Showing posts with label Anna Dressed in Blood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Anna Dressed in Blood. Show all posts

Monday, December 19, 2011

Nat's Top Ten of 2011


When we decided that we would each make a Top Ten of 2011 list, I was convinced that it would take me days.  Surprisingly, it only took me 4 hours.  Granted that is partially because we all decided it was okay to cheat with books in a series and count an entire series as one book.  Even so, it was tough because there were so many books I read and loved this year.  So here it is!  Share with us your favorite reads of 2011!


The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare - Shadowhunters, Downworlders, Demons, Mundanes.  A rich urban fantasy with all the necessary action, romance and teen angst that keeps me coming back for more. And it introduces some of my most favorite male characters in YA - Magnus, Jem and Jace

If I Stay by Gayle Forman - I sobbed.  And sobbed.  And then sobbed some more.  I am not much of a crier in my personal life, but there are a number of books that make me weepy at turns and there are very few books that turn me into an emotional basket case.  If I Stay wins the emotional basketcase category. Hands down.  It is equally funny, beautiful and oh so terribly sad.  If I had to put this list in order of favorites, this would compete with my next choice as number one on the list.

Where She Went by Gayle Forman - The companion book to If I Stay.  Another beautifully written story.  The main character is so darn loveable you can't help but feel for him.  Even when he pulls the ultimate rockstar move and starts sleeping with his groupies.  What's not to love about a emotionally messed up rockstar?  Not a thing, I say.  Not a darn thing.  This one will also have you alternately laughing and crying.  Fortunately, it will not turn you into an emotional basket case.


Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins - Just all sorts of happy. I have re-read this book 4 times in as many months.  This is the ultimate "pick me up" book when I am feeling down.  Perfect romantic comedy.  If they make a movie out of this (a well cast and well made movie), I will die.  Simply die.

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins - Take the happy from Anna and the French Kiss.  Add a dash of angst and a pinch of quirky and you have another awesome romantic read.

Anna Dressed in Blood - I read a few books that scared the crap out of me this year.  This one definitely takes the cake.  Super creepy.  I would purposely leave all of the lights on after reading it.  Actually those things would usually keep a book off my favorites list.  But it was so good.  I couldn't put it down and the characters (particularly Cas) were absolutely amazing.

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green - Full of smart humor, slapstick, and just all sorts of awesome.  Definitely a book written for nerds that are boys by a nerd that is a boy.  But that doesn't mean girls don't love it too.  Obviously, since it did make it to my list.  And I am not a boy.  But I am definitely a nerd.

Geek Girl by Cindy Bennett - This is a story about a girl who learns to love herself and also learns that she is worthy of the love of people around her.  A great message without being beat over the head with it.  AND to top it off, the love interest in this book made me forget about Peeta for a few hours.  High praise indeed, if I do say so myself.

Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins - Speaking of Peeta....There is too much to say so I won't say anything at all.  Other than if you are one of the 5 people in the universe that hasn't read this trilogy, READ IT!

The Iron Fey Series by Julie Kagawa - An amazing fantasy about faeries with the feel of both The Dark Crystal and Alice in Wonderland.  The entire series is full of adventure and not a single character disappoints.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

* * * * ½

I hate ghost stories. They scare the ever living you-know-what out of me. Not sure why. Maybe because it is the ONE supernatural thing I believe in. And if they are real, I can’t control where they are or how they might affect me. I’ll let you in on a little secret. I am so scared of ghosts that I don’t ever want to own a home that has been lived in by someone else. Which is silly since I grew up in a 100 year old house with no ghosts. But then who said fears were rational?

Anyways, I digress. My point in sharing my fear is so you would know how completely out of character it was for me to pick up Kendare Blake’s Anna Dressed in Blood. I noticed the hype over the book so looked it up and surprise, surprise. It actually sounded interesting. A ghost hunter? Well, I think we can all agree I want one of those around. And a ghost that kills anyone that enters her home? Except for Cas, the ghost hunter, that is. His life is spared and neither of them understands why she didn’t kill him. Needless to say, the story sounded a little more than intriguing, and enough so to convince me to pick it up at the library when it was released.

And thus began my 3 days of terror.

Day 1 – Read up to page 68. I turned on all the lights and ran up the stairs to bed looking behind me every step of the way. And we hadn’t even met Anna yet.

Day 2 – Got quite a bit farther. However read with all the lights on and cowered in the corner of the couch until the husband came upstairs after playing video games. It was 1:30am. I was ready to go to bed at 10:30pm but there was no way I was going anywhere without my knight in shining armor to protect me.

Day 3 – Decided it was in my best interest to finish the book during the day. Still avoided the basement and again looked behind me every step I took up to my bedroom.


Ok, I definitely overreacted. But that was to be expected. And regardless of my overreacting, this story IS scary. There is a considerable amount of suspense as well as a bit of violence and gore. It is definitely not for the light of heart.

And despite being scared, I found this book to be an excellent addition to the YA world. Cas is an amazing male protagonist that kicked his teenage angst to the curb. Despite the fact that he lost his father, he changes schools as often as some people change clothes, and he has a seriously messed up calling that few people know about, this kid has it together. He is wonderfully sarcastic and has a penchant for swearing that I fully appreciated. Yes, there is a swearing this book. Not a ton but more than you might find in other YA books. Just what you would expect from a sarcastic, fairly well adjusted 17 year-old boy.

Anna is, needless to say, CREEPY! There is a bit of build up to meeting her. And when you do, you won’t be disappointed. She is a very, very angry ghost with no control over her actions. I can’t say more than that without giving a lot away. But I will tell you that you might end up liking Anna just as much as you like Cas.

The supporting cast of characters in this book is amazing. Cas’s mom is fabulous. They have a great supportive relationship that is free of drama. Cas’s new friends end up being extremely strong people that will do anything to help each other. Even the people in this book that lose their lives are surprisingly well developed.

Needless to say, I loved this book. So much so that I will be anxiously waiting for the second installment, Girl of Nightmares, due out next August. Apparently I am a masochist as we all know I will again be turning on all the lights and cowering in the corner until someone walks me safely up to my bedroom.



~ Nat

Sunday, October 16, 2011

A Peek in the Biblio-Bin - #6

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. It is a way for bloggers to share what books they have won, received for review, bought from the bookstore, borrowed from the library or friend, etc.



This week Nat gives you a peek into the Biblio-Bin.




Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages--not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.

When one of the strangers--beautiful, haunted Akiva--fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?


Evie finally has the normal life she’s always longed for. But she’s shocked to discover that being ordinary can be . . . kind of boring. Just when Evie starts to long for her days at the International Paranormal Containment Agency, she’s given a chance to work for them again. Desperate for a break from all the normalcy, she agrees.

But as one disastrous mission leads to another, Evie starts to wonder if she made the right choice. And when Evie’s faerie ex-boyfriend Reth appears with devastating revelations about her past, she discovers that there’s a battle brewing between the faerie courts that could throw the whole supernatural world into chaos. The prize in question? Evie herself.

So much for normal.






Seven half-bloods shall answer the call,


To storm or fire the world must fall.

An oath to keep with a final breath,

And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.


Percy is confused. When he awoke from his long sleep, he didn't know much more than his name. His brain fuzz is lingering, even after the wolf Lupa tol him he is a demigod and trained him to fight with the pen/sword in his pocket. Somehow Percy manages to make it to a camp for half-bloods, despite the fact that he has to keep killing monsters along the way. But the camp doesn't ring and bells with him. The only thing he can recall from his past is another name: Annabeth

Hazel is supposed to be dead. When she lived before, she didn't do a very good job of it. Sure, she was an obedient daughter, even when her mother was possessed by greed. But that was the problem - when the Voice took over he mother and commanded Hazel to use her "gift" for and evil purpose, Hazel couldn't say no. Now because of her mistake, the future of the world is at risk. Hazel wished she could ride away from it all on the stallion that appears in her dreams.

Frank is a klutz. His grandmother says he is descended from heroes and can be anything he wants to be, but he doesn't see it. He doesn't even know who his father is. He keeps hoping Apollo will claim him, because the only thing he is good at is archery - although not good enough to win camp war games. His bulky physique makes him feel like an ox, especially infront of Hazel, his closest friend at camp. He trusts her completely - enough to share the secret he holds close to his heart.

Beginning at the "other" camp for half-bloods and extending as far as the land beyond the gods, this breathtaking second installment of the Heroes od Olympus series introduces new demigods, revives fearsome monsters, and features other remarkable creatures, all destined to play a part in the Prophesy of Seven.



Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father's mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn't expect anything outside of the ordinary: track, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he's never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, now stained red and dripping with blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

But she, for whatever reason, spares Cas's life


Share with us the books you acquired this past week!