Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers 
Release Date: March 14, 2006
Format: Paperback
Pages: 552 pages
Source: Retail Store
Genre: Historical Fiction, YA Historical Fiction
Review Date: March 8,, 2014
Rating: 3 bookmarks

Synopsis: It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.

I have to admit, this is one of those books that make me feel very "well read" if you know what I mean! I read this for book club, but in all honesty I was reading the book up to the very last hour before the meeting.  I wouldn't have picked this book for myself, but it was recommended by someone at work so it made the voting list.  Alas, the group voted...and here we are!  As a bonus, this is the first book that I've read that qualities for my book to movie adaptation reading challenge. I haven't seen the movie yet, but I plan to soon.  We discussed this book almost two weeks ago, but I needed a little bit of time to digest the story.  This is one of those books where after I think about it for a while, my opinion transformed a little bit.

Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers
Release Date: First published March 1, 1999 / Audio unabridged edition released October 27, 2009 by Harper Audio
Format: MP3
Pages: 276 pages (Paperback) / Audio Length: Approx 6.5 hours
Narrator: Rebecca Mozo
Source: Library Borrow via Overdrive
Genre: YA Paranormal, YA Urban Fantasy
Review Date: March 4, 2014
Rating: 2 bookmarks

Synopsis: Elena: beautiful and popular, the girl who can have any boy she wants. Stefan: brooding and mysterious, desperately trying to resist his desire for Elena for her own good. Damon: sexy, dangerous, and driven by an urge for revenge against Stefan, the brother who betrayed him. Elena finds herself drawn to both brothers....who will she choose?

Hey friends, 

Into historical fiction? Well I have a fun giveaway for you! In anticipation of the March 6th release date, I'm holding a giveaway for one hardcover copy of Savage Girl by Jean Zimmerman  I received my own copy last week and I'm excited to read it!  Now it's you're turn to get your copy, courtesy of Viking/Penguin Books!   In case you want to read this with others, I've also linked an awesomebook club kit.

This is a US Only giveaway and will be open for only one week! 

Good luck and Happy Reading,
~Tamara

SAVAGE GIRL was described by Booklist, “Suffused with a gothic aura of dark suspense, this is a finely wrought psychological work from the author of The Orphanmaster (2012), rich with historical detail… Immensely readable, SAVAGE GIRL takes the reader by the throat and doesn’t let go.” There are also reviews in the works from Good Housekeeping and O, The Oprah Magazine. Jean Zimmerman’s previous novel, The Orphan Master, was named one of 2012’s Best Historical Fiction by NPR.

Jean Zimmerman’s new novel tells of the dramatic events that transpire when an alluring, blazingly smart eighteen-year-old girl named Bronwyn, reputedly raised by wolves in the wilds of Nevada, is adopted in 1875 by the Delegates, an outlandishly wealthy Manhattan couple, and taken back East to be civilized and introduced into high society.

Synopsis:  Bronwyn hits the highly mannered world of Edith Wharton era Manhattan like a bomb. A series of suitors, both young and old, find her irresistible, but the willful girl’s illicit lovers begin to turn up murdered.

Zimmerman’s tale is narrated by the Delegate’s son, a Harvard anatomy student. The tormented, self-dramatizing Hugo Delegate speaks from a prison cell where he is prepared to take the fall for his beloved Savage Girl. This narrative—a love story and a mystery with a powerful sense of fable—is his confession

Publisher: The Random House Publishing Group 
Release Date: First published October 16, 2012 / Audio unabridged edition released October 16, 2012 by Random House Audio
Format: MP3
Pages: 568 (Hardcover) / Audio Length: Approx 27 hours
Narrator: Scott Brick
Source: Library Borrow
Genre: Fantasy/Post Apocalyptic/Dystopia/Horror
Review Date: February 19, 2014
Rating: 4 bookmarks

Synopsis: At the end of The Passage, the great viral plague had left a small group of survivors clinging to life amidst a world transformed into a nightmare. In the second volume of this epic trilogy, this same group of survivors, led by the mysterious, charismatic Amy, go on the attack, leading an insurrection against the virals: the first offensives of the Second Viral War.

To do this, they must infiltrate a dozen hives, each presided over by one of the original Twelve. Their secret weapon: Alicia, transformed at the end of book one into a half human, half viral—but whose side, in the end, is she really on?

Initially I thought this book would get a rating of 3, but after thinking on it a few days I pushed it up to a 4 because after finishing the book, I kept thinking about it. The longer I thought about it, the more I liked it.

The Twelve essentially picks up 5 years after The Passage. The Twelve refers to the twelve original virals, the death-row-inmate subjects turned-virals from the blood of Zero during "Project Noah". To save the world, all twelve must be eliminated.

Publisher: Plume Books
Release Date: September 7, 2004
Format: Mass Paperback
Pages: 436 pages
Source: Used Book Sale
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Review Date: February 16, 2014
Rating: 4 bookmarks

Synopsis: Elena Michaels is a werewolf. She tries to be human, but the man whose bite changed her existence forever, and his legacy, continue to haunt her. Thrown into a desperate war for survival that tests her allegiance to a secret clan of werewolves, Elena must reconsider who and what she is.

Hey friends!

I have a mini review for you today!  A mini review is my short and sweet analysis of a book.  You'll know in 350 words or less if this is a book I recommend.

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: First published October 1, 2013/ Audio unabridged edition released October 2013 by Hachette Book Group USA
Format: MP3
Pages: 305 (Hardcover) / Audio Length: Approx 7 hours
Narrator: Candice Accola
Source: Library Borrow via Overdrive
Genre: YA Paranormal
Review Date: February 11, 2014
Rating: 2 bookmarks

Synopsis: Supernatural meets The Da Vinci Code in this action-packed paranormal thriller, the first book in a new series from New York Times bestselling author Kami Garcia. 

I never believed in ghosts. Until one tried to kill me.

When Kennedy Waters finds her mother dead, her world begins to unravel. She doesn’t know that paranormal forces in a much darker world are the ones pulling the strings. Not until identical twins Jared and Lukas Lockhart break into Kennedy’s room and destroy a dangerous spirit sent to kill her. The brothers reveal that her mother was part of an ancient secret society responsible for protecting the world from a vengeful demon — a society whose five members were all murdered on the same night.

Now Kennedy has to take her mother’s place in the Legion if she wants to uncover the truth and stay alive. Along with new Legion members Priest and Alara, the teens race to find the only weapon that might be able to destroy the demon — battling the deadly spirits he controls every step of the way.

Suspense, romance, and the paranormal meet in this chilling urban fantasy, the first book in a new series from Kami Garcia, bestselling coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures novels.

Pros: In general, it was hard to find pros for this book.  I had high hopes, but felt supremely let down.  I think that the sub characters helped the story along. Had some of the secondary characters not have been interesting; this would have been a one bookmark rating. I did like the whole Illuminati aspect of things, which added another dimension to the back story.

Cons: Kennedy.  I wanted to like her, but she's too insecure for my taste. Dare I say even a little bland?  I like a strong and witty female lead. Yes, she's strong in some respects, and in others she's a seriously insecure kid.

The love triangle is weak at best and that’s sad because most YA stories revolve around the love interest.  Honestly, I didn’t understand why either of the twin boys even liked her. I just didn't get the love "triangle" in this story.  

All the teens are 17, with exception of the one 15 year old. I felt that the story sort of fell on the younger side of the YA genre. Personally, I like older YA, so this just felt a tad young for me.  I really expected this to be more like Anna Dressed in Blood.  It's definitely in the wheel house, but it's much dryer and slower. Even the supposed plot twist, wasn't such a big deal. 

Sadly the narrator didn't help things. She was a tad bland. At times, the story turned into background noise.

Final Thoughts:  I expected a slow start being that the couple of Beautiful Creatures books that I read also started pretty slow, but I think I was hopeful because this book was written by only half of that writing duo. But unlike the BC books, the pace didn't pick up. Not ever.  Beyond the slow pacing, I didn't care for the heroine, and it’s important for me to like the focal character of the story.  I didn't connect with her.   Will I read the next book in this series? Nope.  Would I recommend this? No, not really. 

Happy Reading, 
Tamara

Hey friends!

Thanks to Penguin Books, I have an awesome giveaway for you just in time for Valentine's Day. 

Enter to win The Last Letter From Your Lover, by Jojo Moyes!  Be sure to check out my review of Me Before You.  I really enjoyed it, so I'm looking forward to reading this one.

The Last Letter From Your Lover is a novel not to be missed.  It's been re-released with beautiful new cover art!  It's a perfect February read, reminding us that the most beautiful type of love comes from a place of selflessness and surrender.  

Because this is being mailed out by the publisher this is a US only giveaway. This giveaway will be open all week and will close at midnight (Eastern Standard Time) on Friday night. Good luck!

Happy Reading,
~Tamara

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers 
Release Date: December 23, 2013
Format: ebook
Pages: 288 (Hardcover)
Source: NetGalley
Genre: YA Fiction
Review Date: February 5, 2014
Rating: 4 bookmarks

Synopsis: It's time to meet your new roomie. When East Coast native Elizabeth receives her freshman-year roommate assignment, she shoots off an e-mail to coordinate the basics: television, microwave, mini-fridge. That first note to San Franciscan Lauren sparks a series of e-mails that alters the landscape of each girl's summer -- and raises questions about how two girls who are so different will ever share a dorm room.

As the countdown to college begins, life at home becomes increasingly complex. With family relationships and childhood friendships strained by change, it suddenly seems that the only people Elizabeth and Lauren can rely on are the complicated new boys in their lives . . . and each other. Even though they've never met.

National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr and acclaimed author Tara Altebrando join forces for a novel about growing up, leaving home, and getting that one fateful e-mail that assigns your college roommate.

Disclaimer: I was given an e-galley courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This book took me by surprise. Of course I liked the synopsis or I wouldn't have read it, but I didn't expect to like it so much.  The fact that this book centered around the summer between the last year of high school and the first year of college is unique and creative. It seems like we always hear about freshman year once it's begun, but what happens before the day you move into your new home?  

Elizabeth and Lauren could not be more different, yet at the root of things they are essentially the same.  We got to know each girl and their own personal issues and what it was like for them leading up to being away from home for the first time.  It all begins when Elizebeth (EB for short) reaches out to Lauren via email after learning from the housing department that they will be roommates in the fall at UC Berkley.   Lauren lives in nearby San Francisco with her parents and their large family of five siblings and EB lives in New Jersey with her mother, she has no siblings and divorced parents. 

Throughout the book their delicate relationship teeters back and forth as they email back and forth over the summer.  You can't really tell if they will be lifelong friends, frenemies or enemies or even roommates at all.  It's amazing to see how two strangers are able to connect because of a mutual fear, for lack of a better word, of the unknown going in to their first year away from home. Throw in family, high school friends, changing relationships, boys, dating and the whole stress of going away to school quadruples for these girls.

Hey friends,

I decided to make a TJB book jar to get through some of the books on my TBR shelf. For those that don't know, TBR means, "to be read".  The frequency of the draws and reviews are unknown at this time, but I'm looking to do it either once a month or every other month for the remainder of 2014. After that, who knows.  I'll do this for as long as I can and hopefully I won't get bored with it too soon.  

As I said in my video these are not books that I "want to read" listed on Goodreads, but they are physical books sitting on my shelf. 

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Release Date: October 22, 2013
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 526 (Hardcover)
Source: Amazon
Genre: YA Dystopia
Review Date: Recorded December 27, 2013
Rating: 3 bookmarks

Synopsis: The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories. 

But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love. 

Told from a riveting dual perspective, Allegiant, by #1 New York Times best-selling author Veronica Roth, brings the Divergent series to a powerful conclusion while revealing the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.