Stacking the Shelves #5

Stacking The Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and is a way to share with everyone all the goodies you've received through out the week. 

Just click the covers to be taken to their goodreads pages. 

Purchased

I can't resist a kindle deal of the day and I've heard pretty good things about Where the Stars still Shine, and I got Fracture me and Ignite me this week so I could buddy read with my love Jess. <3 Ignite me was awesome. 

Freebies

For Review

(Thank you Sourcebooks)

I thought this one looked good! I'm all about contemps these days. :)


This week it warmed up a bit and we didn't get as much snow. We have had a lot of melting though, and lots of icicles! Behold... our ice zombie arm!! 

Hope you all had a great week!!

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Labels: stacking the shelves

The Weekend Update - 2.22.14

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, the weather's going to be gorgeous again this weekend. Sorry to brag, but I know it won't last, so I'm going to enjoy it for the few weeks we actually get spring-like weather here in Texas. And I'm sorry to all of you suffering because of the snow! :( It would have been nice to have gotten a little bit of that, but Mother Nature apparently had other plans. o_O

Katie went to her first dance last week. I meant to share pictures, but I didn't get them uploaded. Technically, they're still not uploaded, but I did have a few on my phone, so I'll share one now so y'all can see just how adorable she was. It was a Daddy/Daughter Masquerade Ball for Valentine's Day, and she was beyond excited to drag her daddy to it. They pumped her full of punch and candy and then sent her home at bedtime, and she konked right out. And she already wants to know when the next dance is. =)

Other than that, we're just counting down the days until Spring Break and Katie's birthday. I think we're going to take a little trip, but nothing's set in stone yet. Either way, I can't wait to have some time off! :D

Anyway, here's what I scored this week:

For Review:

Thank you, Harper, Macmillan & Random House!!!

So excited to start Meridian. I remember when a sequel to Arclight was but a wishful thought. :) My Last Kiss and Broken Hearts, Fences and Other Things to Mend both sound like great reads, as well. April already read and reviewed The Tyrant's Daughter, so we'll be giving this copy away soon. Like, now. Just let us know in the comments if you're interested in the title, and we'll pick one random commenter to win. It'd also be nice if you'd leave a comment on April's review, but it's not necessary. ;)

Traded:

I've already read Erased, but I liked the old covers better and wanted an ARC with it. Not that the next book -- Nick's book!!! -- will match, but whatevs. And now that I have Infinite in my possession, I can finally finish this series. Probably just going to start back over with Incarnate since it's been so long since I read it, and I never started Asunder.

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

The Week in Review:

Reviews:

• Bright Before Sunrise (April)
• Tsarina (Jen)
• Grim - Anthology (April)
• Cress - Audiobook (Jen)
• Vicious - Adult (Jen)

Current Giveaways:  I'm giving away a copy of The Winner's Curse in anticipation of the book's release on April's birthday!!! And if you were paying attention earlier in this post, you also have a shot at winning The Tyrant's Daughter by commenting below.

Promotional/Discussion Posts:  April's going to YA Fest in April!!!

Jen's Currently Reading/Listening To:

Still buddy-reading this with Em and Jenn from Book Jems. I love the surfer aspect and I'm equal parts intrigued and horrified by the two love interests. And I'm skeptical. Very skeptical about how this will all turn out for Wendy.

I can't believe I was able to make myself wait this long to read my ARC, but I'm really enjoying this story so far. Which doesn't surprise me at all. I just hope these "feels" everyone keeps mentioning aren't the TFiOS kind. It is a cancer book, after all. :(

Upcoming Reviews:

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

Review: Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Title: Vicious
Author: V.E. Schwab (pen name for Victoria Schwab)
Series: n/a
Publisher: Tor
Publication Date: September 24, 2013
Source: purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

A masterful, twisted tale of ambition, jealousy, betrayal, and superpowers, set in a near-future world.

Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong.

Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?

In Vicious, V. E. Schwab brings to life a gritty comic-book-style world in vivid prose: a world where gaining superpowers doesn’t automatically lead to heroism, and a time when allegiances are called into question.

So, I'm of the mind that Victoria Schwab is just bloody brilliant. True, I enjoyed this novel just a smidgeon less than I did The Archived series, but even so, I loved Vicious in ways I never expected to. I often cringe when I read that a protagonist envisions themselves climbing into another person and becoming one with them, but dammit if I wouldn't just love to climb into Victoria's brain and live there, pick it apart and see how it works. Okay, that sounds a little creepy when I see it in writing, but you know what I mean.

This is an adult book that follows two young men with special abilities over the course of a decade. Victor and Eli were not born with these abilities. They were scientists, playing God and endangering their own lives in the process. These two best friends quickly become enemies when their experiments go awry, and the results are detailed in this book. But they are not the only humans with these "superpowers", which is what piqued their interest in the matter to begin with.

There are some characters you are supposed to connect with, others you are supposed to loathe, and then there are the characters that you dissect. Vicious is made up entirely of the latter. In this story, there is no good or evil, no black and white...only shades of grey. And there is definitely no shortage of morally ambiguous characters here. I expected this book to be full of men leaping buildings in a single bound or people who could stop a speeding car with the flat of their palm. And there are different people -- called ExtraOrdinaries, or EOs, for short -- with different abilities in this book, but the people and their gifts are far superior to any comic book characters you already know.

Schwab's writing is dark and brilliant and utterly fascinating. The plotting is so intricate and though some aspects are easy to guess, it's just so compelling watching as the story unfolds. Vicious aides the reader in putting the pieces together by traveling from present to past and back again through alternating chapters. The past to present dynamic, reminiscent of the method used in All Our Yesterdays, really changes how a story unfolds and how you meet certain characters and in what circumstances, and I find it entirely captivating.

This is not your average superhero book. It is about power, obsession, jealousy, and yes, supernatural abilities. But what I loved best was how this story explored the fine line between good and evil, right and wrong, and how easy it is to blur the two when one's motives are in question. I also just really enjoyed cheering for the antihero. I'll be reading The Near Witch soon and then I don't know what I'll do with myself besides cry rivers because I won't have another Victoria Schwab novel to read for ages. =(

GIF it to me straight:

This novel would make a spectacular movie!

About the author:

I am the product of a British mother, a Beverly Hills father, and a southern upbringing. Because of this, I have been known to say “tom-ah-toes”, “like”, and “y’all”. I also suffer from a wicked case of wanderlust, made worse by the fact that wandering is a good way to stir up stories. When I’m not haunting Paris streets or trudging up English hillsides, I’m usually tucked in the corner of a coffee shop, dreaming up monsters.

My first YA novel, THE NEAR WITCH, a dark original fairy tale, debuted with Disney*Hyperion in August 2011, and is now out in paperback.

My next YA novel, THE ARCHIVED, is the first book in a new supernatural series about a world where the dead are shelved like books, and it hits stores January 2013, also with Disney*Hyperion.

My first adult novel, VICIOUS, about two brilliant and highly disturbed pre-med students who set out to generate their own superpowers and end up mortal enemies, is out in hardcover from Tor September 2013.

I have more books coming out in 2014, but I’ll get to those later.

These days, when someone asks me what I do when I’m NOT writing, I just kind of laugh nervously. But in truth, on the odd occasion I’m not typing away, I’m probably baking cookies, or watching BBC shows, or wandering. (See how we came full circle, there?)

Find Victoria:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | Tumblr | YouTube

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Labels: adult, beautiful covers, favorites, must-read, reviews, superheroes, superpowers, tor, vicious, victoria schwab

{Audiobook} Review: Cress by Marissa Meyer

Title: Cress
Author: Marissa Meyer
Narrator(s):  Rebecca Soler
Series: The Lunar Chronicles, book #3
Length:  15 hrs 40 mins
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: February 4, 2014
Source: purchased, ARC received from publisher
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

Rapunzel’s tower is a satellite. She can’t let down her hair—or her guard.

In this third book in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, who has been trapped on a satellite since childhood with only her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker—unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing stop her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only ones who can.

So, I had this ARC of Cress sitting on my shelf for months, and I really wanted to return to this story and the amazing world that Marissa Meyer has created. But I also really like to continue a series via the same method with each book, and since I listened to both Cinder and Scarlet on audiobook, that meant I had to wait like everyone else.

But it was worth it. Sooo worth it to hear Rebecca Soler bring these characters to life again. I don't think I'd like these books half as much if it weren't for her narration. That's a lie. I'd still love them, but it just wouldn't be as much fun because I wouldn't make Cinder sound as feisty in my head, Kai wouldn't seem nearly as regal, Scarlet wouldn't have that slight French accent, and Thorne, well, okay, Captain Carswell Thorne will always be that swoonworthy rogue. But you get the picture. Some audiobooks are just books that are being read to you via some unknown narrator, but the Lunar Chronicles on audio is like having a movie going inside your head. It's impossible not to put yourself in the story, to imagine everything as it's happening and hope for the best right along with the rest of the crew. Rebecca Soler's narration of this series is pure magic, and even if I were to get an advance copy of Winter -- assuming they will exist -- I'd still probably opt for the audio version because it's just. So. Much. Fun.

No matter how much I started off enjoying this series, I'm constantly surprised by it. Each book just gets progressively better, introducing new characters and new villains and new romances. And somehow, no one ever gets left out or sidelined in order to concentrate on a different story arc. No matter who the leading lady is in each book, the others are not forgotten. I follow the author's blog and Twitter and I know how crazy-organized she is and has to be in order to keep all of these storylines in check, so I can imagine how easy it might be to let a character fall by the wayside. But Meyer never does, and you seriously have to applaud what a masterful storyteller she is.

And I love seeing how everyone's story is coming together, how everyone fits into this giant picture Meyer undoubtedly has in her head. Her reimagining of some of my favorite childhood fairy tales is beautifully done, and I love how the author has woven bits of science and fantasy into her stories to create something fresh and vibrant and completely her own. In this installment, it's Rapunzel's turn in the spotlight, with Cress as the damsel in distress, imprisoned in a satellite orbiting Earth, far from her hero's reach. And yet, that daring Thorne makes a rescue attempt anyway. (He wouldn't be our dashing hero if he didn't, now would he?)

I have to admit, I like Thorne with the feisty Cinder better. But as her heart is elsewhere and Thorne only seems to relish pushing her buttons, plus the fact that Cress is almost obsessive when it comes to the Captain, it was inevitable that Cress and Thorne should be paired together. I just wish Cress weren't so consumed with the do-gooder she believes Thorne to be, and I wish that I knew whether Thorne was being honest when he explained that he didn't do those things out of the goodness of his heart. Also, Cress seems a bit immature for a cad like Carswell Thorne, but maybe that's just the kind of girl he needs. I guess only time will tell.

If the previous books were action-packed, then this one is just plain explosive. There are shocking revelations and touching reunions and kidnapping plots and all manner of craziness. Things are lost. Things are gained....only to be lost again. And there are swoons. Not nearly enough but I'm really hoping for an epic finale when it comes to that department. Like I said, this series just gets better with each installment. So, if that holds true with Winter -- and I have no doubt it will -- we'd all better gird our loins because we are truly in for it now. I'm ready to see Queen Levana get her evil comeuppance, and I'm eager for more than a few happy endings for our storybook heroes.

GIF it to me straight:

Sci-fi/fantasy that is just good, wholesome fun. I love this series!

About the author:

Marissa Meyer lives in Tacoma, Washington, with her husband and three cats. She’s a fan of most things geeky (Sailor Moon, Firefly, color-coordinating her bookshelf . . .), and has been in love with fairy tales since she was given a small book of them when she was a child. She may or may not be a cyborg. Cinder is her first novel.

Find Marissa:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest

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Labels: audiobooks, beautiful covers, book trailers, fairy tales, fantasy, favorites, lunar chronicles, macmillan, marissa meyer, must-read, retellings, reviews, sci-fi

{Promo} The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski: Favorite Quote + Giveaway

The following is promotional material provided by the awesome ladies over at Good Choice Reading in celebration of the release of The Winner's Curse in less than two weeks. I absolutely loved this novel, and I'm beyond giddy that it releases on April's birthday. So, to celebrate the release and April's birthday, I'm giving away a copy to one lucky reader. (Don't worry, I'm also sending one April's way...couldn't have her missing out on the epicness that is this book. =D)

First things first, a little about the epic novel in question:

Title: The Winner's Curse
Author: Marie Rutkoski
Series: The Winner's Curse, book #1
Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux BYR
Publication Date: March 4, 2014
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | IndieBound | Books-A-Million

Winning what you want may cost you everything you love.

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.

Here's the very cool trailer:



And here's my very favorite quote from the book:

Also for your reading pleasure, here are links to my reviews of The Winner's Curse and Marie's other YA novel The Shadow Society.

Rules:

• This giveaway is international. As long as you can accept ebooks via Amazon/Barnes & Noble or if The Book Depository ships to your location and the book is currently available, you are good to go. (You can double-check that here.)
• One entry per household. 
• Entries will be verified. Any entry found to be falsified will result in disqualification of all entries for that participant. 
• Winner will be notified via email. Winner will then have 48 hours to respond before another winner will be selected. Please check your SPAM folder!!! 
• We are not responsible for lost packages. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the author:

Marie Rutkoski is the author of The Kronos Chronicles, including The Cabinet of Wonders and The Celestial Globe. The Cabinet of Wonders, her debut novel, was named an Indie Next Kids’ List Great Read and a Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year, among other honors. Rutkoski grew up in Bolingbrook, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago), as the oldest of four children. She attended the University of Iowa, where she took Writers’ Workshop classes and studied with Pulitzer Prize-winner James Alant McPherson. After graduating, she lived in Moscow and Prague. Upon receiving her Ph.D. from Harvard University, she held dual appointments as a lecturer there in both English and American Literature and Language, and History and Literature. Rutkoski is currently a professor at Brooklyn College, where she teaches Renaissance Drama, children’s literature and creative writing. She lives in New York City with her husband and cat.

Find Marie:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Best of luck & happy reading!

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Labels: all the swoons, april, book trailers, fantasy, favorites, giveaways, historical fiction, macmillan, marie rutkoski, must-read, promotions, teasers, the winner's curse