2012 Wrap-Up and Goals for 2013

So this year I participated in 2 year-long challenges:  The TBR Pile Reading Challenge and the A-Z Book Challenge.  Both of which I completed!!!  The TBR pile should have been easy, yet as I got new books, those sounded better than the ones I'd already had sitting on my shelves, even though I'd been so excited for those books too!  The A-Z challenge was more difficult, finding books to go with Q, X, Y, and Z was not easy, and so I stretched a bit on those. You can see how I did if you go to the links above for those posts.  Because I have such a big TBR pile, I've chosen to participate in that one again this year, and you can see my post for that here.  I also started my own 1 month challenge, that I plan to run again this year, maybe even in conjunction with a blog that does a lot of giveaway hops holding one week of a hop during that month, it is my September is for Sequels Challenge.  I think I had about 10 people participate this year, I'm hoping to get more next year!  And talking about getting more, my blog following is up over 1000!!  Which means to expect a giveaway in January!  I'm thinking either a gift card, or maybe a choice of book from the Book Depository.  
I set my reading goal with Goodreads at 125.  But as I got later in the year, I think around September, I realized I might not quite make the 125.  For many reasons, so I decided to drop my total.  First I dropped it to 105.  I figured that would be a 5% increase over last year, so that would be good.  But then, I started being ahead of my goal, so I bumped it up to 110.  Then to 115.  And now, I'm one book away from that, so by midnight tonight, I must finish my current book to reach my goal!  And as my New Year's Eve plans involve a quiet day at home while it snows outside, I see no problem in completing the goal.  I plan to set my goal for 2013 at 120.  I'm hoping to go to 125, but for now I'm being realistic with 120.  Blog goals, hmm.  I'm hoping to maybe do a re-design on my blog sometime this year.  Probably save some money and have someone do it as I do not really know how to do that kind of stuff.  But I have some ideas I need to write down to share with whoever I get to do it.  
My personal goals for 2013 are to get back to the walking I was doing.  I was doing anywhere from 3-5 miles almost every day.  Then I worked 3 jobs for awhile, and that killed any time I had, or energy to actually leave the house.  Which then lead to my bad eating habits, feeling too lazy to cook, just running through the fast food drive thru on the way home from work. So I plan to work on that as well.  My goal as a teacher, besides continuing to look for a library job, is to keep up on my grading.  Try to stay an extra hour after school and get the current day's grading done that day if possible.  Although, with the new puppy, I may have to run home, let the dogs out, then go back to school to work for an hour.  But getting into that habit will be great for getting ready for the good weather when I can start walking again.
Other great things this year, I continued meeting awesome authors.  In fact, going to BEA was so much fun!  I wish I could afford to go again this year, but I just can't.  And my principal did let me teach a Communication Arts class this year, so that is a bit of a step closer to my goal of being a school librarian.
So, now I'd like to hear from my followers.  How did you do with your goals and challenges this year?  What are your goals for 2013?  And, what would you most like to see for my 1000 follower giveaway this January?  (Be reasonable, I'm working on finances, and we do have the big fiscal cliff that we may be going over soon in America!)

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas to all my followers!  Or whatever holiday you might celebrate, I hope you enjoy it.  I've already got the number 1 book I had hoped for, Insurgent!  The special edition with Four included!  Had a great family get-together with my Mom, Step-dad, younger brother, sister-in-law, and niece last night.  Today is my 2nd get-together with my Dad, Step-mom, and two younger sisters.
I must come up with an idea for a giveaway for getting over 1000 followers this past month.  So look for that in the new year.
I am also making sure I've completed the two challenges I signed up for this year, the A-Z Challenge, and the TBR Pile Reading Challenge.  Both of which I have completed to the best of my ability!  I'll be joining in the TBR Challenge for 2013, and I must decide if there are any other challenges out there I want to join.
One thing I do have to do while I am off from teaching for the next week or so, I must get some songs taken off of my iPhone, ones that I don't listen to that much, so that I have room for doing the new operating system update.  Also, once again, for some reason my Adobe Digital editions has unauthorized me, and so the e-galleys I have on my Nook won't let me read them.  And I was right in the middle of a good one!  Grr!  Hope to be able to remember exactly what I need to do to fix it!
One last final note, I had been looking at getting a new puppy for my dog Dora to have a sibling to play with since I lost my Sydney (the cartoon at the top represents Sydney) last January.  And on Saturday I got to bring home, hopefully forever, a little dachshund boy named Argyle.  I think the name is really cute on paper, but when you try to call it out, it doesn't quite roll off the tongue.  I've been calling him Buddy, so don't know if that'll end up being his name, because I'd really like something more unique, since he is such a unique looking little boy.

Redemption (Hearts of Stone #1) by Veronique Launier

First, of course, thanks to Netgalley and Flux books for letting me read an egalley of this book.
I have to say as soon as I figured out from the cover, as well as the description of the book that this was about gargoyles, I was hooked!  I have always been fascinated by gargoyles, from the time my dad used to play the scary gargoyle sounds record to wake me up when I was younger, to even buying books about them and looking for them on buildings when I traveled with my mom.  And, let's face it, a whole new type of paranormal character to write about!  But, of course, there has to be magic, and that comes into the story through witches, who made gargoyles to protect them.  And also, there is magic in this story from the Native Americans of the area it takes place in.  It is in Canada, Montreal to be exact, so that is a little bit of an unfamiliar area to me.  But it works.
The main characters are Guillaume, and Aude.  Guillaume is the gargoyle, who is somehow freed from his stone self even though the witch family who brought him about is long gone.  Aude is the girl who Guillaume and his fellow gargoyles/family are watching be attacked when this all happens.  As it happens, they hear this strange chanting, and drumming.  They are of course intrigued and wonder how this happened, and so Guillaume begins to follow Aude, trying to get to know her and find out how she did this.  Aude, who goes by Odd, lives with her mom, who is a bit of a strange woman, but knows she is, and so her daughter has always dealt with her strange ways.  Aude is a musician, and it turns out, so was Guillaume in the past.  But it wasn't a one time attack on Aude, she continues to get attacked and have strange things happen around her.  Without completely trusting Guillaume, she works with him to try to figure out exactly why these things are happening to her.  She also learns about her past and things about her family she never knew.
I really liked this book.  I like that even though there may be a "connection" almost right away between the 2, they don't just all of a sudden fall in love, and all that.  They work through it.  Aude is attracted, but doesn't know whether to trust this strange guy who appeared out of nowhere when this weird stuff starts happening.  Guillaume is the one who doesn't seem to have feelings, according to his "family" anyway.  So he is sure he is just interested in her to find out what he needs to, in order to stay alive, so he doesn't have to go back to being a stone creature who just watches the world around him go on.  I liked the use of both witches as an ancient power, as well as the Native American "magic" as story lines.  The stone creatures are really good too.  Makes me think of golems.  I'm glad to see this is going to be a series, because while it did end pretty well, it doesn't HAVE to go on, I am eager to follow the story on and see what happens next as Aude learns about her powers and her lineage.
I will be adding this to my A-Z Reading Challenge as well, on the V for the author's first name.

Suck It Up and Die by Brian Meehl

I got this book thanks to Netgalley and Random House Children's Books. It's been a while since I read the first one, Suck it Up. That I read for a possible book on the Gateway or Truman book list a couple years ago. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't one of my top picks that year, I think that was the year of The Hunger Games and Gone by Michael Grant, that really drew my attention. But this wasn't a bad book, in a way, similar to the Vlad Tod series by Heather Brewer in that it was a main character of a boy vampire. In this book it is two years after our main character, Morning McCobb has come out as the "poster boy" for vampires that want to be accepted into society, same rights, etc., and they promise they won't drink human blood. Only a blood substitute. That part of course always reminded me a bit of the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris. The book started out kind of slow for me because it seemed everything was going along just as it was supposed to, no problems to overcome. Kind of how I always figured that whenever I'd wished a book went on, how it would have gone on without any big dangers or plot points to fight. But then we got a new villain, well, sort of a new one. He was created in the forest where all the vampires go when they die. And he joins forces with a human who is the head of a group of people that don't want vampires to live along humans.

Well, soon we learn that when a vampire is actually satisfied and realizing the thing they wanted most in their human lives, well, that causes an interesting change. And Morning begins to get framed by the pair of villians in the public eye. I feel this was definitely a good sequel to the first. I know the first one left off in a way that I knew there had to be a sequel, and this did explain a lot, and kept the series going. Not sure if this one leaves off for another in the series, but it's probably a good chance that it will.
I will count this one as my "U" for the A-Z Reading Challenge for the "Up" in the title.

Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne

First I have to say thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Childrens Publishing Corporation for letting me read the egalley of this book.  It really fits in with all the end of the world stories I seem to be reading lately.  It is set slightly in the future, eveyone carries a "tab" around with them for use of a phone, internet, etc.  We begin with our main character, Dean, traveling on a bus to school.  In this school district they have 2 buses for each route, one that carries the high schoolers, and one that carries the middle school and elementary kids.  They are both traveling to school when all of a sudden a freak hail storm begins.  The high school bus gets hit the worse and slides until it flips over and crashes.  The younger kids' bus driver is able to control their bus better and pulls/crashes it into the front of a huge department/grocery store, kind of like a Walmart or Target supercenter I would say.  Maybe a shopping mall?  Not quite sure.  Then she goes back and helps get the high school kids out and over into the store and out of the storm.  It's early enough in the morning that the store is empty.  Mrs. Wooly, the bus driver, leaves the kids saying she is going for help. About that time the security gates come crashing down around the store, making it impossible for the kids to leave.  So while they're waiting there, they figure they'll eat at the pizza shop.  Astrid, one of the high school girls that Dean has always had a crush on, used to work there, and so she get the pizzas going.  Their tabs aren't working, the network seems to be down, which never happens according to Dean's brother Alex, who is a tech wizard.  But they do find an old fashioned tv that they turn on to find out what is happening.  Turns out there have been lots of disasters.  A huge tsunami has wiped out most of the East coast.  And near where this is taking place, a huge government testing facility has either been attacked or something we don't know for sure, but anyway, chemicals have been released into the air.  The kids finally find a way out, on the roof of the store, but when they get up there, they see a huge mushroom cloud, the chemicals.  And then Dean turns murderous, and Niko, one of the other high schoolers, breaks out in blisters.  They learn that the chemicals have different effects based on a person's blood type.  So, they end up settling in waiting for Mrs. Wooly to return, which she doesn't.  At first they let Jake, the big football hero kind of take over as boss.  But soon other things begin to happen.  They figure out the water also contains the chemicals in the bathroom when Astrid attacks one of the little kids she is helping clean up.  Astrid then takes off on her own and hides.  Jake and his buddy Brayden just want to relax.  Aren't up much for organizing or getting things figured out so they can survive on their own.  Other problems that they must deal with, people outside trying to get in who have been affected by the chemicals.  Worrying about if the electricity will go out.  Food lasting, etc.  We've got 6 high schoolers and I think about 6 little kids plus a middle school girl.  One of the little kids speaks Spanish mostly.  Dean ends up being in charge of the food, and gets the little kids to take turns being his helpers.  Niko ends up in charge and plans things out.  Dean's brother Alex is in charge of all the power and things like that. 
This was a pretty good story, an interesting take on end of the world.  In a way, a bit of Lord of the Flies, kids must learn how to take care of themselves, and when/if adults show up, they may be surprised by how the kids have had to handle things.  Definitely a good, quick read.  My only negative on it, is I don't quite know what the title has to do with the story.  I think there has to be a sequel, but not sure.  I will read on because I have to know if they do ever find their parents.
I am going to put this on my A-Z Reading Challenge as the "Y" for the two of them in the author's name.

Transcendence by C.J. Omololu

First, thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishers for letting me read this as an egalley.  I really liked this book.  It is a book about reincarnation.  Which reminds me of another of my favorite book series, The Eternal Ones by Kirsten Miller.  Yes, Incarnate by Jodi Meadows is also about reincarnation, but it is a little different, and I'm guessing a different planet than Earth?  And of course there is always the book Reincarnation by Suzanne Weyn.  All of these books are ones I enjoyed.  And this one didn't disappoint either.  We started out with our main character Cole, short for Nicole, in London with her sister Kat and their father.  They're touring the famous Tower of London where many people were held and later beheaded or executed nearby, including Anne Boleyn.  Cole has a vision of someone being beheaded in the main area of the Tower.  When she has this vision, she stumbles and is caught by a very cute boy named Griffon.  Griffon seems to recognize her at first, although she doesn't know who he is.  Soon she learns that they are connected somehow, and when she is back home she learns he lives nearby and they meet up again.  They get closer, and eventually not only do her visions keep popping up, dangerous things start happening to her.  Griffon tells her she is what is called Akhet.  Basically in this story it sounds as if anyone can be reincarnated, but only some remember past lives, and these are the Akhet.  It seems someone in Cole's life may be from her past, and be after revenge, for something that Cole slowly remembers that she is probably not really responsible for.  But Griffon has his secrets too, and they threaten to come between him and Cole.  Cole doesn't know who to trust when she realizes just where the connection between her and Griffon is from. 
I need to start taking notes when I'm reading ebooks because I know there was something I wanted to remark on, some quirky little part that really made me laugh or stood out to me, but I can't remember it now.  I hope to learn more about Cole's first life she is remembering, the time when she was beheaded.  This will definitely be a recommendation for me when it is published and arrives at the bookstore.  I like that there is going to be a sequel because there was definitely a loose end left with another person Cole met that seemed to know her. 
Finally, this will count as my "J" on my A-Z Reading Challenge for the author's name.

Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1) by Robin LaFevers

Grave Mercy by R.L. LaFevers
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I got this book as an advanced readers copy from an ad in Shelf Awareness. Later on there was an ARC on the table at the bookstore where I work too. It sounded really good. But then it sat on my shelf for a month or so. The back of the book said the publication date was April 3rd, so I picked it up the 2nd to last week of March, and when I walked into work that week, it was already out on the shelves! So this is not an advance review I guess. As I said, the book sat for awhile, other books seemed more interesting, and thinking I had till April, I waited. Well, I was crazy. Once I picked up the book, I was hooked from the very first page! Such a good story. The characters are so well developed, the back story is all there, and I thought the action and plots were good. I was on the edge of my seat at the end when Ismae was trying to help Duval. Of course you knew she would fall in love with him, but she knew to be cautious the whole time not knowing what he might really be up to. Ismae's life was horrible. Her father didn't want her, he even tried to make her mother miscarry her with homemade potions. It didn't work, and Ismae came out with scars. Everyone in the village thought she was cursed because of that. And finally her father got her married off to a man that was even more vile, and on the night he saw her scars, she was rescued by a priest, who passed her through the ranks until she came to the convent of St. Mortain. This was a time when the old gods had become saints in order for them to still be given respect with the new church. St. Mortain was the god/saint of death. And the girls here are trained to be assassins. Something that really appeals to Ismae, to be able to get justice on men who do things like were done to her. Who are traitors to their country. She is told who to kill, and she knows she is to do it when she sees the marque of Mortain on them. And quite often the marque is in the spot where they will be killed, the neck, the head, around the mouth for poison. One good thing Ismae has is that she is immune to the effects of poison.
Her first two assignments go well except for one small issue with each one. In fact, as she is getting assigned her 3rd person, it turns out that person shows up, and wants their help. It is Duval. She is assigned to show up as his "cousin" which during that time, is assumed to be a mistress. And she must help him protect the duchess from the French and help her find the correct suitor to save Brittany, their country. Duval is under suspicion though. And there are traitors and subplots going around the high court. Ismae must figure her way through all this intrigue and also deal with her feelings for Duval and knowing if that is why she trusts him, or if he is really trustworthy and has the duchess' best interests in mind. She learns that maybe Death's mark isn't always the end and that people can redeem themselves in St. Mortain's eyes. And she tests this, and finds it true.
I could just go on and on about how good this book was. Now, I feel it ended in a way that doesn't leave for a sequel, and this is part of a series. But from the blurb at the end of the ARC I see that we will follow one of the other convent girls, Sybella, who had become a bit of a mystery once she left the convent. So now I look forward to reading her story. My only complaint, not about the story, but that my ARC was missing pages in two places. The first place is where we learn that Duval is a bastard brother to the duchess, the 2nd part is where Ismae has finally found the marque of death on someone she has been ordered to kill, and she decides to test her theory of redemption. But we miss out on the whole thing, just getting in at the end. I will have to figure out how my ARC pages match up the real copy and go read those sections.
This will count as my "G" in my A-Z Reading Challenge. 

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The White Oak (Imperfect Darkness #1) by Kim White

The White Oak by Kim White
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First thanks to Netgalley for letting me read this egalley.
Now, I really have been getting into stories about the underworld lately. So this sounded like a unique new take on it.
As other reviewers have said, the story jumps right in from the first page. The main character is Cora and she and her family are sucked into a sinkhole as they surround her father's casket at a funeral for him. Her father was a mean, abusive man. And now all Cora can think is that not only did he terrorize her in life, he's ruining her life even as he is dead. The whole farm they live on is on top of an immense cave system. She and her brother Lucas have spent their days exploring the cave. While Cora survives the sinkhole somehow, Lucas does not. Cora is met by a machine type object called Minotaur. Minotaur can change into anything, and he rescues her. But Cora soon wonders if she can trust him after being taken in by a woman named Sybil. Sybil writes people's stories. But she gives Cora the pen that writes them and tells her to go on and finish her story when it is destroyed in a fire. Sybil also tells Cora she will find her brother, even though he is dead. When Cora gets to the river before the Underworld, her brother is waiting for her. He helps her to get across the river and through the gates. But once through he is taken to where he is supposed to go, or so he thinks. He has been taken by Minotaur and his father/creator Minos. They use Lucas's genius programming skills to get him to stay. But Cora is captured and taken to trial.
Now, the story is interesting. However, so far I am a little confused. First, Minos, is this supposed to be the Minos from the myths? Or did I read that wrong? Second, I'm not sure about the whole computer programming bit, and how it ties in. And I have to say that the end is a HUGE cliffhangar, but so very abrupt! I guess it makes me REALLY glad that the 2nd book in the series is supposed to come out later this year, although I don't see it listed here on Goodreads. So, interesting take, just I'm a little confused about what exactly is going on. I did see another review compare it to the Matrix, and that kind of makes sense in that I did have a little confusion with the whole Matrix movie series.
I will add this to my A-Z Reading Challenge as the "K" for the author's name.

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The Weepers: The Other Life 1 by Susanne Winnacker

The Weepers: The Other Life by Susanne Winnacker
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Normally I would wait until a month before the publishing date to review a book from Netgalley, but since I see that the ebooks were "published" already, I thought it would be okay to go ahead and post my review. Once again, I'll say thanks to Netgalley for letting me read this egalley, as well as Marshall Cavendish, the publisher.
I'm kind of surprised by how many zombie books I've begun to read. And really, while yes, this is a zombie story, the zombies play a pretty small part. They are there, they are a danger, but again we're really reading about the story of the people not infected. In this story the zombies are humans suffering from a scientifically enhanced version of rabies. One that takes humans over and can change them into almost beast like creatures, hairy, running around on all fours, or still pretty human looking. The title of this, The Weepers, was hard to find on Goodreads at first. That's because most of the book listings for this are under the title The Other Life #1. The title "The Weepers" is due to the fact that the creatures all look as if they are crying, they have "tears" running down their faces, and their eyes are swollen as if from crying.
The beginning of the book reminds me a bit of by S.A. Bodeen. Sherry is our main character, and she is living in an underground bunker with her family. We know how long she's been down there because she has counted days, and tells us over and over. They've been sent into bunkers we're told, by the government. But recently the messages from the government telling them to stay there until they receive notification it is okay outside, have stopped. And they've run out of food. Apparently the amount of food they brought for 4 years, wasn't exactly enough. Even with Sherry's grandfather passing away while they are there. Everyone is going stir crazy, getting on each others' nerves, and the end of the food supplies means they must make a drastic decision. Sherry and her father choose to go out of the bunker and try to find some food, also hoping to find out what is going on outside now that they've not heard any news from outside. Fortunately their family has had a history of hunting and shooting, so Sherry is prepared and not overly scared of shooting a gun, whether she's any good of a shot or not. As she goes to a large store, I think it was a Walmart, she and her father hear strange noises, and see their first weepers. As they are attacked, her father tells her to run and meet him outside and be safe. But he never comes back. Sherry runs into a boy named Joshua. He saves her, and takes her back to a place called Safe haven. But Sherry knows she must get back to her family in the bunker before they try to go out on their own and something horrible happens to them. She also must try to find her father, especially when Joshua tells her that the weepers often take humans to their nests, and stockpile them, kind of like squirrels with nuts.
The story line was good, and I like the science behind the disease. I also like that there is government intrigue in what could be going on. However, and I don't know if it's just because what I read was an egalley, and maybe not quite ready for publishing, but there were some grammatical errors. First, one sentence that really stood out and bothered me was this: "On the fifth floor we didn't have more luck". I think it's missing the word "any" before more luck. Just doesn't sound right. There were a few other things like that. Nothing that won't hopefully be fixed with a quick edit before publication if there is time.
Also, we get these flashbacks of Sherry's life before all this started. And while at first they seemed to fit in okay, towards the end they didn't really fit where they were going. Again, I'm wondering if that has something to do with it being an egalley, and maybe there is something wrong with the formatting of the pages. Don't know. I like the idea of flashbacks leading up to the current time, they just need to fit into the story more smoothly. I will recommend it, the story is good, just a few editing things to get straightened out to make it the best it can be.
This will be the "W" on my A-Z Reading Challenge.

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Fever by Lauren DeStefano

Fever by Lauren DeStefano
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I waited so long to read this from when I got to read the first book in the series, Wither. I wished really bad I'd get an ARC of it since I'd gotten to read Wither as an ARC. But it didn't happen, so I had to check the book out from the store where I work. I gave Wither 5 stars I loved it so much, and this was really good, but had some of the same issues that a lot of 2nd books in a series seem to have. I was a little surprised they that Rhine and Gabriel ran into a trap so soon, but I guess I'd have realized that if I'd read the summary on Goodreads. :-) But it made sense because that is where they met "Lilac" and her daughter Maddie. It is also where we got the idea that their former housemaster, Vaughn, Linden's father, had more secrets than we had even begun to find out in Wither. At first when Rhine started feeling sick, I wondered, was she finally pregnant? It doesn't really ever say that she and Gabriel go that far. But I was a little confused. Then, when you figure out what Vaughn may have done, it all begins to make sense. I knew that the whole situation with Linden couldn't be finished yet, it just wasn't completely tied up, and this is how we get back to begin to deal with it. I was so anxious for Rhine to find her brother as well. And I'm glad we do finally get some satisfaction on whether he's still alive at the end. I'm almost wondering though, if we still have more to learn about their scientist parents, and if they were as good as a child remembers their parent to be.
So now I'm eagerly awaiting the 3rd book! It would be so awesome to get an ARC of that, but not holding my breath, so at least this time I'll be waiting the same amount of time as everyone else who has to wait till the book is actually published. In conclusion, I liked the book, and am still hooked on the story!
This book will go on my "C" for the A-Z Reading Challenge, for being part of the Chemical Garden series.

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Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer

Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Okay, I see there is a TON of controversy and dislike on this book, so I have to post my review here as well as on my blog. I loved the first book in this series. The 2nd was kind of slow, but I could see how it was necessary. This one was much better in lots of action and a REAL conclusion to the story. It's not one of those stories that are supposed to be a trilogy, but then at the end, all of a sudden it isn't quite over so we go on. My thought to those authors is to not call it a trilogy, call it a series. Even just to be safe. Anyway, beyond that. I will admit I am totally Team Ren, not Shay. But then again, I'm not Calla. It's like with Twilight, the book. If Bella had ended up with Jacob, that would have been wrong. And I'm only Team Jacob because of Taylor Lautner, and only after New Moon, so I'm more Team Jacob for me, than for Bella. I feel this book had a very logical ending. And I'm okay with who Calla ended up with, and with the way it happened. I loved all the different places they had to go to get the pieces for Shay to use to defeat the Keepers, and his uncle, who was actually a demon. Definitely some of the characters who died in this were some that were my favorite, but I compare that to Harry Potter, in that it seems more realistic, (yeah, I know this is fiction) if not everyone miraculously lives through it all. Plus, it adds more emotion and makes you feel more connected, I think. As I said before, I like that there was a very firm, no question about it, ending. While the Rift may be closed, they do also let on at the end that it doesn't mean all bad magic is over, just that it can't come from that evil anymore. I don't want to say too much that might give away the ending. And I can understand why some people were upset about it, I just don't agree with them. I understand their point about it not really being Calla's "choice" how it all ended up, but really, that was her choice seemed to be leaning towards, so....
The one complaint someone mentioned that I totally agree with, is the cover. I loved the original hardcover artwork , and am not a fan of the new covers, this book does actually make Calla look a lot older than she is.
I do look forward to the prequel. I think that will be neat to go back and see how it began.
This book will count as the "B" in my A-Z Book Challenge.
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Revealing Eden by Victoria Foyt

Revealing Eden by Victoria Foyt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is another time when I wish Goodreads would let us give half stars. This was good. Not quite a 4 for me, but really not as low as a 3 either. I did enjoy this book. When I had to put it down, I was eager to pick it back up, and that is a good sign for me. I have really been into dystopian stories, and this was a good one. I could tell that there was something more to the relationship between the main character Eden and her boss Bramford from the first time they had an interaction in the book. The relationship between them was so much like the few real romance novels I've read. Even though we never really got the story from his viewpoint, it was always from Eden's, I could tell by the things he said, and the things Eden saw him do, that he had feelings for her. And I'm okay with that. She felt attracted to him, and so even though she fought her feelings for him, she really wanted him too. Which, kind of textbook romance novel. But again, the rest of the story was okay enough for that to work.
In this future world, it seems as if something like global warming has occurred, because anyone with light skin, or most people with light skin, died because of the heat and the sun's rays. Those who were left, even the darker skinned people, had to move below ground. Now the white people, or "Pearls" are the minority, and treated that way. The darker skinned people are called "Coals" and are considered the superior race. It is so bad that the Pearls even color their skin to look like Coals. People are given mating ratings, based on their skin color, skills, etc. Pearl is pretty low. Now the reason this is so bad, is that if by the time you reach a certain age you aren't married, you are no longer allowed to live in society and use their rations and supplies. They take you to the surface and leave you to fend for yourself. Which usually means death. Eden's father is a scientist that works for Bramford, where he also got Eden a job. Eden knows only one Coal who treats her fairly and makes her feel attractive, his name is Jamal. She finds out that Bramford is having her father work on a genetic cure for the light colored skin. A way to make it darker. But when they are attacked by a very prejudiced group, her father's work is compromised, Bramford agrees to be the test subject, and they must leave and run into a rainforest to hide. Bramford begins to change, because part of the cure contains the genes of a jaguar to start with, and he changes physically into almost a beast. But he is still human enough to use his resources to get them free, into a village. Pearl finds out Bramford once was mated, and this leads to some interesting discoveries of what kind of a man he really is.
This is going to be a series I guess, which is good, because while this ends on a pretty good note, we're also kind of left wondering what will happen next, with Bramford, and how will Eden be able to be with him, now that he is not really a man anymore.
I'd like to say thanks to Netgalley and Bookmaster for letting me read the egalley of this book.  I will count this as the "E" for Eden on my A-Z Reading Challenge.

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Rebirth: An Aftertime novel by Sophie Littlefield

Rebirth by Sophie Littlefield
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book kept up with the first in the series. Although I found it a little slow to get into. There was a big event at the beginning that got you hooked though, you found out that the library Cass had first arrived at in the first book had been burned and people killed by the Rebuilders. Which meant that Dor's daughter had been kidnapped. Cass thinks she could just stay at the Box with Smoke, but Smoke is so angry about the Rebuilders that he goes to infiltrate them for Dor. It's basically a suicide mission. And Dor is going to go too, it is his daughter. Cass wants to go as well to find Smoke, although she feels that Smoke has betrayed her and her daughter Ruthie by just leaving like that. Cass really just wants to find a safe, normal place for her daughter Ruthie to have a chance to grow. So after a trip filled with danger to the Rebuilders, Cass feels she might have found a good place. As an Outlier, someone who has the immunity to the disease that has caused the zombies, she is highly valued, and would live a life of "comfort" in the Rebuilders' colony. However, it turns out all is not as great as it seems. What the scientist in charge of the rebuilders wants the Outliers for is a bit creepy, and Smoke has gotten himself into a situation that must be saved, and then they do find Dor's daughter Sammi, and she also is in a precarious situation, although being Dor's daughter, she feels she can take care of herself. It definitely leaves off on a huge cliffhanger, and I know the 3rd book is out. I may have to actually buy that one, as I got the other two as an ARC and the first came with the 2nd ARC to introduce to the series. I got both from the Barnes and Noble store I work at.
Personally, some of Cass's decisions I don't quite know that I would be like that, so at times it is hard for me to connect to her. But the story is one that is interesting and keeps you reading on. I just think it'd be nice to have a little more zombies in it.  Although, we do learn that the zombies seem to be evolving.  So that could make for some interesting events in the 3rd book.
To count this in my A-Z Challenge I'll have to go with it as the "L" book for the author's last name.  It also counts on my TBR Pile Challenge.

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Torn (Trylle Trilogy #2) by Amanda Hocking

Torn by Amanda Hocking
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I actually read this as an ebook just like the first one in the series, Switched. When I enjoyed the first one as much as I did, I went ahead and purchased the 2nd and 3rd as ebooks, I believe for only about $2.99 at the time. Like with the first one, I read this on my iPhone Nook app whenever I was somewhere and didn't have a book with me. After I finished my last book, I decided to go ahead and finish this book. These are now coming out in actual "books" so I thought I'd go ahead and get my reviews done on them.
At the beginning of this Wendy has run away, back to her human family, to get away from having to be the Trylle princess. She just wants her normal life back, and believes she can actually do that if she leaves. She brings home Rhys, the child that she replaced as a changeling. So her human brother Matt gets to meet his "read" brother. But of course, she can't just go home, as it turns out there are other trolls out there, the Vittra, who come back to try to kidnap her, and do succeed. They take her to their king, who turns out to be her father. But while she is being held there, she learns about why the Vittra want her, and meets her stepmother. She learns the Vittra can't have children, and hope that she can come in and help them, as she is a mix between them and the Trylle. Finn comes in as a Tracker to rescue her, along with her brothers Matt and Rhys. They all are taken back to be safe in her mother Elora's home. Wendy learns that she must become the princess in order to save her people, and must even become betrothed to help. But there are some mysteries she must solve while she's there, like why did it end up being so easy to escape the Vittra, it was like one of them just let her walk out, a Markis named Lucas. And why then does he show up at her mother's home?
I enjoyed this book, and will probably read the 3rd one in the next month or two. I look forward to seeing how it will end. As I mentioned in my review of the first one, I'm glad we still don't really have a love triangle, at least not to the point of other stories these days.
This goes in my A-Z Challenge as my "T" book.  And because I've had it so long on my ereader, I'm counting it as part of my TBR pile challenge as well.  And the 3rd one, Ascend, will count towards that challenge as well when I get to it, as I've had these books probably for close to a year downloaded to read.

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Another Jekyll, Another Hyde by Daniel and Dina Nayeri

Another Jekyll, Another Hyde by Daniel Nayeri
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

First I want to thank both Netgalley and Candlewick Press for the chance to read this egalley. I don't think I reviewed either of the first two books on Goodreads, you'll have to go to my blog at http://misclisa.blogspot.com/ to find those reviews. But I really enjoyed the first two: Another Faust and Another Pan by Daniel and Dina Nayeri. And so, I was so excited when I saw this 3rd one on Netgalley, I immediately requested it. It seems like it was forever before they accepted my request, I began to get worried I wouldn't be approved, but I was, and I'm so happy, because I was NOT disappointed in any way, shape, or form!
Let me say this was a perfect ending to a great series! The books are modern day versions of some classic tales, which you can tell from the titles: Faust, an old German tale about a man who is unsatisfied with his life, so he sells his soul to the devil; Peter Pan, a boy who stays a boy forever, and has a band of boys who follow him, and then there is Wendy too; and finally, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the story of the man with the mild doctor personality by day, and the monstrous personality at night. All stories are well updated in this series. They are also some of the most original teen stories out there.  They're not the usual paranormal romance, I believe they could get teens inspired to go back and read the actual original stories they were based on. 
We started in the first book meeting Madame Vileroy, the beautiful and mysterious governess/guardian of 5 teens, all who have in a way sold their soul to her for what they want, beauty, success, smarts, athleticism, etc. However, she is basically like the devil, in that their wishes don't quite turn out the way they want, and she is almost defeated in the end, and three of the teens escape. Oh, and this story takes place at the prestigious Marlowe school in NYC.
In the 2nd book we meet the Darlings, Lucy and John, who go to Marlowe because their father is a history professor, and researches into ancient Egypt. Because of some ancient artifacts that are loaned to the school for a special exhibit, the underworld is let out to take over the basement of the school. The new mousy school nurse seems to be a part of it, and we learn that she is Madame Vileroy, back to seek bone dust, the stuff that makes her immortal and beautiful. Peter is a new kid at school, there because he follows these artifacts, because he too has an interest in the bone dust, and the mousy nurse.
And finally, the 3rd, and what seems to be the final installment. Thomas, who used to date Belle, one of Madame Vileroy's charges, before she dumped him, now has to deal with Vileroy and his father getting married. Of course she isn't who you'd want for a stepmother, one reason for Thomas is that he is heartbroken and confused at Belle leaving, and what he thinks he saw before she left, and part of the reason is that she needs her son to be "re-born" in order for her to regain what she needs to be her normal, beautiful, immortal self. And she has chosen Thomas to be the "vessel" I guess you would say. Which leads to a whole Jekyll and Hyde scenario, and Thomas begins to have blacked out times that he cannot remember.
(Spoiler alert!!!)
In the end, I think there is no way you can say that the evil isn't destroyed. I believe this villain is gone, they defeated her. And that is the way that I want some stories to end. I want there to be an end to the evil. Kind of like Harry Potter destroyed Voldemort. Sometimes it is okay for evil to really go. And this is the perfect way it was done.
This goes in on my A-Z Challenge as my "A" entry.

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Pandemonium (Delirium #2) by Lauren Oliver

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

First, I have to say thanks to my employer, Barnes and Noble, and also Harper Collins Children's Books for giving me the chance to read this as an Advanced Readers Copy.
Okay, once again, I think that I give this a 4 instead of a 5 because I didn't like the ending! Not that it wasn't a good ending, don't get me wrong. In fact I wish I could rate 4.5 instead of just 4 or 5, but the ending irritated me. I'm really a bit tired of love triangles. I won't say who the love triangle is with, I'll let you read the book itself and see who the 2 boys are, but I don't feel it was needed with this series. To me, the 3rd book could have been about the search for Lena's mother, who she glimpses and comes in contact with briefly in this book. And trying to help the guy she now has feelings for survive the "deliria" she now knows well.
I was so happy when I found out that there was a second book in this series as I was so mad with the way the first one, Delirium, ended. It sucked that she lost her love, Alex at the end. In a way it made me as mad as the first and only Nicholas Sparks book I ever read, in that it made me feel all good inside and like the system could be overcome and people could be happy, but then BAM! true love is gone because one of them dies.
Pandemonimum is a really good second book. As many sophomore books have been lately, they've just kind of moved the series along, didn't necessarily quite live up to the original, but were necessary to keep the series going. This one blows that all away. It moves the story along with enough action and plot to keep up with the original in my opinion.
Lena is now living in the Wilds. We are told her story through flashbacks in between what is happening when she must re-enter the Society to help with furthering the fight for those who want their own choice to love or not. When she first gets to the Wilds she is in bad shape, she has been on the run, by herself, and without Alex, she doesn't know how to survive, and so barely manages to stay alive, until she is found by members of the resistance, or Invalids, as they are called in the cities. They nurse her back to health, and soon require her to start contributing to their camp in a way that everyone else does. And as soon as she does start feeling better, Lena goes back to what we know she loved best in Delirium, running. Every winter they must move their camp south in order to survive. And they must send scouts out to make sure their way is safe. Well, as they move along, sooner than planned due to a message from their contacts on the inside that things have gone wrong, they end up losing a few of their group. This sends them in to the city to try to help further the resistance. Lena must go in undercover, and join into the opposition as a member. At a big rally, things go wrong. Lena is following Julian, the leader of the DFA - Deliria Free America's son. And she gets kidnapped at the same time he does. They must fight their way out to freedom, and find that there may have been some betrayal by someone they wouldn't have suspected.
Often books that jump back and forth like this can be confusing, but the way the author does this really worked for me. I really liked this book, except for the ending, mind you.
One other thing I have to point out that amused me so much I had to tweet about it as I read it. The vans that are used kind of as police type vehicles, they have the name of the department, the City of New York, Department of Correction, Reform, and Purification as an acronym which reads: CRAP. Funny? Or is it just me?

I will be counting this as the "O" in my A-Z Book Challenge for the author's last name.

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Pure by Julianna Baggott

Pure by Julianna Baggott
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I saw this ARC on the table at the Barnes & Noble where I work, and at first didn't think it could be YA as big of a book as it was. But I picked it up and read about it, and thought it sounded right up my alley. And I'm very glad I picked it up. I've not read any of this author's other books that she wrote under other names, but they don't necessarily sound like my type as I see what they were, one name is N.E. Bode, who I have seen those books, the other name is Bridget Asher. But, I will definitely be awaiting the next book in this series because I really liked this one, and am eager to see where it goes next. It's a definite dystopian, end of the world novel. I like that in this case the heroine, Pressia, is not perfect, in fact no one in this world outside the Dome is perfect. She's scarred, and burned, from the detonations, and like everyone else, she has fused to something that she was in contact with when it happened. Her arm has a baby doll as her hand. She lives with her grandfather, and as she is getting close to the age of 16, she is worried about being taken by the OSR to serve in the army to fight against the Dome. The Dome that sent messages right after the detonations that they would be back to help and save them some day. Yet, this has not happened. And the people outside have turned on those inside, hating the "Pures". Even creating nursery rhymes about catching and killing them to breathe the dust from their ashes to cure themselves. Pressia escapes when the OSR comes from her, only to run into the Pure who has left the Dome on purpose. His name is Partridge, and he has left because he believes that his father lied, and his mother survives somewhere out in the wastelands. Together Pressia and Partridge turn to a rebel named Bradwell for help. There are run ins with the OSR, and secret links to the Dome, man made special forces that are more animal than human. And while they think they've found what they've been looking for, have they really, or have they just found more questions and more reasons for revenge against the dome?
I liked how the science, realistic or not, was brought into the story. I liked that the main character, Pressia, is not a perfect beautiful outcast like in other books. Her romantic partner isn't either, he was fused with birds on his back. While I will admit it was a bit long at times, it all worked out, and there wasn't a time when I was bored. I was always eager to get back to it when I'd had to put it down. I don't know that it is "the next Hunger Games" but I do think that people who enjoyed that series will be interested in this. It is it's own type of book. As one quote on the cover says, it is more apocalyptic than Hunger Games really. And, as usual, the problem with reading ARCs is that then I have even longer to wait to read the next installment in the series!
This will count as the "P" in my participation in the A-Z Book Challenge.
And while you're here, don't forget to go sign up for my 300 Followers in January Giveway of a $15 gift card to Barnes and Noble.  I need 1 more follower by tomorrow, January 31st if this is going to happen!

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The Death Cure by James Dashner

The Death Cure 9 Copy Floor Display by James Dashner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First I want to say that this is from my TBR pile, so fits into my TBR Reading Challenge.  I lucked out and got this book on Black Friday.  The bookstore I work at opened at midnight to have special sales, and this was one of several teen books that they had for 50% off!  20% better than my employee discount, and so I couldn't pass it up.  Now if only I could find my ARC of the first book in the series.  :-)  This will also fit into my A-Z Reading Challenge as my D book.
I think this was a good follow up/conclusion to the Maze Runner series. It had lots of suspense and action. We got to see almost all the characters again, and see how they ended up. We got some more information on why the gladers were chosen, about being immune to the Flare, etc. I wish we'd had more time with Teresa, still not sure how I feel about her. Also, without giving anything away, I wish we'd been able to get Thomas's memories back and know more about what happened. The good thing is that there is supposed to be a prequel, and I'm looking forward to reading that and hopefully learning all the things that are still stuck in my mind. I purchased a copy of the book that had some "classified" documents in the back, and so I believe that probably gave a little hint to what will be in the prequel and what happened before we jumped right into the middle of the story in Maze Runner. As I said, a good read, I'm sure most people who enjoy this series will be satisfied with how it ended.
I apologize for my kind of quick and short review, it was really good, but I had a couple egalleys and ARCs sitting in my house that I got AFTER I started this, and so I've been chomping at the bit to get started on those.  But I didn't want to quit this and go back later, I wanted to see it all the way through. 
One last thing, don't forget to promote my 300 Follower Blog Giveaway by signing up here!  Think I've got about 13 more followers to hit that last I checked.

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A - Z Book Challenge

So, I really only did one book challenge last year, the Debut Author Challenge hosted by

The Story Siren. And I'm now debating whether to do that one again this year or not. But this is a challenge that sounds really interesting and different. So I'm going to try it. I'm going to go with the "B" method, of just as I read adding titles to the the list. In order to make this list, what I'll probably do is make a post, and then just add to it as I add books to the list and update it. Not sure how else to keep a list on my blog right now. I'm not so great with all the design stuff. But if any of you have suggestions on how I can do it, I'd love it! I'm kind of at the mercy of using Blogger's little widgets right now.

If you're interested in participating, just click on the button at the top of this post and follow the instructions to get involved!

A- Another Jekyll, Another Hyde by Daniel and Dina Nayeri
B- Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer
C- Fever (Chemical Garden series #2) by Lauren DeStefano
D- The Death Cure by James Dashner
E- Revealing Eden (Save the Pearls #1) by Victoria Foyt
F- First Kill (The Slayer Chronicles) by Heather Brewer
G- Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1) by Robin LaFever
H- Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo
I-  Incarnate by Jodi Meadows
J- Transcendence by C.J. Omololu
K- The White Oak (Imperfect Darkness #1) by Kim White
L- Rebirth (Aftertime #2) by Sophie Littlefield
M- My Soul to Take (Soul Screamers #1) by Rachel Vincent
N-  On Fire (Teen Wolf) by Nancy Holder
O- Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
P- Pure by Julianna Baggott
Q- Rift (Nightshade preQuel #1) by Andrea Cremer
R- Ripper by Amy Carol Reeves
S-  Spellcaster by Cara Lynn Shultz
T- Torn (Trylle Trilogy #2) by Amanda Hocking
U- Suck it Up and Die by Brian Meehl
V-  Redemption by Veronique Launier
W- The Weepers (Other Life #1) by Susanne Winnacker
X- Truth (XVI #2) by Julia Karr
Y- Monument 14 by EmmY Laybourne
Z- The Kill Order (MaZe Runner prequel) by James Dashner