Follow Friday

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. It's a great way to meet new blogger friends. This weeks question is:

Q:Q: The #FF is 150 weeks old! And we want to hear from you! What would you change about the hop? What do you like about it? Or just suggest a question to be used for next week!

Question for next week.... What is the last book you talked someone into reading by telling them how good it was?

Also, YAY for the 150 week birthday. Congrats ladies.

Happy Weekend!

Born Of Illusion by Teri Brown

Born of Illusion by Teri Brown

Release Date – June 11, 2013

Publisher Website -  Harper Collins

Publisher Social Media - Twitter/Facebook/SavvyReader  

Pages - 384 pages

My Rating- 3.5/5

**obtained for review from publisher**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

Anna Van Housen is thirteen the first time she breaks her mother out of jail. By sixteen she’s street smart and savvy, assisting her mother, the renowned medium Marguerite Van Housen, in her stage show and séances, and easily navigating the underground world of magicians, mediums and mentalists in 1920’s New York City. Handcuffs and sleight of hand illusions have never been much of a challenge for Anna. The real trick is keeping her true gifts secret from her opportunistic mother, who will stop at nothing to gain her ambition of becoming the most famous medium who ever lived. But when a strange, serious young man moves into the flat downstairs, introducing her to a secret society that studies people with gifts like hers, he threatens to reveal the secrets Anna has fought so hard to keep, forcing her to face the truth about her past. Could the stories her mother has told her really be true? Could she really be the illegitimate daughter of the greatest magician of all?

I've always been fascinated by magic and magicians. Combine this with a 1920's setting and I knew I had to read this one. Teri Brown delivers a novel filled with magicians, real magic, and heart pounding danger. 

The relationship between Anna and her mother Marguerite was intriguing. You never really knew what her mother was thinking, or what genuine emotions she may have for her daughter. Their relationship was flawed, and at times felt competitive (especially from Marguerite's end). It all comes together, but seeing their interaction was one of my favourite parts of the story. It was obvious that Anna had a rather unique upbringing and often resented being in her mother's shadow.

Tying into the mother daughter dynamic was Anna's own 'growing up'. She was starting to distance herself, having her own opinions, and want to live her life the way she wanted. Teens can identify with this, as part of your teen years is finding yourself, defining what's important to you, and testing how you feel about things and  going out into the world. It was nice to see this tied into an imperfect relationship like Anna and Marguerite's was.

I felt the historical aspect of the novel wasn't as developed as I hoped in some aspects, but was well researched in others. The setting and tone didn't pull from the 1920's as much as I anticipated. However, I felt the other elements more than made up for this.. The research that was done was effectively used and sent me off on a Googling spree after. I wanted to know, especially about Houdini. Houdini's background is especially present, and she used events in his life to attach parts of the story to. It lent a credible tone to the novel.

The magic elements were exactly what I wanted them to be. Nothing too flashy or over the top. Mixing it with a scientific storyline made it feel plausible, and was a nod to the experiments that would have taken place around this time. Who hasn't seen the old video footage of people guessing cards behind a screen? This allowed the magic to immerse itself in the story, even as the story revolves around it.

The big question of Anna's parentage, and whether or not she is Houdini's daughter was one of my favourite parts of the novel. Seeing her curiosity about him, and their possible connection was intriguing. Every time they connected on some level left me wanting more. The ultimate question is whether or not it matters who her father is, and the answer is that it doesn't. Do we get an concrete answer either way? All I will say is that I was completely satisfied with the outcome.

As much as I loved the beginning of the novel, I do have to admit that it lost a little steam in the latter half. The ending didn't have the same impact, for me, that the beginning did. It was what I expected from about half way through the novel, and was satisfactory ending, but not as gripping as the beginning.

A novel that casts a dangerous and romantic spell. I quickly fell into Anna's story. If seductive magic, 1920's allure, and a quick moving plot are things you enjoy in a novel, be sure to pick this one up.

Waiting on Wednesday.... Wild Cards

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick this week is Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

After getting kicked out of boarding school, bad boy Derek Fitzpatrick has no choice but to live with his ditzy stepmother while his military dad is deployed. Things quickly go from bad to worse when he finds out she plans to move them back to her childhood home in Illinois. Derek’s counting the days before he can be on his own, and the last thing he needs is to get involved with someone else’s family drama.

Ashtyn Parker knows one thing for certain--people you care about leave without a backward glance. A football scholarship would finally give her the chance to leave. So she pours everything into winning a state championship, until her boyfriend and star quarterback betrays them all by joining their rival team. Ashtyn needs a new game plan, but it requires trusting Derek—someone she barely knows, someone born to break the rules. Is she willing to put her heart on the line to try and win it all?

So I may have mentioned my new obsession with Friday Night Lights. It should come as no surprise that this book would be high up on my 'must read' list. It sounds amazing and I actually really love the cover. Counting the days until I can get my hands on this one.

Expected release date - October 1, 2013

Kobo Aura HD review

A little while back I was given the opportunity to test drive the new Kobo Aura HD. I've had the device long enough to read a few ebooks on it and decided to share my thoughts.

The first thing I noticed was it's sleek design. It's quite nice to look it. The 'slanted back' that gives the feel of holding a physical book is a perfect touch for those of us who love the feel of a hardcover novel. It weights practically nothing, and has a modern look to it.

The operating system is smooth. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly and seamlessly turning pages was. Having the capablity to switch fonts is also another fantastic bonus.

The Kobo Aura HD's selling points* are

6.8" ulta-high resolution ClarityScreen and 1440 x 1080 display

No-glare Pearl E Ink touchscreen

Integrated front-light

Wi Fi capable

4GB of Memory expandable with Micro SD cards

All of these are huge selling points for any reader. However, as someone who reads A LOT the expandable memory card is enticing. The front light is a wonderful addition, and I've already used it quite a bit. There is no eye strain this way and it makes reading in low light much easier. It'll be perfect to travel on planes with.

With all the positives, there are a few little things I would LOVE as additions -

Twitter capability 

The system can post quotes to Facebook. I would love to see the same thing apply to Twitter. I use Twitter much more often than Facebook and it's the perfect social media platform for sharing your favourite passages.

Clearer Instructions

There are still many features I am trying to find, or ones I am accidentally coming across. While this makes for some fun surprises, having a better how to manual included would allow me to make the most out of the system.

My experience with the system has, so far, been amazing. It's crystal clear screen, and front light are huge selling features. The design is also a instant hit with the book lover in me. As someone who has been less than enthusiastic about ebooks, this electronic reader is just the thing to tempt me to indulge in a few. It truly is an e-reader that is built for book lovers.

If you'd like to know more about the Kobo Aura HD be sure to visit the Kobo website for more details.

*selling points listed on back of Kobo Aura HD package

The Bling Ring by Nancy Jo Sales

The Bling Ring by Nancy Jo Sales
Release Date – May 21, 2013
Publisher Website -  It Books/Harper Collins
Publisher Social Media - Twitter/Facebook/SavvyReader
Pages - 288 pages
My Rating- 4/5
**obtained for review from publisher**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

Meet the Bling Ring: six club-hopping LA teenagers accused of stealing more than $3 million in clothing and jewelry from the likes of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson and other young members of the Hollywood elite-allegedly the most audacious burglary gang in recent history.

Driven by celebrity worship, vanity, and the desire to look and dress like the rich and famous, the Bling Ring made headlines in 2009 for using readily available sources-like Google maps, Facebook and TMZ, to track the comings and goings of their targets. Seven teens were arrested for the crimes, and instantly became tabloid fodder. The world asked-how did the American obsession with celebrity get so out of hand? And why did a band of ostensibly privileged LA teens take such a risk?

Vanity Fair reporter Nancy Jo Sales found the answer: they did it because they could. And because it was just that easy.

Author of the acclaimed Vanity Fair story on the Bling Ring "The Suspect Wore Louboutins," Sales gained unprecedented access to the Hollywood thieves, and in the process uncovered a dark world of teenage arrogance, greed, obsession, and delusion. Now, for the first time in a full book length work, Sales details the Bling Ring crimes up close and in depth, and reveals the key players' stories in a shocking look at the seedy world of the real young Hollywood.

Reviewing a non fiction novel has always been tricky for me. You're talking about real people and real situations. It's harder to critique someone personally than examine a character's flaws in a fiction novel. This novel however resonated with me, and it was surprisingly not the people involved, but the author's insight that spoke to me. The Bling Ring examines the perfect storm of current celebrity culture, and the boom of around the clock news reporting, and it's resulting impact on today's youth.

A case is made that these teenagers had access to round the clock information about these celebrities thanks to websites like TMZ. The shift in this type of reporting happened right around the time this was happening, and the dynamics changed everything. Celebrities were more accessible (or appeared that way) than ever. Twitter helped knock over some of those walls as well. It presented a different culture than before. Celebrities have always had a certain mystic, especially in 'Old Hollywood' and this lifted the veil. It made the  celebrities seem touchable.

The impact of Reality TV is also looked at. The entire notion of fame being easily obtained has always been around. However, talent was normally part of that equation. Reality TV ushered in a new era. One could be famous, even infamous, and talent was optional. I could see immediately how these individuals could have thought this would get the access into the club they so desperately wanted to be part of.

The refrain of "they have so much" was prevalent from numerous suspects involved in this case. I found it interesting that the idea of Occupy Wall Street and the whole '1 percent' notion was just a few years off. I suspect many may not feel sympathy for the victims. Their victims may have had 'more than enough' (and this point is shown by the fact that some couldn't even given a full list of items taken because they simply couldn't recall everything they owned) but something precious was stolen from them - a feeling of safety. Orlando Bloom's Grand Jury testimony in particular was heart tugging. You felt the violation, and hurt in his words. It was interesting to see how many of them couldn't return to those homes as a result of what happened.

I was both flabbergasted, and partially amused by the fact that one of the accused was wearing Orlando Bloom's shirt in his mug shot. It spoke to their arrogance, and belief that they wouldn't get caught. One of the police offers references that they were 'really bad at not getting caught' and that sums it up perfectly. They flaunted their crimes, the goods, and almost courted the notoriety that would stem from their actions. As Nancy Jo Sales says 'they did it because it was easy' and as a result felt they could get away with it. The teens came across as celebrity obsessed, and rather jaded. They were simply bored. They wanted to be part of what they deemed 'the life style' and this came across as their way of attaining it.

Nancy Jo Sales did a wonderful job of remaining impartial and is even sometimes sympathetic with some of the teens involved. She also holds nothing back when it comes to the vapid, self interested aspect of their personality. She allows these people to speak for themselves, and allows the reader to connect the dots from there.

Anyone with a passing interest in the case when it broke back in 2009, or who is eagerly anticipating the release of Sofia Coppola's film should check this out. I would venture that anyone interested in pop culture, and current events may find much to enjoy as well. An almost unbelievable story of young Hollywood that left me stunned and speechless.

Weekly Obsessions

The awesome Kelly at KellyVision started posting a weekly post highlighting whatever she happened to be obsessed with that week. I LOVE this idea, so much in fact that I will be doing it myself every Saturday.

Here are my obsessions this week:

BOOKS

Dance of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin

I loved the first book so much. I had high expectations going in for the sequel. Beautifully written, and just as dark and sexy as the first one. It was everything I wanted as the end of the series. I can't wait to share my review, and for Dance of the Red Death week to happen close to the date of release.

Summer Reading

It's finally starting to feel like spring here. I am hoping the trend continues and we get some gorgeous weather because I WANT TO READ OUTSIDE! Nothing beats reading a really addictive book while laying out by the pool, or in a beautiful park.

TV

NBC's Dracula



Jonathan Rhys Meyers as a vampire? YES PLEASE. Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Dracula? *dies*. Luckily this trailer more than lives up to my expectations. I will be obsessed with this for the entire season if it delivers on what this trailer promises.

 ABC's The Betrayal and Resurrection 




Resurrection is based on the novel The Returned that is being released this Autumn. The trailer makes it look full of emotion, and it's beautifully shot. The little kid is the cutest and I am cautiously optimistic that it will be a decent show.

Betrayal looks like a twisty, soapy, dramatic filled guilty pleasure. I see similarities to the movie Unfaithful. I hope it's as good as the trailer makes it seem. These types of shows can either be really good, or laughably awful, so here's hoping.

So what are you obsessed with this week?

Follow Friday

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. It's a great way to meet new blogger friends. This weeks question is:

Q: School is out! What is your favorite Summer Reading book??

I read The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series one summer, and I still LOVE that series. Perfect beach reading.

Happy Weekend!