Review: Existence [Existence Trilogy #1] By Abbi Glines

Synopsis:

What happens when you're stalked by Death? You fall in love with him, of course.

Pagan Moore doesn't cheat Death, but instead, falls in love with him.

Seventeen year old Pagan Moore has seen souls her entire life. Once she realized the strangers she often saw walking through walls were not visible to anyone else, she started ignoring them. If she didn't let them know she could see them, then they left her alone. Until she stepped out of her car the first day of school and saw an incredibly sexy guy lounging on a picnic table, watching her with an amused smirk on his face. Problem is, she knows he's dead.

Not only does he not go away when she ignores him, but he does something none of the others have ever done. He speaks. Pagan is fascinated by the soul. What she doesn't realize is that her appointed time to die is drawing near and the wickedly beautiful soul she is falling in love with is not a soul at all.

He is Death and he's about to break all the rules.
-Goodreads

Thoughts: 
Holy goodness gracious. Can I just say this book was spectacular?! The last line was mind-freaking-blowing! I will be having withdraws until April let me tell you.Then Abbi tells me I will feel better after reading the blurb for Predestined [Existence Trilogy #2] and you know what, she was so right!! I am ecstatic there is a another one but darn! I kinda want to read it like right now! I am so in love with Dank that it isn't even funny. I mean, look at his auhmazing eyes on that cover! Melt my soul much? If Death is anything like Dank I will gladly let him in my house anytime he comes knocking. This book litteraly rocked my world folks. I was smiling so big my eyes started watering, giggling like a school girl, and there was even a bit of jumping up and down towards the end. I had my house looking at me like I was a crazy woman, but that was so okay. I seem to not be able to contain my emotions when reading an Abbi Glines book, she just has that effect on me. And it never fails that the boys in her books are smoking and the romance, *sigh* breathtaking. [:

**** **** **** **** ****

"Don't look at him and he'll go away" Curious yet? Well, you should be! Maybe it is just me, but I pretty much love that first line. Pagan Moore is not your average teenager readers. You see, Pagan can see wondering souls and has learned that if she just ignores them they will go away. But when arriving at school for the first day of her senior year she can't help but to notice a certain soul following her around. Then he speaks and her world is thrown upside down. See, the souls never talk to her. Now she is more than intrigued as to why this pretty sexy looking guy..oh..sorry..soul has spoken to her, he is a soul right? Okay people, if that is not enough to make you want to devour the rest of this book, then I don't know what will.

I LOVE Abbi Glines books for a lot of reasons, but the characters she fills them with is probably a top one. They are so easy to connect with and love that I just can't get enough! Even when there are characters I hate, I kinda love to hate them, and this book is no different. To put it simply, I pretty much love Pagan. This girl had some crazy things happen to her and she kept her head through it all. I loved that she felt so strongly and wasn't afraid to show her emotions when times got tough.Oh and the best friends Miranda and Wyatt never failed to make me laugh, even when they hated each other for a whole day I loved them! The perfect mix of sappy, and sassy made this my "perfect couple" of the book. I know, how could I call her two best friend the "perfect couple"?! Well, when there are two dudes who love the same girl, there is no perfect couple!

Yeah, you read me right. I said two guys. What, you thought Death was the only guy crushing on Pagan? [Can I just say now since I didn't say it before, I am effing head over heels with that name. Pagan. That just screams Bad Mama Jama doesn't it?!] Anyway...oh right...No, Death oh I mean Dank [once again, amazing name!] is not the only one who has the hots for Pagan, there is also the incredibly sexy jock Leif Montgomery. I would be lying to you all if I said I was uber jealous of Pagan in this book. Sure, there are two amazing guys, but the circumstances to everything around them, well lets just say Pagan can deal with it. Though, once you really get down to it, there is no competition between the two. That doens't mean, however, that you won't be torn between the two boys! Both have their things going for them and you will come to see that neither are going anywhere anytime soon!

Crazy relationships are not the only thing you will be getting with this book. From the mysteries trying to be solved, to the loops you are thrown for it is safe to say there is enough to keep you glued to your seat for the entire ride. Your heart goes from soaring, to stomped into the ground and then once you emotions are starting to level out you are hit with something you never saw coming. Get ready for a lot of 'No Way! Are you SERIOUS?! YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME!' There is more, but I could have went on for days people. Everything just fit together so perfectly for me in this book I wish it would have went on forever. I never got to a point where I said to myself, "I think I will just stop for the night." There was never time to stop! Once the last few chapters rolled around I was so engrossed in this book I actually screamed at that famous last line everyone keeps talking about. ;]

All I will tell you all is, DON'T CHEAT! When you pick up this book do not cheat yourself. The last line is so much better when you read from cover to cover. Do whatever needs to be done for your curious eyes to keep their eyes from wondering to the last page. This book was such a fresh twist on the paranormal genera and I was dazzled by how well Abbi Glines transitioned from her other works. I can not wait for Predestined to come out and answer all the burning questions I have. This is the start of an epic Trilogy I can just feel it in my bones. I guess I can now call Abbi Glines a master of suspense right? I don't think anyone will disagree with me on that one. Get ready for an intense ride folks, because this is just the beginning.

Rating:

*****

Five Fantabulous Stars

[A re-read for sure]

Review: Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Synopsis:

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.

But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.
-Goodreads 

Thoughts:Okay guys. This is my first review on here and I really couldn't dream up a better one. I had my eye on this book ever since it came out back in February but the price kept me away. I knew it would go down later on in the year and I had a ton of other books to go through that by the time December rolled around it was just a book on my to be read pile like so many others. Thanks to the lovely people over at The Cheap I was reminded how beautiful the cover was and then my eyes caught sight of the sale price. Needless to say I bought it up instantly and have had my nose in it ever since. I wish I would have spent some extra money and bought the hard back after reading it and loving it so much. I could show this book off to the world. I mean really people, the cover tells all. But I digress, I should probably get onto the actually words within shouldn't I?

 **** **** **** ****

A two page first chapter. You don't expect much from two pages right? Maybe a little dialog with someone important to the book, maybe a pass memory that will come back in later so you have better understanding, but what you get from these two pages is so much better. You get thrown into a future world where love is a horrid disease that everyone has been taught to be terrified from. So much so that once you turn the age of 18 you are to be cured from it forever. At the end of chapter one, I was pretty much forced to read the rest. How could you not?! A world where love is banned?! That is just poppycock! And I know the rest of you out there were thinking the same exact thing! We love to love love!!!!! It is the one thing we search and yearn for, so how could it be called a disease?! 

Lauren Oliver quickly helps you realize why our leading lady, Lena, knows love is a bad thing, it did take her mom after all. Oliver knows how to write ladies and gents, and she knows how to toy with your emotions. Along with a leading lady comes the best friend right? I don't know if anyone tops my favorite bestie this year more than Hana. Lena would seriously be nothing with her best friend by her side, and the story benefits from this pair so much it is unreal. Even when you don't see much of Hana you still are thinking about her, and wanting more from her or at least I was. I really really hope I get to see any little inch of Hana I can in the next book, otherwise I may have to sob on a few shoulders. Also, you can not forget that without Hana, we would have had no Alex. And folks, you want yourself an Alex.

There are so many swoon-worthy boys out there in bookland but from the moment you get introduced to Alex you will be swooning you socks off. Completely sweet and totally compassionate you can't help but to fall in love with him yourself. I wanted Alex in any way possible in this story. When he isn't around I was dreaming up ways where I could pop him in just so I could see more of him, but trust, he is just freaking amazing. The relationship between himself and Lena was so right and developed so perfectly you felt it in your bones when their lips first met. [enter swooning here] Getting to see their relationship grow was the best ever, especially when love is forbidden, it makes their love that much sweeter.


So much happens in the second half of the book it is kinda hard to put into words. Seriously think bam, pow, boom, kapow, and so forth. Friendships are tested, mysteries you didn't even know where mysteries get solved and you heart breaks for about a billion different reasons. Lauren Oliver sure knows how to write an ending folks. I probably should have waited until I had book number two in my hands to read this sucker but I couldn't help myself. I should have known that since the first chapter was incredible that the last was going to be spectacular. And it was, but in the sense that I was on the edge of my seat biting my nails sweating bullets. Then BAM. She goes and does it. She ends the book and I am left a little bawling baby.


From the amazing characters, to the kinda terrifying dystopian world, and the amazing use and flow of words this book has it all. I love being sucked into a world so much that I forget where I really am and how late it is as I flip the pages. I am sure the next installment in this series will be just as great, if not better, than this one. Lauren Oliver has manged to make me fall back in love with the though of love and see, that even when it hurts to love, it is better than not having love at all.

P.S. 
I forgot to mention the one thing that managed to make me smile despite the extremely crazy ending. Seeing how much Lena had grown. Really people, this girl went from fearing love so much that she was counting down the days til she is cured from it to letting it fuel her in the moment she needed it the most. How amazing. Love could never be a bad thing I am telling you. [:


Rating:
* * * * *
Five freaking fantastic stars!
[now on my favorite shelf]

Top Reads Of 2011

As 2011 comes to an end it is time to take a look back at those books that held a special place in your heart. Now, I know everyone is usually doing a top ten but if I did a top ten, then I would just have to do a top twenty and would probably just end up adding all the books I fell in love with on the list. By doing a top five I hope to really focus on the books that completely stole my heart. Books that have stayed with me more so than the others by being exceptionally amazing and with having 122 books on my reading list this year, the narrowing down was not an easy task. But, nonetheless, here are my top reads from 2011!

Number Five: 

Lucas had it all – popularity, a devoted girlfriend, a brotherly best friend, and a loving mother who would do anything for him. His life was right on course to be a successful and fulfilling one, until the crash changed everything. It happened late one night during a sudden downpour. That evening, three young lives were lost and one life was left irrevocably altered. As the lone survivor, Lucas finds himself surrounded by swirling gossip of reckless drunkenness from the small town he used to warmly call home. Amid his own guilt and self-hatred, Lucas struggles to find hope, find peace, and maybe, even find love again.
Description from Goodreads

Starting out my top five is Collision Course by S.C. Stephens. First off, I am very grateful for the find of fictionpress and in doing so I found S.C. Stephens. This is not the only book from her on my list and she is such an amazing up and coming writer it is completely unbelievable. This book seriously stole my heart and I don't remember ever crying so much while reading. I had to stop reading a few times just to keep the tears under control. Stephens did such a spectacular job conveying every powerful emotion that comes along with a tragedy such as this. This was not the first book I read of hers, but it also wasn't the last. Keep an eye out for her folks, I think you may fall in love as hard as I did.

Number Four:
 
"No one tried to get involved with me, and I kept to myself. This was the place where everything was supposed to be safe and easy. How could Evan Mathews unravel my constant universe in just one day?"

He knows there’s something more to the girl sitting in the back of the class the moment he sees her. She’s beautiful, intelligent, and athletic – but she slips quietly through the crowded halls, trying not to exist. Determined to get to know the elusive girl, Evan soon discovers…

Emma Thomas is hiding a terrible a secret.

Reason to Breathe is an electrifying page turner from start to finish, a unique tale of life-changing love, unspeakable cruelty, and one girl’s fragile grasp of hope. Description from Goodreads

I don't even know where to start with this book, I guess I went on an emotional rampage this year because, once again, this book made my CRY a river. Really, I cried a freaking river. I can not express how much I LOVE Evan in this book. He is a freaking amazing man who I would want any day of the week. Oh and Emma? I swear, out of any heroine I have read this year she is up there on my tops. Sure, she has no powers or anything crazy but this  girl is incredibly strong. Her story is utterly powerful and I can not wait for the second book to come out to finish off her story. I just can not tell you all enough how amazing this book is, so you should probably hop on that e-reader of yours and buy it up. You will not be disappointed!

Number Three:

For almost two years now, Kiera's boyfriend, Denny, has been everything she's ever wanted: loving, tender and endlessly devoted to her. When they head off to a new city to start their lives together, Denny at his dream job and Kiera at a top-notch university, everything seems perfect. Then an unforeseen obligation forces the happy couple apart.

Feeling lonely, confused, and in need of comfort, Kiera turns to an unexpected source – a local rock star named Kellan Kyle. At first, he's purely a friend that she can lean on, but as her loneliness grows, so does their relationship. And then one night everything changes...and none of them will ever be the same.
Description from Goodreads

Here is the lovely S.C. Stephens again!! This was the first book I read from her and it is the single thing that got me hooked on reading all of her works. Really, all I would need to say to a reader of this book is Kellan Kyle and we would both fall into a puddle of goo on the floor at your feet. People, Kellan Kyle is everything you would ever look for in a man. Rock god, Sex stud, and just so damn loveable. This was also the first book I read that really turned up the heat if you know what I mean. *wink wink* From not knowing who Kiera should really be with to the heartache that comes along with choosing between two men you love there is no shortage to the emotion that will be spewing from your heart at the end of this one. I think the best part about finding new and upcoming writers is the price that comes along with their books. For such amazing work I pretty much feel like I stole this book from her. Help get the word out there and don't forget to let me know if you love S.C. as much as I do.


Number Two:

When literature student Anastasia Steele is drafted to interview the successful young entrepreneur Christian Grey for her campus magazine, she finds him attractive, enigmatic and intimidating. Convinced their meeting went badly, she tries to put Grey out of her mind - until he happens to turn up at the out-of-town hardware store where she works part-time.

The unworldly, innocent Ana is shocked to realize she wants this man, and when he warns her to keep her distance it only makes her more desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her - but on his own terms.

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey's singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success – his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving adoptive family – Grey is man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a passionate, physical and daring affair, Ana learns more about her own dark desires, as well as the Christian Grey hidden away from public scrutiny.

Can their relationship transcend physical passion? Will Ana find it in herself to submit to the self-indulgent Master? And if she does, will she still love what she finds? 
Description from Goodreads 

Let's just say I liked the turned up heat of Thoughtless and from that I ran across this little number. This was my number one choice for 2011 until another book I had waited for came out and compleatly took me [like I kinda knew it would]. This book may turn the heat up to blistering hot, but the story that comes along with it is even more powerful. I love a good story of growth and none is better than Fifty Shades of Grey. E.L. James mastered the art of telling the story and entering the dirty parts in just the right spot. What I think made me love this book the most was the dirty bits were not raunchy. They may have made my pulse quicken and made me dream of Mr. Grey maybe a bit more than one should, but they were freaking perfect. I would say this book is a bit 17 and above, but it will have your knees weaker than you have ever felt before. Trust me. If you like this one, don't forget to check out the second book Fifty Shades Darker. The third is due out sometime next year.


Number One:

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa's powers for his own dark ends.
With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister's war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move and that one of their own has betrayed them.
Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will; the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?
As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.
Description from Goodreads 

Once this book came out, I had a pretty strong feeling it would be topping out all of my books this year. I mean how could it not?! I love Cassandra Clare and all her works but I must say The Infernal Devices are turning out to be my favorite. I can not express how much I love every single character in this book especially Will. I swear I will not go all Team Will or Team Jem on you but I do have a favorite, only because I feel it is what Tessa truly wants! But I bet most of you out there say that too huh? This book tuned out to be everything I exspected and soooo much more. I had no idea that by the end of it my heart would be shattered in so many places I would have to go buy more tape to fix it. It leaves you so conflicted with your own emotions you just don't know what to do! I cried, yelled a bit, and was depressed for a good portion of the next few days. You have to call a book number one on your list if it has control over your emotions long after you read it, and here I am, still depressed! Here is to the long wait ahead of us for Clockwork Princess!

****************

Well there you have it folks! My top five reads of 2011, I wish I would have had time to do a top twenty but sadly I did not. I am kinda ready for this year to get over with so the books I have been twitching in my chair to read will finally come out! I can't even begin to wonder what the book gods have in store for us all this year, but I know we will not be disappointed. So here is to all the great books of 2011 and all the great ones to come!
Cheers!!

Introductions

Being in love with books is like...well okay...I have no way to finish this sentence. I started this blog due to the fact that I have no one in my real life who likes the same books I do or have the same interests in the books I do. When I go off on a rant about a book I have read or am reading they all look at me like I am a crazy girl, and I very well may be...I figured that there are ton of people out there in the world who would love to have a 30 minute rant with me about how such and such should be with this person instead of the other person and then give details as to why. Since I am constantly reading and bugging everyone around me with plots and twists and turns and romantic interests I decided I needed to share with people just like me, thus Dreaming In The Pages was born!!! I look forward to talking with you all in the coming months and hopefully I find a home here. I will be posting book reviews, my thoughts on the books I am reading, the music that fuels my reading nights, and anything else that could pertain to my insane amount of reading. I am just starting out on this but I must say, I am extremely excited to get this blog started. So thank you all for taking time to read a little about me and PLEASE don't forget to follow. I shall see you all in the coming days. [: