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Disclaimer: I bought this book to read to give it an honest opinion!
After Hello
Author: Lisa Mangum
Hardcover
Pages: 272
September 4, 2012
Shadow Mountain
Overview:
What if the first day of your relationship was the only day you had?
Seventeen-year-old Sara is a seeker. She’s always on the lookout for the perfect moment to capture with her ever-present, point-and-shoot camera, especially on her first trip to New York City.
Sam is a finder. He has a knack for finding what other people can’t—a first-edition book or the last two tickets to a sold-out Broadway show. In New York, there is always something interesting to find.
When Sam and Sara’s paths cross, neither one of them is prepared for what they will find out about each other—and about themselves when they form an unlikely partnership in search of a seemingly elusive work of art. They have one day to find the impossible. Fate brought their talents together, but what happens when time runs out? Will love be able to overcome fate?
My Take:
The cover caught my eye of this little gem and immediately grabbed it! I read the cover bit and figured this book was for me. I was right! How I liked this story. It was unique and fresh.
The story takes place in New York which made me feel like I was on an adventure with Sam and Sara. The time frame was 24 hours which seemed longer to me. Sara loves the camera and uses it to capture those unique moments. So when she's in NY she couldn't pass the thought of not using her camera and manages to snap shot Sam who came out of a cafe. Something about him captured her attention.
Sam notice her noticing him. Sara follows him as then they engage in a conversation which led to one thing and another of learning a bit about each other. Their conversation connection was quite unique and fun. Of course in their conversation, they talk of things that are dear to them. Some of the things they mention is a tough thing for them to chat about but in a way I think it helps them to talk to someone about these topics rather than keeping it all bottled up.
Somehow Sam gets Sara involved with his and brother's work as it turns into a mission looking for something unique. Sam helps her. Does she succeed in her mission or not? Do sparks go flying between Sam and Sara while they chat? I think there's a great friendship there and that it could spin into something more. Read the book to find out. I think the chemistry between the two is great.
The story is written from both: Sam and Sara's perspective. I love how the chapters tell you who the perspective is. It's a nice change of pace.
Cover Rating: A
Story Rating: B
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Disclaimer: I bought this book to read to give it an honest opinion!
The Dark Unwinding
Sharon Cameron
Pages: 318
Published: September 1, 2012
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Hardcover
Overview:
When Katharine Tulman's inheritance is called into question by the rumor that her eccentric uncle is squandering away the family fortune, she is sent to his estate to have him committed to an asylum. But instead of a lunatic, Katharine discovers a genius inventor with his own set of rules, who employs a village of nine hundred people rescued from the workhouses of London.
Katharine is now torn between protecting her own inheritance and preserving the peculiar community she grows to care for deeply. And her choices are made even more complicated by a handsome apprentice, a secretive student, and fears for her own sanity.
As the mysteries of the estate begin to unravel, it is clear that not only is her uncle's world at stake, but also the state of England as Katharine knows it.
My Take:
I spied this book in the store as the cover caught my attention. The stunning blue dress was just too good to pass up. Once I had the book in my hands, I read what the story was about and figured to give the book a chance.
Basically Katharine is sent off to get her Uncle committed to the asylum by her greedy Aunt so that the family fortune could be released to her aunt. o off Katarine goes on an adventure in the matters of her uncle. What she finds is that her uncle state is a not crazy, but a genius inventor. It seems that her uncle is great with numbers and somehow could be seen as crazy back then compared today where he might have a disability.
Katharine learns that her Uncle employs quite a few people and begins to feel the burden of what to do. To protect her inheritance or this strange place? What will she decide?
Her uncle's apprentice Lane Moreau requests for a 30 day delay. Katharine accepts the request and she hoped she could pull it off but realizes her Aunt may try to sneak her claws in earlier. She did the best she could.
Of course there is a bit of love going around in this book between Lane Moreau and Ben Alridge and Katharine..so who will win? What will happen? As you find the answers towards the end of the book, it made me relieved!
All the characters in this book were strong and had their own uniqueness. They all played a part of the story. Some were quiet, some were quirky, some were protective and even catches your attention from beginning to end. If you like young adult historical, then this book is for you. The one thing that jumped out at me in the book is the spinning. What is that? You have to read the book to find out.
The ending of the book left me feeling that there could be a sequel. I hope so because this book had my attention and made me wonder what was going to happen. How the story went took me by a complete surprise! Nice little gem to read.
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Cover Rating: A
Story Rating: B
Disclaimer: I bought this book to read to give it an honest opinion!
My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century
Author: Rachel Harris
Pages:304
Published: September 11, 2012
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
Overview
On the precipice of her sixteenth birthday, the last thing lone wolf Cat Crawford wants is an extravagant gala thrown by her bubbly stepmother-to-be and well-meaning father. So even though Cat knows the family’s trip to Florence, Italy, is a peace offering, she embraces the magical city and all it offers. But when her curiosity leads her to an unusual gypsy tent, she exits . . . right into Renaissance Firenze.
Thrust into the sixteenth century armed with only a backpack full of contraband future items, Cat joins up with her ancestors, the sweet Alessandra and protective Cipriano, and soon falls for the gorgeous aspiring artist Lorenzo. But when the much-older Niccolo starts sniffing around, Cat realizes that an unwanted birthday party is nothing compared to an unwanted suitor full of creeptastic amore.
Can she find her way back to modern times before her Italian adventure turns into an Italian forever?
My Review
Cat is off to Italy with her father and stepmother for a sweet sixteen party. Cat seems to be not so happy that her stepmother is throwing this party but at the same time she is glad she's going to Italy. She loves the arts and Italy is the place to see it all. She somehow manages to get some time to herself away from her father and stepmother by going on a tour. She then ends up being curious of a gypsy tent and then somehow is transformed back in time!
Her reaction was not scared but was pretty stroked about being back in time. It was neat that Cat could actually understand the language and speak it. Although her adjusting to the customs of 16th century was interesting to see. The other characters from the 16th century seemed to think the way Cat talked was just how it was in London. There was not so much shock geared towards Cat. Cat did have an adventure and she learned some lessons as well.
She meets Alessandra from the 16th century who becomes her friend and manages to tell her that she is really from the future. I loved how Alessandra was pretty accommodating to her along with being fascinated of the future. She is a good character. Somehow she ends up being more important than you think.
Of course romance! Lorenzo oozed with being a perfect guy for Cat. He was also an artist. He came off to be as a swoon worthy guy even with his awkward moments. I was glad to see how Lorenzo and Cat reacted to each other. Does Cat get Lorenzo?
Something triggers Cat to realize she must get back to her time. Will she be able to? Will the gypsy lady show up again? What will happen? Overall the story is a great, whimsical and fun read. If you like time traveling and quick reads, this book is great! The ending I must say is not what I expected and I can't wait for more!
Cover Rating: A
Story Rating: B
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Disclaimer: I bought this book to read to give it an honest opinion!
Time Traveling Fashionista 1
Author: Bianca Turetsky
Pages:262
Published: April 5, 2011
Publisher: Poppy
Overview
What if a beautiful vintage dress could take you back in time?
Louise Lambert has always dreamed of movie starlets and exquisite gowns and longs for the day when she can fill the closet of her normal suburban home with stylish treasures. But when she receives a mysterious invitation to a vintage fashion sale in the mail, her once painfully average life is magically transformed into a time-travel adventure.
Suddenly onboard a luxurious cruise ship a hundred years ago, Louise relishes the glamorous life of this opulent era and slips into a life of secrets, drama, and decadence. . .
My Take
I saw this book in the store one day. Honestly the pink cover caught my attention and I just had to have it. Time traveling by fashion? That is awesome. Of course this book is geared towards 5th-8th graders but the story itself is great! I love the whole book and the themes that are in this book.
Louise Lambert craves for vintage fashion. She can't get enough of it considering she's only twelve years old in the book. So one day she gets an invitation to this vintage fashion sale. She could not resist this. She had to go and off she went! She is on a mission to find a dress for the dress that is coming up.
Off to the store she goes. She ends up meeting these two strange ladies in the shop. While Louise browse the shop, she finds a stunning dress that just calls to her. The two older ladies encourage her to try it on. Loving the dress, Louise eventually gets shipped back in time on a ship! At first she did now know where she was and who she was. But somehow she figures it out and learns she was on the Titanic! She needs to figure out how to save herself and those she's met on the ship? Can she do it?
This was such a fun read and quick too! I love how the author brought these pages to life by the story and illustrations of the gowns and events that were going on. I am also a fan of Titanic stories. So I was glad to make this purchase! The character Louise is a likable, fun and adorable character. One would be happy to go on her journey with her.
The Time Traveling Fashionista at the Palace of Marie Antoinette
Author: Bianca Turetsky
Hardcover
Pages: 272
Published: September 2012
Publisher: Poppy
Overview
Louise Lambert's best friend's thirteenth birthday party is fast approaching, so of course the most important question on her mind is, "What am I going to wear?!" Slipping on an exquisite robin's egg blue gown during another visit to the mysterious Traveling Fashionista Vintage Sale, Louise finds herself back in time once again, swept up in the glory of palace life, fancy parties, and enormous hair as a member of the court of France's most infamous queen, Marie Antoinette.
But between cute commoner boys and glamorous trips to Paris, life in the palace isn't all cake and couture. Can Louise keep her cool-and her head!-as she races against the clock to get home?
My Take:
Louise Lambert shows up again. She is another year older and learns that her father is out of a job and her class trip to France is cancelled due to financial woes. She was feeling a bit bummed out now. Even to make matters worse the one boy she likes seems to like a new student.
The one thing that cheers her up is that she received an invitation for another vintage fashion sale by the two strange ladies that she met from the last book who's names are Marla and Glenda. She arrives to the shop as she glances around checking out the dresses while Marla and Glenda are strange as usual. She somehow finds a stunning blue French gown tucked away. She was tempted to try it on but it wasn't what the owners wanted her to slip on. She transformed back in tome to the world of Marie Antoinette court with politics and drama!
Louise finds herself in shock and sees France for its truth in wealth and poor. She remembers if what her history teacher told of her the events that happen to Marie and tries to fix it. She does her best but somehow realizes she needs to get herself back before the revolt starts. I love how Louise learns about herself again in this journey, how rich history really is and how history can even reflect on your own home.
Another fun and quick read! The illustrations are stunning as usual! I love these series. The pace and history details in this book and previous book is just amazing. I look forward to more from this author! Book three I think will be in the works considering Louise may have a new crush!
Go pick up these series today...great reads, great fun!
Stories Ratings: A
Cover Ratings: A
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Disclaimer: I bought this book to read to give it an honest opinion!
Between the Lines
Author: Jodi Picoult & Samantha van Leer
Hardcover
Pages: 358
Published: June 26, 2012
Simon Pulse
Overview:
Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.
And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.
Delilah and Oliver work together to attempt to get Oliver out of his book, a challenging task that forces them to examine their perceptions of fate, the world, and their places in it. And as their attraction to each other grows along the way, a romance blossoms that is anything but a fairy tale.
My Review:
I grabbed this book as the title caught my attention. I read the the tidbit about what the book was and decided to give it a go. Well when I started it was okay but when I got further into the story, it seemed slow and a bit confusing from the different point of views that were going on. Each chapter or sub chapter would be from the charter's point of view (mostly Delilah's or Oliver's). You would have to concentrate a bit on the story to keep up with it.
Fairy tale story with a modern twist. Of course this story has a prince, love, friends, creatures..the usual aspects that fairy tales consist of. Then there's the heartbreaking part of losing someone. The modern twist is at the end of the book which I thought was pretty amazing!
The fun thing about this book was the sketches. I loved seeing the sketches with the story in this book. You could actually get a feel for what was going on better.
The two characters that are mentioned in this book mostly is Oliver and Delilah. Delilah is a gal who is a loner and loves to read. She wants to get lost in a story and not deal with real life. What teenager wants to get lost in a different world at times? Oliver is a character in the book who wants not to be in a book anymore. He is curious of what is outside of this story and book. He wants to be free. Freedom is something everyone treasures and dares to be explored! Delilah identifies with Oliver and see him as a friend. They both are likable characters. Who could not like them? I thought they were a good match for each other.
So one day Oliver ends up trying to talk to Delilah and she hears him! Their worlds collide as they chat to one another. Can you imagine a book talking to you one day? This was pretty neat. They both like each other and yet the mission was to figure out how to get Oliver out of the book! I liked how they come up with hypothesis and then test them out! Some go well and some do not. Each one is an adventure. At times both Oliver and Delilah get frustrated in dealing with figuring things out along with reality that hits them in their own worlds but they still try to figure out a way. Will they succeed in getting Oliver out of the book?
As I mentioned up above, it was kind of confusing for me a bit on what was going on and seemed a bit slow. It was an okay story. To those who like fairy tales, I'd give it a shot if you are into that genre! I'm glad I read it just to try something different and new.
Cover Rating: B
Story Rating: C
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Disclaimer: I bought this book to read to give it an honest opinion!
Ripper
Author: Amy Carol Reeves
Pages: 340
Publisher: Flux
Published: April 8, 2012
Overview
It's 1888, and after her mother's sudden death, Abbie is sent to live with her grandmother in a posh London neighborhood. When she begins volunteering at Whitechapel Hospital, Abbie finds she has a passion for helping the abused and sickly women there.
But within days, patients begin turning up murdered at the hands of Jack the Ripper. As more women are murdered, Abbie realizes that she and the Ripper share a strange connection: she has visions showing the Ripper luring his future victims to their deaths--moments before he turns his knife upon them. Her desperation to stop the massacres leads Abbie on a perilous hunt for the killer. And her search leads to a mysterious brotherhood whose link to the Ripper threatens not just London but all of mankind.
My Review:
The cover caught my attention immediately! I purchased this book and then started to read.
The setting takes place in 19th century in London. The author immediately makes you feel like you are there during that time period. Of course I liked how Abbie gets thrown into the world of the medical field. She seems to be the type of gal that can handle anything thrown her way. If I was thrown into that situation I don't think I could handle the cases that Abbie attended to. Abbie seems very interested in learning about the medical field and wants to pursue it. I thought this was great. During that time, it was very rare for women to try to pursue this considering most were to be married and have children.
Anyways, the main character is Abbie who has a wild spirit like her mother but is living with her grandmother who wants her to act a certain way. Her grandmother wants Abbie to have the proper upbringing. Although Abbie tries to abide her grandmother's rules but she knows better than to go down that path. She's a generous, kind and a hard worker character.
While she continues to volunteer, she gets visions tied in with Jack the Ripper killing the victims. Abbie is very brave to tolerate those visions she gets. I know I would be out of mind if I saw what Jack the Ripper did. This also gets Abbie's curiosity peaked as she tries to solve who Jack the Ripper is. Abbie also feels guilty that she had to see those women die and she cared for them.
Of course there is a love triangle in this story. There is Simon and William. The one thing different about this love triangle compared to the usual one is that Simon and William are both good guys. It's not like the good guy vs the bad guy. Okay Simon genially cares about his patients and would be a great approval from Abbie's grandmother as well. Simon is a saint type of guy. Then there's William who is a great physician as well but holds back in trust a bit. Simon is a bi tore open while William is a bit more closed. Who will Abbie go for?
The ending let me wanting more. Is there a second book? I so want to see what happens next with Abbie, Simon and William. Will the Ripper get caught? What will be next?
BR>
Cover Rating: A
Story Rating: B +
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