Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult

Number of Pages: 422
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Date of Original Publication: 1999
ISBN #: 978-0-06-087806-1

Hello Everyone Happy 2015! As much as I wanted to start this year off with a good bang it was quite the opposite! But I have a new years resolution and I’m sticking to it. I have a reading routine that I want to follow and hopefully crank out some more book reviews! Now I know I have been mainly reviewing vampire/paranormal fiction novels the past year or so but I wanted to switch it up a bit here and there. Today, I’ll be reviewing Jodi Picoult’s novel “Keeping Faith”. Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors and her stories are always so different from one another they always hold my interest.

Keeping Faith is a realistic fiction novel in which I have had on my favorite book list for about seven years now. I forgot why it was on my favorites list so I decided to reread it. It is badly worn and torn from how many times I read it when I was younger. 

The novel revolves around a seven year old girl by the name of Faith. Faith comes from a non religious family and has never studied any religions yet after her parents divorce she starts reciting bible quotes and saying she has a new friend in which she calls her guard. Psychiatrists believe that her development of an imaginary friend is normal as the divorce process is emotionally hard on children. It isn’t until later that Faith identifies her friend as God.

As allegations start unfurling around Faith being a messiah/prophet, strange medical miracles start happening in Faith’s presence and reporters now flock her home while her parents fight for her in a custody battle. But those aren’t the only two fighting. A Jewish Rabbi and the Catholic church come together to argue their sides of what Faith may be seeing. As Faith’s mother considers her and Faith to be Jewish, Faith starts going through stigmata, in which the Catholics argue is impossible in the Jewish faith.

I love this novel because not only is it a family survival story but it is also a story that brings three different religions together. The Catholic priests, the Jewish Rabbi, and the Atheist television reporter that Faith’s mother falls in love with by the end of the novel, all come together to argue their sides on religion and ultimately scope what the seven year old girl may be experiencing.

As an Atheist myself I can definitely say that this is an interesting read for believers and non believers. However, I found three spelling mistakes in addition to the four other mistakes I found and crossed over the years. The editing job was not good on it. Maybe in newer editions they fixed the grammar and the typos but not in the original version that I have!

★★★★★ 5 out of 5. And I’d definitely recommend it!

**I did read novella 12.5 of Lara Adrian’s Midnight Breed series however it is too short for me to do a full review on therefore I will combine it with book 13 when it releases this summer, so sorry for those who have followed my reviews on that particular series**

I will try and get my next book review up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading. If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns for me, let me know, or just simply want to talk to me. I will do book requests. You can send me a message to me on here or E-Mail me at: TeamBellisle@yahoo.com

I check my yahoo account more often then Tumblr however.

~*~ TJ ~*~

Marked by Midnight (MB 11.5) and Crave the Night (MB 12) by Lara Adrian

Title: Marked By Midnight + Crave the Night
Number of Pages: 146 + 288
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Date of Original Publication: June 30th, 2014 + August 5th, 2014 
ISBN #: 1939193893 + 0345532635 

Alright guys, got another one out there but I must say. I am very disappointed with the last three books I have read. I did complete book two of the Black Dagger Brotherhood series as I had been previously reading, and I didn’t like it. It just wasn’t doing it for me. So I quite the series and decided to not even bother posting a review. Sorry. I have always been a huge fan of Lara Adrian’s Midnight Breed series, obviously even my username is geared towards it. However, these last two I found to be very disappointing from Lara. 

Marked by Midnight is a short novella that Adrian pushed out in June revolving around Mathias Rowan. Rowan was first introduced in Taken by Midnight (8) as he was a co-worker of Sterling Chase’s from the Darkhaven Enforcement Agency in Boston. Rowan now leads a command center for the Order in London. Murders start occurring within the city and Rowan ties it to a woman named Nova, a breedmate who is a skilled tattoo artist.

Crave the Night is the twelfth book to the series, and the second since the First Dawn and it revolves around Nathan Bishop, a captain of a Boston Order Squad, and a high class breedmate named Jordana Gates. Jordana eventually finds herself in the middle of the Order’s war and becomes Nathan’s biggest issue.

Alright. Now here comes the hard part. I don’t want to rant or give anything away. But both of them I’m disappointed in. Both were way too short, cut to the chase, and in the end it did not feel as though they had any form of direction. Crave the Night was very predictable, all three twists Lara tried to implement I figured out easily before hand, and nothing really important in the overall story line happened. The elders were never mentioned and it was too much Jordana and Nathan too fast.

I really hope that novella 12.5 in October “Tempted by Midnight” or book 13 whenever it is released will bring more of a plot line. For now these are both receiving three out of five stars.

★★★ 3 out of 5.

I will try and get my next book review up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading. If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns for me, let me know, or just simply want to talk to me. I will do book requests. You can send me a message to me on here or E-Mail me at: TeamBellisle@yahoo.com

I check my yahoo account more often then Blogger however.

~*~ TJ ~*~

Dark Lover by J.R. Ward (BDB book 1)

Number of Pages: 402
Publisher: Signet
Date of Original Publication: September 6th, 2005
ISBN #: 978-0451216953

Yes, 2014. Starting it off with the flu and losing a job. So guess what? More reading! Yay! This one was a recommendation to me, this is J. R. Ward's Dark Lover. Book one to her Black Dagger Brotherhood series. This series is up to 12 books now, it is similar...I say similar lightly, to Lara Adrian's Midnight Breed series which is why it was recommended to me.

Beth is a journalist, more like an editor for a newspaper company, not much is said about what she actually does yet we get a view of her stuck-on himself boss. Wrath is the eldest of his vampire race, only about three hundred years old, oh and he's going blind. Their worlds collide when Beth's vampire father requests Wrath to assist Beth's change to adulthood, as their race does not become vampires until 25 in age. He wanted her to survive with his blood and no other because his daughter is half human and not of full vampire heritage. Wrath refuses his request and helps her see out the transformation, they fall in love and fight to the end together, along with the rest of the brotherhood, just a few, four if I remember, other vampires who have obstacles to them as well.

Alright, this series was not similar to Adrian's Midnight Breed series. The characters were barely developed, the relationship was rushed, and the action was pathetic; in my opinion. I personally felt that she spent too long getting to Beth and Wrath's introduction, then realized how long her book was so she rushed the relationship. One minute their meeting, the next they're fighting, then the next she agrees to marry him. To me it wasn't realistic.

Ward develops a new language for these elders yet does not describe it very well. There is a glossary in the front, yes in the front, as if you are to memorize the words before you read her book, and she uses the vocabulary often and less frequent enough that it was slightly confusing. Honestly I don't like maps or glossaries at the beginning, I want to read a book and be able to understand it, not have to flip to the beginning a billion times. Her writing style was mediocre and the fight scenes were typical.

I ordered the entire series, all twelve books I did. I just received books 8, 9, and 12 in the mail today, yet it's #2 I need; so you won't see a review for #2 for a while. Dark Hunters by Sherrilyn Kenyon was also recommended to me but I need to finish this series first. I have been told it 'gets better' and I will hold it to the end.

★★★ This book is getting a 3 out of 5. (Yes I have actual stars now!)
I have picked two random books out from the library to pass the time until I receive book 2 in the mail.

I will try and get my next book review up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading. If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns for me, let me know, or just simply want to talk to me. I will do book requests. You can send me a message to me on here or E-Mail me at: TeamBellisle@yahoo.com
I check my yahoo account more often then blogger however.

~*~ TJ ~*~

Cemetery Girl by David Bell

Number of Pages: 389
Publisher: New American Library
Date of Original Publication: October 2011
ISBN #: 978-0-451-23467-4

Hey guys I'm back for a little while. 2013 has been a really rough year on me and reading sure hasn't been a possibility for me lately but I did manage to finish this one, Cemetery Girl by David Bell. I will try not to rant or be too negative in this review however I do not recommend it. I wish I would've chosen another book to read.

Abby and Tom Stuart are struggling to regain a strong life after the disappearance of their 12 year old daughter Caitlin. Their marriage is no longer to be, they lose the family pet, friendships are lost, as well as made but the ground still is crumbling beneath them because something is not quite right. Caitlin is found and returned four years after her disappearance. She is now a young woman who does not fear her captor but more is in love with him and has conflicting views with her parents opinions of the situation.

I have to be real honest here. I never read book reviews from others until after the book has been read by myself but this book was so bad that I started reading other reviews half way through the book. And I wasn't alone. The characters are unlikeable and flat. The storyline is never rounded properly, so much potential the storyline could have fails completely by the end. So many open ended questions are left, the characters never round out, and the overall mood of the book stays grim until the end. Of course Grim/Dark books don't always need to lighten up but this was to the point where the story line wasn't even believable. This is not a sci fi/nor fantasy. This is realistic fiction and it just didn't do it for me I'm sorry guys.

I am giving this book 1 out of 5 for lack of depth, flat characters, unbelievable storyline and just being a really dull book.

I will try and get my next book review up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading. If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns for me, let me know, or just simply want to talk to me. I will do book requests. You can send me a message to me on here or E-Mail me at: TeamBellisle@yahoo.com
I check my yahoo account more often then Blogspot however.

~*~ TJ ~*~

PS: Lara Adrian's Book 12: Crave The Night had an original release date of February 2014. It was pushed back due to an illness to April 2014. And now Lara has announced she is pushing it to August 2014, but she will also throw in Lazaro Archers novella right after Crave The Night's release. Such a bummer to wait though. RAWR!

Edge of Dawn (MB Book 11) by Lara Adrian

Number of Pages: 273

Publisher: Delacorte PressDate of Original Publication: January 29, 2013ISBN #: 978-0-345-53260-2

Hey everyone. Time for a new review! I read this book in one day…Tuesday. The date of its release. Took me only seven hours but I loved it! This is for Lara Adrian’s Book 11 to her Midnight Breed series, “Edge of Dawn”. I have reviewed all of the other 10 books on my tumbler account and have loved every single one of them. Lara proves herself again to be a strong writer in this one as well.

Book 11 is based twenty years later then book 10 “Darker after Midnight” when the new children in the series are grown up and a war between vampires and human is at stake. I do have to be careful what I say on this because of the amount of people I have reading this who read this series and do not want spoilers.

 The two main characters in this novel are Mira and Kellan Archer. Mira and Kellan have grown up together in the Order’s compound since they were the ages of ten and fourteen. When Mira was twenty-one she and Kellan (twenty-five) were involved in an accident on patrol one night. Kellan was murdered in a warehouse bomb…so it seemed.

Eight years later and a VIP that Mira was supposed to escort to a political rally goes missing; abducted just moments before she arrives, she finds them and gets kidnapped in the process. When she awakes she finds out that she’s being held captive by her ex lover Kellan who had been presumably dead. Mira and Kellan must find a balance between the lives they live and prove to each other that they can stop a war from occurring while being together in the end forever.

Lara introduces a variety of new and exciting characters and develops a quick and entertaining plot line. This novel is definitely a fast paced, page turning novel. You won’t want to put it down. I would definitely recommend this novel to anyone who is a fan of the supernatural/paranormal/romance/action type…did you get all that?

I would give this book a 5 out of 5.

By the way book 12 Crave the Night is based off of Nathan. There has not been a release date for that but I’ll get it noted as soon as I find out.

I will try and get my next book review up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading. If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns for me, let me know, or just simply want to talk to me. I will do book requests. You can send me a message to me on here or E-Mail me at: TeamBellisle@yahoo.com

I check my yahoo account more often then Blogger however.

~TJ 

The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien

Number of Pages: 306
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Date of Original Publication: 1937
ISBN #: 0-345-33968-1

Hey peeps. Finished another book for class. This one I have read and previously reviewed but I will review it of course again. This is the Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien. A now prelude the the Lord of the Rings trilogy. 

This novel is about a Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins who is confronted one morning by a wizard named Gandalf who wants him to join an adventure with him. As hobbits do not like adventures he naturally refused yet the next day twelve dwarfs along with Gandalf show up at his door and convince him to come with them.

There are many conflicts on the way of this journey but they’re main goal is to get across the land to a mountain which had once belonged to the dwarfs yet was overruled by a dragon many years before hand. The dwarfs struggle with their journey and Bilbo changes along the way. Finding a ring that can turn him invisible and becoming a leader in which no one thought he could be. Gandalf had faith in the hobbit where as the dwarfs did not. Gandalf is only present in some of the adventures.

I enjoyed this novel very much. I thought it was entertaining and well written. It had it’s funny moments and it generally keeps a good story line. The only thing I didn’t really care for much were the characters personalities. The twelve dwarfs seemed useless half the time, Bilbo complained a lot, Thorin Oakenshield was supposedly the leader of the company of dwarfs but was always lagging behind and then the wizard was always leaving to do his own business. Small frustrations that I just didn’t think made any of them heroic. I wont give any spoilers but my three favorite characters die at the end…sad day. But it was still a good novel and I would recommend reading it.

I would give this novel 5 out 5 for good plot development and writing techniques. I have not decided yet if I want to read the entire L.OT.R trilogy but I will maybe in the future and get reviews up.

For those of you who followed all of my Midnight Breed Series reviews: Book 11 Edge of Dawn comes out on Tuesday and I should have the review up Tuesday night or Wednesday morning. (Yes I am thrilled to read this and I may pull an all nighter.) *This series I mainly reviewed on my Tumblr.

I will try and get my next book review up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading. If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns for me, let me know, or just simply want to talk to me. I will do book requests. You can send me a message to me on here or E-Mail me at: TeamBellisle@yahoo.com

I check my yahoo account more often then Blogger however.

~TJ 

Alice In Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll

Number of Pages: 272
Publisher: Barnes & Noble books
Date of Original Publication: 1865 (book 1) 1871 (Book 2)
ISBN #: 978-1-59308-015-0 + 1-59308-015-8

Hello everyone. Back again. :) Finished reading Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland” and the sequel “Through The Looking-Glass”. I had to read these for my sci fi and fantasy lit class…so here’s my review!

The novel was a very quick read and involved many pictures. We all like picture books right? Well unfortunately I disliked these two novels. The main premise of the story is a 7 year old girl named Alice who has an over active imagination and ends up dreaming of two quests that she has to finish. The first one being to find out who she is (she’s seven) and the second being that she wants to be a queen.

Lewis describes these novels as being written as children books but there’s no way children would even be able to comprehend half of the puns, the jokes, or the themes involved in the novel. Overall it’s just a strange novel, the characters are mainly personified objects and talking animals. 

I found Alice’s character to be most obnoxious. She cries nearly every other page and is constantly expecting everything to be proper for her when shes in a world of insanity. Her logic doesn’t fit into the illogical world that Carroll portrays, therefore she is constantly frustrated.

A few of the characters seem to help the story become more enjoyable such as the hookah smoking caterpillar and the Cheshire cat that disappears. The mad hatter also helps bring some entertainment in this novel as he’s completely bonkers. But personally I wouldn’t really recommend these two.

I’d rate this a 2 out of 5. It’s just hard for me to explain my review of these two books. It’s too weird to review.

My next review (most likely) will be of The Hobbit…so hopefully you’ll appreciate that one more. I’m going to go crawl back into bed now.

I will try and get my next book review up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading. If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns for me, let me know, or just simply want to talk to me. I will do book requests. You can send me a message to me on here or E-Mail me at: TeamBellisle@yahoo.com

I check my yahoo account more often then Blogger however.

~TJ