Book Reviews by Today, I Read…

Happy Tuesday! It’s time again for another edition of Teaser Tuesdays…

Here are the rules:

• Grab your current read
• Let the book fall open to a random page
• Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• You also need to share the title of the book where you get your teaser from…that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given
• Please avoid spoilers

This week’s teaser:

“I changed my clothes, finding a baggy T-shirt scrunched in the closet in the hall with the words SAVE THE EARTH, NOT YOURSELVES printed on it. It was loose enough not to hurt the burns too much.” pg. 196 Stolen by Lucy Christopher

When I first heard about this book I was certain I wanted to read it. From the synopsis and some early reviews, I was able to gather that it would be controversial in some way. I enjoy reading controversial novels, especially those that present a conundrum. Stolen does just that. From what I’ve gathered, it touches on the concept of Stockholm syndrome. And after reading the first few pages, it seems like it’s going to be a smooth read.

Title: wtf
Author: Peter Lerangis
ISBN: 978-1416913603
Story Length: 272 pages
Genre: Young Adult Action/Adventure

Back Cover of wtf

ONE PLAN, TWO PARTIES, SIX PLAYERS:

Jimmy: the driver
Cam: the connect
Byron: the know-it-all
Waits: the supplier
Reina: the conscience
MC: the crasher

On one Friday night these six will test their limits to the extreme. Some are driven by lust, others by greed. One just wants to have fun, and another desires to be free. If everything goes as planned, they all get what they want. But within twenty-four hours, bones will break, bodies will touch, hearts will race, guns will be drawn, and everything will go oh so very wrong.

Three Quick Points About wtf

• Point 1: Ultimate in mental junk food. It’s like a McD’s Big Mac with extra cheese and special sauce with bacon piled on top and no lettuce or pickles.
• Point 2: There’s no room to breathe. It felt like being trapped in the passenger seat of a high octane sports car with a brick on the accelerator.
• Point 3: Darkly comical. I laughed a few times, but I had to wonder whether or not I was supposed to and if it made me a bad person because I did.

Continue reading »

This post will be sticky until the contest is over. Scroll down to read the new stuff.

In my recent review of Morpheus Road: The Light by D. J. MacHale, I basically gushed. It’s been a while since I’ve been able to gush about a horror novel. And thanks to the wonderful book fairies at Simon & Schuster, I’m able to giveaway 5 copies of the finished book. (Hooray for book fairies!!)

The last few giveaways I’ve held, I’ve asked you to help me create a story, but this time around, I’m going to be different…

One common thread throughout this book was fear, complete and utter.

Imagine for a moment that there was an entity which could climb inside your head and make you believe the most heinous things are happening all around you. What would you see? What is that deep dark fear lurking in the outer reaches of your mind?

To enter the giveaway, all you need to do is leave a comment answering the question above. If you’d like extra entries, there’s a couple ways you can do it:

• Follow me on Twitter +1
• Tweet about the giveaway (include a link to your tweet in the comments) +2
• Add a link to the giveaway in your sidebar +2
• Blog about the giveaway +3
• Become a confirmed newsletter subscriber +3
• Leave a comment on the Morpheus Road: The Light review +1
  (No spammy comments please. Spamminess of comments measured at my sole discretion.)

Entrants must be at least 13 years old. The contest is open only to residents of the U.S. and Canada. (My apologies to my international readers, but I’m limited by the publisher’s shipping restrictions.) The contest is open until 12 Midnight EST on Sunday May 16th, 2010. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to email me.

Title: Morpheus Road: The Light
Author: D. J. MacHale
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0438-0
Story Length: 344 pages
Genre: Young Adult/Psychological Horror

Back Cover of Morpheus Road: The Light

It begins with mysterious sounds, a fleeting face outside a window–all things that can be explained away. That is, until he comes face-to-face with a character who only exists on the pages of a sketchbook–a character Marshall himself created.

Marshall is quickly convinced these strange incidents have something to do with his best friend, Cooper, who has gone missing. Together with Cooper’s beautiful but aloof sister, Sydney, Marshall searches for the truth about his friend while ultimately uncovering a nightmare that is bigger and more frightening than he ever could have imagined.

Three Quick Points About Morpheus Road: The Light

• Point 1: More of a creepfest than a gorefest. Although I’d definitely place this book in the horror category, there’s a relatively small amount of blood and guts.
• Point 2: So. Much. Tension. It just didn’t stop. Right when you think all is well–BAM!–something else jumps out at you.
• Point 3: There’s a mystery begging to be solved. Too bad the second book isn’t out yet, because (and I can’t believe I’m going to say this…) OMG I can’t wait for it!

Continue reading »

Sometime last year, I came across an interesting kit which contained bookmarks, a reading diary, and some other interesting bits. I don’t remember the name of it, and I’m kicking myself in the head because I should have written it down, but it was the bookmarks which caught my attention.

These weren’t any old bookmarks. They were special. They had a section to write the title of the book and its author along with some basic information.

Looking back over the books I’d read through the years, I realized having that information on a bookmark would come in handy. However, I didn’t really need everything else that came with them, so I devised a plan to use index cards to jot down notes while reading. That’s what I call the dark ages of my reading system.

The index cards were haphazard and unorganized and sometimes lacking vital information about the book I’d read. But through experimentation, I found the index card bookmarking system that works well for me.

(I wasn’t lying when I said I have tiny handwriting and it only gets tinier the faster I write.)

I’m sure it will evolve over time and through more experimentation, but in the meantime this works. Now I just need to invest in some decorative index cards or maybe design a printable template because I truly miss the cuteness of traditional bookmarks.

(BTW, if anyone is interested in a printable template, let me know because I may decide to make it available as a download.)

What system, if any, do you use while reading? And if, by chance, you know or have an idea of the bookmarking kit that I was talking about at the beginning of this post, please let me know. Thanks!