The Mortal Instruments Series

If you are going through "Twilight" withdrawal, then you are going to LOVE these books. Because there is life after "Twilight" people. I promise!! I had trouble grappling with this concept too, until I picked up the "Mortal Instruments" books by Cassandra Clare. And let's be honest- these books are pretty basic to the YA genre at this point, but I did not even know they existed until I read about them on Stephenie Meyer's blog. If I didn't know about these books, maybe you don't either. Sometimes, I even think they are better than "Twilight" (gasp!). But Cassandra creates a world that is a broad and as deep as that of J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" books while also preserving the aspects which teen agers love about the "Twilight" Saga (handsome men, romance, adventure, ect.) Their are characters that you can both relate to and ogle at and a wierd love triange that will both drive you insane and get you completely hooked on the series. The stories are fantastic. My favorite of the books is probably the second one, "City of Ashes." but they are all incredible.


If there is anything you get out of this blog, ANYTHING, I hope it is that you go pick up these books and read them. You can learn more about Cassandra Clare and the Mortal Instruments series by going to her personal page or by following her on Twitter or friending her on Facebook. If you have read the "Mortal Instruments" series, may I recommend the fantastic "Wicked Lovely" series by Mellissa Marr, which I will be sure to blog about it soon!
More to come, OfficiallyMRS

Sarah Dessen Week: The Final Four

Because Sarah has more than 7 books, I have decided to put the four that I neither loved, nor hated in together as the final day, with only a synopsis and book cover for each one, because I would pretty much be saying the same thing over and over again. I neither loved them or hated them.
So here we go,
"Just Listen:" Last year, Annabel was "the girl who has everything"—at least that's the part she played in the television commercial for Kopf's Department Store.This year, she's the girl who has nothing: no best friend because mean-but-exciting Sophie dropped her, no peace at home since her older sister became anorexic, and no one to sit with at lunch. Until she meets Owen Armstrong. Tall, dark, and music-obsessed, Owen is a reformed bad boy with a commitment to truth-telling. With Owen's help,maybe Annabel can face what happened the night she and Sophie stopped being friends.


This Lullaby: When it comes to relationships, Remy doesn't mess around. After all, she's learned all there is to know from her mother, who's currently working on husband number five. But there's something about Dexter that seems to defy all of Remy's rules. He certainly doesn't seem like Mr. Right. For some reason, however, Remy just can't seem to shake him. Could it be that Remy's starting to understand what those love songs are all about?

Dreamland: Rogerson Biscoe, with his green eyes and dark curly hair, is absolutely seductive. Before long, sixteen-year-old Caitlin finds herself under his spell. And when he starts to abuse her, she finds she's in too deep to get herself out.

And for How to Deal...
This is an article from Sarah's website about THE MOVIE (which is a cross between That Summer and How to Deal) Back in February of 1998, when my first two books, Someone Like You and That Summer, were optioned for a movie, a friend of mine who is a writer and has experience in such things said to me, "I think that is so exciting. It’s wonderful and you should be proud. But I want to tell you, I’ve had over ten options and none of of them have ever panned out. Just so you know.
This was good advice, and I heard it again and again. Because of this, I came to think of the possibility of the movie ever getting made as being kind of like winning the lottery: about as great, and about as likely.
Well. Years passed. Scripts were written. (Not by me: which is good, because I have no idea how to write a script.) I built a house, got married, wrote three more books. All the while the Movie Thing was in the background, and I thought of it when I wasn’t daydreaming about shoes or Stila lipsticks, or whenever I was at the movies myself, which was a fair amount because I love movies, even bad ones. Every year the option would come up to be renewed, and every year I would brace myself for it not to be.
Then, in February of 2002, I came home from walking my dog to find a message from my agent. Optimist that I am, I assumed this was to tell me that option, up at the end of the month, was going to be dropped. I dragged myself to to the phone, braced for bad news, and instead was greeted with mild hysteria on the other end of the line, shrieking and squealing. Had I gotten their email? (No.) Was I sitting down? (Yes.) Then they finally told me what all the fuss was about: the movie was going to be made. Mandy Moore was starring. It was all in that day’s Variety, which they were faxing me right that second.
By mid-March everything was official, and shooting began in June. After four years almost to the day, things were moving really fast. Words fail me when I try to describe what all this is like: the closest I can come is an out of body experience of some sort. While I am here in North Carolina trying to write, cleaning out my refrigerator, and going to the grocery store, there is a huge group of people up in Canada hard at work bring characters I created to the screen. I mean, that’s just insane. If I thought about it too much I think my head would explode.
Those of you who have seen books you love be made into movies know that something is always different, that the transfer from the page to the screen means things get left out or lost. Since Someone Like You has a fierce, extremely loyal following (the rest of the books have support too, but for some reason SLY is bigger, I’m not sure why) I’m sure there will be some grumbling about things that were omitted or changed. I felt that way too, at first. But I’ve come to realize that the books will stay just as they are, exactly as I want them to be, no matter how else they are presented. Sure, I was sad to see some characters get cut, but I’m leaving this one to the professionals. I’ll just stick to writing novels, thanks.
The script for the movie---which was called Someone Like You, until Ashley Judd had a movie by the same name---takes Halley and Scarlett and Macon’s story from SLY and gives Halley Haven’s family from That Summer. Which means that Ashley from That Summer is Halley’s sister, and Halley’s mom is actually Haven’s mom. Confused yet? It actually works really well on the page. Trust me.
How To Deal was released in July 2003, and it's now available on DVD and shows pretty regularly on Lifetime (and, if I am to be totally honest, I always stop and watch it, at least for a minute or two). Getting to see my books go from the page to the screen was an incredibly fun ride, and I can only hope I get to do it again someday. Fingers crossed!

So that concludes Sarah Dessen week!! I hope you all enjoyed it!
To learn more about Sarah and her books go to http://www.sarahdessen.com/ , http://www.sarah-land.com/ , friend her on facebook, follow her on twitter or keep coming back to OfficiallyMRS every day this week to read more reviews of Sarah's books.

More to come,
OfficiallyMRS

Sarah Dessen Week: "That Summer"

So although I do love Sarah's books, this one is by far my least favorite of all of them. I do not like writing negative reviews, because hey, I mean these people have put in years of their lives to creating these books so that we can read them!! But as a personal preference, I really did not like "That Summer." It is also the first of Sarah's books that was published, and I have found that her stories get better with each book, making this one almost her ground zero. I read "That Summer" as a summer reading project, so that could be the reason I didn't like it as well. But as the first Sarah Dessen book I read, I did not pick up her books until about two years later, (clearly a big mistake) when I found "The Truth About Forever."

Here is a synopsis so you can chose for yourself (no spoilers):

For fifteen-year-old Haven, life is changing too quickly. She's nearly six feet tall, her father is getting remarried, and her sister, the always perfect Ashley, is planning a wedding of her own. Haven wishes things could just go back to the way they were. Then an old boyfriend of Ashley's reenters the picture, and through him, Haven sees the past for what it really was, and comes to grips with the future.

If you are a big fan of Sarah's and want to decide whether you like the book for yourself, I encourage you to do so, but if you have never read and Sarah Dessen books, this is not the book to start off with.

To learn more about Sarah and her books go to http://www.sarahdessen.com/ , http://www.sarah-land.com/ , friend her on facebook, follow her on twitter or keep coming back to OfficiallyMRS every day this week to read more reviews of Sarah's books.

More to come,

OfficiallyMRS

Sarah Dessen Week: "Someone Like You"

"Someone Like You," like many of Sarah's other books, deals with some heavy issues, this time pier pressure and teen pregnancy as well as loss, but still remains positive with its strong, fun cast of characters and the relationships formed between them. I loved the relationship that Scarlett has with Halley, and vice versa. I also liked the girl-guy relationship in this book because it allows it to stand out from the other Sarah Dessen books I've read.

One thing I didn't like about the book was the fact that I don't think it really stressed how difficult being a teen mom is or being a pregnant teen is. Besides that fact, this is pretty much the Sarah Dessen version of "The Secret Life of the American Teenager," with a little less drama.

Speaking of, have we all seen the first few episodes of the new season?

gasp! shock! DRAMA!!

I can't believe Grace did that!! And what happened to her Dad! And can Grace seriously think that she is a fault for what happened! That's taking it too far! And Amy's mom!! OH MI GAWD!! It was kind of over dramatic, but that's why we love it right?

And what about "Make it or Break it?"

Do we love it or do we love it?? I mean, I love it. Watching people do flips in the air, something I could never accomplish (I'm a klutz), is pretty cool.
Anyways, back to "Someone Like You"

Here is a synopsis of the book (no spoilers!):

Halley and Scarlett have been best friends for years, sharing secrets, clothes, and crushes. People know Scarlett as the popular, flamboyant one; Halley's just her quiet sidekick. Then, at the beginning of their junior year, the balance shifts. First, Scarlett's boyfriend Michael is killed in a freak accident; soon afterward, she learns that she is carrying his baby. For the first time, Scarlett really needs Halley. Their friendship may bend under the weight, but it'll never break--because a true friendship is a promise you keep forever. Sarah Dessen's poignant, funny voice has earned her raves and legions of teenaged fans.

Just so you know, Halley's name is pronounced like the girl in the parent trap, the one who lives in California. It's pronounced like Hallie, not Hailey. I didn't get that until about half way through the book, so I thought I would give you a heads up!!

To learn more about Sarah and her books go to http://www.sarahdessen.com/ , http://www.sarah-land.com/ , friend her on facebook, follow her on twitter or keep coming back to OfficiallyMRS every day this week to read more reviews of Sarah's books.

More to come,

OfficiallyMRS

Sarah Dessen Week: "Lock and Key"

"Lock and Key" is the second most recent of Sarah's books, and my second favorite (only to "The Truth About Forever"). Although it deals with some very heavy issues, it is a story of growth, hard work and friendship while also portraying a realistic image of high school. The one part I did not like about the book was how private schools were portrayed. I go to a private school and not everyone at private schools are stuck up brats. Just so you know.

Here is a synopsis of the book (no spoilers!):

What happens when your past is not just past, but wiped clean entirely? How do you figure out where you're going when you can't even claim where you've been? These were the questions that inspired Lock and Key. It's the story of a girl named Ruby who is abandoned by her mother and determined to make it on her own, even---and especially---when she is sent to live with her long-lost sister in a whole new world of privilege, family, and relationships. As Ruby learns, there's a big difference between being given help and being able to accept it. And sometimes, it takes reaching out to someone else to save yourself.
A fun think about this book is that it gave way to a new jewelry fashion: key necklaces!! I even have one of my own.
Sarah wears hers a lot too! And Tiffany's just came out with a new line of key necklaces, which, although most likely accidental, is pretty cool, if I do say so myself.

Anyways, if you haven't read this book, go pick it up at your local bookstore (and if you have a local independent bookstore that you can buy it from, they really appreciate it!) or library because it really is fantastic!

To learn more about Sarah and her books go to http://www.sarahdessen.com/ , http://www.sarah-land.com/ or keep coming back to OfficiallyMRS every day this week to read more reviews of Sarah's books.

More to come,
OfficiallyMRS