How To Breathe Underwater

Kate is a competitive swimmer, best in the state actually, and her father is the coach pushing her to perfection. Until one day at swim practice he is caught in the arms of a swim mom, in front of everyone! Suddenly Kate and her mother are moving an hour away to restart their lives, and Kate is no longer sure who she wants to be or what she wants to do. Enter Micheal, the cute boy across the hall, and Patrice the pretty and sweet girl who welcomes her in Chem class, who also happens to be dating Micheal, something Kate finds out after developing a major crush on the boy. Then out walks Harris, Kate's best friend for nearly her whole life! Kate's entire world is turned upside down by everything, most importantly, her decision to stop swimming. And suddenly Kate, at nearly seventeen years old, has to figure out where she is going from here.

I would like to start by saying the only thing I allowed to be colored by my favor of the author (who is my baby sister) was the fact that I picked the book up in the first place. I do not traditionally read YA Romance, or really very much romance at all these days. I am also completely against first person narrative, it bothers me, I find it hard to get into, and so I avoid it, a fact I am sure I have mentioned before. It takes a lot to get me to read a book combining these too elements, but I have read some of my sister's previous, unpublished works, and I knew she was a great writer, so there was never I doubt I would pick this book up. And I in no way doubt that decision because this book was amazing!

Vicky' writing style is on point! With a unique perspective thanks to the events of her life, she was able to write characters and events that were real, heartfelt, and altogether incredible! Every moment of this book was so perfectly descriptive and emotional! The characters were believable and lovable (even for a moment the father, whom you can't help but feel a flash of pity for). Kate's moments of panic were so accurate they stung, and created an appreciation for the author's ability to craft such scenes that I want to thrust this book on so many of my fellow readers. From the start I was pulled into the narrative and dragged from page to page needing to know how it would all turn out, how Kate would handle everything being thrown at her, how things could possibly work out in the end. And I was not disappointed as I finally laid the book down only a day after picking it up.

Vicky Skinner is a truly gifted story teller! And I can't wait to see what the future holds for this talented young writer! Knowing what is coming next year, what she is working on after that, I am so incredibly excited to add her stories to my shelves and delve into more of her unique tales! Go pick up this book now and get ready to discover a new beloved author!

The Jane Austen Project

Take two people from our current timeline, give them a crash course in 1815, and toss them back into the past to have them get close to one of the most prolific writers in history. What could possibly go wrong? Well for Rachel Katzman and Liam Finucane it starts with a climbing boy. Can they hope to alter the past as little as possible while trying to become friends with the Austens and get close enough to get their hands on some very personal letters and a manuscript always though unfinished? Or will they change things too much and alter the world they came from?

This was a very interesting read, guys! Flynn tells the story of two people getting to do what a lot of us avid readers wished we could do, go back and meet the writer of some of our favorite stories, get the chance to know her, try to understand her more. But we all know that playing with time travel is a dangerous game. Something Katzman and Finucane learn as soon as they arrive in 1815 and nearly have the whole thing blown over a surly inn keeper and their lack of luggage. Yet they persist.

What follows was a bit of a roller coaster for our characters as they try to balance themselves carefully into a world they really can't fully fit into while trying not to alter the course of history too much. After all they were only sent back to observe, get copies of a few letters and a manuscript, and make it home to tell their superiors what they learned. But Rachel in particular has a very hard time keeping to the mission plan.

I enjoyed the novel, despite how easily it all ended when things did go south for our travelers. It was fun to read of Rachel trying to hold back the fangirl when interacting with Jane. Watching events unfold at the end of Jane's life in a different way. And seeing that world from the eyes of someone from our own time. It all made for a great story told with a wonderful voice. Because while Rachel sometimes annoyed me enough to have me groaning and rolling my eyes, I did like the way Flynn wrote her. The book was fun! I would recommend it to anyone unable to get enough of Jane Austen of Regency era novels!

Between Worlds

Finally I got around to reading this second novel in the Cemetery Tours series and my only regret is not getting to it sooner!

After Micheal Sinclair declared to the world that yes, he does in fact see ghosts, his friend Luke Reiner approaches him once more asking to join him on his show Cemetery Tours. This time, his presence is a stipulation one of the home owners has placed on their allowing the tv show to film there. Michael reluctantly agrees after Luke and Kate, Micheal's now girlfriend, team up against him. We join Michael, Luke, and Kate once more on a ghost hunt that gets out of hand as the crew learns more about the ghost haunting a home in Maine.

I loved getting to join the team once more for a wild and humorous ride. Jacqueline has a unique gift in building up the world of Michael Sinclair where he can talk to ghosts, Kate can sense them, and Luke likes to poke them with a stick. The banter between the characters, including Brink, Michael's ghostly roommate, really makes you laugh out loud at least a half dozen times. Also in this one is a tragic love story that focuses around the ghosts the team is trying to find evidence of, and the heartbreak leads to some pretty crazy moments for everyone.

Jacqueline also steps outside her zone and takes us to the stunningly beautiful Maine, describing an incredible home and a quaint town that made me wish I could take a trip up there while reading this one.

Of course I am going to recommend everyone read this second great novel from Smith. Specifically to those that took the chance in reading the first one. This was a great follow up novel and I am looking forward to the third one.

You're Never Weird On The Internet (almost)

June: Books written by celebrities.

When did I first become aware of Felicia Day? I don't even know. I remember seeing her on Eureka and recognizing her immediately, so I had to have seen Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog by then. I don't know if I saw the episodes of Buffy: The Vampire Slayer before or after I knew her name. But I know for a fact when I saw her on Supernatural I fangirl squealed and did a jumping dance in the middle of the living room because Felicia Day was so cool and on my new favorite show! I didn't get to watch her show The Guild when it first aired but I have since made up for that by watching it multiple times and mentioning it to all my friends. So basically it's like I've always been aware of Felicia Day, even though she has only been an actress since 2001. Maybe it's like Joss Whedon said in his intro: "She's something more than a self-made woman - I sometimes think she's not a human woman, that she willed herself into existence, before willing the world to make a place for this new, unfathomable creation." Felicia Day willed herself into my life, and it has been glorious ever since.

In her memoir Felicia tells the incredible tale of how she grew up home-schooled, managed to start college at age 16, and obtained two Real Degrees while never getting her GED. Than she moved to LA with the feeling that she was just meant to be an actress. And it seemed that anything she wanted to do, she put her mind to, and rocked it.
Only, it didn't keep happening that way.
While most of the world sees Felicia Day as this incredibly bubbly, happy, bright person who is not only beautiful but is also a gamer, which is just awesome, people don't suspect the underlying anxious, over-worked, neurotic that hides behind the games she played until she had pushed most of the world out.

And this is why I love Felicia Day. On top of the fact that I always love her bigger characters, I started to catch glimpses of the real Day sometime after she stared in Eureka and what I saw fascinated me. I'm not a major gamer, but I love to sit and loose myself in some Zelda when I can. I spent most of my teen years behind a computer screen in RPG chatrooms because I could be better than who I was IRL. I am addicted to stories because they are the easiest way for me to loose myself (and reading is something that people will encourage). And with all the convention panels I was getting to watch on YouTube, I started to see someone that I could relate to. And she was awesome!

Reading this book I got a closer look at Felicia Day than I ever had before. She opens her soul for the readers and welcomes them in to follow her journey through not only her childhood and move to LA, but the tough years including the two she spent literally addicted to WoW and then later when depression and anxiety got a hold of her so bad that her health took a turn for the worse. Day does not sugarcoat how hard things got for her, and I love that, because people that go through the same need to see that other have it just as bad. And her making her way out of it and doing something incredible, gives the rest of us real hope.

When I saw that Felicia Day wrote a memoir I got so excited, because she is awesome and I love to read about peoples' lives, how they got to where they are, and what they take from that experience. I got so much more in this book. I got to see hope that even though I am incredibly anxious and what people think of my work terrifies me, I can still put it out there, because I made a think #LookIt.

I really encourage everyone to read this one. It's full of laughter and sweet stories and awkward moments. And then it's full of truth and honesty. For the gamers, the women, the socially awkward creative people. Everyone feeling like maybe their passion is just too weird. Everyone that overthinks things to the point of insomnia. Here is a book written by a woman that gets it. And says that it is ok to be like that, you can make something of it, you just got to try. So give the book a read, and tell me what you think about it!

Panic

I'll be completely honest with you on how I picked this book to read. My husband was rushing me out of the library, I wanted a new book to get me through the end of April until I could pick up my book club read for May, and I reached over and grabbed the first book at hand. I had already read the jacket, so I had a vague idea of what the book would be about, but I was unsure if it was really something I wanted to read. Wow am I glad that I took the chance.

Panic is the story of a game played in a small town by recent high school graduates. During the school year everyone in the high school gives up a dollar for every school day. At the end the money is divided between two secret judges, and a winning pot. Then seniors decide if they are going to compete or not by jumping off a rock wall into a lake. The game thus begins. Over the course of the summer that follows the contestants are put through more and more insane challenges to determine who is brave (crazy) enough to make it out the other end and claim the money. This year the story follows two contestants, Heather, who had not intended to compete at all, and Dodge, who  had been planing on joining the game for two years.

This book was a roller coaster from beginning to end as I followed the story of these brash, crazy new adults as they fought to not only win the game but get their lives under control. Lauren Oliver does an incredible job of bringing each challenge to life, making each character something special, and making sure the reader is too immersed to do anything but keep turning pages. I found myself not only eagerly pushing on to the next chapter, but also recounting the challenges and outcomes to my friends, who at the age of 30 were calling these kids insane for what they did. But we were all interested to see how it would end with bated breath.

If you like The Hunger Games I am sure you will love this story about these kids trying tot fight for a way to improve their lives and willingly risking their lives to do it. However, this is a much tamer version as everyone else isn't watching, but those that know about Panic are actually trying to stop these kids from continuing. But sometimes, the reward is just too good.

EDIT :: So give this book a shot! If you want to take a look at the world of Panic, this is where you can find the Origin of Panic. It is in two parts, each only six pages long, but it is a teaser to see what kind of insanity is behind the game these kids play, and how it started. Check it out!

Final Life

April - Books with RED covers.

At the 2015 Texas Teen Book Festival my mom met a local author, Rose Garcia. They talked, my mom thought her book idea sounded cool, she bought the book. She just passed it on to me to read. And while I was interested in the idea behind the Transhuman Chronicles, I feel that the book has left me with less than stellar feelings.

To start with, I don't feel as if Garcia sat down and worked through all the details of the story. There are points during which she contradicts herself, going back and correcting what the main character had been told. She passes these off as 'well, we kept this little bit from you' or 'it's just a theory but it could work even though I just said yesterday that it wouldn't' and maybe it works for her, but I was left feeling a little shafted.

There were also too many moments of recap. I know what all has been happening in the story so far, because like the main character I have been there for it all. Why she feels the need to recount events that happened yesterday (repeatedly through the book) I don't understand, and I certainly didn't need it as a reader.

This being said I did find the book interesting enough to sit down and read it in one day, so there's that. Like I said, it is an interesting idea, nine lives in which you can figure out your purpose and this one girl who is on her last life and the fate of the world rests on her surviving to the next day. Throw in the fact that her parents are sort of superhumans with special powers that totally skipped her in the worst hand dealt ever, a dramatic move to not only a new town and state but who different climate during the main character's senior year of high school, and a love triangle that just breaks your heart for one guy but you also can't help but hope for the other, and you have yourself an entertaining read at the very least. So who knows, maybe this will become your new favorite book or author if you give it a chance. I'm only telling you my problems with the story so you are forewarned about it's shortcomings. None of the issues I had with the writing kept me from finishing the book, and I think that's what counts. Plus, it never hurts to support a new author.

I do think I will pick up the other books in the series at some point in the future. I do want to know where things go from here for the main characters after all. I just don't see it happening right away. If you do read the book, let me know what you think! I would love to hear a second opinion!

Cemetery Tours

So I picked this book up at the library simply because it had a sticker on the side that said "local author." Well of course I was going to pick it up to help support someone nearby! Now I can't wait to be able to buy a copy of this book and her other ones to add to my bookshelf to really support her, because I really enjoyed this one! Meet Jacqueline E. Smith!

The story follows 2 main people: Michael, who incidentally can see dead people, and his new neighbor Kate, who moves into the cursed apartment next door and brings along one mean looking ghost. So, I know it sounds kinda cliche, of course he can see dead people so of course she has to be haunted. But the story is more than that. For one, Michael does nothing about the fact that he sees the dead. To the point that he goes out of his way to ignore and act normal when in the presence of ghosts so that they won't follow him home expecting things from him. Of course this doesn't always work because sometimes they do follow him home and now everyone in his apartment building believes it is cursed and the landlord can never keep tenants in the one right next to Michael. So for a brief afternoon as Michael helps the pretty new girl and her brother move in, he is all smiles because, well, he can't help himself around pretty new girl. Until he sees the very angry, very scary looking ghost glaring down Kate's brother Gavin, and so he turns tail and runs back to his own apartment.

But Michael can't stay away from Kate, he is drawn to her, for reasons outside the usual she is pretty and new and single, but you don't get to know about those 'till much later. He finds himself drawn into multiple ghost-related scenarios that he has been trying to avoid his whole life, and tries his best to help to not only impress the pretty neighbor girl, but also because he has realized that up until this point he has been a little selfish by not helping. Things, of course, get out of hand and twisted around because nothing is ever simple or straight forward. There are a couple of heartbreaking moments where you just want to hug some characters but you can't, because they are fictional, and ghosts mostly. And there is plenty of humor to have you laughing.

I thought this book was a breath of fresh air. The characters are people I know. Michael is selfish, just wants to be normal. Kate is fanatical about a TV show about ghost hunters and so fangirls when she meets the lead actor. Gavin is the protective big brother who ignores his own failing health because he can't stress his sister out. They are normal people who make you laugh, drive you crazy, make you roll your eyes, and draw you to them all at once. The book being based in Texas really helps for me, too. I love it that no one bats an eye at it taking them an hour and half to drive somewhere and it getting far too late in the evening in the process, because that's just what happens when you live in this big state. And of course the parents of these almost thirty year olds are so involved in their children's lives, making decisions for them, giving advise, still trying to parent even though their kids are grown, because that is just how we are in the South. I loved being able to relate to these characters!

The only drawback I feel the need to point out is that it take a little while for the plot to thicken. We find out plenty about the characters, what has happened to them, that they like one another, and it seems like most of the book goes by before any conflict arises aside from the "boy meets girl, boy likes girl, boy is too shy to ask girl out" bit. But it's necessary I think, after reading it. After all, the author is introducing you to this guy that she wants to follow for a few books. You need to have some background, some setting. Instead of cramming story, big events, the main plot into one book, this is the beginning. I think in book two will be more of the main climax of Michael's story, if the ending to this one is any indication. And there is still more than enough drama in this one to keep a reader satisfied with having read it and looking for more. Just, if you find it starting off a little slow, know that I did too, but if you keep going, I think it will really be worth the wait!

So pick this book up! Discover someone new with a lot of potential. And let me know what you think! Because I am headed to the library for the next one!

Shada : A Doctor Who Story

Feb. - Books published after 2011

Where do I even begin about this book? Let me start with a little backstory, a "Why it was written" of sorts. Did you know that Douglas Adams was a writer for the original Doctor Who series back in the 70's? I did not. As a great fan of Adams in my late teens, I was unaware of what he was doing outside the Hitchhiker's series. In my defense, as an American I wasn't exactly the target audience for the BBC show. In 2005 when the show started back up I heard about it from all my college friends, some of whom went to Harlaxton for the study abroad program out University offered simply to be closer to all things British they loved so much. It was in 2006/7 that I discovered BBC, falling in love with random episodes of Graham Norton, Doctor Who, even Law & Order: UK! Don't even try selling me on the American version of Being Human because it is crap compared to the original. But being sucked into the world of The Doctor failed to fill me in on one of my favorite author's former hand in the show, even as I watched numerous older episodes. So imagine my excitement when I unwrapped this book one holiday or other and became nearly giddy with the possibility of mixing Adams and The Doctor!

Reading this book, Adams' hand in creating The Doctor has never been more clear! Of course his mind helped shape the Time Lord's personality! How could I never see it before! The Fourth Doctor could have been best friends with Arthur Dent!

This brings me a little further into the story behind this book. Shada was the episode they were working on when the BBC went on strike. The story line never came to an end. And while everyone was distraught over it, Tom Baker (the 4th Doctor) admitting they all cried at the loss, Adams couldn't help but be relieved. Because the story was not what he had wanted. He had been forced to leave things out, drop off whole lines of thought, characters appeared only to leave the plot with no explanation!

Enter Gareth Roberts. I don't know how he got the script, why he was asked to write this book, but I am eternally grateful he did. Gareth did an incredible job of capturing Adams's voice and writing a book that I could almost believe was written by the late author I so loved. Many times I found myself sinking into a place I hadn't since first reading Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. Other parts had me laughing out loud and wishing I could start up some episodes of the 4th Doctor because I definitely heard his voice in my head throughout the story.

Simply put this is such an awesome book. Perfectly told in the way of a Doctor Who episode. With all the humor, chaos, twists, and close calls one would expect to accompany The Doctor. So if you have ever read any of Douglas Adams' work and loved it, or seen an episode of Doctor Who and been enraptured, pick this book up. It is completely worth the read!

::EDIT:: I am marking the scheduled publish date on this for Feb. 29th so it will be listed on the Feb bracket, even though I didn't finish the book until March 15th.

Guilty By Association

Feb. - Books published in the last 5 years.
BONUS - This one is to be published on April 1st, 2016

The best thing about this month's theme is that it forces us to explore new writers since there is a good chance the authors we love may not have published a book in the last five years, or if they did we already read them. I picked out my two books, got excited, and then was given an opportunity. Someone in a writing group I am part of on Facebook wanted some bloggers to read and review her work to help get it out there. Best. Decision. Ever!

Guys, meet E. A. Copen, author of this new series about Judah Black, an agent working for the BSI, the Bureau of Supernatural Investigation. Judah has just been reassigned to a supernatural reservation in Texas where all kinds of people humans would consider monsters have been herded and given too many rules on how to live. Judah has been dropped into the deep end of a pool of people who don't trust her, don't want her in their business, and have more issues than Copen can encompass in one book. Before Judah can even clock in on her first day she finds a murder victim. The investigation that follows follows is a series of ups and down with plenty of road blocks giving Judah ten more questions for every answer she manages to wrangle. But Judah is damn good at her job, keep that one in mind.

I think one reason I enjoyed this book so much was because I am a huge fan of Kim Harrison's Hollow's series. While there is enough similarity between the two to drew a new fan into Copen's world, there is plenty of differences that never did I actually find myself comparing the two. Judah is a single mom that works for the government organization that hovers on threatening her entire life. In stark contrast to Harrison's series where supernatural's outnumber humans due to a tomato virus, Copen's world finds supernaturals treated like second class citizens forced to walk a very fine line so they don't rock the boat. Because that could lead to be being dragged from your home and killed while your pregnant wife watches. While Judah works for the system that controls not only where supernaturals can live but when they can have children, she isn't blind to the injustice and finds herself far more sympathetic to the plight of her new neighbors.

Literally my only complaint about the book is the occasional typo that jerked the writer in me to the side itching to correct a few words before I could continue reading. But you have to keep in mind this author threw herself out there, self published (as far as I am aware) and wrote an amazing book. Trust me, you can over look the mistakes for the awesome story.

Oh, and of course I am going to whine about the fact that now I have to wait for the next book! But you can be sure I am going to be keeping my eye very closely on this writer. I will be eagerly awaiting any news for future books. So as soon as April 1st hits, get your copy of the book (I will also be buying a paperback copy to show of on my shelf) and join me in loving this new series. I see great things in this author's future.