N. Sparks Contest

Hey there books fans!

We have come across a great contest going on right now.

If you're on twitter, and love Nicholas Sparks then you will love this:

Follow @NSparksNovels on Twitter for a chance to win one of 16 signed books by Nicholas Sparks.

Sounds awesome right!?
Anyone can enter. It's not only for the U.S., all of you international readers have a shot too!

Help get them to 16k followers!

And if you don't already, follow Christina and I at @Mimi_Esquivia and @mediaCG.

Good Luck!!!!

Update

Hey Everyone!!!

Sorry Christina and Mimi haven't posted anything in the recent months. We haven't forgotten about our blog, we have just been very busy with work. But don't worry, we will get things in full swing soon enough. Especially during reading season a.k.a Summer.

Right now Mimi is reading Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Christina has already read it. We hope to have the recap up for you by the end of this month, followed by a review on the movie.

Have any of you read it?

Give us your thoughts.

We appreciate all of you for stopping by. Thanks for your support.

Top 25 Books of 2010

Amazon.com has released a list of the top 25 books of the year. Considering that Amazon is one of the top three book selling companies, we think this list is pretty accurate.

We have reviewed three (The Last Song, A Reliable Wife, Dear John) books on this list, and will be posting three (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Series) others in the upcoming months.

Here is the complete list of the top 25 books.

1. Faces in Time: A Time Travel Thriller by Lewis E Aleman

2. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

3. Percy Jackson and the Olympians Paperback Boxed Set (Books 1-3) by Rick Riordan 4. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson 5. The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson 6. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson 7. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot 8. The Three Weissmanns of Westport: A Novel by Cathleen Schine 9. Worst Case (Michael Bennett) by James Patterson 10. The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, No. 3) by Dan Brown 11. Dear John by Nicholas Sparks 12. A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick 13. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery 14. Olive Kitteridge: Fiction by Elizabeth Strout 15. The Postmistress by Sarah Blake 16. Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins 17. Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins 18. Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay 19. Fantasy in Death by J.D. Robb 20. The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks 21. The Love Dare by Alex Kendrick 22. The 9th Judgment (Women's Murder Club) by James Patterson 23. Under the Dome: A Novel by Stephen King 24. Breathless: A Novel by Dean Koontz 25. Savor the Moment (The Bride Quartet, Book 3) by Nora Roberts Have you read any books on this list?? Let us know which ones you did, and what you thought.

Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

I read this book because Christina would not leave me alone, and made me read it. Don't get me wrong, I want to read everything ever written by Kristin Hannah, but I didn't feel like I would really enjoy this book.

Well, I was kind of right. I was half way through the book, and I couldn't wait to get it over with. I still wasn't hooked. And just when I was about to chuck it out the window, it started to reel me in.

This is by no means a love story. It's about two sisters who had a mother who never showed any emotion towards them. The only time she would talk to them without being cold, was when she would tell them a fairy tale, one she never finished. But in his death bed, their dad made them promise to make their mom tell them the story.

From the very beginning I knew that this wasn't an ordinary fairy tale, and I caught on pretty quick. I just couldn't forgive what this lady's coldness had done to her daughters. I must say that I really liked the end. The fairy tale turned out to be very sad, and the ending just perfect. It really had a crazy twist that I had no idea was coming.

Overall, I do not regret reading this book at all. I'd give it a 7.5 out of 10.

Have you read it before? What do you think? Let us know.

-Mimi

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Winter Garden was yet another Kristin Hannah great. I am such a fan of stories within stories, especially stores talking about a certain period in history, and that is exactly what Winter Garden is.

First, I need to tell you NOT to give up on the book. I was scared Mimi was going to stop reading it because she hated the beginning so much, so I promise you that it will pick up and you will not be able to put it down.

This is a story of loss, and most importantly love. Nina and Meredith are two sisters who grow up with a bitch of a mother and a pretty awesome dad, but they loose their father and have to figure out how to live with only their mother around. Anya, their mom, is a horrible excuse of a mother. She never talks to them or shows them affection, all she does is sit outside in her winter garden. As the story goes on, we learn why Anya is the way she is and Nina and Meredith learned about a time they never new existed.

Once you are done reading the book, you will feel bad for Anya and her past, but you probably won't forgive her for being such a bitch. If you are like Mimi, you probably won't like Nina and Meredith throughout the book because they do a bad job keeping their own relationships intact. I didn't so much hate them, I just wanted to smack some sense into them at some points in the book.

All in all, this is a GREAT book that any woman will LOVE! Remember, the beginning is kind of slow and you will get mad at Anya, but I promise it will get better.

Have you read Winter Garden? What did you think?

PS: This would be A GREAT movie because it not only has a love story, but some action as well!

-Christina

The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

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This book was absolutely AMAZING! I know I probably have, and will say that a lot about other books in this blog, but this one was hard to put down. It's one of the most suspenseful books I have ever read, and it brings out a lot of emotions.

I felt really bad for Mary. She was so kind, and had no choice than to become the King's mistress, and deal with the horrors her sister Ann made her go through, but she stayed strong. Meanwhile, Ann was the nastiest bitch I have ever read about in a book. She didn't care at all for her sister Mary, and used her like an old rag doll. Just thinking about it makes me mad. You can't begin to image how evil Ann was until you read this book.

There were other characters here and there that you will love, hate, or will just annoy you, but no one will bring out the emotions like Ann. You're going to want to punch the book while you're reading. The things she does are appalling! I won't ruin anything for you, but I will tell you that on a scale from Bitch to Mega Bitch, she gets a "Ultra Mega Super Bitch."

I saw the movie, and I will say it was good. And trust me, I'm usually hard on movies of my favorite books, but I will tell you that the Ann in the movie isn't even half the bitch Ann was in the book. I recommend both the movie and the book, but especially the book. It's definitely a GREAT read.

-Mimi

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This was my second time reading The Other Boleyn Girl. I bitched at Mimi for months telling her I did not want to read it again, but I am sure glad I did! The first time I read it way too fast and kept confusing it with the movie. This time, I read it nice and slow and enjoyed it much more.

First of all, if you liked the movie, you will LOVE the book. It is really really big, but super good and scandalous! It is based very roughly on the life of Henry VIII and wife of a few years, Anne Boleyn. (mother of the great Queen Elizabeth)

Basically the king sleeps around with Anne and her sister Mary and just about every other girl around him. I really REALLY hate him. He is gross, annoying, and cocky just because he is the king he can get whatever or whomever he wants.

Anne is a total bitch consumed with the idea of wealth and power. Because of that, she gets beheaded, which she 100% deserves. Her sister Mary on the other hand (the narrator of the book) is forced into the life consumed by power. At a very young age she is made to sleep with the King and be his lover. Her whole life is based on what her family makes her do, it really sucks and I feel bad for her.

This is a time where men are the rulers of the women, and I am so glad I was not alive then. I would have been the first one to be hung! The book really upsets me because of the lives the women have. They literally eat, sleep, and dress to make the men happy.. how horrible! My favorite part of the book is when Mary finally realizes she should stop listening to her family and do what she wants to do! Luckily, she has a good life with her husband and children.

This book is NOT for younger people.. there are a few graphic parts that are mot meant for them. Like I said, if you like scandal, you will love this book!

Have you seen the movie or read the book? What did you think?

-Christina

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The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

I was supposed to read this book my Junior year of high school. Needless to say, that didn’t happen, I thought I was too cool to read in High School, but I never forgot the stories so I’ve kept them on my list.

I always thought this was a sad story. I felt extremely sad for Gatsby. All he wanted was to be loved by Daisy, but she was too busy being a pea brain. I’ve always hated Daisy. She cared too much about an image, and not enough about love.

One thing I didn’t like about the book was that it was told through Nick Carraway, Gatsby’s neighbor, and Daisy’s cousin. I wanted to know what Gatsby or Daisy really thought about each other, more than what Nick thought.

Although I hadn’t read the book, I saw the movie more than once and I loved it. I’m a proud owner of it on DVD, and I’m happy to say the movie stayed pretty much 99% true to the book.

This is a great book for both men and women of all ages to enjoy. It’s a timeless classic. Please let us know what you think.

-Mimi

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I thought the Great Gatsby was a good book, not a great book. I do have to admit I feel a little better that I read a classic and didn't actually hate it.

I need to start off my pointing out how much I HATED Tom and Daisy. Tom was a rude, cheating, prick who thought he was the king of the world because he had money, and Daisy was a stupid bitch who only cared about money and didn't realize what a great person Gatsby was.

I felt so bad for Gatsby. He loved Daisy so much and that freaking hoe bag couldn't wait for him once he left for war, and even worse she wouldn't leave Tom after Gatsby did SO much for her and pined over her for years.

The end didn't surprise me, I had a feeling Gatsby would be killed, but it still pissed me off! Basically I wish Tom and Daisy would have drowned in a pool full of money!

THE END :)

-Christina

Highest Paid Authors..

Here is the list of the top paid authors for this year:

1. James Patterson ($70M)
2. Stephenie Meyer ($40M)
3. Stephen King ($34M)
4. Danielle Steel ($32M)
5. Ken Follett ($20M)
6. Dean Koontz ($18M)
7. Janet Evanovich ($16M)
8. John Grisham ($15M)
9. Nicholas Sparks ($14M)
10. J. K. Rowling ($10M)

We have reviewed books by Patterson, Meyer, and Sparks but I think Kristin Hannah needs to be on this list! I have read many Danielle Steel books, but personally I think Hannh is 1000 times better. I thought for sure J.K Rowling would be higher up.

Does anyone on this list surprise you?

-Christina