Saturday, January 31, 2015

Stacking the Shelves #93


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:


Ink and Ashes
Ink and Ashes by Valynne E. Maetani

         


Claire Takata has never known much about her father, who passed away when she was a little girl. But on the anniversary of his death, not long before her seventeenth birthday, she finds a mysterious letter from her deceased father, addressed to her stepfather. Claire never even knew that they had met.

Claire knows she should let it go, but she can’t shake the feeling that something’s been kept from her. In search of answers, Claire combs through anything that will give her information about her father . . . until she discovers he was a member of the yakuza, the Japanese mafia. The discovery opens a door that should have been left closed.

So begins the race to outrun his legacy as the secrets of her father’s past threaten Claire’s friends and family, newfound love, and ultimately her life. Ink and Ashes, winner of Tu Books’ New Visions Award, is a heart-stopping debut mystery that will keep readers on the edge of their seats until the very last page.






Sisters of Blood and SpiritSisters of Blood and Spirit by Kady Cross

         


Wren Noble is dead—she was born that way. Vibrant, unlike other dead things, she craves those rare moments when her twin sister allows her to step inside her body and experience the world of the living.

Lark Noble is alive but often feels she belongs in the muted Shadow Lands—the realm of the dead. Known as the crazy girl who talks to her dead sister, she doesn't exactly fit in with the living, though a recent suicide attempt and time in a psych ward have proved to her she's not ready to join her sister in the afterlife.

Now the guy who saved Lark's life needs her to repay the favor. He and his friends have been marked for death by the malevolent spirit of a vicious and long-dead serial killer, and the twins—who should know better than to mess with the dead—may be their only hope of staying alive.

SweetModel Misfit (Geek Girl, #2)



Audio:


Geek Girl (Geek Girl, #1)Backward CompatibleAll Fall Down (Embassy Row, #1)To All the Boys I've Loved Before (To All the Boys I've Loved Before, #1)Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles, #0.5)A Cold Legacy (The Madman's Daughter, #3)The Geography of You and Me



Bought: 

Zodiac (Zodiac, #1)CreedVivian Apple at the End of the World (Vivian Apple, #1)

Friday, January 30, 2015

Wee Reads #4




Introducing Wee Reads!!

I love to read to my Grandson.  He will bring us a book, crawl into our laps, and ask us to read. He also reads himself well... we think that is what he does. He loves books and he has some he loves, some he is so-so about, and some he really doesn't seem to care for. So my new feature will feature the toddler board books that he loves and as he grows so will the books we read to him. 



What Finn Reads....



How Do Dinosaurs Count to Ten?
How Do Dinosaurs Count to Ten? by Jane Yolen and Mark Teague

 


The bestselling, award-winning team of Yolen and Teague present their beloved dinosaurs in a new format with this fun, read-aloud board book that teaches young children to count from one to ten!

Come along for some BIG fun as your favorite dinosaurs delight young readers with their playful antics. How do dinosaurs count to ten? Over and over and over again!
This brand new board book format brings the gigantic humor of bestselling, award-winning team Jane Yolen and Mark Teague to the youngest readers, helping them learn to count from one to ten with a simple, rhyming text and laugh-out-loud illustrations! A perfect companion book to the other HOW DO DINOSAURS tales, and a great baby gift as well.


What Finn Thinks....


 Finn has life theme and its Dinosaurs. He loves them and he loves anything to do with dinosaurs. This book is totally cute. Not only does it teach how to count but each page has a different dinosaur and the dinosaur name. So totally cool, even I get to learn my dinosaurs. Just a warning.... The last page says how do dinosaurs count to ten....again. And Finn always tells me again... so this book gets read over and over and over. 


Here are some How Do Dinosaur books. I have not tried them yet but I am sure Finn will love these too. And there is even more than this!

How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night?How Do Dinosaurs Learn Their Colors?How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Rooms?How Do Dinosaurs Learn to Read?How Do Dinosaurs Play with Their Friends?

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Thoughts on Thursday #1


So I am reading a book right now and I am so loving the story but the main character is driving me insane. She doesn't think before she acts and she ends up getting herself and others in so much trouble... and she is the heroine? I know she is trying to help and doing what she thinks will help... But come on let's think about what you are doing.....


Throughout this wonderful story I find myself doing a lot of this....


And I really wish I could smack her upside the head.




It just seems endless. I get that I read YA and teenagers can make some pretty bad decision out of emotion or make decisions on a whim. Sometimes though, its too much, it takes away from the character and in tun the story. 



I wonder  does the author realize how infuriating this character is when writing the story? Was it on purpose? 




What are your thoughts? Does this bother you? If the story is good does it matter how stupid the heroine seems to be even if her heart is in the right place? 



Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Delightful Discoveries #89



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






Never NeverNever Never by Brianna R. Shrum

  

James Hook is a child who only wants to grow up.

When he meets Peter Pan, a boy who loves to pretend and is intent on never becoming a man, James decides he could try being a child—at least briefly. James joins Peter Pan on a holiday to Neverland, a place of adventure created by children’s dreams, but Neverland is not for the faint of heart. Soon James finds himself longing for home, determined that he is destined to be a man. But Peter refuses to take him back, leaving James trapped in a world just beyond the one he loves. A world where children are to never grow up.

But grow up he does.

And thus begins the epic adventure of a Lost Boy and a Pirate.

This story isn’t about Peter Pan; it’s about the boy whose life he stole. It’s about a man in a world that hates men. It’s about the feared Captain James Hook and his passionate quest to kill the Pan, an impossible feat in a magical land where everyone loves Peter Pan.

Except one.





Hotel Ruby
Hotel Ruby by Suzanne Young 



Stay Tonight. Stay Forever.

When Audrey Casella arrives for an unplanned stay at the grand Hotel Ruby, she’s grateful for the detour. Just months after their mother’s death, Audrey and her brother, Daniel, are on their way to live with their grandmother, dumped on the doorstep of a DNA-matched stranger because their father is drowning in his grief.

Audrey and her family only plan to stay the night, but life in the Ruby can be intoxicating, extending their stay as it provides endless distractions—including handsome guest Elias Lange, who sends Audrey’s pulse racing. However, the hotel proves to be as strange as it is beautiful. Nightly fancy affairs in the ballroom are invitation only, and Audrey seems to be the one guest who doesn't have an invite. Instead, she joins the hotel staff on the rooftop, catching whispers about the hotel’s dark past.

The more Audrey learns about the new people she's met, the more her curiosity grows. She’s torn in different directions—the pull of her past with its overwhelming loss, the promise of a future that holds little joy, and an in-between life in a place that is so much more than it seems…

Welcome to the Ruby.






School for Sidekicks
School for Sidekicks by Kelly McCullough





Being a hero isn't always what it's cracked up to be in this funny and genuine novel from adult fantasy author Kelly McCullough.

Evan Quick is a GIANT superhero geek who dreams of one day becoming a superhero himself. Every morning he checks to see if he's developed his powers overnight, and every day there's nothing. No flying, no super strength, no invulnerability—that always hurts to check—no telepathy, no magic. Not even the ability to turn off the alarm clock without smacking the switch.

But then Evan somehow manages to survive a supervillian's death ray, and is sent to the Academy for Metahuman Operatives. Unfortunately, his new school is not what he expected, and instead of fighting bad guys, Evan finds himself blacklisted, and on the wrong side of the school's director. If Evan ever wants to realize his dream, he must convince his "mentor" Foxman, a semi-retired has-been, to become a real hero once again.


Spelled

Spell by Betsy Schow



  
Fairy Tale Survival Rule #32: If you find yourself at the mercy of a wicked witch, sing a romantic ballad and wait for your Prince Charming to save the day.

Yeah, no thanks. Dorthea is completely princed out. Sure being the crown princess of Emerald has its perks—like Glenda Original ball gowns and Hans Christian Louboutin heels. But a forced marriage to the brooding prince Kato is so not what Dorthea had in mind for her enchanted future.

Talk about unhappily ever after.

Trying to fix her prince problem by wishing on a (cursed) star royally backfires, leaving the kingdom in chaos and her parents stuck in some place called "Kansas." Now it's up to Dorthea and her pixed off prince to find the mysterious Wizard of Oz and undo the curse...before it releases the wickedest witch of all and spells The End for the world of Story.






Ash: A Destined Novel
Ash by Shani Petroff and Darci Manely





Destiny is pre-determined. It is strictly monitored. It is unchangeable.
Or is it?

Madden’s life is a whirlwind of privilege and perks. Born into the elite Purple ring, she is fated to be a Minister of the Seven. Although her position comes with the burden of great responsibility, she’s nothing if not confident in her future. After all, Destiny Specialists have determined how she will fulfill her life's purpose, and they are never wrong.

Her classmate Dax, an Ash, is clinging to the opposite end of the spectrum. While everyone around her knows what destiny awaits them, Dax’s fate is…missing. Isolated and ignored, she refuses to let her lack of status define her.

After a stunning twist of fate, Dax and Madden’s paths intertwine in ways neither could have possibly imagined. The two are forced to question their own past, present and future as they realize who they are is not necessarily who they were meant to be.

ASH, the first book in the Destined series, is an unforgettable journey into an alternate future which will leave readers wondering just how much we can control our own fate.

Destiny is calling. Will you fight for yours?