The Book Thief & The Revenge of Seven

I will start out by saying I have not reviewed many books and I definitely have not done so in several years so be patient with me as I find my rhythm. 

I have read two books for my winter book challenge so far and am in the middle of my third so I thought it a good time to post some reviews.

The Book Thief  by Markus Zusak
 Category: "Bookish Book"
  5 Out of 5 Stars   

                Set in Nazi Germany between 1939 and 1943 The Book Thief is about a little girl named Liesel Meminger. The story is narrated by Death who is in possession of the journal she wrote about her time between 1939, when she arrived to live with her foster parents and, 1943 when everything changed. Death as a narrator, to me, is brilliant. It gives a fresh perspective to what could otherwise be considered an over done genre. I thought it was beautiful, poignant, heartbreaking, and soul shattering. I cried, a lot, sobbing can not see through them tears,  and it has taken me several days to process the story and understand how I feel about it. It is rare for me to find a book that invokes this kind of response and as such I feel this book will forever hold a special place in my heart. I think it is a treasure and everyone should read it at least once. 

The Revenge of Seven by Pittacus Lore
Category: "Freebie" 
5 out of 5 Stars 

They caught Number One in Malaysia.

Number Two in England.

Number Three in Kenya.

And Number Eight in Florida.

They killed them all.

I am Number Seven.

I will make them pay. 

               This is the fifth book in one of my favorite series. The Lorien Legacies series is about a group of aliens, who look just like us; hiding on Earth after their home planet was ravaged and taken over by the Mogadorians.  The group is called The Garde, they all have special powers and in this installment are trying to team up to fight the Mogs that are hunting them and trying to take over Earth and destroy it too. There were originally ten of them sent here and only 6 remain. Can they defeat the evil Mogs and return home to rebuild their planet or will Setrakas Ra kill them all in the end.

  A little blurb about the book:

The worst was supposed to be over. We were reunited after a decade apart. We were discovering the truth of our past. We were training and getting stronger every day. We were even happy...
We never imagined the Mogodorians could turn one of our own against us. We were fools for trusting Five. And now Eight is lost forever. I would do anything to bring him back, but that's impossible. Instead, I will do whatever it takes to destroy every last one of them.
I've spent my entire life hiding from them, and they've stolen everything away from me. But that stops now. We're going to take the battle to them. We have a new ally who knows their weaknesses. And I finally have the power to fight back.

This series is totally different from what I normally read but I love it none the less. The first book is I am Number Four, which was made into a movie with Alex Pettyfer.  I enjoyed this book and it was a quick read for me. I can’t wait for the final book to come out next year!!

Hope you enjoy and perhaps try out these books!

Winter Book Challenge

As I am an avid reader a good friend of mine suggested we do a book challenge together! I am very excited to participate in this Winter book Challenge by Semi-Charmed Kind of Life

The rules are simple and as follows:

 General rules:

• The challenge will run from November 1, 2014, to February 28, 2015. No books that are started before 12 a.m. on November 1 or finished after 11:59 p.m. on February 28 will count.
• Each book must be at least 200 pages long. Audiobooks are fine, as long as the print versions meet the page requirements. Large-print books are also acceptable, as long as the regular-print version exceeds 200 pages in length.
• A book can only be used for one category, and each category can only be completed once. If you want to switch the category of a book during a later check-in, that's fine, just be sure to account for that in your point total.
• Rereads can be used for a maximum of three books in the challenge. This rule is meant to encourage you to try new books while still allowing you to revisit books from your childhood or young adulthood that you might get more out of now. Please reread the entire book within the timeframe of the challenge in order to count it; no simply finishing old books or partial rereads (unless the category explicitly states otherwise, of course)!
• The highest possible total is 200 points, and the first five people who finish the challenge will be invited to contribute a category for the next challenge. Good luck!

This is my preliminary list so far!

 5 points: Freebie! —   The Revenge of Seven - Pittacus Lore (the final book in one of my favorite series) 
10 points: Read a book written by an author who has published at least 10 books. --- The Wedding - Nicholas Sparks 

10 points: Read a book of short stories.  --- Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman 
10 points: Read a book with a food in the title. --- The Ice Cream Girls - Dorthory Koomson 
15 points: Read the first book in a series that is new to you. — The Surgeon - Tess Gerritsen (The Rizzoli and Isles Series) 
15 points: Read a book that was originally written in a language that is not your native language. — The Romance of Tristan and Iseult - Joseph Bedier (originally written in French) 
15 points: Read a book written by a local author. — Hourglass - Myra McEntire (she lives in Nashville, TN)
20 points: Read a "bookish book." — The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
20 points: Read a book with a direction in the title. — Wicked; The life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West - Gregory Maguire 
25 points: Read a book from a genre you don't usually read. — Belle; The Slave Daughter and the Lord Chief Justice - Paula Byrne (historical fiction)
25 points: Read a book with a song lyric in the title. — I Got You, Babe - Jane Graves (song by Sonny & Cher) 
30 points: Read two books with a different meal in each title. — Lunch in Paris -Elizabeth Bard & 

Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman -  Sam Wasson

I will try to post some reviews!