Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme put together by Broke and Bookish where we put together a list of top tens.  This is my first one, and I just had to today because the top ten is:

Top Ten (pick a genre) books!  So I decided to go with Dystopian and Post-Apocalyptic since that's what I'm reading this month! Here we go!

10.  Inside Out by Maria V Snyder

This book had a really good ending, and lots of plot twists.  I am giving it place #10 mainly because the first half of the book was kind of hard to get through.  The ending made it worth reading, though!

9. Birthmarked by Caugh M O'Brien

This book was a very different take on a dystopian.  I can't wait to read the rest of the series!

8.  Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

This book was so good!  I didn't like the sequel nearly as much, but watching the two worlds collide was so suspenseful!  I was almost jumping up and down by the end of it, when everything came together!

7.  Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

You can't have a dystopian list without this book on the list!  A classic, and one of the reasons we have a dystopian genre!

6.  Wither by Lauren DeStefano

This series is very good.  Its really easy to get lost in this world.  Loved the characters, and lots of plot twists. The sequel, Fever, is just as good.

5.  Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Just recently read this book, and loved it!  This one is different, because its a dystopian, but also a fairy tale re-make!

4.  Enclave by Ann Aguirre

This one hasn't gotten as much buzz, which surprises me.  Its dark and violent, and not hard to imagine at all.  And the romance in it is top-notch!

3.  Matched by Ally Condie

I love this series!  A lot of people didn't like it, because they felt the reading was too simple.  It gets more intense the farther you get in, and I think that mirrors Cassia's journey.  What I love best about this series is you never really know too much about the Society, and what's really happening at the top.  It makes it feel like you are right there with Cassia!

2.  Divergent by Veronica Roth

This won on Goodreads "Best book of 2011", voted by readers.  You can't say enough good things about this book.  Its full of action, great characters, and the writing is superb.  Can't wait for Insurgent to get here!

1.  The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

 I don't really need to say to much about this series I think!  The fact that its still #1 to me after all the newer dystopian books I've read..says it all!  If you haven't read these books, I don't know what's wrong with you!  (jk!)  Seriously, go and read them now!

What Are You Reading Monday #2

What Are you Reading Monday is a meme put on by Book Journey where we put out our weekly reading list to share with others.  Its been a busy week for me!

Finished reading last week

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Lenobia's Vow by PC & Kristin Cast

Afterlife by Claudia Gray

Enclave by Ann Aguirre

Currently Reading

All's Fair in Vanity's War by Elizabeth Marx

Legend by Marie Lu

Hoping to read this week

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupa

Prized by Caraugh M O'Brien

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Have a great reading week!

Shelf Candy Saturday #2

Shelf Candy Saturday is put on by Five Alarm Book Reviews where you pick a book cover you love to showcase and explain what you like about it.  My pick today is Fated by Alyson Noel.

Since this cover was released last week, I have been in love with it!  I love the colors, and the girl is so pretty.  I love how her hair is all wild, too!  The dreamcatcher earrings are awesome, it gives it a Native American flair.  I can't wait to read this book, just based on the cover!

What covers are you digging right now?

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Synopsis:  16 year old Cinder is considered a technological mistake by most of society and a burden by her stepmother.  Being cyborg does have its benefits, though; Cinder's brain interface has given her an uncanny ability to fix things, making her the best mechanic in New Beijing.  This reputation brings Prince Kai himself to her weekly market booth, needing her to repair a broken android before the annual ball.  He jokingly calls it "a matter of national security," but Cinder suspects its more serious than he's letting on.

Although eager to impress  the prince, Cinder's intentions are derailed when her younger stepsister, and only human friend, is infected with the fatal plague that's been devastating Earth for a decade.  Blaming Cinder for her daughter's illness, Cinder's stepmother volunteers Cinder's body for plague research, an "honor" that no one has survived.

But it doesn't take long for the scientists to discover something unusual about their new guinea pig.  Something others would kill for.

My 2 cents: The synopsis dragged me into this story.  But it doesn't even cover the half of it!  I loved this book, I read it in 2 sittings!

First of all, I need to explain Cinder a little bit.  This story is obviously taking place in the future.  After the 4th World War, most of the planet is destroyed.  The main country that the story focuses on is called the Commonwealth, and its center is Beijing, now called New Beijing.  And its a bit of a mess.  The plague has been raging for a decade, the Emperor has taken ill with it; and Prince Kai is desperate for a cure for his father.  In the future, there are cyborgs.  They are part mechanical; but mostly human.  Society in general does not think of these creatures as human though, and are treated as low class citizens.  Cinder is almost all cyborg.  I think in the book it says 36% of her make-up is cyborg.  She became one when she was 11 and in a horrible car accident.  Her parents were killed, and to repair her body the surgeons made her a cyborg.  She doesn't remember anything before she was 11; apparantly her hippocampus in her brain was damaged in the accident.  She actually came from Europe.  An inventor adopted her after her surgery and took her back to the Commonwealth with him; shortly after he died, leaving her with a cruel stepmother.  

The other huge part of the story is the Lunars.  A moon colony was established awhile ago; the humans there transcended into a new species called Lunars.  They have their own society.  There has been talk of war between Earth and the Lunars for generations, and now is a critical point in history.  Queen Levana rules Lunar, and she is EVIL.  The biggest advantage Lunars have is they can use "glamour" to make people see and believe things that aren't true.  Animosity between humans and lunars is very high.

Cinder was the best part of this book.  Her character was awesome.  By the end of the book, you felt like a cyborg, too.  The author's way of writing it was so clever.  We would occasionally get the messages in the text that Cinder was getting on her screen for her brain interface. Here's an example of some text.  Cinder is in her workshop with her android friend, Iko:

"Iko's speakers made a coarse grumbling noise, the closest she could get to a groan.  "What about it?"

"Its going to take all our time and money to fix it up."

"No. Cinder!  Tell me you're joking."

Cinder was recording a mental list as she shut the storage compartment and rolled down her pant leg.  The words scrolled across her vision.  GET CAR.  ASSESS CONDITION.  FIND PARTS.  DOWNLOAD WIRING BLUEPRINT.  ORDER GASOLINE.

She spotted Kai's android on her worktable.  FIX ANDROID.

"I am serious."  "

All the other characters are fabulous, too.  Kai is dreamy.  I'm hoping we get to know him more later in the series.  The plot was very inventive.  It loosely follows the story of Cinderella, but in a future dystopian society kind of way.   There of course is a few twists, but the major one I was able to figure out very early in the story.  I think that is my only complaint....it was too easy to figure it out.  But there are other smaller twists that I had no clue about.

Regardless of that, this book is definitely worth reading. I give it 4 stars!

Feature And Follow Fridays #2

Feature & Follow Friday is put on by Parajunkee for all of us bloggers to network with each other a bit and answer a question.  Todays Question is:

Q: Have you ever looked at book’s cover and thought, This is going to horrible? But, was instead pleasantly surprised? Show us the cover and tell us about the book.

 For me, its was the Sookie Stackhouse series.  (True Blood on HBO)  I thought all the covers looked so cheesy.  These are the first three.  But the books were surprisingly good, and they seem to get better and better.  I've read up through #8 at this point.  The covers don't bother me as much as they used to...but they are still not my favorite!

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren where we show off what books we've received this week.  My haul is pretty good!

From the bookstore:  The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks, Maze Runner by James Dashner, Rosebush by Michele Jaffe, Once Dead Twice Shy by Kim Harrison

       

From Amazon:

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

From the library:

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Legend by Marie Lu

Prized by Caugh M O'Brien

Also received for review:
The Merchant's Daughter by Melanie Dickerson
Halflings by Heather Burch
The Peculiars by Maureen Doyle McQuerry
All's Fair In Vanity's War by Elizabeth Marx

Lenobia's Vow by PC & Kristin Cast

This is from the House of Night series.  This is Novella #2

Synopsis:  Lenobia's Vow tells the gripping story behind the House of Night's enigmatic riding instructor – and one of Zoey’s closest allies against evil

The House of Night is an international publishing sensation; with almost 12 million books in print, and an incredible 120 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, the series has taken the world by storm. Now, the excitement continues as the Cast mother-daughter duo shares the back stories of a few of the House of Night's most important – and mysterious – characters. The second of the House of Night Novellas brings us Lenobia, the strong, beautiful horseback riding instructor, who guides Zoey through some of her darkest hours, and has a dark secret buried in her own past...

In a small southern town at the turn of the century, young Lenobia is developing into a beautiful young woman with ideas of her own. But when she is Marked as a fledgling vampyre, her world turns upside down, and she is drawn to the musical streets of New Orleans. There, she learns of the city’s dark underbelly, ruled by powerful black magic. As Lenobia experiences her first love – and loss – and discovers a passion for horses to sustain her, she must come face-to-face with Darkness itself. And she may not escape without scars.

My 2 cents:  

This was a great novella! I am loving the House of Night Novellas, Dragon's Oath was equally good! Because it takes place late 1700s, the language is beautiful. I loved the way the words painted a picture. Every word was perfect, it was like poetry!

Lenobia is one of my favorite House of Night instructors.  She is in charge of the stables and horses at House of Night, and teaches the fledglings how to ride.  She is Zoey's closest ally in the House of Night, and has not fallen for Neferet's evil.  I knew the back story on her would be intriguing.

Because she does meet with true evil in this novella, it makes sense as to why later she can see right through Neferet.  Since in the last House of Night book, there was a small start of romance for Lenobia, I can see why after reading this novella why she is so hesitant when it comes to love.  

This was a great novella with a fascinating back story to one of my favorite characters at House of Night.  4 stars from me!