Month: July 2011

Saturday Song

Posted July 30, 2011 by Tracy in Reviews | 2 Comments

I have to admit to not ever hearing this band until this week, but I like them!  I heard this first song, Something to Believe In, on my way to work and I was diggin it.  I went and listened to some of their other music and liked that as well.  I love finding new music to listen to.  I’m also putting in another vid called Under Control.  Yes, it’s a good song but I love the vid with the mannequin – gotta love a band with a sense of humor. 🙂  Happy Saturday!


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What Are You Reading? 7-29-11. (68)

Posted July 29, 2011 by Rowena in Features | 13 Comments

Rowena: It’s the last weekend of July (I can’t believe it’s August already) and I’m knee deep in a romance reading kick. I’ve read loads of romances in the last couple of weeks and am now showing any signs of stopping. I just finished Jill Shalvis’ Animal Attraction (YUM!) and am starting The Perfect Play by Jaci Burton. Yeah, I know- it’s about frickin’ time if you ask me. I picked it up around the time my Mom was in the hospital back in April but never got around to reading it so I’m reading it now, or I would be reading it now if I could stop staring at the cover. =)

Holly: OMG that Jaci Burton cover. drool I might need to go dig mine out so I can lick stare at it.

I’ve had a pretty good reading week so far. A lot of contemporaries. Yesterday I read Good Girls Don’t by Victorical Dahl. I was impressed with the growth of the heroine, but I was bothered by a lot of her actions throughout the book. This morning I started Bad Boys Do and so far it’s pretty great. I’m getting close to the end, so we’ll see.

Earlier this week I read Head Over Heels by Jilll Shalvis. I was worried going into it but it turned out great. I also read Sage Creek by Jill Gregory, another small town contemp. It was pretty good though I did have a few minor quibbles.

Casee: I’m reading Live Wire by Lora Leigh. It started out slow, but now I’m getting into it. I’ve been doing really good this month. Reading a lot more than I did. I have been going into a slow down though. Which is unfortunate. I blame it on the books. I just finished Skin Dive by Ava Gray and it took me three days to read. I was reading a book in 1-2 days so that really pulled me out of my routine. I was really disappointed in Skin Dive. I have loved all the books in the Skin series. Hopefully I’ll get around to reviewing it so I can tell you all the things I didn’t like.

What are you reading?


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Review: Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer

Posted July 29, 2011 by Tracy in Reviews | 2 Comments

Warning: This review contains spoilers from the first book in this series, Nightshade.

When Calla Tor wakes up in the lair of the Searchers, her sworn enemies, she’s certain her days are numbered. But then the Searchers make her an offer—one that gives her the chance to destroy her former masters and save the pack—and the man—she left behind. Is Ren worth the price of her freedom? And will Shay stand by her side no matter what? Now in control of her own destiny, Calla must decide which battles are worth fighting and how many trials true love can endure and still survive.


Calla has saved Shay from certain death and helped him escape.  She’s gone with the Searchers and hopes it’s for the best.  It doesn’t take too long to verify that all that she thought was true was a lie and that her previous masters, the Keepers, were using her and the rest of the Guardians as pawns in their own game.

Calla’s mind and heart is in a strange place and as much as she would like to have Shay fill those spaces Calla finds that she can’t seem to get Ren out of her mind. She loves Shay but she also loves Ren in her way.  Is this truly a love triangle or not?  It’s really pretty hard to tell and we don’t have any definitive answer to that question by the end of the book.

Calla works with the Searchers to try and save her pack but things don’t exactly go as planned and lives are torn apart.  Not only that but someone that Calla loves might actually be a traitor and the person they least expect to help in their mission shows up offering assistance.  What is Calla to make of it all?

This book had me asking a lot of questions by the time it was over.  I struggled with Calla and her indecisions in this book. Her wishy-washiness with Shay due to thoughts of Ren irked me at times.  I just wanted her to figure it all out in her head and be done with it.  She said she loved Shay but when someone calls her his girlfriend she vehemently denies it.  Really?  I thought you were!  sigh

Besides Calla’s uncertainty of her relationships she was a Guardian and she needed to get the job done.  When she is sent out with a team to extract her packmates she’s more than up for the job.  She’s only just turned 18 but she’s a strong wolf and ready to take even the largest Guardian on.

I really liked the story in this book – maybe not as much as book 1 but it really rounded things out for me and brought in more information about Calla’s Guardian background, what exactly Shay is and his role in her future, how evil the Keepers actually are and that the Searchers aren’t the bad guys.  It was a lot to take in but definitely worth the read.  I’ll definitely be reading book 3 when it releases (supposedly next January).

Rating: 3.75 out of 5


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Review: Overbite by Meg Cabot.

Posted July 29, 2011 by Rowena in Reviews | 4 Comments

Publisher: Avon, Harper CollinsGenres: Paranormal Romance


Rowena’s review of Overbite (Insatiable Series, Book 2) by Meg Cabot.

Hero: Lucien or Alaric?
Heroine: Meena Harper

Meena Harper has a special gift, but it’s only now that anyone’s ever appreciated it. The Palatine Guard—a powerful secret demon-hunting unit of the Vatican—has hired her to work at their new branch in Lower Manhattan. With Meena’s ability to predict how everyone she meets will die, the Palatine finally has a chance against the undead. Sure, her ex-boyfriend was Lucien Anton­escu, son of Dracula, the prince of darkness. But that was before he (and their relationship) went up in flames.

Now Meena’s sworn off vampires for good . . . at least until she can prove her theory that just because they’ve lost their souls doesn’t mean demons have lost the ability to love. Meena knows convincing her co-workers—including her partner, Über-demon-hunter Alaric Wulf—that vampires can be redeemed won’t be easy . . . especially when a deadly new threat seems to be endangering not just lives of the Palatine, but Meena’s friends and family as well. But Meena isn’t the Palatine’s only hope. Father Henrique—aka Padre Caliente—New York City’s youngest, most charming priest, has also been assigned to the case. So why doesn’t Meena—or Alaric—trust him? As she begins unraveling the truth, Meena finds her loyalties tested, her true feelings laid bare . . . and temptations she never even imagined existed impossible to resist. This time, Meena may finally have bitten off more…

Once I got past the beginning hump of the first book, I quickly finished Insatiable and was eager to start Overbite. I’m pleased to say that I enjoyed this book so much more than I enjoyed the first book. It’s so good to see Meena, Jon, Alaric and even Lucien back in action.

In this book, Meena is now working for the Palatine Guards with Alaric and Alaric has the total hots for Meena but is annoyed that she only sees him as a friend. The relationship that bloomed between Meena and Alaric was strictly platonic even though Alaric wanted more from Meena. They were friends first and I really enjoyed them together.

As much as I adored Lucien early on in Insatiable, for me it was always about Alaric for Meena. The protectiveness that comes out in Alaric was just too cute for words. Lucien was protective as well but his protectiveness wasn’t as sincere as Alaric’s was and I never once swooned over him even though I probably was supposed to. I wasn’t a big fan of him biting Meena without her express permission and then when she asked him not to bite her, her bit her anyway. Yeah, that’s a quick way for me to not pick to be on your team buddy.

There’s a new kind of vampire, not from Lucien’s batch of vampires around the world (which kind of confused me since he’s supposed to be the Prince of Darkness so I thought he knew about all vampires, etc..) but he’s looking for them because they’re trying to get to Meena as well and you know nobody messes with Meena. The Church/Palatine Guards send out a priest from Costa Rica, Padre Caliente who Alaric hates more than anyone (well not more than Lucien, I don’t think but close) because he’s a cowardly man who lives in the limelight.

These new vampires on the street are making the other vampires from Insatiable look tame little puppies because these new vampires not only suck their victims blood and drain them but they’re flesh eating vampires like zombies and well, eww gross! So while Meena and Alaric are trying to figure out what’s going on, they’re hitting road block after road block and they’re starting to wonder if the culprit works for their organization because whoever it is, is stripping Meena and Alaric of all of their goodies and they’re not liking it one bit.

The action is back and funnier than ever. This cast of characters had me cracking up throughout the story and Meg Cabot did a wonderful job of keeping me invested in the story and the characters. I came to care for Meena and was rooting on her to save Alaric and the world from these crazy vampires. Alaric’s personality shines in this book and I fell in love with him over and over again with each passing page. He’s just awesome.

Jon Harper is back and determined to show the Palatine Guard’s that they need someone like him working for them. His invention had me cracking up and his interactions with Adam, Meena and everyone else (Yelena was cute too) made this book even more enjoyable. This was a great follow up to Insatiable and I have every faith that fans of Insatiable will love this book as well. Meg Cabot strikes again and she proves that she can write the hell out of a story and create characters that you’ll want to follow over and over again through their different adventures. This book doesn’t disappoint.

Grade: 4.5 out of 5

This book is available from Avon. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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Book Watch: Take a Bow by Elizabeth Eulberg.

Posted July 29, 2011 by Rowena in Promotions | 4 Comments



From the fantastic author of The Lonely Hearts Club and Prom & Prejudice comes a story of all the drama and comedy of four friends who grow into themselves at a performing arts high school.

Emme, Sophie, Ethan, and Carter are seniors at a performing arts school, getting ready for their Senior Showcase recital, where the pressure is on to appeal to colleges, dance academies, and professionals in show business. For Sophie, a singer, it’s been great to be friends with Emme, who composes songs for her, and to date Carter, soap opera heartthrob who gets plenty of press coverage. Emme and Ethan have been in a band together through all four years of school, but wonder if they could be more than just friends and bandmates. Carter has been acting since he was a baby, and isn’t sure how to admit that he’d rather paint than perform. The Senior Showcase is going to make or break each of the four, in a funny, touching, spectacular finale that only Elizabeth Eulberg could perform.

I’ve read the other two books that Elizabeth Eulberg wrote and adored both of them. Elizabeth Eulberg has definitely become one of my go to authors for great contemporary YA books so I was more than a little excited to come across this little gem.

Performing Arts school reminds me of Victorious on Nickalodeon but that show is actually one of the shows that my daughter watches that I actually enjoy so I’m excited to dig right into this world that Eulberg has created for Ethan, Sophie, Emme and Carter. I can’t wait to see all of the pairings and the emotional drama that will go on throughout the book. This book has a release date of April 2012 (I can’t find a definite date anywhere) and though we’ve got a bit of a wait, I’m confident that Eulberg will deliver the goods once again so mark your calendars, we’re getting a new Elizabeth Eulberg book soon, woot!

..and that’s your scoop!

Buy the book: B&N|Amazon
Book cover and blurb credit: http://barnesandnoble.com


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