Stacking the Shelves (15)

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga of Tynga's Reviews. It's a weekly post where book bloggers showcase the books they received throughout the week.

This week has been absolutely crazy. Things with school have definitely kicked up a notch, especially since this is my last year of university (at least for my undergrad). But I still got plenty of books thanks to Chapters having some awesome YA titles in the bargain section. So here's what I got this week!

Review:

- Breakaway by Michael Betcherman - I am part of the blog tour for this title and it sounds like a really interesting read from a boy's perspective. I'll be reading this one in the next 48 hours so be sure to come back on October 3 to see what I thought. 

Thank you to Razorbill Canada for sending me this book.

Borrowed:

- Scarlet by Marissa Meyer - So I'm pretty excited about this one. Big thanks to Katherine from The Lady Critic's Library for lending this one to all the Ottawa bloggers.

- Black City by Elizabeth Richards - I have been wanting to read this book ever since I first heard about it. It sounds really interesting. Thank you to Katie from Bookishly Yours for lending this to me.

Purchased:

- The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky - This is where I admit that I still haven't read this book and with the movie coming out this is a pressing matter. But now I have a copy and I can't wait to dive in to it.

- Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter - I love fairy tale retellings so I was excited about this title. Though I have been seeing some mixed reviews for this book so I'll have to wait and see if it's as good as I hope it is.

- Wildefire by Karsten Knight - I absolutely adored this book when I read it last year but never got around to buying a finished copy for myself. So when I saw it on the bargain table at Chapters I just had to buy it.

- Possess by Gretchen McNeil - This is one of those books that I was always interested in reading but never acted on despite all the great reviews. So when it was on the bargain table at Chapters I figured I should finally give it a shot.

- Moonglass by Jessi Kirby - This book falls in the same category as Possess so once again, when I found it in the bargain section at Chapters I just couldn't resist grabbing a copy.

So those are all the books I got this week. Hopefully this week will be a little less crazy with school so I have some time to read. But next weekend is Canadian Thanksgiving so that means a 4 day weekend for me and I plan to get plenty of reading done! And as usual, leave me a comment letting me know what you got and I'll try to come check it out.

Burn for Burn by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian

Title: Burn for Burn (Burn for Burn #1)

Author: Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian

Publisher: Simon & Schuster BFYR

Release Date: September 18, 2012

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository

BIG GIRLS DON'T CRY…

THEY GET EVEN.

Lillia has never had any problems dealing with boys who like her. Not until this summer, when one went too far. No way will she let the same thing happen to her little sister.

Kat is tired of the rumours, the insults, the cruel jokes. It all goes back to one person--her ex-best friend--and she's ready to make her pay.

Four years ago, Mary left Jar Island because of a boy. But she's not the same girl anymore. And eh's ready to prove it to him.

Three very different girls who want the same thing: sweet, sweet revenge. And they won't stop until they each had a taste.

Ever since I heard about Burn for Burn I have been wanting to read it. Then I got a cop for review in the spring and it took all the restraint I had to hold off on reading it. Now that I've finally read it, I can say that it was even better than I thought it would be. 

Kat, Lillia and Mary all have someone they want to get revenge on. Kat always wanted to do to her former best friend what was done to her. Lillia doesn't want what happened to her to happen to her little sister. Four years ago Mary had to leave town because of what happened to her. The three girls bond over their desire for revenger. Together, they vow to right the wrongs that were done to them. And nothing will stop Kat, Lillia and Mary until they've all had their revenge. But revenge may not be all it's cracked up to be.

While I had read books by Jenny Han in the past, this was my first time reading something by Siobhan Vivian. Let me just say that I loved it. In Burn for Burn, Siobhan Vivian and Jenny Han wrote a fantastic read. Even before I started reading I knew that Burn for Burn that I would really enjoy the story. And then I started reading and it definitely didn't disappoint. Right from the beginning I was drawn into the story, wanting to know what had happened to each of the girls to make them want revenge so bad. The fact that the story was told from three different points of view definitely was one of the things that made the book so engrossing. I just kept wanting to know what would happen next. And with every page I turned it just kept getting more interesting and that ending definitely left me wanting more.

I loved getting to know Kat, Lillia and Mary. Each of the girls had flaws and wasn't perfect and I think that's what made me love them that much more. Kat was hellbent on revenge but every so often you were able to see that she was really suffering despite the front she put up. With Lillia, she wasn't quite as perfect as she pretended to be, and you could see that at times she really wasn't so sure about the whole revenge thing. And my heart just went out to Mary. She has suffered so much but still tried to put up a brave front and I have so much respect for her because of that. There is a bit of mystery surrounding the other characters. I still don't feel like I know that much about many of them. Maybe I'll find out more in the future.

Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian's Burn for Burn was an absolutely fantastic read. It was filled with a small amount of mystery and a strong desire for revenge--even I wanted revenge by the time I finished reading. If you like the TV show Revenge, then I strongly recommend you give Burn for Burn a try.

Stacking the Shelves (14)

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga of Tynga's Reviews. It's a weekly post where book bloggers showcase the books they received throughout the week.

This week I got quite a few surprises in the mail and only bought two books. So all in all it was pretty good. I've finally started getting back into the swing of things now that I've figured out my schedule with school, I have found when I have time to read and do blog stuff. But between work and readings for school, this is going to be a pretty busy year!

Review:

- Broken by A.E. Rought - This book absolutely intrigues me. The synopsis makes it sound like something totally different so I'm definitely looking forward to reading it. But that probably won't happen until later this year since this book doesn't come out until January 2013.

- The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater - I have heard nothing but absolutely fantastic things about this new book by Maggie Stiefvater, so you can bet I will be reading this one quite soon.

- Reaper by K.D. McEntire - This is the sequel to Lightbringer which I've read part of so this is the motivation I need to finish the book so I can find out what happens in the next book.

- The Diviners by Libba Bray - I can't wait to read this one. I have heard that it is absolutely fantastic. I just hadn't realized quite how big it was...but that just means the story will last longer!

Thank you to Strange Chemistry, Scholastic Canada, PYR Books and HBG Canada for sending me these books!

Purchased:

- Embers & Echoes by Karsten Knight - I have been waiting for this book pretty much since I read the last page of Wildefire. Now that I have a copy you can bet I will be reading it soon.

- Flesh & Bone by Jonathan Maberry - I absolutely love the Rot & Ruin books. They are definitely not getting quite as much attention as they deserve. At any rate, I'm happy to now have the third book in this series.

That's it for me this week. If you missed it on Monday, check out my recap of the Smart Chicks event in Montreal. And as usual, leave me a comment and I'll try to stop by and see what you got!

Cover Reveal: Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Today I have the honor of taking part in the cover reveal for Opal, the third book in Jennifer L. Armentrout's Lux series. As some of you may know, I am a huge fan of this series and simply cannot get enough of the books. And let me just say the cover for this third installment is simply amazing. So without further ado...

No one is like Daemon Black.

When he set out to prove his feelings for me, he wasn't fooling around. Doubting him isn't something I'll do again, and now that we've made it through the rough patches, well…There's a lot of spontaneous combustion going on.

But even he can't protect his family from the danger of trying to free those they love.

After everything, I'm no longer the same Katy. I'm different…And I'm not sure what that will mean in the end. When each step we take in discovering the truth puts us in the path of the secret organization responsible for torturing and testing hybrids, the more I realize there is no end to what I'm capable of. The death of someone close still lingers, help comes from the most unlikely source, and friends will become de deadliest of enemies, but we won't turn back. Even if the outcome will shatter our worlds forever.

Together we're stronger…and they know it.

Isn't the cover absolutely gorgeous? I feel like the covers for this series just keep getting better and better. Be sure to add the book to your Goodreads and you can pre-order it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

And to celebrate the reveal of the cover, Jennifer L. Armentrout has some special stuff going on on her blog.

Follow this link to an ~~~ EPIC CONTEST ~~~ Announcement. You willwant to bookmark this page!

About author Jennifer L. Armentrout:

USA TODAY Bestselling author, Jennifer L. Armentrout, lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing, she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell, Loki. Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She also writes adult romance under the name J. Lynn.

Find Jennifer on: Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Website | Blog

Waiting on Wednesday (62)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where book bloggers devote a post to an upcoming book release they are particularly looking forward to.

THIS WEEK'S PICK:

LET THE SKY FALL BY SHANNON MESSENGER

Vane Weston should have died in the category five tornado that killed his parents. Instead, he woke up in a pile of rubble with no memories of his past--except one: a beautiful, dark-haired girl standing in the winds. She's swept through his dreams ever since, and he clings to the hope that she's real.

Audra is real, but she isn't human. She's a sylph, an air elemental who can walk on the wind, translate its alluring songs, even twist it into a weapon. She's also a guardian--Vane's guardian--and has sworn an oath to protect him at all costs.

When a hasty mistake reveals their location to the enemy who murdered both of their families, Audra has just days to help Vane unlock his memories. And as the storm winds gather, they start to realize the greatest danger might not be the warriors coming to destroy them, but the forbidden romance growing between them.

Set amongst the desert airstreams of Coachella Valley in California, LET THE SKY FALL is about two teenagers broken by their pasts, divided by their futures, and bound by love.

This book just sounds fantastic. There aren't all that many out there so I love any story that deals with elemental control. But that's not the only thing that makes this book so appealing. Just reading the synopsis I know that this is a story that will captivate me from start to finish and one that will even most likely break my heart in some way. All that to say, I can't wait to read this book. Oh, and the cover isn't so bad either (read: absolutely fantastic).

Let the Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger will be published March 5th, 2013 by Simon Pulse.

Smart Chicks Kick It Event Recap

On Saturday September 15, I had the opportunity to attend a Smart Chicks Kick It Event for the second year in a row. Last year the event was in my home town so it made things easy. This year, the Smart Chicks came to Montreal and thanks to the awesome Ciara from Lost At Midnight, I was able to travel two hours in order to attend the event. Before I say anything else, let me just say that if you ever have the opportunity to go to an event with any of these authors you should definitely do so because you won't regret it. 

My day started off with a trek across town with my bag of books in order to meet Ciara so we could drive up to Montreal. After the 2 hour drive, we arrived at the Chapters in Pointe-Claire (Montreal suburb) where local bloggers had been nice enough to save us some space around where they were sitting so we could all wait for the event to start. While waiting, I got to meet some wonderful bloggers (see picture below) and participate in some trivia questions where I won a $5 giftcard for knowing that Kelley Armstrong's Darkness Rising books take place on Vancouver Island. 

[Top Row L-R: Stephanie (Tynga's Reviews), Ciara (Lost at Midnight), Cindy (Tynga's Reviews), Cindy (Cindy's Love of Books). Bottom Row L-R: Me, Lucy (Moonlight Gleam's Bookshelf), AH (Badass Book Reviews)]

After just under 2 hours of waiting and getting to know everyone, the authors arrived and took part in a Q&A and asked the audience to guess facts about the different authors present. The authors at the Montreal stop were (from L-R in picture below): Rosemary Clement-Moore, Melissa de la Cruz, Melissa Marr, Kelley Armstrong, Margaret Stohl, Rachel Caine & Kami Garcia. (I apologize if you can't see some of their faces, I was at the front but I was sitting on the floor).

After the Q&A I was able to get all the books I brought with me signed and even get back in line a few times for different authors in order to help other bloggers get their own books signed. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a picture with Melissa de la Cruz (I have one from last year!) but you can see me with all the other authors below!

While waiting for all the bloggers to get their books signed, I was able to continue getting to know everyone. Once we all had our books signed, we were all lucky enough to be able to take a group picture with the authors. Though this had to be done in two takes since Kelley Armstrong, who had the longest line, was still busy signing books for readers. In the first picture, the bloggers are with Melissa Marr, Rosemary Clement-Moore, Melissa de la Cruz, Rachel Caine & Margaret Stohl. In the second picture we were joined by Kelley Armstrong and Kami Garcia but we lost Melissa de la Cruz.

Overall, this was a fantastic book-filled day. It was great getting to know some bloggers who I hadn't met before (I have now checked out all of their blogs!) and meeting authors, some for the first time, some for the second time. My experience with the Smart Chicks event is that they are always absolutely fantastic. If you are in the Philadelphia area, I strongly recommend you attend their final stop on Tuesday evening!

Stacking the Shelves (13)

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga of Tynga's Reviews. It's a weekly post where book bloggers showcase the books they received throughout the week.

So I have been a bit of a fail as a blogger the last couple of weeks, but life has been somewhat crazy. I kept on going from one place to another and then school and work started up again last week so things have been a little hectic. But I am determined to get back into the swing of things and what better way than to do a Stacking the Shelves post since I haven't done one in about a month or so. So without further ado, here's what I got in the past month or so.

Review:

- Dead is a Killer Tune by Marlene Perez - This is actually the 7th book in a series and I previously got the 6th one so since they are all pretty short, I may eventually pick it up.

- The Broken Lands by Kate Milford - I have honestly never heard of this book before but I read the synopsis and it sounds interesting so I may pick it up eventually. It sounds like it is more MG so it could be an interesting change of pace.

- What Came from the Stars by Gary D. Schmidt - Like with the previous one, I haven't heard of this book before and it sounds like MG so it could be interesting to read.

- Sons of the 613 by Michael Rubens - Once again, never heard of this book before but I read the synopsis and it definitely sounds interesting. So who knows, I may just end up picking it up soon.

Thank you to Thomas Allen & Sons for sending me these 4 books for review.

Purchased:

- Glitch by Heather Anastasiu - I've been hearing about this one for the longest time and have been looking forward to reading it for about just as long. So you can be sure that I will be picking this one up and reviewing it soon.

- Spark by Brigid Kemmerer - Oh my god. I had been more or less dying for this book ever since I finished Storm and it was pretty much amazing. I have already read it so you can probably expect a review in the coming week or so.

- The Splendor Falls by Rosemary Clement-Moore - I bought this one today at the Smart Chicks signing in order to get it signed by the author. But I've read the synopsis and it definitely sounds like something I am looking forward to reading.

- Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore - Again, I bought this one at the Smart Chicks event to get it signed by the author. This one I have heard plenty of great things about and it sounds like a spooky read so maybe I'll hold up on reading it until around Halloween.

- Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr - Another book I bought at the Smart Chicks event. I've heard this book is fantastic so I am so looking forward to reading it.

- Origin by Jessica Khoury - I have heard plenty of amazing things about this book so I am definitely looking forward to reading it. Hopefully I have time to pick it up in the near future.

Swag:

Like I mentioned I was at the Smart Chicks event today in Montreal and I was able to get some swag from some of the authors there. Be sure to check back on the blog on Monday for a full recap of the event with some pictures!

That's it for me. Considering this is a month's worth of books, I haven't gotten too many new ones, which is a good thing considering the current state of my shelves and TBR pile. As usual, leave me a comment telling me what you got and I'll try to come and stop by your blog as well!

Entice by Jessica Shirvington

Title: Entice (Violent Eden Chapters #2)

Author: Jessica Shirvington

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release Date: September 4, 2012

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository

CONSEQUENCE HAUNTS EVERY CHOICE.

Violet Eden is Grigori--part angel, part human. Her destiny is to protect humans from the vengeance of exiled angels.

Knowing who to trust is key but, when Grigori reinforcements arrive, it becomes clear everyone is hiding something. Even Lincoln. The only thing Violet does know: Phoenix's hold over her is more dangerous than ever.

The race to find the one thing that could title the balance of power brings them all to the sacred mountains of Jordan, where Violet's power will be pushed to the extreme And the ultimate betrayal exposed.

I had enjoyed Jessica Shirvington's Embrace when I read it earlier this year, so I was definitely looking forward to reading Entice, the second book in the series. And I was completely blown away. Before I knew it, I couldn't bear to put the book down, even for just one moment.

Now that she has Embraced, Violet Eden is a full-blown Grigori. And now her life is just that much more complicated. Her friendship with Lincoln is on shaky grounds, and wanting more than just friendship is only going to lead to more trouble and heartbreak. Against her will, Violet still has a link to Phoenix, and he's not about to let her go any time soon. But with the arrival of the Grigori from the Academy, Violet needs to put all her efforts into her training and on finding the Scriptures. Except there may be more going on and everyone and everything may not be as it seems.

While I had found Embrace to be an enjoyable read, it hadn't really been anything that blew me away. But despite that, I had still been looking forward to reading Entice because the story had piqued my curiosity. And boy am I glad that it did. Entice ended up being a fantastic read. Jessica Shirvington didn't waste any time getting to the action. Right from the start there was something happening, and it kept up through the whole book. What makes this so interesting to me is all the angel mythology, especially since i can see where a lot of it comes from, and can even understand it. But there are definitely other aspects of the story that made it very difficult to put the book down once I started reading. And the ending just left me begging for more.

Right from the beginning of this series, I really liked Violet Eden, and that didn't change when I read Entice. Violet is definitely a strong characters, both physically and mentally. This is a girl who can more than hold her own in a battle and doesn't scare easy. But at the same time, she still has a vulnerable side and that makes her more real to me. That vulnerable side often comes out when Lincoln is involved. Because Lincoln is Lincoln and he is hard to put into words without revealing absolutely everything. And if it wasn't obvious already, I may have developed a small crush on Lincoln. The new characters were also great and I absolutely loved Spence. He just always managed to put a smile on my face.

Entice by Jessica Shirvington was a fantastic read. With just the right mix of paranormal, action, romance and heartbreak, it made for the kind of book I just can't seem to put down once I start reading.