Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Goals for 2015

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly event hosted by The Broke and the Bookish with a new topic every week. This week's topic is:

Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2015

There is only one day left in 2014 so now comes the time to make some resolutions for the year to come. Bookish goals are my favourite because I tend to actually accomplish more of them. So here are my resolutions:

1. Read 125 books. This year I read 133, so it this is certainly achievable.

2. Read more classic. This has been an ongoing goal for me and I've been able to keep up. It may seem small, but I'm so drawn to YA and easy reads that classics tend to be a mission for me. 

3. Finish series that I've started. I've had Champion on my shelf for so long and it's not the only one from a series that's been sitting unread, so here's to completing those!

4. Read the books on my To-Read shelf first. I really want to read books from my shelf instead of picking ones that aren't on it to read. 

5. Borrow more books from work. I work at a bookstore, which means I can read books for free instead of spending my hard earned money on them. Yes, there are many books I must have on my shelf, but there are some that I just want to read and give back, so I really need to stop buying all of them.

6. Review every book I read. I fell behind this year, but I was doing pretty well for most of it. It's a great tool to keep my writing fresh and my blog filled.

7. Reread at least one book this year. It's nice to take the time out of the new stuff and re-visit an old favourite. I'll have to do this at least once this year.

8. Read more adult fiction. As much as I love my YA, it is nice to go out the norm and into other genres sometimes. 

9. Join some book challenges. Because they are always fun and out of the box!

10. Become more involved in the blogging community. This blog is still so small and not very popular. Ir I put myself out there more, maybe it can become something more. 

What are your goals for the new year? Happy New Year all!

Review: My True Love Gave to Me

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories
Edited by Stephanie Perkins
Authors: Holly Black, Ally Carter, Matt De La Pena, Gayle Forman, Jenny Han, David Levithan, Kelly Link, Myra McEntire, Stephanie Perkins, Rainbow Rowell, Laini Taylor, Kiersten White
Published: October 14th, 214
Hardcover, 320 pages
5 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favourite sitcoms and, especially if you love holiday anthologies, you're going to fall in love with My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories by twelve bestselling young adult writers, edited by international best selling author Stephanie Perkins. 

This is the first time I've read an anthology all the way through. Normally I just pick out the stories by my favourite authors and read those ones, promising to go back and read the rest but still haven't. So I read this one from start to finish, in order, and it was wonderful. It brought out the warm, cozy emotions you get around the holidays. Each one was so different and diverse, they each stood out from the others and got me into the Christmas spirit.

Midnights by Rainbow Rowell 
5 Gold Stars

Rowell's story is super cute, Set over a few New Year's Eves, we watch as Mags and Noel, a pair of friends, spend every New Year's together with the wrong ending. Noel always ends up kissing someone at midnight, and it's never Mags. It's sad, realistic, and has the cutest happy ending there is. Sometimes it takes years to realize what's right in front of you.

Mags held on to his neck with both arms. She pushed on his forehead. He smelled like skin. "I can't get close enough," Noel said.

The Lady and the Fox by Kelly Link
4 Gold Stars

A cute, magical story told over many Christmases. Miranda spends every Christmas with her god-mother Elspeth Honeywell, and one year she sees a strange man outside in the snow. His name is Fenny and he can only be out when it's snowing. Miranda quickly falls in love with him, uncertain of who he is and how he's here but determined to give him the life he deserves. It read like an old-fashioned fairy tale and I loved the link to the fox through Fenny and the creepy lady that went with him.

"Could I stay with you. I vow I would. I would stay and grow old with you, Miranda. Or as long as you wanted me to stay."

Angels in the Snow by Matt de la Pena
5 Gold Stars

Shy is spending Christmas alone cat-sitting in New York, the first year away from his family. He's broke and starving, but too proud to do anything about it. That's when Haley shows up at his door claiming her shower is broken. She is sweet and loving, also alone and wanting someone to spend Christmas with. They are both broken people who find each other on a cold winter's night. Shy is a great character and Haley is his perfect counterpart. This one warmed my heart!

I felt like I was breathing the world into my lungs.

Polaris is Where You'll Find Me by Jenny Han
4 Gold Stars

This one was very cute! Natty has a magical life. When she was a baby, Santa brought her up to the North Pole and now she lives among the elves. At the annual Christmas party, Natty is ready to get the one she thing she really wants for Christmas, an elf named Flynn. She's always felt out of place and no one believes her stories. This one was too short for me, and I felt like I couldn't really get into the story, but it was sweet nonetheless.

"Living where I live, it can sometimes be hard to tell the difference between magic and make believe."

It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown by Stephanie Perkins
5 Gold Stars

Marigold does not live a typical life. She wants to get out of town and her new animation series is just her ticket, but needs a voice and North is just the right guy for the job. She just needs to talk to him first. What begins as an innocent trip to a tree farm becomes a lovely evening as North helps Marigold get into the Yuletide spirit. These two are the cutest ever (as expected from Stephanie!) This one was probably my favourite of the twelve and I wish I had more time with these characters.

"I've always felt lucky to live someplace where snow is rare, you know? It's the rareness that makes it so special."

Your Temporary Santa by David Levithan
4 Gold Stars

Connor needs someone to play Santa for his little sister, for one last year before she stops believing. Our narrator, Connor's boyfriend, dons the suit and sneaks into the house late at night to put presents under the tree. When he encounters both of Connor's sisters, he learns a lot more than he thought he would. It helps him find where he belongs. It was cute little story, reminded me a little of the Grinch, but in a good way. It's a cute reminder of what Christmas is really about.

"It's hard not to feel just a little bit fat when your boyfriend asks you to be Santa Claus."

Krumpuslauf by Holly Black
5 Gold Stars

Hanna bargained with the universe many years ago, and this winter she celebrates Krumpuslauf this year, she meets someone that makes her second guess everything she believes in. She plans a New Years party that to her seems like a million bucks, but not so much to the douchebag her best friend is dating. But sometimes miracles happen and bad people get what they deserve. This was a very different story and I loved the magical aspect to it.

"And then I found myself in the hall, kissing Joachim, a boy I barely knew, a boy with a pretend name and who might be a demon or a faerie or a disturbing hallucination."

What the Hell Have you Done, Sophie Roth? by Gayle Forman
5 Gold Stars

Sophie is very different from the rest of the people at her college. She's a scholarship kid and from New York ,so no one really gets her sense of humour or lack of money. They wear Christmas sweaters on purpose and sing awful Christmas carols. But when Russell shows up enjoying her little sarcasm, she realizes she may just have a friend after all. They spend the evening together doing fun things and celebrating Hanukkah. They are both different and find solace in each other. Full of Gayle harm, this one made me smile and feel very cozy and warm.

There were only nine emergency candles on the shelf. "That's almost like the actual Hanukkah miracle."

Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus by Myra McEntire
4 Gold Stars

A very different take on the nativity. Vaughn is the kind of kid who gets up to no good and always find way to prank people. But when he has the chance to impress Gracie, the Pastor's daughter, he jumps at the chance to be a better person. With his help, the church is able to put on their live nativity, with him as Joseph and Gracie as Mary, he realizes he has family everywhere.

Q"Although I'm glad he ruined it for you. I'll be happy to be the one to set things right."

Welcome to Christmas, CA by Kiersten White
5 Gold Stars

Maria lives in the barely there town of Christmas, CA. She can't wait to leave her small apartment and the tiny Christmas diner she works at. But when a new chef starts working there, with a mysterious name and background, Maria starts to actually have fun while she's at work. Soon everything starts looking up and she realizes that everything she really needs is in this small Christmas town. The best little story about what really matters at Christmas and all year round.

"I might be okay with Christmas, but Santa is still the worst."

Star of Bethlehem by Ally Carter
4 Gold Stars

Lydia wants to escape for the winter, so when she has the opportunity to switch plane tickets with someone at the airport, she does it in a heartbeat. While in the middle of nowhere, she learns about real families and falls for Ethan, the boy who doesn't know anything real about her. But things have a way of catching up to us. This was cute story that could easily be turned into a movie for Christmas. Very Hannah Montana and very cute.

"If you just want to go away then any ticket will get you there."

The Girl who Woke the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
4 Gold Stars

I hate to say that this was my least favourite. Laini is such a great writer and this world was very different, but not very much happened. Neve will do anything not to have to marry the Priest so she prays to the forbidden Wisha and in doing so wakes the Dreamer. Can he help her escape her inevitable future at the clutches of the man who wants to marry her? And can the Dreamer give her what she really wants? It was lovely to read and very different, but I wish it had more pizzaz.

"If I spend all my disappoint before breakfast, what will I go on for the rest of the day?"

The cover of this is the cutest. I loved being able to pick out the characters from each story as I met them. This is a book I'll be picking up every Christmas to get me into the spirit.

Review: Top Ten Clues You're Clueless

Top Ten Clues You're Clueless
Author: Liz Czukas
Published: December 9th, 2014
Paperback, 304 pages
4 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

Top Five Things that are Ruining Chloe's Day

5) Working the 6:30 a.m. shift at GoodFoods Market

4) Crashing a cart into a customer's car right in front of her snarky coworker Sammi

3) Trying to rock the "drowned rat" look after being caught in a snowstorm

2) Making zero progress with her crush, Tyson (see #3)

1) Being accused - along with her fellow teenage employees - of stealing upwards of $10,000

Chloe would rather be anywhere than locked in work jail (aka the break room) with five of her coworkers... even if one of them is Tyson. But if they can band together to clear their names, what looks like a total disaster might just make Chloe's list of Top Ten Best Moments. 

I picked this up right away because I heard that it was a little Christmas-y and I like me some holiday reading around this time of year. It turned out to be the cutest holiday book and a great read all around. Chloe is stuck working the morning shift at GoodFoods Market on Christmas Eve. Waking up early sucks any day, but it's Christmas Eve and the weather sucks and she'd rather be in bed. Everything is going wrong and to make matters worse, the money from the holiday donation box is missing and someone has accused the young-ins of stealing it. Suddenly Chloe is playing detective while also trying to make friends with the girls at work, flirt with Tyson, and get home in time for Christmas dinner with her mom and brother.

Top Five Reasons You'll Love This Book:

1) It's very Breakfast Club-esque. Six kids from very different cliques are forced to spend time together and slowly get to know each other and realize they all kind of dig one another.

2) Lists! I'm a huge fan of lists and Chloe does not disappoint. Her lists are clever, fun, and down right funny. I loved when she listed the movies she wished she lived in, especially since her list was exactly the the same as mine!

3) Work antics. If you've ever worked fast food, grocery, retail, any job really, you know what it's like to work with people you don't like, or do like and want to know better. The cast of characters in this book was so diverse, it seemed so real. I related to Chloe perfectly as I've worked many jobs like this. I loved reading about working at Christmas time and the madness that goes with it.

4) A bit of drama. Chloe has diabetes and because the store is a madhouse, she hasn't been eating all day. When it finally catches up to her, it's a little nuts, but it doesn't take over the whole story. It was great to see how everyone reacted and tried to help her get through it.

5) It's a cute holiday story that will warm your heart. It's a little corny with the mystery of the money, but in the best way possible. It will make you like your job more (maybe) and make you realize that the people you work with have the potential to be really good friends. We spend so much time at work, it's a much better time when you love the people you work with.

All in all, this was a nice little contemporary read that I read in two days. It was a lot of fun, made me laugh, and kept me guessing on who could have stolen the money. The cast of characters was the perfect mix and the Christmas Eve at a grocery store was a great setting for this little bit of charm. If you're looking for a cute holiday read, I'd definitely pick this one up!

"I'm not sure the rest of the world has gotten the memo, because I still feel like a pretty big dork compared to a lot of people at my new school. And being insecure makes me want to write more lists, which makes me feel more nerdier, which makes me write more lists... You can see my problem."

This Shattered World Blog Tour Contest

Hey all!

Just stopping in to let you know about this amazing contest happening all over the blogasphere this week. Tomorrow marks the release of This Shattered World, the second book in the Starbound trilogy by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. If you haven't picked up the first book, These Broken Stars, I highly recommend you do. It's a wonderful sci-fi that's reminiscent of the Titanic days.

The blog tour has been going on for a week, but there is still lots of time to read all the posts and enter into the giveaway to win a signed copy of the book, or even the grand prize of having coffee with the authors! These posts have taught me new things about the series and about books as a whole and these authors are great ladies who I'm sure you'll enjoy. Take the time to visit these posts, it'll be worth your while.

Jubilee Chase and Flynn Cormac should never have met.

Lee is the captain of the forces sent to Avon to crush the terraformed planet's rebellious colonists, but she has her own reasons for hating the insurgents.

Rebellion is in Flynn's blood. Terraforming corporations make their fortune by recruiting colonists to make the inhospitable planets livable, with the promise of a better life for their children. But they never fulfilled their promise on Avon, and decades later, Flynn is leading the rebellion.

Desperate for any advantage in a bloody and unrelentingly war, Flynn does the only thing that makes sense when he and Lee cross paths: he returns to base with her as a prisoner. But as his fellow rebels prepare to execute this tough-talking girl with nerves of steel, Flynn makes another choice that will change him forever. He and Lee escape the rebel base together, caught between two sides of a senseless war. 

This Shattered World released tomorrow, December 23rd, from Disney-Hyperion. The giveaway is hosted by The Midnight Garden, to learn more and to enter the contest, head on over to the page and get ready for some fun! - This Shattered World Blog Tour & Giveaway

Review: Don't Touch

Don't Touch
Author: Rachel M. Wilson
Published: September 2nd, 2014
Hardcover, 415 pages
5 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

Step on a crack, break your mother's back,
Touch another person's skin, and Dad's gone for good...

Caddie has a history of magical thinking - of playing games in her head to cope with her surroundings - but it's never been this bad before.

When her parents split up, Don't Touch becomes Caddie's mantra. Maybe if she keeps from touching another person's skin, her parents might get back together... which is why she wears full-length gloves to school and covers every inch of her skin.

It seems harmless at first, but Caddie's obsession soon threatens her ambitions as an actress. She desperately wants to play Ophelia in her school's production of Hamlet. But that would mean touching Peter, who's auditioning for the title role - and kissing him. Part of Caddie would love nothing more than to kiss Peter - but the other part isn't sure she's brave enough to let herself fall.

The cover and premise of this book alone made me pick it up. It seemed more unique than anything I've read and certainly the most realistic. People talk about OCD and anxiety like it's no big deal, but there are people out there, like Caddie, who physically cannot make themselves do something in fear of what might happen. Caddie has forever trusted the rhymes and sayings that if you do something, something bad will happen. Step on a crack, break your mother's back. She cautiously weaves through life, but the day her dad leaves the family, she can't help but blame herself. If she had just never let someone touch her, he might still be here. So she begins wearing gloves, staying far away from people, and vowing never to touch someone ever again in hopes of seeing her father again. But now that she's at a new school and making new friends, she keeps getting the urge to touch, and as much as her mind is telling her no, her heart is saying yes when it comes to Peter, the Hamlet to her Ophelia.

I knew I was going to understand Caddie from the beginning. It's not that I won't touch people either, but I understand telling yourself something and believing it's true and that if you don't listen, bad things will happen. I'm nowhere near as anxious as Caddie is, but I can certainly see how she got herself into that place and I was so proud of her for getting out of it. It was hard to read in some places, feeling the brutality that she puts herself through, especially when she starts getting feelings for Peter but can't will herself to touch him. Her new group of friends help her through it. Mandy, a girl she knew from when they were kids, tries to help Caddie come out of her shell. Caddie isn't happy with how pushy she is, but I loved how she eventually opened up to her and was willing to get help. Peter was amazing, the best kind of guy to read about. He's friendly, supportive, and willing to wait for Caddie to be able to touch him, though he does try to push her along a bit too. None of them really know why Caddie won't touch them, so I can understand how they'd try to fix her even though they don't know how broken she is. And really, only she can make herself better but with their support, it was a lot easier for her.

The writing was amazing. Rachel captured the thoughts and feelings of someone who doesn't think they deserve to be happy. I'm a huge fan of plays and acting, so I loved that there was a minor story of them preforming Hamlet, and I loved reading about the rehearsals and how Caddie wanted to do a good job, but didn't know how to release herself into it. The moments with her and Peter were delicious to read and I just loved reading her journey from nothing to everything. It was hard for her to except that just because she wasn't touching anyone didn't mean her dad would come back. It was heartbreaking and realistic and it was perfect, brutality honest look at OCD that a lot of people don't realize. This is a must read for everyone as it gives you a glimpse into the life of someone who could be beside you and you wouldn't even know they were suffering like this.

"When we locked eyes, the ease of his stare and the welcome of a smile made me feel like one of two fixes points in a hurricane. The building could have crashes down around us as he smiled, and I wouldn't have noticed."

Waiting on Wednesday: I'll Meet You There

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, where we highlight an upcoming release we are eagerly anticipating.

My WoW this week is:

I'll Meet You There
By Heather Demetrios
Hardcover, 400 pages
Expected publication: February 3rd, 2015

From Goodreads:

If seventeen-year-old Skylar Evans were a typical Creek View girl, her future would involve a double-wide trailer, a baby on her hip, and the graveyard shift at Taco Bell. But after graduation, the only thing standing between straightedge Skylar and art school are three minimum-wage months of summer. Skylar can taste the freedom - that is, until her mother loses her job and everything starts coming apart. Torn between her dreams and the people she loves, Skylar realizes everything she's ever worked for is on the line.

Nineteen-year-old Josh Mitchell has a different ticket out of Creek View: the Marines. But after his leg is blown off in Afghanistan, he returns home, a shell of the cocksure boy he used to be. What brings Skylar and Josh together is working at the Paradise - a quirky motel off California's dusty Highway 99. Despite their differences, their shared isolation turns into an unexpected friendship and soon, something deeper. 

This sounds like my kind of story. Lonely, broken kids who are looking for a better life and find each other while they're at it. Also, how great is that cover? Can't wait to pick this one up! What's your Waiting on Wednesday thia week?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Books we Read in 2014

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly event hosted by The Broke and the Bookish where we list wonderful bookish things!

This week's Top Ten topic is: Top Ten Books we Read in 2014

It's that time of the year! I love compiling lists at the end of the year. I read some great books this year, but here are the top ten:

1. On the Fence - Kasie West:
2. Let's Get Lost - Adi Alsaid
3. Don't Touch - Rachel M. Wilson

4. Open Road Summer - Emery Lord
5. Isla and the Happily Ever After - Stephanie Perkins
6. Since You've Been Gone - Morgan Matson

7. The Retribution of Mara Dyer - Michelle Hodkin
8. Cress - Marissa Meyer

 9. Everything Leads to You - Nina LaCour
10. Don't Look Back - Jennifer L. Armentrout

I read some amazing books this year and there are still a lot on my list that came out this year that I haven't had a chance to read yet. It was good year in YA and I know next year will only be better. Happy reading everyone! What were your top reads of 2014?

Review: Ashes to Ashes

Ashes to Ashes
Authors: Jenny Han, Siobhan Vivian
Published: September 16th, 2014
Hardcover, 387 pages
4 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

New Year's Eve ended with a bang and Mary, Kat, and Lillia may not be prepared for what is to come.

After Rennie's death, Kat and Lillia try to put the pieces together of what happened to her. They both blame themselves. If Lillia hadn't left with Reeve... if Kat had only stayed with Rennie... things could have been different. Now they will never be the same.

Only Mary knows the truth about that night. About who she is. She also knows the truth about Lillia and Reeve falling in love, about Reeve being happy when all he deserves is misery, just like the misery he caused her. Now their childish attempts at revenge are a thing of the past and Mary is out for blood. Will she leave anything in her wake or all that remain be ashes? 

The end of a series is always bittersweet and it normally takes me a long time to finally open it up and read it in fear that I won't be happy with how it will end. The Burn for Burn series has stood out from the beginning. It started out very contemporary with three girls out to seek revenge on those who have wronged them and quickly turned into its own genre. The ending of the first book showed us just what Mary was made of and the end of the second told us Mary was probably not who we thought she was. So in the last book, Ashes to Ashes, took everything we know and proved us wrong about what we thought was going to happen. It's hard to write this without spoilers because there are a lot of parts of the last book that ruined the series for me and parts of how it ended were not what I was looking for when I went into this book.

Kat was immediately my favourite of the three girls. She didn't take anyone's shit and throughout the events that happen through the series, she grew as a character the most for me. She realized what they were doing was wrong and I could feel her regret after what happened at the New Year's party. Mary could have been a great character. I wish she had been able to forgive Reeve for how he treated her and to move on from everything that happened. Her story took the strangest turn that I wasn't expecting and still am not very happy with. I think I understand why the authors did it, but I'm not sure I liked it. With Lillia, I was never really a fan. She got too much handed to her and every guy seemed to fall so easily in love with her. In the end, when she still has two guys fighting over her, I was kind of just done with it and did not care who she ended up with (though I'm not happy with who she ended up with, I was hoping he'd end up with Kat). So much happened on this tiny island and it made for a whirlwind read that was not predicable at all. These girls certainly knew how to piss people off and their schemes ruined more than they thought they would. Yes they went too far, yes they realize what they did was bad, but who doesn't want to make people pay for what they did to you? I certainly would never do anything like this, but it's fun to read about people who took that leap and did it.

This series stands out on its own and I think I'll eventually re-read the whole thing together to see if I can catch hints of certain things before they are revealed. The ending was very realistic, no super happily ever afters here, and thought I wish some things were different, I understand why it had to happen. It's worth the read to finish off the series and get some answers, so don't not read it guys, no matter what awful things you may be reading about it.

"Years from now this will be what I remember when I remember my spring break senior year. It will be this moment right here. The smell of chlorine on his skin. The way the sun dips into the water before it disappears. The first time I ever told a boy I loved him."

Review: Drama Unsung

Drama Unsung
Author: Jennifer Jamelli
Published: August 31, 2014
Paperback, 292 pages
4 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

All Alexa wants is to be cast as Cosette... until she meets her very own Marius.

Most of the drama in Drama Club happens long before the curtain opens. Alexa Grace finds herself right at the heart of the drama - in a whirlwind of gossip and emotions and charades - when she moves to a new school and auditions for Les Miserables. She quickly realizes that the auditions are fixed, that the person who is cast as Cosette has it out for her, and that she is in the middle of a dangerous backstage love triangle.. In a tangle of jealousy, passion, frustration, and ambition, Alexa and her classmates struggle to come together to pull off an amazing production. 

High school is full of drama, no matter who you are or what clique you're in, but being in the Drama club can have an extra dose of dramatic flair. Alexa has just moved to a new school, which in itself can be nerve-racking, but joining the Drama Club and realizing that being the new girl behind Addison won't get her very far. Addison pretty much owns the Drama Club, her father the main donator to the school, so she gets whatever part she wants whether she deserves it or not. So even though Alexa would make the best Cosette and it's her dream role, she ends up as Eponine, a girl caught up on Cosette's boyfriend, Marius. Life often imitates art as Alexa soon finds herself attracted to Addison's boyfriend, Collin, and soon she's in her own miserable love triangle and trying to survive the play.

This was a fast read and full of drama, laughter and some sweet moments between Alexa and Collin. I loved that each chapter was a different song title from Les Miserables, one of my favourite plays. I enjoyed that the story revolved around the production of this play, from auditions to curtain calls, and all the madness in between. The dialogue flowed nicely and the plot was great for this cute, high school story. It would be perfect for a young teenager to read, especially someone who's in drama or loves it. I was only in a few plays in high school and thankfully I did not get caught up in anything like this, but I can certainly see how it could get crazy back there. Addison was the perfect bad girl, one with money who always gets what she wants. And I love how it came to bite her in the ass at the end. Alexa made some great friends, like Eric, who wished her the best and continued to try and get her together with Collin.

A nice, light read for another who loves acting, plays, or just Les Mis in general. It shows that even if you don't get what you want, you may find something better. Getting the big part in the play is not what acting is about, it's about having fun, making friends, and becoming the character you were assigned. I'll let you know this much, this book ends a lot happier than Les Mis did!

"He kisses me at an achingly slow pace, pulling me into his arms and rubbing my back gently. It's a kiss that reminds me that we have nowhere to be right now and no one about to barge in on us. a kiss that promises many more kisses to come."