City of Ashes

The saga continues! Clary is unable to wake her mother and is dealing with the attraction she feels to her new-found brother. Jace is being investigated by the Clave and feels like he is losing everything. As if that weren't enough, Valentine, who now has the Mortal Cup, steals the second mortal instrument, the truth sword. Clary and her new friends must do everything they can to stop him when the Clave refuses to listen to their warnings.

Yeah, this whole series is sexy. The dialogue is mostly great. The story is excellent. There is action and romance and generally, just a good time. As for the Jace/Clary thing, I think it's quite sexy that they want each other even though it is forbidden (for now), because I think they will end up being not related. This installment was filled with clues that they might not be related and I really hope that it turns out to be the case.

As for what's coming next, there are a few things to be excited about. The third, and final installment of this trilogy, City of Glass, comes out in March. I'm not sure how long I'm ready to wait for it, but I guess I have no choice. City of Glass should finish the Valentine saga and clear things up about Jace and Clary. She is not planning any other books, so I hope she doesn't kill Jace. Seriously, that would break my heart worse than when Dumbledore died. Maybe. Even though City of Glass, will end this story, Clare will continue writing about shadowhunters (the nephillum who hunt demons). But she's going to set in a few hundred years ago. It should be interesting.

City of Bones

Wow. This book is sexy. A fantasy set in modern day New York City, 15 year old Clary can suddenly see vampires, werewolves, and demons. After her mother is kidnapped, she discovers that she was lied to her whole life. She is a nephillim, a being with human and angel blood, and her mother hid her away from that world to escape a man named Valentine. But now Valentine is back and after The Mortal Cup, a powerful object that Clary's mother took from him and hid. Now Clary must band with Jace, Isabel, and Alec, three friends who grew up learning to fight demons, in order to save her mother and stop Valentine.

The book is actually way more complicated than that. There are big reveals and fun arguments. The characters are all well developed and great. There is so much romantic tension that I loved it, but at the same time was full of action. Fights with demons, werewolves, vampires, where Clary and her friends are outnumbered. It is a fun read. And oh yeah, stop reading if you don't want it ruined, but Clary finds out that the guy she has come to love is actually... wait for it... her brother! Yeah, she kisses her brother. This book is a little fearless. And the author is great with being true to the characters emotions and experiences. She really presents her story well.

As for movies, I hope they get made. These would be amazing movies, if done well. They would need decent budgets, because lame special effects would ruin everything, but if they cast sexy actors who are actually quite skillful, then this could be huge. I'll be waiting to see what happens!

Stop in the Name of Pants!

I was very excited for this book to come out, but only just managed to buy and read it 2 months after it was released. Which brings me two months closer to the release of the next one, which I can't wait for. A recap on the series: Basically, Georgia writes a diaries about her first encounters with boys. The main three are the Sex God, Robbie, who left her to study the environment in New Zealand, but eventually came back for her. The Luuurve God, aka The Italian Stallion or Masimo, who took over for Robbie as lead singer of The Stiff Dylans when Robbie went to New Zealand. And Dave the Laugh, who was originally a red herring to make Robbie jealous, but who Georgia can't stop kissing or thinking about even when she was dating Robbie or Masimo. All throughout there are her hilarious friends and don't forget Wet Lindsay, the annoying girl who always dates the same guys as Georgia.

This novel starts after Georgia becomes Masimo's official girlfriend, but when he goes to Italy for a month, she kisses Dave the Laugh (who has a girlfriend!). There is a lot of romantic tension between Georgia and Dave the L, but the beginning is honestly, kind of slow. It really got good during the last 100 pages, when Masimo gets back. Lindsay is trying to break up Masimo and Georgia because she is spiteful and Masimo gets jealous when he keeps finding Georgia with Dave the L. He doesn't even know about the kiss. It all escalates at the end when Dave the L and Masimo go out to fight over Georgia, leaving me ACHING for the next installment.

I didn't like Masimo when he was first introduced, but he really comes alive as a love interest for Georgia. But I still love Dave the Laugh. I'm sure that this isn't the best idea for the target audience, but what I want to see is Georgia continuing to date Masimo, while having Dave the L on the side. I love her developing relationship with her mom and Sven is also one of my favorite characters. I think a real confrontation with Wet Lindsay would be amazing to read. In the end, really, I want Georgia to get with Dave the Laugh. I think that this will happen, but probably not until the very last book. I want more books, so I suppose I'm okay with Rennison dragging the story out some more as long as there is some more really good D the L snogging in them.

And...... MOVIE TIME. July saw the release of Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging, an adaptation of the first novel. I have finally got around to (trying to) watch it. I made it ten minutes. You may like it, but I couldn't stand it. I didn't like the way it was directed, I didn't like the writing. Part of what made Georgia so funny in the books is how whiney and melodramatic she is, but in the film it just came off annoying. I also forget how young all the characters are in the books, and trying to watch the movie made me feel old. There was a lot of good casting (some not so hot, like Mr. and Mrs. Nicholson, Libby, and Dave the L), but all of the acting felt wrong. All in all, I didn't like it and hope it hasn't ruined the books for me.

Vegan Virgin Valentine

Another novel from Mackler (The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things), that shows she can create great characters. Mara Valentine is a type A personality. She's been accepted to a prestigious college and is competing for valedictorian with her ex-boyfriend. She's even got a part time job and everything seems to be going perfect. But then V, Mara's niece who is only a year younger than her, shows up and V and Mara couldn't be less alike. V smokes pot, is into acting, and hooks up with Mara's ex-boyfriend. But Mara is about to figure out who she really is and not who she thinks her parents want her to be. With a not-always-easy relationship with V, a new (and older) boyfriend, and lots of trial and error, Mara may just learn how to really live.

Mackler make some really good characters. I love Mara and V, and Mara's boyfriend too. I love the journey she takes and feel the tension. There is lots of conflict and lots of emotions and it was just a good story. It isn't how I would have resolved Mara's situation, but then I am very different from Mara and her decision is true to herself and the journey she takes throughout the novel.

Twilight

This book has a lot of fans and a lot of hype, so clearly I have to add my two cents. Actually, I bought this book back in November, because the back was intriguing. A girl falling for a Vampire who lusts for her blood? Fantastic. I bought it and read it before I realized how much of a phenomenon it is. So, clearly, there is a lot to talk about here.

First, what's it really about? Bella moves in with her father and at school meets a boy named Edward Cullen. He is tense around her always, like he hates her, but she can't help but fall in love with him. Well, it turns out he actually loves her too, but he's a vampire and the scent of her blood is the beautiful blood he has ever smelled. They are in love, but soon another vampire meets Bella and he wants her blood. Edward and his vampire family (who are all gorgeous by the way) fight to protect Bella from the other vampire.

Alright, I LOVED this book when I first read it. Sure it was really cheesy, but it made me giggle and was exciting, and Bella is actually a really interesting narrator. Plus, the premise is kind of great. This isn't a great piece of literature by any means, but it is a fun read. I don't think it deserves all the hype it's getting. Seriously, the story flows well and is anything but boring, but there isn't much conflict between Bella and Edward. It all happens so fast. They meet, he's a vampire, oh and now they're in love. There are plenty of other books that deserve the hype this book is getting.

As for what comes next, there are a few things to mention. First, the series is growing, which should be obvious because Meyer would be stupid to stop writing about Bella and Edward with the fan-base she's got. I just bought the second novel and am excited to read it. There are two other books in the series out, the last having come out recently (within the last month, I think). I will buy them when they come out in paperback or try to get them from the library. I'm excited to read this story, but not excited enough to pay hardback price.

Finally.... the MOVIE!!!! It's coming out November 21st and I'm very excited to see how it turns out. It might be total crap, but I'm hoping that it's not. They have a female director, so if the film is any good, it might do good things for women in the film industry. I'm mixed on the casting. Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen: FANTASTIC. Kristen Stewart, I'm not so sure about. However, the girl CAN act, and that is what is most important. I am very excited to see how this shapes up.

Moose: a memoir of fat camp

It is purely coincidental that the two books I read about being fat are being posted next to each other. I loved the Mackler novel, but I think I like Moose better. Klein tells about her experiences dieting as a child and going to fat camp. She condenses several years of her life into one summer so that the story flows better and it's great. She is honest about everything and her story-telling is superb. I can not wait to read Straight Up and Dirty, because Klein is an amazing writer.

Even if you can't relate to being fat, this is just a great read. Klein combines parts of her real childhood diary with her story-telling and it is highly effective. At one point she asks her diary if it is a girl diary or a boy diary because that would determine whether or not it was her best friend or her boyfriend. She says that if it is a boy diary it would be really sad that her boyfriend was a diary. At other times the story is sad, like when her father puffs his cheeks at her when he thinks she is eating too much. Not only is the story tight and well told, but it is a great reflection on human nature and our society's obsession with weight.

The Earth, My Butt and other Big Round Things

Virginia's life is... complicated: She's the overweight, youngest child of a perfectly beautiful family, she fools around with a guy named Froggy and kind of likes him, but is afraid to act on that, because that's not what good fat girls do, her best friend has moved to the other side of the country, and she's obsessed with making lists. But then her brother is kicked out of Columbia for date rape. Her whole family is thrown off balance and Virginia must learn to deal with the family she always thought was perfect and never felt a part of. And hey, maybe she'll learn to love herself and maybe get a guy too.

Seriously, I doubt that summary does this book justice. Every girl should read this book. Not only does Mackler know how to create amazing characters and tell a good story, but if you're interested in the thought process of an overweight 15-year-old, this is your Bible. As a character, Virginia could have easily been a pathetic, self-obsessed fat girl, but she's not. She's a real person and she learns how to stand up for herself. This book has such a great message, but it is also an enjoyable, well-told story.

Flawless

A continues to torment the four former friends with dark secrets. This time they delve into the Jenna incident and we get some answers on this. Each character's situation gets worse and worse and we have another Red Herring for who A is. But Ally is definitely dead, and Ally was definitely a bad kid.

There are a lot of awesomely trashy moments in this book, but they are few and far between. The plot develops excruciatingly slow. This is why I don't watch Lost. I have a short attention span, and the author is just being spiteful. I kind of want to know who A really is, but I doubt I'm going to waste money on another book from this series. If you read it, let me know, because I am a little curious about how this all ends up.

Lord Loss

Darren Shan switches from Vampires to Werewolves, and I love it! Scary and funny with plot twists and great characters, this is a great introduction for a new series for Shan. It all starts when Grubbs Grady discovers his entire (chess-obsessed) family dead, their bodies being played with by demons and a demon master, Lord Loss. He soon finds out that his bloodline has a genetic disease, where teenagers often become werewolves. And this isn't howl at the moon once a month werewolves. Transformations occur around the full moon, but they are permanent and the child must either be killed or controlled. Lord Loss is the only one with a cure, but you'll have to play his game first. One person fights off his demons, one person plays him in five simultaneous games of chess. If either one of these people looses, then Lord Loss gets them both... and the child. As if that weren't enough, if the person playing chess manages to win three games, it still isn't over. The fighter and the child can go free, but the person playing chess is taken to Lord Loss's demon dimension, where they must fight for their life. Lord Loss killed Grubbs' entire family and now he must decide if he is ready to face him himself in order to save a new-found family member.

Well, this plot description was longer than I intended, but seriously, this book was good. I like it better than the Cirque du Freak books, and just bought the second one and am itching to read it. The characters are easy to like, real, and funny. To be honest, I was worried that Shan would give us Darren, the narrator in Cirque to Freak, all over again but with werewolves. However, this didn't happen. The writing is conversational, first person like the Cirque du Freak, but Shan gives us an entirely different narrator and shows that he really is the master of horror and a great writer. This book reads a little older than the Cirque du Freak, and is just real. Shan doesn't shy away from teenage pregnancy, or adult infidelity. The horror elements are fantastic, but Shan's success comes from being able to ground them in the real world.

Charlie Bone and the Time Twister

Charlie Bone is back at Bloor's, where strange things always happens. Once again, Charlie and his friends must come together to fix things when they meet Henry Yewbeam, a boy from the past, who was sent to the future with a mysterious time twister.

I read this a long time ago, and it all kind of runs together. These books are good and fun to read, not great, but definately enjoyable. This book continues Charlie unraveling the mystery of the Red King and the endowed children, as well as Charlie finding his father and dealing with his aunts. This is probably the worst review ever, but I'm planning on reading the rest of the series and don't want to just skip several of the books.

Cathy's Book

Cathy keeps a journal of sorts (with beautiful sketches that physically give this book great character) so that if anything happens to her, her best friend will know what is going on. Cathy has a boyfriend, who she cares about a lot and he seems to care about her too. That is until he suddenly breaks up with her, citing age differences. Cathy breaks into his house and starts stalking him and gets in over her head with what she thinks is Chinese organized crime, but the truth turns out to be deeper and stranger than she could ever imagine.

This book is AWESOME! It is INTERACTIVE, with phone numbers, websites, etc., that work. Parts of the book are sketches, parts are evidence that Cathy finds as she investigates her ex-boyfriend, sometimes her instant messenger conversations are part of the story and we see her conversations. If she has two conversations at the same time, we see them side by side, with time stamps, the way we would if we had two conversations up on the computer screen. I didn't check any of the interactive parts, because I couldn't put the book down, but I am told that everything is still operational. Either way, the story is stand alone, so if all you have is the book, you can still enjoy the story. I was seriously impressed when I read this book. I read a lot, and tend to love all stories, but I've become better at finding great stories (thanks to two internships that allowed me to read all summer for school credit! Best summer ever!). This is a great story that really modernizes the novel medium. The characters are great, the story is phenomenal, the presentation is excellent. Seriously, read this book.

The Amulet of Samarkand

The Amulet of Samarkand follows a young magician, Nathaniel, who gets over his head by summoning a mid-level demon, Bartimaeus, to steal the Amulet of Samarkand from one of the most powerful (and evil) magicians in his country. He uncovers a plot deeper and more sinister than he could ever have imagined and must team up with Bartimaeus to save his government.

The storytelling switches from Nathaniel's point of view to Bartimaeus and both are unique, lovable story-tellers. Bartimaeus especially is a funny narrator, and the magical world that Nathaniel and Bartimaeus inhabit is extremely interesting. The story is great, this novel having a satisfying self-contained story, while still setting up the overarching plot of the trilogy. I feel that often trilogy's are just one really long book, where really, they are three separate stories, joined by one over-arching story (Take note Christopher Paolini!). The Bartimaeus Trilogy is a real trilogy, thankfully and all of the interweaving plots are excellent.

As a side note, I'm not sure when I will be reading the rest of the trilogy, for two reasons. One, I bought the book, but it is at my parent's house in Virginia and I live in California now. Two, the second book switches between three points of view: Nathaniel, Bartimaeus, and a girl who only briefly showed up in the first book, but who I hated. I'm sure if i give her a chance, she'll be great, because I love Jonathon Stroud as a writer, but I really don't want to give her that chance because she pissed me off like Julie Cooper in the first book.

Format Change

Change of format. Now I'm going to just explain the premise of the book in one to two sentences, give a few comments, and maybe mention a favorite moment or two. I want to keep updating, but life is a bit hectic, as I now have a full time job, am writing a novel and a screenplay, have a part-time job, and like to read.

Expect me to catch up on this within the next week or so, hopefully and I will be better at updating. Books to look for: The Mortal instruments, the new Confessions of Georgia Nicholson, Twilight Saga, Princess Academy, Moose: Memoir of Fat Camp and many many many more!