A Reader in Time

Monday, January 7, 2013

Burned by Sara Shepard

Book: Burned (Pretty Little Liars #12)
Author: Sara Shepard
# of Pages: 336 (Hardcover)
Rating: 3.5 stars

Goodreads Summary
It's spring break, and the pretty little liars are trading in Rosewood for a cruise vacation. They want nothing more than to sail into the tropical sunset and leave their troubles behind for one blissful week. But where Emily, Aria, Spencer, and Hanna go, A goes, too. From scuba diving to tanning on the upper deck, A is there, soaking up all their new secrets.

Emily is smooching a stowaway. Aria's treasure-hunting partner is a little too interested in her booty. Spencer's going overboard trying to land a new boy. And a blast--or rather, a crash--from Hanna's past could mean rough waters ahead for everyone.

The liars better tighten their life jackets. A perfect storm is brewing, and if they aren't careful, A will bury them at sea. . . .

My Thoughts:
For spring break Spencer, Aria, Hanna, and Emily are going with their class on a cruise in the Caribbean. Although they are glad to be leaving Rosewood for a while, they cannot help but think about what happened during their spring break the year before.

The car accident Hanna was in the previous summer comes back to haunt her. Emily falls for a new girl. Spencer competes for a boy. And Aria gets a little too close to someone who could be a potential threat.

This was supposed to be the last book in the Pretty Little Liars series. But alas, Shepard extended it by another 2 books. Although there was an unexpected twist at the end of the book, I was disappointed that nothing big happened. Sure A caused a lot of chaos and fright, but I kept waiting for some great OMG moment to happen and it never did.

I've been trying to figure out who A is, but there are so many potential candidates that he/she could really be anyone. Also some of the things A is threatening and demanding of the girls are getting redundant. Aria keeps remembering something bad she did in Iceland during the summer but there has yet to be any specifics on it. Hopeuflly they will be revealed in the next book.

Overall, Burned was a good book, but I was disappointed with it's lack of wow factors that would have made it stand out from the other books in the series.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Rage Within by Jeyn Roberts

Book: Rage Within (Dark Inside #2)
Author: Jeyn Roberts
# of Pages: 354 (Hardcover)?????
Rating: 4.5 stars

Goodreads Summary
Aries, Clementine, Mason and Michael 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 surviving teens, and 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, even if he is still alive. Michael is still 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, Aries, Clementine, Mason and Michael will have to trust and rely on each other in order to survive.(

My Thoughts:
Things are steadily getting worse. The Baggers are more organized now. Rounding up the survivors and trying to rebuild a world that they rule. Michael is trying to help Clementine find her brother. Aries is doing her best to be a good leader for the other teens and she is starting to feel the stress. Mason tries to keep to himself, though it is not easy in a house full of people.

I really liked how we get to see what happens to a couple of the characters before all the madness started. It's getting harder for them to survive and arguments are occurring more frequently. Despite all the craziness, there is a little romance.

I liked Mason in Dark Inside and grew to love him more in Rage Within. And I knew Clementine was tough, but she really kicked ass in this book. I seriously think that she should be the leader instead of Aries.

I haven't seen anything about a sequel. But after that ending there surely has to be one. Does anyone know if there is going to be one?

Overall, Rage Within was a spectaular read. It was dark, gripping, and it left me with chills.

Friday, December 28, 2012

Stacking the Shelves #11

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews where you share what books you obtained over the week.

Bought

Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Onyx (Lux #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Opal (Lux #3) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

Gifted

Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans

I also got three B&N gift cards for Christmas.

For My Nook

Shadows (Lux #0.5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
The First Lie: A Lying Game Novella by Sara Shepard
Daughter of the Earth and Sky (Daughters of Zeus #2) by Kaitlin Bevis

The Secret of Ella and Micha (The Secret #1) by Jessica Sorenson

The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden (The Coincidence #1)
by Jessica Sorenson

Eternal Eden (Eden Trilogy #1) by Nicole Williams

What books did you get this week?

Thursday, December 27, 2012

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

6 Bloggers, 12 Mini-Challenges, 24 Books to Win!

I attempted this challenge this year, but due to certain circumstances I was unable to finish it. But I am determined to finish it in 2013.

Guidelines:

- This challenge will run from January 1, 2013 - December 31, 2013.

- Any genre, length, or format of book counts as long as it was released in 2012 or earlier.

- You can move up levels, but no moving down.

- On the 20th of each month, one of the hosts will post a wrap-up. Every wrap-up will have it's unique theme, a mini-challenge, a giveaway, and a place for you to link up your reviews from this month. For each review you link up, you will get one entry in a drawing of one book of choice from Book Depository. The giveaway will be open until the next wrap-up post goes up (i.e. the entire month).

For more info about the challenge and signing up visit Evie at Bookish.

Levels:

How many books you're planning to read for this challenge.

1-10 - A Firm Handshake

11-20 - A Friendly Hug

21-30 - A Sweet Kiss

31-40 - Love At First Sight

41-50 - Married With Children

Schedule:

January 20th: Evie@Bookish (www.evie-bookish.blogspot.com)

February 20th: Rachel@Fiktshun (http://www.fiktshun.com)

March 20th: Justin@Justiin's Book Blog (http://www.justinsbookblog.com/)

April 20th: Tiffany@Escaping One Book At A Time (http://escapingonebookatatime.blogspot.com/)

May 20th: Bonnie@Words At Home (www.wordsathome.ca/)

June 20th: Justin@Justin's Book Blog (http://www.justinsbookblog.com/)

July 20th: Emily@Doodle's Book Blog (doodlesbookblog.blogspot.com)

August 20th: Tiffany@Escaping One Book At A Time (http://escapingonebookatatime.blogspot.com/)

September 20th: Rachel@Fiktshun (http://www.fiktshun.com)

October 20th: Emily@Doodle's Book Blog (doodlesbookblog.blogspot.com)

November 20th: Bonnie@Words At Home (www.wordsathome.ca/))

December 20th: This one will be posted on all the blogs. There will also be a huge BOX OF BOOKS giveaway and this time you can link up ALL YOUR TBR Pile REVIEWS you wrote for the entire year.

I'm going to go for the A Sweet Kiss level.

Books:

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Pushing the Limit by Katie McGarry
The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan
Ashen Winter by Mike Mullin
The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa
The Iron Knight byJulie Kagawa
The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
Insignia by S.J. Kincaid
Stealing Parker by Miranda Kenneally
Outpost by Ann Aguirre
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare
Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Defiance by C.J. Redwine
Plague by Michael Grant
Fear by Michael Grant

Saturday, December 22, 2012

Eve and Adam by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate

Book: Eve and Adam
Author: Michael Grant & Katherine Applegate
# of Pages: 291 (Hardcover)
Rating: 4.5 stars

Goodreads Summary
In the beginning, there was an apple—

And then there was a car crash, a horrible injury, and a hospital. But before Evening Spiker’s head clears a strange boy named Solo is rushing her to her mother’s research facility. There, under the best care available, Eve is left alone to heal.

Just when Eve thinks she will die—not from her injuries, but from boredom—her mother gives her a special project: Create the perfect boy.

Using an amazingly detailed simulation, Eve starts building a boy from the ground up. Eve is creating Adam. And he will be just perfect... won’t he?(

My Thoughts:
Evening 'Eve' Spiker is in a bad car accident. Eve's mother, Terra, takes her from the hospital to her own facility to help her recover. To keep her from being bored, Terra has Eve work with a computer program and tells her to create the perfect boy. Solo, Terra's assistant of sorts, tries to convince Eve that her mother is doing bad things at her facility and she does not want to believe him.

There were a couple times when Eve annoyed me, but overall, she was very intelligent and a great friend. I loved Solo. He's sneaky, funny, and observant. Eve does not like Solo in the beginning, but eventually she grows to trust him. As for Adam, I thought he was pretty two-dimensional.

I loved the action, mystery, and humor. It was fast paced and addictive. Overall, a very enjoyable book.