Change

       So... Blogger really hasn't been working for me. I don't have followers and I can't switch things over to Blogluvin' or however that is spelled. So I decided to move to WordPress. I probably should've have started there to begin with, but oh well. Here is the link to my new blog: NEW BLOG! CLICK ME!
      Thank you to anyone who does actually sit and read any review I make. I know I suck at it. I'm already happy with WordPress. I may not delete this blog just because it still has many (it feels that way to me) reviews on it. Thank and remember to follow this link. 

Yesterday

     Yesterday was an awesome day. I found out maybe a month ago that Katie McGarry, Julie Kagawa, And Aimee Carter would be having a book signing about 20 minutes or so from my house. Now, you all know how much I love Katie McGarry's books so when I found out she was having a signing (along those two other awesome authors) I was excited. 

      I met some amazing book bloggers and got a little goody bag for asking a question... which just so happened to b have the sequel to Julie Kagawa's The Lost Prince: The Iron Traitor. I'm so excited to read that (on my long list of TBR). All the authors were just amazing and I'm so happy to have gone. And when Harry Potter was brought up, it turned into a full blown discussion. On the topic of discussions, a person in the crowd asked if they always wanted to be writers. Julie Kagawa actually wanted to be a vet until high school when she found out you needed to know a lot of math for that. I think we can all agree with that. Aimee Carter? Started writing because of FanFiction. So all those people who bash FanFiction and say it's not really writing? Just look at Aimee Carter. She wrote four books (along with short stories) and is onto her third series. Someone asked them what there advice would be for people who want to be writers. They all agreed on keep reading and never listen to anyone who says to give up. But Aimee told us something that happened to her. When she went out sending a different book to people, she got a contract. She sad she was thrilled to have finally gotten an agent. But then she got a call... and they pulled her contract. Aimee stopped writing but then got the idea for The Goddess Test series and sold that book. That's crazy and when I heard her says this my jaw dropped. You hear of rejections but never of an actual company pulling the contract. Katie McGarry told everyone a hilarious story about her in high school that led to her wanting to write for teens. Let's just say she hit her head... a lot. She was absolutely hilarious. 

      

Here are some photos of me with them all. Please ignore how horrible I look in all of them. It was a hot day. 

   

Julie Kagawa is just awesome. I'm so excited to start her vampire series. It's been on my TBR list for so long now. I can't wait. We had a conversation on writing and how people stare at you like your crazy for writing demented scenes or asking the best way to torture a person. She agreed with  me! 

Me and Aimee Carter. The Goddess Test was a great book. And look! The Fifth-Wave right behind us! *Cries*

 Me and Katie McGarry. I was so excited to meet her I was shaking. Pushing the Limits means a lot to me and to finally meet the author behind one of my favorite books... It was honestly the best. I haven't been like this with an author since Sarah Dessen. I will say again: GP READ HER BOOKS! 

     I wish I took more photos but I really wasn't sitting in the best seat and someone really tall was in front of me. It didn't deter the event at all though. I won a prize (the black bag in the photo above), met my favorite author, and also met some great people. This made up for the crappy day I was having. 

~ Lauren

What I'm Reading

         Stephen has been invisible for practically his whole life — because of a curse his grandfather, a powerful cursecaster, bestowed on Stephen’s mother before Stephen was born. So when Elizabeth moves to Stephen’s NYC apartment building from Minnesota, no one is more surprised than he is that she can see him. A budding romance ensues, and when Stephen confides in Elizabeth about his predicament, the two of them decide to dive headfirst into the secret world of cursecasters and spellseekers to figure out a way to break the curse. But things don’t go as planned, especially when Stephen’s grandfather arrives in town, taking his anger out on everyone he sees. In the end, Elizabeth and Stephen must decide how big of a sacrifice they’re willing to make for Stephen to become visible — because the answer could mean the difference between life and death. At least for Elizabeth.

--------------------------------

     I've been so excited for this book. So happy to finally be starting it! 

~Lauren

Friday Quote Day

    Two posts in one day?!?!? I know. It's crazy. I swear I'm not sick. I haven't done this in a long time. 1) Because I was always tired so I just didn't want to and 2) absolutely NOTHING was good. No quote was standing out to me. But I did find one while reading Dearly, Departed. It's a short quote. Only five words. But these five words actually hold a lot of truth to them.

           "Understanding did not equal acceptance." - Pg. 277

       This quote is so true that I really don't think I have to explain in. Let's have a moment of silence to reflect on how true this quote is. *bows heads* Yes, such an amazing quote.

~Lauren

Dearly, Departed (Gone With the Respiration #1) by Lia Habel

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses. 

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

In Dearly, Departed, romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love. Goodreads

____________________________________________________

    I bought Dearly, Departed on a whim back in October. A Zombie romance that takes place in the future but a future that resembles the past? Victorian past? Um, hell yeah. I mean a zombie romance. I was really excited for it. I tried reading it a couple of times but just couldn't get into it. I was annoyed with the whole changing point of views. I'm fine with one... but for, sometimes five? I got annoyed. The only reason I picked it up was because the other book I was going to read was left in the car... which then was dropped off and left and the mechanic. A lot of anger when I woke up to find out it was gone. I said I had no books and my mom proceeded to look at me then at my bookshelves. So I picked up Dearly, Departed. 

    Nora is the usual character. Doesn't really fit in with society and all that. She's interesting though. In the beginning I didn't know what to think. It was somewhat slow but understandable. You can't just open up a book in the middle of the good stuff. Plot has to be built. Lia Habel did an excellent job of it. And her writing is one of the best that I've read. She adds so much detail that it feels more like a movie than a book (which is the absolute best). 

    All the characters were interesting. Between Bram's friends or the other POVs. Though the changing kept annoying me. I've read countless of books where the POV changes, Cassandra Clare has a million different ones, but for some reason for Dearly, Departed I would loose focus. I partly blame myself though. I read the ending back in October. 

    Bram was my favorite POV. He never rushed anything with Nora. He was more fascinated by her. She was a living person. He also wasn't in full-on creeper mode. I also thought he was sweet. He didn't let being dead hinder him from enjoying anything and basically said screw you to anyone that told him differently. I think he became my favorite character in the book. Not because he was supposed to be That Love Interest, but because he was an extremely interesting character. 

    Nora wasn't bad. She sometimes didn't listen to rules (which many characters don't) but if she needed to, she did. If staying put was important, she would. And to me that was refreshing. For some reason I feel like authors think in order to be a tough female character you can't listen to anything. Oh you want me to stay behind because you actually care about my safety and know I'm not prepared? Too bad. *Causes about a million people to die and ends up being kidnapped* Nora actually LISTENS. And it was NICE. She was tough when she needed to be tough and if she didn't want to listen she turned her head and basically pretended she never heard any rule being in-placed. Toward the end, maybe the last ten to twenty pages or so, Nora didn't really feel like her. Something happens and she becomes... I don't know maybe less tough to me. She almost becomes clingy in a sense. I'm not sure. 

     I enjoyed the plot. The fact that Lia Habel went to in-depth with The Laz was awesome. She spoke about how it happens and what the body ends up doing. A lot of biology went into it. Not many authors do that. In some books the author will be like,” OH, and here's this virus thingy that causes people to die, but looookkkk at the shiny hot boy. LOOOOOKKKK." Lia Habel really didn't do that. She focused on the virus, made it extremely thought out too. And the romance was perfectly well paced. There were no hot and steamy scenes where the angst is so heavy that the reader can feel it. No. It's courting. That's the best way to explain it. They admit to liking each other. Give the cute smile or seek the other out, but put aside their feelings to figure out what's happening. And that's nice. 

    I know I will definitely buy the sequel. Hopefully there are no love triangles and the book isn't the usual sophomore slump. Many sequels (besides one) have been really good. Don't let me down because I really enjoyed this book and I don't want it to turn into the Until I Die series that progressively got worse and I was able to basically call out the whole plot for the last book. Please, Lia Habel, keep this series interesting. Make Nora and Bram remain with each other and leave out the whole angst ridden no-I-can't-be-with-you-because-I'm-a-monster-so-let-me-push-you-away plot thing. 

    Overall I liked Dearly, Departed. A lot of the characters were interesting and weren't annoying at all. I didn't fully get into it, like the Lux series, but I enjoyed it. It will definitely be on my third shelf. 

    If you're looking for a book that's not confusing and fun to read Dearly, Departed is that book. It's a really good summer read. And like, you know, ZOMBIE ROMANCE. That's awesome. 

~Lauren

Summer Reading: All the Classics!

Disclaimer: I just want to say sorry if my writing may seem all over here. I was just really annoyed about why schools can't pick awesome books with characters we teens might actually relate to. 

    _________________________________________________________________________

 

    When students think of June they think about school being over and done with. No more tests and no more homework. "HA!" Screams basically every school from everywhere,"NO ESCAPING. YOU MUST SIT AND READ THESE MANDATORY BOOKS!" Now I actually get excited for summer reading. It's like Christmas! You sit down in English class, nervous energy radiating from everyone. You're dreading the bad gifts but hopeful for good ones. At least that's me. See I don't get why I get so excited. I know it will be some classic by some dude whose work wasn't appreciated until AFTER they died. 

  So I sat there. A hopeful 17 year old. Maybe, JUST MAYBE, it would turn out to be awesome. Or if I get stuck with a classic it'll be like Fahrenheit 451. Eh... No. Three books that I really don't want to read. The one book I will mention that I have to read (one out of three) is Great Exceptions by Seriously Dude If You Don't Know It You Need To Pray To The Literature Gods. This is where my hatred for summer reading comes in. I'm not saying the big GE is horrible (I haven't really started it yet), but it puts me to sleep faster than math class. Which takes a lot. 

     Schools insist on enforcing books. We have to sit down, shut up, and read. Like an intense version of DEAR Time complete with mental breakdowns and moments of absolute torture. If you're going to force a book choose an awesome one. Because when you go with the classics this happens: 

 Give a list for crying out loud! Let us choose. Do schools honestly think that a forced book will make us love it? Yeah, maybe I loved Fahrenheit 451, but I also know a lot of kids who hated it. Imagine if schools gave a giant list (like I said before). Put Great Expectations on it with Fahrenheit 451. Throw in Emily Bronte and Jane Austin. But then add modern authors like John Green, David Levithan, Patrick Ness and more. 

      For some reason though schools never will learn. Whether it's ten to hundred years from now, students will be stuck with the classics. They'll be reading The Great Gatsby or Sense and Sensibility. Classics are happening NOW! Right now sitting on that shelf in some bookstore is a classic, but schools won't look at the Chaos Walking series and think,"Great Scott look at this book. A book someone could understand! It's characters are teens that struggle with what OUR students may face. THIS BOOK SHALL BE SUMMER READING APPROVED!" Okay, so maybe the person that picks books doesn't speak like this, but it still makes sense. 

     Schools are going to go straight to Barnes and Nobles Classic Literature section and pick books. Maybe not all schools are like this. I do know of some that actually choose YA books. Most don't though and how I wish they did. I don't want a classic. I want to read a book that will make me feel. One that shows me a teenager going through my struggles. I'm sorry but I highly doubt some teen guy is walking around New York because of some secret benefactor while struggling with society. Not all the books suck, not all the books are worship worthy. So before giving us three books that we have to read, give us five of ten and tell us to pick. I'll gladly write an essay. Right now though, this is me:

     What do you think of summer reading? Is your school forcing you to read any classic books? Tell me in the comments. Also, tell me about the worst book you had to read or your favorite. Now if only I remember where Great Expectations went... 

~Lauren 

How Not To Read The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey

    WARNING FOR THE FIFTH WAVE: DO NOT WATCH SUPERNATURAL WHILE READING RICK YANCEY'S BOOK. FEELS ARE FELT IN BAD WAYS. ENGLISH IS NOT POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF THE FEELS. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS AS SHOWN BELOW:

 

DO NOT DO IT. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DO NOT READ THE FIFTH WAVE WHILE WATCHING SUPERNATURAL. YOUR EMOTIONS WILL GO INTO OVERDRIVE AND JUST... THIS ABOVE PHOTO SHOWS WHAT WILL HAPPEN. And don't write reviews while watching Supernatural...

   I'm better. Moderately. So here is the cover for The Fifth Wave: 

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

------------------------------------------------

   Does that not sound awesome? I wasn't going to buy it, but I did. And I am happy I did. This review is cryptic, and I apologize for that, but anything I say could spoil the book. And I really don't want to because knowing anything about the book could spoil it. JUST READ IT. So, here is my very all over review: 

   I love this book. No one can touch it. No one. The plot is so amazingly thought out I just... No words. It's fast moving but somehow not at the same time. I love all the Waves. They're thought out everything is though it. The only complaint I have is that the book is spilt up into parts and each one is a different point of view. For me I would loose focus and I became confused. I wish I knew whose point of view it was, but I found out why Rick Yancey kept it all hush hush. It's actually really important to the plot. 

    Everything was moving along perfectly in the book then with about 100 or so pages left BAM! All These plot twists and bombshells were just being dropped. It was crazy and I loved it. But the ending. The ending is torture. It was a strange cliffhanger, but it was still one. I didn't really like what happens. Just have to wait till the sequel. Very impatiently. Can he just release it now? Please? 

   That 100 pages and so mixed with Supernatural will kill you. Between Dean, Sam, Castiel and all they have to do with this book... I cried. Total emotional breakdown. If you decide to do it, I will be here for you. I will. 

Besides the changing point of views of confusion, I totally recommend this book. Rick Yancey knows how to build the plot and explains things perfectly. Some things were left unanswered, but that's why it's a series. Read this book. Please. 

~ Lauren 

Join the Blizzard is Here! And Some More...

Head on over to Sara Raasch's blog to learn more!  You can win some really awesome stuff. Check it out!
   So, I've been going through books fast lately which means I will have reviews! Some I loved to the point of almost marrying them. While some turned out to only work as friends. Tomorrow is the first review. It's a surprise, so I will NOT tell you the book...
    Stop looking at me like that.

Tomorrow!

~ Lauren

Dare You To by Katie McGarry

But what begins as a dare becomes an intense attraction neither Ryan nor Beth expected. Suddenly, the boy with the flawless image risks his dreams-and his life-for the girl he loves, and the girl who won't let anyone get too close is daring herself to want it all….      

Ryan lowers his lips to my ear. "Dance with me, Beth."

"No." I whisper the reply. I hate him and I hate myself for wanting him to touch me again....

"I dare you..."

If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's home life, they'd send her mother to jail and seventeen-year-old Beth who knows where. So she protects her mom at all costs. Until the day her uncle swoops in and forces Beth to choose between her mom's freedom and her own happiness. That's how Beth finds herself living with an aunt who doesn't want her and going to a school that doesn't understand her. At all. Except for the one guy who shouldn't get her, but does....

Ryan Stone is the town golden boy, a popular baseball star jock-with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even the friends he shares everything with, including the constant dares to do crazy things. The craziest? Asking out the Skater girl who couldn't be less interested in him. (Goodreads) 

    

___________________________

     I loved Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry. It got me through a really difficult time back in October. At the end of Pushing the Limits I saw there would be a sequel. Then I read it was Beth and I wanted to hit my head repeatedly against the wall. Beth annoyed me. I won't lie. I knew she had it hard, but she was a complete you-know-what to Echo and just overall annoyed the living crap out of me. 

     I read those couple of pages back in October and wasn't hooked. I read another chapter that was released, and again I wasn't drawn in. I knew I would buy Dare You To. 

     I did. 

     Yesterday. 

     And completely fell in love. I fell so hard I don't know how I'm not covered in cuts and bruises. Dare I say (haha, see what I did there? Get it? Dare... *slowly walks away*) it was even BETTER than PTL. In the beginning I thought it was going to be the same, but it really isn't. The characters were so much more… alive. They felt real. I laughed multiple of times and I almost cried at one point. I won't say much but it was between Beth and her uncle (pgs. 156 to 161). This was the moment my heart broke for her. The overall emotion of the scene was just amazing. Here's a quote: 

“Quiet anger frightens me. The drunks, the idiots, the ones that rage easily - them I can handle. I know when to step out of their way. It's the ones that hold the anger in, the men that think about what they do and how they do it, that scare me. They're the ones that cause damage.” 

I loved out Katie McGarry wrote it. It was phenomenal. This scene made me realize that PLT was flat in someways. Not fully. I still love that book, but Dare You To just does't compare. I felt the emotions of all these characters, more so than in PTL. When I think about it I realize that PLT was structured. Maybe that's just me, but Dare You To doesn't feel that way. Katie McGarry's writing really did get better. 

      

    Beth acts a certain way for a reason. I knew this in PTL, but didn't fully understand it. This book helps you understand her so much more. It helped me understand her problem with Echo. She was so used to loosing everyone she loved, that she felt Echo was taking Noah away. But she understood she wasn't a bad person. We all get like this when someone new comes in and it starts feeling like you're being pushed away. She just feels so hopeless, but Ryan gives her hope. One of my favorite quotes is by her:

   

   "We all have our fears. Those things that exist in the dark corners of our mind that terrify us beyond belief." 

    

  It's an amazing quote. I have this thing for quotes about fear. This my favorite. There are so many quotes that I love. Which is basically every word in this book. 

     

    Ryan. Ryan Stone. He is amazing. There are so many stories with the girl/boy who is messed up and had a bad life then meets the girl/boy who changes them. Of course the good ones also have a messed up life. With Ryan though, it felt different. His family was falling apart because of something with his brother (which I won't say) and a lot more. But Ryan slowly comes to this realization that nothing is perfect. He know's it's not all sunshine and ponies, but is too afraid to face the music. His brother, and Beth,  more or less force him to see this. I love the emotion Ryan has. I love him, please don't kill me, more than Noah. Like by maybe little more. Fine, a lot more. He understands Beth. Doesn't push her. Just…. Here, this explains me: 

            “I hold the bottle out into the rain and watch as the steady flow slowly fills it. When there is enough, enough that Beth can clearly see, I close the bottle and hand it to her.

She raises a skeptical eyebrow, but accepts the bottle.

"It's our rain Beth."

Her head barely shakes to show her confusion while I rub the back of my neck and search for my courage. "I told you I loved you in this rain and when you doubt my words, I want you to look at this bottle.”

    

Another point when I fell in love with this book even more, Hurt by Nine Inch Nails was in it. I knew immediately this was the song, and I was right. Katie McGarry got the feeling of the song down so well. I was singing it in my head while reading that scene:

    

     "The flat and bitter notes of a Nine Inch Nails song play on the radio and I sink into my corner of the car, pulling my legs into my chest. My heart aches with the lyrics. It's a phrase embedded in my soul, a lyric that talks about people you love and how in the end... they go away." - Beth

More quotes? Of course! 

“How many more of us are faking the facade? How many more of us are pretending to be something we're not? Even better, how many of us will have the courage to be ourselves regardless of what others think?” 

“I won't let you go." I blink. As if he could stop me. "You won't let me go." 

"No, I won't let you go. You're mine and I don't lose.” 

“I like you. I. Like. You. I'll admit you're annoying. Sometimes you agitate me to the brink of insanity, but you can throw it back at me like no one else. When you laugh, I want to laugh. When you smile, I want to smile. Hell, I want to be the one to make you smile.” 

To me, this explains Beth: 

   I am telling you now, like right now, to go buy this book. It was beautifully written and so easy to picture in my head I felt like I was watching a movie. This book was heartbreaking, brutally honest, and will sink it's nails into you that letting go of Dare You To will be extremely difficult. Katie McGarry wrote an amazing book. I went from being hesitant to completely loving this book. Amazing job Katie McGarry. I can't wait till Crash into You. 

~ Lauren 

* I realized that I was reading The Fifth Wave... Should finish that. But I have too many romances to read and I need one. No stopping me. 

Join the Blizzard!

    I don't know how long I followed Sara Raasch (SeeSaraWrite) for. I do know it has been for a long time. Like before high school. I may have been in 6th grade. I do know that she's been a huge inspiration for me. 

    When I read her post about finally selling her book, I was ecstatic. It gave me hope to never give up on writing. 

    In celebration of her book, Snow Like Ashes, Sara decided to start holding giveaways. Each one takes place during the start of a season (which has to do with her book). I remember joining the first one. Me, a 17 year old who never really won much. Then I saw my name. Laughed hysterically. Reloaded the page a million times to make sure it wasn't a joke. 

     It wasn't. 

     So now I'm here spreading the word out about her book and the giveaway: Join the Blizzard.  Click here for more about it. Also, don't forget to add her book on goodreads. I know I'm really excited for it. As should everyone in this world. Maybe universe... 

      

Here is a full synopsis of her book taken from her website: 

          

     At sixteen, Meira has only been allowed to have one goal: help the other Winterian refugees free their enslaved people from the King of Spring. Her life has been a whirl of bloody missions to steal back the magical conduit that will return power to Mather, Winter’s quiet and strong future king. 

When one mission lands Meira with half of the conduit, she discovers that nothing is above being sacrificed for Winter’s freedom – not even herself. With Sir – Winter’s former General and Meira’s only father-figure – treating her like a pawn, a heartbreaking alliance made with a dangerous kingdom, and all-out war looming around her, Meira begins to wonder if it’s possible to save Winter without losing herself.

But who Meira is links her to Winter and its conduit more than she could ever guess – and her connection is only the first snowflake in a blizzard that will change the world.

      

     I think this is me right now. Just please, give me this book. Also, I just love Dean. 

      Sara Raasch, thank you for everything. Thank you for showing me to never give up and thank you for writing such an awesome book. Congratulations! 

~ Lauren

PS- I actually will have a review up today! I know, shocker. School's over so expect more surprises. 

What I'm Reading

    So it's been awhile... again. BUT I REALLY HAVE AN EXUSE!
                                               Finals. And Regents.
    For those of you who are lucky enough to not live in New York, a regent is this stupid exam that all kids in high school have to take. And if you fail you go to summer school. Seriously. But I'm not here to rant about school. I just wanted to quickly say that right now I am reading The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey. And it's amazing right now. Hopefully I will finish it soon and get a full review to you lovely people.

~ Lauren

School Spirits by Rachel Hawkins

Official Synopsis: Fifteen-year-old Izzy Brannick was trained to fight monsters. For centuries, her family has hunted magical creatures. But when Izzy’s older sister vanishes without a trace while on a job, Izzy’s mom decides they need to take a break.
Izzy and her mom move to a new town, but they soon discover it’s not as normal as it appears. A series of hauntings has been plaguing the local high school, and Izzy is determined to prove her worth and investigate. But assuming the guise of an average teenager is easier said than done. For a tough girl who’s always been on her own, it’s strange to suddenly make friends and maybe even have a crush.

Can Izzy trust her new friends to help find the secret behind the hauntings before more people get hurt?

_____________________________________________________________

        It is a truth universally acknowledged THAT I LOVE RACHEL HAWKINS. I remembered being in 8th grade when Hex Hall first came out. That 14 year-old me didn't know was coming. 

        I loved Hex Hall, loved all the characters involved (even the minor ones). When Izzy was in the last Hex book I was eh with her. I love Rachel Hawkins though so to not by the book would be a sin. BUT IZZY WAS AMAZING. DEAR LORD MY FIRST KID WILL BE NAMED ISOLDE. I DON'T CARE. THAT NAME ROCKS. She is one of the best female characters I have read in a long time. 

        I haven't been able to get into a single book, yet School Spirits sucked me in right from the start. I've known people that get turned off by spin-off books. Sometimes they do get annoying because, yeah there is a new POV, but all the same characters are back and there is lacking in character development. Rachel Hawkins doesn't do this! She mentions Sophie and Archer once, but the rest of it is Izzy, her mom, and a whole bunch of new characters. Romy just seems like the person I would be friends with. She's not annoying and definitely far from being weird. Anderson was minor too but I love how Rachel Hawkins doesn't push him in the corner like a kid in time out. He has just as much of a roll in everything that's going on. And the man that has stolen my heart: 

                 DEX!!

        He is seriously after my heart. Dresses old fashioned? Check. Speaks correctly? Check. Witty? HELL YES.  Here are two lines:

"Whoever used to hang out here, they must have been pretty tiny," I joke.  

Dex turned his flashlight on me. "Um, Izz, pretty sure they weren't standing up." 

"Romy, I don't think Harvard is going to be very impressed by your membership in something called PMS." 

        I love him. It's the truth. 

        I loved School Spirits. It was the first book I read straight through. Like literally straight through. I finished it in seven hours. Or less... It was fast paced, but too fast, and it made me realize how much I miss this world. Like I took all my Hex Hall books and curled up on my bed. My mom may have walked by and saw this and may have called me crazy. Whatever. They only complaint I have, which may bother some people, is that there was a lot of writing mistakes. A period where it should be placed, the wrong letter for a word, leaving out some words. But publishing will always have small things and it definitely didn't take away from the book. Also, I read that this is only one book. I seriously hope not because it ended with some major questions not being answered and I really need Izzy and Dex to become Dezzy/Dizzy/Dexy/Zexy... So I'm basically making my OTP into sounding like sexy. They are though. I see your judging eyes *lifts chin up and puffs out chest* but I don't care. 

        Go buy this book. Right now. If you didn't read the Hex Hall series (but like come on, you did. Right? No? Well, GO BUY IT) you could could still read SS first. There are some spoilers to Hex Hall, major ones to me, so I would first read Hex Hall.  So go out my lovelies and read while I do this:    

A VIDEO! Two Lovely Books

In which I fail at doing a video. This was just easier to do because I had to study for my AP exam. But yes, here I speak how two books that I love. Like OMG WHAT IS AIR.  But this was me while making this video and reading these books

 

But you lovely oxygen breathing people (or non-breathing people. Whatever you prefer) should go out and buy these books! 

And watch Supernatural. 

~Lauren 

PS- I read Anna so many times it fell apart. It's true. 

Prince of Wolves by Quinn Loftis

    Jaque Pierce was just an ordinary 17 year old girl getting ready to start her senior year in high school in Coldspring, Texas. When a mysterious foreign exchange student from Romania moves in across the street, Jacque and her two best friends, Sally and Jen, don't realize the last two weeks of their summer was going to get a lot more interesting. From the moment Jacque sets eyes on Fane she feels an instant connection, a pull like a moth to a flame. Little does she know that the flame she is drawn to is actually a Canis lupis, werewolf, and she just happens to be his mate; the other half of his soul. The problem is Fane is not the only wolf in Coldspring, Texas. Just as Fane and Jacque are getting to know each other, another wolf steps out to try and claim Jacque as his mate. Fane will now have to fight for the right to complete the mating bond, something that is his right by birth but is being denied him by a crazed Alpha. Will the love Fane has for Jacque be enough to give him the strength to defeat his enemy, will Jacque accept that she is Fane's mate and complete the bond between them?  Goodreads


        I give it: 2/5 stars

     Now, I have been waiting to read a good wolf series for a while. Most of them suck and usually end up trying to hard to be Twilight, which is just puke-tastic. My friend turns to me yesterday and says," Hey read this book. It's really good." All I have to say is... THANK THE BOOK GODS IT WAS FREE. This book was just not good at all. First off the book just opens up and BAM, HERE IS WOLF BOY. HER IS GIRL. EYE CONTACT AND INSTA-LOVE. And I get it. Part of the reason why I wanted to read this book was because of the idea that wolves meet their one mate and it's an instant connection. I get that, but I don't get how Jaque is so automatically accepting of everything. I mean YOU HEAR A VOICE IN YOUR HEAD. I'm sorry but if I hear a voice in my head I wouldn't be as okay with it as Jaque is. Like she freaks out and calls her friends... but they don't react to her as if she's crazy. I know they're supposed to be BFFs with the whole OMG-HOT GUY-GOSSIP TIME but if my best friend turned to me and was all hey, the new hot guy moved in and I swear he spoke to me in my head I would gently sit her down and ask what drugs she may be on.

      Besides many of the reactions in this book just not seeming real (i.e. Jaque’s sudden acceptance around pages 60-80 of hearing Fane’s voice was just strange. Just because the voice says it’s the person doesn’t always make it real.), the grammar and writing was also horrible. I'm not saying I'm the Queen of Grammar, but I’ve seen FanFiction with better writing. I was happy for one thing: it helped to prepare me for my SAT today.

        I am happy I downloaded it. If I spent my money on this book I would be extremely pissed. If you want to try it, do it. It’s free. I really wish the characters were better and the plot was outlined better. It could have been a good book.

~Lauren