Jeri Smith-Ready's StreetTeam!

So, I joined Jeri Smith-Ready's StreetTeam tonight!

I read, and LOVED her first two books in the Shade Trilogy, 'Shade' and 'Shift.' But, even though I own the third and final book, 'Shine,' I still haven't read it... thumbs down to me on that one!

BUT! After watching this Ah-Mazing trailer made by Jeri herself, it makes me want to go grab my Nook (it's never that far from me anyway) and dive right into it!! :)

You should watch it too! No real spoilery, though reading the first two books would help... But, still, without further ado... the video!

"Unspoken" By Sarah Rees Brennan

"Unspoken" by Sarah Rees Brennan is an extremely well-written book - though the ending did leave me a tad crazed.
Kami Glass talks to a boy she's never met before - in her head. Talk about having an imaginary friend! For as long as she can remember she's been having conversations with a boy named Jared in her mind - and has been freaking out several people along the way.
Over the years she's learned to keep it to herself though, and has even questioned whether Jared is real or all her imagination. No matter, she wouldn't know what to do without his ever-presence in her mind.
Kami is just an awesome character. She's strong-willed, brave, extremely funny, and smart. We meet our lovely heroine right as the Lynburn family is moving back to Sorry-in-the-Vale.
As the head of the school newspaper, Kami is always looking for a good story. And, the stories -or lack thereof- that surround the mysterious Lynburn family have her extremely intrigued.
Twin sisters Lillian and Rosalind Lynburn moved away, along with Lillian's husband Rob, several years ago and have finally returned to live in their ancient mansion at the center of town with the slightly morbid decor. Only, they aren't alone.
They've brought with them their sons Ash and Jared - cousins who cannot stand one another, and couldn't be more different.
Oddly enough, one of the boys is extremely familiar to Kami, even if he is different from what she ever expected.
What would you do if your imaginary friend turned out to be real?
I really enjoyed this story. It was different than the handful of books I've read recently, and Kami is a very unique, endearing character I'm sure to remember for some time.
Honestly, I did not expect several of the things that happened toward the end of the book - complete shockers to me! (Especially the person behind the animal sacrifices!) And, yes! The ending is driving me crazy! I even had a dream the night I finished the book that Sarah had released several more chapters of the story, I can't remember what happened in said chapters, but I know I was even more upset when I woke up that morning :(
Anyway, in all seriousness, you need to read this book! You won't regret it, I promise!
There's love, friendship, mystery, intrigue.. the list goes on!

5(million) STARS!

"Spark" by Brigid Kemmerer Review

"Spark" is the second book in Brigid Kemmerer's Elemental Series. The first book, "Storm" was recommended to me by my Sister-in-Law earlier this year - she knows my love of YA fiction - and I am SO happy I finally decided to get it on my Nook.

I soon fell in love with the four Merrick brothers, Michael, the oldest, Nick and Gabriel, the twins, and Chris, the youngest. Their banter is just amazingly entertaining, not to mention endearing. It's easy to see they truly care for one another, even if they sometimes resent each other, as siblings tend to do every now and then.

In "Storm," we learn that each of the four brothers can control a specific element, Earth, Air, Fire and Water - however not entirely - and our main hero, Chris, thirsts for water. "Spark," however, focuses on Gabriel and his burning need for fire. Puns definitely intended - I'm a nerd like that.
When "Spark" begins, Gabriel isn't really in the best frame of mind. He feels like he's failed his family. He fights for control of this amazing element and he feels its pull on him constantly, feeding into his emotions, begging him to bring it to life when he knows he can't for fear of what may happen.
It doesn't help that up until this point in his life, Nick did and shared everything with Gabriel - and is now starting to do things on his own, and keep certain things from him - whether he means to or not. Gabriel has his sports, all four of them, and that helps him some, but it's not a cure-all. And, even the solace he finds in that is threatened when his new math teacher finds out he's been cheating.
Everything is starting to weigh heavily on Gabriel, and it only draws him toward fire that much more. One night in particular, it leads him directly to a house fire. Though devastating for the family whose home it is, it allows Gabriel to be near his element AND help those who fall victim to it.
Unfortunately - or fortunately depending on how you look at it - someone is setting fires in neighbors' homes. Though no one knows who is responsible, or why they're doing this, Gabriel can feel the anger fueling the fires, and knows he's doing the right thing by helping the families. But in doing so, he quickly finds himself becoming suspect #1 in the police investigation - and even his brothers don't truly believe he's innocent.

Insert Layne here. Layne is a Sophomore who just so happens to sit next to Gabriel in math class. Obviously she notices Gabriel - who doesn't? - But she knows he'd never notice her, unless of course he's asking for something, like a stupid pencil. It's in math class that she picks up on the fact that he's cheating, and offers her help - even though she has no idea why she should.
Unfortunately for Layne, she has her own fair share of problems to deal with. Her mother left them, and her father tries his best to raise Layne and her hearing-impaired brother, Simon - but doesn't really know how. Add on the fact that Simon is being bullied everyday at school and you can see things aren't really looking up for her. And, as if that wasn't enough, Layne has a secret she would go to the ends of the Earth to protect, something even her own mother didn't want people to know.

Layne and Gabriel get off to a rough start at first, but it is through their uncanny relationship that they are able to grow as individuals. She believes in him even when he doesn't believe in himself, and he sees past the exterior Layne tries so hard to portray, and pushes her boundaries to get her to see herself the way he sees her.

All in all I loved this book. I do sort of have a soft spot for the tough exterior-soft interior boys. They just tug at my heart strings.
There were so many times in the book that I wanted to just reach in and give both Layne and Gabriel a huge hug. So many times I wanted to punch Kara - Layne's closest friend - in the face, for being such a bitch. And so many times I wanted to tell the Merrick brothers that Gabriel was innocent, even if he did everything possible to keep them thinking otherwise. But, unfortunately, that option has not been invented for the Nook yet, and I just had to power through to the end - and end that did not disappoint! I look forward to reading "Spirit" about Hunter! Is it June 2013 yet?! :)