Weekly Obsessions

The awesome Kelly at KellyVision started posting a weekly post highlighting whatever she happened to be obsessed with that week. I LOVE this idea, so much in fact that I will be doing it myself every Saturday.

Here are my obsessions this week:

BOOKS

Just One Day by Gayle Forman

This book! I had such a deep and personal reaction to this book, and especially the main character. Willem is totally swoon worthy, and EVERYONE will be gushing about this one when it's released. It made the plane ride to Florida so much better!

Cover for Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay

I have always loved the Beauty and the Beast fairytale. This twist on the classic tale sounds amazing, and that cover...well it's simply beautiful. The red and black combination is a favourite of mine. Check out the Goodreads synopsis for more details.

Cover for Of Triton by Anna Banks

Pretty steamy right? I love the underwater kiss, and the little bubbles look like sparkles (or diamonds) floating around them. All around a pretty hot cover. Add it to your Goodreads (beware of spoilers for the first book though!).

TV

Bates Motel trailer



This looks really good. I am loving everything I have seen so far. I am a little apprehensive about the fact that they have moved this into current times though. I thought it was a straight prequel where they showed how Norman became the man we see in Psycho.  However, this still sounds like it'll be fantastic. The acting looks solid, and it seems well cast. I have high hopes for this, and can't wait to watch it in March.

OTHER

Disney World

The trip was fantastic. I can't wait to go again. If you missed my recap and want to see photos, I have a post written up already.

So what are you obsessed with this week?

Waiting on Wednesday.... Of Beast and Beauty

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick this week is Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

In the beginning was the darkness, and in the darkness was a girl, and in the girl was a secret... 

In the domed city of Yuan, the blind Princess Isra, a Smooth Skin, is raised to be a human sacrifice whose death will ensure her city's vitality. In the desert outside Yuan, Gem, a mutant beast, fights to save his people, the Monstrous, from starvation. Neither dreams that together, they could return balance to both their worlds. 

Isra wants to help the city's Banished people, second-class citizens despised for possessing Monstrous traits. But after she enlists the aid of her prisoner, Gem, who has been captured while trying to steal Yuan's enchanted roses, she begins to care for him, and to question everything she has been brought up to believe. 

As secrets are revealed and Isra's sight, which vanished during her childhood, returned, Isra will have to choose between duty to her people and the beast she has come to love.

The cover is gorgeous, and this sounds amazing. I love the twist on the classic story that this seems to have, and have high hopes this will be a great read.

Expected release date July 23, 2013

Romeo Redeemed by Stacey Jay

Romeo Redeemed by Stacey Jay
Release Date – October 9, 2012
Publisher Website -  Delacorte Books For Young Readers/Random House
Publisher Social Media - Twitter
Pages -384 pages
My Rating-  3.5/4
**obtained from publisher for an honest review**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

Seductive companion to the popular Juliet Immortal, in which former lovers—Romeo and Juliet—meet, not as true lovers, but truly as enemies.

Cursed to live out eternity in his rotted corpse, Romeo, known for his ruthless, cutthroat ways, is given the chance to redeem himself by traveling back in time to save the life of Ariel Dragland. Unbeknownst to her, Ariel is important to both the evil Mercenaries and the love-promoting Ambassadors and holds the fate of the world in her hands. Romeo must win her heart and make her believe in love, turning her away from her darker potential before his work is discovered by the Mercenaries. While his seduction begins as yet another lie, it soon becomes his only truth. Romeo vows to protect Ariel from harm, and do whatever it takes to win her heart and soul. But when Ariel is led to believe his love is a deception, she becomes vulnerable to Mercenary manipulation, and her own inner darkness may ultimately rip them apart.

Romeo Redeemed is a story of redemption, and how love can shine light even in the darkest of places. The power of love to make us want to change, and what it means to truly be there for someone else is explored in this twistedly romantic novel.

This novel allows us to get inside Romeo’s head and get to know his character much more than in Juliet Immortal. He’s given a second chance and must use it to save himself, and along the way discovers a love worth fighting for. His path towards his eventual change was one of the most interesting parts of the story.

Stacey manages to create a world so easily imagined by describing things vividly. The darkness of Romeo’s mind, and the horrors he inflicted and suffered are brought to life with her words. This novel is even creepier than Juliet Immortal because so much of it is coming from Romeo’s fractured mind. His mind is a sadistic and twisted place to be, especially in the beginning and Stacey captures this wonderfully.

Ariel is a perfect match for Romeo. She’s broken, volatile, and has a penchant for darkness. Her saucy side can match Romeo’s banter for banter. They both are attracted to the demons they see in each other. Their relationship is filled with passion, fire and is consuming. They challenge each other to be better, and Romeo especially wants to be worthy of Ariel.

Those hoping for a little more explanation of elements from Juliet Immortal may find themselves saddened. I will admit to being a little confused at some parts of the story. It veers into alternate realities, while presented right away, I don't feel were fully explained. It does come together in the end, but I felt there were still some aspects of the alternate realities, and  how they interact and co-exist that were not fully developed.

Those who may wish for the classic romance of Romeo and Juliet will be happy to hear that there is a bitter sweet moment between the two in this novel. I found myself aching for both these characters, and yet felt each was where they belonged in the end.

A darkly sexy follow up to Juliet Immortal that is necessary reading for anyone who wanted to know more about Stacey Jay’s Romeo. The series works better read together, but the first novel is my personal preference of the two.

In My Mailbox

This is a weekly meme hosted by the awesome Kristi at The Story Siren. It gives us a chance to showcase the books we got during the week.

This week I got 2 books from the library and purchased one.

The Catastrophic History of You and Me by Jess Rothenberg (goodreads)
Halo by Alexandra Adornetto (goodreads)
The Vampire Diaries: The Return: Midnight by L.J Smith (goodreads)

I purchased The Catastrophic History of You and Me. I have been hearing great things about it and can't wait  to read it. Halo is for my angel event. I have heard mixed this so hopefully it ends up being good. The Vampire Diaries book is simply because I've read the rest of the series and want to see it through until the end.

I have two books for review via Netgalley and the publishers

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers (goodreads)
Romeo Redeemed by Stacey Jay (goodreads)

I am super excited to read Romeo Redeemed as I really enjoyed Juliet Immortal.

Happy Reading everyone!

Obsessions

The awesome Kelly at KellyVision started posting a weekly post highlighting whatever she happened to be obsessed with that week. I LOVE this idea, so much in fact that I will be doing it myself every Saturday.

Here are my obsessions this week:

BOOK


Stacey Jay's awesome news

I may have mentioned how excited I am about fairytales. Once Upon A Time, Cinder, and other amazing retellings are bringing them back in a major way. Imagine my excitement when I read this on Stacey Jay's blog 

"Stacey Jay's futuristic retelling of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, to Michelle Poploff at Delacorte, in a very nice deal, in a two-book deal, by Ginger Clark at Curtis Brown."

Stacey goes on to give some more details, and this sounds awesome. I enjoyed Juliet Immortal so I am curious to see what she will do with Beauty and the Beast. She also teased us with a news of a Romeo Redeemed cover (she calls it YUMMY). VERY EXCITED!


TV

Vampire Diaries

This photo makes me all kinds of happy. I love Stefan and Elena together, and this season has been rough. This looks like a step in the right direction though and I am dying to see the episode this comes from.

Revenge


I've loved this show since the beginning, but I am swooning over this weeks episode where the adorable Daniel proposes to our devious (and slightly crazy) heroine Emily (err...Amanda). It was a sweet proposal with the rain and sweet words and all. I also LOVE Nolan. His snark is amazing. If you haven't checked out this fun, deliciously soapy show you really should!

Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay

Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay
Release Date – August 9, 2011
Publisher – Delacorte
Publisher Social Media - Twitter
Pages - 304
My Rating- 9/10
Obtained - purchased

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

The most tragic love story in history . . .
Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn't anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she's fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she's forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love.

Do you remember reading Romeo and Juliet in high school? Most people I know don’t really like the play, I happen to love it. Stacey Jay’s novel promises to turn the familiar story on it’s head and twist it and it accomplishes exactly that.

The writing style is fast paced, engrossing and the story kept me guessing. The “paranormal” or “supernatural” aspect of the novel is well developed and explained. It is a unique element and I really enjoyed it.

There are a lot of twists in the novel, so even when you think you know what is going on something happens to change that. Things are often not what they seem, and people sometimes are not who you think they are.

There is a lot of action in this novel. The fight scenes are plentiful and action packed. Juliet can certainly hold her own. Fans of fast paced, intense reads will appreciate this aspect of the story.

The characters were my favourite thing. I really ended up caring for both Juliet and Romeo for different reasons.

Juliet in this novel is strong, smart, caring, and still angry as a result of Romeo’s betrayal. She is an Ambassador of Light and is sent to protect the souls of soul mates from The Mercenaries (whom are represented by Romeo). She is often hard on herself as she doesn’t feel she had the “qualities” an Ambassador of Light is supposed to possess. I love that when she falls in love with someone who is “forbidden” to her that she is willing to sacrifice her happiness to save that person. She really does want to help Ariel have a better life when she is finished her mission. She is an interesting character and I am looking forward to seeing more of her in the second novel.

The other main character is Romeo. Oh Romeo, Romeo Wherefore art thou Romeo? The Romeo we know from Shakespeare’s play is nowhere to be found. He’s cocky, arrogant, and flat out mean most of the time. There is a more gentle nature underneath and sometimes you can almost see that he did love Juliet at one point. His character arc and development is the most dramatic in the story. I really enjoyed guessing what his motives might be and figuring out how much was truth and what was lies. I can not wait to find out what is next for him in Romeo Redeemed. He captivated me, and I looked forward to his parts of the story (I wonder what that says about me?). I had a hard time liking the love interest because I was so invested in Romeo.

Stacey Jay has created something really unique and captivating. You if love Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet you’ll appreciate this twist on the classic story, and if you didn’t care for the play you’ll appreciate it because it’s so different. Pick this one up, it’ll surprise you!

In My Mailbox

This is a weekly meme hosted by the awesome Kristi at The Story Siren. It gives us a chance to showcase the books we got during the week.

I had a pretty crazy mailbox week....







I purchsed:

Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay (goodreads)

It FINALLY came in this week. Stacey Jay was offering to send a signed book sticker if you preordered it and that also came this week (along with a Juliet Immortal magnet).

I won:

Die For Me by Amy Plum (goodreads)

Amy was having a contest on her Twitter for a signed copy and I won. I was so happy to get a signed copy. I have an extra copy now so I will be having a contest for that soon.

For review:

Betsy Wickwire's Dirty Secret by Vicki Grant (goodreads)

I also like the actual cover MUCH better :)



Thank you HarperCollins (and Shannon). This was a really cute book. Look for the review next week.

The Pledge by Kimberly Derting (goodreads)



The S&S GalleyGrab had this in it, and it was the only one I decided to take. Thanks to Simon and Schuster for the chance to read it.

What books did you get this week? Leave me a comment and I will check it out.

Happy reading everyone!

Waiting on Wednesday...

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick this week I actually saw first on The Bucket List blog. Thank you to them for bringing it to my attention!

My pick this week is Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay.


Here is the GoodReads synopsis

The most tragic love story in history . . . Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn't anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she's fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she's forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love.

I LOVE Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. It's one of my favourite Shakespeare plays (along with Macbeth). I love that this novel is going to twist the story on it's head. The premise sounds very interesting and could be quite unique. The cover is also very pretty. I can't wait until September 13, 2011 when this is scheduled to be released!