City of Bones Character Posters and Trailer

It's fangirl time! I hereby apologize for me using to much "amazings" in the following post...

It has been a little while since I last completely fangirled over the cast for the The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones movie. A lot has happened since that time...
I was browsing the interwebs a few minutes ago and I just realized that I am still desperately excited for this movie. I cannot wait. I want it!!
So I thought it would be time for another quick post about it, just to get us all a little more desperate for it.

Book Challenge Day 16: Favourite Female Character

All right so for today I have to pick one female character... That's is hard. But so far the whole challenge consisted of pretty tough decisions...
First off all I would like to say some things about female characters in books. They do get a lot more hate than male characters. No matter what, someone always disliked the actions of female characters. They are too bossy, they are too ladylike, they fight too much, they fight not enough... Something is always wrong.
I think a lot of fictional heroines deserve a lot more love than they are actually getting...

But anyway, this wasn't about defending all but picking one...
You may remember that I once made a list called "My Favourite Heroines Of All Time", you can find that list here. Back then Arya Stark from the A Song Of Ice And Fire Series. But I am pretty sure she does not hold that throne any longer...
Which great character throw her down, though? Of course it was another ASOIAF character. I do not know what is going on with G.R.R Martin, but he writes great characters!

I just adore Ygritte. I love the way she speaks and acts, I love the way she is able to love and hate so purely. And "You know nothing, Jon Snow" was definitely the best thing that happened to this fandom.
And she made me cry. I do not want to spoiler... oh forget that!

ATTENTION SPOILERS!

I cried so hard when she died! And Jon just wanted to save her and she never got to see a castle *sobs*
They really should have stayed in that damn cave!
She was so brave and fought for what was right in her opinion, no matter what. She was a strong female character. I would have loved a POV chapter from her. Just to know how she was dealing with Jon's betrayal... And now I will curl up in my little cave an sob because of that terribly sad character death.
Yes, that is the reason I read G.R.R. Martin. He always makes me cry...


Make sure to check the Challenges Page in order to read all my answers!
Who is your favourite female character?
Love and Words
KJ

Book Challenge Day 15: Jace vs. Aaron

Argh. I have to pick my Favourite Male Character for today. How am I supposed to pick ONE? There are sooo many swoon worthy men in YA it's unbelievable!

For a long time Jace Wayland from The Mortal Instruments was my favourite fictional male character. But Aaron from Pretty Dark Nothing is unbelievable great, too. I would tell you why he is so great, but I cannot, since that would mean telling you everything about the ending. And we do not want that, do we?

Let's just say he is great and you better go and read the book by Heather Reid like right now! 

What are you still doing here? Go and read it!

I loved Jace because he was so funny and smart. He had that kind of a Bad boy attitude and was a really tortured soul. I love tortured bad boys. I have a thing for them :)

But I am slowly (like really really slowly) growing up  and I know realized that being a tortured bad boy is great when you are 16, but not that great when you are getting older and want to settle down. 

So Aaron is not an average bad boy. But he is really tortured... That poor guy!

And there is a similarity between those two, I am not telling you what, though! We do not want spoilers...

Who is your favourite male character?

Love and Words
KJ

Vampire Academy Movie Casting

Well I already told you who is going to play the leads in the upcoming Vampire Academy movie (I am so excited, I can't breath :D) in this previous post. Here is a short round up:


That's Zoey Deutch as Rose Hathaway,  Danila Kozlovskiy as Dimitri Belikov, and Lucy Fry as Lissa Dragomir.

Last monday the news were released that Olga Kurylenko would be playing the headmistress of the school Mrs. Kirova.
My first thoughts were something in the line of this:

(I am Sam and the casting director is Dean :D)

(Gifs are not mine! If it's yours and you want credit mail me :) )

Then I thought a little more about it I realized that Olga Kurylenko is nothing like I imagined Kirova when I read the books. She was a headmistress of an academy, always cold and I kind of imagined her as an old lady. Like professor McG in the Harry Potter movies.
And hands down Olga Kurylenko is just gorgeous!
So I could be sitting here and cry about the fact that she looks so much different than I wanted her to look. But of course I am not doing that. You know why? Imagine they cast a actress that looks exactly like the Kirova of my imagination. I would be thrilled! And then I would maybe find out that she sucks at acting and gives a terrible performance.

I know that Olga Kurylenko is, at least in my opinion, a great actress and can pull of a fierce performance, as seen in Centurion. I am sure she has all an actress needs to play the headmistress of a school that trains teenagers to fight vampires.
If a character is supposed to have blonde hair and the actress has brown hair, or pink hair, I am fine with it as long as she plays the character in a good way.
I am sure the movie will be great! This will be fangirl-heaven!
Oh, please do not let them disappoint me :D

What are your thoughts on the casting?
Love and words
KJ

PS: I just love gifs :D

Why Katie McGrath makes me reading...

You all know today is Wednesday and that means it is time for a new round of "Waiting on Wednesday"... But I cannot do this today! I have way to many books that are still waiting on my shelves to be read and I just don't want my TBR to get even bigger, again.
So instead of talking about TBRs the WoW way I thought we do it the Penguin way and answer the TBR questions from Penguin Teen Australias posts.

Puh, that was a long explanation :D Let us start with the questions:

1. What have you just finished reading? 
I just finished reading A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin. I love his books but that one nearly killed me. I'm sure all fans of the series that read the books can rely to that devastating feeling I had after finishing it. I don't want to spoiler anything so all I'm saying is: "There are certain fictional characters deaths you will never recover from". But what he did with Cat at the end was great. It was so spooky and I'm sure it will look awesome on screen.

2.What have you just started reading?
(I am always starting way to many books and finishing way to less! I have like 5 books on my Currently Reading Shelf)
I just started reading Labyrinth by Kate Mosse. And I am already in love with this book! I watched an add for the movie a few weeks ago and Katie McGrath was part of the cast so I basically HAD to watch it. But I didn't. Because I heard that the movie was based on a book and I always love reading books before watching the movies. So I bought the book. And it has been awesome, so far! I love the two protagonists, especially Alais (since Alice hasn't been on the pages a lot), I love the mysterious atmosphere and the medieval setting and the concept of having a deja vú through time and... it is just great. If you're into historical fiction spiced with some fantasy you should definitely

3. What do you wish you could be reading right now?
Soooo much! But I gotta go with The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory since it just sounds awesome! Go check out the Goodreads summary!

What would your answers be today?

So now I'm off to continue reading Labyrinth and I cannot wait to join the team of EpicReads in todays teaparty later on.
Love and Words
KJ

Image source: Goodreads

Vampire Academy Movie Cast

Aloha :)

Yeah, I know I am a little late on this, but have you saw the cast for the Vampire Academy movie news? They finally cast Rose, Lissa and Dimitri!
Zoey Deutch will play Rose, Lucy Fry will play Lissa and Danila Kozlovskiy will play Dimitri. I never saw any of them in a movie so I cannot say if they are good actors or not, but I am still really happy with that casting. All right, I admitt it I am freaking out over here!
They definitely have the looks and (which makes me even more glad) they have the right age. You surely now all those actors playing high school kids and looking like they are 25 or older. I was really afraid that would happen with the VA cast, too.



Zoey Deutch will surely play a great Rose. Rose is one of my favourite characters and for a long time VA was (and still is) one of my favourite series. (Seriously click on the tag and you'll find a lot of posts were I fangirl over the books). The only thing I dislike about Zoey being Rose is that she's too skinny to be Rose. One of the big reasons Rose is such a great role model for girls is that she's not the typical super skinny girlie girl you see eveywhere on tv. So I'm kinda scared that will not be such a big point in the movie, which is really sad.
But I'm still sure she will be a great Rose!
For more information on the casting go here!

Oh and for those that have no clue what I am talking about:

Vampire Academy is the first book in a mesmerizing series by Richelle Mead and focuses on the conflict between two vampire races and the adventures of Rose Hathaway and her best friend Lissa. I love it, it is great go and read it! (Or find a full review here)

So please excuse me, I am going back to fangirling now... ( And I think I will start talking in gifs now...)

Love and words
KJ

I do not own the picture. The source is here. And I do not own the gif, found it on tumblr, If you want me to credit you for creating it just leave a comment.

Tuor And The Fall Of Gondolin by J.R.R. Tolkien

Tuor Und Seine Ankunft In Gondolin by J.R.R. Tolkien
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher: Klett-Cotta
English title: Tuor And The Fall Of Gondolin

This is going to be a rather short review for many reasons. One beeing that this is a rather short book, the other: Do I really need to tell you how much I love Tolkien and the stories from Middle-earth? Do I? I do not think so.

Tolkien's son, Christopher Tolkien, edited this book, bringing together two different versions of the unfinished shor story "Tuor and the fall of Gondolin".
Gondolin is the secret city of Tugon high king of the Noldor. And Tuor, a human that grew up with elves is set out by Ulmo, lord of water, to warn him that Gondolin will fall.
The book consists of two versions of the story that botj show how Tolkien may have intended to finish it. It also has a huge appendiy, explaining the changes, characters, and places, and many different maps. Therefore the reader is able to understand how the story changed since it was first written in 1916.

This world is so rich on stories, history and detail that you will believe you are reading a history book and not a work of fictional. Tolkien shows in this story one more time what a great storyteller he is, letting the words sound as poetic and melodic as a shakespearean piece. He is indeed one of the greatest fantasy authors that ever graced this world

Tuor and the fall of Gondolin is a great addition for every Tolkien fan's library. So it is basically the perfect book for a fangirl like me. ;D

Love and Words
KJ

View all my reviews

What's new on my shelves...

Hello everyone :)
I hope you all had a great christmas! I got a lot of books and could fill the whole post with them, but let's talk about other news on my shelves by answering some questions...

What are you reading currently?
I started reading two books this week. The first one is a newer version of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin by Tolkien, edited together by his son. I love it! Middle earth has such a strong mythology and the old stories help understanding that a lot.
I watched The Hobbit movie, too this week (All I'm saying is: Fangirl Heaven!) and when they found the swords Gandalf said that they were made by the elves of the first century while I was sitting in the cinema screaming "In Gondolin!". Nothing is better than convincing a whole cinema of your nerdness.

The second one is The Demon Lover by Juliet Dark which I got through Net Galley. So a huge thank you goes to the Random House Publishing Group for accepting my request. I already went through half of the book and I really like it so far! It has the perfect theme for me centering on fairy tales and old gothic lit.

What is new on your shelf?
Well I got many new books for christmas but the one I look most forward too would be a Sneak Peek of The Archived by Victoria Schwab. The book sounds really amazing and I can't wait to start reading it!

What have you just finished on your shelf?
The last "book" I finished was actually a manga, I have a lot of catching up to do with the One Piece series. I did start a lot of books lately but never get to finish them... Well I should change that more than fast!

What is the most anticipated book you want to read next?
That's a tough one! There are so many upcoming books I would love to get!
I would die to get my hands on Mind Games by Kiersten White. The synopsis just sounds so interesting:

Fia was born with flawless instincts. Her first impulse, her gut feeling, is always exactly right. Her sister, Annie, is blind to the world around her—except when her mind is gripped by strange visions of the future. 

Trapped in a school that uses girls with extraordinary powers as tools for corporate espionage, Annie and Fia are forced to choose over and over between using their abilities in twisted, unthinkable ways… or risking each other’s lives by refusing to obey.

In a stunning departure from her New York Times bestselling Paranormalcy trilogy, Kiersten White delivers a slick, edgy, heartstoppingly intense psychological thriller about two sisters determined to protect each other—no matter the cost.

How yould you answer those questions? What did you change on your shelves this week?
Leave a comment and tell me about your books, I would love to hear from you :D
Love and words
KJ

Summary and Cover taken from Goodreads

12 books of 2012

Aloha friends and foes
What are you up to this week?

Well, I recently read a blog post by J.R. Johansson author of the upcoming novel Insomnia (check it out!) about her 12 favourite books.
And I thought I'd do the same. So here is a list of the 12 books I read in 2012 and loved. They are in no particular order, and the links lead you to the reviews:

1. Matched by Ally Condie
Isn't it funny that I cannot find the words to express how much I enjoyed a book where words were so important for the story? My favourite scene was definitely the one where Cassia read the poem for the first time. It showed how much power and energy words can have, one of the many reasons I love poems. The scene was beautifully writtten and like a poem itself, really poetic. 

2. The Eagle Of The Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff
Rosemary Sutcliff has a really great writing style. She delivers a beautiful image of ancienct Britain and the people living in it, so vivid that you fear and wish the scene comes to life between the pages.
I cannot even pick a scene I liked the most, since there were so many with big symbolism or pure epicness (yes, I have to call it "epicness") in it.

3. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
Whenever I think this world can not get bigger, better or more epic I read the next installment and it comes bigger, better, and more epic. I love the series and I loved this book simply for the great characters and vivid and interesting world they're fighting for.

4. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
I had a bet with a friend going on that I would be able to finish this book within two days. I did. And I could finish this review within two seconds: AWESOME!
But even the Antagonists in this book are awesome. I can emphathize with everyone and I shared the thrill with all of them. 

5. The Heroine's Bookshelf by Erin Blakemore
The chapters of this book work like mirrors, because they capture so many nuances and different states of life. This book feels like a journey to myself and to the person I want to become one day, a true heroine, no matter if I ever "safe the world". It's enough, if I save my own day. Erin Blakemore shows that amazingly. 

6. The Perks of being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
How can you write about something when the only thing that comes to your mind is "I freakin' love this!"Charlie is in my opinion one of the nicest characters I ever read about. He is introverted and he does not quite participate in life. But because of that he sees things differently and asks questions about life most people would never think of. This gives a phylosophical touch to the entire novel. 

7. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
I loved the characters and I feared for them like I don't do often. It was an amazing journey back to a world I loved visiting the first time. If you thought the capitol can't get any meaner, read this books!

8. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
If you read between the lines this book can make you sad as well as unbelievable happy. It is a great book for children and even more for adults. Because it shows you what really matters in life and what is terrible wrong with us today. 

9. The First Truth by Dawn Cook
When i started this book I wanted to set sales and leave home, for a journey into distant countries full with magic, fantasy, and a lot of words.Dawn Cook, who you might know as Kim Harrison is able to write a book in this genre without making the reader think "Oh, we already had that", half a dozen times. This plot seems to be new and thrilling. 

10. City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
Cassandra Clare wrote a fulminate third book to a wonderful series. If I remember right The Mortal Instruments was planned as a trilogy and this book would have been a perfect ending. She creates a wonderful world that lives through its details. The world of the shadowhunters is rich with myths, beliefs and traditions. But the little details got me even more.

11. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
How far is science allowed to go? Should humanity arise over the rules of nature and become its’ own god? Those questions were important back when Stevenson wrote his novel and today, were new technically devices and a growing medicine are part of our everyday life, have become even more important.

12. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
The story of Katniss has a hidden meaning and tells the reader something. The book teaches something about war, how to protect, how to loose, and something about human cruelty. 
There are not many contemporary books that have a message. Normally you find those messages just in old classics by Schiller or Goethe who tried to teach the people something. But the Hunger Games trilogy is different, there is a message hidden in every book. And you do not even need to read between the lines, it is right there in the open. 

I know I'm not posting a lot lately, but I do not have a lot of time to read. If you still want to stay updated with bookish news and my reading goals follow me on twitter, I'm a little more present there these days (there's supposed to be a button somewhere under the contact section, so just click that :D)

What were you're 12 favourite books of 2012?
Love and words
KJ

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

Hey folks :)
So here is my review of The Perks Of Being A Wallflower! It is the first one in my 50in1 yearly challenge (yay only 49 to go! :D) and I finished it just before I posted the challenge, update.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is going to be a really hard review to write. How can you write about something when the only thing that comes to your mind is "I freakin' love this!"

I so a trailer for this book a few weeks ago and since I adore Logan Lerman I thought "Hey, I need to watch that movie!" But I always love reading books before watching the movies based on them. What is more fun than sitting in the theatre an screaming "They ruined the book!" at the begining of the ending credits?
I told my best friend about it, she read bought the book and finished it within two days comanding me to definitely read it "like just now"!
So I read it.
And damn, that's a good book!

The story is told through letters freshman Charlie writes to an unknown person. Charlie is really introverted and does not have a lot of friends outside his family. Last year his best friend died and he still needs to figure everything out about that. In his first year in high school he meets Sam, the in his opinion most beautiful girl in the world, and her stepbrother Patrick. They include him in their circle of friends and he becaomes part of their life. Together the new friends discover themselves and their place in this world through what you could call "sex, drugs and rock'n'roll".
Charlie telly the reader about his problems in life as a wallflower and he has a unique view on everyone else in the story.

Charlie is in my opinion one of the nicest characters I ever read about. He is introverted and he does not quite participate in life. But because of that he sees things differently and asks questions about life most people would never think of. This gives a phylosophical touch to the entire novel.
Charlie's awkwardness around other people, mostly girls, makes him unbelievable cute. I really wanted him to have his happy ending and to finally get over the things that trouble him. One more reason for the greatness of this novel is the fact that, in his letters, Charlie never quite explains what "messed him up" because he doesn't really now it himself. The reader needs to read between the lines and put the pieces of the puzzle together himself (until you finally learn the truth at the end)
My favourite scene was the brownie scene in the first part of the book. Charlie was indeed really naive and "the milkshake dialogoue" was unbelievable funny. That's one more great thing about the book: It is really tragic and funny in the same time. I cried my eyes out for Charlie, more than once, because he made me love so hard and because it was a really sad story after all.
And now the things I didn't like: There was actually just one thing I did not like about the book: There was not one character in there, that was reallly deeply happy. Through all that heart break, growing up, and finding your self it would have been nice if someone would have been happy at least a little while. And though I know there are no real happy endings in live it would have been nice to see just a little tiny one in this book.

A little Off topic that isn't quite off: I started watching Squaresville over on Youtube a few weeks ago. It's a really funny webseries following the lifes of two teenagers that don't quite fit in and really don't want to anyway. Seriously check it out if you don't know it by now! As I started reading "The perks" I was reminded of these characters. A crossover of those two stories would probably unbelievable cute and funny (and I would definitely ship Charlie and Zelda as a couple. We could call them "Charda" XD)
So all in all I have to say: I have a Charlie-esque crush on this book!

What Rachel thinks of it: "Awesome" Well that's a long review, but thanks for the input anyway :D

View all my reviews
So looking back now I don't think the trailer looks that great. I don't think he captures the tragedy of the book. But I still hope the movie will be great! If it is not than it aachieved at last one thing: It got a lot of people to read the book. And I will never regret reading it :)
Have you read the book? What are your predictions on the movie The Perks of Being a Wallflower?
Love and Words
KJ

Books to Movies: The Hunger Games edition

Hello everyone :)

So I finally saw the Hunger Games movie a few days ago - I know, I'm like the last person on freaking earth that had not seen it before :D - and I could easily call this post "How awesome got even more awesome".
You all know that I love the Hunger Games trilogy. Seriously after finishing the last book I was like "Oh no, why did you read it? Now every other book will be a dissappointment for you!"
But watching a movie based on a book you read is always a different story. Of course we all enter the cinema knowing that the movie will not be as the book, that they cut things out because no one wants to watch a four hour movie, and that you may be disappointed. Telling a story in a movie is always different than telling a story in a book.
I started watching this movie prepared for anything. Would I love it? Would I hate it screaming "They ruined the damn thing!"
And what did I did? I freaking loved it.
Here is why:

1. The actors were just amazing. I could see every feeling on the screen coming to life. Every aspects of the characters. Especially Jennifer Lawrence did - in my opinion- a great job as Katniss. The last scene, when they were doing that last interview I could read all the things going to Katniss mind in her face. She was glad she survived and still she was uneasy because of the treat dangling in front of her. (And before I forget: Team Haymitch and Evie over here! :D) And the other tributes were great, too.

2. The setting. District 12 was not like I imagined it, but the desperation was transported in a really great way. I loved the capitol and the looks of the people. A wonderful use of picture language

3. The last scene of Seneca Crane. No words for that besides: Genius!

4. Anyway I loved that they showed what was going on in the capitol since the books were just from Katniss point of view and left that out. It was a great addition to the story.

And here is what I didn't like about the movie: 

1. I understand that they needed to cut out things because the movie would have been too long otherwhise. But I didn't like that they cut out so much of Rue and Katniss. Her end could have been a lot sadder if the viewer saw more of her background and the relationship between her and Katniss.

2. Peetas and Katniss relationship. I think it wasn't as clear as in the books who loved who and who was just pretending. My friend for example got totally confused.

3. The Mockingjay. I didn't like that Katniss got her mockingjay on the hob. This way it lost, in my opinion, some of its meaning. It was still a gift but not as a sign of friendship. Anyway Katniss does not seem like someone who's attention is caught by jewelery.

But all in all this was just a great movie! I loved every second and I may rewatch it a dozen times until Catching Fire hits theaters next November.
Talking 'bout Catching Fire: They just casted Glimmer and Gloss, yay! :) And there are a lot of rumors that Sam Claffin would play Finnick Odair. Don't get me wrong: I really liked the actor (And I liked him in the Pillars of the Earth, before Snow White and the Huntsman! XD) but I just can't imagine him with blond hair...

Are you as excited as I am for Catching Fire? Tell me about it in the comments :) What is your favourite book-based movie?
I just hope the world won't go down in December, the end of 2013 is filled with so many movies I need to watch... The next part of The Hobbit, Catching Fire, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones...

Love and Words
KJ

Fangirl heaven aka Mortal Instruments Movie Cast

CAUTION: This post will be filled with words like amazing, great, love, etc. and a LOT of capital letters. Pure excitement ahead, read carefully...

I know, I'm probably the last one who finds out about this but I'm utterly amazed and... I just can't find words for it right now...
I just checked the cast for the Mortal Instruments: City of Bones movie.
When I heared that they are planning to turn this book by Cassandra Clare which I absolutely loved and adored (seriously, I LOVE TMI) I wasn't so sure what to think of it. In fact I was just afraid that the movie industry would screw up another book.
And than I heard about the first confirmed cast members. I wasn't so sure what to say about that either. Of course, they did not look like I imagined them, but seriously actors in movies never look like the characters you imagined while reading the books. It is more than hard to find an actor that looks like the person every reader imagined differently.

And today I just found out that two of my most favourite actors of all time (feels like this post will be filled with LOVE ;D) Jonathan Rhys Meyers (yeah, lovely Henry VIII) and Lena Headey (all hail Queen Cersei and the queen from 300 whose name I just forgot...) were cast as Valentine and Jocelyn. How AMAZING is that?
They are both amazing actors and I'm pretty sure they will pull of the characters just perfectly. And that though I never imagined Valentine and Jocelyn to look like those actors.

Now I'm pretty sure the movie can't be that bad. Because there are a lot of great actors on board (for up to date information visit the official page), known for their character portrails. And if Cassandra Clare is happy, I'm happy too. The only problem know: We have to wait a whole year to actually see the movie. But no rush, good things need time.

What do you think about movie adaptions? Are they always disappointing?
Who would you cast in the Mortal Instruments movie?
For my reviews of the books and more info about the books and the movie just click the Cassandra Clare-Tag :D

Love and Words
KJ

Clockwork Princess Cover revealed!

OMG! It is finally here. The Cover for Clockwork Princess the last installment in the Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare. And I think it is unbelievable amazing! Seriously! I loved the other two covers (Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince) but this one is just gorgeous!
I think those covers are better than the Mortal Instruments covers. We can only hope that the book will be as good as the cover promises. I read about people saying the girl's face would be odd but I like her look. It has something mysterious :) And she remindes me of Natalie Dormer, which I absolutly adore.

I haven't read the Infernal Devices yet. But that is just because I am waiting on them to be published in Paperback here in my home country. (for the sake of my pocket money :D) I am a huge fan of the Mortal Instruments series and I hope I will be hooked with this Spin Off, too.

Are you eager to get your hands on this book? Have you read any of the other books by Cassandra Clare? And if not, what the hell are you waiting for?

(And I just saw a ad vor the City of Bones Movie that will apparently hit theaters in august next year. Today is like fangirl heaven :D
And (again!) I just found out that Cassandra Clare will be publishing a new Shadowhunter series called The Dark Artifacts in 2015. How could I miss this? Here is the synopsis from the official press release: "Set against the glittering backdrop of present-day Los Angeles, the series follows Emma Carstairs, the fiercest warrior and most skilled young Shadowhunter since Jace Wayland, and Emma's sworn partner in arms, Julian Blackthorn. Despite Emma's complicated feelings for Julian, the two must band together to investigate a demonic plot that stretches from the warlock-run nightclubs of the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica.")


To learn more about Cassandra Clare just click the label with her name and read on :) )

So I'll stare at the cover a little more and leave you guys now :D
Love and Words
KJ

Heart of the Dragon _ A Supernatural Novel

Heart of the Dragon by Keith R.A. DeCandido
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Published: 2010
Synopsis (taken from Goodreads): "A Supernatural novel that reveals a previously unseen adventure for the Winchester brothers, from the hit CW series!

When renegade angel Castiel alerts Sam and Dean to a series of particularly brutal killings in San Francisco's Chinatown, they realise the Heart of the Dragon, an ancient evil of unspeakable power, is back! John Winchester faced the terrifying spirit 20 years ago, and the Campbell family fought it 20 years before that - can the boys succeed where their parents and grandparents failed?"
This book captures the charm and witt of the TV series. It is as funny as the series and the characters are as belivable and loveable. You can really imagine your favorite Demonhunters act like they do in this book.
For all fans of the series it will be great to finally find out so much about Mary Winchester, her parents and how she met John. I personally liked the fact, that all three generations of Winchesters fought the same ghost. I liked to compare their acting, family similarities and differences.
I loved reading something about Dean and Sam as children since it explains, especially on Deans side, why he acts the way he does.
For everyone who doesn't know this series I do not recommend this book as a start. Don't get me wrong, everyone should start this series. But Heart of the Dragon will just confuse you if you do not know the background of the last four seasons of Supernatural. All those names, people and events reffered to will surely destroy the fun for anyone who does not know what happened before.
I read and reviewed another Supernatural book called "Witch's Canyon" and as I said there I have to admitt there are some things I did not like.
The book has many details, acting, setting, and everything else. In a normal scene that helps to imagine how it would be in a TV series. But in really thrilling scenes, dark scenes, fight scenes, and most important ghost scenes that just takes the thrill away.

But anyway I still recommend this book to fans of the series who just cannot get enough of the Winchesters. Everyone else should start at the beginning, the first season, not with this book.

Love and words
KJ
View all my reviews

My Crushes on Male Book Characters - Rachel Style...

....Homies! :)

Sooooooooooo.... I was asked to create a post with MY book crushes :) And I guess, I'm gonna do that now and will start my list with the words: 'Mission completed!'

5. Starting with the last one of the ranking, I'm going to introduce to you:
   Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling!
   I know it sounds odd that he's supposed to be one of my book crushes, but he actually is! And to be honest, I had a hard time deciding between Draco and Snape, but since I'd prefer Snape as an uncle or such thing, I didn't think he was fitting the list :P
   Draco Malfoy is your average badass guy: He's cocky (Oh, hell yeah, he IS!), rich (who would figured that one?) and thinks he's the best. His parents seem pretty much messed up and they totally failed in raising their son. He is blonde and mean, and it seems like he actually had to pay the people around him to act like friends.
   But did you ever try to see the other side of him? Hello? In the first book he asked the great Harry Potter to join his clique! Isn't that a sign of insecurity?? The point I really suffered with him was when Harry cut him open with that stupid spell he'd found. Stupid Harry! Malfoy's crying scene in the 6^th movie was very convincing too, and since I always fall for the boys / men I can pity, he had me at a sob. :3 
   
   
   3. We'll continue with the 3^rd place, because I couldn't decide and now there are two persons ranked third. And I'll try to be more precise and less talkative now :D
   Maurice Micklewhite from the trilogy Lycidas, Lilith & Lumen by Christoph Marzi (no shame if you don't know him → he's a German author)
   Maurice is an elf with stereotype blonde hair, green-blue eyes and that cute ears I fancy so much ^^. Despite that, he's the smartest elf I know. He knows EVERYTHING! And if he doesn't know something, he only needs a few hours to find out! Furthermore, he is very polite and nice and always there when you need him. And he lives in the National Library of London. Yes, you've heard right! I want to live there, too *-* Together with him <3
   &
   Marquis de Posa from Don Carlos by Friedrich Schiller
   He.Is.Awesome! He is the perfect mix of personal belief in freedom and justice & a classical character. Unfortunately, he loses the passion for his aims for a little while, because he seems too consumed by the power that is given to him. And that's his end. He gets shot. Poor Posa. :( But nevertheless he is a brilliant character and if he wasn't part of the Malteser order I would totally marry him! 
   
   
   2. Glorfindel from The Lord of the Rings – The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien
   I cannot believe that they let Arwen take over Glorfindel's part in the first movie! That's blasphemy! Glorfindel is on the one hand charming and seems very juvenile, which is very delighting, and on the other hand he can get so serious and always knows how to handle the situation. Plus, he rescues the Hobbits & Aragon. And he's an elf. And blonde. With loooooooong hair. Doesn't that make him perfect enough? :3 
   
   
   1. The one and only:
   Howl from Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones!
   He's blonde (once again... why do I always fall for the blonde guys??), he's a sorcerer, he has a deal with a fire demon AND he has a walking castle. Hello? Coolness level 1,000,000? :) Howl comes from a faraway land (I'm not gonna spoil right now!) and is very narcistic.
   Quote (when he had a cold): 'Help! I'm dying of neglect up here!'
   He's annoying in a very lovely way and his conversations with others are always funny and so is the whole book. Howl just deserves the title of „Rachel's top male Book Character Crush“!

So, that was it from me for now! I apologize for the long explanations, but I really needed to defend my opinion on Draco :P See you soon and beware of wild animals!

Remember, there's always a toilet to flush! (I'm gonna work on a better signature, I promise :P)

R.S.

My favourite heroines of all time

Hey guys :)

Do you remember the post about my literary crushes? You can re-read it here.

I thought about doing such a list again. But talking about fictional boys could get really boring. (No I don’t think so :D )

So I decided to make a “My top 5 favourite Heroines in books”

I as a girl love heroines that kick ass, stand their ground and go their way no matter which obstacles they have to pass. So it should have been easier picking five girls than it was with the boys, right? Especially, after I read so many books with heroines.

But it wasn’t that easy. Turns out you need to be a lot better if you want to convince me as a heroine than you need to be as a fictional crush.

Anyway here comes my list of the five best heroines (in my opinion) from book world: 

1. Arya Stark (A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin)

Who she is: Arya is one of the POV characters from George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series. Ary is the daughter of Lord Eddard Stark and nine years old (well, at the beginning :D) She has four brothers and one sister.

She fights with a sword and travels the realm of Westeros to help her family win the game of thrones. She is not a real Lady for she likes to fight, picks on her sister and she refuses to marry a lord when she comes of age.

Arya is accompanied by her friends Gendry and Hotpie, together they travelled with the night’s watch and escaped the Lannister man. Arya killed someone ones in her life, to safe herself, while her father was attacked. And later on she had a deal with an assassin to safe herself again. You never know what adventure she will drawn into next.

Why I like her: Arya does not act like she should. She refuses to behave like a lady as her sister does. She fights for her life, owns a sword called Needle and is completely cute doing so. She is one of my favourite characters from ASOIF, besides Daenerys (who is btw a kick ass heroine, too:) )

I loved her in the books and I even more love her in the TV series.

2. Safron (The Dust of 100 Dogs by A.S. King)

Who she is: Safron was a young irish girl that flew to paris and landed on a ship on it’s way to the caribic. She became a famous pirate and stole a great treasure. But while she was burying it Safron was cursed by her arch enemy’s lover with the dust of 100 dogs. So Safron lived 100 lifes as a dog (or you know, as 100 different dogs) before she was reborn in modern America. So now Safron is on a quest to get back her treasures.

Why I like her: Because she fights for what she believes is hers and never backs down.

3. Chloe Saunders (Darkest Powers by Kelley Armstrong)

Who she is: Chloe used to believe in boogy man as a little girl. She did not just thought that they were real she saw them. But that were only fantasies of a little girl, right?

In High School Chloe starts to see ghosts again. Real ghosts. Everyone thinks she is mentally ill so she gets send off to a group home for people like her. Turns out those people are a werewolf, a sorcerer, and a witch. Because Chloe is a necromancer, she can see and even raise the dead. But if that wasn’t enough for one girl the group home was founded by a mad scientist who founded a company, too. A company that messed around with the genetics of people like Chloe. A company her mother and aunt seem to be related, too.

Why I like her: Because she would do anything for her friends. And though she gets betrayed by someone she loves she continues to fight for her right (to paaarty XD). And her powers are just awesome!

4. Lucy (Lucy in the Sky by Paige Toon)

Who she is: Lucy is a modern women who has everything she ever wanted. A lovely fiancé, a great job and now her two best friends from her childhood days are getting married. So Lucy gets on a plane to fly to Australia her childhood home. A few minutes before the plane starts she looks on her mobile phone for the last time in hours. While the “turn of your mobiles” sign blinks Lucy reads a text message from her fiancé. A message claiming to come from a unknown woman who just slept with Lucy’s fiancé.

So Lucy sets off to a journey around the world. A journey were she will encounter what love, friends and family really means and to find out if the perfect life she has is really that good…

Why I like her: Because she’s a modern day woman who tries to go her way. And though she sometimes does not seem to succeed she continues on.

5. Maggie (Inktrilogy by Cornelia Funke)

Who she is: Maggie is a young girl, whose mother disappeared years ago. She lives in a little house with her father Mo and hundreds of books. Maggie grew up with books and she loves nothing more than a good story.

But one rainy night a mysterious man called Dustfinger appears at her door. A man, her father knows from long ago. Dustfinger claims that he lived in a different world before her father read him out of a book called Inkheart. Finally Maggie learns why her father never read a story out loud to her: Everything Mo reads comes to life. And for every character that comes out of the book someone from our world gets pulled into the book. That’s why Maggie’s mother disappeared.

So Maggie sets out on an adventure to find her mother and defeat the villains that came with Dustfinger out of the world of Inkheart.

Why I like her: Because she was the first heroine I ever saw as a role model. And though she was really young during her adventures she was brave and intelligent. I loved Cornelia Funke’s story since Maggie reminded me so much of myself. I wish I could read myself into a book and I really love to read as much as she does.

And here, for comparison is Rachel’s list:

1. Smilla Jaspersen (Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow by Peter Hög)
   Why she likes her: “Smilla is just not your stereotype of heroine – she’s grown up, very intelligent, awesome and she takes what she wants.”

2. Jane Rizzoli (Rizzoli&Isles by Tess Gerritsen)
   Why she likes her: “Jane is amazingly cool in the TV series, but in the books she just kicks ass! And she reminds me of me just a little too often ;)”

3. Recha (Nathan the Wise by G.E. Lessing)
   Why she likes her: “She is just the smart one in the whole drama and: come on, she’s Nathan’s “daughter”, she HAS to be a great heroine!”

4. Lady Amalthea (The last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle)
   Why she likes her: “One word: awesome! The most beautiful and poetic book character I’ve ever known – she was a great part of my childhood.”

5. Sophie (Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones)
   Why she likes her: “In the beginning (meaning in the first book) she is a very ordinary girl, but with a great sense of black humour and the natural talent of dealing with Howl (the number one on my list of favourite male book characters ;P)”

While I was working on this list, I read Robert Louis Stevenson’s Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. And in the fourth Chapter a girl appears, only a side character. And there was one line that, in my opinion, shows what a heroine should not be like: “At the horror of these sights she faded”

How can she fade, if someone interesting is going on? Do not fade, tell me about it! :)

If you are as much into heroines as I am you should definitely check out Erin Blakemoor’s The Heroine’s Bookshelf

Who are your fav’s and why?

For example: Do you prefer Hermione or Katniss? Maybe someone totally different leads your top five.

Tell me about your lists in the comments

Love and Words

KJ

Challenging myself

Hello guys :)

Since I'm starting to have more time I thought about doing some reading Challenges. Just like last year I am doing the Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, but this time that is not enough for me. 

I'm participating in the It's the end of the world (and we like it) Challenge

This challenge is about post-apocalyptic and dystopian novels. Since I love those kind of novels I thought it would be the right challenge for me. 

But I do not know how good this works for me, therefore I am starting with the easy level. The challenge is a yearly challenge so I can update and change my list if things are going well. 

So here is my list: 

It's the end of the world (and we like it) Challenge

Level: Easy (10 books)

Duration: 6. July. 2012 until 6. July. 2013

1. The Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
2. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
3. The Passage by Justin Cronin
4. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
5. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
6. Across the Universe by Beth Revis
7. The Water Wars by Cameron Stracher
8. Matched by Ally Condie
9. The Pledge by Kimberly Derting
10. Wither by Lauren DeStefano

Of course I'll keep you update with my progress since I will be posting a review to each book after finishing it. But to stay updated with the list and find out in what other challenges I want to participate in you can read my Challenge Log over on Goodreads. 

Do you know any of these books? 

Have you ever participated in such a challenge? 

Maybe you want to join me in my quest. Just post your list in the comments :)

Love and Words 

KJ

The Second Annual YA Sisterhood Crush Tournamet

Hello everyone :)
Do you remember when I posted something about Clary and Jace from the Mortal Instruments winning the First Annual YA Sisterhood Summer Crushin Tournament and the YA Sisterhood Heroine Tournament? No? Then read all about it here.

To tell a long story short: The girls of the YA Sisterhood are hosting the second Crush Tournament this year. Well, you probably already guessed it because it wouldn't ne annual if they only did it for one year.
I just wanted to tune in and tell you that the first round will start in July 6. So make sure to get all the infos here and to make sure you all behave like reasonable persons and do not attack anyone because he likes someone you cannot stand read this post. We are all fans of books and we should stick together. Always remember that!

Sadly this will be the last tournament since there were so many problems going on with hate mails and discussions and stuff. I do not want to get into too much detail because I did not participate in anything. I just watched. And I'm not happy about so much hate in book world. Get your act together people!
Noone should be attacked by other people just because his or her opinion on something. Especially not because of some book. If you look at it closely you will remember that does books are not real. The charackters are not real but the people you attack and insult on the internet are real. And even though you don not know and will never meet this people your words can still hurt them very much and cause a lot of trouble.
So please, do not ruin the fun in all this.
I am not saying that no one should be able discuss his opinion in a civil way. I am just saying that you should not fight over books. Because even though books mean the world to me (you all know that) I still remember that they are just books. There is no matter of life and death here. No reason to be mean to anyone. Especially not to the wonderful people who gave us these books (I still cannot believe that a lot of people send hate mails to Cassandra Clare because her characters one. That makes me not just sad but really angry, too.)

So lets all play together nicely, like my mom used to say when I was little.
May the best crush win the tournament!
Love and Words
KJ

The little prince

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is going to be more a comment than an actual review.

I think it's really hard to review a book like this. It's pure poetry.
If you read between the lines this book can make you sad as well as unbelievable happy. It is a great book for children and even more for adults. Because it shows you what really matters in life and what is terrible wrong with us today.

I recommend it to everyone.

Love, words and after reading this book especially roses to everyone!

View all my reviews

A Journey through Fantasy Part 1

Hey guys :)
I'm back from my bookshopping tour and (besides my monthly dose on mangas) I have the beginings of two new series in my backpack waiting to be showed to you.

Yeah, I know I should finish the series I already started before begining with something new, but can you resist the atmosphere of your favorite bookstore? Besides, I'm currently waiting on Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare to come out in paperback, here in my home country. So I can continue with the series. The nice woman at the book store told me that it will be published somewhere around the end of the year. So to fill the long waiting gap I'm setting sales and leaving home, for a journey into distant countries full with magic, fantasy, and a lot of words. Will you come with me? Than just go ahead...

The first coast we're landing on today gives us a wonderful view of dangerously high mountains. The captain of our little ship tells us that in this mountains the Host is said to be. A place where magic still exists and people called the Keepers learn to use it.  I'm talking about First Truth by Dawn Cook, who you might know as Kim Harrison. It's the first book in the Truth series and from what I read so far it's really good. I really like the two main characters Alissa and Strell and how they're fighting all the time :)

Here is the official synopsis taken from Goodreads:

Alissa doesn't believe in magic. Her father's stories about the Hold, a legendary fortress where human Keepers learn magic from the enigmatic Maters, are just that―stories. But her mother insists that Alissa has inherited her father's magical ability, and so she must go to the Hold―the only place her talents can be trained.

On her way, she crosses paths with Stree, a wandering musician from the plains. And though Alissa is not sure she can trust a plainsman, Strell has something she needs―one of her father's old maps. Travelling together, they can reach the Hold before the snow sets in.

But they don't know that the Hold is nearly empty. Something is very wrong and someone believes that Alissa and Strell know about a book called First Truth

I think it's time for a little cover comparing. We haven't done that in a long time and this books gives us not just two but three covers to compare. But remember you cannot judge a book by it's cover. Which cover do you like the best, the old English one (top right corner) or the first German one (bottom left corner) or the newer one(middle) ? Do you know this series? Tell me in the coments :)

I especially like the German cover with the hoddie. It looks so mysterious :) To find out more about the series, wich will be published into French soon, visit Dawn Cook's official site.
All in all I'm pretty hooked with this book and plan to finish the whole series before school starts again in a few weeks. You should definitely check them out and I'm surely going to post my review :D

"A Journey through fantasy" will be continued, with the next series I have waiting on my shelf. In the mean time just enjoy the wonderful view from the tower of the Host.

I also found a bunch of other books I desperately want to read so I guess we're in for a "Can't wait for..." next week :)

Love and words

KJ