I haven't done an IMM in awhile and I found some fun stuff at the library today so I thought I'd do one. If any of the books sound like something you'd like to see a review of, leave me a little note in the comments. Lately I've been finding it too taxing to review EVERYTHING that I read, but I do take requests, so to speak. And you all leave such wonderful comments. :) Also, IMM is a meme originally hosted by The Story Siren.
*NOTE* I found all of these titles in the Young Adult section minus S&S. Sometimes I just want to live in that section. I've also included the synopsis' found on either the back of the book or the flaps so you have all the info I have.
Romeo & Juliet & Vampires by Claudia Gabel (adapted from William Shakespeare).
The Capulets and Montagues have some deep and essential differences. Blood differences. Of course, the Capulets can escape their vampire fate, and the Montagues can try to not kill their undead enemies. But at the end of the day, their blood feud is unstoppable. So it's really quite a problem when Juliet, a vampire-to-be, and Romeo, the human who should be hunting her, fall desperately in love. What they don't realize is how deadly their love will turn out to be -- or what it will mean for their afterlives...
This riotous twist on the ultimate tale of romance is simply to die for.
I do like Shakespeare, particularly the tragedies and histories. The comedies leave something to be desired for me. Plus, I do love a fun vampire tale. This one could be really good, or at least comically bad.
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
When each summer begins, Belly leaves her school life behind and escapes to Cousins Beach, the place she has spent every summer of her life. Not only does the beach house mean home away from home, but her favorite people are there: Susannah, her mother's best friend, and her sons, Conrad and Jeremiah. Belly has been chasing Conrad for as long as she can remember, and more than anything, she hopes this summer will be different. Despite distractions from a new guy named Cam and lingering looks from Conrad's brother Jeremiah, Belly's heart belongs to Conrad. Will he offer his to her? Will this be the summer that changes everything?
This one just sounded so cute. It reminded me of the same sort of coming of age novels that authors such as Sarah Dessen and Laurie Halse Anderson write. I love them and I love those types of novels. And three guys in one novel, yep, sold.
The Cold. Grace has spent years watching the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf-- her wolf-- watches back. He feels deeply familiar to her, but she doesn't know why.
The heat. Sam has lived two lives. As a wolf, he keeps the silent company of the girl he loves. And then, for a short time each year, he is human, never daring to talk to Grace...until now.
The shiver. For Grace and Sam, love has always been kept at a distance. But once it's spoken, it cannot be denied. Sam must fight to stay human-- and Grace must fight to keep him-- even if it means taking on the scars of the past, the fragility of the present, and the impossibility of the future.
This one sounds really cute. And by cute, I mean interesting and on trend with what audiences are reading and wanting these days. Especially for YA fair. I've been eying this book for awhile, the cover has been taunting me. I finally caved and pulled it off the shelf.
Born in an Andean village in Ecuador, Virginia lives with her large family in a small, earthen-walled dwelling. In her village of indigenas, it is not uncommon to work in the fields all day, even as a child., or to be called a longa tonta-- stupid India-- by members of the ruling class of mestizos, or Spanish decedents. When seven-year-old Virginia is taken from her village to be a servant to a mestizo couple, she has no idea what the future holds.
Virginia quickly grows accustomed to the conveniences and luxeries of mestizo life. But promised pay and visits to her family are quickly forgotten, as is her bosses' pledge to send her to school. Beaten and told that the sole purpose of indigenous girls is to serve, Virginia must fight to hold on to her spirit and humor. She teaches herself to read and write and performs science experiments in secret.
When Virginia's only friend betrays her, she must gather her courage and escape. But once she's found her freedom, will Virginia, now a teenage caught between cultures, also find a place where she belongs?
I saw this book on the new arrivals shelf. I have a weakness for memoirs and history and this involves subject matter that I am unfamiliar with. I can't wait to read it.
Sense and Sensibility is the answer to those critics and readers who believe that Jane Austen's novels, despite their perfection of form and tone, lack strong feeling. Its two heroines-- so utterly unalike each other-- both undergo the most violent passions when they are separated from the men they love. What differentiates them, and gives this extraordinary book its complexity and brilliance, is the way each expresses suffering: Marianne- young, impetuous, ardent- falls into paroxysms of grief when she is rejected by the dashing John Willoughby, to whom she has completely given her heart; while her sister, Elinor-- wiser, more sensible, more self-controlled-- masks her despair when it appears that Edward Ferrars, whom she loves deeply and steadfastly, is to marry the mean-spirited and cunning Lucy Steele.
All, of course, ends happily- but not until Elinor's "sense" and Marianne's "sensibility" have equally worked to reveal the profound emotional life that runs beneath the surface of Jane Austen's immaculate and irresistible art. In its marvelously perceptive portrayal of two young women in love, Sense and Sensibility provides us with all the pleasure we expect from this great novelist-- whose mastery of comedy and satire should never prevent us from responding to her rich, intuitive understanding of the human heart.
This is a reread for me, it's one of my favorite novels of all time. I'm sure if you're a reader of this blog that you know that Colonel Brandon is basically my ideal man. And Edward Ferrars is also a man of remarkable caliber. Who doesn't want to crawl into a Jane Austen novel and live their. I may just review this anyway, because I love it so much.
What are you all planning to read within the next few weeks? And what of the above list would you like to see reviews of?
As always, thanks for reading, dolls!
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