Blogger Conference and Book Expo America Day One

BEA is done. All that is left is the recapping. I am going to break this down into two posts. First up I will discuss the Blogger Conference and day one of BEA. The next post will have days two and three of BEA recapped.

BLOGGER CONFERENCE

This was my first year attending BEA's Blogger Conference. I wasn't really sure what to expect. Sadly, I don't feel I got much out of it and hope they look at revamping it in the future. There were some elements I did like (namely the blogger involvement that was pretty evident) but I can't say I would attend again (unless it really changed). The keynote speech by Maureen Johnson was funny, on point, and really uplifting. I wanted to shout my love of books from the rooftops and help make sure children always have access to all types of reading material.

The party afterwards was also an excellent chance to mix and mingle and meet a few bloggers.

During the party we got to pick up a few ARCs and things while mingling.

This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner (goodreads)
Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer Armentrout (goodreads)
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken (goodreads)
Zodiac by Romina Russell (goodreads)
In the After Light by Alexandra Bracken (sampler) (goodreads)
Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (goodreads)
Stitching Snow by R.C. Lewis (goodreads)
The Secret Diamond Sisters by Michelle Madow (goodreads)

I got to say hello to Michelle Madow during the party. I enjoyed The Secret Diamond Sisters a lot and was happy to gush a bit in person.

The Alexandra Bracken book and sampler were part of a panel and were given out to attendees. It came with a cute tote bag of the series as well.

BEA DAY ONE

A relaxed, much more reserved day at the Javits Center on day one. It was rather nice. Of course, I didn't know this until I actually experienced the other days, but I am thankful for this lull before the crazy started.

Atlantia by Ally Condie (sampler) (goodreads)
The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon (sampler) (goodreads)
Breaking Butterflies by M. Anjelais (goodreads)
Ghost House by Alexandra Adornetto (goodreads)
Talon by Julie Kagawa (goodreads)
Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater (goodreads)
Dead To Me by Mary McCoy (goodreads)
Famous Last Words by Katie Alender (goodreads)
Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick (goodreads)
Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley (goodreads)
Famous In Love by Rebecca Serle (goodreads)
Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini (goodreads)
The Jewel by Amy Ewing (goodreads)
You by Caroline Kepnes (goodreads)
I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson (goodreads)
Before I Go by Colleen Oakley (goodreads)
Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld (goodreads)

This was the day I got to meet Josephine Angelini! That was pretty awesome! I also got to fangirl over Rebecca Serle as Famous In Love was my most anticipated title of BEA. Rebecca is super pretty, and very fashionable (even her arm sling was cute). I have already read Famous In Love, and it's fantastic. It was EVERYTHING I wanted and more. I have lots planned to celebrate/promote this release so stay tuned.

Everything else was picked up at the publishers booths. The line for Sinner was just as intense as you would expect, but the Scholastic people are amazing and it went really smoothly. I was pleasantly surprised to see Breaking Butterflies there. It had caught my attention a little while ago, and while I have reservations about how the subject matter will be handled, my curiosity won out.

I kept hearing about The Jewel almost everywhere I went. The Epic Reads party offered me the chance to chat with Amy Ewing a bit, and she was lovely. I am excited to read it.

This day also gave me the two adult books I picked up. You by and Before I Go by Colleen Oakley. Both sounded rather interesting (for very different reasons) so I had to give them a try. Before I Go sounds similar to a movie I saw a few years ago, so I am curious to see how it compares.

I braved the Harlequin signing to get Talon, Ghost House, and Lies We Tell Ourselves. It didn't feel as overwhelming as previous years. It was definitely not as crazy as I was expecting.

The buzz on the floor was loud around I'll Give You The Sun. It seemed to be a title everyone was looking forward to picking up a copy of. I was lucky to snag a copy first thing in the morning while checking out the publisher booths.

Dead To Me was another delightful surprise. The Disney booth had an advertisement in the Blogger Conference booklet that told us to stop by and mention the ad for a surprise book. I happen to be handed Dead To Me and promptly fangirled (much to the delight of the lady working the Disney booth at the time). I have had this one on my radar for what feels like FOREVER now so I am excited to read it.

Day one left me excited to read some of these amazing titles, and eager for day two where I would get to meet even more amazing authors.

Next (and last)  recap post will go up on Thursday!