a few fabulous updates...

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For you Hunger Game fans (isn't that everyone?) here's some news about the final book in the trilogy:


Also, check out this link to info about the Greater Houston Teen Book Convention--really cool!  Sharon Draper, among other fabulous authors will be there (!) and it's FREE!

For all you Percy Jackson fans, let me know how you liked the movie and how well you think it matched up with the book!

Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink

Okay, so I KNOW we aren't supposed to judge a book by it's cover, BUT....how cool is this cover?  Man, just looking at it makes me feel intrigued and settle down on a cold and rainy day (such as today---36 degress for our high here in Nacogdoches, Texas!) to read this one (kudos to whomever designed the cover art--truly genius!).

The book tells the story of twins born into a family with an important mystical history which the girls, of course, know nothing about.  As the tale unfolds you find yourself in the midst of a web of intrigue & deception and a battle between good and evil that could...quite possibly...mean the end of the world as we know it. 

I know, I know...it sounds amazing, doesn't it?  Well, it IS!  So, what are you waiting for?  Grab it off the shelf before there's none left, brew a hot latte and head for the comfy chair to settle in for a long winter's read. 

One of the Survivors by Susan Shaw

I have a history of loving Susan Shaw's work, so when I pulled this new one out of the box I couldn't wait to get started.   And even though I knew...knew that it wasn't going to be one of those happy happy joy joy books, it hit me like a sucker punch.  Gut-wrenching is perhaps the word that describes it best.  Poignant and thought-provoking and hard and real are others that come close. 

I've experienced the frustration of the office testing and retesting the fire alarm system all day.  Of the constant interruptions on the loud-speaker.  THIS IS ONLY A TEST.  again and again and again until you are ready to scream.  It is equally trying for the teachers and students, too.  You just want it to shut up.  Pretty soon you ignore it as best you can. 

I've also had the experience of my school burning down.  My situation was different, though, because it happened on a holiday and no one was in the building.  We were all safe, unlike Joey and Maureen's classmates. 

Joey has recently lost his mom in a house fire, so he jumps everytime it sounds.  Even with his history teacher droning on and on.  Even when they say its just a test. 

And then...it sounds again...only this time the message is garbled.  static in the background.  What are they saying? is it just an alarm again? surely it is.  right? 

Joey knows he can't stay in that room. Every instinct is pounding in him to GET OUT.  He, along with his best friend Maureen leave despite the promise of detention from his yelling teacher who refuses to leave.  No one else defies the teacher.  No one else survives.

Survivor guilt coupled with hate-filled shouts of "murderer" make life incredibly difficult for a while.  And then, through journaling and artwork healing slowly beings.  And Joey is invited to speak at the tree-planting ceremony at the memorial for his lost classmates.

"They want me to come and talk about the sketch and why I drew what I drew. That picture. I bled to draw it. Those pencil lines are my blood that flowed from my veins. I didn't draw it to be smart or funny or creative or because I was bored or anything like that.  I had to record that moment. It was important, maybe the most important thing I've ever done.  That drawing shows all there is to show the moment that everything changed." 

Read this book.  It will change you.

Bullrider by Suzanne Morgan Williams

Bull Rider, by Suzanne Morgan Williams is the second of the 2010 Lone Star books on my blog. 

Let me just say that I love this book.  It is a great layered story that goes beyond the title of Bull Rider....one of family and their expectations of who you should be versus who you are; of strength and trials of life; of military service and dreams deferred. It is, ultimately, a story of familial love and hope. 


Cam O'Mara comes from a ranching family with a proud bull riding heritage that he really wants no part of.  Cam is a skateboarder, not a bull rider.  His older brother Ben is serving in the military in Iraq, and when Ben comes home with a tramatic injury that changes his life drastically--no more championship bull riding for him--and falls into despair questioning who he is now and what kind of future can he possibly have?  Cam makes a pact with Ben dealing with bull riding and not losing hope which involves lying to get into a bull riding competition in order to win the large prize purse. 

While this is a "guy" book, it isn't only for the guys, I assure you.  While this is a book about bull riding and the military it isn't only for bull riders and military families, either. 

It is a book for everyone that has ever had family expectations, a dream for the future, and hard knocks to overcome. 

 In short, it is a book for everyone. 

Young Samurai: The way of the warrior by Chris Bradford

12 year old Jack Fletcher is sailing with is father and the crew of the Alexandria.  They shipwreck off the coast of "the Japans" and the entire crew is killed by ninja--except for Jack.  He is then taken in and adopted by a powerful local samurai warrior named Masamoto--they are bonded over a common enemy, for Dragon-Eye has killed both Jack's father and Masamoto's eldest son.


Because he is considered less than by just about everyone because he is not Japanese, he must work even harder to prove his worth as a warrior as he is trained to become samurai. 


The author is a martial arts expert--and it shows...this book is at its best when the fighting is on.  Jack has trained hard, but must prove himself over and over again---especially to Masamoto's youngest son. 


I loved the book.  Yes, there are bits here and there that are choppy, but overall the book is a thrilling ride filled with ninja, martial arts, and learning the way of the warrior. Good stuff.


Because I always wanted to be a ninja (don't laugh!)when I was younger (okay, so maybe still today I think the idea of it is cool) I've included a video that I also posted earlier in my blogging days.  Enjoy.  ;)

The Season by Sarah MacLean

If you think Jane Austen meets Nancy Drew sounds like an entertaining romp of a book then you'll adore The Season. 
As the back cover states, "Boys, ballgowns, murder...This year's season will be unforgettable!"


I have always loved historical fiction, murder mysteries and those lovely Jane Austen novels with strong female characters who still yearn for true love.  Well, The Season has it all---and does it quite well IHMO.  Just enough romance to make it interesting--not enough to make it a mush-fest. 

Alex, Ella, and Vivi are young ladies making their society debut--it is, after all, The Season.  Wanting nothing to do with becoming the prim and dutiful wife of some dreadful bore, Alex is completely uninterested in the balls she must attend.  When the Earl of Blackmoor is killed in a strange and highly suspect accident, she decides to help his son Gavin--a longtime friend of her family solve the mystery--whether he wants her help is another matter altogether. 

Did I mention Gavin is young, brooding and "devilishly handsome"?  A yummy recipe for romance, I say. 

Girls, grab this one.  You'll love it.  The perfect book to curl up and read on a rainy day with a bit of fall chill in the air.  Enjoy!

Chance Fortune and the Outlaws

Chance Fortune and the Outlaws, by Shane Berryhill, is the next book from the Lone Star list to be reviewed here.

The story is set in a parallel universe in which Earth is exactly like a comic book from the 1950's---complete with superheroes and a superhero academy.

Now, I do like comics, really I do. After all, Batgirl was a librarian (check the archive for my super-fabulous post in July on this very topic.)

Sadly, this book just did not do it for me. I wanted to like it--I really tried to like it, but it just wasn't meant to be.

I think the premise is good--but when Disney's Sky High does it better, well...that's a sign you are in trouble.

Josh is a regular kid with superhero dreams. He sacrifices everything and works hard with his retired superhero mentor in order to get admitted into the academy. Unfortunately for Josh he doesn't have any "real" super powers, which makes getting in a bit tricky. Luckily for him, his mentor hatches a plan and decides that his power is being super lucky. Uh-huh, super lucky. Not a great super power, granted, but it does allow him entry into the famed academy. Fast-forward to the name change of Chance Fortune and the meeting of friends with names like Shocker and Psy-chick. They all become involved in fighting games that become deadly serious when a nefarious plot to rule the world is uncovered and Chance and his group, the Outlaws, must save the day.

Um....maybe it would work better in graphic novel form?

Those of you who are die-hard comic buffs will probably enjoy this book, but for the rest of you....I suggest you check this one out along with a couple of other books just in case it doesn't do it for you either. A sequel is coming soon....