Tanja's Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Words/Topics That Instantly Make Me Pick Up A Book

Hello. It's another Tuesday and that basically means another Top Ten Tuesday. It's a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish where every week we pick top ten picks for a certain topic. Today the topic is Top Ten Words/Topics that make me pick up a book. It'll be hard but I'll try.

1. Any fantasy world. Yeah I'm so good at this. But really fantasy will always be part of me. I really don't have set criteria for them. (especially the ones with dragons!)

2. Some topics that are unique to me - mostly paranormal or fantasy. For example I have never read a book by mermaids (A Little Mermaid doesn't count) so I can't wait to read one of them.

3. Books that deal with hard topics and heart-breaking stories. Ah it's always good to feel something strong.

4. Next book in series. (I'm quite sure that I'm cheating here) but really I mostly read sequels as everything has one these days.

5. Books set into Neverland but not retellings. Yes I love Neverland as it reminds me of my childhood and I'm always looking for a new one but not Peter Pan retellings as I'm not into retellings.

6. Dystopian books of any sorts. It was paranormal and contemporary once upon a time but now it's dystopia as it still has some new things to offer, hopefully.

7. Books about angels. I'll never learn from my mistakes it seems. Something within me is stronger.

8. Books with swoon-worthy guys. You can never have enough of these, right?

9. Sweet and lovely love stories without love-triangles for summer. I'm starting to collect books for this summer.

10. Books with kick-but female characters. Go girls!

As always I'd love to see your picks so link them up.

Until the next time,

The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa

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Author's
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Book summary: 

Allison Sekemoto has vowed to rescue her creator, Kanin, who is being held hostage and tortured by the psychotic vampire Sarren. The call of blood leads her back to the beginning—New Covington and the Fringe, and a vampire prince who wants her dead yet may become her wary ally.

Even as Allie faces shocking revelations and heartbreak like she’s never known, a new strain of the Red Lung virus that decimated humanity is rising to threaten human and vampire alike.

   After I've heard that Julie Kagawa was writing a dystopian series I was so in. I really liked The Iron Fey series and so I got The Immortal Rules for the review. I was thrilled. I had some issues with it though. Starting with pacing. I wanted to press forward few times in the book cause it was too slow. But at the end I liked the idea of the book so I couldn't wait to get this one too.

    Herlequin being as awesome as always gave me the arc of this book. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed this book. Everything that I didn't like in the first book was great here. Starting with pacing. I had problem with it in The Immortal Rules but here it was just right. This book has around 400 pages and I think I've read it in one sitting. It was so captivating. Then with Allie. I liked her in the first book too but she became a really dear to me here. Also I've got to see Kanin more. His character in the first book was so mysterious and bad-ass and here I could meet him better. Honestly I'm one of rare persons who is not a big fan of Zeke but who asks me. Anyhow this book was much better than the first for me.

   Allie is a girl living in the new world After the Red Lung human population almost disappeared. It was a time for vampires to rise and rule. They needed food so they had to keep humans safe or what's left of them whatsoever. Allie has been turned into a vampire by Kanin but she still had a feelings for human life and in the first book she decided to help Zeke and his little tribe. After that she vowed to do another thing - help Kanin.  She could feel he was in danger and it was time to complete the task in this sequel. In the process she meets some other members of her family and realized that the connections between vampires is not so week. 

   Like I said this series is becoming better and better for me therefore I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

Rating: 5 stars.

Until the next time,

***NOTE: I received a copy of this book via NetGalley from Herlequin. Thank you.
I'm not paid for writing this review - I do it as a lover of written word. 

Showcase Sunday (#1)

I keep telling how I must do these post but really I never have time to prepare the post. Basically this is a meme created by Book, Biscuits & Tea. So this is some of the things I've gotten in past month or so.

Bought...

My two babies Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare and Apollyon by Jennifer Armentrout.

For review... 

The Year of the Great Seventh by Teresa Orts. I can't wait to read it and I'm preparing an interview with the author too. Thank you Teresa!

These are from Netgalley or book tour books, then from other bloggers or authors for review and some I've won. Thank you all. I've read most of them but I'm way behind with my reviews. I'll have to do that asap.

From the library..

 

Well these are basically the reason why I'm always behind with everything. They're for my lit classes. Besides these I have got The Sound and The Fury and Tess of the d'Urbervilles too.

I've got some ebooks too but honestly I lost track of them. I just know that I have few series that I can't wait to finish but I can't find time to do so.

Anyhow I'd love to see your books for this week. Link them up in comments.

Until the next time,

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

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Author's 

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Book summary

Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy. 

Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?

Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.

A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.

This will be short as there is nothing much left to say...

Sometimes a review for some book is unnecessary. This is one of them. There is nothing to say or do that'll describe my feeling for this book. It filled me with love, with anger, with tears and then it destroyed my heart. I can't remember when was the last time I cried so much as I did while reading the epilogue. It'll pass a lot of time until it happens again. It's been years since I've started this series and today and that was one of the most wonderful journeys in my life.

It has been the privilege and the honor of my life to know you. Tessa, Will and Jem.

Forever and ever, my friends, hail and farewell.

Until the next time, 

Boundless by Cynthia Hand

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Author's

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Book summary:

The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California - and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfill her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must decide her fate once and for all.

        Writing a review for the last book in series is quite difficult. It means telling goodbye to the characters whose stories you've read and whose feeling you've felt. Sometimes you've waited for a year or more to read the next book in that series. It becomes even more difficult when it's a story that took your breath away multiple times and broke your heart as well. When you cried and laughed and fell in love with the characters. Well one of these was Unearthly series to me.

        Now two years after I've meet Clara, Tucker and Christian that day has come. And it's hard. I can't tell you more about the story itself here as it wouldn't be possible without spoiling many things to those who haven't read the first books in the series. Instead I should say more about my relationship with this story.

       Many times I've said that angels are something special to me. Some things in life you cannot explain and my fascination for angles is one of them. I don't know where it came from but I know that I'm happy it did. So two years ago when I started reading this story the things clicked between us. I was blow away with the story and creatures. From the first Clara's purpose up to meeting Christian and Tucker. Then last year it was time for Hallowed. Tucker was mu favorite boy and one of my book boyfriends ever since, but in that book the world shattered. Radiant - a short story - was there to get me through the waiting. There I've meet Angela. It was nice for a change to meet her better and needless to say it nicely connected the stories. So if you plan on reading this book you might first read that short story. Finally on my birthday this year this book came out. Some people are afraid of reading the second book in trilogy and I'm not. I still have some hopes left if the second book disappoints, but if third one disappoints there is no coming back. So I was afraid of reading this.

        Then again I didn't have to be. Cynthia was careful enough to please us - the fans of her books. I was surprised that even though Tucker and Christian were there, but not as much I'd want to - especially the first one,  I was still enjoying this story so much. I saw the whole story and discovered some things that made this story whole. I have no idea what Cynthia is up next but I'm pretty much sure I'll read it, whatever it is.

Rating: 5 stars.

Until the next time,

Book Blast: Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris

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Book summary:

Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?

About the author

Elizabeth Norris briefly taught high school English and history before trading the southern California beaches and sunshine for Manhattan's recent snowpocalyptic winter.

She harbors dangerous addictions to guacamole, red velvet cupcakes, sushi, and Argo Tea, fortunately not all together.

Author's 

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Giveaway 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Until the next time,

Waiting On Wednesday (#41)

You know the story. This is a meme created by Breaking the Spine and every week we pick books we're waiting for. Here are our picks for this week.

Glass' pick

For Cricket Thompson, a summer like this one will change everything. A summer spent on Nantucket with her best friend, Jules Clayton, and the indomitable Clayton family. A summer when she’ll make the almost unattainable Jay Logan hers. A summer to surpass all dreams.

Some of this turns out to be true. Some of it doesn’t.

When Jules and her family suffer a devastating tragedy that forces the girls apart, Jules becomes a stranger whom Cricket wonders whether she ever really knew. And instead of lying on the beach working on her caramel-colored tan, Cricket is making beds and cleaning bathrooms to support herself in paradise for the summer.

But it’s the things Cricket hadn’t counted on--most of all, falling hard for someone who should be completely off-limits--that turn her dreams into an exhilarating, bittersweet reality.

A beautiful future is within her grasp, and Cricket must find the grace to embrace it. If she does, her life could be the perfect shade of Nantucket blue.

Expected publication: May 7th, 2013

Tanja's pick

THERE ARE SOME THINGS YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND ...

A broken-down camper hidden deep in a national forest is the only home fifteen-year-old Carey can remember. The trees keep guard over her threadbare existence, with the one bright spot being Carey's younger sister, Jenessa, who depends on Carey for her very survival. All they have is each other, as their mentally ill mother comes and goes with greater frequency. Until that one fateful day their mother disappears for good, and the girls are found by their father, a stranger, and taken to re-enter the "normal" life of school, clothes and boys.

Now, Carey must come to terms with the truth of why their mother spirited them away ten years ago, while haunted by a past that won't let her go ... a dark past that hides many a secret, including the reason Jenessa hasn't spoken a word in over a year. Carey knows she must keep her sister close, and her secrets even closer, or risk watching her new life come crashing down.

Expected publication: May 2nd, 2013

We'd love to see your picks so feel free to link them up.

Until the next time,

Tanja's Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Books I Thought I'd Like MORE/LESS Than I Did

Hey. It's time for another Top Ten Tuesday. As you probably know it's a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and our task for this week is to pick top ten books that we though we'd like more or less !

5 books I though I'd like more..

 

5 books that I though I'd like less..

I'd love to see your picks too so feel free to link them up in comments.

Until the next time,

Trapped by Michael Northrop

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Author's

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Book summary:

The day the blizzard started, no one knew that it was going to keep snowing for a week. That for those in its path, it would become not just a matter of keeping warm, but of staying alive. . . .

Scotty and his friends Pete and Jason are among the last seven kids at their high school waiting to get picked up that day, and they soon realize that no one is coming for them. Still, it doesn't seem so bad to spend the night at school, especially when distractingly hot Krista and Julie are sleeping just down the hall. But then the power goes out, then the heat. The pipes freeze, and the roof shudders. As the days add up, the snow piles higher, and the empty halls grow colder and darker, the mounting pressure forces a devastating decision. . . .

      Before I say anything about the book I need to say that firstly I want to thank the author for singing this book. I was a really nice thing to do, as we all love signed books. Secondly I want to thank this book for saving me. Trust me I'd die of boredom if I didn't bring this book with me on my four-hour class.

     We'll go back to that but first something about the book. Winter is officially over. I say officially cause a week ago I've seen the sun for the first time after I believe months. Now it's gone again and cold is still here. But in the book we've in stuck in blizzard. It's been snowing for days and it's been snowing badly. Our main characters are still in school unable to get out. If you want to ask why didn't they go before everything became hellish. Well...let's say that they're young and honestly no one believe that this would happen. Scotty is the boy that tells us the story. He and his two best friends are among the last seven kids at their high school. They have been waiting for their parents to pick them up but as time passes the chances for that are getting low. Without an adult and on their own in huge high school they must find a way to survive until snow stops. Soon enough this turned into a story about surviving in insane conditions.

      Now back to the class. I really but really like most of my classes but this woman doesn't know when to stop. She talked and talked about the theory of cultural studies. Regardless I was safe cause I had this book with me so I enjoyed the story and was really focused on it. I couldn't wait to read what happens next so that time passed really quickly.

     Back to the book again. One thing that I really love about this book is the design. Every chapter was decorated with snow and that really fit the story. As I read I noticed the connection better and really liked the idea.

Rating: 4 stars.

Until the next time,