Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Title: Revolution
Series: None
Author: Jennifer Donnelly
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Pages: Hardcover, 472 pages
Rating: 4

Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Summary:

BROOKLYN: Andi Alpers is on the edge. She’s angry at her father for leaving, angry at her mother for not being able to cope, and heartbroken by the loss of her younger brother, Truman. Rage and grief are destroying her. And she’s about to be expelled from Brooklyn Heights’ most prestigious private school when her father intervenes. Now Andi must accompany him to Paris for winter break.

PARIS: Alexandrine Paradis lived over two centuries ago. She dreamed of making her mark on the Paris stage, but a fateful encounter with a doomed prince of France cast her in a tragic role she didn’t want—and couldn’t escape.

Two girls, two centuries apart. One never knowing the other. But when Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she recognizes something in her words and is moved to the point of obsession. There’s comfort and distraction for Andi in the journal’s antique pages—until, on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words transcend paper and time, and the past becomes suddenly, terrifyingly present.

Jennifer Donnelly, author of the award-winning novel A Northern Light, artfully weaves two girls’ stories into one unforgettable account of life, loss, and enduring love. Revolution spans centuries and vividly depicts the eternal struggles of the human heart.

REVIEW:

The story is about Andi a girl who happen to fall inlove with the music because of the tragic accident that happened to her family. She takes music a way out. A way to forget it all and to remove the pain she felt.

Andi’s family was in the process of breaking down. And two years ago, it did. When her little brother Truman died, making her mom shocked after losing her son and her dad – just being himself as always. And lastly, her. Copping the pain and blaming herself she then slowly lost the will to live.

Andi is a gifted musician and a wise girl. Who, like I said found the music after her brother’s death. And because of all the things that happened around her. She did everything to learn the cure of her painful reality and that is learning the music. By doing so, she didn't realize or should I say that she doesn't care that she is about to be expelled in her school.

And because of that Andi's dad decided to bring her to paris expecting her to move on and finish her thesis. Instead she found a diary of Alexandrine Paradis who lived when the time of french revolution. The diary is about Alex's experience during the french revolution and it also talks about some secrets that was never revealed and somehow answers to all Andi's questions.

I was caught in Alex's experience just like Andi was. And that is why i find it hard to let go of the book that easily, despite some boring scenes. I wanted to know what happened next. It was kind of fun reading it as well. I mean I get to know the city in some ways.

Revolution is a great book. It gives you full detail of Andi's life and not to mention it brings you the city of Lights, Yes. That's france. It tells about the French revolution. About their missing King and what happened before and after the revolution.



Kay-c

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Guest Post Monday (5): Kimberly Derting

Today, we have Kimberly Derting, author of the Body Finder series, to talk to us about life before and after getting published.

I’ve known that I wanted to write since I took 7th grade journalism in junior high. Of course, I was pretty sure I didn’t want to be a journalist since they have to cover big events like wars and droughts and epidemics. I’m more of a stay-in-my-clean-safe-house-and-make-stuff-up kind of gal. Thankfully, that worked out for me!

Before I was published my life was so…calm. There were no deadlines, no revisions, no author signings or tours, no interviews or Twittering. I used to have something called: free time. But would I trade it for anything??? Heck no!

Once I was published (or at least under contract), I had to learn to manage my time. Which basically means I had to stop messing around and put myself on a schedule. I’m (still) learning to balance that fine line between work and family. Unfortunately, with a crazy busy schedule, sometimes it’s the family time that has to give. Thankfully, my husband and kids don’t complain too much about eating fast food…over and over again.

______________________________________________

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Guest Post Monday (5): Kimberly Derting

Seven Sorcerers by Caro King

Title: Seven Sorcerers

Author: Caro King

Publisher: Querqus

Rating: 3 and a half stars

For Nin, Wednesday is the worst day of a week but she learned a whole new dimension of worst when on one Wednesday her little brother Toby was gone and no one in her family remembered him except her. Tried to discover the mystery, she realized that whatever took Toby is planning to kidnap her as well. Managed to escape from the bogeyman but everyone is her family lost their memories about her, hid in Drift with the help of Jonas, a stranger who experienced the same thing with her, Nin discovered a lot of new things including the history of this world. Learned the truth about this world and the Seven Sorcerers that once ruled it, Nin set on a journey to save Toby, but can she make it when Drift posed so many dangers such as Hound, tombfolk, and of course the same bogeyman who wont let her go easily.

 I enjoyed this book a lot. It was nice and fun book to devour in one night (if you're not too busy with work). The character develop nicely in this book, when the first time Nin arrived at the Drift, she was almost helpless and relied on Jonas everytime something happened. But eventually she became stronger and understand the power she has and gained confident in what she was doing. The changes also happened to the bogeyman, I wont say anything that will spoil the fun of you, but he's one of the most interesting character in this book, although my favorite character is Jik, I have a thing with quirky-out-of-the-ordinary creature (like the hob in The Crowfield Curse and Dobby in Harry Potter), beside Jik is so cute (if more than two-meter tall mudman can be considered as cute).

The story is quite predictable in some parts but it doesn't mean it's not fun to read. However the ending was too quick and too abrupt. I was still enjoying the book and felt the tense of their adventure and suddenly, it ended and I was like, 'huh?'. Apparently there's a second book, Shadow Spell, and I've decided that I'm going to find this book. I recommend it to Middle-Grade readers who like fantasy.

Lynossa

Seven Sorcerers by Caro King

Room by Emma Donoghue

Title: Room

Author: Emma Donoghue

Publisher: Picador

Rating: 4 and a half stars

"The world is always changing brightness and hotness and soundness, I never know how it's going to be the next minute." 

Jack was just turned Five and just like any other boy; he likes watching TV, play games, and he loves his Ma very much. He lived in Room with her Ma, Duvet, Table, TV, Bath, and other furnitures and the only person ever he see in that room beside his Ma is Old Nick, an occasionally nighttime visitor. Never set foot outside Room, Jack believed Room is his whole universe and everything outside the room was in Outer World. Everything on TV was not real, but mouse and spider were real because he saw them. But one day her mother revealed the truth: there is world outside the Room and people just like them, thus start Jack's terrifying journey of entering the world for the first time.

This story will break your heart, but mend it back with the warmth of love. Now, I'm not usually say those kind of words, but that's exactly what I felt after I read this book. I can't even imagine the pain that 'Ma' was suffering for being captivated and abused for years by Old Nick. It's scary to think that there are plenty people like Old Nick out there, stalking girls or children as if they're a prize to win. But I was touched by how despite everything, 'Ma' tried to live and took a good care of her son, and also on how Jack constantly tried to understand the new world that confusing yet fascinated him.

It was written from Jack's point of view, which can be annoying sometimes because we could see the ego and selfishness of a five-year old boy. But even though it annoyed me, I still consider it brilliant because that exactly what five-year old boy would think. They think their mother (family) is the whole world, and they're selfish, but they also eager to learn about everything. The plot was a bit slow as the author spend several chapters to show Jack's and Ma's characters and also their daily life in Room. The story got more interesting after Jack managed to escape and saved his Ma. What went after that wasn't about the trial or crime but about how Jack was trying to adapt with everything that's new to him. Stairs, store, hammock, bees, and of course people.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves reading family drama, a bit of psychology, and basically people who like to read story with depth.

Lynossa

Room by Emma Donoghue

Prepare for 'May is Our 6-Month Bloganniversary'!

Wow, we've been blogging for almost 6 months and we almost have 500 followers, yiipppeee! We would like to thank all of you who take your time to stop by (lurker and commenter) in our blog. We love you!
To celebrate our 6-month blogging, right now we've already prepared several contests and giveaways (several publishers are going to participate as well), however if there are bloggers, authors, or publishers who want to participate in our celebration (I'm thinking about arranging hop contest), you could contact us via email at deranged.booklovers@ymail.com. This offer is opened to all bloggers, authors and publishers regardless the preference genre (however it would be better to check our preference). If you're interested, by all means, contact us!

Prepare for 'May is Our 6-Month Bloganniversary'!

Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz

Title: Invincible Summer

Author Hannah Moskowitz

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Rating: 4 stars

---May contain some spoilers!---

Chase and the rest of McGill family (his parent, his older brother Noah, his younger sister Claudia, and his younger deaf brother Gideon) always spend summer at the beach together with the Hathaway family. Noah always had a summer fling with Hathaway's oldest daughter, Melinda, and Chase always be the one who act like oldest brother. But things doesn't always stay the same and as they grew older, more problems starting to show up: ranging hormones, puberty, school, and parents. Trying to keep his brother Noah stayed with their family, helping his parent took care Gideon, keeping eye on the more-mature younger sister, Claudia, while pressing his sexual interest toward Melinda, Chase took the changes in one huge gulp and felt devastated by it. This is not a book about romance, this is about a boy who grew up in somewhat dysfunctional family, forced to be mature before his age, and finally learned that no matter what happened, family always comes first.

The cover and the blurb were misleading. I thought it was a summer romance story, but I was mistaken. I was completely blown away by the ending and ended up giving this book 5 stars at Goodreads, however after I remember all the details and my reading progress, I have to drop one stars. That doesn't mean the book sucks though, quite the contrary, this book is awesome. The characters are interesting; the connection between them were real although the bromance between Noah and Chase made me lift my eyebrow a bit. I felt in love with Gideon, Chase's deaf brother, half-amused half-cringed by Claudia's attitude, and curious about what would happened between Chase, Noah, and Melinda.

Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz

In My Mailbox (11)

IMM is a meme started by Kristi of The Story Siren with some inspiration from Alea of Pop Culture Junkie.

The idea behind IMM was not only to put new books on your radar but to also encourage blogger interaction. IMM explores the weekly contents of my mailbox & books bought. And sometimes other fun goodies.

Anyone can participate in IMM and you are not limited to only sharing books that arrive via your mailbox. You can also share books that you've bought or books that you've gotten at the library.

Lynossa's Mailbox:

Bought:
Room by Emma Donoghue
The Ask and The Answer (Chaos Walking 2) by Patrick Ness

Given:
The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking 1) by Patrick Ness
Across The Universe by Beth Revis

Won:
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Loser/Queen by Jodi Lynn Anderson (not in picture, is borrowed by my sister)

Free ebook from NetGalley
Theories of Flight (Metrozone #2) by Simon Morden
The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter
The Restorer by Amanda Stevens

I was being lazy the past few weeks so I decide not to be lazy today and post everything I got. I bought The Ask and The Answer after I received The Knife of Letting Go from my sister. She was away from home and bought the book for me on the airport on her way to Japan a week before the tsunami disaster. Across the Universe ebook was given by Alyssa as part of R.A.K (Random Act of Kindness), thank you so much Alyssa!
I won Mockingjay from Ms.DeRaps and Loser/Queen from Ellz Readz few months ago although due to many things that happened to me (including the slow post service in my country) I haven't found the right time to show it (or I just being lazy as usual, sorry!). I also received another egalley from NetGalley. I'm looking forward to read Theories of Flight because I had a great time reading the first book, Equations of Life (check my review here).

In My Mailbox (11)

In The Arms of Stone Angels by Jordan Dane

Title: In The Arms of Stone Angels


Author: Jordan Dane

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Rating: 4 Stars

He looked thinner, not like the strong boy I remembered. His golden skin that once looked like sweet caramel had turned pale. And someone had cut his long black hair to make him conform to what they thought he should be. If White Bird knew what they'd done, he would have fought them. And I would have given anything to see the fire in his eyes again. But in his condition, he had no fight left...
.... 
"Oh, my God. What have they done to you?" I whispered, not recognizing my own voice. "What have I done?"

14 years old Brenna Nash escaped for Oklahoma after a horrible murder of a girl in her class, a murder she accused to be done by her best friend, half-Caucasian half-Native Indian, White Bird. Now, two years later, she returned to Oklahoma and learned that White Bird was locked in a mental hospital since that day. Feeling guilty for not stepping up for her friend, Brenna decided to seek for the truth; whether White Bird is the true killer or not. Unfortunately the whole town seemed to against her; the sheriff thought she was involved in the murder and the local bullies harassed her. Seeking comfort in graveyard, she tried to unreveal the mystery, but some people who knew the truth would stop her at nothing.

I really enjoyed this book; I'm a mystery lover and this book satisfied my thirst for it. Along the way I guessed who might be the culprit was - and it turned out my prediction was correct, yeay. At first I felt annoyed with Brenna for being an angst teen, but along the way I saw more about her and I liked her. She has many layers and behind her seemingly egoist behaviors, she actually care a lot. Another thing I like about this book is there's no damsel-in-distress moment, wooohooo! I can't tell you how much I love it; I've read too many books (YA and non-YA) where the girls were just hopeless and constantly need to be saved. That's not what happened to Brenna. She was bullied yet she's still strong and continue trying to save White Bird. Of course, due to his condition, we could only met the 'real' White Bird near the end of the book but Brenna explained a lot about him, she made me felt like I knew White Bird too. Sometimes I was annoyed with the way the girls in YA book describe the boys she love, but not in here. It was clearly that Brenna loves him, but she never went over the board with her love; it's love, not adoration.

Not only that, this book also covers plenty issues; starting from racist, bullies, prejudice, and sexist. It was a bit unfair for the adult in this book; most of them portrayed either as prejudice people with hidden motives. But hey, sad as it seems, it's also the fact. It remind me how often we look at other people based solemnly on how they dressed and to think about them based on whether they have benefit for us or not. The supernatural element in this book was done subtly but nice; it didn't way over the top. Actually it seemed like something that could happen in our lives. I felt like I've learned something about Native Indian from this book; about their custom and practice. In these days where people of the world mixed together in almost everywhere, it was sad that in some areas (especially small town/village) racism is still alive and kicking.

I think this book is a must read for YA fans who like mystery, strong heroine and bigger issue than I-love-a-super-guy-but-I-can't-be-with-him-because-he's-immortal thing.

Lynossa

ps: This review is part of April is NetGalley month. I received the e-copy of this book from NetGalley, thanks!

In The Arms of Stone Angels by Jordan Dane

Cover Love: Black is Angst

I always get the impression that contemporary books with black covers are angsty. I avoid reading them as much as possible because most of them are such tear-jerkers, but oh, they have such pretty covers too! My pink is black so although I hate sad books, I can't stop buying them! Oh, and they have some pretty epic premise too that are very hard to resist! Here are some black Contemps that I spotted in Goodreads:






A Note of Madness by Tabitha SuzumaStolen by Lucy Christopher

Such a Pretty Girl by Laura WiessA Beautiful World by Gregg Tyler Milligan Freefall by Mindi Scott


 Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles Forbidden by Tabitha SuzumaLuna by Julie Anne Peters


Looking for Alaska by John Green
Harmonic Feedback by Tara Kelly
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous 
~Mithee

Cover Love: Black is Angst

Crime Fiction Alphabet: M is for Marple, Jane

"The young people think the old people are fools -- but the old people know the young people are fools."

This week letter on Crime Fiction Alphabet is M, check out the rest entries in Kerrie at Mysteries in Paradise. She's the host of this event.

My entry for M is Miss Marple. Those of you who are fans of Agatha Christie must've known her. She's the spinster old lady who lived in St. Mary Mead, a village in outskirt London. She's consider as the 2nd most famous character made by Agatha Christie (of course we all know who's the first :D).

Miss Marple was described as small fragile-looking old lady who frequently seen knitting and considered as nosy.  At first people usually looked down on her, only regard her as 'nice old lady' but actually she's very perceptive about human nature. With her skill/talent in understanding human, she managed to solve criminal mysteries, and often triumph police.

There are mixed opinion about her, some people consider her not as detective, therefore didn't like the books that feature her; while some other enjoy reading how she solved mysteries around her. I agree her way of solving crime isn't the exact detective way; she use her knowledge about human not based on clues and evidences. For me, it depend on the case; she's not my favorite Christie's character but I enjoyed some of the books with her in it. My favorite Marple's is Murder at the Vicarage. I'm not sure why though, probably because of other characters in that book. Beside that, I also enjoyed Caribbean Mystery and Nemesis. What about you?

Lynossa

Crime Fiction Alphabet: M is for Marple, Jane