BLOG HOP FUN!

It's finally here!
The ROMANCE IS IN THE AIR Blog Hop!
I'm not participating in this one but I definitely want to get the word out on the fun BLOG HOP going on. Over a hundred and fifty blogs are giving away awesome prizes.
Here's the link I Am A Reader Not A Writer and Rachael Anderson so don't forget to drop in and join the fun over the weekend. Have fun!

Winner of My Beautiful Failure

And the winner drawn for ARC My Beautiful Failure is-
hungryforham
Thanks to everyone who entered.
I'll be participating in Romance in the Air giveaway hop starting on February 8th.
Don't forget to join in the fun.

My Beautiful Failure GIVEAWAY!!

Seems like a good time for a giveaway....
Up for grabs is a book I just read and reviewed-
My Beautiful Failure By Janet  R. Young
This ARC was sent to me by Simon and Schuster and I  have their permission to pass it along.

Summary taken from Goodreads-A haunting account of a teen boy who volunteers at a suicide hotline and falls for a troubled caller. Billy is a sophomore in high school, and twice a week, he volunteers at Listeners, a suicide hotline.
Jenney is an “incoming,” a caller, a girl on the brink.
As her life spirals out of control, Jenney’s calls become more desperate, more frequent. Billy, struggling with the deteriorating relationship with his depressed father, is the only one who understands. Through her pain, he sees hope. Through her tears, he feels her heart. And through her despair, he finds love. But is that enough?
GIVAWAY RULES**
1. Please enter contact information in comment section.
2. This giveaway runs from January 14th to February 1st.
A winner will be selected on February 2.
3. You must be 13 years or older to participate.
4. If you are selected as the winner, you will be notified by email. If you do not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be selected.
5. This giveaway is open to U.S. residents.

Book Review -MY BEAUTIFUL FAILURE

MY BEAUTIFUL FAILURE
By Janet R. Young
2012
320 Pages
Summary taken from Goodreads-
A haunting account of a teen boy who volunteers at a suicide hotline and falls for a troubled caller. Billy is a sophomore in high school, and twice a week, he volunteers at Listeners, a suicide hotline.
Jenney is an “incoming,” a caller, a girl on the brink.
As her life spirals out of control, Jenney’s calls become more desperate, more frequent. Billy, struggling with the deteriorating relationship with his depressed father, is the only one who understands. Through her pain, he sees hope. Through her tears, he feels her heart. And through her despair, he finds love. But is that enough?
My Thoughts-
My Beautiful Failure is heartbreaking and haunting. This story doesn't hold back-the issues of depression and suicide are in your face-raw and emotional.
We first met the Morrison family in The Opposite Of Music where the mental breakdown of of Bill Morrison happens. My Beautiful Failure picks up the story about a year later.
Sixteen year old Bill Jr. (Billy) and his family are still recovering from the aftermath of Bill's breakdown.
Billy, the main character is still in care-taking mode and worries endlessly about his dad. When his father, an artist decides to start painting again it drives a wedge between the two of them. The thought of his father failing or worse being unable to handle failure gnaws at Billy constantly.
Billys' best friend Gordon suggests that Billy volunteer at a suicide prevention center to help him focus on something other than his dad and because of his experience dealing with his dad's depression. The job seems perfect for Billy until he goes against the hotline rules and starts to take a personal interest in frequent caller, Jenney.
Billy is my favorite character because he's so hard to love. I completely connected with his fears and worries. He's had to grow up very quickly during the past year, shouldering the responsibility of his father's depression as well as go to school and look after his mother and little sister.
 It tells the story of how the entire family is affected by depression. It's now been about two weeks and the characters are still fresh in my mind along with the emotions I felt after completing this story.
My Beautiful Failure stays with you long after it's finished.
My thanks to Simon and Schuster for sending me this ARC and giving me the opportunity to read and review it.

Book Review-THE GIRL IN THE WALL

THE GIRL IN THE WALL
By Daphne Benedis-Grab
2012
256 Pages
Summary taken from Goodreads-
Ariel's birthday weekend looks to be the event of the season, with a private concert by rock star Hudson Winters on the grounds of her family's east coast estate, and all of Ariel's elite prep school friends in attendance. The only person who's dreading the party is Sera, Ariel's former best friend, whose father is forcing her to go. Sera has been the school pariah since she betrayed Ariel, and she now avoids Ariel and their former friends. Thrown together, Ariel and Sera can agree on one thing: this could be one very long night.
They have no idea just how right they are.
Only moments after the concert begins and the lights go down, thugs open fire on parents and schoolmates alike, in a plot against Ariel's father that quickly spins out of control. As the entire party is taken hostage, the girls are forced apart. Ariel escapes into the hidden tunnels in the family mansion, where she and Sera played as children. Only Sera, who forges an unlikely alliance with Hudson Winters, knows where her friend could be. As the industrial terrorist plot unravels and the death toll climbs, Ariel and Sera must recall the sisterhood that once sustained them as they try to save themselves and each other on the longest night of their lives.
My Thoughts-
When I first saw the cover of The Girl In The Wall I assumed it was a paranormal tale, I was pleasantly surprised that this book is actually part thriller-part romance.
Author Daphne Benedis-Grab keeps the story fresh by playing off  two different points of view-one is Sera and the other is Ariel. Both girls have very different personalities and that keeps the story from lagging or getting boring. Sera and Ariel have a former friendship and a long past in common that we get bits and pieces of as the story unfolds.
The story is intense-filled with unexpected friendships and a couple of violent deaths I didn't see coming. I loved the action and the unexpected twists and turns this tale took me on. 
The only thing that made me scratch my head in confusion was Sera's inability to dial 911 from a cell phone thats' the latest and greatest in technology-HUH??? We all know that every cell phone is capable of that. This detail kinda drove me crazy because it is a major part of the story.
The romance between Sera and Hudson is a cute distraction. The story can easily carry itself without it.
Looking back I wish the story had been a chapter or two longer to flesh out the character of Nico. To me he was the most interesting character and I would have loved more details about him.
The Girl In The Wall was a suspenseful nail biter that had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. I would love to find another title by Daphne Benedis-Grab.
This book was sent to me to read and review by FSB Associates. I will be donating this book to my local Middle School Library.

Book Review-The Disreputable History of Frankie Laundau-Banks

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

By E. Lockhart

2008

342 Pages

Summary taken from Goodreads:

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 14:

Debate Club.

Her father’s “bunny rabbit.”
A mildly geeky girl attending a highly competitive boarding school.
Frankie Landau-Banks at age 15:
A knockout figure.
A sharp tongue.
A chip on her shoulder.
And a gorgeous new senior boyfriend: the supremely goofy, word-obsessed Matthew Livingston.
Frankie Laundau-Banks.
No longer the kind of girl to take “no” for an answer.
Especially when “no” means she’s excluded from her boyfriend’s all-male secret society.
Not when her ex boyfriend shows up in the strangest of places.
Not when she knows she’s smarter than any of them.
When she knows Matthew’s lying to her.
And when there are so many, many pranks to be done.
Frankie Landau-Banks, at age 16:
Possibly a criminal mastermind.
This is the story of how she got that way.
My thoughts:
Have you ever been excluded from a game, locked out of a tree fort or left behind because you were a girl? In elementary school I didn't want to play with dolls, hang on the money bars, or swing. I wanted to run with the boys, catch the football, and shoot the bad guys with my finger gun. Maybe that is why I completely fell in love with this book.
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks is BRILLIANT! The story takes place over the span of two years. We see Frankie go from shy and uncertain to someone who could quite possibly take over the world.
Frankie starts a new school year having gone through some major physical changes over the summer. She immediately gets the attention of popular senior, Matthew.
As their relationship progresses she finds out that Matthew belongs to an all-boy secret society at her boarding school. This secret society-The Loyal Order of the Bassett Hounds has a long history of pulling legendary pranks. Frankie wants to be a part of it but can't simply because she's a girl. But Frankie is not the type of girl to accept no for an answer.
Frankie is impossible not to fall in love with and root for. A main character with brains, beauty and wit quick enough to make your head spin.
I bought this book used from Amazon.com and donated it to my local middle school.

Movie Trailer:BEAUTIFUL CREATURES

This is a movie I'm excited to see-BEAUTIFUL CREATURES
Coming to theaters FEBRUARY 2013
The book is written by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl.
Summary from Goodreads.com
There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that's what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.
Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.
Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.
In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.
Looks like its worth the price of admission in my opinion.
Check out the movie trailer-