Blazing the trail by Deborah Cooke

Published: June 5th, 2012

Publisher: NAL Trade

Pages: 310

Copy: Library

Summary: Goodreads

It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and Zoë Sorensson’s love life is heating up. Cute, loyal, and understanding, wolf shifter Derek is pretty much the perfect guy. He likes Zoë, and he knows what it’s like to have to keep a secret. Yet, Zoë can’t help but wish it was rebel rocker Jared asking her to the Valentine’s dance instead. But Jared’s too busy playing hot and cold with her heart, calling Zoë his dragon girl one minute and then taking special interest in her best friend the next.



Zoë is just about ready to breathe fire, especially once she uncovers a new threat that targets her friends. Although Zoë thought the Mages were defeated, they’re back and have invoked an old spell to give them new power—they plan to eliminate all shape shifters on the night of the big dance. Now, Zoë must lead an alliance of young shifters to battle the Mages and figure out exactly what—and who—she wants, before it all goes up in smoke…

Deborah Cooke's Dragon Diaries series was a pleasure to read.  Perhaps this was partly due to the fact that I did not have to wait more than a few weeks between each book, but it was only a small part.  From what I can find out, this is Ms Cooke's first foray into YA and I sincerely hope it won't be her last.

Her character development through the three books: Flying Blind; Winging It and now Blazing the Trail, has been steady and believable.  Zoe has so much to learn as the only femaile dragon, and taking her place as Wyvern requires a huge learning curve.  She is amenable to suggestion and allows her friends to help her whenever possible. Zoe is smart and sassy, but never forgets her friends.  What a wonderfully strong heroine she is, learning from her mistakes and always willing to try again.

There are so many wonderful secondary character in the trilogy that it's hard to mention them all.  Meaghan, Zoe's best friend is 'the genius' but she is such a likeable person that it's hard to hold that against her.  It's so funny watching someone get excited over mathematics :)  Jessica is a bit of a mystery, but by this book, she has developed into a solid character and you can't help but appreciate her.

Of course the hot guys are tripping over themselves, but most have their vulnerabilities - Liam getting teased about the peach fuzz on his top lip was so cute and Derek showed real strength of character in his relationship with Zoe.  Jared shows up again - the enigmatic 'stranger' who flits in and out of the story, but he definitely has a heart of gold.

For me though the storyline itself was what kept me coming back for more.  The twists and turns with the three fates Urd, Skuld and  Verdandi, or Granny, were impressive and the introduction of Sigmund, the ghost of Zoe's older brother was superb.  Something I appreciated in this series was that the mages were the bad guys and the shifters are the good ones.  Reading about a large group of different shifters putting aside their differences and working together was intriguing and well done.  Put together dragons, magic, shifters, ghosts and romance - lots of different romances in fact - and you have the recipe for a perfect series.  I'm just sorry it's over.

Waiting on Wednesday - August 22

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine,  that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating or books that are in our TBR pile.  This week’s “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is

We love Canadian authors and one of our favourites is Lesley Livingston.  Starling is book #1 of her newest series!

Fantastic Fairytales The Faerie Path by Frewin Jones

Published: February 2007

Publisher: Eos

Summary: Goodreads

Swept away into a court of magic and beauty, she discovers she is Tania, the lost princess of Faerie: the youngest daughter of Oberon and Titania. Since Tania's mysterious disappearance on the eve of her wedding five hundred years before, Faerie has been sunk in darkness and gloom. The courtly Lord Gabriel Drake, who Tania was once to marry, has found her and brought her back.

With Tania's return, Faerie comes alive again as a land of winged children, glittering balls, and fantastic delights. But Tania can't forget Anita's world, or the boy she loved there.

Torn between two loves and between two worlds, Tania slowly comes to discover why she disappeared so long ago. She possesses a singular magical ability and she must use it to stop a sinister plan that threatens the entire world of Faerie.

Ok, time to fess up.  I haven't read this book.  I own a copy that I snagged off the sale cart at the library a few weeks ago, but I haven't got around to reading it yet.  I have been looking at this book for years - literally.  I even took it home a few times, but for one reason or another never read it.  It sounds wonderful, so I don't know why I haven't read it.  Is there anyone out there who has read this one and can tell me whether it's worth cracking open or not? I'd love to hear from you and get your opinions on this one.  If it is good there are more in the series, but I have so much to read right now I feel reluctant to start another so-so series.  Let me know what you think.

Stacking the Shelves

Stacking the Shelves allows us to share the books we have added to our collections - physical, virtual, borrowed, bought or received.

 I loaded up my e-reader again with the following titles.  I'm getting revved up for a long cross-country road trip.  Which begs the question - what have you been reading while on summer vacation?

 

Spark: Elementals 2 by Brigid Kemmerer

Published:; August 28th, 2012

Publisher: Kteen

Pages: 432

ecopy: Courtesy of publisher and Netgalley

Summary: Goodreads

Sometimes he can even control it. And sometimes he can’t. Like the fire that killed his parents.

Gabriel has always had his brothers to rely on, especially his twin, Nick. But when an arsonist starts wreaking havoc on their town, all the signs point to Gabriel. Only he’s not doing it.

More than Gabriel’s pride is at stake -- this could cost him his family, maybe his life. And no one seems to hear him. Except a shy sophomore named Layne, a brainiac who dresses in turtlenecks and jeans and keeps him totally off balance. Layne understands family problems, and she understands secrets. She has a few of her own.

Gabriel can’t let her guess about his brothers, about his abilities, about the danger that’s right at his heels. But there are some risks he can’t help taking.

Spark is smokin', in more ways than one.  Four hot brothers, four budding romances and an arsonist.  Is it Gabriel, the brother who can control the element of fire? No it's not, but I'm not telling who it is.  And I didn't even have a glimmer of a guess until almost the end of the book.  My initial suspicions were waaay off - not even close.

Unfortunately I have not read the first title in this Elementals series: Storm, and I really wish I had.  Not that it was difficult to follow along at all - Ms Kemmerer did a very good job of filling in some back story where needed, but this book was all about Gabriel.  As the first book appears to have been all about Chris the youngest brother, my not reading it did not seem to impact my enjoyment of Spark. 

Gabriel is hurting.  He's suffering from a major case of guilt and his actions make him appear like the logical choice for the arsonist.  His anger and frustration seemed genuine, and while I've never understood the teenage males' propensity for violence, my son tells me it rang true. (I've always been more of a 'use your words' kind of person.)  Layne is a fragile girl, who hides her beauty behind her brains, and tries never to stand out.  There is a very disturbing scene of teen bullying, that to my mind fully illustrated some of the negative things that are going on in high schools today.  In fact there are several such scenes, but again, my son tells me that's what happens.  They were each integral to the story, and helped to illustrate the types of people we are dealing with in the story.

Spark is one of those tales where you are almost sure you know what is going to happen, but the getting there is all the fun.  Gabriel, Nick, Chris and Michael are very convincing as brothers and Layne, Quinn, Becca and Hannah were all wonderful in their own way.  Yes, Spark is romantic, but it's the tension over the fires that will keep you reading.  It is a fun, exciting paranormal mystery and I for one will be back for more.

Burn by Heath Gibson

Published: August 8th, 2012

Publisher: Flux

Pages; 264

ecopy: Courtesy of publisher and Netgalley

Summary: Goodreads

All it takes is one spark.


William Tucker loves being a volunteer firefighter (maybe it's no coincidence that a pastor's son would enjoy saving people). And after he rescues his crush, Mandy Pearman, she undergoes a profound transformation for the better. In fact, it seems like a lot of good comes from the embers of tragedy in his small Alabama town. William may not be able to meet his father's expectations, force his mother to ditch the gin, or protect his gay brother, but for those who need a second chance at life, William isn't afraid to light the match--and become the hero the town needs.


Burn is a surprisingly good little gem that I hope does not get missed by readers.  When I first started it I was hesitant, not sure that it was my style, but it surprised me, got under my skin, and then blew my socks off with it's ending.  Can't say a lot without major spoilers, but WOW, I wasn't expecting it.

The main character, William is from a dysfuntional southern family that at times reminded me a little of the Beautiful Darkness series - minus anything supernatural.  He has a very self-deprecating sense of humour that was both sad and amusing and it's easy to like him as a character.  He is a good friend and he has a good heart, but all is not as it seems.  I wondered a little at why he started behaving the way he did, but really, with a family like his, it wasn't all that surprising - something had to break.

Burn is a short but very interesting  look at why we might be tempted to do something wrong, for the right reasons.  A compelling read.

Follow Friday

Feature and Follow is a blog hop that was started by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. Each week a different question is posted by our hosts and we will answer! This is a great opportunity for bloggers to network and interact. This weeks question is:

What blogger inspires you?  It can be any kind.  It doesn't have to be a book blog.

That's easy - Tynga from Tynga's Reviews because she is so freaking busy with her blog.  She does reviews and always manages to run these massive giveaways.  Plus, now she's a new mom.  I don't know how she does it!

The second one who inspires me is Liz from Midnight Blooms.  She is such a sweetheart.  We met a couple years back at an author signing and she was a student.  Again, I don't know how she manages to read so quickly and still goes to school.  I know Liz follows us because every now and again I'll see her comments pop up.  So that means she's using her reader too.  Yet another busy blogger!

Ladies, you're awesome.

- Christinabean

Welcome to the Paperback Princesses! Make yourself at home, take a look around our blog and let us know what you think in the comments section. We would love to hear what you have to say about our posts. We often try to comment on your comments as well so feel free to start a conversation! Since there are two of us running the show, we always have a variety of titles and event postings. Be sure to check out our own personal meme page. Check out Fantastic Fairytales, Let's Hear it for the Boys, In Case you Missed it and a few others. We try to not only focus on new YA books but also great titles from the past.