[Review] Hawthorne by Sarah Ballance

Hawthorne by Sarah Ballance 
Publisher: Sarah Ballance
Publishing Date: February 2014
Format: free ebook
40 Pages
Links: Amazon | Goodreads

Synopsis 

After a terrifying encounter with the unexplained, it takes ten years and the news of her grandmother’s passing for Emma Grace Hawthorne to return to her childhood home. She seeks peace in saying a proper goodbye, but what she finds is an old love, a sordid family history, and a wrong only she can right. 

Living in the shadow of Hawthorne Manor, Noah Garrett has never forgotten about Emma Grace. In a house full of secrets, his search for missing documents reveals a truth that can cost him everything. What he finds gave Emma the freedom to walk away from the mansion, her heart free and clear, but at what price to Noah?

My Review 

I found this short story on Amazon when the Kindle edition was free, so I just downloaded it on a whim. I finally read it today on my Kindle - it's a quick read, so it didn't take too much time from my other books. This is a short story about ghosts, old mansions and romance. I can't say I've ever really read a ghost story before, but I liked this one! This book didn't suck me in immediately, but once I was about halfway through, I was hooked. And the ending?! All I can say is "wow." I wasn't expecting that at all. It really makes me want to go back and reread the story since I'm sure I'll pick up on a few other things now! It also really makes me want to visit (or live in!) an old house like the one described so beautifully in this book. 

[Review] Heaven's Price by Sandra Brown

Heaven's Price by Sandra Brown 
Publisher: Bantam Books
Publishing Date: 1983
217 Pages
Format: paperback, purchased

Synopsis 

Blair Simpson embraced a life most people merely dreamed about. Devoting her nights as well as her days to dancing - in the chorus line of Broadway musicals and in occasional TV commercials - she had never considered another career. Now an injury has sent her to a small town for six long months of recuperation. All around her are couples who are raising families and building dreams together. And there she meets a man who forces her to come to terms with a part of herself she has long denied.

From her first encounter with her new landlord, Sean Garrett, the powerful sexual attraction between them catches her off guard. For the first time she's unable to lose herself in her dancing, as Sean's passion and tenderness urge her to open her life to him. More than anything, Sean wants to build a future with fiery, raven-haired Blair. But Blair's own passion for dance has ruled her for so long, she many not be able to break its hold - even if it costs her the love she had thought she's never find.

My Review

I started reading Sandra Brown books so long ago - probably before I really should have been (: I think my mom had a bunch around the house, and I just started reading them, and pretty soon devoured so much of what she had written! While this wasn't my favorite book of hers, I still enjoyed it. I picked this one up because I specifically wanted to read a romance. I didn't want anything dystopian, young adult, suspenseful, etc; I just wanted a romance. And that's exactly what I got. Blair is a stubborn dancer who doesn't want to give up her career in dancing. Sean is just as stubborn, but knows what he wants in life, and that includes Blair. They have a whirlwind romance, but like all couples, face challenges during their relationship. It was a short, quick read that I finished in a day. If you've read anything by Sandra Brown, or just want a quick romance, pick it up. Like I said, it's not my favorite of hers, but it was a sweet story.

[Review] The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger 
Publisher: Harcourt, Inc.
Publishing Date: 2003
536 Pages
Format: paperback, purchased
Buy Links: Amazon  |   B&N

Synopsis 

A most untraditional love story, this is the celebrated tale of Henry DeTamble, a dashing, adventuresome librarian who involuntarily travels through time, and Clare Abshire, an artist whose life takes a natural sequential course. Henry and Clare's passionate affair endures across a sea of time and captures them in an impossibly romantic trap that tests the strength of fate and basks in the bonds of love.

My Review 

I'm torn on my review of this book, so I'm giving it 3.5 stars. While I really enjoyed reading it, I found some parts to be dragged out, making me want to skip pages and just finish the book. Henry and Clare have a beautiful love story that really stands the test of time. I really loved the beginning parts when Henry would visit Clare as a young girl, and then a little further into the book when Clare has to explain some things to Henry about how they know each other. It was very sweet and romantic. One character I don't really like is Gomez; I just want to smack him upside the head sometimes!

Throughout the middle of the book, I felt like some things could have been left out, and maybe the story a little shorter. However, I still very much enjoyed it. I thought the ending was well done and I liked finding out how their lives play out. Overall, I think it was a great love story and I would recommend others to read it. Now I want to watch the movie again!

Movie Trailer

Challenge Wrap-ups!

I can't believe it's already the end of January! It's so crazy how fast time flies! Since it's the end of the month, I'm updating you all on my challenges. I've done pretty good this month, though haven't met them all. Hopefully next month goes just as well! You can go to my original post regarding this challenge by clicking on the link below the buttons. 

Jumble Your Genres

The purpose of this challenge is pretty self-explanatory in the title: each month, there is a new genre for you to read books from. January's genre was young adult, and thankfully, pretty easy for me! I actually read more YA than I used to, which is pretty nice. Sometimes it gives me a break from some other heavy topics adult novels tackle. Though YA tackles quite a few as well. Below is the list of books and reviews I completed for this challenge! 

The Summer I Found You by Jolene Perry
Wither by Lauren DeStefano
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Letting Ana Go by Anonymous

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First Reads Reading Challenge

This challenge is to read as many new-to-you authors as you can! I chose the Expert Level, in which I need to read 51-75 new-to-me authors. I'm at 7 so far, so I think I'm doing ok! 

1. Champagne Kisses by Krista Lakes
2. Wither by Lauren DeStefano
3. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
4. The Summer I Found You by Jolene Perry
5. Atonement by J.H. Cardwell
6. Best Fake Day by Tracey Rogers
7. Letting Ana Go by Anonymous

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Monthly Keyword Challenge

This challenge is so fun and thankfully isn't concerned about how much you can read. This challenge gives multiple words for each month, and you find a book that has one of these words in the title! The title can also have a variation of the word in it; for example: snowing or snowflake, even though the word is "snow". I only read one book with one of these keywords, but I was more than okay with that. 

January's words: Angel, Secret, Clock, Black, Day, Wild

Best Fake Day by Tracey Rogers

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Series Challenge

Goal: Finish as many series as you can! I love this challenge because there are so many series that I start, but just never get around to finishing. This helps me stay on track to get some more books off my shelves! So far, I've only finished The Hunger Games Series. My review to Mockingjay is below. But I also started the Chemical Gardens Trilogy, which I've been wanting to read for a while! I just got the other two books in the mail this week, so I should be able to finish the series soon! 

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

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TBR Pile Challenge 

I participated in this challenge last year, but didn't do so well. As a result, I chose a lower level in hopes that I can accomplish this! So far, I've read 3 of 21 books, so I'm 1/7 of the way through! Yay! :) If I stick on this path, then I'll definitely make my goal by the end of the year. But... I am planning a wedding, and then there's actually having the wedding, and the honeymoon.. so I'm not so sure yet how it will all work out! 

1. Beach Road by James Patterson 2. The Road by Cormac McCarthy 3. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

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Monthly Motif Challenge

Finally, the last challenge. Unfortunately... I didn't meet this one. January's motif was to read a book set in another country or written by an author from a country different than your own. Well, I started reading one by a Scottish author, set in Scotland, but I didn't finish it. I hope to go back to it sometime soon, but it wasn't holding my interest.

[Review] Letting Ana Go by Anonymous

Letting Ana Go by Anonymous 
Publisher: SimonTeen
Publishing Date: June 4, 2013
279 Pages
Format: won, paperback
Purchase Links:  Amazon |  Barnes and Noble

Synopsis 

In the tradition of Go Ask Alice and Lucy in the Sky, a harrowing account of anorexia and addiction.

She was a good girl from a good family, with everything she could want or need. But below the surface, she felt like she could never be good enough. Like she could never live up to the expectations that surrounded her. Like she couldn't do anything to make a change.

But there was one thing she could control completely: how much she ate. The less she ate, the better - stronger - she felt.

But it's a dangerous game, and there is such a thing as going to far...

Her innermost thoughts and feelings are chronicled in the diary she left behind.

My Review

I haven't read Go Ask Alice or Lucy in the Sky yet, but I received this book in a large giveaway hosted by SimonTeen that I won. I picked it up first because I had heard of how good Go Ask Alice was, and it sounded like a great story.

What I wasn't expecting was how much this story would get to me! We never really know the girl's name in this story, but I thought of her as Ana, since it's the name on the cover, but that could be about anorexia and not her actual name. Regardless, Ana has a pretty good life when this story starts out. She's asked to keep a food journal by her cross country coach because girls from other schools have been struggling with eating disorders and running. They restrict their calories and overexercise so much that their bodies shut down. Initially, Ana likes keeping the journal, and does a really great job with being honest. But as you read, you slowly start to see signs before the eating disorder becomes full-blown.

Ana slowly starts to become controlled by what and how much she eats. What starts out as a simple food journal becomes a journal about a severe disease. It doesn't help that her mom is struggling with her weight, her best friend has started restricting her calories to a dangerously low amount, and her friend's mom makes comments about how good Ana looks when she starts losing weight. All of these factors add up and Ana's mindset changes from being carefree, to becoming consumed with controlling her food.

It makes me really sad to see how people view themselves and feel the need to be "perfect." I've struggled with weight throughout my life, and I've definitely counted calories. But for me, it was more about choosing healthy things to eat - if I saw how many calories chips were, and how few I would be able to eat, I would choose carrots, yogurt, or fruit. It just made me much more conscious of what I was eating. I stopped counting calories after a while because it just was tedious work that I constantly forgot, but I've been able to still eat pretty healthy. I just wish more young girls (and guys) would understand this rather than trying to starve themselves. There's such a big difference between eating healthy and cutting out bad foods, and starving yourself. And anorexia doesn't just affect the person its controlling; it affects their family and friends as well.

[Review] Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publishing Date: Aug 24, 2010
390 Pages
Format: hardcover, purchased
Purchase Links: Amazon

Synopsis 

Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.

It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plans - except Katniss.

The success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future to Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels' Mockingjay - no matter what the personal cost.

My Review

What to say about this book... Well, it kept my attention! I had tried to read this book so many times before, but I could never get past the first couple of pages. Then I went to see Catching Fire the other night with my fiance, and I decided I really wanted to find out what happens next! I'm happy it restored my want to finish the series! It actually kept my attention throughout the whole story, which I was really happy about.

I didn't think it was as good as the first book (why does this happen so often in series?!), but it was better than I was expecting it to be. Mostly I wanted to read it just to finish the series, but the further I got into the book, the more I wanted to read it because it was enjoyable. Katniss faces so many struggles throughout this book. What I really love is that she doesn't just breeze through them all. She actually has doubts about what she should do; she withdraws from people when she can't decide what's best for the people of Panen and her family. Things don't just come really easy to her. It makes Katniss as a character so much more easy to relate to. I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. It wasn't bad - it was actually a good ending. But who Katniss ends up being with (Gale v Peeta), is not what I expected, nor what I really wanted. But that's all I'll say about it (:

If you haven't read this series yet, or if you just haven't finished it, do so!!

Favorite Quote: 

"It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart." pg 156