In My Mailbox (39)

August 5, 2012

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi over at The Story Siren. It’s awesome. Every week, we all get a chance to tell everyone what new books we’ve gotten so that we can tell you guys and we can all drool and squee together! Huzzah for squees!

Guys, I had a bit of a craptastic week last week, so I decided to soothe my weary self by going on a spree. Hence the mini-splosion of books courtesy of my wallet. I’ve been meaning to buy finished copies of lots of these books and I finally did it. Plus, I got some pretty sweet gems from NetGalley, too! Bad week is instantly BETTER!

NETGALLEY

Book cover for Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff

Stormdancer: The Lotus War #1 by Jay Kristoff (September 18, 2012 from Thomas Dunne Books). Guys. I’ve been excited about this book for a long while now. I cannot wait to read the story of Yukiko and her dangerous quest and her crumbling world–a Japanese-based fantasy-punk kind of place. Also: CHECK THAT SLEEVE TATTOO. Dying.

Book cover for The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa

The Lost Prince: Call of the Forgotten #1 by Julie Kagawa (October 23, 2012 from Harlequin Teen). Obviously I would be right on top of this one, guys. It’s the first book in the companion series to The Iron Fey, my favorite fairy series of ever. This one is about Meghan’s brother, Ethan. Who, if you’ve read those books, was a basically a toddler the last time we saw him. Ahem. Not a toddler anymore. And now he’s getting into some fae shenanigans himself. I can’t wait to read this one.

Book cover for The Unfailing Light by Robin Bridges

The Unfailing Light: The Katerina Trilogy #2 by Robin Bridges (October 9, 2012 from Random House Children’s). Guys, I enjoyed THE GATHERING STORM, the first book in this historical paranormal set in tsarist Russia because, one, I love historical paranormals. Two, the Romanovs are one of my many geek-gasm topics. I was a little confused by the story, but I’m looking forward to the second book nonetheless. I need to know what happens to Katiya and George!

(THANKS MUCHLY to St. Martin’s Griffin/Thomas Dunne, Harlequin Teen, and Random House for these awesome books!)

BOUGHT

The Demon King: Seven Realms #1 by Cinda Williams Chima. Friends, Cinda Williams Chima’s fantasy series is LEGIT. I have copies of the other two books in this series–THE EXILED QUEEN and THE GRAY WOLF THRONE–but I read this first one after checking it out of my library. I need it, though. And now I have it. HUZZAH! (PS. Read these. They’re super.)

Cinder: The Lunar Chronicles #1 by Marissa MeyerAnother book that I loved to bits and pieces, but didn’t have a finished copy of. CINDER was outstanding. One of my favorite books of this year. I love the world and the characters and EVERYTHING. I can’t wait for SCARLET!

Legend: Legend #1 by Marie Lu. It seems a crime that I didn’t have a finished copy of LEGEND, right? I mean, I’ve sung its praises far and wide, and was salivating at the prospect of getting a copy of PRODIGY, book 2, at BEA this year. Alas, when you are broke, some things have to take a back seat, and so I was never able to buy a copy of LEGEND for myself until now. Woot!

The Waiting Sky by Lara ZielinI’m sorry, did you say storm chasers? I’m in. I’m in! And what’s that? Tornadoes, did you say? Alright, alright, I SAID I was in!! No need to try to convince me any more! Oh, plus there’s brother/sister drama and a little romance on the side? Wow. That’s a lot of awesome in one book.

The Luxe, Envy, Rumors: The Luxe #1-3 by Anna GodbersenSo here’s the deal: These books are just soapy, dramatic fun. I liked them quite a bit, and I have the fourth one, SPLENDOR, but I didn’t have the first three. I love historical fiction books, and this series, set in turn-of-the-century (that would be the 20th century) New York, is a good time.

I’m so excited for the books I got this week! Hope you guys love what you got in your mailboxes, too!

Tripping Over August

So I’m changing this up a little bit. As much as I love telling you guys about as many awesome books that are coming out each month, I’m feeling like I want to highlight just a few that I am most excited about. So that’s what we’re going to do from here on out. (Or until I change my mind again. Ha!) Without further ado, here are the 5 books (this is a totally arbitrary number) I’m most excited for in August.

Book cover for Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass (Throne of Glass #1) by Sarah J. Maas.

Amazon | Goodreads

Friends, I just started reading this one and I’m already in love. I’ve been EAGERLY anticipating THRONE OF GLASS, the debut fantasy by Sarah J. Maas, for ages, and I can’t tell you how excited I am that it’s finally almost out in the world. Also, I was super lucky enough to get an ARC at BEA this past June, and I got to say “hey!” to the author herself. She was a DOLL, and so far her book is living up to every expectation of awesomeness that I had for it. (August 7, 2012 from Bloomsbury.)

Book cover for The Waiting Sky by Lara Zielin

The Waiting Sky by Lara Zielin.

Amazon | Goodreads

Excuse me while I DIE WITH EXCITEMENT over here. A book about tornadoes? STORM CHASING?! Like Twister, one of my favorite movies of ever?! I can’t deal. Plus, this one has some pretty juicy sounding family drama: an unstable mother, a brother who flew the coop, anger, bitterness.  There’s one thing that I love reading about above lots of other things, guys, and that’s brother/sister relationships. I don’t have a brother, so reading about girls who DO have brothers is the only taste of it that I get. I’m really looking forward to seeing how Jane and her brother Ethan get along. Or not. Also, WEATHER.  (August 7, 2012 from Putnam Juvenile.)

Book cover for Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale

Palace of Stone (Princess Academy #2) by Shannon Hale.

Amazon | Goodreads

Lots of great fantasies coming out this month, friends! I seem to be looking forward to most of them. But honestly, Shannon Hale’s sequel to PRINCESS ACADEMY, a truly wonderful middle grade? Of course I’d be excited! I don’t want to spoil things too much if you haven’t read PRINCESS ACADEMY yet. Suffice it to say that Miri, the main character, is fantastically bright and smart, and I’m very much looking forward to seeing her and her friends in a new environment. (August 21, 2012 from Bloomsbury.)

Book cover for Defiance by C.J. Redwine

Defiance (Defiance #1) by C.J. Redwine.

Amazon | Goodreads

The buzz I’ve been hearing about DEFIANCE has been pretty amazing. It’s another fantasy about a girl named Rachel who basically breaks all the rules of feminine submission and meekness to go searching for her presumed dead father against he wishes of the Commander. Of course, she goes on this road trip/quest with Logan, a guy who sounds like a MAJOR hot brooder whom Rachel once confessed her love to, to disastrous effect. FANTASY QUEST WITH FEELINGS. I’m dying over here. (August 28, 2012 from Balzer + Bray.)

Book cover for If I Lie by Corrine Jackson

If I Lie by Corrine Jackson.

Amazon | Goodreads

Friends, I love military-themed books. Not a secret. I also love books with complicated emotions. Plus I feel like the cover of IF I LIE is some kind of HUGE metaphor: Look at all that GRAY AREA! Totally makes sense when you take into consideration that this book is about a girl, Quinn, who cheats on her boyfriend, Carey, who’s serving in the military. There’s secrets, and lies, and drama. I love the sound of literally all of this. (August 28, 2012 from Simon Pulse.)

Book Review | Unbreak My Heart | Melissa C. Walker

I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Book Review | Unbreak My Heart | Melissa C. WalkerUnbreak My Heart by Melissa C. Walker
Published by Bloomsbury on May 22, 2012
Genres: Contemporary YA, Young Adult
Pages: 232
Format: eARC
Source: the publisher via NetGalley
AmazonBarnes & NobleGoodreads
three-half-stars

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?

[Read more…]

Top Ten Tuesday (38)

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Characters I Want to Switch Places With for a Day

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It’s awesome. Every Tuesday, the lovely folks over at The Broke and the Bookish post a top ten list topic so that book lovers like you and me can pour over our shelves and make our own lists. You can check out all the other Top Ten Tuesday‘s on their site!

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[Read more…]

Recommend A…(11)

Recommend A... meme

…First Book in a Series

Recommend A… is a SUPER meme hosted by Shanyn from Chick Loves Lit that lets us get a little random, and a little off the radar. I LOVE IT.

So. First book in a series. This is HARD, mostly because I read so many series! But trust me when I tell you that this list could be a bazillion books long. First books in a series that rock my socks are pretty special, and I often always have the softest spots for the books that drew me into a series in the first place.

Book cover for Grave Mercy by Robin LaFeversGrave Mercy: His Fair Assassin #1 by Robin LaFevers. GUYS. I read this book in February, and it remains one of my favorite books of the year. Assassin nuns in medieval France who are basically the minions of Death, killing people whom he marks? It’s historical fantasy at its best. I can’t recommend this highly enough.

Book cover for The Iron King by Julie KagawaThe Iron King: The Iron Fey #1 by Julie Kagawa. I always recommend this series to people who don’t usually hold with fairies because it’s pretty legit. Meghan Chase is a stellar character, and Ash and Puck are two immensely lovable guys. The fairy realm in The Iron Fey series is vibrant and colorful and full of well-constructed characters, and the emotional depth of these stories shouldn’t be overstated either. It’s good stuff. REALLY good stuff.

Book cover for The Penderwicks by Jeanne BirdsallThe Penderwicks: The Penderwicks #1 by Jeanne Birdsall. SIGH. Friends, this is one of my very favorite series out there, and one of my very favorite middle grade books of all time. It’s the best story about a family of quirky, loving sisters living with their widower father. The first book takes place during their summer vacation, where the girls get into all kinds of shenanigans. I can’t do my love justice here, but trust me. They are seriously the most adorable, retro awesome family. I adore them to bits and pieces.

In My Mailbox (38)

July 29, 2012

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi over at The Story Siren. It’s awesome. Every week, we all get a chance to tell everyone what new books we’ve gotten so that we can tell you guys and we can all drool and squee together! Huzzah for squees!

In which I am feeling bingey for New Adult books and buy a load of them. 

BOUGHT

Book cover for Flat Out Love by Jessica Park

Flat Out Love by Jessica Park. So friends, I’m really loving these New/Mature YA books that are around. I’ve always wished there were more books out there featuring ACTUAL LITERAL young adults, as opposed to high schoolers who aren’t quite adults yet. FLAT OUT LOVE is about a girl from Ohio who’s going to college in Boston and winds up living in a house with two MIT professors and their kids. And wouldn’t you know it? There’s brothers there. I’m super excited for this one.

Book cover for Between the Lines by Tammara Webber

Between the Lines: Between the Lines #1 by Tammara Webber. GUYS. I read Tammara Webber‘s book EASY in, like, a few hours last week after it had been lingering on my kindle for months. My review will be up later this week, but let me give you a preview: FREAKING AWESOME. I immediately went and discovered that Tammara has a whole series of New Adult/Mature YA books, starting with this one about a bunch of young hot kids shooting a movie together on location. Yes please.

Book cover for Where You Are by Tammara Weber

Where You Are: Between the Lines #2 by Tammara Weber. A continuation of the dramz from book 1. There are four young people in that book and they are all still around. To be honest, it sounds like people are getting with each other/forming attachments all over the place. JUICY!

Book cover for Goof For You by Tammara Webber

Good For You: Between the Lines #3 by Tammara Webber. So the first two books seem to be about a group of young people, but this one looks like it focuses on Reid Alexander, this Hollywood hotshot guy who’s gotten into some trouble with the LAW. Seriously, I love the sound of all of these books.

I’m so excited for the books I got this week! Hope you guys love what you got in your mailboxes, too!

Book Review | This Is Not A Test | Courtney Summers

I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Book Review | This Is Not A Test | Courtney SummersThis Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers
Series: This Is Not a Test #1
Published by St. Martin's Griffin on June 19, 2012
Genres: Contemporary YA, Horror & Ghost Stories, Young Adult, Zombies
Pages: 326
Format: eARC
Source: the publisher via NetGalley
AmazonBarnes & NobleGoodreads
four-stars

It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self.

To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually want to live.

But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside.

When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

[Read more…]

Top Ten Tuesday (37)

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Most Vivid Worlds or Settings in Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It’s awesome. Every Tuesday, the lovely folks over at The Broke and the Bookish post a top ten list topic so that book lovers like you and me can pour over our shelves and make our own lists. You can check out all the other Top Ten Tuesday‘s on their site!

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Recommend A…(10)

Recommend A... meme

…Book You Read This Year

Recommend A… is a SUPER meme hosted by Shanyn from Chick Loves Lit that lets us get a little random, and a little off the radar. I LOVE IT.

I’ve read SO many great books this year, guys. Seriously. Obviously I have a hard time only recommending one book as it is, but suffice it to say, this was an especially difficult list to narrow down. Here are three of my favorites so far:

Book cover for Unraveling by Elizabeth NorrisUnraveling (Unraveling #1) by Elizabeth Norris. Guys, this book surprised me with not only how much I loved it, but with how much it WASN’T what I thought it would be. The twist was pretty much the opposite of what I thought it would be. It was awesome.

Book cover for Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard

Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard. A solid contemporary/travelogue/coming-of-age/romance/AWESOME. There aren’t a ton of books around that are so vibrant that the places and the people just kind of hum themselves off the pages. WANDERLOVE is like that. Good stuff.

Book cover for Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer. If you haven’t yet read this sci-fi/dystopian retelling of Cinderella…you need to fix that pretty much ASAP. I’m not a huge science fiction reader/viewer/consumer, but when I do find something from that genre that I love, I love it HARD. CINDER is pretty genius. It’s clever, well-written, gripping, and a super beginning to what’s sure to be an amazing series.

In My Mailbox (37)

July 22, 2012

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi over at The Story Siren. It’s awesome. Every week, we all get a chance to tell everyone what new books we’ve gotten so that we can tell you guys and we can all drool and squee together! Huzzah for squees!

Couple of good ones this week, friends. They sound cute/awesome/fun. Or, in the case of one of them, already ARE awesome. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. 

NETGALLEY

Book cover for The Demon Catchers of Milan by Kat Beyer

The Demon Catchers of Milan by Kat Beyer (August 28, 2012 from EgmontUSA). So this one sounds like it has the potential to be LEGIT. Italian demon hunters? Ancient evils? A young American girl who must travel to her ancestral home in Milan to learn the tricks of the family trade? LOTS of potential, I’d say.

Book cover for Rockoholic by C.J. Skuse

Rockoholic by C.J. Skuse (November 1, 2012 from Scholastic). So I’m not entirely sure that this book is actually new. But it IS new to me, so I guess that counts. Plus it sounds like BOATLOADS of good times: a young girl goes to a concert of her favorite band and “accidentally” (I can’t wait to see how THAT works) kidnaps the lead singer, and now he won’t leave her house. The Goodreads summary quotes “Paparazzi” by Lady Gaga, which could be…not flattering. But also hilarious. I’ll take a flyer on it.

(Tackle hugs to EgmontUSA and Scholastic for these puppies!)

BOUGHT

Book cover for Small Damages by Beth Kephart

Small Damages by Beth Kephart. I’ve been totally enthralled by the sound of this book for awhile now, and when I heard some people whose opinions I trust completely REALLY loving it, I knew that SMALL DAMAGES would be great. I LOVE Spain, and so when this book came in the mail this week, I really couldn’t hold off reading it. So far, it’s poignant and bittersweet and lovely. PLUS! Guys! It’s a really cute, little trim size, and I just die for those little books!

That’s it for me this week, guys! I hope you all got some super goodies in your mailboxes this week!