This month has been a crazy and busy month for myself but I’ve managed to post 4 book reviews and finish reading a total of 9 books!
The books were:
Both Sides of Time by Caroline B. Cooney: Review 4/5
Gameboard of the Gods (Age of X#1) by Richelle Mead: Review 5/5
The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden by Jessica Sorensen: I absolutely disliked this book. I am never again going to buy a book that I’ve heard nothing about. I was really disappointed by the amount of sex stuff in it which made me skip a lot of the book. The quality of the writing was also horrid. I don’t understand the hype around this book. 1/5
Juliet Immortal (Juliet Immortal #1) by Stacey Jay: It took me 3 months to finish this book. I found it hard to get into it and the characters weren’t relatable at all. 3/5
If We Kiss by Rachel Vail: Another book I was disappointed in. I’m happy I only paid a dollar for it on my nook. 2/5
Influence: Science and Practice by Robert B. Cialdini: I had to read this book for a class and I found it very interesting. Its a fun academic read. 5/5
Perfect Scoundrels (Heist Society #3) by Ally Carter: Review 5/5
A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America by Ronald Takaki: This book was eye opening and brilliant. A must read for all Americans and Cultural Generational Americans. 5/5
If you would like to recommend books that I should read or would like to discuss any of these books with me feel free to leave a comment.
Katarina Bishop and W.W. Hale the fifth were born to lead completely different lives: Kat comes from a long, proud line of loveable criminal masterminds, while Hale is the scion of one of the most seemingly perfect dynasties in the world. If their families have one thing in common, it’s that they both know how to stay under the radar while getting-or stealing-whatever they want. No matter the risk, the Bishops can always be counted on, but in Hale’s family, all bets are off when money is on the line. When Hale unexpectedly inherits his grandmother’s billion dollar corporation, he quickly learns that there’s no place for Kat and their old heists in his new role. But Kat won’t let him go that easily, especially after she gets tipped off that his grandmother’s will might have been altered in an elaborate con to steal the company’s fortune. So instead of being the heir-this time, Hale might be the mark. Forced to keep a level head as she and her crew fight for one of their own, Kat comes up with an ambitious and far-reaching plan that only the Bishop family would dare attempt. To pull it off, Kat is prepared to do the impossible, but first, she has to decide if she’s willing to save her boyfriend’s company if it means losing the boy.
What I liked:
I absolutely loved this book! I believe it to be the best yet in the Heist Society Series. We were finally able to learn more about Hale’s family and his background. There were many moments where I literally screamed at Hale or Kat (and that is something I don’t do often because I don’t want to look like a crazy person). Something that I really liked that Ally Carter did was that she completely surprised me with the last twenty pages of the book. I don’t want to spoil it for anyone so I won’t say anything but this was the first book in the Heist Society Series that I was not able to guess the ending. Ally Carter was just bumped up to VIP status in my list of best authors out there.
What I disliked:
Honestly, it took me a little while to get into it. I don’t know if it was because I just so busy I couldn’t enjoy reading a book or because it was slow at the beginning but after the first 100 pages there was no stopping me.
Overall:
Perfect Scoundrels was a really fun book to read and I truly enjoyed. I can always count on Ally Carter to give me a book that is fun to read and tackles issues that many teenagers are facing today in their everyday lives. She knows how to make heavy subjects like death and insecurity more approachable and easier to tackle. Basically, she makes life easier. 🙂
Rating: 5/5
Rating System:
1/5: I hated it.
2/5: It had some redeeming qualities but overall, not a good book.
3/5: I liked it (A fun read).
4/5: I really like it, but something was missing.
5/5: I love it! It’s as close to perfection as it can get!
Today debuts another new segment called, “Book Spotlight”. Book Spotlight will be every second Thursday of the month. If the day or frequency changes, I will let you guys know!
This Thursday I recommend:
Book Title: Getting Over Garrett Delaney
Author: Abby McDonald
Org. Pub Date: January 24th, 2012
Goodreads Summary:
Seventeen-year-old Sadie is in love: epic, heartfelt, and utterly one-sided. The object of her obsession — ahem, affection — is her best friend, Garrett Delaney, who has been oblivious to Sadie’s feelings ever since he sauntered into her life and wowed her with his passion for Proust (not to mention his deep-blue eyes). For two long, painful years, Sadie has been Garrett’s constant companion, sharing his taste in everything from tragic Russian literature to art films to ’80s indie rock — all to no avail. But when Garrett leaves for a summer literary retreat, Sadie is sure that the absence will make his heart grow fonder — until he calls to say he’s fallen in love. With some other girl! A heartbroken Sadie realizes that she’s finally had enough. It’s time for a total Garrett detox! Aided by a barista job, an eclectic crew of new friends (including the hunky chef, Josh), and a customized self-help guide, Sadie embarks on a summer of personal reinvention full of laughter, mortifying meltdowns, and a double shot of love.
Now, Get off the computer and read it! You won’t regret it!
I present to you another unplanned segment of Online Book Haul!
I had bought Delirium about a month ago and I recently purchased on Amazon the rest of the Delirium trilogy including the extra companion that goes along with the books.
I bought the rest of the series trusting everyone in the reading world. I hope the trilogy is as good as people have been telling me it is.
I’m currently halfway through Delirium and soon I will be posting a review of Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead.
Both Sides of Time by Caroline B. Cooney (#1 in the Time Travel Quartet)
Welcome to the TalkingBookworm’s first Book Blast from the Past!
I chose Both Sides of Time as the book that would debut Book Blast from the Past because it was one of the books that started the process into turning me into the full blown bookworm I am today. Reading it for the first time in 10 years, I was shocked to see this was the type of book I loved to read when I was 12! This book has love, time traveling, murder, almost everything you can imagine without there being anything supernatural (like vampires, werewolves, etc.)
GoodReads Summary:
Imagine changing centuries–and making things worse, not better, on both sides of time
Imagine being involved in two love triangles in two different centuries. What if, no matter which direction you travel in time, you must abandon someone you love?
Meet 15-year-old Annie Lockwood, a romantic living in the wrong century. When she travels back a hundred years and lands in 1895–a time when privileged young ladies wear magnificent gowns, attend elegant parties, and are courted by handsome gentlemen–Annie at last finds romance. But she is a trespasser in time. Will she choose to stay in the past? Will she be allowed to?
What I liked:
Time Travel. I wish more books had time traveling in them. I was surprised to find myself enjoying a book that is written in third person because I normally tend to shy away from books that are in third person. Cooney brought up the issue of women rights and what is really expected of a woman. I applaud her for educating tweens on how bad it was for women in the past, and how far we’ve come to remedy those incorrect notions that society had of women. This book is really 90’s down to the core. I think that’s another reason why I love it so much. It’s a book that can take me back to my childhood.
What I disliked:
The first 80 pages of the book had me questioning why I loved this book so much when I was a tween. I disliked the fact that it took almost half of the book to finally get to an exciting, intriguing part of it. I think the first book in a series always suffers from this syndrome, the “let’s set everything up so the reader knows what I’m talking about in the future” syndrome. I prefer stories that have flashbacks instead of being trapped in the past for ages. When I think ‘time travel’ I think ‘excitement’, and the first half of the book wasn’t giving me the excitement I was craving. Even though Cooney did a good job with the background of Annie and Strat, it was still hard at times for me to sympathize with the characters. I think part of it was because the book was set in third person. I lost some of the connection with the characters because I wasn’t in their heads all of the time. Towards the last third of the book the silliness left and a serious more modern tone set in. I really loved the turn of events and how the last third of the book progressed.
Overall, I still love this book even though I didn’t enjoy it as much as I did ten years ago. At the end, I felt for Devonny, Harriet, and Florinda. Strat proved to be a better gentleman than most gentlemen in his time, and Annie finally did what she was supposed to do from the beginning. This book is a book everyone should read. It teaches the reader history, educates them in a style of writing, and brings enjoyment at the same time. I recommend this book to everyone. Young and Old. You’ll understand my love for this book once you’ve read it.
Rating: 4/5
Rating System:
1/5: I hated it
2/5: It had some redeeming qualities but overall, not a good book
3/5: I liked it (A fun read)
4/5: I really like it, but something was missing
5/5: I love it! It’s as close to perfection as it can get!
This semester, Thursdays are my Fridays. I managed not to have Friday classes. *jumps in excitement*
This post will be a bit less professional than normal because I am re-posting something here that I posted on Tumblr a few days ago regarding books I have not finished, books that will probably be in my “on-hold” list for a while. My quality of writing suffers a bit in my tumblr blog because I write how I think, grammatical errors, incomplete sentences and all. You have been warned 🙂
Tumblr Post:
I have several books on hold. Like I can’t finish them for some reason.
Book #1 Insurgent by Veronica Roth
I have a very good reason why I haven’t finished it. The book can’t end. I refuse to finish it and… I have about 50% of the book left and I know I must read the rest in one sitting which I do not have the time for.
Book #2 Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay
Juliet makes me mad. And Romeo, don’t get me started with Romeo. Oh, and Juliet’s friend (I know it’s not her “real” friend because Juliet isn’t really Juliet but whichever girl’s body she is currently in. *sorry for spoilers but not really*) really annoys me too. Ugh.
Book #3 Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter
I’m mad at Hale. And Kat. For a more logical reason, see Insurgent’s reason.
And I’m currently reading Clockwork Prince (#2 in the The Infernal Devices Series) and If We Kiss by Rachel Vail.
So far, I really don’t like ‘If We Kiss’. Can’t get used to the writing style. Everything seems so immature and cliché. I bought the ebook for 2.99 so I’m not that upset. Just a little annoyed. I’m going to finish it though. I want to see if it has any redeeming qualities aside from the fact that the book is written grammatically well [so far].
Some books I have on hold [like I haven’t gotten to them] are:
Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead
Delirium by Lauren Oliver
and some other books in ebook form which I forgot the names of.
So that’s basically my book life. Apart from Uni books and homework.
This book haul was planned for, not like the previous one I posted a few days ago… Oops.
I bought two books on amazon that I could not find in any of the bookstores near me, including those that are 30 and 50 miles away. Yes, I traveled that far for books. The books are:
Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta
Both Sides of Time by Caroline B. Cooney
This coming Saturday “Book Blast from the Past” debuts and I’ve chosen to do it on Both Sides of Time, a book I read in my tween years that started my development into becoming the full blown bookworm I am today. When I first read it, I borrowed the book from my school’s library and wasn’t able to obtain a copy of it at the time. Both Sides of Time was first published in 1995, that was 18 years ago. For my generation, that was a long time ago. It definitely qualifies as a blast from the past type of book.
Saving Francesca is a book I stumbled upon while browsing GoodReads. It seemed interesting and I probably won’t be reading it soon as I have a bunch of other books to read already on my currently reading and to read lists.
I am going to try my best to update this blog frequently even though I am currently in the last semester of my college career. It is very hectic at the moment but it is in a fast-paced environment that I thrive.
In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch–a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood–or else she might be next.
What I liked:
Richelle Mead has done it again. Even though this is the slowest book so far in the Bloodlines series, it is still very good and did not bore me. I absolutely love it when an author can make a book that is not all fireworks and sparks still be very interesting and intriguing book. I was very pleased to see Adrian and Sydney’s relationship develop to the point where both of them knew exactly where they each stood with their feelings and with each other. Honestly, I liked that The Indigo Spell did not have this big cliffhanger in the last chapter but instead TIS seemed to have this feeling that the complete book in itself was a big foreshadow and a big cliffhanger for the rest of the series.
What I disliked:
Marcus Finch. I didn’t like his character or the developments that occurred around him. I can only think of two good things that came out of having Marcus Finch in the series. He was blown up way out of proportion for how little importance he had in this book. Knowing Richelle Mead though, he will probably have a big role further down in the series and I will have to eat my words.
Rating: 5/5
Rating System:
1/5: I hated it
2/5: It had some redeeming qualities but overall, not a good book
3/5: I liked it (A fun read)
4/5: I really like it, but something was missing
5/5: I love it! It’s as close to perfection as it can get!
My First Edition Signed Copy of Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter
Today I went to Redondo Beach, California, to a Ally Carter Book Signing Event at the Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore next to the South Bay Galleria (Mall).
This was my first time ever attending a author signing event and it was… awesome. It was like a bookworms united meeting or something. I was amazed by the huge turnout to see Ally Carter [and Gail Carriger].
I think I will be making these type of events a regular thing now. Well, when authors come to bookstores near me that is.
The Talking Bookworm 