Nevermore by Kelly Creagh

A+ 10/10 WOULD DEFINITELY RECOMMEND!

I have to start this review off by saying that I don’t normally read these types of books. Paranormal romance has just never been my thing. When I accidentally stumbled upon this book, I was immediately intrigued by the Poe aspect of the story; I’ve always been an Edgar Allan Poe fangirl. I happened to glance at some of the reviews, which generally seemed pretty positive. I took a chance, and let me tell you what, I am SO happy that I did. 

This book tells the story of Isobel and Varen, a cheerleader and a goth who end up being paired together for an English project. Neither one of them is very happy about this arrangement. Isobel’s possessive, football playing boyfriend isn’t happy about it either. 

This book doesn’t have that immediate opposites-attract, love-at-first-sight aspect (THANK GOD). We slowly see Isobel become aware that you can’t judge a person by what they look like and what others think of them. At the same time, Varen doesn’t just see her as a dumb cheerleader anymore. You can tell, even with his aloof mannerisms, that he genuinely cares about her and wants nothing more than to protect her. It is so refreshing to see a romance that develops in a realistic way. Just about when you are ready for them to start admitting their feelings for one another, strange things begin to happen. Isobel begins to have intense dreams that seem all too real when she wakes up. She is hearing voices. She is being chased by invisible adversaries through the woods. Why did all this begin as they started this project? What does Edgar Allan Poe have to do with this?

I am so impressed by the writing of this book. This is one of those stories that could have definitely had a crash-and-burn if it wasn’t executed perfectly. Kelly Creagh managed to weave the story of Isobel and Varen seamlessly with her references to Poe and the mysterious circumstances that surrounded his death. She has given her readers a so-crazy-it-just-might-be-true explanation, and that is one of the greatest things about the book. You are left sitting there wondering...could something like this have really happened? 

I think the only bad thing I could possibly say about it is the cliffhanger ending, and I truly don’t know how anybody who read this when it first came out was able to handle waiting for the second book. Thankfully, I have already downloaded it onto my Nook, and plan to begin reading it after I post this review. 

Fairytales for Wilde Girls by Allyse Near

THIS BOOK WAS FANTASTIC!

Isola Wilde is a sixteen year old girl living in England with her parents. She is considered quite strange by most of her acquaintances, but she does have her two very good friends, James and Grace. She also has friends that only she can see, who she has dubbed her ‘brother-princes’, guardians straight from a fairytale. They do everything in their power to protect Isola, which is good, because things are about to get a little crazy when she is walking through the woods and runs into a dead girl in a birdcage. 

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The best thing about this book was the absolutely mesmerizing way in which Allyse Near writes. She has such a unique style, and I truly hope to see more books from her in the future. There was not a single instance where I felt bored while reading this story. 

The second best thing about this book was definitely the main character. Isola is now one of my all-time favorite characters from any book ever. Seriously. She was loving and unique, and it was impossible not to be on her side, hoping for everything to work out for her. 

I don’t know if I can properly express just how great this story was without being excessively gushy. It was truly magical, so I highly suggest you do yourselves a favor and give it a read.

P.S. If you are in America, you can order it through fishpond.com. They have free shipping :)

Tell The Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

This isn’t really going to be a proper review; I wasn’t really into book reviewing when I read this book, so I didn’t write down my thoughts. I just wanted to put it out there that it’s one of those books that I feel everyone should read. It’s just beautifully written, and while it is heartbreaking, it is also full of hope.

This book came into my life at just the right time. My father had passed away in July, and I found myself starting books and putting them down repeatedly. I was going through the worst case of reader’s block that I have ever experienced in my life. My fiance, knowing that I had wanted to read this book, bought it for me. 

I'm pretty sure that this book brought me back from the dead, and I will always remember it being the saving grace that allowed me to finally cry and let myself feel something other than emptiness. It will forever hold a spot in my heart for that.

Book Review- The Wisdom of the Shire by Noble Smith

This is a unique and engaging self-help book, perfect for any fan of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Noble Smith encourages readers to take a step back from their hectic lives and the many problems that they deal with on a day-to-day basis, and live in a more simplistic manner, just like the hobbits of Middle-Earth.

Anyone who knows me knows that I have been completely enamored by the hobbits and their way of life ever since I first picked up Tolkien’s books. Good food and cheer, what could be better than that? It seems that Noble Smith shares my thoughts on this matter, and really gives us a handbook to following the Hobbits’ example. One of the chapters has such a simple, yet overlooked message. Sleep well. Yeah, that’s it. As simple as it sounds, how many of us actually turn off our TVs and computers at a decent hour and go to bed? Noble even says, “If you’re reading this book right now and you’re tired, put it down and go to bed.” I also thought that the chapter on love was brilliant. Noble has us think about where we currently base our ideas of ‘romance and love’. How many of us are constantly looking at celebrity gossip magazines and acting so surprised when these people split up and both go after ‘the next best thing’? Smith writes about Tolkien and his wife, Edith, and the obstacles they overcame to be together. “The Wisdom of the Shire tells us: True love must be defended bravely with the soul of a warrior, and yet tended with the patience of a gardener.” 

I was very happy with this book, and I sure hope others will decide to pick it up and add some Hobbit wisdom to their lives. You won’t be disappointed.  

Rating: A+

Will I read it again?: Yes, probably quite often

Saturday

I am not a fan of the mall. I feel like the older I get, the more I hate shopping malls. The people are rude, and the clothes are expensive, and it gives me way too much unneeded anxiety. But I had a coupon for H&M and some money from tax returns, so I thought, why not?

Well, I'm pretty sure Ryan and I were only there for a little over an hour before it was time to go. The whole ordeal was giving me a headache. People just stopping right in front of you, but looking at you like you're wrong for running into them. People who stop half in-half out of a store and block the entrance. The food court...OMG. Talk about sensory overload. Just looking at that place can give me a mild to moderate panic attack.

We probably won't go back for a long time.

The trip was not a complete waste though. I got a few nice things:

Alice in Wonderland iPhone case

The Wisdom of the Shire

Pretty Dress

Oz Travel Cup

1.) Alice iPhone case. Impulse buy, but Alice in Wonderland is my favorite Disney movie, and it's almost impossible to find any Alice-themed merchandise. It's cute and I'm happy.

2.) The Wisdom of the Shire by Noble Smith. I have been wanting to read this and I never pass up on good books. This is a self-help book, but Hobbit-style. I've always said that the best way to live is to live like a hobbit. 

3.) Pretty dress. I only bought this because I had a 20% off coupon for H&M. I do like it a lot though. 

4.) Oz cup. Impulse buy. I really can't express how excited I am to see this movie though. 

All in all, it was a decent trip that I will not be doing again for a very long time.

Book Review- Repeat it Today with Tears by Anne Peile

Susanna is a teenage girl who is obsessed with the father that she has never known. When she schemes up a way in which to meet him, rather than introduce herself as his daughter, she seduces him. Rather obviously, this is not a relationship that is going to end well for either party involved. 

This is the kind of book that I knew I wanted to read the moment I read the synopsis. I am a girl with an absent father. I can relate to Susanna’s longing and desperation for a relationship with her father. I was able to look past the repulsive idea of a father/daughter sex affair, and read it for what it meant to Susie- daddy’s love at last. And she was deeply in love with him, in her own obsessive way. She states that she exists only for him, and she believes it to her very core. Without her father, she is nothing. Just try to imagine having this mindset, never wavering, no matter what happens... I find it utterly heartbreaking. There were so many points in this book where the emotion took over me, and I had to put the book down to get my thoughts in order. That, to me, is a good read. 

This is a book that I highly recommend, if you are able to get past the subject matter. For being just short of 200 pages, it is an incredibly powerful and engaging story. It may be some disturbing subject matter, but it is very beautifully written. One of those stories that even a week after finishing it, you still find yourself thinking about it, trying to make up different endings, imagining what the characters could be doing now...(I’m not the only one who sometimes believes that characters live on after the story is finished, right?...er, no? well ok).

My rating- A

Will I read it again?- Yes

Thanks for reading! 

Amanda

Wait.... how do people blog?

So I started a blog (obviously)! I've always wanted to because there are lots of blogs I enjoy reading and I always felt like I should have one of my own, even though I am far from interesting and I don't cook or make crafts or draw or paint or do any of the other really interesting and cool things that people do on their blogs. 

So I've been a member of blogger for about two days now…. and I still haven't posted anything or even filled out an about me page. I've sort of started messing around with my layout but I really cannot figure out how to make this thing look 'pretty' like I imagined it looking in my head. Oh well, maybe I'll figure it out one day. 

Now the question is, what am I going to use this blog for?

1.) Stories about my ever-so-fascinating life!

I think this is going to be a no. I am a very awkward and boring person. I don't have many friends and I don't do a lot of interesting things. If I were to try to keep an updated blog on my life, there would end up being years in between posts. So I'm just going to scratch this idea right at the preamble.

2.)Fashion!

I love clothes! I love putting outfits together, I love going shopping, and I love looking at other girls' fashion blogs. But me…. eh, no. I just don't think I'm actually that fashion-forward, I really just love wearing a bunch of florals and comfy clothes, and a lot of times I don't even match because I just don't care. I do intend on entering a lot of awesome giveaways now that I do have a blog though, because sometimes those awesome fashion-girls offer some really awesome stuff. Really, I'm very excited for this.

3.)My animals!

I could certainly fill an entry a day with updates on my pets… but I'm already crazy enough when it comes to them, and I quite possibly already need an intervention. They will probably make plenty of appearances though. They're too cute not to be on the Internet. 

4.)Books!

This is probably going to be mainly what I end up writing about, because reading is my favorite thing ever. I love books. When I told my fiance that I made a blog and didn't even know what to write, his suggestion was to write reviews about the books that I read. I've never been much of a reviewer; I tend to just read maniacally until I reach the end of a book and then jump straight into the next one without even stopping to absorb what I've just read. I think it would be nice to actually take the time to think and write about my books. I would hopefully be able to articulate why I think people should read everything that I read besides just saying, "IT WAS SO AMAZINGGGGGGGG YOU JUST HAVE TO READ IT!", because let's face it, that really doesn't sell people. Also, I've read some crappy, waste-of-my-life books, and I would love to possibly save other people from that fate. Life is too short to read bad books. 

So, here goes nothing. A blog with no specific subject matter. A mix of books and animals and I'll probably fangirl over some bands because I love some music and I have a eery obsessive personality and I can't control myself. Also, I'll probably talk about Paul McCartney, because I love him. Ok, bye!