Review: Hell’s Reaping by James Bishop

Title: Hell's Reaping: Book One of The Apotheosis Trilogy
Author: James Bishop
Publisher: CreateSpace
Release Date: September 10, 2012
Acquired Via: Author
Judgment day came, and humanity fought. We lost. Demons control Earth and civilization is reduced to a few scattered bastions. Desperate times, desperate measures. Five Templar Knights are damned and sent to Hell as humanity’s last hope. And then it gets better.

Holy crap this book was good! It hooked me from the very beginning. The first chapter was dark, darker than the rest of the book, but it did set the tone of what was to come. You can’t expect bunnies and unicorns when it’s a book about hell. Unless it’s The Evil Bunny of Doom or Bad Unicorn, fantasy version of Bad Horse. By the way, if you haven’t seen Dr. Horrible, go watch it now. But I digress.

I loved this book. Its split in five acts, each telling the story from each of the main character’s perspective. With a sixth pulling everything together. I enjoyed each tremendously. The characters were all compelling and unique. Each dealt with being damned in their own way, but all paths took them towards the same end. Some through more hardship than others, but each suffered to reach their destination.

Blog Tour (Review & Giveaway): Luminosity by Stephanie Thomas

Title: Luminosity
Author: Stephanie Thomas
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: December 11, 2012*
Acquired Via: Itching for Books Blog Tour
Dystopian fantasy novel, Luminosity by Stephanie Thomas, is the author's young adult debut. The main character, Beatrice, is a Seer who has been receiving visions of an impending invasion by City's mortal enemy, the Dreamcatchers. As tensions mount and the City goes on high alert, Beatrice starts keeping secrets that could be dangerous to everyone.

Initially, I was not a fan of Luminosity. It is written in first person from Beatrice's point of view, and I was a little confused about the way Stephanie Thomas brought us into the story. For one, I thought Gabe was some sort of guard, and we're told the Keeper is supposed to be intimidated by Beatrice, but I never got that vibe. Despite these things, once I got into the novel, it really began to flow, and I was hooked.

Review: Valkyrie Rising by Ingrid Paulson

Title: Valkyrie Rising
Author: Ingrid Paulson
Publisher: Harper Teen
Release Date: October 9, 2012
Acquired Via: Southern Book Bloggers
Valkyrie Rising is the young adult debut novel of Ingrid Paulson. It is a mythology-based story set in modern Norway about Elsa "Ellie" Overholt, who discovers a family secret and more to this world during a visit to her grandmother's in Norway.

The Writing of Valkyrie Rising is something that I belive would be perfect for teen readers and other lovers of YA. The characters are interesting and engaging, and the plot never really dragged. The writing style itself is something that teens will have no trouble flying through, and the first person point of view will give the reader a chance to get to know Ellie and connect with her.

Thankful for Books Giveaway Hop (US/CAN)

Welcome to my stop on the Thankful for Books Giveaway Hop hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and Tristi Pinkston! I'm thankful for all of the books in my life. As my shelves are overflowing, I'm going to be giving one of them away today.

What You Can Win



Katie is on the verge of her Rumspringa, the time in Amish life when teenagers can get a taste of the real world. But the real world comes to her in this dystopian tale with a philosophical bent. Rumors of massive unrest on the “Outside” abound. Something murderous is out there. Amish elders make a rule: No one goes outside, and no outsiders come in. But when Katie finds a gravely injured young man, she can’t leave him to die. She smuggles him into her family’s barn—at what cost to her community? The suspense of this vividly told, truly horrific thriller will keep the pages turning.

Blog Tour (Review & Giveaway): Zuto by Udi Aharoni

Title: Zuto: The Adventures of a Computer Virus
Author: Udi Aharoni and Gil Troitsa (Illus.)
Publisher: CreateSpace
Release Date: August 7, 2012
Acquired Via: JKS Communications

Zuto: The Adventures of a Computer Virus is the middle-grade debut novel of Udi Aharoni. The story is set inside of a boy named Tom's computer and follows a Zutrog-33 virus named Zuto.

The Writing of Zuto really made reading the book a breeze. The style is definitely aimed at a younger audience with short chapters and cute illustrations every ten pages or so. There is also a "Zutopedia" in the back that defines some of the computer terms that are used in the course of the book. The characters are funny, and Zuto is charming enough to make a virus a sympathetic character. The only drawback that I saw with the novel is that it may be a little too simple for the age group it is aimed at, but this one is not a major concern because most children (like adults) like an occasional easy read, and Zuto sneaks a little educational material into the story. 3.5/5 Stars

Blog Tour (Guest Post): Zuto by Udi Aharoni

Zuto: The Adventures of a Computer Virus takes place inside a strange, little known world: a personal computer, the perfect setting for a fast-paced, funny, one-minute-long story.

Zuto, a smart, sneaky computer virus, leads a happy life in his secret hiding place: the Recycle Bin. There, among heaps of junk full of surprising treasures, he plans his tricks. Everything changes when a far more malicious program invades the computer . . . and threatens to end all life in it. Together with his Recycle Bin friends—outdated, buggy programs—Zuto sets off to save his world.

The book’s colorful and imaginative metaphors offer an insightful glimpse inside a computer. An appendix, the ‘Zutopedia,’ explains the truth behind the story: how malware works, what’s the role of firewalls, binary numbers, Easter eggs, IP addresses, and many more.

World-Building in Zuto
by Udi Aharoni
Zuto is a story that takes place inside a computer. That is, the world in which the plot occurs is in fact a visualization of the inside of a computer, and the characters are personified programs. This in itself is not new. The 1982 movie “Tron”, for example, already depicted such a world, and since then there were several other movies, TV shows and books of the same kind. It’s interesting, though, to note the differences between Zuto and previous works.

Random Acts of Kindness - November

RAK is a monthly meme hosted by Book Soulmates. You can join in on the fun HERE.
For those of you who don't know, a RAK is a Random Act of Kindness. People sign up with their wishlist and then can look at other people's wish-lists and send them a Random Act of Kindness. It is really simple, but here are the rules:

COMPLETE RULES RE-CAP:

• Please read carefully follow all rules! Thank you!
• Please sign-up each month that you can participate (and by participate, we mean give as well as receive).
• Show off your participation by grabbing our RAK button (code is in the right sidebar of the Book Soulmates page).
• Create a wish list (on Amazon, Goodreads, or your blog, etc) and post it in the Google Doc located in each R.A.K post for the month.
• If you choose to do a R.A.K for someone, check out their wish list and contact that blogger directly for their information.
• Once you receive a RAK, send us an our new email to [rakbybooksoulmates @ gmail . com] so that we can update the Google Doc. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU SEND EMAILS TO THIS ADDRESS!
• E-book participation is limited to files being gifted directly to a person from the e-book store. Amazon's Kindle Store is set up to allow this, as well as the Kobo store and we believe Barnes & Noble with Nook as well.
• At the end of the month, SHOW US YOUR R.A.K by making a "RAK Wrap-Up" post. This post should include who you SENT gifts to as well who you RECEIVED gifts from.

OPEN TO EVERYONE including all of our INTERNATIONAL brethren!

Remember, there's always the Book Depository or Fishpond, and they offer FREE shipping!

If you're feeling the urge to splurge on me this month, I have two different bookish wishlists on Amazon: one for YA/MG Books and another for Adult Books. If you just want highlights, here are the top 5 that I really want:

1. The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy
2. The Sorceress by Michael Scott
3. Birthmarked by Caragh M. O'Brien
4. Carnival of Souls by Marissa Marr
5. Iron Hearted Violet by Kelly Regan Barnhill

I can't wait to start sending things out to you guys!

Random Acts of Kindness - October Wrap-Up

RAK is a monthly meme hosted by Book Soulmates. You can find out more and join in on the fun HERE.
My October RAK - Sent



I sent Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout to
Barbara at Basia's Bookshelf
My October RAK - Received

I didn't sign myself up to receive any RAK for October because I didn't send anything in September. I'm nearly caught up, so I'll probably sign up for November.

Now that has been all said and done, how was your month? Leave me links so I can go check it out!