Review: 13 Little Blue Envelopes - Maureen Johnson

Goodreads synopsis:

When Ginny receives thirteen little blue envelopes and instructions to buy a plane ticket to London, she knows something exciting is going to happen. What Ginny doesn't know is that she will have the adventure of her life and it will change her in more ways than one. Life and love are waiting for her across the Atlantic, and the thirteen little blue envelopes are the key to finding them in this funny, romantic, heartbreaking novel.

Review:

’13 Little Blue Envelopes’ follows the journey of Ginny, as she globe-trots her way around the world according to the instructions, left in a series of 13 letters, by her deceased aunt.  Her travelling adventure takes Ginny on a trip of self-discovery, opening her eyes to new experiences, emotions and people.  It’s also an opportunity for her to let her hair down for once and just have fun!

This wasn’t a stand-out book but I still enjoyed it.  I’m not a traveller myself so I had the pleasure of living vicariously through Ginny instead!  It was a quick read (I finished it in one evening) and would probably appeal to a slightly younger teen audience.  I liked the way that by the end of the book Ginny had become more self-assured and confident (but I reckon she was pretty confident to start with to go gallavanting around Europe on her own).  It did surprise me a little bit that Ginny’s mother would let her go alone, without any idea of where she was going to end up, but maybe that's just me.

There are certain aspects of the story that I would have liked to have seen developed further and a bit like Ginny's journey I felt it was all rather a whirlwind at time, skimming the surface without digging deeper into the story itself.  However, I loved reading about all the places she visited...I only wish I was as brave as her!

I haven’t read anything by Maureen Johnson before but I'm now interested enough to try some of her other books now.  I've heard that 'Girl at Sea' is very good and of course there's going to be a follow-up to '13 Little Blue Envelopes', so I shall be looking out for that too.

Waiting on Wednesday #3: Steel - Carrie Vaughn

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights eagerly awaited upcoming releases.  Head on over there to take part or to check out all the other fabulous books that people are looking forward to reading! 

My choice this week is a book that looks amazingly good.  I have another, 'Voices of Dragons' by Carrie Vaughn, on my wishlist too.  They both sound sensational. 

Steel by Carrie Vaughn
Published March 1st 2011 
HarperTeen

When Jill, a competitive high school fencer, goes with her family on vacation to the Bahamas, she is magically transported to an early eighteenth century pirate ship in the middle of the ocean.

I love pirate stories!  I love the gorgeous front cover!  This just sounds so intriguing that it's riding high on my wishlist at the moment. 

Review: I Am Number Four - Pittacus Lore

Goodreads synopsis:
Nine of us came here. We look like you. We talk like you. We live among you. But we are not you. We can do things you dream of doing. We have powers you dream of having. We are stronger and faster than anything you have ever seen. We are the superheroes you worship in movies and comic books—but we are real.

Our plan was to grow, and train, and become strong, and become one, and fight them. But they found us and started hunting us first. Now all of us are running. Spending our lives in shadows, in places where no one would look, blending in. we have lived among you without you knowing.

But they know.

They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They killed them all.

I am Number Four.

I am next.

Review:

When I first heard about this book it was described as basically being a story about an alien invasion.  If that’s enough to put you off wanting to read ‘I Am Number Four’, then don’t let it because this book is about so much more.  It’s about being the newcomer in a small town and trying to fit in, it’s about the bond between fathers and sons, it’s about those pangs of first love and it’s about growing-up and discovering who you are and who you want to be.

John Smith is not your average teenager.  He's actually an alien from the planet Lorien, sent to earth, along with eight others, to be protected against attack from the evil Mogadorians.  The Mogadorians (who are crazy scary!) are intent on tracking down the nine escapees and killing them, although they can only be killed in the correct order.  3 have been dealt with already and number four (John) is next.

This is not your typical sci-fi fare.  'I Am Number Four' makes a cracking good read, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  The first half of the book is about introducing the characters and developing the emotional attachment between them and the reader.  The second half picks up the pace nicely and I found myself turning pages ever more rapidly to find out what was going to happen next.  I was rooting for John and his friends and I think my knuckles turned white from gripping the book so tightly!  The story ends leaving you wanting more, which is why 'The Power of Six' (book 2 in the Lorien Legacy) has swiftly shot to the top of my wishlist. 

I can easily see why this has already been optioned for a major movie adaptation.  I can't wait to see who they're going to cast as John.  The story just leaps off the page and you can see it clearly happening right in front of your eyes.  I would heartily recommend this book to anyone.  I loved it!

Book Blogger Hop (September 24 - 27)

I am taking part in Friday's Book Blogger Hop, which is hosted by 
Crazy for Books

If you've just stumbled upon me via the hop, then welcome to my blog. I hope you find something that interests you!  The hop is a great opportunity to visit lots of new blogs and meet like-minded book lovers from around the world.  I love taking part :)

I'm going to go and explore some of the other links over the weekend.  If you'd like to join in the fun too, then head on over to Crazy for Books, read the rules, post your own link and away you go :)

The question this week for the book hop is from:-

Elizabeth at Silver's Reviews.

When you write reviews, do you write them as you are reading or wait until you have read the entire book?

I always wait until I have read the entire book before writing my reviews.  Mainly because sometimes when I start a book, I might find it a little slow or can't really get into it properly, but there nearly always comes a turning point in the book where it either becomes magical and amazing or it just doesn't get any better.  I like to give it a fair chance before writing any thoughts down about it.  Once or twice I've completely changed my mind about a book!  I do need to write my reviews pretty soon after finishing the book though because I nearly always forget some key details otherwise. 

Waiting on Wednesday #2: Anna and the French Kiss - Stephanie Perkins

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights eagerly awaited upcoming releases.  Head on over there to take part or to check out all the other fabulous books that people are looking forward to reading! 

My choice this week is a book that I have been dying (and I mean dying!) to read for ages and ages.  I've been very jealous of the review copies that have been landing in everyone's mailboxes lately!

 

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Published December 2nd 2010 
Dutton

Anna was looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. So she's less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris — until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all . . . including a serious girlfriend.

But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss? Stephanie Perkins keeps the romantic tension crackling and the attraction high in a debut guaranteed to make toes tingle and hearts melt.

I've posted about this book before but I am literally on tenterhooks waiting for this to be released.  I'm an avid follower of Stephanie Perkins's blog and I've been hearing about this for so long that I just want it in my possession now and in pride of place on my bookshelf :)

Bath Festival of Children's Literature 2010

The Bath Festival of Children's Literature has been an annual event for the last few years.  This year it's running from Friday 24th September - Sunday 3rd October.  The festival brochure dropped through my letterbox yesterday and look what I saw listed!

Maggie Stiefvater and Jennifer Lynn Barnes (K18)

Organisation: Bath Festival of Children's Literature

Date: Sunday 3 October, 6-7pm

Price: £5.00

Venue: Guildhall, High Street, Bath, BA1 5AW

If you’re Team Jacob, this is the event for you! Join Maggie Stiefvater, the author of Shiver and Linger, and Jennifer Lynn Barnes, the author of Raised by Wolves, as they discuss the irresistible appeal of werewolves.

Hear about how they came to write their haunting, breathtaking and totally original supernatural love stories.

If that wasn't enough to make you feel giddy, then Cornelia Funke is also appearing on the same day to talk about her new book, 'Reckless'.
                                           I mean what a line-up!

And of course I want to go desperately now because it sounds amazing!