Mundie Moms

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

NEW MI jewelry! Isabelle's Necklace


http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=32539540
For all of our MM members, you can find her thread here-

Review - Fallen by Lauren Kate




Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (December 8, 2009) US

Publisher: Doubleday (17 Dec 2009) UK

There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.

Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page turning thriller and the ultimate love story.

After hearing about this book a while ago, I was desperate to get my hands on a copy. And then I saw the cover, and true book lust began. I mean, look at that cover, it’s absolutely gorgeous and I love the dark shades used; makes it seductive and more than a little scary. I was instantly intrigued by the gothic girl and ominous woods on that luscious cover.
The story begins with Lucinda, known throughout the book as Luce, is enrolling at Swords and Cross school, following a disturbing incident during the summer. Luce doesn’t want to go to this morbid school, full of teenage delinquents, she just wants to be a normal kid, at a normal school. But little does Luce know things are about to get a lot weirder. I liked Luce as the protagonist; she wasn’t dull or self involved, she was just an average teenager with issues. Issues where dark shadows lurked in the air around her, a constant companion she doesn’t know the meaning behind.

Enter Daniel, the brooding and mysterious boy that catches Luce’s attention on the very first day. There is something about him that’s so familiar, like a friend you forgot you had. The description of him in the book is dark hair and icy grey ices speckled through with violet. Instantly, the description alone made me like him, I mean who wouldn’t, he’s your perfect male lead; gorgeous and unattainable, everything a teenage girl desires. But he’s hiding a secret, a secret that would destroy everything Luce holds dear, but will she listen to save herself?

There’s also the gorgeous Cam, with his golden hair and piercing green eyes; swoon! Luce is drawn to him, like a moth to a flame for an inexplicable reason, how can you resist those gorgeous eyes and yes I’ll say it, amazing physique. He’s the only boy at Swords and Cross that gives Luce the time of day, but is he trying too hard and if so what’s the reason behind his motives? Surely someone that good looking can have anyone he wants?

In a school full of kids with issues, who is Luce to trust? Well, this was a question I asked myself all the way through the book, along with a few others. The main question for me was, what is Daniels problem? I think the secret to this books success, which it most certainly will be, is that it keeps you guessing until the very last page, where still, not all of the questions flowing through my mind were answered. This is the perfect set up for a book with a sequel, because it kept me a reader intrigued about what will happen next. Cliffhanger endings are my favourite.

The characters in the book were really well formed, and I have to say my favourite supporting character in the book was Penn. She is the perfect best friend, with her eay friendship and trusting ways, I never once questioned her motives for befriending Luce. She is genuinely a nice girl and her personality shines from the pages, I loved her.

I will admit I found the pace of the story to be a little slow, but it was a bit like watching a fire; how the wood burns slow at first but you stay engrossed because you know soon enough it will be engulfed in fire. That’s what the book was like. Little tendrils of information crucial to the plot are handed to you in small doses, enough to keep you interested until the next time. As the reader you find out the story before Luce does, then its just waiting for the pieces to fall together in her mind about the reality of what’s happening to her.

Onto the forbidden love; my favourite kind. The chemistry between Luce and Daniel progressed quickly, and I found myself wondering Really? But you don’t even know each other that well? But hey, it worked for Twilight and it is sure going to work for Fallen. The sexual tension between the two of them drips off the pages and you just want them to throw themselves at each other in a passionate embrace. The sexual tension between them just built and built and built, until I just wanted to reach into the pages and bang their heads together.
I really enjoyed the storyline, especially the action packed ending, which by the way, was worth waiting for. There are more twists and turns in the book than a dance sequence, seriously, I had no clue about what was going to happen at the end of the book or where the story was leading me. I do know one thing; the sequel Torment, could not be released fast enough.
I have read a LOT of books, and not one of them compares to Fallen, I have tried thinking of books that are similar or share the same sort of story line and came up short. Fallen is an amazing start to a series and a refreshing change to the genre.

Twitter Tuesday - Heidi R. Kling

Some of you may already follow Heidi R. Kling on twitter -(http://twitter.com/HeidiRKling) and you know we're looking forward to her book, Sea, coming out in June 2010. So imagine our happiness when we saw this on twitter this morning -








Major shout out to Saundra Mitchell, if you're not following her on twitter (http://twitter.com/SaundraMitchell) you should. She wrote Shadowed Summer and trust me, it's in our TBR pile. On her blog, Saundra is running a Trick or Treat contest, go check it out here. You know Mundie Moms love contests and winning.

But on twitter today, she posted Heidi R. Kling's real ghost story. *insert appropriate haunted sounds* Here's a snippet -

"In the town I grew up old mansion rots on the banks of the American River. The historical house, with its chipped pain and eye-like-windows, is a favorite Bed-and-Breakfast for ghost-hunters.

My aunt, a visiting screenwriter from Los Angeles, drags anyone willing to visit. Today the Group of Willing is my sister, my uncle and me.

First, she shows us the room where she spent the night.

“Hello, Louisa,” my aunt says as we enter the large room. A queen sized-canopy bed sits in the middle of the wood floor. “She is happy to see me.”

“Did she say that?” I asked.

“I can smell her lavender,” was my aunt’s reply.

Sniffing the air, I too detected lavender and didn’t see any evidence of the dried flower.

According to lore, Louisa is known as the Woman in White.

Tourists and villagers alike claim they’ve seen her dressed in a flowing lace gown crossing the winding country road from the Vineyard House to the graveyard across the street and then back again. My aunt claims she seen her more than once."


You can read the rest on Saundra's blog. Such a good way to start off a haunting October Tuesday, wouldn't you say?

I can't forget to mention one more tweet. It's Hush, Hush 's book birthday!! Congratulations Becca Fitzpatrick. Now the world can fall in love with your Patch. Hurry, go and get the book. It's out today.

Mundane Monday #3


I can't believe we forgot this. Our deepest apologies, as MI quotes give us great Mondays. This is better late than never and hopefully this will give you a great Tuesday.




"...Have you fallen in love with the wrong person yet?'
Jace said, "Unfortunately, Lady of the Haven, my one true love remains myself."
..."At least," she said, "you don't have to worry about rejection, Jace Wayland."
"Not necessarily. I turn myself down occasionally, just to keep it interesting."

Labels