Wicked Winter Read-a-Thon

After the awesomeness that was the Wonderfully Wicked Read-a-Thon last month, I've decided to sign up for the next one being held in February. The details below are copied across from Bex at Kindle Fever who is hosting this time.

The Wicked Winter Read-A-Thon is a time when we all get together to dedicate the weekend of February 3-5 to as much reading as possible. You read as much as you can in order to get yourself a little further through that huge to-read pile! We know real life gets in the way and even if you can’t participate more than one day, you’re welcome to join in on the fun!

In the meanwhile, we will be hosting book-related challenges where you can win some awesome prizes and have a Twitter party at the hashtag #WWReadathon! You can posts updates on your blog, Twitter, Goodreads or Facebook — as long as the profile is public and we all can enjoy your reading progress! For this edition, we’ve also planned a chat surprise in order to include those who aren’t on Twitter in some chatting fun. But exactly what will happen is a surprise for now.

To sign up, click here. Seriously, sign up - it's a lot of fun :)

Booking Through Thursday (10)

E-readers like the Kindle and iPad are sweeping the nation … do you have one? Do you like it? Do you find it changes your reading/buying habits? If you don’t have one, do you plan to?

No. I don't own any kind of e-reader and I don't have any intention of buying one. The main reason is I like real books. I like to hold them in my hands, look at the pretty covers and occasionally surround myself with stacks and crouch there croaking "my pretties" and stroking them....well mostly just the first two :)

I get why people like them - you can carry literally thousands of books and have easy access to all of them. I keep seeing the problems though - they are harder to read (all the ones I have tried have given me a migraine), they require charging and they are expensive. Most e-books cost the same as paperbacks, if not more, and I don't see the point in paying that much for a virtual file.

I have seen the argument that e-books are better for the environment, which makes sense to a point as they aren't printed on paper. They do require power to read though, and that has to come from somewhere. Also most publishers are aware of the eco-focus of their readers now and use recycled and/or sustainably sourced paper. Piatkus, for example, who publish the Black Dagger Brotherhood novels in the UK are actually FSC approved and they aren't the only ones.

Fall into Reading - Question 7

As part of the Fall into Reading challenge, Katrina at Callapidderdays is going to be posting a reading related question each Wednesday. I'm hoping to answer them here each week, partly to keep me motivated for the challenge itself (I find it way too easy to forget about challenges) and partly because there's a great group of people taking part and I'd like to see their answers.

If you're wondering what the whole Fall into Reading thing is about, check out my original post here or Katrina's "The Basics" post here.


This weeks question is: Is there a book that has had a tremendous impact on your life? One that made you look at life in a whole new way, or caused you to completely change something in your life?

I can't think of any books that have had a tremendous impact on my life. All the big changes in my life tend to be decisions I make either on the spur of the moment (so no books) or after careful thought and research (so lots of books).

I do believe though that everyone is constantly changing and evolving, and that every book you read changes you in some way. Sometimes it's big, sometimes it's small, but you're never the same person who started the book when you finish.

Bonus question: How is your Fall Into Reading coming along? Are you on track? Ahead of schedule? Falling behind?

I'm getting on okay. I made a list of 57 books which I'm now thinking was slightly nuts as it is a massive amount of reading to do. I think I've read 14 which isn't too bad but is nowhere near halfway. I've read a few other books, but I've also not been well so I haven't been reading that much.

Top Ten Tuesday (9)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by the Broke and the Bookish where a new top ten list is posted each week. This week is: Ten Books That I Read That Were Outside Of My Comfort Zone (whether you liked them or not).

1. The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
This was my first ever zombie book, which I mostly picked up because the blurb makes Mary's village sound very similar to the movie The Village. I enjoyed it, but ended up having my comfort zone pushed in a way I hadn't expected. The scene with the baby just creeped me out and is the reason why I haven't read any further in the series.

2. The Harrowing by Alexandra Sokoloff
My first ever horror picked up to fill out a 3 for £5 book deal which ended up succeeding where every horror movie I've ever seen failed. It scared the pants off of me and was read in a single nail biting session because no power on this Earth could have made me put it down until I knew what happened. Even then I was tempted to sleep with the light on.

3. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
This is the book that got me to start reading fantasy. I'd read Tolkein as a kid, but nothing else. I saw this in the library and picked it up thinking I might read it while I was visiting family. I ended up rationing the pages and ordering the entire trilogy from amazon so it was waiting for me on my return home. An awesome read :)

4. Your Planet or Mine by Susan Grant
Aliens! I don't usually read science fiction, and the idea of an alien romance was more than a little odd for me. I picked this up to fill the Y part of a Read-the-Alphabet challenge as I literally couldn't think of anything else. It was okay, but I definitely prefer my sci-fi on TV - give me Roswell, the X Files or Firefly and I'm a happy girl.

5. Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon
When I first moved into adult paranormal books, I started with urban fantasy and gradually moved toward paranormal romance. I really wanted to read the Dark-Hunters but heard it was best to start with this (technically a prequel to the series). The title and blurb really pushed my comfort zone, but not only did I manage to buy it without blushing too much I loved it and have read the entire series multiple times.

6. The Lovely Bones by Alice Seabold
This was totally out of my comfort zone because of the storyline, and still pretty much is. I'm glad I've read it, but I found it to be really difficult to read emotionally and I don't think I'd read another book like it.

7. Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Another book I read because of an awesome movie trailer (*cough* Twilight *cough*). I wouldn't have read it without seeing the trailer because I hadn't heard of the author before. It's a great read though, and now I'm totally hooked on the author.

8. Get a Clue by Jill Shalvis
This was my first romantic suspense and I read it because the Book Depository really messed up my order (this was supposed to be Thunder Moon by Lori Handeland) and let me keep the mistake. I really love it. I'd never have read it otherwise but it's sweet and romantic with a brilliant mystery

9. Candy Apple Dead by Sammi Carter
I brought this purely because it has candy recipes in. I didn't even know that cozy mysteries existed before I read this, but it started an addiction and now I'm hooked. I'd never been interested in mysteries but these are great gentle reads (there's little-to-no sex, violence, swearing, drugs etc) and usually have a clever mystery to solve.


10. Her Notorious Viscount by Jenna Petersen
My ultimate "out of my comfort zone" read. I don't read historical romance, and even after this it is still out of my comfort zone. I was bored waiting for a delivery a few years ago so I read the first quarter or so of this on the publisher's website. I fell in love with the characters and desperately want to know what happened next so I ordered a copy and read it as soon as it arrived.

Teaser Tuesdays (10)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers.

My teaser:

"Her intelligent eyes were opened wide, her expression one of guilty pleasure. The nail of her index finger held captive between her upper and lower teeth and her lips curved in a slight, secretive smile."

~ Page 104, A Killer Plot by Ellery Adams

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Title: Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Author: Laini Taylor
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
ISBN: 978-1-444-72262-8
Pages: 418
Series: Daughter of Smoke and Bone #1
Type: Young Adult Fantasy
Source: Purchased
Goodreads

Karou is a girl living two lives - the first as a seventeen-year-old art student in Prague, the other as a courier for a monstrous creature named Brimstone who trades wishes for teeth. Karou was raised in Brimstone's store, a mystical place known only as Elsewhere which can be reached through a myriad of doors scattered throughout the world. But the doors to Elsewhere are closing and Karou must find a way to return to her family and discover her true identity along the way.

This is one of those books I'd seen raved about all over so I was looking forward to reading it. On the whole I was very impressed. The book is well written with a cleverly developed plot and believable world. Setting Karou's 'regular life' in Prague is genius as it is a unique city that really suits her. The narrative is full of sparks of humour and keeps you wanting to turn the pages. The idea of wishes in different denominations is brilliant and something I haven't seen done before. Small wishes called scuppies are good for little things like giving itches, whereas larger wishes like gavriels can grant the gift of flight.

There is a big change however for the second half of the book. The first is focused on Karou and her life in Prague, following her around the world on her errands for Brimstone. The second half sees Karou discover her true identity, and is mainly in flashbacks. I still enjoyed the second half, but it is very different to the first half mostly because it is completely in Elsewhere. It is a big shift in style and was a little jarring at first.

Karou is a great lead character. She manages to ground the more fantasy-based characters and has an amazing balance of inner strength and vulnerability. Akiva is an amazing romantic interest, so much better than her ex-Kaz who is mentioned at the start of the book. The characters I really fell in love with though are Zuzana (her human best friend) and Brimstone. I wish there had been more of a focus on Brimstone, and can only hope he has a larger role in the sequel.

The ending felt a little abrupt as it falls straight after Karou has discovered her true identity. It returns to the storyline from the first half of the book, then drops a bombshell and ends. It's a total gamechanger and left me thinking 'huh?'

All in all this was a great read and I can't wait for the sequel.

Plot: 9/10
Characters: 10/10
Ending: 8/10
Enjoyment: 9/10
Cover: 10/10

Overall: 46/50

Movie Monday - Beastly

There are so many movies being made out of books these days that I've decided to create a feature where the two will be compared. On the first Monday of each month, I'll take a book I've read that's been adapted and compare it with the movie version. As with all my reviews I have tried to avoid using spoilers, although some minor ones may slip through.

First up is Beastly by Alex Flinn, made into a movie staring Vanessa Hudgens and Alex Pettyfer.

I really enjoyed the book, and I loved the movie too although it is pretty different. Like most book-to-movie adaptations the story has been glossed up and compressed, so the most obvious difference is that Kyle gets one year to break the curse not two as in the book.

The plot stays pretty true to the major parts of the book, although Kyle doesn't have his magic mirror and Lindy's father sends her to him to keep her safe rather than so he can get his drugs back. Lots of little things have been changed though - the school in the movie is Bucksford Academy not Tuttle, Kyle likes roses because Lindy does not because Will shows him and, other than one scene, there is barely any reading in the movie whereas it's a big deal in the book.

Alex Pettyfer is an almost perfect match to how I imagined Kyle and he captures the arrogant nature perfectly. However the beast is pretty different in that he is a "self-mutilated tattooed frankenskank" rather than an actual hairy beast. The other big changes is that he goes from Kyle to Adrian in the book and Kyle to Hunter in the film.

Vanessa Hudgens is a great personality match for Lindy, but looks nothing like how I imagined. In the book she is described as "a sort of mousy-looking girl with a red braid and freckles" so that's pretty different from Vanessa Hudgens' dark hair and olive skin.

Kendra wasn't what I expected, although Mary Kate Olsen did an incredible job of bringing the character to life. In the book she is supposed to be fat at first, and then appear to get thinner when Kyle realises that she's a witch whereas in the movie she is slim throughout with some awesome shoes. Her curse has also been changed from "" in the book to "embrace the suck" in the movie.

Neil Patrick Harris is a perfect match for Kyle's tutor Will, although I was disappointed his seeing eye dog Pilot is absent from the movie. Magda in the book is Zola in the movie, but other than making her Jamaican she is also a great match for the book as is Kyle's TV anchor father.

The ending is a bit different with Kendra's story continuing in a different way to the book, and Kyle and Lindy's ending being less dramatic but far more romantic. In some ways I prefer the sweet romantic ending of the movie, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't slightly miss the drama and action of the book.

All in all I think it was a fair adaptation and while I miss some parts that didn't make the jump from book to movie I did enjoy watching it.

So have you watched or read Beastly? What did you think?