All These Things I've Done By Gabrielle Zevin Review #80

Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
Pages: 354
Source: ARC
Links: Amazon/ Chapters
Rating: 4/5

In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is carefully rationed, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city's most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine. It consists of going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.'s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until her ex is accidently poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she's to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight--at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafia family.

Engrossing and suspenseful, All These Things I've Done is an utterly unique, unputdownable read that blends both the familiar and the fantastic.

Last year I had come home and found a packaged box for me in the mail. In the red box was confetti, coffee bean cover chocolates, a letter and an arc of All these things I've Done .

Immediately I dug into the book and devour it. It was as addictive as chocolates themselves. Sadly I went away for eight months to Taiwan and never got around to reviewing it before it was published. 

Now all that set aside , I just got to say that I love some of the promotional things they do with novels. The people or person that does them is both brilliant and hard working. I imagine for an author and others involve in the team it takes  a lot of work to promote a novel. In this case: Coffee Covered chocolates with the main character's (whose the daughter of a dead mob boss) last name on it's package. Not only was it  fun to dig into the book itself, but devouring the chocolates were also a yummy treat. So I just want to say thanks to Ksenia Winnicki @ Macmillan for sending this to me =D 

I found this novel to be witty, charming and overall a great read. 

It was easy to dive into the story. 

There was many circumstances where I could not put the book down.

 Zevin's did a amazing job with 

characters. She made each and every one of her character stand out

 and apart from each other. 

Every person in the novel had their own little trait about them 

(Natty; genius, Win;hats, Scarlett; theatre, Gable; Jerk ect;) 

that set them apart. 

The story flows flawlessly in first person. It was set in the big apple 

one of my favourite places. 

The originality of it was what peak my interest when it first

 arrived and through out the entire novel. 

Set in the future where chocolate is illegal.

Who would not want to read a story like that? 

All These Things I've done is definitely a book I will be finding myself

 read over and over again.

Especially since it set in NYC. After I received this novel in the mail I 

actually went on a vacation in NYC. 

So I got to see some of the many places that are actually talk about.

 It was cool reading the novel while actually visiting the places

 that the characters go to. 

Annie devotion and love towards her family, even when sometimes

 she went astray from that path, was mesmerizing and

 beautiful. I thought the strong sense of family ties 

and love (and how far you would go for them) was what made the 

novel more strong. 

The things Annie did and gave up for her family is what made her a 

strong protagonist. 

I felt heart broken every time she had to give up something up

 (that she truly loved) 

because of the situation she was in. 

This novel, though intriguing at every point, was not a hard read. My 

only complaint was that the ending did not seem satisfying enough. 

It did not feel like a ending but more of a cut off point. 

This September 2012 the sequel comes out, Because It is My Blood. I

 am definitely looking forward to the second novel. 

This is definitely a novel that readers should read or put on their tbr 

pile.

 Check out Gabrielle Zevin's website =D 

In My Mail Box #26

City of Lost Souls (Mortal Instrument #5) By Cassandra Clare (Amazon/Chapters)

The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees.


No magic the Clave can summon can locate either boy, but Jace cannot stay away—not from Clary. When they meet again Clary discovers the horror Lilith’s dying magic has wrought—Jace is no longer the boy she loved. He and Sebastian are now bound to each other, and Jace has become what he most feared: a true servant of Valentine’s evil. The Clave is determined to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. Will the Shadowhunters hesitate to kill one of their own?


Only a small band of Clary and Jace’s friends and family believe that Jace can still be saved — and that the fate of the Shadowhunters’ future may hinge on that salvation. They must defy the Clave and strike out on their own. Alec, Magnus, Simon and Isabelle must work together to save Jace: bargaining with the sinister Faerie Queen, contemplating deals with demons, and turning at last to the Iron Sisters, the reclusive and merciless weapons makers for the Shadowhunters, who tell them that no weapon on this earth can sever the bond between Sebastian and Jace. Their only chance of cutting Jace free is to challenge Heaven and Hell — a risk that could claim any, or all, of their lives.


And they must do it without Clary. For Clary has gone into the heart of darkness, to play a dangerous game utterly alone. The price of losing the game is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she even still trust him? Or is he truly lost? What price is too high to pay, even for love?


Darkness threatens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.




Until I Die (Revenants #2) By Amy Plum (Amazon/Chapters)


Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love. As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy. In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series.

Seriously...I'm Kidding By Ellen Degeneres Review # 79

Author:Ellen DeGeneres
Publisher:Grand Central Publishing (Hachette Book Group)
Pages:241
Source: Chapters
Rating: 5/5

Welcome to my third book. Inside this book you will find an assortment of wonderful things--words,pictures,advice,tidbits,morsels,shenanigans,and,in some copies,four hundred dollars cash. So you might want to buy a few. I'm so happy you're holding this book in your hands right now and reading its jacket or flap or whatever you want to call this little extra part of the book. Jackcap or Flacket or Flapjacket. Whatever,really. I don't have enough room on this flapjacket to tell you all the reasons why you should buy this book, but I can tell you this and it's a guarantee: If you buy it, you will feel better, look better, be happier, grow taller, lose weight, get a promotion at work, have shinier hair, and fall madly, deeply in love. And as an added bonus feature I'd like to point out that this flapjacket doubles as a bookmark. So you're paying for a book and you're getting a bookmark absolutely free. Where else are you going to find that kind of deal? Now, before you begin reading, you you'd like to learn more about me please turn to the back flap. (Back flap sounds weird, doesn't it? The more you say it the more it sounds like something you try to get rid of through exercise and eating right. Anyway, please read on.)

Ellen Degeneres is the only person in this entire world who can constantly self promote herself without looking or sounding self centre. Ms. Degeneres happy, carefree, determine and funny personality always shine through with whatever project she doing. Whether that is hosting her talk show, The Ellen Degeneres Show, or writing   her own humorous novel. Ellen's goal has always been to make other smile and that is no different with her novels (she already has three under her belt).

In Seriously...I'm Kiding  she takes something serious as her own life and turns into a humorous adventure.Unlike other books she doesn't have a dramatic beginning and climax. No! She just writes about random things (or thoughts) in her life. It's one giant laugh fest. Or a better way of putting it: It's her talk show in book format. As I read this book I could not help but feel Ellen Degeneres was sitting in my living room beside me. She was right there. Beside me. Talking as if I were her best friend.

She may be a celebrity but Ellen's genuine self always shine through. Ellen Degeneres is loveable and whether your reading her book or watching her show you cannot help but feel as if she is your next door neighbour. She motivates her readers and audience to another level. I, as a reader, could not help but feel refresh after reading this book.

This was an awesome read. I did not once get dulled by it and finished it within a few hours. Lately, since returning from Taiwan, I have been in a reading funk. However after reading this novel I am motivated to read again.

Yours Truly,

Returned After a Long Hiatus

Hello Everyone :)

I have returned after a really long, almost a year, hiatus. I spent the last year in Taiwan, Asia as an exchange student. Sadly while over there I did not have much to read books, much less write reviews, or work on this site. I have been missing this site quite a lot. I miss writing reviews. I have a huge TBR pile that I can not wait to start digging into.

~Maura: Monster of Books~