"...her secret is patience..." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Book Spotlight: The Collector (Dante Walker #1) by Victoria Scott


He makes good girls...bad.
 
Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal-opportunity collector and doesn't want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within ten days.

Dante doesn't know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector…and uncover emotions deeply buried.


From Goodreads.com

     Dante Walker is a collector and he's pretty amazing at his job. Well, he's pretty amazing at everything and he's not afraid to tell you. Dante has a special assignment and that assignment is Charlie. Never in a million years did Dante expect Charlie and now that he met her, he begins to rethink everything he stands for. That's when the real fun begins. 

     Guys, this book, THIS BOOK, is amazing! I can't even begin to tell you how much I loved it. I could not put it down. And Dante, oh Dante, he is just.....hold on, got to keep it PG. :)

    Dante Walker is a fabulous character. Seriously, I loved reading his story and getting to know him through the pages. He's the cocky, arrogant, hilarious, bad boy type who makes girls everywhere swoon. He grows so much throughout the book and I think that's one of my favorite parts of the story. I mean, guys, he's a bad boy right? The evil himself standing at your doorstep, trying to collect your soul. You don't really get any worse than that. But after meeting Charlie, after getting to see another type of an individual that sees the best in people and wants to make the world a better place, Dante begins to realize there is more to life than his job. 
     Now, Charlie. She is one different type of a heroine. I seriously had no idea what to expect from her, considering all of the promotion and such was on Dante. Yet, I've come to love her to pieces, just like Dante. She is a sweetheart, a golden child, and she teaches Dante how to be a better person but simply being. That's true love ladies and gentlemen. When you look past the outer and see right to the inner. 
     I loved everything about this book. The characters, the setting, the little one liners. Victoria created characters that grab on to your heart stings and don't let go. The only bad thing about this book is that it ended and I have to wait for the next one. The Collector is going to take you by storm. Seriously, read this book. 
     The Collector is out now! Get it, read it, love it!

     Happy reading, 

     Valia 

PS. And here's my review in gifs: 









Alright, I'm done now.



Saturday, March 23, 2013

Mixed Media Art Project Video

Hey lovelies,

So lately I've been asked to share a Mixed Media Art project and I finally got around to it. I can't find my tripod so it was interesting experience filming with my camera in one hand, while doing the project with the other.
I tried to include the products I used in the video, but if you have any questions just ask. Enjoy!


Finished project! 


What do you think? 

Have a wonderful day! 

Much love, 
Valia 

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Updates. In Vlog Form.

Hello lovelies,

As you can see by the title of this post, I vlogged. *cheers all around* *bows* Thank you, thank you very much.
But seriously, here's what I've been up to. Enjoy!




So what about you, lovely people? What's on your TBR for this month? 

Let me know! 

Much love, 
Valia

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Road Trip Wednesday: Check in - Writing/Reading Goals!

Hello lovelies, 

     So I saw the Road Trip topic for this week and I realized, this is a mighty fine question and one that needs to be answered. 

     This Week's TopicQuarterly check-ins! We're already 1/4 of the way through the year--where are you on your reading and writing goals?

     This Week's Road Trip Song: Tonight I'm Getting Over You by Carly Rae Jepsen (because I'm slightly obsessed with this jewel at the moment). 

     Let's talk writing goals. Seriously, I may need an intervention, or whatnot, when it comes to this particular topic. I need to stop staring projects! My head is just overflowing with ideas and I seemed to have to get them all on paper at the same time. 
     How crazy am I? (Don't answer that.)

     But seriously, I have two distinct WIP's on my plate right now and I decided that I'm going to work on both of them. 
     At the same time. Que the screaming and the hollering. 

     I know I'm probably taking too much on (especially considering my work madness) but I want to give it a try. One is a magical kind of a story and one is an adventure suspense. I'm having too much fun with both of these at the moment and I'm hoping I don't go stark raving mad and actually finish both.


     Now, let's talk about reading goals. Mostly, right now, I just want to make sure I'm reading. I know that's not much of a goal, maybe, but sometimes, when I'm in the middle of a story, I forget the part where I NEED to read. Reading makes me a better writer. Reading makes me think. Reading is just all together a good brain exercise. I have read 19 books to date and I kind of love that. I'm hoping I'll keep up. 

    So what about you? Where are you on your reading/writing goals? 

     I'd love to hear all about it!

     Much love, 

     Valia 

Monday, March 4, 2013

Book Spotlight: The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnett

Sixteen-year-old Dusty Everhart breaks into houses late at night, but not because she’s a criminal. No, she’s a Nightmare.

Literally.

Being the only Nightmare at Arkwell Academy, a boarding school for magickind, and living in the shadow of her mother’s infamy, is hard enough. But when Dusty sneaks into Eli Booker’s house, things get a whole lot more complicated. He’s hot, which means sitting on his chest and invading his dreams couldn’t get much more embarrassing. But it does. Eli is dreaming of a murder.

Then Eli’s dream comes true.

Now Dusty has to follow the clues—both within Eli’s dreams and out of them—to stop the killer before more people turn up dead. And before the killer learns what she’s up to and marks her as the next target.


From goodreads.com

   Guys, I've been sitting on this review for two months! I don't even know how I contained my excitement until now, but somehow I did. Well, mostly it's because I talked about the book nonstop anyway. *snickers* But I'm way ahead of myself here. 

   The Nightmare Affair is a story of Dusty Everhart, a real life Nightmare. This is not a technical term, it's a magical one. It's her job to sit on top of unsuspecting victims and drink their dream juice. Then, she is partnered up with Eli Booker, the hot guy from her old school. Not that sitting on a hot guy is all that hard, but then things turn wonky and the real fun begins. 

   I loved everything about this book. The cover? Gorgeous to boot. The characters? Fun, fresh, and all so real. The adventure? Exciting! The hot boy? Swoon worthy. 
Dusty was a great main character. Sure she had her ups and down, but that's what makes any character a real one. I could totally see myself going to school with this girl and becoming her friend. 
   Eli, oh man, Eli. Well, he's all kinds of hot and swoony and I loved his character. I loved seeing him develop as an individual, just like Dusty did. And them together? Oh boy! I think one of the biggest parts of their relationship that I enjoyed is that it wasn't insta-love and bam, they're together. No, they had their ups and downs, their other relationships, but in the end, the chemistry between them was just a little too sizzling. 
   There is so much more I can tell you about this book but really, you just need to read it for yourself. If you are fans of magic and good solid writing, then this is a book for you. 

   The world Mindee created is magical, exciting, and fascinating, with characters who keep you on your toes and tug at your heart strings. 
TOMORROW!!! IT COMES OUT TOMORROW!
   The Nightmare Affair comes out March 5th, 2013. Get it, read it, LOVE it! 

Happy reading, 

Valia 

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