Book Review- Cold Kiss

21 Jan, 2012 by in Uncategorized Leave a comment

Cold Kiss
by Amy Garvey
Hardcover, 304 pages
Publication Date: September 20th 2011
by HarperTeen
ISBN  006199622X
Book Source: BEA
3 Stars


It was a beautiful, warm summer day, the day Danny died.
Suddenly Wren was alone and shattered. In a heartbroken fury, armed with dark incantations and a secret power, Wren decides that what she wants—what she must do—is to bring Danny back.
But the Danny who returns is just a shell of the boy Wren fell in love with. His touch is icy; his skin, smooth and stiff as marble; his chest, cruelly silent when Wren rests her head against it.
Wren must keep Danny a secret, hiding him away, visiting him at night, while her life slowly unravels around her. Then Gabriel DeMarnes transfers to her school, and Wren realizes that somehow, inexplicably, he can sense the powers that lie within her—and that he knows what she has done. And now Gabriel wants to help make things right.
But Wren alone has to undo what she has wrought—even if it means breaking her heart all over again.

Review by ephrielle: From the beginning this book has started in such a way as to make it unique.  Instead of following the cause and effect model we are going backwards.  Something has already happened and now we are going to figure it out in reverse.  A great use of the unexplored areas of the English language.  
Basically, you have a teenage girl getting carried away by her feelings.  Everything at that age seems so permanent and intense.  In the throes of her undying love she makes a mistake, a huge mistake.  As most teenagers find that intense lasting emotion was more of a growth pain.  Now she finds herself not liking the consequences and needing a way out.  Sprinkle in some zombie and magic and you are good to go.  A relatively quick read.

Content: intense swearing


About the author: I’ve always been a reader. I’ve also been a movie theater ticket taker, a nanny, a camp counselor, and a romance editor. Now I’m a wife and a mom and a writer who still spends most of my free time reading (when I’m not watching too much TV).

After starting off in romance with books like Hot Date and Pictures of Us, I’m writing in the genre I’ve always loved most, young adult fiction. (My very first completed novel, which will live forever under my bed, was a young adult novel!) 


Find more about author Amy Garvey on Goodreads/ Twitter/ Tumblr/ Facebook/ Blog/ Figment

Hallowed Blog Tour

20 Jan, 2012 by in Uncategorized 2 comments

Fire and Ice is thrilled to be today’s stop on the Hallowed by Cynthia Hand Blog Tour hosted by Mundie Moms. We are posting our review of the book and if you’d like to check out the rest of the tour click here to view all of the sites participating.

Hallowed
Unearthly #2
by Cynthia Hand

Hardcover, 416 pages

Expected publication: January 17th 2012
by HarperCollins Publishers
ISBN 0061996181
Source: Netgalley
5 stars
Summary from Goodreads: For months part-angel Clara Gardner trained to face the raging forest fire from her visions and rescue the alluring and mysterious Christian Prescott from the blaze. But nothing could prepare her for the fateful decisions she would be forced to make that day, or the startling revelation that her purpose—the task she was put on earth to accomplish—is not as straightforward as she thought. Now, torn between her increasingly complicated feelings for Christian and her love for her boyfriend, Tucker, Clara struggles to make sense of what she was supposed to do the day of the fire. And, as she is drawn further into the world of part angels and the growing conflict between White Wings and Black Wings, Clara learns of the terrifying new reality that she must face: Someone close to her will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.

Described by Richelle Mead as “utterly captivating,” Unearthly received outstanding reviews, garnered accolades from New York Times bestselling authors, and was named an Indie Next Pick. In this heart-wrenching sequel, Cynthia Hand expertly captures the all-consuming joy of first love—and the agony of loss. This beautifully woven tale will appeal to fans of Lauren Kate, Becca Fitzpatrick, and Aprilynne Pike.

Heather’s review: Cynthia Hand’s debut novel Unearthly made my best of 2011 list this year and it looks like Hallowed will be on the my BIR list for 2012. I love this series! Hallowed picks up right where Unearthly left off, and had I a chance to do it over, I would re-read book one before picking up book two. I remembered the plot and characters well, but there are so many little nuances in this installment that you will miss if it’s been awhile. Clara’s vision has come to a close and now she is having dreams as well as an overwhelming sense of sorrow. She’s made her choice clear between Tucker and Christian but that choice may be putting those she loves in danger.


Hallowed is a much more emotionally driven novel with less action than book one, but I soaked up every minute. So much so that I couldn’t pick up another read for a while.  I wanted to fill in the blanks on some things so I actually went back and re-read most of Unearthly when I was finished. We see all the same people in book two, but much less of Tucker’s sister Wendy and her boyfriend Jason. Also, Clara’s brother Jeffrey is a mystery. The one character I have not been able to connect with at all is Angela. So I’m gearing up for more of her in book three.


I had many questions answered about who and what the angel bloods are, about Clara’s upbringing and why her mother has held so many secrets. But the best part of Hallowed by far are the two boys Tucker and Christan. Cynthia Hand knows how to write realistic, amazingly supportive, perfect heroes each in their own way. They are completely different, but each brings out a good side in Clara. So many noteworthy scenes with them both in Hallowed- including a ski trip, fishing, and learning to use glory. Both boys grew on me more than they had in book one. I really didn’t think that would be possible!


Readers will be thrown for a loop with some of the plot twists and will laugh out loud as Hand pokes fun at Twilight stalkerish behaviors and love triangles (though they are used in this book.) The pace of Hallowed is slower but never drags and the tone a little more heavy as Clara is dealing with so many swirling emotions she is picking up from other people and non-people. Some of the content is better suited for an older teens since there are a few heavy make out, a partially undressed scene in a bedroom, and mild violence. No sex or swearing.


I highly recommend both Unearthly and Hallowed. If you are a fan of all things paranormal including angel mythology and the perfect swoon worthy male characters this is the series for you! I’m having a hard time moving on to another book because they influenced me so much. So, if you haven’t read them yet, run and pick up Unearthly today!


About the author– Cynthia Hand grew up in southeast Idaho (very near the Wyoming border). Currently she lives in southern California with her husband and two small children. She teaches courses in creative writing at Pepperdine University. Unearthly, her debut YA novel, was published by HarperTeen in January 2011, out in paperback on 11-1-11. The sequel, Hallowed, was released on January 17th.

Check her out on Goodreads/ her website/ blog/ twitter

Renegade Cover Reveal Scavenger Hunt

20 Jan, 2012 by in renegade, tor teen Leave a comment

Fire and Ice is so excited to be taking part in the cover reveal scavenger hunt for Renegade by
 J. A. Souders.

She is making us do a little work for her cover by splitting it into six pieces. First, you need to find the pieces.
Then, stop by the following blogs (schedule below) on the time’s specified and collect the pieces. While you’re at each stop you’ll also need to collect the words that create a phrase. You’ll need to figure out this phrase for Monday’s Giveaway.

Our puzzle piece of the cover is below and the word for our site is

ABOUT…

RENEGADE book summary from Goodreads: Since the age of three, sixteen-year-old Evelyn Winters has been trained to be Daughter of the People in the underwater utopia known as Elysium. Selected from hundreds of children for her ideal genes all her life she’s thought that everything was perfect; her world. Her people. The Law.

But when Gavin Hunter, a Surface Dweller, accidentally stumbles into their secluded little world, she’s forced to come to a startling realization: everything she knows is a lie. Her memories have been altered. Her mind and body aren’t under her own control. And the person she knows as Mother is a monster.

Together with Gavin she plans her escape, only to learn that her own mind is a ticking time bomb… and Mother has one last secret that will destroy them all
If you are ready for a scavenger hunt simply visit the following blogs and collect a word along with the puzzle pieces and head over to the three blogs hosting the giveaway on Monday. Good luck!

7 AM: Woven Strands
9 AM: Writer’s Ally
10 am: The Oasis
11 am: Fire and Ice
1 pm: Confessions of a Bookaholic
3 pm: Jessie Harrell-The Daily Harrell

For the final cover, on Monday visit one or all of the following blogs:

Reading Teen
Books Complete Me
Mundie Moms
Simple Love of Reading

About the Author:  J.A. Souders was born in the heartland with an overactive imagination and an over abundance of curiosity that was always getting her into trouble. She first began writing at the age of 13, when she moved to Florida and not only befriended the monsters under the bed, but created worlds for them to play together.

Because she never grew up, she decided she’d put her imaginary friends to work and started writing. She still lives in the land of sunshine and palm trees with her husband and their two children and is an active member of the RWA, CFRW, YARWA and SCBWI.

She is represented by Natalie Lakosil of the Bradford Literary Agency. Her debut book, RENEGADE, surfaces Fall 2012 from Tor Teen.

Learn more on Goodreads/ her site/ blog/ twitter

Book Review- Why We Broke Up

19 Jan, 2012 by in why we broke up 1 comment

by Daniel Handler
Art by: Maira Kalman
Hardcover, 368 pgs
Published December 27, 2011
by Little, Brown
ISBN: 9780316127257
Book source: BEA

Buy it: Amazon | The Book Depository
Add it: Goodreads | Shelfari

Summary From Goodreads: Min Green and Ed Slaterton are breaking up, so Min is writing Ed a letter and giving him a box. Inside the box is why they broke up. Two bottle caps, a movie ticket, a folded note, a box of matches, a protractor, books, a toy truck, a pair of ugly earrings, a comb from a motel room, and every other item collected over the course of a giddy, intimate, heartbreaking relationship. Item after item is illustrated and accounted for, and then the box, like a girlfriend, will be dumped

Debbie’s Review: Right from the start I was into this book. They writing style (written in a letter/rambling form) took me a bit to get used to but I was impressed that the author was able to get across an entire, very interesting, story line this way. I enjoyed the quirky details, and the well written female lead by male author, even though parts of the plot were a little obvious.


Plus the book has some great art that carries the story along as well. In each chapter Min tells Ed the reasons they broke up, accompanied by a picture of each item she’s including in the box to give back to him.


Content: Some sex. No violence. Some strong language. I’d give it a PG-13 rating as the references/language are brief

About the author: Daniel Handler is the author of the novels The Basic Eight, Watch Your Mouth, Adverbs, and as Lemony Snicket a sequence of children’s novels collectively entitled “A Series of Unfortunate Events.” He also plays the accordion.

More info on Author: facebook

About the Illustrator: Maira Kalman was born in Tel Aviv and moved to New York with her family at the age of four. She has worked as a designer, author, illustrator and artist for more than thirty years without formal training. Her work is a narrative journal of her life and all its absurdities. She has written and illustrated twelve children’s books including Ooh-la-la- Max in Love, What Pete Ate, and Swami on Rye . She often illustrates for The New Yorker magazine, and is well known for her collaboration with Rick Meyerowitz on the NewYorkistan cover in 2001. Recent projects include The Elements of Style (illustrated), and a monthly on-line column entitled Principles of Uncertainty for The New York Times. She has had three exhibitions at the Julie Saul Gallery since 2003. She lives in New York and walks a lot.

More info on Illustrator: Website

Giveaway Winners

18 Jan, 2012 by in Uncategorized Leave a comment

Congratulations to Tressa who won Angelfire Bookmark Pack

Gi-Gi who won a Love and Leftovers ARC and finally

Jessy who won the ARC of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight.

Winners please email us your mailing address and stay tuned everyone else for new giveaways tomorrow!

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Time Gangsters Blog Tour

17 Jan, 2012 by in time gangsters 2 comments

Fire and Ice is today’s stop on the Cedar Fort Blog Tour for

Time Gangsters
by Berin L Stephens
Paperback, 296 pages
Expected Publication Date: February 8, 2012
by Cedar Fort Inc

ISBN: 1599559668
Book Source: Netgalley
Rating: 5 stars
When Billy discovers a hidden cache of ancient coins, it isn’t long before a gang of thugs swipes them right from under Billy. Plotting to use the magical properties of the coins to seize power in the past, these power-hungry gangsters will do anything to reach their goal. Their future threatened, Billy and Danny must race through time to steal back the coins—before history is changed forever!

This was a really fun book! There was so much action and crazy things going on all over the place. I loved the characters and how they fought at first, but then they realized that they needed to work together to steal back the coins. I loved the plot, I mean what kid doesn’t dream of finding gold coins in the walls of their bedroom! Not to mention the coins do really cool things, like letting you jump really high. This book is written for elementary age kids, and I can’t wait to have my 11 year-old read it.

Content: Really clean.

About the Author:

Wanted: Dead or Alive
Berin “Reeds” Stephens

Former getaway driver for Franco Carnassi. Also played tenor saxophone in Carnassi’s speakeasy, the Club Velocity. He may be armed and dangerous. Originally from Chugiak, Alaska, he is currently believed to be in a hideout somewhere in a valley in the mountain west. He is guarded by several kids, a dog, a cat, and an aloe plant. If you have any information concerning Reeds’s whereabouts, please contact Agent Elliott of the Bureau of Investigation immediately or visit http://www.berinstephens.com./.

Find out more about Berin L Stephens:  Website/ Blog/ Facebook

Find out more about Time Gangsters: Website
To visit more blogs on this blog tour check out the schedule. 

Book Review- Friends & Foes

16 Jan, 2012 by in regency, sarah m edeb 3 comments

Friends and Foes

by Sarah M. Eden
Paperback: 269 pages
Published by Covenant Communications Inc.
January 3, 2012
ISBN-10: 1608613763
Book Source: bought
4 stars

Book description from Amazon: After five years of tracking and capturing spies on English soil, Philip Jonquil, Earl of Lampton, is in pursuit of his last quarry. But at a traveler’s inn, he encounters an unexpected and far more maddening foe: Sorrel Kendrick, a young lady who is strikingly pretty, shockingly outspoken, and entirely unimpressed with him. Indeed, Sorrel cannot believe the nerve of this gentleman, who rudely accuses her of theft and insults her feminine dignity. Doubly annoyed when they both end up at a party hosted by mutual friends, Philip and Sorrel privately declare war on one another. But Philip’s tactics, which range from flirting to indifference, soon backfire as he finds himself reluctantly enjoying Sorrel’s company; and, much to her dismay, Sorrel finds Philip’s odd manner to be increasingly endearing. In the midst of this waning war and growing attraction, Philip catches wind of the French spy he’s been tracking, and Sorrel inadvertently stumbles upon a crucial piece of the puzzle, making her indispensable to the mission. But can two proud hearts negotiate a ceasefire when cooperation matters most?
This is the fourth book I’ve read by Sarah M . Eden and I can say she is one of my favorite writers of clean Regency romance. It had been a while since I’d read Kiss of A Stranger and I had already forgotten many of the characters. I wish I would have re-read it before picking up Friends and Foes. Sarah integrates the people from her last books into each of the new ones so it’s fun to have them fresh in your mind. Philip Jonquil is back and is the focus of Friends and Foes instead of a secondary character. This time he’s acting as a “Dandy” ,a well-dressed self-assured gentleman who on the side is acting as a spy for the English war effort. He’s in the midst of trying to catch a Frenchman when he stumbles upon a woman in his room at the inn who he accuses of stealing his walking stick.

The two start a spew of conversational banter which keeps up through the whole novel. They declare “war” on one another when they learn they have mutual friends and are not just strangers, but rather are forced to spend the entire Christmas holiday with their perspective families at Crispin’s estate. Main heroine Sorrel is headstrong and has suffered greatly as a result of a crippling incident so she doesn’t feel she is material for romance. Instead she and Phillip jab at each other with cutting and sarcastic insults.

This is such a fun, clean read!  Overall I was highly entertained. My only little peeve was the overuse of the word “lud” by Phillip and the fact that the book is very main character driven. The reader doesn’t get a deep sense of any of the side characters or resolution of sub plots that are previously explored. The issue of Sorrel’s leg, her relationship with her mother and father plus a side romance going on between her sister Margie and Phillip’s brother are left up in the air.  I’m hoping they are resolved in the next book Sarah puts out.
 Friends and Foes is currently number 4 on the Deseret Book bestsellers list- you go Sarah! Readers who liked Josette by Danielle Thorne or Jane Austen’s works will enjoy Sarah’s latest installment. Find out more on Goodreads .

About the Author: Sarah M. Eden read her first Jane Austen novel in elementary school and has been an Austen addict ever since. Fascinated by the Regency era in English history, Eden became a regular in the Regency section of the reference department at her local library, painstakingly researching this extraordinary chapter in history. Eden is an award-winning author of short stories and has been a Whitney Award Finalist for her novels Seeking Persephone (2008) and Courting Miss Lancaster (2010).

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day

16 Jan, 2012 by in martin luther king jr, mlk, quotes Leave a comment

Fire and Ice wants to wish everyone a happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We hope you are enjoying your holiday and always remember the example his wise words set…
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”
“Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness.”
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
“Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”
“the time is always right to do the right thing”

“We must live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” -Martin Luther King Jr.
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1000th Post Giveaway

14 Jan, 2012 by in Uncategorized 3 comments

 
Fire and Ice just hit our 1000th post and to celebrate we are giving away two of Maggie Stiefvater’s books- a paperback of Shiver and an ARC of Forever. Thanks so much to all of you who have made this site what it is. We have grown a lot since our first post. I appreciate all of the comments, tweets and feedback you give! To enter click read more and fill out the rafflecopter form.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Book Review- Bloodlines

13 Jan, 2012 by in paranormal YA fiction, razorbill, richelle mead Leave a comment

Bloodlines
by Richelle Mead
Hardcover, 421 pages
Publication Date: August 23rd 2011
by Razorbill
ISBN 1595143173
Book Source: BEA
5 Stars

When alchemist Sydney is ordered into hiding to protect the life of Moroi princess Jill Dragomir, the last place she expects to be sent is a human private school in Palm Springs, California. But at their new school, the drama is only just beginning.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Bloodlines explores all the friendship, romance, battles and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive – this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone’s out for blood.

Review by ephrielle:
If you loved the Vampire Academy Series you will adore this one as well.  But don’t write it off as more of the same.  It is the same world but from the perspective of an Alchemist, namely Sydney Sage.  We get an insiders view of the Alchemist world as well as Sydney’s changing views of those they think abominations.  Don’t judge a book by its cover as well as people.  You might be surprised they aren’t what they seem.  Not only that but there is something deeper going on with Sydney.  And you will have to read to find out what.

I and so excited for this series.  It will be thrilling to find out where everything will lead.  In the last series Richelle Mead broke across boundary lines and it seems she will do it again.  After finishing this book I had a hard time sleeping since my mind was roving over all the possibilities.  An added bonus for this book is the lack of swearing.  Since the book is told by Sydney Sage there are some rather awesome moments of complete misunderstanding. For one super great example of this turn to page 229. Sage is so sure she is interpreting the moment right that she gets it so completely backwards.  I suppose knowledge isn’t all it is cracked up to be.  She is such a refreshing character.  It seems so many of the females right now are hormonal sex fiends.  So the books follow the lines of girl sees guy and almost immediately wants to get in his pants.  I love how we are watching her discover herself and the possibilities.  The pace of this discovery is slow enough as to be a sweet building torture.  I just must have more and can’t wait to get the next book.

Content: violence


About the author: Scorpio Richelle Mead is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of urban fantasy books for both adults and teens. Originally from Michigan, Richelle now lives in Seattle, Washington where she works on her three series full-time: Georgina Kincaid, Dark Swan, and Vampire Academy.

A life-long reader, Richelle has always loved mythology and folklore. When she can actually tear herself away from books (either reading or writing them), she enjoys bad reality TV, traveling, trying interesting cocktails, and shopping for dresses. She’s a self-professed coffee addict and has a passion for all things wacky and humorous.

Find more about author Richelle Mead on Goodreads/ Twitter/ Website/ Facebook/ Blog