Waiting on Wednesday (72)

Hi and Happy Wednesday! Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine to show what we got during the week!

This week's pick is:

Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone
October 9, 2012

Anna and Bennett were never supposed to meet: she lives in 1995 Chicago and he lives in 2012 San Francisco. But Bennett’s unique ability to travel through time and space brings him into Anna’s life, and with him, a new world of adventure and possibility. 

As their relationship deepens, they face the reality that time might knock Bennett back where he belongs, even as a devastating crisis throws everything they believe into question. Against a ticking clock, Anna and Bennett are forced to ask themselves how far they can push the bounds of fate—and what consequences they can bear in order to stay together. 

Fresh, exciting, and deeply romantic, TIME BETWEEN US is a stunning and spellbinding debut from an extraordinary new talent in YA fiction.

The Time Between us doesn't come our for quite awhile but how could I not show it!! I really like the simplicity of the cover, but the girl does look a little old for YA, but who cares?! The concept of this one seems brilliant! I love time travel, and I love romance. I don't see how I couldn't like this one. Seriously. 

Are you waiting on anything this week??

Interview with Augusta Blythe

Hi everyone! Today Augusta Blythe, author of Winterborne and Ravenstoke, is here on the blog to do an interview!

1. How would you describe Ravenstoke in a sentence or less?  

It's superhuman powers, mythological creatures, England, and a high school musical rolled into one. 

2. If you could change anything about Ravenstoke, what would it be?  
The number of copies sold so far.

3. Are you anything like your main character, Loie?  
She has my sense of humor and my strong sense of loyalty.  We also like similar types on the guy front.  Thankfully, I never suffered from a complete lack of confidence like Loie, but I knew plenty of girls who did.  
   
4. What are you working on right now? Something new or more books for the Winterborne series?  
I'm about to publish a middle grade fantasy adventure novel called In the Land of the Sapphire Sea.  It's about a timid 12-year-old girl who must perform nine tasks in order to rescue her little sister from the clutches of an evil Imp queen.  I've also mapped out the third book that follows Ravenstoke; that will be called The Yawning Void.  

More about Augusta: Augusta Blythe is the author of Winterborne and Ravenstoke, YA urban fantasy novels. She is also the author of Hostel Takeover written under the pseudonym Keeley Bates. She currently lives in England with her husband, two children, a clown fish, a cleaner shrimp and a mine urchin.


Read my reviews of Winterborne and Ravenstoke!


Thanks so much for stopping by Augusta!

Slide by Jill Hathaway

Title: Slide
Author: Jill Hathaway
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Publication Date: March 27, 2012
Source: Thanks Netgalley and Balzer + Bray!
Add to your shelves 


Summary: Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth—her sister’s friend Sophie didn’t kill herself. She was murdered. 

Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn’t actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else’s mind and experiences the world through that person’s eyes. She’s slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed “friend” when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie’s slashed body. 

Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can’t bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting off lately, more distant, especially now that she’s been spending more time with Zane. 

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

Review: I was really expecting to like Slide. I've almost never met a good murder mystery that I didn't love. Slide proved to be just that and much more. I'm just so happy that I picked it up!


Vee, the main character, is a girl that I just can't quite figure out, and I mean this in the best possible way. I definitely developed a soft spot for Vee during Slide. She was such a rock for her family and others. I definitely admired Vee and her determination to figure out who Sophie's killer was.


Vee's ability to slide is a unique concept, as well. Whenever Vee touches something that has an emotional imprint of sorts she slides into them, experiencing the world through their eyes. Hathaway handed the concept brilliantly and I believe it was very well done. I'm definitely curious to see how this idea is going to be expanded on in the sequel, Impostor.


Along with the mystery, there's quite a bit of drama in Slide. It really didn't take away from the mystery aspect of the book but it did play a big role. The mystery at times could be a bit predictable but there were some moments when I had no idea what was going to happen next. It was a bit of a thrill ride!


Overall, Slide managed to hook me with the mystery and Vee's unusual ability but I kept reading because of those aspects and the characters. 


Rating: 4.5 stars

In My Mailbox (67)

Hi everyone! In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren to share books we got during the week!

I had a really great week in books!

The picture is a little dark--sorry!

Perception by Kim Harrington: AH! I'm so excited to read the conclusion to the Clarity series!

The Catastrophic History of You and Me by Jess Rothenberg: If this one doesn't look adorable I don't know what does. I really love the incorporation of the Golden Gate Bridge on the cover!

Fever by Lauren DeStefano: I've been waiting for the sequel to Wither for ages. Hopefully this one is just as awesome!

That's it for me! What did you get?

Blog Happenings (67)

Hi everyone! I hope your enjoying the start to your weekend. I know mine is going to be very, very busy!

READING:

I'm having a really hard time getting through Partials--it's not that it's bad, it's really good but the book is just so long that I find it really daunting. So I started reading Slide, which is a really quick read, and I've almost finished it. I'm really liking it!

READ:

Gimme a Call by Sarah Mlynowski-Very cute and fun!

TO READ: Same as last week minus Slide

Pretty Crooked by Elisa Ludwig

Stolen Away by Alyxandra Harvey

I'm very excited to get started on both of those!

There are SO many good books coming out in the next few weeks-Take a look at my What to Read from yesterday!

But do you know what comes out on Tuesday!? If you guessed Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver you are so right. There's been quite a few lucky people that have got to read it already but I'm stuck with waiting till Tuesday. Hopefully I can get to the bookstore that day and pick it up! I'm SO pumped.

Are there any other books I should know about that are coming out in the next few weeks?

What to Read (16)

What to Read is just a little thing I like to do that features a slew of books from a certain genre. Sometimes I don't exactly do genres, but you get the gist!

Today I'm featuring:

MARCH RELEASES

All of these books come out in early March so be sure to look for them! They all look spectacular.

That's all I have for you today--have a great day!!

Gimme a Call by Sarah Mlynowski

Title: Gimme a Call
Author: Sarah Mlynowski
Publisher: Ember
Publication Date: April 27, 2012
Source: Borrowed from a friend
Add to your shelves 


Summary: A new life is just a phone call away! 

Devi's life isn't turning out at all like she wanted. She wasted the past three years going out with Bryan—cute, adorable, break-your-heart Bryan. Devi let her friendships fade, blew off studying, didn't join any clubs . . . and now that Bryan has broken up with her, she has nothing left.

Not even her stupid cell phone—she dropped it in the mall fountain. Now it only calls one number . . . hers. At age fourteen, three years ago! 

Once Devi gets over the shock—and convinces her younger self that she isn't some wacko—she realizes that she's been given an awesome gift. She can tell herself all the right things to do . . . because she's already done all the wrong ones! Who better to take advice from than your future self? 

Except . . .what if getting what you think you want changes everything? 

Review: Gimme a Call is a fun, and sometimes quite silly read, that really examines the question: If you could would you go back and change your life?

When Devi drops her phone in the water fountain at the mall she picks up the phone and calls her freshman self. (The Devi that drops the phone into the fountain will be referred to as IVY and the Devi that picks up the phone that is a freshman will by DEVI--this is how it is in the book.)

I was instantly enamored by the idea of telling your younger self what to do better. Though, if I got the chance I'm not sure I would because some major stuff goes down because of Ivy's meddling. Mlynowski handles the concept brilliantly. I really was never confused about what was going on in the lives of the two girls, mostly because Mlynowski is such a great writer. I was so surprised by the writing style. It was just so much fun!

Devi was definitely my favorite of the "two girls" despite them being the same. She was just a lot more fun and younger and definitely not as emotionally traumatized as Ivy. Ivy was still a good character, but she used Devi so much and it just mean! Devi and Ivy are two totally different characters with very different narrations. I was so happy that the switching narrations didn't sounds the same.

Gimme a Call is very fast-paced and there is almost never a dull moment. It was just a very enjoyable read that had a great pace. I especially liked the end. It gave hints of what happened but it's quite opened ended.

Gimme a Call is a great read, especially if you're looking for a book that has a unique concept that's handled really well. It was just a pretty fantastic read. I can't wait to read more from Mlynowski!


Rating:

Waiting on Wednesday (71)

Hi everyone! Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine!

This week's pick is:

The Unquiet by Jeannine Garsee
July 17, 2012

Sixteen-year-old Rinn Jacobs has secrets: One, she’s bipolar. Two, she killed her grandmother. 

After a suicide attempt, and now her parents' separation, Rinn and her mom move from California to the rural Ohio town where her mother grew up. Back on her medications (again!) and hoping to stay well, Rinn settles into her new home and school. She refuses to be daunted by the fact that the previous owner hanged herself in Rinn's bedroom, or that her classmates believe the school pool is haunted by Annaliese, a girl who drowned there. But when a reckless séance goes awry, and terrible things start happening to her new friends—yet not to her—Rinn is determined to find out why she can’t be "touched" by Annaliese...or if Annaliese even exists. 

With the help of Nate Brenner, the hunky “farmer boy” she’s rapidly falling for, Rinn devises a dangerous plan to uncover the truth. Soon reality and fantasy meld into one, till Rinn finds it nearly impossible to tell the difference. When a malevolent force threatens the lives of everyone she cares about--not to mention her own--she can't help wondering: who should she really be afraid of? 

Annaliese? Or herself?


This sounds so intense. I've really developed I liking for psychological thrillers over the past year and this one seems to fit that bill perfectly! I love not knowing whether what's going on is actually real or not. And who is this Nate Brenner, the farmer boy?! 

Mini Review: The Season by Sarah MacLean

Hi everyone-
I just wanted to do a really fun, mini review of one of my favorite books from a long time ago!

The Season by Sarah MacLean

Published on March 1, 2009 by Scholastic

My Source: Bought

Seventeen-year-old Lady Alexandra Stafford is strong-willed and sharp-tongued and not interested in marriage. Unfortunately, her mother is determined to marry her off to someone safe, respectable, wealthy, and almost certainly boring. But Alex is much more interested in adventure than romance. 

Between ball gown fittings, dances, and dinner parties, Alex, along with her two best friends, Ella and Vivi, manages to get entangled in her biggest scrape yet. When the Earl of Blackmoor's father is mysteriously killed in a riding accident, Alex helps his son, the devilishly handsome Gavin, to discover the truth. It's a mystery brimming with espionage, murder, suspicion, and true love. Romance and danger fill the air, as this year's Season begins!

Review:

The Season is a fantastic historical fiction book. It combines both that and mystery making this book a fast-paced and ultimately a very fun book.

One of my favorite things about The Season is the characters. I'm always enamored with main characters that are supposed to be all prim and proper but would rather be doing some a little bit more dangerous and fun. This is exactly what Alex, the main character, is like. She's a ton of fun and quite the witty girl. She and her friends really made me smile with their escapades. 

The mystery, at times, could be a bit predictable. This really doesn't detract at all from the quality of The Season. I was still intrigued by the mystery and there are a couple of curve balls in the book. Plus, there are chapters from the killer's point of view--in third person. 

Of course The Season has a very, very nice romance. Gavin, the love interest, and Alex made such a cute couple. They're kind of friends but at the same time love to tease each other and give each other a bad time. This, of course, develops into a romance. Yay! 

Overall, The Season just about has it all. If you're looking for a book with mystery and a swoon-worthy love interest then you might want to give this one a try. I sure wish MacLean would write more YA! 

Rating: 5 stars

In My Mailbox (66)

Hi everyone and happy Sunday! In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren to share books we got during the week!

This week I only got one book, but it looks fantastic!

From Netgalley:

Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker

I think this one sounds absolutely adorable! This book comes out in May but I hope to get to it very, very soon! 

What did you get this week?

Blog Happenings (67)

Happy Saturday everyone!

READING:

Partials by Dan Wells-I've just started to read this one but it seems to be off to a great start!

Gimme a Call by Sarah Mlynowski-I just need a really fun, short read and this looks perfect. I'm a few chapters in.

READ:

Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

Hallowed by Cynthia Hand

Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood

All of those were fantastic books!

TO READ:

Slide by Jill Hathaway

Pretty Crooked by Elisa Ludwig

Stolen Away by Alyxandra Harvey

I really need to read these books soon. They're about to expire off my Nook! I absolutely hate it when that happens.

I'm getting so behind on new releases. There are just so many great books coming out and I cannot keep up with all of them.

Have you read any of these? If you have, please tell me if they are worth the read?!

Plus, have you seen this?

I'm not sure if this is the final cover but I'm really excited! This comes out in August! Embers & Echoes is the second book in the Wildefire series!

Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood

Title: Born Wicked
Author: Jessica Spotswood
Publisher: Putnam
Publication Date: February 7, 2012
Source: Bought
Add to your shelf

Summary: Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they're witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave. 

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word . . . especially after she finds her mother's diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family's destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra. 

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren't safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other.

Review: Born Wicked is a truly fantastic book. I was so in love with it from the moment I started reading it to the last second I closed there book. Theres almost nothing not to love about this one!

Cate Cahill is our main character in Born Wicked. Oh, Cate. What a girl she was! It took me awhile to get warmed up to Cate but one I did I really enjoyed her character. Cate will do anything to protect her younger sisters, Maura and Tess. I could understand Cates feelings of protectiveness towards her sisters but it wasn't a full understanding. (possibly because I don't have any siblings of my one.) But still, this was an admirable trait. But other than that her character was so much fun!

I loved Cate's sisters! Both Maura and Tess can be such sweet girls but at the same time really scary. I'm not sure if I trust either one. They made great characters, though.

The plot of Born Wicked was fabulous! There is never a dull moment and if something huge and revealing wasn't going on, we were learning about Cate's crazy world. And about witches and magic. I definitely loved that!

I don't think that I can end this review without touching on the romance. Can I just say that I love Finn, a love interest. He definitely earns a happy sigh from me. He's a bookworm and a sweetheart to boot!

Born Wicked is such a fun book. I was drawn in by the promise of witches and magic but I stayed because of the characters, main and supporting. Especially Finn.

Rating: 4.5ish stars

What to Read (15)

What to Read is just a little thing I like to do that features a slew of books from a certain genre. Sometimes I don't exactly do genres, but you get the gist! I planned to have a review up of Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood but unfortunately I'm not quite done with that one yet! Hopefully a review will go up tomorrow and if not there will be another post of some sorts. But here is "Friday's" post!

Today I'm featuring:

LOVE

Tuesday was Valentine's Day and I thought it would be fun to highlight some of my favorite romances. These are not very current releases, some are but I'm trying to highlight older books that I loved. 

The Season by Sarah MacLean~I am SO in love with this book. I read it way before I started by blog so I never did a review on it---maybe I'll do that for tommorrow--but this book has it all. Romance, mystery and a historical setting. I think I'm just about ready to die of happiness already. The romance is adorable and really sweet, as well.

The Boston Jane series by Jennifer L. Holm~ Like The Season, I read the Boston Jane series way before I started blogging. It was really before I read any YA. Truth be told when I read these I was still in elementary school and I was scandalized by all the kissing. But oh my goodness was I obsessed with the romance. If you want a sweet romance in historical times then this is the one for you. Just because I read this when I was younger doesn't mean it isn't in the genre of YA. I think I'm going to give this series a re-read to see if I still love them.

Newer romances that I love:

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi: This is so spectacular. Both the book and the romance.

Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally: READ THIS ONE NOW! I'm so in love with this book and the characters. And of course, the romance.

Blood Red Road by Moira Young: Jack and Saba are so great. Seriously, read this one soon!!

Waiting on Wednesday (70)

Hi and happy Wednesday! Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine to show books we can't wait for!

This week's pick is:

The Selection by Kiera Cass
April 24, 2012

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in the palace and compete for the heart of the gorgeous Prince Maxon. 

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks. 

Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself- and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.


This sounds like a really great book. I'm loving the actual idea of having a Selection. (It sounds horrible but really cool!) And with a main character by the name of American Singer this better be good! I loving the cover, too!

Hallowed by Cynthia Hand

Title: Hallowed
Author: Cynthia Hand
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: January 17, 2012
Source: Bought
Add to your shelves 


Summary: For months Clara Gardner trained to face the fire from her visions, but she wasn't prepared for the choice she had to make that day. And in the aftermath, she discovered that nothing about being part angel is as straightforward as she thought.

Now, torn between her love for Tucker and her complicated feelings about the roles she and Christian seem destined to play in a world that is both dangerous and beautiful, Clara struggles with a shocking revelation: Someone she loves will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.

In this compelling sequel to "Unearthly," Cynthia Hand captures the joy of first love, the anguish of loss, and the confusion of becoming who you are.

Review: Hallowed is the sequel to probably one of my absolute favorite books of 2011, Unearthly. While Hallowed was good and really enjoyable it didn't quite live up to Unearthly.

Clara is going through so much emotional turmoil in this book and I felt for her so much. Clara is just always trying to do what is right and get through her purpose. Of course, she does all of this with such great humor. That's what I could always count on during the book. Clara's humor. But mostly I just felt really bad for her.

Hallowed has a great love triangle. I was firmly and I mean firmly on Tucker's side in Unearthly. I pretty much thought Christian was a scumbag. But now...I like Christian and he's kind of sweet and really cute. He'll never be Tucker but I wouldn't mind if Clara ended up with Christian. During Hallowed I felt SO bad for Tucker. That poor guy.

Hallowed was a little slow at times but Hand's gorgeous writing carried me through that. I was happy that most of my questions were answered from the first book but of course now I have even more questions. Hallowed pretty much made me cry, as well. It could just get so sad during some moments and my heart totally went out to Clara.

Overall, Hallowed was an enjoyable read. I'll admit that I was expecting more but I'm just really excited for the next book!!


Rating:

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

Title: Incarnate
Author: Jodi Meadows
Publisher: Katherine Tegen
Publication Date: January 31, 2012
Source: Bought
Add to your shelves 


Summary: New soul

Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

No soul

Even Ana's own mother thinks she's a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she'll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

Heart

Sam believes Ana's new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana's enemies--human and creature alike--let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else's life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.

Review: Incarnate is a beautiful book with equally beautiful writing. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't impressed but I have so many questions!

Incarnate starts off with introducing us to Ana, the new soul. I loved Ana. She has lived with her mother, Li, for so long that she constantly feels the need to defend herself. I'm pretty sure I would have crumpled and just given up if I was in Ana's situation. I'd admire her so much because she really becomes strong and intelligent throughout the book. I just really admired her for pushing through all her problems.

Sam, the love interest, was a little disappointing to me. He's really sweet, plays the piano and thinks Ana is amazing but there was just something off about him. I wish I could have liked him more, but sadly I didn't. He and Ana did have a cute romance but something just wasn't there. Maybe I'll feel more comfortable about him in a different books. One thing I did love was all of Sam's friends!

Meadows introduces a wholly different book to the genre of fantasy. There are so many unique and somewhat new concepts. Incarnate is filled with reincarnation, dragons, weird temples and a ton of other great aspects. But all I had was questions. And then a ton more questions. I'm so excited to see if all my questions are answered in the next book!

I was totally captivated with Incarnate. Even though I sometimes wanted more I loved Ana and Meadows' beautiful writing. I can't wait to see what she comes up with next!


Rating:

In My Mailbox (65)

Hi everyone and happy Sunday! In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren to share books we got during the week!

This week was awesome!!

• Incarnate by Jodi Meadows: This has such a beautiful cover and the writing is just as stunning! I'm really liking this one and I only have 60 pages left.
• Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood: I was SO excited to get this one in the mail. I've heard such great things about it and the cover is gorgeous and really soft...
• Truth by Julia Karr: For some reason I didn't realize this one was out yet but when I saw it I had to get it! Hopefully I can get started on this one soon.

For Review:

Masters of the Veil by Daniel A. Cohen: I'm very excited to get started on this one! Thanks for sending it to me, Kate! 

That's all for me! What did you get?

Blog Happenings (66)

Hi everyone! I haven't been active on the blog for the past two days. Mainly, because I've been really busy with school and dealing with all those problems! But I'm back, for quite awhile now. I'll try not to leave everyone again!

READING:

I'm almost done with Hallowed! I have about 50 pages left and, truthfully, I'm very sad. I picked up Incarnate and I'm about a half of the way through. I'm really liking it!

I haven't read too much this past week which is why I am still reading Hallowed.

READ:

Uhhh....nothing

TO READ:

The Butterfly Clues by Kate Ellison

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

According to Goodreads I'm three books behind in my challenge and somehow I don't think that I'll ever get caught up. This sucks. Actually I'll probably make it up in the summer but not right now. 

Progress in Other Challenges:

Debut Author Challenge: 6 out of 12 (Actually there's about 44 but...)

TBR Reading Challenge: 0 out of a minimum of 11 books

I'm not doing too bad on the debuts but on old books I have on my shelves? Not so much.

I'm going to leave everyone with that because I have some great books to finish reading and some commenting to do! 

Waiting on Wednesday (69)

Hi and Happy Wednesday! Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine to share books we can't wait for!!

This week's pick is:

A Midsummer's Nightmare by Kody Keplinger
June 5, 2012

Whitley Johnson's dream summer with her divorce dad has turned into a nightmare. She's just met his new fiancee and her kids. The fiancee's son? Whitley's one-night stand from graduation night. Just freakin' great. 

Worse, she totally doesn't fit in with her dad's perfect new country-club family. So Whitley acts out. She parties. Hard. So hard she doesn't even notice the good things right under her nose: a sweet little future stepsister who is just about the only person she's ever liked, a best friend (even though Whitley swears she doesn't "do" friends), and a smoking-hot guy who isn't her stepbrother...at least, not yet. It will take all three of them to help Whitley get through her anger and begin to put the pieces of her family together. 

Filled with authenticity and raw emotion, Whitley is Kody Keplinger's most compelling character to date: a cynical Holden Caulfield-esque girl you will wholly care about.


I recently read Keplinger's Shut Out and absolutely loved it and I've been planning on reading The DUFF for awhile. But I know I'm going to have to pick this one up immediately! Whitley sounds like such a great character. I'm sure the romance will be just as fantastic as it has been in her other books. Plus, I'm loving the cover and the title! It's perfect! 

Guest Review: Hallowed by Cynthia Hand

Today I have something a little special for everyone! I happen to have a little obsession with the Unearthly series by Cynthia Hand. And so does my friend, Saba. Today Saba is here to do a review on Hallowed, the second book in the series. Let's just say things are going to get a little crazy here at the blog today! :) Hallowed has got some mixed reviews but...let's just see what Saba has to say!

Title: Hallowed
Author: Cynthia Hand
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: January 17, 2012
Source: Bought
Add to your shelves 


Summary: For months Clara Gardner trained to face the fire from her visions, but she wasn't prepared for the choice she had to make that day. And in the aftermath, she discovered that nothing about being part angel is as straightforward as she thought.

Now, torn between her love for Tucker and her complicated feelings about the roles she and Christian seem destined to play in a world that is both dangerous and beautiful, Clara struggles with a shocking revelation: Someone she loves will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.

In this compelling sequel to "Unearthly," Cynthia Hand captures the joy of first love, the anguish of loss, and the confusion of becoming who you are.

Saba's Review: WOW. 

WOW WOW WOW. Wow times a million. 

I love this book so much. I don't think I can fit how much I loved this book into a tiny review. I could write a book about how much I loved this book. As you can see, I'm a little obsessed, and you should be too. 

I have been hotly anticipating Hallowed for just about a year now, and I had the greatest expectations. Well, I have to say then that my expectations were met. I'm so happy they were. I hate it when sequels don't do as good as their previous books. But don't worry, Hallowed wasn't one of those books! 

As usual, Cynthia Hand manages to deliver a spectacularly beautiful and charming book that fills up every aspect of a good read (Scratch that, an AMAZING READ). Clara was and still is one of my favorite main characters. She's insanely smart and always manages to make me smile, she's pretty much hilarious. That's one of my favorite things about Cynthia Hand's books, they are hilarious. Like make you crack up out loud in a quiet room hilarious. I adore those kinds of books. 

Oh and of course, there's another character I need to talk about. TUCKER. Tucker Avery, the most amazing, awesome, adorable, main character you will ever read about. Tucker was just as great in this book as the previous, and not to mention he was HOT! Sorry I sort of have a thing for cowboys. The only thing that nagged me was that we didn't get to know him as well as we did in the previous book, we didn't get to read as much about him. Instead we learned about a different character, who's name is not to be mentioned. But still, Tucker was amazing <3. Katie: Oh, who doesn't have a thing for cowboys?! 

Hallowed had a great plot line, one that made you think one thing but then a whole another thing happened. It was filled with great twists. I loved the depth of each one of the characters, it made you feel what they're feeling and actually care about them. I loved that. It made the book feel very real. 

One of the best parts of this book was the beautiful writing, the oh so beautiful writing. Not only in describing but just the tone and the things said. I actually cried a lot in this book because of that. Cynthia Hand manages to touch your heart with this book all the while keeping you intrigued and laughing along, and crying along too I guess. The pace of the book was just perfect, it was equally balanced and I felt as though everything in the book had a reason and it wasn't just the author blabbing on. Everything in this book was just great, and the ending was killer, I don't know if I can make it until next year. 

Overall, Hallowed exceeded Unearthly and I LOVED it. It was amazing!!! So if you're hesitating to read this book, I say, don't! Go read it now because you are missing out on a truly, truly amazing book!

Saba's Rating:

Thanks for the review, Saba!! It was great!

Ravenstoke by Augusta Blythe

Title: Ravenstoke
Author: August Blythe
Publication Date: December 4, 2011
Source: Author: Thanks Augusta!
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Summary: In Winterborne, Loie and Mia's seventeenth birthdays brought more drama and surprises than they ever expected. Now, in Ravenstoke, they are adjusting to the aftermath and struggling to keep those newfound powers in check. When Andreas is called away to England under mysterious circumstances, a new guy is sent to Salcey Ridge in his place. Cian is smarmy and cocksure and Loie wants nothing more than to unleash a hellhound on him. Unfortunately, Cian isn't the only complication in their lives as the girls must also contend with the reappearance of Mr. Winterborne himself and Loie's most dreaded fear of all - a part in the school musical. Can the girls survive the rest of junior year unscathed?

Review: Ravenstoke is such a fun read. I was so glad to be back in this world that I got to visit in the first book, Winterborne.

Loie, the main character, has such a distinctive voice. That was definitely one of my favorite parts of the book. She's really admirable, too. She has tons of awesome powers but she never once becomes conceited or annoying. Loie is just a very down to earth character. Plus, she was always making me smile with her memorable narration.

We're introduced to a new character in Ravenstoke. His name is Cian and I was definitely enthralled with him. He and Loie don't have much of a romance, they don't see each other that much, but when they did meet I was definitely rooting for them. Hopefully something more will happen in later books!

I was very intrigued by the plot of this one. Loie is growing into her powers, powers that are very powerful and very cool to read about. I loved reading about her training sessions! The plot could be a little bit slow in times but I could get through those parts because of Loie! Loie and her friend Mia take a trip overseas that I absolutely loved!

Overall, Ravenstoke is a fantastic sequel. I'm definitely looking forward to more from Blythe.


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