Shelf Candy Saturday (2)

Shelf Candy Saturday is an awesome weekly meme hosted by Five Alarm Book Reviews where each Saturday bloggers defy the saying "never judge a book by its cover" and showcase one that really catches their eye. Covers play a huge role in the books I choose so it's great to have the opportunity to showcase the pretties :)

My shelf candy for this week is Possess by Gretchen McNeil.

Fifteen-year-old Bridget Liu just wants to be left alone: by her mom, by the cute son of a local police sergeant, and by the eerie voices she can suddenly and inexplicably hear. Unfortunately for Bridget, it turns out the voices are demons – and Bridget has the rare ability to banish them back to whatever hell they came from.

Terrified to tell people about her new power, Bridget confides in a local priest who enlists her help in increasingly dangerous cases of demonic possession. But just as she is starting to come to terms with her new power, Bridget receives a startling message from one of the demons. Now Bridget must unlock the secret to the demons' plan before someone close to her winds up dead – or worse, the human vessel of a demon king.


This cover really caught my eye when I saw it on a couple of blogs, and then when I got my copy I was even more impressed. The picture above doesn't do the cover justice. In real life it has a metallic sheen and it shimmers. It is aso a really gorgeous blue.

I haven't read the book yet so I don't know if the tree branches across the girl's face are part of the story or not, but they make the cover have a really creepy feel.

The little turquoise twirl behind the title is also on the hardcover of the book itself (sorry for the bad picture - it is literally indented into the cover) which I think is very cool.



So what's your shelf candy this week?

First Drop of Crimson by Jeaniene Frost

Title: First Drop of Crimson
Author: Jeaniene Frost
Publisher: Avon
ISBN: 9780061583223
Pages: TBC
Series: Night Huntress World #1
Type: Adult Paranormal Romance
Source: Purchased
Goodreads

Denise MacGregor knows all to well the dangers of the vampire world. Her last foray there ended in the death of her husband so since then she has shunned the vampire world, including her best friend Cat Crawfield. When a demon shapeshifter marks her and threatens her family, Denise has no choice but to reconnect with it. She calls Spade, a mysterious vampire who has been fighting his attraction to her since they met and together they must fight to save Denise and her family.

This is the first book in the Night Huntress world series that has spun off of the great Night Huntress novels (which started with Halfway to the Grave). Falling after the fourth book in that series, this features two of my favourite characters - Cat's best friend Denise and Bone's best friend Spade so I was really looking forward to reading it.

The plot is well-thought out but surprisingly simplistic compared to the Night Huntress books. At first the book had difficulty keeping my interest as it just felt like the characters were going through the motions, but it then picked up and I really enjoyed the second half. There were some clever twists and a brilliant ending.

I already liked Spade and Denise and I really enjoyed reading their story and learning more about them. My enjoyment was dented a bit by the fact the tension stopping the pair from getting together is almost completely down to misinterpretation. There were times where I wanted to reach into the book and knock their heads together. One simple conversation and their relationship problems would have almost entirely disappeared.

One thing I really enjoyed was that there are cameos from other Night Huntress characters, including Ian who I have always loved. He is his usual arrogant rude self but he helps to ground the story and to create a counter point to Spade.

All in all this was a good read and I'm looking forward to Eternal Kiss of Darkness.

Plot: 8/10
Characters: 9/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 8/10
Cover: 7/10

Overall: 42/50

Booking Through Thursday (9)

All other thing being equal, would you rather read a book that’s hard/challenging/rewarding or light/enjoyable/easy?

It all depends on my mood really. I don't often read books that are emotionally challenging because of the subject matter but I'm happy to read books that are intellectually challenging. At the same time there is a lot to be said for a light easy read. It all depends what I feel like reading.

Other than my mood, other things do influence my reading choices. Around Christmas I read almost exclusively Christmas-themed books, a lot of which are lighter reads. There's usually a lot going on for me near Christmas (and there'll be more this year given that I'm making most of the presents I'm giving) so I don't want a challenging book that requires more effort.

I don't think I could ever read just challenging or just easy books. All challenging would suck the fun out of reading, and all easy would mean I get bored. A mixture of the two suits me best.

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Title: Anna Dressed in Blood
Author: Kendare Blake
Publisher: Tor Teen
ISBN: 978-0765328656
Pages: 316
Series: Anna #1
Type: Young Adult Paranormal
Source: Gift
Goodreads

Cas Lowood has an unusual life. He lives with his kitchen witch mother and their spirit sniffing cat and spends all his free time hunting ghosts in hopes of avenging his father's death. Cas is following in his father's footsteps killing the vengeful dead before they can claim more victims. When Cas gets a tip about a particularly viscious ghost he goes off to discover more about Anna Dressed in Blood as she is known, and soon finds there is a lot he doesn't know.

I'd seen this book mentioned all over the web with loads of rave reviews. I loved all the teasers people had posted on their blogs so I decided to read this over Halloween. I'm really glad I did as it is an amazing read, managing to blend creepy with gross and sweet in a storyline packed with so many twists and turns it makes your head spin.

The plot is amazing. I was expecting the tagline to cover the plot "Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story..." but there is so much more to it than that. Cas and Anna's stories rapidly become more complex than I was expecting and all the other characters introduce so much depth to the story I could barely stop myself reading. There are also a lot of pop-culture references which are brilliant and made the book have a self-aware feel.

I don't read many books with male protagonists so I was surprised to like Cas as much as I did, though with a name like Theseus Cassio I was always going to like him. The characters on the whole are really well written, from the hero Cas to his kitchen witch mother (who isn't stereotypical or mocked) and the reluctant sidekick Thomas. Anna is incredibly well developed managing to find a balance between menacing and vulnerable, and despite her bad girl role I loved her.

The ending is well written and cleverly done, managing to conclude the story with some big twists I didn't predict. It does lead into the next book which is good in some ways, but leaves a few unanswered questions which will bug me until I get the chance to read it.

All in all, this was an incredible read and I can't wait for the sequel - Girl of Nightmares.

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

Overall: 49/50

Fall into Reading - Question 6

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: When it comes to fiction, are you more of a “plot person” or a “character person”? If you had to choose, which concept would win out when it comes to picking and loving a book: plot or character?

I'm both. The best books have clever plots and brilliant characters, but there are some great books out there that have good plots but characters that let it down (like Lover Enshrined by J.R. Ward) or good characters and disappointing plots (like The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting). All my favourite books have won me over with both their plots and their characters.

If you've ever read one of my reviews, you'll know that all my reviews are scored on five areas including plot and characters. I rate that way so I can give fair reviews because I don't want one area of the book to overshadow the others. No matter how amazing the plot is, a poorly written character is always going to dent my enjoyment and vice versa.

It's hard for me to continue with a series if I don't like the characters for whatever reason (poorly written, stupid decisions or just annoying) and the same goes for plots. However if I had to make a decision I would say that bad characters and an amazing plot is more likely to be continued than great characters and a dull plot. Catch my interest and I'll give the series a second chance, bore me and I'll find something else to read.

Top Ten Tuesday (8)

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: Top Ten Books I Had VERY Strong Emotions About (cry, laugh, hurl across the room, etc.)

1. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Emotion: Obsession
My year 5 teacher went through a stage where he would read us part of The Hobbit every Friday afternoon. One week he stopped at the part where Golum asked Bilbo the riddle. I desperately wanted to know the answer so badly I grabbed my Mum's copy as soon as I got home and read the entire book (plus Lord of the Rings including the appendices) before school started on Monday.

2. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Emotion: Admiration
I studied this in high school when I was 15. It is the only "school book" I have ever loved and I still think it's an incredible piece of writing a decade later. The dystopian is so well developed it acts as a terrifying reminder of what could happen to our society.

3. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
Emotion: Boredom
Following from the best "school book" is the worst. I hated this book and never got more than ten pages in. It's boring and annoying and I really wanted to read 1984 (the other possible set book). I never read it, never even watched the movie and passed the exam using Cliff Notes.

4. Undone by Rachel Caine
Emotion: What the *&!~???
I'v mentioned on the blog before that (a) I'm a huge Rachel Caine fan and (b) this book really annoyed me. It's a great book...as long as you ignore the fact it doesn't have an ending. It just stops with a line saying the story will be continued in the next book. There are cliffhangers and then there is just randomly stopping. This is the latter.

5. The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge
Emotion: Love
This is my favourite book from childhood and I read it countless times as a kid. Then for some reason I had to take the book back to the library and I promptly forgot what it was called. I spent years looking for a book called Moonacre and only rediscovered it a couple of years ago after my grandparents picked up a DVD called The Secret of Moonacre that seemed incredibly familiar.

6. The Undead Next Door by Kerrelyn Sparks
Emotion: Hysterical laughter
All of her books are brilliant and hilarious, but I picked this one to make the list based on the author's mean streak. She created an amazing French vampire called Jean-Luc and gives him a heroine called Heather...when he can't say H. It's incredibly funny :)

7. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Emotion: Awwwwwwww!
I adore this book. I brought it for the cover and put off reading it because I kept seeing it compared to Twilight. As much as I love Twilight, I love this more. Sam and Grace are amazing and their story is truly heartwrenching. Also it gets extra points for the temperatures at the start of each chapter which is both awesome and fits with the story.

8. The Harrowing by Alexandra Sokoloff
Emotion: Abject terror
This is hands down the scariest book I've ever read. I read it in a single sitting despite my original plan to read a couple of chapters before bed. A couple of chapters in I realised I'd need to read the entire book because no way was I going to sleep until I knew how it ended. Even then I was still creeped out :o

9. Acheron by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Emotion: All of them
I've been a big fan of the Dark-Hunter books for several years and when I heard Acheron was getting his own book I was really excited. Then I picked it up, saw the sheer size and was a little traumatised. It is a massive book and the whole thing is an emotional rollercoaster. There are sweet moments, funny moments, sad moments and even "oh my gosh, what the heck?" moments.

10. Strange Fate by L.J. Smith
Emotion: Annoyed impatience
This is the last book in the Night World series and I've been waiting for it for about 8 years (don't feel sorry for me - there are people who read the books earlier and have been waiting even longer). The author never seems to finish. First there was family stuff that meant she took a long break from writing (fair enough), then publisher issues (it happens) and now it seems she's focusing on extending the completed series that have become TV shows (annoying). Just finish the Night World already!

Teaser Tuesdays (9)

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:

"I can't seem to do anything, but then he's got me around the chest, holding my arms down and dragging me out. It isn't until he flicks the light off and the scene in the room goes black that I shake him off and start to run."

~ Page 257, Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake