Summary: It started when she was served a soft drink laced with LSD in a dangerous party game. Within months, she was hooked, trapped, in a downward spiral that took her from her comfortable home and loving family to the mean streets of an unforgiving city. It was a journey that would rob her of her innocence, her youth--and ultimately her life.

Go Ask Alice is based on the actual diary of a fifteen-year-old drug user. Names, dates, and places have been changed in accordance with the wishes of those concerned.

This book is about a girl named Alice (she never says her name so this is only an educated guess based on the title). She accidentally takes LSD at a party and is immediately hooked. She tries to quit, but it seems as though the universe won't let her. I won't spoil it for those who intend on reading this book. If you do, I don't think you will be disappointed. One thing that shocks me is that it’s an actual diary of a 15-year old drug user… I find it crazy that the things she wrote in here really happened. If you decide to read this book, be sure to read the epilogue at the end, or everything near the end would seem far too peachy keen. Writing wise, I was happily surprised. I picked out this book from curiosity and wonder, and the writing is actually not half bad. Hopefully you decide to read it, and it leaves a mark on you as it has done with me and many others.

-Janet.

Discussion: Swag

swag (n): plunder; booty.

or

swag (n): Promotional items, especially when given for free, considered as a group.






So, what does that mean to us in the book world?

I did the best I could to provide examples in the pictures, but to make it simple: bookmarks, t-shirts, jewelry, stickers, pins, posters, and bookplates are swag. Sometimes you have special things, like nail polish for The Dark Divine. ANYTHING can be swag, in theory.





















Swag is basically promotion for the books. Often times, it's extremely pretty. Except for the Twilight bookmarks. But that's mostly the fault of the people doing make up.

The basic thing is bookmarks. Other things like posters and pins and shirts come after that. Then if you're getting a package from the author or a friend or a contest, you could get anything relating to the book, like hair extensions, candies, and notebooks.

Now that I've caught up anyone not sure what swag is, the discussion.

I'm wondering what you all think of swag? Do you see it as just a way of promotion? Do you have any swag/would you want any? Is swag a good idea, but not your thing? Or are you swag-obsessed? Tell me anything and everything you can about swag and you.

My personal story/opinions:

I've always been kind of iffy about swag. I don't use bookmarks too often and I have three that work when needed, I'd have no where to put pins or posters, and I'm not sure I'd wear a t-shirt.

Then I began falling in love with book ideas more and more. I wanted ANYTHING that had to do with the book. Then Heidi Kling put out an alert last week that she was still up for sending out some more bookmarks and we had ten minutes to contact her. Since Sea is one of those books I'm desperate for, I took the plunge and asked.

Today an orange envelope with my name and a Popsicle sticker on the back arrived. My bookmarks were here.

With 5 in total, one of them being signed, I already have plans for three of them. And I'm kind of in love. The signed bookmark has been by my side for the past three hours...for no real reason. I'm tempted to put in next to the Guys and Dolls program that Lauren Graham signed last May.

Then I remembered in another author's news letter, she said if you wanted bookmarks for her new release, all you had to do was email and I got all excited again and emailed her.

So, how about you guys? Swag yay/nay, etc?

--Julie

My Love Lies Bleeding by Alyxandra Harvey

My Love Lie Bleeding by Alyxandra Harvey

Summary: The Blakes are rather different to your usual neighbours. They are vampires and some of the members of the family date back to the twelfth century. One of the children, Solange, is the only born female vampire known and, as such, she poses a direct threat to the vampire queen.

Her best friend Lucy is human, and when Solange is kidnapped Lucy and Solange's brother, Nicholas, set out to save her. Lucy soon discovers that she would like to be more than just friends with Nicholas. But how does one go about dating a vampire? Meanwhile, Solange finds an unlikely ally in Kieran, a vampire slayer on the hunt for his father's killer.

I am shocked by how much I loved this book - there has kind of been a flux of vampire fiction flooding the YA market since the whole Twilight thing so I wasn't expecting to like this one as much as I did but I really loved it, it was really different from all the other books from the vampire genre I've read.

I really liked the plot, some of the background info on the Drake family and the vampire history was a little hard to keep up with in the beginning but beyond that it was really good and one of my favourite things about it was that, unlike most books, there didn't seem to be any filler chapters - all of it was interesting, it's not a very long book but I'd rather have a book this length where it never bores me than have a really long book that is mostly filler stuff and very little actual plot.

The characters were awesome, my favourites were Nick and Lucy - those two were just the height of adorable and their little moments had me smiling or laughing or aww-ing out loud throughout the whole book but even the minor characters were great, I loved Solange's family, the over protectiveness of her brothers was cute.

The book is told in alternating POV's, half of the story is Lucy's and half is Solange's and it was almost like reading two entirely seperate stories set in the same world - there were times where their stories would be more intertwined but not always, there were two entirely seperate love stories going on and they were both really unique and felt really different from each other while reading and somehow that made it seem more real.

The main characters were really strong, it's nice to read about strong female characters - that was one of my favourite things about Lucy, despite the fact she was just a human surrounded by all these vampires, she totally held her own and wasn't afraid to stand up for herself.

I really recommend the book and if you're like me, a little reluctant to read more vampire YA fiction because there's just been so much of it recently, I still think you should give it a chance. I can't wait for the sequel so I can get another fix of Drake family awesomeness.

Later.

Note: I think the book is published under the title Hearts At Stake in the US, with a different cover too.

In My Mailbox (7)

In My Mailbox is a meme started by The Story Siren and inspired by Alea at Pop Culture Junkie.

I was going to add this onto the end of Julie's post, but whatever... I just got one book:

Skins: The Novel by Ali Cronin

Summary: Effy has fled to Italy with her mum, where she tries to put her feelings for Freddie, and the guilt she feels for stealing him from Katie out of her mind. The perfect distraction come in the form of sophisticated older man, Aldo...

Naomi and Emily are struggling with spending time apart when Em goes to France with her parents and battles with her stubborn twin sister, Katie. Back in Bristol, Naomi pines for Emily while wondering about her future education.

Thomas and Pandora are sweetly in love, and finding it difficult to consummate their feelings for each other.

Freddy and Cook are engaged in a vigorous game of sexual one-upmanship with a frustrated JJ as referee...

By the end of the summer, the gang will have resolved some issues and brought up some more, but always in the raw, uncompromising, contradictory and authentic narrative style that makes the series so popular and compelling. Language and sexual references are graphic.

Skins is a UK TV show, I think it's airing in America now too - anyway, I really like the show and the book is what happens over the summer between series 3 and 4. I don't know if it's one of those books that you have to have seen the TV show to actually understand it or if it works as just a novel on it's own, when I read and review it I'll let you know.

I recommend the show too, it won't be everyones style but some might like it. There was a cast change between seasons 2 and 3, so you could just watch season 3 to understand the book a bit better.

Later.

Historic Saturday (5)

Someday this meme will become more regular. But when it takes me a while to read a book, everything gets thrown off. =/

To Catch a Pirate
Jade Parker

Once caught, it’s harder still to let a pirate go.

When Annalisa Townsend’s ship is set upon by pirates in search of her father’s treasure, one of the crew, James Sterling, discovers her in the hold. When he moves to take her necklace, she begs him not to, as it is all she has left of her mother. He accepts a kiss in exchange for the necklace. “A fair trade, m’lady,” he tells her afterward, before disappearing.

A year later, with a forged letter of marque, Annalisa is intent on hunting down the wretched James Sterling and reclaiming her father’s treasure from him. But now she’s in danger of him stealing something far more vulnerable this time: her heart.


There's really not much to say here. To Catch a Pirate is a quick read, probably better for a summer day on the beach than a sick day in February. It's very cute, though predictable, and the characters are all very much human. The plots been done before in different time periods with different levels of bad boys and good girls, but if you need some fluff, this is the right book.

--Julie

Viola in Reel life by Adriana Trigiani

Title: Viola in Reel Life
Author: Adriana Trigiani
Summary:  Viola's parents dumped her in the middle of nowhere. Well maybe "nowhere" isn't exactly true and perhaps "dumped" is too strong a word. As documentary filmmakers, her parents follow their stories. While they are filming in Afghanistan, they send their daughter to Prefect Academy for Young Women in South Bend, IN. Away from her home and friends in Brooklyn, Viola has resolved to be miserable. Her only comfort is in her daily IM conversations with her BFF, Andrew, and her personal video diary, "The Viola Reels." Then she meets her roommates, who are too great to be indifferent toward. Her constant video-camera-toting lands her on committees for school functions. To top it all off she meets a boy who shares her interest at a school dance. Suddenly, the ninth grader is happy, busy, and feeling at home. She even enters a film competition. Through the help and support of her friends and family, it could just be the short film of her dreams, maybe even good enough to win the competition.

*~*

I saw this book in my school library and thought it sounded good so I decided to read it. It actually was a good story to read. It's in the point of view of Viola and she thinks that her parents abandoned her so they could go film their video. She really wanted a one bedroom room but instead got stuck with 3 peppy roommates: Romy, Suzanne, and Marisol. They try to bring Viola out of her shell, but at first she doesn't really want to. The roommates were really good; not clingy or overly peppy... just normal teenage girls and I liked that.

She misses her best friend Andrew and she sticks to her videos and her camera instead of trying to be friends with these girls. Soon she starts opening up bit by bit and tries giving these girls a chance.

When she films the Academy's fields, she sees a mysterious woman in red on the film... when she was alone in that field. She's extremely puzzled by it and her roommates think it's some sort of spirit. 

She opens up more at the dance with the Academy's brother school and meets a guy named Jared. She and him share interest in making and watching movies and when they kiss they share a real connection. Jared is one of those guys who's real shy but can also be charming and sweet. I liked him pretty well.

All is dandy and fine but then Viola enters a film-making competition and so does Jared. Soon she and Jared's connection starts to falter a bit, as does her connection with Andrew... but Viola still has her roommates who swear that everything with her and Jared's just fine, that he's just preoccupied with his film.

Viola didn't annoy me as much as I thought she would. I mean, a teenager left in a boarding school while her parents are halfway around the world... I expected some complaining. She did kind of complain; she didn't think it was fair, she felt unloved, etc... but she kind of had a reason to.

Overall the book was really good. It was a book that wasn't filled with drama, but more of a girl just trying to fit in and make her dreams come true. (/end cheesy lines.) I'd recommend it fo sho!

...no. xD

Rating: 4/5 Stars

-Deanna xx

Sovay by Celia Rees

This review WILL contain some plot spoilers. I'll pretty much be rewriting the plot so it's more accurate. Not interested, don't read it!

Sovay

Celia Rees

England, 1783. When the rich and beautiful Sovay isn't sitting for portraits, she's donning a man's cloak and robbing travelers in broad daylight. But in a time when political allegiances between France and England are strained, a rogue bandit is not the only thing travelers fear. Spies abound, and rumors of sedition can quickly lead to disappearances. So when Sovay lifts the wallet of one of England's most powerful and dangerous men, it's not just her own identity she must hide, but that of her father. A dazzling historical saga in which the roles of thieves and gentry, good and bad, and men and women are interchanged to riveting effect.

Here's what REALLY goes on:

Sovay is about a girl named Sovay getting revenge on her fiance and then turns into a story about the French Revolution and it's effect on England. And the 4 or so possible love interests for Sovay.

Now, let's rewind. As a book about the French Revolution and it's effect on England, an awesome book. As a suspenseful book looking at some possible revolutions in England that may or may not be true (when I study the French Revolution, I'm looking at France, not other countries. So, I don't know much here), it's an awesome book. As a romance of a 17-year-old girl in 1794 (when the book actually takes place. Way to fail goodreads) who's wronged by her love and then has to to find new love? Utter failure.

The book had so many potential love interests and Sovay seems interested in so many of them, my brain could not keep it all straight. And then the true love interest doesn't come in until the very end! And the ending was so fast paced, that the epilogue summed up everything that happened years later in a page. I kinda went "Erm...wha?"

Truly, this was a good book. I can't lie there. But this book took me a week to read because it wasn't what I was looking for. I was looking for a romance and I got a book about politics and highwaymen. Really, I love the French Revolution and probably would've loved this book had I read it and been expecting what really goes on in this book and been in the mood to read a book like it. But I was looking for a romance when I picked this up off my pile and was very disappointed.

I do have to end this by saying that if you do like historical fiction and like the French Revolution and everything about it, go buy this book. By all means, it IS a well done story. Just, don't read it for the romance.

Now, I'm not going to do this every time, but since this wasn't a glowing review like I usually do, I'm just gonna link you guys to a couple of positive reviews as well. They're kind of spoiler-y too though.

http://keris.typepad.com/chicklet/2009/08/review-sovay-by-celia-rees.html
http://www.curledupkids.com/sovay.html
http://www.teenreads.com/reviews/9781599902036.asp

--Julie