[Review] If I Stay by Gayle Forman

If I Stay by Gayle Forman
Publisher: Speak
Publishing Date: April 6, 2010
262 Pages
Format: paperback, purchased
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Synopsis

On a day that started like any other...

Mia had everything: a loving family, a gorgeous, adoring boyfriend, and a bright future full of music and full of choices. Then, in an instant, almost all of that is taken from her. Caught between life and death, between a happy past and an unknowable future, Mia spends one critical day contemplating the only decision she has left - the most important decision she'll ever make.

Simultaneously tragic and hopeful, this is a romantic, riveting, and ultimately uplifting story about memory, music, living, dying, loving.

My Review

This is a good book. Unfortunately, for me, it wasn't a great book. I'm sure I'm one of the few people that feel this way, too. My expectations were high for this book; I had read so many reviews about it, so I couldn't wait to start it. I'm pretty sure that's the reason it wasn't as great for me. So many times, not all, but many times I get really excited to read a book, I feel like I don't love it as much as everyone else. My other thought is that it took me a while to finish this book. As a previous post of mine on my blog, I've been super busy lately with wedding plans since its just three short weeks away! This is making it take longer for me to get through books and consumed so much of my time. Maybe if I had read it all within a few days I would have enjoyed it more.

That being said, I still really liked this book! The story is heartbreaking - how do you choose between leaving your life behind or staying after everything has changed so much? The characters are pretty well developed and I enjoyed getting to know them. I think Teddy is a cute younger brother and reminds me of mine, although he's now 23! And her parents are fun and loving people, even a little hippy, which I found very entertaining! I also really envy Mia's character in her cello abilities! I can't play an instrument to save my life, so anytime I hear about someone who can, I'm instantly jealous! haha I really want to read the next book in this series! It will probably be a while before I have a chance to get a copy and read it, but I think it will be a good follow-up to this one! (:

[Review] Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Publisher (this version): Signet Classics

Publishing Date (this version): Jan. 2, 2008

Publishing Date (original): 1813
Format: paperback, purchased
379 Pages
Links: Goodreads | B&N | Amazon

Synopsis 

Spirited Elizabeth Bennet is one of a family of five daughters, and with no male heir, the Bennet estate must someday pass to their priggish cousin William Collins. Therefore, the girls must marry well—and thus is launched the story of Elizabeth and the arrogant bachelor Mr. Darcy, in a novel renowned as the epitome of romance and wit. Pride and Prejudiceis Jane Austen’s masterwork, an entertaining portrait of matrimonial rites and rivalries, timeless in its hilarity and its honesty.

My Review

There's honestly probably not much more than I can say about this book that other readers haven't already said or thought, so I'm just going to say what I thought! I bought this book about 6 years ago because I had never read it and really wanted to. I then proceeded to pick up the book about 10 times and put it down 10 times. I just couldn't get into it; the writing was difficult for me to read, and because of that, it took me a long time to get through just a few chapters and then I would pick up a book I knew I could get done in 2 or 3 days, rather than 2 or 3 weeks. 

I also think part of me was a little afraid to read it because I absolutely adore the Pride and Prejudice movie with Keira Knightly and Matthew Macfadyen. So while I knew I'd like the storyline, I couldn't tell if I'd like the actual book as much. But I convinced myself I would be reading it this year, so I picked it up and just kept pushing through. 

And guess what? I loved it! The writing definitely took some time for me to get used to, and I kept my dictionary app up on my phone almost the whole time, but after a while, I started becoming a little familiar with it and reading wasn't taking me quite as long. Don't get me wrong, it still took me a while to get through the book and I know it will continue to take me a while to get through these types of novels, but its so much more enjoyable now!

P&P was such a great read for me. I fell in love with it and the characters immediately. Mr. Darcy... ahh what can I say?! I was so infuriated with him at times, but then so infatuated at others. And I found Elizabeth to be really charming. She speaks her mind but always seems to have others' bests interests at heart. Lydia drove me crazy and so did Mrs. Bennet a little bit, but they were still so interesting to read about. And Mr. Bennet is funny! Throughout the book, I found myself laughing so many times, nearly crying at others - oh Jane Austen, what have you done to me?? I now find myself wanting to read all her books right away! Though I am going to have to read a few others in between to give my mind a rest from concentrating so hard on that language. Haha. 

Basically, I thought this book was beautiful. I want to reread it because I know that I'll find things I missed the first time around. I would absolutely recommend this book, but I would also say that you need to be in the right mindset for it. I don't know what that is, everyone's different, but like I said, I tried multiple times to pick it up and just couldn't get into it. But I knew I wanted to read it, so I kept trying and this time, it worked! I know a lot of people won't give a book that many chances, but I encourage you to with this one! (: 

*Book Promo* Winterkill by P.H. Turner

Winterkill

by P.H. Turner

Released June 2014

Synopsis 

A beautiful reporter and a charming rancher are caught in a web of mayhem, murder…and lust.

Reporter Sawyer Cahill returns home to Cheyenne, Wyoming to report for the local station. But leaving behind the coverage of the gangland murders of San Antonio only lands her smack in the middle of the ritualistic animal mutilations. Harassed and threatened by the freak behind the bizarre murders, Sawyer plunges into her investigation, reaping the attentions of two local ranchers.

Local rancher, Jake Spooner, tangles with a tug of war relationship with Sawyer. Tormented between his smoldering desire for Sawyer and his wish to keep her safe, their passion flames in a mountain snow storm.

Link to Follow Tour: http://www.tastybooktours.com/2014/07/winterkill-by-ph-turner.html

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21891273-winterkill?from_search=true

Buy Links 

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Winterkill-PH-Turner-ebook/dp/B00JF7ZF90/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=undefined&sr=8-4&keywords=winterkill

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/winterkill-ph-turner/1119105194?ean=9781616506339

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/winterkill-7

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/winterkill/id853829605?mt=11

About the Author

Teaching and shooting news and documentaries took me to work on the East and West coasts, the Midwest and an island in the Gulf of Mexico. Born a fourth generation Texan, I live in Austin with an energetic mutt that waits patiently every day for me to come home and write

Author Links

Publisher: http://www.kensingtonbooks.com/author.aspx/30573

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/P.H.TurnerAuthor

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8135186.P_H_Turner

Excerpt

I met him for happy hour at the Yella Feather bar over on the south side about 5:30 on a hot August evening. He was dead by 6:15. Ours was a short relationship.

Lieutenant Deaver was one of the old guys with the San Antonio PD. He strolled in with the coroner, finding me where the first responder had put me. Over in a corner holding up a yellowed wall that reeked with years of stale nicotine.

“You okay?” Deaver asked.

“Yeah, think so.” I took a weak swallow of warm Coke.

“What happened?” He pulled out a rickety chair and sat down.

I slumped into a seat beside him. “I didn’t see the killer. My back was to the door when I heard the sound of a round chambered. Right in front me—Rodriguez was talking to me—a small, round hole drilled into his forehead. I heard the door bang shut and a car squeal off, but by the time I made it outside there was nothing to see and only cordite to smell.”

I looked around the bar, broken-down scarred tabletops, wobbly chairs, flaking vinyl floors with duct tape covering the cracks. The stink of disinfectant and stale grease mingled with gun smoke. Helluva place for a kid to die.

“How long you known him, Cahill?” Deaver asked softly.

“I’d say about forty-five minutes, give or take.”

He scratched his left armpit, his face screwed into thought. “What were you doing with Rodriguez? Source of yours?”

Giveaway

($5.00 Amazon GC &; Ebook Copy of WINTERKILL)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Break from Blogging (mostly)

It's sad for me to say this, but I have to take a break from blogging :( It really comes down to some amazing things happening for me lately and coming up, but its still sad! The first thing is that I've recently gotten a new job! I really love this one and I'm so much happier here than at my previous job. The second is that I'm getting MARRIED in one month! Ahhhhh So exciting, but that also means SO much work left in planning! Every spare minute that I have is dedicated to wedding things. Which is amazing, but a bummer that I don't have as much time to read and blog. The third is that right after the wedding, we're taking our amazing honeymoon to Europe for two weeks! Italy and Greece are calling our names!

So, with everything that's been going on, I just haven't had the time to dedicate to blogging. Believe me, I still plan on reading a lot (as much as I can)! But I definitely won't be on here that much. I'll still be posting anything previously scheduled, but won't be taking much else on. Hopefully after the wedding I'll be jumping right back in! I'm going to try to post when I can, but it's been a little slow lately and will continue to be slow for a bit.... Talk to you all very soon! (:

*Book Tour* Worth the Fall by Claudia Conner

Worth The Fall

The McKinney Brothers # 1

By: Claudia Connor

Releasing September 9th, 2014

Synopsis 

Prepare to be swept away by a talented debut author with a passionate, powerful story to tell.

They meet on a beach. . . . Abby Davis isn’t wearing a skimpy bikini or sipping umbrella drinks, not when she’s busy chasing around four little ones. And Matt McKinney isn’t looking for fun—he’s a Navy SEAL, a grown man with a long list of missions . . . and fallen brothers.

They only have a week. . . . Abby has brought her children to this beach to start over, to give them the enjoyable memories they deserve. Matt’s been sidelined by a combat injury, and haunted by the best friend he lost and the promise he made: to remain a SEAL—focused and dedicated. This leaves no time for what he’s always wanted: a family.

But a week is all it takes. . . . Matt opens her heart while Abby soothes his soul. And though they plan to say good-bye when the week is over, something magical happens on that beach, something neither can forget. Something utterly, completely worth falling for.

Link to Follow Tour: http://www.tastybooktours.com/2014/07/worth-fall-mckinney-brothers-1-by.html

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21469653-worth-the-fall?from_search=true

Buy Links

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Worth-Fall-McKinney-Claudia-Connor-ebook/dp/B00J1IQX4E/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1407203839&sr=1-1&keywords=Worth+the+Fall

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/worth-the-fall-claudia-connor/1120019663?ean=9780553390919

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/worth-the-fall/id841778887?mt=11

About the Author

Claudia Connor attended Auburn University, where she received her undergraduate and masters degrees in early childhood education, and completed her studies in Sawbridgeworth, England. Always a lover of happy endings, she enjoys movies, reading, and spending her days putting on paper the stories in her head. She lives near Memphis, Tennessee, with her husband and three daughters.

Author Links

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/claudia.connor.18

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Claudia__Connor

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8058866.Claudia_Connor

Tell Me Something Tuesday 9.9.14

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Heidi @ Rainy Day Ramblings. Each week a new question is presented. Check out Heidi's blog for all the details :)

This week's question: What are your book picks for fall 2014? 

I love questions like these, but hate them at the same time. I love making lists and picking out what I'm going to read next. But I'm really bad about sticking to that list... Happens every time no matter how hard I try! It really comes down to me being a mood reader, I think. Sometimes I want to read romances, sometimes mysteries, other times young adult. Just depends what I'm feeling at the time, which is why I don't stick to these lists very well. I rock lists in every other area of my life, just not reading (: But I'll try anyways! 

1. Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult

2. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

3. 8th Confession by James Patterson

4. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

5. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

6. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

7. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

8. Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

Feature and Follow Friday! 9.5.14

Feature and Follow is a blog hop hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. The purpose is to meet new people and gain more followers in the book blogging community. If this is your first time here, welcome! You are about to make some new friends and gain new followers. But you have to know, the point of this hop is to follow other blogs also. I follow you, you follow me. 

The general rules are: 

- Follow the Feature and Follow Hosts (Parajunkee and Alison Can Read)

- Follow the Featured Bloggers

- Put your Blog name and URL in the Linky thing. You can also grab the code if you would like to insert it into your posts. 

- Grab the button up there and place it in a post. This post is for people to say hi and that they are now following you in your comments. 

- Follow, Follow, Follow as many as you can. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Don't just follow, comment and say hi in the post! Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say 'hi'

- If someone comments and says they are following you, please follow back! 

This weeks question: Are you a writer? If so, what genre? Or if not, have you ever considered writing? 

I'm not a writer currently (not considering blogging), but I've always wanted to! My goal is to one day write a book, but I find that I just don't have the time right now. With planning a wedding, starting a new job, and having another hundred or so hobbies, I don't find (or make) the time. Since it is a longterm goal of mine, though, I'm hoping that I can start writing sometime soon! Not entirely sure what genre I'd like to write; maybe young adult, maybe romance, maybe general fiction. I'll probably just get an idea and go from there without trying to conform to a specific genre. 

August 2014 Wrap-Up

I can't believe August is over already! Where did the summer go? I feel like everyone is saying that these days and it's true - it's over with so quickly! I swear, the older I get, the fast time seems to fly by! Bring on the fall season! (:

This past month was pretty busy for me outside of blogging, so unfortunately I didn't get as many books done as I would have liked and didn't create many blog posts, but that happens sometimes. I'm sure once my wedding is over (its next month already! eek!), I'll have a little more time do work on my blog and read (:

August Reviews

The Goodbye Summer by Patricia Gaffney

How Do I Love Thee by Lurlene McDaniel

Leaving Home: Short Pieces by Jodi Picoult

Keeping Mr. Right by Robin Bielman

Time and Again by Nora Roberts

Now You See Her by James Patterson

One For the Money by Janet Evanovich

Other Posts

Feature and Follow Friday

What is the biggest city you live near (or interesting landmark)?

Stacking the Shelves

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten books (and authors) I'd recommend to those who haven't read mysteries.

Feature and Follow Friday: Favorite social media

*Book Blast* The Graham Sage by Anna Belfrage

*Blog Tour* Keeping Mr. Right Now by Robin Bielman

2014 Challenge Updates

I'm slowly working on completing these challenges! It's much more difficult than I was anticipating, but I think that's because of all the things that have come up in my personal life this year. There have been a few months that I've done really well, and other months...not so much. But I've decided that I don't necessarily need to do the exact challenge every month and its more about broadening my reading horizons and trying new things, so that's ultimately what matters to me (: 

Jumble Your Genres 

2014 Monthly Motif Challenge 

2014 Monthly Keyword Challenge

First Reads Challenge 

2014 TBR Pile Challenge

2014 Series Challenge

Tell Me Something Tuesday 9.2.14

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Heidi @ Rainy Day Ramblings. Each week a new question is presented. Check out Heidi's blog for all the details :)

This week's question: What are some of the things you look forward to during the fall season? 

Oh, I don't know where to start because I love everything about fall! I love seeing the leaves change colors and therefore all of scenery changing and I love the smell of Autumn in the air (I hope I'm not the only one who smells this!) I love having pumpkin flavors of everything, especially lattes; I love the weather getting cooler. Wearing "fall clothes" like sweatshirts, jeans, long sleeves, and hats is my favorite! I love knowing that its cool enough outside that I can snuggle inside with a good book, blanket and a cup of coffee/cappuccino. And I really love halloween! I don't get dressed up for it much, but I still love the activities and seeing all the decorations. Along with that comes haunted houses, pumpkin patches, and hayrides. Plus, fall has Thanksgiving! Sure, its at the end of the fall season, but definitely one of my favorite holidays!

And most importantly, this fall I'm looking forward to getting married! Our big day is October 18!! Can't believe its next month already. Fall is my favorite season, so no better time to have our wedding (: 

Absolutely love this season! Can't get any better (: