Tis' The Season Contest @ Good Books & Wine!

There's so many good contests going on it's not even funny. I seriously think I should tell you all about this one [: But let's get to the point, shall we? At Good Books and Wine there's a contest going on where the:

• First place winner gets: Their choice of 6 books from the pile.
• Second place winner gets: Their choice of 5 books from the pile.
• Third place winner gets: Their choice of 3 books from the pile.
• Fourth place winner gets: Their choice of 1 book from pile.
• Fifth place winner gets: Their choice of 1 book from the pile.

Sound good, eh? And there's some really great books up there to! Hint, click on the picture and you should be able to see each titles clearly.

Check the contest out.

Review | Keeping The Moon by Sarah Dessen

Title: Keeping The Moon
Author: Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Speak
Pages: Speak
Rating: 3/5

"Colie expects the worst when she's sent to spend the summer with her eccentric aunt Mira while her mother, queen of the television infomercial, tours Europe. Always an outcast -- first for being fat and then for being "easy" -- Colie has no friends at home and doesn't expect to find any in Colby, North Carolina.

But then she lands a job at the Last Chance Cafe and meets fellow waitresses Morgan and Isabel, best friends with a loving yet volatile relationship. Wacky yet wise, Morgan and Isabel help Colie see herself in a new way and realize the potential that has been there all along."

My thoughts:

Keeping The Moon is a book that I'm sort of iffy about. It was good because all of Sarah Dessen's books are, but as I said...iffy.

Colie, our main character, isn't relateable. She barely talks, has any emotions throughout the book except low self esteem and that's about it. I hate to down a character like that, but I'm serious. That's the first thing I thought of the book. Norman, though, is a character I liked both. He was straining to be something that his father necessarily didn't like. He loves art and collecting things. On the outside he may seem like a hippie, as pointed out by Colie, but there's more to him and I love that in any book. Aunt Mira is a really nice character. She's eccentric and dresses weirdly, but she doesn't let whatever someone says about her keep her down. That's something I loved about her character. Really someone everyone needs, don't you think? All of the characters are down to earth and relateable, except for my little annoyance up there ^ somewhere.

The writing, of course, is fairy awesome. Dessen's writing is my favorite, there's just something about it that keeps me reading them. I just love how she ties in the title into the actual story. But I have to say her other books were much better and deeper. Anyways, this novel was more on a lighter subject which, by the way, I still can't figure out all the way. The ending tied up perfectly and to me it wasn't rushed. Above all, I still recommend this book to any Sarah Dessen fans!

FTC: This was bought with my own money.

In My Mailbox. [22]

^^^^^
Ever heard of surreal art? Well you've just witnessed it!

So, I officially have enough books to last me for awhile. I still haven't gotten around to all of last weeks books! And yet here I am again. But psh, I don't mind one bit [: It's a movie because I didn't want to do a whole post/mess with Photoshop...so yep.

The Story Siren created this meme, and it was inspired by The Book Junkie.

Music that I tried to get on there:
The Islander - Nightwish.

Uber Awesome Contest.

Hey! I'm sorry for doing this to you guys again. But I just heard about this great contest and I thought you'd guys be interested too!

Basically there's this box, and its filled with eleven awesome books! Some including: Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves, Fallen by Kate Lauren, Give Up The Ghost by Megan Crewe, and many more.

So here's the link for any of you who're interested just click on the smiley right after this sentence[:

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays!

"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. "
-Norman Vincent Peale
______

To all my followers who celebrate Christmas:

Merry Christmas! When children are going to bed waiting for their presents, I'm writing this so you get it at exactly 12:01 Christmas morning. Smart, aren't I? But anyways, this is just a little post to wish you awesome guys a nice Christmas. One that's filled with laughter, family, presents, and all that good stuff! [:

To those who don't:

Whatever your holiday is, Happy Holidays! I wanted to make sure I went both ways this time. Just in case. But yeah! I hope you and your family have a great holiday filled with all the stuff listed above. The laughter, family, presents (if you do those) and all that good stuff!

Sincerely,
Kaylyn [:

Review | Fallen by Lauren Kate

Title: Fallen
Author: Lauren Kate
Publisher: Random House
Pages: 452
Rating: 5/5

"There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move. Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go.

Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her. Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page turning thriller and the ultimate love story."

My thoughts:

Fallen is a book that'll have you gasping with each encounter with Daniel, flinch at the action, and overall swoon to the entire book.

Words can not describe how much I loved this book. Unlike Kate's first book, this one was beyond amazing. The writing, from start to finish, kept its hold on me throughout the whole book. The characterization was amazingly done. You really got a sneak into each of the character's personalities even though it was all Luce's point of view. Each were well rounded. The action towards the end of the book had me gripping the pages. The concept, in my eyes, was even more awesome. The author's point of view of that is quite interesting and I love it.

This book will have you trying to figure out whose on what side, swooning over how romantic it can get, and having you flip pages constantly. Overall a really good book, I would recommend it to all of you! [:

*Fan girly review. I'm so sorry about that, xD. It was just really good and surpassed how I originally thought it would be!

Waiting on Wednesday! [o8]

Haven't done this in awhile, but anyways here's what my pick for this week is!

"Christine Johnson’s CLAIRE DE LUNE, in which a teenager learns that she is a werewolf, descended from a long line of female werewolves, and must balance her human and werewolf lives, while tracking down the rogue werewolf preying upon the people of her town."

[:

Werewolfs. Need I say more?

Review || Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Title: Vampire Academy
Author: Richelle Mead
Publisher: Razorbill
Pages: 336
Rating: 4/5

"St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger. . . .

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever."

My thoughts:

Vampire Academy is a fast paced, awesome book. It, as any other vampire book will do, created it differently than your basic story about vampires.

The main character, Rosemarie, has a smartalec-I don't care what you think-whatever attitude. And I must say I liked her character. On the other hand, you have Liss, who takes things more seriously and thinks about the consequences. She's Rosa's peanut butter to her jelly. In other words they put together well. Dimitri, God help us all, is just awesome in a bad boy type of way. Overall, all the characters are nicely put together and their relationships are likeable.

The plot is where I get a little iffy. The action, love, and suspense was awesome don't get me wrong, but for some reason it only seemed to revolve around one thing. That one thing being figuring out who did those 'things' (read to find out) to Lissa. Other than that, the writing and plot was awesome and kept me on my toes (: Did I mention how amazing Mead's concept of half vampires and guardian are? Because it is!

Overall, I really like this series. I don't know why I waited so freakin' long to start reading them! Off to find the second book :P

In My Mailbox! [21]

So, instead of a tower of pictures like last week, I decided to do a little video. It has what I borrowed, etc. It won't take much of your time I swear. Because it's like one minute long, xD.

In My Mailbox was created by The Story Siren and inspired by The Book Junkie! So go check them out as well. I'm posting this early, btw.

Oh! Enjoy the music! It's Short Stack...whadya think? That picture just caught my eye, it has no meaning lol.

Review | City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Glass
Author: Cassandra Clare
Publisher: McElderry
Pages: 560
Rating: 5/5

"To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters — never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and her best friend, Simon, has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.

As Clary uncovers more about her family's past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he's willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City — whatever the cost?"

My thoughts:

For the last book of this awesome series folded everything up nicely and ended on a nice note. The suspense that's driven throughout the whole book will bound to have you cursing under your breath and just turning the pages for more.

The characters, as stated in the previous reviews, were so realistic, you would have thought they were real people. Clare made them with so many layers in their personalities it was fantastic.

Finally, in the third book, I got a hold on the whole different views type of writing. That was better than I originally thought it was. With each event you got a different view each way. You also ride a wave of emotions along with the characters; the writing just did that to you.

Overall, this series is amazing and I couldn't recommend more than right now. City of Fallen Angels come on to me! (:

[Sorry this isn't much of a, well, review but I couldn't help it. Unless, you know, you wanted me to spoil it all for you. So yeah I thought it'd be better to just review everything than give a review. Make sense? :P]

FTC: Borrowed from local library.

Review | City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Ashes

Author: Cassandra Clare

Publisher: McElderry
Pages: 496
Rating: 5/5

"Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go -- especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil -- and also her father.

To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings -- and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?

In this breathtaking sequel to City of Bones, Cassandra Clare lures her readers back into the dark grip of New York City's Downworld, where love is never safe and power becomes the deadliest temptation."

My thoughts:

This sequel will have you running through all the action, just urging to keep reading and just finish the whole book in one sitting.

The characters in this book are now more developed than they already were in the first book, City of Bones. More are introduced, two to be blunt. The relationship between Jace, Simon, and our heroine, Clary is even more tense. Mostly that tension runs through her and Jace's relationship, not with Simon. But towards the end it's somewhat cleared out; which, by the way, makes me mad. Ish. I have a feeling that's not the end of that triangle. Throughout the book you get the often, the feeling of nothing is what it seems. The action, suspense, love triangle and just everything about this book was awesomely created and beautifully written as ever (:

The only thing that threw me off, and this isn't a bad thing at all; it just confuses me. The perspectives. It takes you a bit to figure out which section is read in who's point of view. But eventually, you get the hang of and it's easily figured out quickly. This is just my problem sometimes, not that is has anything to do with others or has anything wrong with it. I love it actually and it's a very good idea; adds to the book's magic (:

FTC: I bought this book with my own money;

In My Mailbox/ Birthday Stuff [[: [2o]

Hi! This Wednesday I had my seventeenth birthday and I got some really cool stuff for presents. So that's right, this is going to be a big IMM. Ish. Well, however you look at it xD. I'll be showing you books that I got for my birthday, for review, and borrowed from the library (:

Stay tuned...!

Presents (Some):

Borrowed from thee library!:

For Review!:


If you haven't noticed, yes I did make a little pyramid but that's beyond the point! Yep, yep that's all I got this week. You're probably thinking that's not much, but hell there all the books I wanted this month (: The second section and first and second books are not something I would normally read; sciencey type books aren't my thing, but it sounded interesting.

Don't be hating on my Robert Pattison movie either! xD. I knew you were thinking that. *Mumbles* Just kidding...

...What did you get?

*There may or may not be more books for review... I don't really know. Just felt like posting this earlier.

Disclaimer

Disclaimer:
This policy is valid from 07 January 2010


This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. This blog does not accept any form of advertising, sponsorship, or paid insertions. I write for my own purposes. However, I do accept and keep advanced reader copies, or ARC's, from publishers, authors, or sometimes publicists.

This blog abides by word of mouth marketing standards. I believe in honesty of relationship, opinion and identity. Most every book reviewed on Darling Reviews is borrowed from a local library or purchased with my own money. If I, by chance, receive an arc for review, it is given by the publisher each time.

The owner of this blog is not compensated to provide opinion on any given arc. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog owners. If I claim or appear to be experts on a certain topic or product or service area, we will only endorse products or services that we believe, based on our expertise, are worthy of such endorsement. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.

Thank you.

Contest Finds! [:

I normally don't do these, but I have to have these book. They sound so amazing and good. But if you're interested as well, you should follow the link I'm about to give...It's also signed by the author, that's a double right? Of course!

Go on and enter, I know you want to read it as well (:

&&&&&

Wanna win Shadow Hills? I know you do! Go on, follow and enter. It's amazing. And who doesn't want to read that book? I know I do! Here's the link: Contest

Psst, that picture has nothing to do with the contests :P I just thought it was purty amazing. Anyways go! Go enter those contests!

Review | City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Bones
Author: Cassandra Clare
Publisher: McElderry
Pages: 512
Rating: 5/5

"When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder - much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing - not even a smear of blood - to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know....

Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end."

The Review;

City of Bones is a thrilling debut novel that will have your foot constantly moving as the plot twists and turns.

The characters in the book are very realistic. Each of them have flaws and things they're great at. Our main character, Clary, is a spunky red head who witnesses a 'murder' that sends her spiraling in a world she never knew existed. Jace is your sarcastic, fight-loving bad boy in the novel. His character was my favorite. But don't think that the other characters aren't any more amazing because I didn't list them..'cuz, well, they are. Awesome that is.

The writing was phenomenal. It gave you just the right amount of back story, emotion, action and descriptions that you could ever want in a book. They were never too much or too little, just perfect. And for a debut novel? That's awesome! The plot was perfect as well. This is my type of book; all things paranormal with some love mixed in. The world Cassandra created is amazing. Can I live there? Anyways...

Overall, I highly recommend that you pick up this series. It will have you nervous with the fighting; swooning with Jace and Clary; laughing with how they act; and dazed with how well it's written[:

FTC: I bought this book.

Review: Hold Still by Nina LaCour

Title: Hold Still
Author: Nina LaCour
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Pages: 304
Rating: 5/5

"An arresting story about starting over after a friend’s suicide, from a breakthrough new voice in YA fiction.

dear caitlin, there are so many things that i want so badly to tell you but i just can’t.

Devastating, hopeful, hopeless, playful . . . in words and illustrations, Ingrid left behind a painful farewell in her journal for Caitlin. Now Caitlin is left alone, by loss and by choice, struggling to find renewed hope in the wake of her best friend’s suicide. With the help of family and newfound friends, Caitlin will encounter first love, broaden her horizons, and start to realize that true friendship didn’t die with Ingrid. And the journal which once seemed only to chronicle Ingrid’s descent into depression, becomes the tool by which Caitlin once again reaches out to all those who loved Ingrid—and Caitlin herself."

My thoughts:

Hold Still is a heartbreaking, raw book about dealing with the loss of someone who meant so much to you.

This novel is so much more than dealing with your close friend's suicide. The author made it that you feel what everyone in the Ingrid's life felt about her taking her lfie. It definitely showed that everyone is different when it comes to that subject. In the way they mourn.

The writing was amazing and I felt that how they were separated - by the seasons - showed each stage of grieving that Caitlin went through. It shows her from silently grieving then she finds her diary and slowly she doesn't forget necessarily, but she allows herself to get over the fact and understand the reason behind why Ingrid did that.

The photography aspect of this novel will catch you by surprise, but it shows you what Ingrid loved to do best. And that made her seem alive throughout the book. Like you really knew her. You will have tears in your eyes through some parts; I know that I did.

Overall, this is unlike any 'losing someone over suicide' book that I've ever read. It's so much into Caitlin's head that you'd think it really happened. I really, really liked this and following through with the stages of the main character's grief and recovery is fascinating and heartbreaking. Go get a copy if you haven't read it (:

FTC: This was borrowed from my local library.