Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga’s Reviews and is all about sharing the books you are adding to your bookshelf, be it the physical one or your digital one!
More headway, maybe I'll catch up and finish sharing everything that I've added to my shelves. More than likely not this week or the next. :P I am sorry, I should have kept up on this but I find it fun to do massive posts like this. So I'll just get right into it again this week!
Mailbox Pickup:
Title:The Casual Vacancy
Author: J.K. Rowling
Format: Hardback
Release Date: September 27th, 2012
Release Date: September 27th, 2012
A BIG NOVEL ABOUT A SMALL TOWN ...
When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early forties, the town of Pagford is left in shock.
Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war.
Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils ... Pagford is not what it first seems.
And the empty seat left by Barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?
When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early forties, the town of Pagford is left in shock.
Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war.
Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils ... Pagford is not what it first seems.
And the empty seat left by Barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?
The Harry Potter series has impressed and changed the young adult fantasy and paranormal genre forever, and J.K. Rowling goes after the same crowd she started with. However, with this book the same age group that she started with is older and she needs to address that age difference in this book. I find it good to see J.K. Rowling back in action and trying to get a new title out into the public.
The Casual Vacancy has a lot of issues with me that need to be addressed long before getting into the book. The synopsis makes it seem like there is a town that is at war with itself. People seem to hate each other with never ending malice, but I don't know if that's exactly true. The other issue I have is the lack of any characters, the main character or whatever doesn't present itself. Who is going to be telling the story?
My biggest issue is the whole book is about how a supposed empty seat left by this Barry character, forces the entire town into World War 3. I find this political ploy and the whole plot sense of this synopsis to be very poor and very boring. In fact the only real reason I picked this book up was because it was written by J.K. Rowling. We'll see if she can keep her Harry Potter status by the end of the book.
The Casual Vacancy has a lot of issues with me that need to be addressed long before getting into the book. The synopsis makes it seem like there is a town that is at war with itself. People seem to hate each other with never ending malice, but I don't know if that's exactly true. The other issue I have is the lack of any characters, the main character or whatever doesn't present itself. Who is going to be telling the story?
My biggest issue is the whole book is about how a supposed empty seat left by this Barry character, forces the entire town into World War 3. I find this political ploy and the whole plot sense of this synopsis to be very poor and very boring. In fact the only real reason I picked this book up was because it was written by J.K. Rowling. We'll see if she can keep her Harry Potter status by the end of the book.
Title: Red Rain
Author: R.L. Stine
Format: Hardback
Release Date: October 9th, 2011
Release Date: October 9th, 2011
Travel writer Lea Sutter finds herself on a small island off the coast of South Carolina, the wrong place at the wrong time. A merciless, unanticipated hurricane cuts a path of destruction and Lea barely escapes with her life. In the storm’s aftermath, she discovers orphaned twin boys and impulsively decides to adopt them. The boys, Samuel and Daniel, seem amiable and immensely grateful; Lea’s family back on Long Island—husband Mark and their two children, Ira and Elena—aren’t quite so pleased. But even they can’t anticipate the twins’ true nature—or predict that, within a few weeks’ time, Mark will wind up implicated in two brutal murders, with the police narrowing in.
Red Rain by R.L. Stine follows in the same line as The Casual Vacancy. When I was younger I read a few Goosebumps books, and they always kept me in suspense and there was some bit of a fear behind the chapters and books. I wouldn't say I thoroughly enjoyed the books back than, but I have changed since I than.
When I picked up Red Rain, I was looking for a good suspense or thriller book. I wanted something that pulled me and tried to scare me through the book. Than when I saw this book come across book trailers on youtube, I just couldn't help myself. It fit everything I was looking for, and R.L. Stine is one of those authors that you can count on to put out a good book. I just hope my judgement is right on this one as well.
When I picked up Red Rain, I was looking for a good suspense or thriller book. I wanted something that pulled me and tried to scare me through the book. Than when I saw this book come across book trailers on youtube, I just couldn't help myself. It fit everything I was looking for, and R.L. Stine is one of those authors that you can count on to put out a good book. I just hope my judgement is right on this one as well.
Title:Yesterday
Author: C.K. Kelly Martin
Format: Hardback
Release Date: September 25th, 2012
Release Date: September 25th, 2012
THEN: The formation of the UNA, the high threat of eco-terrorism, the mammoth rates of unemployment and subsequent escape into a world of virtual reality are things any student can read about in their 21st century textbooks and part of the normal background noise to Freya Kallas's life. Until that world starts to crumble.
NOW: It's 1985. Freya Kallas has just moved across the world and into a new life. On the outside, she fits in at her new high school, but Freya feels nothing but removed. Her mother blames it on the grief over her father's death, but how does that explain the headaches and why do her memories feel so foggy? When Freya lays eyes on Garren Lowe, she can't get him out of her head. She's sure that she knows him, despite his insistence that they've never met. As Freya follows her instincts and pushes towards hidden truths, the two of them unveil a strange and dangerous world where their days may be numbered. Unsure who to trust, Freya and Garren go on the run from powerful forces determined to tear them apart and keep them from discovering the truth about their shared pasts (and futures), her visions, and the time and place they really came from. Yesterday will appeal to fans of James Dashner's The Maze Runner, Veronica Roth's Divergent, Amy Ryan's Glow, Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and Ally Condie's Matched.
NOW: It's 1985. Freya Kallas has just moved across the world and into a new life. On the outside, she fits in at her new high school, but Freya feels nothing but removed. Her mother blames it on the grief over her father's death, but how does that explain the headaches and why do her memories feel so foggy? When Freya lays eyes on Garren Lowe, she can't get him out of her head. She's sure that she knows him, despite his insistence that they've never met. As Freya follows her instincts and pushes towards hidden truths, the two of them unveil a strange and dangerous world where their days may be numbered. Unsure who to trust, Freya and Garren go on the run from powerful forces determined to tear them apart and keep them from discovering the truth about their shared pasts (and futures), her visions, and the time and place they really came from. Yesterday will appeal to fans of James Dashner's The Maze Runner, Veronica Roth's Divergent, Amy Ryan's Glow, Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and Ally Condie's Matched.
Yesterday I found on Goodreads I believe. I was simply exploring The Maze Runner series for The Kill Order and this popped up on the similar books section. Frankly the cover caught my eye, because it looked like the buildings were turning into trees as they went up and the face in the corner was confusing. When I read the synopsis of the book and the books it was compared to, my mouth dropped open. I have read all but two of those books (Glow and Daughter of Smoke and Bone) but both of those sit on my shelf. This book has some big comparisons behind it, and I want to see if they are justified.
Looking at the synopsis it seems the book is broke apart into two sections, Now and Then. What happens in Now to make it Then? I was wondering if there was a distinguishing event that makes the transition clear or if there is some coming of age event that Freya goes through (her father's death) to change all the events. Than There is Garren Lowe, the character that brings up a past even Freya doesn't know she has. I was confused on this, why does her memory seem foggy? Did something happen, I guess that's the point of the book; to explain why she's so confused and her past.
Title: Starling
Author: Lesley Livingston
Format: Hardback
Release Date: August 28th, 2009
Release Date: August 28th, 2009
Mason Starling is a champion fencer on the Gosforth Academy team, but she's never had to fight for her life. Not until the night a ferocious, otherworldly storm rips through Manhattan, trapping Mason and her teammates inside the school. Mason is besieged by nightmarish creatures more terrifying than the thunder and lightning as the raging tempest also brings a dangerous stranger into her life: a young man who remembers nothing but his name--the Fennrys Wolf. His arrival tears Mason's world apart, even as she feels an undeniable connection to him. Together, they seek to unravel the secrets of Fenn's identity as strange and supernatural forces gather around them. When they discover Mason's family--with its dark allegiance to ancient Norse gods--is at the heart of the mystery, Fennrys and Mason are suddenly faced with a terrifying future.
Set against the gritty, shadowed back-drop of New York City, this first novel in award-winning author Lesley Livingston's epic Starling Saga is an intoxicating blend of sweeping romance and pulse-pounding action.
Set against the gritty, shadowed back-drop of New York City, this first novel in award-winning author Lesley Livingston's epic Starling Saga is an intoxicating blend of sweeping romance and pulse-pounding action.
After reading Starling's synopsis the first thing I thought of what how similar it sounded to Divergent. Well it sort of does, minus the whole paranormal aspect. I see Mason falling for Fennrys and the romance being behind those two, while at the core Mason learns about her family's allegiance and what it means to her. Okay maybe it's a bit more different now that I'm thinking about it, but there is some part of a struggle and growing up tale to this book.
Starling is about every bit of a young adult novel that I enjoy. It's got a good setup for some good action and story telling, but on the side there is a elegant romance waiting to blossom. I love books that combine those two genre's together, however while both may try to do that, there are very few that do it well. Doing it well may be the hardest part to an author, but I find that it's the books hardest part doing it well enough for me. Everyone has their own taste in how they like different mixtures, so maybe it'll be done well enough for my tastes.
Starling is about every bit of a young adult novel that I enjoy. It's got a good setup for some good action and story telling, but on the side there is a elegant romance waiting to blossom. I love books that combine those two genre's together, however while both may try to do that, there are very few that do it well. Doing it well may be the hardest part to an author, but I find that it's the books hardest part doing it well enough for me. Everyone has their own taste in how they like different mixtures, so maybe it'll be done well enough for my tastes.
Title: Clockwork Prince
Author: Cassandra Clare
Format: Hardback
Release Date: December 6th, 2011
Release Date: December 6th, 2011
In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.
With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.
Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?
As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.
With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.
Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?
As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.
Okay and I'll get this out of the way right now. I did pick up Book #2 in The Infernal Devices series before I picked up the first one. I saw this on sale at a local Meijer. I have been trying to get around to reading more, and the Mortal Instruments series is on my list to get to. I have always been a fan of Cassandra Clare and have wondered how good the series are, if she's put out this many books.
The Infernal Devices is a spawn off of the Immortal Instruments series from what I understand. I don't know exactly how they relate or if they are even following the same timeline. I just haven't gotten into the series all that much, and like I said before it is on my list to get around to.
