I requested a copy of The Vinyl Princess by Yvonne Prinz from my local library the minute it was released. They finally contacted me to let me know I could pick it up last week!

Synopsis:
Summer is here, and 16-year-old Allie, a self-professed music geek, is exactly where she wants to be: working full-time at Berkeley’s ultra-cool Bob and Bob Records. There, Allie can spend her days bantering with the street people, talking the talk with the staff, shepherding the uncool bridge-and-tunnel shoppers, all the while blissfully surrounded by music, music, music. It’s the perfect setup for her to develop her secret identity as The Vinyl Princess, author of both a brand-new zine and blog. From the safety of her favorite place on earth, Allie is poised to have it all: love, music and blogging.

Her mother, though, is actually the one getting the dates, and business at Allie’s beloved record store is becoming dangerously slow--not to mention that there have been a string of robberies in the neighbourhood. At least her blog seems to be gaining interest, one vinyl junkie at a time....

Reading The Vinyl Princess brought back a lot of memories. My Dad was a DJ with an impressive vinyl collection. Music was our world. I remember traveling to record conventions at local civic centers and hotels, pouring through vinyl old and new. Dad and I also made many trips to Main Street Records in Northampton, MA to look for vinyl to add to our collection. I remember walking down the tiny stairway to the basement area to find the latest imports.

When I graduated from college, it was no surprise that I gravitated toward a career in music. Up until last year, I happily marketed music; working for major record labels and eclectic marketing companies. I've watched the industry slowly fall apart due to illegal downloading. I lost my job due to budget cuts brought on by illegal downloading.

Needless to say, I felt a personal connection to the story and characters. Allie and I would have a lot to talk about.

If you're a music lover, this book is a must-read. Allie's blogs and commentary on music are not only entertaining, but incredibly informative. I actually made note of some songs I'd like to track down--I'm willing to bet my Dad owns the vinyl.

If you'd just like to read a good story filled with colorful characters, friendship, and love, this book is a must-read.

In short, I loved The Vinyl Princess!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

For more information, visit The Vinyl Princess at:
@vinylprincess
thevinylprincess.com

I was so excited when I received an email from the library letting me know the copy of Stupid Cupid by Rhonda Stapleton I requested had arrived! After a couple months of reading Rhonda's Tweets, I knew the book would be fun and couldn't wait to read it.

Synopsis:
Felicity's no ordinary teen matchmaker...she's a cupid!

Felicity Walker believes in true love. That's why she applies for a gig at the matchmaking company Cupid's Hollow. But when Felicity gets the job, she learns that she isn't just a matchmaker...she's a cupid! (There's more than one of them, you know.)

Armed with a hot pink, tricked-out PDA infused with the latest in cupid magic (love arrows shot through email), Felicity works to meet her quota of successful matches. But when she bends the rules of cupidity by matching her best friend Maya with three different boys at once, disaster strikes. Felicity needs to come up with a plan to set it all right, pronto, before she gets fired...and before Maya ends up with her heart split in three.

Modern day cupids? What a fun idea! And this book was entertaining from beginning to end.

Felicity is a lovable character with a great sense of humor and a good heart. I laughed out loud more than once at the shenanigans she got herself into as she made matches at her high school and at home!

Her friends Andy and Maya were great, too. After reading so many books where teenage girls revolve their entire existence around boys, it was refreshing to see girls with distinct personalities and interests. They were just like the friends I had in high school.

In fact, I wish the characters were real so we could hang out.

I can't wait to see what happens next in Flirting With Disaster (March 9) and Pucker Up (May 18)! I hope Felicity gets to be on the receiving end of one of cupid's love arrows.

If you're looking for a light, amusing book to read this Valentine's Day, you should definitely check out Stupid Cupid!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

For more information, visit Rhonda at:
Twitter (@rhondastapleton)
rhondastapleton.com

I really needed to know what happened next in the Immortals Series, so I found myself heading back to my grocery store to pick up a copy of Blue Moon by Alyson Noel.

Synopsis:
Just as Ever is learning everything she can about her new abilities as an immortal, initiated into the dark, seductive world by her beloved Damen, something terrible is happening to him. As Ever’s powers are increasing, Damen’s are fading--stricken by a mysterious illness that threatens his memory, his identity, his life.

Desperate to save him, Ever travels to the mystical dimension of Summerland, uncovering not only the secrets of Damen’s past--the brutal, tortured history he hoped to keep hidden--but also an ancient text revealing the workings of time. With the approaching blue moon heralding her only window for travel, Ever is forced to decide between turning back the clock and saving her family from the accident that claimed them--or staying in the present and saving Damen, who grows weaker each day...

This is one of those rare cases where the sequel far surpassed the original.

Damen's mystery illness and the Stepford-like behavior of Ever's friends and classmates was creepy and enough to keep me interested until the surprising ending.

I enjoyed visiting Summerland and learning more about the location and the people who reside there. Alyson Noel did a great job of creating a magical place, right down to the twin girls Romy and Rayne, who felt like they stepped right off the pages of Stephen King's The Shining; I never knew if I should trust them and wondered if they were sweet or sinister.

Again, the talk of potions and chakras completely flew over my head, but I was glad to finally have a few answers to the many questions I had about Ever's previous lives and Damen's background.

Blue Moon was a fun, easy read filled with romance, suspense, sacrifice, and heartbreak from beginning to end. I liked it so much better than Evermore and am really curious to see what happens in Shadowland.

♥ ♥ ♥

My grocery store has an impressive book collection. While shopping one Saturday afternoon, my attention was drawn to an end cap featuring best-selling YA books. Evermore (Immortals Series #1) by Alyson Noel soon found its way into my shopping cart and came home with me.

Synopsis:
Since a horrible accident claimed the lives of her family, sixteen-year-old Ever can see auras, hear people’s thoughts, and know a person’s life story by touch. Going out of her way to shield herself from human contact to suppress her abilities has branded her as a freak at her new high school--but everything changes when she meets Damen Auguste...

Ever sees Damen and feels an instant recognition. He is gorgeous, exotic and wealthy, and he holds many secrets. Damen is able to make things appear and disappear, he always seems to know what she’s thinking--and he’s the only one who can silence the noise and the random energy in her head. She doesn't know who he really is--or what he is. Damen equal parts light and darkness, and he belongs to an enchanted new world where no one ever dies.

I've been mulling over this review for days. Every time my fingers would hover over the keyboard, massive comparisons to Twilight would fill my head. I mean, Evermore was so much like Twilight--outsider in a new school, unexplained happenings, an enemy who wants the heroine dead, and a gorgeous boy who inhabits the girl's every thought, shapes how she makes decisions, and ultimately saves the day--that I can't help it. But that's not fair to Alyson Noel, who worked hard to create a magical world.

I thought the idea of immortals and the folklore behind them was unique, though I did find myself zoning out during the scientific explanations. Having a character read auras and hear thoughts was intriguing and added an extra layer to Ever.

Damen wasn't very appealing to me. He seemed controlling and manipulative, and I'll never understand why teenage girls flock to these boys and view them as soulmates.

What kept me reading was the storyline revolving around the ghost of Ever's little sister Riley. She was feisty and fun. Her journey through the afterlife tugged at my heartstrings.

Because I know the purpose of this book was to set up a series, I'm going to cut it a bit of slack. So far, the sequel, Blue Moon, has more excitement and an interesting plot.

♥ ♥

Stories about fallen angels fascinate me, so of course I had to use my Barnes & Noble gift card to pick up Fallen by Lauren Kate!

Synopsis:
There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.

Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page turning thriller and the ultimate love story.

Lauren Kate has a gift. She can take a reader on a walking tour of marshes, crumbling graveyards, and dilapidated buildings without leaving the comfort of their own homes. That's what I liked best about this book--the descriptions. I felt like I was actually in Savannah, Georgia. She painted such a unique, realistic, Gothic picture and took me on an amazing journey.

Fallen took awhile to get going, but that's okay. As with any book that is introducing a series, I want to get a feel for the characters, where they're from, and what motivates them. There was a steady build to the action. And, let me tell you, once things picked up, they picked up at a rapid, heart-stopping speed.

I was left with a lot of questions, which frustrated me at first. But the more I thought abut it, the more excited I became for the sequel (Torment, currently scheduled for publication in September), which I hope will answer some questions that I simply cannot stop thinking about.

♥ ♥ ♥