Top Ten Tuesday #125

Top Ten is an original feature/weekly meme created here at

The Broke and the Bookish that features a great bookish top ten every week.

I missed last weeks and so I decided to post last weeks top ten.

My Top Ten Anticipated Spring Reads







To join in for this week...

Sad to say I dont have any from my childhood teens years I would like to revisit to say but here were some of my favorite reads.....

Review: Denton Little's Deathdate by Lance Rubin

Title: Denton Little's Deathdate 

Author: Lance Rubin

Publisher: Knopf Books For Young Readers

Publishing Date: April 14th 2015
Pages: 352

Genre: YA Science Fiction/Mystery /Humor/ Coming of Age

Series: Stand Alone

Source:   ARC 

  

Denton Little's Deathdate takes place in a world exactly like our own except that everyone knows the day they will die. For 17-year-old Denton Little, that's tomorrow, the day of his senior prom.

Despite his early deathdate, Denton has always wanted to live a normal life, but his final days are filled with dramatic firsts. First hangover. First sex. First love triangle (as the first sex seems to have happened not with his adoring girlfriend, but with his best friend's hostile sister. Though he's not totally sure. See: first hangover.) His anxiety builds when he discovers a strange purple rash making its way up his body. Is this what will kill him? And then a strange man shows up at his funeral, claiming to have known Denton's long-deceased mother, and warning him to beware of suspicious government characters…. Suddenly Denton's life is filled with mysterious questions and precious little time to find the answers.

Debut author Lance Rubin takes us on a fast, furious, and outrageously funny ride through the last hours of a teenager's life as he searches for love, meaning, answers, and (just maybe) a way to live on. 

I wanted this book from the moment it caught my eyes. I can't say if it was the cover ( I love) the title (intriguing) or the synopsis ( sounds pretty darn hilarious) or just the entire package. Whichever it was I wanted my hands on this wish. Well the publisher fairies delivered and I devoured this book. Practically in one sitting ( I just had to go to work) It was AMAZING. By far one of the most original and creative peice of work I have ever read. It was hilarious, it was emotional, it was suspenseful and thrilling, it was thought provoking, and it even had some mystery. It really had just about everything in the book. In fact I don't even know what genre this book is, doesn't matter though. I LOVED IT! 

It is somewhere in the future and everybody knows the date they will day. Denton Little's deathdate is coming up and this is a book about his last days. It involves waking up after his first drunk night, losing his virginity, turning purple, prom, a letter from his dead mother, a mysterious man, a kidnapping, a crazy old cop, his girlfriends crazed ex boyfriend, his own funeral, a  little yellow that is hell bent on running him over, and so much more.l .Denton is in for the ride of his life (litterally) and it is filled with surprises as he learns to accept, live, fall in love, leave his mark, and trust the unknown. 

Okay this is a very hard book to review because I am not sure what I just read. All I know is it was the best thing I have read in a very long time. This was an unbelievable read and I never expected to love it this much. It is a humorous book but it also has depth. I thought I knew what to expect and I so didn't. The book is always a type of sci fi- it is obviously the future and science has played a part in finding out how to know when one is going t die. But... it reads like a contemporary coming of age (or not) type of read for more than half the book then it goes into a pretty cool mystery until the end with a real sci fi thriller type of read. IT FLOWED!!! The change was subtle and it worked. The humor stayed in tow and never missed a beat. Really was a piece of wonderful work. 

I absolutely adored pretty much every character. There were a few I adored more than the others but the story wouldn't be awesome if there was even just one minor, especially a major, character left out. 

Denton was a great character. I loved his growth. I loved his personality, I loved his flaws. Denton has known his deathdate since he was about 5 years of age. It has shaped most of his personality. He has lived a normal life. He figured this is what he wanted. To live as if he wasn't going to die before he finished high school. He had a very loving family. A best friend, A girlfriend. A deathdate. Life was as it should be except when his deathdate rolls around, he realizes he has never really lived and this is where our story takes place. It starts off with Denton drinking and way too  much for the first time in his life. This leads to a bunch of unfortunate events which leads to a mystery which leads to some pretty awesome stuff. 

I really liked Denton's Mom, she was very very crazy. but loving! I loved his best friend, Paulo. Hilarious guy that would do about anything for Denton, I also really loved Paulo's sister Veronica. She was pretty awesome. She was cold but caring and she brought so much fun to the story. Denton' girlfriend Taryn was pretty important to the story but I never connected much to her, I didn't mind because it seemed to have fit with the story. All the characters had their place and was an important piece. They made the story. 

This story has so many parts, What would you do if you knew it was last day? Are we better off knowing our deathdate? Can fate be stopped? So many things explored in this book. It was thought provoking but also full of action and full of fun and full of surprises. 

This book was so amazing guys really read it!

I'm from New Jersey. It's a way better state than people give it credit for. I went to Brown University, and now I live in Brooklyn with my wife and son. They are delightful people.
Before I became an author, I was primarily an actor. "Anything I'd recognize you from?" you might ask. Probably not, unless you watched the short-lived NBC hospital show MERCY, in which I guest-starred as a patient with a naked sleepwalking problem.
By my late 20's, the acting business was making me sad, so I started to focus more on writing.
Now I'm primarily a writer and it makes me incredibly happy.

Delightful Discoveries #95

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

The Lies About The Truth by Courtney C. Stevens

  

Sadie Kingston, is a girl living in the aftermath. A year after surviving a car accident that killed her friend Trent and left her body and face scarred, she can’t move forward. The only person who seems to understand her is Trent’s brother, Max.

As Sadie begins to fall for Max, she's unsure if she is truly healed enough to be with him — even if Max is able to look at her scars and not shy away. But when the truth about the accident and subsequent events comes to light, Sadie has to decide if she can embrace the future or if she'll always be trapped in the past.

Velvet Undercover by Teri Brown

Samantha Donaldson’s family has always done its duty for the British Crown. In the midst of World War I, seventeen-year-old Sam follows in their footsteps, serving her country from the homefront as a Girl Guide and messenger for the intelligence organization MI5. After her father disappears on a diplomatic mission, she continues their studies of languages, high-level mathematics, and complex puzzles and codes, hoping to make him proud.

When Sam is asked to join the famed women’s spy group La Dame Blanche she’s torn—this could be the adventure she’s dreamed of, but how can she abandon her mother, who has already lost a husband to the war? But when her handlers reveal shocking news, Sam realizes there’s no way she can refuse the exciting and dangerous opportunity.

Her acceptance leads her straight into the heart of enemy territory on a mission to extract the most valuable British spy embedded in Germany, known to the members of LDB only as Velvet. Deep undercover within the court of Kaiser Wilhelm II, Samantha must navigate the labyrinthine palace and its many glamorous—and secretive—residents to complete her assignment. To make matters worse she finds herself forming a forbidden attraction to the enemy-a dangerously handsome German guard. In a place where personal politics are treacherously entangled in wartime policy, can Samantha discover the truth and find Velvet before it’s too late…for them both?

From author Teri Brown comes the thrilling story of one girl’s journey into a deadly world of spycraft and betrayal—with unforgettable consequences.

The Edge of Forever by Melissa E. Hurst

In 2013: Sixteen-year-old Alora is having blackouts. Each time she wakes up in a different place with no idea of how she got there. The one thing she is certain of? Someone is following her.

In 2146: Seventeen-year-old Bridger is one of a small number of people born with the ability to travel to the past. While on a routine school time trip, he sees the last person he expected—his dead father. The strangest part is that, according to the Department of Temporal Affairs, his father was never assigned to be in that time. Bridger’s even more stunned when he learns that his by-the-book father was there to break the most important rule of time travel—to prevent someone’s murder.

And that someone is named Alora.

Determined to discover why his father wanted to help a “ghost,” Bridger illegally shifts to 2013 and, along with Alora, races to solve the mystery surrounding her past and her connection to his father before the DTA finds him. If he can stop Alora’s death without altering the timeline, maybe he can save his father too.

Our Lady of the Ice by Cassandra Clarke

  
Hope City, Antarctica. The southernmost city in the world, with only a glass dome and a faltering infrastructure to protect its citizens from the freezing, ceaseless winds of the Antarctic wilderness. Within this bell jar four people–some human, some not–will shape the future of the city forever:

Eliana Gomez, a female PI looking for a way to the mainland.

Diego Amitrano, the right-hand man to the gangster who controls the city’s food come winter.

Marianella Luna, an aristocrat with a dangerous secret.

Sofia, an android who has begun to evolve.

But the city is evolving too, and in the heart of the perilous Antarctic winter, factions will clash, dreams will shatter, and that frozen metropolis just might boil over…

This Monstrus Thing by Mackenzi Lee

In 1818 Geneva, men built with clockwork parts live hidden away from society, cared for only by illegal mechanics called Shadow Boys. Two years ago, Shadow Boy Alasdair Finch’s life shattered to bits.

His brother, Oliver—dead.

His sweetheart, Mary—gone.

His chance to break free of Geneva—lost.

Heart-broken and desperate, Alasdair does the unthinkable: He brings Oliver back from the dead.

But putting back together a broken life is more difficult than mending bones and adding clockwork pieces. Oliver returns more monster than man, and Alasdair’s horror further damages the already troubled relationship.

Then comes the publication of Frankenstein and the city intensifies its search for Shadow Boys, aiming to discover the real life doctor and his monster. Alasdair finds refuge with his idol, the brilliant Dr. Geisler, who may offer him a way to escape the dangerous present and his guilt-ridden past, but at a horrible price only Oliver can pay…

Review: Liars Inc. by Paula Stokes

Title:  Liars Inc.

Author: Paula Stokes

Publisher: HarperTeen

Publishing Date: March 24th 2015

Pages: 368

Genre: YA Mystery Thriller

Series: Stand Alone

Source:  ARC

  

Max Cantrell has never been a big fan of the truth, so when the opportunity arises to sell forged permission slips and cover stories to his classmates, it sounds like a good way to make a little money and liven up a boring senior year. With the help of his friends Preston and Parvati, Max starts Liars, Inc. Suddenly everybody needs something and the cash starts pouring in. Who knew lying could be so lucrative?

When Preston wants his own cover story to go visit a girl he met online, Max doesn’t think twice about hooking him up. Until Preston never comes home. Then the evidence starts to pile up—terrifying clues that lead the cops to Preston’s body. Terrifying clues that point to Max as the murderer.

Can Max find the real killer before he goes to prison for a crime he didn’t commit? In a story that Kirkus Reviews called "Captivating to the very end," Paula Stokes starts with one single white lie and weaves a twisted tale that will have readers guessing until the explosive final chapters.

I wasn't real sure how badly I wanted to read this book. It sounded interesting but for some reason something worried me about this book. Not sure if I found that worry in the title, the cover, or the synopsis. It was just there hovering. Well I decided to read it and I didn't need to worry. It was great. I loved it. The mystery, the suspense, the characters, the writing, the pacing. All up to par and more for what I look for in a thriller.

Max Contrell has a pretty decent life. A best friend that is way cool, a hot hot girlfriend that can't keep her hands off of him, a family that loves him, and he is graduating soon. Good stuff. At school one day the three amigos, Max, his girlfriend Parvarti, and his best friend Preston decide to embark on a economical adventure and create Liars Inc. Liars Inc give others in school answers to a test, an alibi, a school absent excuse and really anything else that needs a cover up or a lie.  All goes well until Preston asks Max  for the use of Liars Inc. He needs an alibi while he goes to Vegas to meet a girl. Sure no problem. Well Preston ends up missing then dead and Max is the prime suspect. Well crap. Max  and Parvari set out on a mission to find out the truth behind it all and of course find out way more than they expected and find themselves in a load of extreme trouble. 

I really enjoyed this book. I will say more than I thought I would. Again, not sure why I had my doubts but I did. Its hard to do a thriller, a mystery right. Its my favorite genre and this book hit it almost perfect for me. There were a few snags, mainly the ending. It just felt rushed but many times thrillers do for me. I didn't like all the characters too much either. Well mainly just one. I will get to that. 

The book did have great pacing and it kept my interest all the way through. I really couldn't  put the book down. I was looking for ways to sneak in a couple more pages anywhere I could.
I did enjoy the story line too, It was a good one. The mystery was pretty awesome. I figured out part way early one but then the book made me think I was wrong so I gave up on my theory and then I was right... but the biggest part, I never guessed. I was totally surprised in the end.

I liked Max. I connected to him quite easily and I liked his character. He seemed honest, thought and spoke and acted as I feel a teenage boy would,..I really don't have much experience in that department but it felt authentic for me. I believed his character. I rooted for him, I felt for him, I liked him and he never seemed to disappoint me. He was dumb at times but in a realistic way. 

Parvarti was okay. I had a harder time liking or connecting to her. She seemed unauthentic. I wanted to like her a bunch because Max did but something about her threw me off. I didn't always trust or believe her character. She didn't annoy me and she adds so much to the story I just didn't feel her character. 

Some secondary characters I would love to bring to light, Max parents and the cops. They were a great part of the story. Max entire family was pretty awesome. They were supportive and never questioned Max's innocence. 

I also really liked the cops. I am not sure why they just brought something extra and authentic to the story. They weren't dumb cops or full of it cops, but they were entertaining and memorable. They fit in real well even though they were very minor.

Like I mentioned the ending was a bit rushed but I find that many times in these type of books. Once the who why and how is out there, not much left except some kicking butt and escaping. Everything that led up to the ending was spot on and I really really really enjoyed it.. Highly recommend for those that like a great mystery thriller.

So happy I read this book, I think it was pretty dang rockin!

When she's not working (rare), she's kayaking, hiking, reading, or seeking out new adventures in faraway lands. She's petted tigers, snuggled snakes, snorkeled with stingrays, and once enjoyed the suction-cuppy feel of a baby elephant's trunk as it ate peanuts from her palm. Her future goals include diving with Great White sharks, learning Krav Maga, and writing a whole slew of novels, not necessarily in that order.  Paula Stokes is half writer, half RN, and totally thrilled to be part of the world of YA literature. She started out writing historical fiction under a pen name and is now branching out into other YA genres.