2009 Wrap-up

Wow, what a year! Looking back in 2009, I have read some pretty amazing books, met some pretty awesome bloggers and authors, and had some great times. Here is my 2009 Wrap-up!

My top 12 favorite 2009 books (not in order):

1) Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
2) Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

3) Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink

4) Candor by Pam Bachorz

5) Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatric

6) The Siren by Kiera Cass

7) Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev

8) Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr

9) Bones of Faerie by Janni Lee Simner

10) The Singing by Alison Croggon

11) Fade by Lisa McMann

12) Betrayals by Lili St. Crow

To my fellow Bloggers:

(Vania left, Shalonda right)

-This year I had the pleasure to meet many other bloggers at various signing and festivals! Thank you Shalonda, Vania, Kelsey and Kate for making these events so much fun!! Love you girls!

(Danni left, Shalonda middle, Me right)

-I also want to give a shout out to my best internet blogger buddies! I hope we meet someday girls!! Love you Taschima, Sandy, Briana, and Shayla! The Blogosphere would not be the same with out you girls.

-To Danni and Ali, my dear friends before my blogging days (or theirs), I want to let you guys know it was so great to have your support. Thank you! <3

To my readers:

-2009 would not have been as fantastic as it was without your feedback and support. Thank you so much for being there to comment when you agree or disagree. You are the ones that keep me going-- I still can't believe people read what I write! Thank you, thank you, thank you and I look forward to seeing all of you so much more throughout 2010!

Signing/Festivals:

2009 was full of great signings and author festivals. I had the chance to meet so many authors and actually have conversations with them! Here are some pictures from various events.


(Diana Peterfreund)


(Aimee Friedman and David Levithan)


(Richelle Mead)


(Ally Carter)


(Maggie Stiefvater)


(Kathryn Williams and Victoria Schwab)


(Maureen Johnson)

There are so many more signings and many more authors that I met that I wish I could also include, and I want to give a shout out to them as well: Daniel Waters, Jennifer Jabaley, Melissa De La Cruz, Sara Zarr, Charlaine Harris, Andrew Smith, and Justine Larbalestier. You guys/girls are all fantastic and it was so great meeting all of you!

Wrap-up:

Thank you everyone who came and supported me in 2009 and all the authors who agreed to interviews and requested that I review their books. I really appreciate everyones help! Thank you Briana, the Book Pixie, for getting me into blogging this year--and Thank you everyone else for being so nice that I couldn't help but stay! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Interview: Kiera Cass

Kiera Cass is the author of the YA novel The Siren. The Siren is now available for purchase on: Amazon.

Questions about The Siren:

Tainted Poet: First off, could you give us a brief summery of The Siren?
Kiera Cass: The Siren is an update on the Greek mythology of sirens, who were beautiful bird-women that sang to sailors and made them crash their boats into rocks and sink. In my version, they're just regular girls who end up living as servants to the Ocean. The hero of our story, Kahlen, has a hard time adjusting to the lifestyle, particularly when she meets a human boy, Akinli, and falls in love with him. It's hard because she can't even tell him anything about herself; her voice would make him want to drown! So it's about her trying to make it work and what happens when she starts breaking the Ocean's very strict rules.


TP: Was there anything in particular that inspired you to write this book?
KC: I woke up from a nap. I must have been dreaming about water or mermaids or something, because the idea of sirens came into my head. I thought "That would be fun to write about if they had some sort of purpose." I just didn't think there was any point to their world; why would they exist? And then, like a bolt of lightening, I got it. The Ocean eats people! I jumped up and wrote down four tiny paragraphs that were the beginning of the story, though I didn't know where it would go at the time. And I think only one line from that seed ended up in the final version. Yay editing!

TP: The characters in The Siren had a lot of personality. Did you put anything of yourself in any of them?
KC: I think most writers put themselves somewhere in there, whether they mean to or not. Kahlen wears a lot of my worries about life and death and what's best for others, and, of course, my undying love for cake. And it's pretty common knowledge that Elizabeth is an extreme version of my best friend Liz. There are bits of my husband and other friends stuck in there as well, but it's not so obvious.

TP: A story about a Siren is such a breath of fresh air. What is your favorite mythical creature?
KC: The chupacabra! Mostly because it's fun to say. Chupacabra!

TP: Your names are very unique-- How did you come up with Kahlen and Akinli?
KC: Kahlen and Akinli were both names I wanted to use for my kids, but my hubby vetoed them! Kahlen I heard for the first time on America's Next Top Model years ago. And Akinli was a surname on a mailbox here in Blacksburg that I just adored. I have pictures of both the inspirations on my website, kieracass.com

TP: Will you ever write a companion novel to The Siren?
KC: I've certainly thought about it, and I know absolutely how and why Kahlen would go back to that world. If you're a really analytical reader, you may catch the open door I left for her. But I'm not sure it would be as satisfying for the fans. Most of the love story has developed, and it would be more of a life story than a love story, though I can say from experience that so much of what love is really happens after you're married.

Other Questions:

TP: Was there a point in your life when you decided you were going to be a writer?
KC: No. But I've always loved writing, and now it seems stupid that I haven't been doing it all along. I did major in History in college, and I would say that that is a much better major for writers than English. All you do is listen to stories. No wonder I was so happy.


TP: Are there any particular foods or drinks that you like to eat or drink while writing?
KC: Ohhh! That's a good question. Umm, in pretty much every circumstance, I like to have sugar around. The summer I wrote The Siren, I would sit at a cookie store called Crumb and Get It. It smelled good and the cookies were great and it wasn't very busy, so it was easy to write. But they ended up closing down, so I write at home or at Bollo's, a local coffee shop, usually. I prefer local businesses.

TP: Could you share one interesting fact about yourself?
KC: I wrecked a car when I was four. I pulled it out of park and backed my baby brother and myself into a tree. I remember trying to crawl out the open window because I was sure I was going to die, but it wasn't a big enough gap. At the time, all I had seen were cars hitting things and blowing up on TV, so it was pretty scary.


TP: What is your favorite book? And what is one book you think people should read before they die?
KC: I guess I'll always love The Little Prince by Antione de Saint-Exupery. It's a children's book, but it's full of good things no matter how old you are. And, currently, I think everyone needs to read The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. DO IT!

TP: Do you have any projects you are working on right now?
KC: Absolutely! I have a rough draft of what I guess will be my next project done, as well as several half-finished drafts of other things. As soon as I get some time, there have been requests for me to rewrite the last three chapters of The Siren from a different perspective, and I'd like to be able to present something, since it was pretty much impossible to do in the actual story.


TP: What is one question you wish readers would ask, but they never do?
KC: I've had so much fun with people asking things like "What movie were Kahlen and Akinli watching?" and "What song was playing here?" Those little details are fun for me. The one that I'm surprised no one has asked (and have been dreading) is about how Ifama ended up as a siren. And, the thing is, I totally know and can't tell. In the original version, her whole story was in there, but as I reworked it over and over, I heard her saying "Please don't tell that to everyone." She's a very proud person, and her secret is one I'll keep. Which stinks, because I hate keeping secrets.

TP: Any last statements?
KC: I just hope people enjoy the book! And if you do, please spread the word. You can talk about The Siren, contact me, and keep up with upcoming projects at kieracass.com!

END

Thank you so much Kiera for the interview!! I greatly enjoyed your book The Siren and I hope to read more from you in the future!

The Siren by Kiera Cass

Rating: 4.5/5.0

Re-Read? Yes! I can definitely re-read this several times.

Recommend? I recommend this to anyone. There is a bit for everyone in this book.

Release Date: July 7th, 2009
Publisher: iUniverse
Pages: 276

Synopsis:

"You must never do anything that might expose our secret. This means that, in general, you cannot form close bonds with humans. You can speak to us, and you can always commune with the Ocean, but you are deadly to humans. You are, essentially, a weapon. A very beautiful weapon. I won't lie to you, it can be a lonely existence, but once you are done, you get to live. All you have to give, for now, is obedience and time..."

The same speech has been given hundreds of times to hundreds of beautiful girls who enter the sisterhood of sirens. Kahlen has lived by these rules for years now, patiently waiting for the life she can call her own. But when Akinli, a human, enters her world, she can't bring herself to live by the rules anymore. Suddenly the life she's been waiting for doesn't seem nearly as important as the one she's living now.

My Thoughts:

If you could have another chance at life, would you take it? No matter the price? The Siren is a unique tale about a girl named Kahlen who is a part of a small group of Sirens that live in the servitude of the Ocean. Throughout the novel, love and loss are introduced and Kahlen, who has the ability to love so thoroughly, is tossed and torn with both emotions constantly. Kahlen's life is like the Ocean-- rough and drowning, but also equally calm and soothing.

The Siren had such a clever storyline that I couldn't begin to guess what would happen next. It was a breath of fresh air-- it was the first time I have ever read a story on Sirens. And I wasn't disappointed. Kiera Cass's concepts on sirens was interesting and her story really unique. The pace was set just right and there was never any confusion with what was happening. Her writing style was very clear and easy to read.

What I found really interesting about the book, were the names. Kahlen, Akinli, Aisling were all names of her characters and I really liked them. I read so many books-- characters start to blend together since I hear their names reused again and again. It's refreshing to see one-of-a-kind names that uniquely belong to this novel.

The Siren just blew me away, and I cannot wait to read another book by Kiera Cass.

Details:

Cover: 3.5
Plot: 5.0
Characters: 5.0
Writing: 4.5

What are you Reading Mondays -5

So I haven't posted this in awhile! Well I'm am back home and I hope to be back on a regular schedule. Here is what's going on this week:

What I Read:

-The Siren by Kiera Cass (Hope to post the review this week).

What I'm Reading:



What I Plan to Read:

-Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

-Candor by Pam Bachorz

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So those are my plans for this week. What are yours?

This meme is brought to us by: J. Kaye's Book Blog.