The Smart Chicks Are Coming to Ottawa!

Last year, a group of wonderful YA authors came together and went on tour, hitting a number of different cities in the United States and Canada. Unfortunately, the closes they came to me was over 5 hours away and I didn't have the means to get there. Lucky for me, this year they are doing another tour and this time around they are coming to me. So on October 3rd, I will have the pleasure of meeting Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, Melissa de la Cruz, Margaret Stohl and Charles de Lint (who has been made an honorary Smart Chick for this stop). I really can't wait!

But the point of this post is to make a call out to all the other bloggers from Ottawa and the area around the city and find out who is planning on being there. I also wanted to ask if anyone would be interested in meeting up before hand or if you wanted to get together at the event itself. Let me know in the comments or send me an e-mail at emiliebookworld@gmail.com.

I hope to see some of you there!

Waiting On Wednesday (26)

For those of you that don't know, 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 reading.

THIS WEEK'S PICK:

THE GOLDEN LILY BY RICHELLE MEAD

The second thrilling installment in Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy spinoff series.

Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students—children of the wealthy and powerful—carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Richelle Mead’s breathtaking Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive. In this second book, the drama is hotter, the romances are steamier, and the stakes are even higher.

So obviously this one is not coming out for quite some time since Bloodlines just released about a month ago but I still cannot wait for it to be out and available. Bloodlines was as fantastic as I had hoped it would be and the end definitely left me hanging and wanting more. June and The Golden Lily can't come soon enough.

The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead will be published June 19th, 2012 by RazorBill.

Original Sin by Lisa Desrochers

Title: Original Sin (Personal Demons #2)

Author: Lisa Desrochers

Publisher: Tor Teen

Release Date: July 5, 2011

Source: Purchased

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

Luc Cain was born and raised in Hell, but he isn't feeling as demonic as usual lately--thanks to Frannie Cavanaugh and the unique power she never realized she had. But you can't desert Hell without consequences, and suddenly Frannie and Luc find themselves targeted by the same demons who used to be Luc's allies.

Left with few options, Frannie and Luc accept the protection of Heaven and one of its most powerful angels, Gabe. Unfortunately, Luc isn't the only one affected by Frannie, and it isn't long before Gave realizes that being around her is too...tempting. Rather than risk losing his wings, he leaves Frannie and Luc under the protection of her recently acquired guardian angel.

Which would be fine, but Gabe is barely out the door before an assortment of demons appears--and they're not leaving without dragging Luc back to Hell with them. Hell won't give up and Heaven won't give in. Frannie's guardian exercises all the power he has to keep them away, but the demons are willing to hurt anyone close to Frannie in order to get what they want. It will take everything she has and then some to stay out of Hell's grasp.

And not everyone will get out of it alive.

After I finished reading Personal Demons last year, I couldn't wait to get my hands on Original Sin so I could find out what happens next. I had highly enjoyed the first book and Original Sin definitely did not disappoint.

Frannie's soul may now be tagged for Heaven but that still doesn't seem to be stopping all these demons from showing up in town and coming after Luc. Because Hell wants Luc back...except, thanks to Frannie's Sway, he's now human. And what's even better, Gabe has tagged his soul for Heaven. Just when things were starting to go well with Luc and Frannie strange things start happening in town, some demonic in nature, some not so much. Plus, there's Frannie's new guardian angel doesn't seem big on the idea of Luc and Frannie being together. And just when they all need Gabe's help the most, Gabe goes away, finding it more and more difficult to resist Frannie and her Sway. Not that he's trying so hard to resist her. Frannie will now have to fend for herself, especially when her guardian angel keeps getting distracted. But Hell is bringing all its got to the table and Frannie and Luc may be in more trouble than they thought.

Original Sin was nothing if not incredibly hot and sexy. Lisa Desrochers definitely knows how to write those steamy parts. But the book is so much more than just that. The story is incredibly well-written and those mini-cliffhangers at the end of the chapters only served to make me keep reading even when I knew I had to stop. Though what I love best about Original Sin were the alternating points of view. Lisa Desrochers definitely figured out how to make it so no matter who was speaking, I was never even close to bored. Basically, she did no wrong in this book, if you ask me.

Frannie was just as great as I remembered. She definitely doesn't let people walk all over her and that is one of the things I like best about her. But most importantly she wasn't the "damsel-in-distress" type and could actually defend herself when it came down to it. Even though Frannie seems to have chosen between Luc and Gabe, I still can't make my mind up. I loved seeing Luc as a human an reading his thoughts on the subject. Most of the time he just made me crack up or actually start laughing out loud. Once again, I wish I could have seen more of Gabe. But what I did have of him, I enjoyed a lot. What I particularly like is that he's always there for Frannie no matter what. That just made me like him that much more. An Matt was very interesting to say the least. I liked him at first but as the story moved forward I started to have my doubts about him. And with that ending, who knows what's going to happen next.

Original Sin was a most excellent sequel and if anything, it was even better than Personal Demons. Lisa Desrochers is an incredible writer and I can't wait to find out what happens in the next book in this series.

In My Mailbox (15)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi of The Story Siren and inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie. It's a post where we talk about the books we received during the week either for review, from the bookstore or anywhere else.

This week was another great week for books. I visited my bookstore quite a few times during the course of the week and got a book for review. I've even read a few of them already and I look forward to diving in to the rest. So here's what I got this week.

Bought:

- Firelight by Sophie Jordan (HarperTeen September 7, 2010) - I’ve been meaning to read this book for the longest time. With the second book coming out last week, I’ve been hearing a lot about it again and decided to finally pick it up. Plus, it’s about dragons, so how bad can it really be?

- As You Wish by Jackson Pearce (HarperTeen September 1, 2009) - I have yet to read anything by Jackson Pearce but I now officially own all three of her books. So now would be a good time to pick one of them up and read it. But, like I’ve said before, if her writing is anything like her videos I’m pretty sure I’ll enjoy reading them.

- Fateful by Claudia Gray (HarperTeen September 13, 2011) - This book is about werewolves on the Titanic. That alone was enough to get me to pick up the book. Plus a lot of other people have said that this book is really good. I didn’t really need anymore reason than that to pick up the book.

- Gimme a Call by Sarah Mlynowski (Delacorte Press April 27, 2010) - This book is part of my attempts to read more contemporary books. I’ve heard nothing but good things about this book and I look forward to jumping right into it.

- The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff (RazorBill September 21, 2010) - I have been meaning to read this book since it first came out last year. Now I finally have a copy for myself and I absolutely cannot wait to start reading it. Hopefully, I’ll be able to dive into it soon.

- Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt September 14, 2009) - I love witch stories and even then I don’t read that many so I’m really happy to have picked this book up. I’ve heard really good things, especially since the sequel just came out recently. I can’t wait to be able to start reading it.

- Elixir by Hilary Duff (Simon & Schuster October 12, 2010) - I am always wary of books written by celebrities so I have been quite hesitant to pick this book up. I actually bought because I received its sequel for review. I’ve now read it and it was a lot better than I originally expected. You can expect to see a review for it in the very near future.

- Vanish by Sophie Jordan (HarperTeen September 6, 2011) - Since I bought the first book this week, I figured I might as well buy the second that way I will be all ready to go once I finish reading the first one. Much like with the first, I’ve heard nothing but good things about it.

For Review:

- Devoted by Hilary Duff (Simon & Schuster October 11, 2011) - I was offered a copy of this book for review and decided to take the offer despite my wariness of books written by celebrities. I’ve now read the first book and when I finished it, I couldn’t wait to start this one. Hopefully it will be just as good as the first one.

So that's all I got in my mailbox this week. Let me know what you got and yours and I'll go check it out!

Bloodlines by Richelle Mead

Title: Bloodlines (Bloodlines #1)

Author: Richelle Mead

Publisher: Razorbill

Release Date: August 23, 2011

Source: Purchased

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

When Sydney is torn from her bed in the middle of the night, at first she thinks she's still being punished for her complicated alliance with dhampir Rose Hathaway. But what unfolds is far worse. Jill Dragomir--the sister of Moroi Queen Lissa Dragomir--is in mortal danger, and the Moroi must send her into hiding. To avoid a civil war, Sydney is called upon to act as Jill's guardian and protector, posing as her roommate in the unlikeliest of places: a human boarding school in Palm Springs, California. the last thing Sydney wants is to be accused of sympathizing with vampires. And now she has to live with one.

The Moroi court believe Jill and Sydney will be safe at Amberwood Prep, but threats, distractions, and forbidden romance lurk both outside--and within--the school grounds. Now that they're in hiding, the drama is only just beginning.

I don't think I would be lying if I said that Bloodlines was the book I anticipated the most this year. After I finished the final Vampire Academy book, I couldn't wait for August to come so I could go back to the world I love so much. So you can imagine just how excited I was to finally be able to read Bloodlines.

When her father wakes her up in the middle of the night and tells her to get dressed, Sydney is worried the Alchemists have finally decided how to punish her for having helped Rose Hathaway escape from the Moroi Court. But it turns out that's not what they have in mind at all. Before she even has time to realize what is happening, Sydney is being told to pack her bags and she is on her way to Palm Springs, California. There she will be going to Amberwood Prep boarding school, rooming with non other than Jill Dragomir, sister of the Moroi Queen, who has been sent into hiding after threats on her life were made. But that's only the beginning for Sydney as she soon finds out she will have a lot more to deal with than just trying to keep the Dragomir princess safe safe and hidden. For someone who isn't particularly fond of vampires, Sydney will now be getting close to a lot more of them than she could have ever imagined. 

When I first started reading Bloodlines, I couldn't wait to go back to the world and characters I had first been introduced to in the Vampire Academy serie. I was also quite apprehensive because I was afraid the book wouldn't live up to my expectations. As it turned out, I was definitely not disappointed by Bloodlines even though I've heard of quite a few people who had the opposite reaction. I'll just say that if you expect it to be just like Vampire Academy, odds are you'll end up disappointed. As far as I was concerned, the story was fantastic and I enjoyed every page of it. In this book, Richelle Mead wrote a great story that is more than enjoyable with all the wit, humor and sarcasm that I've come to expect from her.

Sydney is no Rose Hathaway but she is awesome and kick ass in her own way. She if definitely a rebel, going against most of what the Alchemists stand for, especially when it comes to vampires. I definitely loved getting to know her better and finding out who she really is. I also really loved finding out more about Jill. It always felt like there was a lot more to her and I was finally able to see what it was. The same thing goes for Eddie. He was always there but I never really knew much about him beyond what I saw happening. Now that I know more about him, I'm definitely liking him more and more. And I was more than happy to have Adrian back. He made me laugh pretty much every time he spoke or did anything. What was even more amusing, to me at least, was everything that seemed to be going on with him and Sydney. I definitely can't wait to see where that's going to go.

Bloodlines was definitely everything I expected, and maybe even more. Richelle Mead definitely had the right idea with this spinoff series and I can't wait to see where she's going to take it next. June 2012 and The Golden Lily, the second book in the series, cannot come fast enough.