Boy's Life Review

From Goodreads

Boy's Life
by Robert McCammon
From Goodreads:

 Zephyr, Alabama, is an idyllic hometown for eleven-year-old Cory Mackenson — a place where monsters swim the river deep and friends are forever. Then, one cold spring morning, Cory and his father witness a car plunge into a lake — and a desperate rescue attempt brings his father face-to-face with a terrible vision of death that will haunt him forever.

As Cory struggles to understand his father's pain, his eyes are slowly opened to the forces of good and evil that are manifested in Zephyr. From an ancient, mystical woman who can hear the dead and bewitch the living, to a violent clan of moonshiners, Cory must confront the secrets that hide in the shadows of his hometown — for his father's sanity and his own life hang in the balance...

This tale of an 11-year-old's struggle between innocence and evil begins with the discovery of a gruesome murder and ends with the revelation that, even in Zephyr, Alabama, life is not safe and simple--and most things and people are not what they seem to be. "Recaptures the magic of being a child in a world of possibilities and promise. . . ."--Atlanta Journal Constitution.

My Thoughts:  This was an amazing read!  This is only my second McCammon book, but his writing just blows me away and I know that he'll have a place amongst my favorite authors of all time. A very, very special thanks to Midnyte Reader who not only got me this book, but got it signed by Robert McCammon himself!  And thanks to Stephen King, who recommended McCammon's book The Five last summer.  I love finding great authors by simply reading what you're favorite authors are reading.

Boy's Life is a coming of age story, but there is so much more involved!  The town of Zephyr still holds a bit of magic for young Cory and his friends, magic they desperately need as a year of bullies, outlaws, ghosts, water creatures, fallen ladies, death, racism, nose picking girl named Demon, nazis, neo-nazis, carnivals, amazing pitcher named Nemo, nightmares, visions and story telling. 

I know, it seems a lot for just one book, but McCammon weaves it all together seamlessly.

It's awful, because I already know that I am not going to do enough justice to this book.  I know that some of you are going to write this book off simply because McCammon's novels fall under the horror category.  But his writing is just amazing!  There were so many lines I was copying down in my little quote book, so many times the book had me laughing, or crying, or just plain scared and worried for Cory and his friends.  I really felt like I was part of the town of Zephyr, like maybe I was Cory's nosy neighbor. 

I was not expecting this book to be so filled with magic, but once I got into the book it became my favorite part.  Some of the magic simply came from a young boy's imagination.  A magic most people put away when they grow up.  But writers don't, and I don't think us rabid readers do either.  I think we still have the touch of magic that we had as kids, and books help us tap into it now and then.

Here's some of my favorite quotes from the book:

 “See, this is my opinion: we all start out knowing magic. We are born with whirlwinds, forest fires, and comets inside us. We are born able to sing to birds and read the clouds and see our destiny in grains of sand. But then we get the magic educated right out of our souls. We get it churched out, spanked out, washed out, and combed out. We get put on the straight and narrow and told to be responsible. Told to act our age. Told to grow up, for God's sake. And you know why we were told that? Because the people doing the telling were afraid of our wildness and youth, and because the magic we knew made them ashamed and sad of what they'd allowed to wither in themselves.”

 “I'd like to be everybody in the world' I said. 'I'd like to live a million times.'
'Well'--and here my father gave one of his sagely nods--'that would be a fine piece of magic, wouldn't it?”

“I had always wondered what Reverend Lovoy meant when he talked about "grace." I understood it now. It was being able to give up something that it broke your heart to lose, and be happy about it.”

  “Maybe crazy is what they call anybody who's got magic in them after they're no longer a child.”

Boy's Life is that kind of book.  It'll help you tap into the magic.

Boy's Life gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

**My copy of Boy's Life was gifted to me by the amazing Midnyte Reader, so all opinion, comment, and snark are completely my own.**

(I'm Not) Over You Review

Image from Goodreads

Over You 
by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus
Expected Publication:
From Goodreads:

After the grand explosion of her relationship, seventeen-year-old Max Scott developed what every girl in the history of the world has been waiting for: a way to get over being dumped. Now Max is the go-to guru for heartbroken high-school girls all over NYC. But when her ex unexpectedly shows up in her neighborhood, Max’s carefully controlled world starts to unravel. With her clients’ hearts hanging in the balance, Max will have to do the seemingly impossible: get over him once and for all.

Brilliant at bringing humor to the trials and tribulations of the lovestruck, #1 New York Times bestselling authors Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus have crafted a tale that will resonate with any girl who has ever been in love or had her heart broken. It brims with smart observations, features a pitch-perfect teen voice, and will attract fans of Jenny Han, Sarah Mlynowski, and Lauren Barnholdt. Readers are sure to fall head-over-heels for this sharp spin on breaking up, making up, and getting even.

My Midnight Musings:  I must be on a book high, because the last few books that I've read have been wonderful, and Over You was like the cherry on top of a book sundae.  I loved the premise, with Max racing to fix the broken hearts of New York's walking wounded girls and their transformation from crying puddles of mess back to the confident, single, young women they were before.  Allegedly.

Max's life is a bit outlandish and unbelievable, at 17 she's got her own basement apartment underneath her mom's new place, access (although not completely legal, okay completely illegal access) to drool worthy fashion, and an amazing business. But since I'm really good at suspension of belief I was able to go along with all of this. And I have to admit, I was a bit jealous of Max,  although fortunately Max's life is as messed up as anybody else and she's the pot doling out advice to all of New York's kettles. She makes mistakes, especially in the area of her friendship with her best friend, and she's fairly clueless when it comes to her own life.

But aren't we all?  I am an expert when it comes to your problems.  My own?  Uh, not so much.

In a lot of ways this book reminds me of the movie The Wedding Planner and Jennifer Lopez's Mary character because Max has her own bag of magic to fix any dumped girl's dilemmas and has loyal assistants who help manage all the many problems that pop up.  And even though Max has helped countless girls get over their ex, she's been running from her own heartbreak.  Which isn't a problem until her ex moves to New York and pretty much moochies on Max's territory, even darkening her future plans.

Things begin to fall apart in her personal life, but every bit of this book is amusing.  I laughed, I teared up a few times, and I cringed when Max made the WRONG decisions.  She was like the sorority girl who checks the attic after hearing what is obviously the sound of her roommate's decapitated head hitting the attic floor and, even though you know she's the heroine of the movie there's still a chance she is just going to end up a bloody mess. 

Over You was probably the funniest book that I've read in awhile, it literally had me laughing out loud. The point of view was mostly Max, but we occasionally the reader is privy to other character's thoughts, which was a tad confusing in the beginning.  In the end though I liked it, because I really did want to know more about Ben, Taylor and Bridget.  In fact, I would have been happy to have a book just about Bridget and Taylor, and I'm kind of hoping to see sequels to this book.

 And now, after reading Over You, I am totally prepared to help you, my Midnight Book Minions, with any and all future heartbreaks you may experience.  I will stock up on chocolate and help come up with your awesome Moments when your ex will realize the horrible mistake he/she made in dumping you and beg to take you back, which of course you will decline because you will have moved on.  Okay, maybe I won't actually stock up on chocolate, since most chocolate in this house gets devoured, but I will buy some on the way over to your place. 

I've read a few other novels by McLaughlin and Kraus, Dedication which I loved, Nanny Diaries which I liked, and Citizen Girl which was just okay.  Over You is more like a YA version of Dedication, and I will definitely be looking for more books by these authors!

Over You gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

I think it's cute and it fits the book, but it's not a cover that would stop me in my tracks.

** I received a copy of Over You through Around the World ARC tours in exchange for my honest review, all thoughts, opinion and snark are my own**

Sundays In Bed With... BEA Edition

Welcome to my meme, Sundays In Bed With... where we share what books we're curled up in bed with today, or which book we'd like to stay in bed reading if only we had the time!  You can participate by adding your blog link, or simply comment and tell me what you're reading.  Better yet, take a picture of your book in your bed and upload it. 

No doubt many of you are sick to death of all the BEA posts, but I haven't actually gotten around to really sharing all the awesome bookness I got in New York, so I thought I'd do it now.  Here's what's in my bed this morning:

Ten and The Spindlers are two of the books I've already read.  I got Ten signed by the amazing Gretchen McNeil, and both were Midnight reads. My review for The Spindlers is already up, and Ten will be coming soon.  Also pictured here is a tote that I actually bought (and not just one of many that I gobbled up greedily at BEA) at The Strand.  I love it, and I take it everywhere I go. 

These were the 3 books that were on my MustGetOrIMightDie list.  Bitterblue doesn't have a cover, but there's an interesting story behind how I got my copy (a story I won't share here, but buy me a drink at BEA next year and I'll tell you). Odd Apocalypse was the number one, and I didn't get it until the very last day despite my awesome blogger friends who were on the look out for it.  Fortunately Kim shared my sob story to a Power Reader who was happy to get me a copy since they were just handing them out wily nily to the Power Readers. Shadow of Night, sequel to A Discovery of Witches, was the very first book I got autographed and I cannot wait to read it!  Deborah Harkness was so wonderful, and was very understanding about my sudden ability to make sense while speaking and my general squeaky fangirl excitement.

 I stumbled upon Croak, which I really wanted to read.  I didn't see the sequel on the floor, but there's lots of books I missed.  Bared to You, which is supposed to be similar to Fifty Shades of Grey, but actually written for publication, Legend, Chosen Ones (love the cover!) Darker Still, Unraveling (signed! Norris is amazing!), The Farm, Me Before You (one of the first books I grabbed), Seed, and After Life.

 Kim picked up When It Happens to You for me, since I'm a huge brat pack fan, Memoirs of and Imaginary Friend, Carnival of Souls, Ashen Winter (actually a sequel to Ashfall which I haven't read but will because the publisher was so super excited about this series), Origin, Twelve Patients (which I picked up because it reminded me of Kingdom Hospital), Hemingway's Girl (met the author at the Blogger Conference and she was wonderful so I'm glad I got the chance to get her book!) and Techno-Mancer which just looks cool.

 The Raven Boys (I actually have two copies of this, and I'll be using the other one in a giveaway, but it's the only book I took more than one of, on purpose at least, and it was different days.  As you can tell, I'm having a little guilt over taking two), The Naptime Chef, God Loves Ugly, The Digest Diet, the new Captain Underpants novel that I'll probably give to my nephew (uh, after I read it!), Drama (which looks cute!), Kiss & Make Up, Beta, and Black City.

 Pushing the Limits (so excited about this!), Prodigy, Insurgent (signed!) Hourglass (signed, and I have to say the author is wonderful, and we actually talked about the cover and how it the girl in the photo's took them herself and I managed to not sound too much like and idiot), Destined (signed- I haven't read the series, but I'll at least read this since Pike was generous enough to hear me gushing over the other three authors she was sitting with), Schroder, The Last Dragonslayer, and Motherland (again, met the author and she's hilarious and swears a lot).

 Zom-B (which Kim picked up because she knows me well), False Memory, Monster Hunter Legion (another author at the breakfast that I met and have a slight author crush on now), The Beautiful Mystery, City of Women, Escape, Syndrome E and The Prophet, the other book I have two of, but that was an honest mistake, I didn't know he was signing the next day, and so I have a signed copy.

 The Innocents (LOVE the cover), Skinny, which the wonderful rep at Scholastic was very excited about), Summer and Bird, Where'd  You Go, Bernadette (signed), Time Between Us, Venom (the Penguin reps were very enthusiastic about this one, and it's at the top of my list as Tara, the rep I spoke to the most, was genuinely gushing over it), Son, Magisterium (another fav of the Scholastic rep), Regine's Book (totally reminds me of Go Ask Alice), and Breed.

The Wishing Spell (Chris Colfer is glowing, hilarious and truly passionate about books), Masque of the Red Death (signed!), Then Came You, Let's Pretend This Never Happened, The Iron Knight, The Fault in Our Stars, An Abundance of Katherines (signed by John Green and the young woman who won the cover design contest), Agorafabulous!, Merits of Mischief, and The Passage (I already own this on my Kindle, but I met Justin Cronin and he was fantastic.  Sadly, I did not get the sequel, but it's a book I was already planning to buy so I honestly can't complain).

Black Mask (audio), Stirred, Code Name Verity (very excited about the buzz on this!), The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, Seriously, Just Go to Sleep, Against the Grain (signed and linked to Amazon since I could not find it on Goodreads), Sky Color, a graphic novel sample for The Infernal Devices, False Impressions and The Stooges (signed graphic novel).

I got a few audio books too, ParaNorman, Anna Dressed In Blood (hello, audio re-read in October!), Criminal, and Dreadtime Stories.  Also I got Bob Harper's new book for my mom because she loves him (although she does not need to diet!) and a cool graphic book about Economics.  Just check out my BEA shelf on Goodreads.

Phew!  Hope you got through all that, but if not hopefully you at least made it to the end so that you can add your link!

The Spindlers Review

Image from Goodreads

The Spindlers
by Lauren Oliver
Expected Publication: 10.01.12
From Goodreads:

Looking across the breakfast table one morning, twelve-year-old Liza feels dread wash over her. Although her younger brother, Patrick, appears the same, Liza knows that he is actually quite different. She is certain that the spindlers-evil, spiderlike beings-came during the night and stole his soul. And Liza is also certain that she is the only one who can rescue him.

Armed with little more than her wits and a huge talking rat for a guide, Liza descends into the dark and ominous underground to save Patrick's soul. Her quest is far from easy, and the road to the spindlers' nests is riddled with danger. She must brave tree snakes, the Court of Stones, and shape-shifting serpents before facing her greatest challenge in the spindlers' lair, where more than just Patrick's soul is at stake.

My Midnight Musings:  As much as I love Oliver's YA novels, The Spindlers, along with her previous middle grade book Liesl & Po, have cemented my love for her writing.  The Spindlers is a wonderful mix of Alice in Wonderland, Labyrinth, and Oliver's wonderful imagination and originality. 

Liza, as a main character, is relateable to all readers, no matter their age. Her parents aren't the normal cardboard cut outs, although Liza's adventures underground are done without their knowledge it isn't because her parents are bumbling idiots.  Like many parents today they are struggling to pay bills, and so it's a bit easier to understand that they don't see that their son's soul has been stolen by evil spider like creatures.

A word about the spindlers, and that word is shudder.  The idea of spiders that grow in all kinds of sizes, have human hands at the end of their legs and can steal our souls, planting their little spindler babies in our soulless husks until they hatch out and destroy us is disturbing and nightmarish to say the least.  Honestly, Ron Weasley would be crapping himself is he had to deal with Liza's foes.  Prepare to be freaked out by insects for quite awhile after reading this book!

Despite the fear of the spindlers, Liza is determined to save her brother's soul.  She teams up with Mirabella the rat, who dresses and paints herself up like a cross between a very special Project Runway losing outfit, constructed out of items salvaged from a dumpster, and a drag queen caught in a torrential downpour. Mirabella is Liza's guide and companion as they encounter cute,but sensitive glow worm like creatures, a bizarre market where you can buy all manner of things with pretty colored paper, and through a court case that's both terrifying and ridiculous, until finally Liza must confront the evil Spindlers.

My favorite parts of the books was Liza herself.  She is already a strong character at the beginning, but she really grows up and embraces the strangeness she encounters.  And as a fan of the weird, I appreciate that.    Plus I absolutely love the way Oliver has explained where dreams come from, but I'll let you discover that for yourselves.

There isn't anything groundbreaking in this book, the plot is a tad predictible but I was still anxious for Liza and enchanted (and terrified) of the world.  I think it would make a wonderful addition to any library, and perfect for the next 24 Hour Readathon in October (see, the publication date coincides nicely, take it as a sign!). 

The Spindlers gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

Like so many other of us book bloggers, my head is easily turned by a pretty book cover, and this one is perfect.  My only complaint is that the spiders on the cover are clearly not spindlers, since they do not have human hands, but that it probably for the best as the image is truly disturbing.

**I received a copy of this ARC at BEA.  All thoughts, opinion and snark are my own.**

The Girl Who Chased the Moon Review

You know how you can just read one book by an author and know that they will have a forever place in your heart?  Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen was that type of book for me, and so far she's been living up to the spot she earned in my heart from her first book.

The Girl Who Chased the Moon
by Sarah Addison Allen
From Goodreads:

In her latest enchanting novel, New York Times bestselling author Sarah Addison Allen invites you to a quirky little Southern town with more magic than a full Carolina moon. Here two very different women discover how to find their place in the world…no matter how out of place they feel.

Emily Benedict came to Mullaby, North Carolina, hoping to solve at least some of the riddles surrounding her mother’s life. For instance, why did Dulcie Shelby leave her hometown so suddenly? Why did she vow never to return? But the moment Emily enters the house where her mother grew up and meets the grandfather she never knew—a reclusive, real-life gentle giant—she realizes that mysteries aren’t solved in Mullaby, they’re a way of life.

Here are rooms where the wallpaper changes to suit your mood. Unexplained lights skip across the yard at midnight. And a neighbor bakes hope in the form of cakes.

Everyone in Mullaby adores Julia Winterson’s cakes. She offers them to satisfy the town’s sweet tooth and in the hope of bringing back the love she fears she’s lost forever. In Julia, Emily may have found a link to her mother’s past. But why is everyone trying to discourage Emily’s growing relationship with the handsome and mysterious son of Mullaby’s most prominent family? Emily came to Mullaby to get answers, but all she’s found so far are more questions.

Is there really a ghost dancing in her backyard? Can a cake really bring back a lost love?
In this town of lovable misfits, maybe the right answer is the one that just feels…different.

My Thoughts: Magical!  Sarah Addison Allen is magical, made of magic, I bet she even sneezes out fairy dust.  I loved Win Coffey and really liked the mystery behind his family.  I did feel that The Girl Who Chased the Moon was more YA than adult, and the ending came just a little too abruptly and was left a little too unfinished, but I just adored Mullaby.  Allen can give inanimate characters life, and she is spectacular with breathing life into a small southern town.  Once again, women and friendship looms large in Allen's books, and I liked the friendship that brewed between Emily and Julia.  While Emily is a bit uncomplicated, Julia is filled to the brim with character.  Is it as good as Garden Spells or The Sugar Queen?  No, but it's still a lovely read by an author I always look forward to reading.


The Girl Who Chased the Moon gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

It might be a little high for what it was, but I just can't rate a Sarah Addison Allen book anything lower!

Sundays In Bed With... #13

Welcome to my Sundays In Bed With... Meme!  Share the book or books you're curled up in bed with this morning, or the ones you would be reading if only you had the time to stay in bed reading!  Just add your link below!

This morning I am spending Sunday in Bed With...

Over You by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus.

Okay, I have a confession, I only liked, not loved, The Nanny Diaries.  But I freaking loved their book Dedication, and so far Over You is every bit as funny, witty and embarressing as Dedication.  I could have stayed up super late last night reading this book, but chose sleep so I don't mess up my schedule.  Honestly, it's really funny, and even if the point of view flips mid page now and then, I don't even care.  It's kind of their style of writing, and it's easy to get used to.  

So what are you reading (or wish you were reading) this morning? 

BEA Book Look

Here's a quick look at the preciouses I picked up at BEA. I'll post my BEA adventures tomorrow, complete with pictures and book titles.  Hope ya'll are reading something good!

The Golden Acorn Review

The Golden Acorn
by Catherine Cooper
From Goodreads:

When Jack Brenin finds a golden acorn lying in the grass, little does he know that it is the beginning of a thrilling and magical adventure. Just an ordinary boy, Jack has been chosen for a hugely important task, and enters a world he believed only existed in legend. Full of twists and turns, talking ravens and mischievous Spriggans, 'The Golden Acorn' is a hugely entertaining and exciting tale from a very talented new author. Your kids will love it, and so will you! This brilliant story deservedly won the Brit Writers' Awards 2010 for unpublished writers and has now been published by Infinite Ideas.

My Thoughts: This book was an impulse buy, but it got me back into occasionally reading a Middle Grade book.  It reminded me of how much I loved The House With The Clock In Its Wall growing up (mostly because Jack is a bit like Louis, just a normal kid), and The Golden Acorn certainly has the kind of magic and adventure that I think kids would be drawn to. I am interested enough to purchase the next book as soon as I finished this (which was last year, and no, I haven't read the sequel yet, but I will!), so it was definitely worth my time to download the free copy from Amazon when they were offering it. I do want to pick up a print copy simply because the cover is so lovely!  Honestly the picture is not doing it justice!  I would share this book with my youngest nieces and nephew, and I think it'd make a great book to read out loud to your kids!  Or heck, if you just like Middle Grade books that contain a touch of magic.  


The Golden Acorn gets a Midnight Book Rating of: 

Sundays In Bed With... # I Don't Even Know Because I Am Over Tired From My Trip Home Last Night And BEA.

I'm back, Midnighters!  Although I plan on spending most of today wallowing in my bed (seriously the trip back from New York sucked as our bus was filled to the brim with crazy!), I also hope to get a little bit or reading done.  And laundry.  Sadly the Fluff and Fold elves did not visit my suitcase in the middle of the night, so it looks like I'll have to wash it myself.

Sundays In Bed With... is a meme to share what book you're curled up in bed with this Sunday morning (okay, I realize it's late afternoon already, but I had a birthday party to attend as soon as I woke up) or what book you'd like to spend the day reading, if only you were able to.  So here's what I'm reading today:

Ten by Gretchen McNeil!!  I was lucky enough not only to get a copy of this ARC at BEA, but it's signed by the awesome Gretchen McNeil herself!!  Gretchen was so awesome to meet, and she hasn't the cutest laugh ever.  The fact that she's writing about a killer stalking teens only adds to her awesomeness. I've only read a few pages so far, but I'm already enjoying it.  There's a line early on in the book which is similar to the "I'll be right back" lines in a horror movie, which made me laugh hard.

I'm so wiped out from this last week, but I had a blast at BEA, so I'll be sure to share all the good times soon.  And look for my guest post on Kim's site soon... as in "as soon as I write it".  Until then, let me know what you're reading today!  Even better, take a picture and upload it to your blog! Just add you link below.

A Crafty Killing Review

A Crafty Killing (A Victoria Square Mystery #1)
by Lorraine Bartlett
From Goodreads:

The last thing Katie Bonner wanted was to become the manager of Artisans Alley. But when her business partner, Ezra Hilton, is found bludgeoned to death, she has no other choice. Business under Ezra has been faltering-but was it enough to provoke someone to murder? Only Kate can find the answer.

My Thoughts: Every time I read a cozy I'm tempting to just put off all other genres for the next year and read cozy after cozy.  Several years ago I probably would have done that, now that my shelves are sagging under the weight of all the books I've been waiting to read I just can't do that.  I still can't fathom that there was a time when I didn't have anything good to read and when I would just re-read all my old favorites over and over and over again.

  A Crafty Killing is a great first in the series, as we join Katie in the next phase of her life. Which I really liked, because with some first in a series (especially in cozies) it feels like we're arriving mid-story, almost as if we aren't starting with the first book but the third.  In this book though,  the reader learns along with Katie about the going ons at Victoria Square and just what it'll take for her to take over Artisans Alley. 

The setting is as cute and cozy as could be, with great side characters. I need and require cute and quirky secondary characters, and Bartlett (who also writes under the name Lorna Barnett) is very good at casting her cozy towns. Because it's the first in the series, there's still lots of characters that can be saved for future books, because while there are lots of artists at the Artisans Alley, we only meet a handful in A Crafty Killing.  Thankfully, because otherwise I wouldn't have been able to keep all the characters straight in my head!

I did suspect who the killer was, but I wasn't positive until the end. And that's a good thing, you don't ever want to be so surprised by who the killer is that you get mad at the author for completely making up the ending. Katie was a great heroine, but I'm still getting to know her. I found her a little too trusting in some ways, and then completely non-trusting the very next scene. But I think it's human nature to be contrary, and I'm certainly a contrary Katie myself, so this works for me. 

 I was lucky enough to purchase a signed copy, and even got to chat with the author, and I will definitely be continuing with this series. If you like cozies, or just want to try one out, then I'd recommend A Crafty Killing! 

A Crafty Killing gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

I love cozy covers, and although it took me a bit to understand why the heck the cat was on there, eventually I understood.  And I'm a sucker for cats on book covers!

I Hunt Killers Review

I'm currently away at BEA, so I thought I'd share some of my favorite reads so far this year that I haven't reviewed yet. 

I Hunt Killers
by Barry Lyga
From Goodreads:

 What if the world's worst serial killer...was your dad?

Jasper (Jazz) Dent is a likable teenager. A charmer, one might say.

But he's also the son of the world's most infamous serial killer, and for Dear Old Dad, Take Your Son to Work Day was year-round. Jazz has witnessed crime scenes the way cops wish they could--from the criminal's point of view.

And now bodies are piling up in Lobo's Nod.

In an effort to clear his name, Jazz joins the police in a hunt for a new serial killer. But Jazz has a secret--could he be more like his father than anyone knows?

My Thoughts: This books was suggested by my friend Steph.  She kindly offered to let me read it on her Kindle on the way to BEA, but I couldn't wait since I had to agree that it definitely seemed like a Midnight Book Girl read, so I just downloaded it off of Audible.

Because I am impatient like that and I have a monthly credit to spend.

It was hard for me not to compare this book to Dan Wells John Wayne Cleaver books.  But while both teens are in need of therapy, the supernatural twists in Wells series are absent here.  I Hunt Killers is a straight out thriller, but very much on the dark side.  It took a lot of self will (and a broke piggy bank) to resist the urge to buy a physical copy of I Hunt Killers since I only listen to audio books in the car for the most part and I just really wanted to find out who was behind the murders!

And I can honestly say the identity of the killer surprised me. Not in a "the author completely pulls a mysterious killer out of his ass" twist, but an honest to gosh, "why the hell didn't I figure that out, I'm such a bad detective!" kind of surprise.

I had a hard time with Jazz sometimes.  As main characters go, he's a bit all over the place.  I don't think he's a sociopath per se, but borderline personality disorder isn't too far from the mark.  Of course, if you look up the definition of borderline personality disorder it pretty much describes almost every teenager I've ever known. He's like a faucet, able to turn on the cool water at will, but sometimes he's just so hot tempered you can practically see the steam rising off of him.

Jazz has a lot going on.  He lives with his crazy grandma (who both adds humor and genuine sadness to the story), trying to keep the social worker from taking him away to a foster home.  I really couldn't fault Jazz for being ticked off about that.  He's less than a year from being 18, and even a really great foster home isn't going to magically heal his troubled childhood in that short of time.  Plus, he'd lose what little he had left if the state took over.

Then there's the fact that Jazz was raised by a notorious serial killer father, and still hears his voice in his head, instructing him on the finer points of life through the eyes of a killer.  Jazz is just not like other kids.

But Jazz has Howie and Connie, and they are infinitely likeable.  Although I have to point out that the narrator on the audio kind of makes Howie sound like Yogi the Bear (I honestly kept waiting for him to say "Hey, Boo-boo").  Other than that, Howie is the best side kick in the universe and if I ever commit a crime, I want Howie to have my back.  And Connie is like Jazz's conscience, she is pretty much the only one that can offer some stability to Jazz.  At one point in the book I do question her sanity, but Connie is one unruffled duckling.  Although, if my future daughter ever dates a boy with that much issues and pent up anger, I will go all medieval on his butt. 

I was surprised with some of the crime scene details in this book, it read much more like an adult thriller that just happened to feature the teen son of a serial killer in it.  So, it's not for the faint of heart.  I don't think it's too harsh for teens who've been raised on a steady diet of Criminal Minds and CSI though.  Teens tend to gravitate towards the morbid anyway, and this is a book that is easily appealing to teen boys.

 I Hunt Killers gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

I think it goes well with the story, and I like that it's obvious that this is a book with blood in it, but it's not terribly eye catching or original.

Anna Dressed In Blood Review

I'm currently away at BEA, so I thought I'd share some of my favorite reads so far this year that I haven't reviewed yet. 

Anna Dressed in Blood
by Kendare Blake
From Goodreads:

Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.

My Thoughts:  This is what happens when I have too many books on my tbr shelves!  It takes me forever to get to the books I was once super excited about reading.  Which is a shame, because this is not the first awesome book that's gathered some dust on my (in this case, Kindle's) shelf.  I really need to stop putting certain books off.  Maybe I need to rate my tbr books by what stars I think they'll get, and tackle them that way... Hmmm..

So I loved this book.  It was like the awesomeness of Supernatural with only one hot ghost hunter dude so that I don't have to pick which hot guy to crush on (although it would be Dean.  Which is how, despite how he's described as looking, I pictured Cas.  Don't judge me.). And here be ghosts!

I loved how obsessed Cas became with Anna before he even met her.  How her image stayed with him, always at the top of his thoughts even when he was hanging out with the beautiful Queen Bee Carmel Jones. 

This book reminded me of good times I've had with friends and family, telling ghost stories, and how much I wish we still gathered around the campfire or living room table to scare the snot out of each other.  Lots of people grow up and move away from ghost stories, but readers like me never let go.

I realize  from the title that I should have realized that Anna was going to be of the violent ghost persuasion, but I was a bit unprepared for how bad ass she was.  Less than a quarter of the way through the book, she put me in my place by ripping a wrestler dude in half.  I was both sickened and just a wee bit impressed.  Skills like that could come in handy. 

I think part of the reason it took me so long to read Anna Dressed in Blood was that maybe I was afraid it wouldn't live up to it's title.  That maybe because it was YA it'd be all watered down like watching a horror movie on Lifetime, all the actually scariness and blood edited out, but it's not.  Anna is as fierce as her title. 

Should you read this book?  Hells, yeah!

Should you send me a copy of second book ARC?  Yes, immediately.  :)

It's Quote Time!

They have rationalized their fears away.  People shouldn't do that.

I'm no superhero.  If anything I'm Rorschach from Watchmen.  I'm Grendel. I'm the survivor in Silent Hill.

God, living people are irritating.

Anna Dressed In Blood gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of: