Blog Tour + Giveaway | What’s Your Winner’s Curse?

Winner's Curse

The LOVELY crew at Macmillan reached out and asked a bunch of bloggers to take part in a blog tour for Marie Rutkoski’s fabulous Winner’s Curse series in anticipation of the release of book 2, THE WINNER’S CRIME. I was equal parts STOKED and ANXIOUS about answering the question they’re asking of us, though! Because it’s HARD. But anything for this series, friends. If you haven’t started it yet, it’s time to do yourself a favor.

So, without further ado, THE QUESTION:

The ‘Winner’s Curse’ is an economics term that means you’ve gotten what you wanted – but at too high a price.  What would you pay too much for?

WHOA, right? WHOA. Have you guys ever seen the movie Little Women? The new one with Winona Ryder? Remember that one scene near the beginning when the sisters are up in the attic and they’re talking about what they want for Christmas and Amy asks for a cuter nose or limes or both and Jo asks for pens or something (I can’t remember the details of their wishes, and I can’t remember Meg’s at all), but Beth asks for the war to end so their dad can come home and everyone else is like, *crickets* and then–you can see this on their faces for a second–“Shit. We’re all assholes.”? I feel like I’m at a similar crossroads here. I could be superficial like my actual namesake and say, “I would pay too much money for books, and stuff from Ulta, and books, and scarves.” I could be like Jo and ask for things that would help me further my career or my dreams, like time to write or an awesome library job. Or I could be like Beth and say that I would pay too much money for my dad’s health to be better, a winning lottery ticket so my parents didn’t have to worry about money, societal equality, an end to bullying, and a host of other things. I’m having a real crisis about it.

So, I guess what I’m going to do is break it down for you: something superficial that I would pay too much money for, and something serious. Sound good?

Superficial first: I would hands-down pay too much money to have a huge library in my own house. I have so many books and not enough room for them all, so I’d fork over whatever cash I could scrounge up for not only someplace to store and showcase them, but a sanctuary for me to read as well.

Like this:

Home library

Or this:

home library

Or this (OMG THIS ONE. I WANT):

home library

I’d take this one, too:

home library

I want a big, airy, cozy space that’s big enough for all the books I have and all the books I’ve yet to buy, but with big fluffy couches and lots of windows and maybe a fireplace. AHHH, PEACE. *daydreams*

If I’m being serious, I’d pay all the money in the world for my dad to be in better health. Don’t get me wrong: He’s not ill or in danger of imminent death, nor am I sure that this would be a curse for me, per se. He’s just not 100%, you know? He had a very mild stroke a few years ago and has a pacemaker and a few other things going on. Everything is managed really well and he’s doing great, but like, he’s my DAD. Supposed to live forever. So I’d pay too much money for that in a heartbeat. Like, right now I’d do it. If my mom had similar issues, I’d do the same for her or anyone in my family. NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO DIE, OKAY? Maybe we can all become vampires and live together forever. That actually sounds like a great plan, right? I thought so. I can see you nodding.

Now that we’ve got that slight downer out of the way, it’s time to give away things! HUZZAH! That’s right, as long as you are over 13 and live in the US, you are eligible to win one copy of THE WINNER’S CRIME by Marie Rutkoski, thanks to those aforementioned lovely folks at Macmillan. You may do a happy dance now. I’ll wait. *waits*

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don’t forget to check out the other stops on this awesome blog tour! You can also visit the dedicated website for The Winner’s Trilogy for all kinds of super fun things!

Waiting on Wednesday | Rebel Mechanics

Waiting on Wednesday Rebel Mechanics • Shanna Swendson

Book Cover Rebel Mechanics Shanna Swendson

 

A sixteen-year-old governess becomes a spy in this alternative U.S. history where the British control with magic and the colonists rebel by inventing.

It’s 1888, and sixteen-year-old Verity Newton lands a job in New York as a governess to a wealthy leading family—but she quickly learns that the family has big secrets. Magisters have always ruled the colonies, but now an underground society of mechanics and engineers are developing non-magical sources of power via steam engines that they hope will help them gain freedom from British rule. The family Verity works for is magister—but it seems like the children’s young guardian uncle is sympathetic to the rebel cause. As Verity falls for a charming rebel inventor and agrees to become a spy, she also becomes more and more enmeshed in the magister family’s life. She soon realizes she’s uniquely positioned to advance the cause—but to do so, she’ll have to reveal her own dangerous secret.

WHOA WHOA WHOA. GUYS. Does REBEL MECHANICS sounds fantastic, or what? I’m utterly, utterly fascinated by the sound of this book. Alternate history in which the Colonies never gain their independence from Britain (if the American Revolution even ever happens); REBELS, HELLO; this great steampunk angle; and WHAT IS VERITY’S DANGEROUS SECRET???? Also, can you see that tagline there on the cover? “All is fair in love and revolution”? STAHP. I’ve gone on before about how much I love reading about revolutions, and Shanna Swendson’s YA debut is hitting all of the right notes, and has mad potential. MY BODY IS READY.

REBEL MECHANICS comes out on July 14, 2015 from Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Rebel Mechanics Shanna Swendson

Book Review | Love Letters to the Dead | Ava Dellaira

book cover Love Letters to the Dead Ava DellairaTitle: Love Letters to the Dead
Author: Ava Dellaira (web | twitter)
Genre: Contemporary YA, epistolary
Amazon | Goodreads | B&N
Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Release date: April 1, 2014
Source: ARC from the publisher via NetGalley (Thanks, FSG!)

It begins as an assignment for English class: Write a letter to a dead person. Laurel chooses Kurt Cobain because her sister, May, loved him. And he died young, just like May did. Soon, Laurel has a notebook full of letters to people like Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Amelia Earhart, Heath Ledger, and more; though she never gives a single one of them to her teacher. She writes about starting high school, navigating new friendships, falling in love for the first time, learning to live with her splintering family. And, finally, about the abuse she suffered while May was supposed to be looking out for her. Only then, once Laurel has written down the truth about what happened to herself, can she truly begin to accept what happened to May. And only when Laurel has begun to see her sister as the person she was; lovely and amazing and deeply flawed; can she begin to discover her own path.

[Read more…]

Book Review | The Winner’s Curse | Marie Rutkoski

Book cover for The Winner's Curse by Marie RutkoskiTitle: The Winner’s Curse
Author: Marie Rutkoski (web | twitter)
Series: Winner’s Trilogy #1
Genre: Fantasy YA
Amazon | Goodreads | B&N
Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
Release date: March 4, 2014
Source: ARC from the publisher via NetGalley

As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions.

One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin.

But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined.

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.

[Read more…]

Waiting on Wednesday (36): The Winner’s Curse

Waiting on Wednesday

The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski

Book cover for The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski

The Winner's Curse

THE WINNER’S CURSE by Marie Rutkoski has been on my radar since some lucky ducks got SUPER early copies at BEA. It immediately set off a bunch of my “OOOOH! THIS SOUNDS EXCELLENT” bells because it’s a fantasy, and we all know how much I’m all over those. Any time I hear about a new fantasy series starting I get the happy fidgets; I just want to read them all.

But when I read the synopsis, a few bonus things jumped out at me: First, right off the bat, Kristin Cashore’s name flashed like a huge neon sign in front of my face. KRISTIN CASHORE. Done. I’m in. (Cassandra Clare, too, but if I’m being honest, Kristin Cashore is more of a draw for me.) But then there’s also this music angle, and war and slavery. This sounds like some legit drama, friends. Can’t wait to get my mitts on it!

THE WINNER’S CURSE comes out March 4, 2014 from Farrar, Straus and Giroux

The Winner's Curse

Waiting on Wednesday (23): Crewel by Gennifer Albin

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. I love it because it is basically a squee-fest where book lovers can choose one book that they are DYING to get their hands on. Check it out!

Crewel (Crewel World #1)

by Gennifer Albin

Book cover for Crewel by Gennifer Albin

Incapable. Awkward. Artless.

That’s what the other girls whisper behind her back. But sixteen year-old Adelice Lewys has a secret: she wants to fail.

Gifted with the ability to weave time with matter, she’s exactly what the Guild is looking for, and in the world of Arras, being chosen as a Spinster is everything a girl could want. It means privilege, eternal beauty, and being something other than a secretary. It also means the power to embroider the very fabric of life. But if controlling what people eat, where they live and how many children they have is the price of having it all, Adelice isn’t interested.

Not that her feelings matter, because she slipped and wove a moment at testing, and they’re coming for her—tonight.

Now she has one hour to eat her mom’s overcooked pot roast. One hour to listen to her sister’s academy gossip and laugh at her Dad’s stupid jokes. One hour to pretend everything’s okay. And one hour to escape.

Because once you become a Spinster, there’s no turning back.

Guys, I’m really intrigued by this “weaving time with matter” concept going on in CREWEL, the debut from Gennifer Albin. In fact, the whole world in this book sounds BANANAS. I’m not sure whether to call this one dystopian, science fiction, or fantasy, but whatever it is, I’m in. PLUS, I love the sound of the last hour. Tons of jeopardy, heartbreak, and FEELINGS it seems like. I’m curious, too, whether the book takes place over just that hour, which would be a little insane, or if the story takes Adelice on the run, like a YA The Fugitive

You know what else I like the sound of in CREWEL, although I’m SURE that it’s just a matter of something being left out of the synopsis? There’s no love interest. Now. I’m no hater of love drama. In fact, I’m a pretty big fan. But I also appreciate a good story that features a character trying to figure out her own business without things getting complicated further by boys. Let’s hope that things go one way or another–boy all over the place, or boy nowhere–because there’s NOTHING less satisfying than a sort-of couple, amirite? But whatever. I’m in no matter what!

CREWEL (CREWEL WORLD #1) is coming out October 16, 2012 from Farrar, Straus and Giroux BFYR.

Book Review | The Survival Kit | Donna Freitas

Book Review | The Survival Kit | Donna FreitasThe Survival Kit by Donna Freitas
Published by Farrar Straus & Giroux on October 11, 2011
Genres: Contemporary YA, Death/Dying/Grief, Relationships, Romance
Pages: 351
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
AmazonBarnes & NobleGoodreads
five-stars

When Rose’s mom dies, she leaves behind a brown paper bag labeled Rose’s Survival Kit. Inside the bag, Rose finds an iPod, with a to-be-determined playlist; a picture of peonies, for growing; a crystal heart, for loving; a paper star, for making a wish; and a  paper kite, for letting go.

As Rose ponders the meaning of each item, she finds herself returning again and again to an unexpected source of comfort. Will is her family’s gardener, the school hockey star, and the only person who really understands what she’s going through. Can loss lead to love?

[Read more…]

Book Review | All These Things I’ve Done | Gabrielle Zevin

Book Review | All These Things I’ve Done | Gabrielle ZevinAll These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin
Series: Birthright #1
Published by Farrar Straus & Giroux on September 6, 2011
Genres: Dystopian YA, Families, Young Adult
Pages: 354
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
AmazonBarnes & NobleGoodreads
four-stars

In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is carefully rationed, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city’s most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine. It consists of going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.’s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until her ex is accidently poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she’s to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight–at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafia family.

[Read more…]