Salvage by Alexandra Duncan: ARC Review *Spoilers

Ava, a teenage girl living aboard the male-dominated deep space merchant ship Parastrata, faces betrayal, banishment, and death. Taking her fate into her own hands, she flees to the Gyre, a floating continent of garbage and scrap in the Pacific Ocean, in this thrilling, surprising, and thought-provoking debut novel that will appeal to fans of Across the Universe, by Beth Revis, and The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood.

*badly edited as it is a rant.

Bad book. Bad, bad, boring book. May I say this was a book of cliches? It certainly, undoubtedly was. It was highly, highly predictable throughout and I almost couldn't bring myself to finish it. I, at the end, just flipped around in it till I reached the end, closed it, and then contemplated how this book could have been such a large, drastic waste of words, ink, and effort. Poor, poor trees. Your remains have been wasted.

Ava, the main character was plain irritating to me. I guess , maybe, she was created to be as she was so the author could emphasize the way she was raised and the culture she was born into but if that was the case, the author took it too far. I found Ava to be indecisive, and weak- a blob of moving goo. I understand that Ava has grown up and was raised under a male dominated society so her meekness is expected. However, she never seems to grasp the full idiocy of her actions and situation.

The number one thing that irritated me was he immediate love for (whatever his name was) Luck. Basically the story line/ romance between them flows along the lines of this:

1. Boy meets Girl
2. Boy is strange and different to Girl exposing her to new ideas and things
3. Boy and Girl are at marriageable age
4. Boy and Girl meet again suddenly realizing the love each other with no large prior romance or connection 
5. Boy and Girl are one same ship and Girl is to be married
6. Boy and Girl believe they are to be the new married couple
7. Boy and Girl goes "have fun" (Girl no longer a virgin if you didn't get that)

Now of course do to the cliche nature of this story Ava was not actually supposed to marry the boy thus they both screwed up big time. All in short, Ava and Luck both got into very big trouble and Ava was presumed to be sentenced to be executed due to her sin before being saved by one of the widows on the ship who took sympathy. Boom, widow is captured, girl escapes and is girl is once again alone.

Basically that is the flow of the story.

Oh, and I have to get to the best part. So after Ava falls from the sky and is on earth she becomes all depressed and stuff and is taken care of this really nice family. Of course though, her first thought is that: I might be having Luck's child!, and she becomes super excited, loving, and hopeful. Really girl? You've met him a few times, you screw around with him and gets yourself kicked off your home probably forever (good thing too), and after all this all you feel is that I might be pregnant as you've had no period due to post traumatic stress and recovery? Think Child! I can't stand your idiocy.

Also, another thing that irked me was that I never exactly knew how to picture her. In her description she is described as darker than the other women on her ship and has dark black hair which was dyed auburn to conform with all the other women on the ship. I assumed that her ethnicity was Indian due to the fact her aunt was from Mumbai and so was her Grandfather (assumed). However, once she lands on earth, it is immediately said that Ava is paler than the other people. I can still go with Indian was there are skin tone differences and she is most likely pretty diluted in blood due to her bloodline with the people on the ship. So you'd assume that she was Indian in culture somewhere right? Well then the cover completely contradicts everything. I know you're never supposed to judge by the cover but if you're going to place a damsel in distress who's depiction largely resembles Ava, I'm going to assume its her. Now the girl on the cover is clearly Caucasian as far as I can tell. Stop book! Your description and cover is very confusing. May you please stay consistent?

I guess that the only part of this book that was okay-ish was the fact that she did not go back and be all happily married with Luck, instead choosing to remain on her as she has "changed". Congrats Ava, you've moved one. So yes, that was the only main part that I kind of liked in this book with a horrendously annoying protagonist.

I don't believe I'd recommend this book to anyone. But if you're really desperate for a read that guarantees frustration I'd say go for it! (note the sarcasm). As you can tell I'm pretty biased to not like this book but if you must give it a try and see if you note differently.

Last Thought: I read this book in its ARC form (advanced reader's copy) so it might have changed a little for the better in its official publication process. However, though an ARC copy the amount of grammatical errors, spelling errors, and perhaps formatting errors was appalling. I don't believe I've ever seen such a badly edited ARC. I found it slighly insulting they would use such a bad copy and print it into an Arc. It was hard and confusing to read. Alright, rants over.

*Also note the use of "So". The author keeps on saying "So" and Ava regards herself as the so girl. This was super confusing and I don't believe they never explained what it was in the book? The might have but I sped read. I'm hoping this is fixed or was supposed to be substituted for something else, Idk, but I was very confused with it.

The Serpent of Germany: A research paper on the Rhetoric of Joseph Goebbels

The Serpent of Germany

            A single word is power; a sentence is a trap; a speech is propaganda. Humans, by nature, are creatures ruled more so by emotion than logic.  They are easily swayed by passions making their invention of speech their own damnation.  Blunt force easily fuels hate, while sweetly, venomous words arouse blind seduction, thus making rhetoric the ideal tool in the eternal power struggle of the world.  Skill in the art of rhetoric was what allowed Goebbels to rise to the limelight he desired (Goebbels: The Man Who Created Hitler pg 15).  With it, he came to grasp Germany in his palm, and to dominate her people.  Goebbels was not a superman-like character; instead, he was a man that was once nicknamed "Little Joe": ugly and club footed (Goebbels: The Man Who Created Hitler pg 15).  However, his physical appearance did not falter his run at power.  He used his words to maintain a greater power with intelligence than ever achievable by blunt force.  At the dawn of World War II, Goebbels recognized the fact that Germany was a nation that had fallen from grace after its previous humiliating defeat from World War I.  It is at this point that Goebbels began his assent to power, grasping his nation's shame as golden opportunity.  He offered his nation a renewed sense of confidence, uplifting her fallen ego with words dripping with honey.  Joseph Goebbels sold a cycle of German superiority to the people, appealing to honor and moral duty in Nazi propaganda, exploiting the people's humiliation from Germany's defeat in World War I.

            Goebbels plays off the people's shame from World War I to bind them to national patriotism, enforcing German superiority.  He conjures imagery with the title of his speech: "Children with their Hands Chopped Off," to emphasize German resilience.  Germany has matured: no longer an innocent child but a wise and strong nation.  Goebbels immediately hits his audience hard with shame from its previous defeat in World War I.  He declares that "the results were catastrophic.  Germany was robbed of its honor and its land," that "[Germany] [was] disarmed and robbed of [its] merchant fleet and navy, and [its] colonies" ("Children with their Hands Chopped Off" par 11).  His retrospection of Germany's previous humiliating defeat pains and tugs at his audience's pathos as a painted image of Germany's fall from glory.  This blow of humiliation sets the audience up to willing accept any words of comfort to pacify its shame, making it now easily influenced.  Goebbels then offers solace to his newly complacent and ashamed audience declaring that Germany's defeat "did have one good result": the loss of blind trust and innocence ("Children with their Hands Chopped Off" par 12).  Now Germany is no longer an innocent fool:

[Germany] has learned much from the past. Above all, it has learned never to trust a treacherous foe. This lesson is deep in our bones ("Morale as a Decisive Factor in War" par 14).

This excuse, of an evident loss of trust, is used by Goebbels as the reason Germany has been able to realize its true potential and strength.  The hindrance of the "foe" has been realized and the hard lesson of trust learned, thus "[Germany] is not as defenseless today as [it] once [was].  Today [it has] the most powerful army in the world" ("Children with their Hands Chopped Off" par 17).  Goebbels's juxtaposition of "defenseless" in comparison to "powerful" aids to further  arouse national pride.  In being beaten and shamed, Germany has realized its true potential and strength, finally maturing while the rest of the world has suffered lassitude and festered from basking in their arrogant glory of earlier victory.

            Goebbels's radiance of confidence in his words erases doubt and offers reassurance to the people, compelling them to believe and remain faithful to Nazi propaganda.  He ardently states "someone once said that he did not know which people could be beaten to death, but he did know the German people had to be beaten to life" (Resistance at Any Price" par 6).  This juxtaposition offers a glorification of the German people that rings with his audience: Germany only gains strength from enemy assault, never faltering.  These words infuse his audience with passion for his propaganda.  It feeds the people the will to rise from the ashes of Germany's defeat in World War I and offers condolence for the necessity of the previous failure for the rise of the greater now.  He thus incorporates past failure as part of the long road to a destined glory.  Goebbels also forces an idealization upon the German people preaching "whatever may come, we will stand upright through all the storms, working and fighting" ("The Higher Law" par 9).  Here, hasty generalization asserts the fact the whole of the German nation is firm in faith of the Reich's cause.  This centralization of confidence calls for mass conformity of the German citizens whose conformed faith feeds the propaganda in a relentless cycle.  Knowing this key strategy, Goebbels constantly feeds the flames of the undying German spirit: "Never will we surrender our right to live in freedom and dignity as we ourselves wish" ("The Higher Law" par 9).  He then offers another juxtaposition between the wants of the singular to his faith in the nation.  This juxtaposition states that want of the singular to surrender now and be relieved of his current state of suffering; yet, the singular will never surrender due to his faith that "final victory will be ours.  It will come through tears and blood, but it will justify all the sacrifices we have made" ("Resistance at Any Price" par 12).  His chosen diction: tears and blood, ties closely to the moral ideal of sacrifice of the singular for the all.  Goebbels's words have turned his audience into gluttons, fattened from  the fantasy of high morality and ideals.  His strong appeal to inborn moral obligation: the ethos of his audience, grasps his people in a hypnosis of moral propaganda.

            Furthermore, to emphasize the innate honor of Germany, Goebbels paints a picture of shining morality, enforcing the idea the Germany is above the brutality of the "uneducated" allies allowing the people to gain a sense personal superiority.  His speeches highly moral ideals that are stated as a innate feature of the German propaganda.  His words feature ideals like: "Peace through victory!  That is our slogan." and "The truth is always stronger than the lie" ("Christmas 1941" par 15) ("The Racial Question and World Propaganda" par 27).  These ideas are set in moral code applying to any culture and his clear statement of these ideas in German propaganda reassures the people's ethos and draws them in.  When one is told that the cause he is fighting for is definitely and unarguably for a moral and good cause, a bond is forged within the soul that is hard to break.  Goebbels also brings to emphasis of the honor of German warfare declaring how "[he] saw German soldiers giving bread and sausages to hungry French women and children, and gasoline to refugees to enable them to return home as soon as possible" ("The Jews are Guilty" par 10).  The pleasantness of this honorable picture appeals to the pathos of the people drawing them further in towards the German cause.  However, using strategic climatic phrasing, Goebbels does not increase to mention more pleasant German deeds.  Instead he turns his words to the affects of the high morality of the deeds of these German Soldiers.  He follows with the idea that the enemy victims, after receiving German aid and care that allows them to return to safety, goes home only " to spread at least some of their hatred against the Reich" ("The Jews are Guilty" par 10).  This scenario of how "thanks" is offered  to the German soldier from offers of aid stimulates outrage in the morality of German citizens.  This blatant "betrayal" of good intentions easily allowed Goebbels to draw increasing numbers of "moral" people to Nazi Propaganda.

            Goebbels, also, uses the allies destruction of German cultural monuments to create a mutual sense of anger and superiority among the German people.  Goebbels makes a clear statement regarding the reasons behind the avid destruction of German monuments by enemy forces:

German or Italian cultural centers that were built over centuries were reduced to soot and ashes in brief hours...this is evidence of an historical inferiority complex that wants to destroy what the enemy is incapable of producing himself ("Immortal German Culture" par 4).

He evokes resentment and demonization of the allies due to their spiteful, jealous destruction.  Goebbels draws the inference that in seeking to destroy German arts the enemy seeks to destroy the German spirit, for "not only the buildings of our cities and cathedrals and cultural monuments of Europe are falling into ruins, but also a whole world" ("The World Crisis" par 8).  The pathos of his audience is affected from this statement as innate honor forces them to stand even taller against the assault. Catharsis, from the unnecessary and tragic loss of irreplaceable national treasures, also rallies the people in a rage that feeds Nazi propaganda's fire.  However, pride is generated alongside rage by Goebbels's careful mention of destruction from envy.  This pride is fed to the German people by the hasty generalization that German art is superior to the point of purposeful destruction by savage enemies, who destroy what they, themselves, cannot create:

Is it not interesting that the English leadership has destroyed dozens of German theaters, while England itself does not have even a single serious theater? And the Americans are not even worth mentioning ("Immortal German Culture" par 5).

Goebbels's sarcastic insult to the meagerness of artistic achievements of Germany's assaulters rouses national pride.  He draws a clear juxtaposition between "[Germany's] eternal artistic accomplishments stand against skyscrapers, cars, and refrigerators"; it is a comparison of aged, aesthetic beauty verses cold, gray metal ("Immortal German Culture" par 4).  This juxtaposition of unparalleled German art and its targeted destruction, caused by jealous spite, allows Goebbels to play his people's ego and maintain a lasting grip on his nation.

            In all his speeches, Goebbels's words ring that constant faith in German propaganda will insure all of Germany an inevitably bright future.  This clear demand of faith in Germany is demonstrated in Goebbels's speech "The Year 2000"  In this speech, Goebbels takes a clearly retrospective view of the world, talking of it from the point of view of the future.  Though his predictions could easily be called a bluff, Goebbels is careful to state "no one can predict the distant future" ("The Year 2000" par 2).  Instead, The careful phrasing of Goebbels's words allows him to keep himself from being viewed as idealistic, instead, factual as he states "there are some facts and possibilities that are clear over the coming fifty years" ("The Year 2000" par 2).  Goebbels's optimistic prediction creates the future of the year 2000 to be an utopia for the German nation, drawing the people's pathos in towards an idealized peace.  Goebbels use the idea of an utopia to bind the people's faith, stating that "[they]...like Atlas carry the weight of the world on [their] shoulders and [should] not doubt" ("The Year 2000" par 10).  His statement appeals to the people's pathos and logos, as he offers them a personal and societal award, for their actions and faith in his propaganda will help to create an ideal utopia for Germany.  To further simple necessity of faith to his audience, Goebbels makes a return to confidence:

Without wavering we know that a nation of brave men and sacrificing women, with an obedient and devoted youth, a nation that is risking its very existence in fighting for freedom, will gain it ("Morale as a Decisive Factor in War" par 14).

Here, Goebbels offers the idea faith will earn the people's ideal utopia; he becomes a propaganda salesman.  This blatant appeal to pathos: the guarantee of a definite personal benefit, plays on the human nature of greed and acts as a binding glue connecting him to his audience.

            Through the whole course of World War II, Josef Goebbels was able to hold the German population under a hypnosis of faith and manipulation.  Like the biblical serpent of Adam and Eve, he captured Germany in a psychotic frenzy and fed it with visions of superiority and honor.  Goebbels raised Germany's ego from its pit of shame, caused by defeat in World War I, offering "redemption".  He was the serpent of Germany: a short, ugly man whose beauty in language manipulated a nation to march under his hand.  To hold well strung words at the tip of one's tongue offers more power ever attainable by brute force.  Words can reach out and consume one's soul with unknown- silent- manipulation.  The true power holder is not one that harbors "high" morals of the god-like Clark Kent but one who can manipulate submission to an unaware audience.

  

Works Cited

Goebbels, Joseph. "Children with their Hands Chopped Off." Das Reich, 24 June 1939.

Goebbels, Joseph. "Christmas, 1941." Germany. 24 December 1941.

Goebbels, Joseph. "The Higher Law." Das Reich, 24 September 1944.

Goebbels, Joseph. "Immortal German Culture." 7th German Art Exhibition. Germany. 26 June 1943.

Goebbels, Joseph. "The Jews are Guilty." Das Reich, 26 November 1941.

Goebbels, Joseph. "Morale as a Decisive Factor in War." Das Reich, 7 August 1943.

Goebbels, Joseph. "The Racial Question and World Propaganda." Nuremberg Rally. Germany.1933.

Goebbels, Joseph. "Resistance at Any Price." Das Reich, 22 April 1945

Goebbels, Joseph. "The World Crisis." Das Reich, 17 December 1944.

Goebbels, Joseph. "The Year 2000." Das Reich, 25 February 1945.

Reimann Victor. Goebbels: The man who created Hitler. Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company INC, 1976.

  

Works Consulted

Goebbels, Joseph. "Churchill's Trick." Das Reich, 1 March 1942.

Goebbels, Joseph. "German Women." Women's Exhibition. Berlin. 18 March 1933.

Goebbels, Joseph. "Youth and the War."  Germany. 29 September 1940. 

Holocaust Encyclopedia. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. 6 January, 2011.

            http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007429

Knopp, Guido. Hitler's Henchmen. Phoenix Mill, Thrupp-Shroud-Gloucestershire: Sutton Publishing Limited, 2000.

Trueman, Chis. History Learning Site. 21 April 2012.

            http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/treaty_of_versailles.htm   

White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout: ARC Review *Spoilers

One kiss could be the last. 
Seventeen-year-old Layla just wants to be normal. But with a kiss that kills anything with a soul, she's anything but normal. Half demon, half gargoyle, Layla has abilities no one else possesses. 
Raised among the Wardens—a race of gargoyles tasked with hunting demons and keeping humanity safe—Layla tries to fit in, but that means hiding her own dark side from those she loves the most. Especially Zayne, the swoon-worthy, incredibly gorgeous and completely off-limits Warden she's crushed on since forever. 
Then she meets Roth—a tattooed, sinfully hot demon who claims to know all her secrets. Layla knows she should stay away, but she's not sure she wants to—especially when that whole no-kissing thing isn't an issue, considering Roth has no soul. 
But when Layla discovers she's the reason for the violent demon uprising, trusting Roth could not only ruin her chances with Zayne…it could brand her a traitor to her family. Worse yet, it could become a one-way ticket to the end of the world.

This book! I never expected it to like it but I did! It was just that the first reaction I had to White Hot Kiss was: "Well that cover is rather....well.. awkward..." To me, whenever I see these types of covers I immediately think cliche, young adult romance, with a love triangle: standards for attracting teenage girls. Yes, this book has some of these aspects but the way it was put together didn't make it cheesy, instead a very attractive fun read.

The first connection I made about this book was the fact that the main character, Layla, in the way that she thinks, acts, talks, acts, etc., reminds of Percy Jackson. It is the oddest connection, I know, but I just feel that casual vibe throughout the book and a similarity in character. I found Layla to be very quirky and fun character. She certainly wasn't a damsel in distress (which really did surprise me ( *cough the cover)) and stood up for herself throughout the novel. There were times in which I found her to slightly gullible and illogical but I found it kind of endearing. Her little weaknesses in her character, to me, served as a reminder of who she was and the life she was born into. A too strong character/well rounded rubs off to be as perfect and Layla's quirks kept the image of her as a teenage girl enforced in my head.

One must always mention the love interests of young adult romance so here it is. The two males in the love triangle involving Layla would be Roth (Astaroth) and Zayne (good names I must say, good names). Roth is a demon, the "current" prince of demons to be exact (its explained in the book, I'd rather not spoil that part) while Zayne is a gargoyle and the childhood friend and crush of Layla. Usually I'd pinpoint exactly who I believe she is going to end up with at the end of the novel but somehow I can't say for sure with the relations between Layla and these two lovely young men. If I was to bet, it would be with Roth as that is traditional with young adult romances. We just love the handsome, dark, and dangerous type. He and Layla's got some stuff going and too be honest I liked his character. Though he falls in the handsome, dark, and dangerous category he doesn't harbor the traditional characteristics:

A. He's humorous
B. He's not moody and dark all the time (*cough Edward)
C. He acts human (not some insane superhero)

I really want to bet that Roth is who Layla ends up with but then Zayne's character is just so good. He's the classic Peeta character (Hunger Games) and genuinely wants the best for Layla yet is limited by the boundaries of the law of the Gargoyles. I believe the only reason he hasn't made a move is his strong obedience to the laws of the Gargoyles ( Layla= half demon and half Gargoyle so them going out is a big no, no ). Maybe there is a chance for the good guy to win out on this but I'm not really sure. So the point is, love triangle is not stable. Plus *big spoilers Roth has been sent to hell at the end of the last book so he's technically he's not of the picture anymore (he'll be back, I checked with the next book) and that gives Zayne time to make his move. Love triangles drive me crazy. I usually can predict but I'm still iffy about Zayne's relationship to Layla. He's older brother one minute then potential love interest next.
*Why must every YA romance contain a love triangle? Is it the new most trendy shape? Triangles? Why not love squares? Then at least everyone is happy. See humans just can't be happy without seeing someone else suffer in their happiness.

Although I this book was about Gargoyles and Demons instead of the traditional Vampire and Werewolf theme that has been really popular lately, I didn't find a change of what type of supernatural character that was featured to be relevant. Though, yes, it technically stepped outside the cliche, it wasn't that much different in feel. There was still the eternal feud between the two races due to a war of good and bad. The change was interesting and different but I feel if you switched the whole book to feature vampires and werewolves, no large difference would happen to the plot. White Hot Kiss still followed the normal pattern of these types of young adult supernatural romances.

I found this book to be a pretty good read. It was humorous, relaxing, and had surprisingly human characters (none of that since-I'm-supernatural-I-must-be-dark-and-mysterious stuff). I don't particularly think that the cover and the title of White Hot Kiss particularly suits it. I guess it would be for marketing as apparently people love these types of steamy covers and titles, but I found it to make it more cliche and sappy then the book actually was. If I was to give a rating out of five for this book, I'd give it a 3.5/5. That's not bad considering I put good at 4 and my ultra loves at 5. I would say to give this book a try. It feels different from the norm in its more human feel and non vampire/werewolf characters. It is also a fast and fun read that is sure to entertain.

Wedged Sneaker Insanity

New shoes world and I really don't know what to say about them.

They are an insane mass of studs, snakeskin, and glitter. I don't believe I have ever owned anything so decked out. I have no idea where or when I'll ever wear these bedazzled shoes (maybe to school? ) but they are very comfortable. I was very surprised by that but I can run and walk in them just fine like in any pair of regular sneaker I own. I really don't need the extra height either but, hey, I have a dream of being 5 foot 7 so an extra inch or so can't hurt.

This pair was a present from my mother which she bought for me on her recent trip to China. I'm not quite sure where you'd find a pair quite like it here in the US but well, the internet is a world of wonders. 

Pair View: What studs.

Single shoe facing outward view

Single shoe facing inward view

Front view

Pair side view

Front view. Just look at that glittered top!

A Childhood Brought Back

I'll admit the post was forced upon me by my sister so I'll dedicate it to her.

It is the result of a very happy and childish Saturday afternoon in which we decided that burning little pieces of wood in our backyard would be the best way to avoid studying. 

It was actually really fun. We burned a couple of ants (I'm sorry world for cruel entertainment), some sticks, some leaves, and we tried to set fire to some paper but unfortunately it didn't work.. *dang it :)

Look at that smoke!
*We kept a small cup of water on hand just in case we actually started a fire but unfortunately it didn't work.

A clear picture of what we were doing :)

Look at the smoke! There was a lot more smoke then that is pictured.
It just didn't show up on camera very well.
*my sister's hand btw

More smoke! 

Holes we made! How we wished it had caught fire.

Lilacs and Flowers!

The Lilacs Bloomed!

They're my absolute favorite blossoms as they smell the nicest.

They pictures aren't the best but the flowers are pretty!

(I have an awful of flower pics don't I... :D )

And of course they're pictures of other flowers that I happened to find pretty too.

Awkward light circle in the middle.. :)

My Favorite Pic. of everyone I took

Such a classic flower picture I think.

Clover Flowers!

And this one just looked pretty.

Panic by Lauren Oliver:ARC Review *spoilers

Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.
Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.
Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.
For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them—and the knowledge that sometimes the very things we fear are those we need the most.

Panic was a good book. It is named for the game "Panic" played in the small town of Carp, and serves as the center for the plot line to revolve around. I wasn't quite sure what my feelings to this book would be but I decided that I liked it. I've read works of Lauren Oliver before including Before I Fall and her Delirium trilogy. Before I Fall is classified as one of the best young adult books I've ever read. I loved the fact that it never diverted away from its purpose even though it was highly tempting to root for the romantic possibility instead of the necessary one. It was a lesson teaching book. However, Oliver's Delirium trilogy was a miss for me. I didn't like it particularly and found it to be slightly bland. It was a good trilogy but I certainly didn't love it or have been able to retain much of the plot details after breezing through it for good, quick read.Panic was good though. I find it to be a medium between these works of Oliver that have read. I found it's character to be more similar to Before I Fall in it's style and purpose.

The plot of Panic was very fascinating. I find that I have never read anything quite like it. It had a slight connection/similarity to the idea in the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins in the aspect of a dangerous, possibly life threatening game being played by the characters of the novel. The plot line of the story was well connected but at parts I would find myself confused at what had happened or what is going on. There is a lot of names and characters introduced and since it is about various aspects of the game and the outside story I found Panic to be hard to follow at times. At some points I had to pause and reread to make sure I got what had happened.

Panic is not a romantic read, just so you know, though there are very, very light tints of in weaved in the plot line; it is never a major part of the plot line- like a light sprinkle. I figured we'd clear that up in case you were hoping for something romantic to happen like in Before I Die or Delirium. It is much lighter in romance then either of Oliver's previous books. However, the characters are still paired off in the end but I found that to be a little forced and off. There was never much romantic development between either of the two matched pairs ( Heather and Bishop, Dodge and Nat). Heather and Bishop's relationship is excused by me as they are described to be childhood friends, etc. so mild development was okay. At least it was logically assumable. Dodge and Nat, however, just felt sleazy. Dodge's thoughts of Nat does come off a bit stalkerish and Nat isn't shown to be a very good person/character. They seem to each use the other for a part of personal benefit: Nat-the money pot, Dodge- connection, love, etc.

One flaw I found in Panic was that there seems to be holes in the plot/story. The town of Carp, where the Panic takes place, is described to be a small town of twelve thousand people in the middle of nowhere. The game of Panic is said to be a hundred year old tradition of this town. If this game was to have lasted for so long and this town to be a small town mostly populated by generations of people living in the same place, I found it questionable that the police had to question and dig so hard to find information about the game of Panic. Like the first part of the game, Panic, called "The Jump", it is said that this part/first trial has always been tradition. As it is tradition, wouldn't it be highly likely that someone in the police force would have grown up at Carp's high school and know about this destined first trial, making the police force very capable and knowledgeable in stopping this dangerous game? I don't find that all this fuss about stopping the Panic should have been so greatly mentioned in the plot line if it's set in a traditional small town and is a tradition. It makes for a very large and questionable hole.

Overall, Panic was a descent read. I had a intriguing plot line and good characters. I don't think I've ever read a book quite like it but I find it similar to books with the theme of a dangerous game and winning. I say its worth a read and is well written but I will not say it is one of my favorites. I also wouldn't call it a light read either as it kept me at the edge of my seat at some points. I'd save Panic for a night when you need a read with a little kick to it but won't stress you out.

Cotton? I think not.

March and still snowing in Virginia. 

Just look at these pictures! It's happy, flowering spring here in lovely Bay Area and a winter wonderland on the opposite coast.

These pictures were all taken outside the US Patent Office in Washington D.C. 

They have a pretty snazzy outside I must say.

Be honest, this totally looks like a field of the cotton plant.

Close up and it still looks like cotton. What is this magical winterness!

A larger perspective.

I particularly like this photo. It's just so clean and simple.
The red of the chairs offer a stark contrast to the blatant white of the snow. 

This photo was taken outside the US Patent office building at their outside lunch area I believe.
The lightly topped snow upon the umbrellas and tables give it such a clean feel.

Chairs and Snow. Simple but somehow still rather appealing.

The Falconer by Elizabeth May: ARC Review *Spoilers

Heiress. Debutant. Murderer. A new generation of heroines has arrived.
Edinburgh, Scotland, 1844
Lady Aileana Kameron, the only daughter of the Marquess of Douglas, was destined for a life carefully planned around Edinburgh’s social events – right up until a faery killed her mother.
Now it’s the 1844 winter season and Aileana slaughters faeries in secret, in between the endless round of parties, tea and balls. Armed with modified percussion pistols and explosives, she sheds her aristocratic facade every night to go hunting. She’s determined to track down the faery who murdered her mother, and to destroy any who prey on humans in the city’s many dark alleyways.
But the balance between high society and her private war is a delicate one, and as the fae infiltrate the ballroom and Aileana’s father returns home, she has decisions to make. How much is she willing to lose – and just how far will Aileana go for revenge?

The Falconer turned out to be a better read than I expected it to be. First approaching it my reaction to this book was not good. When I read the back cover the first line that struck me was "She's a stunner". I immediately felt like this female character was set for perfection. I don't like my characters perfect. It is the foibles and the flaws that give the character character. Ailena, however, doesn't exploit her beauty. Her beauty is simply a factual presence in the story and is not used to heighten the story's plot line and move the story along. This  was much appreciated by me.

To be bluntly honest, the main reason I picked up this book was due to it's cover. Shame on me for once again judging a book by its cover but lets be honest, it is a pretty cool cover. I like how clean it looks. All the lines and edges of the image is crisp. The cut of the image is also great, featuring just enough of the heroine and plot of the story to give the reader a glimpse of what type of novel he or she is getting into.

In regards to the texture and plot of the book, I thought it was pretty well drawn out. I didn't find the book to be "spectacular" in the aspect of never having seen such a plot line, but it was certainly enjoyable as a light read with some built in anticipation, drama, intrigue, fantasy, etc. I'll admit that there were some unique aspects of the book, so don't take it as there is nothing-like its completely cliche- cause its not. It just as the same feel as a lot of fairy, fantasy novels.

Aileana is further explained in the book to be a Falconer: a descendant of a long line of female fairy hunters. The name is derived from the fact Falconers are able to mentally connect with a/their personal falcon and see through its eyes, thus a Falcon-er. She is also explained to be the last remaining Falconer (as of this point), which I found to be a bit cliche in the plot aspect but I was okay with-whatever to make the plot intriguing. She had the traditional girl and guy best friend ( a fairy in this case) along with a classic childhood love interest which surprisingly turned out not the be interested in her and she him! ( Magic! I know! I pray this doesn't change and turn into a love triangle. I can't stand love triangles. (There are exceptions.) They kill me.)

This book was certainly not heavy on the romance, which I rather enjoyed. There were some subtle parts that I could sense something going on between Aileana and Kiaran, her fairy trainer (classically dark, mysterious, and handsome) that I believe is her main love interest, that I feel would be further developed in the series as The Falconer is part of a trilogy. It was light, kind of like icing on the cake to the main plot. I find it irritating when one has the two lead characters fall in love instantly. Then the novel looses all opportunity to develop and go deeper, tormenting the reader for that final sweet moment of romantic expressal. *the sigh of the climax
I am, however, a bit concerned how this possible romance between the two leads is going to work out. Kiaran, as I stated previously, is a fairy that doesn't age. Even though Aileana is a Falconer, so slightly unique, this difference doesn't grant her immortality. I'm rather intrigued by this and I hope to find out. I just pray it won't be tragically beautiful like the end of Cassandra Clare's The Infernal Devices series. I loved Cassandra Clare's ending to that series, I'd just rather not suffer the emotional heartache that came with it.

Also, the case of the murder of Aileana's mother was very cleverly explained- I must say. At first I thought it would be a small part of the story line to aid the plot development. Instead, it turned out to have had effect on the plot explaining how Aileana came to be who she is now. Overall I liked the development of this aspect of the plot. It wasn't bland and milked for plot because it could have been. It made sense and tied in with the story cleanly.

Overall, this The Falconer was descent and I liked it when I read through it. I would say if you had time to go pick it up and read it. It certainly won't do you no harm and maybe you'll really like it! I'm just so immune do to the novels from English that I'm immune to love stories and fantasy right now.... All I can think about is free will and Cassius. *Julius Caesar you kill my brain
Anyways, read The Falconer. I recommend it. Not heavy and not filled with cheese. And let me state again, the cover is beautiful.