Friday, August 22, 2014

The Friday 56 (5)


The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Midnight Frost (Mythos Academy, #5)"Behind us, more lights turned on inside the library, and more shouts and yells cut through the night air."--Midnight Frost by Jennifer Estep




What's on your page 56 this week?

Monday, August 18, 2014

Musing Mondays (5)

     Musing Mondays is a weekly meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading, that asks you to muse about one of the following each week:
• Describe one of your reading habits.
• Tell us what book(s) you recently bought for yourself or someone else, and why you chose that/those book(s).
• What book are you currently desperate to get your hands on? Tell us about it!
• Tell us what you’re reading right now — what you think of it, so far; why you chose it; what you are (or, aren’t) enjoying it.
• Do you have a bookish rant? Something about books or reading (or the industry) that gets your ire up? Share it with us!
• Instead of the above questions, maybe you just want to ramble on about something else pertaining to books — let’s hear it, then!

My Musings for the Week...

     Multiple points of view can be a good thing.  I personally like to see what's happening through the eyes of more than one character beyond the view of the MC. But, that can also present a bit of a problem especially when the voices sound so similar that the POVs start to blend together, making it difficult to distinguish which character is which.  Sometimes the characters can even introduce more subplots and make the story start to feel a little cluttered, but that's not always the case.  Personally, I prefer to to read multiple POVs in third person.  Some great books/series that contain multiple points of view:

     The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. I do enjoy the various points of view throughout all of the current books. (Cinder, Scarlet, & Cress.)

     Crystal Fire by Jordan Dane, with the different POVs from the crystal children and the slightly-insane-although-they-think-they're-sane scientist of the Believers. (I haven't reviewed this one yet.)

     Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson, with the views from the different memebers of the crew, especially Vin herself.

     The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater, Raven Boys, a girl named Blue, shenanigans...you get it.

    Leviathan Trilogy by Scott Westerfeld. I especially like how this series was done, with points of view from the Clanker side of the war and the Darwinist side. The blatant differences between the beliefs of the two sides was interesting to watch unfold as the two main characters interacted with one another.

     Daughter of Smoke & Bone Trilogy by Laini Taylor...there's just so much to like about this series. But the varying points of view make the story that much wider, giving a look into the different sides of the war.

     I'm sure there are plenty of other great books out there that I missed that have multiple points of view.  I either haven't read them or just forgot about them.  But what about you guys, how do you feel about multiple points of view?  Or, what are some of your favorite reads with multiple POVs?

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Review: Foundations in Comic Book Art by John Paul Lowe

Foundations in Comic Book Art: SCAD Creative Essentials (Fundamental Tools and Techniques for Sequential Artists)Title: Foundations in Comic Book Art: SCAD Creative Essentials(Click title for synopsis)
Author: John Paul Lowe
Source/Format: Publisher, Review Copy
Age Range: Um, this is an educational book
Publisher/ Publication Date: Watson-Guptill, August 12, 2014

Goodreads     Barnes & Noble    Random House

My Thoughts:

     Foundations in Comic Book Art by John Paul Lowe was an interesting book with plenty of tips and tricks to help artist working on developing their own technique. There were easy examples to follow with exercises to help with drawing straighter lines and so on. If you're just starting out with comic book art and don't really know much about the craft then I think this book would be a good beginners guide, as it goes over some basic techniques and essentials that you need. The book had great explanations on the proper use and cleaning of brushes and nibs as well as recommendations on paper types that work best with each drawing utensil. It also offers great explanations for what to do with ink when its dried out after being left open, working with thicker inks, as well as handy tips for creating certain effects such as splatter marks on a pageand how to judge if paint brushes are good or not. Lowe presents the information in an easy to understand manner, so I will definitely keep Foundations in Comic Book Art on my shelf for future reference.

I received this book from Blogging For Books for this review, thank you!

Friday, August 15, 2014

The Friday 56 (4)

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1)"The faintest of smiles touched Peony's lips. She raised a hand and waved with only her fingers."-Cinder by Marissa Meyer




What's on your page 56 this week?

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Review: Courting Magic by Stephanie Burgis

Courting Magic (Kat, Incorrigible, #3.5)Title:Courting Magic
Author: Stephanie Burgis
Source/Format: Review Copy, Ebook
Age Range: YA
Publisher/Publication Date: Five Fathom's Press, August 12, 2014

Goodreads    Amazon     Kobo     Smashwords     iBooks

Summary from Goodreads
    In Kat Stephenson's Regency England, magic is even more shocking than a stolen kiss. But now that she's eighteen, it's time for wild and magical Kat to be introduced to high society by her older sisters, whether she likes it or not...and to finally have a romance of her own! Read More Here


     Magical mayhem, humor, with the right amount of mystery and a touch of romance—Courting Magic by Stephanie Burgis had it all, and it worked perfectly. Even though it was a novella, I found Courting Magic to be highly entertaining with a well executed plot, and I was more than happy to return to the Kat, Incorrigible world. Kat was back at it again with more crazy antics, but this time she was on a specific mission while also being introduced into "Society." Needless to say, her family was slightly overbearing but meant well in their attempts to help her find a husband. I loved the way things unfolded. The mystery aspect was done well and I was left to wonder who was behind it, and when the culprit was revealed it turned out to be someone I never expected.  I was stunned, nearly speechless, it was a really good plot twist. The ending was absolutely perfect, loved it—that's all I've got to say on it. For anyone who's read any of the Kat, Incorrigible books you're going to need to read this one for sure. Or if you're anyone just looking for a quick read definitely consider checking out Courting Magic.

This Review Copy was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

About the Author
Stephanie Burgis was born in Michigan, but now lives in Wales with her husband, writer Patrick Samphire, and their children. Before becoming a fulltime writer, she studied music history as a Fulbright Scholar in Vienna, Austria and worked as a website editor for a British opera company. She has published over thirty short stories for adults. Kat, Incorrigible (US)/A Most Improper Magick (UK) won the Waverton Good Read Children's Award in 2011 for Best Début Children's Novel by a British writer. It was followed by Renegade Magic/A Tangle of Magicks) and Stolen Magic/A Reckless Magick. And don't forget to visit Stephanie Burgis on:

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