I won these from The Epic Rat. Yayyy! Head on there for awesome giveaways! There are two going on right now.
on Saturday, 30 May 2009
Copyright: 2008
Pages: 400
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
ISBN-10: 0385736002
ISBN-13: 978-0385736008
Buy at: Book Depository | Amazon
Rating: 3.5/5
Synopsis: He holds the secret that can end the world. The truth: Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris on September 28, 1330. Nearly 700 years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst of his day. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life. The records show that he died in 1418. But his tomb is empty. The legend: Nicholas Flamel lives. But only because he has been making the elixir of life for centuries. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects; the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world. That's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world as we know it. Sometimes legends are true. And Sophie and Josh Newman are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time.
Review: Okay, I have to admit something: I was under the (sadly) mistaken impression that Nicolas Flamel was from J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, and that Michael Scott had borrowed her characters for his book. Okay! The secret's out already! Sue me for my ignorance!
on Monday, 25 May 2009
| Title: Hero |
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| Author: Perry Moore |
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| Genre: Fantasy |
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| Publisher: Hyperion |
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| Elements: Superhero |
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| Series: Stand alone
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At heart, Hero is a story about the relationship between a boy and his dad. Thom was so alone, he had no one but his dad to count on. His dad is Hal Creed, ex superhero who is now shunned by everyone in the community. Thom is also shunned by association.Thom Creed is used to being on his own. Even as a high school basketball star, he has to keep his distance because of his father. Hal Creed had once been one of the greatest and most beloved superheroes of The League-until the Wilson Towers incident. After that Thom's mother disappeared and his proud father became an outcast.
The last thing in the world Thom would ever want is to disappoint his father. So Thom keeps two secrets from him: First is that he's gay. The second is that he has the power to heal people. Initially, Thom had trouble controlling his powers. But with trail and error he improves, until he gets so good that he catches the attention of the League and is asked to join. Even though he knows it would kill his dad, Thom can't resist. When he joins the League, he meets a motley crew of other heroes, including tough-talking Scarlett, who has the power of fire from growing up near a nuclear power plant; Typhoid Larry, who makes everyone sick by touching them, but is actually a really sweet guy; and wise Ruth, who has the power to see the future. Together these unlikely heroes become friends and begin to uncover a plot to kill the superheroes. Along the way, Thom falls in love, and discovers the difficult truth about his parents' past.
This is moving, funny, and wonderfully original novel shows that things are not always what they seem, and love can be found in the unlikeliest of places.
So when one day Thom finds out that he has superpowers, and is asked to join the same superhero community that rejected his dad, Thom is torn. The real problem however, lies in the fact that Thom is gay. His dad, and almost everyone else in the Hero universe has a prejudice against gay people. I found it slightly disorienting that in a land where superpowers and superheros are rampant, no one can accept gay people.
Hero was very well written. The thing that most interested me about Hero, other than its plot, is that it was written by Perry Moore, the executive producer of the Chronicle of Narnia movies. Since the movies had been... executed excellently, I expected nothing less than the same from the book.
Seeing the lengths Thom went to for his father, and vice versa, was very touching. The ending reminded me a bit of the Watchmen comics, and made me tear up even though it seemed a little abrupt. I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel to find out what happens after.
I also liked reading how Thom grew into his own. It was a bit depressing reading how lonely and friendless he was. After joining the League though, he grew more confident, and had a much brighter outlook on life which makes it more fun to read when he gets into all sorts of trouble.
As for the action scenes... whoa. I could see every little scene playing out in my head, just like watching it on a TV screen! There are talks about a series based on the book. I hope the actors won't disappoint. With Stan Lee and Perry Moore at the helm, if the project ever comes to fruition, I think it can be an award winning series. I know, I know, it's high expectations but they can definitely surpass them.
Only one word to describe this novel: EPIC!
on Sunday, 24 May 2009
The Alchemyst (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel) - Michael Scott
The Alchemyst is a contemporary fantasy which opens in modern day San Francisco when brother and sister, Josh and Sophie discover that the owner of the bookstore where Josh works is the immortal French alchemist, Nicholas Flamel. Flamel and his wife, Perenelle, are the guardians of the Book of Abraham which they have protected for centuries. This is a collection of the most powerful spells in the world. When Dr John Dee discovers the Flamels' whereabouts, he attacks and snatches the book. Josh and Sophie intervene to help Flamel, but now they too are being hunted by Dee and creatures that predate humanity.
on Wednesday, 20 May 2009
| Title: The Princess Plot |
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| Author: Kirsten Boie |
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| Genre: Fantasy |
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| Publisher: The Chicken House |
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| Elements: Switching places |
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| Series: ook 1 of a potential series? |
You believe whatever you want to believe.Jenna has just won the starring role in a film about a princess--sweet! In the wink of an eye, she's whisked off to a remote, romantic kingdom for the "shoot."
But something's amiss: First, she finds out she bears an uncanny resemblance to the real princess, who has run away following the death of her father, the king. Then she learns that the conniving regent plans to use her to take control of the country, now being fought over by rebels.
As the plot twists and turns, Jenna discovers just what she's made of--and just why she resembles the missing princess so much!
That's the one little peeve with this book I had. How can one over sheltered 14 year old girl believe that her unbending mother, who doesn't even let her stay for dinner at her best friend's house, would just let her up and leave for a far away country to film a movie without even a goodbye? *takes a deep breath*
Now that I've gotten that out, I have to say that this is one of the cutest books I've read in a while. It reminds me a lot of The Princess Protection Program (PPP) an upcoming Disney Chanel Original Movie (DCOM), which is probably why it caught my attention, waaaaay up there on the bookshelf.
The plot was pretty believable, especially when you look from the point of view of a very naive girl. It was nice reading how Jenna evolved from that to someone who's much more confident in her abilities and be more independent, not having to rely on hiding behind her much more prettier and talented best friend, Bea. Given a chance to shine, Jenna does so excellently. The characters were all likeable, with the exception of sour Mrs Jarkas. Initially, I thought of this as a children's book, you know: the type where all's well ends well. I'm glad to see that it's not like that though, it's more... real. Which kind of shows how much books and plots have evolved over the years.
I give some of the credit to Harry Potter. The series evolved from a children's book to something much much darker, but which never loses its creditibility or fun read factor.
There's a sequel up already, which I hope is quickly being translated from German to English. Hurry! I'm already a Jenna-Jonas shipper. :D
on Sunday, 17 May 2009
Received from Contests:
from Bookworm Readers.
After years of waiting, it is finally Libby Ryan’s turn to shine at the Practical County Fair. Libby is filled with excitement as she and her granddad pick out two calves for her to raise on her family’s cattle farm, in hopes of winning the annual steer competition. Against her father’s advice, Libby gives the calves names, even though both steers will eventually be auctioned off. After a few months of preparing for the Practical County Fair, Libby finds that she is growing closer to her steers with each passing day, and the pressure to win Grand Champion is mounting. Luckily, Libby can count on her best friend to get her through most of the county fair chaos. Yet once reality sets in and she realizes that her steers will soon be sold to the highest bidder, the chaos in Libby’s heart becomes too much to bear.
on Saturday, 16 May 2009
| Title: World's End |
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| Author: Erica Verrillo |
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| Genre: Fantasy |
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| Publisher: Random House |
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| Elements: Political intrigue |
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| Series: Book 3 of the Phoenix Rising trilogy |
Got this ARC from The Story Siren. Thanks!Elissa used to daydream about being a princess. Now the reality of what it brings is clear: stiff, courtly manners, dresses like cages, tortuously high shoes, and betrothal to an aging duke to secure her father's kingdom! Elissa wants no part of it and makes her escape to be with her devoted friends, who the King has no use for.
But the unseen hand of the Ancient One once again guides Elissa toward a fate she does not wish to acknowledge - the culmination of the prophecy of the Phoenix!
I'm aware that this book is going to be published soon (June 9, 2009) so I'll try not to spoil the plot too much. Not having been introduced to this series before, here's what I can gather from the story.
Elissa's found her father after a long and arduous journey (Of course, it's never easy peasy. No one wants to read about an easy peasy journey.) and found out that she's the heiress to a kingdom! This should be the "happily ever after" part of the tale, but life doesn't quite work out that way. Determined to make things work out, Elissa stays, only to find out that she's being used as a pawn in her father, the king's court games.
I thought this book was mildly interesting. The characters seemed a little flat, but that's probably because I haven't read the two prequels. The stubbornness which endeared Elissa to me kind of irritated at the same time; even though there wasn't much evidence, I thought she was more of a spoilt brat. I wanted to shake her and go "Girl! You found your father, he's a king. Even better, he loves you. Stop running away and screwing things up already!" The plot was slightly lacking, same as the ending, but the excellent writing and details more than made up for it.
Honestly, I just don't think it suits me. When I gave it to my little sister, she totally loved it. I doubt she'll return me the book. Hmm...
on Monday, 11 May 2009
| Title: Discordia: The Eleventh Dimension |
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| Author: Dena K. Salmon |
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| Genre: Fantasy |
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| Publisher: Hyperion |
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| Elements: Alternate universe |
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| Series: Stand alone? |
I've been a bad, baaaad blogger this May. *hangs head*Lance loves being a level 17 zombie sorcerer in the game Discordia more than being a teenager in real life. He wishes he could stay there forever and one day, voila!
His wish gets granted. Instead of being transported to the game, he gets dumped in the real Discordia.
Now Lance must find a way to get back to Earth before he loses his life, and sadly for him, there are no rez potions this time around.
Not to worry, I've been picking up some of the slack and have a couple of reviews heading your way this week. On to the review! This was a fun book to read. I've been waiting for a YA book of this genre, and I'm not disappointed. The Discordian universe was well thought out, but that in itself was kind of the strength and weakness of the book.
It seemed to me that while the universe was complete, the plot wasn't. It seemed to jerk around, and as a former gamer, I loved the jerky parts. It was just like going through a portal in a game to a different town. As a book? Not so much. The writing also made it feel like I'm reading a manual and a first draft of a script rather than the final story. The characters were a little bit flat, especially Lance's classmates, but since they aren't integral to the plot, I don't really care.
Overall, if you don't have such high expectations (like I did!) and consider this to be a game walk through, it's a great book with a very interesting premise. Check it out!
I have a recommendation: For you adults who like this type of genre but with a bit more sauce, check out Blow Me Down by Katie MacAlister.
on Wednesday, 6 May 2009
| Title: Generation Dead |
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| Author: Daniel Waters |
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| Genre: Paranormal |
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| Publisher: Hyperion Book CH |
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| Elements: Zombies |
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| Series: Book 1 of the Generation Dead series |
Hi everyone. A short review. (:Phoebe Kendall is just your typical Goth girl with a crush. He's strong and silent...and dead.
All over the country, a strange phenomenon is occurring. Some teenagers who die aren't staying dead. But when they come back to life, they are no longer the same. Feared and misunderstood, they are doing their best to blend into a society that doesn't want them.
The administration at Oakvale High attempts to be more welcoming of the "differently biotic." But the students don't want to take classes or eat in the cafeteria next to someone who isn't breathing. And there are no laws that exist to protect the "living impaired" from the people who want them to disappear--for good.
When Phoebe falls for Tommy Williams, the leader of the dead kids, no one can believe it; not her best friend, Margi, and especially not her neighbor, Adam, the star of the football team. Adam has feelings for Phoebe that run much deeper than just friendship; he would do anything for her. But what if protecting Tommy is the one thing that would make her happy?
I finally finished reading Generation Dead. By far, it's definitely one of the best books I've read this year, and that's really saying something. I thought it'd be the usual girl meets boy, oh no! boy's a zombie forbidden love blahblahblah type of story, but it's not.
It's intelligent, funny and slightly creepy at times, giving me almost the exact same feeling I got when I read The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. What's the phrase, a "dystopian future"?
The ending was a cliffhanger, which was pretty irritating to me. Then again, it does mean that there'll be a continuation! :D I'm so an Adam fan, what about you?
Anyway, my friend JH sent me this article right after I finished reading GD. Here's the link. He said it's most probably a hoax as the media loves to exaggerate. It creeps me out nonetheless.
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