Mundie Moms

Friday, September 16, 2011

Review - Witch Eyes

Written by: Scott Tracey
Published by: Flux
Release Date: September 8, 2011
Source: Bought.
Purchase from: Barnes and Noble | IndieBound | amazon
5 stars - Bewitching and delightful. A must read.

Synopsis: A boy who can see the world’s secrets and unravel spells with just a glance.

Braden’s witch eyes give him an enormous power. A mere look causes a kaleidoscopic explosion of emotions, memories, darkness, and magic. But this rare gift is also his biggest curse.

Compelled to learn about his shadowed past and the family he never knew, Braden is drawn to the city of Belle Dam, where he is soon caught between two feuding witch dynasties. Sworn rivals Catherine Lansing and Jason Thorpe will use anything—lies, manipulation, illusion, and even murder—to seize control of Braden’s powers. To stop an ancient evil from destroying the town, Braden must master his gift, even through the shocking discovery that Jason is his father. While his feelings for an enigmatic boy named Trey grow deeper, Braden realizes a terrible truth: Trey is Catherine Lansing’s son . . . and Braden may be destined to kill him.

One of my favorite tropes involves the use of a mysterious town. Seriously, who doesn’t love a town where there are two feuding families and secrets from long ago? Well, Scott Tracey drops his talented, sweet and yet sure of himself protagonist in just such a town and oh, Mundie Moms, does the plot thicken.

First, let me tell you about Braden. I can’t do this without pointing out that I kinda want to adopt him. What?!? I know, I’m a mom and it seems natural for me to love a character who is confident, curious, smart and yet, hurting. Braden’s magical gift comes at a price and those of you who know me, know that I love balance in my magic systems. Ah, the cost of magic. Imagine having to wear sunglasses all the time and suffer debilitating headaches? You know the kind that make you pass out?  No wonder I wanted to help him from the very moment I turned the first few pages.

As I read on, I discovered that he’s part of a complex world and that he’s inexplicably tied to the bizarre city of Belle Dam. A quiet little town. Except for a feud, where Braden’s father is firmly on one side and Braden’s new best friend just happens to be on the other. Oh, and let’s talk about that adorable boy, Trey. Yeah, Trey. Mundie Moms, there is the sweetest romance tucked in as a subplot to this action packed story. But oh wow, is the romance adorable. Braden and Trey easily make it into my Top Ten Favorite Couples list. Most of you can accurately tick off my Top Ten Couples (hint: they’re probably the same as yours), so think about it, I'm saying that Braden and Trey definitely deserve to be there with the rest. Yes, that good.

I promise to not spoil anything for you. But, as Braden unlocks (literally) the secrets of the town, he discovers that he’s part of a much bigger picture. All I have to add is – hang on tight, because the pacing, action and plot reveals in the last half of the book are UNBELIEVABLE. I’m still thinking about them and that’s the best sign of a good story.

When you’re in the bookstore this weekend, be sure to pick up Witch Eyes and read a few pages. Once you meet the sarcastic, brave and determined Braden, you won’t be able to put the book down. I only know this, because I couldn’t until I reached the very last page.

Hello Will...




*sigh* Oh Will...... how many more days until CP is out?

I have no idea how I missed Cassie's link to this fabulous picture on facebook this week, but I couldn't look at this drool worthy picture and not share it. This picture will definitely be seen again on MM's.

Speaking of Will, we're gearing up to celebrate the release of CP with a CA read along & our 2nd 31 Day Infernal Devices Celebration!

Our read along will kick off on October 12th and run through November 1st. A couple days after that our CP/Infernal Devices Celebration begins on November 6th and will end on December 6th, CP's release day! Stay tuned to the blog for more details, which will be coming soon.

Freebie Friday: CROSSED ARC GIVEAWAY

Happy Friday!! I'm so excited about today's GIVEAWAY!!! Thank you to Penguin, we have an ARC, a poster and pin of CROSSED, the sequel to MATCHED by Ally Condie to giveaway!!


The Giveaway:

While the same giveaway rules apply, I have added an option for extra points. You do not need to do the extra points to enter the giveaway. If you want to increase your chances of winning, please select which ever extra points you did.

To Enter:

* 1 entry per person, more than one will result in your entries being deleted
* This is open Internationally, but international giveaway rules apply.
* You must 13 yrs & older to enter (if under 13 you need to have your parent/guardian's permission to enter)
* This giveaway ends on 9/30/11


GOOD LUCK!!! If you don't win this giveaway, there's going to be 2 more! :)

Flashback Friday #1

Sophie & I have been talking a lot about doing something a little different on the blog. We like the different posts we do, but we wanted to mix it a bit, which is how Flashback Friday's was born.

This is a weekly post we'll doing that will include a review of a book that's been out for awhile or one that's been sitting on our shelves begging us to read it. It may also include a review of a book we've read before, but haven't picked up in awhile. Today's Flashback Friday is: Twilight

Published by Little Brown
Released on October 5th, 2005

Isabella Swan's move to Forks, a small, perpetually rainy town in Washington, could have been the most boring move she ever made. But once she meets the mysterious and alluring Edward Cullen, Bella's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. Up until now, Edward has managed to keep his vampire identity a secret in the small community he lives in, but now nobody is safe, especially Bella, the person Edward holds most dear. The lovers find themselves balanced precariously on the point of a knife—between desire and danger. Deeply romantic and extraordinarily suspenseful, Twilight captures the struggle between defying our instincts and satisfying our desires. This is a love story with bite.

This book is what got me into reading paranormal YA books, and I've been in love with this genre ever since. When it first came out, I was one of those who claimed I'd never read a book about a "stupid vampire love story". I totally ate my words, because this is the only book I've read more times than I care to admit on here. It's also the book that reminded me why I loved to read, and made me fall in love with YA paranormal books. Thanks to Twilight, it lead me to Twilight Moms, which lead me to Stephenie's book of the month club on TM's, which lead me to City of Bones and the rest is as they say, is history. If it hadn't been for Edward and Jacob, I may not have met Jace. lol

Stephenie's world building, in-depth characters, vividly detailed setting and well written plot fueled my obsession for more. Everything about her story felt realistic, and her writing took me to a whole new world. It had been a while since I re-read Twilight, but reading it again reminded me of why I fell in love with it in the first place. I've never felt more torn between two well written love interests, more intrigued with both the vampire and werewolf lore and I've never fallen in love with all the characters like I have with Twilight. Not to mention the fact I'd love to run through the woods with the vampires and spend the day on 1st Beach with the wolves.

Despite the fact this book has been ripped on more times than it deserves, it won't ever change my love for Stephenie's writing or what she's created. She's one of the few authors who's paranormal book gave me everything I hoped it would and so much more. Even though it's been a couple years since I first read Twilight, re-reading it again doesn't change my 5 star review for it. I loved it then, and I continue to do so now.

The Faerie Ring Blog Tour

I'm really excited to announce our upcoming blog tour for Kiki Hamilton's debut, The Faerie Ring. Our tour will run from September 26th- October 8th. There will be giveaways, reviews, authors interviews and more posted through out the tour. You can find all the tour information along with the book's synopsis and links below.


Published by: Tor Teen
To Be Released on: September 27th, 2011

London, 1871
Orphaned and picking pockets in London’s Charing Cross station to support not only herself, but her ‘family’ of orphans, sixteen year-old Tiki steals the Queen’s ring and thinks she’s solved their problems. That is, until Rieker, a pickpocket from the North End, suspects her in the theft and tells her that the ring is really a reservoir that holds a truce between the British and Faerie courts.

When he warns her that the fey will do anything, including murder, to recover the ring, Tiki is unsure whether to believe him or not. To complicate matters, Rieker seems to know something about the unusual birthmark on Tiki’s wrist. But when Tiki and her family are threatened the game changes.

In a dazzling debut that takes you from the gritty slums of Victorian London to the glittering ballrooms of the Royal Palace to the menacing Otherworld, you won’t want to miss this thrilling tale of mystery, adventure and romance.

The Tour:

9/26- Mundie Moms- tour kick off w/ a review & giveaway
9/27- Teens Read & Write- author interview
9/28- Over Flowing Shelf- character interview
9/29- Girls In The Stacks- guest post
9/30- A Blog About Nothing- author interview, *book giveaway
10/3- I Read Banned Books- author inteview
10/6- The Story Siren- review & author interview
10/7- Eve's Fan Garden- review, *book giveaway
10/8- Page Turners- review
10/9- Mundie Moms- author interview
10/10- Reading Teen- guest post


About The Book:

You can keep up with all the latest The Faerie Ring news by following The Faerie Ring site. Learn more about the story, meet the characters, see a map of 1871 London, and read reviews about the book.

Purchase from:


About The Author:

To learn more about Kiki and what inspired her story, please visit here site HERE.

The Sequel:


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