Teaser Tuesday (5)

It's that time again....

"Teaser Tuesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Mizb of Should Be Reading.  Anyone can do it, here's how:

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a random page
3. Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page.
4. Share the title and the author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers.

• 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.)

 Since I'm kinda making this week all about Maria V. Snyder and her books with my upcoming contest, book signing pics and quotes, etc... why not my "teaser" as well?

This "teaser" comes from Maria's 2nd installment in her Study series, Magic Study.

"He pulled my arm out to expose my bracelet. 'When I carved this my thoughts were on you, love. Your life is like this snake's coils. No matter how many turns it makes, you'll end up back where you belong. With me.'"

All of Maria's books have become a part of my top favorites of all times, but I just really love the characters in her Study series...Yelena and Valek, Ari and Janco, the list goes on...

She does such a wonderful job weaving her characters and storylines together that you'll be blown away if you haven't read them yet...her books never leave you dissapointed and always leave you wanting more...what more could you ask for from an author?

Do you have a good "teaser" from a great book you're reading?  Leave me a comment below and I'll check it out...

As far as the upcoming contest goes....better check back in with me tomorrow for your first chance to sign up and see what's up for grabs!

Also...on a side note...for all you bloggers out there looking to jump on a book tour...there's still one spot left for The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson tour over at International Book Tours!  I'm signed up for the tour and can't wait to read this book.  

Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, bookworm and band geek, plays second clarinet and spends her time tucked safely and happily in the shadow of her fiery older sister, Bailey. 

But when Bailey dies abruptly, Lennie is catapulted to center stage of her own life—and, despite her nonexistent history with boys, suddenly finds herself struggling to balance two. 

Toby was Bailey’s boyfriend; his grief mirrors Lennie’s own. Joe is the new boy in town, a transplant from Paris whose nearly magical grin is matched only by his musical talent.

For Lennie, they’re the sun and the moon; one boy takes her out of her sorrow, the other comforts her in it. But just like their celestial counterparts, they can’t collide without the whole wide world exploding.

Doesn't that sound like potential for a great read?  I thought so and didn't hesitate to sign up...maybe you should too!

Quote of the Week (6)

"There's always another storm. It's the way the world works. Snowstorms, rainstorms, windstorms, sandstorms, and firestorms. Some are fierce and others are small. You have to deal with each one separately, but you need to keep an eye on whats brewing for tomorrow."

-- Maria V. Snyder (Fire Study)

That's right....I just couldn't resist using one of Maria's quotes after meeting her on Saturday at her book signing in Lancaster, PA.  I had so much fun and it was well worth the road trip....all I can say is Maria is beyond gracious and nice...she's wonderful!  

You guys know how excited I was to go to my 1st book signing and it didn't dissapoint!  She took the time to take pictures with me and to sign multiple copies of her books for me...I got there early and the line hadn't formed yet...I guess sometimes it pays to be punctual...hopefully I'll remember that in the future, lol!  I've got to upload those pictures I took to show you guys, I'll get right on that a.s.a.p.!

So as you may remember, I was talking on Friday about wanting to host my 1st giveaway...and I'm in the process of working on it now.  The 1st place prize will be a SIGNED copy of Inside Out that Maria was kind enough to dedicate to a lucky winner and she threw in a bookmark to go with it!  

I have two other books that I know I'll be adding to the contest for 2nd and 3rd place winners, but like I said this will be for followers only!  You guys have been so great and I love you to death...when I last checked I had 39 on Friday and my number seems to have gone up so if that continues I'll be sure to add onto the contest giveaway to reflect that.  

Also on a side note...because this contest is to reflect how much I love my followers...this contest will be International...I don't wanna leave anyone out...they might not all be like this in the future...I might have to utilize the Book Depository for later contests but this one is for EVERYONE!

I'm hoping to get the google docs contest forms, etc...all that jazz set up and ready to go by Wednesday...if not it will be as soon as I can figure it out, lol!  So check back in and get excited...I know I am, I love reading so much and I love giving away books almost as much as I love getting them..hehe!

P.S. in other news....don't forget to pick up Radiant Shadows by Melissa Marr which comes out tomorrow!  I'm going to try and fly through her 3rd book in the Wicked Lovely series, Fragile Eternity so that I can delve into the new release pronto!

In My Mailbox (4)

This is a meme that I first heard about from Kristi over at The Story Siren and immediately wanted to jump on board. Every week we’ll post about what books we have received (whether they’re bought/borrowed, etc… you get the idea). This is generally done on Sunday, but I’m told that it’s really whatever day works for you; I’m going to be posting mine on Fridays because I tend to post less on the weekends. Everyone participating will try and visit other lists to comment and possibly pine for the new arrivals everyone’s talking about. I’ve learned that it’s a great idea to really try and stop by at least two or three lists because I’m constantly finding out about new books that I’ve later added to my TBR list.

This week I tried not to burn a hole in my pocket like last week and stuck to purchasing one book for my collection:

Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? Not like it's all that dangerous - the only neck I risk is my own. Until I accidently start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution. I should have just said no...

If I was only going to purchase one book this week...why did I choose this one do you ask?  Well it's because I have some very exciting news....I'm going to my 1st book signing on Saturday, and yes it's with Maria V. Snyder!  Maria will be at the Borders store in Lancaster, PA and I can't wait to meet her and experience a signing for the 1st time!  Maria's quickly become one of my favorite authors and I can't wait to read Inside Out.  Because of my excitement over the book signing and over having 39 followers (I love you guys!) I thought it might be time to host my 1st giveaway featuring....you guessed it - Inside Out.  There may be one or two more books thrown in as well since I want the first giveaway to be as exciting for you guys as it is for me to host it.

I'll have more information on the giveaway early next week so be sure to check back in for that, and can we please cross our fingers that I can figure out how to work Google Forms by then, lol!  Also be sure to check out the rest of Maria's tour schedule for Inside Out on her site and you'll also find that you can read the 1st three chapters of Inside Out there.

Having nothing to do with Maria V. Snyder but connected to the topic of book tours, I wanted to give everyone a heads up that Alyson Noel has just posted her tour schedule for her upcoming novel, Dark Flame.  Unfortunately she's not coming anywhere that wouldn't require me to get on a plane to see her or I'd totally be making my plans and mapping out my driving course, but if she's coming near you I think it would be a great opportunity for anyone!

And on a last note before the weekend....it being Friday it's of course Blog Hop Time!!!!  So don't forget to visit the Book Blogger Hop over at Crazy-for-Books and check out some great blogs that you may not know about. Since I've joined I've found some amazing ones and I can't wait to see who joins this week!

Happy Reading!

Cover Reveal!!!

I was going to wait to post this cover reveal tomorrow, but I just couldn't stand holding back.  After reading Firespell by Chloe Neill, I was of course anxious for the sequel to come out a.s.a.p.  But in the meantime while I'm trying to learn some patience, Neill was kind enough to post the cover image for Hexbound (A Novel of the Dark Elite, Book Two)!  

Isn't the cover awesome?  I'm even more excited to read it now and am growing less impatient by the day, lol!  But until it's release in January 2011 (which seems so far away) I'll have to make due somehow. 

Review: The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima

Before he knew about the Roses, 16-year-old Jack lived an unremarkable life in the small Ohio town of Trinity. Only the medicine he has to take daily and the thick scar above his heart set him apart from the other high-schoolers. Then one day Jack skips his medicine. Suddenly, he is stronger, fiercer, and more confident than ever before. And it feels great until he loses control of his own strength and nearly kills another player during soccer team tryouts. Soon, Jack learns the startling truth about himself: He is Weirlind; part of an underground society of magical people who live among us. At the head of this magical society sit the feuding houses of the Red Rose and the White Rose, whose power is determined by playing The Game. A magical tournament in which each house sponsors a warrior to fight to the death, The winning house ruling the Weir. As if his bizarre magical heritage isn't enough, Jack finds out that he s not just another member of Weirlind, he's one of the last of the warriors at a time when both houses are scouting for a player. Jack's performance on the soccer field has alerted the entire magical community to the fact that he's in Trinity. And until one of the houses is declared Jack's official sponsor, they'll stop at nothing to get Jack to fight for them.

This was a story that left with me many questions, and not the normal…what’s going to happen next? type of questions. This was a hard read for me to get in to, which is usually not the case with young adult material, let alone fantasy…I usually love everything about being taken into a different world, far away from reality, and normally I enjoy the vacation from reality so much I never want it to end. This was not the case for me with The Warrior Heir.

So I found myself wondering if I was just in a reading rut...I've found myself in those every once in a while and because I wasn't flying through the pages I may have just been expecting too much from a book that no matter what...because of my rut, just wasn't going to sustain my appetite for the unattainable, I'm not sure. Cinda Williams Chima is a talented story teller, this I can say with absolute certainty. Her characters were fun and likable when she wanted them to be, and awful and frustrating when she was going for that angle. She controlled the story, and the reader was only along for the ride...and it was a good ride, just not the best in my opinion. The main character, Jack, was a good character but hard for me to relate to. I'm not sure if it's just that as a female reader I find that I enjoy a strong female lead more than a male lead or what, but this is just one of the many questions I was left pondering.

One of the supporting characters, Leander Hastings who becomes close to Jack as his teacher/mentor reached the top of my favorites list for characters in this novel. He was mysterious and I was never sure if Jack should be putting his trust in him so completely. But I think it was Leander’s questionable nature that made him so interesting to me.

Jack’s aunt Linda was another character I found myself liking. She was strong and formidable…a real source to be reckoned with, but she also left me frustrated at times when she was unable to reach the goals she was hoping to obtain. No one is perfect and I often found myself being unnecessarily harsh with my criticism of her lack of “perfection” while I was reading. I'm not sure why I expected so much from her, but I did nonetheless.

Despite this not making my top 10 favorites of all time, I must say that although the book was difficult for me to make my way through, the prologue of this story was excellent! The way Chima set up the story and tied up the prologue...I was shocked at how much I wanted to uncover the secrets and mysteries she laid out in only the first few pages of the novel. My dad always said, before you buy a book you're unsure about, sit down and read the first chapter or at least the first few pages to see if you find yourself interested. Now I know this is unfair for all books, some need more than a chapter to pull a reader in and this does not make them any less wonderful all the time, but if I tested my dad's theory on The Warrior Heir, I would have snatched the book from the shelf and run for the register to buy it. The prologue, like I said would pull any reader in right away, it was that good. So while this book was not a favorite of mine, I was glad I read it and I did enjoy it for the most part.

This was the first book in a trilogy and I did add the next two installments to my TBR list because I'd like to see if they are more appealing to me and also out of curiosity as to what happens to the characters I was introduced to. Maybe I'll fall in love with them and it'll be proof positive that the difficulty I had with this read could be chalked up to a reading rut like I thought. If that's the case I'm glad, and I"ll know that I just happened to pick up The Warrior Heir at the wrong time.

I gave The Warrior Heir (The Heir Chronicles, #1) 2 shamrocks!!

Just A Little News

Hello Readers!  

To get through Wednesday I'm going to be surfing around and checking around for any news worthy of bringing to your attention.....

I wanted to let you guys know that Cassandra Clare and Holly Black will be touring soon, and Cassandra has been kind enough to post those dates along with a sneak peek of the BLADS (aka the shiny covers that go on hardbacks) that were sent to her...go have a look.

Be sure to check back tomorrow for my review of The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima!

Review: Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, #1) by Maggie Stiefvater

Grace and Sam share a kinship so close they could be lovers or siblings. But they also share a problem. When the temperature slips towards freezing, Sam reverts to his wolf identity and must retreat into the woods to protect his pack. He worries that eventually his human side will fade away and he will be left howling alone at the lonely moon. A stirring supernatural teen romance.

Maggie Stiefvater is an author who is known for being fun and eccentric and this passion of hers comes out in her writing. When I picked up Shiver and read the book jacket, I was expecting a typical paranormal/fantasy young adult read. What I was not expecting to find was a love story to rival the likes of Bella and Edward (for the Twilight fans), or Elizabeth Bennett and Mr.Darcy (for the Austen fans like myself.) Grace and Sam have now been cemented in time as having a love story that is swoon worthy. Their relationship will make you jealous and envious, frustrated and worried, but above all else, readers will find themselves caught up in hoping against all hope that these two will get the happy ending everyone knows they deserve.

Stiefvater gives us not one narrator but two in Grace and Sam, and I have to tell you this may be one of my favorite things about the book. More often than not, we only see a story unfold from one character's perspective but Shiver leaves nothing out. We get alternating points of view, feelings from both characters, and because of this you will only find yourself loving these characters and their story all the more. Grace is a sweet and innocent girl who is a truly kind person that has had only herself to rely on despite having two parents under the same roof, but that's until Sam enters her life. And Sam, well Sam is that boy that every girl hopes to eventually find because to him, making Grace smile is his main task every day...that and of course fighting like hell to stay with her. What's not to love about these two? If you read Shiver and find something lacking let me know, because after reading it myself, to me, these two are the epitome of perfection.

This is one of those reviews where I don’t want to get into the plot too much because every tiny detail Stiefvater weaves has its own significance and deserves to be discovered in her way through the pages by each reader. I will say I did get my paranormal/fantasy fix with this read but not in the normal ways that most novels in these genres provide. There are spins on details like what controls the werewolves’ shifts, and how the transformation may not last forever. An expiration date is laid on these characters and their time together and as a reader I was constantly thinking about the unfairness of it all. Yet somehow these two maintained their own version of hope and kept mulling through it. They didn’t want a pity party; they were just moving forward with their lives and taking nothing for granted, most especially not each other. It was a lesson learner for me.

This is yet another novel that I’ve had on my TBR list for way too long and I wish I had gotten to it sooner, but there is a silver lining in my procrastination…Linger, the sequel to Shiver comes out soon. If I had to wait much longer I’m not sure I would be what you could call a “happy camper”. I’ve heard from so many readers and fellow bloggers that this is a novel that has made it into their top “10” lists of all time favorite books they’ve read. They continuously piqued my curiosity and after reading the novel for myself I now understand. There’s just something different about Shiver. It has that “it” factor that not many novels do. It’s that extra something that makes a novel not just good, but great! Go out and get this book if you haven’t read it yet, you won’t regret it. I can’t wait for Linger to hit the store shelves.

I gave Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, #1) 4 shamrocks!