TGIF (50)

There once was an awesome blogger named Ginger and she decided to create a super fun feature where fellow bloggers would answer fabulous questions via blog posts every Friday. TGIF was born and we all have Miss Ginger at GReads! to thank for that! This week’s question is:

Show Me Your Cover:

What are some of the worst book covers, but hold some of the best stories inside? Don’t be embarrassed, show us your cover!

I had a really hard time with this question! I went through all of my top rated books but as I was doing so, I realized something: I love almost all of their covers! Most people are very particular about covers but that just isn’t me. Sometimes I like people on the covers, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I like the more artistic look and other times it just doesn’t work for me. After quite a bit of searching and even more nit-picking, I did come up with a few covers I was not a fan of (sort of. I still like most of the covers, just not for that particular book)

Ex-mas (A Love/Hate Story) by Kate Brian

It’s been a while since I’ve read this one but I remember finding it totally adorable! The cover is cute enough but it also has a little too much cheesiness.

Timeless by Alexandra Monir

Don’t get me wrong, this cover is very pretty HOWEVER I am not a giant fan of such a specific image of the main character. I had someone all dreamed up in my head and this cover made it a little hard to let my imagination run free.

Trade Secrets by Yvonne Collins and Sandy Rideout

My reasons for not liking this cover are very similar to the above one. I had the character all figured out in my head but then when you go and look at the cover it’s just not quite the same. This book is so full of quirkiness, adorableness, and music! There should be a guitar on the cover (just saying!)

Return To Paradise by Simone Elkeles

Are these real people or is that a drawing? Isn’t this the same two people on another YA book even though the other one has a different background? Why doesn’t this cover match the edginess of the first book’s cover? All these questions explain why I do not like this cover.

Lockdown by Alexander Gordon Smith

Holy freaking creep-fest, Batman! I had nightmares for weeks and weeks after looking at this book. The story inside is a bit scary yes, but I do not need to pee my pants every time I look at the book!

Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

This cover also creeped me out like no other. When my best friend suggested this as our next book club read, I almost smacked her. The story is just so great and really not all that creepy so I really wish the cover didn’t portray that! I love that Ransom used all these old, freaky photos throughout the whole book but using one on the cover may scare readers away, ones who would have loved the book!

This week on Kate’s Tales of Books and Bands (5/18-5/25):

TGIF (49)

Life As Kate (16)

Tune In Tuesday (60)

Elements by Kate Fuentes + Blog Tour + Review (kind of!)

Katelyn Visits GReads!!!!!!!!!

Monthly Wrap-Up (February 2011)

It’s that time again! Monthly Wrap-Up is a feature on my blog that I just started this year. At the end of each month I will post exactly what happened on my crazy little blog for that previous month. February is a short month; that is the excuse I am using to cover up my lack of reading/blogging this past month.

Books I Read In February

Rhymes With Cupid By Anna Humphrey

Vixen by Jillian Larkin

Gone by Lisa McMann

Timeless by Alexandra Monir

The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg

Across The Universe by Beth Revis

*That is a total of 6 books read for the month of February. I am now 14% done with my goal of reading 100 books this year*

Books I Reviewed In February

Other Words For Love by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal. (Read my review here.) This is a fantastic 2011 Debut Novel that needs to be read by teenage girls everywhere. Love, heartbreak, and redemption are all included in this wonderful book!

 

Vixen by Jillian Larkin. (Read my review here.) This is a must read for anyone participating in Y.A. Bliss’ Historical Fiction Challenge. Revenge, love, drama, murder, lies, deceit, fashion; basically the norm for the Roaring 20’s.

 

Timeless by Alexandra Monir. (Read my review here.) Another fantastic 2011 Debut Novel! This one takes us all throughout history as the main character races through time to save the boy she loves.

 

The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg. (Read my review here.) Not a debut novel but an absolute must-read! This feel-good novel is about getting over heart-break, learning to love yourself, and not to mention, it features the wonderful Beatles!

*I feel that I should also mention that this book may or may not have been written about my best friend Kati and I*

 

Rhymes With Cupid by Anna Humphrey. (Read my review here.) This super cute, easy-loving novel is the perfect little book for Valentines Day, or really just for a time when you just need a love story to get you by.

 

Across The Universe by Beth Revis. (Read my review here.) 2011 Debut Authors must have been conspiring together to all write fantastic novels. Across The Universe is a book that will satisfy all readers regardless of what their favorite genre is. It is sci-fi, romance, thriller, mystery, just everything great rolled into one.

Miscellaneous Things On The Blog In February

I continued to participate in the weekly meme featured by The Story Siren, In My Mailbox. I got so many fantastic items this past month, I really couldn’t believe it!

(Read my IMM posts here, here, and here.)

I also joined a new meme this month hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading, called Teaser Tuesday. You pick a random page of a book you are currently reading, reveal 2 sentences, and tease all your readers. It is fun and I got a great response to it!

(Read my Teaser Tuesday post here.)

On one particular day, I was feeling generous and bored so I decided to post a few videos staring, made, and produced by my brother and neighbor. The creative little dudes love coming up with videos and also love the comments, so if you are feeling generous and bored as well, click the link below and drop them off a comment!

(To view my brother’s and neighbor’s videos click here.)

In other news, Leah Clifford’s book, A Touch Mortal came out this month! To enter her giveaway (which sadly, I did not win) I had to make a post regarding the craziest thing I have ever done. It features my spontaneous personality, clumsiness, and all-around bad luck.

(To view “The Craziest Thing I Have Ever Done” click here.)

Wrap Up

That is it for this month, I know it is sad and pathetic. I am not getting too much closer to my goal of books read in 2011, but I have a feeling March is going to be more productive! However, Kati and I will be taking a spring break trip to Myrtle Beach, so if I am somehow swallowed up by the ocean (it’s happened once or twice before, who knows if it’ll happen again), you all will have to deal. Now back to the point, if you are interested in doing a monthly wrap-up, please do so! Post a link in the comments section, and I will check it out. I hope February was a great, love-filled month for everyone!

Book Review: Timeless by Alexandra Monir

Title: Timeless (Timeless #1)

Author: Alexandra Monir

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Pages: 280 hardcover

My Rating: 4/5 stars

When tragedy strikes Michele Windsor’s world, she is forced to uproot her life and move across the country to New York City, to live with the wealthy, aristocratic grandparents she’s never met. In their old Fifth Avenue mansion filled with a century’s worth of family secrets, Michele discovers a diary that hurtles her back in time to the year 1910. There, in the midst of the glamorous Gilded Age, Michele meets the young man with striking blue eyes who has haunted her dreams all her life – a man she always wished was real, but never imagined could actually exist. And she finds herself falling for him, into an otherworldly, time-crossed romance.

Michele is soon leading a double life, struggling to balance her contemporary high school world with her escapes into the past. But when she stumbles upon a terrible discovery, she is propelled on a race through history to save the boy she loves – a quest that will determine the fate of both of their lives.

This book is purely fabulous! Alexandra Monir mixed so many great elements to create this novel. Timeless follows a young girl named Michele. After the abrupt and tragic death of her mother, Michele is shipped across the United States to live with her estranged grandparents. Did I mention that her grandparents are one of the wealthiest people in New York? As she tries to adjust to life without her mom Michele is also forced to adjust to life in New York. She now goes to a private school full of rich, snobby girls, and she is thrown into the life of luxury, the near opposite of what life was like for her in California. Besides spending time with the only nice girl in school, Caissie, Michele likes to time travel. At first it is only by mistake as it usually is but once she meets the young, handsome Philip she just can’t help but going back in time to his world. Soon Michele finds herself wrapped up in not only Philip’s time but also the time of some late relatives. She must hurry to help changes the past for the one’s she loves before it’s too late. (Cue dramatic music)

Ok as I said earlier, loved this book! I will admit to being a tad bit apprehensive to read a novel about time travel. I mean it is something we ALL wish would happen in real life, but due to the cheesiness of some movies and books; the idea is thought to be impossible. Well Alexandra did a fabulous job making it seem realistic! It is all done with a skeleton key that Michele finds. It seems to practically come to life when it touches certain objects from the past. Michele is transported back to the time period of the certain item she is touching. I know that authors claim to have no control over the covers of their books but I feel that I should mention this: The key is on the cover! And it just happens to look exactly like its description; how awesome! (The whole cover in general is gorgeous by the way). Ok, now that I have gotten off topic WAY too much, back to the review. So time travel; it was done in a fabulous job. I love Alexandra’s take on it not to mention the research this girl did! You can find her sources in the back of the book.

To add to the awesomeness of the time travel, Timeless also has superb descriptions of the past. Michele first travels back to the time 1910. This sounded like such an extravagant, gorgeous time period. With all the ball gowns and fancy houses, I would have loved to have seen it. Michele also joins the world of gangsters and flappers for a few scenes. Since I just read not one but two books about the 1920’s I can assure you that the description that Alexandra gives is wonderful. Last but not least Michele joins a time period of heartbreak and fear, the 1940’s. This must have been a hard time to write about due to the loss our country was facing during World War 2. I loved how Alexandra included small details like the flags that people hung on their doors symbolizing the loved ones who are fighting and the ones that they have lost. So to make that history lesson shorter, all of the time periods Michele goes to in Timeless were full of accuracy and wonderful imagery.

We wouldn’t have a great book without great characters. For the brief amount of time we got to see the relationship between Michele and her mother, you could tell it was a strong one. The character of Michele alone is also a great character. She has to struggle through a lot and it is easy to see that NOTHING comes easy for her so I just couldn’t help but feeling sympathy for her. Throughout all of her struggles and her experiences in different times she really grows as a person. I loved the quirkiness of all of the relatives and friends she meets in the past; each one brings something unique to the table. And Philip, dear Philip; he is adorable! Not only does he sound cute but he is also quite the gentleman. I love the way he treats Michele with such respect! Even though I did love how sweet Philip was, there was a small something that made their relationship fall a little flat to me (just a little though!!) I am more than confident that the romance in the second Timeless novel will be amazing!

Timeless is yet another great 2011 debut novel!

The 2011 A-Z Challenge

I swore to myself that I wasn’t going to do anymore challenges, well that was until I came across The Thoughts of a Book Junkie’s Blog. I thought that this challenge would be easy, fun, and a great way to possibly win some free books (come on, who doesn’t love free books =). All you have to do is compile a list of 26 books that you will read throughout the year. Easy enough, right? Well the catch is, is that there has to be one title for each letter. Do you know how many books are out there with a Z as the first letter of the title? There isn’t many, but the few that I did find sound great! Now for the awesomeness of the challenge: There is plenty of possible giveaways just for joining, it’s international, & it can be combined with other challenges! You better believe I am using books that are part of the Y.A. Historical Fiction Challenge (**) and the 2011 Debut Author Challenge (*). So now, on to my list of A-Z books.

A- Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton*

B- Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys**

C- Choker by Elizabeth Woods*

D- Dead Rules by Randy Russell*

E- Entwined by Heather Dixon*

F- Falling For Hamlet by Michelle Ray*

G- Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

H- Haven by Kristi Cook*

I- Illegal by Bettina Restrepo*

J- Jekel Loves Hyde by Beth Fantaskey

K- Kissed by an Angel by Elizabeth Chandler

L- The Lipstick Laws by Amy Holder*

M- Moonglass by Jessi Kirby*

N- The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab*

O- Other Words fo Love by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal*

P- Possession by Elana Johnson*

Q- Queen of the Dead by Stacey Kade

R- Rival by Sara Bennett Wealer*

S- Sirenz by Charlotte Benarrdo & Natalie Zaman*

T- Timeless by Alexandra Monir*

U- Unearthly by Cynthia Hand*

V- Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez*

W- What Can’t Wait by Ashley Hope Perez* (Review, Interview)

X- XVI by Julia Karr*

Y- You Had Me At Halo by Amanda Ashby

Z- Zen and Xander Undone by Amy Kathleen Ryan

In My Mailbox (2)

IMM is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren and 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. Here is a list of the books I have gotten this week (really someone should hide my debit card from me):

Bookstore:

XVI by Julia Karr (2011 Debut Author Challenge)

Timeless by Alexandra Monir (2011 Debut Author Challenge)

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison

Across the Universe by Beth Revis (2011 Debut Author Challenge)

Other Words for Love by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal (2011 Debut Author Challenge)

Fall For Anything by Courtney Summers

Well I hope you enjoyed this week’s In My Mailbox. Be sure to check in next week to see what new books I have to read!

My 2011 Debut Author’s List!

Below is the ever-growing list of my “Need To Read” books. All of these books are part of the 2011 Debut Authors Challenge that is hosted by The Story Siren. I am excited to say that a majority of the books on the list, I have already put on my to read list on my Goodreads account! The challenge asks you to pick 12 books (preferably one new author per month) but of course knowing me, I couldn’t stop there. I really wouldn’t be extremely surprised if I end up adding all of the books to my list =]

*Updated on 1/5/11

January:

1/4/2011 Cynthia Hand’s book titled Unearthly.

1/4/2011 Elizabeth Woods’ book titled Choker.

1/6/2011 Julia Karr’s book titled XVI

1/11/2011 Lorraine Zago Rosenthal’s book Other Words For Love.

1/11/2011 Alexandra Monir’s book titled Timeless.

1/11/2011 Maurissa Guibord’s book titled Warped.

1/11/2011 Beth Revis’s book titled Across the Universe.

1/25/2011 Eilis O’Neal’s book titled The False Princess.

February:

2/1/2011 Paige Harbison’s book Here Lies Bridget.

2/8/2011 Gwendolyn Heasley’s book Where I Belong.

2/8/2011 Karen Mahoney’s book The Iron Witch.

2/15/2011 Courtney Allison Moulton’s book titled Anglefire.

2/15/2011 Sara Bennett Wealer’s book titled Rival.

2/22/2011 Leah Clifford’s book titled A Touch Mortal.

2/22/2011 Kristi Cook’s book titled Haven.

2/22/2011 Kelly Keaton’s book titled Darkness Becomes Her.

March:

3/1/2011 Kim Harrington’s book titled Clarity.

3/1/2011 Bettina Restrepo’s book titled Illegal

3/1/2011 Gwen Hayes’ book titled Falling Under.

3/22/2011 Frances O’Roark Dowell’s book titled Ten Miles Past Normal.

3/22/2011 Ruta Sepetys’ book titled Between Shades of Gray.

3/22/2011 Lauren DeStefano’s book titled Wither.

3/28/2011 Ashley Hope Perez’s book titled What Can’t Wait.

3/29/2011 Heather Dixon’s book titled Entwined.

3/29/2011 C.C. Hunter’s book titled Born At Midnight.

April:

4/4/2011 Amy Holder’s book titled The Lipstick Laws.

4/12/2011 Ann Aguirre’s book titled Enclave.

4/14/2011 Angela Cerrito’s book titled End Of The Line.

4/26/2011 Tessa Gratton’s book titled Blood Magic.

4/26/2011 K. Ryer Breese’s book titled Future Imperfect.

May:

5/3/2011 Holly Goldberg Sloan’s book titled I’ll Be There.

5/3/2011 Jessi Kirby’s book titled Moonglass.

5/3/2011 Veronica Roth’s book titled Divergent.

5/10/2011 Christina Mandelski’s book titled The Sweetest Thing.

5/10/2011 Lara Chapman’s book titled Flawless.

5/10/2011 Amy Plum’s book titled Die For Me.

5/10/2011 Tracy Deebs’ book titled Tempest Rising.

5/10/2011 Gae Polisner’s book titled The Pull of Gravity.

5/23/2011 Katie Kacvinsky’s book titled Awaken.

5/24/2011 Myra McEntire’s book titled Hourglass.

June:

6/1/2011 Jo Treggiari’s book titled Ashes,Ashes.

6/7/2011 Tara Hudson’s book titled Hereafter.

6/7/2011 Cat Patrick’s book titled Forgotten.

6/7/2011 Elana Johnson’s book titled Possession.

6/8/2011 Charlotte Bennardo & Natalie Zaman’s book titled Sirenz.

6/14/2011 Sonia Gensler’s book titled The Revenant.

July:

7/1/2011 Randy Russell’s book titled Dead Rules.

7/1/2011 Melanie Welsh’s book titled The Mistress of the Storm.

7/5/2011 Michelle Ray’s book titled Falling For Hamlet.

7/26/2011 Karsten Knight’s book titled Wildefire.

August:

8/2/2011 Victoria Schwab’s book titled The Near Witch.

8/3/2011 Sara Grant’s book titled Dark Parties.

September:

9/15/2011 Jennifer Armentrout’s book titled Half-Blood.

9/27/2011 Michelle Hodkin’s book titled The Unbecoming Of Mara Dyer.

9/??/2011 Kendare Blake’s book titled Anna Dressed In Blood.

9/??/2011 Scott Tracey’s book titled Witch Eyes.

October:

10/??/2011 Kiki Hamilton’s book titled The Faerie Ring.

November:

December:

12/19/2011 Helen Landalf’s book titled Broken Wings.

2011 In General:

Megan Bostic’s book titled Never Eighteen.

Jeyn Roberts’ book titled The Dark Inside.

Jessica Martinez’s book titled Virtuosity.

Lia Habel’s book titled Dearly, Departed.

Rae Carson’s book titled The Girl Of Fire And Thorns.

Jocelyn Davies’ book titled A Beautiful Dark.

Sarah Maas’ book titled Queen Of Glass.*

Kathleen Peacock’s book titled Hemlock.*

* According to Goodreads this book isn’t expected to be published until 2012. If that reins true then this book will be taken off of my 2011 DAC list and added to the 2012.