A Muggle's Magical Book Blog finds a new home!

Dear Muggle Friends,

I have been thinking of making a change for some time now and with Blogger doing strange things (like deleting my blog for 12 hours *dies*) I have decided to move on to greener pastures.

I now have my own domain, which you can find here:

New Home

Also as most of you know GFC is being delete from non-blogger sites soon. So if you would like to continue following this magical book blog you need to Subscribe to A Muggle's Magical Book Blog by Email. If you do decide to subscribe please let me know so I can return the favour.

If that's not your thing you can follow me via Facebook and Twitter.

With the move comes some blogging resolutions:

* Quality over Quantity!

* Only do "In my mailbox" and "Cover of the week" meme's

* Engage more with my followers

I appreciated each and everyone who has shared my blogger days with me and I hope to see you at A Muggle's Magical Book Blog new home!

Review: Switched

Switched (Trylle Trilogy #1) by Amanda Hocking

Published 2012 (first published 2010) by Macmillan Publishers Ltd,
Paperback, 238 pages
Source: Received from PanMacmillanSA for a honest review.

"When Wendy Everly was six-years-old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. It isn't until eleven years later that Wendy finds out her mother might've been telling the truth.

With the help of Finn Holmes, Wendy finds herself in a world she never knew existed - and it's one she's not sure if she wants to be a part of."

- From Goodreads

 

7/10

From the beginning of this novel I was hooked! It starts out with a bang that carries right through. The storyline was unique as well as the paranormal element.

Wendy gets thrown into this very interesting world of “Trylle” with their fascinating mythology and ways of life. Wendy is temperamental, entertaining, unpredictable and real. With a whole host of diverse and remarkable characters to complete this fascinating world.

The novel reads very quickly and you can easily read it in one sitting, forgetting about the world around you. The writing flows and the story includes everything you need in a YA novel – fun, excitement, romance, intrigue and action.

I can't point at anything I disliked about this novel, I just wanted something more.

But I can't wait to read the sequel to see where Ms. Hocking takes us!

http://amandahocking.blogspot.com/
https://twitter.com/#!/amanda_hocking

“Did you think you could treat me like shit at a dance, then sneak into my room in the middle of the night and tell me that I'm a troll with magical powers, and I'd just be like, yeah, that sounds right.”
― Amanda Hocking, Switched

Torn (Trylle Trilogy, #2) by Amanda Hocking  
 

 

Giveaways and Integrity

I have been thinking about this for a long time and I thought I would do a blog post and see what everyone else thinks.

When you enter a giveaway you normally have to follow a blog, tweet about it, share it on Facebook etc. Most of us are happy to do this because the prize is worth it. As a result, hosting a giveaway is a great way of gaining followers. But what if you don’t get your prize?

I have won tons of giveaways but I only receive about 50% of the prizes. Most of these giveaways are international and as I am in South Africa so I don’t really mind if I don’t get something. Things get lost in the post all the time and I don’t follow up unless I know the blogger well. Book Depository prizes always arrive so I now only enter international giveaways that get shipped from there. But now I’ve started to wonder if some bloggers are just using giveaways to get followers and then don’t bother sending out the prizes.

I ask this because in September last year I won a book from a fellow South African Book Blogger but never received it. It would have been shipped locally, so I fully expected to get it without any problems. But by October I still hadn’t received any email from the blogger. I contacted her on Goodreads, asking if she’d lost my email address. Nothing.

Eventually I tweeted her, and she replied saying her Goodreads account wasn’t working, that she had sent me a message, and my book was still waiting to be sent. She asked for my postal address, which I gave to her. I didn’t get any reply and I never received a book from her. It is now January.

Has anything like this every happened to anyone else? How did you handle it? I honestly feel that it shouldn’t be such a hassle. Or is it too much to expect bloggers to act with integrity in giveaways? I would die of shame if I promised someone something and never delivered. This is how I handle my own giveaways:

* I try my very best to stick to all the times laid out in my giveaway.
* I contact the winner via email, as well as on twitter if I can
* I send their prize straight away
* I follow up and ask if their prize has arrived

How do you handle giveaways? What’s your opinion on the whole issue?

My Blog can now be followed via email - top right hand corner.

Review: Twilight Audiobook

Twilight (Twilight #1) by Stephenie Meyer - read by Ilyana Kadushin

Published January 5th 2009 by Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd
Audio CD
Source: Library

"When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes, mesmerising voice, and supernatural gifts, Edward is both irresistible and impenetrable. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret. What Bella doesn't realise is the closer she gets to him, the more she is putting herself and those around her at risk. And it might be too late to turn back... Deeply seductive and extraordinarily suspenseful, Twilight will have readers riveted right until the very last page is turned."

- From Goodreads

 

N/A

I have read the Twilight series several times and I'm sure my readers know that I enjoy the series. But wow the audio book was just bad. For one the voices wasn't my own so I had a very different Bella and Edward in my head suddenly.

Now I know that their relationship isn't the best and that it is creepy at times. I know most twilight fans ignore all these facts and just enjoy the story. But this Audio Book made it impossible!

It makes Bella sound even more desperate and Edward even more depraved.

Please if you haven't read Twilight, don't listen to the audio book first, and if you haven't listened to the Audio Book yet, but have read the book, stay away if you want to stay in the twilight bubble :)

 

Cover Of The Week

This weeks cover is....

Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst

What a beautiful cover!

Review: Azuri Fae

Azuri Fae (Caledonia Fae, #2) by India Drummond

Published November 20th 2011 by Trindlemoss Publishing
Kindle Edition, 250 pages
Source: From the Author for a honest review

"Book 2 in the Caledonia Fae series.

A faerie prince disappears in the borderlands, and his father enlists the help of outcast Eilidh and her bonded druid, Quinton Munro. Tantalised with hints of a lost and ancient magic, they learn that time is working against them every step of the way. Is the prince’s disappearance related to the vanishing of an entire Scottish village?

Faced with deception, assassination attempts, and a mad queen who would sacrifice her own child to keep a dreaded secret, Eilidh struggles with an impossible situation. Her people demand she commit treason and betray the man she loves. Will she do what duty requires, or throw away the chance to reunite the kingdom in exchange for the life she hadn't dared hope for? "

- From Goodreads

 

9/10

This series right here is the reason I accept Author request books. Every now and then you find a gem like this!

Ms. Drummond does not disappoint. The world of Eilidh and Munro is explored even more and you get to see the Fae side of life. It is fascinating! 

While creating a world of mystery and romance with epic fantastical proportions Ms. Drummond does not loose sight of her characters. She has a way of giving uniqueness to each character and making their decisions and actions seem natural.

Once again I stress the importance of uniqueness in novels and the ability to take me by surprise! Check and check.
  
Eilidh has quite a few paths to choose from in this novel and you will be on the edge of your seat! The Fae way of seeing things, their traditions and even their royal intrigue does not disappoint and will leave you begging for more! 

Read this series if you want something different and even more so if you don't like Faeries/Fae! I never have and Ms. Drummond has made me a convert.

http://www.indiadrummond.com/

http://www.facebook.com/india.drummond.author

https://twitter.com/#!/IndiaDrummond

https://plus.google.com/103372168541051530608/posts

http://www.amazon.com/India-Drummond/e/B004VKMP4E/

http://www.indiadrummond.com/contact/email-me/

“"When I was her age," Munro said to Eilidh, "I was chasing frogs."
Oron Chuckled. "When I was your age, I was chasing frogs. Come. We have things to discuss."”

Book 3: Enemy of the Fae (Coming 2012)
 

 

2011 End Of Year Book Survey

Jamie over at The Perpetual Page-Turner created this survey last year, so it's now the 2nd survey. This is my first time participating! Here we go:

1. Best Book You Read In 2011?

Wow hard question. There we a lot, but I would say the one that stands out the most is:

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

2. Most Disappointing Book/Book You Wish You Loved More Than You Did?

A Wrinkle in Time

by L'Engle, Madeleine

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2011?

Bloodlines

by Mead, Richelle

4. Book you recommended to people most in 2011?

Everything We Ever Wanted: A Novel

by Shepard, Sara

5. Best series you discovered in 2011?

Evermore (The Immortals, #1)

by Noel, Alyson

6. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2011?

India

Drummond and Stephanie Perkins

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?

A Game of Thrones

by Martin, George R.R.

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2011?

Catching Fire

by Collins, Suzanne

9. Book you most anticipated in 2011?

Last Sacrifice

by Mead, Richelle

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2011?

Bad Taste in Boys

by Harris, Carrie

11. Most memorable character in 2011?

Anna and the French Kiss

by Perkins, Stephanie

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2011?

If I Stay (If I Stay, #1)

by Forman, Gayle

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2011?

If I Stay (If I Stay, #1)

by Forman, Gayle

14. Book you can't believe you waited UNTIL 2011 to finally read?

Marked (House of Night, #1)

by Cast, P.C.

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2011?

“I mean, really. Who sends their kid to boarding school? It's so Hogwarts. Only mine doesn't have cute boy wizards or magic candy or flying lessons.”
― Stephanie Perkins, Anna and the French Kiss

16. Book That You Read In 2011 That Would Be Most Likely To Reread In 2012?

Bloodlines

by Mead, Richelle

17. Book That Had A Scene In It That Had You Reeling And Dying To Talk To Somebody About It? (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc. etc.) Be careful of spoilers! 

Last Sacrifice

by Mead, Richelle (The End)

In My Trunk

This weekly meme (In My Mailbox) is hosted by The Story Siren

I got these books in Thailand - Second hand book stores and exchanges at Restaurants:

* 3 German Harry Potter's

*1 Finish Harry Potter

They are for my Harry Potter Language Edition collection!

What's in your Trunk this week?

Cover Of The Week

This weeks cover is....

New Girl by Paige Harbison

What a beautiful cover!

Review: A Wrinkle in Time

A Wrinkle in Time (Time #1) by Madeleine L'Engle

Published March 15th 1973 by Yearling (first published January 1st 1962)
Paperback, 211 pages
Source: Library

"It is a dark and stormy night. Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and their mother are in the kitchen for a midnight snack when a most disturbing visitor arrives.

"Wild nights are my glory," the unearthly stranger tells them. "I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me sit down for a moment, and then I'll be on my way. Speaking of ways, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesserac."

Meg's father had been experimenting with this fifth dimension of time travel when he mysteriously disappeared. Now the time has come for Meg, her friend Calvin, and Charles Wallace to rescue him. But can they outwit the forces of evil they will encounter on their heart-stopping journey through space?"

- From Goodreads

 

1/10

Well obviously I didn’t like this book if you look at my rating. Now let me tell you why:

What was going on? Is it just me or was it very confusing? Jumping from one thing to another? I guess it’s supposed to be like that. That the author was trying something new or trying to be different. But it didn’t work for me.

Meg was annoying and bratty, understandable though as she has to go rescue her father while traveling with her little brother that is a 40 year old in my opinion. And with Calvin the heartthrob… shoot me now.

Ah yes then the three witches? Can I call them witches? Who knows I lost interest in them the moment they arrived.

What was wrong with this book? It’s supposed to be a children’s book? Is this a joke? Did I miss it?

I felt the author was forcing details and events into places where they shouldn’t be. I honestly can’t name one thing I liked about this book.

It is easily the most overrated book I have every read. I wanted to gauge my eyes out by the end.

http://www.madeleinelengle.com/
http://www.facebook.com/wrinkleintime

“If you aren't unhappy sometimes you don't know how to be happy.”
― Madeleine L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time 

A Wind in the Door (Time, #2) by Madeleine L'Engle