Wishlist Wednesday: Lies Beneath

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown
Killer Mermaids!, pages unknown
Expected publication: June 12th 2012 by Delacorte Press

Calder White lives in the cold, clear waters of Lake Superior, the only brother in a family of murderous mermaids. To survive, Calder and his sisters prey on humans, killing them to absorb their energy. But this summer the underwater clan targets Jason Hancock out of pure revenge. They blame Hancock for their mother's death and have been waiting a long time for him to return to his family's homestead on the lake. Hancock has a fear of water, so to lure him in, Calder sets out to seduce Hancock's daughter, Lily. Easy enough—especially as Calder has lots of practice using his irresistible good looks and charm on unsuspecting girls. Only this time Calder screws everything up: he falls for Lily—just as Lily starts to suspect that there's more to the monsters-in-the-lake legends than she ever imagined. And just as his sisters are losing patience with him.(less)

If you don't know, I'm a Michigander.  So a book about A GROUP OF ASSASSIN MERMAIDS LIVING IN LAKE SUPERIOR kinda has me all sorts of geeked out.  And it's a 2012 debut (apocalypsies, woot!).  So I cannot wait to get my hands on this one, and I just hope it is nice and twisted-weird, and not run-of-the-mill YA PNR blahdeeblah.
Fingers crossed.

What are you wishing and hoping and squeeing for this week?

TBR Tuesday: Infinity

Most of us have books we've bought with all intentions of reading (or maybe just because it was cheap!), only to have them fade away on a shelf or disappear into a stack of books, never to be seen or thought of again.
TBR Tuesday is a way to talk about the books we own but haven't read, see what other people think about them, and help us decide whether to bump it up our list or knock it off completely.
[If you're more a book borrower than a book buyer, you're still welcome to participate with the books that you've been meaning to read and haven't!]

On my TBR

Infinity by Rachel Ward
Science Fiction/Dystopia, 249 pages
Published June 6th 2011 by Chicken House

The mind-blowing conclusion to the chilling NUMBERS trilogy: Because everyone wants to live forever.

No matter what it takes, Sarah's desperate to escape from the numbers.

Always numbers. Sarah loves Adam, but can't bear the thought that every time he looks in her eyes, he can see her dying; can see her last day.

It's 2029. Two years since the Chaos. Sarah and Adam are struggling to survive. She knows he always envisioned them together "'til death do us part." But will a child come between them? The child she loves. The child he saved.

Little Mia was supposed to die that New Year's Day. The numbers don't lie. But somehow she changed her date. Mia's just a baby, oblivious to her special power. But ruthless people are hunting her down, determined to steal her secret.

Because everyone wants to live forever.

Earlier this year I read and reviewed the first two books in the Numbers trilogy, Numbers and The Chaos.  Since this is a UK-published series, our US versions come out much later here than they do there, so my Brit Buddy Bill* sent me a UK copy of the series wrap-up, Infinity...which I had all intentions of reading until I suddenly found myself swamped by, well, everything.
Anywhoodle, I definitely want to read it sooner than later, but for now, it's hanging out in the dreaded TBR.


Sidenote: This is the copy I had planned on getting, since it matches the rest of my US hardcovers.  But this version doesn't come out until May, so I am more than happy to stick with my gifted UK paperback! 

*Thing for alliteration, who, me? ;P

So what's on your TBR this week?

The Poison Diaries: Nightshade by Maryrose Wood

The Poison Diaries: Nightshade by Maryrose Wood
Historical Fantasy, 279 pages
September 1st 2011 by HarperCollins Children's Books

Sixteen-year-old Jessamine Luxton is heartbroken. Her true love, Weed, the strange and intriguing young man who came into her life so suddenly, has disappeared.

Jessamine suspects that her own father, Thomas, may have been involved. Thomas was obsessed with poisons and discovering Weed's secret understanding of dangerous plants. This suspicion and her own growing expertise with poisons have changed her. She is no longer innocent. So when Jessamine learns that Weed is alive and in danger, she will do whatever it takes to be reunited with him, including killing whoever gets in her way.

Just to warn you: there really is no way to write a review of a 2nd book in a series without revealing some secrets from the first book.  This is especially true where this series is concerned, so this review will contain spoilers for book one!


I mentioned in my review of The Poison Diaries that I liked it better after having read Nightshade.  It brought some things together for me, but mostly I think it was because the ending to TPD takes such a strange turn that I think your mind needs time to adjust, and there just wasn't time before the book ended.  I mean, yes, you've been somewhat prepared for talking plants from Weed's revelations, but then to actually have plants talking - and plotting murder and world domination - is just a little strange. It takes a big adjustment.  A lot of willing suspension of disbelief.  But by book 2, it almost seems natural.  Partly, I think this is because not just poisonous plants are doing the talking.  You start to get a feel for the different "personalities" of the plants, and they become more like characters.  But I think it's also because of the way it's narrated - more in Weed's voice, and where Jessamine is concerned, she's no longer fevered, so it reads less...manic, I guess.  Whatever the reason, it works now, and makes the ending of TPD go down a little better.

Where it seemed to touch on magical realism in book one, I think it takes a pretty firm turn into magical realism in Nightshade.  It also goes really, really dark.  Wood explores some pretty deep, scary waters for a YA book, which, coupled with the magical realist feel, is really interesting.  When you think "dark" in YA, you tend to think emotional contemporary blahblah.  This is a completely different kind of dark, a story of control and manipulation and completely losing oneself to it.  It's very Gothic feeling, and I kept thinking as I was reading that it would make such a good, strange little movie.  (You know, if you could figure out a way to make Oleander scary and not just silly onscreen.)   It's told in that delicious car-crash-in-slow-mo way that just grips you and makes you certain that it's going to be a first-rate tragedy.  [I mean Tragedy-capital-T; you know, the cosmic irony, world is against us, every step I take in what I think is the right direction makes everything worse...that type of thing.]

Part of what makes this work so well is the split narration between Jessamine, who is slowly losing herself with the help of Oleander, and Weed, who is coming into his own.  I wasn't a big fan of the split narration in book one, but here it really works.  There is good balance to their story arcs, and getting to see every false step from two angles, seeing it all plotted out by Oleander, and how successful he is at pulling the strings, really contributes to the Gothic tragedy feeling.   I also just plain liked Weed's voice in this, so I was happy to be in his thoughts and have his world opened up more.  He keeps it all together, but it's Jessamine who steals the show.  I mentioned at the end of my TPD review that book 2 is definitely worth reading because Jessamine is kickass, and I meant that.  She is...dark and dangerous and a complete 180 from the charmingly naive girl she was in the beginning.  And what's more, it's believable.  It's sometimes painful to watch, and you sometimes want to cheer for her and sometimes want to yell at her, and it all just works to push us toward an ending you can't help but fear.

As for the ending itself, I have to say I loved it.  Now, this comes with a caution, because, just as in book one, I think this is the type of ending that may really piss people off.  It is certainly not for fans of the cliff-hanger ending.  But, going back to the movie comparison, the whole thing feels very episodic and it works for me.  The feel of the ending is really haunting and an interesting blend of optimism and pessimism.  It's perfectly in keeping with the darker tone of the book, and I respect it as a result.  And I have to say, without giving anything away, the final image is just... just brilliant.

So if you've read book one and were on the fence about whether to continue the series, I would strongly urge it.  It's really going some interesting places, and I think you'll like the two books almost as a set.  If you haven't read book one, but ignored my spoilers warning and read this review, and now have your interest piqued (talking plants?  Oleander?  Tragedy?), I would strongly recommend picking up both books at the same time, so that you can head straight into Nightshade after finishing TPD.  Don't worry, they're both quick reads...

Friday Face Off: Hourglass v. Timepiece

The cover for Myra McEntire's Timepiece, the second in the Hourglass books, was released recently, and I thought it made for good Face-Off material.  I loved the sort of quiet, eerie hauntedness of Hourglass - the uncomfortable oddness and disconnect with reality.  It really drew me in, and was a favorite cover of this year.  Timepiece takes a similar approach but tries to amp it up a bit, and I'm curious what all of you think of it.   To me, it looks a little Peter Pan, and the way the shadows fall, it looks like her hair is disembodied, like she doesn't really have a head under all that... Unsettling, but in a different way from Hourglass...  But what do you think? Was it successful?  Does it draw you in?

Which one did it better?

Last Week on FFO: The reds and grays of Dark Angel faced off against the similar palate of Everneath, with Everneath pulling out a nearly-unanimous win.

Winnah ------>

Winner of Poison Diaries: Nightshade

Well, my poisoned lovelies, we have a winner in the competition for a copy of The Poison Diaries: Nightshade, and it is....

EVIKA P.!!

Congrats! I hope you enjoy your book, Evika!
As for the rest of you, if you pick up this series, you must let me know what you think!

Book Chat: Xmas Wishlist

I decided to forgo a Wishlist Wednesday post this week since the Book Chat for the week is all about wishlist items.  This week we want to know what's on your Christmas (or end of year, if you prefer) wishlist - the books that you most want to get your hands on before 2011 ends.
Feel free to record your own Chat and post it as a video response, or write a blog post and link it at www.thebookrat.com.
Or just let us know in the comments, of course.

NEXT WEEK: Books that surprised you.

Mentioned:
THE BOOKS:
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi: http://amzn.to/sJ1LIf
Liar's Moon by Elizabeth C Bunce: http://amzn.to/tsYV5g
Dearly Departed by Lia Habel: http://amzn.to/tw1DR5
Shattered Souls by Mary Lindsey: http://amzn.to/tAO1mV
Legend by Marie Lu: http://amzn.to/vCTDLY
The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff: http://amzn.to/viHT8j
Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C Wrede: http://amzn.to/rsefTY
Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson: http://amzn.to/spruK8
Please Ignore Vera Dietz by AS King: http://amzn.to/vlIE0A
Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma: http://amzn.to/uvobvJ
By These Ten Bones by Clare B Dunkle: http://amzn.to/vPkna2
Burn Bright by Marianne de Pierres

OTHER:
DustinDisco: http://www.dustindisco.com/
R.A.K. @ Book Soulmates: http://booksoulmates.blogspot.com/

TBR Tuesday: A Need So Beautiful

Most of us have books we've bought with all intentions of reading (or maybe just because it was cheap!), only to have them fade away on a shelf or disappear into a stack of books, never to be seen or thought of again.
TBR Tuesday is a way to talk about the books we own but haven't read, see what other people think about them, and help us decide whether to bump it up our list or knock it off completely.
[If you're more a book borrower than a book buyer, you're still welcome to participate with the books that you've been meaning to read and haven't!]

On my TBR

A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young
Fantasy, 267 pages
June 21st 2011 by Balzer & Bray

We all want to be remembered. Charlotte's destiny is to be Forgotten...

Charlotte’s best friend thinks Charlotte might be psychic. Her boyfriend thinks she’s cheating on him. But Charlotte knows what’s really wrong: She is one of the Forgotten, a kind of angel on earth, who feels the Need—a powerful, uncontrollable draw to help someone, usually a stranger.

But Charlotte never wanted this responsibility. What she wants is to help her best friend, whose life is spiraling out of control. She wants to lie in her boyfriend's arms forever. But as the Need grows stronger, it begins to take a dangerous toll on Charlotte. And who she was, is, and will become--her mark on this earth, her very existence--is in jeopardy of disappearing completely.

Charlotte will be forced to choose: Should she embrace her fate as a Forgotten, a fate that promises to rip her from the lives of those she loves forever? Or is she willing to fight against her destiny--no matter how dark the consequences.

This was a pure cover-appeal impulse buy for me during the Borders liquidation sales.   I had vaguely skimmed some glowing reviews, but it's not like I really remembered a thing any of them said.  Just an overall sense of "read it" and "pretty" made me reach for it.
So yeah, no idea when I'm going to get around to reading this one.  Any of you read it?  Love it, hate it, indifferent?  Should I bump it up the pile, or should I have resisted the pretty?

What's clinging to your TBR pile this week?

The Poison Diaries by Maryrose Wood

The Poison Diaries by Maryrose Wood
Historical Fantasy, 304 pages
April 8th 2011 from HarperCollins

In the right dose, everything is a poison. Even love . . .

Jessamine Luxton has lived all her sixteen years in an isolated cottage near Alnwick Castle, with little company apart from the plants in her garden. Her father, Thomas, a feared and respected apothecary, has taught her much about the incredible powers of plants: that even the most innocent-looking weed can cure — or kill.

When Jessamine begins to fall in love with a mysterious boy who claims to communicate with plants, she is drawn into the dangerous world of the poison garden in a way she never could have imagined . . .

**This review is going to be somewhat informed by the fact that I read the first two books in the series before writing either review, so I know what happens next and how it all fits together.  Because of that, there will be times that I will reference book 2, which I wouldn't generally do, and I am sorry for that, but I promise to try to avoid spoilers.

I have to start by saying that I found The Poison Diaries to be really different from other YA books out there, and for the most part, I mean this in a really good way.  It's rare to have anything these days that actually feels unique or inventive.  The book almost has a magical realist feel to it, which, though a lot of MG and YA books have magic in them, is not a genre often tackled for this age group.  There's a surreal strangeness to the writing and plot that I really enjoyed.

But it's because of this that I think it is going to be one of those off-putting books for a lot of people.  There are times, especially toward the end of the book, where it's just plain weird.   And though I really like that, I know there are plenty of people who won't.  When I was finished, my one-line review called it a "strange little mindfuck of a book" and I know not everyone likes to be mindfucked...

But whether you do or not, I think you should give it a chance. It's a kickass concept, for which we apparently have the Duchess of Northumberland to thank.  She has spent a considerable amount of time and money constructing an epic garden at her castle (uh huh), and this garden includes an ambitious poison garden, which she thought would make a great backdrop to a story and voila! now it is.  And as much as you may want to be irritated and find the whole thing pretentious, the thing is, it really does make a great backdrop to a story.  Alnwick Castle, Hulne Abbey and the Luxton's poison apothecary garden makes for a really rich, compelling setting for Jessamine's life to revolve around.

And speaking of Jessamine, though I think some of the (very few) characters in the book can be static and one-dimensional, I found Jessamine very interesting and likable.  She's sort of charmingly naive, but with a thirst for knowledge and recognition that I thought worked and gave her depth.  And in a weird way, I thought the narrowness of the other characters in her life actually aids in her character development, because they were kind of representative of her limited scope and her very confined world.  They made interesting counterpoints to her narration and her diary.

The diary itself was a little strained as a concept.  It felt forced to me, like "The Poison Diaries" sounds like a great name for a series, so we need to work this in somehow.  But Jessamine's diary was overkill; it wasn't necessary - her father, Thomas, has a true poison diary that comes into play in a huge way in the series, and was more than enough to carry the name and give it purpose.  Very little of the narration actually takes place in Jessamine's diary, and what does could easily be worked into the internal monolgue that makes up the bulk of the book.  I felt like the diary bits could have been cut and made the book smoother as a whole, which was something that it especially needed in the end, when the narration is split.
But maybe I just over-think these things.

The one real drawback for me, though, was the end.  As I said, the narration is split in the end, and is...scattered for a number of reasons.  The very simple prose  of the first 3/4 of the book just sort of unravels and can feel a little chaotic.  This is intentional in part, I think, and I can't get too into why without spoilers. But while it may be interesting  to have the narration match the chaos of the story conceptually, it didn't quite work for me in practice.  The change was too abrupt, and the ending even more so, and the two combined turned me off a bit.  I felt like I was tearing through this really absorbing, weird, fast-paced read and loving it, and then it just started to fall apart, and there weren't enough pages left to put it back together.  It was weird, because it was the kind of ending that I respect and a part of me likes, but that just couldn't inspire the enthusiasm in me that I wanted to feel for this book when I was done.

And this is the part where I reference book 2, because the thing is, I liked it enough that I definitely wanted to keep reading, hoping that book 2 would cast book 1 in a different light and make things work.  And it did.  It did and then some.  But the enjoyment of one book shouldn't be dependent on the next; it always feels like a cheap gimmick to me when this is the case, and it pisses me off a little on principle.  And though I don't think the ending was completely a cheap gimmick (because I think it was partly a pessimistic streak in-keeping with the rest of the book, which I applaud), I still can't help but be a little miffed on principle.  It's just who I am.

And my god, if this isn't the most rambly, convoluted review.  Maybe it's symptomatic of the poisons found inside...
The fact is, I liked this on its own well enough, and liked it a lot more on reflection after book 2.  Though it's certainly not everyone's cup of poison tea, I think those in the right mindset are going to find it really interesting and memorable, and I promise you, if you're weird enough (like me) and are eager for the 2nd book, the series will impress you.  'Cause Jessamine?  She's pretty kickass.


[Psst! Don't forget, you can enter to win book 2, Nightshade, here - but it ends soon, so hurry!  And make sure to check out my review of Nightshade tomorrow!]

Friday Face Off: Dark Angel v Everneath

I've featured the cover for Eden Maguire's Dark Angel on FFO before (when it faced off against The Vespertine).  But recently, I've been seeing the cover of Brodi Ashton's Everneath everywhere, and I realized that, though the two are by no means cover twins, they most certainly remind me of each other.  Everything from the gorgeous dresses and half-obscured faces to the red/gray/white color scheme, flourishes to the titles and upward slant to the wings-and-clouds (fog?) behind the titles - they may not be the same cover, but these two definitely have some things in common.  They would have plenty to talk about over coffee...
So, which would you reach for?  Love 'em, hate 'em?

Which one did it better?

Last Week on FFO: Salvaged went head to head foot to foot with Slept Away.  And though it was a 50/50 split between the two books, it was nearly unanimous that everyone is skeeved out by feet.

Winnah ------>  not feet.

Book Chat: Most Anticipated Contemporary Reads

It's Book Chat time again, guys.  This week, in honor of Just Contemporary month once again, we are talking about our most anticipated contemporary reads.  They can be books you own or have had on your to-read pile for awhile, or contemporary books that have yet to be released - whichever you prefer.

If you want to participate in Book Chat, you can link up your vlog or blog post below.  Or feel free to let us know your thoughts in the comments.

NEXT WEEK: Your Christmas/end-of-year Wishlist

TBR Tuesday: The Books of Courtney Summers

Most of us have books we've bought with all intentions of reading (or maybe just because it was cheap!), only to have them fade away on a shelf or disappear into a stack of books, never to be seen or thought of again.
TBR Tuesday is a way to talk about the books we own but haven't read, see what other people think about them, and help us decide whether to bump it up our list or knock it off completely.
[If you're more a book borrower than a book buyer, you're still welcome to participate with the books that you've been meaning to read and haven't!]

On my TBR

Cracked Up To Be
Contemporary, 214 pages
Published December 23rd 2008 by St. Martin's Griffin

Perfect Parker Fadley isn’t so perfect anymore. She’s quit the cheerleading squad, she’s dumped her perfect boyfriend, and she’s failing school. Her parents are on a constant suicide watch and her counselors think she’s playing games…but what they don’t know, the real reason for this whole mess, isn’t something she can say out loud. It isn’t even something she can say to herself. A horrible thing has happened and it just might be her fault. If she can just remove herself from everybody--be totally alone--then everything will be okay...The problem is, nobody will let her.

Some Girls Are
Contemporary, 246 pages
Published January 5th 2010 by St. Martin's Griffin

Climbing to the top of the social ladder is hard--falling from it is even harder. Regina Afton used to be a member of the Fearsome Fivesome, an all-girl clique both feared and revered by the students at Hallowell High... until vicious rumors about her and her best friend's boyfriend start going around. Now Regina's been "frozen out" and her ex-best friends are out for revenge. If Regina was guilty, it would be one thing, but the rumors are far from the terrifying truth and the bullying is getting more intense by the day. She takes solace in the company of Michael Hayden, a misfit with a tragic past who she herself used to bully. Friendship doesn't come easily for these onetime enemies, and as Regina works hard to make amends for her past, she realizes Michael could be more than just a friend... if threats from the Fearsome Foursome don't break them both first.

Tensions grow and the abuse worsens as the final days of senior year march toward an explosive conclusion in this dark new tale from the author of Cracked Up To Be.

Fall For Anything
Contemporary, 230 pages
Published December 21st 2010 by St. Martin's Griffin

When Eddie Reeves’s father commits suicide her life is consumed by the nagging question of why? Why when he was a legendary photographer and a brilliant teacher? Why when he seemed to find inspiration in everything he saw? And, most important, why when he had a daughter who loved him more than anyone else in the world? When she meets Culler Evans, a former student of her father’s and a photographer himself, an instant and dangerous attraction begins. Culler seems to know more about her father than she does and could possibly hold the key to the mystery surrounding his death. But Eddie’s vulnerability has weakened her and Culler Evans is getting too close. Her need for the truth keeps her hanging on...but are some questions better left unanswered?

I've found each of Courtney Summers' books in the Amazon bargain bin in the last few months, and with all of the insane amounts of love I've seen other bloggers and reader-friends give her, I went ahead and picked each of them up, even though I'm not generally drawn to contemporary.  (These covers didn't hurt, though.)  Now, working on things for Just Contemporary month for Ashley, it's had me thinking about the contemporary books I own and want to read, so I thought I would showcase the three of these and see what you guys think about them.  
Do they live up to the hype?  Which of the three is your favorite?

And more importantly, what's lurking in your TBR stacks this week?

(Also, if you want to find out more about the contemporary books I own that are still in need of reading, make sure to check out this week's Book Chat on thursday...)

CLOSED Giveaway - Poison Diaries: Nightshade by Maryrose Wood

I mentioned in this week's IMM that I just got a copy of Nightshade, the 2nd book in the Poison Diaries series, and that I would be giving away a signed copy.  Lest you call me a liar, I'm going to go ahead and do that now.
;)

The Poison Diaries: Nightshade
by Maryrose Wood
Historical Fantasy, 288 pages
October 25th from Harper Collins

A dark, gothic tale of romance… and murder.
The latest book in the grippingly dark series, The Poison Diaries.

Our heroine, Jessamine, has lost her faith in the men she loved, and her innocence as well. She turns to the dark side and plots to kill her father, using his own poisons, before becoming an assassin, a poisoner for hire. Can she recover from her heartache and reunite with her true love, Weed? Find out in this thrilling story where poisons, darkness and horror are a part of everyday life, and love is the only cure.

I am currently reading/loving this book, and will be sharing my thoughts on both books with you at some point this week, but until then, you can try to win a copy for yourself.
Part of the delight of these books is the mystery of the poisons, and for this giveaway, you get to play along and get in on that mystery...

Ways to play:

1. Like The Poison Diaries on Facebook

and post on their wall that you want to win a copy, and that you were sent by The Book Rat

2. Follow @poisondiaries on Twitter

and tweet a message about winning a copy from The Book Rat

Ya know, something like this:

"I want to win a signed copy of @poisondiaries because The Book Rat says it's great!"

3. Visit the Poison Diaries website

and find the poison "Arum Maculstum", add it to the "my poison diary" section, and then share it via twitter, making sure to reference The Book Rat.

Sounds fun, right?  I mean, who doesn't love a poison scavenger hunt?!
Make sure you don't forget to tag me in your tweets/posts - that's how the winners are being tracked, and I wouldn't want anyone to miss out!
And trust me, you want to win this book - this series is unlike anything else out there, and the more I read, the more I think Jessamine is pretty kick-ass.

This all ends the 20th, so you'd better get a move on!
Good luck, everyone!!

In My Mailbox: 11/12/11

Make sure to leave a link to your IMM in the comments, so I can see what goodies you got!  And if you've read any of my goodies, let me know what you thought of them. :)
And as always, In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren.

New to my shelves:

Blackbringer by Laini Taylor: http://amzn.to/skwSog
First Day on Earth by Cecil Castellucci: http://amzn.to/s9xS0k
The Poison Diaries: Nightshade by Maryrose Wood: http://amzn.to/tmTiFr
Cinder by Marissa Meyer: http://amzn.to/n5L9xI

Also mentioned:
Helluva Halloween winners post
Cinder/The Lunar Chronicles FB page

Friday Face Off: Slept Away v. Salvaged

The following two covers are not identical by any means, but I can't see one without thinking of the other.
As for which I like more, I'm really not sure.  So I leave to you: without knowing what they are about, which would you reach for on shelves, if either?

Which one did it better?

Last Week on FFO: Breathless and Breathless went head to head, with Breathless pulling out a win...Um...wait.
Y'all liked the girl.

Winnah --->

Helluva Halloween Winners!!!

Below you'll find all of the winners for Helluva Halloween.  If you find yourself listed, an email is on the way to you, but with a couple of exceptions, I don't need anything additional from you; you're prizes will be on the way shortly.  Happy reading!!

(Also, if anyone notices that I missed a giveaway, please let me know!)

(mystery box)

Leigh Ann 

Mandy D

Alexabex

(edited, as previous winner had just bought the book!)

(winner's choice)
Bekka 

Avital, 

Vivien, 

and Minda 

Jessy 

latisha 

TatooGirl

 &

kimyunalesca

&
Nichole

Samantha35

And this concludes this year's Helluva Halloween.  Hope you had fun; see you next year!

Book Chat: Favorite Contemporary Reads

Hey guys, it's Book Chat time.  My video this week is actually being hosted by Basically Amazing Ashley, in honor of her event, Just Contemporary.

You can find out all about my favorite contemporary reads by heading over and watching the video.


But of course, I couldn't leave you guys out, so please feel free to link up your blog or vlog posts for this weeks Chat below.

Next week: Most Anticipated Contemporary Reads - they can be contemp books you've just been meaning to read or contemporary reads that are yet to be released.  Or a mix of the two, of course!
See you next week!

TBR Tuesday: Cinder

Most of us have books we've bought with all intentions of reading (or maybe just because it was cheap!), only to have them fade away on a shelf or disappear into a stack of books, never to be seen or thought of again.
TBR Tuesday is a way to talk about the books we own but haven't read, see what other people think about them, and help us decide whether to bump it up our list or knock it off completely.
[If you're more a book borrower than a book buyer, you're still welcome to participate with the books that you've been meaning to read and haven't!]

On my TBR

Cinder 
by Marissa Meyer
Sci-fi, Fairy Tale, 400 pages
Expected publication: January 3rd 2012 by Feiwel & Friends

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Ever since I got this in the mail - hell, ever since I first heard about it, I knew I wanted to include this in next year's Fairy Tale Fortnight.  But the thing is...FTF isn't until April, and that's a long time to wait.  And with the book coming out in January, I have this debate on my hands - do I save it or do I read it soon and post briefly about it on the release, but save the full review for April?  I've been leaning toward the latter option 'cause y'all, I want to read this soon.
What do you guys think?  Should I be a good girl and save it, or read it ASAP?  Anyone looking forward to this cyborg-Cinderlla?

What's calling your name from the TBR stacks this week?

October Rewind

This is my October Rewind, so it's a look back at what I read in October, with a quick thumbs-up/-down rating.  Make sure to let me know if you agree or disagree, or intend to read any of the books, in the comments.
And if you do a Rewind of your own, leave me a link and I'll check it out!
[Note: If you guys want a linky, I will add one. :) ]

The reviews:
Drink, Slay, Love: http://dft.ba/-14yv
Anna Dressed in Blood: http://dft.ba/-14yy
The Mephisto Covenant: http://dft.ba/-14yC
Hourglass: http://dft.ba/-14yA
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children: http://dft.ba/-14yB
Red Velvet & Absinthe: http://dft.ba/-14yz

Friday Face Off: Breathless vs., well, Breathless...

I came across these two covers when I was randomly trolling on Book Closeouts to see if they'd gotten anything good in.  Both are called Breathless, and both involve being submerged or nearly submerged in water.  I have a clear favorite, but I'm curious what you guys think.  So,

Which one did it better?

Last Week on FFO:  The UK and US versions of Rachel Hawkins Hex Hall series went head to head, with the US versions winning in a landslide (it was a rare unanimous vote!).  You found the UK versions to look very "Disney" and movie poster, while the split covers of the US versions provided a lot of visual interest.

Winnahs --------->