Feature & Follow (12)

Hosted by: Alison can read.

Q: What are you reading right now? How do you like it?

I always read several books at the same time, but my 'leader book' is Michelle Diener's work 'In a treacherous court.'
The other books I'm reading are:
Juliet Marillier - Shadowfall (here it's called: Verboden magie)
Mercedes Lackey - The fairy godmother.
Stefan Bachmann - The peculiar.

An unconventional woman. A deadly enemy. A clash of intrigue, deception, and desire..
1525: Artist Susanna Horenbout is sent from Belgium to be Henry VIII’s personal illuminator inside the royal palace. But her new homeland greets her with an attempt on her life, and the King’s most lethal courtier, John Parker, is charged with keeping her safe. As further attacks are made, Susanna and Parker realize that she unknowingly carries the key to a bloody plot against the throne. For while Richard de la Pole amasses troops in France for a Yorkist invasion, a traitor prepares to trample the kingdom from within.Who is the mastermind? Why are men vying to kill the woman Parker protects with his life? With a motley gang of urchins, Susanna’s wits, and Parker’s fierce instincts, honed on the streets and in palace chambers, the two slash through deadly layers of deceit in a race against time. For in the court of Henry VIII, secrets are the last to die..

I'm obsessed with everything that has to do with The Tudors, so when Michelle emailed me if I wanted a copy from her two books, I was thrilled. I'm almost done now and I love it! It's such a shame that I have to go to school, because I can't read as much as I want to. The conspiracy lies deep within the trusted circles of the King and it's up to Susanna and John to find out who is behind the attacks, before they both die. It's fascinating to see how the court is; filled with snakes, trying to profit from everybody in order to get more money, land and status. Definitely recommended if you like The Tudors and Philippa Gregory. My review is coming soon, so stay tuned if you want to know more!

And link me up with your FF. Happy weekend!

Review 74. Maureen Johnson – The name of the star.

Title: The name of the star.
Author: Maureen Johnson.
Pages: 372.
Published: September 29th 2011.
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile.
Sort: Part one of ‘Shades of London.’

The day Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London marks a memorable occasion. For Rory, it's the start of a new life at a London boarding school. But for many, this will be remembered as the day a series of brutal murders broke out across the city, gruesome crimes mimicking the horrific Jack the Ripper events of more than a century ago. Soon “Rippermania” takes hold of modern-day London, and the police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man police believe to be the prime suspect. But she is the only one who saw him. Even her roommate, who was walking with her at the time, didn't notice the mysterious man. So why can only Rory see him? And more urgently, why has Rory become his next target? In this edge-of-your-seat thriller, full of suspense, humor, and romance, Rory will learn the truth about the secret ghost police of London and discover her own shocking abilities.

Rating: 

“Keep calm and carry on. Also, stay in and hide because the Ripper is coming.”

Summary.
Aurora – although she uses the name Rory – lives in America. Her parents are going to work in Bristol, so she will start a new year in London at a boarding school. London is shocked by the bizarre murders lately; they are similar to the murders made by Jack The Ripper.

When Rory spots a man at the crime scene, she becomes a valuable eye-witness. The only strange thing is: Jazza was there and she never saw the man. That’s how Rory’s strange new ability is discovered by a special force and soon, she is tangled up in the Rippermania. She is in grave danger, because the new Jack has made her his next and last target. Why is he so interested in her? Why did he start killing in the first place? And how can you stop someone who seems untouchable?

Opinion.
It’s quite hard to give you a good summary, because I don’t want to give you any spoilers. This is the best I could do without giving too much away. It’s up to you if you want to find out who this mysterious new Jack is. 

Rory is a nice girl, but not really remember able. She was a bit plain, nothing special. She is brave, though and I liked her, but I think I will forget about her soon. One thing I like about this book is that the romance doesn’t play a big role. It’s there and it’s cute, but Jack is the most important thing.

The ending was well done. The story ends, but it gives enough room for the next book. There was a nice build up towards the end and it did deliver. The writing style was pleasant, but sometimes, I wished that the story went a bit faster. You know, it felt like I could skip some pages without missing a thing.

I’m definitely going to read the next book, because I liked it. I just didn’t love it.

WoW 21. The mist on Bronte Moor, Scarlet & Untitled.

Breaking the spine.

Aviva Orr - The mist on Bronte Moor.
Expected publication: January 8th 2013 by WiDo Publishing.

When fifteen-year-old Heather Jane Bell is diagnosed with alopecia and her hair starts falling out in clumps, she wants nothing more than to escape her home in London and disappear off the face of the earth.
Heather gets her wish when her concerned parents send her to stay with her great-aunt in West Yorkshire. But shortly after she arrives, she becomes lost on the moors and is swept through the mist back to the year 1833. There she encounters fifteen-year-old Emily Brontë and is given refuge in the Brontë Parsonage. Unaware of her host family’s genius and future fame, Heather struggles to cope with alopecia amongst strangers in a world completely foreign to her. While Heather finds comfort and strength in her growing friendship with Emily and in the embrace of the close-knit Brontë family, her emotions are stretched to the limit when she falls for Emily’s brilliant but troubled brother, Branwell. Will Heather return to the comforts and conveniences of the twenty-first century? Or will she choose love and remain in the harsh world of nineteenth-century Haworth?

This sounds fascinating! And the cover is pretty.

 Marissa Meyer - Scarlet.

 Expected publication: February 5th 2013 by Feiwel and Friends.

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison--even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive. Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.  

I loved Cinder and I can't wait to find out what is going to happen. And I want to know how Cinder and Scarlet are going to meet!

 Veronica Roth - Untitled. Divergent 3.

NO TITLE YET ANNOUNCED. The third book in Veronica Roth's #1 New York Times Bestselling DIVERGENT series is coming in Fall 2013. 

Divergent was awesome and Insurgent was pretty good, so come on. I want to know how this ends. And I can't wait for the title and cover.

Link me up with your WoW!

 

Review 73. Jodi Lynn Anderson–Tiger Lily.

Title: Tiger Lily.
Author: Jodi Lynn Anderson.
Pages: 292.
Published: July 3rd 2012.
Publisher: Harper Collins Children's Books
Sort: Stand alone.
Source: Won in a giveaway.

Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair.. Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn't believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell. Peter is unlike anyone she's ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland's inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything—her family, her future—to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she's always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter. With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it's the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who's everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.

Rating:  

How can I describe my love for this book in a rational way? It will be hard for me, since I haven’t read a book like this so far. It touched me in a way no other book did this year. How is it possible to tell Tiger Lily’s heart breaking love story in words, when you have to feel it? I’m going to try my best to tell you about this beautifully crafted story.

Summary.
Tiger Lily lives in the tribe ‘Sky eaters.’ She is the adopted daughter of the leader Tik Tok, who found her under the flower she is named after. One day, there is a shipwreck and one boy survives, but his penalty is death. Everybody is afraid to catch “the aging disease.” Tiger Lily is too stubborn and she saves the Englander. This will change her life. This is how she is going to meet the famous Peter Pan; the boy everybody is scared of.

“They kept apart from each other, but it was as if a string attached their fingers, because they could each feel each other’s hands even though they carefully kept their hands apart.”


That is the best way to describe the love that is blossoming between them. Tiger Lily doesn’t talk a lot and she always hide her feelings. But with Peter, it is different. She smiles more, she tries to come out of her shell; and Peter is a better person around Tiger Lily too. The lost boys accept Tiger Lily like one of them. They always watch out for Captain Hook and his Pirates, but Tiger Lily makes their life better. That is until a new ship arrives to pick up the Englander Tiger Lily saved. She is glad that he is going away, because he takes over the village.

When something horrible happens in Tiger Lily’s life, she stays away from Peter for a while and that’s when my heart broke. The Englander girl called Wendy steps into the story and she messes up everything. Peter and the Lost boys are leaving with her and Tiger Lily stays behind.

Opinion.
Damn you, Wendy!

This story is told from Tink’s point of view. She can’t talk, but she is able to read minds and hearts. It was wonderfully picked, because we get to meet Peter and Tiger Lily in a different way. Tiger Lily is fierce, brave, stubborn and restless. Peter is lost and loses his heart quickly, but Tiger Lily always kept a piece of it. I wanted them to be together for ever, even when I knew how the story would end. They were so sweet and they completed each other. They are both damaged and lonely. This story broke my heart, crushed my feelings and made me want to cry. There was nothing I could do when I saw Tiger Lily’s heart being shattered by Wendy’s appearance.

To make things even worse, Peter wrote a letter to Tiger Lily and I’ve never read anything so beautiful and pure. It was as if I was Tiger Lily and he wrote me that letter. You know that feeling, when you really life inside the story and almost become one of the characters? I felt all sad inside and you know that you’ve read a magnificent book if the author can give you those feelings. If this story doesn’t touch you, I don’t know what else can. The letter was almost too much too handle for me. I know, I have a weak soul when it comes to these broken love stories.

I’m glad that this story doesn’t end too unhappy. They both find their way to continue their lives. Tiger Lily is too strong to give up and she is happy, but in another way. This story tears my emotions apart and I will read it again for sure. I can’t look at Peter Pan the same way after reading this book.

The other characters in this book are great as well. We get to know them; they play a role and aren’t there to fill up some space. I especially loved Tik Tok, a man with a very present female side. He is a sweetheart. The world-building is good, the writing style is easy and almost poetic. The words flow.

Please, do yourself a favor and get a copy from this book.

Showcase Sunday 13. Free books.

This week, I got some amazing books. Most of them for free! There was a book sale and I helped them out, so I got to pick some books as a thank-you-gift! Netgalley was also kind enough to provide me with another book and I bought myself a little present. Just because I can.

Free books.
I only have to buy book 1, Vampire academy. I'm very happy that I got these!




I'm still curious about this series, but I hear nothing but negative things. So it was fantastic that I could take them for free! House of night.




I decided to snag these away as well.

God's spy.
The venetian betrayal.
The fallen blade.

Netgalley.


A.E Rought - Broken.
Expected publication: January 8th 2013 by Strange Chemistry.

Imagine a modern spin on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein where a young couple's undying love and the grief of a father pushed beyond sanity could spell the destruction of them all.




Bought.
Finally! Ruth Frances Long - The treachery of beautiful things.
 
A darkly compelling mix of romance, fairy tale, and suspense from a new voice in teen fiction. The trees swallowed her brother whole, and Jenny was there to see it. Now seventeen, she revisits the woods where Tom was taken, resolving to say good-bye at last. Instead, she's lured into the trees, where she finds strange and dangerous creatures who seem to consider her the threat. Among them is Jack, mercurial and magnetic, with secrets of his own. Determined to find her brother, with or without Jack's help, Jenny struggles to navigate a faerie world where stunning beauty masks some of the most treacherous evils, and she's faced with a choice between salvation or sacrifice--and not just her own.

Fantastic week for me. Link me up with your haul!

Review 72. Rachel Hawkins – Spell bound.

If you haven’t read the other books, there are spoilers! Also in the blurb, so be aware.

Title: Spell bound.
Author: Rachel Hawkins.
Pages: 336.
Published: March 13th 2012.
Publisher: Hyperion Book CH.
Sort: Part 3 of Hex Hall.
Review part 1: Hex Hall.
Review part 2: Demonglass.

Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident. Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?

Rating:

This is already the last book of the Hex Hall series and I absolutely loved them. This one makes a perfect ending to Sophie’s story. I did find some exiting news on my favorite website, Goodreads. There is coming a Hex Hall Spin-off!

There is a huge lost in this book. This person was always a bit on the background, but still managed to capture a piece of my heart. It’s terrible that it happened, but it was for a good cause.

Friendship plays a big part in this story and I like that. You always need someone in a battle and Sophie is depending on the people around her. And those people are fantastic. Her best friend Jenna, who supported her from the beginning. I think that their friendship is one of the best I’ve read about so far. They have this special connection going on. Her new made friends at The Brannicks, one of the most unsuspected people and of course her mother. She is tough! You can see where Sophie got her awesomeness from.

Like I said before, this book is filled with action. Things are spinning out of control and their world is soon collapsing into darkness. The demons are loose and they form a big danger. There is this constant tension and you’re just waiting for the big moment. The plot went a bit too fast for my taste, but I was still satisfied with the ending.