The Weekend Update - 10.25.14

So, since my end-of-the-week post isn't just about what I got in my mailbox or on my Kindle each week -- though that is a big part of it, I won't lie -- I decided to change up the title and intro a bit.  I might tweak the format a bit over the next few weeks, but for the most part, it'll contain the same stuff: stuff I got, stuff I did, and stuff that's coming up on the blog.  Plus, I get to use the awesome GIF you see here and blow kisses to all the people who sent me lovely books and bookish things.  Oh, and I've started linking up to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews since I'm not using a specific meme title anymore.  April's also doing her own Stacking the Shelves posts on Sundays.  Stop by and say hi!  =)

So, Texas Teen Book Festival was kind of awesome. Ransom Riggs walked right by me as I was heading to the sales tent, and I momentarily forgot the camera around my neck and how to form coherent words and instead simply stared in open-mouthed awe as he strode passed. It's funny to me that you can chat online with authors day in and day out, but when it comes to meeting them in person, you freeze up. Or is that just me? :P

I headed out on Friday afternoon to ATX with this suitcase full of books to be signed by #TTBF14 authors. I'm glad my husband wasn't home when I packed because he already thinks I have a problem. (Wait till he notices the other stack of books that I purchased at the festival!)

It was a whirlwind of a trip, but I'm glad I went. It was my first time taking a road trip by myself, so I was a little nervous, especially with my car acting up right before I left, but it all worked out. And my sis and I went to a few different places that neither of us had ever been to before while I was in town, including Punch Bowl Social and Sway. (I love Thai food.)

The festival was a bit different from what I was expecting. I thought it would be indoors -- and the panels were held in ballrooms/auditoriums -- but the signings were all out in the parking lot at the university. In humid 90° Texas heat. And at first, there weren't even tents for the authors. I felt bad for them, stuck in one spot like that for an hour or so at a time. But they added little tents over each author awhile later. Still, everyone else waiting in line wasn't so lucky. The line for the book sales tent alone took me an hour and a half to get through. And before you say, "Jen, why didn't you bring books from home or buy them prior to the event?", please know that there's kind of an honor system in place, that for every three books you bring from home, you're expected to buy one from The Book People since they're a major sponsor of the festival. It all would have been fine if we hadn't stayed up drinking and catching up the night before and had gotten our asses to the festival and in line when it first started. Oh, well. It was my first year to attend...you live and learn, right?

I only managed to catch the "Danger is My Middle Name" panel with Sarah J. Maas, Marie Lu, Garth Nix, and Joelle Charbonneau, but it was the one I was most excited for anyway. It was extremely adorable to see Sarah flail and fangirl over being on the panel with Garth. She even brought the copy of Sabriel she's had since she was twelve with her for him to sign!

I would also like to point out that at this point, Kat turns to me and says, "I want whoever does their author photos to take my picture from now on. Those pictures up there are great, but they look nothing like the actual people on stage." Lol. I paraphrased, but that was the gist of what she whispered. =)

I'm going to be honest. I got nervous and flustered a lot and totally forgot to take pictures. I posted a few on Instagram, but I wish I'd taken way more, especially when I was meeting the authors. But I still have the memories of bumbling and acting like a genuine idiot, so there's that. :) I hope I have the opportunity to attend next year, especially knowing what I do now. And maybe after another year of blogging and online interactions, I can come across as less of a crazy person. ;0)

Anyway, here's what I scored this week:

For Review:

The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord (ARC) - LovedlovedLOVED her debut, Open Road Summer, which April and I buddy-read and reviewed earlier this year. I hope we get the chance to do the same with this book!

Save Me by Jenny Elliott (ARC) - This book sounds like a lot of relationship drama, romantic and otherwise, but there seems to be a lot of mystery and intrigue leading to all that drama. I just hope it's not too angsty. :P

A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray (finished copy) - I am so excited for another multiverse/parallel worlds book! I need more of these in my life. And I've heard good things about this book, which has me doubly excited. And if I'm not mistaken, it's my first book by this author.


The Body Electric by Beth Revis (Netgalley) - I still need to read the last book in her sci-fi series, but I think this one is kind of supposed to be what's happening on Earth while Amy and Elder are travelling across the universe -- ha, see what I did there? -- and I love that it focuses on memory and seems like more of a psychological thriller. I can't wait to start it!

And I got these lovelies from Macmillan Kids. I can't wait to share these with Katie and then Aubrey & April so we can do another feature review with them! :)

Purchased:

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater - I already read, loved, and reviewed this third book in The Raven Cycle, but I had to have a gorgeous, signed, doodled-in copy from Fountain Bookstore. I always pre-order Maggie's books from there, so all of mine match. :) My Maggie shelf will never be complete, but I do love to see it grow:

(Ugh. I had a whole rant typed up because Fountain Bookstore neglected to put the suite number on my address, so even though the package showed as delivered by the USPS on Thursday, it was floating around the building somewhere and no one seemed to have a clue where it is. Until Friday at 4:10pm. If I hadn't had to stay at work late thanks to my boss, I wouldn't have gotten it until Monday. Grr. So far, I've seen about a 75% failure rate with this bookstore. If it weren't for the fact that I really love my Maggie-doodled books, I'd cease doing business with them. I'm all for supporting independent bookstores, but not to the point that I'll suffer bad customer service.)

I also purchased a ton of books at the #TTBF14 but I'll have to show those off next week...I'm too lazy to pull them back off the shelves and photograph them right now. :P

So, that's my haul. How about you? What did you get this week?

The Week in Review:

Reviews:

• This Night So Dark - novella (Jen)
• Rites of Passage - audio (Jen)
• Not in the Script (Jen)
• The Jewel - audio (Jen)

Current Giveaways: 

Promotional/Discussion Posts:  

• Kiddie Fall Favorites #1 - April & Aubrey share their favorite Halloween stories
• Series We Want to Start - the top series we hope to get to someday soon
• Tea Time with Ellie Marney - the Every Breath Blog Tour stops by
• Waiting on Wednesday - this week we're waiting on Crimson Bound & Things We Know By Heart

Jen's Currently Reading/Listening To:

It's happening!!! I haven't been in a reading slump, per se, but I haven't exactly read anything truly enthralling in a little while. I know this will be the book to change all that. My sister's been recapping me on Dark Triumph while she reads it, so I'm ready for this book now.

I really enjoyed Tucker's Ten Tiny Breaths series, and I'm kinda going to miss it. I'm not sure this new book will help with the pain, since it seems like another emotional read, but I'm willing to try. :) The audio will probably make it even worse...lol.

Upcoming Reviews:

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Labels: in my mailbox (imm), stacking the shelves, the weekend update