Artist of The Week #11

white skirt by ~lian-blackdream

Official Description Of The Pic from the artist:

Digital Art / Drawings / People ©2007-2010 ~lian-blackdream for publishing company

• DeviantArt Account: http://lian-blackdream.deviantart.com/
• PageViews: 386.266
• Current Residence: PR China
• Favourite genre of music: rock
• Email: lian2604@yahoo.com
• MSN: lian2604@hotmail.com

In My Mailbox (5) - Notable Quotables (6)

In My Mailbox #5 - Weekly meme from The Story Siren
The idea is to post the books you got this week, whether you bought them, got them as a gift, from the library, or received them to review.
*Just noticed that the whole mailbox is Yiota -.-

For Review (all Adobe Digital Edition):
Yiota - Masters & Slayers by Bryan Davis (AMG Publishers)
Yiota - Once In A Full Moon by Ellen Schreiber (HarperCollins) - Review was done but will be posted around December
Yiota - Raising Dragons by Bryan Davis (AMG Publishers) -  Click here for the REVIEW
Yiota - The Betrayal of Maggie Blair by Elizabeth Laird (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Yiota - The Oracle Rebounds by Allison van Diepen (Harlequin) -  Click here for the REVIEW
Yiota- Wolf of Trebon by C.L.Lankin (AMG Publishers)

Won (i highly doubt i will read those so if anyone wanna trade feel free to tell me or buy):
Yiota - Claimed by Vicki Lewis Thompson
Yiota - The Conqueror by Kris Kennedy
Yiota - Orchard Valley Brides by Debbie Macomber
Yiota - A Highland Duchess by Karren Ranney
Yiota - Jared by Sarah McCarthy


For Free ( for university but still books):
Yiota - Fundamentals of Database Systems by Ramez Elmasri & Shamkant B. Navathe
Yiota - Applied Electromagnetism by Liang Chi Shen & Jin Au Kong
Yiota - Computer Graphics by Simetria Publications
Yiota - Web Services Platform Architecture by Pearson Education

What did you get this week?

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Notable Quotables is a meme hosted by Bewitched Bookworms.Each time we share a quote we loved and explain why we picked it. Be part of it here: Notable Quotables

"Dad just told me that I'm the son of a dragon!And then he leaves?" - Bill by Raising Dragons, Bryan Davis

picked byYiota

I'm waiting to hear this phrase soon too! It's my dream to have a dragon, be a dragon, meet a dragon. So dear person with the power..please get me a dragon...or at least the letter from Hogwarts!

What's yours today?

The Oracle Rebounds Review

As the “oracle of dating,” Kayla is supposed to have all the answers about love and relationships. She’s supposed to have the perfect relationship. But now that Jared is “taking a step back,” Kayla feels like a total fraud.
So the expert on dating starts taking her own rebound advice—and some from her friends—and stops moping around. Yeah, there are other possibilities out there—including the beyond-cute French foreign exchange student she’s showing around town. But when controversy erupts about the Oracle’s advice, Kayla is sent reeling once again. Will anything work out for her this year? Yet when her friends start seriously needing the Oracle, Kayla begins to focus on what really matters: Viv, Sharese, Amy and Ryan, her trueblue buds. And suddenly, everything starts making sense again… 

REVIEW:
Here we are with a young adult book with no magic from me! I'm surprised myself.

I used to read books like Oracle Rebounds a lot, 2-3 years ago. I liked simple romances of teenage girls and guys and when i saw the book i couldn't resist. 

The book starts with Kayla and Jared break up. Still it's difficult for me to understand why Kayla though he wanted to break up with her. It was pretty obvious he had more to say. And we see to end he indeed had some more things to say. Before be back together again, we follow Kayla's and her firends' love life. They literally live to date, it's the only thing they have in mind. 
The story last as Kayla had count the rebound days for a relationship. And at every chapter we see how many days have passed. The book is small and it's moving really fast if you think how many things happened. It's a pretty weird feeling i had when i was reading it. I couldn't understand the characters..they weren't developed enough for me. You could see their actions and nothing more. New characters last only a chapter but it supposed they changed Kayla's life with their actions. And there is really nothing more than the love life of everyone. I felt like it missed something. It was kinda boring. You don't even get a good look at Kayla's family. Somewhere before the end, Kayla had some problems with her site, Oracle, so the things became more interesting and finally i could see something more from her.

Overall, the book was pretty ok. Small though. If i had read when i was around 15 i know i would have loved it but right now not so much. I guess it's for high school girls. Definetelly not boys. I can't imagine a boy read that.Hehe...And you have read so many romances, books like it look empty. At least that's me.

If anyone else, around my age, have read the book..do you believe the same? I'm really curious.

Thanks Harlequin for providing an ARC for review.

Games/Books That SHOULD be Movies! #3

I know what you will tell me. "But Vampire Academy would be a movie"...well..duhh...its scheduled for 2013 and still not sure. No casting, nothing! In case you don't know what Vampire Academy is...well it's a book with vampires! Suprise Suprise! The bad guys are vampires too! No werewolves in this one. There six books on the series (the last one not out yer) and there will be spin off series too. Not sure what they will be about. Only we know is we will not have the main characters. Anyway..i will keep it in the first book here. Or try too...

Summary:
Vampire Academy is a best selling series of six young-adult paranormal romance novels by American author Richelle Mead. It tells the story of Rosemarie "Rose" Hathaway, a seventeen-year-old Dhampir girl, who is training to be a bodyguard for her Moroi best friend, Vasilisa "Lissa" Dragomir. In the process of learning how to defeat Strigoi (the undead and evil vampires) in St. Vladimir's Academy, Rose finds herself caught in a forbidden romance with her handsome instructor, Dimitri Belikov, while having an unbreakable bond with Lissa.
The book is narrated from Rose's point of view. Having her mysterious bond, she can also see through Lissa's eyes, which enables her to read her mind and feelings. (from wikipedia)
*Yiota adds: It's more than a romance book. It has a big war on the behind and Lissa with Rose are in the middle of it. It's more of the main problem than how Rose will be with Dimitri.

Why it should be movie?
I know you are like "No more vampire movies! And it be a copy of Twilight!" and blah blah...So i guess i have to convince you its better than any other and worth it. Hmmmm....
1. It's not Twilight. And i mean it in any way possible. For me it's the best vampire book i have read because the vampires are how we know them. If i'm right, Mead has bassed her vampires on some read Romanian or Bulgarian myths. They have problem with the sun, they kill, they do not sparkle, they are mean, they kill for fun, they have fallens, you are easily afraid of them, they have powers, they drink blood (all of them!)...what else?
2. It's like something Hogwarts with vampires. Well with far more violence. It's certainly over 17.
3.For the girls: it has a really strong love story - For the boys: it has many killing,battles,action and hot chicks (and the vampires don't sparkle or afraid to get laid with a human girl)
4. It's not a love story. It has background plot. A huge one which is one of things that keep the book active. I mean yeah we all want Dimitri and Rose, but gosh i'm dying for the royal wars and what will happen to Lissa and Rose with their connection.
5. It has element magic. 'Nough said.

Cast:
Rose :       Nina Dobrev
Dimitri:     Ben Barnes
Lissa:       Amanda Seyfried
Christian:  Logan Lerman
Adrian:     Jackson Rathbone
Mia:         Anna Sophia Robb
Mason:     Rupert Grint
Victor:      Ralh Fiennes
Janine:      Alyssa Milano
Natalie:    Anna Kedrick
Eddie:      Steven R. McQueen
Queen:     Nicole Kidman

In case you wanna do it too, feel free to leave your link to Mr.Linky! It's not necessary to do it the same day with us :)

Raising Dragons Review

Raising Dragons is a contemporary fantasy novel that inspires young people to dig deep within to find their God-given strengths and use them to overcome any obstacle. It is both a hair-raising, modern-day adventure and a glimpse into another world—a world of knights, dragons, and fair maidens.

A boy learns of his dragon past; a girl has known of hers for years. They combine their faith, courage, and love to overcome evil, a slayer who seeks to bring an end to dragon heritage, forever.

The kids at school call Billy "Dragon Breath" for good reason. His breath is bad! It isn’t the normal, morning-mouth bad; it’s the hot-as-fire, "don’t-you-dare-get-near-me" bad. Trouble erupts when his hot breath sets off the fire sprinklers in the boys’ restroom at school, and his parents learn that they’ve kept their secret for too long.

Billy finally discovers the secret. His father was once a dragon! Now that’s a piece of news a guy doesn’t deal with every day! Billy feels betrayed, alien, lost. When the dragon slayer traps him on a cold mountaintop in West Virginia, Billy learns to battle with weapons of steel and spirit while relying on a power he doesn’t understand, a power that helps him learn to trust again.

Bonnie, an orphan, tries to find a home, someone to love her, even though she feels like a freak because of a body feature that she calls a deformity. But this unusual feature becomes a life-saving attribute as she discovers that her love for others and her faith in a creator hold the answers she’s looking for. (from the official site)

REVIEW:

Don't tell me you expect to hear more about the plot I mean the official summary is huge enough :P 

So here we have a Christian literature story. When i picked it, i had many many doubts about it. I have my own thoughts for God and stuff so i wasn't really sure if i can read the book. Well, i have to say i enjoy it! The book is written like child's fairytale with all the adventure and magic. I like how it was fast with many turns. The whole story with the dragons turning human and have dragon-kids and the background story with King Arthur create something unique in a way. Even though i guessed the bad guy from the very start it had some really good surprising scenes. It wasn't a cliche story with dragons and princesses,etc. We also follow more than once character's POV. We even see the bad guy when he schedules things, something that most writers like to keep it secret and it was still making me nervous on how will end or what to follow next.

As for the characters they were developed pretty good. We see a perfect image of the main characters and we learn more about the secondary ones as the story goes. But still we not see everything. The story continues so it keeps some things secret.

The only thing i couldn't understand and it was confusing me was the connection between God and all this magic stuff. Like they were dragons in Bible? For me that certain connection didn't work out at all. It didn't convince me.

Anyway, i think the book was a good fairytale. Not in the "wow" category but not in the "nah" one as well. I think the people who will most enjoy the story will be under 18. Not that someone older can't. If i was a parent i would read to my child though. It's a good fantasy start alongside Narnia or Harry Potter.


Thanks AMG Publishers for providing an ARC

Author Interview: Douglas Pearson

Douglas K. Pearson, Michigan native and journeyman, currently winters west of Rockford, MI with his cool bride of 19 years and their three kids. During his summers, he sails his family around the Great Lakes on their ketch, Learnt’s Wake, pilgrimages to Europe and runs a conference or two. He is now working on a novel, Blood Line and helping in the production of the movie, The Frontier Boys.

We had the opportunity to do an interview with him, for his book In Jane (at the end of the post you can find more about it) and finally it's time to share it with you too. You will find some interesting questions about the book progress, the research and many many other things! And guess what..In Jane has a sequel in progress!

It would be amazing if you can share some things from your book. Something more than an official summary.

Some of the great things from Injane came in the form of surprise.  As a writer, I give all my characters a lot of room to come alive and I try not to limit what they say or do.  And with Injane, Jane both surprised and scared me on a consistent basis.  I was always amazed at her perspective towards both people and her environment and how she was able to be so brave despite her harsh memories and experiences.

What inspired you to write it, you took any ideas from other books, games, movies etc?

The novel, Injane, came to me at the intersection of Summit Ave and 13 Mile Road above Rockford, Michigan at the V.F.W. Hall. (The same intersection where I saw a teen do something that inspired my novel, Veterans’ Day!  Wierd!) Injane came to me when I was traveling westbound into a stunning squall line of lightning, black clouds and fierce rain.  I turned to my brother Dave and said, “Wouldn’t it be interesting if we someday discovered that dangerous storms develop whenever angels and demons fight?” The working title for Injane for many years was The Line, indicating the link between spiritual wars and severe weather.  I remembered a well-loved Frank Peretti novel we studied back in Wheaton Graduate School in 1991 called, This Present Darkness.  When I realized the only thing missing between the spiritual world around us and me connecting it to weather was a character, Jane was born!

Did you do any research before start or during of the writing of the book?

The research for Injane took me into the development of storms and into the history of severe storm outbreaks like the following story...   

On March 18, 1925 a huge tornado formed in Missouri, crossed the Mississippi River and moved into Indiana before dissipating in the late evening. It was the most devastating and powerful tornado in American history. The Great Tri-State Tornado grew to be a mile wide along a 219-mile-long path. It left four large towns completely destroyed, flattened over 15,000 homes, and injured over 2,000 people. Most significantly, 695 people were killed, a record for a single tornado. The Great Tri-State Tornado left a legacy that is evidenced by ghost towns, lost ancestors, and stories passed from generation to generation.

http://blogs.woodtv.com/?p=1561 Bill’s Blog

... and as a life-long sailor on the Great Lakes and captain of Learnt’s Wake (soon to be featured in Cruising World Magazine), I’ve always paid great attention to weather and its power.  As to Jane’s suffering, I did go back to some of my notes from my 3rd novel, Day of the Dog, which took me into the disturbing territory of Criminal Sexual Conduct.  I researched this topic quite a bit while teaching at Michigan’s maximum security prison for teenage felons charged as adult men.  But as to actual pre-research done before writing Injane? I must say that I did very little.  This is because my novels are character based and I rarely know which direction they will take me.

Which scenes were the hardest to write?

The scenes in Injane that were the hardest to write were some of the scenes that didn’t make into the final book, the one currently out for publication and perhaps that is for the best.  It may not be necessary for the readers to see all of Jane’s suffering and her descents from situations beyond her control are rare and disturbing.  It is also important, however, to know that her insights and bravery come on the heels of her great suffering and the current released copy is honest with this.  I see Billy Graham’s statement as true, ‘God rarely uses people that haven’t suffered deeply.’ As to the horror of the war between God and Satan that she can observe? I got little sound sleep during those writing episodes and at least one blood-curling yell still echoes in my home when a hand touched my shoulder at 3am while I was writing.  That one or two seconds of terror that erupted before I realized it was my wife’s hand, lasted a long, long time!

How long has it taken you to write it?

Injane as novel was written in about two or three weeks.  I live myself deep into my novels and they always come out pretty quick and of course, I believe that they all are masterpieces.  I make doubly sure that my family is ready for me to write a novel because I’m a disaster when I write, burying my desk in food, beard dandruff (oops!  Too much info!)  I now know that I have to sit on a completed novel for a year of so before I can finish them.  Letting them bake makes me not so attached to the characters or cutesy stupid stuff that found it’s way into the narrative.  Stephen King said it best in his book, On Writing, “Murder your darlings!”

What’s the best part of writing a book for you?

The best part of writing Injane is how it taught me to believe in my characters, even when they have baggage that isn’t popular or have abilities that are for the most part are unbelievable.  It is vital to realize that what Jane saw, I saw.  How she was beaten, I was there too.  And even though I was unable to rescue her from the scenes, I trusted that her future would somehow bring redemption through her struggles.

If you could pick another genre to write about, which one will be?

The genre of fiction is my genre.  And the ages of my characters at this point in my writing career seems to be some of the greatest ages of tension and honesty.  Injane, by its nature, forced the characters to deal with some basic understandings of spiritual warfare when some of my other novels never touch the subject.  One of my novels, Coffin Light, for example has many opportunities for spiritual insights, but the characters weren’t interested in thinking that way.  Not interested at all.

Did you have support at the beginning and/or during your writing?

I have a lot of support for being a writer.  I keep getting fired from normal teaching jobs and writing for a living keeps getting thrusted upon me!  And of course, my wife, kind of ‘digs’ my imagination and although she throws my manuscripts across the room once in while and yells, ‘this is not the man I married!’ I always know she supports and loves a good story.  I tribute my wife, my late father and my in-laws for believing and supporting me during those long years when times were tougher.

Did you always had in mind to be a writer or it just happened?  

I am a constant reader.  I read both ‘brainer’ and ‘no-brainer’ books equally and ironically, seem to appreciate them both.  I am currently writing the sequel to Injane.  It’s working title is Blood Line and it is her search for her roots.  Injane, as some may have understood from its beginning, links Jane’s ability to see in the dark to her earliest memories when she was slotted to be aborted.  I’m currently battling with the facts of this controversial social issue as they keep trying to invade Blood Line and reduce it to a Social Action Novel or Agenda Novel.  I believe an ounce of propaganda can ruin a masterpiece.  And I keep having to be honest with my discoveries even though the realities of such topics are just plain dangerous.

What’s book genre do you usually read?

The book genre I mainly read is fiction.  The Dome, Theodore Boone, any Louis L’Amour I can get my hands on were last September’s reading.

How important you find the communication between you and your readers? Do you reply to their messages or read their reviews?

The connection and communication between me and my readers is the stuff of legends and I love every second of it.  Currently on Facebook, two of my characters from Coffin Light have somehow created their own Facebook Profiles and are hacking on any readers who dare comment on the Coffin Light Group Site.  I enjoy watching the sparks, especially when some of my former students make comments about the book without reading it!  But Coffin Light deals with racism, and that topic seems to be raising its ugly head around Michigan of late.  I also hold low key meetings and talks for those who follow my novel, The Dead Sea Souls.  The novel is officially released around this Halloween, and deals with one families journey through an apocalyptic genocide.  It’s not a light read and I took a vow never to do another edit because it only makes me want to buy more guns, food and ammunition! 

Are you working on any other projects except writing, right now?

Projects that are taking my time right now that are outside of my writing business, douglaskpearson.com is my adventure company, Storymakers, which uses my storytelling ability to run team building exercises for companies.   In the summertime, Learnt’s Wake LLC, my sailing business aboard my old Irwin 52 also runs team building exercises in between my family cruises!

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From the days where children look out at their new world through crib bars, Jane sees two worlds at once. Diagnosed schizophrenic by the clinical profession and insane by her peers, she bounces around in a foster care jungle until landing in Michigan at age 17.

When activity in her invisible world begins to intensify, Jane finds herself caught in a maelstrom; a turbulent story where good and evil can only be deciphered by access to both worlds.

Buy it Pot-Boilers.com

Official Site

Read the first chapter here!

Thanks Douglas Pearson and Shantel Vander Galien  for the interview

 

 

Our first Affiliate: My Love Affair With Books

As you may already noticed from the sidebars we have our first affiliate. Our first partnership. We welcome lovely Misha with her blog, My Love Affair With Books in our company! Misha is one of our most supportive followers and she has one of the best blogs i have seen. I'm really proud to be friend with her! Her blog is about books from many genres. She updates it daily! There are also part of many weekly memes to get to know her better and have fun around. There are giveaways and most important there are reviews. Like today she posted like three book reviews!Talk about book food and fast reading huh? You should go and check out her blog and support her as you do with us.
As an affiliate we will RT most of her tweets for you, you have easy access on her blog by our sidebar and of course her giveaways are on our main page as well! So we will make sure you will not miss a thing!

Once again welcome Misha and big thanks for letting us be your first affiliate too!^^

My Love Affair With Books

Twitter: http://twitter.com/Misha_1989

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=630067989

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3809685

Formspring: http://www.formspring.me/misha1989

50 Followers Giveaway Winner!

 We have our first winner! Congrats to #334

Lu - ch*****x@hotmail.com

You won a book of your choice! :D You have 48 hours to claim your award or new winner will be picked. An e-mail has be sent to you with more info. Just in case, check your Junk Box ;)

Also i decided that somewhere between 150-200 GFC followers i will do another International giveaway so stay tuned! ^^

Big thanks to everyone who took part and promote our giveaway! You rock guys! :)

Book VS Movie #2:The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

Story Summary: Pippa is on her 50s while her husband on his 80s. She has two kids that are grown up and start their own lives. The story starts when Pippa and her husband move on the suburbs. Their lives change and Pippa starts to wonder if she took the right decisions for her life as she rewinds her childhood and teenage years before she end up married with kids. Meanwhile, her neighbor's son returns home and shakes Pippa's world with his character.


Where the book wins: There are more details. You can understand how Pippa was feeling and what have happened in her life with more details. There are more events and more characters that in the movie would be tiring, but in the book were connecting dots about Pippa's life.
Publised at 2008.





Where the movie wins: They say a picture is 1000 words. You can see the people and the places if you couldn't understand the book. There are great actors that match with the characters and some events are passing in frond of your eyes much easier than the book.
Released at 2009.

Final Winner: It's a Tie. Seriously, there are almost the same.

In case you've seen the movie and read the book, do you agree with me?

We Listen: Speak Now by Taylor Swift

Yesterday i got Taylor Swift's 3rd album which was released the previous weekend. After all her success with the previous album and the sold out tours everyone was waiting for it. At least the fans of that genre. Once again she continues with the "love story" related songs something that i found a bit boring. Many of her songs are alike in lyrics or music. Most of them ballads and not really country. She is getting a bit pop. I believe none of her latest albums are as great as the 1st one but she is still good. And she wrote all the songs by herself. Pretty awesome. The fact is that the last days i hear the album again and again til i get really bored :P

I decided to do "first thought in mind" for the songs of the album. Better summary for the cd ;)

1. Mine - I so love the video!
2. Sparks Fly - don't get the fuss over the song
3. Back to December - written for Taylor Lautner aka Jacob at Twilight
4. Speak Now - Hate it!
5. Dear John - Fall asleep in the middle
6. Mean - My new addiction! <3
7. The Story of Us - Pop but i like its sound!
8. Never Grow Up - Parents' Song
9. Enchanted - Boring :/
10. Better Than Revenge - Remind me of Avril Lavigne
11. Innocent - Bliah! She did sang that at MTV Awards right?
12. Haunted - The best from the album
13. Last Kiss - Nahhh....
14. Long Live - Has the word "dragons" in it! woot!

B-Sides:
1. Ours - Cute lyrics
2. If This Was A Movie - Lovely background music
3. Superman - wtf?
4. Back To December Acoustic - It's ok
5. Haunted Acoustic - HOLY SHIT! WOW! LOVE LOVE!


In case you got it too what do you think?

Series We Loved: The Mountain

The plot centers on a ski resort run by Will Carver. When his grandfather dies, Will discovers that the resort has been left to his brother David, an irresponsible layabout who returns to pick up the reins. There is familial conflict over the resort and over Maria, a woman who previously dated David, but then Will. Additional conflict comes from the efforts of land developer Colin Dowling and his attractive daughter, Max, who falls for David.
REVIEW:
The mountain is a normal show, with a little drama and a small dose of humor and secret romance. It also includes love triangles and teenage pregnancies. The story is about a guy who returns in his home town and find out that his brother not only became the director of the ski resort that their family owns, but also he's dating his ex-girlfriend. As he tries to find his place back in the family, they all have to deal with someone rich who wants to buy their company. That was the drama part. The secret romance part is all over the show. You will understand it by yourselves. The last episode is not what you expect. It's not epic, with happy endings. It leaves you with lots of questions about the characters. But it also spreads a message about real-life situations. I, personally, loved the end just because it was simple and because they didn't thought of making something extraordinary. Generally, it was a nice show that I really liked.
Now, there is only one season (2004-2005), and because of the low ratings it was cancelled after the 13th episode.

Artist of The Week #10

Coming of Dragons Cover by *kerembeyit

Official Description Of The Pic from the artist:

Digital Art / Paintings & Airbrushing / Fantasy ©2010 *kerembeyit This is the cover art that I made for the book named The Coming of Dragons: The Darkest Age Volume 1 by A.J. Lake I made this one for the German Edition by Ravensburger. The Editor gave me a complete freedom and I paid her back by giving it all my love I hope you like it as well. I made another one for the volume two and I`ll send it soon. --- Photoshop CS2, Cintiq 12WX © 2010 Ravensburger

• DeviantArt Account: http://kerembeyit.deviantart.com/
• PageViews: 2.112.372
• Current Residence: Turkey - Ankara
• Interests: Drawing, Painting, Smoking
• Favourite movie: Carlito's Way, True Romance, Big Lebowski, Rec
• Favourite band or musician: Faith No More, Marcus Miller, Tal Wilkenfeld, The Band
• Favourite artist: Wayne Reynolds, Jim Murray, Raymond Swanland, Ian McCaig, Todd Lockwood
• Favourite poet or writer: Ihsan Oktay Anar, Philip Dick, Aziz Kedi
• Favourite photographer: Otisagabey, Earl Miller
• Favourite style of art: Illustration, Cover Art, Promotional Art, Concept Design
• Favourite cartoon character: Mr. No, Ken Parker, Conan, Corto Maltese, Daredevil
• Personal Quote: "If you have a message, use Western Union.” Jack Warner
• Tools of the Trade: Adobe Photoshop CS2, Cintiq 12WX, SmudgeGuard
• Website: http://theartofkerembeyit.com
• Email: kerembeyit@hotmail.com

In My Mailbox (4) - Notable Quotables (5)

In My Mailbox #4 - Weekly meme from The Story Siren
The idea is to post the books you got this week, whether you bought them, got them as a gift, from the library, or received them to review.


Bought:
Nina - Last Night at Chateau Marmont by Lauren Weisberger
Yiota - Vampirates:Empire Of The Night by Justin Somper
Yiota - Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan
Yiota - The Way of Shadows: The Night Angel Trilogy: Book 1 by Brent Weeks

Won:
Yiota - Wanting Seila Dead by Jane Haddam

What did you get this week?

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Notable Quotables is a meme hosted by Bewitched Bookworms.Each time we share a quote we loved and explain why we picked it. Be part of it here: Notable Quotables

"You didn't see it?" said the Prince of Krondor as he regarded his youngest son and the Squire from Ludland."How could you miss the biggest warship in the Drodorian fleet when it was less than a hundred feet away!" - Arutha by The King's Buccaneer, Raymond E.Feist

picked byYiota

For starters, 100 feet is about 30 meters. Just in case. I picked this quote for two reasons. Firstly, King's Buccaneer is my fav book from my favourite author ( i have about 17 books of the series. Still goin on...) and i wanted to share something of him with you. Secondly, Arutha and his young son Nicholas are both at my top 10 fav characters. Nicholas is my at top 5 actually. And of course it's one of the scenes i laughed really hard. Yeah..they fall on the ship with their sailing boat. The sailors almost got a heart attack thinking they killed the prince..<3

What's yours today?

Eon: Rise of the Dragoneye Review

Two swords, angled for slicing, came whirring towards my chest. My block was simple: a step of the back leg, a shift of weight, my right sword joining the left in front of me, cutting side slanted down. His blades hit mine. The impact resonated through my arm bones.
Does young Eon have the power to become a Dragoneye? His ruthlessly ambitious master believe he does. Now the years of gruelling training will be put to the test: it’s time for the terrifying Rat-Dragon to choose his next apprentice.
In a spectacular sequence of events, Eon is catapulted into the opulent but treacherous world of the imperial court. But Eon is playing a dangerous game: he is in fact Eona, a young woman whose true identity must remain hidden, for discovery would mean instant death.
Inspired by the rich myths and traditions of Ancient China, shimmering with energy dragons and fraught with tension, this is a fast-paced, exhilarating page-turner.

REVIEW:
Finally...a good fantasy book. I really missed them. Firstly, something you need to know it's i'm crazy for dragons. So the odds to not like the book were almost none. But you never know of course.

So here i am with Eon at my hands. I was pretty hyped about the book. I fall in love with the story from the summary only. The whole thing, was placed in a world like ancient China. It doesn't exist but you can see similarities, like the places or how they dressed. It's a pretty exotic place and you are getting a perfect idea of the world. Sometimes the details are much in a way that they go on for a page or so, but still the world it's so interesting that's not really tiring. The book is pretty big but it goes so fast that you don't really notice it.There are so many things going on! I didn't expect that much. I was thinking it would be more of Eon's training. I finished it really quickly and i was like "wtf? i need more!".

The book is full action, magic, fights, power. Everything that makes a fantasy book look good. That i noticed is that there is no romance in it but my girly nose can smell it appear in the next book. Not that i have problem! Didn't really care. I was so anxious about how the story will go on, in the whole book that i didn't even had time to think about other things or if it could be better (believe it doesn't need something more though). Important fact! It is NOT predictable. It's has some really surprising moments that you didn't even thought that will happen. That means a lot for me. Especially since the last "dragon" related book i had in my hands was Eragon's series which are so freaking annoying predictable. Another good thing is that the various characters who appear, which are many, presented when they have to and you are not getting confused or forgetting anyone in the way.

As for Eon is me. Seriously, if i was in that world i would be like her. She has the same ideas, thoughts and reactions like i would have so you can guess i was really one with the book. She was sympathetic, afraid, funny, shy...And still at the end of the book, she is nervous on what we will happen next. I believe she is one of the best fantasy characters i have read. She might be the chosen one, but she is not getting the perfect thing in just a month or so who everyone believes in. There are doubts for her even at the end of the book. Just because she stays human, as she was before the change. Making her real as a character.

Right now, i can't wait for Eona! The second and final book of the series. I think i will go re-read the book once more. Already miss it.

Oh! Something that i found pretty weird is that the book has different titles and covers in every place which was released. At first i didn't know what i had to buy. Lol...At last i got the one with the title "The Two Pearls Of Wisdom".

Games/Books that SHOULD be movies! #2

This time i will write for a book. Just so you ppl out there dont think that I dont read. I do read...often...sometimes...a bit....on some occasions...rarelly... ANYWAY! Focus here people....PEOPLE! HEY!...over here! Yes follow the colourfull image. No dont...I...ITS NOT FOOD!...no you cant smell it either! its a picture for pete's sake!. Anyway...Uhm...here...people...please....just listen for a while then you can go eat...No there is no hamburgers....yes we have cookies....the food stand is on your right as you exi...NO people! stay! Im not gonna bore you I swear!.....sigh....ok so its just me and........a dog....Well animal audience is better than no audience. So i will begin this post. As you see here the book i chose, make it more like a trilogy apparently is the Bartimaeus Trilogy....nice...now im talking to myself, even the dog left. WELL IM GONNA FINISH THIS POST NO MATTER WHAT!



Book synopsis: The book is an interesting and dark approach to the world of mages. The world is our world, in a way, but also NOT our world. Although the countries and scenery are the same as our world, due to the existance of the Mage's things are not like our current world. For instance England is an empire streching through a large part of Europe for instance, America is a province of wild tribes etc etc. Now, the first thing that drew me in this book was the approach it did to wizards. Stand aside goodhearted Harry Potter, eat dirt noble Dumbledore, cos those wizards, are self righteous bastards, arrogant snobs and frankly i wanted to punch them all in the face. The mages are the monarchs of the world and they actually consider all those that are NOT wizards, as inferior beings with their sole role to serve them. Interesting yes? Well it IS since im all alone in here talking to an empty theater. Another thing that also kept me from not burning the book due to the disslike of the mages was.....wait im not supposed to do a review right?....well DUH look at the tittle!!

Why it should be a movie:

FINE! now im arguing with my own self. Anyways lets get to bussiness. The book focuses around 2 (at the first book) and then 3 characters. Nathaniel, a young ambitious and pretty powerfull wizard, a genie (demon) called Bartimaeus (bet you didnt see that comming), and finally Kate a plain human of the resistance. The book has an interesting plot, that enfolds with some years in between the books, switching to 3rd person views whenever it describes what Nathaniel and Kate are doing, and on 1st person view, whenever Bartimaeus describes things from his point of view. The book has some amazing laugh scenes, especially with Bartimaeus. You literally stop reading to laugh. I think it would be an amazing movie due to its different approach to wizards, and demons. So long good wizards that want to save the world, and evil demons that wish to end it. Here is a contraversal, dark and, well lets face it, more realistic approach to the fantasy world. Interesting twists, and an end that made me feel really sad. (Hell i got so emotionall i almost shed a few tears). I believe if the book isnt mutilated and butchered in its process as a movie, will be a more dark and pleasant break from the usuall Harry Potter themed fantasy worlds.

Cast.....i really hate this part, but since no one is around i might go for it

Nathaniel: Kris Marshall, Skandar Keynes

Kate: Sarah Silverman, Mara Wilson (i know she grew up, but I dont really care :P)

Bartimeus: tough one, he shapeshifts, but as his Ptolemy version i would go for Ben Barnes

well those are the main, if i start putting every single character in the cast. i would as well make the movie :P. Anyway, rate, comment, throw things at it, buy the book, eat a sandwitch, below

Books VS Movies: Inkheart

Story Summary: Meggie’s father, Mo, has an wonderful and sometimes terrible ability. When he reads aloud from books, he brings the characters to life--literally. Mo discovered his power when Maggie was just a baby. He read so lyrically from the the book Inkheart, that several of the book’s wicked characters ended up blinking and cursing on his cottage floor. Then Mo discovered something even worse--when he read Capricorn and his henchmen out of Inkheart, he accidentally read Meggie’s mother in.
Meggie, now a young lady, knows nothing of her father's bizarre and powerful talent, only that Mo still refuses to read to her. Capricorn, a being so evil he would "feed a bird to a cat on purpose, just to watch it being torn apart," has searched for Meggie's father for years, wanting to twist Mo's powerful talent to his own dark means. Finally, Capricorn realizes that the best way to lure Mo to his remote mountain hideaway is to use his beloved, oblivious daughter Meggie as bait!

Where The Book Wins:
The biggest difference between the book and the movie is the action scenes and the characters. You get to know and unite with the characters much more in the book and live in their world too. The action scenes have a bit more violence than the movie, and feel more dangerous. Plus, the book continues the story with two more books when the movie gives the story a different ending and stops.

Published at 2003

Where The Movie Wins:
Firstly, it gives real life to the characters. The casting is almost perfect, especially for the role of Mo. If i'm right, even at the book says that the author had pictured Brendan Frasher as Mo. The story of the book became reality without big changes (except the ending) and is really good they sticked up to that. The special effects and the music, create the world in the book as it was imagined and sometimes even better. Also where sometimes the book is getting boring with the details, the movie make the details enjoyable by giving you a fast tour of the Inkheart world without tiring you.

Released at 2008

Final Winner: The Inkheart Movie

In case you have seen the movie too or read the book, do you agree with our final winner?

21, Review

Looking for a way to pay for tuition, Ben Campbell finds himself quietly recruited by MIT's most gifted students in a daring plot to break Vegas. With the help of a brilliant statistics proffesor and armed with fake ID's, intelligence and complicated system of counting cards, Ben and his friends succeed in breaking the impenetrable casinos. Now, his challenge is keeping the numbers straight and staying one step ahead of the casinos before it all spirals out of control.

REVIEW:
This is an old movie (from 2008). It's based on true events and on a book, which are the main reasons I saw it. I haven't read the book, but I will someday.

The story is telling about a young guy which is genius in maths (the exact opposite than me) and goes to the MIT University. But he has financial problems and he wouldn't be able to afford the tuition for the Harvard Medical School. A proffesor finds out his genius brain and decides to take him on a small group of his. He owns a group of five students which teach them how to count cards. He gets them every weekend on casinos so they can win money. Their little plan works fine until the young guy falls in love with blackjack and becomes greedy as a result a chief security finds them after a big win and decides to bring them down.

The directing part was really good, since you are able to see many casinos in Las Vegas, such as Hard Rock Cafe Casino, Red Rock Casino and Planet Hollywood. About the actors and actresses:
Jim Sturgges was the main character and he did great. His character was the most complex and had more problems than the others.
Kate Bosworth was to different from her role in Win A Date With Tad Hamilton. Not that innocent and much sexier.
Laurence Fishburne had a role suitable for him. He was the chief security and he was harsh and tricky.
Kevin Spacey was the teacher of the students who learned them his secrets, since he used to count cards by himself, but he got caught.

I liked the movie a lot. The actors and actresses were really good. And you didn't even care about the fact that the original people were all Asian-American. As I said the events are true. MIT is close to Las Vegas and the directors took special measures to protect their casinos after that event e.g. now counting cards is illegal.