May TBR

May 4

May TBR

What I’m Reading in May

I’m excited for these books, guys! There’s a few fantasies on here, but I’m really getting into contemporaries right now. This beautiful weather does it every time!

 Kindle

May TBR

NOWHERE BUT HERE: THUNDER ROAD #1 • Katie McGarry | One of these days, I’ll post reviews of all of Katie McGarry’s books. I’ve been a horrid slacker with her existing series. I’m going to turn over a new leaf with her new series. I love the grittiness and the drama in her books.

HOLD ME LIKE A BREATH: ONCE UPON A CRIME FAMILY #1 • Tiffany Schmidt | Nothing about this books sounds less than intriguing. A world where there is a black market for body parts sounds dangerous and, frankly, a little gross. But I’m totally interested.

THE STORYSPINNER: THE KEEPER’S CHRONICLES #1 • Becky Wallace | This fantasy has been on my radar for ages. Also, I’ve heard good things. There’s magic and performers that sound like gypsies a little bit. I just started reading this one.

  Owned/Print ARCs

May TBR

THE SCORPIO RACES • Maggie Stiefvater | Rereading this forever favorite while my bestie Alyssa reads it for the first time.

REVENGE, ICE CREAM, AND OTHER THINGS BEST SERVED COLD: BROKEN HEARTS AND REVENGE #2 • Katie Finn | The first book in this series was cute but predictable. I’m still looking forward to seeing where things go for Gemma, Hallie, and Teddy.

LOVE, FORTUNES, AND OTHER DISASTERS • Kimberley Karalius | I just started this one as well and it’s cute. I don’t think I’m loving it, but it’s got a cute premise.

VELVET • Temple West | It’s been awhile since I read a book about vampires, guys, but this one has potential. Going to be digging into this one very soon.

ROOK • Sharon Cameron | This book just sounds fantastic. Alternate world Paris? STOP.

THE PENDERWICKS IN SPRING: THE PENDERWICKS #4 • Jeanne Birdsall | I just LOVE THESE KIDS. I can’t wait to see what happens now that we get a little time jump!

Audiobooks

May TBR

AN EMBER IN THE ASHES • Sabaa Tahir | YO. A fantasy based on Ancient Rome and an audiobook narrated by Steve West and Fiona Hardingham, the most excellent duo behind THE SCORPIO RACES audiobook? I’m in.

PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS: PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS #1 • Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson | This is our May On the Same Page book, and I’m stoked. A MG Peter Pan retelling narrated by Jim Dale. Also, I used to read Dave Barry’s column when he was still working in newspapers, and it was HILARIOUS. This can only mean good things, friends.

What are you guys reading this month?

Filed Under: Monthly TBR

Book Review | Fairest | Marissa Meyer

Apr 30
Book Review | Fairest | Marissa MeyerFairest by Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #3.5
Published by Feiwel & Friends on January 27th 2015
Genres: Dystopian YA, Science Fiction
Pages: 272
Format: Hardcover
Also in this series: Cinder, Scarlet, Cinder, Cress
Also by this author: Cinder, Scarlet, Cinder, Cress
Source: Bought it
Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Goodreads
three-half-stars

In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Reviews, Young Adult Tagged With: , , , , ,

On the Same Page | The Wrath and the Dawn | Renee Ahdieh

Apr 29

on the same page

The Wrath and the Dawn • Renee Ahdieh

I’m going to let you all in on a secret about On the Same Page: The three of us read the same book each month, but we almost never read the book at the EXACT same time. We talk about it and gush or complain or discuss, but never while we’re all in the act of reading together. Never “OMG I’m on page 54,” “OMG I’m two pages behind you THIS IS AMAZINGGGG.” That is, until THE WRATH AND THE DAWN. I have to say, it was incredibly fun and very lucky that we all wound up having overlapping free time.

Another thing that was awesome about this month’s book? Umm, EVERYTHING. Ahem. I meant to say that the vibrant setting created an incredibly vivid environment for the story of Shazi and Khalid. It felt like I was reading a grown-up Aladdin. Picturing the palaces, the clothes, the food, the desert was all so easy to do. Because reading THE WRATH AND THE DAWN was so visual for me, it was a no-brainer that I put together another Pinterest board. I’m going to try not to overwhelm you guys with pins, but I might fail. There’s just so much to see!

[Read more…]

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Top Ten Tuesday | Top Ten Books Featuring Girls Disguised as Boys

Apr 28

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Books Featuring Girls Disguised as Boys

So I’m pretty excited about this list, guys, but I’m going to tell you right now: Some of these books feature girls who merely favor dressing like boys as opposed to deliberately trying to pass themselves off as boys. Mostly I put those books on here because they loosely meet my topic and I wanted to have 10 books. And also I really loved them and want to talk about them.

Also, there’s a few books on here that aren’t out yet, but whose synopses talk about girls disguising themselves as boys, so I’m SUPER excited to read them!


Girls disguised as boys
PRINCESS OF THORNS | STACEY JAY • Friends, if you love fantasies and haven’t read this book, I can’t recommend it enough. It was well-written, fun, dramatic, and very swoony. The main character, Aurora, spends nearly the entire book passing herself off as her brother, Ror, and it makes her relationship with Niklaas verrrry interesting.
THE BURNING SKY | SHERRY THOMAS • This entire series–well the first two books, anyway–belong on this list. Iolanthe Seaborn attends Eton College with Titus as a way to keep her under the radar of Atlantis. If none of that makes any sense, these books are just WAITING for you to pick them up. I personally love seeing Iolanthe, under the name Archer Fairfax, interacting with the boys at Eton and fitting right in.
LEVIATHAN | SCOTT WESTERFELD • I wasn’t a big fan of steampunk until I read this series about Deryn Sharpe and her escapades during a reimagined World War I that saw the two sides as Darwinists (think radically altered natural species) and Clankers (machines). But there is almost NO character more awesome than Deryn. Legit. She’s confident and tough and so smart, and in order to get herself firmly entrenched in fighting the war like she wants, she’s got to do a little faking.
SCARLET | A.C. GAUGHEN • To be honest, I’ve only read the first book in this series and I don’t remember too much. But I DO recall that Scarlet, in order to perform her duties as a super thief for Robin Hood’s band of men, she has to pose as a boy. Definitely have plans to catch up on this series, guys.
EON: DRAGONEYE REBORN | ALISON GOODMAN • I have such wonderful memories of reading this series. It’s one of the most awesome takes on dragons that I’ve ever read since the dragons aren’t physical creatures. Rather, they are spiritual beings that are controlled by specific masters. One dragon in particular has been inaccessible for ages until a young boy named Eon shows up. BUT! LO! Eon is actually EONA. She’s disguised herself as a boy so that she would be allowed to train as a Dragoneye. This story is pretty amazing.
A GAME OF THRONES | GEORGE R.R. MARTIN • Who has read these books and doesn’t remember Arry, Arya’s male identity that she uses after she leaves King’s Landing and heads north towards the Wall? In order to keep herself safe from people looking for Eddard Stark’s children, Arya chops off her hair and becomes Arry, and so begins her long journey.
ALANNA: THE FIRST ADVENTURE | TAMORA PIERCE • I’m beyond excited to reread these books soon, friends, and it’s mostly down to how awesome Alanna is. In order to train as a knight, she has to appear as Alan of Trebond. Of course, she KILLS IT.
REVOLUTION | JENNIFER DONNELLY • So, this is one of the stretches, guys. But this book is wonderful and I still think about it over a year later. It’s told across two timelines: One a modern girl struggling with depression after the death of her younger brother, and the other of a girl during the worst days of the French Revolution, who spends her nights setting off fireworks and becomes known as The Green Man. Not a light book, but still really lovely. Plus, more French Revolution, pls.
GRACELING | KRISTIN CASHORE • Another stretch! But like, this is kind of a big one. Katsa never overtly pretends to be a boy or tries to hide the fact that she’s female. But she does keep her hair short and favors dressing in boys clothing. I told you, a stretch. Anytime I can work in a GRACELING mention, though, is an effort well-made as far as I’m concerned.
NEVER JUDGE A ROGUE BY HIS COVER | SARAH MACLEAN • So I don’t want to talk too much about this one because when the truth is revealed in one of the previous volumes of this series, it’s kind of a huge deal. It belongs, though. I love historical romances, and Sarah MacLean does them exceptionally well.
VENGEANCE ROAD | ERIN BOWMAN • And now we reach the portion of the list that features books I haven’t read yet or are unreleased. I’m incredibly excited to read this one. IT’S THE WILD WEST. WITH DRAMA. The main character, Kate, assumes the identity of a boy to search out her father’s killers. It just sounds SO FANTASTIC!
UNDER A PAINTED SKY | STACEY LEE • I CAN’T WITH THIS. Historical fiction that takes place on the OREGON EFFING TRAIL. STOP. Not only is it set in one of my favorite, most underrepresented time periods, it’s about two girls who disguise themselves as boys while they’re on the trail, running from their pasts together. Dying to read this one.
TANGLED WEBS | LEE BROSS • Another one that I can’t wait for. It takes place in another one of my favorite time periods: 18th century England. It’s got secrets and fancy parties, but also a young girl who has to dress as a boy to keep herself safe on the streets of London. GIMME IT.
BLOODY JACK | L.A. MEYER • Can you guys believe that I haven’t read any of these books? Ever? A girl disguised as a boy so that she can serve on a pirate ship? Not sure what I’ve been thinking, not picking this one up ASAP.
Filed Under: Top Ten Tuesday Tagged With: ,

Book Review | The Sin Eater’s Daughter | Melinda Salisbury

Apr 24

I received this book for free from a fellow blogger (thanks for sharing!) in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Book Review | The Sin Eater’s Daughter | Melinda SalisburyThe Sin Eater's Daughter by Melinda Salisbury
Series: The Sin Eater's Daughter #1
Published by Scholastic on February 24, 2015
Genres: Fantasy YA
Pages: 320
Format: ARC
Source: a fellow blogger (thanks for sharing!)
Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Goodreads
four-half-stars

I am the perfect weapon.
I kill with a single touch.

Twylla is blessed. The Gods have chosen her to marry a prince, and rule the kingdom. But the favour of the Gods has it’s price. A deadly poison infuses her skin. Those who anger the queen must die under Twylla’s fatal touch.

Only Lief, an outspoken new guard, can see past Twylla’s chilling role to the girls she truly is.

Yet in a court as dangerous and the queen’s, some truths should not be told…

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Reviews, Young Adult Tagged With: , , , ,

Waiting on Wednesday | The Boy Most Likely To | Huntley Fitzpatrick

Apr 22

Waiting on Wednesday

The Boy Most Likely To • Huntley Fitzpatrick

Book cover The Boy Most Likely To Huntley Fitzpatrick

A surprising, utterly romantic companion to My Life Next Door—great for fans of Sarah Dessen and Jenny Han

Tim Mason was The Boy Most Likely To find the liquor cabinet blindfolded, need a liver transplant, and drive his car into a house

Alice Garrett was The Girl Most Likely To . . . well, not date her little brother’s baggage-burdened best friend, for starters.

For Tim, it wouldn’t be smart to fall for Alice. For Alice, nothing could be scarier than falling for Tim. But Tim has never been known for making the smart choice, and Alice is starting to wonder if the “smart” choice is always the right one. When these two crash into each other, they crash hard.

Then the unexpected consequences of Tim’s wild days come back to shock him. He finds himself in a situation that isn’t all it appears to be, that he never could have predicted . . . but maybe should have.

And Alice is caught in the middle.

Told in Tim’s and Alice’s distinctive, disarming, entirely compelling voices, this novel is for readers of The Spectacular Now, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, and Paper Towns.

I CAN’T EVEN with how excited I am to read THE BOY MOST LIKELY TO. Huntley Fitzpatrick gets the contemporary thing RIGHT, guys. I’m excited to reread the book where we first met Tim, MY LIFE NEXT DOOR, before diving headfirst into his story. I remember loving him even though he was always a little troubled. ESPECIALLY because he was a little troubled. Also because I think he’s a ginger and we all know how much I love those.

Huntley Fitzpatrick is quickly becoming one of my favorite, go-to summer romance authors, guys. I’m really looking forward to this one.

THE BOY MOST LIKELY TO comes out on August 18, 2015 from Dial

The Boy Most Likely To Huntley Fitzpatrick

 

Filed Under: Waiting on Wednesday Tagged With: , , ,

Top Ten Tuesday | All-Time Favorite Authors

Apr 21

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten All-Time Favorite Authors

Would you guys believe me when I tell you that this list was actually really hard? ALL-TIME FAVORITE? That’s a huge deal. How do I determine this? Author’s I read and loved when I was a wee thing whose work has stuck with me? Authors I love who are still writing books? Author’s who’ve written my favorite books, but maybe not necessarily authors whose entire catalog I’ve read? THE DECISIONS! So I kind of just threw a list together. I still think it’s a pretty accurate list, though. BUT AHH THE PRESSURE!

 

TTT_grrmIt’s only been about four years since I started reading A Song of Ice and Fire, but it’s already assumed a huge role in my fandom life. When I first read these books, I hadn’t started blogging yet and I read nothing else–literally–for almost a year. I completely immersed myself in the world of Westeros and House Stark and dragons and The Wall. Any time the world-building in a book is this good and this consuming, I’ll be that author’s biggest fan for always.

TTT_dianaLike there’s any way the author who created James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser wasn’t going to be on this list. You guys know me better than that, I hope. On a serious note, I can pinpoint my love for all things Scottish to the Outlander series. For real. And I love the relationship that Diana has crafted between Jamie and Claire.

TTT_maggieI’ve read all of Maggie’s currently released work, and her books are some of my all-time favorites. If you guys can tell me the last time I went more than a week or two without mentioning THE SCORPIO RACES, I’ll be shocked. I feel like I talk about it all the time. Understandable, though, once you’ve read it and met Puck Connolly and Sean Kendrick. I LOVE Maggie Stiefvater. There’s nothing she could write that I wouldn’t want to read.

TTT_jk rowlingWhat do you guys think the odds are of basically every Top Ten Tuesday including J.K. Rowling on it? I think those odds are high. Although she’s on my list of all-time favorite authors, I basically only mean Harry Potter. I don’t really have any desire to read her adult books. Soooo, take from that what you will, but I can’t have this list without J.K. Rowling on it.

TTT_jandy nelsonJandy Nelson has written only two books, but they’ve both been so lovely and so heartbreaking and have stayed with me so long that I can’t NOT have her on my list of all-time favorite authors. She cemented her place on this list after just one book!

TTT_rothfussI’m getting the feeling that a lot of authors on this list are here because their characters are some of the most amazing I’ve ever read, and Patrick Rothfuss is no exception. Kvothe is in a league all his own, but I also love Wil and Simmon and Fela (let’s just pretend that Denna doesn’t really exist, mmkay?). Like GRRM, Patrick Rothfuss is on this list as much for Kvothe as he is for his stellar world-building. If I could live in the world where Kvothe lives, I’d be a happy camper.

TTT_kristin cashoreI’m getting ants in my pants for something new from Kristin Cashore. GRACELING was one of the first YA books I ever read, and it essentially hooked me. I loved all three books in that series for different reasons, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting the announcement of her next book ever since.

TTT_morgan matsonWhen I try and think of an author who’s a sure thing, Morgan Matson is one that usually comes to mind pretty quickly. I just LOVE her stories and her characters and her everything. I’ve been moved by all of her books, and I just can’t gobble her books up fast enough. GIMME ALL OF THEM.

TTT_tolkienWhen I was younger, I didn’t really read a lot of fantasy, which seems crazy because I love it so much now. It’s probably a cliche that Tolkien is on this list but he really deserves a spot. I read The Lord of the Rings in college (*piles on more cliche*) and would, like, stay home on the weekends while my friends went out drinking so that I could read these books in peace. This was also right around the time when the movies were coming out, so I was totally invested. If I’d never read these books, I’m not sure how my love of the genre would exist.

TTT_rainbowTalk about an author whose work is super poignant and lovely. I don’t think I’ve ever read a Rainbow Rowell book and not been moved by it. I’ve laughed and swooned and cried–basically I run the gamut of feels when I read her stuff. I have just one book from her catalog left to read (THE ATTACHMENTS), and I have to admit that I’m a little nervous about CARRY ON. But one thing that all of the authors on this list share is their instant readability for me: I’ll never not read a book they write. Rainbow is a “no duh” author for me.

 

Filed Under: Top Ten Tuesday Tagged With: , ,

Series Love | The Penderwicks

Apr 20

series love PenderwicksSeries love The Penderwicks Jeanne Birdsall

Series Name: The Penderwicks

Author: Jeanne Birdsall (web | twitter)

Publisher: Yearling/Knopf

Number of Books: 4/5

Titles: THE PENDERWICKS: A SUMMER TALE OF FOUR SISTERS, TWO RABBITS, AND A VERY INTERESTING BOY | THE PENDERWICKS ON GARDAM STREET | THE PENDERWICKS AT POINT MOUETTE | THE PENDERWICKS IN SPRING | UNTITLED #5

Links: Five Star Friday | Five Favorite Things

Series love The Penderwicks Jeanne Birdsall

The Penderwicks is a series of middle grade novels that I LOOOOVE TO DEATH. They are one of the most loveable, hilarious, touching families I can recall reading about ever. There’s Mr. Penderwick, whose name is, frankly, a mystery to me; Rosalind, the oldest and most mommish of the sisters; Skye, brash, smart, tomboyish, and confident; Jane, a dreamer, writer, and all around flighty gem; and Batty, the baby and the most ADORBS thing on the PLANET. The Penderwicks’ mother passed away not long after Batty’s birth and their father is a college professor. Basically, we meet them when they’re on summer vacation and follow them through their everyday lives and on all of their shenanigans for a number of years after.

Some of these shenanigans include one Jeffrey Tifton, a young boy the girls meet in book 1. He’s amazing: friendly, kind, funny, and very sweet. I’m convinced he’s going to marry one of the Penderwick girls. Because that would be THE MOST PERFECT.

The most recently released book, THE PENDERWICKS IN SPRING, features a time jump, but the all the stories are told as if the girls are adults, recounting their youth together.

Series love The Penderwicks Jeanne BirdsallI can’t shout my love of this family from enough rooftops. Each of the girls has their own vibrant personality, but they mesh so well and love each other so much. They look after one another and rag on each other and make each other laugh. They create their own fun and turn everyday things into special memories. I LOVE THIS. None of the sisters ever talk about their phones or watching TV or Twitter. These books are literally about their LIVES and the things they do outside and the friends they meet at home or while they’re away.

The Penderwicks are just about the most wonderfully NORMAL family I’ve ever read. But that doesn’t equate to them being boring. NOT AT ALL. Jane is hilarious, Skye is outspoken, Rosalind is good-natured and a little bossy, and Batty is just THE cutest thing ever. These books see them reminiscing about their mom, visiting with their favorite aunt, their dad meeting a really awesome lady and getting remarried, meeting boys–there’s just this sense of innocence about them that I find really appealing. Because it’s not annoying. It’s just like healthy, I’m-still-growing-up-and-learning-stuff innocence. Even in other middle grade books I read, this isn’t always apparent. It’s so refreshing.

Also, one of my favorite things about this family is their sense of humor. Their dad has his moments, and also Jane. She’s the funniest to me. Jane plays soccer, and when she gets really into it, she has this HYSTERICAL like alter ego who’s this rough cockney dude who starts fights and gets fierce. She causes more than one scene during a game. She kills me.

Speaking of daddy Penderwick, I love him. He’s present, sometimes clueless about raising girls, but supportive and fun and fosters strong relationships between himself and between his girls. I love reading about dads, and he’s a great one.

Of course, I can’t talk about the Penderwicks without talking about MOPS. Meeting of Penderwick Sisters. GUYS. They have MEETINGS together about things they think are important and there are rules and they take it so seriously. There’s also MOOPS, which is Meeting of Older Penderwick Sisters. Poor Batty gets left out of those. I just find the whole thing too cute for words.

I love reading middle grade, and this series is one of my favorites. It takes Jeanne Birdsall about three years to write each one, which is a crazy long time, but I’ll wait however long she needs me to. There’s only one more book left, and while I haven’t read THE PENDERWICKS IN SPRING yet, I have high hopes for it, and I have my own hopes for the way the series will close. People compare the Penderwick sisters to the March sisters from Little Women, and I can see it. The closeness of this family is just so heartwarming.

If you’re looking for middle grade that’s a breath of fresh air, with great characters, great humor, heartfelt warm-fuzzies, and an old-timey feel, I can’t push The Penderwicks series on you enough.

Filed Under: Series Love Tagged With: , , , , ,

Book Review | I Was Here | Gayle Forman

Apr 17
Book Review | I Was Here | Gayle FormanI Was Here by Gayle Forman
Published by Viking Juvenile on January 27, 2015
Genres: Contemporary YA, Suicide
Pages: 288
Format: Hardcover
Source: Bought it
Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Goodreads
four-stars

Cody and Meg were inseparable.
Two peas in a pod.
Until . . . they weren’t anymore.

When her best friend Meg drinks a bottle of industrial-strength cleaner alone in a motel room, Cody is understandably shocked and devastated. She and Meg shared everything—so how was there no warning? But when Cody travels to Meg’s college town to pack up the belongings left behind, she discovers that there’s a lot that Meg never told her. About her old roommates, the sort of people Cody never would have met in her dead-end small town in Washington. About Ben McAllister, the boy with a guitar and a sneer, who broke Meg’s heart. And about an encrypted computer file that Cody can’t open—until she does, and suddenly everything Cody thought she knew about her best friend’s death gets thrown into question.

I Was Here is Gayle Forman at her finest, a taut, emotional, and ultimately redemptive story about redefining the meaning of family and finding a way to move forward even in the face of unspeakable loss.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Reviews, Young Adult Tagged With: , , ,

Book Review | The Orphan Queen | Jodi Meadows

Apr 15

I received this book for free from a fellow blogger (thanks for sharing!) in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Book Review | The Orphan Queen | Jodi MeadowsThe Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows
Series: The Orphan Queen #1
Published by Katherine Tegen Books on March 10, 2015
Genres: Fantasy YA, Magic, Young Adult
Pages: 400
Format: ARC
Source: a fellow blogger (thanks for sharing!)
Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Goodreads
five-stars

Wilhelmina has a hundred identities.

She is a princess. When the Indigo Kingdom conquered her homeland, Wilhelmina and other orphaned children of nobility were taken to Skyvale, the Indigo Kingdom’s capital. Ten years later, they are the Ospreys, experts at stealth and theft. With them, Wilhelmina means to take back her throne.

She is a spy. Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate Skyvale Palace to study their foes. They assume the identities of nobles from a wraith-fallen kingdom, but enemies fill the palace, and Melanie’s behavior grows suspicious. With Osprey missions becoming increasingly dangerous and their leader more unstable, Wil can’t trust anyone.

She is a threat. Wraith is the toxic by-product of magic, and for a century using magic has been forbidden. Still the wraith pours across the continent, reshaping the land and animals into fresh horrors. Soon it will reach the Indigo Kingdom. Wilhelmina’s magic might be the key to stopping the wraith, but if the vigilante Black Knife discovers Wil’s magic, she will vanish like all the others

Jodi Meadows introduces a vivid new fantasy full of intrigue, romance, dangerous magic, and one girl’s battle to reclaim her place in the world.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Reviews, Young Adult Tagged With: , , , ,
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