Showcase Sunday #9

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Books, Biscuits, and Tea! 

This is where each Sunday, we can "showcase" what we've gotten in the way of books; 

in the mail, at the bookstore, the library, or as a gift!

I got a TON of books this past month, from winning a giveaway, trading books on YA Book Exchange, a gift from amazing blogger friends! (Krista & Becca) and one steamy E-Book I just had to get! I was doing so well with my book buying ban, but exactly one month from the day I swore off buying, I bought a book! I have about 6 books on their way to me now that I've ordered online and from a bookstore in California. Hey, at least when technology dies suddenly, I'll have months of entertainment for free...er... already paid for! 

Showcase Sunday #8

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Books, Biscuits, and Tea! 

This is where each Sunday, we can "showcase" what we've gotten in the way of books; 

in the mail, at the bookstore, the library, or as a gift!

Ok, this should be my last Showcase Sunday featuring "books bought" because I need to enforce a severely strict BOOK BUYING BAN for the next few months. I have bought TOO many books in the past few months and I haven't gotten through ANY of them. I definitely don't have book buyers remorse (LOL, like that exists!), but I guess what I'm feeling is pressure to read the books I already have. It sounds weird, but I love the thrill of a the chase... in the book buying world. When a book has a release date, I count down the days and hours until I can buy it and then once I have it, I move on to the next soon-to-be released book. There really should be medical coverage for book therapy. I'll bet even authors would back this up. 

Without further ado... 

Showcase Sunday #4

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Books, Biscuits, and Tea! This is where each Sunday, we can "showcase" what we've gotten in the way of books; in the mail, at the bookstore, the library, or as a gift! 

I haven't done a Showcase Sunday in months and I think it just comes down to the fact that planning these out takes more time and finesse than I'm usually able to come up with, but I think I finally found an easier system to execute this each week, or every other week. :)

WARNING: VERY LONG POST WITH LOTS OF PRETTY PHOTOS OF BOOKS!

ENTER AT YOUR OWN WALLETS RISK!

Finally!

I FINISHED PURE!

It only took me about a million years, but I finally finished it last night and now I'm bummed because Fuse (book 2) by Julianna Baggott doesn't come out until the middle of February 2013! The book has definitely given me plenty to think about for the next book in the series. I've got lots of questions and I can't wait to see how they will be answered in Fuse.

My review for Pure by Julianna Baggott will be up soon, as well as my review for The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker, which I also finished yesterday.

I was in such a slump that getting more than a few pages through any book was just too much for me. I wish I could say  it was because I was distracted with work or hobbies, but I think it was just a long span of time when I needed visual stimulation from movies/television versus the more intellectual stimulation you get from reading. It's not to say I haven't kept up with buying a few new releases that I HAD TO HAVE, but they were gathering dust on my bookshelf. I'm happy to say, I'm back in the game!

Next on my reading list is Eve by Anna Carey, which I had previously started, as well as my ARC of Splintered by A.G. Howard, which was given to me by my fabulous local indie bookseller Cindy, owner of Island Bound bookstore.

Now all I have to work on is my Showcase Sunday... for the past 2 months!

Happy Reading!

(All links for book titles to Goodreads)

In My Mailbox (1)

IMM: In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren !

Wonder Show by Hannah Barnaby (link goes to Goodreads)

Released: March 20, 2012

Won a signed ARC through Goodreads First Reads!

Description via Goodreads:
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, friends and neighbors, allow me to change your lives! Step inside Mosco’s Traveling Wonder Show! You’ve read about them in magazines, these so-called human curiosities, this tribe of misfits—now come and see for yourselves. We’ve got a gent as tall as a tree, a lady with a beard, and don’t miss your chance to see the Wild Albinos of Bora Bora! Ask Madame Doula to peer into your future (only two dollars more if you want to know how you’re going to die). 

And between these covers behold the greatest act of our display—Portia Remini, the strangest of the menagerie because she’s a ‘normal’ among the freaks, searching for a new beginning on the bally, far away from McGreavey’s Home for Wayward Girls, where Mister watches and waits. He said he would always find Portia, said she could never leave . . . 

Oh, it’s not for the faint of heart folks. If you’re prone to nightmares or you’ve got a weak ticker, you’d best move on. Within these pages lies a tale of abandonment, loss, misfortune for the rich and glory for the poor (and a little murder doesn’t hurt). It’s a story for the ages, but be warned: once you enter the Wonder Show you will never be the same.


H'OKAY - So I got this in the mail on Monday and I couldn't wait to start reading it, and I'm about 1/4 of the way through it. Disclaimer: I do this weird thing where it takes me a while to read books sometimes, and even though I take long breaks from reading a book, it's more or less because I'm so overwhelmed with the book that I need time to take apart what I've read and pick through it in my mind. (This is a habit that I picked up from being an English major in college... I've learned to dissect and distinguish every little detail in a story)
Besides me being weird... so far this book is fabulous and I intend to finish it very soon. Review to come!

The Ember Gods (Kilenya #2) by Andrea Pearson (link goes to Goodreads)

Released: September 27, 2011

Won a signed copy through Goodreads First Reads!

Description via Goodreads:
Jacob Clark has just returned from the world of Eklaron, where he frustrated the evil plans of the Lorkon and returned the magical Key of Kilenya to its rightful owners. His quest is far from over, though—Aloren is trapped in Maivoryl City by the Ember Gods, and Jacob can't return to save her until he receives the potion that will protect his team from the corrosive influence of the Lorkon.

Balancing between this new world and his own proves tricky. Not only has he started his first year of high school, but his magical abilities are bringing him too much attention. He feels pulled by both sides, hoping he'll figure out his special powers to save Aloren in time.


H'OKAY - I got this amazing little beauty in the mail today, and despite it being the second book in the series, (the first being, The Key of Kilenya) I was still interested in reading it. I had looked at the information for the first book and no matter how many stories that are about a dystopian universe, I'm always interested in when a character from contemporary times finds themselves in a different universe along side theirs. It makes me feel like it's possible and I'm always intrigued at how authors come up with new and innovative ways to explain how they found this time/parallel universe "rip". Since this is the second book in the series, I decided to get the first book on my Kindle, so the review for this one might take a little longer, because even though the author, Andrea, offered to send me an outline of what happened in book one, I'd much rather read it so I can get the full experience!




Happy reading !!

Let's talk about Goodreads

And how awesome it is! (Goodreads)

I only joined the site maybe 3 or 4 months ago, but boy does it have a lot to offer authors/readers! Not only are you able to keep track of your personal reading accomplishments in the form of currently-reading, to-read, and read (which makes keeping track of the bazillion of books I read quite handy), you can also become a fan of author's goodreads pages which allow users to comment about their favorite books, see when authors update their blogs/twitters/facebooks with new stuff, and learn more about them (most of the authors update their own profiles quite regularly).

But another really great opportunity Goodreads offers its users is the Giveaway section. I stumbled on this by accident and I am SO GLAD I DID. Pretty much what happens is publishers/authors/whoever else has access to books, they offer one of their books (whether it's the first of the series because the sequel is out soon) or it's the sequel which doesn't come out for weeks or months and they want to get their novel out there, or there are signed copies available that they want to giveaway. Sometimes they offer ARC's (Advance Reading Copies), sometimes it's a Galley (a bound/unbound version of a formatted novel printed on computer paper) and sometimes its the finished copy of the book, whether it has been published yet or not. The main objective for these Giveaways are for these books to get to readers before or during the books release so that in return for this awesome (DID I SAY FREE?) gift, the winner(s) will in turn write reviews on the novels Goodreads page.

While some of the novels are kind of obscure, they offer novels of all genre's from self-help to YA to memoirs. At the moment, there are about 33 pages of giveaways, with each page having about 15-25 giveaways you can enter. Entering for these giveaways is as simple as selecting a shipping address (for the book to be sent to) and agreeing to the terms of the Goodreads Giveaways (which are very easy to follow). I think it's pretty awesome of the authors/publishers to do this, and in order for it to continue happening, the winners are encouraged to write honest reviews (minus spoilers for the books not published yet) so that the novel gets a good amount of publicity from readers who are the target for these novels. I mean, how many times have you read a publishers description of a book and after reading it thought, "eh... I wouldn't go so far as saying it's the top 10 book of this year"?? It's because they want you to read it, and while they may think it's awesome, it's ultimately up to readers to discover this for themselves. So reading reviews by other readers/Goodreads users like myself, it's easier to see if I'll find a novel interesting enough to pick up. For the most part, even novels with the worst reader reviews are still enjoyable, but it all depends on who's the reader!

SO... the reason for this whole post comes down to the fact that over the past couple of days, I have won 4 giveaways... 2 novels are yet to be released and the other 2 are currently available in bookstores. If you do happen to win, (if you enter as many giveaways as I do, you're bound to win at least once), shipping takes about 4-6 weeks, depending on who's shipping the novels (usually the publisher) and when I receive mine in the mail, I'll be doing a very happy happy joy joy post with pictures included. :)