This Or That (10)

Cari @ Cari’s Book Blog!

Hello readers, bloggers, authors, and generally awesome people (who happen to love books!) and welcome to This Or That! This Or That is a feature posted every week and it works like this: each person is asked a series of This Or That/Would You Rather-type questions, some serious and some funny, and by doing so we get to learn just a bit more about our favorite bookish people!  This feature is currently scheduled through April 2013 but if you would still be interested in signing up, please check out this post and fill out the form!

When I think back to my very first year as a blogger and all of the genuine, awesome bloggers I looked up to Cari is most definitely at the top of the list. She has always been so incredibly sweet and I love checking out all of her posts! She has everything from reviews to HILARIOUS video chats with some pretty awesometastic authors! Well without further ado, let’s meet the one and only Cari!

About the blogger: I started blogging in September 2009. After attending several book events around town and blogging about them I became the Social Media Expert for Blue Willow Bookshop. When I’m not browsing book catalogs I like to keep up with the latest fashion trends. I am never too busy for a new project and my secret is that coffee is a food group.

When it comes to your reading tastes are you a bigger contemporary fan or a fantasy fan?

Defiantly contemporary!

Guardian Angels (the goody-two-shoes) or Fallen Angels (the bad boys)?

Oh this is a hard one. I’m not an angel fan so pass!

When it comes to music do you sing along or dance along?

Sing along!

Cowboys or rockstars?

Cowboys! Maybe it’s a Texas thing.

 Do you listen to one specific type of music or mixed genres?

Yeah I’m all over the place but my go to music is country.

Okay be honest here: Do you fan-girl over your favorite authors quite enthusiastically or do you sit back quietly and stalk them?

Lol I fan girl but I can hold back. Like the time I saw Maggie Stiefvater in the bathroom but I held it together and walked out without embarrassing myself. I hope she isn’t reading this. With some authors I try and play it cool.

 Do you tend to be a bigger fan of the fictional boyfriends or the fictional best friends?

Fictional boyfriend! I love you Corndog From (Stealing Parker)

 Dessert time: cookies or cupcakes?

Fancy cupcakes for the win!

Are you a cat person or a dog person?

Dog person but my dogs ignore me like cats so I don’t know what to make of it.

 A year without books or a year without your favorite food?

A year without food because who am I kidding I always fail at book bans.

Are you a nook girl or a kindle girl?

iPad!

 Books turned into movies or books turned into TV shows?

Books turned into movies! Hunger Games, Twilight, and hopefully Catching Jordan some day soon!

Team bad boy or team boy next door?

Boy next door!  Jay from the Body Finder or Cricket from Lola and the Boy Next Door!

 Would you rather be turned into a werewolf or a vampire?

Vampire. There Are not enough razors in the world to be a werewolf. Unless I could hang out with the guys from Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes.

 Would you rather read outside in the sun or inside all snuggled up with a book?

Inside. A bird once pooped on my book when I read outdoors.

 Do you keep your books on bookshelves or random spots throughout the house?

My whole house is one big pile of books. I either keep them on one of the 7 bookshelves, bags, or one of my nightstands.

 Do you do your reading in rooms filled with chaos or do you do your reading in pure silence?

I either read in silence or with my iPod on to drown out the outside world.

When marking the pages in your books do you use a bookmark or dog-ear your pages?

Bookmarks, hair ties, the remote, anything expect fold the page.

Do you like your books to be a part of a series or stand alone?

I prefer stand alone but I have a number of favorite series

If given the option would you take $1,000,000 or an endless supply of books? 

The million because then I could use it for books, family, and fashion.

So what did you guys think? If you didn’t already think Cari was made of pure win (most definitely unlikely) you surely do now! I am also a fan of cupcakes and the boy next door (Cari was actually the one to make me read The Body Finder which in turn introduced me to Jay. Love me some Jay!) Please leave a comment below letting us know what you thought of this week’s This Or That and be sure to check out the links below to stalk…err follow/like/be-friend Cari throughout the internet!

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Cover Reveal: Fanged Princess by Elisabeth Wheatley

Title: Fanged Princess

Author: Elisabeth Wheatley

Release Date: January 22nd, 2013

I will not let my brother suffer the same loss…

Hadassah’s father, the Vampire King, punished her for her choice to love a human. Now her brother, the only person in the world who still matters to her, has fallen for a human girl. Determined to keep the girl safe, the three of them flee from their home in New England and find themselves cornered with their father’s minions closing in. If they want to escape, their only hope may be to join forces with the mortal enemies of their kind…

Be ensnared in this dark tale of enduring love, loyalty, and revenge from teenage author, Elisabeth Wheatley.

 This must be the week of awesome cover reveals! When the absolutely talented, wonderful, and sweet author, Elisabeth Wheatley asked if I wanted to be a part of this cover reveal, I jumped at the chance! (Partly because she’s awesome and partly because I was dying to get a sneak peek of it before everyone else!) When I saw the greatness that is this cover I just gasped. First the color, I adore the purple! They used such lovely shades of purple and I love how it swirls with the darker black in the background. And now let’s just talk about this cover model…GORGEOUS! The straight black hair, the lace, the Victorian Gothic clothing, everything about it just screams dark fantasy. So what do you guys think of this cover? Let me know in the comments, but first be sure to check out the book trailer below!

 

Don’t forget to add Fanged Princess to your Goodreads shelf!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Elisabeth Wheatley started writing very short (and rather silly) stories when she was around six. She became a voracious reader and after being practically forced by her cousins to watch Disney’s version of “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,” she developed a chronic passion for fantasy.

Elisabeth eventually went to work on what would become “The Key of Amatahns” when she was eleven. “The Key of Amatahns” is the first in the seven-book series, “Argetallam Saga.”

She is also now working on an urban fantasy/paranormal romance vampire novella.

When she isn’t spellbound by reading fantasy books and writing her own, Elisabeth trains and shows her Jack Russell Terrier, Schnay, makes goat cheese, and studies mythology.

Elisabeth’s Facebook Page

 Elisabeth’s Goodreads Author Page

 Elisabeth’s Twitter Page

Elisabeth’s Blog

Cover Reveal: Elder by Raine Thomas

Title: Elder (Firstborn #3)

Author: Raine Thomas

Release Date: December 27th

Clara Kate is one of the eight beings needed to activate The Elder Scroll, an ancient artifact causing tragedy and darkness on the Estilorian plane. She knows that her focus needs to be on finding the final piece and stopping the evil Mercesti, but Ini-herit isn’t making it easy.

He’s working closely with Clara Kate on the quest to stop their enemies…too close for her comfort. His presence serves as a constant reminder of the love they shared on the human plane, a love that he no longer remembers at all.

Her life and the lives of those she loves are at risk, and she knows she has to put aside her personal problems. So far on their journey, she’s endured heartbreak, terror, pain and loss. She’s even been brought to the brink of death.

She thinks things can’t get any worse.

She’s wrong.

I am so, so, SO EXCITED to be apart of another one of Raine’s cover reveals! The first two books in the series, Defy and Shift both have absolutely gorgeous covers and Elder can certainly be added to that category. Defy has this whole peacock them going along with it while Shift has a beautiful butterfly theme. While Elder is just as pretty as the previous two covers, I love that the character on the front has this whole “tough” thing going on! The blacks, grays, and whites along with the sword and that bright pop of blue for the title just make the whole cover stand out! It is safe to say that Devan Edwards of Nimbi Designs did an absolutely FABULOUS job on the cover for the final book in Raine’s Firstborn trilogy!

And please don’t forget to add Elder to your shelf on Goodreads!!!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Raine Thomas is the award-winning author of a series of YA fantasy/romance novels about the Estilorian plane, including the Daughters of Saraqael trilogy and the Firstborn trilogy. She is a proud member of Romance Writers of America and is a contributing blogger to The Writer’s Voice. When she isn’t planning weddings, writing or glued to social networking sites, she can usually be found on one of Florida’s beautiful beaches with her husband and daughter or crossing the border to visit with her Canadian friends and relatives.

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It’s My Birthday And I’m Ready To Par-teeeeeeey!

Yay! I am officially a 20-year-old!!!!

I am not going to lie in the slightest; I am going to miss being a teenager so much! I think of all the fun, crazy, wild, magical times I’ve had over the past 20 years and a giant smile crosses my face. At the same time, I am so ready to embrace this next chapter in my life! I am ready to finish up college, get a real job, move out, pay my own bills…okay maybe not that last part but you get what I mean. I am sure there are going to be even more fun, crazy, wild, magical times ahead for me but I will be experiencing them as a legit adult! As in someone who can actually do adult-ish stuff like boss people around and you know other adult-ish stuff that I cannot for the life of me think of right now. Crazy, I know, but also sort of kick-butt!

Now it wouldn’t be a true par-teeeeeey without cupcakes & presents. Since I ate all of the cupcakes, we’ll just have to stick to presents!

Here’s what is going to go down: I am going to list a few of my all-time favorite series that feature women that I aspire to be like now that I’m sort of grown up (key words: sort of)! These leading ladies are all hilarious, quirky, and embrace their adult lives with maybe not so much grace but a whole lot of independence and awesomely fantastic experiences! And after I’m done listing my favorite series, you will pick two books (they can be from the same series or from two different series) that you would love to own, hug, pet, squeeze, and possibly read. Once you’ve picked your two favorites you are going to fill out the form below to be entered to win. Yay for presents!

The Secret Society Girl series by Diana Peterfreund

Secret Society Girl

Under The Rose

Rites of Spring (Break)

Tap & Gown

Amy, the main character in this series, kicks some major butt. She is funny, independent, confident, a fiercely loyal friend, one to never back down from a fight or allow herself to be insulted. She is just SO FREAKING AWESOME! I’ve read the entire series a handful of times and I never tire of her and everything that she goes through!

The Jessica Darling series by Megan McCafferty

Sloppy Firsts

Second Helpings

Charmed Thirds

Fourth Comings

Perfect Fifths

I haven’t finished this series yet but I can tell you right now, Jessica Darling is one remarkable person who not only makes me feel like some of the crazy thoughts running through my head maybe aren’t that crazy but she also makes me laugh so very hard!

The Heather Wells series by Meg Cabot

Size 12 Is Not Fat

Size 14 Is Not Fat Either

Big Boned

Size 12 and Ready to Rock

I started this little gem of a series this past year and holy wow! Heather Wells is confused, working on the confidence part, struggling to put her life together but through all of that she is so incredibly snarky and hilarious!

Here are the nitty-gritty details about the giveaway:

-The giveaway is international as long as The Book Depository ships to you!

-The giveaway ends at the end of the day on 12/5

-Sharing is not required but it would be oh so appreciated :)

Thank you all so much for joining in on my birthday celebration!

Tune In Tuesday (80) Birthday Edition!

Tune In Tuesday is a weekly feature in which bloggers get to showcase another one of their loves, music! This feature was originally created by Ginger over at GReads! but you can now find it here at Kate’s Tales of Books and Bands. If you would like to participate in this weekly feature, make a blog post showcasing a song (or a few!) and link up at the bottom of this post! While you’re here make sure to check out all the other awesome blogs that have decided to participate!

Does anyone know what today is? It’s November 27th! To most of you this day is just any other Tuesday but for me it is something way more! Today is the eve of my birthday and not just any birthday, it’s the eve of my 20th birthday!!!! Now don’t let my overuse of exclamation points fool you, I am actually quite sad I will no longer be a teenager :( Regardless I am also a bit excited to be a sort-of grownup. I say sort-of because I, in no way, shape, or form, plan on acting too adult-ish. I mean a girl’s still got to have fun, right?

So in honor of the super awesome times I had as a teenager and the many more awesome times I will have as a sort-of adult, here’s some of the music that helped make me who I am today!

p.s. Considering these are all songs I love (hardcore) they may or may not have been featured on a Tune In Tuesday post before. If this is in fact the 4th or 5th time you’ve seen the same song featured on my blog, I apologize. It won’t (okay…it probably will) happen again!

Yeah by Usher

It is no secret that Kati is my very best friend. When we were both embarrassingly awkward little girls in the 6th grade, we bonded over the fantasy that we would one day grow up and marry Usher. I can honestly remember each of us having our own CD players and pressing play at the very same time so we could sing his songs together! Also, our dance moves to this song? Nothing else compares.

Mr. Brightside by The Killers

Throughout 99% of my childhood, my sister and I did not agree on anything. However, when The Killers came along with this little doozy of a song, we couldn’t help but agree that we were in love with not only the song but the band as well!

We Are Young by 3OH!3

My friends and I were considered a little off for loving the heck out of this band in high school but we didn’t care. Whenever I think about all the awesome summers we’ve spent together, 3OH!3 is always a constant factor.

Fearless by Taylor Swift

If you know me at all, you know that I have a deep love and respect for this girl. Say what you will about her methods of revenge (which are kick-butt methods if you ask me) or just how good her voice even is (I happen to think it’s all sorts of awesome!) there is one thing you cannot deny and that is that she knows how to connect. Throughout those high school days spent doing all sorts of things that made me an utter nerd, her music was there for me, helping me along one awkward moment at a time.

Check Yes Juliet by We The Kings

LOVE THIS BAND! So many good times at their concerts, on the way to their concerts, singing in the car and reminiscing about their concerts <3 My sister, my best friend, and I have had so many fun memories involving We The Kings! And I’m sure there will be more to come, like when Travis and I get married (kidding…sort of)!

Hold On by Wilson Phillips

Kati and I singing this song over and over and over and over again in the car while pretending to play the drums on one of our many road trips….now that’s one teen habit that is so totally moving on to adult-ishhood!

Well there’s a glimpse at only a little sliver of the music I love and adored throughout my formative years! Be sure to leave a comment letting me know what your favorite songs as a teen were/are and link up your Tune In Tuesday post by clicking the cute, little button below!

Book Review: Turning Pages by Tristi Pinkston

Title: Turning Pages

Author: Tristi Pinkston

Publisher: Inkberry Press

Pages: 240 paperback

My Rating: 4/5 Stars

Source: I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest and thoughtful review

With his pride and her prejudice, what could possibly go wrong?

When the arrogant Blake Hansen steals Addie Preston’s promotion at the library, he pretty much rubs her nose in it. But Addie, who dreams of being a full-fledged librarian, decides to stick it out. She loves surrounding herself with books and keeping her father’s memory alive in the building where they spent so much time together.

Soon, Addie learns that her beloved library will be torn down to make room for a larger facility, and she has to make a choice. Fight, or let go?

To complicate things, she finds herself attracted to Blake, who is engaged to someone else. Will Blake and Addie ever resolve their differences?

Turning Pages by Tristi Pinkston is not only super adorable on the outside (I mean, just look at that cover!) but it is also a sweet story on the inside! The main character is a huge book nerd who happens to be dealing with some real-life issues. And let’s not forget that most of the book takes place in a library. It all makes me ask, what’s not to love?

I loved Addie as a main character! She was such a sweet, caring, passionate girl going through some of the hardest things she’s ever gone through in her life. Addie’s mom passed at an early age and when we first meet her she is also dealing with the recent passing of her father. Now her, her younger siblings, and her step-mom are forced to deal with life without him. My heart broke for this entire family! I could see more of Addie’s pain because obviously she’s the main character, but I was also able to see just how hard it was on everyone else. This only made it harder to bear when I learned of the financial struggles this family was going through. Regardless of all the pain and problems, there was an incredible amount of faith and determination on not only Addie’s part but from her step-mom as well. It was so nice to see such a strong bond between the entire family but Addie and her step-mom in particular; They were each others rocks.

On top of dealing with everything at home, Addie also has an incredible amount of work problems to sort through. Forced to deal with the potential tearing down of her beloved library and having to work with Mr. Blake “I like to steal Addie’s job promotion and continually insult her (albeit it unknowingly) on a daily basis” Hansen, let’s just say I gained a whole new respect for this girl! I loved the constant banter between the two of them. Addie is very independent and certainly has a mind of her own and Blake can be moody and rude without even realizing it. When Blake would accidentally say something rude to Addie and Addie would get all fired up about it, I couldn’t help but giggle. Soon their banter turns into a friendship. Addie finds herself in a jam on more than one occasion and Blake just happens to be there every time to help save the day. As you can probably infer from the summary of the book, feelings of friendship soon turn into feelings of something more for Addie & Blake. Blake’s engagement and Addie’s feelings for an old crush, not to mention the fact that HE IS HER BOSS only complicate things more! I do wish that there would have been a bit more between them romantically. I knew from the beginning there was going to be some type of romantic notion between them but I wish it would have shown up more throughout the book. It’s just that for a majority of the book they were sometimes bantering enemies and most of the time friends so a few more stolen glances, a few more secret touches, just something aside from the admitted feelings of love near the end would have really made the romance seem more evident.

Addie deals with so much from the very first page up until the very end of the book. Even though she was faced with one problem after another, I had no other option but to admire her strength through it all. Problems at home with her family, problems with her job, problems with her love life (or lack of it) would be enough to make any person go bonkers, and even though Addie certainly had her stressed-to-the-max moments she also DEALS WITH IT! She powered through everything like a true fighter. Tristi certainly did a fantastic job of turning this real-life book nerd into a fan of this book about a fictional book nerd. The main character is certainly one to admire and even through I thought the romance could have been spiced up a bit, there is still so many sweet, touching messages that readers can take from this story!

In My Mailbox (46)

IMM is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. It is a way for book bloggers to post what they have received for review, borrowed from a friend, bought at the bookstore, or picked up at the library!

I picked up a few more e-books for my Nook this week one of which I have been insanely excited about ever since I first read the summary of it!

Bought:

10 Weeks by Jolene Perry & Janna Watts

My Thoughts: This pretty little book right here was only $.99!!! I couldn’t pass up a deal like that and since I read and enjoyed one of Jolene’s other books, I thought I’d give it a shot!

Simply Irresistible by Jill Shalvis

My Thoughts: Ever since I read Ginger’s review of this book (and the whole rest of the series!) I have been dying to read it.

Dizzy by Nyrae Dawn and Jolene Perry

My Thoughts: I CANNOT WAIT TO READ THIS BOOK!!!! I fell in love with Nyrae’s writing when I read Charade and as I said above, I really enjoyed Falling by Jolene. So you can probably guess how incredibly excited I was when I found out these two awesome authors were writing a book together!

Well that’s it for my books this week! I hope you all had a lovely book week as well & please be sure to leave your IMM/Stacking The Shelves links below so I can check them out!

This Or That (9)

Zareen @ Reach For The Stars…And The Books!

Hello readers, bloggers, authors, and generally awesome people (who happen to love books!) and welcome to This Or That! This Or That is a feature posted every week and it works like this: each person is asked a series of This Or That/Would You Rather-type questions, some serious and some funny, and by doing so we get to learn just a bit more about our favorite bookish people!  This feature is currently scheduled through April 2013 but if you would still be interested in signing up, please check out this post and fill out the form!

I am thrilled to have the absolutely LOVELY Zareen on This Or That today! She loves all sorts of books, her nickname is Taco, and she is a fellow The Voice lover, so what’s not to like!?! I know you’re all sorts of excited to meet her so without further ado, here’s Zareen!

About The Blogger: Zareen is currently a high school senior who can constantly be found with a book in hand. She’s a member of her high school’s academic decathlon team, and she recently started a young adult book club with her best friend. Alongside her passion for reading, she is also a huge fan of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team.

When it comes to your reading tastes are you a bigger contemporary fan or a fantasy fan?

My adolescent self would argue for contemporary, but I’ve loved fantasy ever since I read The Chronicles of Narnia at age seven.

Let’s talk boys: jocks or nerds?

Definitely nerds.

Guardian Angels (the goody-two-shoes) or Fallen Angels (the bad boys)?

Tough one. Can I say a little bit of both, like Daniel Grigori (Fallen) and Patch Cipriano (Hush,Hush)?

When it comes to music do you sing along or dance along?

Sing. I might make everyone’s ears bleed, but it’s better than tripping over my own feet.

Do you listen to one specific type of music or mixed genres?

All sorts. I’ve got everything from Queen and The Beach Boys to Maroon 5 and Coldplay on my iPod.

What type of books do you tend to enjoy more: laugh-out-loud-writing or make-you-ponder-life’s-biggest-mysteries-writing?

I’d have to go with the former since I consider reading to be an escape.

Okay be honest here: Do you fan-girl over your favorite authors quite enthusiastically or do you sit back quietly and stalk them?

Is it possible to be a restrained fan-girl? I’m more likely to be enthusiastic online, but I’m actually a bit on the shy side in person.

Are you a cat person or a dog person?

I have a fur allergy, so the honest answer would be neither. Haha.

A year without books or a year without your favorite food?

Can’t survive a year without books, so favorite food it is.

Would you rather spend a whole week with your FAVORITE fictional boyfriend or spend a whole day with ALL of your fictional boyfriends?

Let’s face it: I love too many fictional boys to ever pick a favorite, so I’ll take the day with all of them!

Would you rather read outside in the sun or inside all snuggled up with a book?

Inside all snuggled up! Hot cocoa would be a bonus.

When marking the pages in your books do you use a bookmark or dog-ear your pages?

Always a bookmark.

Do you like your books to be a part of a series or stand alone?

That depends on the book and how much story there is to tell.

Cover talk: Do you like people on the covers or a design?

Again, depends on the book. I’ll admit that the ‘fair-skinned girl in a pretty dress’ trend is getting old though.

Are you a nook girl or a kindle girl?

Kindle, definitely Kindle.

Books turned into movies or books turned into TV shows?

Books into movies!

Team bad boy or team boy next door?

If we’re talking fiction rather than real life, I think I lean towards the bad boy.

Would you rather be turned into a werewolf or a vampire?

I’ll say vampire if I can hang with the Denali coven from the Twilight saga!

Cupcakes or Ice Cream?

Ice cream!

Now that it’s close to winter will you be more likely to make a snowman or have a snowball fight?

I wish it snowed where I live. I’d be up for a snowball fight.

So what did you guys think? I absolutely know what Zareen meant by being brave and outgoing online but whenever I meet bookish people in person I become shy and quiet (well at least at first…after a few minutes I can be rather err CRAZY!) And YESSS to being a fan of nerds. NERDS FOR THE WIN! I want to give a big, gigantic, HUGE thank you to Zareen for agreeing to part of This Or That this week! I had so much fun reading all of her answers and I hope you guys did as well! Checkout the links below to stalk…err follow/like/be-friend Zareen throughout the internet!

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Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello there fellow people of the internet and Happy Thanksgiving!!!! I hope you are all enjoying your holiday with the people you love and stuffing yourselves silly with lots of good food! This past year has been one heck of a wild ride and I have SO much to be thankful that I could not possible write up a whole blog post on everything, but I have narrowed it down to my top 5!

5. Music. When life gets too crazy (which happens quite often) or I just need a moment to myself (which also happens quite often), I can count on music to take me away. Every concert I attend, every CD I buy, every artist I listen to in my room, all of those moments have created some incredible memories and the things that those musical memories have done for me has been nothing short of a miracle.

4. Books and the authors that write them. I am so thankful for every author who has written a book that’s taken me away, whether the book made me fall in love, shiver in fear, dream up crazy new worlds, or join the fighting lines against some evil gang of crazies, they have all made a difference in me somehow.

3.  You! My blogging/twitter/bookish/just plain awesome friends. Whenever I’m having a bad day, just need to chat with someone, or heck if I just need someone to look at silly cat pictures online with me, I can count on you guys to be there and I am more thankful for that than you’ll ever know! I have loved every random, fun, crazy, ecstatic, sometimes confusing, all-the-time awesome conversations I’ve had with all of you and I am so thankful for the amazing people that blogging has introduced me to!

2. My best friends, Kati & Stacey. This has been such a tough year for all three of us for many reasons but the biggest one was the terrible car accident that Stacey was in last Christmas. Stacey’s brain trauma was severe and it has taken her almost an entire year to get back to normal (but she’s made it and I couldn’t be more proud of her!). I feel so, so, so incredibly blessed that I did not lose a friend on that day. As much as I wish her accident never happened, one good thing did come out of it and that has been bringing Kati, Stacey, and I so much closer!

1. My family. Our house is always loud, crazy, and hectic. There’s always someone crying or screaming (or a mix of the both), there is always a mess to be cleaned up,  there is always something that needs to be fixed, no place is a private (or quiet) place, trying to get the little kids to do homework is like trying to pull teeth, and I can guarantee you that everywhere you look, you will see a kiddo likely doing something they are not supposed to be doing. But through all that craziness there is so much love. I feel so blessed to be able to spend time with people who are just as weird as me on a daily basis!

So there you have it, my top 5 things I am thankful for this year! But like I’ve said, there is so much more than that to be thankful for! Truly, I am just blessed that I get to live each and every day. Now tell me, what are you most thankful for this year?

Blog Tour + Book Review: Forbidden Fire by Kimberly Kinrade

Title: Forbidden Fire (Forbidden #2)

Author: Kimberly Kinrade

Pages: 270 (e-book)

My Rating: 3.5-4/5 stars

Source: I received a copy of this book for a blog tour

“Time held no meaning as my mind darted in and out of memories. Past and present collided to create a full-sensory collage out of my life: playing hide-n-seek with my best friends Luke—who always cheated by walking through walls when he was about to be caught—and Lucy; Mr. Caldrin critiquing my sketches and offering ideas to make them more realistic; targets changing faces, blending into the same person, their thoughts rippling through my mind like waves. Through it all, a demon stalked me from the shadows of my memories, never quite showing its face, but crouching, waiting.

And then I dreamed….”

Sam and Drake may have escaped, but they aren’t free—not with a powerful Seeker after them. As Sam struggles with the ethics of her new powers and embraces a blossoming physical relationship with Drake, Lucy and Luke face challenges of their own.

With forces coalescing inside and outside the Rent-A-Kid dorms, it’s only a matter of time before the fire they started forces each of them to make choices they can’t undo. But will it be enough to save them?

Forbidden Fire was an incredibly exciting continuation of the Forbidden series! I loved how the first book in the series left off. It left room for lots excitement in book two and it certainly didn’t disappoint. While there was a bit about this second book that I did not like, it kept me on my toes!

Forbidden Fire brought Lucy and Drake together–in person this time–to help defeat the evil organizer that’s taken over Rent-A-Kid, a school that harbors kids with super paranormal powers. I was really excited to see how their relationship would pan out now that they were able to interact with each other in person rather than through their mind talk. This was perhaps what bugged me most about the book. Instead of their relationship continuing on, growing, and both characters learning together as a team and a couple, Sam struggled to communicate basic things with Drake let alone what she was really feeling inside. This made me slightly angry with Sam and feel sorry for Drake. I could understand where Sam was coming on, the things that went down in the last book was enough to shake anyone to their core but Drake is so open for being there for her, to help support her through all the turmoil but she failed to open up to him a lot of the time. Sam was such a strong character in the first book but in this book she was definitely more broken and while I have faith she will find strength again, it was hard to read from her point of view at times. However, I really loved Drake in this book! He has so much resting on his shoulders, the most important thing being keeping his girlfriend and unborn child safe,  but he kept strong. Sure he had his moments of weakness and fear too, but he tried to stay there for Sam as much as he could. With all of that being said, near the end of the book, Sam seemed to snap out of it and it left me hope for her to redeem herself in the next book.

And now to the parts I LOVED about this book! First it was simply a delight to learn more about two of my favorite people from the first book, Lucy and Luke! These two are twins who just so happen to be Sam’s best friends and only a small fraction of the kids left to deal with the hell their school has become. Throughout this book we got to see a lot more of Luke and Lucy and I just adored how brave and tough these two were while also letting their sense of humor, insecurities, and struggles with right and wrong shine through; it made them seem all the more real to me!

Their struggles only lead me to my very favorite part, the mystery, the suspense, the action OH MY! This whole book kept me on the edge of my seat chapter after chapter, page after page. Luke and Lucy were dealing with their own sticky situations while being stuck inside the school while Sam, Drake, and his friend Brad were on the run and getting themselves into a number of jams on the outside. I was constantly wondering what would happen next, what new problem would arise and when and how they would each work through them. Up until the very last page, this continued on and I must say, I am extremely happy with how the book ended! A lot was figured out and resolved by the end of Forbidden Fire but for every question answered and every problem worked through, another two arose for the future book to work through!

All in all, I would say Forbidden Fire was an enjoyable book. While Sam may have annoyed me at times, I was pleasantly surprised with the other characters we were able to fully meet this time around and the action certainly kept me turning page after page!