WOW #20 Fault Line by Christa Desir

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine . Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event meant to showcase the not-yet-released books that we are eagerly awaiting. This week I've chosen Fault Line by Christa Desir.

Ben could date anyone he wants, but he only has eyes for the new girl — sarcastic free-spirit, Ani. Luckily for Ben, Ani wants him too. She’s everything Ben could ever imagine. Everything he could ever want.

But that all changes after the party. The one Ben misses. The one Ani goes to alone.

Now Ani isn’t the girl she used to be, and Ben can’t sort out the truth from the lies. What really happened, and who is to blame?

Ben wants to help her, but she refuses to be helped. The more she pushes Ben away, the more he wonders if there’s anything he can do to save the girl he loves.

Release Date: November 12, 2013.

This book sounds like it could be both adorable and sad. Plus I love the cover.

Rachel

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TTT #24 Fall TBR List DOUBLE FEATURE!!!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish. Each week they give a topic, and then other blogs make their top ten lists for that topic.

This week's topic is Top Ten Books On My Fall 2013 TBR List

In no particular order, as per usual:

1) Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs: I got this book from the library, and just looking at it, wow. It looks fantastic and also pretty creepy. I can't wait to read this one.

2) Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton: I've been trying to find this book forever and finally I have it from the library! I loved Tessa Gratton's short stories from the Merry Fates, so I can't wait to read this. I almost feel like I should have waited for Halloween to read it, but I can't wait much longer!

3) Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor: Ever since I first heard about this book I knew I needed to read it, and now I've been eyeing it at the school library for ages. 

4) The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater: I got this for my birthday last year and I still haven't read it! And the sequel comes out today! I think I need to hurry it up a bit. 

5) City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare: I need to know what happens next! Also I need to work on my never-finishing-series habit.

6) Seraphina by Rachel Hartman: I picked this book up during the summer and ever since Maggie Stiefvater recommended I have wanted to read it. Plus the author has the same name as me(score!).

7) Dark Days at Saddle Creek by Shelley Peterson: Ever since I could read horse books were always my favourite. I've since widened my reading horizons and read waaayyy more than horse books, but I still read the very odd one. Shelley Peterson is my favourite horse author, so naturally I have almost all her books. I've been saving this one!

8) Trickster's Queen by Tamora Pierce: Seeing as she's my favourite author, I have paced myself so that I always have a few books from her that I haven't read. That way, I know I always have something wonderful and new to read. And it's time to crack another new spine, I think! 

9) The Iron King by Lisa Kagawa: Another book I picked up this summer, I can't wait to read it! I love reading different takes on the Fae. The way authors combine the myths to make their own stories is so interesting.

10) Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks: I have it on loan from a friend, and this will be my first Nicholas Sparks book(and I was supposed to read one LAST fall. Oops.) I'm looking forwards to reading it.

There's my ten! Now have a look at Megan's...

Rachel

                            ____________________________________________

1) Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay: I picked this up at Chapters for like $2! Who can resist a retelling of a classic love story, especially at that price? I can't wait to give this one a read. 

2) The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman: I bought this book ages ago, because I love Neil Gaiman. I loved Coraline, and also the Doctor Who episodes that Mr Gaiman has penned. I've heard good things about this book! 

3) The Elite by Kiera Cass: I loved The Selection! I felt like I was in the middle of a modernized fairytale, and it was amazing. I need to read the next instalment in the series!

4) Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia: My dad picked this up for me from a second hand bookstore this summer. I'm excited to read it, it sounds different from anything else I've read in the past, and they made a movie of it! That must mean there's something enjoyable about it! 

5) Cold Kiss by Amy Garvey: This book just looks good. Heartbreaking, but good. 

6) The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith AKA JK Rowling: Ummm... does this one even need an explanation? 

7) Shadowcry by Jenna Burtenshaw: This book sounds really interesting! Life and death intersect, and people have magical powers... sounds good to me! 

8) Incarceron by Catherine Fisher: Somehow I haven't read this book yet! I've heard TONS of good stuff about this book and I'm so stoked to finally read it. :)  

9) Hereafter by Tara Hudson: ghosts, and boys. and the cover is SO PRETTY. 

10) City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare: OHMYGOSHINEEDTOKNOWWHATHAPPENSNEXT. THEENDOFTHEFIRSTONENOOOOOOOOOOOOOWHYDIDYOUDOTHAT?!  

TOO MANY BOOKS AND NOT ENOUGH TIIIIIIIIIIIME! 
lol. 

keep readin' it write!
Megan 

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Swimming Through Clouds by Rajdeep Paulus

I live in the in between. Between what if and what is. It’s how I manage. It’s the only way I know. Everyone has their way. This is mine.

When high school, cell phone disruption forces a classroom ban, the words on a Post-it note spark a sticky romance between two unlikely friends. Transfer student Talia Vanderbilt has one goal at her new school: to blend in with the walls. Lagan Desai, basketball captain and mathlete, would do just about anything to befriend the new girl. One Post-it note at a time, Lagan persuades Talia to peel back her heart, slowly revealing her treasure chest of pain—an absent mother, a bedridden brother, and an abusive father. In a world where hurt is inevitable, the two teens search for a safe place to weather the storms of life. Together.

Once again, I started this book having no idea what I was getting into. It seems to be a trend with me and books, to be honest(maybe I should start reading more just the first two sentences of the synopsis?) . In the first few chapters, I was kind of going "Oh, no, this is not what I thought it would be at all. What am I doing?" But that quickly changed.

Swimming Through Clouds turned out to be a time-well-spent kind of book. At times it was almost painful to read, but it was definitely worth it. 

The characters started off as a bit dull to me, but they definitely grew on me the more the story progressed. The book really only had four characters of importance: Talia, Jesse, their father, and Lagan. Without a doubt, I was always rooting for Talia, although, let's be honest, as the victim of an abusive father, I think it would be impossible not to. There were certainly times when Talia confused me and made me somewhat frustrated, but the more I got to know her the more I understood where she was coming from, even though it is impossible for me to relate to what she is going through. There was some definite character growth for Talia in this book and I really appreciate that. 

Jesse, Talia's younger brother, was another good character. He didn't make me frustrated or mad at all, and I really did sympathize with him for the entire story. Their father, though, I felt completely opposite about. 100% hater, just as we are supposed to. Some of he things he did made my stomach turn. As the synopsis says, he is abusive towards Talia and her brother. One thing that I would have liked is a bit more background on him. I felt like I never really got to understand why their father was the way he was.

Lastly, there was Lagan. He was truly a very sweet guy. The way he treated Talia was wonderful, although I do wish that, at least towards the end of the book, Talia had been able to become a bit more independent and not so... spookish. 

Also worth mentioning is Rajdeep Paul's's writing and storytelling, which were absolutely wonderful! It was all so detailed, and not in that please-stop-talking-about-the-exact-shade-of-the-neighbours-eyes kind of way, but in that I-can-totally-picture-everything-that-is-happening-in-vivid-detail way, and it was fantastic. Also, the pacing of the book was really really good. 

The one thing that I would have changed in this book is the ending. The ending itself was fantastic, but I think that an epilogue would have been just right to finish off. Swimming Through Clouds had one of those somewhat open-ended endings that lets the reader imagine what happens, but I think it is almost a bit too open in a way. Personally, I would have liked to have a bit more closure. There seemed to be a few things that could have been mentioned while still having that open-ended ending.

Overall, I think this is a book that I would definitely recommend. It was waaayy out of my normal comfort zone and yet I still thoroughly enjoyed it. However, I don't think enjoying this book is the main thing. Instead, I think the most important part of this book is that it made me think about this kind of situation in a way that was meaningful and not always 100% comfortable. It's one of those books that might not be light and happy to read, but is valuable and important.

The Good: Writing, overall story and meaning
The Bad: Possibly could have used an epilogue or something at the end
The Verdict: 8.5/10. Loved it!
Goodreads Link

Rachel

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WOW #19 This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine . Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event meant to showcase the not-yet-released books that we are eagerly awaiting. This week I've chosen This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales.

Making friends has never been Elise Dembowski’s strong suit. All throughout her life, she’s been the butt of every joke and the outsider in every conversation. When a final attempt at popularity fails, Elise nearly gives up. Then she stumbles upon a warehouse party where she meets Vicky, a girl in a band who accepts her; Char, a cute, yet mysterious disc jockey; Pippa, a carefree spirit from England; and most importantly, a love for DJing.

Told in a refreshingly genuine and laugh-out-loud funny voice, THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE is an exuberant novel about identity, friendship, and the power of music to bring people together.





Release Date: September 17, 2013

Oooohhh, I like how this sounds! 

Rachel

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TTT #23 Book to Film Adaptations We Want

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish. Each week they give a topic, and then other blogs make their top ten lists for that topic.

This week's topic is Top Ten Books I want to see Turned into a Movie or TV Show
(in a world where adaptations are never crappy)

In no particular order, as per usual:

1) Maggie Stiefvater's Wolves of Mercy Falls series: I love Maggie Stiefvater, and her books that would do best adapted to film are in this series. (PS, did you hear she's releasing a companion novel to this series? Announced today! Check here for info on Sinner, which was previously referred to as White Pants Novel)

2) Stephanie Perkins' Anna and the French Kiss: Contemporary romance turned move? Yes.

3) The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick: I read this book a few years ago in school, and while it wasn't my favourite book ever, I think this would do very well as a movie.

4) Delirium by Lauren Oliver as a TV series: This was going to be a TV series, but then no. The pilot was cancelled. (Thanks Fox! Not.)

5) Snow: a Retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves by Tracy Lynn: I'm a huge fan of fairy tale retellings, and I think that this particular retelling would be super awesome to see as a movie. It's dark and creepy, and it's a take on Snow White I've never ever seen before.

6) The Song of the Lioness by Tamora Pierce: I'm kind of wary about putting this one on a list like this, but seeing as Tamora Pierce is my favourite author of all time ever, I know that I would see a movie if they made one. That being said, though, I 100% do NOT want anyone to make her books into movies. This genre has a pretty awful track record for adaptations (Eragon, Inkheart, Spiderwick was meh, Ella Enchanted was a good movie but a bad adaptation) and I think that there is no way these books could be done in a way that was true to the story without having a ridiculous budget. Even with a ton of money, I would still be skeptical. 

7) Inkheart by Cornelia Funke: This book is already a movie, but honestly, I don't think the movie should count cause it kind of sucked. Try again, Hollywood.

8) The rest of the Narnia Books: So far we have 3 of them, can't we have the other 4? It would be nice at least to have the rest with the characters we kind of know.

9) Endangered by Eliot Schrefer: This book was so. good. It was powerful as a book and I think it would be even more powerful as a movie.

10) Angelfall by Susan Ee: Apocalyptic angels on the big screen? Sounds like a good idea, if you ask me.

Bonus: This wouldn't be something I'd be terribly interested in now, but who else remembers the Animal Ark series or, even better, the Magic Treehouse? These books were my life when I was starting to read. I think they would be wonderful adapted into a children's tv series. 

Rachel

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The Unfailing Light (Katerina #2) by Robin Bridges

Having had no choice but to use her power has a necromancer to save Russia from dark forces, Katerina Alexandrovna, Duchess of Oldenburg, now wants to forget that she ever used her special powers. She's about to set off to pursue her lifelong dream of attending medical school when she discovers that Russia's arch nemesis--who she thought she'd destroyed--is still alive. So on imperial orders, Katerina remains at her old finishing school. She'll be safe there, because the empress has cast a potent spell to protect it against the vampires and revenants who are bent on toppling the tsar and using Katerina for their own gains. But to Katerina's horror, the spell unleashes a vengeful ghost within the school, a ghost more dangerous than any creature trying to get in.

As the second book in the Katerina trilogy, I'd been waiting a long time for this one to release. I enjoyed this book, but I have to say it was a bit disappointing. The first one had finished off so strong and I was dying to read the Unfailing Light, but it just didn't quite make the cut.

Katerina was still great character in The Unfailing Light- she has very clear goals and still does her best to do what's right AND what's best for her. However, George Alexandrovnich did let me down this time :( And I really did like him in the first book, too! He was just a bit of a jerk this time around. The non-insta love that was starting between Katerina and George in the last book did not seem to flow through into this book, since George was being dumb. He completely disregarded what Katerina wanted and underestimated her abilities again and again and again. I also didn't think that Katerina was as frustrated with him as she could have been. Personally, I would have seriously considered giving him a good kick to the shins at times.

Characters aside, there were other parts of this book that I wasn't entirely keen on. The pacing was much slower than the first book, which had me not as excited to keep reading. A faster paced action packed story was exactly what the Unfailing Light needed to keep the ball rolling after The Gathering Storm, but it just didn't really happen. Also, the setting was the same in this one as it was in the first book, despite there being hope of something new.

A part of the book that I did like, however, was the ghost that was mentioned in the synopsis. The setting as a whole is still as enjoyable as ever. Russia in the late 1800's with paranomal-ness? Yes. Still good.

So even though this book was a bit of a let down (it seems to be a trend with the middle book in trilogies, or is that just me?) I am eagerly looking forward to the next one, The Morning Star, which came out August 27th. It's on my list to read!

The Good: The world, as always, and Katerina
The Bad: George, pacing, anti-climatic after the first book
The Verdict: 3.5/5
Goodreads Link


Rachel

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WOW #18 The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine . Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event meant to showcase the not-yet-released books that we are eagerly awaiting. This week I've chosen The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White.

Isadora’s family is seriously screwed up.

Of course, as the human daughter of Egyptian gods, that pretty much comes with the territory. She’s also stuck with parents who barely notice her, and a house full of relatives who can’t be bothered to remember her name. After all, they are going to be around forever—and she’s a mere mortal.

Isadora’s sick of living a life where she’s only worthy of a passing glance, and when she has the chance to move to San Diego with her brother, she jumps on it. But Isadora’s quickly finding that a “normal” life comes with plenty of its own epic complications—and that there’s no such thing as a clean break when it comes to family. Much as she wants to leave her past behind, she can’t shake the ominous dreams that foretell destruction for her entire family. When it turns out there may be truth in her nightmares, Isadora has to decide whether she can abandon her divine heritage after all.

Release Date: September 10, 2013

I've read plenty of books that center around Greek mythology, but none about Egyptian mythology! Plus the cover is gorgeous!

Rachel

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Review: Rory by Ciye Cho

Far beyond heaven, earth and hell is a city known as Palladino, a place ruled by ghosts and filled with demons, magic, and all sorts of darkly beautiful things. A city where no one can ever escape.Eighteen-year-old Rory is a cake decorator who makes stunning confections. But no amount of frosting or miracles can save her when a demon kidnaps her—and carries her to Palladino. Here, Rory ends up in a deadly charm school where young women are forced to become companions for the Ghost Lords. And for her to survive, Rory must become everything that she isn’t: graceful, elegant... and perfect.
But nothing is what it seems in Palladino. Not the magic. Not the ghosts. And definitely not Martin Marius, the bizarre Ghost Lord-slash-inventor who is drawn to Rory. For amid a thousand machines and a hundred cats, Martin holds a secret that could change everything. A secret that could either free Rory... or destroy her.

This book was generously given to us from Ciye Cho in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much Ciye! 

Let me just say, honestly, I LOVED this book. I wasn't too sure what to expect going into it, but once I started reading it, I actually couldn't put it down! I finished the entire book in 2 days. That's how good it was. 

It was just a really great mix of everything I love in YA fiction. It was surreal, fantastical, although still extremely relatable. The setting is magical, and wonderful, but also dark and dangerous. The pace of the story was good, there were no slow points, or bits that were boring or hard to read through. It was one of those action-packed books that constantly throw plot twists at you to keep you interested. That fact made this book particularly addicting for me.The plot was mysterious, and very unpredictable, so it left me wanting to keep reading to find out what would happen next! And after I finished the whole book, I found myself saddened by the fact that the next book in the series is not published yet! I can't wait to read it! 

I loved the main character Rory. She's a baker, and my favourite scenes were when she was baking cakes and decorating them. The description of those scenes were just so much fun to read! There was a dream kitchen involved... and let me tell you... I think anyone would love to have that kitchen, even if you weren't a baker! It sounded fabulous! The level of description throughout the whole book was amazing, not just in the baking scenes. I am a very visual person, so when an author can really paint a clear picture in my head with the words they use, it's usually an instant hit with me! Ciye Cho definitely accomplished that! 

Another thing that was really great about this book was that there was a talking cat. Need I say more? Didn't think so. 

I'm wracking my brain to try and find something I didn't like about this book... but I don't think there was anything! All around, it was a great book, and very fun to read!  

The Good: everything. no joke. 
The Bad: nothing. it was addicting perfection that I couldn't put down. There's nothing bad about that!!!! 
The Verdict: 10/10 peeps. Give it a read. you won't regret it!!!! 

PS: I can't wait to read Ciye Cho's mermaid series Florence, it looks equally as good! 


keep readin' it write!
Megan

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