**REVIEW** Social Suicide by Gemma Halliday

Twittercide: the killing of one human being by another while the victim is in the act of tweeting.
Call me crazy, but I figured writing for the "Herbert Hoover High Homepage" would be a pretty sweet gig. Pad the resume for college applications, get a first look at the gossip column, spend some time ogling the paper's brooding bad-boy editor, Chase Erikson. But on my first big story, things went . . . a little south. What should have been a normal interview with Sydney Sanders turned into me discovering the homecoming queen-hopeful dead in her pool. Electrocuted while Tweeting. Now, in addition to developing a reputation as HHH's resident body finder, I'm stuck trying to prove that Sydney's death wasn't suicide.
I'm starting to long for the days when my biggest worry was whether the cafeteria was serving pizza sticks or Tuesday Tacos. . . .

   Going into Social Suicide I had a much better idea of what to expect.  Figuring that Hartley would still be the same girl and in the same kind of situation.  No matter how much that sounds like a complaint it really isn't.  Gemma Halliday has an awesome and unique way of writing a novel that just draws you in.  Hartley is over what happened in Deadly Cool and has moved on.  I mean it is high school, who dwells on past murders when homecoming is just around the corner?!   Not Hartley that's for sure.  However this is only because she is more concerned with solving the latest string of murder/attempted murders.  You have to admire her strength and determination to figure out the truth even when no one else believes it.  Hartley is a strong and independent girl that just wants to do what's right even if it means doing a little wrong along the way.

  Hartley was the same yet different in this one and I liked her more.  I don't know if it is the fact that I know her better now or the fact that she is just such an all around fun and easy character.  She is the kind of girl that doesn't give up easily in any aspect.  The romance that is kind of thrown about this read is further proof that Hartley wont give up.  The emotion and need doesn't devourer her but she does have hopes, no matter how many times they seem to be shattered.  Hartley sucks up embarrassment and shrugs it off but you know it is killing her at the same time to have everything sitting on the inside.

  Gemma did not disappoint with any of her characters in this novel and they were just as wonderful as in the last.  Every suspect, every person that plays their part in this murder mystery will make you smile.  Especially her best friend Sam.  I am so drawn to that girl!  She is fun and you can't help but laugh at her quirky ways.  The ways that gets around swearing is awesome problem is how do you take someone that say "fluffin" seriously?  Good thing that she seems to be in the book to make you smile and laugh.

  One thing that I really thought with this one was how glad I am not to be living where Hartley is!  The town is like a magnet for craziness and murder.  It should have a sign that say buyer beware when you enter and lucky to see you leave upon leaving the town.  This killer was a mystery to me for most of the book but I did figure it out long before I did in Deadly Cool.  Which is awesome because I love being able to say "HA!" when I find out that I am right.  Although I figured it out there was many times that I was made to second guess myself but that is all part of the mystery right?

  I can not wait for Gemma Halliday to release the next book in this series.  They are fun and easy reads that you will love every page of the way.  With quirky characters and a determined and fun protagonist Social Suicide is a book that will easily hold a special place on your shelf!

**REVIEW** One Moment by Kristina McBride

This was supposed to be the best summer of Maggie's life. Now it's the one she'd do anything to forget.
Maggie remembers hanging out at the gorge with her closest friends after a blowout party. She remembers climbing the trail with her perfect boyfriend, Joey. She remembers that last kiss, soft, lingering, and meant to reassure her. So why can't she remember what happened in the moment before they were supposed to dive? Why was she left cowering at the top of the cliff, while Joey floated in the water below-dead? As Maggie's memories return in snatches, nothing seems to make sense. Why was Joey acting so strangely at the party? Where did he go after taking her home? And if Joey was keeping these secrets, what else was he hiding? The latest novel from the author of "The Tension of Opposites," "One Moment" is a mysterious, searing look at how an instant can change everything you believe about the world around you.

  This is one of those reads that I picked up because I wanted something a little more real and found myself being pulled in by it.  Being a contemporary read and given the description I braced myself for an emotional roller coaster.  Although I felt many different things there was never quite the roller coaster I expected there to be.  The story had an easy flow to it and brought each new revolution in at the right moment.  I did however pick up on what had happened (what I thought had happened) very early on in the book.

  Maggie was at the heart of everything and I liked her.  She was real and didn't behave as if nothing happened or as if her entire world was ending.  She had so much to sort through when she lost Joey and it was only made harder by the fact  that she had a huge hole in her memory and no one seemed to want to admit to what they knew.  The way she struggled and fought to deal with what she didn't know but needed to know had such a true and strong feel to it.  She goes through so much that even when the truth comes out and she stills feels as if her world has been blown apart, the truth sets her free.  Not that it was easy for her but I think the entire ordeal that she had to go though made her grow and learn how to get through things that you never want to have to.

  The other characters really touch you too, including Joey who is no longer with us.  Joey actually managed to hit quite a few soft spots with me and had me fuming a few times but at the same time he is a teenage boy and was probably confused himself.  Shannon managed to evoke quite a bit of emotional energy from me throughout the book and I was left unsure on how I really felt about her.  Tanna and Pete were there but seemed to fade in and out for me there was nothing that stood out but at the same time they didn't fade into nothing when I was done the book.  Adam was probably the one that I felt the most drawn to outside of Maggie.  My heart went out to him and everything he had to deal with.

  Through all of this Kristina McBride completely captures not only what it is to grieve but also what it is like to be a teen.  No matter what happens I love that the book stay true to the age of the characters and honestly it was how I would picture things going.  I will freely admit that at times I found everyone a little predictable but I think maybe I found comfort in it.  That everyone was consistent in who they were.  Even if meant that they weren't truthful it was just part of who they were or what they are trying to do.

  Kristina McBride took a story of loss and devastation and turned it into something much bigger and much stronger than that.  This is how a girl lost everything but gained more.  How you can grow up with someone but never really know everything about them and ultimately how you grow up when you least expect to have to.  The ending was beautiful and I love how Kristina gave Maggie her closure.  Despite the predictability, which I honestly didn't mind I loved this book.  It was a perfect summer read and is wonderfully written.  I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good and emotion filled summer read.

SIGN UP FOR the ReVamped Reader Relay!!! Round #2

So we are done round #1 and moving right along to round #2!!!  I am looking for more people wanting to read this awesome book and have a chance at some awesome prizes!!  I am the head of the Canadian Team along with Chrystal from Snowdrop Dreams so you can contact either one of us!  Easiest way is to leave a comment here with your email so we can get back to you.  

There is one major thing that we are asking this time and it is SUPER important that you can commit to it before you sign up.  We now have a one week per person rule.  Due some hold ups last time we just ask that you are willing to get into it and get it moving :)  Remember the more people that get the book in their hands the better your chances are of winning something AWESOME like you very own signed book!!!! 

Rather than that this is the deal:

1. Read the book.

2. Post a short review (anywhere!)
Suggested places: Blog, Amazon, B&N, Goodreads, Twitter, Facebook, etc.
The review could be as short as one or two sentences or longer. You can even Tweet the review and it will count. Just make sure that you save the link.

3. Email the following information to your Team Leader:
Your Name, Location, Review Link. Please ensure that your team name is in the email title!
(ex. Sarah A., Toronto, Canada, www.amazon/twitter/facebook/goodreads/reviewlink.com)
*Why is this part of the relay important? Read the “Prizes” section to find out!

4. Share the book.
It’s up to the reader to choose who to share the book with. This could be a friend or a family member, someone from school, someone in another town, or someone from a completely different corner of the world! Please ensure that this person is interested in reading ReVampedand participating in the relay, so that we can make sure they will also pass on the book. Ideally, the goal is to see how far the book can travel, and how many homes (and hopefully hearts!) it can reach. Do you have to spend money for shipping? No. You can pass it on by hand. If you want to ship, that’s great as well. The Team Leaders can also be responsible for getting people onto a team reading list, so do check in with them.

5. Bonus.
Sign your name and add any comments into the Reader Notebook that will be travelling with the book. Feel free to sign your name in the book as well!

*Please understand that the Team Leaders and I are doing this with the belief that all participants will follow an honor code and pass on the book after reading. This is a fun way to read a book, connect with friends, as well as make new ones along the way, so you need to be an active, enthusiastic, and honest participant for it to work.

Now, for the prizes!

Every month, we will tally up the readers from each of the five teams. This is why it’s important for everyone to sign in after finishing the book. The team with the largest amount of points will be declared that month’s winner!

Point System:

• 1 point for each group member that signs their name
• 1 point for each city that the book travels to
• 2 point for each state/province that the book reaches
• 3 points for each different country

Example:
A book that makes its way from Toronto, ON to Buffalo, NY to New York, NY and reaches ten readers.

• 10 members: 10×1=10
• 3 cities: 3×1=3
• 2 states/provinces: 2×2=4
• 2 countries: 2×3=6
• Total Score: 23

All members from the winning team will be placed in a draw for ReVamped goodies (print copies of the book, posters, bookmarks, etc.) 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd place winners will be declared every month. The numbers are re-set after each month, and a new tally starts up, so that every team has an equal chance of winning each month. However, the member names don’t re-set, so if you were part of the Month One team, you still can win during the Month Two or Month Three draws. There will be consolation prizes for the other teams as well!

  That is A LOT of awesome that you can win right?!  Well that's enough for now.  If you have ANY questions go ahead and ask I am more than happy to answer and if we have hooked you already then leave a name and how to contact you!!! 

Also you can see Ada's original post HERE.  Most of the info from this post came from there :) 

GIVING THANKS!! My Friends, Support & Inspiration!

So I did have a review set up to post today but I (after sleeping 20 out of 24 hours in the past day) have decided that this post is far more important than any review could be.

  This blog is not just a product of my love of books but really a show of how amazing and supportive fellow bloggers and authors can be!! I have a special place in my heart for so many of you out there and I know I wont get you all in, in one post but just know that I appreciate EVERYTHING and I mean EVERYTHING no matter how big or small,  that you all have done for me.  The reason I feel the need to post this right now is that with all of the drama going on out there in this family of readers, bloggers and writers I feel that you all need to hear that there are those of us out there that care.  Now you may think and say that you know and to an extent you do but some that aren't a part of all of this yet, the ones that have yet to join this supportive and wonderful community need to know just how awesome it is to be a part of everything.  

So let me introduce you to all of the people that have stood beside me and encouraged to go 

on even when I wasn't sure if I could make it all work.  Now I know most of you wont read why

 but I would be super happy if you could at least click and visit the who's!!!

THANK YOU

 Ali Cross Author of Become & Desolate & Mary Ann from Chapter by Chapter 

For supporting my nervous behind enough for me to get this blog going!!  Ali supported me right from the moment we started talking and I love her for it.  She put a lot of faith in me.  Mary Ann has been wonderful from our first meeting in #YABookChat.  She is nothing but positive and wonderful.  Let me tell you she has been there every time I have a question and in the start that was A LOT!!!  These 2 ladies are honestly the reason that I was able to gather the courage to start and the ones that answered my millions of questions before my first post went up!! 

Christine Fonseca Author of Dies Irae, Lacrimosa and many more to come

 & Brina Courtney Author of Reveal and Capture

These wonderful authors have included me in things that I never even dreamed of being a part of.  I mean becoming a blogger I figured I would be contacted for reviews and interviews but these ladies have gone above and beyond as far as I am concerned!!!  Christine....  Well she has kept me in the loop for all her new projects and what she is up to!!  Which is AWESOME because some days when I have gone awhile without a little dose of  what she has going on I go through withdrawal.  Brina was the victim of my first ever review :)  I LOVED Reveal and was clinging to the last page and then Brina made me one of the happiest people by letting me Beta for her.  Yup, I all but passed out when she asked me!! Now because of these wonderful ladies I look forward to meeting more Indie Authors!

Jessirae from Words, Pages & Books & Joy from Joyous Reads 

My first blogging friends!   Well the first ones that I made all on my own.  I know that sounds silly but both Joy and Jessirae I met along my blogging journey.  Joy has been so much of an inspiration with her reviews and kindness.  Reading hers reviews was when I first realized how awesome you can make a review even if you didn't enjoy a book.  Her reviews are honest and filled to the brim with how she felt and I frequently smile or giggle while reading on her blog.  Jessirae is a perfect example of how friendship can grow and mean something even if you are a world away!  Okay so we aren't a world away but Ontario to California feels that way sometimes.  Jessirae is awesome to talk to and has been an all around joy to be friends with.  we send "care" packages to each other and she is how I met Ada!! Adam Adams is a must for anyone that hasn't visited her or read her EPIC novel!!!

Heather from SupaGurl Books & Evie from Bookish

I am almost at a loss of words now.  It has been hard as it is to pin one thing for each of these people and getting harder.  Heather was the first person to let me in on a blog tour.  This is a MAJOR thing for such a new and small blogger such as myself.  She didn't hesitate or anything just gave me a spot and has on every tour I have asked to be a part of since then.  I have to thank her so much for that because as an organizer it can't be easy to take chances like that!! Evie...  I don't even know where to start with her.  This wonderful design you see that is ALL Evie!  However she is SO MUCH more than that.  Evie was the first blogger that I met in the flesh.  Her and Wendy A Cupcake & A Latte welcomed me right off the hop and made me feel like I belonged.  I have met Evie twice since then and she wows me with her kind heart EVERY SINGLE TIME!!!!!!  She helps, supports, shares and will make you smile but has a fighters heart and will stand up for what she feels is right.  I really look up to her for all the wonderful things she has done and will continue to do.  

So thank you all!!  If your name isn't here it's not that I don't love you or appreciate you!!!  It's the fact that this post is a result of TOO MUCH SLEEP & my need to remind everyone out there of all the awesome that Bloggers & Authors alike have to give!!!  So even when I feel like this: 

I keep on going because I know that even when people aren't rushing to read what I have to say and authors aren't lining up to be read by me that all of these guys are there.  They support me and are just plain there to make this community better!!!   So please visit and follow these people!!!  Each of their names is the link to see their awesome blogs or some form of way to follow.  THANK YOU for taking the time to read my rant or visit the people that make my blogging world more fun!!!!!

  

CONTEST FEATURE FRIDAY: Badass Edition

Contest Feature Friday is something I started so that I could share all of the amazing
contests/giveaways I have found/entered that are going on in the blogging world!!

This week I have decided to share one amazing blog that has several Giveaways going
on at the moment and frequently has ones going on.

BADASS BOOKIE

There is currently 4 giveaways going on on this AWESOME blog!!! 3 are

INTERNATIONAL & 1 is US only.

For International you can win a copy of: 

Deadly Hemlock by Kathleen Peacock HERE

The Forsaken by Lisa M. Stasse HERE

The Little Woods by McCormick Templeman HERE

For US only you can win:

Signed First Edition of Skylark by Meagan Spooner HERE

I encourage you even if you don't enter to follow this blog!!  Lisa I frequently posting

amazing interviews and reviews!!  You will love following her blog <3

That's all for this week :)  What do you think?

Awesome right?!  Do you have a giveaway you want to share? You are

more than welcome to link it up here!!!!

**REVIEW** Frozen by Robin Wasserman

The Download was supposed to change the world.It was supposed to mean the end of aging, the end of death, the birth of a new humanity. But it wasn't supposed to happen to someone like Lia Kahn.And it wasn't supposed to ruin her life.
Lia knows she should be grateful she didn't die in the accident. The Download saved her--but it also changed her, forever. She can deal with being a freak. She can deal with the fear in her parents' eyes and the way her boyfriend flinches at her touch. But she can't deal with what she knows, deep down, every time she forces herself to look in the mirror. She's not the same person she used to be.
Maybe she's not even a person at all.

  Lia is something that she shouldn't be.  Dead.  A freak accident changed her life forever and despite the fact that she shouldn't be dead, she is dead but the doctors are telling her different.  Her body is gone but they have downloaded the contents of her brain into a new one, a mech one.  Now her her perfect friends, perfect boyfriend and  her entire perfect life aren't what they used to be.  Heck they aren't existent and Lia is stuck trying to work it all out and trying to find a reason to just be.

  This book and I got off to a bit of a rough start.  Actually Lia and I had a rough start but I kind of adjusted just like she did.  The biggest thing was to start I had a hard time relating I think.  She was super negative and just seemed to want to let go and push everything away but slowly I realized just how reasonable she was being.  I thought could I handle this... Answer: NO!  I would freak out and wish that my parents hadn't made that choice but in the end Lia did what I would do, suck it up and give it a go.  For her it was disastrous and all things considered she did way better than I would.

  Emotions filled me when Lia made the move to go home.  I was scared, worried and oh so angry about what might happen.  Why angry you may ask?  Well seeing no one bothered to visit her while she was "adjusting" to her new self I was prepared for the worst the moment she made the decision and from there the feeling just grew.  Her sister treats her like CRAP and even her parents seem to distance themselves from her.  Seriously why save your kid just so you can deny them and make them feel like even less of a human being! Freaking F- on the parenting grade.  Heck any form of family support may have made Lia feel better but everything just keeps sliding down hill for the poor girl!

  Her boyfriend, well EX boyfriend is slim!! There comes a point and time where your loyalty is tested in every relationship and I just felt like he bailed before her even really knew.  The fact that Lia doesn't look the same or sound the same and isn't in an "organic" body doesn't mean she doesn't feel.  She feels and even when she isn't sure if she does you can feel the hurt.  This is on;y intensified by the fact that her friends are now her sisters friends and they treat her like @^*% too.  First glance made me think that it was going to good and that despite their detachment they would realize she was still mostly Lia, but heck no.  They are shallow and have no desire to be around a "skinner."

  There is a light at the end of the tunnel though.  A group of Mechs (skinners) wants to help Lia or convert her I am unsure really.  Regardless of whatever they intend on doing, I think that they kind of help Lia to get over her inability to accept that she is no longer the same as everyone else and she never will be again.  I want her to be able to go on with a normal life like she was promised but lets face the facts here, NO ONE is going to let that happen.  Not her family, friends, boyfriend or really the doctors that made the statement to start with.  These guys are a little intense but I ended up kind of liking their reckless and adrenaline driven ways.

  Lia does manage to gain a friend: Auden.  Not quite the kind of friendship you would expect and I was seriously pissed with the way Lia treated him frequently.  Thing is he always came back for more.  When she endangered him, when she pushed him away and even when she left him behind.  The boy is a freaking sucker for punishment and I had a love/hate relationship with him for it.  You have to give someone credit that doesn't give two craps about what anyone else thinks.  Jude kind of complicates the friendship but actually in a very realistic yet sad way.

  I will be picking up Shatter because I seriously need to know what happens.  Biggest thing that I loved about this book was Robin Wasserman's writing.  It was amazing and I think that Robin's writing is what really managed to pull the story off in the end.  This being said I will admit that I probably would have stopped and not gone on if this wasn't such a well written novel.  This is the type of writing that screams read me!  I haven't really read anything like it so I can't make any hard recommendations but if you are a fan of dystopian or technologically advanced books you might want to give this one a try.

Waiting on Wednesday: Rage Within by Jeyn Roberts

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spineand spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.  My beautiful button is thanks to Evie!! Yup just one more thing of AWESOME she did for me.

This weeks pick shares my birthday with me!! 

In this apocalyptic sequel to Dark Inside"'s "well-balanced, realistic suspense" (Kirkus Reviews"), four teens continue the struggle for survival as they face a world gone mad. Aries, Clementine, Michael, and Mason have survived the first wave of the apocalypse that wiped out most of the world's population and turned many of the rest into murderous Baggers. Now they're hiding out in an abandoned house in Vancouver with a ragtag group of fellow teen survivors, trying to figure out their next move.
Aries is trying to lead, but it's hard to be a leader when there are no easy answers and every move feels wrong. Clementine is desperate to find her brother Heath, but it's impossible to know where he'd be, assuming he's alive. Michael is haunted by the memories of his actions during his harrowing struggle to survive. And Mason is struggling with something far worse: the fear that he may be a danger to his friends.
As the Baggers begin to create a new world order, these four teens will have to trust and rely on each other in order to survive.

Let me tell you the reasons WHY:

1.  The world.  I mean if I was actually living it I would be terrified but while reading I am drawn right into  it!!! 

2.  The girls.  I can't wait to see how they drive forward.  Yes I love the boys too but love Clementine & Aries!!

3.  Strange as it may sound the cover.  It totally takes me to where I was in Dark Inside and I believe this one will suit the book just as much as Dark Inside's cover suited it!!

4.  Well as sad as it is I am even more excited that a book I am looking SO FORWARD TO has the same birthday as me!! How awesome is that?!

That's what I am waiting on this week!! What are you waiting on?!  Leave

me a link so I can visit and add to my wish list because it isn't big enough

yet :)

**REVIEW** Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts

Since the beginning of mankind, civilizations have fallen: the Romans, the Greeks, the Aztecs… and now us. Huge earthquakes rock the world. Cities are destroyed. But something even more awful is happening: An ancient evil has been unleashed, and it’s turning everyday people into hunters, killers, and crazies.
This is the world Mason, Aries, Clementine, and Michael are living in—or rather, trying to survive. Each is fleeing unspeakable horror, from murderous chaos to brutal natural disasters, and each is traveling the same road in a world gone mad.
Amid the throes of the apocalypse and clinging to love and meaning wherever it can be found, these four teens are on a journey into the heart of darkness—and to find each other and a place of safety.

  This book did not leave my hands from the first chapter on.  I mean I could seriously not even think about letting it out of my sight.  The end is here but it's not just the earthquakes that are taking down people, it's other people.  Regular people, the ones you grew up with.  Something inside is snapping and we are becoming the most dark and evil forms of ourselves.  The part of us that we ignore and hide away in our daily lives and it is dominating us and bringing an end to the human race as we know it.

  These men were liked.  They were served coffee and pie at the diner and helped out with the town festivities. - p. 31 Clementine

  Where do I begin with this one because I think that I could honestly carry on forever about it.  I believe I could turn around and pick it up again right now.  It's not that it was a light and fluffy read and truth be told it was the opposite in almost every way.  This was a dark and intense blow by blow of how 4 teens deal with the end of everything as we know it.  Loosing their loved ones, watching people be murdered and having to kill themselves just to survive!  Can you imagine trying to survive that and all the high intensity emotions you would feel?!  We know that civilizations have faded and disappeared but this is full self destruct mode and explained as the result of us being to globalized and too big.  The extent in which Jeyn Roberts explains the gruesome and terrifying events that the teens go through will actually place you there in the heat with them.  There were  times I felt my own adrenaline rising and my heart trying to beat out of my chest.

Closing her eyes meant seeing and imagining the bodies of both strangers and the people she loved.  Their screams echoed like a scratched record on an endless loop. -p. 160 Aries

  The characters in this book were just mind blowing.  They were real and the emotions that they felt were realistic.  Each person was so distinct to me and even now days later I think of them.  Not in the creepy way you are probably thinking but more in a "WOW" kind of way.  These aren't adults we are talking about but teens that are for the most part left alone and behind to protect themselves and find a way to rebuild it all.  Through the fear and moments of complete defeat these teens pull through.  We are not just talking the initial loss either, most of them loose people that they found on their journey as well.  You would think that this would make the loss easier but it doesn't soften the blow when another person is taken from them.  Yes that means that Jeyn bring in some characters that don't really have a true place but they have meaning to the book a a whole.

If he could get this one thing right, he might be able to put his guilt behind him. -p.280 Michael

 Now I may be a little biased but looking back on every page I marked and there is A LOT of them I tended to tag (post-it) more areas where Aries and Clementine were involved.  Micheal and Mason were interesting and has many moments that even made my jaw drop a little but the girls had so many moments that made me feel drawn to them more.  Neither one of the girls were anything alike though.  Clementine spends most of her journey solo having to sleep with one eye open so to speak and Aries gathers a group in which she is a major source of its strength.  Yes they do break down and have moments of weakness but faced with the end of the world and having lost basically everything that was near and dear to you wouldn't you loose it just a little bit?  To me their strength and ability to survive shines through because of their situations.  Aries keeps everyone together and tries to maintain some form of order while Clementine has to live daily with no one beside her, no one to help watch her back.  The guys go through both situations and deal with being in groups and being alone.  No matter how you look at it just to survive this apocalyptic world for as long as they have is amazing.

All he needed now was a good strong kick to the head and it would be over.  He would not close his eyes.  He'd face death head on. -p.334 Mason

  There is also this interesting little chapter here and there brought to us by Nothing.  There is no name, no who or what it is but it is there feeding us.  It's kind of the extra that gives you that feeling of crawling across you skin.  No it (he/she) doesn't threaten or do anything special really but more gives the truth.  Speaks what needs to be said and some things that don't.  I get a distinct feeling that the Nothing is actually a someone that we are reading about but it's hard to tell really.  There must be a reason behind the glimpses of what is inside and lurking in everyone.  I would like to call them Zombies and I guess the way their mind works can indicate that but when you look at the thought process it is beyond that of what a Zombie is known to have.  There is exceptions in every case though and whatever these people have become is not really human.  The Nothing makes it very clear to me that something beyond what we know has happened and will continue to happen.

We became evil because we deserve it, not because we lived our lives as saints.  The darkness can not go where the light holds warmth.  Sometimes it is easier to embrace the pain than fight against the fire.- p. 272 Nothing

  To call this a dystopian just wouldn't feel right to me.  Dystopian to me is where you are in the future and there has been some kind of established civilization.  Dark Inside is more about the now, the how and to me it's an apocalyptic novel.  This is the how not the now.  The nit and grit that people need to survive before they can even consider how they are going to rebuild everything.  This is how we loose everything we know and learn how to survive and truth be told at times it scares the heck out of me.  Aries, Clementine, Mason and Micheal all have what it takes to get through all of this hell but need more than themselves to be able to make it in general.  Even if they still know how to smile when all seems lost in this world.

"As long as I'm not forced to eat Spam and canned turnips I'll survive," she said.  "I don't get Spam.  What exactly is it?  Ham?  Lunch meat?  It's creepy."- p.227 Clementine 

I can tell you right now that I am all but begging to get my hands on Rage Within.  Jeyn Roberts has created a world that I am terrified of but become engrossed in within moments of hitting the pages.   With how attached I became to the characters, to the world that was created within the pages of this book it will be torture waiting for #2 (even if it does have the same birthday as me).  If you can handle the brutal honesty and some scenes where the true nature of humanity shines through pick this one up.  This is going on my favourites shelf and due to this I would pick up ANYTHING that Jeyn Roberts writes in the future!!

**REVIEW** Hunting Lila by Sarah Alderson

17-year-old Lila has two secrets she’s prepared to take to the grave. The first is that she can move things just by looking at them. The second is that she’s been in love with her brother’s best friend, Alex, since forever.
After a mugging exposes her unique ability, Lila decides to run to the only people she can trust—her brother and Alex. They live in Southern California where they work for a secret organisation called The Unit, and Lila discovers that the two of them are hunting down the men who murdered her mother five years before. And that they’ve found them.
In a world where nothing and no one is quite as they seem, Lila quickly realises that she is not alone—there are others out there just like her—people with special powers—and her mother’s killer is one of them…

     Just wow.  This was not at all what I was expecting but in the best possible ways!  Hunting Lila was a well written, action packed, page turning novel.  This is the kind of book you start and fall in love with right from the get go and can't believe how much you love it by the end.  I had issues putting it one down for so many reasons and couldn't believe it was all over so fast when I reached the final pages.  Sarah Alderson really blew me away with her writing style and how easy everything seemed to flow out.

  Lila is really a character that you can relate to.  Now if I do this just right you will understand why but I am not sure I can make it so that I truly do her justice.  Lila has a hard time accepting what she is.  The strength she has is unbelievable but she doubts herself... Frequently.  However instead of this making her look weak and annoying, it is what made her feel real and easy to relate to.  I am not a fan of whiny or weak characters so I can tell you with 100% certainty that she is anything but.  Her doubt is only human and she will constantly shows her strength by helping those that ask, even when she isn't sure about how honest they are or if they are really on her side.

  There is romance in this one but it is so far from insta love.  It was awkward and at times seemed impossible but I loved it.  This is probably one of the more real and possible romances that I have read of lately.  As most of you know I don't shy away from insta love and most of the time I kind of appreciate it but it's nice when something real comes along.  Plus it is so not hard to see why Lila has been in love with Alex for so long.  I mean the guy is hard core hot.  Military training and hot as hell...  I will take two!  It didn't take long for my heart to fall in love with him and I haven't known him as long.  The memories that Lila carries of Alex is more than enough to make you feel like you really know him.

  Unforgettable characters are a big draw for me with this one as well.  There is a unique feel to everyone you meet and sometimes I found my original conclusion about who they were to be wrong.  This said I can still tell you the names of the majority of the characters.  That is saying a lot for me.  Most of the time I find that people fade into the background and my notes are what remind me of who everyone is(excluding the main characters).  With every one's unique traits and for some their abilities it's hard not to remember who is who.

  The twists in this book are just mind blowing.  You think you know and then it all changes every time and I love every moment of it.  You would  think that all of the changes would confuse or take away but really they just make the book that much better.  The way they are written just take you right along with them and you wonder how you never seen it coming.  They are really quite brilliant and make this such an amazing and unforgettable novel.

  I found it hard to believe that this was Sarah Aldreson's debut novel.  This was all but flawless writing and I will probably revisit this one in the future just because I enjoyed it that much.  This is a book that EVERYONE should have on their shelves.  In fact if you don't have it there already I highly suggest that you leave this page to order it!! This is one of the best books I have picked up this year hands down.  I have Fated on my shelf and will be picking it up as soon as I can and also ordering Losing Lila very soon.  PICK THIS BOOK UP!!

**REVIEW** Rapture by Lauren Kate

The sky is dark with wings . . . .
Like sand in an hourglass, time is running out for Luce and Daniel. To stop Lucifer from erasing the past they must find the place where the angels fell to earth. Dark forces are after them, and Daniel doesn’t know if he can do this—live only to lose Luce again and again.
Yet together they will face an epic battle that will end with lifeless bodies . . . and angel dust. Great sacrifices are made. Hearts are destroyed. And suddenly Luce knows what must happen.
For she was meant to be with someone other than Daniel. The curse they’ve borne has always and only been about her—and the love she cast aside. The choice she makes now will be the only one that truly matters.
In the fight for Luce, who will win?
The astonishing conclusion to the FALLEN series. Heaven can’t wait any longer.

   After staring down my lap top screen for what feels like forever I have decided that this is not going to be an easy review to write.  The Fallen series were books that I loved.  Did I have issues with some things?  Yes but they were never major enough to detour my love of the books.  Going into this book knowing that it was going to be the last was hard and was avoided.  There were questions, BIG QUESTIONS that I needed answered and the fear of it being another series that ended and let me down was high.

She could have listed a dozen sexy stolen moments, a dozen gorgeous, bitter sweet kisses.-  p. 51

  Rapture starts off where Passion ends and quickly becomes a fast paced race against time.  The mission to stop Lucifer from changing history and ending everything well all know.  This is why I worried to start.  I figured it was going to be a lot more of Luce asking Daniel for answers and getting nothing but there was answers.  Luce has grown and so has her ability to figure out what is going on.  She has the answers she has been searching for and this gives us some of the answers we have been looking for.  I enjoyed that Lauren Kate brought these memories on slow and in all the right places.  It wasn't a rush of everything but pieces that came and worked their way into who Luce was now.  Luce learned lessons from most of her memories and through them gained strength.

What was to become of us?  What about our history, and our love?- Luce p. 21

  There was a lot of change and loss in this book.  Personally one of the characters lost was one of my favourites and I was shocked at what happened and to see them go.  No matter how much I love a character and become attached to them when an author kills one of their own characters I think it shows a strength in their ability as a writer.  No matter how minor or major a character may be it doesn't mean they are immune to death and that to me makes the characters more real.

"They knew that stopping Lucifer is more important than an individual life," Daniel said.  "More than anything else that has happened, let this convince you of how urgent our task is here."- Daniel p.267

  Despite reading how much everyone loved the ending to this series I have to say that I felt a little let down by how it all ended.  Their love supposed to be one to end all love, the biggest of the big and it all boiled down to something so inconsequential that I could have screamed!  After all they went through I felt that they deserved so much more than  what they got.  Luce and Daniel deserved more as far as I was concerned but there are many that did love how it all ended.

"I loved you until it hurt me, until our love was consumed by your pride and rage..."- Luce p.407

  This may not have been the ending that I had wished for but all things considered it was a decent finish to a good series.  Luce and Daniel had many struggles and hardships that continued throughout many many years but they always had their love.  The conclusion with its fast paced action will pull you in from the start just like all of Lauren Kate's books in the Fallen series.  I would recommend these books to people that love novels with Angels and true, determined and time transcending love.  I will pick up whatever Lauren Kate comes up with next!! 

Contest Feature Friday: Shattered, Slayers and Starting New

This is my way of sharing the love of giveaways!!  I enter many a month and feel that

I should share the chances with EVERYONE!!  With so many awesome giveaways out 

there I try and share 1-3 a week. 

This week I have 3 different giveaways to share!  Each with a different and fun prize!

As always click the picture/button to be taken away to the giveaway and the blog name 

takes you straight to the blog.  Even if the giveaways don't require a follow 

#1

Kayla from Shattered Memories is having a Giveaway for Embrace and a pre-order

of Entice by Jessica Shirvington!!!  I am one of the few that actually haven't read this

one.  That makes this SUPER EXCITING for me!!

Isn't the banner beautiful!!  I mean the the covers for the books are gorgeous and Kayla's

talent made this banner awesome!! 

#2

Jill A. Cooper is having a SUPER giveaway to go with her her release of Dream Slayer!

I guess you want to know what it is....  It's a Kindle Fire!!! OH YA!! Seeing mine is

kind of shattered this would be awesome but who doesn't want a new e-reader?! 

So click on the cover of her beautiful novel and be taken away for your chances to win!!

#3

Well the last one I am sharing this week is SO FAR FROM LEAST!!!  Evie from Bookish

as you know is AMAZING!!!  If you didn't know you do now.  She is pure wonderful and 

one of the nicest people you will ever meet.   As many of you know she recently gave my blog

an awesomeness over haul <3  I personally am still in complete awe over it.  Then to top it of 

she is having a giveaway to celebrate what she did for me!! Evie is AMAZING

If you love my new look you will love Evie!!  So head on over and visit her!! There is

MANY more giveaways going on there <3  Like her blog should count as 5+ 

giveaway posts!

So that is it for this week!  What do you think?  Are you excited?!

Until next week GOOD LUCK!!!

**REVIEW** Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday

Hartley Grace Featherstone is having a very bad day. First she finds out that her boyfriend is cheating on her with the president of the Herbert Hoover High School Chastity Club. Then he’s pegged as the #1 suspect in a murder. And if that weren’t enough, now he’s depending on Hartley to clear his name. 
But as much as Hartley wouldn’t mind seeing him squirm, she knows he’s innocent, and she’s the only one who can help him. Along with her best friend, Sam, and the school’s resident Bad Boy, Chase, Hartley starts investigating on her own. But as the dead bodies begin to pile up, the mystery deepens, the suspects multiply, and Hartley begins to fear that she may be the killer’s next victim.

  Turns out my little murder mystery kick is paying off with awesome books.  Gemma Halliday has written a fun and addictive mystery novel.  I was super impressed with how the story just took off and didn't look back.   Not that you would want to go back if you were poor Hartley.  Starting the day with finding an empty wrapper in your boyfriends locker and then a dead body in his room, is not any ones ideal way of starting the day.  Then when your now ex-boyfriend says he didn't do it what do you do.

  Hartley and Sam are two YA characters that I am not sure I could ever get sick of.  The way that Gemma has written them just makes them so fun to read and I found myself giggling and finding people that would listen to the little things that I found amusing.  I actually felt rather connected to both of the girls.  Obviously more Hartley than Sam due to the amount of page time but I am close to both of them.  I know how hard it is to find out terrible things and still feel driven to do something to help.  I did find her inability to really freak out on Josh annoying but I think I did a lot of it in my head to make up for it.  That I think is the only time I felt like I couldn't really connect with Hart, when all she could see was the boy she loved not the one that betrayed her.

  There was lots of fun beyond the dead bodies in this book(not that I think dead bodies are fun, they just stir up drama).  The car that Sam and Hartley had to take everywhere that took forever to get there was one of them.  This would be the time that I mention that it ran on vegetable oil and they had to make stops to fill it up.  The strange and different scents that the car produced would be enough to make most teens avoid the entire issue but these girls were on a mission.  Driving around something that send fumes out that smell like old burgers is nothing while you are looking for a murderer!  I feel that I should also mention Chase.  The bad boy that will totally steal every page that he is a part of.  There is NO SHAME in being a bad boy and knowing it.  The biggest thing for him with me was his ability to say it as it is and his unique style.  I know you are thinking well he's a bad boy they are all unique....  Well Chase will stand out and trust me he is totally worth every page he is on.


  This was a totally fun and keep you on your toes kind of book.  I did figure out who it was but not right away and did second guess myself a couple of times.  There was so much fun and humour packed into a thrilling and action packed mystery that you can't help but love it.  The next book has been moved up my reading queue and I can't wait to see how things go for Hartley in it!!  If you are looking for a light and fun murder mystery or just a light book to squeeze in this is one I would highly recommend! 

Waiting on Wednesday: Ironskin by Tina Connolly

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spineand spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I am eagerly awaiting: 

Jane Eliot wears an iron mask. 

It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin. 
When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help. 
Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey. 
Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.

Hardcover: 304 pages

Expected Release: October 2, 2012

Published by: Tor Books

Why am I waiting on this one?

1.  Total sucker for the dark and enchanting cover.  Just try and tell me you don't 

think that it has a pull to it!

2.  Steampunk.  That one word is strong enough to make me want to pick this up. I 

haven't read a lot of steampunk but what I have, I have enjoyed.

3.  I haven't read the original Jane Eyre that this is a twist of but from what I have read

this is going to rock and maybe inspire me to pick up the original!!

Well that is what I am waiting on this week.  What are you waiting on?! Leave me 

a link so that I can visit and add to my ever growing TBR pile :)

NEW LOOK!!!

LOOK!!!

Isn't it glorious?!  I have wanted something different and original for so long....  I thought that due to my limited abilities this was NEVER going to happen...  Then one wonderful Lady changed everything for me!!  Well she changed my blog that is for sure!!  Her name is Evie and she runs her own blog that I want you to visit(please she is really wonderful).

(click on her button and be taken away to her beautiful blog)

  See this set up?  I honestly would be lost if I even attempted to do ANY of this it would be a fail and I don't know if anything would even make it out alive.  So when Evie said she had a surprise and showed me this I had to fight the urge to get in my car and drive to her to hug her!! I am beside myself with happiness and pride for this design change and when I do see her next week I am not sure how I will be able to thank her enough!  There is so much awesome poured into this design I don't know what I love the most!! You even need to watch to see all the new meme banners that she made.  My Weekly Report is EPIC and I have the perfect Waiting on Wednesday one.  I would like to take this time to mention that my WoW's never even had a banner before tomorrow :)  

I am still adding a couple of things here and there.  Stuff that I kept meaning to do but never did before now.  Seeing I have this beautiful blog I need to get these things done and remain worthy of the design that Evie has made for me.  I love this!! I LOVE THIS SERIOUSLY!!!  I am so extremely lucky to not only have the ability to say that I know Evie and how wonderful she is but to be able to say that she designed this specifically for me!!!

THANK YOU EVIE!! YOU ARE AWESOME!

What  do you think?!  I would love to hear your thoughts and any kind words you may have for the wonderful Evie! 

*REVIEW* Before I Wake by Rachel Vincent

I died on a Thursday-killed by a monster intent on stealing my soul. The good news? He didn't get it. The bad news? Turns out not even death will get you out of high school...  Covering up her own murder was one thing, but faking life is much harder than Kaylee Cavanaugh expected. After weeks spent "recovering," she's back in school, fighting to stay visible to the human world, struggling to fit in with her friends and planning time alone with her new reaper boyfriend. But to earn her keep in the human world, Kaylee must reclaim stolen souls, and when her first assignment brings her face-to-face with an old foe, she knows the game has changed. Her immortal status won't keep her safe. And this time Kaylee isn't just gambling with her own life...

  Where to start with this one.  I started the Soul Screamers series a little later than most but it had me hooked right from book 1.  Each book I finished left me needing a little more and it became kind of like an addiction.  There is honestly so much to love about this series and each book just completely pulls you in and holds you to the pages until you turn the last one.

  Kaylee has been through so much in this series and really you have to admire her selfless ways.  Dying hasn't been very kind to her though and I find myself wanting to poke her at times.  I wouldn't call her weak but there are moments that she lets a little bit of self pity get through and to me it just wasn't her.  Characters change and grow but I felt that Kaylee left a little bit behind when she came back.  Her love for her friends and family hasn't changed and I would have to say that is my favourite thing about her anyway.  She would do anything for those she cares about and at the end of the day that is what really matters to me.

  Todd, Nash and Sabine create a lot of interesting situations.  Obviously for different reasons but despite the different situations they all bring something to the table that you want to read and I mean you WANT it!  Todd creates a lot of the steamier scenes that leave you smiling and remembering why you love him and Kaylee.  They are just too perfect for each other.  Nash... I actually have both issues and sympathy for him.  There are moments when my heart seriously goes out to him but then he does something selfish and stupid and I want to scream at him!  Sabine, well she is herself.  She is a consistent characters and despite her snark I actually really like her.  I love her honesty and flat out blunt ways.  I however have issues with her lack of smarts when it comes to Nash.  I understand undying love but when that guy wouldn't risk anything to save you?!

  This series really does just get better and better.  The story progresses at such a rate that you don't feel you are missing something or get board with all the extras.  You also have to respect an author that has the ability to kill of any of their characters at any given time!  This to me makes them more real and more human.  Well I guess not more human but knowing that they can die like anyone else makes the entire risk factor that much more intense.  With this book when the big thing happened it was like my emotions went from 0-60 and I was floored.  I did see it coming to an extent but still I didn't really expect it.

  This was another awesome instalment for the Soul Screamers series.  Rachel Vincent never fails to amaze with her strong characters and unpredictable twists.  There is always something just around the corner and you can't help but not want to put these books down.  I think that it is safe to say that this is one of my favourite series and I will be sad to see it end.  With all the work and development that Rachel put into her characters I have become rather attached.  Needless to say this is another must read and an amazing addition to an already mind blowing series!

*REVIEW* SLIDE by Jill Hathaway

Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth--her sister's friend Sophie didn't kill herself. She was murdered.
Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn't actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else's mind and experiences the world through that person's eyes. She's slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed "friend" when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie's slashed body.

Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can't bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting distant lately, especially now that she's been spending more time with Zane.

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

I was looking for something different and had been meaning to pick up this book for way too long and am so glad I did. This was the type of read that glues you to the pages and you find yourself flipping through it faster and faster wanting to find out what is going on. The description had always intrigued me but what I didn't realize was just how interested I was going to be once I started. 

Vee is such an amazing character. It is so clear even from the start that there is way more to her than just a girl that slides. She is well written and came completely and utterly alive for me. Her reactions, attitude and feelings were realistic and I didn't doubt what I was reading for a minute. Sometimes while reading(even when I enjoy a character) I find that their behaviour just doesn't match the situation and loved that every step of the way I believed Vee. 

The "sliding" was really different concept, that was done really well. The unpredictability of when it would happen and who Vee would become a part of was kind of a rush. It didn't however always lead to the most comfortable situations, in fact most of the time it took Vee somewhere she did not want to be. There seemed to be no easy way to slide and poor Vee used a lot of caffeine to try and avoid the entire situation.

The need to point out that Jill didn't just create one memorable character is strong and I feel that she deserves a lot of credit for that. I find that frequently I forget characters that aren't front and center. This was not the case with this novel. Rollins, Mattie, Zane, Sophie and many more really stick with you. Even mean girl Amber stood out! Each character was well defined and even if I wasn't their biggest fan. This is just one of the many things that stood out to me with this book.

Jill Hathaway has a smooth writing style that feels seamless. I loved that I was guessing the entire novel. Every time I thought I had the murder pegged things changed and I began suspecting someone else. I will admit that when I was positive I knew who it was I was right... That is until something came up and I changed my mind yet again. Yet you never feel lost, just compelled to go on! If you are looking for something different and well written then Slide is definitely the way to go!! I can not wait to get my hands on Impostor. In fact between now and then will feel like torture.