Cicely Loves Books

When a tornado picks  up her trailer home and deposits Amy Gumm in Oz, she can't believe it.  But this Oz is different than the one in the stories. Oz has become a dark and desolate place and it's all because of Dorothy. Now it's up to Amy trained by the Order of the Wicked to stop Dorothy from mining all the magic out of Oz and put an end to her cruelty. Because if one thing is for certain, Dorothy must die. "Let this be a lesson to all of you," she said quietly, although her voice carried through the throne room. "This is where revolution will get you. In Dorothy's Oz, there is no room for the Wicked." But then the Lion slunk through my field of vision - licking his chops and eyeing me, because apparently patrolling the outskirts and creeping people out was his preferred party activity- I love a good retelling and/or fractured fairy tale and this is certainly no exception. While I've always enjoyed the Wizard of Oz, it is not one of my fairy ta...

Weekly Round-Up is my wrap-up of last week's activities and includes what I'm reading this week, reviews I've posted, books in the mail and anything else of interest plus From the Library, my weekly listing of what I've checked out from the library. I'm reading Dorthy Must Die by Danielle Paige and The Diamond Thief by Sharon Gosling. I'm listening to Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler, read by Khristine Hvam. Last week I reviewed The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two by Catherynne M. Valente, read the author.  I am on vacation this week. Happy Easter and Spring Break!

September finds herself back in Fairyland, of sorts. She has landed on the moon and there finds her faithful friends, A-L and Saturday and learns that she must save the moon from a Yeti. “There is no such thing as a people who are all wicked or even all good. Everyone chooses. But even they, even they looked at people and saw only tools. No one is a cup for another to drink from.”  How beautifully written are these books? So lovely and musical and lyrical.  And infinitely quotable. There are so many passages that I wanted to mark and highlight but you can't really do that with an audio book. I'm going to have to buy them just for that purpose. Though I will admit that there were a few times I felt like the characters said 100 words when 10 would do. I was happy to have the real A-L and Saturday and not just their shadows like in the last book. It was nice to have the gang all back together. It's once again a simple quest story with September encountering all manner of q...

Weekly Round-Up is my wrap-up of last week's activities and includes what I'm reading this week, reviews I've posted, books in the mail and anything else of interest plus From the Library, my weekly listing of what I've checked out from the library. I'm reading Dorthy Must Die by Danielle Paige and The Diamond Thief by Sharon Gosling. I'm listening to The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two by Catherynne M. Valente, read by the author and Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler, read by Khristine Hvam.

Right now I am in the long process of moving this blog into a Wordpress one since I've heard it's a lot easier and more functional to use. I will of course still have this site up and running but for all the newest updates you can check out my new site here: http://thepaigeturnerblog.wordpress.com/ Please bear with me while I'm still under construction and am working out all the kinks in the system. It would also mean the world to me if you could subscribe/follow the new blog! Thank you all so much!

Synopsis:  Ask Aria Morse anything, and she must answer with the truth. Yet she rarely understands the cryptic words she‘s compelled to utter. Blessed—or cursed—with the power of an Oracle who cannot decipher her own predictions, she does her best to avoid anyone and everyone.   But Aria can no longer hide when Jade, one of the few girls at school who ever showed her any kindness, disappears. Any time Aria overhears a question about Jade, she inadvertently reveals something new, a clue or hint as to why Jade vanished. But like stray pieces from different puzzles, her words never present a clear picture. Then there’s Alex, damaged and dangerous, but the first person other than Jade to stand up for her. And Will, who offers a bond that seems impossible for a girl who’s always been alone. Both were involved with Jade. Aria may be the only one who can find out what happened, but the closer she gets to solving the crime, the more she becomes a target. Not everyone wants the truth t...

I'm pretty excited for the new SYNC schedule. I found a lot of great audio books there last year and I'm looking forward to this year's selection.  If you don't know, "SYNC is a free summer audiobook program for young adults. From May 15 th  to August 13 th , SYNC gives away two complete audiobook downloads a week – a current young adult title along with a thematically paired classic or required summer reading title. Sign up for email and text alerts and be first to know when new titles are available to download at  www.audiobooksync.com ." If you love audio books or if you are interested in trying them, this is a good way to start!

Weekly Round-Up is my wrap-up of last week's activities and includes what I'm reading this week, reviews I've posted, books in the mail and anything else of interest plus From the Library, my weekly listing of what I've checked out from the library. I'm reading Dorthy Must Die by Danielle Paige and The Diamond Thief by Sharon Gosling. I'm listening to Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler, read by Khristine Hvam. Last week I reviewed The Here and Now by Ann Brashares and The House of Hades by Rick Riordian. Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't ask to be some kind of hero. But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know? Sure, I've read the books. I've seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little blue birds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can't be trusted, Wicke...

Synopsis:  Born in Chicago, Illinois, three sisters are uprooted and brought to Pakistan, after the terrorist attacks on 9/11/2001. After becoming oppressed and abused by their radicalized father and drug-sedated mother, two of the girls decide to run away from home and soon they discover their inner selves. One is a twelve-year-old blessed with a gift she does not know she has, the other, a seventeen-year-old proficient in the methods of psychological warfare. Along the way they encounter a handsome young man, and his family who are also looking to start a new life away from their terrorist state. Their travels takes them to Afghanistan, Dubai, Mexico and the United States, leaving a chaotic but interesting trail behind.   Developing a family among a group of outcasts, including a young Asian girl who is prolific in computer hacking, their adventures continue with the girls making daring escapes from authorities, and fighting Al Qaeda extremists working for their father. The ...

Synopsis:  Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they're rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is restored, so is reality. Lucy soon moves to Edinburgh with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father. Lucy and Owen's relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mai ls, and -- finally -- a reunion in the city where they first met. A carefully charted map of a long-distance relationship, Jennifer E. Smith's new novel shows that the center of the world isn't necessarily a place. It can be a person, too. Release Date: April 15, 2014 Number of pages: 352 My review: This was such a fantastic read! I blew through more than half the book in one day because I simply could n...

Annabeth and  Percy are stuck in Tartarus, making their way to the Doors of Death. Meanwhile, the rest of the group are going to find the doors in the mortal world to save them. I always enjoy the Olympus books even if the action can be predictable. Predictable is fine as long as it isn't formulaic. And if the characters are good, then predictable is less predictable and more comfortable. Because we've been with Annabeth and Percy through one series and now partway through another we know how they will react to situations with Annabeth trying to talk her way out and Percy trying to fight his way out. So it's easy to see that they are going to get out of Tartarus using their skills. On the other side of the Doors are the rest of  the demigods who are making their way to mortal side in order to rescue Annabeth and Percy and then close them on their side therefore making Gaia unable to summon more monsters and making her weaker. I feel like we get more of Leo and Hazel than an...

Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover ★★★★★ Release Date: March 18, 2014 Publisher: Atria Age: New Adult Genre: Music, Contemporary Romance, Realistic Fiction, College Format: Paperback Source: Purchased Buy it: Amazon | Barnes and Noble At twenty-two years old, aspiring musician Sydney Blake has a great life: She’s in college, working a steady job, in love with her wonderful boyfriend, Hunter, and rooming with her good friend, Tori. But everything changes when she discovers Hunter cheating on her with Tori—and she is left trying to decide what to do next. Sydney becomes captivated by her mysterious neighbor, Ridge Lawson. She can’t take her eyes off him or stop listening to the daily guitar playing he does out on his balcony. She can feel the harmony and vibrations in his music. And there’s something about Sydney that Ridge can’t ignore, either: He seems to have finally found his muse. When their inevitable encounter happens, they soon find themselves needing each other in more ways than ...

Prenna and her community have a huge secret. They are from a future where the world has collapsed and a deadly blood plague carried by mosquitoes is an epidemic. Sent back in time, the leaders of her community are suppose to be working on the solution. But in the meantime they are expected to assimilate into the 21st century and above all else, never tell who they are or where they came from. But Prenna falls in love with Ethan and the two make a startling discovery about Prenna's time and her community itself. To get it out of the way first, I didn't like the romantic plot. It was strange. Yes, Prenna and Ethan had known each other for a long time but it moved so quickly into true love that it felt forced and I wasn't feeling it. It was more like teenage lust than love. And that's fine but don't pretend it to be otherwise. Anyway. I enjoyed the book despite my objections to the love story. It was a good read and I liked how feisty Prenna was and how she was willing...