Summer Break!!! Series, I Hope To Catch Up On!

Welcome to Turning Pages!

As you guys might know, from my last post today, my summer break has offically started! Honestly, what school goes until the end of June, you've got to be kidding me!? But yes, mind does..

Summer means, no school, no late night homework, no stress, no going to bed and waking up early! But it does mean loads of reading and blogging time! Yoo hooo!

This summer I have a few goals, one of them being, to re-read, finish and review a few series I've had sitting on my shelf for a while now, just waiting to be opened and read! Which include:

The Pretty Little Liars, by Sara Shepard!

The Mortal Instruments, by Cassandra Clare!

The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead!

and last but not least, The House of Night, by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast!

I know this is a huge load of books, but I'm pretty determined and plus I'm OUT of school, and don't have any other obligations, besides doing a few chores every week. If you have any big reading plans or goals this summer, comment below, I would love to hear what they are!

WWW Wednesday

What am I reading?

The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff! Wasn't actually planning on reading this book, but it was selected for Burn Bright's book of the month, for our reading club! I'm really enjoying it so far, and I can't wait to see if Daphne finds her brother Obie, before things go too wrong! If you want to read a review written by two other fantastic reviewers, and me, make sure to stop by burnbright.com.au at the end of this month!

What did I just finish reading?

I just finished reading one of the cutest girl books ever! If you're looking for that book to start off your summer reading, The Darlings Are Forever, by Melissa Kantor is it!

What do I plan on reading next?

I hope to read Revived by Cat Patrick and finish up the Particulars by Maureen Doyle McQuerry soon!

Waiting On Wednesday!

Welcome to Turning Pages!

School's out! School's OUT! Finally! I'm finally free, meaning nothing to do, but read and blog! Yahooooo!

Title: Just For Fins.
Author: Tera Lynn Childs.
Summary:


"When Lily Sanderson decided to remain Crown Princess Waterlily of the mer kingdom of Thalassinia, she knew she couldn't just coast along in the current. But since she's spent the last couple of years on land, Lily's not sure she has the fins to lead a kingdom. Even her maddeningly pretentious cousin Dosinia seems to know more about ruling than she does. But Lily has to dive in deep to keep her promise to Tellin, her mer bond in name only, who tells her his kingdom is suffering in the changing ocean climate. Lily knows this is a seven seas–sized problem. They'll need to create some serious waves to make the mer community aware and get it to join together to make things right. Lily has to lead the way, even if that means facing one of the iciest queens in the mer kingdoms. Just when Lily thinks her double life on land and sea can't get any more complicated, an ancient mer law might separate Lily and her human boyfriend, Quince, after all. It feels as if the pair is up against a solid tsunami wave! In this third installment in the series that began with Forgive My Fins and Fins Are Forever, Lily will have to find a way to balance safety and justice for the mer people and for the humans she loves."


Release Date: 7/3/2012.

Book Review: Darlings Are Forever

Title: The Darlings are Forever.
Author: Melissa Kantor.
Format: Hardback.
Pages: 352
Source: Library.
Publisher: Hyperion.
Published Date: 12/6/2011
Summary:

"Jane. Victoria. Natalya. Together, they are the Darlings. Best friends forever. They have matching necklaces, their own table at Ga Ga Noodle, and even a shared motto: May you always do what you’re afraid of doing. When the friends begin freshman year at three different high schools in distant corners of New York City, they promise to live by their motto and stay as close as ever. The Darlings know they can get through anything as long as they have each other. But doing scary new things is a lot easier with your friends beside you. And now that the girls aren’t spending all their time together, everything they took for granted about their friendship starts to feel less certain. They can’t help but wonder, will they really be the Darlings forever?"

Cover:

The Darlings Are Forever, actually had a recent cover change, going from the picture of three girls picnicking in a field, to a bright pink background with fortune cookies. If I was up to me to select a cover, it would be the newer one; it's just brighter and I feel it matches the story and the characters' personalities a lot more!

My Thoughts:

Darlings in Love was what got me into my summer romance novel kick; even though the story itself doesn't take place in the summer months, but it's just a nice and light read to indulge on a hot day at the beach. Loving it so much, I decided to research if Melissa Kantor wrote any other novels I could pick up and gulp down; she does...and one of them is called The Darlings Are Forever, the first book in the series...

So yes, yet again, I read the series out of order, simply because I didn't do my share of research ahead of time.

But now I'm back on track, and again head over heels for the three darlings and Melissa Kantor's writing style! The Darlings Are Forever, is about three teenage girls going into their first year of high school, but each to a different school. Promising each other on the last day of summer, things would never change and they'll always be friends, the girls can't wait to see what high school has in store for them.

Victoria creates her own baking club, Jane gets a part in a major play production, and Natalya becomes friends with a few of her school's most popular girls. Things seems to be going just right, school is treating everyone of them great and they're all still really close, even with their busy schedules!

But things aren't always what they seem to be, and those things start going down hill. Jane starts to have feelings for her play's producer, Victoria gets caught going to a party, and Natalya realizes the girls she thought she became so close with only want to be associated with her because of Victoria and her dad.

The Darlings Are Forever was packed with action, romance, and scandal! If you're looking for that book to get you started on your summer reading this series is it!

Book Haul!

Welcome to Turning Pages!

Happy Monday!

School is almost out, this is my last week! So I decided to spoil myself and went out and bought two books (and two act/sat books, but we don't like those!), I can't wait to spend all summer relaxing and reading! (I', so jealous of you who are already doing that!!!)

Daughter of Smoke and Bone, by Laini Taylor.

"Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky. In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low. And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war. Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages—not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out. When one of the strangers—beautiful, haunted Akiva—fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?"

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, by Michelle Hodkin.

"Mara Dyer doesn’t know if she is crazy or haunted—all she knows is that everyone around her is dying in this suspenseful and “strong, inventive tale” (Kirkus Reviews). Mara Dyer doesn’t think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there. It can. She believes there must be more to the accident she can’t remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed. There is. She doesn’t believe that after everything she’s been through, she can fall in love. She’s wrong. After Mara survives the traumatizing accident at the old asylum, it makes sense that she has issues. She lost her best friend, her boyfriend, and her boyfriend’s sister, and as if that weren’t enough to cope with, her family moves to a new state in order to give her a fresh start. But that fresh start is quickly filled with hallucinations—or are they premonitions?—and then corpses, and the boundary between reality and nightmare is wavering. At school, there’s Noah, a devastatingly handsome charmer who seems determined to help Mara piece together what’s real, what’s imagined—and what’s very, very dangerous. This fast-paced psychological—or is it paranormal?—thriller will leave you breathless for its sequel, The Evolution of Mara Dyer."


Read any of these two books? Comment down below, but NO SPOILERS! Pretty please (;

Waiting on Wednesday!

Welcome to Turning Pages!

Title: The Evolution of Mara Dyer.
Author: Michelle Hodkin.
Summary:

"The truth about Mara Dyer’s dangerous and mysterious abilities continues to unravel in this gripping sequel to the thrilling The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. One week after Mara walked into a police station in Miami at the close of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, she has been committed to psychiatric treatment for what her parents believe was a mental breakdown. But what seems like a hallucination to everyone else is a chilling reality for Mara. Someone from her past has discovered her strange, deeply disturbing secret and that someone wants her to pay. But when no one believes the truth, Mara is totally helpless. The only person on her side is Noah Shaw, as sexy and handsome as he is loyal and cunning. Noah is the only person who can help Mara—as long as he doesn’t get himself killed in the process."

Release Date: 10/23/2012

Blogger of the Week!

Welcome to Turning Pages and to another Blogger of the Week!

(If you would like to become a blogger of the week, then please head to my "Blogger of the Week" tab, and check out what you need to do to participate! If you have any further questions don't be afraid to email me!)

Please give a warm welcome to Laura, from Scattered Figments!

Laura, can you tell us a little about yourself, and your blog, Scattered Figments? How did you come up with the name? Does it have a special meaning? 

I started blogging just over a year ago. A friend of mine had a great book blog and I figured it sounded like fun! I've always been an avid reader and, hell, I also like the sound of my own voice! Gushing about books I love and ranting about books I hate has turned out to be not only fun, but rewarding. Blogging also makes me write. I'm hoping to get a book published some day and writing reviews means I have to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) on a regular basis. "Scattered Figments" came from a notebook I keep for my writing. On the front page I wrote "Scattered figments and broken fragments / from my imagination." It's hardly brilliant, but I liked the way it sounded. When I had to choose a name for the blog, it just popped to mind.

(That's awesome! I was never really an avid reader, until about two years ago, no one was able to make me pick up a book. But now you'll never see me without one! My friends here at home don't really read much, and that's why I started blogging, I was on the search for friends with a common love for books!)

If you could change one thing about your blog, what would that thing be? 

I would change the amount of giveaways I'm able to do. I'd love to be able to send out all the books I love and offer more book vouchers as an incentive for people to pick up some of the books I recommend. However, I'm simply not rich enough to do so! I'll stick to one-per-month until I win the Lotto.

What are your goals for blogging? 

I've been meaning to get more involved in book tours and author interviews. I'm still not entirely sure how to do this, but at some point I'll get around to it!

(I love doing book tours and author interviews! Authors don't always come to where I live, meaning I don't get to ask them questions I have, but with author interviews all and more questions are answered!)

What's the most recent book you've read and tell us about in exactly five words.

I read a book called "The Missing" by Shiloh Walker. I picked it up from the YA shelves in a discount book store. It must've been miss-shelved because the five words I'd use a describe it would be: MUCH raunchier than I expected!

(Hahaha, perfect word choice!)

What do you enjoy doing besides reading and blogging? 

All my favourite pass-times involve escapism. I'm a movie buff (especially when it comes to horror) and a video-game fanatic! I know, geeky right? But I just love a good story and playing games ( favourites include those from the Final Fantasy or Dragon Age series) is sometimes like stepping into a good book! I also write. I've recently finished writing my first book and have started querying agents. It's a scary process and, being a newbie, I'm sure it'll take me a long time to get anywhere with it, but it's still exciting.

Your all time favorite book? 

This question is always a toughie as when I think I've chosen my favourite, a half-dozen other options spring to mind and make me second-guess myself! Whenever a hear the question, though, the book which springs to mind first is always "The Stand", by Stephen King. It's a book about a plague which wipes out 99.9% of the human race. The survivors of the plague have to side with either a 108 year old woman who acts as the voice of God, or The Dark Man, Randall Flagg. I'm not usually into books with religious overtones, so for me to say this is one of my favourites shows how good the writing must be!

(I really want to get into Stephen King books, I hear nothing but positive things!)

What do you indulge in while reading a good book? 

White Zinfandel! Unless I'm reading in the morning, in which case I prefer Jack Daniels, straight up. Kidding! I love to take a book to the beach and grab a coffee on the way. Here in Wales, it's often too cold and/or wet to get out of the car with said book and coffee, but I kind of love just sitting in the car with the rain hitting the windows while I read. Of course, the coffee tends to make the windows steam up, so I probably look dodgy as hell!

If you could take out any author to lunch, who would you take and to where? 

I would have to choose Stephen King, for a couple of reasons. The first is that he's my hero. The second is that I actually met him once before and it was an excruciatingly embarrassing moment of my life. Seriously, the shame haunts me. You can read about the excruciating encounter here. You'll cringe. A lot.

So there you have it! Thank you so much for letting me take part in this exciting new meme!

Thank you so much for visiting us at Turning Pages and answering our questions!

If you are also a book blogger and want your blog to be featured here, please make sure to check out the "Blogger of the Week" tab above!

Book Review: City Of Ashes

Title: City of Ashes.
Author: Cassandra Clare.
Series: Yes, #2.
Format: Paperback.
Pages: 496.
Source: Barnes and Noble.
Publisher: McElderry Books.
Published Date: 3/24/2009.
Summary:
"Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go—especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil—and also her father. To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings—and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?"


Cover:

LOVE! Every book in this series, matched perfectly and they each look fantastic! I hope the rest of the series will look just as good as the first four!

My Thoughts:

Starting to read the City of Ashes, I was a bit skeptical! I didn't really enjoy the first book very much, so I didn't really want to waste my time, and force myself to push through the second one as I did with the first.

But City of Ashes left me speechless! My jaw was dragging on the floor, the entire last one hundred pages! Every single page was intense, I couldn't stop myself from picking it up!

In this whimsical world of werewolves, vampires, and shadow hunters, a "somewhat" normal teenage girl just wants her life back. Continuing on from the first book (City of Bones), Jace and Clary continue their search for their father (Valentine) and the secrets he was keeping.

Throughout their journey both teens are faced with tough obstacles and things might just not be the way they seem. Will things between Jace and Clary stay the same? Will they deny their love for one another? Or will they get the chance to be together?! Well, you'll just have to read the book yourself to find out! (:

What's Coming This Week?

Paperback:

Beautiful Chaos (Beautiful Creatures Series #3), by Kami Garcia. 

I'll Be There, by Holly Goldberg Sloan. 

Chosen Ones, by Tiffany Truitt. 

Huntress, by Malinda Lo. 

Run the Game, by Jason Myers. 

Paper Covers Rock, by Jenny Hubbard. 

Ripple, by Mandy Hubbard. 

Sometimes It Happens, by Lauren Barnholdt.

Hardback: 

 Rapture (Lauren Kate's Fallen Series #4 - B&N Exclusive Edition), by Lauren Kate. 

The Golden Lily (Bloodlines Series #2), by Richelle Mead. 

Timepiece (Hourglass Series #2), by Myra McEntire. 

The Fear (Enemy Series #3), by Charlie Higson. 

Stronger: A Super Human Clash, by Michael Carroll. 

For Darkness Shows the Stars, by Diana Peterfreund.

WWW Wednesday!

Welcome to Turning Pages!

What am I currently reading?

School has been extremely busy because of summer break coming up soon, so I haven't gotten very much time in to read and blog as I'd like to. So with that I'm still reading the Darlings Are Forever, by Melissa Kantor. This is such a cute series, and a perfect light read for the summer! Besides reading about the darlings, I'm also about sixty pages into The Peculiars by Maureen Doyle McQuerry. So far it's pretty interesting, and I've heard REALLY good things about it!

What did I just finish reading?

Well I haven't actually finished any book too recently, with being so stressed from school. But the last book I finished was The City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare, which I'm hoping to get my review up tomorrow! Even though I didn't really like the first book, The City of Bones, I liked this one a lot better!

What do I plan on reading next?

I'm not exactly sure yet, but if you really want to know, I'll be posting my TBR pile for this month before the weekend, so come back and check that out ! (:

Waiting On Wednesday!

Welcome to Turning Pages!

Summer is coming up really soon, and I can't wait to finally sit out in my backyard and just read ALL day long! There are tons of great summer reads coming out within the next few weeks and I'm thrilled to get my hands on! Here's one of them:

Wake by Amanda Hocking.



"Gorgeous. Fearless. Dangerous. They're the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Lexi and Thea have caught everyone's attention—but it’s Gemma who’s attracted theirs. She’s the one they’ve chosen to be part of their group. Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different. Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. But her new powers come with a terrifying price. And as she uncovers the truth, she’s is forced to choose between staying with those she loves—or entering a new world brimming with dark hungers and unimaginable secrets."


This Wake the book you're waiting for also? Let me know!

Book Haul!

Welcome to Turning Pages!

These past two weeks and the next two coming up will be a tad bit stressful here at Turning Pages, since school is ending soon and I have tons of school work to finish up before ends. But I'm trying to do my best to get a post or two up everyday! Once these next two weeks are over, and the stress of the school year ending is over, everything will be back to normal!

But now to the books I got this week! Remember summer break is coming up soon for me, so I'm making a lot of "summer-y" book purchases!

All These Things I've Done, by Gabrielle Zevin.

"In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is carefully rationed, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city's most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine. It consists of going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.'s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until her ex is accidently poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she's to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight--at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafia family."

Seventeenth Summer, by Maureen Daley.

"Until the summer before college, Angie Morrow didn't really date. Her mother didin't like her to go out much. But no one -- not even Angie's mother -- can resist the charm of strikingly handsome Jack Duluth. His good looks grab Angies's attention from the moment in June when Jack throws Angie a smile at McKight's drugstore. And on their first date sailing under the stars -- when Jack leans in and whispers to Angie, "You look nice with the wind in your hair," the strange new feeling s begin. Tingles, prickles, warmth: the tell-tale signs of romance. It's the beginning of an unforgettable summer for Angie, full of wonder, warmth, tears, challenge, and love."

We'll Always Have Summer, by Jenny Han.

"It's been two years since Conrad told Belly to go with Jeremiah. She and Jeremiah have been inseparable ever since, even attending the same college-- only, their relationship hasn't exactly been the happily ever after Belly had hoped it would be. And when Jeremiah makes the worst mistake a boy can make, Belly is forced to question what she thought was true love. Does she really have a future with Jeremiah? Has she ever gotten over Conrad? It's time for Belly to decide, once and for all, who has her heart forever."

If you have read any of these books, comment down below, I would love to hear what you think!

What's Coming This Week?

Paperback:

Snow White and the Huntsman, by Lily Blake. 

Awakened (House of Night Series #8), by P. C. Cast. 

Twisted (Pretty Little Liars Series #9), by Sara Shepard. 

Keeping Secrets, by Alyson Noël. 

Daughter of Smoke and Bone, by Laini Taylor. 

The Day Before, by Lisa Schroeder.

Hardback:

Stunning (Pretty Little Liars Series #11), by Sara Shepard. 

Mirage, by Kristi Cook. 

A Midsummer's Nightmare, by Kody Keplinger. 

Messy, by Heather Cocks. 

Surrender, by Elana Johnson. 

Arise, by Tara Hudson. 

Tempest Unleashed, by Tracy Deebs. 

Monument 14, by Emmy Laybourne. 

A Girl Named Digit, by Annabel Monaghan.