Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Waiting on Wednesday (47): Wish by Joseph Monninger

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that I'm eagerly awaiting. This week I can't wait for Wish by Joseph Monninger! The summary sounds unique and intriguing plus I love to swim and be in the water, so it sounds like a perfect read. Also, the cover is really cute and fun! Can't wait to read it this fall on November 9, 2010! The summary and cover below is from Goodreads.



Bee’s brother, Tommy, knows everything there is to know about sharks. He also knows that his life will be cut short by cystic fibrosis. And so does Bee.

That’s why she wants to make his wish-foundation-sponsored trip to swim with a great white shark an unforgettable memory.

But wishes don’t always come true. At least, not as expected. Only when Bee takes Tommy to meet a famous shark attack survivor and hard-core surfer does Tommy have the chance to live one day to the fullest.

And in the sun-kissed ocean off a California beach, Bee discovers that she has a few secret wishes of her own. . . .


Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Swoon Review


Title: Swoon
Author: Nina Malkin
Pages: 425
 Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: May 4, 2010
My Edition: ARC Paperback
Reading Level: Young Adult
Recieved From: Nina Malkin
Author's Website: ninamalkin.com

Summary from Goodreads: 
Torn from her native New York City and dumped in the land of cookie-cutter preps, Candice is resigned to accept her posh, dull fate. Nothing ever happens in Swoon, Connecticut...until Dice's perfect, privileged cousin Penelope nearly dies in a fall from an old tree, and her spirit intertwines with that of a ghost. His name? Sinclair Youngblood Powers. His mission? Revenge. And while Pen is oblivious to the possession, Dice is all too aware of Sin. She's intensely drawn to him -- but not at all crazy about the havoc he's wreaking. Determined to exorcise the demon, Dice accidentally sets Sin loose, gives him flesh, makes him formidable. Now she must destroy an even more potent -- and irresistible -- adversary, before the whole town succumbs to Sin's will. Only trouble is, she's in love with him. What do you do when the boy of your dreams is too bad to be true?
 
Review: 
Throughout Swoon, Nina Malkin described and wrote an interesting and a definite swoon-worthy paranormal story with many colorful and enjoyable characters. Right from the start, I was engaged in the story and then became instantly hooked because of the unique beginning. However after reading the first 200 pages or so, I suddenly became a tad bored and thought it just kept dragging on and on which explains why it took me about a week to finish. Despite the dragging, I highly enjoyed the story and the paranormal romance aspects. By the end, it did speed up and did wrap everything up which is why I finished the end pretty quickly.

Candice aka Dice and the girls of Swoon with their single syllable nicknames surely made the story of the town of Swoon highly amusing and intriguing. After moving from her hometown New York, Dice is accepted only because of her über popular cousin Pen because she isn't a perfect blond like all the other Swoon girls. When Pen falls from a tree causing a vengeful spirit from over 200 hundred years ago to possess and take over her mind and body, the whole town starts to dramatically change. Dice finds herself instantly falling for the spirit, Sin, after she realizes what he is and that he's in her cousin. Sin's spirit is then released after a failed exorcism and begins to wreck havoc on Swoon for revenge of the death of his former love on the family members of those responsible for his death. The story continues through the very complicated back story of Sin and the messy relationship between Dice, Pen, and of course Sin.

I thought the girls' single syllabled nicknames were pretty funny and cute and also loved the name Sin as the definition pretty much describes his character completely. The town name, cover, and tagline were all just perfect! I also loved Dice and Sin's relationship but wish Dice could have had the perfect relationship with Sin in the end because I really liked her character. The ending wrapped up the confusion of Sin's past and even resulted in the conclusion of his unrest over his death and the unsolved murder. The ending was definitely much faster paced and had some very surprising moments.

Overall, Swoon was a great story but could have been a little better if it wasn't as long and had moved along a little faster. If you want to swoon like me and the rest of the girls from Swoon, then I would pick up a copy of Swoon today!

Rating:

Sunday, August 15, 2010

IMM (47)

In My Mailbox was started by The Story Siren. IMM is where I post the books and/or swag I won, received for review, bought, borrowed, or ect.  

FOR REVIEW:
Werelove: Dusk Conspiracy Book 1 by Lakisha Spletzer (Paperback from author) 
Lockdown: Escape from Furnace Book 1 by Alexander Gordon Smith (Paperback from HH InGroup) 
WON: 
the cutest metal string bookmark with charms won from Nikola's Book Blog 
and made by Lark's Country Heart


Friday, August 13, 2010

Blog Survey: +5 Entries for August Celebration Giveaway

(I just had to add the adorable cookie monster cupcake again lol!)   

Since today is my blogoversary, I would love to have some honest feedback about my blog. The survey can be completed anonymously or if you want +5 entries in my August Celebration Giveaway then leave your name and email. If you have already entered my August Celebration Giveaway then I will add the +5 entries to your amount of entries myself. The survey is on Goggle Docs HERE! I can take any positive and negative feedback...so please honest. Thanks everyone!

It's My One Year Blogoversary!



On this day one year ago on August 13th 2009, I started this lovely little (kind of pathetic back then) blog An Addicted Book Reader! My blog has developed and come sooo far since then, and it couldn't have happened without the support of many fellow bloggers, my followers, and all the lovely authors, publishers, and bloggers that have sent me so many amazing books. Thank you everyone, and I <3 you all! 

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Here's some stats & firsts of An Addicted Book Reader over this amazing year:

# of reviews: 70
# of posts: 272
# of books read in 2010: 54
# of followers: 386
# of author interviews: 3
# of contests: 11
1st book reviewed: Masquerade by Melissa de la Cruz 
1st ARC from blogger: Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
1st ARC request: The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance: Candle Man Book 1 by Glenn Dakin
1st blog award: The Lemonade Award
1st blog contest win: box of 17 books from Elizabeth Scott

Thursday, August 12, 2010

The Naughty List: A Debut Author Challenge Mini Review


Title: The Naughty List
Author: Suzanne Young
Pages: 272
 Publisher: Razorbill
Publication Date: February 4, 2010
My Edition: ARC Paperback
Reading Level: Young Adult
Challenge Read For: 2010 Debut Author Challenge
Won From: Story Siren - Feb DAC winner

Summary from Amazon: 
As if being a purrfect cheerleader isn’t enough responsibility! Tessa Crimson’s the sweet and spunky leader of the SOS (Society of Smitten Kittens), a cheer squad–turned–spy society dedicated to bringing dastardly boyfriends to justice, one cheater at a time. Boyfriend-busting wouldn’t be so bad . . . except that so far, every suspect on the Naughty List has been proven 100% guilty!

When Tessa’s own boyfriend shows up on the List, she turns her sleuthing skills on him. Is Aiden just as naughty as all the rest, or will Tessa’s sneaky ways end in catastrophe?

The Naughty List. Is your boyfriend on it?

 
Review: 
The Naughty List was a funny and unique debut book and such a pleasant surprise! The plot wasn't like anything that I have read before and since it was light and also funny, it made for the perfect book for my reading mood. Moving along quickly with several unexpected events, I bonded with the characters right from the start and just loved the premise of the story. Once I started reading, it was just so cute and good I didn't want to stop, so it didn't take me very long to finish. Despite how unique the plot was and it also very unrealistic that a cheerleading squad would form a society that catches boyfriend cheaters, but it was enjoyable so I didn't mind that it was unrealistic.


Overall, I highly enjoyed reading about the funny and charming SOS cheerleaders! I recommend The Naughty List to any girl who wants revenge for a former cheating boyfriend or just wants to read a story about girls catching the dirty cheaters. I can't wait to get my hands on the second book in the series, So Many Boys! 

Rating: