Queen in Exile by Donna Hatch

Queen in Exile by Donna Hatch

Publisher: Walnut Springs Press, March 23rd 2010

Pages: 373

Edition: Paperback

Genre: Young Adult

Rating: A

Summary:

Rumors of war hang over Princess Jeniah's peaceful country of Arden, a land that shuns both magic and warfare. Following a lifelong dream, Jeniah forms a telpathic bond with a revered creature called a chayim, who is prophesied to save her kingdom. But when a Darborian knight comes upon Jeniah with her chayim, he sees only a vicious monster about to devour a maiden, and he slays the beast.

Devastated by the loss of her chayim, and fearing that her own magic is evil, Jeniah doubts her destiny. When an enemy invades Arden City, they slaughter the people, storm the castle, and execute the entire royal family except the princess. Rescued by the knight who slew her chayim, Jeniah is now heir to the throne of Arden and the only hope for freeing her people from tyranny.

On the run and hunted by enemy soldiers, Jeniah must place her life and the fate of her kingdom in the hands of this trained killer. Torn between embracing her destiny as queen of Arden, and her love for a mere knight, she must ultimately rely on her magic to save herself and her people from death and tyranny.

Review:

The summary for this book made it sound like an action/adventure/romance/paranormal novel. And that's exactly what it was! I loved every single moment of this book :)

To start, Jeniah is princess of Arden but she certainly doesn't act like any ordinary princess! She's brave, adventurous, different and has special magical abilities. I'll just say that I loved reading the book from her perspective BUT you also get to read it from Kai's perspective, which made it all the more interesting. The book started off very strong, with a captivating beginning. You are immediately introduced to both main characters and you feel as if you've known them forever. Kai is probably one of my favorite male characters that I've read about. He's obviously handsome and is dangerously skilled in combat, which makes him the perfect bodyguard for Jeniah. They embark on an amazing journey together and you get to see their relationship develop throughout that adventure.

As the novel progresses, it just gets better and better! There's a ton of action and suspense moments in the book and a few twists too! I loved the new mythical creatures introduced in the novel such as chayims, wrywolves and duocorns. Well wrywolves are just another type of werewolf species but still, I liked how Donna included some differences between the two. For me, the end of the book was spectacular. It was amazing! I finished this book in three days because it was so gripping. I'm really hoping for a sequel.

I recommend this book to everybody! Do yourself a favor and go pick it up RIGHT NOW.

CSN Giveaway!

Hello lovelies! So sorry I haven't been posting ... well... at ALL! But I do have a nice treat for you today. CSN contacted me and asked me to either review or host a giveaway and since I reviewed something last time, I'll give something away to one of you this time! Click HERE to enter the contest and good luck to all of you! :)

The contest ends September 28th!

CSN Preview

Hello lovelies! CSN offered to let me host a giveaway on their behalf for a $60 gift card for any of their stores, and they have A LOT!

As a college student, I really try to make my dorm feel like home and with a modern chair the room really has a cool feeling to it. I'd love to get this chair even though it doesn't match anything in my room!








Anyways, check out all they have to offer at http://www.csn.com/ and I'm sure there's at least 20 things you'll have your eye on by the time you're done looking.

Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

Publisher: Hyperion, May 2008

# of pages: 400

Source: Library

Edition: Hardcover

Genre: Young Adult

Rating: C+

Summary:

Phoebe is just your typical goth girl with a crush. He’s strong and silent…and dead.

All over the country, a strange phenomenon is happening. Some teenagers who die aren't staying dead. They are coming back to life, but they are no longer the same—they stutter, and their reactions to everything are slower. Termed "living impaired" or "differently biotic," they are doing their best to fit into a society that doesn’t want them.

Fitting in is hard enough when you don’t have the look or attitude, but when almost everyone else is alive and you’re not, it’s close to impossible. The kids at Oakvale High don’t want to take classes or eat in the cafeteria next to someone who isn’t breathing. And there are no laws that exist to protect the differently biotic from the people who want them to disappear—for good.

With her pale skin and Goth wardrobe, Phoebe has never run with the popular crowd. But no one can believe it when she falls for Tommy Williams, the leader of the dead kids. Not her best friend, Margi, whose fear of the differently biotic is deeply rooted in guilt over the past. And especially not her neighbor, Adam, the star of the football team. Adam has just realized his feelings for Phoebe run much deeper than just friendship. He would do anything for her, but what if protecting Tommy is the one thing that would make her happy?

Review:

I really wish I liked this book more than I did! It took me forever to read, a week and a half I believe... which is usually kind of long for me.

The concept was really interesting and I was so excited to read it, but the plot just didn't do it for me. Nothing really caught my interest enough to make me keep reading, I basically just kept reading because I have to review Passing Strange, which is the 3rd book in the series and I'd really like to be updated on the first two books.

The characters were fun and lovable, but I didn't have that connection that I wish to have with every character I read about. Phoebe was strong and I liked that, but her personality was just as boring as the color of all of her clothes, black.

I know this is a short review and I'm sorry for that, but I honestly have nothing else to say about this book. I hope I like the second one better!

Arson by Estevan Vega

Arson by Estevan Vega

Published: May 4th 2010 by Tate Publishing

Pages: 318 pages

Rating: B-

Summary:

ARSON GABLE FEELS LIKE A FREAK. HE CAN CREATE FIRE. HE NEVER ASKED FOR IT. HE NEVER WANTED IT. BUT HE CAN'T SHUT IT OFF.

Before now, three things were true: he both loved and despised his grandmother; his life was going nowhere; and he was alone. But when a strange girl-who feels more normal behind a mask than inside her own skin-moves in next door, Arson hopes to find something he's never had: purpose. Using what he fears the most about himself, Arson must face his consuming past and confront the nightmare that is present as he walks the fine line between boy and monster. Dark, moody, and breathtakingly relevant, Arson, the chilling chronicle of an isolated boy with unimaginable ability, is sure to ignite the hearts and minds of a new generation.

Review:

I have very mixed thoughts about Arson. I'm still not quite sure if I enjoyed the novel or if it just fell flat for me.

To start, this is the first novel by Vega that I've read so I wasn't too sure about his style of writing or if I would like the book. The summary did intrigue me though, so I gave the book a shot. Arson started off strong and I was eager to read on. The main character, Arson, was troubled and had secrets that I yearned to know more about. I thought he was kind and had a strong heart especially with the guilt he deals with throughout the book. His ability to create fire also adds more spark (no pun intended ;D ) to his personality.

As you read further into the book, things get a little bit odd, for example the way his grandmother acts around him. She is definitely not loving or sane in my opinion but the reasoning behind that does gets explained. I also thought that although Arson started off well, the development and plot of the book were very poor. The middle section of the book really had no point to it except maybe to emphasize the feelings Emery and Arson were developing for each other but that dragged on a bit too long for my taste. As for the conclusion of the book, it was excellent. There was excitement and twists in the plot that I totally didn't see coming and Vega ended the book with an awesome cliffhanger!

To finish, I wouldn't say that Arson was great but it was a good book. It's worth it to read it when you have the time.

CSN Spine Bookcase Review

Hello my loves! I was lucky enough to get a bookcase from CSN to review! As some of you may know, I'm in college and I just moved into my dorm yesterday, and dorms are NOT big at all. It's a challenge to find room for everything you brought and the book shelves they have to not fit my requirments :P

Here's a picture of the room itself (my side) so you can see how small it is.






And here's a picture of my lovely bookcase.








And here's a picture of how well the bookcase fits in with my other furniture.






The bookcase is incredible, it was actually fun to put together (not hard at all), and the shipping was amazing. It took 2 days for the bookcase to get to my house and did I mention FREE shipping? Pretty awesome.

In My Mailbox (38)

In My Mailbox was created by The Story Siren. Click here to learn more about it.

Overall!

For Review:

The Jumbee by Pamela Keyes

The Jumper Chronicles by W.C. Peever

Bought:

Kiss of Life (Generation Dead #2) by Daniel Waters

So what did you guys get in your mailboxes? Let me know in a comment so I can come see your post! :)

Book Blogger Hop (4)

Hey hoppers! Welcome to our blog! :) I hope you enjoy although we haven't really had the time to post much this week.... and I'm STILL reading Generation Dead. It's taking me long enough huh?


Question: How many blogs do you follow?


Answer: Oh wow... I think around 200 or so. There are so many awesome blogs out there, I just can't help it! How about you guys? Let me know through the comments or leave a link to your blog!