In My Mailbox (49)

IMM is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. It is a way for book bloggers to post what they have received for review, borrowed from a friend, bought at the bookstore, or picked up at the library!

This week’s IMM is going to look a little on the large side because it’s been a good month since my last IMM post. With Christmas & super good book deals thrown in there, I am now rolling in the bookish goodness!

For Review:

In The Band by Jean Haus (e-book)

My Thoughts: I am so uber excited for this one! It just screams “READ ME MUSIC + BOOKISH NERDS!”

Pieces Of Lies by Angela Richardson (e-book)

My Thoughts: Secret societies, college, romance, and lots more. I had no other choice but to accept this review request!

Liberty by Annie Laurie Cechini (e-book)

My Thoughts: Thanks Rhemalda for a review copy! I cannot wait to get started on this one!

Bought:

Fallen Too Far by Abbi Glines (e-book)

My Thoughts: I am quickly becoming an Abbi Glines fanatic. I loved this one!

Someone To Love by Addison Moore (e-book)

My Thoughts: This one sounds super awesome!

Derailed by Alyssa Rose Ivy (e-book)

My Thoughts: I enjoyed this one a lot! Molly and Ben were awesome together!

Veer by Alyssa Rose Ivy (e-book)

My Thoughts: I only made it about halfway through this one before I lost interest. I just wasn’t connecting to the characters like I was in Derailed.

This Beautiful Thing by Amanda Heath (e-book)

My Thoughts: I can’t wait to read this one! I can understand where the main character is coming from (my younger brother sometimes acts like an over-protective older brother ESPECIALLY when it comes to guys)

Planning On Forever by Ashely Wilcox (e-book)

My Thoughts: Ohh, those pesky love triangles! I can’t wait to see who Alexa ends up with!

My Misery Muse by Brei Betzold (e-book)

My Thoughts: Tattoo artist & band member??? Uhh, yes please!

Need by Carrie Jones (e-book)

My Thoughts: I have heard so much about this series. I am so happy to finally have the first book so I can get started!

Just Remember To Breathe by Charles Sheehan-Miles (e-book)

My Thoughts: Oh my word, you guys this book was so beautiful and made of awesome!

Tempting The Best Man by J. Lynn (e-book)

My Thoughts: I ended up really enjoying this one! I loved the tension between Madison & Chase!

Chance Encounters by J. Sterling (e-book)

My Thoughts: I am a little iffy on the whole “love at first sight” thing but I am willing to give this one a try. It has some pretty positive reviews!

The Sweetest Thing by Jill Shalvis

My Thoughts: You guys, I now adore Jill Shalvis with all of my heart! This book follows the oldest sister a.k.a. the one most like me and I LOVED her story!

Head Over Heels by Jill Shalvis

My Thoughts: Chloe and Sawyer….be still my beating heart! Even though the first three books in this series all received 5 stars from me, this one was still my favorite!

That Boy by Jillian Dodd (e-book)

My Thoughts: Jillian helped to create the super awesome event that took place last month, “99 authors, 99 books, 99 cents”. There were so many awesome books for under a dollar. I just HAD to pick up a copy of her book!

Avoiding Commitment by K. A. Linde (e-book)

My Thoughts: Holy wow, that is the craziest premise ever (okay, so not exactly the craziest but still pretty freaking crazy and totally interesting!)

Down To You by M. Leighton (e-book)

My Thoughts: HOLY CRAZY TWIST BATMAN! This book was so good and there was a twist near the middle-ish/end that made my jaw drop!

Bouquet Toss by Melissa Brown (e-book)

My Thoughts: It was .99 and it sounds cute. I say that’s a win/win

Bad Rep by Meredith A. Walters (e-book)

My Thoughts: Another NA title! I am determined to read some awesome NA books this year!

Up In Flames by Nicole Williams (e-book)

My Thoughts: Wow, this book blew me away! It was an impulse buy but totally worth it!

The Mighty Storm by Samantha Towle (e-book)

My Thoughts: That cover along with the fact that one of the main characters in a band, has me beyond pumped to read this!

Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacey

My Thoughts: I’m bouncing around with this series. I started off with book #3 then went to book #1! I felt that this one wasn’t as good as #3 but it was still full of such awesome characters and lots of good laughs (oh, and some sexy times too!!)

Yours To Keep by Shannon Stacey

My Thoughts: I loved this book so very much! It was the perfect amount of comedy and romance. Sean & Emma were perfect together!

Slow Summer Kisses by Shannon Stacey (e-book)

My Thoughts: This book was short and sweet but it was so well-rounded. I really enjoyed it!

The Dead Girls Detective Agency by Suzy Cox

My Thoughts: Kati and I were at Barnes & Noble last week just browsing around when we came across this book. I haven’t heard of it before but it reminds me somewhat of Stacey Kade’s series so I am all sorts of excited to read it!

Sweet Venom by Tera Lynn Childs (e-book)

My Thoughts: I have heard so many awesome, awesome things about this series! I want to see what the fuss is about.

Cowboy Dark by Tess Oliver (e-book)

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this one! I feel like it ended way to abruptly and a little “off” compared to the rest of the story but it was still a fun read.

Fallen Crest High by Tijan (e-book)

My Thoughts: I have been seeing this book around some so I figured I would give it a try!

Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

My Thoughts: Touching, beautiful, heartbreaking, and lovely. This book was beyond awesome!

Gifted/Won:

From C.A. Kunz:

The Modified by C.A. Kunz (signed) + The Childe/The Modified Snow Globe + awesome swag!

My Thoughts: A HUGE thank you to Carol and Adam! This was such an awesome Christmas surprise!

From Jolene Perry:

Dizzy by Nyrae Dawn & Jolene Perry (signed)

My Thoughts: Nyrae & Jolene (aka Dylan & Ziah) had a super fun Twitter chat about 2 months ago! Jolene was sweet enough to send me a signed copy after the chat!

p.s. Thanks Jolene!!!

Christmas Gifts:

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

My Thoughts: HOLY ZOMBIES!!! I cannot wait to see this movie February 1st, but before thin I will be reading this book!

The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress

My Thoughts: This book sounds like it is full of awesomesauce. I cannot wait to read about these three kick-butt girls!

From Cyndi:

Such A Rush by Jennifer Echols

My Thoughts: I am such a fan-girl of Jennifer it’s actually kind of creepy. But creepy tendencies aside, this is one book of hers that I haven’t read yet so I am super happy I now have it. Thank you so much Cyndi <3

From Justin:

Zack (my little brother) and I would love to say a giant THANK YOU to Justin for such awesome gifts. WE LOVE THEM!

Bot Wars by J.V. Kade

My Thoughts: Justin sent this one for my brother Zack and I to read together. We both love robots so we can’t wait to read it!

Ungifted by Gordon Korman

My Thoughts: Another Zack & Katelyn book. We love the cover of this one!

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

My Thoughts: This series has been on my ‘to-read” list for FOREVER! When I opened the box and saw this & Fire in there, I just about died!

Fire by Kristin Cashore

My Thoughts: See above!

The Girl In The Steel Corset by Kady Cross

My Thoughts: This is another book that I have been eyeing since before it came out. I knew from just reading the summary that I would love it so now I can’t wait to read it and find out if that’s true!

Hopeless by Colleen Hoover (e-book)

My Thoughts: Oh how this book broke my heart and then put it together again. I didn’t think I could love Colleen’s writing any more than what I did but then I read this and that all changed.

The Vincent Brothers by Abbi Glines (e-book)

My Thoughts: I LOVED The Vincent Boys so I can’t wait to see where this story leads

From Mandie:

Music note necklace + Degrees of Wrong by Anna Scarlett swag

My Thoughts: I love me some Mandie <3 <3 <3 She is the absolute BEST!

From Alexa:

An Easy bookmark!

My Thoughts: Alexa sent me a lovely bookmark with a quote from Easy by Tammara Webber! Thanks Alexa, I love it so much!

The Best of 2012!

2012 was an absolutely AWESOME year of books for me! I had such good look with many of the books I read. This past year I really branched out of my comfort zone as far as my reading taste goes. I slowly started to get more into the mature YA and NA books that were popping up like crazy. After having awesome luck with a few, I read as many as I could fit in. I also began seeing some of my blogging friends dipping their toes into the world of adult books and since I trust their opinions with my bookish life, I decided to give it a try. Some positive reviews led me to purchase a few and falling in love with those few led me to purchasing a whole lot more and boy am I glad that I did! Out of the 85 books I was able to squeeze into 2012, I gave 5 stars to nearly 40 of those books, crazy I know!!!! Below are all the books that I loved & adored with all of my heart in 2012. Clicking the picture will lead you to the Goodreads page of that particular book unless I had the chance to review it on the blog, if so, the picture will lead you to the review!

In no certain order, the best books of 2012:

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

 

Did you get a chance to read any of these titles in 2012? Did you love them as much as I did? Are there any books you would recommend to me for 2013?

In My Mailbox (39)

IMM is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. It is a way for book bloggers to post what they have received for review, borrowed from a friend, bought at the bookstore, or picked up at the library!

The past couple of weeks I had really slow mail weeks (Keep in mind slow does not necessarily mean sucky. I am REALLY EXCITED about what I did get) so I waited until I had enough for a good IMM post. Hope you enjoy!

For Review:

The Art of Disappearing by Elena Perez (e-book)

My Thoughts: I cannot wait to read this book! I want to learn all about Delia’s life and this little “gift” of hers!

Bought:

Easy by Tammara Webber

My Thoughts:Goodness gracious people, I freaking love this book so very much!!! Don’t believe me? Read my review for it right here!

Between the Lines (Between the Lines #1) by Tammara Webber (e-book)

My Thoughts:Clearly I was on a bit of a Tammara Webber kick these past couple of weeks. After Easy I just HAD to have other books by her. I cannot wait to get started on this series!

Where You Are (Between the Lines #2) by Tammara Webber (e-book)

Good For You (Between the Lines #3) by Tammara Webber (e-book)

Wanderlust by Windsor Drive

My Thoughts: I know this isn’t book related but I am so excited about the awesome music I got in my mailbox this week that I just had to share it with you guys. If you haven’t heard of Windsor Drive before, I suggest you all check them out!

Books for school

My Thoughts: I don’t see how it can cost me $200 for 4 books, all used, and three of which I am only renting but whatevs. It’s all a part of the college life!

Gifted/Won:

Perfect Escape by Jennifer Brown

My Thoughts: Thanks Justin! This book sounds so fantastic and it’s been a while since I’ve read a good road trip book!

Well that’s it for books the past couple of weeks. I hope you all had awesome book weeks & happy reading!

 

 

 

Book Playlist: Easy by Tammara Webber

As I’ve said many times before, creating playlists for multiple occasions is a huge hobby of mine. Just recently I have started doing it for books. I can’t say I do it for every book but for the ones I really love I can’t help but pick out a few songs that really remind me of it.

I recently reviewed Easy by Tammara Webber and let’s just say, I love that book hardcore. It is easily one of my favorites this year and I knew I had to do more than just review it, so I decided to come up with a playlist of the book. Some of the songs remind me of the story in general, a specific character, or a scene in the book. I hope you guys enjoy and of course if you’ve read the book and can think of another song I should add to it just let me know!

And if by chance the playlist is not working below, I picked out a few of my favorite songs to feature as YouTube videos!

P.S. If you are a fan/user of Spotify you can subscribe to the playlist by following this link!

Prove You Wrong by He Is We

When It All Falls Apart by The Veronicas

Fall by Windsor Drive

Book Review: Easy by Tammara Webber

Title: Easy

Author: Tammara Webber

Pages: 316 Paperback

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

**Attention: This book is considered Mature YA/New Adult**

A girl who believes trust can be misplaced, promises are made to be broken, and loyalty is an illusion. A boy who believes truth is relative, lies can mask unbearable pain, and guilt is eternal. Will what they find in each other validate their conclusions, or disprove them all?

When Jacqueline follows her longtime boyfriend to the college of his choice, the last thing she expects is a breakup two months into sophomore year. After two weeks in shock, she wakes up to her new reality: she’s single, attending a state university instead of a music conservatory, ignored by her former circle of friends, and failing a class for the first time in her life.

Leaving a party alone, Jacqueline is assaulted by her ex’s frat brother. Rescued by a stranger who seems to be in the right place at the right time, she wants nothing more than to forget the attack and that night–but her savior, Lucas, sits on the back row of her econ class, sketching in a notebook and staring at her. Her friends nominate him to be the perfect rebound.

When her attacker turns stalker, Jacqueline has a choice: crumple in defeat or learn to fight back. Lucas remains protective, but he’s hiding secrets of his own. Suddenly appearances are everything, and knowing who to trust is anything but easy.

There is something to be said about a book that can capture your heart in the very first pages and continues to hold onto it long after you’ve finished reading. This is the case with Easy. I read this book a few weeks ago, fell hopelessly & madly in love with it, and then failed to write a review because I feel like my words cannot do this book justice. After reading one shining review after another I just knew this would become and insta-favorite of mine and never in my whole life have I been so right.

Jacqueline is not in the best of places when we first meet her. She has just been dumped by her boyfriend (the same guy she traveled across the U.S. with to attend the same school) and whatever strands of normalcy she held onto after the break-up were quickly severed the night she was attacked. Enter Lucas. Lucas is the dark knight that steps in to save her. He is a quiet, mysterious boy that makes Jacqueline feel those tingly feelings again (whether she wants to admit it or not). On top of Lucas we also “meet” Landon, her tutor that she e-mails quite frequently. Where one guy is the dark, baffling type the other is the sweet, funny type and Jacqueline finds herself somewhat torn between the two. And this folks is where there’s a twist to end all twists. I am not one to spoil much but let’s just say picking one or the other is not as difficult of a task as it may seem.

So here’s what I loved about our main character (aside from everything). She was NORMAL. Sure her life and the events she just went through are not normal but as far as teenage college students go, she is just like everyone else. I loved that she wasn’t the extra funny type or the super brainy type. She was just in the middle and I did not know that was exactly what I was craving in a book but it SO was! I think Jacqueline’s low-key personality will make it incredibly easy for readers to relate to her. You will likely have more than one thing in common with her and by the end of the book you’ll be rooting for her happiness.

And now here’s what I loved about Lucas (aside from everything). He is so, so, so broken. But even though there are parts of him that hurt so badly, he is also able to love, care, and feel so strongly for our main character. Lucas was a puzzle for Jacqueline to solve with his long hair, lip ring, tattoos, numerous odd jobs, artistic skills, and the ability to be everywhere important (i.e. wherever Jacqueline is) and honestly people, I did not mind one bit how long it took her to really figure him out. He was such a deep, multi-layered character and learning all the little details about Lucas, his past and present, his strengths and insecurities, it all just made him all the more lovable.

Then there was the romance…*sigh* Here’s what I loved about it (aside from everything). Ms. Webber has a way with words and boys. She made my heart melt and my toes curl. She made my pulse race and my mind spin with all the future possibilities of these two characters together. Every scene that featured Jacqueline and Lucas together practically ignited the entire book with their chemistry. It was always there, even from the very first scene, but seeing it grow and escalate into something so beautiful, raw, real, and swoon-worthy was quite the experience. These two just fit together in their beautifully broken ways. Jacqueline has her not-so-secret demons haunting her and Lucas has some terrible skeletons in his closet that make getting close to someone quite difficult but seeing them grow individually and as a couple while working through their problems made this romance one of my all-time favorites!

It is probably very clear to all of you just how much I adored Easy by Tammara Webber. She has created a story that I will be recommending to everyone from now on. It was wonderfully written and every little detail of this story helped to capture my heart completely. The story line was filled with twists, darker issues, a love story to be insanely jealous of, and a couple that really works and I am telling you now, you MUST read this book because it is certainly a book not worth missing.

My End Of Summer Blues…

It’s that time of year again; the leaves are changing colors, I am spending hundreds on books (not the fun kind of books either), Starbucks is on my good side again (three cheers for pumpkin spice!!!), school has started (three boo’s for school!!!), and most of all it is the time to say goodbye to summer (how about a hundred boo’s for end of summer!!!). Don’t get me wrong, I love fall especially considering that 90% of my closet supports the cooler weather,hello cute sweaters and boots, but nothing compares to those lazy summer days spent by the pool or lying on the beach reading some of my favorite summery books.

So in honor of those warm summer days, I decided I would list off a few of my favorite summer reads. Some are new favorites and some are older favorites but in the end they are ALL fantastic. If you have any great summer recommendations that will help to brighten my first few weeks of fall and ultimately prolong my summer just a bit more, please let me know in the comments section!

Easy by Tammara Webber

Holy freaking cannoli I just adore this book like no other. The chemistry between these two is hot enough (but not in a dirty way, I promise) to warm up any chilly fall day.

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

The sweet, adorable, charming romance in this book is positively PERFECT for summer time…and fall time…and well any time!

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

There’s a beach, there’s a family, there’s a romance, and there are quite a few tears but this book was a top read from my summer of 2012!

Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

Summer days are not complete without a road trip and no book does it better than this one!

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

This book, oh goodness, this book. My love for this book comes so easily much like my love for summer.

Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty

This is such a funny, relatable, and incredibly enjoyable book. Even though I read it last winter, it is perfect for a pool-side re-read.

Forget You by Jennifer Echols

Jennifer’s books are full of romantic tension and characters that are so freaking loveable. This is my favorite book by her and I try to re-read it every summer!

Endless Summer by Jennifer Echols

The title has summer in it so OF COURSE it is a great summer read. But honestly I read this two winters ago and I still thought it was positively brilliant.

Secret Society Girl by Diana Peterfreund

I read this book Every. Single. Spring/Summer. Kati and I agree on very little but this is one of them. It’s easily our favorite series and we just love starting our summer off right with these books.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Stephanie’s writing is so incredibly delightful. Every page of this book is made of awesome and since summer is made of awesome, it’s a solid match!

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

Since I am me and Sarah is Sarah, and you know since Sarah writes what Sarah writes and I generally fan-girl over anything that Sarah writes, then there was 100% chance at least one of her books would make my list. This one just shouts IT IS SUMMER. READ ME NOW!

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

This is my FAVORITE book for summer time. Heck, it is my favorite book for all-time but I just don’t think you can go wrong with this one!

TGIF (56)

There once was an awesome blogger named Ginger and she decided to create a super fun feature where fellow bloggers would answer fabulous questions via blog posts every Friday. TGIF was born and we all have Miss Ginger at GReads! to thank for that! This week’s question is:

Choose Your Next Read:

How do you go about choosing what you read next? Do you have a schedule you follow, or do you read whatever makes you happy at the moment?

Picking what I’m going to read next can be a very tough process. To help my problem just a little bit I have my bedside bookshelf. On this shelf I have my nook, all of my review books, all of my BEA books, and the occasional book I am just DYING to read. First and foremost I try to get any review books that have a deadline out-of-the-way first. If I am reading it for a blog tour or if the author is requesting that it be finished by a certain date then I try really hard to get it done.

When it comes to all others I know it is technically supposed to be review books first. So if I feel like following the rules then I read two at a time: the real copy of a review book that I got first and an e-book. Some nights I feel like reading from my nook and other nights I can read the book.

However, as many of you may know, I am a bit of a rule breaker. Every now and then (or quite often if I am being honest) I pick whatever is sounding good at the moment. Just last week I was in the middle of reading a review book when Easy by Tammara Webber showed up on my doorstep (darn you Barnes & Noble and your free, speedy shipping!). I stopped everything I was doing to read that book. This happens ALL the time to me. I will get a bookish craving for a certain type book and I just can’t help but read it!

This is going to be the last TGIF post for a while :( I am going to miss this feature bunches but I hope to see all of your posts when it returns!

This week on Kate’s Tales of Books and Bands (8/24-8/31):

TGIF (55)

In My Mailbox (38)

Tune In Tuesday (67)

Shift by Raine Thomas + Launch Tour + Book Playlist

The Modified by C.A. Kunz + Cover Reveal + Giveaway