Those Fictional Guys We Love

This is going to be a regular feature here on Pure Imagination where I spotlight those amazing guys in YA books or just books in general that we love. Because let’s face it, they are one of the main reasons you love the books. Maybe even the reason you keep reading. So this week is:

Prince Po from Graceling by Kristin Cashore.

Why do we love him?
Really, what’s not to love? He makes Katsa stand up for what she believes in. He’s the reason Katsa becomes who she is. He can put up a good fight. He’s funny. He loves Katsa. And his eyes are silver and gold! What do you love about him?

I was going to search for a actor/model to represent Po but I’m sick and running a fever now so I’ll do that with the next guy. If you guys know of someone that could be Prince Po please let me know!

Who would you like to see next time around?

  • Sam from Shiver
  • James from Ballad
  • Patch from Hush, Hush

Waiting On Wednesday(17)

December 8, 2009

Seventeen-Year-Old Luce is a new student at Sword & Cross, an unwelcoming boarding/reform school in Savannah, Georgia. Luce’s boyfriend died under suspicious circumstances, and now she carries the guilt over his death with her as she navigates the unfriendly halls at Sword & Cross, where every student seems to have an unpleasant—even evil—history.

It’s only when she sees Daniel, a gorgeous fellow student, that Luce feels there’s a reason to be here—though she doesn’t know what it is. And Daniel’s frosty cold demeanor toward her? It’s really a protective device that he’s used again . . . and again. For Daniel is a fallen angel, doomed to fall in love with the same girl every 17 years . . . and watch her die. And Luce is a fellow immortal, cursed to be reincarnated again and again as a mortal girl who has no idea of who she really is.

I know Fallen has been on everyone’s WoW but I love the cover and I can’t wait to read it!
Here’s another one that I’m really really lookin
g forward to. It doesn’t have a cover yet.

The Witch’s Alphabet by Caitlin Kittredge: Spring 2010

In the city of Lovecraft, the Proctors rule and a great Engine turns below the streets, grinding any resistance to their order to dust. The necrovirus is blamed for Lovecraft’s epidemic of madness, for the strange and eldritch creatures that roam the streets after dark, and for everything that the city leaders deem Heretical-born of the belief in magic and witchcraft. And for Aoife Grayson, her time is growing shorter by the day. Aoife Grayson’s family is unique, in the worst way-every one of them, including her mother and her elder brother Conrad, has gone mad on their sixteenth birthday. And now, a ward of the state, and one of the only female students at the School of Engines, she is trying to pretend that her fate can be different. Aoife is gifted in the mechanics that run her world, but no amount of study can erase the memory of the day Conrad lost his mind and attacked her before going on the run from the Proctors. Or from the knowledge that her own sixteenth birthday is fast approaching. Aoife’s s future seems bleak. Until one day she receives a letter that reads simply:


Find the witch’s alphabet

Save yourself

Aoife knows the letter is from Conrad, but is he a rambling madman or warning her to get out while she still can? In order to save herself, Aoife must find her brother. And in order to that, she must leave Lovecraft and venture into a world of Heretics and air pirates, hidden rooms and dark family secrets…before the clock winds down, and she too succumbs to the necrovirus.

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine

Review: Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Title: Graceling
Author: Kristin Cashore
Reading Level: Young Adult
IBSN: 9780547258300
Blurb:

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight; she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.
She never expects to fall in love with beautiful Prince Po. She never expects to learn the truth behind her Grace–or the terrible secret that lies hidden far away. . .a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone. With elegant, evocative prose and a cast of unforgettable characters, debut author Kristin Cashore creates a mesmerizing world, a death-defying adventure, and a heart-racing romance that will consume you, hold you captive, and leave you wanting more.
My Thoughts:

Katsa is a Graceling. Her Grace is killing. She doesn’t like to kill but the King makes her. When she meets Prince Po her world is about to drastically change. Can she be in love and still be herself?

I don’t usually like these pure fantasy novels. I’m more of an Urban Fantasy person. Kristin Cashore might have just changed my mind.
In Graceling Cashore has created a magical fantasy world full of surprises. She took a concept that has been done one million times-superpowers-and completely made it her own original work of art. The land in which Graceling takes place is full of endless possibilities.
Katsa is an strong female character. She has good reason to be. Katsa’s growth as a character is amazing. It never felt rushed or unjustified. It takes some authors three to four books to achieve this much character development. Kristin did it in one book. She has a knack for it!
The relationship between Katsa and Po was of course my favorite part. I thought it played out perfectly. It wasn’t overdone but it did leave you wanting more.

Kristin Cashore is a name we are going to be hearing for a long time to come. She is a fairly new name on the YA Fantasy front but I think she will be right up there with Robin McKinley very soon. I loved Graceling and I can’t wait for Fire. If you haven’t read it yet, what are you waiting for? 5 Stars!

Musical Monday

Welcome to the second edition of Musical Monday! This time around we have Muse! Enjoy!

On a side note: I don’t buy new music a lot but tomorrow(9/29) there are two new albums being released that I’m excited about! Paramore and Breaking Benjamin! How will I ever decide which one to listen to first!

In My Mailbox!

In My Mailbox was started by The Story Siren.

In this mesmerizing sequel to Lament, music prodigy James Morgan and his best friend, Deirdre, join a private conservatory for musicians. James’ musical talent attracts Nuala, a soul-snatching faerie muse who fosters and feeds on the creative energies of exceptional humans until they die. Composing beautiful music together unexpectedly leads to mutual admiration and love. Haunted by fiery visions of death, James realizes that Deirdre and Nuala are being hunted by the Fey and plunges into a soul-scorching battle with the Queen of the Fey to save their lives.

Of course I’ve already read this but….

“Shoot,” I muttered when the paper sliced my finger; I pulled it out to examine the damage. A single drop of blood oozed from the tiny cut. It all happened very quickly then. Edward threw himself at me, flinging me back across the table… I tumbled down to the floor by the piano, with my arms thrown out instinctively to catch my fall, into the jagged shards of glass. I felt the searing, stinging pain that ran from my wrist to the crease inside my elbow. Dazed and disoriented, I looked up from the bright red blood pulsing out of my arm-into the fevered eyes of the six suddenly ravenous vampires.

Legions of readers entranced by Twilight are hungry for more and they won’t be disappointed. In New Moon, Stephenie Meyer delivers another irresistible combination of romance and suspense with a supernatural twist. The “star-crossed” lovers theme continues as Bella and Edward find themselves facing new obstacles, including a devastating separation, the mysterious appearance of dangerous wolves roaming the forest in Forks, a terrifying threat of revenge from a female vampire and a deliciously sinister encounter with Italy’s reigning royal family of vampires, the Volturi. Passionate, riveting, and full of surprising twists and turns, this vampire love saga is well on its way to literary immortality.

Also, never get a paper cut with vampires around.

I don’t know why I put the blurb up. Its not like you didn’t know what it’s about! I had to buy it! It’s too pretty!

Five months ago, Valerie Leftman’s boyfriend, Nick, opened fire on their school cafeteria. Shot trying to stop him, Valerie inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but was implicated in the shootings because of the list she helped create. A list of people and things she and Nick hated. The list he used to pick his targets.

Now, after a summer of seclusion, Val is forced to confront her guilt as she returns to school to complete her senior year. Haunted by the memory of the boyfriend she still loves and navigating rocky relationships with her family, former friends and the girl whose life she saved, Val must come to grips with the tragedy that took place and her role in it, in order to make amends and move on with her life.

Giveaway Winners!

It seems like its been forever since this contest started! I had a lot of fun doing it and thank you thank you thank you for entering and following and of course reading the blog! But lets get to the part you all are interested in, shall we?

The winner(picked by random number generator)of the signed copy of Blood Promise by Richelle Mead is….Froggy!!!
(I have sent you an e-mail.)
We’re not done yet! The winner of the bonus book is….

Cherie J!!
(I have also sent you an e-mail.)

You get to pick a book from this list:

  • Meridian – Amber Kizer
  • Wings – Aprilynne Pike
  • The Gargoyle – Andrew Davidson
  • Revealers – Amanda Marrone
  • Wicked Lovely – Melissa Marr
  • Distant Waves – Suzanne Weyn
  • The Looking Glass Wars – Frank Beddor

Thanks again to everyone that entered! And of course stay tuned because there will be another contest soon!

Review: 1984 by George Orwell

Title: 1984
Author: George Orwell
IBSN: 9780451524935
Blurb:

The year 1984 has come and gone, but George Orwell’s prophetic, nightmarish vision in 1949 of the world we were becoming is timelier than ever. 1984 is still the great modern classic of “negative utopia”–a startlingly original and haunting novel that creates an imaginary world that is completely convincing, from the first sentence to the last four words. No one can deny the novel’s hold on the imaginations of the whole generations, or the power of its admonitions–a power that seem to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time.

My Thoughts:

Winston Smith vaguely remembers what the world was like before. Before the revolution, before the Thought Police, before Big Brother. But he can’t remember if it was better.

I wanted to read this book because its a classic. No bookshelf is complete without it. What I was surprised to find is that I really liked it. Sure, I knew I would like it. It’s a classic for a reason but I really enjoyed it. I thought it would be hard to get through and reading it would take a lot of effort on my part. I was wrong.
I’m not going to get into the plot very much. It’s one of those books you just have to read. It’s a story about the horror of human nature. The horror of man’s obsession with power. This book was written in 1949. I can understand what an impact it must have had then. With Hitler and WWII still fresh in everyone’s minds. Even in the 50′s it might have seemed possible that something like this could happen. In today’s day and age its not even feasible but it makes you thankful for the world we live in and the privileges we take for granted.

I highly recommend 1984 if you haven’t read it already. Like I said no shelf is complete without it. 4 Stars

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