In My Mailbox (October 31, 2010)

In My Mailbox credit goes to The Story Siren

One book (again) this week! But that's okay because this book has been on my list to read for ages now, and my pile of books to read is HUGE!

Bought:
Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

That is all folks! What did you get in your mailbox?

The Thirteenth Chime by Emma Michaels

Published: August 13th 2010
Publisher: Bokheim Publishing

Summary: No one knew of its existence until it was removed from the attic upstairs.

In a beautiful house that overlooks the sea, an antique clock has the power to change the course of their lives.

The power the clock resonates will not only force Destiny and ex-boyfriend David on a journey into the depths of one man's mind long dead, but into the mind of a man filled with hatred and bent on revenge.

With the only clues to the nature of the clock having disappeared into the sea, Destiny and David must retrace the steps the man had taken into the darkness, before they fall prey to the trap he had set in motion over half a century ago. 

Hatred never dies.

My Review: My first thought of this book was wow, what a beautiful cover. It's mysterious and creepy and just perfect for this book. I was excited to read a book about a grandfather clock, because I love them. My grandparents have had the same grandfather clock for as long as I can remember and I just love to look at it. The look and the sound of it is beautiful, and thankfully, theirs only chimes twelve times.
Anyways, the book starts off well. Right away we are introduced to Destiny and Stephanie, who themselves are good characters with just the right amount of character development. None of the characters are overdone in The Thirteenth Chime, nor are they too complex and that makes this particular novel more enjoyable.
The Thirteenth Chime is a debut novel written by Emma Michaels. Emma, I believe, is able to make her story believable and real. She writes with just enough detail to paint a picture of the story, and I was impressed with the picture painted in my head!
I enjoyed this novel and the chilling, eerie feeling I got while reading it. The Thirteenth Chime had me turning the pages so fast and had me yearning for more. It was fun and adventurous. I would recommend this novel for anyone who enjoys solving riddles. And I'm definitely looking forward to seeing more novels from Emma Michaels in the near future. 

In My Mailbox (October 24, 2010)

In My Mailbox credit goes to The Story Siren

This week I only got 2 books!

Bought:

The Thirteenth Chime by Emma Michaels (I'm really looking forward to reading this book!)

Gift:

Fallen by Lauren Kate (I think my boyfriend was so impressed by all the great feeback from when he surprised me with Torment [see this IMM] he went out and got me the first of this series!

So that's all I got in my mailbox this week, what about you?

Top Ten Tuesday - My Top 10 Fictional Crushes

Top Ten Tuesday credit goes to The Broke and the Bookish

This weeks top 10 topic is:

Fictional Crushes

So here they are in no particular order:

1. Edward from the Twilight Series - I read and throughly enjoyed the Twilight series before all of the hype came about, and i'm not ashamed to say that yes, Edward Cullen has been / is one of my crushes. Everything about him is crush-worthy!

2. Jacob from the Twilight Series - The same goes with Jacob, he's right up there with Edward. Need I say more?

3. Jace from The Mortal Instruments Series - I just finished this series, and Jace is still VERY fresh in my mind. I love his nonchalance and his smart-ass attitude.

4. Will from Clockwork Angel - I'm crushing on Will for the same reason as Jace.

5. Stark from the House of Night series - Sure, he went from good guy, to bad guy, to good guy but he had the mystery, and passion and good looks in my mind.

6. Pony-Boy Curtis from The Outsiders - The Outsiders was the first novel that I ever read and really understood and enjoyed. And because of that, I've always felt a little something for Pony-Boy.

7. Damon from The Vampire Diaries - I've never read these books yet, but the t.v. show definitely has a crush-worthy Damon...Yum.

8. Ian O'Shea from The Host - He went for what he wanted and what he loved and that's pretty awesome!

9. Ron from Harry Potter series - He is probably the most loyal friend I've ever read about, plus he's funny. Two qualities of what I like to call a little crush!

10. Jem from Clockwork Angel - The whole 'I've got a secret that you can't ever find out" persona is kind of hot! Just sayin'.

So there they are, my top 10 crushes! What are yours?

In My Mailbox (October 17, 2010)

In My Mailbox credit goes to  The Story Siren

I should be used to this by now, but once again a slow week! 

Won:

Thirst No. 3 The Eternal Dawn by Christopher Pike

Thanks to Simon & Schuster for this book. I was so excited that I received this book on my birthday (Friday) Looking forward to reading this series, so i'll have to pick up the first two.  

Nothing was bought this week due to my huge To Be Read pile!

What's in Your Mailbox?

Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan

Published: September 2003
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers

Summary: This is the story of Paul, a sophomore at a high school like no other: The cheerleaders ride Harleys, the homecoming queen used to be a guy named Daryl (she now prefers Infinite Darlene and is also the star quarterback), and the gay-straight alliance was formed to help the straight kids learn how to dance. 
When Paul meets Noah, he thinks he's found the one his heart is made for. Until he blows it. The school bookie says the odds are 12-to-1 against him getting Noah back, but Paul's not giving up without playing his love really loud. His best friend Joni might be drifting away, his other best friend Tony might be dealing with ultra-religious parents, and his ex-boyfriend Kyle might not be going away anytime soon, but sometimes everything needs to fall apart before it can really fit together right.
This is a happy-meaningful romantic comedy about finding love, losing love, and doing what it takes to get love back in a crazy-wonderful world.

My Review: This book is set in a time and place where lesbians and gays are accepted and embraced by everyone (well, almost everyone). And when I say accepted, I mean the teenagers can walk through the school hand in hand with their partner, there peers call them names like "gay boy" and it's totally okay, and no one is truly offended by it. There is even a drag queen as the star quarterback AND homecoming queen! Ideally, I believe that this should be okay, and that gays and lesbians should be accepted by everyone and be allowed to walk hand in hand without ridicule and bullying, but this book went a little over the top I think. It was a quick and easy read, funny and altogether entertaining. The characters didn't have much in character development but for this novel it seemed to work alright. 

I think that a lot of teens (gay or straight) would be able to relate to the book in one way or another - sneaking out saying you're doing homework when there isn't much or any homework getting done. Seeing your ex walk by and remembering what you once had. Having that one friend who is right to the point, no matter what the point may be. We've all been there, and it's good to read a book and know that even the characters in them are just like us.

Overall, Boy Meets Boy was an alright book. I'm not going to tell you to rush out and read it, but if you stumble across it, it wont hurt to give it a try. You'll see that no matter the relationship (gay or straight) we all have trouble sometimes, "I wonder if it's possible to start a new relationship without hurting someone else. I wonder if it's possible to have happiness without it being at someone else's expense." (Boy Meets Boy, page 59)  

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Published: March 24, 2009
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry

Summary: To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters-never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.

As Clary uncovers more about her family's past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he's willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City-whatever the cost?

Love is a mortal sin and the secrets of the past prove deadly as Clary and Jace face down Valentine in the third installment of bestselling series the Mortal Instruments.

My Review: So this was book 3 of The Mortal Instruments series, and it was absolutely fantastic! Once again, I'm going to say that Cassandra Clare is an excellent writer. She is a New York Times Bestselling Author and she definitely deserves that title. The thought and time spent on the writing in this series is stunning. You can read my review of City of Bones here and City of Ashes here, and you'll see that I've been impressed with Cassandras writing since reading my first Cassandra Clare novel, Clockwork Angel (review here) As I've said before, I love that I can picture everything I'm reading. The colour of the sky, the design of the Shadowhunter gear, the light glow of the witchlight stone, the beauty of the seraph blades - I see it all when I read City of Glass!

This book was so hard to put down. From the beginning to the end, it's filled with twists and turns. City of Glass takes the reader on a reading roller coaster! The world of Shadowhunters is so intense and intriguing and I seriously became one of them when reading the book. I lived in their world, breathed their air, saw what they saw. It was fabulous!The characters in City of Glass are ones that will be talked about for years to come. That may have a little something with the fact that Jace took the Teen Read Award for Best Hottie! But Clary and Jace with their strength and power will be on your mind when you think of a strong hero / heroine. We met some new characters in City of Glass, Aline and the handsome and mysterious Sebastian, and some of our favourites have returned, like Alec and Simon. I don't want to say much about the characters and spoil anything for those of you who haven't read this book yet. And trust me, you'll want to read this series and add them to your collection as soon as possible.So overall, City of Glass was a great book - with just enough mystery, suspense and awesome characters. You'll want to read it yourself to see what I'm talking about!

In My Mailbox (October 10, 2010)

In My Mailbox credit goes to The Story Siren

Once again, it was a pretty slow week!

Gift:

Signed Like Mandarin bookmarks from Kirsten Hubbard

Torment - by Lauren Kate (my boyfriend bought me this book. He was out shopping, saw this book, and knowing that I totally judge books by their covers, knew that I would probably like to read this one. What he didn't realize was that it's the second in the series, and that I haven't read Fallen yet. But that's okay, it was the thought that counts!)

So, thats what I got in my mailbox this week. What's in your mailbox?

In My Mailbox (October 3, 2010)

In My Mailbox credit goes to The Story Siren

This week was a slow week! But that's okay, I seem to have a lot of books that need to get read!

Bought:

City of Glass (Book Three in The Mortal Instuments series) by Cassandra Clare

That's it! But be sure to check back shortly for a review of City of Glass! Almost done this one!

What's in Your Mailbox this week?