In My Mailbox #9

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme over at The Story Siren's, where you share what books and other goodies you got. This week, our local bookstores were having a sale, so I bought for books in all:

And I love their covers too! :) Especially Darkness Becomes Her!

So I'm probably gonna reread Wither before reading Fever, and I'm really excited to see how it goes. And Darkness Becomes Her looks like a fun dark book! :) I've also heard that Blood Red Road and Eve are pretty kick-ass, so we'll see about that... And I just noticed: they're all dystopian books! Looks like I'm gonna have a lotta fun reading! :)

So what books did you get this week?

Jen! Midnight Book Thief

Giveaway Alerts... and a Haiku!

So there are tons of giveaways around the blogosphere! One of them is by Amanda from Stuck in YA Books, and she's giving away not one, but TWO boxes filled with books! Interested? Click the button below!

And not only that, Paige from the Book Vulture is hosting her very first giveaway, and she's giving away four copies of Slide, all with signed bookmarks! You can enter HERE, if you want.

And finally... one of my favorite bloggers, Patricia from Book Exhibitionism, is hosting her April Giveaway! If you want to join, (and I know you want to!) click the cute banner below! 

Here are the books you might win:

And its a pretty awesome selection, no? :) And even if you don't want to enter the giveaway, do check out her blog. It's really fun, and she posts new content every day!

And finally, because I promised Patricia one... Here's a haiku, just for her:

Haikus are awesome

But sometimes they don't make sense

Refrigerator

Heh, okay, I can't take credit for that. I read that somewhere online before. :) Okay, okay, here's my actual haiku for Patricia. And I make no promises that it won't suck. Well, I can almost guarantee that it sucks. :P

Reading's her hobby

And reviewing on BE

And eating babies

#thisisgettingweird could not get any truer! Heh, first two lines are true. The third one? Well... its an inside joke. Blame #PixieKiss! :) 

Jen @ Midnight Book Thief

Soul Screamers #3- Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent: Review

Kaylee has one addiction: her very hot, very popular boyfriend, Nash. A banshee like Kaylee, Nash understands her like no one else. Nothing can come between them. Until something does. 

Demon breath. 

No, not the toothpaste-challenged kind. The Netherworld kind. The kind that really can kill you. Somehow the super-addictive substance has made its way to the human world. But how? Kaylee and Nash have to cut off the source and protect their friends—one of whom is already hooked. 

And so is someone else…

My Soul to Keep is the third book in the Soul Screamers series. And for me, this book is one of the major turning points of the series. This is where things started to go downhill for Kaylee, and her perfect world- well, as perfect as it can be, anyways- is shattered.

To be honest, I didn't really like this book compared to the others in the series. Why? It frustrated me. Nash and Kaylee's issues made me want to thump them. All the secrecy, the betrayals, the hurtings- made me feel full blast frustration. 

Now that I think about it, I think the main reason why I didn't like it that much during the first time I read it was Nash's betrayal. Back then, I was Team Nash, and it hurt to see their relationship go down the drain. What he did... It disgusted me, shocked me, infuriated me. But then again, I guess that was essential for Kaylee and Tod to happen. 

But it spite of that, I did like this book. The ending completely made up for whatever frustration (Yup, third time using this word. That's just how frustrated I felt.) I felt earlier. I have to say, I did NOT see that huge twist. 

The Rating

So overall, I give this book 4 stars. The plot picks up in the middle part, full with Vincent's signature twists and turns, and it did not disappoint. I completely did not expect the bigger picture- for the first half of the book, I only thought Kaylee had Demon's Breath to deal with. Turns out, she's up against something way bigger, trust me. She's gonna need all the help she can get- or else everyone she loves- and knows- will become Netherworld chowder. 

So bear with the first part and whatever annoyance you might feel against Kaylee and Nash, because I promise you, the ending WILL be worth it.

Jen @ Midnight Book Thief

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So I have conflicting views on this book. What about you? Did Nash's actions infuriate you? What do you think will happen next? And which cover do you prefer? If you manage to answer all my questions, I'll give you a cyber cookie. :)

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The Mediator #6- Heaven Sent by Meg Cabot: Review

 

Oh, how time flies, and now its almost the end of March! Guess its time to review a reread of a favorite of mine for  The Books that made me Love Reading Challenge, hosted by Emlyn Chand! This time, I'm going up higher the readig chain from MG to YA, and I picked:

Suze should be on cloud nine. She's going out with Jesse, the most gorgeous ghost of all time. But, her fellow mediator, Paul Slater, wants Suze all to himself, and he's hell-bent on making the happy couple ancient history. When creepy Paul threatens to travel back in time and stop Jesse from dying, Suze is seriously spooked. Her boyfriend has a ghost of a chance to live again - but it would be without her. So, what will Jesse choose? Life - or love?

Ah, I love the Mediator series. If I remember correctly, this series sealed the deal for my love of YA. But at that time, I had no idea what YA. I think that's also the series which made me love paranormal romance, but of course, I didn't even know such a genre existed!

So Heaven Sent (also titled "Twilight"- though not the one with sparkly vampires, let me assure you) is the last book in the Mediator series. And I absolutely loved it. Suze is a Mediator, so she can see ghosts. And she also loves Jesse. Who, needless to say, is a (very hot) ghost. Throw in Paul, another jealous Mediator who wants Suze for himself, and ta-da! Instant conflict! 

I really liked the romance in this series. Its obvious that Suze is attracted to Jesse from the beginning, but you slowly see her falling more deeply in love with him. I wish more YA series and a romance like this. It wasn't insta-love; their relationship had emotion and depth to it. Jesse is so sweet too, the perfect gentleman to Suze's kickbutt attitude!

And not only that, I loved the plot in this book. I mean, how can a romance between a human and a ghost end up, well, nicely? This book had eveything, from romance, to humor, to suspense. This book slowly builds up the tension, leading up to the explosive climax. 

Anf that ending. So sweet, so happy, so perfect. It was THE ultimate happy ending. I couldn't help but be happy with the way Meg Cabot ended the series! After everythig that they went through, Suze and Jesse desered their happy ending!

The Rating

Five Stars! A personal favorite of mine, and my favorite book in the series (followed by the fourth book, Young Blood). I've read this series countless times, ever since I read the second book back when I was ten or so, and I never seem to get tired of it!

Jen @ Midnight Book Thief

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Waiting on Wednesday #7: Sweet Evil

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

What if there were teens whose lives depended on being bad influences? This is life for sons and daughters of fallen angels in Sweet Evil.

Tenderhearted Southern girl, Anna Whitt, was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage, and her will-power is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

A cross-country trip to meet her father forces Anna to face the reality that hope and love are not options for her kind. When she confronts her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

Right now, I am obsessing over this book. Why?

...Okay, do you really need to ask why? The summary sounds amazing. In Goodreads, the book's already got a lot of 5 star reviews. Seriously, this book sounds like the perfect paranormal romance! Not to mention the beautiful cover. I love how Anna's left part's all white and "good", while Kaidan's part is all so dark! 

So, yeah. In short? I want this book.

... so what are you waiting on this wednesday? :)

Jen @ Midnight Book Thief

Until Next Time by Amy Lignor: Review

Hey! Today's my stop on the Until Next Time blog tour! I've got a review for you guys, so read on. :)

How does a girl choose between the one who steals her heart and the one who owns her soul?

Matt and Emily were created for a specific job. Raised and trained as the ultimate angel/warrior team, they are sent down to save, defend, judge and forgive, depending on the 'life' they've been assigned. What they don't realize is that the power of human emotions, such as love, anger, passion and fear can take over even the best of souls, causing them to make mistakes and follow paths that lead to confusion and heartache.

When the reason for their training is finally revealed, the angel/warrior team find themselves thrust into a world they know nothing about. Matt takes over the life of Daniel, a young man with a great deal of baggage. Emily becomes Liz, a girl living in a remote village who relies on nothing more than her own strength to survive. A violent storm erupts one night, and framed in the window of Liz's establishment is a frightening face. Let in by the soul of a Good Samaritan, the two visitors bring with them a past full of secrets that could literally change an angel's path and a warrior's plans.

From murder to redemption, this angel/warrior team must find a way to keep the faith they have in each other in a world that's ripping them apart.

As part of the Until Next Time blog tour, I was given the opportunity to review the book, and I don't regret my decision to do so!

The Bad

The beginning. So the first part of the book confused me. I totally could not understand where the story was going, and it almost made me stop reading. It kinda made me disoriented at first, and took some time to get used to. 

The conflict. Okay, so the conflict kinda disappointed me. Not to mention confused me. I was expecting so much more for the main event, but when it finally came, I was a bit let down. Yes, it was kinda cool, but still. It could have been so much more. 

The Good

The writing. Amy Lignor has a unique was of writing. It's beautiful, the way she writes. She successfully captures the beauty in her words, and she fills her pages with inspiration. Her characters are well introduced, both the earthly and heavenly ones. And I also love how she placed some humor in the story!

The Awesome

The ending. Wow, Until Next Time had such a beautiful ending. It was so sad, and it gave me that warm fuzzy tingly feeling. So breathtaking- what a way to end the story! But not only that, it ends with a cliffhanger. It leaves you hanging with a huge question mark, such that you have no choice but to pick up the next book. 

The Rating

I'm giving this book four stars. I have to say, this was an unusual read. I did not get what I expected when I read this book- in a surprisingly pleasant way. In no way did this book have a cliche that so many other YA novels have. Amy Lignor is one author I'm gonna be watching for!

Jen @ Midnight Book Thief

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Memorable Monday #8

And I'm back with my eighth Memorable Monday! For those who have no clue on what this is, this is a meme hosted by Escape in a Book, where you share a a certain quote that you love- funny, beautiful, or memorable in any way.

How to participate?

1. Share a quote that has captured your interest lately in a Memorable Monday post on your blog.

2. Go here and leave the link to your post in our inlinkz widget.

3. It would be nice if you visited one or two of the other participants.

4. If you tweet your posts then feel free to use the hastag #MemorableMonday

This week, my quote comes from... 

(Image is linked to GoodReads)

Being the first female werecat enforcer isn't easy. Scars accumulate, but I'm stronger in so many ways. 

As for my personal life? It's complicated. Choices worth making always are. Ever since my brother's death and my father's impeachment, it's all I can do to prevent more blood from spilling. Now our Pride is under attack by a flight of vicious thunderbirds. And making peace with our new enemies may be the only way to get the best of our old foe. 

With the body count rising and treachery everywhere, my instincts tell me to look before I leap. But sometimes a leap of faith is the only real option...

So I totally had another quote prepared for today, but I just finished reading this one yesterday, and this quote below just stuck with me. Here it is:

“Justice is for the victim.” 

Kick. 

“Vengeance is for the survivor.”

It just got me thinking. I never knew just how true it is! And this series, though its not YA (and within good reason!), is amazing, and I really recommend that you read this! Oh, and if you're interested, read my three sentence review here, which pretty much sums up the whole series. ;)

Jen @ Midnight Book Thief