Liebster Blog Award

I've been tagged for the Liebster Blog Award by two blogs, 2 B Read and Vivalabooks.  Since I've been tagged by two, I'll give 11 facts, tag 11 people, and then I'll answer both bloggers' questions.

The Rules:

1. Post 11 facts about yourself.

2. Answer the 11 questions that the blogger gives you.

3. Tag 11 other bloggers that have under 200 followers.

4. Tell these bloggers that you tagged them.

11 Facts About Me:

1. When I was in kindergarten, my favorite book was The Little Engine That Could. 

2. I have broken my two front teeth.  I broke one of them in third grade and had it fixed, and in fourth grade I broke both of them.

3. I have never been able to successfully dive, despite the several years when it was taught at swimming lessons.

4. When I was thirteen, I placed third in the county spelling bee.

5. When I was in eighth grade, I was the Cowardly Lion in my school's performance of The Wizard of Oz.

6. I do not like cheese alone, but I love pizza and cheese crackers.

7. My first plane ride was this year when I went to Florida for a Disney trip for school.

8. I love heights.

9. I sing, dance, and play the viola.

10. I am afraid to do a somersault, but I like going on upside-down roller coasters.

11. I am currently writing a contemporary YA book, and I hope to get it published someday.

Blogs I've Tagged:
The Screaming Nitpicker
The Book Slayer
Eyes on the Pages
Book-A-Holic
Ensconced in YA
Snark and Ramble
Adventures in YA Fiction
busybookbee
Getting Lost in Words
Gobs and Gobs of Books
Books Worth Remembering 

Answers to Questions from 2 B Read:

1. What do you love most about blogging?

I love writing reviews and getting comments because I realize that some people are actually reading what I'm writing.  I also enjoy reading reviews on other people's blogs.  I participate in one meme (Waiting on Wednesday).  I really like this meme, despite the fact that it makes my TBR list even longer.

2. What is your favorite book cover?

My favorite book cover is Breaking Beautiful by Jennifer Shaw Wolf.  I really love the colors, and the scene shown.  

3. Dust jacket or no?

If I'm reading a hardcover book, I never take off the dust jacket.

4. Who's your favorite author?

My favorite contemporary YA author is probably Sarah Dessen.  My favorite YA paranormal author is Cassandra Clare or Richelle Mead.

5. What's a song you find goes perfectly with a book?  Which book?
I really had to think about this one because I didn't really know what song would go with a book.  I'm going to say that Someone Like You by Adele goes with When You Were Mine by Rebecca Serle.  In both the song and the book, the guy has left the girl to be with another girl.

6. Talking, texting, or video chatting?

I usually talk on the phone to people from my family.  When it's friends, I usually text, but I used to talk on the phone more.

7. Do you pre-plan your blog posts?

I don't usually pre-plan.  During school, I always made my WOW posts ahead of time so they would be ready for Wednesday.  Other than that, I usually write a review a day or two after I finish a book, and I publish the post right after I write it.

8. Favorite color and why?

My favorite color is pink.  I don't really know why.  I guess I just like it because I think it's a pretty color.

9. Do you accept ARCs?  If so, what's your favorite thing about that?

I have gotten a few ARCs through Netgalley.  I like getting to read a book before it is actually on the shelves.  I like posting a review so people can get an idea of what the book will be like before they actually read it.

10. Do you have a Goodreads account?  If so, what's the best thing about that program through your eyes?

I do have a Goodreads account.  I had it before I actually started blogging.  The best thing about the program in the "to-read" shelf.  I have so many books I want to read, and I would probably forget about some of them if I didn't have Goodreads.  I also find many new books to read through Goodreads as well.

11. What's your favorite number?  Does it have anything to do with a book?
I don't really have a favorite number.

Answers to Questions from Vivalabooks:

1. How long have you been blogging?

I started blogging on March 24th this year.

2. Why did you start blogging?
I started blogging because I enjoyed reading reviews on book blogs.  I decided I wanted a book blog of my own so I could write about the books I loved and have people read what I was writing about them.
3. Who is your favorite author?
I mentioned this in the first set of questions.  My favorite YA contemporary author is Sarah Dessen, and my favorite YA paranormal authors are Cassandra Clare and Richelle Mead.
4. What is your favorite book?
I love so many books that it's hard to choose just one, but I'd say my favorite book is Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen.
5. Do you have any ARCs right now?  If so, what?
I have an eARC from NetGalley of Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry.  I have already read it, and I loved it.
6. What are you currently reading?
I just finished Keep Holding On by Susane Colasanti.  The next book I plan on reading is Don't Breathe a Word by Holly Cupala.
7. How many books are in your TBR pile?
I currently have four library books in my TBR pile.
8. If you could be a book character for a day, who would you be?  Why?
I would be Hermione from the Harry Potter series.  I would want to be her because I think it would be really fun to go to Hogwarts and learn all the magic.
9. What is your favorite place to read?  Why?
I like to read in my bedroom or in my family room.  I like to read in those places because there are comfortable spots to read there.
10. Do you prefer Australian and British accents?
I have no idea what an Australian accent sounds like, but I like British accents.  Also, I can do a cockney accent (lower class British), and it is really fun to talk (or sing) in cockney.

Questions for Those I've Tagged:
1. What is your favorite thing about book blogging?
2. What book are your currently reading?
3. What are five books you want to read this summer?
4. How long have you been blogging?
5. Do you participate in any memes?  If so, which ones?
6. Who is your favorite author?
7. Do you prefer series or stand-alone books?
8. Do you have a Goodreads account?
9. Have you gotten any ARCs since you've started blogging?
10. What upcoming book are you looking forward to the most?
11. Do you like to write to as well, or do you only like to read?

 

Review: Black Dawn by Rachel Caine

Ever since the draug--mysterious creatures that prey on vampires--took over Morganville, the lives of student Claire Danvers and her friends have been thrown into turmoil. Most of the town's residents have evacuated, but Claire, Shane, Eve and Michael have chosen to stay and fight.Using the city's water system to spread, the draug have rapidly multiplied. Things in Morganville look grim, especially since vampire Amelie--the town founder--has been infected by the master draug's bite. Now, if Claire and her friends don't figure out how to cure Amelie and defeat the draug, it looks like Morganville will become little more than a ghost town...

My Review:

I have read and enjoyed the first eleven Morganville Vampire books, and this book was no different.  It had new developments for the characters, good dialogue and humor, and plenty of action in the battle against the enemy (in this case, the draug).  In Black Dawn, many new POVs were added.  I got to be in the heads of Claire, Shane, Eve, Michael, Oliver, Hannah, and Naomi.  I might have missed one, but I think I got them all.  

POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD

There are some new developments in the characters relationships with Black Dawn.  Michael and Eve are experiencing problems because he bit her without permission after the draug attacked him.  She is wary of him, and he feels horrible that he did that to her.  They luckily patch up their relationship by the end of the book, and they get married in the Epilogue.  Shane has some problems after he gets caught by the draug.  They show him his perfect future life, and he gets upset because he thinks he will never have it.  Claire convinces him that he doesn't need perfect.  I have never really liked Monica, but there is one scene with her that Shane narrates that made me feel sorry for her.  There is a character death in here.  I won't say who it is, but it is a character I actually liked.

There is good action in here between the draug and the Morganville humans and vampires.  The draug are scary creatures, and I would not want to fight them.  When a human is trapped by the draug, they start to dream.  These dreams are either really good dreams or nightmares.  The dreams often make them confused about dreams vs. reality.  This is what happens to Shane in Black Dawn.  If a vampire is trapped by the draug, it will feel like he or she is being eaten alive.  Magnus is the master draug, and Claire can somehow see him.  In this book, they discover why she can see him.  The final battle between Magnus and the others is well-written.  

If you are a Morganville Vampires fan, read this book.  If you haven't read the series but like YA paranormal, start reading Glass Houses.

Katie 

There was s 

Waiting on Wednesday #13: Stealing Parker

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine.

 My pick for this week is:



Parker Shelton pretty much has the perfect life. She’s on her way to becoming valedictorian at Hundred Oaks High, she’s made the all-star softball team, and she has plenty of friends. Then her mother’s scandal rocks their small town and suddenly no one will talk to her.

Now Parker wants a new life.

So she quits softball. Drops twenty pounds. And she figures why kiss one guy when she can kiss three? Or four. Why limit herself to high school boys when the majorly cute new baseball coach seems especially flirty?

But how far is too far before she loses herself completely?

Companion to CATCHING JORDAN.
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I loved Catching Jordan, so I can't wait for Stealing Parker.  I hope it is as good as her first book.  I will pick this up once it releases on October 1st.



What are you Waiting On this Wednesday?

Katie