The Clock Monkey - a YA blog

Finding the perfect photo for your book cover, getting the photographer's OK on using it...

2012-01-21T19:28:00.002-03:00

...and three minutes later, being told by the photographer that an editor wants to buy exclusive rights to the photo and use it in a book cover.

FML.

This is the photo, btw. Raven Heart by (c) curcabeata '11

That's CORA! That's Insomnia's cover! This picture represents my book so perfectly.

Argh, I'd already made the cover, and it looked so beautiful, you guys. Curcabeata was so nice to me, apologising for telling me yes first, and then no. She said she'd let me know if the editor did use the cover, because they weren't sure yet.

So, be on the lookout for this photo in a cover! I'm sure it'll be a YA title, because of the girl.

I do hope they buy the pic from her, because she'd be making some money then. But, then if they don't, this will definitely be Insomnia's cover.

Go and see her portfolio, it's awesome!

*I'll go and silently cry in my room...*

The Alchemy of Forever (Incarnation, #1), by Avery Williams

2012-01-19T07:00:00.000-03:00

Release Date: January 3rd, 2012

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Age Group: Young Adult

Overall: 5 out of 5 Stars

Categories: Paranormal, Drama, Romance, Reincarnation
Goodreads Page - Buy The Book

Read in January 2012

Summary:

After spending six hundred years on Earth, Seraphina Ames has seen it all. Eternal life provides her with the world's riches but at a very high price: innocent lives. Centuries ago, her boyfriend, Cyrus, discovered a method of alchemy that allows them to take the bodies of other humans from jumping from one vessel to the next, ending the human's life in the process. No longer able to bear the guilt of what she's done, Sera escapes from Cyrus and vows to never kill again.

Then sixteen-year old Kailey Morgan gets into a horrific car accident right in front of her, and Sera accidentally takes over her body while trying to save her. For the first time, Sera finds herself enjoying the life of the person she's inhabiting--and falling in love with the boy who lives next door. But Cyrus will stop at nothing until she's his again, and every moment she stays, she's putting herself and the people she's grown to care about in danger. Will Sera have to give up the one thing that's eluded her for centuries: true love?

My Opinion:

A great, fast-paced debut from new author Avery Williams! It seems reincarnation is the topic that's "in", what with Jodi Meadows's upcoming Incarnate.

I read this last week, in a few hours split into two days. I hadn't read a book that fast in a while!

Since this is the first in a series, I'll forgive Avery for not giving us as much backstory as I would have liked. But I'm guessing she's saving the best for later.

The book opens with Seraphina going to a ball in Victorian Era's London, and right after that we meet Cyrus, the boy who will change Sera's life forever. She's badly injured, but instead of watching her die, he gives her the life elixir, turning her into an Incarnate. From then on, she'll have to steal other people's lives to stay living.

What I loved about this book, was Sera's voice. The way she narrated her story was unique, and I can't wait to read more.

Also, Avery's use of alchemy for something other than gold-making was really surprising! I'd love to see what's in Cyrus's book on the subject. The idea of body-hopping to stay alive was great, it gave the MC something to think about: does she want to keep living like this, killing others for her own benefit; or is she ready to let go, and go into the unknown?

All in all, I found Sera to be a really strong character, and I can't wait to see what happens to "the boy next door"! That ending was terrible, in a great way!

TCM Against SOPA

2012-01-18T12:11:00.000-03:00

The Clock Monkey is blacking out today in protest of Internet Censorship.

Learn more about SOPA, let's fight it together.

WoW #22: Unraveling, The Treachery of Beautiful Things, Undeadly and Enchanted

2012-01-18T00:00:00.000-03:00

Paranormal, fairy tales, beautiful covers, what more do you need? All of these books sound great, some are being released later in the year, but Undeadly releases in February!

Waiting on: Unraveling, by Elizabeth Norris

Expected publication date: April 24th, 2012

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Add to Goodreads - Pre-order on Amazon
Debut Author

Summary from Goodreads:

Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she’s opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn’t possible, Janelle knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life.

But her reincarnation, and Ben’s possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI-agent father’s files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what’s right in front of her: Everything that’s happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben’s sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she’s going to need to uncover Ben’s secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process.

From debut author Elizabeth Norris comes this shattering novel of one girl’s fight to save herself, her world, and the one boy she never saw coming.

Waiting on: The Treachery of Beautiful Things, by Ruth Frances Long

Expected publication date: August 16th, 2012

Publisher: Penguin Group USA

Add to Goodreads - Pre-order on Amazon

Summary from Goodreads:

The trees swallowed her brother whole. And Jenny was there to see it. Years later, when she returns to the woods where Tom was taken to say good-bye at last, she finds herself lured into a world where stunning beauty masks the most treacherous of evils, and strange and dangerous creatures await—creatures who seem to consider her the threat. Among them is Jack, mercurial and magnetic, with allegiances that shift as much as his moods. Determined to find her brother, with or without Jack’s help, Jenny struggles to navigate a faerie world where nothing is what it seems, no one is who they say, and she’s faced with a choice between salvation or sacrifice—and not just her own.

Waiting on: Undeadly, by Michele Vail

Expected publication date: February 28th, 2012

Publisher: HarperTeen

Add to Goodreads

Summary from Goodreads:

The day I turned 16, my boyfriend-to-be died. I brought him back to life. Then things got a little weird...

Molly Bartolucci wants to blend in, date hottie Rick and keep her zombie-raising abilities on the down-low. Then the god Anubis chooses her to become a reaper—and she accidentally undoes the work of another reaper, Rath.

Within days, she’s shipped off to the Nekyia Academy, an elite school that trains the best necromancers in the world. And her personal reaping tutor? Rath. Who seems to hate her guts.

Rath will be watching closely to be sure she completes her first assignment-reaping Rick, the boy who should have died. The boy she still wants to be with.

To make matters worse, students at the academy start turning up catatonic, and accusations fly—against Molly. The only way out of this mess? To go through hell. Literally.

Waiting on: Enchanted, by Alethea Kontis

Expected publication date: May 8th, 2012

Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books

Add to Goodreads - Pre-order on Amazon

Summary from Goodreads:

It isn’t easy being the rather overlooked and unhappy youngest sibling to sisters named for the other six days of the week. Sunday’s only comfort is writing stories, although what she writes has a terrible tendency to come true.
When Sunday meets an enchanted frog who asks about her stories, the two become friends. Soon that friendship deepens into something magical. One night Sunday kisses her frog goodbye and leaves, not realizing that her love has transformed him back into Rumbold, the crown prince of Arilland—and a man Sunday’s family despises.
The prince returns to his castle, intent on making Sunday fall in love with him as the man he is, not the frog he was. But Sunday is not so easy to woo. How can she feel such a strange, strong attraction for this prince she barely knows? And what twisted secrets lie hidden in his past—and hers?

Writing on Monday: Getting the hand of the whole "Showing vs. Telling" thing

2012-01-16T14:09:00.002-03:00

A few months ago, I decided I wanted to write something other than the WIP that I'd been trying to write for over a year. So, I left Insomnia hanging and dived into a completely different world.

But I missed my characters too much. I knew just where I wanted to take them (or rather, where they were taking me), but back then I lacked the inspiration. Well, that inspiration's back, stronger than before.

Last year I'd uploaded part of my WIP to inkpop and had a couple of people read it. I also had a couple of betas helping me. They all said the same, that my writing was coming along just fine for a newbie, but that I needed to mature in the sense of Showing vs. Telling.

A week ago, I picked Insomnia back up, and re-read those very helpful critiques. I googled "Showing vs. Telling" and read a bunch of articles about the subject. And then I opened my .doc file and started writing/editing my WIP. I feel confident that I'll have it finished in a month or two, and I'm happier about it than ever before. Just thinking that I'll have written a book -ME!- fills me with joy. Even if that book is not National Book Award-winning material (oh, wait, I'm not eligible for that, given where I live and all...). Even if the only people who read it are my friends and family, and maybe you? I'll just be happy to have finished it.

Last night I hit the 45k mark on my word count, reaching 157 pages on my WIP. From my calculations, I'm 3/4 of the story in, so that means I still have thousands of words left to write. And I love that! Cause it means it'll be the longest piece I've ever written.

Now I want to show you the first paragraph of the first chapter of the new draft. If I haven't lost you on the way, and you're still reading, thank you! I wanted to show you the old version, but silly me, I edited on it and didn't save the edit as a new .doc. I hope you'll read what's next and let me know what you think. This is how Insomnia begins:

I wasn’t going to make it. My stomach heaved, bile rose up my throat, its bitter taste filling my mouth. One of my hands shot up to cover it, the other hugged my chest. My lungs struggled to catch a breath, the simple effort of trying to breathe hurt my muscles as they strained to let air in. A loud bang reverberated against the walls as the front door shut closed and the sound echoed in my head, louder and louder. Beads of sweat ran down my face, trickling down to the wooden floor. Each splash ricocheted against my eardrums, as my heightened senses took it all in. The minor headache I’d woken up with this morning had turned into a full scale migraine.

Here are some of the articles on S. vs. T. I read:

Show, Don't (just) Tell by Dennis G. Jerz
T is for the "Telling" Truth by Barbara Dawson Smith
Creative Writing 101 - Colorado Springs Fiction Writers Group
Writing Workshop: Show vs. Tell by Bonnie Grove

And I just read this very illustrating post by Veronica Roth about what goes on behind the publishing biz.

I'd love to know what you're writing! Leave me a comment and I'll stop by your blog and read whatever you've posted.

The Way We Fall, by Megan Crewe

2012-01-12T09:00:00.000-03:00

Release Date: January 24th, 2012

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Age Group: Young Adult

Overall: 1 out of 5 Stars

Categories: Drama, Dystopia, NetGalley, Did Not Finish*

Goodreads Page

Read in January 2012

Summary:

It starts with an itch you just can't shake. Then comes a fever and a tickle in your throat. A few days later, you'll be blabbing your secrets and chatting with strangers like they’re old friends. Three more, and the paranoid hallucinations kick in.

And then you're dead.
When a deadly virus begins to sweep through sixteen-year-old Kaelyn’s community, the government quarantines her island—no one can leave, and no one can come back.
Those still healthy must fight for dwindling supplies, or lose all chance of survival. As everything familiar comes crashing down, Kaelyn joins forces with a former rival and discovers a new love in the midst of heartbreak. When the virus starts to rob her of friends and family, she clings to the belief that there must be a way to save the people she holds dearest.
Because how will she go on if there isn't?

My Opinion:

I was expecting to love this book -the premise is good and it's categorised as a dystopia, which is a genre I love- but alas, I did not. A lot of other people seem to have liked it, and maybe that's why I was expecting too much from this novel. I'd seen a lot of 5 stars reviews on GR.

The novel's protagonist, Kaelyn, begins writing a diary for her ex-bestfriend, Leo. It starts out slow, but that's understandable, because that's how you're supposed to write a diary, little by little, not like a normal prose narrative book. But further on, that's exactly what it becomes; the diary transforms into something else, where Kaelyn narrates everything, but still in a slow pace.

I could not for the life of me relate to any of these characters: Kaelyn, her brother Drew, her cousin Meredith, her father... they were all there, but none (it seemed to me) had enough depth, they didn't seem real to me.

The way Kaelyn retells the events happening in her island are dull and unsufficient for my reader curiosity. Nothing interesting happened, and I found myself (after reading 157 pages) skipping chapters, that didn't show much promise either. The ending was predictable, too.

Needless to say is, I was very disappointed. I was truly expecting something different from what I got. I do want to keep reading what Megan writes, though. Maybe I'll like Give Up The Ghost, people say it's funny.

*It wasn't that I didn't finish it, more like -like I said above-, I skipped chapters after reaching the middle, only to see how it ended and move on to my next read.

Firelight (Firelight, #1), by Sophie Jordan

2012-01-11T10:00:00.000-03:00

Release Date: September 7th, 2010

Publisher: HarperTeen

Age Group: Young Adult

Overall: 4 Stars

Categories: Fantasy, Paranormal, Dragons, Romance

Goodreads Page
Other books in the series: Vanish (Firelight, #2)

Read in January 2012

Summary:

A hidden truth. Mortal enemies. Doomed love.
Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki—a descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.
Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping away—if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy.
Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide.

My Opinion:

Firelight drew me in and didn't let go until I was done! What a good read! It took me a while to read this, but that was because I waited until it was published in Arg, instead of buying it through the internet. But now, I don't know if I'll be able to wait until Vanish is published here, I want to read it now!

Although I really enjoyed this book, I was a little annoyed at the plot: girl's family has to move for whatever reason (in Firelight it was to save Jacinda from a terrible fate), girl starts new school, doesn't make many friends, and the cutest guy -the one all the girls drool about- notices her among the throng.

But I get it: sometimes these things -writing about new kids in school and falling for the boy/girl you've dreamed about/seen in your mind/are destined to meet/etc.- are inevitable if we want to make the story work. I know this from experience, I'm writing a book where my female character dreams about a boy whom she later meets, and oh, what a surprise, she meets him because he's new in school. But I've learnt it doesn't matter what others write, it's what you make of your story. Honestly, I don't see any other way for neither mine nor Sophie's story to work: Jacinda's in danger and they have to move. She's the new kid in school -along with her sister, Tamra- and it's there where she meets Will, the hunter who refused to kill her.

And it's because of that that she wants to be around him (why did he spare her, when he kills her kind for a living?), and also, because without him, her draki (her dragon spirit) will certainly die in the hot desert where her mother took her.

I love dragons, and this story did not disappoint. Their history was explained very well through Jacinda's voice, which I thought was unique. I loved that the draki have all different abilities, like Jacinda being a fire draki, the last of her kind, and that they live in closed communities. And I also can't wait to learn more about the enkros and the hunters, and Will's story.

I only wish the love triangle wasn't so strong and present in the book. Sophie created wonderful characters, and while I can tolerate the new girl syndrome, I really dislike a bad love triangle.

I'd recommend this to Inheritance's fans: while this is nothing like Paolini's series, a) it's got dragons, and b) we've got no more Inheritance books, so we might as well move on to the next series.

Becca Fitzpatrick reveals title for book four in the Hush, Hush saga

2012-01-10T21:34:00.001-03:00

Just moments ago, Becca revealed the final title in the Hush, Hush saga!

*drumroll*

The title is... FINALE!

Just like she said, that word has a musical tinge to it, which goes great with the series's previous titles.

Now we'll have to wait for the cover reveal. She also said that she won't be accepting any offers to turn the series into films, and I couldn't be happier with that decision, because lately, we're hearing a lot of authors saying that their books would be made into films, and I don't think the films/producers take the books' essence into consideration enough, and these books turn out to be only a ghost of what the books were.

The live video chat isn't over yet. Come and join us!

Happy Book Birthday: The Fault in Our Stars, A Million Suns & Jessica Rules the Dark Side

2012-01-10T13:11:00.002-03:00

BOOK INFO:

Release Date: January 10th, 2012
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Hardcover
Age Group: Young Adult
Categories: Contemporary, Illnesses
Goodreads Page - Amazon - TBD - Barnes & Noble

Summary:

Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now.

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.

BOOK INFO:

Release Date: January 10th, 2012
Publisher: Razorbill
Hardcover
Age Group: Young Adult
Categories: Sci-Fi
Goodreads Page - Amazon - TBD - Barnes & Noble

Summary:

Godspeed was fueled by lies. Now it is ruled by chaos. It's been three months since Amy was unplugged. The life she always knew is over. And everywhere she looks, she sees the walls of the spaceship Godspeed. But there may just be hope: Elder has assumed leadership of the ship. He's finally free to enact his vision - no more Phydus, no more lies.
But when Elder discovers shocking news about the ship, he and Amy race to discover the truth behind life on Godspeed. They must work together to unlock a puzzle that was set in motion hundreds of years earlier, unable to fight the romance that's growing between them and the chaos that threatens to tear them apart.
In book two of the Across the Universe trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Beth Revis mesmerizes us again with a brilliantly crafted mystery filled with action, suspense, romance, and deep philosophical questions. And this time it all builds to one mind-bending conclusion: They have to get off this ship.

BOOK INFO:

Release Date: January 10th, 2012
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
Hardcover
Age Group: Young Adult
Categories: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Goodreads Page - Amazon- TBD - Barnes & Noble

Summary:

It’s one thing to find out you’re a vampire princess. It’s a whole other thing to actually rule. Newly married Jessica Packwood is having a hard enough time feeling regal with her husband, Lucius, at her side. But when evidence in the murder of a powerful elder points to Lucius, sending him into solitary confinement, Jessica is suddenly on her own. Determined to clear her husband’s name, Jessica launches into a full-scale investigation, but hallucinations and nightmares of betrayal keep getting in her way. Jessica knows that with no blood to drink, Lucius’s time is running out. Can she figure out who the real killer is—and whom she can trust—before it’s too late?

I want them all! I haven't read Across the Universe yet, but it's on my TBR list for this year.

The Curse Workers Series by Holly Black gets a new look

2012-01-08T14:02:00.000-03:00

And while they are beautiful and everything, I still hate it when they change the cover design halfway through. Cause now I'll have books with different cover styles, and I don't like that at all.

They could have designed Black Heart's cover like the previous two, and maybe change all of them later.

Well, there's nothing I can do about it now. I'll just have to buy BH with this new cover and have it stand out because it doesn't blong.

And, what was so wrong about the old covers? I loved them, I thought they were haunting and dark and reflected the book's essence just fine.

Compare the new vs the old covers:

Demon Whisperer (Caden Butcher, #1), by Tawny Stokes

2012-01-08T02:00:00.001-03:00

Release Date: September 28th, 2011

Kindle Edition

Age Group: Young Adult

Overall: 5 Stars

Categories: Action, Paranormal, Underworld, Boy's POV, Bewitching Book Tour Review

Goodreads Page - Author's Website

Read in December 2011

Summary:

Awake a year-long coma, where he literally spent in hell, Caden Butcher, 17, developed a special power. He can speak to demons in their own language. This new trick helps him take over the family exorcism business, from his broken alcoholic father. Having to take care of the finances, Caden makes a decent income getting rid of demons. He’s known as the young whiz-kid exorcist to the stars, obtaining most of his work in Hollywood. But what others don't know is the exorcisms are all staged with the help of his best buddy, a demon he met in hell named Dantalion (Dan).
When an exorcism goes wrong, Caden discovers the demon inside a teen girl is not the run of the mill malicious entity but an adversary from down under who is hell bent on Caden’s destruction. The International Order of Exorcists, an organization that tolerates Caden at best because of his respected father, starts their own investigation because of his screw up.
Now with the help of his demon buddy, and Caden’s girlfriend Aspen Spencer, a skilled necromancer, Caden must track down the rogue demon before he can expose Caden as a fraud and destroy everything that matters to him in his life, ending his reign as the one and only Demon Whisperer.

My Opinion:

I wasn't expecting to like this book that much, but boy, did I LOVE it! Who doesn't like a book in a boy's POV? And what a voice did Caden have!

Tawny created a fast paced book that'll leave you wanting more.

Caden is a 17 year old boy (19, according to his ID) with a heavy baggage. He's got a secret he's not willing to tell anybody: he's been to Hell and found a way out. During his time inside, Caden learnt how to speak Demon, with which he can talk to demons and make them do his will. He made a friend there too: Dan.

I really liked how Caden and Dan's relationship was built: Dan was a good friend to Caden, but he was still a demon, and he acted as such, never saying he was sorry for what he did. Tawny found a great balance there.

I also liked how she crafted Caden and Aspen's relationship: he was in love with her, and ultimately, he wanted to save her, but it wasn't a lovey-duvey thing and it had a solid basis. I enjoyed reading about them, and how their love progressed, because really, it looked real. Things like that happen in real life (the love thing, not the teen exorcisms and such) and it's good to read about it too, to help you keep your head on the ground and not up in the clouds.

Caden's a character that goes through a mayor transformation throughout the book; I loved how much he grew up and realised he couldn't do it all on his own, and that he needed help.

There were many different things at play here, and they kept me hooked to the book. So much so, that I finished its 228-ish pages in 4 days! I hadn't read a book in that few days in a long time!

I'll definitely be reading Tawny's other books in the future.

In My Mailbox #8

2012-01-06T23:46:00.000-03:00

I went to two of my local libraries today and got (all books are in Spanish, and I thought I'd show you what covers they've got, as some are not the same as their English counterparts):

Chica de Fuego (Firelight, Firelight, #1), by Sophie Jordan

This one's been in my TBR list since it came out, and I loved seeing it in my local library, so of course I bought it!

Dragons and romance, hell yeah!

Prueba de Fuego (The Scorch Trials, Maze Runner #2), by James Dashner

Loved The Maze Runner, and I'm hoping to love this one even more!

Dulce Fuego (Fire Study, Study #3), by Maria V. Snyder

The Insider Series made me love Maria's writing (can't wait for book 3!), and when I saw this one in a used bookstore, I actually squaled. Too bad I don't have neither Poison Study nor Magic Study, but now I'll definitely see if I can find them!

Cinco Cerditos (Five Little Pigs, Poirot #24), by Agatha Christie

I haven't read any Christie yet, so I thought this was a good time to start.
Also bought in the used bookstore.

Have you bought anything interesting this week?

Morganville Vampires Reading Challenge 2012

2011-12-27T20:52:00.000-03:00

Jo at Ink and Paper is hosting an awesome Challenge: the Morganville Vampires Reading Challenge 2012! I haven't read these books yet, and I love vampires, so I immediately signed up.

The challenge will run from Jan 1st to Dec 31st, 2012.
I'll use this post to update my progress.
I'll be trying the Oliver level: 1-6 books.

Glass Houses: TBR
The Dead Girls' Dance: TBR
Midnight Alley: TBR
Feast of Fools: TBR
Lord of Misrule: TBR
Carpe Corpus: TBR

Outside In (Insider, #2), by Maria V. Snyder

2011-12-26T19:00:00.001-03:00

Release Date: March 1st, 2011
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Age Group: Young Adult
Overall: 5 Stars
Categories: Sci-Fi, Space Travel, Action
Goodreads Page
Read from November to December 2011

Summary:

Me? A Leader? Okay, I did prove that there's more to Inside than we knew. That a whole world exists beyond this cube we live in. And finding that led to a major rebellion - between worker scrubs like me and the snobby uppers who rule our world. Make that ruled. Because of me, we're free. I thought that meant I was off the hook, and could go off on my own again - while still touching base with Riley, of course. He's the one upper I think I can trust. But then we learned that there's outside and then there is Outside. And something from Outside wants In.

My Opinion:

Thanks to the Insider Series, I now like Sci-Fi books. I didn’t use to; I started Inside Out thinking it was just another Dystopia and ended up being surprised: it was a sci-fi, and I loved it! It was also my first Snyder book, and it got me hooked! Now I want to read every book by her.

Outside In begins where IO left off: the Force of Sheep had won the rebellion, the Insiders learnt they were travelling through Outer Space, the Travas were arrested, a Committee was formed and new levels were discovered. Trella and her friends thought they had nothing else to worry about, but soon they found out how wrong they were.

I truly love how Maria crafts her characters’ personalities, I could sometimes guess how some of them would act, but most of the time, everything was a surprise, which was brilliant!

This book is all about love, trust and betrayal, and making tough choices in the name of everyone on board. Trella must figure out who she can trust and defend everything that’s being threatened in Inside.

A must for Snyder and Sci-Fi fans everywhere!

Spirits of Glory, by Emily Devenport

2011-12-25T18:50:00.000-03:00

Release Date: October 24th, 2010
Publisher: Smashwords
Age Group: Young Adult
Overall: 3 Stars
Categories: Mystery, Sci-Fi, Time Travel
Goodreads Page
Read in December 2011

Summary:

One morning the people of the North woke up and the people of the South were gone. That's the first thing every child learns on the colony world of Jigsaw. But for one girl, knowing about The Disappearance is not enough. Hawkeye wants to know why.

That's why she spent half her life researching The Disappearance. And that's also why eight Neighbors show up on her doorstep, demanding that she accompany them into the Forbidden Cities ruled by the Southern gods to speak with the Spirits of Glory. Everyone thinks Hawkeye is an expert on Neighbors, these almost-humans who move, talk, and think as if they were born inside one of the Time Fractures. But she can't imagine what they want to ask the ghosts of their ancestors, or why they need her to go along. The Southern gods caused every human inhabitant of the Southern cities to disappear overnight - what else might they do?

But the Northern gods say Hawkeye should go and her curiosity won't let her refuse, even though she's going into more danger than she can imagine. Pain and puzzlement wait along the broken interstate, along with scavengers who want to kill them all. Hawkeye's questions only generate more questions as they move farther and farther into the South, right into the heart of the Disappearance, until Hawkeye's questions have all been answered.

Even the ones she was afraid to ask.

My Opinion:

Spirits of Glory is a short but well crafted novel, with a lot of elements to put together in the end, keeping you hooked to the story.

I really liked how Emily built this new world -Jigsaw- and how she presented us with its history and background, little by little, making us want more.

The idea of the Time Fractures was very nicely done (being a Doctor Who fan, I tend to pay a lot of attention to these sort of things): once Hawkeye and Co. were in a Fracture, Time seemed to stretch for them, what would take a minute to do, in a Fracture it takes hours. I also enjoyed the visual of the book; Emily put a lot of detail into it.

But that's my main argument against this book: there was, perhaps, a little too much detail, and not so much action. Whenever we got action, though, it was brilliant!

Hawkeye's growth throughout the book is also nicely written; we read how she becomes a much more mature (than she already is!) girl and how she learns how to handle things in a much better fashion, despite her disability. There's some romance in there, but the way Emily wrote it was great: it wasn't too fluffy, it was barely there, but it was definitely sweet and it worked for the book.

It's a standalone (a plus!), I think, and a nice book if you're looking for an interesting sci-fi with a really well built world.

I really wish we'd seen more action, because I think it would have been a great book with it.

Ryan Gosling Reads Young Adult

2011-12-16T12:45:00.000-03:00

Oh, you didn't know? Well, he does. And sometimes he cries.

(I don't know why people created this meme, but it's amazing!)
xo,
Ella

Giveaway-ers: The Book Depository DOESN'T ship everywhere. Better World Books DOES.

2011-12-15T10:56:00.000-03:00

Being an international blogger, I'm often out of a LOT of awesome giveaways. Most of them are only US/Canada limited, and that sucks. BAD.

BUT, a lot of considerate people do hold international giveaways. Where do they buy the prizes? From The Book Depository. WRONG! TBD only ships to a number of different countries, and they claim their shipping is international, but this is not entirely true.

Last year, my Secret Santa got me a Gift Certificate for Better World Books. They DO ship internationally and their prices are great too!

Now, I don't want you to think this is a big advertising post for BWB, I just want YOU (who are thinking of holding an international giveaway soon) to think of buying the prize at BWB, so EVERYONE can enter.

I'll be holding an international giveaway of my own soon, so stay tuned.

xo,

Ella

UK Book Trailer for Hallowed (Unearthly, #2)

2011-12-13T12:31:00.001-03:00

WOW. Creepy. I just loved Unearthly and I've requested Hallowed from NetGalley, so hopefully I'll be reading and reviewing it soon. I have to know what happens to Tucker!

And I think I like this style of cover more, don't you?

Borrowing Abby Grace #1: The Shadow, by Kelly Green

2011-12-13T00:20:00.000-03:00

Release Date: October 17th, 2011
Publisher: Backlit Fiction
Age Group: Young Adult
Overall: 3 Stars
Categories: Paranormal, Body-Swap, Mystery
Goodreads Page - Twitter - Facebook
Read in December 2011

Summary:

Sent to repair the lives and loves of teenagers on the edge of disaster, smart and sassy Abby Grace has everything going for her, except one thing: a body.

My Opinion:

BAG is a book with a lot of potential, and I felt it really could have given us more. It was all there, but not completely there.

We meet Abby, a ghost (we're not sure about this yet) to give it a term, who's inside a girl's body: Brooke needs her help with something and Abby's here to do the job for her.

When I was asked to review this, I said "Why not? Sounds good!". And it was, but I wish we'd gotten more info about Abby and her handler (?) Will, and also, about her Borrowing businness. I know we'll get all this in the next books, but for a First in a Series, it lacked that thing that makes you want to run to the bookstore and buy the sequel.

Nevertheless, The Shadow is a short book (only 50-ish pages) and a fun read for a cold afternoon when you want to curl up in a sofa and read.

Up next, BAG #2: Girl Steals Guy!

Happy book birthday Clockwork Prince, Deadly Little Voices, Ruthless and Surrender

2011-12-06T21:50:00.000-03:00

Some awesome books are coming out today. Have you pre-ordered any of these, and are anxiously awaiting for it?

Clockwork Prince (The Infernal Devices, #2), by Cassandra Clare
HARDCOVER
I read Clockwork Angel last year, and I loved it! I've yet to read TMI, though.
And guys, YOU CAN HEAR THE 1ST CHAPTER READ BY ED WESTWICK ON GOODREADS!!! GO, GO, GO!

Deadly Little Voices (a TOUCH novel), by Laurie Faria Stolarz
HARDCOVER
I haven't read any of these yet. Should I?

Ruthless (Pretty Little Liars, #10), by Sara Shepard
HARDCOVER
I don't know if I'd like these, sometimes I think I would, other times I just find a book that I want to read more.

Surrender (Haunting Emma, #2), by Lee Nichols
PAPERBACK
Haven't read the first one either, but I hear it's good!
You can win a copy on Goodreads! US only, though.

Happy release day to The Future of Us, by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler!

2011-11-21T10:58:00.000-03:00

It's 1996, and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet.

Emma just got her first computer and an America Online CD-ROM.

Josh is her best friend. They power up and log on--and discover themselves on Facebook, fifteen years in the future.

Everybody wonders what their Destiny will be. Josh and Emma are about to find out.

Loved the summary the first time I read it; I know this is a book I'll end up loving :)

The Future of Us is now in bookstores and is available through online retailers.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer, #1), by Michelle Hodkin

2011-11-19T16:41:00.000-03:00

Michelle Hodkins's blog - website - goodreads - twitter

Release Date: September 27th, 2011
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Age Group: Young Adult
Overall: 5 Stars
Categories: (I don't want to spoil it for you.)
Read in November 2011

Summary:

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.
It can.
She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

My Opinion:

If you haven't read any other reviews for this book, and all you know about it is what you've read in that summary, then Mara Dyer's story is not something you'll be expecting to read. It begins with mystery and ends with madness.

From the start, you're sucked up into Mara's world, one of hallucinations and tragedies and feel like there's no way out. Michelle crafted her beautifully, showing us the many sides of her personality, building it all up until that big revelation is finally out in the open. And boy, what a revelation! I'm honest when I say I did not see that one coming when grabbing this book! I was expecting something else entirely, and in the middle, I fell for this story.

What I loved about this book was just that, the surprise we get in the end. Also, its darkness. Mara is a girl with real issues, but with an even bigger problem beneath the surface. It was how getting to that problem was written what I loved most about this book.

And Noah's character doesn't hurt ;) Who doesn't love a bad boy with a British accent? His role in Mara's story will grow as the book progresses, and believe me, you'll end up loving him and wanting to smack him in the face at the same time.

I strongly recommend this book to suspense, mystery and paranormal lovers.

Guest Post: Working Through Writer's Block, by Anthony Garcia

2011-11-18T00:59:00.001-03:00

Solutions to Writer's Block

When you have a writer’s deadline,nothing is as frustrating as writer’s block. Whether the “victim” is a studentwho has a deadline for an assignment in graduate programs online,or whether it is a professional writer with an internal expectation to get acertain amount of work done, writer’s block is incredibly frustrating andintimidating for writers of all ages and experience levels. There are solutionsto get over writer’s block so that the blank page or computer screen stopstaring back and taunt them with their lack of progress.

Be Prepared

Sometimes writer’s block comes frombeing under-prepared to write about specific topics. This might mean having towrite about a topic they have little knowledge about and haven’t prepared for,or because the topic was assigned and the writer has little interest. If thisis the kind of preparation the writer lacks, then a solutionfor that problem is to research. Whether writing as a student or asa professional, gaining background information can be an integral part ofmaking the brain click so that the words will flow more readily.

Another part of preparation is tothink about where the writing will go before you start. You can make an outlinebefore writing, or you might try brainstorming possible topics to include inthe writing. Some people can do this by talking through the story, even if thewriter is only speaking to herself. Many times getting those main ideas outthere, whether on paper or some other manner can lay out what needs to be doneso the writer may begin.

Start in the Middle (or the end)

Sometimes the issue for writers ishow to start, or even where to start. One solution is to start with what is known. Sometimes we know thatsomething important happened, but it can be the difficult to figure out how toget the reader to that point. One solution for the writer is to ignore thebeginning and go the part they know well, the middle, orthe end, or wherever the climax occurred. By going to the arc of action, thewriter will often better understand what information is left out of thewriting, and then the writer will know what to include in the beginning.

Walk Away

There comes a point for anyonesuffering through writer’s block that sitting and staring at the blank page orthe blank screen elicits diminishing returns. If you have tried other solutionsbut are still experiencing writer’sblock, you may just need a mental break. Breaks help, even if theyare short. It is possible that a writer can do too much concentrating, so muchso that no original or free-flowing thoughts can penetrate the bullet proofwall that won’t allow the writer to get anything accomplished. Sometimes,taking 15 minutes to think about something unrelated to writing is all that isnecessary in order to start writing. If something pops into their head rightaway, it might not be Pulitzer Prize material, but it can get the writerstarted.

Talk to People

The writer who still has writer’sblock should talk to someone. It is not necessary to talk to people aboutwriter’s block. As a matter of fact, it can be helpful to talk about baseball,a television show, or a song, or anything in the world other than writing. Forthe writer, there is in the back of their mind no matter what, so it ispossible that while talking, or watching television something will click. However,it can also be really helpful to bounce ideas off of others about the writingitself. Maybe someone has an experience with something you are writing about,and could shed light on the topic. Since all of us have different lifeexperiences, it can be really useful to get a multitude of perspectives whenyou are at a loss for ideas. With writer’s block, almost anything can allow theblock to go away and help the writing process to start.

There are few things morefrustrating than writer’s block, especially when there is a deadline or acommitment that must be met. However, few people have died from writer’s block,so by trying a few different proven strategies, writer’s block too shall pass.My best advice: just don’t’ give up!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anthony recently completed his graduate education in English Literature. A New Mexico native, he currently resides and writesin Seattle, Washington. He writes primarily about education, travel, literature, and American culture.

SHATTER ME's Release Day and MARA DYER News!

2011-11-15T11:06:00.000-03:00

Today's the release day of SHATTER ME, by debut author Tahereh Mafi! I think I'm right in saying it's one of the most anticipated books of the season. Just look at its cover!

Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

In this electrifying debut, Tahereh Mafi presents a world as riveting as The Hunger Games and a superhero story as thrilling as The X-Men. Full of pulse-pounding romance, intoxicating villainy, and high-stakes choices, Shatter Me is a fresh and original dystopian novel—with a paranormal twist—that will leave readers anxiously awaiting its sequel.

Or, look at its trailer (which is ah-mazing!):

*drops jaw*

Happy book birthday SHATTER ME! I shall soon get my hands on you!

And, speaking of awesome books: THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER is on its SECOND PRINT! Just after being on the shelves for 6 weeks! SIX WEEKS! Wow, that's great!

I'm reading this book right now (as a matter of fact, I'll go and keep on reading it as soon as this post it up) and I tell you, I'm loving it. My review will probably be up next week.

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.
It can.
She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.
There is.
She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.
She's wrong.

I still have uni to worry about, but classes are ending which means I'll have more time to read soon!

xo,
Ella

What does 2012 hold in (book)stores for us

2011-11-12T12:46:00.000-03:00

2011 is nearly over, and we're all still alive, yay! And thanks to uni, I failed -yet again- to complete any challenges I signed up for this year. It's fun, though, to try and participate, so be sure I'll be signing up for any 2012 challenges I come across!

Uni is also nearly done for me, which gives me time to catch -a little- up on my reading. This year I read less books than last, but I was more busy than I was in 2010, so it's not so bad for me.

A lot of new books are reaching Argentine stores, maybe I'll take some pics and make a special post about that later... But it makes me super happy! Maybe publishing homes are realising Latinamericans expect new books to be published in their home countries just as eagerly as Northamericans and Europeans? Buying books from online reteilers isn't cheap, you know. Apart from the book itself, we have to pay for shipping, which costs nearly more than the book! Crazy... But, moving on!

So, 2012 books! Some great titles are coming next year, take a look -click on the pics to enlarge, and view the covers in all their splendor!- (every link leads to Goodreads):

Innocent Darkness (The Aether Chronicles, #1), by Suzanne Lazear

The Gathering Storm (The Katerina Trilogy, #1), by Robin Bridges

Small Medium at Large, by Joanne Levy

Breaking Beautiful, by Jennifer Shaw Wolf

Auracle, by Gina Rosati

A Breath of Eyre (Unbound, #1), by Eve Marie Mont

Gilt (The Royal Circle), by Katherine Longshore

Love & Leftovers, by Sarah Tregay

May B., by Caroline Starr Rose

Never Eighteen, by Megan Bostic

Scarlet, by A. C. Gaughen

Touched (Touched, #1), by Corrine Jackson

Look at the pretty covers! AURACLE's is amazing! And it's synopsis is even more so! A Breath of Eyre was one of my WoW's this year, not that long ago.

Remember these are debut authors, so you can add any of these titles to next year's 2012 Debut Author Challenge!

These are just a few of next year's releases, you can look at the rest here (Goodreads) or here (Class of 2k12).

xo,
Ella

Root - A new interactive story from Guardian Teen Books

2011-11-09T00:04:00.000-03:00

Remember I told you about Michael Grant's new interactive project a few months ago? Well, someone from The Guardian has just emailed me something really exciting, and not unlike Grant's project:

Guardian Teen Books has partnered with Random House for a new interactive, serialised story called Root - a fast-paced thriller set in the shadowy world of computer hacking and espionage.

ESPIONAGE! I love the Cherub series by Robert Muchamore, I read a few of them -that were not reviewed here-, and ever since I've loved the idea of teen spies.

Every weekday for six weeks a new chapter will be released on guardian.co.uk/teen-books. The content will be directly influenced by readers’ contributions, such as their ideas for characters' personalities and skills.

The story's already begun, it's on its twelfth chapter now. But I'm definitely gonna start reading it as soon as I can!

The heroine Molly Root is a 15 year old computer genius whose friend Danny is killed after being caught stealing priceless data from a ruthless global corporation. Now she's in over her head. So far Molly Root's mission to get to the bottom of her best friend's murder has taken her on a perilous trail across London. Her key lead is a dodgy police detective - and her attempts to expose his shady contacts are testing her ingenuity to the limits.

Yep, I'm loving the summary!

As well as incorporating suggestions from readers, the story will also be brought to life via several social media platforms. For example, Guardian Teen Books' Twitter and Facebook accounts will be providing behind the scenes updates of how Molly is progressing, along with clips on Audiobooks featuring the voicemails that Molly has discovered. This will be accompanied by onsite quizzes and photo puzzles on Flickr.

How exciting is that? I know it's convinced me! You can go and take a look if you want, click on any of the links above to visit the site.

The ReadIt1st Movement

2011-11-06T11:00:00.000-03:00

Right, Doctor? Nerdfighters are cool, he says.

Nerdfighters are among the coolest people on Earth, and they've created something that deserves to be spoken of.

I only just learned about it, and I already think it's amazing.

Have you ever watched a film based on a book and swore you'd never waste your time reading said book? Well, you might have missed out on reading a really good book, all because of its crappy on-screen adaptation.

The ReadIt1st Movement (I don't know if it's actually a movement, I just like to call it that) is all for reading the book before watching the film! It's something I've always believed in. I haven't watched the Jane Eyre remake because I still have the book waiting for me in a box (I know, tragic, but I still haven't gotten shelves for my new flat).

I love it when you can see on the big (or small) screen something you've previously imagined in your mind. It's magic, isn't it? Of course, a book's adaptation to a film isn't always accurate (The Vampire Diaries is a series I love, but on TV, the show's taking turns that L. J. Smith didn't even write! And it isn't necessarily a bad thing.) and we must remember that when watching a film or a TV show based on a literary work.

So, if you also think like me, and you're willing to take the pledge, you can go to readit1st.com and sign up!

The Eternal Kiss: 13 Vampire Tales of Blood and Desire, by Various Authors

2011-11-05T21:30:00.000-03:00

The Eternal Kiss: 13 Vampire Tales of Blood and Desire, by Various Authors on Goodreads
Release Date: July 28th, 2009
Publisher: Running Press Kids
Age Group: Young Adult
Overall: 4 Stars
Categories: Vampires, Paranormal, Romance
Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Finished in November 2011

Summary:

There’s an allure to vampire tales that have seduced readers for generations. From Bram Stoker to Stephenie Meyer and beyond, vampire stories are here to stay. For those fresh-blooded fans of paranormal romance or for those whose hunt and hunger never dies, these stories have what readers want!This collection of original tales comes from some of the hottest, most popular, and best-selling YA writers, including:
• Holly Black (The Spiderwick Chronicles, Tithe)
• Libba Bray (A Great and Terrible Beauty)
• Melissa De La Cruz (Blue Blood)
• Cassandra Clare (City of Bones)
• Rachel Caine (Morganville Vampires)
• Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguie (Wicked)
• Cecil Castellucci (Boy Proof, Queen of Cool)
• Kelley Armstrong (Women of Otherworld)
• Maria V. Snyder
• Sarah Rees Brennan
• Lili St. Crow
• Karen Mahoney
• Dina James
They will make everyone a sucker for eternal kisses.

My Opinion:

Vampires are among my favourite otherworldly creature, and this book didn't disappoint! What an amazing book from such talented authors!

From romances between vampires and their hunters (the drama!), and vampires who've been so for years to people who've just changed or are hoping to be turned, this book has it all.

I seriously can't remember reading a book so full of action as well as sexual tension, and so well written. Because, let's be honest, teens' hormones are all over the place 24/7, it's no use denying it. And these writers use it to their advantage, creating stories that'll leave you pining for an undead boyfriend/girlfriend of your own! Just subtle kisses (hence, the book's title) that make you feel a chill crawling up your spine and keep on reading until the end are what this book is about.

You'll find your typical gorgeous type of vamp and vampires that are anything but glamourous and living in ghettos, surrounded by police guarding them so they don't leave that place.

Many of these authors I'd never heard of, but now, I'm definitely going to start looking into their work.

If you love vampire stories as much as I do, you'll love this book.

I'm not dead!

2011-10-26T23:26:00.000-03:00

WOW, I can't believe that even though I'm not here, this blog still keeps getting a lot of visitors a day, THANK YOU!

I've been receiving a lot of review/interview requests, that I'd love to accept, and I want to go back to being active on the blogosphere, but sadly, university is taking up most of my time.

So, during the next couple of months, I'll be online as much as I can -meaning, you'll probably see a blog post every three weeks!-, but after uni is done for the year, I'm all yours bloggy world!

I've also got some projects I want to share with you guys, and I need your imput, so stay around.

xo,
Ella

WOW #21: A Breath of Eyre

2011-10-08T11:52:00.001-03:00

Waiting on: A Breath of Eyre (Unbound, #1), by Eve Marie Mont

Expected publication date: April 1st, 2012

Publisher: Kensington

Summary from Goodreads:

Get lost in a good book. Literally.
Emma Townsend has always believed in stories—the ones she reads voraciously, and the ones she creates in her head. Perhaps it’s because she feels like an outsider at her exclusive prep school, or because her stepmother doesn’t come close to filling the void left by her mother’s death. And her only romantic prospect—apart from a crush on her English teacher—is Gray Newman, a long-time friend who just adds to Emma’s confusion. But escape soon arrives in an old leather-bound copy of Jane Eyre…
Reading of Jane’s isolation sparks a deep sense of kinship. Then fate takes things a leap further when a lightning storm catapults Emma right into Jane’s body and her nineteenth-century world. As governess at Thornfield, Emma has a sense of belonging she’s never known—and an attraction to the brooding Mr. Rochester. Now, moving between her two realities and uncovering secrets in both, Emma must decide whether her destiny lies in the pages of Jane’s story, or in the unwritten chapters of her own…

How cool is that summary? I love the idea of a teenager getting sucked into a classic tale, and I adore the classics! I'll be pining for this one.

I'm slowly turning into a Whovian.

2011-08-30T20:03:00.001-03:00

Tenth Doctor and Rose Tyler

And I'm loving it! I've known about Doctor Who for some time now, but I just started watching it last week. I've devoured the first two seasons, am about to finish the third, and I'll keep on going until I get to where everyone else it right now! After that, I want to watch the Classic Episodes :)

This show's brilliant, it's got everything you could ask for: adventure, amazing new worlds, romance, suspense, mystery, it's got it all!

For those of you who haven't watched this amazing show, it tells the story of the Doctor (currently in his Eleventh regeneration), a Time Lord (basically an alien who can travel through time and space).

Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler

On the 2005 season, the Ninth Doctor was played by Christopher Eccleston. And I loved him! He was so good! That season finale was amazing, and I wanted to see more of him, but no such luck.

Now, I'm watching the Tenth Doctor's seasons, the third one, to be exact, and I'm not too happy about the changes.

I still love the show, but I'm kinda hoping the old days will come back.

The Doctor's new companion, Martha Jones, is nice, but I'm missing Rose too much. They say she comes back soon, so I'm gonna have to keep watching to find out when.

I think I'll be on season 6 by next week.

Do you like DW?

xo,

Ella

The Day I Decided to Switch Stories

2011-08-15T22:04:00.001-03:00

Doesn't she look happy?

Yeah, that's today. And I feel like the girl on the picture, honestly.

I'd been secretly dating another Idea -the horror!- while trying to finish Insomnia. But the thing is, even though I know exactly where Insomnia's going, I don't really want to keep writing it anymore. At least, not for now.

What started out as something fun became a sort of duty (I HAVE to finish this book! Or else...), in a bad way, and I don't want to feel that anymore.

I do feel kind of bad for leaving my characters behind, now that I know them so well. But I think it's not the right time for me to write that story. So, I'm changing courses and following that other Idea I told you before.

And I'm very excited! I've already started drafting my character's personalities and their world, so before I dive into writing it, I know just where I'm headed.

I'll totally share stuff about it with you, when I have something to share, lol ;)

I think this is a good thing, something fresh and new. I'm glad I made this decision.

What are you writing? Let me know!

xo,

Ella

Do you buy used books or books from different sellers on Amazon?

2011-08-15T11:31:00.002-03:00

Click to enlarge.

Hey guys, I have a quick question for you.

I recently started buying books from Amazon: pre-ordered Lola and The Scorpio Races and I'm really happy about it, because it's the same as buying books here in my home country, the cost is practically the same. The only difference is that when I buy books on Amazon I have to wait to get them.

A few days ago I started thinking: "Would it be worth it to buy used books or books from other sellers on Amazon? They certainly are cheaper, but what are the guarantees?"

So, my question to you is: Have you ever bought used books or from a different seller on Amazon? Is it worth it? Is the books' quality good when you get them?

xo, Ella

Lauren DeStefano discusses the perils of Goodreads

2011-08-15T01:02:00.001-03:00

Awesome video. So funny, I had to share!

Kami Garcia sells a new series to Little, Brown!

2011-08-14T21:12:00.000-03:00

Excerpt from Publishers Weekly:

Garcia’s ‘Legion’ Heads to LBBYR… and Hollywood

“Kami Garcia, coauthor of the bestselling YA series Beautiful Creatures, sold the first two books in a new series, called the Legion, to Julie Scheina at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. Scheina bought North American rights to Unbreakable and Unbound from Jodi Reamer at Writers House; the series is set to launch in fall 2013. The first book, Unbreakable, is also already in development in Hollywood with producer Mark Morgan (the Twilight Saga and Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief) attached… LBBYR called the series a “frightening and thrilling urban fantasy’”full of “suspense, romance, and dark paranormal forces.”

Are you curious yet? Here’s a preview:

Kennedy Waters’ entire life changes when she finds her mother dead and discovers she is a member of a secret society formed two hundred years ago to protect the world from a powerful demon determined to find a way out of his dimension and into ours, and from the dangerous spirits he controls.

(from beautifulcreatures.com)

Wow, awesome news! I'm a huge Beautiful Creatures fan; I love Kami and Margie's writing, and cannot wait to read their solo projects! Remember, Margie also sold her new YA Sci-Fi series to LB. These ladies are taking new paths, and I'm sure they'll do great in their new projects.

Good luck, Kami!

The Scorpio Races New Book Trailer!

2011-08-14T19:50:00.003-03:00

How awesome is that?! As usual, Maggie did it all herself (with help, of course, but it's all her anyway). I'm dying to get this book and have already pre-ordered it (the perks of having a debit card!).

Here's the summary if you don't know what the book is about:

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen. (Taken from Goodreads).

Maggie's having a contest on her blog where you can win an ARC of TSC. Click here to enter.

Pre-Order the book: The Scorpio Races(Amazon)

Crescendo (Hush, Hush, #2), by Becca Fitzpatrick

2011-08-11T00:21:00.001-03:00

Becca Fitzpatrick's website|blog|FB|Twitter

Release Date: October 19th, 2010
Publisher: Simon and Schuster's Children's Publishing
Age Group: Young Adult
Overall: 4 Stars
Categories: Paranormal, Romance, Angels
Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Other books in the series: Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush, #1), Silence (Hush, Hush, #3)
Read in August 2011

Summary:

Nora Grey's life is still far from perfect. Surviving an attempt on her life wasn't pleasant, but atleast she got a guardian angel out of it: a mysterious, magnetic, gorgeous guardian angel. But, despite his role in her life, Patch has been acting anything but angelic. He's more elusive than ever and even worse, he's started spending time with Nora's arch-enemy, Marcie Millar.

Nora would have hardly noticed Scott Parnell, an old family friend who has moved back to town, if Patch hadnt been acting so distant. Even with Scott's totally infuriating attitude Nora finds herself drawn to him - despite her lingering feeling that he's hiding something.

Haunted by images of her murdered father, and questioning whether her nephilim bloodline has anything to do with his death, Nora puts herself increasingly in dangerous situations as she desperatly searches for answers. But maybe some things are better left buried, because the truth could destroy everything - and everyone - she trusts.

My Opinion:

Hush, Hush was such an amazing, exciting, and fun beginning to a series, that I was hoping to be even more in love with Patch in Crescendo. But I was a little disappointed.

It took me a while to remember that Nora's sixteen years old, therefore some of her actions and decisions seemed a little immature to me. Even so, I couldn't help think sometimes that she could make a better choice. Or tell her, "Why don't you see what he's doing to you?" (he being either Patch, Scott or Rixon).

All that aside, I loved how Becca put even more drama into Crescendo, making Nora question her father's death, thinking it might have been Patch who did it, which led to the two of them eventually breaking up. All I could think was, "No! Don't do that! You can't leave Patch, he loves you!" But I've got to admit, she was very determined, and didn't change her mind like some little girl who says first they want one thing, and then they want another. I liked that.

The Marcie Drama was a little too undeveloped, I think it needed more, I needed to know more. But the Scott Issue was really well written! I loved that.

And the ending! Argh, you can't do that Becca, that's mean! Why did you leave us hanging like that? I tell you, it was all worth it for those final chapters!

So, all in all, while I didn't love this book as much as I did Hush, Hush, I still liked it, and that's why I'm giving it 4 Stars.

Have you read Hush, Hush and Crescendo? Are you waiting for Silence too?

Do you love Patch as much as I do? *swoon*

xo, Ella

Kate Hegarty's New Book Trailer: The Saskatoon Balloon

2011-08-06T20:18:00.001-03:00

When Kate's Mieradome came out, everyone said they loved it. I didn't get a chance to read it yet, but Kate's sent me this new book trailer for her new novel, The Saskatoon Balloon, and now I feel like reading them both!

I still haven't read Faerie Books (I know! I know!), and I really want to read this ones. Maybe I will soon!

Did you like the trailer? Have you read Mieradome?
You can follow Kate's blog here.

xo,
Ella

Michael Grant's New Interactive Project

2011-08-06T14:11:00.000-03:00

A few days ago, I was contacted by Jennifer who's working with GONE author, Michael Grant, in a new and exciting project.

This winter, we'll be able to experience Michael's new transmedia series, which according to Jennifer "is essentially [...] an interactive narrative told through the written word, video, puzzles, and more. But most importantly, it encourages fans to become part of the action."

Looks like we'll be able to read and interact with this new story in awesome sites (http://nexushumanus.com/ and http://societytwins.com/, maybe?). Isn't that exciting?

Can't wait to hear more about this, stay tuned for more!

Recreate PANDEMONIUM's cover international contest!

2011-08-03T16:03:00.000-03:00

We're having an international contest over at Deliriously Falling, where you can win a Pre-Order for Pandemonium!

All you have to do is recreate Pandemonium's cover. Read the full details here.

Getting into Pottermore or How I Nearly Had a Panic Attack

2011-08-02T20:33:00.000-03:00

So, unless you've been living under a rock, you must have heard of Pottermore. Maybe you think it'll be cool, and you're willing to wait til October to try it, or, if you're like me, you were up all night last night, refreshing the site like crazy and chatting with as many Potterheads as you could, trying to see if you could help each other solve the clue.

I'm one of those people that, when they want something, they need it NOW. I had been up from 11pm the night before, waiting til it was 5am when maybe the clue'd be up. 5 came, and no clue. 6 came, and still no clue. That was when people starting thinking, "Well, if the first clue was up at 9am BST, and the second at 10, then this one will probably by up at 11." It was 6: something here in Arg -4-hour difference with London-, so we had to wait til it was 7. By then I was more than awake, I don't know what I was. A bundle of nerves, that's what I was. I was literally shaking, you guys (I HAD to get in, I couldn't stay up any other day!).

And then, FINALLY, it was 7 am Arg - 11am BST, and the clue was up.

I didn't even have time to think the answer, when someone told it to me. So I tried it. I was taken to this page:

Click to enlarge.

And I thought, "Where is the bloody Quill?!?!?" I tell you, I spent the most horrible 10 minutes of my life trying to see if the Quill was hidden somewhere. Until I screencapped my screen, and showed it to my friends. Someone told me I had to deactivate my Adblock, and I'd see the Quill. So I did, and it worked!

Levitating the Quill was another problem, it took me several tries. But after having spent hours up waiting, getting an almost-heart-attack because I couldn't see the damn Quill, and then finding it and registering (I forgot my password right after creating the account, I was so nervous), it was worth to see this:

My username is CharmFirebolt58, a nice one! It was a whirwind of emotions, but I made it out alive. I got to bed at 8 this morning, and I'm happy as a clam (if that's the right expression!). Now I have to wait a few weeks for that other email telling me I can access the site!

Tell me if you got in early too! I want to know everyone's usernames, so I can friend you (or w/e it is we'll be able to do once we're on there) later!

xo,

Ella

Happy birthday J. K. Rowling!

2011-07-31T01:00:00.000-03:00

(I love tumblr. These posts I've reblogged can better express my feelings right now.)

Twenty years ago today, Harry Potter was lying on the floor of an old lighthouse, counting down the minutes to his eleventh birthday, when the magic began. Today, millions of his fans worldwide are eagerly counting down the minutes to midnight, when the magic will begin again. For all of us.

We potterheads will always remember when we crashed Pottermore before it even started.

(In the meantime, we keep waiting for something to happen at pottermore.com...)

How To Get Published: A Flowchart by Kate Hart

2011-07-28T20:50:00.000-03:00

I saw this in Kate Hart's blog, and thought it was hilarious, as well as funny and useful!

FEVER's cover is out!

2011-07-27T18:31:00.000-03:00

And I'm not really in love with it.

I do like the face that they've kept the theme from the first cover. But that one was so much more haunting, don't you agree?

The girl in FEVER's cover looks kinda drunk to me. I don't really like it aesthetically.

What do you think?

The Maze Runner (The Maze Runner, #1), by James Dashner

2011-07-26T06:05:00.001-03:00

The Maze Runner (The Maze Runner, #1), by James Dashner on Goodreads

Release Date: October 6th, 2009
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Categories: Dystopian, Post-Apocalyptic, Sci-Fi

Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Other books in the series: The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner, #2), The Death Cure (The Maze Runner, #3)
Read in July 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

Imagine waking up one day in total darkness, unsure of where you are and unable to remember anything about yourself except your first name. You're in a bizarre place devoid of adults called the Glade. The Glade is an enclosed structure with a jail, a graveyard, a slaughterhouse, living quarters, and gardens. And no way out. Outside the Glade is the Maze, and every day some of the kids -- the Runners -- venture into the labyrinth, trying to map the ever-changing pattern of walls in an attempt to find an exit from this hellish place. So far, no one has figured it out. And not all of the Runners return from their daily exertions, victims of the maniacal Grievers, part animal, part mechanical killing machines.
Thomas is the newest arrival to the Glade in this Truman-meets-Lord of the Flies tale. A motley crew of half a dozen kids is all he has to guide him in this strange world. As soon as he arrives, unusual things begin to happen, and the others grow suspicious of him. Though the Maze seems somehow familiar to Thomas, he's unable to make sense of the place, despite his extraordinary abilities as a Runner. What is this place, anddoes Thomas hold the key to finding a way out?
In The Maze Runner, Dashner has crafted a creative and engaging novel that's both mysterious and thought provoking.

My Opinion:

I'd read a lot about this book, some really good reviews, and it had always been on top of my TBR list. So when I saw it in my local bookstore, I knew I had to buy it. Not that many American books find their way to Latin America, so I was really happy to find this one.

Cover of my/Latin American edition.

And it did not disappoint! What an awesome first-book-in-a-series! It left me aching for more!

I missed the buzz over this book when it was first published, so I'm not going to make this a long review, as I imagine you may have read a lot of reviews already, but I am going to say this: I saw The Scorch Trials in my bookstore, and I'm getting it when I have money (lol).

I can't remember ever reading a book about a Maze, this one was something fresh. Every chapter ended leaving you more confused and with more questions than before, and I can definitely see why some people compare it to Lost. It has that mysterious air that the TV show had, and that I loved. I can definitely see myself becoming a fan of this trilogy.

Another thing that suprised me in a wonderful way, was the fact that James wrote a book where teenage (this is a crucial fact) boys are capable of working and living in a very well crafted community. Yes, they got help from the "Makers" (? - I read the book in Spanish, so I don't know the term in English), the people who put them there, but in the end it was up to them to get things done. Eventually, the girl who arrived at the Glade also participates, but the boys are the ones who've built up everything before she got there.

Why do I like this? Because it shows teenagers can do more than care for trivial matters! Leaving aside the fact that this is a Sci-Fi, these boys worked hard not to let anguish and pain bring them down. So, kudos to Dashner, Thomas and the Gladers!

This book is full of fast-paced action, suspense, mystery and some laughs thrown in there too. I highly recommend this is you still haven't read it!

Stay, by Deb Caletti

2011-07-25T14:11:00.001-03:00

Stay, by Deb Caletti on Goodreads

Release Date: April 5th, 2011.
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Simon Pulse

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Categories: Romance, Drama, Contemporary, Relationships

Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Read in June 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

Clara's relationship with Christian is intense from the start, and like nothing she’s ever experienced before. But what starts as devotion quickly becomes obsession, and it's almost too late before Clara realizes how far gone Christian is—and what he's willing to do to make her stay.
Now Clara has left the city—and Christian—behind. No one back home has any idea where she is, but she still struggles to shake off her fear. She knows Christian won't let her go that easily, and that no matter how far she runs, it may not be far enough...

My Opinion:

For my first Caletti book, it was awe-some. It had drama, it had love, it had strange relationships... everything you can ask for in a Contemp!

The way Deb created Clara -at first a shy girl, who becomes someone new with Christian around- was incredibly belieable. I could really see her, hurt and broken, trying to find herself again in that little place on the beach, where she and her father go to escape from the city. Every one of her decisions made sense, once you got to "know" her, which helped me understand her throughout the whole book, and made me want to grab her off the pages and keep her safe myself! She was a really grounded person, and I loved watching her grow.

The rest of the characters was brilliant as well. Her father, and his secrets; her best friend and her personality, Christian and his... he was really well written too, crazy as hell, but a great character, plot-wise.

I loved this book so much, I can't wait to read some other Caletti book!

If you're looking for an intense Contemporary book, then run to the book store and get this one!

I had a strange dream...

2011-07-24T20:27:00.000-03:00

...where (I have no idea where I was) but J. K. Rowling was giving me a book (it was her in person, I saw her), bound like my copy of Deathly Hallows from Bloomsbury, but when I opened it, it had all the 10.000-ish exclusive words she's about to release in Pottermore. And it was brilliant.

And then I woke up. No joke. I did dream it.

I'm suffering from Post-Potter-Traumatic-Disorder. Help!

Shatter Me cover revealed!

2011-07-15T19:38:00.000-03:00

Yesterday, Hollywood Crush revealed Tahereh Mafi's (I still don't know how to pronounce her name!) debut book's cover! And it is quite stunning! Take a look:

Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days. The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old-girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

In this electrifying debut, Tahereh Mafi presents a world as riveting as The Hunger Games and a superhero story as thrilling as The X-Men. Full of pulse-pounding romance, intoxicating villainy, and high-stakes choices, Shatter Me is a fresh and original dystopian novel—with a paranormal twist—that will leave readers anxiously awaiting its sequel. (from Goodreads)

Isn't that an awesome cover! And the summary, so cool. A mix of dystopia and paranormal. Something fresh and interesting, can't wait!

PANDEMONIUM'S COVER IS OUT!

2011-07-11T10:45:00.000-03:00

And WOAH! Isn't it a beautiful cover?

I'm in awe. Love that they've kept the theme of the Special Edition's cover :)

These covers have something that make me want to keep staring at them, they possibly are among the best-looking covers I've ever seen, and I'm not just saying it because I love the books.

Move on over to Deliriously Falling and share your thoughts, everyone!

xo,

Ella

Potter Walk in Buenos Aires, July 3rd, 2011

2011-07-03T21:24:00.000-03:00

Chp Argentina, a Harry Potter fans/reading club, had a Walk to Plaza de Mayo today, and I missed it. I didn't know, otherwise I would've gone!

Chp Arg's members walked down Buenos Aires's streets dressed in Hogwarts robes, from the four houses, carrying their magic wands. (Photos taken from Yess di Giovanni. Click to enlarge.)

A Death Eater and Yess, a Gryffindor.

Witches and wizards in Plaza de Mayo, Bs. As.

I love that sign. It reads "JK: We are the magic you created"

Yess and Voldemort. His characterisation is wicked cool. Look at his fingernails!

Bill? and Yess. And a Death Eater behind them!

These pics make me sad because I wasn't able to go. But I WILL go next time! In the mean time, I'll keep on crying because I missed this one...

I just realised I haven't shown you guys my new tattoo...

2011-07-03T13:25:00.000-03:00

...so here it is:

My right forearm lookin' all cool :P

Excuse the scabbiness of my arm. Here is was only a few days old.

Taken yesterday. My arm is now cured! Click to enlarge.

Story behind it: I'm a Harry Potter fan, always have been, always will be. So of course my first tattoo had to be HP-releated. I love Hermione, she's my favourite female character, so when thinking about what I was going to get, I started googling and this pic came up, and I just fell in love with it:

Love this tat. It must have really hurt!

So, I knew I had to get Hermione's wand tattooed. And then I had the idea to put my brothers in there too; since we all love HP, and I love all three of them (HP's world and my two little brothers) it made perfect sense to me.

I am in love with my forearm. We've been dating for the past two months, and I think I'm ready to make a serious commitment with it, you guys.

This is my first (of many) tattoos. I already know what I'm getting next, and have started saving for it. But I have to wait to get it done, to let the shock of this one wear off of my parents' minds! I'm aiming for a sleeved arm... maybe I'll get there with the years.

xo,
Recently-Tattooed-Ella

July is NetGalley Month! Are you in?

2011-07-01T01:16:00.000-03:00

Emily at Red House Books has come up with a great idea for a feature. July is going to be NetGalley Month, for those of us who love NG.

The deal is to read as many NetGalley books as we can. I'm setting myself a goal of five NG books. If I read more, then great! The more, the better.

This month I'll be reading:

The Near Witch, by Victoria Schwab
Starcrossed, by Josephine Angelini
The Goddess Test, by Amy Carter
Populazzi, by Elise Allen
and Outside In, by Maria V. Snyder.

If you want to participate, you can sign up here. At the end of the month, there'll be a giveaway, where two winners will receive a $15 gift card to The Book Depository.

I hereby declare July to be NetGalley Month in TCM.

xo,

Ella

Across the Universe's New Paperback Cover!

2011-06-30T21:56:00.001-03:00

WOOO! Love that new cover! I loved the hardcover one too, but this one is stunning! I'm definitely buying this when it comes out! I was waiting on the PB release, and now it looks like I'm gonna have a super cool cover!

What do you think? Do you like this better than the original one?

WoW #20: Article 5 and Incarnate

2011-06-29T01:32:00.003-03:00

Waiting on: Incarnate (Newsoul Trilogy, #1), by Jodi Meadows

Expected publication date: January 1st, 2012

Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books

Summary from Goodreads:

NEWSOUL
Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

NOSOUL
Even Ana’s own mother thinks she’s a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she’ll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are suspicious and afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

HEART
Sam believes Ana’s new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana’s enemies—human and creature alike—let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else’s life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.

What an interesting summary! And that cover is gor-geous! Can't wait!

Waiting on: Article 5, by Kristen Simmons

Expected publication date: February 12th, 2012

Publisher: Tor Teen

Summary from Goodreads:

New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC have been abandoned.

The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes.

There are no more police — instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior — instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested don’t usually come back.

17-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren’t always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it’s hard to forget that people weren’t always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. That life in the United States used to be different.

In the three years since the war ended, Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the Federal Bureau of Reformation. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow. That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And what’s worse, one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings…the only boy Ember has ever loved.

YAY! I love me dystopian novels! This one's got a really catching summary too! And a beautiful cover. Looking forward to this one :)

And you, what are you waiting for this week?

Margie Stohl has sold rights to a new YA Sci-Fi series!

2011-06-28T15:13:00.003-03:00

Yesterday, Beautiful Creatures' co-author made an announcement on her blog:

My amazing agent, Sarah Burnes of the Gernert Agency, has sold my first solo project, ICONS, a new YA Sci-Fi series, to Little, Brown, which will be edited by my beloved Beautiful Creatures Novels editor, Julie Scheina.Yay!

Margaret has also shared some info on her new project, through PW:

Stohl Launches SF Series at LBYR
Margaret Stohl, co-author of the bestselling YA series Beautiful Creatures, sold North American rights to two books in a new series called Icons to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. Julie Scheina acquired the novels from agent Sarah Burnes at the Gernert Company, and book one is slated for spring 2013. The YA science fiction series, which is set 16 years after an alien invasion, follows a group of teenagers who become swept up in a resistance movement looking to unseat the extraterrestrials who've taken control of the planet.

You can read Margie's full post here, and "Like" Icons' new Facebook page here.

If I Stay (If I Stay, #1), by Gayle Forman

2011-06-28T13:14:00.000-03:00

If I Stay (If I Stay, #1), by Gayle Forman on Goodreads

Release Date: (Paperback) April 6th, 2010.
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Speak

Overall: 3 Monkeys
Categories: Romance, Drama, Contemporary

Challenge: 100 Books in a Year, 2011 Debut Author Challenge*
Read in June 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen-year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, watching her own damaged body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together the pieces - to figure out what she has lost, what she has left, and the very difficult choice she must make. Heart-wrenchingly beautiful, Mia's story will stay with you for a long, long time.

My Opinion:

I was really hoping to super-love this book, as everyone kept saying how much they'd cried with it and how much they loved it (I love to cry when reading a good book). But, sadly for me, this book didn't quite reach me as it did others.

I found the storyline (almost-dead girl's spirit -?- walking down the hospital's halls, trying to figure out if living is worth it or if she should just let go) to be already used. Maybe it was because I'd recently watched a 2007 film (Awake) with Hayden Christensen, where his character is almost in the same place as Mia is. Only, Mia's story is much more dramatic, as opposed to Clay's (Hayden Christensen) where he does want to live but finds that people are trying to prevent that from happening.

Anyway, it wasn't the story that gripped me, but the flashbacks that appear throughout the book, that tore at my heart.

Cover of my edition.

When Mia tells us about her family (Isn't it nice to read about a whole family for a change? Well, until the accident, of course.), about how she and Adam became boyfriend and girlfriend, and about her best friend Kim and her many eccentricities, that was when I loved the book.

Because those insights were completely functional to the plot, to make us feel things for the characters. And boy, did I feel them.

In the end, I think Mia made a good choice. But I didn't like the way the book ended, it was way too open for an ending. I would have liked to see something else.

We'll see how I like Where She Went, book 2! Apparently, it's told from Adam's POV. Oh, how I love a boy's POV in a book... *sigh*

*This book was released a couple of months ago in Argentina, making it a Debut in my country.

First PANDEMONIUM Summary is Revealed!

2011-06-28T01:28:00.001-03:00

Bonnie just shared with us the new PANDEMONIUM (apparently now Mar 2012) summary on Deliriously Falling!

Lauren Oliver captivated readers with DELIRIUM, the first book in a thrilling dystopian trilogy in which Lena Haloway dared to fall in love with Alex and escape the cure, the government-mandated procedure that renders a person immune to the disease of love. Lena and Alex staked their lives on leaving their oppressive society, but only Lena broke free...

Go here to read the whole thing and discuss!
So excited!!!

Cover (Un)Love: Devoted (Elixir, #2), by Hilary Duff, Elise Allen

2011-06-28T01:20:00.000-03:00

Man, that is one ugly cover (no offence to the designer).

Nothing like Elixir's -which I loved-, and it just looks like something we see all the time, the girl-with-no-eyes.

I'm disappointed, you guys. I loved the first book, and I'm really excited about this one, but that cover... I just hope they change it for the paperback release.

What do you think? Have you read Elixir?

Read my review of Elixir here.

I don't even know if the word unlove exists, I'm pretty sure I just made it up, but you get my point.

Resister Report: Anna and the French Kiss, by Stephanie Perkins: Labeled DANGEROUS

2011-06-27T23:02:00.000-03:00

From the Headquarters of the Amor Deliria Nervosa Division:

We have received word that resister Stephanie Perkins is spreading propaganda against the cure. She is calling it ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS and trying to tell teenagers that falling in love is a good thing, treating the warning signs of the deliria as a necessary building block to true love. The tale stirs up too many emotions and will have law-abiding citizens second-guessing the cure. This blatant attack on our regime will not be tolerated.

Read the full Report here. Destroy after reading it.

---------------------------------------------

Deliriously Falling has succesfully infiltrated the Amor Deliria Nervosa Division! We now have access to Top Secret Reports that will help us in our quest to destroy the tyranny of the Government now ruling us.
Are you a Resister?

JKR announces POTTERMORE!

2011-06-23T09:02:00.000-03:00

I've been counting down the days and hours until this moment, and now we finally know what it is!

Stop with the guessing! Now we know that Pottermore is a reading site!

Pottermore is an exciting new website from J.K. Rowling that can be enjoyed alongside the Harry Potter books. You can explore the stories like never before and discover exclusive new writing from the author. It is FREE to join and use, and is designed to be safe for people of all ages. [from Pottermore]

We'll be able to re-read the series and get new and exclusive data from the author. From what I gather, it'll be a sort of interactive site, where we'll read and share thoughts, and build the story as we want it.

"Follow the owl," Jo says, so I'm thinking HP-related sites will have owls scattered around them come October, and they'll lead us to new experiences from Pottermore.

We've waited for this announcement, but now we'll have to wait until October, too. Wow, it can't come fast enough.

The question of the moment: What IS Pottermore?

2011-06-18T11:32:00.000-03:00

HP diehard fans -like myself- have been wondering this for days now. What exactly IS Pottermore? I'll let youtuber ratsrox explain what the rumours are so far:

In the video, the countdown is 6 days, etc., etc. Right now, that countdown is set to 4 days, 20 hours, etc., etc.

If you go to the pottermore.com page and click on the owl, like is explained on the video, you'll be taken to a YT page like this one above. There in the dooblie-doo, it says, "The owls are gathering... find out why soon."

So, we can only guess and (impatiently) wait, until JKR announces something that is sure to change us fans's lives, and I'm not exagerating.

You can follow Pottermore on Facebook and visit its website.

Are you a HP diehard fan like me? Tell me!

Happy birthday Sarah Dessen!

2011-06-06T22:44:00.000-03:00

I'm taking some time off studying and reading to wish a very happy birthday to author Sarah Dessen!

Sarah is considered Contemporary YA royalty, and it shames me to say that I've only read one of her many books, Someone Like You, but I'd certainly like to read more.

So, happy birthday Sarah! Have a great day!

New changes coming to Deliriously Falling!

2011-06-02T17:38:00.000-03:00

Many of you may know that at the end of last year I started the official Lauren Oliver fansite.And while we had a great beginning, I know we'll have an even better time this year!

Today we welcome our three newest members, Cary, Marisa and Bonnie!

All five of us (Cary, Marisa, Reg, Bonnie and me) are working hard to bring new and cool things to the site. So, go over there, say hi to the girls and keep checking back! You won't regret it!

xo,

Ella

The Goldsmith's Secret, by Elia Barceló

2011-05-29T23:46:00.002-03:00

The Goldsmith's Secret, by Elia Barceló on Goodreads

Release Date: March 31st, 2011, UK
Age Group: Adult
Publisher: MacLehose Press

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Categories: Romance, Time-Travel, Historic Fiction, Contemporary

Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Read in May 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

One snowy night in New York City, a successful, solitary goldsmith reflects on his life, and his unrealiable memories intertwine and collide. Journeying to the village in Spain where he grew up, he hopes with some trepidation that he will encounter Celia, "the Black Widow", a beautiful and mysterious friend of his mother with whom he had a short and passionate affair when he was a teenager. But instead he meets a young woman who opens doors into an unimagined world, and takes him back in time.
The Goldsmith's Secret is a remarkable story of a love trapped between two parallel times, set in Spain in the 1950's, 1970's and in the last year of the twentieth century.
In beautifully economical prose, and with a structure as intricate and refined as a bevelled jewel, The Goldsmith's Secret is alight with intense nostalgia, memories and desires.
Elia Barceló has come to be recognized across Europe as a truly original voice, and her books as poetic works of great subtlety.

My Opinion:

To be such a short novel, it had a very long story that traveled through time; a unique romance.

Written somewhat poetically, Barceló tells us the story of Celia and a man whose name we don't know, if I remember correctly.

Celia, the widow, is in love with a man she loved in her youth, and who left without saying goodbye. And he, a teenage boy captivated by that woman's strength. In their short affaire, she tells him something like, "I knew you'd be back." He doesn't understand a thing, and thinks she's confused, speaking to the man she once lost.

Now a grown man, he makes a trip from New York to the town where he grew up, and where he hasn't been in years. He expects to find a modernised town, as towns tend to get after some decades, right? But when he gets there at night, he can only see a few lights on here and there, and this brings back a memory from his childhood.

The hotel where he's staying is just like the one from his memory, from the time when he looked through tge window to spy on the visitors who stayed there when he was a boy. And like that, litttle by little, he realises that -almost magically- he's back to the Villasanta of his early years. And he remembers, too, that Celia is a teenage girl in this time.

And so begins the search for the love of that young Celia, while he's a fourty-some-year-old man.

The Goldsmith's Secret is a beautiful tale of a love that couldn't be. He gets his second chance, but will he succeed?

There's not much more to say about this book. I loved Elia's writing; I could see that old Spanish town very clearly while reading. I'm also a hopeless romantic, and this book was perfect for me. I'm really glad to have read it.

Thanks to Nicci Praca for sending me a review copy.

Armchair BEA: Networking

2011-05-25T12:12:00.000-03:00

Welcome to Day Three of Armchair BEA. Today is all about Networking, which is basically a Blogger's bread and butter (correct me if I'm using the wrong expression, please!).

Without it, we wouldn't be able to talk to other bloggers and/or authors, therefore, never being able to build those relationships I cherish so much right now.

Because without book blogging, with whom would I share my craziness over books? Who would hold long talks with me about whether Katniss did the right thing by staying with Peeta (she absolutely did the right thing!)? Where else would I find people so inmerse in books and their world?

To me, finding and making a new book blogger friend is always something beautiful. So when I discovered that Alex, from A Girl, Books and Other Things, is Mexican, I started jumping up and down in my seat. I love finding new Latin bloggers!

Enjoy my interview with Alex, it's quite fun!

Alex with her two dogs. Aren't they adorable?

Let's start this interview with you telling me a bit about yourself. Where do you live?
Hi!! I live in Mexico City, and I honestly can't imagine living anywhere else, even though it can be crazy living here since it's such a huge city.

I've noticed your favourite genres are Romance and YA, like me! Let's imagine I'm not an avid reader, and I have no idea what to pick up next. What would you recommend me, in both genres?
In the YA front, definitely get you started on some Meg Cabot, she writes in such a way that it's like a friend is telling you a story, probably recommend the Airhead series, or The Mediator, depending on how you feel about Paranormal. An in the Romance front, for historical Lisa Kleypas, definitely, either Dreaming of You, or maybe her Hathaway series - and she also writes lovely contemporaries.

What do you do in your spare time?
Lately, all I have is spare time, as I'm looking for a job. A regular day for me involves cooking and baking, tiding up the house, playing with my dog and watching TV. Other than that, I work on my blog and watch anime and write my own stories - which I post for fun on Fictionpress. I also like to write old-fashioned ink and paper letters, though few people answer in the same way. Oh, and I also knit scarves like crazy.

When and how did you start your blog?
I started the blog because I could see how my friends got annoyed whenever I started to gush about a book, so one day I just started. It was April of 2008 and I was just finishing up my college degree so I had more free time than I had while at school and decided to give it a go. It was a very different blog back then - even had a different name - but it helped me learn a lot of stuff.

If you could meet one of your favourite authors, who would you choose?
Probably Meg Cabot, I have friends who have met her and swear she's funny and nice, and I always love her blog posts. Or Melina Marchetta, I love her books.

I've also seen you review films. I'm studying Film! Can you tell me which film has gripped your attention this year?
Wow, that's so cool, that you're studying film, I mean. Now, let me think... Definitely Easy A has been my favorite so far, Morning Glory and the King's speech.I can see myself watching those movies over and over, which is my standard of cool.

I've signed up for the 100 Books in a Year challenge, and I'm already behind. You've read over eighty books in these past months! WOW! How do you make the time to sit and read? I barely have time anymore!
If I'm to be completely honest... I don't sleep much - even though I spend most of the day alone and I have time to read, I read almost exclusively at night. I've struggled with anxieties from a young age and sometimes I can't shut my brain off and sleep, so I read and it helps me calm down, so reading is a necessity for me, helps me stay sane.

And finally, convince those who are reading this to follow your blog in a short paragraph.
I'm honest in my reviews, and I try my best to be consistent and not let myself be carried off in the hype. Plus, I have quite defined tastes, so I think I'm pretty reliable.

Thanks, Ella. This was fun!

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I was interviewed by Stella from Ex Libris. Click here to read the interview and find out more about myself!

xo,

Ella

Armchair BEA: Best of 2011

2011-05-24T13:04:00.000-03:00

Welcome to Day Two of Armchair BEA, the bloggy event meant for those of us who couldn't make it to the actual BEA.

Today's topic is: Best of 2011.

Well, this isn't very hard. There's one book that came out early this year, which I love and can't wait to re-read:

DELIRIUM, by Lauren Oliver.
This book tore at my heart and left me hopeless, until I found out there was hope for them.
I love, love, love this book, and I'm waiting for it to come out in Argentina, so I can have my own printed copy, since I read it on NetGalley.

And there were other books that I really liked this year (considering I haven't read very many books):

Red Glove, by Holly Black.
A great way to continue this series;
I love Cassel!

Wither, by Lauren DeStefano.

Such a brilliant start to a new series!

It must be terrible knowing when you're going to die,

I can't imagine Rhine's world.

Both have 5-monkey-reviews :)

Armchair BEA 2011 Kick-Off

2011-05-23T21:44:00.000-03:00

Today starts this new bloggy event: Armchair BEA, meant for those of us who are unable to go to the actual BEA. Being in Argentina makes it kinda hard for me to attend, so when I heard about Armchair, I immediately signed up!

The organisers are giving us a prompt every day, and today it is: Who are you, and how do you Armchair?

*stands up* Hi, I'm Ella, a 19-year-old Film student, and I have a problem.

I'm a bibliophile. It's something I can't control, every time I'm close to a book store, I'm somewhat "forced" to go inside and buy a book. That leads to me having less and less money to buy anything else, and to my having books piled up at home, without having the time to read them all.

But I'm trying to change. I am. Now that I'm in uni, I have to save money, and buy photocopies for class, food, rent, etc., etc.

It's hard, specially because I pass a book store every day on my way to uni.

So, that's who I am. Oh, and I'll be forever grateful to the people who invented NetGalley, because I can read free ARCs of wonderful books whenever I want to!

That was a little about me, hope you enjoyed it!

Nightshade (Witches' War, #1), by Andrea Cremer

2011-05-19T17:38:00.000-03:00

Nightshade (Witches' War, #1), by Andrea Cremer on Goodreads

Release Date: October 19th, 2010
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Philomel

Overall: 4 Monkeys
Interest: Series
Categories: Paranormal, Werewolves, Magic, Romance

Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Read in May 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: after graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers.

But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything— including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?

My Opinion:

When this book came out last year, everyone was talking about it. Everyone. But since it's about werewolves, I wasn't very intrigued, despite the 5-star-reviews. Now that I've read it, I can honestly say that I really liked it. Not loved, but liked.

Cremer does a very good job with her characters, but the beginning of the book was a little confusing to me. I don't know if it was because I listened to the audiobook and maybe missed something, but at first I didn't know if the humans knew about the nature of the pack, and were afraid because of that, or if they were ignorant of it, and were scared of them because of how the pack acted. It took me a long while to get that they didn't, in fact, know their classmates were wolves. (Maybe this happened only to me, or maybe to someone else too, I don't know.)

And there were other things that felt a bit forced, clichéd too. Like the incident in Haldis Cavern that led to... that thing you know if you read the book. It was way too obvious to me. I would have liked -maybe, loved- this book more if that hadn't happened.

What I did love -and the reason I'm giving this 4 stars- was the characterisation of the different characters. There were like ten wolves in Calla's pack, and all of them had a different and unique personality, which was brilliantly written. So, congrats Andrea for that!

Bryn and Ansel were terribly sweet! And the loyalty of the pack towards their alphas was great too. They may had had differences with them, but the pack certainly had no doubts when it came to protecting them.

I loved how Cremer wove the wolves' history with magic! And I cannot wait to learn more about Shay's place in all of this!

Shay was great. Romantic, strong, a bit shy... he was a brilliant character. Calla... she'll have to do more to get my attention. She felt like every other YA heroine to me. She was great in her own way, yeah, but I still wanted to see a bit more of her dark side.

Overall, a really nice book! I'll have to read Wolfsbane soon!

Dear Mr. Potter

2011-05-06T00:57:00.000-03:00

What a wonderful thing Tumblr is. I just came across this link. It's a Sneak Peek for an upcoming book, a compilation of letters to Harry Potter from the fans.

I've been reading it for a little while, and just had to share it.

One of the letters I read said something like, "I try to explain to people why I feel the way I feel about Harry, but only those who are like me, who love Harry's world like I do, will be able to understand me fully." And that is exactly how I feel. My friends and family don't understand why I love a "Children's" book so much, and I've tried to explain to them how I feel, but I've come to realise, I'll never be able to make them see what I see. Harry means so much to me, and I love to feel that connection to other die hard fans.

We are the Harry Potter Generation. We are family. We are history.

xo,
Ella

Happy Birthday Scott Westerfeld!

2011-05-05T22:22:00.000-03:00

Thanks to you, I like Sci-Fi, which I thought I hated before reading Uglies. So THANK YOU!!!
And happy bday!

Everyone, go wish him a happy birthday here and here!

Cover and Excerpt Revealed: Becca Fitzpatrick's SILENCE!!!

2011-05-02T13:45:00.000-03:00

WOAH!!! That is one awesome cover! LOVE the way Patch's carrying Nora, looks terrifying, haunting, lovely and... WOW. I need to read Crescendo, but I don't have money right now! *sad face*

Check out this exclusive excerpt from the book:

He closed the distance between us, and just when I thought he'd drawn me against him, he stopped, holding himself in check. I exhaled, trying not to cry. He leaned his elbow on the door jam, just above my ear. He smelled so devastatingly familiar, soap and spice, the heady scent bringing back a rush of memories so pleasurable, it only made the current moment that much more difficult to bear. I was seized by the desire to touch him. To trace my hands over his skin, to feel his arms tighten securely around me. I wanted him to nuzzle my neck, his whisper to tickle my ear as he said private words that belonged only to me. I wanted him near, so near, with no thought of letting go.

"This isn't over," I said. "After everything we've been through, you don't get the right to brush me off. I'm not letting you off that easily." I wasn't sure if it was a threat, my last stab at defiance, or irrational words spoken straight from my splintered heart.

"I want to protect you," Patch said quietly.

He stood so close. All strength and heat and silent power. I couldn't escape him, now or ever. He'd always be there, consuming my every thought, my heart locked in his hands; I was drawn to him by forces I couldn't control, let alone escape.

"But you didn't."

Thanks to Hollywood Crush for both the cover and excerpt.

Blood Witch (Sweep, #3), by Cate Tiernan

2011-04-30T13:58:00.000-03:00

Blood Witch (Sweep, #3), by Cate Tiernan on Goodreads

Release Date: March 22nd, 2007 (1st published on 2001)
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Puffin

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Interest: Series
Categories: Paranormal, Witchcraft, Religions, Wicca, Family Issues

Other Titles Reviewed in TCM: Book of Shadows (Sweep, #1), The Coven (Sweep, #2)
Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Read in April 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

Morgan knows that witchcraft can be dangerous and that her birth parents died because of their involvement. But witchcraft is a part of Morgan in a way she can't ignore, and now that she's practicing Wicca, her powers are increasing. Her boyfriend Cal is a witch, too. He believes that they are muirn beatha dans, witches who are meant to be together, to love one another. But the sudden appearance of Hunter, a stranger who claims to be Cal's brother, threatens to ruin everything. Hunter says that Cal is practicing dark magic. And Morgan feels unsure. Could it be true?

My Opinion:

I have to say, this series is becoming one of my favourites. It just gets better and better. Cate really knows her Wicca.

This review will be very short, because this is a short book. And since this is the third book, and the new bind-ups contain three books each, from now on I'll just review those bind-ups, because these books are so short, it'd be so much easier if I just did that, writing a review for three books at once.

What I have to say about Blood Witch:

I don't like Selene Belltower. I started disliking her at the end of book two, and now it's getting pretty obvious where she's going, and that makes me dislike her even more.
I don't like Cal either. But that's because I kinda read a little spoiler, which made me change the way I see him.
I'm liking Hunter more and more, and I can't wait to see what happens with him.
I'm dying to see what's going on with Bree and Raven and their coven! It feels like Bree and Morgan are both stubborn, and they both miss each other, but neither wants to be the one that apologises first.
And although it sometimes felt like Morgan couldn't do anything without Cal's approval, I definitely see where that is going, and I'm sure -or I hope- that she'll be her own woman soon. There are fifteen of these books, so the third one is just like scratching the surface.

The writing's magical, like in the first two books, and although Cate weaves a lot of made-up facts (of course she would, this is her fictional world!), her Wicca facts are very accurate.

I can't wait to see how this unravels! So many secrets and lies and drama!!! You should definitely start reading this series, if you already haven't.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part Two: Official Trailer!!!

2011-04-28T09:27:00.000-03:00

How awesome is that? I watched it last night, and I was sure I'd get a heart attack! I squealed and awww'ed and sobbed, and my roommates were baffled. They can't understand why I love Harry (the series) so much. I've tried to explain to them everything it's taught me, but they just can't see why someone my age is crazy about "magic". They're not mean about it! They just don't get it.

Do you love the books as much as I do? Because I'd like to be your friend if you do.

xo,
Ella

I'm featured on In Between Reading and Writing!

2011-04-26T14:25:00.000-03:00

The lovely Jude Henderson is featuring me on her beautiful blog, In Between Reading and Writing, today!

You can learn more stuff about me there, so hop on over! Go to her blog post here.

Jude, honey, you are ah-mazing. Enough said.

Inside Out (Insider, #1), by Maria V. Snyder

2011-04-25T01:05:00.002-03:00

Inside Out (Insider, #1), by Maria V. Snyder on Goodreads.

Release Date: April 1st, 2010
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Harlequin
Source: NetGalley

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Interest: Series
Categories: Dystopian, Science Fiction

Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Read between March and April 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

Keep Your Head Down.
Don't Get Noticed.
Or Else.
I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? The only neck at risk is my own…until I accidentally start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution.

My Opinion:

What a great book to introduce me to the work of Maria V. Snyder! Truly amazing! Maria has created a whole new world, for lack of a better term, and it's incredibly exciting to see how it works.

When I started reading it, Trella explained how they lived in a place called Inside, and how it was built. She showed us where she was going in the pipes, but it was hard to keep up with her, I really needed a map! And guess what. I found a map of Inside, after reading the book. So now that I'm done, I can think back on it, and understand her movements better. I really think the map should have been included on the book, so we'd be able to keep better track of Trella's moves through the pipes.

Considered to be the Queen of the Pipes, and not because everyone loved her so much, Trella is a wonderful character, and I loved watching (reading) her evolution on the pages. She starts out as a closed-in character, with Cogon as her only friend (No one recycles Cogon!). But, as she realises how life on Inside really is, and how she has the power to change that, she takes a spin in the other direction. While she couldn't trust anyone before, now she's learning there's strength in numbers.

I loved Riley too. *swoon* He's the Upper who changes Trella's view of the world.

Basically, every single character is written to perfection. They all have their tempers, their characteristics, those things that make them unique, and I love that in a book.

What I love about Dystopian books are the revolutions. I get really excited about them, when I read them, because in the real world, we could really do with a few. And those that are set in motion need our support.

Trella needs to find Gateway, the door to Outside. She'll have a lot of help, a lot of it. The bad guys here are the Trava family, who rule Inside, spreading lies to the Scrubs and Uppers, so they won't unite against them.

The search for Gateway was one of the most thrilling things I've read this year. Trust and treason, friends and enemies, this book has it all. Even love, which I'm a sucker for. And I don't particularly like Sci-Fi, but man, I didn't even know this was a Sci-Fi until the end of the book! So brilliantly introduced! I'm in awe, seriously.

I'm a new Maria V. Snyder fan, and I'm off to read Outside In. Can't wait to see what happens next!

In My Mailbox #7

2011-04-24T11:04:00.000-03:00

This week I got a couple of books; a printed one, and a few eARCs:

Tierras de Esmeralda: La Esfera Mágica, by Pilar Alberdi.
(Printed. From Publisher.)

Summary from Goodreads (translated by me):
A land of leyend, where numerous characters face the darkness released by Ténebrus and his minions. While on the Lands of Esmerald, their inhabitants have understood that a book is worth as much as a library, and a person as much as all people, on the dark world beside them, evil lurks in shadows.

Can a group of teenagers and an elder restore hope to the villages? And what about those flying young people from Tilsmans?
To know that, just open this book, where it reads...
"Lands of Esmerald or the lineage of the Smáragdos. Also known as the Land of the Three Kingdoms (Mytos, Circe and Artemisa), the three lineages and the three libraries." Submerge in a classical and medieval world, where the wondrous becomes real. A war between good and evil. This is just the beginning.

The Near Witch, by Victoria Schwab.
(eARC from NetGalley.)

Summary from Goodreads:
The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.

And there are no strangers in the town of Near.These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life.
But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.
The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.
As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.
Part fairy tale, part love story, Victoria Schwab’s debut novel is entirely original yet achingly familiar: a song you heard long ago, a whisper carried by the wind, and a dream you won’t soon forget.

Starcrossed, by Josephine Angelini.
(eARC from NetGalley.)

Summary from Goodreads:
How do you defy destiny?
Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it's getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she's haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they're destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeating throughout history.
As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.

Populazzi, by Elise Allen.
(eARC from NetGalley. Author Interview and Giveaway to come!)

Summary from Goodreads:

Cara has always dreamed of being a Populazzi, one of the popular crowd. But it’s not until she changes schools that she gets a shot at it, thanks to her best friend Claudia’s crazy plan. The idea is simple: The rungs of The Ladder are relationships. First get a boyfriend who's ranked low, then climb up through more boyfriends until you're not just one of the Populazzi, but the Supreme Populazzi. Yet what starts off as a fairy tale turns into a somewhat dark comedy of errors. Just when Cara reaches the top, her life hits rock bottom. She wonders why she wanted to be popular in the first place—and if there’s any way to live happily ever after now.

I've got a bunch more on NetGalley, but I don't want to make this post uber-long. What did you get this week?

In My Mailbox explores the contents of my mailbox on a weekly -not so weekly!- basis. (This feature was inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie and created by Kristi of The Story Siren.)

Indie Spotlight Month

2011-04-24T10:20:00.001-03:00

The girls from In Between Reading and Writing and Nightlyreading have come up with the idea to do an Indie Spotlight in the month of May. Personally, I haven't read many indie books, I may have read a couple in my life. But I'm very interested in them, because I'm sure there are some indie books that are just as beautifully written as your average big-publisher-book.

So, if you're an indie author, and would like to be featured here, on TCM, email me at ella_press@live.com.ar. We can do an Interview, Guest Post, Giveaway, anything!

Or if you're a blogger and would like to share your opinion, let me know! If you write up a post on your blog (in May!), I'll read it and link it here.

xo,

Ella

Catching Up Readathon - Update #2

2011-04-24T09:23:00.000-03:00

I just finished Dark Lover!
One less, three more to go!

~~Inside Out, by Maria V. Snyder.~~

Blood Witch, by Cate Tiernan. <-- I'm reading this now! Nearly done ;)

~~Dark Lover, by J. R. Ward.~~

Nightshade, by Andrea Cremer. <-- I won't be able to finish these two. Too much to read for uni :(
and Eragon, by Christopher Paolini.

Are you doing the Readathon? How's your progress?
xo,
Ella

I started a new Romance blog!

2011-04-23T00:52:00.000-03:00

Yes, I caved. I couldn't resist the urge, and thus, The Clock Monkey's Love Shack was born. It's merely minutes old, and it needs a lot of loving. Stop by, follow and tell me to follow your romance blog! We can be *nice* friends. *wink*
My first review, Dark Lover, by J. R. Ward, will be up tomorrow. And a blog makeover will soon take place too. I like seeing my blogs pretty :D

Catching Up Readathon - Update

2011-04-22T18:09:00.000-03:00

Just finished reading Inside Out, by Maria V. Snyder.

And:

OH. MY. GOD.

It is the most amazing Dystopian book I've read this year!

Sooooooooooooooo freaking good!

Wow, I need time to recover, before moving on to my next read.

Catching Up Readathon!

2011-04-22T16:06:00.000-03:00

I'm doing the 100 Books in a Year Challenge, from both Goodreads and Book Chick City.

Goodreads says I'm 19 books behind. So, there's no way I'm gonna read 9+ books this weekend, but I do want to finish the five I'm reading:

Inside Out, by Maria V. Snyder.
Blood Witch, by Cate Tiernan.
Dark Lover, by J. R. Ward.
Nightshade, by Andrea Cremer.
and Eragon, by Christopher Paolini.

I know I can finish the first four, but I barely started Eragon, so I might not finish it by Monday. We'll see.

xo,
Ella

"Whisper Stories in my Ear" Challenge [Audiobook Challenge] 2011

2011-04-22T14:26:00.001-03:00

I LOVE listening to audiobooks: when I don't want to turn on the light to read, when I'm walking to uni, on the bus somewhere, anywhere... So, I when heard about this international challenge, I knew it was for me!

The goal is to listen to 12+ audiobooks. Here's my list (I reserve the right to change it as I please):

Paranormalcy, by Kiersten White. Narrated by Emily Eiden.
Incarceron, by Catherine Fisher. Narrated by Kim Mai Guest.
Saving Francesca, by Melina Marchetta. Narrated by ---.
The Piper's Son, by Melina Marchetta. Narrated by ---.
Linger, by Maggie Stiefvater. Narrated by Jenna Lamia, Dan Bittner, Pierce Cravens, Emma Galvin.
Infinite Days, by Rebecca Maizel. Narrated by Justine Eyre.
Personal Demons, by Lisa Desrochers. Narrated by Sara Barnett, Michael Nathanson.
The Last Song, by Nicholas Sparks. Narrated by Scott Sowers, Pepper Binkley.
Storm Glass, by Maria V. Snyder. Narrated by Jennifer Van Dyck.
The Dead of Night, by John Marsden. Narrated by Suzi Dougherty.
Blue Bloods, by Melissa de la Cruz. Narrated by Christina Moore.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, by J. R. R. Tolkien. Narrated by Richard Inglis.
The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman. Narrated by Neil Gaiman.
Crusade, by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguié. Narrated by ---.

This challenge is hosted by Bewitched Bookworms.
*Edit: Thanks to Diana Peterfreund, for bringing to my attention the fact that her book is not an AB. I can use the time I'd have used looking for Rampant, for something else, like reading another book!

10 clues that your life has become a Southern Gothic paranormal romance

2011-04-20T01:00:00.000-03:00

I found this on the Figment blog, and thought it was hilarious! I wanted to share it with you, so here it is!

by Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia (authors of Beautiful Creatures and Beautiful Darkness)

10. If a mysterious stranger in town suddenly appears in your dreams – or if your dream stranger suddenly appears in your town – you may have gone Southern Gothic.

9. If you move into the abandoned plantation house on the outskirts of town – or wish there was an abandoned plantation house on the outskirts of town – or wish your town had outskirts or inskirts or any kind of skirts at all – you may have gone Southern Gothic.

8. If you find yourself eyeing the rebellious, dark-eyed, new boy/girl, and suppressing the urge to climb to the top of the Summerville water tower with him/her, you may have gone Southern Gothic.

7. If you hang out in graveyards for fun – and in particular, talk to the people who live there – and more importantly, if they talk back – you may have gone Southern Gothic.

6. If you read tealeaves or chicken bones, stick bottles on the tree in your front yard, or line your windowsills with salt, you may have gone Southern Gothic.

5. If you named your wooden kitchen spoon – say, for example, the One-Eyed Menace – and use it for more powerful, elemental transformations than bringing the Chili-ghetti to a boil – you may have gone Southern Gothic.

4. If you use the term “Mortal” to describe some of your friends the way someone else might say “Canadian,” “Yankee,” or “Blonde,” you may have gone Southern Gothic.

3. If magical, angst-ridden poetry begins appearing on your walls – whether or not you wrote it – you may have gone Southern Gothic. (Ditto music magically appearing on iPod, pages magically turning in a book, or rooms magically rearranging themselves.)

2. If you start pining away for this or that or the other and nobody understands, you may have gone Southern Gothic.

1. If you find yourself falling in love before first sight, it’s too late. You’re full on, full-blown Southern Gothic. So pour yourself some sweet tea, go out on the veranda and sit for a spell. You’ll be fine so long as you keep reading.

Good Lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise.

[via Figment blog]

New book by David Levithan and Andrea Cremer coming 2013

2011-04-19T11:42:00.000-03:00

Publishers Weekly just posted the news:

Jill Santopolo, executive editor of Penguin Young Readers' Philomel imprint, took world rights to a new YA novel by David Levithan and Andrea Cremer called The Invisibility Curse. Bill Clegg, at William Morris Endeavor, brokered the deal for Levithan, who co-wrote Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (and is editorial director at Scholastic Press). Richard Pine and Charlie Olsen, from Inkwell Management, represented Cremer, author of Nightshade (and history professor at Macalaster College). The novel follows a boy burdened by invisibility who meets a girl that has the power to see him and, possibly, cure him. Publication is currently set for 2013.

I'm reading Nightshade and it's going great, and I've heard awesome things about David's work (I've got Leviathan and Behemoth ebooks to read!). Adding The Invisibility Curse to my TBR list right now!

Happy birthday to me!

2011-04-15T23:27:00.000-03:00

Today's my birthday!!! YAY! I wanted to post this before the day ended.

And today's also some very cool people's birthday too :D

So, happy birthday to:

Authors Maria V. Snyder and Hayley Anne Perkins, Actresses Emma Watson and Emma Thompson, Inventor Leonardo Da Vinci, and Argentine footballer, Andrés D'Alessandro.

Great people were born on a day like today. And those who'll be born in the future on a 15th of April will be the greatest kids you'll meet. Trust me, I know.

Just a quick reminder: you should enter my international contest! I haven't made a lot of propaganda for it, but you should know about it. And tell others! Go here to enter.

That's it for today. Oh, I also started reading Eragon. I'm currently reading five books. So you should tell me which one of those I'm reading I should finish first. I'm thinking Inside Out, by Maria V. Snyder, since she shares her bday with me, which makes her instantly cool.

xo,
Ella

FREE DOWNLOAD: 13 Little Blue Envelopes, by Maureen Johnson!

2011-04-13T18:23:00.000-03:00

To celebrate the release of The Last Little Blue Envelope, Maureen Johnson is giving us the chance to download for free 13 Little Blue Envelopes!

You can download 13 LBE to read on your Kindle, Nook or Sony Reader.You can keep the whole book, it won't suddenly disappear. Isn't that great?

The Last Little Blue Envelope hits the shelves on April 26th.

I'm ill

2011-04-11T13:17:00.000-03:00

Yeah, Tulio. I know how it feels.

I'm getting the flu (I'm not there yet, that's why I said "getting"), my head hurts from looking at the screen, so I'm not gonna be online too much. I'm almost done with the books I'm reading, so I'm gonna have a few reviews next week.

And Friday's my bday! Have you entered my contest?
xo,
Ella

Spanish cover for Girl Saves Boy, by Steph Bowe

2011-04-07T21:29:00.000-03:00

Look at that pretty cover! I love this type of photography, the colours are great.

But, once again, the translators have done a terrible job with the title.

What translates to Spanish as Chica Salva a Chico, is now, The Lake Girl. So, I'm assuming there's a lake in Steph's book.

I have to say, I didn't think this book would be out in Spanish so soon, so that's a nice surprise!

It'll be released on April 8th (tomorrow!) in Spain by Editorial Montena, which has a mirror in Argentina! Meaning, it's likely we Argentines will get the book here soon!

{via Historias Imaginarias}

We have our Peeta and Gale for The Hunger Games films. Beware: HORRIBLE CASTING AHEAD.

2011-04-05T00:05:00.000-03:00

{via Heart Shaped Box and Mientras Lees}

Today we learned that Josh Hutcherson (Bridge to Terabithia, Zathura) and Liam Hemsworth (who the heck is he?) were cast to play Peeta Mellark and Gale Hawthorn, respectively.

Are you kidding me? Josh Hutcherson as Peeta? The Peeta I -and I imagine many others- have been waiting so long to see? He IS NOT PEETA to me. It doesn't matter that he'll be made-over, no amount of makeup can change him and make him look like the Peeta from my mind. He's a really good actor, to me anyway, but I do not see him as Peeta. And the other John isn't Gale either. How about they switched their roles up?

Terrible casting choices! For all the gods, who were the casting directors? I'm flying to the States now and setting up a strike or something at the production company. You can't do this to us fans, please! Listen to us on this one! They are not the ones for the roles! Forget about making millions of dollars. Don't you want to make a film that'll last in time?

Take the Harry Potter films for example. Who knew Dan, Emma and Rupert before them? No one. And look at them now, the most important young actors of our generation, to my eyes. Why not hire unknown actors to bring to life our beloved Peeta and Gale? Maybe they could do a better job than these two.

Being a Film student, I understand the beauty of telling stories through audiovisual arts. And this is just wrong. I don't mean to offend these actors, but seriously, the production's got it way, waaaaaaaaay wrong.

You can see that all they care about it making a commercial film, and as many millions as they can.

I'm torn between going and not going to see the film. But I know, in the end, I'll cave, and end up going. At least Jennifer Lawrence looks a bit like Katniss with her hair dyed.

Happy Blogoversary to Me! + 200 followers!!! + Happy Birthday to Me (not yet) = PARTY!

2011-04-04T14:19:00.000-03:00

The Clock Monkey turned TWO last March 28th and I completely forgot! And I just realised I've reached 200 followers! :D Thank you, thank you, thank you!
And, my birthday's on Friday 15th! So, I thought: TCM's 2nd bday, reaching 200 followers, my birthday = we've got to celebrate somehow, right?

That means I'll be holding a giveaway to thank you for being there! My first giveaway!!! (The first giveaway I'll be funding)

Since I'm an international blogger, I know what it's like to not be able to enter a lot of these giveaways on the blogosphere. So, I'll be giving away a book of your choice! You choose a book under 15 American dollars, I buy it for you on The Book Depository (which, coincidentally, doesn't ship to Argentina, so I can't enter those giveaways either, but most of you aren't Argentine, so...), and you get it delivered to your house! Isn't that great! If only TBD shipped to my home country, I'd have a lot more books right now.

The rules for this giveaway are:

You don't have to be a follower, but I want to thank those of you who are. So if you're an old follower, you get +2 entries. (If you started following the blog before I reached 200, you enter into this category.)
Leave a comment wishing me a Happy Blogoversary + Happy Birthday (let's pretend it's my birthday)!
Leave me your email so it's easier for me to contact you. No email, no entry.
It's open internationally and it'll end on May 15th, a month away from my birthday.
The winner will have to be patient to get their prize, I've never done anything like this before, so it may take me a while to figure it out!

Thanks for being there! And good luck! Spread the word so others get the chance to participate too!
xo,
Ella

The Wolves of Mercy Falls' Fourth Book: Cover Revealed!

2011-04-01T18:22:00.000-03:00

Isn't it great?
Maggie just revealed the cover for the fourth book in the Shiver trilogy.
Read her full post here. ;)

The Coven (Sweep, #2), by Cate Tiernan

2011-03-31T19:14:00.000-03:00

The Coven (Sweep, #2), by Cate Tiernan on Goodreads

Release Date: March 22nd, 2007 (1st published on 2001)
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Puffin

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Interest: Series
Categories: Paranormal, Witchcraft, Religions, Wicca, Family Issues

Other Titles Reviewed in TCM: Book of Shadows (Sweep, #1)
Challenge: 100 Books in a Year
Read in March 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

Cal, now Morgan's boyfriend, helps her accept the truth: Wicca is in Morgan's blood. As Morgan learns more about Wicca, she realizes that she needs to find out more about her parentage. The answers are there, but she doesn't know how to find them.

My Opinion:

Another great Sweep book!

In this one, Morgan learns more about herself and her heritage, about why she's such a strong witch. Her character is beautifully written, a shy and insecure girl who turns into a powerful witch when in circles.

I loved the relationship between the characters; Cal, Morgan, Bree, Selene, they were all amazing. Morgan's friends are completely believable, Cate does an amazing job of giving each of them their own personality, and that is a hard thing to do!

There's so much going on, it keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time! Definitely a book worth reading!

It's such a short/quick read, that I don't have much else to say, because I don't want to ruin it for those of you who want to read it.

You can now buy bind-ups of these books, they come three books per bind-up, meaning the first three books, that were first published individually, are now one bind-up, and so on.

I'm now reading Blood Witch (Sweep, #3), and I'm loving it! Boy drama, BFF drama, so much drama!!! Amazing series!

WOW #19: The Mephisto Covenant, Witchlanders, The Magnolia League and Wrapped

2011-03-30T13:36:00.001-03:00

Waiting on: The Mephisto Covenant (The Mephisto Covenant, #1), by Trinity Faegen

Expected publication date: September 27th, 2011

Publisher: Egmont USA

Summary from Goodreads:

Sasha is desperate to find out who murdered her father. When getting the answer means pledging her soul to Eryx, she unlocks a secret that puts her in grave danger—Sasha is Anabo, a daughter of Eve, and Eryx’s biggest threat.

A son of Hell, immortal, and bound to Earth forever, Jax looks for redemption in the Mephisto Covenant—God’s promise he will find
peace in the love of an Anabo. After a thousand years, he’s finally found the girl he’s been searching for: Sasha.

With the threat of Eryx looming, Jax has to keep Sasha safe and
win her over. But can he? Will Sasha love him and give up her mortal life?

I saw this book in a previous WoW on some other blog, and the cover just captured me. And then the summary took over. Forbidden love? Bring it!

Waiting on: Witchlanders, by Lena Coakley

Expected publication date: August 30th, 2011

Publisher: Atheneum (Simon and Schuster)

Summary from Goodreads:

High in their mountain covens, red witches pray to the Goddess, protecting the Witchlands by throwing the bones and foretelling the future. It’s all a fake.
At least, that’s what Ryder thinks. He doubts the witches really deserve their tithes—one quarter of all the crops his village can produce. And even if they can predict the future, what danger is there to foretell, now that his people’s old enemy, the Baen, has been defeated?
But when a terrifying new magic threatens both his village and the coven, Ryder must confront the beautiful and silent witch who holds all the secrets. Everything he’s ever believed about witches, the Baen, magic and about himself will change, when he discovers that the prophecies he’s always scorned—
Are about him.

Magic! Witches and the Goddess! I need to read this book.

Waiting on: The Magnolia League (The Magnolia League, #1), by Katie Crouch

Expected publication date: May 3rd, 2011

Publisher: Poppy (Hachette Book Group)

Summary from Goodreads:

After the death of her free-spirited mother, sixteen-year-old Alex Lee must leave her home in northern California to live with her wealthy grandmother in Savannah, Georgia. By birth, Alex is a rightful, if unwilling, member of the Magnolia League, Savannah's long-standing debutante society. She quickly discovers that the Magnolias have made a pact with a legendary hoodoo family, the Buzzards. The Magnolias enjoy youth, beauty and power. But at what price?

As in her popular adult novels, Crouch's poignant and humorous voice shines in this seductively atmospheric story about girls growing up in a magical Southern city.

High societies and hoodoo magic make me want to have this book in my life now. Also, the cover's gorgeous!

Waiting on: Wrapped, by Jennifer Bradbury

Expected publication date: May 24th, 2011

Publisher: Atheneum (Simon and Schuster)

Summary from Goodreads:

Agnes Wilkins is standing in front of an Egyptian mummy, about to make the first cut into the wrappings, about to unlock ancient (and not-so-ancient) history. Maybe you think this girl is wearing a pith helmet with antique dust swirling around her.
Maybe you think she is a young Egyptologist who has arrived in Cairo on camelback.
Maybe she would like to think that too. Agnes Wilkins dreams of adventures that reach beyond the garden walls, but reality for a seventeen-year-old debutante in 1815 London does not allow for camels—or dust, even. No, Agnes can only see a mummy when she is wearing a new silk gown and standing on the verdant lawns of Lord Showalter’s estate, with chaperones fussing about and strolling sitar players straining to create an exotic “atmosphere” for the first party of the season. An unwrapping.
This is the start of it all, Agnes’s debut season, the pretty girl parade that offers only ever-shrinking options: home, husband, and high society. It’s also the start of something else, because the mummy Agnes unwraps isn’t just a mummy. It’s a host for a secret that could unravel a new destiny—unleashing mystery, an international intrigue, and possibly a curse in the bargain.
Get wrapped up in the adventure . . . but keep your wits about you, dear Agnes.

The pitch for this book is "Veronica Mars meets Jane Austen". Two things I love. And it's got mummys and mystery. I want this book.

Why Do YOU Blog?

2011-03-29T13:05:00.003-03:00

A couple of days ago, Kristi from The Story Siren posted an entry about Bloggers and Authors. It opened a discussion to all of us about whether Blogging is a such a good way of promoting books.

To us, the bloggers, or at least, to some of us; blogging about books is a way to share our love of reading with others all over the world. I fell in love with book blogging because I had no one who felt the same way I do about books near me. Discovering the Book Blogging Community, to me, has been a life changing experience. Without it, I wouldn't know all I know now about the YA Book-world and its authors, I wouldn't have bloggish friends and I wouldn't be in touch -and wouldn't have built a friendly relationship- with my favourite authors.

I blog because I love it. I love sharing my passion for books with the world, and I'm not afraid to say it for fear of being catalogued Nerd or Bookwork or something worse. I squeal in bookstores when I see a book that I didn't know had been published in my country, and I don't care if anyone's around to watch me, but I will do a happy dance.

I don't blog to be Internet Famous, I don't even care about my follower count (but I do love all of my followers!), and I certainly am not after free books or swag. When I started blogging, I didn't even know you could get free books. And considering I'm an international blogger, I still don't get any. I may have gotten three books for review last year. Whenever I get a request to review a book, I get excited and honoured to have been taken into consideration by the author/publisher. Because it tells me I must be doing something right. It tells me that the time I spend reading, and blogging and writing is worth it. People actually hear what I have to say.

People hear what you have to say. You don't have to be scared or feel sad because you don't have many followers and your post won't be read by many. If it's read by just one person, feel happy about it. I do.

And about blogs being a tool for Authors to promote their books, that's exactly what they are to them! We give their books free publicity in exchange for nothing. But it's also a way for us to connect, let them know we love what they're doing, learn what they're up to, etc. etc. etc.

A blog can sell a book, four books, a dozen, but it doesn't matter, and it shouldn't be our primary goal. Let the publicists/agents/booksellers/publishers do that instead. Let us spread our love for the book. It's like a contagious disease: I love it, tell you to buy it; you buy it, tell someone else to buy it; and so on and on forever.

Why do YOU blog?

xo,

Ella

The Dark Divine (The Dark Divine, #1), by Bree Despain

2011-03-28T00:23:00.000-03:00

Spanish Cover

The Dark Divine by Bree Despain on Goodreads

Release Date: December 22nd, 2009, USA - October 13th, 2010, Spain
Age Group: Young Adult
Publisher: Egmont USA, USA - Ediciones B, Spain

Pages: 310 (Spanish Edition)

Overall: 4 Monkeys
Source: Bought - Paperback
Interest: Series

Other Titles in the Series: The Lost Saint (The Dark Divine, #2)
Read in March 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

A Prodigal Son

A Dangerous Love

A Deadly Secret

Grace Divine—daughter of the local pastor—always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared and her brother Jude came home covered in his own blood.

Now that Daniel's returned, Grace must choose between her growing attraction to him and her loyalty to her brother.

As Grace gets closer to Daniel, she learns the truth about that mysterious night and how to save the ones she loves, but it might cost her the one thing she cherishes most: her soul.

My Opinion:

It took me a while to get into this book. I'd read half of it when I felt that spark I love feeling when I'm reading. The spark that tells me, "This is an awesome book!" It took a while for me to sense it, but in the end, I wasn't disappointed.

The Dark Divine's pace is slow-ish at first, but the ending, OH MY the ending... I need answers, and I need them now!

The relationship between Grace and Daniel is beautifully written, not rushed or forced, which is what I love about book romances. Both characters are great, Grace always doing the right thing, and Daniel... well, trying to stay away but failing miserably.

Grace's family is very religious, and I cannot imagine it any other way. It made a lot of the things that were happening make much more sense and in the end, when it came to saving souls, you could understand the character's actions a whole lot better.

Bree's writing is amazing. Like I said, it was a bit too slow for me at first, but then I got everything I'd been waiting for at the end. All the drama, action, love and suspense condensed in the last five chapters.

Things are not what they seem in this book, and as hard as you try to guess what the outcome will be, you won't be right every time.

-----------------

Does anyone else think the cover had nothing to do with the book? I mean, I love it and I'd definitely have picked the book up in bookstore just because of it, if I hadn't know what the book was about; but I just feel it's there to distract us from the real topic of the book, and nothing more. I don't know if I'm making any sense...

xo,
Ella

IMM #6 - Vlog #1!

2011-03-27T00:45:00.000-03:00

My first vlog ever! *scared* You can finally see me, and when I grow up, I'll be able to see myself!

Not only did I get books, but I got a really nice surprise too! Find out what it is :)

Watching it, I realised that I need to open my mouth and articulate my words more. lol

I bought:
Dark Divine, by Bree Despain
Espejismos, by Alyson Noël
Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë
Brida, by Paulo Coelho
Eragon, by Christopher Paolini
Corazón de Tinta, by Cornelia Funke
El Diablo viste a la Moda, by Lauren Weisberger

In My Mailbox explores the contents of my mailbox on a weekly -not so weekly!- basis. (This feature was inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie and created by Kristi of The Story Siren.)

xo,
Ella

ps: My face! ROTFL!!! OMR, so embarrassed!

Tips for New (and not so New) Bloggers #2: Content and Commenting

2011-03-25T21:15:00.000-03:00

Hi everyone! *waves to new followers*

This is the second installment of my Tips/Tutorials feature I started to help new bloggers out there.

In three days, The Clock Monkey will turn two (yay!). I learned a few things along the way, tips I'd like to share with you. Because we all start somewhere, right?

Some of these tips are my own, some I learned elsewhere and am just sharing with you (you'll find the link to the source in the bottom of the post if that's the case).

So, today I'd like to talk about Content, Comments and Commenting to get more Readership.

When we publish a new post, we all want to see if someone's commenting on it. We visit our blogs often to see if there's a new comment. Because we spent our time writing it, and we'd love to hear people's opinions on it. But when you're a new blogger, your follower base can be small, and maybe you don't get as many visits as you'd like. Even if you have as many followers as I do, that doesn't mean many of them will read your post.

Let's say that out of ten followers, one reads your blog on a regular basis. So if you have twenty, thirty followers, chances are, only a small percentage will take the time to read your blog.

Because, let's be honest, we follow blogs because we're atractted to them, because of the layout, a contest, some content we liked. But we rarely go back to it until after quite a while.

I follow a LOT of blogs, and I try to visit them as much as I can, but to tell the truth, I have a select few I go to more than anything. Perhaps you do too.

And then there's the thing about originality. Everyone's practically posting the same thing, so your followers are most likely to go to their preferred blog first, instead of yours, or maybe you are that preferred blog.

When I first started, all I cared about was posting what was the "It" topic at the moment, but then I came to realise, if you have a blog with good content, it doesn't matter if your follower count is small or if you don't get many comments. People will still read your post at some point (I get comments on older posts from time to time) and they'll like that you shared something original and yours, rather than something copied off of another blog.

So if you're reading a book that was published in 2008 and you want to review it, go ahead! It's your blog, isn't it? You might get a few comments from people who've read the book and want to tell you if they liked it or hated it.

Now, someone's commented on your post. Hooray! What I suggest is that you answer to the comment. I've just installed Intense Debate to do just that. Build a relationship with your readers. Let them know you care about their opinions too. Do that, and they might come back.

Also, comment on as many blogs as you can, and leave your blog's URL in the comment, asking politely if they'd be so kind as to stop by your blog. But don't be a pain in the butt. Just do it once on every blog, otherwise you'll scare the blogger away. When someone asks me to do that, I do and I sometimes follow too, if I liked the content of the blog.

Be grateful for those ten, fifteen, 200 followers you have! Some bloggers spend years with as little as 30.

Another thing I wanted to talk about is Word Verification (we'll call it WV from here on). Don't you just hate that? I didn't know I had it on until just now, when I installed Intense Debate!

When you're a new blogger with a small readership, you really don't need WV. It just gets in the way and it can be annoying. Some people unfollow blogs because they're tired of having to decipher that little crooked word to leave you a short comment. You should only use WV when you get a lot of spam. Tell your followers that that is the case, and they'll understand. I did it for a while; I put a little message on the Blogger Comment widget saying that I was using the WV because of that. Spammers rarely take the trouble of deciphering the WV.

I hope this helped, and that you slowly but steadily, build a larger readership.

xo,

Ella

WOW #18: Karma, by Cathy Ostlere

2011-03-23T00:54:00.000-03:00

Waiting on: Karma, by Cathy Ostlere

Expected publication date: March 31st, 2011

Publisher: Razorbill

Summary from Goodreads:

On October 31, 1984, Indira Gandhi is gunned down by two Sikh bodyguards. The murder sparks riots in Delhi and for three days Sikh families are targeted and killed in retribution for the Prime Minister’s death. It is into this chaos that sixteen-year-old Maya and her Sikh father, Amar, arrive from their home in Canada. India’s political instability is the backdrop and catalyst for Maya’s awakening to the world. KARMA is the story of how a young woman, straddling two cultures and enduring personal loss, learns forgiveness, acceptance and love.

How beautiful is that cover? And this is a book written in free verse. I've never read a book in free verse before!
India has always intrigued me, it's definitely a place I wish to go some day in the future. I really want to read this book!
And guess what? You can win a copy on Goodreads!
But there's more! Author Cathy Ostlere will be here on TCM soon! :D Keep your eyes open!

Beautiful Chaos: The Summary!!!

2011-03-22T09:42:00.000-03:00

Summary from beautifulcreatures.com:

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, strangeand 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.

I know, Jake. OMG.

Discover Inkpop! And while you're at it, read my WIP!

2011-03-20T22:48:00.001-03:00

Ten days ago, I was on the HarperCollins website, and I found a link called "inkpop" on its footer. I clicked on it, and it took me to the inkpop main page.

After browsing around a bit, I decided to join.

Inkpop is a great site for YA writers, complete with forums, libraries, and much more. It's easy to navigate, and the layout is great too.

You upload your material, and others read it and give you their thoughts. Don't be scared of sharing your work, there's no way anyone can copy your stuff, just try to, you won't be able to! If people like your work, they can "pick" it. The more picks you get, the higher ranked your story is, and it might reach the Top Picks of the month!

That's what's so amazing about this site: the Top Picks. Each month five projects get chosen -they're the ones people vote for (or "pick")- to be read by a HarperCollins editor. If your book is chosen and read, you'll get an email from the editor who read it, with of course, advice for editing it.

The Carrier of the Mark, by Leigh Fallon, was found on inkpop! It's being published on September 13th, 2011.

Listen to the author, Leigh, tell her story about how she was chosen and got a book deal!

I'm loving inkpop because it gives me a space to share my writing and get feedback from people who know what they're talking about.

I'm currently writing my first book, and it's taking me forever to finish it. I started a draft on NaNo '09, and kept on writing it until early 2010. I left it there collecting digital dust, until late last year, when I had a sudden change of heart, and of ideas. I suddenly knew exactly where I wanted my story to go, so I started re-writing it. And now, I'm back to re-re-writing it! I'm changing it up yet again, but I know third time's the charm!

My WIP's titled Insomnia. Here are my short and long pitches for you to read:

Cora is a teenager who knows when people are gonna die... even herself.

Ever since she dreamed about a car crash where her best friend died, Cora has known that she has the ability to see when people's lives are ending. But what scares her the most is that she's dreamed about her own death, and in that dream she wasn't alone. Now, she's more worried about the boy she saw than about her own life, and she can't understand why.

So, those pitches aren't exactly award-winning, but they're all I've got for now! If you're on inkpop, or if you aren't but still want to read my story, you can go here to do so. I'm uploading chapter by chapter, as I write and try to edit them. Please leave me a comment with your thoughts if you do! If you don't want to join inkpop, leave a comment here.

xo,