Archive for the 'reading is delicious' Category

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The Books of Elsewhere–The Shadows

Published on July 14, 2010 in reading is delicious Tags: , , , , , , . ______________________________________

Okay, so I really am in love today.

Really this time!

Last night I finished up THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE: THE SHADOWS, and ohmigosh it was good.

It’s one of those books where the adult in me thinks, (cue high-pitched nasally adult voice)  “Oh, I really like this story. What nice atmosphere. How unique,” and the kid in me is like, (cue my real voice) “Ahhh! That’s scary. Wow—cool. I want to do that! She did what? The end? Where’s the next book!?!?”

I was lucky enough to interview the author, Jacqueline West, HERE.


THE SHADOWS is a fast paced read set in Olive Dunwoody’s new home—a crumbling Victorian house brimming with rooms to explore and curiosities to discover. Her slightly absent minded, but brilliantly (and hilariously) mathematical parents have no clue what kinds of secrets their home holds. Olive, however, finds herself unraveling a dark and deadly mystery, aided only by three cats and a bratty boy.

Atmosphere: Really old house with hidden rooms, paintings you can travel through, cool old spectacles, creepy basements, that prickle at the back of your neck when you know something’s not right, overgrown backyards, nosey neighbors, and cats with attitude. In a word: awesome.

Language: Jacqueline West is also an award winning poet, and she has this beautiful knack for clear, concise, and completely unique description. There’s also lots of witty dialogue that kept me smiling and laughing throughout the book.

If you’re looking for a fun Middle Grade read, you should seriously check this book out. There’s also a pretty cool website for the book that includes sample chapters and clips from the audiobook: www.thebooksofelsewhere.com

Definitely 5 out of 5 hearts for this book:

♥♥♥♥♥

Have a great day!

-M♥lly

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so maybe I overreacted…

Published on July 12, 2010 in reading is delicious Tags: , . ______________________________________

Yesterday this was me:

(Girl sits on porch during thunderstorm, her feet propped up on the iron railing. She has a book in her hand and three tears running down her cheek.)

*closes book*

*sighs*

*reopens book and rereads last three pages*

*sighs*

(Boy has been sitting in chair next to her, asleep. He hears book close and tries to pretend like he was awake the whole time.)

Boy: So was the book good?

Girl: It was…hmmm. *brushes away tears*

Boy: It was sad?

Girl: Well, it ended happy. I guess.

Boy: Hmmm. Want to ride bikes?

~~~

So then I went on a rainy bike ride and thought about the book and lived happily ever after (or something like that).

I guess I was a little disappointed.
I mean, I liked the book.
I liked the characters (for the most part).
I even dragged reading the book out, so it wouldn’t end.

But I just didn’t feel it all the way.

It’s like that date with your dream guy, only to find out he has chronic bad breath and he’s kinda mean to his dog. A lot of people would look over stuff like that because he’s hott, but I just didn’t feel like settling for anything less than I hoped for.

So I take back Wednesday’s post about being in love. I was almost in love.

I had a good time, book. It’s me, not you.

But it was a good book. Just not AH-MAY-ZING.

So, thanks to the great advice of agent Mary Kole, I will not reveal this book’s title, since I’m not saying the nicest things about it. But I will ask you if you’ve ever been really moved by a book that then let you down, resulting in you almost crying. (Well, maybe crying a little.) Or am I just too emotionally invested in the books I read? (Probably.) And I know I got your hopes up on Wednesday that I was going to reveal this super-amazing wonder-book, so I’m sorry–I will never again assume I’m in love until a book is good and over.

Anyways, I’m so over it. Hope you had an amazing weekend!!! Let me know if you found the one book…

-M♥lly

7 Comments

Beautiful Creatures

Published on July 8, 2010 in reading is delicious Tags: , , , , . ______________________________________

Why am I rocking the super-dark nail polish, you ask?

Easy. It’s a tribute to this book I read and liked. You may have heard of it:

*First off, this is not the book I was raving about Wednesday. I’m still not finished with that one. However, this is the book I read before I started reading Wednesday’s book. And I enjoyed it quite a lot. So much so that I painted my nails, as stated above.

The Bulgarian cover, which definitely captures some of that juicy atmosphere. I LOVE it.

This book is fresh–

I loved the narrator–a boy. He has this quiet strength and passion that seriously makes my heart flutter.

I REALLY liked a paranormal romance coming from the guy’s perspective. AND! Bonus! It really sounds like a guy, not a girl’s version of a guy. A real guy. Granted, a rare guy, but a real one.

This book has enough atmosphere to fill the hole in the ozone layer and then some–

Seriously. I think I am more in love with the atmosphere (steamy Carolinian humidity, mysterious and gorgeous plantation mansions, unique and crazy relatives, magic, mythology, underground libraries, etc.) than I am with Ethan (the guy narrator).

I have to admit that I wasn’t as impressed with the girl as I would have wished, but I’m holding out hope for her and I will definitely be checking out the next book: BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS. That was really the only thing that bothered me.
I loved the tension, I loved the hero, I loved the mystery.

A necklace from the story. One that reminds me a LOT of one I had in middle school. Maybe it’s time to revive it bc it’s just soooo cool.

Thanks to everyone who recommended this cool book. And double thanks to Tessa Gratton, who created a fantabulous contest that included BEAUTIFUL CREATURES as one of the prizes. (Which I won. Yay!)

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***I HOPE to review another inspiring book on Monday. See ya soon!

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-M♥lly

7 Comments

caught me

Published on July 7, 2010 in reading is delicious Tags: , , . ______________________________________

LUNCH, ANYONE??? Take me here. Please. Photo by Thor Dekov Buur

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FINALLY,

one of those books I can’t put down!!

So I’m reading this book. It’s an original spin on something old, possibly something overdone. But it’s so fresh. The characters are so untypical. The prose is so entrancing at times. I seriously already teared up, just because I like it so much. Not cause it’s sad.

Right now I’m in love. I’m counting down the hours until my lunch break. Until I get to dive in and savor some more.

I’ve been here before. I’ve been let down because a book doesn’t follow through with the characters or the the theme or the mood. But I have faith in this book. If it is still just as tasty by the end, I will let you know on Friday.

Thanks for all of your recommendations. I’ve gotten some really fun, interesting, amazing books by taking your advice.

I can’t wait to read them all!!!

Seriously, if I could get paid to sit/lay/walk around and read–well, I’d probably be dreaming.

What about you–any amazing reads lately?

-M♥lly

10 Comments