This Place Has No Atmosphere by Paula Danziger

Summary (via Goodreads):  "It's the year 2057 and fourteen-year-old Aurora couldn't be happier with her life on Earth: She's part of the "in" crowd, her best friend is a celebrity, and Matthew has asked her to Homecoming. But Aurora's parents have new jobs on the moon, and she and her little sister must leave their friends and schools to go with them. Aurora is sure she will hate life on the moon, because there are only 750 people in the whole colony. What if none of them is a cute boy her age?"

Review: I really loved this book when I was young, and I just now realized why. It's about a girl who moves to a small town where there are very few people with whom to socialize and she finds herself through acting. Which is pretty much the story of my life. Growing up as an Air Force brat, I moved around a lot. This story really spoke to me, since it's about a family that gets uprooted and all the members have to make new friends. Just say "Army post in Germany" instead of "colony on the moon."

Anyway, besides the fact that it deals with an issue that lots of teenage girls experience (as most Paula Danziger books do), it's a sweet, quick read with cute situations (SHOWING me romance instead of telling me about it-- hooray!) and characters that feel real.

Goodreads Shelves: fluffy, i-own-it, is-this-a-kissing-book, thought-provoking

Rating:

Switched by Amanda Hocking

Goodreads Summary: "When Wendy Everly was six-years-old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. It isn't until eleven years later that Wendy finds out her mother might've been telling the truth.

With the help of Finn Holmes, Wendy finds herself in a world she never knew existed - and it's one she's not sure if she wants to be a part of."

Review: I'll tell you the sentence that bugged me the most in this book. I don't remember it verbatim, but the gist of it was, "I hadn't really thought about him much, but now that he'd started being a jerk to me, I realized how attractive he was." Which, now that I think about it, describes the plight of quintessential Nice Guys rather accurately. Anyway, this is the Girl Who Doesn't Think She's Pretty Likes a Mean Boy story, although he stops being mean fairly soon into the book. LUCKILY, he doesn't stop brooding EVER, so the people on Team Edward still have something to drool over.

I was fairly ok with Wendy. Like, as a person. She's ok with standing up for herself; she's ok with getting into people's faces and speaking up when she thinks she should. She's frustrated that no one will tell her anything, which I think is reasonable.

The exposition, while frustrating, was well done, I think. It was frustrating in that Wendy kept getting a runaround, where she'd ask questions and people would be like, "oh, you'll find that out soon enough." But it was well done in that I didn't have to deal with three straight chapters of exposition, which, now that I think of it, is nice. It reminds me of the exposition in The Maze Runner.

Anyway, I'll let you know how the sequel goes.

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, i-have-the-ebook, is-this-a-kissing-book

Rating:

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Summary (via the author's website): "Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away.

Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.

When Melanie, one of the few remaining "wild" humans is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn't expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

Wanderer probes Melanie's thoughts, hoping to discover the whereabouts of the remaining human resistance. Instead, Melanie fills Wanderer's mind with visions of the man Melanie loves—Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body's desires, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she has been tasked with exposing. When outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off on a dangerous and uncertain search for the man they both love."

Review: So you may have noticed the Twilight-themed poll in my left sidebar... I'm kind of curious how y'all feel about those books. I fall into the second category. It's the "I recognize that they're poorly written, but something about them appeals to me." Not to say, mind, that I LIKE them, per se, but that when I read them I can't really put them down.

I feel a little better about the Host. I actually do like it. The characterization of Wanda is fairly well done, although I think if I met her in real life she might be kind of annoying in the crème brûlée way (has anyone seen My Best Friend's Wedding??). The story is fairly interesting, high in the "then he looked at me twice" drama that I love. The beginning and ending are slow, but I'm ok with that.

All in all, a pretty decent book. Kind of surprising from the author of Breaking Dawn, n'est pas?

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, i-own-it, is-this-a-kissing-book, pretentious, thought-provoking

Rating:

Reading My Own Darn Books

Hi guys. Can we talk for a minute? And by "talk," I of course mean that I'll type and you'll read. And if you're not ok with that, well, that's cool.

So anyway, I decided to take on a project. It's kind of epic. Here's the deal: I want to read my books.

I know, right? It seems pretty intuitive... yet most of you know that it's much easier said than done. You buy books, you check them out from the library, you win them, or you borrow them, and you end up with a huge stack of books that you own - paid money for, even! - that you've never even cracked open. What the heck?!

So my goal is to read, if not ALL of them (I have shopped many a book sale in my day), at least a lot. I think it's good to go ahead and read books I actually already have. Who knows, maybe I'll end up trimming my collection down a little. To that end, I'm enforcing a Ban on all books that I don't own, starting... well, about a week ago, actually.

As with all good Policies, there are a couple exceptions. In this case, they're very specific, and are as follows:

• I already have The Maze Runner out from the library, so I'm gonna read that. Probably.
• My father-in-law lent me two books about World War II, and I'm gonna read those.
• Audio books are excepted, because I only have one (Harry Potter 5, if you're curious).
• Ebooks don't count. I'll buy or download as I see fit, although I won't borrow any from the library.

Other than that,  the Policy, for the forseeable future, is that I'm not going to read or buy any book that I don't already own.

I'm actually pretty excited about this. I have a lot of books I haven't read, and I'm betting I'll find a new favorite or two. :)

I know that we all need solidarity sometimes, so if you want to join in, feel free! It's a good way to curb a book-buying habit, if you have one, or a library addiction, like I'm recovering from. Just link to your blog in the comments. Create your own rules (don't think you have to follow mine!), and go ahead and grab the button! Good luck!

Cryoburn by Lois McMaster Bujold

Summary (via the publisher's website): "Miles Vorkosigan is back!

Kibou-daini is a planet obsessed with cheating death. Barrayaran Imperial Auditor Miles Vorkosigan can hardly disapprove-he's been cheating death his whole life, on the theory that turnabout is fair play. But when a Kibou-daini cryocorp-an immortal company whose job it is to shepherd its all-too-mortal frozen patrons into an unknown future-attempts to expand its franchise into the Barrayaran Empire, Emperor Gregor dispatches his top troubleshooter Miles to check it out.

On Kibou-daini, Miles discovers generational conflict over money and resources is heating up, even as refugees displaced in time skew the meaning of generation past repair. Here he finds a young boy with a passion for pets and a dangerous secret, a Snow White trapped in an icy coffin who burns to re-write her own tale, and a mysterious crone who is the very embodiment of the warning Don't mess with the secretary. Bribery, corruption, conspiracy, kidnapping-something is rotten on Kibou-daini, and it isn't due to power outages in the Cryocombs. And Miles is in the middle-of trouble!"

Review: So... wow. This book kind of makes me sad, because the Big Thing that happens at the end kind of overshadows the rest of the book. So that there's this whole book, but the only thing anyone's going to talk about is the Big Thing. Which comes at the very end.

Other than that, though, good book. The storyline was a little confusing for me, but I'm going to blame that on rushing through the book for the sake of devouring it. Doing that tends to get me confused.

Random thought: On most planets in this universe, you can tell that there's some kind of Earth-based cultural influence (the idea being that everyone originally came from Earth when they colonized all these planets), but the cultural influence in Kibou-dani is the strongest I've seen in this series, from the architecture to the clothing to the way people speak. (It's all Japanese, if you were wondering.)

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, funny, i-have-the-ebook, i-own-it, thought-provoking

Rating:

A Matter of Magic by Patricia C. Wrede

Summary (via Goodreads): "When a stranger offers her a small fortune to break into a traveling magician’s wagon, Kim doesn’t hesitate. Having grown up a waif in the dirty streets of London, Kim isn’t above a bit of breaking-and-entering. A hard life and lean times have schooled her in one lesson: steal from them before they steal from you. But when the magician catches her in the act, Kim thinks she’s done for. Until he suggests she become his apprentice; then the real trouble begins.

Kim soon finds herself entangled with murderers, thieves, and cloak-and-dagger politics, all while trying to learn how to become both a proper lady and a magician in her own right.
Magic and intrigue go hand in hand in Mairelon the Magician and The Magician’s Ward, two fast-paced novels filled with mystery and romance, set against the intricate backdrop of Regency England."

Review: So I'd already read both the books this one's made up of, several years ago. But it was nice to revisit them, since it's been a while. I was a fan. The stories were fun, and the characterizations were pretty well done. Also, because I was looking for it, I caught all of the instances where Mairelon was subtly unhappy about Kim having suitors and stuff. So that was fun.

I had a hard time keeping track of what people looked like, though. This interfered with how well I was able to visualize things, so I wish there had been more description sprinkled in.

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, funny, i-own-it, is-this-a-kissing-book

Rating:

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Summary (via the author's website):  "When 16-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London’s Downworld,where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What’s more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa’s power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm’s length...everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world...and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all."

Review: So here it is... it took me forever to finally read it, but once I got into it, it only took about two days. So hooray!

Can I talk about Will for a minute? Here is the actual "Bad Boy." Jace is not really a bad boy, he only pretends to be. He's sarcastic and impertinent and stuff, but when it comes down to it he's nice to the people around him, loyal, and a genuinely good person. Will, on the other hand, is rude and sarcastic too, but when it comes down to it he has a lot of psychological damage and he's not very nice to people. Ever. I'm proud of Ms. Clare, because so many people create these characters they say are "bad" who are actually just Jaces... teddy bears on the inside. But Will is an actual jerk. So, you know, props. Also, if you couldn't tell, I'm on Team Jem. But I reserve the right to change my mind when I read the next book(s) in the trilogy.

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, funny, i-own-it, is-this-a-kissing-book, pretentious

Rating:

New Awards

I've won a couple awards in the last few weeks!

Thanks to Missy at Missy's Reads & Reviews and Jennifer at Book Noise for the One Lovely Blog award!

Here are the rules:
1. Accept the award. Post it on your blog with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.

2. Pay it forward to 15 other bloggers that you have newly discovered.

3. Contact those blog owners and let them know they've been chosen.

And thanks to Tina at Book Couture for the Life is Good award!

Here are the rules:
1. Thank and link back to the person that gave this award.
2. Answer the 10 survey questions.
3. Pass the award along to 15 bloggers who you have recently discovered and who you think are fantastic.
4. Contact the bloggers you’ve picked to let them know about the award.

Here are the questions:
1. If you blog anonymously are you happy doing it that way; if you are not anonymous do you wish you had started out anonymously so you could be anonymous now?
I'm semi-anonymous; if you were intent on finding me, you could, but it's not super easy... question mark? I'm happy with the way it is, though. :)

2. Describe one incident that shows your inner stubborn side:

Um... I dunno! Maybe one time I insisted on where to eat dinner?

3. What do you see when you really look at yourself in the mirror?

Hm... blond hair, hazel eyes, and a nose I'll probably never like. lol

4. What is your favourite summer cold drink?

There's this Korean drink called Milkus... it's pretty much carbonated milk. It sounds gross, but it's actually very tasty.

5. When you take time for yourself, what do you do?

 I watch TV, especially "guilty pleasure" shows like Buffy.

6. Is there something you still want to accomplish in your life? What is it?

 Of course! What good would life be if there weren't anything I wanted to accomplish?? Right now I'm working on getting a job... some time in the future I want to start a family.

7. When you attended school, were you the class clown, the class overachiever , the shy person, or always ditching?
I was the smart one, I admit it. Also, my senior year I took a bunch of classes that didn't involve much academia, so my teachers didn't care if I left. That was nice. :)

8. If you close your eyes and want to visualize a very poignant moment of your life what would you see?

Hm... probably my wedding day.

9. Is it easy for you to share your true self in your blog or are you more comfortable writing posts about other people or events?
I guess I'm more comfortable talking about other things (you know, like books and stuff...) because I don't know if people care about my personal life. I think there's an important balance to strike between talking about my life and talking about books, and I think I'm a little skewed towards the book side. I'll try to work on that, eh?

10. If you had the choice to sit down and read or talk on the phone, which would you do and why?

That depends on who was on the phone! I wouldn't hang up on someone just to read, but if I had the choice between reading and just calling some random friend for the heck of it, I'd probably read.

I'm afraid I'm going to cop out in the "passing these along" category and give them to everyone! Feel free to take these and pass them on! :)

The Treasure Map of Boys by E. Lockhart

Summary: "Ruby is back at Tate Prep, and it’s her thirty-seventh week in the state of Noboyfriend. Her panic attacks are bad, her love life is even worse, and what’s more: Noel is writing her notes, Jackson is giving her frogs, Gideon is helping her cook, and Finn is making her brownies. Rumors are flying, and Ruby’s already-sucky reputation is heading downhill.

Not only that, she’s also: running a bake sale, learning the secrets of heavymetal therapy, encountering some seriously smelly feet, defending the rights of pygmy goats, and body-guarding Noel from unwanted advances.

In this companion novel to The Boyfriend List and The Boy Book, Ruby struggles to secure some sort of mental health, to understand what constitutes a real friendship, and to find true love—if such a thing exists."

Review: I think I'm having a hard time reviewing this one because I read all three of them right in a row. I feel like pretty much everything I have to say here has already been said, but I'll give it a try.

So. I like Ruby's movie lists in her footnotes. I especially like when she's illustrating something that never happens in the movies: "Movies where [something that has happened to her/might happen]: none." In fact, now that I think of it, I like all of her footnotes. Even though a lot of the ones give definitions that I already know, which I'm going to pretentiously attribute to the fact that I'm a college graduate reading books aimed at high school students.

I like seeing Ruby's growth. She goes from the girl who kisses her best friend's boyfriend at a dance to someone who can say no to boys, stand up to her friends, and objectively admit that the people she was once close to aren't actually very good friends at all. So hooray for character development!

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, funny, is-this-a-kissing-book, thought-provoking, to-own

Rating:

The Boy Book by E. Lockhart

Summary: "Here is how things stand at the beginning of newly-licensed driver Ruby Oliver's junior year at Tate Prep:

 • Kim: Not speaking. But far away in Tokyo.
 • Cricket: Not speaking.
 • Nora: Speaking--sort of. Chatted a couple times this summer when they bumped into each other outside of school--once shopping in the U District, and once in the Elliot Bay Bookstore. But she hadn't called Ruby, or anything.
 • Noel: Didn't care what anyone thinks.
 • Meghan: Didn't have any other friends.
 • Dr. Z: Speaking.
 • And Jackson. The big one. Not speaking.

But, by Winter Break, a new job, an unlikely but satisfying friend combo, additional entries to The Boy Book and many difficult decisions help Ruby to see that there is, indeed, life outside the Tate Universe."

Review: I liked this one as well. Ruby is still awesome, and still doing her thing. I like that things with boys happen the way they do in real life: Sometimes it's not meant to be, and they start dating other girls, and that's ok.

I like Ruby's therapy sessions. Doctor Z is pretty cool, and I like reading about them and about mental health and stuff. (Can you tell that I like my reading to be slightly educational? Because I do.)

I'm frustrated by Ruby's friends sometimes. Like how Kim and Cricket won't let Ruby have a side to the story, and won't give her a chance to slip up and make mistakes sometimes. That's frustrating.

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, funny, is-this-a-kissing-book, thought-provoking, to-own

Rating: