Stacking The Shelves [16]

Go over to Tynga's Reviews and join in on the fun!

Hey! Wow, it's been awhile. I'm super duper sorry about my being so MIA! But, I'm back, and I'll definitely be blogging a lot more!

I got several books I've been eagerly waiting for from the library this week. Along with that, I got a couple of books as presents for my birthday, which was on Monday. I also received 2 books last week that I won from contests! Here they are!

From the Library!

• Vortex by Julie Cross — I read Tempest, the first book, and it was GREAT! I am so excited to read this!
• Uses For Boys by Erica Lorraine Scheidt — I originally saw this on Goodreads, and I thought it seemed interesting. It's a 230 page book, so it shouldn't take too long to read, and I might review it later!
• Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans — I'm reading this for the Debut Author Challenge. I saw this on the list that was posted for the DAC and though I'd check it out. I've seen mixed reviews from people who have already read it, but I'll see how it goes.
• Nobody by Jennifer Lynn Barnes — I saw this under the "Recommendations" section of my Goodreads, and it looked very interesting!
• Shades of Earth by Beth Revis — AHHH! THIS BOOK! I've been waiting so long for this book. I read A Million Suns the first week it came out and I've been so excited to read this book! I might just move aside all the other books in my to-read pile and read this one! 

For My Birthday!

• Just Listen by Sarah Dessen — Just Listen was AMAZING! I love this book. This might be one of my favorite books written by Sarah Dessen! 
• This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen — I have yet to read This Lullaby, but it's written by Sarah Dessen so it's gotta be great! 
• The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen — I've seen the reviews for this one, and most of the people love it! I got it from the library once, but never had time to read it. Now that I own it, I can read it any time I want!

These 3 books came together in a box set.

From Contests!

• Deity by Jennifer Armentrout — I won this from Jena's 2nd Annual Scavenger Hunt at Shortie Says! And it's SIGNED! Deity is my favorite book so far out of the Covenant Series. The ending caused me to freak out, and I can't wait for Apollyon. If you haven't started this series yet, what are you waiting for?!
• Never Eighteen by Megan Bostic — I won this from Doodle over at Doodle's Book Blog. This book is exactly 200 pages and will be a nice, quick read. OK, maybe it won't exactly be nice...there might be some crying involved. 

That's what I got this week (and sorta last week)! Leave a link to your post and I'll check it out.

Why I Haven't Been Blogging and Upcoming Things

Hey all! This is just going to be a quick update post about what'll be coming on this blog and what's been going on lately.

If you've noticed, I haven't posted anything since January 11th. I'm extremely sorry about that, but I'm completely back now! Due to some personal and family issues, I've been neglecting this blog a little. Now that everything is take care of, I'm fully on board!

Now, there are going to be many more posts than before. Many more reviews, promotional posts, and all that great stuff. I'll definitely be posting a review of Altered by Jennifer Rush, Florence by Ciye Cho, and Advantage Erin by Kris Kreisman within the next couple of weeks. There will also be some unscheduled reviews too! There will be a whole bunch more for the Debut Author Challenge and the Sequel Challenge that I'm participating in this year!

I'll be talking to you guys soon! Thanks for visiting :)

Stacking The Shelves [15]

Go over to Tynga's Reviews and join in on the fun!

How was your week? We have midterms coming up next week for school, so I've been studying. I'm not getting much reading time in. But I DID go to the library and pick up some books!

From the Library:

• Crash by Lisa McMann—I actually didn't find out about this book until I looked at the "on order" section of my library's website. When I saw it, I thought it sounded interesting and decided to request it! We'll see how it turns out.
• Prophecy by Ellen Oh—I had heard some good reviews on this, based on people who got ARCs of it. It wasn't on my to-read list, but I thought I'd give it a try.
• Just One Day by Gayle Forman—This has been on my to-read list for a while now! I'm super excited to finally get to read this. And, from what I've been hearing from people who've already read it, it's great!

Kindle Fire HD Giveaway or $199 Amazon GC/Paypal Cash

20 Amazing Authors plus more than 100 of the Best Bloggers have joined together to bring you 1 Amazing Giveaway!

The winner will have the option of receiving a Kindle Fire HD (US Only)

Or $199 Amazon.com Gift Card (International)

Or $199 in Paypal Cash (International)

This giveaway is sponsored by these Awesome Authors:




The Essence by Kimberly Derting
Alaina Claiborne by MK McClintock
Excuse Me, My Brains Have Stepped Out by Pandora Poikilos
Uncontrollable by S.R. Johannes
Hunted by Ednah Walters
Cliffhanger by Amy Saunders
I Was Here - Before You Came by Camelia Miron Skiba
Everlost by Brenda Pandos
Blood Oath by T.L. Clarke
Reaper's Novice by Cecilia Robert
Bulletproof by Jeff LaFerney
Lancaster House by Taylor Dean
Two Halves by Marta Szemik
Murder on Potrero Hill by M.L. Hamilton
Bellyache by Crystal Marcos
Kill Shot by Anne Patrick
Skid Out by Ann Marie Frohoff
Between by Mary Ting
Dragon Stones Saga by Kristian Alva
Rapunzel Untangled by Cindy C. Bennett


Giveaway Details
1 winner will receive their choice of a Kindle Fire HD (US Only), $199 Amazon Gift Card or $199 in Paypal Cash (International).
Ends 1/31/13

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the authors. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.


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Waiting On Wednesday [7]

This is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine! It features a upcoming releases

Pulse by Patrick Carman
Release date: February 26th, 2013
Summary from Goodreads:

The year is 2051, and the world is still recognizable. With the help of her mysterious classmate Dylan Gilmore, Faith Daniels discovers that she can move objects with her mind. This telekinetic ability is called a "pulse," and Dylan has the talent, too.

In riveting action scenes, Faith demonstrates her ability to use her pulse against a group of telekinesis masters so powerful they will flatten their enemies by uprooting street lights, moving boulders, and changing the course of a hurtling hammer so that it becomes a deadly weapon. But even with great talent, the mind–and the heart–can be difficult to control. If Faith wants to join forces with Dylan and save the world, she'll have to harness the power of both.

This book seems like it would be awesome. And, besides, look at that amazing cover! I'm really anticipating this release, and I can't wait until February to read it!

Stacking The Shelves [14]

Go over to Tynga's Reviews and join in on the fun!

Hey all! How has your week been? My winter break ended on Tuesday, so I went back to school Wednesday. On Thursday I went over to the library and picked up a few books! Check it out:

From the Library:

• A Million Suns by Beth Revis — I got this because Shades of Earth comes out soon! I think it comes out in about 2 weeks. It's been so long since I've read this series and I thought I'd quickly read through it again before reading Shades of Earth. 
• The Pledge by Kimberly Derting — I also got this one because I needed to review what had happened. The second book in the series, The Essence, came out a few days back.
• The Essence by Kimberly Derting — This is the second book in The Pledge Trilogy, as you can see above. I'm super excited to read this. I've been waiting so long to be able to read this and I'm super happy it's finally out! AHH!
• Altered by Jennifer Rush — This is her debut book and I saw it on Goodreads. It looked and sounded amazing, plus it was on pre-order by my library. I HAD to request it. It sounds so good!

My Cousin Gave Me A Book!

• The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern — I've actually never heard of it. Actually, now that I look on Goodreads, it seems as if I've seen the cover before, but never actually checked it out. It seems interesting, plus it's got a lot of awards and a 4 star rating, so I'll give it a try! 

I Signed Up For the 2013 Sequel Reading Challenge!

Hey guys! So, along with the Debut Author Challenge, I'm also doing this one – the 2013 Sequel Challenge. I noticed on my to-read list there are A LOT of sequels that I want to read. 

The goal of this challenge is to read as many sequels as you can within the year 2013. 

Here are the Guidelines! **from Auntie Spinelli Reads**

1. The challenge runs from January 1st to December 31st. 
2. Any books started before Jan. 1 will not count.
3. Any book after the first book in the series counts. Books in the same series also count.
4. Novellas count, as long as it is after book #1 (ex: #1.5, #2.5, etc.) No prequels.
5. Books can be of any publication date. They don't have to be released in 2013.
6. Sign ups will be open until December 1st, 2013
7. Add the URL of your challenge post to the linky widget. If you'd like to wait, it's ok to use your blog URL and send me your link when you get the post up).
8. At the end of each month I will post a linky for you to add your sequel reviews to.
9. I will try to do some giveaways throughout the year for participants (as long as I can afford it).
10. There will be a giveaway at the end of the year for all participants who completed the challenge.

If you want to join in on the challenge over at Auntie Spinelli Reads and add your link!

Books that I've read for the challenge will be posted here. A review will also be posted for each sequel that's read!

Bringing YA to YOU!

Have you ever wished that a big YA book tour would make a stop in your hometown? Well, here's your chance for that wish to come true! YA2U is a program that features five award-winning and best-selling authors who are holding a contest to see what city they should visit in an exclusive tour stop!

The authors are collecting votes from January 1 to February 15, and any city in the continental US or any Canadian city that has an international airport can win an exclusive visit from all five authors, including an author panel and book signing! Entering is super easy--and if you help spread the word about the contest, you can also enter win a signed copy of all of their books (TEN signed books in total!)--and the book contest is open internationally!

The authors in the program are:

• Marie Lu, the New York Times best-selling author of Legend and the upcoming Prodigy
• Marissa Meyer, the New York Times best-selling author of Cinder and the upcoming Scarlet
• Beth Revis, the New York Times best-selling author of Across the Universe, A Million Suns, and the upcoming Shades of Earth
• Victoria Schwab, author of The Near Witch and the highly-anticipated upcoming The Archived
• Megan Shepherd, author of the debut novel The Madman's Daughter

And they want to have an event in your home town! To participate, just got to the YA2U website and let them know what city you want them to come to. And while you're there, help spread the word about the contest and you can be entered to win all of their books--TEN signed books in total! 

Here's why the YA2U Team should come to MY hometown! 

I live in Maryland! Yes, yes, east coasters always have authors coming to their area. BUT! Not many come to Maryland. They all go to Pennsylvania, New York, or North/South Carolina! I'd really like for YA to come to MY hometown. It could be any city in Maryland, really, because Maryland isn't a huge state, so it wouldn't be hard to drive a couple hours. Plus, it would be totally worth the drive if it meant a chance to meet these authors! AND, if it's hosted in my hometown, the 5 authors and YOU ALL can visit Baltimore, Washington DC, and all the other great places in the area!

Why should the YA2U Team come to your hometown? 
Why not join in the fun today and share with others about this program and your hometown. The more votes your town gets, the closer you are to having your very own personal tour stop! Vote for YOUR town here!

And if you help spread the word, you can also participate in the book giveaway. Tell them that you learned about YA2U from ME and we both get extra entries in the contest! 

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Waiting On Wednesday [6]

This is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine! It features a upcoming releases

I have a lot that I'm waiting on! This is one that I am going to read right when it comes out.

The Elite (The Selection #2) by Kiera Cass

Release Date: April 23rd, 2013

Summary from Goodreads:

Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Illea. 

America still isn't sure where her hear lies. When she's with Maxon, she's swept up in their new and breathless romance, and can't dream of being with anyone else. But whenever she sees Aspen standing guard around the palace, and is overcome with memories of the life they planned to share. With the group narrowed down to the Elite, the other girls are even more determined to win Maxon over – and time is running out for America to decide. 

Just when America is sure she's made her choice, a devastating loss makes her question everything again. And while she's struggling to imagine her future, the violent revels that are determined to overthrow the monarchy are growing stronger and their plans could destroy her chance at any kind of happy ending. 

This is the second book in The Selection trilogy. I absolutely loved The Selection and I need to read this one NOW. I can't wait to see what happens and what the "devastating loss" is. The covers in this series are so pretty. I love the colors that are used. The Selection's was a tealish-aqua color and this one is a reddish-orange color. I can already tell this one will be just as great as the first.