Review - Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

Title: Chain Reaction
Perfect Chemistry #3
Author: Simone Elkeles
Publisher: Walker Books
Publish Date: Aug 16, 2011
Hardcover, 308 pages

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I stopped reading this book and picked up another book, then ho hummed my way back to the book only to realize I had already downed three quarters of the book. Oops! This book was the last installment in the series and apparently I liked it way more than I realized.

By now, I have come to really enjoy the lightness. I like that they cover racial issues and love being difficult enough to require work. It is nice to have such different stories and yet a feeling of familiarity. The characters have this quality where I don't want to like them, but they grow to become people I find fun and attractive. In the end, I am rooting for them to have a great budding relationship.

Check out my other reviews of Simone Elkeles books -
Leaving Paradise

Summary -
Luis Fuentes has always been sheltered from the gang violence that nearly destroyed his brothers’ lives. But that didn’t stop him from taking risks—whether he’s scaling a mountain in the Rockies or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis can’t stop looking for the next thrill.

Nikki Cruz lives her life by three rules—boys lie to get their way, don’t trust a boy who says “I love you,” and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Her parents may be from Mexico, but as a doctor’s daughter, she has more in common with her north-side neighbors than the Latino Blood at her school. Then she meets Luis at Alex’s wedding, and suddenly, she’s tempted to break all her rules.

Getting Nikki to take a chance on a southsider is Luis’s biggest challenge, until he finds himself targeted by Chuy Soto, the new head of the Latino Blood. When Chuy reveals a disturbing secret about Luis’s family, the youngest Fuentes finds himself questioning everything he’s ever believed to be true. Will his feelings for Nikki be enough to stop Luis from entering a dark and violent world and permanently living on the edge?

Review - Unraveling Isobel by Eileen Cook

Title: Unraveling Isobel
Author: Eileen Cook
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publish Date: Jan 1, 2012
304 Pages

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Isobel was witty, fun and spunky. I liked her instantly. She was original and not afraid to face her demons. It is always a pleasure to read a female character who is strong and still able to be vulnerable. She has a history of "crazy" in her past with her father having been diagnosed with Schizophrenia. So she is in constant peril with the possibility that she is crazy. Her mother is a bit distant from her. They are better friends that family. And when her mother marries a new man and he drags them to a small island with him mansion and son, she is spinning her wheels. Isobel is befriended by the most popular girl in school and then develops a small crush on her step brother. Meanwhile she is seeing ghosts, or is she?

A really fun, light read. I enjoyed every minute along with the creepy parts too! Actually the creepy parts were so great! And I don't like to be scared.

***

Holy cow have you seen how many books Eileen Cook has written? Check out her blog here!

Summary -
Isobel’s life is falling apart. Her mom just married some guy she met on the internet only three months before, and is moving them to his sprawling, gothic mansion off the coast of nowhere. Goodbye, best friend. Goodbye, social life. Hello, icky new stepfather, crunchy granola town, and unbelievably good-looking, officially off-limits stepbrother.

But on her first night in her new home, Isobel starts to fear that it isn’t only her life that’s unraveling—her sanity might be giving way too. Because either Isobel is losing her mind, just like her artist father did before her, or she’s seeing ghosts. Either way, Isobel’s fast on her way to being the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons.

Wordless Wednesday - Shamrock Farms

I really didn't get as many great pictures as I would have expected, but we were on a moving tram and it was really overcast. However, we had a blast and drank lots of milk, ate ice cream and cream cheese and many other dairy products. YUM!

PS Their food smelled worse than their poop!

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday - Tune In & Teaser

Harvey Danger, I'm Not Sick, but I'm Not Well -





The french chefs always gave me a hard time for being slow, but I would rather be slow and get it right. But they were always on my bollucks anyway. About three months in, there was a terrible scene involving a plate of ravioli. The ravioli in question were more like dim sum - made without an egg yolk. Robuchon got a hold of the plate, and threw it at me. It hit the side of my face. My ear was blocked with hot food, my face was burnt, and there was ravioli all over the place.

Roasting in Hell's Kitchen
Gordon Ramsey

Review - Desires of the Dead by Kimberly Derting

Title: Desires of the Dead
The Body Finder #2
Author: Kimberly Derting
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publish Date: February 15, 2011
Hardcover, 368 pages

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I reviewed the Body Finder #1 here.

Violet continues in her destiny to find out why she has been given this gift and whether it really is a gift or a disease. She picks up where she left off in book #1 with Jay, her long time friend and (could it be?) future lover.

I won't go in to too much detail because I highly recommend these books and this author.

She meet Sara, a supposed FBI agent who starts to inquire about how she was able to identify a missing body no one else could find that was behind a very large and very secure door. Will Violet confide in Sara or will Sara use her gift as a beacon to FBI abuse? Or is Sara hiding a few secrets of her own as well?

New characters, new cases to solve and of course, a new murderer following and hoping to kill Violet before she finds out who dun' it. I am just love struck with this series and could find myself enjoying these books for years to come. I hope it will be more than just a 3 book series. It would be sad to see these end. The possibilities are endless with this character and her gift.

Check out my review of Kimberly Derting's new book The Pledge
AND
Pre-order the next in the series, The Last Echo, Body Finder #3 due out April 2012.

Summary -
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 Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.