January Wrap UP!

I'm really embracing the snow for this months 'theme' so I hope you guys like it! 

Here's my January Wrap Up! 

1. Sweet Reckoning: The conclusion to Wendy Higgins "Sweet Series". I listen to this one on Audible and I LOVED it. 

2. Shade Me: The first book in the new "Nikki Kill" series. If you like Veronica Mars you will love this book! 

3. See Me: Nicholas Sparks isn't everyone's cup of tea, but dammit, he's mine! I read this book in one sitting! 

 1. Slammed: I've only ever come across one Colleen Hoover book that I didn't like and this was not it! While I didn't give it 5 stars it was without a doubt one of my favorite books I read (listened to) this month. 

2. The Assassin and the Pirate Lord: This was for my TBR Challenge (read a prequel)and it was a quick, fun read. I'm currently reading The Assassin and the Healer so that will be in my February Wrap Up Post. 

3. Sword and Verse: This was a really pleasant surprise for me! I didn't know anything about this book going into it and I flew through it! I'll have a review up later this month. 

 4. The Year We Fall Apart: This book was a hard one for me to rate, I'll go into why in my review (to come) but I just felt like it was missing too much for me to rate it 5 Stars/Snow Flakes. 

5. Smart Girl: This was my first Rachel Hollis book and OMG I laughed so hard I cried! And not just at one part, it was the entire book! It was a super fun, sweet read and I'll be reviewing it sometime next week! 

6. Flat Out Celeste: This is the third book I listened to this month and while it wasn't quite as good as the first book in the series, "Flat Out Love", I really liked seeing things from Celeste's point of view and I loved how it wrapped up everything for all the characters. I haven't read the "Flat Out Matt" yet which is book 1.5 in the series but its on my list. 

1. Shallow Graves: This was one of my most anticipated books of the month and it just fell short for me. I liked the idea behind it but the story itself wasn't enough to hold my attention. I'll also be review this later this month. 

2. I Remember You: Oh how I wanted so badly to love this book. Its been on my TBR since before it was released and I was so excited to read it. Sadly I ended up almost hating this book, along with the characters. I couldn't relate to the MC and the story just dragged on and on. Honestly this one should've been rated 2 Stars and I don't know why I gave it 3 on Goodreads... 

 All of my 1 "Snow Flake" books are books that I DNF. 

1. Elementals: I love stories about modern day witches and I LOVE this cover but the story just wasn't there for me.

2. Thicker Than Water: Another good concept and intriguing synopsis but it just dragged on and on and I couldn't make myself finish it. 

3. The Mystery of Hollow Places: I was actually really excited when I started this book. I went into it blind and it started off with a really interesting couple of chapters but I found myself forcing myself to pick it up and the story started to lag. 

4. Other Broken Things: I'm all for a rebellious teen with an attitude problem but oh. My. God. I hated this MC. I usually make myself read 30% before I DNF but I don't even think I made it past 15% with this book. 

5. A Madness So Discreet: A little back story on this book. I actually met Mindy McGinnis at an event before she ever started writing this book. I overheard her talking about an idea she had for her next book and I was hooked. I immediately inserted myself into the conversation to get the tentative title and possible release date. A year or two later I finally saw it on EW and I was SO EXCITED. Sadly I just couldn't get into it...

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So there's my January Wrap Up! I feel like I had a really good reading month! I think what helped me read SO MUCH and what kept me from falling into a slump is DNF when I felt like it and not forcing myself to push through. Last year I fell into a MONTH LONG slump and it was awful so I'm trying to not let that happen again. 

Let me know what you think and I'll talk to you soon! 

Until next time,

 Ginger  

ARC Review of "Shade Me" By Jennifer Brown

Shade Me 

By Jennifer Brown 

Stars: 5 

Source: EW 

Release Date: January 19th 2016 

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A phone call from the hospital in the middle of the night. Someone you don't know has been attacked and your number is the only one in their cell phone. They need you to identify the body. Do you go? 

Nikki Kill does. And what she finds out is that the schools most popular girl has been beaten within an inch of her life, left for dead and she is now in a coma. 

Any normal person would identify her and let the police take care of it. But Nikki isn't exactly what you would all 'normal'. 

Thanks to a rare phenomenon called 'synesthesia' Nikki can see things that other people can't. Her senses are overlapped in a way that allows her to see emotions, numbers and letters as colors. 

Lies are gray, lust is violet, etc, etc. 

Nikki has always thought of her diagnosis as a disadvantage, a disability, but it might be just what she needs in order to solve the mystery of Peyton Hollis before someone else gets hurt.   

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"Shade Me", book one, in what I hope will be a very long series, sucked me in from the first couple of pages. 

Nikki is like the (slightly) less kiss ass version of Veronica Mars. She may not have a giant drooling sidekick (Backup, not Wallace!) or a taser (though she should invest in one) but she's got her seriously cool diagnosis of 'synesthesia', the mysterious death of her mother and now the mystery of Peyton Hollis' attack. 

Add in a hot brother (Peyton's not Nikki's) a nosy cop and (of course) an absentee parent and you've got yourself a thrilling suspense YA.

Her synesthesia is originally what drew me in but Brown's writing and characters are what I ended up staying for. 

Yes there were those "Oh no she didn't" moments where you're screaming at her to run away/lock the doors/call for help/let the police handle it, but without those moments we wouldn't have this book so I just rolled with the punches and tried not to let her total lack of self preservation bother me. 

I do admit that some times her color clues (what I called her synesthesia) threw me a little bit, but all in all I still couldn't give this book anything less than 5 stars, because a book that you stay up until 3AM to finish when you have work in the morning is a book deserving of 5 stars.  

That being said I almost wish this had been an adult novel. Nikki is 18, her dad was barely in the book and for it being 'young adult' there was a ton of sex and violence. Plus I feel like it would've been longer if it had been adult or even NA. And I'm ALL about more Nikki Kill. 

I can't wait for the next book! 

Until next time, 

Ginger 

P.S *SPOILERS* 

Well spoiler-ish but whatever. 

Am I the only one who instantly shipped her and the cop (whose name I cannot remember!!!)??? 

Maybe I'm crazy but I really love them together and I can see a good working relationship between them (with benefits of course ;)).

In compliance with FTC guidelines I am disclosing that this book was given to me for free to review. 

My review is my honest opinion.

Stacking The Shelves (38)

"We are all book lovers and the need to share our enthusiasm is sometimes overwhelming. Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in the physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! 

If you're anything like me, you are probably hoarding books and even though you are excited about your latest book arrival, it might be a while before you get to review it and Stacking The Shelves is a good way to express your undying enthusiasm for those titles."

So I haven't done a Stacking post in what feels like forever, not because I stopped buying/receiving books but mostly because I got far too lazy keeping track of which ones I had already talked about and which ones were new. So instead of writing a giant post I just picked the top 5 books that I've gotten recently and then I'll hopefully be better about posting once a week what I've added to my TBR. 

First up:

This releases in May and is about two friends who take a road trip to meet the three people whose lives were saved by the donation of their best friends organs. 

It's suppose to be witty, heart breaking and hopeful so I'm all in! 

Next: 

Another May 3rd release (May is crazy this year for YA books!). This is the origin story for one of the most famous literary villains. It's the first book in a series and it sounds a little like OUAT/Regina. Good girl gets her heart broken and turns bad. 

Really looking forward to this one! 

Next: 

One night in New Orleans, two strangers, no names, no phones, no baggage. 

YES PLEASE!

This releases May 10th and can we talk about that cover?!

Next: 

Elsie Main has been trying to remember what happened during her brothers drowning for five years. One minute he was there the next he was gone. When she meets Tay, a cute boy who freedives she vows to find the answers to her questions. 

Release date is April 26th. This sounds like a great Sarah Dessen/Summer Read! 

And last: 

New York, magic, Boyfriend with a dark secret? 

Dear (literary) Gods yes!!! 

This also comes out April 5th and its one of my most anticipated reads! 

And there you go! Let me know what books you've recently added to your collection in the comments and I'll talk to you soon! 

Until next time, 

Ginger 

February TBR

This is my first TBR post, I don't usually make a list/pile of what I'll be reading from month to month but I did it a couple times last year and I did it last month and it worked out so well I think I'm going to continue doing it. 

So here is my TBR for the month. 

These are all the ARCS I'll be reading: 

 My ARC TBR makes me laugh because I recently signed up for the next round of OTSPSECRETSISTER and I specifically mentioned that I hate books set on boats. It's weird I know. But then I go to look at my ARC's for the month and I have TWO with boat settings... We'll see how this works out... 

Next are the physical books I'll be reading this month: 

As you can see I made up for the fact that I only had one contemporary to read from my ARC list. I thought I'd go a little crazy this month with the cute, lovey dovey reads since it is February. 

Now I've already read Red Queen and I LOVED it but my TBR Jar Challenge for the month was to "Re-read a Favorite" and to be honest I almost picked a different one because I wasn't in the mood for a re-read. But then I remember that The second book in the Red Queen series is coming out this month (!!!!!!!!!) and that I was already planning on re-reading Red Queen so it worked out perfectly! 

Last but not least are my 2 most highly anticipated reads for my TBR. If you read my February Releases post then you already know what they are but in any case: 

I'm so excited to read these two books that I can't even put it into words! I haven't decided yet if I want to pre-order these, go to the store to get them or download the e-books the Monday night before they come out! I just know I want them ASAP! 

Let me know what books are on your February TBR and I'll talk to you all soon! 

Until next time, 

Ginger 

Waiting On Wednesday

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

Here is my selection for the week:

Taken from Goodreads: 
In the follow-up to Abbi Glines’s #1 New York Times bestseller Until Friday Night—which bestselling author Kami Garcia called “tender, honest, and achingly real”—three teens from a small southern town are stuck in a dramatic love triangle.

Willa can’t erase the bad decisions of her past that led her down the path she’s on now. But she can fight for forgiveness from her family. And she can protect herself by refusing to let anyone else get close to her.

High school quarterback and town golden boy Brady used to be the best of friends with Willa—she even had a crush on him when they were kids. But that’s all changed now: her life choices have made her a different person from the girl he used to know.

Gunner used to be friends with Willa and Brady, too. He too is larger than life and a high school football star—not to mention that his family basically owns the town of Lawton. He loves his life, and doesn’t care about anyone except himself. But Willa is the exception—and he understands the girl she’s become in a way no one else can.

As secrets come to light and hearts are broken, these former childhood friends must face the truth about growing up and falling in love…even if it means losing each other forever.

Release date is: August 23rd 2016

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I don't usually do W.O.W for books so far in advance but I'm really excited for this book and I cannot wait to get my hands on it! The first book in this series was actually my introduction to Abbi's writing and I loved everything about it! 

I know she has a TON of other books out there and I'm slowly but surely adding them to my collection but this one is top priority! 

Until next time, 
Ginger 

Most Anticipated February Releases

So I thought I'd start off this month by sharing my top 10 books that I'm anticipating this month. 

Just a couple things: 

I'll include a brief synopsis of most of the books listed but if it's part of a series I'll leave out the synopsis to avoid spoilers.

There are books that come out March 1st that I've included because my March Releases post won't go live until a couple days after March 1st. 

Books marked with a "~" are ones that have been sent to me to review.

These are listed in order of excitement from least to most.

Here we go! 

10. These Vicious Masks By Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas ~ 

Release Date: February 9th  

I don't know a ton about this book, the cover is what caught my eye, but then I heard it's being pitched as Jane Austen meets the X-men so that's all I really need to know!

9. You Were Here By Cori McCarthy 

Release Date: March 1st 

Jaycee is going to live past graduation, unlike her brother Jake. Well.. Maybe.. The only way she can deal with her brothers death is by recreating the very daredevil stunts that got him killed. Content to do this alone she's shocked to find a group of unlikely friends who all have their own reasons for wanting to complete the dares. 

This sounds like Lauren Oliver's "Panic" meets  Gayle Foreman's "I Was Here" so I'll definatly be picking this up!  

8. Firstlife By Gena Showalter 

Release Date: February 23rd 

Firstlife is a dress rehearsal. Everlife is is when your real life begins, after death. Tenley Lockwood refuses to let her parents choose where she'll live after death. She wants to be able to choose between the two ruling realms but even given the choice she doesn't know where she wants to end up, or worse, where the boy she's falling for will end up.

Yes please! This premise is killer and it's by Gena Showalter so of course I know I'm going to love it! 

7. The Leaving Season By Cat Jordan 

Release Date: March 1st

Middie Daniels calls it the leaving season, the time of year everyone graduates, packs up their bags and never looks back. Her boyfriend, Nate, is leaving this time, to volunteer for a year, but after that she'll be leaving too. With him. But when tragedy strikes she finds herself leaning on the shoulder of Nate's best friend Lee and she realizes that no matter the season, love can pull you through the hardest of times.   

6. Take The Fall 

Release Date: February 16th 

When Sonia and her best friend Gretchen are attacked in the woods Sonia is lucky to make it out alive, Gretchen however is discovered at the bottom of a waterfall dead. Suspect #1 is Gretchen's ex, Marcus. When Marcus asks for help clearing his name Sonia agrees, but only to find damning evidence against him. However when she starts falling for him she begins to wonder, if it wasn't him that day in the forest, who was it?  

One word- NEED!

5. The Shadow Queen By C.J. Redwine ~ 

Release Date: February 16th

Confession time. I don't like retellings. Something about them always turns me off. Which is why I still haven't read Splintered or Cinder (don't fret, I will this year! I promise!.) But this book sounds so good I can't help but add it to my list. 

Long synopsis short, this is a Snow White retelling where the princess "Lorelai" must kill the evil queen to save her kingdom. Oh and there's a love interest so... YAY!!! 

4. Blackhearts By Nicole Castroman ~ 

Release Date: February 9th

A debut novel that tells the story of Edward "Teach" and Anne Barrett, their love, and how heartbreak turns Teach into one of the most infamous pirates in history- Blackbeard. 

Honestly do I have to say anything else to get you to pick up this book? Because I know I'm HOOKED already! 

3. In Real Life By Jessica Love 

Release Date: March 1st 

 Hannah and Nick have been best friends since 8th grade, even though they've never met. Senior year Hannah decides to road trip to Vegas and confess her love for him, only problem is, when she gets there, she meets his girlfriend who he never mentioned. 

I love contemporaries so of course this is number 3 on my list. It also doesn't hurt that Emory Lord blurbed it!

2. Glass Sword By Victoria Aveyard 

Release Date: February 9th

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I LOVED The Red Queen so. Freaking. Much! I've been counting down the days until I could get my hands on this beauty and if Brandon Sanderson didn't have a book coming out this month then Glass Sword would be my number 1 anticipated book for February. 

Red Queen Review

1. Calamity By Brandon Sanderson. 

Release Date: February 16th 

  I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am to read this book! If you haven't been introduced to the awesomeness that is Brandon Sanderson yet then I HIGHLY recommend you start with his Reckoners series!

I do have a review up for the second book in the series but it does have spoilers so I'd save it until you've caught up on the series. 

Review of Firefight

And there you have it! 

Let me know what you think and if I missed a book that you're really excited about then let me know so I can add it to my ever growing pile! 

Until next time, 

Ginger 

Cover Reveal "Life After Juliet"