Publisher: Disney Hyperion


Friday, January 19, 2018

An Avalanche: Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Megan Spooner

Posted by 4 Comments

I received this book for free from Disney-Hyperion in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

An Avalanche: Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Megan SpoonerUnearthed by Amie Kaufman, Meagan Spooner
Published by Disney Hyperion on January 9th, 2018
Genres: Adventure, Sci-Fi, YA
Source: Disney-Hyperion
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four-stars

When Earth intercepts a message from a long-extinct alien race, it seems like the solution the planet has been waiting for. The Undying's advanced technology has the potential to undo environmental damage and turn lives around, and Gaia, their former home planet, is a treasure trove waiting to be uncovered.

For Jules Addison and his fellow scholars, the discovery of an alien culture offers unprecedented opportunity for study... as long as scavengers like Amelia Radcliffe don't loot everything first. Mia and Jules' different reasons for smuggling themselves onto Gaia put them immediately at odds, but after escaping a dangerous confrontation with other scavvers, they form a fragile alliance.

In order to penetrate the Undying temple and reach the tech and information hidden within, the two must decode the ancient race's secrets and survive their traps. But the more they learn about the Undying, the more their presence in the temple seems to be part of a grand design that could spell the end of the human race...

I am behind on the times because this is my first time reading a book by this dynamic duo. To be fair, These Broken Stars has been on my tbr since 2012 and we’re just going to ignore the fact that 5 years later (or 4 years since it came out,) I still haven’t read it. BUT, I WASN’T GOING TO LET THAT HAPPEN WITH Unearthed. If I remember correctly, at some point it was pitched as Indiana Jones in space. I also got serious National Treasure vibes from the synopsis and I  am garbage for anything that involves a treasure hunt and secrets.

For those wondering, yes Unearthed 110% lives up to those comparisons. Unearthed is a fantastically written book that you WILL gobble up because it is addicting and exciting. There are very few books I say this for (because I am a picky fuck) but, I would NOT be upset to see Unearthed on the big screen.

It did take me a while to really get into the book but I think there is a small chance that might just be a me thing. I cannot even pinpoint what made it slow. It starts off in the midst of action and the action/adventure keeps building like an avalanche until you’re hit in the face by that masterpiece of an ending.

If you are a commercial reader like me, Unearthed is the next best thing and you’d be making a huge huge mistake by not adding it to your tbr. It’s been such a long time since I’ve been truly swept up on an adventure like this (re-reads of favs don’t count) and I cannot believe that we’re going to have to wait for a sequel. THATS THE PROBLEM WITH NOT READING BACKLIST, YOU HAVE TO WAIT FOR THINGS LIKE SEQUELS.

UGH.

Anyway, anyone who says commercial fiction is so shallow can bite me because Unearthed on top of having great characters, also explores socioeconomic privilege and how that shapes Amelia and Jules’ childhood experiences.

I’d, like, talk about the characters and the romance in Unearthed but tbh, there really isn’t much I can say. They are both great characters, their romance starts on a relationship of convenience, with some hate-love vibes and blossoms into something more. We also have great secondary characters and that’s all you gotta know.

There is a good chance most of you already have this on your to-read lists but if not, seriously, like, what other convincing do you need? DO YOU NEED SOMEONE TO DELIVER UNICORNS TO YOUR HOUSE? Can someone deliver unicorns to my house?

four-stars

4 Hot Espressos

Giveaway: Spindle by E.K. Johnston

Posted by on 12/05/2016 • 9 Comments

Today we are partnering with the lovely people at Disney-Hyperion to bring you a fabulous giveaway! E.K. Johnston is an incredibly talented author and I am SO excited to read Spindle. I enjoyed A Thousand Nights and CRIED while reading The Garden of Three Hundred Flowers (a short b/w A Thousand Nights  and Spindle, more info will be below) so I am sure Spindle will be even better. Exit, Pursued by a Bear (a retelling of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale) was also one of my favorite books of the year so basically, I just need all of Johnston’s books in my life :’)

About the Book About the Author

E.K. Johnston had several jobs and one vocation before she became a published writer. If she’s learned anything, it’s that things turn out weird sometimes, and there’s not a lot…

Review: Passenger by Alexandra Bracken

Posted by on 01/20/2016 • 9 Comments

Passenger AKA the much awaited, highly anticipated time travel romance. I had hoped it would be everything I wanted, I had hoped I would swoon and die because cuteness, but unfortunately that didn’t happen. Passenger was by no means a bad book, I just had a hard time relating to the character and getting behind the romance (which is kind of a big deal given that it is a time-travel romance.)

Etta is really my biggest problem with the book. It isn’t that she is fundamentally flawed, I just couldn’t get behind her as a character. Her privilege, growing up the way she did and in the century she did, is so blatant and her ignorance of it really bothered me. Being with Nicholas did make her realize that she was…

Giveaway: A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston

Giveaway: A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston

Posted by on 09/15/2015 • 3 Comments

Thanks to the lovely people at Disney-Hyperion, we’ve got a copy of A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston up for giveaway today! A THOUSAND NIGHTS is a dazzling retelling of Arabian Nights by E.K. Johnston – in stores October 6th! All samples and prizing are provided by Disney-Hyperion.

Make sure to: Learn more on un-requiredreading.com Check out the first four chapters of A THOUSAND NIGHTS here. #AThousandNights

Giveaway!

PRETTY THINGS IN A DANGEROUS PLACE prize pack One (1) winner receives: · Copy of A Thousand Nights; · Branded nail polish set & tea bag dispenser.

 

Open to US addresses only Prizing and samples provided by Disney-Hyperion Full contest terms and conditions found on Rafflecopter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Spinning Starlight by R.C. Lewis

Review: Spinning Starlight by R.C. Lewis

Posted by on 08/19/2015 • 9 Comments

I am honestly quite conflicted with this book.

While I appreciated this was a retelling of an under-the-radar fairy tale (come on, we have had enough of Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Little Mermaid retellings!), this book left me feeling a little underwhelmed. I kind of expected a lot because even though I had some problems with Stitching Snow, the author does know how to write a story. With a cover like that, with a premise like that (oh-em-gee, eight older brothers?! Sign me up, s’il te plaît!), surely after a year, and with a writer like R.C. Lewis, surely this book will knock other retellings out of the water?! Unfortunately, instead of feeling enamored with it, I just feel a bit… deflated.

Meet Liddi Jantzen, the heiress to a large techy company that…

Review: A Whole New World by Liz Braswell

Review: A Whole New World by Liz Braswell

Posted by on 07/31/2015 • 19 Comments

What a disappointment this book turned out to be.

You know, when I requested for this book, I did it because I was really, really expecting a Disney movie retelling (wait, is that even allowed? Isn’t there supposed to be some copyright thingy about modifying a well-known commercial masterpiece into something else? Can some lawyer clarify this for me, please?!) that would literally bring me a whole new world. You see, there is something that books can do better than movies – one of them is characterization. With a book, you can get into the deepest psyche of the characters and really get to know them in a more personal and intimate level; we’ll be able to know more why they feel a certain why or how their feeling or other…

Review: When by Victoria Laurie

Review: When by Victoria Laurie

Posted by on 03/27/2015 • 11 Comments

If you think this is your usual paranormal book where a girl finds herself capable of doing some pretty cool shit and doesn’t know how to use it and consequently gets frustrated until she finds the Love Interest/s who help/s her channel her powers for good before they run off to the sunset to their happily ever after, STOP RIGHT THERE! I shit you not, When by Victoria Laurie is anything but… that. It gets rid of the overused PR formula and breathes into it new life. I’m telling you right now that this book will surprise you in the sickest way possible (and I mean that very positively).

Being able to know when someone will die is definitely not an easy burden. If I had this curse put upon me, I…

Review: Invaded (Alienated #2) by Melissa Landers

Review: Invaded (Alienated #2) by Melissa Landers

Posted by on 01/15/2015 • 11 Comments

I loved the first book so I was really excited to read this sequel. While it didn’t wow me quite as much, I still really loved this one too. I loved the characters and how much they changed and grew. The storyline was fantastic and I really enjoyed the direction that it went. It was pretty obvious where things were going, but exciting to see how things would end up at that point and exactly how far we would get to see.

Cara is now on Aelyx’s planet, L’eihr, while he is back on Earth in order to make sure that the alliance goes through. She has gained citizenship, but things are far from easy for her. Besides missing home and missing Aelyx, the clones on L’eihr are not…