The Siren by Kiera Cass

from goodreads

4 stars

The expression "when it rains it pours" definitely describes my life the past week. It seemed that if one more thing was thrown at me I was going to go crazy. I had to have extra appointments, and those needed to be squeezed in around Miss G's spooky tea birthday party and a day off school. My hip started acting up which meant walking sucked and since walking sucked I didn't get done all I wanted to in Miss G's new room. This week is looking up a bit but I feel so behind and I don't have time to fall behind.

What got me through this? Having some good things to read. Thank goodness for books. They truly are an escape and sunshine on our rainy days. Now it is time to breath easy, get caught up and continue to read.

Synopsis

Kahlen was rescued in a drowning accident and became one of the ocean's sirens. These girls are beautiful but their voice is deadly. They must serve the ocean for a hundred years, luring ships for the ocean to consume. When they aren't doing that they live their lives how they please, but they cannot talk to regular humans.

Kahlen is almost done her time when she falls in love with a mortal. Will she be able to risk it all for love?

My Thoughts
This was a really interesting take on the whole idea of sirens and the ocean, the inter-connectivity of people and the strength of love.

Kahlen was an interesting character in the fact that the deaths that her voice caused on the ocean affected her so much, where as the others were more immune. It is kind of a morbid thought. The ocean needing to feed and the way it does that is through drowning victims. The premise, I grant you, is a bit weird, yet it worked.

I liked the story. I liked how Kahlen made things worked. I liked how the siren's were there for each other. I liked how this wasn't just a sappy romance but showed how people really can feel connections and work around perceived obstacles. I liked how it showed the power that love really can be.

This book is nothing like Cass's Selection series. This has a deeper feel to it and a bit of a darker tone. It is still a great book "fluff" book. One you can read without making your brain work too much. But the characters were more real and relatable, it was not silly, it was just a great story to be a part of.

Pinkalicious: The Pinkamazing Storybook Collection by Victoria Kann

from goodreads

5 stars
Birthday season number 2 is upon us. And this year I told the girls no birthday parties. I am just over them and really don't feel like figuring out how to entertain a bunch of children for hours, or paying others to do it. But, I have allowed them to have some friends over for a more subdued celebrations, and no presents! (Seriously, they have so much they really don't need anymore.)

I am looking forward to Miss G's playdate this Saturday. Miss G decided to have a spooky tea party with two of her friends. They are going to decorate cupcakes, make flubber and do a monster craft. It was fun seeing Miss G's creative side (and her not going crazy over accessories or mandatory things).

Miss V is also fine to go with a subdued approach. She is going to invite 3 or her friends over for a movie night and some pizza. I can handle that.

Perhaps by the time Miss P gets to school I might feel like doing birthday parties again, but for now low key is the way to go.

Synopsis

This is a collection of 6 stories from Victoria Kann's Pinkalicious collection of books. They are The Pinkerrific Playdate, Pinkalicious:The Princess of Pink Slumber Party, Pinkalicous and the Pink Hat Parade, Pinkalicous:Flower Girl, Pinkalicious: Soccer Star and Pinkalicious and the Pinktastic Zoo Day.

My Thoughts

I really have mixed feelings when it comes to book collections. While it is nice to have a collection of books for the kids to read all in one place, the books themselves are heavy and sometimes cumbersome to read. Sometimes when people give us the collection we already have some of the books so now I have duplicates happening. And often I get stuck reading more stories then I wanted to at the time. This collection, however, I love.

What is so great about this Pinkalicous collection. Well the first is these are books that I would not have readily on my shelf. Some are from her "learn to read" pinkalicious books, which are actually good stories. The others are from her actual story book series but are not her first ones that we would already have.

Second. When the story ends the kids can't see the title page of the next one. This makes it easy to read one story and only one. My kids have a Dora collection story book and I always end up having to read the whole thing because when the story ends they can see what the next story is and of course beg for it. Now, I am all for reading to kids, but at bedtime when you only have time for one story and don't want to start a whine fest it is nice when they can't see what is coming next and can easily accept it is the end. So thank you book editor/designer for making it easy to close the book without tears. Yes, it is more paper, but it makes the transitions so much nicer and makes the stories feel complete and separate.

Third. How can you not like Pinkalicous. The flower girl story is my favourite and I love it. But the other stories help with problem solving, using your imagination, and being nice and supportive to one another. As always the illustrations are fantastic. If you don't like pink you might not like this book as much because there is a lot of it.

So, if you are going to take the plunge and get a story collection book that you aren't going to groan over or wish you never brought into you house, then I would recommend this one. It has fun stories, is easy to read, and it is easy just to read one story and not all of them. And since I recommend it, it must be good because, as I alluded to, I usually can't stand these all in one books.

Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

from goodreads

2 stars

What a dusty few days it has been. On the weekend my husband did the finishing touches to the new office space so that means moving time. I have been moving desks, and shelving in. And then I have to go through the old office stuff. Our old office became a dumping ground over the last few months. Why try to keep it tidy when you are going to be moving stuff? Right? Well now it has come to pay the price for our uncaring. We have to go through papers and random items and sweep up spilled sparkles and finally make a decision and consolidate our filing system. Fun, fun, fun. Hopefully that will all get done so that on Saturday we can paint the walls the shade of green Miss G has requested and then move her stuff in.

I know that I will feel an immense sense of accomplishment when it finally all gets done, but it is getting to that point that seems a hopeless task. Oh well, on piece of recycling at a time. I'll get there. And then I will take a much deserved reading holiday!

Synopsis

This is the next installment of Red Queen Series. This finds Mare Barrow and Cal in league with the rebels. They travel around the kingdom trying to find the other anomalies like Mare, red blooded but with silver capabilities. As they search they feel the crunch of time as the newly crowned King Maven seeks to thwart and capture them at every turn.

My Thoughts

Well, as you can see from my rating, I was far from amused with this book. After reading Red Queen last year I was eagerly awaiting the next story. I was kind of disappointed.

Yes, there was action and we got to learn more about the rebels and what happened to Mare's brother. But the story itself I found boring and repetitive. Like super repetitive. Like so super repetitive. Do you get the idea that it was repetitive?

I also find her mixed feelings about Maven hard to understand. While reading the first book I totally thought that she and Cal were the love interests and I really didn't think that she and Maven had that much of a connection, not really. So when she goes on about her feelings for him and how mixed they are and she saves notes from him, it was really hard to wrap my brain around, because I feel she has a stronger connection with Cal. That could be just me. But if there were teams, I would totally be team Cal.

The story was slow. The ending a bit too quick. I will still read the next book when it comes out. I care about the supporting cast of characters, not so much Mare. I think this was a bridging book that had to happen to get the story where it needed to be for the next book, that is my hope anyway. But it was definitely a let down after Red Queen and I wouldn't blame readers for not wanting to continue.

Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu

from goodreads

4 stars

I started the year with a reading bang. It seemed I was constantly reading and finishing books so fast. Now the slow down has come. I am getting busy with other projects around the house, or reading aloud to Miss P more and going to lots of appointments.

Sometimes reading is like that. It goes through ebbs and flows. And really, that is life. You have moments where you are so busy if one more things falls on your lap you will burst! And then, you have moments where you can just laze around and be chill.

I am love that things do change and that there are times and seasons for things. I am also grateful that I can renew my library books online, for those times when I am slow.

Synopsis

The Legend trilogy is written in two voices. One is that of Day, the Republic's number one criminal, who is really a 17 year old boy trying to survive and help out his family. The other voice is that of June, the prodigy of the system who follows without question until her brother dies and she is faced with new information. Throw in a war, disease, rebels and romance and you get one pretty cool dystopian series.

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed this series. The characters seemed well thought out and well rounded. They didn't seem to have complete hero complexes that you often see in YA dystopian books. The characters admitted when they couldn't do something and accepted the help that was around them. They really leaned on others which was refreshing to see.

I really enjoyed the switching between voices of Day and June. It was neat to get two different perspectives. It made the story a bit more rounded and helped with the flow. You gained a deeper sense of the society they found themselves in.

I also liked how the series ended. Ending are such a hard thing to get right and I think Lu did an excellent job of making the story feel complete and you feel like the characters are going to be alright. 

There were times that I found the story not as engaging, or some of the interactions a bit weird or not in keeping with the characters and story. But on the whole this was a great dystopian. Definitely one that you should read if you haven't yet.