Saturday, October 29, 2011

Halloween Week: Favourite Picks






Well guys it’s that time of year again. Halloween Week! With only two days until Halloween I've been thinking carefully about my favourite Halloween picks just in case some of you are out of Halloween gas and need a little help. Check out what books and movies I think are perfect for snuggling up with this Halloween week.














BOOKS





Smokeless Fire (Fire Spirits #1) - Samantha Young (Haha, shameless promotion of one’s own novel) 

Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1) - Richelle Mead  

Interview with a Vampire - Anne Rice

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis













The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon - Stephen King

The Summoning (Darkest Powers #1) - Kelley Armstrong
Bitten (Otherworld #1) - Kelley Armstrong

Wicked Lovely (Wicked Lovely #1) - Melissa Marr

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's (Sorcerer’s) Stone - J.K. Rowling

 
















Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush #1) - Becca Fitzpatrick

My Blood Approves (My Blood Approves #1)
Amanda Hocking

Nevermore (Nevermore #1) – Kelly Creagh



City of Bones (Mortal Instruments #1) - Cassandra Clare    

 
















The Glass House (Morganville Vampires #1) - Rachel Caine  

Stray (Shifters #1) - Rachel Vincent    
               
Gone (Gone #1) - Michael Grant        
               

Jenny Pox (The Paranormals #1) – J.L. Bryan




Blood Like Poison (Blood Like Poison #1) – M. Leighton

Destiny Binds (Timber Wolves #1) – Tammy Blackwell

Half-Blood (Covenant #1) – Jennifer L. Armentrout

The Hunger Games (Hunger Games #1) - Suzanne Collins

Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods #1) – Melissa De La Cruz

 




MOVIES





Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (or any of the Harry Potter movies!)

Scream Trilogy

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas
Coraline


The Corpse Bride

Pan's Labyrinth

HellBoy 1 & 2

Underworld

Underworld: Evolution




Blade Trilogy

Eden Lake

The Chronicles of Narnia 1 & 2

Hocus Pocus












And my most recent favourite Halloween book pick is...



Witch Eyes by Scott Tracey

Braden was born with witch eyes: the ability to see the world as it truly is: a blinding explosion of memories, darkness, and magic. The power enables Braden to see through spells and lies, but at the cost of horrible pain.

After a terrifying vision reveals imminent danger for the uncle who raised and instructed him, Braden retreats to Belle Dam, an old city divided by two feuding witch dynasties. As rival family heads Catherine Lansing and Jason Thorpe desperately try to use Braden's powers to unlock Belle Dam's secrets, Braden vows never to become their sacrificial pawn. But everything changes when Braden learns that Jason is his father--and Trey, the enigmatic guy he's falling for, is Catherine's son.

To stop an insidious dark magic from consuming the town, Braden must master his gift—and risk losing the one he loves. (Blurb from Goodreads).


My Review
*****Awesome Read

What I loved most about Witch Eyes was that lacking sense of déjà vu. Tracey’s world was completely refreshing and I honestly felt as if I was stepping into undiscovered territory. I had no idea what would happen next.

Scott Tracey really has created an elegant and vivid world of witch craft. Set in the atmospheric and charged town of Belle Dam, Witch Eyes is full of mystery, magic, romance and intrigue. Seventeen year old Braden is our main character and he comes with a wicked sense of humour, abundance of sarcasm and a gift that is truly unique. I fell in love with the language Tracey used to describe Braden’s vision, utterly in awe of the author’s ability to take something so complex and explain it in a way that I understood – better yet, explain it so I could visualize the beauty and magic of his gift.
The small war Braden stumbles into in Belle Dam is exceptionally intriguing. I found myself addictively turning the page because I had to know what the hell was going on. There are no clichés, no obvious answers, and the twists and turns in Witch Eyes are exceptionally clever. It’s been a while since a book has kept me on my toes. As well as the fantastic and enigmatic plot (can a plot be enigmatic? Yeah, I’m gonna say this one is), the characters in Witch Eyes are…well…wow. I’m a huge Braden fan. I love when I love the main character this much. Braden is just so compelling. I thought it was awesome how, as the reader, we got to see his vulnerable side - the side of him that is bitter about his dad, loyal to his uncle, stripped bare by his gift, crushing on a hot older guy. But then amazingly we can also see how he must come off to the other characters – very self-contained, defensive, independent, wary.
In steps Trey, Braden's love interest. He’s hot, he’s cool, he’s also loyal to the point of being a pain in the ass and as Braden so perceptively points out, he has a bit of hero complex. He’s utterly loveable and I found the two of them together hilarious, electric and entertaining.
Even better the other characters, Jade, Drew, Jason and Catherine, are intriguing in their own ways and I can’t wait to read more about them.

I was hooked from the first page by this riveting young adult paranormal. Cannot wait for Book Two!

Five Massive Massive Stars!



That's my favourites for this holiday season. What are your favourites?


Sam x




4 comments:

  1. Anything by Stephen King would be perfect!

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  2. Nice picks! I've read a number of these including The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Gone, the Harry Potter books, City of Bones, and the Hunger Games! I enjoyed them! :)

    Rumana @ Relook the Book

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  3. I am SOOOOO going to watch Hocus Pocus. :p
    My favorite ever jack-o-lantern is one I saw today for THE HUNGER GAMES!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. A Hunger Games Jack-o-lanter ----> :-O
    I want one.

    ReplyDelete