Against Nature by John G. Nelson

#NewReleaseTuesday
pages 215 (ebook)
Wildchild Publishing  April 2011
rating: 5stars

Synopsis:

The U.S. is ground-zero for a mysterious global pandemic. The disease is highly infectious and kills its victims within two weeks of exposure. It’s neither bacteria nor a virus and all traditional treatment regimens have failed.

Serena Salus, a radical scientist, discovers the organism is an extraterrestrial dust mite brought to earth by a shuttle astronaut. The government contends it’s a genetically-engineered organism created on earth by enemies of freedom.

Dr. Salus uncovers a vile plan for distributing her experimental vaccine and finds herself in a deadly confrontation with powerful forces that’ll stop at nothing to control the distribution of her vaccine.



Review:

Okay let me tell you this right of the bat. I was contacted by the author and asked if I would like to read Against Nature as part of the Dystopian Reading Challenge. Why am I giving you this disclaimer? Because I loved this book and I want you all to know that it's because I like the story and not because I was given this book. So on the the review.

The action gets going right from the beginning. While trying to return a satellite back to its orbit, a astronaut gets cut. Thinking the cut is minor everyone deboard the shuttle and head their separate ways. Soon they are turning up dead all over the planet. Turns out the astronaut picked up extraterrestrial dust mite in that cut. These mites are high contagious and deadly. Everyone who becomes infected dies.

The mites are really the background story. The real story is how the government handle this crisis. Many people may find this story to fantastical. Government would act that way. Or government could make this decisions in such a rash way. I am not one of those people. The world that Nelson lays out is completely plausible. Look at any election and you will see hints of what goes full blown in Against Nature.

So here's the jest of things. This country is full on contradictions. We are a nation of Christians (our money states "In God We Trust") but we have business open on the Sabbath. We claim to be peaceful but we have been in one war or another since Vietnam. We say "every man is created equal" yet we are still having the first black this, the first Latino that. The list of contradictions could go on.

When it is all said and done though, this country is about money. Period. Those who have it and those who want it. One of the quote from the book stands out I'm paraphrasing "the middle class is an illusion. There are only two classes. The leisure and the working." You know what, that is the most true statement about society. Because no matter how many figures you are making at upper middle class, you still have to work in order to maintain that lifestyle. So though you may get paid more that Burger King worker you consider yourself better than just like him/her you are in the same boat. You NEED a job.

Lastly another highlight for me was how the book pointed out that people who don't outright say God is great and this country is perfect are looked at as socialist, anti-christian, and/or anarchist. There are those who may read this and think those things of me. Here's a news flash. Waving a flag doesn't make you a patriot and quoting scripture doesn't make you a believer. If we all thought the same way this country would be completely different than it is today.

Against Nature makes you think. Whether you think a post pandemic world like the one depicted in Nelson pages can happen or not, it will at least get you to thinking about what you value, who you are, and where you stand.

*source: given by author for an honest review

Challenges:
Let Me Count The Way
2013 Ebook Reading Challenge
Dystopian Reading Challenge

Mailbox Monday

#mailboxmonday

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week and explore great book blogs. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

I received three arc's last week:
The Abomination by Jonathan Holt release date 6/18/2013
High Price by Dr. Carl Hart release date 6/11/2013
If You Were Here by Alafair Burke release date 6/04/2013

Cover Candy 31

#lustingforcovers #covercandy


I love the title of this one. It's a great book as well.

Shoot the Breeze 4

#shootthebreeze

It has been a very busy time for me and everything has suffer including this blog, my crochet, and my knitting. I am only going to get busier as I look for a second job. Still like always I am hoping to catch up on some post to get new posts coming. I have plenty of reviews the problem is writing them. I am also looking to start blogger guest spot and author interviews. I hope you all join me for the fun. I will also get back to doing giveaways and such. I think that everyone who won a prize from me has received them. If you haven't please send me an email at worthreadingit@hotmail.com

Follow Friday 6

#FF

Welcome to the Feature & Follow

Gain new followers and make new friends with the Book Blogger Feature & Follow! If this is your first time here, welcome! You are about to make some new friends and gain new followers -- but you have to know -- the point of this hop is to follow other bloggers also. I follow you, you follow me.

The Feature & Follow is hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of Parajunkee's View and Alison of Alison Can Read. Each host will have their own Feature Blog and this way it'll allow us to show off more new blogs!

Click here or here for the rules

Today's Feature - Beauty but a Funny Girl

1. When did you start blogging?

I started blogging in October 2012, so I still consider myself somewhat of a baby blogger. 

2. What is your favorite part of book blogging?

I love finding new books. I know there are books that I have read/plan to read that I would not have found out about had it not been for blogging. I don't mean just indy books, but ones with smaller publishers that occasionally slip under the radar. At the same time, there are books where by blurb alone I would pass on, but when I see so many fellow bloggers rave about it, I know I have to give it a chance. Blogging has definitely expanded by TBR list, which is a double edged sword really. 

3. What type of books do you mainly blog about?

I mainly focus on YA books that deal with fantasy/paranormal. That's definitely my favorite genre, but at the same time I read historical fiction, realistic fiction, new adult, and adult books. I've got to mix it up every now and then, but I always go back to the favorites.

4. What is your favorite book(s)?

My all time favorite book is Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. However, you can't go wrong with a Sherrilyn Kenyon book, especially if it's from her Dark-Hunter or The League series.

5. What has been the best thing that has happened to you because of book blogging?

This is probably a really cheesy and cliche answer, but I've made a lot of blogging friends though doing this. Bloggers whose reviews and opinions I've come to trust when it comes to both books and blogging. Also, I've learned a lot about myself when it comes to book preferences and review writing. 

Q: Is there a song that reminds you of a book? Or vice versa? What is the song & the book?

I'm going to be boring and answer truthfully - I really can't think of any songs that remind me of a book.

I cannot think of a single song that reads me of a book. Seriously, drawing a blank. So I think I'll say that I read a fair amount of street lit so r&b and hip-hop/rap songs could remind of one of those books. Does that count ...

Freestyle Friday 5 - Historical Fiction

#freestylefriday #FF

Why you won't really see Historical Fiction on this blog?

As a kid I hated history. Maybe hate is too strong; I disliked (strongly disliked) history. I found it boring and certain gender role expectations infuriating  Also the formal way people spoke to each other bothers me. Historical romance is perhaps the reason why I shy away from this genre. Throbbing loins and such just doesn't work for me.

Unless a book is recommend to me or grabs me in some way there will be very little historical fiction reviews. I know many of you are HF fans. I like reading the blogs of those you read these types of books I just don't get the same type of enjoyment out of them.Then again I never use to like romance novels of any kind so maybe HF will grow on me.

Company by Max Barry

rating: 2 stars
mp3 10 hrs 17min

from Kobo:

Stephen Jones is a shiny new hire at Zephyr Holdings. From the outside, Zephyr is just another bland corporate monolith, but behind its glass doors business is far from usual: the beautiful receptionist is paid twice as much as anybody else to do nothing, the sales reps use self help books as manuals, no one has seen the CEO, no one knows exactly what they are selling, and missing donuts are the cause of office intrigue. While Jones originally wanted to climb the corporate ladder, he now finds himself descending deeper into the irrational rationality of company policy. What he finds is hilarious, shocking, and utterly telling.

My Review:

I am torn. I really liked Jennifer Government. Many people did not and I could see why they didn't. Many people like this book and I can see why they did. However, for me this book was lacking. So let's break it down like this. 

What did I like?

I like that the company turn out to be an experiment. Even though it's to the extreme I have worked places where people are too afraid to speak. Managers who don't do anything. Managers who don't even know how to do the job of the people they are managing.

What didn't I like?

I didn't like the main character. I found him to idealistic and naive. I cannot tell you how much he annoyed me. The ending also didn't impress me. The type of people in the Alpha program didn't strike me as the type of people who would just give up and go on to other things. The experiment was done in secret so to me they seem like the types that would've tried to set up shop in another city. 

Company was an interesting look at corporate American in what I would probably say as the 80s. Good for a fast read. Don't take it too seriously but don't be surprise if you see a little of your workplace environment depicted in the story. TBR 3

Challenges:

2013 Audio Book Challenge

Let Me Count The Way

Exposed by Naomi Chase

rating: 2stars

From Kobo:
Her past is back to haunt her--and it's hotter than ever. . . On the brink of a major promotion Tamia Luke is within reach of the glitzy life she's always dreamed of--until her client Dominic "Nico" Archer blackmails her into becoming his mistress threatening to reveal her scandalous past. Tamia has no choice but to submit to his demands. But the tables turn when her hostility towards Nico is replaced with insatiable lust. No man--including her boyfriend--has ever satisfied her the way he does. And as her infatuation grows the closer she comes to losing everything--including her life.

My Review:
"Tamia has no choice ..." Life is all about choices. Even when you think you do not have a choice, you do. Some times there are things that happen to us that we can not control but how you react is up to you. You have a choice. Tamia made choices when she was younger that she knew may come back to bite her. Then when confronted with her past she made the choice to keep hiding, all that followed was of her own doing.

This book was entertaining and at times steamy. The ending was not a happy one and I am quite okay with that. The only thing I did not like was the sister. Very unappreciative and certainly did not learn her lesson. The fact that she was jealous and ultimately turned on her sister goes to show that people, even family, will bring you down to save themselves.

TBR 3

Challenges
2013 Ebook Reading Challenge
2013 Book Bingo Reading Challenge
New Author Reading Challenge 2013

Cover Candy 30

#lustingforcovers #covercandy

Spring into Horror Read-a-Thon 2013

Spring into Horror Read-a-Thon 

Now I know what you all must be saying at this point, "she is always joining read-a-thons and then never finish a single book". You know what? You are right but as they say, keep trying to you get it right. 
My log
Against Nature  (ebook)
Mockingjay (audiobook)
The Litigators (audiobook)
reviews for these books coming but Yay I actually finished a book for a readathon

Cover Candy 29

#lustingforcovers #covercandy

Cover Candy 28

#lustingforcovers #covercandy