Review of Shift by Jeri Smith-Ready

Title: Shift (Shade #2)
Author: Jeri Smith-Ready
Published by: Simon Pulse
Pages: 367
Source: Library
Format: Hardcover
Rating: ★★★★

Summary from Goodreads: Aura’s life is anything but easy. Her boyfriend, Logan, died, and his slides between ghost and shade have left her reeling. Aura knows he needs her now more than ever. She loves Logan, but she can’t deny her connection with the totally supportive, totally gorgeous Zachary. And she’s not sure that she wants to.

Logan and Zachary will fight to be the one by her side, but Aura needs them both to uncover the mystery of her past—the mystery of the Shift.
 
As Aura’s search uncovers new truths, she must decide whom to trust with her secrets…and her heart.

Since it is October I thought it would be a great time to read a ghost story.  I was never a huge ghost fan until I met Logan.  Sure he made some dumb decisions, but otherwise he was bright, cocky, and full of life.  He definitely would have been a star if he didn't overdose on the night of his big break. 

Now Logan is back, but Aura is ready to move on.  What's a girl to do?  I like Aura, though I must admit there were times during the novel that I really questioned her sanity.  I think she was put in  incredibly difficult situations and there were no good ways out.  You can tell that as much as she still loves Logan she needs him to move on, and not only so she can move on, but because she truly wants Logan to be at peace.   

As for the boys, I think Logan grew up tremendously in this novel.  He still has his edgy rock star quality but he's starting to realize the world doesn't revolve around him anymore.  He realizes that by staying he is not helping his family cope, but possibly causing them more pain by sticking around.  And how could we forget the gorgeous Zachary with his sexy accent?  Zachary and Aura have so much sexual tension between them and yet can't seem to find a way to be together.  As I was reading I kept thinking that they have to end up together, there is just no way they are not meant to be together...they're too perfect for each other.

As for the story line it gets more amazing as this series continues.  There were some huge changes and surprises that will leave you gasping and rereading sections.

If you haven't read Shift (or Shade for that matter) give yourself a little treat and go out and read them in honor of the upcoming holiday. 

Friday Night Date Night

On Fridays I wanted to do something a little different then what I normally do.  I decided that on Fridays I'm going to do movie reviews.  I'm hoping to review mostly movies adapted from books, but I'm sure other movies that were not based on books will pop up every now and then.  Hopefully some of these reviews will help you decide what to watch on your date night or a night of chillin with the girls.  

So last night  my bestie and I went to go see The Help based on the novel The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  We've both read the book and absolutely loved it too pieces so we both had high hopes for the movie.  My reading the book and listening to the audiobook (yes it that good that I did both) was a difficult but rewarding experience, so I was really nervous about how some of the scenes would transfer to the big screen.

The verdict...I loved the movie.  For about the first 20 minutes I was unsure if I would like it.  I felt that maybe people who didn't read the book would have a hard time following, but then I decided I was wrong.  I came into it expecting the movie to be exactly like the novel so when it didn't start out the same I jumped to conclusions thinking people wouldn't get the story.  After seeing the whole movie I know people will not have a hard time understanding the message of this novel/movie. 

As I thought, some of the scenes were hard to watch but the director did them in a tasteful, but truthful way.  I thought the movie stuck really well to the novel, and the changes that were made only increased the imagery and added to the story. 

I was really pleased with all the actors that were chosen and think they did a great job portraying these characters I've come to know and love.  I actually heard somewhere that the character of Minny was based on the actor Octavia Spencer.  Octavia Spencer is a good friend of Kathryn Stockett and she not only reads Minny's part in the audiobook, but also plays her in the movie.  

Just like reading the novel, the movie was an emotional rollarcoaster for me.  I laughed, I cringed, I cheered and I cried.  Despite my wild ride this is a movie I won't soon forget. 

Still unsure of if you want to see it? Check out the trailer!

    

Review of Past Perfect by Leila Sales

Title: Past Perfect
Author: Leila Sales
Published by: Simon Pulse
Pages: 322
Source: Simon & Schuster's Galley Grab
Format: Ebook
Rating: ★★★★

Summary from Goodreads:  All Chelsea wants to do this summer is hang out with her best friend, hone her talents as an ice cream connoisseur, and finally get over Ezra, the boy who broke her heart. But when Chelsea shows up for her summer job at Essex Historical Colonial Village (yes, really), it turns out Ezra’s working there too. Which makes moving on and forgetting Ezra a lot more complicated…even when Chelsea starts falling for someone new.

Maybe Chelsea should have known better than to think that a historical reenactment village could help her escape her past. But with Ezra all too present, and her new crush seeming all too off limits, all Chelsea knows is that she’s got a lot to figure out about love. Because those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat it….

I was in the mood for a cute light read and Past Perfect sounded like a great book to fulfill that want.  Chelsea is doomed...not only is she working at the Essex Historical Colonial Village as a junior interpreter, wearing a heavy dress and telling people where the bathroom (excuse me, the privy) is all summer, but now her ex-boyfriend is working there too.  She is still stuck in the past in many ways and can't seem to move forward.

Things turn around when Chelsea get nominated as Lieutenant of the Essex Historical Colonial Village junior interpreters war against the neighboring Civil War reenactment village.  She has to make some tough decisions and figure out what she really wants and if the past is doomed to repeat itself.

I liked Chelsea, though at times I thought she was whiny and just needed to get over Ezra.  I wanted to tell her to stop obsessing over him and to move on....that boy is definitely not worth it!  I think she had a good heart and though she made some really dumb decisions, she still fought to correct her mistakes. 

I also enjoyed the plot of this story.  I loved the reenactment villages and the added twist of the war between them.  It was fun hearing about each side's strategies and all of the planning that went into their missions.  Some of them seemed like harmless pranks where I was laughing out loud and others seemed to cross a line.   

The forbidden romance also was a nice feature.  It is so much sexier when the romance is forbidden.  Anyone else think that too?

If you want something different to read that will leave you feeling bubbly and happy inside, Past Perfect is your book.

Top Ten Tuesday

Today I'm participating in Top Ten Tuesday hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Book Endings That Left Me With My Mouth Hanging Open (because of the cliffhanger or because the ending was MINDBLOWING, etc.)

1.  Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer.  I felt like this novel finished right before the good part.  The story itself didn't wrap up for me, it just left me hanging. 

2. Delirium by Lauren Oliver.  I want to know what happens next. 

3. The Magnolia League by Katie Crouch.  Again those cliffhangers get you every time.  It makes me feel that I didn't get half of the story, like they left off the last couple of chapters or something.    

4. The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore.  Are you kidding me?  That battle was brilliant and then Pitticus Lore just left me with that ending...not acceptable. 

5. Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins.  Yet another story that leaves me not totally sure what happened or what will happen. 

6. City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare.  Seriously, Seriously, Seriously!

7. Shawdow Kiss by Richelle Mead.  I bawled and at the same time I was completely floored.  I could not believe Richelle Mead did that...No seriously, I had to reread it multiple times because I really didn't think she was so gutsy!

8.  Uncommon Criminals by Ally Carter.  Brilliant ending.  I never saw it coming and had no idea how they were going to pull it off!

I really tried to get to ten this week but again I couldn't.  I should start thinking about these posts a week in advance so I can take down notes or ideas when they come to me. 

Review of Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

Title: Between Shades of Gray
Author: Ruta Sepetys
Published by: Philomel Books
Pages: 344
Source: Library
Format: Audiobook
Rating: ★★★★★

Summary from Goodreads: Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions. Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously - and at great risk - documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.

Wow.  I'm not sure if it's just this story or the fact that listening to it made it feel so real, but this story captivated me and touched me in a way I haven't felt in a long time. 

Lina's story was breathtaking, beautiful and heartbreaking all at the same time.  This is a story of fighters and survival.  I don't have words to describe how powerful Lina's story was.  At first she was just a common girl placed in a horrible situation, but then she learned how to adapt to her surroundings, but also remembered her roots and thrived to survive her grueling circumstances. 

We often talk about how fierce and kick-butt we like our heroines, and for me Lina had all these qualities, but she wasn't fighting vampires or zombies, she was fighting prejudice, ignorance and hatred.  I cannot image how she must have felt, or how anyone must feel by being hated not for something you did, but for who your ancestors are.   

At first, I thought this story would be one of the Nazi and that aspect of the war, but instead I got an eye opening encounter of some of the horror that Stalin inflicted.  I never remember studying this in history, so it was new and completely mind blowing to hear this.  Their experiences from the filth and disease infested train car, to being starved and over worked, and finally surviving the arctic temperatures was something I won't soon forgot.   

I really don't have the words to do this story justice, but just trust me when I say this is a must read. 

Winner of the Banned Books Week Giveaway Hop

Congratulation to Patricia from Patricia's Particularity for winning the Banned Books Week Giveaway Hop.  The book she chose from the ALA's Top Ten Challenged Books of 2010 was The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie.

Reward Challenge - stage #1

I don't know if you are anything like me but it is impossible to stop from buying books.  I love it, but sadly my bookshelves and my bank account don't.  When I found The Reading Reward Challenge hosted by Good Golly Miss Holly I knew this challenge was for me.  

The goal of this challenge is not a book buying ban but instead a reward program.  There are different stages and hopefully by the end your TBR pile will go down, but you'll still end up rewarding yourself by getting some new books (plus their are also prizes you can win!). 

Here is how it works

Stage 1      Read ONE Book (you own)       =      Buy ONE Book
Stage 2      Read TWO Books (you own)     =      Buy ONE Book
Stage 3      Read THREE Books (you own)  =      Buy ONE Book
Stage 4      Read FOUR Books (you own)    =      Buy ONE Book
Stage 5      Read FIVE Books (you own)     =      Buy ONE Book

a n d   s o   o n . . . 

So far I have completed Stage 1.  I read Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles (review) and bought Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles.  

Now on to Stage 2...