Review: Hooked

Title: Hooked

Author: Catherine Greenman

Publisher: Delacorte Books

Release Date: August 9, 2011

Received: Borrowed

Rate: 5

Summary: Thea Galehouse has always known how to take care of herself. With a flighty club-owner mom and a standoffish, recovering-alcoholic dad, Thea has made her own way in her hometown of New York, attending the prestigious and competitive Stuyvesant High School. But one chat with Will, a handsome and witty senior, and she's a goner—completely hooked on him and unable to concentrate on anything else.
Always worried that she loves Will more than he loves her, Thea is pleasantly surprised when their romance weathers his move to college and Will goes out of his way to involve her in his life. But then, Thea misses a period. And that starts Thea and Will on a wild ride that neither of them could have possibly prepared for. When they decide to keep the baby, their concerned parents chip in what they can to keep Will in school and give both teenagers a comfortable place to raise their child. But when a freak accident leaves Thea shaken and threatens to upend their little family altogether, Thea is forced to turn to the last place she would have chosen for comfort: her stiff, uncompromising father.

Review: Hooked was... Amazing for a lack of a better word at first I kind of hated Thea for her stupidity. But towards the end I just loved her. She was strong, brave and a bit too stubborn. This book is an amazing example of a good mother. At times I questioned her sanity but i still loved her. Will on the other hand beginning to end I held a strong dislike for him. Amazing book. 5 stars.

Thoughtful Thursday

*Note: Thoughtful Thursday is for those books that we have yet to review and have been published more then a year ago...*

Secrets of Transformation by Eva Dillner

Pub date: November 10, 2008
Publisher: Divine Design
Summary: It Started like a Fairy Tale... He was Prince Charming. At first. The abuse came later, when he thought he owned her. It started with verbal attacks. She had done something wrong, he screamed. She couldn't do anything right, it seemed. Other days, Prince Charming was back. One day he raped her. On two occasions he tried to kill her. She survived. She went on a quest to heal, to understand, to gather the pieces of the puzzle, to make whole. Her inner and outer journeys took her deep into a chain of ancestral pain. Along the way she learned the secrets of transformation. She left the past behind and changed her life. Are you tired of tripping over your past? Do you keep repeating the same relationship scenarios over and over again? Do you wonder why some people manage to move past the dreadful things that have happened to them? Find out how to quit your whining, leave your baggage behind and create a new you. Eva Dillner is a writer, artist and teacher working with creative and therapeutic processes for inspiration and transformation. Originally an engineer, she turned to alternative therapies when life skidded to a halt in the early nineties. She trained with the best in the business from Seattle to Edinburgh and beyond. In the last five years she's published five books and has toured Europe and the United States to hold Eva Parties - instead of Tupperware, you get Eva live and in the moment.

Iona Tamsin Has Said: I received this book free in return for a review.

I prefer not to write negative reviews, but, unfortunately, this book is not for me. It is more like something the author has disgorged over various periods for the sake of therapy, and in fact it apparently was written for this purpose. 

I find the book a bit too intense, since it deals solely with the author’s subjective, negative, experiences. I didn’t find it to be particularly well written, since it contained grammatical errors, such as an incorrect use of apostrophes, which is a particular irritation to me. For instance, she writes at one point: “Teenage lust at it’s best”. 

The book deals with Eva Dillner’s various relationships, including one with her abusive husband, her parents’ emotional neglect of her, and the work she carried out to resolve her resultant problems. 

I do admire her constant work with herself. Her life appears to have been one long therapy, and obviously it helps to write about one’s problems and process. 

The book seems confused, and is confusing. At the beginning Ms Dillner refers to Shen therapy, which she has used extensively, but not until much later in the book is this form of therapy explained. Part of the problem is probably due to the book not being written from beginning to end but at varying times, the author then later attempting to collect the various writings and diary entries together to form a coherent work. 

The final section, “Secrets of Transformation”, concludes the book, although the book as a whole has been given this title. The few good insights, in my opinion, are contained in this section. 

I can’t recommend this book, but some may get something out of this account of Ms Dillner’s various problems and how she worked to turn her life around. She states that she received much praise for one of her earlier books, so there must be some fans of hers out there. 

Review: Stupid Cupid by Rhonda Stapleton

Title: Stupid Cupid

Author: Rhonda Stapleton

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Release Date: December 22, 2009

Received: Borrowed

Rate: 5

Summary: Felicity's no ordinary teen matchmaker...she's a cupid! Felicity Walker believes in true love. That's why she applies for a gig at the matchmaking company Cupid's Hollow. But when Felicity gets the job, she learns that she isn't just a matchmaker...she's a cupid! (There's more than one of them, you know.) 

Armed with a hot pink, tricked-out PDA infused with the latest in cupid magic (love arrows shot through email), Felicity works to meet her quota of successful matches. But when she bends the rules of cupidity by matching her best friend Maya with three different boys at once, disaster strikes. Felicity needs to come up with a plan to set it all right, pronto, before she gets fired--and before Maya ends up with her heart split in three.

Review: Stupid Cupid was ADORABLEEE! I really loved it. It was definatly the chicky flicky kinda book to bring me out of my rut. I think it would be fun to cupid. Maybe not for life but for a little while. I love, love so maybe thats why i was so drawn to this book.

Heir to Power by Michele Poague

Author: Michele Poague
Series: The Healing Crystal
Publisher: iUniverse
Publication Date: December 27, 2010
How Received: For Review
Rate: 3

Summary: (as quoted from Amazon) e colony of Survin has been hidden for centuries, protecting an ancient religious artifact called the Healing Crystal from men who would steal or destroy it. Kairma, heir to the Crystal, is destined to mate with the handsome Naturi and become the leader of the reclusive colony, but she is too young to realize the peril soon to arrive. At sixteen, Kairma is too young to realize many things ....
Kairma would rather go spelunking with her brother and his best friend than study ancient medicine and religious laws, but the discovery of a tomb containing ancient artifacts leads Kairma to question her religion and the true nature of the Crystal. To further complicate Kairma's ascent, a childhood illness has left her resembling a nearby race of men both hated and feared by the people of Survin. Because of this, Kairma's younger sister Kinter, who is in love with Naturi, believes she is the rightful heir.
Disease and infertility have decimated Survin, but bigotry and religious laws forbid the introduction of new members so things heat up when a traveling archeologist stumbles upon the reclusive colony and introduces a powerful new weapon. Forced into a larger world, the Survinees discover they hold an object of unimaginable power, a power other men covet, a power that might save or forever damn the human race.
　
My thoughts:
Heir to Power was an alright read. The story follows sixteen year old Kairma, and the trials and plight that come to her as she prepares to become ‘heir to the Crystal’. I admire Kairma’s strength, and I think that she is a very smart, yet vulnerable, heroine. There was definitely a long list of main characters and some really sweet romance throughout the story. But, for me, there was a little too much detail in the book. I felt as if I were reading a book about background settings in fantasy instead of reading a book that’s story was set in a fantasy world. Of course, this is simply my opinion, and I am sure many other readers will enjoy this book. But, for me, the descriptive writing and multiple points of view made it too hard for me to follow the story properly enough to enjoy it.
3/5
~Moujnir

Waiting On Wednesday (6)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Title & Author: Timepiece by Myra McEntire

Publisher: EgmontUSA

Publication Date:  June 12, 2012

What books are you waiting for?

Writing Tips for Aspiring YA Authors Guest Post

Thank you for having me on your blog to talk about writing tips for aspiring YA authors. After

writing my first novel, I learned quickly that becoming an author isn’t just about writing a good

book. I’ve included a list of 10 things I’ve learned over the years.

1. It is important to write what you love and it will show through your work.

2. Keep improving your craft and writing stories, even if you are in the query or submission

process. Just like anything else in life, the more you practice the better you get.

3. Find a critique partner and beta readers who are going to look at your work with a critical eye

and be open to making changes to your manuscript.

4. Read, read, read!!

5. Create a facebook “like” page for your writing and sign up for a twitter account so that you

can start making connections within the reading and writing community.

6. Establish a domain name and set up a website to highlight your writing and give potential

readers information about your books and yourself as a writer. Also, include your contact

information, including an e-mail address and links to your facebook, blog, and twitter addresses.

7. Use blogging sites like Wordpress or Blogger to create your own blog.

8. Stay open to anything. Even though I’m represented by an agent, I am also self-publishing

a series. I think authors are starting to dip their feet into both the traditional and self-publishing

worlds. The industry is ever-changing.

9. Getting published is a marathon, not a sprint, unless you get really lucky. Get your name out

there. With social media there are so many connections you can make in the reading/writing

world. I love talking with other writers, readers and bloggers. I learn so much from them and feel

like I’ve made wonderful friendships and gained an invaluable support system.

10. Most of all, never give up on your passion to write. There is no better feeling than sharing

your stories with others.

Teaser Tuesday

Killing Rites by M.L.N. Hanover

Publishing date: November 29, 2011
Teaser: "When I put my arm around him, his back was wet. When I looked at my fingers, I saw blood. "What the hell?" "it's okay," He said "Just get me inside"


Summary:
JaynÉ Heller has discovered the source of her uncanny powers: something else is living inside her body. She's possessed. Of all her companions, she can only bring herself to confide in Ex, the former priest. They seek help from his old teacher and the circle of friends he left behind, hoping to cleanse JaynÉ before the parasite in her becomes too powerful.

Ex’s history and a new enemy combine to leave JaynÉ alone and on the run. Her friends, thinking that the rider with her has taken the reins, try to hunt her down, unaware of the danger they’re putting her in. JaynÉ must defeat the weight of the past and the murderous intent of another rider, and her only allies are a rogue vampire she once helped free and the nameless thing hiding inside her skin.