Waiting One Wednesday (24)

This is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine where every Wednesday bloggers highlight a book that they are eagerly anticipating the release of! 

My Life Next Door
By Huntley Fitzpatrick
Release Date: June 14th 2012

Summary: "One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time." 

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen year old Samantha wishes she was one of them… until the day Jase Garrett climbs her terrace and changes everything. 

Jase can sense that his beautiful neighbor is missing something in her sterile home, and as the two fall fiercely in love, his family makes her one of their own. 

But when the bottom drops out of Sam's world, which perfect family will save her–and will her perfect love survive? 

Set among the haves and have-nots of a coastal New England town, My LIFE NEXT DOOR captures the angst, the heartache, and the raw-nerve emotions of first time love—and biting loss.



Ahhh I love this cover so much! It's so bright and happy, which seems to reflect what the first part of this book is about. What I'm a little worried about is how serious this book will be when it come's to the "bottom dropping out of Sam's world" because books that are about loss really depress me. It kind of reminds me of Twenty Boy Summer, which I enjoyed but did not feel happy while reading. But maybe it will end up being a cute read that's not really serious at all. Whatever it is, it still sounds awesome and I can't wait to read it!

Movie Review: Real Steel

Summary: Set in the near future, where robot boxing is a top sport, a struggling promoter feels he's found a champion in a discarded robot. During his hopeful rise to the top, he discovers he has an 11-year-old son who wants to know his father.


Review: I was so so so excited to see this movie after my parents saw it and loved it. So I saw it with some friends at the dollar theater and it was even better than I had expected! I love futuristic/action movies, so this one was definitely my style. 


Hugh Jackman was awesome in this; at first he was an arrogant jerk who only cared about money, but he really manned up once he met his son and finally faced his boxing past. His son was the most adorable 11-year-old I have ever seen, never taking no for an answer. The robots were SO COOL and how they fought each other. It was always a fight to the death and it was really interesting seeing how there were "gamers" behind their boxing moves. One robot had guys with joysticks while others were voice commanded. Though the robots were cool, not much else in the movie was "futuristic." Sure the phones and computers where future-looking, but the cars, buildings, and clothes all looked the same. But I guess that's understandable since the robots were really the big deal of the movie. 


The fights in the movie were so intense that someone in the audience actually started clapping when Atom (Hugh Jackman's robot) actually one a fight. And to be honest, I felt like jumping up and clapping too. So much tension and anticipation was brought to the fights that I actually felt like I was watching a fight that really mattered. This movie was just seriously so awesome and I would recommend seeing it as soon as you can! There's even a little bit of added romance to please the romantics, but not too much to bother the action-lovers. It's perfect for everyone! 

Book Review: Sanctuary Cove by Rochelle Alers

Sanctuary Cove 
By Rochelle Alers
Release Date: January 1, 2012

Summary: Sometimes love is the simplest choice of all.

Still reeling from her husband's untimely death, Deborah Robinson needs a fresh start. So she decides to pack up her family, box up her bookstore, and return to her grandmother's ancestral home on Cavanaugh Island. The charming town of Sanctuary Cove holds happy memories for Deborah. And, after she spies a gorgeous stranger in the local bakery, it promises the possibility for a bright, new future.

Dr. Asa Monroe is at a crossroads. Ever since the loss of his family, he has been on a quest for faith and meaning, traveling from one town to another. When he meets Deborah, the beautiful bookstore owner with the warm eyes and sunny smile, Asa believes he has finally found a reason to stay in one place.

As friendship blossoms into romance, Deborah and Asa discover they may have a second chance at love. But small towns have big secrets. Before they can begin their new life together, the couple must confront a challenge they never expected . . . 

Review: The title "Sanctuary Cove" seems to capture the essence of this book perfectly. It started off very sad and a bit depressing, describing the death of Deborah's husband, which left her at the age of 38 with two teenage children. In order to escape her sadness, she moves back to Sanctuary Cove and tries to recuperate and find happiness again. Sanctuary Cove is the perfect place to do this, leading into a romantic relationship with the new man in town. 

Deborah is a very sweet women who devotes herself to raising her children and opening a bookshop on Cavanaugh Island. This book is sad when it deals with the loss Deborah and Asa (the new man in town) went through in their lives, but it's that hurt and need for love that brought them together. I thought it was cute how the bookshop was what really pulled them towards each other when Asa applied for the job there. Learning to trust each other without feeling guilty for being happy again was a sweet journey to get lost in. 

The ending of this book felt a little rushed to me, but the overall book was a decent story. I thought it was kind of weird how Deborah owns a bookshop and her husband was a high school teacher yet it was no problem to buy her daughter $300 heels while owning very expensive heels and handbags herself. That one detail bugged me, but it was very minor in the whole scheme of the sweet story. Reading this made me want to move to an island, live a whimsical life, and find my own sanctuary. For a feel good, cute book, consider picking up Sanctuary Cove!


***Make sure to enter the giveaway right here for a chance to win this book! January 9th is the last day to enter!

In My Mailbox (21)

In My Mailbox is a meme that I picked up from The Story Siren's blog. It's where we share the new books that we've gotten for that week with our readers. These books could be from the library, the store, or from the writers/publishers for review. Whatever the reason, I will share my new books every Sunday!

From Barnes and Noble 

My mom picked this one up for me this week from Barnes and Noble and I am SO excited to read it! I fell in love with the cover since I first saw it (it's actually a shiny, sparkly blue) and added it to my TBR list. Once I get through some review books, I'll be able to devour this book asap! Can't wait because it already has an average rating of 4.45 stars on goodreads, so I know it's going to be good! Be sure to check back soon for a review :) 

I don't know about you, but I'd say my mailbox was pretty amazing this week! And that's it! I hope you all had a very happy New Year and a great mailbox from the last week of 2011!

Book Review: More Than Words Can Say by Robert Barclay

More Than Words Can Say 
By Robert Barclay 
Release Date: January 17, 2012

Summary: From the author of If Wishes Were Horses comes a novel of long-buried secrets and self-discovery, showing us that sometimes what goes unsaid is more powerful than words. . . . 

Chelsea Enright never expected to inherit her grandmother's lakeside cottage deep in the Adirondacks—a serene getaway that had been mysteriously closed up decades ago. This is no simple bequest, however, because when Chelsea finds her grandmother's WWII diaries, she's stunned to discover that they hold secrets she never suspected . . . and they have the power to turn her own life upside down. 

Even more surprising is the compelling presence of local doctor Brandon "Yale, and Chelsea soon finds her "short stay" has stretched into the entire summer. She cannot put this cottage and her family's past behind her easily—and the more she learns about the woman her grandmother truly was, the more Chelsea's own life begins to change . . . and nothing will ever be the same again.

Review: Ughh finally, I'm done reading this book! I was looking forward to starting this one after I won an ARC from librarything, but by the end I was just tired of the story. The author had a good idea, but the execution was very poor and had me skimming the last 30 pages because it was so drawn out. 

The main reason I didn't like this book, though, was because of the unrealistic dialogue. Some of the things Chelsea or Brandon say are SO ridiculous and there is NO WAY anyone would ever say that when they're talking to someone. Unrealistic dialogue is my biggest pet-peeve in books, so this book was so hard to read without getting annoyed with how stupid they sounded. 

The idea of Chelsea moving to her Grandmother's cottage and reading her journal from the World War II era sounded like something I would enjoy, but it was, like I said, just too drawn out. I skimmed a lot of pages in between the journal readings because everything else seemed to be there to build "suspense" to the next time they read an entry. The author kept on saying how Chelsea was in so much pain and didn't know if she could handle another entry, but I got none of that emotion whatsoever. The emotion Chelsea felt seemed forced and during the big climax at the end was more of a speed bump...no huge reveal or event that really shocked me. It was also annoying how in the last 50 pages, Chelsea was planning some "secret" thing the reader didn't know because when the big secret was revealed, I was like "well duh that was going to happen!" I could see how the author tried to make this book a sweet romance, it just really did not make it there. 

Shelf Candy Saturday (20)

Shelf Candy is a meme hosted by Five Alarm Book Reviews and every Saturday, bloggers choose a book whose cover really catches their eye. I know you're not supposed to judge a book by it's cover, but I always do, so I'm choosing books whose cover alone made me pick it up. So I hope you enjoy my shelf candy!

This cover shows SO much about this book and I absolutely love it. The girl looks so helpless sitting on the edge of the rock looking out to the ocean, like she's trapped (which based on the summary she actually is). The colors are so pretty, especially how the title matches her dress. The stormy gray sky and dull waves give off the sense of grief and sadness, really capturing the tragedy this book is supposed to be about. Ever since I saw this cover I really really wanted to read it and I got it for Christmas, so now I get to! I am so excited to dig into this one because the cover just draws me in. Any cover with that much power over me definitely deserves my attention. 

Even More 2012 Challenges!

Since I did not participate in ANY challenges last year, I have decided to partake in even more than I had initially thought of. To add to my challenge list, I am going to join the 100+ challenge hosted by Book Chick City and the 2012 Book Blogger Recommendation challenge hosted by Reading With Tequila. Here's a little bit about each challenge!

This contest runs from January of 2012 to December of 2012 and the goal is simple: read over 100 books in one year. Since my Goodreads goal is to read 130 books, I'm hoping this challenge will be a piece of cake for me. If you want to join in on this challenge, you can sign up here!

For this challenge, Reading With Tequila provided a list of the top 25 recommended books of 2011 and the challenge is to set a goal of how many books from that list you will read. I'm going with level two where I will read 10 lists from that book because many of them are already on my TBR list. They could even count towards my TBR reading challenge for this year! Yay! If you interested in joining in on this challenge, you can sign up here! And here's a list of the 25 recommended books: 

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 
2. Divergent by Veroncia Roth*
3. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen*
4. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins 
5. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare 
6. Graceling by Kristin Cashore* 
7. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare* 
8. The Stand by Stephen King 
9. Delirium by Lauren Oliver* 
10. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling 
11. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak 
12. Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini* 
13. The Name Of The Rose by Umberto Eco 
14. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon* 
15. The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal 
16. The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle 
17. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte* 
18. Enclave by Ann Aguirre 
19. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson 
20. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead 
21. Poison Study by Maria V.Snyder 
22. The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa*
23. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Steifvater 
24. Dark Lover by J.R. Ward* 
25. The Maze Runner by James Dashner

*The starred books are those I plan to read in 2012

If you want to follow along on my journey towards completing these challenges, make sure you stop by my page labeled 2012 Challenges on my menu bar! And that's it! I hope your 2012 is as successful as I hope mine is!