Stacking the Shelves #69

Stacking The Shelves is a hosted by Tynga's Reviews. Come join the fun and share all the book you received this week. 

For Review:

Wish You Were Italian by Kristin Rae 

         

Pippa is in Italy for the summer and, despite her parents’ wishes, she has no intention of just studying the local art! She has a list of things of her own to do: from swimming in the Mediterranean Sea to getting a makeover – and falling for an Italian boy! As Pippa explores the dramatic ruins of Rome and Pompeii, she is swept into her own drama with two guys: an irresistible local she knows is nothing but trouble and a cute American archaeology student . . . Will she find her true love?

The perfect reckless romance to enjoy whether you are home or abroad.

Fool Me Twice by Mandy Hubbard 

     

Last summer, Mackenzie and Landon were the perfect couple. And then he dumped her and broke her heart. Fast forward a year and they’re back at their summer jobs at Serenity Ranch and Spa. And Mack and her best friend Bailey are spending their time fantasizing about making voodoo dolls and playing childish pranks on Landon.

Lucky for Mack, the perfect opportunity presents itself. Landon takes a nasty fall and suddenly he’s stuck in the past—literally. His most recent memory is of last summer, when they were together, so now he’s calling Mack pet names and hanging all over her.

The plan is simple: keep Landon at arm’s length, manipulate him so he’s the one falling in love, and then BAM, dump him in the most epic revenge plot in the history of everdom. There’s only one teensy problem: Mack can’t fall for Landon a second time.

Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid

                  
          

Five strangers. Countless adventures.One epic way to get lost. 
Four teens across the country have only one thing in common: a girl named LEILA. She crashes into their lives in her absurdly red car at the moment they need someone the most. 
There's HUDSON, a small-town mechanic who is willing to throw away his dreams for true love. And BREE, a runaway who seizes every Tuesday—and a few stolen goods along the way. ELLIOT believes in happy endings…until his own life goes off-script. And SONIA worries that when she lost her boyfriend, she also lost the ability to love. 
Hudson, Bree, Elliot and Sonia find a friend in Leila. And when Leila leaves them, their lives are forever changed. But it is during Leila's own 4,268-mile journey that she discovers the most important truth— sometimes, what you need most is right where you started. And maybe the only way to find what you're looking for is to get lost along the way. 

    Audio: 

Feature and Follow Friday #98

Feature Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Rachel of Parajunkee and Alison of Alison Can Read!

Featured Blog:

Pottermorebooks

and

Chapter Break .net

Featured Question:

Question of the Week: 
Recommend some of your favorite back-list books – books that are at least a few years old (I’m thinking 5-10 years old rather than classics).Here are a few of my favorites...

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

  

Angus: My mixed-breed cat, half domestic tabby, half Scottish wildcat. The size of a small Labrador, only mad. Likes to stalk Mr. and Mrs. Next Door's poodle. I used to drag him around on a lead, but, as I explained to Mrs. Next Door, he ate it.

Thongs: Stupid underwear worn by old Swotty Knickers, Lindsay. What's the point of them, anyway? They just go up your bum, as far as I can tell.

Full-Frontal Snogging: Kissing with the trimmings, lip to lip, open mouth, tongues...everything (apart from dribble, which is never acceptable). As taught to me by a professional snogger.

In this wildly funny journal of a year in the life of Georgia Nicolson, British author Louise Rennison has perfectly captured the soaring joys and bottomless angst if being a teenager. In the spirit of "Bridget Jones' Diary," this fresh, irreverent, and simply hilarious book will leave you laughing out loud. As Georgia would say, it's "fabbity fab fab!"

   The Named by Marianne Curley 

Ethan lives a secret life as a Guardian of the Named. Under the guidance of Arkarian, his mentor, and with the help of Isabel, his unlikely but highly capable apprentice, Ethan has become a valued member of this other-worldly corps. As the only defense against the evil Order of Chaos, the Named travel through time to prevent the Order from altering history and thereby gaining power in the present and the future.

As the threat from the Order intensifies, secrets of the past are revealed and villains and heroes are exposed. This gripping fantasy is set in modern times, but is infused with intrigue from the past, super-natural characters and surprising plot twists. Curley has written a winner through to the end.

Deadly Little Secret by Laurie Faria Stolarz

  

Some secrets shouldn't be kept...

Up until three months ago, everything in sixteen-year-old Camelia's life had been fairly ordinary: decent grades; an okay relationship with her parents; and a pretty cool part-time job at the art studio downtown. But when Ben, the mysterious new guy, starts junior year at her high school, Camelia's life becomes anything but ordinary.

Rumored to be somehow responsible for his ex-girlfriend's accidental death, Ben is immediately ostracized by everyone on campus. Except for Camelia. She's reluctant to believe the rumors, even when her friends try to convince her otherwise. She's inexplicably drawn to Ben and to his touch. But soon, Camelia is receiving eerie phone calls and strange packages with threatening notes. Ben insists she is in danger, and that he can help-but can he be trusted? She knows he's hiding something... but he's not the only one with a secret.

From the best-selling author of Blue is for Nightmares comes a story of paranormal romance that's sure to be a thrilling and chilling teen favorite.

Review: Ashfall by Mike Mullin

Title: Ashfall 

Author: Mike Mullin

Publisher:  Tanglewood Press
Publishing Date: October 11th 2011

Pages: 476
Genre:  YA Apocalyptic 

Series: Ashfall #1
Source: Paperback

  

Under the bubbling hot springs and geysers of Yellowstone National Park is a supervolcano. Most people don't know it's there. The caldera is so large that it can only be seen from a plane or satellite. It just could be overdue for an eruption, which would change the landscape and climate of our planet.
For Alex, being left alone for the weekend means having the freedom to play computer games and hang out with his friends without hassle from his mother. Then the Yellowstone supervolcano erupts, plunging his hometown into a nightmare of darkness, ash, and violence. Alex begins a harrowing trek to seach for his family and finds help in Darla, a travel partner he meets along the way. Together they must find the strength and skills to survive and outlast an epic disaster.

It feels like this book was on my TBR list forever. The original cover kind of turned me off and I didn't feel the need to read it right away, even though I heard the book was good. I actually love the new cover and when I was contacted to review the series, I jumped at the chance. I finally have a reason to read it, right now, no more excuses. So I read it, I loved it, I am so excited to keep reading this series. The story was awesome, the characters rocked, and there was definitely a crap its the end of the world vibe worth reading about. 

A super volcano in Yellowstone decides to erupt and in the process takes out more than just Yellowstone. It pours ashes for days, causes a horrible winter to come early, animals dying, people dying, fires, murders, there is nothing left good in the town that Alex called his home. Alex's family left him alone for the weekend in Iowa when they took a trip to Illinois to visit family. Alex is determined to leave his hometown and travel to Warren Illinois, about 3 hours away by car, to track down his family. The only problem, no car, horrible weather, ash everywhere, and danger around every corner. The trip will take more than 3 hours, more than days, more than weeks. Along the way he meets Darla, she saves his life.... more than once..... they become friends and travel buddies, they decide to travel together until they reach Warren. 

I was pretty sure this book would rock. I heard so many wonderful things about it and I love apocalyptic reads. They freak me out and take me to a world I would never want to live, but I enjoy it and I am entertained by it. This book surpassed all my expectations. I totally loved this book. It was a very fast read and I finished it quicker than I thought I would. Once I picked it up and read a chapter or two, I was hooked. Everything happened quickly but not too fast. Every time I thought things were good, danger over, BAM... something happened again, and this book did not shy away from death, creepies, grossness, or despair. It was quite a horrific read.

There was a lot of bad stuff in the book, but it did not make the book a bad read. For every bad thing, there was something to laugh at, awe about, or just tear up and smile. I think I went through my entire palette of emotions during this read. There were a few times I wanted to throw the book, but then I wanted to hug the book. 

This kind of book is a book about a journey and about survival. There are times these type of books can get boring for me and lose interest. When these books have excellent character building, I am in it to the end. The characters in this book rocked. I loved the main characters and I loved all the supporting characters, even the bad guys were awesomely evil. 

I fell in love with Alex. He started off a geek, nothing wrong with that. I love geeks, but to make it even better, by the end of the book he was a bit of a heartthrob. He was a hero, a gentleman, and a goober. He made me laugh and he made me adore him. He never backed down, he always had the best intentions, and he had heart... Oh yes I just loved him. The way he respected others, especially Darla made me swoon a bit... for Darla's sake. Making me swoon in books is not an easy task. I read lots of books with lots of heroes, and Alex made to the very top of my list of heroes. He was all good and no bad. 

Darla was also a great character. She was a strong girl. She had heart too. She worked hard, she was honest, she did what was needed for those that she loved. She didn't love a little, she loved a lot. Everything she did, it was done all the way. She was smart and she was resourceful. She had a breaking point but she found a way to fight through it. 

One of the main things I liked about this apocalyptic story, it was feasible, it felt realistic, it could happen. Those thoughts made the read scary. It was written well. It was not all doom and gloom, but the feel of survival was definitely there. Everything felt real, never forced, never phony. I really attached to the story and to the characters and fought with them in this terrifying trek of survival. 

All I can say is just read it, if you like apocalyptic stories with great characters. This book is for you. Don't waste another moment, get the book and read it. Its a keeper and I can't wait to dig in to the next book, which happens to be sitting on my shelf waiting for me. 

Mike Mullin’s first job was scraping the gum off the undersides of desks at his high school. From there, things went steadily downhill. He almost got fired by the owner of a bookstore due to his poor taste in earrings. He worked at a place that showed slides of poopy diapers during lunch (it did cut down on the cafeteria budget). The hazing process at the next company included eating live termites raised by the resident entomologist, so that didn’t last long either. For a while Mike juggled bottles at a wine shop, sometimes to disastrous effect. Oh, and then there was the job where swarms of wasps occasionally tried to chase him off ladders. So he’s really hoping this writing thing works out.


Mike holds a black belt in Songahm Taekwondo. He lives in Indianapolis with his wife and her three cats. ASHFALL is his first novel.

Delightful Discoveries #56

Delightful Discoveries are books that I have discovered recently... old, new, just released... from blogs, Goodreads, libraries, friends, or bookstores. 

Kate Walden Directs: Night of the Zombie Chickens

  

Night of the Zombie Chickens is supposed to be Kate Walden's breakout film. But her supporting actresses-her mother's prize organic hens-are high maintenance, to say the least. Thank goodness Kate's best friend Alyssa is the star. She's great at screaming and even better at killing zombies in creative ways. 

But when Alyssa turns into a real-life soulless zombie and ditches Kate for the most popular girl in seventh grade, Kate suddenly finds herself both friendless and starless. Now, thanks to Alyssa's new crowd, Kate is the butt of every joke at school and consigned to the loser table at lunch.

If movies have taught Kate anything, it's that the good guy can always win-with the right script. And her fellow social outcasts may be the key to her own happy ending. Kate hatches the perfect revenge plot against her former best friend, but even though her screenplay is foolproof, Kate soon realizes that nothing-in filmmaking or in life-ever goes exactly as planned. Especially when there are diabolical hens out to get you.

100 Sideways Miles by Andrew Smith

Finn Easton sees the world through miles instead of minutes. It’s how he makes sense of the world, and how he tries to convince himself that he’s a real boy and not just a character in his father’s bestselling cult-classic book. Finn has two things going for him: his best friend, the possibly-insane-but-definitely-excellent Cade Hernandez, and Julia Bishop, the first girl he’s ever loved.

Then Julia moves away, and Finn is heartbroken. Feeling restless and trapped in the book, Finn embarks on a road trip with Cade to visit their college of choice in Oklahoma. When an unexpected accident happens and the boys become unlikely heroes, they take an eye-opening detour away from everything they thought they had planned—and learn how to write their own destiny.

The Last Thirteen by James Phelan 

3 books. 13 nightmares. 1 destiny.

I click my fingers and everybody dies.

Sam wakes from his nightmare to discover the terrifying reality. It will come true.

Kidnapped from school and finding out his parents aren't who he thinks they are, Sam is suddenly running from danger at every turn. Nothing will ever be the same again.

With his life and identity shattered, Sam's salvation is tied to an ancient prophecy. He is in the final battle to save the world, up against an enemy plotting to destroy us all.

He alone can find the last thirteen.

Trust Me I'm Lying 
by Mary Elizabeth Summer

  
Julep Dupree tells lies. A lot of them. She’s a con artist, a master of disguise, and a sophomore at Chicago’s swanky St. Agatha High, where her father, an old-school grifter with a weakness for the ponies, sends her to so she can learn to mingle with the upper crust. For extra spending money Julep doesn’t rely on her dad—she runs petty scams for her classmates while dodging the dean of students and maintaining an A+ (okay, A-) average.

But when she comes home one day to a ransacked apartment and her father gone, Julep’s carefully laid plans for an expenses-paid golden ticket to Yale start to unravel. Even with help from St. Agatha’s resident Prince Charming, Tyler Richland, and her loyal hacker sidekick, Sam, Julep struggles to trace her dad’s trail of clues through a maze of creepy stalkers, hit attempts, family secrets, and worse, the threat of foster care. With everything she has at stake, Julep’s in way over her head . . . but that’s not going to stop her from using every trick in the book to find her dad before his mark finds her. Because that would be criminal.

 Pandemic by Yvonne Ventresca 

Even under the most normal circumstances, high school can be a painful and confusing time. Unfortunately, Lilianna’s circumstances are anything but normal. Only a few people know what caused her sudden change from model student to the withdrawn pessimist she has become, but her situation isn’t about to get any better. When people begin coming down with a quick-spreading illness that doctors are unable to treat, Lil’s worst fears are realized. With her parents called away on business before the contagious outbreak—her father in Delaware covering the early stages of the disease and her mother in Hong Kong and unable to get a flight back to New Jersey—Lil’s town is hit by what soon becomes a widespread illness and fatal disaster. Now, she’s more alone than she’s been since the �incident” at her school months ago.

With friends and neighbors dying all around her, Lil does everything she can just to survive. But as the disease rages on, so does an unexpected tension as Lil is torn between an old ex and a new romantic interest. Just when it all seems too much, the cause of her original trauma shows up at her door. In this thrilling debut from author Yvonne Ventresca, Lil must find a way to survive not only the outbreak and its real-life consequences, but also her own personal demons.