Cover Beach #6

This week it's not only a beautiful cover I'll reveal. I read some reviews of this book and I was quiet fascinating. It seems to be a must read. It's about:


Someone else's life by Katie Dale

Genre:	Contemporary Fiction
PublicationDate:	February 2nd 2012
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	478
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster UK
Websites:	Katie Dale | Goodreads
Purchase:	Buy here

Blurb: When seventeen-year-old Rosie’s mother, Trudie, dies from Huntington’s Disease, her pain is intensified by the knowledge that she has a fifty-per-cent chance of inheriting the crippling disease herself. Only when she tells her mum’s best friend, ‘Aunt Sarah’ that she is going to test for the disease does Sarah, a midwife, reveal that Trudie was not her biological mother after all... Devastated, Rosie decides to trace her real mother, hitching along on her ex-boyfriend’s GAP year to follow her to Los Angeles. But all does not go to plan, and as Rosie discovers yet more of her family's deeply-buried secrets and lies, she is left with an agonising decision of her own - one which will be the most heart-breaking and far-reaching of all...




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Cover Beach is a feature by Stephanie from Books Paradise. I love covers and I must confess that I usually buy my books by the cover. Yes, I know it isn't as right as rain... Cover Beach is also a post about covers I love (regardless of I would buy it), sometimes about the difference between German and English covers and something along those lines.
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Wordless in Paradise #8 ~ Do you know waht your books do at night?

Das Lied der Banshee by Janika Nowak

Genre:	Fantasy, Romance (YA)
Veröffentlichung:	January 10th 2011
Seiten:	480
Herausgeber:	Pan Verlag
Websites:	Livebook | Goodreads
Mein Exemplar:	gekauft
Zu kaufen:	Amazon (DE)

Klappentext: Aileen ist siebzehn Jahre alt und führt ein ganz normales Leben. Das ändert sich schlagartig, als sie eines Abends von vier bulligen Kerlen überfallen wird. Irgendwie übersteht sie die Situation unbeschadet - nur wie? Hat es etwas mit diesem merkwürdigen Schrei zu tun, den sie instinktiv ausgestoßen hat? Am liebsten würde Aileen die ganze Sache vergessen, doch weder ihre unverwüstliche Sturheit noch ihre frechen Sprüche können verhindern, dass sie sich plötzlich in einer Welt voller Magie und Gefahr wiederfindet...

Ich schloss die Augen uns schrei aus vollem Halse, (...) Es hörte sich an, als würde dieser Schrei meine Seele tragen oder als würde die Erde selbst schreien, denn das Geräusch, das über den Hof hallte, hatte etwas zutiefst Urtümliches in sich.

Wahrscheinlich setzte in diesem Augenblick mein Verstand vollends aus, denn wer würde sich schon mit solch einer Waffe (Harke) auf ein Wesen wie dieses stürzen? Genau, ich! Ich, die ich mich gestern nocht nicht mal gegen eine Horde Schläger zur Wehr hatte setzen können.

Na klar. Ich war ein besonders absonderlicher Freak.

Meine Meinung: Das Lied der Banshee lag ein gutes halbes Jahr auf meiner Wunschliste und ich hatte es schließlich sogar gelöscht. Dennoch ließ mir dieses Buch keine Ruhe. Also entschloss ich mich, mir dieses Buch doch zu kaufen und ich wurde keineswegs enttäuscht. Aileen ist siebzehn und trifft sich mit ihrem Arbeitskollegen Thomas (ihr heimlicher Schwarm!) auf einem Konzert. Schon auf der Hinfahrt bemerkte sie vier Schlägertypen in der S-Bahn. Als sie sich in der Nacht auf den Heimweg macht wird sie prombt von diesen vier Typen in eine dunkle Ecke getrieben und brutal zusammengeschlagen. Als einer von ihnen ein Messer zückt, schreit Aileen voller Panik um ihr Leben und noch ehe sie es bemerkt brechen ihre Angreifer einfach zusammen und bleiben reglos liegen. Gluck, das war einfach nur Glück! Aber Aileens Verletzungen heilen rasent schnell. Merkwürdig, ist wahrscheinlich nur Einbildung, sagt sich Aileen. Doch als in der folgenden Nacht auch noch plötzlich ein paar seltsame Wesen, halb Vogel und halb Mensch, nach ihrem Leben trachten, erfährt sie, dass sie eine Banshee ist und eine höhere Macht sie ohne erkennbaren Grund aus dem Weg räumen will. Schon bald befindet sie sich zusammen mit Thomas auf der Flucht...

Das Buch ist einfach wundervoll aufgebaut und durch und durch mit sehr schönen und passenden Illustrationen versehen. Eigentlich bin ich kein Fan von Bildern -in welcher Form auch immer- in einem Buch, aber diese sind wirklich grandios. Okay, ich muss zugeben, sie haben mich manchmal ein wenig abgelenkt, aber das macht Nowak's erfrischender Schreibstil wieder wett. Außerdem ist ihre Protagonisten jung, witzig, sarkastisch, ungeduldig und manchmal auch ein kleines bisschen übermütig. Sie ist ein kleiner Wirbelwind, der für sehr viel wunderbare Stimmung sorgt. Besonders Ihr Sarkasmus oder auch ihr Galgenhumor sind sehr amüsant. Geht es bei Aileen jedoch um Thomas oder viel mehr um ihre Gefühle für ihn, so wird sie plötzlich ziemlich steif und will sich natürlich nichts anmerken lassen. Nach und nach muss sie aber feststellen, dass Thomas scheinbar ähnliche Gefühle für sie hat.

Ihre magische 'Ausbildung' (Stimmen- und Fähigkeitstraining) nehmen einen recht großen Abschnitt in Anspruch, allerdings wird es alles andere als langweilig. So trumpft die Autorin mit allerhand wundervollen Dingen und Wendungen auf, wie beispielsweise die 'magische Lupe', die es ihrem Besitzer ermöglicht ein völlig fremde Schrift in ihre ihr bekannte Schrift umzuwandeln. Es gibt zahlreiche Wesen (Banshees, Harpyen, Gargoyles, Götterkinder, unvm.), die sich prima in die Geschichte einfügen und ein harmonisches Ganzes ergeben. An Ideenreichtum und Abenteuer mangelt es in diesem Buch definitiv nicht.

Fazit: Das Lied der Banshee ist eine fantastische Geschichte voller fabelhafter Wesen in "normaler Welt" Kulisse. Wirklich sehr zu empfehlen.

Black Short Monday #8 ~ Impulse Control

Black Short Monday is feature by Stephanie from Books Paradise. Mondays are definitely black. I thought what could I do to make it better. In the last time I consistently read short stroies, novellas or something along those lines and what lends itself better for reviewing those stories as a black monday? - Right, a black Monday!

Short Story:	Impulse Control
Author:	Susan Bischoff
Anthology:	Kiss me, Kill me
Genre:	Paranormal Romance
Published:	February 25th 2011
Format:	Kindle ebook
Websites:	Susan Bischoff | Goodreads
My copy:	bought by myself

Blurb: In the world of the Talent Chronicles, kids born with supernatural powers are taken from their families and forced into government research facilities called State Schools. At one such school, a group of Talents must work together to stop a dangerous experiment that's already killed two of their peers and threatens others. If they're caught they face Detention, and Detention at a State School has a whole different meaning.

Of course I'm morphing! It was hard enough taking the form of this skinny little girl, then add dodging the fireballs you made her throw at me, and now I'm supposed to be able to concentrate enough to hold it when she's fried my damned arm? Son of a bitch!

My thoughts: Impulse Control is the prequel novella of The Talent Chronicles by Susan Bischoff. When I started reading the first few sentences I had a bad clue. I'm sorry to say I was right. The writing style as well as the characters didn't work for me. Maybe the characters were too young and the romantic part of that story wasn't even romantic. It was more about both the first kiss and love you had in life. Nothing mind-blowing. Only the kind of paranormals could be interesting, if they were described in more detail. But I doubt that the novels of The Talent Chronicles are better or rather that they would work for me.

Impulse Control seemed to be an exciting story for young readers (10-13 years or so), but not for me in any case.

Cover Beach #5

Cover Beach is a feature by Stephanie from Books Paradise. I love covers and I must confess that I usually buy my books by the cover. Yes, I know it isn't as right as rain. Cover Beach is also a post about covers I love (regardless of I would buy it), sometimes about the difference between German and English covers and something along those lines.


This time there are three beautiful covers I love. The combination of content, color and image make my hearts melt.


Shadow Heir by Richelle Mead

Series:	Dark Swan #4
Genre:	Urban-Fantasy
PublicationDate:	February 2nd 2012
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	400
Publisher:	Bantam Books
Websites:	Richelle Mead | Goodreads
Purchase:	Buy here

Blurb: New York Times bestselling author Richelle Mead returns to the Otherworld, a mystic land inextricably linked to our own--and balanced precariously on one woman's desperate courage... Shaman-for-hire Eugenie Markham strives to keep the mortal realm safe from trespassing entities. But as the Thorn Land's prophecy-haunted queen, there's no refuge for her and her soon-to-be-born-children when a mysterious blight begins to devastate the Otherworld... The spell-driven source of the blight isn't the only challenge to Eugenie's instincts. Fairy king Dorian is sacrificing everything to help, but Eugenie can't trust the synergy drawing them back together. The uneasy truce between her and her shape shifter ex-lover Kiyo is endangered by secrets he can't--or won't--reveal. And as a formidable force rises to also threaten the human world, Eugenie must use her own cursed fate as a weapon--and risk the ultimate sacrifice...










When the Sea is Rising Red by Cat Hellisen

Genre:	Paranormal (YA)
PublicationDate:	February 28th 2012
Format:	Hardcover
Pages:	296
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Websites:	Cat Hellisen | Goodreads
Purchase:	Preorder here

Blurb: After seventeen-year-old Felicita’s dearest friend, Ilven, kills herself to escape an arranged marriage, Felicita chooses freedom over privilege. She fakes her own death and leaves her sheltered life as one of Pelimburg’s magical elite behind. Living in the slums, scrubbing dishes for a living, she falls for charismatic Dash while also becoming fascinated with vampire Jannik. Then something shocking washes up on the beach: Ilven's death has called out of the sea a dangerous, wild magic. Felicita must decide whether her loyalties lie with the family she abandoned... or with those who would twist this dark power to destroy Pelimburg's caste system, and the whole city along with it.










The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman

Genre:	Paranormal (YA)
PublicationDate:	January 19th 2012
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	448
Publisher:	Atom
Websites:	Robin Wasserman | Goodreads
Purchase:	Buy here

Blurb: It was like a nightmare, but there was no waking up. When the night began, Nora had two best friends and a boyfriend she adored. When it ended, she had nothing but blood on her hands. Chris was dead. Adriane couldn't speak. And Max, Nora's sweet, smart, soft-spoken Prince Charming, was gone. He was also-according to the police, according to her parents, according to everyone-a murderer. Desperate to prove his innocence, Nora's determined to follow the trail of blood, no matter where it leads. But Chris's murder is just one piece in a puzzle that spans continents and centuries. Solving it may be the only way she can save her own life.

My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent

Series:	Soul Screamers #1
Genre:	Urban-Fantasy (YA)
Published:	August 1st 2009
Pages:	279
Publisher:	Harlequin
Websites:	Rachel Vincent | Goodreads
My copy:	ebook, bought by myself
Purchase:	Amazon (DE) | Book Depository

Blurb: She doesn't see dead people. She senses when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally. Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about her need to scream than she does. And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason, only Kaylee knows who'll be next.

What I really need was for someone to tell me what good premonitions of death were if they didn't help me warn people. What was the point of knowing someone was going to die, if I couldn't stop it from happening?

She had no idea what her life had cost. I didn't regret my choice. Not even a little bit.

My thoughts: After I have read My Soul to Lose, the prequel novella of the Soul Screamers Series by Rachel Vincent I read My Soul to Take the first novel in the series last week. It's some kind of a book you can hardly stop reading. Kaylee the main-character in this series is likeable from the very first. She isn't really popular in school but she is someone special. Kaylee is a bean sidhe and when she sees shadows blanket anybody Kaylee knows this person is about to die. She can't warn the person, because Kaylee must hold back her growing grief-stricken shriek. The last time she couldn't stop her screaming she woke up in a psychiatric unit. Only Nash Hudson, the hottest guy in school, can calm her...

Expect the unexpected! Every review I'd read told me what a great book / series it is. And of course that's right. But I didn't expect it to make me cry. The part where I had to cry was when I learned the truth about the death of Kaylee's mom. It isn't easy to read for anyone, but for a mother it will be much more brutal and heartrending than for a non-mother. It was hard to read, but I couldn't stop even though I could barely see the words.

My favorite characters were Kaylee, Nash and especially Tod (I don't want to say too much, you'll meet him in the book). Kaylee's responses often have a hint of sarkasmus and all three characters are pretty straightforward - that's the way I like.

My Soul to Take is a fun, dark and thrilling read with so many twists you didn't see coming. Quite fascinating and unique!