Thursday, August 25, 2011

Blog Tour: Anna Dressed In Blood

Anna Dressed In Blood was one of my favorite ghost-type stories I have stumbled upon in a long time. A review will be posted up later (ya know when I actually get back to using this blog). Today I'm excited to have Cas, the main character who has such depth to him he'll surely be a favorite among readers, here with us!


10 Things You (Probably) Don’t Know About Me


1. I am no fan of spiders.

2. I listen to modern rock, and don’t really like classic. Except for The Rolling Stones. My Dad and Gideon’s influence.

3. When I was a kid, my mom and dad taught me to read using The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum. It’s still my favorite book.

4. I am basically addicted to Saskatoon jam.

5. Of my two namesakes, Theseus the Greek hero and Cassio from Othello, I would rather be more like Cassio.

6. I can identify every one of my mother’s candle spells just by scent.

7. One of my favorite movies is Tarantino’s Death Proof. I’d never seen it until Carmel brought it over and made me and Thomas watch it.

8. I like to rock climb.

9. I’ve never been to a concert. (Amber: It's okay Cas, I will take you to one.)

10. My dad is buried at his family plot in Massachusetts. Aside from the funeral, I’ve never been to the grave and neither has my mother.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Sweetly by Jackson Pearce

Sweetly by Jackson Pearce


Released: August 2011
Publisher: Little, Brown
Genre: Young Adult - Fairy Tales - Series
Pages: 320
Source: Dark Faerie Tales Blog Tour


Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

Twelve years ago, Gretchen, her twin sister, and her brother went looking for a witch in the forest. They found something. Maybe it was a witch, maybe a monster, they aren’t sure—they were running too fast to tell. Either way, Gretchen’s twin sister was never seen again.


Years later, after being thrown out of their house, Gretchen and Ansel find themselves in Live Oak, South Carolina, a place on the verge of becoming a ghost town. They move in with Sophia Kelly, a young and beautiful chocolatier owner who opens not only her home, but her heart to Gretchen and Ansel.


Yet the witch isn’t gone—it’s here, lurking in the forests of Live Oak, preying on Live Oak girls every year after Sophia Kelly’s infamous chocolate festival. But Gretchen is determined to stop running from witches in the forest, and start fighting back. Alongside Samuel Reynolds, a boy as quick with a gun as he is a sarcastic remark, Gretchen digs deeper into the mystery of not only what the witch is, but how it chooses its victims. Yet the further she investigates, the more she finds herself wondering who the real monster is, and if love can be as deadly as it is beautiful.



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Jackson Pearce has got to be one of my favorite authors. I absolutely am in love with her storytelling. Yes, not just writing, but her ability to really tell a story. Fairy Tales are something all of us know well, and there are tons of re-tellings out there, but I swear this woman is the Queen of them. Not to mention she wrote such a kick ass opening that sucked me in!

Sisters Red was a favorite for me, but I think Sweetly topped it. I loved Gretchen and Ansel, and them stumbling into this town where secrets are being kept. There is something out there taking girls, and everyone wants to point the finger at Sophia, the young woman who hold an annual Chocolate Festival every year. Sophia had me curious from the moment she came into the story. Her house may have not been made of candy and sweets, but was a baker. The way it was written, I felt like I was there smelling all the goodies and tasting them. I seriously was craving sweets through this book! I liked seeing the side of Ansel that Sophia brought out. He was more quiet and timid character, but it was cute seeing the way he acted around her.

Then there was Samuel. Oh, Samuel. I swear my inner character whore was swooning over this boy. I loved the relationship between him and Gretchen. Gretchen was so tired of being scared of the witch that took her twin sister. Instead of relying on Samuel to be her protector like a lot of girls in stories would do, Gretchen wanted to learn how to fight for herself. It was refreshing to see such a strong-willed character that wasn't overly stubborn and could have her sensitive side as well.

The setting was perfect. I still felt as if I were reading a fairy tale, yet it was done in modern times. It's something very tricky to do when you think about. Between the characters, suspense, and the fact I was craving chocolate throughout this book the best part was the outcome. Jackson gave such fantastic twists - I did not see all those answers coming out like that! The balance she had for both plot and characters will make any reader fall in love with this re-telling. I hope Jackson continues to do some more re-tellings in the future. She rocks them!

♥amber

Monday, August 1, 2011

Saying goodbye......for at least a little while.

Hi kids!

I don't like flooding the blog with reasons of why I've been so absent, but life has a way of sticking its nasty little nose in my reading/blog business and sadly JYTBB is the last thing on my mind. I don't really want to go into detail, but let's just say things have been very chaotic lately. Some of it's good. Really good. And some of it...well, it's bad. Really bad.

My big master plan was to get SO MUCH reading done, but that didn't happen. Here it is August and I've got plans for the entire month....writing plans that is. Yep, I'm doing something crazy and I'm going to Camp NaNoWriMo. I know there will still be some scheduled posts coming up, but besides that, I guess I will be seeing y'all in September! Enjoy the rest of your summer :)

♥amber