Mundie Moms

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Pottermore Has Been ANNOUNCED!

This IS exciting news! Be sure to go watch the video announcement from J.K. Rowling herself

Book Review- Vampire Academy

Published by Razorbill
Released on August 16th, 2007
Source- Bought
2.5-3 stars- I'm torn

St. Vladimir's Academy isn't just any boarding school; it's a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They've been on the run, but now they're being dragged back to St. Vladimir's; the very place where they're most in danger...

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy's ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi; the world's fiercest and most dangerous vampires make Lissa one of them forever

This is a series that's been highly recommended to us for awhile now, which is one of the reasons I've been looking forward to reading it. Though it wasn't quite what I was excepting I can definitely see why so many people like it. Rose is a snarky, independent character who is also a bit of broken one and is able to hide that well behind her tough girl attitude. She's also a very loyal friend and body guard to Lissa, the Moroi Vampire Princess. One of the things that makes Rose relatable as a character is her struggles between staying loyal to Lissa and following her heart, but for some reason I just couldn't connect with her character, and I can't pin point why that was. Rose does make a lot of frustrating choices, and she doesn't always think about the consequences of her actions. At the same time she's definitely a fighter. She sticks to what she feels is right, and I admire that about her.

Mixed into Vampire Academy's great setting, and fabulous mythology is a forbidden love story. Even though I didn't really connect with the story like I wanted to, I couldn't get enough of Dimitri and Rose. I loved their chemistry. One of my favorite scenes between the two of them is in the gym when he's training her and she tries to surprise attack him. I'm sure fans know exactly what scene I'm talking about. I really liked Dimitri's character. Like Rose, I wanted to know more about him and uncover the air of mystery that surrounds him for much of the book. I also really enjoyed the lore and history Richelle created with her vampires. Talk about plot and character twists! There's some great twists that I didn't even see coming. I also liked the different abilities/powers some of the characters have and how that wrapped up into the storyline.

In the end I'm really torn about the book. There's a lot of things I both like and didn't like about it. With the little things that bothered me, I don't know if it's because I'm feeling burnt out on vampire books or what it is. Had I picked this book up before the slew of other vampire books I've read I may have liked it better. That's not to say it's horrible book, as it's not. Right now it's just not one that grabbed my attention and made me fall in love it like I was excepting. I'd definitely recommend this series for teens. There's language, the issue of cutting, sexual context, mentions of pot and underage drinking.

Thoughtful Thursday- YA Books Become Movies

There is a lot of hype lately surrounding the exciting movie news with YA books being turned into movies. From The Mortal Instruments Series, to Divergent, The Hunger Games and more. When it comes to books vs movies, I'm #TeamBooks all the way. I feel like a lot of what I love about a book is lost when it's made into a movie. I've yet to watch a movie that was inspired by a book or a series that captured everything I loved about it in the movie. Nor do I think I'll every feel that way, because a movie can't capture all the things that I imagine or feel about a book. That's not to say I won't go watch the movie or enjoy it, but when it comes down to it I love my books more than movies.

I love what Screen Gems has done w/ the The Mortal Instruments Movie casting so far, in the fact that they've worked with Cassie and they're not rushing in their casting choice. To me as a fan, the speaks volumes that they want to make sure they get the right cast together. All to often the casting of YA movies makes or breaks the movie for me. Take the Twilight movies for example. I know there's a lot of things that didn't match the books, but the cast made the movie for me.

Here's a list of YA books that are currently optioned for movies:

* The Mortal Instrument Series by Cassandra Clare
* Divergent by Veronica Roth
* Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
* Wake by Lisa McMann
* Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
* Delirium by Lauren Oliver
* Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
* The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
* Wings by Aprilynne Pike
* The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
* Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
* Firelight by Sophie Jordan
* The Dark Divine by Bree Despain
* Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
* The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
* Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
* Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
* Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
* Heist Society by Ally Carter
* The Last Apprentice by Joseph Delaney
* Legend by Marie Lu
* The Maze Runner by James Dashner

It's true I've not finished reading the Harry Potter series *gasp* so I can't compare the books to the movies, but from the few movies I've seen from the series and from the first three books I read, I liked what they did. New Moon and Eclipse are other movies I thought they did a good job with some what staying true to the books.

Here's a list of some recent MG and YA books that have made into movies:

* The Harry Potter Series
* The Chronicles of Narnia series
* The Twilight Series
* Beastly
* I Am Number 4
* Red Riding Hood
* Percy Jackson
* The Diary of a Wimpy Kid
* The Golden Compass
* Eragon
* Nick & Nora's Infinite Play List
* Avalon High
* Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
* Princess Diaries
* Coraline

I'm sure there's some books and movies I've accidentally left off both lists (please leave me a comment letting me know if I left off your favorite book or movie and I'll add it).

What are your thoughts on books being made into movies? What YA book being turned into a movie are you most looking forward to seeing?

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