Jackaby, Black Duck, and One Lovely Blog!

I was nominated for the One Lovely Blog award! See the bottom of this post for more info. :) 

So, as I think I've said before, I'm doing ANOTHER reading challenge. Similar to the one I did in August--actually, it's pretty much the same thing. The only difference is that I have a lot less books on my list this month. :P 

Since I reviewed Killer Instinct, I've read 2 books--Jackaby, and Black Duck. And oh my gosh, both were amazing. 

I'm about 99% sure that I looked like this upon finishing both. :P

But really though. I just. 

They're both so good. 

And, oddly enough, both are historical fiction. Well, actually, Jackaby might not be historical...but it's still amazing. 

Anyways. Without further ado....

Jackaby

Genre: Supernatural, historical(ish).

Author: William Ritter (his name seems like one you'd come across in the book, actually.)

Content: Um...none, really, that I remember. I mean, there's the violence that comes with this being a murder-y thing and [SPOILER] the whole Red Cap thing. *shudder* But other than that...there wasn't really anything in it!

Memory: Jackaby, Abigail, and Charlie being awesome investigator buddies. And Mona yelling at them. "We have cake." Douglas the duck. 

Rating: 5 stars. 

I really, really liked this book. A lot. It's just the coolest idea. Like, in the synopsis, there was this line that started with "Doctor Who meets Sherlock". SO. COOL.

And the charactersssssssssss. They're precious. <3

I'm kinda thinking it's a series? Or at least hoping?

Because I need more of Jackaby and Abigail and Jenny the ghost. And supernatural occurrences that crop up in New Fiddleham. <3

Black Duck.

Genre: Historical, suspense, could be mystery? 

Author: Janet Taylor Lisle

Content: Again, this one didn't have anything in it, really. I mean, there was the whole illegal transport of alcohol thing, and it got kinda violent at times, but other than that...

Memory: Tom Morrison's shack by the beach, Marina's clam chowder, and a rolled up fifty-dollar bill stuck inside a pouch and shoved beneath a mattress.

Rating: 5 stars!

This book. I cannot get over this book. It was jarring finishing it and being yanked out of New England in 1929, away from Ruben and Jeddy and Marina and Tom Morrison, and a speedboat called the Black Duck.

Also, can we just TALK about that ENDING?

I think I should have seen it coming? I read the book super fast, so I don't really remember if Ruben ever came out and said what happened in the beginning, but...still? Ow? I was hurt by that? But the bits after were amazing. The whole book was. 

I just really appreciated Black Duck because it's one of the only YA '20s books I've found that doesn't focus on flappers and parties and either Chicago or New York (yesIknowmybookisinNYCbutITSDIFFERENT).
Like, I get all of that was a big part of the 20s, but there's so much more! There's people like Ruben and Jeddy, people like Mr. Riley and the small sleepy New England towns, ships like the Black 

Duck. There's more.

//end rant. 

But yes. Black Duck is amazing and you should read it. So is Jackaby.
The two couldn't be more different, but they're both great. <3

I've been nominated for the One Lovely Blog award by Emily at Dreaming Hobbit! I'm super excited! :D

The Rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you and leave a link to their blog.
2. List the rules and display the award
3. Add seven facts about yourself
4. Nominated 15 other bloggers
5. Follow the blog you were nominated by

So. 

Crap.
I have to come up with 7 facts about myself. 

Hmm...

1. I play piano.
2. Over the past couple of months, I've fallen in love with the '20s--the fashion, the books...GAH. 
3. On that note, I love vintage. The '20s through early '60s, really. <3
4. I am allergic cats, dogs, dust mites, cockroaches, and a variety of pollens. :/
5. I have three younger siblings. 
6. I've wanted to write since I was at least 10 years old. 
7. I love history. A lot. 

Well. There they are. *flops*

And now, my nominees. :D I don't even follow 15 blogs, so I'm not sure how many I'll come up with...

• Mariesa at MeoBird/ 2 AM Readers
• Sam at The Writer's Nook
• Chloe at Curious Ramblings
• Elly at The Spilled Inkwell
• Ellie at The Restored Artist
• Charlotte at Photographer of Thoughts

So that's...six? *merp*

That's close enough I guess. :P 

[Book Review] Killer Instinct

Lemme tell you guys a story.
Mariesa told me a while ago that The Naturals was really good, and I read about a quarter of it before it had to go back to the library. This is about two months or so ago.
And then, December Reading Challenge starts. I think, oh, hey, The Naturals! I'll finish that!
So I did. Last Sunday.
And I've been in a sort of reading slump waiting for the next one to get in at the library.
AND THIS AFTERNOON I GOT IT.
I GOT IT AT ABOUT 5 O'CLOCK
AND FINISHED IT
JUST NOW
SIX HOURS LATER.

IT WAS AN EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER AND I SQUEALED AND SCREAMED AND LAUGHED AND I LOVE THESE BOOKS SO MUCH OKAY.

*coughcough* Okay. I'll stop screaming and, you know, actually review.

Killer Instinct-5 stars.

I'd Call It... YA Criminal Minds? It has a distinct Ally Carter-ish feel about it--brooding guys, thrilling chases, FBI involvement... no sign of Interpol, yet. ;)
In a Few Words... Cassie and co. pick up where The Naturals left off, only this time, someone's messing with Dean. Cue a freaky game that spans a few hundred pages, multiple dead ends--and bodies--AND squeal-worthy scenes between Cassie and Dean. <3
I'd recommend this to... Definitely not a children's book. :P Fairly graphic when it comes to the murders, and there's the creepy factor that comes with Cassie being a Natural profiler. Lia is questionable as always. :/ So...PG13?
I'm Left With... "I rose up on my toes, my body pressed against his, and returned the kiss, the pain in my face fading, washed away with the rest of the world, until there was only this moment--one that I hadn't thought I'd live to see."


Really though. Killer Instinct.
Jennifer Lynn Barnes, can I please have the third book? Pretty please? *bats eyes*
I just.
I cannot.

My ship sailed. 

My characters lived!

bUT I NEED MORE.

*pointed look at JLB and Jonathan Stroud*

I'm waiting on book three from both of you.

Starry-Eyed (12.7.14)

Guysssssssssss.
If ever there's been a time when I've lived up to my blog description--starry-eyed adventures--it is now. I've got so much that I'm excited for and doing right now, and I feel Starry Eyed.
First of all, STORY IDEAS.
My latest, and also what I'm going to be working on next, can best be summed up as "Pride and Prejudice meets Sherlock Holmes". It takes place in Regency London, which involves a lot of research.
I'm not complaining. Research is actually my favorite. But I'm a history nerd and always have been, so it's not a surprise. xD
Some of the topics I'm researching right now include...

• Regency dances 
• Regency London
• Police procedure in the Regency and Georgian eras
• And even though it's not 'research', I'm reading A Study In Scarlet and rereading Pride and Prejudice. :3

Right now, I'm doing a December Reading Challenge (similar to the one from August. I'm reading Burial Rites, The Naturals, and A Study in Scarlet, along with a lot of other books. :D

ALSO.

IT'S CHRISTMAS.

MERRY CHRISTMAS. 

*little kid voice*

andGodblessus,everyone.

Final Thoughts On NaNoWriMo '14

I hit 50,000 words on Thanksgiving--or the day after, I guess, given that it was about one o'clock in the morning. And I still had about 20,000 left at the most.
Tonight--before youth group started, with everyone talking and playing games--I finished my first ever first draft and got to type 'The End'.
Empty Alibi is 68, 6882 words long.
53 chapters. 9 parts.
It's done.
I'm happy, and sort of sad. I loved writing this book. I loved writing about Bethany and Elliot and Jules and Chapman, I loved killing people--creepy as that sounds--I loved listening to my novel playlist on repeat.
I love this book.
But gosh, I'm tired.
I'm taking all of December off from writing--and doing another reading challenge! :D--and then I'm starting back in January.
So.
NaNo.
I honestly think every writer should try NaNoWriMo at least once. Because it challenges you, and you know what? Even if you only write 10,00 or 15,00 or if you win and broke 50,000, you wrote. You wrote more than you would have written if you didn't do NaNo.
And it's fun. There's community, and it's fun knowing that there are other people doing this same crazy stuff as you.
ALSO.
WINNER GOODIES.
FREE COPIES OF YOUR BOOK PRINTED.
SUSCRIPTIONS TO AWESOME STUFF LIKE EVERNOTE AND SCRIVENER.
L O T S OF FUN.
So...will I be doing NaNo again next year?

Heck. To. The. Yes.