Saturday, March 27, 2010

New Favorite Character Meme



Jen over at The Introverted Reader has started a new meme where we can all swoon over our favorite characters. This is going to be so much fun! Check out the details on her page. But just to give you a quick taste, here's how she described it:
We all have characters we love. Let's spotlight these fantastic creations! Whether you want to be friends with them or you have a full-blown crush on them, you know you love them and want everyone else to love them too!

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick



This week's favorite book crush is Patch from the fabulous book, Hush, Hush, Becca Fitzpatrick's debut novel. Doesn't seeing this gorgeous cover just make you want to pick up this book? One of my favorite reads so far this year. I can't wait for the next installment, Crescendo, due out this November! Something about guys with tortured pasts...I just love them and want to fix their little broken hearts. You absolutely must add this to your TBR pile if you haven't already!

Saturday, March 20, 2010

New Covers Released

Wow! Two books I am SO looking forward to have released their covers!


Clockwork Angel (Infernal Devices series - Prequels to The Mortal Instruments series) by Cassandra Clare


Torment (Fallen series) by Lauren Kate

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Merry Un-Birthday to Me!



I am a terrible mother. I almost forgot again! Somehow September came and went without me acknowledging that I'd been blogging for 1 year! So, I promised I'd say something at the 1 1/2 year mark to make up for it. Better late than never, eh?
So, happy late birthday, Heart of Darkness blog! Yay me! :)
And a special thanks to those of you who have followed and commented. I'll try to do better this September when we turn 2...

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Look What the Book Fairy Left Me (7)

I know I promised myself I wasn't going to buy any more new books for a while. But that what addicts do. We make promises that we have no intention of keeping. Besides, I had to celebrate the new book shelves my husband is going to be building me very soon!


Old Magic by Marianne Curley
Jarrod Thornton is mesmerizing,
but Kate Warren doesn't know why.
The moment the new guy walks into the room, Kate senses something strange and intense about him. Something supernatural. Her instincts are proven correct a few minutes later when, bullied by his classmates, Jarrod unknowingly conjures up a freak thunderstorm inside their classroom.
Jarrod doesn't believe in the paranormal. When Kate tries to convince him that he has extraordinary powers that need to be harnessed, he only puts up with her "hocus pocus" notions because he finds her captivating. However, the dangerous, uncontrolled strengthening of his gift finally convinces Jarrod that he must take Kate's theories seriously. Together, they embark on a remarkable journey -- one which will unravel the mystery that has haunted Jarrod's family for generations and pit the teens against immense forces in a battle to undo the past and reshape the future.


Scorched by Sharon Ashwood
Ex-detective Macmillan has a taste for bad girls, but his last lover really took the cake—and his humanity. Now a half-demon, Mac’s lost his friends, his family, and his job. Then a beguiling vampire asks for his help to find her son. Suddenly, Mac has a case to work—one that leads him deep into the supernatural prison where Mac learns that cracking the case will cost him his last scrap of humanity.

This is bk 2 in the Dark Forgotten series. I couldn't find bk 1 anywhere, so I will probably end up getting that online at some point...


Angel's Blood (A Guild Hunters Novel) by Nalini Singh
Nalini Singh introduces readers to a world of beauty and bloodlust, where angels hold sway over vampires.
Vampire hunter Elena Deveraux is hired by the dangerously beautiful Archangel Raphael. But this time, it’s not a wayward vamp she has to track. It’s an archangel gone bad.
The job will put Elena in the midst of a killing spree like no other—and pull her to the razor’s edge of passion. Even if the hunt doesn’t destroy her, succumbing to Raphael’s seductive touch just may. For when archangels play, mortals break.


Archangel's Kiss (A Guild Hunters Novel) by Nalini Singh
Vampire hunter Elena Deveraux wakes from a year-long coma to find that she has become an angel-and that her lover, the stunningly dangerous archangel Raphael, likes having her under his control. But almost immediately, Raphael must ready Elena for a flight to Beijing, to attend a ball thrown by the archangel Lijuan. Ancient and without conscience, Lijuan's power lies with the dead. And she has organized the most perfect and most vicious of welcomes for Elena...


Gone (Final book in the Dream Catcher series) by Lisa McMann
Janie thought she knew what her future held. And she thought she’d made her peace with it. But she can’t handle dragging Cabel down with her.
She knows he will stay with her, despite what she sees in his dreams. He’s amazing. And she’s a train wreck. Janie sees only one way to give him the life he deserves: She has to disappear. And it’s going to kill them both.
Then a stranger enters her life — and everything unravels. The future Janie once faced now has an ominous twist, and her choices are more dire than she’d ever thought possible. She alone must decide between the lesser of two evils. And time is running out. . . .

I've already finished this one (before I was able to do this post). I thought the idea behind the series was very original. There were some good points that I really enjoyed. But, overall, I was kind of left feeling...indifferent, I guess you could say. I didn't love it and I didn't hate it. All three of the books are very short, quick reads. My advice? Check them out at your local library.


The Sight by David Clement-Davies
In an epic tale of good and evil, legend and history, and the blessing and curse of an extraordinary gift of the Sight (an ability to see through others' minds and into the future), David Clement-Davies obliges the many fans of Fire Bringer with a new fantasy novel. The Sight features a Transylvanian wolf clan faced with the terrifying changes brought about by Morgra, a bitter she-wolf determined to fulfill an ancient legend in order to have supreme power over all Vargs (wolves). Young Larka, a white wolf pup born with the Sight, embarks with her brother Fell and the rest of her family on an extraordinary quest for truth and salvation, with shocking consequences that even the most astute reader may not foresee. Clement-Davies's multilayered and elaborate plot will keep young readers riveted for hours on end, drawing on Christianity, fairy tales, and mythology in a colossal allegory and cautionary tale for its human audience.

This is one of those books that I wasn't too sure about. I pick it up everytime I go to the book store and then, inevitably, I find something I think I want more and put this one back. Not this time. I'm really excited to read the next book in this series, Fell. In fact, I almost bought it before I even paid attention to the fact that it was a part 2! Gotta read part 1 first, though.


Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Incarceron -- a futuristic prison, sealed from view, where the descendants of the original prisoners live in a dark world torn by rivalry and savagery. It is a terrifying mix of high technology -- a living building which pervades the novel as an ever-watchful, ever-vengeful character, and a typical medieval torture chamber -- chains, great halls, dungeons. A young prisoner, Finn, has haunting visions of an earlier life, and cannot believe he was born here and has always been here. In the outer world, Claudia, daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, is trapped in her own form of prison -- a futuristic world constructed beautifully to look like a past era, an imminent marriage she dreads. She knows nothing of Incarceron, except that it exists. But there comes a moment when Finn, inside Incarceron, and Claudia, outside, simultaneously find a device -- a crystal key, through which they can talk to each other. And so the plan for Finn's escape is born ...

* all of the book descriptions were taken from goodreads.com

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

A Very Happy Unbirthday to You!


Thanks so much, Shauna, for awarding my blog! :)

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Look What the Book Fairy Left Me (6)

A couple of weeks ago my husband and I went to visit my mother in law for her birthday. She's recently moved into this 110 yr old house that was filled with untold treasures. Below you will see some of the treasures I was allowed to keep! I can't really think of anything better...


The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne (1850)
My most prized find! It's seen better days, but is still in pretty good shape. The cover is embossed. Very neat!



Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (1911)
One of my most exciting finds...








Helen's Babies by John Habberton (1881)
This is one that I've never heard of and haven't yet researched (I've since googled an apparently is was intended for adults but became a children's classic!), but the cover was so pretty I couldn't pass it up. The cover page looks hand stamped, and likely is. I am just in awe...


The Works of Edgar Allen Poe
Standard Classics (1933) Vols 1-10, embossed covers
Something I couldn't capture with the camera is the beautiful drawing inside each of the covers. I wish I could share.


The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson
Standard Classics (1930) Vols 1-10, embossed covers, includes Treasure Island and Dr. Jekyl & Mr. Hyde




Little Masterpieces 6 Vols (1901)
Includes volumes by Edgar Allen Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne








World's Greatest Literature Vol 1 & 2
Spencer Press (1936) Last of the Mohicans by Thackery, Vanity Fair by Cooper



This one is a little worse for wear. It's in the worst shape.
The Poetical Works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1856)
AND! It has this awesome drawing of the author...actually most of these old books have this and it is very very neat!! There's a very fine peice of tissue paper separating the picture from the title page to prevent the ink from transferring.






David Copperfield by Charles Dickens (1920)




Of course, I couldn't take pictures of ALL the books I got, but these were some of the neatest finds...There was also a book of Shakespeare's works from 1911, The Complete Poetical Works of John Milton from 1899 and many many more! And this doesn't even include any of the crazy old medical books that were left there by the man who built the home. There were books about insanity and surgery and all sorts of nifty stuff. When I went to visit my mother in law that day, I certainly wasn't expecting a treasure trove of books! It was so exciting for me being the bibliophile that I am. And yes, there were even a few tears of pure joy...I'm not ashamed to admit it! :)

Here's the old house built at the turn of the century 1900s. A doctor built the house for his growing family of 10 children! Only one of those children decided to marry and have a family of their own. One daughter remained living in the home until her death in 2008, this was the only home she'd known. She was a teacher, and these were her books. Thank you, Ms. Parker. (photo of her as a young woman below)
You can still see the old servants house out to the side. One side was for the cook, the other was for the gardner. It has been used mostly for storage for quite some time but still had the original fireplace mantels and old bedframes. There were countless other little treasures all over the place.
Next time I go I want to check out the cellar and the attic. I can only imagine what kind of coolness I may find!!