Title: Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1)
Author: Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
Published: December, 2009 by Little, Brown Books
Pages: 563
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that’s what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn’t have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.
Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she’s struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.
Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town’s oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.
In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

Final Thoughts:
I don’t think I’ve ever wanted a book to be over as much as I did when reading Beautiful Creatures. Before I even reached the halfway point, I felt as if I’d read enough, that I could put it down and not care what happened. It was just so slow moving—and with almost six hundred pages, that’s definitely not what you want. It has a lot of descriptive scenes, adding in things that aren’t essential to the plot, or even at least a little interesting to the reader. I had no desire to learn about the town’s civil war re-enactments—I just wanted to find out about the curse. It’s basically a big chunk of Ethan and Lena thinking that they love each other but can’t say it, the townspeople obsessively hating them, and the threat of an evil curse coming to tear them apart. If it had been 300 pages, then maybe I would have enjoyed it more, but as it stands, I just can’t stop shaking my head at this book.

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren, which allows bloggers to share what books they’ve received in the past week. They can be from stores, contests, tours or publishers!

• The Secret Circle: Initiation and Captive Pt 1 by L.J. Smith (purchased)
• Heaven by Christoph Marzi (purchased)
• A Kiss In Time by Alex Flinn (purchased)
• Wings by Aprilynne Pike (purchased)
• Spells by Aprilynne Pike (purchased)
• New Girl by Paige Harbison (thanks to Publishers)

It’s been a busy week for me. I got a job in another city so I’m moving back and forth between two places. I apologise to those I haven’t been able to get back to. I will get back on track with the blog eventually, but it may be a little slow until I get into a new pattern. As for my books this week, I saw the new cover for The Secret Circle and decided it looked cool. I’m still watching the tv series, so I may wait until the end of season 1 before I start on the book. I have no idea what Aprilynne’s books are about other than faeries, but the first two were both instock at the same time for once, so I finally ended up getting them. The tag line on the front of Heaven was enough to intrigue me, plus I love the cover. I probably didn’t need to buy A Kiss In Time this week, but it matches my Beastly cover, so there you have it. Thanks to Harlequin Teen for New Girl, looking forward to checking it out.

Here are my latest reviews if you want to check them out:
Duck, Julie Rieman, A Place In This Life
Seville, Jane, Zero At The Bone

Link up to your mailbox and I’ll be sure to check it out!

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Breaking the Spine and serves to showcase those pesky books that aren’t released yet, but that we’re eagerly awaiting! You can click the title to add to Goodreads. This week, my WoW is…

Title: Team Human (Team Human #1)
Authors: Justine Larbalestier & Sarah Rees Brennan
Published: July, 2012 by Harper Teen

When a vampire shows up at Mel’s high school, it’s up to Mel to keep her best friend from falling in love with him. Add a mysterious disappearance, a cranky vampire cop, a number of unlikely romantic entanglements, and the occasional zombie, and soon Mel is hip-deep in an adventure that is equal parts hilarious and poignant.

I’m not sure if that’s the final synopsis, as it seems a bit short. Still, I can’t wait to get my hands on this one. A girl trying to save her best friend from the hot vampire guy who’s just rocked up at school sounds like an awesome book. Plus, with Sarah Rees Brennan as one of the authors, there’s no way I can’t read this.

Title: A Place In This Life
Author: Julie Rieman Duck
Published: September, 2011 by Julie Rieman Duck
Pages: 254
Rating:  
Purchase: Amazon // Smashwords

For Natalie Miller, it’s just another family vacation. For someone else, it’s the opportunity he’s been waiting for.

With only a single peck from a guy named Frank, Natalie’s anything but experienced with boys. But when Todd pops out of the water, says hi, and tells Natalie he has leukemia, all of that changes.

She’s never had attention like this from a boy, let alone one who’s a real charmer with sex on the brain and the experience to match. Drawn to Todd like a magnet, Natalie gives him her friendship, her love, and her body. Even when she’s tempted by gorgeous, healthy schoolmate Alex, Natalie’s desire to love and care for Todd pushes her to see how far love can go in spite of the potential for death of the relationship — and death of the one she loves.

Final Thoughts:
This is not one for those who are after a light romance. It has to be the most moving book I have ever read. I still feel like someone’s ripped me open and torn me to shreds. I didn’t put this book down once, sitting glued to my kindle for the entire afternoon. I knew it wasn’t going to be a walk in the park based on the synopsis, but I had no idea how much I would come to care for these characters. For the past however many hours it was, they were all that existed. Their pain is still affecting me as I sit here and try and keep the tears back long enough to pull together something that might resemble a review.

Title: Zero At The Bone
Author: Jane Seville
Published: April, 2009 by Dreamspinner Press
Pages: 308
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

After witnessing a mob hit, surgeon Jack Francisco is put into protective custody to keep him safe until he can testify. A hitman known only as D is blackmailed into killing Jack, but when he tracks him down, his weary conscience won’t allow him to murder an innocent man. Finding in each other an unlikely ally, Jack and D are soon on the run from shadowy enemies.

Forced to work together to survive, the two men forge a bond that ripens into unexpected passion. Jack sees the wounded soul beneath D’s cold, detached exterior, and D finds in Jack the person who can help him reclaim the man he once was. As the day of Jack’s testimony approaches, he and D find themselves not only fighting for their lives… but also fighting for their future. A future together.

Final Thoughts:
A hitman falling for his target—it doesn’t sound too original, but it ended up being a completely addictive read. Alternating POVs, we get to see inside the closed off mind of a killer as he tries to come to grips with his warring emotions, as well as the mind of the target—a surgeon-turned-highly sought after witness. It’s a very long book, or at least it felt like it. It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, spreading things out, giving them time to build, while still packing in oodles of plot. Once this thriller infused the romance, it became very hard to put down—I stayed up well past 4am on this one.

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren, which allows bloggers to share what books they’ve received in the past week. They can be from stores, contests, tours or publishers!

• The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman (purchased)
• A Witch In Winter by Ruth Warburton (purchased)
• Twisted Heart by Eden Maguire (purchased)
• Stefan’s Diaries: The Asylum by Kevin Williamson & Julie Plec (purchased)
• The Fallen: End of Days by Thomas E. Sniegoski (purchased)
• In Darkness by Nick Lake (thanks to Publishers)
• Nana V7 by Ai Yazawa (purchased)
• Nana V8 by Ai Yazawa (purchased)

I went shopping last Friday and probably spent too much. I went through the YA aisle and stacked my arms full of books and went in search of the price scanner. I decided to be good, and put four back…but I’ll probably go back and get them later, anyway. I keep buying more volumes of the Nana manga, yet I still haven’t finished V1, still, I’ll probably buy more next time I go shopping again. I loved the anime, so I can’t wait to read these. The Blood and Shadow book sounds really cool, so I’m hoping to be able to slot it in sometime soon. I haven’t read any of Robin’s other books yet, but I will check those out too eventually. Basically everything I got this week was an impulse buy, the only book I was actually looking for was the Stefan’s Diaries one, but that’s the way it goes, isn’t it. Shopping in person is so much more fun than browsing online.

Here are my latest reviews if you want to check them out:
Armentrout, Jennifer L. Lux #1, Obsidian
Logsted, Gred, The Stuttering Tattoo
Malthea, Vlad The Paler
York, Kelley, Hushed

Link up to your mailbox and I’ll be sure to check it out!

Title: Hushed
Author: Kelley York
Published: December, 2011 by Entangled Publishing
Pages: 229
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

He’s saved her. He’s loved her. He’s killed for her.

Eighteen-year-old Archer couldn’t protect his best friend, Vivian, from what happened when they were kids, so he’s never stopped trying to protect her from everything else. It doesn’t matter that Vivian only uses him when hopping from one toxic relationship to another—Archer is always there, waiting to be noticed.

Then along comes Evan, the only person who’s ever cared about Archer without a single string attached. The harder he falls for Evan, the more Archer sees Vivian for the manipulative hot-mess she really is.

But Viv has her hooks in deep, and when she finds out about the murders Archer’s committed and his relationship with Evan, she threatens to turn him in if she doesn’t get what she wants… And what she wants is Evan’s death, and for Archer to forfeit his last chance at redemption.

Final Thoughts:
I love broken boys—they tear you up inside, but you can’t help but want to see them happy. Archer, faced with a horrible upbringing, is quiet, withdrawn, basically living only to please his childhood friend, turned obsession–Vivian. Beyond frustrating, she’s the kind of person you don’t need in your life anymore, but can’t seem to get rid of—a heavily one sided relationship. Setting it apart from the other contemporary romances, Hushed takes on a surprisingly gripping serial killer plot, where Archer—the protagonist—is the one knocking people off. While it could be compared to Dexter, I think Archer comes across more likeable, with a desire to protect the ones he cares for, rather than getting off on killing people.