Monthly Stats: July 2010

Not an overly brilliant month as far as number of reviews but I'm getting back on track.

Also it's really hard to find a 'July' picture that's not related to Independence Day lol

Read and Reviewed

The Iron Daughter - Julie Kagawa
Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life

The Red Pyramid - Rick Riordan

The White Queen - Philippa Gregory

Ash - Malinda Lo

Chasing Brooklyn - Lisa Schroeder

Read - reviews to come soon

City of Ashes - Cassandra Clare

The Red Queen - Philippa Gregory

Accomplice - Eireann Corrigan

Challenges

Terry Pratchett: 1/6
Typically British: 7/8
Dystopian Challenge: 8/10

I really need to get some Terry Pratchett books read, I have a whole load waiting but they keep getting pushed back because they're neither review copies or library books.

Followers

I've gone from 133 to 179 over June and July - apparently I forgot June's monthly post. But yay for all my followers!

Book Blogger Hop and Follow Friday

 

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer @ Crazy for Books. It's a chance for book bloggers to connect and share the book love. Check out Crazy for Books for more details and to find the links of some awesome blogs.

This weeks question is:
Who is your favorite new-to-you author so far this year?
Oh my god! Scott Westerfeld! I can not believe that I hadn't read any of his books until this past year! I've now whizzed my way through about 7. The Uglies series is seriously amazing as is Leviathan which I'm so looking forward to reading the sequel off.

You can read Scott's blog here and follow him on Twitter here


Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkie

Don't forget to leave a comment here to say hi if you're stopping by from either the of these!

Also it's Mega Swagbucks Day on Swagbucks. If you don't know what this site is then check it out and sign up because it's awesome. Just use it as your search engine, get swagbucks in return which can be redeemed for prizes - like Amazon gift cards. Just click on the icon below to find out more.

Review: The Iron Daughter - Julie Kagawa

Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron Fey, iron-bound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her. Worse, Meghan's own fey powers have been cut off. She's alone in Faery with only her wits for help. Trusting anyone would be foolish. Trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly. But even as she grows a backbone of iron, Meghan can't help but hear the whispers of longing in her all-too-human heart. 

My review of the first book in this series, The Iron King, can be found here

Well, there's probably not a lot I can say about The Iron Daughter that either I didn't say about the first one or won't include spoilers. There's the same amazing characters (as well as some new ones), the writing is brilliant and we get to learn more about the world Julie Kagawa has invented and describes in excellent detail.

Puck is still up to his usual mischief, Grim comes and goes seemingly as the mood suits, Ash ... well, Ash is hot and brooding ...

There's everything you loved about the first book (and if you haven't that yet you really should!) combined with a new adventure to stop the Iron Fae from taking over and of course a little bit of romance ... but who with?

Other reviews of this book:
The Ninja Librarian
drey's library

Teaser Tuesday (14)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others.

* Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This weeks teaser is from Accomplice by Eireann Corrigan (release date 1st August 2010)

Whatever seed of evil was in me began to feel like it had taken root. I was growing a tree. I don't know why I kept encouraging it.

It's Monday (16) and Weekly Round Up

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week hosted at Book Journey. Post the books completed last week, the books you're currently reading, and the books to be read this week. Please comment or leave a link to let me know what you're reading this week!

Completed last week

The Red Queen - Philippa Gregory
City of Ashes - Cassandra Clare

Currently Reading

 

Accomplice - Eireann Corrigan
Her Sanctuary - PQ Glisson
Titan's Curse (audio) - Rick Riordan

Up soon


No and Me - Delphine de Vigan

Reviews

The Red Pyramid
Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life

Books Received

In My Mailbox

Posts of Interest

Teaser Tuesday
Waiting on Wednesday
Friday Finds

In My Mailbox (17)

In My Mailbox is a weekly event exploring the books received this week and is hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren

Bought

None! Yay me, doing well on my book buying ban lol

For Review


Thanks to the awesomeness of Chicken House and Bloomsbury I got a bunch of books for review this week!

The Maze Runner - James Dashner
Accomplice - Eireann Corrigan
No and Me - Delphine de Vigan
The Poisoned House - Michael Ford
4.3.2.1 - Noel Clarke
Fallen Grace - Mary Hooper
The Other Girl - Sarah Miller
Blood Feud - Alexandra Harvey
Pastworld - Ian Beck
The Poisoned House - Michael Ford
No and Me - Delphine de Vigan

Library

Omg none! I actually have about 16 unread books from the library at the moment, so this is most definitely a good thing this week lol

Review: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life

Scott Pilgrim's life is totally sweet. He's 23 years old, he's in a rock band, he's "between jobs," and he's dating a cute high school girl. Nothing could possibly go wrong, unless a seriously mind-blowing, dangerously fashionable, rollerblading delivery girl named Ramona Flowers starts cruising through his dreams and sailing by him at parties. Will Scott's awesome life get turned upside-down? Will he have to face Ramona's seven evil ex-boyfriends in battle? The short answer is yes. The long answer is Scott Pilgrim, Volume 1: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life. 


I've been wanting to read the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels for ages and the upcoming movie made that even more the case. This is definitely one of the best comic books I've read recently, if not ever.

It's funny, quirky - without going overboard - and imaginative. The art work is simple but brilliant. It's not very often I really love the characters in comics but Scott and his friends are actually awesome! Scott thinks he's totally cool but the reality is that he doesn't have a job, he likes two girls - one of which is still in high school -and he shares a bed with his gay roommate, Wallace, as they can't afford another one. Can he really get the amazing Ramona by battling the evil exes?

Here's the trailer for the upcoming movie starring the hot and amazing Chris Evans as one of the evil exes =0P

Book Blogger Hop

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer @ Crazy for Books. It's a chance for book bloggers to connect and share the book love. Check out Crazy for Books for more details and to find the links of some awesome blogs.

This weeks question is: TELL US ABOUT THE BOOK YOU ARE CURRENTLY READING!

I currently have 3 books on the go.

The Red Queen is an ARC of the second in the series of Philippa Gregory's Cousins War books, the first being The White Queen. It's set in the 1400s just before the Tudor period at the time of the wars between the houses of Lancaster and York.I'm around half way through and really enjoying it. Philippa Gregory comes up with some amazing characters and really brings history to life.

My second book it City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare, again the second book in a series, this time The Mortal Instruments one. I loved the first one of these, great characters, fab story, brilliant writing and I'm really getting into this one ... and I love Jace!

My third is an audio book, Percy Jackson and the Titan's Curse. I've really enjoyed the previous PJ books but this one's taking a bit of time to get through, mostly because it's audio and I tend to listen to them in the car except I haven't been driving very far this past few weeks. So it's not really to do with the book, just circumstance, lol. The story is good so far, I'm about half way through, but the narrator's voice is annoying me a little.

Fridays Finds

What great books did you hear about/discover this past week? Share your FRIDAY FINDS! Friday Finds is hosted by MizB at Should be Reading.

 

 

The Legacy - Gemma Malley 

When a Pincent Pharma lorry is ambushed by the Underground, its contents come as a huge surprise - not drugs, but corpses in a horrible state. It appears Longevity isn't working and the drugs promising eternal youth are failing to live up to their promises. A virus is sweeping the country, killing in its wake, and Longevity is powerless to fight it. When Richard Pincent of Pincent Pharma suggest that the Underground has released the virus, something has to be done to put the story straight and once and for all alert everyone to the truth

The Poisoned House - Michael Ford 
The year is 1856, and orphan Abigail Tamper lives below stairs in Greave Hall, a crumbling manor house in London. Lord Greave is plagued by madness, and with his son Samuel away fighting in the Crimea, the running of Greave Hall is left to Mrs Cotton, the tyrannical housekeeper. The only solace for the beleaguered staff is to frighten Mrs Cotton by pretending the house is haunted.
So when a real ghost makes an appearance - that of her beloved mother - no one is more surprised than Abi. But the spirit has a revelation that threatens to destroy Abi’s already fragile existence: she was murdered, and by someone under their very own roof. With Samuel returned to England badly wounded, it’s up to Abi to nurse him back to health, while trying to discover the identity of the killer in their midst. As the chilling truth dawns, Abi’s world is turned upside down.


No and Me - Delphine de Vigan
Parisian teenager Lou has an IQ of 160, OCD tendencies, and a mother who has suffered from depression for years. But Lou is about to change her life—and that of her parents—all because of a school project about homeless teens. While doing research, Lou meets No, a teenage girl living on the streets. As their friendship grows, Lou bravely asks her parents if No can live with them, and is astonished when they agree. No’s presence forces Lou’s family to come to terms with a secret tragedy. But can this shaky, newfound family continue to live together when No’s own past comes back to haunt her?  

Review: The Red Pyramid - Rick Riordan

Title: The Red Pyramid (Kane Chronicles #1)
Author: Rick Riordan
Format: Hardback
Pages: 528
Genre: Adventure, Children's
Published: 4th May 2010 (Puffin)

Since his mother's death six years ago, Carter Kane has been living out of a suitcase, traveling the globe with his father, the brilliant Egyptologist Dr. Julius Kane. But while Carter's been homeschooled, his younger sister, Sadie, has been living with their grandparents in London. Sadie has just what Carter wants -- school friends and a chance at a "normal" life. But Carter has just what Sadie longs for -- time with their father. After six years of living apart, the siblings have almost nothing in common. Until now.

On Christmas Eve, Sadie and Carter are reunited when their father brings them to the British Museum, with a promise that he's going to "make things right." But all does not go according to plan ; Carter and Sadie watch as Julius summons a mysterious figure, who quickly banishes their father and causes a fiery explosion.

Soon Carter and Sadie discover that the gods of Ancient Egypt are waking, and the worst of them --Set-- has a frightening scheme. To save their father, they must embark on a dangerous journey -- a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family and its links to the House of Life, a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs.

Being part way through Percy Jackson and the Olympians series (by the same author) I was really looking forward to reading The Red Pyramid.  The tale is narrated by the two main characters, Sadie and Carter Kane, generally in chunks of two chapters and although on occasion I forgot who's turn it was, it was easy enough to remember as each page is marked with who's talking. I really liked both characters and the idea of them hardly knowing each other but having a natural sibling bond allows the reader to get to know them throughout the book as they reconnect with each other.

The story itself follows a similar style to the Percy Jackson books, with Sadie and Carter having a set time in which to reach their destination and complete their task, along the way running into various Gods, creatures and magicians who are trying to stop them. The main difference I found was that while I have a basic knowledge of Greek mythology (and so was able to second guess some of the Percy Jackson plots), I had no prior knowledge about Egyptian mythology before reading The Red Pyramid. It was fun to learn about it as I read the book as it made the story more than just an adventure. I have to admit I got a little confused with some of it at times, although I don't believe that was anything to do with the author or the writing. I think Egyptian mythology just is confusing - even the characters were confused at points!

The Red Pyramid is an exciting adventure story, combined with a fun way to find out about the Egyptians. a recommended read, especially if you're looking for a book for reluctant boy readers.

www.rickriordan.com