Weekly Book Haul (September 26th-October2nd)

As usual school has been interfering with my reading time and book shopping so my haul is pretty small.

Waiting on Wednesday: Brother by Ania Ahlborn

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: Nemesis

Author:  Anna Banks
Series: Nemesis #1

Date Published: October 4th 2016 

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

From the bestselling horror author of Within These Walls and The Bird Eater comes a brand-new novel of terror that follows a teenager determined to break from his family’s unconventional—and deeply disturbing—traditions.

Deep in the heart of Appalachia stands a crooked farmhouse miles from any road. The Morrows keep to themselves, and it’s served them well so far. When girls go missing off the side of the highway, the cops don’t knock on their door. Which is a good thing, seeing as to what’s buried in the Morrows’ backyard.

But nineteen-year-old Michael Morrow isn’t like the rest of his family. He doesn’t take pleasure in the screams that echo through the trees. Michael pines for normalcy, and he’s sure that someday he’ll see the world beyond West Virginia. When he meets Alice, a pretty girl working at a record shop in the small nearby town of Dahlia, he’s immediately smitten. For a moment, he nearly forgets about the monster he’s become. But his brother, Rebel, is all too eager to remind Michael of his place… 

I've seen some positive reviews from the people that received ARC's of this, I just hope they change the cover.

Monday Book Recommendations: With Malice by Eileen Cook

Monday is the day I choose what new books I’m going to start reading but I have so many books in my To Read Pile that sometimes it’s hard to choose so I have decided that on Monday mornings I’ll recommend some  of  my favorite books.

For fans of We Were Liars and The Girl on the Train comes a chilling, addictive psychological thriller about a teenage girl who cannot remember the last six weeks of her life. 

Eighteen-year-old Jill Charron's senior trip to Italy was supposed to be the adventure of a lifetime. And then the accident happened. Waking up in a hospital room, her leg in a cast, stitches in her face, and a big blank canvas where the last 6 weeks should be, Jill comes to discover she was involved in a fatal accident in her travels abroad. She was jetted home by her affluent father in order to receive quality care. Care that includes a lawyer. And a press team. Because maybe the accident...wasn't an accident. Wondering not just what happened but what she did, Jill tries to piece together the events of the past six weeks before she loses her thin hold on her once-perfect life.

Eileen Cook has never disappointed me with her books and this was no exception.

Waiting on Wednesday: Bright Smoke, Cold Fire (Untitled #1) by Rosamund Hodge

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: Bright Smoke, Cold Fire 

Series: Untitled #1

Author: Rosamund Hodge

Date Published: September 27th 2016 

Publisher:  Balzer + Bray
When the mysterious fog of the Ruining crept over the world, the living died and the dead rose. Only the walled city of Viyara was left untouched.

The heirs of the city’s most powerful—and warring—families, Mahyanai Romeo and Juliet Catresou share a love deeper than duty, honor, even life itself. But the magic laid on Juliet at birth compels her to punish the enemies of her clan—and Romeo has just killed her cousin Tybalt. Which means he must die.

Paris Catresou has always wanted to serve his family by guarding Juliet. But when his ward tries to escape her fate, magic goes terribly wrong—killing her and leaving Paris bound to Romeo. If he wants to discover the truth of what happened, Paris must delve deep into the city, ally with his worst enemy . . . and perhaps turn against his own clan.

Mahyanai Runajo just wants to protect her city—but she’s the only one who believes it’s in peril. In her desperate hunt for information, she accidentally pulls Juliet from the mouth of death—and finds herself bound to the bitter, angry girl. Runajo quickly discovers Juliet might be the one person who can help her recover the secret to saving Viyara.

Both pairs will find friendship where they least expect it. Both will find that Viyara holds more secrets and dangers than anyone ever expected. And outside the walls, death is waiting. . . 

I love Rosamund Hodge writing style plus I'm looking for new series to start.

10 songs I love

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week a new top ten list is posted, and to participate all you have to do is fill in YOUR top ten for the list.

This week's topic:

Top Ten Songs that I love

1) As long as you love me by The Backstreet Boys

This has been my favorite song since I'm 4 years old and it's still in my top 25 most played songs.

2) Shut up and Dance by Walk the Moon

My brother and I played this on a loop during our trip to New York to recharge our energy.

3) Say you love me by Jesse Ware

I love the lyrics of the song.

4) Sunday Girl by Florrie Arnold

I heard this song in some perfume commercial and became obessed with it.

5) Explosive by Bond

This is my get pumped song, so I can prepare myself to face the day

6) Never let you go by Jakaranda

This is due to the scene in Parent Trap when Lindsey Lohan goes to her mom's studio to take pictures.

7) As the World Falls Down by David Bowie

I loved the ball scene in the movie labyrinth and the song just amazing.

Monday Book Recommendations: Beware That Girl by Teresa Toten

Monday is the day I choose what new books I’m going to start reading but I have so many books in my To Read Pile that sometimes it’s hard to choose so I have decided that on Monday mornings I’ll recommend some  of  my favorite books.

Title: Beware That Girl

Series: - 

Author: Teresa Toten

Date Published: May 31st 2016

Publisher: Delacorte Press

For fans of We Were Liars, The Girl on the Train, and Gone Girl, this powerful psychological thriller with multiple mysteries is set against the backdrop of the megawealthy elite of New York City. Toten delves into the mesmerizing yet dysfunctional world of those who manipulate but seem ever so charming. With its gripping pace and Hitchcockian twists, Beware That Girl will keep readers guessing until the very last line.

The Haves. The Have-Nots. Kate O’Brien appears to be a Have-Not. Her whole life has been a series of setbacks she’s had to snake her way out of—some more sinister than others. But she’s determined to change that. She’s book smart. She’s street-smart. Oh, and she’s also a masterful liar.

As the scholarship student at the Waverly School in NYC, Kate has her work cut out for her: her plan is to climb the social ladder and land a spot at Yale. She’s already found her “people” among the senior class “it” girls—specifically in the cosseted, mega-wealthy yet deeply damaged Olivia Sumner. As for Olivia, she considers Kate the best friend she’s always needed, the sister she never had. 

When the handsome and whip-smart Mark Redkin joins the Waverly administration, he immediately charms his way into the faculty’s and students’ lives—becoming especially close to Olivia, a fact she’s intent on keeping to herself. It becomes increasingly obvious that Redkin poses a threat to Kate, too, in a way she can’t reveal—and can’t afford to ignore. How close can Kate and Olivia get to Mark without having to share their dark pasts? 

When I started to  read this I was expecting some Gossip Girl type of book and this certainly wasn't it. I was pretty pleased with it.

Waiting on Wednesday: A Shadow Bright and Burning by Jessica Cluess

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: A Shadow Bright and Burning

Series: Kingdom on Fire #1 

Author: Jessica Cluess

Date Published: September 20th 2016

Publisher: Random House BFYR

I am Henrietta Howel. The first female sorcerer. The prophesied one. Or am I?

Henrietta Howel can burst into flames. When she's brought to London to train with Her Majesty's sorcerers, she meets her fellow sorcerer trainees, young men eager to test her powers and her heart. One will challenge her. One will fight for her. One will betray her. As Henrietta discovers the secrets hiding behind the glamour of sorcerer life, she begins to doubt that she's the true prophesied one. With battle looming, how much will she risk to save the city—and the one she loves?

I love the cover and the premise sounds amazing although I'm a bit wary because it looks like it will have a love triangle

Ten ALL TIME Favorite Dystopian Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week a new top ten list is posted, and to participate all you have to do is fill in YOUR top ten for the list.

This week's topic:

Top Ten ALL TIME Favorite Dystopian Books 

1) 1984

This was my first dystopian read ever, my mom bought it for me and I was hooked from the very first page.

2) The Hunger Games

This was one of my first YA reads and the book that made me fall in love with Dystopian YA reads.

 3) Brave New World

This is amazing in it's own way but I do recommend reading it before 1984.

Monday Book Recommendations: How It Feels to Fly by Kathryn Holmes

Monday is the day I choose what new books I’m going to start reading but I have so many books in my To Read Pile that sometimes it’s hard to choose so I have decided that on Monday mornings I’ll recommend some  of  my favorite books.

The movement is all that matters.

For as long as Samantha can remember, she’s wanted to be a professional ballerina. She’s lived for perfect pirouettes, sky-high extensions, and soaring leaps across the stage. Then her body betrayed her.

The change was gradual. Stealthy.

Failed diets. Disapproving looks. Whispers behind her back. The result: crippling anxiety about her appearance, which threatens to crush her dancing dreams entirely. On her dance teacher’s recommendation, Sam is sent to a summer treatment camp for teen artists and athletes who are struggling with mental and emotional obstacles. If she can make progress, she’ll be allowed to attend a crucial ballet intensive. But when asked to open up about her deepest insecurities, secret behaviors, and paralyzing fears to complete strangers, Sam can’t cope.

What I really need is a whole new body.

Sam forms an unlikely bond with Andrew, a former college football player who’s one of her camp counselors. As they grow closer, Andrew helps Sam see herself as he does—beautiful. But just as she starts to believe that there’s more between them than friendship, disappointing news from home sends her into a tailspin. With her future uncertain and her body against her, will Sam give in to the anxiety that imprisons her? 

This book definitely  needs more attention, it's beautifully written and it has an incredibly amazing message.

Weekly Book Haul (September 5th-11th)

Although school has been tough I've been able to catch up on my 2016 releases so no I'm going back to the 2015 releases that I missed.

In a Handful of Dust by Mindy McGinnis Review

Title: In a Handful of Dust

Series: Not a Drop to Drink #2

Author:In a Handful of Dust by Mindy McGinnis Review

Date Published: September 23rd 2014

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

The only thing bigger than the world is fear.

Lucy’s life by the pond has always been full. She has water and friends, laughter and the love of her adoptive mother, Lynn, who has made sure that Lucy’s childhood was very different from her own. Yet it seems Lucy’s future is settled already—a house, a man, children, and a water source—and anything beyond their life by the pond is beyond reach.

When disease burns through their community, the once life-saving water of the pond might be the source of what’s killing them now. Rumors of desalinization plants in California have lingered in Lynn’s mind, and the prospect of a “normal” life for Lucy sets the two of them on an epic journey west to face new dangers: hunger, mountains, deserts, betrayal, and the perils of a world so vast that Lucy fears she could be lost forever, only to disappear in a handful of dust.

In this companion to Not a Drop to Drink, Mindy McGinnis thrillingly combines the heart-swelling hope of a journey, the challenges of establishing your own place in the world, and the gripping physical danger of nature in a futuristic frontier. 

*Although this book was marketed as a companion/standalone novel I definitely recommend reading the first book*

Ok let me start by saying that this is a good book  the issue I had with this book is that it was not as amazing as the first one but still it's worth reading.

Things I liked

-Lynn is just one of those characters that was created to break my heart. I absolutely loved seeing how she has changed in the time that passed between the first book and this one. I wish the book had been written in her Point of View.

-The fact that the characters that didn't make it to this book were still mentioned and we got to see how their absence affected Lynn and Lucy.

Things I wasn't a fan of

I didn't connect with Lucy as much as I did with Lynn, there were a few times that I almost gave up on the book. My biggest issue with her was how naive and selfish she was at the start of the novel, she is living in a pretty screwed up world yet she was incredibly trusting of every stranger she met.

Rating