Showcase Sunday (14)

 

 Hosted by the lovely Books, Biscuits and Tea, the aim of Showcase Sunday is to highlight our newest books or book related swag and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto e-readers each week. 

 

 

Bought:

~ Ten by Gretchen McNeil (already read this! My review is already up! So creepy!)
~ The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
~ What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang (So freaking excited to read this!)  
~ Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout (already read and I own an ARC but can't help buying JLA's first ever hardcover! read my review here!)

For Review: 

~ All The Broken Things by Cindi Madsen (thank you to Entangled Teen for the e-galley. Read this in one night and OMG so freaking good! Review for blog tour!)

~ Conjure by Lea Nolan (thank you again to Entangled Teen! Currently reading this one!)

~ Alice In Zombieland by Gena Showalter (thanks to MiraInk for the finished copy!)

~ Devil's Bargain by Rachel Caine (thanks again to MiraInk for the finished copy!)

So, what did YOU guys get this week? Let me know what you think of my weekly haul and leave your links down below, I'll go and check them out! :)

Weekly Roundup!

~ Monday
Review of Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor 
~ Wednesday
Waiting On Wednesday: The Summer I Became A Nerd by Leah Rae Miller
~ Friday
Cover Reveal: Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Cover Reveal: Pantomime by Laura Lam
~ Saturday
Review of TEN by Gretchen McNeil

Review: Ten - Gretchen McNeil

Title: Ten

Author: Gretchen McNeil

Release Date: September 18th 2012

Genre: Young Adult, Horror Suspense and Mystery

Publisher: Balzer & Bray

Pages: 304

Source: Bought

And their doom comes swiftly.

It was supposed to be the weekend of their lives—an exclusive house party on Henry Island. Best friends Meg and Minnie each have their reasons for being there (which involve T.J., the school’s most eligible bachelor) and look forward to three glorious days of boys, booze and fun-filled luxury.

But what they expect is definitely not what they get, and what starts out as fun turns dark and twisted after the discovery of a DVD with a sinister message: Vengeance is mine.

Suddenly people are dying, and with a storm raging, the teens are cut off from the outside world. No electricity, no phones, no internet, and a ferry that isn’t scheduled to return for two days. As the deaths become more violent and the teens turn on each other, can Meg find the killer before more people die? Or is the killer closer to her than she could ever imagine?

 
THIS BOOK. People, this book got me in trouble OK. Yes. You heard me. I had to go to my school's 'Catch Up Club' two days ago because I nearly fell asleep during a class and I was walking around like a freaking zombie. AND I NEVER USED TO GET IN TROUBLE. Until now. You wanna know the reason why? Because this book had me shitting myself and I couldn't sleep after reading it at night. Sounds fab, right?

Surprisingly, this book got a 5 goddess rating even when I didn't like ANY of the characters. You heard me, I disliked them all. And you guys know how much I need to like the characters to continue reading. But in this case, I still found myself flipping through the pages. 

The main character Meg was a little, well, boring. She was nothing special or anything like that. I'm actually finding it hard to talk about her. Both good and bad. That means she didn't really stand out or anything. But then again, the author might have done this deliberately as to not distract from the plot itself.

As you can see, there are TEN major characters in this book. It's right there on the title. Duh. Anyway, at the start I was worried that I wouldn't remember all of them, that some characters would mesh together in my mind and I would have trouble matching the names to their personality. Luckily, that didn't happen. All of them were very different and interesting. (Except for Meg - she was boring.) I think my favourite was T.J. And Gunner :)

Can I just say how much I freaking hate Minnie? (and guys I'm not talking about Minnie Mouse - that's another discussion for another day) Seriously, if I have a friend like Minnie I would like, kill myself. I want to bitch slap her. 

I love the way the author wrote this. It was very suspenseful, mysterious, and just downright creepy. I'm the biggest wimp ever, and I normally don't even read horror or anything like that. But this was such an exception. I don't regret reading it even though I was scared shitless. Like, I couldn't even close my eyes at night. Yeah, I totally blame this book that I was nearly falling asleep during Ethics class. Yep. 

I was suspicious of every character. Which is a good thing, people. Whenever I think "Oh, it's definitely them", the author steers me away the very second. There were a lot of twists and turns. And I loved every second of it. Bear in mind I haven't figured out who the killer was. TOTALLY took me by surprise. Yay!!

This was my first book by Gretchen McNeil, but it won't certainly be the last. I might have to check out her first book out last year, POSSESS. :)

Cover Reveal: Pantomime by Laura Lam

About PANTOMINE:

R.H. Ragona’s Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass – remnants of a mysterious civilisation long gone – are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It’s a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimaera is still there. It’s a place where anyone can hide.

Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star.

But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada.

Goodreads | Website | Publisher Page

   February 5th 2013 by Strange Chemistry

Cover Reveal: Opal (Lux #3) by Jennifer L. Armentrout!!!

About OPAL *faints*:

No one is like Daemon Black.

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

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

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

Together we’re stronger... and they know it.

December 11th 2012 from Entangled Teen

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

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

http://jenniferarmentrout.blogspot.com/p/october-1-2012.html

  

My thoughts on cover: *squeal* *happydance* Oh my shizzzzzzzz I love this cover!! Defnintely my favourite cover of the series yet (and yes, we still have 2 more books for this series!). I just love everyything about it. The colours, the font, the MODELS. As you know, Pepe and Stzella is possibly the best looking couple ever. And Pepe makes such a delicious Daemon LOL. I just love him. And his hair and his hands! DEAR GOD, HIS HANDS! *dies of hotness* And yes, I've got a thing for hands.

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

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

  

Waiting On Wednesday (27)

THE SUMMER I BECAME A NERD

by Leah Rae Miller

2013

~ Entangled TEEN ~

On the outside, seventeen-year-old Emma Jean Summers looks like your typical blond cheerleader. But inside, Emma spends more time agonizing over what will happen in the next issue of her favorite comic book than planning pep rallies with her quarterback boyfriend. That she's a nerd hiding in a popular girl's body isn't just unknown, it's anti-known. And she needs to keep it that way.

Summer break is the only time Emma lets her real self out to play, but when she slips up and the adorkable guy behind the local comic shop's counter uncovers her secret, she's busted. Before she can shake a pom-pom, Emma's whisked into Logan's world of comic conventions, live-action role playing, and first-person-shooter video games. And she loves it. But the more she denies who she really is, the deeper her lies become, and the more she risks losing Logan forever.

Add to Goodreads

When I first came across this on Goodreads, I was like I NEED TO HAVE THIS BOOK NOW. This sounds exactly like my kinda book! I haven't really read a YA book yet with a cheerleader protagonist so I'm really excited about this! I think the plot sounds really original! ME WANT IT NOW!!

Cover Thoughts: Well, obviously this doesn't have a cover yet but I think we can safely say I will love it! It IS Entangled after all! :) 

 

So what are YOU waiting for this Wednesday? 

Review: Days of Blood and Starlight - Laini Taylor

Title: Days of Blood and Starlight (Daughter #2)

Author: Laini Taylor

Release Date:November 6th 2012

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton

Pages:440

Source: Won! Thank you so much to DaughterofSmokeandBone from Twitter! :)

Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a new way of living – one without massacres and torn throats and bonfires of the fallen, without revenants or bastard armies or children ripped from their mothers’ arms to take their turn in the killing and dying.

Once, the lovers lay entwined in the moon’s secret temple and dreamed of a world that was a like a jewel-box without a jewel – a paradise waiting for them to find it and fill it with their happiness.

This was not that world.

 

As most of you know, Daughter of Smoke and Bone was one of my top ten best books read in 2011. I thought it was just super creative and I love the side characters. So you can imagine I had such high expectations for this sequel. Like, impossibly high expectations. Well, you can probably guess this sequel was just meh.

Okay. Before you guys bite my ass off, let me just tell you this. I liked it. I liked it enough to keep reading, to see what happens. But there were times when I just couldn't be bothered. (I was in a reading slump aswell during this time. Booo.)  Anyway, I think the writing and language was a major part in this. Don't get me wrong. Laini's writing is just in another world; it's that good. And it's so lyrical and posh and everything else that I'm like O_O while reading this. Coz guys, I much prefer like the straight to the point and addictive writing. I applaud her ability to create character's deaths (not really a spoiler; it's a freaking war. Someone's going to die.) so emotionally and even though you haven't spent that long with that character, you still feel like you've lost a friend. *cries*

Anyway, my favourite characters are most definitely Zuzana and her boyfriend Mik. Karou's human friends. Their interactions were just hilarious! Zuzana has such a great sense of her humor and someone that I would definitely want to be friends with. Mik was such a sweetie.

I'm a bit on the fence about Karou. Well to be honest I never really did connect with her in the first book too. She's strong and smart but comes across way entirely different. The love story in this was supposed to be really powerful and all that shit but because I never really did like them as a couple in the first book, I wasn't really that into them in this sequel. Wasn't really rooting for them. I'd rather have Karou be with someone else (who you'd meet later in this book). Now, he I had feelings for. *drools*

I hated Thiago. On second thought I think EVERYONE does. But my hatred for him is just in a whole new level. Dude. I'd even dig up his own grave for him. 

The plot was just so action-packed and dramatic and magical. It was really something else. There was a lot of stuff going on, and I think in some cases, TOO MUCH. 

There was this scene at the end where I thought 'THAT WAS JUST SO UNNECESSARY'. I can't wait for everyone to read this so I can talk about it with someone. I just didn't like it and unfortunately that was the scene where my mind goes to when I think of this book. Not good. 

Overall, it was a good read. Definitely not as good as Daughter and reading this, now I'm not dying for the next book. It can wait. 

 

Showcase Sunday (13)

 

 Hosted by the lovely Books, Biscuits and Tea, the aim of Showcase Sunday is to highlight our newest books or book related swag and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto e-readers each week. 

 

 

Bought:

~ My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris - Loved this book so much that I bought TWO copies! One for me (obvs!) and one for my friend! Read my review!
~ My Heart Be Damned by Chanelle Gray - read my review here! loved it!
~ Hidden by Sophie Jordan - Team Cassian! excited to read this!
~ Fathomless by Jackson Pearce - haven't read any of Jackson's books before.

For Review: 

~ The Truth About Faking by Leigh Talbort Moore -for blog tour!

Swag:

~  The Collector by Victoria Scott *SIGNED* bookmarks -eeep! She even put the best message on the post it note!! :D Dear lord I am dying for this book!
~  Hooked by Liz Fichera *SIGNED* swag pack - thank you so much! Loving the wristband! PINK!!

Weekly Round-up!

Monday

Review: Foretold Anthology by Richelle Mead, Simone Elkeles, Laini Taylor etc.

Tuesday

Blog Tour: Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins - Guest Post about Anna and Kaidan

Wednesday

Waiting On Wednesday: Hooked by Liz Fichera 

Thursday

Review: The Diviners by Libba Bray

Friday

Blog Tour: My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris (Author Interview)

Cover Reveal: Fireblood by Trisha Wolfe

Saturday

Review: My Heart Be Damned by Chanelle Gray

*Giveaway* Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Yep. You read that right. I will be giving away a copy of my favourite author ever Jennifer L. Armentrout's CURSED. Since I reached 400 followers last week I thought why not have a giveaway? 

Read my review of CURSED here!

Add to Goodreads

This giveaway is international. And if you don't want to leave your email addy n the comment section below you can just leave your twitter username so I can contact you if you win! Ends September 28th. I will announce the winners in a new blog post. You must be a follower of this blog to enter.

About the book!

Dying sucks-- and high school senior Ember McWilliams knows firsthand. After a fatal car accident, her gifted little sister brought her back. Now anything Ember touches dies. And that, well, really blows.

Ember operates on a no-touch policy with all living things--including boys. When Hayden Cromwell shows up, quoting Oscar Wilde and claiming her curse is a gift, she thinks he's a crazed cutie. But when he tells her he can help control it, she's more than interested. There's just one catch: Ember has to trust Hayden's adopted father, a man she's sure has sinister reasons for collecting children whose abilities even weird her out.

However, she's willing to do anything to hold her sister's hand again. And hell, she'd also like to be able to kiss Hayden. Who wouldn't? But when Ember learns the accident that turned her into a freak may not have been an accident at all, she's not sure who to trust. Someone wanted her dead, and the closer she gets to the truth, the closer she is to losing not only her heart, but her life. For real this time.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: My Heart Be Damned - Chanelle Gray

Title: My Heart Be Damned (Damned #1)

Author: Chanelle Gray

Release Date: September 15th 2012

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal

Publisher: Knight Romance Publishing

Pages: unknown

Source: Bought

If you're a Hunter, there are only three things you must know about the Damned. The Damned can't lie, can't live without a body, and can't leave you alone.

Amerie Carter has the blood of a Hunter, unfortunately. She is one of a rare line of women who, upon her sixteenth birthday, will come into extraordinary powers used to hunt the Damned; escaped souls from Hell who take up residence in human bodies. It's supposed to be her sweet sixteen, but Amerie has never dreaded a day more, and her worst fears are confirmed as the celebration turns tragic when her mother is killed.

Grief-stricken, Amerie vows to never hunt a day in her life. She's determined to hide behind normalcy, attending school, hanging out with her friends and working an after-school job at The Hut. All Amerie wants is to be left alone. But try telling the Damned that. The harder Amerie tries to ignore her powers, the more the Damned come looking for her.

When an attack leaves one of Amerie's friends in the hospital, and endangers the lives of her fellow students, she knows she has no choice: Hunt or Be Hunted. Thankfully, the gorgeous, secretive, and so-off-limits Marshall offers to train Amerie to take out her supernatural enemies. But training with Marshall means lying to her friends, her family, and confronting the mysterious circumstances surrounding her mother’s death.

Amerie soon discovers she’s not the only one with something to hide, Marshall's secrets might kill her before the Damned get the chance.

 
I'd be honest with you. I never planned on reading this book. At all. I don't know really why - I think it's because of the cover with the girl in a dress. Yeah, I'm tired of covers like that, ok. And I thought this book would be just like every other YA paranormal out there (don't get me wrong - YA paranormal is still my favourite genre ever!) but there's just SO much of them. I them vowed to keep away from this book but yesterday one of my blogger friends was gushing about it on twitter and I totally trust her opinion and taste on books. So I was like, why not? And as you guys know I was on a horrible horrible reading slump these past two weeks.

So then I bought this book on my Kindle yesterday. And read and finished it yesterday too. Guys, let me just tell you now that I'm in love with this book. It totally got me out of my craptastic reading slump and made me love reading again! Yipee!

Amerie was such a great kick ass character. I love this girl so much! I really relate to her and connecteed with her. She's got all of my fave aspects in a heroine. But that's not to say she wasn't flawed. She is. But the flaws that she got just made me love and appreciate her even more! 

I definitely added Marshall to my list of ever growing book boyfriends. He was just so cocky and sexy! Definitely my favorite combination LOL. And I love that their relationship starting out slow and rocky. Only one thing that I need was more sexy scenes. I'm hoping for more kissy scenes in the sequel! :P

The side characters were some of my favourite characters EVER. I love Amerie's friends, Chuck and Mercy. I love that they have their own storyline at the side and I can't wait to see more of them in the sequel. (yes! there's a sequel! Yay!) And about Sam. Well I never really liked him so. But I'm glad to say there's no love triangle, folks. Nuh uh. 

The paranormal elements was also something that I very much enjoyed! I thought it was fairly original and one I haven't really read more about. This debut also contains a lot of action, mystery, betrayal and romance. I think there's something for every reader here. The writing was also amazing and the pacing was perfect. I read this in one night and I don't regret a bit! Definitely a phenomenal debut! :) 

 

Cover Reveal: Fireblood by Trisha Wolfe

About FIREBLOOD: 

To save a kingdom, Zara must choose between a prince who could be the answer and a rising rebellion that threatens to take control.

When Zara Dane is chosen to marry Prince Sebastian Hart, son of the man who ordered her father’s capture, Zara knows she must fight to save everything she loves from ruin.

Being betrothed to the prince means a life trapped behind the towering stone walls of the Camelot-forged realm. Under the watchful eye of the prince's first knight, Sir Devlan Capra, changing her future becomes difficult.

When an unlikely rebel reveals the truth about the deadly secrets that fuel King Hart’s twisted world, Zara’s path to rescue her father becomes clouded by deception. The Rebels clear her path by forcing Zara’s hand with an ultimatum: sway Prince Sebastian to join the Rebels, convincing him of his father’s evil nature, or they will take him out.

But Zara is uncertain about a future under the Rebels’ command and where the prince’s heart truly lies. She must decide who to trust, what to believe, and what she’s truly fighting for before the king destroys all of Karm, including her heart.

Add to Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15841140-fireblood

Fireblood official series site: www.Firebloodnovel.com

Trisha's website: http://www.trishawolfe.com/

Trisha on Twitter:  https://twitter.com/TrishWolfe

So what do you guys think of this cover? Do you love it like I do, or are you disappointed? And do you think you'll read the book once it comes out?