You Can't Judge A Book By Its Cover... Or Can You?

Deadly Little Lies by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Even with the first novel in this series, Deadly Little Secrets, being a little...shall we say, chilling, I'm super excited for this novel. Deadly Little Secrets got really interesting at the end and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with Ben and Camelia, especially with the new twist, Adam.


Release: November 24, 2009

Synopsis: Last fall, sixteen-year-old Camelia fell for Ben, a new boy at school who had a very mysterious gift – psychometry, the ability to sense the future through touch. But just as Camelia and Ben's romance began to heat up, he abruptly left town. Brokenhearted, Camelia has spent the last few months studying everything she can about psychometry and experiencing strange brushes with premonition. Camelia wonders if Ben's abilities have somehow been transferred to her.
Ben returns to school, but he remains aloof, and Camelia can't get close enough to share her secret with him. Camelia makes the painful decision to let him go and move on. Adam, the hot new guy at Knead, seems good for her in ways Ben wasn't. But when Camelia and Adam start dating, a surprising love triangle results. A chilling sequence of events uncovers secrets from Ben’s past – and Adam's. Someone is lying, and it's up to Camelia to figure out who – before it's too late.


Cover: I have to say I REALLY am liking this cover. The cover for Deadly Little Secrets wasn't all that great, the blues and grays made it seem a little washed out. It wasn't the sort of cover that made you want to pick it up. However, this cover, while still a little dreary, is far more striking. It reminds me a bit of the cover for Oblivion Road, another cover I'm fond of. The snowy landscape and crescent moon give the book and eerie appearance. Also, the red umbrella provides great contrast and catches the eye. I can't find anything about this cover I dislike, definitely a favorite.

Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender

Alexis thought she led a typically dysfunctional high school existence. Dysfunctional like her parents' marriage; her doll-crazy twelve-year-old sister, Kasey; and even her own anti-social, anti-cheerleader attitude.

When a family fight results in some tearful sisterly bonding, Alexis realizes that her life is creeping from dysfunction into danger. Kasey is acting stranger than ever: her blue eyes go green sometimes; she uses old-fashioned language; and she even loses track of chunks of time, claiming to know nothing about her strange behavior. Their old house is changing, too. Doors open and close by themselves; water boils on the unlit stove; and an unplugged air conditioner turns the house cold enough to see their breath in.

Alexis wants to think that it's all in her head, but soon, what she liked to think of as silly parlor tricks are becoming life-threatening--to her, her family, and to her budding relationship with the class president. Alexis knows she's the only person who can stop Kasey -- but what if that green-eyed girl isn't even Kasey anymore?

Bad Girls Don’t Die is unlike many of the other books I’ve read. Where most authors fill their books with pages of detail and dialogue, Alender has stripped away the fluff, leaving behind nothing but the straight story. The book is written short and sweet giving you just enough to go by, without cutting any corners. The plot moves swiftly, leading you to the climax gracefully with the interest level never wavering.

The fast-paced plot and short details did make character development a bit difficult. I found it difficult to understand what was going on in Lexi’s head most of the time. This was a problem I also had with the minor characters. A lot of their growth and change over the course of the novel seemed to suddenly occur.

Of course, with a book like this, a possessed little sister and haunted house, there’s the issue of how dark and creepy the story actually is. The book needs some creepiness, but not too much. Luckily, Alender found the perfect mix. The book has that air of superstition and chilling writing, without making it frightening to read at night.

While her style of writing did take some getting used to, once I got over the initial awkwardness I found the I really enjoyed Bad Girls Don’t Die. If you’re looking for a quick, fast-paced paranormal read, without sacrificing plot and quality then this is a great choice.

3 Stars!

Sleepaway Girls

When Sam Montgomery's best friend gets her first boyfriend, she's not reading to spend the summer listening to the two of them call each other "pookie." Sick of being a third wheel, Sam applies to be a counselor-in-training at Whispering Pines camp in the New York Catskills. But what she doesn't realize is that it's not going to be all Kumbaya sine-alongs and gooey s'mores.

If Ashley, the alpha queen of Whispering Pines, doesn't ruin Sam's summer, then her raging crush on the surfer-blond and flirtatious Hunter just might. At least she has playful Cole, who's always teasing her but is oh-so-comfortable to hand out with, and the singular gang of girls that become fast friends with Sam - they call themselves the Sleepaway Girls.

Reading Sleepaway Girls was like watching an old episode of Lizzie McGuire, cute, fun and youthful. There’s something about summer camp that screams summer fun. Even if you have never been to summer camp (like me), teens can relate to Sam’s experiences at Whispering Pines.

Much like in her Secrets of my Hollywood Life series, Calonita has created a realistic teen for a main character with a strong, compelling voice that keeps you reading. Even her minor characters, though a bit cliché at times, were believable. You could imagine yourself sneaking off with the sleepaway girls for a secret taping or just chatting with them over dinner in the mess hall.

My only major complaint about the book would be Sam’s inability to see how great Cole was from the get go. But, as much as we’d wish it wasn’t true, girls will be girls and sometimes we get distracted by the hottie and miss the great guy that’s standing right next to us.

Sleepaway Girls was pure teen fun; full of high jinks, girl talk, and cat fights.

4 Stars!

My Shiny New Toys...

Okay so maybe they're not toys...but they are shiny!

I'm excited to announce that I officially have Chick Lit Teens bookmarks (because they're way more useful than business cards). This is something I've thought about doing for awhile but never got around to ordering until a few weeks ago. And I'm happy to say that I'm so glad I did. They're absolutely amazing, way better than I would've imagined.

In case you can't see the picture clearly, they say "Find great teen books, read review, meet best selling authors, and more..." They also feature the blog name and address. All on a very cool (very shiny) pink and purple background with flowers.

What do you guys think?

P.S. Thanks to the awesome folks at Small Business Printing who designed and printed the bookmarks.

Airhead Giveaway

Emerson Watts isn't your average sixteen-year-old girl. She loves playing video games with her best friend, Christopher, and has made peace with her less-than-supermodel-esque looks. But when she's involved in a bizarre accident, she wakes up to find she's now in the body of a supermodel. Who's behind it? What's the motive? And how can she get Christopher to realize she's still the same person inside?

From #1 New York Times bestselling author MEG CABOT comes Airhead, now available in paperback! And look for book 2 in the series, Being Nikki, in hardcover in stores now!

In celebration of this fantastic book's paperback release (today!) I have 5 copies of the shiny new paperback to give away.

Interested?

If you are:

Leave a comment on this post with your name and email address

+1 for blogging about the contest/ adding a link (Sorry this is the only extra entry you can get this time. I'm lazy and don't feel like counting up extra entries)

Contest ends June 2, 2009 midnight EST

Winners will be announced that week (I promise)

Good luck!

P.S. Check out this short, but intriguing book trailer:

Want to know more? Check out Meg Cabot's website for reviews, a sneak peak, and more.

Coming To A Bookstore Near You

When I last did this post, before Christmas, I received a large response. A lot of people said they'd like to see it again. So I give you "Coming to a Bookstore Near You!"

Lovestruck Summer by Melissa Walker (5/5)

Austin music fest

Yay, summer in Austin!

Good food, good times. Fun for everyone!

Okay, living with my sorority-brainwashed cousin, who willingly goes by "Party Penny," is not exactly what I had in mind.

All your favorite bands

But the cute musicians I've met totally make up for it . . . like Sebastian. Swoon.

All ages welcome

So why can't I stop thinking about Penny's friend All-American Russ and his Texas twang??

Saturday & Sunday, from noon to midnight

Don't wait up!

The Faerie Path: Immortal Realm by Frewin Jones (5/5)

In an instant, a time of joy and celebration turns to one of heartbreak and fear.

Tania has finally found a way to bring her two worlds together, and while enjoying a long-awaited meeting of her Mortal and Faerie families, with her beloved Edric by her side, all seems right for the princess.

But when a Faerie baby suddenly falls ill, followed by more and more Faeries—including her own sister Cordelia—Tania knows that something is terribly wrong.

With no time to lose, Tania joins forces with her sisters to find a cure before this dark plague kills everyone she loves. Yet as the illness spirals out of control, Tania realizes that what they really need is help from the Mortal World. But will bringing another stranger to Faerie only make things worse? With countless lives hanging in the balance and a fast-growing Faerie suspicion of all things Mortal—including Tania herself—Tania makes a desperate move that will either save the land and people she has come to hold dear . . . or destroy their only chance for survival.

Being Nikki by Meg Cabot (5/5)

Things aren't pretty for Emerson Watts.

Em was sure there couldn't be anything worse than being a brainiac the body of a teenaged supermodel.

But it turned out she was wrong. Because that supermodel could turn out to have a mother who's gone mysteriously missing, a brother who's shown up on her doorstep demanding answers, a former best friend who's intent on destroying Stark Enterprises to avenge the death of his lost love, and a British heartthrob who's written a song about her that's topping the charts.

How can Em balance all that with school, runway shows, and weekend jaunts to St. Johns - especially when she's got ex-boyfriends crawling out of the woodwork who want more than just a photo op; a sister who is headed to the high school cheerleading championships; a company she represents that seems to be turning to the dark side...

Not to mention trying to convince the love of her life that models aren't really airheads after all...especially one model in particular.

But then, nobody said it was going to be easy being Nikki.

Sleepaway Girls by Jen Calonita (5/1)

When Sam's best friend gets her first boyfriend, she's not ready to spend the summer listening to the two of them call each other "pookie." Sick of being a third wheel, Sam applies to be a counselor-in-training at Whispering Pines camp in the New York Catskills. But what she doesn't realize is that it's not going to be all Kumbaya sing-alongs and gooey s'mores. If Ashley, the alpha queen of Whispering Pines, doesn't ruin Sam's summer, then her raging crush on the surfer-blond and flirtatious Hunter just might. At least she has playful Cole, who's always teasing her, but is oh-so-comfortable to hang out with, and the singular gang of girls that become fast friends with Sam-they call themselves the Sleepaway Girls.

Proximidade!

Thanks to Elise at Reading Rocks for this wonderful award.


This blog invests and believes in the PROXIMITY-nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement! Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers!

Ashley at Books Obsession