Cleopatra's Moon by Vicky Alvear Shecter

Title: Cleopatra's Moon
Author: Vicky Alvear Shecter
ISBN: 9780545221306
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Released: August 01, 2011
Page #: 355
Source: My public library

Summary:
"Princess of Egypt
Cleopatra Selene is the only daughter of the brilliant Queen Cleopatra of Egypt and General Marcus Antonius of Rome. She's grown up with jewels on her arms, servants at her feet, and all the pleasures of a palace at her command, and she wants only to follow in her mother's footsteps and become a great and powerful queen.

Prisoner of Rome
Then the Roman ruler Octavianus, who has always wanted Egypt's wealth, launches a war that destroys all Selene has ever known. Taken to live in Octavianous's palace in Rome, she vows to defeat him and reclaim her kingdom at all costs. Yet even as she gathers support for her return, Selene finds herself torn between two young men and two different paths to power. Will love distract her from her goal - or help her achieve her true destiny?"
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First Lines:

"'Get rid of that body now, or my men will mutiny!' the captain yelled from the other side of the door.
A stylus on the floor rolled with the movement of the ship. The flame from the hanging bronze lamp flickered. Still, I did not respond."
Page 1
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Review:

I should have known this book was going to be super detailed when I saw the long character list at the beginning of the book. Yikes.

Well, this is the semi-historical account of Cleopatra Selene. Her family is destroyed by Rome - and one by one, she loses everyone she has ever cared about. Her parents, her country, her life, and even more. It's about her resilience and desire to continue her life as though nothing had happened. She spends all of her time in Roman captivity trying to figure out how to get back to her homeland and rule once more. On the way to searching for freedom, she finds herself torn between two guys - both in very different circumstance.

In all honesty, I had a really hard time getting into this book. After finishing it, I realize why we needed all the detail, but it sure starts out slow. There are lots of names, lots of faces, lots of instances to just show you later what she's lost. It doesn't seem to really flow very well. It jumps from year to year to show you important events and I got a little lost. I almost stopped reading before it got good.

It does get good. Once you are in "present time" as it were, you start to get into a flowing story that makes sense. They are captives in Rome and they start to figure out their new identities. It also picks up speed when the guys enter the picture - as love interests. Perhaps I just need that stuff for a good story, but it really helped me get into it.

At one point, I told my husband, "I don't like this book very much, but I really want to find out what happens." He smartly told me that it must be good in it's own way for me to care that much. He was right, I suppose. It's not a book to fall instantly in love with. It's a book to savor and realize the wonderfulness of it later.

I don't really know anything about the historical time that this book is written about. In fact, I know just about nothing. But I think this story does a good job of piquing my interest and showing me a new side of this ancient world.

One thing that bothered me in the beginning of the book was the emphasis on religion. Now, I do understand that Egyptians (and other ancient civilizations) were super involved in the lives of their gods and goddesses. But there's a whole sequence where Cleopatra Selene questions every other religion and dismisses them. Which is fine... but it's very abrupt and random-seeming. I do like to think about the Egyptian gods - praying to one specifically for one thing... and another for something else. It is just very interesting.

Okay, so I suppose it's time for me to let you know if I recommend it. And I'm not really sure. I think those that are really interested in Egyptian history will love it (assuming it's semi-historically accurate - and I cannot write to that). And maybe even people who want to know more about that time in history. I'm not sure the casual YA reader will find this one that enthralling. Interesting, maybe... but they'll have to give it a chance. Get past the first half of the book and see where you are. I think some others loved it more than I did... see below ;).

But for the record, I did enjoy the ending (as much as I could - there were other things not to like... story-wise). It left me feeling hopeful and wondering about what happened in their lives next. So, take that for what it's worth!
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Other Blog Reviews:

Reading, Writing and Ruminating on Young Adult Books
IB Book Blogging
Fiction Folio
Book Drunkard
Library Lady
Supernatural Snark

Waiting on Wednesday (78)

"Waiting on Wednesday" is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. Here's what I'm waiting on this week...

Every Other Day
by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
To be released: December 27, 2011

Summary from Baker and Taylor:
"Appearing as a normal 16-year-old girl every other day while hiding her alternate identity as a demon-slayer who tracks and kills hellhounds and other supernatural monsters, Kali recognizes a demon mark on a popular girl in school and is challenged to save the girl on a day when she does not have her demon-slayer powers."

First of all, how pretty is this cover?! I really think this book sounds amazing - I cannot wait to get my hands on it. It really sounds like a unique story.

What are you waiting on this week?

Out This Week Nov 6-12

Some wonderful stuff coming out this week...

• 11.8.11 Sparks: The Epic, Completely True Blue, (Almost) Holy Quest of Debbie by S.J. Adams
• 11.8.11 Faking Faith by Josie Bloss
  

• 11.8.11 Don't Expect Magic by Kathy McCullough
• 11.8.11 Finding Somewhere by Joseph Monninger
  

• 11.8.11 Prized by Caragh M. O'Brien
• 11.8.11 The Sharp Time by Mary O'Connell
  

• 11.8.11 Inheritance (Inheritance Cycle #4) by Christopher Paolini
• 11.7.11 The Daughters Join the Party (Daughters series) by Joanna Philbin
  

• 11.8.11 Fetching by Kiera Stewart
• 11.8.11 Kill You Last (Thrillogy) by Todd Strasser
  

Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay

Title: Juliet Immortal
Author: Stacey Jay
ISBN: 9780385740166
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Released: October 07, 2011
Page #: 307
Source: My public library

Summary:
"Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, who made the sacrifice to ensure his own immortality. But Romeo didn't anticipate that Juliet would be granted eternal life as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light.

For seven hundred years, Juliet has struggled to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent, while Romeo has fought for the dark side, seeking to destroy the human heart. Until now.

Now Juliet has found her own forbidden love, and Romeo, O Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy their happiness.

Secrets unfold and surprises about in Stacey Jay's powerfully dark romance, which reunites literature's most tragic couple."
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First Lines:

"Tonight, he could have come through the door - the castello is quiet, even the servants are asleep in their beds, and Nurse would have let him in -but he chooses the window, climbing through the tangle of night flowers, carrying petals in on his clothes."
Page 1
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Review:

I truly picked up this book because I love the cover. It speaks volumes - and could very easily be the cover for so many books. You wonder about the girl, where she is, what's going on. Just very well done. It's the complete opposite from the turmoil in the book.
Except I'm a little worried about who she is supposed to be in the story. If it's Juliet herself, then yay. If it's the body she's in for the whole story, not so good. Here's hoping it's Juliet.

Okay, so this is the story of Juliet and Romeo.... way past their tragic end. When they killed themselves, they were pulled into an afterlife they did not expect. Juliet was charged with making sure soul mates find each other. She is always given a new body and tries to make their lives better before she leaves it. Romeo, on the other hand, is supposed to keep these soul mates from loving each other - through any means necessary. And if one kills the other, they get pulled to his side of forever as well.

During this cycle, there is something different - Juliet cannot find her guide (who meets her at every cycle) and she's not sure what's supposed to happen. And she starts to fall in love herself - which isn't supposed to happen. Romeo has started to have a change of heart, but isn't sure he can pull it off. And Juliet doesn't trust him in the least, even if he could.

I'm not sure if that summary made sense, but I hope it's close. Through the first (almost) half of the book, I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what in the world was happening. It's a bit confusing. I do understand the basic principles... it's the specifics that throw me off. These two Light and Dark organizations.... run by... ? I'm not sure. Angels? No. spirits? I dunno. Anyway, it's a little confusing. You just need to know that they are the keepers of time... sort of. And that they send Romeo and Juliet to whatever time and place they are needed.

Once I sort of figured out what was going on, I really liked Juliet. Her character is very determined and keeps the peace wherever she goes. She's also a serious fighter - not willing to give up, even when Romeo is hot on her trail. It made me really root for her. It also helps that she was falling in love with the best-boy-in-the-world. I don't think any guy is that romantic, but he sure comes across as perfect. And I enjoy the irony of her falling into another forbidden love - how appropriate.

Romeo's character had me a little confused. You never really know if you can trust him throughout the story. There are a couple of chapters that give his point of view on a few things... and I think those left me even more confused about his character. All of his actions are terrible - then he'll say something about wanting to change. He just sounds like an awful guy... and even though he's described as attractive, I really couldn't picture him that way.

When I started getting closer to the end, I was really worried that I wouldn't like/understand the ending. The author proved me wrong - somewhat. There were still some mystical things that happened that I'm still not sure I understand. But the relationship stuff made me happy. No, I'm not giving away the ending... I just wanted to mention it because I was surprised at how it left me feeling like the story was complete. I had serious worries that I would put down the book with confusion.

All in all, I'd say this is a very unique story - even if it's taken from the original Romeo and Juliet. The author does a very interesting job in twisting that story around to make it mystical and modern. I truly liked the concept and I think it's executed well - for the most part. I just wish I didn't have the points of confusion throughout the book.

I will definitely be recommending this book to readers who love reworked stories (it's not quite that, but I think it will translate well). It's also great for those who love romance. The story also has a sense of thriller - what with Romeo stalking around - so it might appeal to those readers as well. I'm very intrigued by this author and wonder what her other books are like. I may have to go find out.
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Other Blog Reviews:

The Great, the Good and the Bad
The Book Smugglers
In the Good Books
Zoe's Book Reviews
IB Book Blogging
The Book Heist
Reading Vacation
Book Twirps
Poisoned Rationality

Waiting on Wednesday (77)

"Waiting on Wednesday" is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. Here's what I'm waiting on this week...

Still Waters
by Emma Carlson Berne
To be released: December 20, 2011

Summary from Baker and Taylor:
"Hannah can't wait to sneak off for a romantic weekend with her boyfriend, Colin. He’s leaving for college soon, and Hannah wants their trip to the lake house to be one they’ll never forget.
But once Hannah and Colin get there, things start to seem a bit...off. They can't find the town on any map. The house they are staying in looks as if someone's been living there, even though it's been deserted for years. And Colin doesn’t seem quite himself. As he grows more unstable, Hannah worries about Colin’s dark side, and her own safety.
Nothing is as perfect as it seems, and what lies beneath may haunt her forever."

I think this book sounds like a great romantic mystery. And I think the cover is very pretty - it and the title really make you wonder about the book, don't they? I'm excited to see how this book turns out!

What are you waiting on this week?