On the Bookshelf

Wow! A year ago today I started blogging about books. Coincidentally, today I also reached and surpassed one hundred followers! To celebrate I have installed a new blog layout but I also want to give away one of my all time favourite books.

The budget is tight and it is not a flash prize but Dracula is a Gothic classic book that I love and want to share.

Author: Bram Stoker
Title: Dracula
Publisher: CCV
ISBN 13: 9780099511229
Short Description:
A young lawyer on an assignment finds himself imprisoned in a Transylvanian castle by his mysterious host. Back at home his fiancee and friends are menaced by a malevolent force which seems intent on imposing suffering and destruction. Can the devil really have arrived on England's shores? And what is it that he hungers for so desperately?
Further details here.

How to enter:

• The contest is open internationally to all countries that the Book Depository ships to. Check that your country is on this list.
• Be a follower. If you are not yet a follower, find the follower button in the right sidebar and click it!
• Comment below. Remember to include an email address by which I can contact you if you win.
• All entries must be in by 9PM August 20th 2010 GMT+10.
• It is one entry per person. You don't have to jump through hoops to enter or increase your chances of winning. You are not required to tweet, link, or blog about this contest but it is appreciated if you do.

The winner will be chosen at random using random.org and then contacted via the email address provided for a shipping address. The prize will then be purchased by me from the Book Depository and shipped to the winner.

Terra

Title: Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side
Author: Beth Fantaskey
Publisher: Harcourt
Release Date: February 1, 2009
Source: Library

The undead can really screw up your senior year . . .

Marrying a vampire definitely doesn’t fit into Jessica Packwood’s senior year “get-a-life” plan. But then a bizarre (and incredibly hot) new exchange student named Lucius Vladescu shows up, claiming that Jessica is a Romanian vampire princess by birth—and he’s her long-lost fiancé. Armed with newfound confidence and a copy of Growing Up Undead: A Teen Vampire’s Guide to Dating, Health, and Emotions, Jessica makes a dramatic transition from average American teenager to glam European vampire princess. But when a devious cheerleader sets her sights on Lucius, Jess finds herself fighting to win back her wayward prince, stop a global vampire war — and save Lucius’s soul from eternal destruction.

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side is actually a YA Paranormal Romance book that gets it right. In Fantaskey's portrayal of the relationship between American Teenager (and secretly Romanian vampire princess) Jessica Packwood and the mysterious foreign exchange student (and secretly Romanian vampire prince) Lucius Vladescu there is an understanding that physical attraction is natural but actual love takes time. There is a great element of push-and-pull between them. At first Lucius pursues Jessica, feeling bound by duty to fulfil the pact that their parents committed them to, but Jessica resists. The logic loving Jessica is convinced that Lucius must be mad, vampires don't exist, and she most definitely is not a vampire princess. But Lucius can only take so much of being forced to futilely pursuing an Americanised teenage princess and as he discovers the freedom of choice he has in the United States his attentions wander elsewhere. Only then does Jessica realise her feelings of possession and attraction for Lucius, and maybe even love.


Fantaskey leads the reader to wonder whether or not Jessica and Lucius will end up together. Can the local boy, Jake, win Jessica's heart or does "nice" just not compete with handsome, brooding, vampire royalty? Will Lucius continue his pursuit of Jessica or will his new found freedom of choice prove to be all too tempting leading him to choose the likes of Faith Crosse instead?

Jessica greets the news of vampires by throwing up a wall of logic. While it was great to see a balanced and intelligent female lead who is very well grounded in reality, this also becomes one of her most frustrating qualities - that girl wouldn't recognise a vampire if one jumped up and bit her on the neck! Although told from Jessica's perspective, we get a streak of humour and a great insight in to Lucius' view via his letters home to his uncle, reporting on his progress.

Fantaskey slips in some great humour and isn't afraid to make fun of the genre that she is writing in - there is definitely a hint of satire in there - overall making for a great read.

The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
Evernight by Claudia Gray
The Vampire Is Just Not That Into You by Vlad Mezrich



Terra

 
Who wants 10% off from the Book Depository? The Book Depository is currently celebrating its sixth birthday and to celebrate they have given people the opportunity to send vouchers for 10% off to their friends! I've decided that I would love to share this opportunity with my followers here On the Bookshelf!

I will send in for the first ten followers who leave a comment below with their email address to receive vouchers for 10% off. If you are not already a follower, please click follow down in the right side bar. Let me know if you want one by 08/08/10.

If you are concerned about spam, The Book Depository promises that once they have emailed you your voucher they will discard your email and bother you no more.

The Book Depository ends the offer on August 31st 2010.

Terra

 



Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"And it's only a matter of time before they kill us all. Mwah-ha-ha! You really do watch too many movies, don't you?"

Page 58 from The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong.

Terra

I am so excited about the books that I got this week - all courtesy of my library! If you aren't already taking advantage of your local library then you need to get down there right now and sign up!

Drood by Dan Simmons
I have seen some good reviews of Drood and I have high hopes for it. Drood, as I have been told, is a sort of historical science fiction-fantasy horror mystery novel starring non other than Charles Dickens. I am definitely looking forward to cracking open this one.

The Alchemy of Murder by Carol McCleary
Yet another historical novel. I am really interested in exploring historical fiction at the moment. I recently read a really good review of this book and I wish I could remember which blog it was on so I can credit the review writer. Anyway, having spotted The Alchemy of Murder while filling the new arrivals display at work, I was convinced that I should give it a try. While Drood lays claim to Charles Dickens, The Alchemy of Murder hosts in its cast of characters the likes of Jules Verne, Oscar Wilde, and Louis Pasteur. 

The Desert Spear by Peter V. Brett
Happy dance time! I loved Brett's novel The Painted Man (also published as The Warded Man) and I have been keen to get my hands on The Desert Spear ever since its recent release.

In the meantime, you can check out my review of The Painted Man right here.




The Vampire of Ropraz by Jacques Chessex
Next to the other tomes that I picked up this week, this book by Swiss author Jacques Chessex sticks out as being only 110 pages. Set in 1903, The Vampire of Ropraz is not a literal vampire story but is about how a superstitious and downtrodden village in Switzerland reacts to a series of brutal mutilations of the bodies of dead women as well as the man that the identify as the "Vampire".

*In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren Go here to find out more.

Terra

Title: Wildthorn
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Release Date: 6th March 2009
Source: NetGalley.com

They strip her naked, of everything-undo her whalebone corset, hook by hook. Locked away in Wildthorn Hall—a madhouse—they take her identity. She is now called Lucy Childs. She has no one; she has nothing. But, she is still seventeen-still Louisa Cosgrove, isn't she? Who has done this unthinkable deed? Louisa must free herself, in more ways than one, and muster up the courage to be her true self, all the while solving her own twisted mystery and falling into an unconventional love ...

From the very first page Wildthorn drew me in. It is an engrossing read that I had trouble putting down. Eagland draws readers in with the compelling mystery of first unravelling which is Louisa's true identity and who is responsible for sending her to Wildthorn Hall. Is she Louisa Cosgrove or is she, as she is told, Lucy Childs? Is there a conspiracy to see her locked away or is she nothing more than a paranoid mad woman?

We seek answers to these question through Louisa's memories of her past. Louisa is a complex and unconventional girl with ambitions beyond what society allows a young woman of her station. She longs to study medicine, wishes to marry no man, and struggles to come to terms with her desire for a forbidden relationship.

Louisa endures terrible conditions in the asylum and it is heart-wrenching to realise that Wildthorn only begins to scratch the surface of what horrors asylum patients would have experienced and the general ignorance of mental conditions that prevailed at the time. Louisa finds comfort in her plans to escape and the kindness of only one of the women working at the asylum. Eagland handles the tentative romance that blossoms from this kindness with a subtlety that works well with the characters and the times.

Wildthorn is a captivating historical young adult novel. Readers will be drawn in by Louisa's plight and unravelling the mysteries that surround her.

Terra

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

And that is how a teenager who claimed to be a vampire came to reside in our garage at the start of my once-in-a-lifetime senior year. And not just any vampire. My arrogant, overbearing vampire betrothed.

From page 33 of Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side.

I grabbed this one at work today and am already well and truly stuck into it.

Terra

Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
I have finally picked up a copy of Hush Hush. To be accurate, one of my friends is about to take a holiday to Bali and I helped myself to her bookshelf seeing as she won't be needing it while she is away.

I have seen so many good reviews of this book. I hope that it lives up to expectations!


50 Facts That Should Change the World by Jessica Williams
A bit of non-fiction this week and a bit of food for thought. I grabbed 50 Facts from the library where I work. Inside is fifty facts about major issues around the world and a brief essay accompanying each one, expanding on the issue. This is the 2007 edition.

Wildthorn by Jane Eagland
This is my second read from NetGalley. I have been wanting to try some historical fiction lately and Wildthorn sounded like an excellent place to start. I've actually already finished reading Wildthorn now so look out for my review very soon!

*In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren Go here to find out more.

Terra

Teagan Wylltson's best friend, Abby, dreams that horrifying creatures—goblins, shape-shifters, and beings of unearthly beauty but terrible cruelty—are hunting Teagan. Abby is always coming up with crazy stuff, though, so Teagan isn't worried. Her life isn't in danger. In fact, it's perfect. She's on track for a college scholarship. She has a great job. She's focused on school, work, and her future. No boys, no heartaches, no problems.

Until Finn Mac Cumhaill arrives. Finn's a bit on the unearthly beautiful side himself. He has a killer accent and a knee-weakening smile. And either he's crazy or he's been haunting Abby's dreams, because he's talking about goblins, too . . . and about being The Mac Cumhaill, born to fight all goblin-kind. Finn knows a thing or two about fighting. Which is a very good thing, because this time, Abby's right. The goblins are coming.

Read this book!

I don't usually chase down e-books for review but I have been really eager to get my hands on Tyger Tyger. For you see, Tyger Tyger has something I can get really excited about—goblins!

Tyger Tyger is a refreshing and unique addition to the current selection of Young Adult supernatural fiction. In their budding yet cautious romance, Finn is protective of Teagan but without being overbearing or controlling. Teagan is a well fleshed out leading female character who is both smart and caring. The loving family dynamic is so very welcome. The relationship between Teagan, her younger brother Aiden, and their parents is one that is sweet and supportive.

The very best thing about Tyger Tyger is the goblins. Readers will be enthralled by the Celtic mythology Hamilton has used to create this rich tale. This is the kind of book I would love to see illustrated. After reading this I set to searching the internet for information on Celtic mythology and art of Fionn Mac Cumhaill, Fear Doirich, and Ginny Greenteeth. Hamilton has gotten me hooked on Celtic goblin nasties and I cannot wait for the next Goblin Wars book.

Tyger Tyger is the perfect read for young teens or even just those of us who are young at heart. Look for it on bookshelves from November 15th!

Terra

Surprise! I'm still alive and I've brought you a Teaser Tuesday on a Wednesday. (I'm sure it's still Tuesday somewhere in the world!) I've been rather tied up the past couple of weeks with work and more particularly family things and family always comes first. I should have time to to return to blogging now so how about a review of Tyger Tyger this afternoon too? But moving on...

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

In recent years it's become increasingly evident that certain national diets are healthier than others. Compared with British or Americans, the French have less heart disease, Greek men live longer, Japanese women have less breast cancer and osteoporosis and the Japanese don't even have a word for hot flushes.

From page 82 of Food for Life by Michael Van Straten.

Terra