I'm gone for a while...

Hey Everyone!


I'm posting to say that I will be gone from April 1st to the 11th, because I'm going on holiday to Japan! :D


I've scheduled some posts, so feel free to read and comment etc., and I also have a giveaway running right now.


CLICK HERE TO ENTER MY 200 FOLLOWERS GIVEAWAY


Thank you and see you in a couple of days.


Rabiah

Waiting on Wednesday – Week 49

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It's to spotlight on upcoming releases which I'm DYING to get my hands on.


This week's WoW is:
The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting


**WARNING: Is spoilery if you haven't read books 1 and 2**


In the end, all that's left is an echo...
 
Violet kept her morbid ability to sense dead bodies a secret from everyone except her family and her childhood-best-friend-turned-boyfriend, Jay Heaton. That is until forensic psychologist Sara Priest discovered Violet's talent and invited her to use her gift to track down murderers. Now, as she works with an eclectic group of individuals—including mysterious and dangerously attractive Rafe—it's Violet's job to help those who have been murdered by bringing their killers to justice. When Violet discovers the body of a college girl killed by "the girlfriend collector" she is determined to solve the case. But now the serial killer is on the lookout for a new "relationship" and Violet may have caught his eye...



Release Date: April 17, 2012


OHHH EMM GEE. OMG. OH MY GODS. I CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS ONE! (notice my excitement with the caps lock??) One of the best series EVER. Each one is more amazing than the last. Can't wait! :D


What are you waiting on?

200 Follower Giveaway!

I know I said this a while ago, but...


I've reached 200 followers!! :D


And now, it's time for the pretty much long-awaited (and my first) GIVEAWAYY! I just wanted to thank you all so much for following :)



Here's the deets:

  • TWO Winners! (I didn't have a giveaway for 100 Followers, so yup, TWO!)
  • International, as long as the Book Depository ships to you for free. Not sure? Check Here.
  • Need to be a follower on GFC or Networked Blogs.
  • Must be 13 or older to participate.
  • Ends June 1, 2012.
  • Comments on this post (although appreciated) do not count as entries


What can you win? WELL...

Your Choice of one of the following! 
(Click on the pic to go to the Goodreads page)



(PRE-ORDERS)



OR

$11 or less (USD) to the Book Depository

For every 50 more followers (starting with 250 :P), I will add FIVE more choices :) If I reach 500 followers in total (GFC + Networked Blogs) I will add another winner.


**400+ Followers?!?! <3 you guys :D


ENTER in the Rafflecopter below:

Life Is But a Dream by Brian James

Life Is But a Dream by Brian James


Release Date: March 27, 2012
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Rated: YA 14+
Format: eGalley
Source: NetGalley
Buy: AmazonThe Book Depository
GoodreadsWebsite

Sabrina, an artist, is diagnosed with schizophrenia, and her parents check her into the Wellness Center. There she meets Alec, who is convinced it's the world that's crazy, not the two of them. They are meant to be together; they are special. But when Alec starts to convince Sabrina that her treatment will wipe out everything that makes her creative, she worries that she'll lose hold of her dreams and herself. Should she listen to her doctor? her decision may have fatal consequences.


I have a confession: I tend to judge books by their cover. Which is what made me request this eGalley. Never mind what the book was about but the cover. That magical, eerie, yet beautiful cover which caught my eye. No hesitations on clicking the request button. It was only after I looked at the cover that I read the blurb. Of course, this only made me want it more. I got approved. I had to wait a while to read it. When I started, and guess what? I just couldn't stop.
Just like the cover, Life Is But a Dream is magically enticing, hauntingly beautiful and one of those contemporaries which make you feel. Make you clutch onto your very existence, unsure of what's to happen next. Becoming a teen opened up the word to a different kind of contemporary novels, and I'm glad that this one was there, because it is one story that will stay with me no matter how much more I ever read.

Sabrina's perception has completely distorted. The spine-tingling descriptions of her take on the world around her, had me in goose-bumps, but the writing is absolutely stunning. What Alec says about Sabrina at one part is totally right: 

You get to see past all the things that are fake and ugly. The problem is that most people look at the world and see a bunch of strip malls. You actually see something worth seeing and they don't think that's fair.

In some weird way, if you think about it, Sabrina's world is really much better than our own. I really liked her character for that. She's not afraid to be different, and she really does (philosophically) question: what exactly IS normal?

Alec's character was a roller-coaster ride for me. I liked him at the beginning, but then as Sabrina's relationship develops with him, I started hating him, and then before you know it, I liked him again! I guess I just like the fact that he, like Sabrina, sees the truth in life around them, how 'mechanical' the world is, and that everyone's just following a routine.

It wasn't too long a book, which was perfect, because just the right amount of plot went into it, and along with it, gorgeous descriptions. James' writing flowed and I can't think of one flaw in this book. The building up of tension and anxiety in Sabrina was brilliant, I must say. Best parts of the story. I also really loved how the story goes back and forth between memories and the present, as well as some personal thoughts from Sabrina thrown in there. Allowed the story to sit back for a while, whilst it progressed.
Thinking about the title as well, it's a very "ghostly" line– Life is but a dream... – the last line of the song "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" has a haunting chill to it. *shivers*

Life Is But a Dream is everything you could imagine it to be. Emotional, heart-breaking and evocative, Brian James explores the different and difficult, and crafts a masterpiece. 


If you like this, try...


Getting Over Garrett Delaney by Abby McDonald

Getting Over Garrett Delaney by Abby McDonald


Release Date: January 24, 2012
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Rating: YA 14+
Format: eGalley
Source: NetGalley
Buy: AmazonThe Book Depository
GoodreadsWebsite


Can a twelve-step program help Sadie kick her unrequited crush for good? Abby McDonald serves up
her trademark wit and wisdom in a hilarious new novel.


Seventeen-year-old Sadie is in love: epic, heartfelt, and utterly onesided. The object of her obsession - ahem, affection - is her best friend, Garrett Delaney, who has been oblivious to Sadie's feelings ever since he sauntered into her life and wowed her with his passion for Proust (not to mention his deep-blue eyes). For two long, painful years, Sadie has been Garrett's constant companion, sharing his taste in everything from tragic Russian literature to art films to '80s indie rock– all to no avail. But when Garrett leaves for a summer literary retreat, Sadie is sure that the absence will make his heart grow fonder - until he calls to say he's fallen in love. With some other girl! 

A heartbroken Sadie realizes that she's finally had enough. It's time for total Garrett detox! Aided by a barista job, an eclectic crew of new friends (including the hunky chef, Josh), and a customized selfhelp guide, Sadie embarks on a summer of personal reinvention full of laughter, mortifying meltdowns, and a double shot of love.

We've all read novels about falling IN love, but then every once in a while, a rare gem comes along that's about the opposite. Getting Over Garrett Delaney was that gem. Boy, if you thought falling head over heels for a boy was hard, imagine how hard it is to stop liking him. Or maybe you don't need to imagine. Trust me, we've all been there. Luckily for Sadie, she's got the help of her friends to get her though the ultimate Love Detox.
I've never read any of Abby McDonald's novels before, and this was probably the first book of hers which I've ever heard of. Her writing made me laugh, made me empathize and totally had me wishing for a group of people to help me through the hard times. She, mark my words, is totally a contender for one of the Queen of Teen contemporary. No kidding, she has the same familiar touch as Meg Cabot, Sarah Dessen and other Q of T's do, with her own little specialities. I've got to get my hands on her other books now!

Alright, ENOUGH about me ranting about how much I love this author. Onto the book!

Perfect. That's all that I can really sum it all up. The characters in this novel were per-fect. Flaws? sure. But that just made it so much better. I felt sorry for Sadie, and even though she was quite pathetic at times, mooning over Garrett, that was actually understandable. Like I said, we've all been there some time or the other. I love how we can see the stages of development, as she moves further away from the life she evolved around Garrett to become her own.
Speaking of Garrett, he is one character who you know from the beginning you're going to hate. Another thing I love about YA contemporary authors– you know exactly who's going to end up with who, and who to hate, but you still love the ride the author takes you on, no matter how obvious it turns out to be. (Anyway, back to Garrett) he's pretty obnoxious, I guess, and something about him ticks me off. He's always interrupting Sadie, he's always being judgmental about things that she does. It's just too... narcissistic. Hate characters who always want it their way. *Growls*

I love the twelve-step program. Like, some of the chapters in which she takes on the detox have the tips at the beginnings. It's a lot of fun reading about Sadie's transformation– it's like a complete new makeover! (She's All That, anyone?) There's something about a character becoming more of themselves that totally inspires me to do so as well. I thought about the steps and tips that the book gives and I thought it sounded awfully familiar to what I have done in the past. God, I had no idea how lame I was. Oh well, that phase is over and hopefully shall never come again.
The little twists in the story were quite enjoyable as well. Nothing too serious to make your eyes pop out, but definitely some little-heart stoppers in there. The ending was totally satisfactory. Just like a YA contemp novel should be.

Getting Over Garrett Delaney has definitely been one of the best contemporaries of the year so far, and I'm looking forward to more of what McDonald writes. Totally sweet, totally hilarious, and totally heart-warming, fans of How to Be Popular and Something, Maybe will fall hard for this gem.


If you like this, try...

Waiting on Wednesday – Week 48

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It's to spotlight on upcoming reads which I'm DYING to get my hands on.

This week's WoW is:
The Stalker Chronicles by Carley Moore

Sophomore Cammie Bliss has long been labeled a stalker by her peers, but when a cute new boy named Toby arrives at her small town high school, Cammie has a chance to be "normal." Trouble is, she can't really help herself and she's up to her old tricks of "intense observation and following" pretty quick. Making things worse, her younger brother is dating one of the most popular girls in the school, her parents have separated, and her dad has begun to watch their house most nights. Cammie has simply got to figure out why she behaves the way she does, and end it once and for all.


Release Date: March 27, 2012

This one sounds so adorably funny– mostly because it sounds EXTREMELY familiar (personally *wink wink*) Can't wait for this one!


What are you waiting on?

In My Mailbox – Week 29

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. It's to share with you all what amazing books/swag I received, bought, borrowed, won etc. this week.



This week I'd borrowed three books: The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger (the spine bent from being borrowed many MANY times), Looking For Alaska by John Green and Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder
I'm currently reading Looking For Alaska and loving it so far (it's John Green– how could I not?). I'd previously read Inside Out, but I didn't get to finish it, so finally I'm going to get to find out what happens!

At the bottom of the pile is a book I won The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith from Sandra @ Waiting For Wentworth. Heard so much about it, and so I'm glad I managed to finally get my hands on a copy of this.

**Thank you to Sandra @ Waiting For Wentworth!**


NetGalley and eBooks:

I totally forgot to mention last time, but I got an eBook copy of Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin for review. I'm still at the beginning of this one, but loving it so far.

From NetGalley, I got approved for Narc by Crissa-Jean Chappell (Flux Books), The Summer My Life Began by Shannon Greenland (Penguin Publishing), The Girl in the Clockwork Collar by Kady Cross (Harlequin), and Shadow & Bone by Leigh Bardugo (Macmillan Children's Publishing Group).


**Thank you to Anne Walls and Meredith Zeitlin for Freshman Year, and to all the publishers mentioned above for the eGalleys!**


Swag

Something I also didn't mention earlier. I received some really cool handicrafts from Emmelyn! Check it out:


They are all really cute bookmarks :D totally adding them to my ever expanding bookmark collection ;).

That's it for books this week!

■■■■■■■■■■


In My Reading Pile this week:


Rachel from Fitkshun does this in her "My Reading Pile" posts where she shares what she's going to try and read this week. I think it's a good idea to keep track of what needs to be finished :)



Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin


Kelsey Finkelstein is fourteen and FRUSTRATED. Every time she tries to live up to her awesome potential, her plans are foiled – by her impossible parents, her annoying little sister, and life in general. But with her first day of high school coming up, Kelsey is positive that things are going to change. Enlisting the help of her three best friends — sweet and quiet Em, theatrical Cass, and wild JoJo — Kelsey gets ready to rebrand herself and make the kind of mark she knows is her destiny.

Things start out great - her arch-nemesis has moved across the country, giving Kelsey the perfect opportunity to stand out on the soccer team and finally catch the eye of her long-time crush. But soon enough, an evil junior’s thirst for revenge, a mysterious photographer, and a series of other catastrophes make it clear that just because KELSEY has a plan for greatness… it doesn’t mean the rest of the world is in on it.

Kelsey’s hilarious commentary throughout her disastrous freshman year will have you laughing out loud—while being thankful that you’re not in her shoes, of course…

••••••••••

Methinks that's the only MAJOR book that needs to be read this week. So... that's it for now I guess!

What did you get in your mailbox?