One of the things I'd like to do more is take part in more reading challenges. When I saw this one, I knew it was just for me. Here are the rules taken directly from the website:

1. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate.

--Non-Bloggers: Post your list of books in the comment section of the wrap-up post.

2. There are four levels:

--The Mini YA Reading Challenge – Read 12 Young Adult novels.
--Just My Size YA Reading Challenge – Read 25 Young Adult novels.
--Stepping It Up YA Reading Challenge – Read 50 Young Adult novels.
--Super Size Me YA Reading Challenge – Read 75 Young Adult novels.

3. Audio, eBooks, paper all count.

4. No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.

5. Challenge begins January 1st thru December, 2010.

6. When you sign up under Mr. Linky, put the direct link to your post where your Young Adult novels will be listed. Include the URL so that other viewers can find this fun challenge. If you’d prefer to put your list in the sidebar of your blog, please leave your viewers the link to the sign up page. Again, so viewers can join the challenge too.

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If you're interested in signing up too, click on the image to get to the website.Let me know too! I'll be doing the 25 book challenge to start off with. Not sure which books I'll be reading yet, but I'm looking forward to it! Reviews will be posted in my blog as the books are read, and I'll also collect them here:
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Spoilers for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as well as previous books in the series. Hence the cut.

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Rating: four stars
Length: 757 pages
Source: shelf
Other books I've read by this author: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (my review), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (my review), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (my review), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (my review), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (my review), Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (my review) , Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch through the Ages, The Tales of Beedle the Bard (my review)

xposted to bookish and temporaryworlds

After a stressful week of school, I broke down and ordered some books off of paperbackswap. In many ways this isn't a big deal. I have plenty of credits, so it's not like it's costing me any money. I just hate to add even more to my TBR pile. Here's what I've ordered

A Northern Light- Jennifer Donnelly
Speak- Laurie Halse Anderson
The Silver Kiss- Annette Curtis Klause
Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan (audiobook)
The Lightning Thief- Rick Riordan

I've already read the first three books, but don't own copies yet. The final two are books that I've heard good things about.

Also, lately I've been completely burried in homework. It looks like I won't have time for the big changes I'm planning for temporaryworlds' one year anniversary. What I'll most likely do is announce the changes on Dec 1st and then put them into action by the new year. That way, nothing will be rushed :)

High school freshman Chris is going through some changes. He’s become prone to mood swings and finds that he’s hungry all of the time. No, it’s not just puberty. He’s actually turning into a vampire. Chris knows what this means. Eventually he will starve to death from lack of blood, or the thirst will drive him to kill someone, and he will be executed as a result. So when Chet the Celestial being offers to cure him of his vampirism, he can’t say no. In return, all Chris needs to do is infiltrate the local vampires and stop them from raising an evil ancient deity.

Thirsty is a strange but fascinating little read. In a genre filled with sexy, dangerous vampires, Anderson presents us with an account that’s far from romantic. Chris’s transformation from human to vampire is visceral and disturbing, a nice little metaphor for the frustrating time known as puberty. The writing here is very well done. Chris’s voice wanders back and forth between strangely beautiful to conversational, and it works well. I found Chris to be a very realistic character, not a superhero but a scared kid caught up in a very bad situation. Watching Chris struggle to do the right thing, when the right thing doesn’t even seem to be an option at times, can be painful. You can’t help but cheer him on as he tries to save the day, get the girl, and keep his transformation a secret. I also really liked the setting that Anderson set up here. As someone who grew up in a Massachusetts suburb, I instantly connected to the similar town found here, despite the fact that vampires weren’t preying on human beings where I grew up.

Thirsty is the second M.T. Anderson book that I’ve read, and despite the fact that I connected well to the setting, and the narrator, I couldn’t help but think about how it didn’t quite measure up to Feed (the first M.T. Anderson book I’ve read- which was written five years after Thirsty). Thirsty struggles from being a little too predictable. From the second Chris discovers that he’s turning into a vampire, I knew how things were going to turn out. Also, despite the fact that Anderson does a great job crafting teen dialogue, I was a little annoyed by the fact that so many of the characters (mostly the teenagers) sounded exactly the same. These two factors did bring down my enjoyment some. In the end, I still felt as if it was a strong story that’s walks to the beat of its own drummer. I would recommend it for people that like vampire stories, but are looking for something a little different that the dozens of vampire titles that have populated the YA section over the past few years.

Rating: four stars
Length: 256 pages
Source: paperbackswap
Similar Books: For other young adult books that star vampires, check out In the Forests of the Night by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes and Sunshine by Robin McKinley. Thirsty may also appeal to fans of MT Anderson’s Feed and John Green’s Looking for Alaska, both which star a male protagonist who is fascinated with a unique girl they meet.
Other books I've read by this author: Feed

Pretty big spoilers under the cut that I couldn't avoid. Don't read this review if you haven't read Half-Blood Prince unless you want to be spoiled.

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Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 652 pages
Source: shelf
Other books I've read by this author: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (my review), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (my review), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (my review), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (my review), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (my review), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch through the Ages, The Tales of Beedle the Bard (my review)

xposted to bookish and temporaryworlds

Death’s Daughter starts off like your typical chick lit book. We meet Calliope Reaper-Jones, a twenty-something that hates her job, loves shopping, and has just been set up on a blind date by her best friend. That is until the memory charm she cast on herself four years ago breaks, and she remembers who she really is, the immortal daughter of the grim reaper. Callie, who wants nothing more than to live a normal life, is livid at this turn of events until she discovers that her father (death) has been kidnapped along with her older sister. In order to save her family’s immortality, she must complete three tasks and become death herself. Unfortunately, she’s not the only one interested in the job.

I really wanted to like this book, and there were some things I did enjoy. If there’s one thing Benson did do well here, it’s her world building. I enjoyed the mix of old and new religions that created the world of the afterlife. Also, I found that Benson’s writing flows quite well, making the book quite easy to read. What brought everything down was its protagonist. Despite being the same age as the Calliope, I had difficulty connecting with her throughout the book. I didn’t relate at all to the spacey city girl who whined about not being able to goof off more at work, nor did I connect with the hapless “heroine” who kept on stumbling into trouble and having to be rescued. Possessing the maturity of a bratty teenager, Callie seems to spend most of her time crying, getting into danger, and lusting after every age appropriate male. Whenever I began to enjoy the book, Callie would open her mouth and say something that made me want to slap her. I also found that I also had some issues with the logic of the plot. I don’t want to give too much away, but I didn’t understand why people did certain things. Such as why did Callie put a memory charm on herself to forget about her family when she’s immortal? Wouldn’t she notice not aging and dying after a while? There were several times during this book when I had to stop and ask myself similar questions.

As I said before, I really wanted to like this book. Benson is a talented actress and from my memories of meeting her at a Common Rotation concert, one of those rare, genuinely nice people. Unfortunately, as much as I tried over the past four days, I just couldn’t understand why Callie was the way she was and did the things she did. As a result, I never connected with the story. By the time we got to the big twist at the end I found that I didn’t even care. I will not be continuing this series.

Rating: two stars
Length: 359 pages
Source: paperbackswap
Similar Books: For similar paranormal reads try Kim Harrison’s Rachel Morgan Series (beginning with Dead Witch Walking), Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files (beginning with Storm Front), or Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampires Mysteries (beginning with Dead until Dark).
Other books I've read by this author: this is my first

Now I'm going to go feel like a big meanie for writing such a negative review...

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Spoilers for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

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Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 870 pages
Source: shelf
Other books I've read by this author: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (my review), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (my review), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (my review), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (my review), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch through the Ages, The Tales of Beedle the Bard (my review)

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I realized this morning that temporaryworlds is about to celebrate it's one year anniversary on 12/01/09! To celebrate, I will be announcing two big changes that will be taking place in this blog's second year. I hope that these changes will bring temporaryworlds to a new level, and I'm really excited about them. Check back here on 12/01 for the big announcement!

Also, I recently went to a library sale and picked up some surprisingly recent books for really cheap. Reviews will be posted once I've read them. Here they are:

Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman
Certain Girls by Jennifer Weiner
The Guy not Taken by Jennifer Weiner

The first book is a YA fantasy written. The writer, Alison Goodman, also wrote Singing the Dogstarblues, which was the first book I reviewed for this blog (read my review here- I loved it). I've read a handful of books by Jennifer Weiner: Good in Bed, In her Shoes, Little Earthquakes, and Goodnight Nobody. These two books intrigued me because the first (Certain Girls) is a sequel to Good in Bed, while The Guy Not Taken is a collection of short stories. Watching novelist try their pen at short fiction is always interesting. Sometimes they're very successful. Sometimes, they're not. I'm curious to see what side of the fence Weiner will fall on.

The world has changed a lot in fourteen years. After a cataclysmic event that resulted in everyone over the age of fourteen vanishing, earth is now ruled by cruel overloads. Children are raised in dormitories until they reach the age of fourteen. At that point they are sent to the Meat Factory where their organs, brains, and muscles are harvested and used to make violent creatures that serve as pawns in the battles between the overlords. Gold-Eye, who has the ability to see the future, manages to escape from the dorms and is rescued by three teenagers who consider themselves Shade’s children. Shade, who was once human, has made it his life’s mission to bring the world back to the way it once was, but does he really have his children’s best interests in mind?

There are many things that Shade’s Children does very well. Like his well-known Abhorsen Trilogy, which mixes fantasy and horror, Shade’s Children mixes sci-fi and horror, and it does it quite well. The concept of having your bodies mutilated into these horrible creatures is quite creepy, and the idea that you might keep a fragment of your sense of self through it all is downright terrifying. Nix also does a good job of presenting us with five interesting leads, Gold-Eye, Ninde, Ella, Drum, and of course Shade. The author not take the easy way out when it comes to characterization, instead presenting us with individuals that are flawed, and complex. On a conceptual level, Shade’s Children does very well, giving us interesting characters, a solid setting, and a plot worthy of a Hollywood Blockbuster. Unfortunately, the execution of these great idea is somewhat flawed.

Shade’s Children is divided up into short chapters with mini “confessionals” (or video recordings of Shade and his children reflecting on the state of the world, and how it came to be that way) inserted in-between. The confessionals are great because they allow us to learn about the characters, and the world without breaking up the action-packed storyline. The actual chapters themselves are more problematic. The novel is told in a third-person omniscient viewpoint that jumps from character to character very quickly, and it’s done somewhat sloppily. By not focusing on one character per scene, combined with a lightning fast pace, the reader has a hard time connecting with it’s main characters, as if the writer has put up a wall between us and them. This can also lead to really elementary writing mistakes, such as a violation of the almighty “show, don’t tell" rule and dialogue that can be sub-par. I also felt that the pace of the novel was at times, too rushed and the development of certain characters (mainly Shade at the end of the book) seemed forced. Not to mention that the overlords, although creepy, end up feeling underdeveloped.

Despite its original plot line and well thought out horror elements, Shade’s Children is a flawed book. Although there are many things about it I enjoyed (the concept, the characters of Ella and Drum, the confessional sections), it’s somewhat uneven execution prevented me from fully enjoying the book. As a result, I don’t necessarily think that Shade’s Children is a bad book, but it’s not really a good one either. Perhaps it would have done better as a screenplay or graphic novel.

Rating: three stars
Length: 345 pages
Source: library sale
Similar Books: For more young adult dystopias, check out The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (my review), Feed by M.T. Anderson, and The Giver by Lois Lowry. This book also reminded me a bit of the movie, The Matrix.
Other books I've read by this author: Sabriel, Lireal, Abhorsen, Across the Wall, Mister Monday, Grim Tuesday

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Books Read
1. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling (my review)
2. Death in the air by Agatha Christie (my review)
3. Murder in Three Acts by Agatha Christie (my review)
4. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling (my review)
5. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling (my review)
6. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by JK Rowling (my review)

Total books read: 6

Shortest book: 230 pages
Longest book: 734 pages
Average number of pages: 379
Total pages: 2279

Re-reads: 4
New books: 2

Most popular rating: four and a half stars (three times)
Average Rating: 4.58

Favorite book: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Biggest disappointment: I enjoyed all of the books I read this month :)

It appears that all of the books I have read this month have a theme, and that theme is "British." That was not intentional. What was intentional was the fact that all of the books I read this month may be described as comfort reads. In September, my busy school schedule kept on getting in the way of getting any pleasure reading done. I kept on starting books, putting them down for several days, and then completely forgetting where I was. As a response I decided to re-read one of my favorite series, The Harry Potter Series. I also picked up a couple books by Agatha Christie. Her work is always quick and fun.

Although six books in one month (a little over a book a week) is a lot less than what I used to read, I think that this is a realistic reading schedule for me while I'm in grad school. My classes certainly keep me busy, and finding time to read was a challenge. November will be even more of a challenge as I have quite a few assignments due, Thanksgiving, and I want to spend more time working on my writing. Although I once again do not have time to attempt NaNoWriMo (seriously, November is just the worse month for that) I will be making an attempt to work on my writing every day, even if it's only for a half an hour.

This review is spoiler-free for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Some people may consider if spoilerish for previous books in the series, so I'm putting it under a cut.

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Rating: five stars
Length: 734 pages
Source: shelf
Similar Books: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (my review) also showcases a deadly tournament. The Skulduggery Pleasant series by Derek Landy should also appeal to fans of the series.
Other books I've read by this author: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (my review), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (my review), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (my review) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch through the Ages, The Tales of Beedle the Bard (my review)

xposted to bookish and temporaryworlds

Some of the sixteen books I mailed out have made it to their destination, so I have credits again! I decided to pick up a few books. Here's what I've ordered:

The Shadows and the Light by Anne Bishop
The House of Gaian by Anne Bishop
Ghosts in the Snow by Tamara Siler Jones
Deaths Daughter by Amber Benson (my review- posted 11/11/09)

The first two books are books two and three of the Tir Alainn Trilogy. I already read book one (The Pillars of the World) and reviewed it last summer. Since I have a bad habit of starting series and then never finishing them, I figure that I should make an attempt to break that habit. I'll probably read those once I'm done with The Harry Potter Series. The third book was recently recommended on bookish. The last is just because I like Amber Benson as an actress, and I'm curious to see how her fiction turns out.

I also purchased two books on book closeouts. Got a fantastic deal on them:

The Faceless Ones by Derek Landy (out of stock- will not be shipped)
Midnight Never Come by Marie Brennan

The Faceless Ones is the third book in the Skulduggery Pleasant Series. I've already read Midnight Never Come, but don't own my own copy yet.

I'll review the new books once I've read them! Also, expect to see a review of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire up this afternoon. I just finished rereading the book last night.

Like the previous Harry Potter reviews, this one is longer than usual, and I discuss spoilers (more so in this review than the previous ones). As a result, everything's under a cut.

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Rating: five stars
Length: 435 pages
Source: shelf
Similar Books: For other books about magic and boarding schools, try A School for Sorcery by E. Rose Sabin, A College of Magics by Caroline Stevenmer, and A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray. Harry Potter fans may also enjoy Inkheart (my review) and The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, and Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landry, all which present young adults who are pulled out of their normal lives and into a magical one.
Other books I've read by this author: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (my review), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (my review), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch through the Ages, The Tales of Beedle the Bard (my review)

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This weekend I opened up my paperbackswap account for the first time since 01/01/09. I had a whopping 17 books requested from me and another 7 oh hold (yikes!- shipping costs are going to kill me). I also ended up requesting three books for myself. They are:

The Invisible Ring by Anne Bishop
The Whim of the Dragon by Pamela Dean
Thirsty by M.T. Anderson (my review- 11/22/09)

Now I've already read and reviewed The Invisible Ring here, but I don't own a copy yet. The Whim of a Dragon is book three in a trilogy. To be honest, I read the first two books so long ago, that I may need to re-read then before diving into book three. Thirsty is by M.T. Anderson. In 2008 I read and feel in love with his sci-fi novel Feed. This one is about vampires, and I'm excited to read it.

The good thing about reviewing a series that so many people have read is that I can be a little more free in discussing spoilers. Although the review below does not give away the ending, I do reveal certain information that I would normally hold back. As a result, it's under a cut. It's also a little longer than most of my reviews.

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Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 341 pages
Source: shelf
Similar Books: For other books about magic and boarding schools, try A School for Sorcery by E. Rose Sabin, A College of Magics by Caroline Stevenmer, and A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray. Harry Potter fans may also enjoy Inkheart (my review) and The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, and Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landry, all which present young adults who are pulled out of their normal lives and into a magical one.
Other books I've read by this author: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (my review), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch through the Ages, The Tales of Beedle the Bard (my review)

xposted to bookish and temporaryworlds

(This book is also known as Three Act Tragedy. Once again, I’ll be going by the name on my copy, just so I don’t confuse myself)

When Reverend Stephen Babbington dies after consuming a cocktail, the final analysis is that he died of a fit, ruling out murder. That is until a second death takes place in a manner almost identical. Three amateur detectives take the stage: Sir Charles Cartwright, a former actor, his friend Mr. Satterthwaite, and a young woman known as Egg, whom Sir Charles is not so secretly in love with. The trio begins to inspect the guests at each party, but struggle to find how the two murders are connected. Will world-famous detective Hercule Poirot manage to help them find the murderer, before someone else ends up dead?

Murder in Three Acts is a different type of Hercule Poirot case simply because Hercule Poirot is not the protagonist here. In fact, he doesn’t play a major role until over half-way through the novel. The benefit of this is it does set the book apart from novels where he plays a more prominent role. Seeing as Christie ended up writing thirty-three Hercule Poirot novels (and even more short stories), it makes sense that she would want to break up the formula a bit. The main drawback to this is, despite Poirot’s secrecy, he does, with his manner of drawing attention to important details, guide the reader through the mystery and help them try to solve it on their own. Where he plays a smaller role in this volume, it’s more difficult for the reader to play along with the detective. This did end up diminishing my enjoyment somewhat.

Despite the drawback, Murder in Three Acts is a cleverly put together mystery. Although I managed to find out who the killer was this time, the method and motive where hidden from me and I was purely surprised when Poirot revealed it at the end. The characters that we are introduced to this volume are a lot of fun as well. I particularly liked Sir Charles, who, after being an actor on stage for so long, has a habit of sliding into roles subconsciously. His friendship with the more grounded Mr. Satterthwaite and almost-romance with the lively Egg were also enjoyable to read about. Although I would not recommend this to a first time Agatha Christie reader, established fans will sure to enjoy this mystery.

Rating: four stars
Length: 230 pages
Source: shelf
Similar Books: for other Hercule Poirot books written around the same time try: Murder on the Orient Express, Death in the Air, and Death on the Nile. All three recommended.
Other books I've read by this author: The Tuesday Club Murders, Dead Man’s Mirror, They Came to Baghdad, 4:50 to Paddington, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Sleeping Murder, The Secret Adversary, The Secret of Chimneys, Hallowe’en Party, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, Death Comes as the End, Appointment with Death, A Caribbean Mystery, A Murder is Announced, The Under Dog and Other Stories, Death on the Nile, Murder on the Orient Express, Death in the Air (my review)

I'm still in a mystery mood (thank you Castle) and have two unread Agatha Christie books sitting on my shelf. Which one should I read next...

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(This book has also been marketed as Death in the Clouds- I will refer to it as Death in the Air during my review as that’s the title found on my copy.)

I’m not hugely into mysteries, but every now and then I get in the mood for one. When I do, one of the first places I reach is Agatha Christie. This time I picked up Death in the Air which once again proves a sorry truth about detectives. They just can’t go anywhere without running into a murder. In this novel, world famous detective Hercule Poirot is traveling by airplane when one of the passengers is killed mid-flight by a poisoned dart. To make the situation even more bizarre, the murder weapon is found tucked in the back of our detective’s chair, drawing suspicion to him. Poirot must solve the mystery not only to find the killer, but also to clear his name,

Death in the Air is an example of a solid Agatha Christie mystery. In the beginning of a book a seemingly impossible murder takes place, and as we begin to look into passengers on the plane, it looks as if multiple people could be guilty. Like Poirot, the reader must find his or her way through red herrings, and false alarms to find the truth at the end. I always see if I can solve the mystery first, and I often find that I can discover pieces of the truth (for example, who committed the murder, what was the murder weapon, what’s the motivation) but rarely get the whole picture by the time Poirot unveils the killer. I had a very similar experience with Death in the Air, where I had guessed pretty much everything by the beginning, but was too distracted by the drama of the story and ended up changing my mind to the wrong person. Death in the Air also gives us a cast of entertaining side characters, such as Mr. Clancy a scatterbrained detective novelist, and Jane Grey, a young hairdresser caught up in both the mystery and a love triangle. Jane Grey is almost the second protagonist of the story, which I feel was a good choice, as she is far easier to relate to. Although Poirot, with his brilliance, egg shaped head, and giant mustache, is a fascinating lead, his sharp mind and secretive nature makes him at times quite distant to the reader.

Death in the Air has all the elements of a good Agatha Christie mystery. Although it is not as brilliant as say, Murder on the Orient Express, or A Murder is Announced, it was still a enjoyable read that kept me guessing (and second-guessing myself) until almost the last page.

Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 230 pages
Source: a neat used bookstore near campus. I forgot the name but it’s something very standard like “Used books”
Similar Books: For other books where Hercule Poirot encounters a murder while in transit, try Murder on the Orient Express (train), and Death on the Nile (boat).
Other books I've read by this author: The Tuesday Club Murders, Dead Man’s Mirror, They Came to Baghdad, 4:50 to Paddington, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Sleeping Murder, The Secret Adversary, The Secret of Chimneys, Hallowe’en Party, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, Death Comes as the End, Appointment with Death, A Caribbean Mystery, A Murder is Announced, The Under Dog and Other Stories, Death on the Nile, Murder on the Orient Express

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For this book, my review ended up being a bit longer than usual, so I put in under the cut. A few minor spoilers for the book, but nothing too big. Chances are, if you want to read this book, you've done it already anyway.

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Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 309 pages
Source: shelf
TBR Pile: 135 books
Similar Books: For other books about magic and boarding schools, try A School for Sorcery by E. Rose Sabin, A College of Magics by Caroline Stevenmer, and A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray. Harry Potter fans may also enjoy Inkheart (my review) and The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, and Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landry, all which present young adults who are pulled out of their normal lives and into a magical one.
Other books I've read by this author: Harry Potter and the Camber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisioner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch through the Ages, The Tales of Beedle the Bard (my review)

xposted to bookish and temporaryworlds

Yep, I'm very late on this one I know.

Books Read:
1. The Eternal Kiss by Trisha Telep (my review)
2. Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire by Derek Landy (my review) 

Total books read: 2

Shortest book: 351 pages
Longest book: 416 pages
Average number of pages: 383.5
Total pages: 767

Re-reads: 0
New books: 2

Most popular rating: five stars (once) and three and a half stars (once)
Average Rating: 4.25 stars

Favorite book: Playing with Fire
Biggest disappointment: If we're going just by stars, I'd have to say The Eternal Kiss. It wasn't a bad book, but ended weekly.

At the beginning of September, I moved from Maine to Rhode Island to attend grad school full time. At the end of August, I wondered if that meant more time to read (as I was no longer working full time) or less time to read (due to homework). I think September's pitiful haul has proved the latter. October already looks more promising.

Spoilers for the first Skulduggery Pleasant book. No real spoilers for Playing with Fire (book 2)

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Rating: five stars
Length: 351 pages
Source: bookcloseouts.com
TBR Pile: 135 books
Similar Books: The Artemis Fowl Series. The Harry Potter Series.
Other books I've read by this author: Skulduggery Pleasant: Scepter of the Ancients

Next up, I’m reading a collection of fantasy short stories, The Coyote Road. Expect updates to be far less frequent from me, as I just became a full time student in a master’s program for library science. I have very little time to read beyond what’s required. I’m doing my best to make reading a priority, but I’m buried in homework!

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