The Mystery of the Randomly Appearing Books

As a book blogger, I’m quite used to getting books in my mailbox.  I don’t get several a week like some reviewers do, but I do receive a couple every month.  Sometimes I don’t remember where these came from or whether they’re from a publisher, author or giveaway.  Usually a quick glance through my inbox will tell me whether I’m supposed to be reviewing it right away for a publisher or author or whether I won it in a giveaway and can put it in my leisure reading pile.

Which brings me to my current dilemma.  Last week I received two books in the mail: The Beautiful and the Cursed by Page Morgan and Doomed by Tracey Deebs.  As you can see, they’re not by the same author (not even the pen name is the same) and the publishers are different (Delacorte Press, a division of Random House and Bloomsbury respectively).

Since I actually don’t win that many giveaways, I am in doubt as to whether this was a giveaway prize because I would remember winning two books.  At least, I hope I would.  Especially since the mysterious sender went through all that trouble to ship me two hardcover books from the US at a cost of over $20!

So here are my clues to this mystery:

  • The authors are not the same
  • The publishers are not the same
  • I don’t remember winning a giveaway with these as prizes (or it was a giveaway and I wasn’t contacted by the prize provider beforehand)
  • This package was sent to me by an M. Boone of G something ville, USA (the writing is illegible)
  • They used the wrong postal code (one letter off) so the package was lost in Quebec and Ontario before making its way here

Well, I’m putting it out there for you guys: Where did these books come from?

Carrie Pictures 2013 009

Discussion: Male YA Love Interests

I’m not sure about you guys, but speaking in broad terms I find that most male love interests for female main characters fall into two categories: the cold, distant but hot jerk or the goofy best friend who’s always stuck by the MC.  Of course this is a huge generalization, but it really does seem to happen a lot in YA today, especially when it comes to my nemesis the love triangle.

Generalizations aside, what I want to talk about is this: what makes a good male love interest in YA?  (We’ll talk about female love interests later this month.)  Do you have a favourite love interest?  Why is he your favourite?

Personally, my current favourite is Po from Graceling.  He’s not a distant jerk but neither is he the goofy best friend either.  No, he’s a mature young man that doesn’t play around when he realizes that his love for Katsa is mutual.  Throughout the story he protects Katsa while realizing that she can also protect herself, decides what he wants out of life and treats Katsa like an equal partner in their relationship.  What a novel idea!

What it’s Like to Write Seven Reviews in One Day

Due to work being busier than ever, my little health problem and family obligations, in July I had been reading a lot and reviewing very, very little.  By mid-July I had probably read 20 books and written zero reviews for them.  As you guys know, I’m a horrible procrastinator, but every once in a while inspiration strikes like lightning.

All the authors reading this know what I’m talking about: your heart speeds up and you feel the instant need to go on your computer and type like mad to get all of your ideas on paper while you can.  You don’t stop for anything: food, drink, bathroom breaks, etc.  It’s energizing, but it can leave you drained for days afterward.  I know some authors that get completely wiped out after 5000 words in a day (fair enough, really), but what’s it like on the reviewer end?  Do reviewers experience similar fatigue after going on a review writing binge?  See for yourself!  Below is an accurate recreation of my thought process as I wrote seven reviews in one day, my record to date.

Work Zone

Review #1: I am in the zone!

The first review I tackled on that day was a review for a book I absolutely loved.  As you guys may or may not know depending on whether you write reviews as well, it’s very easy to gush about a new favourite book than to do a ‘meh’ review.  My average review is about 3-4 paragraphs, but this review ended up being 6 paragraphs long after some substantial editing so you guys wouldn’t get sick of my gushing.  Writing this review had the effect of truly putting me in the zone, meaning I was all energized for review #2. Continue reading →

Cameron’s Law by Mia Darien

Cameron's Law by Mia Darien(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)

Vampires are people, too.

Cameron’s Law has made all supernatural creatures legal citizens, and the boy next door has suddenly become the werewolf next door. With Sadie Stanton, vampire and one of the public faces of the legislation, calling the little town of Adelheid, Connecticut home, it can’t help but be a focal point for these once mythical beings.

But when vampires start attacking werewolves without provocation, Adelheid draws the attention of those that would seek to have Cameron’s Law repealed and would send the preternaturals back into the shadows they used to hide in, but without the safety of their anonymity and their law.

Can Sadie keep the city’s two biggest species from descending into chaos and war before it brings all of them to harm? And can she do it when she herself gets thrust into the spotlight?

[Although I’m publishing this review in conjunction with the Adhelaid blog tour, I downloaded an ebook copy for free because I was interested in Cameron’s Law anyway and the tour gave me an excuse to read it.  As always, this is still an honest review.]

I’ve become almost immune to books with action-packed beginnings, but when a book starts out with someone getting staked you know it’s going to be good.  And when the character that gets staked is heading to the police station even though they’re a vampire, you know there’s a whole new exciting world yet to be revealed.

Welcome to Adhelaid, Sadie Stanton’s headquarters where she fights for supernatural rights.  You see, only a year ago she helped pass Cameron’s Law, the law that made all supernatural beings citizens of the United States with full rights.  As you can probably guess, there were a lot of people unhappy about that and they go to extreme lengths to express that unhappiness.  You might be thinking that this sounds a little cliché but I’m vastly over simplifying all of the politics between supernatural beings and humans Mia Darien throws into her novel.  If you were to read Cameron’s Law for one reason and one reason only, it would definitely have to be for the world-building.  It’s impressive.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about Sadie in the beginning, but she’s definitely the kind of snarky character you can’t help but fall in love with.  She’s snarky and she knows it’s a defense mechanism, but she’s also a little vulnerable when it comes to her heart.  Let’s just say I love how she doesn’t fall in Insta-Love and that when she’s in love it’s not all rainbows and sunshine either.  Especially when the mysterious murders of werewolves by apparent vampires cause tensions between the two supernatural communities.

Part of what I really liked about Cameron’s Law in regards to the plot was that it was fast-paced but there were some slow moments for readers to catch their breath.  The slow moments aren’t boring and actually forward the plot, but it’s nice not to have constant action so you can get a little backstory.  The interactions between Sadie and Vance are definitely slower than the greater conspiracy but they further both the plot and their characterization.

Even if you’re not really into urban fantasy or paranormal romance I’d highly recommend Cameron’s Law.  I’m so glad that I got an opportunity to pick up a great book I otherwise would have missed because of Mia Darien’s blog tour.  So seriously people, if you’re looking for a short but good read, pick up Cameron’s Law.  You won’t regret it.  Besides, it’s free right now on both Amazon and Barnes and Noble if you get it in their respective ebook formats!

I give this book 5/5 stars.

Amazon     Barnes and Noble     Goodreads

Book Blast: Written All Over Her by Mia Darien

Written All Over Her by Mia Darien

Written All Over Her

By Mia Darien

Book Four in the

Welcome to Adelheid series

 

Published: May 27,

2013

One word can change the story of your life forever. 

Abduction. Torture. Surrender.

Eleven months from her adolescence have framed thirty-one years of Detective Nykk Marlowe’s life. Despite the trauma of her past, and the unique physical scars it left her with, she’s built a career as a detective for the Adelheid Police Department.

Her personal life might only consist of caring for her sister and a pet rabbit, but she accepts that.  She accepts that she’ll never be able to be like “normal” people, even the supernatural ones. As long as she can keep the past where it belongs, she’s okay.

But when the body of a teenage girl shows up with the same scars that Nykk sees in the mirror every day, her “okay” life gets turned upside down and she’s forced to confront the past she’s been looking away from for sixteen years.

And when it turns out there’s already more than one victim, the pressure’s on to stop the killer before any more girls are tortured, mutilated, and murdered.

“…This installment of the Adelheid series is dark, creepy, and extremely well written…”

 

“…Another winner from Mia Darien. It’s impossible for me to NOT fall in love with Darien’s carefully crafted protagonists…”

Continue reading →