Everything Beautiful by Simmone Howell

I have been taking a much needed break from life. I am back!

Summary- Riley Rose, atheist and bad girl, has been tricked into attending Spirit Ranch, a Christian camp. There she meets Dylan Kier, alumni camper and recent paraplegic, who arrives with a chip on his shoulder and a determination to perfect all of his bad habits. United in their personal suffering and in their irritation at their fellow campers, they turn the camp inside out as they question the meaning of belief systems, test their faith in each other, and ultimately settle a debate of the heart.

Thoughts- I was a bit nervous to start this book. I do not believe in god and this book starts off with Riley Rose being sent to Christian camp. I was surprised! It was a good surprise as well. This book was wonderful. It was sarcastic, shocking and there are no happy endings and rainbows in this book. Sarita was a well written, enjoyable character, Dylan was heart wrenching and Fleur was a complete bitch. I still can not sympathize with her. This story was well written and it has it's laugh out loud moments. I highly recommend it.

Overall- I loved this book. The premise was a bit scary to me, but it was done well. The writing and the character development was spot on.

Cover- I hope the cover model is not supposed to be Riley. Riley is plus size and the cover model is NOT. It's an adorable cover though.

Teaser Tuesdays 8/25

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading in which one grabs their current read, opens to a random page, and gives two "teaser" sentences from that page.

Irial watched the girl stroll up the street: she was a bundle of terror and fury. He stayed in the shadows outside the tattoo parlor, but his gaze didn't waver from her as he finished his cigarette.

Taken from page 1 of Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr.

In My Mailbox 8/22

I received quite a few books this week. Of course, I received most of them from PBS, a few from Bookmooch and I bought a few with birthday money from Barnes and Noble. One was a birthday present.



I really am trying to make a list of what came from where, but with the amount of books that come in and out of this door, it's really not something that is easy to do!

Contest Winner!!!!

I wanted to announce that Kristen won the ARC's of How To Ditch Your Fairy and Bad Girls Don't Die. Congrats Kristen!

Now I am off to enjoy my birthday! I won movie tickets to a movie of my choice and we are having dinner. It should be fun! I hope you all have a great day.

Win The Hunger Games!

Have you read The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins? No? Win a copy by entering Jenna's contest here! Tell her I sent you and we both get extra entries! Good luck!

Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender

Summary: Alexis thought she led a typically dysfunctional high school existence. Dysfunctional like her parents' marriage; her doll-crazy twelve-year-old sister, Kasey; and even her own anti-social, anti-cheerleader attitude.

When a family fight results in some tearful sisterly bonding, Alexis realizes that her life is creeping from dysfunction into danger. Kasey is acting stranger than ever: her blue eyes go green sometimes; she uses old-fashioned language; and she even loses track of chunks of time, claiming to know nothing about her strange behavior. Their old house is changing, too. Doors open and close by themselves; water boils on the unlit stove; and an unplugged air conditioner turns the house cold enough to see their breath in.

Alexis wants to think that it's all in her head, but soon, what she liked to think of as silly parlor tricks are becoming life-threatening--to her, her family, and to her budding relationship with the class president. Alexis knows she's the only person who can stop Kasey -- but what if that green-eyed girl isn't even Kasey anymore?

Thoughts: This book was fun. It was a quick read and if you like ghost stories, you will be a fan. It was a bit rushed for my tastes and everything wrapped up a bit too nicely. It is an enjoyable read and I am fascinated with ghosts. There were some fairly spooky parts and reading about ghosts always makes me jumpy. What can I say? I am a firm believer. Kasey plays a chilling role in this book and you will feel for her. I enjoyed seeing the friendship between Megan and Alexis blossom. I believe a lot of teenagers will be able to relate to the relationship between Kasey, Alexis and their parents. It's a great read for a gloomy, rainy afternoon.

Overall: Though it was a bit rushed, it was still an enjoyable read and one I would recommend, especially to anyone with a love of ghost stories. (Have you entered my contest yet? You can win this book, but the contest ends tomorrow!) Enter here!

Cover: I thought this was a unique and original cover. If I hadn't known about this book, it is definitely one that I would've picked up to read the back at B&N or Borders.

Waiting on Wednesday 8/19

Most sixteen-year-olds have friends. Aden Stone has four human souls living inside him:

One can time-travel.
One can raise the dead.
One can tell the future.
And one can possess another human.

With no other family and a life spent in and out of institutions, Aden and the souls have become friends. But now, they're causing him all kinds of trouble.

Like, he'll blink and suddenly he's a younger Aden, reliving the past. One wrong move, and he'll change the future. Or, he'll walk past a total stranger and know how and when she's going to die.

He's so over it. All he wants is peace.

And then he meets a girl who quiets the voices. Well, for as long as he's with her. Why? Mary Ann Gray is his total opposite. He's a loner; she has friends. He doesn't care what anyone thinks; she tries to make everyone happy. And while he attracts the paranormal, she repels it. For her sake, he should stay away. But it's too late. . .

Somehow, they share an inexplicable bond of friendship. A bond about to be tested by a werewolf shape-shifter who wants Mary Ann for his own and a vampire princess Aden can’t resist. Two romances, both forbidden... doomed. Still, the four will enter a dark underworld of intrigue and danger... but not everyone will come out alive...