Nightshade Book Review

Nightshade
by Andrea Cremer

Originality -

Nightshade was definitely original. I was thinking that this book would be like every other werewolf book that I’ve read but it was not. The werewolf society that Andrea Cremer created felt real and was easy to dive into.
5/5

Characters-

Calla is a strong female protagonist that gives orders rather than taking them. She’s fierce but still has a soft side. But most importantly she’s easy to relate to. I have mixed feelings about the male leads though, especially in the beginning of the book.
4/5

Dialogue-

I think this story has some of the best dialogue. Why? Because the things Calla said/ thought at times made me bend over with laughter! The comic-relief in this book was gold. The more serious times were also fantastic. The author also did a great job of incorporating modern day teen speech without making it look like she tried too hard.
5/5

Setting-

The setting wasn’t mentioned as much, but I got the feeling that Calla lived in a place close to the woods. She is a werewolf after all.
3/5

Voice/Writing-

Andrea Cremer’s voice was amazing, and easy to melt into. Her voice alone was what made me decide to read past page 1—and I’m glad that I did.
5/5

Cover-

At first I wasn’t so amused by the cover but I guess it’s grown on me overtime. The purple is really eye-catching.
4/5

Overall Rating= 4/5

Otherwise known as a MUST READ. I highly recommend this book. The ending will literally have you begging for more. :)

Happy reading,

~Ezmirelda

Nightshade Book Review

Coming soon to bookshelves everywhere...

Julie Kagawa, author of the iron fey series revealed the full cover of Iron Queen on her blog today. I’m a huge fan of her books. Isn’t this cover awesome?

*Click on the picture to read the summary

Another book I can not wait to read is Matched by Ally Condie. The summary itself has already gotten me hooked! Here's the book trailer that was released about a week ago.

Which books are you really looking forward to that are coming out this fall?

Coming soon to bookshelves everywhere...

50th Follower Party

It’s a lot less empty here than when I started blogging last May. My small voice started off as a echo is a large empty hallway, to a much louder voice. So I just wanted to say thank you to all my followers—for listening to my rants and helping me grow as a writer. I made some really awesome friends here, and learned a lot more about both publishing and novel-writing.


October is nearly over and once November starts I’m going to be busy as ever with Nanowrimo and school activities. I’ll try to post either here or on the NaNo blog as often as I can.

Also I’ve written this article on How To Write a Query Letter on the Writing Tab. Feel free to check it out for those of you who aren’t already familiar with it.

Happy Writing,

~Ezmirelda


Random Question:

Every Halloween I feel so tempted to write a short story in the horror genre. It always ends up being about a kid going into a haunted house and getting scared out of his wits. Haha :) Is anyone else thinking about writing a short story for Halloween?

50th Follower Party

Elixir Book Review

Elixir by Hillary Duff

Book Review

Originality-

I liked the aspect of it being about immortality, but I felt like I’ve read something like it before. Like Evermore by Allison Noel.

3/5

Characters-

I thought Clea was an okay protagonist. It was interesting to follow her side of the story but then again, I couldn’t really connect with her.

I loved the other minor characters though—like Clea’s best friend. She was one of my favorite characters!

4/5

Dialogue-

The dialogue was great. I really connected with it, because as a teen I know what it’s like to read a forced attempt of an adult trying to sound like a teen—and there was none of that in this book.
5/5

Plot-

The plot was very well planed out. I liked the twists and turns. The beginning felt a little slow to me, but when more characters start to come in the pace starts to pick back up again. The ending was kind of abrupt though.
3.5/5

Setting-

The book had multiple settings. I never really got a good picture of the surroundings, but she did a good job of it towards the end of the book.
3/5

Voice/writing-

Hilary’s voice was great! I loved the fluidity of her words—it didn’t sound forced at all. And the grammar was just fine.
4/5

Cover-

I love the cover! The purple flower and the fonts are very eye-catching.
5/5

Overall- 3.5/5

It was great but it didn’t really grab me much as a reader. That extra something wasn’t there that usually pulls me into the story—and I think that problem lies in originality. I recommend that you read it. Who knows, maybe it might interest you more than it did to me. It wasn’t a bad book. It’s just that it wasn’t the best book either.

*My reviews are also on goodreads.

Elixir Book Review

Are you ready for NaNo?

NaNoWrimo 2010

During the month of November I’ll be doing most my blog posting on my Nanowrimo blog. Please come and check it out, even if you think you won’t be doing it this year. I love how Nanowrimo gets us all together to do the thing we love to do: writing. And the fact that we have a deadline makes it even more exciting! (Am I starting to sound crazy yet?) Sure, I’ll be tired and extremely busy for an entire month—but the outcome will be well worth it. :D

If you have a Nano account leave a link to your page so I can add you as a writing buddy.

We can do this thing! :)

~Ezmirelda

Are you ready for NaNo?

Teaser Tuesday: Elixir

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading and asks you to:

-Grab your current read
 -Share 2 teasers
-Don’t include any spoilers
-Include the title and author: Elixir by Hilary Duff

This is my first time doing a teaser Tuesday. I picked the most non-spoiler quotes I could find. Enjoy!

Quote # 1

“I finally found a shadow high in the corner of the frame, and fresh goose bumps danced up my arm.” Pg. 51

Quote # 2

“My dreams of this man may have been vivid but they were just dreams. They had nothing to do with reality; not mine, and clearly not his.” Pg. 164

Also, I started a blog just for Nanowrimo this year. It’ll be most active during the month of November, but stop by to vote on the poll if you can. :)


~Ezmirelda

Teaser Tuesday: Elixir

Hilary Duff…a YA author?

Hilary Duff is the author of the upcoming YA novel Elixir. I remembered her on TV as Lizzie McGuire. I viewed her as a singer, an actor, but never as an author. But here’s yet another thing to add on to a list of her accomplishments. When I found out that she was writing this book I was so surprised I had to double check to see if it were really her and not some person with the same name as her.

Luckily I got an ARC so I won’t have to wait till October 12, 2010 to read it. It’s definitely on my TBR (to be reviewed) list.

This reminds me of something I read in Meg Cabot’s Princess Diaries series. It’s the book where Mia decides to publish her romance novel and when the publisher finds out that she’s a princess they insist on her using her real name to attract more readers. I’m imagining a similar situation happened with Hilary. :)

Here's the blurb:
 
As the daughter of a renowned surgeon and a prominent Washington D.C. politician, Clea Raymond has felt the glare of the spotlight her entire life. And though she dreads the paparazzi who track her every move, she herself is a talented photojournalist who takes refuge in a career that allows her to travel to the most exotic parts of the world.
But after Clea’s father disappears while on a humanitarian mission, eerie, shadowy images of a strange and beautiful young man begin to appear in Clea’s photos—a man she has never seen in her life.


When Clea suddenly encounters this man in person she is stunned—and feels an immediate and powerful connection. As they grow closer, they are drawn deep into the mystery behind her father’s disappearance and discover the centuries-old truth behind their intense bond.


Torn by a dangerous love triangle and haunted by a powerful secret that holds their fate, together they race against time to unravel their past in order to save their future—and their lives.

Hilary Duff…a YA author?

October Chills & NaNo

It’s October. The warm weather is disappearing & the leaves are changing colors, leaving a big mess of leaves in our backyard. And I love it!  I’m really excited for NaNoWriMo next month. I’m contemplating whether to use Idea # 1 which involves curses or Idea # 2 which involves rivalry. Both ideas are tempting but I’m going to have to choose one of them sooner or later.

Does anyone else think they’re going to be participating this year?

I’m currently reading Halo by Alexandra Adornetto (an 18 year old author) I’ve read very mixed reviews about it but I like to read books myself before making judgment on them. I also finished reading Mockingjay recently and I’m not really sure how I felt about the ending. 

If there’s any book that I’ve been looking forward to the most then it would have to be Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead. It’s going to be the last book in the Vampire Academy series. I met Richelle at a book signing about a year ago and she’s as amazing as her books are. 

I really like this cover, although I can never tell which character it's supposed to be.

Hope you guys are enjoying the rest of your weekend!

~Ezmirelda

October Chills & NaNo