Andrea's Top 10 Reads of 2011

So here you have it- in no particular order I've listed my favorite 10 books which were released in 2011 that I read. There were some books I didn't get a chance to read that came out this year, that were a huge hit, but I'll be sure to blog about those when I get the chance to read them. :-)  And of course many more I read that should/could be added to list.. but I'm trying my hardest to stick with 10!!

Click the pictures to read my review!!

Review to come soon :-)

What are your best reads of 2011? Same or different than mine-- I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts. 

2011 has been a wonderful year. Thank you to Casey and Haylee for making me a part of the Dark Readers team, its been a fun year reviewing with both of you. Thank you to the Publishers for generously sending ARCS and books to be reviewed. Thank you to the authors who let us into their minds and escape to another world for a short period of time :-) Last but NOT least, thank you thank you to the followers who make all of what we do totally worth it! There isn't anything better than being able tell others about an amazing book!

I look forward to seeing what 2012 brings. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!! 

Livestream:: Twilight hand and footprint ceremony at Graumans Chinese Theatre!

A THOUSAND YEARS by Christina Perri video & screencaps

So the Christina Perri song A Thousand Years which will be featured on the movie Twilight Saga Breaking Dawn was released at midnight last night! The song is absolutely beautiful and the video made for it is just stunning- sums up the entire Twilight series in almost 5 mins.




So I spent some time making screen caps of the video-

These are just a few-- there are about 140 screen caps total.

To see ALL of the screen caps click HERE
OR ZIP ALL picture click  HERE

 

Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Big thanks to Pattinson Post for asking me to do a guest review of The Night Circus over on their blog- Click HERE to visit Pattinson Post! 

Title: The Night Circus
Author: Erin Morgenstern
Publisher: Doubleday
Date Published: September 13, 2011
Pages: 387

Synopsis:

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.
True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Review: Happy Book Birthday!! Ever since listening to a short interview that Erin Morgenstern did with Comicon radio The Night Circus was a book I couldn't wait to get my hands on! And today it is FINALLY out for others to read and I hope you enjoy this novel as much as I did...

Once you enter the first page, do not intend to leave the circus- one like you've never experienced before- until the very last line is read. And even then, this story will carry on with you-I know it did me. The magic that wavers through the writing and every sentence is magnificent. The thought and knowledge the the author, Erin Morgenstern put into The Night Circus is vivid! The plot is deep, with a idea of simplicity, and a storyline that will blow you away. The way Erin describes the circus blew me away. The reader feels as if they have taken a step through those iron gates, and into the striped tents. From the sights and sounds to even the smells, every minute detail is explained. 

The Night Circus is a book that you will not want to put down!

The characters in this book are complex...  the love of the circus is something that each of them have in common- but for some, it is magic that binds them together. In this book, the way that the author introduces each of these characters and brings them all together is rather complex. There are three different stories being told;two of those characters (Marco and Celia) do not know that they are training for a "game", let alone do they know who their competitor is. Both Marco and Celia are characters that anyone can love very easily, their magic and talents alone draws any readers attention. I wasn't disappointed at all with how their story plays out- although there are leaps and bounds that every character has to endure- their love never fails.

Bailey, who's a young boy and the third story in this book, comes into play very nicely. His story is separate from all the other characters in the book- not having any role in the actual circus, he is just a boy who falls in love with the circus and the circus falls in love with him.


The Night Circus is a novel that will most definitely be passed down from generation to generation. With that being said, I believe it is ideal for any age group who has an interest in fictional writing. Or someone who wants to take a break from everyday life, jump into a good book, and explore what this circus has to offer ;-) You won't be disappointed! 

The Twilight Evolution: Twilight obsessed women!

The Twilight Evolution: Twilight obsessed women!: "This is what happens when a bunch of Twilight obsessed women are on Twitter at the same time. They begin to 'TALK' they begin to express the..."

Review: Twilight, True Love, and You by Louise Deacon

 Pattinson Post was kind enough to let me review Twilight True Love and You. Please head over to their site HERE and take a look at my guest post :-) Thanks, Andrea 

Title: Twilight, True Love & You: Seven Secret Steps to Finding Your Edward or Jacob

Author: Louise Deacon 

Pages: 320

Publisher: Summersdale Publishers

Date Published: April 4, 2011 (UK)

Summary: Presents seven secret steps towards true love. Suitable for girls who adore vampires or werewolves, this title helps them to learn how to find lasting love and loyalty with a human.

Review: First off, I want to give a little cover love- the cover is sharp, it is obvious that this book is in relation to the Twilight Saga, and caught my eyes right away :-)  Twilight, True Love & You is a different genre book than I normally pick up to read. This book would probably be considered "lifestyle" or "health & well-being" genre and I tend to stay away mainly because I don't like that some books make you feel as though the author is preaching to you. This book though, isn't designed to feel that way at all!


With Twilight True Love and You, the author, Louise Deacon takes a fun approach at explaining the ways that women should go about in trying to find "their Edward or Jacob". What she means by this isn't going out and finding a vampire or werewolf ... its more than that. She takes it step by step, focusing on ideas like past relationships, expectations, and personalities.

NOTE: You do NOT need to be a fan of Twilight or have even read the books to love and understand this book. Louise simply uses the characters of Twilight as examples in her book. The beginning was more about Edward and Jacob and debunking their "amazing" characteristics. For those who are obsessed with Edward or Jacob (like me ;-)) it was almost a reality check. 


Louise also uses Psychology data and research, along with personal stories of friends and clients to further support and explain her ideas. 


Having a psychology degree myself, I thought this book was fascinating!! I think that it would be a great read for several groups of people: Those obsessed with Team Edward or Jacob & can't seem to let go of the fact that no man will ever match up, people who are interested in psychology type reads whether they've read Twilight or not, and psychology students. The entire time I was reading I felt as though Twilight, True Love, and You would be a great book to use as a reference in a psychology class.

I tend to try and read anything that has to do with Twilight- its fascinating to see what connections fans (and even those who aren't fans) have to say about all sorts of topics related the Twilight Saga! Looking at relationships and how fantasy novels are interpreted by humans is a great take on a book. It didn't disappoint! 

Boston Twilight Convention (August 19-21)

So, this was my first Twi Tour experience... and I had a blast!! My friend Tracy and I went together and while we were there met up with three other ladies, whom we talk to on Twitter; Jen, Sharon, and Sabrina. The weekend was super packed with events- including Twilight Lexicon & Twilight MOM panels, Hillywood show, the Twilight actors Q&A, autographs and pictures, and much more! Here is my summary (and some HOT pictures) of my weekend!!

Friday was Q&A with...
TINSEL KOREY!

 Tinsel plays Emily in The Twilight Saga. She is the fiancee of Sam Uley- member of the wolf pack! Who imprinted on Emily.

Tinsel talked a little about the process of applying the scar on her face- she said that in the beginning it took over 8hours, but eventually the process got faster and faster. She also said that at one point they started to put her scar on the wrong side of her face- which all Twilight fans know Emily's scar is on the right side of her face- caused by Sam who lost control of his wolf temper. When asked about memorizing lines for roles she says that once she knows that story, the lines come easily. And she enjoys playing pranks on the "wolf boys" when it's downtime on set. LOL- can only imagine!

 GIL BIRMINGHAM

Gil Birmingham plays Billy Black, Jacob's father. Let me just say that Gil is awesome. He was so much fun and hysterical!

**Gil's favorite movies he's ever worked on is an animation film called Rango.

**Described himself in three words, "I am me" 

**Gil says he enjoyed play fist fighting w billy burke & another fav was giving the stink eye to Rob Pattinson.

Friday night was Karaoke. Or as some called it "Korey"oke.

**Gil didn't bring his guitar with him on this trip, but both him and Tinsel sang at Karaoke. They were awesome! They stayed for most of the night. Tinsel even got up and sang with one of the young girls who was in the audience. And yes, I did get up to sing a song! lol.
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Saturday was Q&A with...
BOO BOO STEWART

Seriously!! how cute is he??

 Boo Boo Stewart plays Seth Clearwater in Twilight Saga. He is the youngest of the wolf pack and the younger brother of Leah Clearwater.

**first off, Boo Boo is such a sweetheart! We met him in the morning and got his autograph. And made sure every person in line got a hug!

**Boo Boo was finally able to talk with Rob Pattinson on set. Says he's hilarious and just a cool guy.

**He started doing stunts at 10 years old. 

 Someone asked Boo Boo if he'd show up a flip!!

 TINSEL comes back and does another Q&A session

**Tinsel didn't realize the magnitude of the Twilight franchise when she auditioned for Emily

 And here comes the part that everyone was patiently waiting for on Saturday! 

The Breaking Dawn vampires ((Guri Weinberg, Patrick Brennan and Bill Tangradi)) :-) And let's just say that they were a RIOT! Honestly, I had a hard time keeping up with them, so didn't get much of a chance to tweet or right down the questions and answers being asked.

** Guri Weingberg (far left) plays Stefan in Breaking Dawn. Stefan is a member of the Romanian Coven.

** Patrick Brenna (middle) plays Liam. Who is a member of the Irish Coven.

** Billy Tangradi (far right) plays Randall. An American nomadic vampire.

This picture says it ALL! lol

 Next was Vampire Photo Ops.

Tracy & I in out "GFYS" shirts!! Its a Twitter/Guri thing ;-)

I LOVE this picture. (Tracy Guri, myself-Andrea)

That night after dinner we quickly got dressed for the Volturi Ball. Unfortunately the lighting was too dark for pictures, but the night was fun. The Hillywood girls were DJs and they also chose the winner for the centerpiece displays. Which were so cool!! Some people really got into this ball- with prom dresses and some even dressed up at vampires.

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And on the last day of Twilight Tour... we had a Q&A with...
ALEX MERAZ

Alex Meraz who plays Paul, a member of the Quileute wolf pack.

 Isn't he hot! Oh my goodness! lol 

**Alex told a hilarious story about Taylor Lautner; he was so funny! 

**Alex would play James if he had to be a vamp in the Saga. 

**The greatest thing he got from the film series were the friendships he made filming the Twilight movies

Alex signing the banner that was auctioned off.

PETER FACINELLI

 And last but not least was a Q&A with Peter Facinelli, who plays Dr. Carlisle Cullen. The father of Edward Cullen.

Peter was a blast!! He got the audience enteracting with him and laughing. He got up and walked around the room. Gave hugs and even sat down 4 seats from me!!

**The funniest thing was that when asked about his hair for Breaking Dawn, he joked that some things were out of his control.

 **He continues to bring up his hair randomly. The audience got a kick out of it!! "underneath the hair is still a great man"

**Favorite horror story- Carlisle's hair in Breaking Dawn.

Promise those aren't the only things he talked about, but I couldn't help but share! So funny!!

I got a Photo Op with Peter also!!

LOVE THIS!

The cast members do autographs, the only thing we need to do is either bring something for them to sign, or buy pictures at the kiosks they have set up. So I decided to paint a Twilight collage. I'm happy with how it turned out.

 Overall, the Twilight Tour in Boston was a success! I met some amazing fans and people from Twilight Lexicon and TwilightMOMS as well as other people who I talked with on Twitter previously, but hadn't met til now.