Tune in Tuesday (002)

This is "Tune in Tuesday" hosted by Ginger at GReads. I'll feature a song with a music video I absolutely love and think you should listen too!

I've always loved Bruno Mars. He has such a unique voice and style to his music. I recently (and finally) watched "Breaking Dawn Part 1" and after this song played, I had it stuck in my head! I listened to it before but not like I have since the movie. (Which by the way, I LOVED!!!)

So, here is "It Will Rain" by Bruno Mars from the Breaking Dawn Part 1 soundtrack (which I think I may have to get).

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? [004]

Yay, it's Monday! What are you reading is hosted by One Persons Journey through a world of Books. Each week we spotlight the books we are reading, planning on reading or just finished reading.

Recently Finished:
• Die For Me by Amy Plum (finished: 01/29)
- Loved it! (review to come this week) Cannot wait for the next one! The covers in this series are gorgeous! I loved the idea of making zombies less...zombie like! :)
• Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer (finished: 01/25)
- Even though there were about 500 pages of not much going on, I still really liked it and will be reading the next book to see what happens with Alessandro and Rosa.

Currently Reading:
• The Statistical probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith (started: 01/29)
-This book sounded so cute! I featured it in a WoW post and had to buy it as soon as it came out. I'm only about 57 pages in, but I'm sure I'll love it and will probably be done with it tonight or tomorrow! :) Love that it's set over a 24hr period. It's the first book I'm reading for my personal "Contemporary February" challenge!

Up Next:
• Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
- I loved Eli & Naomi's No Kiss List by these two. Excited for this one.
• Saving June by Hannah Harrington
- This doesn't seem like it'll be a light, fun read, but it's got great reviews and I've been wanting to read a more in depth YA contemporary.
• Lola & The Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
- I was one of the very few people who just did not care for Stephanie's first book Anna & The French Kiss, but I liked her writing style, so I hope that this one is better for me!

So, I've gotten a slightly early jump on my Contemporary February Challenge yay! What'd you post this Monday?

Waiting on Wednesday (012)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine.
It's a great way to learn about books you haven't heard of before.

This week, I'm featuring one that comes out in June of this year by Dial Books!

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
Release Date: June 14th, 2012
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers
Pages: 395
Genre: YA Contemporary

"One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time."
The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen year old Samantha wishes she was one of them… until the day Jase Garrett climbs her terrace and changes everything.
Jase can sense that his beautiful neighbor is missing something in her sterile home, and as the two fall fiercely in love, his family makes her one of their own.
But when the bottom drops out of Sam's world, which perfect family will save her–and will her perfect love survive?
Set among the haves and have-nots of a coastal New England town, My LIFE NEXT DOOR captures the angst, the heartache, and the raw-nerve emotions of first time love—and biting loss.

Why I'm excited:
There just aren't enough contemporary books coming out this year, especially from debut authors. At least not ones I'm too excited about. But this one is very intriguing and I can't wait to read it! I may wait a month or so after the release to see the reviews.
I love that cover. And I love that dress she's wearing. If I saw this on a store shelf, I'd definitely be interested enough to pick it up!

What are YOU excited about!?

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? [003]

The only reason I'm posting this one today is because my "Up Next" has changed. Otherwise... everything is exactly the same.
I have no idea why it is taking me so long to read Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer! I am almost done however!

So, UP NEXT is....
Die For Me by Amy Plum!! I'm excited for it! I'll save the others I posted about for Contemporary February!

Look at that beautiful cover! And the cover for book two (Until I Die) is even more gorgeous!

I'm hoping to be finished with Arcadia Awakens by tomorrow, I want to start reading this ASAP!

Waiting on Wednesday (011)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. I try to have books that are coming out in the next few months.


I had a hard time choosing between two books, so I decided on the one with two covers I love. The second cover [with the read mask] is the kindle edition cover. There is a 3rd cover listed, but I'm not a fan of it, personally. This book is a 2012 YA Debut, so add it to your list! :)

Cross My Heart by Sasha Gould
Release Date: March 13th, 2012
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Pages: 272
Genre: YA Historical Fiction

Venice, 1585.
When 16-year-old Laura della Scala learns that her older sister, Beatrice, has drowned, she is given no time to grieve. Instead, Laura's father removes her from the convent where he forcibly sent her years earlier and orders her to marry Beatrice's fiancé, a repulsive old merchant named Vincenzo. Panicked, Laura betrays a powerful man to earn her way into the Segreta, a shadowy society of women who deal in only one currency—secrets. The Segreta seems like the answer to Laura's prayers. The day after she joins their ranks, Vincenzo is publicly humiliated and conveniently exiled. Soon, however, Laura begins to suspect that her sister's death was not a tragic accident but a cold-blooded murder—one that might involve the Segreta and the women she has come to trust.

Why I'm excited:
Contemporary Fiction will always be my favorite genre, but I also like reading about history. So, it stands that I'd love historical fiction. I'd prefer it in more of a contemporary fashion, but I love paranormal as well. This one seems to be in more of a contemporary fashion, meaning no paranormal... but I wouldn't be surprised if it was paranormal with the way that summary is written.
There are a few YA Historical Fiction novels coming out this year that I'm quite excited for but I decided to spotlight this one!

What book are you excited for this week!? Let me know, please! :)

Contemporary February?!

I've [unofficially] declared February as "Contemporary February". I will read only contemporary books, preferably lovey-dovey ones in honor of Valentine's Day. Plus, my birthday is in February, so I get to read whatever the hell I want!

Here is the list of books I have planned for February:

1. Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
2. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith
3. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
4. One Night That Changes Everything by Lauren Barnholdt
5. Charlie All Night by Jennifer Cruise
6. The Sweetest Thing by Jill Shalvis
7. Lola & The Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
8. Saving June by Hannah Harrington

These are the reads that are readily available to me and I'll read in order of what I wish to read at a certain time. A few of them I am more excited for than others.I may read all, a couple or more. :)

Contemporary books are my favorite and I'm more than happy to dedicate an entire month to them. (Darn it all to heck, it has to be the shortest month of the year.)

Code to image:
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Tune in Tuesday (001)

Because my Top 5 Playlist hasn't changed much this week, I decided to do another musical meme this week. This is "Tune in Tuesday" hosted by Ginger at GReads. I'll feature a song with a music video I absolutely love and think you should listen too!

I tried really really hard to not use a Kpop song and MV, but I just love this video. I haven't listened to this band much before, but this song and video have definitely won me over.

This is "전쟁이야 (This is War)" by MBLAQ. I could explain the video and song, but I think it's pretty self explanatory. Except the ending. I know what they're saying & I understand the video.... except the last 2 seconds. (P.S. You should really watch the live performance. LOVE that too!) If you do want me to explain, leave a comment. :)

Teaser Tuesday (003)

Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer

Her name was Iole Dallamano. She spoke softly and slowly. She didn't seem afraid of the scalpel in Rosa's hand.
   She was fifteen but looked younger, in spite of the shadows under her sad eyes. Her black hair was cut short. One of the men who regularly came here had done that, she said. Otherwise they hadn't touched her. Every few months, when her hair was long again, one of them chopped it short. Iole had asked them why they didn't cut her throat right away, but they never answered that question. -- pg. 91 

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? [002]

Yay, it's Monday! What are you reading is hosted by One Persons Journey through a world of Books. Each week we spotlight the books we are reading, planning on reading or just finished reading.

Recently Finished:

• The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

- I absolutely LOVED this book and cannot wait for the next one! That was one hell of an ending. Read my review on this 5 star book here.

Currently Reading:

• Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer

- I haven't been able to sit down and read it yet, but it must be finished by the end of this week. There will be my review on Good Choice Reading closer to it's release date! :)

Up Next:

• The File on Angelyn Stark by Catherine Atkins

- This is the next review book that I will be reading for Good Choice Reading. It seemed pretty interesting and I liked the darker premise it seems to have.

• Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

- I recently bought this book and cannot wait to read it! This will be the next one I read for Camisado Mind. :)

• The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

- (This depends on when I get it from Amazon) I've been excited about this book for awhile. I even did a WoW post about it [here]. There've been really good reviews about this book, but I don't ever pay attention to them. They're never in agreement with me anyways. :-P

Eep. Still thinking of how I want to handle this feature/meme. But I like it. Do you do this meme!?

THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER by Michelle Hodkin [review]

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin


Published: Septemper 27th, 2011 | Simon & Schuster
Age: Young Adult
Pages: 452
Acquired: Bought from BookDepository.com


Overall:

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.
It can.
She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.
There is.
She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.
She's wrong.

Review:
 With the very vague summary, I didn't know what to expect when reading this book. I honestly bought the book for the cover. I chanced it. Before reading, I had to ask someone else who had already read what genre it was. She said "paranormal".... Even throughout the book, it didn't seem very paranormal to me. It just seemed like a girl who was crazy, seeing things. Possible coincidences.... Then, the ending came. Yeah, quite paramoral. The best kind!

Mara moves to Florida after she loses her two best friends and boyfriend in a building collapse. Though she can't remember exactly what happened, she still feels terribly guilty and hates being surrounded by their memory. Florida seems like a good idea at first, and then not so much... And then she meets Noah.

Ah, Noah! I loved that bloke (he's British). At first, I honestly did not see much of a connection between the two and though I didn't see it, I wanted him to stay in the book! So glad he did.

I was genuinely surprised by how this book made me feel the emotions I was supposed to feel. When Mara was anxious, I felt her anxiety. When she was scared, I was scared along with her. When she felt like she was going insane, I thought she was going insane.
One of the best parts about this book was that I was as clueless and left in the dark as Mara was. This is a prime example why 1st person POVs are my favorite to read!

I sometimes read the last sentence or two in a book before I actually begin it. Boy am I glad I didn't this time. That ending held it all. And it was so aggravating and shocking. I actually stared at the page for a few minutes after finishing wondering how the hell could it end like that!? The next book could come out tomorrow and it would not be soon enough! I will be pre-ordering it as soon as it's available.

Mara's relationship with her brothers and the way she handles her friends is actually actually heartwarming. And the comedy in this book is dark, but hilarious. Little things, but I laughed so hard. In the next minute I was anxious and excited to see what would happen next.

READ IT! Buy it. Hardback worthy. (I mean, GAWD that unbelievably gorgeous cover!)

Plot:
Characters:
Ending: 1/2 (Just for that ending.... I'm still just... ugh!)
Writing:
Cover: (yeah, that's six stars)



______________________________________________________

Author Info:
Michelle Hodkin grew up in South Florida, went to college in New York, and attended law school in Michigan. When she isn't writing, she can usually be found prying strange objects from the jaws of one of her three pets. The Unbecoming of Dara Myer is her first novel.

Check out Michelle on: website | twitter | blogger | goodreads

Waiting on Wednesday (010)

I was looking through my past posts & saw that all but 2 are ones I don't much care about. So, from now on, they'll be about books I'm super amped about.

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. I try to have books that are coming out in the next few months.

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson.
Release date: May 8th, 2012
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 224 pages (not nearly enough)

Taylor's family might not be the closest-knit – everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled – but for the most part, they get along fine. Then Taylor's dad gets devastating news that changes everything. Her parents decide that the family will spend the summer together at their old vacation home in the Pocono Mountains.
Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven’t actually gone anywhere. Her former summer best friend is still around, as is her first boyfriend. . . and he's much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve.
As the summer progresses, the Edwards become more of a family, and closer than they’ve ever been before. But all of them are very aware that they’re battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance – with family, with friends, and with love.

Why I'm excited:

I loved Morgan Matson's debut novel Amy and Roger's Epic Detour, it was one of my favorite books of 2010. I've added it to my "To-Buy" list and will get it soon.

I will be pre-ordering Second Chance Summer in April, just so I can get it as soon as possible. I love contemporary books the most, and it's been awhile since I've been excited about the release of an upcoming contemporary novel.

If you'd had the luck of reading this book already, 1. YOU'RE TOO LUCKY! 2. How was it? NO DETAILS, PLEASE!!

What book are you excited for that's coming up?! Let me know, please! :)