Kisses from Hell Cover!

Did I do a post about this already? I couldn't find one... So there is officially a cover for Kisses From Hell! I'm so excited!

Thoughts?

Prom Nights From Hell

It appears that HarperTeen has re-released Prom Nights From Hell with an all new cover! (right) This cover is very similar to the old one. (left) It has an open rose. The names of the authors on the top instead of the bottom. And I notice that the order of the names is different; this time, instead of Meg Cabot first, Stephenie Meyer is first AND has the line all to herself. Now, her names is long and possibly the longest. (I am not going to count letters. Sorry.) But, I wonder if there's a reason...I'm betting there is. As the author of Twilight, one of the best known books right now, I'd say, she's probably going to sell more books than the others. I mean, let's face it! I read this book before The Twilight Saga was everywhere. It was definitely known, but it was more of a cult thing. Not so much pop culture type thing. Anyway, I really like the new cover and I wonder if they'll go back and do new covers on the other books as well. I do believe this was the first, so it makes sense. I know that the newest one, Kisses from Hell, is similar to the old version. So who knows what this means? I like the old one as well, but I think this cover will sell more. It actually looks similar to the Twilight books...hmm. Red object in the center on a dark background. (This is gray; Twilight is black) and white lettering. Just another thought. And now I'm slightly disappointed in this cover.

I will probably be doing a Sunday Series meme on these covers some time. Probably closer to the release of Kisses from Hell.

Vacations from Hell

published: May 26th 2009

publisher: HarperTeen

format: Paperback

pages: 280

genre: fantasy

Vacations from Hell is an anthology written by five, well-known young adult authors. They include Libba Bray (A Great and Terrible Beauty) Cassandra Clare (City of Bones), Claudia Gray (Evernight), Maureen Johnson (13 Little Blue Envelopes), and Sarah Mlynowski (Bras & Broomsticks).

The following (partial) synopsis comes from amazon.com

Life's a beach . . . and then you're undead?

in this must-have collection, five of today's hottest writers tell supernatural tales of vacations gone awry. Lost luggage is only mildly unpleasant compared to bunking with a witch who holds a grudge. And a sunburn might be embarrassing and painful, but it doesn't last as long as a curse. Of course, even in the most hellish of situations, love can thrive. . . .

From light and funny to dark and creepy, these stories have something for everyone. You definitely won't want to leave this collection at home!

My Thoughts:

The Cover:

I pretty much have the same thing to say about this cover as I did about Love is Hell, it goes very well with the previous Hell anthologies. (Prom Nights from Hell and Love is Hell) I like that they all have the sort of fiery smoke background with a single focal point. This one is a flower that reminds me of traveling, beaches, and summer. I really like this one and I can't wait to find out what will be on the cover of Kisses from Hell (due out in Fall 2010 and I know Alyson Noel has a story called Bring Me to Life (and I believe that Kristin Cast also has a story. I'm not 100% sure on that one though). Maybe it'll be a tube of lipstick? =P

The Book:

I love short stories (still) and I read these in two days. I had to stop because it was early in the morning and when I started the last one, I was still freaked out and that one sounded freaky. It reminded me of a movie that I'd rather NOT think about. Anyway, I will review each story separately.

Crusin' by Sarah Mlynowski

This story was a great opener to this anthology. It's about a girl and her friend (Kristin and Liz) on a cruise by themselves. One girl is trying to find a guy for her first time and they scope out guys and make a new friend (Hailey). What begins as a fun, boy-seeking cruise adventure, eventually turns hellish.

I really enjoyed this one. There were some twists and that's the best part. When something happens that the read wasn't entirely expecting, it makes the book that much better and Sarah did an excellent job on Cruisin'. I've never been on a cruise, but if it's anything like the Cruise to Nowhere that these girls are on (that's really what the cruise is called) then I don't want to go on one!

I Don't Like Your Girlfriend by Claudia Gray

This story is about a girl named Cecily who also happens to be a witch, as is her mother. Every summer her family goes to the beach and meet up with six other families with witches. Cecily's enemy is Kathleen and she's very mean. This summer she brings her boyfriend Scott who is gorgeous and perfect for Cecily. She is convinced Kathleen brought him to spite her and is out to expose her true nature.

I like this because it's different than other witch stories. In this world, men cannot know about the witches. I thought this was very cool and different. I also liked how it ended! But I won't talk about that.

The Law of Suspects by Maureen Johnson

In this story, sisters Charlie and Marylou go to France to stay with their cousin. They think they're going to Paris to see the Eiffel Tower and be touristy, but he sends them to the countryside where he promises to follow. There they discover a hellish story and then begin to live a hellish nightmare.

This story was great! It was so original and I was left completely FREAKED out! I was seriously afraid to read the next one! This wasn't really what I was expecting and that's the beauty of it! I would love to know where a story like this came from.

The Mirror House by Cassandra Clare

This story is about Violet who goes to Jamaica with her mother and new step-brother and step-father. She and her step-brother share a secret that turns out to be beneficial. The cook at the villa warns Violet about the dangers of the beaches, but she doesn't believe her.

This story, also freaked me out! It was extremely cool though. I loved all the different elements of the people in the story and how they all work/fit together in some way. I thought it was well-written and it definitely kept my attention.

Nowhere is Safe by Libba Bray

In this story four friends, Poe, John, Baz, and Izzie go to a town that is said to have traded with the devil in order to prosper. This story was pretty freaky and I enjoyed it. I could totally see this being made into a movie or something. It was creepy and had all kinds of unnatural things going on. It was great. It was definitely well thought out.

Love Is Hell

published: November 25th 2008

publisher: HarperTeen

format: Paperback

pages: 272

genre: fantasy

Love is Hell is an anthology written by five, well-known young adult authors. They include Melissa Marr (Wicked Lovely), Scott Westerfeld (Uglies), Justine Larbalestier (Liar), Gabrielle Zevin (I Was A Teenage Amnesiac) and Laurie Faria Stolarz (Deadly Little Secret).

The following (partial) synopsis comes from Amazon.com:

Sure, love is hell. But it,s totally worth it.

From two students who let the power of attraction guide them to break the hard-and-fast rules of their world to the girl who falls hard for a good-looking ghost with a score to settle, the clever, quirky characters in this exciting collection will break your heart, then leave you believing in love more than ever.

The following synopses come from me.

Sleeping with the Spirit by Laurie Faria Stolarz

This one is about a girl named Brenda who is having realistic nightmares about a boy who she soon finds out is actually the boy who lived in her house and was murdered in it 20 years before. He's been watching her and needs her help with something. Turns out, he's really there in ghost form, but he can only be seen by her in her dreams. They go on a little journey to allow him to move on, but their relationship develops in unexpected ways.

Stupid Perfect World by Scott Westerfeld

This story is a futuristic fantasy that explores the possibility of no health issues, transporters so no one needs to go outside, no raging, teenage hormones. They do however have a class called Scarcity were they learn about the old days when people got colds and had to deal with an annoying little activity known as sleep. The class has a project where they choose something from those days to live and Kieran and Maria choose projects that unexpectedly intertwine where they learn about themselves as well.

Thinner Than Water by Justine Larbalestier

This short story takes place in a town where the villagers live, for the most part, without technology and no one really leaves the town. They have 'trial' marriages beginning at the age of sixteen. Jeannie and Robbie have a 'trial' marriage and everyone is against it saying he's an outsider because he wasn't born there, they believe he's different. That he's a faerie.

Fan Fictions by Gabrielle Zevin

This is a different sort of vampire love story about a girl named Paige and a boy named Aaron. There isn't really much else to say. You'd have to read it.

Love Struck by Melissa Marr

This story is about Selkies. What are Selkies? They're seals that can shed their 'Other-Skin' and look like very beautiful humans. What happens to their 'Other-Skin'? Well, if a human happens upon the skin of the opposite sex they become mates.

My Thoughts:

The Cover:

I think this cover is appropriate for the book. It's fiery and pink! The fire part is very muchshowing the 'hell' part and the pink all for the love. And I really like the heart locket in the center of the cover. It gives us a focal point and it catches my eye. It very much 'goes' with its predecessor Prom Nights From Hell (2007) [right] which includes the authors Meg Cabot (Princess Diaries), Kim Harrison (Once Dead, Twice Shy), Michele Jaffe (Bad Kitty), Stephenie Meyer (Twilight), and Lauren Myracle (TTYL). It has the same concept, but the 'theme' is prom, obviously.

The Book:

I really like short stories and this book has five! So, because there are five different stories, I'll discuss each one briefly.

Sleeping with the Spirit I enjoyed this story because I have not read very many love stories where one of the lovers is actually a ghost. It was original and lovely.

Stupid Perfect World This story was completely original. It was not what I would have expected in this book, but it was what I would think of as a Scott Westerfeld story. It was futuristic and strange, but relatable as well.

Thinner than Water At first, I wasn't completely sold. I didn't know what to expect, but I quickly became attached to the character of Jeannie and wanted her to be happy and get it right. It was a bit of a heart-wrenching story.

Fan Fictions This story may look like a typical, predictable vampire story that you've seen a thousand of, but it's not. I thoroughly enjoyed this one and really empathize with Paige and her experiences with her friends and Aaron.

Love Struck I am a huge mermaid fan and while I know that Selkies are not mermaids, they are similar. This starts out as a creepy feeling story and quickly turns into what the anthology is all about, Love being Hell.

Vacations from Hell (2009) includes the authors Libba Bray (Going Bovine), Cassandra Clare (City of Bones), Claudia Gray (Evernight), Maureen Johnson (13 Little Blue Envelopes), and Sarah Mlynowski (Bras & Broomsticks)

I will be reading it and posting a review in the near future.

I just don't know exactly when. So stay tuned...