Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday #16

 
 
 
Sea of ShadowsTitle: Sea of Shadows
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Series: Age of Legends, #1
Publisher: HarperTeen
Expected Publication: April 8, 2014


They hear the spirits. They must obey.

In the Forest of the Dead, where the empire's worst criminals are exiled, twin sisters Moria and Ashyn are charged with a dangerous task. For they are the Keeper and the Seeker, and each year they must quiet the enraged souls of the damned.

Only this year, the souls will not be quieted.

Ambushed and separated by an ancient evil, the sisters' journey to find each other sends them far from the only home they've ever known. Accompanied by a stubborn imperial guard and a dashing condemned thief, the girls cross a once-empty wasteland, now filled with reawakened monsters of legend, as they travel to warn the emperor. But a terrible secret awaits them at court--one that will alter the balance of their world forever.
 
Why I'm Waiting:
As soon as I saw the description for this one I knew that I am going to be buying this one as soon as it's released. It seems like it's going to be fantasy and I am definitely looking forward to reading more YA fantasy.
 

What are you guys waiting on this week? Leave me a link below and I'll check it out!

Friday, July 26, 2013

Review: The Collector

The Collector (Dante Walker, #1)Book: The Collector
Author: Victoria Scott
Series:  Dante Walker, #1
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Format: Paperback
Pages:  352
Source: Purchased



He makes good girls...bad.
Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal-opportunity collector and doesn't want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within ten days.

Dante doesn't know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector…and uncover emotions deeply buried.


My Rating:
 
This was one of my favorite reads this year. From the moment I read the description I knew that I had to get my hands on this book. I had high hopes for this one, and I was not disappointed. From the beginning I knew that I was not going to be able to put the book down, and as soon as I finished reading I had the urge to flip back to the beginning and read it all over again.
 
The plot was awesome. I loved the idea of there being collector's that collect souls for hell and work for the devil. Then throwing in the liberators just made the story all the more interesting. The book was fast paced and full of action and I wouldn't want it any other way. The great thing about this book was the fact that while there was some romance it didn't take away from the story at all but only added another element to it.
 
I loved Dante. I knew from the beginning that I would. Even though he was a jerk and extremely egotistical, the guy was funny. Even though he could be quite mean, I found myself laughing constantly when Dante did or said something hilarious, which happened to be pretty much all the time. It took a little while for me to like Charlie however. She was a sweet girl but at times I found myself wishing she would put Dante in his place. She was awkward and geeky and the complete opposite of Dante and that's what made the relationship so great.
 
If you're worried that you won't like this one just give it a chance. The book is full of funny lines that had me laughing out loud and Dante will definitely grow on you. The fact that the romance doesn't happen instantly is another great thing about this book, the fact that it happens gradually just adds to the story. I cannot wait for the next installment and I am not so patiently waiting to see what happens with Dante and Charlie next.

 

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday #15


The Liberator (Dante Walker, #2)Title: The Liberator
Author: Victoria Scott

Series: Dante Walker, #2
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Expected Publication: August 27, 2013


Bad boy, meet bad girl. Dante has a shiny new cuff wrapped around his ankle, and he doesn't like that mess one bit. His new accessory comes straight from Big Guy himself and marks the former demon as a liberator. Despite his gritty past and bad boy ways, Dante Walker has been granted a second chance.

When Dante is given his first mission as a liberator to save the soul of seventeen-year-old Aspen, he knows he’s got this. But Aspen reminds him of the rebellious life he used to live and is making it difficult to resist sinful temptations. Though Dante is committed to living clean for his girlfriend Charlie, this dude’s been a playboy for far too long…and old demons die hard.

With Charlie becoming the girl she was never able to be pre-makeover and Aspen showing him how delicious it feels to embrace his inner beast, Dante will have to go somewhere he never thought he’d return to in order to accomplish the impossible: save the girl he’s been assigned to, and keep the girl he loves.


Why I'm Waiting:
I just finished The Collector and I am dying for more Dante and Charlie. This one sounds like it's really going to test Dante and I can't wait to see how he handles himself while dealing with the spunky sounding Aspen.
 

What are you guys waiting on this week? Leave me a link below and I'll check it out!


 




Monday, July 22, 2013

Review: The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner (Maze Runner, #1)Book: The Maze Runner
Author: James Dashner
Series:  Maze Runner, #1
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Format: Paperback
Pages: 374
Source: Library


When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. He has no recollection of his parents, his home, or how he got where he is. His memory is empty.

But he's not alone. When the lift's doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade, a large expanse enclosed by stone walls.

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning, for as long as anyone can remember, the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night, for just as long, they've closed tight. Every thirty days a new boy is delivered in the lift. And no one wants to be stuck in the Maze after dark.

The Gladers were expecting Thomas' arrival. But the next day, a girl is sent up- the first girl ever to arrive at the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. The Gladers have always been convinced that if they can solve the maze that surrounds the Glade, they might find their way home... wherever that may be. But it's looking more and more as if the Maze is unsolvable.

And something about the girl's arrival is starting to make Thomas feel different. Something is telling him that he just might have some answers- if he can only find a way to retrieve the dark secrets locked within his own mind.


My Rating:
When I started this book I really wasn't sure what I expected. I thought it would be a basic dystopia/end of the world story but it turned out to be so much more.  As the boys in the glade struggled to find out what they were doing shoved in the middle of a maze, I found myself asking the same questions.
 
There were elements that I really enjoyed, like the memory wipes and the monsters that are in the maze as well as how they are stuck in the middle of a maze in the first place. Unfortunately, I also think the monsters, also known as Grievers, could have had more description because I was under the impression that these were scary beyond belief. Sure they were creepy and the descriptions made them sound quite scary but if they have the ability to climb the walls of the maze what was stopping them from climbing over the walls of the glade and attacking the boys while they slept?
 
This book had me flipping pages well into the night just trying to find out what happens next. The story is slow in the beginning but once things get rolling the story just seems to fly by. By the end some of my questions were answered but I had a bunch of new ones that came to mind when I closed the book.
 
I really enjoyed Thomas' character. He was intelligent and went after what he knew he wanted. He wasn't afraid to stand up for himself or his friends and when things seemed to be impossible he continually managed to look at the bright side. I absolutely loved Chuck and Newt. I managed to connect with all three but Chuck was just so sensitive and fragile where Thomas and Newt could take on anybody.
 
This is definitely a series I will be continuing with. After that ending how could I not? The mystery and suspense surrounding this story has me wanting to get to the next book as soon as possible. I can't wait to see what comes next for Thomas and the gladers and where their stories will lead them. And I hope to see more information on WICKED and what role they will continue to play throughout the entire series.


Friday, July 19, 2013

Review: Across the Universe

Across the Universe (Across the Universe, #1)Book: Across the Universe
Author: Beth Revis
Series:  Across the Universe, #1
Publisher: Razorbill
Format: Hardcover
Pages:  398
Source: Library

 

A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

My Rating:
 
I have seen this book all over the blogging community and I admit I was a little afraid to read it since everybody seems to love this one. I am glad that I did decide to read it though because I really enjoyed the story. I am a huge fan of books dealing with space and this one had the advantage of taking place on a space ship. To make it more interesting the person in charge is lying to practically everybody on board.
 
The first chapter had me hooked and I couldn't put the book down. I loved the fact that it was in dual POV and it was done well. Each character had a strong voice and I didn't get confused as to who was who. Towards the end I did guess who the murderer was, but for over half the book I was just as confused as Amy and Elder.
 
The characters in this one were so well fleshed out that I was interested in all of them, even if I didn't necessarily like them all. Amy was intelligent and strong, she had to be, being the only different person on a spaceship where everyone else is the same. Elder was an interesting character for me. He was meant to be like everyone else, even though he would be the leader one day, but he was so different from what everybody on the ship was like. I loved the chapters that were in his point of view because we really get to see what his life is like. I know Elder is supposed to be the love interest in this one but I loved Harley. I couldn't help it. He was so sweet and amazing that it was impossible not to love him. His artistic talents that everyone else considered crazy made him unique and that was the greatest thing that he could be.
 
If you're a fan of space books but are afraid of the hype surrounding this one I really recommend that you read it anyway. It was an amazing story that sucks you in with the mystery and at the end leaves you wanting more. I am definitely going to be finishing this series and I can't wait to see what happens between Amy and Elder next.

 

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday #14



The Infinite Moment of UsTitle: The Infinite Moment of Us
Author: Lauren Myracle

Series: N/A
Publisher: Amulet Books
Expected Publication: August 20, 2013


For as long as she can remember, Wren Gray’s goal has been to please her parents. But as high school graduation nears, so does an uncomfortable realization: Pleasing her parents once overlapped with pleasing herself, but now . . . not so much. Wren needs to honor her own desires, but how can she if she doesn’t even know what they are?
Charlie Parker, on the other hand, is painfully aware of his heart’s desire. A gentle boy with a troubled past, Charlie has loved Wren since the day he first saw her. But a girl like Wren would never fall for a guy like Charlie—at least not the sort of guy Charlie believes himself to be.
And yet certain things are written in the stars. And in the summer after high school, Wren and Charlie’s souls will collide. But souls are complicated, as are the bodies that house them . . .
Sexy, romantic, and oh-so-true to life, this is an unforgettable look at first love from one of young adult fiction’s greatest writers.


Why I'm Waiting:
This sounds like such a cute read and I'm really excited for it to come out. I can't wait to see what happens between the characters. Plus that cover is absolutely gorgeous
 

What are you guys waiting on this week? Leave me a link below and I'll check it out!


 



Monday, July 15, 2013

Review: Confessions of a Shopaholic

Confessions of a Shopaholic (Shopaholic, #1)Book: Confessions of a Shopaholic
Author: Sophie Kinsella
Series:  Shopaholic, #1
Publisher: Dial Press.
Format: Paperback
Pages: 312
Source: Library


Meet Rebecca Bloomwood.

She’s a journalist. She spends her working life telling others how to manage their money.
She spends her leisure time … shopping.

Retail therapy is the answer to all her problems. She knows she should stop, but she can’t. She tries Cutting Back, she tries Making More Money. But neither seems to work. The stories she concocts become more and more fantastic as she tries to untangle her increasingly dire financial difficulties. Her only comfort is to buy herself something – just a little something…

Can Becky ever escape from this dream world, find true love, and regain the use of her Switch card?



My Rating:

 
I really enjoyed this book. I've been meaning to get into more adult books and start reviewing them but I always end up pushing this one back on my list. When I found it at the library I figured it wouldn't hurt to try it since I could always just not finish. As I started reading however I quickly grew hooked and I was looking forward to finding out how Rebecca fixed her financial problems.
 
Quite a few times however I found myself shaking my head at how Rebecca handled things. If only she had done things differently, maybe things wouldn't have gotten so bad for her. At times it seemed like proper actions weren't taken against Rebecca just so the story could go on and I found myself thinking that certain things wouldn't work like that in the real world. Her antics and schemes to fix her money troubles did have me laughing though and I couldn't believe all of the trouble she went through.
 
Rebecca was hilarious. I really enjoyed being able to see the things that went on inside the woman's brain because they were ridiculous. Even though she seemed to be scatter brained a lot of the time Rebecca is quite smart when she applies herself and I love that in characters.
 
Of course everything worked itself out in the end and she even hooked up with a swoony guy (which I saw coming from the beginning). I can't wait to see what situations Rebecca gets herself into in the following books and I will hopefully be getting to them soon.
 


Thursday, July 11, 2013

Cover Reveal: The Promise

 Title: The Promise
Author: C.E. Wilson
Will be available July 18th on Amazon and Smashwords
Add The Promise on Goodreads
What does it mean to be a human?

Lily Larkin is about to find out when on what should have been a day of great happiness, she is diagnosed with a rare and unbelievable disease.  She is shrinking, possibly without limit.

As her life starts to spin out of control and the world starts to grow around her at an uncontrollable rate she is forced to confront her greatest fear - losing the man whom she loved from the moment she saw him.  Can they stay together even though she feels her humanity slipping away?  Can she trust him with her secret and, as her disease progresses, her safety and even her life?  Can she trust herself?

A bittersweet story of love and loss, The Promise is a YA Paranormal Fantasy that will have you questioning the meaning of your own humanity and the weighing of trust against love.

What will Lily choose?

What would you choose?

Monday, July 8, 2013

ARC Review: Neptune's Tears

Neptune's TearsBook: Neptune's Tears
Author: Susan Waggoner
Series:  Timedance, #1
Publisher: Henry Holt & Co.
Format: ARC
Pages: 218
Source: Won


London, 2218 A.D. Seventeen-year-old Zee is an intern empath. She’s focused on her job, poised for a great career—until one day an attractive patient undoes her hard-earned calm. As an empath, she cannot afford such distractions, but neither can she stay away from David, even when she discovers he’s one of a mysterious alien race. As London comes under attack by anarchist bombings, and as Zee struggles to get a handle on her unusually strong psychic abilities, David starts pulling away. Although Zee’s sure he’s attracted to her, David has secrets he cannot share. But it’s too late for Zee. She’s losing her heart to the gray-eyed alien boy, and she’s determined to follow him—no matter how far it may take her.



My Rating:
I was not a fan of this book. When I first read the description, I figured it would be completely awesome since I've really been into space books recently and I couldn't wait to start this one. Unfortunately it didn't live up to my expectations and I didn't end up loving it like I thought I would.
 
The story moved way to slowly for me and I found myself bored and not really caring what happened. It seemed like nothing really happened until the book was almost over and the plot dragged along. There were also topics that were pretty hard to understand and should have been explained more, like the act of divesting.
 
The characters were another huge disappointment for me. They weren't as developed as they could have been and I really only liked David. I really found myself disliking Zee. She let a guy jeopardize everything she had been working for and let him distract her from every other important thing in her life.
 
The only thing that really caught my attention was David's real reason for being on Earth which was revealed at the end of the book. While it was interesting and created drama and suspense it simply wasn't enough to make me want to read the next book to find out what happens.
 
 
 
 


 

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

The Spiral Arm Book Blitz

The Spiral Arm by Peter Boland
Publication date: May 21st 2013
Genre: YA Dystopia
Synopsis:
Wren Harper lives on an overcrowded Earth on the brink of apocalypse. There are just too many people. The answer lies 600 light-years away on Kepler; a planet more than double the size of Earth. For decades humans have been fighting another race for its control. Earth’s armies are depleted. So now 15-year-old cadets are sent to fight, trained along the way in vast combat ships. But why has Wren been chosen? She's small and geeky and not a fighter. Will she survive Kepler? Or will the training kill her first? This is a debut novella-length episode in a series full of cliffhanger endings.

Purchase:Amazon | Barnes & Noble
 

AUTHOR BIO:
After studying to be an architect, Pete realised he wasn’t very good at it. He liked designing buildings he just couldn’t make them stand up, which is a bit of a handicap in an industry that likes to keep things upright. So he switched to advertising, writing ads for everything from cruise lines to zombie video games. After meeting his wife Shalini and having two boys, he was amazed when she sat and actually wrote a book. Then another and another. They were good too. Really good. So he thought, I’ll have a go at that. He soon realised there’s no magic formula. You just have to put one word in front of the other (and keep doing that for about a year). It also helps if you can resist the lure of surfing, Taekwondo, playing Lego with the boys and drinking beer in front of the TV. 
 
Guest Post:
There’s something about Mary
 
I’ve got a thing for Mary Shelley (no, not in that way). What I mean is I’m totally in awe of what
a ground-breaking thinker and novelist she was. While Jane Austen wrote about dinner parties,
politeness and getting hitched, Mary Shelley wrote about something so dark, original and
challenging, it still resonates today. I’m talking about Frankenstein.
 
It was first published anonymously back in 1818 to mixed reviews, but the story caught the public’s
imagination. No-one had read anything like it before. Back then science fiction simply didn’t exist.
Mary was the first, a trailblazer who paved the way for others like Jules Verne and HG Wells. In fact,
Frankenstein predates Verne’s first novel by 39 years, yet he is considered to be the founding father
of science fiction, not Mary. But she got there first with her dark novel about a scientist who plays
God.
 
I feel the importance of Shelley’s brilliant novel has been slightly side-lined and misunderstood.
No thanks to the numerous Hollywood movies. The monster has become an icon for a mindless
reanimated copse. Little more than a zombie who kills anyone on sight. Yes, he is a terrifying killer
but in the book he’s also thoughtful, sensitive and highly eloquent. He’s a tortured soul who’s
desperate to know why he’s been brought to life and why his creator detests him so much. Her
writing is achingly beautiful, on a par with Shakespeare. It touches on the deep philosophical themes
of what it means to be human and whether someone has the right to play God. With human cloning
now a real possibility, the question of playing God is becoming more and more relevant. Thing is,
Mary Shelley was asking the question nearly 200 years ago. That makes her a visionary and a genius.
 
I’m very fortunate that Mary Shelley happens to be buried in my home town of Bournemouth. Her
grave is just as gothic as her writing - she’s buried with the heart of her lover, the poet Percy Shelley.
I’ll often go and write in one of the cafes in town and will take a detour so I can pass by her grave.
It’s in an overgrown garden cemetery on the side of a hill peppered with ancient leaning pine trees
and unkempt bushes. Down a snaking path through the undergrowth you come to Mary’s tomb.
It’s a modest affair about the size and height of a large coffee table. As I pass by I give Mary a nod
and hope that some of her amazing talent will rub off on me.  If you’re ever in Bournemouth, take a
detour into St Peter’s Church and pay your respects to Mary - a titan of literature.
 
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Monday, July 1, 2013

The Diviners (Review)

The Diviners (The Diviners, #1)Book: The Diviners
Author: Libba Bray
Series:  The Diviners, #1
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Format: Hardcover
Pages:  578
Source: Purchased.

Blurb:
Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."

When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.
 
My Rating:
I absolutely loved this one. It had so many elements that I enjoy all wrapped up into one *humongous* book. It had mystery, suspense and awesome characters along with many more. This book was intimidating by the sheer size alone but I am so glad that I finally decided just to read it even if it ended up taking a while. It was so engaging however, that it only took me about a week to get through 578 pages.
 
I love books set in the 1920's. It's one of my favorite time periods to read about especially when it's set in New York and features speak-easies. There's just something that is so fun about the time and when a crazy killer is thrown into the mix then it just becomes even better.
 
I really liked Evie. She was so sassy and she did what she wanted to without worrying about the consequences. That being said she was still rather intelligent and she knew how to have fun. I was really hoping that she would get together with Jericho, but there is always the sequel to see where things will go between those two. Speaking of Jericho, I did not see that revelation about him coming. I would never have guessed that was what was up with him, I honestly thought he was a diviner.
 
I found myself alternating between hoping that Naughty John would make another appearance and praying that he wouldn't. He was a really cool character but he honestly really creeped me out. That whole rhyme that goes with his name? Had me freaked out at night and yet I couldn't stop saying it to myself.
 
If you're a fan of ghost stories as well as the glitz and glamor of the roaring 20's then I definitely recommend this one. Libba Bray definitely knows how to mix the two and keep it true to the time period while adding the elements that make this novel exciting and downright creepy at times. I cannot wait to see where this series goes next!