Wednesday, October 31, 2012

...in books

I wish you all a very Spooky Halloween!
I think I found the appropriate review for a day like this:


Review
Vampire Academy
by Richelle Mead

The author:
source
Scorpio Richelle Mead is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of urban fantasy books for both adults and teens. Originally from Michigan, Richelle now lives in Seattle, Washington where she works on her three series full-time: Georgina Kincaid, Dark Swan, and Vampire Academy.
A life-long reader, Richelle has always loved mythology and folklore. When she can actually tear herself away from books (either reading or writing them), she enjoys bad reality TV, traveling, trying interesting cocktails, and shopping for dresses. She's a self-professed coffee addict and has a passion for all things wacky and humorous.
source: Goodreads

First sentences:
I felt her fear before I heard her screams.

Summary:
St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger...
Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever.
source: Goodreads

My opinion:
I’m pretty sure everyone out there heard of Richelle Mead’s famous Vampire Academy series. I had too but I didn’t pick it up until I saw several of Camilla’s book videos on her YouTube channel (check it out-she is amazing!) and heard her rave about these books. I wanted a new cool book and downloaded it on my Kindle. I read it in two days straight and loved it!

Vampire Academy is the first book in the Vampire Academy series and the introduction into the world of Moroi, Strigoi, Dhampirs and the world of the school, St.Vladimir.
I am not a huge fan of vampire books mostly because I get scared easily. Each vampire or werewolf book I read was either funny or had a steampunk/phantasie background. Vampire Academy however is set in today’s United States and that made it feel more real than any other vampire book I read.

Regardless, I liked it a lot. The story is told from Rose’s point of view. She is a Dhampire and Lissa’s best friend and she tries to protect Lissa, a vampire princess, from her past and all the pressure she and society puts on her. The two girls fled from St. Vladimir two years before the beginning of the first book, something no one ever done before but unfortunately they run out of luck and get caught and brought back to school. The story is totally gripping and I saw the whole book as a film before my inner eye (which is an indicator of a well written book for me). Some scenes are described in such accuracy and detail that I felt uncomfortable while reading them, for example the moment Rose and Lissa come back to school and everybody stares at them. Richelle Mead has the gift of telling a paranormal story so believably that you can feel the tension. This story felt so real to me and that made it even more gripping and sucked me into it immediately.

Rose is an awesome main character. She is strong willed, loyal and always ready to protect her friend against everything and everyone. Rose was the head of their escape from St. Vladimir and her determination enabled the girls to live a “normal” live for two years. She would do anything for Rose and is ready to die for Lissa if it would safe her best friend. Lissa’s and Rose’s bond is so strong that Rose can feel Lissa’s fears, feelings and anxieties and sometimes she is even able to see through Lissa’s eyes without her knowing.

Lissa is a famous vampire princess who suffers after the death of her parents and her brother and tries to uphold the degree of socializing her brother did but it slowly kills her and so Rose decided that the two girls would flee the vampire society. Lissa often tries to be stronger than she can be, she tries to make the best out of their return to St. Vladimir and she has two rather unusual gifts which make her special even in vampire society.

Vampire Academy is a wonderful first book and I will definitely read the next one soon. It was a book that fascinated and gripped me and I can recommend it to everyone who loved paranormal books.

Vampire Academy is available at Amazon in paperback and for your Kindle too. You can also buy it at Book Depo.

The Books in the Vampire Academy series are:
  • Vampire Academy
  • Frostbite
  • Shadow Kiss
  • Blood Promise
  • Spirit Bound
  • Last Sacrifice
For more information about Richelle visit her Homepage, her Blog and her Facebook and Twitter pages.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

...in books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish.
This week's question is:
Top Ten Favorite Kick-Ass Heroines

 This week's TTT raised some question by itself. What is a kick.ass heroine? A wonderful blog post was written by Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner. You can read it here

Here are my top ten kick-ass heroines:
Pippi Longstocking (from Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren)
because she is super strong, lives all on her own, manages to scare robbers off and is just super awesome.

Alexia Tarabotti (from The Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger)

because she is a feminist in a way in Victorian England. She keeps a whole pack of werewolves under control, manages to solve mysteries and doesn't faint when she is in real danger (as any other Victorian lady would do).

Finley Jayne (from the Steampunk Chronicles by Kady Cross)

because when Sam (who really dislikes her) is in danger she doesn't have to think twice if she helps him.

Stephanie Plum (from the Stephanie Plum novels by Janet Evanovich)

Bounty Hunter in Trenton, New Jersey ... enough said?

Gwendolyn Shepherd (from the Gemstone Trilogy by Kerstin Gier)

because she accepts her fate and travels through time to safe the world.

Meggie Folchart (from the Inkheart Trilogy by Cornelia Funke)
because she fights for her father and her friends and is not afraid to confront evil characters.

Angela Clark (from the I heart... series by Lindsey Kelk)
because she tries to regain her life after her finacé cheated on her and is determined to live her new life in a new city.

Sergeant Mary Mary (from the The Nursery Crimes series by Jasper Fforde)
because she declined a job offer from DCI Friedland Chymes to do the right thing and stay with the NCD.

Hermione Granger (from the Harry Potter novels by J.K. Rowling)
because she is the most loyal friend and the brain behind the whole Harry-Ron-Hermione team.

Clary Fray (from The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare)
beacuse she is pushed into a whole new world, faces it with a lot of guts and has to deal with her life without her mum and an evil father. 

Friday, October 26, 2012

...in pictures

 Next week's topic will be:
Rural / Ländlich
Please link you post to mine in time.
Submission period is between the 26th
of October and the 3rd of November.
(11:59 pm CET)

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

...in books



Review
Diminishing Paige
by Robert Shields

The author:
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of "Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided" and "The Economics of Sex" and has written the weekly "From the Bench" sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, "Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society" is part one of his new series. He also authored the book "Confessions of the Self Absorbed Observer: What I Saw Today." He has testified in a multitude of dockets and other legal proceedings. He graduated at the top of his economics class at the University of Arkansas and won the award as the "Most Outstanding Student in Economics."
source: Amazon

First sentences:
“Sergeant Major, with all due respect, what the hell just happened here ?” Storm Lancaster asked his Marine Junior ROTC commander.

Summary:
She leaned over and kissed him on the mouth totally catching him by surprise. Her warm lips erased any symptoms of being cold on the bridge, yet she froze him in place. It was wonderful, but it was over in a flash and he thought, "I never kissed her back."
A fool knows the price of everything and the value of nothing is the romantic theme between Paige Wheeler and Storm Lancaster. The intelligent high school expellees serendipitously meet at a garage sale and end up approaching sex in an awkward text book fashion. They start viewing the relationship through the lens of economics as if sex was a commodity. As they grow closer together, Paige’s promiscuous past comes to light that haunts her, which leads to complications in their relationship. Storm’s ineptness in handling the pressures of a relationship from previously attending an all-boys school causes problems while Paige finds some amusement in his immaturity. Her sterilized view of sex creates consternation for Storm over their rapport. At their new school, they make a mutual friend in Jamal. The trio engages in pranks as their friendship with him develops. Storm’s proclivity as an adolescent male leads to poor decisions with Paige as Jamal, often the voice of reason and conscience is ignored to the detriment of the couple. Emotions spin out of control after a frolicking camping trip with Paige’s old high-school buddies and the sexual economics experiment explodes.
source: Goodreads

My opinion:
At the beginning of the year I read Robert’s first book Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society (read my review here) and I really liked it. So when he contacted me again and asked me to review his newest book Diminishing Paige I accepted.

This book was different than the first one and that irritated me a bit at the beginning. Diminishing Paige is the story of Paige and Storm and how they manage their lives in their last semester in high school.

It took me a while to really get into this book and I cannot tell why exactly. The story starts strong and after that I had the feeling that it slowed down but after I read on I discovered that this was the intention. During the course of the book both characters change and become stronger than before and they could not do this without one another. It is the story of a strong teenage love and their struggle with it. The story includes some unexpected twists and turns that I had not expected.

The characters are well portrait and until the very last chapter I wasn’t sure what to make out of Paige but in the end I must say she is a really nice girl who loves her friends and can be so strong that we all can learn from her. Storm on the other hand really needs Paige to grow and gain more self-confidence.

Diminishing Paige is a good book portraying teenagers, their problems and love really well. I would not say that it is an entertaining read, even though it has funny intervals, but it is a book that makes you think after you finished it.

Diminishing Paige is available at Amazon in paperback and for your Kindle too.

For more information about Robert Shields visit his Blog.

Thank you to the author for sending me this book as a review copy!

Sunday, October 21, 2012

...in books

 
Showcase Sunday is weekly meme hosted by Vicky at Books, Biscuits & Tea which was inspired by In My Mailbox from Kristie at The Story Siren.
It is a possibility for us to show what amazing books we got during the week. 

The weather in Vienna started to get really fall-like this week. One day it was sunny and warm and the next day it was cloudy, cold or foggy. So I bought some books that kind of resemble a theme. 

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Caroline Mackler

Kiss & Blog by Alyson Noel

The Land of Stories - The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer

With Love at Christmas by Carole Matthews

Christmas at the Cupcake Café by Jenny Colgan
 
This week was my Blogoversary Week - my little Blog turned one year on Tuesday and I celebrated with guest posts from five awesome bloggers. You find an overview of this week's posts here. I am also giving away a book of your choice up to $15 from Book Depo. You can enter it until November 11th. The winner will be announced on the blog and via Twitter (follow me here). 

Blogoversary

This week is my Blogoversary Week! 
I started this blog on October 16th 2011 and to celebrate I asked 6 of my all time favorite book bloggers to write a review of their favorite book that they read 
between October 2011 and September 2012. 

Today is the last day of my Blogoversary Week and I want to thank all of the awesome bloggers who stopped by and wrote amazing reviews of their favourite books and I want to thank you who came by this week and celebrated with me. 

This week's posts were:

Don't forget to enter my
Giveaway
To celebrate my first blogoversary 
I will give away a book of your choice 
up to $15 from Book Depo
VII - very important information:
  • to enter please follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form.
  • you must be at least 13 years old or have your parents permission to enter.
  • this giveaway is open internationally as long as Book Depo ships to you.
  • the winner will be announced on the blog after the giveaway ends.
  • to protect your privacy please do not leave your e-mail adress in the comment section.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Blogoversary

This week is my Blogoversary Week! 
I started this blog on October 16th 2011 and to celebrate I asked 6 of my all time favorite book bloggers to write a review of their favorite book that they read 
between October 2011 and September 2012. 

First of all, congrats to Karin on reaching one year! Karin has been a lovely friend of mine, and so I was delighted and honored when she wrote and asked me to participate in her Blogoversary celebration week!

Anyway, I’m Jana. You might know me as That Artsy Reader Girl or one of the crew over at The Broke and the Bookish. I’ve been blogging about books for about two and a half years, but started That Artsy Reader Girl in November 2011. I live in the Rocky Mountains of the USA, and am a 25-year-old graphic designer/singer/world traveler/book lover. A huge chunk of my life (like 10 years) was spent pretty much hating reading, so I’ve been making up for lost time over the past few years. There are so many amazing books out there, and it’s become my mission to read as many as possible! When I’m not reading, I’m working on design projects for my clients, shopping, making jewelry, watching movies and old TV show re-runs, or baking yummy food!

Karin asked me to talk about a favorite book of mine that I’ve read during the life of her blog. What a hard question! I’ve read so many amazing books during the past year, that it’s hard to select which one I enjoyed the most. I think I’m going to pick Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard to discuss, though. I love that book so much.

I’m sure many of you know about Wanderlove, but for those of you who don’t, it’s all about a girl who goes on a journey of self-discovery as she gets lost (in a good way) with a cute boy in Central America. She throws caution to the wind and ends up on a crazy adventure that ignites this fire of confidence and self-worth in her soul. This girl is me. She’s artsy, and she loves to travel. I identified with her so much as her love of art and culture dripped off the pages. Part of the book takes place in Belize, which I love. I was in Belize a few years ago, so I was able to picture everything in my mind. The book just came alive, and the scenery was written beautifully. I loved the boy, Rowan. He’s bookish! Can I have him? 

The main reason this book is a favorite, though, is because it made me discover the good things in myself as I read it. I came away refreshed and excited. It inspired me to make all these goals to travel more and experience life more fully. To better my art, and to make more friends. To be spontaneous and more easy-going. I set this huge goal to go on a major trip so that I could have the same journey of self-discovery that Bria did. I never thought I’d actually do it, but I did just this past summer. And you know what? It worked. I spent 6 weeks traveling through Europe with my mom, and came away knowing myself so much better than I thought I ever would. I was extremely sick through most of the trip, but I pushed myself and found out what I’m capable of. I had an amazing time that I will never forget. I didn’t fall in love with some sexy guy on this trip, but I think I got something even better out of it. I fell in love with myself.

Thanks again, Karin, for asking me to participate in your celebration! And thanks for hosting me on your blog. Here’s to another year full of books and reading!  

Thank you Jana for being in part in my wonderful Blogoversary Week! 
Jana is one of the sweetest people I know out there in the blogging community and I cannot tell you how much I would love to go book shopping with her. Or we could meet for a coffee and talk for days. Stupid Atlantic Ocean - why do you have to be between me and her? 
I had Wanderlove on my Kindle for ages and I still didn't pick it up. I wrote it basically at the top of my TBR list and hopefully will read it soon so that I can tell her how awesome I found this book. 

Giveaway
To celebrate my first blogoversary 
I will give away a book of your choice 
up to $15 from Book Depo
VII - very important information:
  • to enter please follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form.
  • you must be at least 13 years old or have your parents permission to enter.
  • this giveaway is open internationally as long as Book Depo ships to you.
  • the winner will be announced on the blog after the giveaway ends.
  • to protect your privacy please do not leave your e-mail adress in the comment section.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friday, October 19, 2012

Blogoversary

This week is my Blogoversary Week! 
I started this blog on October 16th 2011 and to celebrate I asked 6 of my all time favorite book bloggers to write a review of their favorite book that they read 
between October 2011 and September 2012. 

"First off, HUGE happy blogoversary to Karin! She is such a sweet person and an awesome addition to the blogging community. Blogging can be seriously rough and to stick it out for a year? I'd say you're in it to win it. 

I'm Jen, and I'm one of two parts of Makeshift Bookmark, which was launched in September 2010. My co-blogger, Carla, joined me about a month ago and ALREADY she makes me look bad with how much cooler she is than me. 

 
So many amazing books have been published since Karin started blogging, but one that sticks out for me is The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. Talk about a mind screw. If you like your narrators unreliable and looney toons, Mara is your girl. But is she REALLY crazy? The constant "WHAT IF" is what nailed this book for me. Michelle Hodkin once told me that she wrote Mara in the same vein as the movie Memento. She wants you to second guess everything. EVERYTHING. 

You may have heard some WTFery about the whole "crocodile" scene. Pish posh, people. They're in the Everglades. IT MAKES SENSE, darnit. And the most awesome thing is that all the weirdness that you're left with (sans answers, go figure) in The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer is addressed in the phenomenal sequel, The Evolution of Mara Dyer (out 10/23/12! GO PREORDER!) But, because Hodkin is the daddy mac of suspense, there's a whole new cliffhanger with which to torture yourself.

Read any and everything by Michelle Hodkin. You won't be sorry!"

Thank you Jen for making me and hopefully all of my readers curious about this book. Added one more to my ever growing wish list. 
Jen is an awesome nurse and book addict, both day and night. Follow her on Twitter to read all her ramblings about her night shifts and bookish adventures. Her blog was also one of the firsts I discovered and I loved it from the beginning on. This summer she took a blogging break and I cannot tell you how happy I am that she is back and found a fabulous co-blogger in Carla.  

Giveaway
To celebrate my first blogoversary 
I will give away a book of your choice 
up to $15 from Book Depo
VII - very important information:
  • to enter please follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form.
  • you must be at least 13 years old or have your parents permission to enter.
  • this giveaway is open internationally as long as Book Depo ships to you.
  • the winner will be announced on the blog after the giveaway ends.
  • to protect your privacy please do not leave your e-mail adress in the comment section.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

...in pictures

 Next week's topic will be:
Stop
Please link you post to mine in time.
Submission period is between the 19th and the 27
th of October.
(11:59 pm CET)

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Blogoversary

This week is my Blogoversary Week! 
I started this blog on October 16th 2011 and to celebrate I asked 6 of my all time favorite book bloggers to write a review of their favorite book that they read 
between October 2011 and September 2012. 

My name is Kat and I'm a zombie-loving, book devouring, shoe-addicted Aussie and I've been living in the Netherlands for more than four years. I speak approximately four words of Dutch - at this rate I'll be able to speak a whole sentence by the end of 2014. I started my blog, The Aussie Zombie, in November 2011 shortly after discovering the awesomeness of book bloggers and deciding that I wanted to join in too! I read and review almost any book, and although zombies are my favourites, I'm also known to dip into contemporary young adult, historical fiction and non-fiction when the zombies need a holiday.



My favourite book that I've read in the past year has without a doubt been Mark Tufo's Zombie Fallout.  As well as being overflowing with zombie, there's also humour, paranormal elements and some awesome characters.  It's the book I always recommend to anyone looking for a good (adult) zombie read, and so far *touch wood* everyone I know that has read it has loved it.  To give you an idea, here are a few quotes that I love:

“I honestly wanted to stop the car and thank Captain Obvious”

“Tipper looked like a cokehead. He twitched more than Tom Arnold when Roseanne was yelling at him”

“He was a good man, maybe a card or two shy of a standard deck but you could always draw in the missing cards on the jokers”

“Zombies were coming through like holiday shoppers on Black Friday at a Best Buy with 50 inch plasma televisions on sale”

“I’d like to say there was a face-off but the zombies take that stuff way too literally”

So if you love zombies, or if you want to try a zombie book, this is definitely my recommendation!

Thank you so much Kat for stopping by at my blog and being part of my Blogoversary Week!
If you ever need a wonderful (Zombie) book recommendation go visit her blog! Kat is so awesome! I would love to meet her some day and I'm so sure that we would hit it off right from the beginning. Twitter conversation with her are always the best. You want an example? We once discussed if having pizza, ice cream and good book as company on a Saturday is acceptable and we totally agreed that it might even be better than going out. Yes, that is a really devoted reader.  

Giveaway
To celebrate my first blogoversary 
I will give away a book of your choice 
up to $15 from Book Depo
VII - very important information:
  • to enter please follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form.
  • you must be at least 13 years old or have your parents permission to enter.
  • this giveaway is open internationally as long as Book Depo ships to you.
  • the winner will be announced on the blog after the giveaway ends.
  • to protect your privacy please do not leave your e-mail adress in the comment section.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Blogoversary!

This week is my Blogoversary Week! 
I started this blog on October 16th 2011 and to celebrate I asked 6 of my all time favorite book bloggers to write a review of their favorite book that they read 
between October 2011 and September 2012. 

I’m Alexa, a twenty-something currently living in the beautiful, magical, incredible city of New York, and I read obsessively. I grew up with a passion for reading, mostly because of my parents and their heroic efforts to get me interested in books. Apart from reading books and blogging about them, I like to write and I enjoy travel. Also, I’m engaged, which is something that still feels new and exciting to me, and getting married next September.





I officially started Alexa Loves Books in April of 2011, though I only really got serious about blogging in October of 2011. I was inspired by a few of the book bloggers I followed regularly back then to do it, as I thought it was a neat idea to be able to share your thoughts on books with other people. It’s become an important part of my life, as well as an avenue for me to get connected to other book lovers, authors and even publishers! I wouldn’t give it up for the world, as it’s been the most amazing experience.





I’m so excited to talk about one of my favorite books of this year, Incarnate by Jodi Meadows. Amidst all the other fabulous books I’ve read (and there have been quite a few), I wanted to take a moment to highlight this one, if only because thinking about it brings back warm and fuzzy memories.

I was definitely nervous about going into Incarnate, because there was so much hype surrounding it. I needn’t have worried though; Incarnate was amazing and is definitely one of my favorite books I’ve ever read.

I completely loved the characters. I felt for poor Ana, who was intelligent and lovely but rejected by most of the society she grew up with. It was cool to see how she gained a little more confidence and respect towards the end of the book, though we’re still not sure what her role might be. And then there’s Sam, the guy who’s charming, intelligent, artistically inclined and who basically immediately accepts Ana - how can you not fall in love with him?

The story was intriguing from beginning to end, and I couldn’t put it down once I started it! It was cleverly paced, alternating through quieter, sweeter moments with intense, action-packed scenes. Plus, the combination of both science fiction and paranormal elements was interesting, as I’d never scene that done before.

I definitely recommend this fantastic novel! The story’s incredibly unique, and there’s romance, friendship and interesting elements to boot. 


Thank you Alexa for taking the time to write this wonderful review, I just added Incarnate to my rapidly growing wish-list.
Alexa's blog is part on my daily blog tour - of course - and she is my number one blogger to read about travel tales and discuss going abroad with. I really hope that when I'm in the US the next time I will by able to go to New York and meet up with her. I imagine it to be a fabulous day - brunch, browsing her favorite bookstores, laughing, talking and going for some cocktails in the evening :)

Giveaway
To celebrate my first blogoversary 
I will give away a book of your choice 
up to $15 from Book Depo
VII - very important information:
  • to enter please follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form.
  • you must be at least 13 years old or have your parents permission to enter.
  • this giveaway is open internationally as long as Book Depo ships to you.
  • the winner will be announced on the blog after the giveaway ends.
  • to protect your privacy please do not leave your e-mail adress in the comment section.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Blogoversary

This week is my Blogoversary Week! 
I started this blog on October 16th 2011 and to celebrate I asked 6 of my all time favorite book bloggers to write a review of their favorite book that they read 
between October 2011 and September 2012. 

One year ago on the 16th of October I started this wonderful blog and because of this I celebrate my first Blogoversary this week with guest posts from six different and fabulous book bloggers from all over the world.

My Life… was born out of two other blogs I already had – one showing photography and one talking about books. I took those and merged them together and created this lovely blog you are reading right now.

Over this past year I learned a lot about blog layouts, changed mine a few times, created buttons for my blog, my photochallenge and my blogoversary, experimented with review styles until I found one I really like, participated in memes and got to know so many wonderful bloggers. I also discovered Twitter and Goodreads and I love this interaction with my bookish friends. I discovered many new genres, like YA and Steampunk, which I’m sure I hadn’t tried if I had not read all those amazing book blogs that are out there. I received some ARCs which was and still is pretty amazing and I had some awesome discussions with authors I adore.

This year was an amazing one for me reading, blogging and socializing wise and I would like to take the time to thank all of you who read and comment here so regularly. Thank you, I really appreciate you taking the time to stop by and read my ramblings in my little corner of the internet.

I would also like to say a huge thank you to some very special people I met during the last year:
  • Daisy from Between the Pages for super funny Twitter conversations
  • Kat from The Aussie Zombie for everything – she is really special to me
  • Jana from That Artsy Reader Girl for writing amazing reviews, having a similar taste in books as I have and therefore adding loads of books to my TBR and for being awesome to chat with
  • Jen from Makeshift Bookmark because she entertains me so much with her tweets during boring lectures
  • Dani from Pen to Paper for many awesome conversations and for the idea of meeting in person when I’m back in Birmingham next year
  • Alexa from Alexa loves Books for introducing me to many great (travel related) books
  • Ginger from GReads! for introducing me to Pumpkin Spice Lattes, for recommending books and music and for some good ideas how to bring books into school (if I ever finish my studies and really are a teacher)
  • Kristie from The Story Siren for being a great inspiration without her knowing about it
  • Jamie from The Perpetual Page-Turner for mentioning so many great books on her blog, introducing the Top Ten Tuesday meme on The Broke and the Bookish and for writing super entertaining blog posts
  • Vicky from Books, Biscuits and Tea for being so sweet and for always being there when I am in desperate need of a chat- or rant-session via Twitter
  • Michelle Madow for writing awesome books, retweeting my reviews and being a wonderful person to correspond with
  • Ali McNamara for writing one of my all time favorite books, for tweeting hilarious pictures of your dogs and for being a wonderful person to chat to
  • Monica McInerney for being the nicest person ever and for sending me not one but two signed books over from Dublin
I could go on and on and on but I am sure you all know how much I love you all! Thank you for celebrating my first Blogoversary with me and for many many more to come.


Giveaway
To celebrate my first blogoversary 
I will give away a book of your choice 
up to $15 from Book Depo

VII - very important information:
  • to enter please follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form.
  • you must be at least 13 years old or have your parents permission to enter.
  • this giveaway is open internationally as long as Book Depo ships to you.
  • the winner will be announced on the blog after the giveaway ends.
  • to protect your privacy please do not leave your e-mail adress in the comment section.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, October 15, 2012

Blogoversary!

This week is my Blogoversary Week! 
I started this blog on October 16th 2011 and to celebrate I asked 6 of my all time favorite book bloggers to write a review of their favorite book that they read 
between October 2011 and September 2012.

I'm Daisy from Between the Pages and The Broke and the Bookish. I live in Holland and spend my days (and often nights) working as a doctor at a pulmonology department, which brings in the funds needed to support my book buying habit. I felt so honored when Karin asked me to be a part of her Blogoversary week!

So first off I'd like to say: thanks Karin for having me and happy blogoversary!

Karin is asking us to pick our favourite book we've read during the lifetime of her blog and let me tell you, that is a HARD question! I've read a lot of amazing books between
October 2011 and September 2012 and it's breaking my heart a little that I can't just gush about all of them.

But let's get to it, shall we:
I think my favourite book I've read during that time period would have to be The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson. I'd been PINING for that book for over a year and when I finally got to it, it was everything I could have ever wanted from it. It's epic fantasy at its best and I just LOVED it! I like my heroines strong and being good people and she's all that and more! She went through so much character growth, I felt proud to be a part of her journey. And THE BOY! If I haven't convinced you with the kickass heroine that Elisa is, maybe I can convince you by saying there's a heartbreakingly amazing BOY in there! But it's not just the characters that blew me away, the storyline with the Godstone lore is mindblowing and GAH! Even after a year I'm still failing at being coherent when talking about this book! I just finished the sequel, The Crown of Embers, so I'm sneaking it into this little bit: I have so many emotions because it made me feel ALL THE THINGS and while Rae Carson is a master at tearing my heart to pieces and then stomping on it, I may just be able to forgive her because these novels are just that amazing.

Have I convinced you all to read it yet? :)

Also, because I can't help myself, I'm going to give honorable mentions to Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas, Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder, Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi and Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins.

Thank you Daisy for writing this post for my Blogoversary Week! Your blog was one of the first ones I discovered when I started blogging a year ago and I loved it so much - still do :) I discovered many great books through your blog and recommendations via Twitter and I hope that one day we will meet in person!  

Giveaway
To celebrate my first blogoversary 
I will give away a book of your choice 
up to $15 from Book Depo
VII - very important information:
  • to enter please follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form.
  • you must be at least 13 years old or have your parents permission to enter.
  • this giveaway is open internationally as long as Book Depo ships to you.
  • the winner will be announced on the blog after the giveaway ends.
  • to protect your privacy please do not leave your e-mail adress in the comment section.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, October 14, 2012

...in books

 
 
Showcase Sunday is weekly meme hosted by Vicky at Books, Biscuits & Tea which was inspired by In My Mailbox from Kristie at The Story Siren.
It is a possibility for us to show what amazing books we got during the week. 
 
A good friend of mine reads like crazy too and so some years ago we decided  that the best idea to celebrate Christmas and our birthdays (in January and February) would be to go book shopping together. 
Until last year we were really sucessful and went shopping together once after Christmas and once after my birthday but last year life got too busy so we went book shopping for our birthday presents after I came home from Australia in late July but this year we totally failed! 
We managed to go shopping at the end of January for our Christmas presents but we never got round to go for our birthday presents until Friday (October 12th) - how crazy is that?
But we managed and hopefully we will be back on track next year. 
 
Here are the books I bought and the one I got as a really late birthday present:
I'm really in the romantic (chick-lit) mood at the moment. Maybe because I have a lot to do and I need something lighter to read. 
 
my birthday present :)
 



 

Friday, October 12, 2012

...in pictures

 Next week's topic will be:
Decline / Verfall
Please link you post to mine in time.
Submission period is between the 12th and the
20th of October.
(11:59 pm CET)

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

...in books



Review
The Last Little Blue Envelope
by Maureen Johnson

The author:
Maureen knew from an early age she wanted to be a writer. She went to high school at an all-girls' Catholic school and graduated from University of Delaware with a degree in writing. She now lives and writes in New York City.
Many of the adventures Maureen's characters face in her books are based on real-life stories. Maureen has traveled all over Europe, and is a Secret Sister to vlog brothers Hank and John Green.
source: Goodreads

For two further (one short and one long) biography go check out Maureen’s  About page on her Homepage.

First sentences:
It was that time of day again.

Summary:
Ginny Blackstone thought that the biggest adventure of her life was behind her. She spent last summer traveling around Europe, following the tasks her aunt Peg laid out in a series of letters before she died. When someone stole Ginny’s backpack—and the last little blue envelope inside—she resigned herself to never knowing how it was supposed to end.
Months later, a mysterious boy contacts Ginny from London, saying he’s found her bag. Finally, Ginny can finish what she started. But instead of ending her journey, the last letter starts a new adventure—one filled with old friends, new loves, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Ginny finds she must hold on to her wits . . . and her heart.
This time, there are no instructions.

My opinion:
In The Last Little Blue Envelope we meet Ginny again. It is winter and she needs to decide which university she wants to visit next year and has trouble deciding when she is contacted by Oliver, an English boy, who tells her he found Aunt Peg’s letters in a backpack he bought in Greece. So Ginny, once again, jumps on a plane, crosses the Atlantic Ocean and starts a new adventure with old and new friends by her side.
The Last Little Blue Envelope starts some months after we left Ginny in 13 Little Blue Envelopes and I can only say that it is as awesome as I hoped it would be. Ginny starts a new adventure and is quickly surrounded by friends again who help her solve the last mysteries Aunt Peg sent her in the 13th letter last summer.
The book again has wonderful characters, an amazing writing style and all the fun elements that fill Maureen’s books. It is the perfect sequel to 13 Little Blue Envelopes and I can highly recommend it to anyone who read and liked the first book. Ginny once again travels though some parts of Europe but this time it is winter and she not only has to solve Aunt Peg’s riddles, she also has to decide what to do with her life after high-school ends.

The Last Little Blue Envelope is available at Amazon in paperback and for your Kindle too. You can also buy it at Book Depo.

The prequel to this book is called 13 Little Blue Envelopes (read my review here) and is available at Amazon and Book Depo.

For more information about Maureen Johnson visit her Homepage, her Blog and her Facebook or Twitter page.