Tag: books

Book Review, Books, Road Trip Wednesday

July Books – Spotlight on SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY…

Elodie

Today is Road Trip Wednesday 🙂 RTW is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway’s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

This week´s topic: Best Book of July

I have read some wonderful books this July so I will not be choosing the best one, rather I´ll be telling you about one which really took me by surprise.

This month I read:

MY LIFE NEXT DOOR by Huntley Fitzpatrick: I gushed about it here (and you could win a SIGNED book by just commenting on this post…)

PUSHING THE LIMITS by Katie McGarry : This one was also very good, it had different types of characters. I explained why I enjoyed it here (hint: layered characters, siblings and hot romance)

CRACKED UP TO BE by Courtney Summers: Wow! This book is the first one I read from Courtney Summers and definitely not the last. It´s  very raw but also very true and I connected with the main character who wanted to be perfect. All the time. And then doesn´t know how to deal when it collapses. Really really good.

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT´S NIGHTMARE by Kody Keplinger: Kody is a must-buy for me. I really enjoyed her two first books and this one didn’t disappoint!

THE ONE THAT I WANT by Jennifer Echols: I picked up this one based on Jessica’s Bookanista Review and I don’t regret it one bit! Really, to get the full picture, you should read Jessica’s review 😀 Like her, I agree that the book actually makes us understand the dysfunctional relationship which sometimes can happen between friends and thus, give a reasoning behind some of the main character’s actions. Plus the swoon-factor is major!

So as you can see, I was on a contemporary kick, probably since I was finishing up my novel, I was trying to immerse myself in the same genre.

The one that totally took me by surprise though was: SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY by Susan Dennard! I loved it and I highly recommend it! I picked it up based on Katy´s recommendation and she does a fabulous job in explaining why this book is great (so go ahead, read her review and then come back to know why I loved it too :D)

Okay, thanks for coming back! So, why did I love it?

I have never read Steampunk before and it has some elements of it…Very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

  1. The writing. Really, you can feel like you´re with Eleanor in the streets of Philly looking for her brother. You can feel the corset and you can laugh and open wide eyes when Eleanor discover more than what she bargained for.
  2. Eleanor. Talk about a girl with character! And she just appears very human, like you could hand her an umbrella through the pages of the book and tell her “aim for the knees”. Disclaimer: I usually do not talk to my books. Or only rarely
  3. Daniel. Oh Daniel. So annoying and so charming. Loved Daniel!
  4. The story. It has action, it has feelings, it has romance…it has friendships and it has that little something something which creates magic in a book!

I am SO looking forward to the sequel!!! (and it is going to be set in Paris….)

So, tell me, what book pleasantly surprised you recently?

Books, reading, writing

Happy Friday #23 – The End, Zombies and other stories…

Elodie

Yay, it´s time for Happy Friday 😀 Looking forward to know what made you smile this week!

Don´t forget you can enter my giveaway for a SIGNED copy of MY LIFE NEXT DOOR by Huntley Fitzpatrick (see interview with Huntley and details here)

Writing: So. Something insane happened. I wrote “THE END” to my second WiP. It still seems so unreal to know that I actually managed to write 2 books! Okay I still have a lot to do for both of them but right now I am just relishing the moment 😀

Reading: I loved PUSHING THE LIMITS by (and reviewed it here…) I started SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY by Susan Dennard and wow! No really, WOW! Oh and I am participating in the Something Strange and Deadly Outbreak Contest (Erin has the details 😀) and sent this picture to the lovely ladies who are organizing it. Disclaimer: I was just coming back to work after a long day at work and the train was late but you can see the Rhine in the background…

Query: I received GREAT feedback from the folks over at YALITCHAT.org on my query and then decided to enter Taryn´s contest especially after reading all of her helpful #querycrits tweets. Ladies and gentlemen, Taryn´s suggestions and comments were spot on. She helped my query to become ready to be sent. I know. I can barely think about breathing. Now I just have to polish my manuscript.

I am so thankful for Jaime for all her ideas/comments/suggestions on my chapters because I also have the feeling that thanks to her, my WiP will be much much much stronger/better!!!!  (full post on how Jaime has helped me later, promise!) Oh and I am thinking of using Taryn as a beat-reader as part of her Teen Eyes Editorial services…

So, tell me, what made you smile this week?

 

Books, reading, Road Trip Wednesday

My Life as a Fictional Character…

Elodie

Today is Road Trip Wednesday 🙂 RTW is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway’s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

Before I get started, don´t forget you can enter my giveaway for a SIGNED copy of MY LIFE NEXT DOOR by Huntley Fitzpatrick (see interview with Huntley and details here)

This week’s topic: : If you could be reincarnated as any fictional character, which would it be?

So, for some reason, the first things that came to my mind were:

  1. All the books I wouldn´t want to be in even though how I loved them very very much. No, really, I don´t see myself listening to “And may the odds be ever in your favor” as I walk into The Hunger Games. Even though, I´d love to meet Katniss and all.
  2. All the boys which should have attended my high school with the specific purpose of sweeping me off my feet (until I met my wonderful hubby of course :P).
  3. Some of said-boys are actually in the first category aka places I´d be afraid to put my feet into or just part of very very sad stories or sad families. Oh Jonah Griggs, how I wish you´d have been in my Sociology or Math class but nope.

So, hmm, what to do? what to do? Yep, I´ll totally be Anna from Anna and the French Kiss.

Paris – Source: me 😀
Tour Eiffel. Picture taken in 2009 😀

Why? Well, there are plenty of reasons but here a few…

  1. She lives in Paris
  2. Etienne St-Clair – do I need to say more?
  3. She has goals and friends and hobbies and dreams. And Etienne. And Paris 😀
  4. Her family has positive sides. Love her little brother.

Now I am curious, if you could be into a book, which one would it be?

Book Review, Top Ten Tuesday

Most Vivid Worlds/Settings In Books

Elodie

This Top Ten Tuesday feature is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish and I first came across it on Jaime´s blog. It´s a lot of fun and they post the topics way in advance!

Before I get started, don´t forget you can enter my giveaway for a SIGNED copy of MY LIFE NEXT DOOR by Huntley Fitzpatrick (see interview with Huntley and details here)

Today´s topic: Most Vivid Worlds/Settings In Books

So it would appear I am very much a character gal. I had a hard time remembering books where the settings really grabbed me so the ones below are very special because the world they created was so vivid, it stayed with me long long after. Also they all had wonderful characters 😀  To know more about each of those books, just click on the titles and pouf! you’ll be on the summary page from Goodreads.

 

 

 

 

1. Across the Universe by Beth Revis: Feeling claustrophobic while reading a book probably means the author has done it right…

2. The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab: The writing is so poetic and I had the feeling to be transported in a fairytale land (the scary and eery kind from the Brothers Grimm).

3. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater: I could feel the wind on my face and taste the salt on my lips while reading this book. So much magic in the words!

 

 

 

 

4. Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta: I loved everything about this book but I also totally had the feeling I was with them on that road. Everything seemed so real and was depicted so vivibly that I have images in my head of places I’ve only read about.

5. Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbart: If you cannot travel to South America this summer, just read this book and you’ll have the impression you also dipped your toes in the water!

Tell me, which is the last book you read where you thought the setting was essential to the story?

Books, young adult

Five Reasons To Fall in Love with My Life Next Door

Elodie

 Summary from Goodreads: A gorgeous debut about family, friendship, first romance, and how to be true to one person you love without betraying another. “One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time.” The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy, affectionate. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen-year-old Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs her terrace and changes everything. As the two fall fiercely in love, Jase’s family makes Samantha one of their own. Then in an instant, the bottom drops out of her world and she is suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

In an interview with YA Bound, the author – Huntley Fitzpatrick – summarised her book in ten words. I think they also fit perfectly:

A girl who watches and a boy who knows it.

There are many reasons to read this book: the story is compelling, the writing flows and the voice is mostly natural. Some may say that it feels slow at times and maybe rushed at others. But isn´t it how life sometimes is? Slow, rushed and everything in the middle? Everybody always stayed in character. I could have come up with even more reasons to fall in love with My Life Next Door but I tried to contain myself.

1- George: One of Jase´s little brother. This child is ADORABLE. He is neurotic, granted but his worries and his wit make him so real and so cute and just a little child you want to protect to make sure that he doesn´t find additional reasons to worry about every single thing.

 “His bed´s really comfortable and he never pees in it”

George gives me a smile, the same dazzling sweet smile as his big brother, although at this point, with green teeth. “I might marry you,” he allows. “Do you want a big family?” 

I like that. You look like Sailor Supergirl.

***********************

2. Jase: There are not enough words to describe Jase. He is…confident, honest, mature, sexy, funny, smart, driven, athletic, real. He is the type of guy you can lean on, talk to, make a fool out of yourself with, have fun, laugh, do daring things. Yep. Quite a character.

***********************

3. Jase and Sam: For those two, I´m just going to put four quotes from the book. I think it pretty much says a lot about them.

“So now you’ve met my mother,’ I say to Jase that night, leaning back on the roof. 
‘I sure have. That was awesome. And completely uncomfortable.

“You have to kiss me,” I find myself saying.
“Yeah.” He leans closer. “I do.” 

But I like being Sam. I like being Jase´s Sam. It sounds relaxed, easygoing, competent. I want to be that person (Page 184)

And the way he does look at me makes me feel absolutely beautiful.

***********************

4. Jase´s parents, all of the Garrett family: What really amazed me in this book was how I could picture each and single one of the members of the Garrett family. The little one who says “boob” and “poop”  a lot, Alice the angry one who´s actually quite tender, the other hot brother and I could continue but I will leave you with another of my favorites i.e. Andy:

Andy spends all her time on Facebook and reading, rereading Twilight again and again.

***********************

5. Tim: The way he speaks about Hot Alice, the way he messes a lot of things but he´s actually not that messed up, the way he was there for Sam when she was young and is still around and because he says things like this:

“Why do all the hot girls want the jocks and the good boys? We losers are the ones that need you.”

When to pick up this book?

  • Great Summer Read (but really you could cuddle with it in all seasons)
  • If you like Sarah Dessen or Jennifer Echols. Plus some of the first time moments did remind me of Judy Blume (!)
  • When you’re in the look for a great set of characters
  • If you want something which makes your heart feel warm
  • As a writer: The Life Next Door shows how to handle many many characters while giving them all a different personality and something which stands out. They don’t fall flat.
  • The kisses and the steamy sexy scenes

I am already anticipating Ms Fiztpatrick’s next book especially after getting a glimpse on what she’s working on (see below excerpt from an interview with YABound)

My next book, now tentatively titled, WHAT I THOUGHT WAS TRUE, takes place in the same region as MY LIFE NEXT DOOR, but features a very different couple—one who have had a rocky history. Gwen Castle has come from a long line of fisherman and cleaning women on her small, exclusive Island. Cass Somers is heir to a boat-building business, and Gwen’s Biggest Mistake Ever. Now that he’s spending the summer slumming it on “her” Island, can they get beyond their rocky past and find common ground.
I even dared to contact the author on Twitter (overcoming my shyness and all :-)) and she was so kind to answer my question!
  
So tell me, did you have good relationships with your neighbors as teenager?
Blogging, Books, reading

Looking for Alaska – Book review

Elodie

 I believe there is hope for us all, even amid the suffering-and maybe even inside the suffering. And that’s why I write fiction, probably. It’s my attempt to keep that fragile strand of radical hope, to build a fire in the darkness.

(John Green from his interview with Penguin Group)

LOOKING FOR ALASKA is the type of books which made me feel, think and laugh. Some of the characters reminded me of JELLICOE ROAD because of the way they were developed: fully layered, fully there in the story and fully jumping out of the pages.

Summary from Goodreads: Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

As I´ve mentioned before, I am not used to read from a guy´s perspective. Sometimes, I even wonder  before getting into a book with this type of POV if I will really enjoy it. Being in Miles´ (aka Pudge) head didn´t feel forced in any ways, shape or form. I had high expectations for this book which can translate in me waiting with my fluttering heart to be amazed, on the look for the sentences, for the special moments. This usually means that I enjoy the story but I can get too busy trying to find its greatness to really enjoy it. Does it make sense?

                                                                                                                                          Source: besttshirtparty.blogspot.ca via Elodie on Pinterest

With LOOKING FOR ALASKA, I had a bit of this modus operandi where I was in the story without being in, until I let myself just read…

I started to think about what one may go through when one is looking for The Great Perhaps or the questions we ask ourselves when faced with tragedy. The beauty of the book was that I didn´t feel forced or pushed one way or another. I appreciated this. John Green mentions in an interview with The School Library Journal: “It’s a funny book, but it’s also a book about the universality of suffering and grief and forgiveness and whether or not there’s a reason for radical hope”. 

The universality of emotions. So important. So true. No matter where people come from. Those were conversations I remember having in High school with my friends and it resonated.

And then there are the characters. As I mentioned, when reading, I was quickly falling in love with them: their quirks, their interaction, their passions, their humor…

My favorite one has to be The Colonel. John Green gives us the privilege to get to know a gentleman in the making. The Colonel doesn´t have it easy, he´s difficult, bossy and moody but he´s there for his friends (at least tries to be), he shows so much respect for his mother…He´s also funny. Alaska is interesting. So full of life. Bigger than life. Tortured. Unsure. Sure. Full of contradictions. They´re all growing up as the story goes…

Some of my favorite quotes:

  • (…) but if I hadn’t imagined it, I would never have gotten to the Creek at all (p. 54)
  • Now I understood why the Colonel was short – he couldn’t afford to be any taller (p. 91)
  • I’ll say “Thanks”. Man, she helped fill out my application to this place. And she let me come here, and that’s no easy thing when you come from where we do, to let your son go away to school (p. 116)
  • After so much kissing that it almost started to get boring (p. 123)
  • I could not go alone, and going with anyone other than the Colonel would amount to alone (p. 148)
  • It always shocked me when I realised that I wasn’t the only person in the world who thought and felt such strange and awful things (p. 213)

So tell me, what book are you anxiously waiting to read?

personal, writing

Five perks of living with a writer

Elodie

Before I start on the perks, the entries for Christa´s Band Camp story contest are up and I´m one of them 😀 It seems a tad unreal I have to admit. You can check all entries here and please vote for your favorite ones.

Now our regular posting shall continue.

Not too long ago, hubby wrote about several rules one should keep in mind when living with a writer (or dating one). This made me think about the perks that one has when his/her significant other happens to be a writer.

There are some 😀

                                                                                                      Source: yellowheartart.com via Shelley W on Pinterest

1. Time.  If you want to play on TV or hang out with your buddies alone or spend quality time with the children, you should know that a writer will not hold you back. He/she will either spend this time with you on the couch with her/his laptop on the laps. This can even count as time together. Or, if your writer prefers to write in silence, they may disappear for a while.  Just know they will always be back.

2. You won’t get bored. No really. A writer lives with imaginary people in their minds. When they read or write, they might start talking about those people like they’re real. Plus with all that imagination running through their veins, they’re bound to have some quirks.

3. You will become famous. By famous, I mean your writer will probably mention you regularly on Twitter, his/her blog because, well, you can be the source of funny or cute stories. And later on, when your writer gets published, you do have a very high probability to be featured in his/her book (maybe it will even be dedicated to you, cool, no?)

4. Easy to please. Maybe not always. But you can always say “Happy Birthday” or “I´m sorry” with a book. You can even spy on his/her goodreads TBR list or you can read their blog posts to know which books they absolutely have to read. Yes there might be hundreds. You may pick randomly and still make your writer smile.

                                                                                                                    Source: livraire.tumblr.com via June on Pinterest

5. They appreciate you. They know it´s not always easy to live with a writer. Ok here it´s maybe a hidden message to my hubby 😀 But I do, really, appreciate everything my hubby does which makes my writing easier: a) he doesn´t make fun of me- except when I start tearing up about fictional characters, b) he understands I need the time to write, to connect with other writers, to blog, c) he encourages me, d) he pushes me when I need it but e) hugs me when I need it too. 😀 and f) he listens to me rambling about my drafts, while trying to give me ideas.

What other perks would you add to this list? 😀 Which ones do you agree with?

Happy Friday, revising, writing

Happy Friday #20 – Burst of productivity, an anniversary and other stories…

Elodie

Yay, it´s time for Happy Friday 😀 Looking forward to know what made you smile this week!

Writing and critiquing: This week has been soooooo productive on both front! I´ve been really getting into Jaime´s story and I am enjoying critiquing every word. I´ll have to write a post about this critiquing business because it´s also a learning process and a getting-to-know the other writer better. Thanks to critiquing Jaime´s chapters, I also worked quite a bit on my own WiP. While in terms of word counts, I didn´t write as much as last week, I feel that my chapters are getting much stronger. So yep. Productive week 😀

Reading: I am still reading LOOKING FOR ALASKA by John Green. It´s a bit of a slow read for me but this has several reasons: (1) I don´t want it to end; (2) I am reading this book as a reader and as a writer, thinking about the words´ choice and the dialogue. There are many other books that I didn´t want to let go of but with this one, it´s like I´m in the story without being in while still being in. Ok and since this didn´t make sense at all and I´m not yet done with the book which I am really really enjoying, you now know what Jaime has to deal with when it comes to the comments I make inside her WiP 😀

Randomness: My parents celebrated their 38th wedding anniversary. Yep, it´s amazing. They´re amazing. Through all the ups and downs that may come during 38 years, they´re still a team and I am thankful for them! Since my dad would have a cow if I post a picture of him on my blog – or maybe not, maybe it´s just on Facebook, I´ll have to check this 😀 – I found a picture which shows them together but doesn´t show them.

Papa et Maman looking in the same direction

So, tell me what made you smile this week?

Books, Road Trip Wednesday

June – Best Book of the Month…

Elodie

Today is Road Trip Wednesday 🙂 RTW is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway’s contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question and answer it on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

This week’s topic: What was the best book you read in June?

This month, I’ve read 4 Young Adult books and 2 romantic suspense novels 😀 All of them were amazing. Looking at the YA stories I immersed myself in, it will be tough to come up with a favorite but I´ll try my very best. I will do this post a bit differently by just writing words which for me symbolize my reading experience and link my full review when available (I have already reviewed 2 out of the 4 :D)

SECOND CHANCE SUMMER by Morgan Matson: Family. Love. Growing up. Tragedy. Tears. Friendships. (full review here)

IF I STAY by Gayle Forman: Tragedy. Tears. Life. Music. Hope. Family. Love.

WHERE SHE WENT by Gayle Forman: Recovery. Anger. Love. Music. Family. Scars. Love.

THE SELECTION by Kiera Cass: Love. Heart. Power. Family. Privileges. (full review here)

While I loved all of them, I will pick WHERE SHE WENT for this month because I am so unused to read something from a guy´s perspective. Being in Adam´s head felt like a privilege, like I really could understand his thoughts process and the emotions were just so raw and beautiful and true.

His relationship to Mia and to her family made me tear up a few times.  There were also moments I wanted to shake him but mainly I just wanted to hug him and tell him that I was sorry, that he too suffered from the tragic accident not only by losing Mia at first but by losing his second family.

If you want a book which will tear you apart while slowly building you back together and on top of that, reread sentences because they’re mesmerizing, you should go and pick up both IF I STAY and WHERE SHE WENT.

Truly amazing.

So, tell me if you could describe your favorite book of June in only one word: what would it be?

Observations, personal, reading, revising, writing

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder…

Elodie

                                                                                                  Source: guidetomenhattan.com via Rachel on Pinterest

When one thinks about artists in the spotlight, very rarely will the word “writer” come up. And sure, J.K. Rowling, Stephen King and others do not grace the pages of US Weekly or People Magazine every week. TV channels may not discuss their latest book at length like they may do with the latest performance of whatever actor…but writers like any other artists put their souls out there.

Reviews.

They´re everywhere.

You cannot entirely hide from them.

                                                                                                                                      Source: xkcd.com via Michael on Pinterest

They come from within, from our wonderful critique partners, our great beta-readers. Then, from agents, possible editors and then from the readers themselves.

After reading this post by Shannon (if you haven´t read it, you definitely take a look :D, I´ll wait) and a comment by Christa on my post from last week, it hit me both as a writer and as a reader: Not everyone will like my work. Not everyone likes the books I could not put down. Of course we know it but there is a moment where it seems to become more real.

And then, I remembered that old saying “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”…readers bring their own baggage, past and taste to the books they read just like writers laugh or cry words on paper.

Getting published is really putting yourself out there, in the big big, sometimes scary world. There is no “Dealing with reviews for dummies”.

I checked one of my favorite books on Goodreads.com, The Ripening Seed by Colette and it has quite a bit of bad reviews. At the beginning I got a bit distracted thinking how is it possible? Can´t people see the art? The beauty of her words? The cynical look at the bourgeoisie world while still going through the motions of growing up? There are also great reviews of this story but usually the eye has a tendency to focus on the negative. But all the negative reviews of the world will not take away the feeling of awe I had while reading my mother´s copy of this book as a teenager or the flutters in my heart as I reread it years later. What should matter to me the most is how I felt about something.

As writers, we owe it to ourselves to go the extra-step, the scary step in our writing (like I mentioned in my Monday post last week) but then we´re standing out there naked. And let´s face it, being naked in front of possibly millions of people reading your words is SCARY.
So, I think we also need to protect ourselves once our words are out there. We need to have a safe place we can go to and need to know that yes we may be awkward in dealing with all this but what is important is that at the end of the day, we remember that we had the courage to go in the big scary world, that some did love our words and that, sometimes as a reader and as a writer, it is ok to just do that:

….as long as we walk with our heads high the next day and continue to be happy with our tastes as readers and proud of our words as writers.

Oh and if I ever get published and start freaking out, can someone remind me of this post? 😀

Looking forward to reading your thoughts on this!