Book Challenge Day 10: Faust I by Goethe

Today I am talking about my Favourite Classic Book.
This is, again a German one. And it is again a hard decision.
You know I love me some classic books. Dracula, Frankenstein, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Wuthering Heights, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Of Mice and Men, Don Karlos...
I love them all.
But if I have to pick a favourite one it would definitely be one by Schiller or Goethe since they were both great writers (and best friends).
I loved Faust I by Goethe. Here is a short summary for everyone who does not know the book (as always taken from Goodreads):

Goethe’s Faust reworks the late medieval myth of a brilliant scholar so disillusioned he resolves to make a contract with Mephistopheles. The devil will do all he asks on Earth and seeks to grant him a moment in life so glorious that he will wish it to last forever. But if Faust does bid the moment stay, he falls to Mephisto and must serve him after death. In this first part of Goethe’s great work, the embittered thinker and Mephistopheles enter into their agreement, and soon Faust is living a rejuvenated life and winning the love of the beautiful Gretchen. But in this compelling tragedy of arrogance, unfulfilled desire, and self-delusion, Faust heads inexorably toward an infernal destruction.

Faust is a strange character. I am halfway torn between really disliking him and loving him. Mephisto on the other side is really great. He pulls of some great quotes and is perfection in demon form.
The story itself is really interesting, showing a man that searches for the real meaning of life. What if one day you find out that everything you will ever accomplish will not be enough in the end? What if you want more than you can ever get?
And I just love the idea of the devil betting with god on human souls :D
What is your favourite classic story?

Love and Words
KJ

Cover Reveal: Just one Cup by Cassandra Giovanni

Today we have news from the amazing Cassandra Giovanni. She has a new book coming up on June 20 2013. Do you know what that means? It's Cover Reveal time!
Check it out:

Emma Walker was a writer who'd lost herself to someone else's anger--who had given up on ever feeling like herself again.

Evan Levesque was a rock-god--the one all the woman wanted, but he'd never gotten used to the loneliness between the stage and real life.

With just one cup of coffee they'll begin a journey of self-discovery at each others sides, but can Emma handle Evan's fame while dealing with her own demons? Emma's checkered personal past, a bad relationship that haunts the edges of her memories, threatens to make everything implode on them when Evan takes matters into his own hands.

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but your words...they'll destroy my soul--Can Emma handle being put back together and facing who she's become because of it? 

GENRE: New Adult>Contemporary Romance 

 And because she is so amazing the lovely Cassandra Giovanni gave us a little Sneak Peek, too:

Book Challenge Day 9: Medea

So I am skipping day 8. The prompt for day 8 was writing about the most overrated book. I think Breaking Dawn is the most overrated book because that, despite the fact that I liked Eclipse, really disappointed me.
Therefore I wrote a post about Breaking Dawn. The whole thing ended with me completely bashing the book. And I am not going to post something that bashes a book so bad.
Do not get me wrong. I have strong opinions and I have no problem with stating them official even when they are bad. But whenever I write something bad about a book I at least try to be polite. Because somewhere an author tried really hard to write the best book they can write and it is kind of their baby. I will not kill someones baby. And even more important: It is only my opinion. I am in no way "right" about the whole thing. Other people love the book and will do everything to defend it. I respect these people.
Therefore I always try to be polite.
But I honestly had a really bad day today, so I do not feel able to write a polite post about this topic. I am not doing it at all. Maybe I will write one later, but not now.

Let's start with Day 9 anyway!

A book you thought you wouldn't like but ended up loving. 

That is really hard. Why? Because I usually do not read books if I already think I would not like them...
Well it seems like I once again have to turn to a German book. But fear not! This time I am pretty sure it has been translated into English: Medea by Christa Wolf.
We read it in 12th class and the begining was really bad. It starts with the protagonist Medea having a fever dream, but you do not know that it is a fever dream. Therefore everything is really confusing and she talks about things that happened or may happen, and what she is feeling. For the first 20 pages I was like "What is going on here? Who is she, what is she talking about? I hope the rest of the book is not like this"
But if you get through those first 20 pages the book is really great. Honestly, hands down, it was one of the best books I ever read in school. And I wrote my exams in English and German so I did nothing than reading books for three years.
So book is a retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Medea who is betrayed by her beloved Jason. It's really tragic. And the whole book is basically pure feminism. But it's great!

Would you check it out?
Love and Words
KJ

Cover Love: Deception and The Burning Sky

It's that time again! Let's share some cover love!
Well all know that you should not judge a book by it's cover but who does not like the feeling of holding such a shiny gorgeous and pretty book in your clumsy little hands?

So today we are looking at two upcoming novels from Harperteen:
The first one is Deception the sequel to Defiance by C.J.Redwine. The book will hit shelves on August 27, 2013.

It reminds me of the cover for the first one without being the same. They used the same model and I think it is always good when you can see that books of a series belong together.
I love the pose of the model and the expression on her face. She looks so fierce and dangerous.
The colours are really beautiful, her red hair creates a great contrast. This cover is really beautiful!
And now for everyone who never heard of these books before, here is a summary of book 1:


Within the walls of Baalboden, beneath the shadow of the city's brutal leader, Rachel Adams has a secret. While other girls sew dresses and obey their male Protectors, Rachel knows how to survive in the wilderness and deftly wield a sword. When her father, Jared, fails to return from a courier mission and is declared dead, the Commander assigns Rachel a new Protector, her father's apprentice, Logan--the same boy Rachel declared her love for two years ago, and the same one who handed her heart right back to her. Left with nothing but a fierce belief in her father's survival, Rachel decides to escape and find him herself. But treason against the Commander carries a heavy price, and what awaits her in the Wasteland could destroy her.

At nineteen, Logan McEntire is many things. Orphan. Outcast. Inventor. As apprentice to the city's top courier, Logan is focused on learning his trade so he can escape the tyranny of Baalboden. But his plan never included being responsible for his mentor's impulsive daughter. Logan is determined to protect her, but when his escape plan goes wrong and Rachel pays the price, he realizes he has more at stake than disappointing Jared.

As Rachel and Logan battle their way through the Wasteland, stalked by a monster that can't be killed and an army of assassins out for blood, they discover romance, heartbreak, and a truth that will incite a war decades in the making.

The second cover is for The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas. It comes out on September 17, 2013.
Oh my god, it is so gorgeous! First of all I like that there is no model on this cover. It is a nice change from all those other covers around. (Which does not mean that I dislike covers with models on. Exhibit A would be the Defiance cover!)
The colours mix together really great and the whole scenery is so interesting. I wonder what the lightning is doing there and what the city/thingie down there is. This book captures the readers eye on first glance and makes you wondering what the whole book is about.
Here is a single clue, aka the summary:

   It all began with a ruined elixir and an accidental bolt of lightning…

Iolanthe Seabourne is the greatest elemental mage of her generation—or so she's being told. The one prophesied for years to be the savior of The Realm. It is her duty and destiny to face and defeat the Bane, the greatest mage tyrant the world has ever known. A suicide task for anyone let alone a sixteen-year-old girl with no training, facing a prophecy that foretells a fiery clash to the death.


Prince Titus of Elberon has sworn to protect Iolanthe at all costs but he's also a powerful mage committed to obliterating the Bane to revenge the death of his family—even if he must sacrifice both Iolanthe and himself to achieve his goal.

But Titus makes the terrifying mistake of falling in love with the girl who should have been only a means to an end. Now, with the servants of the Bane closing in, he must choose between his mission and her life.

Which one is your favourite? Do not choose, just love them both :D
Love and Words
KJ

You can find all covers here. 

And all summaries are taken from the respective Goodreads pages.

Book Challenge Day 7: Wolfsgier

Today we are talking about:

The Most Underrated Book

I think a book that does not have the fanbase it would deserve is Wolfsgier by Brigitte Melzer. She is a German author and I do not think that her book has been translated into English yet. So you have to bear with me on this one.

The title can be translated to something like Wolf's Greed. The story centers around the young woman Emma who is haunted by a dangerous beast in her dreams. She lives in London, 1886, and everyone thinks she is insane. So Emma ends up in an ansylum, which is a terrible place if you consider the time she lives in. This is where the story starts and the atmosphere Melzer conjures is dark and haunting.
Emma is desperate to find out something about the beast so she escapes and returns to the place she was born, a little village in the misty Dartmoor.
But Emma does not realize how great the dangers around her have become: An inspector from London followed her to return her back to the Asylum, a mysterious group of men chose her for a sacrifice, and the beast is not only hunting her in her dreams anymore...

I love the spooky and sometimes really dark atmosphere. The characters are great and the ending...! Do not let me get started about that ending! I can simply not remember that any other book made me so emotional over an ending. It was so great!
And I am a big fan of the author anyway so if you ever come across one of her books: Read it!
Trust me, I talked Rachel into reading it and she loved it, too!

So this is definitely a book I wish more people could read.
Love and Words
KJ

Demonic Dora Review

Demonic Dora by Claire Chilton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First  I want to thank the publisher for making me able to read this book via Netgalley. When I started readig this book I thought it would be a funny read and different from other demon books.
After all we are talking about a girl that lives in the attic of a church (which is pretty cool by the way), has a preacher father with a TV show that thinks all vegetarians are abominations, and tries to summon demons using a twister matt with a pentagramm she painted onto the back of it and ingredients she got via ebay.
Than the demons entered the picture and I changed my mind a little thinking this book may be darker than expected. It is not, which kind of disappointed me a little.
I really like evil demons but I am always open for some funny ones, too. I am a huge fan of Jonathan Stroud's Bartimäus books for example.
But the further I got with this book the more frustrated I got. The demons are so far from evil it actually hurts. You could consider this a pro point for being fresh and new but with them constantly refering to themselves as evil it is definitely a minus point.

I had a few other minus points on my notes in the begining but the overall funny atmosphere overshadowed them.

Sometimes I got the feeling the book tried to hard to be funny and the constant poop-jokes were really anoying.
After half of the book I got a little bored, too, since the story did not feel like picking up any pace. The plot seemed to slow down with each page and the ending was really forseeable. The last twist was, in my opinion, not shocking at all.
The motivation of the characters was really confusing for me, too. I could not understand what they were all about and the romance felt really forced. The only one I really liked was the little side kick. He was funny and negative, like a real demon.
But the characters themselves, except from their motivations, were interesting enough to keep me reading and stopped me from droping the book halfway through.

I scrolled through some other reviews on goodreads and people were complaining about all the swearing in the book. I did not mind the swearing in the first half of the novel. But after the second poop joke I kind of got bored by all the swearing, too. It felt forced.

I think the over all problem I had with this book was the fact that most of the jokes were not funny for me.
It started reading good, I thought I would end up with a 5 star review but in the second half the negative points just got to much to be ignored.

Funny moments cannot carry a story alone when the rest is missing. I think that is the problem this book has.

But if you are looking for a light and funny read, and if you think poop-jokes are funny, this book is definitely a recommendation for you

Love and Words
KJ

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