Sunday, July 15, 2012

Match #9: Adrian (#2) vs Cricket (#31) Goes to Adrian



And the Winner is
Adrian

Welcome to The YA Sisterhood's YA Crush Tourney 2.0!  We hope that through this all you will meet a lot of book loving people, discover new books, and of course be introduced to many more dreamy crushes!  

Be aware that we have tried to keep all the posts pretty general, but there might still be some spoilers.  If the spoiler is big, it will be marked.  However, still proceed with caution!

Matches will run for 24 hours, 12am to 12am every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  For more information please check out our Tournament Page.

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If you don't already know, the amazingly crushable Adrian Ivashkov is being represented by me, Anna Tee from The Bursting Bookshelf. Adrian is from The Vampire Academy series and the Bloodlines series by the hugely talented Richelle Mead. If you want to stay up to date on how Adrian is doing in the Tourney or to just support him, please check out my Twitter and use the hashtag #TEAMADRIAN. Before we begin, I'd just like to thank the YA Sisterhood for hosting this event! WARNING, MINOR SPOILERS BELOW. 

Personality:
If you've read the Vampire Academy books and Bloodlines ones, you already know that Adrian is the perfect embodiment of a good guy with a bad boy exterior. Even though the bad boy front is very appealing (and I do mean very appealing), the fact that he is willing to stand up for others (take Jill for example- he's fiercely protective of her in a big brother sense) and that he doesn't fall for all the lies involved in the Moroi royal court.

Though he does have his vices, he has been known to change his ways when an important person in his life asks him to. He gave them up for both Rose and Sydney at different points in time, and made other efforts to better himself in both cases. This demonstrated how he is willing to put others before himself, but only in certain cases. His parents made attempts at changing him, but he refused to until it was Rose putting pressure on him to follow through. As you can see, once he has let you in, past his bad ass facade, he is truly a person that is worth being friends with.

"And you're also one of the most fiercely loyal people I know --and caring, no matter how much you pretend otherwise."
--The Golden Lily Page 136

"Adrian did care passionately about others underneath all of his bravado and flippancy. I'd seen him risk his life to prove it."--The Golden Lily Page 137

Looks:
Drop dead sexy your thing? If so, Adrian's your guy. Amazing green eyes, locks of brown hair, and a good sense of style to boot. Don't believe me? 

"Warily, I stopped and crossed my arms as I took him in. He was a little shorter than Dimitri but wasn't as lanky as some Moroi guys ended up looking. A long, charcoal coat- probably made out of some insanely expensive cashmere-wool blend- fit his body exceptionally well, and the leather dress shoes he wore indicated more money still. He had brown hair that looked like it had been purposely styled to appear a little unkempt, and his eyes were either blue or green- I didn't have quite enough light to know for sure. His face was cute, I supposed, and I pegged him to be a couple years older than me. He looked like he'd just come from a dinner party."
       -Frostbite by Richelle Mean, page 135, Rose's POV

 "The speaker was Moroi guy, a little older than me, with dark brown hair that had undoubtedly been painstakingly styled to look messy. Unlike Keith's ridiculously over-gelled attempts, this guy hah actually done it in a way that looked good. Like all Moroi, he was pale and had a tall, lean build. Emerald eyes studied us from a face that could have been been sculpted by one of the classical artists I so admire. Shocked, I dismissed the comparison as soon as it popped into my head. This was vampire, after all. It was ridiculous to admire him the way I would some hot human guy."--Bloodlines Page 46

Even Rose, who was madly falling for Dimitri at the time, can appreciate Adrian's smoking good looks and impeccable fashion sense.

Talents:
Two words: Spirit user. He can walk in your dreams, compel others better than the average Moroi and heal as well. He doesn't let these abilities go to waste either- he used his dream walking frequently to help various friends (often Rose) whether it was life or death or just a more mundane issue. He trained with Lissa quite often to get even better with his gifts so he could be of more use and be able to help more people. Apart from his supernatural talents, Adrian is also an art student at a college, so he's also an artistic kind of guy. Can you ask for any more? Oh right- he also has a knack for talking his way out of any situation.

 
Special Attributes/ Best Qualities:
Still on the fence about voting for Adrian? The good looks, amazing personality, and supernatural talents didn't win you over? Well, one thing Adrian is known for is loving a girl wholeheartedly. He doesn't go half in and not commit to a person; when in love, he wholly commits himself to that person. This was easy to tell from how he reacted after breaking up with a girl, who will remain nameless for the sake of staying as spoiler free as possible. Apart from truly committing himself to relationships, he is also brave; he never showed fear when he was breaking rules to help his friends and he sticks by their side until the very end. Loyalty is another one of his amazing qualities: he never waivers from those he supports, even when the going gets tough. Humor and creativity? You can also find those traits in Adrian easily.


"Yeah? Can you draw a skeleton riding a motorcycle with flames coming out of it? And I want a pirate hat on the skeleton. And a parrot on his shoulder. A skeleton parrot. Or maybe a ninja skeleton parrot? No, that would be overkill. But it'd be cool if the biker skeleton could be shooting some ninja throwing stars. That are on fire." -Bloodlines
On top of all of that- he can also be a fairly romantic and sweet guy. He doesn't do anything halfway, including his honesty; he always told the truth, even to the point of being brutally honest.


"The color," he breathed. "When you stand in the light. They're amazing...like molten gold. I could paint those..." He reached toward me but then pulled back. "They're beautiful. You're beautiful." -Bloodlines
“He'd written me up a proposal of why dating him was a sound decision. It had included things like "I'll give up cigarettes unless I really, really need one" and "I'll unleash romantic surprises every week, such as: an impromptu picnic, roses, or a trip to Paris—but not actually any of those things because now they're not surprises.” 
"I'm serious. She asked me what my greatest strength was. I said getting along with people." "Thats not bad," I admitted. "Then she asked what my greatest weakness was. And I said, 'Where should I start?'" "Adrian!" "Stop saying my name like that. I told her the truth. By the time I was on the fourth one, she told me I could go."  -Bloodlines


In Summary:
-He's a bad ass
-Obviously sexy
-He's a rare spirit user
-He's a Moroi, not a Strigoi
-He's willing to change his ways when asked
-He's the whole package
-He has an amazing personality
-He's protective

If you haven't yet read the Vampire Academy or Bloodlines Series, I highly suggest you do, but in the meantime, vote for Adrian! If you have read both series, you should know to vote for Adrian already! Would you want an angry Alchemist tampering with your shampoo? 

Thanks again to the YA Sisterhood for hosting this amazingly fun tournament and to Monica and Jennifer for their help!

Did I mention you should vote for Adrian? :) 


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Hey y'all! I'm Avery from Avery's Book Nook and today I  AM BEYOND excited to be advocating one of my most favourite YA boys of all time- Cricket Bell from Stephanie Perkin's LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR!

During the tournament you can follow me at:


Personality/ Special Attributes/Best Qualities
  • Cricket, in my opinion, is without a doubt one of the most romantic YA male characters I have ever encountered before- he truly wears his heart on his sleeve and he isn't afraid to show his emotions: 
"I can't stop thinking about you, and I'm not the guy I used to be, I've changed- [...] Go out with me tonight. Tomorrow night, every ni-" (pg. 92). 
"A star. Every star he's drawn onto his skin has been for me" (pg. 328). 
  • Furthermore, he is without a doubt one of the most genuine, kind-hearted, and humble characters I know of, constantly putting others before himself, whether it be his sister, Calliope, and her figure skating or walking Lola home when she was unable to do so DESPITE having a major school assignment due the next day 
  • He's funny: 
"Cricket tells a joke and turns to see if I'm laughing, if I think that he's funny, and I want him to know that I do think that he's funny, and I want him to know that I'm glad that he's my friend, and I want him to know that he has the biggest heart out of anyone I'd ever known" (pg. 136).
  • He doesn't hold judgements against ANYONE- whether it be Norah, Lola's dads, or heck, even Lola when she makes some pretty terrible mistakes throughout the book.

  • He is close friends with Etienne St. Clair from ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS. Put those two boys in one room? 'Nuff said: 
"Cricket dwarfs St. Clair. They look like Rocky and Bullwinkle, and the comfortable manner between them makes it appear they've been friends for just as long. I suppose that when one overly kind person and one overly outgoing person become friends, it's easy like that" (pg. 163).
  •  Cricket is evidence that chivalry is not dead- as Lola says, "Cricket Bell has integrity" (pg. 270).

  • And perhaps best of all, he likes Lola for just the way that she is- he doesn't expect her to change or be someone that she isn't:
"And maybe some people think that wearing a costume means you're trying to hide your real identity, but I think a costume is more truthful than regular clothing could ever be. It actually says something about the person wearing it. I know that Lola, because she expressed her desires and wishes and dreams for the entire city to see. For me to see" (pg. 281).

Looks
I don't want to mess with Stephanie's description of Cricket ('cuz, we all know that you don't mess with perfection ;) ) so here it is straight from LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR: 

Courtesy Simini Blocker
"Cricket Bell was always taller than most boys, but in the last two years, he's added half a foot. At least. His slender body- once skinny and awkward, despite his graceful movements- has also changed" (pg. 36). 

".... his dark hair is tall. It's floppy, but... inverted floppy. I'm not sure how it's possible without serious quantities of mousse or gel... It gives him the air of a mad scientist..." (pg. 36). 

"Cricket Bell has always been... nice. And he was cute, and he was intelligent, and he was older, and it was only natural that I would develop feelings for him. But the day everything fell into place was the same day I discovered that he'd become interested in his appearance. Not in an egotistical way. Simple in a "maybe baggy shorts and giant sneakers aren't the most attractive looks for a guy like me" way.
So he started wearing these pants.
Nice pants. Not hipster pants or preppy pants or anything like that, just pants that said he cared about pants. They were chosen to fit his frame. Some plain, some pinstriped to further elongate his height. And he would pair them with vintage shirts and unusual jackets in a way that looked effortlessly cool" (pg. 37). 

"And now here he is, and his dress habits haven't changed. If anything, they've improved. Both his pants and his shirt are still slim-fitting, but now he's accessorized. A thick, black leather watchband on one wrist, a multitude of weathered colorful bracelets and rubber bands on the other. Cricket Bell looks good. He looks BETTER" (pg. 38). 

Talents
  • Cricket is not only a genius (I mean, he's in university while everyone else his age is finishing high school), but he is also an inventor- creating the most fantastical and wondrous things: 
"When I was five years old, Cricket Bell built an elevator. It was a marvelous invention made from white string and Tonka truck wheels and a child-size show box, and because of it, my Barbies traveled from the first floor of the dollhouse to the second without ever having to walk on their abnormally slanted feet" (pg. 59). 
  • Cricket is a descendant of Alexander Graham Bell. Yes, the Alexander Graham Bell who invented the telephone. AKA it is because of Cricket's descendant that you are able to vote in the Crush Tourney on your phone. 
  • The boy can BAKE
"Andy explains that baking is actually a science- leavening and acids, proteins and starches- and Cricket gets it" (pg. 115).
  • He is good with children- babies especially- he can calm them down when no one else can
  • He knows how to do hair and make-up and does a good job of it- even when under pressure

Anything else? 

Special thanks goes out to the wonderful ladies of the YA Sisterhood for all of the hard work that they do in the organizing of this tournament- they are truly rockstars! Special thanks also goes out to @librarychickD for her being a member of the Team Cricket Street Team and thanks to all who vote for Cricket!