Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten 2014 Release I'm Dying To Read

Top Ten 2014 Release I'm Dying To Read

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they post a new Top Ten list  that bloggers are welcome to join in and answer. 

Happy Tuesday, everyone! My, how time flies by so fast! It's only several more days until the new year!

Although I still have a "small" pile of books I haven't read yet...

- well, maybe not small, it's a bit tall...


...okay, so it's not a "bit" tall, more like...


Fine! It's a huge pile, now give it a rest, okay? *glares* It's not like you fair any better. *sticks tongue out*

LOL. I jest. As I saying although I still have a pile of books sitting unread on my shelf, I am eagerly looking forward to a lot of books to be released in 2014. So here's my top ten:

INTO THE STILL BLUE by Veronica Rossi

(Under the Never Sky #3)

- Perry!!! I am missing my sexy, roguish hero so badly! And Aria! And Roar! And I can't wait for them to kick Kirra's ass - along with Hess and Sable's!

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Favorite Kick-Ass Heroines

Top Ten Favorite Kick-Ass Heroines

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they post a new Top Ten list  that bloggers are welcome to join in and answer. 

Hello, everyone! This week's Top Ten is about your favorite heroines. So here are mine:

1. KATNISS EVERDEEN (The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins) This is probably self-explanatory :)

2. CELAENA SARDOTHIEN (Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas) Being considered as the deadliest assassin in all of Adarlan, and at such a young age, that says a lot for Celaena

3. MEGHAN CHASE (The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa) From being a damsel in distress needing Ash and Puck at her side at all times, Meghan is now a certified queen and swordswoman. And how gorgeous is her teacher, huh? Ash! *faints*

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books for People Who Liked [X] Book

Top Ten Books for People Who Liked [INSERT BOOK TITLE] Book

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they post a new Top Ten list  that bloggers are welcome to join in and answer. 

Hello fellow readers! Today's topic for Top Ten Tuesday is to pick a certain book and recommend books that have similar concepts. Here are my picks. I chose 3 books to base my recommendations on.

If you've read and liked:

Fairy Tales by the Grimm Brothers and Hans Christian Andersen

 

Book Haul [6]

I haven't thought of a name for a weekly meme of book hauls so let's just go with what's posted above.

For now, I'll call this the "Whatever it's called" Book Haul. It's only temporary, I swear. I just haven't thought of a clever name for it. So this is pretty much just like In My Mailbox by the Story Siren and This Week In Books by Pop Culture Junkie and all the other titles with the similar concept here and there. This is a weekly post showcasing the books you received for the given week, either bought online or from a physical bookstore, borrowed from the library or from a friend, received for review or won from a giveaway, etc.

Hi there! 

Wow! How long has it been since my last book haul post? I've been on a hectic schedule for the past few weeks so forgive the absence. 

Anyway, I have a few books in for this week's post. I haven't actually gotten the time to go to bookstores recently so this is going to be a short list.

2012 Debuts RED Giveaway [SECOND WINNER]

Hello everyone!

I was supposed to announce the second winner for the 2012 Debuts RED Giveaway but something came up so I apologize for the delay.

Anyway, without further adieu, I hereby give you the announcement:

Grave Mercy has already been chosen by our first winner therefore today's winner gets to choose between Cinder and Scarlet.

Remember, I’ve decided to choose not 1 but 3 winners for this giveaway! Here's a repost of the schedule and guidelines below:

2012 Debuts RED Giveaway [NEW WINNER PICK]

Hello everyone!

On June 1st, I posted an announcement of the winner for the 2012 Debuts RED Giveaway. Unfortunately, the winner did reply to my email at the designated time required for a response so as much as I want to give the prize to the first drawn winner, I have to pick a new one. 

2012 Debuts RED Giveaway [WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT]

Hello! Hello, dear readers!

How are you?

Today is the 1^st of June 2012. It’s a start of a new month… and of course the end of the 2012 Debuts RED Giveaway!

I am now about to announce the winner. But… before I do that, let me first tell you what surprise I am about to throw in.

I’ve decided to choose not 1 but 3 winners for this giveaway!

That’s right, I first gave these 3 different books as choices, now I’ll give them all away instead.

So for now, the first winner gets to choose from the 3 books, once a book is chosen, the 2^nd winner will be choosing from the remaining 2 and the 3^rd will be given the book that wasn’t chosen by winners 1 and 2. They’re all great books so I know you’ll love them.

To site an example: If Winner 1 chooses Cinder, therefore Winner 2 gets to choose between Grave Mercy and Scarlet. Now when Winner 2 chooses Scarlet, then Grave Mercy goes to Winner 3. Does that make sense?

You know what the best part is? You don’t even have to do anything. I’ll be choosing the 2 other winners from the entries already sent in.

Schedule of announcement of winners:

WINNER 1: JUNE 1, 2012 (this post)

WINNER 2: JUNE 15, 2012 (‘cause I like to torture you. *evil laugh* - kidding.)

WINNER 3: JUNE 30, 2012 (just to keep up the suspense. Teehee!)

Alright, I’m not going to delay the announcement any longer.

Here we go...

2012 Debuts RED Giveaway

Hello there!


Now you're probably wondering what that card above is, right? Right.


So, that card right there is what I call a Red Giveaway Card. Alright, I know what you're saying; you're going, "Really? That's what you called it?" Well I must condone that it sounds good... and I have no other idea on what to call it so I just did the obvious. Also I happen to be a fan of the red color. Ever notice why most of my banners have a red touch to it??? Yup, love red. ^_^


Coincidentally, the books I thought of giving away had a touch of red to it too so I found it reasonable enough. [Excuses, excuses...tsk. tsk. tsk.]


Anyway, so here we go!


I've taken part of the 2012 Debut Author Challenge and I've been enjoying the experience. Now, I'm giving away one* of these books to one* lucky winner.
The choices are:

• Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers (Click to see review)
• Cinder by Marissa Meyer (Click to see review)
• Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen (Click to see review)

I gratefully had the gracious opportunity to read the ARC ebook copies of these books from NetGalley and I absolutely love them! and one of the best ways to show my appreciation is to let another fabulous reader experience the beauty of them.

So how are you going to win a Paperback copy of one* of those books? 

All you have to do is fill up the form below.

Of course, a few rules and guidelines to be noted:

• Contest is open INTERNATIONALLY provided that the Book Depository delivers to your area. Click the link to check: List of countries the Book Depository delivers to
• Entrants must be 13 years old or above
• The winner will be chosen via Random Number Generator
• The winner will be announced on this blog by the end of the contest
• All entrants will receive an email** containing an image of their name on the Red Giveaway card, but only the Winner's card will be flashed upon announcement. The name you provide on the form will be the name shown on the card
• Winner will receive an email and will be given 48 hours to respond else a new winner will be chosen.
• Winner will receive a Paperback copy of their choice among the 3 books up for grabs.
• Contest ends on JUNE 1, 2012
• Only one entry form per person please. 

**Email serves as confirmation of your submitted entry and number of points you have acquired.
*I may throw in a little surprise by the end. ^_^


Go ahead... you know you want to. [Looking at blogpost reader with hypnotic eyes]

- Giveaway is now CLOSED-

Thank you to all those who've entered.

Good Luck!

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen [ARC REVIEW]

        

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

Summary from Goodreads:

"Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance.

Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in. It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for."

Rating:

Scarlet is a wonderful twist to the classic Robin Hood tale!

Will Scarlet is part of Robin Hood’s band of thieves. He’s cunning and quick. He can easily blend into a crowd and he’s one heck of a spy. But he also has a secret, he is actually a she. That’s not the only secret she’s keeping and that secret haunts her everyday… what’s worse, it has come back to claim her.

I don’t know much about the story of Robin Hood; I just know the basics: he’s a thief who steals from the rich and gives to the poor. What I know doesn’t go further than that… unless you count the Robin Hood cartoon by Disney. LOL.

Anyway, I’ve always been a fan of books showing women empowerment, so it’s really no surprise that Scarlet caught my attention, and the retelling bit was an added bonus.

 Gaughen’s version of the classic was a very delightful read. Never had I imagined the possibility of this story to evolve into something different and yet still stick as strongly as probable to how the original tale was created. I really admire how she threaded all her research into a story worth reading.

Scarlet’s attitude was something I don’t like about a person.  She’s rude, impulsive, and secretive among other things. There’s too much negative energy around her and yet, I love her. Her imperfection just makes her a more interesting character. At first I was really annoyed at her for evading all the issues Robin wants her to open up about but when I found out the truth, I couldn’t help but shed a few tears for the girl. She’s been through a lot.

I had mixed feeling about Robin and Little John’s characters. There are times that I liked them and times that I wished the story to move on because they were just annoying. Still, I have to commend the uniqueness of them both. They’re memorable and strong, so kudos!

The plot of this story was really interesting and every chapter of this book was entertaining. I love the balance of romance, action and narrative that Gaughen has provided readers with.

The only reason I didn’t give this book a perfect rating was the ending. Oh sure I love how Scarlet’s relationship went into but there’s still a lot of unfinished business. If this is ever a standalone then it may cause disappointment. There’s got to be more to this… Please!!! *Doing the puppy eyes*

Well I still think Scarlet is an incredible novel and I highly recommend this to readers who are suckers for classic retellings.  

In My Mailbox [20]

In My Mailbox [20]

hosted by The Story Siren

I kicked off the New Year with a new job as a 3D Graphic Artist so I'm a little swamped with work right now leading me to not be able to visit a bookstore yet. Fortunately, I've got a ton of books still sitting on my shelf waiting to be read. I did get some ebooks though. 

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen 

(Approved from Netgalley)

Darkride by Laura Bradley Rede

(For Review)

Thank you Bloomsbury for the copy of Scarlet and Laure Rede for letting me have the honor to read and review her book, Darkride.

So that's it for me. What did you guys get this week?

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By the way, be sure to check these out:

Interview and Giveaway with Elizabeth Marx

Birthday Giveaway