January Wrap Up

For the past year I've watched people among blogosphere and booktube wrap up their previous months when it comes to reading, set goals for the next and just talk and gush about all things bookish. I always love reading two of them especially: Amber's [Books of Amber] and Rachel & Jasprit's [The Reader's Den]. Edit: since I forgot to add the giveaway and poll, then these will be added in the next month's wrap up post with double amount of books to choose from. 

January reviews (click on the covers for the links)

Books read in total? The total amount of books I read in January is 20. A LOT, I know. For me it is, at least. I just kind of had the month off except for work, because I managed to do so well last semester that I had zero exams. Plus, three of the books I read were novellas which read extremely fast. February will be a lot more laid back for me.

Lowest and highest ratings were 4.9 and DNF. I gave 5.0 to Under the Never Sky when I re-read it, because I realized that I love absolutely everything about it (even though I gave 3.5 when I first read it.. yep, I don't know how that happened...), but since it's a re-read then it doesn't count in my eyes, so 4.9 it is.

Book boyfriend of the month is a tie between Perry and Roar. I just love them both equally and you cannot make me choose to save my life. The runner-up is Braden Carmichael which Aman totally approves of, I'm sure ;)

Love triangles? There was only one book that had a decent love triangle and that is Hallowed by Cynthia Hand where Christian Prescott *scowls* and Tucker Avery *beams* fight for Clara's heart. Other than that, there were books that held some love-triangely tension, but I wouldn't call them love triangles because the choice is very, very obvious.

What I'm planning on reading... I'm so bad with tbr-s, you have no idea. If I make a tbr, you can be certain that I won't read anything from the list. Though, since Nick is reading The Bone Season this month, I'm planning on reading it with her. Perhaps I'll join the Angelfall readalong with Aman and Janhvi. Perhaps I'll read Cress right away depending on how bad I need it after Scarlet. What's for certain though is that I will read Into the Still Blue BECAUSE. Because!!! I need it more than my next breath basically. So I'm definitely reading this pretty thing:

That's it for me on January. I think I'll take it slow this month, because it's the beginning of spring semester and my final one (hopefully) before I get my BA degree. I need to work on my thesis, finish the semester, graduate, go to work (hopefully more often than last fall), hopefully read some awesome books and hopefully blog without taking huge breaks. Anyhow, I have some questions for you, because I'm nosy like that and want to know :) ...

What were your favorite books last month? Any new book boyfriends I should know about? (Or any old crushes returning to the pages you were reading?) ;) How many books did you read? What are you planning on reading this month?

Review: Icons by Margaret Stohl

Title: Icons (Icons #1)
Author: Margaret Stohl
Published: May 7th 2013
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

Your heart beats only with their permission.
Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.
Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.
She's different. She survived. Why?
When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.
Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.

I want to rant so bad, but I’m trying to contain myself. Ok, here we go. I’m glad that Stohl is trying to branch away from the Stohl-Garcia duo and the idea of this book is breathtakingly awesome, however, sometimes things just don’t always work out the way we want them to and this was exactly the case here. I didn’t fancy this book and I probably will not continue with the sequel. Let me tell you why.

“I am powerful because of who and what I am. Not because of who I am not.”

The book starts out great. We have Dolores and her best friend Ro and I really enjoyed their dynamic. They complement each other quite well and find solace in each other. They are each other’s rocks. As the novel progresses, they begin to grow apart though. Ro is doing everything in his power to keep them safe from the government that is trying to capture them, but Dol’s poor choices and putting trust in strangers rather than her best friend still manage to get them locked up on an island with two other teens. I really liked the idea of the story, but unfortunately, for me, it didn't live up to the awesome premise. What I’m trying to say is that the execution wasn’t as good as I hoped it’d be. The world building was pretty good, though very complicated (and I still don't understand some of it), but the characters honestly ruined it for me.

I don’t know how much it would have affected me if I had read a physical book or an e-copy, but I listened to an audiobook and I was honestly confused about the parts which were for the ambassador eyes only. Alsu, quite often, I felt extremely creeped out by them. You know, the parts from the book? Speaking of the book, you have no idea how annoyed Dol made me with her actions by giving the book away. You are told to not let the book out of your sight and you give it up to a stranger without reading it first? *eyeroll* Also, her voice and inner monologue were so similar to Ethan White’s which didn’t help her case either.

Again, we have a love triangle. Can a book not be without a love triangle? You can tell right off the bat that Ro has feelings for Dol and all she has eyes for is Lucas. Who, by the way, is a nasty little brat. He went rogue on every decision the other three Icon Children made and acted like a darn fool all the way through. His decisions made me roll my eyes and I’ll say that he and Dol deserve each other. I’m shipping Ro and Tima since he deserves someone who isn’t Dol. Tima became my favorite character, quite unexpectedly at that. I blame the dog. I’m a dog person and she saved one. What can I say? I’m impressed.

I didn’t hate this book, but I liked only tiny bits of it and it wasn’t enough for me to want to pick up the sequel. For the sake of everyone, I hope it gets better and perhaps, if people who gave Icons less than three stars decide to give the sequel a go and convince me that it’s worth continuing? Perhaps I’ll reconsider, but for now, I’m done with this series. I hope you guys had better luck with it though. PS. It doesn’t take anything away from the book nor does it affect my opinion on the plot and the characters, but I liked the original pink cover way better.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Meet the author

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Review: Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Title: Beautiful Chaos (The Caster Cronichles #3)
Authors: Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl
Published: October 18th 2011
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository 

Is death the end . . . or only the beginning?

Ethan Wate always dreamed of leaving the stifling Southern town of Gatlin. But he never dreamt that finding love with Lena Duchannes would drive him away. Lena is a Caster girl whose supernatural powers unveiled a secretive and cursed side of Gatlin, so powerful it forced him to make a terrible sacrifice.

Now Ethan must find a way to return to Lena - and Gatlin - as she vows to do whatever it takes to get him back. Even if it means trusting old enemies or risking their loved ones' lives. Can Ethan and Lena rewrite their fate and their spellbinding love story in this stunning finale to the Beautiful Creatures series?

It’s official! I finished The Caster Chronicles series before Beautiful Creatures movie hits the big screen. Yay! I’m so happy, because after giving up on the second book my hopes were beyond gone. I really thought I’d be one of the few unlucky ones who came to dislike this series, but hallelujah, boys and girls, the last two completely made up for the second book. YES!

“There are lots of things we choose not to see. Doesn't mean they aren't there, even if we wish they weren't.”   

Plot. Well, it’s hard to talk about anything without spoiling it for those who haven’t read Beautiful Chaos or Beautiful Redemption yet, but what I can tell you is that I loved it! Half of it is from Lena’s POV due to the shocking circumstances that took place in Beautiful Chaos and left us hanging with our mouths open, thinking “no way, there cannot possibly be a cliffhanger like this, right?”. One of the reasons why I loved this book so much was probably Lena’s POV. It was refreshing and different in a lot of ways than Ethan’s and since that boy knows how to get on my nerves, Lena balanced it out with her thoughts and she gave us a completely different insight to the whole story.

The final book can definitely be a hit or a miss, but this one, for me at least, was a hit! Yeah, there were some places where I found myself questioning why didn’t they do those things sooner or why is this even necessary etc, and, yes, there was some eyerolling going on, but in the end it all came down to one thing: redemption. Everyone in this series had to redeem themselves in some way or another. Moreover, I actually shared my first few tears in The Caster Chronicles series. The final chapter was beautiful and happy, yet so full of sadness and heartache. It concluded this saga extremely well.

Characters. What’s cool about The Caster Chronicles is that even if people pass on to the afterlife, we can still read about them and they help our heroes and heroines out in every way possible. Link, Ridley and John – my three favourite characters were all featured in this book one way or another. I feel like I got closer with Lena due to her point of view on things. Other casters who have survived this whole journey are also as lovely as ever. Amma is fantastic as always. Ethan – yeah, you wear out my patience like no other, but I cannot seem to hate you either.You are who you are and at the end of the day, you’re the reason these unlikely relationships work as they do. Good job, mate!

“Maybe there isn't a meaning to life. Maybe there's only a meaning to living.”

This whole book kept me thinking how little time we really have and if there really is such a thing as a destiny written for us to follow or can we create our own future by following our dreams and goals while trying to surpass these insurmountable obstacles. I guess you’ll find out how I feel about that after you read this book for yourself, heh. I’m glad to have finished this series, but kind of sad since it all finally picked up like it was supposed to and now it’s all gone. But, hey! There’s still gonna be a movie to look forward to, yay!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Meet Kami Garcia

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Goodreads

 

Meet Margaret Stohl

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Goodreads

Review: Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Title: Beautiful Chaos (The Caster Cronichles #3)

Authors: Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl

Published: October 18th 2011

Add It: Goodreads

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

Ethan Wate thought he was getting used to the strange, impossible events happening in Gatlin, his small Southern town. But now that Ethan and Lena have returned home, strange and impossible have taken on new meanings. Swarms of locusts, record-breaking heat, and devastating storms ravage Gatlin as Ethan and Lena struggle to understand the impact of Lena's Claiming. Even Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals is affected - and their abilities begin to dangerously misfire. As time passes, one question becomes clear: What — or who — will need to be sacrificed to save Gatlin?

For Ethan, the chaos is a frightening but welcome distraction. He's being haunted in his dreams again, but this time it isn't by Lena - and whatever is haunting him is following him out of his dreams and into his everyday life. Even worse, Ethan is gradually losing pieces of himself — forgetting names, phone numbers, even memories. He doesn't know why, and most days he's too afraid to ask.

Sometimes there isn't just one answer or one choice. Sometimes there's no going back. And this time there won't be a happy ending.

Beautiful Creatures for me was a fascinating read, but I got tiresome of Ethan’s inner monologue. I know lots of fans love him, but I think he is just an okay protagonist. I like guy POV’s, but I honestly couldn’t bare being inside Ethan’s head for more than two hours. It got even worse when I read the second book which I didn’t even finish. So how in the world did I end up reading Beautiful Chaos? Don’t ask me, because I can’t answer to your question. All I know is I wanted to know how the story continues (I finished reading Beautiful Darkness via my dear, dear friend Wikipedia) and I wanted to try listening to an audiobook so I decided to give this series one more try. I do not regret it!

“The mortal world is in a state of Beautiful Chaos and destruction, which will ultimately lead to an exquisite end.” 

Beautiful Chaos is literally chaotic. Sometimes authors name their books trying to stay true to this series of name combinations, but Garcia and Stohl have done an outstanding job with Little Brown when it comes to naming these four novels. In addition to being chaotic, it was darker, more twisted, emotional and action-packed. I even got tears in my eyes in one scene with Link and Ridley, but no tears from me while reading the first two.

The narrator in this audiobook did a pretty decent job especially with Amma and aunt Mercy. I didn’t imagine Link (love that kid!!) with that kind of a voice, but it was pretty okay too. I can’t tell you much about the plot, because if you haven’t read the second one, you will be disappointed by the spoilers, so let’s just say that you can expect lots of Abraham, Seraphine, an unexpected romance between two people on the opposite sides (which I was totally happy about) and lots and lots of sneaking around. You don’t know until the very end who will be the one to sacrifice oneself, who is bad, who is good and overall your thoughts will most likely be the kind of “What the heck is going on??”.The first half of the book wasn't that exciting, but when the real action began, it didn't stop until the last sentence. Which brings me to the cliffhanger.

There was a cliffhanger and when I heard the last few words I was like “What? It ends just like that? No, it was just getting really interesting.. -.- “ I guess they need to leave something for the final book which I’m more than eager to read now. I’ve actually grown to like all of these characters in their own way and I’m anxious to see the movie of the first book which comes out in February, 2013. I  think this world Garcia and Stohl have created is absolutely stunning and if the first two didn’t get me on board, then this one most certainly did. 

“Hey, Ethan."
"Yeah?"
"Remember the Twinkie on the bus? The one I gave you in second grade, the day we met?"
"The one you found on the floor and gave me without telling me? Nice."
He grinned and shot the ball. "It never really fell on the floor. I made that part up.” 

If you’re not a fan of this series, but still liked the first book, than try to finish the second one (Have you noticed that a second book is like a curse in a series? I don’t know what’s up with that), because Beautiful Chaos was so, so good. It wasn't perfect, but it was definitely a far cry from Beautiful Darkness and I couldn't be happier.

PS. The cover is a major let down though. The other three are so much better..

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Meet Kami Garcia

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Goodreads

 

Meet Margaret Stohl

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Goodreads

Teaser Tuesday #19

This is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

To participate you:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
• (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) * Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teasers

Because of him, the end was near, and Demons were walking among us. It was all about him. He was the one to blame.

~ 34% of "Beautiful Chaos" by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

Movie trailer: Beautiful Creatures by Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia

I've read the first book, tried reading the sequel (didn't finish, because I felt too depressed by Ethan's inner monologue, but I will give this book a second try at some point.. I really want to..) and this movie will definitely be marked on my calendar at the beginning of 2013. I wasn't aware that the trailer was already out and if you haven't seen it yet, be sure to check it out! It looks amazing! Is it weird that I like this better than the book? The movie isn't even out yet, but I'm excited. Look for me in the queues after it's been introduced to the masses, because I will be standing in the line, waiting to see this. Yes, count me in!

Beautiful Creatures

Original Title: Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1)
Author: Margareth Stohl, Kami Garcia
Release Date: December 1st 2009
Publisher: Brown Books for Young Readers
Add it: Goodreads
Buy it: Amazon | Book Depository

There were no suprises in Gatlin County.

We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.

At least, that's what I thought.

Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong. There was a curse.

There was a girl.

And in the end, there was a grave.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgwown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no suprises, one secret could change everything.

I’ve heard about this series before and seen the cover about a thousand times, but never dared to pick it up. I just looked some webpages of Estonian publications to see what books are translated to my native language. I discovered that “Fallen“ has now been translated and to my suprise the first and the second book of the Caster Chronicles series have been translated into Estonian, too. So I borrowed them from a library and decided to give this series a try.

I thought that “Beautiful Creatures“ was translated pretty well. I even found new words I had to look up from an Estonian dictionary because I had never heard of them before. I liked the overall concept, however, I do believe that this book should have ended earlier because it got tiresome at the end.

The other thing that bothered me was that Ethan, the main character, was a bit naive and he got into trouble because he didn’t really take advice from Amma, his mother figure, or Macon, Lena’s (Ethans girlfriends’) uncle. It felt like Amma and Macon were keeping a secret, but you could easily see that they were doing this in order to keep their families safe. Ethan was just too reckles in my opinion. He put everone at risk and acted without thinking.

I think there wasn’t anything else I wasn’t that sattisfied with. I liked Link. A lot. He was hilarious and fun! I liked Amma and Macon. I think I even liked Riley – she caused a big havoc everytime she was in the picture. Heh, I got to say “I told you so! “ to myself (and to this book): I figured out what’s going on like 150 pages before Ethan. I did not predict the whole thing, but I predicted the outcome and the main idea. I found the ending very sad.

Do I recommend this book? Yes, I think you should read it if you’re into male POV, mystery (well, it’s definitely not anything like Hercule Poirot, Sherlock Holmes or Mikael Blomkvist from the Millenium series, but it’s still mysterious.. At least some of it is..), fantasy, young adult literature and a bit of humour (there isn’t much of it, but it made me laugh a few times, yes). If you don’t like any of those things or you do not wish to read about a reckless teenage boy with paranormal romance problems or about a small town with narrow-minded people, it’s definitely not for you.

Rating: 3/5.

Excerpts:

“You're so full of crap, you could pass for a toilet.”

 “The right thing and the easy thing are never the same.”
 “Three can keep a secret if two of them are dead”
 “So you are a vampire."

"I most certainly am not." He looked annoyed. "That's such a common phrase, such a cliche, and so unflattering. I suppose you believe in werewolves and aliens too. I blame television.”
 “Teenagers. Everything is so apocalyptic.”

Reading order:

1. "Beautiful Creatures"
2. "Beautiful Darkness"
3. "Dream Dark" (a novella)
4. "Beautiful Chaos"
5. "Beautiful Redemption"

Teaser Tuesday

This is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

To participate you:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
• (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) * Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

 My teasers:

Since one died and the other one left, Amma kept cooking and baking and stacking, as if she could cook her sadness away. We both knew she couldn't.

~ p.22. "Beautiful Darknesss" by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl.

Teaser Tuesday

This is a weekly bookish meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

To participate you:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
• (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) * Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

 My teasers:

I stretched out my arm, trying to catch her. I reached out, but all I caught was air.

~ p.11. "Beautiful Creatures" by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl.