Badass Bookie

Release Date: 1967 Publisher: Speak Pages:  187 From Goodreads :  "According to Ponyboy, there are two kinds of people in the world: greasers and socs. A soc (short for "social") has money, can get away with just about anything, and has an attitude longer than a limousine. A greaser, on the other hand, always lives on the outside and needs to watch his back. Ponyboy is a greaser, and he's always been proud of it, even willing to rumble against a gang of socs for the sake of his fellow greasers--until one terrible night when his friend Johnny kills a soc. The murder gets under Ponyboy's skin, causing his bifurcated world to crumble and teaching him that pain feels the same whether a soc or a greaser." Admittedly going into this book I was somewhat determined not to like it- for one reason, it's completely out of my comfort zone (that being YA pararnormal and dystopian/ post-apocalyptic), for another, I had to read it for school (I cannot recall having  ...

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Title: "SYLO"  Author: D.J. MacHale Publisher: Razorbill Release Date: July 2, 2013 From Goodreads:  "Does Tucker Pierce have what it takes to be a hero when the U.S. military quarantines his island? Fourteen-year-old Tucker Pierce prefers to fly under the radar. He’s used to navigating around summer tourists in his hometown on idyllic Pemberwick Island, Maine. He’s content to sit on the sidelines as a backup player on the high school football team. And though his best friend Quinn tells him to “go for it,” he’s too chicken to ask Tori Sleeper on a date. There’s always tomorrow, he figures. Then Pemberwick Island is invaded by a mysterious branch of the U.S. military called SYLO. And sitting on the sidelines is no longer an option for Tucker, because tomorrow may never come.  It’s up to T...

Release Date: February 5, 2012 Publisher: Feiwel and Friends Pages: 464 From Goodreads:  "Cinder returns in the second thrilling installment of the New York Times-bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive. Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother and the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she has no choice but to trust him, though he clearly has a few dark secrets of his own. As Scarlet and Wolf work to unravel one mystery, they find another when they cross paths with Cinder. Together, they must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen who will do anything to make Prince Kai her husband, her king, her prisoner." I have to start this review by than...

Today I am excited to have author Nikki Colligan whose debut novel, "Sunshine", is released today, stop by the blog to tell us a bit about herself and her book!  Describe SUNSHINE in 5 words or less. Oh, that’s hard, but I’ll try: Funny. Dark. Music. Monsters. How do you balance being a student with being an author? It’s definitely hard! But I love being a student as well as being a writer. I guess it depends on the semester, really. I usually try to write at least 2,000 words a day. It can be hard when I have homework and papers and all of that school business, but as long as I have a semi-routine of school, school-work, writing-work, I’m a happy camper. Also, caffeine helps. : ) Do you work on multiple books simultaneously? If so, what is your process?  Yes. I try to take at least a week break in between writing a rough draft and then editing it, although last time I tried that, I went nuts. I can’t NOT write. So now when I take a break, I start a new project. I take a...

ARCTIC ADVENTURE By Willard Price. 272 pp. Red Fox. £7.99. (Ages 9 and up) ISBN 9780099482277 Rating: 5 Stars     I got this book from my school library when I was looking for a book to read. This is the second book I have ever read by this author. I really like this author's books because they make you want to save endangered species from becoming extinct. However, I do not agree that it is good for animals to all be in zoos because then animals don't learn how to live in the wild. I personally think this is a good book to read around this time of the year because I finished it yesterday, and as it just snowed it looks as if your in the Arctic today.     This book is about two brothers, Hal and Roger, who go to Greenland and Alaska to pick up animals that their father sells to zoos. While they were in Greenland they made very good friends with Olrik and a polar bear that they named Nanook. Nanook saved them when they were at the point of d...

THE GRIM GROTTO A Series of Unfortunate Events: Book the 11th. By Lemony Snicket. Illustrated by Brett Helquist. 352 pp. Egmont Books Ltd. £6.99. (Ages 9 and up) ISBN 9781405266161 Rating: 5 Stars     Even though this is "Book the Eleventh" you can still read it on its own because it explains the rest of the series in the beginning. That said, this book was very interesting to me because it revealed a lot of secrets. For example I was very surprised to find out that their friend Fiona's stepbrother had joined Count Olaf's troupe. I felt extremely sorry for Fiona that she had to be the one in the middle: the one both sides wanted.     This book is about the Baudelaires and their extremely unfortunate events underwater. I myself think that the most unfortunate and frightening event that they encounter is when Sunny is poisoned by the Medusiod Mycelium. Even though the events that occur after that are still very frightening, I hope I have not fri...

LILY ALONE By Jacqueline Wilson Illustrated by Nick Sharratt. 320 pp. Doubleday Children's Books. £12.99. (Ages 10 and up) ISBN 9780385618649 Rating: 4 Stars     I read this book because my friend recommended it to me. I am honoured to say that her mom knows Jacqueline Wilson. I myself actually sometimes feel like Lily.     This book is about a girl called Lily. One day her mom goes off with their may be future dad on holiday so they are left home alone. Poor Lily has to somehow get the house together before their mom comes back. Sadly with Baxter, Pixie, and Bliss always on the move that is nearly impossible. Just to make it worse they have a secret to hide: their mom has left them home alone.     I think ages nine to twelve should read this book because the language is for older readers but adults and teenagers would probably think the story was a bit childish. This book definitely deserves four stars because it wa...

On My Wishlist is a great event that was created by  Book Chick City . It is now hosted by Sarah over at  Workaday Reads !  It's where you list all of the books that you desperately want but haven't actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. I thought that this was a fantabulous idea so I thought I would join in! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Title: "Of Triton"  Author: Anna Banks  Release Date: May 28, 2013 Publisher: Feiwel and Friends From Goodreads: "In this sequel to OF POSEIDON, Emma has just learned that her mother is a long-lost Poseidon princess, and now struggles with an identity crisis: As a Half-Breed, she’s a freak in the human world and an abomination in the Syrena realm below. Syrena law states that all Half- Breeds should be put to death. As if that’s not bad enough, her mother’s reappearance among the Syrena turns the two kingdoms—Poseidon and Triton—against one another. Which leaves Emma with a decision to make: Should she comply ...

Release Date: February 2, 2013 Publisher: Tor Pages: 400 From Goodreads:  "The second installment in Kristen Simmons's fast-paced, gripping YA dystopian series. After faking their deaths to escape from prison, Ember Miller and Chase Jennings have only one goal: to lay low until the Federal Bureau of Reformation forgets they ever existed. Near-celebrities now for the increasingly sensationalized tales of their struggles with the government, Ember and Chase are recognized and taken in by the Resistance—an underground organization working to systematically take down the government. At headquarters, all eyes are on the sniper, an anonymous assassin taking out FBR soldiers one by one. Rumors are flying about the sniper’s true identity, and Ember and Chase welcome the diversion…. Until the government posts its most-wanted list, and their number one suspect is Ember herself. Orders are shoot to kill, and soldiers are cleared to fire on suspicion alone. Suddenly Ember can’t even step ...

So... Discussion posts. Something that I have always wanted to done but never felt confident enough to do. But I have now decided to take the plunge (thanks to Jamie over at The Perpetual Page-Turner for the inspiration)- we'll see how this goes. Perhaps it will become a weekly feature!  Over the past six months or so I have noticed that I am being increasingly more and more critical when it comes to what I read/ how I review. Take for instance, "Stealing Parker" by Miranda Kenneally . I know that had I read this book a year or two ago I would have been ALL OVER it, giving it four, if not five, stars. But now? I gave it two stars (or "Black City" by Elizabeth Richards , where I have it 2 stars, or or  "Easy" by Tammara Webber , where I only gave it 3 stars, or... Oh gawd, a million other books). Or, where the average star rating I used to give books was in the 4.5 range is now in the ~3 star range. Additionally, a couple of months ago I did the one th...

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Title: "Dare You To"  Author: Katie McGarry Publisher: Harlequin Teen Release Date: May 28, 2013 From Goodreads: "I dare you..."  If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's home life, they'd send her mother to jail and seventeen-year-old Beth who knows where. So she protects her mom at all costs. Until the day her uncle swoops in and forces Beth to choose between her mom's freedom and her own happiness. That's how Beth finds herself living with an aunt who doesn't want her and going to a school that doesn't understand her. At all. Except for the one guy who shouldn't get her, but does....  Ryan Stone is the town golden boy, a popular baseball star jock-with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even the friends he shares everything with, including the con...

This is a week of new features for me- today I present to you Twitter Tuesday and on Thursday you'll be introduced to Thursday's Thoughts! As some of my Twitter followers may have noticed (with all of my #amwriting and #amediting Tweets) I've been trying my hand at writing the last year or so. "Trying" being the operative word- I have struggled with my writing so much during that time, especially in the first drafts. However, I've found a lot of comfort in perhaps one of the most unlikely places- Twitter. How so? Through reading some of my favorite authors writing experiences- namely in their similar struggles. Reading their Tweets really helps put things into perspective for me, reminding me that even the most successful authors struggle every now and again, but that they've been able to overcome it and that, if they can, we can too! Some are funny, some are sad, but I think that we will all be able to relate to one or two! Want to learn more about these...

Release Date: October 1, 2006 Publisher: Harcourt  Pages: 337 From Goodreads: "Miranda’s disbelief turns to fear in a split second when a meteor knocks the moon closer to the earth. How should her family prepare for the future when worldwide tsunamis wipe out the coasts, earthquakes rock the continents, and volcanic ash blocks out the sun? As summer turns to Arctic winter, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother retreat to the unexpected safe haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove. Told in journal entries, this is the heart-pounding story of Miranda’s struggle to hold on to the most important resource of all--hope--in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world." At the time that I had read this book I had just finished both "The Way We Fall" and "The Lives We Lost" by Megan Crewe and I cannot help but compare this to the two, the former especially, as they were both wr...

On My Wishlist is a great event that was created by  Book Chick City . It is now hosted by Sarah over at  Workaday Reads !  It's where you list all of the books that you desperately want but haven't actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. I thought that this was a fantabulous idea so I thought I would join in! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Title: "Recalled"  Author: Cambria Hebert Release Date: February 15, 2013 From Goodreads: "Love or Death? A simple question really. The choice seems obvious. But. What if you never knew love, what if your life was spent just trying to survive? What if you knew your fate before you were fully grown? And then you died. And you were given another chance. A better chance. This new life depended upon one thing: your job. And so you agreed. You thought it would be simple. You thought it would be cut and dry. It never is. And now you are left holding the fate of someone else in the palm of your hand and you have to make ...

THE DARK WOODS is a bewitching collection of young adult short stories, ranging from science fiction and fantasy to paranormal, all featuring a lesbian heroine. This collection is part of Project Unicorn , a fiction project that seeks to address the near nonexistence of lesbian main characters in young adult fiction by giving them their own stories. Stories by Sarah Diemer Witch Girls (Dark Fantasy): The wild witch girls lurk at the edge of the woods, waiting to snatch away any girl who’s less than good. Gran’s warnings are the same every day: be good, or the witch girls will take you. But what if you want to be taken? Witch Girls is my favorite of Sarah’s contributions. The warning about the witch girls only made me want to be one of them. Surfacing (Fantasy): When Alice’s brother John takes a mermaid out of the sea and drags her into the woods to die, Alice must find the courage to stand up to the worst bully she’s ever known in order to save a life. This was a sad but wonderful st...

Release Date: December 11, 2012 Publisher: Entangled Pages: 452 From Goodreads:  "No one is like Daemon Black. When he set out to prove his feelings for me, he wasn’t fooling around. Doubting him isn’t something I’ll do again, and now that we’ve made it through the rough patches, well... There’s a lot of spontaneous combustion going on. But even he can’t protect his family from the danger of trying to free those they love. After everything, I’m no longer the same Katy. I’m different... And I’m not sure what that will mean in the end. When each step we take in discovering the truth puts us in the path of the secret organization responsible for torturing and testing hybrids, the more I realize there is no end to what I’m capable of. The death of someone close still lingers, help comes from the most unlikely source, and friends will become the deadliest of enemies, but we won’t turn back. Even if the outcome will shatter our worlds forever. Together we’re stronger... and they know ...

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Title: "Into the After"  Author: Demitria Lunetta Release Date: June 25, 2013 Publisher: Harper Teen From Goodreads:  "They hear the most silent of footsteps.They are faster than anything you've ever seen. And They won't stop chasing you...until you are dead. Amy is watching TV when it happens, when the world is attacked by Them. These vile creatures are rapidly devouring mankind. Most of the population is overtaken, but Amy manages to escape—and even rescue “Baby,” a toddler left behind in the chaos. Marooned in Amy’s house, the girls do everything they can to survive—and avoid Them at all costs. After years of hiding, they are miraculously rescued and taken to New Hope, a colony of survivors living in a former government research compound. While at first the colony seems like...

To the cozy little town of Benevolence, the Wolf of Winter is a distant memory. Two generations ago, this nightmare creature crept through the streets and brought with it a blizzard of catastrophic proportions. So goes the story. Isabella Fox finds the legend hard to believe. A witch for hire, she's just moved to Benevolence because it's the only place in the world where nothing ever happens. As the new village magicmaker, she's expected to cast only one spell a year--freeing up her time to pursue new dreams, and perhaps love. As the Winter Solstice celebration draws near, Benevolence flurries with the magic and wonder of the holiday season. But not all are welcome to partake in the town's festivities. Outcast shapeshifter, Emily, lives alone in the mountains. She is a mystery to Isabella, until they happen upon each other by chance in the snowy wood... On the night of the Winter Solstice, love is in the air...but so is the cold, sky-piercing howl of the Wolf of Winter...

Liza never knew that falling in love could be so wonderful . . . and so confusing. "'Liza,' Mom said, looking into my eyes, 'I want you to tell me the truth, not because I want to pry, but because I have to know. This could get very unpleasant . . . Now--have you and Annie--done any more than the usual experimenting . . . ' 'No, Mom,' I said, trying to look back at her calmly. I'm not proud of it, I make no excuses--I lied to her." This groundbreaking book is the story of two teenage girls whose friendship blossoms into love and who, despite pressures from family and school that threaten their relationship, promise to be true to each other and their feelings. This book is so truthful and honest, it has been banned from many school libraries and even publicly burned in Kansas City. Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden is the third lesbian book written for teens. But it stands out as the first lesbian book for teens in which the characters are punished ...

Release Date: January 22nd, 2013 Publisher: Hyperion Pages: 336 From Goodreads: "Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books. Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive. Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often-violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive. Being a Keeper isn't just dangerous-it's a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da's death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead ...

On My Wishlist is a great event that was created by  Book Chick City . It is now hosted by Sarah over at  Workaday Reads !  It's where you list all of the books that you desperately want but haven't actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. I thought that this was a fantabulous idea so I thought I would join in! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Title: "Burn For Burn" Author: Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian Publisher: Simon and Schuster Release Date: September 18, 2012 From Goodreads:  "BIG GIRLS DON'T CRY...THEY GET EVEN. Lillia has never had any problems dealing with boys who like her. Not until this summer, when one went too far. No way will she let the same thing happen to her little sister. Kat is tired of the rumours, the insults, the cruel jokes. It all goes back to one person– her ex-best friend– and she's ready to make her pay. Four years ago, Mary left Jar Island because of a boy. But she's not the same girl anymore. And she's read...

Release Date: August 7, 2012 Publisher: Bloomsbury Pages: 404 From Goodreads:  "After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom. Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best. Then one of the other contestants turns up...

Release Date: April 26, 2011 Publisher: Atria Pages: 240 From Goodreads: "R is a young man with an existential crisis--he is a zombie. He shuffles through an America destroyed by war, social collapse, and the mindless hunger of his undead comrades, but he craves something more than blood and brains. He can speak just a few grunted syllables, but his inner life is deep, full of wonder and longing. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he has dreams. After experiencing a teenage boy's memories while consuming his brain, R makes an unexpected choice that begins a tense, awkward, and strangely sweet relationship with the victim's human girlfriend. Julie is a blast of color in the otherwise dreary and gray landscape that surrounds R. His decision to protect her will transform not only R, but his fellow Dead, and perhaps their whole lifeless world. Scary, funny, and surprisingly poignant, Warm Bodies is about being alive, being dead and the blurry line in between....

Today I am excited to have Brian Palmer and Jason Rowe stop by the blog to tell us a bit about co-authoring their book XII: Genesis!  Brian: Anyone who has ever sat down to try and write a novel knows of the many pitfalls that await you. Procrastination. Writer's block. Email. Social media. Family. Friends. More procrastination. It seems in fact that from the very moment we decide we want to create this fictional tale that has come sweeping into our minds like a wave onto a warm, tropical island around sunset, there are forces set to oppose us so that we will be prevented from doing the very thing we want to do. Jason: And it's important to realize that while all of these things can get in the way of your writing, they actually do take priority along the way, especially if you have responsibilities that others are counting on you to fulfill and writing isn't your primary source of income or priority. The key is always going to be a matter of prioritization and time manageme...

To support my fellow Canadian bloggers I have decided to participate in Stacking the Shelves created by Tygna over at  Tygna's Reviews . As Tygna writes,  "Stacking The Shelves is all about the books we are adding to our shelves each week, sharing with you our excitement for our newest titles and maybe have you discover a new book in the process!"  I may be the most lame STSer ever- this is my first since the book-blogger meet-up in November. Surprisingly not a single one of these books came from Christmas! For Review:  "Days of Starlight and Blood" by Laini Taylor (Thanks to HBG)  "The Archived" by Victoria Schwab (Thanks to HBG)  "The Lives We Lost" by Megan Crewe (Thanks to HBG) "The Friday Society" by Adrienne Kress (Thanks to Raincoast) "Things I Can't Forget" by Miranda Kenneally (Thanks to Raincoast) "Pulse" by Patrick Carman (Thanks to HarperCollins Canada) Bought (I discovered BookCloseOuts.com... H...

Mara's mother is missing, her little brother is sick, may be dying, her father is grieving. It all seems hopeless - until Mara sets out on a life or death journey to bring her mother home. I am a huge fan of Katherine Langrish, so when I found out she had a mermaid book, I had to get my hands on it. Forsaken was an extremely short book. I could have read the entire thing in less than 20 minutes, but I drew out the reading experience and made sure I broke it down into two sittings. Mara's father is a merman. Mara and all of her siblings are merchildren. But Mara's mother is human. She left her world for the man she fell in love with. But she grew tired of living in the ocean and longed for her home. So she leaves her children and husband behind. This is the story of Mara's journey, venturing on land to find her mother. While very short, it's a wonderful story. I highly recommend it!

As many fellow Canadians will know YA authors are very rarely able to visit us, however... That could very well change AND we have the power in our hands to incite that change! Authors Marie Lu, Marissa Meyer, Beth Revis, Megan Shepherd and Victoria Schwab have joined together to bring their readers the YA2U ! What is YA2U? It is a contest of sorts whereby these 5 amazing ladies will visit a city of voter's choice! Now please make note that there are a few qualifications, the main being that the Author Event Prize is only valid in the continental US and major cities in Canada (A major city in Canada is a city that has an international airport within it). As of this past Thursday Toronto, Ontario was in second place! Even if your Canadian city doesn't qualify I highly advise (or more like beg) you to vote for Toronto (perhaps in the second option- as everyone gets 2 choices- you could also include London, Ontario as London is only about an hour and a half from Toronto and I thin...

Today I am excited to have David James, author of "Light of the Moon", stop by the blog to tell us a bit about who his book will appeal to, what he is currently reading and what advice he has for aspiring authors!  Describe LIGHT OF THE MOON in five words or less.  Beautifully dark tale of love. Do you work on multiple books simultaneously? If so, what is your process?  I do to an extent. I tend to write bits and pieces of other books while working on a main manuscript, but I rarely focus completely on more than one book at a time. I couldn’t do it! I’m a very linear writing, so while I do jump around from time to time, I think I would go crazy writing more than one book at a time. Fans of ___________ will enjoy my books.  Fans of Tessa Gratton or Brenna Yovanoff will enjoy my books. There’s a similar sense of dark hopefulness in my books that I’ve found in theirs. I’ve also gotten quite a few reader responses that have enjoyed Light of the Moon after reading Laini T...