Princess Academy by Shannon Hale

***1/2 out of ****

       Princess Academy by Shannon Hale is a New York Times Bestseller and a winner of the Newbery Honor. Sounds princess-y, right? The typical fairy tale with princesses, princes, dragons and castles. NOT! Princess Academy is much more raw, much more direct, but still beautiful in writing. (This ain't your kiddish fairy tale book!)

       The book takes place in the time of royalty and kingdoms, the usual setting for fairy tales. But Princess Academy doesn't take place in a pretty and polished palace, but instead rocky and rugged Mount Eskel, a mere territory of the great Danland. The story focuses around 14 year old Miri, a girl from Mount Eskel. When priests from the capital of Danland foresee that the prince of Danland's bride is in Mount Eskel, a makeshift princess academy is built there, where young girls from Mount Eskel are trained to be proper princesses. When Miri attends, she become torn in becoming a princess, and the mountain that runs through her veins.  

          I'd rate Princess Academy ***and a half out of ****, because it was something different, a new plot, and it wasn't overused. It was realistic, not wispy and nice like most plots. This one was rocky and tough, like the mountain it took place on. However, it didn't get a perfect score because although the plot was amazing, the writing didn't stand out. It didn't make the reader melt into the book, like it should have. 

A Place Called Here by Cecelia Ahern

*** out of ****

        This book was a good break of routine. Cecilia Ahern is an Irish author, and she wrote the book P.S. I Love You, which is now a film. And of course, being Ahern is an Irish author, this book took place in cozy little Dublin, Ireland. Oh, and another place, called Here.


        The story revolves around 2 main characters, Sandy Shortt, and Jack Ruttle. Sandy Shortte runs a missing persons agency, after she left the Garda. (The Garda is basically the police force of Ireland.) She has been obsessed with missing items and people ever since the girl who lived across from her in her childhood went missing. Jack Ruttle is a simple guy whose little brother, Donal, had gone missing a year ago. And he can't let that go, and is determined to find him. So their paths cross when Donal contacts Sandy to help find his brother. But things go awry as Sandy herself goes missing. (Kind of funny, the person who finds missing people goes missing) She ends up in a place called Here. It's the place where all missing people and things end up, and the people there have made it into their own little society. There, Sandy finds many of the missing people she had been looking for, and surprises everyone with a some stories from home. But it's not all happy endings there, when Sandy loses her watch, people start thinking there may be a way out of Here, and things get a little wild.


        I'd rate A Place Called Here a ***out of ****, because it was a great book, and had a beautiful writing style, but it wasn't perfect. The plot was okay, but for me, Ahern should have extended more on the place Here, because it was much more interesting, and it had a lot of room for creativity. I recommend this book for readers who need a little mystery in their reading.

The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown

***1/2 out of ****

     Yup, you probably haven't seen this cover in quite a while. For those of you who were living under a rock,  (I'm kidding) The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown is the best-selling English language novel of the 21st century,  and has been translated into over 44 languages.


        The DaVinci Code starts off with the murder of Jacques Saunière, who is the curator of the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. The book then switches to the life of Robert Langdon, who is a professor from Harvard and specializes in ancient symbology. Before Jacques Saunière was murdered, he used the blood from his bullet wound in his abdomen to draw a pentacle and spread himself on the floor to resemble DaVinci's painting, the Vitruvian Man. (The reason he did this was to send a special message, hint, hint) He also used a special marker whose ink can only be seen in black light, to write clues, including a message "Find Robert Langdon." The captain of police, Bezu Fache, believes that Langdon was responsible for the murder, thus bringing him to the murder scene having Langdon think it was to help the police force solve the mysterious message Sauniere had written on the floor. But along comes pretty Sophie Neveu, an agent from the French department of Cyrptology, and she knows what Fache is trying to do. Thus, this is the start of the adventure for Langdon and Neveu, who embark on a mission to try and figure out the truth fueling the battle between the Priory of Sion, a secret organization, and Opus Dei, a Catholic organization. And a thrilling adventure it is!


        I DEFINITELY recommend the DaVinci Code for older readers, because there is murder and gory-like parts, but that's not really the point of the story, so the book is still wonderful! I'd rate this book ***1/2 out of ****. It didn't get a perfect score not because it was poorly written, but it was because Dan Brown was aiming this book toward more of an adult audience. So as you know, this is a teen book blog, and this blog is for teens, (but adults and children are welcome as well :)). Not Dan Brown's fault, but the style of writing wasn't for teenagers, but still, an AWESOME book!

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

****out of ****

       I guess I kind of have a thing for apocalypse books. The House of the Scorpion, is amazing. And no wonder, because it has received so many awards such as the Newberry Honor award and the National Book award.

        In The House of The Scorpion, Matt is a clone of El Patrón, a powerful drug lord that rules a small strip of a country between what was the U.S. and Mexico, called Opium. He doesn't know what he is at first, and lives happily with Cecilia, his caretaker. But as soon as the family of El Patrón finds out who he really is, he is thrown into a jail, confused, hurt, and refusing to talk. Maria, the daughter of a powerful senator of the United States, which is not as rich as it used to be, coaxes him out. As soon as El Patrón finds out how badly Matt was treated, he quickly showers him with gifts, and teaches him how to rule with power and greed, making empty promises that he can help him rule Opium. Matt soon discovers that things aren't always what they seem, and finds out El Patrón was only using him. Matt is plunged through a journey of escape from Opium, with nowhere to turn to and death is always around the corner.

        So, the House of the Scorpion is the first book given a perfect rating on this blog. I definitely recommend the book, because I think the reader could learn a lesson, and it really wakes you up from the happy little world we live in, and introduces you to a scary, "real" world.

L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad

*** and a 1/2 out of ****

        Lots of actors and actresses hit one point in their career where they will write an autobiography about their life, and it's supposed to reveal everything, and bla bla bla. So I wasn't that interested when I first picked up Lauren Conrad's L.A. Candy. For those of you who don't know Lauren Conrad, she's the reality star from The Hills, a hit MTV series. This book is NOT  an autobiography of Conrad (phew), but it's very similar to her life. However, the novel is very well written, has an interesting plot, and it's something new. I love new things!

        The novel focuses around Jane, a young woman who moved to L.A. with her beautiful best friend Scarlett. Pretty normal right? Except they become reality stars on a brand new reality TV show! But never judge a book by its cover. L.A. Candy isn't as sweet as its name. Jane gets caught in the regular celeb treatment. Paparazzi, scandals, and lots of publicity. And one of her co-stars is green with envy, and will do anything to get her off the show, and put herself on the top.

          I rate L.A. Candy a *** and a 1/2 out of ****, because it was absolutely amazing. It definitely goes on Chanterelle's top 100, so thus, the good rating. It was missing 1/2 a star,  because the writing style could've been less detailed, and could've gotten straight to the point, but nonetheless, I totally recommend this book!

Untamed by P.C. and Kristin Cast

***and a 1/2 out of ****

        Now, the real action starts to happen in Untamed. The fourth installment in the House of Night, it introduces more new ideas, and now you start to understand why things happen in Marked, Betrayed, and Chosen. It all leads to one big explosion of a plot, and that explosion starts in Untamed.

        So, we resume to Zoey's friendless (that includes boyfriends for Zoey) life. For some weird reason, Stevie Rae, Zoey's best vampyre friend, has turned into a new kind of vampyre with red markings instead of blue, and Aphrodite, Zoey's enemy-turned-friend, has turned into a new kind of human, who has lost her mark but still has supernatural powers. When humans start killing adult vampyres, Neferet, the high priestess (otherwise known as a principal of a vampyre school), declares war on humans. Zoey and Neferet have an enemy thing going on, so Zoey knows the war can't be good. Neferet has turned her back on their goddess Nyx, and started listening to an ancient evil spirit to help aid her in the war. Now nobody will believe Zoey with her suspicions, because that was all part of Neferet's evil plan.

        I liked Untamed better than the first 3 books, because it introduced more new and orginal ideas. Huh, Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer is the 4th book in the series, and it's also one of my faves. I guess I got a thing for 4th books in vampire series (haha). The vampire thing is getting old, but Untamed mixed Cherokee tradition with vampires, resulting in a really cool plot.



Chosen by P.C. and Kristin Cast

        ***out of ****

        Chosen, the third book following Betrayed in the series, was a scarier, and even more suspenseful book. Nice job Casts!

        The book starts off with Zoey's birthday,where she shuts the door on her friends, and shuts her mom out of her life. Zoey's boyfriend problems escalate even more, where she ends up with three boyfriends. Heath, the human ex-boyfriend (or the blood-filled human), Erik, the perfect vampyre boyfriend, and Loren, the teacher who is OFF-LIMITS. She can only choose one, and the other two aren't going to take it well. And when her friends find out that Zoey has been keeping important information from them, they turn their backs on her completely.


        I'd give Chosen the same rating I gave Betrayed, ***out of ****, because it was very suspenseful; the ending a cliffhanger. Like Betrayed, it played with your heartstrings and tapped inside a teenager's life. Do I recommend Chosen? Not really, but I kind of have to, because the House of Night series in pretty good overall.  

Betrayed by P.C. and Kristin Cast

*** out of ****

        The second book of the House of Night Series has a little more originality. It plays with death, and entwines itself into something darker and more Gothic.

        In this book, Zoey has found herself tangled in the old multiple boyfriend web. So she does what any girl would do. Dump one of them. But her ex-boyfriend Heath goes missing like 2 other football players that have died, so Zoey must set out to find him, surprisingly with the help of the supposed antagonist, Aphrodite (hmm, raising some eyebrows, anyone?). The book introduces a new kind of creature, that has never been talked about before, and introduced new villains as well.

        The second book showed a fair amount of improvement from the first, mainly because this plot was different and didn't put me to sleep. It was definitely a page-turner. Betrayed really played with the teenager's life, so you can connect and relate, something that is hard for an author to do sometimes.

Marked by P.C and Kristin Cast

    **1/2 out of ****

        Ahh, another book about vampires. Today, it seems like the vampire thing is really, really overdone. But Marked is interesting.


        In the book, Zoey, the protagonist of the story, lives in a world similar to ours today, but vampyres live among them. Wow, every teenage girl's dream (haha). Vampyres are considered freaks by humans, where they are abnormal, they don't belong, and are outcasts. So it doesn't get better for Zoey when she is marked as a vampyre. Her mother and step-father don't approve, so Zoey turns to her beloved Cherokee grandmother. All fledgling vampyres are sent to a House of Night, where they train them to make it through the "Change" into an adult vampyre. Along the way, Zoey faces abnormal problems like special, supernatural powers, and normal problems like the classic mean girl.

        So it's a **1/2 stars out of ****. The Casts' style of writing was very good, but the plot wasn't that interesting. It's the average story, the heroine takes down the mean girl, gets the her boyfriend, and becomes popular. I do recommend this book, however, because Marked is the first book in the House of Night Series, and the following books in the series are more interesting and different.

Kobo eReader

        Reading today isn't what it used to be back then. Remember the smell of the paper pages of a good old book? Remember the anticipation of flipping the page to find out what happens next? Well, I wouldn't expect you to remember that anyway, with the new Kobo eReader. The Kobo eReader is, in a nutshell, a giant iPod for books. It resembles a giant iPod, even having an iTunes like program to install on your computer to buy books, like how you buy songs on iTunes. However, the creator of the eReader is not Apple.

        Yet, instead of flopping like an iPod-like device should, it's pretty useful. It's ideal to use outside, with a low-glare screen so its shine doesn't blind you when you step out into the sunlight. It's a good size, and easy and lightweight. I have one myself, and I can bring it anywhere when I want to read. The eReader has a nice, sleek and pretty design, with a display button that can change the size and font of the content. It's easy to find what book you want to read, and it even saves the page you were last on, so when you go back to the book, you go directly back to the page you were last on. It has a huge memory, so it can store up to 1000 books, in one electronic book.

        On the other hand, there are cons of an electronic book. I kind of miss the paper pages of a book, and the feel of them in between my fingers. Turning the page of the eReader may only take 2 seconds, but it's way too long to flip a page. Not that I blame it, but sometimes it takes a long time to load, and people get impatient waiting to find out what happens next in a very suspenseful book.

         So, is it good, or bad? For me, it's more of a innovative device than it is a waste of money. The pros outweigh the cons. So my advice? If you read a lot outside and go out and about to read, I recommend the Kobo eReader.