Posted on No Comments on Guest Post: Claire Voyante!

Guest Post: Claire Voyante!

A couple weeks ago, I read Dream Girl by Lauren Mechling and met Claire Voyante.  She’s fantastic!  The second book about Claire’s life, Dream Life, just came out.  I haven’t read it yet, but I planning on getting it soon!  All the reviews I’ve seen about it have been great.  Apparently it isn’t in a lot of stores, but you should definitely ask at your retailer of choice so they know you’re looking for it.  You can find it on Amazon as well.  So without further ado, I welcome Claire to my blog!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Greetings and salutations, book lovers! I’m Claire Voyante, the main character of Dream Life, Lauren Mechling’s rip-roaring detective novel (and no, it is not immodest to say that about a book you didn’t write but in which you star—I checked in one of my grandmother Kiki’s etiquette books).

Dream Life is all about what happened after I found out my best friend Becca had just joined a super-exclusive, centuries-old secret society called the Blue Moons. I figured out how to wiggle my way into the club, and, of course, much drama ensued. I warmly invite you to check Dream Life out—it’s available at select bookstores or an Internet site near you.

When Dream Girl, the first book in the series, came out, my creator Lauren  fielded questions from bloggers and journalists. Lauren is currently underground working on a secret project so I offered to step in and relief pitch. I’m taking a page from Ann Landers’s book and writing an advice column. The questions came from fans of the series.  The answers came from the heart.

Dear Claire,

I’ve been dating this guy David for a month, He’s totally great—he’s funny and he’s an amazing cellist and he smells crazy good—but he’s also kind of weird. He doesn’t speak in typical sentences. He’s really into free association, which can be cool, but it can also be hard to follow what he’s saying. He’s coming over to my dad’s 40th birthday party and he’s never met my parents before. I’m nervous what they’re going to do when they ask him where he lives and he says: “Blue sky. . . beneath the mellow. . . bi-bim-bop.”

It’s less than a week away. Help!

Yours,

Cassie, Or As Dave Says “Lady Flip-Flop Hoo-Hah”

Dear COADSLFFHH,

Yikes! You’re introducing your spoken word artist beau to your parents at a party, in front of all of their friends? This could be really stressful.

If you can’t organize a get-together beforehand, I think the only solution is to offer to DJ the party and make a mix of all jazz songs. When the party starts turn the volume waaaaay up. And when he starts be-bop-talking over the sounds of John Coltrane or Miles Davis, you can laugh too loud and let your parents assume he’s imitating the scat-talk of the music, and he’s just the most hilarious thing since Andy Sandberg did that “Shy Rodney” video with Rihanna on Saturday Night Live.

L’ammour toujours!
Claire

Dream Life by Lauren Mechling — Trailer from Richie Williams on Vimeo.

Posted on 5 Comments on Waiting on Wednesday 1/27/10

Waiting on Wednesday 1/27/10

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

The book I am eagerly anticipating this week is Scarlett Fever by Maureen Johnson.

Ever since Mrs. Amberson, the former-aspiring-actress-turned-agent, entered Scarlett Martin’s life, nothing has been the same.

She’s still in charge of the Empire Suite in her family’s hotel, but she’s now also Mrs. Amberson’s assistant, running around town for her star client, Chelsea – a Broadway star Scarlett’s age with a knack for making her feel insignificant.

Scarlett’s also trying to juggle sophomore year classes, her lab partner who is being just a little TOO nice, and getting over the boy who broke her heart.

In the midst of all this, her parents drop a bombshell that threatens to change her New York life forever…

This is the sequel to Suite Scarlett, which I thought was very cute and fun!  It comes out 2/1.

Posted on 3 Comments on Teaser Tuesday 1/26/10

Teaser Tuesday 1/26/10

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
  • Share the title and author, too, so others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they want

My teaser:

It’s when you start noticing these subtleties of the game that you realize baseball is actually a series of games within a game.  It’s like the game grows within itself.  The events are interconnected, and as you become aware of them all, the game pulls you deeper.

~Safe At Home by Alyssa Milano

I cheated – it’s three sentences instead of two, but it’s a cool quote from someone that “gets” baseball the way I do!

eta: I forgot to do In My Mailbox this weekend.  Between my grandparents’ 65th(!) anniversary dinner, football playoffs, reading, and my current obsession, Doctor Who, it slipped my mind.  I’ll do a two week one this week!

Posted on No Comments on Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

It’s been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents’ divorce—or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live.

A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she’s been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend.

I really liked this book!  I loved Auden.  She was occasionally frustrating, especially at the beginning, but I really liked watching her come out of her shell and grow.  The rest of the characters were great too.  I loved Eli and how he opened up to Auden.  I liked how at one point Auden said that if they had gotten to know each other during the day, they wouldn’t know each other as well.  I liked that they stayed up all night and found fun things to do.  Maggie, Esther, and Leah were really fun teen girls and really believable.  I liked that they helped Auden grow and experience normal teen girls.  And I loved Heidi and Thisbe!

I did not like either of Auden’s parents.  They were both so pretentious and selfish.  They got a little better towards the end of the book, but it didn’t surprise me at all that Hollis and Auden were pretty screwed up after being raised by those two.

This book made me laugh and cry and wish it was summer.

Posted on 1 Comment on Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz

Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz

Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods, Bk 1) by Melissa de la Cruz

Schuyler Van Alen is confused about what is happening to her. Her veins are starting to turn blue, and she’s starting to crave raw meat. Soon, her world is thrust into an intricate maze of secret societies and bitter intrigue. Schuyler has never been a part of the trendy crowd at her prestigious New York private school. Now, all of a sudden, Jack Force, the most popular guy in school, is showing an interest in her. And when one of the popular girls is found dead, Schuyler and Jack are determined to get to the bottom of it.

Schuyler wants to find out the secrets of the mysterious Blue Bloods. But is she putting herself in danger? Melissa de la Cruz’s vampire mythology, set against the glitzy backdrop of New York City, is a juicy and intoxicating read.

I honestly wasn’t expecting to like this book.  I’ve had it on my shelf for several months and always picked something else when I needed something to read.  I finally decided I needed to read it or get rid of it.  I’m glad I read it.  There’s a lot of “vampires meet Gossip Girl” in the book.  The constant brand names and reminders of how rich and elite the characters are got old, but the story was interesting.  I liked Schuyler, Oliver, and Bliss.  I was intrigued by Jack and want to know more about what is going on with Schuyler’s mom.  I am curious to see what happens in the next book.

Posted on No Comments on Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiani

Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiani

Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiani

I’m marooned.

Abandoned.

Left to rot in boarding school . . .

Viola doesn’t want to go to boarding school, but somehow she ends up at an all-girls school in South Bend, Indiana, far, far away from her home in Brooklyn, New York. Now Viola is stuck for a whole year in the sherbet-colored sweater capital of the world.

Ick.

There’s no way Viola’s going to survive the year—especially since she has to replace her best friend Andrew with three new roommates who, disturbingly, actually seem to like it there. She resorts to viewing the world (and hiding) behind the lens of her video camera.

Boarding school, though, and her roommates and even the Midwest are nothing like she thought they would be, and soon Viola realizes she may be in for the most incredible year of her life.

But first she has to put the camera down and let the world in.

This book was just okay to me.  There were times when I really liked it, but it wasn’t something I was super excited to read.  I would read for 20-30 pages and then get distracted and put it down.  It didn’t grip me while I was reading.  I was not a big fan of Viola.  She was pretty selfish and judgmental.  She does grow through the novel, but each time I thought she was starting to get over herself, she would revert back to her old self.  It was frustrating.  There was a time towards the end when she was being a total brat, but I was cheering for her.

I liked her grandmother a lot.  Her roommates were great, but I felt like they were all kind of flat characters and I didn’t get to know them that well.

Posted on 3 Comments on In My Mailbox 1/17/10

In My Mailbox 1/17/10

In My Mailbox was created by Kristi over at The Story Siren. Click here to learn more about it.

These are all the books I acquired this week:

From PaperBackSwap:

  • She’s Got The Beat by Nancy Krulik
  • The Secret Message of Jesus by Brian McLaren
  • Out of His League by Pat Flynn
  • Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison
  • On the Bright Side, I’m Now The Girlfriend of a Sex God by Louise Rennison

From PBS Games:

  • Fire by Kristin Cashore

From Borders:

  • Eight Grade Bites (The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, Bk 1) by Heather Brewer

From Barnes & Noble:

  • Miss Match by Wendy Toliver
  • The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

From my awesome friend Jacki for my birthday:

  • Breathing by Cheryl Renee Herbsman
Posted on No Comments on Miss Match by Wendy Toliver

Miss Match by Wendy Toliver

Miss Match (Simon Romantic Comedies) by Wendy Toliver

Sasha Finnegan has always had a knack for setting people up, and at sixteen, she’s turned her talent into an online business, molding high school crushes into true love. But Sasha finds her toughest match yet when hottie Derek Urban asks her to set him up with Sasha’s gorgeous sister, Maddie. It’s not that Derek isn’t a good catch. In fact, after spending so much time with him, Sasha can’t help but think he’s perfect — for her, that is.

Can Sasha push her feelings aside for the sake of her business? Or has this miss finally found her match?

This book is so cute!  I really liked Sasha.  She was a great character – she was so real!  I really enjoyed reading about her.  Her match making business was creative and a lot of fun to read about.  The characters around her were fun too – Derek, Maddie, Yasmin.  The family dynamic was interesting and made Sasha seem even more real.  This was a fantastic, fun read.

Posted on 6 Comments on Waiting on Wednesday 1/13/10

Waiting on Wednesday 1/13/10

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

The book I am eagerly anticipating this week is Heist Society by Ally Carter.

When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her on a trip to the Louvre…to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria…to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own–scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving “the life” for a normal life proves harder than she’d expected.

Soon, Kat’s friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster has been robbed of his priceless art collection and wants to retrieve it. Only a master thief could have pulled this job, and Kat’s father isn’t just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat’s dad needs her help.

For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it’s a spectacularly impossible job? She’s got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in history-or at least her family’s (very crooked) history.

I love the Gallagher Girl books, so I’m really excited to see what Ally Carter has to offer with new characters!

Posted on 2 Comments on Teaser Tuesday 1/12/10

Teaser Tuesday 1/12/10

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
  • Share the title and author, too, so others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they want

My teaser:

Most kids wake up early on Saturday to watch cartoons, but not me.  The only reason I get out of bed at all on weekends is because eventually, I can’t stand the taste of my own breathe anymore.

~ Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney, pg 16

I can totally relate!  My dog disagrees, but sometimes he lets me sleep late. :)