Avalon High Volume Two : Homecoming by Meg Cabot

Avalon High Volume Two : Homecoming by Meg Cabot

Published: Los Angeles : Tokyopop, c2008

Series: Volume 2, Avalon High Coronation

Will's dangerous brother has been released from the mental hospital, but is he trustworthy? Meanwhile, Mr. Morton is sure that Will is the reincarnation of King Arthur--and he must convince him before the world ends.

Because of the cliffhanger ending from the first book in the series I grabbed this one up quickly and read through it.

One thing that I didn't find so great was that it repeated the first part of the first book but in a way it would've been good for people who hadn't read the first one for quite a while. Plus it's useful if you haven't read the novel Avalon High by Meg Cabot. Which I haven't but I definitely will be if the book is anything like this series.

Anyway, the characters are all interesting. I'm curious to know what they're up to and especially who some of them are, as it seems there are new bad guys afoot.

The story line is really good, it's the perfect fantasy, based on historical myths. The whole King Arthur thing is really cool.

The ending was another cliffhanger. So I can't wait for the third book to come out. It's supposed to come out on the first of September so I'm not sure when it will be seen here.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this book and I'd recommend this to fantasy fans, or anyone into King Arthur and Merlin etc.

My Rating: φφφφ

The Noticer by Andy Andrews

The Noticer by Andy Andrews

Published: Thomas Nelson, 2009

Orange Beach, Alabama is a simple town filled with simple people. But they all have their share of problems – marriages teetering on the brink of divorce, young adults giving up on life, business people on the verge of bankruptcy, and many of the other obstacles that life seems to dish out to the masses.

Fortunately, when things look the darkest – a mysterious old man named Jones has a miraculous way of showing up. Communicating what he calls “a little perspective,” Jones explains that he has been given a gift of noticing things that others miss. In his simple interactions, Jones speaks to that part in everyone that is yearning to understand why things happen and what they can do about it.

I really enjoyed reading The Noticer. It was a very interesting book and it put things in perspective.

I liked all the characters and all the interesting way their lives were changed by the man named Jones. In a way The Noticer shows you just how things are not really what they seem.

This book also teaches that often little things can make big differences.

The story itself was a very entertaining and interesting story. The characters were all memorable especially Jones.

I really liked The Noticer and I would recommend this one to anyone looking for a short, heart-warming story.

My Rating: φφφφ

Avalon High Coronation Volume One : The Merlin Prophecy by Meg Cabot

Avalon High Coronation Volume One : The Merlin Prophecy by Meg Cabot

Published: Los Angeles : Tokyopop, 2007

Series: Volume 1, Avalon High Coronation

Ellie must convince Will that he is reallly the reincarnation of King Arthur so the Merlin prophecy will occur.

I quite enjoyed reading The Merlin Prophecy. They have a fantasy element which I really like because I'm a huge fantasy fan.

I really liked the story line. It was quite interesting and it was based on historical myths of King Arthur and it put a modern spin on it which I really liked.

The characters were all really interesting. I quite liked Ellie and Jennifer but I found Will to be slightly annoying at times. I liked how genuine and down-to-earth Ellie and Jennifer seem more than anything.

Overall, I really liked The Merlin Prophecy and I think I will definitely be reading the rest of the series.

I'd recommend this one to fans of the fantasy genre and also anyone who likes Meg Cabot books or manga.

My rating : φφφφ

The Faerie Path Lamia's Revenge Volume 1: The Serpent Awakes by Frewin Jones

The Faerie Path Lamia's Revenge Volume 1 : The Serpent Awakes by Frewin Jones

Published: Los Angeles, CA : Tokyopop, c2009

Series: Book 1, The Faerie Path Lamia's Revenge

Tania was living an ordinary life in the Mortal World until her sixteenth birthday, when she discovered that she was the long-lost princess of the Royal House of Faerie, daughter of King Oberon and Queen Titania. As the only Faerie who possesses the ability to walk between the Immortal and Mortal Worlds, she's balancing her two lives as best she can: making time to hang out with both sets of parents, getting to know her new sisters, and spending any spare moments with her boyfriend, Edric, a member of the Faerie court. But now an evil force has come to the Immortal Realm, targeting those Tania holds most dear--and threatening the entire Faerie world.

I loved the first book in the Faerie Path series by Frewin Jones and so when I saw this in manga form I thought I may as well try it and see if I like it. I sure liked it.

The story line was a really interesting one. I thought it was a bit slow at first but it soon got into the story and became really interesting.

I loved the illustrations. Especially of the lamia. She was really well-drawn and cool looking. Some of the illustrations of Tania weren't really to my liking though, I thought that some of the expressions on Tania's face made her look mean or angry and it didn't match the mood of the story.

Apart from this I really enjoyed The Serpent Awakes and I will definitely be reading the second book when it comes out as the ending was quite a cliffhanger.

Overall, The Serpent Awakes was quite a good graphic novel. I would recommend this one to fans of fairies, Frewin Jones and manga-style books.

My Rating: φφφφ

Sandman : Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman

Sandman : Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman

Publisher: New York : DC Comics, c1997

Series: Volume 1, Sandman

In PRELUDES & NOCTURNES, an occultist attempting to capture Death to bargain for eternal life traps her younger brother Dream instead. After his 70 year imprisonment and eventual escape, Dream, also known as Morpheus, goes on a quest for his lost objects of power. On his arduous journey Morpheus encounters Lucifer, John Constantine, and an all-powerful madman.

Sandman : Preludes and Nocturnes wasn't anything like I had expected it to be. At first I wasn't entirely sure what age group this was made for but now I think I'm pretty sure it's for adults.

I quite liked reading Sandman the story line itself was a pretty good one. Plus I liked the references to other characters in other comic series and movies. There were aksi a few references to places which were cool.

I quite liked the illustrations in the book especially the ones for the chapter titles. They were really good drawings. I can see why a lot of people like the artist.

One thing I was a bit surprised at was the amount of violence within the book. But I guess if you come across the characters in the book they would tend to be violent. I think the violence is the main reason why this is classed as being for adults.

Another thing I liked about the book was that there were some quite witty and humorous parts to it.

Overall, I thoguth that Sandman wasn't too bad of a graphic novel. I'd recommend this one to anyone not fazed by a little violence and anyone who likes graphic novels. I may read the rest of the series in the future.

My Rating: φφφ

Quotable Quotations (14)

Quotable Quotations (14)

This week I have chosen the theme of Graphic Novels. That means that this week I will be reading and reviewing a bunch of graphic novels/manga. When I first decided to do the theme of graphic novels I thought it would difficult to find a quote from a graphic novel but I did manage to find a suitable quote. This weeks quote comes from Lamia's Revenge : The Serpent Awakes by Frewin Jones.

"She must have powerful magic indeed to send a servant through to the mortal world to harry you." ~ Frewin Jones, Lamia's Revenge : The Serpent Awakes

Thats it for this week have a great week.

In My Mailbox (17)

In My Mailbox (17)

In My Mailbox was created by The Story Siren.

This week I just got three books from the library. I'm trying to diminish my reading pile so I've been reading through the weekend to diminish my pile. Now for the books that I got:

Dead is so Last Year by Marlene Perez

In the beach town of Nightshade, California, home to both human and supernatural beings, the Giordano sisters find summer employment and uncover mysteries involving doppelgangers and oversized football players.

I read the first two books in the series and I loved them. In fact I reviewed them this week. Anyway, I'm really looking forward to reading this one.

Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow

Sixteen-year-old Dru's psychic abilities helped her father battle zombies and other creatures of the "Real World," but now she must rely on herself, a "werwulf"-bitten friend, and a half-human vampire hunter to learn who murdered her parents, and why.

This book sounds really good so I got it out. Also when I looked at the cover I had no idea, but it's actually really shiny in the background which is cool.

I'd Tell you I Love you but then I'd Have to Kill You by Ally Carter

As a sophomore at a secret spy school and the daughter of a former CIA operative, Cammie is sheltered from "normal teenage life" until she meets a local boy while on a class surveillance mission.

I really like spy novels, I loved the Alex Rider series and so I figure these ones should be really cool, especially with a female protagonist.

End to Mystery Week

End to Mystery Week

I definitely had a mystery-filled week, I read some great mystery books and still love mysteries.

I am a huge fan of the mystery genre. Not just with books but also tv and movies. Some of my favourite tv series have a mystery element like Monk and Bones for example.

I have a list of some more mystery books which you might enjoy:

Alex Cross series by James Patterson

Women's Murder Club series by James Patterson

The Party Room series by Morgan Burke

Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy

Cathy series by Sean Stewart

Dead is a State of Mind by Marlene Perez

Dead is a State of Mind by Marlene Perez

Published: Graphia, 2009

Series: Book 2, Dead is series

When a gorgeous new student's prediction that a teacher will be murdered comes true, seventeen-year-old Daisy is determined to solve the crime, but when all signs point to the killer being a werewolf, she fears she is in over her head.

I really enjoyed Dead is the new Black and so I expected to enjoy Dead is a State of Mind. Which indeed I did.

The mystery element was still strong in this one and I did have a few suspicions about different people and different theories and such. I have to say though, by the end of it I pretty much had everything sussed out. It didn't ruin the fun of the book for me or anything.

The story line was really interesting. There were quite a few things that left openings for the next book in the series and so I definitely cannot wait to get my hands on the next one and read that.

Daisy is still my favourite character although sometimes she seemed to do a couple of annoying little things but I got over it.

Overall, I really enjoyed Dead is a State of Mind. It's got the whole supernatural element and then the mystery element. It's a perfect read for fans of the two genres. I will definitely be picking up the next book in the series, Dead is so Last Year, very soon.

My Rating: φφφφ

Dead is the new Black by Marlene Perez

Dead is the new Black by Marlene Perez

Published: Harcourt Inc., 2008

Series: Book 1, Dead Is Series

While dealing with her first boyfriend and suddenly being pressed into service as a substitute cheerleader, sixteen-year-old Daisy Giordano, daughter and sister of psychics but herself a "normal" attempts to help her mother discover who is behind a series of bizarre attacks on teenage girls in their little town of Nightshade, California.

I really loved reading Dead is the new black. It was a really great mystery story.

Throughout the whole book I kept searching for clues wondering who was the culprit. I had a few suspicions and I wasn't too surprised at the end when the culprit was found but they weren't my top suspect.

The storyline was a really good one. The combination of supernatural elements and mystery were a great combination.

I liked all the characters too. I was suspicious of most of them at some point or other. I really loved Daisy though. She was a great character.

Overall, Dead is the new black is a great mystery story that will have you reading it until you finish it. I'd recommend this one to fans of the supernatural as well as fans of mystery stories.

My Rating: φφφφφ

Kiss me Kill me by Lauren Henderson

Kiss Me Kill Me by Lauren Henderson

Published: New York : Delacorte Press, c2008

Longing to be part of the in-crowd at her exclusive London school, orphaned, sixteen-year-old Scarlett, a trained gymnast, eagerly accepts an invitation to a party whose disastrous outcome changes her life forever.

I love a good mystery story so when I read a review for this book I ran straight to the computer and put it on hold. I read it in under a day. I really enjoyed Kiss Me Kill Me.

I quite liked Scarlett and Taylor. I thought most of the other characters were either too mean or too weak. However, I really did like Scarlett and Taylor. Their personalities went really well together and they were a great pair of detectives.

The story line was a good one. I've never read a mystery novel quite like Kiss Me Kill Me. At first I thought that things were going a little slowly but it soon sped up and became quite an enjoyable read.

My one complaint about this book is the cover. The guy has all these little hairs on his chin and it just distracts me from the rest of the cover. It didn't stop me from enjoying the book however.

Overall, Kiss me Kill me was a very delightful book to read. It had its mystery and it had its action. I'd recommend this to anyone who likes a good mystery.

My Rating: φφφφ

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

Published: Scholastic, 2009

Strange things are happening in Skeleton Creek and Ryan and Sarah are trying to get to the heart of it. But after an eerie accident leaves Ryan housebound and forbidden to see Sarah, their investigation takes two tracks: Ryan records everything in his journal, while Sarah uses her videocam to search things out … and then emails the clips for Ryan to see.

In a new, groundbreaking format, the story is broken into two parts -- Ryan's text in the book, and Sarah's videos on a special website, with links and passwords given throughout the book.

I really liked Skeleton Creek. It was full of mystery, suspense and it was interactive.

The story being told from two perspectives in two different styles is a really cool and unique way of getting the story across. I loved reading bits and then watching videos on a website using a special password mentioned in the book.

The clues were all really good and it definitely is a great mystery.

One complaint I have is that it ended too quickly!!! It finished with a cliffhanger ending which left me dying to know more. I notice on the spine of the book it says book 1 so hopefully there will be a book 2 out soon.

Some of the videos are really creepy which adds to the air of mystery.

Skeleton Creek is definitely a great mystery story. I would recommend this one to everyone who loves a good mystery and creepy story.

My Rating: φφφφφ

Quotable Quotations (13)

Quotable Quotations (13)

Yet another Monday is here and so it is time for me to reveal what this weeks theme will be and the quote that comes from a book related to the theme. I really love mystery stories when I was younger I tried to read all the classic detective novels such as Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden and a few others including Encyclopedia Brown. That is why this week I have chosen the theme of mystery books. And now for the quote, which this week comes from one of the most famous detective, Sherlock Holmes.


"It is a capital mistake to theorize before you have all the evidence. It biases the judgment." ~ Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet


I hope that everyone has a very mysterious week.

In My Mailbox (16)

In My Mailbox (16)

In My Mailbox was created by The Story Siren.

This week I had a huge week in the way of books. For me anyway. Most of the books I got this week were from the library but I did get an ebook for review and I also bought an astronomy textbook.

For review:

The Noticer by Andy Andrews

Orange Beach, Alabama is a simple town filled with simple people. But they all have their share of problems – marriages teetering on the brink of divorce, young adults giving up on life, business people on the verge of bankruptcy, and many of the other obstacles that life seems to dish out to the masses.

Fortunately, when things look the darkest – a mysterious old man named Jones has a miraculous way of showing up. Communicating what he calls “a little perspective,” Jones explains that he has been given a gift of noticing things that others miss. In his simple interactions, Jones speaks to that part in everyone that is yearning to understand why things happen and what they can do about it.

This one sounds really interesting and I've started it already and it's quite good so far.

Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell

In the small town of Ondine, Louisiana, fourteen-year-old Iris uncovers family secrets when she conjures up the ghost of a boy missing for decades and decides to solve the mystery of his disappearance.

This one sounds spooky and it's a mystery so it's definitely my kind of read.

The Uninvited by Tim Wynne-Jones

After a disturbing freshman year at New York University, Mimi is happy to get away to her father's remote Canadian cottage only to discover a stranger living there who has never heard of her or her father and who is convinced that Mimi is responsible for leaving sinister tokens around the property.

The cover of this one looks really creepy and the description sounds really good so I grabbed this one when I had the opportunity.

Stargazer by Claudia Gray

Teenage vampire Bianca finds herself the target when evil wraiths attack her boarding school, Evernight Academy.

I really like Evernight and so when this one was available I grabbed it so I could read it. I've heard that it's not as good as Stargazer but I shall soon find out myself.

Zombie Queen of Newbury High by Amanda Ashby

Quiet, unpopular, non-cheerleading Mia is blissfully happy. Rob-super hot football god-has asked her to prom! Life couldn’t get any better. Enter Samantha -cheerleader queen and Miss Popularity-who has made it quite clear that Rob should be her prom date. Mia is desperate to make sure she doesn’t end up dumped in front of the whole school. So with prom in just a few days, she turns to Candice-her holistic, hypochondriac best friend-and decides to try a love spell to make Rob stay with her. Unfortunately, she ends up inflicting a zombie virus on her whole class instead, and she is their zombie leader! At first she loves all the attention. But when she learns from zombie hunter hottie Chase that her classmates will actually try to eat her in a few days, she’s not too thrilled. She’s sure she and Chase can figure something out, but in the meantime, she’s suggesting that no one wear white to prom, because things could get very messy.

You are so Undead to me by Stacey Jay

Megan Berry's social life is so dead. Literally.

Fifteen-year-old Megan is a Zombie Settler by birth, which means she's part-time shrink to a bunch of dead people with a whole lot of issues.

And things are about to get even worse. Someone at school is using black magic to turn average, angsty Undead into flesh-eating Zombies and it's up to Megan to stop the zombie apocalypse...

Wicked Lovely Desert Tales Sanctuary by Melissa Marr

The desert is far away from the schemes of the Faerie Courts—and that's how Rika likes it. Once a mortal and now a faery, Rika seeks isolation and revels in her ability to appear invisible to humans. Then, she meets him. Artistic and kind, Jayce is the last person Rika wants to hide from.

But change is coming, challenging Rika's freedom and her new romance, as her past pursues her, even into the heart of the desert. . . .

Avalon High Coronation Volume two by Meg Cabot

Will's dangerous brother has been released from the mental hospital, but is he trustworthy? Meanwhile, Mr. Morton is sure that Will is the reincarnation of King Arthur--and he must convince him before the world ends.

Avalon High Coronation Volume One by Meg Cabot

Ellie must convince Will that he is reallly the reincarnation of King Arthur so the Merlin prophecy will occur.

The Dust of 100 Dogs by A. S King

In the late 17th century, famed pirate Emer Morrisey was on the cusp of escaping pirate life with her one true love and unfathomable riches when she was slain and cursed with the dust of 100 dogs, dooming her to one hundred lives as a dog before returning to a human body—with her memories intact. Now she's a contemporary American teenager, and all she needs is a shovel and a ride to Jamaica.

Dark Calling by Darren Shan

Events take an unexpected turn in this ninth awesome foray into the worlds of the Demonata..."I know it's ridiculous. Lights can't whisper. But I swear I heard a voice calling to me. It sounded like static to begin with, but then it came into focus, a single word repeated over and over. Softly, slyly, seductively, insistently. Come!" The Disciples are being manipulated by beings older than time. Only Kernel Fleck knows that something is wrong. But he is in the grip of a creature who cares nothing for the fate of humanity. Voices are calling to him from the darkness and he's powerless to resist. Kernel has already been to hell and back. Now he's about to go further!

Yay I am so excited to get my hands on this book. I've been waiting to read it for ages since the cliffhanger ending of the seventh book!!! Which left me hanging in the eighth book to get to this the ninth book.

End to House of Night Week

End to House of Night Week

So this week I posted my reviews of three of the House of Night books.

I have to say that Marked was one of my very favourite books. Unfortunately I have to say I feel the series is just getting worse.
Not that I'm complaining. I will definitely continue to read the series I just hope that the series gets better in the future.

The series in order is:

Marked

Betrayed

Chosen

Untamed

Hunted

Tempted

Also there is a website which you can visit here.

News

News

There are ten books planned for the House of Night series - so far.

The sixth book in the series, Tempted is due out for release on the 27th of October this year.

I also have some super good news for those of you who would like to have a chance to win four of the House of Night books. The books you can win are Betrayed, Chosen, Untamed and Hunted. All you have to o is visit YA Reads here and follow their instructions on what to do to enter and also to get additional entries. Entries close 31 July. Good luck to all those who decide to enter.

Hunted by P.C Cast and Kristin Cast

Hunted by P.C Cast and Kristin Cast
Published: London : Atom, 2009
Series: Book 5, House of Night

Zoey Redbird continues to discover her powers at the House of Night school for vampyres.'The door closed with a sickening thud of finality, shutting my friends out and leaving me alone with my enemy, a fallen angel, and the monstrous bird creature his ancient lust had created. Then I did something I'd only done twice before in my entire life. I fainted.' It's all happening, though Zoey Redbird wishes it wasn't. She has her friends back, which is great. But a dark angel has taken over the House of Night, supported by High Priestess Neferet. Not so great. This leaves Zoey hiding out with the (supposedly friendly) red fledglings in Tulsa's prohibition-era tunnels. The not greatness continues. Zoey has some boy-thoughts to distract her, with a chance to make-up with super-hot-ex Eric. But thoughts of the archer that died, semi-permanently, in her arms also keep distracting her. Then he shows up as Neferet's newest minion. Well, hell. Zoey and friends need a plan to put things right, soon, if she's to keep both head and heart intact.

Hunted was alright, it wasn't a really great or memorable book but it was slightly entertaining.
The characters were all pretty average, none of them really stuck out in my mind. One thing that really annoyed me was that Zoey acts so slutty. She goes on about how she hates girls like that but she acts like that herself. As if she thinks having three guys is acceptable.
I really hate the repeats of everything. Seriously, I get that Erin and Shaunee are like twins but they're opposite looking. I also know that Damien is gay and his boyfriend is Jack. And everything else that is always repeated.

There were of course some really interesting bits in the story which I found myself wanting to know more about.
The ending was kind of confusing I'm not sure what exactly happened but however.
Overall, I found Hunted to be slightly annoying and in a way kind of pointless. To me it just was a filler for the plot. I just hope that the authors improve their story in the future.
My Rating: φφφ

Chosen by P.C Cast and Kristin Cast

Chosen by P.C Cast and Kristin Cast
Published: St. Martin's Griffin, 2008
Series: Book 3, House of Night

Dark forces are at work at the House of Night and Zoey Redbird's adventures at the school take a mysterious turn. Her best friend, Stevie Rae, is undead and struggling to maintain a grip on her humanity. Zoey finds herself in the very unexpected and rare situation of having three boyfriends. Mix a little bloodlust into the equation and the situation has the potential to spell social disaster. Just when it seems things couldn't get any tougher, vampyres start turning up dead. Really dead. It looks like the People of Faith are tired of living side-by-side with vampyres. But, as Zoey and her friends so often find out, how things appear rarely affects the truth...

Chosen was quite a good book, I found to be really dry and boring at the start though. The good thing is it got better later on.
I found the start of this story to be really slow going, nothing exciting seemed to be happening. Another thing that annoyed me about the book was that Zoey kept stating what happened in the last books to the point of it becoming too much.
However, right near the end the book picked itself up a bit. Not enough to keep me totally immersed in the story however.
The characters were alright, they all seemed pretty predictable however.Lets just hope this series picks up is all I have to say.
Overall, Chosen was an interesting read but nothing too special. I'd recommend this one to anyone who likes the vampire genre.
My Rating: φφφ