Book Review: Hunger by Michael Grant

5:17 PM mixagrip

Hunger: A Gone Novel by Michael GrantPublisher: Katherine TegenPublication date: May 2009ISBN: 9780061449086Source: LibraryThree months after all the adults disappear, things are far from normal in the Fayz.  Food has pretty much run out and kids are not willing to do anything about it.  When tension begins to break out between the supernaturals and those without powers, chaos seems to reign.  But there is a bigger problem - the monster in the dark who is calling to the kids.  What does it want and will they be able to stop its sinister influence before it is too late for them all?Things I Liked: Just like the first book Gone,...


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April Reflections

5:01 PM Nikki

I could almost subtitle this one "finding my p(l)ace" because my pace seems to have drastically changed the past five weeks or so. I'm finding that a slower pace makes for a happier me. Which is a good thing, I think!!! I may not have as many posts per week in the months ahead. But if I'm *happy* with what I'm reading, then I think it will make a BIG difference.So this month saw a few more changes in addition to "how often" I blog. For one, WHERE I blog. I have not reviewed a thing at Young Readers. So there will be no reviews of board books or picture books or early readers or children's books this month. Which is strange--though it may not...


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Weekly Geeks: Catching Up On Reviews

4:42 PM Nikki

This week's weekly geeks theme is one of my favorites. It's a Dewey Original. Though I don't think it's a favorite of other weekly geeks. (I'm not sure why.)1) In your blog, list any books you've read but haven't reviewed yet. If you're all caught up on reviews, maybe you could try this with whatever book(s) you [hope to] finish this week. 2) Ask your readers to ask you questions about any of the books they want. In your comments, not in their blogs. Most likely, people who will ask you questions will be people who have read one of the books or know something about it because they want to read it.3) Later, take whichever questions you like from your comments and use them in a post about each book. I'll probably turn mine into a sort of interview-review. Link to each blogger next...


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Library Loot Fifth Trip in April

11:47 AM Nikki

New Loot:Enclave by Ann Aguirre The Joy Luck Club by Amy TanBlack Orchids & the Silent Speaker by Rex StoutDeath of a Doxy by Rex StoutCold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann BurnsThe Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck Sons by Pearl S. Buck The Mother by Pearl S. Buck Three Daughters of Madame Liang by Pearl S. BuckPavilion of Women by Pearl S. BuckThe New Year by Pearl S. BuckThe Promise by Pearl S. BuckImperial Woman by Pearl S. BuckDragon Seed by Pearl S. BuckThe Living Reed by Pearl S. BuckMandala by Pearl S. BuckThe Moon Opera by Bi FeiyuThree Sisters by Bi FeiyuThe German Bride by Joanna HershonLeftover Loot:Northanger Abbey by Jane AustenPickwick Papers...


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The Judgment

7:50 PM Nikki

The Judgment. Beverly Lewis. 2011. Bethany House. 336 pages.Tomorrow holds nary a promise, my dear Mamm often says. But thankfully some things are quite certain--we plow, we plant and harvest. We attend canning bees and quilting frolics. Our wedding season always begins on the first Tuesday in November. And this year there are many couples marrying and looking ahead to starting their own families.The Judgment is the sequel to Beverly Lewis' The Thorn. It is the second in the trilogy; these books are set in the mid-80s in Pennsylvania Dutch Country. The novels focus on two sisters--Rose and Hannah.Hannah (Hen) is married, but she's--for better...


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A Brief History of Montmaray (YA)

5:27 PM Nikki

A Brief History of Montmaray. Michelle Cooper. 2009. Random House. 304 pages. 23rd October 1936Dear Sophie,Happy birthday to my favorite little sister! I've been trying to recollect the day you were born so I can gush about it in an appropriately sentimental fashion, but I'm afraid it's all a blank.Sophie FitzOsborne lives an isolated life with her younger sister, Henry, her cousin Veronica, and her mad-uncle John who happens to be King. Except for a handful of villagers and/or servants that make up the "kingdom" of Montmaray, they are the island's only residents. (Toby, her brother, and Simon, the housekeeper's son, being away in England for...


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Hard Magic

7:00 AM Nikki

There are very few authors whose body of work makes us cackle with boyish glee. Chris Wooding is one. Jonathan Maberry another. Recently Sarah Pinborough has joined those ranks. For those of you keeping score, when Larry Correia writes something new we drop everything. You can then find us camped out with a flashlight in the living room under a tent made of sheets and blankets. Never mind we own our own homes.We are just going to come out and say it: Larry Correia’s HARD MAGIC, book 1 of the Grimnoir Chronicles, is completely fun and awesome. Everyone knows how much we like his Monster Hunter series. We like this one more. Much more....


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First Impressions: Cover Sillies 2

3:35 PM mixagrip

Though the response to my first Cover Sillies post was not stellar, I am still interested in noting some strange first impressions I have on book covers.  My comments are not what I'd call criticism, more of strange or odd reactions to the covers.  Many covers I highlight are ones that I really love.  This collectin of covers is what I like to call the Awkward Bodies edition.  Tell me I'm not the only one who thinks this position is awkward - it literally makes me uncomfortable to look at it.  Maybe I'm just seeing it wrong or something.  Now I know this is odd on purpose, but I honestly think to myself...


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The Land of the Silver Apples (MG/YA)

7:50 PM Nikki

The Land of the Silver Apples. Nancy Farmer. 2007. Simon & Schuster. 512 pages.It was the middle of the night when the rooster crowed.The Land of the Silver Apples is the sequel to Nancy Farmer's The Sea of Trolls. And I must admit that I loved it. I just loved, loved, loved it! Even more than the first book. Perhaps because I already loved our hero Jack! Perhaps because I already cared for Thorgil, Brother Aiden, and the Bard (Dragon Tongue to some.) Perhaps because I really, really came to care for the new characters we're introduced to in this second novel! Or maybe it was just perfect timing--the right book at the right time! Lucy, Jack's...


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Book Review: The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell

9:07 AM mixagrip

The Vespertine by Saundra MitchellPublisher: Harcourt Children's BooksPublication date: March 2011ISBN: 9780547482477Source: e-book provided by NetGalley Amelia van den Broek is visiting Baltimore for the first time - leaving behind her small town secluded life to find a suitable match.  But when she starts seeing the future in the twilight, things become a lot more complicated than she expected.  Especially when she sees something horrible in the future that just might change all their lives.Things I Liked: I really enjoyed the interesting and unique nearly-paranormal mixed with historical fiction details.  I liked the way...


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The Unremembered

7:00 AM Nikki

The hardest part of being a book reviewer is putting together a negative review of a book when you don't want to. This happens for a variety of reasons, but mainly has to do with the author himself (or herself as the case may be). If we hate the author, or absolutely hate a novel, writing a scathing review is simple and enjoyable--therapeutic even. But with a novel like THE UNREMEMBERED, well, we almost didn't even write this up. But then we realized the potential disservice we would be doing you, the readers, and the author, Peter Orullian, by leaving this unreviewed.We are going to tackle this review a little differently from the other...


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Sharp North (YA)

7:33 PM Nikki

Sharp North. Patrick Cave. 2004/2006. Simon & Schuster. 528 pages.The girl nearly didn't find out who she was. What she was. Sharp North is a perplexing YA novel. Part mystery. Part thriller. Part dystopian. It's set in a future world forever altered by global warming. A future world with a corrupt government. (How many fictional future worlds don't have a corrupt government?) A future world threatened by an underground movement, a revolution in the making. Our heroine, Mira, has a role to play in this world--for better or worse. And it's a role that mystifies Mira. For Mira's future is just as uncertain as her past.Sharp North begins with...


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Book Review: A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

7:23 AM mixagrip

Posted as part of Tween Tuesday, hosted by GreenBeanTeenQueen.A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz Publisher: Dutton JuvenilePublication date: October 2010ISBN: 9780525423348Source: Library Hansel and Gretel you may have heard of, but there is a lot more to their story than a child-eating witch.  Born to a king and queen who treat them unspeakably poorly, they run away and find that there is a lot they don't know about the world and about parents.  Things I Liked: I liked the story, but I loved the side notes.  I think they made the whole book more enjoyable.  They were humorous and alleviated the sometimes repetitive...


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The Ropemaker (MG/YA)

7:07 PM Nikki

The Ropemaker. Peter Dickinson. 2001. Random House. 384 pages.It had snowed in the night. Tilja knew this before she woke, and waking she remembered how she knew. Somewhere between dream and dream a hand had shaken her shoulder and she'd heard Ma's whisper.The Ropemaker reminded me of all the reasons I love reading fantasy. Did I love it? I didn't want it to end! I wanted to savor every moment of it. Why? Well, because I loved not only the characters, not only the story, but the world Peter Dickinson created! My favorite character happens to be our heroine, Tilja.Tilja's valley has almost always--twenty generations--been protected by magic. Protected...


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Craziness Ensues and Name That Book

5:45 PM mixagrip

Sorry all, life is getting really busy and I didn't get a chance to do a new Name That Book episode this week.  But, since last Name That Book episode no one guessed the book titles, I figured I could send you to that one and hope someone wants to guess this time around.  Thanks and see you next time!If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percent...


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Hawkmoon: The Runestaff

7:00 AM Nikki

And alas, we come to the end of the tale. We've run the gamut, the bell has tolled, and the last of Hawkmoon's adventures have passed by our eyes. The pages have flown so fast.THE RUNESTAFF is the fourth and final book of the Hawkmoon series by Michael Moorcock that Tor has been giving an upgrade and reprint to over the last year or so. These books hearken us back to the old days of classic fantasy fiction when the heroes were gallant gentlemen and their foes nefarious men of wickedness. Honor and virtue always triumphed over evil, and it was seeing how it would all play out this time around that always drew the readers in droves.Dorian Hawkmoon...


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Sunday Salon: Week In Review #17

8:43 AM Nikki

What I Reviewed at Becky's Book ReviewsThe Voyage of the Dawn Treader. C.S. Lewis. 1952. HarperCollins. 256 pages. Wickham's Diary. Amanda Grange. 2011. Sourcebooks. 208 pages.  What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew: From Fox Hunting to Whist -- The Facts of Daily Life in 19th Century England. Daniel Pool. 1994. Simon & Schuster. 416 pages.  What I Reviewed at Operation Actually Read BibleDiscovering Jesus: Why Four Gospels to Portray One Person? T.D. Alexander. 2010. Crossway Publishers. 144 pages. Through Gates of Splendor. Elisabeth Elliot. 1956/2005. Tyndale. 296 pages.Cries From the Cross: A Journey Into the...


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Weekly Geeks: ABC's of Favorite Authors

2:02 PM Nikki

I just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this week's weekly geek theme!  You know how when someone asks you who your favorite author is? And you feel a bit crazy coming up with just one? Now is your chance to come up with 26 (at least) favorite authors by making a list of  them ABC style.  (See my above link from the past for an example.) There are no rules, list a couple per letter if you feel the need. Skip a letter if you draw a blank. Make it be categories if you want to.  For instance, a favorite YA author list. A favorite classic author list.  A favorite "new to me" author list. A favorite mystery author list.Or simply an...


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Book Review: The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

1:16 PM mixagrip

The Replacement by Brenna YovanoffPublisher: RazorbillPublication date: September 2010ISBN: 9781595143372Source: LibraryMackie Doyle is allergic to iron, steel, and blood.  He is anything but normal.  But in the town of Gentry, you don't talk about those kinds of things.  You don't talk about the fact that a little girl just died and about the horrible things that have been replacing children for decades.  Those are the kinds of things you accept in exchange for luck and avoiding disaster.  But Mackie doesn't know if he can accept those things anymore.Things I Liked: It was a really unique book - it felt original and...


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Library Loot: Fourth Trip in April

1:02 PM Nikki

New Loot:Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword by Barry DeutschMiss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann B. RossThe Hollow Earth by Rudy RuckerElantris by Brandon SandersonWarbreaker by Brandon SandersonThe Case of the Missing Books by Ian SansomThe Bad Book Affair by Ian SansomThe Book Stops Here by Ian SansomSome Buried Caesar; The Golden Spiders by Rex StoutThe Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. TolkienLeftover Loot:Angel Isle by Peter DickinsonEntwined by Heather DixonStay by Deb CalettiThe Islands of the Blessed by Nancy FarmerCity of Fallen Angels by Cassandra ClareI, Robot by Isaac AsimovPebble in the Sky by Isaac AsimovTime's Eye by Arthur C. Clarke and...


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