Delirium EPISODE REVIEW

So for anyone that doesn't already know, Delirium by Lauren Oliver was filmed to originally be a show, but wasn't picked up.  However, Hulu recently released the pilot episode on their website Hulu.com. Before I go into the review, I would just like to say that Delirum was one of the best books I ever read. However, the short stories and two sequels sucked butt and ruined the series.

 

Emma Roberts plays Lena Haloway. She isn't who I pictured Lena to be, but I think that she was their best option. I love Emma Roberts and after watching the episode, I think I'd be okay with her and I think she'd work her way into the role and become Lena for me. They couldn't have gotten a worse actor for Alex than Daren Kagasoff. I don't think he's a great actor, and I think he's a terrible Alex. The only character I did like was Hana.

The episode itself was pretty terrible. It was way too fast and too many things happened. It felt rushed and there was no depth to anything. Within the first twenty minutes Lena and Alex were already making out, and by the end of the episode we are already seeing the ending of the book (which is a whopping 441 pages) when Lena goes over the fence. The episode felt more of a 'Previously on...' than anything. It felt like they were showing a bunch of clips and pushed them into an episode as if they were trying to catch viewers up on what happened.

They also included characters that shouldn't have been included. They added Julian, his family, the Wilds and a bunch of government people. It mostly confused me when it came to them.

I can only speak as a viewer, but what I would have rather seen was a relationship development with not only Alex and Lena but also Lena and Hana. There was no depth to any of their relationships and I felt like I was just supposed to assume Lena and Hana were best friends. I didn't have anything to go on to believe that they were. They should have slowed down the episode. Made many episodes to develop a relationship. Take a whole season to discover about her father. End the season with her going over the fence. Not add all of these events into 43 minutes.

Overall I'm very disappointed, and if this series was actually picked up and was going to be continued, I would never watch it. Not in a million years.

Hades by Kamery Solomon

What can I say about this book?

Well, the first word that comes to mind is disappointment.

I'm severely disappointed with this book. I was so looking forward to it because from reading the blurbs I was totally in love with Hades. However, after reading the book, I didn't love Hades. I didn't love Hades at all.

The main character Katrina isn't exactly annoying, but she could get there eventually. The idea of her was annoying however. She was a country girl that thought she was oh so tough, and I think characters like that are annoying. Don't tell me that you're tough. Show me that you're tough. Make me believe it.

Another annoying feature of Katrina was that she kept calling her Dad 'Daddy'. Never once was he called something else. To me, constantly calling your Dad 'Daddy' is just plain creepy. I mean, okay, call him Daddy every once in a while, but all the time? No, thank you.

Hades wasn't annoying either, but I don't think there was much to him. My original assumption of him was that he was going to be a bad boy, but he wasn't. He was completely different. There's nothing wrong with making him different, but I felt like there was no consistency to him in the beginning. He's perceived as evil, but then once we meet him he's not evil at all. I would have liked to see some evil in him, and then small pieces break away to show that he wasn't.

I don't normally pick on grammar because I'm not good at grammar myself, and I know that these books are indie and use beta readers, but the grammar in this book was horrible. It made me wonder what happened because in the first two, there were grammar mistakes, but not enough for me to make a comment on them. Hades, however, was full of so many mistakes it was annoying. Also, the word 'though' was used waaaay too much. It was the next annoying thing to hearing 'Daddy' every few pages.

The story itself had some potential, but not the kind that I would normally read and like. The first two books were really great because the female characters didn't know who Zeus and Poseidon was, but in Hades, Katrina knew who Hades was. I really didn't like that. I much rather read about her not knowing who he is.

Overall, what I can say about the series is Zeus had the best story, Poseidon was the best character, and Hades was just there. Even though I am not impressed with the final book, I will be reading the next book that is kind of like a spin-off. I believe it picks up where Hades leaves off. Other than that I would say, don't get your hopes up for Hades like I did. Save it for Zeus and Poseidon.

A Radiant Sky by Jocelyn Davies

Um. What?

After finishing the series, that is my response.

The book was so, so good until we reached a certain point. I gave this book four stars out of five. If it weren't for that certain point, I would have rated it a five star book.

I really like Davies writing and I think she has a true talent, and I really hope she writes more books. I loved how this series was so different from other books. She took the angel thing and totally reworked it into something new and great. I loved the characters and the atmosphere. It was really fun to be reading about Colorado instead of some other place like New York.

I only have two complaints about this book. 1. Asher was barely in here. It was frustrating to me because he is the love interest. When there is a love interest, I want to read about the love interest. I don't want to see him in two pages in the beginning, and only have him come back on page 300. That is what this book did. We literally did not see Asher for 300 pages. We always saw Devin though. Devin Devin Devin.

My other complaint is the ending. And this could be considered a spoiler, so be warned. The big battle is going on and then it just stops. Skye has an idea that doesn't involve fighting, and all of a sudden, the fight it over and everyone gets over their hate for the sides. Like, what? That doesn't work in real life, and it shouldn't have worked in the book. I'm fine with the writer wanting to take it in a different direction, but it was the way she went about it. It was literally a light switch that went on and off.

But, fortunately, I can look past this. It was a really great series that I was just drawn to and I'm glad I picked up the books. I recommend it to everyone.

The Fault in Our Stars MOVIE REVIEW

It may come as a surprise to some people, but I actually saw the movie The Fault in Our Stars. It was kind of against my will to be honest. The only reason I saw it was because of a birthday. But anyway, I figured since I was going to see it, why not review it?

Let me start off by saying that even though I wasn't really wanting to see it, I kept an open mind throughout the whole movie.

I think the movie followed the book really well from what I remember. I was impressed by that fact, and I also assumed it would be like that because I knew John Green was very much involved in the movie making. However, one of my friends that read the book and loved it said that the movie switched back and forth with the book.

I honestly liked the movie. I was impressed by it and watching the movie made me want to read the book again and give it another try. I loved the chemistry and banter between Gus and Hazel, and I completely loved Isaac. My heart was really happy when the opening came on and the font was the same font as the book. The credits were like that too. I felt that the movie was more emotional than the book. I also assumed I would feel this way because typically I get more emotional watching something instead of reading it.

*Spoiler* When Gus died, I wasn't sad. I wasn't sad in the book either. I mean, yeah, it's a sad thing to lose someone to cancer, but I expected Gus to die in the book and of course the movie. What was sad for me was Hazel crying when she found out. At that point, I wanted to cry too. What surprised me during the movie, was everyone else crying in the theatre. I heard everyone joking about bringing tissues and things, but I didn't actually think anyone would cry. It shocked me because of all the sad movies I've seen, I've never heard anyone crying in the theatre. People were blubbering.

Overall, I liked the movie. I liked the characters and the acting. I liked the raw emotions and truthfulness the movie had. I would recommend seeing the movie if you're hesitant to see it. It was actually pretty great.

Crush Series Blog Tour

Crush by Lacey Weatherford

Book 1- Crush Series

 

 

Cami Wimberley has a plan, and that plan includes no room for boys—especially the big time party animal, Hunter Wilder, no matter how handsome and charismatic he is. She’s beautiful, a senior, extremely talented, gets good grades, and is working her way toward her dream college to be a musical theater major. Everything is perfect. Hunter Wilder does not want a girlfriend—that would complicate his life way too much right now. He especially doesn’t want this girl, Miss-Goody-Two-Shoes, so how come he can’t keep his eyes off her? He tries to keep her at arms length, but fate seems to keep pushing them together. Before long, it’s obvious to everyone they’re crushing on each other. As sparks begin to fly, Hunter finds himself sinking deeper and deeper into hot water. Soon he’s scrambling to keep Cami from discovering his dark secret—one that can destroy their entire relationship.

 

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Smitten by Lacey Weatherford

Book 2 - Crush Series

 

 

Life is good. Cami is away at her dream college with her dream man by her side. She thinks if she can just get through with meeting Hunter’s family that everything will be perfect. Little does she know that life’s about to turn upside down again when Hunter is called to infiltrate a gang whose specialty is chopping and racing cars. His contact happens to be a beautiful curvy girl who is the gang leader’s sister and he has to pose as her boyfriend. Communication with Cami is basically forbidden to help keep his cover. Hunter, however, can’t stand being away from the girl he really loves, and he sneaks away one night to meet her across town. He doesn’t know the gang leader, Ripper, has suspicions about him already and he’s following him to see where he goes. He surprises Hunter and Cami, and Hunter quickly introduces her as his foster sister who is having some car trouble. He thinks all is well until he discovers he has one serious problem. Ripper likes Cami and decides to pursue her, drawing her into the same dangerous world he’s supposed to bring down. Can he keep his cover without having Cami get caught in the crossfire? Will the two of them survive having to watch each other fake it in the arms of another? Or will their hot stolen kisses destroy everything?

 

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Love by Lacey Weatherford

Book 3 - Crush Series

 

 

Living happily ever after has always been part of the plan for Cami and Dylan, but when strange things begin happening around the Wilcock household, Cami simply believes she’s becoming forgetful. However, when the incidents begin to escalate, both are left feeling vulnerable. Unable to figure out what’s going on, Dylan delves deeper into the mysterious happenings. But when the truth comes out, he finds himself faced with the biggest decision of his life—how far will he go to protect the one he loves? 

 

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  Crush Excerpt

Hunter

             She lifted one and studied it with a small smile before reaching for the next one in the pile.“ These are really good, Hunter. You’re quite the photographer.”

              I held still, my heart racing, knowing if she continued far enough she’d see what I’d been doing. I would totally come off as the jealous boyfriend—something I didn’t want at all. She made her way through until she reached the images that were facing down.

“Those are the bad ones,” I said, moving to stop her. “I’m just going to put them in the shredder.” “Don’t do that.” She placed her hand over mine, stilling me.

“Let me see them first. All the others were so good.”

I was desperate, racking my brain for a way to distract her from continuing. “Cami . . . ,” I let my voice trail off, and she glanced up at me expectantly.

“Yes?”

I closed my eyes for a second. “Forgive me,” I whispered when I looked at her again. I grabbed her cheeks and pressed my lips to hers. Sparks exploded at the simple contact between us, and I found myself sliding my hands down to her shoulders so I could pull her closer. I wrapped both of my arms around her back and pressed against her, walking slowly forward until she was pinned against the door. Her fingers move upward, locking around behind my neck.

She opened her mouth, allowing me access, and I happily invaded, licking and tasting what she offered. It was heaven. She made a soft moaning sound in the back of her throat—or maybe it was me—I wasn’t sure anymore as her hands made their way up into my hair, digging in as she kept me pulled tightly to her.

My palms moved lower, cupping her bottom and lifting so she could wrap her legs around me. She did so as if she’d done it a thousand times before, and I moved to trail kisses across her face and down her neck. She tossed her head back, arching. “Finally,” she breathed out as her hands traveled over me.

 

Smitten Excerpt

Cami

I opened the door into the bay and felt a hand roughly close around my upper arm. I gasped as Hunter shoved me up against the wall, pinning me there with his body as his lips descended to mine. His mouth assaulted, laced with possessiveness and desperation as his tongue invaded, sweeping inside with delicious abandon. My knees shook, and I fisted his shirt in my hands, trying to pull him closer as I drowned in the sensations he was creating inside me.            

This is dangerous! My brain shouted, reminding that Ripper could walk through the door any second and catch us. The thought quickly left as one of Hunter’s hands tangled in my hair, and the other drifted down my body. A soft moan escaped from me, and he growled in return, pressing harder.

“I can’t take this anymore,” he whispered harshly against my lips. “Seeing you in his arms—watching him touch you. It’s driving me insane. I want to rip him apart.” He claimed my mouth again, denying me any chance to reply, but I didn’t care. I didn’t want him to stop—I wanted him to continue his ravishing. My blood pounded in my ears, rushing with both fear and desire as I continued to clutch at him, desperate to keep this connection. Heat streaked through my veins and threatened to melt every part of me . . . I couldn’t get enough.

“Cami, where are you?” Ripper’s voice floated in from the hall, interrupting the moment, and Hunter released me abruptly, stepping away, his breathing rapid as he stared hotly.

“You are mine,” he whispered, glancing once over me before he swallowed thickly, then fled the room through the far door that led outside.

Love Excerpt
Hunter

She never ceased to take my breath away. I couldn’t believe how much my love for her had grown in the short time we’d been together, every day more than the last.

“I recognize that look. Heaven knows I’ve seen it often enough before you drag me off to bed.”

“Drag you.” I folded my arms. “I can’t think of one time you haven’t been a perfectly willing partner. In fact, there have been plenty of times when you’ve done the dragging.”

Bending to kiss her, I gave myself over to the shock that always zinged through my lips whenever we touched, instantly lighting a fire inside me.

 All thoughts of dinner went quickly flying out the window as I devoured her lips, my tongue sliding smoothly in between them to taste her sweetness. Kissing wasn’t enough to convey my emotions to her though, I simply wanted to melt into her and be one.

 “I love you Dylan,” she whispered before pressing her lips to mine. “Thank you for loving me back.”

“I couldn’t breathe without you,” I said against her skin, wondering if she really knew she was my whole world.

Bending over, I kissed her cheek and whispered, “Goody, if you were in a line up with every other girl in the world, I’d still pick you out first.”

 

Cami

Kissing Dylan had to be the best experience ever, his full lips pressing firmly against mine as he held me.

 
Everything about him made me feel safe—the flexing muscles of his arms, the hardness of his chest and abdomen, and his height towering over me. He seemed so strong, so invincible.

 “Bite your tongue,” I said, playfully slapping at his shoulder.

“How about you bite it for me?” Sweeping me into his arms he gave me a wink as he carried me out of the room.

“Dylan should be in here any time. They just relieved Engine Nine­dash­three so they could take a break.” As if on cue, I saw my husband come through the door. His hair was wet and matted thickly to his head, and dark streaks of black ran over his cheeks. Even with his darker complexion, it was easy to see his skin was flushed and he looked worn out.

 “Kiss me and get out of here.”

I shook my head slowly as I moved closer. “So demanding.”

“You love it and you know it.” He grinned, our faces close as we stared at each other, and I could see the love shining from his eyes, even through all the grime that covered him.

My Review for Love:

 

Lacey Weatherford is one of my favorite authors. I think she has amazing, incredible talent, and she's always able to transfer that into her books. Crush, the first book in the series, completely blew me away. I had never fangirled so much about a book before in my life, and it contained what I have deemed the ''plot twist of the century''.  Smitten, the sequel, was just as amazing. It didn't contain any plot twists of the century, but it certainly threw me around, and Love was no exception either. In fact, when I first heard about Love and read the synopsis, I completely freaked out and here is your proof:

 

 

 

I was so stinking excited for the book to come out and when it finally did, I devoured it in a day. It was so sweet how Dylan/Hunter took care of Cami and how much they loved each other. It was a bit hard for me to get used to Dylan's career, and I wish he had stuck with his original job, but that's something I can look over. Another hard thing for me to get used to was Cami being pregnant. It was a bit hard for me to relate to because I'm no where near that part in my life, but it didn't kill the book for me. As always, Lacey's writing kept me on the edge wondering what was going to happen next. I had so many suspects on my list I didn't know what to do with myself, and when we found out who the real culprit was, I was shocked! Love really was a great book and I loved how realistic the book was. There was a cause and effect that would happen in real life and not some made up fantasy. It was great to see Russ again and I can't wait to read his book when it comes out. Overall, this was another great book written by the great Lacey Weatherford. I definitely recommend this book to anyone and everyone, and certainly hope there will be more Cami and Dylan books in the future.

 

My review of Crush: http://teenscenereading.blogspot.com/2013/12/crush-by-lacey-weatherford.html

 

My Review of Smitten: http://teenscenereading.blogspot.com/2013/12/smitten-by-lacey-weatherford.html

*I would personally like to thank Lacey and Michelle for allowing me this opportunity to be a part of the Crush Blog Tour. It was a great privilege and something that I took very seriously. I hope I made you two proud! :)  

Poseidon by Kamery Solomon

I picked this book up after reading the first book in the series called Zeus. I fell in love with Zeus and I was very excited to read the sequel.

I loved loved loved this book!

It was a bit hard for me to get into because we meet Audrey, a very likeable character, and she's going through some tough times. Her husband has died and she has to create herself anew. It was hard for me to relate to because I've never been married, and I've never lost someone in my life. Once I was able to get past Audrey's troubles, I was able to get into the book more. Audrey was a great character and I loved how she was able to get back onto her feet and move on with her life. I felt like she was moving on in a very healthy way, and I greatly appreciated that.

Sy was a very likeable character too. When we first met him, I was kind of wary. I was the same with Zeus, but after a while he really grew on me and I began to love him. He had a great sense of humor and I loved the banter between him and Audrey. My only real complaint about him was that I hated he used the nickname Sy. I realize that with the name Poseidon you don't really have a lot of nicknames to work with, but I wished he had another name other than Sy.

It was interesting to see how the book ended. I'm not sure how I feel about it, and I won't mention much of it so I don't give anything away. All I can say is that it was a weird switch, and I haven't read a twist like that one before.

Overall, this book was great just like Zeus. I definitely recommend it.

Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony

This is a story told entirely through pictures.

I picked this book up just out of interest and once I got home from the library, I started reading it and finished it within the hour. This was the first time I've ever read a book that was told through pictures, so it was hard to get into at first. Once I got used to it and found a groove, it was really fun to read. I'm surprised about the emotions I felt while reading the book. I felt like I was actually Glory sitting down and looking through an old box of trinkets and flipping through a photo album. The story was easy to understand-something that surprised me since I was expecting it to be difficult-and it was easy to feel Glory's emotions. It was fun to read the newspaper articles and see the paintings. I enjoyed seeing their IM messages and playlists. The ending of the story is basically up for you to decide. That was something I knew from the beginning, and I knew I was going to dislike that part. I'm the type of person that wants to be told what happened. Don't leave it up to me. Tell me what happened. But, surprisingly, I liked the ending. I saw how it ended and even though I wasn't told directly what the ending was, I felt like I was directed in how the ending was.

Overall, this was really fun and easy to read. I loved the pictures and the fact that the people in the book were all good looking. One "negative" thing to say about the book though, is that it's twenty bucks. I personally would recommend checking the book out at the library if you can before spending twenty bucks and basically getting a book of pictures.

Zeus by Kamery Solomon

My sister had read this book a while ago and had been suggesting it to me for a while, so when I saw that it was free on the nook, I went ahead and got it.

I am so glad I got it.

This book was pleasantly surprising and was super fun to read. It didn't wow me when I was first reading it, but by the time I hit a certain point I decided that I loved this book. The book first starts out with Karly moving to Las Vegas which I think is super cool because Las Vegas is my hometown. It was great to read a book that took place in Vegas and I liked the fact that Kamery was able to allow the book to take place in Vegas, but not be about Vegas. Karly was a relateable character for me because she was going to college at UNLV and I'm at that point in my life, so it was nice to be able to be like, 'Hey yeah, I totally know what she means about saving her AC and her car power to save money'. Karly was going though everything that I'm going through in my life right now and I've never had that happen to me while reading a book.

Zeus was an interesting guy. To be honest, I didn't like him in the beginning. I thought it was super weird that after the club he just showed up at Karly's house. And then the thing with the flowers... it made me really uncomfortable about Zeus. But, surprisingly, Zeus turned things around and I ended up loving him. It was cool to see how him and Karly interacted with each other and how Zeus reacted when they talked about Greek things and the weather. I also really like Kamery's take on Zeus. The Zeus I always see in my head is the one from Disney's Hercules, but this Zeus was completely different. And when he came in to save the day with his lighting bolts... hot.

Another thing I liked about the book was that Kamery included Greeks gods that aren't commonly known. We always hear about the major gods like Hera, Hades, Zeus, and Poseidon, but Kamery also featured Nike and Morpheus. The action scenes were great and intense and I really enjoyed them. The book didn't lag for me in anyway and I felt like all the chapters and scenes fit with the book and weren't there just to fill spaces. This was a great book that I'd definitely recommend. I was absorbed in it the whole time and finished it the same day I downloaded it. I've already downloaded the next book in the series and have already started reading. If you get the chance to download this book-do it. You won't be disappointed.

15 Book Confessions

1. I always hated reading until seventh grade when Twilight was being passed around.

2. I have too many books for my bookshelf that the shelves droop down. I also have books scattered around my room.

3. I always finish a book. Even if it is terrible and I absolutely hate it-I will finish it.

4. My bookshelf kind of has an order to it. The top shelf is my favorite books, the second and third shelves are just whatever books fit, but I put my least favorites on the bottom.

5. I treat my books like they are babies. They’re handled with the upmost care.

6. When I’m reading a hardcover I have to take the jacket off. Have to.

7. If I’m not falling for the main guy or hero in the books, I fall for the villain or the hero’s friend.

8. I’ve never been to a book signing, but I have about four or five signed books.

9. I’ve never won an ARC :(

10. I’ve won (so far) four books from entering giveaways.

11. I love to recommend books to people. I always have a list in my head ready to go.

12. I don’t lend my books out to people because I hate to be parted from them and I don’t trust the people to treat them as well as I would.

13. Every year I make a list of books that are coming out that I want to buy.

14. Meg Cabot, Rick Riordan, Ally Carter, and Lacey Weatherford are my favorite authors.

15. Somehow I always end up reading the books AFTER the seeing the movie.