Project Earth, Spring Semester, & Ramblings...

Hey all of you beautiful readers! I have been so busy lately.. classes started for my spring semester and life has been hectic! While adjusting to my new professors and what exactly they are expecting of me, I will probably be sporadic in my reviews and posts in general. One of my favorite series- The Arcana Chronicles by Kresley Cole, the third book in the series was recently released. I haven't even had a chance to read it yet, dammit! But I can guarantee that will be my very next review. I am so excited to see where Miss Cole takes the story. If you haven't checked this series out yet, I highly recommend it. The story is so original and written beautifully!

I have also been getting orders for my business that I am trying to catch up with! If you have followed my blog for a while, you know that I run a business called Threads of the Earth. I design and create wearable artwork for the more free spirited folks. I hand dye all of my fabrics, draw my own artwork, and sew every piece from scratch. It is extremely time consuming, but an excellent artistic outlet for me. I have been doing this for a few years, and it has taken me all over the country. I have worked / vended close to a hundred music festivals, from All Good Music Festival in Ohio to California Roots and Wanderlust on the big island of Hawaii! It has been an amazing adventure, and I'm not ready to give up the starving artist dream just yet. I have met many amazing bands and musicians while doing this; my hands down favorite being Nahko Bear from Medicine for the People. Which leads me to my next mission: Project Earth Music Festival in Minnesota.

Project Earth
This festival is put on by a band called Wookiefoot, and ALL proceeds are given to their charity called Be the Change. They spend a few months every year in Thailand, building women's shelters and schools for the less fortunate. They are not only donating all of the money, but their time as well. It is an amazing and beautiful thing that they, as well as all of the bands performing do every year. Nahko & Medicine for the People are one of these bands, which only makes me love them that much more. I have started saving every extra dollar that I get so that I can travel all the way to Minnesota in June to chill with these beautiful people! It is a magical weekend, indescribable to anyone that has never been there. Upon leaving, you have an entirely new family of folks that will be there for you when you need them, that love you unconditionally, and it is incredible! There is so much love pouring out of these people, you can see it in everything that they do. Project Earth is all about coexisting, acceptance, and love; you will be a changed person upon leaving. That, I can promise you. Check it out folks, give it a listen on You Tube if you have some free time. I've gotten close to a lot of you bloggers, and I think it is something you may find interesting! Thank you so much for taking the time to read my ramblings. It has become a necessary past-time for me to spill my thoughts and feelings to all of you, and I can't be more thankful that some of my readers actually enjoy what I have to say! (I think..ha!)

Important links from this post

Threads of the Earth - My business page
Wookiefoot - Host of Project Earth
Nahko & Medicine for the People
The Project Earth Page
Be the Change Charity Page

Book Review - Wicked by Jennifer Armentrout

Wicked
By Jennifer L. Armentrout
A Wicked Saga #1
Ebook: 459 pages
Publication Date: December 8, 2014
Publisher: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Rated:
3.5 out of 5 Stars
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Related Reviews: | Lux | Covenant | Stone Cold Touch |
Categories: Faerie, New Adult, JLA

Twenty-two year old Ivy Morgan isn’t your average college student. She, and others like her, know humans aren’t the only thing trolling the French Quarter for fun… and for food. Her duty to the Order is her life. After all, four years ago, she lost everything at the hands of the creatures she’d sworn to hunt, tearing her world and her heart apart.

Ren Owens is the last person Ivy expected to enter her rigidly controlled life. He’s six feet and three inches of temptation and swoon-inducing charm. With forest-green eyes and a smile that’s surely left a stream of broken hearts in its wake, he has an uncanny, almost unnatural ability to make her yearn for everything he has to offer. But letting him in is as dangerous as hunting the cold-blooded killers stalking the streets. Losing the boy she loved once before had nearly destroyed her, but the sparking tension that grows between them becomes impossible for Ivy to deny. Deep down, she wants… she needs more than what her duty demands of her, what her past has shaped for her.

But as Ivy grows closer to Ren, she realizes she’s not the only one carrying secrets that could shatter the frail bond between them. There’s something he’s not telling her, and one thing is for certain. She’s no longer sure what is more dangerous to her—the ancient beings threatening to take over the town or the man demanding to lay claim to her heart and her soul.

The first word that comes to mind when I think about this book is meh. I didn't realize that this was possible from a JLA book at all, let alone one about the fae. Sigh. The worst part of all of this is the fact that I cannot even pinpoint exactly what it is about Wicked that I don't like. It could possibly be that the synopsis is so similar to The Dark Elements Series that I just wasn't impressed with the idea in general. Or maybe the simple fact that the fae were portrayed to be mindless enemies with a taste for blood and little else. I was taught that the faerie world is a beautiful place; not some hell-like dimension that spawns mutant blood thirsty monster things. Ugh. I hated it, and I hate that I hated it, dammit!

The characters were well written, of course. This is still a JLA book we're talking about here! Ivy is the typical kick-your-ass protagonist that readers have come to know and love from this lady's books. Ivy has no problem with telling you like it is, and drop kicking your ass in the process. She is spunky, mouthy, outgoing, and all the things I wish I was! I thoroughly enjoyed her character, although she is so alike most of JLA's female protagonists. And then there is Ren. Oh, Ren. He is also JLA's typical male love interest; cocky in a confident sort of way, sexy as hell, and a complete pain in the ass. My dream boy wrapped up in a book cover. The fact that I didn't enjoy this book has nothing to do with Ren. Let's face it ladies, JLA can write the kind of book boyfriend that you have dreams about afterward. Sigh.

I really do wish that I could have fallen in love with this story. I wanted to. Maybe I unfairly built it up in my mind so much that let-down was inevitable? Or maybe it was just that repetitive and uneventful? Maybe I read far too many JLA books..?! If you read it and have an opinion, leave me a comment! I would love to hear what you folks thought of this one. Is it just me, or did this book kind of suck?! Muah!

“Why in the world was I going to college? I could be in bed, all cuddled up and shit, dreaming about hot men with abs covered in powdered sugar.” -Ivy by Jennifer L. Armentrout

"“If you tell me to leave, I'll turn and walk away. I swear that, Ivy, but I had to try one more time. I'm not going to possibly go to my grave without trying. Please. Don't let me go.”" -Ren by Jennifer L. Armentrout

"“I bet you have the softest pair of lips out there. And I bet you taste sweet—sweeter than one of those beignets you've got me addicted to." His hand squeezed around the back of my neck. "But you got one hell of a bite—a kick to that sweetness. It'll be rough getting in there, and you're going to fight it every step of the way, but it'll be smooth once I'm there.”" -Ren by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Related Reviews
| Lux | Covenant | Stone Cold Touch | White Hot Kiss |

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