Book Haul #23

Haven't done one in ages and I've received quite a bit of books and even some gorgeous swag:) If you've read any of these titles, let me know so I can push them up on my tbr pile and don't forget to leave your links below in the comments so I can visit you back. Have a great weekend, lovelies!

Physical copies

The 5th Wave (The 5th Wave #1) by Rick Yancey

Soul Screamers Volume Three by Rachel Vincent (includes books #5, #6 and Sophie's novella)

Stealing Parker (Hundred Oaks #2) by Miranda Kenneally

Catching Jordan (Hundred Oaks #1) by Miranda Kenneally (read and l-o-v-e-d!!!, review will be up soon)

Lola and the Boy Next Door (Anna and the French Kiss #2) by Stephanie Perkins

E-books

Truth about You and Me by Amanda Grace (arc)

Escaping Reality (The Secret Life of Amy Bensen #1) by Lisa Renee Jones (arc)

Out of Line by Jen McLaughnlin (arc)

What Endures by Katie Lee (arc)

Ricochet (Addicted to You #1.5) by Krista and Becca Ritchie

Letters to Nowhere by Julie Cross

If You Leave (Beautifully Broken #2) by Courtney Cole

Jordyn by Tiffany King. This was an Amazon freebie. You can find it here. I've been waiting to own this pretty for a long time and I've only heard great things about Tiffany's writing so it was a must 'purchase'.

There were two awesome moments on what seemed to be quite an ordinary day of August. First, I received gorgeous swag from the very talented Elizabeth Norris. I read Unraveling  (my review can be found here) this spring and loved loved loved this book so hard. It was one of these books that I knew I had to have on my shelf as a physical copy as well so I purchased a paperback copy. It arrived way back, but this one book made Elizabeth one of my favorite authors. Since I obviously can't fly across the Atlantic to any of her signings, she kindly provided me with a bookplate. I was wayyyyyyy too happy about it to consider me normal, hehe:) Also, the always wonderful Jasprit from The Reader's Den  sent me a copy of The 5th Wave which I've been pining over ever since these raving reviews started to pop up among blogosphere. She loved it, Rachel, her co-blogger, loved it and everyone loves this book so am I excited? You betcha ;)

HUGE thanks and hugs to Elizabeth Norris and Jasprit, also, big thanks to Flux, Julie Patra publishing, Jen McLaughlin, Inksplinger PR, Katie Lee and Netgalley.

What did you get this week? Leave your links below and I'll check out your goodies :)

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Mod Podge Bookshelf and Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Book Haul #17

Haven't done one in a while and since I've gotten a lot of books, I've divided the physical ones into to parts and I'll feature the first one this week. As always, if you've read any of these books, let me know in the comments. Life is short and I only want to read awesome books so if you loved/hated some of them, name 'em and I'll rearrange my TBR shelf accordingly. Don't forget to leave me your link in the comments so I can visit you back :)

Physical Books

Blood Red Road (Dust Lands #1) by Moira young

The Collector (Dante Walker #1) by Victoria Scott

With All My Soul (Soul Screamers #7) by Rachel Vincent 

ATTENTION: DO NOT SPOIL SOUL SCREAMERS FOR ME, PLEASE! I HAVEN'T READ PAST THIRD BOOK YET LOL

The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1) by Julie Kagawa

For review

Rules of Entanglement (Fighting for Love #2) by Gina L. Maxwell (currently reading)
Ink (Paper Gods #1) by Amanda Sun
Of Silver and Beasts (Goddess Wars #1) by Trisha Wolfe (read, review soon)

True by Erin McCarthy
Gorgeous by Paul Rudnick

Won or gifted

Bitter Angel by Megan Hand

I was lucky enough to won a copy of Bitter Angel by Megan Hand via Amy at Book Loving Mom. Thank you, girls! What a pretty cover it has! And the synopsis sounds so cool!! Can't. Wait. To. Read. This. Pretty.

Also, thank you to Entangled, Penguin, Trisha Wolfe, Scholastic and Harlequin UK.

What did you get this week? Leave your links below and I'll check out your goodies :)

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Mod Podge Bookshelf and Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Review: My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Keep (Soul Screamers #3)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Published: June 1st 2010
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

Kaylee has one addiction: her very hot, very popular boyfriend, Nash. A banshee like Kaylee, Nash understands her like no one else. Nothing can come between them.Until something does.Demon breath. No, not the toothpaste-challenged kind. The Netherworld kind. The kind that really can kill you. Somehow the super-addictive substance has made its way to the human world. But how? Kaylee and Nash have to cut off the source and protect their friends—one of whom is already hooked.And so is someone else…

Soul Seekers series is filled with loads of potential. I think it’s like with Vampire Academy­ – the first two books are like build up for the rest of them and that’s when the real action begins. My Soul to Keep was definitely darker and more twisted than the previous ones. It was different, but enjoyed it quite a bit!

“Was I wearing my 'I'm done with my virginity, please get rid of it for me' T-shirt?”

So.. *ahem* I adored Nash in the previous books. He was sweet, understanding, patient, compassionate, protective and sexy. But I didn’t remember him being so horny all the time. Yeah, there was a lot of smooching and smexy going on, but never like this. In addition to making out, this book had some really dark stuff going on from the very start. Things quickly took a turn towards bad and after a while even from bad to worse.

I still think I’m smarter than Kaylee. I mean… Come on, Kaylee! Those balloons? Did you ever think that you were the one who came to that idea in the first place? Why didn’t you consider that possibility? Didn’t it seem familiar? At the first mention of balloons I knew what it was. I didn’t know who the catalyst was to this though and boy did it took me by surprise!

The character who really came to life in this installment was Tod – my snarky, sweet, selfish, yet selfless, handsome reaper. I just love you so much! I didn’t think you’d steal my heart away from Nash, but you did. You’re plain awesome!! I wish we could have had more scenes with Kay’s Dad, too. He is another character I absolutely adore. He knows he made a mistake by leaving her years ago, but now he’s here, trying to make up for the years they lost and he is doing a darn awesome job! LOL @ his attitude and “Go home, Nash!“ comments. Bahahahhaha. Poor Nash…

“I got swirling eyes and the capacity to shatter windows with my bare voice. Tod got teleportation and invisibility. The supernatural world is so far from fair.” 

I feel like this is a turning point in this series and for that I’m glad. I want things to go even darker. Hopefully the following books are going to be that and feature more Kaylee’s Father and Tod. *fingers crossed* Oh, and by the way, there was a cover reveal for the third volume. I already purchased it and when I did, it was under 6€ (8$) on TBD and it has books 5 and 6 and Sophie’s novella in it. Quite a great deal, if you ask me and that cover doesn’t hurt my eyes either ;) Anyway, I cannot wait to clear my schedule and read the next one already. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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Review: My Soul to Save by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Save (Soul Screamers #2)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Published: December 29th 2009
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

When Kaylee Cavanaugh screams, someone dies.

So when teen pop star Eden croaks onstage and Kaylee doesn’t wail, she knows something is dead wrong. She can’t cry for someone who has no soul.

The last thing Kaylee needs right now is to be skipping school, breaking her dad’s ironclad curfew and putting her too-hot-to-be-real boyfriend’s loyalty to the test. But starry-eyed teens are trading their souls: a flickering lifetime of fame and fortune in exchange for eternity in the Netherworld—a consequence they can’t possibly understand.

Kaylee can’t let that happen, even if trying to save their souls means putting her own at risk...

Last week I said that this is probably a series that’ll improve with each book. I still stand by that statement and if it weren’t for some of the annoying things that took place in My Soul to Save, it would have been not just good, but a great read. Unfortunately there were some elements that annoyed the heck out of me so I cannot raise my rating, but before we get onto that part, let's go over the good things, shall we? 

“Sneak out." He shrugged, as if that should have been a no-brainer. But that was easy for him to say. He was dead. What else could they do to him, take away his birthday?

I’m beginning to adjust to Rachel’s writing style which is great, because it’s written in first perspective from Kaylee’s point of view, therefore I can get to know her better and relate to her more. She is one sassy girl who doesn’t take anyone’s BS and confronts everyone. She is always the one to suffer from helping others, but she’s still trying to do everything in her power to help. That’s what good people do, right? Oh, and she is like a magnet for trouble. However, Kaylee always finds a way out of bad situations. With the help of Nash, Tod and Harmony, she’s learning things about herself and watching her adjust to this new world is amusing to say the least.

Plot, as always, moved on quickly. It’s probably one of the best perks of Rachel’s writing that you don’t get bored that easily. Yeah, I may not agree with every twist and turn she puts on the road for her characters, but they’re all necessary when you think about the main picture. I love that these characters are all becoming their own persons and their sarcastic jokes don’t hurt either. In My Soul to Save we get the first real glimpse of the Netherworld and it’s freaking creepy! Netherworlders (is that even a world? I’m not sure how Rachel referred to them…) are somewhat comparable to Laini Taylor’s Chimaera but their society is very similar to the human world which is really interesting. I’m looking forward to exploring that.

As to what I didn’t enjoy.. Umm.. Let’s just say that the whole plot circled around Addison Page. First of all, that girl was just “meh”. Secondly, I could care any less about her when I want to read about our characters’ struggle, not hers. Ok, enough about her. Moving on, god forbid there’s another love triangle being set up. Nash and Kay seem like a great couple who complement each other in every way possible. Correct me if I’m wrong, but what happened at the end of this book seemed a hell of a lot like a love triangle on the way for our heroine. That just.. sucks. Hopefully it’ll not go all Vampire Diaries and be all triangles and squares or anything other love related mathematical object that includes more than two people.

“I see you all the time, but you've never seen me, because Kaylee said if I got too close to you, I'd suffer eternity without my balls."
"Jeez, Tod!" I shouted, my anger threatening to boil over and scald us all.

So, as I said in the first paragraph, this book could have been great, but since the main problem here was with Addison and helping her out of the consequences of her own foolish decisions, I didn’t enjoy it that much. The potential was there, though, and if it wasn’t for the whole book being about her, I probably would have given it 4 stars. I hope the next books (how many are there in total? Novellas excluded, 7? I think so) will give us insight to Kay’s relationship with her father, learning about her abilities and growing as a person. Some major action and sarcasm always get plus points from me. Fingers crossed!

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

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Review: My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Take (Soul Screamers #1)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Published: August 1st 2009
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | TBD

She doesn't see dead people. She senses when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.

Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about her need to scream than she does. And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason, only Kaylee knows who'll be next.

Okay, so this is another pretty famous series that everyone is raving about. I wasn't a fan of the prequel, I found it lacking character and it was just overall boring until the last third of it when it really picked up. However, I think it benefited that I read it before My Soul to Take, because I understood a hell of a lot more than I would have otherwise. The first book was actually pretty good and I enjoyed it quite a bit.

“The worst memories stick with us, while the nice ones always seem to slip through our fingers.”

Plot. I don't want to spoil anything and since it was such a short read, I can't really tell you that much in specific, but the most fascinating part for me was the mythology and origin of all of these creatures which wasn't enough and you can paint me intrigued, because I want to know more. The plot was full of action, witty remarks, snarky characters and some smexy parts. I think the fact that it all moved so quickly kept me interested to find out what happens next. It was a bit predictable, I figured out some of the key points before Kaylee did, but it didn't bother me that much.

Characters. Kaylee is your typical heroine: she isn't aware of her heritage before someone tells her after some of the unusual things that take place at the beginning of the novel. After that she's trying to cope with it all and do her best to use it for a good cause. What surprised me was that she took the information very well. I don't think I could have been so calm about it. I still admired her calmness, strenght and need to help. That being said, she isn't perfect, because at times she drew conclusions so randomly and they weren't always correct either.

Nash is a good guy and for a change the heroine doesn't want to hook up with a snarky bad boy. No, Nash is loyal, friendly and with a good sense of humor. Oh, and pretty darn attractive! Their relationship took off with a great speed, but what else is there to expect from a Harlequin book. Kaylee's extended family was, at times, a bit chaotic, but I liked them, Sophie excluded. Yeah, her aunt was vain, but she cared about Kaylee. At leas she wasn't all Cruella de Vil on Kay like Sophie. Emma, Kaylee's best friend, brings a positive attitude to the plate in addition to the deaths that make the story mysterious and dark. I loved, loved, loved Kaylee's Dad! He was awesome and his relationship with his brother Brandon was a joy to read about.

“Kaylee, you're adding two and two and coming up with seven.”

In the end it was really good, but I'm sure this series is the kind that keeps getting better and better with every installment and the ratings among my friends in goodreads definitely give me hope that I'll end up not liking, but loving this series. Rachel Vincent has done a great job in portraying teenagers as they are while adding a touch of mythology and suspense to the story. Overall I enjoyed it and I definitely want to read some more.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

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IMM/StS #7

These are the books I got throughout the past two weeks. Leave me a comment if you've read any of these and tell me whether or not you liked it so I know which books to pick up next. Also, make sure to leave your StS/IMM links in the comments so I can visit you back. Thanks!

 Days of Blood & Starlight (Daughter of Smoke and Bone #2) by Laini Taylor *this book is probably the most beautiful book I have ever seen. Like EVER. And it's a real beast! It's huge and I can't wait to start devouring it soon:)*

Deity (Covenant #3) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer #1) by Michelle Hodkin

The Raven Boys (Raven Cycle #1) by Maggie Stiefvater

Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park

Soul Screamers Volume 2 by Rachel Vincent

Everneath (Everneath #1) by Brodi Ashton (you can read my review here)

Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Stiefvater in Estonian *I have already read all of the three book in this series, but it was in harcback and for ~8$ so I felt like I needed to get that since I really love love love that trilogy and I first read them when I borrowed them from a library, so yeah.. I think you can get my point, ha* (you can read my review here)

What did you get this week? Leave your links below and I'll check out your goodies :)

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Story Siren and Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted @ Tynga's Reviews.

Mini review: My Soul to Lose by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul To Lose (Soul Screamers #0.5)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Published: July 1st 2009
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

It was supposed to be a fun day, shopping at the mall with her best friend. Then the panic attack started and Kaylee Cavanaugh finds herself screaming, unable to stop. Her secret fears are exposed and it's the worst day of her life.

Until she wakes up in the psychiatric unit.

She tries to convince everyone she's fine--despite the shadows she sees forming around another patient and the urge to scream which comes burbling up again and again. Everyone thinks she's crazy. Everyone except Lydia, that is. Another patient with some special abilities....

I jumped into this series without knowing that much about it. People were gushing and raving about this series everywhere and I just couldn't look pass it anymore, so I had to see what it's about.

Kaylee is at the mall with her friend Emma and they're trying to figure out a revenge plan on Kaylee's ex as well as shop for homecoming. Then all of a sudden Kaylee feels the urge to scream the heck out of her, because she sees shadows creeping upon a child in a wheelchair and when she starts, she doesn't stop. The next time she's conscious Kaylee realizes she's been commited to a mental hospital. How did it happen and how, when and if she can leave is up for you to find out.

The first half of the prequel was intriguing, but I couldn't read more than 5 pages tops every night. My eyelids grew as heavy as rock and I felt like this book didn't attract me at all. I found this whole situation rather confusing and this mental institution just pushed me away even more.

 However, after complaining about it on Goodreads, I gave myself a promise to finish this ASAP in order to finaly start the real book. I was glad I did, because as soon as I started reading it got interesting all of a sudden. The last ten pages were fantastic and I'm anxious to find out more. If it's anything like the second half of the prequel I'll read it with pure pleasure!

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

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