Kimmel Tippets's Blog, page 2

Book Review - Pure

Title: Pure

Author: Terra Elan McVoy

Synposis from Goodreads: Promise. Betrayal. Confession. Revenge.

Tabitha and her four best friends all wear purity rings, symbols of the virginity-until-marriage pledge they made years ago. Now Tab is fifteen, and her ring has come to mean so much more. It's a symbol of who she is and what she believes—a reminder of her promises to herself, and her bond to her friends. But when Tab meets a boy whose kisses make her knees go weak, everything suddenly seems a lot more complicated. Tab's best friend, Morgan, is far from supportive, and for the first time, Tabitha is forced to keep secrets from the one person with whom she's always shared everything. When one of those secrets breaks to the surface, Tab finds herself at the center of an unthinkable betrayal that splits her friends apart. As Tab's entire world comes crashing down around her, she's forced to re-examine her friendships, her faith, and what exactly it means to be pure.

My Review: Based on the synopsis of Pure, I was expecting an intense religious message, and though the main character is a devout Christian and they do talk about their beliefs, it isn't thrown down your throats. Or at least it doesn't feel like it.

*Spoiler Alert*

Tabitha has made a promise with her four best friends that she will stay pure, a virgin, until marriage. But when she finds out that one of her best friends has broken that promise, without regrets, her world is turned upside down as the friends turn on each other. Tabitha is then forced to ask herself what it really means to be pure and what she truly believes.

I loved that Tabitha didn't sit back and let her friends dictate what she should believe, particularly her friend, Morgan. They were twelve when they made the promise and donned their rings for the first time, and though twelve year old is more than capable of understanding what they just did, Tabitha did it more because her friends were doing it and she wanted to be a part of it all. Now that she's fifteen, it would be easy to go with the flow still, but when Morgan and Naeomi turn their backs on Cara for a decision she made, it just doesn't settle with Tabitha. It feels wrong to her. To me, that makes perfect sense. Through Tabitha's own research, she is reminded of the greatest of all commandments which is to love others as thou would love thyself. You don't have to agree with a friend's decision, but you don't have to shun them either. When we love someone, we love them for who they are, not what they do/did.

For me, that was the greatest message of the book. I would definitely recommend this to teenagers and their parents, especially to parents who are finding it difficult to address this issue with their own teenagers. It can help break the ice and lead the way for discussions.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

WIP - Is it really October?

I keep telling myself there is plenty of time to plan for kleoS. That it's practically still summer and I have MONTHS until November when I will start pumping out the first draft.
Unfortunately, today it hit me. It's already the 5th of October. I have less than one month to get this plot to a point where I feel ready.
I thought I was almost there, but as I pulled out my little notebook with my notes on kleoS, I realized I'm not nearly as prepared as I want to be.
It doesn't help that I've been finding it difficult to feel inspired lately. I'm exhausted all the time, so in my downtime I just like to sleep or sit. When you add that to the fact I've been living in a house that I knew was just temporary so I haven't felt settled for two months, well, it makes focusing difficult.
There is good news in my future, though. I am moving tomorrow to my permanent house so I can finally achieve that permanent feeling I've been craving. I can create my perfect little writing nook and really get my head in the planning stages of writing. I will have a little over three weeks to fine tune my plans before I have to jump in to this next round of NaNoWriMo.
I hope all of you fellow participants are having better luck than I have. Happy Writing!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It seems like I'm just getting busier and busier. This week I'll be spending most of my time packing or unpacking for a last minute move that we're doing, but I will find time to read at least one book.
Deadly Little Secrets by Laurie Faria Stolarz

I bought this book with a gift certificate that I won and I'm really excited to finally get to read it. It's been on my TBR shelf for a few months now!
I know I won't have time to read anything else this week, but I'm hoping to be mostly settled in our new place by next week so I can start devouring more books. Until then, happy reading!

Book Review - The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Title: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Author: Stieg Larsson

Book Synopsis from Back of Book: Harriet Vanger, a scion of one of Sweden's wealthiest families disappeared over forty years ago. All these years later, her aged uncle continues to seek the truth. He hires Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist recently trapped by a libel conviction, to investigate. He is aided by the pierced and tattooed punk prodigy Lisbeth Salander. Together they tap into a vein of iniquity and corruption.

My Review: It took me a few months to finish this book, but not because of lack of interest. I was pulled in immediately with the Prologue and my attention was kept as the stage was set. My problem came with the amount of information that is presented throughout the course of the book, particularly in the beginning. I don't know much about journalism or business, so for me it took a lot of concentration to follow the conversations as they discussed the case against the main character, Mikael Blomkvist. I will admit, at some points, I didn't really try to understand. It was taking too long to read, so I just gave up and I figured that what was important would come across, even if it wasn't completely clear to me why. This method of reading seemed to work for me, and it was worth pushing through the 'heavy' stuff because the rest of the plot was amazing.

Another challenge for me was trying to remember the characters names and the places that they went. The book takes place in Sweden, as that is where the author is from, but the names are so foreign to me it was hard to keep them straight at first. Once they became established characters for me, it was much easier.

How the book is presented is fascinating. We follow Mikael and the other main character Lisbeth, but their story doesn't actually overlap until almost halfway through the book. I knew that they would eventually come together, so it was fun to read how they got to that point.

The plot was extremely intricate and the plot twists were surprising. The Vanger family is unlike any other family I've ever read about. Each member had their own unique quirk that added to the twists of the plot. When I finished, I immediately wanted to pick up the sequel, The Girl Who Played With Fire. There is a preview of the book at the back and after reading the first ten pages I know I'm going to enjoy it as much as the first book.

This book is definitely not for everyone, but if you enjoy a good mystery and you like to be surprised, this is a book to take a look at.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars (It would have been 5, but I couldn't justify it with the skimming I was forced to do.)

I'm alive and mostly well

I feel bad I haven't had a chance to do my blog posts for the past week and a half. With my mother-in-law in town it made it difficult to get on the computer because all of my downtime (the kids napping and after bedtime) was spent visiting with her instead.
It doesn't help that I've had morning sickness and just want to curl up into a ball most nights, plus I go to bed around 9:30 every night. It's a must if I'm going to survive November. I have to stock up on sleep while I can.
I will be on top of my blog posts now though. You can expect a book review of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo tomorrow followed by my normal schedule next week! Happy Writing!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday and time for the weekly meme hosted by One Person's Journey Through the World of Books!

Now, I thought last week was a slow week for me, but I have a feeling this week will be an even slower one for me. My mother-in-law is coming to visit so I don't know how much reading I will realistically get done, but I'm hoping to knock a few books off of my list.
I am currently reading my ARC copy of Seers by Heather Frost. I've been feeling under the weather and it's been a great distraction for me. I'm excited to finish it in the next day or two.

Next, like I said last Monday, I hope to finish The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson.

Then, hopefully, I will have time to start a YA book I bought a few months ago, Pure by Terra Elan Mcvoy. I buy books of all genres, but for some reason I'm craving something sans magic and mystery. I think Pure will do the trick nicely.

Book Review - Birthmarked

Title: Birthmarked

Author: Caragh M. O'Brien

Book Synopsis from Goodreads: In the future, in a world baked dry by the harsh sun, there are those who live inside the wall and those, like sixteen-year-old midwife, Gaia Stone, who live outside. Gaia has always believed it is her duty, with her mother, to hand over a small quota of babies to the Enclave. But when Gaia's mother and father are arrested by the very people they so dutifully serve, Gaia is forced to question everything she has been taught to believe. Gaia's choice is now simple: enter the world of the Enclave to rescue her parents, or die trying.

My Review: I had been intrigued with this book for months, but I was hesitant to read it because I wasn't sure if my heart could handle it. In the bookstore I read the first few pages and my heart was breaking as Gaia took a newborn baby from her birth mom. As I read the mom's reaction, screaming for her baby, I knew I would react the same way if someone tried to take my own babies away from me. I'm glad I gave it a go though, because the story was great and I only shed a few more tears throughout the rest of the book, all having to do with babies of course.

The mystery of the Enclave was the most intriguing thing about the book for me. As with most trilogies, not all the questions were answered by the end of the book. I'm not sure if the questions I want answered will ever be addressed because of how the first book ends. I suppose I won't find out until the second book comes out, but for me the question I want answered is the difference between stars for me. I can't be too specific as I don't want to have any spoilers, but the motive of the Enclave is questionable for me and I'm seeking a bit of closure.

A few elements were predictable, but I was pleasantly surprised by some plot twists that I wasn't expecting. Particularly one with Gaia's mother.

Captain Grey, Leon, was also an intriguing character. Mainly because he wasn't easy to get a handle on. The reader was just as confused as Gaia when it came to what his true intentions might be. His inconsistency made me want to learn more about him. He ended up being my favorite character.

If you enjoy dystopians, you will enjoy Birthmarked. Though, if you're a Mommy, prepare to shed a few tears before the book is through.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Another review for Transformation!

I just received a text from my dear friend, Jenni, who let me know that there was another review for Transformation on Amazon.com. This review is a bit more positive than the first review that went up on Sunday so I just had to share it. It can be found HERE.
I'm off to bed now, sleep tight!

WIP - There's not enough time in the day.

First things first. Two weeks ago in my WIP post I mentioned that the first review of Transformation had been completed and I said I would post it once it was up and available to read. It was just posted on Sunday, so you can read the review HERE if you're interested.
Now I'm supposed to report on how well I did this past week in finishing up the character development for kleoS, but I can't.
Have you ever had one of those weeks where you felt like you were go, go, go all the time and yet at the end of the week you have no idea what it is that kept you so busy? Well, that's how last week was for me. The few moments I did sit down I was so tired I fell asleep.
Most of my writing/planning time is done in the evenings once my two little kids go to bed, but I've been going to bed by 9:30 all week. I just need lots of sleep in order to function right now. I blame the pregnancy.
Right now I'm starting to worry, just a little bit, about how well I'm going to be able to function during NaNoWriMo in November. If I keep up this exhaustion, I fear I won't have what it takes to complete the project.
Thankfully, in November I will be into my second trimester so I should be more energetic. My fingers are crossed that that will be the case. Until then, I will continue to try and develop these characters when I have the energy to focus on writing. I hope I have better news next week!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

I have decided to join the weekly meme, It's Monday! What Are You Reading? hosted by One Person's Journey Through the World of Books.
I'm really excited about this and I hope it helps introduce all of you to a whole new world of books!
Last week was a bit of a slow reading week for me.
I finished Birth Marked by Caragh M. O'Brien. Myreview will be posted on Friday!

I am currently reading The Woman Who Heard Color by Kelly Jones. It's been an enjoyable read so far, but not what I had been expecting.

One I finish with that, I will be reading my ARC of Seers by Heather Frost. I am extremely excited to read this book. I won't be participating in the Blog Book Tour that is currently in progress for Seers, but my review will be posted through simplystacie.net within a few weeks of submitting my review.

Finally, if I don't receive any books to review in the mail before I finish with Seers, I will be attempting to finish The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson. I started it a few months ago but then I got busy reading books that I had committed to finishing. Unfortunately, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo has been put in the "TBR Later" pile for far too long. I really hope I get the opportunity to finish it this week. I'm really intrigued with what I've read so far.

Now I want to know what you are reading! Pleas share.
If you would like to find out what everyone else is reading who is participating in the weekly meme, go to One Person's Journey Through the World of Books to find a list of all the participating blogs. Happy reading!