Friday Featured Blogger (1): Jenny aka prophecygirl!

Friday Featured Bloggers is a (soon-to-be) weekly feature on my blog that interviews new/little-known bloggers with interesting and intelligent blogs. I'm excited to introduce as our first Friday Featured Blogger:

Jenny (aka prophecygirl) from Wondrous Reads!

I'll let her describe herself, so without further ado...

Steph: So, Jenny! Tell us a little about yourself.

Jenny: I'm Jenny, aged 21, from Manchester in the North-West of England. I have a full time job at a Borders store, which is pretty much the best place I could ever hope to work! I love Buffy the Vampire Slayer, books, music (Jimmy Eat World, Coheed and Cambria, Brand New), movies, TV shows, the internet and the Titanic. I have two pets, a dog called Rupert and a cat called Jess. Jess is mine... I love cats!

S: Ooh, Borders. I’ve always wanted to work in a bookstore. What's the best and worst thing about working there?

J: The best thing about working at Borders is seeing pretty much every book as soon as it comes in, discovering new authors, and getting discount on the books. The worst is seeing lots of books that I want, and giving them a rather large amount of my wages back come payday (lol).

S: Haha, that’s not a bad “worst thing” at all! So tell us about your blog. When did you start it and why? What interesting things can visitors expect?

J: I started my blog almost a month ago, on a Saturday night after work. I used to post all my reviews on the Amazon and Borders sites, but decided that I'd prefer to have them all in one place. I have a thing for book covers, so every week I post a 'Cool Cover', and a 'US Vs. UK' cover debate. I also talk about UK goings on (books sites, etc...), and review most of the books I read.

S: I love your ‘Cool Cover’ and ‘US vs. UK’ posts. It’s so refreshing to look at YA book covers from other countries… especially as some of them are even nicer than the US versions. And now…quick! Name 3 (yes, I'm giving you 3 because everyone knows it's impossible to choose just one) favorite books and why you think everyone should read them.

J: My three favourite YA books are really easy for me to choose: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak and The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen. I'd also like to mention I Am Legend by Richard Matheson, which is my favourite adult book. I think everyone should read them because they deal with lots of different themes and issues, and are just amazing stories that I found impossible to put down.

S: Is I Am Legend the book that the movie starring Will Smith was based on? That movie creeped me out! Are you a fan of those horror or scary movies?

J: Yes, the Will Smith movie was based on I Am Legend, however, they changed it a lot. The book is an amazing vampire story, about the last man on Earth, and how he survives on his own (and if anyone likes vampire books, you should definitely read it!). The movie was quite different, which was a shame. But to answer the question about horror and scary movies - yes, I love them! Vampires especially. I've yet to find a movie that has scared me, though I keep trying!

S: Oh, wow. It’s actually a vampire book? Count me in, then! Although you can watch your horror and scary movies yourself, hehe. *shudders* Speaking of which, What's your opinion on the hype over Twilight? Since you have it listed as one of your 3 favorite YA books.

J: The Twilight hype... hmm. Well. I think it's great, as it means more people will read the book, and fall in love with the amazing story and characters. I think Stephenie Meyer deserves every bit of her success, even though I'm sure a lot of people would disagree with me on that. I also love the movie, and saw it many times at the cinema. I first read the books about a year and a half ago, when I'd just started at Borders. Back then, no-one really knew what it was over here, and we had about four copies in store. I never imagined it would take off the way it did, but it’s been very interesting watching it all happen. And, yes, I'll admit, I'm one of those obsessed Twilight fans! (And can clearly ramble on about this for ages, so, moving on...)

S: Hehe, it’s no problem. We all have things to say about Twilight, and I, too, like how it, like Harry Potter, gets kids and teens to read more. Now for something different. What's a book that made you cry?

J: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak left me in floods of tears. Literally, I'm not kidding. It's the most emotional and heartbreaking story I've ever read, and hardly a day goes by when I don't think about it.

S: I agree with you on that one. What a powerful, powerful book. Wow. So, share with us: favorite authors?

J: My favourite authors are: Stephenie Meyer, Richard Matheson, Markus Zusak, Sarah Dessen, Cassandra Clare and Louise Rennison.

S: Speaking of Cassandra Clare... are you a Simon fan or a Jace fan? :)

J: Jace! Definitely. Simon's cool, but... nah. Jace has that whole bad boy thing going on, and I love his quick quips and sarcasm. Plus, he's good with a weapon. I'm currently hoping and praying that he and Clary aren't... y'know.. I don't want to say too much because it's a spoiler for the other books. Lets just say I'm keeping my fingers crossed until March 24th!

S: I’m a Jace fan too! We just love our bad boys. [For those of you who haven’t read the first 2 books in the Mortal Instruments series yet, GO DO IT!] Alright, favorite color?

J: My favourite colour is red. I don't really have a reason why, it just stands out to me!

S: What are some things you just LOVE to receive for presents?

J: I love receiving money or gift cards for presents, because then I can buy some books or music/DVDs. Failing that, I always like the rare Buffy memorabilia my Mum and Dad hunt out for me!

S: And finally, 2 things about yourself that can spark conversation.

J: I can recite the names of all 144 Buffy episodes in complete order, and I'm a staff member on www.bellaandedward.com. Are those two interesting things? Probably not, but hey!

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Nope, definitely interesting, Jenny! Thank you SO much for chatting with me—it was a lot of fun. I hope you all hop on over to Jenny’s blog and send her some love, engulf her in questions about the 144 episodes of Buffy, discuss Twilight with her, and whatnot. Stay turned for more Featured Friday Bloggers! :)