Recreate Tell Me a Secret Cover Contest!

Princess Bookie is having another recreate a cover contest and this time it's recreating Tell Me a Secret by Holly Cupala. Here's the original cover and summary:

 In the five years since her bad-girl sister Xanda’s death, Miranda Mathison has wondered about the secret her sister took to the grave, and what really happened the night she died. Now, just as Miranda is on the cusp of her dreams—a best friend to unlock her sister’s world, a ticket to art school, and a boyfriend to fly her away from it all—Miranda has a secret all her own.

Then two lines on a pregnancy test confirm her worst fears. Stripped of her former life, Miranda must make a choice with tremendous consequences and finally face her sister’s demons and her own.

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Official Rules:
Open Until July 15th unless we hit 30 before that!
First 30 participates In Mr Linky
We will be voting in rounds!
Holly will comment on top 5!

Here's My Cover!

 

My Blood Approves: A Debut Author Challenge Book Review

Title: My Blood Approves

Author: Amanda Hocking
Pages: 266

Publisher: lulu.com

Publication Date: May 5, 2010

My Edition: Paperback
Genre: Paranormal

Reading Level: Young Adult

Received from: Amanda Hocking for review

Summary from Goodreads:

Seventeen-year-old Alice Bonham's life feels out of control after she meets Jack. With his fondness for pink Chuck Taylors and New Wave hits aside, Jack's unlike anyone she's ever met.

Then she meets his brother, Peter. His eyes pierce through her, and she can barely breathe when he's around. Even though he can't stand the sight of her, she's drawn to him.

But falling for two very different guys isn't even the worst of her problems. Jack and Peter are vampires, and Alice finds herself caught between love and her own blood...

Review:

My Blood Approves tells a unique story of a vampire romance with a twist pretty different than most of the vampire stories I've read. Since the tremendous success of the Twilight saga, the popularity has brought tons of literature and movies that involve immortal and fantasy characters. Since then, every book I read that includes vampire characters seem to be rip offs or very similar to Twilight. Stories about vampires are definitely not at all new  and Twilight is also definitely not the most original either. So with that said, My Blood Approves' vampires had some very unique characteristics but the plot had several similarities to the saga. Besides the similarities, the story was very good and very hard to put down because of the romance, drama, and suspense.

The story is about Alice who's saved by a mysterious, older boy while in a sticky situation who later turns out to be a vampire. He attracts everyone around her except herself until she meets his family and they all start to bond over their unusual situation. With the knowledge of their true selves, her life turns upside down and results in her and the two vampire brothers to be in a very messed up love triangle. The stress of their messy relationship was so much fun to read, and I really enjoyed trying to figure out who Alice would end up with, either Jack who is lovable and kind or the one she is meant for the irritable and confused Peter. I loved Jack because he was so funny and nice, but I rooted for Peter and Alice together because her blood is meant for him.

The writing was good but there were several grammatical mistakes which did take away from the story. Besides that, I highly enjoyed My Blood Approves and really need to read the next two in the series. Unfortunately I don't have an ebook reader to read them on, otherwise I would buy them. The covers of the series are absolutely gorgeous and just love the clouds and trees on the vibrant background colors. Hopefully I can read Fate and Flutter very soon. You can buy the ebook of My Blood Approves for only 99 cents at Amazon, so I would recommend buying it right away. Thanks to Amanda for providing with a copy in exchange for a review!

Rating:

Waiting on Wednesday (42)

"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 Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen which is the first book in a new series by the author of the Luxe series. I just bought the first three in the Luxe series library, so I'm excited to start those. Can't wait to read it when it comes out this October 26, 2010! 

Bright Young Things

By: Anna Godbersen

Short Description from Goodreads:
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Bright Young Things is the first in an epic four-book series about three teenage girls finding their way in the glittering metropolis of New York City and the glamorous mansions of Long Island. It’s 1929 and Letty Larkspur and Cordelia Grey have escaped their small Midwestern town to chase big dreams and even bigger secrets. In New York, they meet Astrid Donal, a flapper who has everything she could ever want, except for the one thing Letty and Cordelia have to offer—true friendship. Set in the dizzying summer before the market crash, against the vast lawns of the East End and on the blindingly lit stages of Broadway, the three girls will find romance, intrigue, and adventure.

Just as The Luxe books brought the Gilded Age to readers of Gossip Girl, Bright Young Things will bring the Jazz Age to bestselling author Anna Godbersen’s devoted fans and to new readers alike.

IMM (41): Amazon Bargain Book Edition + Happy 4th of July!

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

BOUGHT FROM AMAZON:
($10 Gift Card from Swag Bucks and $20 Gift Card from Loves to Read for designing her button - thanks so much! I bought all these for a little under $28, so each book cost about $3.75!) 
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The Luxe by Anna Godberson (Bargain Book)
Envy: Luxe Book 3 by Anna Godberson (Bargain Book) 

Rumors: Luxe Book 2 by Anna Godberson (Bargain Book) 

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles (Bargain Book) 

Lipstick Apology by Jennifer Jabaley (Bargain Book) 

Graffiti Girl by Kelly Parra (Bargain Book) 

Demon Princess: Reign or Shine by Michelle Rowen (Bargain Book) 

Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers (Bargain Book)

FROM RANDOM BUZZERS AND WON

The Lighter Side of Life and Death by C.K. Kelly Martin (ARC won from Random Buzzers)

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan (Paperback redeemed with Buzz Bucks)

Rich Boys: An Island Summer Novel by Jenny O'Connell
(Signed paperback + bookmark won from Teens Read Too Blog) 
 

 
Have you read any of these? What did you get this week?

Book Blogger Appreciation Week Entry + Information

Book Blogger Appreciation Week is a week long festival celebrating the community of book bloggers and their contribution to preserving a culture of literacy through book reviews and recommendations, reading reflections, and general bookish chat.  BBAW also includes an awards component.  For more information on the BBAW 2010 Awards and how to participate, please visit the BBAW 2010 Awards Blog.  BBAW events include daily blogging topics, blogger interview swaps, special guest posts, and so much more!

Who:  If you self-identify as a book blogger, this festival is for you!  We have been excited to welcome participants from all over the world for past BBAWs.

When:  September 13-17, 2010.

Where: Right here at the Book Blogger Appreciation Week blog.  You can participate in the comfort of your own home and the convenience of your own time zone. 

Why:  Because book blogging is a fun and time intensive hobby that has created communities around books and played a crucial role in the continuing evolution of what books mean in our society.

How Can I Participate?
You can participate by filling out the registration form for BBAW 2010. Subscribe to the blog’s feed and follow us on Twitter to keep up with all of the developments!

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I thought it would be fun to participate this year, so I'm registering. I feel a little weird nominating myself because I don't feel like my blog is the best out there, but why not try : ) Good Luck to everyone else who registers!

Best Written Book Blog—This blog is consistently well-written, clear, and engaging, no matter what the subject. [Note that nominated bloggers for this award are required to submit 3 reviews, recommendations, or analyses of a specific title; 2 are up to the nominated blogger.]

Review 1: Grace by Elizabeth Scott
Review 2: The Summer Of Skinny Dipping by Amanda Howells
Review 3: Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
Review 4: Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman
Review 5: Butterfly by Sony Hartnett

Best Young Adult Book Blog—This blog offers the best consistently excellent reviews, recommendations, analyses, and other content for books written for a young adult audience.

Review 1: Grace by Elizabeth Scott
Review 2: The Summer Of Skinny Dipping by Amanda Howells
Review 3: Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
Review 4: Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman
Post 5: Best and Worst of Covers

Grace Review

Title: Grace

Author: Elizabeth Scott
Pages: 208

Publisher: Dutton

Publication Date: September 16, 2010

My Edition: ARC
Genre: Dystopian

Reading Level: Young Adult

Received from: Elizabeth Scott & Dutton

Summary from Goodreads:

A fable of a terrifying near future by critically acclaimed author Elizabeth Scott.

Grace was raised to be an Angel, a herald of death by suicide bomb. But she refuses to die for the cause, and now Grace is on the run, daring to dream of freedom. In search of a border she may never reach, she travels among malevolent soldiers on a decrepit train crawling through the desert. Accompanied by the mysterious Kerr, Grace struggles to be invisible, but the fear of discovery looms large as she recalls the history and events that delivered her uncertain fate.

Told in spare, powerful prose, this tale of a dystopian near future will haunt readers long after they've reached the final page.

Review:

Grace tells a very powerful and horrifyingly, realistic story of a young girl, in a distant future, born an Angel who must die as a suicide bomber. The story was extremely well written and very hard to resist. It was very short but every word nicely contributed to the amazing story of Grace who's trying to escape her fate. The dystopian setting seemed scary but also very realistic, so I truly hope our world would never come to one dictator ruling the country. The few characters in the story, mainly Grace and Kerr, had very troubled childhoods, and they learn to bond through their illegal train ride escape to the border in order to stay alive.

Grace is a strong and brave girl who's story is very intense. Since she is an Angel, she must die by a suicide bomb but escapes her fate to keep living. Her people of The Hills live to send a message to Keran Berj to let him know there are people fighting against him. From the day she was born Grace knew her propose in life, but when her day comes, she decides to do anything in order to survive. She fails as a Angel and has to live everyday knowing that many people died from her bomb. Grace meets a boy who decides to help her but later we learn he has ulterior motives in agreeing to help. She boards a miserable train crawling with soldiers through the desert, and finally meets Kerr who will act as her brother. They travel together and learn more about themselves and each other in the process.

Grace wasn't sugar coated or fluffed as it describes a world where absolutely no one would dream to be. Elizabeth Scott's novels are all fantastic, and she definitely knows how to write several YA themes including romance, friendship, dystopian, kidnapping, and many more. Grace is the most compelling and thought-provoking YA novel of the year and will leave you craving to know if they will escape. I loved Grace because I had no idea what to expect and was satisfied behind belief by Grace's unexpected, powerful story. The cover is absolutely beautiful and is the perfect cover for such an amazing book! You will not be disappointing by Grace, so it's a definite must read and highly recommended.

Rating: