Posts By: Giselle

Tuesday, November 01, 2011

Review: Frostbite by Richelle Mead

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Frostbite (Vampire Academy, #2)
Richelle Mead
Released April 10th, 2008
by Razorbill

Goodreads / Purchase

Rose loves Dimitri, Dimitri might love Tasha, and Mason would die to be with Rose…

It’s winter break at St. Vladimir’s, but Rose is feeling anything but festive. A massive Strigoi attack has put the school on high alert, and now the Academy’s crawling with Guardians—including Rose’s hard-hitting mother, Janine Hathaway. And if hand-to-hand combat with her mom wasn’t bad enough, Rose’s tutor Dimitri has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason’s got a huge crush on her, and Rose keeps getting stuck in Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian! The Strigoi are closing in, and the Academy’s not taking any risks… This year, St. Vlad’s annual holiday ski trip is mandatory.

But the glittering winter landscape and the posh Idaho resort only create the illusion of safety. When three friends run away in an offensive move against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. But heroism rarely comes without a price…

I liked this second installment of the Vampire Academy series much better than the first. The story is already established, you know who’s who, you know the lore, so none of that introduction gets in the way. The action starts right away and you get to jump right in.

The character development is great, I found Rose grows up a lot in this book, but who wouldn’t with what she went through. The chemistry between her and Dimitri is fantastic – very sexy and often frustrating. And some of the other characters are a great addition to the story, especially Adrian who is introduced in this book. Christian, whom I didn’t like in Vampire Academy, has started to grow on me in Frostbite. However, Lissa is still a bit dull. I don’t know exactly why. I’m just glad she’s not the narrator.

The ending is a bit harsh. It’s sad; gloomy, but I think necessary. It can’t all be happily-ever- afters, right? I don’t like to put spoilers in my reviews so that’s all I will say about it. The only complaint I have are the recaps included in the book to remind us of what happened before. They’re a bit drawn out and boring for those of us who have read Vampire Academy not too long ago.

Frostbite continues the wonderfully real and creative world Richelle Mead has built, with genuine characters, well written storylines and realistic scenarios.

4 Hot Espressos

Previously reviewed in the series:
1. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Dusty Reads (6)

Posted by on 11/01/2011 • 11 Comments

Dusty Reads is a weekly meme, hosted here, featuring a book that has been sitting unread on our home shelf for some time. To participate, add your link at the bottom.  If you wish, you can grab the button and find more information here. My pick this week:  Poison Study Maria V. Snyder Goodreads / Purchase

Choose: A quick death… Or slow poison…

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…

Review: Bad Girls Don’t Die by Katie Alender

Posted by on 10/31/2011 • 26 Comments

Bad Girls Don’t DieKatie AlenderPublished April 21st, 2009by Hyperion

When Alexis’s little sister Kasey becomes obsessed with an antique doll, Alexis thinks nothing of it. Kasey is a weird kid. Period. Alexis is considered weird, too, by the kids in her high school, by her parents, even by her own Goth friends. Things get weirder, though, when the old house they live in starts changing. Doors open and close by themselves; water boils on the unlit stove; and an unplugged air conditioner turns the house cold enough to see their breath in. Kasey is changing, too. Her blue eyes go green and she speaks in old-fashioned language, then forgets chunks of time.

Most disturbing of all is the dangerous new chip on Kasey’s shoulder. The formerly gentle, doll-loving child…

In My Mailbox (7)

Posted by on 10/30/2011 • 115 Comments

“In My Mailbox” is a meme, created by Kristi at The Story Siren, that features books I’ve  received/ purchased/ borrowed during the current week. 

Happy Halloween my lovely readers! Sadly, I don’t have a costume this year. But my 16 month old’s is a dragon! And when we ask him what a dragon does, he goes “raaawwrrr”. How could I beat that?  So yeah… books… =) Here’s what I got this week. (Click on cover for Goodreads synopsis.) For review:               I want to thank Random House, Delacorte Press, Entangled Publishing, Jessie Harrell and Elisa Ludwig for the review copies.

I won:

                                                          Click here for my review

As you can see I have already read and reviewed Smoke and Bone and it was…

Review: Dark Eden by Partick Carman

Posted by on 10/29/2011 • 12 Comments

Dark EdenPatrick CarmanRelease date: November 1st, 2011by HarperCollins Publishers

Fifteen-year-old Will Besting is sent by his doctor to Fort Eden, an institution meant to help patients suffering from crippling phobias. Once there, Will and six other teenagers take turns in mysterious fear chambers and confront their worst nightmares—with the help of the group facilitator, Rainsford, an enigmatic guide. When the patients emerge from the chamber, they feel emboldened by the previous night’s experiences. But each person soon discovers strange, unexplained aches and pains. . . . What is really happening to the seven teens trapped in this dark Eden?

*A copy was provided by HarperCollins Publishers for review purposes*

Holy freaking cow! Now this is a thriller! I often go into books believing them to be thrillers, when they…

Fresh Batch (Oct 30th-Nov 5th)

Posted by on 10/29/2011 • 9 Comments

This week’s hot releases

Fresh Batch features some of the hottest releases this upcoming week. The books to feature are exclusively chosen by Giselle.

Flavour of the week: Touch Jus Accardo

When a strange boy tumbles down a river embankment and lands at her feet, seventeen-year-old adrenaline junkie Deznee Cross snatches the opportunity to piss off her father by bringing the mysterious hottie with ice blue eyes home.

Except there’s something off with Kale. He wears her shoes in the shower, is overly fascinated with things like DVDs and vases, and acts like she’ll turn to dust if he touches her. It’s not until Dez’s father shows up, wielding a gun and knowing more about Kale than he should, that Dez realizes there’s more to this boy—and her…

Review: Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Posted by on 10/28/2011 • 31 Comments

ObsidianJennifer L. ArmentroutRelease date: December 6th, 2011by Entangled Publishing

Starting over sucks. When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I’d pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring…. until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something…unexpected happens.

The hot alien living next door marks me.You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon’s touch has me lit…

Review: Suspense by Jason Letts

Posted by on 10/27/2011 • 10 Comments

SuspenseJason LettsReleased September 3rd, 2011Format: Ebook

Spencer Nye can’t control the rage bubbling under her skin over the world around her. The trouble is, by the year 2102, the world has solved most of its great problems. Without hunger, war, greed, or even money, people obsess over the glamour of the Culture Industry and its mega-celebrity Idols, who vie for followers over the social networks of Connect.

But Spencer discovers there is plenty to fix within the Idols’ competition for more popularity. She becomes a diehard and promises to do anything to help her Idol, a dreamy movie star named Cleary Mintz, bring his vision of hope and purpose to the world. When she stumbles onto a threat against his life, she’ll have to fight harder than she ever thought…