One more contest for Sunday, then I'm done!

Green Bean Teen Queen has a really fun birthday contest going on at her website so be sure to check it out here. She just posted a great vlog also which was fun to watch. I like seeing what everyone is reading when they are actually talking about it, even more so than just reading a blog about it.

So that's it for contests, but seriously, so many great opportunities to win books! How can you pass up these opportunities?

So many contests but I am actually reading...

So many great contests out there right now! I feel so lucky to at least get a chance to win. It's great so many bloggers have the books to give away and are willing to do so. But in the midst of all this, I have been reading, and quite a bit!

Firstly, romance wise I just finished up Nalini Singh's upcoming July Psy/Changeling book, Branded by Fire. I'm writing the review right now for one of the Romance websites I review for. Needless to say, this is a difficult review to write because the book was purely fantastic! I just adored the chemistry between Riley and Mercy and the genuine raw emotions between these two characters. Nalini Singh also continues her complex worldbuilding. Here is where she lost me a bit as a reader. There were a few too many short chapters interspersed throughout the book, breaking up the flow of the story. It just bugged me. While I found the information important for the most part, I wish it had been condensed into a longer chapter, rather than these short bursts. However, mostly I just adored the book. This is one paranormal series I am not yet sick of. I have pretty much dropped all my paranormal romance reading because frankly, there is too much of it out on the market and not much of it is any good anymore. This is not the case with Nalini Singh. High marks all around!

In YA reading, I finished up A Map of the Known World. While I felt it got a bit too cliched towards the end, dealing with death and its aftermath, I still really liked the significance of artwork to this family, and how Lisa Ann Sandell so capably and so wonderfully painted a picture in my head as I read. Cora had a lot of anger and sadness in her and it was nice to see art become such a powerful outlet for her. Also, Sandell got it right when she showed high school as the catalyst for change. Cora made several new friendships while also realizing one of her longtime best friends was changing into someone Cora did not necessarily like. By story's end, she was ok with that though. It didn't end badly for them, which I also liked. It was a natural evolution of friendship change. I also really like the cover.

I'm currently in the middle of Th1rteen R3asons Why by Jay Asher. So far, it's powerful and compelling and twisted and sad. Yeah, it's good. But not in a good way if that makes sense. I realize I've been reading a lot of rather serious/depressing YA fiction lately and I think after this book, I'm going to have to move on to something lighter and more fun. I have a stack of books a mile tall but if you have any good suggestions for something fun and not too heavy, I'd love to hear it.

The summer reading club starts officially tomorrow at my library. It's going to be a good summer, I can already tell. It's my first summer with this library so I'm excited to see all the families and teens come to the library and participate. Of course I'm most interested in my teen programs and how receptive the teens will be to them, but I'm just really thrilled to be part of this library.

Happy Sunday and go enter those contests!

Another Contest!

This time for CATCHING FIRE!! The sequel to The Hunger Games. Hurry and enter here, courtesy of Reviewer X.

It's not too late!

You can still enter Abby (the) Librarian's Love You Hate You Miss You Giveaway. Love You Hate You Miss You is the new book from one of my absolute fave YA authors, Elizabeth Scott. My favorite book of hers is still Perfect You but I have really enjoyed all her books. So... go and enter! What have you got to lose?

The Story Siren is also having a contest for Crazy Beautiful by Lauren Baratz-Logsted. You can enter here. This book also looks fabulous and I love the cover!

It may not be Saturday but...

I have to do Karin's Book Nook's "Say It Again Saturday." I'm currently in the middle of A Map of the Known World by Lisa Ann Sandell and there are SO MANY beautiful passages in this story. I have to share a few.

I am having a hard enough time keeping up with my classes, especially geometry. There is so much memorization, and for some reason, none of it makes any sense to me, no matter how many times I read and reread the same chapter. How did someone figure out, for instance, that a2 + b2 = c2? Who has a brain that works like that. Who looks at a triangle and thinks, I will figure out a way to understand how the lines and angles relate to one another?

This is EXACTLY how I feel about math!

What a waste. What a terrible waste. He died and I never really got to know him. I never got to know what he did, what he could do. He will never get to show everybody what he could do. I don't even think he knew what he could have done. My gut burns with the same fiery pain I felt on the night he died.

And the opening... and what an opening it is:

Somewhere, things must be beautiful and vivid. Somewhere else, life has to be beautiful and vivid and rich. Not like this muted palette--a pale blue bedroom, washed out sunny sky, dull green yellow brown of the fields. Here, I know every twist of every road, every blade of grass, every face in this town, and I am suffocating.

Interested?? I highly recommend this book thus far!

Being Nikki by Meg Cabot

While I didn't get nearly as much reading done this weekend as I had planned, I did manage to finish Being Nikki by Meg Cabot, the sequel to Airhead.

Em Watts is adjusting to life as super famous model Nikki Howard and while she cannot say she loves it, she enjoys some of its perks. Of course, there is the fact that her ex-boyfriend Brandon won't leave her alone, Stark has her apartment bugged, her best friend Christopher does not realize she is alive, only in Nikki's body, and oh yeah... a mysterious older brother named Steven shows up wanting to know where the heck Nikki's mom is. Em of course has NO IDEA. She is not Nikki. But she wants to help Steven, even as it is easy to tell from his dislike of Nikki that Nikki and Steven did not have the closest sibling relationship.

Then to make her hectic life even more hectic (if that's even possible!) Christopher approaches "Nikki" about bringing down Stark. And Em cannot believe how villainous Christopher has become. And that she has to dress up as an angel for the Stark fashion show!

Meg Cabot kicks the storyline up several notches in this book. Airhead was definitely just the setup for this frankly more interesting story.

And well, ok, my little romantic heart just beat strong for Steven and Lulu, Nikki's celebutante best friend. She has such a cute crush on him. On the other hand, while I think I am supposed to be rooting for Em and Christopher, I really can't. I don't like Christopher all that much. He seems like a bit of a jerk to me. I know there will be a positive reconciliation for him in the future with Em so I hope I can warm up more to him the next book.

There is a part at the end that I strongly agreed with when Nikki laid the smackdown on Christopher. I won't give it away but yeah, I agreed completely. I think the problem with Christopher is, for me, I wasn't given enough of a chance to learn about him in the previous book. Cabot says Em and Christopher were best friends but I didn't get a chance to really see that relationship, so I just have Em's side to rely on, and yeah, her anger is pretty justified when it comes to him, even if he is the best friend.

I liked the new characters that were introduced, particularly Steven. I also really enjoyed Em's struggles to acclimate to her new life and to try to stay close to her parents and younger sister. I felt bad for her but I also think she was doing her best to deal with both of her lives.

I really enjoy Meg Cabot. Her books are fun and while I think most of her female lead characters are exactly the same from book to book, with different names of course, I still sped through this story and I'm definitely excited to see what happens next.

As a side note, if you ever have the chance to meet Meg Cabot, do it! I attended one of her book signings in Minnesota a few years ago and it was such fun. She is a great speaker and really engages with the audience who I have to say, ranged in age from middle schoolers to older adults. She definitely holds appeal for a lot of women.

Next up: I'm not sure, lol. I have a lot of books to read.

Books To Pine For

I've seen this at The Story Siren's site and since I always have books I'm excited for, I thought I'd do my own post.


Sea Change by Aimee Friedman

King of the Screupws by K.L. Going

Slept Away by Julie Kraut

Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

I realize a few of these are already released but my library hasn't received them yet and my paycheck doesn't stretch as far to include all the YA books I want to buy, much to my regret.

Also, if you're like me and you like to enter contests, Presenting Lenore has a fabulous contest going on where you can win 9 Penguin Fantasy books or 9 Reality books so be sure to go and enter!

New Books At My Library

I received a bundle of new books today and these are a few that I thought seemed particularly interesting.

Vickie Howell's Pop Goes Crochet: 36 Projects Inspired by Icons of Popular Culture. The YA Nonfiction section in my library is very sparse so I'm glad to see the library getting more fun project type books for teens to check out. This book has some great pictures, very bright and hip, and it seems like the directions and patterns would be easy to follow. Granted I cannot crochet so I cannot say that with fact. There were a few projects in there, including a poncho like article of clothing (worn by a man in the picture) that I'm not sure if teens would find very trendy but what do I know. Cute and colorful for sure!

Surface Tension: A Novel in Four Summers by Brent Runyon.

Lucas at 13 is excited about everything—swimming, fishing, skipping rocks, and searching for lucky stones—there’s so much to do in two weeks at the lake.

Lucas at 14 is a little more jaded. And more interested in looking at the hot girl next door than in looking for rocks.

Lucas at 15 is a little more angry. The friend he brings along makes him see his summer haven with new—and less appreciative—eyes.

Lucas at 16 is in love—until he gets a break-up post card from his girlfriend, and then he wants to die.

Brent Runyon has crafted a remarkable portrait of a boy at four distinct points in his life and literally shows us his coming-of-age. It’s a story about what is ever-changing and what is timeless, and how we are shaped by both the people and places we love.

Seems like a fun guy book. I want to read once some of my TBR pile drops off. We'll see how soon that happens.

The Eternal Smile by Gene Luen Yang

I don't read much graphic fiction (I need to read more, way more in fact) but I may give this one a chance since I really enjoyed American Born Chinese. I love the yellow sunshiney cover of his new book.

Geek Charming by Robin Palmer. I love nerd/geek stories so this seems like a fun one. And I already peeked at the ending and it doesn't end the way I'd expect so that's always a plus. And yes, I am a fool for the adorable cover and this one is cutesy. Love it. Hopefully I'll like the book just as much as the cover.

As for currently reading, I'm in the middle of Jerk, California by Jonathan Friesen who is a Minnesota writer. Being a Minnesota girl up until a few months ago, I always love reading Minnesota writers and this book has been really good so far. I've teared up already at some of the crappy situations Sam has had to face. But then, just like I am a fool for the cute, I also tear up easily.

So that's a rundown on some books for me.

Currently doing summer reading book talks and promotion at a local high school. It's been a good day but long.

Review: Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway

This is probably the most fun I've had with a book in quite awhile. I readily admit that I love celebrities. I follow celebrity websites, I like to see who is breaking up (or hooking up) with whom. I have never had any desire for my fifteen minutes of fame, but I certainly like to see who does. Well, Audrey Cuttler does not want her fifteen minutes of fame, but she is getting it anyway in Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway.

California high school student Audrey Cuttler dumps self-involved Evan, the lead singer of a little band called The Do-Gooders. Evan writes, “Audrey, Wait!,” a break-up song that’s so good it rockets up the billboard charts. And Audrey is suddenly famous!

Now rabid fans are invading her school. People is running articles about her arm-warmers. The lead singer of the Lolitas wants her as his muse. (And the Internet is documenting her every move!) Audrey can’t hang out with her best friend or get with her new crush without being mobbed by fans and paparazzi.

Take a wild ride with Audrey as she makes headlines, has outrageous amounts of fun, confronts her ex on MTV, and gets the chance to show the world who she really is.

Audrey Cuttler breaks up with her boyfriend, Evan, right at the beginning of this story. From then on, her life changes forever all because Evan, lead singer for the band The Do-Gooders, writes a song about her (finally!). Called Audrey, Wait! it becomes an instant hit and soon goes national and international. Being a muse is not fun however as Audrey finds out.

Audrey is fabulous character. She loves rocking out to music, she hates her job at the Scooper Dooper, and she has a solid relationship with her parents. She is in other words a fairly typical sixteen year old girl. Or she was until, the song and suddenly she is a celebrity in her own school. People who have disliked her are suddenly scrambling to be her friend and she can see the fakeness a mile away.

Audrey's new celebrity status has its perks. She does get to meet a band she enjoys (though as you'll see if you read this book, not everything about that goes according to plan.)

I read through this novel in no time at all. Robin Benway has an ear for today's teenager and she uses it masterfully. Audrey swears, she flirts, she gets mad at her best friend, and she does it in such a way that you cannot help being on her side.

I loved the lyrics that headed each chapter, foreshadowing things to come for Audrey.

What I probably most enjoyed was the fact that, no matter how difficult life became for Audrey because of her ex-boyfriend, she still tried to live a normal life, even amongst the occasional rant. She also kept her relationship with her parents strong and though she tried to hide what was happening to her, she also realized she had to let her parents know what was going on. Relationships prove to be the strongest point of this story. Audrey and her parents, Audrey and her best friend Victoria, like the Queen, and Audrey with her crush, James.

Audrey, Wait! was engaging, energetic and purely likable. This is a book I can see recommending to a wide variety of teens because of the romance angle, the friendship angle, the celebrity angle, and the music angle. There's definitely a little something in her for everyone, though perhaps a harder sell for boys. Also, definitely high school aged, sophomores and above I'd say, because of the swearing and some discussion of sex that would be more appropriate for older teens. Nothing too descriptive but still something to keep in mind if you're suggesting it for an eighth or ninth grader.

One last thing: I really liked the cover of the hardback a lot better than the cover they used for the paperback. The hardback edition is very eye catching and bright. It definitely pops, while the paperback edition just has a girl standing on it. Not all that interesting really and doesn't stand out the way Audrey does in the story.

This is a wholly enjoyable story.

Because I'm excited for this book...

I've heard a lot of good buzz about this book and there's a chance I could win a copy so why not help to spread the word??

Susane Colasanti Sampler

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Fiction Books when it happens take me there

You can enter yourself right here!

To add to my TBR pile... As it continues to grow.

Some books I randomly decided to check out from the library on Friday:



Impossible by Nancy Werlin

It's not a new book but I've been meaning to read it for awhile now. I like the play on Scarborough Fair and I hope I like the story. I've tried to give up the more paranormal type books lately because there are just too many out there, and too many that aren't all that good IMO.











Unwind by Neil Shusterman. This book is nominated for a Colorado Blue Spruce Award which is an award for books chosen specifically by Colorado teens. I had never even heard of it until I went to the Blue Spruce Awards presentation but it looks really interesting.

In a society where unwanted teens are salvaged for their body parts, three runaways fight the system that would "unwind" them

Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth, as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these three unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until theireighteenth birthday, they can't be harmed -- but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, are wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away.

I'm not a huge sci-fi type reader by any means but this sounds more character driven than say...robots, lol.

Synopsis

Meet Skulduggery Pleasant

Ace Detective
Snappy Dresser
Razor–tongued Wit
Crackerjack Sorcerer
and
Walking, Talking,
Fire-throwing Skeleton

—as well as ally, protector, and mentor of Stephanie Edgley, a very unusual and darkly talented twelve-year-old.

These two alone must defeat an all-consuming ancient evil.

The end of the world?

Over his dead body.

A coworker recommended this book to me and just reading the first few pages, I was already liking it so I decided to take it home. I hope it is as good as the opening scene.

I'm also finishing up Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott (excellent and fun as always. I love Finn.) and I also finished up a historical romance, To Beguile a Beast by Elizabeth Hoyt. She is a fantastic romance writer and this book was just grade A wonderful.