Epic Recs: January and Obsidian: Lux #1

Epic Recs

I don't know how many of you have ever heard of "Epic Recs" but it is an amazing and super fun feature where Amber @ Books of Amber and Judith @ Paper Riot force each other to read a certain book a month.  Check out Judith's page here and sign up for a partner!  They are really kind and spend time matching you with someone of similar interests.  That's how I met Andrea from the Youtube Channel Bookstalkers.  This month she made me read the following book… Stay tuned for more updates on "Epic Recs".

Review:

Title: Obsidian: A Lux Novel, Book One

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout

Series: Lux

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Publication Date: May 8th, 2012

Format: Library Copy

Genre: YA; Paranormal Romance; Sci-fy

Rating: ✎✎✎✎

Blurb:

Starting over sucks.

When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens. 

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades. 

If I don't kill him first, that is.

My Thoughts and Reflection:

(SPOILERS HAVE A TENDENCY TO WEASEL THEIR WAY INTO THIS SECTION)

This book doesn't have the most unique premise; it follows along with a lot of clichés that are commonly found in Paranormal Romance.  That, for me, was a problem.  I rarely read Paranormal Romance, because it tends to be repetitive and carbon copied.  So, the premise almost scared me off, but not quite.
The plot took a long time to go anywhere; there was a lot of relationship build up between Daemon/Katy, and Katy/Dee, as well as some foreshadowing involving the whole Dawson story.
The characters overall were interesting. However, Katy was sort of a bland character, which isn't a good thing for a protagonist to be.  She wasn't exactly very interesting, besides all of the book blogger references.  Despite the fact that she was the protagonist, I felt like I didn't know her at all.  Katy also didn't exactly have a relationship with her mom (who was absent) and she didn't have a lot of emotion about her father's death.  She talked about it in sort of a detached way, which is just strange for someone, especially an only child who likely spent a lot of time with her father.
I thought that Dee was a light, fun, character, but she did't have a lot of depth about her.  Besides the pain about losing her brother Dawson, we don't learn a lot about Dee.  She is supposed to be the best friend of the protagonist!  However, her relationship with Katy did give some balance to the romance, which I think a lot of YA struggles with.
With Daemon we obviously get a lot of character development, and I think that he was the most rounded character in the book.  He feels a lot of pain for shutting Katy out, but on the other hand he is fiercely protective of Dee and their situation.  That is understandable, considering that his only other sibling is dead as well as his parents.
I did find it strange that Katy and Daemon never had any bonding moment of the loss of their parents.  It probably would have strengthened their relationship.
 Katy and Daemon's relationship tended to fall into the stereo-typical bad-boy good-girl category, although Katy has a lot of real pain about Daemon's "dislike" of her, which was unique to this particular story.
Ash, Adam, and Andrew are three characters that we really don't here about until towards the end of the book, but I think that Armentrout did a very good job at showing their personalities through dialogue.  They were not flat characters.


The concept of aliens is what fascinated me most.  A lot of paranormal fiction focuses on a more folklore side (vampires, werewolves) or a almost religious side, (angels).  This made Obsidian really unique.
I also loved the way that Armentrout described the aliens, and that she made them beings of light.  Daemon comes across as a dark character for most of the book, so I think that showing that his insides where light added depth to his characters.  Also, the concept of an opposite set of aliens, who are dark, and are set on stealing the light, was great.  It was almost parallel to a story of the angels vs. the fallen angels.
I thought that the ending was satisfactory.  Certainly not a major cliffhanger, but a little disappointing all the same.  After a great lead up I expected a well composed ending.  It came across as a little rushed.

However, at the end of the copy that I read there were several chapters told from Daemon's POV, and I think that they gave a lot of closure and depth to his actions.

Cover Analysis:

I don't think that this was a very fitting cover for the book.  It was too dark for a story about aliens made of freaking light, even if Daemon is the bad boy for half the book.  Also, the boy/girl actors weren't satisfactory.  This should have been a cover without people on it.


SPOILER FREE CONCLUSION

Overall, I was pleased with this unique paranormal romance, but I will be looking for more depth in Katy as the series continues.

~Remy

Paper Towns: The Most Thriller-Esque John Green Novel to Date

Review:

Title: Paper Towns

Author: John Green

Publisher: Speak

Publication Date: September 22, 2009

Format: Paper Back

Genre: YA; Contemporary; Thriller

Rating: ✎✎✎✎

Blurb:

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows.

After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew.

My Thoughts and Reflection:

(SPOILERS MAY BE LURKING BEYOND THIS POINT)

I walked into this novel in a rush; December was wrapping up and I was only a couple books away from reaching my goal of 100 for 2013.  I'd read lots of John Green before, but this one I just hadn't gotten around to.  I was expecting a typical contemporary romance in John Green fashion.  

That's not what I got.  

That blurb is just so darn terrible.  I mean, it does give a taste for the book, but doesn't really give you a feel for how the entire book fits together.  

Quickly into the start I had some worries.  I felt like I was reading Looking for Alaska by John Green all over again.  Now, with an ending like that one I was temporarily taken aback.  However, my suspicions soon faded way as I discovered how different this book was from what John Green has also written.

I think that main difference (from his other work) is how this book was paced; I found it to almost be a thriller.  Paper Towns had this fantastic urgency to it.  His other work tends to be more mellow and focused on relationship development.  In Paper Towns the race against time really determined if there would even get to be any relationship development. 

Margo was a deep character.  She was secretive, aloof, and down right unhappy.  I would have hated her in person however, because she was an attention seeking, secretive, angst ridden teenage girl who needed to just come home.  The whole "clues" thing was an interesting concept, and I think that it revealed how immature Margo truly was.  Overall  I found her character annoying, but still liked what it did to the story.  If that makes any sense.

Quentin was a great character.  He was endearing, full of endless love, and was, oh wait, just like Pudge (from Looking for Alaska).  However, Quentin's endless love and concern for Margo really manifests itself when Quentin realizes the urgency of his search.  The moments when he is begging Margo in his mind to not be dead are completely heartbreaking, and really show an incredible side of vulnerability that we never see with Pudge.  Yes, we do see lots of vulnerable moments with Pudge, but we don't get  worry time, we just get *(ALERT! ALERT!  LOOKING FOR ALASKA SPOILER)* dead-sadness time.  I've decided to consider them brothers of sorts.  I don't know, what do you think?

John Green's fabulous ability at writing secondary characters really shined in this book.  The entire road-trip/all the interactions between Quentin and his buddies are completely priceless.  The secondary characters all had lives, and while obviously we knew who was the protagonist in our story, they didn't.

As always, John Green delivered amazingly beautiful writing.  Here are some of my favorite moments:

"All those paper people living in their paper houses, burning the future to stay warm." -Margo (pg. 57)

"I've lived here for eighteen years and I have never once in my life come across anyone who cares about anything that matters." -Margo (pg. 58)

"We play the broken strings of our instruments one last time." -Quentin (pg. 304)

My favorite part of the entire novel was that another one of John Green's abilities didn't fail again; his ability to write satisfying, but not necessarily happy endings.  This ending left some room for imagination.  I personally think that after their sweet kiss, Quentin and Margo part ways and never see each other again.  Maybe I'm tying in a little too much of Jerry Spinelli's Stargirl, but that's what I concluded.  What do you think happens to Quentin and Margo after Paper Towns ends?

SPOILER FREE CONCLUSION

John Green impressed me with this thrilling contemporary spin on teenage relationships.  However I will be reading carefully in the future to check and make sure that he's careful of repeating characters.  

~Remy

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Things on My Reading Wishlist

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish!

This week's Top Ten is "Top Ten Things On my Reading Wishlist".  (Top Ten Things that you wish an author could write about; a type of character, a situation, a time period, ect.)

1. 

A Book About a Blind Teen 

There aren't that many out there, but I find the general concept utterly fascinating.  A blind artists would be even more intriguing.

2. 

A Book About Humans Taking Over Another Planet

There are a lot of books about aliens taking over earth, and there are a book about humans colonizing another planet, but there are there many books about humans taking over another inhabited planet.  Writing about how the humans treat the aliens would be utterly fascinating.  

3.  

A Book Form of the T.V. Show Merlin

Do I even need to express my feelings about this T.V. show?  It's sort of a prequel story to King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, where a boy named Merlin is the servant to Arthur (then a prince).  Anyway, Merlin is a sorcerer, but magic is banned in the kingdom of camelot.  Nonetheless, it is Merlin's destiny to use his magic to keep Prince Arthur safe.

Anyway, can I have a book series of this please!!! Or something similar.  

4.

A Book About a Female Decoder in WWII

I'm not sure why this would be fascinating, but so many Historical Fiction books focus on the solders and the nurses, but there were a lot of other roles in the war too.  I'm just curious.

5.  

Atlantis

I sort of have this weird interest in Atlantis.  Not an obsession, but I'd like to see it done modernly and well.

6.  

A Mystery That Span Across Centuries

I'd love to see a book like this!  Where the great grandfather discoveries this mystery, and then his great-great-grand-daughter solves it.  Each generation could solve a piece of it, or something.

8.

A Book About a Haunted House That is Real

You know those haunted houses that pop up around Halloween, where you walk through the maze and they jump out and scare you?  Yeah, well that, but where the villains and everything is real and people start getting killed.  I don't know, it's spooky.

9.  

A Girl Haunted by Herself

Picture a book about a girl who was murdered in another life, and then is being haunted by herself.  Not something cliche where she has to prove who the murderer was, but where she has to rid herself of the spirit by doing something crazy.  I don't know.

10.  

A Book About A Giant Game of Capture the Flag

Kids from all across the country participate in a nationwide game of capture the flag.  This always seemed like a cool idea as a kid, and it's a cool concept.

~Remy

Rush: The Game Book 1

Review:

Title: Rush

Author: Eve Silver

Series: The Game: Book 1

Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books

Publication Date: June 11th, 2013

Format: Personal Copy

Genre: YA; Adventure; Sci-Fy; Romance

Rating: ✎✎✎

Blurb: 

When Miki Jones is pulled from her life, pulled through time and space into some kind of game—her carefully controlled life spirals into chaos. In the game, she and a team of other teens are sent on missions to eliminate the Drau, terrifying and beautiful alien creatures. There are no practice runs, no training, and no way out. Miki has only the guidance of secretive but maddeningly attractive team leader Jackson Tate, who says the game isn’t really a game, that what Miki and her new teammates do now determines their survival, and the survival of every other person on this planet. She laughs. He doesn’t. And then the game takes a deadly and terrifying turn.

My Thoughts and Reflection:

(SPOILERS OFTEN PRESENT IN THIS SECTION)

This book has such an interesting premise, don't you agree?  The game is utterly grabbing.  With such an inticing premise, you'd expect that the first chapter would jump right into the action.  Instead, it drags on this incredibly boring and strangely paced set up.  I feel like with this book should have started at chapter four and then had everything else just sprinkled about the rest of the book.  I don't like books with no background, but this one just placed it in the wrong place.  

This poor placing also ruined the pace of the book. The slow beginning met with a sudden fast section, followed up by a mellower middle after we get used to things caused the book to feel choppy.  

Along with the poor set up chapters, it takes quite a while to get a feel for our protagonist, Miki.  Eventually we figure out how awesome she is, but it takes a while!  

I have mixed feelings about The Game.  On one hand, I think that it is incredibly creative and the whole Drau aspect is exciting and surprising, but on the other hand, it takes soooooo long for us to get an explanation that it started to feel like make believe and not sci-fi.  Miki also needed to feel more disbelief about the situation.  So many sic-fy/fantasy crossovers with contemporaries do a poor job of making their characters have realistic reactions to the paranormal or supernatural.  However, Miki does get answerseventually, although it is towards the end of the book.  

Again, the poor set up chapters caused another difficulty for me; understanding and keeping track of which boy was who.  In the beginning we hear about Luka, and his first description makes him seem like the mysterious boy.  Then, after we jump into The Game, we realize that Jackson is the intended brooding bad boy.  (Who had an uncanny, really uncanny, tendency to act/talk EXACTLY like Four from Divergent by Veronica Roth).  After meeting the two boys I sort of sighed and almost wrote this book off as another love triangle.  Except, that's not exactly what happens.  

Carly, Miki's best friend, (who is pretty much a cardboard character) originally calls dibs on Jackson, so Miki, the doting friend, lets him go, and tries to like Luka.  But then Carly decides that she now likes Luka, and Miki gets confused.  She did like Jackson all along though, so it sort of worked out.  After that it's unclear whether Jackson and Miki are really together, but Luka and Carly are, sort of.  It was a strange love triangle/square.  

Miki's development in the story was very much centered around The Game.  When Richelle dies Miki takes the death really badly, and that changes her mind about The Game, about Jackson, about EVERYTHING.

The only character that feel like had any development, besides Miki, was her father.  We get this whole backstory about Miki's mother dying, and his drinking problem, and how he doesn't fish as much or something like that.  Anyway, compared to the other characters in this book he was a breathe of fresh air.

I have to say, Luka was a strange character to figure out.  He turned out not to be the brooding bad boy, but he was the golden boy either.  Somehow this author managed to create a real character among a bunch of archetypes.  It's amazing sometimes what authors sneak in there.  

Jackson is, well, as I said above, pretty much Four.  Exactly Four.  If you haven't read Divergent, read that and not this, because it's better. 

The ending; completely disappointing.  If I read one more cliff hanger ending I might just– but that's an argument for another day.  Anyway, back to the cliffhanger ending.  Yes, of course, Jackson's wrist band goes red in the last mission against the Drau.  Why wouldn't it?

Can you sense my sarcasm? Haha.  

The fact that his book had a cliffhanger ending was beyond disappointing.  This ending didn't even feel like an ending.  Rush was an entire book of build up for the story that will be the sequel.  Why couldn't the author just have mashed the two books together and published something SATISFYING?

Ugh, there was one moment, one moment that could have made the entire book flip me around and slap me across my face.  That was the moment when Miki has Jackson's dream about the car accident.  At first, we don't know that it's Jackson's dream, and I got so exciting thinking that there was going to be a plot twist with Miki having a sister.  Maybe her sister's death was connected with her mother's?  I don't know, but of course, my plans were foiled and the dream turned out to be Jackson's.  

I feel like I've just shredded this book to pieces, but let me make this clear, I really did like this book.  Despite all of my frustrations, I'm almost thinking of it as the first half of the story.  I want to see more from these Drau, I want to explore more with Jackson, his connections with the Drau, and The Game creators.  Most of all, I want to see Luka and Miki manifest as characters.

SPOILER FREE CONCLUSION:

This series has a lot of potential, despite my frustrations with pacing and characters.  I am awaiting the sequel with anticipation. 

~Remy

Super Six Sunday: Favorite Books to Recommend to Others

Super Six Sunday is an awesome meme hosted over at Bewitched Bookworms!

This week's prompt is "Super Six Favorites That I Recommend to Others"

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Review here

This book is amazing and unique.  I can't believe that I waited so long to read it.  There's no time better than now because it's sequel, Hollow City was released on the 14th.  

The Pentrals by Cyrstal Mack

Review here

I read this book after I won an ARC from Emma @ Spun With Words.  It was released this past November.  

Anyway, this was one of the most different, alternative, and surprising novels that I've read in a long time.  I've never heard of or read anything like it in YA, and I'm so happy that it now exists.  I can't wait until the sequel is released, although it doesn't have a particular date yet.  

The Luxe by Anna Godbersen 

I adored this series a couple years ago, and it remains one of my favorites today.  For anyone who is a fan of drama (think Gossip Girl), character development, and historical fiction this is an amazing series to read.  

The Girl With Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti 

This is the perfect book for someone who is either burnt out on the paranormal romance genre but wants to try it again, or for someone who has never tried it and is intimidated by sparkling vampires.  I enjoyed this book so much, it was unlike any other paranormal romance I've ever read.  I'd also say that it gives sort of a bizarre nod towards Stolen: A Letter to my Captor (by Lucy Christopher).  If you were a fan of that book, this is similar but also amazingly different. 

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black

Review here

I had the privilege of reading this book in an ARC format and was about to burst while I waited for others to read it.  I was so pleased because this was such an amazing paranormal book.  No sparkles, and no love triangle.  There was just a smidgen of romance.  If you're interested, check out The Midnight Garden's  giveaway here.  

 The Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

This is just a fantastic book.  Anyone who loves any form of mystery or historical fiction should check this out! :)

~Remy

Lockdown: Escape from Furnace

Review:

Title: Furnace: Escape from Furnace

Author: Alexander Gordon Smith

Series: Escape from Furnace

Publisher: Square Fish

Publication Date: August 3rd, 2010

Format: Library Hardback

Genre: YA; Horror; Dystopian

Rating: ✎✎✎✎

Blurb:

Furnace Penitentiary: An underground hellhole. A place of pure evil with walls soaked in blood. Murderous gangs and vicious guards rule the darkness. Horrific creatures steal people away in the dead of night. And the impossible - escape - is the only hope.

*SPOILERS MAY BE PRESENT BEYOND THIS POINT*

My Thoughts And Reflection:

I had a friend who recommended this book to me, and I picked it up on her behalf.  I'm glad that I did.  Oh, and that blurb doesn't really give this book any justice.  Oh well.

In the beginning, I'll admit, I was a little put off by how scary it came across.  I wasn't used to such raw horror in a YA novel.  

However, the characters and world building quickly sucked me in, and I was thrown on this roller coaster of uncertainty and insane situations with the characters.  

Alex was an endearing protagonist.  He has been dealt these unimaginable circumstances, and yet he never gives up hope.  Donovan is certainly this frenemy in the beginning.  He obviously has a nice heart, and it's so fun to watch him blossom as a character and as a friend. Zee is pretty much just this nice guy who is always around.  I wish that we could have seen more development from him.

There isn't exactly a clear antagonist in this story; yes there are some gangs and such in the penitentiary, but I feel like they were more distractions from the actual antagonist, the situation.  These teenage boys are all thrown in an underground prison where hell and havoc is expected, and praised.  

I'm excited by how much potential this series has.  After an heart pounding conclusion I'm pumped and ready to dive into the second book.  I feel like we'll see from Zee and get more explanation about The Summer of Slaughter.  

Characters and premise aside, I just want to point out how beautifully Alexander Gordon Smith writes!  Here are some of passages from the book.  

"They began as hushed moans chocked back by the countless musicians that crafted them, merging together from every level to create a fountain of sound that ran down to the deserted yard below."  (Pg. 79)

"Hatred– real, murderous hatred–was an emotion I'd never really experienced before, and I wasn't sure whether it excited me or terrified me." (pg. 89-90)

"My head was drumming some sort of ancient tribal dance, my throat felt like I'd swallowed a cheese grater, and my eyes were watering as if I was wearing contact lenses soaked in vinegar. (pg. 115)

I won't tell you the context of these quotes so that I don't spoil anything for you, but aren't they just beautiful?  

Anyway, I was left with one question from this book.  Where are all the girls?  Is there a sister prison, or were girls not involved in the Sumer of Slaughter at All?  I have a feeling that these questions will be answered as the series progresses, and this will remain in the back of my mind.

~Remy

In Shadows Of Magic

Hey all!  Check out this amazing book, In Shadows of Magic by Alison F. Prince!

Blurb: 

Mandy McKinney lives the charmed life. She is beautiful, athletic, popular, dating the hottest jock in school, and certainly doesn't have any time for her loser twin sister. But Mandy also has a secret. When the truth is unveiled, her world is twisted upside down, and her very life is at stake. 

Mandy's twin sister, Brianna, has never had any success in the dating department. When Brianna finally meets the guy of her dreams, it turns out that he has secrets of his own. Dangerous secrets. Just her luck.

The twins are about to be swept away into a world of beauty and power beyond their wildest imaginations where nothing is what is seems, danger is lurking in the shadows, and their only chance of survival is finding themselves, and each other, once again.

Goodreads

Barnes and Noble

Amazon

About the Author:

Alison F. Prince is a school psychologist in northern New Jersey.  In Shadows of Magic is her debut release.

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Amy and Roger's Epic Detour: Contemporary Summer Road-Trip Romance

Review:

Title: Amy and Roger's Epic Detour

Author: Morgan Matson

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: May 4th, 2010

Format: Paperback

Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance

Rating:  ✎✎✎✎

Blurb:

Amy Curry thinks her life sucks. Her mom decides to move from California to Connecticut to start anew--just in time for Amy's senior year. Her dad recently died in a car accident. So Amy embarks on a road trip to escape from it all, driving cross-country from the home she's always known toward her new life. Joining Amy on the road trip is Roger, the son of Amy's mother's old friend. Amy hasn't seen him in years, and she is less than thrilled to be driving across the country with a guy she barely knows. So she's surprised to find that she is developing a crush on him. At the same time, she's coming to terms with her father's death and how to put her own life back together after the accident. Told in traditional narrative as well as scraps from the road--diner napkins, motel receipts, postcards--this is the story of one girl's journey to find herself.

*SPOILERS MAY BE PRESENT PAST THIS POINT*

My Thoughts and Reflection: 

YA contemporary has lately become infamous for lots of insta-love (a situation when characters fall in love after barely knowing each other/spending any time together).  This book, however, is the perfect opposite.  Matson was very sneaky about the chemistry between Amy and Roger, and kept us guessing until the very end.  This was just amazing to read, because it paralleled Amy and Roger's character development perfectly.

From the blurb, we get a pretty good since that Amy's father's death is pretty raw still, but not until we start to delve into the book do we realize to what extent it's affecting her.  That's why the specific places that Amy and Roger visit on their "detour" are so vital.  The places that Amy requests are almost all directly related to her father, and each time that she visits she manages to heal a little more.

Roger obviously has ulterior motives (calm down, not like that) for going on the trip with Amy.  His ex girlfriend isn't exactly a subject of conversation, but it's certainly an elephant in the room.  As the pair near the visit with the notorious ex, it's clear to the reader that Roger's feelings may have changed, even if it isn't clear to Amy.  The wonderful distraction was strategically placed at the perfect moment, and prompted Amy to really evaluate her feelings.

Amy's mother wasn't necessarily a prominent character in this novel, but she wasn't missing.  Non-existent parent presence is another problem in a lot of YA books, and I'm so glad that this book didn't have that.  Because of the specific circumstances that Amy and Roger were in, Amy's mom wasn't literally there, but she was always in the back of their minds; exactly like parents are in any teenagers mind.  Amy's relationship with her mom was perfectly executed.  

Although we never meet Amy's dad before he dies, we do get plenty of flashbacks and can get a feel of what kind of person he was.  Amy's struggle to share the circumstances of her father's death is doesn't just keep Roger in the dark, but also the reader.  I think that when she revealed to Roger the true way that her father died that was one of the final stages of Amy's grief.  (Not to say that grief ever leaves, I just mean in the sense of a step before continuing on with life.  Amy had pretty much paused her life after her father died).  

The shadowy status with Amy's brother was another source of character development for Amy.  She was hesitant to share about him with Roger, and when she finally does I think she starts to accept that nothing about what happened to him was her fault.  The scene when she breaks into his rehab facility was one of the best because it showed how much Amy had progressed in her grief as well how freeing the acceptance was.  

Overall, I think that this book was great; once of the most well written YA books out there.  The playlists, receipts, and pictures were wonderful additions. 

Three Words to Describe This Book:

Amazing Character Development!

I'll defiantly be interested in more by Morgan Matson.

~Remy

Just the Charms Tag and Waiting On Wednesday

Hi all!  Sorry for this ginormous post coming up, especially after my last one! :)

I'm going to start off the the "Just the Charms Tag".  

"Just the Charms Tag" is an original tag created by Youtuber JakesTea.  (That's the link directly to the Tag!)  Anyway, because it was originally formatted for Youtubers, Gabrielle at I Am Fandom altered the tag a bit to make it more blog friendly.  

Anyway, here we go…

What does your username/blog title mean?

"Books In Her Head" has always had a double meaning for me.  First it means that obviously after I read a book I analyze it and it often stays with me for days to weeks.  It also, however, refers in part to my love for writing, and how I always have future books swirling around in my head.

What is the best Star Wars film?

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope is hands down, the best.  Out of the three prequel films, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is my favorite.

What is your blogging set-up? What you do to make your blogposts?

I don't have much of a blogging set up per se.  I usually have the general idea for each of my blog posts set up several days in advance, but most of the time they aren't typed up until the day that they are posted. Sometimes I manage to get really far ahead, but that isn't very often.  I use Goodreads for the cover and blurb, as well as publisher information.  I get most of my books from either the library or buying them myself, although I do occasionally win some contests! 

What is your favorite type of pizza?

A thin crust margarita pizza with tomato slices, chopped basil, and homemade italian sauce.  Top it all off with fresh pieces of mozzarella.  

What does the blogging community mean to you?

The Book Blogging community means a lot to me!  It's fascinating that people of different ages, genders, ethnicity, and nationalities can get together and share their passion for books.  I've gotten so many opportunities to get to know great people through book blogging, and I plan to do it continuing in the future.

Who inspires you?

The work of John Green, Marissa Meyer, Lauren Oliver, J.K. Rowling and Jacylyn Moriarty inspires and influences my writing.  

Hank Green inspires me to want to never stop learning.

Burdgebug and Vira inspire me to draw more fan art.

My family inspires me to be hardworking and chase after my dreams.

My friends inspire me to always find the happy, silly moments, and to never let a bad day get you down.

Most of all, my amazing future inspires me.  All the possibilities of what's to come make me want to succeed in the moment.

How often do you tell the people around you, you love them?

I think that love is a precious word, however it can never be overused when sharing your feelings about important people, things, passions, and BOOKS in your life! :)  I try and let the people that I love know that I love them whenever we won't see each other for period of time, because I would never forgive myself if something happened and it hadn't been one of the last things that I had said to them.

Anyway, I'm supposed to tag as many people as I want, so I'll tag:

Emma @ Spun With Words

and 

Debby @ Snuggly Oranges

Now onto my Waiting On Wednesday!

"Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine where book bloggers can share and talk about books that have not been released yet.

This week I'm waiting for:

This Star Won't Go Out: The Life and Words of Esther Grace Earl

by Esther Earl with Lori and Wayne Earl

Blurb:

A collection of the journals, fiction, letters, and sketches of the late Esther Grace Earl, who passed away in 2010 at the age of 16. Photographs and essays by family and friends will help to tell Esther’s story along with an introduction by award-winning author John Green who dedicated his #1 bestselling novel The Fault in Our Stars to her.

~Remy 

Bookish Survey: Cast A Harry Potter Spell

Hey!  Jasmine over at Flip That Page created this Bookish Survey, one that is all about casting a Harry Potter Spell on a Book!  Here's the link to her original post about it: link.

Reparo:

Fixes Damaged Objects

Book that needs serious fixing: Halo (Halo #1) by Alexandra Adornetto.  I really wanted to love this book but, no.  There was so much focused on the the relationship, and it just got boring.  There was no exciting battles or anything like with the successful Unearthly Series by Cynthia Hand (also about angels).  The Unearthly series is relationship centered, but it had enough other characters and additional plot to balance it out.  Halo had none of that.  If it could thicken up it's plot without copying Unearthly I would be much happier.  On a side note, why are there no paranormal books with a side romance?  Does it have to be Paranormal-Romance?

Lumos:

Creates a Narrow Beam of Light

Book That Deserves More Attention: The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder.  Imagine The Fault in Our Stars but WAAYYYYY less romance centered.  (Not to say there isn't any romance…)  I  found that Wunder's writing was witty and funny.  Very funny.  

Nox:

Counters the Effects of Lumos

An Over Hyped Book: This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith.  This book was annoying, cliché, and the idea is WAYYYYYY overdone.  Nothing about this book is special besides it's pretty cover, which I will admit, is pretty amazing.  DON'T LET THAT FOOL YOU!

Accio:

Summons an Object From a Significant Distance

A Book That I'm Anticipating: Dorothy Must Die (Dorothy Must Die #1) by Danielle Paige.  I love everything The Wizard of Oz, so when I read the blurb for this book I was just dying to get my hands on it!!!!!  It's not out until April!  Ugh.

Expecto Patronum:

Conjures an Incarnation of Positive Feelings

A book that made me cry*: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.  Are there even words?  **Note that many books make me cry.  TFIOS was a close second.

Morsmordre:

Conjures the Dark Mark

A Book That I've Marked as a Favorite: The Girl With the Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti.  This book is one of my favorites because it was just so touching and utterly magical.  It is definitely the most unique paranormal romance that I've ever read.

Petrificus Totalus:

Petrifies Victum

A Book I Wish to Keep Forever: The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie (The Ashbury/Brookfield #3) by Jacyln Moriarty.  Bindy Mackenzie remains one of my favorite characters ever and her story is so amazingly intricate.  

Protego:

Shield Charm

An Intimidating Book That I Keep Putting Off: Les Misérables by Victor Hugo.  Have you seen this book?  It's ginormous!  I'll read it eventually, but it will take me a while to gain the confidence.  *Hides head behind friendly book*

Riddikulus:

Used Against Boggart

A book with a deceiving synopsis: Until It Hurts to Stop by Jennifer R. Hubbard.  The synopsis of this book implied that it would focus on Maggie facing her middle school bully Raleigh.  In reality, the book focused very little on this, and more on Maggie's relationship with her friend Nick.  

Lacarnum Inflamarae:

Shoots Fireballs

A Book That I Wish to Burn Out of my Mind Completely: The Big Crunch by Pete Huteman.  I hated the characters in this book.  They brought all of the problems onto themselves, making it unbearable to read.

Wingardium Leviosa:

Levitates Objects

A Book That I Wish to Re-read:  The Fault In Our Stars by John Green.  The movie is coming out this summer and just aslkdjgpoaij;kjs;faosr.

Avada Kedavra

Causes Instant Death

Worst Book EVER: The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.  I don't even want to talk about his book.  Ugh.

Stupefy:  

Puts Victim in Unconscious State

A Book With a Chapter That I Couldn't Get Over: Allegiant by Veronica Roth Chapter 

Confudo:

Causes Befuddlement or Forgetfulness

A Book That Generally Confused Me: Matched by Ally Condie.  This book had an awkward love triangle and utterly confusing world building. Not my cup of tea.

Crucio:

Inflicts Unbearable Pain:

A Book That Was a Pain to Read: Rules for Secret Keeping by Lauren Barnholdt.  This book had way too many plot lines that never got solved. Ick.

Episkey:

Heals Relatively Minor Injuries

A Feel Good Book That I Enjoyed: The Wedding Planner's Daughter (The Wedding Planner's Daughter #1) by Colleen Murtagh Paratore.  Just a cutesy Middle Grade read. Nothing Special.

Expelliarmus:

Temporarily Disarms Opponent

A Book With Swoon Worthy Characters: Tiger's Curse (The Tiger Saga #1) by Colleen Houck.  Ren is just fantastic, and *spoiler* have you met his twin brother?

Impedimenta:

Impedes Targets Progress

A Book That Kept Me Up All Night Reading: Paper Towns by John Green.  For some reason this book felt more intense than John Green's other books.  Maybe it was the possibility of self inflicted death that freaked me out.  This book was more of a thriller than John Green's other work. 

Silencio:

Immediate Silencing

A Book That Left Me Speechless After I Finished It:  Reason to Breathe by Rebecca Donovan. The entire book was so intense, and then the epilogue.  I was left so hollow inside, and thus was silent.

Legilimens:

Allows You to Delve Into Someones's Mind

A Book With Well Developed Characters: The Ghosts of Ashbury High (Asbury/Brookfield #4).  This book focuses on a fairly large group of characters, but I was able to feel connected to all of them.  

Levicorpus:

A Spell That Turns You Upside Down

A Book That Changed My Mind About A Character From It's Prequel: The Rise of Scourge by Erin Hunter (technically a manga).  This book changed my POV on Scourge, who is mostly featured in The Darkest Hour (Warriors #6) by Erin Hunter.  His evil was explained.

Obliviate:

Used to Hide Memories

A Book With a Story That I Can't Remember: Perfect by Natasha Friend.  I know that I liked this book and the rest of the books in this "sort of" series, but I honestly couldn't tell you what this one was about.

Peskipiksi Pesternomi

Useless Spell

A Book That Had Absolutely No Effect On Me: In A Heartbeat by Loretta Ellsworth.  This book was about a girl who gets a heart transplant, but it was too short and had practically no character development.  Boring!

Reducto:

Breaks Through Solid Objects:

A Book That Convinced You to Reconsider a Certain Genre: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter #1) by J. K. Rowling.  I had never liked Fantasy very much, (Excluding A Wrinkle In Time and The Chronicles of Narnia).  This book opened up the genre for me, and I haven't left it since.  Magic!  

Ricctusepra:

Tickling Spell

A Book That Made Me Laugh: The Year of Secret Assignments (Ashbury/Brookfield #2) by Jacyln Moriarty.  The characters and relationships are just wonderful in this book.  The situations that they find themselves in, now they made me laugh.

Sectusempra:

Offensive Spell That Violently Wounds the Target

A Book That Scarred Me for Life: Stolen: A Letter to My Capotor by Lucy Christopher.  You might be able to get the gist from the title, but lets just say that there were some unnerving scenes…

Tarantallegra: 

Makes You Dance Uncontrollably 

A Book That Made me Feel Giddy:  Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer.  Everything in this book, the characters, the setting, the plot.  MOST IMPRESSIVE SEQUEL EVER!!!

Bombarda Maxima:

Causes an Explosion that Breaks Through Obstacles

A Book That Made Me Explode With the Feels: Looking For Alaska by John Green.  The amazing thing about this book is that the feels came smack dab in the middle, and not at the end!  I had to keep reading.

Finite Incantatem:

Nullifies Other Spells

A Book That I Thought I'd Dislike, but I Ended Up Loving: Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone by Kat Rosenfield.  This book sort of turned me on to the more gritty thrillers and horror in YA.  

And I'm done!  That was a long post to type up!  I hope that you enjoyed it!!  

Au Revior,

~Remy