ARC Review: How To Lead A Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller

A meth dealer. A prostitute. A serial killer.

Anywhere else, they’d be vermin. At the Mandel Academy, they’re called prodigies. The most exclusive school in New York City has been training young criminals for over a century. Only the most ruthless students are allowed to graduate. The rest disappear.

Flick, a teenage pickpocket, has risen to the top of his class. But then Mandel recruits a fierce new competitor who also happens to be Flick’s old flame. They’ve been told only one of them will make it out of the Mandel Academy. Will they find a way to save each other—or will the school destroy them both?

Where to even begin?  I'm a huge fan of Miller's writing so I'll admit up front that I may be slightly bias but her writing speaks for itself in the long run and I'm a firm believer that everyone will no doubt become addicted to her latest YA addition.

The idea surrounding this title was so unique and out of the ordinary that I had no idea what to expect.  Outside of Miller's great writing style and her fast paced page turners I wasn't sure where this one would lead, but I was in for a wonderful surprise.  She continues to impress me with her vivid imagination and yet still manages to keep her stories grounded so that there will always be a piece of me that could see something like this actually becoming a reality.  For everyone's sake I hope this story stays in the fictitious pages that Miller has dominated because if there's an inkling of truth to this story we're all in big trouble.

Her characters were witty, easy to relate to and sympathize with despite their crazy backgrounds and upbringings.  Miller once again has me scared of her villains (they're always so realistic) and our heroes were as easy to root for as ever.  But what I enjoyed most of all was the fact that I had no idea what to expect with each and every turn of the page.  It was difficult to keep up with everything going on but in the best possible sense.  No one enjoys a book where the reader can predict what will happen around every turn, and Miller makes that nearly impossible!

Anyone who has read any of Miller's previous work will no doubt be racing to the stores to pick up their own copy, but if any of you haven't experienced her talent I highly recommend making this your first choice!

I gave How To Lead A Life of Crime 4 shamrocks!!!!

Guest Post: Author Kirsten Miller

Books:  

The Eternal Ones (Eternal Ones, #1)

All You Desire (Eternal Ones, #2)

How to Lead a Life of Crime

Hey Katelyn! Thank you so much for inviting me to write a Valentine’s Day post on Bookshelf Sophisticate (which, as you already know, is one of my favorite blogs)!

Valentine’s is such a fascinating holiday, don’t you think? What other day can get some people hot—and leave others feeling homicidal? And lets be honest—it’s not really a holiday, is it? I guess back in the fifteenth century it must have been kind of sweet. But now it’s just an opportunity for giant corporations to guilt-trip us into buying more diamonds/ cards/ lingerie/ chocolate syrup. (Don’t worry, I’m going somewhere with all this.)

So what does Valentine’s Day have to do with my new book, How to Lead a Life of Crime? Well it just so happens that homicide, capitalism, and true love were all on my mind as I was writing it.

It’s a very angry novel.  The financial crisis was front page-news while I was typing away. I saw what was (and is) going on in America, and it made me extremely mad. Just a few years ago, an elite group of criminals came very close to destroying our country. And the young people for whom I write books will be the ones who end up paying for all those villains’ misdeeds.

Most of How to Lead a Life of Crime takes place at the Mandel Academy—a school for young criminals that’s based on a real institution that existed in my hometown (New York City) at the end of the nineteenth century. The Mandel Academy is a breeding ground for the kind of cheaters, conmen and sociopaths who are robbing America blind. What happens to the school’s students (particularly those who aren’t able to compete) isn’t pretty—which is one reason why my book is definitely not for the squeamish or faint of heart.

I think I’ve made it pretty clear that How to Lead a Life of Crime is dark and bloody. (As you’d imagine, its language is quite crude as well.) So you might be surprised to hear that the novel is also (in my opinion) an extremely touching love story. It’s certainly the best romance I’ve ever written. The relationship between the two heroes, Flick and Joi is like an amazing flower sprouting out of the muck. I didn’t intend to add a romance to the plot. It just appeared one day while I was writing—and then it kept on growing and growing.

Flick, the narrator, is a pickpocket who’s been living on the streets of New York. Joi is the founder of a “colony” of street kids. They’ve both seen and experienced things that would destroy most people. And once the Mandel Academy comes into their lives, the situation gets even worse. But as Joi informs Flick, sometimes all you need to survive is ONE GOOD THING. Joi knows what hers is. And by the end of the book, Flick’s finally found his, too. 

** Thank you so much for stopping by and if any of you guys haven't checked out Kirsten's books yet, head on over and get yourself a copy a.s.a.p.!!!

Countdown: February 2013 (2)

February is a short month but it seems to be packed with great new titles that will hit the shelves in that small amount of time. A few series sequels and a bunch of new titles and authors to check out and I'm excited for each one of them. For some reason outside of Valentine's Day there usually isn't much else going on with everyone in February. It's always a great time to unwind and decompress as much as possible after the holidays, and also a perfect time to get cozy at home with a few of the great books that I've gotten from friends and family.

So I'm hoping that the tradition stands this year and come February the countdown will have been worth it and I'll be able to squeeze as many books as possible into that month and to pump out as many reviews for the blog as possible. So here are just a few of the titles that come out in February that I'm looking forward to diving into.

Countdown Pick #1: How To Lead A Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller (February 2013)

A Meth Dealer. A Prostitute. A Serial Killer.

Anywhere else, they’d be vermin. At the Mandel Academy, they’re called prodigies. The most exclusive school in New York City has been training young criminals for over a century. Only the most ruthless students are allowed to graduate. The rest disappear.

Flick, a teenage pickpocket, has risen to the top of his class. But then Mandel recruits a fierce new competitor who also happens to be Flick’s old flame. They’ve been told only one of them will make it out of the Mandel Academy. Will they find a way to save each other—or will the school destroy them both?

Now this is not the official cover art for this title, but a picture of the ARC that I received in the mail this past month but it's better than nothing right? Miller is one of my favorite young adult authors and her writing never ceases to excite me. It's always full of creative worlds and scenarios, characters that you fall in love with and want to be anything but fictional, and story lines that you wish would never end. How cool does this new title sound? I don't want to spoil anything and it's too soon to post a review, but Miller won't dissapoint her readers. This is yet again another title that won't be leaving my shelf anytime soon unless it's for a reread which is likely to happen more than once. So get excited guys, because come February this is a read you won't want to miss out on.

Countdown Pick #2: Pulse (Pulse Trilogy, #1) by Patrick Carman (02/26/2013)

From New York Times bestselling author Patrick Carman, a teen fantasy-adventure of epic proportions. In 2051, some teens have a “pulse,” the power to move objects with their minds. Compulsively readable, with thrilling action scenes and a tender love story.

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.

Patrick Carman’s Pulse trilogy is a stunning, action-filled triumph about the power of the mind—and the power of love.

Here's the thing. While I love a good romance, and also a good action packed adventure, I like a book even better when it's got both and this read sounds like it'll fit that bill. So even though I haven't read anything by Carman before I've heard only good things and after reading this book's description I'm thinking that I've got a very good chance of liking this book. Have you guys read anything by Carman before? Are you as excited about this upcoming release as I am?

Countdown Pick #3: The Different Girl by Gordon Dahlquist (02/01/2013)

Four nearly identical girls on a desert island. An unexpected new arrival. A gently warped near future where nothing is quite as it seems.

Veronika. Caroline. Isobel. Eleanor. One blond, one brunette, one redhead, one with hair black as tar. Four otherwise identical girls who spend their days in sync, tasked to learn. But when May, a very different kind of girl—the lone survivor of a recent shipwreck—suddenly and mysteriously arrives on the island, an unsettling mirror is about to be held up to the life the girls have never before questioned.

Sly and unsettling, Gordon Dahlquist’s timeless and evocative storytelling blurs the lines between contemporary and sci-fi with a story that is sure to linger in readers’ minds long after the final page has been turned.

Ooh I cannot wait to check this one out. Deserted island and featuring five sure to be strong personality bearing females....what do you guys think? I'm thinking there will be lots of drama to go along with all of these mysteries that are going to be looked into. What the bottom line is where this plot is concerned? I haven't got a clue, but I'm really looking forward to finding out for myself just what Dahlquist has in store for readers.

In My Mailbox (60)

This is a meme that I first heard about from Kristi over at The Story Siren and immediately wanted to jump on board. I'm always picking up new books, because I
never tire of reading, but the other thing I like about this meme is that it gives everyone an opportunity to check out what other book fanatics, bloggers, etc... got for themselves. I've gotten great recommendations from this meme and hope that keeps up in the future.

Here's what I got, what did you guys get this week?

Prince of Wolves (The Grey Wolves, #1) by Quinn Loftis

Jaque Pierce was just an ordinary 17 year old girl getting ready to start her senior year in high school in Coldspring, Texas. When a mysterious foreign exchange student from Romania moves in across the street, Jacque and her two best friends, Sally and Jen, don't realize the last two weeks of their summer was going to get a lot more interesting. From the moment Jacque sets eyes on Fane she feels an instant connection, a pull like a moth to a flame. Little does she know that the flame she is drawn to is actually a Canis lupis, werewolf, and she just happens to be his mate; the other half of his soul. The problem is Fane is not the only wolf in Coldspring, Texas. Just as Fane and Jacque are getting to know each other, another wolf steps out to try and claim Jacque as his mate. Fane will now have to fight for the right to complete the mating bond, something that is his right by birth but is being denied him by a crazed Alpha. Will the love Fane has for Jacque be enough to give him the strength to defeat his enemy, will Jacque accept that she is Fane's mate and complete the bond between them?

Beautiful Disaster (Beautiful, #1) by Jamie McGuire

The new Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate percentage of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance between her and the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University's Walking One-Night Stand. 

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby needs—and wants—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

The Loop by Shandy Lawson (Thanks to Shandy)

Ben and Maggie have met, fallen in love, and died together countless times. Over the course of two pivotal days—both the best and worst of their lives—they struggle again and again to resist the pull of fate and the force of time itself. With each failure, they return to the beginning of their end, a wild road trip that brings them to the scene of their own murders and into the hands of the man destined to kill them.

As time circles back on itself, events become more deeply ingrained, more inescapable for the two kids trapped inside the loop. The closer they come to breaking out, the tighter fate’s clutches seem to grip them. They devise a desperate plan to break free and survive the days ahead, but what if Ben and Maggie’s only shot at not dying is surviving apart?

How To Lead A Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller (Thanks to Kirsten)

A Meth Dealer. A  Prostitute. A Serial Killer.

Anywhere else, they’d be vermin. At the Mandel Academy, they’re called prodigies. The most exclusive school in New York City has been training young criminals for over a century. Only the most ruthless students are allowed to graduate. The rest disappear.

Flick, a teenage pickpocket, has risen to the top of his class. But then Mandel recruits a fierce new competitor who also happens to be Flick’s old flame. They’ve been told only one of them will make it out of the Mandel Academy. Will they find a way to save each other—or will the school destroy them both?

Countdown: Favorite Authors Edition

While I'm anxious to ad some new authors to my bookshelf, I'll never pass up the chance to read yet another story written by an author I've come to adore. So I've been keeping my eyes open for future releases by one of these very authors. Obviously if I listed a soon to be released book by every author I love, the list would go on for forever. So I've listed just a few, but will surely have more of this type of countdown in the future. A few of these titles are already available on the shelves but I've yet to get my hands on them so they're listed with the rest. I can't say it enough, my TBR pile is always never ending, but it's so nice to have books listed among those that are by authors I love, that I have almost no doubt will become new favorite titles as well.

Countdown Pick #1: The Future of Us by Jay Asher (11/12/2011)

It's 1996, and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet.

Emma just got her first computer and an America Online CD-ROM. Josh is her best friend.

They power up and log on and discover themselves on Facebook, fifteen years in the future.

Everybody wonders what their destiny will be. Josh and Emma are about to find out.

If you're not familiar with Asher's Thirteen Reasons Why, please do yourself a favor and go out and buy yourself a copy. It's an emotional roller coaster and at times hard to read, but is overall so worth it. I wouldn't even need to read the description to be interested in this one. If Jay Asher wrote it, I'm on board and expecting greatness. However, I did read the description and can't help but get excited over the details. How cool would it be to see where and how things end up for you in the future? I can't wait!

Countdown Pick #2: The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder

Amber’s life is spinning out of control. All she wants is to turn up the volume on her iPod until all of the demands of family and friends fade away. So she sneaks off to the beach to spend a day by herself.

Then Amber meets Cade. Their attraction is instant, and Amber can tell he’s also looking for an escape. Together they decide to share a perfect day: no pasts, no fears, no regrets.

The more time that Amber spends with Cade, the more she’s drawn to him. And the more she’s troubled by his darkness. Because Cade’s not just living in the now—he’s living each moment like it’s his last.

Reading prose in college as an English major honestly made me want to cringe. It was just never my favorite thing. So when a fellow blogger suggested Schroeder's Chasing Brooklyn, which is written in prose, I was less than enthused to jump in and seriously doubtful I'd make it to the end. I was an idiot! Schroeder takes prose and creates works of art. Readers will forget they're even reading the uncommon format. After Chasing Brooklyn became close to my heart I decided anything Lisa wrote I wanted to read. Amber and Cade's story sounds like it could be a tear jerker, but one I'm anxious to check out. I've got my tissues ready for sure.

Countdown Pick #3: Starstruck by Cyn Balog

Gwendolyn "Dough" X doesn't think she has much going for her—she carries a few extra pounds, her family struggles with their small bakery in a town full of millionaires, and the other kids at her New Jersey high school don't seem to know that she exists. Thank the stars for her longtime boyfriend, Philip P. Wishman—or "Wish." He moved away to California three years ago, when they were 13, but then professed his love for her via e-mail, and he's been her long-distance BF ever since.

At the beginning of her junior year, though, Wish e-mails that he's moving back to Jersey. Great, right? Well, except that Dough has gained about 70 pounds since the last time Wish saw her, while Wish—according to his Facebook photos—has morphed into a blonde god. Convinced that she'll be headed for Dumpsville the minute Wish lays eyes on her, Dough delays their meeting as long as she possibly can.

But when she sees Wish at school, something amazing happens. He looks at Dough like she's just as gorgeous as he is. But Wish is acting a little weird, obsessed with the sun and freaked out by rain. And the creepy new guy working at the bakery, Christian, is convinced that there's more to Wish's good looks than just healthy eating and lots of sun. He tells Dough that a mark on Wish's neck marks him as a member of the Luminati—an ancient cult of astrologers who can manipulate the stars to improve their lives. Is Wish and Dough's love meant to be—or are they star-crossed?

I've met and hung out with Cyn and she's in a word, fabulous! Her writing is no different. It made me laugh, cry, tense up and turn pages as quickly as possible just to find out what would happen next. When I got this one in the mail, work was unfortunately keeping me crazy busy and reading was hard to squeeze in. I'm hopeful that as things have slowed down a notch, Gwendolyn, Philip and the rest of Balog's characters and I will get the chance to get to know each other. I can't imagine that Starstruck won't live up to my high expectations, so I'm excited to have a good book to curl up with now that summer is drawing to a close.

Countdown Pick #4: Fins Are Forever (Fins, #2) by Tera Lynn Childs

On Lily Sanderson’s eighteenth birthday she’ll become just a girl—still a mergirl, true, but signing the renunciation will ink Princess Waterlily of Thalassinia out of existence. That leaves plain old Lily living on land, dating the boy she loves, and trying to master this being-human thing once and for all.

Now that Lily and Quince are together, mer bond or not, she’s almost content to give up her place in the royal succession of Thalassinia. But just when she thinks she has everything figured out, the waves start to get rough. Lily’s father sends a certain whirlpool-stirring cousin to stay with her on land. What did Doe do to get herself exiled from Thalassinia and stuck in terraped form when everyone knows how much she hates humans? And why why why is she batting her eyelashes at Lily’s former crush, Brody?

The seafoam on the raging surf comes when a merboy from Lily’s past shows up—Tellin asks Lily for something that clouds her view of the horizon. There’s a future with Quince on land, her loyalty to the kingdom in the sea, and Lily tossing on the waves in the middle. Will she find a way to reconcile her love, her duty, and her own dreams?

Lily and Quince finally got together at the end of TLC's series opener and the sequel was so far off, that had I not been content with the ending, I might not have made it to it's release date. Now I find this installment starting at me from my bookshelf and I'm wondering what I'm waiting for. So with trouble following Lily on land and a new guy thrown into the mix, I'm worried that my period of contentment is now over. I can only cross my fingers and hope that I leave the last page of this installment as happy and content as I did with the series opener.

Countdown Pick #5: All You Desire (Eternal Ones, #2) by Kirsten Miller

Haven Moore and Iain Morrow have been living a blissful life in Rome, an ocean way from the Ouroboros Society and its diabolical leader. But paradise is not to last. The mysterious disappearance of Haven's best friend, Beau, sends the pair running back to New York, where they encounter the Horae, an underground group of women who have spent centuries scheming to destroy Adam Rosier. Only they can help Haven uncover the secret to Beau's whereabouts in one of her past lives. But their help comes at a price: Haven must infiltrate the Ouroboros Society, charm Adam Rosier, and lure him into a trap. It's a plan the Horae believe will save the world-but Haven and Iain fear that it may destroy the happiness they've been chasing for two thousand years.

Haven and Iain are yet another couple I was excited to see in fictional bliss at the end of Miller's series opener. And Miller seems to be another author who doesn't appear ready to let their bliss last. I'm still a fan, but Miller's making me nervous with the secret plans which lead to traps, missing persons and lives in jeopardy. The reprieve seems to be over, so I'm looking forward to seeing what she's got up her sleeve. I'd like to see Beau safe, Have and Iain together and Adam Rosier to get what he deserves. Is it likely to go my way? Probably not, but a girl can dream, right?

Author Interview: Kirsten Miller

Kirsten Miller is also the author of the critically-acclaimed Kiki Strike book series. She lives in Brooklyn, NY, and she suspects she may have been either Amelia Earheart or Catherine the Great in a previous existence.

I was lucky enough to ask Kirsten a few questions and couldn't wait to share them...check it out!

Katelyn: The idea of true love that lasts throughout lifetimes is so romantic...are you a believer in soul mates and past lives? What drew you to write about such a unique idea?

Kirsten: I think most of us have fantasized about other lives and other loves. And I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one with a list of historical periods that I wish I could visit. (Although there are just as many that I’d prefer to avoid.) As for soul mates, I know a few people I think I might have encountered in previous lives. And most aren’t love interests. I think soul mates can be friends, too. (And then there are the eternal enemies—the people you meet and instantly despise. I haven’t come across too many of those, but I suspect they’re out there somewhere.)

So to answer your question, I’m not sure I believe in reincarnation or soul mates, but they sure do make for some fabulous daydreams.

Katelyn: With your book being recently released this has to be a chaotic and very busy time for you. What's your favorite and least favorite part of the process?

Kirsten: The most difficult part of the process is simply finding a way to get everything done! I wake up each morning to a list of a hundred and one things that must be accomplished between the hours of nine and five. It requires military efficiency to check off all the items on the list. (Sometimes I wonder if I might have been a general in a previous life.) But I would rather be busy than bored, so it’s really not much to complain about.

The best part of the process is finally interacting with people who’ve read the book! Writing can be an incredibly lonely endeavor. With each book, I’ll spend a year or more sitting alone in front of my computer. Then one day, it’s out and I get my very first email! That’s when all the hard work starts to feel worthwhile.

Katelyn: Favorite author/book?

Kirsten: Wow. I’m not sure I have ONE favorite. Possibly The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, which is the best ghost story ever written. Or maybe a dark and dangerous “romance” like Jane Eyre or Rebecca. But if we’re sticking to the YA world, I’ll have to go with The Westing Game, which I’ve read about two hundred times.

Katelyn: Did you have a favorite character while writing The Eternal Ones? If so, can you tell us who it was and why?

Kirsten: Everyone seems to love Beau Decker, the protagonist’s best friend. But my favorite character has always been Leah Frizzell, the otherworldly mountain girl who sees the future, chugs strychnine, and isn’t afraid of a serpent or two. (Her uncle is the preacher at a snake handling church hidden deep in the woods.) She’s everything most people would never expect a “hillbilly” girl like her to be. Academically brilliant, open-minded, and wise beyond her years.

In fact, I like Leah so much that I’ve given her a big role in the sequel, which leads me to your next question . . .

Katelyn: Are you working on any other novels or works at the moment? Is there any chance we'll get to see more of the characters we fell in love with in The Eternal Ones in the future?

Kirsten: Yes! There’s a sequel to The Eternal Ones that’s in the works as we speak! Actually, it’s already written, and I’m just making a few tweaks. So it should be out pretty soon. (I don't have a release date yet.) The few people who’ve read it swear it’s even better than the first book. I don’t know about that, but it IS pretty exciting. And anyone who’s interested in the sinister Ouroboros Society should definitely check it out!

Thanks so much Kirsten for stopping by!  If you guys haven't had the chance to check out The Eternal Ones...what are you waiting for?  If you want to read my review you can find it here and don't forget to stop by Kirsten's website to keep up to date on all things Eternal Ones!  I especially loved the section "letters" where you can read Ethan's words to Constance...swoon worthy for sure!