The Uninvited by Tim Wynne-Jones

Mimi Shapiro is running away from New York. From the NYU professor who went too far, from life. Mimi drives up to Canada where she plans to stay in her father's old cabin. The snye is a beautiful place, almost fairy-like, that is until she discovers someone else-someone uninvited-is already living there. Jay Page, a young musician, has been staying at the cabin for some time-and someone has been leaving little "surprises" around the house: a dead bird, a snake skin, and sounds embedded in his latest compositions.

If Mimi isn't the intruder, who is?

When Cramer Lee first saw Mimi pull up in that shiny red Mini Cooper, he just had to meet her. There is something about Mimi he just can't forget. He must meet her, even if it means pulling some elaborate tricks.

In this suspenseful story of drama and mystery, three characters must find the link that binds them together-before things get entirely out of hand. Everyone was uninvited.....but not for long.

..........

This is really an amazing book. The plot was crafted from merely three characters, a lonely cabin, and an artist who had many hidden secrets. The book was pretty long, but once I got to the third or fourth chapter, I was hooked. The Uninvited is fast-paced and a nail-biting page turner; and the complexity of Mimi, Jay, and Cramer was outrageous yet extremely enjoyable till the very last page. I really connected with the characters and I was sad the book had to end.

My first impression of The Uninvited was that it was a scary thriller like book, but I was wrong. It goes somewhere in the category of suspense and family drama, which made a great combination. The ending of this great novel was surprising but prefect. Told by a master story teller, The Uninvited is a story you won't want to miss.

Pages: 353 Year Published: May 2009 Genre: Suspense/Drama/Realistic

Age Group: YA, age 14+ Buy or Borrow? Both, but definitely good enough to buy

Content: Language, mild sexual references, mild violence/graphicness

Enjoyed It: 5/5 Rating:

Special thanks fo Mr. Wynne-Jones for sending me his book!

In My Mailbox (5)

"In My Mailbox" was created by Alea of Pop Culture Junkee and hosted by Krist at the Story Siren

I've been gone for a week on vacation (more about that later), but I'm back! I've gotten kinda behind on my reading and posting schedule so here's some books I got last week:

In the Mail

The Straits by Jeremy Craig (Flux) June 1

When the Whistle Blows by Fran Cannon Slayton (Philomel) June 11

Bought/Borrowed/ Won

Crazy in Love by Dandi Daley MacKall

(borrowed this from the lirary, then bought it at Borders for $4! while I was on vacation!)

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

(Won this book, along with a really neat bookmark, from RoyalReads)

The YA Book Carnival Contest - CLOSED

The YA Book Carnival, hosted by Shooting Stars Magazine, will be going on this this week: June 22nd-27th and BLT will be participating!

BLT is giving away 5 copies of the newly released paperback edition of

Suite Scarlet by Maureen Johnson

Scarlett Martin has grown up in a most unusual way. Her family owns the Hopewell, a small hotel in the heart of New York City. Her nineteen-year-old brother, Spencer, is an out of work actor facing a family deadline to get his career in order. Eighteen-year-old Lola has the delicate looks of a model, the practical nature of a nurse, and a wealthy society boyfriend. Eleven-year-old Marlene is the family terror with a tragic past.

When the Martins turn fifteen, they are each expected to take over the care of a suite in the once elegant, now shabby Art Deco hotel. For Scarlett’s fifteenth birthday, she gets both a room called the Empire Suite, and a permanent guest named Mrs. Amberson. Scarlett doesn’t quite know what to make of this C-list starlet, world traveler, and aspiring autobiographer who wants to take over her life. And when she meets Eric, an astonishingly gorgeous actor who has just moved to the city, her summer takes a second unexpected turn.

With Mrs. Amberson calling the shots, Spencer’s career to save, Lola’s love life to navigate around, and Marlene’s prying eyes everywhere, things won’t be easy. Before the summer is over, Scarlett will have to survive a whirlwind of thievery, Broadway glamour, romantic missteps, and theatrical deception.

The show, as they say, must always go on . . . .

Scarlett,

Are you still asleep? I can hear you in there, snoring away. I need the following:

White plum tea (whole leaf, loose, organic)

Yerba maté lotion

Dance tights

Laptop computer (I’ll leave it to you to pick one out)

A book on how to write a book

A spicy tuna roll (brown rice)

A list of all plays currently on Broadway

Matches

$4000 should be enough. I’ve shoved the money under your door (see it?). I need these things by noon. I’m meditating now. I want my change, but feel free to take cabs if the purchases are too heavy.

Get the sushi last, obviously. And wake up! We have work to do!

- Mrs. A

...............

HOW TO ENTER:

Leave a comment and list of things you would like to eat/do/touch/etc this summer!

Please leave your email address.

WHO CAN ENTER

USA residents only.

EXTRA POINTS

1+ for posting about this contest on your blog (leave link)

2+ for following my blog

3+ for going onto Muareen's website (which is sooo cool) and to prove you did, paste the link into the comment

Leave a sperate comment for each extra point-it will make it so much easier for me!

THE DEADLINE

This contest ends Monday, July 13th, at 12:00 AM EASTERN.

Book Gorge - Beautiful Hearts

Gorge - Though it may wrong, rude, or a terrible habit, we do it a lot. The lady who works on the 3rd office floor pops chocolates into her mouth about every two minuets. The guy who works at the local ice cream joint looks like he's taken advantage of his job one too many times. And when your best friend throws a swim party, you eat way too much pizza-you know this because you never sunk to the bottom of the pool before. We tend to gorge ourselves with food, yes, but what about the other kind of food?

Is it possible to gore on words?

The girl at the bookstore proves this theory. She's a walking string bean, with her green dress, her black rimmed glasses, the ribbons in her hair. For breakfast she eats Shakespeare, for lunch she has Mark Twain, for dinner Jane Austen is a favorite, and dessert is always Tennyson. Is it possible to gore words? Yes, I believe so, and did I also mention that words will always be a 100% fat free?

- "Book Gorge" by Morgan copyright ©2009

Book Gorge is a list of "to-be released" books I'm looking forward to reading. This is a great opportunity to grab a pen and jot down these books! Till next week, wish and big and happy reading...

Unclaimed Heart by Kim Wilkins (Razorbill) July 9

Hannah: Daughters of the Sea by Kathryn Lasky (Scholastics) Sept. 1

(Not sure why this cover says "Girl in the Shadows" because "Hannah" is suppose to go there)

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (Scholastics) Aug. 1

Purple Heart by Patricia McCormick (Harper Teen) Sept. 1

Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr (Little Brown) Oct. 1

Beautiful by Cindy Martinusen-Coloma (Thomas Nelson) Nov. 1

Last week I posted some other books, but I did something different. I set up a website page especially for these books, but because of the web graphics, it took too long to load and some glitches occurred. From now on, instead of a Wishing on Wednesday post, I will have "Book Gorge".

Click here to see last week's Book Gorge books.

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

After a "accident" happens while exploring the old dredge (a huge mining machine), Ryan McCray is left with a broken leg and a encounter he'll never forget. While Ryan is recovering, he starts recounting his story in his journal, whereas Sarah takes things into her own hands and starts getting to the bottom of this chilling mystery one video at a time. Two teens, one ghost, and a town full secret society members. Something is wrong with Skeleton Creek, but can the twosome find the answer before they burn the dredge to ground and all it's secrets with it?

*****

Master of creepiness or an artists with panicky words? That is the question. When I first started reading this book I noticed that how the author got you scared was with simple words and phrases like "fear", "too terrible to write down", "dredge", "watching", or even "window". I hate windows at night. And wouldn't you know it, that is how the "ghost" is introduced... peeping through a window (see book cover). Is it just me or do I feel a chill? Hmm, oh well. The first two videos are creepy and I would highly recommend a buddy being there with you. Good news though, the rest of the videos are fine. No creepy things popping up, mainly stuff about the mystery. The mystery parts were actually quite interesting and I'm anticipating the next book, but I'm a little nervous about the videos. I can't say that I was so scared out of my pants that I couldn't continue, but it was enough to creep me out. I don't particularly like ghost stories unless I have a good hunch (and it turns out to be true) that the so-called ghost is a real person just scaring people. (I think I watched too many Scooby-Doos.) I thought combining text and video was a really neat idea and, although I prefer to read rather than watch, I think this new idea is a great way to get kids to read. I really don't agree with this book being labeled 9-12 because if someone younger than twelves picks up this book, chances are they'll have a hard time going to sleep. I would recommend to anyone age 12+, but definitely not anyone younger.

If you like ghost mysteries, grab this book and let the story of Skeleton Creek suck you in. Hey, this would even be a great thing to read during a sleep-over. But if you're faint of heart or don't like to be scared, then you know you shouldn't read this book.

No goosebumps? Great. Well here's your chance to experience Ryan and Sarah's adventure yourself because I'm giving away a signed copy of Skeleton Creek. I'm 90% sure that I'm going to give away some other books along with Skeleton Creek, so it might be a few more weeks till this book is actually up for grabs. Please stay tuned!

Ready for the next chilling adventure? Don't hold your breath 'cause Book 2, Ghost in the Machine will be here October 1st, 2009.

Pages: 144 Year Published: Feb. 2009 Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Suspense

Age Group: YA, ages 12+ Content: Spookiness Buy or Borrow? Both

Enjoyed It: 3/5 Rating:

Special thanks to Mr. Patrick Carman for sending me his book!

Monday Muse: The View From My Window

Instead of posting about books this week, I'm going to do something non-related. Today I'm going to share with you My View from my bedroom window. I took this picture yesterday evening before it rained, then turned the picture black and white (made the clouds look neat):

What does your view from your window look like?

Is yours a cityscape, a balcony view? A farmscape, a mountain view, or a countryscape like mine?

Post a comment or create your own "The View From My Window" post, then link with Mr. Linky!

Summer Reading List '09

Almost every year I have kept a "summer reading list" either to gather library goodies or just because I curious to see how many books I could read. Last summer (June-August) I planned to read 25 books, but ended up reading 35!

This summer (June 1st -August 31st) I want to break that record. I'm setting my list up for at least thirty books*, but hopefully I can read more!

Want to join me? Start a Summer Reading post and link through Mr. Linky!

*Can be fiction 100 pgs. and up or non-fiction. In parentheses include month and or rating.

How Many Books: 30+

How Long: June 1st-August 31st

Pages So Far: 2,799

1. Project Sweet Life by Brent Hartinger (June) 5/5

2. The Entomological Tales of Augusts T. Percival by Dene Low (June) 5/5

3. Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman (June) 4/5

4. The Uninvited by Tim Wynne-Jones (June) 4/5

5. The Straits by Jeremy Craig (June) 3/5

6. When the Whistle Blows by Fran C. Slayton (July) 5/5

7. A Sweet Disorder by Jacqueline Kolosov (July) 5/5

8. The Sweet Life of Stella Madison (July) 3/5

9. Me, Just Different by Stephanie Morrill (July) 4/5

10. Lipstick Apology by Jennifer Jabaley (August) 4/5

11. And Then Everything Unraveled by Jennifer Sturman (August) 4/5

In My Mailbox (4) & Bloggy Questions

Well, well. It looks like the mail finally decided to grace me with several books [finally]. Looking forward to seeing these here on the blog? Now for the Bloggy Questions I wanted to ask you:

1) First of all, do you prefer short reviews (cut to the chase sort of thing) or do you not mind reading several paragraphs? (This has nothing to do with my blog)

2) Are my reviews too long, too short, or just right?

3) Would you like to see some vlog reviews in the near future?

What do you think? I'm very grateful for the feeback! :)

These came for review:

The Entomological Tales of Augusts T. Percival by Dene Low (Houghton Mifflin)

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman (from Carman himself...and for a very special reason-to be announced!)

Tombstone Tea by Joanne Dahme (Running Press)