Review: Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors

For review from Walker Books for Young Readers

Amazon - Goodreads

When you're the daughter of the bestselling Queen of Romance, life should be pretty good. But 16-year-old Alice Amorous has been living a lie ever since her mother was secretly hospitalized for mental illness. After putting on a brave front for months, time is running out. The next book is overdue, and the Queen can't write it. Alice needs a story for her mother—and she needs one fast.
That's when she meets Errol, a strange boy who claims to be Cupid, who insists that Alice write about the greatest love story in history: his tragic relationship with Psyche. As Alice begins to hear Errol's voice in her head and see things she can't explain, she must face the truth—that she's either inherited her mother's madness, or Errol is for real.

Ever since I saw Mad Love featured in a Waiting on Wednesday post I have been dying to read it. So when I had the opportunity to review it for Walker Books I completely flipped out! I've never heard of a plot line where a girl has to write Cupid's love story, I mean how original is that?! Thankfully my high hopes were not let down in the least. Mad Love was an amazing read that exceeded my high expectations.

My favorite part of the book was definitely the main character, Alice. She's like no other leading female MC that I've met before. Her inner dialog is flat out incredible and Suzanne did an amazing job at capturing a realistic teen voice. Some of the best parts were when Alice was over analyzing and worrying about becoming like her mother. (Who doesn't worry about that? Ha!)

Not only was Alice wonderful, but the supporting males in the book were completely swoon worthy! Tony was a total hottie, but dawned a pair of nerd glasses! -insert fangirl squeal- Errol was such a unique character, I mean he thinks he's cupid! I loved how Tony's personality was laid back while Errol's was more on the intense side. It definitely gave Alice a wide range of aspects to fall for.

I had never heard of the love story of Cupid and Psyche until reading this book. I loved how Suzanne added mythology flawlessly into the text without get too far from the story. It was so interesting listening to Errol's take on his relationship and watching Alice's reactions.

The ending was just fabulous. I didn't felt rushed or like I was left with a giant question mark in my head. Everything was tied up beautifully and the characters stayed true to themselves.

Amazing Quote:

(I couldn't pick just one, I even had trouble picking only two!)

"What would it like to date a guy who thought he was Cupid? Cupid was a god right? So I'd be dating a guy who thought he was a god.

Maybe that's not so unusual."

"What is more terrifying- the things we imagine or the things that are real?"

Characters: 4.5/5

Creativity: 5/5

Voice: 5/5

Plot: 5/5

Impact: 4.5/5

Overall: 5/5

Mad Love is an incredible story of love and finding yourself, but with a fun twist. The plot is very unique and keeps you on the edge of your seat dying to find out what will happen next.

18th Birthday Extravaganza: Signed Delirium by Lauren Oliver!

It’s Day 4 of Lauren & Katie’s 18th Birthday Extravaganza! Today we're giving away a signed copy of Delirium by Lauren Oliver!

Giveaway Guidelines
-U.S. residents Only
-13 years or older
-Giveaway ends March 16th
-Winner will be picked at random
-Fill out forum here or below

Signed copy of Delirium by Lauren Oliver!

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the governments demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.
But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.

Don't forget to stop by Lauren's blog for Kristi Cook's guest post!

Blog Tour: The Bleeders by Michaela Haze

When I was asked by Dark Readers to be a part of The Bleeders's Blog Tour I immediately jumped at the opportunity! This books sounds so original and definitely attention grabbing!

For Sophia Taylor, life has just gotten surreal.
She woke up on her sofa, bleeding from the head. And her love interest Henry was smoking all of her cheap cigarettes, the ones that he never hesitated to complain about before.
And this is weird because…
1 – Sophia was only bleeding from the head because she fell down the stairs, onto a broken bottle.
2 – HE, being Henry Blaire, her lover and also the man that Sophia paid 10,000 pounds to murder the killers of her sister Melanie.
3 – Henry was smoking all of her cheap cigarettes because she was bleeding from the head.
4 – The bleeding wouldn’t have been so bad if Henry wasn’t an incubus with an addiction to blood and killing the scum of the earth to get it.
All Sophia used to worry about was a double shift at the bar and if her cupboard at home was running low on vodka. Now she must run for her life.

Some quick questions

How did you come up with the idea for The Bleeders?
My mother’s favourite novel is this book called THE GOOD GUY by Dean Koontz and she kept suggesting it to me. Even leaving it outside of my door for me to read. Now coupling this with the fact that my brother had screamed at my mother that he could have her killed for 200 pounds if he wanted her to be. The hit man idea kind of just came along from that. Things in my life generally influence me. The Good Guys – that book my mother wanted me to read, was about a man that accidentally gets targeted by a hit man. I wanted to show that even if you’re a murderer, you are still human. This can be applied to Sophia- the girl that pays for the hit. And Henry the hit man…although he isn’t human.

You’re pretty secretive about the book, why is that?
You have to read the book to understand, and I am not just saying that to sell more copies. There are so many twists in this novel that I constantly worry that I will ruin it for someone before they have read it. As I wrote it, I know everything about it. When people say ‘tell me about your book!’ I have to ask them if they want a condensed ‘movie trailer’ type version, or if they want me to tell them every nook and cranny of it.
And everyone had theories about what happens at the end—and I don’t want to ruin that for them.

Where can I buy THE BLEEDERS?
I put this question here because people genuinely ask me this.
It’s on amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com etc. If you google THE BLEEDERS BY MICHAELA HAZE ‘BUY’ then you should get a few links.

Thank you for reading this—and sorry if I was all promotional. To apologise, please extend you’re arms to your screen and receive an internet hug. Doesn’t that feel better?
I don’t know about you, but I enjoyed it.

Much Love!
Michaela Haze

------------------------

Thanks Michaela!

Don't forget to stop by Dark Readers tomorrow for the Hoarding Humans cover reveal!

18th Birthday Extravaganza: Guest Post by Michelle Hodkin

It's day two of Lauren and Katie's 18th Birthday Extravaganza! We were so excited to here the Michelle Hodkin was able to do a guest post for us! Who's excited for The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer?! -raises hand high!- I am!


Dear 18-Year-Old Michelle,

Hi! It's Future You. The You of 10 years later.

Don't give me that look. Yeah, that one. You're such a skeptic. Believe it or not, I actually know some things that you don't. Like the fact that the very strange girl you just met with a penchant for collecting shiny objects from NYC gutters is going to become one of your closest friends. And that in less than a year, you're going to be keeping mealworms in your refrigerator. I won't tell you why—don't want to ruin the surprise.

But do I have your attention now? Great. Take a deep breath. Then another one. Are you ready? Here we go.

It's all going to work out. That paper you haven't started? You'll finish it, just like you finished all the others. You'll do just fine on your finals, like you always do. You aren't going to fail—at school, or life, or anything. In fact, you're going to do pretty damn well.
I know what you're thinking—that I'm only able to say that now because of how hard you're working now. And that's a little bit true. Don't drop out of college and do ten tons of peyote, for example, or I'll be really pissed. In addition to messing with your brain, it will also make it a lot harder to pass the character and fitness portion of the bar exam.

But peyote aside? Have more fun. For the love of G-d, relax. Enjoy living in New York, because once you leave, you aren't going to be back for a long time. And travel more. Even though you'll have to stay in hostels. Even though you only know one foreign language. Even though you'll get sweaty and uncomfortable and your flat iron won't work in foreign outlets. None of that matters, I promise.

You're on track to finish college at twenty and law school at twenty three, sure. But it isn't a race. You are passionate—and you always will be. You are smart, and you always will be. So study a little less, and explore a little more. You might not get straight A's next semester. But you'll enjoy the ride.

Sincerely,
Michelle of The Future

PS: Don't buy more than one package of mealworms at a time- if they sit too long, they'll become giant beetles. Good luck.

--------------------------------

Thank you so much Michelle!

Don't forget to stop by Lauren's blog to enter for a chance to win a copy of Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann!

In My Mailbox 22

Hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren

Happy weekend everyone! So you've probably noticed that there's no video of me spazzing out over all the booky goodness from this week and that's because my poor little puppy is sick!

Today we found out that he has an infected paw and both of is ears are also infected. The infected ears aren't too big of a surprise because cocker spaniels are known for their ear troubles, but the paw is another story.

Max's paw started bothering him in the beginning of the week and continued to get worse. (Hence my lack of posts, the little guy wanted all the attention in the world, which he for sure got!) Now he's on anti-biotics and has a checkup in two weeks! Thank goodness!

Next week the videos will be back and my little puppy will make an appearance! (Well hopefully, he's a little strong headed...)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Bought:

Fall for Anything by Courtney Summers

Angelfire (Angelfire #1) by Courtney Allison Moulton

Review:

Sean Griswold's Head by Lindsey Leavitt

Thank you Bloomsbury USA!

Gift:

As a congratulations on my 500 Followers my friend, Jen, got me this beautiful book lace! It is so pretty! I'm going to show it again next week so you guys can see its awesomeness in video form! If you look close, each circle has its own unique design! So cool!

Thank you so much Jen!

18th Birthday Extravaganza: Signed Nightshade by Andrea Cremer!

It’s Day 2 of Lauren & Katie’s 18th Birthday Extravaganza and today I’m giving away a signed copy of Nightshade by Andrea Cremer (check out her letter to her 18 year old self here) and on Lauren’s author of Clarity, Kim Harrington stops by!

Giveaway Guidelines

-U.S. residents Only
-13 years or older
-Giveaway ends March 16th
-Winner will be picked at random
-Fill out forum here or below

Signed Copy of Nightshade by Andrea Cremer!

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything— including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?

Don’t forget to check out Kim Harrington’s Post on Lauren’s blog!

18th Birthday Extravaganza: Guest Post Andrea Cremer

Lauren and I are so excited to kick off our 18th Birthday Extravaganza today!

Don't forget to stop by each of our blogs during this awesome event to read the author guest posts and enter the giveaways!

Click here to see the full schedule.

To myself at 18,

I know you thought it was unfair that you turned eighteen the summer AFTER your senior year, which meant you couldn't write yourself excused absences, but being on the younger side of things will only turn out to be a benefit in the future. The next decade is going to be rough. College won't be as amazing as you thought it would be. Turns out you'll question a lot of your choices, make a lot of mistakes, and you will be very, very lonely. Sometimes it will seem like you will never walk the path you've wanted to be on because there have just been too many setbacks. Your heart will be broken, many times over. You will fall in love with the wrong boys, for the wrong reasons. There will be more lows than highs. There will be too many tears. It's not all bad though. You'll find truer friends than you've ever known, and these people wouldn't have come into your life were it not for all those lows.Sometimes you will think you cannot survive. The bad times will force you to figure out who you really are and what you really want out of life. The heartbreaks make you strong. And they make you braver. At the end of this rough decade you're going to meet the right man and fall in love for the right reasons. You will marry him and he is wonderful.

But ten years might seem like a long time to wait for the good stuff. So here's some advice: Keep writing through the rough times. Write to find yourself. Write all the love and the pain, all the joy and the loss. Writing will lead you to the best part of yourself and will bring happiness and fulfillment into your life that you never could imagined. Keep writing. I could tell you what's coming but I don't want to ruin the surprise.

With love,

Yourself (aged 32)

Happy Birthday,

Lauren and Katie

------------------------------

Thank you so much helping celebrate our birthday Andrea!

Don't forget to stop by Lauren's Blog to enter for a chance to win an ARC of Afterlife by Claudia Gray!

In My Mailbox Vlog (21)

Hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren

Bought

-The Body Finder (The Body Finder #1) by Kimberly Derting

-Vampire Kisses: The Beginning (Vampire Kisses #1-3) by Ellen Schreiber

I Am Number Four trailer

Follow Friday (22)

Aaron (Book Addict) of Dreaming About Other Worlds

If you are a fan of Science Fiction what is your favorite book? If you haven't read Science Fiction before...any inkling to? Anything catch your eye?

I don't think any of the books I've read are science fiction. However I did buy Across the Universe by Beth Revis, which I think can be classified as science fiction...maybe? I wouldn't mind reading I Am Number Four and that's mainly because of Alex P, but I'll probably check out the book too even with all the controversies behind it.

Review: Entice by Carrie Jones

For review from Bloomsbury

Amazon - Goodreads

--*Spoilers*--

If you haven't read the first two books in the Need Series (Need and Captivate) this review will contain spoilers.

Zara and Nick are soul mates, meant to be together forever.
But that's not quite how things have worked out.
For starters, well, Nick is dead.
Supposedly, he's been taken to a mythic place for warriors known as Valhalla, so Zara and her friends might be able to get him back. But it's taking time, and meanwhile a group of evil pixies is devastating Bedford, with more teens going missing every day. An all-out war seems imminent, and the good guys need all the warriors they can find. But how to get to Valhalla?
And even if Zara and her friends discover the way, there's that other small problem: Zara's been pixie kissed. When she finds Nick, will he even want to go with her? Especially since she hasn't just turned...she's Astley's queen.

Need was the first young adult book I fell in love with because of its unique storyline and strong female lead. So when book two was released I was completely beside myself in excitement. Unfortunately Captivate didn't do a great job at meeting my high expectations so I was hesitant about Entice. Even though I had a little trouble getting into book three, it turned out to be action packed, Astley-filled and my definite favorite out of the series.

Carrie Jones' amazing world is astounding. Throughout the book I felt like I was walking the snow covered streets of Bedford, Maine following trails of gold glitter. I love the scenery she created and the different adventures she took me on while reading. The plot is so original and well thought out which make it so easy to fall head over heels in love with it.

Zara was tough and independent, which I thought was a wonderful difference from the previous books. It was fun watching her grow into this amazingly strong person throughout the course of the story. I loved that Zara learned to follow her heart and realize that always following what others expect out of you won't always make you happy.

My absolute favorite character was Astley. Not only is he completely dreamy, he is also a very supportive friend to Zara. The two of them together are definitely a duo to be reckoned with! I adored how much Astley reveled about himself and his past in Entice. Every bit of information about him made me love him even more. He's heroic, caring and a little over confident, but that's just part of his charm.

Even though I loved the two main characters, Zara and Astley, I had trouble liking the supporting ones. I found Is to be a bit whiny and annoying at times due to the scary situations that the group was put in. With Dev and Cassidy, I felt like I barely got to see much of them at all because they were either overshadowed by Is or just not in the storyline.

The ending was perfect, it left off just in the right place for the next installment to continue. I felt like I had gotten enough adventure and information so I didn't feel empty at the end. It was just enough of a cliffhanger to get me going crazy waiting for book four.

Amazing Quote:

I pause for a second and then just say it: "You know, life fractures all of us into little pieces. It harms us, but it's how we glue those fractures back together that makes us stronger."

Characters: 3/5

Creativity: 5/5

Voice: 4/5

Plot: 5/5

Impact: 5/5

Overall: 4/5

I completely adore Zara's world and love living it in. It's totally original and will leave you dying to get your hands on the next book. Entice should be a definite read if you're looking for the perfect mixture of romance, action and of course pixies.

Top 5 Favorite Book Boyfriends

Hosted by Larissa's Bookish Life

This week's topic is my Top 5 favorite book boyfriends!

In order from most desired!

Be prepared... there's A LOT of runner ups!

5. Adam

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

It's simple: In a band + plays guitar + awesome fashion sense = Major hottie

4. Ren

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

-drool- What can I say about Ren, besides the obvious fact that he's a complete studmuffin!

3. Carlos

Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

He's a total bad ass with a hidden soft side, I love me some Carlos!

2. Tucker

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

-swoon- Tucker is the perfect country boy! So polite and caring... aww!

1. Luc

Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers

Seriously how could he not be first!? He's is literally the hottest guy out there!

Honorable Mentions

-Astley (Need Series by Carrie Jones)

-Peeta (Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins)

-Alex (Delirium by Lauren Oliver)

-Caleb (Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles)

-Gabe (Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers)

-Roger (Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson)

YA Review Directory

Announcement time! Alice from The Reader Room and I are starting a young adult book review directory!

Don't you just hate it having to search through google to find the review you're looking for? Then when you finally do find it, there's one review that gives it a perfect rating while another blog found the book to be terrible. Well this directory will help cut down the stress of deciding on whether or not you should read a book.

At the directory we will have links to reviews that are sorted by title, author and average rating. The reviews will link directly to the blog that wrote it, so the blogger will get full credit!

There will also be weekly features like "Highest Rated Book of the Week", "Featured Bloggers" and "New Releases We Love!"

What to be apart of the totally awesome YA Review Directory?

Email Alice or I the following information...

-Name of your blog

-Link to your blog

-Review with title & author (link next to or attached to the text).

-Your rating

Have any comments, questions or want your review linked on the blog?

Email us at:

Katie: callmecrazyreviews(at)rocketmail(dot)com

Alice: thereaderroom(at)hotmail(dot)co(dot)uk

Check out the YA Review Directory

While you're there feel free to grab a button to put on your sidebar!

In My Mailbox Vlog (20)

Hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren

Bought

-Where I Belong by Gwendolyn Heasley

-Cloaked by Alex Flinn

-Stargazer (Evernight 2) by Claudia Gray

-Hourglass (Evernight 3) by Claudia Gray

-The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

Mentions:

Alice at The Reader Room

Go check out the

YA Review Directory!!

Don't forget to grab the buttons on the sidebar and email us your review links when your there!

Follow Friday (21)

Ruby Reads

What is your favorite romance hero-type? Stereotype wise. Do you like the strong silent type or the brute macho man?

I'm definitely going to go with the bad boy turned good. I absolutely adore Luc (Personal Demons) Caleb (Leaving Paradise) and Carlos (Rules of Attraction). I love the edge that the bad guy brings to the story and how love brings out there best qualities... that sounds lame, but I mean it in a good way!

"Tell us about one of your posts from this week and give us a link so we can read it (review or otherwise)!"

I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to interview Suzanne Selfors about her new book, Mad Love! Also Bloomsbury was nice enough to donate Mad Love and Coffeehouse Angel for a giveaway! Check it out here.

Author Interview + Giveaway: Suzanne Selfors

Suzanne Selfors is the amazing author of many totally awesome young adult books like Saving Juliet, Coffeehouse Angel and Mad Love. When I was given the opportunity to interview Suzanne I jumped at the opportunity!

What inspired you to write Mad Love?
I don't recall the exact moment when the idea popped into my head, but it rattled around in there for a long time. At first it took the form of an adult novel, but then I realized that the hero, Alice, needed to be a teen. So viola, I transformed the entire story.
One thing that inspired me was my working relationship with two romance writers. We were members of a writing group and I learned a lot about their genre during those years, and I came face-to-face with my own prejudices about the genre. I used to think it was "formulaic", simple to write, blah, blah, blah. The same kind of prejudices we children's writers have to deal with. Boy, was I a dolt!
So I had fun with the romance theme in Mad Love. I highlight the sterotypes, but then reveal the truth- a novel is difficult to write no matter what category it falls into. Period!

Did you always know that cupid was going to play a part in your love story?
I'm crazy about mythology, especially Greek and Roman. I'd reinvented Hermes in my novel, Coffeehouse Angel, and I wanted to try my hand at another mythological character. Who better to pair up with a romance writer than Cupid?

Can you give us three words that describe your book?
Funny, dark, hopeful

Do you see yourself in any of your characters?
Hmmm. Maybe a bit in Alice's mother, the famous writer Belinda Amorous. Because writing keeps her focused and calm. I struggle with depression at times, and writing has always helped pull me out of it.

Was there any character in particular that you had the most fun writing?
Cupid. I dont' want to give away his story, but I loved creating him. He's very different from what most readers will expect. At least, I hope so.

Did you always know that Alice's mom would have a mental illness?
Yep. I did. I knew that from the very first paragraph. Usually when I write a novel, I know the set-up and I know the ending. But I rarely know what's going to happen in between. That's the adventure.

I absolutely adore the cover, it's very hypnotizing! Did you have any input?
It was designed inhouse and no, I didn't have anything to do with it. Except that they were kind enough to ask my opinion along the way, but really I've proven to myself that I'm not such a good judge of covers. So I leave it to the experts to decide. I'm glad you like it. Covers are very important.

Was there any songs that you listened to while writing Mad Love?
Of course I imagined it being turned into a film and so I would choose two songs for the soundtrack: Sam Cooke's version of Cupid, Draw Back Your Bow, love that song. And then for the final scene, (don't want to give any spoilers) I'd choose, This Little Light of Mine, I'm Gonna Let it Shine.

Is there any other writing projects that you're working on?
I'm always working on something. In May, my next kids book comes out called Smells Like Dog. And right now I'm finishing the first draft of my next teen book, which will be out in 2012. I'm really excited about it.

Thank you so much for stopping by Call Me Crazy Suzanne!

Don't forget to check out these awesome links...

Click here to go to Suzanne's website!

Mad Love over at Amazon or Goodreads!

Coffeehouse Angel at Amazon or Goodreads!

--------------------------------

Thanks to the awesome Bloomsbury, Call Me Crazy is having a Mad Love and Coffeehouse Angel Giveaway! Two lucky followers will be able to get their own copy of one of Suzanne's books!

There will be 2 winners.
This giveaway is U.S. only.
Open to followers only.

Click here to view my Contest Policy.

To enter the giveaway fill out the form below!
Contest ends Thursday, February 24th 2011.

In My Mailbox Vlog (19)

Hosted by The Story Siren

Bought:

-Delirium (Delirium 1) by Lauren Oliver

-Vesper (Deviants 1) by Jeff Sampson

Mentions:

Lauren at 365 Days of Reading

Lauren & Katie's 18th Birthday Extravaganza!

Intro Post

Schedule

Follow Friday (20)

Katy from Vision Quest Fail
What is the book you are currently 'pushing'? (Pushing being trying to get someone to read it).Well there is two at the moment. Since I am a proud member of the PD Mafia I'd have to say Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers because it is just totally amazing! If you haven't read it go read it now!! The second is Delirium by Lauren Oliver because her writing is incredible and it's just an all around flawless book.

What are you reading now and why are you reading it?

Right now I'm reading Entice by Carrie Jones which is book 3 in the Need Series. I got it in the mail back in December from Bloomsbury for review so I'm reading it so I can get some reviews for them done. Also I absolutely couldn't wait to find out what is going to happen next, I was a big fan of book 1!

Review: Wither (Chemical Garden 1) by Lauren DeStefano

Simon & Schuster

March 22, 2011

Amazon - Goodreads

Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.
When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home.
But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden's eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limted time she has left.

Wither was one of my most anticipated books of 2011 so when the absolutely awesome Brianna from Bree's Books mailed me a copy I flipped out! The cover is just gorgeous and the plot is totally unique. I was so worried that Wither wouldn't live up to my high expectations of the book, but luckily it went above and beyond everything that I had hoped for. The whole idea of an entire generation's children only living a short amount of time is simply amazing!

Rhine was such a great female lead. Her voice was incredibly strong which made it effortless to be transported into her shoes. She was a strong willed and driven character that I found myself liking from the beginning. I adored how much she loved her brother, Rowan, and how she would do anything to get to him.

My favorite part of Wither was the Sister Wives. Jenna was strong yet graceful while Cicely was annoying yet naive and Rhine was loving and persistent. The mixture of these three made up one kick butt trio! They are definitely some of my all time favorite characters because of how much they grew throughout the story.

I loved how DeStefano characterized Linden. He was a character that I wanted to hit in the face, then ice his wounds because he's so innocent. I love that he was likable even though there is such a strong reason to completely hate him. Gabriel was the perfect guy for Rhine in my eyes. He's strong and warm-hearted. The only problem was that I wish there was more of him in the story. He felt like he was only a passerby. Although the glimpses we did get of him, I highly enjoyed!

Although the ending wasn't everything that I had hoped for, it is a great lead in for book two. It was suspenseful and had me on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what was going to happen next.

Amazing Quote:

"I'll tell you something about true love. It's no science to it. It's as natural as the sky."

Characters: 5/5

Creativity: 5/5

Voice: 4/5

Plot: 4.5/5

Impact: 4.5/5

Overall: 5/5

Wither is such an amazing book. I loved going through this journey with Rhine and I truly can't wait to spend more time in her world. You definitely need to pick this up when it's released on March 22nd.

Lauren and Katie's 18th Birthday Extravaganza!

The time is here! Lauren and I are turning 18 and we want you to celebrate too!

Head on over to Lauren's blog 365 Days of Reading

to find out how you can win awesome signed books and swag! Also see which

awesome authors will also be helping us welcome our 18th year with open arms through guest posts!

Lauren at 365 Days of Reading

The guest post and giveaway schedule is here

Book Blogger Interview: Kreag from I Devour Books

Kreag from I Devour Books was nice enough to do an interview with Call Me Crazy! Check it out!

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Hi Katie! Thanks so much for having me on the blog for an interview! It will be great to see what everyone thinks of me and the blog!

What inspired you to start a young adult book blog?
Well, I am a part of my local libraries teen council. We plan all of the activities that go on for the children and teens from town. So we decided to start a book club (it was my idea :)) where we could just talk about whatever we are reading. So when the first one happened, another member who is now in college said she had a book reviewing blog. She no longer blogs, but she had said I should start a blog becuase I apparently had a lot to say about all the great books I had read in the summer. So, I did.
That's so awesome! I wish my library had a teen council!

What are 3 words that you would use to describe yourself?
Honest, Persistent, Intelligent

Now those are three wonderful qualities to have!

How about 3 words that describe your blog?
Fun, Friendly, Bookish

Are there any upcoming reviews, memes, or events that we can look forward to?
Well, I hope to have my review for Delirium up in the next few days, along with my other ARC reviews coming. I'm trying to fly through the Wicked Lovely series so I can review Darkest Mercy before the release date. I have done a few In my Mailboxes (Yay! I'm going to Borders tomorrow! I can finally do another IMM!) I have been searching around for some more memes to do, but I just haven't had a chance to start any yet, but I am trying to see what I want to do.

Other than reading and blogging, what other hobbies do you have?
Well, I love writing! It is amazing and I want to be a published author so bad! I hope for that to be my career one day, you never know! I also occasionally play video games, mostly RPGs. (I'm a nerd, I accept that :) and I have recently picked up archery. I like to act, I'm in drama club and I am a member of my local libraries Teen Adisory Committee.
Archery!? So awesome!!

What literary character can you relate to the most?
Oh, ah, um, tough question! I wish I could say I was like one of those characters that all the girls swoon over. But I'm not. I'm pretty bookish and smart and not too athletic. My friend said I was like Simon from The Mortal Instruments series, so I guess I'll say Simon! Though I am not a vampire.
I love Simon! Pshh smart and bookish always is better than being athletic any day!

-You recently read Delirium. So I have to ask, what'd you think of it!?
I loved Delirium! It was amazing! The end was so sad, I was crying! I love the characters and everything! The end was fantastic and I can't wait for Pandemonium! I have my review up now!

Yes!!!! So happy you loved it! Pandemonium is WAY too far away!

What's your favorite...

Movie
Well, I like anything that will make me die laughing. I love stupid horror movies! They are so stupid yet amazingly entertaining! My favorite would have to be The Descent, which is not a stupid horror movie and the only one that has actually ever scared me. I am wicked claustrophobic so it was pretty terrifying.

TV Show
Actually, I don't watch T.V. I watch something every once in a while like, maybe CSI, but I honestly only watch T.V. like liteally once a month. I use most of my time to read and write!

Song
Well, right now I will have to say either Heavy In Your Arms by Florence and The Machine or Let The Flames Begin by Paramore. They are both so great, I love them both. I also am a big Lady Gaga fan and can't wait for her new album and I love anything she puts out, though she is somewhat odd, in a good way.

Ahhh I love Heavy In Your Arms too!

Book
Oh! I can't choose! Aaaahhhh! I honestly don't know! My all time favorites are Unwind By Neil Shusterman, The Hunger Games Trilogy By Suzanne Collins and The Mortal Instruments By Cassandra Clare. My other favorites are probably Fallen By Lauren Kate or Swoon By Nina Malkin or Shadow Hills By Anastasia Hopcus or Dead Beautiful By Yvonne Woon (I love her name!) or The Hollow by Jessica Verday. Wow. I have way to many there! Sorry you guys! But I could have tortured you with the rest of the list, so be thankful!
Ooo lots of great ones there!!

Author
Wow. I cannot pick a favorite! I really enjoy Lauren Oliver's writing becuase it is so beautiful and meaningful and I love Suzanne Collins for the great world she creates!
Totally agree with you 100%!

Quote
"I love you. Remember. They cannot take that."

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

So, thanks again for letting me do a guest interview Katie! It means a lot! I hope you guys all love my blog and the books I talk about! And always feel free to tell me about books that I haven't reviewed that you think I'll like! Bye!

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Don't forget to check out Kreag's awesome book blog I Devour Books!