tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64544346472973059582024-02-19T12:13:57.128-05:00 Read My Breath AwayWelcome! Read My Breath Away is a Young Adult book blog with the occasional middle grade or adult book review. Take a look around, I hope you find something you enjoy :)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.comBlogger420125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-59092506314124856502016-08-01T01:00:00.000-04:002016-08-01T01:00:08.045-04:00Ch-ch-ch-ch-changesSo. It has obviously been quite a while since anything has gone up here. I have a good reason for that, but unfortunately it comes with the news that not a lot will be changing on that front, at least for a while.<br />
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I've been working for months now on a big life change that has been and will continue to affect other things in my life, including my ability to blog.<br />
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*drumroll*..........<br />
I'm moving to Spain.<br />
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Not permanently, but for the next year I'll be living in Madrid. This is a huge change for me (having lived in the same city in Canada all my life) and it'll mean I'll be incredibly busy soaking up as much of Spain and everything that goes along with that as I can, plus with my new position that allows me to make this move.<br />
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This means that for the time being, the blog will remain inactive. I'll still be reading <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7563825-jessica">(my Goodreads)</a> and tweeting <a href="https://twitter.com/MsJessR">(my Twitter)</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/thejessrae/">Instagramming</a> the heck out of that beautiful country, but not blogging. Hopefully when I get back I can jump right back in!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-80560332677258426472016-03-17T01:00:00.000-04:002016-03-17T01:00:11.060-04:00Venomous Kiss Re-LaunchSurprise Update!<br />
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I'm sure most of you know that I'm a big fan of Paula Stokes aka Fiona Paul and especially of her <a href="http://www.thestudiopll.com/eternalroseseries">Secrets of the Eternal Rose</a> series. It all started with VENOM, which is now relaunching, along with the rest of the series, through Paper Lantern Lit.<br />
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VENOM (which I <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2012/11/review-venom-by-fiona-paul.html">reviewed here</a>) is now rebranded as <a href="http://www.thestudiopll.com/venomouskiss">VENOMOUS KISS</a>, BELLADONNA (<a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/07/review-belladonna-by-fiona-paul.html">reviewed here</a>) as <a href="http://www.thestudiopll.com/poisonoustouch">POISONOUS TOUCH</a>, and STARLING, a fabulous finale to the series, so no worries about being let down at the end (<a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2014/03/review-starling-by-fiona-paul.html">reviewed here</a>), as <a href="http://www.thestudiopll.com/dangerousheart">DANGEROUS HEART</a>. Plus they're re-releasing the free short story that goes along with the series, <a href="http://www.thestudiopll.com/disastrousdesire">DISASTROUS DESIRE</a>. Now you can get them all with their sexy new covers in convenient ebook format so you can sit down and go to town on the whole romantic, exciting historical series!<br />
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VENOMOUS KISS is out today, with the other two books in the series following in the next two months.<br />
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Want to get in on all the Fiona Paul goodness with some extra Paula Stokes worked in? Check out the giveaway she's running on her <a href="https://twitter.com/pstokesbooks">Twitter page</a>! And if you're not in the US, or you don't win, trust me when I say that these books are totally worth the money, especially when these new ebook releases are so cheap! Good luck and ENJOY! (I sure did!)<br />
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About the Author:<br />
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Fiona Paul lives in St. Louis, MO where she managed to persuade fancy universities to award her degrees in psychology and nursing. Between her studies, she traveled around five continents and spent time living in Thailand and South Korea (which is probably why she finds the idea of wearing shoes in the house a little weird).<br />
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In addition to writing, Fiona is somewhat obsessive about coffee, music, and adventure sports. Her future goals include swimming with great white sharks and writing a whole slew of novels, not necessarily in that order. For updates about Secrets of the Eternal Rose series, follow Fiona on Twitter @fionawritesYA.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-1200358483683832972015-12-14T01:00:00.000-05:002015-12-14T01:00:11.228-05:00Guest Post: Dahlia Adler on What She Learned For "Just Visiting"<br />
I'm a big fan of Dahlia Adler, both as a person and as an author. When she offered me a chance to run a post about her newest release, <i>Just Visiting</i>, I was very excited to jump on it. So Dahlia is "on the blog" today sharing some of the most interesting things she learned while writing <i>Just Visiting</i>.<br />
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In case you haven't yet heard of <i>Just Visiting</i>, here's a bit about the book.<br />
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Just Visiting by Dahlia Adler.<br />
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Published November 17, 2015.<br />
Published by Spencer Hill Contemporary.<br />
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Synopsis:<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">Reagan Forrester wants out—out of her trailer park, out of reach of her freeloading mother, and out of the shadow of the relationship that made her the pariah of Charytan, Kansas. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">Victoria Reyes wants in—in to a fashion design program, in to the arms of a cute guy who doesn't go to Charytan High, and in to a city where she won't stand out for being Mexican. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">One thing the polar-opposite best friends do agree on is that wherever they go, they’re staying together. But when they set off on a series of college visits at the start of their senior year, they quickly see that the future doesn’t look quite like they expected. After two years of near-solitude following the betrayal of the ex-boyfriend who broke her heart, Reagan falls hard and fast for a </span><em style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">Battlestar Galactica</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">-loving, brilliant smile-sporting pre-med prospective... only to learn she's set herself up for heartbreak all over again. Meanwhile, Victoria runs full-speed toward all the things she thinks she wants… only to realize everything she’s looking for might be in the very place they've sworn to leave. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">As both Reagan and Victoria struggle to learn who they are and what they want in the present, they discover just how much they don't know about each other's pasts. And when each learns what the other’s been hiding, they'll have to decide whether their friendship has a future.</span><br />
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And now, take it away, Dahlia!<br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">One of my favorite things about writing is how much you learn along the way. With all the worldbuilding that goes into fantasy and sci-fi, people often forget how much research goes into contemporary, but when you’re representing people in the real world, it’s even more imperative you get the details right. <i>Just Visiting</i> required more research than any other book I’ve ever written, for two reasons: 1) it’s the most grounded in the real world, because it’s all wrapped up in the college admissions process, and 2) every single thing in this book was out of my lane, and I mean <i>everything</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">As a result, I learned<i> </i>a<i> lot</i> while writing this book, thanks to the power of the Internet, and also amazing and brilliant friends willing to share their knowledge. Some of the stuff was cool, some was funny, some was eye-opening, and all of it makes me feel richer for knowing it!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">In case you’re as in the dark about some of these things as I was, here are five things I learned while writing <i>Just Visiting</i> that you can now know too:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">1. <b>ASL isn’t only spoken differently from English; it’s written differently as well.</b> I knew English and ASL were different languages, but I really didn’t know the extent. Obviously they’re spoken differently, with English being verbal and ASL being manual, but I didn’t realize they actually possess completely different grammatical structures, and ASL <i>really</i> isn’t a direct translation. For a period of revisions, I tried to gloss ASL for all its dialogue, but as I ended up relating in an author’s note, it really just didn’t work for the book, and I wouldn’t have done it nearly well enough. (I also learned the word “gloss,” which is the word for transliterating ASL.)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">2. <b>Countries can “graduate” out of the Peace Corps. Palau did in 2013.</b> In <i>Just Visiting</i>, Vic’s brother Javi is in the Peace Corps in Fiji, but he wasn’t always; when I wrote the book in 2012-13, Javi was in Palau. I read up on the country, learned how to say hello in Palauan (“Alii!”), and learned a whole bunch of details about the Peace Corps, but there’s one key thing I didn’t learn until I went to double-check my info during revisions: if a country is deemed not to require Peace Corps assistance any longer, they graduate out, and that happened with Palau in April 2013; the final volunteers left the country in August 2014.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">3. <b>The legal drinking age is 21 in only twelve countries, two of them being the US and Palau.</b> In a conversation between Vic and Javi, he makes a joke about being happy he’s 21 because it’s the legal drinking age in Palau. Unfortunately, this is the one error I know is in the finished version of <i>Just Visiting</i>—when I moved him from Palau to Fiji, I neglected to update this line, and Fiji is one of the over a hundred countries with a legal drinking age of 18-19.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">4. <b>You can get financial assistance for more of the college application process than just scholarships for tuition.</b> God bless knowledgeable literary agents, because if Lana Popovic hadn’t mentioned waivers for applications in her editorial letter for this book, I wouldn’t have gone down the rabbit hole of learning how many fee waivers exist for students in need. Reagan’s family’s income made her eligible for <a href="https://professionals.collegeboard.com/testing/waivers/guidelines/ap">AP Exam fee reductions</a> and an <a href="http://blog.prepscholar.com/act-fee-waiver-complete-guide">ACT fee waiver</a>, as well as up to four <a href="https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/get-in/applying-101/college-application-fee-waivers/participating-colleges">college application fee waivers</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">5. <b>Marvel and DC do not mix.</b> Hands-down, the hardest part of this book was dealing with Dev’s nerdery; apparently I made some unspeakable faux pas (plural) in mixing and matching his fandoms. I made so many errors in this, round after round, even with ten different people yelling at me each time. <i>Hopefully</i> by the finished version of the book, I’ve got this all straight so it’s established Dev is all Marvel, all the time, but God, who even knows. All I can do is hold my breath and pray.</span><br />
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Thank you, Dahlia! I also had no idea that ASL was written differently - I'm definitely interested in learning more about that now. And while I knew that you poor Americans were in the minority having to wait 'til 21 to drink legally, I didn't know that it was only 12 countries making up that minority - quite the exclusive club. Too bad it's a liquorless one. And I've totally been on the receiving end of a Marvel vs. DC lecture before, so you're not alone in that one, Dahlia. Thanks again for sharing! <br />
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About the Author:<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 23.4px;"><span id="goog_155123821"></span><span id="goog_155123822"></span>Dahlia Adler is an Associate Editor of Mathematics by day, a blogger for B&N Teens by night, and writes Contemporary YA and NA at every spare moment in between. She’s the author of the Daylight Falls duology, </span><em style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; color: #333333; line-height: 23.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Just Visiting</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 23.4px;">, and </span><em style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; color: #333333; line-height: 23.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Last Will and Testament</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 23.4px;">, as well as over five billion tweets as @MissDahlELama. She lives in New York City with her husband and their overstuffed bookshelves.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 23.4px;">(Photo credit: Maggie Hall)</span></span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; line-height: 23.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; line-height: 23.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Buy </span><em style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; line-height: 23.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Just Visiting</em><span style="color: #333333; font-family: inherit; line-height: 23.4px;">: </span><strong style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; line-height: 23.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/just-visiting-dahlia-adler/1121765211?ean=9781633920538" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #9268a5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">B & N</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Just-Visiting-Dahlia-Adler/dp/1633920534/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1429474964&sr=8-6&keywords=dahlia+adler" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #9268a5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Just-Visiting-Dahlia-Adler/9781633920538" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #9268a5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">The Book Depository</a> | <a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781633920538" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #9268a5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">IndieBound</a> </strong><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; line-height: 23.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">(You know you want to)</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-11960841795008322222015-11-11T01:00:00.000-05:002015-11-11T08:54:38.639-05:00Blog Tour Review: Love and Other Alien Experiences by Kerry Winfrey<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Welcome to the kick-off of the blog tour for Kerry Winfrey's <i>Love and Other Alien Experiences</i>! I'm very excited that Paper Lantern Lit asked me to take part in this tour, so let's get to it!<br />
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To start, here's a bit about the book:<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26207516-love-and-other-alien-experiences">Love and Other Alien Experiences</a> by Kerry Winfrey.<br />
<br />
Published: November 10, 2015.<br />
Published by: The Studio by Paper Lantern Lit.<br />
Source: Received an e-ARC from the publisher for the tour. Thank you, PLL!<br />
<br />
Goodreads Synopsis:<br />
<strong style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">In this heartwarming debut by HelloGiggles blogger Kerry Winfrey, a young agoraphobe begins a journey of first love that leads her to the true meaning of <em>home</em>—just by taking one small step outside of her house. </strong><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">My name is Mallory Sullivan.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">My therapist says I have an anxiety disorder.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">My brother says I’m an “optimistic recluse.”</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">Everybody else says I'm a freak.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">And they kind of have a point, because I haven't left the house in 67 days and only attend class via the webcam on my laptop. The person I talk to the most other than my mom and brother is the completely obnoxious BeamMeUp, and all we do is argue on New Mexico’s premiere alien message board.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">But after yesterday, I have something: a chance. If I can win the homecoming crown by convincing resident hot popular guy and Friday Night Lights spawn Brad Kirkpatrick to go as my date, then maybe #stayathome will never appear next to the name @Mallory_Sullivan ever again. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">First, I have to leave my room.</span><br />
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My Review:<br />
<br />
<i>Love and Other Alien Experiences</i> is a well crafted combination of a cute high school drama and an exploration of dealing with and overcoming mental illness. Mallory suffers from severe anxiety and agoraphobia, triggered by her dad leaving their family one day without explanation. She doesn't leave her house, attending school through Skype and socializing largely on an online forum about aliens. But when she is nominated for homecoming queen - as a joke, she's sure - she begins to realize that she might actually want to win. At first just for the prize money - $500, which would help her achieve her desire to find her father on a trip she believes he'll be on. But the more she does to try to present herself as a viable homecoming queen candidate, the more she enjoys it - and the more progress she makes working through her anxiety.<br />
<br />
I can't really speak to the handling of agoraphobia except to say that Winfrey wrote it in a way that made me understand and sympathize with Mallory, but I do think that some of the other anxiety manifestations described were conveyed well. I did find that it felt like Mallory moved forward in her progress quite quickly for the severity of the illness, but that was noted in a way by Mallory within the text, and I do understand that it couldn't be drawn out excessively for the purposes of the story. I appreciated the normalization of her seeing a therapist for her anxiety -- it was presented as a positive relationship and the fact that she saw one was never questioned or ridiculed. I think that's an important stance to take in YA, so I was glad to see it here.<br />
<br />
One thing Winfrey does very well in <i>LaOAE</i> is Mallory's relationships with her peers. Despite Mallory confining herself to her house, she still has a great relationship with her best friend, Jenni. Jenni is supportive and considerate of Mallory and her struggle, but she also tries gently to help Mallory challenge her comfort zone in a very respectful way. I also appreciated that she has her own interests outside of the main character -- in her beauty vlogging, for example -- as that makes her feel more real as a character. Mallory also has a close relationship with her brother, Lincoln, the dynamics of which have changed since she became housebound. Watching them sort through these changes and work to maintain the strong relationship they have was a wonderful, if easily resolved, exploration of sibling bonds, something I don't find there's enough of in YA.<br />
<br />
I found that the storyline surrounding the online alien forum and the mysterious user BeamMeUp was a nice addition to Mallory's story, and of course it plays into the plot more than it initially appears, which was fun. Despite figuring out the big reveal early on, I still enjoyed watching it unfold. I thought it was interesting the way Mallory relied on the forum and BeamMeUp as a comfort zone in dealing with her anxiety, and it only made the way the that plot line resolved even better.<br />
<br />
All in all, I really have mostly positive thoughts about <i>Love and Other Alien Experiences</i>. It was fun when it needed to be, and it was serious and fairly realistic, in my opinion at least, when handling Mallory's mental illness. It's an enjoyable, empowering, and ultimately triumphant tale of a young woman facing a difficult struggle and learning that her life doesn't have to end where her mental illness begins.<br />
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About the Author:<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncFywNoti72g3CcMSyi8LM1kG4pHh5sNRDdCAznxp9P-JCoPerbxIvykBcQzptjHLJjNYSeT4-xoL3MSpqstC2b-W9_FVMsNPfIR5tB2GZ2ri3UazwTgdHxchaoKjzghyphenhyphen2cmClP7AfNNC/s1600/kerry.jpe" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncFywNoti72g3CcMSyi8LM1kG4pHh5sNRDdCAznxp9P-JCoPerbxIvykBcQzptjHLJjNYSeT4-xoL3MSpqstC2b-W9_FVMsNPfIR5tB2GZ2ri3UazwTgdHxchaoKjzghyphenhyphen2cmClP7AfNNC/s1600/kerry.jpe" /></a><b></b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<b><b><br /></b></b></div>
<b>Kerry Winfrey </b>grew up in
Bellville, Ohio, where she spent most of her time reading
inappropriate books at the library. Not much has changed. Kerry
writes for HelloGiggles and blogs at welcometoladyville.com. She
lives in Columbus, Ohio with her husband and their dog, Merlin. You
can find her on Twitter @KerryAnn.<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>photo copyright Alex Winfrey </i>
</div>
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Buy the book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Other-Alien-Experiences-Kerry-Winfrey-ebook/dp/B0147DH7OC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1440123160&sr=8-1&keywords=love+and+other+alien+experiences">Amazon</a> // <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-and-other-alien-experiences-kerry-winfrey/1122555140?ean=9781508000266#productInfoTabs">Barnes & Noble</a> // <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/love-other-alien-experiences/id1032420980?mt=11">iBooks</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-5927442775199285302015-10-28T01:00:00.000-04:002015-10-28T10:18:43.122-04:00Blog Tour Review: Frosh: First Blush by Monica B. Wagner <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Today I'm excited to be on the Paper Lantern Lit blog tour for Monica B. Wagner's FROSH: FIRST BLUSH! I've been working on reading more NA lately because, with the college setting especially, it's closer to my own personal experience right now. So I was definitely looking forward to reading this one, and it didn't let me down!<br />
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Before I get ahead of myself, though, here's more about the book:<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25154047-frosh">Frosh: First Blush</a> by Monica B. Wagner<br />
<br />
Frosh #1.<br />
Published: October 20th, 2015.<br />
Published by: The Studio by Paper Lantern Lit.<br />
Source: Received an eARC of the novel for review for the tour. Thanks, PLL!<br />
<br />
Goodreads Synopsis:<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">During welcome week at Hillson University, the FROSH will hit the fan.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">Type-A aspiring journalist Ellie plans to take freshman year by storm. But hell-bent on breaking a huge on-campus scandal, she risks becoming one herself—and getting the mysterious, heart-melting QB in serious trouble. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">Grant, star quarterback and charismatic chick-magnet, is hiding a life-altering secret. The last thing he needs is an overeager (absolutely adorable) journalist asking questions. He’s got a reputation to protect.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">High-society legacy student Devon is ready to catch the football hottie of her dreams. If the tabloids feature her with the “it” boy on her arm, her tainted past will be buried—or so she thinks.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">Charlie, pre-med, is done being the sweet and funny geek that girls like Devon ignore. But if he tries to impress her with a new edgy, spontaneous attitude, will his heart end up in the emergency room?</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8px; line-height: 19.32px;">FROSH intertwines the stories of Ellie, Grant, Devon, and Charlie in Mónica B. Wagner’s sexy NA debut series, about falling in love and falling apart.</span><br />
<br />
My Review:<br />
<i>FROSH: First Blush</i>, the first book in a new series, follows four college students, three of whom are in their first year and just beginning to learn what college life is like. It has its dramatic moments and its sweet ones, and is overall an enjoyable foray into the world of NA.<br />
<br />
The four main characters are an interesting bunch, and mostly felt quite realistic. Each had their ups and downs - what college student doesn't? - and each had things about them that I admired, and other things that I wasn't so crazy about (except for Charlie... I think I just really liked nerdy, adorable Charlie). But take Devon, for example. I loved her confidence and her sex-positivity, but I didn't love the way she rejected the idea of female friends and put down other girls without actually knowing them. Of course, everyone's flaws make them human, but that one did kind of put me off a little more than with Ellie and Grant's characters and their flaws. <br />
<br />
One thing that I find can be quite tough with multi-POV books is making each voice distinct. Sometimes even authors juggling only two POVs can struggle with this, but Wagner managed to distinguish all four voices enough for me that I never had to flip back and check on whose chapter I was reading. I really have to commend her on that, because that's not an easy task, It helped, of course, with just reading and enjoying the story, but it also made it easier for me to get invested because it enhanced the characters' realness.<br />
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I also have to say that while the storyline wasn't constantly pull-me-in exciting, there was enough going on between the four of them that I was kept interested every time I picked the book up, and I became engaged in all that was going on in their lives. I don't want to give much away, because it all really unfolds quite nicely - and I like the way each of them is connected to the others as it does. Plus, Wagner ends on quite the cliffhanger that definitely has me curious to come back for the next installment - there's a lot at stake, and previous evidence shows that it might not play out so well for the characters at first. So while I didn't absolutely love it, there was certainly enough there to get me interested in the characters (and yeah, I'm probably invested in Charlie), and enough plot happening that I need to know what happens next!<br />
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<br />
Enter the giveaway for a chance at a copy of FROSH:<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="f747723719" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/f747723719/" id="rcwidget_ohhdpa0i" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
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<br />
About the Author:<br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Mónica was born in a Peruvian city by
a snow-capped volcano. Growing up, books were her constant companions
as she traveled with her family to places like India (where she
became a vegetarian), Thailand (where she *almost* met Leonardo di
Caprio), France (where she pretended to learn French), and countless
other places that inspired her to write. Now, Mónica lives in Chile
with her husband, three boys, eleven hens, and stray dog. Keep up
with Monica and follow her on Twitter @Monica_BW or visit her
website: http://monibw.blogspot.com. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-320451516071530002015-09-08T01:00:00.000-04:002015-09-08T13:15:20.723-04:00Blog Tour Review: Leading Lines by Chantel Guertin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24402509-leading-lines">Leading Lines</a> by Chantel Guertin.<br />
<br />
Pippa Greene #3.<br />
Published: October 13, 2015.<br />
Published by: ECW Press.<br />
Source: Received from the publisher for review for the blog tour. Thanks, ECW!<br />
<br />
Goodreads Synopsis:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.31999969482422px;"><b><i>
“You’ll fall in love with this genuine young heroine.”</i> -- Best Health</b><br /><br />After two drama-filled weeks in Manhattan, Pippa Greene is back. Despite a romantic reunion with boyfriend Dylan, she can’t seem to shake the emotional aftermath of New York. As she navigates parental drama at home and her charged dynamic with Ben Baxter at school, Pippa finds that Dylan is more wrapped up in his post-high-school life of bands, shows, and new friends than in their relationship. Will it survive?<br /><br />Written with the same humour and heart that made Chantel Guertin’s first two Pippa Greene novels instant favourites, <i>Leading Lines</i> offers a fresh and charming perspective on friendships, family, and first love.</span></blockquote>
<br />
My Review:<br />
<br />
Pippa Greene is back, indeed, and bringing some new struggles with her.<br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Leading Lines</i> is the third installment in Guertin's series about young photographer Pippa Greene and is full of the same kind of realistic moments and, as the synopsis claims, humour and heart that the first two books did so well.<br />
<br />
One thing that Guertin really shines at is the way she writes relationships -- both familial and romantic -- and both of those came through strongly and were very well crafted in this story. As of the beginning of <i>Leading Lines</i>, Pippa has discovered a lot about the previously unknown dynamics of her family. Following that, Pippa has to further deal with her grief over losing her father as she takes on some photography assignments rooted in the past, as well as having to confront her feelings towards the surprise addition to her family circle and those towards her mother for having kept such a big secret. As before, these family relationships are thoughtful and touching while still maintaining enough drama to keep them interesting enough to be worthy of a novel.<br />
<br />
The romantic ups and downs that Pippa goes through with her boyfriend Dylan upon their post-winter break reunion, after all the time spent rooting for them to get together in the past books, actually got a little hard for me to read at times because of how true to young relationships it felt. I saw so much of the personal conflicts and questions as well as the interpersonal issues that came up in my own young relationships come up between Pippa and Dylan as they try to figure out if they can grow together as they each grow on their own as individuals. I really appreciated the way Guertin not only made these issues feel so genuine but also that she gave them the weight they deserve in the story because these are things that really do hold significant weight in a young woman's life. Pippa and Dylan's relationship struggles were never depicted as juvenile in a negative way, even while Guertin maintained the true "teenager feel" of the characters, which was a great balance. One thing I also thought was interesting was that Guertin didn't take the romance where I thought she would, which was great in that it was a surprise, but was still a bit of a bummer for me because I was interested in where I thought it was going (and yes, I'm trying to remain spoiler-free here).<br />
<br />
Other than that, as seems to be consistently the case with these novels, my only real complaint is that there isn't a great deal of excitement that goes on over the course of the story. This isn't a flaw in the books, because it isn't that there's a lack of story here. I think it's more that this is a more "domestic," if you will, storyline than what I normally choose to read and so it doesn't live up to some of the larger scale novels I spend more time with. But family dynamics are something that readers have been loud about asking for, and this series is very strong when it comes to that. It absolutely has its audience, and though I don't fit into that audience 100%, I still definitely enjoy the novels.<br />
<br />
In all, <i>Leading Lines</i> is a great follow-up to the previous two Pippa Greene novels and takes her story deeper into her personal life and into her genuine love for her family, her friends, and her photography. As usual, I also of course appreciate the photographic reference in the title and the weaving into the narrative of the photography terms and techniques. These novels remain relatable and sweet and are a great read for anyone looking for dynamic and honest relationships in their YA fiction.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Follow the blog tour:</b><br />
<br />
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
5: Tour kickoff, Review, and Giveaway, <a href="http://www.bookingitwithhayleyg.blogspot.ca/">Booking it with Hayley G</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
6: Giveaway, <a href="http://www.chapter-by-chapter.com/">Chapter by Chapter</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
7: Review, <a href="http://booksandstuff-kstar.blogspot.ca/">Books Etc</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
8: Review, <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/">Read My Breath Away</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
9: Review, <a href="https://kmn04books.wordpress.com/">One More Page Reviews</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
10: Review, <a href="http://sukasareads.blogspot.ca/">Sukasa Reads</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
11: Guest Post, <a href="http://dearteenme.com/">Dear Teen Me</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
12: Review and Excerpt, <a href="https://brainsbooksandbrawn.wordpress.com/">Brains, Books, and Brawn</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
13: Review, <a href="http://musingsofawriter.com/">Musings of a Writer</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">September
14: Review, <a href="http://sweetmarie-83.blogspot.ca/">Ramblings of a Daydreamer</a></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">September
15: Review and Giveaway, </span><a href="http://thebookbratz.blogspot.ca/" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">The Book Bratz</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-12361514595798051692015-08-26T01:00:00.000-04:002015-08-26T11:44:28.635-04:00Author Interview: Taryn Scarlett, of the Sin & Honey SeriesToday I'm interviewing an author who takes us away a little from the kind of story that's usually featured on this blog. Through my blogging partnership with Paper Lantern Lit I learned about a series of novellas they're releasing that is their first adult work and I have some info on the series straight from the author.<br />
<br />
First, here's a bit about the newest novella in the series:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFB7I0cfTWRAkhrmcSniHkSAtBpi8kX4lGpFN6dQlNFwcweUUOENSFw_LOxClM-68g5cfWrSZ2I4RaCvsne5AYWiQUldIgjiwmL9_ADoR7hFxXlJJCBtN6BKTiYLCqB6bnyFI3xmkCgwnV/s1600/03+ForLoveoftheEnemy_CVR_final2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFB7I0cfTWRAkhrmcSniHkSAtBpi8kX4lGpFN6dQlNFwcweUUOENSFw_LOxClM-68g5cfWrSZ2I4RaCvsne5AYWiQUldIgjiwmL9_ADoR7hFxXlJJCBtN6BKTiYLCqB6bnyFI3xmkCgwnV/s320/03+ForLoveoftheEnemy_CVR_final2.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26071177-for-love-of-the-enemy">For the Love of the Enemy</a> by Taryn Scarlett<br />
<br />
Sin & Honey #3<br />
Published: September 1, 2015.<br />
Published by: The Studio by Paper Lantern Lit.<br />
<br />
Synopsis:<br />
<i>Since the first day he saw her, he had been waiting for an opportunity to seduce her. –Judith 12:17</i><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Judith </b>fought for justice.<br />
<br />
<b>Bagoas </b>reasoned for peace.<br />
<br />
<b>Holofernes </b>thirsted for blood.<br />
<br />
<br />
In this third Sin & Honey novella, Taryn Scarlett explores the provocative story of Judith, a woman tormented by the war in her country—and the war in her heart.<br />
<br />
<br />
A young widow living in devastated country, Judith is forced to watch as the ferocious Assyrian general Holofernes slaughters her people. Desperate to save her family, she decides to take matters into her own hands: she will seduce the general and get into his bed—where she can kill him, and end the war.<br />
<br />
<br />
But once Judith steals into enemy territory masquerading as an Israeli defector, she meets Bagoas, a soldier on a mission for peace. Aroused by his honor, Judith has a terrifying choice to make: let her people suffer and die, or sacrifice true love for the greater good.<br />
<br />
<br />
Now, welcome Taryn Scarlett to the blog!<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Jess: Hi Taryn, thanks for joining me! </span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">First off, <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 0.56cm; orphans: 1;">I must admit to being curious: what draws you to writing erotic
romance?</span></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #274e13;">Taryn: I've
always been drawn to the romantic aspects of books and movies, even
from a very young age. I remember watching Phantom of the Opera, the
musical, when I was only 4 years-old, and being utterly captivated by
the passion and drama of that dark romance. I grew up reading <i>Little
Women, Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice</i>—some
of my first 'ships' were couples from those books! (Jo and Professor
Bhaer 4ever.) Writing romance has always made sense to me, and
romance READERS are some of the most supportive and passionate in the
industry. It's a community I'm proud to be a part of!</span><br /><br />J: What prompted the use of the bible stories as inspiration for this
series?<br /><span style="color: #274e13;">T: I
read <i>The Red
Tent </i>when
I was very young and I've spoken before about how that book
influenced my life—I even went on to write my thesis in college on
Biblical women, using Lillith (Adam's oft-forgotten first wife) and
Leah (one of the characters in the first SIN AND HONEY novella!) as
my primary examples for the two ways we categorize women in
literature: as lovers, or mothers. I've always been fascinated by
Biblical depictions of women: they get these fascinating stories,
bring down nations, save entire civilizations, fall in love, fall in
lust, get betrayed and abused...but their stories are all told via a
male perspective. I wanted to bring some humanity to their stories,
as well as some passion. </span></span><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The first novella in the series, Seven Years of Longing</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b>J: Is there a certain bible story you're especially looking forward to
reimagining? Why that one in particular?<br /><span style="color: #274e13;">T: It's
so hard to pick just one! I will say that the first 3 novellas take
place in uber-ancient times and in mostly rural areas; I'm talking
they only had wool, oil lanterns, and lots of goats. The latter 3
novellas (coming Spring-Summer 2016!) take place later in history AND
are all royal-themed so there's been some evolution in what we have
to work with: fine silks, gold jewelry, beautiful marble columns and
candlelight, lavish feasts...I'm excited to have some freedom to
describe the luxuriousness and sensuality of the later time periods.
:) </span><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><b>J: What was the experience like working with the Paper Lantern Lit team
on these books?<br /><span style="color: #274e13;">T: Amazing.
I love the team at PLL so much. It's a great place to come into your
own as a writer while also allowing yourself to be challenged: from
nuanced Editorial letters from Lexa Hillyer and the sharp and tactful
notes from Lauren Oliver to my own editor Rhoda Belleza's compassion
when dealing with a story that obviously means so much to me–I
really couldn't have asked for a better team to shepherd this series
into the world. (Also shout-outs to Alexa Wejko and Kamilla Benko,
who have done so much behind-the-scenes for SIN AND HONEY!)</span><br /><br />J: Can you give us a sneak peek at what else is coming from you for this
series?<br /><span style="color: #274e13;">T: The
next novella, FOR LOVE OF THE ENEMY, is one I am extremely proud of.
It's the story of a widow, Judith, who goes to great lengths to save
her people from a violent war: seducing and killing the enemy
general. But, of course, she falls in love with a soldier behind
enemy lines and has to choose between the fate of her entire people
or true love. It's got <i>Game
of Thrones</i> levels
of drama, the romance is suspenseful and high-stakes, and I can't
wait for you all to read it!</span></b><span style="color: #274e13;"> </span></span><span style="color: #274e13;">
</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b>Wow, sounds really intriguing! Thanks so much for chatting with me, Taryn!</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5OINsRYYSlI6oPcfp0ZdUBOxXzoUkNZBVvrtyICHkl1IOTBJ171cux1gjprkHc9DTIbvAVh3E1FaQVAQckA3b3IF3yo6AXEu_llihkJFMb2UQmmp1CrFCtioNsDg8Zigi0SWKS44OdfH/s1600/02+TouchofBetrayal_CVR_final.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5OINsRYYSlI6oPcfp0ZdUBOxXzoUkNZBVvrtyICHkl1IOTBJ171cux1gjprkHc9DTIbvAVh3E1FaQVAQckA3b3IF3yo6AXEu_llihkJFMb2UQmmp1CrFCtioNsDg8Zigi0SWKS44OdfH/s320/02+TouchofBetrayal_CVR_final.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<i>The second novella in the series, The Touch of Betrayal</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">Make sure you go check out the Sin & Honey series if some erotic novellas sound like a nice little break from the usual YA fare!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">About Taryn</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: normal; orphans: auto;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: normal; orphans: auto;">Taryn Scarlett holds a B.A. in Theater and English with a concentration in Creative Writing. Her weaknesses are chocolate, floral sundresses, soapy TV dramas, and anything purple. SIN AND HONEY is her first series. You can visit Taryn at www.TarynScarlett.com.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-10321090955659991662015-07-25T01:00:00.000-04:002015-07-25T00:16:15.764-04:00Weekly Wrap: July 25th, 2015Inspired by <a href="http://glass-of-wine.blogspot.ca/">Kathy</a> and <a href="https://kellyvision.wordpress.com/">Kelly's</a> Weekly Obsessions and <a href="http://itisabooklife.blogspot.ca/">Kay's</a> Bookish Report, this is where I catch you up on things from around the blogosphere that caught my eye over the past week.<br />
<br />
I missed last week because I was halfway across the country with limited internet, so this is kind of a double dose of wrap up! Although I'll admit I'm behind on a few things, especially posts from other bloggers, so I'll try to catch up on those for next week!<br />
<h2>
Covers</h2>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24832518-the-geek-s-guide-to-unrequited-love">The Geek's Guide To Unrequited Love</a> by Sarvenaz Tash</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25332000-the-nameless-city">The Nameless City</a> by Faith Erin Hicks</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25309770-curio">Curio</a> by Evangeline Denmark</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDfqYQyLMtzK3fR3uUU5q63CLpynOYdNmbFebzbfBNikES3GExP5Wejq5keWEP2NbUqyG33V4SHRTtU8pyEyl63ge3-LZHAMEbdM32P33qV7vx7y1fPCNEBkpvz71Jf3DZBYYSUkLA_3j/s1600/salt+to+the+sea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDfqYQyLMtzK3fR3uUU5q63CLpynOYdNmbFebzbfBNikES3GExP5Wejq5keWEP2NbUqyG33V4SHRTtU8pyEyl63ge3-LZHAMEbdM32P33qV7vx7y1fPCNEBkpvz71Jf3DZBYYSUkLA_3j/s320/salt+to+the+sea.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19097063-salt-to-the-sea">Salt to the Sea</a> by Ruta Sepetys</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22056895-the-forbidden-orchid">The Forbidden Orchid</a> by Sharon Biggs Waller<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18629735-the-first-time-she-drowned">The First Time She Drowned</a> by Kerry Kletter<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25897757-the-may-queen-murders">The May Queen Murders</a> by Sarah Jude<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17798068-return-once-more">Return Once More</a> by Trisha Leigh</div>
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<h2>
Around the Blogosphere</h2>
Book Riot wrote <a href="http://bookriot.com/2015/07/10/combating-fat-phobia-ya-lit/">a great post</a> about fat phobia in YA and how publishing can work to combat it within the books the industry puts out as well as in how they market those books.<br />
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Book Bub put together <a href="http://media.bookbub.com/blog/2015/06/17/books-to-read-if-you-liked-gone-girl/">a list of books</a> to read if you enjoyed <i>Gone Girl</i>. There's a great YA featured on that list too, by none other than the wonderful Paula Stokes! <br />
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Aimee from The Social Potato made some gorgeous graphics for ACOTAR and ADSOM and I loooove the ADSOM one! <a href="http://thesocialpotato.maryfaye.net/2015/07/12/potato-prints-8-a-court-of-thorns-and-roses-a-darker-shade-of-magic/">Go check them out!</a><br />
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Variety shared the news that Disney is developing a movie based on Julie Murphy's upcoming release, <i>Dumplin</i>! <a href="http://variety.com/2015/film/news/disney-teen-girl-dumplin-movie-1201544373/">Learn more here.</a><br />
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Publishers Weekly put out their Spring 2016 Children's preview and there are quite a few books on there that I am super intrigued by. <a href="http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/67532-spring-2016-sneak-previews.html">Go forth and let your TBR multiply!</a><br />
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<h2>
New Book Deals</h2>
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Anchor & Sophia trilogy by Tommy Wallach</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25923293-by-your-side"> By Your Side</a> by Kasie West<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP_oJN46zw-u0YBaK83vJF-uU3L8S9NPgvwIzD8CWEff_cZR3pKotsdg_JYogmLJdDCmMBeXEL4fs2LDWA55ELNyG0-oC-rhuFQy7PFWyF5Gf8_Y_4ICkph7GwoVLOhgco_jZbxzIqlQQH/s1600/book+deal+bys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="126" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP_oJN46zw-u0YBaK83vJF-uU3L8S9NPgvwIzD8CWEff_cZR3pKotsdg_JYogmLJdDCmMBeXEL4fs2LDWA55ELNyG0-oC-rhuFQy7PFWyF5Gf8_Y_4ICkph7GwoVLOhgco_jZbxzIqlQQH/s640/book+deal+bys.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25835245-hearts-made-of-black"> Hearts Made of Black</a> by Stephanie Garber<br />
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I See London, I See France by Sarah Mlynowski<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25923216-roar"> Roar</a> by Cora Carmack<br />
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The Art of Starving by Sam Miller<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25909375-wing-jones">Wing Jones</a> by Katherine Webber<br />
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<h2>
Song of the Week</h2>
Song of the Week is where I try to pick a song I was listening to a lot over the past week, unless I was boring, in which case I just pick one I love! This week's is by an English band I really love and I've been listening to their first full-length album a lot lately.<br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="380" src="https://embed.spotify.com/?uri=spotify:track:1vqUNPwybaoogN2ixBDP4B" width="300"></iframe>
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What's new in your corner of the book world this week? Did I miss anything that you're really excited about? Let me know!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-2199803895620648782015-07-21T01:00:00.000-04:002015-07-21T01:00:03.843-04:00Top Ten Diverse Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizIR8Y8tWnk79yYd1L2vopNRIiQJBhTBKat_OfE5c5wFLL1_pSHyFNstV2ER6_iZcK9kXqaS1nPt6bLzHZG46i9DjqCGZ7N9jZtiGQBZSMdYQgykP1CKl_MbAjcRcM3VrUczNflBftScTH/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizIR8Y8tWnk79yYd1L2vopNRIiQJBhTBKat_OfE5c5wFLL1_pSHyFNstV2ER6_iZcK9kXqaS1nPt6bLzHZG46i9DjqCGZ7N9jZtiGQBZSMdYQgykP1CKl_MbAjcRcM3VrUczNflBftScTH/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" /></a></div>
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Top Ten Tuesday is created and run by <a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/p/top-ten-tuesday-other-features.html">The Broke and the Bookish</a>.<br />
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This topic lends itself well to a post I'm working on about diverse books, so it was great to look through my shelves and find some diverse books I'm happy to recommend.<br />
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I'm going to divide them up by kind of diversity instead of ranking them like I usually do with Top Ten Tuesday posts.<br />
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<h3>
People of Colour</h3>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22501055-under-a-painted-sky">Under a Painted Sky</a> by Stacey Lee<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18798983-the-wrath-and-the-dawn">The Wrath and the Dawn</a> by Renee Ahdieh<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18667862-like-no-other">Like No Other</a> by Una Lamarche<br />
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<h3>
LGBTQIA</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoRkozwaXzYyYYEE32axVCUTw5-Wtu0X2piRMQik_gX5JN6Pf1gLc3nTCWN_VmpkXWTOz2RcwFE4_Ac4gx5ZTmi2n9HKhoLVIlG0yaxezAh5Uikmii0zRYkarqze-wcym7VK6B-2tA9clZ/s1600/diversity+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoRkozwaXzYyYYEE32axVCUTw5-Wtu0X2piRMQik_gX5JN6Pf1gLc3nTCWN_VmpkXWTOz2RcwFE4_Ac4gx5ZTmi2n9HKhoLVIlG0yaxezAh5Uikmii0zRYkarqze-wcym7VK6B-2tA9clZ/s640/diversity+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17237214-two-boys-kissing">Two Boys Kissing</a> by David Levithan<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17261129-freakboy">Freakboy</a> by Kristin Elizabeth Clark<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21469086-alex-as-well">Alex As Well</a> by Alyssa Brugman<br />
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<h3>
Both (intersectional diversity FTW)</h3>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22719283-under-the-lights">Under the Lights</a> by Dahlia Adler<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20579291-lies-we-tell-ourselves">Lies We Tell Ourselves</a> by Robin Talley<br />
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Neurological diversity</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCH5x2N2xLAwuERq4fABHS9pNbL02El4EOlvOCN9Ue2YzHX_cei984QmHG-_hkQIjO6huYlqxDfIl_sggAYcX99I0aX0ufqAB44qvd4Ir1jIo1I4Hv7u_pg9o0vn8rlgmDlH-NnL3UvEU/s1600/ocd+love+story.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCH5x2N2xLAwuERq4fABHS9pNbL02El4EOlvOCN9Ue2YzHX_cei984QmHG-_hkQIjO6huYlqxDfIl_sggAYcX99I0aX0ufqAB44qvd4Ir1jIo1I4Hv7u_pg9o0vn8rlgmDlH-NnL3UvEU/s320/ocd+love+story.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13326677-ocd-love-story">OCD Love Story</a> by Corey Ann Haydu<br />
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Bonus! </h3>
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Three diverse books that I have seriously heard nothing but great things about and which are on my immediate TBR:<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19547856-simon-vs-the-homo-sapiens-agenda">Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda</a> by Becky Albertalli<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19542841-more-happy-than-not">More Happy Than Not</a> by Adam Silvera<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22896551-none-of-the-above">None of the Above</a> by I.W. Gregorio<br />
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What are your diverse recs?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-81540111267401795702015-07-15T01:00:00.001-04:002015-07-15T14:55:29.879-04:00Quiet YA Spotlight + Guest Post from Ann Redisch Stampler<a href="https://twitter.com/dailyjulianne">Julie</a>, creator of the wonderful #QuietYA hashtag and all around great person has put together a fantastic series with some authors in order to highlight their Quiet YA books. Today I'm excited to be hosting Ann Redisch Stampler, author of <i>Afterparty</i>, <i>Where It Began</i>, and the upcoming <i>How to Disappear</i>, talking about what Quiet YA means to her. Welcome, Ann.<br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span class="s2">W</span><span class="s2">hat</span><span class="s2"> #QuietYA Means To Me</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">I grew up in Santa Barbar</span><span class="s2">a, </span><span class="s2">with a</span><span class="s2"> beautiful white Spanish, red-tile-roofed</span><span class="s2"> library. It was the e</span><span class="s2">ra of no-talking-in-the-library. S</span><span class="s2">o while you’d hear footsteps</span><span class="s2">, a laugh or a dropped book</span><span class="s2"> echoing in the high ceilinged rooms, </span><span class="s2">in my memory, there was always</span><span class="s2"> a hush. </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">For me, this was the hush of</span><span class="s2"> connecting</span><span class="s2"> with a book, of searching through the stacks, taking books from the shelves and leafing through them</span><span class="s2">. Retreating</span><span class="s2"> to a cool, isolated corner with a</span><span class="s2">n armload</span><span class="s2"> of </span><span class="s2">volumes</span><span class="s2"> which</span><span class="s2"> might contain </span><span class="s3" style="font-style: italic;">my</span><span class="s2"> b</span><span class="s2">ook. </span><span class="s2">The perfect one.</span><span class="s2"> </span><span class="s2">The one I had to read right then. </span><span class="s2">The bo</span><span class="s2">ok to that drew me in </span><span class="s2">and spoke to me</span><span class="s2"> --</span><span class="s2">mind, heart and soul</span><span class="s2">.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">This, for me, is what #QuietYA is all about. The debate about </span><span class="s2">whether the definition of Quiet YA should be </span><span class="s2">a</span><span class="s2"> book without plot pyrotechnics, or a book that’s been undervalued, or a book that hasn’t received major awards is interesting. But to the YA reader, searching the stacks as I did, wanting to fall into the pages of her perfect book, I’m not sure that definitions matter.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">Quiet YA </span><span class="s2">is</span><span class="s2"> about being so connected to a book, so involved in the book’s world, so</span><span class="s2"> fascinated by the characters, </span><span class="s2">that all the other noise in the reader’s life fades to the almost-sacred silence of the Santa Barbara Public </span><span class="s2">Library. </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">Quiet YA </span><span class="s2">represents</span><span class="s2"> the reader’s opportunity to range through a citadel of books like the </span><span class="s2">childhood library</span><span class="s2"> where I </span><span class="s2">wanted to pitch</span><span class="s2"> a tent. That was my</span><span class="s2"> fantasy: spending the night alone in that library, black words on white pages illuminated by a flashlight, teaching my imagination to fly; expandin</span><span class="s2">g my understanding of the world and</span><span class="s2"> my ability to see things from different points of view; demanding that I feel empathy for people who reached up from the pages and grabbed my heart.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">As I entered my teen years, books allowed me to create that quiet place of passionate involvement wherever I went. I carried books around with me, and they carried me away and brought me back nourished and refreshed.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">It is a wonder to me now that books with teen characters are being published in such great numbers, and </span><span class="s2">are </span><span class="s2">so highly valued</span><span class="s2"> by their readers</span><span class="s2">. </span><span class="s2">The moments of intense involvement with characters and stories are heightened when the reader is, developmentally, in </span><span class="s2">a place so similar to the characters </span><span class="s2">who</span><span class="s2"> speak to her,</span><span class="s2"> that </span><span class="s2">she’s able </span><span class="s2">to experience the story with a unique emotional immediacy. For older readers, Quiet YA moments pull us back into a fuller appreciation of where we’ve been, and </span><span class="s2">shed light on </span><span class="s2">our process of becoming who we are.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">Quiet YA </span><span class="s2">isn’t</span><span class="s2"> a book, but the experience of interacting with a book.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><span style="padding-left: 36px;"></span><span class="s2">I wish you all a flashlight, a tent, and the YA novel that compels you to enter its world.</span></b></span></div>
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Thank you, Ann, for such a fantastic post. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fcsoE4_auifxhUXSQxvk-UYWUn50SF7UCdS2Dlz7sLX91szSZ6pUKLua4rjKZhxOfWcnRM9Eo4vmaWnzsFINHo7pXyH-qgx2LQT4QLygP7IRl2GSCQ5KfV2rYgxZN87zEbh58uyVMeFN/s1600/afterparty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fcsoE4_auifxhUXSQxvk-UYWUn50SF7UCdS2Dlz7sLX91szSZ6pUKLua4rjKZhxOfWcnRM9Eo4vmaWnzsFINHo7pXyH-qgx2LQT4QLygP7IRl2GSCQ5KfV2rYgxZN87zEbh58uyVMeFN/s320/afterparty.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
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Just so you know, Ann's book <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15751652-afterparty">Afterparty</a> </i>is a Kindle bargain right now. You can grab that here: <a href="http://amzn.to/1JfH6Zq" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">http://amzn.to/1JfH6Zq</a></div>
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Make sure you also enter the (US only) giveaway with books provided by some of the awesome participating authors, including <i>Afterparty</i>! </div>
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<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="33930d277" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33930d277/" id="rcwidget_8rnr2520" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-64714858530346501542015-07-10T01:00:00.000-04:002015-07-10T15:19:59.948-04:00Weekly Wrap: July 10, 2015Inspired by <a href="http://glass-of-wine.blogspot.ca/">Kathy</a> and <a href="https://kellyvision.wordpress.com/">Kelly's</a> Weekly Obsessions and <a href="http://itisabooklife.blogspot.ca/">Kay's</a> Bookish Report, this is where I catch you up on things from around the blogosphere that caught my eye over the past week.<br />
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Covers</h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjza-EaGES7Whr9Qh7lR7v7pVd6e2n-NBmA8gXcU3n7qldbbwWSqQNDof0vE-0SEnc6A-VnrATc_q-xRRur0RzSFoQxN95Q4Tu6_SzkS3GzMXcStOyWg6XIYx1gnL1R346mso39qNclWZoM/s1600/suffer+love.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjza-EaGES7Whr9Qh7lR7v7pVd6e2n-NBmA8gXcU3n7qldbbwWSqQNDof0vE-0SEnc6A-VnrATc_q-xRRur0RzSFoQxN95Q4Tu6_SzkS3GzMXcStOyWg6XIYx1gnL1R346mso39qNclWZoM/s320/suffer+love.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23197843-suffer-love">Suffer Love</a> by Ashley Herring Blake<br />
I absolutely adore the range of blues on this one. They're such gorgeous colours.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWOpV-yBcAmSFdEZUQux15mMcP1CJFj-iy8tWwv5-4JEQak4_w7wMKkVPuHl1ecL2TACznIQYahm2RaDjkfKpTA6z7ugJwFE0Vwy_kAIReeWshVIMthpGvImSqUGGxAmKto61qp5tDwrob/s1600/mr+f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWOpV-yBcAmSFdEZUQux15mMcP1CJFj-iy8tWwv5-4JEQak4_w7wMKkVPuHl1ecL2TACznIQYahm2RaDjkfKpTA6z7ugJwFE0Vwy_kAIReeWshVIMthpGvImSqUGGxAmKto61qp5tDwrob/s320/mr+f.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25816691-mr-fahrenheit">Mr. Fahrenheit</a> by T. Michael Martin<br />
As much as I'm not usually a huge fan of eye covers (the Shatter Me series covers excepted), this one is such a cool and theme appropriate use of the eye imagery that I can't help but think it's totally worth it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG3GyOA7gr5Gny7FGQ4vPhJYo-YIa4_1Y00ijEggp8BuDRQzhaxhFcw5dQvkp0iDdE7Nd6mEjfzykoliZJAfxNBLPpPpfPVx4NRqfeIKgCtbcqe6Fy8uvkMEZ6QTsgrv5IuJAtDN808JD3/s1600/glass+sword.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG3GyOA7gr5Gny7FGQ4vPhJYo-YIa4_1Y00ijEggp8BuDRQzhaxhFcw5dQvkp0iDdE7Nd6mEjfzykoliZJAfxNBLPpPpfPVx4NRqfeIKgCtbcqe6Fy8uvkMEZ6QTsgrv5IuJAtDN808JD3/s320/glass+sword.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23174274-glass-sword">The Glass Sword</a> by Victoria Aveyard<br />
I kind of have mixed feelings on this one because I don't love how close the imagery is to the first one... I wanted it to have an equally striking but <i>different</i> strong symbol on it, but alas. I do really like the silver blood dripping with the red from before, though, and that tagline is flawless.<br />
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Around the Blogosphere</h2>
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Tiff of Mostly YA Lit wrote a really good post about sexual violence in Sarah J. Maas' new book, A Court of Thorns and Roses. Definitely worth a read because she brings up some great points. <a href="http://www.mostlyyalit.com/2015/07/a-court-of-thorns-and-roses-sj-maas.html">Check it out here.</a><br />
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Christa of More Than Just Magic wrote a great post for Women Write About Comics on learning storytelling through childhood toys, specifically Barbies. As someone who also used to make up elaborate stories and plots for my Barbies, I found this a really interesting read. <a href="http://womenwriteaboutcomics.com/2015/06/29/barbie-or-how-i-learned-to-tell-stories/">Read it here.</a><br />
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The Mary Sue also had an excellent post this week, theirs about one of my favourite shows, <i>The 100</i>, and how it has a pretty incredible cast of diverse female characters (and diverse in so many different ways). <a href="http://www.themarysue.com/100-best-female-characters-on-tv/">Read that here.</a><br />
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New Book Deals</h2>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25844635-prince-in-disguise">Prince in Disguise</a> by Stephanie Kate Strohm</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCncJXWTzoMudCkco9-fntVpC2P3tBeSJ5UoQtQnguDSxScBXzqgP7sRVh5YB5DOwJn_vZDxYbqE9HXQ47W2202x3YTKCA7OX61FD5Wr-wLnU-lRl66IQNiI9T0hijTLq7PspqenR1CXZ/s1600/pid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCncJXWTzoMudCkco9-fntVpC2P3tBeSJ5UoQtQnguDSxScBXzqgP7sRVh5YB5DOwJn_vZDxYbqE9HXQ47W2202x3YTKCA7OX61FD5Wr-wLnU-lRl66IQNiI9T0hijTLq7PspqenR1CXZ/s640/pid.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25838976-transference">Transference</a> by Bethany Wiggins<br />
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(DRAGONS, GUYS. I love me some dragons)<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25843018-rising-three">Rising Three</a> by Jennifer Rush<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25844612-4-wizards">4 Wizards</a> by Noelle Stevenson and Todd Casey</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25868538-four-weeks-five-people">Four Weeks, Five People</a> by Jennifer Yu<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25883016-riverkeep">Riverkeep</a> by Martin Stewart<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25883033-the-radius-of-us">The Radius of Us</a> by Marie Marquardt</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25883035-a-song-to-take-the-world-apart">A Song to Take the World Apart</a> by Zan Romanoff</div>
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Also recently announced: the third book in Anne Blankman's three book deal with HarperCollins. This one is separate from her duology and is called <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25862970-traitor-angels">Traitor Angels</a></i>. Here's a little more info:<br />
<b>"The Da Vinci Code meets Graceling in this romantic YA adventure from award-winning author Anne Blankman. In TRAITOR ANGELS, Elizabeth discovers an explosive secret concealed in the epic poem <i>Paradise Lost</i> -- a secret that tears apart the fabric of society."</b><br />
Whaaaaaat? Does that not sound amazing? I am already SO excited for this one.<br />
<i>Traitor Angels</i> is due out Summer 2016.<br />
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<h2>
Pre-Order Offers</h2>
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Julie Murphy is running a US only pre-order campaign for her upcoming release, <i>Dumplin'</i>, where you can get an adorable Dumplin' pin for sending proof of your pre-order to her! More details (and picture courtesy of) <a href="http://andimjulie.tumblr.com/post/123581789767/exclusive-dumplin-lapel-pins-are-here-and-theres">her tumblr, here</a>.<br />
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<h2>
Song of the Week</h2>
A new addition to Weekly Wrap (which only started last week itself, but whatever) because I listen to music so often that I might as well share some of it with you! I'll try to pick a song I was listening to a lot over the past week, unless I was boring, in which case I'll just pick one I love! This week's is definitely one I've been overplaying, though. Actually, since it's the first week, I'll give you two: the one that introduced me to Ryn Weaver, and the song of hers that has become my new obsession.<br />
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What's new in your corner of the book world this week? Did I miss anything that you're really excited about? Let me know!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-29135894070207179502015-07-08T01:00:00.000-04:002015-07-08T09:10:16.055-04:00Underrated YA: Contemporary EditionPart Three! (Super delayed part three but hey! It's here!)<br />
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I've talked about this before but in response to <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/sarahgalo/underrated-book-series-that-need-more-love#.qfEeVYOOYp">this crazypants Buzzfeed list</a>, today I'm going to tell you about some <b>actual</b><i style="font-weight: bold;"> </i>underrated YA (in my humble opinion, anyway) that you should probably go get your hands on ASAP. This follows along the lines of Twitter's response to the same article which took place under #quietYA.<br />
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Note: Since I'm being all adamant about the fact that I want to shed light on truly underrated books here, I've put some rules in place for myself. 1, Nothing that's been on the NYT Bestseller list (because guys, that's not underrated). 2, Nothing that currently has a fancy (major) "Award Winner/Nominee" medal on its cover (like for the Morris Debut Award - sorry, <i>In the Shadow of Blackbirds</i> and <i>Charm & Strange</i>! I still love you!) because that can definitely help with exposure. 3. Nothing that I've seen talked about constantly on social media/blogs within my slice of the book world because I figure you're all exposed to similar chatter and then those books aren't really underrated to you anymore, are they?<br />
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When I started writing this, I realized that I had so many recs there was no way I could have fit all the books I wanted to rec into one post. So I decided to turn this into a mini-series type deal, hence the second part of the title. This is part three and will cover contemporary novels. I already featured "genre" novels here and historical fiction <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2015/04/underrated-ya-historical-fiction-edition.html">here</a>.<br />
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With all that said, here are my contemp picks!<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16101148-five-summers">Five Summers</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18667862-like-no-other">Like No Other</a> by Una Lamarche</b><br />
Both of Una Lamarche's novels thus far have explored love in a very moving and involved way. The first looks at the bonds of friendship and the way they are strained and tested, and the second at a seemingly unconventional but actually very universal romance that crosses faith and race lines.<br />
(My review of <i>Five Summers</i> <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/05/review-five-summers-by-una-lamarche.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18285437-rites-of-passage">Rites of Passage</a> by Joy N. Hensley</b><br />
This is basically the book version of the DCOM Cadet Kelly but darker and with even more girl badass-ness. It's about dealing with grief, dealing with sexism and unfair hostility, and rising above it all to prove that a girl (in this case, the amazing Sam) is just as good as anyone else (not to mention way more kick-butt).<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2014/09/review-rites-of-passage-by-joy-n-hensley.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16068910-the-art-of-lainey">The Art of Lainey</a> by Paula Stokes</b><br />
If you love your lighthearted YA romance with a mismatched pair, fake dating, and some serious character growth, then please tell me why on earth you have not yet read <i>The Art of Lainey</i>.<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2014/05/review-art-of-lainey-blog-tour-kick-off.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17869397-behind-the-scenes">Behind the Scenes</a> by Dahlia Adler</b><br />
This is a "fluffy" Hollywood romance book that actually includes some serious deeper issues and explores the development of a romance when there are other complications really well and honestly. It's a lot of fun but isn't afraid to also bring out some other emotions at times.<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16074758-dangerous-girls">Dangerous Girls</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19732381-dangerous-boys">Dangerous Boys</a> by Abigail Haas</b><br />
<i>Dangerous Girls</i> especially, but man, if you like books that play with your mind and you're looking for a thrill, these are some of the most interesting and criminally underrated YA around.<br />
(My review of <i>Dangerous Girls</i> <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2014/07/review-dangerous-girls-by-abigail-haas.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17290286-goodbye-rebel-blue">Goodbye, Rebel Blue</a> by Shelley Coriell</b><br />
Another really interesting exploration of grief and discovering or rediscovering yourself in the aftermath. The character growth for the protagonist, Rebel, is strong, as is the growth in her relationships. This one has a great helping of both attitude and heart which I found made it easy for me to really enjoy.<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/10/review-goodbye-rebel-blue-by-shelley.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17261129-freakboy">Freakboy</a> by Kristin Elizabeth Clark</b><br />
A smart and sensitive novel in verse that looks into gender fluidity and transgender identity from the perspectives of three very different individuals who each struggle with having a lot on their plates. Reminiscent of Ellen Hopkins, who is fantastic.<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/10/review-freakboy-by-kristin-elizabeth.html">here</a>)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih079-lRB9Tj6E-6Ng5YV0bUD5cXQezWcYtu2Cf5-lXk8BDSap0AYU0uYs3fujQwkEsOWeZwOMZM-Lqrt3DIlNjVufONlJ2UiY0rwGwHYZb6A_wcVDs2X2uxiuV4zN2Fi0-T_UYvQlR5Gj/s1600/canary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih079-lRB9Tj6E-6Ng5YV0bUD5cXQezWcYtu2Cf5-lXk8BDSap0AYU0uYs3fujQwkEsOWeZwOMZM-Lqrt3DIlNjVufONlJ2UiY0rwGwHYZb6A_wcVDs2X2uxiuV4zN2Fi0-T_UYvQlR5Gj/s320/canary.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12579262-canary">Canary</a> by Rachele Alpine </b><br />
This, along with books like Courtney Summers' recent <i>All the Rage</i>, is such an incredibly important book because of the way it deals with sexual assault. It blows the doors wide open on the treatment young women often receive after they try to open up about their experience with sexual assault and it places itself firmly on their side, something that young women often really need to read.<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/08/review-canary-by-rachele-alpine.html">here</a>)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabfIUUUqqGtEm_rfEWiM_j6y6jefP8aQcxCcIoER3deIBWJNxv_Hn9uXkiz510E1-hrBm4rZcyI89SnB7MwQRF9dtlOXOU3J9Nd7ev8KWbECfPZjAdQR7IsxQjUahLy6xqHqCKt21pFa4/s1600/crewe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabfIUUUqqGtEm_rfEWiM_j6y6jefP8aQcxCcIoER3deIBWJNxv_Hn9uXkiz510E1-hrBm4rZcyI89SnB7MwQRF9dtlOXOU3J9Nd7ev8KWbECfPZjAdQR7IsxQjUahLy6xqHqCKt21pFa4/s400/crewe.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8573632-the-way-we-fall">The Way We Fall</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13449858-the-lives-we-lost">The Lives We Lost</a> by Megan Crewe</b><br />
These are not your conventional contemporary but I shelved them here because despite the apocalyptic-like virus, our world is still completely recognizable, and it is changed through something that is really quite realistic. These are great stories of survival in a situation that doesn't actually seem impossible for us, which is a little unnerving and, I find, makes the scenarios that play out that much more interesting, and the characters that much easier to relate to.<br />
(My reviews <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/03/review-giveaway-way-we-fall-by-megan.html">here</a> and <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/03/review-giveaway-lives-we-lost-by-megan.html">here</a>)<br />
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What underrated contemporary YA should I be reading to add to this list? I'd love to hear what your faves are!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-82030804894650269692015-07-07T01:00:00.000-04:002015-07-07T10:14:47.091-04:00Top Ten Hyped Books I've Never Read<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Cqex1WPW7TBXBcClaQoQAapVi2WFsEWb-H2evF9Jo1RTz_XXHxZUpBvDk_pDs8L_vnGQduillIUAhOS_ALbmWpK8yfF7NTXin93Z7G341uWZHxXqrGqhfg7ElG8jELiFNg0BS9sGnIds/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Cqex1WPW7TBXBcClaQoQAapVi2WFsEWb-H2evF9Jo1RTz_XXHxZUpBvDk_pDs8L_vnGQduillIUAhOS_ALbmWpK8yfF7NTXin93Z7G341uWZHxXqrGqhfg7ElG8jELiFNg0BS9sGnIds/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
Top Ten Tuesday is run by <a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/p/top-ten-tuesday-other-features.html">The Broke and the Bookish</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheLfCuMqkq8EQ6TnX71s_q1PJN3rK-0EBOWwVVbKFZTkvJQvt6x3Gw1HlKHLKOHqrouGdF2ggA8EamBLOfpGPhKwVK353eEn5rJmOuynxvhCmM6dBKqyVUpj2oRVkXh7JF8Xri-Uk1vOEj/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheLfCuMqkq8EQ6TnX71s_q1PJN3rK-0EBOWwVVbKFZTkvJQvt6x3Gw1HlKHLKOHqrouGdF2ggA8EamBLOfpGPhKwVK353eEn5rJmOuynxvhCmM6dBKqyVUpj2oRVkXh7JF8Xri-Uk1vOEj/s640/1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11870085-the-fault-in-our-stars">The Fault In Our Stars</a> by John Green<br />
Despite having read almost all of JG's other books, the premise of this one just didn't do anything for me. I don't gravitate towards sad books in general, so I just never really bothered with it. My feelings are overwhelmingly "meh".<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/150038.Cassandra_Clare">Cassandra Clare</a> (City of Bones and its infinite sequels/spinoffs)<br />
Basically a combined lack of no interest plus the overwhelming number of books I'd have to read if I got into these series meant that I just never bothered and still don't plan to.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1656001.The_Host">The Host</a> by Stephanie Meyer<br />
I do actually own this one and everyone seems to think it was better than <i>Twilight</i>. I haven't seen the movie yet either, but both are on my "eventually" list.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4208569.Rainbow_Rowell">Rainbow Rowell</a> (Eleanor & Park, Fangirl, etc etc)<br />
I own her two YA so far but these are more that I just kind of keep putting off. I'm not especially drawn to them but maybe one day I'll pick them up.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/47329-the-iron-fey">The Iron Fey series</a> by Julie Kagawa<br />
Fey and I don't often get along - it takes a really unique, exciting, or exceptional fey book to keep me interested, and I just don't think I could handle an entire series about them.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13188676-ignite-me">Ignite Me</a> by Tahereh Mafi<br />
Ehhh I don't want to talk about this one but it fits the list criteria. I just haven't read it for specific reasons and don't plan to.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11571298-thirteen-reasons-why">Thirteen Reasons Why</a> by Jay Asher<br />
I read one of Asher's other books, <i>The Future of Us</i>, and it didn't do a ton for me so I never bothered continuing with his books, despite the talk surrounding this one.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/901.Ender_s_Game">Ender's Game</a> by Orson Scott Card<br />
Another overwhelming case of "meh." I was just never drawn in by the idea of this one and I don't expect that to change any time soon.<br />
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Meg Cabot's <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6084399-the-princess-diaries">Princess Diaries series</a><br />
I have read other Meg Cabot - I want to get that out before you all jump at me. I just never actually started the Princess Diaries at the age I should have and so the whole thing just kind of passed me by. And now, at this point, the idea of taking on the entire series is a liiiittle overwhelming.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3433047.Sarah_J_Maas">Sarah J. Maas</a> (Throne of Glass series, ACOTAR)<br />
This one IS CHANGING. I promise! I own the three <i>Throne of Glass</i> books as well as the bind up of novellas (which I've actually just started) and I'm taking part in Bloomsbury's readalong that started this week counting down to <i>Queen of Shadows</i>. These are perhaps the only books on this list that I actually seriously intend to read within a reasonable time frame (because who knows when I'll read <i>The Host</i> and Rainbow Rowell), so yay for SJ Maas!<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-29661203528053134162015-07-03T01:00:00.000-04:002015-07-03T01:00:00.420-04:00Weekly Wrap: July 3rd, 2015I wanted to try something a little new that was inspired by a couple of different kinds of posts, including <a href="http://glass-of-wine.blogspot.ca/">Kathy</a> and <a href="https://kellyvision.wordpress.com/">Kelly's</a> Weekly Obsessions and <a href="http://itisabooklife.blogspot.ca/">Kay's</a> Bookish Report wherein I catch you up on things from around the blogosphere that caught my eye over the past week, whether that be new covers revealed, an exciting pre-order campaign that you might want in on, or awesome posts from other bloggers. So I'm going to give this a shot this week and hopefully over the next couple weeks and see how it goes!<br />
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<h2>
Covers:</h2>
Holy smokes, so many of the Winter covers have been revealed over the last couple weeks! I don't even know where to start, but there were some gorgeous ones recently. I'm not going to go too far back because I'll just end up posting too many, but here are a few of the recently released ones that I'm loving:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXaRUdJli0mIUubMDbN5r6GP4GLuOlTxWFLdwSWqONQh6Lb6pJKH61C4bZqAR-8TFK7yA6WL4MStLvRYiDHV4b67ob-6w7jSCb8VAr83S-1mkvvSJlzQ_iJEQnkFsgQ6dNdcmzidD_E3D0/s1600/down+with+the+shine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXaRUdJli0mIUubMDbN5r6GP4GLuOlTxWFLdwSWqONQh6Lb6pJKH61C4bZqAR-8TFK7yA6WL4MStLvRYiDHV4b67ob-6w7jSCb8VAr83S-1mkvvSJlzQ_iJEQnkFsgQ6dNdcmzidD_E3D0/s320/down+with+the+shine.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25647300-down-with-the-shine">Down With the Shine</a> by Kate Karyus Quinn (named after a song by my favourite band NBD).<br />
Not only does this book sound so different and interesting, but that cover is bright and intriguing and would definitely catch my eye on the shelf at a book store!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaHW-hOiMSbeJhkhIrXXlV39PWL5895T44BfvuSOKEM841NAmCi7CCeMVXVzk2qAwvuzao9AfuIfayDyZG84ifY7Lohu9ckM4oxPZzX4xMZ8j-QERdFWajPwu0YNQ1ScfQx5FPoHCBPstl/s1600/ravenous.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaHW-hOiMSbeJhkhIrXXlV39PWL5895T44BfvuSOKEM841NAmCi7CCeMVXVzk2qAwvuzao9AfuIfayDyZG84ifY7Lohu9ckM4oxPZzX4xMZ8j-QERdFWajPwu0YNQ1ScfQx5FPoHCBPstl/s320/ravenous.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25394547-ravenous">Ravenous</a> by MarcyKate Connolly.<br />
This art is both adorable and fantastically realized. I love the colours and the art style and the title treatment... basically all of it!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjFjS11vLlk5vS3rUp8nPznJ7AAtByU6VjOTkAlBAzQ6L-3Q5L5CUTXAHlCNAuRBn6ZjlY3p7Xal9NI8PAqvz4tqoebk_7an6og3CRCJRjPxkBYMCPVx6sm0sCHbuGKQTxKgg9A9tFfn4I/s1600/daughters+of+ruin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjFjS11vLlk5vS3rUp8nPznJ7AAtByU6VjOTkAlBAzQ6L-3Q5L5CUTXAHlCNAuRBn6ZjlY3p7Xal9NI8PAqvz4tqoebk_7an6og3CRCJRjPxkBYMCPVx6sm0sCHbuGKQTxKgg9A9tFfn4I/s320/daughters+of+ruin.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25785728-daughters-of-ruin">Daughters of Ruin</a> by K.D. Castner.<br />
LOOK AT THAT COVER. And a synopsis was just recently released and it's basically about rival "sister" princesses, so colour me intrigued!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMhupc3wsuQRVFtoU1qbxHH5-fBRaVxpHBfEGoaQFC6Yi2cIS0vQiPiowXsnxafZ27_4i7DFZy-kjp8XV90XAHZoFYuv6KR2nhTrPpQfjhP-9R4ikmjChQxDnk2mMUnqZ7OcAACi4g84a3/s1600/revenge+and+the+wild.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMhupc3wsuQRVFtoU1qbxHH5-fBRaVxpHBfEGoaQFC6Yi2cIS0vQiPiowXsnxafZ27_4i7DFZy-kjp8XV90XAHZoFYuv6KR2nhTrPpQfjhP-9R4ikmjChQxDnk2mMUnqZ7OcAACi4g84a3/s320/revenge+and+the+wild.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21843165-revenge-and-the-wild">Revenge and the Wild</a> by Michelle Modesto.<br />
The fooooont. So gorgeous. Priorities = in check.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUo-di4-7HHvUY62PuBuXExWftlevrAIV0Vlr2aGo1aap9tAicK-FMqRT-KQWxbgDxG_CUwf_wnl_g-G75UV1RVE3HbaYaq7faJYTkedKZqsIvgi7OGjXCYtZctVcVS4dgVugZeHX8jBpU/s1600/assassins+heart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUo-di4-7HHvUY62PuBuXExWftlevrAIV0Vlr2aGo1aap9tAicK-FMqRT-KQWxbgDxG_CUwf_wnl_g-G75UV1RVE3HbaYaq7faJYTkedKZqsIvgi7OGjXCYtZctVcVS4dgVugZeHX8jBpU/s320/assassins+heart.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21421609-assassin-s-heart">Assassin's Heart</a> by Sarah Ahiers.<br />
I don't really know what's actually happening in this cover, but I do know I want to stroke it's sumptuous colours and richness forever.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjioLyYCN3uaXu746iiem_8DEFqcqjUYcInWc6-uRU_L6zPX9yeft9pL4Jgr9SBDjYavQ-asRCh9kt0YavDZzeV8V5hWTRYyk2UhBabfOSdd3C4tW7KafFHfX3l5LnEQu4yBYpWAjKS63s0/s1600/this+is+where+the+world+ends.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjioLyYCN3uaXu746iiem_8DEFqcqjUYcInWc6-uRU_L6zPX9yeft9pL4Jgr9SBDjYavQ-asRCh9kt0YavDZzeV8V5hWTRYyk2UhBabfOSdd3C4tW7KafFHfX3l5LnEQu4yBYpWAjKS63s0/s320/this+is+where+the+world+ends.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24039424-this-is-where-the-world-ends?ac=1">This is Where the World Ends</a> by Amy Zhang<br />
Striking like her first novel, and in a similar way; I really like the style of this one.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSS6v3WkXlO8ADiaaZXVYxWDSfY2nbbnts3mZWcBNq0MmIIdHY4A8DYB3f0nO-CrQz5PR18bQn2COgAC0NxCNf2sJ8XP3df3Pk1xk60TZexrPkiY-Z1yUM9yTlr6odcep_xonZmApbM0G/s1600/10000+madonnas.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSS6v3WkXlO8ADiaaZXVYxWDSfY2nbbnts3mZWcBNq0MmIIdHY4A8DYB3f0nO-CrQz5PR18bQn2COgAC0NxCNf2sJ8XP3df3Pk1xk60TZexrPkiY-Z1yUM9yTlr6odcep_xonZmApbM0G/s320/10000+madonnas.jpeg" width="227" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18520654-the-land-of-ten-thousand-madonnas">The Land of 10,000 Madonnas</a> by Kate Hattemer<br />
The colour scheme, the illustrations over the photo, the giant map covering the models... this one just works for me. Doesn't hurt that it sounds awesome, either.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvLe6HCKwkICF_2hILs_aPa8bx_RWr4U-0GeieylPTIW2AqDtrk7vJgPUsZUYOvZ6zdoFh-A9DZRfB8jFPzZO2v86go9ZgIhY42hj69dkM-WKi6egSRcnXMIWFZt1n263j_-8TCpWUBUYP/s1600/last+boy+and+girl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvLe6HCKwkICF_2hILs_aPa8bx_RWr4U-0GeieylPTIW2AqDtrk7vJgPUsZUYOvZ6zdoFh-A9DZRfB8jFPzZO2v86go9ZgIhY42hj69dkM-WKi6egSRcnXMIWFZt1n263j_-8TCpWUBUYP/s320/last+boy+and+girl.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24157347-the-last-boy-and-girl-in-the-world?ac=1">The Last Boy and Girl in the World</a> by Siobhan Vivian<br />
This one is a really great use of shape and colour, and according to Siobhan the finished dust jacket is going to be all shiny, so it should be cool!<br />
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<h2>
Around the Blogosphere:</h2>
You may have seen the #OTSPSecretSister around on Twitter, and the lovely ladies behind it have put up a post about the new session starting this month. See if it's something you'd be interested in getting in on - it seems like it spreads a lot of cheer in the community - by reading the post and checking out the three blogs: <a href="http://bookstakeyouplaces.com/2015/07/01/the-secret-sister-project-faqs-and-rules/">Alyssa's</a>, <a href="http://www.bookaddictsguide.com/2015/07/01/on-the-same-page-secret-sister-project-pre-sign-up-faqs-info/">Brittany's</a> and <a href="http://www.trippingoverbooks.com/2015/07/01/on-the-same-page-secret-sister-project-3-0-faq-and-info/">Amy's</a>! (Same info post on each blog, but check them all out anyway!)<br />
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Hafsah of IceyBooks is pretty well known for her fantastic eye for design, and she's taken that offline to her own Etsy shop! Check out her gorgeous handlettered goodies - these would make fantastic gifts, maybe even for your #OTSPSecretSister if you're taking part this time! <a href="http://www.iceybooks.com/blog/2015/06/a-new-endeavor-handlettered-quote-goodies.html">See her post on them here.</a><br />
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Bekka of Pretty Deadly wrote a really interesting post <a href="http://www.prettydeadlyblog.com/in-defense-of-love-triangles/">here</a> about love triangles and why she doesn't despise them like so many bloggers seem to. After hearing a lot of good points from the anti-triangle side, I liked seeing some points in their favour!<br />
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Shae over at Shae Has Left the Room gave us some insight into a lesser known part of the publishing world with her post about the work she was doing as an intern at a scouting agency. If you've ever been curious about book scouts or foreign rights, definitely <a href="http://www.shaelit.com/2015/06/youre-a-what/">give this post a look!</a><br />
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Bloomsbury is doing a readalong for the <i>Throne of Glass</i> series leading up to the <i>Queen of Shadows</i> release that I'm thinking of joining because I haven't actually read them yet... don't hate me! But the hashtag on Twitter is #ReadThroneofGlass and they're starting next week with <i>The Assassin's Blade</i>, the compilation of novellas. <a href="http://worldofsarahjmaas.com/post/122966836998/were-just-two-months-from-the-release-of-queen-of">More info here</a>.<br />
<br />
The first character profile from Evelyn Skye's cast for her 2016 debut release, <i>The Crown's Game</i>, has been revealed <a href="http://www.evelynskye.com/characters/">on her website</a>. This is a fun way to get a glimpse at the characters before getting to read the book, plus she's running a giveaway to go along with it! <a href="http://www.evelynskye.com/characters/">See more here.</a><br />
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<h2>
New Book Deals:</h2>
Looking back at the past few weeks, there have been a few new deals announced for books that could be very interesting. Notably:<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25752041-the-bastard-table">The Bastard Table</a> by Andrew Shvarts<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25740412-the-black-witch">The Black Witch</a> by Laurie Forest<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25740432-joaquin-s-rebellion">Joaquin's Rebellion</a> + sequel, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25768257-the-long-journey-home">The Long Journey Home</a> by Guadalupe Garcia McCall </div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25796637-devil-and-the-bluebird">Devil and the Bluebird</a> by Jennifer Mason-Black<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25782742-this-promise-i-will-keep">This Promise I Will Keep</a> by Aisha Saeed<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25802922-mirror-in-the-sky">Mirror In the Sky</a> by Aditi Khorana</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25832318-city-of-secret-rivers">City of Secret Rivers</a> by Jacob Sager Weinstein (Middle Grade)</div>
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There was also an unofficial announcement of a 2016 release from Mindy McGinnis on <a href="http://writerwriterpantsonfire.blogspot.ca/2015/06/the-beauty-of-pantsing-it-character-you.html">her website,</a> where she described the project, <i>The Female of the Species</i>, as "a rape-revenge vigilante justice contemporary." Uh, sign me up please. </div>
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<h2>
Pre-Order Offers:</h2>
I didn't pre-order much before I became a blogger, and though I still don't too often, sometimes authors/publishers run really fun offers where you get cool swag of some sort if you pre-order. SO. Here are a few of those that have caught my eye (likely because I'm excited for the book):<br />
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Erin Bowman is running one for <i>Vengeance Road</i> where you automatically get a swag pack for pre-ordering, plus she's running a contest to go along with it! <a href="http://www.embowman.com/2015/vengeance-road-preorder-contest/">Find that here.</a><br />
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Lindsay Smith is also giving away swag packs to people who preorder her upcoming fantasy, <i>Dreamstrider</i>, plus your pre-order gets you in the running for a gift card to a book store of your choice! <a href="http://lindsaysmithdc.tumblr.com/post/122012004427/dreamstrider-preorder-campaign">Find that here.</a><br />
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Bloomsbury is giving <i>Throne of Glass</i> series buttons to people who send in proof of purchase of <i>Queen of Shadows</i> by Sarah J. Maas by August 31st. <a href="https://twitter.com/bloomsburykids/status/600662227033595905">Find that here.</a><br />
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<h4>
Anything exciting go on this week in another corner of the blogosphere that I might have missed? Link me up! </h4>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-21802253968218924132015-07-02T01:00:00.001-04:002015-07-02T01:00:01.606-04:00Review: Last Will and Testament by Dahlia Adler<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDkhebxsIjm4EURHdfXNswNX1jh-KVIyMdQdCxY4gIf0woY76qLsuoI0AJgsBZgk0UoIagqpqqGvQVlNeP-TwCllkg_uwAImpfMXLXxHx9_oRbhRSWyX6u4Qq7l_tmxsJulyTDNOAm_JgF/s1600/last+will+and+testament.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDkhebxsIjm4EURHdfXNswNX1jh-KVIyMdQdCxY4gIf0woY76qLsuoI0AJgsBZgk0UoIagqpqqGvQVlNeP-TwCllkg_uwAImpfMXLXxHx9_oRbhRSWyX6u4Qq7l_tmxsJulyTDNOAm_JgF/s320/last+will+and+testament.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23357716-last-will-and-testament">Last Will and Testament</a> by Dahlia Adler.<br />
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Published: December 9, 2014.<br />
Self-published.<br />
Source: Purchased.<br />
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Goodreads Synopsis:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.31999969482422px;">
Lizzie Brandt was valedictorian of her high school class, but at Radleigh University, all she's acing are partying and hooking up with the wrong guys. But all that changes when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, making her guardian to her two younger brothers. To keep them out of foster care, she'll have to fix up her image, her life, and her GPA—fast. Too bad the only person on campus she can go to for help is her humorless, pedantic Byzantine History TA, Connor Lawson, who isn't exactly Lizzie's biggest fan.<br /><br />But Connor surprises her. Not only is he a great tutor, but he’s also a pretty great babysitter. And chauffeur. And listener. And he understands exactly what it’s like to be on your own before you're ready. Before long, Lizzie realizes having a responsible-adult type around has its perks... and that she'd like to do some rather irresponsible (but considerably adult) things with him as well. Good thing he's not the kind of guy who'd ever reciprocate.<br /><br />Until he does.<br /><br />Until they turn into far more than teacher and student.<br /><br />Until the relationship that helped put their lives back together threatens everything they both have left.</span></blockquote>
My Review:<br />
<br />
<i>Last Will and Testament</i> is the first in my <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2015/05/expanding-horizons-new-adult-lit.html">recently promised real dive into NA</a> and holy heck, talk about a great book to start out with! This one has the drama and the sexytimes that NA is kind of known for while still showing great characters with full, complicated lives and possessing a lot of heart.<br />
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The main character, Lizzie, is hit with a tragedy -- the news of the death of her parents -- right as the book begins and spends the rest of the time trying to figure out how she can possibly pick up the pieces afterwards to get her grades up so she can keep her scholarship and to be a responsible guardian for her two younger brothers. This is an overwhelming situation for anyone, let alone a young college student, so I loved how authentic Lizzie felt as she stumbled and cried her way through it. The way she leaned on her girlfriends and roommates (who were also great characters and super hilarious -- the levity they brought to Lizzie's story was wonderful) but also respected their need to live their own lives, her reluctance to rely on a close family friend, the feelings of needing to live up to what she thinks her parents would have expected of her, the mixed emotions of love but also a little anger and frustration with her brothers... it all resonated as very real and genuine for a young woman taking on so much, and I loved that about it.<br />
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Speaking of needing to get her grades up, let's talk about Connor Lawson. HEL-LO Connor Lawson. Someone please get me one of him, stat. The reserved history nerd tutor TA turned super kind and caring and oh, by the way also HOT AND HEAVY guy is something I am completely into and I totally ate it up. I loved how I could see him warming up to Lizzie even before she really could. Once she did catch on, the way their relationship grew felt very honest and organic, both in action and in terms of what went through Lizzie's head. And even though readers don't get to get right into Connor's head, I appreciated that he still had some very understandable and reasonable hesitations about the relationship for a guy in his position. While it got frustrating to watch him pull away, it was frustrating for all the right reasons because I understood why he was doing it but also why it drove Lizzie crazy. Adler struck that perfect balance of showing exactly where both characters were (mentally, emotionally, etc) even without having written this in dual perspective and I think that only served to make me connect more with both characters and made the relationship stronger for me as a reader. It also made me more invested in them being together, which was key to me loving the book.<br />
<br />
I think my only real complaint about this one (and "complaint" is a strong word) is that there were some things that seemed to me like continuity issues once in a while where things just didn't quite seem to line up. It wasn't anything major, mostly things like dates and years and whatnot, but it was something I noticed that I was a little surprised hadn't been caught because I'm confident Adler put a lot of time into the editing on this one.<br />
<br />
I really loved starting to get into NA with this one. I definitely appreciated the balance of actual plot/story/character development to sexytimes, which I think really helped. This is a great story with fantastic and layered characters who happen to have some hot sex, which is how I find I prefer books like this to be written. Needless to say, I adored Lizzie and Connor and am so excited that there are two more books coming about Lizzie's roomies, Cait and Frankie! Bring 'em on, Adler.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-64552323091837485702015-06-30T01:00:00.000-04:002015-06-30T09:10:39.283-04:00Top Ten Books of 2015 So Far <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Ymy7X1lK5mKI7vj9baVGD8j-I7ZjDwCNKIw1ZULxvE2VU4HiTJIyezDTZAThB5DQrGnwB_bjunPpn99tLD2nCn0jIS3koXq7oLqHmU52BQGQiQwiD1A564uFejDJkJI5njVGALHgng1j/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Ymy7X1lK5mKI7vj9baVGD8j-I7ZjDwCNKIw1ZULxvE2VU4HiTJIyezDTZAThB5DQrGnwB_bjunPpn99tLD2nCn0jIS3koXq7oLqHmU52BQGQiQwiD1A564uFejDJkJI5njVGALHgng1j/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" /></a></div>
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Top Ten Tuesday is run by <a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/p/top-ten-tuesday-other-features.html">The Broke and the Bookish</a>.</div>
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Yeah, yeah, more than ten again this week. Whatever, we're talking about our top reads of the year so far so I think I can get away with listing as many as I want because isn't that the whole point of what we do here as book bloggers? Talk about the books we love? (Also, sorry it's a little half-assed this week - I just got home from Europe and am back at work and I didn't have a ton of time but I still wanted to share my faves!)<br />
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So without further ado...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivLbY09d9vrrUHECfCQetFPDIRxS47C81AAAZgpeJ1weE7Mw_u1OWEKCfvQyjhkzypr9NJQ7KT9ruTWwr37f2FMCwcoaVJAtXybggG5gjYRyuOtCqIZK6cOTSkCkqG_DYq3Td6ySsoB7M9/s1600/best1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivLbY09d9vrrUHECfCQetFPDIRxS47C81AAAZgpeJ1weE7Mw_u1OWEKCfvQyjhkzypr9NJQ7KT9ruTWwr37f2FMCwcoaVJAtXybggG5gjYRyuOtCqIZK6cOTSkCkqG_DYq3Td6ySsoB7M9/s400/best1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<h3>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20308537-the-game-of-love-and-death">The Game of Love and Death</a> by Martha Brockenbrough</h3>
<h3>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21853636-all-the-rage">All the Rage</a> by Courtney Summers</h3>
<h3>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21469068-i-ll-meet-you-there">I'll Meet You There</a> by Heather Demetrios</h3>
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<h3>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6936382-anna-and-the-french-kiss">Anna and the French Kiss</a>/<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9961796-lola-and-the-boy-next-door">Lola and the Boy Next Door</a> by Stephanie Perkins</h3>
<h3>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18081228-the-orphan-queen">The Orphan Queen</a> by Jodi Meadows</h3>
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<h3>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22718810-nil-unlocked">Nil Unlocked</a> by Lynne Matson</h3>
<h3>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23357716-last-will-and-testament">Last Will and Testament</a>/<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17869397-behind-the-scenes">Behind the Scenes</a> by Dahlia Adler</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKMgBsPGw2tX-zYE_H47h4phdklFV0wl7j53oLeth5Cc4AxDKdirlCDpBInstrPiBDOnQjJU9l1vZ4DmB2HjZrYpB7oJa2ss0ynUS2rRdR_GqOKbO0NpxvNzUdjeYRrrb9OtqzU8r-yllW/s1600/best4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKMgBsPGw2tX-zYE_H47h4phdklFV0wl7j53oLeth5Cc4AxDKdirlCDpBInstrPiBDOnQjJU9l1vZ4DmB2HjZrYpB7oJa2ss0ynUS2rRdR_GqOKbO0NpxvNzUdjeYRrrb9OtqzU8r-yllW/s400/best4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<h3>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18798983-the-wrath-and-the-dawn">The Wrath and the Dawn</a> by Renee Ahdieh</h3>
<h3>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16085457-shadow-scale">Shadow Scale</a> by Rachel Hartman</h3>
<h3>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22489107-fairest">Fairest</a> by Marissa Meyer</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2j2A9eQkPV7NAgACP1mwQdF1sGmBAJhMXhcWq4k_D98As1uBpAXoQw5nQr6wsYYGVW1E4E7YMnr5ImDSYP3G1MMBzhl6imt6oi8n7B5H78LjDCz807zFnBC8cW9_SFxYYOj6bxrcD03gc/s1600/best5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2j2A9eQkPV7NAgACP1mwQdF1sGmBAJhMXhcWq4k_D98As1uBpAXoQw5nQr6wsYYGVW1E4E7YMnr5ImDSYP3G1MMBzhl6imt6oi8n7B5H78LjDCz807zFnBC8cW9_SFxYYOj6bxrcD03gc/s320/best5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h3>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18009950-liars-inc">Liars, Inc.</a> by Paula Stokes</h3>
<h3>
<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17788093-skandal">Skandal</a> by Lindsay Smith</h3>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-38990960769449983702015-06-26T01:00:00.000-04:002015-06-26T01:00:05.233-04:00Devoted and Delicate Monsters Blog Tour<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzvgG923W2r7X1QLf9Jor7pGLSxEVBkHYcxqejgnTogFxXvDxnY8TXH55Rwx24xrbhAokfa6naZqcbuwe5Uw1BSCt1_l-Ri02bKok32mVpiRLwZpHQvLLJHObdja1jPEpCg9BW8hgwmplm/s1600/Devoted+%2526+Delicate+Blog+Tour+Evite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzvgG923W2r7X1QLf9Jor7pGLSxEVBkHYcxqejgnTogFxXvDxnY8TXH55Rwx24xrbhAokfa6naZqcbuwe5Uw1BSCt1_l-Ri02bKok32mVpiRLwZpHQvLLJHObdja1jPEpCg9BW8hgwmplm/s640/Devoted+%2526+Delicate+Blog+Tour+Evite.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
I'm so excited today to be part of Raincoast's blog tour for Jennifer Mathieu's <i>Devoted</i> and Stephanie Kuehn's <i>Delicate Monsters</i>. I've previously read each of these authors' debuts so I was thrilled to get the chance to be part of the tour for Jennifer's follow-up and Stephanie's third book.<br />
<br />
To start off, here's a little bit about the books:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22718682-devoted">Devoted</a> by Jennifer Mathieu<br />
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Published June 2, 2015 by Roaring Brook Press.<br />
<br />
Goodreads Synopsis:<br />
<span id="freeText3471709029014561152" style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Rachel Walker is devoted to God. She prays every day, attends Calvary Christian Church with her family, helps care for her five younger siblings, dresses modestly, and prepares herself to be a wife and mother who serves the Lord with joy. But Rachel is curious about the world her family has turned away from, and increasingly finds that neither the church nor her homeschool education has the answers she craves. Rachel has always found solace in her beliefs, but now she can’t shake the feeling that her devotion might destroy her soul.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"> </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSR6BV6wc1h05_EUZyqZwLtMKS-oQeg0Y4HfjMzyWQsxHwtNofgFcwdS_u91gIfKv2F_22a1yMISQkqTad-byx8CiHFJT4oB5Fh1Vjl-8BXBMEcj6f6c8DyeVPoHI9TSh7ymIzVUidoXZc/s1600/delicate+monsters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSR6BV6wc1h05_EUZyqZwLtMKS-oQeg0Y4HfjMzyWQsxHwtNofgFcwdS_u91gIfKv2F_22a1yMISQkqTad-byx8CiHFJT4oB5Fh1Vjl-8BXBMEcj6f6c8DyeVPoHI9TSh7ymIzVUidoXZc/s200/delicate+monsters.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23014725-delicate-monsters">Delicate Monsters</a> by Stephanie Kuehn</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
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<div style="text-align: right;">
Published June 9th, 2015 by St. Martin's Griffin.</div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
Goodreads Synopsis:</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;">From the Morris-Award winning author of </span><em style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;">Charm & Strange</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;">, comes a twisted and haunting tale about three teens uncovering dark secrets and even darker truths about themselves.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;">When nearly killing a classmate gets seventeen-year-old Sadie Su kicked out of her third boarding school in four years, she returns to her family’s California vineyard estate. Here, she’s meant to stay out of trouble. Here, she’s meant to do a lot of things. But it’s hard. She’s bored. And when Sadie’s bored, the only thing she likes is trouble.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;">Emerson Tate’s a poor boy living in a rich town, with his widowed mother and strange, haunted little brother. All he wants his senior year is to play basketball and make something happen with the girl of his dreams. That’s why Emerson’s not happy Sadie’s back. An old childhood friend, she knows his worst secrets. The things he longs to forget. The things she won’t ever let him.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;">Haunted is a good word for fifteen-year-old Miles Tate. Miles can see the future, after all. And he knows his vision of tragic violence at his school will come true, because his visions always do. That’s what he tells the new girl in town. The one who listens to him. The one who recognizes the darkness in his past. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.8000001907349px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; text-align: left;">But can Miles stop the violence? Or has the future already been written? Maybe tragedy is his destiny. Maybe it’s all of theirs.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
I got to ask each of the authors one question about their books.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Devoted</h2>
I asked: How do you approach writing about a topic such as religion, like in Devoted, or the toxicity of slut-shaming rumors, like in The Truth About Alice, without turning your story into an "issue book"? How do you manage to help keep these complex topics so grounded, real, and non-"preachy" in your novels?<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;">Jennifer said: Great question! Honestly, I can't stand issue books mostly because I hated them as a teenager, too. Teenagers are so much smarter than we give them credit for, and they roll their eyes when they read a book that's so obviously trying to Teach A Lesson. I think I try to avoid issue books or being preachy by creating fully formed characters. Alice in The Truth About Alice isn't just a stand in for any bad girl. She has a distinct personality (I hope!). The bullies in Alice are archetypal, but I don't think they're stereotypical. I try to create characters who don't fit a mold. I also try to acknowledge nuance. It would have been very easy to make the bullies in Alice all awful and bad or only show negative images of religious people in Devoted, but I consciously chose not to do that. By showing the bullies' motivations for their behavior or having Rachel attend a new church where people are more welcoming and moderate than her childhood church, I'm trying to add layers to the reader's experience. Hopefully it's working.</span><br />
<br />
<h2>
Delicate Monsters</h2>
I asked: You clearly don't shy away from deep subject matter and tough scenes in your books. How difficult is it to write that material and what, for you, makes these hard topics so naturally integral to your storytelling despite how tough they may be?<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;">Stephanie said: I think every teen’s story deserves to be told, no matter how hard or uncomfortable</span><br />
<div class="p1">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span class="s1">that story may be. That’s my perspective when I’m writing: to reflect the realities </span>we don’t always want to see, and to reflect them with the utmost honesty and empathy. I try and remember this when writing really difficult scenes or ones that make me sad or upset.</span></div>
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<br />
I plan on writing up full reviews for both of these books once I'm home and settled from vacation but here are some quick thoughts on each book:<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Devoted:<br />
I actually found myself getting a lot more out of this book than I'd thought I would. As someone who doesn't really connect with religion, and hasn't in a long time, I didn't anticipate connecting with the book. However, Mathieu's storytelling and the way she presented the main character, Rachel, made it so easy for me to understand her and become invested in the story and in Rachel's life and choices. Rachel is presented as a very sympathetic character but that doesn't leave everyone else in her life as "evil" or "wrong" Christians. Mathieu does a great job at portraying the way different kinds of faith are right for different kinds of people as well as showing that everyone is struggling with something - with the average person, we're not just "good" or "bad" people based on any part of our lives, including what we believe in. This is a great examination of faith and humanity and discovering yourself and how those all intersect in one young girl's life. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Delicate Monsters:<br />
I have to start by saying that Stephanie Kuehn has such a specific writing style that works incredibly well for the way she tells the stories she tells. It's very crisp and really captures a lot of the starkness present in her stories and characters. In <i>Delicate Monsters</i> specifically, the three main characters, Sadie, Emerson, and Miles, are each struggling with something inside them that seems to really be beyond them completely - emotions that seem like they should so far beyond the realm of teenagerdom that it's crazy that these three are each dealing with them they way they do. However, these things are indeed emotions and struggles that teens deal with and Kuehn brings them forward through her characters in such striking and real ways that you really get sucked in. While there isn't a ton of action throughout the story, the narrative from the characters and the build-up towards what could be the breaking point for one or all of them is where the tension and sense of gripping discomfort I often felt came from. If, as per her answer to my question above, Kuehn was trying to portray an uncomfortable truth with "honesty and empathy," I'd say she's done well with this one.<br />
<br />
If you're familiar with the books by either of these authors, I have a feeling their newest releases won't disappoint you. I think Mathieu has done an even greater job this time around with creating that emotional connection to the main character, and Kuehn has written another book filled with uncomfortable but gripping tensions. Both are well worth a read, especially for previous fans of their respective works!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-44129784691539175492015-06-09T01:00:00.000-04:002015-06-09T19:42:58.391-04:00Top Ten Most Anticipated For the Rest of 2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoSD1IcpPsL8W3uxGo5GakP8xaSxKAtlqM_r6jILsxPtSwsB09UvuAL-41BiB39etx6aUMKN-0jY8xBa3xbUITtFQvbdKRxTqzttq9tLo5U5-7CsGrUGD6d2pPSpqU8C35uc0SmowZp-im/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoSD1IcpPsL8W3uxGo5GakP8xaSxKAtlqM_r6jILsxPtSwsB09UvuAL-41BiB39etx6aUMKN-0jY8xBa3xbUITtFQvbdKRxTqzttq9tLo5U5-7CsGrUGD6d2pPSpqU8C35uc0SmowZp-im/s1600/toptentuesday.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
Top Ten Tuesday is run by <a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/p/top-ten-tuesday-other-features.html">The Broke and the Bookish</a>.<br />
<br />
There are totally more than ten books on this list... oops. It's actually twenty (I managed ten per list... but it's split into two lists). SORRY I CAN'T CONTAIN MY EXCITEMENT.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<b>Ones I Now Own</b></h3>
(Mostly thanks to BEA!)<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>
August</b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg013VZjJbsfddg1SF14dbbeIKovPOu7ZABMc_KCSg0hyphenhyphenLYGLU03gi0otmGh8iyKXGNA1DYujXcW0uiz6xZMCN9svF2ZYOKKBvEoGohC5DkJoik7havkCRYJpcsiRk5CuKVNBb7BHx5G5di/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg013VZjJbsfddg1SF14dbbeIKovPOu7ZABMc_KCSg0hyphenhyphenLYGLU03gi0otmGh8iyKXGNA1DYujXcW0uiz6xZMCN9svF2ZYOKKBvEoGohC5DkJoik7havkCRYJpcsiRk5CuKVNBb7BHx5G5di/s320/1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23569428-legacy-of-kings">Legacy of Kings</a> by Eleanor Herman </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24611995-the-accident-season" style="font-family: inherit;">The Accident Season</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Moira Fowley-Doyle</span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="font-family: inherit;">September</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bAsggsc3TQXBLqwuJN9tCt0xRE_8_hJex8CvAWd2VykcpJP1KuapKGkvTG3K7YwH8Ybf3_XRHSGoMbtGcKU6Hs2g_QXNlmAA6SzWzkpOqypV13DzE65EARlepg_toMMUqW6kW-0xvNAl/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bAsggsc3TQXBLqwuJN9tCt0xRE_8_hJex8CvAWd2VykcpJP1KuapKGkvTG3K7YwH8Ybf3_XRHSGoMbtGcKU6Hs2g_QXNlmAA6SzWzkpOqypV13DzE65EARlepg_toMMUqW6kW-0xvNAl/s640/3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<b style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></b></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17564519-walk-on-earth-a-stranger" style="font-family: inherit;">Walk on Earth a Stranger</a><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> by Rae Carson </span></span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23719270-vengeance-road" style="font-family: inherit;">Vengeance Road</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Erin Bowman </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11516221-the-scorpion-rules" style="font-family: inherit;">The Scorpion Rules</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Erin Bow </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18304322-dumplin" style="font-family: inherit;">Dumplin'</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Julie Murphy </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>October</b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjf06wIx650wMz7RHQWqXiPpoAFd1VFEVNbiXFd44lZ5-HUcR6UOuZdLEKz0KkAT51Y0mZEdpBI3q3fcJr1JSrdk1UqR-ibdUm57ZRds74ZugV3BKukkD-ZhZ1HkeMlU02xe9LCZuuEhzc/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjf06wIx650wMz7RHQWqXiPpoAFd1VFEVNbiXFd44lZ5-HUcR6UOuZdLEKz0KkAT51Y0mZEdpBI3q3fcJr1JSrdk1UqR-ibdUm57ZRds74ZugV3BKukkD-ZhZ1HkeMlU02xe9LCZuuEhzc/s400/5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23830990-the-rest-of-us-just-live-here" style="font-family: inherit;">The Rest of Us Just Live Here</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Patrick Ness </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24807186-wolf-by-wolf" style="font-family: inherit;">Wolf by Wolf</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Ryan Graudin </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23395680-illuminae" style="font-family: inherit;">Illuminae</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>November</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhobcKwxB_3AdR51vtj7mjnKKh4YAyaIMywJTZ5xk0N9D-SobYcCxaEvfJyGV6OFU5AnDThshaVMpkMfGKgpAxYPfJVNvo0kCWVtTP7nehqFADoQYBRtDVLWMeWiRtVPaS7mJsO8VOqXUp2/s1600/soundless.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhobcKwxB_3AdR51vtj7mjnKKh4YAyaIMywJTZ5xk0N9D-SobYcCxaEvfJyGV6OFU5AnDThshaVMpkMfGKgpAxYPfJVNvo0kCWVtTP7nehqFADoQYBRtDVLWMeWiRtVPaS7mJsO8VOqXUp2/s200/soundless.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24751478-soundless" style="font-family: inherit;">Soundless</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Richelle Mead </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Ones Yet To Acquire </b></span></h3>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>July</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbs7Q43VG1TufTVaQjOrPJOVLpmUdvrA-ftOov__EjBsZNWV5NuMHi4LK8N6Cj6_ItWHPcZJ2gEToKt5kFtORvufMmdc48gGa4kdIRZ5iT2HdbdfaimXEXGYwzAQ8d6JlXAS3c2zvCqh7/s1600/the+heart+of+betrayal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbs7Q43VG1TufTVaQjOrPJOVLpmUdvrA-ftOov__EjBsZNWV5NuMHi4LK8N6Cj6_ItWHPcZJ2gEToKt5kFtORvufMmdc48gGa4kdIRZ5iT2HdbdfaimXEXGYwzAQ8d6JlXAS3c2zvCqh7/s200/the+heart+of+betrayal.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22718692-the-heart-of-betrayal">The Heart of Betrayal</a> by Mary E. Pearson</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>August</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC0HDxhxYhFkFwR9BJQyaY0SHwKNeP1NhshDCerqiYgZ8cJJ4wgpE61Qkb7Kux56Gzu3QLslsGSf7iabEOiWR9T2H6QGydxqXlokkr_h8d2r-MX2WiGchGlHx6Q5NHw_XpGOvGldaYuaV4/s1600/maid+of+wonder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC0HDxhxYhFkFwR9BJQyaY0SHwKNeP1NhshDCerqiYgZ8cJJ4wgpE61Qkb7Kux56Gzu3QLslsGSf7iabEOiWR9T2H6QGydxqXlokkr_h8d2r-MX2WiGchGlHx6Q5NHw_XpGOvGldaYuaV4/s200/maid+of+wonder.jpg" width="127" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23016777-maid-of-wonder" style="font-family: inherit;">Maid of Wonder</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Jennifer McGowan</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>September</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYPrrY9wVC4bwpnLgubwYSI0o4rE7ognghqSGj9HUo8sbEogNp7rk2pWnozeyx2gmLKjrrDaNHjZ_Uff6Z1lGbfglcesLvhSe6eAaTKkoIn_GwnTka1cB-k0bec2o8zMpNfXEruDWokyjj/s1600/this+monstrous+thing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYPrrY9wVC4bwpnLgubwYSI0o4rE7ognghqSGj9HUo8sbEogNp7rk2pWnozeyx2gmLKjrrDaNHjZ_Uff6Z1lGbfglcesLvhSe6eAaTKkoIn_GwnTka1cB-k0bec2o8zMpNfXEruDWokyjj/s200/this+monstrous+thing.jpg" width="132" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22811807-this-monstrous-thing">This Monstrous Thing</a><span style="font-size: small;"> by Mackenzie Lee</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>October</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX_oWC5gq2BvyQDuTQVRxH1tw052HOISmgm_JN_yXX6e-LjcahTJixrz4mIvutMfPc_d9IjamWZaOjRZMHbLrfFUcKc-9xg9siHwGEuu4b-ftq5B7yo9kqVOGN1ZJolo-6j_vqUE35gHhh/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX_oWC5gq2BvyQDuTQVRxH1tw052HOISmgm_JN_yXX6e-LjcahTJixrz4mIvutMfPc_d9IjamWZaOjRZMHbLrfFUcKc-9xg9siHwGEuu4b-ftq5B7yo9kqVOGN1ZJolo-6j_vqUE35gHhh/s640/4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23846013-the-rose-society">The Rose Society</a><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">by Marie Lu </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18658082-velvet-undercover" style="font-family: inherit;">Velvet Undercover</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Teri Brown </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17973145-dreamstrider" style="font-family: inherit;">Dreamstrider</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Lindsay Smith </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24376529-a-madness-so-discreet" style="font-family: inherit;">A Madness So Discreet</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by Mindy McGinnis</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>November</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitVmtwkYPWkw0eiFF2zIKhlNe9uAiV_e4-q2Xleo8TbCGPxMon-4Ag-cn5Si2GKCbiZfMEgs3VK6zaI0bSKmCAY-YeZanJcoFmKeUXcRv7KLgtcVtRiXTy2MplW9YN1_NTvjO-JJZARZAA/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitVmtwkYPWkw0eiFF2zIKhlNe9uAiV_e4-q2Xleo8TbCGPxMon-4Ag-cn5Si2GKCbiZfMEgs3VK6zaI0bSKmCAY-YeZanJcoFmKeUXcRv7KLgtcVtRiXTy2MplW9YN1_NTvjO-JJZARZAA/s320/2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25223115-just-visiting" style="font-family: inherit;">Just Visiting</a><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> by Dahlia Adler </span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17234659-ten-thousand-skies-above-you" style="font-family: inherit;">Ten Thousand Skies Above You</a><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> by Claudia Gray</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>December</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwZnlCd9ggDs4MKX5nwAFFzvU7LjvwHVvtW5yMxL_P2Bbuq8wE99DM6DevtnjKaNVFaQphHUnPhMU3Nb6JmVttXFpNVnzwqwcWFI_nH-Xs5YsXkSakvLsbAac2E8QEC848YqbvBLR7in5x/s1600/their+fractured+light+temp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwZnlCd9ggDs4MKX5nwAFFzvU7LjvwHVvtW5yMxL_P2Bbuq8wE99DM6DevtnjKaNVFaQphHUnPhMU3Nb6JmVttXFpNVnzwqwcWFI_nH-Xs5YsXkSakvLsbAac2E8QEC848YqbvBLR7in5x/s200/their+fractured+light+temp.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13138736-their-fractured-light">Their Fractured Light</a> by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner</div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What are you most excited about for the rest of the year? Have you read any of the ones on my list? Let me know!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>ETA: UM DUH, HOW DID I FORGET BASICALLY THE BOOK OF HONOUR, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13206900-winter">WINTER</a> (which we have to wait until November for)???</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsFkBagdGe4U2QCK9th_ATqGwlwiySeJF3Gambb4amXjJMpI9DJY02dsRM7xgfbF6Q-oBcSFuGQjfLpVqjL19_2XB9Xh-YrM802JYxDgqHBZpevp_1SxN1ku32TOrRdeDpDMe7r6R1BLLE/s1600/winter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsFkBagdGe4U2QCK9th_ATqGwlwiySeJF3Gambb4amXjJMpI9DJY02dsRM7xgfbF6Q-oBcSFuGQjfLpVqjL19_2XB9Xh-YrM802JYxDgqHBZpevp_1SxN1ku32TOrRdeDpDMe7r6R1BLLE/s320/winter.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-80880354516568803092015-06-05T01:00:00.000-04:002015-06-05T13:05:11.753-04:00BEA '15 Recap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3L6DQoqzY2ZiOYgu6OX-Ysua7zHEvBY4otqOUqFehTkhamIYJZqN4RzMghkzOj4AWkpz8qmAT0Om7WR7qi45Ozc983-EfFcO7zHmTq5BUJLI20uFsEKfyI95_HofDoTtYaujs0lzBGqUK/s1600/bea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3L6DQoqzY2ZiOYgu6OX-Ysua7zHEvBY4otqOUqFehTkhamIYJZqN4RzMghkzOj4AWkpz8qmAT0Om7WR7qi45Ozc983-EfFcO7zHmTq5BUJLI20uFsEKfyI95_HofDoTtYaujs0lzBGqUK/s400/bea.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />
WHEW! My trip to New York City for BEA this year was a whirlwind 6 days that left me totally exhausted but also very reinvigorated about books and blogging and this entire, wonderful community. I'm glad I get a chance to relax now (for a bit... I leave for Europe next week!) but I also loved the chance to spend time with some of the most fantastic people in US publishing. I was terrible about taking pictures because there was always SO MUCH HAPPENING but I borrowed a couple from my friend and BEA buddy <a href="https://twitter.com/lostatmidnight">Ciara</a> of <a href="http://lostatmidnightreviews.blogspot.ca/">Lost at Midnight</a> for this post (unless otherwise credited, all photographs are hers).<br />
<br />
<h2>
Tuesday</h2>
I arrived in New York on Tuesday afternoon and my roomies (Ciara, <a href="https://twitter.com/emiliebookworld">Emilie</a>, <span style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://twitter.com/TheLadyCritic">Katherine</a></span>, <a href="https://twitter.com/kathycoe">Kathy</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/KaleyS23">Kaley</a>) and I all basically dumped our stuff in our rented apartment and turned back out the door to head to Teen Author Carnival, which took place at one of the NY Public Library locations that night.<br />
<br />
There were two panels running concurrently and then two more concurrent ones following, so I got to attend two of the four that night.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8lHhwSOleA1GiQLuLDK_4wX3HP-F6QIJMUf8k95pTwyztM4ng-NOL3kWMDjP_0SYoHFFIvTPrHKZYyKVHtg0gyr9F3W4L0f3t1ii0VH23uzdezWXc8HCVXfbu6NCQKghGVzVwFytBt3Tc/s1600/panel1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8lHhwSOleA1GiQLuLDK_4wX3HP-F6QIJMUf8k95pTwyztM4ng-NOL3kWMDjP_0SYoHFFIvTPrHKZYyKVHtg0gyr9F3W4L0f3t1ii0VH23uzdezWXc8HCVXfbu6NCQKghGVzVwFytBt3Tc/s400/panel1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Panel 1 was about the concept of time in YA and featured <a href="https://twitter.com/lancerubinparty">Lance Rubin</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/AdiAlsaid">Adi Alsaid</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/mariekeyn">Marieke Nijkamp</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/tommywallach">Tommy Wallach</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/LeilaSalesBooks">Leila Sales</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/JenESmith">Jennifer E. Smith</a>, and was moderated by <a href="https://twitter.com/RebeccaASerle">Rebecca Serle</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja8R5B_0BOaygB5eFMW2Epkp13OaTzigZO6Bke1PxMc8RHAth0N_7FDjtKT0j2ucjb3XasxonB-PEzxC-bY2ZIhTQxvlPkGfsQ0NPVA85xHuczevqlxb3TG3J34zYXGqkSdrkfhGSBPbDn/s1600/panel2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja8R5B_0BOaygB5eFMW2Epkp13OaTzigZO6Bke1PxMc8RHAth0N_7FDjtKT0j2ucjb3XasxonB-PEzxC-bY2ZIhTQxvlPkGfsQ0NPVA85xHuczevqlxb3TG3J34zYXGqkSdrkfhGSBPbDn/s400/panel2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Panel 2 focused on world building and featured <a href="https://twitter.com/meligrey">Melissa Grey</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/virgboecker">Virginia Boecker</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/ca_london">Alex London</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/JLArmentrout">Jennifer L. Armentrout</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/alexbracken">Alexandra Bracken</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/stdennard">Susan Dennard</a>, and was moderated by <a href="https://twitter.com/clairelegrand">Claire Legrand</a>.<br />
<br />
Afterward there was time for some book signing where I met amazing authors like Susan Dennard (hey Sooz, we didn't die getting Truthwitch, just like we promised we wouldn't!), <a href="https://twitter.com/KatieMcGarry">Katie McGarry</a> (with whom I gushed over her characters), <a href="https://twitter.com/MissDahlELama">Dahlia Adler</a> (finally! Just as awesome in real life as on the internet, which is pretty damn awesome), and <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSilvera">Adam Silvera</a> (who is the most wonderful person and also super tall), among others.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaQcyw3uTo9sb-TZVsqH0mlA_Gw-omViLq9jcgGjGeLXOjUejuMgyg3YSXqT0P04HXAIca16XK0aq06xiI9rWsl9ElDyByRqZkv21cUOxdx8rYQzD7jsqguh_NZ2bwYoQ1hl6-mhdBqPcH/s640/blogger-image-886010218.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaQcyw3uTo9sb-TZVsqH0mlA_Gw-omViLq9jcgGjGeLXOjUejuMgyg3YSXqT0P04HXAIca16XK0aq06xiI9rWsl9ElDyByRqZkv21cUOxdx8rYQzD7jsqguh_NZ2bwYoQ1hl6-mhdBqPcH/s320/blogger-image-886010218.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXTILmmsz2zCM5uhx-Q68WNIqguV5giXhZdBWKf904cmC_e1daGjL3-tuA7twiZxjgvifZJCyh6RNEEdeugWjY7Fw2gGQy5wCL1mAkWnCERwGN8BgEQi_zN4Vrik7fhsSs7dF76o2LYsA/s640/blogger-image--805582780.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXTILmmsz2zCM5uhx-Q68WNIqguV5giXhZdBWKf904cmC_e1daGjL3-tuA7twiZxjgvifZJCyh6RNEEdeugWjY7Fw2gGQy5wCL1mAkWnCERwGN8BgEQi_zN4Vrik7fhsSs7dF76o2LYsA/s320/blogger-image--805582780.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Me and Adam posing nicely (in which he is so tall and I am so short) and then being silly so I could be the tall one for once! (These pictures are mine)</i></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Katherine and me Dumplin' posing for Julie Murphy after Teen Author Carnival on Tuesday </i></div>
<br />
<h2>
Wednesday</h2>
Wednesday marked the beginning of BEA with the half-day, which kicked off with some serious <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21414439-truthwitch">Truthwitch</a></i> madness as everyone scurried to Macmillan as the floor opened to snag a golden ticket (literally) to be able to get this one. This was probably the most intense thing I took part in at BEA, though I heard there were some similar reactions to Alexandra Bracken's signing of <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20983362-passenger">Passenger</a></i> the next morning. Aside from that crazy entrance, though, Wednesday was a great day and I loved getting to see Sooz again (also oh my gosh I am so excited to start <i>Truthwitch</i>!). In the line, waiting for a few hours like the dedicated fans we are, I met <a href="https://twitter.com/staybookish">Hazel</a> (who did my blog design!) and <a href="https://twitter.com/louisse_ang">Louisse</a>, who both came to BEA from the Philippines! Talk about dedicated!<br />
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That night was the Epic Reads party, which I felt so lucky to be invited to (shoutout to <a href="https://twitter.com/HCCFrenzy">Suman at Harper Canada</a> for scoring us Canadian girls invites - you're the best!) At the party I met and actually got to chat a bit with some of the lovely Harper people, including <a href="https://twitter.com/margotwood">Margot</a>, briefly, as well as some Harper authors like <a href="https://twitter.com/CoreyAnnHaydu">Corey Ann Haydu</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/Patrick_Ness">Patrick Ness</a> (who signed my awesome book shimmy tote because he's great), and <a href="https://twitter.com/maggielehrman">Maggie Lehrman</a>. We all also went home with an awesome goodie bag containing some printouts of the cool Epic Reads posters (like their <a href="http://www.epicreads.com/blog/an-epic-chart-of-162-young-adult-retellings/">retellings bubble map</a> and their <a href="http://www.epicreads.com/blog/365-days-of-ya-a-2015-reading-calendar-infographic/">365 days of YA graphic</a>), some yummy treats (below), and a fall Harper ARC (I got <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17404295-ice-like-fire">Ice Like Fire</a>!). Such a fun night, overall!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmSsDpVZJv-tO7Jfa5scg4Ky6FM5aMdZOpAgH9IPdTwgINBt5r_2KFJbZkJ0Pry4pbn44rF120mOoGdxjcCosiWjdv34K5wwsDujCyAYRC4O7eT7Nyxl-xljKOd9JXIbT_ugsP_WFkT0UE/s1600/epic+reads2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmSsDpVZJv-tO7Jfa5scg4Ky6FM5aMdZOpAgH9IPdTwgINBt5r_2KFJbZkJ0Pry4pbn44rF120mOoGdxjcCosiWjdv34K5wwsDujCyAYRC4O7eT7Nyxl-xljKOd9JXIbT_ugsP_WFkT0UE/s320/epic+reads2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Epic Reads' epic rice krispie treats! </i></div>
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<i>Ciara and me after Epic Reads</i></div>
<h2>
Thursday</h2>
Thursday was a little more of a quiet day, wandering around the floor, stopping by some signings (I finally got to meet <a href="https://twitter.com/seesarawrite">Sara Raasch</a>) and chatting with people, including finally getting to meet <a href="https://twitter.com/KseniaWinnicki">Ksenia</a>, formerly of Macmillan publicity, who is now working at Simon & Schuster and who is amazing.<br />
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Later on in the day I got to meet up with <a href="https://twitter.com/ShaelynCherie">Shae</a> of <a href="http://www.shaelit.com/">Shae Has Left the Room</a> and we got to sit in the park and catch up, which was wonderful. It's always so great to finally get to sit and chat in person with the people you're friends with online, so I loved getting that chance.<br />
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Shae and I then headed to the Fierce Reads party at the Strand where we got to mingle with some amazing people. I met authors (I got to chat briefly with <a href="https://twitter.com/marissa_meyer">Marissa Meyer</a> (!!!), <a href="https://twitter.com/LBardugo">Leigh Bardugo</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/iamsandyhall">Sandy Hall</a>, plus Leila Sales and <a href="https://twitter.com/josieangelini">Josephine Angelini</a>, who are both even more unfairly gorgeous in person were there) and the amazing Macmillan team, including <a href="https://twitter.com/bpearlman89">Brittany</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/MVanAkin">Mary</a>, who are both so sweet. I also got to meet <a href="https://twitter.com/Reader_Fictions">Christina</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/GabySalpeter">Gaby</a>, met and spent some time with <a href="https://twitter.com/YerAWizardBekka">Bekka</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/MsAshleighPaige">Ashleigh</a>, and got to chat with <a href="https://twitter.com/LiliReflects">Lili</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/mizgillianberry">Gillian</a>. We also each went home with an awesome Fierce Reads tote bag with a book from each author inside!<br />
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<h2>
Friday</h2>
BEA finale day (because no way was I braving BookCon) and the day I spent the most time in autographing lines because I got to meet, among others, <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcyKate">MarcyKate Connolly</a> (who is so sweet! Hugs next time, MarcyKate), <a href="https://twitter.com/andimJULIE">Julie Murphy</a> (where Ciara and I got to spend some time with another <a href="https://twitter.com/DailyJulianne">Julie</a>, who is wonderful), <a href="https://twitter.com/IWGregorio">I.W. Gregorio</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/therealmbeller">Marcy Beller Paul</a>. I also stopped in line for Corey Ann Haydu's new middle grade, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24515547-rules-for-stealing-stars">Rules for Stealing Stars</a></i>; Dahlia had her signing for <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22719283-under-the-lights">Under the Lights</a></i>, which I was first in line for because I was NOT missing that, and I managed to hop into Alex Bracken's line for <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16150831-in-the-afterlight">In the Afterlight</a></i>.<br />
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Ciara and I were also first in line for Patrick Ness (signing his upcoming title <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23830990-the-rest-of-us-just-live-here">The Rest of Us Just Live Here</a></i>), whose line basically exploded out behind us and grew to be about five rows of people deep, so... good decision-making on our part to be early.<br />
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<i>SO MANY PEOPLE. Except for the group behind the black rope in the back, everyone in that open space is all there for Patrick Ness. And that wasn't even everyone. I think this is when it was only around 3 rows deep. </i></div>
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Friday night was our blogger dinner, which was a lot of fun. I got to meet and chat with <a href="https://twitter.com/skizzles22">Holly</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/ShannonMiz">Shannon</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/InnocentSmileyx">Val</a>, who are all lovely and totally my kind of people. Afterwards, the roomies and I plus <a href="https://twitter.com/mostlyyalit">Tiff</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/readthisya">Sarah</a> all made a trip to The Strand, where I was almost completely overwhelmed by books but managed to be reasonable and not go over my spending limit, of which I am very proud. But seriously, if I lived in NYC, The Strand would have all my money, always.<br />
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</h4>
<h2>
Saturday</h2>
Saturday was basically the only free time we had, so we all headed out to do some New York things. Emilie and I did a little shopping and then saw <i>Finding Neverland</i> on Broadway starring <i>Glee</i> alum Matthew Morrison and <i>So You Think You Can Dance</i> alum Melanie Moore, who were both wonderful. This show was so fantastic - definitely see it if you get the chance. It totally had Em and I both in tears at one point.<br />
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Then that evening was the Paper Lantern Lit party in Brooklyn which was lovely and very mingle-friendly (I got to see Adam again and finally meet <a href="https://twitter.com/TalkativeTara">Tara</a>, who was so nice and gave us all ARCs of the next big PLL & Harlequin title, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23569428-legacy-of-kings" style="font-style: italic;">Legacy of Kings</a>, which I am really looking forward to - thanks so much, Tara!) and had the most delicious punch courtesy of <a href="https://twitter.com/Lexa_Hillyer">Lexa</a>, who the party was also for in honour of the launch of her debut, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18520642-proof-of-forever">Proof of Forever</a></i>.<br />
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And that's it! I left NYC Sunday afternoon totally wiped and lugging crazy heavy bags but so happy I did it.<br />
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Finally, getting back to the books (because that's what this really is all about, right?), to give you an idea of what kind of book talk you can look forward to from me in the coming months, here are the books I picked up at BEA that I'm the <i>most</i> excited about.<br />
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Any of these you think I should get to right away? Let me know! I don't know how else I'll possibly choose what to dig into first. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-48777932354500121702015-06-04T01:00:00.000-04:002015-06-04T09:57:38.405-04:00Review: This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13138734-this-shattered-world">This Shattered World</a> by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner.<br />
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Starbound Series #2.<br />
Published: December 23, 2014.<br />
Published by: Disney-Hyperion.<br />
Source: Borrowed from <a href="http://glass-of-wine.blogspot.ca/">Kathy</a>. Thanks Kathy!<br />
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Goodreads Blurb:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.31999969482422px;"><b>The second installment in the epic <em>Starbound</em> trilogy introduces a new pair of star-crossed lovers on two sides of a bloody war.</b><br /><br />Jubilee Chase and Flynn Cormac should never have met.<br /><br />Lee is captain of the forces sent to Avon to crush the terraformed planet's rebellious colonists, but she has her own reasons for hating the insurgents.<br /><br />Rebellion is in Flynn's blood. Terraforming corporations make their fortune by recruiting colonists to make the inhospitable planets livable, with the promise of a better life for their children. But they never fulfilled their promise on Avon, and decades later, Flynn is leading the rebellion.<br /><br />Desperate for any advantage in a bloody and unrelentingly war, Flynn does the only thing that makes sense when he and Lee cross paths: he returns to base with her as prisoner. But as his fellow rebels prepare to execute this tough-talking girl with nerves of steel, Flynn makes another choice that will change him forever. He and Lee escape the rebel base together, caught between two sides of a senseless war.</span></blockquote>
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My Review:<br />
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I really loved <i>These Broken Stars</i>, the first in the Starbound trilogy, which led to me going into <i>This Shattered World</i> with some pretty high hopes. I probably should have controlled those hopes a little more because after such a great first story, this one unfortunately ended up being a bit of a let down in a few different ways. I still enjoyed it, but it wasn't everything the first one was for me.<br />
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I can't help but compare the two books, so that will be a constant theme throughout this review, even though I know I should probably try to see this book on its own. However, since they're marketed as a series, I think it's only fair to assume that people will read this one coming off the last one, and thus it's also fair for me to review it like that. It's funny because I remember thinking that the plot of the previous book was a little slow since Tarver and Lilac spend quite a bit of time walking around, but for some reason the plot of this one also felt really slow despite the fact that I think there was more action happening. Maybe that's an indication of the Kaufman/Spooner combined writing style more than anything if it seems to be a constant, but while it worked for me in the last one, here I felt like there should have been more action and excitement. When there was, though, I was totally into it. It had the kind of space politics and rebellion action that I was excited about once those moments actually came up. I think it's also worth noting that I found the flashbacks kind of unnecessary in this one. They didn't really add enough for me to make them feel worthwhile here when I found I felt like they pulled me out of the action a bit.<br />
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On their own, I definitely liked both Jubliee and Flynn. Jubilee was the more memorable of the two to me and she is a total kickbutt, take-no-prisoners type who I absolutely loved to watch in action. Flynn I enjoyed as well, as he is an unusual hero but has a smart grasp on what he is trying to do for his people and makes a very respectable leader. I appreciated that neither of them were perfect and that they both struggled with that, but I still found it a little hard to connect to them completely. They just didn't feel as open to readers as Tarver and Lilac did. One of the things I really appreciated about both main characters, though (and with Flynn especially), was their convictions. Their beliefs and loyalties run deep and watching them balance those with things that question and counter their ideas all while trying to maintain their sense of who they truly are and what they stand for was really interesting.<br />
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However, I do have to say, again comparing this one to <i>These Broken Stars</i> that the dual narrative was not as good this time around. I found that while Tarver and Lilac had had different voices so that I could nearly always tell who was talking without needing their name attached, Jubilee and Flynn tended to blend together too much and I often found myself flipping back to where it identified who was narrating the chapter. I wish they had come across as more individually distinct voices.<br />
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I loved that Tarver and Lilac had a little cameo in this one; it was a lot of fun and it's so great to get to check in on the old characters and get a glimpse of what they're up to. However in this case, it only served to remind me how much I fell for their romance (I came to ship them so hard) and in contrast, how much I wasn't connecting with the idea of Lee and Flynn together. I mean, I liked them together, don't get me wrong. And I appreciated the hate-and-distrust-to-like trope and the way it was used here, as well as the way each of their feelings made both themselves and the other feel. I enjoyed watching them struggle with those feelings. But I didn't feel the same inescapable draw for them to be together. I didn't feel as much tension as I think the authors were going for. I think part of that came from the fact that they didn't banter like Tarver and Lilac did, and banter is one of the best ways to get me to fall for a couple. I just didn't see the couple here clicking, I guess, as much as the couple in the last book.<br />
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I wasn't able to connect with <i>This Shattered World</i> in the same way as I did the first one, whether in plot or in characters or in romance, which was a little disappointing. On its own, it's a good book with an interesting story and some great action. However, reading it after <i>These Broken Stars </i>and knowing what Kaufman and Spooner together are capable of, it didn't completely meet my hopes for it.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-49628343258654214232015-06-02T01:00:00.000-04:002015-06-02T09:54:25.983-04:00Top Ten Books I'd Love To See On Screen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Top Ten Tuesday was created by (and topics are given by) <a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/p/top-ten-tuesday-other-features.html">The Broke and The Bookish</a>.<br />
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We did this topic back in 2013 (<a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/09/top-ten-books-id-like-to-see-on-screen.html">here are my picks from then</a>, which I still stand behind... especially my GOT-scope Lunar Chronicles show), so all of these picks are going to be books I've read since then. And, as in that case, this takes place in a perfect world in which any TV or movie adaptation would be a flawless one, because I will not accept less.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16085457-shadow-scale">Shadow Scale</a> by Rachel Hartman<br />
<i>Seraphina</i> was on my list last time as a movie adaptation to make up for the <i>Eragon</i> train wreck, but after reading <i>Shadow Scale</i>, I would like to see an entire TV show based around Seraphina and her world. It's intricate and it has so many unique and interesting characters to explore, plus the politics would add a lot of conflict and tension throughout. Another one that could be incredible in <i>Game of Thrones</i> scope.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18285437-rites-of-passage">Rites of Passage</a> by Joy N. Hensley<br />
This would be an awesome movie like <i>Cadet Kelly</i> (Hilary Duff DCOM) but with darker undercurrents and more intense drama. I would be all over a visual representation of this story of girls entering the boys' club and taking down the misogynistic secret society that plagues it while proving that they're just as badass. How empowering and exciting would that movie be?<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18885674-the-scandalous-sisterhood-of-prickwillow-place">The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place</a> by Julie Berry<br />
A group of young Victorian girls trying to solve a murder while hiding its occurrence from all the adults around them? Can you imagine the crazy shenanigans that would take place in that movie? I'm picturing some <i>Matilda</i> and <i>Home Alone</i> elements but with a fun historical flair.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18005276-nil">Nil</a> by Lynne Matson<br />
This could be an awesome <i>Lost</i> style TV show with teens trying to survive and escape Nil. Beginning with Charley's arrival and spanning at least through the end of the sequel, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22718810-nil-unlocked">Nil Unlocked</a></i> (and maybe even through the as yet unpublished third book), we could have a fantastic cast of characters and some high stakes, heart pounding drama as they try to solve the island's mysteries as some teens arrive and some leave... one way or another.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/102448-maids-of-honor">Maids of Honor</a> series by Jennifer McGowan<br />
<i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13260426-maid-of-secrets">Maid of Secrets</a></i> and <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13260425-maid-of-deception">Maid of Deception</a></i> are the first two books in the series, each following two different members of Queen Elizabeth I's special circle of five young women who act as her personal spies. Seeing their spy work would be fun and exciting, and watching their interactions with each other, with members of the court, with their supervisors, and with Elizabeth herself would create some fantastic dynamics to grow with. Plus there would be plenty of gorgeous costumes and hot guys, à la CW's <i>Reign</i>, so... win-win.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22501055-under-a-painted-sky">Under a Painted Sky</a> by Stacey Lee<br />
I think that this story of a growing friendship in a time of desperation would be a powerful and moving one as two young women disguise themselves as boys to run away from their lives and take on the Oregon Trail. I also think it would be a fantastic look into that time in history. The cast of characters is so great (especially Samantha, Annamae, and the little group of cowboys they meet), there's plenty of adventure, people seem to love "journey" movies, and I always want more visual content set in the past because I love seeing it come alive. Plus how awesome would it be to have a movie led by two young women of colour? Seriously.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18081228-the-orphan-queen">The Orphan Queen</a> by Jodi Meadows<br />
A princess who has lost her kingdom and must infiltrate another while working with a group of fellow orphans from her old homeland to try and get her throne back, all while she keeps crossing paths with a mysterious vigilante? Oh yeah, and there's magic, too? Holy awesome story. This one might make a good movie (as long as there's a sequel!) or could be a really cool miniseries, depending on how they worked it. The miniseries would give more opportunity to flesh things out, which might be ideal since there's so much going on here and even things I wished had been explored more in the book. Either way, I want.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20821111-the-young-elites">The Young Elites</a> by Marie Lu<br />
Similarly to <i>The Orphan Queen</i> above, this one has so much going on and such a rich fantasy world to pull from that it could also make an incredible movie series or TV miniseries. It would be dark and gritty but would also have incredibly visually beautiful moments. It has conflicted characters as well as muddled motivations and goals. There's so much storytelling potential here as well as a ton of visual opportunity. I'd love to see it come to life!<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/70002-starbound">The Starbound</a> series by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner<br />
<i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13138635-these-broken-stars">These Broken Stars</a></i> and <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13138734-this-shattered-world">This Shattered World</a></i>, plus the upcoming <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13138736-their-fractured-light">Their Fractured Light</a></i> could, I think, make up a really cool show kind of in the scope of <i>The 100</i>, following different groups of people at different times as they face interconnected and largely unknown troubles across planets as they all fight against the "big bad" of LaRoux Industries in different ways. The timelines would have to be shifted a little to make it work as a TV show but hey, they've done that before.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13638125-vicious">Vicious</a> by V.E. Schwab<br />
I want a Vicious movie so bad, guys. So bad. I want Dane DeHaan as Victor Vale and I want Dave Franco as Eli Ever. I want to see their relationship grow and their science develop and then I want to see it all crash down around them. I want to see their powers. I want the shades of grey that they both embody so well. I want the dark, super not-hero-but-not-quite-villain movie that this could be.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-65349208350048562502015-05-08T01:00:00.000-04:002015-05-08T01:00:05.849-04:00Expanding Horizons: New Adult LitToday we're going to tackle a rather new topic for Read My Breath Away: New Adult.<br />
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I love my YA, don't get me wrong. I think I always will. But lately I've been thinking that maybe I should read some stories that are centred around the stage that I'm in in my life right now as I start thinking about my last year of university and what lies beyond. This is where you guys come in.<br />
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I have a couple of NA experts in my life, so a lot of the recommendations I've gotten so far have come from them. I'm really excited about the titles they've put forward but I also wanted to put the call out generally to see if there are any fantastic NA that have slipped by my experts.<br />
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I really want to read NA that has substance. I know a lot of them seem to focus significantly around dark, troubled relationships and sex. I want NA with more than that. Obviously I have no issue with reading sex in my books if I'm taking this leap, but I don't want that to be the only thing carrying the book. Also, I really don't want abuse romanticized, which I've heard can be an issue in some NA, so please don't steer me towards those. You will have a very unpleasant Jess on your hands if you do that to me.<br />
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So far, I have a few lined up for me. One that I've been meaning to read for AGES is Cora Carmack's <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16034964-losing-it">Losing It</a></i> (and I hope I love it because she's got lots more to dive into afterwards). At the insistence of rec-ing ball <a href="https://twitter.com/MissDahlELama">Dahlia</a>, I picked up <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20877902-unteachable">Unteachable</a></i> by Leah Raeder (and I have a good feeling I'll be reading more of what Leah puts out because I've heard nothing but great things about <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18829666-black-iris">Black Iris</a></i> as well) and I also recently bought Dahlia's own NA debut, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23357716-last-will-and-testament">Last Will and Testament</a></i>. The Ottawa bloggers each got a copy of Ann Aguirre's <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20945757-i-want-it-that-way">I Want It That Way</a></i> (hello earworm!) at our meetup -- thanks Harlequin! And from my NA Expert #1, <a href="http://www.emiliebookworld.com/">Emilie</a>, I borrowed Karina Halle's <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22609201-where-sea-meets-sky"><i>Where Sea Meets Sky</i></a>, which I can't wait to dig into mostly because it's set in New Zealand. Two others on my radar are <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18635166-boomerang">Boomerang</a></i> by Noelle August (I see you, Veronica Rossi) and <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17695321-swimming-to-tokyo">Swimming to Tokyo</a></i> by Brenda St. John Brown.<br />
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All of these are NA books that I'm planning to read soon as part of my efforts to read a little more in my age zone (even though I don't really like the way that sounds... YA forever!!!)<br />
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Have you read and loved any of these? Do you have any other NA faves that you can recommend? Lay 'em on me!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-60938209116231518312015-05-05T01:00:00.000-04:002015-05-05T10:59:17.332-04:00Underrated YA: "Genre Novel" EditionPart Two!<br />
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I've talked about this before but in response to <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/sarahgalo/underrated-book-series-that-need-more-love#.qfEeVYOOYp">this crazypants Buzzfeed list</a>, today I'm going to tell you about some <b>actual</b><i style="font-weight: bold;"> </i>underrated YA (in my humble opinion, anyway) that you should probably go get your hands on ASAP. This follows along the lines of Twitter's response to the same article which took place under #quietYA.<br />
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Note: Since I'm being all adamant about the fact that I want to shed light on truly underrated books here, I've put some rules in place for myself. 1, Nothing that's been on the NYT Bestseller list (because guys, that's not underrated). 2, Nothing that currently has a fancy (major) "Award Winner/Nominee" medal on its cover (like for the Morris Debut Award - sorry, <i>In the Shadow of Blackbirds</i> and <i>Charm & Strange</i>! I still love you!) because that can definitely help with exposure. 3. Nothing that I've seen talked about constantly on social media/blogs within my slice of the book world because I figure you're all exposed to similar chatter and then those books aren't really underrated to you anymore, are they?<br />
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When I started writing this, I realized that I had so many recs there was no way I could have fit all the books I wanted to rec into one post. So I decided to turn this into a mini-series type deal, hence the second part of the title. This is part two and will cover (my interpretation of) "Genre novels," so in this case: fantasy, paranormal(ish - no straight paranormal here, actually), sci-fi, and magical realism novels. I already featured historical fiction <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2015/04/underrated-ya-historical-fiction-edition.html">here</a> and I'm also going to have an installment for contemporary novels.<br />
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With all that said, here are my genre fiction picks!<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10929432-the-archived">The Archived</a> and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13638131-the-unbound">The Unbound</a> by Victoria Schwab</b><br />
Most people know V.E. Schwab for her adult titles (with major crossover appeal), <i>Vicious</i> and <i>A Darker Shade of Magic</i>. While those books absolutely deserve their hype, people who ignore her true YA stuff, especially this duology (to hopefully one day be a full trilogy) are truly missing out not only on more of her incredible storytelling but also on some wonderful characters and a truly unique idea.<br />
(My review of <i>The Unbound</i> <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2014/02/blog-tour-review-unbound-by-victoria.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15797050-pantomime">Pantomime</a> by Laura Lam</b><br />
I haven't had a chance to read its sequel, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17797456-shadowplay">Shadowplay</a></i>, yet but I'm sure when I do it'll go right on this list as well. But on Pantomime for now: this is a book with a circus (which is such a fun and interesting setting, by the way), magic, and a protagonist working through finding their place and identity. This book is different from pretty much anything else I've read and I really recommend it.<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/02/arc-review-pantomime-by-laura-lam.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13132403-17-gone">17 & Gone</a> by Nova Ren Suma</b><br />
All you people who are flailing over her newest release, <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18044277-the-walls-around-us">The Walls Around Us</a></i>, and wondering who this wonderful author is need to get the heck on the backlist train! <i>17 & Gone</i> is Suma's third book (I believe) and wow, is it ever a doozy. I wrote an entire post about how this book made me reflect on the way my depression and social anxiety affected me throughout high school and continues to affect me now in university. It played with my mind and truly got into my heart, all with Suma's wonderful prose that seems to be a staple in her work.<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2013/03/arc-review-17-gone-by-nova-ren-suma.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17225463-nil">Nil</a> by Lynne Matson</b><br />
Teens dropped on an island paradise that might actually be somewhat sentient and turns out to be far from paradise? A year each to try and escape before their time runs out? Sounds like ingredients for an exciting and suspenseful and unique sci-fi, right? RIGHT. Throw in some fun and really enjoyable characters and some fantastic female agency in Charlie and I call <i>Nil </i>a total winner!<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2014/03/review-nil-by-lynne-matson.html">here</a>)<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18166936-the-strange-and-beautiful-sorrows-of-ava-lavender">The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender</a> by Leslye Walton</b><br />
I feel like a lot of things about the description of this one might scare people off... strong magical realism, a generational aspect, etc, but it's actually a beautiful and compelling read that explores themes in family and religion, and looks at when devotion turns obsessive in a very memorable way. This is not the kind of book I'm normally drawn to but it really surprised me and I'd love to see more people give it a shot!<br />
(My review <a href="http://readmybreathaway.blogspot.ca/2014/03/review-strange-and-beautiful-sorrows-of.html">here</a>)<br />
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Did I miss one that would be on your list of underrated genre fiction? Are any of these on your TBR?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-42768131621726287962015-04-24T01:00:00.000-04:002015-04-24T01:00:04.467-04:00Engage Grabby Hands Upon... Inspired by <a href="http://bookriot.com/2015/04/06/phrases-trigger-shut-take-money-response/">this post</a> at BookRiot, today I wanted to share the keywords or phrases that, when found on books, immediately make my grabby hands start to tingle. And, like Maddie at BookRiot, I basically transform into Fry when I find that some of these things have been combined into one glorious promise of a book.<br />
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I actually have a lot in common with BookRiot's Maddie and thus I must agree with her on the following that she mentioned in her post:<br />
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- <i><b>"a pair/group of [young] women must work together"</b></i><br />
You want to give me a girl gang? I want that girl gang. Seriously though, I love when women (I specified young women there because I'm focused on YA here) have to team up to get things done. Also, it means more awesome lady characters to enjoy and hopefully wonderful friendships to eat up. Win/win/winwinwin.<br />
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- <i><b>"set in 19th century London"</b></i><br />
I don't limit myself to the 19th century or to London - I am a fairly equal opportunity hist. fic. lover - but there's just something about the atmosphere so often found in books about this time and place that sucks me right in.<br />
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- <b style="font-style: italic;">"murderess/lady assassin" </b>and my addition, <b><i>"lady spies"</i></b><br />
As if I could even pretend that these ones don't immediately catch my attention.<br />
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In addition, here are some of the other things that make me drool for a book right off the bat:<br />
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- <b><i>"Greek/Roman/Egyptian/Norse mythology"</i></b><br />
I'm sure I've told this story here before, but I was totally that kid in elementary school who sat in the library and read absolutely everything about mythology that I could get my hands on. I literally did a whole posterboard project on the Egyptian gods (Isis, Ra, and Set, if you're wondering which ones) FOR FUN. And *nerd alert* one of my favourite PC strategy games has always been Age of Mythology. So what I'm saying is that I want all the mythology YA, please and thank you.<br />
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- <b><i>"Tudor"</i></b><br />
Yes, seriously, the word Tudor is basically all it takes. I'm a little obsessed with the Tudor line, especially around the rule of King Henry VIII, so I jump all over books that promise<br />
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- <b><i>"witches in historical-leaning fantasy"</i></b><br />
I don't really gravitate so much towards modern witch stories but you give me witches in a historical-fantasy-like world and I am so in. <br />
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- <b><i>"WWII"</i></b><br />
Dark? Maybe. But honestly, WWII fiction is like cat nip. It's another one of those historical periods that I have always had an interest in and so since I've done lots of studying of the facts side of things, I love reading the stories that people imagine go along with it.<br />
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- <b><i>"girl disguised as a boy"</i></b><br />
When girls have to disguise themselves as guys to survive and there's always the risk that they could be discovered and there's usually tension galore? Yeah, gimmie. I think I might have <i>Mulan</i> to thank for loving this trope so much.<br />
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- <b><i>"pirates"</i></b><br />
There are not enough pirates in YA these days. Every time I hear about a pirate story I almost start to drool. Pirates are ruthless, exciting, adventurous, and usually a couple of them are pretty sexy (in literature, anyway), and those things are all so much fun to read about. Plus there's often lots of travel in pirate stories, which, honestly, you can't go wrong with.<br />
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Now that I've shared by book kryptonite with you, I want to know what yours are! What keywords or phrases set your bookish heart aflutter?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554598904814955639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454434647297305958.post-38469916888206731702015-04-23T01:00:00.001-04:002015-04-23T01:00:01.119-04:00Giveaway: Beautiful Girl by Lida James<div>
Today in partnership with the wonderful Paper Lantern Lit, I'm excited to offer up the chance to win an e-copy of Lida James' <i>Beautiful Girl</i>, a PLL The Studio title. I'm hoping to be reviewing this one soon but people have been saying some really great things about it! So if you have an Apple-compatible product on which you can read e-books, make sure you enter for your chance to win below!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9nUrC0dfWT_5YBbLoUb98j7R4SAePpFJSclIANTuzhcAQQLwz4PEUK-J6DdS4KAQlIuZONz13GcqBNUCRol0z9YOh85foOb4Rp3gqMLp4wC_Dzw_64Ej3wxEobi61oEkkowbRg1rfHV9/s1600/beautiful+girl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9nUrC0dfWT_5YBbLoUb98j7R4SAePpFJSclIANTuzhcAQQLwz4PEUK-J6DdS4KAQlIuZONz13GcqBNUCRol0z9YOh85foOb4Rp3gqMLp4wC_Dzw_64Ej3wxEobi61oEkkowbRg1rfHV9/s1600/beautiful+girl.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21526290-beautiful-girl">Beautiful Girl</a> by Lida James</div>
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Published: October 28, 2014.</div>
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Published by: The Studio, a PLL imprint.</div>
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Goodreads Synopsis:
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.31999969482422px;">Darkness has a way of catching up... <br /> <br />Sophomore year at Dutchess College has just begun, and Nicole is still haunted by memories of her first love, Zach. As the changing leaves fall on the stately Hudson Valley campus, she takes solace in running—pushing herself to go harder, faster, to be the best. With the wind blowing through her hair, she can almost convince herself that she is beautiful, that she will find love again.<br /><br />So when Nico runs, quite literally, into the maddeningly elusive Justin, she’s convinced she’s found the guy to make her forget her ex—despite the warnings of her friends and her straight-edged running partner, Luke.<br />But when Nico is attacked in the woods after a wild night of partying, everything changes. Suddenly, Nico begins receiving anonymous threats, and she no longer knows where to turn for help—or whether even her close friends can be trusted.<br /><br />All she wants is to be one of the beautiful girls—the ones who never have to chase perfection. But in order to uncover the truth, she’ll have to face a past she had hoped to leave behind forever. She thought she could outrun the darkness, but darkness has a way of catching up…and only one boy can save her.</span></blockquote>
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<u>Please Note:</u><br />
This giveaway is open to anyone with an <b>Apple-compatible e-reader or device</b> (void where prohibited). Paper Lantern Lit is handling the giveaway, so by entering you are providing them with any information you put into the Rafflecopter.<br />
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Good luck!<br />
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