Waiting on Wednesday (9)

The last thing Cammie Morgan remembers is leaving the Gallagher Academy to protect her friends and family from the Circle of Cavan--an ancient terrorist organization that has been hunting her for over a year. But when Cammie wakes up in an alpine convent and discovers months have passed, she must face the fact that her memory is now a black hole. The only traces left of Cammie’s summer vacation are the bruises on her body and the dirt under her nails, and all she wants is to go home.

Once she returns to school, however, Cammie realizes that even the Gallagher Academy now holds more questions than answers. Cammie, her friends, and mysterious spy-guy Zach must face their most difficult challenge yet as they travel to the other side of the world, hoping to piece together the clues that Cammie left behind. It’s a race against time. The Circle is hot on their trail and willing stop at nothing to prevent Cammie from remembering what she did last summer.

Releases March 13th


Gallagher Girls 5!!! Need I say more? I love this series. It's really cute and fun. I cannot wait to see what Cammie gets into next!


What are you waiting for this week?
 

The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney

Freak. That's what her classmates call seventeen-year-old Donna Underwood. When she was seven, a horrific fey attack killed her father and drove her mother mad. Donna's own nearly fatal injuries from the assault were fixed by magic—the iron tattoos branding her hands and arms. The child of alchemists, Donna feels cursed by the magical heritage that destroyed her parents and any chance she had for a normal life. The only thing that keeps her sane and grounded is her relationship with her best friend, Navin Sharma.
When the darkest outcasts of Faerie—the vicious wood elves—abduct Navin, Donna finally has to accept her role in the centuries old war between the humans and the fey. Assisted by Xan, a gorgeous half-fey dropout with secrets of his own, Donna races to save her friend—even if it means betraying everything her parents and the alchemist community fought to the death to protect. 

First, I have to say, look at that gorgeous cover! Just look at it! I was instantly drawn in by it and had to pick it up. So pretty!!! And the story was even better! Loved it! It was exactly what I wanted it to be. A cute love story, an intriguing mystery, and a kind of magic I rarely read about. Now I think I'm hooked! 


Donna was injured when she was young by a terrifying fairy beast. Without the Maker, she would have lost her hands. But he used alchemy and iron to restore them. I was hooked right away.

The Order of the Dragon was so fasctinating! I can't wait to get my hands on the next book to learn more about them. Alchemy isn't something I've read much about, but this book made me want to look more into and pick up more books with it in it. There wasn't a ton in this book, so I'm hoping the Wood Queen brings more!

Navin was probably my favorite character. He was such a loyal friend who stuck by Donna no matter what, even when she got kicked out of school. Most people will never know how amazing it is to find someone like that. Even when she had to tell him the truth about her, it didn't make him love her any less. He was amazing. Which was why I was so mad when he got kidnapped! Argh! Leave the super awesome best friend alone!

Xan was a great love interest. He was sweet and really cared about Donna. They shared something that no one else could come close to relating to. And he was hot! Like seriously steamy. I liked watching their romance unfold.

Donna was the only character I couldn't really connect with. I didn't hate her, but I didn't love her either. I don't know what it was about her, but she just wasn't my favorite.

There were definitely more questions than answers with this book. Like what really happened to Donna. I can't wait to pick up Wood Queen and find out!

The Near Witch by Victioria Schwab

The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.

And there are no strangers in the town of Near.
These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life.
But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.
The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.
As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.
Part fairy tale, part love story, Victoria Schwab’s debut novel is entirely original yet achingly familiar: a song you heard long ago, a whisper carried by the wind, and a dream you won’t soon forget

Though the Near Witch starts off a little slow for my taste, once the story got rolling I really enjoyed it.

Lexi and her family live on the moor in a town called Near. This scenery was so beautiful and haunting. It was like the moor was alive and had a mind of it's own. If you just listened hard enough, it would tell you all it's secrets. But as Lexi's father always told her, the wind is lonely and always looking for company. I loved everything about the moor. I wanted to explore it and learn about it with Lexi. I wanted to get lost in it.

All the stories Lexi's father told her were beautifully written. There was a lot but I couldn't help wanting to hear more. Even though the father is dead the whole book, I felt like I knew him. It was clear he was a great man and father. I liked him the most, even though all we hear are stories about him.

The magic in this story was wonderful. It was 'old' magic, controlling elements instead of casting spells. I wish we saw more of this type in YA books.

Lexi was fierce and very protective. She was a great main character. She loved her family and her town and did everything she could to protect them. I admired that.

Cole kind of bothered me at first. I think it had something to do with how mysterious him was. It seemed a little unnatural and forced. But when he started to open up more, I really liked him.

The Near Witch is a hauntingly beautiful story that is well worth checking out. The writing has a very lyrical quality to it and I can't wait to see what Schwab comes out with next!

Have you guys read this? What did you think? 

Top Ten Tuesdays: Books I'd Quickly Save If My House Was Going To Be Abducted By Aliens

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Bahaha. I love the title of this weeks top ten. But this is going to be an incredibly hard list. I can only save tn books? Every book lovers nightmare! But we will give it a try....

1.  Circus of the Damned by Laurell K. Hamilton
Even though we are now on book twenty in the Anita Blake series, Circus of the Damned remains my favorite. I loved the huge showdown, Anita meeting Richard, being marked for the first time. All of it. If I could only save one book in the series, it would have to be this one.

2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Now this one isn't necessarily my favorite, but it is the one I've read the least amount of times. I want to save it to make sure I could read it again and again. Make sure I absorbed everything in it, if that makes any sense at all...

3. Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison
This is an amazing series. I'd really want to save all of them, but I could live with just having the first one. I love the new ones, but I would chose the beginning of the series every time. Kick ass Rachel hunting down some badies as opposed to her being accused of being the badie.

4. Where There's a Witch by Madelyn Alt 
I love all the books in this series, but it this one Maggie FINALLY comes to her senses and starts seeing Marcus! I girl-squealed when they got together. That moment deserves to be saved.

5. Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel
This was the first ARC I ever received and I've grown quite fond of it. I tried to do a giveaway for it, but the first person who won never contacted me. So I picked another person. And never heard from them. My blog was still really new and I got frustrated and gave up. Now I'm kinda glad I did. I like being able to see the first ARC I ever got for review.  Plus, it was an AWESOME story and I can't wait for the second one!

6. May Day by Jess Lourey
This is the only signed book I have, and I'd be sorry if I lost it. I got to talk to the author for like twenty minutes and told her all about my dream of one day being a published author. She was awesome and very encouraging. She wrote me a very sweet message on the inside cover and it would make me sad if the aliens got their hands on it. 

7. Stardust by Neil Gaiman 
This is the first Gaiman book I read. And I fell completely in love with him.
This book is full of adventure, magic, and love. I wouldn't want to lose a book I loved as much as this one.

8. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
While this wasn't my favorite in the series, the ending needs to be kept with me. Katniss was healthy and happy. And married to Peeta. I cried so many happy tears at the end of the series. Love, love.

9. Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead
Much like Mockingjay, I would just want the ending. I'd read it over and over just to be sure Rose and Dimtri were really together, and really happy. They went through hell together and for each other and they deserved their happy ending.

10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
I couldn't lose this story. It got me through some really hard times in high school and it would break my heart to lose this copy.

Alright that's my top ten. Any books in common? Make sure to leave a link to your top ten in the comments!!

Daily Dose (6)

Hosted by Good Golly Miss Holly

Daily Dose is about sharing pictures that inspire you, make you laugh, or you just think are pretty.

Babe in Boyland by Jody Gehrman

When high school junior Natalie - or Dr. Aphrodite, as she calls herself when writing the relationship column for her school paper - is accused of knowing nothing about guys and giving girls bad relationship advice, she decides to investigate what guys really think and want. But the guys in her class won't give her straight or serious answers. The only solution? Disguising herself as a guy and spending a week at Underwood Academy, the private all-boy boarding school in town. There she learns a lot about guys and girls in ways she never expected - especially when she falls for her dreamy roommate, Emilio. How can she show him she likes him without blowing her cover?

Summary taken from Goodreads 


First off, I love this cover! It was so adorable and playful I couldn't help but pick it up!


Babe in Boyland was a cute, but predictable read. If you've seen She's the Man (or read the original Shakespeare play) you've read this book. But it was still a fun read.


Natalie goes under cover as a boy at an all boys school to find out what boys really think about relationships and why boys do the things they do (which I'm sure all us girls would LOVE to know). As fate would have it, she gets a super hot, sensitive boy as her roommate. And of course, 
  she falls in love with him, but can't do anything about it. Hilarity ensues. 


Parts were laugh out loud funny. Especially the closet scene. SO funny! 


All in all, it was a cute, quick read. I'm glad I read it but didn't buy it. I'd say it's worth your time, but get it from the library or a friend.

Waiting on Wednesday (8)

Hosted by Bending the Spine

Escape from the realm of the dead is impossible when someone there wants you back.

Seventeen-year-old Pierce Oliviera isn’t dead.

Not this time.

But she is being held against her will in the dim, twilit world between heaven and hell, where the spirits of the deceased wait before embarking upon their final journey.

Her captor, John Hayden, claims it’s for her own safety. Because not all the departed are dear. Some are so unhappy with where they ended up after leaving the Underworld, they’ve come back as Furies, intent on vengeance…on the one who sent them there and on the one whom he loves.

But while Pierce might be safe from the Furies in the Underworld, far worse dangers could be lurking for her there…and they might have more to do with its ruler than with his enemies.

And unless Pierce is careful, this time there’ll be no escape.

Releases May 28th.
 

Abandon was my first Meg Cabot book. I really, really enjoyed it and I think Underworld  has the potential to be even better now that some of the back story is out of the way. Ooohh I cannot wait!


What are you waiting on?

Ton Top Tuesdays: Books That Broke Your Heart

Hosted by the Broke and the Bookish.

Now the original title of this was 'Books that broke your heart a little.' I decided to drop the little and post books that absolutely shattered me. I love me some saddness, can't help it. Don't get me wrong I like a happy ending, but I always found myself drawn to book that hurt you so badly you don't know how there could possibly be a happy ending. Alright bring on the tear jerkers!

THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS.

1. Anything by Cassandra Clare but specifically Clockwork Prince.
Clare is a master at setting up these beautiful relationships you can't help but root for. Annnndddd then she tears everyhing apart. Oh but wait, here's a tiny bit of hope to cling to. Oh wait again, just kidding! For the Infernal Devices series, I can't see a happy ending. Someone is going to be hurt. And more than likely, someone is going to be dead. Cassandra Clare, you brilliant, heartless bitch.

(I love Cassandra Clare. I don't really think she's a bitch. No one take that seriously.)

2. Atonement by Ian McEwan
Saddest book ever. And movie. I can only handle watching the movie like once a year, even though it's one of my absolute favorite. It just hurts too much. There is no happy ending to be found here. Not for anyone.

3. Blood Promise by Richelle Mead
While most of these books break your heart in some way, but this one was the worse. Seeing Dimitri as a Strigoi was the worst. Worse than thinking he had dead. It broke my heart so bad.

4. Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls 
I don't think I could read this book again. It is a wonderful book. But it is completely heartbreaking. A young boy and his dogs. It is a wonderfully sad but hopefully story. As someone who has had dogs her entire life, I know how hard losing a pet can be. I remember just sobbing when we read it in class in elementary school, and I haven't been able to bring myself to read it again. Too much for me.


5. Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
This book starts out with a death. And while this one ends on a note of hope, watching the main character trying to deal with the death was so heartbreaking. Especially because she feels like she can't talk to anyone about it. She had a secret relationship with her best friends brother and  he died before they could tell him. It was just the worst. But what a wonderful story.


6. For a Few Demons More by Kim Harrison
One of the worst deaths in a series ever. I am still mad at Harrison for killing Kisten. We are like five books later and it makes me sad all the time. I loved him so much. I will probably never forgive her.

7. Bridge to Terabithia bgy Katherine Paterson
What a beautifully sad story. Losing a friend at that age, I can't even imagine. But somehow the boy survives it. And doesn't lose his brilliant imagination. I just loved it. Even though it was hard to continue after her death. I'm glad I did though.


8. Gone by Lisa McMann 
This was the last book in the Wake series. And it. I mean, I can't even explain it. It was happy, or as happy as it could be. It was kind of a no win situation. Janie's life was going to be short and hard, but she was making the most of it. It just hurt.


9. The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson 
Another book that starts with a death. I should seriously consider stop reading books that start that way. But I love them. And this is a wonderful story. It was sad and beautiful and fantastic. 

10. Graceling by Kristen Cashore 
Another bittersweet ending that nearly killed me. It wasn't anywhere near fair what happened to Po, but I guess it worked out in the end. Still the tears were flowing that's for sure.


I can't wait to see your guys picks! I love books that make me cry and cannot wait to discover new ones!


What's your Top Ten?

Daily Dose (5)

Daily Dose is hosted by Good Golly Miss Holly

The Unbecoming Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkins

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.


It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember 
that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.
 
She's wrong.

Summary taken from Goodreads 


There probably isn’t anything I can say about this book that hasn’t been said. But I don’t care. I’m gonna say it anyways. Holy crap this book was amazing!!

The book start with Mara waking up in the hospital with no memory of how she got there. Her parents tell her she just survived a terrible accident that claimed the like of her best friend, her boyfriend, and his sister.

Mara develops a severe case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and starts seeing her friends everywhere. In order to help save her mind, her family moves her across the country. But it just seems to be getting worse. And strange things start happening to people around her. Trying to figure out what was real with Mara was enough to spin your head.

Then Mara meets Noah. Noah!!! He is just the most steamy. I loved ever scene he was in.

This book threw me through the loop so many times. The middle! The end! Oh my gosh. The twists in this just kept coming. Really there isn’t much more I can say without giving it away.

The only thing left to say is.  Read it. Now! 

Waiting on Wednesday (7)

Hosted by Breaking the Spine

It all begins with a stupid question:

Are you a Global Vagabond?

No, but 18-year-old Bria Sandoval wants to be. In a quest for independence, her neglected art, and no-strings-attached hookups, she signs up for a guided tour of Central America—the wrong one. Middle-aged tourists with fanny packs are hardly the key to self-rediscovery. When Bria meets Rowan, devoted backpacker and dive instructor, and his outspokenly humanitarian sister Starling, she seizes the chance to ditch her group and join them off the beaten path.

Bria's a good girl trying to go bad. Rowan's a bad boy trying to stay good. As they travel across a panorama of Mayan villages, remote Belizean islands, and hostels plagued with jungle beasties, they discover what they've got in common: both seek to leave behind the old versions of themselves. And the secret to escaping the past, Rowan’s found, is to keep moving forward.

But Bria comes to realize she can't run forever, no matter what Rowan says. If she ever wants the courage to fall for someone worthwhile, she has to start looking back.

Kirsten Hubbard lends her artistry into this ultimate backpacker novel, weaving her drawings into the text. Her career as a travel writer and her experiences as a real-life vagabond backpacking Central America are deeply seeded in this inspiring story.

Out March 13th. Summary taken from Goodreads.


I was actually lucky enough to get a ARC of this on NetGalley, but it was so good I am definitely going to buy a finished copy. Be looking for my review of this one a little closer to the release date.

Daily Dose (4)

 

Hosted by Good Golly Miss Holly

 

Month in Review: January

Can you believe January is  already over?? I sure can't! Where did this month go??

Well it was a great month for me reading wise at least! Here are the books I've read and some other highlights this month.

Books read in January: Links go to my reviews
1. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevens
2. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
3. Heist Society by Ally Carter
4. Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews
5. Away by Terri Hall 
6. Clarity by Kim Harrington  
7. Halflings by Heather Burch 
8. The Iron Daughter by Julia Kagawa
9. Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann
10. Max by James Patterson
11. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkins (review to come!)
12. Hunters of the Dusk by Darren Shan
13. Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard (review to come!)

Other reviews posted:
1. Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead
2. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
3. Early to Death, Early to Rise by Kim Harrison

Favorite book of January:

Super hard to choose between this and Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, but I am so in love with this series and everything Clare does! Loved every moment of this book.
















Favorite post of January:
Daily Dose (2)
I am just loving this meme. It's so fun to post pictures that inspire me or that I just think are fun. You should check it out!






Well that was my January! Did you have a good month too?

Waiting on Wednesday (6)

Spellbound by Rachel Hawkins.
Release date: 3/13/12 

Hailed as “impossible to put down,” the Hex Hall series has both critics and teens cheering. With a winning combination of romance, action, magic and humor, this third volume will leave readers enchanted.

Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident.

Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?

Summary taken from Goodreads

 I am so in love with this series. I cannot wait to jump back into this wonderful world. And Archer. I need more Archer in my life.