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. I got some great books last week but I ran out of time to post this IMM so this week’s is two weeks in one. At the end of this post I will also be doing a little re-cap of the Dark Days of Summer Tour that I attended yesterday; so awesome! As I said, this is two weeks in one so there are a lot of books to take in. Click on book title to add to your Goodreads account!
Review:
Witch Song by Amber Argyle (PDF)
Summary: The world is changing. Once, Witch Song controlled everything from the winds to the shifting of the seasons-but not anymore. All the Witches are gone, taken captive by a traitor. All but Brusenna. As the echo of their songs fades, the traitor grows stronger. Now she is coming for Brusenna. Her guardian has sworn to protect her, but even he can’t stop the Dark Witch. Somehow, Brusenna has to succeed where every other Witch has failed. Find the traitor. Fight her. Defeat her. Because if Brusenna doesn’t, there won’t be anything left to save.
My Thoughts: I am so excited about this one! I have heard little about it and the summary is quite vague but I just have this feeling that it is going to be epic. I can’t wait to start reading!
House Trap by Mike Mauthor (PDF)
Summary: Rachel Evans is a sixteen year old overachiever who would take nothing less than to achieve her goal of getting into Dartmouth College. But Rachel’s life would never be the same once she stepped into the house of Alicia Hausefalle, the most popular girl in Wedds High School. Rachel was there to tutor her. She never expected to meet two strangers who were ready to end her life.
My Thoughts: I just finished this one yesterday! It is a thrilling, suspenseful novel! Review to come soon.
A Potential Problem (Lily Gardner Series) by Jennifer Groepl (PDF)
Summary: A gifted student, Lily follows the rules, makes her parents proud, and gives the impression that she’s strong enough to handle anything. Maybe that’s why her recently divorced parents think it’s perfectly acceptable to leave her unsupervised All. The. Time. What they don’t seem to realize is that their barely teenage daughter is struggling because of it.
When her middle school reputation downgrades from awesome potential to “creepy counting girl”, Lily begins to act out as only a gifted teen can – faster and more thoroughly than everyone else. Diving head first into trouble, Lily falls hard for Tony Jacquez, a local gangbanger with a problem much bigger than hers. In way over her head, but too young and in love to realize it, Lily ultimately uses both her book-smarts and newly-acquired street-smarts in a plan to help Tony. Only this time it’s Lily who forgets she’s really just a kid.
A Potential Problem is a 53,000-word realistic YA fiction novel, the first novel in the Lily Gardner series.
My Thoughts: I am so very excited to read this one! A good girl meeting a bad guy that leads her down a dark path is likely a book to leave me speechless!
The Childe by C.A. Kunz (Signed + Personalized + Swag)
Summary: Cat Colvin is pretty much your typical run-of-the-mill teenager growing up in the small port town of Astoria. Sure, she is taller than average, has a mane of fiery red hair that is impossible to tame, is left handed, and has one eye that is sky blue and one that is amber, but that is where the differences end . . . unless you include the minor detail of her slow metamorphosis into the Childe.
We all know how difficult high school can be, and for Cat Colvin it is no different. Except for the fact she has the daunting task of trying to hide her budding Childe traits as they begin to reveal themselves at the most inopportune times.
This first book in this coming of age fantasy series follows Cat’s life through the twists and turns toward finding out what and who she really is. Come and take the plunge with Cat into a world filled with biting humor, darkness, and yes, a few life lessons as well.
My Thoughts: A HUGE thank you goes out for Carol and Adam (the C and A of C.A. Kunz) for sending this awesome package! So far the book is extremely interesting. In the package they included a signed copy of the book, a lovely moonstone necklace, two bracelets, several pins and bookmarks, and smiley face coins. I am so thankful for this!
Children of the Lost Moon by Gabrielle Blue (Signed)
Summary: Savannah Henderson, 17, is lonely. An only child of always busy and never at home doctor/scientist parents, Savannah struggles with Attention Deficit Disorder, struggles in school, and struggles for the approval of her unapproachable and disapproving parents. Athletically, however, she is practically unmatched, having mastered the art of Kendo (The Way of the Sword) as a child, then moving on to saber fencing. Physical activity calms her mind, a perfect channel for her A.D.D. She dreams of becoming the next Olympic gold medalist.
Savannah is introduced to a new fencing coach, Aaron Sloan. Unbeknownst to her, Aaron is not only a “finisher of fencers,” but is also Alpha of a shapeshifter pack, protector of the human species, ensuring their survival against those ancient enemies, werewolves.
Thrust into this impossible world, Savannah’s life becomes intertwined with the shapeshifters as she is targeted by werewolves and drawn into their war. Under the protection of the close-knit Sloans, she finds excitement and danger, as well as family and a sense of belonging, something she’d never had before. She also finds romance with Luke, Aaron’s son.
My Thoughts: First of all, holy smokes this sounds good! I have always assumed werewolves and shapeshifters were one in the same. I am so excited to see a new spin on this where they are actually enemies! Secondly, THANK YOU Gabrielle Blue (a pen name for two co-writing sisters!) for sending me not one but two signed copies of this book! Now, what is a girl to do with two copies of a book *wink, wink*
Bought:
The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner
Summary: While Nick Gardner’s family is falling apart, his best friend, Scooter, is dying from a freak disease. The Scoot’s final wish is that Nick and their quirky classmate, Jaycee Amato, deliver a prized first-edition copy of Of Mice and Men to the Scoot’s father. There’s just one problem: the Scoot’s father walked out years ago and hasn’t been heard from since. So, guided by Steinbeck’s life lessons, and with only the vaguest of plans, Nick and Jaycee set off to find him.
Characters you’ll want to become friends with and a narrative voice that sparkles with wit make this a truly original coming-of-age story.
My Thoughts: If you haven’t heard of the awesomeness that is Gae Polisner yet, you have clearly been living under a rock. I have not read her book yet but it is sure to be a major hit with me :) Gae is an awesome, hilarious, wonderful person so I CAN’T WAIT to read her book!
Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta
Summary: My father took one hundred and thirty two minutes to die.
‘I counted.
‘It happened on the Jellicoe Road. The prettiest road I’d ever seen, where trees made breezy canopies like a tunnel to Shangri-La. We were going to the ocean, hundreds of kilometres away, because I wanted to see the ocean and my father said that it was about time the four of us made that journey. I remember asking, “What’s the difference between a trip and a journey?” and my father said, “Narnie, my love, when we get there, you’ll understand,” and that was the last thing he ever said.
‘We heard her almost straight away. In the other car, wedged into ours so deep that you couldn’t tell where one began and the other ended. She told us her name was Tate and then she squeezed through the glass and the steel and climbed over her own dead – just to be with Webb and me; to give us her hand so we could clutch it with all our might. And then a kid called Fitz came riding by on a stolen bike and saved our lives.
‘Someone asked us later, “Didn’t you wonder why no one came across you sooner?”
‘Did I wonder?
‘When you see your parents zipped up in black body bags on the Jellicoe Road like they’re some kind of garbage, don’t you know?
‘Wonder dies.’
My Thoughts: I have this wonderful blogging friend named Ashley. She is the creator of this magnificent blog called Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing, you may have heard of it? Anyways, this is her favorite book. In fact, I have heard on more than one occasion that she threatens to injure unless one reads this book. Okay, you caught me, maybe she doesn’t threaten harm onto anyone but she LOVE, LOVE, LOVES this book so I just need to read it. I already <3 it just knowing that she adores it so much.
The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter (Signed)
Summary: It’s always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate’s going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won’t live past the fall.
Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he’ll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.
Kate is sure he’s crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she’ll become Henry’s future bride, and a goddess.
My Thoughts: Holy smokes I got a signed copy of this book! There is an awesome indie bookstore about 2 hours away. (The Dark Days tour I am talking about below was hosted there). This bookstore is awesome, in the fact that they have signed books all over the place. This just happened to be one of them. Aimee Carter was indeed at the Dark Days event as an attendant but I am way to big of a chicken to ask her to sign my book so I just picked up a pre-signed one. Maybe it is about time I stopped acting so shy? Yeah, I think so!
Bought for Dark Days of Summer Tour:
Wings by Aprilynne Pike (Signed + Personalized)
Summary: Laurel was mesmerized, staring at the pale things with wide eyes. They were terrifyingly beautiful—too beautiful for words.
Laurel turned to the mirror again, her eyes on the hovering petals that floated beside her head. They looked almost like wings.
In this extraordinary tale of magic and intrigue, romance and danger, everything you thought you knew about faeries will be changed forever.
My Thoughts: I have had this book for forever and I still haven’t read it yet. I want to get started on it very soon. I’ll be picking it up sometime this summer for sure!
Spells by Aprilynne Pike (Signed + Personalized)
Summary: Six months have passed since Laurel saved the gateway to the faerie realm of Avalon. Now she must spend her summer there, honing her skills as a Fall faerie. But her human family and friends are still in mortal danger–and the gateway to Avalon is more compromised than ever.
When it comes time to protect those she loves, will she depend on David, her human boyfriend, for help? Or will she turn to Tamani, the electrifying faerie with whom her connection is undeniable?
My Thoughts: Again, I have had this one for forever I just need to find the time to read it! I am sure that after reading the first two I will hurry out and purchase the third book, Illusions!
Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini (Signed + Personalized)
How do you defy destiny?
Summary: Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it’s getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she’s haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they’re destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeating throughout history.
As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.
My Thoughts: Well, this book looks gorgeous! It is so shimmery and pretty. On top of looking good, it sound fabulous! I can’t wait to see the interesting spin that Josephine took on the whole Helen of Troy thing.
Vampire Kisses: The Beginning by Ellen Schreiber (Signed + Personalized)
Summary: A new guy in town.
Rumors of vampires.
Dangerous first love.
This is where it all begins. . . .
The mansion on top of Benson Hill has stood empty for years. But one day it seems to be occupied, and its mysterious, handsome inhabitant Alexander Sterling becomes the source of much talk around town. Raven, a vampire-obsessed Goth-girl who has always considered herself an outsider in “Dullsville,” is determined to uncover the truth surrounding the secretive Alexander. As she gets to know him, and their spark intensifies, Raven finds herself in some unanticipated situations. Can Alexander make her lifelong dream come true? But love always has its complications—especially when it can only be awakened at nightfall.
The first three books in Ellen Schreiber’s bestselling Vampire Kisses series capture the thrill of a most unusual romance.
My Thoughts: I didn’t plan on getting this book at first but after hearing Ellen talk about it I just had to! I know the vampire thing has been a bit over-done but I think this one is going to have something new and interesting to bring to the table!
Divergent by Veronica Roth (Signed + Personalized)
Summary: In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.
Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the literary scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.
My Thoughts: This news just in, “Katelyn is the last YA fan on Earth who has not read Divergent yet!!!” Yeah, I feel so very lame for not reading this yet. It sounds SO good and I hear amazing things about this book on a daily basis!
Dark Days of Summer Tour Recap:
*Ellie (Book club friend), Josephine Angelini (Starcrossed), Veronica Roth (Divergent), Caroline (Book club friend), Katelyn (Yours truly), Ellen Schreiber (Vampire Kisses Series), Aprilynne Pike (Wings Series)*
*Yes guys, I really am that short in real life!*
I made it to my second author event ever! It was such an amazing, wonderful experience. The fellow book club members and I drove down to Lansing, MI to a wonderful indie bookstore called Schulers. This store has every amazing book you could ever imagine plus they host great events such as the Dark Days Tour! After browsing around the store for a little bit, my friends and I settled in our seats to await the big event. The event started off with a quick bio of the authors and a little bit about the books that they write. After that, we went right into Q&A. You guys may not know this but I am shy. Like ridiculously shy. That picture you see up above took me a full 2 hours to work up the courage to ask if they would take one with us. So the odds of me asking questions that day were slim. Regardless of my own personal fears, other audience members still managed to ask interesting and intriguing questions. I loved the responses from all four authors! Josephine Angelini was so great! Not only was she super funny (she came up with the craziest metaphors!) but she also had a wealth of knowledge. All of her answers were so well thought out. Veronica Roth was so dang cute! She was funny and so honest with all her answers. Ellen was also quite amazing! She shared so much information on being a published author. Plus her personality was fabulous! Aprilynne rounded out this fantastic group of girls perfectly. I love her input on all the hard, tough questions that were asked. After the super great Q&A, we moved on to book signing. All the girls kept on their brave faces (even though they must have been running low on energy) as they signed a ton of books for a ton of people! All in all, it was a super memorable event. My only complaint is I wished more bloggers could have been there. It would have been pure awesomeness if I could have met some of my great blogging friends.
