Mini Review: Plague Land by Alex Scarrow

Plague Land by Alex Scarrow (Dec. 5, 2017)
Length: 384 pages
Genre: Young Adult Horror/Survival
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Purchase: Barnes & Noble | Amazon
Source: I received a free eARC from the publisher through Edelweiss. This did NOT affect my honest review. Thanks Sourcebooks!
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: Leon and his younger sister Grace have just moved to London from New York when news of an unidentified plague begins to fill the news. Within a week the virus hits London. People in the streets turn to liquid before their eyes, and what follows is a frantic hunt for a safety which may no longer exist. A new gripping series from Alex Scarrow.

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My Review

Plague Land in Three Words: Gore. Survival. Family.

Leon notices a plauge mentioned on tv, yet no one except him is giving it second thought. Leon finds this odd, if not a little unsettling. When shortly after the world comes crashing down around him and his family, he can't say he is that surprised. Leon must step up and help his family survive the plague. This horror novel is unique, gruesome, unexpected, and a little frightening.

The Bottom Line: An interesting read worth checking out at your local library, or perhaps even purcahsing if gory/horror/survivor books are your thing.

TTT #83: Winter TBR Pile

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

I have one month between my fall and spring semester of grad school and I want to read as much as I can! Next semester I will be in reading heavy classes and won't have time to read for fun, so I am goingt to read my little heart out during my break. I chose a wide variety of books for my reading marathon. **Titles are linked to Goodreads.

 

1. Warcross by Marie Lu

2. Without Merit by Colleen Hoover

3. Renegades by Marissa Meyer

  

4. Year One by Nora Roberts

5. Meet Cute by Various Authors

6. Lucky in Love by Kasie West

  

7. You Won't Know I'm Gone by Kristen Orlando

8. Deadly Sweet by Lola Dodge

9. Wicked Soul by Nora Ash

10. The Borden Murders by Sarah Miller

Did any of my picks make your list?

The One Where I Rank Friends Thanksgiving Episodes

As many of you already know, I am a Friends fan for life. Thanksgiving is only a few days away and that means a Friends Thanksgiving episode marathon is in my near future. Is there a better way to celebrate Thanksgiving than sharing my ranking of all of the Friends Thanksgiving episodes? This was harder than I thought it would be. I love them all, but here is my ranking of episodes from my least favorite to my most favorite.

10. The One Where Chandler Doesn't Like Dogs (Season 7)

Reason: Not only is it sad that Chandler doesn't like dogs, but I would much rather watch The Holiday Armadillo episode from this season. The best part of this episode is the gif below.

9. The One With the List (Season 2)
Reason: "She's not Rachem." I barely even consider this a Thanksgiving episode.

8. The One With Rachel's Other Sister
Reason: The plates!

7. The One With the Late Thanksgiving (Season 10)

Reason: Chandler and Monica are getting a baby!

6. The One With the Rumor (Season 8)
Reason: The I Hate Rachel Green Club

5. The One Where Underdog Gets Away (Season 1)
Reason: The first ever Thanksgiving episode!

4. The One With All the Thanksgivings (Season 5)
Reason: Chandler proclaims his love.

3. The One with Chandler in a Box (Season 4)
Reason: It's threefold.

2. The One Where Ross Got High (Season 6)
Reason: "Custard? Good. Jam? Good. Beef? Good."

1. The One with the Football (Season 3)
Reason: Two words, Gellar Cup.

I had way too much fun making this list! What is your favorite FRIENDS Thanksgiving episode?

Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: Haven by Mary Lindsey

Haven by Mary Lindsey (Nov. 7. 2017)
Length: 371 pages
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
Source: I received a free eARC from the publisher. This did NOT affect my honest review.
Purchase: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | iBooks
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: "We all hold a beast inside. The only difference is what form it takes when freed."

Rain Ryland has never belonged anywhere, He’s used to people judging him for his rough background, his intimidating size, and now, his orphan status. He’s always been on the outside, looking in, and he’s fine with that. Until he moves to New Wurzburg and meets Friederike Burkhart. Freddie isn’t like normal teen girls, though. And someone wants her dead for it. Freddie warns he’d better stay far away if he wants to stay alive, but Rain’s never been good at running from trouble. For the first time, Rain has something worth fighting for, worth living for. Worth dying for.

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My Review

Haven in Three Words: Mysterous. Dark. Passionate.

Reminiscent of novels like Blood and Choclate by Annete Curtis Klause and Velvet by Temple West, Haven is sure to please fans of young adult paranormal romances.

Unlike your average YA paranormal romance novel, Haven is told from the point of view of a male protaganist. Not only is this a breath of fresh air, but having the female being the strong, dangerous, mysterious one to the normal human boy is pretty fantastic. Although Rain is no weakling, he is merly a human among a world of mythology and magic. Rain is an interesting main character who is forced to go live with the aunt he didn't know he had in a small town he didn't know existed. Inserted into a small town where he is clearly the oustider is barely a problem when he realizes that the small town has more secrets than people.

Mary Lindsey does a magnificant job at describing a small town setting filled with mysterious stories and weird residents. Although Rain is fresh meat at his new school, he is drawn to the dangerous Freddie, a tough girl who Rain finds scary and yet alluring. Their forbidden friendship turns more, and the author does a nice job with its unfolding. Actually, the pacing of the whole book was well done. Although the plot keeps a lot of the usual paranormal tropes, it still manages to bring a few surprises to the reader. I will admit that the foreshadowing was a little heavy handed. Otherwise, it's an entertaining story with great chemsitry between the main characters and a high-stakes ending.

The Bottom Line: Give it a shot.

About the Author

Mary Lindsey is a multi award-winning, RITA® nominated author of romance for adults and teens. She lives on an island in the middle of a river. Seriously, she does. When not writing, she wrangles her rowdy pack of three teens, two Cairn Terriers, and one husband. Inexplicably, her favorite animal is the giant anteater and at one point, she had over 200 "pet" Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches. The roaches are a long story involving three science-crazed kids and a soft spot for rescue animals. The good news is, the "pet" roaches found a home... somewhere else.

WEBSITE | GOODREADS | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK

Giveaway

Click HERE for the giveaway!

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TTT #82: Picture Books

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Here are the pictures books my future children must have in their library!

Would any of these books make it (or have made it) on your children's bookcase?

Short & Sweet MG Review: Wishtree by Katherine Applegate

Wishtree by Katherine Applegate ( Sept. 26, 2017)
Length: 224 pages
Genre: Middle Grade Fiction
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Source: The library.
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: Trees can't tell jokes, but they can certainly tell stories. . . . Red is an oak tree who is many rings old. Red is the neighborhood "wishtree"—people write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red's branches. Along with her crow friend Bongo and other animals who seek refuge in Red's hollows, this "wishtree" watches over the neighborhood. You might say Red has seen it all. Until a new family moves in. Not everyone is welcoming, and Red's experiences as a wishtree are more important than ever.

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My Review

Wishtree in Three Words: Uplifting. Magical. Unique.

Wishtree is a wonderful story for readers of all ages. Applegate is a magnificant story teller. Told from the point of view of an old oak tree in lyrical prose makes for a beautiful story. Readers will get to meet the many animals that live in the tree, the grumpy lady whose land the tree resides on, and a sweet boy and a shy girl who are destined to become friends. This book explores the important issues of not judging people, to be accepting of everyone, and to be kind. This book couldn't have been published in a more timely fashion considering our current political climate.

The Bottom Line: It doesn't matter whether you buy your own copy or borrow one from the library, all that matters is that you give this book a read.