Follow Friday #8 & Happy Holidays!

   Hosted by Parajunkee

Weekly Question:
What are your plans for this fabulous day?

Nothing special actually. It's a tradition that we go to my grandma every year, but since she is hospitalised with a broken shoulder, and we are snowed in, that is impossible this year. We'll probably just have a fancy dinner with our family at home, and tomorrow morning we'll exchange gifts.

This will probably be my last post for this year, I'm taking a week off from blogging. This has been a wonderful year, and I hope to see you back in 2011!
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everyone!

Busting the Newbie Blues

Busting the Newbie Blues is an event hosted by Small Review to connect fellow YA-bloggers, and help out starting bloggers.

How to join:

• Select the questionnaire that best applies to you (there's no "wrong" choice, so just pick whichever one you feel most comfortable answering)
• Create a post on your blog with the questions and your answers
• Grab the banner above or the button below to include in your post or sidebar
• Link back to Small Review's post
• Sign the Mr. Linky below so we can all come and visit your post!
• Spread the word! 

My Answers: 

When did you start your blog?

I created my blog in April, but I didn't really do anything with it then, it was just to see how this blogging thing works. I started to actively blog around October, when I discovered the wonderful world of weekly memes and other blog-fun.

Why did you start your blog? 

I started my blog because I joined the site Goodreads, and there I started reviewing books. I liked this so much and a lot of people over there wrote blogs themselves that I thought, I want that too! My blog has changed quite a bit since then, at first it was just a place for me to post my reviews on and be done with it. Now I like to post about other topics too, like what books I can't wait to put my hands on and discuss books with other book-lovers.

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far? 

The biggest challenge I'm still struggling with is trying to get frequent readers. Followers, if you like. I try to post every day, and try to have at least one extensive book review up every week, but it's very hard to compete with all those other book blogs out there. They seem to get all those ARC's and requests, while we newbies are always a step behind on all of the trends. 

What do you find most discouraging about being a new blogger?

The feeling you are talking to thin air. That there is no one out there that is remotely interested in what you have to say. I'm glad that I have reached the point now where everything seems to take off, that there actually are people that respond on what I post. But especially when you just start blogging, that is the most discouraging.

What do you find most encouraging? 

When you find out there are other struggling bloggers out there. Not every blogger has the time to read and review a book a day. It is strengthening to know that you aren't the only one. Every single comment made on one of my posts makes my day. Just because someone has taken the time to read something I have put a lot of thought in. That's what makes blogging totally worth it.

What do you like best about the blogs you read? Have you tried to replicate this in your blog? 

One thing that I really like about blogs is when they write more into their reviews than "oh, this book was AWESUM". I like to know more about the book, things that stood out, how the characters were portrayed, that kind of information. I try to reflect this in my own reviews too. I will always explain what I absolutely loved about the book, or absolutely hated, and why. That way, readers can make up their own minds on if they want to read that book or not.

What do you dislike about blogs you’ve read? Do you try to avoid this? 

One thing I cannot stand is a lack of interpunction, lack of use of capital letters, and obvious spelling errors in every single sentence. I think a person that reads so much and thinks about what he or she has read, should be able to write correct English. Of course, I don't mind minor errors at all. I make those all the time! But I at least try to write in a way that is enjoyable to read...

Any advice for other new bloggers? 

Don't be discouraged. When your blog finally starts off, it is so much fun to have a blog. Try to keep in mind that it takes some time. Join in on memes and events to give your blog some more exposure, and take every feedback or comment you get at heart. 

Anything else you’d like to share about your experience? 

So far, hosting Nyx Book Reviews has been so much fun. It has opened a whole new world for me. My to be read pile has never been this big!

Is there anything you’d like to tell us about your blog?

I review mostly young-adult books, epic fantasy, paranormal romance and urban fantasy. Overall I tend to read about everything. I try to review every book I read, and my reviews are always honest reflections of my own opinion. It's to hard for my to keep up with all the trends, as most books aren't available here in the Netherlands, but I try to get my hands on new releases as soon as possible. I'm having great plans for the upcoming year. There will be more giveaways, some author interviews, more book reviews and other fun posts!

Talking about giveaways, check out my very first giveaway (international) if you haven't yet!

Teaser Tuesday #9

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• Make sure you do not include spoilers
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Teaser Tuesday #9: Torment

"Only one thing could warm him today, and she was out of reach. He missed the way the crown of her head made the perfect resting spot for his lips. He imagined filling the circle of his arms with her body, leaning down to kiss her neck. But it was a good thing Luce couldn't be here now. What she would see would horrify her."

From the second page of Torment. I can't keep from staring at that fabulous cover! Hopefully the story is as good as the outside is (:

BR: Rampant

Rampant by Diana Peterfreund

5 out of 5 stars

This book has a premise that is as awesome as the story itself. This book is about KILLER UNICORNS. Yes, you have read that correctly. Unicorns are not the fluffy white harmless creatures everyone thinks them to be. They are something entirely different. I quote:

"Unicorns are man-eating monsters.
They don't have wings, they aren't lavender or sparkly, and you could never catch one to ride without its goring you through the sternum.
And even if it somehow managed to miss you major arteries - and it never misses - you'd still die from the poison in it's horn.
But don't worry. My great-great-great-great-great-aunt Clothilde killed the last one a hundred and fifty years ago."

This is what sixteen years old Astrid has been told all her life by her unicorn-obsessed mother. She or course doesn't believe this nonsense, until her boyfriend is attacked by one. Luckily, he survives, but her chances of him taking her to prom are instantly eradicated. This confirms everything Astrid has been told all this time, and her mother sends her off to Rome to be educated in the reopened unicorn hunters headquarters.

If you think killer unicorns are awesome, you will absolutely love this book. Not only is the idea utterly amazing, the presentation is really good. Rampant has a solid plot, with more than enough lore to support the story. At first, the extensive background may seem a little bit overwhelming, but these pieces of information are so often referred back to that you will remember them without effort.

"This was the karkadann, the most dreaded and deadly of all unicorns. This was the creature of nightmares, the thing my family fought for so many generations."

I cannot stress the fact enough how utterly brilliant this book is. Astrid has made it to my top 3 most kick-ass heroines. I love that there finally is a girl in a YA novel that doesn't hide behind her crush at every sight of danger. She is truly self sufficient, and actually has to protect her crush from being hurt. I adore that she isn't dependant. It annoys me that almost all female characters seem to be nothing without their male counterparts.

This is at times a rather dark book. The unicorn hunting business is not at all without risk. Any of the girls could die in an ambush. More often than not there are at least a few broken bones after a fight. I think it's great that Ms. Peterfreund didn't gloss over the fact how horrible combat is. It isn't all honour and glory, it's frightening and a struggle for life and death. You can see that this takes a toll on the girls, as would be expected. But it must be done, and only the hunters can take unicorns down. They accept their duty with their heads held high and bows strung and axes raised.

"The kirin turned in our direction and lowered its head to charge. It was smaller than the one I'd seen before, barely more than a yearling, yet every bit as deadly. I froze, forgetting all Lino's archery lessons as the monster stared me down with its glowing, golden eyes."

It's not all about fighting and killing though. There is a clear message about growing up and learning how to make your own choices. The hunters must keep their virginity, otherwise they will lose their powers. This makes for a rather tough topic for the girls to cope with. They will have to make a choice between love or their obligations. 

"I wasn't quite sure what kind of "unicorn crap" I could potentially pull off. You might lie about having lost your homework, but I wouldn't be able to pretend I'd killed a kirin if I hadn't."

This is one of those books you come across that you think is so great you can't stop talking about it. As you might tell from the abundance of quotes from this book, I obviously can't get enough of it. While I'm reviewing, I'm skimming through the pages again, looking for great passages. It makes me want to reread the whole book. While I just finished! *sighs*

Please read this. That way we can all squee together. There is also a sequel to Rampant, called Ascendant. I must have that book now!

2011 Reading Challenge: Wordsworth Classics

One of my resolutions for next year is that I want to read more of all those literary classics out there, those books everyone should read at least once. And to help me with that I'm joining this Classics Reading Challenge hosted by The Deranged Book Lovers!

The Rules:

• You can read any classic novels which are included in list of Wordsworth Classics. You don't need to read wordsworth edition, you can pick any publisher releases as long as those releases are unabridged.
• It’s okay to re-read. You can put the book you’ve read in the past in your list as long as you’re going to read it again in 2011. Set your target and list the book you want to read along with the challenge button in your blog and fill the form.
• You don't have to review those books but if you want you can link them
• This is a year-long challenge (Jan 1, 2011 - Dec 23, 2011) so you can still commit to it in the middle of year 2011. All you need to do is fill the form. 

The Levels:

• Peasant: 1-4 books
  Bourgeois: 5-8 books
  Knight: 9 – 12 books
  Noble: more than 12 books

For 2011 I'm going for Knight. Let's see if I can reach my goal!

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.

This week I received:

Won this from Firstreads

Ebooks:

 

Don't forget to enter my giveaway!

Giveaway!!!

I finally got the opportunity to host my very first giveaway! Hurray!

What's for grabs?

A free paperback copy of the book Betrayal of Love and Freedom!

Rules:

- You must a Nyx Book Reviews follower
- This is a INTERNATIONAL giveaway
- Fill in the form below
- This giveaway will run till January 19th

The review for this book will be up soon, and also an interview with the author, Paul Huljich.