Take the Fall by Emily Hainsworth Review

Title: Take the Fall

Series: - 

Author: Emily Hainsworth 

Date Published: February 16th 2016

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

WHO KILLED GRETCHEN MEYER?

Fear grips the residents of Hidden Falls the night Sonia Feldman and her best friend, Gretchen Meyer, are attacked in the woods. Sonia was lucky to escape with her life, but Gretchen’s body is discovered at the bottom of a waterfall. Beautiful, popular, and seemingly untouchable, Gretchen can’t be gone. Even as Sonia struggles with guilt and confusion over having survived, the whole town is looking to her for information…could she have seen something that will lead the police to the killer?

At the top of the list of suspects is Gretchen’s ex-boyfriend—and Sonia’s longtime enemy—Marcus Perez. So when Marcus comes to Sonia for help clearing his name, she agrees, hoping to find evidence the police need to prove he’s the killer. But as Gretchen’s many secrets emerge and the suspects add up, Sonia feels less sure of Marcus’s involvement, and more afraid for herself. Could Marcus, the artist, the screwup, the boy she might be falling for have attacked her? Killed her best friend? And if it wasn’t him in the woods that night…who could it have been?

-Even though I guessed who the killer was halfway through the book, the way the author handled the reveal which made it pretty cool and not what I expected.

-Gretchen turned out to be such a great victim because the more you found out about her I could only think that no wonder she got killed and why someone had not done it sooner.

Things I didn't like:

-Marcus and I never clicked, the story could have been fine without him.

Waiting on Wednesday: The Gilded Cage by Lucinda Gray

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: The Gilded Cage

Series: -

Author: Lucinda Gray

Date Published: August 2nd 2016

Publisher: Henry Holt & Co.

After growing up on a farm in Virginia, Walthingham Hall in England seems like another world to sixteen-year-old Katherine Randolph. Her new life, filled with the splendor of upper-class England in the 1820s, is shattered when her brother mysteriously drowns. Katherine is expected to observe the mourning customs and get on with her life, but she can't accept that her brother's death was an accident. 

A bitter poacher prowls the estate, and strange visitors threaten the occupants of the house. There's a rumor, too, that a wild animal stalks the woods of Walthingham. Can Katherine retain her sanity long enough to find out the truth? Or will her brother's killer claim her life, too?

I like historical novels so this seems perfect for me.

Ten Things Books Have Made Me Want To Do or Learn About After Reading Them

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week a new top ten list is posted, and to participate all you have to do is fill in YOUR top ten for the list.

This week's topic:

Top Ten Things Books Have Made Me Want To Do or Learn About After Reading Them 

 Sword fighting-Eragon

I had a lot of fun reading about Eragon's lessons with Brom that I used to act them out.

Magic Show - The Night Circus

Reading about the amazing Tents created throughout the book I wished I could do it.

Harry Potter-Magic

This one explains himself

 All things the Edmond Dante got taught while in Prison

I might not use all this knowledge to get revenge it's still interesting how Edmond went from being someone with little education to someone so cultured.

Singing-  Under the Never Sky

I have many talents but singing is not one of them I don't want to be this virtuoso just to be capable to carry a tune.

  Book Binding- Inkheart

Meggie's dad can do this and for some reason I've wanted to learn how to do that.

  Survival Skills- The Swiss family Robinson

I'm a city child born and raised that has easy access to everything, I would not survive in the wild.

Playing the Violin- If you find me

My parents always talked about getting me into lessons but never did and now I figured that I was to old to start.

Monday Book Recommendations: The Doll Collection by Ellen Datlow

Monday is the day I choose what new books I’m going to start reading but I have so many books in my To Read Pile that sometimes it’s hard to choose so I have decided that on Monday mornings I’ll recommend some  of  my favorite books.

Title: The Doll Collection

Series: - 

Author: Ellen Datlow 

Date Published: March 10th 2015

Publisher: Tor Books

The Doll Collection is exactly what it sounds like: a treasured toy box of all-original dark stories about dolls of all types, including everything from puppets and poppets to mannequins and baby dolls. 

Featuring everything from life-sized clockwork dolls to all-too-human Betsy Wetsy-type baby dolls, these stories play into the true creepiness of the doll trope, but avoid the clichés that often show up in stories of this type.Master anthologist Ellen Datlow has assembled a list of beautiful and terrifying stories from bestselling and critically acclaimed authors such as Joyce Carol Oates, Seanan McGuire, Carrie Vaughn, Pat Cadigan, Tim Lebbon, Richard Kadrey, Genevieve Valentine, and Jeffrey Ford. The collection is illustrated with photographs of dolls taken by Datlow and other devoted doll collectors from the science fiction and fantasy field. The result is a star-studded collection exploring one of the most primal fears of readers of dark fiction everywhere, and one that every reader will want to add to their own collection. Stories in this anthology by: Stephen Gallagher, Joyce Carol Oates, 

Gemma Files, Pat Cadigan, Lucy Sussex, Tim Lebbon, Seanan McGuire, Carrie Vaughn, Stephen Graham Jones, Miranda Siemienowicz, Mary Robinette Kowal, Richard Bowes, Genevieve Valentine, Richard Kadrey, Veronica Schanoes, John Langan, Jeffrey Ford

It was pretty Cool to see how many ways a doll could be made into something incredibly creepy without restoring to possession.

Other Broken Things by C. Desir

Title: Other Broken Things

Series: -

Author:C. Desir

Date Published: JAnuary 12th 2106

Publisher:  Simon Pulse

From the author of Bleed Like Me, which Booklist called “edgy, dark, and turbulent with passion” comes another compelling and gritty novel about addiction and forbidden romance—starring a fearless, unforgettable heroine.

Natalie’s not an alcoholic. She doesn’t have a problem. Everybody parties, everybody does stupid things, like getting in their car when they can barely see. Still, with six months of court-ordered AA meetings required, her days of vodka-filled water bottles are over.

Unfortunately, her old friends want the party girl or nothing. Even her up-for-anything ex seems more interested in rehashing the past than actually helping Nat.

But then a recovering alcoholic named Joe inserts himself into Nat’s life, and things start looking up. Joe is funny, he’s smart, and he calls her out in a way no one ever has.

He’s also older. A lot older.

Nat’s connection to Joe is overwhelming, but so are her attempts to fit back into her old world, all while battling the constant urge to crack a bottle and blur that one thing she’s been desperate to forget.

Now, in order to make a different kind of life, Nat must pull together her broken parts and learn to fight for herself.

I liked how the author showed that teens aren't immune to addiction. Most authors just glaze by it or make drinking look like something glamorous.

Natalie is a pretty unlikable character, tolerable at her best but these negative things are what made her so interesting. Half of the time I was sure she wasn't going to make it and the other half I wanted to see her rise to the occasion.

I really liked Natalie's mom, she made mistakes but instead of doing nothing and playing the victim she tried to do her best for her daughter.

I'm not sure how I feel about the romantic interest. It certainly came as a surprise and it makes sense but I still have mixed feelings about it.

Final Rating

Waiting on Wednesday: P.S. I Like You by Kasie West

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: P. S. I Love YOu

Series: -

Author: Kasie West

Date Published: July 26th 2016

Publisher: Point

What if the person you were falling for was a total mystery?

While Lily is spacing out in Chemistry one day, she picks up her pencil and scribbles a line from one of her favorite songs on the desk. The next day, someone else has written back to her on the desk! Soon enough Lily and the mystery student are exchanging notes, and lyrics, and even sharing secrets. When Lily finds out that her anonymous pen pal is a guy, she's flustered -- and kind of feels like she's falling for him. She and her best friend set out to unravel the identity of the letter writer -- but when the truth is revealed, the guy is the LAST person Lily could have ever imagined it to be. Now that Lily knows the truth, can she untangle her feelings and gather the courage to listen to her heart?

From beloved author Kasie West (The Distance Between Us) comes an utterly charming story about mixed messages, missed connections, and the magic of good old-fashioned secret admirer notes. 

Kasie West is always a safe bet author, I usually love things she writes.

Ten Books Set Outside The US

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week a new top ten list is posted, and to participate all you have to do is fill in YOUR top ten for the list.

This weeks topic:

Top Ten Books Set Outside the U. S.

This one was kinda hard since most books I read are set in the us and I didn't want to fill my list with books set in the Uk. but here are some of my faves:

1) Harry Potter. I mean best book ever (U.K.)

2.-  Revenants Series by Amy Plum ( France)

3.- River of Time Series b y Lisa Tawn Bergren (Italy) 

4.- Origin by Jessica Khuory (Brazil)

5.-The Chronicles of Narnia (Part of it is set in the UK)

6.-Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne (Takes Place Underwater and I'm pretty sure that they don't go into U.S. Waters)

7)The Accursed King by Maurice Druon (France & England)

8.-Swiss Family Robinson (Deserted Island somewhere)

9.- My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century (Italy)

10 Tsarina by J. Nelle Patrick (Russia)

Monday Book Recommendations: Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

Monday is the day I choose what new books I’m going to start reading but I have so many books in my To Read Pile that sometimes it’s hard to choose so I have decided that on Monday mornings I’ll recommend some  of  my favorite books.

Title: Glass Sword

Series: Red Queen #2

Author:Victoria Aveyard

Date Published: February 9th 2016

Publisher: Harper Teen

If there’s one thing Mare Barrow knows, it’s that she’s different.

Mare Barrow’s blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control.

The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: she is not the only one of her kind.

Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors. But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat.

Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?

The electrifying next installment in the Red Queen series escalates the struggle between the growing rebel army and the blood-segregated world they’ve always known—and pits Mare against the darkness that has grown in her soul. 

 No second book syndrome here, although I did want to shake some of the characters a few times. Still it was the sequel I had hopped for.

Spelled by Betsy Schow Mini Review

Title: Spelled

Series: -

Author:Betsy Schow

Date Published: June 2nd 2015

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Fairy Tale Survival Rule #32: If you find yourself at the mercy of a wicked witch, sing a romantic ballad and wait for your Prince Charming to save the day.

Yeah, no thanks. Dorthea is completely princed out. Sure being the crown princess of Emerald has its perks—like Glenda Original ball gowns and Hans Christian Louboutin heels. But a forced marriage to the brooding prince Kato is so not what Dorthea had in mind for her enchanted future.

Talk about unhappily ever after. 

Trying to fix her prince problem by wishing on a (cursed) star royally backfires, leaving the kingdom in chaos and her parents stuck in some place called "Kansas." Now it's up to Dorthea and her pixed off prince to find the mysterious Wizard of Oz and undo the curse...before it releases the wickedest witch of all and spells The End for the world of Story.

I really liked the little snippets at the beginning of every chapter, especially the fairytale survival tips.

The reference to real brand made me roll y eyes especially Hans Christian Louboutin.

Waiting on Wednesday: How to Hang a Witch

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: How to Hang a Witch

Series: How to Hang a Witch

Author:Adriana Mather

Date Published: July 26th 2016

Publisher: Random House

Salem, Massachusetts is the site of the infamous witch trials and the new home of Samantha Mather. Recently transplanted from New York City, Sam and her stepmother are not exactly welcomed with open arms. Sam is the descendant of Cotton Mather, one of the men responsible for those trials and immediately, she becomes the enemy of a group of girls who call themselves The Descendants. And guess who their ancestors were?

If dealing with that weren't enough, Sam also comes face to face with a real live (well technically dead) ghost. A handsome, angry ghost who wants Sam to stop touching his stuff. But soon Sam discovers she is at the center of a centuries old curse affecting anyone with ties to the trials. 

Sam must come to terms with the ghost and find a way to work with the Descendants to stop a deadly cycle that has been going on since the first accused witch was hanged. If any town should have learned its lesson, it's Salem. But history is about to repeat itself.

I've been looking for a series that features witches, the few ones I've started haven't been to my taste, so maybe this one will work.

Ten Facts About Me

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week a new top ten list is posted, and to participate all you have to do is fill in YOUR top ten for the list.

This weeks topic:

Top Ten  Facts about me

1) I'm about to start my second year of college!! 

2) I'm a very organized procrastinator. I can make a to do lists, have a a great plan list but take ages to do it. 

3) I never broke the habit of taking a nap at 4 p.m. When I was a kid my parents always put me down for a nap at around 4pm and to this day I absolutely need to sleep at this time. 

4) Even do I have a brother we were both raised as only children due to our 8 and a half years between us. Neither of us knew how to share. 

5) I could read in English and Spanish by the time I was 4

6) I started to study Graphic Design in 2012 but had to drop out I was able to enroll in a new school last year to continue my degree 

7) I have an incredibly large family, last time I counted I had over 30 cousins sadly  I'd throw 98% of my family off a cliff if I could. 

8) Whenever I have to take an important decisión I think about how it would look on my future wikipedia page 

9)I've been obsessed with european royalty since I'm a little kid. No idea why I love reading about all the royal bloodlines.

10)I want to live in London one day.

Monday Book Recommendations: Steel Scars by Victoria Aveyard

Monday is the day I choose what new books I’m going to start reading but I have so many books in my To Read Pile that sometimes it’s hard to choose so I have decided that on Monday mornings I’ll recommend some  of  my favorite books.

Title:  Steel Scars

Series: Red Queen #.2

Author: Victoria Aveyard

Date Published: January 5th 2016

Publisher: Harper Teen

Farley was raised to be strong, but being tasked with planting the seeds of rebellion in Norta is a tougher job than expected. As she travels the land recruiting black market traders, smugglers, and extremists for her first attempt at an attack on the capital, she stumbles upon a connection that may prove to be the key to the entire operation—Mare Barrow.

 Novella's can be tricky, some feel like they were written just so the author could make more money but in this case it actually added more substance  to the main series

Apps that make me productive

I have the attention span of a newborn most of the time thankfully there are other like me and they recommended a bunch of apps to help me be more productive, so now I'm sharing a list of the ones I use the most.

SelfControl

 This OS app block all the websites you tell it to. You can block it from 15 minutes to a day, if you are like me that gets distracted easily you definitely needs this.

Zotero

 This one helps you organize your research, it has saved my life many times when it comes to citing works.

Microsoft Onenote

At first I thought this was an overly complicated version of Microsoft word but it syncs with all your devices plus it's incredibly easy to use.

Lanes

This chrome extension lets you make to do lists, has a clock plus a built in pomodoro timer, it also features pretty backgrounds.

Between Two Kings by Olivia Longueville Review

Title: Between Two Kings

Series: The Queen of Two Kingdoms

Author: Olivia Longueville

Date Published:November 15th 2015

Publisher: MadeGlobal Publishing

Anne Boleyn is accused of adultery and imprisoned in the Tower. The very next day she is due to be executed at the hand of a swordsman. Nothing can change the tragic outcome. England will have a new queen before the month is out. And yet…

What if events conspired against Henry VIII and his plans to take a new wife? What if there were things that even Thomas Cromwell couldn’t control, things which would make it impossible for history to go to plan?

The year is 1536.

History is about to be changed forever. 

The old Anne Boleyn is dead.

The new Anne is a cold and calculating woman.

Between Two Kings. 

Things I liked:

I have been following this story for years back when it was being posted chapter by chapter on FanFiction.net

I certainly enjoyed being able to read the book in one sitting instead of irregular updates but why did they have to make this a series instead of a standalone but oh well.

I find Anne Boleyn fascinating but most books detail her downfall or how she caught the eye of Henry VIII but a book that actually has her survive and getting revenge on Henry?? Give it to me already

Things I didn't like:

-There were a few editing mistakes here and there and some of the words were a bit too modern and sounded weird when I read considering the time period.

Not a complaint but I did miss the little author notes  I got at the end of the chapters back when this was a fanfic because the author's insight was amazing. You should definitely check out her Tumblr.

Final Rating