A Great Opportunity and A Cool Link

Tanya Egan Gibson, author of the upcoming adult/teen book How To Buy a Love of Reading which will be released May 14 (check out the book trailer here), is offering readers the chance to share stories about how reading changed their lives on a new part of her site.

All submissions will be posted (subject to approval to weed out spam and profanity), and between now and the novel's release date on May 14th, three of them then will be chosen to be made into flash-animated "books" on the site's virtual bookshelf. Also, the three winners will win a signed copy of How To Buy a Love of Reading.

Basically it's a win win situation, that I will defintly be taking part in and I hope you do too. :)

Also, recently, author Brent Hartinger ( author of Project Sweet Life) sent me an email that linked to a Harry Potter vs. Twilight discussion where an hour-long debate occurred between a few teens. He ended up compiling all of the footage into an eight minute video, which he hopes you will check out here.

The One by Ed Decter

Summary:

She doesn't know the rules.

But a girl like her doesn't need to.

Chloe Gamble knows three things: she's better than the tiny Texas town she grew up in; there's just one person she can trust; and she wants to be famous.

And what Chloe wants.... Chloe gets. (from Amazon)

Review:

Going into this I wasn't expecting a whole lot. Possibly a page turner, but mostly another small town girl gets famous kind of novel. Though, it was a decent book that shows promise in being a great new trilogy.

First off, I loved the beginning it was mysterious and fully captured my attention, holding it for the first hundred or so pages, but soon after everything just kind of went off pace. It got boring and went too in depth describing the whole Hollywood world, making it hard to get through. Though, towards the end it once again picked up speed and left a cliff hanger, of course.

The characters were interesting, but weren't that three dimensional. I liked how it was told in three point of views with Chloe's as the main narrative, her agent, Nika's Manuscript notes, and Travis's (her twin brother) emails. Since, it let you to get to know the characters well. Chloe was probably my favorite character overall, because I loved her determination to make it in Hollywood no matter what came her way.

Overall, The One was a decent opening to a new trilogy. I look forward to reading the sequel, VIP Lounge, which comes out this December.

Grade: B-

The One is now out in paperback.

In My Mailbox (3/23 to 3/28)

I am "stealing" this from The Story Siren. If you want to find out more about it click here. Anyway, these are books I got this week at the bookstore, library, and in the mail, of course. All summaries are from either Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

The Received:

The Sorceress (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel) by Michael Scott (ARC and Releases: May 26, 2009)

Nicholas Flamel's heart almost broke as he watched his beloved Paris crumble before him. The city was destroyed by Dee and Machiavelli, but Flamel played his own role in the destruction. Sophie and Josh Newman show every sign of being the twins of prophecy, and Flamel had to protect them and the pages from the Dark Elders.

But Nicholas grows weaker with each passing day. Perenelle is still trapped in Alcatraz, and now that Scatty has gone missing, the group is without protection. Except for Clarent—the twin sword to Excalibur. But Clarent’s power is unthinkable, its evil making it nearly impossible to use without its darkness seeping into the soul of whoever wields it.

If he hopes to defeat Dee, Nicholas must find an Elder who can teach Josh and Sophie the third elemental magic—Water Magic. The problem? The only one who can do that is Gilgamesh, and he is quite, quite insane

I got this in a random package from Random House this week. I've never read the first two in this series. So, I guess I'll have to go see if my library has them.

Persistence of Memory by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes (ARC and already relased)

Sixteen-year-old Erin Misrahe just wants to be like everyone else in her new school. But Erin has more to worry about than passing AP Chemistry or making friends. In times of stress, she has always been overcome by her alter ego, Shevaun, whose violent behavior wreaks havoc on those around her. Erin can never remember anything about these episodes, and she’s grateful to have been spared them for a while.

But when a protective friend comes back into Erin’s life, he insists that Shevaun is a vampire who actually exists apart from Erin. Shevaun has dangerous allies, like the handsome witch Adjila—and they’re determined to sever Shevaun’s connection to Erin once and for all.

This is the other book that was in that package from Random House. I actually already own this. So, I possibly may give this away in the future or donate it to my library. Not sure which, yet.

Overall: A sad and slow week, don't you think? Though, I still got some great books.

Inspired Friday with Sarah Darer Littman

Sarah Darer Littman is the author of Confessions of a Closet Catholic and the newly relased, Purge. You can vist her website here.

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I was suffering from a horrendous case of the "Second Book Blues" back in 2006, when I went to Kindling Words, a writing retreat for published authors and illustrators. Several ideas for my second book had already been rejected, and I was depressed and wondering if I was really meant to be a writer or if the success of my first book, CONFESSIONS OF A CLOSET CATHOLIC, was just a fluke. (Yes, authors are notoriously insecure!) Ellen Wittlinger (Marisol's Story, Hard Love) was leading the author strand that year, and her theme was "Inspiration". She asked us to bring photographs or pictures that inspired us.

My mother had been cleaning out her house and she'd found this picture ( said picture to the right) of me on a Caribbean holiday we took when I was about 14. I brought this photo to the workshop because it made me sad - sad because looking at it now I realize I had quite a nice figure but at the time I was convinced that I was fat. I wanted to write a book for the girl I was then, and for the girls - and guys - out there who feel the same way today.

I came away from Kindling Words knowing I had to write the book that eventually became PURGE. It wasn't what I was being told I should write, but it was the book I needed to write. I'd been showing my agent and editor things I was working on after I'd written a few chapters, but with this I decided to write the whole book before I showed anyone anything. I needed to be true to my process and let this book happen.

PURGE is a book about which I feel particularly passionate because I've suffered from body image issues my entire life, and was actively bulimic for many years as an adult. I've been in recovery for seven years now, and it's one of the most fulfilling things for me as an author has been when readers have written or come up to me and said how they were able to relate to Janie. I didn't want to sugar coat Janie's experiences and make it seem like recovery is simple and easy, because Lord knows it isn't, but PURGE is, ultimately, a hopeful book because recovery IS possible. I'm living proof of that.

If you want to learn more about getting help with eating disorders check out the resource page on my website: http://sarahdarerlittman.com/eating_disorder_resources.html

Thank you for letting me share my inspiration with you!

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Thanks so much, Sarah! :)

Waiting On Wednesday: Week 19

My pick this week is:

Ballads of Suburbia by Stephanie Kuehnert

There are so many ballads. Achy breaky country songs. Mournful pop songs. Then there’s the rare punk ballad, the ballad of suburbia: louder, faster, angrier . . . till it drowns out the silence.

Kara hasn’t been back to Oak Park since the end of junior year, when a heroin overdose nearly killed her and sirens heralded her exit. Four years later, she returns to face the music. Her life changed forever back in high school: her family disintegrated, she ran around with a whole new crowd of friends, she partied a little too hard, and she fell in love with gorgeous bad boy Adrian, who left her to die that day in Scoville Park. . . .

Amidst the music, the booze, the drugs, and the drama, her friends filled a notebook with heartbreakingly honest confessions of the moments that defined and shattered their young lives. Now, finally, Kara is ready to write her own.

My Thoughts/ Why I Want This:

It's by Stephanie Kuehnert. Isn't that a good enough reason to want this? :) Also, I love the cover, it's very unique.

Willow by Julia Hoban

Summary:

It only takes one night to loose everything you have.

Willow's life was going great. She had trustworthy friends, loving parents, and cool older brother who lives in the city. Though, one rainy night, her life changes dramatically.

Suddenly, her parents are dead and she has to move in with her brother and his wife who has just had a baby. Now, Willow's life isn't going perfect. Since, for one, it seems like no one understands what she is going through or sees the pain she suffers from every day. So, she begins to take out of all the frustration she holds in with cutting. Though, when a boy comes along who finds out her darkest secret. Will he be able to change everything or make it worse?

Review:

I'm kind of torn over this book. Since, on one side I loved it, but on the other side I kind of disliked it.

First off, Willow was a great character, one that you could completely understand her story and why she did what she did. Plus, she had all the feelings that a teen girl who has lost her parents has: anger, loneliness, frustration, ex. Though, I just couldn't relate to her in the cutting area of her life. Possibly because I have never cut and have never had friends that have cut. Or maybe because I can never quite comprehend why someone would want to inflict that kind of pain on themselves. Also, as a result of her cutting, she was sometimes so painfully awkward with what she said to the situations she got herself into. Some I could understand, but with others I felt like screaming, " Willow, just don't say that! You are making yourself look like a weirdo." Though, as the novel progressed she began to get more comfortable with herself, leaving the awkwardness to happen less frequently. Overall, she was still an extremely well developed character even if she did have a few flaws.

Guy was just an all around wow. I loved how he was so careful with Willow and how he always acted like a big shield that wanted to protect Willow from cutting and the world. Plus, he was just so gentle with her. Guy was just that kind of prince charming type of guy that all girls want, especially me! :)

The one thing that truly got me hooked on this was the story Julia created and the writing she used to present it. Both were descriptive and always kept you entwined in the story. Plus, I loved the ending.

Even with with the faults Willow had, it was still an extremely well written debut, that teen girls (and possibly guys) will come to love. I truly look forward to reading more by Julia.

Grade: B+/ A-

Willow will be released April 2, 2009. You can find out more about here. Also, be sure to enter Lauren's(from Shooting Star Mag) amazing contest.

* Much thanks goes to JL, once again, for sending me this. :)

In My Mailbox (3/16 to 3/21)

I am "stealing" this from The Story Siren. If you want to find out more about it click here. Anyway, these are books I got this week at the bookstore, library, and in the mail, of course. All summaries are from either Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

The Received:

Purge: Rehab Diaries by Nicole Johns

Purge is a beautifully crafted memoir that has a Girl, Interrupted feel. In this raw and engaging account of her months in rehab, Nicole Johns documents her stay in a residential treatment facility for eating disorders. Her prose is lucid and vivid, as she seamlessly switches verb tenses and moves through time. She unearths several important themes: body image and sexuality, sexual assault and relationships, and the struggle to piece together one's path in life. While other books about eating disorders and treatment may sugarcoat the harsh realities of living with and recovering from an eating disorder, Purge does not hold back. The author presents an honest, detailed account of her experience with treatment, avoiding the clichéd happily-ever-after ending while still offering hope to those who struggle with eating disorders, as well as anyone who has watched a loved one fight to recover from an eating disorder. Purge sends a message: though the road may be rough, ultimately there is hope.

Looks interesting

Swoon by Nina Malkin

Sin is Coming...Prepare to Swoon!

Torn from her native New York City and dumped in the land of cookie-cutter preps, Candice is resigned to accept her posh, dull fate. Nothing ever happens in Swoon, Connecticut...until Dice's perfect, privileged cousin Penelope nearly dies in a fall from an old tree, and her spirit intertwines with that of a ghost. His name? Sinclair Youngblood Powers. His mission? Revenge. And while Pen is oblivious to the possession, Dice is all too aware of Sin. She's intensely drawn to him—but not at all crazy about the havoc he's wreaking. Determined to exorcise the demon, Dice accidentally sets Sin loose, gives him flesh, makes him formidable. Now she must destroy an even more potent—and irresistible—adversary, before the whole town succumbs to Sin's will. Only trouble is, she's in love with him.

I'm so so so excited about this!!

The Bought:

The One by Ed Decter

Chloe Gamble knows three things: she's better than the tiny Texas town she grew up in; there's just one person she can trust; and she wants to be famous.

And what Chloe wants...Chloe gets.

I love the cover.



Twilight

Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) doesn’t expect much when she moves to the small town of Forks, Washington, until she meets the mysterious and handsome Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson)—a boy who’s hiding a dark secret: he’s a vampire. As their worlds and hearts collide, Edward must battle the bloodlust raging inside him as well as a coterie of undead that would make Bella their prey. Based on the #1 New York Times best-selling sensation by Stephenie Meyer, Twilight adds a dangerous twist to the classic story of star-crossed lovers.

Not a book. Though, still amazingly awesome! :)

The Borrowed:

Same Difference by Siobhan Vivian

Emily is ready for a change. She's been in the same town with the same friends for a long time...and none of them really understand her art. But when she goes to Philadelphia for a summer art institute, she suddenly finds like-minded people. One in particular, Fiona, intrigues and challenges her. But there are some things Emily is going to have to find out for herself -- like what the balance is between life and art, and which is more important when push comes to shove.

Fade by Lisa McMann

For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They're just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.

Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody's talking. When Janie taps into a classmate's violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open -- but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie's in way over her head, and Cabe's shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.

Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability -- and it's bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what's to come is way darker than she'd feared....

Both look great!

Also, I got a nice little note from Julia Hoban, author of Willow.

Not the best of weeks, but it was still okay.

Contest for This Is What I Want to Tell You by Heather Duffy Stone

Heather has been nice enough to donate a copy of This Is What I Want to Tell You to be given away.

Here's the summary from Amazon:

The stories people tell are always about the things we left behind, and about the things we wish we could do again. The real story isn't about what you know; it's about what you wish you knew then. When my brother and my best friend fell in love—that was the end of everything I knew.

Fraternal twins Nadio and Noelle share a close connection—and as Noelle's best friend since they were five, Keeley Shipley fit perfectly into their world. But everything changes after Keeley spends the summer before junior year at Oxford. When Keeley returns, Nadio falls in love with her. Noelle, ripped apart by resentment, sees her as an ungrateful rich girl. But Keeley has a painful story that she can't tell yet. As Nadio and Keeley hide their romance, Noelle dives into something of her own—a destructive affair with an older boy.
Beautifully presented by dual narrators in a haunting stream of memories, this is the deeply moving story of how secrets can consume a friendship—and how love can heal it.

To enter just leave a comment and you are magically entered. :)

Now, to the extra entries.

-Put a link to this on your sidebar ( +3)
- If you become a follower/added me on Google Reader( +3)
- If you are a follower/ subscribe to my blog on Google Reader (+6)
- If you send out bulletins (Myspace), send an email to friends ( make sure to include my email address) or anything else. (+1 for each one that you do)
- Leave a comment on Heather's Inspired Friday post below (+2)

So, you could possibly end up with 12 or 9 entries. Also, this will end on April 3- which is three weeks away!

Good Luck!

Inspired Friday with Heather Duffy Stone

Heather Duffy Stone is the author of the newly released This Is What I Want To Tell You. You can check out her blog here.
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I’ve always been really interested in the way we define family—how different it is for each of us. This is something I remember being really aware of in middle and high school. About seven years ago I wrote a short story that I think came from this. It was about a young mother who was sending her children to school for the first time. Watching them climb the steps of the school bus, she started to reminisce about the love affair she’d had with their father. I wrote this story and then I put it away for a while. I just hit a wall with it, though I knew there was something about it I really liked.

About four years later I was about to move to Italy and my friends threw a going-away party for me. Through this strange turn of events, someone came to this party who I’d known when I was much younger. He was someone, maybe the first person, who I had really fallen for. And I was completely thrown. Seeing him brought back all of these feelings and memories about why we fall for the people we do and how you can know someone for a few minutes or weeks and years and they can just have such complete impact on you. Anyway, after this party I moved out of the country and I wrote an essay about that night.

And then I was teaching an absolutely amazing group of students in Italy—just really funny, challenging, creative, curious honest students and we were reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky—and it was pretty much the only book I could get this class to read and I thought, this is the kind of book I want to write—this truth, this reality.

So somehow, I have no idea how, all of these things came together when I was reading through old files on my computer. Those children from the schoolbus suddenly became 17 and that party I’d gone to suddenly grew a character and my students inspired me to write about the way we fall for people and the two sides of ourselves and the reality of not having it all figured out. And all of this somehow inspired This Is What I Want to Tell You. This is what I love about writing stories though, that all of these things come together in this impossible way that makes a fictional world make sense!

Thank you SO much for having me! This was really so fun to write about.
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Thanks, Heather. I can't wait to start your book.

If you are an author and would like to be a part of Inspired Friday, please contact me at laurenscrammedbookshelf@gmail.com.

Waiting On Wednesday: Week 18

My pick this week is:


The Comeback by Marlene Perez

Sophie Donnelly is one half of the most popular and powerful couple in school, until new girl Angie Vogel shows up and compromises everything. Angie steals Sophie's starring role in the school play, and, worse, her super-popular boyfriend. Sophie has been quickly dispatched to social Siberia, but not for long--she'll do anything it takes to make a triumphant comeback. (from Amazon)

I actually have never read anything by Marlene. Though, I do have Dead Is The New Black somewhere on my bookshelf. Anyway, this book looks cute. Plus, it's coming out in paperback. So, I'll actually be able to afford it. :)

The Comeback will be released August 1st, 2009.

Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott

Summary:

Everyone thinks their parents are embarrassing, but Hannah knows she's got them all beat. Her dad made a fortune showing pretty girls--and his "party" lifestyle--all over the Internet, and her mom, who was once one of her dad's girlfriends, is now the star of her own website. After getting the wrong kind of attention for far too long, Hannah has learned how to stay out of sight...and that's how she likes it.

Of course, being unknown isn't helping her get noticed by gorgeous, confident Josh, who Hannah knows is her soul mate. Between trying to figure out a way to get him to notice her, dealing with her parents, and wondering why she can't stop thinking about another guy, Finn, Hannah feels like she's going crazy. She's determined to make things work out the way she wants....only what she wants may not be what she needs. (from Author's website)

Review:

I'm going to let you into to a little secret I have, I love Elizabeth Scott's novels! They are like a guilty pleasure for me because they are light, funny, and well written novels, that I absolutely love. Whenever, I read one I'm usually in a bad mood, for some reason, but they instantly cheer me up within the first chapter.

Something, Maybe was no different, of course. It was filled with well developed characters, cute boys, and father-daughter relationship problems. The plot was interesting, but not very complex. I enjoyed the whole scenario where a former playboy's girlfriend gets pregnant and has a baby that the playboy claims is not his. Enter Hannah who is the daughter of these two. I felt sorry for Hannah because of her father's many problems that never let him get really close to her and evidently made her hate him for it. Also, which boy should I be with part of this novel was cute, but it got annoying after a while.

Hannah was a three dimensional character that I could identify with a ton, for many reasons. The main reason was that she was extremely shy and worried that if she got herself out there too much, she would just get hurt. I used to feel that way, too, but after a while I finally cracked my shell like Hannah began to do in this story. Also, the other people, such as Finn and Tegan were great additions to the story and characters I ended up loving by the end.

Overall, Something, Maybe is another classic Scott novel that will make you feel happy and sad at the same time. This novel will appeal to fans of Elizabeth Scott's previous novels and girls who are looking for a cute romance book that doesn't make you think too much.

Grade: B+

Something, Maybe will be released March 24, 2009. You can find out more about here. Also, be sure to check out Elizabeth Scott's website and blog, that has cool contests just about every week.

* Much thanks to the people at Simon & Schuster for sending me this wonderful book!

Winner of The September Sisters

Wow, there were 475 entries for this contest! Anyway, according to Random Number Generator, the winner of the ARC is number 396 :

Taylor

Congrats! I just emailed you. So, be sure to respond in the next 72 hours or I'll have to pick a new winner.

Didn't win? Well, I still have my A Little Friendly Advice giveaway going on (link on the right sidebar) and I have another one planned for this month. So, watch out! :)

Just One Wish by Janette Rallison

Summary:

Seventeen-year-old Annika Truman knows about the power of positive thinking. With a little brother who has cancer, it’s all she ever hears about. And in order to help Jeremy, she will go to the ends of the earth (or at least as far as Hollywood) to help him believe he can survive his upcoming surgery.

But Annika’s plan to convince Jeremy that a magic genie will grant him any wish throws her a curveball when he unexpectedly wishes that his television idol would visit him. Annika suddenly fi nds herself in the desperate predicament of getting access to a hunky star actor and convincing him to come home with her. Piece of cake, right?

Janette Rallison’s proven talent for laugh-out-loud humor, teen romance, and deep-hearted storytelling shines in a novel that will have readers laughing and crying at the same time. (from Amazon)

Review:

Before starting this, I had extremely high expectations. Since, for one, isn't the cover so cute? Plus, Janette's previous books have been great, so I was hoping this would be the same deal. Luckily, it was a darling book. Though, it had a quite a few flaws.

First off, I loved the characters. Annika was a strong teenage girl that I admired a ton, because of how far she would go to make all of her brother's dreams come true. Plus, the relationships she had with her parents, best friend, and brother were cute and real. Relationships that were perfect, but still flawed. Lastly, I loved how Annika could still have a wicked sense of humor in a time of such pain. By the way, the others such as Steve, Madison, and Jeremy were once again fun people to read about and made the story flow quite nicely.

Though, the plot wasn't all that great. For the first part, it was basically all talk and no action, which made it extremely hard to get through. Luckily, after 140 pages it quickened up with the action and dialogue between the characters. Making it an okay book overall.

( Minor spoiler ahead) The other thing I didn't quite like about the plot was that it sometimes seemed like this could NEVER happen in real live. Since, what security guard would actually let two teenage girls on to a TV set. Plus, it really surprised me when Steve basically dropped all of his plans to go see Annika's brother, because what Hollywood actor or actress would do that in real life? Probably none. Though, even with these unrealistic details, Just One Wish was a still cute book. (end of spolier)

Overall, Just One Wish is a was a quick read that I suggest to fans of Janette's previous books or people who liked Meg Cabot's Teen Idol.

Grade: B-

Just One Wish is now out. You can find out more about it here. Also, be sure to check out Janette's website.

* Much thanks to JL for sending me this book! :)

In My Mailbox ( 3/9 to 3/14)

I am "stealing" this from The Story Siren. If you want to find out more about it click here. Anyway, these are books I got this week at the bookstore, library, and in the mail, of course. All summaries are from either Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

The Received:

A Map of the Known World by Lisa Ann Sandell ( ARC, Releases: April 15, 2009)

Cora Bradley dreams of escape. Ever since her reckless older brother, Nate, died in a car crash, Cora has felt suffocated by her small town and high school. She seeks solace in drawing beautiful maps, envisioning herself in exotic locales. When Cora begins to fall for Damian, the handsome, brooding boy who was in the car with Nate the night he died, she uncovers her brother's secret artistic life and realizes she had more in common with him than she ever imagined. With stunning lyricism, Sandell weaves a tale of one girl's journey through the redemptive powers of art, friendship, and love.

They say no land remains to be discovered, no continent is left unexplored. But the whole world is out there, waiting, just waiting for me. I want to do things-I want to walk the rain-soaked streets of London, and drink mint tea in Casablanca. I want to wander the wastelands of the Gobi desert and see a yak. I think my life's ambition is to see a yak. I want to bargain for trinkets in an Arab market in some distant, dusty land. There's so much. But, most of all, I want to do things that will mean something.

This one sounds fantastic. Plus, the cover is really cool up close.

The Bought:

This Is What I Want to Tell You by Heather Duffy Stone

Nadio and his twin sister, Noelle, always had a unique bond. And somehow, Keeley Shipley fit perfectly into their world. But when Keeley spends the summer in England, she comes home changed, haunted by a dark memory. As she and Nadio fall in love, they try to hide it from Noelle, who's jealously guarding a secret of her own. Slowly, a life-long friendship begins to crack under the crushing weight of past trauma, guarded secrets, jealousy, obsession . . . and an unexpected love that could destroy them.

Can't wait to start this!

Not the best week ever. Though, I still have a big stack of books to read that I got in the last few weeks. :)

Contest for A Little Friendly Advice by Siobhan Vivian

Siobhan has been nice enough to donate a copy of A Little Friendly Advice to be given away to one lucky winner. A Little Friendly Advice, in my point of view, was a awesome debut novel with a great cast of characters.

Anyway, here's the blurb from Amazon:

Ruby's turning sixteen . . . but the day doesn't turn out to be as sweet as it's supposed to be. Her long lost father shows up, and Ruby doesn't want to have anything to do with him. Instead, she wants to hang out with her friends - loyal Beth, dangerous Katherine, and gossipy Maria. They have plenty of advice for her - about boys, about her dad, about how she should look and what she should be feeling. But really, Ruby doesn't know what to think or feel. Especially when a new boy comes into the picture . . . and Ruby discovers some of her friends aren't as truthful as they say.

So, would you like to win a signed copy of this fabulous novel? All, you have to do is comment on this post telling me one book you are looking forward to reading this year that is not yet out.

For Extra Entries:

-Put a link to this on your sidebar ( +3)
- If you become a follower/ follow on Google Reader ( +3)
- If you are a follower/ follow on Google Reader(+6)
- Comment on Siobhan's guest post below. (+3)
- If you send out bulletins (Myspace), send an email to friends ( make sure to include my email address) or anything else. (+1 for each one that you do)

This contest will end on March 27th.

Good Luck! :)

Inspired Friday with Siobhan Vivian

Siobhan Vivian is the author of A Little Friendly Advice and the newly released, Same Difference. So, without a futher ado here's Siobhan talking about Same Difference!

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Same Difference was a very personal story for me. I based it off the summer before my senior year of high school, when I went to a summer art program in Philadelphia.

When I was growing up in New Jersey, I knew how to play what I’m going to call “the game”, which means that I knew what to do to blend with the in-crowd, the “right” friends to have…all the stuff that keeps you afloat in high school. It wasn’t all bad, necessarily. I had good friends. I liked my life. But I also felt like there were parts of my personality that I had to bury, to hide from my friends, because they’d think I was weird. A lot of times, I felt like a phony. Like I was playing pretend.

But then I go to Philly and meet all these super cool artsy kids who just don’t care what people think of them. They’re doing crazy stuff and into music I’ve never heard before. It was all so exciting and inspiring, and I found myself drawn into this whole other world. I was totally inspired by the confidence they had. I let some of those hidden parts show. It was exhilarating!

Only, that was a game too. You needed to act a certain way to be friends with those artsy kids. You couldn’t like things that were popular. You had to put on a show. And did I mean it in the same way the artsy kids did? Or was I acting again? In a way, both groups were similar. There were rules you had to follow.

By the end of that summer, I was so mixed up. I didn’t know which version of myself was the real one. Was I the suburban girl who played by the rules, or the arty wild girl who didn’t care what people said/thought about her?

So that became the inspiration behind SAME DIFFERENCE…the story of a girl who has to find true herself, while she splits her time between two very different groups of friends.

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Thanks so much, Siobhan. That was a great guest blog!

If you are an author and would like to be a part of Inspired Friday, please contact me at laurenscrammedbookshelf@gmail.com.

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Summary:

One contest.

Two girls.

A downfall into the messy seas of anorexia.

A fight to be skinny.

Only one makes it to the end of her senior year while the other one looses.

Most girls in eighth grade make resolutions on New Years to be more popular, less shy, or to finally get a boyfriend. Though, this isn't the case for Lia and Cassie. They make a resolution, well more of a contest, to see who can be the skinniest of the two. To count the calories of everything that enters their bodies and determine if they have been good enough to keep it in. This begins Lia and Cassie's struggles with anorexia and bulimia.

Now, it's senior year and one of them has been found dead. Can the other one overcome her demons and not end up the same way?

Review:

Wintergirls is a gritty, raw, and jaw dropping tale of one girl's downfall into the danger zones of anorexia. Laurie Halse Anderson perfectly captures the voice of Lia and her fight to be skinny. As you read the book, you begin to feel like your right there with Lia and root for her to realize that there are people out there that can help her overcome all of this.

When I first requested this I had no idea it was about eating disorders. I was attracted to the pretty cover and I usually love Laurie Halse Anderson's novels. So, how could this be any different, I thought. Though, it was, but not in a bad way. I personally think that this is Laurie's most honest book yet, because of how up close you get to see Lia's problems with eating and cutting. Also, her writing was at it's best. It was well paced and descriptive to the point where you got a feeling that Laurie had gone through an eating disorder herself or had someone she was close to go through one. (Actually, she didn't. I read in the back of the book that she was inspired by emails from teens telling of their problems with bulimia and anorexia.)

One of my favorite parts of Wintergirls was the message. The message that even if you do have the same promblems as Lia, you can get help and be honest to yourself. Also, to the girls who are reading this and have never had an eating disorder, it will most likely scare them away from having one like it did to me.

Overall, Wintergirls was an amazing journey that will pick you up from page one and dosen't drop you once untill the end. I absoulty sugguest this novel to all. But be aware, that it can get a little graphic somtimes.

Grade: A+

Wintergirls will be released on March 19, you can find out more about it here. Also, be sure to check out Laurie's website, blog, and myspace.

* Much thanks to JL who sent me this amazing book! :)

Waiting On Wednesday: Week 17

My pick this week is:

Summary:

Eager to learn everything she can about her new abilities as an Immortal, Ever turns to her beloved Damen to show her the way. But just as her powers are increasing, Damen’s are waning.

In an attempt to save him, Ever travels to the magical dimension of Summerland, where she learns the secrets of Damen’s tortured past; a past which he has always kept hidden from her. But in her quest to cure Damen, Ever discovers an ancient text that details the workings of time. Now Ever must chose between turning back the past and saving her family from the accident that claimed their lives—or staying in the present and saving Damen, who grows sicker every day...

My Thoughts/ Why I Want This:

Well since, this happens to be the sequel to a lovely book I read named Evermore, I can't wait to to get my hands on it. Unfortunately, it's not being released until August 9. :(

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Summary:

In Mary's world, there are simple truths.

The Sisterhood always knows best.

The Guardians will protect and serve.

The Unconsecrated will never relent.

And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village. The fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

But slowly, Mary's truths are failing her. She's learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power. And, when the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness.

Now she must choose between her village and her future, between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded by so much death? (from Author's website)

Review:

It's been a couple of hours since I finished reading this and I still can't believe how truly remarkable The Forest Of Hands And Teeth was. In my view, this defiantly has the potential to be one of the best debuts of 2009, if not the best.

The writing, the world, the characters were all so interesting and haunting, which made you become totally involved in the story from the beginning.

The characters in The Forest Of Hands and Teeth were extremely three dimensional to the point were you felt that they jumped off the page. Since, you could feel their fears, their fight for happiness, and their battle to be strong in a world were all you want to do is cower in a corner. Carrie even crafted the unconsecrated in a way that you began to feel sorry for what they had became even though you wanted to hate them for what they had done to the world. Mary was probably my favorite character overall because her strength just amazed me. I loved how no matter what happened to her she never gave up and always found the bright side of things. Also, I liked the romance between Travis and Mary. It was a cute and great add to the story.

Also, I became completely enthralled in the world Carrie Ryan had created. Since, I always find it interesting to read about what an author thinks may happen in the future. Plus, the world felt real to me. Though, I had a couple of problems with it. Such as, Carrie never really said what had lead to the unconsecrated. Also, she never really came out in said what the unconsecrated were, leaving me to infer that they were zombies.

The writing was up to par, too. Carrie Ryan shows in this that she has big talent, which makes me extremely excited to read more by her.

Overall, there is not enough adjectives to describe how incredible The Forest of Hands and Teeth was. As said above, I'm really looking forward to reading more by Carrie. Also, I truly hope she wrights a sequel to this telling of what happens to Mary. Since, the ending was kind of a cliff hanger.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth will appeal to fans of The Hunger Games or to people looking for a great book that contains romance, fantasy, and horror.

Grade: A+

The Forest of Hands and Teeth is out now. You can find out more about it here. Also, be sure to check out Carrie's website and blog.

Winner of The King's Rose

Wow, there were 511 entries for this contest! I can't believe it. Anyway, according to Random Number Generator, the winner of the ARC is number 85 :

Yan

Congrats! I just emailed you. So be sure to respond in the next 72 hours or I'll have to pick a new winner.

Didn't win? Well, I still have my September Sisters giveaway going on ( link on the right sidebar) and I have two or three more planned for this month, so watch out. :)

Bleed by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Summary:

Over the course of a single day, the lives of ten teenagers will intersect in powerful and unexpected ways.

Among them are Nicole, whose decision to betray her best friend will shock everyone, most of all herself; Kelly, who meets the convicted felon she’s been writing to for years; and Maria, whose definition of a true friend is someone who will cut her. Derik discovers his usual good looks and charm won’t help him get the girl he really wants, while Joy, a fifteen year old waitress, hoping for true intimacy, narrowly escapes a very dark fate.

Seamlessly woven together, this collection of interconnected short stories paints an authentic portrait of today’s teen experience that is at once funny, moving, and often very haunting. (from Amazon)

Review:

When I finally obtained a copy of this last week, I was so excited. Since, I loved the concept of weaving together ten teenagers lives. Though, with Bleed I was extremely disappointed.

The characters and plot were interesting enough, but it just seemed like it was lacking. Lacking development, lacking a fast paced plot, lacking well just about everything. The characters were dull and one dimensional. Plus, you never really came to understand some of the crazy stuff they did love. For example the one girl, Kelly, goes and meets a convicted murder, a guy who KILLED his girlfriend. I know that people can go crazy when they are in love. But come on, that's not crazy, that's stupid!

Then, the plot was just boring. Since, most of the situations that the teens got themselves into were typical to began with and then they were carried out typically. Though, with saying that, I did find myself completely involved in the story for Nicole and Sean's parts.

The only other part that I somewhat liked about this book was the idea of it all. Since, most people never realize how their actions and attitude can affect people that they don't even know that well.

Over all, Laurie defiantly let me down with this story. Though, I still love her other books. So, I defiantly will be picking up her new releases when they come out, especially Deadly Little Lies. :)

Grade: D+

Bleed is now out in paperback.

In My Mailbox (3/2 to 3/7)

I am "stealing" this from The Story Siren. If you want to find out more about it click here. Anyway, these are books I got this week at the bookstore, library, and in the mail, of course. All summaries are either from Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

The Received:

Girlfriend Material by Melissa Kantor

If Kate were Lady Brett Ashley, the devastating heroine of Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises, she'd spend her summers careering around the Riviera in her coupe, breaking hearts by the dozen--because why not? In reality, Kate's never even had a boyfriend, and she'll be spending the summer abetting her mom's lame ploy to make her dad jealous: running off to Cape Cod and crashing at the seaside home of her wealthy friends, the Cooper-Melnicks. To add to the shame, the Cooper-Melnicks' gorgeous daughter Sarah is a bit like Lady Brett, and she seems less than thrilled to hang out with her new houseguest. Any dreams Kate once had of a perfect summer are ruined.

That is, until Sarah's cute, witty friend Adam starts drawing Kate into the fold--and seems intrigued. With Adam around, Kate feels like she just might have a bit of heartbreaker potential after all. But when a breezy summer romance quickly grows more complicated can Kate keep pretending her relationship with Adam is just a carefree fling? Or will she take the risk and tell him her real feelings? Suddenly Kate is asking herself a question she never thought she'd stoop to: Is she girlfriend material? ( To Be Released May 2009)

I am so excited about this!!

Nothing But Ghosts by Beth Kephart

Ever since her mother passed away, Katie's been alone in her too-bit house with her genius dad, who restores old paintings for a living. Katie takes a summer job at a garden estate where, with the help of two brothers and a glamorous librarian, she soon becomes embroiled in decoding a mystery. There are secrets and shadows at the heart of Nothing But Ghosts, symbols hidden in a time-darkened painting, and surprises behind a locked bedroom door. But most of all, this is a love story-- the story of a girl who learns about love while also learning to live with her own ghosts. (To Be Released June 2009)

This looks so good. I can't wait to start it.

Miss Match by Wendy Toliver

Sasha Finnegan has always had a knack for setting people up, and at sixteen, she's turned her talent into an online business, molding high school crushes into true love. But Sasha finds her toughest match yet when hottie Derek Urban asks her to set him up with Sasha's gorgeous sister, Maddie. It's not that Derek isn't a good catch. In fact, after spending so much time with him, Sasha can't help but think he's perfect -- for her, that is.

Can Sasha push her feelings aside for the sake of her business? Or has this miss finally found her match? (Out now)


Sophomore Switch by Abby McDonald

Take an administrative snafu, a bad breakup, and what shall heretofore be known as "The Hot-Tub Incident," and you’ve got two unprepared sophomores on a semester abroad. For American party girl Tasha, an escape to Oxford may be a chance to ditch her fame as a tabloid temptress, but wading Uggs-deep in feminist theory is not her idea of a break. Meanwhile, the British half of the exchange, studious Emily, nurses an aching heart amid the bikinis and beer pong of U.C. Santa Barbara. Soon desperation has the girls texting each other tips — on fitting in, finding love, and figuring out who they really are. With an anthropologist’s eye for detail and a true ear for teen-speak, exciting new novelist Abby McDonald has crafted a funny, fast-paced, poignant look at survival, sisterhood, and the surprising ways we discover our true selves. ( To Be Released March 10)

This looks cute.

The Bought:

My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters by Sydney Salter

Dark Guardian #1: Moonlight by Rachel Hawthorne

Zombie Queen of Newbury High by Amanda Ashby

The Borrowed:

No More Us For You by David Hernandez

Lament by Maggie Stiefvater

Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Everything Is Fine by Ann Dee Ellis

Partly Cloudy by Gary Soto

Prom Nights From Hell by Meg Cabot

Absolutely Maybe by Lisa Yee

Alis by Namoi Rich

I Know It's Over by C.K. Kelly Martin

Bleed by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Project 17 by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Not the best book week mail wise, but other than that it was a fantastic week for books! :)

Paisley Hanover Acts Out by Cameron Tuttle

Summary:

Popular Paisley Hanover's sophomore year is supposed to be great. Since, she has three amazing best friends, extremely supportive but slightly weird parents, and decent grades. She even has a seven step plan on how to make her sophomore year one to remember. Though, as she tries to tackle the first step on her list ( get on the yearbook staff) everything goes horribly wrong!

It turns out that they made a big mistake leaving poor Paisley to have to join drama ( the horror of all horrors) instead of yearbook. Paisley thinks her life can't get worse. But unfortunately it can! Her best friends aren't talking to her after she accidentally sent a mean message to one of them, she made a fool out of her self in front of her crush, Eric Sobel, and now a YouTube video is going around showing her doing something so embarrassing that she can't even stand to watch it!

Though, with help from her new drama buddies, she comes up with a plan to take down the popular people at her school, even if it means bringing herself down with it.

Review:

To be honest, I wasn't excepting much from this. I can't exactly key point why, but I think it had something to do with the cover and summary. They just weren't eye catching enough. Though, as soon as I started it, I feel in love with Paisley's story. Since, it was extremely funny and seemed shockingly real!

The plot and writing in Paisley Hanover Acts Out was cute and interesting. I loved that Carmen not only had a novel within this, but a "notebook" filled with Paisley's drawings and thoughts. It was a great idea! Also, the plot was original which made me keep flipping the pages wondering what was going to happen next. Plus, near the end Carmen keep throwing in surprises that had my prediction of what was going to happen go completely off track.

Although, I had a couple of problems with the book. For one, Paisley Hanover Acts Out had some of the weirdest transitions ever. There was this one time when she was talking about soccer and then all of sudden it flipped to her describing her best friends in the next paragraph! Also, sometimes the writing was redundant.

The real stars of this novel were Paisley Hanover and her friends (the unpopular ones), though. They were hilarious and snarky which made you become completely interested in their lives. Plus, they all had this sense of reality which I admired.

Overall, Paisley Hanover Acts Out was one of the funniest books that I have read in awhile, even though it become somewhat shallow at times. I can't wait to read the sequel to this, Paisley Hanover Kisses and Tells, which comes out in October!

Grade: B+

Paisley Hanover Acts Out was officially released today. You can find out more about it here.

* Much thanks goes to JL for sending me this awesome book! :)

Since, I'm feeling lazy

and don't want to count up all the entries for The King's Rose contest. I've decided to extend the deadline of it to Saturday. So, be sure to enter, if you haven't.

Waiting On Wednesday: Week 16

Wow, week 16!?! I can't belive it.

Anyway, my pick this week is:


Stupid Cupid by Rhonda Stapleton

Felicity's no ordinary teen matchmaker...she's a cupid!

Felicity Walker believes in true love. That's why she applies for a gig at the matchmaking company Cupid's Hollow. But when Felicity gets the job, she learns that she isn't just a matchmaker...she's a cupid! (There's more than one of them, you know.)

Armed with a hot pink, tricked-out PDA infused with the latest in cupid magic (love arrows shot through email), Felicity works to meet her quota of successful matches. But when she bends the rules of cupidity by matching her best friend Maya with three different boys at once, disaster strikes. Felicity needs to come up with a plan to set it all right, pronto, before she gets firedâ?¦and before Maya ends up with her heart split in three.

My Thoughts/ Why I Want This:

• I heart the cover.
• It's about cupid! How cool is that?
• Rhonda is a 2009 Debutante which basically means this book is going to be fantastic.
• It's going to be a trilogy!! ( you can see the other two covers here)

Stupid Cupid will be release on December 22, 2009. So, what book are you dying to read this week?

Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

Summary:

All Meg has ever wanted to do was get away. Get away from everything that makes her life the insane thing it is: her high school, her overprotective parents, and her annoying in the middle of nowhere town. To show her feeling for this she does everything a teen in her town isn’t expected to do: die her hair blue, ride a motorcycle, do drugs, and hook up with random guys. Though, one day she just goes way too far. She is caught hooking up with her boyfriend on a train track where two teenagers were killed 8 years ago, while her friends, Tiffany and Brian, were a few steps away . The police officer, John, decides to teach her friends and her a lesson. So, now on her spring break she is stuck riding around with a hot but totally frustrating guy named John ( the cop who arrested her) during the middle of the night busting up random things. As her week continues, secrets come out about him and her but will they end up falling for one another because of this or will it push them further apart?

Review:

Going Too Far was an amazing book that either had me laughing out loud or sitting on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. I absolutely loved Meg. She was a funny and honest character who had a great back story to why she was the way she was. Also, John's personality was cute and great addition to the story. Though, the thing that had me mainly hooked was Jennifer Echols' writing. It was fast paced, detailed, and addicting. Basically, it was everything a good book should be.

Overall, Going Too Far is a book you will still be thinking about days after you have read it. I suggest this to fans of Courtney Summer's Cracked Up To Be and Brooke Taylor's Undone.

Grade: A+

Going Too Far will be released on March 17th, 2009! You can find out more about it here. Also, be sure to check out Jennifer's website, myspace, and blog.

* Reviewed for Flamingnet

To Be Mona by Kelly Easton

Summary:

To Be Mona opens up with Sage loosing her class election for president to Mona, the most beautiful and popular girl in Sage's school. As anyone would be, Sage is devastated. So, she decides she is going to try to reinvent herself as a person by loosing weight, dying her hair blond, and getting the perfect boyfriend, Roger Williams to be exact.

When Sage's best friend, Vern, realizes what she is doing. He is shocked, because he loved Sage the way she was before. He liked that she was a bit chubby and her boring light brown hair. Though, Sage isn't listening to him, because in the aftermath of doing all this, she gets Roger Williams as her boyfriend. So, her life is going to go perfect from now to the end of senior year, right? Nope.

Review:

Before starting To Be Mona, I didn't have that many high hopes for it. Since, I hadn't heard the greatest things about it. Though, I loved the cover and the summary made it sound interesting, so I decided, why not get it from the library?

To Be Mona was a semi decent book that was a quick read. Was I impressed by it in any way? Not really.

Most of the characters were bland and didn't have many emotions or three dimensional characteristics. Also, the chapters are all told in alternating perspectives featuring the three main characters: Vern, Sage, and Wal-Mart leaving little time to get to know them and making the book seem rushed most of the time. With saying that, I did like Sage's funny and self conscience character a bit and she made up for the lack of other good characters.

The plot was interesting and made the book go by fast. Though, with some of the problems in the book, I would have loved to seen Kelly go more into detail. One thing, I didn't get about this book was how Roger was supposed to be this big abusive boyfriend type. First of all, Sage and him don't even date until the end of the book. Also, he was mostly controlling, but didn't seem all that abusive as he was made out to be. For me, it just seemed like he was a jerk with a temper problem. The other main problem I had with this book was the ending. It seemed rushed and let a lot of questions swirling around in my head.

Overall, To Be Mona is an okay book that I suggest that you get from your local library instead of wasting your money on it. Will I read anything else by Easton? Probably not. Unfortunately, this book was a big let down for me.

Grade: C-

To Be Mona is now out in hardback and you can find out more about it here.