Alex Rider: Stormbreaker: Book Review

Title: Stormbreaker
Author: Anthony Horowitz
My Rating: 4 Stars
Buy The Book:
-HERE-

"They said his uncle Ian died in a car accident. Alex Rider knows that's a lie, and the bullet holes in his uncle's car confirm the truth. But nothing can prepare him for the news that the uncle he always thought he knew was really a spy for Britain's top-secret intelligence agency. Enlisted to find his uncle's killers and complete Ian's final mission, Alex suddenly finds himself caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse, with no way out. "



I picked up Stormbreaker from the library after having it recommended from a friend. The plot sounded incredibly intriguing to me. Of course, hearing that the book was transformed into a movie was one of the major factors in drawing me to reading it. You see, I'm a fan of book-to-movie conversions. I like to not only picture the images set forth in written word, but to actually see them on the big-screen brings me excitement.

Back to the book...I thoroughly enjoyed it! I don't read through books incredibly fast, but I found that I finished this within a week or so.

Alex Rider didn't think himself very special. In fact, if his Uncle Ian had not died in a suspicious car accident, his life would have gone on as normal. But one jaunt into the junkyard and an escape from death later, Alex's life is turned upside down by the discovery of bullet holes in his Uncle's car. If his Uncle was only a banker and he had only died in a 'car accident', why were there bullet holes in his car? When Alex is enlisted from a British secret intelligence agency to help finish his Uncle Ian's, who was revealed to not be a banker, but a spy, last mission, his life turns to the dangerous side. But Alex can supposedly handle that. After all, his Uncle had been secretly preparing him for this type of thing his whole life.

I found the writing was an easy read. While it wasn't completely descriptive in every aspect, I felt like the style was easy and perfect for this novel. The characters were well developed, enjoyable and realistic. The adventure was definitely eye-catching.

My only complaint was the small amount of swearing they spread in the book. The ones I caught were on pages 60, 79 and 140. The bad guy used his form of 'bloody' quite a lot. But seeming as it's really only a British swear word, I don't find it offensive. :P Because of this being a 'spy' book, there was some violence. Nothing was too descriptive or gory, but the thought might send some shivers up your body.

I'm going to be watching the movie in the upcoming week. If I feel like it, I might post a movie review. :)



What's Coming Up Next?

The Horse and His Boy, by C. S. Lewis
Raising Dragons, by Bryan Davis
Too Rich for a Bride, by Mona Hodgson
Point Blank, by Anthony Horowitz

A Cowboy's Touch: Book Review

Title: A Cowboy's Touch
Author: Denise Hunter
My Rating: 4 Stars
Buy The Book:
-Here-

"Hypertension is nothing to mess with, Abigail. You're so...restless. You need a break -- a chance to find some peace in your life."

With those words spoken, Abigail Jones was sentenced to three months in Moose Creek, Montana to check up on her Aunt Lucy. The aunt who seems to be going a little insane. But what workaholic, big-city girl like Abigail would cherish the thought of enduring three months of boredom in the middle of nowhere?

Only a few days into her venture out to Moose Creek, Abigail happens upon Maddy Ryan, a young girl who has just had her bike stolen. With her journalist instincts kicking up, Abbey promises the girl, who turns out to be the daughter of the widowed cowboy who owns Aunt Lucy's ranch, to help her recover her precious item. The two form a special bond during their short mystery adventure. Maybe her visit here wouldn't be boring after all...

To kickstart her summer stay in Montana even further, Maddy informs Abigail that her nanny has just bailed on her dad for the summer leaving the job wide open. Maybe this was just what she needed. After careful consideration and accepting the job, Abigail is now spending her time living with Maddy and her handsome father.

Wade Ryan seems a mysterious character to Abigail. He is a solemn man, and while he wishes the right life for Maddy, he seems so detached from her. Abigail sets out to fix that disconnection. But who could this mysterious Wade Ryan be? She knows he is hiding something.

What happens when this cowboy starts to find a place in her longing heart? How can she deal with an incredible discovery, an astounding opportunity, and a love that is only bound to be broken in the end?

This was a very fun read! Being a fan of stories that take place out West, I found this satisfying. Being a romantic, following along Abigail's sentimental adventure was endearing. The pace of the book kept the suspense just where it needed to be.

I rated this a four star because I felt the narrative writing seemed a bit clipped at times. While the author described things well, I feel like it took away from the flow of the book. Otherwise, I really enjoyed the dialogue. It's so hard to figure out how to manage writing good dialogue. Usually I complain more about how the talking just didn't seem realistic to me, but that wasn't the case in this book.

I highly recommend this for girls aged 14 and up who love to settle down with a good romantic book with a bit of mystery thrown in. :)

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

What's Coming Up Next?

The Horse and His Boy by C. S. Lewis
Raising Dragons by Bryan Davis
Stormbreaker (Alex Rider Novel #1) by Anthony Horowitz
Too Rich for a Bride by Mona Hodgson

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: Book Review

Title: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Author: C.S. Lewis
My Rating: 5 stars
Buy The Book:
-Here-

"Narnia . . . the land beyond the wardrobe, the secret country known only to Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy . . . the place where the adventure begins.

Lucy is the first to find the secret of the wardrobe in the professor's mysterious old house. At first, no one believes her when she tells of her adventures in the land of Narnia. But soon Edmund and then Peter and Susan discover the Magic and meet Aslan, the Great Lion, for themselves. In the blink of an eye, their lives are changed forever."



Continue the adventures through Narnia with Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy who have been sent away from their home because of the war. On a rainy day with nothing to do, the four children set out to explore the old house. After inspecting a spare room and declaring it empty besides for an old wardrobe, the four oldest children leave, but Lucy stays behind. For what little girl wouldn't want to explore the insides of a beautiful wardrobe? What normal little girl would find herself in the middle of a wintry wonderland after entering said wardrobe like Lucy had? After coming to an old lamp post, our dear little adventuress meets a Faun who takes her to his home for some tea. She later finds out he was meant to do the 'White Witch's' duty and kidnap her, for she was a daughter of Eve. He was so stricken with guilt, that he helps Lucy back to the wardrobe and to her world. She is ecstatic about the new world that she has found and runs to tell Peter, Susan and Edmund, who, of course, do not believe she is telling the truth.

After the wardrobe becomes the last resort for a hiding place to get away from the eyes of the housekeeper, the four tumble back into the world of Narnia where adventure is waiting for them. What will happen to the four Pevensie children as they journey through Narnia?

Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again.

What's Coming Up Next?

The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis
Raising Dragons by Bryan Davis
A Bride for Donnigan by Janette Oke
A Cowboy's Touch by Denise Hunter

Just Do Something: Book Review

Title: Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will
Author: Kevin DeYoung
(Forward by Joshua Harris)
My Rating: 5 Stars
Buy the Book -HERE-

"Pastor and author Kevin DeYoung counsels Christians to settle down, make choices, and do the hard work of seeing those choices through.
Too often, he writes, God's people tinker around with churches, jobs, and relationships, worrying that they haven't found God's perfect will for their lives. Or--even worse--they do absolutely nothing, stuck in a frustrated state of paralyzed indecision...waiting...waiting...waiting for clear, direct, unmistakable direction.
But God doesn't need to tell us what to do at each fork in the road. He's already revealed His plan for our lives: to love Him with our whole hearts, to obey His Word, and after that, to do what we like."

After becoming increasingly stressed with an assignment I was given for college homework, my mom picked up this book from my Aunt. This went along very well with the theme of some the assignments put forth in my college book where I would find myself constantly running around trying to come up with an answer to what the Lord's will was for that area of my life. As soon as I sat down in the car, I began to read. Through the entire journey of the book, my anxieties over what God's will could possibly be in my life were put to rest.

"God is not a magic 8-ball God we shake up and peer
into whenever we have a decision to make. He is a
good God who gives us brains, shows us the way of
obedience, and invites us to take risks for Him."

So what exactly is the will of God? As Kevin DeYoung so cleverly points out, the will of God is that you love Him with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind. As His Word says in Matthew 6:31-33: "Therefore do not worry saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'. For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." (NKJV)

"We can stop pleading with God to show us the future
[being] confident that He holds the future."

"Our search for the will of God," Kevin DeYoung says, "has become an accomplice in the postponement of growing up, a convenient way out for the young (or old) Christian floating through life without direction or purpose. Too many of us have passed off our instability, inconsistency, and endless self-exploration as "looking for God's will," as if not making up our minds and meandering through life were marks of spiritual sensitivity."

"Let's not spiritualize our inability to make
decisions in the quest to discover God's will."

To follow up with the previous paragraph, Kevin DeYoung says that, "As a result, we are full of passivity and empty on following through. We're tinkering around with everyone and everything."

So what should we do about this?

"When it comes to our future, we should take some responsibility, make a decision and just do something."

I highly, highly recommend this book to everyone. Especially those who are confused as to just what God's will is in their life. I came out of reading this with a whole new outlook on just what God's will really is.

"Wisdom is what we need to live a godly life. God does not tell us the future, nor does He expect us to figure it out. When we don't know which way to turn and are faced with tough decisions in life, God doesn't expect us to grope in the dark for some hidden will of direction. He expects us to trust Him and be wise."

What's Coming Up Next?

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Raising Dragons by Bryan Davis

The Magician's Nephew: Book Review

Title: The Magician's Nephew
Author: C.S. Lewis
My Rating: 5 stars
Buy the Book -HERE-


"Narnia...where the woods are thick and cool, where Talking Beasts are called to life...a new world where the adventure begins.
Digory and Polly meet and become friends one cold, wet summer in London. Their lives burst into adventure when Digory's Uncle Andrew, who thinks he is a magician, sends them hurtling to...somewhere else. They find their way to Narnia, newborn from the Lion's song, and encounter the evil sorceress Jadis before they finally return home."

I picked up this book earlier this month for the first time in over five years. What a refreshing experience! To travel back into the world of Narnia after such a long time away is an incredible thing. I forgot how much I loved this first installment to the classic tales of Narnia.

We first meet Polly Plummer in the back garden, where she suddenly happens upon Digory Kirke, the boy who has just moved in next door. After getting to know each other over the span of the summer, they ramble inside one cold, wet rainy day and discover a tunnel that runs the length of their connected line of houses. Upon an accident, they end up in Digory's eccentric Uncle Andrew's study and to their horror, the man himself is inside the room. After tricking Polly into touching one of his magical rings, for he considered himself a magician, she disappear into a world unknown. Digory follows her to find if she is safe. Enter the Wood Between the Worlds, a magical and enchanting place full of pools that lead to different worlds. Through their adventures, Polly and Digory unleash the powers of the evil sorceress Queen Jadis, unintentionally bring the Queen back to their world where she seeks to make it her 'kingdom', and witness the birth of Narnia. All in all, The Magician's Nephew is a great tale of adventure, intrigue and entertainment. Step into the book and watch as the great Aslan sings Narnia to life.

"He thinks great folly, child,' said Aslan. "This world is bursting with life for these few days because the song with which I called it into life still hangs in the air and rumbles in the ground. It will not be so for long. But I cannot tell that to this old sinner, and I cannot comfort him either; he has made himself unable to hear my voice. If I spoke to him, he would hear only growlings and roarings. Oh, Adam's son, how cleverly you defend yourself against all that might do you good!"



What's Coming Up Next?

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung (foreward by Joshua Harris)
Raising Dragons by Bryan Davis

I'm back!

Wow. Could it be possible? Is Tippie really coming back to the blogging world? There has to be a catch, right?

Well, after a very long break, I'm finally making my way back. A lot, and I do mean that quite literally, has happened since October of 2009. A whole year of growing older and making new memories!

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Some Highlights:
♥ Started College
♥ Took up Swing Dancing and completely fell in love with dance. I go every week now.
♥ Actually applied for a job, even though I didn't get it.
♥ Went to Chicago and fell in love with that place
♥ Went to a wedding in another state. Completely enjoyed myself!
♥ Got to hang out A LOT with my new best friend
♥ Have some new favorite bands
♥ Have some new favorite TV shows
♥ Spent a lot of time with family
♥ Got my ears pierced ((actually, I got this done last week :P))
♥ Got my license!

I wish I could organize this and remember everything, but it is simply too hard! What did I do this year that disappointed me? I totally ditched writing. :( I seriously didn't work at /all/ on writing.

What am I going to do to change this? I'm going to bump up my writing skills and work on shining up a completed novel enough to hopefully send in to possibly get published. It's a big goal and will I accomplish it this year? Probably not, but I can at least try!

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

So, what does me returning to you exactly mean? First off, I'm going to work on reinventing my blog. It needs a makeover, don't you think? After that, I plan on giving you guys updates on my life, posts about my progress on a certain challenge I am giving myself, book reviews, and other fun stuff.

I think something I lost this year was a love of reviewing books. Before, I used to sign up to be a pre-publication reader for HarperCollins Children's books, but when that finished, I kind of gave up on reviewing books. That was a silly thing to do! So, you guys can look forward to book reviews from me. I need to revise that in my life as well...I read hardly any books last year. This year I am changing that!

See you guys after my blog's makeover! I'm excited for this!