My Twitter Experience

I'm in the mood to talk and write, and write and talk..let's see where this goes.

I've probably officially been on twitter for about a month. And in that time, I have met so many amazing people all over the world. I'll talk about them individually in a moment, but I need to let you guys know about me. In real life. Who I am. I'm not an easy person to get along with or like. And I am not saying this to garner sympathy. I'm just telling it how it is. I'm for the most part, extremely antisocial(although this has gotten better) and I've been on medication for my anxiety and depression for years. For so long I felt hopeless. It's difficult in real life for me to make friends, mostly because I refuse to kiss ass. And I hate small talk. The getting to know you crap. It's just so awkward and annoying. Maybe it's my own fault, maybe I bring it on myself, but I'm slowly learning to love myself again. I feel happier. And I have my wonderful twitter community to thank.

I get up in the morning and think about you guys immediately. What are you doing, are you okay...etc. I cannot wait to say hello to everyone. When I go out and I can't access my twitter, I miss you all. I wonder what you are doing. Your updates matter to me. I put myself in several different groups on twitter: the book blogging and writing community, the atheist/agnostic community, and then there are some of you I've just met in one way or another and now we are great, great friends.

This is where I talk about you individually. Special shout-outs go to Fred, Megan, Greg, Nick, Jenn, Amy, Lani and Jaime. You guys are the ones I miss the most when I'm not around. I may have forgotten someone and I will be sure to edit this later if that happens.  And even if I don't talk to you anymore, you will not be forgotten. You know who you are. There are also quite a few of you who I'm still getting to know. You matter too. There's just so many that I can't get every name. Just know that all of you are in my heart and thoughts every single day. I look forward to continuing this experience. I realize this blog may seem a little cliche. But it's the truth. And I mean every word. I love you guys.

Sleight is Amazing!

Sleight: Book One of the AVRA-K by Jennifer Sommersby
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Sleight. Wow. What a read. I even read the acknowledgments at the end. I'd give it more of a 4.5 stars. I'll explain why in a moment.

First, let's talk about what I loved. Amazing characters, awesome setting, and a believable plot. The balance of the three was perfect. I couldn't honestly say that it was character-driven or plot-driven, because the balance was so well done. I loved Gemma, Ash, and Marlene, but my favorite character by far was Irwin. I would've loved to have someone like Irwin looking out for me in my life. I wasn't really a Henry fan at the beginning but he grew on me by the end. He was just too sweet to Gemma. I like a little bit of bad boy in my men. I was more of an Ash fan..but Jen took care of that for me as well. I can't reveal how or why without revealing spoilers, and I try to keep my reviews as spoiler-free as I can.

I love circuses. I know they are bad for the animals, I just think they make great book settings. Water For Elephants anyone? And I love elephants. I can't believe major publishers passed on this novel. It was fantastic. But I'm glad you went and published it anyway Jen. This is a book you can be proud of. And Lucian made such a great villain. One of the creepiest villains I've encountered this year so far.

I'd like to talk quickly about what I didn't like. And I say quickly, because there isn't much. Truthfully, I just felt like the plot could've been tightened up just a bit more. There were a few parts in the book where I felt the action dragged a little bit. There weren't any specific scenes I would've removed or anything, I just felt sometimes maybe the author went into too much detail. It was a bit wordy in places. But honestly, even though I thought that could've been improved upon, the writing was beautiful and it flowed so well.

Basically I'm just dying to read the next one. I've been told it's an action movie on paper. I hope certain characters redeem themselves, but that is doubtful. This is one series I will be continuing. Guys, this is a self-published novel. It is available for purchase on Amazon in ebook form. But you need to get it. It's fantabulous.


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My Book Haul and Other Things(Including Review Policy)

Today I went to Books A Million. I did not intend to buy the whole store. Unfortunately, looking around my recliner, that seems to be exactly what I have done. According to my debit card this is what I have done. The fact that while in the bookstore I had to have Dan hold half of my books might have clued me in. Yet I couldn't stop. So I may as well share what I bought.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - John Berendt

Cane River - Lalita Tademy

The History of Love - Nicole Krauss

Haven - Kristi Cook

Chime - Franny Billingsley

Finnikin of the Rock - Melina Marchetta

Marcelo in the Real World - Francisco X. Stork

Everlasting - Angie Frazier

Falling Under - Gwen Hayes

Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks - Lauren Myracle

    And finally,

Babe in Boyland - Jody Gehrman

I know. It's a lot. I better get started. And before I even start on these I have a pile of about twenty in the bedroom. I'm running out of places to walk in there. Do you have any opinions about my choices?

Right now I am reading Sleight: Book One of the AVRA-K by Jennifer Sommersby. And it's really good. I'll have the review for that later on when I finish it. And then I have to finish the Study series by Maria V. Snyder. After that I have The Royal Dragoneers by M.R Mathias. I can't wait to read that one. If it's anywhere as good as The Sword and the Dragon then I'm sure I'll have a winner. There are a lot of great indie authors out there. I love reading indies. And I'm always open to reading indie novels.

So before I go, let me talk quickly about my indie review policy. Or any other book review policy. Basically what it comes down to is this. If your book sounds interesting to me and it sounds like something I would like I will read it. If I start to read it and I find that it's riddled with grammatical errors or bad writing, I'll stop. As far as time frame goes..anything that someone asks me to review takes precedent over the books I choose to read myself. Sometimes though, the list of books I have to review for authors gets ridiculously long and I have to break in-between to read something I want to. I'm sure you understand this. In order for this hobby to stay interesting and fun for me I have to do it the way I need to. This policy may change in the future. Who knows?

Any questions about anything? Ask down there in the comments. Thanks guys!!

Love, Me

Zombies!!!!

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Uhhhhhh..please don't make me do this review. I'm afraid. Really afraid. What's that? You promise you won't beat me up? Okay. I'll tell you what I thought then. Carefully.


And that's the thing. I don't really know what to say. I loved it! But I HATED it at the same time. Hence the three stars. It's been a long time since a book I'm reading has given me such an outwardly visceral reaction. It was hard to read at times. My imagination was going into gory overtime.


I've decided I don't like reading about zombies. I can't handle it. That doesn't mean I won't finish the series..just not now. I need a break. I had nightmares. Certain things mess with certain people's minds. Well I figured out my Achilles heel. Zombies. Isn't that ridiculous?


I figure that if I had to live like the characters in this book did, surrounded by a zombie fence just waiting for the day they busted it down, I'd probably kill myself. I'm not just saying that. I mean it. Could your life get possibly any more messed up than that? I mean it was completely void of hope. Empty. Scary. Horrifying.


Now let's talk book details. Ridiculously well written. Beautiful and terrifying at the same time. Anger inducing. The settings were fantastic. I think I pictured everything in my mind exactly the way the author intended. The platforms and the zombie fences and their moaning. OMG, please don't make me relive it again.


I hated the ending. Not all of it, but since I can't tell you which parts without spoiling it, I guess you are just going to have to read it and form your own opinions. There were a few unanswered questions. But I guess we were supposed to make our own assumptions. Mine weren't positive. But I mean the entire book was void of hope. So should I really expect the ending to be that much different?


I'm going to conclude it here. Everything else I say after this will be repetitive anyway. Just read it. If you haven't already. I definitely want to hear what you think.


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Welcome and Hello!

Hey everybody! Welcome to my blog. It's definitely a work in progress, but hopefully someday I hope to get it to where I truly feel it's a true reflection of me. Clearly I will be posting book reviews here, and that will be the main focus, but I've thought long and hard about it and I've also decided that I will include other facets of my life here as well. Maybe I will post thoughts about movies I've seen, or cool websites I like, or just plain old journal entries. Sometimes I like to pretend I am a photographer. So you may find some of that here too. And when I finally start writing my own book(hopefully soon), I will keep you posted on the progress of that here too as well. I may ask your opinions on things from time to time. Never be afraid to be honest with me. If you think that something sucks, say so. If I have one pet-peeve in the world and something I've dropped friends over, it's cowardliness. Stand up for yourself and what you believe in, even if it's an unpopular opinion.

You can find me on twitter @ http://www.twitter.com/Kara_Malinczak

Facebook @ http://www.facebook.com/kmalinczak

And @ Goodreads @ http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4470942-kara

I'm still learning about myself every day. I don't think there will ever come a time in my life where I truly know who I am, when I'm done learning, or changing, or adapting. I continue to grow every minute. This blog is going to grow and change with me. It's my baby, and although it doesn't look like much now, it's only because I don't have a clue what I'm doing yet! So I just wanted to officially welcome you. Thanks so much for visiting.

The Sword and the Dragon by M.R. Mathias
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm conflicted. Part of me is glad I'm done reading because it's so long, but on the other hand, I feel like the characters have become a part of me and I'm sad to see them go. Really sad.

There were so many vivid scenes that are memorable in my mind. It's hard to explain, but when you are reading and you can picture a scene that's happening down to the most extreme detail in your own mind, then I believe you have an excellent piece of fiction in your hands(or on your computer).

The battle scenes are extremely well-written. Appropriate amount of action, gore, and detail. Somehow the book manages to cover every aspect of fantasy without being cheesy in any way. The climactic battle scene is just wow. It captures all the tension and I almost feel as if I'm standing there right next to the fighters.

This is a artfully done character driven novel with extremely deep and dimensional characters either likable or unlikable, but really detailed either way. A lot of the characters I like have died already. This makes me sad.

I read an interview the author did where he said Pael was evil. but likable. I didn't find him to be likable at all. He is grotesquely creepy. Just my observation. This is not a bad thing.

At this point I favor Vaegon, Hyden and Mikhail the most, and Loudin....but well. And now Vaegon is gone also. Sigh..my heart aches.
And I am in love with Claret. I want a dragon of my very own. And the sword Ironspike feels like it has its very own personality. Strange(I wrote this paragraph while I was still reading).

I have heard criticisms on other boards about the lack of editing and grammar mistakes. I didn't find that to be a problem at all. There were a few, yes, but that is to be expected from a self-published novel. I have seen MUCH worse editing than this and I'm glad to say that it didn't detract from the magic of the story at all.

Also, I would like to add a personal thought to this review. I read something the author posted somewhere about the fact that a publisher turned him down because they didn't believe him to be stable enough to make an investment in. I thing this is a shame, because his writing is amazing and I believe it would sell like crazy. It appears as though he's making more money publishing on his own though so good for him. And it's definitely their loss. They missed out.

Such a great epic fantasy, I mean it was magical, emotional, and really drew me in, but when you decide to read it you are making a Stephen King type commitment. This is a long book. But it is so worth the read. There are self-published gems out there.


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Asylum Lake by R.A. Evans
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I don't usually read horror novels. Why? Because any book that makes me sick to my stomach I don't consider entertainment. This is just a personal preference and I realize I'm in the minority here. That being said though, there are some good ones out there, maybe I just shouldn't be reviewing  them.  Still, I know a good book when I read one, even if I cringe through the whole thing. And this is a good book.


The plot of Asylum Lake is just fantastic. It twists and it turns and you think you know where the book is going to go, but then the author throws you for a loop and something totally unexpected happens. There's so much creativity here. I wonder often how authors do this. I can't even imagine coming up with fantastic ideas like the ones found in this novel.


It's a pretty quick read. But it's one hell of a ride. You find yourself finding sympathy for characters that you know you shouldn't. My husband would totally love this book, because it's twisted and he loves that kind of stuff. It's very Chuck Palahniuklike. More like the paranormal version though.


There are some pretty gory moments found in these pages.If you can't handle that, don't read. And the human imagination can definitely make it worse. Lots of blood and guts. And aside from that, it gets really creepy at times.


What can I say though? The book is beautifully written. R.A. Evans writes like he's been doing it forever. Maybe he has. Who knows? There is a sequel to this book coming out and I haven't decided yet if I'm going to read it yet or not. But I probably will, because even though the story wrapped up nicely, there are still a LOT of unanswered questions. And I sort of want to know the answers.


If I have one criticism of the book it's that it seemed to take awhile for the story to get going. And then there was the fact that as a reader, you knew the asylum was across the lake the whole time, but it was hardly in the story until the very end. I think asylums are pretty much the creepiest places on earth and I was really hoping to find more of it here. The cover has an asylum on it, asylum is in the title, yet it was lacking in that department. It might sound stupid to you, but it makes sense to me. I can only hope that the next novel follows more of a storyline having to do with the asylum itself. A lot happened there. I am looking forward to reading the next title in the series. Well done R.A Evans.


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Laney by Joann I. Martin Sowles
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I don't even know where I want to go with this review. Let me start by explaining how I found the book in the first place. Most indie novels and self-published books that I read I am asked to review by the author. This one I read on my own. I didn't even know the author. I found it on a whim in the Kindle Store. Truthfully, this will probably be the last time I do this.

It's not that it was awful, though parts of it were badly written. It's just that it was so all over the place. Parts of it were really intriguing and fun to read, while other parts of it read like bad Twilight fan-fiction. I know the author is a fan of Twilight, I checked her website, and it certainly shows. While some parts of the novel were the author's own creation(and consequently, these were the parts I liked), others felt like they were taken directly out of Stephenie Meyer's series with the settings and names changed. She even had to go and stick werewolves in there, although at least here they were evil.aim

There was a female character that didn't like the protagonist. Can we say Rosalie? A pixie-non vampire best friend. Alice? A big burly protector? Emmett. And the main male character was almost Edward Cullen to a T. Now I'm not sure if this is what the author was going for or not, but even so, this was a ridiculously poor imitation of the Twilight Series.

Now that I have all my grievances out of the way, I can honestly say I am interested to see where the series goes next. The relationship between Laney and Oliver was sweet and parts of it were pretty steamy and sexy, but the bottom line is this: I don't know if you've checked my to-read list lately, but it's brimming over with books I need and want to read. And although I'm curious to see where the author goes with her story, I simply don't have the time to waste on books that are just okay. And that's exactly what this one was. Amateurish and ehhhh.


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Disclosure Policy

This policy is valid from 09 June 2011


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