From A to Z

In My Mailbox #32

2012-02-19T02:37:00.000-06:00

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren that gives bloggers the opportunity to showcase the books they’ve received that week. You can learn more about it here.

From the publisher for review:

The House of Velvet and Glass by Katherine Howe

After the Snow by SD Crockett

Bought:

Hunting Lila by Sarah Alderson

Fated by Sarah Alderson

I am SO excited for both of these! I finally bought them from the Book Depository because I keep hearing the most amazing things and I decided I couldn’t wait any longer to read them.

Won:

Fracture (signed) by Megan Miranda

Fracture t-shirt

I won these from the lovely Anna over at Anna Reads and I’m so happy to own a copy of this amazing book. My review will be up in a few days.

That’s it for me, what’s in your mailbox this week?

"Waiting On" Wednesday #37

2012-02-15T00:03:00.000-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release that we’re eagerly anticipating. Let the salivating commence.

My pick this week:

Smart Girls Get What They Want

By: Sarah Strohmeyer

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Release Date: June 26, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

Gigi, Bea, and Neerja are best friends and total overachievers. Even if they aren’t the most popular girls in school, they aren’t too worried. They know their real lives will begin once they get to their Ivy League colleges. There will be ivy, and there will be cute guys in the library (hopefully with English accents)! But when an unexpected event shows them they’re missing out on the full high school experience, it’s time to come out of the honors lounge and into the spotlight. They make a pact: They will each take on their greatest challenge – and they will totally rock it.

Gig decides to run for student rep, but she’ll have to get over her fear of public speaking – and go head-to-head with gorgeous California Will. Bea used to be one of the best skiers around, until she was derailed. It could be time for her to take the plunge again. And Neerja loves the drama club but always stayed behind the scenes – until now.

These friends are determined to show that smart girls get what they want – but that could mean getting way more attention than they ever bargained for…

Why I’m Waiting: I was totally one of these smart girls in high school (and definitely expected to meet a cute guy with an English accent in the library at college, haha!), and I’m so excited for this book. It sounds so fun and entertaining and yay for the smart girls!!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Broke My Heart a Little

2012-02-14T00:07:00.000-06:00

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It’s a super fun to way to connect with other bloggers through one of my favorite things ever… LISTS! :D

Today's topic:

Top Ten Books That Broke My Heart a Little

I’m a very emotional person, both in real life and with my fiction, and I get very emotionally invested in the lives of fictional characters, so I tend to cry a lot, haha. I love it when this happens though, even though it’s painful, because it means I really connected with the book and it made me feel.

This is not a full list of ten, because even thinking about these is making my heart hurt. And I’m going to try to be vague to avoid spoilers, but hopefully if you’ve read the books you’ll understand what I mean.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman (I started crying from nearly the first page.)

Where She Went by Gayle Forman (The ENTIRE book. Oh god.)

Graceling by Kristen Cashore (The bit at the end when Katsa confronts Po.)

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (Peeta’s situation, Katniss and Gale’s outcome, Prim.)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling (Um, duh. Dobby. Forest scene. All the deaths. Fred is still alive in my heart.)

Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (“Had we but world enough, and time…” This book is even more painful during rereads because you know the significance of certain events ahead of time.)

Fracture by Megan Miranda (The teenage angst in this book is ridiculously painful. I just wanted them to work it out.)

Sally Lockhart Trilogy by Phillip Pullman (Specifically an event in the second book, The Shadow in the North. Guys, if you’ve read it, you know what I’m talking about.)

What are your favorite heartbreaking books? I can already feel a sob-inducing marathon coming up...

Review: Dark Eyes by William Richter

2012-02-13T17:46:00.000-06:00

Dark Eyes

By: William Richter

Publisher: Razorbill

Release Date: March 15, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Contemporary Thriller/Mystery

Pages: 383

Source: ARC from Around the World ARC Tours

Wally was adopted from a Russian orphanage as a child and grew up in a wealthy New York City family. At fifteen, her obsessive need to rebel led her to life on the streets.

Now the sixteen-year-old is beautiful and hardened, and she’s just stumbled across the possibility of discovering who she really is. She’ll stop at nothing to find her birth mother before Klesko – her darkeyed father – finds her. Because Klesko will stop at nothing to reclaim the fortune Wally’s mother stole from him long ago. Even if that means murdering his own blood. But Wally’s had her own killer training, and she’s hungry for justice.

“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” for teens, this debut thriller introduces our next big series heroine.

Wow. So this book was a lot darker and more intense than I was expecting. It is not your normal fluffy YA novel, but a tense action thriller with high stakes and real consequences.

The action and thriller side of the novel is done really well. The mystery of Wally’s mother’s identity, the clues we’re slowly given, how everything falls into place… it all kept me reading late into the night. And the climax is full of nonstop action and unexpected twists that had me both cringing in horror and laughing in delight.

This is the second book I’ve read recently by a screenwriter (Jennifer Bosworth’s Struck was the other one), and oh man, do they know how to bring the excitement! The writing is engaging and each scene feels like it could come straight off the pages and right onto a movie screen.

The one thing I had an issue with in terms of the plot of the novel was how easily Wally discovers everything. She makes connections and draws conclusions based on very little evidence and she’s never wrong. She guesses things and figures things out that even trained detectives would have trouble with, much less one sixteen-year-old with very few resources. I don’t think there were any setbacks in her investigation at all. Every single lead she followed turned into a wealth of information, her timing was always perfect, and the whole thing felt unrealistic. I just wish it was done in a way that was more believable.

Other than this, I did enjoy Dark Eyes as an action novel. It’s the emotional side of the novel that I felt was lacking a bit. I never really understood Wally’s motivation for running away from home, since she obviously cares for her adoptive mother, Claire, and feels guilty about leaving her. She has led a privileged and pampered life, and comes across as rather selfish. Wally is also just a very hardened character and keeps everyone at arm’s length, which makes it hard to really connect with her. She talks about her friends as her family and the people she truly belongs with (the whole reason she ended up leaving home), but I would have liked more development of her relationship with them. I personally never really saw the connection they all had, so while I became intrigued by Wally and her quest to find her mother, I couldn’t really bring myself to care that much about the crew.

Despite my issues with the book, I enjoyed Dark Eyes. I especially loved the Russian aspect to the novel, since I lived in Russia when I was a kid. It made me feel a little nostalgic. :) Overall, Dark Eyes is a dark, gritty story that will keep you turning the pages until the thrilling conclusion.

In My Mailbox #31

2012-02-12T01:00:00.001-06:00

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren that gives bloggers the opportunity to showcase the books they’ve received that week. You can learn more about it here.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

I didn’t actually get any books in the mail this week, just a couple from the library which I’ve been wanting to read for ages, so I’m super excited for both of them.

HOWEVER, I did get something very exciting in the mail, and those are my From A to Z mini business cards!! I feel so legit now, haha. And they're so prettyyyyyyy, I just want to stroke them. They were really fun and easy to design, and if you want some of your own you can check it out here. (And if you use that link you’ll get 10% off!)

What’s in your mailbox this week?

Follow Friday & TGIF

2012-02-09T22:26:00.001-06:00

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read.

Today’s Question: What would you prefer: reading your favorite book over and over again until you get sick of it OR reading hundreds of mediocre books? And why?

Hmm, tough question. I think I’d rather read my favorite book over and over again, because even reading a couple of mediocre books in a row would drive me crazy. There are too many amazing books out there to read the mediocre ones, and if it’s really my FAVORITE book, then I’d have no problem rereading it multiple times.

TGIF is hosted by Ginger at GReads!

Love Stories: What are some of your favorite fictional love stories?

Ooh, love stories! I love love stories! I’ll try to keep my list to a reasonable level. :P

· Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine – This is one of my favorite books of all time. And it’s such a sweet love story. Char is definitely one of my top fictional boyfriends ever.

· The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger – Lovely and heartbreaking. Never fails to make me cry.

· Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins – St. Clair! Need I say more? This love story is so sweet and charming and adorable, it makes my heart hurt.

· The Boy Next Door by Jennifer Echols – This book has so many elements that I love. It’s a best friend love story, it involves “fake” dating to make someone jealous, lots of teenage angst, a kickass heroine, I am IN LOVE with this book. All of Jennifer Echols’ books should actually be on the list.

· The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen – Slow-developing romance, tons of cute moments, love it.

Okay, I could just keep going so I’m going to stop there. :) I can’t wait to see what love stories everybody else is in love with! I’m always looking to add to my list.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Review: Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

2012-02-09T15:54:00.000-06:00

Graffiti Moon

By: Cath Crowley

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Release Date: February 14, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Contemporary

Pages: 272

Source: ARC from NetGalley and Random House

Senior year is over, and Lucy has the perfect way to celebrate: tonight, she’s going to find Shadow, the mysterious graffiti artist whose work appears all over the city. He’s out there somewhere – spraying color, spraying birds and blue sky on the night – and Lucy knows a guy who paints like Shadow is someone she could fall for. Really fall for. Instead, Lucy’s stuck at a party with Ed, the guy she’s managed to avoid since the most awkward date of her life. But when Ed tells her he knows where to find Shadow, they’re suddenly on an all-night search around the city. And what Lucy can’t see is the one thing that’s right before her eyes.

There are absolutely no words for how much I LOVE this book. This is probably going to be less of a review and more of just a gushing love letter to Graffiti Moon and Cath Crowley. I fell in love when I first read it back in August last year and then I fell in love all over again when I reread it just a few weeks ago. Everyone needs to go preorder it RIGHT NOW, because this book is amaaaaaazing.

Graffiti Moon is one of those rare books where every element seems to come together and blend pretty much perfectly. The plot, the execution, the dialogue, the characters, the writing…they’re all flawless and create this perfect little package, this wonderful gem of a book.

I knew I wanted to read Graffiti Moon the moment I read the synopsis. A group of teenagers, giddy and celebrating the end of high school, going on an all-night adventure to search for a mysterious graffiti artist? And then add in the fact that the two main characters have an awkward past together? Oh yes please, sign me up. And what a group of friends! These kids are AWESOME, you guys. Funny and clever and witty and they have the BEST conversations. There are some truly hilarious moments where I couldn't help but laugh out loud. Seriously, I wish I had conversations like this with my friends. The dialogue and banter between Ed and Lucy in particular is enough to make me grin, but all the other side characters are just as awesome. Even Lucy’s parents are fantastic. This book just crackles with chemistry and the magic of this kind of night when anything can happen.

And the writing. Oh my goodness, the writing. I could go on and on about how beautifully this book is written. It took me longer than usual to read Graffiti Moon because I kept stopping and reading certain segments over and over again. My second time reading it I decided to highlight all my favorite passages, and then I stopped because I realized I was highlighting almost the entire book. The writing is just gorgeous and flowing and perfect. Cath Crowley paints beautiful pictures with her words and the entire night comes alive for the reader. This is particularly magical because of all the art happening in this book – Shadow’s painting and Lucy’s glassblowing and Poet’s words. She makes me want to put on a smock and create something.

The story is told through alternating points of view, going back and forth between Lucy and Ed, with occasional short chapters of Poet’s poems. I loved this format, and I think it worked really well for the book. It was so fun being able to get inside both Ed’s and Lucy’s heads. At times the chapters would overlap a little, and even though this sometimes felt unnecessarily repetitive, at other times it was really interesting to see the same scene from both sides. Both characters are so incredibly real – they make mistakes and say stupid things and life isn’t a fairy tale, and that’s part of why this book is so delightful.

Graffiti Moon is a stunning novel, one that I will be rereading over and over and over again. With fabulously clever dialogue, gorgeous descriptive writing, and an all-night adventure you won’t ever want to leave, this is officially one of my favorite books of all time.

Some favorite quotes:

(I don’t usually do this for books but I just couldn’t help it. Also this is not NEARLY all of them. I had a hard enough time limiting myself to these.)

‘The night didn't go so well because I broke his nose, which was an accident that happened when I hit him in the face because he touched my arse.’
~~~~~

‘“I know about graffiti,” I say, and the words come out as if I’m an old lady saying she likes the hip-hop.’
~~~~~

‘Mum says when wanting collides with getting, that’s the moment of truth. I want to collide. I want to run right into Shadow and let the force spill our thoughts so we can pick each other up and pass each other back like piles of shiny stones.’
~~~~~

‘He was leaning back in his chair and staring at me. And every time he stared I felt like I’d touched my tongue to the tip of a battery. I was nothing but tingle. After a while the tingle turned to electricity, and when he asked me out my whole body amped to a level where technically I should have been dead. I was pretty sure we had nothing in common, but a girl doesn’t think straight when she’s that close to electrocution.’
~~~~~

‘I liked that he had hair that was growing without a plan.’
~~~~~

‘For that week after Ed asked me out and before we went on the date, I felt like the world was heated glass and I was glad to be trapped.’
~~~~~

‘“I know that” I say, trying to act like I’m not embarrassed for thinking love and sex are the same thing. I know they’re not, but I want them to be close enough to at least brush each other as they pass.
~~~~~

"Waiting On" Wednesday #36

2012-02-08T00:00:00.001-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release that we’re eagerly anticipating. Let the salivating commence.

My pick this week:

The Best Night of Your (Pathetic) Life

By: Tara Altebrando

Publisher: Penguin Group

Release Date: July 5, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

An all-day scavenger hunt in the name of eternal small-town glory…

With only a week until graduation, there’s one last thing Mary and her friends must do together: participate in the Oyster Point High Official Unofficial Senior Week Scavenger Hunt. And Mary is determined to win.

Mary lost her spot at Georgetown to self-professed “it” bully Pete Lembo and she’s not about to lose again. But everyone is racing for the finish line with complicated motives, and the team’s all-night adventure becomes all-night drama as shifting alliances, flared tempers, and crushing crushes take over. As the items and points pile up, Mary and her team must reinvent their strategy – and themselves – in order to win.

Why I’m Waiting: Haha, this sounds awesome! I’m a big fan of the all-night adventure stories (Graffiti Moon, One Night That Changes Everything), and I’m also a huge fan of scavenger hunts, so this sounds perfect. And I love the cover! The silhouettes, the striking color against the black... So cool.

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Review: The Selection by Kiera Cass

2012-02-07T19:28:00.001-06:00

The Selection (The Selection 1)

By: Kiera Cass

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: April 24, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Dystopian

Pages: 327

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in the palace and compete for the heart of the gorgeous Prince Maxon.

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn’t want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she’s made for herself – and realizes that the life she’s always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

I was immediately intrigued when I first heard about The Selection, both because of the interesting premise and the gorgeous cover. I’m left with mixed feelings after reading it, but overall it was a fun and entertaining read.

The Selection has been pitched as “The Bachelor” meets The Hunger Games, and I can definitely understand the comparisons to both. I’ve never actually seen “The Bachelor,” but the competition that the girls go through in The Selection seems pretty similar to me. I really enjoyed the girls’ interactions as they realized that they were becoming friends (some of them, at least!) despite the fact that they were all competing to win the heart of Prince Maxon. And Maxon himself is such a sweetheart! I do wish that his friendship with America had happened a little slower, but their interactions were a lot of fun.

America herself is a likeable heroine, though at times she came across as a little too perfect and admired. Her interactions with Aspen and her family were some of my favorite moments, especially her little sister, May. I’m looking forward to seeing more of her. (And more of Aspen!). This is one of those love triangle books where I don’t feel very strongly toward either boy, YET. I like them both, so we’ll just have to see what happens. :)

The comparison to The Hunger Games is also understandable to me, although I think they are alike less because they’re both dystopians and more because of other very similar plot elements (which I’m not going to go into, but you’ll probably notice as you read the book).

To be honest, in comparison to a lot of dystopians, The Selection hardly even feels like a dystopian novel. People are divided into numbered caste systems (with Ones being the highest and Eights the lowest), and there are occasional rebel attacks, but the overall tone of the novel is much more relaxed and the story focuses mostly on the Selection itself. Which in some ways is a refreshing change from the heavier novels out there, although I am hoping that in future novels we’ll get more information about the rebels and everything that's going on.

If you like your dystopians a little on the fluffier side, and if you enjoy reality competitions like “The Bachelor,” I’d recommend reading The Selection. For me, it wasn’t am-AH-zing, but it is definitely a light, entertaining story that I enjoyed reading, and I am planning to check out the next book in the series.

Blog Tour: Falling In Between by Devon Ashley (Playlist)

2012-02-06T00:00:00.000-06:00

In honor of her novel Falling In Between, Devon Ashley is visiting From A to Z today to share some of her favorite love songs! I'm a gigantic music nerd, so I can't wait to see what she's come up with. You can also stop by Devon's blog to enter for a chance to win a signed doodle-graph copy of the book!

Devon Ashley's Falling In Between Playlist:

I've got a loooooong list of favorite love songs so what I'm giving you here is just a sample. Some are sweet, some are funky, and some are heartbreaking. Some even remind me of my characters in Falling In Between. I think my fave on this list may be Hey Na Na just cause it's so funky and different. Any of these on your list of faves?

1. 4Real by Avril Lavigne

2. Arms by Christina Perri

3. Moments Between Sleep by VersaEmerge

4. Hummingbird Heartbeat by Katy Perry

5. Never Say Never by The Fray

6. Hey Na Na by Katie Herzig

7. Fallin’ For You by Colbie Cailat

8. All I Have by Mat Kearney

9. Love You Like a Love Song by Selena Gomez

10. When it Rains by Paramore

11. Hear You Me by Jimmy Eat World

12. Hologram by Katie Herzig

13. Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift

Great list, Devon! Hear You Me is definitely one of my favorite songs and I'm also a huge fan of Christina Perri, Mat Kearney, and Katie Herzig. Thanks so much for the tunes! :)

Find Devon Ashley:
Blog | Goodreads | Facebook

In My Mailbox #30

2012-02-05T00:00:00.002-06:00

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren that gives bloggers the opportunity to showcase the books they’ve received that week. You can learn more about it here.

For Review:

Digit: She’s Got Your Number by Annabel Monaghan

Thou Shalt Not Road Trip by Antony John

These are both from Around the World ARC Tours. I haven’t started either yet, but I'm looking forward to reading them. Especially Digit, it looks really fun.

The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda

I received this for review and I’m PSYCHED. This book sounds so awesome and creepy. And I actually think I prefer the original blue cover to this new one but oh well. I actually just noticed the people in this one which makes me like it a little more. Thanks so much to Macmillan for this review copy!

What’s in your mailbox this week?

Review: Glimmer by Phoebe Kitanidis

2012-02-04T17:33:00.001-06:00

Glimmer

By: Phoebe Kitanidis

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Release Date: April 17, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Paranormal

Pages: 352

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

What if you forgot your identity and had to rely on other people to tell you who you were?

And what if to discover your true self, you first had to unravel a mystery so big and terrifying you were not sure you’d survive solving it?

When Marshall and Elyse wake up in each other’s arms with zero memory of how they got there or who they are, it’s the start of a long journey through their separate pasts and shared future.

Terrified by their amnesia, the two make a pact to work together to find the answers that could jog their missing memories. As they piece together clues, they discover they’re in the idyllic mountain resort town of Summer Falls, where everyone seems mysteriously happy, but as Marshall and Elyse quickly learn, darkness lurks beneath the town’s perfect façade. Not only is the town haunted by sinister ghosts, but none of its living inhabitants retain bad memories of anything – not the death of Marshall’s mom, not the hidden shame in Elyse’s family, not even the day-to-day anguish of high school.

Lonely in this world of happy zombies, Marsh and Elyse fall into an intense relationship… but the secrets they uncover could be the death of this growing love – and the death of everyone, and everything, they love in Summer Falls.

Glimmer is such an interesting story. There’s a lot going on… magic and ghosts and heat naps and old legends and amnesia and a seemingly idyllic but confusing town… but somehow it all manages to work together and form this absolutely crazy and fun ride.

It’s really interesting when the main characters of a story have absolutely no memories, even of themselves. As a reader, it’s hard to get a sense of who they are when they don’t even recognize their own names or faces. In some ways this is a cool way to go through a story, because you’re really discovering everything along with the characters, but there were times when it was frustrating for me. Elyse in particular could be annoying, because she’s clearly an attractive girl, which apparently pisses her off as soon as she looks in a mirror and realizes. She kept making comments about her “stupid pouty lips and huge green eyes” (That’s not an exact quote, by the way, but pretty close. At one point I believe she even says she looks like a Disney princess.) and how she didn’t feel like she should have been born into this curvy body, and why are all her clothes so short and tight? Girl, you’re pretty, just get over it. I never really understood her resentment towards herself.

But for the most part it was great fun going along on the journey with Marshall and Elyse. After waking up naked together, they set off immediately in search of answers, with the reader egging them on every step of the way. With each new revelation they learn a little bit more about Summer Falls, but for the majority of the time everyone is left wondering WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?! I really loved the sense of mystery throughout the whole novel, it was an exciting change to the majority of YA novels I read. And everything is so unpredictable that you’ll have a hard time getting bored or even guessing what’s going on.

Phoebe Kitanidis has created the little town of Summer Falls really well; it’s so full of character. I visited Colorado last summer and as I was reading I could totally picture Summer Falls just nestled in the mountains there. The whole town has this awesome mysterious atmosphere to it.

Glimmer is a fun, fast-paced read, partly because you won’t want to put it down until you’ve figured everything out and know what’s happening. It’s mystifying and thrilling and just a little bit creepy. I definitely enjoyed this wild adventure.

Friday Hops #8

2012-02-02T21:18:00.000-06:00

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read.

Today’s Question: Define what characteristics your favorite books share. Do they all have a kick ass heroine or is the how love interest the Alpha Male?

I'm definitely a fan of kick ass heroines! Both physically kickass (Katsa! Suze! Katniss!) and also really clever and witty heroines (Lori! Lucy! Ginny!) are big favorites of mine. As for love interests... I have a huge weakness for best friend stories (as I will mention again below in my TGIF answer). And my favorite books tend to have slowly developing romance as opposed to love at first sight (also expanded on below!).

TGIF is hosted by Ginger at GReads!

Book Appeal: When you’re browsing goodreads, the library, or another blogger’s reviews, what grabs your attention to make you want to read it?

A good love story! I’m a sucker for romance, so that’s probably the number one thing that I look for. And none of that insta-love stuff. I like the slow burnnnnn. I want sparks. Sexual tension. Even if I’m not that interested in the plot, if I hear that a book has an amazing slow burn romance or the characters have fantastic chemistry together I’ll almost definitely check it out.

I’m also a huge fan of best friend stories (The Boys Next Door, Catching Jordan, Fracture, etc.), so that will make me pick up a book too. Or not even best friends, but just characters that have known each other for a while and have some kind of history together (awkward history is awesome too). Of course, those usually also have the slow burn/chemistry thing going for them, so…

Oh, also! Clever humor and spunky heroines are big turn-ons for me. As is gorgeous and unique writing (like Tahereh Mafi and Cath Crowley). Or if a book is really intensely emotional and makes you hurt in a good way… that works for me too. :P

And if it’s a reviewer who I’m familiar with and I know we have similar taste in books, I’ll usually trust them if they say they liked a book even if I wasn’t planning on reading it. I also look at the favorite books of certain authors that I really like. I’ve discovered some awesome books that way.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Review: When the Sea is Rising Red by Cat Hellisen

2012-02-02T00:00:00.000-06:00

When the Sea is Rising Red

By: Cat Hellisen

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

Release Date: February 28, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Fantasy

Pages: 296

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

After sixteen-year-old Felicita’s dearest friend, Ilven, kills herself to escape an arranged marriage, Felicita chooses freedom over privilege. She fakes her own death and leaves her sheltered life as one of Pelimburg’s magical elite behind. Living in the slums, scrubbing dishes for a living, she falls for charismatic Dash while also becoming fascinated with vampire Jannik. Then something shocking washes up on the beach: Ilven’s death has called out of the sea a dangerous, wild magic. Felicita must decide whether her loyalties lie with the family she abandoned…or with those who would twist this dark power to destroy Pelimburg’s caste system, and the whole city along with it.

Wow. What an incredibly awesome debut novel! I went into this book not expecting it to be A) high fantasy, or B) just quite as amazing as it was. I LOVE high fantasy and don’t read nearly enough of it for some reason, so this was such a fun surprise for me.

We are thrust immediately into the world of Pelimburg – and what a world it is! An oppressive caste system, tightly controlled magic, selkies and sea-witches and unicorns… it’s dark and dangerous and oh so magical. Cat Hellisen has created a wonderfully imaginative and complex fantasy world that feels just like you’re stepping straight into the novel. You can feel the mist coming off the water and the magic sparking off your skin; it’s fantastic. It takes a while to get accustomed to the world and some of the terminology can be a little confusing at first, but if you pay attention you’ll be fine.

Though it has familiar themes, this is not your average fluffy YA novel; there’s so much more going on here. It is an incredibly unique and well-written story, with very relatable and real characters. Felicita is an immediately likeable and wonderful heroine – smart and brave and strong – and I really enjoyed exploring the underbelly of Pelimberg with her. The group that she takes refuge with is made up of a fascinating group of street kids, both friendly and not so much, and Felicita and the reader both get swept up in their lives without really knowing whether or not they can be trusted. Things going on in Pelimburg are much bigger than Felicita realizes at first, and by the time she understands what is happening she has ended up right in the middle of it.

The two other main characters, Dash and Jannik, are each incredibly different and charming in their own ways, and I loved Felicita’s relationship with both of them. The romance in the story isn’t necessarily the typical kind of love triangle or the kind of happily-ever-after romance that you find in most YA novels, but I thought it was absolutely perfect and realistic and fitting for the story. It’s a little darker, a little grittier, and a little more bittersweet at the end, but it works very well for the characters and their situations.

When the Sea is Rising Red is one of those books that is nearly impossible to put down. I kept telling myself I would only read one more chapter before I went to sleep and before I knew it it was three in the morning. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. If you like fantasy, if you like your stories dark and intense and magical, if you’re looking for something a little different in your YA, you don’t want to miss When the Sea is Rising Red. It is a beautiful and haunting story that will stay with you for a long time.

NetGalley January Wrap Up

2012-02-01T20:30:00.000-06:00

It’s February!! And that means that NetGalley January is officially over and it’s time to share how we did!

I didn’t read quite as many NetGalley books as I had hoped I would, due to other reading commitments and one week where I was in an unfortunate reading slump, but I feel like I made good progress and I now have the urge to just keep going. Which is a good thing, since I’ve signed up for the 2012 NetGalley Reading Challenge! My goal is to read at least 30 NetGalley books in 2012 and I’ve read four so far, so I think I’m well on my way.

But back to NetGalley January, here’s what I ended up reading:

Tempest by Julie Cross (my review)

Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

Fracture by Megan Miranda

My other reviews will all be up soon, so keep an eye out for those.

Thanks so much to Emily over at Red House Books for putting this all together! I can’t wait to do it all over again for NetGalley April! Happy reading everyone. :)

"Waiting On" Wednesday #35

2012-02-01T00:00:00.001-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release that we’re eagerly anticipating. Let the salivating commence.

My pick this week:

Such a Rush

By: Jennifer Echols

Publisher: MTV Books

Release Date: July 10, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

A sexy and poignant romantic tale of a young daredevil pilot caught between two brothers.

High school senior Leah Jones loves nothing more than flying. While she’s in the air, it’s easy to forget life with her absentee mother at the low-rent end of a South Carolina beach town. When her flight instructor, Mr. Hall, hires her to fly for his banner advertising business, she sees it as her ticket out of the trailer park. And when he dies suddenly, she’s afraid her flying career is gone forever.

But Mr. Hall’s teenage sons, golden boy Alec and adrenaline junkie Grayson, are determined to keep the banner planes flying. Though Leah has crushed on Grayson for years, she’s leery of getting involved in what now seems like a doomed business – until Grayson betrays her by digging up her most damning secret. Holding it over her head, he forces her to fly for secret reasons of his own, reasons involving Alec. Now Leah finds herself drawn into a battle between brothers – and the consequences could be deadly.

Why I’m Waiting: I love love love Jennifer Echols and I’m SO EXCITED for this book. I have a secret dream of getting a pilot’s license (and watching Pan Am only intensifies that desire, haha), so I’m thrilled about the fact that Leah flies. And Jennifer’s heroines are always so spunky and absolutely a blast to read about. Can’t wait for this one!

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Review: Tempest by Julie Cross

2012-01-31T15:54:00.002-06:00

Tempest

By: Julie Cross

Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin

Release Date: January 17, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Paranormal/Sci-Fi

Pages: 352

Source: ARC from NetGalley and Macmillan

The year is 2009. Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. But it’s not like the movies – nothing changes in the present after his jumps, there’s no space-time continuum issues or broken flux capacitors – it’s just harmless fun.

That is… until the day strangers burst in on Jackson and his girlfriend, Holly, and during a struggle with Jackson, Holly is fatally shot. In his panic, Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but this is not like his previous time jumps. Now he’s stuck in 2007 and can’t get back to the future.

Desperate to somehow return to 2009 to save Holly but unable to return to his rightful year, Jackson settles into 2007 and learns what he can about his abilities.

But it’s not long before the people who shot Holly in 2009 come looking for Jackson in the past, and these “Enemies of Time” will stop at nothing to recruit this powerful young time-traveler. Recruit… or kill him.

Piecing together the clues about his father, the Enemies of Time, and himself, Jackson must decide how far he’s willing to go to save Holly… and possibly the entire world.

Time travel stories are always a little iffy for me. Sometimes they work incredibly well (like The Time Traveler’s Wife), and sometimes they’re just too confusing and give me a headache (can’t think of an example right now but you know what I mean! :P). Tempest falls somewhere in-between for me, but overall I did enjoyed the story.

We learn about the rules of Jackson’s ability to time travel right at the beginning, which sets up the story nicely. But as things progress Jackson slowly begins to realize that he doesn’t even begin to understand everything that’s going on and things are way bigger than he ever imagined.

This is kind of where things got out of hand for me. I felt like the plot just had too many different elements and everything was unnecessarily complicated and a little bit unbelievable (yes, even for a science fiction story). I didn’t fully buy into the CIA/Enemies of Time subplot, and I wish that there had been a bigger focus on the simpler aspects of the story instead of trying to introduce so many things at once. The time travel aspect itself can be confusing if you start to think about it too much, but as long as you just go with it then it’s easy enough to understand.

I did really love Jackson’s visits with his sister, they were some of my favorite scenes in the novel, and I would have liked to see more of that developed. It was also really fun watching Jackson interact with the past versions of his friends, especially Adam (yay for science geeks!). Having a male protagonist is always a refreshing change in YA and I enjoyed seeing things through his point of view. And THANK YOU Jackson, for refusing to go back to high school! I’ve always thought it was so ridiculous that so many supernatural immortal characters would actually spend their time in high school (Really?? Really?), and I might have cheered a little bit when college-age Jackson put his foot down (although I don’t understand why his dad was so accommodating; MY parents definitely wouldn’t have been). All that said, I never really connected with Jackson very well, and I also didn’t feel much for Holly. I think this may be because she is shot so quickly at the beginning of the novel that I didn’t really have a chance to get to know her, so I just didn’t care that much.

The climax of the novel is action-packed and high-stakes, and leaves the reader with a slightly bittersweet feeling and a desire for more. Holly’s writing is incredibly visual and cinematic, and the whole thing kind of feels like a action movie, which made the book fun to read even with my lack of connection to the characters. I also definitely still have some questions about the logistics of the time traveling, but I’m hoping the second book might answer them.

Overall, although it didn't wow me, Tempest is an engrossing and entertaining story, and I’m looking forward to finding out what happens next.

In My Mailbox #29

2012-01-29T01:00:00.001-06:00

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren that gives bloggers the opportunity to showcase the books they’ve received that week. You can learn more about it here.

No IMM last week because of… laziness? Haha, I don’t remember. Anyways, two weeks worth of books!

For review:

The Selection by Kiera Cass

Unraveling by Elizabeth Norris

Glimmer by Phoebe Kitanidis

When the Sea Is Rising Red by Cat Hellisen

Dark Eyes by William Richter

These are all ARC tour books from Around the World Tours (love that place!). I’m reading The Selection right now and I’m liking it so far (only a couple of chapters in though). Glimmer was really good, and When the Sea Is Rising Red was amaaaaaazing. So so fantastic. I stayed up until around 4 in the morning reading it. <3 My reviews for all of these will be up soon.

Bought:

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick

Oh how I love John Green (my tumblr name is because of him). I’m so excited to read this one – I’ve heard nothing but good things about it. And I ordered Silence way back when it first came out, but since I preordered TFiOS with it, they both just arrived together. I haven’t decided whether I want to reread the first two books before Silence, but I’m really looking forward to visiting with Patch and Nora again. :)

Other stuff:

I’m on the street team for Don’t Breathe a Word by Holly Cupala, and I got this awesome swag pack in the mail last week. It’s full of posters, stickers, magnets, bookmarks… I’m not sure just how I’m going to share all this DBaW love yet, but I’m sure I’ll think of something. ;)

That’s it for me, what did you get in your mailbox this week?

Friday Hops #7

2012-01-26T21:28:00.001-06:00

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read.

Today’s Question: Which book genre do you avoid at all costs and why?

There’s no genre that I avoid at ALL costs, but I generally don’t read a lot of nonfiction. That said, I just remembered that I’m in LOVE with The Beak of the Finch, which is nonfiction. Haha, ah well. I like a little bit of everything!

TGIF is hosted by Ginger at GReads!

Buy or Borrow: Where do your books that you read come from? The bookstore? The library? Do you prefer to own a book, or have it on loan?

I definitely prefer to own books (which is obvious when you see my bookshelves), but I actually hardly ever buy books these days. Between the books that I already own but haven’t read, books that I get for review, and library books, I have MORE than enough to read. (Plus I’m broke. :P) I do love used book sales though – especially for finding out-of-print editions. I went to school in Baltimore, which has the most amaaaazing place called The Book Thing, which is basically like a used bookstore, but everything is FREE! They run on volunteers and donations, and you can just go in and take however many books you want. It’s FANTASTIC. I definitely miss being able to go there and search for awesome books.

Happy Friday, everyone!

"Waiting On" Wednesday #34

2012-01-25T00:00:00.000-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release that we’re eagerly anticipating. Let the salivating commence.

My pick this week:

Bitterblue (The Seven Kingdoms 3)

By: Kristin Cashore

Publisher: Dial

Release Date: May 1, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

Eight years after Graceling, Bitterblue is now queen of Monsea. But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisors, who have run things since Leck died, believe in a forward-thinking plan: Pardon all who committed terrible acts under Leck’s reign, and forget anything bad every happened. But when Bitterblue begins sneaking outside the castle – disguised and alone – to walk the streets of her own city, she starts realizing that the kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year spell of a madman, and the only way to move forward is to revisit the past. Two thieves, who only steal what has already been stolen, change her life forever. They hold a key to the truth of Leck’s reign. And one of them, with an extreme skill called a Grace that he hasn’t yet identified, holds a key to her heart.

Why I’m Waiting: I LOVED both Graceling and Fire, and I am so so excited for this third book in the series. Kristin Cashore is awesome and I can’t wait to fall in love with these characters all over again.

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Blog Tour: Falling In Between by Devon Ashley (Review)

2012-01-24T14:15:00.001-06:00

From A to Z is one of today's stops on the Falling In Between Blog Tour, so welcome! My review of Falling In Between is posted below, and be sure to stop by Devon's blog for the full tour schedule and a chance to win a signed doodle-graph copy of the book!

Devon will also be visiting From A to Z on February 6th to share some of her favorite love songs, so don't miss that!

Falling In Between

By: Devon Ashley

Publisher: Indie Published

Release Date: February 14, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Paranormal

Pages: 264

Source: ARC from author

Finally! A private conversation. And all I had to do was throw myself off a cliff, drown in a pond in my undies and let him put his hands on my breasts to bring me back to life. Yay me… (yeah, that’s sarcasm).

Yep, that pretty much sums up the most craptastic night of Jenna Baker’s life. She drowns after jumping off a cliff, meets a hotty named Chance in the pearlescent in-between and is brought back to life by her soon-to-be boyfriend Robert.

Just when things start to move forward with Robert, the guy she’s been crushing on for a year now, in walks the man of her dreams – literally. Chance suddenly appears in her dream every time she closes her eyes. So it’s Robert by day and Chance by night. One in the real world and one in the dream world. What could possibly go wrong?

Absolutely nothing – until she comes face to face with the guy she met in the in-between, and realizes her romantic rendezvous with Chance may be more than just her imagination.

Falling In Between has a really unique premise, and while I did enjoy reading it, unfortunately it didn’t grab me the way I had hoped it would. The story starts off very promising, with Jenna drowning and meeting a mysterious guy in the “in-between” before being revived, but I feel like it never really lived up to this promise for me. It wasn’t a bad book by any means, it just wasn’t completely my cup of tea.

The main issue I had was that there was very little development of Jenna’s relationships with both Chance and Robert. Her relationships with both of them start pretty quickly, and even throughout their time together I feel like I didn’t really see the progression of their connection. It felt like almost every time we saw them it was in some sexual situation – I feel like I never really got to know either of the boys very well outside of that and I didn’t feel invested in her relationship with either of them.

There isn’t much plot or conflict other than the main issue based around Jenna being with the two boys, and since I didn’t really connect with either of them I just couldn’t bring myself to care that much. Because of this, I felt like there was a lack of material for me to identify with, although I did enjoy their story on a surface level.

In contrast to the lack of development of Jenna’s romantic relationships, I think her relationship with her best friend and roommate Sophie was very well done and it was my favorite part of the novel. I really loved Sophie and the scenes with the two of them and their bonding sessions and conversations in the room were so fun. Jenna clearly needed a guiding influence in her life and I love that Sophie was there for her.

Though technically not in diary form, reading Falling in Between feels very much like you are reading Jenna’s journal and she’s just having a conversation with you. It’s very casual and intimate and you can get inside her head easily, which I liked a lot. This also gives the book a bit of an addictive quality – I read the almost the entire thing in just one sitting.

If you’re looking for a sweet and simple love story with a bit of a paranormal aspect, you might want to check out Falling In Between. Overall I would have liked a little more from the story, but it was nevertheless a light, enjoyable read.

Review: Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

2012-01-22T16:25:00.000-06:00

Struck

By: Jennifer Bosworth

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

Release Date: May 8, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Paranormal Post-Apocalypse

Pages: 373

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

Mia Price is a lightning addict. She’s survived countless strikes, but her craving to connect to the energy in storms endangers her life and the lives of those around her.

Los Angeles, where lightning rarely strikes, is one of the few places Mia feels safe from her addiction. But when an earthquake devastates the city, her haven is transformed into a minefield of chaos and danger. The beaches become massive tent cities. Downtown is a crumbling wasteland, where a traveling party moves to a different empty building each night, the revelers drawn to the destruction by a force they cannot deny. Two warring cults rise to power, and both see Mia as the key to their opposing doomsday prophecies. They believe she has a connection to the freak electrical storm that caused the quake, and to the far more devastating storm that is yet to come.

Mia wants to trust the enigmatic and alluring Jeremy when he promises to protect her, but she fears he isn’t who he claims to be. In the end, the passion and power that brought them together could be their downfall. When the final disaster strikes, Mia must risk unleashing the full horror of her strength to save the people she loves, or lose everything.

Okay, so this book almost makes me want to go stand in a storm and try to get struck by lightning. And if a book makes me want to do something that’s potentially fatal, well… the book has to be pretty awesome, right? Right. (Please note the use of almost.)

Struck is such a unique story. From the view of what might happen to Los Angeles after a horrible earthquake to the idea of a girl who is addicted to getting struck by lightning, the fascinating premise will draw you right in, and the remarkable world-building will keep you there.

Jennifer Bosworth is a screenwriter, and it’s completely evident as you read Struck. The devastated city of LA is brought to life through her wonderful descriptions and everything jumps right off the page. I almost felt like I was watching a movie in my head, and I would love to see Struck on the big screen. The story moves along rapidly, with the book broken up into the three days before the storm hits, and you can feel the tension as it gets closer and closer. Everything leads up to the explosive ending, with twists and turns all along the way, including something that I totally did not see coming (and I’m usually pretty good at guessing things so it’s awesome when an author can surprise me).

I really liked Mia from the start. She’s not one of those annoyingly naive heroines who can’t ever tell what’s going on. She has her moments, of course, but for the most part she’s incredibly smart and intuitive, and I absolutely loved reading from her perspective. The rest of the characters are also great; everyone from Mia’s family to her love interest to the members of the two cults are interesting and fun to read about. Although I will say that I wish there had been a bit more development to the romance; it was just a bit too fast-moving and instalove for me to really get invested in it.

And one note about the cults, while there are pretty heavy religious themes to the novel, it’s not done in a preachy or overbearing way at all. Jennifer handles the cult aspect very well, and I would recommend not letting that prevent you from reading Struck.

One of the things I love about this novel is that while there is definitely the possibility for future books, Struck itself is a complete and engaging story with a satisfying ending. There’s no awful cliffhanger, no frustrating loose ends. Not that I don’t enjoy the occasional tantalizing cliffhanger, but it’s a refreshing change to finish a book and actually have it end.

With an awesome heroine and a unique premise, Struck is an addictive, fast-paced novel that you won’t want to put down. I can’t wait for more from Jennifer Bosworth!

Review: Slide by Jill Hathaway

2012-01-19T14:58:00.000-06:00

Slide

By: Jill Hathaway

Publisher: Balzer + Bray for HarperCollins

Release Date: March 27, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Paranormal Mystery

Pages: 256

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth – her sister’s friend Sophie didn’t kill herself. She was murdered.

Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn’t actually fall asleep during these episodes: when she passes out, she slides into somebody else’s mind and experiences the world through that person’s eyes. She’s slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed “friend” when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie’s slashed body.

Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can’t bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting off lately, more distant, especially now that she’s been spending more time with Zane.

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger, and with no one else to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

I’m having very mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I love the idea of being able to slide into other people’s bodies – I think it’s a really fresh idea for a paranormal novel and I was immediately intrigued. A lot of things about the novel were done really well and overall it was definitely an enjoyable read. At the same time, I had a few issues with it and I feel like it didn’t fully live up to its potential.

Vee is a likeable and realistic character, and I really enjoyed her interactions with the various other characters in the novel. Jill Hathaway portrays the interpersonal relationships in Slide incredibly well, that was probably my favorite thing about the story. The way the characters deal with things like grief and forgiveness is particularly delicate and touching. And although there are a lot of heavy themes touched on in Slide, the novel never felt overly dark.

As I already mentioned, Vee’s ability to slide into other people’s bodies adds a really fun and interesting paranormal aspect to the story, although I would have loved more exploration into where the ability comes from, especially whether there’s any connection to her mother. There are hints that it is hereditary but it’s never really mentioned further than that. I like that the sliding is the only paranormal element of Slide and doesn’t take over; it’s still a largely realistic story.

I think my main disappointment with Slide lies in the murder mystery. Vee is a pretty crappy detective, to be honest, which at times was very frustrating as a reader. There were many things I figured out long before she did, and she had a tendency to jump to the obvious conclusions very quickly, so by the time she got to her big revelations there wasn’t as much of an impact for me. However, I wouldn’t say that the murder mystery is completely predictable, and there are many twists and turns along the way. But the story behind the murder felt very far-fetched to me. The culprit’s motive wasn’t entirely convincing and it didn’t have the satisfying “Oooohh!” that I like to experience at the end of a murder mystery.

All that said, Slide is still a quick, engrossing read that manages to entertain despite the flaws. I thoroughly enjoyed the concept and had fun reading it.

"Waiting On" Wednesday #33

2012-01-18T00:00:00.000-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release (or releases) that we’re eagerly anticipating.

My pick this week:

Masque of the Red Death

By: Bethany Griffin

Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s Books

Release Date: April 24, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

Everything is in ruins.

A devastating plague has decimated the population. And those who are left live in fear of catching it as the city crumbles to pieces around them.

So what does Araby Worth have to live for?

Nights in the Debauchery Club, beautiful dresses, glittery make-up… and tantalizing ways to forget it all.

But in the depths of the club – in the depths of her own despair – Araby will find more than oblivion. She will find Will, the terribly handsome proprietor of the club. And Elliott, the wickedly smart aristocrat. Neither boy is what he seems. Both have secrets. Everyone does.

And Araby may find something not just to live for, but to fight for – no matter what it costs her.

Why I’m Waiting: Gorgeous cover aside, this book sounds awesome. Devastating plague by day, crazy club parties by night… count me in! And don't forget those two mysterious guys. :P Can’t wait to read this one!

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

"Waiting On" Wednesday #32

2012-01-11T00:00:00.000-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release (or releases) that we’re eagerly anticipating.

My picks this week:

Vessel

By: Sarah Beth Durst

Publisher: Margaret K McElderry Books

Release Date: September 11, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

In a desert land where serpents made of unbreakable glass fly through the sky and wolves made of only sand hunt within storms, Liyana is destined to be a vessel, to sacrifice herself so that her clan’s goddess can inhabit her body… but her goddess never comes.

Why I’m Waiting: Um, WOAH. This sounds amazing. Flying serpents made of glass? Wolves made of sand? And just look at that cover! SO gorgeous.

From What I Remember (cover not final)

By: Stacy Kramer & Valerie Thomas

Publisher: Hyperion

Release Date: May 15, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

KYLIE:

Tijuana WHAT? I should be putting the finishing touches on my valedictorian speech. Graduation is TODAY! And is this a wedding band on my finger??

MAX:

It all started with Kylie’s laptop and a truck full of stolen electronics. Okay, it was kind of hot, the way she broke us out like some chick in an action movie. But now we’re stranded in Tijuana. With less than twenty-four hours before graduation. Awesome.

WILL:

Saving Kylie Flores from herself is kind of a full-time occupation. Luckily, I, Will Bixby, was born for the job. And when I found out she was stuck in Mexico with dreamy Max Langston, sure, I agreed to bring their passports across the border – but there’s no reason to rush back home right away. This party is just getting started.

LILY:

I just walked in on my boyfriend, Max Langston, canoodling with Kylie Flores, freak of the century. Still, I can’t completely hold it against him. He NEEDS me. It’s even clearer now. And I’m not giving him up without a fight.

Why I’m Waiting: I really like stories that are told from multiple points of view, and this one sounds like it could be crazy fun. I can’t wait to see what shenanigans these four manage to get up to.

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Review: Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

2012-01-10T00:00:00.000-06:00

Pandemonium (Delirium 2)

By: Lauren Oliver

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: February 28, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Dystopian

Pages: 375

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

Lauren OIiver captivated readers with Delirium, the first book in a thrilling dystopian trilogy in which Lena Haloway dared to fall in love with Alex and escape the cure, the government-mandated procedure that renders a person immune to the disease of love. Lena and Alex staked their lives on leaving their oppressive society, but only Lena broke free.

Pandemonium continues Lena’s gripping story. After escaping from Portland, Maine, Lena makes it to the Wilds and becomes part of an Invalid community, where she transforms herself into a warrior for the resistance. A future without Alex is unimaginable, but Lena pushes forward and fights, both for him and for a world in which love is no longer considered a disease. Swept up in a volatile mix of revolutionaries and counterinsurgents, Lena struggles to survive – and wonders if she may be falling in love again.

Full of danger, forbidden romance, and exquisite writing, Lauren Oliver’s sequel to Delirium races forward at a breathtaking pace and is sure to appeal to fans who crave the high-stakes action of The Hunger Games and the bittersweet love story of Romeo & Juliet.

If you’ve read my review of Delirium, you know that I went into it with incredibly high expectations and was left feeling slightly disappointed. And while I still have a lot of the same problems that I had with Delirium, I’m happy to say that I liked Pandemonium a lot more. This may be partly because I had more of an idea of what to expect, or maybe I was just too harsh with Delirium, I don’t know. But Pandemonium has made me want to go back and reread Delirium, and I feel a new affection for it that I didn’t feel before.

The story is told in two parts, with chapters alternating between Lena’s life when she first arrived in the Wilds (picking up right where Delirum left off) and her life as a member of the resistance about six months later. I loved this format, because of course we all want to know how she immediately adjusted to life in the Wilds but it’s fantastic to see where she ends up and how she changes. A lot of the situations in the alternating chapters parallel each other, which was also really fun.

There is a brand new cast of characters in Pandemonium, and it was great getting to know the inhabitants of the Wild and see how they live. They take Lena in and she quickly becomes one of them, doing what she needs to do to survive without Alex. Alex’s absence is felt very strongly and Lena frequently thinks about him, using his memory as a source of strength. I absolutely LOVE the new, stronger Lena, she feels so kickass.

I’m still not totally feeling the romance in this series, but that’s okay. I have hopes that it might finally win me over in the third book. Another thing I had an issue with is that the Invalids still refer to love as a disease and talk about getting “infected.” I thought the whole point is that they want to rid the world of the idea that love is a disease, not just convince everyone that it’s okay to be infected. Ah well.

The last 50 pages are tense and race along at breakneck speed, and I couldn’t read fast enough to find out what was going to happen. And at the end of it all, once again, Lauren Oliver leaves us with a heart-clenching cliffhanger. I can’t say whether I was surprised by the ending or not (because certain people know my theories and I don’t want to spoil it :P), but I will say that whether or not I was expecting it, the last page is an awesome, heart thudding moment that will leave you wailing for the next book.

I never even really felt that desperate for Pandemonium after finishing Delirium, but I NEED the third book now. I’m so excited with the possibilities and I really hope that Lauren Oliver delivers. Pandemonium is an excellent follow-up to Delirium and fans of the first book definitely won’t be disappointed.

Review: Life Is But a Dream by Brian James

2012-01-08T15:24:00.000-06:00

Life Is But a Dream

By: Brian James

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Release Date: March 27, 2012

Genre/Age: Contemporary YA

Pages: 234

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

Alec and Sabrina are crazy in love. Problem is: Sabrina’s really crazy.

Sabrina, an artist, is diagnosed with schizophrenia, and her parents check her into the Wellness Center. There she meets Alec, who is convinced it’s the world that’s crazy, not the two of them. They are meant to be together; they are special. But when Alec starts to convince Sabrina that her treatment will wipe out everything that makes her creative, she worries that she’ll lose hold of her dreams and herself. Should she listen to her doctor? Her decision may have fatal consequences.

This book was so much more real than I was expecting. For some reason when I first heard about it I got the impression that it had almost a psychological thriller feel to it and that the reader was going to be unsure about which was reality - Sabina’s dreams or the facility where she lives. This is NOT the plot, clearly I am just an idiot (in my defense I think I first read a different synopsis than the one above), and what happens is actually a very beautiful story about Sabrina’s struggle with schizophrenia.

Life Is But a Dream portrays Sabrina’s condition incredibly well and it is so easy to sympathize with her. Brian James really manages to get inside her head, allowing the reader to see the world the way Sabrina does and understand why she gets worried about losing herself to the medication. Some of the things she sees sound so beautiful, and it doesn’t always feel like she’s crazy. She’s just afraid of her life changing and she doesn’t want to become a mindless robot like the rest of the world. You can’t help but get caught up in her story.

Alec as a love interest was very interesting. He and Sabrina fall in love very quickly, which isn’t my favorite thing, but is understandable under the circumstances. They have both been locked away from the world, told that they’re crazy, and they find comfort and understanding in each other. I totally get it, and it was wonderful to watch their connection develop and see someone understand Sabrina in a way that she hasn’t experienced for her entire life. What made it interesting to me was that at certain times I thought that Alec almost felt like the villain. As a reader I became so invested in wanting Sabrina to get better and conquer her disorder that it was really hard to read when Alec tried to convince her that the doctors were the crazy ones and didn’t have her best interests at heart. I went back and forth between not wanting Sabrina to lose her world and wishing that she would just trust her doctor.

Overall I really enjoyed Life Is But a Dream. The writing is beautiful and it is a fascinating look at the world through the eyes of someone who has schizophrenia. I’ll definitely be watching for more from Brian James.

In My Mailbox #28

2012-01-08T01:04:00.000-06:00

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren that gives bloggers the opportunity to showcase the books they’ve received that week. You can learn more about it here.

Pandemonium (Delirium 2) by Lauren Oliver

Slide by Jill Hathaway

Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

I received these three for ARC tours, which is great, but sad because I don’t actually get to keep them. Sigh. Ah well. Sharing the book love! Pandemonium was awesome (my review will be up very soon), Slide was a mixed bag but overall enjoyable, and Struck is very good so far.

The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder

I won this from Kristina’s World of Books and I can’t wait to read it. Thanks, Kristina!

A couple of the packages also had some book swag, which is always such fun.

Overall, a very good week! What did you get in your mailbox?

Cover Reveal: Stealing Parker by Miranda Kenneally

2012-01-06T14:05:00.000-06:00

I was wandering the internet this morning (as is my habit), and I was THRILLED to stumble across the shiny new cover (and title!) for Stealing Parker, Miranda Kenneally’s upcoming companion to Catching Jordan. It’s no secret that I loved Catching Jordan, and I am SO excited for her next book.

It was previously titled The Girl I Used To Be, but I like Stealing Parker a lot more because of the symmetry with Catching Jordan. I also love that the covers have a similar theme. I can’t wait to have them both on my shelf!

We don’t know much about Stealing Parker, just that it’s about a 17-year-old who falls for the 23-year-old coach of the baseball team. And characters from Catching Jordan make appearances! You can read an excerpt here.

What do you guys think? Are you as excited for this book as I am??

Friday Hops #6

2012-01-06T00:00:00.002-06:00

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read.

Today’s Question: Go count the number of unread books sitting on your shelf. How many?

Um. Is this a real question? Hahahahaha. I have NO IDEA. A LOT. Like, a lot a lot. I can’t even give you a number. Hundreds, probably. Between the books I own but haven’t read and the books I’ve checked out from the library… it’s just a lot. My eyes are definitely bigger than my stomach when it comes to books, and I’m clearly unrealistic about the amount of time I think I’m going to have to read. SIGH.

TGIF is hosted by Ginger at GReads!

Reading Resolutions: What are some of your reading goals for the new year?

I don’t like making too many goals for myself, but I do hope to read at least 100 books this year. I’ve also signed up to participate in the 2012 Debut Author Challenge and the 2012 YA Contemporary Challenge (read more about those here).

Other than that, I’m just hoping to have fun reading. Sometimes I start to feel like it’s a chore, when I have reading schedules and review schedules and I’m just trying to read as fast as I can so I can check it off my list and get onto the next book. That’s NOT what I want reading (or blogging) to be like for me, so I’m going to try to keep it stress-free this year. :)

Happy Friday, everyone!

Cover Reveal: City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare

2012-01-04T13:34:00.001-06:00

This morning USA Today revealed the cover for the fifth book in Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series, City of Lost Souls, which comes out on May 8th.

To be honest, I'm not really a fan. It looks too much like a romance novel, and I don't like the fact that you can see both of their faces pretty clearly. In the previous books their faces were mostly cut off, and all the figures were facing front, which I liked better. Ah well. I do like the blue and red color scheme though! Haha.

What do you guys think? Am I missing something?

__________________________________________________________________________________

In addition to the cover, USA Today also released the exclusive prologue! Check it out below:

Simon stood and stared numbly at the front door of his house.

He'd never known another home. This was the place his parents had brought him home to when he was born. He had grown up within the walls of the Brooklyn row house. He'd played on the street under the leafy shade of the trees in the summer, and had made improvised sleds out of garbage can lids in the winter. In this house his whole family had sat shivah after his father had died. Here he had kissed Clary for the first time.

He had never imagined a day when the door of the house would be closed to him. The last time he had seen his mother, she had called him a monster and prayed at him that he would go away. He had made her forget that he was a vampire, using glamour, but he had not known how long the glamour would last. As he stood in the cold autumn air, staring in front of him, he knew it had not lasted long enough.

The door was covered with signs—Stars of David splashed on in paint, the incised shape of the symbol for Chai, life. Tefillin were bound to the doorknob and knocker. A hamesh, the Hand of God, covered the peephole.

Numbly he put his hand to the metal mezuzah affixed to the right side of the doorway. He saw the smoke rise from the place where his hand touched the holy object, but he felt nothing. No pain. Only a terrible empty blankness, rising slowly into a cold rage.

He kicked the bottom of the door and heard the echo through the house. "Mom!" he shouted. "Mom, it's me!"

There was no reply—only the sound of the bolts being turned on the door. His sensitized hearing had recognized his mother's footsteps, her breathing, but she said nothing. He could smell acrid fear and panic even through the wood. "Mom!" His voice broke. "Mom, this is ridiculous! Let me in! It's me, Simon!"

The door juddered, as if she had kicked it. "Go away!" Her voice was rough, unrecognizable with terror. "Murderer!"

"I don't kill people." Simon leaned his head against the door. He knew he could probably kick it down, but what would be the point? "I told you. I drink animal blood."

He heard her whisper, softly, several words in Hebrew. "You killed my son," she said. "You killed him and put a monster in his place."

"I am your son—"

"You wear his face and speak with his voice, but you are not him! You're not Simon!" Her voice rose to almost a scream. "Get away from my house before I kill you, monster!"

"Becky," he said. His face was wet; he put his hands up to touch it, and they came away stained: His tears were bloody. "What have you told Becky?"

"Stay away from your sister." Simon heard a clattering from inside the house, as if something had been knocked over.

"Mom," he said again, but this time his voice wouldn't rise. It came out as a hoarse whisper. His hand had begun to throb. "I need to know—is Becky there? Mom, open the door. Please—"

"Stay away from Becky!" She was backing away from the door; he could hear it. Then came the unmistakeable squeal of the kitchen door swinging open, the creak of the linoleum as she walked on it. The sound of a drawer being opened. Suddenly he imagined his mother grabbing for one of the knives.

Before I kill you, monster.

The thought rocked him back on his heels. If she struck out at him, the Mark would rise. It would destroy her as it had destroyed Lilith.

He dropped his hand and backed up slowly, stumbling down the steps and across the sidewalk, fetching up against the trunk of one of the big trees that shaded the block. He stood where he was, staring at the front door of his house, marked and disfigured with the symbols of his mother's hate for him.

No, he reminded himself. She didn't hate him. She thought he was dead. What she hated was something that didn't exist. I am not what she says I am.

He didn't know how long he would have stood there, staring, if his phone hadn't begun to ring, vibrating his coat pocket.

He reached for it reflexively, noticing that the pattern from the front of the mezuzah—interlocked Stars of David—was burned into the palm of his hand. He switched hands and put the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

"Simon?" It was Clary. She sounded breathless. "Where are you?"

"Home," he said, and paused. "My mother's house," he amended. His voice sounded hollow and distant to his own ears. "Why aren't you back at the Institute? Is everyone all right?"

"That's just it," she said. "Just after you left, Maryse came back down from the roof where Jace was supposed to be waiting. There was no one there."

Simon moved. Without quite realizing he was doing it, like a mechanical doll, he began walking up the street, toward the subway station. "What do you mean, there was no one there?"

"Jace was gone," she said, and he could hear the strain in her voice. "And so was Sebastian."

Simon stopped in the shadow of a bare-branched tree. "But he was dead. He's dead, Clary—"

"Then you tell me why he isn't there, because he isn't," she said, her voice finally breaking. "There's nothing up there but a lot of blood and broken glass. They're both gone, Simon. Jace is gone. . . ."

"Waiting On" Wednesday #31

2012-01-04T00:00:00.000-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release (or releases) that we’re eagerly anticipating.

My picks this week:

Reunited

By: Hilary Weisman Graham

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Release Date: June 12, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

1 Concert

2000 Miles

3 Ex-Best Friends

Alice, Summer, and Tiernan are ex-best friends.

Back in middle school, the three girls were inseparable. They were also the number one fans of the rock band Level3.

But when the band broke up, so did their friendship. Summer ran with the popular crowd, Tiernan was a rebellious wild-child, and Alice spent high school with her nose buried in books.

Now, just as the girls are about to graduate, Level3 announces a one-time-only reunion show.

Even though the concert’s 2000 miles away, Alice buys three tickets on impulse. And as it turns out, Summer and Tiernan have their own reasons for wanting to get out of town. Good thing Alice’s graduation gift (a pea-green 1976 VW camper van known as the Pea Pod) is just the vehicle to get them there.

But on the long drive cross-country, the girls hit more than a few bumps in the road. Will their friendship get an encore or is the show really over?

Why I’m Waiting: I am a huge concert addict and I love road trips, so this book sounds perfect. I also love friendship stories, especially when it is THIS EXACT SITUATION. Ex-best friends forced to be in the same place for an extended period of time and work through everything. Bring it on.

Unbreak My Heart

By: Melissa C. Walker

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens

Release Date: May 22, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

Sophomore year broke Clementine Williams’ heart. She fell for her best friend’s boyfriend and long story short: he’s excused, but Clem is vilified and she heads into summer with zero social life.

Enter her parents’ plan to spend the summer on their sailboat. Normally the idea of being stuck on a tiny boat with her parents and little sister would make Clem break out in hives, but floating away sounds pretty good right now.

Then she meets James at one of their first stops along the river. He and his dad are sailing for the summer and he’s just the distraction Clem needs. Can he break down Clem’s walls and heal her broken heart?

Told in alternating chapters that chronicle the year that broke Clem’s heart and the summer that healed it, Unbreak My Heart is a wonderful dual love story that fans of Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, and Susane Colasanti will flock to.

Why I’m Waiting: Spending a summer on a sailboat? Yes please! I would kill to be able to do that. I’ve always loved sailing and being on the water, and combine it with a love story and I am SO THERE. I also love the fact that the story is told in alternating chapters between the past and present. I can’t wait for this one!

What books are you waiting on this week?

Review: Don't Breathe a Word by Holly Cupala

2012-01-03T14:45:00.001-06:00

Be sure to visit the virtual book birthday party for Don't Breathe a Word!! You can read the first two chapters, listen to the playlist, watch Holly take you around Seattle, check out a sneak peek of the graphic novel, enter to win party swag, and so much more!

Don’t Breathe a Word

By: Holly Cupala

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: January 3, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Contemporary

Pages: 320

Source: ARC from Me, My Shelf and I Book Tours

Joy Delamere is suffocating…

From asthma, which has nearly claimed her life. From her parents, who will do anything to keep that from happening. From dangerous Asher, who is smothering her from the inside out.

Joy can take his words – tender words, cruel words – until the night they go too far.

Now, Joy will leave everything behind to find the one who has offered his help, a homeless boy called Creed. She will become someone else. She will learn to survive. She will breathe… if only she can get to Creed before it’s too late.

Set against the gritty backdrop of Seattle’s streets and a cast of characters with secrets of their own, Holly Cupala’s powerful new novel explores the subtleties of abuse, the meaning of love, and how far a girl will go to discover her own strength.

Don’t Breathe a Word is a beautiful and powerful story that tackles several issues that aren’t often dealt with in YA literature. Ideas of abuse, homelessness, love, and family are all woven into the novel and make it a painful and riveting read.

This book almost definitely will make you look differently at the next homeless person you see, but for me the most powerful message in Don’t Breathe a Word was about abuse and the effects it can have on someone. Even though Joy is living on the streets, she never really felt “homeless” to me. She’s still in the same city as her family and she could go home any time she wants to. The story is more about her past and her journey to discover who she is. The topic of abuse is threaded throughout the novel very delicately and it’s handled extremely well. Joy’s past is unfolded slowly, with flashbacks of her time with Asher interspersed with her present life on the streets, and it is wonderful to see her reflections on their toxic relationship changing as she begins to grow and evolve.

The friends Joy meets on the streets of Seattle are also a fantastic addition to the story. Each of them has their pasts, their own reasons for living the way they do, as well as their own struggles and challenges. Joy can’t help but be caught up in their lives, and you’ll be pulled right along with her.

There were two main things that kept me from giving Don’t Breathe a Word a full five star rating. The first one is the connection between Joy and Creed. On the one hand, I absolutely loved their relationship and the bond they shared, and I really did feel like they had great chemistry and some really wonderful scenes together. The thing was that it was so instantaneous and it felt like they had already been friends for several months. I feel like we missed the beginning; I never understood why they had this connection. Joy basically runs away from home to try to find Creed because he saw her on a sidewalk once and told her he could help her. This seemed totally random to me and kind of threw me off for the rest of the book. I would have liked a little more meat to the beginning of their story together.

The second thing is the ending. Without giving anything away, I’ll just say that it felt very unrealistic and left me unsatisfied. After such an intense and gritty story, I wasn’t prepared for or expecting it to end the way it did. A lot of people will probably be happy with the ending, but again, I wanted more. This book could have had an even greater emotional punch if it had ended differently.

Despite these flaws, Don’t Breathe a Word is an amazing novel. It’s intense and heartbreaking, thought-provoking and utterly addictive. Definitely not one to miss.

Blog Tour: Pantheons by EJ Dabel (Interview)

2012-01-03T09:00:00.001-06:00

From A to Z is today’s stop on the Pantheons Blog Tour! Gladys from Sea Lion Books and author EJ Dabel have kindly provided an interview for us, which is posted below.

In addition, Bookaholics Book Club is hosting an international giveaway for Pantheons which you can enter here. It ends January 9th, so don’t miss out!

About the book:

On the streets, they call fifteen year old orphan Isaiah Marshall the “Indestructible Diamond.” Isaiah is the leader of the “Redrovers,” a group of teenage misfits consisting of his friends Jeremy, Monty, and Pipsqueak, but when they trespass into Kaliber Academy to get even with the arrogant Jason Ollopa, they are in way over their heads.

Principal Webb enrolls them into the high school and Isaiah soon learns about the existence of the gods of the Ancient World. Because the gods have refused to fight the last War for fear of the Mysterious Dark, the Powers-That-Be have stripped them of their spiritual bodies and given them mortal, teenage forms.

Isaiah discovers he’s not only a god, but that he’s the child of the Greek goddess Metis, the son destined to overthrow his cruel and sadistic father Zeus, the Darkener of the Sky, and become the greatest god in all the Pantheons. Isaiah is thrown into a world where the democratic Olympians, war-mongering Norse, Gothic Celts, firstborn Egyptians, the enlightened Hindu, the animal-like Aztecs, the martial artist Asians, the intelligent Babylonians, the great spirits of the Native American Indians, and the fierce Finnish will war against one another for the greatest of all prizes: the Dominion.

Interview:

Tell me a little bit about yourself.

My name is Ernst J. Dabel, and not only am I the author of PANTHEONS, but I’m also the President and co-owner of Dabel Brothers Productions. I’ve been in the publishing business for over 10 years and my company has adapted numerous novels into graphic novels. I’ve worked with authors such as Dean Koontz, Laurell K. Hamilton, Jim Butcher, George R.R. Martin, Robert Jordan, Orson Scott Card, Raymond E. Feist, and many others. Many of our graphic novels have been on the NY Times Bestseller’s list, Jim Butcher’s Welcome to the Jungle, and Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time. Mercy Thompson: Homecoming graphic novel by Patricia Briggs was actually on the Bestseller list for well over 6 weeks.

Also, about a month and a half ago, I had the pleasure of becoming the proud father of my firstborn son Nathan Ernst Dabel, and he is amazing!!! He can smile now! When I act silly and goofy with him he actually laughs at me, I must admit, it is one of the most wonderful feeling in the world to be a father. Now, I can understand what my father Ernst Dabel Sr. must have felt for all of us when we were born. I made up this little story for Nathan about this frog who wanted to fly and whenever I put on my storyteller hat for the occasion, he stops crying, and actually stares at me intently. I think he likes that story . I do a lot of daddy-things now, bottle-feedings, diaper-changes, etc. There’s nothing quite like it! I can’t imagine life without him. My first book Pantheons is dedicated to my son Nathan, because I love him with all my heart :)

When did you first realize that you wanted to be a writer?

It was Christmas day and I was twelve years old at the time. I remember the excitement I felt as I waited for my turn to come to open gifts, then it finally came, my younger brother Les handed me a wrapped gift. Curious as to what it was, I tore into it with a vengeance. What could it be? It had to be something good and then my heart sunk in disappointment as I held up a book. I gave a half-hearted smile, hugged him, and thanked him for the present. For the next several weeks, Les proceeded to bother me constantly about when I was going to read the book. It was annoying! I guess he didn’t know that at the time I did not like to read, but I have to say that he was a persistent little fellow as I recall. Eventually I picked up the book, to his delight, and decided to ‘pretend’ to read the book so I could get him off of my back. The cover showed a chubby guy with a sword and some kind of creature next to him, and the title read The Hobbit. So under the watchful eye of my brother I started reading. “In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit.” I was like, ‘what’s a Hobbit?’ and ‘Why would it live in a hole in the ground?’

I was hooked, and Les had a big grin on his face as I devoured that book, then went on to read the Lord of the Rings, and finally the Silmarillion all before my thirteenth birthday. When I finished the Silmarillion, a passion for writing stirred within me I never knew existed and I knew then that I wanted to be a writer.

If you had to choose, which writer made the biggest impact in your decision to write?

I’d have to say that a lot of authors made an impact in some way or other. J.R.R. Tolkien was the first writer who made the first big impact in my decision to write. His novels were the first to keep me up all hours of the night when I was twelve. My biggest regret, however, was the fact that he died in 1973 and I was born in 1975. I would have liked the opportunity to have met him. I could say that he was the only author that I read and enjoyed as a kid, but unfortunately died before I had a chance to publish his work, and that is one of my biggest regret in my life. Aside from Tolkien, every other author that kept me up at night and made an impact in my decision to write, I’ve had the honor of publishing them all.

What book are you reading now?

Right now, I’m reading a book by C.S. Marks called ‘Ravenshade’. I finished the first two books in the series ‘Elfhunter’ and ‘Fire-heart’. C.S. Marks is brilliant! I’m happy that my brother David is publishing her series at his company Sea Lion Books.

How did you come up with the idea for Pantheons?

Actually, I didn’t. My brother Les, the same one who first got me the Hobbit back when I was twelve, said to me ‘Ernst, why don’t you write a book about all the gods of the ancient world as teenagers in the same school. You can have the Greeks, Norse, Egyptian, Celts and all of the others. Can you imagine Zeus fighting Odin?’ Before he even finished talking, my pen was already flying across my notebook, that very same night I started my research and the idea evolved from there. The next day, I had papers all over the place filled with notes.

The characters you created for Pantheons take a life of their own. Like they leap off the pages. Do you find it hard to remember each character’s personality?

Yes, they do take a life of their own. Sometimes, I’m surprised at the turn they take. One such character which leapt off the pages was the Celtic god Lugh. There are some of the main characters whose personalities I’m used to by now, but for the vast majority it is very hard to remember. With the amount of characters I have to deal with I have to keep good notes on them all. My wife, Aba, she helps me a lot by filling all of my characters.

We hear that you are in the process of writing Pantheon’s sequel. Will this be a trilogy or a series? Do you have any other books in the works?

Yes, I’m hard at work with Pantheons Book #2, and it will be a series. My first reviewer, Katy Sozaeva, had asked me about The Morrigan and Cerridwen, and I told her that both will make their appearance in book two, as well as Cerridwen’s sons Morfran and Taliesin.

The first book in my other series, ALBINO book #1 is about woodland creatures in a fantasy setting. The story is finished and will be edited soon to be released sometime next year. The hero is Albino, a mouse as big as a rat with fur as white as snow and eyes as red as cherries. I’ve sent a picture of Albino so you can get a sneak peek, I hope you enjoy it.

My third book series, which I’m still very early into, unlike Pantheons and Albino I can’t talk about yet, but I’m having lots of fun with it :)

Will there be a graphic novel of Pantheon’s in the near future?

It will depend on the fans. If they ask for it, I’ll have to give it to them ;)

Visit EJ Dabel:

Goodreads | Blog

2012 Reading Challenges

2012-01-02T17:00:00.002-06:00

I’m participating in two challenges this year (so far, at least :P), the 2012 Debut Author Challenge, hosted by The Story Siren, and the 2012 YA Contemporary Challenge, hosted by Katie’s Book Blog and Reading Angel.

I’m not making myself a definitive list of titles to read, but here are some that I’m super excited about:

2012 Debut Author Challenge:

(If the title is in bold it means I have an ARC)

A Witch in Winter by Ruth Warburton

The Wicked and the Just by J. Anderson Coats

Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

The Selection by Kiera Cass

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Auracle by Gina Rosati

Katana by Cole Gibsen

The Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges

Someone Else’s Life by Katie Dale

Slide by Jill Hathaway

Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

Alchemy of Forever by Avery Williams

Fracture by Megan Miranda

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

2012 Debuts I’ve Already Read (and therefore can’t include):

Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

The Catastrophic History of You and Me by Jess Rothenberg

2012 YA Contemporary Challenge:

There are some books that qualify for both challenges, so if I’ve already listed them under the 2012 Debut Authors list above, I’m not going to list them here. And again, bold means I have an ARC.)

Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Getting Over Garrett Delaney by Abby McDonald

The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour

The Fine Art of Truth or Dare by Melissa Jensen

The Lifeguard by Deborah Blumenthal

The One That I Want by Jennifer Echols

Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard

Pieces of Us by Margie Gelbwasser

Pretty Crooked by Elisa Ludwig

Thou Shalt Not Road Trip by Antony John

Gone, Gone, Gone by Hannah Moskowitz

Welcome, Caller, This Is Chloe by Shelley Coriell

In Honor by Jessi Kirby

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

Being Friends With Boys by Terra Elan McVoy

Fall From Grace by Charles Benoit

Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson

52 Reasons to Hate My Father by Jessica Brody

Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols

The Waiting Sky by Lara Zielin

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

The Girl I Used to Be by Miranda Kenneally

2012 Contemporaries I’ve Already Read:

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

Don’t Breathe a Word by Holly Cupala

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

Life Is But a Dream by Brian James

Where It Began by Ann Redisch Stampler

Haha, think that’s enough to keep me busy? I’m SO excited about all the amazing books coming out this year, and I’m really looking forward to participating in my first challenges.

Happy reading, everyone! And good luck with your own challenges in 2012!

In My Mailbox #27

2012-01-01T09:30:00.001-06:00

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren that gives bloggers the opportunity to showcase the books they’ve received that week. You can learn more about it here.

Just one book this week, and I’ve actually already read it and it was great. My review will be up in a few days.

Life Is But a Dream by Brian James (for ATW ARC Tours)

Happy new year everyone! What books did you get in your mailbox this week?

Best of the Bunch Award: December

2012-01-01T02:38:00.000-06:00

Happy 2012 everyone!! I can’t believe it’s already a new year! And since December is over, that means it’s again time to pick my favorite book from the month! Best of the Bunch is a fun monthly meme started at Lyrical Reviews, and if you're interested in participating, you can learn more here.

So, my Best of the Bunch pick for December is…..

CLOCKWORK PRINCE

By Cassandra Clare

Description:

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when it becomes clear that the mysterious Magister will stop at nothing to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends. With the help of handsome, tortured Will and the devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal and fueled by revenge. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move – and that one of their own has betrayed them.

Tessa is drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets, and give Tessa answers about who she really is? As their search leads to deadly peril, Tessa learns that secrets and lies can corrupt even the purest heart.

I actually didn’t read as much as I expected in December, but Clockwork Prince was the clear favorite. This is one of those books that I’m not going to review on From A to Z, for a variety of reasons, but I do love this series and Clockwork Prince was a fantastic sequel to Clockwork Angel. I still don’t know whether I’m Team Will or Team Jem (I just love them both!) and now I’m dying for the final book. A whole year to wait! Eep.

What was your favorite book from December?

NetGalley January Pledge!

2011-12-31T12:00:00.000-06:00

So, I’ve decided to participate in the NetGalley January Read-A-Thon over at Red House Books, which I am SUPER excited about because 1) all the previous NetGalley months have been very busy for me, so I’m thrilled to actually be able to participate this time, and 2) I SUCK at keeping up with my NetGalley books. Like, it’s really really bad. You guys don’t even know.

AND I just recently got a brand new Kindle (which will be known as St. Clair from now on :D), which means I get to read all these NG books NOT on my computer screen! Yay!

I don’t want to set too lofty a goal and then be feel bad about myself if I don't meet it, but here are some of the books I’m hoping to knock off my list in January:

Tempest by Julie Cross

Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard

Shattered Dreams by Ellie James

And I’m going to stop there for now. I also have some other review books I’ll need to read, so I can’t concentrate solely on NetGalley, but I’m definitely looking forward to this. :) What better way to start the new year?

Happy January reading, everybody!

Wander Dust Giveaway Winners!

2011-12-31T01:36:00.000-06:00

Thanks so much to everyone who entered the Wander Dust giveaway! Random.org has done its thing and the winners have been chosen!

The winner of the signed paperback copy of Wander Dust, the Tolkein quote necklace, and a signed bookmark is Kristina Haecker!

The other nine winners, who will each receive a signed Wander Dust bookmark, are:

Gladys Gonzales Atwell

Sayomay

DB Graves

Monica

Pyper541

Shanon (Escaping with Fiction)

Melissa

Deann Fox

Emily C.

Congrats to all of you! Notification emails have been sent out with more information, and since I know it’s a holiday weekend and people might be out of town, I’ll wait until Wednesday night (the 4^th of January) for responses. If I haven’t heard from you at that point, other winners will be chosen.

Happy new year everyone!

Review: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

2011-12-31T00:00:00.001-06:00

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

By: Jennifer E. Smith

Publisher: Poppy

Release Date: January 2, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Contemporary

Pages: 256

Source: ARC borrowed from Sarah

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan’s life. She’s stuck at JFK, late to her father’s second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley’s never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport’s cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he’s British, and he’s in seat 18B. Hadley’s in 18A.

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it.

Who doesn’t dream of meeting the perfect guy in an airport? Anybody could end up sitting next to you on a plane, so why not the guy of your dreams? To everyone who has ever had a thought similar to this, The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight will be total wish fulfillment. It was for me, and I loved every single second of it. I read the entire book in one sitting with a smile on my face the whole time and a happy sigh at the end of it. I LOVED it.

Now, normally I am not a fan of love at first sight stories. I usually like my romance to happen slowly, growing out of friendship with lots of tension and gradually building up to that final payoff. But somehow I was totally on board with everything in Statistical Probability. Despite the title, and the fact that the story takes place over only 24 hours, this does not feel like one of those insta-love YA romances. It’s not cheesy or hokey, and it feels totally realistic and believable. Which takes great skill, in my opinion. Way to go, Jennifer.

I adored Hadley, fell in love with Oliver, and even grew to like Hadley’s parents and her dad’s new wife. Hadley and Oliver are both dealing with their own issues, making Statistical Probability more than just a love story, and their romance doesn’t overshadow the other things going on in each of their lives. Every facet of the novel was well-balanced and it all meshed together incredibly well.

Aaaaaaand let’s talk just a little bit more about Oliver, shall we? SWOON. Oliver is… well, he’s absolutely wonderful. (He wasn't listed as one of my favorite book boyfriends from 2011 for nothing!) He’s incredibly clever and sweet, and he has a wicked sense of humor. He’s adorable and funny and charming, he’s BRITISH (so many automatic points right there), and he and Hadley have fantastic chemistry together. Airport gods, can I meet an Oliver the next time I travel? PLEASE? Great, thanks.

I absolutely adored this book, and if you’re a fan of contemporary stories you definitely won’t want to miss it. My one complaint would be that it’s too short, but in some ways that just makes it feel like a perfect little bite-sized treat. :)

*Thank you so much to Sarah from The Book Life for offering to lend me her copy of Statistical Probability. You are a gem. <3

My Top Ten Books I'm Looking Forward to in 2012

2011-12-30T06:00:00.001-06:00

The 2011 Top Ten meme is hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic, Lisa from A Life Bound by Books, Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books, and Rachel from Fiktshun.

Previous Topics:

Top Ten Favorite Books in 2011

Top Ten Favorite Book Covers in 2011

Top Ten Book Boyfriends in 2011

This is also the Top Ten Tuesday topic for January 3, which is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.

Today’s topic:

Top Ten Books I’m Looking Forward to in 2012

There are so many amazing-looking books coming out in 2012 that it was really hard to narrow it down, but somehow I managed! So here they are, in order of release date, my top ten most anticipated books for 2012:

Getting Over Garrett Delaney

By: Abby McDonald

Publisher: Candlewick Press

Release Date: January 24, 2012

Contemporary books are my new-found weakness, and this one looks so cute. And fortunately it's coming out in January, so not much of a wait left!

Bitterblue

By: Kristin Cashore

Publisher: Dial

Release Date: May 1, 2012

I LOVED Graceling and I feel like I've been waiting for Bitterblue forever. I can't wait to return to the world and find out what everyone has been up to (Katsa and Po in particular :P).

In Honor

By: Jessi Kirby

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing

Release Date: May 8, 2012

Road trips! Last wishes! Heartache! Her older brother's stubborn, arrogant (and good looking) best friend as a driving companion! So much goodness in one novel (and possibly too many exclamation marks).

For Darkness Shows the Stars

By: Diana Peterfreund

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Release Date: June 12, 2012

Ajsdfk jlekfjlzsdkf I NEED THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW. Oh my lord. I don't even know what to say. My WoW post featuring this book is much more coherent and lists the six main reasons I want it, which are too long to post here.

Something Like Normal

By: Trish Doller

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Release Date: June 19, 2012

This book looks amaaaaaazing and I've heard incredible things about it. I love stories with love interests who have a bad history together and I also love that it has a male protagonist. I'm going to explode with awesomeness come June.

The Waiting Sky

By: Lara Zielin

Publisher: Putnam Juvenile

Release Date: August 2, 2012

Yet another one I'm DYING for. (I know, I know, that's what this whole list is about.) Tornado chasing, family drama, tornado chasing, escaping with her older brother and his tornado chasing friends for a summer, did I mention the TORNADO CHASING? I've always had a secret desire to be a stormchaser. Aaaaah, I want this book.

Auracle

By: Gina Rosati

Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

Release Date: August 7, 2012

Astral projection! Body snatching! Falling in love with someone you can't touch! And an absolutely gorgeous cover. This one sounds fantastic.

The Girl I Used to Be

By: Miranda Kenneally

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release Date: October 2012

Miranda blew me away with Catching Jordan, and I'm SO excited to read more from her. I don't know much about this one but I already love it. It's about a girl named Parker (I LOVE guy names for girls) who falls for the older baseball team coach (not older in a creepy way, older in a hot, she's-17-and-he's-23 kind of way). Plus, I've heard that our favorite characters from CJ make appearances, which is always fun. :D

Shatter Me #2

By: Tahereh Mafi

Publisher: HarperCollins

Release Date: November 2012

Shatter Me was freaking amazing, so even though the sequel doesn't yet have a title, cover, synopsis, or even an exact release date, my finger is already hovering over the 'preorder' button. I NEED more of Adam, Juliette, Warner, Kenji, James... and of course Tahereh's swoonworthy writing.

Isla and the Happily Ever After

By: Stephanie Perkins

Publisher: Dutton

Release Date: 2012

It's no secret I'm a HUGE fan of Stephanie Perkins, and although I'm dreading the end of my visits with my beloved characters with this final companion novel, I still absolutely cannot wait. And I REALLY can't wait to see what delectable new guy Steph manages to create. She's already outdone herself with Cricket and Etienne, I honestly don't know how I can handle any more. My heart is exploding already.

Alright, now that I'm salivating over all these novels that won't come out for months and months, what books are you looking forward to in 2012?

Review: Waltz This Way by Dakota Cassidy

2011-12-28T18:23:00.001-06:00

Waltz This Way (Ex Trophy Wives 3)

By: Dakota Cassidy

Publisher: Berkley Trade

Release Date: March 6, 2012

Genre/Age: Adult Contemporary Romance

Pages: 352

Source: ARC for Good Choice Reading ARC Tours

Left without a partner…

When former ballroom champion Melina Cherkasov found out that her famous husband was cheating, she was devastated, especially since she was informed by a sleazy reporter on national TV. Thanks to an ironclad pre-nup and a scumbag ex, Melina has to pack up her dog and her dignity and take refuge in her dad’s retirement community in New Jersey.

… it’s time to take the lead.

To make ends meet, Melina puts her dancing shoes to use as an instructor at Westmeyer – a private school for boy geniuses. Teaching a bunch of hormonal teenagers the waltz it trying, but the school’s sexy handyman proves to be an ample distraction. Drew McPhee is perfect, except for one thing: he doesn’t like dancing. Thankfully the finesse Drew lacks on the floor is more than made up for by his skills in the bedroom. And after one steamy night, the ballroom diva is the one getting swept off her feet…

As a former dancer I knew I was going to enjoy Waltz This Way, but you don’t need to appreciate ballroom dance or reality TV shows in order to love this story. It’s full of relatable characters, snappy dialogue, and sexy moments, and it’s such a fun ride every step of the way.

I loved loved LOVED the interactions between Drew and Mel. I like my romances hot and snarky, and these two have chemistry in spades. They’re hilarious and clever and absolutely wonderful together. Mel is just a fantastic character all on her own; I love her relationships with everybody. Her scenes with the boy geniuses in dance class were especially fun.

The supporting characters were actually one of my favorite parts of Waltz This Way. From Drew’s eccentric family (particularly his son, Nate), to Mel’s best friends from LA, the different personalities definitely made the story what it was.

And although this is technically the third book in the Ex Trophy Wives series, it stands well on its own and it isn’t at all necessary to have read the previous books in order to enjoy it. I was really intrigued by the glimpses we got of the previous ex trophy wives, and I’m definitely looking forward to going back and reading the first two books in the series, particularly to learn more about Jasmine’s story.

I will say that I thought everything was wrapped up just a little too neatly and maybe slightly unrealistically, but it was a nonetheless satisfying ending. When I decide to read a contemporary romance I’m usually expecting a happy ending, so I’m not really complaining. :)

Overall, Waltz This Way is a fun, sexy story with sweet moments, fabulously clever dialogue, and a great cast of characters. If you’re a fan of contemporary romance you won’t want to miss this one!

My Top Ten Book Boyfriends in 2011

2011-12-28T07:00:00.002-06:00

The 2011 Top Ten meme is hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic, Lisa from A Life Bound by Books, Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books, and Rachel from Fiktshun.

Previous Topics:

Top Ten Favorite Books in 2011

Top Ten Favorite Book Covers in 2011

Today’s topic:

Top Ten Book Boyfriends in 2011

So I have a huge thing for fictional guys (come on, what reader doesn’t?), but I actually found this list rather difficult to put together, not because I had too many, but because I didn’t have enough! Apparently I am pickier with my fictional men than I thought. Although some of them were total no-brainers. :D

My list (absolute favorites grouped at the top, but not exactly in order):

Étienne St. Clair

Found in: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Okay. Obviously he’s going to be at the topic of this list. Sweet, caring, funny, lovely, with-an-accent, perfect (in an imperfect way) St. Clair. His friendship with Anna is my favorite thing about the book. I even named my Kindle after him. He is wonderful. I have to admit, I never fully got on board with his whole lack-of-height thing, but don’t worry, that gets taken care of with….

Cricket Bell

Found in: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Possibly even swoonier than St. Clair (didn’t think it was possible, did you?), Stephanie Perkins CLEARLY knows how to write a love interest. I’ve said it before, she should really just write my life. Cricket is adorable and awkward and sweet, and again, perfect. But he’s also completely real, which is a big thing for me with my fictional boyfriends. And my favorite thing about Cricket? He’s TALL. Like, super tall. Clearly we’re meant to be. <3

Adam Wilde

Found in: If I Stay and Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Oh my lord, Adam. I don’t even know if I can put my feelings for him into words. (This is why my reviews for these two books haven’t been posted yet, haha.) He’s sweet, he’s caring, he’s funny, he’s hot, he’s a musician, he cries in front of Mia, he gets along with her family… the list goes on and on. I loved Adam in If I Stay but I fell absolutely head-over-heels for him in Where She Went, which is told from his point of view (seriously, if you haven’t read it yet, I just don’t know what to do with you). My heart clenches every time I think about him. Swoon.

Adam Kent

Found in: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

I’ve realized I love a lot of Adams (there’s also Jennifer Echols’ Adam from The Boys Next Door/Endless Summer, who would totally be on this list except I didn’t reread those this year). I’ll laugh if I end up married to an Adam in real life. Shatter Me’s Adam is also sweet and caring and swoony, and his chemistry with Juliette is OFF. THE. CHARTS. Seriously, it is amazing. I am sooooo excited for Book #2, partly because I can’t wait to read more with the two of them. Hoo baby.

Oliver

Found in: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E Smith

Proof that you don’t even need to know someone’s last name to fall for them, Oliver made me believe in love at first sight – or at least the possibility of a future relationship based on an instant connection. :P He is absolutely hilarious and so clever and wonderfully sweet. Plus, he has a British accent. Sold.

Sam Henry

Found in: Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

I loooooove best friend stories, and Sam Henry is such an amazing best friend. He’s always there for Jordan but they also have that wonderful snarky quality to their friendship. They’re comfortable teasing and making fun of each other, and that is such an attractive thing to me. Basically I love him, and I can’t wait to catch glimpses of him in the companion novels.

Jesse de Silva

Found in: The Mediator series by Meg Cabot

I reread this series this year (for about the millionth time), so that’s my excuse for putting Jesse on this list. :P And I love that I have an excuse to include him, because I ADORE Jesse de Silva. He may be a ghost, but he’s hot, he speaks Spanish (I grin every time I hear the word ‘querida’ now), he bandages Suze whenever she gets injured fighting other ghosts, he has a totally endearing jealous streak, and he has those fantastic 19^th century mannerisms that make him such a perfect gentleman (sometimes TOO much of a gentleman, if you know what I mean ;)). Jesse was one of my first book crushes, and he will forever be on my list. <3

Fred Weasley

Found in: The Harry Potter series by JK Rowling

Again, reread the books, get to include him, blah blah. I do love all the characters in the HP world (and I have a particular soft spot for Snape, as some of you may know, although not in a boyfriend capacity), but Fred Weasley has one of the larger pieces of my heart. And yes, of course I am in denial and he is alive and well in my head. Necrophilia shmecrophilia. (What’s it called when the dead person is fictional??)

Roger Sullivan

Found in: Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

Roger is hot, sweet, willing to be the solo driver on a road trip across the ENTIRE UNITED STATES without complaining, and he has awesome taste in music. What more could you want?

Magnus Bane, William Herondale, James Carstairs

Found in: The Mortal Instruments series (Magnus Bane) and The Infernal Devices (Will and Jem) by Cassandra Clare

I’m lumping these together because they’re all Cassandra Clare creations and I only have one spot left on my list. :D Magnus is clearly awesome, and he’s amazing with Alec, although obviously he would never be MY boyfriend. :P And Will and Jem both have qualities that I love, so I’ve always had trouble choosing between them. Will is dangerous and hot and keeps you on your toes, but Jem is sweet and funny and also hot. How is a girl supposed to choose?

Whew, I did it! So much swooning just happened as I wrote this. Who were your favorite fictional boyfriends from 2011? I’d love to meet more delicious guys. :)

"Waiting On" Wednesday #30

2011-12-28T00:00:00.001-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release (or releases) that we’re eagerly anticipating.

My picks this week:

The Selection

By: Kiera Cross

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: April 24, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

But for America Singer, being selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn’t want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

Why I’m Waiting: Oh wow, this book sounds awesome! Secret loves, palace intrigue, rebel attacks, and what sounds like a dystopian version of The Bachelor. And look at that cover! So so gorgeous. I wish I had an occasion to wear that dress.

Glitch

By: Heather Anastasiu

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Release Date: August 7, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

In the Community, there is no pain or war. Implanted computer chips have wiped humanity clean of destructive emotions, and thoughts are replaced by a feed from the Link network.

When Zoe starts to malfunction (or “glitch”), she suddenly begins having her own thoughts, feelings, and identity. Any anomalies must be immediately reported and repaired, but Zoe has a secret so dark it will mean certain deactivation if she is caught: her glitches have given her uncontrollable telekinetic powers.

As Zoe struggles to control her abilities and stay hidden, she meets other glitches, including Max, who can disguise his appearance, and Adrien, who has visions of the future. Both boys introduce Zoe to feelings that are entirely new. Together, this growing band of glitchers must find a way to free themselves from the controlling hands of the Community before they’re caught and deactivated, or worse.

In this action-packed debut, Glitch begins an exciting new young adult trilogy.

Why I’m Waiting: A society based on implanted computer chips, how cool is that? With the crazy advances technology continues to make, this is such an interesting idea to explore. Can’t wait to see where Heather goes with it! (And again, a gorgeous cover.)

Be sure to check back on Friday to read my list of the top ten books I’m looking forward to in 2012! And I’d love to know what books you’re waiting on this week. :)

My Top Ten Favorite Book Covers in 2011

2011-12-27T06:00:00.000-06:00

The 2011 Top Ten meme is hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic, Lisa from A Life Bound by Books, Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books, and Rachel from Fiktshun.

Previous topics:

Top Ten Favorite Books from 2011

Today's topic:

Top Ten Book Covers

I love this topic, because I always have the urge to make cover pictures in my posts absolutely HUGE, and now I have an excuse! :D So, in no particular order, and regardless of how I felt about the actual book itself, here are my ten (plus two) favorite covers of the books I read in 2011:

Honorable Mentions:

My Top Ten Favorite Books in 2011

2011-12-26T07:00:00.001-06:00

2012 is almost here, which means it’s time for Top Ten lists of 2011! I love lists, so this is always super fun for me. This year, Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic, Lisa from A Life Bound by Books, Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books, and Rachel from Fiktshun are hosting the Top 10 of 2011, with a whole week of fun Top 10 posts. Check back all week for lists like my top ten favorite book covers from 2011, top ten books I’m looking forward to in 2012, and (my personal favorite) my top ten book boyfriends! :D

Today the topic is the Top Ten Books I’ve Read in 2011. This is also the theme for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday list, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, so it’s two for one!

After making my list, I realized that my 2011 in books was a year of fantaaaaaastic contemporaries. Seven of the ten books I chose (and the honorable mention) are contemporaries! And all ten books are HIGHLY recommended, of course.

In no particular order:

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (my review)

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins (my review)

The new gold standard in YA contemporary romantic fiction. Totally squeeworthy. I even named my Kindle St. Clair in honor of the amazingness that is Stephanie Perkins.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Oh. My. Goodness. I am officially in love with Gayle Forman. These books rip your heart out of your chest, stomp on it, and then mash it back in. They are SO. GORGEOUS. Where She Went in particular is one of those books that I pick up almost every day and read a bit from. I haven’t actually reviewed either of these on From A to Z (although I do have an incredibly emotional and slightly melodramatic review written for Where She Went), but I’m hoping to do it soon. Nobody should go without reading these.

Graffiti Moon

by Cath Crowley

This comes out in the US in February, and everyone should go preorder it NOW. The writing is indescribably amazing. Amaaaaaaazing. My review will be up closer to the release date.

Ten ThingsWe Did (and Probably Shouldn’t Have)

by Sarah Mlynowski

Pure fun. Hilarious and adorable and sweet and did I mention hilarious? I’d love to live inside this book.

Catching Jordan

by Miranda Kenneally

(my review)

I wasn’t expecting to love this one as much as I did, but oh boy, do I love it. Jordan is so freaking lucky to be friends with so many awesome guys. I want her life (and I especially want her best friend, Henry!).

Shatter Me

by Tahereh Mafi

(my review)

Loooooove this book. It is gorgeous. That is all.

Anna Dressed in Blood

by Kendare Blake

(my review)

Another surprise hit! And very different, which makes it a standout in a world of sooooo many paranormals. Loved it.

White Cat

by Holly Black

This was one of the first books I read in 2011, before I was even blogging, and even though I have yet to read the sequel, Red Glove, I absolutely loved White Cat. Holly has long been one of my favorite authors, and her mythology for the curseworkers is so fascinating and unique. I can’t wait to read more.

Honorable Mention:

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

by Jennifer E Smith

This book is sooooo adorable and total wish fulfillment. Love love love. My review will be up in a few days. (EDIT: My review!)

There you have it, my top ten (eleven) books from 2011! What were your favorites this year?

In My Mailbox #26

2011-12-25T02:32:00.000-06:00

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren that gives bloggers the opportunity to showcase the books they’ve received that week. You can learn more about it here.

Lots of books this week, for two main reasons: 1) I missed last week because I was traveling, and 2) I came home for the holidays and had a lovely stack of books waiting for me! So without further ado, the contents of my “mailbox”:

From the publisher:

Amplified by Tara Kelly

Just Your Average Princess by Kristina Springer

So Silver Bright by Lisa Mantchev

I’m Not Her by Janet Gurtler

Hades by Alexandra Adornetto

From the library:

Dearly Departed by Lia Habel

Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin

For review:

Falling in Between by Devon Ashley

Pantheons by EJ Dabel

No Rules of Engagement by Thomas Wilson

Won/gifted by author:

Rippler (Ripple 1) by Cidney Swanson

Chameleon (Ripple 2) by Cidney Swanson

Free on my Kindle (aka St. Clair :D)

Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

From NetGalley:

Dying to Know You by Aidan Chambers

Pieces of Us by Margie Gelbwasser

Welcome Caller, This is Chloe by Shelley Coriell

Katana by Cole Gibsen

Happy holidays to everyone who is celebrating! What goodies did you get in your mailbox this week?

Review: Unraveling Isobel by Eileen Cook

2011-12-24T19:40:00.001-06:00

Unraveling Isobel

By: Eileen Cook

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Release Date: January 3, 2012

Genre/Age: YA Contemporary Paranormal

Pages: 304

Source: ARC from Around the World Tours

Isobel’s life is falling apart. Her mom just married some guy she met on the internet only three months before, and is moving them to his sprawling, gothic mansion off the coast of nowhere. Goodbye, best friend. Goodbye, social life. Hello, icky new stepfather, crunchy granola town, and unbelievably good-looking, officially off-limits stepbrother.

But on her first night in her new home, Isobel starts to fear that it isn’t only her life that’s unraveling – her sanity might be giving way too. Because either Isobel is losing her mind, just like her artist father did before her, or she’s seeing ghosts.

Either way, Isobel’s fast on her way to being the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons.

Unraveling Isobel is such a fun paranormal story, despite the potentially heavy material. It reminds me a bit of Frost by Marianna Baer, with seemingly supernatural occurrences that may or may not be supernatural after all, but it takes a much more lighthearted approach.

The ghost story side of Unraveling Isobel was done really well, and I was right there with Isobel as she began to dig deeper into the history of her new home, wondering what in the world is going on. The story isn’t so creepy that you won’t be able to sleep, but it’s just enough to maybe give you the shivers if you’re reading at night.

The writing is clever and engaging, and Isobel is a great narrator with a wonderful sense of humor. She's snarky and funny, and entirely relatable. She could be naïve at times, which was a little frustrating, but she grew a lot throughout the novel. The book is hard to put down, with new twists and discoveries at every turn. I finished it in just a few hours and had absolutely no desire to stop reading.

I do wish there had been a little more build up to the romance. When you have a love story between step-siblings there’s SO much potential for angst and confusion and I feel like a lot more could have been done with that. Once Isobel and Nate got together they were both just like “Well, whatever, we’re not actually related,” and I just wanted to see more hesitation and uncertainty. I really enjoyed Nate as a character though. He starts off as a bit of a jerk, but as he warms up to Isobel and they start spending more time together you can’t help but grow to love him. The friendship between the two of them is fantastic.

The parents in this book also have some serious issues. There are times when I just want to be able to crawl inside certain novels and smack a few characters around, and this was definitely one of them. Although it would have been nice if we could have gotten to know Isobel’s dad better; there’s definitely the potential for a great relationship there.

With clever writing and a totally engrossing storyline, Unraveling Isobel is an awesome modern day ghost story. Though not a mind-blowing novel, it’s a fun, light read and I’d definitely recommend it.

"Waiting On" Wednesday #29

2011-12-21T00:00:00.001-06:00

“Waiting on” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights an upcoming release (or releases) that we’re eagerly anticipating.

My picks this week:

Being Friends with Boys

By: Terra Elan McVoy

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Release Date: May 1, 2012

Add it on Goodreads!

Description:

Charlotte and Oliver have been friends forever. She knows that he, Abe, and Trip consider her to be one of the guys, and she likes it that way. She likes being the friend who keeps them all together. Likes offering a girl’s perspective on their love lives. Likes being the behind-the-scenes wordsmith who writes all the lyrics for the boys’ band. Char has a house full of stepsisters and a past full of backstabbing (female) ex-best friends, so for her, being friends with boys is refreshingly drama-free… until it isn’t any more.

When a new boy enters the scene and makes Char feel like, well, a total girl… and two of her other friends have a falling out that may or may not be related to one of them deciding he possibly wants to be more than friends with Char… being friends with all these boys suddenly becomes a lot more complicated.

Why I’m Waiting: I love love LOVE stories about strong male-female friendships, especially ones where a girl is mostly friends with guys, so this one sounds perfect. I’m also really excited about the fact that they’re in a band. Although I can say from experience that being friends with boys is most definitely NOT drama-free, haha.

Auracle

By: Gina Rosati

Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

Release Date: August 7, 2012

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Description:

On the surface, there’s nothing remarkable about Anna Rogan: she gets average grades, she’s not especially fashionable, she spends most of her time just hanging out with her best friend Rei. But Anna does have a remarkable secret: she has the ability to do astral projection. She uses her out-of-body experiences to explore the universe, until one day when there’s an accident at school and her classmate Taylor gets into her body. Now Taylor’s using her new identity to accuse an innocent boy of murder and she shows no signs of leaving Anna’s body. The only person who knows Anna’s secret is Rei, and as her feelings for Rei grow she must face a future where they can never touch… unless they can find a way to get Taylor out of Anna’s body, stop the murder trial, and discover the true nature of Anna’s power.

Why I’m Waiting: Astral projection! Body snatching! Falling in love with someone you can’t touch! This book sounds so cool. I am curious about what exactly has happened to Anna. Is she in her body along with Taylor? Is she in Taylor’s body? Is her consciousness just floating around somewhere? Regardless, I absolutely can’t wait to read this one. Oh, and the cover is soooo gorgeous. Love it.

What books are you waiting on this week?