or not, but it was fabulous! I did not expect myself to love this book so much! I could not put it down starting from the first chapter. Everything about the story drew me in when I started reading.
One thing that I really admired about this book, was that the Author Rae Carson is not afraid of killing characters off, even though their deaths hit close to home. I was excited, because the very concept of this book is exciting and new. And guess what? It wasn't Dystopian! Also I was excited that Rae incorporated God a lot in this book (yea I a religious)

This book deserves much more hype than books like Pushing the Limits. Especially since it's a debut novel! I cannot wait to see what happens in The Crown of Embers!

How to go Thrifting (book edition)

Without a doubt, we all love new books. Just going to the bookstore and buying a brand new book with a shiny cover, and pages that smell nice. It's heaven! Personally, I love it and if I could live in a book store I would. It's my favourite hobby (buying/reading books) but it's a very expensive hobby. I'm sure that a lot of my fellow book nerds would agree, especially the ones in Canada (like me). We can't always afford to buy 3 hardcover books all over $22 dollars. Don't you wish you could buy good books for a lot cheaper than their regular price? of course you do! I'm sure a lot of people already know that you can buy used books, but where? Some people buy them at garage sales, or library book sales. Well little did you know that Value Village and Salvation army have books too. Okay so thrifting is a term I use to say that i'm buying used clothes from Value Village, or places like it. I do thrift a lot because you can find really good stuff if you look hard enough. It's the same with books. So the other day I went to value village with a couple of friends I bought my Halloween costume (they have good ones there and you are never too old to dress up for Halloween) and I looked through the sweaters because I love sweaters. (me any my friends have an inside joke about sweaters so we buy one every time we go together) Anyway back to the point! Value Village has a massive amount of books, and I found quite a few very good books in amazing condition, and for very cheap compared to the regular prices.

These are the books that I found there. Amazing right? The lady at the cash register even told me: "Woa you found The Night Circus here? That's a really rare find" and I completely agree with her. It's an amazing find. The original price for The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern here in Canada is $32. No way would I spend that much for a book. The softcover is $20 dollars too... Way too much. But this book right here? Only $4. Yep! I got The Night Circus in hardcover in amazing condition for only $4. Graceling was the same price. I was jumping up and down and squealing with joy when I found The Night Circus. After I left the store, I told myself that I will come back here often to look for books, because I know that there are some good books hiding on the shelves. Save your money, and try your hand at thrifting! I'm sure you will come back with some great books

Book Review: Pushing the Limits by: Katie McGarry

 

My Rating: ★★
Date Published: July 31st, 2012
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Age Group: Teen
Pages: 384
Do I own it?: Yes


Synopsis: (Taken from Goodreads)

No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with "freaky" scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.

Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.

Review:

I was so disappointed with this book! I expected greatness, but when I read it, I got.....meh. The thing that really bothers me, is that it's sort of a typical book! Un-popular hottie guy meets popular(ish) girl, they fall in love, etc... This wasn't the sort of book that I would read again. Sure a lot of YA readers probably love Noah, but not me. I didn't really swoon over Noah at all. Probably because it's so typical! Every book I read nowadays has the same male lead. It gets quite annoying. T...moreI was so disappointed with this book! I expected greatness, but when I read it, I got.....meh. The thing that really bothers me, is that it's sort of a typical book! Un-popular hottie guy meets popular(ish) girl, they fall in love, etc... This wasn't the sort of book that I would read again. Sure a lot of YA readers probably love Noah, but not me. I didn't really swoon over Noah at all. Probably because it's so typical! Every book I read nowadays has the same male lead. It gets quite annoying. This romance wasn't good at all. It wasn't even romance! It was more lust than romance. Almost everything about this book bothered me to the point of wanting to throw this book out the window. It took me over a month to read this book. Every time I picked it up, I was frustrated because I needed to finish it, and I had many pages to go. It wasn't a book that kept me on the edge of my seat. The only time when I thought that this book was actually good, was in the end when Echo finds out what happened to her that night with her mom. The mystery was mainly the thing that kept me from giving up on this book. I also have a problem with giving up on books. That's when my mild case of OCD kicks in, and I have to finish it or it will bother me for a looong time. I feel like I am the only person who didn't enjoy this book... Everyone has their own opinion on books, so it's fair. Well if whoevers reading this review wants to read this book, then I would recommend reading it. Who knows, it could be your next favourite book. I might read the second book, (Dare you to. Beth's story) but I also might not. Curiousity will probably take over and I will either end up buying it, or checking it out from the library.

Mini September book haul!

So not a big book haul this month. I did not have time to go to the store, but I did go to WalMart and picked up this copy of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I'm quite excited to start reading it! I have may more books to read before this one though. I also got in the mail What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang, that I won on a giveaway through Goodreads. It sounds amazing so be sure to pick it up when it comes out!

The Perks of being a Wallflower by: Stephen Chbosky
What's Left of me by: Kat Zhang

Book Review: The Host by: Stephanie Meyer

My Rating: ★★★★★
Date Published: May 6th, 2008
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Age Group: Adult
Pages: 619
Do I own it?: Yes

Synopsis: (Taken from Goodreads)

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.

When Melanie, one of the few remaining "wild" humans, is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too-vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn't expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

Wanderer probes Melanie's thoughts, hoping to discover the whereabouts of the remaining human resistance. Instead, Melanie fills Wanderer's mind with visions of the man Melanie loves - Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body's desires, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she has been tasked with exposing. When outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off on a dangerous and uncertain search for the man they both love.

Review:

I don't understand why people say, "It's really good, but it takes a while to get into. The first 100 pages are boring." I thought that the first 100 pages were great! It gave me an understanding of the world, and what was going on. I was quite discouraged when my friend gave me this book, because it is such a thick book. I thought it would take me awhile to get through. It didn't take me long at all, especially for a book with this many pages.


I liked everything about this book. The only thing I was frustrated with, was that Melanie (or wanderer) kept getting beat up. It really did solidify the reason why the Souls took over the world. Humans tend to think that you can solve everything by killing or hurting someone. I love the world so much. Especially the characters. I am so attached to the characters. I feel like I know them personally. I just love them so much. I was so happy for the good ending. I don't think I would've survived if the ending wasn't good. People often compare this book to Twilight. It is absolutely nothing like Twilight. I think that all the negative media portrays Stephanie Meyer in a bad light, when she really is a fantastic author. I loved Twilight before all the negativity. All the hate just killed the books for me. But this book, will never disappoint me. I am very happy that Stephanie Meyer is thinking of writing two more books to this one. The Soul, and The Seeker. I really hope she writes them. I cannot wait for this movie to come out!