google-site-verification: google935433b691795853.html KRISTY BERRIDGE: 2012-01-15

Saturday 21 January 2012

Book Review: Bloodlines by Richelle Mead

Let it be known from the onset that I used to be a hardcore paranormal reader with a penchant for adult twists in romance, violence and verbalisation. Now I've drifted from saucy encounters with supernatural hotties to the young adult genre. Even my own writing, The Hunted, is based upon teenage escapades.I have quite literally fallen for this softer world of unhurried love ridden by the potent yet ever changing emotions of young adults and I think Richelle Mead may just be the cause of it!
Needless to say I have read the entire Vampire Academy series. I enjoyed all of them for different reasons, but as I turned the last page, I did wonder what would become of poor Adrian Ivashkov. Thankfully the author decided to question the destiny of some of her more interesting and valid characters from this series and wrote 'Bloodlines'.
This novel follows the story of Sydney Sage, an alchemist currently revoked of her duties covering the existence of vampires from the human populace. Essentially unpopular among her peers because of her previous encounters with vampires and her general acceptance of their existence, she's asked to redeem herself in what Alchemists believe to be a most undesirable situation - consistent inter-species interaction.
Due to violent attacks and political agendas within the vampire royal family, Sydney is compelled to prove her worth, agreeing to go undercover, protect said undesirables and yet distance herself from any emotional connection that could arise - a task that she ultimately finds difficult to balance.
I found Bloodlines gripping and intricate - a few stories interwoven together, ultimately converging at the end of the book and unraveling the whole picture with complete clarity. The goals were attainable and the villains were unsuspecting. The characters were honest, relatetable and consistent. I can honestly say that I didn't put this book down often, but there were moments when I wanted more, when I wanted what was ultimately forbidden between vampire and human ...
I will definitely pick up the second book in this series when it is released and I happily give it 4 out of 5 stars for keeping me thoroughly entertained and guessing.
Have a good one,

Kristy :)

Friday 20 January 2012

Follow Friday #16

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!

This weeks question: What's the craziest thing that you've ever done to get your hands on any particular book?

My answer: Okay, don't get me wrong, I love to read, but really, do people actually stand in line for hours or beat competitors with a stick to get their hands on a book? My answer is hell no! The craziest thing I've ever done for a book is pay full price! Otherwise I'm happy to wait patiently until it comes on special or I can whip it up from the shelves in K-Mart for a steal. Sorry guys. Apparently I'm cheap and unenthusiastic, but I gotta say, I admire the determination of anyone else willing to do ANYTHING for a great read.

Have a great Friday everyone!

Kristy :)

Wednesday 18 January 2012

Warring with my Waistline Take 2

I would just like to say ... no thanks to Christmas, my lofty ambitions to rival Cindy Crawford in a bikini have been negated. I have been unfairly assaulted by holiday yule and abundant lashings of chocolate. Thus 'Operation Great Ass' has been disbanded temporarily in light of my current depression.
Okay, I tell lies. I'm not depressed, merely outraged. I exercised like a woman possessed - hours in the gym, running, walking, and swimming to combat the intake of a few days worth of food, and still I gained weight!
*Cue Violins*
So basically, thanks to the post two weeks, a downward sugar spiral, and motivation from friends, I've finally worked off Christmas delights, but alas I am certain the Gods are still conspiring against me. I found a massive hole in my workout pants the other day. Not really a big deal unless you do squats in public and get eye-balled by a dirty old perv who's leering at your crotch.
Not to be dissuaded from my efforts thus far, I sat down on the couch last night, sewing needle in hand and put my crotch back together again. It took about an hour, but undoubtedly worth it as I loaded up my gym bag this morning with high hopes of attending a 'Boot Camp' class this afternoon.
Turns out it wanted to rain, and since I'm not into wet T-shirt competitions or sliding around in mud - I'm blogging instead. Who knows, tomorrow it might hail during my Zumba class?
Have a good one,

Kristy :)