Thank you to MizB of Should Be Reading for giving us Teaser Tuesday every week!
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
•Grab your current read •Open to a random page •Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page •BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) •Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
This week's teaser comes from Blue by Lou Aronica.
From this deeply focused state, Gage heard two whispers. They spoke together with different voices. One voice was young. The other longed for youth. There was much consternation here. Confusion. Defiance. They knew their story was the wrong story... p 17
Thanks to Kristi, The Story Siren for hosting In My Mailbox every week!
I didn't get anything last week but I DID get a few great books THIS week. One, I finished and put my review up for yesterday. Hehe. I couldn't put it down.
In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other. In Linger, they fought to be together. Now, in Forever, the stakes are even higher than before. Wolves are being hunted. Lives are being threatened. And love is harder and harder to hold on to as death comes closing in.
Chris Astor is a man in his early forties who is going through the toughest stretch of his life. Becky is Chris's fourteen-year-old daughter, a girl who overcame enormous challenges to become a vibrant, vital young woman - and now faces her greatest obstacle yet. Miea is the young queen of a fantasy land that Becky and Chris created when Becky was little, a fantasy land that has developed a life of its own and now finds itself in terrible, maybe fatal trouble. Together, Chris, Becky, and Miea need to uncover a secret. The secret to why their worlds have joined at this moment. The secret to their purpose. The secret to the future. It is a secret that, when discovered, will redefine imagination for all of them. Blue is a novel of trial and hope, invention and rediscovery. It might very well take you someplace you never knew existed.
Sometimes things happen to test us, it's only if we pass the test do we receive the true gift. The time has come for the visitor to arrive. When this happens it is a life changing event for those he encounters. Their lives have reached a turning point and with the watchful eye of the Visitor they will each recieve a gem. By passing the test comes the opportunity to recieve the true gift if they are fortunate enough. His journey with each of these five women leads him to not only change their lives but also his own.
There are two books that have ever made me cry. Maggie Stiefvater has written both of them. Shiver being the first one. Forever being number two.
In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other. In Linger, they fought to be together. Now, in Forever, the stakes are even higher than before. Wolves are being hunted. Lives are being threatened. And love is harder and harder to hold on to as death comes closing in.
I've waited so long to be able to read this book. It was totally and completely worth the wait.
Grace is fighting to stay human, and almost fails at simply staying alive. Sam is fighting to save her. Cole is fighting to do the impossible. And Isabel is fighting her own inner demons.
Cole was my hero in this one. I absolutely adore him as a character and I can't imagine having read this series without him. When I first "met" him in this series, I thought he was cocky and arrogant and a TOTAL jerk. By the end, he was still all those things, but he has the hugest heart. Even if he doesn't realize it or want to admit it. And you've got to hand it to him for his determination and way of figuring out the impossible.
I love Sam and Grace and Isabel. They all are completely different than they were when the series started, and yet... they're the same. Isabel's icy shell gets chipped away and you see the broken person she is with a heart of gold she doesn't want anyone to see. And won't admit she has. Sam is tired of letting fear rule his life and so he faces it head on and prevails. All the while never waivering in his love and loyalty for Grace. And Grace, just as steadfast and strong as ever. Even in her weaknesses.
But Cole... Cole was my favorite. And not just because when I was reading his parts I was reading them with Dan Bittner's voice ::sigh::, but because he was just amazing.
This is now one of my favorite series of all time. Without a doubt. If you haven't read any of The Wolves of Mercy Falls books, you should. Maggie is an amazing author and I'm so glad to have read the series. I can not tell you how much I loved this book.
Q: Which book genre do you avoid at all costs and why?
A. Well, this week's question is definitely not a hard one. I tend to stay away from non-fiction stuff in general. Biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, self-help. Stuff like that. Bores me to tears.
Wow, that was an easy one. :-P What about you guys?
Daring You to Read is hosted every week by Tynga over at Tynga's Reviews.
Here's how it works:
- You choose a book you’ve read, loved and would dare your readers to read!
- The book you choose must be an older release (at least 6 months ago), because let’s be honest, we’re all quite aware of the latest releases.
- Write your own blog post, using the button and linking back to Tynga’s Reviews, inviting your readers to read your chosen book.
- Come back on Tynga’s Reviews and put your link in the linking tool.
- Browse other bloggers Dare and let them know if you’ve read their featured book, or plan on reading it.
- Super easy and an awesome way to discover that special book who might have slipped off your radar!
This week I'm daring you to read Radiant Shadows by Melissa Marr.
Hunger for nourishment.
Hunger for touch.
Hunger to belong.
Half-human and half-faery, Ani is driven by her hungers. Those same appetites also attract powerful enemies and uncertain allies, including Devlin. He was created as an assassin and is brother to the faeries' coolly logical High Queen and to her chaotic twin, the embodiment of War.
Devlin wants to keep Ani safe from his sisters, knowing that if he fails, he will be the instrument of Ani's death.
Ani isn't one to be guarded while others fight battles for her, though. She has the courage to protect herself and the ability to alter Devlin's plans—and his life. The two are drawn together, each with reason to fear the other and to fear for one another. But as they grow closer, a larger threat imperils the whole of Faerie. Will saving the faery realm mean losing each other?
Now, I could have sworn that I reviewed this book on the blog, but looking back, apparently I have not. Which makes me sad because I believe this was my favorite of the entire series. It was just amazing.
We see two of the characters, who were mere cameos in all of the other books, up front and center finally. And they were amazing. Ani is half human and half fae, a member of the dark court and daughter of Gabriel, one of the kings Hounds. Devlin is the High Court's queen, Sorcha's, brother. Not only that, he was also her Bloodied Hands. An assassin. One who'd been ordered many many years before this story to kill Ani. But he did not.
Ani was fierce and strong. She was full of passion and fire. Devlin was the absolute perfect person for her. He wasn't intimidated by who she was or what she needed. And he didn't consider her the usual "damsel in distress" that he needed to throw coats over mud puddles for.
So in this book, Seth - Aislinn's main squeeze and now, Sorcha's "son" - has left Faerie, as per his agreement with the High Court queen, for a short period of time to visit his love again. Sorcha plummets into this incredible depression and brings Faerie down with her. Bananach, or, War, is completely ready to step in and take total advantage of the Queen's lack of Reason.
Devlin and Ani definitely have some difficult choices to make. Choices that will impact all of Faerie.
*
Like I said, my favorite of the ENTIRE series. I love Ani and Devlin and the story that surrounds them. And if you've read any of the rest of the books in the series before this one, I highly recommend RUNNING out to grab this one next.
I read this book some time ago, well... a few years now. It has two of my favorite things in the world in it. Fantasy and tattoos. Who wouldn't want to read it? And the covers to all of the novels in the Wicked Lovely series are so striking.
To 17-year-old Leslie, the tattoo is a thing of indescribable beauty, a captivating mark that she must make her own. But this subtle web of eyes and wings brings with it a transformation that no sweet young girl would ever imagine or welcome. Like its predecessor, this stand-alone sequel to Wicked Lovely plunges its youthful heroine into a faery world of almost constant peril. A tantalizing urban fantasy that won't let go.
Leslie has quite a home life. Only part of which holds a drug addicted brother who is completely fine trying to sell her to his friends so he can score in a different way. Poor Leslie can't really control this downward spiral, so she decides to try and find a foothold in the chaos. She wants a tattoo. A chance to dull the pain inside with a little pain on the outside.
Niall, right hand man to the king of the Summer Court, Keenan, has been selected to guard Leslie. Or to watch over her at least. To keep her safe from the Dark Court faeries. The only problem? He's falling in love with her. And he's not supposed to.
Leslie ends up choosing for her tattoo, the mark of the Dark Court king, Irial. A tattoo that binds her to him and allows him to, more or less, feed on her and sustain his fae. But instead of stronger, his bond with Leslie leaves him wondering if he's too weak for his court. On the bright side for Leslie, though, it leaves her numb to pain and sorrow.
But does she want to stay that way?
I loved Ink Exchange. I can't even tell you how much I loved it. Reading the first novel in the series, I disliked the Dark Court. Troublemakers. That's all they were to me. Trouble makers and just bad overall. This story told me how completely wrong I was. I completely fell for Irial and Niall.
Leslie was a strong character, even if she didn't feel that way most of the time. And I completely identify with her. The reason for her getting tattooed. WANTING to feel numb for a while. Leslie proves she's strongest though at the end.
I've seen a lot of reviews where this book fell flat for people. And a lot of reviews where this book was so much better than the first for others. It's a companion book to the first, not necessarily a sequel. And I think honestly, I fall in with the second lot. The first book made me angry. Which I suppose was the right reaction to have. But the second, like I said, had two of my favorite things. Tats and fantasy.
I will recommend this, to anyone who's read Wicked Lovely. If you haven't read that one, you probably won't understand what's going on in this one. I might recommend a minimum age of 15 or 16, because it is a darker book than the first, but other than that, everyone should go pick it up!
Thank you to MizB of Should Be Reading for giving us Teaser Tuesday every week!
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
•Grab your current read •Open to a random page •Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page •BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) •Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
This week's teaser comes from War Horse by Michael Morpurgo.
It was nothing special when he came into the stable that morning and led Zoey out. But when he came back into the stable afterward and began to sweet-talk me and held out a bucket of sweet-smelling oats, I was immediately suspicious. But the oats and my own inquisitiveness overcame my better judgement, and he was able to slip a halter over my head before I could pull away. His voice, however, was unusually gentle and kind as he tightened the halter and reached out slowly to stroke my neck. "You'll be all right, old son," he said softly. "You'll be all right. They'll look after you - they promised they would. And I need the money, Joey; I need the money bad."
I really wasn't sure I wanted to read this book, after watching the previews for the movie. Horses hold a soft spot in my heart and ... well, I just don't know. But There it is. That's how far I've gotten. Can't wait to see ya'lls teasers!
Was browsing through some confectionary faux-pas on Cake Wrecks and came across a few literary gems among the bunch. Thought I'd share some of them with you!
I think that's probably enough for now. :-) Enjoy!
Yay! So I'm excited to announce that I have a winner in the Humanity Scar giveaway. This lucky winner gets a copy signed by miss Monique Doucette, the author herself.
Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway! For those of you who didn't win I highly suggest grabbing a copy of this yourself. It's an amazing book and you won't be sorry that you did.
The winner was chosen using one of those random number generator thingies. Comments were numbered from those on the blog and those from the facebook page and then entered into the generator.
So without further ado...
*EDIT*
I had to pick another winner guys. The previous winner had an international address and the giveaway stated it was US only. Also, when I went back to recount the comments to do the drawing again, there were some on my "comments" page that I couldn't see on the blog post itself. So, to be fair, I accounted for those comments as well. So, I'm sorry to Andrea, but the new lucky winner was comment number 1!
With all eligible entries accounted for:
And comment number one belonged to:
Congratulations! Will be emailing you for your details! You have 48 hours from now to respond and collect your prize!
Yay! I finished reading The 58th Keeper by R.G. Bullet. It took a while, but not because it wasn't a good book. I loved every bit of it. I'd just been on brain overload, like I said on another post. It was such a fun book to read and I don't think I've ever read another story like it.
Archy Bass is stuck at Rushburys, a boarding school that feels more like a prison. He meets Vincent, a stocky, sandy-haired boy that becomes his partner in crime. Archy gets an invite to go on holiday to Turkey with Vincent, Vincent's father, his brother Richard, and his brother George. George, however, ends up being a sister named Georgiana.
It turns out they're going to be studying an archaeological dig. Their "holiday" turns out to be one day at the beach before they settle down and get to work. Only, that day on the beach changes Archy's life forever.
He doesn't really know what he's getting in to when he gives all of his possessions to Alturus Burk in exchange for a rug. But not just any rug. A rug that makes him DISAPPEAR. But something is wrong. Alturus seems to be running from someone. And Archy and Vincent find out who pretty quickly when they track Archy to the airport and almost get a hold of him while he's waiting for his plane out of Turkey.
The rug literally takes Archy and his friends on a wild ride over Europe (along with turning the user invisible, it can fly!) and even back in time as he fights to retain his title as Keeper and make Restitution for his old pal Alturus, all the while trying to avoid the Kurul who will stop at nothing to get the "rug" from him. Even if it means killing him.
The book was exciting and I was sad to make it to the last page knowing there was nothing to read after that. I said before in another post, Archy is the perfect person to follow on this journey. He's not spoiled or mean. He's humble and gracious and a perfect main character. Vincent is a great sidekick and an extremely loyal friend. Conversations in the story were funny(I especially liked the one that happened in an online chatroom) and flowed really well. And I loved how the names of the Sentinels seemed to go along with their personalities.
The 58th Keeper was jam packed with action and suspense humor and I can only hope that this turns in to the first of many stories about Archy and his "rug".
Q: What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done to get your hands on any particular book?
I don't think I've ever done anything crazy. When Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix came out my mom, brother, and I went to Borders at probably 6:00 the night before to wait for the midnight release. My mom even dressed like a witch. LoL. The Hansel and Gretel kind. It was great.
