Mundie Moms

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Book Reviews: Harper Teen's Impulse Novellas; Breathless by Sophie Jordan, Radiant by Cynthia Hand, Stupid Perfect World by Scott Westerfeld, Cruisin' by Sarah Mlynowski


There are some fabulous releases out today, but the ones I'm really excited for come with Harper Teen's Impulse, which launched TODAY! I first mentioned Impulse here, and if you're not familiar with it, it's Harper Teen's line of e-novellas. Let me just say this, I am not an e-book fan, like at all. I rarely read a book unless it's in my hands (of course I do make rare exceptions), but I am a HUGE fan of this! Harper Teen was gracious in sending me a Kindle reloaded with today's releases and I devoured them.  While I'm still not sold on e-books, I am SOLD on e-novellas and e-readers. *shocker* I know. For those that know me, no hell didn't freeze over with me saying that. haha I'm looking forward to purchasing more of Impulse's e-novella's as they are released. Here's my review for today's 4 releases.


By: Sophie Jordan
Published by: Harper Teen
Released: 12/4/12
Format: e-book/novella
5 stars: I LOVED IT!
Source: e-book from publisher to review

Sophie Jordan's breathtaking digital original novella set in the world of Firelight.

For Az, it's supposed to be a fun summer vacation with her family. Nothing complicated. Just a quick trip to test the waters as she prepares for a year on her own. That all changes when she rescues a drowning girl and meets Tate—the most gorgeous human boy she's ever seen. Tate throws her heart, her plans, and her life into upheaval, but the closer she gets to him, the harder it is to hide the secret of what she is. With no hope for a future together, the last thing that can ever happen . . . is love.

This stand-alone digital original is perfect for those new to the Firelight series as well as veteran - quoted from Harper Teen

There are a few authors whom I feel can write both adult (romance) books, and YA books flawlessly. As in these few authors are ones I feel like they know how to write hot scenes without them being adult romance kind of scenes. There's nothing wrong with a good adult romance, I just don't enjoy reading those scenes in YA books. You can have an ultra hot YA scene without making it adult, and Sophie Jordan is an author who does that perfectly! Wow can she write HOT! Let me just say, Breathless did in deed leave me feeling Breathless, pun indeed. 

I'm a huge fan of Sophie's and was sad to see the Firelight series come to an end this year. It's one of those series I absolutely love, and this novella is a great addition to the series. I loved Az's character from the series, but I enjoyed reading about her own story and her handling a situation she gets herself into. I loved that this story takes place outside the pride, and with her parents. It definitely puts Az in a rather tough place when she inadvertently gets involved with humans. *sigh* Ah Tate. I think Tate might give Will a run for his money, because this boy does not give up when he wants something, and that something is Az. 

Without giving anything away, I will say I enjoyed that no matter how much Az fought against pride law, her heart, and her wanting to not get involved, she can't deny what she feels for Tate. Tate himself is not someone who will let Az run away. I liked that Az's parent's played a small, yet important role in a decision she makes. I LOVED that hot character chemistry that Sophie Jordan can write so well. It's F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S! If you're read this series, you HAVE TO GET THIS NOVELLA! My only compliant with it, is it needs to be a book, and not a novella. I wanted more of Az's story. 


By: Cynthia Hand
Published by: Harper Teen
Released on: 12/4/12
Format: e-book/novella
4 Stars: I Enjoyed It
Source: e-book from publisher to review

From New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Hand comes a riveting original novella (available only as an ebook) set in the world of the Unearthly series.

Clara is desperate to get away—from the memories that haunt her in Wyoming and the visions of a future she isn't ready to face—and spending the summer in Italy with her best friend, Angela, should be the perfect escape. . . .

For as long as she can remember, Angela has been told that love is dangerous, that she must always guard her heart. But when she met Phen two years ago she was determined to be with him, no matter the costs. Now she must decide whether she can trust Clara with her secret, or if telling her the truth will risk everything she cares about.

Alternating between Angela and Clara's perspectives, Radiant chronicles the unforgettable summer that will test the bounds of their friendship and change their lives forever. -quoted from Harper Teen

I enjoyed being back in this world! I loved Hallowed and I didn't realize how much I really missed this series until I read this novella. The end of Hallowed left me wanting Boundless, and now that I've read Radiant I'm dying to get my hands on the last installment in this series. This isn't a story that centers on Tucker or Christian. Yes, these two are mentioned through out the story, but this storyline focuses on Clara and Angela's visit to Italy, which takes place between Hallowed and Boundless. 

Clara's heartbreak and grieving from the events that unfolded at the end of Hallowed are present in this book, as is something a little sinister. There's something that doesn't add up with how Angela is acting, nor does everything feel right with the introduction of Phen, Angela's fling. There's a lot more to Phen than I'm going to mention here, so that it stays a surprise. Let's just say I'm really curious to find out if I'm right about what I think is going happen in Boundless with Phen's role in this book. I really wanted to like Angela more, but man alive this girl has some issues she needs to work out. I have a feeling that my hunch about her is going to be right as well. 

Cynthia did a great job with making me wonder which side Angela is going to take, the good or the bad side. Right now I'm torn on which path I think she'll choose. It's apparent there's something not right with her, and have Phen in the picture only adds to my hunches. I have a feeling there's going to be a few surprising twists and a bit of heartbreak in Boundless. I can not wait to read it. 


By: Sarah Mlynowski
Published by: Harper Teen
Released on: 12/4/12
Format: e-book/novella
3 Stars: It's A Good Reads
Source: e-book from publisher to review

From the critically acclaimed author of Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) and the Magic in Manhattan series comes a fun short story about taking the plunge on the high seas, where not everything is what it seems.

Kristin is ready to take the next step. . . . The only problem is she hasn't found the right guy to take it with her. That's why she agreed to go on the ominously named Cruise to Nowhere with her best friend, Liz. There are plenty of cute guys on the ship to choose from if only Kristin can work up the nerve—and stop worrying about the reports in the tabloids that passengers on cruises have been mysteriously disappearing and that someone suspects it has to do with . . . vampires. - quoted from Harper Teen

A cruise ship, and vampires... sold! I don't know why, but I found this comical and interesting and I had to know what this short story was going to be about. I will say this book was not at all what I was excepting. It's one of those great short stories that leads you to believe that one thing is going to happen and than throws in this fabulous twist that had me thinking "no way!" and how did I not see that one coming. I'll be honest, I almost stopped reading the book. It's not that I didn't like it, it's because I thought I had figured out what was going to happen. I'm so glad I didn't stop reading it, because that element of surprise was awesome! At least it was for me, because of my "I already know what's going to happen" attitude I had. I love it when I'm proven wrong about a book, and I was definitely prove wrong about this one. If you're a paranormal fan I'd recommend reading this one.


By: Scott Westerfeld
Published by: Harper Teen
Released on: 12/4/12
Format: e-book/novella
3 Stars: It's A Good Read
Source: e-book from publisher to review

In this future-set novella by bestselling author Scott Westerfeld, Kieran Black lives in a "perfect" world. Disease and starvation have been eradicated, sleep is unnecessary, and it takes no time at all to go from the Bahamas to the moon. But now Kieran has to take Scarcity, a class about how people lived in the bad old days. And as if sitting through an hour of Scarcity every day wasn't depressing enough, it's final projects time. Each student must choose some form of ancient hardship to experience for two whole weeks. Kieran chooses having to sleep eight hours a night, which doesn't seem too annoying.

Maria Borsotti has never thought much of Kieran, but she decides to take pity on him and help him out with his project. Soon, Kieran is sleeping and having vivid dreams, while Maria, whose Scarcity project is to give up all teenage hormone regulation, is experiencing emotions she never knew she had. As their assignments draw them closer together, they begin to wonder if the olden days weren't so bad. Maybe something has been missing from their perfect lives after all? -quoted from Harper Teen

I'm a big fan of Scott's Leviathan series and I enjoyed The Secret Hour, but for some reason outside of these few books of Scott's I can't really get into his other books. I don't know why that is. While I think this is a good read and a book fans of Scott Westerfeld's are going to enjoy, it's not one I loved. I admire Scott's writing, his rich world building and the characters he writes about. Kieran and Maria were two characters who's story I liked reading, but there was something I just couldn't connect with, and I can't even tell you why or what it was that made me feel that way. I hope my thoughts on Stupid Perfect World don't deter fans of Scott's from reading this book, because I think they'll really enjoy it.

Twitter Tuesday - Hebel Design


MMs, Hebel Design has THE cutest rune ornaments EVER. Now, I know the shop is closed for holiday shipping, but wouldn't this make a cute Valentine's Day pressie for your favorite Shadowhunter? And did you take a look at the gorgeous designs for all of Cassie's books? I mean there are bookmarks, pendants, rings, bracelets and oh my, the sparkly shiny happy things that make my Magnus-like mind scream with accessorizing possibilities.

Now both Katie, Emm and I have received, given and purchased a number of their pieces and I can vouch for their durability (hey, I'm a mom if ever there's a position called Jewelry Tester, I want to apply) they withstand bubble baths, holiday dishes and all the usual wear and tear. I may have stuffed the Thanksgiving turkey wearing my Jace Spinner ring. Yes, I normally take off my rings when cooking/baking but yeah, stuff happens and it's as durable as Jace himself.

Take a look at the other books in the left hand nav bar of their blog. WOW. The Curseworkers, Modern Faerie Tales, The Grisha Trilogy, Covenant, Lux, Sweet Evil and The Iron Codex are all represented with elegant jewelry designs and bookmarks. If you haven't checked out Hebel Designs, do so now. Plus they have amazing customer service and you know how much Mundie Moms love that.



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