Writer's Block: Hometown Love

It’s been so long guys, so long, and I am so sorry about that. Writer’s Block really only happens when I have something to write about that’s relevant. If anyone has a question about writing, or writing/reading-related, like my favorite books in a certain genre, please comment! I’ll answer anything anyone has to ask whenever they want.

For this WB I’m going to be talking about something that makes me really happy: when books are set in Chicago! Why Chicago? ‘Cause that’s where I live. I feel like it’s left out a lot because books either take place in the desert or New York (I mean, think about it, really think about it) and Chicago is a big city where a ton of things can happen. So here are some books that make me smile by just simply taking place in my hometown (they make me smile for other reasons as well, don’t worry).

DIVERGENT TRILOGY by Veronica Roth

 

Of course everyone has pretty much read this so they know all about it. It takes place in a dystopian Chicago, and all the elements of my beloved city are there, albeit being pretty much degraded and rust covered. Roth herself is from Chicago, so it makes sense for her to set her bestselling trilogy there. Even better, the covers all have different places from Chicago on the cover and the movie was filmed there.

DRESDEN FILES by Jim Butcher

Definitely a worthy SF&F read anyways, Harry’s world is very much Chicago, although maybe not as obviously so as it is in Divergent? I’ve only read a few books in the series, so maybe some major landmarks come into play later, but overall, the Chicago-ness is there.

IMMORTAL RULES by Julie Kagawa

 

I’m cheating a little. Basically, in the first book, they spend a large deal of the end of the middle there and I just love the dystopian twist with all the docks and water. Certainly the most interesting and the coolest of the three series’ take on the fantasy aspect of it. Of course, they don’t spend as much time as I would like there, but you know, have to give a little, right?

What about you? What books are set in your hometown, or nearby? What other books are set in Chicago? Sound off in the comments!

Another Update

So I’ve gotten quite a few books read but I’m not going to write reviews for them because there are just too many I’m behind on. Avempartha, Forever, No Place Like OZ, Nyphron Rising, and Let the Sky Fall are all getting shelved. I enjoyed all of them, Avempartha and Nyphron Rising getting solid five stars; No Place Like OZ (which is worth reading) gets 4 ½ and so does Let the Sky Fall. Forever Odd gets four stars. If you really, really want to know more, please comment and I’ll get right on that. For now, I’m really working to stay on top of things and that isn’t so easy when I’m behind on reviews.

I will be reviewing Phoenix Island, so look for that near the end of the year. Thanks, and keep reading!

PS. I’m now on winter break, so I’ll be powering through books and tv. Look for more and more reviews coming every day plus a special Christmas book haul and best books of 2013.

PPS. Something strange has been happening with my computer and it’s reaching the end of its life. If something looks strange on the blog or isn’t working right, please comment or email me right away so that I can fix it.

Book Review: Soar

In the city that never sleeps the Chronicles continue…

Serving coffee is temporary, just like Casey's year off from school. She’s going to come up with a plan to stay in New York City and go back to college, and that plan does not involve dating a paranormal creature—let alone two.

Running the supernatural society of New York is not as fun as it sounds, especially when you still have to answer to your ex-girlfriend’s fiancé. Toby doesn’t mean to bring Casey into the chaos of his life, but he can't resist the girl who makes him smile when he thought no one else ever could.

Jared's in New York checking out a security risk for his best friend, the king. He plans to return to New Orleans quickly, but not if it means losing his chance with the brunette who pretends she wants nothing to do with him.

In over her head with a bunch of winged creatures who most definitely are not angels, Casey has to figure out who to trust with her life and maybe her heart.

This is the companion/sequel series to the Crescent Chronicles. If you remember, Flight was my first book of the month, way back when. When I heard that she was writing another series using Toby and Jared as main characters (and newcomer Casey) I was aboard. Unlike the first series this one switches narrators between the three characters I just mentioned. Each was interesting, although Jared wasn’t as fun to read about as I had hoped, and my heart certainly went out to Toby. This book was twice as entertaining as the original trilogy and it had me captivated from the very start.

We see a ton more shifters in this book than we did, really, for the rest of the series, and this is where the main threat is held for the series. I don’t want to spoil anything, but like with Allie, Casey is a wanted woman. Trust me when I say you won’t see the terrible little cliffhanger coming. I was so caught up with the book I didn’t even realize it was over until I turned the page and there were no more (reading on my kindle certainly didn’t help!). I shrieked when I realized we were going to be left dangling like we were. In a good way. I think it will please many people to see the direction Rose Ivy takes us in.

Now, this is a New Adult book and it really should be taken at that value. The romance was intense. It also drags out through the whole story and one of the reasons I kept reading as closely as I was, was for the love story. I was just dying to see how it played out and my nose was glued to the screen. 

Overall, it was a pretty amazing book. I’m giving it four stars.

What's Up: December

I’m so sorry I’ve been gone. Time has just been flying by, and trust me, it’s not because I’ve been having a ton of fun. My life has been jam packed with so much writing reviews has become difficult. I have been reading a bit, though, and I have several reviews I plan to write and post very soon. I also read and reviewed an ARC, which I’ll post about later when it’s closer to the release date. I had also planned on doing midseason television reviews, and I still want to do that, but it may take a little longer, when most shows have already taken their bow for the year. Look for that in the coming weeks since I’m still catching up on everything. I also want to put up my favorite books I read this year, so look for that in the final weeks of 2013.

As for my TBR list, right now it’s very relative. I want to read a ton over Christmas break (which isn’t for another week, sadly), so here’s what it looks like:
· Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (a re-read, which I’m reading now)
· Die for Me
· Pushing the Limits
· Daimon (a novella)
· Hunger Games Trilogy (re-reads)
· Percy Jackson series (all re-reads except Last Olympian, which I only just picked up)
· Angel Burn (re-read)
· Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (re-read)
· Torment (re-read)
· The Archived

There are a lot of books I want to re-read, for different reasons. When I review each of them I’ll explain why, but I won’t bog down this post with the reasons. Like I said, I’ll (hopefully) be posting all the reviews for books I’ve read recently so stay tuned. And I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!