Some Exciting News

So, I've been busy and haven't had time to read or set up my posts for this and I apologize for that. Later I'll be explaining what I've been up to because it's somewhat book related. 

But, for now, I got some exciting news today, and since I don't have anything else to post, I thought I would share this with you.

Earlier today I got the news that I got accepted into Baylor University!

When I applied, I was required to create a Go Baylor account. I applied back in November and I hadn't heard from them for a while. So, today, I decided to log into my account during one of my classes today to check to make sure everything with my application was okay. When the first thing that popped up was "Congratulations on your acceptance," I about had a heart attack. And when I got home today, guess what was waiting for me. My letter. It came with a certificate and everything. 

Yeah. I was pretty excited. I may have even cried a little. 

So, there you go. You are now caught up on my life. 

And for those who don't care about anything non-book related, come back in a few days for normal programming. 

Mini Review: Rockoholic

Rockoholic by C.J. Skuse

Scholastic

November 1, 2012

Read the full Goodreads description here. 

As you can probably guess from the title and cover, Rockoholic can be described in one word: fun. Rockoholic was an adventure that I wasn't expecting. I'll admit, I didn't get into it right away. It took some time, but once I did, I enjoyed this novel. I know I should have seen this coming, but I was a bit surprised by just how much Jody was obsessed with the rock star Jackson. I'm not talking about how much she loved him and his music, I talking about how border-line creepy she was with him. Although I didn't really relate to this, I was thoroughly entertained by this. But, I was especially glad when she grew and got a life away from this. Although I wouldn't exactly call Rockoholic realistic, it was still a fun and original adventure. 

Review: Crash by Lisa McMann

Crash (Visions #1)
Lisa McMann
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release Date: January 8, 2013

If what you see is what you get, Jules is in serious trouble. The suspenseful first of four books from the New York Times bestselling author of the Wake trilogy.Jules lives with her family above their restaurant, which means she smells like pizza most of the time and drives their double-meatball-shaped food truck to school. It’s not a recipe for popularity, but she can handle that.What she can’t handle is the recurring vision that haunts her. Over and over, Jules sees a careening truck hit a building and explode...and nine body bags in the snow.The vision is everywhere—on billboards, television screens, windows—and she’s the only one who sees it. And the more she sees it, the more she sees. The vision is giving her clues, and soon Jules knows what she has to do. Because now she can see the face in one of the body bags, and it’s someone she knows. Someone she has been in love with for as long as she can remember.In this riveting start to a gripping series from New York Times bestselling author Lisa McMann, Jules has to act—and act fast—to keep her vision from becoming reality.

Back a few years ago, I was obsessed with Lisa McMann's Wake series. Looking back, I think that if I had read those books for the first time now, I would have a very different view of them. That being said, I was excited that Lisa was coming out with a companion series, but I was also nervous about it for that very reason. 

Crash is a very thrilling ride. Lisa McMann sure knows how to keep you enthralled until the very end. This is the kind of book that you will read in one sitting, both because it's so short, and because you just need to know what is going to happen. 

This book needed a lot more character development. I liked Jules and Sawyer fine, and I was definitely entertained by Jules's siblings, but they all needed more developing. If I remember correctly, this was a problem in the wake series, too. It comes with having such short books. But I'm hoping that this will be remedied in the next book.   

All in all, Crash is a good start to a series. I'm not obsessed with it by any means, but I'm still looking forward to what's in store next. And Lisa continues to be an author that I'll always read.

Top Ten Tuesday: Settings

As always, Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. For more information or to participate, visit here.

This week's topic is Settings I'd like to see more of

1. The mountains- I don't care where these mountains are, but mountains make a very interesting setting and really goes with paranormal/fantasy stories.
2. The south- Have you noticed there aren't many YA books set in the south?  Sure, there's a few, but not as many as other places. Now, even though I've spent most of my life in Colorado, I'm a Texas girl at heart and plan to make my way back down there eventually (as in in a few months once I graduate). Anyway, I love the south and would love to see more books set in a good ole' southern town.
3. Alaska- I just remember reading Winter Longing and loved the setting. It's not exactly somewhere I want to live, but it's really interesting. 
4. More exotic places- For instance, more books set in Central/ South America. Wanderlove got me hooked on that. 
5. More foreign Steampunk settings- Shadow and bone is set in steampunk Russia. Stormdancer is set in steampunk Japanese. I'm talking these kinds of settings.

What settings would you like to see more of?

Review: Uses for Boys by Lorraine Scheidt

Uses for Boys
Erica Lorraine Scheidt
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Release Date: January 15, 2013

Anna remembers a time before boys, when she was little and everything made sense. When she and her mom were a family, just the two of them against the world. But now her mom is gone most of the time, chasing the next marriage, bringing home the next stepfather. Anna is left on her own—until she discovers that she can make boys her family. From Desmond to Joey, Todd to Sam, Anna learns that if you give boys what they want, you can get what you need. But the price is high—the other kids make fun of her; the girls call her a slut. Anna's new friend, Toy, seems to have found a way around the loneliness, but Toy has her own secrets that even Anna can't know.
Then comes Sam. When Anna actually meets a boy who is more than just useful, whose family eats dinner together, laughs, and tells stories, the truth about love becomes clear. And she finally learns how it feels to have something to lose—and something to offer. Real, shocking, uplifting, and stunningly lyrical, Uses for Boys by Erica Lorraine Scheidt is a story of breaking down and growing up.

So... I was really hoping to like this one. I really was. But, I was disappointed. I know that a lot of people did really like this novel, but my dislike comes down to one aspect: lack of connection.

Anna. On a certain level, I did like her, but I just could not connect with her at all. Part of that has to do with something else (which I'll talk about later) and part of that has to do with her decisions. Now, This novel was very honest and realistic, which I can appreciate, but it was just hard for me to put myself in Anna's shoes. 

And the writing. Scheidt's writing was very, well, disconnected. I have seen this style before and sometimes it can really work. But not in this case. I had enough trouble understanding Anna and the disconnected feel of the novel did not help.

Overall, I just could not get into this novel. It did have good things about it that I could appreciate (the honesty of the novel), and I can see why others did like it. However, this just wasn't the novel for me. 

Giveaway: Hallowed by Cynthia Hand

Hey y'all! Today I am here to do a giveaway for the book Hallowed by Cynthia Hand, just in time for y'all to catch up on the series before book number three comes out!

For months Clara Gardner trained to face the fire from her visions, but she wasn't prepared for the choice she had to make that day. And in the aftermath, she discovered that nothing about being part angel is as straightforward as she thought.
Now, torn between her love for Tucker and her complicated feelings about the roles she and Christian seem destined to play in a world that is both dangerous and beautiful, Clara struggles with a shocking revelation: Someone she loves will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.
In this compelling sequel to Unearthly, Cynthia Hand captures the joy of first love, the anguish of loss, and the confusion of becoming who you are.

A Few Guidelines:

~Giveaway runs from January 9 to January 23

~Must have an US shipping address

~Must be 13 years or older to enter

~To enter, fill our the rafflecopter

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Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Goals for 2013

As always Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and Bookish. For more information or to participate, visit here.

This week's topic is book goals for 2013. I'm going to go ahead and throw in some blog goals as well.

1. Read more books than last year. I think this one is pretty self-explanatory. 
2. Read more books that have been sitting on my shelf for what seems like forever. I have grown quite a collection and I would really like to get some of them read. 
3. Try not to get as many books from the library. If you know me at all, you know that I have a series addiction to going to my library. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing, but it is when I'm bringing home a bunch of books twice a week. There's no way I can read all of those. 
4. Read library books before due date. I have so many books out that I can never get to, so I end up just rechecking them out five times before I ever get to reading them. A part of my problem. 
5. Interact more in the blogging community. This is always one for me. I actually did a lot better last year (although I kind of fell off the blogging planet the last month), but there's always room to grow in this area. 
6. Really working on expanding my blog. I've been blogging for four and a half years now and I feel that my blog isn't anywhere near where it should be. (Although please note: I love my blog and am so appreciative to anyone who reads it. I just feel that, if I work on it, it could be so much more).
7. Start rereading series before a new book comes out. I've been wanting to do this for a while. Sometimes, when a new book comes out, I don't remember much from the previous books. Plus, it gives me an excuse to reread books that I remember really liking. 
8. Review almost every YA book that I read. I was doing very well with this for a while. But the last half of the year I got a little lazy. 

What are some of your 2013 goals?

Books I Did Not Get to in 2012

Sorry, y'all. I meant to post this a few days ago but forgot to. It's a little late but better late than never, eh?

So, I've seen some of these posts around, and decided to do one myself. There are a lot of great books that I did not get to read in 2012 and definitely will be reading (hopefully) soon in 2013.

I love Maggie Seifvater so I was really excited to read this one. I actually started it, but had to return it to my library before I got the chance to finish. I'll have to get this one again.

I've heard a lot of really good things about this one and I was excited to read it. Since it hasn't been out that long I don't feel too bad about not getting to it. 

I've been eyeing this one for a while. Not long ago, it was on sale for about three dollars for my Nook, so I bought it. 

I know, I know. I even checked this one out three or four times this year but never got around to it. I've heard it's amazing. But I think, since I've waited this long, I might as well wait until closer to when Requiem is released so I don't have to wait so long to read it.

I bought this one closely to when it was released. Several people have just raved about this book. I don't know why, but I never got around to reading it. I definitely need to, soon!

Another one that people raved about, I bought, and never got to.