And The Winner Is.....

Elina Ov! Congratulations on winning! I have already sent out an email to the address provided and I hope to hear from you soon! Thank you to everyone who participated in this giveaway, I hope you will all stick around and try again in my next giveaway.

Book Cover Love

I absolutely love book covers. I know it should matter more whats inside the cover than the cover itself, but I cannot help but to be drawn to books with covers I like. That's not to say that I will not read a book just because I don't like its cover only that I am drawn faster to books that have covers that catch my eye. To celebrate this I thought I would post a few pictures of some of my favorite book covers.

These also happen to be some of my favorite books. I would love to see some of your favorite book covers! You can comment and tell me what your favorite book covers are or leave a link to a picture.

Girl Unmoored Review

Girl Unmoored
by Jennifer Gooch Hummer
Published Date: March 6th 2012
by Fiction Std
4 Stars

What Goodreads has to say: Apron Bramhall has come unmoored. It’s 1985 and her mom has passed away, her evil stepmother is pregnant, and her best friend has traded her in for a newer model. Fortunately, she’s about to be saved by Jesus. Not that Jesus—the actor who plays him in Jesus Christ, Superstar. Apron is desperate to avoid the look-alike Mike (no one should look that much like Jesus unless they can perform a miracle or two), but suddenly he’s everywhere. Until one day, she’s stuck in church with him—of all places. And then something happens; Apron’s broken teenage heart blinks on for the first time since she’s been adrift.

Mike and his grumpy boyfriend, Chad, offer her a summer job in their flower store and Apron’s world seems to calm. But when she uncovers Chad’s secret, coming of age becomes almost too much bear. She’s forced to see things the adults around her fail to—like what love really means and who is paying too much for it

My Review: Girl Unmoored revolves around a girl named Apron and the troubles she is currently facing. With her mother gone she is left with her father and his evil new wife and an ex-best friend. Life just seems to be tumbling down hill for Apron. However, after meeting Jesus, not the real one but a close look alike, Apron learns that sometimes a savior can come in the most unusual form and through him she is exposed to a kind of love that not everyone understands. Girl Unmoored pulls the reader in from the beginning. The quirky main character Apron is the kind of girl everyone can relate to. The author tackles hard issues like AIDS and same sex relationships and how people reacted to things like that in the 80's. I loved how the author tackled these issues head on and did not try to down play them. I felt that Mike and Chad were great characters and the way the author wrote their parts really allowed me to picture them in my mind and feel connected to their story. One thing I always look for in good books is the book's ability to really pull me in, if I find myself crying or laughing while reading a book because I feel that drawn into the story then I know I have found  a good one. This book did just that, the author conveyed Mike and Chad's love story in such a raw, real way that I found myself crying during sad moments and laughing out loud during funny ones. The story feels so real and is so easy to relate to because it is not a perfect fairytale, it is a story that shows the hard parts of life just as clearly as the good parts. I cannot wait to see what else this author comes out with!

About the Author: Jennifer Gooch Hummer has worked as a script analyst for various talent agencies and major film studios. Her short stories have been published in Miranda Magazine, Our Stories and Glimmertain. She has continued graduate studies in the Writer’s Program at UCLA, where she was nominated for the Kirkwood Prize in fiction. Currently, Jennifer lives in Southern California and Maine with her husband and their three daughters. Girl Unmoored is her first novel. Please visit her at jennifergoochhummer.com

Divergent
by Veronica Roth
Published Date: May 3rd 2011
by Katherine Tegen Books
5 stars


Check it out on Goodreads here: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8306857-divergent

My Review: I am so happy to be reviewing this book as it is one of my favorites. Divergent takes place in Chicago during a time when all people are separated into factions. Each faction has a distinct name and core value. The factions are: Dauntless the fearless, Abnegation the selfless, Amity the peaceful, Candor the honest and Erudite the intelligent. When a person turns 16 he or she is allowed to choose which faction they would like to join as well as take a diagnostic test that tells them which faction they would be best suited for. In order to fully join a faction a person must complete a task of sorts in order to prove they are worthy of that faction. The book follows main character Beatrise who goes by Tris as she makes the transition from her home faction of Abnegation to her chosen faction Dauntless. The tag line one choice can transform you rings true throughout the whole book. I was really intrigued by all of the factions and what it meant to be part of each faction. I liked considering what faction I would choose and why. I found it really easy to like Tris and quickly fell in love with the mysterious Four. The book is action packed and one of those books you just cannot seem to put down. I was so into the story that by the end I immediately wanted to read the sequel. Of course the sequel is not set to release until may so I had to settle for pre-ordering it. I cannot wait for insurgent to arrive in the mail and until then I have Divergent to re read and keep me busy. If your looking for a good book to read this is one you need to check out.

About the author:Veronica Roth is only 23, so her bio will be short. She’s from a Chicago suburb. She studied creative writing at Northwestern University, and wrote DIVERGENT (Katherine Tegen Books, May 2011). The second book in The Divergent Trilogy, INSURGENT, will come out in May 2012. In the meantime she will spend endless hours browsing Wikipedia in her pajamas as she eats corn flakes. (Or some other kind of bland breakfast cereal.)

Getting things worked out

I just wanted to make a quick post asking you to forgive the changes and tweaks I have been making since I started the blog a few days ago. I am still trying to figure out all the details of blog posts and how I want my page to look. I have made a few changes that I want you to know about:

1) I added a page just for product reviews so that the book reviews wont be mixed in with the product reviews anymore
2) The product review "page" is technically a second blog since blogger only allows static pages. Just click on the product link in the sidebar under contact me and home and you will be taken to the product review "page".
3) This one is obvious of course from now one I will have my product reviews posted on the product page and my book reviews on my main page.
4) I did all of this to try and make things easier for you, my readers, so please feel free to contact me and tell me what you think about how things are currently set up!
Thanks!

Garnier Fructis Product Review

Product: Garnier Fructise
Price: $3.50
Time used: 6 months
Instructions on bottle: Apply a quarter-sized portion to damp or dry hair.Use fingers or a comb to distribute throughout hair. Do not rinse. For best results use with the Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine System of shampoo, conditioner and leave-in.

My Thoughts:  I started using this product about six months ago. I picked it up on a random trip to Walgreens and decided to give it a try. I dye my hair pretty often so I as you can imagine I deal with a lot of dryness. I find that this product really does leave my hair feeling softer and smoother. This leave in conditioner smells great and is easy to work into hair. I just towel dry my hair and put a small amount into my hands and then rub it through my hair. You really only need a little bit, if you use too much your hair will feel greasy and the conditioner will not fully soak into the hair. Sometimes if im in a rush I just focus on my tips as those are always really dry. This product also has argan oil in it which is great for hair. According to argonoilsociety.org Argan oil penetrates into the hair pores or shafts and enhances the elasticity of hair. It also proves to be very nourishing for the growth of hair. Click the link posted above to learn more about the benefits of argan oil. This product can be used everyday, I personally use it about every other day and I use it anytime I go swimming in chlorinated water. I would definitely suggest checking this product out.You should be able to find it at your local drugstore.
Note: I cannot guarantee that this product will work for you as it has worked for me. All hair is different and this is just my thoughts on how the product worked for me.

Pandemonium Review

Pandemonium
by Lauren Oliver
Published Date: February 26th, 2012
by Harper Teen
Personal Copy
5 stars

Check out the Goodreads description here: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9593911-pandemonium

My Review: I was a little late to the Lauren Oliver train but, I am so glad I finally found her. I read the first book of the series Delirium and I was hooked. I couldn't wait for Pandemonium to come out. When I was finally able to get the book from amazon I was beyond excited. Thankfully this book did not let me down. The book starts with Lena having made it into the wilds. A whole new group of people are introduced and while some of them seem to want to help her, Lena has a hard time transitioning. She soon makes the decision to leave the old Lena behind and give herself completely to the people of the wilds and eventually the resistance. The pace picks up in the book as the twists of the story are revealed. I constantly tried to figure things out before they where revealed and I was still surprised at every turn. I love books that keep me on the edge of my seat and this one definitely did. If you haven't read any Lauren Oliver books this series is a great place to start and if you have well then continue on with this book, you will not be disappointed

About the Author: Lauren Oliver comes from a family of writers and so has always (mistakenly) believed that spending hours in front of the computer every day, mulling over the difference between “chortling” and “chuckling,” is normal. She has always been an avid reader.
She attended the University of Chicago, where she continued to be as impractical as possible by majoring in philosophy and literature. After college, she attended the MFA program at NYU and worked briefly as the world’s worst editorial assistant, and only marginally better assistant editor, at a major publishing house in New York. Her major career contributions during this time were flouting the corporate dress code at every possible turn and repeatedly breaking the printer. Before I Fall is her first published novel.
She is deeply grateful for the chance to continue writing, as she has never been particularly good at anything else.

Buy Pandemonium here: http://www.amazon.com/Pandemonium-Delirium-Lauren-Oliver/dp/006197806X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1334628177&sr=1-1

Don't forget to enter the giveaway on this blog for your chance to win this great book!

April Giveaway!

In celebration of starting my new blog I have decided to start things off with a giveaway. I got Lauren Oliver's Pandemonium shortly after reading Delirium. I really enjoyed the book and now I want to give you the chance to enjoy it to. All you have to do to enter this giveaway is fill out the rafflecopter form under this post. I will randomly choose one winner using rafflecopter and announce the winner on May 1st. This giveaway is open to U.S residents only.