Daisy Chain Book Reviews

Here are some of my favorite covers for November 2011: The Black & Blue Edition The Pledge by Kimberly Derting I'm starting to develop a THING (in caps) for black book covers. I want to buy a lot of books that are mostly black and line them all in a row. I especially like it when black covers have the white contrast, and not much more in terms of color. The lips are pink, and the hair is barely blonde enough to be not quite white. I want to buy this and put it next to The Night Circus , and then buy some more books that are mostly black and white. To put in my row. Amazon | Goodreads Crossed by Ally Condie Aside from the fact that I just don't think the hole Cassia just punched through that bubble could have POSSIBLY made that much shrapnel spew forth, I really like this cover. I love the bubble theme going on in this series' covers, and the stark, clean background that reminds me of their Society. It's simple, interesting, and pretty, and still appropriately s...

Title: Texas Gothic Author: Rosemary Clement-Moore Publisher: Delacorte Publication Date: July 12, 2011 Links: Amazon | Goodreads Source: Gift Amy Goodnight's family is far from normal. She comes from a line of witches, but tries her best to stay far outside the family business. Her summer gig? Ranch-sitting for her aunt with her wacky but beautiful sister. Only the Goodnight Ranch is even less normal than it normally is. Bodies are being discovered, a ghost is on the prowl, and everywhere she turns, the hot neighbor cowboy is in her face. Texas Gothic is a combination of ghost story, forensics, archaeology dig, mystery, and magic. Amy (short for Amaryllis) is an adorable main character, and is easy to like. She's smart and funny and has designated herself as "the normal one" in her family, doing what she can to keep a lid on the crazy. I like Amy's voice. She's a fun character to follow, and the type of girl that I could be friends with. Amy often beco...

In My Mailbox  is hosted by Kristi at  The Story Siren . What's up bookish people?! It's that time of week for the sharing of the spoils! This week, I controlled myself and didn't buy any books. But I did get a nice little smattering of e-galleys for review. Here they are: For Review : Pure  by Julianna Baggott (NetGalley) Unraveling Isobel by Eileen Cook (Galley Grab) Cinder by Marissa Meyer (NetGalley) Don't You Wish  by Roxanne St. Claire (NetGalley) The Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges (NetGalley) Someone Else's Life  by Katie Dale (NetGalley) What books did you get this week?

Title: Bad Taste in Boys Author: Carrie Harris Publisher: Delacorte Publication Date: July 12, 2011 Series: Kate Grable #1 Links: Amazon | Goodreads Source: Gift Someone's been a very bad zombie. Kate Grable is horrified to find out that the football coach has given the team steroids. Worse yet, the steriods are having an unexpected effect, turning hot gridiron hunks into mindless flesh-eating zombies. No one is safe--not her cute crush Aaron, not her dorky brother, Jonah . . . not even Kate! She's got to find an antidote--before her entire high school ends up eating each other. So Kate, her best girlfriend, Rocky, and Aaron stage a frantic battle to save their town . . . and stay hormonally human. Bad Taste in Boys is a fun mixture of horror and humor. Kate is a mostly likable protagonist. She considers herself a geek who recently began blossoming out of her geekdom. She's an epileptic who has finally been having some success at keeping her seizures under control...

Title: Past Perfect Author: Leila Sales Publisher: Simon Pulse Publication Date: October 4, 2011 Links: Amazon | Goodreads Source: Galley Grab All Chelsea wants to do this summer is hang out with her best friend, hone her talents as an ice cream connoisseur, and finally get over Ezra, the boy who broke her heart. But when Chelsea shows up for her summer job at Essex Historical Colonial Village (yes, really), it turns out Ezra’s working there too. Which makes moving on and forgetting Ezra a lot more complicated…even when Chelsea starts falling for someone new. Maybe Chelsea should have known better than to think that a historical reenactment village could help her escape her past. But with Ezra all too present, and her new crush seeming all too off limits, all Chelsea knows is that she’s got a lot to figure out about love. Because those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat it… Leila Sales has officially become one of my auto-buy authors. I am in love with the charac...

Title: The Revenant Author: Sonia Gensler Publisher: Knopf Publication Date: June 14, 2011 Links: Amazon | Goodreads Source:  Random Buzzers When Willie arrives in Indian Territory, she knows only one thing: no one can find out who she really is. To escape a home she doesn't belong in anymore, she assumes the name of a former classmate and accepts a teaching job at the Cherokee Female Seminary. Nothing prepares her for what she finds there. Her pupils are the daughters of the Cherokee elite—educated and more wealthy than she, and the school is cloaked in mystery. A student drowned in the river last year, and the girls whisper that she was killed by a jealous lover. Willie's room is the very room the dead girl slept in. The students say her spirit haunts it. Willie doesn't believe in ghosts, but when strange things start happening at the school, she isn't sure anymore. She's also not sure what to make of a boy from the nearby boys' school who has taken an i...

Title: The Monstrumologist Author: Rick Yancey Publisher: Simon & Schuster Publication Date:  September 22, 2009 Series: Monstrumologist #1 Links: Amazon | Goodreads Source: Won Monsters are real. Will Henry is the orphan apprentice of a doctor with an unusual specialty: monstrumology, the study of monsters. When a midnight visitor brings them the body of a young girl entwined with the corpse of an Anthropophagus, it is the start of the most mysterious case of Will Henry's life. Anthropophagi are headless monsters whose razor-sharp teeth are in their stomachs - and they are supposed to be extinct in this part of the world. Now Will and the monstrumologist are in a race against time to put a stop to the plague of monsters before they kill again. The Monstrumologist is an awesome adventure. It's got monsters, gore, conspiracy, mayhem, creepy crawlies, insane asylums, and characters that range from lovable to heinous and everything in between. Will Henry is a great pro...

In My Mailbox  is hosted by Kristi at  The Story Siren . What's up bookish people?! It's that time of week for the sharing of the spoils! Here are the books that I've gotten since last time: For Review : Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel Darker Still by Leanna Renee Hieber Fury's Fire by Lisa Papademetriou Fracture by Megan Miranda Amplified by Tara Kelley Just Your Average Princess by Kristina Springer So Silver Bright by Lisa Mantchev Slayers by C.J. Hill Bought : The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan The Death Cure by James Dashner Blood Promise by Richelle Mead (found this copy, signed, at Books-A-Million as one of those publisher overstock $6 hardcover bargain books - score!) Gift : Bloodspell by Amalie Howard ( Random Act of Kindness  from Amber  - Thanks!) What books did you get this week? Let me know in the comments!

Title: Desires of the Dead Author: Kimberly Derting Publisher: HarperTeen Publication Date: February 15, 2011 Series: Body Finder #2 Links: Amazon | Goodreads Source: Purchased The missing dead call to Violet. They want to be found. Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered—and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life. As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mi...

I don't know about the rest of you, but for me October and Halloween put me in the mood to read books that are scary and books that deal with ghosts, witches, and other things that go bump in the night. I've been making an effort to read and review books of this sort on the blog this month. If you're like me, and are looking for some seasonal reading this Halloween season, then you may want to consider picking up some of these for the end of October: The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey These are the secrets I have kept. This is the trust I never betrayed. But he is dead now and has been for nearly ninety years, the one who gave me his trust, the one for whom I kept these secrets. The one who saved me . . . and the one who cursed me. So starts the diary of Will Henry, orphan and assistant to a doctor with a most unusual specialty: monster hunting. In the short time he has lived with the doctor, Will has grown accustomed to his late night callers and dangerous business. But wh...

Title: The Near Witch Author: Victoria Schwab Publisher:  Disney Hyperion Publication Date:  August 2, 2011 Links: Amazon | Goodreads Source: NetGalley The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children. If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company. And there are no strangers in the town of Near. These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life. But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true. The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him. As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls...

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and features upcoming releases. Girl of Nightmares  by Kendare Blake 2012 I loved Anna Dressed in Blood , and am exasperatingly impatient for the sequel. I love that the cover for book two ups the horror elements. It's much scarier this time! Goodreads | My Review of Anna Dressed in Blood The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting April 17, 2012 I enjoyed The Body Finder more than I expected to, and just recently finished Desires of the Dead . I'm looking forward to seeing where Violet's story takes her next. And to some hopefully creepy chapters from the bad guy's POV. Amazon | Goodreads | My Review of The Body Finder The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff November 15, 2011 This book looks creepy and interesting. I'm very curious about it! I liked The Replacement , and I hope that Brenna's next book is even better. Amazon | Goodreads What book(s) are you waiting on?