But major publishers like Pearson Education, Cengage Learning, and Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishing Group aren’t so thrilled with the thousands of beta testers across 2,000 universities in the U.S. enjoying Boundless’ free and open alternatives. Students using the beta product rated the Boundless’ platform 50 percent higher than physical textbooks, and the average grade for users was a B+, with 80 percent saying they received grades they wanted or higher.

The top three publishers sued Boundless in March of 2012, but just as the company said it would, Boundless has evolved and moved out of beta with various new publicly live products. The company raised an $8 million Series A round, led by Venrock in April 2012.

Boundless has now filed an Amended Answer and Counterclaims with the court, asserting that Boundless no longer offers the products being charged with three counts of copyright infringement, one for unfair competition, and one for false advertising.

Boundless is now asking that the plaintiffs take a look at the new products and determine whether or not they also allegedly infringe. It’s unclear if this can or will affect the current court case, which is against the now-extinct beta product. In either case, the publishers seem adamant to ignore the evolution of Boundless’ products and let the ruling for the beta product determine the future of the startup.

Boundless founder and CEO Ariel Diaz tells TechCrunch that neither the beta nor the current products are infringing any copyright, since the content is sourced from publicly available information, or Open Educational Resources (OER).

In an email to the plaintiffs, Boundless’ counsel asks for more clarity about the plaintiffs’ intentions for Boundless’ current live products.

Given that there is some overlap in the content of [the beta product] and [the current products], our client is concerned that Plaintiffs will claim that Boundless’ aforementioned works infringe Plaintiffs’ textbooks only after this case ends. Our client would prefer not to conduct its business under such a cloud of uncertainty.

In other words, Boundless simply wants to know if it will be slapped with yet another lawsuit for its current products after the lawsuit on its currently unavailable beta product ends.

Here’s how the publishers’ counsel responded:

With all due respect, Plaintiffs are under no obligation to monitor and analyze those changes, factually and legally, on an ongoing basis. Plaintiffs are also not under any obligation to respond to your client’s request that they research and evaluate whether they have new claims that could potentially be added to their case at this time. It is not realistic to litigate against a moving object even if we wanted to, which we do not.

He goes on to say…

We have little doubt that the Court’s resolution of Plaintiffs’ claims will inform your client’s current and future business practices.

As it stands, 80 percent of the market is controlled by four top publishers, who all generally provide the same content in the same order. Much of that content is also readily available as OER, which Boundless takes advantage of to offer accessible course materials to students. Prices have been jacked up three times that of inflation, according to Boundless.

Unlike the cheery impressions by the corridoor, the
corners full of cobwebs are always active. The creatures
may engender blossoms for a while but the mood
blows its breeze earlier.

Such unwanted battles from/of within that evoke
eruptions maybe misunderstood to the hiding,
although quite silly to a wise man.

Ideas about riding the beast only unleashes doom
that devours the remnants later.

- In lawsuit with publishers, open textbook startup Boundless hits back.

- A Dutch publisher talks about his new mobile app with subscriptions for individual writers.

- Updated: Time Warner reportedly in talks to sell most of its magazines to Meredith.

- Startup Plympton acquires DailyLit to deliver serial fiction in a digital age.

- Department of Justice clears Random House-Penguin merger.

- Hearst: Women finally embracing online magazines thanks to 7-inch screens.

- Inkling makes its Google-friendly digital publishing tools free to everyone.

- EBSCO Publishing releases new eBook subscription offering – eBook Public Library Collection.

- OCLC and FamilySearch partnership will combine resources for richer genealogy research experience.

Book Synopsis: [goodreads]
Pages 438 | Published January 22nd 2013 by Harper Teen
The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.
Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California – and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.
As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfill her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must decide her fate once and for all.

Book Review: 4 stars.

<*Beware! There are spoilers in this review*>

Oh Cynthia Hand, why oh why do you do this to me!? Make me feel so much for your characters and then on the last page I am saddened by the finality of the series. Boundless was the last instalment of the Unearthly trilogy, and it surprised me.

Like with most series, the problem arises when the readers is unable to remember what happened in the previous books because there is such a long wait time between publications. And even though I did write a Pensive Post on this series…..I clearly missed out a few things. So it took me maybe a few chapters to get into the book, but after those mere minutes had past, I was hooked. Again.

Hand has this beautiful style of writing that creates a clear depiction of scenes allowing the reader to fully immerse themselves into her world. I had no trouble imagining Stanford, Tuckers barn and dare I say Hell or even Heaven?? The description of Hell was actually done rather brilliantly, mirroring streets on Earth with a sorrowful twist. I devoured it.

The plot for me did carry on a bit, and at times I sat there wishing that Hand would just get on with it. Like most readers I am sure, we try to predict what will happen before the book ends. Well, I did not pick the situation with Angela. And yet I admired how it fit in with Clara’s purpose. With such an everlasting war going on between good and evil, I was a little relieved to know that <*spoilers*> Clara’s purpose would not end this war. That she only played a rather small part in the success of good for one day. And because of this I really enjoyed how Hand finished her trilogy. Despite when Tucker became a prophet, it was just too ‘happy ending’ for me.

Like i’ve mentioned before, anything with religious undertones I will read… because I am sort of a religion nut. The contrast in beliefs between Jeffrey and Clara in regards to faith was written with such honesty that I loved it. Since the existence of God is questioned constantly in every day life, I rather liked how Hand showed this conflict through two angels.

“I blame God,” he says. “If there even is such a thing. Sometimes I feel like we’re all chumps, doing stuff from these visions just because somebody told us to, in the name of a deity we’ve never even met. Maybe the visions have nothing to do with God, and we’re just seeing the future. Maybe we’re all perpetuating the myth”
Boundless | Cynthia Hand

This brings me to my opinion on the debate of Tucker vs. Christian. It only happens rarely that I fall for the love interest who the protagonist does not end up with – and this was another of those cases. From the beginning I did love Tucker, his cowboy mannerisms and hat made me swoon. Yet even so, I know why I prefer Christian. Don’t get me wrong, Hand has definitely set up the love interests in a way that either one would be good for Clara. And we all know that she picked Tucker in the end because she would always love him more. I just preferred Christian. Why? I think it was because he was mentioned more. As a reader I felt that I knew more about him, and was saddened that he wouldn’t get his happy ending. Its always going to be a hard decision when you have to choose between a person who you are destined to be with, and then another who your heart will always love. I get Clara’s decision, and if this was real life I’d hope I’d now have a shot with Christian….i’m just saying.

If you have started this series then I recommend you finish it, and if you haven’t then you should give it a go. It is one of the better angel series I have read.

BUY BOOK

Breathes there the man, with soul so dead,
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land!
Whose heart hath ne’er within him burn’d,
As home his footsteps he hath turn’d,
From wandering on a foreign strand!
If such there breathe, go, mark him well;
For him no Minstrel raptures swell;
High though his titles, proud his name,
Boundless his wealth as wish can claim;
Despite those titles, power, and pelf,
The wretch, concentred all in self,
Living, shall forfeit fair renown,
And, doubly dying, shall go down
To the vile dust, from whence he sprung,
Unwept, unhonour’d, and unsung.

Word meanings:

pelf=money, wealth

Meet=well fitting
Yarrow, Ettrick, Teviot= rivers in the Scottish Borders

I am giving away 1 book to 1 winner. You get to chose between 4 books, so I hope you like them!!! Your options are:

No one is like Daemon Black.

When he set out to prove his feelings for me, he wasn’t fooling around. Doubting him isn’t something I’ll do again, and now that we’ve made it through the rough patches, well… There’s a lot of spontaneous combustion going on.

But even he can’t protect his family from the danger of trying to free those they love.

After everything, I’m no longer the same Katy. I’m different… And I’m not sure what that will mean in the end. When each step we take in discovering the truth puts us in the path of the secret organization responsible for torturing and testing hybrids, the more I realize there is no end to what I’m capable of. The death of someone close still lingers, help comes from the most unlikely source, and friends will become the deadliest of enemies, but we won’t turn back. Even if the outcome will shatter our worlds forever.

Together we’re stronger… and they know it

The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California – and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfill her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must decide her fate once and for all.

Embrace the Forbidden

What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?

This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.

Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but Anna, the ultimate good girl, has always had the advantage of her angel side to balance the darkness within. It isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

There’s nowhere left to hide.

I thought vampires were our enemies – they controlled our lives, isolated our cities, and demanded our blood – until I met Victor. With Victor taking over as the new Lord Valentine, things were supposed to get better. Instead, they’re worse than ever.

Day Walkers, a new breed of vampires who can walk in the sun, are terrorizing the city. Blood supplies are low, and if Victor’s vampires don’t get enough, they will become infected with the Thirst – a disease that will turn them into mindless killers.

To stop it, I must journey across the desolate wasteland to the very place where the sickness began. I can only hope that the answers that await me are enough to save us all… before it’s too late.

NOW that you see your choices all you need to do is go to ——a Rafflecopter giveaway

You can also go to this links to continue on in the hop!

I finished working on Season One of this fantastic show back in December, and it is finally on the air on Travel + Escape, tune in on Sunday’s at 9pm EST. It’s a show about two Ultra Marathon runners, Simon and Turbo, who travel the world in participating in 8 of the most grueling and intense endurance races in 8 fantastic locations.

Please check out the website http://www.travelandescape.ca/shows/boundless/ for more information on the show, and have a look at the brilliant trailer above.

From the company’s statement:

The reaction of the publishers has been their unjustified and legally untenable lawsuit against Boundless for copyright infringement of these textbooks and false advertising and unfair competition. Ariel Diaz, founder and CEO of Boundless said, “In our view, such legal action is an attempt to stifle startups such as Boundless who are driving innovation and using the power of the Internet to help students save money and become better learners.

The company argues that, because the content in Boundless textbooks is public domain and not protected by copyright, it cannot be subject to copyright infringement. The company goes after publishers as well, nothing that the publishers’ claims to copyright infringement is barred by “their own unclean hands and inequitable conduct.” There are also accusations of copyright monopoly. In other words, this may get ugly.

The trial will be huge for OER — if Boundless wins, the publishers will need to accept the reality that, someday, as I’ve written before, the cost of many textbooks really will go to zero. The publishers are already preparing for the commoditization of their product in some way or another, telling the market that in the future they’ll focus on selling tools related to the books, but not relying on the book sales alone. Macmillan has its whole “disrupt our business from the inside.” Pearson has its Project BlueSky, a platform that offers free, Creative Commons-licensed content, alongside its own expensive books.

But even as they’re doing that, they’re suing a startup doing the same thing. When I first heard about Boundless, I thought, here is a company changing a messed up system by blowing it up, rather than working quietly within it. They’re paying the price for that revolutionary thinking by wasting time with a lawsuit. But if they win, they’ll open the doors for other radical uses of OER and Creative Commons-licensed material.

The irony is that Boundless’s business model isn’t any different from the publishers’ long-term plan. The company gives away books for free and then tries to upsell students on its $20 SmartNotes tools. Update: The company doesn’t charge for SmartNotes either. Which means there is no business model at the moment. It’s not something that investors would swoon at, which is no matter for now — Boundless has $10 million in venture backing from Venrock and others, giving it the luxury to figure that out over time. If the jury allows the company to continue creating free textbook alternatives, charging for premium tools is the most obvious way for the company to scare up revenue.

If Boundless wins, the publishers’ next defense will be to smear the company’s offerings as low quality and not a usable replacement. In a marketplace serving cash-strapped college kids, free will always be better than expensive no matter the quality, but that’s the attack that has had the most staying power for OER content thus far.

I was very interested to read Sociology professor Joshua Kim’s quality assessment of Boundless books in Inside Higher Ed. The actual information in most “Intro” books is not copyrightable, but their organization is. Considering most “Intro” books are basically interchangeable, the publishers have a difficult case to make there, he writes.

I think that the publishers are going to have a hard time arguing that the organization of their books is protected when the lawyers for Boundless point out that every table of contents looks pretty much the same for every introductory textbook. The free Boundless version is just another entry into a sea of almost identical versions of our big selling, and hope-to-be big selling, higher ed textbooks.

Further, he says the content in Boundless books is around 80 percent as good as the expensive hardbacks. He says the content wouldn’t hold him back from assigning a Boundless book, but the lack of offline reading functionality and test banks would. Those seem like fairly easy problems to solve, once Boundless emerges from the shadows of this trial (and, of course, pending the company wins the trial).

I’m not convinced Boundless’ current business model lack of a business model would make it into a huge company, but I am convinced the company can make a huge impact on the future of textbooks. For that reason, I’ll be watching this trial closely.

[Image via]

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

Hello world! I hope that you have all had an awesome week in books, let me know what you received or have bought this week  All of the book covers will link you to goodreads so that you may read the synopsis if you wish  The Bane is a re-release of Eden the first book in the Eden trilogy by Keary Taylor. So the link will take you to the Eden title rather than The Bane.

~ NetGalley ~ I am so grateful, and incredibly delighted to be given the opportunity to read these wonderful books!

~ Bought ~

I bought this yesterday and am already 53% of the way through….I don’t know what I will do when it ends….maybe cry. So far though, it is really amazing! Review should be up by wednesday!

Happy Reading!

I lost myself in colored strife…

Seeing deaf piano keys;

rhyming words and would have beens;

I found Angels begging God

to show perfection in the flawed,

to show the way to right all wrong;

Singing a prayer to stay strong.

Thus, I know one thing true:

Light gathers my belief in you,

And nothing’s hard or out of reach,

Yet… I can’t paint you in one speech…

Stacking The Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews.
It’s all about sharing the books we’ve picked up for the week, whether they are bought, borrowed, gifted, galleys, physical or virtual.
Share your shelves and remember to visit Tynga’s Reviews where it all started to find more great books!

Bought

I was considering buying this off The Book Depository but they only had the American cover, and I think this Australian cover is SO BEAUTIFUL. So I went to my favourite bookstore, and it was $5 off. Then I had $8 bonus cash on my loyalty card to spend. I spent a total of $6 on this book and read it in a day.

Supporting your local bookstores is a great idea. Also, isn’t it BEAUTIFUL?

Boundless is one of the companies that offers digital textbooks, now under Creative Commons licenses (BY-SA)

The textbooks publishers have found a digital nightmare. Maybe is not right to talk about enemies but they are fearful opponents, indeed. Internet and access to new and portable technologies (laptops, tablets, smartphones…) have increased the usage of digital textbooks instead of printed and expensive unupdated encyclopedias.

Startups such as Boundless or BC Campus’ Opening Education project offer students and faculty digital textbooks under Creative Commons licenses that can be used wholly or partially at no costs, where traditional textbooks are usually expensive and unupdated most of the time.

As reported by TechCrunch, since April 2012 the Boston-based startup Boundless, founded by Ariel Diaz, Brian Balfour and Aaron Whitehas, have being fighting the oligopoly of old-school textbook publishers giving free alternatives to students and professors. So far, they released 18 open textbooks under the same license as Wikipedia (Attribution-ShareAlike). The subjects for these textbooks’ range from biology to economy and many topics in between. They work as alive producers of knowledge, offering extra sources such as quizzes, guides and extra sources through links to Creative Commons licensed sources.

As free textbooks, they don’t work in terms of expiration dates as can be found in other (paid) digital textbook options. Nonetheless, benefits for Boundless come from Premium features available for a cost. To access Boundlees users need to create an account on their website. Before that, this is the list of textbooks currently available.

In Canada, the government of British Columbia announced, in October 2012, their support to the creation of open textbooks for some of the coursers with the highest impact in the province’s public post secondary system.

BCcampus, a publicly funded organization using information technologies to connect expertise, programs and resources in post-secondary institutions in British Columbia is coordinating this project, as they have over 10 years of experience in this field. Opening Education program is preparing textbooks for approximately 200.000 students that will be available for free online, or at low-cost for printed versions.

The website created for the project started as a discussion board for people interested in open education, starting at Vancouver Opening Education (2011). Now, Opening Education is trying to engage British Columbia faculty, institutions and publishers to its project. So far, they have a list of links to find openly-licensed and free textbooks.

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 Title & Author:

  Series:  Unearthly #3

  Publisher: HarperTeen, 438 pages

  Release Date: January 22, 2013

 Genre: YA Paranormal

 Source: borrowed from a friend

  Amazon |   Goodreads  | Cynthia Hand

 SYNOPSIS: (According to my husband, who has NOT read the book —  see how well he listens to my bookish ramblings)

This book is more of the same but ramped up like 5 billion times for the epic finale in the 3rd and final book in the series.  Fighting, a trip to Hell and a whole lot of glory will determine who comes out a winner in the crazy love triangle.  This book will keep you on the edge of glory! haha

__________________________________________________________________

BOOK ROCK BETTY BREAK DOWN:

• THE KISSING –  Yes and No.  There are some moments where I thought something might happen, but then it didn’t.  It doesn’t take away from the obvious romantic undertone of the book, but there is honestly just too much craziness happening for major kissing to be on the menu.  I loved the electric chemistry between Clara and Christian.  Though not team Tucker, they are pretty stinking cute.  *rolls eyes*
• THE SWOONING -   Christian.  I was on swoon overdrive.  This guy is obviously hot in all the ways that count, but what really made me swoon was his unconditional loyalty to Clara!  He was her rock.  He knew what she needed when she needed it and was there for her no matter how (usually like something she stepped in) she treated him.  Plus, the dude is a warrior with that glory sword!  I can see why some swoon hard over Tucker, but to me… he was a howdy doody hotdog.  (sorry!!)
• THE SWAGGER –  This book was intense!!  It started off on a great tone.  Everyone is adjusting to college life, etc., but then the visions come, followed by training, some love triangle drama, a visit to hell, and some glory sword battles with Black Wings!  I couldn’t catch my breath.  Every time I turned a page a new twist was thrown at me.  I felt like I was walking across a mine field.  Quite a finale to the series!!
• THE OH SNAP! -  Once again, Cynthia Hand brings some surprises, okay, unending surprises!  My jaw seriously dropped at least 3 times.  I’d be reading and out of the blue these random bombs were dropped that blew everything out of the water.  I enjoy this, but it was too much at times…. making it hard to believe.
• THE UMMM WHAT?? -  1. Again, Clara has some cheesy lines.  Who says “congratulations.  that’s epic.” to someone who just had a baby?  Sometimes it seemed like Cynthia Hand tried a little too hard to sound ‘with the times’ and failed big time.  2.  I hated the ending.  It didn’t do some of the characters justice.  One in particular deserved a hell of lot more.  3.  There is no way defeating a bad ass Black Wing could be so simple… that scene fell flat.  4.  Clara being able to “show” people her memories was a little too Twilight for me.  OH OH OH… and  5.  Clara was too weak to even hold a glory circle, yet she manages to wield a glory sword and then bring someone back to life.  Yeah, okay.
• THE ROCK:  Angel by Slick Shoes  

ENCORE:
This book was full of suspense and kept me on the edge of my seat.  I really didn’t know how things would play out.  It wasn’t the happy ending I’d hoped for, but for others it might have been exactly what they wanted.  The resolution was just too easy.  It should have been 10 times more complicated than it was– the action, the romance, all of it.  One thing I really enjoyed was getting to know Samjeeza.  It was interesting to learn about his history with Clara’s mother.  It’s always good to see how love can have a huge impact on evil.  I appreciated the moral tone of the book.   Though I have some issues with the way the series wrapped up, I still loved it!  I couldn’t stop reading and it put me on an emotional roller coaster.  That is always a good thing!  Even with all of the UMMM WHATs, I’m still putting this one on my top shelf.

RATING:   TOP SHELF

The discussion panel was loads of fun! It started where each author had a chance to describe their series, without giving spoilers – which must have difficult beyond belief. One of my favorites was when Brodi Ashton described her main character losing something special at the end of the first novel, a “trinket with abs.” After several laughs, the authors answered several questions in relation to their novels. These questions ranged through several different topics such as describing their latest novels in five words and how they created their futuristic and fantasy settings. The authors also discussed failed manuscripts such as Tahereh Mafi’s MS about “magical purple eyelashes,” which was intriguing; their research into their novels, like Cynthia Hand visiting the actual town and high school for her setting; and the authors’ writing process and whether they were a pantser (someone who flys by the seat of their pants) or a plotter . I liked Veronica Rossi’s answer about being a plotter that boycotts.

I would have to say it was definitely the highlight of my year so far. And now I want to share a piece of it with one of you! I’m hold a Rafflecopter Giveaway featuring four signed books plus some swag. Here’s what’s up for grabs: signed copy of Everbound (Everneath #2) by Brodi Ashton plus Everbound bookmark; signed copy of Boundless (Unearthly #3) by Cynthia Hand plus three Unearthly Series bookmarks and two Unearthly temporary tattoos; signed copy of Unravel Me (Shatter Me #2) by Tahereh Mafi; and signed copy of Through the Ever Night (Under the Never Sky #2) by Veronica Rossi. One winner takes all. The giveaway is open to participants 13 years and older living in the USA and Canada. Giveaway closes midnight, February 25^th. Good Luck!

Click to enter -> a Rafflecopter giveaway

From Amazon:

The past few years held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner ever could have anticipated. Yet through the dizzying high of first love to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she could no longer deny was that she was never meant to have a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seemed like the best option, so she’s headed back to California—and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfill her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must choose her fate once and for all.

DATE / Aug 2009
WORKSHOP ORGANISER / Skyhigh Creative Partners
DESCRIPTION / Use 5 photos to describe FRIEND
IDEAS /
All the friends are strangers before we met. Friends are always from the boundless world.

 Title & Author:

  Series:  Unearthly #2

  Publisher: HarperTeen, 403 pages

  Release Date: January 17, 2012

 Genre: YA Paranormal

 Source: borrowed from a friend

  Amazon |   Goodreads  | Cynthia Hand

 SYNOPSIS: (According to my husband, who has NOT read the book —  see how well he listens to my bookish ramblings)

Let the love-triangle human/angel party rage on!  Girl Angel loves Boy Human, but Boy Angel is destined to be with Girl Angel MEANWHILE the dark wings (think: Dark Wing Duck) are raging a war against the good angels to bring them over to the dark side.  This book has love, tragedy and leaves you wanting more.  Luckily there is a 3rd book!  Boo yah!

__________________________________________________________________

BOOK ROCK BETTY BREAK DOWN:

• THE KISSING –  YES, YES, YES!!  There is so much tension in this book it’s CRAZY!  It just builds, and builds, and builds until BAM! it finally happens!  And, WOW is it perfect!  :)
• THE SWOONING -   HA!  Is there anything better than two ridiculously hot guys fighting over the same girl?!  Tucker and Christian bring the swoon in full force.  Personally I am Team Christian, HANDS DOWN, but to be honest, it is easy to sway either way.  I thoroughly enjoyed drooling over both.
• THE SWAGGER –  Another great book!  Cynthia Hand sets the perfect pace.  There are quiet, relationship building moments, and then sudden craziness that kept me on my toes!  She also has a way with words.  I had a hard time keeping my emotions in check, especially toward the end.  My husband thought I was crying over something he was watching on TV, and I flipped out and yelled “YOU IDIOT!  DON’T LAUGH AT ME! @#$%$#@^#@$ JUST @#$%#$% IN MY BOOK!”.  It’s also not predictable.  It is full of interesting twists I wasn’t expecting.
• THE OH SNAP! -  I couldn’t believe the shockers that were revealed– Angel Congregation?!  Triplares?!  Clara’s dad?!  Black Wings might have hearts?!  Jeffrey’s purpose?! GOOD GOOD STUFF!!
• THE UMMMM WHAT?? -  1. Why did Clara have to say “tough beans”?  Who says that?!  2. Not really a fan of all the brand names and TV show mentions, etc.  Who cares?!  and 3. Wendy is a real turd to Clara.  She seemed so insensitive considering what Clara was dealing with.  Chill dawg.
• THE ROCK:  Such Great Heights by The Postal Service  

ENCORE:
I enjoyed this book just as much as the first.  Clara grows a lot as she is learning to separate her free will from her destiny.  I loved the focus that was placed on her relationship with her mother and father.  It was so genuine and well written that it had me in tears.  I could feel the sorrow!  I also adored the way Christian was there for Clara through all of her ordeals regardless of how hard she was pushing him away.  Plus, throw in a lot of surprises and a pretty sweet love triangle – it becomes one impressive book!   I wasn’t let down at all, especially considering this was the second book of the series!

RATING:   TOP SHELF

 Title & Author: 

  Series:  Unearthly #1

  Publisher: HarperTeen, 435 pages

  Release Date: January 1, 2011

 Genre: YA Paranormal

 Source: borrowed from a friend

  Amazon |   Goodreads  | Cynthia Hand

SYNOPSIS: (According to my husband, who has NOT read the book —  see how well he listens to my bookish ramblings)

This book is 1 part Twilight and 2 parts Touched By An Angel and a whole lot of crazy!  You have these people who don’t know they are angels until they reach a certain age.  The way they find out is they grow wings and start glowing/sparkling.  Then they find out that they have a specific task that is their life’s goal.  But there are bad angels out there who try to ruin the day.  When you throw in a silly love triangle, this book is out of this world!!

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BOOK ROCK BETTY BREAK DOWN:

• THE KISSING –  HELL YES!  You want the tingles?  How about the kind of kissing that lights your entire body up?  Perhaps, enough energy to light up a dark barn?  This book brings on the kissing, as well as all the sugary sweetness that leads up to it.
• THE SWOONING -  Prepare to OD on swoon.  In this book there are TWO, yes, TWO hot guys worth swooning over.  We’ve got Christian– hot perfection– attractive in the ridiculously pretty way. He’s super hot and has every girl in school drooling over him.  Plus, he’s really good at everything.  Basically on a level above everybody else, but he doesn’t behave that way.  Then, on other end of the spectrum we’ve got Tucker.  Mmmmm Tucker.  Mmmmm Mmmmm Mmmmm.  He is a scruffy cowboy…. tan, muscular, and yes he’s got charm.  He is the guy I’d want to help me out if my car broke down on the side of the road… Are you picturing this??  Early on he has some issues communicating how he really feels, and is quite sarcastic, but trust me, he knows how to treat a girl right.  He is perfect in an imperfect way.  I had trouble choosing a team.  I wanted both!
• THE SWAGGER –  I was addicted by page 3.  It’s the kind of book that takes about 20 seconds to realize that ‘HEY.  THIS IS GUNNA BE AWESOME’.  Cynthia Hand is so descriptive with her characters.  She developed them in a way that gives a clear physical and mental picture of who they are.  I hate it when I can’t SEE my characters.  I felt so connected the entire way through.  I finished it in less than a day.
• THE OH SNAP! -  There were a lot of surprises and moments that made me want to punch someone in the face.  It is not predictable and left me unsure of what would happen, or better yet, what I wanted to happen!  Oh, and there is a reference to the movie Carrie!!!
• THE UMMMM WHAT?? -  Why did the Black Wing (evil angel) have to be named SAM?!  One of his first lines is “I AM SAM”.  I couldn’t take him seriously from that point on.  All I could picture was the movie I AM SAM.  Oh… and one other thing.  After the fire, Clara takes a shower and summons her wings so she can wash them.  We are told her wings have a 10ft span…. HOW BIG IS HER SHOWER?!?!
• THE ROCK:  Ready and Waiting to Fall by Mae   

ENCORE:
What a great book!  The angel world was really unique and I enjoyed learning more and more about it as Clara experienced various aspects of it for the first time.  I love all things paranormal and I obviously love kissing, so this book was right up my alley.  What I loved most was that even though there is a love triangle, I didn’t feel a forced push toward one or the other.  At certain times I definitely leaned toward Tucker, but I have feeling the next 2 books will have me swaying back and forth!  I LOVE that!  There doesn’t seem to be a RIGHT or OBVIOUS choice.  I like that Clara is feeling that too.  It doesn’t always have to be black or white!  Thank you Cynthia Hand!  A good series makes me read insanely fast.  I have blown through the first 2 books in 3 days—-   READ THIS BOOK!  I was tempted to put this one in my firebox, but I just can’t.  It was close, but I’m going to save the space.

RATING:   TOP SHELF

Boundless by Cynthia Hand

Publisher: HarperTeen
Series: Unearthly #3
Pages: 448

Goodreads Summary:

The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California – and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfill her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must decide her fate once and for all.

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