For some reason I'm having an incredibly difficult time writing this one review - for a book I enjoyed quite a bit - and so I apologise for not being all caught up on them. I might have to set it aside for now and go to the next one. What do you guys do when you're stuck on a review? I reckon I write these posts.

The other day I posted about how you would feel if you could read cut scenes from a book. While watching the Dark Days of Supernatural tour another thing also came to me, also from something Veronica Roth said. (I think I would love to sit in a coffee shop and have a chat with her.) I'm not sure of the question that prompted the answer, but I believe they were asked if there was anything that they had changed about the book during editing, although it could have been about their favorite character. Either way the one big thing about Divergent is that the first 30 pages of the book were originally written from Four's perspective which made him easier to flesh out later as Veronica always knew what he was doing relative to Tris.

My favorite series that does this is the one from my last post, A Song of Ice and Fire, but you may also be familiar with it from Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series. Although most of the series is seen from Meghan's POV, Summer's Crossing is told from Puck's perspective and The Iron Knight will be from Ash's. If you could see a book from a different character's perspective, either as a companion piece or short novella, which character would you choose? And from which book?

I'm not sure that I mentioned this here, but one of my favorite characters is Severus Snape for various reasons. Although this would probably be difficult, I would like to know Snape's take on the latter half of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. And if you haven't seen this deleted scene from the film version, if you're a Snape fan I think you'd enjoy it. It breaks my heart.

I usually hold off and post this on a Friday, but I have to be at work early tomorrow and I'll be there late and so there's no time like the present. Right? Let's go with that.

This week's question courtesy of Parajunkee's Follow Friday is:

Q: The magic book fairy pops out of your cereal box and says "you and your favorite character (from a book of course) can switch places!" Who are you going to switch with?

I had to think about this for awhile. For the time being I think I would choose Cinna (from The Hunger Games) although I don't have a specific moment in the books in which I would want to swap places. Maybe when he tells Katniss, "Remember, girl on fire, I'm still betting on you." Cinna is my favorite character from the series - he was always a breath of fresh air in the middle of a story where you either wanted to cry or tear your hair out in frustration at how horrible things were going for everyone. Every time Cinna had a moment it was calming, honest, and there was never a time where I doubted him or did not think of him as anything other than Katniss' best confidante. Although, I might want to switch with Katniss so I could talk to Cinna myself!

And when I come home after Cinna goes back to design a fabulous dress for Katniss I would find a entirely new and completely fierce wardrobe in the likes of Alexander McQueen. How could a girl say no to that?

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event courtesy of Breaking the Spine that showcases much anticipated upcoming releases.

A Dance With Dragons (A Song of Ice and Fire #5)

Author: George R.R. Martin

Publishing date: 07/12/2011

from goodreads:

In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance once again--beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. In the east, Daenerys Targaryen, the last scion of House Targaryen, rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has three times three thousand enemies, and many have set out to find her. Yet, as they gather, one young man embarks upon his own quest for the queen, with an entirely different goal in mind.

To the north lies the mammoth Wall of ice and stone--a structure only as strong as those guarding it. There, Jon Snow, 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, will face his greatest challenge yet. For he has powerful foes not only within the Watch but also beyond, in the land of the creatures of ice.

And from all corners, bitter conflicts soon reignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all...

I don't think I can stress how excited I am for this book. Setting aside the fact that this is very much not a YA release it's the book I am most looking forward to this year. If you've heard of a little show called A Game of Thrones then you may or may not know that this is the fifth book in that series. The books are long and seem imposing but once you begin the story I assure you they will pull you in and you'll probably have a hard time pulling yourself away from the story. There are times when I feel that fantasy writers are some of the best writers out there and GRRM is no exception - the worlds he creates provide the landscape for such a broad breadth of such fully developed characters that it's all too easy to become emotionally involved with them for good or bad.

I am very much ready for more Tyrion and Jon and, well, the rest I'll have to find out. I'll stop before I can't - I just want to let you guys know that if you pre-order A Dance with Dragons via Barnes & Noble you are eligible to purchase earlier books in the series at 50% off. I warn you, though, the books are big and reading them in mass market paperback is cumbersome. It really is worth it to spend the extra few bucks to get a trade copy.

Whew. That was a lot. What are you waiting for?

I'm currently watching the Dark Days of Supernatural livestream and as I've been listening I thought, hmm, these comments would make an interesting post. The question was about the writing process, and Veronica Roth was commenting about something a professor had told her about cutting extraneous content from a story such as what characters were wearing or what they were eating. Of course cut scenes also can be dialogue or action scenes.

If you had the option to read a fully unedited version of a book would you choose to read it, or might you choose not to out of the chance that it might interfere with how much you enjoy the finished product?

Personally I'm not sure what I would do, although my answer might vary depending on the book that I were deciding about. Would I want to read an uneditedcut version of A Dance with Dragons? Probably, but it would most likely be thousands of pages long. An uneditedcut Harry Potter? No, I don't think so, because I love the way everything flows as is thanks to the goddess JKR.

Author: Cara Lynn Shultz

Publication Date: 06/28/2011

Publisher: Harlequin Teen 

Pages: 352

Source: e-ARC

Synopsis: 

Life hasn't been easy on sixteen-year-old Emma Conner, so a new start in New York may be just the change she needs. But the posh Upper East Side prep school she has to attend? Not so much. Friendly faces are few and far between, except for one that she's irresistibly drawn to—Brendan Salinger, the guy with the rock-star good looks and the richest kid in school, who might just be her very own white knight.

But even when Brendan inexplicably turns cold, Emma can't stop staring. Ever since she laid eyes on him, strange things have been happening. Streetlamps go out wherever she walks, and Emma's been having the oddest dreams: visions of herself in past lives—visions that warn her to stay away from Brendan. Or else. (goodreads)

When I started this book I imagined it would be a slightly darker version of Gossip Girls so when I found myself rather entrenched in it after only a few pages I knew the rest of the day was shot for me. After escaping her abusive stepfather, Emma Conner moves to New York to live with her aunt and nearby cousin. The only meaningful possession she was able to bring with her was a gift from her brother - a necklace with an old family crest. Emma's only wish is to avoid being the new girl that everyone talks about. She fails miserably at this through no fault of her own and begins to find herself in a constant battle of wits with the resident mean girl (Kristin) all the while capturing the attention of both the school jock (Anthony) and the quiet Brendan Salinger.

I really enjoyed Emma. One of threads of the story is where Anthony gives up on trying to woo Emma and so he tries instead to get to her by feigning interest in her cousin Ashley. I've seen this situation play out in a lot of books and often time one character stays quiet because they don't want to upset the other. Emma isn't like that - she tells Ashley, not without some hesitation, that Anthony is no good. She doesn't get swept under by Kristin's bullying, either, and sticks to her guns without being overwhelming. I was a little nervous when Emma met Brendan as I was hoping the story would stay fantastic and not have them fall crazily in love too fast - and it did and they didn't! The pacing for the two of them was well done and despite Brendan being a sort of emo rich boy he wasn't boring or overbearing in any way, and Emma didn't turn into Bella Swan in her fascination with him. Their story was quite fascinating with little tidbits here and there throughout the story that really wove everything together.

Another thing I enjoyed was the writing itself. Prep school, high schoolers - the speech patterns and word choice could have been stereotypical but were quite well-chosen instead. I know I've mentioned this before, but I really love when authors make modern slang and phrases seamless. Cara Lynn managed to due that here to the story's advantage and I found myself laughing aloud every now and again. I'm going to mark some quotes to include after the book's release date to emphasize this.

The ending of the story was vivid in a way that I did not expect and highlights people at their worst and best in an action-packed surprise. Although the story touches on the paranormal, it, for me, was almost subtle and more of a backdrop for the story of two people rather than the characters being the accessory to the plot. Overall if you're looking for a story that has an intriguing romance, fun background characters, and good writing then you'll want to get Spellbound; but set aside a few hours - it's addicting! It's also worth nothing that this is a stand-alone novel. (Not long after I read it on my Kindle I pre-ordered a copy via the Book Depository where it's currently priced at $7.49 with free shipping. That's how I know I liked it.)

This ARC was received from Harlequin Teen via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The first words I remember reading were the names of the states on a puzzle map of the United States I had when I was a baby. Even before I could make out the letters, I would study the shapes and memorise the edges and their location to other funnily shaped pieces. As I got older I began to attempt to pronounce the names and their capitals and once I was old enough to read I would ask that other family members time me on how fast I could complete the puzzle and my knowledge of states and their capitals.

This knowledge served me well in 5th grade when weekly we had a state quiz. We were given a piece of paper with enough blank lines for all of the states with just the initial letter to help us out. From the very first test to the last I could remember and spell correctly all of the states and did so in a short manner of time.

So, from the very beginning, I loved words and their shapes and potential. I loved learning more about them and what I could do with them. And it stuck with me. 

But not every child is like that. For some letters, words, and their placement is a battle. For some they aren't magical but a chore and no matter how deftly crafted the story the interest isn't there. I understand this as that's why people are individuals. However, when Harry Potter was released, and then, later, Twilight, it was almost as if an entirely new door was opened for so many kids. It didn't matter what they were reading, just that they were. Without those doorways and then the genre that opened up after some of those kids many not have had the interest to continue.

One of my biggest issues with books in general is that sometimes an author - or maybe even a parent- assumes that big words or realistic overtones will scare a kid off or implant bad ideas into their heads. Is that possible? Yes, of course. Statistically, no. Give children credit. They are smarter than people give them credit for and when you give them room for their imaginations to create and explore than you've given them a gift beyond measure. People need to know about Deb Caletti's Stay and that it's okay to say 'no' to an abusive relationship. They need to know they aren't alone and that there is help out there for them. Or they could read David Ward's Between Two Ends and get lost in a sea of words but learn about the deeper relationships between people. 

Judy Blume. Roald Dahl. Dr. Seuss. J.D. Salinger. Lois Lowry. C.S. Lewis. Stephanie Meyer - you know, it doesn't really matter. There are a lot of decisions parents should be making for their kids, but I don't think acting as a shelter from YA really should be near the top of any list.

Thanks, Mom, for letting me read as much as I wanted needed to and the only fine we had to pay was to the library.

After a much needed weekend off, I don't have too much in my mailbox this week. I did pick up some from the library but not too much else. Let's see if I can remember them.

Free download:

Summer's Crossing, Julie Kagawa

This novella was fantastic. Seeing everything, especially Puck himself, from Puck's POV was well worth the read. It's funny just how biased readers can be when seeing things solely from one perspective so this offers a nice alternative.

Library:

Unwind, Neal Shusterman

I've been meaning to read this book for quite a long time and I'm actually in the middle of it now and it's blowing my mind with horrific future potential. Definitely on the review pile.

From the author:

The Economics of Ego Surplus, Paul McDonald

For disclosure purposes, I was contacted by the author to read and review this book. It is described as being "part action novel, part literary novel, part guidebook to economics" from goodreads and you can read the first 54 pages here. Since I study political science and economics goes hand in hand with just about everything it sounded like something beneficial to read. The review will be honest as all others are.

And there's my truncated IMM for this week. I'll be catching up with all of your posts soon and then trying to catch up with reviews myself. Hope you all had a good weekend!

Hi, everyone! It's been a bit of a rough week for me, so I do apologise for the fewer reviews and posts. I'm going away for the weekend and promise to post reviews of Spellbound and Dreams of Significant Girls not long after I come back.

No Follow Friday or hop for me, but I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Time to decompress with some books, a hammock and a lake. (And I'm bringing the Kindle in case I finish the two books I'm bringing with me!)

Arrivederci!