What I am Thankful For

Hi Everyone!

My Thanksgiving holiday weekend ended yesterday and woah it was a joyful time. A time that included eating food, sharing conversations with my family, seeing a wonderful potential house to buy, watching the touching film adaption to The Book Thief, and lighting Hannukah candles. 

What I am thankful for...

1. Generous people, friendly people and funny people. Friends basically. 
2. Laughing uncontrollably so many times the last few days and all the other times. 
3. Opportunities. 
4. Chocolate cover pretzels. They are my weakness. 
5. My family and my dog. 
6. The best group I could hope for as my group project team for my theater class this past semester. 
7. A exciting first college semester. If this morning is any consideration, I think the last two weeks will continue the trend.
8. The four teachers I had this semester who all helped me become more confident while participating in class discussions. 
9. Jennifer Armentrout's doing meet a blogger posts on Wednesday. She did mine last Wednesday!
10. Excellent actors like Robbie Kay. (Need more of his facial expressions.) 
11. Excellent friends and actors I know from my theater class. 
12. Finding a new book this year that, so far, I can read again and again. Secret by Brigid Kemmerer is what I'm talking about. 
13. The books I can re-read forever and ever. Top books include Hidden Talents by David Lubar, Evernight by Claudia Gray, The Rites of Spring Break by Diana Peterfreund and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling.
14. Lastly, the most important one of all. All of you who still read and comment on my blog. 

Thanks for reading!

Review: The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead

Hi Everyone!

Suddenly, with a little warning, I wrote a whole review after a few struggles the past week. Turns out, I just need to find a different book to review while I still gather my emotions towards another. 

Today I am reviewing...

The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead

Publication Date: November 19th, 2013

Publisher: Razorbill

Source: Bought!

4/5 WITHIN THE LIGHT STARS!

The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead lives true to its name. During this central book is the times Adrian and Sydney walk within a lighted cavern both certain of their role as candleholder. Neither letting the bounds over their romance to take hold and pull them away.

I both love and wanted more in this book. There are great moments. There are bland. There are breathtaking lines and bothersome telling points. There are predictable twists and a sweet, juicy romance. 

The two things I know for sure are one) I feel the Sydrian gasp and two) I experiencing either bitter or love emotions for all other major characters.

Adrian point of view was the best. I like the youthful appearance he gives to Sydney during their time alone together. So many times point of views bear similarities, yet Adrian brought his humor, insecurity, and pensive valor. While reading The Golden Lily I hoped others would come to admire Adrian, as much as Sydney and I, when realizing his truth courage, and in this book it may come to fruition for a moment or two. 

After outgoing Rose, I was happy to gain my fellow inquisitive introvert Sydney. Sydney was always hard working, wise and gentle. Now, she finally reaches complete open-mindedness. There is no quality I desire more from people. A hard gained attribute that Sydney implements to her advantage while trying to pacify the one who needs to learn it too. And causes the best line of the book. Too bad the line is too spoilery.

Eddie, Eddie, Eddie!!!!!!! Since Shadow Kiss, he has reigned among the characters that I miss when absent. While reading Blood Promise and during the first part of this book, I kept wondering, “Where’s Eddie?” I am mad that he was gone from a large part of this story. His resolve to help Rose after Mason’s death and his continuing selfless journey created this selfless warrior. He’s a bright torch that faces self-hate towards his inability to solve everything, raging fire in his wake.

I liked seeing the way Eddie influences Neil, a new dhampir, to become selfless. (At least that’s inferred by my reading) I was a bit worried that Neil would continue the whole book as an overzealous flatstone. And then Neil drove home his surface of arrogance is actually because he wants to acquire honor.  Still, he could never replace Eddie.

My bitter juices goes to Sydney's dad and a certain sister. My surprise giddiness goes to Trey. 

The story journeys to a unsurprising conclusion and a simple realization to how to prevent Stirgoitism. Yet the former does not really matter because I am enthralled by the glimpse of the new setting. I cannot wait for the next book to explore more. The second gave me nerveless disappointment. Yet, it leads to a great Eddie moment and certain cameos. Though I wish for more from Christian’s.  

My hopes and predictions for Silver Shadows:

The center will hold.

Eddie will redeem his failure.

Adrian will locate a lost.

Sydney will stay strong. 

Thanks for reading!

A Quick Announcement!

Hi Everyone!

My sister and I recently created a Facebook Page for Unforgettable Books. I hope you check it out! You can see a picture of my bookshelf.

Thanks for reading!

Diary Discussion Sort of Poem

Hello. 

What to do When You're Finish Those Books

My original plan was to review a book this week. But, I just can't. All weekend, I was consumed with anticipation. During this week, slowly late at night (after I finished my college work), I read this amazing book, experiencing giddy jitters the entire time. Now, I finished it and I am obsessed. 

What to do now I finished an unforgettable book? 

Should I forget about it?

Do I want to? No.

Do I need to? Probably.

Ok. Yes. 

I live with responsibilities. 

Schoolwork. 

Being a good friend, sister, and daughter.

Preparing for my future

and many more. 

As do we all.

We all have to live. 

But I also do not want it to disappear. 

Yet, I need to stop thinking about it to concentrate on my life. 

If anyone else experiences this feeling, this post is for you. 

How I usually get over magnificent and mind-consuming books?

I think of another book to wait for. 

This time I do not want to. 

I want to appreciate the grand book I have, 

as the others that leave the same feelings,

and move forward. 

New catharsis ideas:

Talk to a friend. Already tried. Keep thinking about the book. 

Write a blog post asking others opinions. Doing. 

Write an email to the author about how much I loved the book. Hmm, I'll try that.

Find a person who read the book to chat about it with. Let the search begin. 

Listening to music. Working a bit. 

What I really want is a potion that makes me forget only what happened in each unforgettable book and start them again with fresh eyes and with delightful surprises again. 

I want these books to continue to thrive without an ending. 

Two impossibilities. 

Two selfish desires.

The truth.

As usual, I want too much. 

Love,

Rachel 

Truth or Dare - Embarrassing review or Halloween Costume

Hi!

Can you believe its November already? My first semester of college is certainly speeding by. 

The meme Truth or Dare was created by the blogger Jenn Does Books. 

Every week there will be a new Truth or Dare to answer. 

This week:

Truth

Tell about the worst/most embarrassing review you ever written. 

or 

Dare

Did you dress as a fictional character for Halloween? Share your photos with us.

Since I dislike wearing costumes, I chose Truth. I still cannot wait to see other people's creations.

My most embarrassing review was my Redheads are Soulless by Heather White review. Why? Because of this small part that I deleted from my review. 

I always was envious of redheads and the redheads in the book Redheads Are Soulless are definitely worth the emotion of jealousy. They have amazing powers. Sofia, the main character, for example, can break objects with her mind. Robbie is an awesome guitar player. Jason can heal bruises as quick as my dog can run around my backyard.

Sofia, Robbie and Jason are all redheads with amazing powers! 

I later learned from someone that Robbie and Jason were actually not redheads. I am really embarrass to admit I made a mistake and did not read the book closely enough to recognize the characters appearance. I wish I checked the character's appearance instead of assuming they were red-heads. 

I just tend to ignore physical appearances of characters. When I read, I usually do not really care. I tend to consider characters personalities. In contradiction, sometimes when I do consider appearances I create my own. Before noting that Balthazar from my favorite series from ninth grade, Evernight by Claudia Gray, was a blond from a uncountable re-read, I always pictured Balthazar as brunette Cory Moneteith. Mostly because my song for Balthazar is Can't Stop This Feeling Anymore by REO Speedwagon, which Cory sang on Glee's pilot. 

I also find this review missed a heartfelt tone. 

Thanks for reading!

Cover Reveal: Into the Storm by Melanie Moreland

Hi Everyone!

I hope you all had a wonderful, frightening and ghostfull Halloween last night. 

Today I am participating in the cover reveal for Into the Storm by Melanie Moreland. This cover reveal is hosted by Xpresso Book Tours.

Book Information:

Publication Date: Late 2013

An Adult Romance

Synopsis:

She is a woman on the run. Pain, loneliness and terror are what she is leaving. Where she is headed doesn’t matter as long as it’s away from the hell her life has become.

Joshua Bennett is trapped in a prison of his own making by the memories of his past. Traumatized and isolated, he is a reclusive writer, living a quiet, lonely life, his only companion his dog, Bear. It is what he knows, what he has accepted to be his life.

One dark night, one huge storm, and one ice patch brings them together. He finds himself with an unexpected houseguest with no memory. She wakes up a stranger to herself and the man watching her. Even more mysterious is the lack of any sort of identification with her or in her car. She is an enigma to both of them.

Trapped by the storm and isolated from the outside world, they slowly open up, learning to trust and love, until the world once again shows up, threatening the fragile peace of their newly discovered world, and tearing them apart.

There are many twists and turns as they struggle to find each other, overcoming both the mental and physical elements that keep them apart.

A story about overcoming our fears, finding love and learning to live again.

Author's Bio: 

Melanie Moreland lives a happy and content life in a quiet area of Ontario with her husband and fur children. Nothing means more to her than her friends and family, and she cherishes every moment spent with them.

Known as the quiet one with the big laugh, Melanie works at a local university and for its football team.  Her (box) office job, while demanding, is rewarding as she cheers on her team to victory.

While seriously addicted to coffee, and somewhat challenged with all things computer-related and technical, she relishes baking, cooking, and trying new recipes for people to sample. She loves to throw dinner parties and socialize, and also enjoys travelling, here and abroad, but finds coming home is always the best part of any trip.

Melanie delights in a good romance story with some bumps along the way, but is a true believer in happily ever after.  When her head isn’t buried in a book, it is bent over a keyboard, furiously typing away as her characters dictate their creative storylines, to let her share them with her readers.

Twitter - Goodreads - Facebook

And the cover:

My Thoughts:

The white in the center glares at my eye a bit, but besides that, I love this cover. I find its landscape gorgeous with blue white and black. 

Thanks for reading!

ARC Review: Notable by Marnie Bates

Hi Everyone!

Today I am reviewing:

Notable by Marni Bates

Publication Date: October 29th, 2013

Publisher: Kensington Publishing

Source: Netgalley

3/5 ENTERTAINING STARS

My review:

I know I care about a book when I think about it. A lot. Notable by Marni Bates, sadly, has not thrown itself in my mind till I started writing this review. I just wanted to start with that statement to make sure you know that this is a good book, but if your in a new books-to-obsessively-recommend slump, like I am, it will not alleviate the empty pain.

That being said, Notable by Marni Bates is a fun-filled story of excitement and transfers from scene to scene in a nice steady flow. I sped through this story in pretty much one read-through.

I love Marni’s idea to set this story in Cambodia. I am thrilled that Chelsea and her group of college students and one teacher in actual danger with a drug lord. Yep, I enjoyed their struggle. I was completely scared for Neal, the trapped sweet and talkative teacher. The plot, in short, was terrific, a bit of romance, a bit of thrills, and heroine with initiative. The only segment I found unlikeable was a confusing piece near the end. The climax was not clearly written. 

Chelsea is an excellent combination of naivety, when it comes to dealing with criminals, and stubbornness to stay true to her bluntness; I could relate to both. She is he opposite of the stereotypical popular girl. She is understanding, reasonably judges a bit, and never allows others to influence her to change her personality. I am a bit sad, though, that her two best friends fit the popular stereotype.

The banter between Chelsea and Hudson was the typical entertaining interactions I expect in an initially infuriating romance and opinionated duo. On paper, I would have loved Hudson, the tough, thoughtful guy, but I really never found myself attracted to him. I preferred when Chelsea was flirting with Wesley, a lawyer with connection to finding the enemy who kidnapped Neal. Her fake name was terrific! I love how it connects to Scott, Chelsea’s true friend Jane’s boyfriend who dislikes Chelsea.

Notable by Marni Bates is a good book. It is perfectly fine to read it separate from the rest of the Smith High series.

I leave with saying, “Chelsea rules!” 

Thanks for reading!

ARC Review: The Iron Traitor by Julie Kagawa

Hi People!

The Iron Traitor by Julie Kagawa

Publication Date: October 23rd, 2013

Publisher: HarlequinTeen

Source: Netgalley 

4/5 TEARY STARS

Tears fell out of my eyes for minutes after finishing the last page. Burning tears of and sorrow. I felt heartbroken. Tears spill while I think about how every page moved closer and closer to this moment of suffering. The ending contains a beautiful second-to-last line unmatched by any line.

The book lives with splendid writing that lies in simple narrative mixed with gorgeous images. Each passage is transitioned smoothly. The dialogue is similar to what I hear everyday.

I experience so much empathy for the three main characters. Oh, Ethan, Kenzie and Kieran. Ethan has grown in many ways from his old live a life of depravity self as he comes to risk everything for Kenzie and his family. He extorts his true insecurities and gains a new confidence. I always will like stubborn girls with creative ideas like Kenzie. Kenzie’s capacity to forgive is unbreakable. Kieran may be a love struck wanna-be savior who disregards everyone else, but I still like him because I long for his redemption and admire this resolved half-fey who independently strives for his goal. He lets no one tell him that love is not worth the grim consequences.

What really caused me to be disappointing was the plot. Till The Nevernever segment around 200 pages in I found the plot was a deflating balloon and I was the helium whizzing away. I found the plot was mostly one event after another without any significant occurrence. I mostly lacked drive to read. Especially when Ethan did an action similar to what I thought he learned from in the previous book. 

After, Nevernever I started finding the energy to read this book. I adored the still lingering jacket moment and plenty of tension-filled scenes. The last section left me experiencing plenty of sentimental emotions.

The Iron Traitor is, in all, a pretty good book if you do not mind waiting for important events to happen. The writing is beautiful and the main characters are strong. 

Thanks for reading!