Overprotected- Waiting on Wednesday

Overprotected by Jennifer Laurens. Release date: April 29th 2011. Published by Grove Creek Publishing.

Why am I pining for Overprotected?

I'm actually a bit embarrassed to admit that I wouldn't have thought twice about picking up Overprotected  if I'd seen the book in a store. I think it's the bodyguard on the cover that just looks a bit fake. Luckily for me I read an excellent review of this novel over at The Mod Podge Bookshelf and it made me want to read this book(so bad!). Do check out the review and the rest of my post, you might want to add Overprotected  to your wishlist as well :) I just remembered that I've actually bought one of Jennifer's books before, I have a copy of A Season of Eden in my shelf, it sounds like a great story I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

Book trailer:

Synopsis(borrowed from the Goodreads):

Ashlyn: A lonely society princess living in New York City.

Daddy hired you to be my bodyguard.

Colin: Childhood enemy, now her protector.

Daddy thought I’d be safe. He thought I’d never fall in love. He thought he could keep me forever.

Charles: obsessed with keeping her safe, keeping her his, he hires the one person he knows she could never fall in love with: Colin.

Daddy was wrong

Want to know more about the author or the book?

Visit Jennifer Laurens' homepage

Follow Jennifer on Twitter

Visit the Overprotected blog - read excerpt here.

Add Overprotected to your Goodreads shelf

What are you waiting for this week?

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. This event spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. Please visit Jill's blog to find out what other book bloggers are waiting for.

Firelight - Teaser Tuesday

This weeks teaser is brought to you from Firelight by Sophie Jordan, Kindle location 661-64:

I shake my head and open my mouth to stress my unwillingness, then stop. My flesh shivers. The tiny hairs at my nape prickle in alert. A textbook slips from my fingers, but I don't move to pick it up.

This is actually cheating because I've finished this book, but I still wanted to share a teaser from it. Of the hyped up books I've read lately they've all been a bit of a disappointment but I'm glad to report back to you that I thought Firelight was a great read! One of the best books I've read so far this year and I'm lusting for the sequel.

MizB of Should Be Reading host this meme called Teaser Tuesday . Anyone can play along! Just do the following: 

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Book review: The Last Full Measure by Ann Rinaldi

My summary:
Fourteen-year-old Tacy Stryker lives in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during the period of the American Civil War and she is present when the Battle of Gettysburg commence in July 1863.Tacy's father is involved in the war as a doctor, trying to save lives on both sides, and her two of her brothers, Brandon and Joel, are off fighting while Tacy is at home with her Ma and her disabled brother, David. David is so bitter for having to stay at home doing "nothing", he wanted to be a soldier as well but he was turned down due to his bad leg. Still David one day has his chance to give the last full measure.

My thoughts:
This was absolutely an amazing historical read, it was the first book I've ever read by Ann Rinaldi but I'm sure that it won't be the last. The Last Full Measure isn't a YA historical fiction that will give the reader loads of information about the Battle of Gettysburg. This is the story of the people of Gettysburg and their families and the drama many the people there experienced during the battle. This is also the story of the 200-400 free black Americans living in Gettysburg at the time of the battle, according to the author this is the first work of fiction that have addressed important piece of fact.

This story is told from a fourteen-year-old girl, Tacy's, point of view and for me she was a credible main character. Tacy isn't some kind of heroine fighting alongside with the men in the war, she is a girl trying to get by. Tacy grows as a character throughout the novel, from being a child towards becoming a young woman. During these days of hardness I believe Tacy learns a lot about humans in general and herself. There are several other characters in this story but I didn't feel like there were too many characters to keep track of. Every character brought something unique to the story.

The shortest little scenes could bring tears to my eye. That's how good Rinaldi writes about encounters that might have happened during this war (or any war really) perhaps not identical to the ones in the novel but similar enough. It reminded me of stories my great grandmother, she's almost a 100(!) years old, have told me about her experiences from the Second World War here in Norway. I'll save those stories for another day but my point is that even though the Civil War was a very different era of course but in many ways a war is a war. I feel that The Last Full Measure was realistic and historical accurate. It was at times very sad, I cried, but that's how it is in times of war.

Several of the characters in this novel actually lived at the time in Gettysburg and I think it is wonderful of Rinaldi to bring them to life again. It is something that I find very touching and I loved reading the authors note where several additional facts about the characters where included.

I want to read more of Ann Rinaldi's novels now so I would appreciate suggestions on Rinaldi novels that I should read in the comment form below.

The cover:
It's quite boring I must say and wouldn't have intrigued me to pick the book of the shelf in a store.

My rating of this book:

4.5 stars out of 5

Want a second opinion? Check out these reviews written by some of my book blogging friends:
J'adorehappyendings
Becky's Book Reviews
The Mod Podge Bookshelf
Rebecca's Book Blog

Want to know more?
Add The Last Full Measure to your Goodreads wish list.
Visit Ann Rinaldi's homepage 

The Last Full Measure by Ann Rinaldi

Published: November 2010
Pages(hardcover): 224
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
ISBN: 0547389809 (ISBN13: 9780547389806)
Full disclosure: Review copy from the publisher via NetGalley. For honest review. 

This book can be purchased from a number of local retailers and on-line book stores such as Amazon or The Book Depository (I'm not an affiliate of either). The latter store does by the way have free shipping to about 100 countries.

Lipstick Laws:Teaser Tuesday + siesta

This weeks teaser is brought to you from Lipstick Laws by Amy Holder, Kindle location 43-45:

I, April Bowers, am a tissue-wasting, size-34C-obsessed bosom sculptor. Yes, I confess... I am a bra stuffer.

I just finished this book and it was a mediocre reading experience I would say.. 

MizB of Should Be Reading host this meme called Teaser Tuesday . Anyone can play along! Just do the following: 

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Siesta:
I'm taking a short break from blogging to catch up on some reviews. Expect me back on Monday, until then have a fab week!

Author interview: Pamela Klaffke

A few days ago I posted a guest review of Snapped by Pamela Klaffke, today I post a guest interview. My sister, who also did the guest review, has conducted an interview with author Pamela Klaffke about her novel Snapped :) I'm pleased to introduce author Pamela Klaffke and interviewer Daydreamer:


1.For Sara B. there’s a lot of inner dialog going on, and it’s pretty dark stuff too. Why did you make Sara so violent and at times pretty macabre, in her way of thoughts?

I wanted to illustrate that side of everyone's mind that people generally don't want to admit to having. it's definitely exaggerated, but that's part of the satire. Sara is also in crisis — she's having a breakdown — and anyone who has ever experienced any kind of mental meltdown knows that your thoughts aren't always rational or pleasant, and that life can get pretty dark.

2.How did you come up with the idea of putting two old ladies like Esther and Lila in the story? They sort of don’t fit in at all, and then somehow they do.

i have a great love of vintage clothes and fashion magazines (and a huge personal collection), and i wanted to incorporate this somehow. the characters of lila and esther just made sense to me as i was writing. since i start the process only knowing the beginning, middle and the end of the story (just like in school!) and the main character's voice, it's an adventure for me, too, imagining who sara might run into or meet. specifically regarding lila and esther, their meeting reminded me of the odd and random encounters many of us have n our lives with the most unlikely people; sometimes the friendships stick and sometimes they don't. thankfully, in this case they did, because i love the old ladies, and think they offer a nice counter-balance to sara's erratic behavior.

3.Were you trying to shock or maybe provoke some of the readers with using a very direct and uncensored language? 

no, there was never an intention to shock. the language and thoughts and general vulgarity is simply part of the character. some of it may come from the fact that other than geneieve, sara's friends are primarily male. of course, the book isn't going to be for everyone, and indeed, some readers get quite offended and upset, but it's also important to keep in mind that the book is satire and therefore everything is exaggerated, including the language. (plus, there really are people out there who talk like that!)

4.There’s almost no mentioning of Sara’s family, just that she doesn’t speak to her mother. Where IS Sara’s family?

there's the one brief mention of her mother, but i didn't want to weigh the story down with mother-daughter issues, since i think that would have detracted from the core of the story. i have always imagined that sara's mother is living on the sunshine coast of western Canada with a younger husband and too many face lifts.

5.I kind of got the feeling that the book was cut short. I wanted to know more about everything. But then again, I almost always do. Like what happened to Genevieve and her show, and would she ever forgive Sara? Couldn’t the book have been just a coooouple of pages longer?

the story had to end when it did, or it would have been twice as long. i also didn't want things to be all neatly wrapped up, particularly with genevieve. women's friendships are complicated and i wanted to show that. they can end in the most sudden and unexpected ways.

6. Did you try out different endings to the book? Or was Sara’s destiny written in stone?

the original ending was very slightly different (and actually shorter); sara didn't have the final encounter with the parrot girl, but otherwise, it was pretty much the same. that it ended with a new beginning for sara seemed to fit, and as i said, continuing the story would have made the book very long, really two books instead of one. i sometimes wonder what would have happened to all of the characters, as i suspect many readers so as well, but think it's best left for everyone to imagine their own version of what happens next.

Book review +giveaway: Glee: Foreign Exchange by Sophia Lowell

This is the second official Glee novel, check out my review of the first novel(a Glee prequel) The Beginning.

My summary:

A French glee club is visiting the glee club at McKinley High. Can Rachel handle the competition? Why does Kurt get all the girls? Will Finn runaway to France with his new crush?

My thoughts:

As I've said before I love, LOVE Glee and I very much enjoyed reading the first Glee novel so when this one showed up in my mailbox I had to read it ASAP. 


This time the Glee kids is in for a surprise, but how will things work out when the French Glee club arrive at McKinley High? Mr. Schuster assigns each of his Glee members to a French student, they are going to show the French students around school and make sure they'll have a good time. The plot sounded great to and to some extent it was. Puck tried every trick he could think of to get a cool French girl to be his girlfriend. Rachel and Quinn both had issues with Finn getting assigned with the hottest French girl(she wasn't just hot but also a talented singer, you can only guess what went through Rachel's mind). We got to see more of Artie which was great. 


While Foreign Exchange was entertaining it just didn't have the same Glee-feeling as the the first novel. Something was missing and I hope Lowell is aware of that and that the same wonderful feeling is back on paper in the third official Glee novel, Summer Break, when it hits the stores in July this year.

The cover:
Nice and colorful, it just makes you happy + it's a picture of some of my fav Glee characters!

My rating of this book:

3 stars out of 5 - it was ok.

Giveaway:
I'm giving away my copies(that means that they're used copies) of the first two books in this series. If you would like to read the books just leave a comment below and make sure to include your email. The contest is international and ends March 24th.

Want to know more?
Add Glee:Foregin Exchange to your Goodreads wish list.
Visit Read Glee

Glee:Foreign Exchange by Sophia Lowell

Published: February 2011
Pages(paperback): 256
Publisher: Headline UK
ISBN: 0755377389 (ISBN13: 9780755377381)
Full disclosure: Received review copy from Headline UK for honest review. 

This book can be purchased from a number of local retailers and on-line book stores such as Amazon or The Book Depository (I'm not an affiliate of either). The latter store does by the way have free shipping to about 100 countries.  

Book review: Snapped by Pamela Klaffke

Since almost all of my reviews are of young adult novels I feel that I have some responsibility to warn the readers when the novel I review below is unsuitable for younger readers.


Guest review:
The review below has been written by my younger sister, Daydreamer. Here's a short intoduction of my sister: She is 25 years old and a lover of books just like me, she recently finished her studies(I guess that shows in her opinion about drinking wine on a Tuesday) and she is working as a radiograph at a Norwegian hospital.

*This review is of an adult novel, the book contains some of the following ingredients: language and alcohol.*

My summary:
Sara B. is the co-founder and star-photographer of the stylemagazine”Snap”. She does the magazines Do’s and Don’ts-column every week, and hence she is now solemnly responsible for wrecking thousands of people’s self-esteem over the years. And she actually loves her job. At least that’s what she thought until Eva B. and F*ing Parrot Girl entered her life. Suddenly Sara isn’t all that sure of what is hot, and what is not. F*ing Parrot Girl is probably a DO, but is definitely trying to f*ing hard to be one, and Sara would rather do several grotesque things to herself, than to put Parrot Girl in this week’s DO-list. And that decision is the first step towards the turn-around of Sara’s life.

My thoughts:

Snapped takes you head first into the world of fashion, and the life of a woman who is starting to see that her time as a trendsetter and style icon may be over. Bordering forty, she still tries to maintain the same lifestyle she did as when she was twenty, with more or less success. When the younger and trendier Eva B, a big fan of Sara, and an even bigger fashion enthusiast, suddenly and sneakingly is competing for Sara’s job, she finds herself struggling to keep up.

The raw and uncensored language in this book is refreshing. Nothing is sugarcoated, and I really like that. I also love that Sara is allowed to drink whatever, whenever, and still there is no mentioning of alcoholism. Why CAN’T you have a bottle or two of red wine on a Tuesday? 

This is a high-speed book, which meant I almost didn’t have time to turn the pages, ‘cuz then it would have speed right on without me! Sometimes that could be quite exhausting, and I had to put on the breaks, take a u-turn and go back a bit. This almost always happened when Sara was thinking, or rather ranting on inside her head, and I would lose her train of thoughts as well as my own. Despite these minor set-backs it was an enjoyable read, and a good piece of “chick lit” in the same spirit as M. Keyes books, but with a hint more darkness to the main character. 


Make sure to stop by this blog on Friday to read an interview with the author.

Want to know more?
Add Snapped to your Goodreads wish list.
Visit Pamela Klaffke's homepage 
Read the first chapter of Snapped  

Snapped by Pamela Klaffke

Published: Januar 2011
Pages(paperback): 400
Publisher: Mira
ISBN: 0778327469 (ISBN13: 9780778327462)
Full disclosure: Review copy provided by Katie from Midas Public Relations

This book can be purchased from a number of local retailers and on-line book stores such as Amazon or The Book Depository (I'm not an affiliate of either). The latter store does by the way have free shipping to about 100 countries.  

Book review: Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

I'll let the author, Courtney Allison Moulton, tell you what her debut novel Angelfire is all about:

My thoughts:

I was so exited when I found out that my request for Angelfire was approved on NetGalley, I mean Angelfire you guys! The plot sounded so good, the trailer was great and other readers raving on about how excellent this book was. It's one of those books that every YA reader seems to fall in love with. 

As always I'll be honest with you guys; I really struggled to finish this novel and I had several issues with the story. The main character, Ellie, was over a thousand years old but stories of her past lives were almost non existent. I would have loved to get to know much more about her past. I guess it will be revealed bit by bit throughout the series but the novel could have been so much better if some more tidbits about Ellie's past had been told. I understand the concept that she was to remember the past by herself but her guardian, Will, answered 99 % of her questions with something like "you'll remember it in time". To be honest that annoyed me.

The fight scenes seemed to unrealistic and I couldn't feel the chemistry between Will and Ellie. That being said I felt the hatred in the character that was Ellie's father, it felt so real and I disliked him instantly.

I don't doubt that Moulton is a gifted writer but to me it seems like the novel could have been so, so much better. But then again we can't love them all and this is only my personal opinion.

Book trailer:

The cover:

Love it! Ellie looks like such a though kick-ass heroine.

My rating of this book:

2.5 stars out of 5

Want a second opinion? Check out these reviews written by some of my book blogging friends:

sophistikatied reviews

Supernatural Snark

BookHounds

Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf

Miss Page-Turner's City of Books

Want to know more?
Add Angelfire to your Goodreads wish list.
Visit Courtney Allison Moulton's homepage 
Read Courtney's blog 
Follow Courtney on Twitter

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

Published: February 2011
Pages(hardcover): 464
Publisher: HarperTeen/Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins

ISBN: 9780062002327
Full disclosure: Review copy from HarperTeen via Netgalley. 

This book can be purchased from a number of local retailers and on-line book stores such as Amazon or The Book Depository (I'm not an affiliate of either). The latter store does by the way have free shipping to about 100 countries.