Becoming Edward Review

Becoming Edward
Faye Meredith

Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: June 6, 2011
Series: N/A
Genre: YA, Romance
Pages: Kindle ebook
Source: Purchase
Rating: 4/5 (Avg 4/5)

Rachel's hooked on Twilight and is in love with Edward Cullen. Clive is obsessed with Rachel but he's no Edward. Lewis is in love with himself until he meets Rachel.

Both boys fail to win her until one of them has the bright idea of becoming Edward.

Becoming Edward is a light-hearted teen fiction novel for young adults who love paranormal romance, especially Twilight and Breaking Dawn. There are no vampires in it, but there is a boy who thinks he's Edward Cullen.

The author is a huge Twilight fan and explores what it's like to be a Twi-hard while other people just 'don't get it'.

This was one of those random Kindle purchases that I make every once in a while when I come upon an ebook that simply intrigues me. I mean, come on, a book about a guy that decides to become Edward Cullen to win the girl? For the female Twilight fans, that is a MUST read if for no other reason than to find out how it goes! Plus, at a price like $2.99, it's simply too hard to resist.

I adore this book. Not only was the premise amusing and just too cute for words, but the characters were seemingly realistic and relatable. Rachel is most definitely one of those girls that is so addicted to Twilight and Edward Cullen, simply no boy will ever compare to the fictional heartthrob. She was also relatively sane for a die-hard Twilight fan, which is one stereotype that I was glad was not personified in the book. As a fan of Twilight, I fancy myself rather sane and definitely still connected to this thing we like to call reality.

I think the only thing that I wasn't so happy with was how far Lewis went with the whole 'becoming Edward Cullen' concept. Maybe I didn't use my imagination enough when I was reading the synopsis, but I was thinking he would fully turn on the Edward gentlemanly charm and maybe do the signature bouffant hairdo. But, no. It goes much deeper than that... almost to the point of sheer chaos. While it was cute, it was definitely straddling the line and teetering on outright creepy.

Becoming Edward was a fun, light-hearted read that can pretty much be read in one sitting. It's an endearing story about how far one guy will change to get the girl with many laugh-out-loud moments that will surely make the people around you think you're as crazy as those silly Twilight fans. ;)

Cindy had the book in her mouth.

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Purchase: Amazon • Smashwords

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I imagine the haul next week will be as ridiculous if not more so, my best friend called to tell me that Books-A-Million has a bunch of YA books in their bargain section... which is so not good for my self-imposed budget. ;)

New This Week!

Aurora Undefined Review

Aurora Undefined
Kate Hinderer

Publisher: Kindle
Release Date: March 10, 2011
Source: Author
Rating: 4/5 (Avg 3.5/5)

Aurora is entering her senior year and everything around her seems to be falling apart. Her best friend has joined the cool crowd and she struggles to grapple with the loss. But when tragedy strikes, Aurora realizes what loss is really all about and how moving on becomes a fight of the will, mind and heart.

This is one of those beautiful reads that everyone needs to get a hold of in their reading careers. The story is beautifully simplistic yet monumentally provoking when it comes to your emotions.

I love Aurora. At first, I was a little hesitant because she did seem immature and selfish, but she grew throughout the story and ended up growing on me as well. Her realizations through the novel that she's not defined by others is something that a lot of teens need to know and realize - it's a strong message for everyone, and not just teens. It's even better because she does have a friend to help her realize this and he's there for her every step of the way - Hudson. Ahh, Hudson... he's basically amazing. I found myself looking forward to his parts in the book more than anything because he really made the book for me. I think the best part was when he lost it on Aurora. It was something she needed and I am so glad that he's the one that did it because I don't think, in the end, she would have caught on if those things were said by anyone else.

The emotions and reactions in this book ring true to real life, making this a read that anyone can relate to. The writing was great, the storyline even greater and the book really is tops for me. Though it's a little slow to begin with, the story soon picks up and has you hooked until the very end. This is definitely a recommended YA read for 2011 for me.

Declaring Spinsterhood Review

Declaring Spinsterhood
Jamie Lynn Braziel

Publisher: AmazonEncore
Release Date: May 3, 2011
Series: N/A
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: Paperback, 284 pages
Source: Publicist
Rating: 4/5 (Avg 3/5)

Emma Bailey is thirty years old and single. No problem for her, but a point of round-the-clock contention for her mother, her family, and too many of her friends. In Jamie Lynn Braziel's Declaring Spinsterhood, the terminal illness known as "old maid" is explored from every angle, and the result is a compassionate, compelling, and wickedly funny novel. Emma may stand up before all and declare her intention to never marry, but what about that little place in her heart reserved for Brian Davis? Sure, Brian's seeing someone, and Emma is not a vixen who breaks up relationships, but would it be so terrible if Brian returned the interest? Rather than bide her time, Emma dates…and dates. Some of the men are charming, others less so. With her vow of spinsterhood more a noose than a friend, Emma musters her courage and moves on. That is, until the unforeseen throws up the biggest obstacle of her life: love.

I want to call this book what I would consider to be one of my perfect beach reads without that sounding completely insulting. Some people see "beach reads" as one of those smutty romance novels that you take to the beach in paperbook format to read without guilt - and if you get some sand in the pages, then no problem. However, my definition is a little different. I love the beach and consider the beach to be a very romantic place. With that mindset, what I consider a good beach read is a great romance that can be read with an equally great back-drop -- like the beach. The beach just gives it that extra something that makes it that much better for me. So, that's what Declaring Spinsterhood is for me - a great romance book that I want to read with the ocean roaring at my ears, the sun warming my skin with the sand squishing between my toes. Absolute perfection, really.

The narration of this book makes it easy to read and very easy to follow. Emma is a great character to read about, full of life and spunk. She served the book well with her sparkling personality and intense free spirit. I love her drive and determination, especially how she keeps on keeping on when things seem to not go a certain way. Brian is an amazing friend and so much more. Emma's mom is... well, not exactly the greatest person in the world, but she serves her purpose in the book. As a matter of fact, all of the characters shine in this book serve as small pieces to the puzzle that is this book, clicking together perfectly.

The romance is kind of sudden, yet not really surprising at all. It really heats up the pages afterward, but the love scenes stay very G-rated - so, it's not one of those smutty books you have to hide from the world. Actually, it's quite the opposite... you'll want to share this with most of the world once you're done.

I think the only thing I can say is that the dialogue gets a little lengthy at parts, but besides that.. it's brilliant. It's a great read for all of my Contemporary Romance readers out there. You won't be disappointed. ;)

Blog Tour Guest Post: Courtney Vail

I haven’t told a soul this, ’cause it’s kind of embarrassing, and frankly, quite sad, but the first glimmer of inspiration I got for my novel, Kings & Queens, came from the movie, Drive Me Crazy…yep, the one with Melissa Joan Hart and Adrian Grenier. Didn’t I warn you about the sad?

In that movie, the leads live next door to each other, and something about that scenario seemed cool and interesting to me. And in my mind, I discovered this character Majesty. All I knew was that she was feisty, tomboyish and the manager of her school’s baseball team and the BFF of two guys: Derek and Alec. Although not a direct source of inspiration, it was kind of a Dawson’s Creek thing I guess.

But I’m not a romance writer. I need plot, beyond character conflict. I love suspense and weirdness, like the Dean Koontz, John Saul, Lois Duncan variety, so I wanted to work in something odd and compelling, but had nothing. Well, one night, I dreamt I was running for exercise, yes I do that, crazy I know, and overheard these two guys planning a church massacre and escaped them in this little town. Boom! Exactly what I needed. I found the seedling for my dark plot, as well as the setting for my story.

So, I brainstormed, wrote character sketches, spun out bits of dialogue and jotted a few key points, then just dove in. And the story grew into something totally shocking, unexpected and awesome. Incidentally, Majesty and Derek ended up living on opposite sides of the river in their class-divided town rather than next door to one another. That just worked better.

Sometimes, I’ll be rereading some of my favorite scenes, and thinking, wow, I wrote that? Yeah, I actually WROTE that. Several of Derek’s scenes, especially, are so intense and heartbreaking.

One of my friends was abused as a child and ended up shooting his puppy out of anger, so Derek’s tumultuous childhood was spawned from that awful and very real place. I wanted to explore that and see what a character would do with that past, where he’d go, how he’d ever find peace and love when he kept everyone at a distance with biting remarks, when he didn’t have the guts to trust anyone. Because Derek is so complex and scarred, most of my early readers ended up caring for him the most. And I actually did too. He’s definitely my fave.

I had a blast taking the sparks of inspiration I found and weaving them together to create a wild and twisty read, one that I hope will not only entertain, but also be difficult to put down and forget.

Thanks for reading!

Blog Tour: Book Line Interview with Sharks & Boys

As part of Teen Book Scene's blog tour for Sharks & Boys, author Kristen Tracy has decided to answer her interview questions a little differently -- she's answering by using lines from the book.

Enjoy!!

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What is the easiest way to describe Sharks and Boys to readers?
“We’re sunburned. We’re dehydrated. We’re starving. We’re screwed.”

Where did the inspiration for the story come from?
“Sharks!”

If you could be a super hero, who would you be?
“A torpedo?”

Do you have a favorite food?
“I can’t believe that nobody grabbed any chips. We had, like, eight bags of Doritos.”

Are there any quotes that inspire you?
“Wick started talking about how we seemed to be in each other’s orbits: biology, swim class, twin studies. And I loved that idea. I wanted to think of myself as a moon or maybe a planet being drawn to another moon. Like the path I was on with Wick was more significant than anything on earth; it was celestial.”

Besides writing, what are other things that you enjoy doing?
“I want to try cocaine,” Dale says.

How do you think authors should respond to bad reviews?
“Water enters my ears and I can’t hear anything.”

New This Week!

Before & After: Alissa Grosso

Alissa Grosso’s first novel, Popular, will be published in May 2011 by Flux. At various points in her working life she has been a tavern wench, a term paper writer, a newspaper editor and a children’s librarian. She owns very few garments that aren’t covered with cat or dog hair. She lives in New Jersey.

Read more at www.alissagrosso.com

I feel incredibly behind on just about everything. There are emails I need to read, emails I need to answer and thank you cards I need to write. In fact, even as I am writing this, I feel a little bit guilty about all the other things I should be doing. I have to keep reminding myself that it will all get done.

So, you might wonder what I've been doing that has kept me so busy. I had a great launch party hosted by my local independent bookstore, The Clinton Book Shop. It was a perfect day from start to finish, and my parents did a great job of inviting (literally) everyone they knew. I think I had just recovered from the launch and gotten caught up on everything when BEA week arrived.

Since I live in New Jersey and since Book Expo America is such an awesome event, I try to go every year, but this year was extra special for me because I would be fulfilling a goal I set for myself the first time I attended BEA. When I first attended the event as a librarian a few years back, I decided that one day I wanted to attend as an author signing her own book, and guess what? This year that is exactly what I did. I have to say that the experience lived up to all my expectations. It was perfect!



This year's BEA was extra special for another reason. I am a member of the Class of 2K11 and many of our members were in town for the expo as well as a variety of events we had set up in and around the city. It was great to finally meet all these talented authors. We have all served as each other's cheerleaders and built-in support network through this crazy publication journey. I am so grateful to everyone in the Class of 2K11 for being such cool people and good friends. I had a great time with them. Of course, we tried to pack as many events as we could into a very short span of time, and I'm still feeling a bit exhausted.

So. to sum up the way I feel post-launch there is that overwhelming sense of being way behind on just about every single every day task, a feeling of exhaustion from all the recent events and, of course, a tremendous amount of gratitude to everyone who has been there to help me through this journey and to help me spread the word about my book. I feel so lucky to know so many awesome people. In short, it's a busy, crazy time, but I'm enjoying it!

Reviews For Popular
A Good Addiction
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Meet the clique that rules Fidelity High: Olivia, Zelda, Nordica, and Shelly, each one handpicked by über-popular Hamilton Best. You know you're "in" when you make the guest list for one of Hamilton's parties. And in the thralls of senior year, everyone wants to get noticed by Hamilton.

But Hamilton's elite entourage is coming apart at the seams. Olivia fantasizes about finally having a boyfriend, Zelda dreams of ditching high school, Nordica wants to be alone with her photography, and Shelly's plotting to dethrone Hamilton. Lies and secrets are ripping away the careful ties that have kept them together for years. But Hamilton has the biggest secret of all, one that only her boyfriend Alex knows. If the truth got out, it would shock everyone and destroy Hamilton's fragile world—and she'll do anything to protect her secret and keep her clique together.