The Reader Bee: September 2012

Saturday, September 29, 2012

Weekly Book Haul #17

Library Finds:

Alice in Zombieland - Gena Showalter
Ten - Gretchen McNeil
Crown of Embers - Rae Carson
This is Not a Test - Courtney Summers

Hey guys!

I managed to snag a couple of really awesome books at the library this week.
(Yay!)
I am SOOOOOO excited to have Alice in Zombieland, Ten and This is Not a Test.
These will be awesome books to read next month for Halloween.
And I can't wait to see what Rae Carson has in store for me in Crown of Embers.
So exciting!

I apologize SO MUCH for being such a slacker lately. :(
I appreciate ALL of you that take the time to still visit the blog regularly.
I'm trying to figure out a way I can still get some reading/blogging in with my new busy schedule.
(Speed reading course, anyone? ha!)

I miss you all SO MUCH! Thanks for sticking around.
I'm trying my best to get back in the swing of things.

What new books did YOU Get this week???

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Waiting on Wednesday #86 - The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson

The Madness Underneath
(Shades of London #2)
by Maureen Johnson

Publication Date: March 28th, 2013
Publisher: HarperCollins

Add to Goodreads

When madness stalks the streets of London, no one is safe…

There’s a creepy new terror haunting modern-day London. Fresh from defeating a Jack the Ripper killer, Rory must put her new-found hunting skills to the test before all hell breaks loose…

But enemies are not always who you expect them to be and crazy times call for crazy solutions. A thrilling teen mystery. (Goodreads)

So, I haven't actually had a chance to read The Name of the Star...
(It's the first book in the Shades of London series)
But I do have it sitting on my shelf, just waiting for me.
I think I will read it next month as a Halloween Read!
I know I will love it, and will be pining for The Madness Underneath!
The covers are so cool!

What are you Waiting for this week???

**"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine,
that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.**

Monday, September 24, 2012

Noteworthy New Releases * 9/24 - 9/30 *

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Waiting on Wednesday #85 - Nameless by Lili St. Crow

Nameless
(Tales of Beauty & Madness #1)
by Lili St. Crow

Publication Date: April 4th, 2013
Publisher: Razorbill

Add to Goodreads

A dark and eerie retelling of Snow White from Lili St. Crow,
New York Times bestselling author of the Strange Angels
series.

Sixteen-year-old Camille doesn’t remember her life before she was adopted by the powerful Vultusino family—the missing childhood years that left her scarred and silent. Now she lives a life
of luxury, protected by the supernatural Mafia Vultusinos, specially Nico, her adopted brother.

But Cami knows that she is not really Family. She is a mortal with a past that lies buried in trauma. And it’s not until a mysterious boy approaches her and reveals scars of his own that Cami begins
to uncover the secrets of her past . . . to find out where she comes from and what danger she now finds herself in. (Goodreads)

A Snow White retelling??? I LOVE retellings!
And this one sounds like it will be AMAZING.
I can't wait to check it out!

What are you Waiting for this week??

**"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine,
that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.**

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Review: The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

The Power of Six
(Lorien Legacies #2)
by Pittacus Lore

Publication Date: August 23rd, 2011
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 406
ISBN: 9780061974557

B&N | Amazon | The Book Depository | Goodreads

I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.

Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?

They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed.

I am Number Seven. One of six still alive.

And I'm ready to fight. (Goodreads)

I finally found time to read The Power of Six, the sequel to I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore, which I read and reviewed last year for the blog. I found the book to be an interesting sequel to the series!

The book is told from two different points of view; through John, who we met in the previous book, and also through Marina, who we come to find out is Number 7. I found Marina to be a refreshing character, she was very determined to figure out her past, and to survive her future. I did feel bad for her that her Cepan had kind of given up on her duties, and that she wasn’t as well trained as John was by his Cepan. She does, however, hold her own when she needs to. We are also introduced to another member of the Garde, but you’ll need to read the book to find out exactly who it is!

I still find Six to be a very fascinating character. She’s definitely a kick-butt character, and those are my favorite kinds. But we also get to see a somewhat different side to her in this book as well. Six is definitely my favorite character in this series. I love that we get to find out her real name as well, it’s not one that you would expect from her! John, and his best friend Sam, are much the same as they are in the previous book. Poor John, he seems like one big mass of confusion through most of the book. I just wanted to give him a hug!

The storyline for this book is much the same as the previous book. The kids are still on the run from the Mogs, as well as the FBI and police, and are trying to find the rest of the members of the Garde. I love that we are given parts of the back story as well. We were able to get a better idea as to how the kids came to our planet, and how they survived when they first arrived.

Overall, I have really enjoyed the books in the series so far. I’m really looking forward to starting the next book in the series, so see what adventures we are taken on next.

Happy Reading!

Monday, September 17, 2012

Noteworthy New Releases * 9/17 - 9/23 *

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Weekly Book Haul #16

Library Finds:

Pushing the Limits - Katie McGarry

Tiger Lily - Jodi Lynn Anderson

Endlessly - Kiersten White

Hey guys!
It's been a while since I made a book haul post.
I apologize for that!
Things are crazy here, and I haven't had time to do much shopping or requesting. :/

However, I did finally make it over to the library this week, and picked up some great new releases!
I've heard so many good things about Pushing the Limits, and Tiger Lily!
I'm really looking forward to reading Endlessly as well, although I hate seeing the series end!

That's all for me this week.
What new books did you get???

**This post was inspired by In My Mailbox by TheStorySiren, in order to share books received each week.**

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Review: Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan

Unspoken
(The Lynburn Legacy #1)
by Sarah Rees Brennan

Publication Date: September 11th 2012
Publisher: Random House for Young Readers
Pages: 370
ISBN: 9780375870415
From Publisher for Review

B&N | Amazon | The Book Depository | Goodreads

Kami Glass loves someone she’s never met . . . a boy she’s talked to in her head ever since she was born. She wasn’t silent about her imaginary friend during her childhood, and is thus a bit of an outsider in her sleepy English town of Sorry-in-the-Vale. Still, Kami hasn’t suffered too much from not fitting in. She has a best friend, runs the school newspaper, and is only occasionally caught talking to herself. Her life is in order, just the way she likes it, despite the voice in her head.

But all that changes when the Lynburns return.

The Lynburn family has owned the spectacular and sinister manor that overlooks Sorry-in-the-Vale for centuries. The mysterious twin sisters who abandoned their ancestral home a generation ago are back, along with their teenage sons, Jared and Ash, one of whom is eerily familiar to Kami. Kami is not one to shy away from the unknown—in fact, she’s determined to find answers for all the questions Sorry-in-the-Vale is suddenly posing. Who is responsible for the bloody deeds in the depths of the woods? What is her own mother hiding? And now that her imaginary friend has become a real boy, does she still love him? Does she hate him? Can she trust him? (Goodreads)

Unspoken is the first book that I have read by Sarah Rees Brennan. I have to say, I found this book to be a hilarious, and completely engrossing read! I love a book that can make me laugh, and you will definitely have some LOL moments while reading this novel!

The main character in the story, Kami, is absolutely hilarious. She reminds me of myself in the way that she is snarky and sarcastic at times. I love her for this, and found her to be easily relatable. Jared, whose family has just recently moved back to town, was quite a mystery. I found him to be extremely interesting as well. The relationship between Kami and Jared was well written, and extremely intense. While it seemed that they had known each other their whole lives, Kami still did not allow them to rush into a relationship. (I found this to be somewhat refreshing, and frustrating at the same time. Ha!) There is a love triangle in the story as well, in the form of Jared’s cousin, Ash. I didn’t care for Ash quite as much as I did for Jared, but he definitely did make an impression.

Kami’s friends, Angela and Holly, were very well written secondary characters. As were Kami’s parents. I enjoyed reading about them just as much as I did the main characters in the story. I love it when an author makes you care for ALL of the characters in a story!

The storyline for the book was very engrossing. I flew through the pages just to see what was going to happen next. The book ends with quite a cliffhanger, which has left me dying to get my hands on the next book to see what is going to happen next! Gah, the wait is going to be intense, but it will totally be worth it.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, so much more than I expected to. If you don’t already have it on your to-read list, you should be adding it right now!

Happy Reading!

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Waiting on Wednesday #84 - The Murmurings by Carly Anne West

The Murmurings
by Carly Anne West

Publication Date: March 5th, 2013
Publisher: Simon Pulse

Add to Goodreads!

A teen girl starts hearing the same voices that drove her sister to commit suicide in this creepy, suspenseful novel.Everyone thinks Sophie’s sister, Nell, went crazy. After all, she heard strange voices that drove her to commit suicide. But Sophie doesn’t believe that Nell would take her own life, and she’s convinced that Nell’s doctor knows more than he’s letting on.

As Sophie starts to piece together Nell’s last days, every lead ends in a web of lies. And the deeper Sophie digs, the more danger she’s in—because now she’s hearing the same haunting whispers. Sophie’s starting to think she’s going crazy too. Or worse, that maybe she’s not…. (Goodreads)

Oh wow...
Everything about this book is super creepy!
The cover, the summary... I LOVE IT!
I definitely can't wait to check this book out.

What are you Waiting for this week???

**"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine,
that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.**

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Giveaway: Speechless by Hannah Harrington & Phone Gelskin!!

Hey guys!

A couple of weeks ago, I had the wonderful opportunity to read and review
Speechless by Hannah Harrington.
(See my Review)

Today, the folks at Harlequin Teen and Big Honcho Media are giving YOU
a chance to win this incredible read, as well as a gorgeous phone Gelskin!

Keep reading to learn more, and don't forget to check out my review for the book!

About Love is Louder:

Harlequin TEEN has partnered with the nonprofit Love is Louder, a movement that started when actress Brittany Snow, MTV and the Jed Foundation decided to do something to help those feeling mistreated. Hundreds of thousands of people just like you have come together to raise the volume around the message that love and support are louder than any internal or external voice that brings you down.

About the Book:

SPEECHLESS

By Hannah Harrington
Released August 28, 2012

Everyone knows that Chelsea Knot can’t keep a secret. Until now. Because the last secret she shared turned her into a social outcast – and nearly got someone killed. Chelsea has taken a vow of silence – to learn to keep her mouth shut and to stop hurting anyone else.

Speechless explores the real-life teen issues of bullying, mean girls, LGBT awareness and hate crimes. Compared to the many books already out about bullies, Harrington’s novel stands out for its authentic voice and unflinching portrayal of what it means to be part of the bullying. In October 2012, Harlequin TEEN will be releasing a brand new survey that has interviewed 1,500 girls between 13-18 years old on the subject of bullying.

Link Up!

Hannah Harrington | Love is Louder | Harlequin Teen on Facebook & Twitter

Now that you've read about the book and watched the trailer,
it's time to move on to the giveaway!

Here is what you can win!

ONE copy of Speechless by Hannah Harrington!

AND...

ONE Phone Gelskin!!

Don't they look great?
What are you waiting for? Go enter now to win!

All prizing provided by Harlequin.

Giveaway Rules:

* Must be 13 or older to enter giveaway.
* Giveaway open to US and Canadian addresses only.
* ONE winner will be chosen and will receive the novel and phone case.
* Winners will be contacted via email, and have 24 hours to respond
* Giveaway will end Monday, September 17th, 2012
* By entering this giveaway, you agree to the terms listed above.

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, September 10, 2012

Noteworthy New Releases * 9/10 - 9/16