WHAT BOOK WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE FOR FREE FOR VALENTINES?

I couldn't find a valentine book sweet enough to have for our February monthly contest... so can you good folks help me out... What would you like to have for free this valentines? Books? Chocolates? Okey the chocolates is a given, there will be scrumptious european chocolates in the prize pot!! Keep in mind though that it has to be mailable. And could withstand 2-3 weeks transit. So tell me what you want!!

POISON STUDY WINNER

First, I would like to apologize for the delay with announcing the winner... it just seems like one problem after the other... anyway... I've done the checking, la di bla di bla, and the name which came out of the hat is........

Icejewel !!

Congratulations to our winner, your book is on it's way to you. Please allow 1-2 weeks mailing time because I posted it as ordinary surface mail.

THE FRIDAY 56: THE 5 GREATEST WARRIORS

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Closest book: The Five Greatest Warriors by Matthew Reilly
P56, 5th sentence:

Imagine earthquakes at every fault line.

Happy Friday!!!

THE BOOK OF ELI

The Book Of Eli
Directed by The Hughes Brothers
Starring Denzel Washington

The Story Is About:
Post-apocalyptic America where few humans remain. They fight over a bible because they believe it to be a book which will give whoever possesses it power in a literal sense. Eli is some sort of a Rambo-styled lone ranger who makes it his mission to deliver the bible to someplace safe in the west based, on his faith. Meets good and bad people along the way.

My Take On This Movie:
I have to give Denzel Washington’s acting ability a 5 out of 5 here. He actually breathed life in an otherwise very poor and quite nonsense story. Okey, so faith could make somebody do near miraculous deeds. I’ll buy that. But, why would Eli protect the bible with his life from getting into other people’s hands when the whole point of his mission bottom line of his mission is to spread it? Anybody see any contradiction of principles here? I find myself having difficulty “suspending disbelief” as a movie viewer. Besides, to make a movie about post-apocalyptic humans fighting over a bible is stretching silly a bit too far for me. Entertainment value? 1 out of 5.

Verdict: silly

Cherry’s Rating: 1.5 out of 5 cherries


Movie Link: http://thebookofeli.warnerbros.com/

SHADES OF MIDNIGHT

Shades Of Midnight by Lara Adrian
Book 7 of the Midnight Breed (MB) series

Genre: urban fantasy, paranormal romance, vampire, erotica

About This Book:

In a frozen wilderness steeped in darkness, the lines between good and evil, lover and enemy, are never black or white but drawn in SHADES OF MIDNIGHT . . .
Something inhuman is stalking the frigid Alaskan wilds, leaving unspeakable carnage in its wake. For bush pilot Alexandra Maguire, the killings stir memories of a horrific event she witnessed as a child and evoke in her the inexplicable sense of otherness she has long felt but never fully understood . . . until a darkly seductive stranger with secrets of his own enters her world.

Sent from Boston on a mission to investigate the savage attacks and stop the slaughter, vampire warrior Kade has his own reasons for returning to the frigid, forbidding place of his birth. Haunted by a secret shame, Kade soon realizes the stunning truth of the threat he faces--a threat that will jeopardize the fragile bond he has formed with the courageous, determined young woman who arouses his deepest passions and most primal hungers. But in bringing Alex into his world of blood and darkness, Kade must confront both his own personal demons and the even greater evil that could destroy all he holds dear.

Source: Info in the About This Book was taken from the author's website at http://www.laraadrian.com/ on 19/12/09.

My Take On This Book:
The story telling quality is good but not quite a masterpiece. I would give it a 4 out of 5. The story itself is also good but not terribly original. Maybe because I've read the Black Dagger Brotherhood by JR Ward and the Dark Hunter series by Sherrilyn Kenyon already that it has now grown old on me?! Perhaps. I would give it a 2 out of 5. The cover art... If I was browsing the shelves of a bookstore on a retail therapy binge, I would pick this book up as a potential buy just by it's cover alone... that's a 4 out of 5. So for entertainment value, I would give this book a 3.5 out of 5.

This is the latest release of the Midnight Breed (MB) series which is by now composed of seven books. And this is the first MB book I've read. I probably would have a better appreciation of characters and events if I've read this series in sequence instead of jumping straight to Book 7. But, even though this is Book 7 of the MB series, it can be read as a stand alone. There is enough background information provided within the pages so that the readers don't get confused. But like I said, it would give the reader a better appreciation of characters and events if read in sequence.

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries


Acknowledgements: We would like to thank Constable & Robinson for sending us the review copy of Shades of Midnight.

CONTEST:
Because this book was provided to me for free, I would now like to pass it on to another reader for review. That means, if you are not interested in reading the book please do not enter the contest!

Shades of Midnight is an adult book, that means this contest is for 18s only!!

To Enter: Please register HERE.       (THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED)

Contest Particulars:

• You have to be a Cherry Mischievous (www.cherrymischievous.com) blog follower via Google Friend Connect to enter the contest.
• There will only be one winner.
• You have to be 18 or older ot enter this contest.
• The winner promises to post a review of this book on the internet.
• Open to international readers.
• Contest ends on Feb 15, 2010.
• If this contest is not in concordance to your local legislations, it is up to you to follow your local rules.
• You must have a valid snail mail address and email address to enter this contest. We need the snail mail address to send the book(s) and/or prizes to. We need the email addy to get in touch with you.
• Please read the Disclaimer as it forms part of the Contest Particulars.
• Questions? Ask! Shoot us an email (mischivusfairy-shadesofmidnight@yahoo.com). Please write SHADES OF MIDNIGHT in the subject line.

THE FRIDAY 56: PRADA & PREJUDICE

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Closest book: Prada & Prejudice by Mandy Hubbard

P56, 5th sentence: (The fifth sentence is only the one in bold letters. But it is too skimpy to post only one word so I decided to post the entire paragraph.)

My room is on the second floor of the west wing, at the end of the hall, so all I can do is go toward the front entry. There are doors on both sides of the hall, so I walk towards the first one and press mt ear to it. Silence.

Happy Friday!!!

KISS OF FIRE

Kiss Of Fire by Deborah Cooke
Book 1 of the Dragonfire series.

Genre: urban fantasy romance

Caption At The Back Cover:

For millennia, the shape shifting dragon warriors known as the Pyr have lived peacefully as guardians of both the four elements and the earth’s treasures. But now the final reckoning between the Pyr, who count humans among these treasures, and the Slayers, who would eradicate humans and the Pyr who protect them, is about to begin…

When ace accountant Sara Keegan decides to settle down and run her quirky aunt’s New Age bookstore, she’s not looking for adventure. She doesn’t believe in fate or the magic of tarot cards, but when she’s saved from a vicious attack by a man who has the ability to turn into a fire-breathing dragon, she questions whether she’s losing her mind – or about to lose her heart.

Self-reliant loner Quinn Tyrrell has long been distrustful of his fellow Pyr. When he feels the firestorm that signals his destined mate, he’s determined to protect and possess Sara, regardless of the cost. Then Sara’s true destiny is revealed and Quinn realizes that he must risk everything – even Sara’s love – to fulfill their entwined fates.

My Take:
I find that my love for fantasy changes over time. Two years ago I had a “vampire phase” where I was absolutely gaga about anything and everything vampire! The most memorable aspect of that time was that I was crazy about the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by JR Ward and Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter series. Then that was followed by the “wolf phase” where most of the books I bought were about shape-shifting wolves. Sometimes I don’t even read the caption about the book, if it got a shape-shifting wolf in it I buy and read it! Nuts, I tell you!! Now, I think I’m into a “dragon phase”… probably one of the reasons why I bought Kiss Of Fire by Deborah Cooke.

I started reading this book not only wanting to “suspend disbelief” but wanting to “like” the story as well. Just because it got dragons in it. The “wanting” is in itself is a powerful motivational springboard to start off anything. It almost always ends with a positive five out of five feedback. But, I just hate inconsistent characters… It drives me up the wall! Flippin’ heck, in the beginning chapters Character A is said to divulge a very, very valuable info to the bad guys when they tortured her for it, because “she has to live” for the good guys to win the fight of good against evil seeing that she is their “prophetess”. Character A is even said to have major guilt issues for having done that. Fine, I’ll swallow that. Then in the last chapters, Character A informed Character B that she has the means to escape but purposely stayed captive to provide the protagonists a purpose to get together?!? I can't wrap my head around that… Inconsistent behaviour once is forgivable. Twice is pushing it. Several times along the story… makes the book an irritating read.

The premise of the story is very good. Shape-shifting dragons which lives for centuries to fight for the good against evil. Absolutely wonderful!! Honourable hero and feisty heroine. Magic. Airborne action. Firestorm attraction and romance. Then the story-telling quality tries to make the book quite boring... I’d give the story-telling quality a 1.5 out of 5. Despite the good fantasy elements, I had to force myself to finish the book! That’s how bad the story-telling quality is. But, I did finish the book so can’t give it a zero. I’d give the story itself a 1.5 out of 5. The cover art… a 4 out of 5. I have to say that the covers of this series are quite attractive to fantasy buffs like me. It was one of the persuading points for me to buy this book.

Overall I’d give this book a 2 out of 5. So, would I read another Deborah Cooke? Probably. But, I'll most likely not buy another Deborah Cooke!

Cherry's Rating: 2 out of 5 cherries

WINDOWS 7 TUNEUP

I received a request to review this product and so I installed it on my computer to try it out. It looked good. It is user friendly, menu driven, and the functions are easy to understand. But, it also erased some components of my Paint software rendering it totally useless that I had to re-install it. It also messed up my McAfee security software. So to those interested in computers and softwares, this might be a powerful tool. But for people like me who are not very technically savy this program is a disaster! So I would recommend this program to those with programming degrees. If you do not have that, don't even try it. I have since removed the Windows 7 TuneUp from my computer and done necessary manual repairs to the damage it wrecked.

THE FRIDAY 56: SHADES OF MIDNIGHT

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Closest book: Shades Of Midnight by Lara Adrian
P56, 5th sentence:

Something else had brutalized them... just as the young woman, the pretty brown-eyed blonde named Alexandra Maguire, had insisted in gathering in the town church.

Happy Friday!!!

WIN YA TRIO

Win:

• Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
• The Dark Divine by Bree Despain
• Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

in our YA TRIO contest!!

TO ENTER: Register HERE. (THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED)

Contest Particulars:
•You have to be a Cherry Mischievous blog follower via Google Friend Connect to enter the contest and/or a member of the CherryD fandom community. Having both will gain you 5 extra entry credits.
•There will only be one winner. Winner takes all!
•Contest is open to international readers.
•Contest ends on March 19, 2010.
•If this contest is not in concordance to your local legislations, it is up to you to follow your local rules.
•Under 13? Parental permission is required. Email us.
•You must have a valid snail mail address and email address to enter this contest. We need the snail mail address to send the book(s) and/or prizes to. We need the email addy to get in touch with you.
•Questions? Ask! Shoot us an email. Please write YA TRIO in the subject line.

PRINCEP'S FURY WINNER

The PRINCEP'S FURY contest has ended. There were only 9 valid entries in all and the name which came out of the hat is......

Jake of Teens Read And Write

Congratulations to Jake!! Your book will be mailed to you on Monday. Happy reading!!

Thank you to all of you who participated and I hope you enjoyed the blog contests!

(((muah)))

FIRST LORD'S FURY

First Lord's Fury by Jim Butcher
Book 6 and final book of the Codex Alera

About This Book:

The aging First Lord of Alera has fallen in battle. Yet his people must continue to resist an invading inhuman army. Desperate Alerans even pledge fealty to the Vord Queen to survive, turning the incredible power of Aleran furies back on their own people. And despite all efforts, the Alerans are being ground into dust and pushed to the farthest reaches of their own realm. However, Tavi has returned with vital insights from the Canim Blood Lands. He knows how to counter the Vord and, more importantly, believes human ingenuity can equal fury-born powers. Now events are rushing towards a last stand, where Tavi and the last Aleran legions must formulate a dangerous new strategy, together. For a civilization is on the brink of extinction.

Source: Info in the About This Book was taken from amazon at http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1841498513.

Genre: epic fantasy, YA

My Take On This Book:
I like the way this book answers some mysteries in the previous books. Like the way it explained the Alerans are actually not native to Alera but migrants from somewhere else. And adopted to Alera's environment, including the use of "furies". But didn't say where they came from, to begin with though...

This book also revealed the identity of the mystery man in Book 1 who witnessed the Marat pre-war orgy before the Second Calderon. I had to stop for a minute there to recall that mystery man and that I did wonder who it was but promptly forgot all about it after.

Now, why does the wild, feral wind furies attack and kill Alerans and animals on Alera while leave the Marat alone? I've always wondered about that...

It seems that the name "Marok" is a favourite alpha canine word for authors. Jim used it in this book to name the head of the Canim spiritualist. Patricia Briggs used the name Marok as the title for her head of werewolf in the Mercy Thompson series. Or am I just reading too many fantasy books?

By the way, can anyone tell me what is the difference between an earthcrafter and a Knight's Terra? Because they awfully sound the same to me but for some reason each word is applied as if there is a difference. The difference of these terms seems to be similar to the difference between an earthcrafter and a watercrafter...

I also like the way this book bring the stories of all six books in the Codex Alera series together to a close. In the book, is mentioned bits and pieces from all six books and nicely blended them together. It also answered a question I had when I reviewed The Furies of Calderon (Book 1 of the Codex Alera) which is: Why is this series called Codex Alera? As I understand it, it is because the six books is suppose to be a chronicling of Gaius Octavian's rise to power. The Codex Alera. What do you think?

The only major complaint I have about this book is that this is the final book of the Codex Alera series. That means there won't be anymore! But, I want more! *sigh*

Cherry’s Rating: 5 out of 5 cherries