The Glass Series

 This series is a spin off of the Study Series. It is told through Opal's view point. I absolutely LOVED this series! They were great books and I am sad that it is over! I love Opal in these books and I love all the twists with her love interests that happen. Spy Glass was my favorite book of the series.




Storm Glass by Maria V. Snyder
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I will admit, I was a little skeptical going into this book not sure how I would feel about it. I am so in love with Yelena and Valek that I thought it might taint my view on this series and that it wouldn't meet my expectations. However, I am just as attached to Opal as I was to Yelena. I can not wait to read the next book!




 Sea Glass by Maria V. Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love all the twists and turns through this book. It has been fun to see Leif in a different light cause in the Study series, I did not like him. I have a love hate with this series! I love these books and can't read them fast enough, but I hate for them to end. Can't Wait to read the next one!




 Spy Glass by Maria V. Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

WOW! This was my favorite book of the series! I loved the book and was totally satisfied with the way that it ended! Just like the Study Series I am very sad that it is over, but I can not wait to read the new series that Maria Snyder is working on! Seriously go read the study series and the Glass series! I will be adding these books to my personal library sometime soon!

Gearing up for the Games

Just over 2 weeks til Hunger Games comes out and Chelsea and I are SO EXCITED!  We absolutely devoured the books and since we read them together (well, not together together -- that would be weird!) We spent many hours on the phone with each other discussing every little detail and every character -- what we loved, what we hated, what made us cry. (Our reading habits totally remind me of this pin I saw on Pinterest)

I recently listened to the audio books for the series and fell in love all over again.  And the new single Safe & Sound by Taylor Swift?  LOVE!  It is so hauntingly beautiful and so perfect for the soundtrack. Just watching the music video gives me chills.









I really wish I could see the movie with Chelsea (or any one of my awesome sisters!!!) but alas we all live too far apart.  :( 

To gear up for the Games I decided to make a fun little craft.  These pendants are super easy and you can use them on a necklace or key chain.

What you'll need:

• 1.25" wood squares (I got mine at Hobby Lobby -- 6 pk for $1.47)
• bails (found in the jewelry section at craft stores)
• graphic
• Mod Podge  
• Glossy Accents
• sand paper

1. First you'll want to print off your image onto cardstock and cut it to size.  
2. Apply a thin layer of Mod Podge to the wood square and attach your cardstock.  (You could apply a layer of Mod Podge on top but I didn't bother with that!)  File the edges with sandpaper if there is any overlapping paper.  I also like to "rough" up the edges a bit for a more distressed look. 
3. Apply the Glossy Accents, making sure to apply it all the way to the edges and not allowing any bubbles. Allow to dry several hours, or overnight.  This gives it a really cool glossy, hard finish.  
4. Next, attach the bail (I used a dab of hot glue) and thread it onto a string or chain or ribbon or key chain.  And now you have your own little piece of the Hunger Games. :)

I created several different versions you can use if you use the 1.25" squares.  You can right click and save the image you want or click HERE for all images or click HERE for a printable of all designs.

Happy Hunger Games!!!!

-marie

Linked to - Rae Gun Ramblings, Craft-O-Maniac, Sumo's Sweet Stuff, Keeping It Simple, Becolorful, C.R.A.F.T. 
Sugar & Spice, Fine Craft Guild, Classy Clutter, Sugar Bee Crafts, Michelle Paige, Oopsey Daisy, Lil Luna,

What I Read: February

This was a pretty busy month book-wise!  It started off with just a bunch of okay books, but The Scorpio Races and Fire were finally two books that got me excited to keep reading!  Hopefully I will have many more good books next month.  :)

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I thought this was a fun, light read -- would've been a perfect summer read! I liked the coming of age story, though I think there's definitely some more growth that needs to happen with the characters. Hopefully we'll get to see that in the next book. I liked the characters, but didn't love them, except for maybe Jeremiah. And I don't love who she ended up with but I am looking forward to reading more in the series.


Across the Universe by Beth Revis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a pretty good book. There were things I really liked, but things that I didn't like. It hooked me at the very beginning, but then got a little slow before it picked up again. In some ways it reminded me of Inside Out , by Maria Snyder and The Maze Runner , by James Dasner -- two excellent books -- but this one fell just a little short of those books. It was a very interesting concept but I just never really felt attached to the main characters. And I will admit some of the "Season" stuff was a little weird and uncomfortable.  I still enjoyed it enough that I can't wait to read the rest in the series.


I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I admit I didn't make it very far into this book. But far enough for me to know that I would not enjoy it. I really didn't like the way the author jumped back and forth between the past and present -- it was very confusing. I also felt like there was too much information that wasn't pertinent to the story, that things were too drawn out; the author just seemed to ramble at times. There was also a lot of sexual content and language that was thrown in randomly and it's just not something I felt like continuing.


The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Based on reviews and recommendations I expected to be blown away by this book. Instead I was a little disappointed. While some of the anecdotes the author shared about her life were interesting, to say the least, the overall tone of the book was a little .... bland. I was sad for the kids -- their parents were definitely a little crazy -- but I wanted to feel some emotion, any kind of emotion, from the author. I didn't want to know what happened, I wanted to feel it. There was a sort of disconnect I felt that I missed.


Demonglass  by Rachel Hawkins
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Really enjoyed this sequel. I just love Sohpie and all her sarcastic thoughts and comments! The beginning was a little slow but then it really picked up and there was so much happening. The one thing I didn't like about this book was the love triangle. Honestly, I barely remember Cal from the first book and having him as a potential love interest just seemed a bit forced and not really necessary to the story. Also a huge cliffhanger at the end, but well worth it. Can't wait til the next one comes out.


It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I flew through this book. It was such a quick read - I actually finished it in a day! I felt sad a lot in this book and I hope there is more happiness in the next. I liked the few chapters from Jeremiah's point of view and wish there were more. He is definitely my favorite character!



The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was such a unique and beautiful story. When I first started I thought it was just okay, nothing special. But maybe about 100 pages in I fell in love -- with the story, the island, the characters. It suddenly felt so real to me. Puck & Sean were two perfect characters. I loved how different they were and I loved how different their voices were. It was easy to distinguish who was speaking; I can't say the same for several other books I've read recently. It was such a beautifully told story and it left me longing for more -- more Puck & Sean, more Corr, more Thisby, just more everything. I loved this book!



Fire by Kristin Cashore
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Having love Graceling, I was very excited for this sequel. The story was completely different from Graceling, but not in a bad way. I enjoyed this just as much as the first! The only thing really tying this to Graceling was the back story of Leck, which I really enjoyed learning about. There wasn't a lot of suspense or action, but I loved the slow way the story and especially the characters developed. This whole idea of "monsters" was so unique and so intriguing. Fire was the perfect main character and I really came to love all the people in her life and felt every joy and pain she felt for each of them. I can't wait to read the next in the series, though these characters will be missed!

The Study Series

I have always loved to read and it is one of my hobbies that I share with my sisters Kylie and Marie. I have not picked up a book since I read " The Uglies" series over a year ago and now that my baby is getting older I looked to Marie for a good suggestion for a book to read. She turned me onto the  Study series.




Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down! I love that my attention was grabbed right away and I didn't have to wade through a slow first few chapters to get to the good stuff! The concept of this book was different than anything I have read so far and I enjoyed getting lost in it's story! I can't wait to read more from this author!






Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I could not get through the 1st book fast enough and was very excited to start this one! I really enjoyed seeing Yelena discover her magic side. It was fun to meet the southern characters and see what life was like down south!

Fire Study by Maria V. Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have loved this whole series! I did find all of the traveling in this book to be a touch annoying, however there were so many twist and turns in the book it kept me on the edge of my chair. I loved all the suspense and action through it. What a perfect ending! I will definitely read this series again!

Have any good book suggestions for me? 

What are you reading?

-chelz