Friday, July 31, 2015
Thursday, July 30, 2015
BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR
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| SYNOPSIS:
Originally published in French as Le bleu est une couleur chaude, Blue is the Warmest Color is a graphic novel about growing up, falling in love, and coming out. Clementine is a junior in high school who seems average enough: she has friends, family, and the romantic attention of the boys in her school. When her openly gay best friend takes her out on the town, she wanders into a lesbian bar where she encounters Emma: a punkish, confident girl with blue hair. Their attraction is instant and electric, and Clementine find herself in a relationship that will test her friends, parents, and her own ideas about herself and her identity.
First published in French by Belgium's Glénat, the book has won several awards, including the Audience Prize at the Angoulême International Comics Festival, Europe's largest. The film Blue Is the Warmest Color won the Palme d'Or at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.
REVIEW:
I am new to graphic novels, the first one I read Fun House I found undesirable, but I am not one to give up very easy, so I checked this one out from the library and guess what? It is phenomenal between the depth of the story and striking graphics I am in awe. For those of you that are unfamiliar with graphic novels they are nothing like comic books with graphic novels the story is more complex and finished in one book unlike comic books that are short parts of a story that come out in issues over time. A very interesting fact about graphic novels is that they pre-date comic books the first graphic novel was published in 1783 while the first comic book in 1837.
The prose of this read contains numerous tones such as personal growth, life and death, love, betrayal, forgiveness, and so much more creating a phenomenal tale of two individuals. Therefore, stunning me further such a sophisticated novel can be written in dialogue balloons and captions. The story felt too short yet the quality of writing it contains made up for it bizarre as it is wanting the story not to end is the only bad thing I could come up with about Blue is the Warmest Color.
Next is the graphics which are mind-blowing. They are startlingly lifelike looking comparable to actual photographs the graphics are so detailed from the facial expressions to the little things such as a piece of trash on the ground or the door hinges. There are a lot of areas in this novel that the graphics, for example, the facial expressions communicate so well on their own the author did not even place words as well with the color blue.
Then put together both the prose and graphics and you have something astonishing. Sensational graphics that will show you what is happening takes storytelling to a whole new level. Some readers might argue that it takes away from using your own imagination to picture what is going on, but I say no everyone will look at the graphics in a different way. Also, each time you look at the graphics you pick up something new you missed the first time. It also is just not a book for lesbians either, it is for everyone. You can learn a lot from this book. I was reminded to live every day to it's fullest and holding grudges gets you nowhere.
 
About this author:
Julie Maroh (born 1985) is an author and illustrator originally from northern France. She studied comic art at the Institute Saint-Luc in Brussels and lithography and engraving at the Royal Academy of Arts in Brussels, where she still lives. LINKS: |
Friday, July 24, 2015
Half-Life
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| SYNOPSIS: Half a life is not worth living.
Probably not a good idea to take advice from your dead twin sister. High school sophomore Trisha Traynor and friends have played the Halloween mirror game for years, the one that’s supposed to show a glimpse of the guy they’ll marry. But no one’s ever seen anything. Until tonight—when Trisha is gob smacked by the candlelit arrival of her long-deceased twin sister, instead of her crush, Kirk Maxwell.
In a voice and vision that only Trisha can hear and see, Chessie claims to be back on a compassionate journey. Trisha fears she’s gone nuthouse crazy. But she nonetheless follows the instructions Chessie outlines in their nightly conversations, until she finds herself stepping across some ethical lines, and probably ending all chances with Kirk.
When a sisterly showdown ensues, resulting in the shattering of the mirror, Chessie’s gone again, and a heartsick Trisha sets about righting her recent wrongs. That is until she stumbles upon the real reason Chessie had come back and the most important glimpse yet that the mirror could never predict.
REVIEW:
As an adult, I have to admit I do enjoy reading young adult literature yet, with this book the 108 pages I endured was more than enough. I loath writing reviews on books that I am not fond of but as a reviewer, I have to be honest regarding how I feel concerning the book and how it is written. The blurb of the book gave the idea there was going to be a creepiness factor, for instance, a teenage girl seeing her dead twin sister in the mirror reads an eerie book ahead. The sad fact of the matter is the book contained nothing frightening not even a hang nail. None the less the mother in the book did make my skin crawl since her character is overwritten in the despair department. The prose was light focusing primarily on teenage drama. However, the author did add to the plot a positive point to the story which helped this read a great deal. Even though this book was not my cup of tea I am sure there are pre-teens that will enjoy this book.
This book is under the genre young adult which in literature is traditionally written for ages ranging 16 to 25. I think this book falls more under teen fiction, which is written for ages 10 to 15.
LINKS:
BOOK DETAILS:
Half-Life by Tina Ferraro
Published by Leap Books
Publication date: March, 24th, 2015
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult
ISBN: 1616030267
Pages: 108
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About this author:
| I am the author of three young adult novels with Random House: Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress, How to Hook a Hottie, and The ABC's of Kissing Boys (AKA Ten Ways to Kiss a Hottie). In addition, I self-published The Starter Boyfriend and released a Lunchbox YA romance, Stupid Cupid.
I've been writing since I learned to hold a pencil and sold upwards of a hundred short stories to national magazines before turning to novels. I share a home in the L.A. area with my rocket scientist husband, some demanding cats, and whichever of our grown kids is in town. My interests include Facebook Scrabble, the color orange, and chasing coyotes out of the neighborhood.
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Thursday, July 23, 2015
HARDWIRED
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| SYNOPSIS:
Award-winning teacher Clary Stone is home for the summer, helping her family and recovering from a personal tragedy. She loves her Wisconsin city on Lake Michigan, hoping to find what’s left of herself in the familiar warmth and safety. At first, the city is the same, but she soon finds things have changed. Clary becomes involved in parts of the town that she’s never seen or known before. The summer’s odd journey leads her to the city’s homeless shelter for small children.
Leefe Ellis manages the shelter and is totally unlike anyone Clary’s ever met. Homeless since the age of three, Leefe reveals another side of life with remarkable courage, honesty, and humanity. Working side by side with the little children, both realize they are fellow travelers, but neither has met another person as completely different as they are from each other. It’s often confusing, sometimes frightening, but always fascinating.
REVIEW:
This book pulled at my heart with both sorrow and joy. The plot is a huge eye opener that needs to be more publicized. The prose was not of great depth, but the author did a wonderful job in portraying the seriousness of homeless children. Therefore, also what optimism and ambition can do to make a difference in not only someone else's life but your own. As a reader, you will learn something from this book. Rowlands did a magnificent job developing the main characters Clary and Leefe. I found the descriptiveness in this book spectacular. Though this book is fiction, I hope that the programs for the homeless children in this read are based on fact. Most people think of the homeless as only adults that have mental issues this being far from the actual truth. Everyone falls on hard luck, some worse than others the crushing part is when people cannot get themselves out of this situation. This book helps in understanding the truth for the children displaced due to homelessness. I would like to thank C.P. Rowlands for bringing this issue to the public's attention.
"Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to review this book"
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About this author
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LINKS:
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Sunday, July 19, 2015
Fun Home NOT Fun
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| SYNOPSIS:
A fresh and brilliantly told memoir from a cult favorite comic artist, marked by gothic twists, a family funeral home, sexual angst, and great books.
This breakout book by Alison Bechdel is a darkly funny family tale, pitch-perfectly illustrated with Bechdel's sweetly gothic drawings. Like Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, it's a story exhilaratingly suited to graphic memoir form. Meet Alison's father, a historic preservation expert and obsessive restorer of the family's Victorian home, a third-generation funeral home director, a high school English teacher, an icily distant parent, and a closeted homosexual who, as it turns out, is involved with his male students and a family babysitter. Through narrative that is alternately heartbreaking and fiercely funny, we are drawn into a daughter's complex yearning for her father. And yet, apart from assigned stints dusting caskets at the family-owned "fun home," as Alison and her brothers call it, the relationship achieves its most intimate expression through the shared code of books. When Alison comes out as homosexual herself in late adolescence, the denouement is swift, graphic — and redemptive.
REVIEW:
What I was expecting this book to be and what I got out of it were telescopic. I gave this book two stars due to the great illustrations. How thrilling this book is going to be I thought due to the fact that it is a graphic memoir about a lesbian and her relationship with her father well, I was duped. The book is predominantly told in a way that meshed other books and their characters, for instance, The Odyssey, Homer, Proust, Wilde, etc. into the ongoing plot. Making this read intolerable for readers who loath Greek mythology or a lot of the time making the story confusing. Furthermore, the profuseness of the grammar is too excessive for a graphic novel. For a memoir, the protagonist was undeveloped. She came off atrocious and unkind. Yet, I felt deep sympathy for her father. He was unable to become the person he truly was in life due to the era he lived in. Yet, in his own way he still tried to be true to himself which the daughter ridiculed relentlessly.
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Saturday, July 18, 2015
Winner of The Camelot Shadow eBook Giveaway!
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| RACHEL D. For entering The Camelot Shadow eBook Giveaway! |
Thank you all who entered the giveaway and for participating in the blog hop. I hope you come
back to visit Readaholic Zone soon.
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
What Stands In A Storm
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| SYNOPSIS:
Immersive reporting and dramatic storytelling set you right in the middle of the horrific superstorm of April 2011, a weather event that killed 348 people.
April 27, 2011, marked the climax of a superstorm that saw a record 358 tornadoes rip through twenty-one states in three days, seven hours, and eighteen minutes. It was the deadliest day of the biggest tornado outbreak in recorded history, which saw 348 people killed, entire neighborhoods erased, and $11 billion in damage. The biggest of the tornadoes left scars across the land so wide they could be seen from space. But from the terrible destruction emerged everyday heroes, neighbors and strangers who rescued each other from hell on earth. With powerful emotion and gripping detail, Cross weaves together the heart-wrenching stories of several characters—including three college students, a celebrity weatherman, and a team of hard-hit rescuers—to create a nail-biting chronicle in the Tornado Alley of America. No, it’s not Oklahoma or Kansas; it’s Alabama, where there are more tornado fatalities than anywhere in the US, where the trees and hills obscure the storms until they’re bearing down upon you. For some, it’s a story of survival, and for others it’s the story of their last hours. Cross’s immersive reporting and dramatic storytelling sets you right in the middle of the very worst hit areas of Alabama, where thousands of ordinary people witnessed the sky falling around them. Yet from the disaster comes a redemptive message that’s just as real: In times of trouble, the things that tear our world apart also reveal what holds us together
REVIEW:
This powerful book grabs you into its pages and like the tornados, it spirals your emotions on a wild ride. It is a true story of the grisly damage done by the 62 tornados that took place in Alabama on April 27, 2011. Nevertheless, the author does not just focus on the horror of the situation, providing also the courage, strength, community's uniting, and the strength to move on after this catastrophe. I found not one bad thing about the writing of this book. It is written in three different sections: the storm, aftermath, and recovery making the story come together exceedingly well.
I learned an immense amount of information about weather and meteorology such as all the history behind it including the accidental discovery of radar, how the tornado sirens came to be, the first airplanes P-61C's to fly into tornados taking the first measurements of them, in conclusion, the remarkable groundwork accomplished to get science where it is today. The book will have you shedding tears as you go along on the journeys of people losing loved ones. The turmoil of losing everything a person had plus the place where they once felt safe had called home. Henceforth, you will be smiling with joy when you read about people helping others they do not know. Also, when a ghastly event proves that compassion still lives inside us all even towards a rival. This book just blew me away (no pun intended). Thank you, Kim Cross for taking me on this adventure. |
"Thanks Netgalley for letting me give an honest opinion of this book"
LINKS:
What Stands In A Storm is available wherever books are sold.
Pick up a copy today!
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Kim Cross is a contributing editor for Southern Living and a feature writer who has received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Society of American Travel Writers, and the Media Industry Newsletter. Her writing has appeared in Outside, Parade, Popular Mechanics, Cooking Light, Bicycling, Runner’s World, The Tampa Bay Times, The Birmingham News, The Anniston Star, USA TODAY, The New Orleans Times-Picayune, and on SBNation.com, ESPN.com, and CNN.com. She lives in Alabama. |
Monday, July 13, 2015
International Authors' Day 2015 Blog Hop + BOOK GIVEAWAY
| BOOK GIVEAWAY AVAILABLE at the BOTTOM of BLOG POST  |
| What books and authors mean to me |
I started this blog due to my love of books wanting to give back to the authors to some degree for what they have given to me. I do not have a favorite author nor do I have a favorite book. I know this sounds strange to many people. I started reading before most children did. As an extremely shy child books were my friends, they were always there for me and helped me escape my fears. Books are a part of what I embody, it does not matter if I loved them or hated them, they have made me the person I am today. Now, as an adult I am disabled being stuck in a broken body is not an easy feat yet, with the help of books I am able to leave the pain behind at times going to places and doing things that have been wondrous. I inhere the essence that authors dream up helping make my world a phenomenal place. I thank all the authors which have made my life so grand taking me on stunning adventures allowing me to see the world through others eyes.
I am not a writer only a reader I believe what this says about books is better than I ever could:
BOOK GIVEAWAY!!!
Available in mobi or epub
Available in mobi or epub
Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam spends each day in much the same way: caring for his terminally ill wife and trying to lose himself in the dusty tomes that fill his library. Everything changes when he receives a visit from a man representing a clandestine organization operating with the backing of Queen Victoria herself. The group seeks his aid in finding an Arthurian artifact that, legend holds, can cure its bearer of any wound or disease.
Skeptical but desperate to help his wife, Alfred is convinced that the fabled item might actually exist after witnessing a seemingly impossible display of power by the organization's leader, James Nigel. He decides to pursue the treasure, accompanied by an eccentric scholar, a deadly druid, and his best friend, a sardonic bookseller who is far more than he seems. As he follows an arcane trail of clues from the gas-lit streets of London to the wilds of Scotland and deep into ancient catacombs in Italy, Alfred becomes enmeshed in a web of hidden agendas, secret societies, and ancient enchantments. Along the way, he learns a dark secret about Nigel’s past—and the true power of the artifact he seeks.
Steeped in a compelling mythology and filled with unexpected twists, The Camelot Shadow will leave readers stunned, breathless, and wrestling with an impossible question: what do you do with an object that has the power to both save the world and destroy it?
Skeptical but desperate to help his wife, Alfred is convinced that the fabled item might actually exist after witnessing a seemingly impossible display of power by the organization's leader, James Nigel. He decides to pursue the treasure, accompanied by an eccentric scholar, a deadly druid, and his best friend, a sardonic bookseller who is far more than he seems. As he follows an arcane trail of clues from the gas-lit streets of London to the wilds of Scotland and deep into ancient catacombs in Italy, Alfred becomes enmeshed in a web of hidden agendas, secret societies, and ancient enchantments. Along the way, he learns a dark secret about Nigel’s past—and the true power of the artifact he seeks.
Steeped in a compelling mythology and filled with unexpected twists, The Camelot Shadow will leave readers stunned, breathless, and wrestling with an impossible question: what do you do with an object that has the power to both save the world and destroy it?
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Sunday, July 12, 2015
A Conduit for Man
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SYNOPSIS:
Seventeen-year-old Henry Malone's mind is no longer his own—along with the sum total of humanity’s knowledge, another consciousness has been stuffed into his brain. It plagues him with visions, speaks and acts through him, and worst of all, it’s killing him. He's quickly running out of time, and if he dies, all of humanity’s knowledge goes with him. His only hope for survival is finding Planetary Link's top Neurotechnician, Doctor Carter. But in order to get to her, he must cross into a world where his actions have plunged society into chaos—then compel the Doctor to betray her employer before his own mind destroys him. REVIEW:
Just so you know that this review does have some major spoilers in it. The authors writing is pleasing and gratifying and the book started out just as amazing as the first book in the series but then things went awry. It is segments of the plot that lead to confusion, leaving me as a reader wondering what was taking place. Riya had the most growth as a character and had to dig deep inside herself to find the strength that she needed to get through the horror she suffered. For that reason, in my eyes she has the most relevance in this story. Henceforth, the confusing, strange and bizarre begins.
A.L. Twelve Fourteen was the place all knowledge known to man was to be stored and from the first book we know that Henry uploaded it all into his brain. Yet, what is it that Henry actually uploaded? A cult from the past that had uploaded their own minds somehow on to a type of computer device is what I took away from it. Oh poor Henry, he was the best character in the story. I never understood what he is a conduit of? Maybe in book three, we will find out. Also, if Josh was giving individuals visions through their NEX, how was he able to get a vision to Chief Ourai if he had no NEX? Kurei appears in the plot as a forceful character turning the story in a strange direction. It is not good versus bad anymore. The story is now bad against bad.
I will still keep reading the series. Sometimes what one reader likes another does not. I still think M. Stephen Stewart is an amazing writer. I can not wait to review book #3.
"Thank you, M. Stephen Stewart, for allowing me to give an honest review"
PURCHASE HERE: AMAZON
AUTHOR BIO:
M. Stephen Stewart is a graduate of Indiana University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism. He makes his home in Indianapolis with his wife and two dogs. In his spare time, Matt is an avid sports fan, gamer, and reader, who loves to connect with new people. You can usually find him around town with his wife, exercising, or in front of his computer working on a new project.
Author links:
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Saturday, July 11, 2015
BLOG TOUR + BOOK GIVEAWAY
Book details:
We Are Watching by M. Stephen Stewart
(Mindshare #1)
Publication date: December 16th, 2014
Genres: Dystopia, Young Adult
(Mindshare #1)
Publication date: December 16th, 2014
Genres: Dystopia, Young Adult
Synopsis:
Henry Malone’s childhood was shattered by the unexplained suicide of his father. Now a teenager, his days are spent studying to become a Neural Implant Technician for Planetary Link Corporation, helping them maintain an iron grip over his walled country and every iota of knowledge contained within—but he leads a double life. Henry’s nights are spent helping his mother wage a cyber war against them in her quest to find the truth behind his father’s death.
He’s managed to keep his two lives separate, a delicate balance that’s endangered after he repairs the neural implant of a stranger. He finds she’s in possession of illegal memories from the outside world, unauthorized knowledge of his father, and a message: speak to me later and tell no one. Henry has a choice to make—ignore the message and maintain his double- life, or answer and risk everything to uncover secrets Planetary Link would kill to keep buried.
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MY REVIEW:
This is the utmost phenomenal sci-fi book that I have had the pleasure of reading.The truth is I have never been an enormous fan of Sci-fi books. Yet this book is so different from the rest of the Sci-fi genre. This is an unconventional and distinct read. An author like M. Stephen Stewart can write in such a profound way that while reading his book the details and settings are so dynamic you feel as if you are living in this futuristic world. A world that one day far into the future could be our genuine reality. The characters have an enormous depth to them; as well their feelings are vivid and real touching the reader in such a way that you cry, laugh, get furious, or sullen along with them.
The plot is unique and strong. It is packed with all types of situations that you will not detect coming as well as fully loaded with creative context. Here is something to chew on but I can give nothing else away. Henry Malone, one of the main characters, is training to be a Neural implant technician for the Planetary Link Corporation. Plink controls all knowledge through a person's NEX (an implant in the brain). Henry lives in a walled in country and as the rest of society is only allowed access to the limited knowledge Plink allows. Henry is needed for a dire quest which will change his life forever. However can Henry gather the courage to proceed with this challenge given unto him. Basically, it is what's in the blurb, sorry. The book never slows down it keeps you on the edge obsessed with what venture shall be next. Furthermore this read is greater than a futuristic world that has profound problems that need to be solved, it shows what true bravery is, it explains what it means to fight for the good of humanity and to put your full faith in another human trusting them with your life.
We Are Watching (Mindshare #1) is the first book in a series. However, the ending is abrupt leaving you wanting more which you can have right away with the second book in the series A Conduit for man (Mindshare #2). Which I have already lost myself in...
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AUTHOR BIO:
M. Stephen Stewart is a graduate of Indiana University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism. He makes his home in Indianapolis with his wife and two dogs. In his spare time, Matt is an avid sports fan, gamer, and reader, who loves to connect with new people. You can usually find him around town with his wife, exercising, or in front of his computer working on a new project.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
What Are Your Reading Habits?
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Sometimes I am a Monogamist reader and at other times I am an Extrovert reader. It just depends on what phase I am going through. How about you? Do you fit into just one group or multiple? Share your reading habits!
*Thank You booklikes
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