WoW - June 15th

WoW is a weekly meme I participate in, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.  It stands for Waiting on Wednesday, and the point is to share to the Blogging world what book you're most looking forward to that week!  This week, I can't wait to read Eve by Anna Carey!

Summary (from Goodreads):  The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

Why I want to read it:  Easy.   I love dystopian. This sounds like a great one to read, judging by the summary.

What happens. . .

When I am given too much time on Photoshop:

Notice anything wrong with this picture?  Here's the original:

And here's the second in the series, the one I based the colours on:

Hmm. . . Shouldn't I be posting reviews instead of messing around on Photoshop?  :)

In My Mailbox - June 12th

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted at The Story Siren, in which you show the books you got that week.  They can be borrowed from friends, bought, or been taken out from the library.  This week, I only got one book, from the library:

The Evil Within - Nancy Holder

What did you get in your mailbox?  Leave a link in the comments!

City of Glass Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Abhishek Duggal for winning my 100 followers giveaway!  He has responded back to me, and the book is shipping right now.  Many thanks to everyone who participated!

The Gathering

The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong

Publisher: Harper (HarperCollins)
Pages: 359
Source: Received as gift
Summary (from Goodreads): Sixteen-year-old Maya is just an ordinary teen in an ordinary town. Sure, she doesn't know much about her background - the only thing she really has to cling to is an odd paw-print birthmark on her hip - but she never really put much thought into who her parents were or how she ended up with her adopted parents in this tiny medical-research community on Vancouver Island.
...moreSixteen-year-old Maya is just an ordinary teen in an ordinary town. Sure, she doesn't know much about her background - the only thing she really has to cling to is an odd paw-print birthmark on her hip - but she never really put much thought into who her parents were or how she ended up with her adopted parents in this tiny medical-research community on Vancouver Island.

Until now.

Strange things have been happening in this claustrophobic town - from the mountain lions that have been approaching Maya to her best friend's hidden talent for "feeling" out people and situations, to the sexy new bad boy who makes Maya feel . . . . different. Combine that with a few unexplained deaths and a mystery involving Maya's biological parents and it's easy to suspect that this town might have more than its share of skeletons in its closet. 


My review: There is so much I can say about Kelley Armstrong's writing, but I can sum it up in one word: amazing.  There's so much I like about it.


The thing that really stands out to me in Kelley's books is the humor cleverly weaved in.  It doesn't come across as a particularly funny book as your reading it, then suddenly you realize that your laughing in in the most serious parts.  This reminded me a lot of her last book trilogy.  I'm having a hard time deciding which one I liked more, but I think I am leaning towards her last one, but just barely.  The only reason I say that is because I loved Derek, and I don't particularly like Daniel or Rafe.


Having said that, though, I admit that the characters really jumped out to me.  While I never found some of them, like Sam and Rafe, particularly likable it was made up by their realism.  Maya was an excellent main character, with the just the right mix of great and annoying things about her.  Every step she took was like one of my own.


I'm very indecisive about the plot of the book.  At some points I thought it was too fast, at some points I thought it was too slow.  In the end though, I hadn't even considered putting it down at all, so it endedi up being fine.  The main climax at the end of the book was well-paced; not too short, not too long.


All I can say is that if you haven't read anything by Kelley Armstrong, I suggest that you do that now!


My rating:
Characters: 5/5
Plot: 4/5
Writing: 5/5
Originality: 5/5

In total,