Thursday, June 30, 2011

Awesome Awktopus Summer of YA Lit Challenge

 The Awesome Awktopus Summer of YA List Challenge is hosted by Audrey @ holes In My brain.

Start and finish a series or trilogy. Any genre. Maybe it’s one that you’ve always wanted to try but never have, maybe it’s one you just didn’t have time to tackle, and the 'finish' part is important.
I have this  interesting zombie series on my to-read for a while.

Read the book you’ve been avoiding because of hype.
Yup.  I haven't read TMI yet, but I heard it's really good. 

Read a book published before year 2000. Yes. YA is not just a thing invented after the explosion of Twilight.
I've been meaning to read this book.

Buy a book for yourself as a prize for something (for surviving Monday? Yep, that counts!) and read it!
Okay I'll by myself a little birthday present :)

Wanna join? Head over to holes In My brain to check out the rules and more mini challenges.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday: The Space Between

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm waiting on...
 The Space Between 
by Brenna Yovanoff 
Pub Date:  November 15th 2011

Summary:
Everything is made of steel, even the flowers. How can you love anything in a place like this?

Daphne is the half-demon, half-fallen angel daughter of Lucifer and Lilith. Life for her is an endless expanse of time, until her brother Obie is kidnapped - and Daphne realizes she may be partially responsible. Determined to find him, Daphne travels from her home in Pandemonium to the vast streets of Earth, where everything is colder and more terrifying. With the help of the human boy she believes was the last person to see her brother alive, Daphne glimpses into his dreams, discovering clues to Obie's whereabouts. As she delves deeper into her demonic powers, she must navigate the jealousies and alliances of the violent archangels who stand in her way. But she also discovers, unexpectedly, what it means to love and be human in a world where human is the hardest thing to be.

This second novel by rising star Brenna Yovanoff is a story of identity, discovery, and a troubled love between two people struggling to find their place both in our world and theirs.

This book had me at half demon and half fallen angel. How can I not read this book!  And look at that awesome cover!

What are you waiting on this week? Leave me a link and I'll visit. Thanks for stopping by!

Monday, June 27, 2011

Cover Crazy: Under the Stars

 Cover Crazy is a weekly meme hosted by The Bookworms, showcasing covers worth going crazy over.
 
This week I'm crazy about...



This is such a beautiful cover. I love everything about it.

Stars dot the night sky, meteors passing by.  It's like a painting.

I'd love to have this cover blown up to hang in my room! 







Summary:
After seventeen-year-old Andrina’s home is demolished by meteors, she encourages her family to relocate to Legora, one of the few remaining cities that promise a new life to weary travelers. But Legora’s food and supplies are in shortage—too many refugees have sought protection behind its gates—and the only option is to appeal to the King of the New World for provisions. When the town assembles a lottery to choose who will plea to the king, Andrina holds the ill-fated ticket.

Her arrival in Valyad, the royal territory, sparks intrigue from King Zarek. Andrina can’t imagine herself acting like the other girls, who flounce after Zarek’s affection and money, but she considers giving in to her flirty side if it’ll guarantee that her family is fed. So when Zarek leaves Andrina with a bitter decision—marry him or he’ll strip Legora of its supplies—she has no choice but to accept being Queen of the New World.

Soon, though, Andrina uncovers that Valyad is smothered in deceit. Days after their wedding, Zarek is found stabbed to death and all fingers point to Andrina. Betrayed by Valyad’s governor, who wants the crown for himself, Andrina learns that it’s the people who will cast a vote on her fate; people who don’t want a commoner operating their kingdom. Andrina must not only convince Valyad that their king didn’t die by her hand, but also outsmart the sly politicians of the realm with a surprise they can’t outrun.


What do you think about this cover? What covers are you crazy over this week?

Sunday, June 26, 2011

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren, showcasing what you received in the mail, bought, or borrowed from friends or the library for that week.

Here's what I got this week!
For Review

Borrowed from Library


Won 

So that's what I got from mailbox this past week. It was like an early birthday present because my 16th birthday is today! Yay :D

What did you get in your mailbox this week? Leave a comment with a link to your mailbox so I can check out all the great books that you got.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Review: Enclave


Genre: Zombies, Dystopian, Post Apocalyptic, Romance, Adventure
Release Date: April 12, 2011
Series: Razorland #1

WELCOME TO THE APOCALYPSE
In Deuce’s world, people earn the right to a name only if they survive their first fifteen years. By that point, each unnamed ‘brat’ has trained into one of three groups–Breeders, Builders, or Hunters, identifiable by the number of scars they bear on their arms. Deuce has wanted to be a Huntress for as long as she can remember.

As a Huntress, her purpose is clear—to brave the dangerous tunnels outside the enclave and bring back meat to feed the group while evading ferocious monsters known as Freaks. She’s worked toward this goal her whole life, and nothing’s going to stop her, not even a beautiful, brooding Hunter named Fade. When the mysterious boy becomes her partner, Deuce’s troubles are just beginning.

Down below, deviation from the rules is punished swiftly and harshly, and Fade doesn’t like following orders. At first she thinks he’s crazy, but as death stalks their sanctuary, and it becomes clear the elders don’t always know best, Deuce wonders if Fade might be telling the truth. Her partner confuses her; she’s never known a boy like him before, as prone to touching her gently as using his knives with feral grace.

As Deuce’s perception shifts, so does the balance in the constant battle for survival. The mindless Freaks, once considered a threat only due to their sheer numbers, show signs of cunning and strategy… but the elders refuse to heed any warnings. Despite imminent disaster, the enclave puts their faith in strictures and sacrifice instead. No matter how she tries, Deuce cannot stem the dark tide that carries her far from the only world she’s ever known.

My Thoughts:
Full of adventure, action and unexpectedly zombies, Enclave will leave you at the edge of your seat. I love post apocalyptic books (as I mentioned on my post apocalyptic WoW post), so this it the perfect book for me.

Deuce kicked ass. There isn't much I love more than a female protagonist who isn't whiny and emotional all the time. In fact, Deuce is hardly capable of those feelings, which made me love her that much more, and certainly allowed me to connect with her character on a deeper level. I knew from the first encounter with Fade that I would love him as well, and I wasn't wrong about that. 

At first, it takes a little getting used to their names and numbers, but soon you'll be sucked into the world Ann Aguirre created. The ending was more of a sigh of relief, and you're left with really wanting to read more, though it's not precisely a cliff hanger. Overall, I enjoyed Enclave a lot.

Rating: 

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday: Post-Apocalyptic Edition!

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. 


Expected publication: July 5, 2011

 LONDON, 2012: It arrives and with that the world is changed into an unending graveyard littered with the bones, wreckage, and memories of a dead past, gone forever.LONDON, 2032: Twenty years later, out of the ashes, a new world begins to rise, a place ruled by both loyalty and fear, and where the quest to be the first to regain lost knowledge is an ongoing battle for power. A place where laws are made and enforced by roving gangs-the Bloomsbury Boys, the Gardners, the Red Lady's Gang-who rule the streets and will do anything to protect their own.THE FOUR: Zane, Titus, Erin, Eve. Living in this new world, they discover that they have abilities never before seen. And little do they know that as they search post-apocalyptic London for Titus' kidnapped sister that they'll uncover the secret of It, and bring about a reckoning with the forces that almost destroyed all of humanity.


Expected publication: Sept 1, 2011

The wars that followed The Collapse nearly destroyed civilization. Now, twenty years later, the world is faced with a choice—rebuild what was or make something new.

Stephen Quinn, a quiet and dutiful fifteen-year-old scavenger, travels Post-Collapse America with his Dad and stern ex-Marine Grandfather. They travel light. They keep to themselves. Nothing ever changes. But when his Grandfather passes suddenly and Stephen and his Dad decide to risk it all to save the lives of two strangers, Stephen's life is turned upside down. With his father terribly injured, Stephen is left alone to make his own choices for the first time.

Stephen’s choices lead him to Settler's Landing, a lost slice of the Pre-Collapse world where he encounters a seemingly benign world of barbecues, baseball games and days spent in a one-room schoolhouse. Distrustful of such tranquility, Stephen quickly falls in with Jenny Tan, the beautiful town outcast. As his relationship with Jenny grows it brings him into violent conflict with the leaders of Settler's Landing who are determined to remake the world they grew up in, no matter what the cost.



Expected publication: Oct. 11, 2011


Under the bubbling hot springs and geysers of Yellowstone National Park is a supervolcano. Most people don't know it's there. The caldera is so large that it can only be seen from a plane or satellite. It just could be overdue for an eruption, which would change the landscape and climate of our planet.
Ashfall is the story of Alex, a teenage boy left alone for the weekend while his parents visit relatives. When the Yellowstone supervolcano erupts unexpectedly, Alex is determined to reach his parents. He must travel over a hundred miles in a landscape transformed by a foot of ash and the destruction of every modern convenience that he has ever known, and through a new world in which disaster has brought out both the best and worst in people desperate for food, water, and warmth. With a combination of nonstop action, a little romance, and very real science, this is a story that is difficult to stop reading and even more difficult to forget.

I love the post-apocalyptic genre. I don't know about you, but reading about the character's tale of survival after an epic catastrophic event makes for an exciting read.

What do you think about these books? What are you waiting on this week?

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Review: The Goddess Test

Release Date: April 19th, 2011
Genres: Romance, Mythology
Series:  Goddess Test #1

It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall.Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.
Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess.


My Thoughts:

I love greek mythology, so when I heard about the Goddess Test I had to read it.


Kate was a great heroine. She was brave, tough, and so selfless. Her maturity and strength are something that you know she's acquired during the years of taking care of her mother. Henry wasn't exactly what I had in mind for Hades. He had everything to be the bad-sexy-guy, but he was so...sad. I liked him, but he was always silent and never really a protagonist. 

The Goddess Test did a retelling of the myth of Persephone (yay! my favorite Greek myth). It's interesting reading how Aimee Carter creates mythological twists in the novel, such as having to pass all seven testes for immortality. Speaking about those testes, I expected it to be difficult. But they weren't and they were given to Kate without neither her or the readers' knowledge. That was a disappointment considering many girls have tried to pass the seven tests and failed.

The gods in this book were way too normal and average - be it their names or their actions in the book. It disappointments me that the characteristics of the Greek gods were almost not used in the book and I think it would have given and added so much to it.


It's an original, refreshing story and it grabbed me, but I was expecting more. I'm looking forward to see what else the series has in store for us.

Rating:
 
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