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.

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   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) 

    

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     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?

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        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

Quote of the Day

“It's not how we fall. It's how we get back up again.”
― Patrick Ness, Monsters of Men

Chaos Walking was a series I always passed but never picked up. I was stupid. It is one of my favorite series. And it just so happens to be chock-full of quotes that are amazing.
Everyone can relate to this quote. We all fall, fail at something that is important to us. What it comes down to is STANDING UP.
Buy this series. All of them.

Read on!
~ Lauren

Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff

The city of Ludlow is gripped by the hottest July on record. The asphalt is melting, the birds are dying, petty crime is on the rise, and someone in Hannah Wagnor’s peaceful suburban community is killing girls.

For Hannah, the summer is a complicated one. Her best friend Lillian died six months ago, and Hannah just wants her life to go back to normal. But how can things be normal when Lillian’s ghost is haunting her bedroom, pushing her to investigate the mysterious string of murders? Hannah’s just trying to understand why her friend self-destructed, and where she fits now that Lillian isn’t there to save her a place among the social elite. And she must stop thinking about Finny Boone, the big, enigmatic delinquent whose main hobbies seem to include petty larceny and surprising acts of kindness.

With the entire city in a panic, Hannah soon finds herself drawn into a world of ghost girls and horrifying secrets. She realizes that only by confronting the Valentine Killer will she be able move on with her life—and it’s up to her to put together the pieces before he strikes again.

Paper Valentine is a hauntingly poetic tale of love and death by the New York Times bestselling author of The Replacement and The Space Between.

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There is not doubt about it: Brenna Yovanoff has been when of my favorite authors since her first book, The Replacement, came out. Yovanoff is amazing at setting up a creepy scene and just explaining a scene altogether.
Paper Valentine started off great. Hannah is great character. Usually the books I've read where there is a serial killer the main protagonist gets to be annoying. But Hannah, at least to me, isn't trying to play detective. She just wants to figure out what's wrong.
Another part I loved was her friend. Lillian, who is dead, and she just so happens to see her. It was a bit confusing though and it was never said how Hannah was able to see her.
Overall though I thought this book was great. Definitely buy it... along with Brenna Yovanoff's other books.