Beautiful Madness Book

My brain, my heart and my soul isn't fully functioning a few minutes before I wrote this review. I am THAT affected by this book. Title: The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2) by Maggie Stiefvater Release Date: September 17th 2013 Published by: Scholastic Press Source: Publisher (Thanks Ms. Joyce!) Buy: Amazon | Book Depository Summary: Now that the ley lines around Cabeswater have been woken, nothing for Ronan, Gansey, Blue, and Adam will be the same. Ronan, for one, is falling more and more deeply into his dreams, and his dreams are intruding more and more into waking life. Meanwhile, some very sinister people are looking for some of the same pieces of the Cabeswater puzzle that Gansey is after... I don't really know where to start, but this book has just made me feel so much emotion that I am not sure what to discuss, what to say, and what to feel. All I know is this, The Dream Thieves is very, very good. After reading The Raven Boys, I have gotten used to the very slo...

After the awesome book signing last weekend (which I think I still have a hangover of), here's another one. I'm lucky enough to receive a surprise email from HarperCollins International's publicist, Sarah, inviting me to attend a preview night for HarperCollins' 2015 Winter YA book line up. Needless to say, I was over the moon with excitement! Mostly because of the books I'll get to see, but also the chance to finally see Sarah who I've been talking to for years. We never, I repeat, never get events like this in the Philippines. So it came as a surprise and shock to me that we're having preview nights like those done in the US, Canada and UK. Sarah Woodruff discussing the Winter 2015 books she was about to present. We were told that there will be games, so we came prepared and ready to have fun, of course. Our team (Team I Do Not Know) almost won. *Ahem Jesselle of The Life Long Bookworm* :) The questions were mostly about HarperCollins' YA titles and th...

I am nursing a really good (bad?) bookish hangover. I know it's only been a day but I'm wishing I can experience it all over again! I have been to a handful of signings, each one more enjoyable than the previous but I am still amazed at how each  book signing has something different to offer and it feels like I am attending it for the very first time over and over. And as always, I am plagued by sleeplessness because of my over-excitement at the fact that I am meeting fabulous authors the next day. That shock when you see the authors whose books you just read, and see them walking in front of you, smiling and waving for the very first time never gets old, really. Both authors were there early! We started on time, and the questions started rolling and both Claudia and Madeleine gave such witty, elaborate answers to the questions each blogger asked. I've read Spellcaster (which I reviewed here ) so I knew my question will be about that particular Claudia Gray series, so when ...

A thrilling sci-fi read that swept me off my feet! Title: Linked (Linked #1) by Imogen Howson Release Date: August 1st 2013 Published by: Quercus Source: Publisher Buy: Amazon | Book Depository Summary: For years, Elissa has suffered nightmarish visions and unexplained bruises. Finally, she's promised a cure, and an operation is scheduled. But on the eve of the procedure, Elissa discovers the truth: she's seeing the world through another girl's eyes. A world filled with wires, machines and pain. Elissa follows her visions, only to find a battered, broken girl. A girl who looks exactly like her. A twin she never knew existed. Elissa and her twin Lin go on the run, but even after changing their looks and clothes, they're barely a step ahead of the government agents who are ruthlessly tracking them down. For Lin and Elissa are too valuable to let go, and the dark truth at the heart of it all is too shocking to risk exposing... I have a twin, I am a twin myself so any...

Amazing book haul this week! There are quite a few books I am excited to read and I am so glad I got them! Thank you to my wonderful book fairy for these! Stacking the Shelves hosted is by Tynga's reviews ! So leave a comment below and share your own haul! For review: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton King Dork Approximately by Frank Portman The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey Borrowed: Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios Won: Endsinger by Jay Kristoff (Signed ARC) Shade series by Jeri Smith-Ready (signed) Bought: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas Thank you Louisse of The Soul Sisters, Random House Teen, Penguin Australia and Jay Kristoff!

Once in a while I get to read a book full of poems that has just the right amount of kick, sass and bite. This time it's a book called Poisoned Apples, and for good reason. Title: Poisoned Apples: Poems for You, My Pretty by Christine Heppermann Release Date: September 23rd 2014 Published by: Greenwillow Books Source: Edelweiss Buy: Amazon | Book Depository Summary: Every little girl goes through her princess phase, whether she wants to be Snow White or Cinderella, Belle or Ariel. But then we grow up. And life is not a fairy tale. Christine Heppermann's collection of fifty poems puts the ideals of fairy tales right beside the life of the modern teenage girl. With piercing truths reminiscent of Laurie Halse Anderson and Ellen Hopkins, this is a powerful and provocative book for every young woman. E. Lockhart, author of We Were Liars, calls it "a bloody poetic attack on the beauty myth that's caustic, funny, and heartbreaking." Cruelties come not just from wicked...

Today I have the awesome Caroline Tung Richmond on the blog and we'll talk about her inspiration for writing her very, very interesting debut novel, The Only Thing to Fear! And yes, I did ask if there's a sequel in the works. Wanna know her answer? Check the interview below! Twitter pitch: Describe your novel in 140 characters! Whew, this is tough! But here goes nothin': Set in a world where Hitler won WWII and colonized the US, a Virginian farm girl starts a revolution to overthrow the Fuhrer. Share with us your writing process... where did the inspiration for The Only Thing to Fear came from? What made you write this story? The inspiration for this book came to me in 2011, right after I read The Aquariums of Pyongyang, which is a memoir by a North Korean refugee. That book really stuck with me, and I started wondering what it would be like to grow up in such a harsh and controlling regime. My imagination took over and an idea struck me—of a teen girl being raised by her u...

You know I've been hearing a lot of good things about this novel, and now I get the chance to share an excerpt with you all! Check it out! Title: Before He Was Famous by Becky Wicks Release Date: May 29th 2014 Buy: Amazon Summary: One guy, one girl. One in the spotlight. One in the shadows. Falling in love with your best friend isn’t always a great idea, especially when he’s Noah Lockton - the sexiest, most famous new talent on the planet. When 21-year-old small-town photographer Chloe Campbell is offered the chance of a lifetime – to join her celebrity childhood friend Noah on tour as an exclusive blogger for a New York magazine – she’s certain both have put what happened four years ago behind them. But his eyes still burn; his voice is still a jackhammer to her heartstrings; all his songs are about her. Is it possible that that night still haunts them both? The music industry is a machine, spinning hype and rumors as much as his records. It’s not just Noah’s girlfriends who’v...

When an imaginative mind takes the what ifs and the possibilities and spin an amazing story out of it? Even better. This is why I love alternate universes. Title: The Only Thing to Fear by Caroline Tung Richmond Release Date: September 30th 2014 Published by: Scholastic Press Source: Publisher (Thanks Ms. Joyce!) Buy: Amazon | Book Depository Summary: It's been nearly 80 years since the Allies lost WWII in a crushing defeat against Hitler's genetically engineered super soldiers. America has been carved up by the victors, and 16-year-old Zara lives a life of oppression in the Eastern America Territories. Under the iron rule of the Nazis, the government strives to maintain a master race, controlling everything from jobs to genetics. Despite her mixed heritage and hopeless social standing, Zara dreams of the free America she's only read about in banned books. A revolution is growing, and a rogue rebel group is plotting a deadly coup. Zara might hold the key to taking dow...