Book Review: Crown of Embers by Rae Carson.

 Crown of Embers by Rae Carson.
(Fire and Thorns #2)
Book Summary: In the sequel to the acclaimed The Girl of Fire and Thorns, a seventeen-year-old princess turned war queen faces sorcery, adventure, untold power, and romance as she fulfills her epic destiny.

Elisa is the hero of her country. She led her people to victory against a terrifying enemy, and now she is their queen. But she is only seventeen years old. Her rivals may have simply retreated, choosing stealth over battle. And no one within her court trusts her-except Hector, the commander of the royal guard, and her companions. As the country begins to crumble beneath her and her enemies emerge from the shadows, Elisa will take another journey. With a one-eyed warrior, a loyal friend, an enemy defector, and the man she is falling in love with, Elisa crosses the ocean in search of the perilous, uncharted, and mythical source of the Godstone's power. That is not all she finds. A breathtaking, romantic, and dangerous second volume in the Fire and Thorns trilogy.

Liana's Summary: Elisa's enemies may have been put back, but only temporarily. She knows that she's in danger-- her country's in danger-- and the ones she care about are in danger as well. She can't afford to lose anyone else, after she's lost so much already. No one trusts their new queen, though, as she is a woman and only 17 years old-- except for Hector, the commander of her royal guard. But, will it develop into something more than trust? Rae Carson writes a breathtaking second novel to the Fire and Thorns series.

Rate(1-10): 9

Well, when I saw this at the library I was just like, hey! I need to read the second book of Fire and Thorns! So, despite my crazy TBR list, I picked it up and checked it out to read. Yep, the first book was just that good.

I read Girl of Fire and Thorns a few months ago, and I have to admit I forgot some of the important details. But I remembered most of it. 

One of the reasons that this book deserves such a high rating is because of the wonderful storyline, the way everything is plotted out. Despite the stereotype about the second book in a series to always be boring, this book turned out to be great. Another reason, though, is because the main character is so authentic. She has many flaws, but she still tries her hardest. She's one of the most authentic characters I've ever met, and I like that. She sets a good example for not only the people in the book, in her life, but also for her readers as well.

I stayed up last night to read, LOL. I think I'm finally speeding back up! Finished in one day. (; That's what happens when I tell myself to get away from the computer. Now I'm super pumped for book 3! For some reason, I have this feeling that it'll be the best in the series! After the semi-cliffhanger here, ugh. Definitely, book 3 will start out great, and hopefully, end great as well!

"My life has ever been yours, Elisa."




"Always."




"I am wholly and irreversibly in love with...."



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Yeah, I'll just use the excuse I use every time I have less quotes: I got overexcited and didn't bother putting much! LOL.
What did you guys think of this (shortshortshort) review? (;

Book Haul- 16.

1. 52 Reasons to Hate My Father by Jessica Brody.

Since I did a blog tour for this about 6 months ago, I get my own copy for free! Yay! :D It looked pretty good and I got hooked by the synopsis! I heard there was a lot of character development-- and I love that!

2-5. Lord of the Rings series by JJR Tolkien.

This is one of those series that I finally decided to read because it was super popular. I know I'm a bit late, haha. Well. I can't wait to read it.

6. Breathe by Sarah Crossan.

It looked gorgeous, okay. The cover just totally sucked me in. The rating on Goodreads is pretty high too-- and when I saw this at the bookstore I just had to get it!

7. Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff.

I met Brenna Yovanoff at a signing she was doing with Marie Lu, Andrea Cremer, and Jessica Khoury a few days ago. I decided to try a new genre- creepiness. Gosh, I'm a big wuss though. LOL.

8. Rise by Andrea Cremer.

I met her at the signing, too! I read NIGHTSHADE, and I decided to pick up a copy of the prequel!

9. The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff.

Another Brenna Yovanoff book.

10. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer.

YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW LONG I WANTED TO READ THIS OMG IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL but I still have library books to finish. omg why

11. Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers.

My friend said it was pretty good! Might as well give it a whirl. I got it for free, too.

12. Pretty Sly by Elisa Ludwig.

I had no idea this was a second book to a series.. now I have to find the first book. Okay.

13. Drain You by M. Beth Bloom.

I guess I got too excited. I might give this one away.

14. Bang by Lisa McMann.

I've been wanting to read CRASH, the first book of this series, for quite some time now. I saw this ARC copy of book 2. Hehe. It's supposed to come out this October, but I got an ARC anyway!

15. Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross.

(I got too excited again)

16. Endlessly by Kiersten White.

I've heard lots of great things about Kiersten White's PARANORMALCY series, and I guess I have to read the first two books, huh.

Well, yeah. That's it for now!

Book Review: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks.

 The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks.
Book Summary: A man with a faded, well-worn notebook open in his lap. A woman experiencing a morning ritual she doesn't understand. Until he begins to read to her. The Notebook is an achingly tender story about the enduring power of love, a story of miracles that will stay with you forever. Set amid the austere beauty of coastal North Carolina in 1946, The Notebook begins with the story of Noah Calhoun, a rural Southerner returned home from World War II. Noah, thirty-one, is restoring a plantation home to its former glory, and he is haunted by images of the beautiful girl he met fourteen years earlier, a girl he loved like no other. Unable to find her, yet unwilling to forget the summer they spent together, Noah is content to live with only memories. . until she unexpectedly returns to his town to see him once again. Allie Nelson, twenty-nine, is now engaged to another man, but realizes that the original passion she felt for Noah has not dimmed with the passage of time. Still, the obstacles that once ended their previous relationship remain, and the gulf between their worlds is too vast to ignore. With her impending marriage only weeks away, Allie is forced to confront her hopes and dreams for the future, a future that only she can shape. Like a puzzle within a puzzle, the story of Noah and Allie is just beginning. As it unfolds, their tale miraculously becomes something different, with much higher stakes. The result is a deeply moving portrait of love itself, the tender moments, and fundamental changes that affect us all. Shining with a beauty that is rarely found in current literature, The Notebook establishes Nicholas Sparks as a classic storyteller with a unique insight into the only emotion that really matters.

Liana's Summary: Noah didn't expect a visit from Allie. But after so many years, she came back. Now, she's engaged. She came to tell him that one simple fact. Noah respects her decision, but he came to fall in love with her-- all over again. And what about Allie? She knows it's unfair to her fiance if anything happens between her and Noah. But how can she restrain her true feelings, when she knows it's real?

Rate(1-10): 8

Regardless of what negative comments my friends said about this book, I actually enjoyed it very much.

I know it's Mr. Sparks's debut novel, and, to be honest, it wasn't as good as his other books, but I guess this was expected from a debut novel. I am not really biased in any way.. Okay, fine. I am.

This book reminded me a lot of Sebastian Cole's SAND DOLLAR. Well.. I should say that SAND DOLLAR reminds me a lot of this book. It seems that Mr. Cole got a lot of ideas from this book. I know because Nicholas Sparks was his inspiration. (;

It was a really nice love story, gentle and charming. Fabulous.

It's actually my 6th Nicholas Sparks book.. Like I said, Nicholas Sparks is one of the only Contemporary authors I can stand. 

A quick and fast read-- greatly enjoyable! Now I need to watch the movie.

"...a morning person."

I'M A MORNING PERSON TOO AHAHA


"And, my darling, you will always be mine."

omg. Brb crying. Can I just die in a hole


"Go away! Stay away from me!"

UGH WHY THIS IS SO UNFAIR


"It's our anniversary."

So freaking.. sad.

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I apologize for the lack of quotes. I was so caught up in reading it, LOL.
What did you guys think of this review? (;

Book Review: Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks.

Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks.
Book Summary: Love hurts. There is nothing as painful as heartbreak. But in order to learn to love again, you must learn to trust again. 

When a mysterious young woman named Katie appears in the small North Carolina town of Southport, her sudden arrival raises questions about her past. Beautiful yet self-effacing, Katie seems determined to avoid forming personal ties until a series of events draws her into two reluctant relationships: one with Alex, a widowed store owner with a kind heart and two young children; and another with her plainspoken single neighbor, Jo. Despite her reservations, Katie slowly begins to let down her guard, putting down roots in the close-knit community and becoming increasingly attached to Alex and his family.
But even as Katie begins to fall in love, she struggles with the dark secret that still haunts and terrifies her . . . a past that set her on a fearful, shattering journey across the country, to the sheltered oasis of Southport. With Jo’s empathic and stubborn support, Katie eventually realizes that she must choose between a life of transient safety and one of riskier rewards . . . and that in the darkest hour, love is the only true safe haven.

Liana's Summary: Katie is going to start a new life-- a different one, away from her past, away from the man that had hurt her the most. She finds herself in the town of Southport, a small town, where everyone knows everyone and people get along well. She meets Alex, someone who proves to her that it's capable to love again, even after being shattered. Katie thinks everything is perfect now, though she's vaguely aware that wonderful things can't last forever. So what does she have to do when her past lurks around the corner and threatens to take the life of her and the life of the man she loves? She has to kill it. Kill and stop her past.

Rate(1-10): 10!

You know what, I am so shaky right now I can't even. There's this crazy surge of emotions going through me at the moment and all I really want to do is type gibberish to get it all out. I feel relief, hope, and sadness all mixed together and I don't even know how to type this review to make it make sense to everyone.

Well. I wanted to read this book because I'm going to watch the movie in a couple of days, and I HATE HATE HATE watching movies without reading the book first. Some people tell me that it's better to watch the movie first and read the book after because, when they watch the movie, and then read the book, they can expand their knowledge of what happened in the movie by reading the book. But, I prefer to read first and then watch so I can rant about how the producers left out the most important part or added something that was less than necessary. Honestly, I like to see something I read become something of action.

As you all know, and I'm pretty sure I mentioned this already-- I was getting really sick of the Dystopian/Fantasy/Paranormal genres. After getting sick of Dystopia, I thought I needed something Fantasy, or Medieval, but after reading something of that genre I realized what I really need- Contemporary. So here I decided to read a Nicholas Sparks novel-- my 5th N. Sparks novel, to be exact. He's too fabulous.. Honestly he's one of the only contemporary authors I actually like.

To talk about the cover.. Unlike many other covers, this one actually has a lot of meaning to it, like, omg. Omg. Oh my gaaaaaaaaaaaawds. And it's so gorgeous, too..

Can I just go on to the character discussions. Okay. This time I will discuss the antagonist because I need to.

Katie- It's been SUCH a long while that I've met a protagonist that I actually like. I can't even recall the last time that I met a strong and kind protagonist like Katie. She's so amazing, like, omg. She received so much abuse but she still was smart enough to form a plan to get away from it all- she was strong enough to escape with such a risky plan and she withstood 4 years of hell. She's a really amazing protagonist. She's so caring and kind and omg wow

Alex- Honestly, when he was first introduced to the book, I imagined him as an old man, since he had gray hair and all. But he's not old at all, in fact, he's young, just stressed and tired with all the things he has to deal with. What's remarkable is that he dealt with all those things with amazing patience. Wow, wow, wow. He's a really considerate father. He'd rather die than see his kids harmed. Katie and Alex- I ship them so hard they probably broke their bones because of my ship

Kristen and Josh- These kids are so mature. In fact, too old for their age. They know so well and they know better than to do what most little kids do- scream and cry when unnecessary. They're really nice kids and SO CUTE. (Usually little kids just annoy me out of my mind but Kristen and Josh are SO CUTE)

Jo- I feel as if she's that one friend who would always listen, who would always care, and never betray. A good friend. 

Kevin- I dislike him very much. He plays a good role as antagonist. I dislike him so much that if I met him in person the first thing I would do is push him off a cliff and make sure he falls all the way down and dies. I seriously can't say any more without exploding.. yeah I really hate him. Nicholas Sparks has the ability to create crazy and evil antagonists, it's truly amazing. omg. I just hate Kevin..

"..you're a vegetarian, right?"

OU SNAP, DON'T ASSUME.

"Isn't that a bow on the handlebars?"

Aw, he even bothered to put a bow on it. (x

"Believe me, the last thing I'd do is buy you a bicycle."

"That weekend, I told her that the two of us would get married one day."

"He called me Erin."

"Do you know what I like about you?"

"My body?"

"..and he knew it was all Erin's fault."

"Kevin hung up the phone without another word, knowing he'd found her."

Holy hell..

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And that's that! What did you think of this review? (;