Showing posts with label BBAW. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BBAW. Show all posts

September 13, 2012

BBAW: Pimping awesome books!



Partials
by Dan Wells

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Publisher's Summary: The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out.

Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic-in-training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws have pushed what's left of humanity to the brink of civil war, and she's not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will find that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them—connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.

Dan Wells, acclaimed author of I Am Not a Serial Killer, takes readers on a pulse-pounding journey into a world where the very concept of what it means to be human is in question—one where our humanity is both our greatest liability and our only hope for survival.

★★★★★★


Cinder
by Marissa Meyer

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Publisher’s summary: Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.
★★★★★★


Embers & Echoes
by Karsten Knight
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Publisher’s summary: Ashline Wilde may have needed school to learn that she is actually a reincarnated goddess, but she’s ready to move beyond books. She leaves her California boarding school behind and makes for Miami, where she meets a new group of deities and desperately seeks her sister Rose, the goddess of war. But she’s also looking for love—because even though her romance with Cole had to be snuffed, Ash is a volcano goddess—and she doesn’t get burned.

This sequel to the edgy and action-packed Wildefire continues a fiery drama on an immortal scale.
★★★★★★



A Touch Morbid
by Leah Clifford
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Publisher’s Summary: Eden saved Az.

She fought and sacrificed and won him back from the most evil of evils. Now is the time for happily-ever-afters, right?

Not so fast.

A boy—even an angel—is hardly the solution to Eden’s problems. She’s still caught between life and death, still cursed to spread poison with her touch. She’s lost one best friend and another is quickly unraveling. And now something is happening to the mortals. Something very, very bad.

What happens in the dark spaces? The ones between life and death, love and hate, betrayal and redemption, sanity and delusion.

Or good and evil.

Eden is about to find out.

The riveting sequel to A Touch Mortal.
★★★★★★


Unraveling
by Elizabeth Norris
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Publisher's Summary: Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she's opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn't possible, she knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life.

But her revival, and Ben's possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI agent father's files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what's right in front of her: Everything that's happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben's sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she's going to need to uncover Ben's secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process.

From debut author Elizabeth Norris comes this shattering novel of one girl's fight to save herself, her world, and the boy she never saw coming.


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September 12, 2012

BBAW: What does blogging mean to me?


Blogging to me is the first hobby that I've truly loved and stuck with. And here are my reasons.
Friends!

I never knew that once I started blogging I would gain friends. I quickly realized that I would be connecting with people around the blogging world, but I never thought I could one day call some of these people friends. And, not only friends, but best friends.

These friends are there to share excitement with me. They are there when I need some advice. They are there to listen to me vent. And they are there to make me feel better when I'm upset.

This one particular thing is truly what I think has kept me blogging for as long as I have.

Books!

In a way, blogging to me is like a giant book club. With all the blogs I visit, almost every single day I find a book that I've never heard about. Being able to find these books and listen to other bloggers’ advice has helped me find some amazing books that I probably would never have known about.
Reading!

Reading has been my number one passion for at least 10 years now, and ever since I've started blogging, I'm reading more books than I ever have! And I love it!
Authors!

Being able to connect with authors who wrote the books I love is amazing. Having the opportunity to ask them questions about their books and even giving them a hard time when they crush my soul in a scene is awesome. But, best of all, I've met some amazing authors who I can also call a friend.
Events!

Before I started blogging, I had never attended even a single book event. Not even a book signing! The only thing I ever did bookish related before book blogging was go to the midnight releases of a Harry Potter book. Now that I'm blogging, I've gone to more bookish events than I can count! And now, they have become my favorite things to do when I'm away from home.
Fun!

All the things above make blogging fun! I look forward to chatting with people on twitter about a book or even about something random. I love reading and even responding to comments...and I love getting my feelings out about a book I've been reading. And people are actually listening...or should I say reading. LOL
Me time!

In my house, book blogging is all about me. When I get on my computer, or when I pick up a book, it's my time to unwind. I find the best time for me to do this is when everyone has gone to bed at night. It's amazing and peaceful! I think for me, it’s like a nice warm bubble bath is for others.

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September 11, 2012

BBAW: Interview Swap!



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Me: Please welcome today's guest Chachic from Chachic's Book Nook!  Hi Chachic! It’s nice to meet you!!! I love meeting new bloggers.
Chachic: Hi Mindy! Nice to meet you too. BBAW is a great way to meet new bloggers, right?

Me: First off, how long have you been a book blogger? And what type of books to you primarily read and review?
Chachic: I’ve been blogging since 2010 and I read all sorts of genre fiction - young adult fiction, epic and urban fantasy, fairy tale retellings and contemporary romance. I’m usually willing to try anything that comes highly recommended by a blogger I trust.

Me: What inspired you to start blogging?
Chachic: I was lurker for a while before I started my own blog. I’ve always enjoyed reading but I don’t get to talk about the books that I read with real life friends. I realized that having a book blog would help me connect with readers who share my tastes in books and that’s one of the main reasons why I thought it would be a good idea to start blogging.

Me: What is your favorite parts and the parts you don’t like very much of book blogging?
Chachic: I really enjoy discussing the books that I read with fellow readers and bloggers, that’s still one of my favorite aspects of blogging. I’m not a fan of the drama that happens though and I try to stay away from those because I want my blog to be my happy place - it helps me unwind and relax. I also don’t like experiencing a blogging slump because it’s frustrating but when you’ve been blogging for some time, I think a slump becomes a usual thing.

Me: What are you top 5 favorite books of all time? And your top 5 favorite books you have read this year?
Chachic: I have such a hard time answering this question! Can I cheat a bit? I have a long list of favorites over at my blog. :P I’ll share five of my favorite authors though: Megan Whalen Turner, Robin McKinley, Melina Marchetta, Ilona Andrews and Elizabeth Wein.

Five favorite reads from 2012 are Seraphina by Rachel Hartman, Such A Rush by Jennifer Echols, Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein, Northlander by Meg Burden and the Trese graphic novels by Budjette Tan and KaJo Baldisimo.

Me: What are your favorite Memes to participate in and why?
Chachic: I like doing Book Haul posts but I believe that isn’t technically a meme because nobody hosts it. I also enjoy participating in Retro Friday hosted at Angieville because I get to review older titles instead of new releases. I host a meme on my blog called Want Books, where I feature books that have already been released and are on my wishlist.

Me: Based on what you know of me now, do you have any suggestions of blogs I might like?
Chachic: Based on what I’ve seen while browsing through your blog, I have a feeling you’d be interested in checking out several blogs that I follow:
  1. Janicu’s Book Blog
  2. The Book Smugglers
  3. Fantasy Cafe
  4. The Nocturnal Library
  5. The Readventurer
Me: Other than reading and blogging about it, what do you like to do in your spare time?
Chachic: My favorite hobbies are summarized in the shirt that I’m wearing now:


I just moved from Manila to Singapore for a new job a few weeks ago. So I’m still trying to get to know the city where I’m based now by exploring bookish and foodie places.


For the first time in my life, I have access to a good public library and I find that pretty exciting.

Me: Thanks for stopping by Chachic! It was fun chatting!!! Make sure you stop on over to Chachic's blog to check out my interview. You can find it here: BBAW Interview Swap.

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September 10, 2012

BBAW: Bloggers That Rock!


One of the things I love doing ever since I started blogging is blog stalking. There are A LOT of blogs that I stalk frequently, but for BBAW I thought I should share some blogs that I think everyone needs to get to know. ***Note*** These blogs are NOT in order of "my" most frequently visited blogs, they are in alphabetical order.


Lisa with A Life Bound by Books
I fell in love with Lisa's blog about a year ago. She has a lot of fun features and she's super nice. I got to know Lisa more when I met her at ALA. You should check her out.

★★★★★★


Amy with Book Loving Mom

Amy is totally awesome. I think what I love about stopping by her blog is watching her vlogs. She always seems to do it on the fly without even thinking about it. I'm not quite sure when I stumbled across her, but we started off chatting back and forth on each other’s blog a while back.
★★★★★★


Alba with Book Pics

Alba is probably the funnest girl in the blogging atmosphere. She leaves the best comments (kind of like a hectic ramble) and she's a lot of fun on twitter. The best part are her vlogs. She can go on and on for 10 minutes being a super fan over only a few books.
★★★★★★



Pam with Bookalicious

I not only like to read Pam's reviews, but I like to read her random posts. I love it when she uses extreme sarcasm to get her point across...and she tells it like it is. She is very opinionated and that is what I admire about her.
★★★★★★


Books Over Boys
Momo with Books over Boys

I actually see Momo on twitter more than I read her blog, but I stop by her blog pretty frequently. I love how fun her blog is and I find a lot of books that I've never heard of and she makes me want to read books that I probably would never pick up.
★★★★★★


Candace's Book Blog
Candace with Candace’s Book Blog

I've been stalking Candace's blog since the very beginning of book blogging. I actually found the designer of my first blog design from her blog. I've changed my design since then, but she does an amazing job.
What I love most about Candace's blog are her reviews. She tells it like it is and doesn't leave fluff when it's not needed. She also seems to get a lot of the same books that I get unsolicited. So I like to see her opinion before I decide if it's worth giving a shot.
★★★★★★


Dazzling Reads
Natalia with Dazzling Reads
I love Natalia's blog because I think we have very similar taste in books and from her recommends I've found books that I've never heard before.

★★★★★★



Cynthia with Dog-Eared & Bookmarked
What I love about Cynthia's blog, is she tends to read a lot of books that I've already read. So I love to go back to her blog to see what her take is on the books once she has read them.

★★★★★★


Fiktshun button
Rachel with Fiktshun

I probably frequently visit Rachel's blogs (yes I said blog"s") more than most other blogs. And the reason is her random topics. She always has a topic that has me thinking and it is pretty much always right on the dot of how I feel (of whatever topic.) She always puts a lot of passion into whatever she writes. Plus, she also writes totally awesome short stories, and they always seem to bring me out of a funk if I'm in one.
★★★★★★



Karen with For What It’s Worth
I actually found Karen because she's Team Shelti. I love Karen's blog because it is not all about books. I've found some pretty awesome music on her blog.

★★★★★★


Hackaroo's Reviews
Jessica with Hackaroo's Reviews
I've seen Jessica on twitter more than I've gone on her blog. I'm pretty sure that she chatted about books on twitter with bloggers long before she started blogging. I love her blog because there always seems to be posts that are just a lot of fun to read.

★★★★★★



Mickey with I’m a Book Shark
I first found Mickey's blog through my favorite Indie author. What I love about Mickey is her reviews. I feel like I can always fully trust that she speaks her true feelings through her reviews.

★★★★★★



Kristina with Kristina’s World of Books
The first time I met Kristina is when I went to The Smart Chicks Kick It tour. She is really awesome. What I love most about her blog is her pictures. She takes some amazing pictures and they are usually book related. She reads a lot of the same books I like, but she also reads a lot of adult. And I think that one day, she might be the blogger that could ever convince me to pick up an adult book.

★★★★★★



Anna with Literary Exploration
What I love about Anna's blog is we have very similar taste in books. I see Anna at a lot of book events and we seem to be a fan of the same authors. What I also love about Anna's blog is, she always seems to feature (have blog tours for) really awesome authors. We might not always agree with our opinions on a specific book, but she is always honest in her opinion.

★★★★★★



Julie with My 5 Monkeys
Julie is a blogger that is local to me, but what I love about her blog is how picky she is about the books she reads. She is very honest in her reviews and she is very critical. We might not always agree on a book, but I can always trust that she is giving her honest opinion.

★★★★★★


My Guilty Obsession
Kindlemom with My Guilty Obsession
What I love about Kindlemom's blog is, she seems to have a lot of books that I haven't fully decided if I want to read yet. And I always look for her opinion on those books.
★★★★★★



Rachel with Parajunkee
There is a lot I can say about how awesome Rachel and her blog is. First of all, I would consider Rachel a leader in the blogging community, and a great one at that. She has a great feature on her blog called Book Blogging 101 that gives amazing tips in blogging. Another is, she's an awesome blog designer. She designed my blog and I think that if I had a ton of money, I would pay her full time. And lastly, I love how she always speaks up for what she believes in and I truly admire her for it.

★★★★★★



HD with Reading Writing Breathing
I met HD at ALA Annual in Anaheim this last June and he is AWESOME and best of all, I love his blog. I love that I get to see a teen boy’s POV of books that I read. He also has some awesome random topics and I, so far, have always agreed on his opinion.

★★★★★★



Jena with Shortie Says
What I love about Jena's blog is, her blog is a lot of fun. I've found a lot of really entertaining music, and I've also found some really great books there as well.

★★★★★★



Becky with Stories & Sweeties
I've been stalking Becky's blog for a while and I love seeing her opinion on the books she reads. Plus, I've found some really awesome books in her WOW posts.

★★★★★★


Tater's Tall Tails
Tara with Tater’s Tall Tails
What I love about Tara's blog is how much excitement she puts in her reviews. She is also very funny. I've met her a couple times at book signings, and she is just as awesome in person. Plus, I love her blog design...I could probably stare at it all day.

★★★★★★




Autumn with The Autumn Review
Autumn's blog is another blog that I've stalked for a while. She doesn't always read the same books as I do, but I love reading her take on books.

★★★★★★


The Bookish Babes
Andrea with The Bookish Babe
I've stalked Andrea's blog almost as long as I've had my own blog. I love that she, after all this time, still takes Indie books. She is very honest in her opinion about books. If I ever pick up a contemporary book, it will be because of her.

★★★★★★


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Brooke with The Brooke Reports
Brooke is awesome! What I love about Brooke is, when she talks about books, it pretty much surrounds the dude that is in the book and I crack up almost every single time I read one of her reviews. She is also very entertaining to have a twitter convo with.

★★★★★★



Nancy with The Ravenous Reader
The top two things I love about Nancy's blog are, first, her updates on local signing events. If I go to an event, she has been there...pretty much every single time. Second is her reviews about audiobooks. I love audiobooks and there are not many people that review them. She listens to a lot of audiobooks, so I like to see her opinion and get suggestions from her.

★★★★★★



Jaime with Two Chicks on Books
Jaime is one of my Blogger Best Friends. Almost every single book I read is from her recommend. She usually reads a book long before I read it, and she is a major book pusher...and she has never steered me wrong.

★★★★★★


Word Spelunking
Aeicha with Word Spelunking
It seems like I've been stalking Aeicha for forever. She reads a lot of similar books that I do, but she also reads a lot of books that I've never considered picking up. So I always like to see what she thinks about a book.

★★★★★★


Xpresso Reads
Giselle with Xpresso Reads
I really admire Giselle! She is extremely talented in designing banners and she is very good at keeping very entertaining posts. I've been a regular blog stalker probably from the very beginning when she started blogging and she proves what an awesome blogger she is by how successful she has become in only a year.

★★★★★★

Only one visit over to any of those blogs and you will totally get why I'm a fan!
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Dear followers, fans and peeps! Some of the books I review on Magical Urban Fantasy Reads are provided to me for free by either the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. Please know that I am in NO WAY compensated for my reviews. All opinions are mine and I am not required to give a positive review in exchange for a free book! But some of the purchase links on my blog are monetized through places like Amazon, Book Depository or Barnes & Noble.