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Heys, Guys, Ely told me to post this! So here we go:

Standalone Novels of September 2012

September 1st

The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron

Goodreads 

September 4th

Origin by Jessica Khoury

Goodreads 

Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

Goodreads 

Blackwood by Gwenda Bond

Goodreads 

September 7th

Indomitable Spirit by Greg Curhan

Goodreads 

September 11th

Anything but Ordinary by Lara Avery

Goodreads 

Tilt by Ellen Hopkins

Goodreads 

September 18th

Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Goodreads 

Ten by Gretchen McNeil

Goodreads

New Series and Sequels of September 2012

September 1st
Stormdancer (The Lotus War #1) by Jay Kristoff
Goodreads

September 4th
Tiger's Destiny (The Tiger Saga #4) by Colleen Houck
Goodreads
Outpost (Razorland #2) by Anne Agguire
Goodreads
Sweet Shadows (Medusa Girls #2) by Tera Lynn Childs
Goodreads
Fathomless (Fairytale Retellings #3) by Jackson Pearce
Goodreads
Caught (The Missing #5) by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Goodreads

September 8th
Silver (Bandia #1) by Talia Vance
Goodreads 

September 11th
Unspoken (The Lynburg Legacy #1) by Sarah Rees Brennan
Goodreads 
Hidden (Firelight #3) by Sohpie Jordan
Goodreads 
Shadowfell (Shadowfell #1) by Juliet Marillier
Goodreads

September 18th
The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle #1) by Maggie Stiefvater 
Goodreads
What's Left Of Me (The Hybrid Chronicles #1) by Kat Zhang
Goodreads 
The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns #2) by Rae Carson
Goodreads 
 
September 25th
A Fractured Light (A Beautiful Dark #2) by Jocelyn Davies
Goodreads  
Shadows (Ashes Trilogy #2) by Ilsa. J Bick
Goodreads
Dearly Beloved (Gone With The Respiration #2) by Lia Habel
Goodreads
Alice in Zombieland (White Rabbit Chronicles #1) by Gena Showalter
Goodreads

Books and Baking

Here’s something a little different for A Book So Fathomless! 

Basically, today I decided to make my first ever batch of macarons and while they didn’t turn out perfectly (I don’t have a proper mould, yet- I decided I would create a cute little ‘photoshoot’ including the book I’m currently reading- ‘A Brief History of Montmaray’ by Michelle Cooper. The Vintage Classics version that I own is just gorgeous and everything just looked too sweet not to post. 

My macarons are actually ‘Earl Grey + Rose Petals and Honey Filling’, and they are amazing! What are your favourite flavours and what are you currently reading? 

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend!

x Ely

REVIEW: The Lying Game by Sara Shepard

Title: The Lying Game (The Lying Game #1)

Author: Sara Shepard

Publication Date: December 7th, 2010

Publisher: HarperTeen

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 307

Rating: 3.5/5

Blurb: I had a life anyone would kill for. Then someone did.

I may not remember much, but I know I led a charmed life. Even in death I’m getting something no one else does: an encore performance, thanks to Emma, the long-lost twin sister I never got to meet. Now, in order to figure out what happened to me, Emma needs to become me. But can she laugh at inside jokes with my best friends? Convince my boyfriend she’s the girl he fell in love with? Hug my parents good night like she’s their daughter? And can she keep up the charade even after she realizes my murderer is watching her every move?

Let the lying game begin

Review: Before reading this book, I actually watched a few episodes of the TV show of the same name and so I was expecting a similar sort of plot line. However, the books and the TV show are widely different. Without giving too much away, Sutton (the dead twin in the blurb) isn’t actually dead in the TV show which caused a slight confusion for me.

Anyway, onto the book. Despite being a massive fan of the Pretty Little Liars TV show by the same author, I have never actually read any of her books but had been previously warned about the quality of her writing and plot lines etc. While it is not literary genius, the writing in this book isn’t too terrible and the plot, while it seems a little unbelievable at times, is also rather good. 

Overall, I do plan on finishing this series and watching it in conjunction with the TV show to see the difference between the two and decide which I prefer.

REVIEW: Nevermore by James Patterson

Title:  NEVERMORE (THE END OF MAXIMUM RIDE)

Author: James Patterson

Publication Date: 6^th of August.

Publisher: Little Brown

Format: Ebook

Pages: 368

Rating: 1/5

Blurb: One last chance...

For Max, Fang, Angel, Iggy, Nudge, and Gazzy.

Before it all ends.

Are you ready for the final chapter? Are you ready for the ultimate flight? Because THIS IS IT. One last incredible, explosive adventure with an astonishing ending that no one could have seen coming.

Review: First of all, lets get this straight. I love the Maximum Ride series with all my heart. I love the Characters and I love James Patterson as a writer, and so I’m expressing my opinion without previous judgment. I am on both team Dylan and team Fang and my rating does not relate to Max not ending up with one of them, vice versa.  I am reviewing this book on how much it feels like a completion of a series and how it was wrapped up as a single book. Therefore, I am extremely disappointed.

Analyzing Language:

The way I see it, James Patterson does not care for this series. He just wants to get it down and over with and throw it away to focus on his bigger stories involving crime and justice. I adore his way of writing, as it reflects his characters perfectly with their witty comebacks and thoughts.  Some of his language is nicely written throughout the series, but overall it is satisfactory. In most places, he writes it like an amateur writer would (like stereotypical fanfiction). Like it’s his very first draft and that it must be good enough to just throw out into the writing world, and truly, I expected better.

Characters:

James Patterson has a way with characters that we cannot describe. It doesn’t even seem like he is the one writing this and that you’re actually inside someone else’s head. He creates memorable characters that stick with you forever, which has personal traits that personally I could never forget. Nudge, Gazzy and Iggy are amazingly created characters, which I would like to see more off. Angel, I do dislike. She was so stuck up herself that I wanted her just to be gone and done with it all. And I hated it how Max called her her “baby” which was totally unlike the character of max anyway. I understand that all characters change, but really, I fell in love with the first Fang, not the emotion expressing weirdo he has turned into now. I kept going between Dylan and Fang and I also realized that I do not like it when a character ends up with someone at the very start of the novel. Dylan’s character was sweet and kind but he did nothing to gain Max. Max just threw herself on him sometimes and I thought that was just ridiculous.

SPOILERS BEGIN HERE:

Dylan, (spoiler) after he went rampaging in the town angry at seeing Max and Fang together, he came back and didn’t do anything to win Max’s heart even after Angel, (Who came to be surprise and a disappointment as the voice) and at the very end of it all, he just shrugged and gave Max to Fang and that was all, along with all the other stupid cliff hangers involving the other characters.

The only thing I was happy about is when Maya died. I didn’t want Dylan to end with Maya and I was hoping that James Patterson wouldn’t do that and I’m glad he didn’t, because I would seriously kill him.

Max was supposed to save the world and so a tsunami came and they basically stood up and won over it, and she started as the new max and allowed the world turn into a human death parade.. She was supposed to harden her heart and she barely did anything to it.  I am so disappointed with this novel. It seemed more like a middle book than a last book to a series I loved.

PLOT:

Horrible. Just stop please. You did not answer any questions and the ones you did answer weren’t even completely rational answers, or good for that matter. Fang being immortal? Really. Do not bring immortality in with cheesy titles such as Nevermore. Please Patterson, do not write the books u won’t end up falling in love with, because truly, you ripped this up badly.

REVIEW: Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Name: Will Grayson, Will Grayson

Author: John Green and David Levithan

Publication Date: April 6^th, 2010

Publisher: Dutton Juvenile

Format: Paperback

Pages: 310 pages

Rating: 4/5

Blurb: What if you were somewhere you never expected to be and met someone with your name?
What if the girl you didn't think you were interested in started being interested in you?
What if your best friend started writing a musical about your life...and it made you look lame?
*
What if you are depressed?
What if you are in love with someone you've never met?
And what is the story with the guy walking around with your name?

Review: Honestly, this is one of the weirdest books I’ve ever read. It’s one of those books that you read and have absolutely no clue what on earth is happening throughout. In a weird way, I enjoyed it.

That being said, despite only have read one book of John Green’s (The Fault In Our Stars, of course). I expected so much. I was really disappointed, John’s writing is just as amazing (though nowhere near as heartbreaking) and I must admit I did do a little happy dance when I saw the name ‘Hazel’ in there once. So if this book had been written entirely by John Green, it would have gotten five out of five without a doubt.

However, David Levithan’s chapters drove me insane! Basically, there isn’t really any grammar used whatsoever and while that might not bother some people- those chapters just didn’t make any sense to me. This was what really brought down the book for me, but I think I would have enjoyed David’s parts as well if they had been easier to read.

I do think you need to be in a certain mood to read this book. Parts of it are so hilarious that you’ll be rolling around on the floor, other parts are very heavy. Overall, it was interesting.

CAMP NANO DIARIES (#2)

Dear Camp Nanoers

So, going strong so far? Maybe, Maybe not. So today, i decided to give you guys your main aim. Right now, you should be well near your 10 000's or even higher, or maybe even lower if your falling behind. But it doesn't really matter. Nano is for the words, but writing is for the story. So, pick now. Pick if you rather value your words or the story in your novel that you are writing. There is no wrong and no right because i totally understand if Nano is just there for a boost in your story or an actual comp that you are vigorously participating in. But you really need to make a decision between those two. Because on my first year of Nano, all I cared was about how many words I got down and that is still fine with me because at least I had something to start with which I could go back and work on. But right now, for camp nano, I barely care about word count and I am sticking to the story that I am trying to write. You just have to see which one works for you and you’ve got it.

 

xxChami

Standalone Novels of August 2012

August 1^st

The Jelly Bean Crisis by Jolene Stockman

Goodreads 

August 2^nd

Survive by Ale Morel

Goodreads 

The Waiting Sky by Lara Zielin

Goodreads 

August 7^th

Fingerprints of you by Kristen-Paige Madonia

Goodreads 

Between You and Me by Marisa Calin

Goodreads 

The Boy Recession by Flynn Meaney 

Goodreads 

August 8^th

Narc by Crissa-Jean Chapell

Goodreads

 

August 14^th

Touched by Cyn Balog

Goodreads 

Counting Backwards by Laura Lascarso

Goodreads 

Intentions by Deborah Heiligman

Goodreads 

Kissing Shakespeare by Pamela Mingle

Goodreads 

August 16^th

The Treachery of Beautiful Things by Ruth Frances Long

Goodreads 

Earth Girl by Janet Edwards 

Goodreads 

August 21^st

The Raft by S.A. Bodeen

Goodreads 

The Sweetest Spell by Suzanne Selfors

Goodreads 

Pizza, Love and Other Things That Made Me Famous by Kathryn Williams

Goodreads 

August 28^th

The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna

Goodreads 

If I Lie by Corrine Jackson

Goodreads 

The Dark Light by Sara Walsh

Goodreads 

The Demon Catchers of Milan by Kat Beyer

Goodreads 

The Invisible World by Suzanne Weyn

Goodreads 

UPDATE: August 5th 2012

Hello!

Sorry for the lack of posts lately- Chami and I have been working diligently on our Camp NaNoWriMo’s but as I have met the daily quota I thought I would write up a quick post before things get too hectic.

I’ve got quite a few reviews and other fun things coming up in the near future so here is a short list of things you can except to see from us:

-          Review of Villette by Charlotte Bronte (By Ely)

-          Review of Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan (By Ely)

-          Series review of The Immortals by Alyson Noel (By Chami)

-          New Series and Sequels from September 2012 (Check  for August’s)

-          Standalones for August and September 2012

-          Posts from our Camp NaNoWriMo adventures

Sound exciting?

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend,

Love Chami and Ely.

CAMP NANO DIARIES

Dear CampNano

Sometimes i hate you, and sometimes i can't help but love you. Right now, i hate you. I hate you so much that i could literally walk up to you and give you an "Elena" bitch slap. But what has to be done must be done so nano here i come.

Camp Nano started August 1st and started bad. Horribly bad. Everything i wrote was just horrible. I hate the beginning of my novel and i realised that i may finally have to put it aside and do what Ely is doing. Start from the middle. But for me, i mean like Chapter two or something because the first chapter has nothing specifically to do with the storyline but set the scene. So, i'm going to send Chapter 1 off into hiding and take it on in Chapter 2. I did start writing Mockerberry before, but i hated the first chapter as much as i hate the one that i'm writing, but now i like that one more. THIS IS THE WORST.

Hold on tight Camp nanoers. 

Love Chami

REVIEW: Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce

Name: Sisters Red (Fairytale Retellings #1)

Author: Jackson Pearce

Publication Date: June 7^th, 2010

Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Format: Paperback

Pages: 352 pages

Rating: 3.5/5

Blurb: Scarlett March lives to hunt the Fenris--the werewolves that took her eye when she was defending her sister Rosie from a brutal attack. Armed with a razor-sharp hatchet and blood-red cloak, Scarlett is an expert at luring and slaying the wolves. She's determined to protect other young girls from a grisly death, and her raging heart will not rest until every single wolf is dead.

Rosie March once felt her bond with her sister was unbreakable. Owing Scarlett her life, Rosie hunts ferociously alongside her. But even as more girls' bodies pile up in the city and the Fenris seem to be gaining power, Rosie dreams of a life beyond the wolves. She finds herself drawn to Silas, a young woodsman who is deadly with an axe and Scarlett's only friend--but does loving him mean betraying her sister and all that they've worked for?

Review:

I love Jackson Pearce- honestly I think she is probably one of the coolest people alive and going into Sisters Red (the first novel of hers that I’ve ever read) I expected to enjoy it immensely, and I did enjoy it.

That being said, I had some issues with this book. This book is about werewolves, and I have nothing against that, however I wasn’t overly keen on Jackson’s take on them. There was just something that didn’t set right with me. Another issue I had was with the biggest plot, from a couple of chapters in I already worked the big secret of the novel and spent most of the novel hoping that I would be wrong.

Character wise, I loved Scarlett March – the badass wolf hunter, and I found her attitude and ambition amazing- she is most definitely my favourite character in the novel. I loved Silas Reynolds- the sweet woodsman, too but Rosie March drove me up the wall at certain parts in the novel. I won’t go into detail as to avoid spoilers, however if you’re interested in discussing this book (or any another) feel free to drop us an e-mail at abooksofathomless@gmail.com

x Ely