Happy New Year's Eve!!! Top Ten Best Dystopian

So, it's New Year's Eve! And I decided to do my Top 10 of 2011 BEST DYSTOPIAN.*


*They aren't necessarily published in 2011, I just read them in 2011.

* Sorry, it's actually a Top 12...

:D

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Hearts at Stake : Book Review

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Title: Hearts at Stake

Series : Drake Chronicles#1

Pages : 248

Author : Alyxandra Harvey

Publisher : Bloomsbury

Format : Paperback

Source : Bought - Owned

My Opinion : This book was recommended to me by one of my fellow book blogger friends, Stephii from BookFever . Of course, since we have similar tastes in books, I decided to give it a try, and so I put it on my Christmas wishlist. And one Christmas morning, I saw that Santa Claus (also known as Dad and Mom) had come by and left Hearts at Stake as a neatly-wrapped present. I was really happy to get it as a present, since the summary held a great promise.

Solange is special. She’s the only girl to be born a vampire in about nine hundred years, and she is a Drake, which is one of the ancient families. And she is in danger, since of how unique she is, and also because an old prophecy that talked about the next female born vampire. Here’s the thing; while she’ll change into a vampire at sixteen, she’ll be so weak, and people want to kill her for many reasons (one being that the queen wants to kill her since she is a treat to her crown). And then she meets the vampire bounty hunter Kieran, human, and falls in love with him. Lucy, her best friend, is protected by the Drakes because she is kind of part of the family, and she’s human. She has always found Nicholas, Solange’s brother, annoying, but it seems like it’s turning into something more… romantic.

My favorite character has to be Lucy. She’s just so funny and a fighter. I loved it when she punched Nicholas’ nose, and when she also punched Kieran’s. It was so funny! She seems like a good friend :D. Nicholas looked sweet (and hot), and I liked Solange, who was independent and stuborn, kind of like Lucy.

I really like this book. It was a quick read (I read it in about 2 and a half hours), and it was face-paced and held your attention.

It’s super beautiful in my library! It may be little, but it sure is an awesome story. I’ll be sure to buy the rest of the series!

4/5 roses

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Legend : Book Review

             Click for the Summary!

                Title : Legend

Series : Legend #1

Pages : 305

Author : Marie Lu

Publisher : Putnam Juvenile

Format : Hardcover

Source : Bought - Owned

My Opinion : Legend is Marie Lu’s striking

debut novel, in books as well as in YA. And

Marie Lu has done it gracefully, with no noticeable mistakes; an extravagant book.

Legend evolves around Day (or Daniel as we find out in the end of the book, oh, and he’s a boy) and June. Each chapter is either in Day or June’s point of view (POV). They are in a post-apocalyptic time. And their government (the Society) is fighting both the Patriots and the Colonies (or are they the same?). Until now, you may think they are both the same… nope. Day lives in the streets and is a really looked-for criminal, and June is a prodigy of the Society. That’s because Day failed (or he presumably failed) the Trials, a huge test every 10 years old has to take, and June has got the highest score: 1500/1500. Yup… nerd much? Anyways, Day supposedly killed June’s brother and last family member, but *spoiler!!!* it’s not him, but one of June’s (presumed) friends * spoiler’s done*. Oh, right, and Day got caught and is going to get killed…

I hope that my summary has got you wanting needing Legend! Because when I read Goodreads Summary, I put it in my to-reads so quickly and put it on my Christmas wishlist. And I got it!» Yippee!

The characters all have a well-developed background which is sometimes told effectively, sometimes just summarized. I personally liked Tess a lot; she reminded me of one of my best friends; caring, nice, and not a bad thought about anyone. Also, I liked the two main characters, and Day was pretty awesomely hawt!

You have to understand that I’m hurrying through this book review because I jumped on my (parent’s) computer as soon as I had finished it. I read it in about 6 hours (Take out some time eating, bathroom breaks, some stupid interruptions, and a short time RPing on the computer).

At first, the cover is super beautiful; some may think that’s why I read it, but no, it’s because  of the many Goodreads reviews recommending it and the summary. I own a copy and it looks great on my shelf, just besides Shatter Me.

4/5 roses


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City of Glass : Book Review

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Title : City of Glass 

Series : Mortal Instruments #1

Pages : 541

Author : Cassandra Clare

Publisher : Margaret K. MacElderry

Format : Hardcover

Source : Bought - Owned

My Opinion : 
P.S. : The parentheses are my thoughts as I write this…

P.P.S. : Lot’s of spoilers in this review; couldn’t help myself

 City of Glass is the third installment in the loved Mortal Instruments series written by awesome author Cassandra Clare.  Also, it was the biggest in the series (Sorry, I felt like I need to add that).

This time, the setting is in the City of Glass (like the book’s title!!), or Idris, the home of the Shadowhunters if you prefer, more precisely in Alicante. Clary and Jace still love each other even though they are brother and sister *BIGGEST SPOILER EVER!*, but yet, they find, near the end, that they aren’t. *alright, now it’s done, you did good not reading it* Almost Everyone is there: from Magnus Bane, to Simon (yep, even though he’s a vampire and they aren’t allowed in Idris, he thought, well I think I prefer going there and getting imprisoned by some crackpot old fool then dying killed by demons; I understand him.), Luke (looks like they decided to break the law, then why not break it as much as they can, right?) and Clary (she’s there illegally; she didn’t get the permission to go there; bad Clary!). Seems like they are all baddies! (Skyscraper!!! Ooops, sorry, I’m listening to Skyscraper by Demi Lovato (covered by Cimorelli)).

The characters evolved a lot in the book; Clary grew up more and was unhappy a lot with Jace, as was Jace with Clary. *little spoiler* Alec and Magnus Bane finally got together and kissed, eeeeeep!!!! I am so Team Malec or something *little spoiler is done*.  What pained me the most is that *spoiler* Max, the little guy, died *spoiler’s done*.

The writing also was way better than City of Bones and City of Ashes; I really felt transported to the scenes; as if I were there. It was fast-paced just enough. I hope City of Fallen Angels is going to be as good.

The Mortal Instruments series looks wonderful on my shelves and the covers keep being beautiful. I wonder what’ll be the fifth book’s cover…

5/5 roses

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Within Giveaway

Trinity Hartell’s life changed after the accident. Left with irreversible brain damage, she becomes a burden to her mother, a cause for heartbreak for her boyfriend Zack, and a flattened obstacle for her jealous best friend, Ellie.

But then she starts writing. Perhaps it’s a coincidence that the psychotic, murderous protagonist of her novel bears a striking similarity to the charming Wiley Dalton, a mayoral candidate in the upcoming election.

Or, perhaps not…
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This is my first giveaway ever! I will be giving away one ePub/eBook copie of Within by Clare C. Marshall! Yep! 


P.S. You need to be a follower to enter :) But it's free and painless, and I offer great reviews!The Giveaway ends JANUARY 17TH 2012!!


Here's the form!

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Within Interview!

1. Where did you get the idea for Within's plot?

The very basic idea came to me a couple years ago during the winter when I was piling wood with my sister. I thought, What if this pile of wood fell on one of us? How would our lives be different? Later, I realized that the story would be better in an urban setting, so I changed the woodpile accident to a car crash.

2. Why did you name it Within?

Originally, it was titled Buried, as was Trinity’s manuscript, to signify that pre-accident Trinity might still exist within her shattered mind. I changed it to Within after I realized that there was a recent movie release under the title Buried.

3. What other name would you give your book?

I would still call it Buried, but the name Within has grown on me since changing it.

4. What represents the cover? Is it Trinity?

Yes! My boyfriend, Dave, and I went through many images before choosing this one. I wanted to make sure she had the right expression and physical characteristics. The leafs were a late addition, signifying the story that grows within her mind.

Just as a side note, the two of us run a small freelance editing and design business for indie authors called Woulds & Shoulds Editing and Design (http://editinganddesign.com). Just in case you’re in the market for a pretty cover. :)

5. This isn't your first book, but how was it to write this one? Hard... easy, and why?

Fairly easy, all considered! I wrote it as part of the 3 Day Novel Contest last year. It was my first year in the contest and I had pretty much all the scenes planned out before I started writing. That way, writing it felt more like a catharsis than a chore. Later, I went back and developed the characters more, taking it from about 32,000 words to 51,000 words.

6. What song would you say describes your book? Why?

The song “Winter Winds” by Mumford & Sons, because I think it accurately describes the romantic tension in the novel, especially between Ellie & Zack.

7. Which character was your favorite, and why?

I think Edmund was my favourite character to write. I think it’s fascinating when we can see into the villain’s mind, and what makes him tick.

8. Where did you get your character's names?

Most of these character names just came to me. That doesn’t happen often! Usually I will assign a character a temporary name until I have the time to spend researching a proper name for them. The hardest character to name in this book was Edmund, my villain. In my 3-Day-Novel-Contest madness, I named him Baldar, which was just horrible. I spent a lot of time trying to come up with a classier, more refined-evil name for him.

9. How was it, the first time you published this book? Did you feel relieved, or anxious? And why?

After taking the Creative Book Publishing program at Humber College, the whole publishing process really lost its whole mystified quality for me. I know the business behind it now so it’s easy to view your books as products that have to be sold. Some writers hate this mindset, because they see their books as part of their soul; their baby. While I share this to an extent, I think that it’s important to balance the business and creative sides of being a writer in order to be successful.

Overall, though, it’s exciting going to through all the steps of publishing--editing, more editing, layout, cover design, marketing--and I’ll be repeating them in a couple of months with my next book.

10. Do you feel like you could still change a bit of your story? What would it be?

The ending was originally quite different--and without spoiling it, I’ll say that it was basically the opposite! I changed it at my editor’s suggestion. I don’t really regret it, as I think it adds a real punch to the story, but I think if I were ever to write a screenplay version, I might go with the original ending.

11. Who is your favorite author, and did she/he inspire you to write? Why?

My favourite author changes with the books I read. Right now my favourite author is probably Maggie Stiefvater. She knows how to write in a way that makes the reader feel something powerful, be it infatuation, hope or despair. I’m not sure what initially started me writing. It was just something that I’ve always wanted to do because I’ve always had stories to tell.

12. What is your favorite book ever (non-classic) ?

It changes every so often, but at the moment, my favourites are Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater and A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin.

13. What is your favorite classic?

Definitely Gone with the Wind. The ending just really resonated with me: the idea that Scarlett was projecting her idea of Ashley onto him, and that he was completely different than what she thought--I think that’s an easy mistake to make when we think we have feelings for someone.

14. Will there be a sequel. With Ellie and Zack?

Nope! This is a stand-alone work. They are far and few between, these days. I do have other book ideas that span multiple books, though!

15. What should we expect for your next book?

My next book is coming out in May 2012, and it is called The Violet Fox. It’s a YA fantasy, and I’m especially excited about it because it’s one that I’ve been meaning to write for a while now!

There are two types of people: those that live on the surface (the Marlenains) and those that live underground (the Freetors). The story follows Kiera, a young Freetor girl who must impersonate a Marlenian princess to retrieve stolen documents that contain the secret to her people’s magic. Not everything is as it seems, however, as she uncovers an assassination plot, and falls in love with the Marlenian prince.

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Shatter Me : Book Review!!

                                                     

                           Click for the Summary

Title : Shatter Me

Series : Shatter Me #1

Pages : 338

Author : Tahereh Mafi

Publisher : HarperCollins

Format : Hardcover

Source : Bought - Owned

My Opinion : Shatter Me is one of the books that stays in your mind a long, long, loooooooong time after reading it, because of its authenticity, its originality (sorry for the big words, you're probably waking up with your coffee cup and saying: whut? Sorry XD). 

Shatter Me evolves (I'm using evolves a lot in my review these times...) around Juliette, a monster someone who can kill people by touching them (yup, awesome!), but it got her to an prison asylum (it's more like a prison actually). Then she meets Adam, who is her new roomate, or cellmate, and  remembers him from her life outside the prison asylum. It turns out he's a *spoiler!* soldier of an evil mastermind called Warner (Warner Bros! Oops, sorry, that was really random) *spoiler done* and she's confused. Basically, Juliette is confused with herself during almost the whole book, which I think is awesome. And the end... well, you have to rad the book to know it!

The characters are pretty awesome. They are well developed. I really loved Adam. He's so.... wow! And even though Juliette is a confused mess in almost the whole book, but in the end, she gets better.

I feel like the end was a surprise. I mean, I wouldn't have thought it would be like that. Yep, now I'm just tempting you, book readers *laughs evily*.

Since I own the book, I can tell you it looks awesome in a bookshelf! The cover is very, very, very pretty! I love the girl, I think it's Juliette...

Finally, I have to say that this is going to be a trilogy *happy dance* And that Shatter Me is now one of the best books of 2011 and has been added to the now Top 16 Books of 2011!

5 roses on 5!


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Crowning of the Best book of 2011

So, yep, it's that time of the year... the crowning of the best book of 2011!!!!!!!!

*DRUM ROLLS*




So, yep, DELIRIUM BY LAUREN OLIVER is the best book of the year!



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On My Shelf (5)

On My Shelf

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren and is a post for bloggers to share what books they've received to review, bought, won, borrowed or were gifted.

But I call it: On My Shelf! Because... well... I don't receive many books In My Mailbox, so... yeah :D

On My Shelf This Week:

For Christmas:

                         
                                   

From The Library :

For My Nook:

P.S. : Merry Christmas!
P.P.S. : Forever Lost in Books won't have a new post each days since it's the holidays and I'm busy (reading)!!

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