It seems the rest of you are thriving. I love reading your blogs, I really do. Makes me feel bad though, Ive read a mere 50 pages in an entire week. Not sure if it's school or a combination of Big Bang Theory and the new season of The Biggest Loser, but I just can't seem to sit and read these days.
Maybe it's the book? I'm reading a decent one, it'exciting but I just cant get deep into it. Any suggestions?

I have about 7 books id like to read in the next month but at the rate im going that's impossible!

Anyways, miss you guys!

-Alana

Welp. It's been a busy week of work, and a little play here at my place. Oddly enough in one week the weather went from the high 20's to like 15 degrees. And it just keeps hammering down rain. The leftovers of the Japanese typhoon are being blamed, but who are we kidding? The Canadian west coast will be wet for another nine months!

With the sudden drop in temperature, I for some reason ( or because everything happens for a reason) read Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver. I love reading books that coincide with the weather. Makes them better.

Anyways, I really didn't like it. I don't see what the hype is about at all. I rolled my eyes at every conversation Sam and Grace had. I love werewolves but this book was just so.... young. The fact Sam made up lyrics about things made me gag. All I kept thinking was REALLY? the first third of the book I could pretty much sum up into " omg omg omg I want him to kiss me, omg he has yellow eyes, omg omg". I just didn't dig it at all. The characters sucked. I'm sorry. I know SO many people are into this book, but I just wasn't! .. AND the "summer girl" song? I could barely take it anymore by that point. haha.

That being said, I finished it, and I'll most likely read the other two just because I'm like that. Maybe by the third one they'll be more mature? I acted the way grace did when I was like 13-15 and maybe that was the target audience to begin with- but usually I can appreciate some good YA and this made me want to read something for adults for sure.

We'll give it 2/5.

So I'm the only person who hasn't read The Help apparently. I wanted to SO BAD. trust me. When I first heard of it, my mind raced straight to The Secret Life of Bees, which is hands down one of my favourite books ( even though I cant say I'm a fan of other Sue Monk Kidd books).

Anyways, the bookstore downtown has a book club, and they posted a sign saying they were reading it and when the club would meet. It has been like my life goal to join a book club. I'm one of those people who has a gym membership, but never goes to the classes. Who loves to read, but never goes to the book club... even though I really REALLY want to.

I keep getting off track here! OK! So then there was even more buzz when the movie decided to come out and be awesome. I don't have cable so I haven't heard everything, but it sounds like the movie is actually pretty good. It FINALLY came to my town this week and I literally almost had my shoes on ready to go see it tonight- but I couldn't help but stop and ask myself if I should read the book first... I tend to LOVE movies way more after I have read the book, and either never read the book or hate the book if I have seen the movie first.

So I thought I'd take it to the experts- YOU! What did you think about the help? Worth the read first and wait for the DVD? or skip it and just watch the show because its good enough?

SO MUCH is happening in my life right now.
It sucks that I've barely had a chance to read or check out your blogs. I'm still here, and still so very much in love with your blogs, I just have NOT had the time to be as committed as I once was. It might actually still be a while to get back into a swing!
I'm working full time right now in a new smoothie bar in town. I live in a small town and its such a big deal that the store is just a nuthouse right now and I'm working tonnnnns of overtime!
I have also been doing an online course so my time is just being totally spent.

I did get a chance to FINNNNNNALLY burst through The Hunger Games. I was nervous to even read this because the sneak movie trailer on the MTV awards was only 'OK', and I knew I was the last person ever to read this book. But I did it anyway and thought it was SO good. I wont post a synopsis because I know you've all read it. All I can say is that I am very excited not only for the movie, but also to get my hands on Catching Fire.

I just loved how exciting the book was. If I didn't have to, I wouldn't have put it down and it's short enough that if life didn't happen I could have just powered through it. I'm totally in with the Hunger Games hype crowd and will probably be lined up to watch the midnight screening when it comes out in June. Thankfully I have a certain sparkly vampire movie to watch before then to tide me over with my YA novel-turned-movie love affair.

I miss you all and hope to be back soon! Thanks for sticking around!

When I think about my dream house- it has a room that looks like this. I knew you guys would like it so I had to share <3 Hope you're all busy reading amazing books and blogging about them for me to read :)
-Alana

I finally finished reading Graceling and I've so many thoughts running through my head. I've decided not to do a 'review' per say, of this one because I just want to talk about it. And I know a lot of you read this series.

So, on goodreads not that long ago, Fire was recommended to me by some person I don't know. This summer I had decided I would branch out into YA and Fantasy and just see if I liked it. I thankfully now follow many amazing blogs that keep me in the loop and get me so excited about reading this genre that I just feel nothing but excitement when I wake up and read all of your blogs. There is a lot of catch up reading to do- particularly with a few certain series which you will see from me soon.

So Fire, was truly amazing to me. I completely lost myself in it, and I am proud to now call it one of my favourite books. The story was so exciting and the chapters are a perfect length, I couldn't put it down and Cashore's writing is so easy to read, and flow-y. So of course I had to read Graceling.

I had read on a bunch of review sights that is is better to read Fire first ( which I did without noticing). About halfway through Graceling, I really thought one should read it first. I enjoyed Fire so much and thought it was a bit more exciting than Graceling. But as I got to the end of the book, and learned that the third book is about the Graceling characters, particularly Bitterblue, I would agree in the order of reading Graceling second.

I liked graceling a lot too, there is just something about Cashore's writing that makes her books so exciting to read. I need to say I liked Fire more than I liked Katsa, but they both were some of the better female heroines I've read about.

These books are the type to me that stick in my heart. When I thought reading YA fantasy would be cool and adventurous, this is exactly the books I was looking for. If you've yet to read these books- you absolutely must. They are such a treat.