Mundie Moms

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Book Review: All These Things I've Done


Released on: September 6th, 2011
Source: ARC from publisher to review
3.5 stars- It's A Good Read

In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is carefully rationed, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city's most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine. It consists of going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.'s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until her ex is accidently poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she's to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight--at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafia family.

This is a fun, exciting and at times thrilling read that felt like a cross between a dystopian and a contemporary book. There's a lot of things that Gabrielle intertwines into her story that captured my attention, and kept me invested in the over all story even when some things didn't quite come together for me. It's unique and refreshingly different from the normal YA books that have been released lately. I think YA fans will really enjoy it because of that.

Anya is a character I both admire and had a hard time really connecting with. Her greatest strength is her ability to do whatever it takes to protect her family, and stick to her guns when she believes in something. She's grown up in the shadow of her father, a notorious late mob boss which gives her a sense of no fear, she has to sort through her family's mob issues, make her relationship with Win work and try to stay out of trouble, which she lands in a few times. I like the way Anya was written and the way she tells her story. Her voice is really strong and unique, which made for a fast paced, exciting read, but one that I didn't connect with like I wanted to. She's a character who shows little emotion, which is understandable, but it made it hard for me to truly connect with her.

I really liked the romance in the story between Anya and Win, because they're from two totally different sides of the law. Anya hails from a family of well known mobsters and Win, the new kid is the new DA's son. Gabrielle Zevin does such a fabulous job at creating a believable romance between these two, because it's not all peachy with them. Anya's mobster ties and Win's dad cross paths one too many times, and that definitely has an effect on their relationship. Both characters have realistic strengths and weaknesses that together make their relationship work, while at the same time cast doubt into whether or not it can survive the latest proposition Win's dad offers Anya.

There's some great twists that liven up the plot and made me want to yell "GO ANYA", because just as things seem to go well for her something happens and she either has to deal with the consequences from it or figure out a way to fix the situation. There's action, romance, mob action, a ban on caffeine & chocolate (gasp who can live in a world where these things are banned), and a different approach on the true meaning of family that really make this book stand out. In terms of world building, I liked the feel of the world in which Anya lives in, but I was left wondering why there was a ban on things like caffeine and chocolate, and other things that are mentioned in the book. I wanted to know more about way there was a ban on these things vs being told there was and having to just accept it.

There's a lot of things that happen through out the story that truly make it an unique, good YA read. It's one I'd definitely recommend to YA readers 14 years & older. Don't forget to enter to win a copy of All These Things I've Done HERE.

Author Interview with Sweet Venom Author Tera Lynn Childs

I am so excited to have Tera Lynn Childs on the blog today. I adore her and her books! Today she's stopped by to answer a few questions I had for about Sweet Venom, her newest YA release! You can read my 5 star review for it here.

Grace just moved to San Francisco and is excited to start over at a new school. The change is full of fresh possibilities, but it’s also a tiny bit scary. It gets scarier when a minotaur walks in the door. And even more shocking when a girl who looks just like her shows up to fight the monster.

Gretchen is tired of monsters pulling her out into the wee hours, especially on a school night, but what can she do? Sending the minotaur back to his bleak home is just another notch on her combat belt. She never expected to run into this girl who could be her double, though.Greer has her life pretty well put together, thank you very much. But that all tilts sideways when two girls who look eerily like her appear on her doorstep and claim they're triplets, supernatural descendants of some hideous creature from Greek myth, destined to spend their lives hunting monsters. These three teenage descendants of Medusa, the once-beautiful gorgon maligned by myth, must reunite and embrace their fates in this unique paranormal world where monsters lurk in plain sight.


Thank you so much for joining us today Tera! Congratulations on your newest release. How would you describe Sweet Venom in three words or less?

Buffy meets mythology.

I loved your mythology and the unique spin you gave it. Did you find it challenging to add a creative touch to Medusa's lore?

There isn't actually that much information about Medusa in Greek mythology, so it was pretty easy to take the few "facts" we know about her and make them suit my purposes.

You have some awesome kick butt heroines in Sweet Venom. Which character do you feel you related to the most?

I am probably the most like Grace--eco-conscious, computer savvy, and maybe a little too much of a pushover. But there are definitely parts of me in each of the girls. I can be a bit aloof like Greer and I secretly have a tough girl side like Gretchen.

I adore the chemistry between Gretchen and Nick! What's something you admire about each of their characters?

I love that Gretchen is dedicated to her duty. Being the one responsible for keeping the human realm safe from monsters at such a young age is huge, but she just accepts it as her job. I love that Nick pushes Gretchen's buttons and that he won't back down from her, even when she's at her prickliest.

Can you give a hint about what we can expect in book 2?

Wow, in book two (Sweet Shadows) everything goes crazy. More characters go missing. Secrets are revealed. And we get to see what the abyss is like, up close and personal. By the end, I think every single character has gone through a big change.

Speed Round Questions:

Summer of Fall? Fall

Sports or shopping? Shopping

Flip flops or tennis shoes? Flip flops

Tropical island get away or ski trip? Tropical island

Drakis or Merpeople? (I know that's a hard one) Both! They can co-exist.
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Thank you Tera for stopping by!

You can find out more about Tera's books visiting her website, following her on twitter, facebook and visiting HarperTeen's site.

Cassie's CP ARC Crafty Shadowhunter Contest

Cassie CP ARC giveaway has ended and Cassie's posted the winner's along w/ their submissions on her site. Congratulations to all the winners and honorable mentions! There's a lot of fantastic artists and I can only imagine how hard it was for Cassie to narrow the winners down.

There were three winners & a tie for 1st place!

The first place tie goes to: A fan made video by Charlotte Markey who used her own drawings to make it:


And the tying winner created a fabulous ID monopoly game, which you can see more of here.


Seriously, this game needs to be sold, I'd totally buy it!

I enjoyed this video, which was the other winner


See guys read The Infernal Devices too!!

Be sure to stop by Cassie's site to see the list of 2nd & 3rd place winners, along with the honorable mentions. Here's one of my favorite honorable mentions:

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