Stacking the Shelves (9)

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews!

Edwin's Stack For the Shelves:

Bought:

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

Release Date: September 21, 1937

I'm about to start reading this in preparation for the movie, which is coming to theaters this December! Hell yeah!

Emily's GINORMOUS BIRTHDAY Stack For the Shelves:

For Review:

On Fire: A Teen Wolf Novel by Nancy Holder

Release Date: July 17, 2012

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for this copy to review!

Bought:

Yesterday, I went to Kristina McBride's Lauch Party signing for her book, One Moment, which I reviewed earlier this month. I got two copies of her two books signed. One for me and one for one of you!

The Tension of Opposites by Kristina McBride (SIGNED)

Release Date: May 25, 2010

One Moment by Kristina McBride (SIGNED)

Release Date: June 26, 2012

FIND MY REVIEW HERE.

And I got some bookmarks signed - more giveaway swag!

I met Rae in early May at another signing and I was bummed when I didn't have my book. So I asked her beforehand if she would be attending Kristina McBride's signing and she said yes. I made sure that I brought my copy of The Girl of Fire and Thorns with me and she was sweet enough to sign it! THANK YOU, RAE! (And I'll see you in August!)

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson (SIGNED)

Release Date: September 20, 2011

There was a section in Books & Co. where a whole shelf of YA novels were 3 dollars per book. I bought these because I loved Looking for Alaska (plus, my friend is also going to LeakyCon and offered to take my John Green books to have signed - I FREAKING LOVE YOU, BRIAN!) and Wither was a good book - definitely worth three dollars. The other two books have been on my reading list for a while, so I thought, what the hell!

The Alchemy of Forever by Avery Williams

Release Date: January 3, 2012

Choker by Elizabeth Woods

Release Date: January 4, 2011

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Release Date: January 1, 2005

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

Release Date: March 22, 2011

Do you see these? Yeah, I bought all of these for 15 dollars. All in great condition besides Fateful, which came without the book jacket (but for $1.99, I'd say it's worth it!) Wanna know where I got these? Check out this website: BookCloseOuts.Com

Are We There Yet? by David Levithan

Release Date:

The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend by Kody Keplinger

Release Date: September 7, 2010

Fateful by Claudia Gray

Release Date: September 13, 2011

In A Heartbeat by Loretta Ellsworth

Release Date: February 2, 2010

Isle of Night by Veronica Wolff

Release Date: September 6, 2011

Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors

Release Date: November 18, 2010

Tangled by Carolyn Mackler

Release Date: December 16, 2009

Tell Me a Secret by Holly Cupala

Release Date: June 22, 2010

These are all of the books I bought/received.

This is my total physical haul for the week!

Gifted:

My best friend made me a cookie cake, bought me coffee and took me to see Magic Mike! 

She's such a sweetheart!

My mom bought me some goodies at the Kristina McBride book signing. Tempest is even signed!

(But my favorite are the cute little buttons! They are going on my purse!)

Tempest by Julie Cross (SIGNED)

Release Date: January 17, 2012

Tempest signed by Julie Cross from a previous signing at Books & Co.

Cute earbuds. My favorite color is purple!

My gift package from my dad. Those flip-flops are freaking awesome. I love them so much! 

AND HOLY BATMAN, THE CAT BOOKMARK. He knows me so well!

How cool is this? I mentioned on twitter that I was going to see Kristina on my birthday and she brought me these (her favorite candy) as a thank you for coming and a birthday wish! She is so nice!

From Netgalley:

A Girl Named Summer by Julie Garwood

Rerelease Date: June 26, 2012

Original Release Date: March 3, 1986

Birthday Indulgence:

I got my daith pierced (that's the piercing inside my ear) and the jewelry is in the shape of a heart. I love it! Happy birthday to me!

Won:

An Amazon Kindle Fire. Yes. You read that correctly. 

The lovely Cecilia Gray hosted a giveaway for those who reviewed her books. 

One lucky winner would get a Kindle Fire and another would get a Nook Tablet. AND I WON! 

What did you get for your shelves this week?

Follow Friday (20)

Feature & Follow Friday is hosted by Alison Can Read and Parajunkee's View!

Q. Birthday Wishes -- Blow out the candles and imagine what character could pop out of your cake... Who is it and what book are they from?

A. Hey! This is funny because my birthday is actually today! Woo!
Well, if a character poped out of my cake, it would be... Jay Heaton, Shaun Mason, Tobias/Four Eaton, Peeta Mellark, Prince Kai, Etienne St. Clair and Cricket Bell. SINCE IT'S ACTUALLY MY BIRTHDAY. I GET MORE AND I GET TO KEEP THEM ALL.

Who would pop out of your birthday cake?

Desperately Wanting Wednesday (2)

Desperately Wanting Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Rachel at Parajunkee's View. It is based off of the meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, Waiting on Wednesday. Since the "On My Wishlist" meme is no longer active, Ed and I have decided to switch to this meme so we can talk about books (and movies) that we want - both released and to-be-released.

This week's theme is:
Second Series Salivation

Our Released Pick:

Flesh and Blood (House of Comarré #2) by Kristen Painter

The blurb as seen on Goodreads:

Release Date: November 1, 2011

Publisher: Orbit

402 Pages

With the ring of sorrows still missing, and the covenant between othernaturals and mortals broken, Chrysabelle and Malkolm's problems are just beginning. Chrysabelle still owes Malkolm for his help, but fulfilling that debt means returning to Corvinestri, the hidden vampire city neither of them is welcome in.

The discovery that Chrysabelle has a brother could mean reneging on her promise to Malkolm, something that might make him angry enough to loose the beast living inside him. And fulfilling her vow could prove devastating for Chrysabelle --- especially when you throw in power hungry witches, dead fringe vampires, and the Kubai Mata.

I read the first book in this series and LOVED IT! I need book two now. NOW. I keep eyeing it and then forgetting about it. *facepalm*

Our To-Be-Released Pick:

Girl of Nightmares (Anna #2) by Kendare Blake

The blurb as seen on Goodreads:

Release Date: August 7, 2012

Publisher: Tor Teen

304 Pages

It's been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost-hunter Cas Lowood can't move on. 
His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live--not walk around half dead. He knows they're right, but in Cas's eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with.
Now he's seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he's asleep and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong...these aren't just daydreams. Anna seems tortured, torn apart in new and ever more gruesome ways every time she appears.
Cas doesn't know what happened to Anna when she disappeared into Hell, but he knows she doesn't deserve whatever is happening to her now. Anna saved Cas more than once, and it's time for him to return the favor.

Now, I'm not very far into the first book, but I KNOW that I'm going to love it and give it a high rating. So Girl of Nightmares is one book I'm definitely going to be buying in August.  Plus the cover? GORGEOUS! I can't wait to read it!

What books do you desperately want this week?

Top Ten Tuesday (16)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish!

The prompt for this week is Top Ten Character Who Remind Me Of Myself Or Someone I Know In Real Life!

1. Rose Zarelli from Confessions of an Angry Girl by Louise Rozett
Rose reminds me a lot of myself in high school. I was definitely angry and emotional during that part in my life.
2. Jay Heaton from The Body Finder series by Kimberly Derting
Without the romance part, Jay reminds me a lot of my high school friend, Justin. Growing up we were really close and I trusted him with everything.
3. Travis Stephenson from Something Like Normal by Trish Doller
My cousin Andrew is a lot like Travis. Andrew went overseas as a soldier in the army and when he came back he was changed, not that anyone can blame him, and had trouble moving on with his life.
4. Liv Kiskey and her friends, Peach, Millie and Stacy from A Little Night Magic by Lucy March
The relationship between these four friends reminds me of the friendship of me and MY three best friends. We are all really close and involved in each other's everyday lives - and not always in a good way.
5. Violet's mother from The Body Finder series by Kimberly Derting
My mom has always been really supportive of me. We've had a close relationship like Violet has with her mother for as long as I can remember. My mom is one of my best friends, when she doesn't make me super mad.
6. President Snow from The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins
My high school senior principal was a lot like him, except she is a woman, but both of them make you so mad you could spit and then rip out all their hair... Yeah... My mom always calls the principal the ice bitch... erm... Yes.
7. Charlie Swan from The Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer
Charlie is a lot like my dad. Dad is gruff and hard to crack, but I have never doubted how much he loves me. Plus, he drinks beer like it's water.
8. Hermione from The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling
I read like nobody's business. It doesn't matter what kind of book you put in front of me, I'll read it or at least give it a try. I also am a perfectionist when it comes to school. And I'm pretty smart - not nearly as smart as Hermione, but I'd like to think I'm close to her level.

I honestly can't think of any more...

What character make you think of people you know in real life?

Teaser Tuesday: Stormdancer (The Lotus War #1) by Jay Kristoff

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading!

To participate all you have to do is:

•Grab your current read

•Open to a random page

•Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page

•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!) 

 Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

------------------

"The rain started at the end of the sixth day, vast black curtains swaying across their path and hissing on the deck. The wood became slippery, and the stink of burned chi over melting varnish saw Yukiko's nausea return with a vengeance. Huddled in an oilskin among the barrels, she prayed the journey would end, sucking down gulps of fresh air and dreading the monsoon."

Chapter 10: Alive and Breathing, Page 71 (ARC)

Stormdancer (The Lotus War #1) by Jay Kristoff

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A Book Series in Review: As the World Dies: A Zombie Trilogy by Rhiannon Frater

BOOK ONE: The First Days (As The World Dies: A Zombie Trilogy #1) by Rhiannon Frater

The blurb as seen on Goodreads:
Release Date: August 14, 2008
Publisher: Self-Published through Tom Doherty Associates
335 Pages

The morning that the world ends, Katie is getting ready for court and housewife Jenni is taking care of her family. Less than two hours later, they are fleeing for their lives from a zombie horde. 

Thrown together by circumstance, Jenni and Katie become a powerful zombie-killing partnership, mowing down zombies as they rescue Jenni's stepson, Jason, from an infected campground.

They find sanctuary in a tiny, roughly fortified Texas town.  There Jenni and Katie find they are both attracted to Travis, leader of the survivors; and the refugees must slaughter people they know, who have returned in zombie form.  

Fast-paced and exciting, filled with characters who grab your heart, The First Days: As the World Dies is the beginning of a frightening trilogy. 

FIND THE BOOK:

Goodreads.Amazon.Barnes & Noble

Review:
I read book one in this series over a year ago and I don't have a review, so I'll just tell you it was a fast-paced, fascinating read. The cover is also super freaking awesome and what drew me to the series in the first place.

BOOK TWO: Fighting to Survive (As The World Dies: A Zombie Trilogy #2) by Rhiannon Frater

The blurb as seen on Goodreads:

Release Date: February 17, 2009

Publisher: Self-Published through Tom Doherty Associates

368 Pages

Picking up where The First Days ends, Fighting to Survive features the further zombie-killing, civilization-saving adventures of a pair of sexy, kick butt heroines and the men who love them. A hundred or so survivors of the zombie plague have found tenuous safety in the walled off center of a small Texas town. Now the hard work of survival begins—finding enough food; creating safe, weather-resistant shelter; establishing laws; and fighting off both the undead who want to eat them and the living bandits who want to rob and kill them.

FIND THE BOOK:

Goodreads.Amazon.Barnes & Noble

Review:

Fighting to Survive is book two in the As The World Dies series by Rhiannon Frater. It's about zombies. Zombies are awesome, but this book was subpar. 

I don't have a whole lot to say about this book. It was entertaining, but not extraordinary. I usually am obsessed with zombie novels, but that was not the case for this series.

I had some trouble keeping up with the plot at some points and besides the main characters, I got lost in who was who. The main characters, Jenny, Juan, Katie and Travis all had different qualities that annoyed me. Some more than others. I liked Travis best and Jenny least. Travis is pretty cool, but really needs to stand up for himself and be firm in his ideas. Katie needs to learn to consider how her actions affect others and Jenni needs to be honest with those she says she loves. Her secrets could've gotten people killed. She is very selfish in my opinion. Juan… I really liked him, but he could do a lot better than Jenny.

There were too many point-of-views in this story. I had trouble keeping up with the story mostly because I couldn't connect to the characters and I couldn't keep track of who was who. But I liked the zombies! Any book with zombies has at least one redeeming quality, being the zombies themselves.

My favorite character was obviously Ken. He's gay, has an obsession with Daniel Craig and kills zombies. What's not to love about that? Plus he is the real humor in this story.

I really enjoyed the first book, the second was mediocre, but I will continue the series and hopefully love the third book! I'm still intrigued by the plot, so I'm really hoping it will pull through.

BOOK THREE: Siege (As The World Dies: A Zombie Trilogy #3) by Rhiannon Frater

The blurb as seen on Goodreads:
Release Date: August 14, 2009
Publisher: Self-Published through Tom Doherty Associates
368 Pages

The zombie illness has shattered civilization. The survivors who have found tenuous safety in Texas defend their fort against the walking dead and living bandits. 

Katie has made peace with the death of her wife and is pregnant and married to Travis, who has been elected Mayor. Jenni, her stepson, Jason; and Juan—Travis’s righthand man—are a happy family, though Jenni suffers from PTSD. Both women are deadly zombie killers.

In Siege, the people of Ashley Oaks are stunned to discover that the vice president of the United States is alive and commanding the remnants of the US military. What’s left of the US government has plans for this group of determined survivors.

FIND THE BOOK:

Goodreads.Amazon.Barnes & Noble

Review:

Siege was a very disappointing ending for me. I liked the series overall, but I didn't fall in love with it like I hoped I would. Usually, I love all things zombies. This was the exception.

Honestly, I don't know how I finished it. I kept hoping it would pick up, but it didn't. Many people said this series was amazing and the final book was a phenomenal… I am one of the very few who didn't like this book and felt "meh" about the complete series. 

The characters were just not relatable at all. I know they are in a position that we can't possibly relate to, but I expected to at least like the characters and understand their emotions and actions. And the only one I liked was Ken. …Yeah, that's pretty much it… No one else really comes to mind. And I wasn't very impressed with the writing. The change-up in character point-of-view only annoyed me. It was hard to keep up with.

What else is there to say about Siege? Rhiannon Frater is not afraid to kill off her characters! Be forewarned, this is a total angstfest. I cried, I'll admit it. While I didn't like the characters and had trouble with the writing, the plot was wonderful. I was seriously intrigued by everything that happened. But that was as far as my enjoyment went.

What a bummer. I thought this series would be amazing, but it just wasn't for me.

VISIT THE AUTHOR:

Goodreads.Twitter.Website.Facebook

Stacking the Shelves (8)

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews!

Emily's Stack For the Shelves:

From Netgalley:

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

Release Date: July 24, 2012

Confessions of an Angry Girl by Louise Rozett

Release Date: August 28, 2012

Bought:

Uhm... I have no shame.

Received:

I remember entering a contest for a signed bookmark from Alyssa Rose Ivy, but I honestly don't remember winning... But I received this in the mail this week, so I must have, huh? (I also can't remember what blog I won them from, so blog love to EVERYONE!)

Edwin Didn't Get Anything To Put On His Shelves This Week

Book Review: The Prince Who Fell from the Sky by John Claude Bemis

The blurb as seen on Goodreads:
Release Date: May 22, 2012
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
272 Pages

In Casseomae's world, the wolves rule the Forest, and the Forest is everywhere. The animals tell stories of the Skinless Ones, whose cities and roads once covered the earth, but the Skinless disappeared long ago. 

Casseomae is content to live alone, apart from the other bears in her tribe, until one of the ancients' sky vehicles crashes to the ground, and from it emerges a Skinless One, a child. Rather than turn him over to the wolves, Casseomae chooses to protect this human cub, to find someplace safe for him to live. But where among the animals will a human child be safe? And is Casseomae threatening the safety of the Forest and all its tribes by protecting him?

VISIT THE AUTHOR:

Goodreads.Twitter.Website.Facebook

FIND THE BOOK:

Goodreads.Amazon.Barnes & Noble

Review:

The Prince Who Fell from the Sky is a great novel for children and adults alike. I don't read a lot of children's books. This was the first middle-grade that I've read this year and I'm glad I read it. I think that a lot of adults will enjoy it as well!

This was a cute story that I would definitely read to my children. It's sweet and much different than anything I've ever read, in a good way. It's entertaining and light-hearted, definitely something that many kids will enjoy. And though it reads like a fantasy, it's really based here on Earth, but from a different point-of-view.

This book is not told by human perspective. And no, it's not alien's either. The Prince Who Fell from the Sky is actually written in the point-of-view of a bear named Cassomae. Cassomae is a lonely old bear, who seems to have really just given up on life. She has no cubs, no mate and is an outcast in her clan. When a ship crashes near her home, she finds a young human inside. Humans in this story are known as Skinless Ones and Companions. Cassomae takes it upon herself to keep the human safe, she calls him her cub and is determined to protect him like she couldn't protect her stillborns. She is not the only one who knows of the boy though. Soon it is known by all of the inhabitants of the land, including the cruel dictator, the Ogeema, who wants the boy dead. The adventure that occurs as she keeps the human child safe will keep you entranced.

The writing is fresh and poetic. The constant references to nature dazzled me. One of my favorite passages from the novel is the very first paragraph:

"The Forest was green with summer when the bear lumbered up from the creek bed where she had been cooling off. As she crested the bank, she paused to sniff. The air was heavy with new scents of life.

Moist smells. Earthy smells. Flowery smells. And mixed with them was the sweet scent of death."

A little morbid yes, but simple and delicate. As is the entire book.

And while I really enjoyed the book, it was a bit confusing at times. Reading from an animal's perspective is strange. In The Prince Who Fell from the Sky, everything is different. Animals are not known as mammals and there are different kinds of creatures like vora and viand. It takes a while to get used to and is not fully explained until a quarter of the way through the book. But everything is so original and creative that I couldn't help but enjoy the book!

This is a great story that gives a good message to kids. Preserve and protect nature, because without it we couldn't survive. This message is shown in the characters, the plot and the setting. The characters were different and fun to read about. I fell in love with Cassomae and would gladly volunteer to be her friend. She's so kind and lovable. The author's writing really shines in this book and I think many people, both children and adults, will agree. I definitely recommend this to parents and young children!

I received and e-copy of this novel from the publisher through Netgalley for my honest opinion and review.

Book Review: Cross My Heart (Cross My Heart #1) by Sasha Gould

The blurb as seen on Goodreads:

Release Date: March 13, 2012
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
272 Pages

Venice, 1585.
When 16-year-old Laura della Scala learns that her older sister, Beatrice, has drowned, she is given no time to grieve. Instead, Laura's father removes her from the convent where he forcibly sent her years earlier and orders her to marry Beatrice's fiancé, a repulsive old merchant named Vincenzo. Panicked, Laura betrays a powerful man to earn her way into the Segreta, a shadowy society of women who deal in only one currency—secrets. The Segreta seems like the answer to Laura's prayers. The day after she joins their ranks, Vincenzo is publicly humiliated and conveniently exiled. Soon, however, Laura begins to suspect that her sister's death was not a tragic accident but a cold-blooded murder—one that might involve the Segreta and the women she has come to trust.

VISIT THE AUTHOR:

Goodreads

FIND THE BOOK:

Goodreads.Amazon.Barnes & Noble

Review:

Cross My Heart was a great historical young adult novel. I enjoyed it immensely. It was addicting and suspenseful.

It stars a young girl, who has just been taken from the convent where she has lived for most of her life. Her father sent her there as a child and has not heard from him in years, until her beloved sister dies. Then she is sent for and replaces her dead sister in a horrible arranged marriage. The main character, Laura, is horrified by her ancient, awful husband-to-be. When she is invited into a secret society of woman who offer to get her out of the marriage, she jumps at the opportunity. This leads to a series of murders and secrets that rock Venice to its core.

This book was great. It was definitely predictable, but the writing and characters made it enjoyable. I immediately knew who Laura would end up with and as the story went on, the murderer became more and more obvious. The predictability is why I didn't give it five stars, if the mystery of the story had felt more… mysterious, I would've given it five stars plus a thousand. That's how into the book I was.

The author, Sasha Gould, is wonderfully descriptive. The story she provides us is vivid and captivating. Ms. Gould has an almost lyrical prose that enamored me. I really, really enjoyed this story and the way it was written. I've never been out of the United States, but I've dreamed of traveling across Europe. Cross My Heart only made my desire to visit Venice even greater. The pictures that Ms. Gould paints are easily seen in my mind. It doesn't take a lot of imagination to see Venice the way Laura does.

I assume the characters are realistic for their time period. I haven't made many stories based in Italy, and none of the ones that I have read were set in Venice. So I'll have to believe the author. In my opinion, the story was fluent and the ideas sound. Basically, I'm saying I believe that the author is faithful to the era she wrote about.

There is a goodreads page for a second book. Cross My Heart would've been a great standalone novel. I was very surprised to see that book two, which is titled Heart Of Glass, is supposed to be released this year (I think that's a mix up seeing as book one was released in Spring 2012). While I'm shocked that the author is writing a followup to Cross My Heart, I am very interested to see where she will take us next!

I received and e-copy of this novel from the publisher through Netgalley for my honest opinion and review.