Stacking the Shelves

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews in which we showcase our lovely new additions to our overloaded shelves :).

This week's treasures:

Her heart races, her muscles coil, and every impulse in Alessa's body screams at her to run... but yet she's powerless to move.

Still struggling to find her footing after the sudden death of her parents, the last thing college freshman Alessa has the strength to deal with is the inexplicable visceral pull drawing her to a handsome ghostly presence. In between grappling with exams and sorority soirees - and disturbing recurring dreams of being captive in a futuristic prison hell - Alessa is determined to unravel the mystery of the apparition who leaves her breathless. But the terrifying secret she uncovers will find her groping desperately through her nightmares for answers.

Because what Alessa hasn't figured out yet is that she's not really a student, the object of her obsession is no ghost, and her sneaking suspicions that something sinister is lurking behind the walls of her university's idyllic campus are only just scratching the surface...

The opening installment in a twist-laden trilogy, Stitch spans the genres of paranormal romance and dystopian sci-fi to explore the challenges of a society in transition, where morality, vision, and pragmatism collide leaving the average citizen to suffer the results.

Fall under the spell of Wake—the first book in an achingly beautiful new series by celebrated author Amanda Hocking—and lose yourself to the Watersong.

Gorgeous. Fearless. Dangerous. They're the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Lexi and Thea have caught everyone's attention—but it’s Gemma who’s attracted theirs. She’s the one they’ve chosen to be part of their group.

Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. But her new powers come with a terrifying price. And as she uncovers the truth, she’s is forced to choose between staying with those she loves—or entering a new world brimming with dark hungers and unimaginable secrets.

Happy Reading Everyone :)

~ Keely ~

Feature & Follow Friday

Feature & Follow is a weekly meme hosted by the lovely Parajunkee and Alison Can Read in which we book bloggers get to know each other a bit better and increase the number of our friends followers.

This week's question asks:

Worst cover? What is the worst cover a book that you've read and loved?

Welllll, it's not really a bad cover, it's just really kinda plain and generic ~ not saying much about the content of the book. It's actually a trilogy, but I'll go with book one ~ Torn by Amanda Hocking. I read this book back when she was still unknown, promoting her book for a whopping $0.99 on Amazon. I think the fact that it was under a buck caught my eye first, then the synopsis, then the ratings ~ one thing's for sure...it wasn't the cover.

Comparison ~ Then & Now

I loved this series ~ it prompted me to read the rest of Amanda's books, creating an avid fan. The new cover rocks, too. If you haven't read it, what the heck are you waiting for?

::other news::

Today's the last day to enter the giveaway for Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols. Enter here! Just thought I'd throw that out there ;).

Happy Reading Everyone :)


~ Keely ~ 

Fallen for Covers

Fallen for Covers is a weekly meme hosted by Fallen Angels YA Book Blog. Share your obsession with the beauty of the book cover. "Don't judge a book by it's cover..." blah, blah blah.. That's all well and true, but the cover is artwork in itself and draws us into the content. Mine was chosen after perusing the website an artist that's been mentioned in the book blogosphere. You can check out Phatpuppy Art, and see all the beautiful covers she has created. Pure talent!

Honalee by Amanda Hocking
**I love Amanda Hocking, and I can't resist a good story about witches. Throw in the sweetly designed cover, and I'm done for.**

In the small midwestern town of Honalee, Hazel Panning and her best friend Molly Novak are determined to get through her sophomore year in one piece, despite the vicious cheerleaders and Hazel's ridiculous crush on Landon Hooper.

Life gets more complicated when Hazel realizes that she has a penchant for sorcery, like her aunt. Her plans to stay under the radar take a detour when she and Molly stand up for themselves, and Hazel gets the courage to act on her feelings for Landon.

Hazel discovers that the sleepy town of Honalee isn't so sleepy, and magic doesn't make high school easier.

Why? The color scheme is gorgeous ~ purples and blues = magic ~ and it has that touch of classic witchiness. The spiderwebs and spindly trees in the background and the girl with a contrast of pale skin and dark clothing and hair illuminated by the lantern. Just completely eye-catching. Love it! That, and I'm a huge fan of Amanda Hocking :).

Oh, and you know how I love to include the trailer...

So, it wasn't really out in 2010. It was supposed to come out this year, but Amanda stated she wanted to rewrite the ending, so unfortunately, we might be waiting until 2014. So far away!! But I'm sure it'll be worth it :)

Happy Reading Everyone :)

~Keely ~

Book Trailer ~ Wake by Amanda Hocking

Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. But her new powers come with a terrifying price. And as she uncovers the truth, she’s is forced to choose between staying with those she loves—or entering a new world brimming with dark hungers and unimaginable secrets.

 I am so stoked that Amanda Hocking is releasing a new book this month! Three more days, to be exact... I'm a huge fan of her oozing-with-imagination novels, and I'm sure this one will be no exception.. And for your viewing pleasure, here's Wake's trailer:

Happy Reading Everyone :)

~ Keely ~

New Release: Wake by Amanda Hocking

**SQUEEEAALLL** 

Please excuse my childness, but if I seem a little overexcited, well, that's because I am. I tore through Amanda's Trylle Trilogy as if it was the air I breathe and plowed through her other books after I realized I couldn't get enough of her imagination and writing style. Not to mention her incredible story of self-publishing and making it to the top. She rocks.

Maybe I'm a little behind in the times what else is new, but I just found out that Amanda Hocking has a new novel to be released August 7th. Maybe probably you already know about this incredible news, but I just had to share anyway. It made my day.

Amanda Hocking takes you deep into a new world with the first book in her never-before-published Watersong series...

Beautiful. Fearless. Dangerous. They're the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Thea, and Lexi have caught everyone's attention, including the eye of practical Harper. But it's her sister, Gemma, they've chosen to be part of their group.

Sixteen-year-old Gemma seems to have it all - carefree, pretty, and falling in love with the boy next door. But her greatest passion has always been the water. She craves late night swims under the stars, where she can be alone yet belong to the sea. Lately she's had company. Penn, Thea, and Lexi spend their nights dancing, singing, and partying on the cove--and one night Gemma joins them. When she wakes up groggy on the beach the next morning, she knows something has changed.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. As she uncovers the truth about her new mythical powers, Gemma is forced to choose between staying with those she loves or entering a dark world brimming with unimaginable secrets.

You can check out the soundtrack, read an excerpt, and get more info at the links provided... If you haven't read Amanda Hocking, you should definitely pick up one, any, of her books :).







Happy Reading Everyone :)




~ Keely ~

Hollowland ~ Review

"This is the way the world ends - not with a bang or a whimper, but with zombies breaking down the back door."

Nineteen-year-old Remy King is on a mission to get across the wasteland left of America, and nothing will stand in her way - not violent marauders, a spoiled rock star, or an army of flesh-eating zombies.

I read Amanda Hocking's Hollowland in two days. I've done that will all of her books ~ there's just something about her writing that draws you in and forces you to block out the rest of the world. It kicks off with Remy fighting her way out of a quarantine or a safe-zone. She's badass, so she kicks and screams her way out, saving  a couple other girls along the way. However, her little brother, Max, was evacuated, and although she has no idea where he is, she makes it her mission to find him, no matter how many zombies she's likely to run into along the way.

Remy is one of the few female characters I respect. She she kicks more butt than the boys, and she never fusses or waits to be saved. Her one flaw is that she shuts down her emotions (although, she considers that a strength) and refuses to enjoy any kind of normality in this crazy world. Maybe she thinks it's an illusion, maybe it's just that she's been in survival mode for so long that she's afraid or doesn't know how to revert back to who she was. Despite her best efforts, she cares and will do anything in her power to make sure her new family stays safe.

The plot is typical of apocalyptic novels these days ~ a virus infects the human race, turning them into flesh-eating monsters, and those of the minority that remain uninfected must try to survive in a world completely transformed from anything they've ever known. It's back to the basics with a few battles along the way. What makes this story is the characters. I've described my admiration for Remy, but Harlow with her naive and youthful way of looking at things offsets Remy's constant serious tone. Lazlo, my personal favorite, and his transformation from a spoiled rockstar with no other real skills than being in the spotlight to an ordinary but all around good man who teaches Remy a thing or two about how life is still happening around them, even among the walking dead. I'm a character driven reader, so although I really liked the plot, it's the interactions and relationships of the characters that strike me the most.

Amanda Hocking rocks ~ there's really no other way to put it. Her writing is simple and flows smoothly from page to page and her characters are dynamic and believable.

Give this one a shot! I'm tellin' ya, it's a pretty sweet read :)

Happy Reading Everyone :)


~ Keely ~

WWW Wednesday

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading?

• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

What are you currently reading? I've got my nose in World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. I never thought the idea of zombies could sound realistic, but there's Max Brooks for ya.

What did you recently finish reading? I read Amanda Hocking's Hollowland (the cover on Kobo is sooo much better) and Hollowmen back to back. Another story revolving around zombies.. I swear I'm not doing this on purpose (not really), these books just seem to be surrounding me!

What do you think you'll read next? Hmm, decisions, decisions.... I've got a few choices here.. I could go with a little Cassie Clare and the second novel in her Mortal Instruments, or I was looking at Anne Rice's new book, The Wolf Gift. Time will tell ;)










What are the rest of you readers up to???

Happy Reading Everyone :)


~ Keely ~