Signed Mockingjay Giveaway!

Hey everyone!! I am super excited about this giveaway and wanted to share it all with you! Over at Sarah's blog she is giving away a SIGNED copy of Mockingjay!! To enter all you have to do is be a follower of her blog, and leave a comment! Extra entries are available if you tell your favorite Peeta and Katniss moment, write an entry about the giveaway on your blog, tweet about it or add it to your sidebar! So, what are you waiting for!? Go enter this AMAZING giveaway by clicking here!

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Title: The Hunger Games

Author: Suzanne Collins

Where I Got The Book: Library

Why I Read It: Mostly because everyone else is/was going on and on about how good this book/series is. I wanted to find out for myself.

Rating: B


Well guys... I finally did it. I finally read The Hunger Games. My first impression, as I was first starting to book was that it was horribly written, boring, and lacking interest. I know, I'm sure all of you are screaming at your computers right now asking me if I'm crazy. But, as I kept reading, kept pushing my way through the book, I found myself getting more and more into the story, couldn't put the book down, and found myself wanting to reach the end quick to see what happens.

I'm sure 80% of you know what the Hunger Games is about, but just in case, I will tell you.

The Hunger Games takes place in a country with 12 districts. Each district is poor in their own way, but most of them don't ever have any food, and no money to get food. They have to go out each day, risk their lives, and hunt for game, find roots, berries, nuts, etc. just to live. Well, in this country, they have this thing called The Hunger Games. From each district, 1 through 12, two people are drawn from a big ball of names to fight to the death against each other to win the games and the winner of the district wins food for their entire area. Hence the name The Hunger Games. The two people from each district are put into an arena where they have limited supplies of food, water, clothing, etc. and they have to kill each other to find a winner. The two main characters, Peeta and Katniss are from District 12, and they're fighting to be the first two winners ever in the games. This book reminds me of a reality tv show, much like Suvivor. I feel like my decription of the book isn't doing it justice. But I don't want to give too much away at the same time. So, I'm going to post the description from Good reads below:

"Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with every one out to make sure you don't live to see the morning? 

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. 

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love."

That does help a little bit in describing the story. As I said, I felt like this book was boring, lacking interest, and wasn't as good as everyone said when I first started reading it. But as the book went on, and it got closer to the actual Hunger Games, the book was amazing. It was hard to put down, it was compelling, and you found yourself routing for the characters. The only reason I'm giving it a B and not an A is because I felt like it took too long for the book to really get started and get interesting. While some books you read, you can kind of predict the ending, this book had you second guessing yourself mutliple times because you thought you had the ending figured out, but then the author would throw you off and you'd wonder if you're right or not. When I first started the book, I wasn't sure if I was going to read the rest of the series, but the ending leaves you wanting more, and wanting to find out what happens next between Peeta and Katniss. So, I will be reading and reviewing book 2 ASAP!

This is definitely a must read and a book that I think deserves all of the popularity, praise and attention that it has been receiving. While there's a debate going on if this series is the next Twilight, I'm not sure if I agree there. But do see some comparisons. Now, if you haven't already, go read this book!!

Hunger Games vs. Twilight

Just curious from my fellow book readers/Twilight fans/Hunger Games fans what you think about this topic. I'm noticing lots of people saying that the Hunger Games series is the next Twilight. Do you agree or disagree? Why or why not? I just would like other peoples thoughts and opinions on this. I read the Twilight saga, and I am currently reading Hunger Games, so far, I don't think it's the next or new Twilight. What do you all think?


Here is a link to an article I read about this if you're interested: Why 'The Hunger Games' Isn't The New Twilight

The Last Bridge by Teri Coyne

Title: The Last Bridge

Author: Teri Coyne

Where I Got This Book: Same as always... the public library!

Why I Read This Book: I've heard LOTS of things about it, so wanted to check it out for myself.

Rating: B


This book was....... Crazy? Different? Odd? I'm not even sure what word to use. It was the type of book where you take a step back and ask yourself, "Do these things really happen to people?" because unless you've gone through these same experiences, then it's hard for you to even begin to imagine these things happening to others, and when it does, you can't imagine how they feel.

The Last Bridge is about a girl named Alexandra "Cat" Rucker, who has been on the run from her past for 10 years. She's an alcoholic, who smokes too much, and has a series of meaningless jobs that she keeps getting fired from. Cat has been trying for years to forget her past, but a sudden call from an old neighbor forces Cat to return to the home and family she never intended to see again. Cat's mother is dead, and her elderly father is in the hospital, in a coma. Cat returns to the farm house to find a suicide note that says, "Cat, he isn't who he think he is. Mom xxxooo". Cat doesn't know what to think about this note, and suddenly her world is turned upside down, trying to figure out who "he" is. So, as the funeral comes to and end, Cat is finding out tons of family secrets that she'd never would have known, or guessed before now. Cat is thrown into a taut, gripping and edgy look into the past, present, and future. All she has to do now, is figure out where to go from here.

In the beginning of the book, I found myself kind of bored, and disappointed. I had to really push my way through the beginning. But, once I did, it was MUCH easier for me to read, hard for me to put down, and a book that I would definitely recommend to others to read! It's incredibly sad, but yet very heartwarming, alluring and a few funny parts thrown in. It's a mystery, and a family drama, all put into one.

The reason I gave it a B is mainly just because of the beginning. It didn't grip my attention right away, so I didn't feel it deserved an A. But I would definitely recommend everyone to read it!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I'm Dying To Read

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at the other blog I participate in, The Broke and the Bookish. If you would like to jump into this fun weekly meme, go ahead to your blog and create a post, linking back to The Broke and the Bookish's blog, and put in the required information in their linky widget so others can follow you to your blog and see what you said as well!!! So, go ahead! 

TOP TEN BOOKS I'M DYING TO READ

In no particular order...

1.) Leaving by Karen Kingsbury

The first book in the Bailey Flanagin series.

2.) Save Haven by Nicholas Sparks

Came out today! Woo! 

3.) Wicked Appetite by Janet Evanovich

4.) Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult

She's my all time favorite author. Unfortunately, I have to wait until March 2011 =( 

5.) Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I am ashamed to say I haven't read this book/series yet. It's definitely on my must read list!

6.) True Colors by Kristin Hannah

Will be starting this book soon!

7.) The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

I read this when I was a little girl, and now I'm going to read it for banned books week. Its been a long time, I'm just super excited!

8.) Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick 

9.) Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner


10.) Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury

I am probably most excited about this one. It comes out in October! 

The Wednesday Letters by Jason F. Wright

Title: The Wednesday Letters

Author: Jason F. Wright

Why I Read This Book: I read a review on this book on another blog, and I wanted to check it out!

Where I Got It: You'll never guess... the Public Library!

Rating: A

This book is about two older couples who own their own Bed and Breakfast, and the husband, Jack, has a brain tumor that he and his wife, Laurel, have to get through. They've got three children, Mathew, Malcolm and Samantha.

Jack and Laurel have been married for 39 years, and have what appears to be, the perfect marriage. They had the dream of opening up their own B&B someday, and luckily they were able to. One night while Jack and Laurel were in bed, Laurel was complaining of heartburn, but all of a sudden she was clutching her chest, and gasping for air. She was asking Jack for help, but he was incredibly weakened by his brain tumor that he could not help her. Sadly, she passed away. During their 39 years of marriage, Jack wrote a letter to Laurel every Wednesday. After Laurel took her last breath that night, Jack wrote his final Wednesday letter to Laurel, then tucked it away, laid down in bed next to his wife, putting his arms around her, and took his final breath as well. Their three children come together in the grieving process before the funeral and happen to stumble upon the boxes and boxes of Wednesday letters that their father and written to their Mother. As they were reading through the letters, they each found out something about their past that they hadn't known before, most of the secrets being a trying realization.

This book is about redemption, forgiveness, longing, remembering, grieving, and understanding that life is the hardest thing you'll ever life through, but with family, God, and friends, you can live through anything.

I personally thought this was a fantastic book. It was cute, funny, sad, heart warming and heart breaking. I found myself bawling like a little baby in some parts, laughing in others, and there are a lot of jaw dropping events as well. I highly HIGHLY recommend that you ALL add this book to your TBR pile/lists. To tell you how much I enjoyed this book, it's 280 pages long, and I finished it ONE day! Less than 12 hours. And the best part of the book... at least in the copy I had from the library, was an envelope that said "Epilogue" on it, and it was a letter. I won't tell you who wrote it, or what it said, but that was AWESOME! It was the perfect ending to a perfect story!

Please, if you've read this book, or when you do, let me know how you liked and/or disliked it!

Trouble Maker By Janet and Alex Evanovich

Title: Trouble Maker: Book One, A Barnaby and Hooker Graphic Novel

Author: Janet and Alex Evanovich

Why I Read This Book: Janet Evanovich is one of my favorite authors of all time, and I read the first two books in this series, so I had to read this one too!

Where I Got It: Public Library, of course!

Rating: B/C

First, let me explain that a Graphic Novel is a Comic book, in case some of you weren't sure. Also, I had mentioned above that I read the first two books in this series, but the title says Book One. The first two books in the series are actual books, not graphic novels. This is the first in the series that's a graphic novel. Basically, it's a new series with the same story line/characters!

This was actually a cute, light read. It's about two people named Alex Barnaby, and Sam Hooker who are constantly caught up in different fighting crime situations that consists of lots of danger, mayhem, stress, chaos, panic and disorder. Alex is an automacanic, and Sam is a racecar driver -- so you can imagine how these two met. Well, in this book, Alex and Sam's friends, Rosa and Felicia are caught up in some sort of Black Magic Voodoo Cult, and Rosa has gone missing. So, Alex and Sam set out to find Rosa, while running into a bunch of trouble along the way. Things like an exploding voodoo doll, gift-wrapped body parts, etc.

So, on to the rating of this book. It was a great little book. I was a little ify when I first heard about this book, because I didn't think I'd enjoy it much, being a graphic novel. But it was actually quite good. And the graphics are amazing. It shows exactly what the characters are thinking, just by the expressions on their faces. However, I know some of you are thinking, "What exactly is a B/C rating?" Well, I just recently changed to the letter grade rating system because I feel in most cases, it works better. But, I did have one issue with the book that led me to wanting to give it a C: It ended so quickly and abruptly that it made me kinda annoyed! I understand it's a graphic novel, so it's not meant to be a huge book, but I felt like the way it ended was a little too, what's the word? Too... I can't think of a good word, but it left me feeling super anxious for the next graphic novel. I know that was Janet's intention all along, but still! So, I have to wait until November 2010 for the next book! So, I was thinking that if I did still do the star rating, it would get a 4.5 stars, not quite 4, not quite 5... so, that's where the B/C rating comes in. Not quite a B, but not quite a C!

I do suggest that you all add this to your TBR list as a quick read. You'll probably finish it within 20 minutes, but it's just something cute, fun and something to giggle at!

Enjoy!

[[ I didn't add the graphic for my rating at the bottom of this post, because of the 'weird' B/C combo!]]