Giveaway: Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

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My review of Struck


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Review: Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

A girl struck by lightning 

hundreds of times holds the

 fate of the world in her hands.

Mia Price is a lightning addict. She’s survived countless strikes, but her craving to connect to the energy in storms endangers her life and the lives of those around her.

Los Angeles, where lightning rarely strikes, is one of the few places Mia feels safe from her addiction. But when an earthquake devastates the city, her haven is transformed into a minefield of chaos and danger. The beaches become massive tent cities. Downtown is a crumbling wasteland, where a traveling party moves to a different empty building each night, the revelers drawn to the destruction by a force they cannot deny. Two warring cults rise to power, and both see Mia as the key to their opposing doomsday prophecies. They believe she has a connection to the freak electrical storm that caused the quake, and to the far more devastating storm that is yet to come.

Mia wants to trust the enigmatic and alluring Jeremy when he promises to protect her, but she fears he isn’t who he claims to be. In the end, the passion and power that brought them together could be their downfall. When the final disaster strikes, Mia must risk unleashing the full horror of her strength to save the people she loves, or lose everything.
(Goodreads.com)
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Review
I seem drawn to the dystopian genre lately and there are plenty of them out there. I was immediately pulled into this story. A girl who is struck by lightning, multiple times, is not something you read about every day. Mia seems likeable but I wanted to know more about her. We get peeks into the past but not many details, especially regarding her family. She is a tough teen who is trying to survive and protect her younger brother and injured mother at the same time. She was forced to become the leader of her family. Unfortunately she started to become unlikeable rather quickly. I was impressed with her resilience and I can suspend disbelief but she made so many dumb choices. And there was so much skulking around that didn't really lead to anything. The middle of the book felt too long and drawn out with parts that kept repeating with no real results. It seemed like a chunk of that could have been removed and it would have tightened up the story a bit.

 I like the premise and the action was interesting during the actual storms but I didn't care as much for the build up to it. I think that was part of what I mentioned before with the repetition. There are many references to different religious beliefs since some characters view the storms as the end of the world. I didn't have a problem with this and thought that was to be expected from a variety of people with a variety of viewpoints. Two different groups, a religious cult - the Followers, and their opposer - the Seekers, are desperate to have Mia join them and want to use any special powers she may have attained from the lightning strikes. I found it to be an interesting and an important part of Mia's dilemma in trying to figure out her role.

I really do think this debut has potential and I hope the next book can work out the kinks. I know I will read more from this author and will probably try book #2.

Thank you to Macmillan (Fierce Reads campaign) for an arc in exchange for my honest review.

www.macteenbooks.com 
http://us.macmillan.com/struck/JenniferBosworth
http://www.jenniferbosworth.com/

Release date: 5/8/12
Publisher: Farrar, Strauss & Giroux
Pages: 373 (hardcover)
Type: YA dystopian, debut, series

Saturday Snapshot

 Saturday Snapshot is hosted by At Home with Books. To participate in this meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don't post random photos that you find online.
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We thought it was going to be a quiet Father's Day since our kids had come over the night before. They all had plans for Sunday and the younger boys were going to race their 4-wheelers. Since it was three hours away and the track was through the woods, hubby and I didn't attend. Our middle son (age 21) has raced for two years but it was the first race for our youngest son (age 19).

It was definitely a quiet day and one of the longest of my life. We got a call that son #3 had wrecked and was going to the hospital by ambulance. Fortunately a friend who is an EMT (emergency medical technician) was there and offered to ride with him and call with updates. We agonized over jumping in the car or waiting for the initial evaluation to see if he might be lucky enough to be treated and released. As the results of the first x-rays and CT scans slowly came in and there were no broken bones, we finally felt some relief. It was four long hours before he was taken off the backboard, the neck collar was removed and he was allowed to go home. They returned at 1:30 a.m. to some very grateful parents. I can't even express how thankful I am to the friends and his big brother who were there for him, the medical professionals who took care of him and for the protective riding gear that did it's job and saved him. He has had a long, sore week but it's a miracle that's all he suffered. And this isn't even our first ambulance ride but that's another story...

This was the scariest and best Father's Day ever!

Son #2

Son #3

His riding jersey after being cut off him in ER

Photo sent home to parents to prove he was OK

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading and asks you to :
1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a random page
3 . Share 2 "teaser" sentences also citing the title of the book and the author and in that way people can have great recommendations if they like the "teaser".
4. Please avoid spoilers!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(I had to post another teaser from this hilarious memoir!)

"How come all the other moms on the block are out on mother's day and you're home? Why don't you go out too?" You might think this is generous and kind of him, but really, he's trying to get out of pulling ivy from the garage roof. I said to him, look, it's my way of bonding with you. I was in labor between 12 and 27 hours with you two, so each year on mother's day I like you to do hard labor, too.
~ page 19 (ebook)
The Home Fires Are Burning...My Feet! by Nora Barry

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday (started at The Printed Page and now a traveling meme) is at Burton Book Review this month and is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week (checked out library books don’t count, eBooks & audio books do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy,toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

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I was lucky enough to spend some time with my nephews for a few days last week. I stayed with them while their parents went away for an anniversary trip. I didn't get much reading done but I got to skip stones, look for fish, shoot baskets, eat popcicles on the porch, go to the pool and go to dinner with two handsome young men. What more could I ask for?

I did get some goodies recently so I had to join in for Mailbox Monday even if I'm late. I hope you had some pleasant surprises as well!

Billy Bones: Beyond The Grave by David H. Burton
Won from The Cheap (ebook)

The Skin Map by Stephen R. Lawhead
Free with code from Kobo (ebook)

Poopendous! by Artie Bennett
For review from author 

Where's Dave? by Roger Priddy
Bought




 


Brain Quest by Chris Welles Feder
Bought

Baby Animals by Jennifer Quasha
Bought used

 




The Good Ghouls Guide To Getting Even by Julie Kenner
Bought used

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading and asks you to :
1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a random page
3 . Share 2 "teaser" sentences also citing the title of the book and the author and in that way people can have great recommendations if they like the "teaser".
4. Please avoid spoilers!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(This story takes place in the future) 
The news story changes to a segment about President Guiltree's lineage, how more than a century ago, citizens could vote for their president. It worked for awhile, so the story goes, until opposing sides began battling among each other. Now the presidency is inherited. The shortened life spans of the new generations threaten the tradition, but Gulitree seems to think he can solve it having as many children as possible. The fact that all his children are sons is also suspect.
~page 222 Fever by Lauren DeStefano

Review: Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Why be the sheep, 

when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.
Ismae's most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart? 
(Goodreads.com)
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Review
I don't read a lot of historical fiction but I'm glad I picked up this one. It has it's own unique mix of romance, mystery and intrigue with a dash of the paranormal. This is the first book in His Fair Assassin series and has some tough females. A convent of trained killers in medieval France is nothing to take lightly. Ismae is a lost soul and running from an abusive life when she stumbles upon St. Mortain's. The sisters serve Death and train other young women to do the same. Ismae discovers she is a gifted assassin and is given an important assignment to protect the young Duchess from the man who will bear the Marque. A man she must then kill.

The story was well written with great detail and background. Luckily I was reading the ebook version and could easily look up words I didn't know (and there were plenty). The description of the girls' training and weapons were interesting and quite informative. The tale of the god St. Mortain was intriguing and complex, unfolding slowly throughout the book. At times the story seemed dragged out and I started to drift off in the middle. The family history and politics didn't hold my attention but those aren't topics of interest for me anyway. I did enjoy the characters and how diverse they were although I did confuse some member of the royal court from time to time.

Grave Mercy is not a light read and is best savored. If you enjoy historical fiction you will probably appreciate this one more than I did. The next book features a different main character's story, Sybella, who also attended St. Mortain.  
Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin #2) coming in 2113
www.robinlafevers.com

Thank you to NetGalley for an ebook in exchange of my honest review.

Release date: 4/3/12
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pages: 549 (hardcover)
Type: YA historical fiction, series

Saturday Snapshot

 Saturday Snapshot is hosted by At Home with Books. To participate in this meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don't post random photos that you find online.
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We had some hot, muggy days early this week and now we are back to sweatshirt weather. It sure keeps things interesting around here! My photos are from a few weeks ago when we had our first very warm days. We had the kids outside playing and my four year-old granddaughter, The Princess, stripped of her sundress and climbed in the sandbox. Isn't it hard to believe that life used to be that simple?

I hope this weekend you find the time to relax and feel the sand between your toes and enjoy the sunshine. Happy June!

Playing in the sand in her underwear and rain boots.

Who could resist that innocent smile?

Fun stuff!

From Mental Floss - 

11 Cakes Based on Kids' Books, Movies and TV Shows (5/20/12)

Alice in Wonderland by Highland Bakery
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Cakes by Cat

 

 

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From Dornob : Design Ideas Daily -

Sheets and Pages: Readable Book of Hotel Bedcovers

Bold Bookcase Shaped Like Book Pages

 

 

 

 

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