Review: Ink Exchange

by Melissa Marr
publisher: HarperTeen
date published: May 1, 2008
format: hardcover
pages: 325
source: library
Amazon / Goodreads
challenges: Goodreads 2011 Reading Challenge; 2011 YA Reading Challenge

From Goodreads:

"To 17-year-old Leslie, the tattoo is a thing of indescribable beauty, a captivating mark that she must make her own. But this subtle web of eyes and wings brings with it a transformation that no sweet young girl would ever imagine or welcome. Like its predecessor, this stand-alone sequel to Wicked Lovely plunges its youthful heroine into a faery world of almost constant peril. A tantalizing urban fantasy that won't let go."

What I Thought

Ink Exchange started off much better than Wicked Lovely. Where I had problems getting into the plot of the latter, Ink Exchange drew me in almost immediately. This story featured Leslie, a schoolmate and friend of Aislinn, who we find out is hiding a dark secret that we would not have guessed in Wicked Lovely. Another faerie monarch is also introduced. Irial is the king of the Dark Court and is struggling to prevent the starvation of his people. If you were paying attention during Wicked Lovely, you will recall a brief cameo he made early on.

As Leslie tries to escape the pain and fear she hides within herself, she sets out to get a tattoo that will change her entire world. What results is a much darker, intense plot than occurred in Wicked Lovely. Several weighty issues are portrayed and explored, all of which make for a richer, more in-depth plot. The characters are richly portrayed due to the prominence of emotions in this book and the price of trying to escape fear and pain is detailed.

I found Leslie to be a much more involving character than Aislinn. Her problems will make you feel for her and wish that help will be provided for her. Irial is a much different "villain" (I'm not sure whether he is a full-fledged villain or not) than Beira was, as well. Nothing is black-and-white with him. Instead, Irial is made up of many shades of gray, which is very fitting considering his relationship with darkness and shadows. I spent much of the book waffling between hating him and feeling sorry for him, which was very surprising. Niall was also introduced in more depth in this book and I feel he is a better character for it.

Overall, I found this book to be very involving. I started it late last night and finished it within 24 hours. I did not want to put it down. I felt more invested with these main characters, and for that reason, I gave Ink Exchange 5 hoots.

Book Blogger Hop: April 1 - April 4

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly event hosted by Crazy-For-Books. It is a way for book bloggers to connect and discover new blogs they might enjoy.

Every week there is a new question. This week, the question is:

"Since today is April Fool's Day in the USA, what is the best prank you have ever played on someone OR that someone has played on you?"

Honestly, I don't recall ever pulling any spectacular pranks. I've been pranked in my time, but I don't remember what exactly was done, so I don't suppose they were very spectacular, either. I'm fully expecting a prank from my French professor tomorrow. I wonder if I'll fall for it.

Follow Friday: April 1, 2011

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee and is a way for book bloggers to get to know each other better. To join in and make some friends, simply follow these directions as stated by Parajunkee:

1. (Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Host { Parajunkee.com } and any one else you want to follow on the list
2. (Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - http://books-ahoy.blogspot.com/
3. Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
4. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
5. Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"
6. If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
7. If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

Here is this week's question:

WHAT IS THE BOOK THAT YOU REALLY DON'T WANT TO ADMIT TO LOVING?

This is a tough one for me to answer, as I usually am not ashamed to admit what I read. However, the closest I can come to an answer for this question is a book that is completely different than what I usually read. That book is Rapture's Revenge by Lauren Wilde. It had been in my mother's romance novel collection and I remember hiding it in my room in high school because I was too embarrassed to be caught reading it. I actually bought a copy of my own in January. ::blushes::

March Wrap-Up

It's the last day of March, which concludes my first full month of book blogging. This past month has been a lot of fun for me and I've been introduced to many new (to me) blogs and bloggers. This month, I read nine books and reviewed seven. I also changed my blog's layout, established a Facebook page for it, started a Twitter account, and joined Networked Blogs. I received my first ARC from Goodreads First Reads and my first two review requests, one of which I accepted. Lastly, I participated in a lot of memes and started going to the local library again.

Academically, I have had some great news. I found out yesterday that I may be able to graduate in December. I had an appointment with my advisor at which we combed through my transfer transcripts and learned that I am very near the finish line. If I can find a way of completing my remaining two required French classes this summer, then I will be able to take the last of the courses I will need for my major this fall. Such news also means we will not have to move in August! This was a great source of relief for me, as I was worried about coming up with the deposit for a new apartment and the rental fee for a van. I still have to worry about taking the GRE or MAT this summer, picking graduate schools to apply to, and (possibly) taking the CLEP for French, but I'll take it!

Thank you to all of my visitors and followers. You all have made this first full month great for me. I'm really enjoying my blog, as well as reading all of yours. I'm looking forward to seeing what April will bring.

(Edited to add the book I finished and reviewed today.)

Enquiring Minds: March 31, 2011

Enquiring Minds Want to Know is a weekly meme from Dollycas's Thoughts. The object of the meme is to answer the three questions posted each week and then link back to your post on the official Enquiring Minds post linked above from the graphic. Doing so allows bloggers to get to know each other.

This week's questions are:

1. Are you a bath or shower person? I usually take a shower, but every once in a while I like to take a warm bath with a good book and a tasty drink.

2. Do you bath/shower in the morning or at night? I usually take my baths and showers at night due to my love for sleeping as much as possible before I have to get up and go to class.

3. Do you have a hot tub or swimming pool? We live in family housing on campus, so we have neither. The closest we can get is the pool in the fitness center, which our daughter is too young to visit.

Theme Thursday: March 31, 2011

Theme Thursday comes to us from Kavyen at Reading Between Pages. The name of the game is to select a snippet from whatever book you are reading that corresponds with the week's theme. Be sure to name the author and title of your book. Then, leave a link to your post at the official Theme Thursday post. Easy peasy.

This week's theme is: ANIMALS

"Images cluttered the page--intricate Celtic patterns, eyes peering from behind thorny vines, grotesque bodies with wicked smiles, animals too unreal to look at for long, symbols her eyes darted away from as soon as she glanced at them." ~ from Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr (p. 22)

Review: Wicked Lovely

by Melissa Marr
publisher: HarperCollins
date published: April 6, 2010
format: NOOK ebook, with bonus materials
pages: 286
source: purchased
Amazon / Goodreads
challenges: Goodreads 2011 Reading Challenge; 2011 YA Reading Challenge; 2011 E-Book Reading Challenge

From Goodreads:

"All teenagers have problems, but few of them can match those of Aislinn, who has the power to see faeries. Quite understandably, she wishes that she could share her friends' obliviousness and tries hard to avoid these invisible intruders. But one faery in particular refuses to leave her alone. Keenan the Summer King is convinced beyond all reasoning that Aislinn is the queen he has been seeking for nine centuries. What's a 21st-century girl to do when she's stalked by a suitor nobody else can see? A debut fantasy romance for the ages; superlative summer read."

What I Thought

At first, I wasn't too sure about this book. There were several points of interest that caught my attention, but I found that the action at the very beginning was almost non-existent. Aislinn spends the first quarter of the book trying not to let the faeries know that she can see them and being followed by Keenan and Donia. I kept waiting and waiting for something else to happen. I wasn't disappointed. Once the sequence of events began to fall into place, the plot ramped up the action and the love story fully came into play. I knew I was drawn in when I was mentally berating Aislinn for drinking the faerie wine (if you read enough faerie lore, you know to never, under any circumstances, drink or eat what a faerie gives you).

I really enjoyed the characters. I found Aislinn and Seth to be very sweet and, as much as I was rooting for Seth, I also found Keenan compelling. The reasons for what he was trying to accomplish were very compelling, so it was much easier to empathize with him. Beira was a great villain. She was cruel and insidious enough that you will really want for her to be brought down. I think, however, that my favorite character was Donia. She had been through so much and had so much to gain or lose from the outcome of the events that I couldn't help but to pull for her.

Without giving anything away, I was very happy with how everything came together in the end. I just wish that the first part of the story had piqued my interest more. I'm really glad that I kept at it, however. With all of that in mind, I give Wicked Lovely 4 hoots.

Waiting On Wednesday & WWW Wednesday: March 30, 2011

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event from Jill at Breaking the Spine. To participate, simply share that book(s) you are eagerly awaiting the release of and report back to Breaking the Spine with the link to your post. Clicking the image above will take you straight to her post and link widget.

This week I am waiting on The Betrayal of Maggie Blair by Elizabeth Laird. This is one of the galleys I was robbed of the chance to read by Adobe's unwillingness to release a version of Digital Editions for Linux. It's been four years, Adobe! Don't you think it's about time?









WWW Wednesdays is another meme from MizB at Should be Reading. Just answer the following questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you'll read next?

What are you currently reading?

I am almost half-way finished with Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr. Things have finally started picking up and I've even started mentally berating the heroine for some of her actions.










What did you recently finish reading?

I recently finished Nightshade by Andrea Cremer. I wasn't too crazy about the characters in this book, but I really did like the plot. It's rare for me to like one but not the other.










What do you think you'll read next?

I really want to read Wither next, but I still have several library books to get through, so I'll likely read Ink Exchange next so I can get through the two Wicked Lovely books I borrowed and return them to the library on time.

No Netgalley For Me

I tried and I tried but I just can not get Adobe Digital Editions onto my netbook. I even tried using one of the university computers to obtain my eGalleys, only to find out that the program wouldn't let me move the books to my Nook. I love Ubuntu (my OS) very much, but the fact that Adobe doesn't provide a Linux-friendly version of Digital Editions is very sad and frustrating. I have Acrobat Reader and PDF Viewer from Adobe, but no DE. I guess my reading queue just changed drastically.

Teaser Tuesday: March 29, 2011

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly event hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading. It is a meme that lets you see what your fellow bloggers are reading and gives you a glimpse at books you may want to read. Anyone can participate so long as they follow the rules:

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a random page
3. Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
4. PLEASE DON'T SHARE SPOILERS! Try not to give away too much with your selection.
5. Share the title, author, and page numbers so that others can add it to their to-be-read list if they want.

My teaser of the week:

"Aislinn stayed silent until it was time to go to afternoon classes, her fingernails digging small half circles --like slivers of the sun-- into her palms. She concentrated on the pain of those suns, only partially visible in her skin, and wondered if she had any chance at all of escaping from Keenan's attention."

This selection comes from page 87 of the Nook edition of Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr. So far, I'm still having trouble deciding about this book. I will say that I was absolutely thrilled to see Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market" referenced. It's one of my favorite poems.

Musing Mondays - March 28, 2011

This is a meme from Should Be Reading. All you have to do is answer the question of the week.

This week's question is:

Do you read books while you…

…eat? … bathe?… watch movies or tv?… listen to music?… While you’re on the computer?

I'll admit it, I read in all of the above scenarios. My Nook cover has a handy easel, so I can read while I eat by putting it on the table in front of me. I've been known to take long baths and read for hours. I often read while my little girl watches Happy Feet for what feels like the millionth time. When I was single I used to play CDs and read all afternoon with the music playing in the background. Last, but not least, I actually have read while on the computer... and I'm not talking about reading eBooks on my netbook (though I have done that, as well). I'm referring to the times that I am waiting for an important email and read a physical book to pass the time. Yes, I have a problem. Ha!

It's Monday! What are you reading? March 28, 2011

It's Monday! What are you reading is a weekly meme that comes to us from Sheila at Book Journey. To participate, simply post what you finished reading in the past week and what you plan to read this week. It is a good way to find other books you may enjoy reading. After you write your post, head over to Sheila's blog to leave your post's link on the link entry form at the bottom of the What are you reading? post.

What I Finished














Wow. I just realized how much I actually read over the past week. (Click the titles to read my reviews.)

• The Iron King by Julie Kagawa
• Nightshade by Andrea Cremer
• Winter's Passage by Julie Kagawa
• Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (I had planned on drawing this one out, but decided to go ahead and wrap it up.)

What I'm Reading

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr












Up Next














Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr















The Betrayal of Maggie Blair by Elizabeth Laird
Jane Austen: A Life Revealed by Catherine Reef
Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr

Review: Nightshade

by Andrea Cremer
publisher: Philomel
date published: October 19, 2010
format: hardcover
pages: 452
source: library
Amazon / Goodreads
challenges: Goodreads 2001 Reading Challenge; 2011 YA Reading Challenge

From Goodreads:

"Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers.

But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything— including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?"

What I Thought

At first, I felt a bit lost as the story launched. There were terms to describe the different groups (Guardians, Keepers, Searchers, etc.) that left me confused as to what their functions actually were. Several pages went by before explanation was offered and, after that, things made more sense. The different groups include: Guardians, who are shapeshifters (werewolves, if you will); Keepers, of which there are two subgroups (the Nightshades and the Banes), who command the Guardians and are described throughout the book as witches and warlocks); and Searchers, who are the sworn enemies of the Keepers and the ones the Guardians are supposed to defend against (they are a mysterious group and their function isn't really explained very much in this book). As far as the overall groups are concerned, Cremer did a good job of capturing the dynamics of each group and conveying the hierarchical issues involved.

It is the characters as individuals, however, that I am the least impressed with. Calla is supposed to be a trained warrior and is supposed to be the Alpha of her pack (the Nightshades). The love triangle between her, Shay (a human boy new to town), and Ren (the Bane Alpha) seems to bring out the worst in her, though. She keeps playing the go-away-now-come-back-again game with both Shay and Ren and can't seem to stand up for herself with either. I found Shay to be an obnoxious love interest who can't seem take, "No," for an answer. As for Ren, I found him to be an insecure (which, granted, Cremer points out herself) pest who can't keep his hands to himself. Where is Calla's backbone? I find it difficult to believe that she is supposed to be a strong, female character. I wanted to like her, but I found her to be somewhat lacking.

The plot is captivating and had the capability of making me start just one more chapter just to see what would happen next. Something I did enjoy was the creepiness injected into the story. Included in the creep factor were creatures such as wraiths, incubi, succubi, and one very creepy Keeper named Efron Bane. The intrigue was another element that I enjoyed in this book. I had the sense that something wasn't right and kept reading so I could discover what that something was.

I will probably read the second book when it comes out, but I'm not sure if I want to own this series. I think this one is going to be strictly a "borrow" for me. For that reason, I give Nightshade 3 hoots.

In My Mailbox - March 27, 2011

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme from The Story Siren where you can share your new acquisitions. They can come from anywhere: through the mail, via the library, purchased from a store, or downloaded as ebooks. It's up to you!

This week was pretty good for me book-wise. I got some new reads from a store, bought a new (to me) eBook, and bought two more with Amazon gift cards (love that Swagbucks!). I also had some good library finds and look forward to scouring the shelves after I finish my current library stack (all 6 of them). Last but not least, I was approved for a few galleys from Netgalleys, which I am trying to figure out how to download since I run a Linux OS. I managed to get Adobe Digital Editions installed, but it still doesn't work properly. I may have to send my regrets to the publishers. We shall just have to see.

Here are this week's acquisitions:

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa (I finished this one within 24 hours and promptly went out to buy the other two. I was very happy with this read.)












The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa (purchased)













The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa (purchased)













Wither by Lauren DeStefano (purchased w/ Amazon gift card)












Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning (purchased w/ Amazon gift card)













Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr












Library finds:

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr
Nightshade by Andrea Cremer
Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning
Faefever by Karen Marie Moning
Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr (not pictured)







Jane Austen: A Life Revealed by Catherine Reef (eGalley courtesy Clarion Books) - release date April 18th (I'm, as you can imagine, very excited about this one. I hope I get to read it.)











The Betrayal of Maggie Blair by Elizabeth Laird (eGalley courtesy Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) - release date April 18th (Another book that I am excited for.)











Wherever You Go by Heather Davis (eGalley courtesy Harcourt Children's Books) - release date November 14th (It's going to be a long, long time before I review this one.)










Green-Eyed Demon by Jaye Wells (eGalley courtesy Orbit) -release date March 1st (I'm going to have to track down the first two for this series. Hopefully I can find them in the library. My book budget is out for the month.)