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.

Radiance Cover

Wow! More exciting news over on Tales From the OC (Really!) by author Alyson Noel.

The absolutely beautiful cover for her new series has been released to the public. Woo hoo! The new series is a spin-off of her bestselling series, The Immortals. This is about Ever's sister Riley and her life and adventures in the afterlife. The cover is totally gorgeous. You can read her post here and check out a summary on The Immortals Series official website here. Just click on "Radiance".

This cover very beautifully illustrates a scene in Evermore that we hear about and I'm so excited to be able to SEE it.

Radiance hits stores August 31st 2010!

Dark Flame Cover

Okay, I am so excited! Alyson Noel, author of The Immortals Series, has posted a new blog post on her blog, Tales From the Real OC (Really!). This post is about her upcoming book Dark Flame, number four in the well-loved series.

The cover is gorgeous! It goes really well with the previous covers. I was especially curious to see the color. Evermore is purple, Blue Moon is blue (naturally!) and Shadowland is red.

I also wanted to see the main item featured. Evermore has two red tulips (I love tulips). Blue Moon has the orb. And Shadowland as the protective necklace of stones that the name of has slipped my mind!

I am so excited for this book. There is a link to the summary of the novel on her blog post here.

Dark Flame hits stores on July 6th 2010!

Beautiful Creatures

author: Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

published: December 1st 2009

publisher: Little, Brown and Company

format: Hardcover

pages: 563

genre: fantasy

The following synopsis comes from the official Beautiful Creatures website

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she’s struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps, and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town’s oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

My Thoughts:

The Cover:

This is a beautiful cover. It is the first thing I noticed about the book and it grabbed my attention immediately. The text for the title is unlike any I've seen before. I love that the title is in a unique font as well as purple and shiny. The title is the focal point on the cover which is not usually the case. At least I don't think it is. The picture is trees. They are shiny silver, but not at all overpowering. The entire outside of the book is shiny. And I really like that. I think it's a good attention getter. I saw this cover and needed to know what the book was about, and with a name like Beautiful Creatures I was hooked.

The Book:

I was a little worried because the book is 563 pages. The last book I read that was that long was a Harry Potter book (and now Anna Karenina) and it was not the first in a series. I wasn't sure if it would drag on or if it would all be worth it. It was all worth it.

This is a unique world with great characters that I wanted to see succeed. Lena is an outsider and Ethan is not, but he doesn't really feel like he completely belongs. Ethan befriends her and together they go on an adventure where they learn about themselves and their past. It's an exciting story that takes the reader into a different world.

I was surprised that the book is told from Ethan's point of view. I was expecting it to be "the girl" mentioned on the inside flap, because many, if not all, of the fantasy/sci-fi romantic books I've read have been told from a female perspective. I found this to be refreshing. I really enjoyed reading from his side of everything.

I highly recommend Beautiful Creatures.

One more thing that I LOVED about this story is that on the website for the book you can download two songs (well, two versions of the same song-Sixteen Moons) that Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl wrote for the book. It is featured in the book and you can listen to it all the way at the bottom of the home page of the Beautiful Creatures website.

This is the trailer for the book:

WWW Wednesdays

This is a meme where the blogger (that's me) answers three questions. It is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

• What are you reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you'll read next?

So here we go!

I am currently reading Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy for my upcoming AP Lit class.

I recently finished reading Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl. (Review coming soon!)

I am planning on reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest next (for my AP Lit class)

and I'm reading Bleeding Violet on the side. Sort of. It's next. I've started it, but didn't get very far before I realized I really need to read Anna K.

What about YOU? Answer the three questions in the comments!