The Only Wiccan Spell Book You’ll Ever Need by Marian Singer, Trish MacGregor - Book Review #17

 The Only Wiccan Spell Book You’ll Ever Need

by Marian Singer, Trish MacGregor

The Only Wiccan Spell Book You'll Ever Need, by noted Wiccan authorities Marian Singer and Trish MacGregor, is your perfect primer to understanding the basics of Wiccan philosophy and ideology. Starting with a brief rundown of Witchcraft tools and symbols, this handy reference helps you create spells for virtually every aspect of your life: business, creativity, health, love, personal power, prosperity, luck, abundance and travel.

I picked up this book, after I finished reading Laurie Faria Stolarz’ series Blue is for Nightmares. Before that I never heard or at least never noticed anything about Wicca (yes, I know, I might be from another planet), so after finishing series, I became interested and decided to educated myself at least in basics of Wicca.

I found this book to be precisely what I was looking for. It seemed like it covered pretty much every aspect of Wicca – philosophy, tools, herbs, stones, amulets, talismans, symbolism and etc. without going too deep into details.

It is a good book to get a general knowledge about Wicca and as a quick reference material.

"Waiting On" Wednesday #8

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

Confessions Of The Sullivan Sisters

by Natalie Standiford

Publication Date: September 1st 2010

 

The Sullivan sisters have a big problem. On Christmas Day their rich and imperious grandmother gathers the family and announces that she will soon die . . .and has cut the entire family out of her will. Since she is the source of almost all their income, this means they will soon be penniless.

Someone in the family has offended her deeply. If that person comes forward with a confession of her (or his) crime, submitted in writing to her lawyer by New Year's Day, she will reinstate the family in her will. Or at least consider it.

And so the confessions begin....

Fade by Lisa McMann - Book Review #16

Fade

by Lisa McMann

For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They're just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.

Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody's talking. When Janie taps into a classmate's violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open -- but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie's in way over her head, and Cabe's shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.

Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability -- and it's bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what's to come is way darker than she'd feared...

I read Fade just after I finished with Wake, so this time I didn’t need any time to adjust to the unusual third-person present tense narration and Lisa McMann’s writing style. Actually, I was really looking forward to that. Unfortunately, her style changed a bit. Yes, the novel still was fast placed and it still had those beautiful, down to the point fragmented sentences, but unique writing style started to fade (isn’t it ironic) and slip away from Lisa McMann. Father I was into the book, her style was more and more like… everybody else’s.

Nevertheless, I still enjoyed the book. I started to like Cabel almost as much as I like Janie, for how he loved and cared about her. I loved how their relationship was growing and developing.

Plot was quite simple, but it had a suspense element which was driving it forward. Some actions, especially police captain’s seemed a bit unrealistic for me, but what do I know about police work, anyway.

The truth that Janie learns about herself and her ability was really terrifying and, for the luck of better word, bleak. I especially hate when story or situations in the books becoming desolate, with no light of hope, without any optimism. However, I still have third book in this series to read and I could only hope that thing will pick up for Janie.

P.S. The cover is absolutely gorgeous, probably one of my favorite.

Monday Quotes #3

I’ve always loved quotes. There is something about them… they are right down to the point, pure wisdom, clear observations, hilarious humor…Thought, I never had a memory for them for some reason. I could always remember that someone said something great about something, but I could never remember who that was or how precisely it was said. Therefore, I decided to start this Monday quotes thing - I will post each Monday a quote that I like and try to explain what is it in that quote that clicking me.

"A room without books is like a body without a soul."
— Marcus Tullius Cicero

"To add a library to a house is to give that house a soul."
— Marcus Tullius Cicero

These two quotes have identical meaning, so I included both of them.

These quotes are so close to my heart, because I grew up around books. My grandfather’s and grandmother’s three bedroom apartment had thousands of books, pretty much all the walls from floor to ceiling were covered with book shelves – fancy book shelves, regular ones, handmade selves and even very old and ugly ones. The look was not really important – the important was that they were able to hold books. I remember every year my grandfather would collect couple of hundred books to donate to the library, because this was the only way to create a space for new ones. I remember when I was staying with grandfather and grandmother over the summer, almost every day when grandfather was returning from work, he would bring a new book, and that was one of the most exciting moments in the day, because it was like a birthday or Christmas every day.

My parents’ apartment was covered with books as well. We had much less books then grandfather, but still book were everywhere, in every room. Once in a while I was getting a chair to climb on the top shelf and was going, as I used to call it, exploring. By the time I was ten, I was convinced that I knew all the books that we had, but still every time on my exploration mission I was discovering a new ones for myself. My birthday and New Years gifts always included book, if not contained only books.

With all that said, I feel really uncomfortable without books being close by, I feel literally like something is missing. So when I moved to Florida, I brought almost the whole suitcase full of books and started to build my own library. As of today I have around tree hundred books. I know, it is not a much, but all of them are dear to me and close to my heart.

Some two or three years ago, when my husband and I were looking for a house, we went through around fifty houses and most of them were still occupied by their owners. I was not only looking at the houses themselves, but also what people did with that space, how they furnished it, to get an idea for myself what I can do with that. While visiting other people’s homes I’ve noticed some similarities and one of them was – all those houses, with exception of one, didn’t have any books. They didn’t have any book shelves, no they had any books laying around. Even in the teenager’s rooms there were no books, neither textbooks. There were, however, bunch of magazines scattered around the house, which made me believe that owners didn’t try to put away stuff for our visit.

One might disagree with me, saying that with modern technology, I probably wasn’t able to see these books, because they were in the electronic format saved on the computers, or laptop, or Kindle, or any other eBook reader. But I think that we are not that far into eBooks , so that house would not have any paper books.

The thought about the houses that didn’t have any books scared me, probably as much as the thought about the person without the soul would scare me, so I definitely agree with that quote.

Wake by Lisa McMann - Book Review #15

Wake

by Lisa McMann

For seventeen-year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people’s dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the sex-crazed dreams. Janie’s seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime.

She can’t tell anybody about what she does – they’d never believe her, or worse, they’d think she’s a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn’t want and can’t control.

Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is more than a witness to someone else’s twisted psyche. She is a participant…

I didn’t hear anything about this book when it was released. I only noticed it when I saw and fell in love with a cover for the second book in the series – Fade. When I read a synopsis I was positive I want to read this book and still it took me some time to pick it up.

One rainy Saturday in February I decided to test my new and shiny Nook and Wake felt like a good test subject. I downloaded Wake and crawled into bed, tucking covers around myself, prepared to dive into new and existing world. After a couple of pages I sat up on the bed, looking in disbelieve at my Nook, like it was its fault for what I was reading.

The third-person present tense narration stuck between my teeth and made my digestive system hearts. The only thought that was occupying my whole existence was: “Who writes like this? This is revoltingly terrible!”

However, either it was a rain that was making my sleepy or I didn’t really care that much at that time, but I didn’t throw the book out and kept reading. Now, I’m certainly glad that I did.

Lisa McMann writing style was nothing like I’ve ever experienced before and it took me, well, almost the whole first book getting used to it. However, when I finished Wake, I put down the book and I knew that it really was something special. I loved her fragmented sentences, I loved how raw and unedited her writing sounded. I was surprised how one her word gave me more information then sometimes the whole paragraph does. How for some reason without detailed descriptions, it all still felt vivid and unbelievably real. I still don’t understand how Lisa McMann achieved this.

I’m also enormously grateful to Lisa McMann for creating Janie. She is one among not many characters that I actually love with all my heart. She is one of these characters that I admire. Despite her hard life – an alcoholic mother, who doesn’t care about Janie at all, a nonexistent father, very limited income and on top of all of that her special ability (or curse), she work hard to earn some money, she works hard at school and earns good grades. She is taking care not only about herself, but also about her mother. And, the most important she has a goal and she looks optimistically into the future, she is not giving up, she is not letting the river of life just carry her wherever it will turn, she, herself, choosing her directions and fight for what she wants. While I was reading Wake, at times, I was getting an urge to hug Janie and pet her on the head, whispering, “Don’t worry, everything, going to be all right. You will win this, you will get though this and you will be happy, just don’t give up, just keep fighting.”

After I finished Wake and realized how good it was, I downloaded Fade and kept reading, still in my bed, while rain whispered its secrets behind my window.

Heist Society by Ally Carter - Book Review #14

Heist Society

by Ally Carter

When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her on a trip to the Louvre...to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria...to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own--scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving "the life" for a normal life proves harder than she'd expected.

Soon, Kat's friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster has been robbed of his priceless art collection and wants to retrieve it. Only a master thief could have pulled this job, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help.

For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it's a spectacularly impossible job? She's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in history-or at least her family's (very crooked) history.

There was nothing extraordinary about this story… Maybe that’s why it was so extraordinary good.

Heist Society has a classic plot of con-artist’s story with some alterations in characters – this time characters are much younger than they used to be, which, I must say, only adds an exciting novelty. The plot is a cliché, but not in a bad way. This is that type of cliché that only becomes one, because it works so well, and I, personally, never get tired of it. Characters might change a bit – either it is a young couple (How to Steal a Million) or not so young (Entrapment, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) or it is someone who works solo (After the Sunset), or maybe it is a whole team of eleven or more people (Ocean's Eleven, Gone in 60 Seconds). The score may change - it either a sculpture (family reputation) or huge diamond, or paintings, or enormous amount of money, or even someone’s life. However, we still have a team building – tracking old friends that scattered all over the world, making impossible – possible, only using skills (not paranormal) and brains. We still have a travel around the globe in very short time. We still have a plan creation. And, which is the most exciting, this is all - is the race against the time.

I loved Heist Society and I’m enormously grateful to Ally Carter for retelling one of my favorite stories. She did it so skillfully, without destroying it, carefully preserving the essence of the story and breathing in a new life into it. So I’m not surprised that movie deal has been signed even before the book was released.

If you like stories about con-artists, big scores, genius plans and about people who can outsmart almost anyone and anything, I strongly recommend to read this book, you will get three – seven hours of pure enjoyment.

"Waiting On" Wednesday #7

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

Mini Shopaholic

by Sophie Kinsella

Publication Date: August 24th 2010

“Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) thought motherhood would be a breeze – but it’s trickier than she thought. Two-year-old Minnie is a little tearaway who has created havoc everywhere from Harrods to Harvey Nicks to her own christening. She hires taxis at random, her favourite word is ‘Mine’, and she already has a penchant for Balenciaga bags. Becky is at her wits’ end.

On top of this, she and Luke are still living with her Mum and Dad, there’s a big financial crisis so everyone’s having to Cut Back – including all her personal shopping clients – and her husband Luke is feeling low after the death of his beloved stepmother. To cheer Luke up, Becky decides to throw him a surprise birthday party – on a budget – and that’s when things become really complicated. As Becky tries to keep the arrangements secret, misunderstandings and excuses sprout everywhere, and soon she’s told so many fibs she can’t keep track of them. Will Becky pull off the surprise? Will Minnie give everything away? Will Minnie’s godparents ever stop arguing? Who will end up on the naughty step and who will get a gold star? And what will happen when Becky discovers Luke is keeping a big secret too?

I love Sophie Kinsella’s books, they are the rare cases when I actually, truly and literally laughing out loud while reading them.

Monday Quotes #2

I’ve always loved quotes. There is something about them… they are right down to the point, pure wisdom, clear observations, hilarious humor…Thought, I never had a memory for them for some reason. I could always remember that someone said something great about something, but I could never remember who that was or how precisely it was said. Therefore, I decided to start this Monday quotes thing - I will post each Monday a quote that I like and try to explain what is it in that quote that clicking me.

I should’ve probably started from this one, since it is on my profile.

"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best." — Marilyn Monroe

I was thinking for quite some time what I should write on my profile. No, the general idea was clear to me – describe who you are, but as it turned out, it wasn’t as easy as it sounds. I was never able to describe myself fairly. I would either go into all my bad qualities or good ones, so I would either sound as a terrible person or a saint. My interests change as fast and as unpredictable as weather, so describing it was out of the question as well.

But then, I saw this Marilyn Monroe’s quote and I was astonished how precise it described me. Not only that, but also it make a clear statement that actually very important to me – “But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best”. We all have out ugly side and none of us is perfect. And if someone likes our good qualities, they should at least learn to live or accept, if not like, our bad ones. Same goes other way around – we ourselves should learn to accept the worst in person we like.

The Top 100 YA Books

I found this list on The Book Cellar.
It looks like an interesting list. However, as always I disagree with some of the books' positions, but, on the other hand, it is not my Top 100 YA Books, so I guess it is the way it should be.

100. Hate List by Jennifer Brown
99. Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix
98. A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly
97. Among The Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix
96. Bllood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klaus
95. Forever by Judy Blume
94. The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
93. Tithe by Holly Black
92. Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
91. Wings by Aprillynne Pike
90. An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
89. Angus, Thongs And Full Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison
88. Marked by PC And Kristin Cast
87. Maximum Ride series by James Patterson
86. The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
85. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
84. I Am The Messenger by Markus Zusak
83. Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
82. The Mediator series by Meg Cabot
81. The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen
80. Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
79. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
78. Along For The Ride by Sarah Dessen
77. Evernight by Claudia Gray
76. If I Stay by Gayle Foreman
75. Life As We Knew It series by Susan Beth Pfeffer
74. Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston
73. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa
72. Alana: The First Adventure series by Tamora Pierce
71. Stardust by Neil Gaiman
70. Unwind by Neil Shusterman
69. Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
68. Paper Towns by John Green
67. Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles
66. A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith
65. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
64. The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time by Mark Haddon
63. The Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
62. Blue Bloods series by Melissa De La Cruz
61. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
60. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
59. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
58. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
57. Eragon by Christopher Paoloni
56. Morganville Vampires series by Rachel Caine
55. The Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith
54. Fallen by Lauren Kate
53. The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. The Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot
51. Inkheart series by Cornelia Funke
50. Number The Stars by Lois Lowry
49. Lord Of The Flies by William Golding
48. The Maze Runner by James Dashner
47. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series by Ann Brashares
46. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
45. The Summoning series by Kelley Armstrong
44. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
43. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
42. Ender's Game series by Orson Scott Card
41. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
40. Wake series by Lisa McMann
39. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
38. Are You There God? It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume
37. Looking For Alaska by John Green
36. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
35. A Great And Terrible Beauty series by Libba Bray
34. His Dark Materials trilogy by Phillip Pullman
33. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
32. Romeo And Juliet by William Shakespeare
31. The Dark Divine by Bree Despain
30. Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr
29. Forest of Hands And Teeth by Carrie Ryan
28. Holes by Louis Sacher
27. The Outsiders by SE Hinton
26. The Catcher In The Rye by JD Salinger
25. The Princess Bride by William Goldman
24. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
23. The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank
22.Uglies series by Scott Westerfield
21. Beautiful Creatures by Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia
20. Poison Study series by Maria V. Snyder
19. Book Thief by Markus Zusak
18. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carlson Levine
17. Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
16. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
15. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
14. Anne of Green Gables series by LM Montgomery
13. The Giver by Lois Lowry
12. The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
11. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
10. Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis
9. A Wrinkle In Time series by Madeline L'engle
8. Graceling series by Kristin Cashore
7. Percy Jackson And The Olympians by Rick Riordan
6. Nick And Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
5. Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen
4. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
3. Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer
2. Harry Potter series by JK Rowling
1. The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins

"Waiting On" Wednesday #6

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

The Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, #1)

by Cassandra Clare

Publication Date: August 31st 2010

Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: Jem, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length...everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world...and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

Monday Quotes #1

I’ve always loved quotes. There is something about them… they are right down to the point, pure wisdom, clear observations, hilarious humor…Though, I never had a memory for them for some reason. I could always remember that someone said something great about something, but I could never remember who that was or how precisely it was said.

When I was younger, I used to have a notebook where I was writing quotes, so I would not forget them and I enjoyed taking that notebook and rereading quotes occasionally. I probably still have it somewhere, just need to dig it out. It should have some great quotes.

Therefore, I decided to start this Monday quotes thing - I will post each Monday a quote that I like and try to explain what is it in that quote that clicking me. I don’t know for how long I’m going to do that. I don’t know if I get bored in a couple of weeks and give it up, but for now… here is my first quote.

"Isn't it odd how much fatter a book gets when you've read it several times?" Mo had said..."As if something were left between the pages every time you read it. Feelings, thoughts, sounds, smells...and then, when you look at the book again many years later, you find yourself there, too, a slightly younger self, slightly different, as if the book had preserved you like a pressed flower...both strange and familiar."

— Cornelia Funke (Inkspell)

This is one of my favorite quotes, because it is so undeniably true, at least for me.

I don’t like rereading books, because I usually remember them too well (and I mean it, I remember them down to every word) and also because I could never get the same impression second time as I did when I first read them.

However, I like taking a book I’ve read of the shelf, just flip through the pages and remember… but not the book itself, rather where I was when I first read it, how I felt, even what season and weather was at that time. Everything comes rushing to me.

Not only the words in the book help, but also the smell. Oh, I love smells, they are probably the best memory trigger for me. Maybe that’s why I don’t like lending my books to anyone, so the book would only smell with my perfume I was wearing while reading it, with the food that I ate, with the place where I read it. Yes, I’m very greedy when it comes to the books.

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl - Book Review #13

   Beautiful Creatures

by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that's what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power, and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

"Mortals. I envy you. You think you can change things. Stop the universe. Undo what was done long before you came along. You are such beautiful creatures."

Beautiful Creatures is one of these books that draw you so deep inside of itself that when something or someone from outside distracts you from reading it, you need a couple of seconds to understand who you are, where you are and what are you doing here. Beautiful Creatures is one of those stories that you not only hear to be told to you, but that you actually live through, becoming one of the characters, or maybe an object, or maybe even an event – something that makes you part of the story.

I loved everything about this story. Old South setting was absolutely charming and mysteriously haunted – the way I imagine it in my head. Of cause, I couldn’t know how realistically it was described in the book – I never lived in the Old South, but for me it was everything and even more that enters my mind when I think about Georgia or South Carolina.

I loved Ethan. I know that he is a far from the realistic sixteen-year old guy as you can get. He is the boyfriend I would die to have when I was sixteen. He is polite, smart, thoughtful and caring – what else can you ask for. He is so ravishingly perfect, and I mean, the girl can dream.

I loved Lena. I loved how her darkly disturbed image shook up the small sleepy town, how it is contradicted with everything and everyone in that town. I really enjoy having a girl with the mystery in the story instead of a guy, for a change.

I loved Amma. She is the perfect Nana from the Old South family. She is strict, but equitable. She spends most of her time in the kitchen and there is always something cooking that smells deliciously in the entire house. And the last, but not least she has a secret of her own.

I loved Macon Ravenwood. I love how he was referenced to To Kill a Mockingbird’s Boo Radley, because I love To Kill a Mockingbird. He was probably the most interesting character for me. It was fascinating to discover his secrets one, after another throughout whole story.

I loved what role family history played in the book. I loved genealogical trees going as far back as Civil War. I loved Ethan’s great aunts who knew everything about everyone in the family and in the town.

I loved the originality of the Caster’s (Witches and Wizards) lore.

I loved the role of librarians and libraries in the story.

I loved mystery.

I loved magic.

I loved romance.

I loved…

I loved…

I loved…

I know, this book is full of clichés, but those are my type of clichés. They are clichés that I love and I never get tired of them. On the other hand I don’t think that Beautiful Creatures lacks its originality. I also know that some characters and situations are absolutely unrealistic, but so what? They are the way I want them to be, they are the way I dream them to be. So let me close my eyes and get away from the brutal reality of drugs, murder rapes, suicides, anorexia and gangs. And let me dream… This is what Beautiful Creatures story is here for.

"Waiting On" Wednesday #5

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

Crossing Over

by Anna Kendall

Publication Date: October 14th 2010

Whether it's a curse, or a blessing, or an ability, the fact remains: whenever Roger is injured or in enough pain he crosses over to the land of the dead. Once there, there are rules: only the newly dead will talk, for example, and nothing will raise the longer dead from their tranquillity.

There are rules in the land of the living as well; rules which would have Roger hanged for witchcraft if he was ever caught. But refusing to cross over isn't an option. His uncle depends on Roger to hide under the table in their fairground act, listen to the recently bereaved asking questions of their dear departed, and then cross over to find the answers. It's a hard way of life, made all the harder as his uncle's fists usually provide the trigger for Roger to cross over.

It's not the only way of life, though, and when Roger sees a chance to escape he fights for it - little knowing that love, loss, shocking revelations and, ultimately, war lie ahead of him.

Just because Roger can cross over into the land of the dead doesn't mean he wants to.