Sunday, November 30, 2014

Stacking the Shelves {94}


Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews where we get to share the books we've bought, been gifted, or received for review!

How was everybody's week? Mine's been good! How was your Thanksgiving, if you're in the US? It's been a while, huh? I don't really know what happened (I haven't been that busy), but I've just had so little motivation to blog and read. Without the motivation, I didn't want to post halfway done content just to have content here, so I just didn't. The break has actually been really good! I'm feeling refreshed toward everything and am really excited about a bunch of the stuff that's coming up. :) Anyway... 

For review:


The Boy Next Door by Katie Van Ark (SQUEEEEEE)
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt


Zeroboxer by Fonda Lee
The Secrets of Attraction by Robin Constantine
Proof of Forever by Lexa Hillyer


Made You Up by Francesca Zappia
The Cost of All Things by Maggie Lehrman
Things We Know By Heart by Jessi Kirby


Illusionarium by Heather Dixon
Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge

Purchased:



A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray + pre-order goodies (THE SIGNED COVER PRINT)

Misc (I don't know what else to call this!):



Atlantia by Ally Condie (signed + personalized!)
Because my team for the blog tour won. Happy dance!

A recap of the week here on Paper Cuts:
No recap this week, for obvious reasons. :)

Books I read this week (or since my last STS...)
Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle #3) by Maggie Stiefvater
Mortal Heart (His Fair Assassin #3) by Robin LaFevers
Persuasion, Wentworth, and Cracklin' Cornbread by Mary Jane Hathaway

I'm currently reading:
The Cure for Dreaming by Cat Winters

So that's been my week! My eyes might have been bigger than my stomach with that HarperCollins upload... Hehehe. But look at that pretty, pretty mail. Mmmm. :) Have a lovely Sunday and a fabulous week!

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Waiting on Wednesday: Illusionarium by Heather Dixon {70}

Title: Illusionarium
Author: Heather Dixon
Release date: May 19, 2015
From the author of Entwined, a brilliantly conceived adventure through an alternate London. This sweeping, cinematic tale of an apprentice scientist desperate to save his family—and his world—is The Night Circus meets Pixar.

Through richly developed parallel worlds, vivid action, a healthy dose of humor, and gorgeous writing, Heather Dixon spins a story that is breathtaking and wholly original.






I mean, that's not even a real synopsis, but I'm so sold it's not even funny. MUST HAVEEEE

 So what are you guys waiting on this week? :)

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Teaser Tuesday: Mortal Heart (His Fair Assassin #3) by Robin LaFevers {96}

Title: Mortal Heart (His Fair Assassin #3)
Author: Robin LaFevers
Release date: November 4, 2014
Annith has watched her gifted sisters at the convent come and go, carrying out their dark dealings in the name of St. Mortain, patiently awaiting her own turn to serve Death. But her worst fears are realized when she discovers she is being groomed by the abbess as a Seeress, to be forever sequestered in the rock and stone womb of the convent. Feeling sorely betrayed, Annith decides to strike out on her own.

She has spent her whole life training to be an assassin. Just because the convent has changed its mind doesn't mean she has...




My teaser, from p. 57 in the ARC:
If it was not, then I am well and truly suited to being the seeress. And as much as I love Death, I do not think that I love Him enough to entomb myself in the convent before I have even lived.

!!!! This time around, I'm not waiting till a year after the book releases to read it, like I did with the first two, since Dark Triumph was so fantastic. Nope. :D

I'll be visiting around and visiting back, so leave me links to your teasers! :) Happy Tuesday!

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Stacking the Shelves {93}


Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews where we get to share the books we've bought, been gifted, or received for review!

How was everybody's week? Mine's been not bad. :) Hey, remember when I said comments were a priority this past week? Well... Didn't happen. I swear, this week, though. I've just been working so much that it's hard to have the impetus to do the work, but this week I'm working mostly mornings, so I'll have nights to do blogging. :)

For review:


Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

A recap of the week here on Paper Cuts:
Monday - Trailer Reveal: Hellhole by Gina Damico
Tuesday - Teaser Tuesday: Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater
Wednesday - Waiting on Wednesday: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Friday - Review: Cinder & Ella by Kelly Oram

Books I read this week:
Awkward... I didn't finish anything!

I'm currently reading:
Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle #3) by Maggie Stiefvater

So that's been my week! Who has self control? Why, that would be me! Also, no time, but I'd rather say self control. :) Have a lovely Sunday and a fabulous week!

Friday, November 7, 2014

Review: Cinder & Ella by Kelly Oram

Release date: October 1, 2014
Author info: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Pages: 269
Format: Egalley
Source: Author
Buy the book: Amazon
It’s been almost a year since eighteen-year-old Ella Rodriguez was in a car accident that left her crippled, scarred, and without a mother. After a very difficult recovery, she’s been uprooted across the country and forced into the custody of a father that abandoned her when she was a young child. If Ella wants to escape her father’s home and her awful new stepfamily, she must convince her doctors that she’s capable, both physically and emotionally, of living on her own. The problem is, she’s not ready yet. The only way she can think of to start healing is by reconnecting with the one person left in the world who’s ever meant anything to her—her anonymous Internet best friend, Cinder. 

Hollywood sensation Brian Oliver has a reputation for being trouble. There’s major buzz around his performance in his upcoming film The Druid Prince, but his management team says he won’t make the transition from teen heartthrob to serious A-list actor unless he can prove he’s left his wild days behind and become a mature adult. In order to douse the flames on Brian’s bad-boy reputation, his management stages a fake engagement for him to his co-star Kaylee. Brian isn’t thrilled with the arrangement—or his fake fiancĂ©e—but decides he’ll suffer through it if it means he’ll get an Oscar nomination. Then a surprise email from an old Internet friend changes everything.
Cinder & Ella is, simply put, sweet and cute. As someone who really can't resist a Cinderella retelling, I knew I'd read this as soon as I read the synopsis. I definitely wasn't disappointed!

What makes Cinder & Ella stand out from any number of Cinderella retellings, especially one involving a normal girl and a famous guy (though, honestly, I would've enjoyed it anyway--I still watch ALL the A Cinderella Story movie every time I see they're on tv...), is that there is so much more nuance both to the characters and their situations and in Ella and Brian's relationship. Kelly Oram makes Ella's home life one that's not ideal, but it's also one in which not all of the fault lies on the "evil" stepmother and sisters.

There's a lot more going on than in the fairy tale basis, which I loved--especially when it came to Ella and Brian's relationship. It's founded solely through their chats online and over a long period of time. By the time the novel even starts, the two have been talking for a long time (years, I want to say!). They've bonded over their differing opinions on movies, mostly, and their abiding love for The Druid Prince. Their banter back and forth is fun and comfortable. It's a relationship you can tell has been built up, and it's so refreshing.

And can I talk about Ella for a second? She's just awesome, honestly. She's very clearly flawed, and like most of us, it takes someone pointing it out for her to notice, but she also works to make herself better. She's been through a lot and had some bad moments, yet she finds the strength to move forward, scarred and heartbroken. Ella doesn't put up with crap from people, instead she forges her way onward and manages to find a tight-knit support system. And hey, she reads!

Cinder & Ella is the first book I've read from Kelly Oram, but it certainly won't be the last. While, sure, it wasn't perfect, I found myself laughing out loud, tearing up, and grinning like at idiot at different points throughout the story--and isn't that enough?


About the author:

Kelly Oram wrote her first novel at age fifteen—a fan fiction about her favorite music group, The Backstreet Boys, for which her family and friends still tease her. She's obsessed with reading, talks way too much, and likes to eat frosting by the spoonful. She lives outside of Phoenix, Arizona with her husband, four children, and her cat named Mr. Darcy.

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Waiting on Wednesday: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas {69}

Title: A Court of Thorns and Roses
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Release date: May 5, 2015
A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beast with faerie lore.

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Perfect for fans of Kristen Cashore and George R. R. Martin, this first book in a sexy and action-packed new series is impossible to put down!

Squeeee! Sarah J. Maas and Beauty and the Beast???? Ohhhh, I need no more. Can't wait!! :D

So what are you guys waiting on this week? :)

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Teaser Tuesday: Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle #3) by Maggie Stiefvater {95}

Title: Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle #3)
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Release date: October 21, 2014
There is danger in dreaming. But there is even more danger in waking up.

Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.

The trick with found things though, is how easily they can be lost.

Friends can betray.
Mothers can disappear.
Visions can mislead.
Certainties can unravel.


My teaser, from 16% in the egalley:
Blue and Ms. Shiftlet stared at each other. The paper rustled as it settled completely. The knocked-over computer speaker buzzed; one of its cables had been knocked ajar.

The temperature was slowly rising in the room again.

"What just happened?" Ms. Shiftlet asked.

Blue's pulse galloped.

Truthfully, she replied, "I have no idea."

Finally! I'm finally reading BL,LB! I wanted to the moment I was approved, but obligations and time got in the way. So far, it's awesome, just as is to be expected. :)

I'll be visiting around and visiting back, so leave me links to your teasers! :) Happy Tuesday!

Monday, November 3, 2014

Trailer Reveal: Hellhole by Gina Damico

Eek! I'm so excited to be helping to reveal the trailer for Gina Damico's new book, Hellhole! I adored the first two books in her Croak series (I haven't read Rogue yet, shame on me!), so of course I'm seriously pumped for her newest book, which is out January 6, 2015. :D First, a bit about it...

About the book:

Geeky, squeaky-clean Max Kilgore only has one dirty habit: digging for fossils. One day, to his horror, his shovel strikes not upon a dinosaur bone, but a pit to hell—and out of it comes a devil. Specifically, the kind of devil who eats a lot of junk food, watches a lot of reality television, plays a lot of video games, and refuses to leave Max’s basement. But evil is still evil, no matter what form it takes. And Max has to find a way to comply with the demands of the big red menace, lest he lay waste to everyone and everything Max cares about.

With the help of Lore, a former goth girl who knows a thing or two about the dark side, Max goes in search of a new abode for his unwanted guest. Finding a place where he can reside in luciferian luxury isn’t easy, but Max has strong motivation: his mother, whose terminal illness the devil promises to cure if Max gives him what he wants. Lore has her doubts about making a deal with the devil, but Max will stop at nothing to save his mom. And pretty soon, he’s doing things the good kid he once was would never dream of doing. Clearly, hanging around with a devil is a bad influence. But how can Max get rid of the guy without incurring the wrath of hell?
Buy the book: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound

And now for the trailer! :D


About the author:

I grew up under four feet of snow in Syracuse, New York. I received a degree in theater and sociology from Boston College, and I have since worked as a tour guide, transcriptionist, theater house manager, scenic artist, movie extra, office troll, retail monkey, yarn hawker and breadmonger. I am the author of the grim-reapers-gone-wild books of the Croak trilogy (Croak, Scorch, and Rogue), published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and the upcoming Hellhole (January 2015). I live in Western Massachusetts with my husband, two cats, one dog, and while I have never visited hell in person, I have spent countless waking hours at the Albany Regional Bus Terminal, which is pretty darn close.
Find Gina online:  WebsiteFacebook | Twitter | Tumblr

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Stacking the Shelves {92}


Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews where we get to share the books we've bought, been gifted, or received for review!

How was everybody's week? Mine's been good! It feels like it was a bit of a blur, but there's nothing glaring that was awful. :) One wonderful thing? LEIGH BARDUGO SIGNING LAST NIGHT. So good. It was my third time meeting her, second time hearing her talk, and she was just as wonderful as I remembered. I finished Ruin and Rising just in time and now I'm happy, just to have finished the series and with how it ended. And now we have Six of Crows to look forward to! Anyways, on to the books!

For review:


Hellhole by Gina Damico
When Joss Met Matt by Ellie Cahill
This is Liz Czukas, author of the absurdly adorable Ask Again Later, so duh.
Mistletoe and Mr. Right by Lyla Payne
Don't judge, it sounded cute! And there's a dog on the cover. :D



99 Days by Katie Cotugno
Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke (Prisoner of Night and Fog #2) by Anne Blankman
YAYAYAYAYAYAYAY!!

Purchased:



Siege and Storm (Grisha Trilogy #2) by Leigh Bardugo
Ruin and Rising (Grisha Trilogy #3) by Leigh Bardugo

These beauties! :D I already had a hardcover and paperback of the first book, as well as a hardcover of the second book, signed, so I only needed these two (along with the B&N special edition I bought a while ago) for the signing. LOOK AT THOSE DICE. They're so cool! Oh, and would y'all want a recap of the signing? I recorded it and have some pictures, so I could definitely write something up if y'all were interested! Let me know! :)

A recap of the week here on Paper Cuts:
Monday - Review: Diamonds in the Rough (The Secret Diamond Sisters #2) by Michelle Madow
Tuesday - Teaser Tuesday: Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo
Wednesday - Waiting on Wednesday: Siren's Fury (Storm Siren #2) by Mary Weber
Friday - Blog Tour: Cinder & Ella by Kelly Oram {Guest Post + Giveaway}

Books I read this week:
Diamonds in the Rough by Michelle Madow
Cinder & Ella by Kelly Oram
Ruin and Rising (Grisha Trilogy #3) by Leigh Bardugo

I'm currently reading:
Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle #3) by Maggie Stiefvater

So that's been my week! Comments are a priority over the next couple of days, so if they're owed, they're coming! I SWEAR IT. :) Have a lovely Sunday and a fabulous week!