21 September 2011

SHIFTING by Bethany Wiggins [review]

Shifting by Bethany Wiggins

Published: Septempber 27th, 2011 | Walker Books for Young Readers
Age: Young Adult
Pages: 384
Acquired: ARC

Overall: 1/2


Review: I have read a lot of reviews saying how surprised they were that they liked this book. My review is no different. But the reason I'm surprised is because I'm not much of a shifters, werewolves style book, luckily this books isn't really like that.

Maggie Mae moves to Silvery City, New Mexico after a few run-ins with the law for public indecency.... aka she was naked. But being a shape shifter and not quite in control of when and where you turn can leave you in such predicaments.

As she turns 18 she learns to control her shifting ability a little bit better, right when she meets and quickly begins fall for Bridger. He's the guy everyone loves and admires. And it definitely wasn't hard to see why. The entire time I was reading Shifting I kept imagining Blair Redford as Bridger.

I loved Maggie Mae's voice, how she stood up for her own, never afraid to admit when she may be falling and even though she didn't ask for help, she still knew when she needed it. And it was obvious that living with Mrs Carpenter, someone who genuinely cared for her and was there to help her through her difficult time, made it easier for her to adjust and start accepting people into her life.

When the book first starts out, she's attending school and it seems that the entire book will be her as this girl who has to continue running from her issues so as not to expose her secret. And I was relieved to find out that the school year ending fairly early on in the book, I knew it'd mean more Bridger, more Maggie Mae and her life as a shifter and hoped for more of her friends.... like Yana.
Unfortunately, however there wasn't enough Yana, it seemed the author actually forgot about her completely. She was Maggie Mae's first friend, got her a job, and looked out for her best interest from the beginning, but the way the author left her out made it look as if Maggie Mae completely forgot about her.

The ending is not really left open for a sequel, but I wouldn't be mad if there was on. I'd just hope that there would be more Yana, Mrs. Carpenter and more on Bridger's life.


Plot: 1/2
Characters:
Ending: 1/2
Writing:
Cover: (ARC cover)




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Author's Info:
Bethany Wiggins
has always been an avid reader, but not an avid student. Seriously!!! She failed ninth grade English because she read novels instead of doing her homework. In high school, she sat alone at lunch and read massive hardback fantasy novels (Tad Williams and Robert Jordan anyone?). It wasn't until the end of her senior year that the other students realized she was reading fiction--not the Bible.
Seven years ago, Bethany's sister dared her to start writing an hour a day until she completed a novel. Bethany wrote a seven-hundred page fantasy novel that she wisely let no one read--but it taught her how to write. Since then she has completed six more novels, each one a little better than the one before.


Check out Bethany on her: website | twitter | goodreads | facebook | blogger

20 September 2011

Top 5 Songs Played This Week!

Ahh. Music. My first love.
Here are the top five songs that I've been playing constantly this past week!

1. "Rocketeer" by Far East Movement ft. Ryan Tedder (listen) - I strongly disklike their song "Like a G6"... to put it bluntly, I think it's stupid! But this one? I loveee it! I had a Pandora playlist for the Kpop group SHINee going, and this song came on. My first thought -- "not repulsive, let's listen to the whole thing".... and I downloaded it as soon as it was over. So, the fact that they're Asian (for once) has nothing to do with drawing my attention. Heh. I love the MV as well. Even if it never friggin' loads for me on youtube! :)

2. "La Vida Es Bella" by Ana Isabelle ft. Chino & Nacho (listen) - She is gorgeous, Chino & Nacho are adorable... Especially Chino (even if I don't really go for guys with braids. But that lip bite at 0:56 (heh) And his arms. And abs.... I digress). Anyways, the song....
Well, this song (Life is beautiful) is so much fun to dance and sing along with! Gawd! The Spanish language is the most beautiful language in the world to me, especially in song! I love every single word in this song except "gracias a dios" but we won't get into that. Heh. ♥♥ Seriously, listen to this song when you're in a blah kind of mood!!

3. "Disaster" by JoJo (listen) - I have been waiting for JoJo's comeback forever. All these leaked songs were a nice tie over, but nothing felt official. Until now! With a hint from her two previous hits "Leave (Get Out)" and "Too Little Too Late" (my fave), JoJo brings a powerful empowering song. And though I don't love it, it's definitely growing on me. From my favorite singer, a song that showcases her vocal talent! Love.

4. "Who's That Boy" by Demi Lovato ft. Dev (listen) - Demi? Is that you? This is definitely nothing like her past albums, which I love, but I'm glad she's getting more into her R&B vocal tones. This song is STUCK in my head. And with the release of her album UNBROKEN today [can't wait to get it home], I'm sure more songs will be stuck in my head! And with noise cancelling headphones, the bass is ridiculous. LOVE that!! 
This girl has pipes on her, and I'm loving that she's changing her range! Dev & Demi's voice work perfectly together in this song. This performance is so fun, she's stepping out & I hope she continues with the attention, positive! [watch live here]

5. "Good-bye Baby (Silver Mix)" by miss A (listen in HD) - Though I love the original version (here) of this song. The Silver Mix is just 10x better! The bass [which, apparently I'm loving lately] is amazing. The whole feel of it is different from a lot of Kpop music. The original reminds me too much of their first song "Bad Girl Good Girl", which I like... but too similar. Jia's rap just flows better when it's slowed down as does the hook. And Min's voice, my fave. (GIVE HER MORE PARTS MR. JY PARK!)


(Song I'm still listening to? "No Woman I've Found" by Madison | LST! Love it.)

BLUE MOON by Alyson Noël [review]

Blue Moon by Alyson Noël


Published: July 17th, 2009 | St. Martin's Griffin
Age: Young Adult
Pages: 284
Acquired: Public Library

Overall: 1/2

Review: I wasn't completely in love with the first book, but I liked it enough to want to continue reading the series. This book took me forever to finish--not because it was bad, but because it was just slow.

I did not like Damen in the first book, and even though I felt bad for him, I still can't connect with him. In Blue Moon something strange is happening to Damen and Ever makes it her goal to figure out what is wrong with him. And even though it was quite predictable from the beginning, I still liked going along the journey with Ever as she tried to put the pieces together. (Probably because it meant less Damen).

From the beginning there was a constant pull between Ever and Damen, hinting at something bigger to come later in the book. But then the pull begins to happen with her two best friends and every one in her class, the only person paying any attention to her is the new guy, Roman. The first time he spoke, I knew he was no bueno. And I was glad Ever could tell it as well, never letting his charm take her over.

As Ever begins visiting her psychic friend Ava and the mysterious otherworld, Summerland, she begins to see that the only way to save Damen is to have never met him. And honestly, I was for this decision. I just have this feeling about him. I don't know what it is. He may turn out to be amazing in the end, I'm just not a fan now. I actually wish Noël would introduce a love triangle.

Now that Ever is more in tune with her ability to manifest anything at any time, I loved that she used it to her advantage, never being selfish. But at the same time, she only thought of one person, Damen. (gah)

Basically, I have a love/hate relationship with this series. I do enjoy the characters and the writing, but at the same time it can drag in places and I just can't get into the love relationship. Hopefully in the future books it'll pick up.


Plot:
Characters:
Ending: 1/2
Writing:
Cover:



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Author's Info:
Alyson Noël
was born and raised in Orange County, California, she's lived in both Mykonos and Manhattan and is now settled in Southern California where she's working on her next book. Noël is the #1 New York Times best selling, award-winning, author of FAKING 19, ART GEEKS AND PROM QUEENS, LAGUNA COVE, FLY ME TO THE MOON, KISS & BLOG, SAVING ZOË and more.
You can learn more about Alyson on the following links:



Check out Alyson on her: website | twitter | goodreads | facebook | blogger
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