Review by Brittany

Jessica's Guide to Dating On The Dark Side

by Beth Fantaskey

Summary: The undead can really screw up your senior year . . .Marrying a vampire definitely doesn’t fit into Jessica Packwood’s senior year “get-a-life” plan. But then a bizarre (and incredibly hot) new exchange student named Lucius Vladescu shows up, claiming that Jessica is a Romanian vampire princess by birth—and he’s her long-lost fiancé. Armed with newfound confidence and a copy of Growing Up Undead: A Teen Vampire’s Guide to Dating, Health, and Emotions, Jessica makes a dramatic transition from average American teenager to glam European vampire princess. But when a devious cheerleader sets her sights on Lucius, Jess finds herself fighting to win back her wayward prince, stop a global vampire war—and save Lucius’s soul from eternal destruction 

Review: I was a little skeptical to begin reading this book. Then I decided what the heck and tried it. I easily became addicted and stayed up till three o'clock in the morning to finish it. Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side  captivated me with witty characters. I particularly enjoyed Jessica's personality and demeanor. The flow and progression of the main characters falling in love seemed very realistic and not rushed at all. The ending left me squealing! This book practically oozes out charm and is highly enjoyable. If you like vampires, romance, and the tall dark handsome type you must read this book. I look forward to finally purchasing and reading the sequel Jessica Rules the Dark Side.

 

--Brittany

News: New Blogger and New Jersey Book Signing Tonight!

Senior year is a crazy, crazy time. I don't want to stop blogging or reading but I just felt so bad when I leave the blog blank or don't get a review out in time. So I went out in search for another blogger for With A Book. My cousin Kelli, writes reviews here everyone in awhile too, but I wanted one more person. I didn't have to look to hard since one of my best friends, and the first person I asked said yes. 

Me and Brittany!

I want you guys to meet Brittany! I've known her since 7th grade, where we bonded over books. I remember sharing everything that we read, even library books. (Since Brittany didn't have a card, I let her read them after I did). I'm really excited to have her on With A Book. Hopefully now with the two of us, With A Book will always be active. 

Now here's a small intro about herself that Brittany wrote for you guys!

How far away could I go if I traveled by foot, car, train, or plane? How much will it cost for me to visit the tombs in Egypt, to walk the hills of San Francisco, to breathe in the ocean air in the Philippines? May I please eat a croissant on the streets of Paris or smell the meadows of a faraway fairytale? In real life, I cannot slay a Medieval dragon or kiss a cute Italian boy by the Trevi Fountain but through books I can. A book transports you to any destination or time period through the power of words. Words provide you with the opportunity to forget about real life and to live as a character, someone completely different. I love books that make me forget about the present and books that I can never forget. A good book lets you travel the world without ever leaving the couch. This is why I read. My name is Brittany and I have an incurable case of wanderlust. Danielle, my best friend who turned me into a reading addict years ago, has asked me to write some reviews for this wonderful blog. I look forward to reviewing hopefully once a week for you all!

- Both of us are super excited! We are already planning so much stuff! Brittany's first review will be up on tomorrow! :) 

--Also Brittany at the moment is slightly anti-social media sites. I'm going to try and change that. Twitter is very essential for a blogger, don't you guys agree?

 In other news, this is kind of last minute, but I'm off to a book signing at Barnes and Nobles tonight in Freehold NJ! I just thought I would put the word out there to see if any other bloggers are going. 

The book signing is for a local authors. I'm going to see Danielle Sibarium, the author of Heart Waves and For Always!  

Review: Beta

Review by Kelli!

Beta
By: Rachel Cohn

Release Date: October 16th 2012

Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Source: ARC from BEA

Summary - In a world constructed to absolute perfection, imperfection is difficult to understand—and impossible to hide. Elysia is a clone, created in a laboratory, born as a sixteen year old girl, an empty vessel with no life experience to draw from. She is a Beta, an experimental model of teenaged clone. She was replicated from another teenage girl, who had to die in order for Elysia to be created. Elysia's purpose is to serve the inhabitants of Demesne, an island paradise for the wealthiest people on earth. Everything about Demesne is bioengineered for perfection. Even the air there induces a strange, euphoric high that only the island's workers—soulless clones like Elysia—are immune to.At first, Elysia's new life on this island paradise is idyllic and pampered. But she soon sees that Demesne's human residents, the most privileged people in the world who should want for nothing, yearn. And, she comes to realize that beneath its flawless exterior, there is an undercurrent of discontent amongst Demesne's worker clones. She knows she is soulless and cannot feel and should not care—so why are overpowering sensations clouding Elysia's mind?If anyone discovers that Elysia isn't the unfeeling clone she must pretend to be, she will suffer a fate too terrible to imagine. When Elysia's one chance at happiness is ripped away from her with breathtaking cruelty, emotions she's always had but never understood are unleashed. As rage, terror, and desire threaten to overwhelm her, Elysia must find the will to survive.

Review – Yeah, it’s a long summary. I really enjoyed this novel, and I love the cover. In the first couple pages, I was distracted by all the big words and complicated vocabulary… but I got the hang of it. I stayed on the couch all day reading because I couldn’t put it down. There was constant action and suspense, front to back. The characters were all so believable and real and modern. And, of course, there was the complicated love triangle. This one was… different, though. Confusing.

Elysia isn’t the same as the other clones, and she tries to hide that, until she realizes she isn’t the only one who is different, which leads to one of her loves. Rachel Cohn did an exceptionally good job surprising me, several times. I believed one thing throughout half the story, and then realized that it was a complete lie. And on the last page, I was stunned! The final sentence left me rethinking the entire book. I wanted the sequel immediately, which sadly wasn’t an option… Anyway, Beta comes out in October, and I definitely recommend reading it!It’s a book that stays with you.

~~Kelli~~

Book Spotlight: Dark Promise!

Dark Promise by Julia Crane & Talia Jager

Published by: Valknut Press, LLC

Page Count: 176

Rylie has it all - great friends, dream boy, loving family. But on the eve of her sixteenth birthday, her perfect little world shatters. A stranger claiming to be her real mother appears with a secret: Rylie is a faery whose powers will be unleashed on her birthday. Captured and forced into a new life, Rylie struggles to keep everything she loves and discovers a terrifying truth: some promises cannot be broken.

Hey guys! I just wanted to let you know about a book tour going on right now that I'm a part of! Dark Promise by Julie Crane and Talia Jagar. What really drew me to the book was the summary. It sounds to dark and interesting. Faery books have always been on of my favorites so I'm really excited about this one. My review will be up on the 11th :)

Also so far it has 4 and 5 star reviews on goodreads. That's really good for an indie book!

Till then you can check out the rest of the tour. Here's the dates -->

4-Sep	Sophia	yabetweenthelines.blogspot.com	Review
5-Sep	Kirthi	the1bookblog.blogspot.com	Excerpt Reveal + Giveaway
6-Sep	Danielle	withabook.blogspot.com	Review
7-Sep	Ana	whatyareading.blogspot.com	Character Interview
7-Sep	Alexis	theliteraturelion.blogspot.com	Author Top Five
8-Sep	Linda	fictionfervor.wordpress.com	Excerpt Reveal + Giveaway
9-Sep	Naiche	thebookgirlreads.blogspot.com	Review
10-Sep	Stephanie	reviewingwhatimreading.blogspot.com	Review

Coolest T-Shirts EVER

As I w was going research for my homework I found these T-Shirts. I thought you guys would enjoy this. :)







Here's a little about them from the website

"Novel-T offers an opportunity to express your support for the all-stars of literature. For those who feel a connection to certain writers or characters–be it Walt Whitman's expansive exultations, Huck Finn's mischievous morality, Kurt Vonnegut's humorous humanism, or Bartleby's seemingly inscrutable insubordination–these super-soft, slim-fit jersey-style tees are a winning way to "wear your read.""

"To help ensure that there will always be new names to add to the Novel-T line-up, Novel-T donates $1 of every shirt sold to either 

• 826nyc, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, or
• Doctors Without Borders, the international medical humanitarian organization assisting people threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe."

The website to buy the shirts can be found here --- > http://www.novel-t.com/

I personally really want a Darcy shirt :)