Waiting on Wednesday (5)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

This week’s pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:

 Timepiece
Myra McEntire
Release 6-12-12

Synopsis is not yet available 😦

Why I’m waiting for this book:

Even though I didn’t find the first book super fantastic, I was still interested enough to want to continue the series.  The cover is very interesting, and, like the first book, gives the feeling of defying gravity.

Top Ten Tuesday (5)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week a new top ten list is posted, and to participate all you have to do is fill in YOUR top ten for the list.

This week the topic is:

Top Ten Books On My TBR List For Winter

 

1.  Fever – I have been waiting for this one forever, and I’m still waiting!  I can’t wait to know what happens to Rhyne.

2.  Shatter Me – I finally have this one coming in the mail and I have been hearing some super great things about it, so I’m psyched to read it.

3.  Tempest – an ARC win from LibraryThing.  Awesome cover and it sounds to be an awesome story.

4.  Under the Never Sky – Another ARC on my TBR!

5.  Darker Still – The cover was gorgeous, and who wouldn’t want to read such a cool sounding book?

6.  Crossed – Finally, finally, finally going to get to read this one.  I read the first one shortly after it came out and have been anticipating this one since I finished the first.

7.  The Name of the Star – Another coming in the mail.  I find the Jack the Ripper case fascinating, and this book is the perfect YA for me to read.  I’ve seen lots of good things on this one as well and it can’t get here soon enough!

8.  Cinder – This book just seems so unique and takes a completely different spin on the re-telling of Cinderella.

9.  Starters – This book sounds AMAZING, not to mention creepy.  I am including it since it is right at the end of winter and I soooo can not wait to get ahold of this one!

10.  Ashfall – Just started this one.  Heard it was awesome, so I couldn’t pass it up.  I know it came out in the fall, but I’m reading it in winter!

So what made it on your list?

Cover Crazy (7)

 Cover Crazy is a weekly meme hosted at The Book Worms in order to showcase books we think are beautiful and eye-catching.

This week’s cover almost made me drool it’s so lovely!  Course I’m a sucker for faeries anyway.  The dark colors make the woman very mysterious and the mask in her hand give a very masquerade feel, and I love masquerades!  I’m determined to go to one some day 🙂 This artist did a super fantastic job on this image!  The font is also very eloquent.

 Avalar isn’t real. 

At least, it wasn’t supposed to be. 

Aubrey never expected to fall in love with and marry her graduate writing professor Jullian. His life’s work, a grim fantasy titled ‘A Thief of Nightshade’ encompassed everything Aubrey hated about fairy tales and make-believe. 

After Jullian goes missing and is eventually presumed dead, Aubrey discovers just how make-believe the world of ‘Nightshade’ is … 
Not only is Jullian alive and well in Avalar, he’s at the mercy of the Dark Fae, condemned to a fate worse than death, with no memory of Aubrey or his time in her world. In order to save him, she’ll have to confront more than just the demons in her past, but the very real ones that await her in a place she never thought could exist. 

All of them will do everything in their power to stop her.

Sincerely Sunday (6)

 Sincerely Sunday is a new weekly meme that I will be hosting here at On The Shelf that will be like a micro-review or blurb of a book.  Anyone can participate, and you can leave a link to yours in the comments or, if you do not have a blog, you can just leave a comment with your Sincerely Sunday choice.  All you have to do is:

*Pick a book, any book.  It can be new, ARC, old, or one you read 10 years ago, as long as you have read it.
*Tell us the title and author.
*Tell us what made you read this book.
*Give us a short, sincere opinion on the book you chose.

My choice for this week is:

 Beastly
Alex Flinn

I actually saw the preview for the movie before I knew about the book, and being the person I am I have to read the book after I see the movie.

This story is a retelling of the tale of Beauty and the Beast, which is one of my favorite Disney movies.  The book was a cute read, however, I did feel like I was reading  Disney’s version.  So much was the same between the book and the Disney version I was a tad annoyed.  The movie had more differences than the book did from Disney’s version.  That shouldn’t stop you from reading it if you want to though!  What book did you choose for Sincerely Sunday?

*Review* Annexed – Rebecca McKinnon

 Annexed

Rebecca McKinnon

239 pages

ISBN: 9781461147664

Read 11-17-11

Source: Author

Format: Ebook

Annexed follows Narissa, who has been mysteriously brought into a separate dimension from her own known as The Refuge when she goes on a trip to a cabin in the mountains.  Nobody knows how she ended up being pulled into The Refuge, but there are many friendly people who are willing to help her adjust to the way of life.  Determined to find a way home, Narissa tries to research as much as she can about The Refuge, making several friends along the way.  She finds she really likes life at The Refuge, but is it enough to stay?

The concept behind this story is very interesting, and the way of life at The Refuge is much different from the outside world, even the lingo is different.  I can imagine ending up in a strange place that is actually a totally separate dimension would be a pretty freaky thing, but one thing I didn’t care for much was the fact that Narissa didn’t really freak out when she found out she was in a different dimension.  Who wouldn’t freak out??  I think I would have thought people telling me I was in a different dimension where a bunch of lunatics, but she just says ok and goes with it.

There is some romance in this story, but it isn’t the heavy teenage insta-love kind of stuff.  Their relationship builds and they are just close friends at first before any feelings are admitted.  There are characters you love, and characters you love to hate.  I like Mac a lot; he is the protective brotherly type and I think it’s adorable.

I think I would have liked to have seen a bit more description in places, but for the most part I had a pretty clear image in my head.  Sometimes a few personalities seemed almost fakey nice, but, then again, people at The Refuge are different from regular people.

One thing I definitely didn’t agree with was the way Narissa talked to the council when she met with them.  She got an attitude with them and almost bossy, practically demanding at times.  I doubt anyone in a new, strange place would act this way, especially not a teenager, as it was very disrespectful.  If it were me, I would have smiled and nodded and followed the rules (I’m not much of a rule breaker anyway).

All in all, it was an enjoyable book, though not fantastic, but enough that I was looking forward to the next book, which I am currently reading.

Interesting, fast read, questionable behaviors, some fun characters.

Stop by December 1st for my review of the sequel Cantrip and a guest post  from the author!

Waiting on Wednesday (4)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

This week’s pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:

 

 Cinder
Marissa Meyer
Release 1-3-12

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . . 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Why I’m waiting for this book:

This book sounds very fascinating!  I mostly enjoy the fairy tale re-tellings that have been coming out and a futuristic android Cinderella definitely piques my interest.  Plus the cover is simple but you can’t help but to be drawn in by it.

Top Ten Tuesday (4)

 Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week a new top ten list is posted, and to participate all you have to do is fill in YOUR top ten for the list.

This week the topic is:

Top Ten Authors I’d Like to Have at My Thanksgiving Feast

1.  Neil Gaiman – He writes fascinating books with worlds all his own and he seems like a fascinating person!

2.  Tera Lynn Childs – She seems like a super nice person and wrote my favorite mermaid series so far.

3.  Sarah Addison Allen – She lives in a neighboring state and she has a fantastic style of writing, so I’d love to talk writing with her.

4.  J. K. Rowling – Because she would be just awesome to have there!

5.  Travis Thrasher – I’ve met him and he is super nice and I’d love to have him at Thanksgiving as a writer friend 🙂

6.  Stephenie Meyer – I could never leave out the queen of YA vampire sagas!

7.  Jeff Lindsay – He wrote the books to one of the most awesome series ever, DEXTER!  I watch it and read it, and it’s frickin great!

8.  Ally Condie – She got me into really liking dystopian novels and I think she would be a very pleasant guest to have.

9.  Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) – Yes, I know he doesn’t truly count, but I have such a Castle crush I couldn’t not put him on my list!!

10.  Kathy Reichs – To put it simply, she’s awesome.  I love Bones!  Her character is fantastic and what Kathy Reichs does as an anthropologist is fascinating.

Cover Crazy (6)

  Cover Crazy is a weekly meme hosted at The Book Worms in order to showcase books we think are beautiful and eye-catching.

This week is the cover to Just for Fins by Tera Lynn Childs.  I am super excited about this book!  Her first two, Forgive My Fins and Fins are Forever, made it onto my Favorite Reads page, so I’m stoked about the next in the series!  I like all the covers for this series; they are so mermaid-y!  The colors make me think of the ocean and are perfect for a sea series!  This is the same model from the 2nd book and I think she is a fantastic person for the job! If you like mermaids, you definitely need to check out this series!!

 When Lily Sanderson decided to remain Crown Princess Waterlily of the mermaid kingdom Thalassinia, she knew she couldn’t just coast along in the current. But since she’s spent the last couple of years on land—with gorgeous human Quince by her side—Lily’s not sure she has the fins to lead a kingdom. Even her maddeningly pretentious cousin Dosinia seems to know more about ruling than she does. 

But Lily has to dive in deep to keep her promise to Tellin, her mer bond in name only, whose kingdom is suffering in the changing ocean climate. Lily knows this is a seven seas–sized problem: from sea animals dying to oil spills and threats to humans. They’ll need to create some serious waves to make the mer community aware and get it to join together to make things right. Even if that means facing one of the iciest queens in the mer kingdoms. 

Just when Lily thinks her double life on land and sea can’t get any more complicated, an ancient mer law might separate Lily and Quince after all. It feels as if the pair is up against a solid tsunami wave! 

In this third installment in the series that began with Forgive My Fins and Fins Are Forever, Lily will have to find a way to balance safety and justice for the mer people as well as for the humans she loves

Sincerely Sunday (5)

 Sincerely Sunday is a new weekly meme that I will be hosting here at On The Shelf that will be like a micro-review or blurb of a book.  Anyone can participate, and you can leave a link to yours in the comments or, if you do not have a blog, you can just leave a comment with your Sincerely Sunday choice.  All you have to do is:

*Pick a book, any book.  It can be new, ARC, old, or one you read 10 years ago, as long as you have read it.
*Tell us the title and author.
*Tell us what made you read this book.
*Give us a short, sincere opinion on the book you chose.

My choice for this week is (though a little late in the day since I was out of town):

 Fairy Tale
Cyn Balog

I just stumbled upon this one at the library and read the back.  I liked the way it sounded, so I took it home.

Morgan’s boyfriend Cam confesses to her that he is a fairy, and the fairies have come to take him home and will be replacing him with his cousin Pip, but Morgan is determined to outsmart the fairies and keep Cam with her.   This already sounded like it would be a pretty good story, and it turned out to be even better than I hoped.  These characters fight hard for love!  Full of great characters and a wonderful plot, this is a book that any fairy fan must read.

Know Me Better (4)

 “Know Me Better” is a fun weekly meme hosted by I Am a Reader, Not a Writer in order to get to know our fellow readers and bloggers better.  There are 5 new questions to answer each week.  Here are my answers!

1.  What is something people would be surprised to know about you?

Well, most people are quite surprised to find out I work at a jail.  I’ve been at the jail for 7 years, and many people think it is a really scary place, but I guess I’m just desensitized to it because it isn’t freaky to me, lol, not even before I worked there because my mom works there also, so I heard stories she would come home with and I decided it was a place I wanted to work as well.

2.  Beach or pool?

It kind of depends really.  I like the pool because I can see what is in it and the water isn’t salt water that stings my eyes, but also, the beach is much more beautiful than the pool and not quite as crowded as a small pool.

3.  If you had 24 hours alone, how would you spend it?

Reading of course, and probably lounging around.  I don’t get much relaxation time, so that’s most likely what I would do.

4.  Coke or Pepsi?

Sweet tea!  I’m a southerner, what can I say?  Plus, I am rather strange and I can’t drink anything carbonated since it makes me rather sick.  So nothing bubbly for me!

5.  If a movie was made about your life, who would you want to play the lead role and why?

Natalie Portman!  She is a wonderful actress and could play anything part that comes her way.  Plus I like that she is gorgeous with her brown hair and brown eyes (same colors as me), not the typical blonde with blue eyes.  It’s hard to judge a person based solely on what you see on TV, but she seems like she would be a genuinely great person.