Something Borrowed, the movie

I just caught the middle to end of Something Borrowed on HBO. It is actually a movie rendition of the book Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin. I read this book so long ago, but have to say when I saw the movie it brought so many memories of the book back.

If you are an avid reader, you would know that there are a lot of bad, TERRIBLE, movie renditions of books. This is a perfect example of a good one. I know that the charter of Darcy Rhone is supposed to be a brunette, but aside from that, everything in the movie reminds me of why I loved the book so much. If you have or even haven't seen the movie, I recommend reading both books. 

Something Borrowed, is a story about Rachel and her best friend since forever, Darcy. Darcy gets everything she wants, and Rachel is just happy to be her best friend in New York while persuing her dream job as a lawyer. It all goes downhill though when Darcy, being the life of the party at her birthday, leaves Rachel and Darcy's fiancé Dex to end up together. You'll love Rachel, even though she's the one stealing her friend's man, trust me. 

Something Blue is Darcy's story. I won't say much about the storyline, because it really picks up right after Something Borrowed. But, I will say that there is a lot of Ethan, who was Rachel's go to friend during her whole fiasco in Something Borrowed. 

Read both books, and hopefully ::fingers crossed:: they will make Something Blue into a movie soon!

Left to right: Ethan, Rachel, Darcy, Dex

Go read the books!

Crossed- Ally Condie

Sorry for the break in my daily blogging routine, but I do have a life!
I drove down to Ft. Lauderdale for my best friend's bachelorette party a couple of weeks ago. Luckily the five hour drive allowed me to listen to Crossed on audiobook. I have to say, I'm really feeling the whole audio book thing. It's incredible for long drives, however sometimes the voices do get a little annoying.

I started reading listening to Matched on audio the night before my drive home. I left Friday midday, and trust me I listened all day while folding and doing laundry and finally on the ride home. I finished it up in bed before going to sleep. That Sunday I downloaded Crossed and got listening for my ride home.

Synopsis on Goodreads.com

Rules Are Different Outside The Society

Chasing down an uncertain future, Cassia makes her way to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky--taken by the Society to his sure death--only to find that he has escaped into the majestic, but treacherous, canyons. On this wild frontier are glimmers of a different life and the enthralling promise of a rebellion. But even as Cassia sacrifices every thing to reunite with Ky, ingenious surprises from Xander may change the game once again.
Narrated from both Cassia's and Ky's point of view, this hotly anticipated sequel to Matched will take them both to the edge of Society, where nothing is as expected and crosses and double crosses make their path more twisted than ever

Loved:

• two point of views
• {in audiobook} two voices!
• it is leads up to the third and final book
• deeper understanding of the Society and it's areas
• the cover, and the progression is has from the first book

Loathed:

• slow storyline
• felt like a true middle book
• you only knew what was happening where either Cassia or Ky were
• not much substance compared to Matched, just in between 

It's not going to win awards for being the best middle book, but it was definitely enjoyable and kept me hooked on the series. I'm dying to read the third book, Reached. If you liked The Hunger Games series, this story's progression will be something you will like. I sense that Reached will be similar to Mockingjay in many ways {war war war}. 

City of Bones- Cassandra Clare

First things first... THIS BOOK IS ON BARNES AND NOBLE FOR YOUR NOOK AND AMAZON {OR NOOK APP/KINDLE APP ON IPAD} FOR 99 CENTS UNTIL JULY 13! JUMP ON IT! 

Moving on, I heard about this series of books through one of my more mature eighth grade boys. He loved The Hunger Games and we bonded throughout the year because of our discussions about the books. Towards the end of the school year he told me about The Mortal Instrument Series and I saw him nearly devoured the first two books in a matter of weeks. 

I finally started this book because I had it {bought copies for my classroom at scholastic warehouse}, and I told my student I would. Well, let me tell you, I am officially a fanatic. I not only am on the third book as I write this, but I am dying to stop writing this so I can get in bed and KEEP READING! There are four five books in this series, and I cannot wait to finish them all! 

Goodreads.com synopsis:

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . 

Loved:

• Jace! ::fans face::
• this world {unknown to us mundanes} with demons, angels, vampires, werewolves and shadowhunters
• good old unrequited love
• a world shattering twist at the end!
• not out of control, but definitely a little sexy

Loathed:

• a little slow at the beginning
• a lot of character and world building through intense imagery 
• at times I felt uncomfortable with the religion involved in the tale
• the cover... I think that Jace is depicted a little too old!

This book definitely picked up for me, and I HAD to begin the second book as soon as I finished this one. If you like True Blood and Twilight I think this book would definitely be for you!

4 hearts, if you can get through the beginning then you would have begun to get to the good part and will enjoy the series.

Happy fourth!

America's birthday is definitely something worth celebrating. We live in a land that is free. Free? What does that mean to me to us? I think that it gives us luxuries citizens of other countries don't have. For example we can vote for whomever we want to and a sillier freedom is that we have the luxury of shopping 24 hours at a Walmart if we wish.

Those two very different examples seem normal to us. But take the time to think about how people live elsewhere. Sure some live pretty good, but a lot live terrible lives without many things we take for granted daily. On the serious side of the example penny, people can't vote or even if they can, their vote isn't really accounted for. On the sillier side, if you run out eggs for the cookies you're making at 2 am, in some places stores close at 5 on the dot. What do you do then? Here we can go to our 24 hour walmart or maybe 24 hour cvs. Its these truly simple luxuries we take for granted daily. Truly, and not sarcastically, we have a lot to be thankful for here.

Today I celebrated my land of the free by tanning, drinking a beer, and playing in the ocean and pool with great friends and my hubby, instead of working. I'm lucky I get to do all of these things in my beloved country without any trouble. I was even able to buy drinks at the store because it was actually open on a holiday (a simple luxury that comes in handy.)

I hope you all had a wonderful day celebrating our old lady's birthday. I know I sure did!


Ps- I read about three pages of City of Bones by Cassandra Clare today. Its my newest read and it's interesting so far. I'll try to post about Crossed by Ally Condie tomorrow.

Matched- Ally Condie

Let me start by saying I have not read The Giver by Lois Lowry {I PROMISE YOU I WILL READ IT, SO DO NOT JUDGE ME JUST YET OK!?} That being said, I hear that this book is sort of a rip off of Lowry's The Giver. I wouldn't know, but what I do know is that I did enjoy this book. It is a dystopia, which I LOVE! There is something about a YA dystopia that just lures me in. I LOVED The Hunger Games 

This is the synopsis on Goodreads.com:

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

Loved:

• dystopiaaaaa!
• a society where people are matched at the age of 17
• the officials and their gestapo tendencies
• do they fall in love because they were matched, or because they were meant to be?
• book 1 of a planned 3!
• supposed future movie deal... I can just see my students LOVING this
• impending war

Loathed:

• how supposedly Condie's ideas are ripped off of The Giver
• ANOTHER dang love triangle

Really liked it, but it definitely isn't worth 5 hearts. It isn't a ground breaking idea, there are a lot of common literary elements, but it is enjoyable to read. If you can help it, read it don't buy the audio. The audio wasn't terrible, but I think it's better read with your eyes, not listening to the girl and her strange voices!

Up next for me... Matched by Ally Condie! :) Third book out in 2013.



Am I sensing a trend... some sought out sequels in 2013!?!?!

Looking for Alaska- John Green

I bought this book right after finishing The Fault in our Stars also by John Green. I don't know if I was expecting something as great as what I had just finished, but this just didn't do it for me. I think that maybe boys in high school would enjoy this book more than me. I wish I had more to say, but it just didn't leave much for me. Other than the fact that I, like John Green and Miles Halter, now am interested in famous last words.

Here is the synopsis from Goodreads.com:

Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps." Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

Looking for Alaska brilliantly chronicles the indelible impact one life can have on another. A stunning debut, it marks John Green's arrival as an important new voice in contemporary fiction.

Loved:

• the idea of a Great Perhaps
• the different famous last words throughout the book
• wondering what Miles was counting down to at the beginning of each chapter

Loathed:

• boarding school that has such bad campus living
• irrational pranking
• so much smoking
• sex talked about in a meaningless manner
• storyline went slowly for me

It just wasn't for me. I think maybe some people would really love this book, but there was a lot that just didn't sit well with me. I wouldn't read this again or recommend it.

The Fault in our Stars- John Green

Now that I have finished wiping up my tears, I can finally gather my thoughts enough to say that this was a beautifully, intelligentlly, and emotionally riveting tale of cancer-ridden , star-crossed love. 

Sometimes I get into a slump when reading books. It's easy to continue on the same path of genres until you're mind essentially becomes mush. I did this recently, with the self-inflicted onslaught of new adult romance novels I've been reading. Not saying they weren't interesting, lovely tales, just saying I was in a slump. That is how I came across Fault in our Stars.

You'll notice that this book is written by a... dun dun dun... man! 

I actually would have never noticed while reading the book, because he did such a great job sounding like a cancer infested teenage girl. It is a sad story, but it is refreshing to hear about pain and death the way they really are. Painful. Sad. Not. Fun. The Fault in our Stars made me laugh out loud and cry out loud, and even made me reread parts that were too intelligent for my brain, but nonetheless all of these aspects made me love reading this book so much.

This is the synopsis that I found on Good Reads

Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 13, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now.

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind

Loved:

• the truth in pain and suffering... no sugar coating
• how disease breeds friendship 
• the honesty in conversation
• insightful words to quote by
• star-crossed lovers
• the fact that I laughed and cried out loud
• hope that even living for a little while, is worth living

Loathed:

• how true endings just end, but I guess I get it from reading this book {you shall too...read it}

GREAT BOOK! It is a little most costly than most ebooks, but I guess with great insight you must giveth a little more mula!

View all my reviews on Good Reads {my new empire for books!}