Xpresso Reads

Saturday, October 01, 2011

Fresh Batch (Oct 2nd-8th)

Posted by Giselle • 4 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:

Carrier of the Mark
Leigh Fallon

Their love was meant to be.

When Megan Rosenberg moves to Ireland, everything in her life seems to fall into place. After growing up in America, she’s surprised to find herself feeling at home in her new school. She connects with a group of friends, and she is instantly drawn to darkly handsome Adam DeRís.

But Megan is about to discover that her feelings for Adam are tied to a fate that was sealed long ago—and that the passion and power that brought them together could be their ultimate destruction.

Other releases (click on image for Goodreads synopsis):

And because she is so awesome:

As you can see, we’re lacking a little bit this week, especially compared to last week’s awesome releases, but these are still great books that I look forward to reading. Did you read any of these yet? Which one are you most looking forward to?

Remembrance by Michelle Madow: Review, Interview & Giveaway

Posted by Giselle on 09/30/2011 • 55 Comments

I’m very happy to have author Michelle Madow stop by Xpresso Reads to talk about her debut novel, Remembrance – which you must definitely check out if you haven’t already. To add fun to the mix, Michelle has offered up an ecopy of her book to one of YOU! That’s right! *Throws confetti*

Interview with Michelle Madow

Q.What inspired you to become an author?

I’ve always loved writing, but decided to write for the goal of publication about two years ago when I turned the first chapter in for homework in my Intro to Creative Writing class. I was surprised when my classmates and teacher loved it and wanted to read more! Their enthusiasm made me believe I could succeed in finishing a novel if I put my mind…

Review: Second Grave on the Left by Darynda Jones

Posted by Giselle on 09/30/2011 • 5 Comments

Second Grave on the Left (Charley Davidson, #2) Darynda Jones First published August 16th, 2011 St. Martin’s Press

When Charley is rudely awakened in the middle of the night by her best friend who tells her to get dressed quickly and tosses clothes out of the closet at her, she can’t help but wonder what Cookie’s up to. Leather scrunch boots with a floral miniskirt? Together? Seriously? Cookie explains that a friend of hers named Mimi disappeared five days earlier and that she just got a text from her setting up a meet at a coffee shop downtown. They show up at the coffee shop, but no Mimi. But Charley finds a message on the bathroom wall. Mimi left a clue, a woman’s name. Mimi’s husband explains that his wife…

Review: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Posted by Giselle on 09/29/2011 • 18 Comments

Unearthly (Unearthly, #1)Cynthia HandFirst published January 4th, 2011 HarperCollins

In the beginning, there’s a boy standing in the trees . . . .

Clara Gardner has recently learned that she’s part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn’t easy.

Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at…

WoW (3)

Posted by Giselle on 09/28/2011 • 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…

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…