Frogs and French Kisses by Sarah Mlynowski

Rachel is back in this novel, and better than ever. Even though she's a little worried about what people will think about her after the fashion show she's got a new plan up her sleeve. Miri, the sneaky little witch, stole Raf's glove when he wasn't looking. If only Rachel was a witch herself to go and make a magic spell and make him fall in love with her. Oh well, at least Miri's willing to help. Except...Miri's not the most experienced witch...maybe that won't effect it. Who was she kidding?

This novel is as amazing as the first one and makes you just want to keep reading until 3 in the morning when your eyes are all crusty with sleep dust.

Bras and Broomsticks by Sarah Mlynowski

Link to picture

Rachel is very upset. Her YOUNGER sister Miri, is a witch. And Rachel isn't! What is with that?? Rachel's the first born and besides deserving bigger boobs she deserves to become a witch first! Or at least at all. According to her mother, she already passed the witching age, and chances are she won't be a witch anytime soon. But that won't stop Rachel, she wants to be part of the A-list and she wants Raf and with Miri helping her out she might just be able to reach her dreams...

If only all things went perfectly.

Moby Clique (Bard Academy) by Cara Lockwood

Summer's gone and passed and Miranda hasn't felt any better since she left Bard Academy. But for the first time in a while she actually can't wait to go back to school. At least she was supposed to be if it hadn't been for the fact that her little sister Lindsey has been forced to come with her.

To make matters worse, Lindsey only seems to be sucking up to Parker and crushing on Miranda's ex, Ryan. But trouble is slowly arising on the waters and Miranda's going to need some help from her butt-kissing sister and a few more classic characters.

This novel draws you in almost as quickly as the other two do, and we certainly hope we get to see more of this soon!

Upcoming Theme

A month of two reviews every week from ghosts to ghouls to vampires and werewolves. Starting October 5!

Cara Lockwood Interview!

1. What inspired you to write the Bard Academy? And where did you get the idea? My agent suggested that I write a book for young adults, and so I started thinking about what I would've wanted to read when I was younger. When I was in middle school and high school I was what you'd call a "lit nerd" -- someone who gobbled up her English homework assignments and couldn't wait for the next one. I started toying with the idea of bringing fictional characters from the classics to life, and the idea of Bard Academy was born. Even though Bard Academy is a place for wayward teens, it's really my dream school. 2. How did you decide what authors, and which characters from the classic's you would use? Well, I decided that Bard Academy would work best as a kind of Purgatory - where authors and students could learn from one another. Therefore, I went with the idea that the ghosts there would have had to have died with unfinished business on earth - whether that was by suicide or at a young age. I decided on the authors first and then that led naturally to bringing some of their characters to life. 3. What did you do to make the characters your own? Heathcliff (from Wuthering Heights) has always fascinated me as a character. In Emily Bronte's book, he is pretty much a villian who seeks revenge on those who have wronged him. But I always found his character tragic. His revenge, after all, is fueled by heartbreak. It's the loss of his true love Catherine that makes him ruthless. I was really interested in the idea of trying to redeem him. He has a great capacity to love, is fiercely loyal and a great survivor. So in Wuthering High, I gave him the opportunity to make different choices. The result, I think, is that he's a very strong, very compelling romantic hero. 4. How did you create such interesting characters? I take some traits from people I know in real life and weave them into my fictional characters. But I also just imagine people I'd like to know. 5. What is your favorite part about writing this series? I love putting a twist on the classics. I think my favorite part is weaving together characters and scenes from classic books into a modern setting. I have always thought that many classic stories are relevant to our current lives, and Bard Academy allows me a way to demonstrate that. In The Scarlet Letterman, for instance, I had a chance to revisit the idea of morality and the effect of choices we make in our romantic lives. Despite the fact that no one makes you wear a scarlet A for adultery in today's society, we do face judgment. 6. Who is your favorite character in the series? I'd have to say Heathcliff. I have a little crush on him. 7. Which is your favorite book in the series? Probably the first - Wuthering High. Everything is so new to Miranda, and it's the first look at the school. 8. Do you find it hard to try and stay true to the characters from other classic novels? I do. But, the nice thing about putting them in this universe is that they don't have to be exactly true to form. The fictional characters at Bard Academy are freed from the constraints from their original books so they can be different if they choose to be. 9. If you do write another of these, what other characters do you think you will incoporate? I would like to use one of my favorite books from high school, A Tale of Two Cities. Of course, I'd call this one "A Tale of Two Proms." In this book, we might see the return of Catherine (Heathcliff's true love from Wuthering Heights), which would make things interesting for Miranda. What would Heathcliff do if Catherine and Miranda were both in his world at one time? 10. Where do you come up with the parody titles for the novels? I have a fantastically creative friend, Elizabeth Kinsella. Two of the three titles were hers completely: The Scarlet Letterman and Moby Clique. 11. How did you begin as a writer? And how long did it take you to become published? I always knew I wanted to write fiction, but I also knew I had to do something out of college that would pay my rent. So I worked as a newspaper journalist, and then as a marketing writer, while I worked on my first novel. I finished my first novel in about a year and was published three years after that. 12. Out of everything that you've written what is your favorite? Why? I think I would have to say Dixieland Sushi, only because it most closely resembles my childhood growing up half-Japanese in Texas. 13. What is your favorite book and author of all time? Why? Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. It is THE romance, as far as I'm concerned. She invented romantic comedy. 14. What do you enjoy the most about writing? Why? Writing takes me away to another world, much like reading does, except that I get to control what happens. I've just always been fascinated by storytelling, whether that's in books, movies or on television. There's something very compelling about stories. 15. If you weren't a writer what would you be doing? That's a tough question, because I think I would pretty much find a way to write, even if it wasn't fiction. I guess if I absolutely couldn't be a writer in any way, I'd probably do something creative. I love the visual arts, and for a brief time I actually did web graphic design. I might be doing something like that. 16. Finally, any tips for anyone aspiring to be a writer? What's your best tip to being published, as well? If you're an aspiring writer, my best advice is to read every book you can get your hands on. The best way to learn how to write is to read. As far as being published, that's tough because there's no one certain path to getting published. There's also a certain amount of luck involved. I would say as general advice, just be persistent. Don't give up. If you can't sell your first manuscript, get started on your second. I know several published authors who didn't actually catch a break until their third or fourth manuscripts.

Scarlet Letterman (Bard Academy) by Cara Lockwood

After Christmas break, Miranda is back at Bard Academy. And she's not alone, this time she has a new boyfriend! Ryan Kent, and she's got his jacket as well, which seems to be the highlight of the whole semester, at least as everyone else is concerned.

But Miranda still can't stop thinking about Heathcliff and where he really is. If he's not back in the book then where is he? At least, the teachers at Bard are helping her keeping it off her mind especially when most are hostile towards her for knowing the truth about the school.

This novel is as great a page turner as the first one, you won't know that it's over until it already is and will leave you sad, good thing there's another one waiting to let you know how it goes...

Wuthering High by Cara Lockwood

No, not Wuthering Heights! Wuthering HIGH.

Miranda Tate is not a happy teen. She is especially not happy when she is forced to go to Bard Academy. A school that is so horribly depressing it could only have been written. She doesn't have many friends there but she has two good ones. She seems to be the only one suspicious about the weird teachers, one of which leaves wet footprints all over the place, how you literally CANNOT escape, and the boy who thinks he's Heathcliff from Wuthering High, and thinks that she is Catherine!

Then there are the extremely weird dreams that she keeps having about Kate Shaw, a student who went missing in the school fifteen years ago, which had never been heard of before.

This book is completely inventive and will leave you wondering who your teachers really are.

Gossip Girl Week Cancelled

Sorry, but Gossip Girl week has been cancelled because of some computer difficulties we're having. We are still going to have Bring Back Bard Week but we're going to move it up to Monday the 21st. We are going to have an interview with Cara Lockwood so if anyone would have anything they want to know email us or comment here and let us know! Don't forget to add us on Facebook

The Awakening (The Vampire Diaries) by LJane Smith

Yay! We finally made it to the actual Vampire Diaries!

This book definately does not belong in the hands of a kid for many and several reasons:

1. There are a few scary scenes not right for them to read.

2. There are few passionate scenes definately not suitable for kids.

3. No one can truly appreciate this until you are the right age and trust me kids would not be it.

Though the novel has some obvious character flaws, like the fact that Elena's a little self absorbed, the characters have a realness to them that most authors don't seem to be able to

grasp.

The characters have the ability to relate to real people and completely different characters blend together even though in real life that would never happen. It's definately a cliche read but rather surprising twists as to add. It's definately worth the read though!

Black Dawn by LJane Smith

Ljane reverts back to the most common form of vampire and human relationships for this book.

Maggie is 16, spunky and has an iron will. So when she finds out that her brother has mysteriously "dies" she doesn't and won't believe it. So she runs off after his girlfriend to find out what she did to him. Too bad she didn't know his ex was a full blown witch. She gets kidnapped and left as a slave in a magical kingdom of horrifying vampires.

The kingdom ruled by the powerful and special King Delos. While young, that doesn't make him any less evil. He's one of the only people in the world who can stop the apoclaypse but if he strays to the dark side, all is lost. Falling in love with Maggie doesn't change his mind though. He refuses to make the wrong mistake expecially when it could end Maggie. So he'll change her mind, even if it means changing her...

Another wonderful novel that leaves you wanting more until you realize there's nothing left. IF only there was!

Remember, all pictures of books have links to the amazon website. Trust me you don't want to miss these reads.

Huntress by LJane Smith

Finally, a different type of vampire, that hasn't been overdone three hundred times!

Jez always hated humans and all that they stood for. She was the most conceited and animalistic vampire you could ever imagine. Until she finds out what she truly was. A half vampire whose parents were killed because they loved each other. From then on she could no longer live being in that world with other vampires.

She escapes her clan and goes to live with her uncle and aunt as a human. Until she gets caught by her old second in command, Morgead. As much as she hates to admit it, she can't stay away from him, or their feelings for each other. She knows he won't accept her when he finds what she truly is though, but something bigger than them is happening, and there's no way they can stop it.

This book is different than many that I've ever read and it's one of the few that I'm willing to read over and over again.

Soulmates by LJane Smith

While I do love all the books in the series, this is the first one that actually starts to show an actual plot rather than some love triangle or something that includes love.

Hannah has been seeing a psychiatrist, for a very good reason. She's been finding notes telling her she's going to die. In her own handwriting. She sees things that no one else can see, things about the future of the world, and a few from the past.

She sees a dark mysterious stranger in different forms and different times dating back from pre-historic eras. And in each memory she sees, they all end the same way. Her death.

So when this mysterious stranger, who just happens to be more than dead, appears in her life, will she resist temptation and the will to live, or will her love for him win out in the end?

This is the perfect start to the plot of the series, and even though unexpected from LJane, it doesn't make it any less amazing.

The Chosen by LJane Smith

Up until this book, most of Ljane's characters, or at least girl characters, were rather the typical stereotype girls, in books. Then we meet Rashel, someone even Buffy would be jealous of. She's witty, smart, strong and most importantly vengeful. When she was young her brother disappeared, in a very vampiric way, and then minutes later her parents were killed and she was all alone. After that she made a promise to herself to kill any and all vampires until they were all gone.

Then she met Quinn. A human (vermin) hating vampire who won't let a little weak human girl stop him. He obviously didn't know what he was getting in to. After their chance encounter, Rashel let's him go. Her troop not too happy, tells her to get lost.

Quinn can't seem to get her out of his mind, but he refuses to let her get to him. But when their next meeting might leave her incapicated, he might have no choice.

This is one of Ljane's best and trust it's one that vampire lovers and all others won't want to miss.

Hey guys. Sorry that this took so long but I'm currently having computer problems so also the normal star rating for pictures won't be up for the next few ones, but I'll hopefully fix them in by Monday! Thanks for still reading!

Late Updates

Sorry about the late updates but I got a cold this weekend so I couldn't update, it should all be up to date by tommorow! Again, sorry, if you're bored start leaving some comments. P.S. if Bring Back Bard Week, Cara Lockwood has agreed to do an interview so if there's anything you want to ask her let me know. You can email me at smarticals@aim.com.

Daughters of Darkness (Night World) by LJane Smith

"After all, we are soulmates," Ash said. "I can't be completely stupid or I'd be completely wrong for you." - Daughters of Darkness, LJane Smith

The first, Night World novel while amazing lacked one thing that this novel does not, amazing female characters! This novel has the couple you hate to love. Ash, the annoying, cocky, and conceited vampire who hates humans and Mary-Lynette, the perfect Mary-Sue character even with the name.

Mary-Lynette, hates that she feels connected to him as soon as she lays her eyes on him, he's annoying, and conceited and really not as bright as she could imagine (little does she know). She can see the evil that looms inside him but just can't seem to stay away from him.

And neither can Ash, but after a while he doesn't even try. He wants her and he knows it, but someone, rather smelly, is standing in his way. He won't hesitate to protect her though, but will it be enough?

Ash's cousin's (three beautiful witches) brought him to her but he's not the only one with a problem. They're trying to escape from the Night World and they're restrictions and to their Aunt Opa, but when she appears disappears, or dead, Mary-Lynette comes snopping and could just get them all, in trouble...

Ljane, always seems to surprise me with her amazing creativity and ability to make each story unique in its own.

Ljane never seems to surprise us, with her wonderfully creative stories, and my hope is that she won't stop.

Hey guys, thanks for continuing to come back, I just made a Facebook for this site, so become my fan! http://www.facebook.com/BooksMeetBlogs

Gossip Girl Week!

Starting Monday, September 14th will be Gossip Girl week until the September 21st.

It comes in just in time for the season premiere of Gossip Girl on the CW!

Here's the Scheduele:

• September 14: Gossip Girl
• September 15: You Know You Love Me, and All I Want Is Everything
• September 16: Because I'm Worth It and I Like It Like That
• September 17: You're The One That I Want and Nobody Does It Better
• September 18: Nothing Can Keep Us Together and Only In Your Dreams
• September 19: Would I Lie to You?
• September 20: Don't Forget About Me
• September 21: It Had To Be You- Prequel

Don't forget to come back tommorow for the rest of the L Jane Smith Week until the 10th and to come back for Gossip Girl Week! Please click on some adds will your here to help me out!

Secret Vampire (Night World) by L Jane Smith

Today's the first day of LJ Smith Week!!! Hope you enjoy! Leave comments and please click on some ads if you have the time. :)

"It was the first day of summer vacation that Poppy found out she was going to die."

What do you think when you hear of Vampires? (If you think Sparkles just leave right now.) Well, what about lamia? I didn't think so. A breed of Vampires that are born that way. (A lot like in Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side, except a lot of the color effects, like sunlight weakens, fangs, and they even have special powers.)

James is one of them. His life is pretty normal compared to most Vampires, he goes to school, dates and hangs with his best friend Poppy. That is until he finds out that she has Pancreatic Cancer, one of the most painful cancers known to man. He researches it (tearfully) and decides then that he refuses to let her die, mostly because of the obvious, he's in love with her.

So, he decides he's going to turn her into a Vampire, even if they'll kill him for it. THEY being the Night World, the secret world of Vampires, Werewolves, Witches and Shapeshifters. The Number One Rule, Humans are not allowed to know. Number Two (at least for Vampires) Humans cannot be changed into Vampires.

But, when The Night World is the least of their problems, James has to find a way to get Poppy back before The Night World catches up with her.

This is one of those books that I could not put down for two hours straight! It's a must read!

Remember, there's always a link to the amazon page for the book when you click on the picture! Don't hesitate!

September Calender

Here's the calender for September:

• Thursday, September 3rd until Thursday, September the 10th is L Jane Smith Week in honor of the series premiere of the Vampire Diaries on the CW
• Monday, September 14th until Monday, September 21st is Gossip Girl Week in honor of the season premiere of Gossip Girl.
• Wednesday, September 23rd until Sunday, September 27th is Bring Back Bard Week, a week devoted to continuing the Bard Academy Series by Cara Lockwood.

More information on these events as they draw closer.

L Jane Smith Week!

Annoucement!!!

There will be a new review everyday, starting on September 3rd until Septmber 10th. Most of the books will be from her Night Series since it involves Vampires, and the review of the first book of the Vampire Diaries series will be debuted the night before the pilot episode and the second the night of, since they are both printed togther now.

Here's the schduele:

• Thursday, September 3: Night World-Secret Vampire
• Friday, Septemeber 4: Night World-Daughter's of Darkness
• Saturday, September 5: Night World-The Chosen
• Sunday, September 6: Night World-Soulmate
• Monday, September 7: Night World-Huntress
• Tuesday, September 8: Night World-Black Dawn
• Wednesday September 9: The Vampire Diaries-The Awakening
• Thursday September 10: The Vampire Diaries-The Struggle

Stardust by Neil Gailman

"A philosopher once asked, "Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at them because we are human?" Pointless, really... ”Do the stars gaze back?" Now that's a question." - Ian McKellen, Stardust Movie, 2007

To be honest, I was excited to read this because this is a tie for my favorite movie with The Princess Bride. And I was extremely disappointed.

The premise was exactly the same as the movie but there were a few key differences. Firstly, the characters first name is not Tristan but Tristran. His father is not a single father, but rather got married a few months before Tristran was born.

Before I go off into the bad points let me tell you a few reasons why I like it:

• The story was extremely unique and wonderful, interesting plot lines.
• Very understandable (especially since based in Victorian times) but still was true to the language.
• While multiple deaths, the dead Princes still come back from the after life to watch, showing that death might not be an ending but could be a beginning.

Now, the reasons why I was disappointed:

• The novel was quite dark while some tend to thrive on it, it only seemed to bring it down.
• Quite violent for a child/teen's novel.
• The explanations of things were jumbled and a little confusing (not even as confusing as Jurassic Park, which was written by a doctor).
• The ending isn't ended well.
• Instead of Tristran falling for Yvaine, it seems more like he went to her because he had no other choice because the girl who was orignally in love with got pregnant by some other guy.

There are many, many, many things that have to wrong before I can hate something, or even become disappointed by it but this novel seemed to manage it. Why is it that most books that seem to win so many awards and become movies and make authors popular don't seem to be that good at all?

I myself can not answer that but my recommandation, don't bother reading it and stick with the movie, while a little lengthy it will be a better use of two and a half hours than a week of getting through this novel.

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

"There was a faint smell, too. A pungent odor that I'd never smelled before. Well, I'd smelled it faintly before, but now... now it was so strong. And getting stronger. I opened my eyes and forced myself to watch again. That aroma--it wasn't like I was sensing it with my nose. I felt it, somewhere deep in the pit of my stomach, or in the farthest reaches of the primitive part of the brain that we'd talked about in biology class. The part that controlled sex and aggression and...pleasure?"

-Jessica (Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey)

I'll be the first to admit that I wasn't really paying attention when I bought this book. It was on one of those Amazon things were they recommand the books that you should buy because of other books that you've read. I also really didn't look at the discription until I got it (I waited anxiously by the way!) and as soon as I did read it I assumed it would be some type of a Twilight knock off of someone who was trying to gain a fast rise to fame.

Boy was I wrong. As soon as I read the plot I knew it was something different that I was pretty sure I would enjoy. Besides the obvious plot that Jessica's guy, Lucius, is a vampire it turns out that he's not the only one.

(This book redefines the defintion of vampires as someone who was born undead instead of just turned that way. For men, the transformation from a child to a full vampire is simple, it happens when they reach the age of puberty but for girls it's a little more difficult. They're born that way but they still have to be bitten by a vampire in order to get your fangs.)

If finding out that she was a vampire wasn't bad enough, Jessica also learns that she is the descendant of one of the most powerful vampire families (Dragomir) and her decessed parents signed her up to be married to Lucius once she turned eighteen to end a feud between their two families.

Jessica doesn't want any of that. All she wanted was to spend her senior year gaining a social life, and getting together with Jake Zinn. Why should she have to change her whole life for people she doesn't even know and are crazy enough to think they're vampires?!

This book is fun and creative and I couldn't put it down for days. It's a wonderful first book for Beth Fantaskey and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance - Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem! by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains."

It's so hard to tell whether I want to be disgusted or so impressed with this book. It took the orignal classic Pride and Prejudice and then just threw in a batch of zombies to make everything worse and harder.

Throwout the whole novel pretty much around 85% of the text is the same as is the original but I would have to say with more butt-kicking.

In the novel, we find that most of Europe has been over run with zombies for over fifty years and that prompts Mr. Bennet to send all his girls to China to train them to learn the deadly arts.

Also Grahame-Smith is not one to shudder some of his entries to the classic include the scene were Elizabeth brutally kills about 5 ninjas and then continues on to take into the last one's beating heart. This story is not for the light-hearted. I even found myself a bit nauseous at that point.

But besides the nauseating moments it is a generally good read that does create a good love story dynamic even if most of the time you can't tell.

In the end I suggest reading this book if you have nothing else in your reading pile.

Privilege by Kate Brian

MOST GIRLS WOULD DIE FOR A LIFE OF PRIVILEGE.... SOME WOULD EVEN KILL FOR IT. Ariana Osgood ruled exclusive Easton Academy -- until she was arrested for murdering Thomas Pearson. She's spent the past two years at the Brenda T. Trumbull Correctional Facility for Women plotting her escape and is determined to get a second chance at the glamorous life she left behind. And Ariana will do anything to get her way.... From the author of the bestselling Private novels comes a new series about the dark world of wealth, secrets, and Privilege.

So before reading this I thought that this book was going to be all about how Ariana would escape and then she would be redeemed or something like that. Boy was I wrong. Turns out that Ariana hasn't changed much since she was in Billings. She still wants the same things, hated the same people and is practically insane.

But things are in such different terms you find yourself routing for her instead of against her. You get a good mindset into a murder who not only thinks that she is in the right but also regrets and feels guilt for the things she did.

In the beginning, Ariana is in the "crazy house" with her only friend Kaitlyn, who was framed for her best friend's father's murder. Before the story starts she has already composed a plan to not only get out but to get some money.

She gets out and then meets Briana Leigh, she's supposedly richer than God. And also killed her father for her inheritance. Ariana gets into the house and while there falls in love with Hunter but as Emma Walsh.

Then Briana Leigh and her devise a plan to get Ariana into the school of her dream and Briana Leigh with the man of her dreams. That is until Briana Leigh says the wrong thing and sets Ariana off. (Sorry you'll have to read to find out exactly what happens)

Then Ariana devises another plan to break Kaitlyn out of the "crazy house" until she sets Kaitlyn off and finds out that Kaitlyn is not as innocent as she originally thought.

But lucky for Ariana not only is she still able to go on with her original plans she is also able to get people to stop searching for her.

I honestly loved this book. What did you think?

To buy the book you can click on the picture.

Book Meets Blog

"I cannot live without books." Thomas Jefferson

So today when I was writing my blog, and my BFF was on her way to the library she asked me what books to get. And I realized that I do what to be a writer, so that reviewing books would help. So I figured I should start reviewing the books I'm reading and then posting them somewhere so I don't actually have to tell people :), all I have to say is hey! go here! and give them the blog. So here it is more.

Plus it'll give me a chance to actually read more lately.

So follow if you want to read!

P.S. This is going to be for Teens so if you want to read adult books I suggest you look somewhere else.

If there's anything you want me to review, post a comment here. maybe I've already read it or maybe I will :)