City of Bones by Cassandra Clare REVIEW

City of Bones
Author: Cassandra Clare 
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: 2007 


     I had been planning to start The Mortal Instruments series for a while now, and I have finally gotten to reading and finishing the first book. I began The Infernal Devices series last year and have yet to read Clockwork Princess, but I finished the other two fairly quickly and fell in love with the world that the books brought me to. So, after reading the series that precedes this one, I felt it necessary to one day read City of Bones. The day has come! I have very little complaints and very many words of praise so lets begin with the review.

     To begin with the cover art - it's awesome. I bought my copy of the book from Barnes & Noble and got the paperback version and although I wish I had gotten the hardcover (because my copy got a little beat up) I am still able to enjoy the very captivating cover. It gives you glimpses of the setting and one of our main characters but without blatantly revealing it all - it sparks the imagination just enough. It's a pretty thick book, I will say, and I found it hard to hold while reading sometimes because it wasn't sturdy enough to hold regularly, but it wasn't "bendy" enough to fold over in the usual "paperback book fashion." But oh well, enough about aesthetics, on with the summary/review.

     City of Bones introduces us to the world of Shadowhunters - a world I admittedly would love to be a part of. In this book we meet Clarissa "Clary" Fray, who is all of a sudden propelled into this world after coming across Jace Wayland, Isabelle Lightwood, and Alec Lightwood one night in New York City. We learn, as the story goes on that this encounter is not a simple coincidence, but it must've been fate. For, Clary plays a much bigger role in the world of these three young Shadowhunters than she could have ever imagined. I don't want to give much away, and the summary that Cassandra Clare herself wanted to reveal can be found on/in any copy of the book. But let me just say this is the kind of book where I just want to fly through the rest of the series right away and take in all of the information about this storyline as I can. The book offers readers romance, suspense, action, moments where you'll want to be crying and other where you'll be laughing aloud. It truly captivated me and once I got to the third part of the book I found myself putting off reading any further because I wasn't quite ready to finish the story. It sounds silly, but this is definitely one of the books that you will read and get invested in. And it will certainly be a tough time sitting in the movie theaters come August 23 if the movie ruins any parts of this beautifully written piece of literature because there is so much that I feel could be left out even though to me, and probably to many other readers, it's important.

     I fell completely in love with Jace Waylan, one of our leading males, while reading this book. And the plot twists with his character's story line left me speechless and wanting more. Although I know the true star of this first book is Clary, Jace just tugged on my heartstrings. But the great thing about this book is that every character stands out - no matter how small. And even chapters ahead I can remember their names and their roles in the events leading up to the current story. That is always important to me when reading a book because I hate having to flip back all of the time to refresh my own memory so that what I am currently reading makes sense. Clare does a good job of writing in a memorable way and really grabbing your attention. She makes her characters understandable but the text isn't so simple that it feels childish or boring at any point. She also did a good job of leaving us with a resolution while leaving some things left unsaid. So, while there was no big cliffhanger & I'm not angry because I feel like I got jipped once I got to the end, I still am so excited just to find out what happens next. I couldn't even bring myself to read the first small portion of Book Two that is included in the back of my copy because I knew if I did read it I would have to go out right away and grab City of Ashes even though I have three books at home waiting to be read next.

     You can probably tell how much I enjoyed this book by my rambling on in the previous paragraphs,  but the bottom line is: this book is a super enjoyable read and really gets you excited about everything that's in it. I highly recommend reading it - especially before the movie comes out! If you have any specific questions or a question about something I didn't address in this post, feel free to ask and I'll be sure to get back to you! If you've been wondering about this book or if you've been searching for a new book to read, I hope this helped!



                               Sincerely,

         Spenser Lee & Simply Lovely Lit

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl REVIEW

Beautiful Creatures 
Author: Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl 
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company 
Publication Date: 2009 


     I just finished this book two days ago and proceeded to watch the movie this afternoon. I liked the book while reading it, and I wasn't completely in love with it after finishing it. But after seeing the movie I appreciate the book so much more because the movie, quite frankly, wasn't that good at all. It didn't make much sense and eliminated/twisted too many aspects of the plot and characters that really ruined it for me. But let's talk less about the film version and more about the novel itself. 

     So, the cover was interesting for me. Since I read the book after the movie had already come out, the copy I purchased had the actors from the motion picture on the cover (as shown to the left). So, this gave me a visual for the characters already which I didn't mind because the ones that worked in my head were kept and those that conflicted were changed around. I bought the paperback copy, so there was no beautiful hard cover underneath. But, I will say I enjoy the cover art, the font of the text, and the color scheme (as nerdy as that sounds). 

     Now, let's get down to the nitty-gritty: the text itself. It's an enjoyable book; I don't regret reading it at all. I moved through it at a fairly moderate pace and towards the last half to quarter of the book I was really into it. I really loved the relationship between the two main characters (Ethan and Lena). It was relatable, and not overwhelmingly "teen-ish." I also really loved the development of the relationships between these main characters and the adult characters in the book like Macon, Amma, and Marian. But there is something that I must admit I did not like about the book: the ending. I feel like it was an easy way out, just a way to develop a transition into a sequel. I felt like it wasn't real enough for me to believe, even in the world the story creates. I have to be honest and say that, unfortunately, I probably won't go on to read the other books in the series (or at least not any time soon since I have a bunch of other books on my list that I'm actually dying to read). Usually I finish a book and cannot stop thinking about it; I daydream about what happens next, I picture myself in the book and wondering who I'd be most likely to fulfill the role of, I count down the days until I can pre-order the next book in the series if there is one. But, with this book I didn't really have much of a reaction at the end. So, while it was a pleasure to read, my heart doesn't continue to live in Gatlin with Lena and Ethan even after I've put the book down. 

     So, to help you all out in deciding if you'd want to read this book, here's a short summary. The story is about two teenagers, Lena and Ethan, who meet and instantly connect when Lena moves to Ethan's hometown of Gatlin, South Carolina. The two are entwined by destiny, but a circumstance in Lena's life threatens this relationship. Ethan learns that Lena is quite different from your average 15 year old and her 16th birthday, looming in the near future, could tear them apart. I don't want to reveal much more because the big parts of the story I am leaving out are part of what makes it more interesting and I don't want to be "that guy" that spoils the exciting and unique parts. 

    As you can see, this isn't my most enthusiastic review but, still, here's the bottom line:  I do recommend this book. It's a good one and was well though out. But I feel like the end wasn't what it should've been or could've been to keep me engaged as a reader. Maybe one day I'll pick up the sequel, "Beautiful Darkness," and continue on with this series but for now it's on to some Cassandra Clare books for me! 

     if you have any specific questions or a question about something I didn't address in this post, feel free to ask and I'll be sure to get back to you! If you've been wondering about this book or if you've been searching for a new book to read, I hope this helped! 


                    

                                            Sincerely, 

                         Spenser Lee & Simply Lovely Lit 

Too Many Books...? Never.

     As I moved back into school on Friday I realized I needed to send home some things that I don't currently need in my room that would become a nuisance when packing to move out at the end of the semester. Besides clothes that I don't really wear, I basically sent home bags upon bags of books. I've gotten the opportunity to collect so many books between classes and library sales and whatnot that a whole shelf in my closet was so overly cluttered. My bedroom at home has only two shelves in it, so the floors are scattered with lopsided towers of novels and plays. Now, some people might think to donate their books when they had that many, or maybe they would move them into another room to put on separate bookshelves, but not me. I will not rest until I have my own home with my fantasy bookshelves/library. I can't be the only book lover that dreams up their own personal, beautiful, majestic library in their home. I just stalk websites with pictures of such libraries like it's my job, and I figured I would share some fabulous pictures with you all.

     Now, if I could just own a library, or live in one, I totally would. But a home library like this is the nest best thing. I want to have all of the books I have collected my whole life so that my whole family would be able to enjoy the books at all ages. It's a total dork fantasy of mine, but one I think about every time I add another book to the piles. I really hope I am able to make reading time before bed almost every night this semester so I can enjoy a few books for fun since I was unfortunately unable to read ANY last semester. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare is next and then hopefully the books following it in the Mortal Instruments series as well as the books coming out this year that have been on my "To Read" list for almost a year now! 

     If you have any other cool pictures you've found of amazing home libraries feel free to share! If you have a question about any books or anything, let me know! Hope you enjoyed!

                                        Sincerely, 

                    Spenser Lee & Simply Lovely Lit

The Selection by Kiera Cass REVIEW

The Selection
Author: Kiera Cass
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: 2012


     I am sitting down to write this review minutes after putting down this book having finished reading it. I have so many emotions about this story right now, but all I think is "why do I have to wait three long months to finish this story that I got so wrapped up in!?" I started this book two weeks ago, and put it down until this past Wednesday, and since then I couldn't put it down. It is now 2:30 am, but I need to get all my thoughts out now since I am so pleased with the story and already on edge to find out what happens next. 

     So, as always, we start by looking over the cover. This one gets the seal of approval from me. Both the sleeve and hard covers are pretty to me. The image of our leading lady, or at least a model that resembles her physically, is posed on the cover in a stunning ball gown surrounded by mirrors capturing all of her different angles. It captures the eye, and may even help to sell the book, as Cass mentions in her "Acknowledgments" section in the back of the book. The hard cover of the book is a light blue with silver crown imprinted on it. It's simple, but I prefer when a book's hard cover has a small emblem that is representative of the story printed on it versus a plain cover of a solid color and not much else going on. 

     But enough with aesthetics, lets get to the even better part: the plot and story itself. At first I wasn't completely captured by the book, but, let me tell you, it didn't take very long for me to get hooked. By the time I was a few chapters in I wondered about what was going to happen next and had a pure desire to keep on reading. For me, the story was a imaginative way to envision the future, a story that allowed me to relate to the main character (who is a young girl fighting for her individuality while dealing with realistic teenage-girl-things), a touching romance (that isn't even completed in the first book!! cliff hanger warning!), a more behind-the-scenes experience to a show like The Bachelor, and a book that even offered me a few Hunger Games-esque elements that kept me very satisfied. I may be rambling, but I feel like this book had so much to offer that I always seem to enjoy while reading. And, even though I am a teeny bit frustrated that I can't just continue reading about America Singer and The Selection, I am satisfied with the fact that The Elite (Book #2) is coming out in April, 2013, so I don't have to wait too long like I have had to in the past while waiting for sequels. 

     Instead of raving about my own connections to the book and the specific things I love, let me give you a short plot summary if you have no idea what the book is about. The story takes place in the future, in the country of Illéa, which stands in place of the United States of America. Society in this time and place is divided into a very strict caste system that categorizes people by wealth and occupation. Our leading lady, America Singer, appropriately named, is a Five which makes her an artist/musician. As a way to give commoners hope and the chance of drastically improving their family's caste, the royal family holds a Selection for the future princesses of Illéa, by having girls from all over the country enter a competition to win the affection of the prince who is approaching an age to be married at. In the book, a Selection is about to take place and America is eligible. If she chooses to enter and gets selected, that could be hope and happiness for her already-struggling family. But, this choice could also mean the loss of the live she genuinely dreams of for herself. I'll go no further in describing this book right now though, to make sure I don't include any spoilers. 

     Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I fell in love with the characters and the world they live in, I fell in love with the plot, and I cannot wait to read The Elite and find out what happens next. Kiera Cass did a fabulous job with this book, in my opinion, and I encourage everybody to go buy this book or take it out at their local library. I certainly think it is worth the read, and I most definitely think it will be worth waiting for the sequel to come out. But I can't be certain until April! It's already set to be pre-ordered in my Barnes & Noble cart. 

     Bottom line: this book is a great read and extremely captivating, and I highly recommend giving it a shot. If you have any specific questions or a question about something I didn't address in this post, feel free to ask and I'll be sure to get back to you! If you've been wondering about this book or if you've been searching for a new book to read, I hope this helped!



                                  Sincerely, 

                Spenser Lee & Simply Lovely Lit

My "To Read" List

      A new year means new books! There are quite a few books that should be coming out in 2013 that I am so looking forward to buying and reading. In the same fashion as my last post, I am going to just tell you guys which books I am personally looking at just in case you see any titles or authors you have any interest in.
      The first book I plan to read in 2013 is The Selection  by Kiera Cass. I bought this book a while ago and never got around to reading it, so I plan to finish it soon. The next book I bought and plan to read is City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. I had been meaning to start reading the Mortal Instruments series since I have already read the books in the Infernal Devices series that have been published. But, since the movie version of City of Bones is meant to come out this summer, I want to be sure I've read the book first so I can see the movie after I have already established my own concept of the story.
      I keep a bookmark that is really just an index card with books written on it. Every time I finish a book that has a sequel, or other books in the series that are yet to be published, I write it down so I can have a running list and not forget. This is what my list looks like so far:

1. The Kill Order by James Dashner (which came out in August, I'm just waiting to purchase it until I finish the other two books I mentioned)
2. Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare (the third book in the Infernal Devices series, which was said to be expected in March of this year)
3. Divergent #3 (Untitled) by Veronica Roth (I cannot wait to find out the title of the third book and when to be expecting it for sure, although for now it is said to be expected in the fall)
4. Requiem by Lauren Oliver (the third book in the Delirium series, which is supposed to be published in March of this year as well)
5. Tempest #3 by Tracy Deebs (the third book in the Tempest series, that I am unsure about enjoying, but I feel that I need to finish the plot for my own curiosity - it's supposedly coming out this summer)
6. Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers (the next book in the His Fair Assassin series, expected to come out on April 2)
7. Of Triton by Anna Banks (the sequel of Of Poseidon, which I just read, which is said to hit stores on May 28)


     So that'd my "To Read" list, and I hope that you found a few books you may want to add to your own "To Read" list, too! If you had questions about publications dates I hope I was able to clear some of that up for you! If you have any questions remaining, feel free to ask!


                             Sincerely,

                Spenser Lee & Simply Lovely Lit

Beloved Books of 2012

      So, last year I had plenty of time, it seemed, to be reading a book every day. When one was finished, I already had one in my room waiting for me to pick up next. Then school started and I experienced my first semester of college. I was busier than I thought I would be, I was less of a loner than I thought I would be, and I definitely went to bed & woke up later than I thought I would. With all of those things working together, I didn't have even a fraction of the reading time I had available in the beginning of the year. But, I read every day for the majority of 2012, and I discovered and enjoyed many books. Hopefully in 2013 I will be able to make more time for leisure reading at school, but this semester I may have much more work to do. Regardless, I will make the effort and post reviews as often as I can to keep the promise of writing in this blog to myself. But, anyway, the point of this post is to share with you the books I did have the pleasure of reading in 2012 (I kept a list in one of my notebooks). Here they are: 

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
2. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
3. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
4. Legend by Marie Lu
5. Divergent by Veronica Roth
6. The Maze Runner by James Dashner
7. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
8. The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
9. The Death Cure by James Dashner
10. Nobody's Princess by Esther Friesner
11. Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs
12. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
13. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
14. Insurgent by Veronica Roth 
15. Delirium by Lauren Oliver
16. Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
17. Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers
18. Tempest Unleashed by Tracy Deebs
19. Tigerlily by Jodi Lynn Anderson 
20. Of Poseidon by Anna Banks

     Since I know how busy I will most likely be, my goal is to read just as much as I did last year instead of more, because I was reading a lot. But, if I can read more, then I will definitely be happy and make it a yearly challenge. I started this blog around the time I read Grave Mercy, so I had already passed the point in time where all of these books were fresh in my mind enough for me to feel like I could give an optimal review. But, I hope to re-open some of them to remind myself of the details so I can review some. If one of these books sounds interesting to you, or you want my honest opinion of it, I'd be more than happy to specifically review that book next. 


     I hope that if you were searching for a book to read next that this list helped you find a few to take out at the library or buy for your own collection! If you have any specific questions let me know! 



                  Sincerely, 

        Spenser Lee & Simply Lovely Lit 

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson REVIEW

Tiger Lily
Author: Jodi Lynn Anderson
Publisher: Harper Teen 
Publication Date: 2012 


    I read Tiger Lily over the summer, and since then I have filled my brain with a college semster's worth of knowledge and hopefully not forgotten enough to mar the value of this review. If I falter on the plot or details, I can assure you that the one thing I know for certain is that I absolutely loved this book. 

    As always, beginning with the cover, it's pretty cool. At first glance you may think it is an actual tiger lily, the flower, but it's actually a girl in a fiery gown curved in just a way that the strips of fabric fan out like petals. The actual hard cover is simply orange with a black binding over the spine - I'm not usually a fan of the orange-and-black theme unless its Halloween, but I guess it goes with the motif of the flower. 

    Now, on to the story. This review may be short, but it'll be sweet. This story tells the tale of Neverland and Tiger Lily pre-Pan (as in Peter). I have loved the story of Peter Pan since I was little, I even had a crush on the cartoon version (not really sure how that happens). When you open up the front cover of the book it says, "Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair..." So I had to hear about this romance that had never crossed my mind as a possibility, and I am very happy I did. Major props to Jodi Lynn Anderson, because in my opinion, it takes a lot of creativity and guts to create a story that thrives off of the existence of an already-successful one. I think this for two reasons: one, you are writing something that could potentially conflict with the perceptions of the fans of the already-established work and they will react negatively towards your story, and two, you have to write in accordance with every little detail that occurred in the first story and find a way to make it fit in a believable way. It takes a lot of thought, consideration, and imagination to do those things, and Jodi Lynn Anderson was very successful in the creation and publication of Tiger Lily. 

    I'm not going to lie, this story had me crying. Even though I flew threw it (because I was so into it),  I got so attached to the characters and fell in love with the story. It changed my opinions of the characters that had already existed in my mind for so long, I fell farther in love with some, fell out of love with others, but still had an extreme appreciation for both stories. Peter Pan is such a classic, and if you loved it as a kid and just aren't satisfied with one trip to Neverland, pick up Tiger Lily and go there again, it's worth it.  

    If you have any specific questions or a question about an aspect I didn't cover, feel free to ask, but my bottom line is: It's such a fantastic read and definitely worth it! If you've been wondering about this book or searching for a new book, I hope this helped!



                                Sincerely, 

                   Spenser Lee & Simply Lovely Lit