Contest Winners + FYI!

Thanks to everyone who entered and spread the word about the Order of Darkness: Changeling giveaway! Unfortunately I've only got two copies to give away and they're going to these lucky readers ...

Caitlin & Brittney!

Congrats and make sure you check your inbox, ladies!

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Also, the super awesome Nicole over at Word For Teens has featured me on her Blogging In Real Life series. I talk about blogging, designing and other stuff so make sure you click on over and check it out!

Movie Review: Beautiful Creatures

There are probably spoilers in this review. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Okay, so, this movie is going to stir up a lot of mixed emotions for the fans of these books. Me? I absolutely loved it. But it's not hard for me to separate movies from books. When I'm sitting in a dark theater with a big bag of popcorn, I'm not constantly thinking about what I read in the book. I'm absorbed in the story on the screen. And to be completely honest with you, the Beautiful Creatures story (mostly the second half) on the screen was way different from the story in the book. The only plots that it really carries from the book are Lena's claiming and her relationship with Ethan.

Other than that, this was all new to me.

But before you get all huffy and click off the page and swear to not see the movie - wait! I'm not saying that any of these differences are a bad thing. There are many things missing from this movie that I would have loved to see; characters, action sequences ... so much. And while I would have preferred for it to follow more closely, I'm not disappointed with it. It was different, sure, but it fit the same world that Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl created. It makes sense. It's entertaining. It's interesting. The more I think about it, the more I realize how logical this change was. Beautiful Creatures is over 500 pages long and there are so, so many details to the book's plot. If they were to execute that, I have no doubt that it'd be over three hours long. And while I'm sure that the majority of us wouldn't mind sitting in a theater for that amount of time, I assume it's something movie companies stray from unless it's some gigantic production like Harry Potter or The Hobbit. So my thought is that they switched up the story to better fit the length of a film.

And I happen to think they did a pretty damn good job at it.

This is turning into a rant but I just want to stress to everyone to keep an open mind when you see this movie. Don't sit there and constantly go over the book in your head to count the differences. You'll miss the magic of the movie if you do that.

Speaking of the movie ... I'm gonna break down some of my favorite things and not-so-favorite things.

Favorites:
1. Alden Ehrenreich. He was so adorable and hilarious. I want to marry him.
2. The special effects. The makers of this movie went out of their way to make everything look so real and it really paid off. The Lena/Ridley dinner showdown scene was SO EPIC.
3. The setting. It's exactly how I pictured Gatlin in my head while reading the books.
4. The humor. The movie is so charming and funny when I expected it to be heavy on magic and drama.
5. The flashbacks. They were executed SO awesomely.
6. Jeremy Irons and Emmy Rossum as Macon and Ridley. Perfect. Absolutely perfect.

Not-so-favorites:
1. Amma's lack of presence in the Wate household. The movie depicts their close relationship, yes, but I expected her to be more to them than she was in the film. It's one of my favorite things about the books so I was sad to see it so downplayed.
2. Not enough Link. Not only is he my favorite character in the Caster Chronicles but it's no secret that I love me some Thomas Mann so I was disappointed when he didn't get that much screen time. Where was Who Shot Lincoln? And I'm still undecided at how they worked him into the ending.
3. Where was Ethan's father? Where?

Overall, I really loved this adaption. I'll be completely honest with you - I'm a bit worried about how they're going to do the next movie (if there is one) because I'm not seeing how this film opened any doors for Beautiful Darkness. But I have faith in the writers and producers and director. They turned this story into something else and I still fell in love with it (something that I might not have been so forgiving of had it been a different book) so I'll keep my hopes high.

Also? Thomas Mann, if you're reading this, please call up Taylor Lautner and take notes on how he completely transformed himself for Jacob in New Moon. I want you as Linkubus but you gotta buff up, man!

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer.
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends.
Pages: 464.
Release Date: February 5, 2013.
Source: Publisher.

Cinder returns in the second thrilling installment of the New York Times-bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive. 

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother and the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she has no choice but to trust him, though he clearly has a few dark secrets of his own.

As Scarlet and Wolf work to unravel one mystery, they find another when they cross paths with Cinder. Together, they must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen who will do anything to make Prince Kai her husband, her king, her prisoner.

I honestly can't find a single negative thing to say about Scarlet so this review is going to be pretty short and straightforward.

I loved this book. So much.

It's like a companion and a sequel in one and the way that the stories entwine was so cool and clever and executed so perfectly. Scarlet rivals Cinder in the badassery department. She frustrated me at times with her impulsiveness but the lengths she was going through to save her grandmother was so admirable. I like that her hard shell softens with Wolf as the book progresses. And Wolf. Oh, Wolf. *dreamy sigh*

Speaking of Wolf, let me tell you ... this book scared the crap out of me. The wolves and the gore and suspense was so intense. I was really surprised because while Cinder was sci-fi, Scarlet seems like horror with a small dose of sci-fi and the genre crossing is so, so awesome.

Overall, Scarlet is a perfect sequel/companion to Cinder. It's action-packed, romantic, funny, creepy and my only complaint is that I have to way so long for the next book. If you've read the first and you're dragging your feet about this one, please get ahold of this book and read it! And if you're new to the Lunar Chronicle books - what are you waiting for? It's sci-fi and horror meets our favorite fairy tales! Get on it! A million stars to Scarlet!

Other reviews for Scarlet:
365 Days of Reading.
Chick Loves Lit.
Bookyurt.

Giveaway: Order of Darkness: Changeling

About the book:

Dark myths, medieval secrets, intrigue, and romance populate the pages of this first in a four-book teen series from the #1 bestselling author of The Other Boleyn Girl.

The year is 1453 and all signs point to it being the end of the world. Accused of heresy and expelled from his monastery, handsome seventeen-year-old Luca Vero is recruited by a mysterious stranger to record the end of times across Europe. Commanded by sealed orders, Luca is sent to map the fears of Christendom and travel to the very frontier of good and evil. Seventeen-year-old Isolde, a Lady Abbess, is trapped in a nunnery to prevent her from claiming her rich inheritance. As the nuns in her care are driven mad by strange visions, walking in their sleep, and showing bleeding wounds, Luca is sent to investigate and driven to accuse her.

Forced to face the greatest fears of the dark ages—witchcraft, werewolves, madness—Luca and Isolde embark on a search for truth, their own destinies, and even love as they take the unknown ways to the real historical figure who defends the boundaries of Christendom and holds the secrets of the Order of Darkness.

Find out more about Order of Darkness: Changeling on the official site.


About the author:
Philippa Gregory is the author of several internationally bestselling novels, including The Other Boleyn Girl and The White Queen, and is a recognized authority on women’s history. She lives in the north of England with her family and welcomes visitors to her website, PhilippaGregory.com. Order of Darkness: Changeling is her first novel written for teens.

Contest information:
- (2) Winners will receive finished copies of Order of Darkness: Changeling by Philippa Gregory.
- Open to US addresses only.
- Giveaway ends on February 22nd.

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