couldn’t put it down

The Dead of Winter by Chris Priestley

 in Book Reviews / Books / Young Adult by

Summary

“After Michael’s parents die, he is invited to stay with his guardian in a desolate country house. He begins to suspect something is not quite right on the day he arrives when he spots a mysterious woman out in the frozen mists. But little can prepare him for the solitude of the house itself. His guardian is rarely seen, and there’s a malevolent force lurking in an old hallway mirror. As the chilling suspense builds, Michael realizes that the house and its grounds harbor many more secrets-both dead and alive.”

-Amazon.com

Review

This was an extremely easy read. I read it in about an hour to an hour and a half. But for such a short book, it was extremely good. There was a lot going on in this book and it kept you entertained. This book was about 218 pages but the margins in this book made it really be less than that.

It was a really short story and boy was it to the point. I did enjoy it but I would have liked it to be a bit longer. That was my only complaint about the book. It just seemed to give the smallest amount of details and then it just ended.

There really is not much to say about this book due to the fact that nothing really happened. It was a good read and I would recommend it but there is nothing else to say about it.

I did like the cover though. It was in black and white and in the distance you can see a persons silhouette. Then there are trees which are not covered in leaves which means that it is winter and there is snow on the ground. Then at the front of the cover is a skull. I thought that the cover was quite interesting, but that is just my opinion. 🙂

Hope that you give it a try.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

 in Adventure / Book Reviews / Books / Interesting / Older Readers / Series / Young Adult by

Summary

“Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight–she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.

When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po’s friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace–or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away . . . a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.

With elegant, evocative prose and a cast of unforgettable characters, debut author Kristin Cashore creates a mesmerizing world, a death-defying adventure, and a heart-racing romance that will consume you, hold you captive, and leave you wanting more.”

– Amazon.com

Graceling

Image via Wikipedia

Review

Before I even start about this book I would like to thank Omar my YA librarian for finding and giving me this book. Thank you so much because without you I don’t think I would have ever found this amazing book! 🙂

This was absolutely amazing. This is going to be on my top 5 favorite books of this year (unless I come across something more amazing which I highly doubt). The story had everything possible. It had romance, action, it was set in historical times, it was exciting, it was captivating, and it was overall amazing.

The story was about this girl named Katsa. She is Graced with killing but she did not want to have to use her grace. She does not like killing. The book follows her journey from when she meet Po, says no to her Uncle, and then follows her journey of finding a Princess and helping save people who need to be saved, and hurting those who need to be hurt.

I thought that the description in this books were very good. The author, Kristin Cashore, really painted a mental image of the scenery and what these places looked like. I enjoyed reading this book at night because I was kind of in that la-la land and I would go to bed with pretty scenery in my head (yes, I know, I am strange.) I just loved this book’s imagery. It was one of the highlights of the book.

There were not too many characters so you did not get confused as to what was going on. You always knew who was present and you always knew where they were which was helpful as there was a lot of traveling.

There are two more books like this called Fire and Butterblue. Fire happens 30 years before Graceling (even though Graceling was the first book published) and Butterblue takes place 8 years after Graceling.

I am going to be checking out these other two books and I hope that they will be as good as the first one.

If you would like to visit Kristin Cashore’s blog, please click here.

Her blog is great and have a look around.

This book was rated in my library PG-13 because there is some violence in it and there is some blood mentioned but I believe anyone 12/13 and older can read this book.

So happy reading.

Dead Man’s Cove by Lauren St. John

 in Fiction / Older Readers / Young Adult / Younger Readers by

A Laura Marlin Mystery

Summary

“Orphaned Laura is sent to live with her uncle inCornwall, convinced that a life of adventure is hers at last. But everywhere she turns she’s confronted with mysteries. Is Tariq, the shopkeeper’s silent son, a friend or an enemy? Why does her uncle seem intent on erasing his own past? And why is everyone so afraid of Dead Man’s Cove?”

-From Back of the Book

Review

This is an excellent book for all ages. This is YA but I would say that the older end of the Children section of the library (like 11+) could read this book. It had great role modeling and excellent values which a teen/child should not know. A person may not be inspired by the cover because it is kind of childish, but remember never, ever, EVER, judge a book by its cover. I would say that anyone would be interested in this book. The characters were intriguing and easy to relate to and the setting and the story line was interesting as well.

I read another one of her books The White Giraffe (not a great review as I was new to this blog) and completely loved it. She has two series. Legend of the Animal Healer which has The White Giraffe, Dolphin Song (which I also read but never reviewed unfortunately), The Last Leopard, and The Elephant’s Tale. Then she is now starting a new series called Laura Marlin Mysteries. So far she has Dead Man’s Cove and Kidnap in the Caribbean which came out last July.

But this is a great book with great values and issues which some children may encounter. But they are not obvious in the book because Lauren St. John seems to hide the underlying messages in things which happen. You have to understand what is happening to find these message.

This book is not violent in any aspect and is great for all ages.

So go and check this one out. It is a defiant read.

Who is Lauren St. John?

Lauren St. John was born in Gatooma, Rhodesia, now Kadoma, Zimbabwe. She and her family moved when she was 11 to Rainbow’s End farm in Gadzema. She later wrote a memoir Rainbow’s End. She then moved to England and worked there for a few years.

If you want to read more about her click here.

Tiger’s Voyage by Colleen Houck

 in Adventure / At the Library / Book Reviews / Books / Fantasy / Fiction / Hot Off The Press / Interesting / Young Adult by

Summary

The third book in the gripping Tiger’s Curse series!
With the head-to-head battle against the villainous Lokesh behind her, Kelsey confronts a new heartbreak: in the wake of his traumatic experience, her beloved Ren no longer remembers who she is. As the trio continues their quest by challenging five cunning and duplicitous dragons, Ren and Kishan once more vie for her affections–leaving Kelsey more confused than ever.
Fraught with danger, filled with magic, and packed with romance, Tiger’s Voyage brings Kelsey and her two tiger princes one step closer to breaking the curse.
-From Amazon.com
Review
WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!!!!!!! This book was AMAZING. The story was so captivating and I just could not put it down. There was so much romance, humor, and action and everything else that a great book should need. IT WAS AMAZING. I cannot wait for the next book Tiger’s Destiny which I believe is coming out in the Summer of 2012. The ending of the book kind of left you wondering and wanting to, no, needing to know what happened next. I am currently dying. I have to know what happens next in the story ASAP. But I know I said the same thing for Tiger’s Curse and Tiger’s Quest but this book tops them all. I liked this one the best out of them all. I just cannot describe it other than saying GET OUT TO YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY. This is a must read series and if you don’t, you are missing out one something great.
Tell me what you think once you read it.
Also if you would like to read an interview I did with Colleen Houck, click here.


The Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

 in Book Reviews / Books by

Summary

History and fiction merge seamlessly in this luminous novel about artistic vision and sensual awakening as seen through the eyes of the young woman who was the inspiration behind one of Vermeer’s finest paintings.

In seventeenth-century Delft, a strict social order reigns, dividing rich and poor, Catholic and Protestant, master and servant. When sixteen-year-old Griet goes to work as a maid in the home of the city’s most renowned painter, she is expected to know her place. But in the Vermeer household, dominated by his mercurial wife and her formidable mother, Griet soon catches the eye of the master. Captivated by Griet’s quite manner, intuitive spirit, and fascination with art, Vermeer begins to draw her into his world – a rarefied place of exotic color and dazzling light, shifting shadows, and unimaginable beauty.

As Griet becomes a virtual part of Vermeer’s work, their growing intimacy spreads tension and deception in the ordered household and even, as the scandal seeps out, ripples into the town beyond.

With its striking sense of period detail – vividly evoking a distant place and time – Girl with a Pearl Earring tells the tale of a young girl on the brink of womanhood, whose life is transformed by her brief encounter with genius…even as she herself is immortalized on canvas.

-From Inside Flap of the Book

Review

An amazing story this was. I believe that this is the first slow book I have actually enjoyed. I am usually one up for action, and fighting, but this book had none of that. It was practically a harmless book. The only things which were kind of bad was that there was a scandal, and it was told that Griet made love in an alley way. Otherwise this book was about as harmless as it gets. It was a beautiful story and told so well. I loved how they described how Vermeer did his paintings. He would mix many colors together to get one color. There may be green, yellow, and blue mixed together to make white. It was a lovely things to imagine.

I believe that you will be able to visualize this story in your head. They describe everything so well. Even the smallest of details. This is historical fiction but the story would not make you think of history. Griet had long dark brown hair and it was described to be flowing waves. This book used such a small amount of words to describe such beautiful things.

This is a definite must read and it is an easy read being 233 pages (more or less, depending on the edition you are reading.) The book is easy and it was wonderful. I do hope that you will go and check this out from your local library and give it a try.

I hope you enjoy!

If you have read this book tell me what you think.