"Ballad" by Maggie Stiefvater [3 1/2]

James Morgan has an almost unearthly gift for music. And it has attracted Nuala, a soul-snatching faerie muse who fosters and then feeds on the creative energies of exceptional humans until they die. James has plenty of reasons to fear the faeries, but as he and Nuala collaborate on an achingly beautiful musical composition, James finds his feelings towards Nuala deepening. But the rest of the faeries are not as harmless. As Halloween - the day of the dead - draws near, James will have to battle the Faerie Queen and the horned king of the Dead to save Nuala's life and his soul.

I have so been looking forward to reading this next novel in the Lament series ... well I was just a little disappointed. It took me what seemed forever to get into the story. The first part of the book deals with James and his coming to music school and how Nuala and James meet up. There is a lot of background information that is also setting up the story for you, but it just seemed to take forever to get into the juicy bits. The last 100 pages or so is where all the action picked up and it only took me an hour to finish the book from there. James is an interesting character who has this devil may care sort of attitude and is totally typical of the sarcastic youth of today ... he is quite likable. Nuala is part faerie part human and is a little tortured in her life and for some reason or another has chosen not to make a deal with James but can't seem to leave him alone either. The two of them together make an unusual couple but it does seem to work and you want them to find happiness together. Dee has really only a minor role in this story but it is all about her in the end and how James and Nuala can save themselves and Dee from the Faerie Queen.

I did finally enjoy reading Ballad but for me it wasn't as good as the first book, where you just couldn't put it down until you'd read it all. I do look forward to seeing where the story goes, and there would be some interesting characters to write about. One thing that I do love is the covers of this series, they are unusual but quite pretty too.

I rate this book 3 1/2 stars.

"Linger" by Maggie Stiefvater [4]

Their eyes, human eyes in wolf skulls,

remind me of water: the clear blue of

water reflecting the spring sky, the brown

of a brook churning with rainfall, the

green of the lake in summer as the algae

begins to bloom, the grey of a snow-choked

river. It used to be only Sam's yellow eyes

that watched me from between the rain-

soaked birches, but now, I feel the weight

of the entire pack's gaze. The weight of

things known, things unsaid.

We last left Sam and Grace facing a possible future together .... Sam has a cure for the werewolf disease and now has too reckon with his werewolf past and Grace is still facing the fear that perhaps it won't last and to make the most of now.
Into the picture comes a new wolf named Cole and he has hurts and issues to deal with in his life, but he wants to become a wolf permanently, to forget any ties he might have had to his human life.
Isabel is still feeling guilty over her brother's death and is struggling to cope with her family life as well as keep the secret of the werewolves. As all their worlds fall apart, love is what lingers. But will it be enough?

I have been absolutely dying to read this next installment to the Wolves of Mercy Falls series...
For those of you that have read my previous review for "Shiver" you might have noticed that my rating was a lot higher ... While I did enjoy reading 'Linger' I just found that this novel had twinges of "Twilight" to it ... what do I mean, well I just started to feel like Grace was becoming moody and winy like Bella from Twilight ... but when I finished the book it all made sense so try and bare with it if you hated that from Twilight. I still love the way that the author has written each chapter or paragraph from who's ever perspective it is coming from. The introduction of a new wolf has some mystery surrounding it and he will probably play a big part in the finally novel "Forever". To me this one wasn't quite as good as the first, but I do look forward to seeing how this series will be finished off. July of 2011 is the release date of "Forever".

I rate this book 4 stars.

"Shiver" by Maggie Stiefvater [5]

The Cold.

Grace has spent years watching the wolves in the woods behind her house.

One yellow-eyed wolf - her wolf -

watches back. He feels deeply familiar

to her, but she doesn't know why.

The Heat.

Sam has lived two lives. As a wolf, he

keeps the silent company of the girl he

loves. And then, for a short time each year,

he is human, never daring to

talk to Grace...until now.

The Shiver.

For Grace and Sam, love has always

been kept at a distance. But once it's spoken,

it cannot be denied. Sam

must fight to stay human - and Grace

must fight to keep him - even if it

means taking on the scars of the past,

the fragility of the present, and the

impossibility of the future.

Second book read in the name challenge.

Absolutely brilliant....wow, wow, wow!

I so enjoyed reading this book, that it was read in a day...

Could not put it down...

The author is just fantastic and becoming a firm favourite of mine.

Her writing style is so easy to read, it just flows...

A beautiful love story that you think will just not work and defies logic.

I don't want to say too much about the story as it will give it away, so here is just a little snippet...

'And then I opened my

eyes and it was just Grace and

me - nothing anywhere but

Grace and me - she pressing

her lips together as though she

were keeping my kiss inside

her, and me holding this

moment that was as fragile

as a bird in my hands.'

What I will say is that it is written from Grace's view and

Sam's view, which is really good.

It is definitely a must read...especially teenage girls,they will fall in love with it.

If I could give it more than five stars I would.

Have to Read!

Another challenge - Read your name :)

This one looks fun .......... So I thought I would give it a whirl ..............

I - Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
R -
I -
S - Stargrazer by Claudia Grey
H -The Hunger Games - Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

L - The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker
E - Ecstasy by Jacquelyn Frank
G - The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
S - Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Heres the link it is really easy to do .........

"Lament" by Maggie Stiefvater [4 1/2 ]

Sixteen year old Deirdre Monaghan is a prodigiously gifted musician. She's about to find out she's also a cloverhand - one who can see faeries.

Unexpectedly, Deirdre finds herself infatuated with a mysterious boy named Luke who enters her ordinary life, seemingly out of thin air. But his interest in her might be something darker than summer romance. When a sinister faerie named Aodhan shows up with deadly orders from the faerie Queen, it forces Dee right into the midst of Faerie. Caught in the crossfire with Deirdre is James, her wisecracking but loyal best friend.

Deirdre had been wishing her summer weren't so dull, but taking on a centuries-old Faerie Queen isn't exactly what she had in mind.

Another wonderfully told Faerie love story about a young musically gifted girl,

who meets and falls in love with a faerie assassin who is sent to kill her. He is intrigued by her, and after getting to know her falls in love as well. It is a forbidden love and now the Faerie Queen is after both of them.

Beautifully written, it is magical and musical and radiates romance and every teenage girl will just love reading this novel.

Of course the story doesn't end here... it continues with the next novel entitled

"Ballard".

Quite enjoying reading the faerie books at the moment and comparing the authors.

A great read... you will enjoy!