Waiting on Wednesday #363, April 25th

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

Smoke in the Sun by Renee Ahdieh
Expected Publication: June 5th, 2018
From Goodreads:
The highly anticipated sequel to Flame in the Mist--an addictive, sumptuous finale that will leave readers breathless from the bestselling author of The Wrath and the Dawn 

After Okami is captured in the Jukai forest, Mariko has no choice--to rescue him, she must return to Inako and face the dangers that have been waiting for her in the Heian Castle. She tricks her brother, Kenshin, and betrothed, Raiden, into thinking she was being held by the Black Clan against her will, playing the part of the dutiful bride-to-be to infiltrate the emperor's ranks and uncover the truth behind the betrayal that almost left her dead. 

With the wedding plans already underway, Mariko pretends to be consumed with her upcoming nuptials, all the while using her royal standing to peel back the layers of lies and deception surrounding the imperial court. But each secret she unfurls gives way to the next, ensnaring Mariko and Okami in a political scheme that threatens their honor, their love and the very safety of the empire.

Little Do We Know by Tamara Ireland Stone
Expected Publication: June 5th, 2018
From Goodreads:
Next-door neighbors and ex-best friends Hannah and Emory haven’t spoken in months. Not since the fight—the one where they said things they couldn’t take back.

Now, Emory is fine-tuning her UCLA performing arts application and trying to make the most of the months she has left with her boyfriend, Luke, before they head off to separate colleges. Meanwhile, Hannah’s strong faith is shaken when her family’s financial problems come to light, and she finds herself turning to unexpected places—and people—for answers to the difficult questions she’s suddenly facing.

No matter how much Hannah and Emory desperately want to bridge the thirty-six steps between their bedroom windows, they can’t. Not anymore.

Until their paths cross unexpectedly when, one night, Hannah finds Luke doubled over in his car outside her house. In the aftermath of the accident, all three struggle to understand what happened in their own ways. But when a devastating secret about Hannah and Emory’s argument ultimately comes to light, they must all reexamine the things they hold true.

In alternating chapters, a skeptic and a believer piece together the story of their complex relationship and the boy caught somewhere in the middle. New York Times best-selling author Tamara Ireland Stone deftly crafts a moving portrait of faith, love, and friendship.

Blood Will Out by Jo Treggiari
Expected Publication: June 5th, 2018
From Goodreads:
Silence of the Lambs for young adults -- Blood Will Out is a gripping YA thriller readers won't be able to put down.

Ari Sullivan is alive--for now.
     
She wakes at the bottom of a cistern, confused, injured and alone, with only the shadowy recollection of a low-pitched voice and a gloved hand. No one can hear her screams. And the person who put her there is coming back. The killer is planning a gruesome masterpiece, a fairytale tableau of innocence and blood, meticulously designed. 
     
Until now, Ari was happy to spend her days pining for handsome, recent-arrival Stroud Bellows, fantasizing about their two-point-four-kids-future together. Safe in her small hometown of Dempsey Hollow. But now her community has turned very dangerous -- and Ari may not be the only intended victim.
     
Told in alternating perspectives of predator and prey, Blood Will Out is a gripping and terrifying read.


Eden Conquered by Joelle Charbonneau
Expected Publication: June 5th, 2018
From Goodreads:
The electrifying conclusion to the Dividing Eden series by the New York Times bestselling author of the Testing trilogy, Joelle Charbonneau..

The Trials of Virtuous Succession have ended. Prince Andreus is king—and Princess Carys is dead.

But even as he’s haunted by what he did to win the throne, Andreus discovers that his dream of ruling only brings new problems. The people love his twin even more in death than they did when she was alive. The Elders treat him as a figurehead. And worst of all, the winds of Eden are faltering. 

But despite what everyone believes, Carys is alive. Exiled to the wilderness, Carys struggles to control the powers that have broken free inside her. And as she grows stronger, so does her conviction that she must return to the Palace of Winds, face her twin and root out the treachery that began long before the first Trials started. 

The Kingdom of Eden is growing darker with each passing day. Brother and sister, former foes, must decide whether some betrayals cut too deep to be forgiven—and whether one will wear the crown or both will lose everything. 

Oh, yeah, 4 wonderful books coming out at the beginning of June! So excited for them, I have Blood Will Out from NetGalley, and Eden Conquered from Edelweiss and hopefully I'll read them both before they come out! What about you guys? Happy reading!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading #289, December 19th

It's Monday! What Are You Reading is a weekly meme hosted by Book Date where we share what we read this past week, what we hope to read this week...and anything in between! This is a great way to plan out your reading week and see what others are currently reading as well...you never know where that next "must read" book will come from!

What happened in the past week:

Weekly Memes:
It's Monday! What Are You Reading #288
Teaser Tuesday #296
WWW Wednesday #296
WOW #293
Will the Time Come #287
Third Sentence Thursday #277
Random Reads #264
First Lines Friday #283
The Reward Challenge Update #274
Follow Friday #266
How Well I Stuck to It #118
Wrote that Review Update #123

Week 51 Reviews:
How to Win at High School
Little Peach
Revenge and the Wild
Falling into Place
The Secrets of Lily Graves
Fragile Line
Every Last Word
Life by Committee
Lifeblood
Phantom Kiss
Things I Should Have Known
Under Attack
Under Suspicion
Under the Gun
Darkness Dawns
Night Reigns
Phantom Shadows
Predatory
Born in Blood
Blood Assassin

Random:
We Have the Cover of Loving You/Hating You!!!!
Alexandra Ivy Author Page
Rebecca Zanetti Author Page
Dianne Duvall Author Page
Owen Matthews Author Page
Paige Tyler Author Page

OK, so I got33  posts in 7 days, What about you guys? Happy reading!

So this week I want to read Beastly, Lindy's Diary, Bewitched, Mirrored, Beheld, Mercury Striking, Shadow Falling, Justice Ascending, and Textrovert.

See the #1 New York Times bestselling story Beastly through Lindy's eyes! This is her diary, kept while living in captivity with the beast. Lindy's Diary captures all the romance and edgy mystery of the original!

Diary,

I am locked away . . . with no one to confide in but you . . . and him. His fur, those claws—they caught me off guard at first, but now I'm noticing something else about him—something deeper. It's the look in his eye. It tells me he's got a secret to keep. That's okay—I've got one, too. I think I'm falling in love with him. . . .

Lindy

#1 New York Times bestselling YA author Alex Flinn is back with magical twists on four fairy-tale favorites, each featuring a little help from Kendra, the witch from Beastly, as she searches through cities and centuries for her lost love.

Being a powerful witch, Kendra has survived it all. Since she first beheld James over three hundred years ago, Kendra has tangled with witch hunters and wolves, helped a miller's daughter spin straw into gold, cowered in London as German bombs fell, and lived through who knows how many shipwrecks. But her powers have limits, and immortality can be lonely. Kendra isn't ready to stop searching for the warlock she had met centuries ago.

With the help of her magic mirror, Kendra will travel the world to reconnect with her lost love—and, of course, she can't help but play a hand in a few more stories along the way.

Featuring retellings of favorite fairy tales such as Little Red Riding Hood, Rumpelstiltskin, East of the Sun and West of the Moon, and The Ugly Duckling, Alex Flinn's latest young adult novel, Beheld, is fresh fairy-tale fun from beginning to end.

With nothing but rumors to lead her, Lynne Harmony has trekked across a nightmare landscape to find one man—a mysterious, damaged legend who protects the weak and leads the strong. He's more than muscle and firepower—and in post-plague L.A., he's her only hope. As the one woman who could cure the disease, Lynne is the single most volatile—and vulnerable—creature in this new and ruthless world. But face to face with Jax Mercury…

Danger has never looked quite so delicious…

Before the Scorpius Syndrome tore through North America and nearly wiped out the population, Vivienne Wellington was the FBI's best profiler. The bacteria got her anyway. But she survived. She recovered. And when she woke up from a drug-nightmare of captivity, her skills as a hunter of men had gone from merely brilliant to full-on uncanny.

Her mysterious rescuer wants her to put them to the test. But no matter how tempting he is, with his angel's eyes and devil's tongue, Vinnie knows she shouldn’t trust him.

If the FBI were still around they would rate Raze Shadow as one of the bad guys. His military training can't wipe out his association with the Mercenaries, the most feared gang in a thousand miles. His loyalties are compromised. He won't even tell Vinnie his real name. But there's no FBI in the new America of fear and firepower, only instinct and risk. And the way his arms wrap around Vinnie tells its own story. Whatever else Raze is concealing, he can't hide his desire . . .

Before surviving the Scorpius bacterium, Tace Justice was a good ole Texas cowboy who served his country and loved his mama. After Scorpius, the world became dark, dangerous, and deadly... and so did he. The Vanguard medic is stronger, faster, and smarter than before, but he's lost the line between right and wrong. His passion is absolute, and when he focuses it on one woman, there's no turning back for either of them.

Sami Steel has been fighting to survive right alongside Tace, convincing the Vanguard soldiers she's one of them. In truth, Sami is a former hacker turned government agent who worked at The Bunker, where scientists stored both contaminants and cures. Only she knows the location, and she's not telling. Yet when sexual fire explodes between her and Tace, she'll face even that hell again to save him.

It's bad enough when high-school senior Keeley grabs the wrong phone while leaving her small town's end-of-summer fair. It’s even worse when she discovers that the phone she now has belongs to the obnoxious, self-centered Talon and that he's just left for football camp … with her phone. Reluctantly, the two agree to forward messages for a week. And as Keeley gets to know Talon, she starts to like him. Keeley learns there's more to Talon than the egocentric jock most people see. There's more to Keeley, too. Texting Talon, she can step out of the shadow of her popular twin brother. Texting Talon, she can be the person she's always wanted to be.

Sparks fly when the two finally meet to exchange their phones. But while Keeley has been playing a part online, Talon has been keeping a secret. He has a different connection to Keeley — one that has nothing to do with phones, and one that will make their new relationship all but impossible. Knowing what she now knows, can Keeley trust him? And can love in the present erase mistakes of the past?

Week 51 Review: Every Last Word

From Goodreads:
If you could read my mind, you wouldn't be smiling.

Samantha McAllister looks just like the rest of the popular girls in her junior class. But hidden beneath the straightened hair and expertly applied makeup is a secret that her friends would never understand: Sam has Purely-Obsessional OCD and is consumed by a stream of dark thoughts and worries that she can't turn off. 

Second-guessing every move, thought, and word makes daily life a struggle, and it doesn't help that her lifelong friends will turn toxic at the first sign of a wrong outfit, wrong lunch, or wrong crush. Yet Sam knows she'd be truly crazy to leave the protection of the most popular girls in school. So when Sam meets Caroline, she has to keep her new friend with a refreshing sense of humor and no style a secret, right up there with Sam's weekly visits to her psychiatrist.

Caroline introduces Sam to Poet's Corner, a hidden room and a tight-knit group of misfits who have been ignored by the school at large. Sam is drawn to them immediately, especially a guitar-playing guy with a talent for verse, and starts to discover a whole new side of herself. Slowly, she begins to feel more "normal" than she ever has as part of the popular crowd . . . until she finds a new reason to question her sanity and all she holds dear.

My Review:
This book was so great to read! I loved everything about it, it was so freaking great! It does deal with having OCD, which is not pleasant, no matter how much the term is thrown about for basically nothing. This was the real deal, and it wasn't easy to actually live with it.

So Sam was a part of a very popular group of girls, girls that had been friends for like ever, though their number had decreased over time. But they weren't always the nicest people, you know? And they caused a lot of work for her therapist!

I loved when Caroline introduced Sam to the Poet's Corner! That really changed her life, and it was good for her, though there were a few bumps in the road! And a tidbit, is that Tamara Ireland Stone gave Sam coping mechanism of writing from her own life. So yeah, that was cool!

Sam did go through a lot in this book! And yeah, it wasn't easy to deal with, there were some really rough patches! But once she was through, her life was so much better! Not that her life was perfect, but that it was better. And yeah, that was a really great journey to read!

This book was really moving, and I loved reading it!

Author: Tamara Ireland Stone
Read: December 12th, 2016
Source: NetGalley
Reason Why: Really enjoyed her other books, and it's a SAC 2016 Book and a WoW Book!
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Published: June 16th 2015

5/5 Hearts

4/5 Books

4.5/5 Stars

Waiting on Wednesday #210, May 13th

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

Rebellion by J.A. Souders
Expected Publication: July 12th, 2015
From Goodreads:
The thrilling conclusion to J. A. Souders’s riveting SF psychological thriller series for teens

In this conclusion to J. A. Souders’s thrilling, twist-filled Elysium Chronicles series, Evie Winters and Gavin Hunter return to the isolated, dangerous underwater city that they fought so hard to escape.

Back in Elysium at last, Evie has finally found her true self hidden under layers and layers of false memories implanted by the woman she knew as Mother. Thanks to the intervention of her father, she knows the horrible truth about Mother and her insidious plans for her city. With the help of the love of her life, Gavin, and her best friend, Asher St. James, she’s determined to free her people from the cruel dictatorship of Mother’s laws. But how do you free people who don’t know they need rescuing?

Working with the growing Underground rebellion, Evie tries to remove Mother from her position by force—with disastrous results. As the body count rises, Evie must find a way to save Elysium before Mother destroys them all.

Scorched by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Expected Publication: July 16th, 2015
From Goodreads:
Sometimes life leaves a mark. 

Most days, Andrea doesn't know whether she wants to kiss Tanner or punch him in the gut. He is seriously hot, with legit bedroom eyes and that firefighter body of his, but he's a major player, and he never cuts her any slack. 

But when her life spirals out of control, he's there for her. The only problem is, no one else can save her... only she can save herself. 

Get Dirty by Gretchen McNeil
Expected Publication: July 16th, 2015
From Goodreads:
The Breakfast Club meets Pretty Little Liars in Gretchen McNeil's witty and suspenseful sequel to Get Even. The members of Don't Get Mad aren't just mad anymore . . . they're afraid. And with Margot in a coma and Bree under house arrest, it's up to Olivia and Kitty to try to catch their deadly tormentor. But just as the girls are about to go on the offensive, Ed the Head reveals a shocking secret that turns all their theories upside down. The killer could be anyone, and this time he—or she—is out for more than just revenge.

The girls desperately try to discover the killer's identity as their personal lives are falling apart: Donté is pulling away from Kitty and seems to be hiding a secret of his own, and Olivia's mother is on an emotional downward spiral. The killer is closing in, the threats are becoming more personal, and when the police refuse to listen, the girls have no choice but to confront their anonymous friend . . . or die trying.

Deadfall by Anna Carey
Expected Publication: July 16th, 2015
From Goodreads:
In the compelling sequel to Blackbird, Anna Carey delivers a gritty and adrenaline-filled story of a girl desperate to escape her mysterious and terrifying assailants. Told in second person, this heart-pounding thriller puts the reader in front of the target.

A week ago, you woke up in Los Angeles with no memory of who you are. The only thing you knew: people are trying to kill you. You put your trust in Ben, but he betrayed you and broke your heart. Now you've escaped to New York City with a boy named Rafe, who says he remembers you from before. But the two of you are not safe. The same people who are after you are tailing Rafe as well. As the chase heats up, your memory starts to return, but your past cannot save you from the terrifying circumstances of your present, or the fact that one wrong move could end this game forever. 

With enemies on every side, and not a reprieve in sight, Deadfall will grab readers and refuse to let go. Perfect for fans of the Maze Runner series and the Legend series. 

For the Win by Brenna Aubrey
Expected Publication: July 16th, 2015
From Goodreads:
Millionaire bad boy Jordan Fawkes has problems. Big problems. 
That molten-hot intern he hooked up with at Comic-Con is now his assistant. No one can know they’re the stars of the cosplay sex tape that broke the Internet.

Business school hopeful April Weiss has drama. Big drama. 
Working under the CFO of Draco Multimedia should be the opportunity of a lifetime for her, but Jordan Fawkes is the boss from Hell—a sexier-than-sin boss from Hell who holds all the cards for her future career.

And then there’s the small problem of a certain video…

Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone
Expected Publication: July 16th, 2015
From Goodreads:
If you could read my mind, you wouldn't be smiling.

Samantha McAllister looks just like the rest of the popular girls in her junior class. But hidden beneath the straightened hair and expertly applied makeup is a secret that her friends would never understand: Sam has Purely-Obsessional OCD and is consumed by a stream of dark thoughts and worries that she can't turn off. 

Second-guessing every move, thought, and word makes daily life a struggle, and it doesn't help that her lifelong friends will turn toxic at the first sign of a wrong outfit, wrong lunch, or wrong crush. Yet Sam knows she'd be truly crazy to leave the protection of the most popular girls in school. So when Sam meets Caroline, she has to keep her new friend with a refreshing sense of humor and no style a secret, right up there with Sam's weekly visits to her psychiatrist.

Caroline introduces Sam to Poet's Corner, a hidden room and a tight-knit group of misfits who have been ignored by the school at large. Sam is drawn to them immediately, especially a guitar-playing guy with a talent for verse, and starts to discover a whole new side of herself. Slowly, she begins to feel more "normal" than she ever has as part of the popular crowd . . . until she finds a new reason to question her sanity and all she holds dear. 

The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi
Expected Publication: July 16th, 2015
From Goodreads:
A fun, romantic read, perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen and Susane Colasanti!

Before Matt, Ella had a plan. Get over a no-good ex-boyfriend. Graduate from high school without any more distractions. Move away from Orlando, Florida, where she’s lived her entire life. 

But Matt—the cute, shy, bespectacled bass player who just moved to town—was never part of that plan.

And neither was attending a party that was crashed by the cops just minutes after they arrived. Or spending an entire night saying “yes” to every crazy, fun thing they could think of.

Then Matt abruptly left town, and he broke not only Ella’s heart but those of their best friends, too. So when he shows up a year later with a plan of his own—to relive the night that brought them together—Ella isn’t sure whether Matt’s worth a second chance. Or if re-creating the past can help them create a different future. 

In alternating then and now chapters, debut author Lauren Gibaldi crafts a charming, romantic story of first loves, lifelong friendships, uncovered secrets, and, ultimately, finding out how to be brave.

Between the Notes by Sharon Huss Roat
Expected Publication: July 16th, 2015
From Goodreads:
When Ivy Emerson’s family loses their house—complete with her beloved piano—the fear of what’s to come seizes her like a bad case of stage fright. Only this isn’t one of her single, terrifying performances. It’s her life.

And it isn’t pretty.

Ivy is forced to move with her family out of their affluent neighborhood to Lakeside, also known as “the wrong side of the tracks.” Hiding the truth from her friends—and the cute new guy in school, who may have secrets of his own—seems like a good idea at first. But when a bad boy next door threatens to ruin everything, Ivy’s carefully crafted lies begin to unravel . . . and there is no way to stop them.

As things get to the breaking point, Ivy turns to her music, some unlikely new friends, and the trusting heart of her disabled little brother. She may be surprised that not everyone is who she thought they were . . . including herself.

Debut author Sharon Huss Roat crafts a charming and timely story of what happens when life as you know it flips completely upside down. 

Oh, man, these books look so freaking good! I can't wait to read them (though I've gotten a good few of them from Edelweiss!) What about you guys? Happy reading!

Tamara Ireland Stone Author Page

The Story: Time Between Us was a book with a lot of hype! So I just had to read it! And I enjoyed it, and the sequel, so much! And I can't wait to read more books! They're just so good!

Website

Series: Time Between Us.

Time Between Us: Time Between Us and her site, my review, Time After Time and her site, my review.

Stand Alone's: Every Last Word and her site, my review.

Week 52 Reviews: Time Between Us, Time After Time

From Goodreads:
Anna and Bennett were never supposed to meet: she lives in 1995 Chicago and he lives in 2012 San Francisco. But Bennett has the unique ability to travel through time and space, which brings him into Anna’s life, and with him a new world of adventure and possibility.


As their relationship deepens, the two face the reality that time may knock Bennett back to where he belongs, even as a devastating crisis throws everything they believe into question. Against a ticking clock, Anna and Bennett are forced to ask themselves how far they can push the bounds of fate, what consequences they can bear in order to stay together, and whether their love can stand the test of time.

From Goodreads: 
Calling Anna and Bennett’s romance long distance is an understatement: she’s from 1995 Chicago and he’s a time traveler from 2012 San Francisco. The two of them never should have met, but they did. They fell in love, even though they knew they shouldn't. And they found a way to stay together, against all odds. 

It’s not a perfect arrangement, though, with Bennett unable to stay in the past for more than brief visits, skipping out on big chunks of his present in order to be with Anna in hers. They each are confident that they’ll find a way to make things work...until Bennett witnesses a single event he never should have seen (and certainly never expected to). Will the decisions he makes from that point on cement a future he doesn't want?

Told from Bennett’s point of view, Time After Time will satisfy readers looking for a fresh, exciting, and beautifully-written love story, both those who are eager to find out what’s next for Time Between Us's Anna and Bennett and those discovering their story for the first time.

My Review:
I utterly loved these books! So great, and sad, the first told from Anna, the second from Bennett, and yeah, they just come together in just an awesome story, one that was really enjoyable, the ups, and the downs, and the sweetness of their romance!

So the first book was the mystery of what was going on with Bennett, for Anna, because she didn't know, until enough things added up that he had to tell her. And yeah, finding out your kinda-maybe boyfriend is a time traveller, well, not the most common of things!

And their romance had a few issues, like she's from the past, and he's from the future, and that there's rules on his powers, rules that are more explained in his book, as he tests his powers out more, and figures out more things about them, to save lives, which is pretty cool!

These were real people, and in pretty spectacular circumstances, and them being together again, was started by a letter from the Anna of his time, which is both romantic, and incredibly sad, because older Anna had time with Bennett, but ultimately, wasn't with him, so yeah, glad that these books dealt with that, too!

I really enjoyed these books, and I can't wait to read what Tamara Ireland Stone writes next!

Author: Tamara Ireland Stone
Series: Time Between Us #1, 2
Read: December 24th, 24th, 2015
Source: Tuebl, Tuebl/NetGalley
Reason Why: Sounded good! And Time After Time is a Sequel Challenge 2013 Book and a End of Series 2013 Book!
Publisher: Hyperion, Disney-Hyperion
Published: October 9th 2012, October 8th 2013

Time Between Us:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

4.5/5 Stars

Time After Time:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

4.5/5 Stars

Teaser Tuesday #141, December 24th

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page
•Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Today's teaser comes from Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone, page 103.

"He follows me over to the Travel section and I run my finger along the bindings, stopping to extract my favorites. After I've removed a good selection of six or seven, I sit down cross-legged on the Berber carpet and lean back against the shelves."

Sounds pretty awesome! What about you guys? Happy reading!