Stacking the Shelves - A Mix

It's been a good book week! Here's what I got:

For Review:

Hotel Ruby, by Suzanne Young from Edelweiss

From the Library:

At the Water's Edge, by Sara Gruen

Fire & Flood, by Victoria Scott

All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr - audiobook

I'm pretty excited. I've been on a wait list for the Doerr and Gruen books, so I'm glad they are finally here! What exciting things did you get this week? Leave me a link! Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit our hosts, Team Tynga's Reviews. See you soon!

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Book Review: Seriously Wicked by Tina Connolly

Seriously Wicked is supposed to be light-hearted fun. And it is....but maybe a bit too light hearted.

Camellia is being raised by a witch that stole her from her parents when she was a baby. The witch is trying to make Camellia into a witch by teaching her spells. Camellia does NOT want to be a witch. And she doesn't want anyone to know that her "aunt" is a witch.

Her aunt is constantly giving Camellia chores to do, and most of them involve procuring bizarre ingredients for her spells. The latest spell is one that will summon a demon and allow her aunt to take control of the town. Camellia thinks this is dangerous, and although she tries to thwart her aunt's efforts, things turn out even worse than expected. The demon has possessed the guy who Camellia was just getting interested in.

One problem I had with the book is the repetition of "hells" which is Camellia's preferred curse word. I'm sorry -- but I got so tired of her saying this on almost every page. Really? Usually these things don't annoy me, but this went way to far. How could an editor let this be? (I am reading an ARC, so there's hope for the final copy!)

Seriously Wicked is silly. It's over the top. It is billed as "hilarious." A better term, at least for me, is "eye-rolling." You have to go into Seriously Wicked with a mindset that there's going to be totally crazy magic things happen that don't really make sense and aren't explained. This book is about the relationships between the characters, and the surprises are about those characters and who they really turn out to be.

Seriously Wicked is short and easy. I think that if you don't really expect to take things to seriously, and you want a little fun with witches, you may enjoy it.

Published by Tor Teen, May 5, 2015
ARC obtained from Library Media Connection Magazine
208pages

Rating: 2.5/5

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DNF Book Review: Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge

Maybe Hodge's books just aren't for me. I stopped reading Crimson Bound at 37% (approx. 166 pages.) I wasn't enjoying it for a few reasons.

I had a hard time following the lore. (Funny, I said the same thing about Cruel Beauty.) I couldn't keep the characters straight, but maybe this is because I really didn't understand their motivations.

There are bloodbounds, and forestborns, and a Devourer. The world is getting darker and darker. I don't understand any of it really. All is explained very quickly at the beginning and I guess I didn't pay enough attention. The main character, Rachelle, needs to find some magic sword to save the world. And she's protecting the king's illegitimate son, who has no hands. I don't understand how or why she's in this position.

Admittedly, high fantasy is not my favorite genre. But I do enjoy a good fairy tale retelling. I started to dread picking this up and would find things to do instead of reading. That's a definite indication to move on to something else.

I think the writing is clear enough, but the beginning seemed like a very quick information dump about the world. I needed to be refreshed again. After over a third of the book, there wasn't much tension building up - or maybe there was, but I didn't understand it.

Crimson Bound wasn't the book for me, but if you enjoyed Hodge's other books or are a huge fan of high fantasy, you might enjoy it.

Published by Balzer + Bray, May 5, 2015
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
166/448 pages

Rating: DNF

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Stacking the Shelves - More Sequels

Couldn't resist a few exciting finds from Edelweiss this week!

For Review:

A Madness So Discreet, by Mindy McGinnis

I haven't read Not a Drop to Drink, but I've wanted to. This one sounds spooky!

Ice Like Fire, by Sara Raasch

Sequel to Snow Like Ashes -- a must have!

The White Rose, by Amy Ewing

Sequel to The Jewel. Again, a must have!

That's it for me this week? How about you? Leave me a link! Thanks for stopping by and make sure you visit our hosts, Team Tynga's Reviews. See you soon!

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Feature and Follow Friday - Reading Decisions

Happy Friday again! Here's this week's question from Parajunkee and Alison:

How do you decide what books to read? - Suggested by So Many Books, So Little Time.

Well, if you're talking about what types of books I like, I'd say a wide variety. I read  mostly YA, but have a few adult authors that are "must reads" and I read some of the adult best sellers, especially if they may appeal to high school students. I succumb to the hype of certain books. I go after the popular authors' new books -- because that's what my students want to know about. If I enjoyed the first book in a series, I usually go for the rest of the series. I read LOTS of reviews on blogs and from publications and I get a lot of ideas from those.

If you are talking about what order I choose to read my books, here's how I choose what to read next:

First, I look at my review book list (an Excel file). If I have several coming up, I try to vary the genres as much as possible. If I'm running behind, I may just go for the shortest one first!

Then if I'm caught up, I look at a pile I keep next to my desk or at something in my "later" folder on my Kindle. I have printouts of covers and descriptions of all my Kindle books, so I can leaf through them. Most of them on the pile get there because I've read great reviews or it's something I've always wanted to read.

Variety in genres is important. I'm not going to like a book as much if it's the same genre as the one I just read.

Before I leave school for summer, I go through the library and my lists and pull a huge stack of books to take home over the summer. I also have a "want to read" list of eBooks available through my library, so I have lots of lists and most of my selecting (other than review books) has to do with just what mood I'm in.

How about you? How do you "find" new books to read? Are you a more random or organized reader? Leave me a link in the comments. Thanks for visiting and I hope you come back soon.

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Book Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

After a bit of a slow start, A Court of Thorns and Roses turned out to be an exciting fairy tale that I will be happy to recommend.

Feyre and her family are poor. She's responsible for hunting and scraping to keep them alive. In the dead of winter, this is a challenge. When she kills a wolf, her and her family's lives change forever.

They've always been afraid of the fairy lands to the north. They are too close for comfort, and there are rumors that the fairies are crossing the border more often, even though there is a shaky understanding since the war many years ago.

It turns out that the wolf she killed was a fairy, and his master, Tamlin, comes and drags Feyre away to live forever with him in the fairy lands. He's able to do this because of a treaty from long ago. It turns out that Tamlin isn't the ogre Feyre thought, and many of the fairy legends she grew up with are inaccurate.

The fairy lands are actually in trouble. Fairies are losing their powers and there's an evil that Feyre can't quite figure out. She wants to help, but doesn't know how.

I did have a bit of trouble with the pacing at the beginning when Feyre first comes with Tamlin. It seemed like it took quite a while for the plot to move, even though there were some individual events that were exciting. I think the book was a bit long at over 400 pages. Once we got to the last half, though, I really had a hard time putting A Court of Thorns and Roses down.

I also thought Feyre fell for Tamlin really quickly and easily. Yes, she realized he wasn't such an evil fairy, but it seemed that's all it took for her to fall into his arms. Very much "insta-love."

All in all, I'm very satisfied with A Court of Thorns and Roses. I enjoyed several unexpected twists. The ending tied most things up, and the book could work as a stand alone. I've not heard about any more stories from this world, but that would certainly be a possibility, I'm sure.

Readers who enjoy fairy tale retellings and strong female heroines will enjoy A Court of Thorns and Roses.

Published by Bloomsbury, May 5, 2015
eARC obtained from NetGalley
432 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: Say What You Will, by Cammie McGovern

Say What You Will is a lovely contemporary story about friendship in which the friends have more than the usual amount of issues.

Amy has cerebral palsy and can't talk. She uses a walker, slobbers, and doesn't always have control of her muscular functions. She's very intelligent and a good student, but has no friends since she can't communicate easily. She's decided that because she always has an adult helper with her, her peers feel like they can't approach her. So Amy convinces her mother that for her senior year she should hire other students to take turns being Amy's helpers.

Matthew is one of those helpers. Amy is happy about that, since Matthew has at least tried to talk to her in the past. Matthew is good at his job, but it soon becomes apparent that he is dealing with his own problems. He's has a pretty severe case of OCD. As they become closer he finally admits his problems to Amy.

Amy has a great attitude about her disability -- almost too good. The question occurs to the reader -- just who has it worse? Amy or Matthew? Their friendship slowly develops, and they are each wondering if it is possible to have more than a friendship. Each is feeling deeper feelings, but they won't admit anything to each other. As a matter of fact, they go through some pretty rough times.

McGovern has done a great job of getting us to understand, at least a little bit, the life of someone with Amy's disabilities. She almost makes it too easy on the reader, because we don't see much of Amy's life before--what she has gone through to get to this relatively well-adjusted point in her life.

The conversations are interesting. The relationship develops very slowly. The parents add their own pressures and problems to the story. Say What You Will is just a very well-rounded book with aspects that ring true to any teen, no matter what their issues. It's nice to read kind of a normal relationship, with normal ups and downs between two very unique individuals.

I think anyone who enjoys teen contemporaries with some meat to them will enjoy Say What You Will. It's very entertaining, but it's not fluff. I think there's a lot hear that could foster some good classroom or book club discussions.

I'm so glad Say What You Will has been nominated for next year's high school book award. I can't wait to recommend this to all my teens.

Published by HarperTeen, 2014
Copy obtained from the library
343 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Stacking the Shelves - A Box of Books!

Receiving a box of books to review always makes my day. It's so much fun to open it a see what it contains! Here are the books I grabbed this week:

For Review:

Adrift, by Paul Griffin from LMC Magazine

Always up for a good survival story!

Mechanica, by Betsy Cornwell from LMC Magazine

Already have the eARC of this one. Such a beautiful cover. Looking forward to it!

Seriously Wicked, by Tina Connolly from LMC Magazine

The Stellow Project, by Shari Becker from LMC Magazine

Alive, by Scott Sigler, from NetGalley

Speaking in Bones, by Kathy Reichs from NetGalley

A favorite author! 

Gift:

Hit, by Delilah S. Dawson

Free gift from LMC Magazine (this will go in my school library)

From the Library:

Etiquette & Espionage, by Gail Carriger

I've read so many great reviews of this book!

So, a pretty good week for me! How about you? Leave a link so I can drool over your new books. Thanks for visiting and make sure to visit our hosts, Team Tynga's Reviews. Hope you come back soon.

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2015 EBook Challenge - Post Your May Reviews

Here's the sign up page for the 2015 EBook Challenge, if you're interested.

You can see my progress for the entire year on my 2015 Challenges Page.

Here's a place to link up your reviews for April, if you haven't yet.

You can link up your MAY Reviews below:

Hope you are enjoying the EBook Challenge!

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Feature & Follow Friday - Slumps

Hope you are looking forward to a great weekend. Here's this week's question from Parajunkee and Alison:

How do you cure a book hangover/blogging slump/reading slump? - Suggested by Take Me Away....

I can't really say that I've ever had a reading slump. Most of my lack of reading is because I'm busy with other things. Sometimes by choice (other hobbies) or necessity (life gets in the way.) After over 3 years of blogging (and many years of reading before that) I've never not wanted to read, I'm not really sure what that would feel like. I do have goals for reading, but I also know my limitations, and if I can't meet the goals I've set, I don't beat myself up. I'm just more laid back about reading, I have other interests that I turn to at times, and maybe that helps too.

This year is going to be interesting, though. I'm sure I'm not going to reach my reading goals (which really are just to equal my last year's numbers). I'm going to be a grandma in September! So I'm reserving lots of time for a very special daughter and her baby girl towards the end of the year and I'm sure that will impact my reading time.

How about you? I'll be interested in the answers you have. Please leave me a link and thanks for stopping by!

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