Waiting on Wednesday (119)

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

My picks this week are:

Hollyweird by Terri Clark 

Paranormal + Hollywood + cute fallen angel = WIN

When sixteen-year-old Aly King is the grand prizewinner in the “Win a Date with Dakota” contest, it seems like a dream come true. Along with her best friend Desi, and soap star wannabe sister Missy, she flies from Colorado to Hollywood for her celebrity date. Like every other girl in America, Aly knows that Dakota Danvers is a smoking hot movie star. What she doesn’t know is that he’s also Satan’s son.

Luckily for Aly, in the City of Angels there is one actual angel, Jameson Dagon. Granted, Jameson is a fallen angel, but he has one last chance at salvation if he can derail Dakota’s evil machinations. Can Jameson protect Aly and Desi from Dakota’s damning influence, put up with Missy’s prima donna antics—and ignore his smoldering attraction to Aly?

All the way back in 2008 I read a book called Sleepless (the first one by Terri Clark) and loved it, and ever since then, I've been eagerly awaiting a new book by Terri so to say I was excited when I found out about Hollyweird would be a serious understatement. I simply can't wait to read this one. It sound like it will be lots of fun! Though, I have to admit I'm not the biggest fan of the cover.

Miracle by Elizabeth Scott

Megan is a miracle. At least, that's what everyone says. Having survived a plane crash that killed everyone else on board, Megan knows she should be grateful just to be alive. The truth is, she doesn't feel like a miracle. In fact, she doesn't feel anything at all. Then memories from the crash start coming back. Scared and alone, Megan doesn't know who to turn to. Her entire community seems unable—or maybe unwilling—to see her as anything but Miracle Megan. Except for Joe, the beautiful boy next door with a tragic past and secrets of his own... All Megan wants is for her life to get back to normal, but the harder she tries to live up to everyone's expectations, the worse she feels. This time, she may be falling too fast to be saved....

Another Elizabeth Scott book?! Count me in for sure! Anyhow, this one sounds amazing, and I simply can't wait to read it!

Between Here and Forever by Elizabeth Scott

Summary/Cover Image from Author's Website:

Abby accepted that she can’t measure up to her beautiful, magnetic sister Tess a long time ago, and knows exactly what she is: Second best. Invisible.

Until the accident.

Now Tess is in a coma, and Abby’s life is on hold. It may have been hard living with Tess, but it's nothing compared to living without her.

She's got a plan to bring Tess back though, involving the gorgeous and mysterious Eli, but then Abby learns something about Tess, something that was always there, but that she’d never seen.

Abby is about to find out that truth isn't always what you think it is, and that life holds more than she ever thought it could...

Review:

Just when I thought Elizabeth Scott's books couldn't get any better, Between Here and Forever comes along and not only blows me away once again, but makes me proud to say Elizabeth Scott is one of my favorite authors in the world.

Between Here and Forever tells the story of Abby, a girl who always fallen second best to her sister Tess. Tess is everything Abby is not: beautiful, kind, a boy magnet...just a stunning person everyone can't help but love. But everything changes the day Tess lands herself in a bleak coma after a horrific automobile accident. The doctors tell Abby and her parents the chances are slim Tess will ever wake up, and if she does, she'll have major brain damage. Though, Abby knows she can save her sister; she has to save her sister; she can't be the the one left, right? So she recruits the beautiful and secretive Eli to help her save Tess once and for all, but what happens when she tumbles upon something she shouldn't? Will Abby be able to figure out her sister for the first time, or will she never truly understand the person Tess is deep down? Better yet, will Abby realize that everything she ever wanted in a guy is standing right in front of her? Only time can tell in this deep but light tale of one girl's coming of age in times where it couldn't be any harder.

As per usual the characters in this book were nothing short of the relatable and lovable characters I've come to expect with Scott's books. First of all I adored Abby. Abby is a girl I feel many teens will have no problem relating, because who hasn't ever felt like they lived in the shadow of a friend or sibling? Better yet, what I liked most about Abby was that even though she's had hard things happen to her that have broken down her self esteem, she's still strong and feisty, a girl to be reckoned with, a girl who has the ability to overcome life's problems and still be true to herself.

Though, the best book of this book was, in my opinion, the different relationships Abby had with others, and how they changed her life for the better or for the worse. There was the one with Tess, which always made me feel sad for not only Abby for having to live in her sister's shadow, but for Tess because deep down she has some major problems as well. I also adored the one between Eli and Abby. It was interesting to see how they came to depend on each other, and how they allowed the other to lift them up when everything was dark and deary and unforgiving. The friendship between Claire and Abby and Clemente were interesting as well and brought a lot more drama and goodness to this book.

I also adored Scott's writing in Between Here and Forever. Brisk yet informative enough to pain a vivid picture in my head, it was yet another aspect that made this book the best it could be. Scott's talent is one I always envy as well as admire.

Heartbreaking, romantic, and heartwarming, Between Here and Forever maybe just be Scott's best book yet. It's a book that will have nearly any reader on the edge of their seat, guessing until the very last pages, and rooting for Abby and her friends and family every step of the way.

Oh, and for fans of Scott's Bloom, some of the major characters from that reappear in this and that's all I'll say about that.

Grade: A+

Between Here and Forever will be released May 24, 2011.

Source: Galley Grab

Waiting on Wednesday (92)

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is:

Between Here and Forever

by Elizabeth Scott

Abby accepted that she can’t measure up to her beautiful, magnetic sister Tess a long time ago, and knows exactly what she is: Second best. Invisible.

Until the accident.

Now Tess is in a coma, and Abby’s life is on hold. It may have been hard living with Tess, but it's nothing compared to living without her.

She's got a plan to bring Tess back though, involving the gorgeous and mysterious Eli, but then Abby learns something about Tess, something that was always there, but that she’d never seen.

Abby is about to find out that truth isn't always what you think it is, and that life holds more than she ever thought it could.

I absolutely adore Elizabeth Scott's books. Well, expect for The Unwritten Rule but that's besides the point. Anyhow, this one looks just as fantastic. I mean, the cover is adorable (Sunflowers are one of my favorite flowers), the title is catchy, the premise seems great, and best of all, Elizabeth said on her blog recently that this book will contain two characters from Bloom, her first book and my second favorite book of hers. So, mark you calendars for May 24, 2011, because there's an extremely high chance that this book isn't one you want to miss!

Between Here and Forever will be released May 24, 2011.

Grace by Elizabeth Scott

Summary/Cover Image taken from Publisher's Website:

Grace was raised to be an Angel, a herald of death by suicide bomb. But she refuses to die for the cause, and now Grace is on the run, daring to dream of freedom. In search of a border she may never reach, she travels among malevolent soldiers on a decrepit train crawling through the desert. Accompanied by the mysterious Kerr, Grace struggles to be invisible, but the fear of discovery looms large as she recalls the history and events that delivered her uncertain fate.

Told in spare, powerful prose by acclaimed author Elizabeth Scott, this tale of a dystopian near future will haunt readers long after they've reached the final page.

Review:

Grace. There's so much to say, yet I don't think I could ever say enough to justify how amazing and powerful this one book is. It's disturbing, heartbreaking, and yet so beautifully written and eye-opening, you can't help but get caught up in this dystopian tale of life and death and what makes you choose which will be your path in the end.

From the first page, you are transported into Grace's world, a world of chaos and a sick leader controlling it all. Grace is an Angel; though don't let the title make you think she's a heavenly being. You see, an Angel is a suicide bomber used to kill government officials and show that those people won't be in power forever, but Grace took a different root; she escapes, not dying and completing the cause. So now she's on the run with the mysterious Kerr, someone who may have just as much to loose as her, someone who may understand her even though they're far from being the same person.

In Grace's world, she would be viewed as a coward, but to me I viewed her as being an extremely brave and daring person, someone who goes well past the limit on the road not taken to get to the world she wants and knows is best for her. Kerr, oh the mysterious Kerr, is someone who constantly introduced new things that made me, as well as Grace's character, re-think everything I had thought about their world and see new parts that I hadn't seen and understood fully before.

The premise of this was something fresh, and I have to say I don't think I've ever read or heard about anything just like Grace. The execution of the premise was even better, because it constantly had me on the edge of my seat dying to know what big revelation would be revealed next to make me re-think my thoughts on the characters and world they lived in. Also, I liked the discussion this novel held about life and death and everything in between. It was interesting and part of the reason why I'm still thinking of this novel days after reading it.

And this review wouldn't be complete if I didn't mention Scott's fantastic writing at least once, so... Elizabeth Scott is an excellent writer, one that never fails to show her tremendous wealth as a storyteller through the range of different topics she chooses that never fail to be well delivered. She's a writer I admire greatly, one I can't help but want to read more by as soon as possible.

Out of all the fabulous 2010 books this year, Grace is the one you should definitely pick up no matter what. It's fantastic, disturbing, and eye-opening- a book I'm still thinking about days after reading it. Overall, this is one of the best of the year; no doubt about it.

Grade: A+

Grace will be released September 16, 2010.

Source: Publisher. Thanks, Penguin!

The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott

Summary:

"I liked him first, but it dosen't matter.

I still like him.

That dosen't matter either.

Or at least, it's not supposed to."

"Everyone knows the unwritten rule. You don't like you best friend's boyfriend."

Sarah has had a crush on Ryan for years. He's easy to talk to, supersmart, and totally gets her. Lately it even seems like he's paying extra attention to her. Everything would be perfect except for two things: Ryan is Brianna's boyfriend, and Brianna is Sarah's best friend.

Sarah forces herself to avoid Ryan and tries to convince herself not to like him. She feels so guilty for wanting him, and the last thing she wants is to hurt her best friend. But when she's thrown together with Ryan one night, something happens. It's wonderful...and awful.

Sarah is torn apart by guilt, but what she feels is nothing short of addiction, and she can't stop herself from wanting more....

Review:

I don't know about you, but I simply heart Elizabeth Scott's novels. I heart them so much in fact that whenever I hear that a new one is coming out, I get all squeal happy and even more so when a copy arrives in my mailbox. From that information, you can just image how happy I was when The Unwritten Rule somehow ended up in my possession ( early even!) a couple of months ago. Plus, since I couldn’t wait any longer I tore into that exact day, hoping that it would be just as fab as Elizabeth's previous novels. Lucky for me, it certainly was, as I began to see as I laughed at the funny parts, got sad at the sad parts, and was so crushed when I finally ended up on the last word all in the same day.

Sarah was a character that was easy for me to relate to, because of the fact that just like any other Elizabeth Scott novel she was an ordinary girl just trying to find her place in this crazy world, all while trying to keep her loved one's happy. Though, the one unordinary thing about her was the tiny, well big, fact that she was in love with her best friends boyfriend and that that boyfriend may just like her too. I really adored this story line, even though I'm all against any from of cheating, simply because it caused for a lot of drama ( Will they or won’t they? Does he like her too? ) and because throughout the story she always did her best not to hurt her friend by handling the whole situation in a very mature way. Which left her to earn her major points in my opinion. Plus, it was fun to read about her shoe obsession! Further more, I loved Ryan, the boyfriend, too! Since, he was such a sweat and adorable guy. Though, the one character I wasn't too found of was the best friend, surprisingly. To understand my point of view on this let me tell you about Brianna: She is basically that kind of girl who because of her family problems is just a huge witch with a b, quite bluntly, without even realizing it. I really tried to understand her reasons, because seriously haven't most of us been there with our family or at least had a close friend who went through something like Brianna did? But most of the time she treated Sarah like crap and did some pretty stupid things, which really made her a character that I could have done without, even though she is essential to the story. On the flip side, I was happy when Sarah finally stood up to her. I was all like, "Go Sarah!"

The plot and writing were also both key essentials to how great this book was, because of the suspense as mentioned above and the ability Elizabeth has to make this story go in fun and fast paced way that I adored! Sadly, though, there were some parts of this story that were a bit too choppy for my liking, but it didn't take too much away from the story overall.

In all, while The Unwritten Rule is not Elizabeth's best book yet, it still is just a fabulous and darling as the superb cover it has. So, do your best to pick this book up!

Grade: B+

The Unwritten Rule will be released March 16, 2010!

Source: Publisher/ Author. Thanks ES and Simon and Schuster!

Love You Hate You Miss You by Elizabeth Scott

Summary:

It's been seventy-five days. Amy's sick of her parents suddenly taking an interest in her. And she's really sick of people asking her about Julia. Julia's gone, and Amy doesn't want to talk about it. No one knew Julia like she did. No one gets what life is without her.

No one understands what it's like to know that it's all your fault.

Amy's shrink thinks she should keep a journal but instead, Amy starts writing letters to Julia. And as she writes letter after letter, she begins to realize that the past holds its own secrets--and that the present deserves a chance.

Review:

It seems that with every two or three books that Elizabeth releases a year there is always one or two cute stories that are all about love. Then there's the serious one that grips you to the story from page one and doesn't let you go until the last one. This year Something, Maybe was the crowd pleaser while Love You Hate You Miss You was the serious one, though while not being as serious or heartbreaking as Living Dead Girl. To be completely honest, I love both types about the same, though with Love You Hate You Miss You, Elizabeth Scott defiantly went the extra mile to obtain a spectacular story.

Basically this was amazing, heartfelt, and sarcastic which made it a wonderful novel. The plot was interesting and fast paced while still being detailed. Also, I loved how Love You Hate You Miss You switched between the past and present. Since, it gave you a basic understanding of how great Amy and Julia's friendship was while still focusing on the future.

The characters were awesome ,too, because each was well developed, funny, and extremely real, especially Amy. Since, she felt everything that I would think someone who has just lost her best friend would feel: regret, sorrow, guilt; while still being a sarcastic and funny character. Also, the dialogue and situations between each of them flowed smoothly.

Another thing I loved about this was Elizabeth Scott's writing. She definitely has talent and Love You Hate You Miss You proves how easily she can make the words flow and develop an interesting plot from one that has been used over and over again. It seems, at times, that Elizabeth is one that you can ALWAYS except a great and true story from.

Overall, Love You Hate You Miss You was a fantastic read that lived up to it's amazing cover and title. I absolutely suggest to fans of Scott's previous novels and to people who love Sarah Dessen, Meg Cabot, and Susane Colasanti.

Grade: A+

Love You Hate You Miss You will be released on May 26, 2009 You can find out more about it here.

* Much thanks to EM, once again, for sending me this lovely book. :)

Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott

Summary:

Everyone thinks their parents are embarrassing, but Hannah knows she's got them all beat. Her dad made a fortune showing pretty girls--and his "party" lifestyle--all over the Internet, and her mom, who was once one of her dad's girlfriends, is now the star of her own website. After getting the wrong kind of attention for far too long, Hannah has learned how to stay out of sight...and that's how she likes it.

Of course, being unknown isn't helping her get noticed by gorgeous, confident Josh, who Hannah knows is her soul mate. Between trying to figure out a way to get him to notice her, dealing with her parents, and wondering why she can't stop thinking about another guy, Finn, Hannah feels like she's going crazy. She's determined to make things work out the way she wants....only what she wants may not be what she needs. (from Author's website)

Review:

I'm going to let you into to a little secret I have, I love Elizabeth Scott's novels! They are like a guilty pleasure for me because they are light, funny, and well written novels, that I absolutely love. Whenever, I read one I'm usually in a bad mood, for some reason, but they instantly cheer me up within the first chapter.

Something, Maybe was no different, of course. It was filled with well developed characters, cute boys, and father-daughter relationship problems. The plot was interesting, but not very complex. I enjoyed the whole scenario where a former playboy's girlfriend gets pregnant and has a baby that the playboy claims is not his. Enter Hannah who is the daughter of these two. I felt sorry for Hannah because of her father's many problems that never let him get really close to her and evidently made her hate him for it. Also, which boy should I be with part of this novel was cute, but it got annoying after a while.

Hannah was a three dimensional character that I could identify with a ton, for many reasons. The main reason was that she was extremely shy and worried that if she got herself out there too much, she would just get hurt. I used to feel that way, too, but after a while I finally cracked my shell like Hannah began to do in this story. Also, the other people, such as Finn and Tegan were great additions to the story and characters I ended up loving by the end.

Overall, Something, Maybe is another classic Scott novel that will make you feel happy and sad at the same time. This novel will appeal to fans of Elizabeth Scott's previous novels and girls who are looking for a cute romance book that doesn't make you think too much.

Grade: B+

Something, Maybe will be released March 24, 2009. You can find out more about here. Also, be sure to check out Elizabeth Scott's website and blog, that has cool contests just about every week.

* Much thanks to the people at Simon & Schuster for sending me this wonderful book!