Yearly Archives:: 2011

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

WoW (3)

Posted by Giselle • 76 Comments

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

My pick this week:

Dearly Departed

Lia Habel

Release date: October 18th, 2011

Love can never die.

Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune, and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

When I read this premise it really got my attention. It sounds so original. I mean, cute zombies? I must read this! The cover is also gorgeous. I love the colors and the font used. It’s very dark and sexy. This is also what I picked to be October’s Brew (sidebar).

What upcoming book is on your mind this week?

Dusty Reads (1)

Posted by Giselle on 09/27/2011 • 21 Comments

Dusty Reads is a weekly post featuring a book that has been sitting unread on my home shelf for some time. This book is exclusively chosen by Giselle.

This is my first Dusty Reads post. I find that blogs often feature new and upcoming books, so we tend to forget about the great books that we planned to read back when, but never got around to. So this may help someone discover an older book that is just as good as all the ARCs everyone is dying to get a hold of. Here’s what I picked:

Twenty Boy Summer Sarah Ockler

“Don’t worry, Anna. I’ll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it.” “Okay.” “Promise me? Promise you won’t say anything?”…

Shatter Me ARC Winner

Posted by Giselle on 09/27/2011 • 0 Comments

Thank you to everyone who entered to win my giveaway. I’ve selected a winner for a signed copy of Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi. Winner was picked by random number generator.

Congratulations to Brenna of Esther’s Ever After

Be on the lookout for my email.

Shatter Me is Tahereh’s debut novel that will release on November 15th, 2011.It’s a great dystopian that I hope you all enjoy. If you’re interested in what more I had to say, click here for my review.

Don’t forget to check out my other giveaways: One Woman’s Trash 100 Followers Giveaway Thank you so much to all my followers. I hope you’re enjoying my blog. 🙂

Review: The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Posted by Giselle on 09/26/2011 • 13 Comments

The Host (The Host, #1)Stephenie MeyerFirst published January 1st, 2000

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. The earth has been invaded by a species that takes over the minds of their human hosts while leaving their bodies intact, and most of humanity has succumbed.

Wanderer, the invading “soul” who has been given Melanie’s body, knew about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the too-vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn’t expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

Melanie fills Wanderer’s thoughts with visions of the man Melanie loves – Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body’s desires, Wanderer yearns for a man she’s never met. As outside forces…

Review: Wayward by Ashley Girardi

Posted by Giselle on 09/26/2011 • 8 Comments

Wayward (The Witch Wars Saga, #1) Ashley Girardi First published March 27th, 2011

Born without magic, seventeen-year-old Helena “Hex” Wayward is an embarrassment to her power-hungry relatives.

As the weakest member of the world’s most deadly magical family, Hex learns early how to avoid confrontation. There’s no defending herself against an errant curse or the pit-demon that her cousins like to summon during family reunions.

When the dark magic inside of her — magic that she never dreamt even existed — erupts in a violent display, it kills a member of a rival family. Now, Hex’s family hopes to use her magic for their own sinister purposes and their enemies just want her dead. Abandoning her magic will leave Hex defenseless but she’s seen how quickly power corrupts even…

In My Mailbox (2)

Posted by Giselle on 09/25/2011 • 86 Comments

“In My Mailbox” is a meme, created by Kristi at The Story Siren, that features books I’ve received/purchased/borrowed during the current week. Let’s see what I got this week. (click on images for Goodreads synopsis)

I have received for review: I have gotten from giveaways: Freebie on Smashword: I am actually off to go shopping for books bright and early tomorrow morning: My favorite thing to do when I’m not reading! I will feature those next week. What did you get this week?

Review: Angelfall by Susan Ee

Posted by Giselle on 09/24/2011 • 10 Comments

Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days, #1) Susan Ee First published May 21st, 2011

It’s been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels’ stronghold…

Fresh Batch (Sept 25th- Oct 1st)

Posted by Giselle on 09/24/2011 • 7 Comments

This week’s hot releases

Fresh Batch features some of the hottest releases this upcoming week. These are exclusively chosen by Giselle.

Flavour of the week:

Lola and the Boy Next Door Stephanie Perkins

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit — more sparkly, more fun, more wild — the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.When Cricket — a gifted…