Beauty and the Books: Half Bad by Sally Green

Hey ya'll!!

Another week, another book read. Like the new name change?! I decided to go ahead and change the name of my book related posts from "Book Work Series" to the new and improved "Beauty and the Books". I think it's a better fit, what about you? Today's Beauty and the Books is a review on Half Bad by Sally Green. I have been really excited to read this book and had high hopes for it. I enjoyed reading it, but it ended up being different than what I thought it would be. Find out more about the synopsis in my TBR here.

Half Bad is the first book in a new  trilogy, Book Two comes out at the end of 2015. It's about a boy named Nathan, who is half White Witch and half Black Witch. White Witches are good, Black Witches are bad. Nathan's mother was a White Witch, and had a husband and a family of her own. Nathan's father, Marcus, is the most evil of all Black Witches. He killed Nathan's mother's husband, and left her to raise Nathan and the rest of her children on her own. Nathan's mother couldn't deal with it all, so she committed suicide when Nathan was just a baby. Nathan and his siblings were then raised by their Gran. He has never met his father but knows of him. Nathan has to go into town to meet with the Council every year on his birthday. Starting as a young child, he is submitted to tons of questioning about himself and his father, a man he has never met.

I was surprised at how much the book dealt with discrimination, even though it didn't outright say anything about it. I don't know if that was Green's intention in writing it, but that's how it came off to me. You really feel for Nathan as he grows up with everyone hating and judging him, and assuming he's bad news just because of who his father is. No one will be his friend, his teacher's don't take the time to educate him like they do the other students, his oldest sister is very hateful towards him, and even the Council members discriminate against Nathan. The Council sends many notifications to Nathan's house, always changing and giving new rules and regulations pertaining to Half Codes (anyone who is a mixed witch), making his and his Gran's life that much more stressful and miserable. He does have people on his side though. His Gran, his brother Arran, and his sister Deborah treat him well, along with his schoolmate Annalise.

Annalise comes from a Pure White family, all who play major roles in the Council. She and Nathan form a friendship that quickly turns into something more. When her brother's find out about this, they confront Nathan and begin torturing him, hurting him terribly. His family is really upset by this, but know there's nothing they can do about it because Annalise's family is such a huge part of the Council. Soon, Nathan and his Gran are notified by the Council that he is to come in for more questioning. When he arrives and goes through his normal questioning, he is taken into custody, is given a new guardian, and is whisked away immediately, all while his poor Gran watches the whole thing.

Nathan's guardian is a tough, military type woman. She has him on a strict schedule and he is kept chained in a cage at night to sleep. Even though she hits him, and works him to the bone, they grow a sort of fondness towards each other. Just when they grow this newfound fondness, Nathan is taken away again. This time he is taken into the custody of the Council, where Annalise's brother is now working.

While in custody, Nathan ends up escaping. When he was still living with his Gran, he met with this old woman named Mary. Mary told him of people who could help him receive his Three Gifts. Every witch must receive Three Gifts on their Seventeenth Birthday in order to become a witch and find out their power. Nathan already knows that the first person he is supposed to find, lives in the area where the Council building is. Nathan begins his traveling adventures, making stop after stop, and meeting different people who are all steps to finding Mercury, the witch who hopefully will help him with his Three Gifts. I don't want to spoil the entire story, especially since this is the first book in a trilogy, so I'm going to stop the spoilers here.

Nathan is tested in many different ways in his short life, and even though the whole world seemed to be against him, he didn't let that stop him from achieving his goal in getting his Three Gifts. I think this is a great book about facing diversity, and being strong even when you don't have anyone cheering you on. It's a great book for kids in school to read as well. It does a great job of showing how we shouldn't discriminate against others for who their parents are, or where they come from. That everyone is their own person, and despite where they originate from, it doesn't always mean they are going to turn out that same way. We shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. Sometimes the best people are the ones who have all odds against them, sometimes that person just needs someone to give them a chance.

If you enjoy fantasy and paranormal books, I recommend giving this one a try. I enjoyed it even though it was different than what I expected. There wasn't as much magic in it as I thought there would be. If there's anything negative for me to say, it would be that I wished the book would have been  more "magical". I'm really excited for Book Two.  Half Bad ended on a cliff hanger, so I think there will be a lot more magic and action in the second book!

I'm close to being done with my TBR List, and will be on the hunt for more reads pretty soon. Let me know what books you recommend, or what books you'd like to see reviews on in the comments below!


xoxo,
Casey

Book Worm Series: Eleanor & Park *No Spoilers*

Hey ya'll!!

Today I'm going to give you my thoughts, and an overview, of Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell. The reason why I'm not doing a full on review with spoilers is because it is so good that I don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't read it yet. The first Rainbow Rowell book I read was FanGirl which I absolutely loved. For more information on FanGirl click here. I adored Eleanor and Park! It was funny, relatable, and tugged on my heart strings. Throughout the book, the points of view are constantly shifting between Eleanor and Park. Normally I don 't like books like that, but Rowell wrote it so well that the transitions between characters is smooth and easy to follow.

For those of you that don't know, Eleanor and Park is about two high schoolers who start out not liking each other, but overtime they grow on each other and have their "first love" experience. The way Rainbow Rowell wrote about first love was on point and totally relatable and realistic. You really feel like you're a high schooler again while reading it, and relive those feelings of having crushes, being embarrassed, and having to be around people that you just can't stand.

Eleanor is new to school, and is very much an individual and stands out from all the other students. Her choices in clothes are questionable, and she has unruly red, curly hair. She quickly becomes the target for name calling and bullying by her peers. Even though it hurts her, she doesn't try and argue back, or stand up for herself.

Not only does she have a hard time at school, but her home life isn't any better. Her family is poor, and they don't have much of anything. She lives in a rundown little house with her mom and younger siblings, along with her step-dad. Her step-dad is an absolute terrible person. The whole time I was reading I was so disgusted by him. He's very mean, a drunk, and his life goal seems to make everyone in that house miserable with him. Eleanor's mom isn't any better. She's the kind of woman who allows that kind of behavior, and is very submissive to the abusive behavior.

Park's life is very different from Eleanor's. He has a great family, and his life is everything Eleanor wishes her would be, normal. His parents are still together and they adore each other. He has a younger brother who towers over him, and his grandparents live right next door. He also has it pretty easy at school. He isn't super popular, but he isn't a nerd either. You could say Park is in the "happy medium" section on the social scale.

I don't want to give anything else about the book away. All I want to say is stop what you're doing, and go read this book. It's so good, so worth it, and I promise you won't be disappointed. I absolutely adored it, and will recommend it to all book lovers out there.

I hope you enjoyed today's Book Worm Review. Until next time!


xoxo,
Casey

Book Worm Series: TBR and How To Save Money On Books

Hey ya'll!!

I'm finishing up City of Heavenly Fire and wanted to share what books I have that are waiting "To Be Read" (TBR). When I buy books I usually buy in bulk. Especially if I'm on a reading high and I'm finishing books in three days. Also, I usually have a list of books that I want and can never decide on just one or two, so I end up getting five.

I normally buy books through my Barnes and Noble NOOK account, but sometimes I get the actual book. I like to check Half-Price Books (HPB) first before I buy them any other way because - now I'm going to state the obvious here - they are half price. Most of the time the books I end up getting at HPB are in really good condition, with slight to no wear at all, so I really recommend checking there before anywhere else. If HPB doesn't have what I'm looking for, I check out Target. They typically have all the New Releases and Popular books. They are also almost always at a discounted price compared to buying them from Barnes and Noble, or bookstores alike. If Target has what I'm looking for, I compare their price to the NOOK price and make my decision that way. For the most part, Target and NOOK books are pretty comparable price-wise. Hard covers are going to be more expensive, while the paperbacks at Target are usually about the same price as a NOOK book with maybe a $1.00 difference. I notice a lot of times NOOK has random discounts on their books. I remember shortly after Christmas, NOOK was having a sale on select NOOK books and all three books from The Infernal Devices trilogy were selling for $4.99. I got the whole trilogy for only $15.00. I was pretty excited about that find because if I were to have purchased them all in hardcover, they would have been $15.00+ per book. Books can get pretty expensive if you're buying more than one, and if you're a serial reader and tend to blast through books in under a weeks time. Do a little research, go to a couple different places, and more than likely you are going to save some money on your book purchases, and probably discover some new reads to add to your TBR list.

My TBR list is in no particular order. These are just the books that I have in my collection that I haven't read yet, but am planning on reading soon. I also plan on doing Book Reviews on them once I've finished.

Book One:
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell (NOOK Book)
After reading FanGirl, and falling head over heals, I wanted to read something else by Rainbow Rowell. Eleanor & Park has received lots of love, winning the 2013 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Fiction and being a 2014 Michael L. Printz Honor Book. From what I can gather from the synopsis, Eleanor & Park is set in the 80's and is about two teenagers who are social outcasts. They fall in love with each other and bond over their personal interests. Eleanor is bullied in school over the way she looks and dresses, and suffers from an unstable family life. Park is there to help her through all of this. I loved Rowell's work in FanGirl, and have heard so many great things about this one, so I'm really excited to read this one.

Book Two:
Love Letters To The Dead by Ava Dellaira (NOOK Book)
I have a feeling that this book is going to be a Holy Grail Favorite of mine. Based on the synopsis on Barnes and Noble, Love Letters To The Dead is about a girl named Laurel who receives an English assignment. The assignment is to write a letter to a dead person. Laurel writes her first letter to Kurt Cobain, but doesn't stop there. She continues writing to famous dead people, to name a few - Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Amelia Earhart, Heath Ledger, and more. She writes about her life and own personal struggles, which eventually help her learn to cope with her sisters death. I cannot wait to dive into this one!

Book Three:
Half Bad by Sally Green (NOOK Book)
Half Bad is the first book in a new trilogy about witches in modern-day England. There are White witches (the good witches),and Black witches (the bad witches). The 16 year old main character, Nathan, is neither one or the other, he is actually both. His father is the most powerful, evil Black witch, and Nathan's mom is unfortunately dead. Poor Nathan is not welcome by either side, and is kept in a cage and tortured. He needs to escape before he turns 17. At 17 he is supposed to receive three gifts from his dad and come into his own as a witch. If he doesn't, he will die. Half Bad sounds like a fun, thrilling read that I'm pretty excited to get into.

Book Four:
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher (NOOK Book)
Thirteen Reason Why is a New York Times Bestseller and and International Bestseller, with over 1 million copies sold. The main character Clay Jensen comes home from school one day to find a package on his porch addressed to him. Inside, it is full of recorded cassette tapes from Hannah Baker. Hannah is his former classmate, who committed suicide two weeks prior. On the tapes, Hannah explains why she made the decision to commit suicide. Clay learns a lot from Hannah through the tapes. He witnesses her pain, the truth about why she did what she did, all while facing facts about himself. I feel like I'm going to need a box of tissues, wine, and possibly Starbucks because I don't think I'm going to be able to put this one down.

Book Five:
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey (NOOK Book)
The 5th Wave is the first book in a new dystopian series. I'm particularly fond of dystopian reads thanks to The Hunger Games and Divergent. The 5th Wave is about a girl named Cassie who is an unlucky survivor of the "waves". After the 1st wave there was darkness, after the 2nd only the lucky ones escaped, after the 3rd only the unlucky survived, and after the 4th - trust no one. It's the beginning of the 5th wave and Cassie is running from "them". From what I can gather, the "them" are aliens who look like humans, but they kill every person they find. Cassie believes that the best way to stay alive, is to stay alone. She soon meets mysterious Evan Walker, who may be her only hope to saving herself and rescuing her brother. Will she give up? Will she learn to trust? Will she surrender? I'm curious to find out!

Book Six:
Hollow City: The Second Novel of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (NOOK Book)
I read the first book, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, and enjoyed it so I decided to get the second book in the series when it came out. Like the first book, Hollow City is full of creepy old pictures of "peculiar children" with special "abilities". This book begins in 1940, and picks up right where the first book left off. I can't really explain what this book is supposed to be about without explaining the first book. Basically it's about this group of kids that live in another world, a spirit like world, where they never age. Jacob's grandfather was part of that world but was able to get out and live his own life to an old age. Jacob discovers this world and rescues the peculiar children and brings them into the real world. This book is supposed to be about their journey after they have escaped from Miss Peregrine and her spirit world.

Book Seven:
Shadow Falls: The Beginning Books 1 & 2 by C.C. Hunter
I came across this series while browsing in Target. The book is a two-in-one, with the first two books in the Shadow Falls series, Born at Midnight and Awake at Dawn. This series is about a girl named Kylie Galen who has a lot of negatives going on in her life. Her parents are divorcing, her boyfriend breaks up with her, her grandmother dies, and she's being stalked by a strange man that only she can see. Her parents are worried about her mental state so they send her to a psychologist who then sends her to Shadow Falls Camp. Both Kylie and her parents believe the camp is for troubled teens, but they all thought wrong. The camp is for all paranormal beings: vampires, werewolves, fairies, witches, and shape shifters. Kylie has to first deal with the fact that all these creatures are real and she is now living amongst them, while figuring out what she is in the process. This series seems to be right up my ally because I love paranormal fiction and think they're so fun to read.

I hope you enjoyed getting a look at my TBR list. If you've read any of these books, let me know your thoughts on them in the comments below!


xoxo,
Casey

Book Worm Series: Books I've Read Recently

Hey ya'll!!

Today is going to be another post from my Book Worm Series on some of the books I've read recently. Find out below each book, the summary, and what grade I gave each of them. Enjoy!

1. Looking For Alaska by John Green
I'm becoming a big fan of John Green and have made it a mission to read every book he has written. This is the second book I've read by him, the first being The Fault In Our Stars (Loved it!).

"Before. Miles “Pudge” Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave “the Great Perhaps” even more (Francois Rabelais, poet). He heads off to the sometimes crazy and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young. She is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. Then. . . .

After. Nothing is ever the same."

GRADE: Liked it!

2. The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp

I had heard really good things about this book, so when I heard it was going to be made into a movie I decided to pick it up. The style of it reminded me of "The Perks Of Being A Wallflower" (Really Liked it!). If you enjoyed that book, you would probably enjoy this one as well.

"SUTTER KEELY. He's the guy you want at your party. He’ll get everyone dancing. He’ ll get everyone in your parents’ pool. Okay, so he’s not exactly a shining academic star. He has no plans for college and will probably end up folding men’s shirts for a living. But there are plenty of ladies in town, and with the help of Dean Martin and Seagram’s V.O., life’s pretty fabuloso, actually.

Until the morning he wakes up on a random front lawn, and he meets Aimee. Aimee’s clueless. Aimee is a social disaster. Aimee needs help, and it’s up to the Sutterman to show Aimee a splendiferous time and then let her go forth and prosper. But Aimee’s not like other girls, and before long he’s in way over his head. For the first time in his life, he has the power to make a difference in someone else’s life—or ruin it forever."

GRADE: Liked It!

3. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

When I heard that there was a series about a school for vampires, similar to that of a school for wizards - aka Hogwarts -, I was sold and knew I just had to give the series a try. Vampire Academy is nothing like Harry Potter. But it is really fun and I enjoyed the world Richelle Mead created in Vampire Academy. It's a quick, fun read.

"St. Vladimir's Academy isn't just any boarding school–it's a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They've been on the run, but now they're being dragged back to St. Vladimir's–the very place where they're most in danger. Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy's ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi–the world's fiercest and most dangerous vampires–make Lissa one of them forever."

GRADE: Loved it!

4. Frostbite by Richelle Mead

This is Book Two in the Vampire Academy series. I downloaded it as soon as I was done with Book One. I would have downloaded Book Three, but I had a bunch of other books that I still needed to read, so I decided to hold off on purchasing Three until I have read more of the book I already have.

"Rose loves Dimitri, Dimitri might love Tasha, and Mason would die to be with Rose…

It’s winter break at St. Vladimir’s, but Rose is feeling anything but festive. A massive Strigoi attack has put the school on high alert, and now the Academy’s crawling with Guardians—including Rose’s hard-hitting mother, Janine Hathaway. And if handto- hand combat with her mom wasn’t bad enough, Rose’s tutor Dimitri has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason’s got a huge crush on her, and Rose keeps getting stuck in Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian! The Strigoi are closing in, and the Academy’s not taking any risks.... This year, St. Vlad’s annual holiday ski trip is mandatory.

But the glittering winter landscape and the posh Idaho resort only create the illusion of safety. When three friends run away in an offensive move against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. But heroism rarely comes without a price"

GRADE: Liked It!

5. FanGirl by Rainbow Rowell

I was browsing through Barnes and Noble one day and came across the cover of Fan Girl. I read the inner flap and thought it sounded promising because of yet another Harry Potter similarity (do we see a trend here?). The book series that the main character is a big fan of really reminded me of Harry Potter, so naturally I wanted to read it and added it to my Christmas List. It took me a while to get around to reading it because I was finishing the Divergent Series. FanGirl is such a good book, and has become an absolute favorite of mine!

"In Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl, Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.
Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.
For Cath, the question is: Can she do this? Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?"

GRADE: Loved It!

6. The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

This was another random find for me. I was searching through the paranormal section when the cover stood out to me. I really like paranormal, fantasy type books. I have the most fun with them because anything is possible and I can escape to a different world for a little while. It got kind of slow at times, but towards the end it picked up the pace. I do plan on giving the second book in the series a try.

"When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government "rehabilitation camp." She might have survived the mysterious disease that's killed most of America's children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.

Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.
When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she's on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her-East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can't risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.

When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living."

GRADE: Liked it!

I hope ya'll enjoyed today's post! Let me know in the comments below what some of your favorite books are that you've read recently.


xoxo,
Casey

Book Worm Series: Review - The Selection Trilogy by Kiera Cass

Hey ya'll!

I absolutely LOVE to read! It's one of my absolute favorite things to do. I have my Grandma to thank for that. She taught me to read when I was three and took me to Barnes and Noble regularly. We would read and drink endless amounts of hot chocolate on many occasions. Those are definitely some of my favorite memories as a child. I enjoyed reading through Elementary, but kind of fell out of it in Middle School and High School. I didn't get back into it until I was about 19-20 years old. My favorite books to read are Young Adult Fiction, but I do venture out and read books outside of YA from time to time. If you are a certified "Book Worm" like I am, then I hope you enjoy!

Today I am doing a series review on The Selection trilogy by Kiera Cass. I had a lot of fun with this series. All three books were entertaining, fast reads. I purchased The Selection on my Nook a few months ago and didn't get around to reading it until recently. I finished it in three days and immediately purchased The Elite (Book 2) and The One (Book 3). I marathoned the entire series in a week. If you are a fan of YA 'Distopian' Fiction, and the show The Bachelor, you will enjoy these fun reads.

In The Selection we are introduced to the main character, America Singer who lives in the country of Illéa. Illéa, formerly the USA, is set up similar to The Districts in The Hunger Games. The citizens of Illéa live in numbered classes depending on how well off their families were at the time the nation was born. The citizens are numbered as One through Eight, One's are the royal family and Eight's are similar to The Factionless in The Divergent trilogy. America Singer is a Five, and lives at home with her mother, father, and little sister and brother. When the Prince of Illéa, Prince Maxon, comes of age, The Selection begins. The Selection is a nationwide search for the next Princess of Illéa. America is in no way interested in applying because she is carrying on a secret relationship with Aspen. But because of her pestering mother, and the encouragement of Aspen, she decides to go ahead and apply, knowing that the chances of her being selected are quite slim. Low and behold, America is one of the lucky thirty-five girls picked to win over Prince Maxon's heart. She is thrust into a new world, meets new faces, and has new experiences she never even dreamed of. America is a smart girl with a good heart, but she can be down right annoying at times because she is so dang indecisive! If you have read this series, you know exactly what I'm talking about. I don't want to give too much away in case any of you haven't read the series yet, so I'm going to leave it at that.

I give The Selection trilogy a 4 out 5 stars. It's not my favorite series, but it was fun and kept me interested and entertained.

I hope you enjoyed today's post! If you have read this series, let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Also, be sure to let me know what books you're loving at the moment!


xoxo,
Casey


For more information on Kiera Cass, and her books, be sure to check out her website.
http://www.kieracass.com