Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2013




Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. For more information about Top Ten Tuesday and a list of upcoming Top Ten Tuesday topics, click here.
Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2013

My goals are a mix of “personal bookish accomplishments” as well as how many books I want to read and where I want to purchase my books.

1. Finish novel and begin querying in Fall 2013.
I’m writing a steampunk novel for my Masters thesis.  It’s a retelling of a classic piece of literature, and I’m having a total blast writing it.  I’m setting aside the entire months of June and July for revisions (summer vacation from teaching), and August is my deadline for completion!  Wish me luck!

2. Graduate with my Masters in Children’s Literature.
Once I have my Masters in hand, my goal is to find a job in Children’s Publishing.  I would love to work with middle grade or YA in an editorial or marketing role.  I’m currently exploring different avenues and entry level positions.

3. Post at least one book review a week.
My schedule for January has me posting two to three book reviews a week because I’m trying to catch up from my hiatus.  Reviews are slated in my posting schedule for Mondays, occasional Wednesdays, and Saturdays.  I’d love to keep up a two a week schedule, but as it’s tough for me to READ two books a week (with teaching middle school and writing my thesis), I didn’t think that was a realistic goal for me to maintain.

4. Read 12 debut novels.
Last year was my first year attempting the Debut Author Challenge.  I purchased 12 debut novels… but didn’t get around to reading 12 debut novels.  This year I’m setting a goal to post a “Debut Review” on the last day of every month.  This is a way of setting a deadline for myself, and I work well with deadlines (even the self-imposed kind).

5. Read 3 Newbery books and 3 Printz books.
I took a graduate course in Newbery books as well as heard a guest speaker who served on the Newbery committee.  It gave me a real understanding and sense of honor for these awards.  I’m always excited to hear what books are awarded medals each year, and I want to continue reading Newbery and Printz award winners each year (not just when I’m taking a class!)  I also enjoy trying to figure out why this book was chosen/selected versus other books, and identifying the winner’s merits.  I’m a total nerd!

6. Read 7 steampunk novels.
I am likely going to be doing an independent study in the Spring on steampunk, and therefore know I will be reading a bunch of it.  I also want to read what is out there in terms of YA steampunk so as to place my own novel in context.  Is it similar to what’s already been published?  What does it have to offer that’s new?  I have some theories, but I really need to read more in order to prove my assumptions correct.  Some books on my list: The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron, The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress, Fever Crumb by Philip Reeve, and The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann.

7. Read 3-5 contemporary novels.
This is a genre that I’m slowly growing to enjoy.  This year I read Anna and the French Kiss, Lola and the Boy Next Door, The Fault in Our Stars, and The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight (review forthcoming).  All of which I enjoyed, despite not being an avid contemporary reader.  This year I will undoubtedly be reading Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins, The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen, and Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry.  I’ll be watching for a few more contemporary reads to add as well.

8. Read 3-5 historical fiction novels.
This is a genre that I used to love.  I totally grew up on the American Girl series. (Felicity was my favorite.) I’d love to renew my love of historical fiction because lately I’ve been reading a lot of fantasy and science fiction.  I’ve heard great things about Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly and Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson.  But I’ll gladly take recommendations of great historical fiction.

9. Do majority of eBook purchasing from indie booksellers through Kobo.
I’m a little upset by what I’ve read about Amazon’s business practices and their interactions with publishers, authors, and booksellers.  Despite loving my Kindle Touch, I want to shift my book purchasing to support independent booksellers.  I got an iPad for Christmas and downloaded the Kobo app.  Through Kobo, I can purchase eBooks from my favorite indie stores, like Browseabout Books in Rehoboth, Delaware or Politics and Prose in Washington D.C.  I want to purchase eBooks from the stores that offer me great book events, opportunities to meet my favorite authors, and a great shopping experience.

10. Start novel #2.
I’m not even done with book one, and I’m already thinking ahead to book two!  That’s partially because book two was started before I even began book one.  But then there was the “Dystopian Boom” and I realized I had to figure out a way to make my dystopian trilogy different from all the others being offered.  I had a unique premise, but I needed a different ending.  Most dystopians end with either the protagonist running away from the dystopian society or rebelling against the dystopian society.  I wanted an ending that would be neither of those.  And I found one!  A fantastic twist!  I can’t wait to return to this project when I finish my steampunk novel.

Whew!  Does anyone else feel like they need to print out all their goals and resolutions and post them on the walls to keep them in sight?  I have a lot I want to get done this year!

What are your Bookish Goals?

I have a Button!

I have the most thoughtful, wonderful, talented brother.

He made me a blog button and it’s perfect.

There was no badgering or bugging him at all.  In fact, I hadn’t really asked him for this.  We’d talked about other images for my blog, but not my own button.  I love him soooo much.

How was I so lucky to get two totally awesome brothers?

Overdue Book Review: Hex Hall series

The last three months, I was on a blogging hiatus. I missed writing up reviews of several books, but would still like to give my overall thoughts.

Overdue Book Review = Read in October 2012


Hex Hall series
Hex Hall, Demonglass, Spell Bound
By Rachel Hawkins
Purchased/eBook
Genre: YA Fantasy
Big Themes: Magic, Friendship, Mystery, Trust, Family, Love, Boarding School

Summary: Sophie is sent away to Hex Hall after an incident makes clear that she can’t control her magic powers.  Hex Hall is a kind of juvie for magic users, and holds an assortment of magical youth, such as: witches, warlocks, shapeshifters, faeries, and even a vampire.

What I Liked:

The Wit and Humor: The humor in this book was by far the most pleasant surprise as I picked these books up.  Sophie is so witty and her sense of humor makes these books such a joy to read.  It also gave Sophie a distinct voice as the narrator, which is always a plus.

The Plot: I wasn’t really sure what to expect with these books, but what I got was a whole lot more than just a teen girl boarding school book.  There are secret societies, family history, spies, dark magic, ghosts, curses, and mysteries throughout.  The books were paced well with twists and turns and intrigue.

The Setting: Hex Hall is a memorable setting, and the kind of place I wish I could visit.  While it wasn’t Hogwarts, this boarding school was still complex and fascinating with it’s own little secrets.

Criticism:

Villain: I got a little confused towards the end of the series on who the villain was and the whole politics/history bit.  I would have liked to see more foreshadowing in regards to this as well as a more clear set-up/backstory.

Overall Rating: Four stars for being delightfully funny and intriguing series.  While it’s not Harry Potter in scope or complexity, it has a lot of similar charms.

Overdue Book Review: The Fault In Our Stars

The last three months, I was on a blogging hiatus. I missed writing up reviews of several books, but would still like to give my overall thoughts.

Overdue Book Review = Read in September 2012

The Fault in Our Stars
By John Green
Purchased/Signed Hardback
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction
Big Themes: Cancer, Love, Power of Books

Summary: Hazel Grace Lancaster attends a cancer support group where she meets the gorgeous and amazing Augustus Waters.

I LOVED THIS BOOK.

I’m going to keep this review short, since this book has already been reviewed a gazillion times.  Like everyone else in the world, this book blew me away. If you are someone who still hasn’t read it… Fix that. 

I avoided this book for several months because I didn’t want to read a book about cancer or a book that would make me cry. But I picked this book up on a Friday evening and finished it Saturday afternoon… In less than 24 hours. I cried from page 103 on with tears streaming down my face. John Green is a master of characterization and wit. I cared about Hazel and Augustus soooooo much. It’s incredible how John Green is able to get in each character’s head so that their actions and dialogue are consistent and unique.

I don’t want to give any spoilers because it’s so important to go into this book knowing nothing about the story.

Overall Rating: This is now my favorite John Green book and my favorite contemporary book of all time. Five big brilliant stars.

Behind the Story: Pacing & Description Part 3

Owl & White/Red BookBehind the Story posts will be about what goes on behind the scenes as a writer creates their story.  I’ll be writing about my own writing process and sharing any tips or advice I’ve discovered on my own or gathered on the topic. Hopefully both readers and writers find these posts fascinating!
This week’s topic:
Pacing and Description
The past two weeks I’ve been discussing pacing and description as a writer.  For previous posts:
This week I’ll be giving you two more writing tips as well as two more exercises!
Pacing Tip #2: White Space and Description Between Dialogue
In terms of teens, white space is your friend.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve handed my classes a book or story or article and heard them groan when they are overwhelmed by the number of words on a page.  But you can have the opposite reaction if you pay attention to white space.  White space is the negative space where there are no words.  It’s an easy way to keep an eye on your pacing.  You can assume that readers move slowly through a page with little white space because they have a lot of words to read, but a page with a lot of white space will move much quicker.  The easiest way of increasing the amount of white space on a page is to add dialogue.  I’ve noticed that many of the more popular/mass market authors tend to not only write a lot of dialogue, but are also good at writing witty dialogue.  Bravo if that’s your strength!  But even if it’s not, a wisely placed bit of dialogue can break up the pacing of a slow scene.
Author, James Patterson and his Maximum Ride series has a ridiculous amount of white space in his books.  His books run roughly 400 pages, but I’d say at least a third to a half of the book is white space.  He uses an abundance of dialogue.  But what’s really sneaky is his chapters.  There are 134 chapters in the first book, and there are chapter breaks every 2-4 pages.  Picture the amount of white space that comes at the beginning and end of a chapter, and you can imagine how much white space a kid sees when flipping through his books when there’s 134 chapters. (I’ve also noticed that my students love the feeling of triumph in saying they read a 134 chapter book.)  I am not a fan of the Maximum Ride series and don’t find them to be especially well written.  But they are the most fast paced books I’ve seen out there, and I think it’s in large part due to James Patterson’s use of white space.
Writing Exercise #2
Look through your work in progress and see if you can find a section that is text heavy with very little white space.  See if you can insert a brief scene of dialogue to break up the text.

This may sound hard, but I did it for a scene I wrote on Monday!  I saw that I had a long paragraph, and figured out how to convey a lot of the same information through a conversation between two characters instead!
Pacing Tip #3: Sensory Details and Characters Interacting With the Setting
The easiest way to slip in setting without your reader noticing that you’re doing any description at all is by having you characters interact with the setting.  I added sensory details to this tip because those are easy ways to tell if you characters are interacting with the setting.  Does you character feel raindrops rolling down their face?  You just sneakily introduced that it was raining!  Does your character taste salt in the air?  You just told us we’re by the ocean!  Does your character hear the click-clacking of high heels on linoleum?  We must be inside a building, perhaps an official one where women where heels!  See how you can reveal setting through sensory details?  Below are some examples of characters interacting with the setting, often through sensory details.

Pressing her cheek to the warm, gritty pavement, she was able to make out three sets of yellow boots across the square.  An emergency crew. She peeled the door open farther and watched the men–all wearing gas masks–as they doused the interior of the booth with liquid from a yellow can.  Even across the square, Cinder wrinkled her nose at the stench.
Cinder, page 17

Here, the author, Marissa Meyer uses sensory details to show her character interacting with the setting.  You get an idea that this is an urban, secretive, and possibly dystopian setting from the sights, smells, and touch of the place through Cinder’s interactions.  (I absolutely love this sci-fi take on Cinderella and highly recommend it!)

But she was still five hundred feet up when the first sheets of rain arrived.  The cold drops fell diagonally, hitting her dangling feet even under the cover of the airbeast.  Its tentacles coiled tighter, and she wondered how long the medusa would take this pounding before it spilled its hydrogen, hurling itself to the ground.
Leviathan, Page 57

Here, author, Scott Westerfeld informs you of several setting details while maintaining an action-packed narrative.  You learn the setting is up in the sky, during a powerful storm.  I think the pacing and action is heightened by his strong verbs in this section as well: hitting, dangling, coiled, pounding, spilled, and hurling.  There are also sensory details: cold drops and hitting her dangling feet.
Exercise #3

Choose a setting and write a paragraph introducing details about that setting through how your character interacts with the place.  Try to include two or three of the senses in your paragraph.

Repeat for two more different settings!  Bonus points if you include all five senses for a single setting!
I hope you’ve enjoyed this series of posts on pacing and description!  Stay tuned next week for a post on emotion!

January Debuts 2013

Each month I’ll be doing one post to highlight book releases by debut authors that I have my eye on. At the end of each post, I’ll name my MUST READ for the month. Check back at the end of the month for my review. Or feel free to try to sway my opinion to read one of the other debuts as well!


Debut Author Challenge:
January Releases

Altered by Jennifer Rush
Release Date: January 1, 2013
Goodreads Summary:

Everything about Anna’s life is a secret. Her father works for the Branch at the helm of its latest project: monitoring and administering treatments to the four genetically altered boys in the lab below their farmhouse. There’s Nick, Cas, Trev . . . and Sam, who’s stolen Anna’s heart. When the Branch decides it’s time to take the boys, Sam stages an escape, killing the agents sent to retrieve them.
Anna is torn between following Sam or staying behind in the safety of her everyday life. But her father pushes her to flee, making Sam promise to keep her away from the Branch, at all costs. There’s just one problem. Sam and the boys don’t remember anything before living in the lab—not even their true identities.
Now on the run, Anna soon discovers that she and Sam are connected in more ways than either of them expected. And if they’re both going to survive, they must piece together the clues of their past before the Branch catches up to them and steals it all away.

Why I’m Interested: I’m a huge fan of science fiction.  Throw in secrets, escape, love, and a mysterious connection and this sounds like my kind of read!

Splintered by A. G. Howard
Release Date: January 1, 2013
Goodreads Summary:

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.
When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

Why I’m Interested: I normally avoid books about mental illness because it’s such a heavy and dark topic that really gets to me.  However, the reviews that are posted and the description intrigue me, especially the vivid setting and spin on a literary classic.

Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans

Release Date: January 15, 2013
Goodreads Summary:

Felicia Ward is dead. Trapped in a stark white afterlife limbo, she spends endless days replaying memories, of her family, friends, boyfriend … and of the guy who broke her heart. The guy who has just broken into Level 2 to find her.
Felicia learns that a rebellion is brewing, and it seems she is the key. Suspended between heaven and earth, she must make a choice. Between two worlds, two lives and two loves.

Why I’m Interested: This book has a lot of buzz already.  The summary sounds strange, but it also sounds action-packed and intriguing.

Touch of Death by Kelly Hashway
Release Date: January 15, 2013
Goodreads Summary:

Jodi Marshall isn’t sure how she went from normal teenager to walking disaster. One minute she’s in her junior year of high school, spending time with her amazing boyfriend and her best friend. The next she’s being stalked by some guy no one seems to know.
After the stranger, Alex, reveals himself, Jodi learns he’s not a normal teenager and neither is she. With a kiss that kills and a touch that brings the dead back to life, Jodi discovers she’s part of a branch of necromancers born under the 13th sign of the zodiac, Ophiuchus. A branch of necromancers that are descendents of Medusa. A branch of necromancers with poisoned blood writhing in their veins.
Jodi’s deadly to the living and even more deadly to the deceased. She has to leave her old, normal life behind before she hurts the people she loves. As if that isn’t difficult enough, Jodi discovers she’s the chosen one who has to save the rest of her kind from perishing at the hands of Hades. If she can’t figure out how to control her power, history will repeat itself, and her race will become extinct.

Why I’m Interested: I have this fascination with Medusa and think she’s a totally awesome character/legend/myth to play around with as a writer.  That alone made me want to check this book out.

The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd
Release Date: January 29, 2013
Goodreads Summary:

Sixteen-year-old Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself in London—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father’s gruesome experiments. But when she learns he is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations are true.
Accompanied by her father’s handsome young assistant, Montgomery, and an enigmatic castaway, Edward—both of whom she is deeply drawn to—Juliet travels to the island, only to discover the depths of her father’s madness: He has experimented on animals so that they resemble, speak, and behave as humans. And worse, one of the creatures has turned violent and is killing the island’s inhabitants. Torn between horror and scientific curiosity, Juliet knows she must end her father’s dangerous experiments and escape her jungle prison before it’s too late. Yet as the island falls into chaos, she discovers the extent of her father’s genius—and madness—in her own blood.
Inspired by H. G. Wells’s classic The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Madman’s Daughter is a dark and breathless Gothic thriller about the secrets we’ll do anything to know and the truths we’ll go to any lengths to protect.

Why I’m Interested: I heard an agent speak about acquiring this manuscript and it immediately jumped out at me when I saw the list of debuts.  While I haven’t read H.G. Wells’ The Island of Dr. Moreau, I’m really into YA books that are spins or twists on classic literature, so this one definitely intrigues me.

Hooked by Liz Fichera
Release Date: January 31, 2013
Goodreads Summary:

When Native American Fredericka ‘Fred’ Oday is invited to become the only girl on the school’s golf team, she can’t say no. This is an opportunity to shine, win a scholarship and go to university, something no one in her family has done.
But Fred’s presence on the team isn’t exactly welcome — especially not to rich golden boy Ryan Berenger, whose best friend was kicked off the team to make a spot for Fred.
But there’s no denying that things are happening between the girl with the killer swing and the boy with the killer smile…

Why I’m Interested: Native American protagonist and a girl who golfs could make this a fresh and original contemporary read.

My MUST READ January Debut is…

Level 2
Look for my review on January 30!

(I wanted to pick The Madman’s Daughter but it comes out January 29 and I want to read one of the above in January, so look for Madman’s Daughter to slip into another month as a debut read.)

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Resolve to Read in 2013


A HUGE thank you to my awesome brother for my new Top Ten Tuesday button  ðŸ™‚

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. For more information about Top Ten Tuesday and a list of upcoming Top Ten Tuesday topics, click here.

Top Ten Books I Resolve to Read in 2013


Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Yeah. I am the only person in the world who hasn’t read this series. I resolve to fix that!

Grave Mercy by R.L. LaFevers
I’ve heard such great things, but have allowed the length of this book to intimidate me.

Eon by Alison Goodman
Another chunky book that I haven’t tackled but heard wonderful things about, and I love a good fantasy.

Legend by Marie Lu
I love sci-fi and dystopian novels, so I purchased this eBook awhile ago… But still haven’t read it.

Savvy by Ingrid Law
I try to make a point of reading Newbery Honor books, and I purchased this one a VERY long time ago. I want to finally get around to reading it.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Both my mom and other bloggers have raved about this book, and rumors are this book is a tear-jerker.

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry
Another book that I’ve heard great things about and I’m really making an effort to try more contemporary fiction.

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen
I heard Sarah Dessen speak in 2011, and have since wanted to read one of her books. This one I already downloaded as an eBook but I’d take recommendations of other books by Dessen.

Blood Red Road by Moira Young
Another series that I feel like I’m late to discover, but would really like to check out because it screams everything I like.

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
So many people say this series is exceptionally well done and one of their favorite, plus this book has been sitting on my shelf for ages.

Any recommendations on what to start with?
What are you resolving to read?

Overdue Book Review: Iron Knight

The last three months, I was on a blogging hiatus. I missed writing up reviews of several books, but would still like to give my overall thoughts.

Overdue Book Review = Read in August 2012

Iron Knight
By Julie Kagawa
Purchased/Paperback
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Big Themes: Love Triangle, Quest, Fairy Lore, Humanity

SPOILER ALERT: This review contains many spoilers.  Proceed with caution…

Summary: When Meghan becomes the Iron Queen and takes on the responsibilities of her kingdom, she and Ash can no longer be together because her very kingdom is poisonous to him.  Ash, the faery ice prince, is determined to find a way to be with Meghan again, even if it means becoming human… and mortal.

What I Liked:

The Big Bad Wolf: I thought his character was pretty cool, but I think I have a thing for bad guys changing over to the good side.  I liked the reasoning behind why he was so powerful because it really fit with the world-building that Kagawa had already established in the series.

The Three Trials to Become Human: This was by far the most impressive part of the book for me.  The trials were well thought out and purposeful.  They really made it clear what Ash was giving up to become human, but also made the reader reflect on what it means to be human.  I was about to write this book off as a failure until I got to this part, and it totally saved the book for me.

Criticism:


Slow Pacing: This book took forever to read compared to the rest of the Iron Fey series.  It took forever to get to the end of the world.  The questing got boring to me, kind of like in Deathly Hallows with all the time spent traveling in the tent with no clear plan or destination.  I really began to notice Kagawa’s lengthy descriptions and overdone prose.

The Reappearance of Ariella: I didn’t buy this at all.  She died.  In front of Ash and Puck.  There were not any hints throughout the entire series that she could possibly be alive.  While at first I thought it was a fun added conflict for Ash, now that I’ve digested the books, I think this was a bit of a cheap trick.  I just would have appreciated more foreshadowing that Ariella was someone capable of rising from the dead.

Lack of Voice: I was eager to get Ash’s point-of-view in this novel, but I felt like his voice was not recognizably different from Meghan’s.  I was expecting a distinct difference, especially considering he’s fey and from a totally different background.  As well as from royalty.  And male.  I think there was likely a lot of pressure on Kagawa to get this book out (and I remember reading that this book was written for Ash fans), but I wish she’d spent a little extra time on Ash’s voice because I think that would have made this a better book.

Overall Rating: I’d give this book three stars.  If you want more of Ash sacrificing everything for the girl he loves and a lovely happy ending, you should definitely check this book out.

2012 Reflection and Looking Ahead

2012 Challenges


Goodreads Challenge
Goal 75 Books
Did Not Complete



2012 Debut Author Challenge
Goal 12 Books
Did Not Complete

Instead of recapping my failures (depressing) and making excuses (lame), I’m going to reflect on the things I did accomplish this year:

1) I wrote more blog posts in 2012 than I did in 2011 (despite taking a 3 month hiatus), and made lots of new friends along the way 🙂

2) I took 12 credits in graduate courses and now have 36 out of 48 credits towards my Masters degree. I have just one class and my thesis to go!

3) I wrote tens of thousands of words for my novel as well as researching topics that were completely unfamiliar to me like the history of metalworking and properties of metal. I will undoubtedly finish my first draft this winter and that makes me happy!

Goals for 2013

Goodreads Challenge: I’m going to set my goal lower than 2012 but higher than 2011. Hopefully, that middle ground will be the right number. My goal will be 60 books.

Debut Author Challenge: I really want to do a better job on this challenge. It turns out that I purchased a bunch of debut novels, but it was the reading them that got me in trouble. I’m going to have to schedule one book per month and set deadlines for myself. I work well that way, with a little more structure. So I’m going to set a goal of one book a month or 12 books total.

Reading Goals: I want to diversify my reading selections. I tend to read more fantasy and sci-fi, but would like to also read more historical fiction (which I enjoy), mysteries (which I loved as a kid), and contemporary (which is growing on me). I also want to pay more attention to publishers and diversify my reading in that way. I also will be reading as many steampunk books as possible, so if you see a good steampunk book, send it my way!

Writing Goals: I will be finishing my first draft of my steampunk novel this winter, which will be my thesis for my Masters. I will be revising over the Spring and Summer, and be done by August 2013. Hopefully, I can start the query process Fall of 2013. My next writing project (since this novel is a steampunk standalone) will likely be the dystopian trilogy that I put on hold. I had a major revelation while studying dystopians over the summer, and figured out how to break away from the typical dystopian format. I have a major twist that I’m really excited to explore, which should distract me from the nerves of querying.

Blogging Goals: I want to maintain an every-other-day posting schedule, with two-thirds of my posts being book posts and one-third being writing posts. I’d love to look into co-hosting an event or doing some giveaways, but that really depends on big changes in my real life and how they’ll impact me (jobs, moving, money, etc.)

2013 could have a lot of changes in store for me, especially as I’m completing my Masters and pursuing job/career changes. I hope these big changes won’t get in the way of my goals, but regardless, I’m optimistic that 2013 is going to be a fun year 🙂

Overdue Book Review: Iron Fey series

The last three months, I was on a blogging hiatus. I missed writing up reviews of several books, but would still like to give my overall thoughts.

Overdue Book Review = Read in August 2012

Iron Fey series
Iron King, Iron Daughter, Iron Queen
By Julie Kagawa
Purchased/Paperback
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Big Themes: Love Triangle, Quest, Fairy Lore, Responsibility

Summary: When Meghan’s brother is kidnapped, she heads into the world of Faery to get him back with the help of Puck, her best friend.  But things get more complicated when Meghan learns who her father really is and meets the dangerous Ice Prince.

What I Liked:

Great Pacing: These books were full of action, twists, turns, and conflict that kept them moving along at a quick pace.  I definitely think this is part of why Kagawa has seen so much success.  These books are page-turners that you don’t want to put down.

World-Building: This was probably my favorite part of this series.  Kagawa creates a great sense of logic for how the world of Faery exists and how it’s inhabitants are immortal.  I don’t want to give too much of this away, but think Peter Pan… when you say you don’t believe in faeries… one dies.  This translated really well to how she constructed the Iron Kingdom.  Kagawa definitely created a world that was vivid enough to serve as a character in the story, and this was one of the highlights of the series for me!

Likable Characters:  Meghan is a strong heroine who resolves to fight and not sit back and be protected.  Ash was your typical brooding alpha male who can be cold at times (He is an Ice Prince!), but also shows a tender and protective side.  Ash is the kind of male lead that I swoon for.  Puck was a fun character… but see my criticism for my full thoughts on him…  Grimalkin the cat made me giggle to myself on more than one occasion.

Moved to Emotion: I was moved to tears in Iron Queen, so that must say I was pretty invested in the characters.  Mild spoiler… I think the whole sacrifice thing really gets to me in books.

Criticism:

Description Heavy Passages: I found myself occasionally skimming when I’d encounter description heavy passages.  Again, I thought the world-building was fantastic, but I also think there were some areas where Kagawa could have trimmed and been more precise with her language.

Puck: Minor Spoiler… I felt like Puck wasn’t given a fair shot in the whole love triangle business and I felt like he didn’t live up to his potential.  I mean it’s PUCK.  Shakespeare’s Puck.  Legendary Puck.  I felt like the wit and humor could have been pushed more.  I felt like more chemistry could have been established between Meghan and Puck if Kagawa wanted to go the love triangle route.  I never had any doubt that Meghan would end up with Ash, and in a properly executed love triangle, there should be some question.

Meghan’s Abilities: Spoiler… Meghan doesn’t use her awesome abilities.  If I was an ordinary human all my life, and suddenly learned I could do amazing stuff… I would want to do that amazing stuff all the time.  Kagawa set up barriers to Meghan using her powers, like the Summer and Iron making her sick and stuff.  Or her powers being blocked.  But in Iron Queen, the fact that she wasn’t using her influence as the Iron Queen was driving me bonkers.  She had all those pack rats that would obey her every word, and she barely used them at all.  And her Iron abilities, barely uses them at all.  I was constantly waiting for her to use her special abilities and predicting that she would, and kept being disappointed.  This was a major flaw for me that kept me from really enjoying the last book.

Overall Rating: The world-building and pacing of these books make them enjoyable reads, the romance makes it a guilty pleasure and would make me give these books four stars.  HOWEVER, the major flaws that I listed affect how I feel about the overall series.  I’d have to knock down my overall rating to a three or three-and-a-half.  Perhaps as Kagawa matures as a writer, we will see great things from her.  I’ve heard good things about Immortal Rules!

Stay tuned for my review of Iron Knight…