Book Blogger Hop (12) + Follow Friday

It's finally the weekend, which means time for another hop! Hosted by the lovely Crazy-For-Books.

In the spirit of the Twitter Friday Follow, the Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and

readers to connect and share our love of the written word! This weekly BOOK PARTY is an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books! It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs to read!

This week's question:

Highlight one book you received this week (for review, from the library, from the store, etc.) that you can't wait to dig into!

Yesterday I made what was probably my last trip to Border's *sniffle* and bought Anna Godbersen's Bright Young Things. I have been waiting to get my hands on this book forever! I was a huge fan of her Luxe series, and now with a whole new group of girls set in the 1920's, I couldn't pass it up!

Here's the synopsis:

The year is 1929. New York is ruled by the bright young things: flappers and socialites seeking thrills in the dizzying last summer of the Jazz Age.

Across the cast lawns of Long Island and in the glittering metropolis of New York City, three beautiful girls find love, intrigue, and adventure: Astrid Donal is a flapper who seems to have it all... but her perfect veneer hides a score of secrets. Cordelia Grey searches for the father she's never known--and discovers his world is more dangerous then she ever imagined. All Letty Larkspur wants to see is her name in lights, but just how far will she go to be a star?

Q: Let's step away from books for a second and get personal. What t-shirt slogan best describes you?

I think the most appropriate t-shirt logo for me would be "Will Read for Food." Simple, easy to remember.

-To join the fun and make new book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:
-(Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Host { Parajunkee.com } and any one else you want to follow on the list
-(Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - The Book Addicted Girl & The Little Book Blog
-Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
-Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
-Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"
-If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
-If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

Happy Friday!

Teaser Tuesdays (7)

Happy Tuesday everyone! This week's teasers come from Robin McKinley's Rose Daughter, a re-telling of Beauty and the Beast.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teasers:

"It was foolish to talk of hating him--foolish and wasteful. What had happened had happened, like anything else might happen, like a bit of paper giving you a new home when you had none finding its way into your hand, like a company of the ugliest, worst-tempered plants you'd ever seen opening their flowers and becoming rose-bushes, the most beautiful, lovable plants you've ever seen." (84)

--Rose Daughter by Robin McKinley

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (19)

Greetings everyone, hope you are all doing well! Happy Monday. Here's to a great week filled with books!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Book Journey in which we bloggers share what we have read in the past week, and what we're currently tearing through this week.

Last Week I Read

Wildwing by Emily Whitman (Check out my review here!)

Currently I'm Reading

Spindle's End by Robin McKinley

Wildwing by Emily Whitman

GENRE

YA Historical Fiction / Fantasy (359 pgs.)

SYNOPSIS

When Addy is swept back in time, she couldn't be happier to leave her miserable life behind. Now she's mistaken for Lady Mathilda, the pampered ward of the king. If Addy can play her part, she'll have glorious gowns, jewels, and something she's always longed for--the respect and admiration of others. But then she meets Will, the falconer's son with sky blue eyes, who unsettles all her plans.

From shipwrecks to castle dungeons, from betrothals to hidden conspiracies, Addy finds herself in a world where she's not the only one with a dangerous secret. When she discovers the truth, Addy must take matters into her own hands. The stakes? Her chance at true love, and the life she's meant to live.

MY REVIEW

I picked this book up at my local bookstore because it sounded fairly interesting. I've always enjoyed books that include time travel, because I love to see how characters get along in such a completely different world than the ones they were living in.

The only problem I have with time traveling books is that usually for the characters, some out-of-the-blue plot twist happens and they magically fit right into someone's vacated place. It just never seems real enough. Unfortunately, this book was no exception.

When Addy is transported back in time, she sees a falcon, which leads her to a beach on which the remnants of a shipwreck are washed up. Turns out, that ship was carrying the real Lady Mathilda to the castle of Sir Hugh. So when riders show up to survey the damage, they see Addy and assume she is Lady Mathilda, the only survivor of the wreck. I just found this really unbelievable. I have yet to discover a good time traveling story in which the character really has to think and figure out a way to "jump in on the action," as it were.

Actually, the whole story continued in that fashion. The plot was just too unbelievable. It was all really too good to be true. Everything ends up happening right for Addy, even when it doesn't seem like it's going to, it does.

The characters really weren't anything special, just stock characters refashioned in a new way. Will's love for Addy seemed to be a bit unbelievable (again) to me, just because he falls so in love with Addy from the start and it's never made clear what his feelings are based off of.

Historical accuracy wasn't anything to spectacular either. It was just the basics. Nothing to be in awe over. Although I will give credit to Emily Whitman for doing some good research on hawking. That element of the book was well researched.

The prose was simple and pretty unornamented. Seriously, I finished this book in two days.

If I could sum up this book in one word, it would be charming. It was a charming story. The plot was okay, the characters were okay, and the historical accuracy was okay. Nothing really special stood out to me here. Definitely just a run-of-the-mill YA Historical Fiction novel. A good read if you've got a couple of lazy days.

MY RATING

3***

Book #5 in Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Book Blogger Hop (11) + Follow Friday

It's finally the weekend, which means time for another hop! Hosted by the lovely Crazy-For-Books.

In the spirit of the Twitter Friday Follow, the Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word! This weekly BOOK PARTY is an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books! It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs to read!

This week's question:

What is the ONE GENRE you wish you could get into, but just can't?

The one genre that I really have never been able to get into (but really wish I could) is non-fiction. I love history and historical fiction to death. But I find that when reading biographies of certain historical figures, I just can't finish the darn book. I think it's because I'm such a hopeless romantic. That, and the art-less prose is just really hard for me to get through.

Q: Name 3 authors that you would love to sit down and spend an hour or a meal with just talking about either their books or get advice on writing from?

If I could sit down with Lisa Ann Sandell, Hellen Hollick, and L.A. Meyer, my life would pretty much be complete. If I didn't have to stop at three, I'd also invite Libba Bray and Lisa Klein along.

-To join the fun and make new book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:
-(Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Host { Parajunkee.com } and any one else you want to follow on the list
-(Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - We Fancy Books & Unrequited Desire
-Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
-Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
-Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"
-If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
-If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

Happy Friday!

My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira

GENRE

Adult Historical Fiction (364 pgs.)

SYNOPSIS

Mary Sutter is a brilliant young midwife who dreams of becoming a surgeon. Determined to overcome the prejudices against women in medicine--and eager to run away from recent heartbreak--Mary travels to Washington, D.C., to help tend the legions of Civil War wounded. Under the guidance of two surgeons, who both fall unwittingly in love with her, and resisting her mother's pleas to return home to help with the difficult birth of her twin sister's baby, Mary pursues her medical career against all odds.

MY REVIEW

This novel happened to catch my eye for two reasons. One, it was about a nurse, which I aspire to be someday. Two, it was about the Civil War, which I thought was very appropriate considering this past April was the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the American Civil War.

I think this is just one of those books you really have to read to understand just how powerful and beautiful this story truly is. I almost can't put it in words, but I'll do my best.

Mary Sutter just might be one of my favorite literary heroines I've read so far. Her spirit is literally unbreakable. The whole world she lives in is a world full of no's for women, and yet, she pursues her passion for nursing, at all costs. She patiently works her way up from the lowest of lows, nothing more than a scullery maid in a hospital, to one day, becoming a practicing doctor, the first graduate of Elizabeth Blackwell's medical college for women. She possesses such a bright, burning flame of passion that nothing can ever extinguish, not even the pure gore and horror of the Civil War. Her catchphrase? "I want to be a surgeon."

The characters in this novel are extremely well written, each with a very personal contribution to the story. Each character has something unique about them from their past, whether it be a shared bereavement or lost loves, that brings them all together in such a special way. It was so easy to become attached to each of the characters, and love them all in a different way.

The prose of this novel was sweeping and vast, encompassing all aspects of the War. We see it from the frontlines, from the hospitals, from the homefront, and even from the White House itself. I applaud Robin Oliveira for going to such a length as to really make the Civil War and its people come back to life again.

As for historical accuracy, it was flawless. Everything was meticulously researched, from the actual battles to the primitive, undeveloped medicine of the Civil War. This novel drags you through the streets of old Washington, D.C. and puts you right next to the surgeons as they perform countless procedures in the hospitals. I also particularly enjoyed the fact that Robin Oliveira included some famous figures of that era, such as Abraham Lincoln and Dorothea Dix, and breathed new live into these often worn-out historical characters.

But most importantly, this is a love story. A subtle, but powerful love that grows to defy the world of the Civil War. It's passionate, but in a different way... a passion to continue living and thriving a midst the overwhelming death that surrounds it.

This novel can only be described one way: epic. It is truly a Civil War epic. This century's Gone With the Wind. A beautiful, powerful story that I am so glad I had the privilege to read.

MY RATING

5*****

Book #4 in Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Book Haul: My Local Library

Hold the phones! Stop the presses! This just in... I actually went to the library!

I don't even know what's kept me away so long. I don't know why I've been so reluctant to borrow books. I guess it's the thought that I have to give them back, even if I love them to death. And also the thought that the selection isn't super fantastic. Even with this in mind, I borrowed 3 (yes 3!) books from my library today, and I felt so proud!

Anyways, here's a peek at the books I borrowed. Enjoy!

Spindle's End by Robin McKinley (YA Fairytale Retelling)

All the creatures of the forest and field and riverbank knew the infant was special. She was the princess, spirited away from the evil fairy Pernicia on her name-day. But the curse was cast: Rosie was fated to prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and fall into a poisoned sleep-a slumber from which no one would be able to rouse her.

Rose Daughter by Robin McKinley (YA Fairytale Retelling)

"It is the heart of this place, and it is dying," says the Beast. And it is true; the center of the Beast's palace, the glittering glasshouse that brings Beauty both comfort and delight in her strange new environment, is filled with leafless brown rosebushes. But deep within this enchanted world, new life, at once subtle and strong, is about to awaken. Twenty years ago Robin McKinley enthralled readers with the power of Beauty. Now this extraordinarily gifted novelist retells the story of Beauty and the Beast again—but in a totally new way, with fresh perspective, ingenuity, and mature insight. In Rose Daughter she has written her finest and most deeply felt work, a compelling, richly imagined, and haunting exploration of the transformative power of love.

Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton (Adult Historical Fiction)

The Caribbean, 1665. Port Royal, Jamaica is a cutthroat town of taverns, grog shops, and bawdy houses. For Captain Charles Hunter, there’s a living to be made, and gold in Spanish hands is gold for the taking.
Word in port is that the galleon El Trinidad is awaiting repairs in a nearby, heavily fortified, harbor. Hunter assembles a crew of ruffians to infiltrate the enemy island and commandeer El Trinidad, along with its fortune in gold. The raid is as perilous as the bloodiest tales of island legend and Hunter will lose more than one man before he even sets foot on foreign shores, where dense jungle and the firepower of Spanish infantry stand between him and the treasure . . .