My apologizes

Hello my lovely bookworms,

I apologize for my recent hiatus. I am going through some major life changes at the moment- I am leaving my current job to pursue a couple different things. First of all, I really want to focus on editing my upcoming book. I realized while working full time, I am unable to truly put my best efforts forward... I have placed so much passion and energy into this book I would hate to release something I wasn't completely satisfied with. Also, I am ready to get my credential and work with school age children! Time to start studying for the CBEST and CSET.. but when I'm not studying, I'll be either writing or blogging. So give me two more weeks friends, and I WILL be back.. with fervor <3

TGIF? well, sort of..

Saying this last week has been crazy would be quite the understatement.  After working all day + overtime and then hosting a party last night, I did not get a chance to do my TGIF post! =-(

But better late than never right? So without further adieu, is my TGIF post (let's just pretend it's not Saturday) hosted by the lovely Ginger at GReads!

This Friday's Question:

Literary Vacations: If you could take a trip this summer to any place within a fictional book, where would you go? Tell us about your summer dream vacation!

I would want to go to... the Hunger Games arena. I think it would be so fun to run from murderous teenagers, fireballs, flesh-eating dogs, and hallucinogenic wasps.


Can you tell I stayed up late last night? =)


Okay. In all seriousness, and even though this answer is incredibly cheesy and unoriginal, I would want to take a trip to Hogwarts (during the first novel, NOT the last LOL). I've never been to England and I've always wanted to go. So what could be better than a magical version?

I would love to hang out with Harry and the gang. We could fly on broomsticks, do some shopping at Hogsmeade, and have a jolly good time.

This is Alnwick Castle, where they filmed the HP movies :)
 [Photo: nickmilleruk]

Post your TGIF links! I would love to read them :)

Divergent! First Video Review!

So.. I was a little tired today, I'm fighting a cold so my brain is a little sluggish. I'm not totally satisfied with the review, but it's my first video review so hopefully you'll cut my some slack ;) I promise my next reviews will be a little more exciting and upbeat lol.

But WOOOHOOO Insurgent will be released in TWO DAYS!!! So I had to hurry and read Divergent so I could be ready for her next book.

Light My Fire ~ A Firelight Book Review

Title: Firelight
Author: Sophie Jordan
Series: Firelight #1
Publication Date: September 7th, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 323 Pages

Summary from Goodreads:
"A hidden truth.

Mortal enemies.

Doomed love.

Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a drakia descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.

Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping awayif it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy.

Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide.""

My Review:

     I was instantly hooked after reading the first few pages. With Jacinda being a Draki- a descendant from dragons- it was nice to be reading something so unique and refreshingly different from werewolves, vampires, etc. (Not that I don't love me some vampires =] ).

     I loved Jacinda's fiesty personality, but she did have alot (and I mean ALOT) of teen angst towards her mother, when she was only trying to do what was best for her daughter! While reading, I was stressed out about what Jacinda should do, whether she should leave the pride and kill her Draki (which to her was essentially killing a part of herself), or stay in the cult-like pride where they'd force her to marry the Draki prince (Cassian) and make "little fire-breathers". Her choices were pretty bleak so she ended up choosing to not do anything really, until mom stepped in and made the decision for her- by taking her and her sister away from the Pride and moving to a desert.
Yep, that's when the teen angst kicked in.

     The starcrossed/forbidden romance thing between Jacinda and Will was steamy! (with the fire-breathing... ya'll know what I mean :) ). And oh man, can Sophie Jordan write some steamy scenes! Jacinda's connection with Will, how he "released the Draki from within" made it all the more crazier.

     Once I started reading, I could not put this book down and loved every minute of it. It never had a dull moment, Sophie Jordan did a fantastic job keeping the pace quick and engaging. I was fascinated by the Draki mythology and wanted to know more about the different types, and the different abilities each harnessed.

     It is a MUST-read, even with it's lusty scenes and the eye-rolling angsty moments. I give it 4/4 Mochis.

     
     Have you read Firelight? What were your thoughts on the novel?

Sunday Funday

    After my parents recently cleaned out their garage, they dumped off a giant, heavy cardboard box inside my house. After figuring it was all my old junk from my high school days, I ignored it for several days. Then one day when I was bored enough, a day much like today, I decided to open it up to see what was inside.

    I was right about the high school part, but it was definitively not junk (well, maybe to my parents and a few others, but hopefully not to YA readers). Lo and behold it was my old book collection! (Well, most of it anyway). I was so excited to see it, I promptly sat on the floor for the next few hours rifling through random pages of every book. 

Here is a picture of my favorite books series I started reading when I was thirteen and continued reading throughout high school. 

FEARLESS 

The first few books are.. erm, very well loved (the white covers didn't help). I loved picking them up and being transported back to the 90's (lots of fun pop-culture references). 

I'm missing a couple in the series so it's not complete :( I'll have to go back in my parent's garage and search for them. Hopefully I'll find the rest. You can also see how the cover art changed throughout the series.. (after book 12, the covers drastically changed)

Fearless has been re-released this year with a totally new look. Check it out: 

Fearless; Sam; Run (The first three books in the series) by Francine Pascal (Jan 31, 2012)

I also found my old Sweep collection. This one was complete and in better condition! 

They also re-released this series and combined the first three titles into one big book. Here's it's newest look:

So I was bored on a Sunday and thought it would be fun to share my old book collections :) Since I was in my office taking pictures, I couldn't resist sharing a few Mochi pics as well. 

Yep, It's a calendar! My boyfriend's mom made me a puppy calendar of Mochi for Christmas. I was in tears when she gave it to me, it was so sweet. 

These are all pics from the first day I took him home. He looks so different now! 

Okay, so now that I showed you all my nerdy possessions (i.e. old high school book collections, calendar of my dog), do you have any old books that you kept with you throughout the years? I would love to hear what you've read in the past... Maybe we have some in common. As you can see, my YA addiction started early so I wouldn't be surprised. If you have pics of your old books, I would LOVE to see them, feel free to post them here. 

Happy Reading! 

Feature & Follow

Feature & Follow is a blog hop hosted by Parajunkee & Alison Can Read

This weeks question~ If you could have two fictional characters battle it out (preferably from books), who would they be and who do you think would win?

                                          VERSUS

This is such a fantastic question. I would have to say Katniss Everdeen from Hunger Games versus Rose Hathaway from Vampire Academy. Both of these characters are hard-core fighters and I have no idea who would win. I would guess Rose since she carries a stake and can decapitate Strigoi? But Katniss is pretty crafty with her bow & arrow ;)

Who do you think would win this fight? Also, post the link to your own F&F so I can follow! =)

Waiting On Wednesday

Waiting On Wednesday  is a weekly meme, which is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.  

This week I selected: Until I Die by Amy Plum

Summary from Good Reads:

Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love.

As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy.

In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series.

I am so excited for this book, It will be released May 8th. I LOVED Die For Me, the first novel in the Revenants series! Has anyone else read this series? If so, what did you think?