Mundie Moms

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Blog Tour & Book Review: Half-Blood



Published by: Spencer Hill Press
To Be Released On: October 18th, 2011
Source: ARC from author/publisher to review
4.5 stars- I thoroughly enjoyed it
Purchase from: Amazon| Barnes & Noble

The Hematoi descend from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi-pure-bloods-have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals-well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pures.

Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems
with them all, but especially rule #1:

Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden.

Unfortunately, she's crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn't her biggest problem--staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden.

And that would kind of suck.

Add a strong, sarcastic heroine, a fabulous twist on Greek Mythology and some fiery chemistry between two well written main characters and you have the makings for an incredible debut. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Jennifer Armentrout adds some elements to her story that I love in a paranormal book, action, tension between characters, romance, twists, well written characters, sarcasm, a rich, forbidden love, and a rich mythology. What Jennifer does with her Greek Mythology is engaging. If you ever wondered what it would be like to hang around a bunch Prue and Half-Blood Greek Gods and Goddess, Half-Blood has your answer.

Alexandria, Alex for short is the story's main character. She has this kick butt, sarcastic demeanor that I loved it. She's a tough girl who puts on an act to hide the hurt and loss she's feeling from some things that happen from the beginning of the story. She's also gifted with speed & strength, or at least she thought she had strength, but that was until she met her match in Aiden. He's the untouchable pure, who's not only strong, but his presence alone is intimidating. From the moment he and Alex met I knew I was in for an incredible read with these two. Their chemistry was awesome! I loved the tension they had, and how they fought so hard not to fall in love with each other. It's forbidden for Pure to fall in love with Half-Blood like Alex is. These two know how to get under each other's skin and can definitely dish out the sarcasm with each other. I'm sure Aiden will end up on a few favorite fictional character lists after readers meet him.

I also really enjoyed the secondary characters. I liked how they all had a reason for being apart of the over all plot and the roles they played. I adored Alex's best friend Caleb and I also ended up really liking Seth and his role in the story. I'm really eager to see what will happen between the two of them in Pure. Jennifer definitely threw me for a loop with what happens between these two. Seth and and Alex towards the end of the book have a great scene together and some of the lines they say to each other made me laugh out loud a few times. This is a rarity for me, but I even liked the resident mean girl, Lea. There's things that end up happening in the story that turn the tables on her and by the end of the book there's a small, and I mean really small glimmer of hope that things might change between Lea and Alex.

I love it when a book not only has characters I loved getting to know, but it has a great plot. Jennifer kept me invested with her story the entire time. I wanted to know what was going to happen next with Alex. I liked the twists, as they kept me guessing. There's some great scenes between Alex and Aiden that left me wanting more. I also liked the way Jennifer incorporated the story of Alex and her mother into the story, though I wish I had been able to get to know her mother a little bit more.

Jennifer Armentrout has delivered an action packed book full of twists, romance, paranormal powers and a great unique Greek Mythology. Half-Blood is one enjoyable read that I couldn't get enough of. If you're looking for a book that has a little bit of everything in it, than I'd recommend picking Half-Blood up. Now I'll have to use what little patience I have and wait for the release of her sequel, Pure, which will be out next year. There are some sensual scenes, mild language and some under drinking in this book. This is a book I'd recommend to readers 14 yrs and older.

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Be sure to follow the rest of the Half-Blood blog tour via The Teen Scene. In two weeks, be sure to come back and visit us when we have Aiden on the blog.

Release Day Giveaway for This Dark Endeavor, The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein by Kenneth Oppel

Today is a huge release day for books like Bloodlines, The Power of Six, Nocturne and one of my recent favorites, This Dark Endeavor: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein. Thank you to Simon & Schuster I have 1 copy of This Dark Endeavor to giveaway!

You do not need to have been a fan of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to like this book. This book holds it own. I wasn't a fan of Frankenstein, but this telling of what Victor Frankenstein was like as a teen completely hooked me from the get go. I HIGHLY recommend this book! Here's a little bit about this must have read:


Victor and Konrad are the twin brothers Frankenstein. They are nearly inseparable. Growing up, their lives are filled with imaginary adventures...until the day their adventures turn all too real.

They stumble upon The Dark Library, and secret books of alchemy and ancient remedies are discovered. Father forbids that they ever enter the room again, but this only piques Victor's curiosity more. When Konrad falls gravely ill, Victor is not satisfied with the various doctors his parents have called in to help. He is drawn back to The Dark Library where he uncovers an ancient formula for the Elixir of Life. With their friend Elizabeth, Henry and Victor immediately set out to find assistance from a man who was once known for his alchemical works to help create the formula.Determination and the unthinkable outcome of losing his brother spur Victor on in the quest for the three ingredients that will save Konrad's life. After scaling the highest trees in the Strumwald, diving into the deepest lake caves, and sacrificing one’s own body part, the three fearless friends risk their lives to save another.

Action, suspense, brotherly love, romance, adventure, jealousy, desire, and betrayal are just a few of the things that make This Dark Endeavor feel like you're reading a beloved classic. With it's perfectly paced story line and well developed, believable in-depth characters, this story about young Victor Frankenstein is both engaging and intriguing.

You can read the rest of my 5 star review here.


To Enter, all you need to to do is fill out this form here:
* This is open to residents in the US who are 13 yrs & older
* 1 entry per person
* This giveaway will end on August 31st, 2011

Twitter Tuesday - Cassandra Clare


This past Sunday, Cassie tweeted a quote from City of Lost Souls, and I thought it would make a perfect Twitter Tuesday post:

Every time we see each other we fall into bed — and I know I started it, I’m not blaming you— it’s just that maybe we should *talk*." —CoLS

Okay, Mundie Moms, which character is speaking? I think there are multiple possibilities.

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