Review: The Name of the Star

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

Synopsis (From Goodreads): The day Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London, it's the start of a new life at a boarding school. But for many, this will be remembered as the day a series of brutal murders broke out across the city, gruesome crimes mimicking the horrific Jack the Ripper events of more than a century ago.

London is gripped with fear. Someone has started copying the brutal murders that were committed by Jack the Ripper more than a century ago. For Rory, it is the start of her new life as an American teenager at a London boarding school. After a near death experience, Rory starts seeing things, people that don't exist. One she does see happens the same night a murder is committed on the school premises, and now she might be the only key to unravelling the mystery surrounding this new Jack the Ripper.

I love the mystery surrounding Jack the Ripper, and Maureen Johnson recreates that fantastically in this creepy mystery. I felt myself being swept up in the whole gruesome scene and I loved it. Rory is a fun and intriguing character who is definitely out of place since she is the only American in this English boarding school.

The Name of the Star is full of page-turning thrills and a mystery that will keep you guessing until the last page. I look forward to seeing what's next in Rory's adventures.

Source: audible
2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge: #3 of 11

2012 YA Reading Challenge: #11 of 50

Silence or Sound?

After all the work I've been doing, I've finally been able to get back to writing DARK SIGHT. For some reason, I can't work in silence. I need something in the background to help my mind keep flowing with the creative juices.

Since I do most of my writing at home and there's no one around I usually have the TV on low in the background. Last night I found myself writing and thinking one word but writing one that someone on the TV said.

I had to check my MS to make sure no other unexpected words had sneaked their way in amongst the story. This doesn't mean I won't have the TV on while writing, I'll just have to focus more on WHAT I'm writing rather than zoning out and ending up copying what people are saying (especially on advertisements... that's just the worst dialogue you can have).

So, do you write best with silence or sound?

Review: Half-blood

Half-blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout


Synopsis (From Goodreads): The Hematoi descend from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi-pure-bloods-have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals-well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pures. Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, but especially rule #1:Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden. Unfortunately, she's crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn't her biggest problem--staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

Alex is a half-blood and her mother removed her from the Covenant without telling her why, in order to live a semi-normal life. Now, forced to return to the Covenant after the death of her mother, she has to prove that she still belongs there, training to take down the ones who killed her mother: Daimons. Together with pure-blood Aiden, she has to train even harder or she will be forced into servitude (a life no half-blood would choose). Unfortunately training isn't the only thing on her mind. She is also crushing hard on Aiden, which is bad. If anyone found out she would be in even more trouble than she already is due to the #1 rule: Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden.

I had been hearing lots of good things about Armentrout's half-blood, but it took me a long time to get around to reading it and I'm not sorry. Packed full of action and temptation, it definitely is a page turner. Alex has created a vivid and unique world around the Greek mythology of the gods, and Alex was the perfect heroine. Her voice was strong and full of emotion. Even though she has guilt plaguing her, she never lets that stop her from doing what she needs to. I especially loved her rebellious edge and her need to challenge authority at every turn.

I really look forward to reading Pure.

Source: e-book
2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge: #2 of 11

2012 YA Reading Challenge: #10 of 50

YAY! I'm back

Sorry for such a long absence, I promise I have a really good excuse. It has been a super busy month. I've actually started teaching this year (which is a lot more work than I've had to do for a long time). This has involved moving to a new town, to a new state.

Apart from moving and preparing my lessons for all my classes, I've also had a lot of technical difficulties. When I first moved, I had no hot water, no television, no telephone, no internet... okay, now I've got the hot water and television. What I don't have is a telephone or internet (yeah, the bright telephone company switched my phone off when they connected my internet, now I have neither)... I'm just using a mobile stick until then.

Now that I'm actually organised (well, nearly organised), I'm going to return to blogging and writing and using social networks...

So, how has everyone been?