Review: Department 19

Department 19 by Will Hill

Synopsis (From Goodreads):  Jamie Carpenter's life will never be the same. His father is dead, his mother is missing, and he was just rescued by an enormous man named Frankenstein. Jamie is brought to Department 19, where he is pulled into a secret organization responsible for policing the supernatural, founded more than a century ago by Abraham Van Helsing and the other survivors of Dracula. Aided by Frankenstein's monster, a beautiful vampire girl with her own agenda, and the members of the agency, Jamie must attempt to save his mother from a terrifyingly powerful vampire. 

Department 19 takes us through history, across Europe, and beyond - from the cobbled streets of Victorian London to prohibition-era New York, from the icy wastes of Arctic Russia to the treacherous mountains of Transylvania. Part modern thriller, part classic horror, it's packed with mystery, mayhem, and a level of suspense that makes a Darren Shan novel look like a romantic comedy.

Jamie Carpenter always thought vampires were stuff of stories, that was until his mother goes missing and he's attacked by something waiting for him at home. After being saved by a man named Frankenstein, Jamie is brought to Department 19, a place that's not meant to exist (well, at least no one knows exists). Department 19 is a secret government organisation that is responsible for policing the supernatural and keeping the world of vampires and monsters a secret from the outside world. Aided by Frankenstein and a vampire girl who may or may not be dangerous, but definitely has her own agenda for helping them, they must attempt to save Jamie's mother and defeat a powerful and ancient vampire.

I had heard good things about Department 19 before I picked up the book, and I was not let down. Will Hill has created an intriguing under-world using the legendary vampire Dracula and the hunter Van Helsing as a starting point for his world. He has brought the terrifyingly dangerous vampire back into the modern generation which is good to see.

Jamie Carpenter is an interesting character. He knows nothing about this world or what his father did. He has been led to believe that his father was an international terrorist instead of a vampire hunter when he died. This little detail with his father helped to create a tough and well-rounded character. Together with a cast of oddities from Frankenstein's monster to a beautiful vampire who seems to want to help Jamie but everyone says can't trust her, to the ancient vampire set on seeing all the Carpenter family dead, this makes it a thrilling page turner from beginning to end.

The use of the two time lines, the modern with Jamie and the past with Van Helsing, helps to give the reader a deeper insight into the world, while still foreshadowing for events that are yet to come. I recommend this to anyone who loves vampires (especially the rip-people's-throats-out, savage kind). I look forward to seeing where Jamie's adventures goes next with the sequel.

Source: audio book
2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge: #6 of 11-20

2012 YA Reading Challenge: #20 of 50

Procrastination Buster

I have to admit it. I'm an expert at procrastination, especially when it comes to avoiding work. I don't know what I do, but I can sit in front of the computer (promising that I'll start writing) and before I know it several hours have passed.

Yeah, I know, with the amount of time I sit in front of the computer I could have a dozen novels written right now, but alas, my need to procrastinate is still there.

So, how can one person aim to defeat that enemy of every writer, or every person with a computer? You could do something drastic like disconnecting the internet (gah) or getting someone to lock you in a small room with nothing but a notepad and pen and not letting you out until you finish that first draft you've been meaning to complete. Okay, so that's a little too drastic. What about following these tips and bust that procrastination:

1. Prioritise your time: Know what you want to complete and what 'needs' to be completed. Some things may have more priority and so must be completed before anything else. 
2. Set a goal: Yeah, procrastination comes when you don't know what you're working towards. Having a goal is one way to tell yourself that you must complete so many words before you can have a break.
3. Reward yourself: Everyone loves to get rewarded, it makes completing something so much more... rewarding. Give yourself something for completing goals, even if it's ten minutes on Twitter (well, you need to announce to everyone that you completed that goal).
4. Positive motivation: Surround yourself with positive people. Having people who can support you and congratulate you for completing goals will help power you on until you have all your goals completed.
5. Don't be unrealistic: Don't say you're going to write the whole first draft in one sitting (even though i could possibly be done if you don't need sleep, food or any other relief), your goals need to be realistic or you'll get bored and boredom is definitely one road back to procrastination.

And here's a fantastic little video of Lisa Simpson writing a novel, and I promise you watching this isn't procrastination :D

So, how do you beat procrastination? Do you have any other tips?

Review: Shift

Shift by Kim Curran

Synopsis (From Goodreads):  When your average, 16-year old loser, Scott Tyler, meets the beautiful and mysterious Aubrey Jones, he learns he's not so average after all. He's a 'Shifter'. And that means he has the power to undo any decision he's ever made. At first, he thinks the power to shift is pretty cool. But as his world starts to unravel around him he realises that each time he uses his power, it has consequences; terrible unforeseen consequences. Shifting is going to get him killed. In a world where everything can change with a thought, Scott has to decide where he stands.
Scott was always average, hidden in the crowd, but that was until the day he met Aubrey Jones who tells him he's a Shifter, someone with the ability to alter decisions that they make. Scott thinks this could be a cool power, but soon realises that even the smallest decision can have dire consequences and could even end up hurting the ones closest to him.

In an effort to control these powers and help him understand the effects of each decision altered, he turns to ARES, the government organisation who regulates all Shifters, but doing so he is also pulled into a battle between the rebel group, the SLF (Shifting Liberation Front) and trying to hide from a rather grotesque villain who is out to kill him. Scott has to decide who to trust, especially when everyone around him can manipulate the world the way they want it to be.

I was hanging out for Shift's release ever since I heard about the opening of the print Strange Chemistry, and I was not disappointed. Scott is an average teenager in the nicest sense. He is not perfect and he knows it, his family is not perfect and even though he would like it if they were a little less dysfunctional, he would not give them up, and this is what makes his a well-rounded and likable character.  Scott isn't the only interesting character in this book, it is full of interesting and unique characters from the mysterious  Aubrey who gets Scott involved with ARES to the young members who are training at ARES, even all the adults have fleshed out characters and hidden agendas that adds to the twists and turns of the story.

Kim Curran has written an intriguing debut that captures the reader's attention from the premise and keeps a hold. Who wouldn't want the power to alter any mistake they have ever made? Or know what path each decision will lead them down? It's not just the premise that's interesting, there are plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader guessing what's going to happen next. There was only one part of the book that felt a bit muddled, and that was trying to figure out where all the story lines of ARES, SLF and the grotesque baddie all fit together because at parts it felt as if the stories were separate and had no connections to the main storyline, but everything all came together in one finale which felt like a roller coaster of emotions. I would recommend Shift for any lover of superheroes and mysteries, or anyone who has ever faced a decision that they wished they could undo. If this is what Strange Chemistry can deliver, I'm looking forward to reading the next releases.

Source: paperback
2012 Debut Author Challenge: #7 of 12

2012 YA Reading Challenge: #19 of 50

A bit of down time...

It's holidays here and apart from trying to get over a serious infection that knocked me out the last week of school, I've decided it's time for a bit of relaxation... Even though holidays have just started I've been trying to catch up on all my reading that I've been missing due to school obligations. I think before I even think of any more school work I'm going to take some time away and catch up on my reading and writing (things that I've seriously been neglecting).

Yeah, those are things that help me relax and I'm going to do plenty of relaxing during the first week.

So, what things do you do when you have time off?

Feeling under the weather...

What's the problem with Winter? Well, I thought I was going to survive it, but I guess I'm not that strong and I've had the dang flu for the past month. Yeah, it's not nice feeling sick, but there is always a bright side. I hear you saying, there's no bright side to being sick (but at the moment I'd rather be the 'glass-half-full kind of girl).

I've been allowed to catch up on the much needed sleep that I haven't been able to get due to being flat out with work, and hey, there's only four days left until the school holidays where I'll be spending at least one week up on the nice, sunny Gold Coast and doing nothing but writing and relaxing. See, it's always better to look on the bright side than to be a Mopey Madam.

So, who also looks on the bright side when they're sick? Or, what cold remedies do you know (that's something that I really need to know)?

Finally back!

Sorry I've been absent lately. It's been a very busy few months. I've barely had time for anything besides work and sleep (even writing has had to suffer), but now I'm catching up with everything I'm making a promise that I'm coming back and I'm going to put aside time for my writing (seriously, I've got several novels that need to be finished).

So, now I'm back... and this time I'm going to be staying back :)

What's everyone been up to?

Organisation! Who needs it?

Okay, so I'm not exactly the most organised person, especially when it comes to time. I have so many chaotic things I need to get done and I keep saying "I'll spend an hour doing one thing before moving on", but that never goes to plan.

I have a habit of getting side-tracked or becoming too focused on the one task that I lose track of time and not have any time for anything else.

One thing I am going to try and do is to force myself to stick to time limits and organise my afternoon time into four chunks (writing, school work, family and learning a foreign language... yes, that's taking up a lot of time at the moment).

So, how does everyone organise their time? Do you find you have too many things going on and not enough hours to complete everything?