Book review: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

I finished reading Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater today, and I think it deserves a review just because of how good it was.  
*Spoilers*

Shiver is about Grace and Sam. Grace was attacked by a pack of wolves when she was younger and only survived because of a yellow eyed wolf protected her. Since then she has watched the woods for the yellow eyed wolf to appear. Every winter her yellow eyed wolf makes his appearance and every summer he disappears.

Sam is the yellow eyed wolf Grace watches for. He is a wolf during the winter because the cold changes him into a wolf, and a human during the summer because the heat changes him to a human.
 Grace and Sam connect in ways they have not connected with others before. They also feel deeply for the other in a powerful way. As the winter draws closer Sam must fight to stay human, to stay with Grace. Grace doesn't want Sam to change back into a wolf because it could be his last change.
  The relationship between Grace and Sam unfolds as they explore communication between touch, taste and speech. Their time is limited however as winter draws closer bringing with it colder weather. Sam has little time left in his human body before reverts back to his wolf form.
   Shiver is written beautifully by Maggie Stiefvater. She describes things in vivid detail and describes emotions in such a powerful way that the reader actually goes through the pain or hurt the character is feeling. Some parts of the book actually brought un-shed tears to my eyes which wouldn't have happened if the writing wasn't so well done.
 I couldn't decide whether to read the book or not at first because some of the recent reviews of the book had rated the book rather poorly, and also the book is aimed at teens and sometimes the teen books can be quite young. I'm glad I ignored my doubts though and went ahead to read it anyway. I did find the book dragged in the middle during the summery happy days, but winter soon made it's appearance, bringing with it danger for the book's young couple.
I would highly recommend the book for anyone who enjoys the 'Paranormal Romance' genre.

Boy, can I pick them

It's been ages since I last blogged and I've read a few more books since then (eight in total) I also got round to watching Toy Story 3 again (yay!!)
 I have to say that the last two books: 'The Prince of Frogs' and 'The Notebook' were really  a waste of paper and reading time. I found the whole reading experience annoying and endlessly wishing the book would hurry up and end.
Night's Rose
So I stumbled upon this book and 'The Prince of Frogs' in the library. I was immediately captured by the titles and front covers of the books. I also saw on the back of 'Night's Rose'  that the book is based upon the fairytale 'Sleeping Beauty'. Now I loooove fairytales, So naturally I snapped the pair of them up in a hurry and checked them out.
  Rosemarie Edenbery (sleeping beauty) is the heroine of the story. She was not awakened by a kiss but by the pain of  pushing out ogre shaped children (because an ogre raped her) and while this is going, on her friend Ambrose is watching it happen (weird?). So she goes around kicking the arses of ogres everywhere with the help of two men, Gareth (a vampire) and Ambrose (a faerie)
I thought the book was ok-ish but mostly weird. There wasn't enough of the original fairytale in it for me, but in replace a weird version. I liked Gareth and not Ambrose, but the whole love triangle got confusing.
The Prince of Frogs
 The second book was even weirder if that were possible. In this book Gareth and Rose are married as they got married at the end of the last book. Gareth begins to act suspiciously making Rose doubt her husband and Rose still feels for Ambrose (shocking!)
Gareth is hiding a secret he doesn't want to tell anybody so he disappears for a while leaving Rose to give in to her urges and strip the clothes from Ambrose's body (in an alleyway none the less) and then bam! Gareth appears.
 I grew annoyed with Rose's constant flitting between the two men. It was obvious she wasn't happy with a husband, she has to have a bit on the side as well. As for Gareth's secret, I found this the most weird. I mean come on half vampire and half frog? is that even possible?! and then at the end of the book Rose gets two husbands instead of one, cue the sex scenes.
 I didn't understand how she can go from hating Ambrose in the first book, who was watching her while bad things happened to her, and then love him in the second?  weird.
The Notebook
I read this because I saw the film a while ago and loved it, so I naturally wanted to read the book. I actually paid money for it, So now wishing I had just rented it from the library.
I didn't enjoy the book, I found it stupid and annoying. I didn't like the why the author wrote the book either so NOT going to read another of his. The whole romance was so bleh!  but the bits when the pair were older were better. I think they were wrote better than the rest of the book.
Ok, that was a pretty lame review, but it annoyed me so I shoved my feelings out of my head for that book so there.
 And as for Toy Story 3? Loved it, loved it, loved it. What more can I say?

So, I lost one

*Warning: Here be Spoilers ahh matey!*

So I lost one, a book that is from my 150 book challenge. I didn't want it to happen and I didn't intend for it to happen but it happened. The book was 'My sister's keeper' by Jodi Picoult and I tried really hard to finish the book but it just wasn't happening. I probably made the mistake of watching the film first but if i didn't I wouldn't have tried to read the book.
  The general plot line of the book is about Anna Fritzgerald who undergo's countless operations and surgerie's so her sister Kate can fight her battle with leukema. Anna was concived for this reason to be a donor for her Kate. Anna is thirteen years old and has no say in the matter of whether she wants things taken away from her or not so she goes to a lawyer for the rights to her own body. Anna wont give up her kidney which Kate needs which annoys her mother Sara.
The book is narrated by the different characters so every chapter is narrated by a different charater. Anna's and Jessie's narration was quite easy and simple to read by the book in my opinon became complex and difficult to read when Brian (the father) and Sara (the mother) began to narrate there side of things. During these chapters a lot of medical Jargon was used and long paragraphs describing medical treatments filled the chapter. I skimmed these bits, but it got to the point where I was skimming more than I was reading of the book, which I found completely stupid so I flicked to the end.
  I found out at the end of the book that Anna becomes brain-dead after a car accident and dies which is not what happens in the film. In the film Kate dies at the end and Anna lives which is the version I like better. I like Kate but I think Anna deserves a like which is given to the charater at the end of the film. So when I found this out I didn't read anymore of the book because it just annoyed me greatly.
So I don't think I'll be reading anymore from the author but I will watch the film again because I enjoyed the film.
 I'm annoyed I lost a book from my challenge and annoyed that I didn't get to finish it. I like to finish books once I've started them and I could have finished this one but I wouldn't have really read it because most of it I skimmed over. I only wasted a day reading that book, still a day mades all the difference people!
That is all.

The wonders of Joss Whedon and Firefly

It's been a while since I last blogged and I'm terribly sorry. I've been busy with the whole work, work, College work thing (work=bore ) but I've managed to squeeze in time to watch Firefly!
I watched the first episode a few days ago and to be completely honest here, I thought the beginning of episode one started off in a wierd place. Now that could be how the series ends I don't know, all I'm saying is I found it strange to start off with and made me wonder whether I had skipped an episode or not. I continued with it though and didn't get into it straight away, it took me a couple of episodes but I finally succeeded into falling under Firefly's spell.
Now while we're on the subject of Firefly I would just like to say one thing, and that one thing is: Nathan Fillion (aka Malcom Reynolds) Seriously people, how hot is he?!
I didn't think I would even think that about him, I mean I saw him in Buffy the vampire slayer program before I saw him in Firefly I think (don't hold me to that.) He played this priest person I think but he was evil. I didn't think anything of him while he was in Buffy, but watching him in Firefly and it's like "Hel-lo" very wierd.
What can I say about the rest of the crew? I'm liking Zoe and her Kick -Arse attitude. I like a female who can stick up for herself. I'm not too sure about her husband (I swear he dies in Serenity film.. hmm)
I haven't watched many episodes but I can't wait to watch more and then the film so I can finally understand it, and then weep because it's over :(.  We don't see much of Joss Whedon in the U.K any more. He needs to make more series because I was a major fan of Buffy when that was on T.V and becoming a fan of Firefly, damn him.
oh well, I must go and watch more :)

It has been four days since the start of the New Year and it's taken me that long to decide on goals for the year ahead. I decided against the resoultions because I just don't stick to them, or change them to something else so by the time Christmas comes around again I would have changed them like five times. Goals I think are the way forward which I will actually stick to and succeed in completing. They are as follows:

• To watch all of the star wars films-I have only seen bits of the films or a film. I don't actually know what bits I have seen belong to what film. In the past I've avoided the films just because I didn't understand them and the thought of people running around spacey type worlds with lightsavers is quite comical. I still find it comical but I will seek them out and watch them instead of running away from them and marvel and the brilliant imagination of Lucas something or other (Lucas is the director?)
• To read more- I read way to much already but not nearly as much as I should. I aim to be like Matilda in the BFG or similar. I just want to go into a bookstore or a Libuary and say 'I've read all of that shelf and the one below it.' that be so cool.
• To write more- I have my own stories to tell and not writing as much as I should, but that could be difficult what with all the reading I will be doing this year hmm haven't thought that one through, but then I am a female and we are known for multi-tasking.
• To watch Firefly- I didn't catch it the first time it came out on T.V and I probably didn't even have the right channel to watch it on so I wouldn't have made a difference. I've seen the feature film and didn't really understand It but I wasn't aware at the time you had to watch the series and then the film. So I shall do that when I get round to it, should be an easy one to complete since there is only one series.

I can think of so many more to add to this list but I wont, I'll keep it short and sweet and report back next year to tell u I failed or succeeded. I'm hoping on the latter then changing my name to Matty, because Matilida is taken. Only joking :)

Day one

I started my reading Challenge yesterday because it seemed fitting what with the first day of the new year and everything. The book i started with was Cast in Chaos by Michelle Sagara. For those who have not read the books the series follows Kaylin Neya a private Hawk with a complicated past on the road to self-discovery. In every book Kaylin learns a little more about herself and her powers as well as winding up in some sort of trouble.
 If you like the Fantasy genre and a good Heroine then I recommend the book. Well, I recommend starting from book one and finishing with book six. I'm not one for jumping leap-frogging through series, I have to read from the start to the end other wise you might miss important bits.

I expected Cast in Chaos to be a chunky monkey and I wasn't disappointed. At 503 pages It's a chunky bugger, which might not seem like a lot but when you have a deadline to fulfill it is an overwhelming number. My mind then started to calcuate, reading a book a week will leave me reading 52 by the end of the year, PANIC! ( Yes I did take a while to realise how many weeks are in a year, even though I should really know this by now)

 It wont be as bad as I first thought, I'll read the book in no time and have my number one with 99 left to go. Victory will be mine!
I could always read skinny Minnie's but then that wouldn't be very fun either, it wont be challenging enough. It takes the challenge right out of the word challenge. Now I must continue reading so I can make a review.

So It begins

So, I've decided to create a blog because It's a new year and I've wanted a blog for ages but haven't got round to making one. I think why the heck not, while I blog I can develop my writing skills and confuse the nation with my whirlwind of scattered thoughts.

As It's a new year I've set myself a reading challenge I hope to complete before Christmas 2011 or maybe New years Eve 2011 because It will give me more time to read books. I'm going for a hundred books, which I'm confident I will reach long before my deadline, but you never know what's around the corner.  I could end up blind in a couple of months and have to listen to audio books. I'm not saying that's a bad, thing I personally tend to get bored with listening to them, I would rather read. 

I don't have a New Years Resolution yet and maybe that's a good thing, because how many people actually stick to their resolution's? i know the resolution's I have made in the past I have given up halfway through them or forgotten them and changed them to something else.

So without further ado, let the whirlwind of scattered thoughts start.