Top Ten Tuesday #6

This is a weekly event created by The Broke and the Bookish where bloggers post a new "Top Ten" list for the particular week's topic.
 

This week topic is:-

Top Ten Books That Were Hard For Me To Read*

*Please note that this post is going to be based on the contents of each book. Therefore this post may contain spoilers. If you haven't read some of the books please don't read those sections unless you don't mind being spoiled.
   

1. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden) - This book was hard for me to read at times. I think it was mainly the fact that this was based very loosely on a real life geisha and it hit me that this could very well be someone's life I was reading about. There are some serious issues discussed. One thing that I felt really uncomfortable about was the scene where our protagonist's virginity was auctioned off... then she was practically raped by the guy that "won". I am not really that comfortable reading those sorts of situations but I can see why it was included.

 

2. City of Glass (Cassandra Clare) - I know I am just about the only TMI fan that is going to say this but I really found the assumed incest relationship Clary and Jace had going on in this book hard to read about. I didn't ship it. In fact, I felt rather uncomfortable reading about it. I mean brother and sister kissing? How is that not a least a little gross? I am trying to remain neutral and not offend people but this is one issue I find really hard to understand. I cannot ship incest relationships.

 

3. Unwind (Neal Shusterman) - I am not good with anything that relates to needles and hospitals. Anything! The idea behind this dystopian terrified me. It was horribly graphic and gory which I can cope with in certain degrees like in zombie novels. But cutting little children into pieces so other can wear their body parts? Yeah, I don't cope too well with that.

 

 4. The Art of Racing in the Rain (Garth Stein) - It has been a very long time since I read this but I remember being really appalled by a few scenes. I cannot remember exactly what they were but it has stuck with all this time.

 

 

4. Chinese Cinderella: The Secret Story of an Unwanted Daughter (Adeline Yen Mah) - I read this one time when I was one holiday and let me tell you, this isn't a relaxing vacation read! It is the story of a young Chinese girl who is abused. It is very sad, emotional and confrontational. It was hard to read this book

6. Marley & Me (John Grogan) - Reading books about animals, especially pets, has always been hard for me. My dog and cat mean the world to me and to even consider losing them pulls at my heart. If you have seen the movie or read this book you will know that this book is heartbreakingly sad. We all know that is based on a true story and that makes it so much harder to read! You know that it happened to real people...

 

 

 7. Stronger Than You Know (Jolene Perry) - I am not good with books about rape. It is one of the most hideous crimes imaginable and having to read about it so upsetting. I know that may seem weak or maybe even a little disrespectful - I know that the victims would have to go through a lot more than reading about it - but I still have a hard time reading about it. This was obviously hard book for me to read because we see the protagonist struggles with the psychological after effects of going though that sort of trauma.

 

 8. Breaking Dawn (Stephenie Meyer) - A weird one, I know! Yet it was still hard read for me. I don't know what is was exactly. Seeing Jacob like that? Have a teen pregnant with a monster? I don't know but it was a book that I found really hard to read.

 

9. Breaking Free (S.M. Koz) - This book covers a lot of serious topics and there were some sections that were pretty hard to read about.

 

 10. Love Letters to the Dead (Ava Dellaira) - The sections where we see that our protagonist's sister repeatedly leaves her behind with man who molests her so she can sneak off with her boyfriend were really hard for me to read. I was so mad at the sister for doing that to her and mad at our protagonist for not saying anything! It was such a hard situation and no child should ever be forced to endure and keep silent about such things. Ever!

 

Cover Reveal: Fix Up & Change Up

Cover Reveal for Fix Up & Change Up:

(Check out this page for more information about book one) 

 

 

Title: Fix Up + Change Up

Series: Patch Up #2- #3

Author: Stephanie Witter

Cover Artist: Cover Your Dreams

 

Genre: contemporary, new adult, romance

 

Links:   Goodreads (Fix Up) |  Goodreads (Change Up)

 

 

Description for Fix Up:

 

Saying “I love you'' doesn’t erase the old scars and fears. 

 

Skye is trying to overcome what happened with Sean. Now that she’s slowly healing, both physically and mentally, she’s determined to do something she should have done sooner. She’s meeting twice a week with a new, very young therapist, Dr. Marshall. There, she’s able to talk freely, unwind, and question things. Most of the sessions she talks about herself and her hangups, along with her relationship with Duke, which is still on rocky ground. 

But while Skye is slowly getting back on her feet, Duke feels like he's drowning. He’s afraid of pushing her too much, of initiating intimacy, and it’s weighing between them. Moreover, knowing that he's not the one she’s talking to anymore is making him feel things he never thought possible. As days pass, Duke is showing over and over how vulnerable he truly is and how Skye has more power over him than she ever imagined.

When Skye sees how they keep hurting each other, she’s determined to do everything in her power to make things right, no matter what the cost. But one thing is still sure; she can count on Duke whenever she needs him, even if they disagree and fight. When Duke loves, he loves with everything he’s made of, the good and the bad. 

 

Description for Change Up:

In Patch Up and Fix Up you had Skye and Duke’s story. Now, it’s time for Derek and Kate to find their path.

He fights for the people he loves. She fights against love. 

 

Kate Andrews is starting her second year of college in Seattle. She is happy to leave Chicago and her dysfunctional family behind to be with her friends again. Growing up she thought that her parents' loveless marriage was all her father’s fault, but that summer she discovered that things are so much more complicated in life and love. 

Her mother is bipolar. That doesn’t mean her father isn’t unfaithful, nor does he support her and her choices. Additionally, he isn't a great father or husband, but it brings a new perspective in her life; the way she envisions love. 

 

Derek Williams graduated college a few months ago, and while he moved back in again with his single mother and teenage brother, he never thought that he would be struggling with two crappy jobs. He is not succeeding in either of his jobs or in his countless plans for the future. Instead, he’s trying to bring back his brother and set him on a straight path, while trying to avoid the wrong crowd hounding him, thanks to his brother. Together with fighting his mother on her lack of support in their family, this all has caused chaos.

 

Both of them are very different. Their upbringing is opposite; their vision of love and life contrast, and yet they’re both still hung up on each other. They can’t forget that one night they shared months ago, can’t ignore their attraction and quickly maturing love. They match in every way that matters, but time and time again their respective families are getting in the way. 

Are they willing to fight for each other? Is Kate ready to risk her comfort and everything else for love? Is Derek prepared to chose which battles are worth fighting for?

 About The Author:

 

Stephanie Witter is a French dreamer. She started learning English at three, and fell in love with the language. Always with a book, or two close by, she started reading in English when she couldn't wait any longer for Harry Potter to be translated in French. After a while, reading wasn't enough. She started writing Young Adult and New Adult Contemporary novels and Patch Up is her first New Adult Contemporary novel.

Author Links:  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

 

 

 

Cover Reveal: Beautiful Curse + One Wish Away

Cover Reveal of Beautiful Curse:

 

Title: Beautiful Curse

Series: none

Author: Jen McConnel

 

Date of Release: December, 2014

Publisher: Swoon Romance

 

Genres: young adult, contemporary, paranormal

 

Links:   Goodreads

 

Description:

Sixteen-year-old Mya Jones is cursed.

She is, hands down, the most beautiful creature on earth. But beauty can wound, and Mya finds herself reviled and shunned by her peers. If there is even a chance that she could start over, Mya longs to take it, no matter the risks.

So when the strange Mr. Merk offers her a new life away from home, Mya is hesitant but hopeful. Only she didn't count on the mysterious Ross, or her feelings for him.

 

About The Author:

 

Jen McConnel first began writing poetry as a child. Since then, her words have appeared in a variety of magazines and journals, including Sagewoman, PanGaia, and The Storyteller (where she won the people’s choice 3rd place award for her poem, “Luna”).

  She is also a former reviewer for Voices of Youth Advocates (VOYA), and proud member of SCBWI, NCWN, and SCWW. 

A Michigander by birth, she now lives and writes in the beautiful state of North Carolina. A graduate of Western Michigan University, she also holds a MS in Library Science from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. When she isn't crafting worlds of fiction, she teaches college writing composition and yoga.

Once upon a time, she was a middle school teacher, a librarian, and a bookseller, but those are stories for another time.

 

 

Author Links:

Facebook  | Website  | Goodreads 

 

 

 

***************

 

 

Cover Reveal of One Wish Away:

 

Title: One Wish Away

Series: none

Author: Kelley Lynn

 

Date of Release: 11th of November, 2014

Publisher: Bloomsbury Spark

 

Genres: young adult, contemporary, mystery

 

Links:   Goodreads

 

Description:

Lyra has always been ahead of the curve. Top of her class in school, a budding astronomer, and with a best friend like Darren she barely has time to miss the mother who abandoned her family years ago. She's too busy planning to follow in her father's footsteps, and to become the youngest astronomer at Space Exploration and Discovery.

When a star goes missing Lyra is determined to get to the bottom of it only to discover her braniac dad is the mastermind of a top-secret government experiment. They promise to build a perfect world, one galaxy at a time, but with every tweak of the present, a bit more of the future starts to crumble.

  Lyra has to go undercover to reveal the truth and let humanity decide if the consequences are worth more than wishing on a star.

 

About The Author:

Eventually the day came when the voices in Kelley Lynn’s head were more insistent then her engineering professor’s. So instead of turning to her Thermodynamics book, Kelley brought up a blank page on her computer screen and wrote. Somewhere along the way she became a Young Adult author.

Kelley was born and raised a Midwestern girl. She’s not afraid to sweat and fills her free time with softball, soccer and volleyball. (Though you probably don’t want her on your volleyball team.) She occasionally makes guest appearances as a female vocalist for area bands. Music plays a large role in her writing process as well as the characters and plot lines within her stories.

You can find Kelley hanging out at her blog, titled in her name, as well as the group blog she shares with her fellow critique partners, Falling for Fiction. Kelley is a member of the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators.

 

Author Links:

 

Facebook  | Website  | Goodreads  |  Twitter 

Top Ten Tuesday #5

This is a weekly event created by The Broke and the Bookish where bloggers post a new "Top Ten" list for the particular week's topic.
 

This week topic is:-

Top Ten Book On My Fall TBR List

Where I live it is actually Spring, not Autumn (or Fall, as Americans call it) but I am still going to participate in this week's Top Ten challenge. Below are ten books that I would like to read during my upcoming Spring break, if I don't read them beforehand. :)
   

1. Never Fade (Alexandra Bracken) - This is the second book in The Darkest Minds trilogy and I have been meaning to pick it for ages and ages. My beautiful friend Alisha gave it to me as a belated birthday pressie so I will definitely be picking it up soon. Thanks Alisha! 

 

2. City of Heavenly Fire (Cassandra Clare) - I'm not good with endings. I hate them. I just haven't had the guts to pick this up yet because I don't want this amazing series to end! I will have to read it soon. When better than Spring beak? Then I'll at least have two weeks to recover from it!

 

 

  3. The Iron Trial (Cassandra Clare) - This was my last week's "Waiting on Wednesday" but it has since come out. Yay! I have it pre-ordered and arrived this week. I cannot wait to start.

5. Let's Get Lost (Adi Alsaid) - I got this on special at Kmart last weekend. It was out for just $10. What a bargain! I am really eager to start it even though I cannot say I am a real fan of road trip novels. The positive reviews for it have been sky rocketing and I really want to join in with the revelries!  

 

4. Rebel Belle (Rachel Hawkins) - I saw the second book was available for request on Edelweiss and couldn't believe that I had left it this long to pick up the first book! I do own a copy and really need to get around to reading it. I have heard both good and bad things about so I don't even know what to expect!
 

5. Frostbite (Richelle Mead) - There are no excuses for me when it comes to this series. I should have finished it by now but I just have never gotten around to it. I really, really, really need to read Frostbite as soon as I can.

 

  7. Feed (Mira Grant) - Again, a series I own and have yet to finish... or start actually. I really need to get onto this series and finish it. I think this season will be all about catching up on my sequels!

 

 8. Of Triton (Anna Bancks) - The first book in this series was a favourite of mine and I have no idea why I never got around to read the second book. I will definitely be picking this up soon!

 

 

 9. Attachments (Rainbow Rowell) - I just recently read Rainbow Rowell's other popular book, Eleanor & Park, but I didn't really like it. I am hoping that this one will be a lot better.

10. Black City (Elizabeth Richards) - Well, I have to say it again - sorry! This is just another series that I must, must, must try to read this Spring.

 

Review: Black Ice

Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

 

 

Rating: 1 star
 

Description:

Britt Pfeiffer has trained to backpack the Teton Range, but she isn't prepared when her ex-boyfriend, who still haunts her every thought, wants to join her. Before Britt can explore her feelings for Calvin, an unexpected blizzard forces her to seek shelter in a remote cabin, accepting the hospitality of its two very handsome occupants—but these men are fugitives, and they take her hostage.

In exchange for her life, Britt agrees to guide the men off the mountain. As they set off, Britt knows she must stay alive long enough for Calvin to find her. The task is made even more complicated when Britt finds chilling evidence of a series of murders that have taken place there... and in uncovering this, she may become the killer’s next target.

But nothing is as it seems in the mountains, and everyone is keeping secrets, including Mason, one of her kidnappers. His kindness is confusing Britt. Is he an enemy? Or an ally?

 

My Thoughts:

 DNF 45%

Please note that this review is based on an uncorrected advance reader's copy and is subject to change. Also this review contains some minor spoilers.

I have been in a ginormous reading slump for the last three weeks. I have barley touched a book in that time period because I am just so damn tired and sick and busy with schoolwork and family drama and Lord know what else. I finally have a day free and what am I stuck with? This.

I don't even know where to start with this review... everything was just so wrong! I was begging for it to be over by the time I reached the 10% mark.

Lets start with our main character, Britt. She's a bitch. Sorry, is that a bit harsh? She is mean, self-centred, spiteful, whiny idiot. Is that better?

The first problem I had with Britt was how childish she acted about her break up with her ex, Calvin. I understood that it was have been a very awkward situation with him being her best friend's brother but seriously? She really didn't need to drip slurppy over his car seats and steal his CD collection to "get back at him". That is plain old spiteful and immature. She isn't going to convince him to come back to her if she keeps that up - and wasn't that her plan all along?

Then we have the "friendship" debacle. The way Britt and her "bestie", Korbie, Calvin's sister, treated each other was horrible. It wasn't a friendship at all. They tormented each other and said mean things on purpose to get a rise out of the other one. They were practically bullying each other!

"It was times like these [Korbie makes fun of Britt's choice of car] that I had to stop and remind myself why Korbie and I were friends."

"'I [Korbie] cannot drive stick.'
I [Britt] knew this, and making her admit it didn't improve my mood like I'd hoped."
On their trip up to the cabin where they plan on holidaying for the Spring Break, a storm starts and the snow is too thick to drive through. The girls become stranded and lost, they wander to a nearby house and ask the men there if they can stay overnight. While they aren't the warmest greeters, they obliged. Korbie however treats them like they are her servants. She makes fun of them, is rude to them and demands services from them. This isn't what you do when someone is nice enough to offer you help!

"'So tell me what are you girls doing up here in the mountains alone?'
'Starving,' Korbie announced bluntly. 'Its dinnertime. Can we eat and then talk?'"
"'Go work your magic,' Korbie encouraged him with a shoo of her wrist. 'But you're own your own. I don't do manual labour, cooking included. And don't bother asking Britt for help either. She's even worse at cooking than I am.'" I'm sorry but you cannot just demand they make you dinner and then refuse to help.

She then didn't like what they cooked her... "Shaun [one of the men] gave an aggravated snort. 'Beggars cannot be choosers.'
'Well, I'd rather starve then eat that.'"
"'If we're talking about washing dishes, I'm out,' Korbie said." Then she refuses to even wash the dishes... what is wrong with her? Was she raised by wolves?

In the cabin Korbie attempts to flirt with Shaun... even though she has a steady boyfriend named Bear."'It'll be fun, the four of us holed up here together,' Korbie assured them. 'We can snuggle to conserve body heat,' she added with a giggle.
"Korbie looked relieved. 'You [Britt] didn't try to flirt with him [Shaun]?'
'And what if I did?" I said defensively.
'I have dibs.'
'You have Bear.'
'Bear and I are going to different colleges in the fall... so we aren't forever. What's the point of being completely loyal when I know relationship is going to end?'

How about the fact you made a commitment. The relationship isn't over yet! Break up with him if your aren't interested in him, don't cheat because you are too scared to!

The rest of the book was simply ridiculous. Britt constantly pined for Calvin although Korbie oh-so-kindly *cough cough* informs Britt that he cheated on her and she knew about it this whole time.

"'You and Calvin were hardly the exemplary couple.'
I turned, backing myself against the countertop to face her head on. 'What are you talking about?'
'He kissed Rachel. At my pool party last summer.'
I gasped. 'Rachel Snavley"?'
Korbie raised her eyebrows superiorly. 'Nobody's perfect, Britt. Get over it.'
I cannot deal with anymore of this. I am over it.

Note: a copy was provided courtesy of Becca Fitzpatrick and Simon & Schuster (Australia), through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review. No compensation was given or taken during this process.

*Release: 7th of October, 2014

Cover Reveal: The Ghost of You

Cover Reveal for The Ghost of You:

 

Title: The Ghost of You

Series: not currently

Author: Amanda Burckhard

 

Date of Release­­: December 30, 2014

Publisher: Swoon Romance

 

Genre: contemporary, new adult, romance

 

Links:   Goodreads

 

 

Isn't this cover just gorgeous!?

 

Description:

Emmy has everything she’s ever wanted: a hot boyfriend she adores, great friends, a promising future, and even a well-connected family. But one night rips it all away.

A car accident shatters her world, claiming the lives of her twin brother and her best friend. In the wake of the accident, her friends drift away, her family falls apart, and her boyfriend cheats.

The grief is more than she can handle, so she finds escape at the bottom of a bottle of painkillers. Taking the pills makes her brother alive again, if only in her head. Seeing and talking to her brother as if he were still alive is the only thing that keeps her going. Until Logan King moves to town.

Logan sees past the mask of pristine popularity she wears in public and he’s the only one who can tell she hasn’t moved on. His uncanny ability to read her forces her to open up and she starts to fall for him, no matter how unwilling she is to admit it. But Emmy isn’t the only one keeping secrets and when a close brush with death sparks events that bring everything to light, Emmy will have to decide what’s more important: learning how to forgive and move on, or holding onto the pills and the ghost of her past.

 About The Author:

 

Amanda Burckhard grew up exploring bat caves and hunting for dinosaur bones in the Black Hills of South Dakota. When she wasn’t crossing paths with mountain lions, she was making up stories and devouring books at the library. Although, she still does that.

 

Amanda loves to travel and cross out things on her adrenaline packed bucket list. Some of the things she's been able to cross out include see an active volcano erupt, ride a gondola in Venice, and pet a tiger.

 

She currently lives in North Sioux City, South Dakota and works as a microbiologist by day. Some of her obsessions include comic book movies, hot chocolate, sushi, sunshine, and Doctor Who.

 

Author Links:

Website  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads  | Facebook

 

Review: Talented

Talented (Talented #1) by Sophie Davis

 

Title: Talented

Series: Talented, #1

Author: Sophie Davis

 

Published: (unknown); 2012

281 pages, kindle edition

 

Source: Amazon Freebie

 
Rating: 2.5 stars
  

Description:

Block it out. Impossible for Talia Lyons. When you’re a Mind Manipulator, it’s hard enough to block the thoughts of others, let alone your own.

Block it out. The pounding, siren-ready world Talia inhabits as she trains with her fellow Hunters, the country's top-secret covert operatives. The physical demands. The emotional toll.

Block it out. The secrets that Talia’s boyfriend is hiding. Talia’s unbidden feelings of frustration and annoyance toward her teammate, the Casanova of the compound. The wondering why she cares what he thinks.

Block him out. Ian Crane. The man behind the bloodshed marring Talia’s memories of her murdered parents. The man she’s determined to kill.

Block it all out. Focus.

 

My Thoughts:

 Talented was not what I was expecting. That seems like such a stupid thing to say, but seriously, this was such a disappointment. It had so much potential and yet none of it was tapped into. An in-training assassin with a heated vengeance for her parents' murderers? That sounds exciting, thrilling, something I would love to read. Talented promised to be all of that and yet it was nothing but a dull tale of our protagonist's melodramatic love life. This was nothing better than a terrible soap opera.

Talia was one the most irritable characters I have ever had the misfortune of reading about. She whinged and whined and cried and was a bitch to her friends. She was naïve and stupid and I wanted to slap some sense into her multiple times. I couldn't stand reading about her.

The other characters were tolerable but not anything to praise over. I didn't enjoy Erik's moody, two-faced nature and Donovan pissed me off to put it frankly. The only relief was Henri who was generally caring, kind, funny and nice. He wanted to help Talia because they were friends, nothing more, and he looked out for his mates. I really wished that the book could have been his perspective instead.

The plotline was just cringe-worthy. We were promised a book about assassins and revenge yet it was only about Talia's pathetic romantic life. The missions and the action were dull and confusing, barely explained and rushed over so we got more time to focus on the development of a love triangle... yawn. I wanted to know more about their society, the range of abilities, the other consequences of the nuclear fallout and just generally more about their society without all the info-dumping. I wanted action, I wanted suspense, I wanted massive fight scenes and superpowers and I got nothing.
 
In the end this was nothing more than a terribly plotted and dull book. I have to say I am disappointed.