Dust and Decay

Benny Imura and his legendary zombie slaying/samurai older brother Tom are leaving their home behind a fence and heading East. Ever since they saw a jet flying over the abandoned wild country of North America in the previous book, they and their friends Nix, Chong, and Lilah can't forget about it. A jet means that people might be still be alive somewhere. A jet means that maybe, far away, zombies don't rule the world. 
This is where the story starts off. Right in the first chapter we're introduced to the plot: Tom, Benny, Nix, Chong and Lilah are going to pack their bags and head East. Easier said than done. There are millions of zombies in the world - or as they call them in the books, 'zoms' - and what's worse, it looks like a bunch of local thugs are creating a new Gameland, a place where kidnapped children are forced to fight zombies in big pits. It's just as awful as it sounds, and it's up to our brave heroes to survive the living dead, skirt their old enemies from book one, and...oh yeah. Stay alive. 


I really liked this book. Call me crazy, but there's something about the post-apocolyptic survive-or-die genre that really entertains me. I like the absence of cars and cell phones and satellites. It's just such an interesting premise. Plus, Jonathan Maberry has a way with non-stop action, not to mention he knows how to strike an emotional chord with the reader. Really impressive. The only character I didn't like was Nix, and that's because I found her kind of bossy and insensitive. But maybe that's how she was supposed to come across. I didn't like the first book much, so I was happily surprised with this second installment. I'm waiting for number 3....

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Dust and Decay

Halo

Oh, the things I could say about this book. Why, you ask? Well, when the story starts on page 417 and there are only 489 pages in the book, you know you've got a problem. The summary of the so-called plot goes like this: Bethany comes to earth with her angel siblings Gabriel and Ivy to possess human bodies in order to bring light to the world. It sucks having to walk to the mailbox to pick up your junk mail when you've been hanging out on puffy white clouds for a thousand years. I mean, once you've been an angel, everything on earth pretty much sucks. But Bethany falls in love with a human boy named Xavier Woods. And that, my friends, is where the story stops. For over 400 pages Bethany putters around town examining the daffodils and holding hands with the perfect male specimen of Venus Cove. But wait, it gets better. 
Nope, I lied. It doesn't. 
I seriously found myself skipping a minimum of 2 paragraphs every page - everything was so grossly overwritten that I was bored out of my mind. Seriously, I was eating ice cream and counting the chocolate chips in each bite as I scanned the pages to see if anything had happened yet. And I do mean anything. Did Bethany buy new toothpaste? Did she fall down and skin her knee? Did Xavier bring her a box of gummy worms? (Yup...gummy worms.) No! Plus, the angels were supposed to come to earth to bring "goodwill" and "light," but they never did anything but cook breakfast and sew clothing. No motivation. No problem that the characters had to overcome. It's kind of a big chunk of the story that was missing. Alexandra Adornetto started out with a good premise, but there was no plot, no tension, and no real reason for the angels to be on earth. That's not to say that her writing isn't pretty. It is. It's very artistic, in fact. But the entire story could have been told in 10 pages, not 489. That is why the story drags. Tension did not enter Bethany's world until page 417. As for me, I was tense just trying to get to the end of the book. Mission accomplished, now I'm off to read Dust and Decay, by Jonathan Maberry. Later, lovelies! 

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Halo

Elvis and Me

Priscilla Beaulieu Presley tells the story of her life-long romance to Elvis Presley. She met the King when he was the biggest star in the world - but stationed at a military base in Germany. The draft was definitely still going on back then, and it wasn't doing wonders for Elvis's career, who'd just left behind the peak of stardom. The story begins with this shocker: Priscilla was only 14 when she fell in love with Elvis, and he was 24. It was a romance that would last a lifetime. 

Priscilla would be his girlfriend, and eventually wife, for the next twenty plus years. What's frightening is the total dependence and control that Priscilla allowed the King to have over her life. He was a master manipulator, and she changed her speech, style, makeup, posture, tastes, beliefs, morals and pastimes to match his. Elvis could have a violent temper, and she was so afraid of upsetting him that she ended up with ulcers in her stomach. In fact, most of her relationship with Elvis was spent with Priscilla waiting in an empty house, shut off from the world, hoping that Elvis would come home and remember who she was. 

I'm not trying to be critical. Elvis was the King. He was amazing, and so was Priscilla. But this book sheds a light on how incredibly disappointing fame seems to be for those who climb to the top of the ladder. Elvis had everything, but he was intensely unhappy. Priscilla bent over backwards to please him, but it was never quite enough. She always bowed to his wishes, even when she knew it was wrong. She was too afraid that he would no longer love her. At any rate, this book reads like a romantic drama, and the whole time I wanted to shake both Elvis and Priscilla and tell them about a little thing called...reality!  


(For the curious: the color picture probably depicts Priscilla when she was about 16, and the black and white picture was when she first met Elvis at age 14. They were apart for 2 years after he left the army and headed back home: she spent that whole time worried that he would forget her. He never did.) 

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Elvis and Me

The Iron Knight

Prince Ash will go to the ends of the earth to be with the Iron Queen, Meghan Chase. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is exactly where he ends up. In a quest to retrieve his soul and become human, he brings along lovable, witty Puck, the infuriating cait sith Grimalkin and the Big Bad Wolf. Whoever else joins him on his journey might come as a bit of surprise. 
At this point you're probably asking yourself: why would Prince Ash want to become mortal? Simple! True love! Amore! He can't step foot in the Iron Realm as a faery because it will suck the life out of him. The solution? Become a human. Sure, you have to subject yourself to colds, headaches and crazy hormonal cravings (okay, maybe only girls fall into this category) but you get the idea. 

The Iron Fey Series was one of my favorite YA series of last year, so I was surprised to see a fourth installment after the trilogy wrapped up nicely in the Iron Queen. Personally, I found Prince Ash's POV a little boring, but he IS an Ice Prince, after all. My favorite characters in the book will always be Grimalkin and Puck (what is wrong with Meghan - I'll take a crazy, redheaded mischief-maker after an "ice-boy" any day, lol). But joking aside, it was an old-fashioned quest plot line that used all of the best elements of fairytales to get the job done. I liked it. It was fun, and I still think Puck is the best character.....just saying.... 

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The Iron Knight

Robert Sherman

Robert Sherman died today. If you pay attention to all things Disney, then you know that Robert was the older half of the brotherly song-writing duo, The Sherman Brothers, that penned hundreds of songs for Disney, from ‘It’s a Small World After All,’ to ‘Feed The Birds,’ from Mary Poppins. Richard was the younger brother: Robert the older. Their story is the stuff of legend.

Robert spent a great deal of time serving in World War II, where he witnessed firsthand the horror of seeing the Nazi Extermination Camps. These were images that would haunt him for the rest of his life – as would an injured leg. He returned from the war to find his younger brother, Richard, making the decision to pursue a career in music. It was a turning point in both their lives. Richard was a young, bubbly man with an optimistic outlook on life. Robert was slightly depressed and was constantly haunted by the horrors he had seen in the Second World War. It was this contrast that became the duo known as the Sherman Brothers. Richard talked Robert into coming with him to Hollywood – they would write songs together.

 They first wrote a song for Annette Funicello – and the rest is history. They wrote songs for Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book, Winnie the Pooh, Summer Magic, The Parent Trap, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Happiest Millionaire, The Tigger Movie, The Mickey Mouse Club, Flubber, That Darn Cat, The Aristocats, and dozens of smaller songs for Disney Sing-Along collections and Disney Attractions like ‘The Tiki Room,’ “It’s a Small World,’ and the theme for the popular television series, “The Wonderful World of Color.”

Theirs is a legacy that has spanned over half a century. Their songs are timeless. Why? Because they wrote real music. Music that was sweet, and catchy and wonderfully real. Their contrasting personalities blended together to create tunes that have become the most well known songs in the entire world.

Robert Sherman was one of the brilliant halves of the duo known as the Sherman Brothers. The talent that he had coincided with this brother’s – even when they did not always agree. Regardless, he left behind an indelible mark in the world:

The gift of music - songs enjoyed by both young and old. 

(For those wondering, Robert Sherman is the one standing by the piano in both pictures, and he sitting next to Dick Van Dyke in the Mary Poppins Picture)

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Robert Sherman

Beautiful Darkness and The Lovely Bones Giveaway!

Beautiful Darkness. The enthralling creation of two authors, Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, this book is the second installment in the Beautiful Creatures series. The plot is summed up best in the professional synopsis: 

Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he meets mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who reveals a secret world that has been hidden in plain sight all along.

Mixed with paranormal goings-on, beautiful writing and romance, Beautiful Darkness is a New York Times bestseller and phenomenon for a reason. 

The Lovely Bones. Murder. Salmon was murdered when was merely 14 years old. Now, her soul cannot rest until she guides her family remaining on earth to the man that brutally killed her. This book sparked a horror movie starring Sairose Ronan (who is a brilliant actress, if you've never seen her). The New Yorker even called it a "stunning achievement." Thanks, New Yorker. A two word review is tough to pull off. I should know.

Want to win one of these books? Enter the easy-peezy Rafflecopter form below! Want to win both books? If I hit 200 followers, one winner will be chosen instead of two, and that lucky duck will snag both books. I know. It's too good to be true. Hold your applause until the end, please. *wink* 

Wait. This is the end. 

Okay, thanks. Catch you later, babes (and dudes)!


P.S. Sorry, but only US shipping for entrants. *sobs*  

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Beautiful Darkness and The Lovely Bones Giveaway!

Blog Awards!!

Thanks to the kindness and, let's face it, all around awesomeness of Victoria from Confessions of a Twenty Something Fiction Writer, I get to put two more awards under my blogging belt: The Sunshine Award and the Dream Launcher Award. Finally, stuff that I can actually win! I don't have a great track record of winning. Okay. I don't have a track record, period. I won a ten dollar gift card to a stationary store that went bankrupt. How did I win? Because I colored a teddy bear with oil pastels for the local newspaper. They ended up just giving me a ten dollar bill because apparently, gift cards are a thing of the future. (yeah, I was just as confused then as I am now)
So I'm supposed to answer some great, albeit wonderfully silly, questions for this award. Hang on to your hats. This could get.....okay, it's not getting anywhere. Just read. Just smile and read.

What's your favorite color?


Well, I like to think of my favorite color as one big rainbow. Seriously, I love dark green and I adore purple. But my favorite color combo is blue and white. So is that a real answer? No? Okay. I like blue. Sky blue. Deep blue. Black and blue....wait. That's not right. Just BLUE!

Favorite animal?

Are you kidding me? The cat. Un gato. Felinus Domesticus. El tigre. I love CATS! I adore them. In fact, if I could get away with marrying one, I probably would do it. They're so soft and cuddly and adorable. Yeah. I'm definitely going with a cat over a boy. (By this point I'm sure you've noticed that I have issues)

Favorite number?


10. My favorite number. Always even. Always perfect. And yes, it is Adrian Monk's favorite number, too. I told you I have issues. *straightens books*

Favorite Drink?

I'm a boring schmuck, so I don't drink alcohol. Alright, fine. I'm only 18, so I can't drink alcohol. But even if I could or wanted to, my favorite drink has always been and will always be a Cherry Sprite. I like to get it from the bar when I eat out with cherry grenadine. I love it.

Facebook or Twitter?


Twittah, baby! It's like face to face conversations, without faces.
Now that I say that out loud, it doesn't sound as good as I thought.

What's my passion?


Writing, listening to music, reading. And talking to people from around the world. I also love writing screenplays. Oh, and animals.....I love taking care of baby kitties. (feel free to sigh here)

Getting or Giving?

Who doesn't like a teensy bit of both? That is all I'm going to say.......

Favorite Day of the Week?

Honestly, I love Friday nights. Why? Because the weekend is coming and you can eat ice cream or watch a movie (and because I'm such a sweet kid, I settle down with adorable movies like Die Hard  or The Bourne Identity). It's just a good feeling.

Favorite Flower?


Wild sunflowers and Indian paintbrushes. I grew up going to the mountains and both of these flowers are abundant in the Sierra Nevadas. If I get married someday, my wedding bouquet will be a bunch of wild sunflowers. So I'd better not get married in December........

And there you have it. The darkest depths of my soul have been revealed, and the world is either rejoicing or telling me to shut up. Probably the latter. See you later, and check out my brand new Beautiful Darkness and The Lovely Bones Giveaway!!!

I pass this award on to five awesome friends that you guys have to meet!

Bridget from Rants 'N' Ramblings (Author)
Summer from Pride and Princesses (Author) (yes, another Summer!)
Zoe from Bookhi
Tess from A Pathway to Books
Kris from A Book from Snowy River

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Blog Awards!!