Trailer Tuesday: Hades by Alexandra Adornetto + GIVEAWAY

Title: Hades

Author: Alexandra Adornetto

Description: Heaven Help Her.

Bethany Church is an angel sent to Earth to keep dark forces at bay. Falling in love was never part of her mission, but the bond between Beth and her mortal boyfriend, Xavier Woods, is undeniably strong. But even Xavier?s love, and the care of her archangel siblings, Gabriel and Ivy, can?t keep Beth from being tricked into a motorcycle ride that ends up in Hell. There, the demon Jake Thorn bargains for Beth?s release back to Earth. But what he asks of her will destroy her, and quite possibly, her loved ones, as well.

Another giveaway? Yes! I personally haven't read Halo but I remember seeing it around on the blogosphere when it first came out. For fans of the first novel, you will get a chance to win the sequel, Hades, here!

Entries:

+1 Be a public GFC follower, I will check! (MANDATORY)

+1 Tweet, leave link

+ 2 Blog about giveaway, leave link (separate entries)

Giveaway is opened to Canadian and US mailing addresses only and closes on Sept 10, 2011 at 11:59 PM EST.

Check out my other giveaway to win the audiobook version of Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon here!

Boyfriend from Hell by E. Van Lowe

Title: Boyfriend from Hell

Author: E. Van Lowe

Age Group: Teens

# of Pages: 256

My Rating: 5/5

Megan is in disbelief at the idea of her mom, Suze, dating. She pretends she is happy for Suze though, because that is the right thing to do even though she feels otherwise. When perfect Spanish-accented Armando comes into their lives, Megan should be glad for her mom right? After all, he is the entire package. Except Megan could not help but hated him at first sight. Things started to get suspicious around Megan and Armando may have something to do with it. She wants him far away from her mother, fast. But once she finds out who he really is, is there any way to get rid of him forever?

Having read Never Slow Dance with a Zombie (a novel that should not be taken seriously in order to have a good laugh), I was not too sure what to expect of this novel because when I started, it didn't seem to be a comedy. It was a more serious book and one I highly enjoyed. In the beginning, I thought it was going be a typical teen novel where the girl wants a boyfriend so bad and eventually will get him through some cliche circumstances with paranormal involved. Which in a way was true. However, it was much more than that.

After discovering that Armando is Satan, Megan did everything in her power to protect her mother and destroy him once and for all. Her two best friends, Matt and Erin thought she was crazy, but she still persisted on. Even after they have ditched her until she was willing to get help, Megan was heartbroken but still had her mother first in mind. I admired her so much seeing how she much she was willing to risk everything for her only parent who raised her. After her friends left her, it was really cool that she became close friends with Maudrina, a classmate she used to make fun of but realizes she was wrong for being mean and slowly bonded throughout the novel.

Everything in the novel was pitch perfect...except for one thing. The romance. Megan meets a mysterious boy named Guy, whom she soon had a relationship with. The problem for me was I did not feel any chemistry off the pages. It felt a little forced and out of place with the rest of the story. Other than this, I loved it. The climax and ending were a complete surprise and a twist one would never expect!

I highly recommend Boyfriend from Hell for those who wants to try out a book with Satan in it. Either way, I think anyone who is a teen novel lover should try it out!

Review copy provided by E. Van Lowe.

My Monday Mailbox & Music Machine (Aug 22/11)

Mailbox

Received

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

~~~

Music Machine

Title: Bad Girl
Artist/Band: SNSD
Language: Japanese
My Thoughts: Another fun song by one of my favourite Kpop bands. :)

Giveaway: Audiobook for Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon

I recently did a giveaway for the new novel Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon. Unfortunately it lasted less than 2 weeks and some may have missed their chance to enter. So I have a new giveaway for the same novel except in audiobook format! This is perfect for long car rides and you're unable to read (roadtrip idea!).

To make this easier for me and equal opportunity for everyone, simply become a follower through GFC (will check) and comment below!

Open until September 17, 2011 at 11:59 EST. US mailing addresses only.

Watching on Wednesday: Friends with Benefits

Title: Friends with Benefits

Type: Movie

Age Group: Older Teens +

Release Year: 2011

My Rating: 5/5

Jamie (Mila Kunis) is a corporate headhunter in the Big Apple. She is determined to get her hands on Dylan (Justin Timberlake), an extremely talented art director of a small internet company in L.A. She convinces him to stay and work in N.Y.C. for GQ Magazine after being so reluctant.

Later hanging out as friends, they realize that neither of them wanted commitment in a relationship. So they decided to have a go at being friends with benefits. Will it work?

Ever since I saw the movie trailer months back, I wanted to see it so bad. So bad that I went to the movies by myself just to watch it. And I have to say, money well spent!

There are comparisons to No Strings Attached starring Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman. However, having seen both movies, there is a huge difference between them. In my opinion, I will take FwB over NSA any day. In NSA, it focused mainly on the two protagonists together, not much of anything else. However with FwB, you get to see their work lives and family dynamic. Being someone who is interested in the fancier end of business, this was a bonus for me when I get to see how glamorous Dylan's job was. I felt that Dylan and Jamie had such great chemistry. They can be each others' best friends in times of need. I absolutely love all the funny parts. Not to mentioned, it's not cliche at all! What can I say, I am obsessed with romcoms.

I highly recommend this movie to anyone who is a fan of romantic comedies. And better yet, this is a movie the girl can take her guy to watch because it has the humour and sexual content that he would enjoy.

Panjandrum by J.J. Telly

Title: Panjandrum

Author: J.J. Telly
Age Group: Tweens
# of Pages: 288

My Rating: 5/5

Gelsem's world is made up of Levels. She lives a very content life on Level Gee where she does not care to explore the mystery and lifestyle of the other Levels. But everything changes when she wakes up one day to find that she is not in her comfy bed, but in a wooden box! She realizes that she is kidnapped and is now a few Levels below her home Level! Now on Level Pee, she has to figure out why she is there and more importantly, how will she get out?

I admit, in the very beginning I was in a reading slump so I did not absorb as much as I should. When I brought it in to finish reading at work, I was completely hooked! I absolutely love this fantasy world Telly created around these Levels. So there is a Level from A to Z, but of course spelled out like Cee or Emm. Each Level is known for the things that starts with the letter of the Level. For example, my name is Diana and I'm from Level Dee where it is famous for its dancers, drummers and daredevils (I made this up! But you get the gist of it). Each Level has monsters and characters of its own with their very unique attributes. I absolutely love it when a story has a pack load of the author's monsters because it is new and different. You just do not know what to expect!

Gelsem is one of the few viewpoints you get to read as new characters are introduced. They all eventually collide together through different circumstances. What makes these characters unique is that you have a couple that you don't know if you want to support or have bad things happen to them. They get stuck in complex situations and then it would be shades of grey in terms of their actions for the reader.

What I love that Panjandrum had to offer was the freedom from what I usually read. The characters are young but with ages scattering from thirteen to eighteen. I am just genuinely glad that there is none of that young romance situation and some teen cliches I am used to seeing. It is just an honestly fun book to read. When I finished, I was thinking that every single middle school should have this book on their shelves for their students to read. Yes, every single middle school. It has the adventures, the monsters, the twists and turns, and the fun aspect. Highly recommended.

Review copy provided by J.J. Telly.

Winner of Retribution

Winner of Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon is... Bee W Bedard! :) Congrats! :D

Watching on Wednesday: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Title: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Type: Movie
Age Group: Youth +
Release Year: 2008
My Rating: 4/5

Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is back with another adventure when greaser Mutt Williams (Shia LeBeouf) tells him that his old colleague is kidnapped by the Soviets. The Soviets want to find the Crystal Skull, an artifact that rumours that whoever is its founder would give them great powers and riches beyond their imagination. Indiana must get to the Crystal Skull first before the Soviets do and use it for dark purposes. Will he be able to make it?

Prior to this movie, I have never watched Indiana Jones. Therefore, I had nothing to compare it to, which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how you look at it. Luckily, it was a good thing for me.

This movie dealt a lot more with action by fighting the bad guys and racing to find the Crystal Skull. There wasn't that huge depth of character interactions, but there was a bit to give the plot a little push. The ride was good and I enjoyed it as I watched it. There were a couple of comical moments, but other than that, gun shots and running away for 95% of the time.

The end though was a disappointment. I was expecting something grand and historical. Like, a real life artifact or myth with a twist. [SPOILERS] Instead, the Crystal Skull was actually an alien. Or at least, made up an alien because there were 7 Crystal Skulls. That just killed the movie because you would be hyped up to know what this magical item did and finding out that it turned out to be a sci-fi movie just makes you go "What??" [SPOILERS END]

I wouldn't rush out to get this movie but pick it up if you're ever at the library and want something to kill time with.

Trailer Tuesday: Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon + GIVEAWAY

Title: Retribution

Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon

Description: ...Harm no human…

A hired gunslinger, William Jessup Brady lived his life with one foot in the grave. He believed that every life had a price. Until the day when he finally found a reason to live. In one single act of brutal betrayal, he lost everything, including his life. Brought back by a Greek goddess to be one of her Dark-Hunters, he gave his immortal soul for vengeance and swore he’d spend eternity protecting the humans he’d once considered prey.

Orphaned as a toddler, Abigail Yager was taken in by a family of vampires and raised on one belief- Dark-Hunters are the evil who prey on both their people and mankind, and they must all be destroyed. While protecting her adoptive race, she has spent her life eliminating the Dark-Hunters...

I haven't put up any trailers for ages. However, I was asked if I would like to host a giveaway for Retribution and was also sent a link to the new trailer. Since today is Tuesday, thought I can bring back this old meme once more. Not to mention, giveaway!

Ways of entries (put all in one post):

Be a public follower [MANDATORY, without this done, you will not be eligible to win] +1

Tweet giveaway [link please] +1

Blog about the giveaway [link please] +2

This contest is opened until August 11th, 2011 at 11:59 PM EST and for US and Canadian mailing addresses only! If I don't get a reply from the winner within 24 hours, I will pick a new winner.