The Musketeer

My Thoughts:

-    The opening credit part was bad.  It looks really fuzzy and terrible.

-    Why do the French musketeers have English accents?

-    The acting is terrible!!  The dialogue didn't help either.  It was pretty bad.

-    I don't like that the musketeers were portrayed as drunks and slobs.

-    The scenery, costumes, and props were the best part about the movie.  The cardinal had some major candlesticks!

-    Some of the stunts were really cool, but SO out of place.  I kept wondering if this was a musketeer movie or a Jackie Chan movie.  

-    One of the songs is a Superman ripoff!  It plays during the end of the movie and during the end credits.  It is the Superman Theme!!

-    The final battle rain...was LAME!!  The rain kept getting turned on and off, and in some parts, it looked really bad.  

-    The overall movie was pretty cheesy, and not the good kind of cheese.

-    The Disney live action version is much MUCH better.  I recommend watching that instead of this.  

ipod nano

My Thoughts:

-    My hubby and I each got our own ipod nano a couple months ago.  Hooray for tax returns!  This was are very first ianything purchase!  

-    I really really love mine!  It holds a lot of music and other things.  I haven't tried putting an audio book on it yet, but that is the next step!

-    My favorite feature is the clip!!!  LOVE IT!!  It is so nice to take to the gym or anywhere.  It clips and stays on anything.  It is great!

-    I wasn't too thrilled to switch over to itunes, but it is alright.  I love how my playlists transfer over.

-    The overall use is pretty easy.  You seriously just plug it in and it takes care of itself.

-    I really like the clock feature and the workout feature, very nice!

-    If you need an mp3 player, I highly recommend this one!  It is good quality and easy to use.  Plus, it has a lot of other features than just playing music.  

-    For more info, check out the website.

Elliot and the Last Underworld War

From Goodreads:   Being King of the Brownies is no easy job! Elliot outsmarted the Goblins and foiled the Pixie Plot, but now he's being threatened by a giant Yeti. Oh, and there's a mermaid hiding in his bathtub. Elliot might be able to survive some unusual self-defense lessons and a kingnapping plot, but can he withstand the friendship of the neighbor girl--his archnemesis--Cami Wortson?

My Thoughts:  

-    Poor Diffle

-    All the great elements were there again.

-    The princess of the pixies' way of speaking got annoying

-    This was a great end to the trilogy.  

-    I highly recommend these books to young boys.  They'll get a kick out of them. 

The Mansion

Back of the Book:   The Mansion has been ranked next to Dickens' A Christmas Carol as a "must-read" during the holiday season.  It tells the story of John Weightman, a rich man who sees heaven in a dream and is dismayed to see only a small shanty prepared for him.  Sympathy, self-sacrifice and compassion are the overlying themes of this entertaining, easy-to-read story.

My Thoughts:

-    I picked this up because President Monson reads it every single year around Christmas time.  He loves it and refers to it often.

-    Great lesson!!  Do we do things for recognition or because we love and want to serve others?  I want to be a charitable person and have true charity.

-    The story is short, but great!

-    It reminds me a bit of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. 

Elliot and the Pixie Plot

Goodreads Bit:   Between trying to steal a hair for the Pixie Princess and a sock for the Fairies from a demon, Elliot discovers being King of the Brownies is no easy job, in this follow-up to "Elliot and the Goblin Wars."

My Thoughts:

-    The chapter names are fun.

-    The story happens a few weeks after the first one ends.

-    The "no pixies were hurt in the making of this book" bit at the front made me laugh.

-    The wit and banter is really funny.

-    All the stuff I liked in the first book are in this one.  (Examples:  Author talking to the reader, Illustrations, and Humor)

-    I like that Elliot missed his family while he was away.  His family is far from perfect, but it is his, and he missed them.  

-    Fun characters and fun story.

-    This is another great read for younger audiences!

Authorlink with Rick Riordan

One of the many reasons I LOVE LOVE LOVE The Provo Library is that they bring a lot of really awesome authors to town.  I love meeting authors and getting my books signed.  It is awesome!!

Sadly, Mr. Riordan didn't do a signing, so I didn't get to personally meet him or get my books signed, but it was still awesome!

I adore Courtney's costumes.  She always dresses up, and she always looks amazing/stunning/awesome/beautiful and everything in between.

 The slides he had to go with his speech were really fun.

This is him doing a reading from the first chapter of The Mark of Athena!

For more fun and some videos on this event, check out Suey's blog, It's All About Books.  She took some great footage.

p.s.  Sorry the pictures aren't very good.  I have a cheap camera and I still play with settings.

Demonglass

Goodreads Bit:   Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch. 

That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.

But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

My Thoughts:

-    Another love triangle...gag!  I don't like either boy.

-    Yet again, more Harry Potter rip offs.  

-    Really, I felt a lot the same about this book as I did the last one.

-    This one ends with a bit of a cliffhanger.  I will probably read the last book, but it might be painful.   

-    I'm not really enjoying the series, but they keep interested enough that I want to just see what happens.  

Q&A

I'll ask the questions, you provide the answers.  Ready?

Where are some odd places you've caught yourself reading?

Has anyone caught you in these strange places?  

What was their reaction?

My Thoughts:

-    I will open a book and read a page while stopped at a red light.  I try to be aware of when the light turns green, but I've been honked at before.

-    I have also taken my book into a bathroom stall at work because I was dying to finish!!

-    This one isn't too strange, but I take a book to the gym with me to read on the treadmill.

Your turn.  What are your thoughts on these questions?

Hex Hall

Goodreads Synopsis:   Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father--an elusive European warlock--only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

My Thoughts:

-    The majority of the book felt like a Harry Potter/Gallagher Girls rip off.  

-    I enjoyed the humor in the book.  Sophie (LOVE that name) was pretty witty, and I loved how she bantered with Archer and Jenna.

-    I didn't like Archer.  Why did Sophie have to crush on a jerk?  

-    There was a lot of swearing the book, and it wasn't really needed or wanted.

-    Wasn't too keen on the lesbian vampire, but they didn't mention it a ton.

-    I really enjoyed Jenna's character.  She was fun...despite that she loved pink.

-    Most of the book was just meh, but the ending was good.  There was no way for me to predict the multiple twists at the end!  It was kind of exciting!

-    Even though it wasn't one of my favorites, I'm still going to finish the series.  The story has kept me interested.  

Delirium Winner

Thank you to everyone who entered and participated in my first giveaway!  I enjoyed all your comments!

The Winner is.....

LAURA from Tattooed Books

Congrats Laura!!  I'll be contacting you soon for mailing info!  You have until Friday to reply or I'll choose another winner.