Jun 30, 2013

Top 5 Sundays: Best Books of 2013 so far!

Top 5 Sundays is a weekly feature with a different bookish theme hosted by Larissa at her blog Welcome to Larissa's Bookish Life


This week's theme is Best Books of 2013 so far. 

You can join HERE!


So, My Top 5 Best Books of 2013 so far are:


#1 - The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman


 
Without a doubt, the BEST book I read this year! I'm a big fan of Neil Gaiman, so I knew this would be awesome, but he still managed to amaze me & surprise me!  
 

#2 - I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells


 
Actually, the whole John Cleaver Trilogy should be on this list, because I Am Not A Serial Killer, Mr. Monster & I Don't Want to Kill You complete this one amazing storyline, with one amazing main character, and I absolutely loved every second of them.  
 

#3 - Hot Blooded by Amanda Carlson


 
You know why, right? I'm so hooked on the series :) I loved Full Blooded, too, but I loved Hot Blooded even more, and I can't wait for Cold Blooded!
 

#4 - The Fury by Alexander Gordon Smith


 
I actually read this one as 2 separate books, part of The Fury Duology called The Fury & The Storm, but this year it's re-published as one book called The Fury - The Director's Cut with the cover above (the publisher's changed their mind), and it's quite the story of supernatural terror, and one of the best I read this year, so I can't recommend it enough :)
 

#5 - Cinder + Scarlet by Marissa Meyer 


 
The Lunar Chronicles is another series I totally got hooked on this year! I love the story & the world the author created, (fairy tale re-tellings set in a sci-fi world - of course I'm hooked), as well as all the amazing characters, and I can't wait to read the next book in the series!
 

Jun 28, 2013

Debut-a-Thon: Updates + Wrap Up!

 
Debut-a-Thon is hosted by Amber @ Books of Amber!


 

DAY 1:


Today I've been reading: Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff

Books finished today: none

Mini challenges participated in today: Unscramble That Debut

Daily thoughts: Although I like Rump, & it's a fast-read, so with the little time I had for reading today, I did good, I kinda lost interest, so I decided to put it aside for now (but, I'm planning to return to it for the weekend) & to start Splintered next.


 

DAY 2 + DAY 3:

I've been reading: Splintered by A. G. Howard

Books finished: none

Mini challenges participated in: none

Daily thoughts: I'm a total failure this read-a-thon. Although I knew I won't be able to read a lot on Friday, I still managed to read more then I hoped for. I started Splintered & I enjoyed it quite a lot, and I was looking forward to continue reading it on Saturday (maybe even finishing it), but life got in the way. So yeah, instead of spending most of the day reading, I read almost nothing. As you've noticed, I didn't even wrote my updates or participated in the mini challenges, let's hope today (Sunday) I'll do better, although it doesn't seem likely, it seems I won't manage to finish anything, but I still hope I will.

 
DAY 4:

Today I've been reading: Splintered & Rump

Books finished today: none

Mini challenges participated in today: none

Daily thoughts: I read a little from Splintered, and then I read a good chunk of Rump, and if I had a little more free time for reading today, I definitely would've finished it. Actually, I'm returning to it right away :D
 

 
WRAP UP:
 
I didn't finish anything, so I was almost a failure this Debut-a-Thon, but since I read half of Splintered & I'm pretty much almost done with Rump, I did ok, although compared with how much I usually read for read-a-thons, I definitely failed :( I was just too busy. I also participated in only one mini challenge, and I wish I did all of them.
 

Jun 27, 2013

Debut-a-Thon Mini Challenge #1: Unscramble That Debut!


 
My Answers:
 
1. IF YOU FIND ME
2. ALTERED
3. PIVOT POINT
4. ARCLIGHT
5. POISON
6. SPLINTERED
7. THE ELITES
 

Link to the mini challenge HERE!

Debut-a-Thon: Start!


 
Debut-a-Thon is hosted by Amber @ Books of Amber!

It starts @ 12 AM on Thursday June 27, and end @ 11.59 PM on Sunday June 30, no matter what your timezone is. 

What I'll be reading?


  
 As you probably noticed from the books above, I'm in a mood for fairy-tale-like books, so these three are 2013 debuts I've heard great things about. I won't be able to read a lot on Thursday & Friday, but hopefully I'll be free for the weekend to read these.
 

On twitter we'll use #debutathon.

Debut-a-Thon's Kick Off post is HERE!

Jun 26, 2013

"Waiting On" Wednesday #122: Dragonwitch + The Enchanter Heir!

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.
 
 

Dragonwitch
(Tales of Goldstone Wood, #5)
by
Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Publication date:
July 1st, 2013
 

Submissive to her father’s will, Lady Leta of Aiven travels far to meet a prospective husband she neither knows nor loves – Lord Alistair, future king of the North Country. 
 
But within the walls of Gaheris Castle, all is not right. Vicious night terrors plague Lord Alistair to the brink of insanity. Whispers rise from the family crypt. The reclusive castle Chronicler, Leta’s tutor and friend, possesses a secret so dangerous it could cost his life and topple the North Country into civil war. 
 
And far away in a hidden kingdom, a fire burns atop the Temple of the Sacred Flame. Acolytes and priestesses serve their goddess to the limits of their lives and deaths. No one is safe while the Dragonwitch searches for the sword that slew her twice…and for the one person who can wield it.




 
The Enchanter Heir
(The Heir Chronicles, #4)
by
Cinda Williams Chima

Publication date:
October 1st, 2013
 

They called it the Thorn Hill Massacre — the brutal attack on a once-thriving Weir community. Though Jonah Kinlock lived through it, he did not emerge unscathed: like the other survivors, Jonah possesses unique magical gifts that set him apart from members of the mainline guilds. At seventeen, Jonah has become the deadliest assassin in Nightshade, a global network that hunts the undead. He is being groomed to succeed Gabriel Mandrake, the sorcerer, philanthropist, and ruthless music promoter who established the Thorn Hill Foundation, the public face of Nightshade. More and more, Jonah’s at odds with Gabriel’s tactics and choice of targets. Desperate to help his dying brother Kenzie, Jonah opens doors that Gabriel prefers to keep closed.

Emma Claire Greenwood grew up worlds away, raised by a grandfather who taught her music rather than magic. An unschooled wild child, she runs the streets until the night she finds her grandfather dying, gripping a note warning Emma that she might be in danger. The clue he leaves behind leads Emma into Jonah’s life — and a shared legacy of secrets and lingering questions.

Was Thorn Hill really a peaceful commune? Or was it, as the Wizard Guild claims, a hotbed of underguild terrorists? The Wizards’ suspicions grow when members of the mainline guilds start turning up dead. They blame Madison Moss and the Interguild Council, threatening the fragile peace brokered at Trinity.

Racing against time, Jonah and Emma work to uncover the truth about Thorn Hill, amid growing suspicion that whoever planned the Thorn Hill Massacre might strike again
.




What are you waiting for this week?
 
Leave me your WoW links!

Jun 25, 2013

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I've Read So Far in 2013!


Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists.

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list that one of our bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

So, My Top Ten Books I've Read So Far in 2013 (in no particular order) are:


#1 - The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

Ok, so I just finished this, and all I can say is WOW! I was left speechless, so amazing, definitely the BEST book I've read this year!!!

#2 - I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells

To be honest, I should say that the whole John Cleaver Trilogy should be on this list, definitely some of the best books I've read this year!

#3 - Hot Blooded by Amanda Carlson

This book was so full of awesomeness, and I loved every second of it!!!

#4 - The Fury by Alexander Gordon Smith

I actually read this one in 2 separate books, from last-year's paperback edition of The Fury, and this year's ebook sequel The Storm, but because these two are re-published with this cover as one book called The Fury - The Director's Cut, I'm counting them as one book now, and it's a must-read!

#5 - Poison by Bridget Zinn

 So fun, and lovely, and imaginative, and amazingly fairy-tale-like!!! Another must-read!

#6 - Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Actually, Cinder should be on this list, too, because I totally loved it also & I read it this year, but if I had to choose, I actually love Scarlet just tiny bit more ;)

#7 - The Blood by D. J. MacHale

The Blood is the last book in one of my fav trilogies The Morpheus Road, and I absolutely loved it, and I know I'll love reading it again & again, and never get enough :D

#8 - Castle in the Air + House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones

 So, I really wanted this to be a list of only 10 books, and not to cheat, but I just couldn't choose only one of these ;)

#9 - A Witch Alone by Ruth Warburton

A Witch Alone is the last one book in the Winter Trilogy, and it was amazing & perfect, yet so heartbreaking, but I absolutely loved it!

#10 - Wallbanger by Alice Clayton   

If there's one adult contemporary romance you have to try, that's Wallbanger! Just so hilarious, yet sweet & romantic, believe me, you don't want to miss it!!!


This definitely wasn't an easy list to make, because I've already read so many amazing books this year that deserve a place in my top 10 best books, so I already dread doing the best of 2013 list at the end of this year ;) You can imagine how tough it will be then...


What about you?
 
What are your fav reads so far this year?

 Leave me your TTT links!