tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62491320895219238432024-03-05T00:59:11.332-05:00OPEN BOOK EMPTY CUPOPEN BOOK EMPTY CUPDarcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.comBlogger206125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-32683169347580773222019-08-25T18:34:00.001-04:002019-08-25T18:34:30.359-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "trebuchet" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #76a5af;">Bad Feminist </span></b><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Release Date: August 2014</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Publisher: Harper Perennial</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Pages: 320</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666;">Buy this book: </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bad-Feminist-Essays-Roxane-Gay/dp/0062282719"><b><span style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></b></a></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><i style="caret-color: rgb(24, 24, 24); color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">Pink is my favorite color. I used to say my favorite color was black to be <em>cool</em>, but it is pink—all shades of pink. If I have an accessory, it is probably pink. I read <em>Vogue</em>, and I’m not doing it ironically, though it might seem that way. I once live-tweeted the September issue.</i><br />
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<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;">In these funny and insightful essays, Roxane Gay takes us through the journey of her evolution as a woman of color while also taking readers on a ride through culture of the last few years and commenting on the state of feminism today. The portrait that emerges is not only one of an incredibly insightful woman continually growing to understand herself and our society, but also one of our culture.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><em style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;">Bad Feminist</em><span style="font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"> is a sharp, funny, and spot-on look at the ways in which the culture we consume becomes who we are, and an inspiring call-to-arms of all the ways we still need to do better.</span> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><u>Review</u>: I enjoyed reading this book alot. I had difficulty getting back into reading and this book was one of those works that made it easy to fall back into the rhythm of reading. It was honest, open, and referenced a lot of things I could relate to. This is the first book of Roxane Gay that I've read and I am excited to delve into her other works.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-65845044876993185302018-09-07T19:30:00.001-04:002018-09-07T19:33:50.053-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "trebuchet" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #76a5af;">Thinking Fast and Slow </span></b><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Release Date: October 2011</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Pages: 499</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Buy this book: </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0374275637/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0374275637&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2"><b><span style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></b></a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;">In the highly anticipated</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"> </span><i style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">Thinking, Fast and Slow</i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;">, Kahneman takes us on a groundbreaking tour of the mind and explains the two systems that drive the way we think. System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. Kahneman exposes the extraordinary capabilities—and also the faults and biases—of fast thinking, and reveals the pervasive influence of intuitive impressions on our thoughts and behaviour. The impact of loss aversion and overconfidence on corporate strategies, the difficulties of predicting what will make us happy in the future, the challenges of properly framing risks at work and at home, the profound effect of cognitive biases on everything from playing the stock market to planning the next vacation—each of these can be understood only by knowing how the two systems work together to shape our judgments and decisions.</span></div>
<span id="freeText17937570422210111025" style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><br />Engaging the reader in a lively conversation about how we think, Kahneman reveals where we can and cannot trust our intuitions and how we can tap into the benefits of slow thinking. He offers practical and enlightening insights into how choices are made in both our business and our personal lives—and how we can use different techniques to guard against the mental glitches that often get us into trouble. <i>Thinking, Fast and Slow</i> will transform the way you think about thinking.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><u>Review</u>: This was such an interesting book and one of the most difficult to read. I cannot say that I remember too much from it considering it was chalk full of insights, too many to count but I love to learn about the human brain, behaviour and why we do what we do. If you like that sort of thing as well then this is the book for you. Give it a go, but just make sure to have the patience for a long and complex read because this one is all of that and a bag of chips.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-48343917857224302162017-09-07T19:40:00.000-04:002018-09-07T19:47:38.792-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivN5xFa9a8Ja3v8TI8xOzcTLa1HNZe4OreNniHuK0v10LECKudqLvL_bWtRAYG4m_-SSZEc6ECO8JllFFg6okKFjCSJXa9UJsdOlnGPQ10ntN9X0djXylMwYFuaYPvgAWRTCCCr-bQXBmK/s1600/186074.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivN5xFa9a8Ja3v8TI8xOzcTLa1HNZe4OreNniHuK0v10LECKudqLvL_bWtRAYG4m_-SSZEc6ECO8JllFFg6okKFjCSJXa9UJsdOlnGPQ10ntN9X0djXylMwYFuaYPvgAWRTCCCr-bQXBmK/s320/186074.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "trebuchet" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #76a5af;">The Name of the Wind </span></b><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Release Date: April 2007</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Publisher: Penguin Group DAW</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Pages: 662</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Buy this book: </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/075640407X/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=075640407X&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2"><span style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;">Told in Kvothe's own voice, this is the tale of the magically gifted young man who grows to be the most notorious wizard his world has ever seen.</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"> </span></i></div>
<i><span id="freeText1685878918250096092" style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><br />The intimate narrative of his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, his years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime-ridden city, his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a legendary school of magic, and his life as a fugitive after the murder of a king form a gripping coming-of-age story unrivaled in recent literature.<br /><br />A high-action story written with a poet's hand, The Name of the Wind is a masterpiece that will transport readers into the body and mind of a wizard.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"> </span></i><br />
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<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;"><u>Review</u>: I now know what all the fuss was about. Patrick RothFuss (insert laughter...lol). What a delightful writer and what a delightful book. Incredible use of words, a mastery of imagined worlds and a flair for imagery that i have rarely encountered. He is one of my favourite new authors. If you've never read this book, go out and get it. If you love fantasy and have yet to hear of this book, go out and get it. If you've, like me, heard whispers through the grapevine about it, then please don't waste any more time and go out and get yourself a copy. This book will... not change your life, but it will make you remember what epic fantasy at its best can be.</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-68711471414785215982017-03-02T21:23:00.000-05:002017-03-02T21:23:22.870-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #76a5af;">Superman: Birthright </span></b><br />Release Date: October 2005<br />Publisher: DC Comics<br />Pages: 287<br />Buy this book: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Superman-Birthright-Mark-Waid/dp/1401202527" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span></span><span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The entire modern day retelling of Superman — from his early days in Smallville with Lana Lang and Lex Luthor, to his first meeting with Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen and Perry White in Metropolis — is recounted in this lavish hardcover collection by writer Mark Waid and artists Leinil Francis Yu and Gerry Alanguilan! SUPERMAN: BIRTHRIGHT collects the best-selling, critically acclaimed 12-issue maxiseries of the same name and features an introduction by Smallville television producers Al Gough and Miles Millar, plus a sketchbook section showcasing Yu's development work in addition to notes by Waid. Witness the making of a legend, as Clark Kent learns the tough lessons needed to become the World's Greatest Hero! Also watch as Lex Luthor comes to Smallville, befriending Clark. But it's a relationship that may ultimately spell disaster for Metropolis and the Man of Steel.</span></i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Now I feel like I should preface this review by saying that I am not a huge comic book fan. That is not to say that I don't enjoy them because I do. But I didn't grow up on them. That being said I think that this was one of the ones I really loved. I thought the way the story was told and the sequential art was beautiful. There were twists and turns in the story, which I appreciated. Overall it was really a great read.</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-34360633216120934912017-01-26T00:01:00.003-05:002017-01-26T00:05:05.176-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #76a5af;">Ready Player One By Ernest Cline</span></b><br />Release Date: August 17, 2011<br />Publisher: Crown Publishers<br />Pages: 374<br />Buy this book: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/030788743X/ref=x_gr_w_glide_bb_sout?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_glide_bb_sout-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=030788743X&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><i><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white;">In t</span><span style="background-color: white;">he year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise </span><span style="background-color: white;">massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. When Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape</span>.</span></i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ernest Cline's <i>Ready Player One</i> was an awesome surprise. It came into my life at a time when I hadn't been reading much of anything. As evident from my last post, I haven't been blogging much either. So I was trapped in this cycle of not reading and as a result not blogging. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thankfully this novel broke that curse.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let me start by saying that<i> Ready Player One</i> is incredibly well written. There is such attention to detail and an authenticity and respect for character and setting that it amazed me at how Cline managed it all. This story is also relatable and approachable. Cline keeps his language simple as he weaves story with music, art and culture. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Moreover, <i>Ready Player One</i> is, at its heart, homage to all we loved about the 80's such as the movies, music and videogames of that seminal era. Even though I was not familiar with a lot of the references in the novel Cline still managed to make me nostalgic for that era the same way his characters did. This is another testament to Cline's talent as a writer. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Also, the future that Cline paints is built upon an inter-connected alternative cyber reality that is not that far removed from the one we live in now. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cline successfully writes a story that is simultaneously looking backwards and forwards. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This story was a fun ride and the writing was great. Go and get it as soon as you can (before the movie, that Spielberg is slated to direct, comes out).</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-8950949115155966442015-10-09T22:20:00.000-04:002015-10-09T22:20:39.145-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYz6cFfftCSUQf-u-9sHspTeqJuFyFhln_nUsY-vi1vPL1WcuBjNGVObhQrSGM5yQlpuNFd7_Dd07ZqXlm1JqYGMik1VulK7Vk11rKoAr2wPihax3xedS71hT-M-2O2X0uvne5K0x9CjFm/s1600/220px-HeirToTheEmpire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYz6cFfftCSUQf-u-9sHspTeqJuFyFhln_nUsY-vi1vPL1WcuBjNGVObhQrSGM5yQlpuNFd7_Dd07ZqXlm1JqYGMik1VulK7Vk11rKoAr2wPihax3xedS71hT-M-2O2X0uvne5K0x9CjFm/s320/220px-HeirToTheEmpire.jpg" width="192" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #76a5af;">Heir to the Empire (Star Wars: The Thrown Trilogy #1)</span></b><br />Release Date: January 1, 1991<br />Publisher: Bantam Spectra<br />Pages: 404<br />Buy this book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heir-Empire-Star-Wars-Trilogy/dp/0553296124"><span style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a></span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): <span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic;">It's five years after </span><span style="font-style: italic;">Return of the Jedi:</span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic;"> the Rebel Alliance has destroyed the Death Star, defeated Darth Vader and the Emperor, and driven out the remnants of the old Imperial Starfleet to a distant corner of the galaxy. Princess Leia and Han Solo are married and expecting Jedi Twins. And Luke Skywalker has become the first in a long-awaited line of Jedi Knights. But thousand of light-years away, the last of the emperor's warlords has taken command of the shattered Imperial Fleet, readied it for war, and pointed it at the fragile heart of the new Republic. For this dark warrior has made two vital discoveries that could destroy everything the courageous men and women of the Rebel Alliance fought so hard to build. The explosive confrontation that results is a towering epic of action, invention, mystery, and spectacle on a galactic scale--in short, a story worthy of the name </span><i>Star Wars.</i></span></span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I liked this book. A lot. I loved the characters and I felt like they sounded exactly as I remembered them from the movies. Their voices were authentic. I also loved the introduction of Mara Jade into the story. If you read more literature on the characters beyond the movies then you know that Mara Jade becomes and important part of the Star Wars canon. I won't leave any spoilers here but I have to say being introduced to her in Heir to the Empire was satisfying. She was as I imagined and I can't wait to read the second book to see how she is developed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That being said Timothy Zahn clearly knows about the Star Wars Universe based upon the delicate care he takes with weaving a great story. So excited about finally finishing this one and I cannot wait to start on the second.</span></div>
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Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-76010844346826745332015-10-05T01:29:00.001-04:002015-10-05T01:32:58.257-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #76a5af;"><b>A Monster Calls By Patrick Ness</b></span><br />Release Date: September 27, 2011<br />Publisher: Walker Books<br />Pages: 215<br />Buy this book: <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Monster-Calls-Inspired-idea-Siobhan/dp/0763660655"><span style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></a></b></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><i><span style="color: #666666;">The monster showed up after midnight. As they do.<br /><br />But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting. He's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming...<br /><br />This monster is something different, though. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor.<br /><br />It wants the truth.</span></i><div>
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This novel was short and heartbreakingly sweet. I felt like I was a part of Conor's world and I felt his fear, his pain, his confusion and lack of understanding at the crazy and sometimes unfair world around us. There are so many lessons slowly unraveled and learned in this book that even as I write this review I still feel like I'm understanding new things about the book. This was an enjoyable read despite the weighty subject matter. I would highly recommend this novel.</div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-52921666535177677442015-06-08T08:30:00.000-04:002015-06-08T21:43:13.266-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #76a5af;">The Ocean At The End Of The Lane By Neil Gaiman</span></b><br /><b>Release Date</b>: June 18, 2013<br /><b>Publisher</b>: William Morrow Books<br /><b>Pages</b>: 181<br /><b>Buy this book</b>: <b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15783514-the-ocean-at-the-end-of-the-lane"><span style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></a></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666;">Sussex, England. A middle-aged man returns to his childhood home to attend a funeral. Although the house he lived in is long gone, he is drawn to the farm at the end of the road, where, when he was seven, he encountered a most remarkable girl, Lettie Hempstock, and her mother and grandmother. He hasn't thought of Lettie in decades, and yet as he sits by the pond (a pond that she'd claimed was an ocean) behind the ramshackle old farmhouse, the unremembered past comes flooding back. And it is a past too strange, too frightening, too dangerous to have happened to anyone, let alone a small boy.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #666666;">Forty years earlier, a man committed suicide in a stolen car at this farm at the end of the road. Like a fuse on a firework, his death lit a touchpaper and resonated in unimaginable ways. The darkness was unleashed, something scary and thoroughly incomprehensible to a little boy. And Lettie—magical, comforting, wise beyond her years—promised to protect him, no matter what.</span></i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Having just finished this book, I am at a loss for words to describe all the emotions I'm feeling.Well let me just start off by saying Gaiman is a master writer and I don't know any other author that can take pen to page, or in this case keyboard to screen, and make you feel every emotion under the sun whilst having you begging for more. I was sad to get to the end of this rather short work (it was only 181 pages).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However, let me say that I LOVED <b><i><span style="color: #76a5af;">The Ocean at the End of the Lane</span></i></b>. I was teary at times, smiling at others, terrified and genuinely touched. This book captures the innocence of childhood, of dreams and the imagination. I honestly don't know how Gaiman does it but I'm glad he does what he does like no other writer out there. His voice is so unique and sweet and different that I'm glad he was a destined to be a writer so that those of us who are in awe of his skill at least get to enjoy his beautiful words. Thanks Mr. Gaiman for introducing us to Lettie Hempstock and letting us escape to her ocean.</span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"All monsters are scared.<br />That's why they're monsters."</span></i><br />
<i><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />"I found myself thinking of an ocean running beneath the whole universe, like the dark seawater that laps beneath the wooden boards of an old pier: an ocean that stretches from forever to forever and is still small enough to fit inside a bucket, if you have Old Mrs. Hempstock to help you get it in there, and you ask nicely."</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"I saw the world I had walked since my birth and I understood how fragile it was, that the reality I knew was a thin layer of icing on a great dark birthday cake writhing with grubs and nightmares and hunger. I saw the world from above and below. I saw that there were patterns and gates and paths beyond the real. I saw all these things and understood them and they filled me, just as the waters of the ocean filled me. Everything whispered inside me. Everything spoke to everything, and I knew it all."</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Adults are content to walk the same way, hundreds of times, or thousands; perhaps it never occurs to adults to step off the paths, to creep beneath rhododendrons, to find the spaces between fences. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“I’m going to tell you something important. Grown-ups don’t look like grown-ups on the inside either. Outside, they’re big and thoughtless and they always know what they’re doing. Inside, they look just like they always have. Like they did when they were your age. The truth is, there aren’t any grown-ups. Not one, in the whole wide world.”</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“And did I pass?"<br />The face of the old woman on my right was unreadable in the gathering dusk. On my left the younger woman said, "You don't pass or fail at a being a person, dear.”</span></i></div>
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Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-55191661901454367472015-01-19T19:20:00.000-05:002015-01-20T19:20:35.631-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3e/TheGraveyardBook_Hardcover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3e/TheGraveyardBook_Hardcover.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #76a5af;"><b>The Graveyard Book By Neil Gaiman</b></span><br /><span style="color: #666666;"><b>Release Date</b>: September 30, 2007</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;"><b>Publisher</b>: Harper Collins</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;"><b>Pages</b>: 312</span><br /><span style="color: #666666;"><b>Genre</b>: Children's Literature </span><br /><span style="color: #666666;"><b>Buy this book</b>: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Graveyard-Book-Neil-Gaiman/dp/0060530944"><b><span style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></b></a><br /><br /><span style="color: #666666;">Synopsis (from Goodreads):</span></span> <i><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">After the grisly murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own.</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;" /><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family . . . </span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;" /><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his New York Times bestselling modern classic Coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, The Graveyard Book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages.</span></span></i><br />
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This book was amazing in every way. The characters, the setting, the atmosphere and overall suspense, all of it was on point and executed to perfection. Mr. Gaiman had gotten the idea almost twenty years before writing it and needless to say the wait was definitely worth it because what we've been given is an instant classic. The Graveyard Book was endearing, poignant and profound in many ways. Well done. I loved it.</div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-78502330366848714862014-05-27T21:44:00.000-04:002014-05-28T22:32:14.914-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.snugglyoranges.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Shatter-Me-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.snugglyoranges.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Shatter-Me-2.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">Shatter Me By Tahereh Mafi</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Release Date: </span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">November 15, 2011</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Publisher: </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Harper Teen</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Pages: </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">338</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Genre: </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Young Adult</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Buy this book</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">:</span> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Shatter-Me-Tahereh-Mafi/dp/0062085506"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><br /><b>Synopsis (from Goodreads)</b>:</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><s>I have a curse</s><br />I have a gift<br /><br /><s>I am a monster</s><br />I'm more than human<br /><br /><s>My touch is lethal</s><br />My touch is power<br /><br /><s>I am their weapon</s><br />I will fight back<br /><br />Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.<br /><br />The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.<br /><br />The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.<br /><br />Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.</i></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; line-height: 19px;">First, let me preface this by saying that I tried to read this book twice before succeeding the third time around. The main reason for this was the fact that this novel was riddled with so many smilies and metaphors (some of them not making sense and others ill placed) that it took away from the actual storytelling. I'm not going to go in depth with this review because there really isn't much to go in depth with. The synopsis is essentially dragged out over 300+ pages and the ending leaves a lot to desired (not to mention it was entirely unoriginal). </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">I will give the author points for originality and taking risk in narration style but it doesn't work here. I wouldn't recommend this one but I give myself a pat on the back for getting through it though.</span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-63287394837788912452014-05-23T21:00:00.000-04:002014-05-28T22:33:21.638-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">The Wolf Gift By Anne Rice</span></b><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Release Date</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">: February 14, 2012</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Publisher</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">: Knopf</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Pages</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">: 404</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Genre</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">: Adult</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Buy this book</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Wolf-Gift-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B0060AY8K2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a><br /><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Synopsis (from Goodreads)</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">: </span><i style="color: #666666;">The time is the present.<br /><br />The place, the rugged coast of northern California. A bluff high above the Pacific. A grand mansion full of beauty and tantalizing history set against a towering redwood forest.<br /><br />A young reporter on assignment from the San Francisco Observer. . . an older woman, welcoming him into her magnificent, historic family home that he has been sent to write about and that she must sell with some urgency . . . A chance encounter between two unlikely people . . . an idyllic night—shattered by horrific unimaginable violence. . .The young man inexplicably attacked—bitten—by a beast he cannot see in the rural darkness . . . A violent episode that sets in motion a terrifying yet seductive transformation as the young man, caught between ecstasy and horror, between embracing who he is evolving into and fearing who—what—he will become, soon experiences the thrill of the wolf gift.<br /><br />As he resists the paradoxical pleasure and enthrallment of his wolfen savagery and delights in the power and (surprising) capacity for good, he is caught up in a strange and dangerous rescue and is desperately hunted as “the Man Wolf,” by authorities, the media and scientists (evidence of DNA threaten to reveal his dual existence). . . As a new and profound love enfolds him, questions emerge that propel him deeper into his mysterious new world: questions of why and how he has been given this gift; of its true nature and the curious but satisfying pull towards goodness; of the profound realization that there are others like him who may be watching—guardian creatures who have existed throughout time and may possess ancient secrets and alchemical knowledge and throughout it all, the search for salvation for a soul tormented by a new realm of temptations, and the fraught, exhilarating journey, still to come, of being and becoming, fully, both wolf and man.</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rueben, a young reporter, narrowly escapes a wolf attack and soon finds himself experiencing a change that transforms him into a man wolf. Soon after this he begins to take on the role of a vigilante by taking the law into his own hands. As a result the police scientists being looking for him, as well </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">as others with the same gift...<br /><br />I really wanted to like this book but I found certain things problematic. For one, the protagonist was very one dimensional and flat. Rueben is a 23 year old with a Porsche who recites poetry and philosophy... how realistic is that. It didn't seem very believable and this took away from the possible deeper layers of the character.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Secondly, Reuben randomly has a love connection with a women who appears in the woods. No reason is given for why she lives so reclusively or why she isn't horrified by the man wolfs appearance. But soon after spending the first night together they fall deeply in love and we don't get to know more about either character other than their love for each other. I am not a big fan instant. I find it dull and in this case thats what we get.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">The rest of his family are also underdeveloped. Reuben's mom, a doctor, is defined by her job and it is the only light we see her in. And similarly so is his brother who is a priest.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Despite these criticisms, Anne Rice is great at myth building. The back story to the wolf gift (chrism) is fascinating and the strongest point in the book. Her descriptions of the old house in which Reuben lives as well as the redwood forest is so vivid its breathtaking and there is something to be said for that.</span></span></div>
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Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-86533812535471151322014-05-12T20:40:00.000-04:002014-05-28T22:33:41.546-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af; font-weight: bold;">Changing Planes By Ursula K. Le Guin</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><b>Release Date: </b>August 1</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">, 2005</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Publisher: </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Ace</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Pages: </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">239</span><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Genre: </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Young Adult</span><br /><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Buy this book: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Changing-Planes-Ursula-K-LeGuin/dp/0441012248"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></a></b><br /><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Synopsis (from Goodreads)</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:<i> </i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Sita Dulip has missed her flight. But instead of listening to garbled announcements in the airport, she has found a method of bypassing the crowds at the desks, the long lines at the toilets, the nasty lunch, the whimpering children and punitive parents, the bookless bookstores, and the blue plastic chairs bolted to the floor.<br /><br />This method - changing planes - enables Sita to visit fifteen societies not found on Earth. She will encounter cultures where the babble of children fades over time into the silence of adults; where whole towns exist solely for holiday shopping; where personalities are ruled by rage; where genetic experiments produce less than desirable results. And many other exotic landscapes whose denizens are fundamentally human...</i></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Airports are boring places so when I read the synopsis of this novel I had to read it. And let me say that it did not disappoint. Le Guin is an amazing writer with immense imagination. She goes to areas and spaces where many writers haven't gone before. The stories are interesting and unlike anything I had ever read before.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">This collection of stories was an exercise in imagination and it was thought provoking. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to be transported.</span></span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-33116129697993991772014-05-01T20:19:00.000-04:002014-05-28T22:35:02.385-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af; font-weight: bold;">Red Glove By Holly Black (Curse Workers #2)</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><b>Release Date: </b>April 5, 2011</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><b>Publisher: </b>Margaret K. McElderry Books<br /><b>Pages: </b>325<br /><b>Genre: </b>Young Adult<br /><b>Buy this book</b>: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Red-Glove-The-Curse-Workers/dp/1442403403"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a><br /><br /><b style="color: #666666;">Synopsis (from Goodreads)</b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">: </span><i style="color: #666666;">After rescuing his brothers from Zacharov’s retribution, Cassel is trying to reestablish some kind of normalcy in his life. <br /><br />That was never going to be easy for someone from a worker family that’s tied to one of the big crime families—and whose mother’s cons get more reckless by the day. But Cassel is coming to terms with what it means to be a worker, and he’s figuring out how to have friends.<br /><br />Except normal doesn’t last very long. Soon Cassel is being courted by both sides of the law and is forced to confront his past—a past he remembers only in scattered fragments, and one that could destroy his family and his future. Cassel will have to decide whose side he wants to be on, because neutrality is not an option. And then he will have to pull off his biggest con ever to survive….</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am a big fan of Holly Black and her Faerie series but unfortunately this series was off the mark for me. It wasn't the writing, because we all know Holly can write, it was the premise I found less than titillating or engaging. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The plot set up of forbidden love set behind the backdrop of a world where con-artistry magic and the mafia mix should work but ultimately doesn't. i didn't feel the characters were real enough or that I cared too much about them. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Overall I would say that the strength of the writing saves the story but it was the story itself that I found to be flat.</span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-7929127369662039122014-03-16T23:29:00.000-04:002014-05-28T22:34:55.486-04:00<div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">The Girl of Fire and Thorns By Rae Carson (Fire and Thorns #1)</span></b><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><b>Release Date</b>: September 1, 2011<br /><b>Publisher</b>: Greenwillow<br /><b>Pages</b>: 423<br /><b>Genre</b>: Young Adult<br /><b>Buy this book</b>:</span> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Girl-Fire-Thorns-Carson/dp/006202650X"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><i>Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.</i></strong></span></span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br />Elisa is the chosen one. <br /><br />But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can't see how she ever will. <br /><br />Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.<br /><br />And he's not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people's savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.<br /><br />Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.<br /><br />Most of the chosen do.</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">i was pleasantly surprised by The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson. I first heard about it online through several blogs and most of the reviews were very good. When I finally did get my hands on it I have to say that it was a slow read at the beginning. It took me a while to finish but when I did the overall story arc was very satisfying. The characters are very endearing and the protagonist Elisa is a character who I really felt I could get behind. She wasn't whiney as some characters tend to be. She was relatable and surprisingly real leaping off the page instantly. Being in her head wasn't a bad place to be and seeing her world through her eyes was different and great.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The grand love affair (a spice in any great novel) is also a bit of a surprise. I really enjoyed the twists and turns especially the way it was all resolved in the end. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I do recommend this book and I have to say... Rae Carson tells an intriguing story and I followed her till the end.</span></span>Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-58941768318204992762013-09-14T23:27:00.000-04:002014-05-28T22:35:32.852-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">The Blessed By Tonya Hurley</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Release Date</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">: September 25, 2012</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Publisher</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">: Simon & Shuster Books for Young Readers</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Pages</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">: 405</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Genre: </b>Young Adult</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Buy this book</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">:<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;"> </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Blessed-Book-Tonya-Hurley/dp/1444904752"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></a></b></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Synopsis (from Goodreads)<i>: From the author of the New York Times bestselling ghostgirl series, the start to a captivating and haunting teen trilogy about three girls who become entangled with an enigmatic boy—a boy who believes he is a saint.What if martyrs and saints lived among us? And what if you were told you were one of them?<br /><br /> Meet Agnes, Cecilia, and Lucy. Three lost girls, each searching for something. But what they find is Beyond Belief.</i></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">I am going to have a hard time trying to write this review. This isn't to say that I didn't like the book, because I enjoyed it to a certain degree. Well let me start off first by saying that Tonya Hurley is a good writer, I don't think there is a lot of doubt about that. I enjoyed the grittiness to her narrative because it made the setting and the characters that much more believable. That said, I have to say that I was trudging through this book rather than really sinking my teeth into it which I was disappointed by.</span></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">The concept of girl saints/martyrs told in a modern way, in a modern world was entirely new and very interesting. I was intrigued but spent much of the story going through the motions with the characters. There was a lack of tension and therefore most of the book fell flat. I was very interested in Sebastian's character but his story was a background piece at best and at the end of it all I closed the book not feeling like I knew any of the characters, their desires or their fears and wants.</span></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Although <i>The Blessed</i> was quite original and well written, the characters and plot fell a little flat for me. I didn't really understand where the author was going with the story and at the end of it all I still didn't get the full picture really. It just left me confused rather than excited and for that I'd say it turned out to be a disappointment.</span></span></span>Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-34933843299361712172013-09-05T00:00:00.000-04:002014-05-28T22:35:47.378-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af; line-height: 18px;"><b>The Dispossessed By Ursula K. LeGuin</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Release Date</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">: October 20, 1994</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Publisher</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">: UK General Books</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Pages</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">: 387</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Genre: Science Fiction</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b>Buy this book</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Dispossessed-Ursula-K-Guin/dp/0061054887"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></b></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;">Synopsis (from Goodreads):</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;"><i> </i></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Shevek, a brilliant physicist, decides to take action. he will seek answers, question the unquestionable, and attempt to tear down the walls of hatred that have isolated his planet of anarchists from the rest of the civilized universe. To do this dangerous task will mean giving up his family and possibly his life. Shevek must make the unprecedented journey to the utopian mother planet, Anarres, to challenge the complex structures of life and living, and ignite the fires of change.</i></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">This is the second book I am about to review of Ursula Leguin. I must say that there was a major difference between <a href="http://openbookemptycup.blogspot.com/2012/02/tombs-of-atuan-by-ursula-k-le-guin.html"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">The Tombs of Atuan</span></b></a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"> and The Dispossessed. In this novel, Ms. Leguin's main protagonist, Shevek, is a scientist and there was a lot of science involved in the telling of this story. What did you expect you ask? I know, I know I should have known. But I have come to realize that this is a genre I must dabble in slowly rather than dive in head first (which I think I did with this one).</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">The story was simple enough and it's not to say that the plot wasn't interesting, it's just that Shevek is a scientist, going to his new planet for research (more science), and a he spends much time talking with other professors about... science. I felt a little out of my element as I tried to keep up with devices and theories. However, despite this setback the story was well written and the main character was muti-layered and commanding enough to grab my attention and push me from page to page. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">I love to challenge myself and I must say this story definitely did that. It was thought provoking and eye opening. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">The writing was strong, the character development deep and impressive. At the beginning of the story Shevek is a man in search of something he doesn't quite know yet but he is also arrogant in the way we all are when we haven't lived life. We think we have all the answers but we soon find out that life is a lot more complicated then what we perceive or believe. At it's heart the Dispossessed is a story of inner and outer struggle. It is masterfully told and Shevek is a character you won't soon forget whether you agree with his views or not. If you aren't a fan of science fiction, I recommend that at some point when you are ready to give it a chance pick this one up. Put your thinking cap on and enjoy!!</span>Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-87922962505504703712013-09-01T00:00:00.000-04:002013-09-05T01:55:42.926-04:00THREE YEARS!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPb-8jnwWaGKQ8uyr6EYIa99yukn-cCE2zV7qfjZE1km53Ca1ygw4KVYlDZqxfbFVTcP1buQOrGOaL79Z1RU-NFoA5yLhPPkvxkTqHYcPoQBG48CINthmF7NqsF8iuz_YBoitJgcHrzarU/s1600/6105418846_05b37dc285.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPb-8jnwWaGKQ8uyr6EYIa99yukn-cCE2zV7qfjZE1km53Ca1ygw4KVYlDZqxfbFVTcP1buQOrGOaL79Z1RU-NFoA5yLhPPkvxkTqHYcPoQBG48CINthmF7NqsF8iuz_YBoitJgcHrzarU/s320/6105418846_05b37dc285.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Yes, it has been three challenging yet amazing years working behind Open Book Empty Cup. This last year has been a very slow one with regards to the blog but I am hopeful that as there is a dip/low point with everything there is also an uplift as well. I have loved working on the blog and I hope to continue to do it for many years to come. It's been three years so cheers to many more!!</i></span>Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-64969982638908462502013-07-28T19:54:00.001-04:002014-05-28T22:36:27.885-04:00<a href="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1361044695l/6482837.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1361044695l/6482837.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af; line-height: 20px;"><b>Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Release Date</b>: March 2, 2010</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Publisher</b>: Harper Collins</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Age Group</b>: Young Adult</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Pages</b>: 470</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Source</b>: Bought</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Buy this book</b>: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/books/dp/0061726818"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></b></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">What if you only had one day to live? What would you do? Who would you kiss? And how far would you go to save your own life?</span></i></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Samantha Kingston has it all: looks, popularity, the perfect boyfriend. Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life. Instead, it turns out to be her last.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">The catch: Samantha still wakes up the next morning. Living the last day of her life seven times during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death—and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing.</span></i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Before I begin I have to confess that this book took me quite a long time to finish. Having said that there were several factors that contributed to this. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">For one, I found the dialogue stretched too long throughout most of the book. I found that there was a lot of plot dragging in terms of dialogue especially in the middle of the book. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">And secondly, there were too many characters crowded together on the page. A lot of the side characters I encountered I didn't really invest in or care for necessarily. Every couple of pages there would be another character (insert awkward situation pertaining to said side character here) and then that would be it. No mention of them again. It was a little confusing and felt a little like a carousel of characters coming in and out of the plot.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">However, despite these two aspects I continued to read and I was glad that I did. Samantha Kingston is a protagonist whose journey was agonizing and heartbreaking too. She and her circle of friends, who share and keep secrets, push the story forward to an unexpected end. Lauren Oliver doesn't disappoint in her beautiful writing as she pulls at your heartstrings one by one.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">As I neared the end, however long the journey might have been, I began to feel that feeling of not wanting to let go of the ride, my fingers tightening onto the pages. Also the ending was crushing and unexpected. I know I should have seen it coming but I really didn't, which is to the credit of the author. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">Overall Before I Fall, despite being slightly too long in text in some areas, was beautifully written and had ambition and a lot of heart. Samantha's journey is profound and the overall lesson is a great one we all can learn from.</span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-30281911427169967762013-06-23T12:22:00.002-04:002014-05-28T22:36:36.686-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337964452l/12812550.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337964452l/12812550.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>(Daughter of Smoke and bone #2)</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>Release Date</b>: November 6, 2012</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>Publisher</b>: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>Age Group</b>: Young Adult</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>Pages</b>: 517</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>Source</b>: Bought</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><b>Buy this book</b>: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0316133973"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></b></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;">Synopsis (from Goodreads): </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a world free of bloodshed and war.</span></em></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><em><br />This is not that world.</em></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">Art student and monster's apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><em>what</em></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">she is. But with this knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><em>Daughter of Smoke & Bone</em></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">, Karou must decide how far she'll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices,</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><em>Days of Blood & Starlight</em></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. For</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><em>hope</em></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream?</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">The bar was set very high for the sequel to Daughter of Smoke and Bone because of how incredible that book was. It was imaginative in a way I had never read before and in short it blew my socks off. I was hopeful that the second would rise to the challenge and at the least meet expectations and at the best exceed them.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">And the wait was definitely worth it because this sequel met the challenge and surpassed all my hopes and expectations. There is such richness and depth to Laini's writing it is absolutely a feast for the mind to read one of her work.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Karou is back and trying to navigate this deadly new world that she has inherited. Without giving any spoilers away I will say that the action, suspense and world building just gets better in the second book. There are surprise twists and turns that will have you fearful to turn the next page. But as always the author handles her characters with such care and delicacy that they feel like real people immediately. Suzanna and Mik go on a dangerous journey that is as interesting as the daily trials of our main character. Overall this book was incredible in it's world building, plotting and character development. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">The smallest details were not too small and t</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 19px;">hat's the real gift of an author like Laini. She can make even the mundane everyday things sound so magical and interesting with her words. I enjoyed this book immensely and if you haven't read this series get going on it right away. You won't be disappointed!!</span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-83541096576744470442013-06-12T19:44:00.002-04:002014-05-28T22:32:56.727-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a9/The_Fault_in_Our_Stars.jpg/200px-The_Fault_in_Our_Stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a9/The_Fault_in_Our_Stars.jpg/200px-The_Fault_in_Our_Stars.jpg" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">The Fault In Our Stars by John Green</span></b><br />Release Date: January 10, 2012<br />Publisher: Dutton Books<br />Age Group: Young Adult<br />Pages: 318<br />Source: Gift<br />Buy this book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Fault-Stars-John-Green/dp/0525478817"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;">Amazon</span></b></a><br /><br />Synopsis (from Goodreads):<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"> </span></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.</i></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">The story of Hazel and Augustus is so special it had me devouring this book in a day. Their story is more than the cancer that they suffer from, it is more than their battered and ravaged bodies. Their story really is the story of hope and optimism.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">In the saddest moments John Green had us laughing, and in the darkest moment he had us hoping which is what is so special about this book. It was surprising in a good way and I would read it again in a heartbeat.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Life is precious and no one is guaranteed forever and the ones that truly live life are those that can make the moments last for eternity. I loved this book, plain and simple.</span></span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-18494432266753780522013-01-01T00:00:00.000-05:002013-09-04T04:47:30.285-04:00HAPPY NEW YEAR!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><i><b>HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!</b></i></span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-7176669449996087722012-12-30T00:00:00.000-05:002014-05-28T22:37:17.880-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/DaughterOfSmokeAndBone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/DaughterOfSmokeAndBone.jpg" height="320" width="210" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Arial bold'; line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor</span></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Release Date</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">September 27, 2011</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Publisher</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Little, Brown & Company</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Age Group</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Young Adult</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pages</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">417</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Source</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bought</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Buy this book</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:<b style="color: #351c75;"> </b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Daughter-Smoke-Bone/dp/031613399X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1356127919&sr=1-1&keywords=daughter+of+smoke+and+bone"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #76a5af;"><b>Amazon</b></span></a></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">Synopsis (from Goodreads):</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky. </span></em></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><em><br />In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.<br /><br />And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war. </em></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages—not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">When one of the strangers—beautiful, haunted Akiva—fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">This book was huge breath of fresh air. It came with a lot of recommendations and I am not surprised now that I've become one of the lucky of have read it. Laini Taylor is a master storyteller wielding the pen so artfully that it is heartbreaking. There are many scenes of such beauty, layered upon one another it had my head spinning in a good way. To say that i enjoyed this book would be the understatement of the century, I LOVED it!!</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Blue haired protagonist Karou is a multifaceted character with an air of mystery around her that she herself does not understand. You embark on her personal journey with her and at once you are invested and sucked into her world. There is something special about her. She knows it and so does the reader and so begins the excitement to figure out the answers to the questions that surround her. Why does she collect teeth? What are they for? All the answers come to a shocking end that had me running to the store for the second book.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Location, location, location! </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Exotic locals such as </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">Prague, Marrakech and many others are a huge part of the delight of the book. As an avid traveler this was a fun part of the book for me. You travel without having traveled. So vividly were these places described that I felt as though I had walked the streets myself.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19px;">Daughter of Smoke and Bone was such a beautiful book I could not get enough of it. Those who have not read it should really give it a try. You will not disappointed.</span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-35447011624980550802012-12-25T00:00:00.000-05:002013-09-04T04:48:15.079-04:00HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://artbistro.monster.com/nfs/artbistro/attachment_images/0029/1586/Holiday_facts_crop380w.jpg?1291659244" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="http://artbistro.monster.com/nfs/artbistro/attachment_images/0029/1586/Holiday_facts_crop380w.jpg?1291659244" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #134f5c; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><i><b>FROM ME TO YOU, </b></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #134f5c;">HAPPY HOLIDAYS</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><3</span></b></i></span></div>
Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-64395057788217093182012-12-24T00:00:00.000-05:002012-12-24T00:00:08.851-05:00FIRST DAY OF CHRISTMAS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41NHiX-StBL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41NHiX-StBL.jpg" width="217" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">It is once again that time of the year and the holidays season has begun. This also means the run down of the Twelve Days of Christmas. These posts are festive in nature but also book related which is the most fun! I love this time of the year, with all the lights, Rudolf and his red nose and eggnog lattes (yum). Now lets get to this years topic and it is... </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><u><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">Unforgettable Character Names</span></b></i></u></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">. This list is in no particular order however I do love all the names on this list. They made it because they are unique, well suited to their characters and of course "Unforgettable". So enjoy and let the fun begin:)</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">❅</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b>1</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> Artemis Fowl </span><i>from</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> Artemis Fowl series</span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;">2</span> Bruce Wayne <i>from</i> Batman</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 The Hobbits (Frodo Baggins, Samwise 'Sam' Gamgee, Peregrin 'Pippin' Took & Meriadoc 'Merry' Brandybuck) <i>from</i> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lord of the Rings</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 Elphaba Thropp <i>from</i> Wicked (The Life & Times of the Wicked Witch of the West)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">5</span> Oompa Loompas <i>from</i> Charlie and the Chocolate Factory</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6 </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Liselotte (Liesl) Vitzliputzli <i>from</i> Fifth Business</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">7 Severus Snape </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>from</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Harry Potter series</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">8 Atticus Finch <i>from</i> To Kill A Mockingbird</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">9 Tinker Bell <i>from </i>Peter Pan</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">10 Septimus Heap <i>from</i> Septimus Heap series</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">11 Scarlet O'Hara <i>from</i> Gone With The Wind</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">12 Philip Pirrip <i>from</i> Great Expectations</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">❅</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">We have come to the end of the list and number one is not a widely known character. However anyone who has read this series will agree that Artemis Fowl is a very rare anti-hero lead who is as dynamic and memorable as his name. I hope everyone has enjoyed these posts as much as I enjoy making them. See you guys in 2013!!</span></span></div>
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Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6249132089521923843.post-48731918730561650682012-12-23T00:00:00.000-05:002012-12-23T00:00:03.755-05:00SECOND DAY OF CHRISTMAS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.aceshowbiz.com/images/still/dark_knight15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.aceshowbiz.com/images/still/dark_knight15.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small; line-height: 20px;">(Christian Bale as 'Bruce Wayne' in Dark Knight series)</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">It is once again that time of the year and the holidays season has begun. This also means the run down of the Twelve Days of Christmas. These posts are festive in nature but also book related which is the most fun! I love this time of the year, with all the lights, Rudolf and his red nose and eggnog lattes (yum). Now lets get to this years topic and it is... </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><u><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">Unforgettable Character Names</span></b></i></u></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">. This list is in no particular order however I do love all the names on this list. They made it because they are unique, well suited to their characters and of course "Unforgettable". So enjoy and let the fun begin:)</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">❅</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">2</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> Bruce Wayne </span><i>from</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> Batman</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 The Hobbits (Frodo Baggins, Samwise 'Sam' Gamgee, Peregrin 'Pippin' Took & Meriadoc 'Merry' Brandybuck) <i>from</i> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lord of the Rings</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 Elphaba Thropp <i>from</i> Wicked (The Life & Times of the Wicked Witch of the West)</span></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">5</span> Oompa Loompas <i>from</i> Charlie and the Chocolate Factory</span></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6 </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Liselotte (Liesl) Vitzliputzli <i>from</i> Fifth Business</span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">7 Severus Snape </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>from</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Harry Potter series</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">8 Atticus Finch <i>from</i> To Kill A Mockingbird</span></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">9 Tinker Bell <i>from </i>Peter Pan</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">10 Septimus Heap <i>from</i> Septimus Heap series</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">11 Scarlet O'Hara <i>from</i> Gone With The Wind</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">12 Philip Pirrip <i>from</i> Great Expectations</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">❅</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">So common yet simple, powerful and memorable!</span></span></div>
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Darcyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06644226603768644709noreply@blogger.com0