Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: 13 Oct 2009
ISBN: 1416989412
Format: Paperback (ARC)
Pages: 400
Websites:
Becca Fitzpatrick - Official Site
Becca Fitzpatrick - Blog
Becca Fitzpatrick - Twitter

Place(s) Traveled to: Coldwater, Maine & Portland, Maine

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Synopsis:

For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along.With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

What can I say about Becca Fitzpatrick's debut novel, Hush Hush, that hasn't already been said? I don't think my voice will add anything new with the exception that I am not entirely on the Hush Hush bandwagon. There is a lot of hype surrounding this novel and many reviews that gush extensively over the main characters of Nora and Patch. When reading those reviews that say how amazing the two are as a couple I wonder if they've read the same book. Throughout most of the story Patch, a fallen angel, is trying to kill Nora. So...um...how is that romantic? Patch is hailed as this Bad Boy to love and I just don't see it. He is rude and creepy and I have mentioned that he is intent on murder? To me that does not make a swoon worthy leading man. As for Nora...oy...I did not like this character at all. She was vapid and a bit dense. Although I disliked her friend Vee more. Of all the characters I couldn't form any sort of attachment to any of them. And the purpose of Marcie Millar still stumps me. She was just there in random scenes that did nothing to move the story along.

Angels seem to be the up and coming hot topic though and so this book has taken off in a way that I just don't understand. The writing wasn't bad and shows promise for the future but the plot was at times overly simple and at others seemed a bit messy and improbably. Like the time that a few days after a major accident & surgery Vee helps Nora scope out place were Patch works - where Nora for some reason must wear a wig and sluttish clothes while she reads questions off a list. And then she wonders why she doesn't get many answers - especially with such hard hitting subtle ones like "does Patch have a girlfriend?" or "does Patch have a criminal record?"

Flaws aside, the book was engrossing and it only took me a few days to read it. It held my attention and climatic ending had me curious as to where this story would be going next so I will probably check out Crescendo when it is released in the fall of 2010. Though as of now its not a book that I see myself rushing out to get.

Date read: 28 Aug 09

Book Trailer Monday (13): Meet the Class of 2010 & The Tenners

ook Trailer Monday is where once a week I feature a trailer for a book that has captured my attention. This trailer might be for a book that is about to be published, or maybe its for a book that has already been released. There won't be any rhyme or reason to the trailer that I choose....the only common denominator will be that I liked it. That it made me stop or made me think or maybe it made me laugh. I do this mainly for my own enjoyment because I love book trailers. I find them fascinating and I hope that you enjoy the ones that I show here each week as well.

This week I'm going to take a small departure from the regular Book Trailer Monday to show you a short video produced my M2 Productions. For the last few years they have put together a montage of books/authors that will be debuting in that year. So I invite you to take a few moments and learn a little more about the Class of 2010 and The Tenners.

I don't know about you, but I'm really excited about books releasing in the coming year! I think its going to be a great year for books and I am excited to meet/read all these new authors! What about you? What do you think of this weeks trailer? Let me know in the comments.


If you know of a book trailer that you would like to see featured on Book Trailer Monday then please send me an email with a link to irisheyz_5 AT yahoo DOT com.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford (Audio)

Publisher: Random House Audio (Audio); Ballantine Books (Print)
Publication Date: 26 Jan 2009
ISBN: (audio), 0345505344 (Paperback)
Format: Audio
Pages: 320
Audio Length: 9 discs (~ 11 hrs)
Narrator: Feodor Chin

Websites:
Jamie Ford - Official Site
Jamie Ford - Twitter

Place(s) Traveled to: Seattle, Washington (1940's & 1986)

Rating: 5 of 5 star

Synopsis:

In the opening pages of Jamie Ford’s stunning debut novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Henry Lee comes upon a crowd gathered outside the Panama Hotel, once the gateway to Seattle’s Japantown. It has been boarded up for decades, but now the new owner has made an incredible discovery: the belongings of Japanese families, left when they were rounded up and sent to internment camps during World War II. As Henry looks on, the owner opens a Japanese parasol.

This simple act takes old Henry Lee back to the 1940s, at the height of the war, when young Henry’s world is a jumble of confusion and excitement, and to his father, who is obsessed with the war in China and having Henry grow up American. While “scholarshipping” at the exclusive Ranier Academy, where the white kids ignore him, Henry meets Keiko Okabe, a young Japanese American student. Amid the chaos of blackouts, curfews, and FBI raids, Henry and Keiko forge a bond of friendship–and innocent love–that transcends the long-standing prejudices of their Old World ancestors. And after Keiko and her family are swept up in the evacuations to the internment camps, she and Henry are left only with the hope that the war will end, and that their promise to each other will be kept.

Forty years later, Henry Lee is certain that the parasol belonged to Keiko. In the hotel’s dark dusty basement he begins looking for signs of the Okabe family’s belongings and for a long-lost object whose value he cannot begin to measure. Now a widower, Henry is still trying to find his voice–words that might explain the actions of his nationalistic father; words that might bridge the gap between him and his modern, Chinese American son; words that might help him confront the choices he made many years ago.

Set during one of the most conflicted and volatile times in American history, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is an extraordinary story of commitment and enduring hope. In Henry and Keiko, Jamie Ford has created an unforgettable duo whose story teaches us of the power of forgiveness and the human heart.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford is one of those novels that I’ve heard a lot of good buzz about. Everyone that I know who has read it seems to love it. So when I saw an audio sitting on the shelf of my local library I thought that I would give it a go. Wondering all the while if it would live up to the hype that I’d heard. Well, hype is the wrong word but I can’t think of one that will fit. This isn’t a book in which I hear people screaming about from the rooftops but its got this quiet and growing following that is harder to ignore then those who scream to be read. When you pick up Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet know that there are no big bangs or earth shattering revelations. Instead there is just this rich story about a boy and a girl and the cruel realities of living in a world during a time of war. The story is told in two parts, there is 10 year old Henry living in Chinatown in the 1940’s war is raging in Europe and there is an ever growing disdain for people of Japanese decent. The other is through Henry’s eyes as a fully grown man still living in the same area of Seattle but in a world that is far far different from his youth. This story is also about a Japanese girl named Keiko who Henry meets at the white school that his father insists on sending him to and that of Henry’s son, a modern boy who thinks that his father is stuck in the past and old ways.

Words can’t describe just how amazing this story was. Jamie Ford has such a gift with words and story telling that I often thought that I was right there in the story standing next to Henry and seeing the world through his eyes. My heart leapt when his did and it broke when Henry suffered. I would sometimes find myself talking over the narrator of the audio – speaking to Henry’s son telling him that he didn’t understand, that if he knew all that his father had gone through he’d be in awe of him.

Speaking of the narrator, can I just say that I loved Feodor Chin’s voice? He did an amazing job with this book and the accents. There were never any issues in trying to determine who was speaking as he had such distinct twists for all the different characters. I really enjoyed listening to this audio, not just because it was a great story but because the narrator was just so good. This is definitely a narrator that I am going to be on the look out for later on. Just as Jamie Ford is an author to watch. His words are pure poetry and his words are so amazingly drawn. I know I keep saying that but its true. Just as its equally true that I really can’t find the words to fully express just how wonderful this story is. So rather than hear me gush fantastic about it I strongly suggest that you go and discover it for yourself.

Date Read: 24 Aug 2009

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 23 Dec 2008
ISBN: 0802798225
Format: Paperback
Pages: 368
Websites:
Simone Elkeles - Official Site
Simone Elkeles - Blog

Place(s) Traveled to: Fairfield, Illinois

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Sunopsis:

When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created “perfect” life is about to unravel before her eyes. She’s forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, and he is about to threaten everything she's worked so hard for—her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend, and the secret that her home life is anything but perfect. Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But soon Alex realizes Brittany is a real person with real problems, and suddenly the bet he made in arrogance turns into something much more. In a passionate story about looking beneath the surface, Simone Elkeles breaks through the stereotypes and barriers that threaten to keep Brittany and Alex apart.

Perfect Chemistry is one of those books that I first heard about on Twitter. The buzz was all good so I found myself picking up a copy one day at the bookstore. Then as with so many others it got lost on Mt TBR. Then a few weeks ago there was some chatter among friends on Twitter about Bad Boys – love them, hate them and just what makes a well drawn Bad Boy. There are two main categories of Bad Boy, you’ve got the creepy stalkerish boy of Twilight and Hush Hush and then there are the ones that do bad things but deep down they have a good heart. It’s the later of the two that I prefer and its that later category that Alejandro “Alex” Fuentes from Perfect Chemistry falls into. I became intrigued with all the Twitter talk about Alex and so decided to move Perfect Chemistry up a few notches on Mt TBR and initially I was really impressed by it.

Perfect Chemistry is life a modern day Romeo and Juliet or maybe West Side Story would be a better comparison. The two main characters are star-crossed lovers who have many obstacles to over come in order to be together – both outside influences and internal ones as well. Brittany initially reads as a bit shallow but as her story progresses you do learn that there is more to her then her perfect exterior. There is also more to Alex than his gang affiliations. Alex is different then the others in his gang he is smart, doesn’t really mind school and has a secret dream to go to college. He’s realistic and knows that the cards he was dealt won’t really allow for that, but if it doesn’t happen for him then maybe he can makes things just a little bit better for his two younger brothers. Both who see the gang way of life through rose colored glasses. They know their brother is in one and if its good enough for him then why not them?

I thought that the way the relationship progressed between Brittany and Alex was well done and believable and I found that I couldn’t stop reading their story. But as the book moved closer to its conclusion its like they became stuck on repeat. Brittany was only happy when Alex did what she wanted and when what she wanted was for him to leave the gang she couldn’t understand that it wasn’t as easy as say quitting a job. Its around this time that the book started to slip for me. The realism of the beginning started to wan and move into unrealistic territory and the end just became too perfect. Too sacchariny sweet and too much like a fairy tale. By the time I finished the epilogue I had gone from loving the story to merely liking it. I think my end rating may have higher if it wasn’t for that epilogue. I had similar issues with the epilogue for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows. Both were unnecessary and both seemed as though they were trying to hard. Perfect Chemistry isn’t a bad book and its not a waste of time to read it. I would just strongly suggest that the reader stop reading before the epilogue.

Poison Study by Maria V Snyder

Publisher: Mira
Publication Date: 01 Dec 2008
ISBN: 0778327116
Format: Paperback
Pages: 416
Websites:
Maria V Snyder - Official Site
Maria V Snyder - MySpace Blog

Place(s) Traveled to: Ixia

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Synopsis:

Choose: A quick death and hell or slow poison and hell.

About to be executed for murder, Yelena is offered an extraordinary reprieve. She'll eat the best meals, have rooms in the palace and risk assassination by anyone trying to kill the Commander of Ixia.

And so Yelena chooses to become a food taster. But the chief of security, leaving nothing to chance, deliberately feeds her Butterfly's Dust and only by appearing for her daily antidote will she delay an agonizing death from the poison.

As Yelena tries to escape her new dilemma, disasters keep mounting. Rebels plot to seize Ixia and Yelena develops magical powers she can't control. Her life is threatened again and choices must be made. But this time the outcomes aren't so clear.

I recently had the privilege of reading an advanced reading copy (ARC) of Julie Kagawa’s debut book The Iron King. I really enjoyed this new twist on faerie and fell in love with 3 of the main characters – Ash, Puck and Grimalkin, each for different reasons. Of the three Ash is the Bad Boy of the group. He’s dark and mysterious and has a bit of an edge that only the younger son of the Winter Queen can have. During one night of fangirl gushing Julie mentioned that part of her inspiration for Ash was a character named Valek who is featured in Maria V Snyder’s Study series. Well, color me curious and I immediately made a note to look for the first book Poison Study, which was lost somewhere on Mt TBR. Things then began to heat up when Julie began to argue (re: fight) fellow blogger Steph Su for Valek. You can only imagine how this made my curiosity grew in leaps and bounds.

I then went to my shelves, found Poison Study and began to read it that night. It wasn’t long before I was sucked so completely into the world that Snyder created. Yelena is such a complex and wonderfully drawn character. Just when you think you know all her secrets she goes and surprises you. And just when you think that there isn’t anything else she can bear she surprises you again. Her story keeps you on the edge of your seat with anticipation wondering where it all will lead. She starts off as a criminal and soon becomes the food taster for the Commander. During her training she comes into contact with Valek – the Commander’s right hand. He is the Commander’s aide, advisor, and assassin. He is, in short, the ultimate Bad Boy and totally swoon-worthy character.

Poison Study is further fleshed out with the amazing secondary characters that fill its pages. All work together to weave a story that is filled with intrigue, mystery, compassion and so much more. I love Yelena because she is so strong and despite all the odds against her she never gives up. She is a powerful force and yet she is also vulnerable. She makes mistakes, she learns from them and she goes on to make new ones. She is a delightful character to watch and the way that Snyder writes her, makes Yelena seem so very real. Snyder does the same with all her other characters. They all have flaws but you love them because of their short fallings since a too perfect character only comes across as false. Snyder also builds this complex world that the reader can almost see out of the corner of their eye as they read the words that she writes. I fell in love with the land of Ixia and only wanted to know more about it. Snyder built her world and gave it a rich history but she weaved in all the threads of it seamlessly into the story so that they never bogged it down or created a dry patch. Poison Study was a wonderful story and its one that I highly recommend to all. And when you buy it, be sure to pick up the rest of the trilogy because if you are anything like me you won’t want to wait to see what adventures Yelena and the rest will encounter next.