Third Sentence Thursday! (1)

Third Sentence Thursday is a weekly meme hosted by Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books. Here's what you do, you take the book you're currently reading, post the third sentence of the book and do a mini review for JUST that sentence!

So, for my TST I'm going to be sharing the third sentence from the first book in The Mortal Instruments series, City of Bones by Cassandra Clare.

"You can't bring that thing in here."

Don't you just hate when you can't bring a "thing" in somewhere? What is this mysterious thing of which they speak? Well whatever it is, sounds like they're going to have to find another way to get it in!

Waiting On Wednesday! (5)

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. WoW spotlights upcoming releases that we are well... waiting on!

So I'm going to be breaking the rules a little bit! Opps! I'm waiting on a book that already came out but I jus

t found out about!

Title: Coexist (Keegan's Chronicles)

Author: Julia Crane

Summary from Goodreads:

"Sixteen-year-old Keegan is struggling to keep her huge secret from her friends-she's an elf, descended from a long line of elves that live in secrecy alongside humans.

In elfin society, mates are predetermined but not allowed to meet until they are eighteen. Against tradition, Keegan's brother Thaddeus told her Rourk's name because his visions warned him she'd need Rourk's protection, especially since Keegan will play a key role in the coming war between the dark and light elves.

Rourk finds himself drawn to Keegan's side every time she thinks his name. He wants to talk to her but remains in the shadows, silently guarding her every time she mentally beckons him. A twist of fate thrusts the two of them together when Rourk is forced to step up his protection and make his presence known.

An ancient prophesy deeply entwines Keegan's family and the future of their society. Somehow they must find a way to thwart fate and win the battle...without losing Keegan. With war brewing, and dark forces aligning, will Keegan and Rourk ever have the life together that they both desire?"

From the reviews I've read and the trailer it looks amazing! I love elves of any type (probably one of my favorite paranormal creatures) and so a book about them sounds just awesome! Only downfall is that it's an e-book! :( So unfortunately until I decide to take the leap and get an e-reader I'll just have to suffer. You can check out Julia Crane's website for more info on this book!

Review: Past Midnight

Title: Past Midnight (Past Midnight #1)

Author: Mara Purnhagen

Rating: 3.5/5

Pages: 216

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

(Received via Harlequin Teen Panel)

Summary from Goodreads:

"Let me set the record straight. My name is Charlotte Silver and I'm not one of those paranormal-obsessed freaks you see on TV…no, those would be my parents, who have their own ghost-hunting reality show. And while I'm usually roped into the behind-the-scenes work, it turns out that I haven't gone unnoticed. Something happened on my parents' research trip in Charleston—and now I'm being stalked by some truly frightening other beings. Trying to fit into a new school and keeping my parents' creepy occupation a secret from my friends—and potential boyfriends—is hard enough without having angry spirits whispering in my ear.

All I ever wanted was to be normal, but with ghosts of my past and present colliding, now I just want to make it out of high school alive…."

Upon first reading the back of the book I really did not think I was going to like it. I just assumed that, like most books I've read that are about or contain ghosts, I wouldn't like it. I was very pleasantly surprised though.

The Silver family are your usual paranormal investigators. Instead of trying to contact ghosts they try to debunk them. I really liked this take on ghosts because it allowed for alternate opinions and scenarios to be presented to the reader. Everything wasn't so cut and dry.

The main character Charlotte, while not my favorite narrator, was pretty okay. She was someone who spent her life investigating the paranormal and for once just wanted to be normal. (Quite the opposite of what most books are about now a days!) She quickly made friends with popular Avery and while they're friendship seemed too quick to start and more superficial than Charlotte made it out to be, they were otherwise realistic and quite enjoyable. There really weren't any characters I disliked in this book but none that really jumped out at me either.

One thing I do have to say is, the action wasn't very... well actiony. (Not a word. I am aware of this.) I'm not saying there should have been some kind of epic battle but I never felt that there was any dire need for the characters to do anything until pretty much the end of the book.

Having said all that Past Midnight was an enjoyable, quick read that offers a new look on paranormal.

Review: Clockwork Angel

Title: Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices #1)

Author: Cassandra Clare

Pages: 476

Publisher: McElderry Books

Rating: 5/5

Summary from Goodreads:

"Magic is dangerous--but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by--and torn between--two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length...everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world...and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all."

I was hesitant at first to read Clockwork Angel because I had read the first book in Clare's Mortal Instruments series, City of Bones, and I had not cared for it as much as it seemed everyone else had. The hype surrounding Clare and her books was very off putting to me. However, once I decided to pick up this book I couldn't put it down.

What I really enjoyed was the fact that there was such a twist in the plot. Clare did such a good job keeping everything hidden that I honestly did not know who the real villain was until the end! She set up a whole elaborate plot for the characters to follow when in all actuality they were just chasing a story. You never saw the real bad guys for who they were until the end. Most books you read it is very easy to pick out who the villain is or it is just told you up front. No surprises. But Clare kept the reader thinking and engaged in the story. There was never a dull moment.

Also, Clare did an amazing job mixing the aspects of fantasy such as the clockwork creatures and the supernatural beings with the reality of London in the 1800's. You would have thought Clare had been alive during that time herself she did such a magnificent job weaving the two worlds together.

All in all I found Clockwork Angel to be a surprisingly good read. It was compelling, witty, and action filled. The characters are endearing and the plot takes you for a wild ride that you don't ever want to end.

A New Identity!

First off, you're all probably thinking WHO THE HECK IS THIS AND WHY AM I FOLLOWING THEM?! Well, calm down I didn't weasel my way onto your blog rolls! This blog was formerly known as "The Ramblings of a Book Addict". I found this name to be too long and it just didn't suit me anymore. I wanted something shorter, sweet, and to the point. So from now on the blog is Monica Must Read. I've also changed my twitter name but if you were already following me then don't worry you still are!

Next, as you all may (or may not) have noticed I've been MIA from blogging for quite some bit of time! I feel horrible about neglecting my lovely followers but with school I just wasn't able to blog. But, now it's summer and I'm planning to make a comeback of sorts! So in the next few days I'm going to be writing up a number of reviews from the books I've read in my down time and I'll be up and running in no time!

Show Me The... (What I Want to See More of in YA)

There have been some undeniable trends as of late in YA novels. There's the vampires, werewolves, angels, fallen angels, and even zombies have put the living back into living dead. But, what about, well... EVERYTHING ELSE?! Here are some err, things, that I would like to see some more of in the future.

• Elves - One of my favorite parts of The Lord of the Rings and the Eragon books were the elves. They're immortal, extremely intelligent, and strong. AND THEY'RE MAGICAL!!! They're pretty much the best of the best. There are so many possibilities and I feel elves haven't really been explored yet.

• Dwarves - So what if they're tiny? They're pretty awesome! Where are the dwarves in the YA books? Huh? Yet another species that has been ignored despite their sheer AWESOMENESS!

• Giants/Trolls/Cyclops - Don't be hatin' on the tall people either. Giants, trolls, and cyclops are generally portrayed as the bad guys but if vampires, who drink human blood, can be good why can't these guys be?

• Satyr/Minotaur - I think the only place I've seen these guys were in Narnia and I miss them. :( The minotaur especially. Sure half of their body isn't human but that doesn't mean they don't deserve love too!

• And last but certainly not least (in fact this is probably the most important). WHY IN THE WORLD CAN WE NOT CREATE OUR OWN CREATURES?! I know for a fact that there are so many talented writers out there who could probably come up with some extremely epic paranormal/supernatural creatures. I would love to see something new pop up in the YA genre or even just writing in general.

So that's what I want to see some more of! What about you guys? Agree or disagree? Any new ideas? And if anyone could point me in the direction of a good book that's about one of these awesome creatures or anything else out of the norm I'd love it!

150+ Follower Giveaway WINNERS!!!

First, I want to thank you all for entering my giveaway! Also, thanks for following me! You're all wonderful! :)

Now, the moment you've all been waiting for...

DRUM ROLL PLEASE!

Not that kind of drum roll... :L

The 2 winners from the U.S. are:

Ashley Holt

and

Lisa Loves to Read

And the international winner is:

Bridget-Nicole

Congrats to the winners! I will be emailing them shortly!