I recently finished both Shade and Shift by Jeri Smith-Ready. I'll be posting my reviews later in the week. But if you're a Shade series fan, get ready! On Burns Night (January 25) Jeri will be hosting a celebration in honor of her character, Zachary, who's Scottish. In addition, she's giving away loads of prizes...including a rare ARC of Shine, which will be released in May! There are only two ARCs left, so if you want one, you should most definitely participate. Along with twitter chats, Shade fan fix, and fun over at Jeri's blog and twitter, there will be a blog hop! Bloggers will each do a post about their favorite thing about Scotland, in honor of the Shade series and Zachary. They will then hold a giveaway for that item. And if you win, you'll be entered for her grand prize (which includes the ARC). I will be doing a post and giveaway, so be sure to enter! For more details go to Jeri's post here. Have a great Burns Night and be sure to have fun in the festivities!
-Jill
Monday
Week 1
So to kick off Week 1 of my 12 week review madness I will be reading and reviewing......
A Million Suns by Beth Revis
Godspeed was fueled by lies. Now it is ruled by chaos.
Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now.
Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.
Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.
See you later!
Jill
A Million Suns by Beth Revis
It's been three months since Amy was unplugged. The life she always knew is over. And everywhere she looks, she sees the walls of the spaceship Godspeed. But there may just be hope: Elder has assumed leadership of the ship. He's finally free to enact his vision - no more Phydus, no more lies.
But when Elder discovers shocking news about the ship, he and Amy race to discover the truth behind life on Godspeed. They must work together to unlock a puzzle that was set in motion hundreds of years earlier, unable to fight the romance that's growing between them and the chaos that threatens to tear them apart.
In book two of the Across the Universe trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Beth Revis mesmerizes us again with a brilliantly crafted mystery filled with action, suspense, romance, and deep philosophical questions. And this time it all builds to one mind-bending conclusion: They have to get off this ship.
AND
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.
Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.
See you later!
Jill
Saturday
12 Weeks for 2012!
So y'all, to kick off 2012 I thought I'd do something really fun. So for the next 12 weeks, I'll be posting a book review. Each week, I will read a brand new book from 2012! I will announce which book I will be reading and reviewing on Mondays, followed by a review on Saturday at the latest. The books I pick will be new YA/MG releases from 2012. I will also be doing 2012 Debut Author challenge over at The Story Siren throughout the year. It's gonna be a ton of fun and fabulousness! Alright 'nuff about that cool stuff.
Summary (from Goodreads): Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.
Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone - one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship - tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.
Now, Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.
Divergent by Veronica Roth
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.
Holy crap, this book is amazing. I can't believe I didn't read it sooner. This book is a dystopian YA (I've been reading lots of those lately) and honestly, it totally outshines the Hunger Games. Yes, I'm serious. Thats how freaking fantastic it was. Right now all I'm thinking is "I want Insurgent, now!!" But alas, we must wait until May 1st (Look to the sidebar for a countdown! And notice, same release day as Shine by Jeri Smith-Ready!! :) ) And, just to clear it up (this is what I though) Divergent is not a rip off of the Hunger Games. It's not even that similar (besides the whole dystopian, post-apocalypse thing.) Every page of this novel shines and leaves you wanting more.
Legend by Marie Lu
Pages: 305
Series: Legend, Book 1
Summary (from Goodreads): What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.
From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias' death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.
Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.
I just wanted to give y'all some book recommendations. I read these 2011 debut novels over the winter holidays and I HIGHLY recommend them. Like seriously, If you haven't read them, the sequels are all coming in 2012,so you should totally go buy them right now. That's how fab they are. Ok, I'll shut up and give you my highest recommendations that you pick up...
Across the Universe by Beth Revis
Pages: 398
Series: Across the Universe, Book 1
Series: Across the Universe, Book 1
Summary (from Goodreads): Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.
Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone - one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship - tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.
Now, Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.
This is an awesome book it's a whole new take on Sci-Fi. The first chapter is one of the best I've ever read (and I've read a lot.) I like that it's also told from Elder's perspective as well as Amy's. The minor characters are very well developed, and that's something that sometimes debut novels lack. This book was fabHonestly, I am on the edge of my seat in anticipation for A Million Suns (Book 2, coming January 10, 2012).
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Pages: 487
Series: Divergent, Book 1
Summary (from Goodreads): 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.
Holy crap, this book is amazing. I can't believe I didn't read it sooner. This book is a dystopian YA (I've been reading lots of those lately) and honestly, it totally outshines the Hunger Games. Yes, I'm serious. Thats how freaking fantastic it was. Right now all I'm thinking is "I want Insurgent, now!!" But alas, we must wait until May 1st (Look to the sidebar for a countdown! And notice, same release day as Shine by Jeri Smith-Ready!! :) ) And, just to clear it up (this is what I though) Divergent is not a rip off of the Hunger Games. It's not even that similar (besides the whole dystopian, post-apocalypse thing.) Every page of this novel shines and leaves you wanting more.
Legend by Marie Lu
Series: Legend, Book 1
Summary (from Goodreads): What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.
From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias' death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.
Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.
This book was a fairly quick read for me, but it didn't detract from the intense action and drama. This is a great book, and was, like Across the Universe, told from two perspectives. One of the reasons I thoroughly loved this book was because it was inspired by Les Misérables, one of my favorite shows ever (and I love theatre!) I loved seeing June and Day's intense relationship change through the novel. Though it was a tad on the short side for my taste, it had all the necessary suspense, action, and of course, romance to make a book really sparkle.
Friday
E-Readers & Local Bookstores
You may be familiar with the Nook by Barnes and Noble, and (unless you don't watch TV at all) you've probably seen Jane Lynch's Nook commercial. Now needless to say, I prefer Barnes and Nobel over Amazon. Amazon made a lot of mistakes that cost publishers and authors, heck the whole book business, a lot of money. And Amazon did nothing to correct those mistakes. And that's why I have a Nook, not a Kindle.
When Amazon made Kindle and started to sell ebooks, they set the price of all ebooks to $9.99, decreasing the margin for publisher and author income. Though Amazon did not make as much of a profit, they set the prices lower to expand their market. Publishers were in uproar, and since Amazon was the only seller of ebooks at the time, there was nothing publishers could do. If they refused to let Amazon sell their books, then they would not make any profit off ebooks. Amazon shortchanged publishers just so they could expand their market. Now there's a lot more details that I won't get into. Just know there's a reason authors hate Amazon and want you to buy elsewhere.
But I actually don't like e-readers. I hate them, in fact. I love real books so much better, and e-readers are slowly annihilating the market for print books. That's not to say that print books will be off the shelves anytime soon, however. There are still a lot of people that love real books and buy them over ebooks, myself included. But honestly, I can't carry all the books I want to take with me on vacation in my suitcase. Which is why I travel with my e-reader. But I still love print books, and I especially love buying them from my local bookstore or Indiebound.
Local bookstores are being overshadowed by big chain bookstores and especially Amazon. When you support local bookstores, you support the authors and the local sellers. The people are there because they love books. I love my local bookshop and if it were closer, I'd go every time I wanted books. Plus, if you go to an author's local bookstore, most of the time they will have signed copies in stock and can often get a copy personalized.
If you don't have a local bookstore, but you want to support authors the best you can, then indiebound.org is a great site to visit. Its mission is to connect readers with their local bookstore to support local businesses and "strengthen the health of Main Street ecosystems across the United States." Indiebound not just works to connect readers with local bookshops, but it allow you to buy online from a local store if you don't know the website. Plus, Indiebound has ebooks!! So you can buy an E-reader from Barnes and Noble and still support local booksellers by buying ebooks from Indiebound. How great is that?
So remember to support your local bookstores and support the author that bring you words to devour. Don't fall into Amazon's trap just because prices may be cheaper!! In the end, it really hurts the authors. Remember that as you do your holiday shopping. Happy holidays, and don't forget to read!
-Jill
When Amazon made Kindle and started to sell ebooks, they set the price of all ebooks to $9.99, decreasing the margin for publisher and author income. Though Amazon did not make as much of a profit, they set the prices lower to expand their market. Publishers were in uproar, and since Amazon was the only seller of ebooks at the time, there was nothing publishers could do. If they refused to let Amazon sell their books, then they would not make any profit off ebooks. Amazon shortchanged publishers just so they could expand their market. Now there's a lot more details that I won't get into. Just know there's a reason authors hate Amazon and want you to buy elsewhere.
But I actually don't like e-readers. I hate them, in fact. I love real books so much better, and e-readers are slowly annihilating the market for print books. That's not to say that print books will be off the shelves anytime soon, however. There are still a lot of people that love real books and buy them over ebooks, myself included. But honestly, I can't carry all the books I want to take with me on vacation in my suitcase. Which is why I travel with my e-reader. But I still love print books, and I especially love buying them from my local bookstore or Indiebound.
Local bookstores are being overshadowed by big chain bookstores and especially Amazon. When you support local bookstores, you support the authors and the local sellers. The people are there because they love books. I love my local bookshop and if it were closer, I'd go every time I wanted books. Plus, if you go to an author's local bookstore, most of the time they will have signed copies in stock and can often get a copy personalized.
If you don't have a local bookstore, but you want to support authors the best you can, then indiebound.org is a great site to visit. Its mission is to connect readers with their local bookstore to support local businesses and "strengthen the health of Main Street ecosystems across the United States." Indiebound not just works to connect readers with local bookshops, but it allow you to buy online from a local store if you don't know the website. Plus, Indiebound has ebooks!! So you can buy an E-reader from Barnes and Noble and still support local booksellers by buying ebooks from Indiebound. How great is that?
So remember to support your local bookstores and support the author that bring you words to devour. Don't fall into Amazon's trap just because prices may be cheaper!! In the end, it really hurts the authors. Remember that as you do your holiday shopping. Happy holidays, and don't forget to read!
-Jill
Sunday
Release date for GG5 moved up!
So I don't know if you've heard...but the latest Gallagher Girls book by the wildly popular YA novelist, Ally Carter has been moved up...a whole week! Now some of you might be saying "Only a week?" But seriously people. This. Is. Big. Over at her blog, a bunch of her fans have been petitioning to get the release date moved up. And it HAPPENED. Normally these this don't happen. But of course there are exceptions such as John Green, whose new book The Fault in Our Stars was slated for mid-Spring, when his publishers noticed the outcry of the nerdfighters on John's blog. The release date was moved up...a whole lot. Now set for early January, John will hand sign every copy from the first print. That's 50,000 books. Thats a whole lot of signatures.
This doesn't happen very often. Usually it happens when a large number of fans comment and blog about how they want the release date moved up. But that's not to say you should pester your favourite authors. In fact, they usually don't have any control whatsoever as to when the book will be published (other than when they finish writing it, obviously.)
Point is, that Out of Sight, Out of Time will now be release on March 13, 2012. Be happy. Jump for joy. Run around in circles. Just remember: next time you're on Ally's (or any of your favourite authors') site, be sure to thank her. Tell her how much you love reading her books and how much you appreciate her efforts to write the best she can. That's all you can ask for.
-Jill
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