Book Expo America - Day Three

The third and final day of Book Expo. By day three your shoulders hurt, you are usually pretty tired, and all you want is a massage. Luckily the last day tends to be a little less crazy and busy.

I really wanted to meet Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian so the Burn for Burn signing was my first stop that day (after a quick booth walk around). Both Jenny and Siobhan were lovely, and Siobhan recalled my blog from when I had Burn for Burn as my Waiting on Wednesday. Again, totally mind blowing that authors would remember me or my blog. I will never get used to it. They also had cute little bottles of sunblock to give out at the signing. I had gotten my 2 bottles in the package of goodies from Teen Author Carnival!

I read Burn for Burn on the bus ride home and I REALLY liked it! I am already dying for book two!

I also went to signings for A Fractured Light by Jocelyn Davies, and 34 Pieces of You by Carmen  Rodrigues.

The day ended early and I bid farewell to NYC with plans to return next June!

To all the authors, amazing bloggers, and publishers I met during Book Expo - Thank you for making this an incredible experience.

Books from day three are

Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian (goodreads)
A Fractured Light by Jocelyn Davies (goodreads)
34 Pieces of You by Carmen Rodrigues (goodreads)
Poison Princess by Kresley Cole (goodreads)

I also managed to meet Claire Legrand and fangirl over Winterspell. I am so excited about this book (and it doesn't come out for TWO years).

I am already counting down the days until next year's BEA and can't wait to see what awaits in 2013!

Book Expo America 2012 - Day Two

Welcome to day two of my Book Expo recap (or as I like to call it The Day of the Never Ending Lines).

This is the day that tends to be the busiest. There are usually more people around and it makes it slightly crazy. It also happened to be the day that Chris Colfer was there.

To start the day while waiting to get into the exhibit hall the unveiling of the cover for Becca Fitzpatrick's Finale happened. To promote her signing and the unveiling Simon and Schuster had some hotties in black, low slung jeans and black angel feathers walking around. It provided a very nice distraction from sitting in line and the guys were sweet enough to pose for photos. The cover of Finale is actually really stunning and matches the rest of the series.

Cute right?! Simon and Schuster wins the award for best promotion. :)

As soon as I entered I did a quick browse to see what the publishers had going on in the booths and went to line up to meet Chris Colfer. This signing should have been ticketed and it should not have been in booth. The amount of people that showed up, and the unorganized milling around waiting to start an official line up created a blockage in the middle of a walkway. I think Little Brown did not expect the reaction or the amount of people that showed up. People were trying to line up at 9:00 AM for the 11:00 AM signing.

I manged to be one of the first 200 people that scrambled to get in line when Little Brown decided to create one. I was around the 40th person or so. Getting to meet Chris Colfer was worth all the craziness. He's super friendly, very sweet, and seems like a bubbly bundle of energy. I mentioned the breakfast he was part of earlier that morning and he seemed very gracious and humble for the compliments I gave. After he quickly signed my book, I manged to snap a photo and was rushed off. Whirlwind doesn't begin to describe the experience.

The second INSANE line of the day was the Harper Collins Teen Author signing. Bethany Griffin, Veronica Roth, Aprilynne Pike and Elizabeth Norris were all signing at the same time. The signing was at 1:00 pm, and people started lining up at 10:30. I rushed there after the Chris Colfer signing and was still pretty close to the front (I think I was like 40th or so). I was very excited to get to say hello to Bethany as our paths had not crossed yet. She's super nice, and I wish I would have had more time to talk with her. Veronica Roth is as awesome in person as you would expect!

The books from day two are

The Land of Stories by Chris Colfer (goodreads)
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (goodreads)
Entice by Jessica Shirvington (goodreads)
Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin (goodreads)
Insurgent by Veronica Roth (goodreads)
Destined by Aprilynne Pike (goodreads)
Unraveling by Elizabeth Norris (goodreads)
Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter (goodreads)
Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone (goodreads)
The Innocents by Lili Peloquin (goodreads)
Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas (goodreads)
Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes (goodreads)
Crewel by Ginnifer Albin (goodreads)
Altered by Jennifer Rush (goodreads)
Goddess Interrupted by Aimee Carter (goodreads)
The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa (goodreads)

Chris Colfer's novel came in a cute box that included a note from Chris that is seriously "awwww" inducing. The cute tote bag that came with is something I intend to use this summer while trekking to my sister's pool.

Day three tomorrow. A more low key, relaxing day (which was nice!).

Book Expo America 2012 - Day One

Nothing really compares to Book Expo America. It's an exciting, intense, whirlwind and a book lover's dream. A three day long book love fest filled with amazing authors, knowledgeable publishers, and excited bloggers and other industry professionals. I love being around people who love books just as much as I do and this whole event fills me with warm fuzzies for everything about it.

Upon arriving at the Javits Center I immediately freaked out over the amazing Cassandra Clare Shadow Hunter stairs. Each year the stairs get decorated with a book and this year honoured Cassandra's amazing series. While waiting to go into the exhibit hall Harper Collins had a bunch of people in Carnival masks and Carnival of Souls t-shirts to hand out masks advertising Melissa Marr's signing later in the day. I manged to snag a mask on my way in.

I also met up with Kelly from KellyVision in the morning and it was lovely to chat with her in line while waiting. It made it bearable and we ended up meeting up quite a bit during the week.

The mad rush to enter the exhibit hall is exhilarating and frightening at the same time. Forget staying with your friends because you will be separated in the crowd.

I attend the YA Buzz Panel first thing in the morning. The novels discussed were Crewel by Ginnifer Albin, What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang, Skinny by Donna Cooner, Skylark by Megan Spooner, and Colin Fischer by Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz. I left the panel very excited about each of these books and eager to read them. The editors love and admiration of the novels they were discussing was evident and it made you want to read them as well.

I went to autographing sessions for Gretchen McNeil's Ten, Amy Garvey's Glass Heart, Melissa Marr's Carnival of Souls, Tonya Hurley's The Blessed, and Kat Zhang's What's Left of Me. Meeting each of these authors was a highlight, and I am super excited to read all of their novels. 

The novels I picked up on day one are -

Ten by Gretchen McNeil (goodreads)

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater (goodreads)

Glass Heart by Amy Garvey (goodreads)

What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang (goodreads)

The Blessed by Tonya Hurley (goodreads)
Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr (goodreads)
The Diviners by Libba Bray (goodreads)
Beautiful Lies by Jessica Warman (goodreads)
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken (goodreads)
Eve and Adam by Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant (goodreads)
The Prophet by Michael Koryta (goodreads)

Tuesday night also happened to be Teen Author Carnival. I went this year and was so glad I did. It is so much fun. If you attend BEA and love Young Adult novels this is a must attend event.

The two panels I sat in on were

Is This The Real Life? Or Is This Just Fantasy?

The authors on this panel were - Barry Lyga, Tom Pollock, Hannah Mokowitz, Michelle Hodkin, Corrine Jackson, Rebecca Serle, Eliot Schrefer, Crissa-Jean Chappell, Kody Keplinger, Tiffany Schmidt, Fiona Paul and Gretchen McNeil. All the authors were funny, happy to answer questions and it was a fantastic panel. Barry Lyga is less intimidating in person than I was expecting (I Hunt Killers is seriously scary, sue me) and Tom Pollock has a lovely accent that was making all of the audience swoon. Of course, Michelle Hodkin is lovely, so pretty, and awesome (but everyone already knows this). Gretchen McNeil was a fantastic moderator, kept things flowing and was hilarious (she is also so pretty). 

My second panel was 

Where Have You Been All My Life (Let's Talk Boys)

The authors on this panel were - Hannah Mokowitz, Scott Tracey, Michelle Hodkin, Kieran Scott, Jackson Pearce, Crissa-Jean Chappell, Jennifer E Smith, Kody Keplinger, Sarah Tregay, Victoria Schwab and Jen Calonita. Also a fun, interesting panel. I enjoyed Victoria Schwab and found her really sweet. Her Tom Hiddleston crush was shared by a majority of the audience. She had an ARC of The Archived and I may have squealed a little. Michelle Hodkin got a huge round of applause for her answer to the "Marry, Kiss, Kill" question involving the Hunger Games Boys (for those curious Michelle would Marry Peeta, Kiss Finnick and Kill Gale).

In both these panels the highlight was getting insight into how these authors write the novels we love. Many questions were about the writing process, and what they hoped to convey while writing. Unanimously, the authors wanted to provide an experience for the reader, instead of teaching some lesson.

*so this happened! :)

After the panels there was a mass signing. I was able to chat with Michelle Hodkin for a bit about Noah, her teasing us with a bind up of The Evolution of Mara Dyer, and she signed my hardcover. I also got to chat briefly with Jackson Pearce, Fiona Paul, Lauren Morrill, and Aimee Carter (who recognized me from Twitter). All of the authors were incredibly nice. It's pretty mind blowing when an author recognizes you or your blog.

I volunteered to ask an author a question that was selected out of a box of pre-written questions. I was given a box of goodies for doing this. Included in the box were

The City's Son by Tom Pollock (goodreads)
Level 2 by Lenore Applehans (goodreads)
The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter (goodreads)
Fathomless by Jackson Pearce (goodreads)
Narc by Crissa-Jean Chappell (goodreads)
Winter White by Jen Calonita (goodreads)
Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney (goodreads)
The Wood Queen by Karen Mahoney (goodreads)
Witch Eyes by Scott Tracey (goodreads)
Demon Eyes by Scott Tracey (goodreads)

Another highlight of Teen Author Carnival was running into Katherine (from The Lady Critic's Library) and Katie (from Bookishly Yours). Both ladies are awesome Ottawa bloggers whom I love hanging out with and getting to see them in NYC was so fun.

So that was day one of my BEA/NYC experience. Tomorrow's day two post features my reaction to meeting Chris Colfer, getting to meet Bethany Griffin, and line ups from hell! 

The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

Release Date –  June 12, 2012

Publisher Website –  Penguin/Razorbill

Publisher Social Media -  Twitter

Pages -  418 pages

My Rating- 4/5

**provided  from publisher for an honest review**

**SPOILERS FOR BLOODLINES**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

The second thrilling installment in Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy spinoff series 

Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students--children of the wealthy and powerful--carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought. 

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Richelle Mead's breathtaking Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive. In this second book, the drama is hotter, the romances are steamier, and the stakes are even higher.

Romance, action, beloved characters, and enthralling mythology is what readers can expect from The Golden Lily.  A new, and dangerous threat emerges and Sydney has a whole new sets of problems including Angeline, and getting asked out on a date.

The mythology is beginning to deepen and become less murky. I am really enjoying learning about the magic side of this mythology and learning more about the alchemist and their backstory. This is something Richelle Mead does really well. She manages to extend the mythology and give you just enough to answer some questions, and yet totally surprise you a few books later with new information.

I liked Sydney in this novel much more than in Bloodlines. She has begun to grow on me. Her flustered and shocked reaction to being asked out on a date was hilarious, and her nervousness while on the date endearing. She’s a young woman being pulled between what she’s been taught to believe, and what she is beginning to believe for herself. As we grow up we begin to realize our parents may not always be right. We stumble and make up our own minds about certain things and this is what is happening to Sydney. The pressures of her assignment, mixed with forbidden feelings, friendships and new relationships make her easy to root for.

Adrian, if possible, becomes even more swoon worthy and captivating. While Dimitri will always be my first love in this series, Adrian is a close second.  The burgeoning flirtation and friendship with Sydney in Bloodlines is explored and deepens in The Golden Lily. The connection he has with Jill provided some comedic moments when Jill was seeing Sydney through Adrian via the connection. Seeing his feelings grow, even as he is aware that Sydney does not care for Moroi is bittersweet. Those who grew to care about him in the Vampire Academy series will be glad he is moving on from Rose and falling for someone else, however, this seems destined for heartbreak as well. I literally sighed and swooned when Adrian tells Sydney  ‘If I were him, I would have said, 'You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen walking this earth.” after Sydney’s date tells her a gorgeous dress she is wearing is “historically inaccurate”. Seriously, I don’t know how Sydney keeps her hands off him. 

The Rose/Dimitri fan girl in me sighed with happiness whenever he mentioned her, or he received a phone call from her. I am hoping Rose eventually makes an appearance and we get to see them interact again.

The emerging triangle that involves Eddie was one I am one I am not happy to see developed. I really like the thought of Eddie pursuing Jill and wish that would have happened. Hopefully this aspect will be more of a focus in the next books.

While I am not as attached to Sydney as I was to Rose I am still enjoying this series immensely. Adrian and Sydney’s scorching tension and banter is not only well developed but I couldn’t help but become invested in them. Fans of Richelle’s other books will devour this in one sitting and immediately look for more. Her addictive writing, compelling characters and thickening plot all make The Golden Lily a sequel that makes you want more. 

New To My Book Closet

It's that time of the week again. Time to show you what bookish goodies made their way into my home and book closet (to be saved from the evil book eating cat monster named Aria). This is inspired by the various "mailbox" posts out there (eg. In My Mailbox by The Story Siren, and Stacking the Shelves by Tynga's Reviews).

I had a very small book week this week. I had to purchase a book for my bookclub. We will be reading We Need To Talk About Kevin so I made sure to pick up a copy. It was nice to have a small week though because of Book Expo! My recap posts start on Tuesday and will consist of one per day.

We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver (goodreads)

I had actually taken this out at the library before and never got around to reading it before it had to be returned. Very excited to finally have a reason to read this.

Happy Sunday and Happy Reading!

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.

I am back from NYC and had a blast attending BEA. Look for my posts starting on Tuesday! I am still exhausted (having not slept yet after being on a bus all night), nor have I downloaded pictures or anything like that. Hoping to get caught up tomorrow after a good sleep.

There are a few things I wanted to highlight and with that -

Here are my obsessions this week:

BOOKS

New cover for Shatter Me

My jaw dropped. That's how amazing this is. I love the new covers, and hope the rest of the series has similar covers. I like it so much better than the original cover!

OTHER

Girls Only Night

My friends and I are planning on going to see Magic Mike at the end of the month. We figured we'd make a full girls only night out of it and go have a Bellini before the movie. I am so very excited to hang out with everyone, and the hot guys in Magic Mike are icing on the cake!

So what you are obsessed with this week?

Timepiece by Myra McEntire

Timepiece by Myra McEntire
Release Date –  June 12, 2012
Publisher Website –  Egmont USA
Publisher Social Media -  Twitter
Pages -  336 pages
My Rating- 4/5
**received for an honest review from publisher/Netgalley**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

A threat from the past could destroy the future. And the clock is ticking... 

Kaleb Ballard's relentless flirting is interrupted when Jack Landers, the man who tried to murder his father, timeslips in and attacks before disappearing just as quickly. But Kaleb has never before been able to see time travelers, unlike many of his friends associated with the mysterious Hourglass organization. Are Kaleb's powers expanding, or is something very wrong? 

Then the Hourglass is issued an ultimatum. Either they find Jack and the research he's stolen on the time gene, or time will be altered with devastating results.  

Now Kaleb, Emerson, Michael, and the other Hourglass recruits have no choice but to use their unusual powers to find Jack. But where do they even start? And when? And even if they succeed, it may not be enough... 

The follow-up to Hourglass, Timepiece blends the paranormal, science fiction, mystery, and suspense genres into a nonstop thrill ride where every second counts.

Intense. Funny. Page Turner. These are just some of the words I could use to describe Timepiece by Myra McEntire. This follow up to Hourglass takes place shortly after Hourglass ends and sends Emerson, Michael and the rest on a whirlwind race to prevent a disastrous outcome to a stacked ultimatum.

Fans of Myra’s writing in the first novel will be happy to hear that it’s just as great in Timepiece. She’s created an engrossing novel that is a rather quick read. It feels very polished and follows really well from chapter to chapter. The use of small cliffhangers at the end of the chapters made me eager to keep turning the pages.

The story is entirely from Kaleb’s point of view. I fell for his charm, quick wit, and was delighted to find much more to his character. His self assured attitude hides a lot, and it was nice getting to see things from his perspective. I found myself chuckling at a lot of things Kaleb thought, even though there is sadness to him that we get to glimpse under the bravado. This may not have come through without his perspective. I loved his banter with Lily (Emerson’s friend). They play off each other, and the sparks between them make sense. I fully enjoyed getting to learn more about Lily, and seeing her become a larger part of the story.

I didn’t find myself missing Emerson as much as I expected to. She and Michael are still very much a part of this story. Getting to see Michael and Emerson thorough Kaleb’s point of view was interesting. I liked getting to see their connection and actions through the perspective of someone else. It provided an outlook I didn’t think we’d get as I expected the novels to continue with Emerson’s point of view.

It sometimes feels like, with series, that a two book plot is being dragged out to make three. Timepiece avoids this issue. In book one we are introduced to the inner workings of Hourglass, and the complexities of time travel and its repercussions. In Timepiece we are shown that this world is much larger, has more depth, and is more calculated that we could have imagined. The mythology evolved and I was so glad to learn some of the character’s secrets.

With the introduction of the Infinityglass Myra has created a mythology that easily lends itself to more novels in this series. The story is just beginning, the stakes are about to get higher, and time is ticking on our beloved characters. I am looking forward to getting to know whoever narrates the next installment and hope to love them as much as I ended up loving Kaleb.