Waiting on Wednesday: A Gathering of Shadows (A Darker Shade of Magic #2) by V.E. Schwab {112}

Title: A Gathering of Shadows (A Darker Shade of Magic #2)
Author: V.E. Schwab
Release date: February 23, 2016

Four months have passed since the shadow stone fell into Kell’s possession. Four months since his path crossed with Delilah Bard. Four months since Rhy was wounded and the Dane twins fell, and the stone was cast with Holland’s dying body through the rift, and into Black London.

In many ways, things have almost returned to normal, though Rhy is more sober, and Kell is now plagued by his guilt. Restless, and having given up smuggling, Kell is visited by dreams of ominous magical events, waking only to think of Lila, who disappeared from the docks like she always meant to do. As Red London finalizes preparations for the Element Games—an extravagant international competition of magic, meant to entertain and keep healthy the ties between neighboring countries—a certain pirate ship draws closer, carrying old friends back into port.

But while Red London is caught up in the pageantry and thrills of the Games, another London is coming back to life, and those who were thought to be forever gone have returned. After all, a shadow that was gone in the night reappears in the morning, and so it seems Black London has risen again—meaning that another London must fall.

It took me a while to get to A Darker Shade of Magic, but that will not be the case with its sequel! I already preordered it, actually, because B&N will have signed copies, drool. :D

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

Stacking the Shelves {138}

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 was good! I don't feel like anything terribly exciting happened this week? I did get something awesome thoooooough...

Purchased:

HARRY POTTER COLORING BOOK. It's divine! I'm obsessed. I'm not really into the big coloring thing, but everything is made better when Harry Potter is brought into it. :D :D

A recap of the week here on Paper Cuts:
Monday - Distractions - October
Wednesday - Waiting on Wednesday: A Tyranny of Petticoats edited by Jessica Spotswood
Friday - Review: First & Then by Emma Mills

Books I read this week:
Love, Lies and Spies by Cindy Anstey
Starflight by Melissa Landers

I'm currently reading:
Da Vinci's Tiger by L.M. Elliot

So that's been my week! Kind of boring this week, eh? I did make some amazing trades this week, though, so hopefully those will get here and I'll have some goooood stuff to share next week! :) Have a lovely Sunday and a fabulous week!

Review: First & Then by Emma Mills

Release date: October 13, 2015
Author info: YouTube | Twitter
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Pages: 272
Format: Egalley
Source: Publisher provided for review through Netgalley
Buy the book: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | The Book Depository

Devon Tennyson wouldn't change a thing. She's happy watching Friday night games from the bleachers, silently crushing on best friend Cas, and blissfully ignoring the future after high school. But the universe has other plans. It delivers Devon's cousin Foster, an unrepentant social outlier with a surprising talent for football, and the obnoxiously superior and maddeningly attractive star running back, Ezra, right where she doesn't want them first into her P.E. class and then into every other aspect of her life.

Pride and Prejudice meets Friday Night Lights in this contemporary novel about falling in love with the unexpected boy, with a new brother, and with yourself. 

This book, y'all. It's so cute and enjoyable that I really couldn't put it down. I read it in one sitting and was more than pleased to do so. I definitely had high expectations--because who wouldn't with a tagline promising Pride and Prejudice meets Friday Night Lights?--and for me, it most certainly lived up.

Instead of being a P&P retelling, it's more inspired by it--with definite mentions of Austen's other novels. Which I loved, of course. I'm going to generally like anyone who loves Jane Austen. At the same time, Devon, at first, is a little bit insufferable. True to the Austen inspiration, she judges a lot of people before she ever really knows them. Her treatment of her cousin just stinks. Foster is too adorable not to like, quite honestly. Luckily, though, she's got some serious growth, and some of the moments between her and Foster are really very wonderful.

There are some aspects I think anyone would be left questioning, though. I mean, several characters play important parts of the story, but they kind of drift in and out, rather than being a real presence, and they're not given any kind of resolution--just Devon's suppositions about them, which don't even serve as real closure.

Soo, despite those problems I had, it's pretty obvious the cuteness, romance, and Jane Austen aspects, won me over. If you're looking for a quick, light read, First & Then is certainly a book for you.

About the author:

Emma Mills is a debut author better known to her subscribers as vlogger Elmify. She is also co-creator and co-host of the "life skills" channel How to Adult. 

Waiting on Wednesday: A Tyranny of Petticoats edited by Jessica Spotswood {110}

Title: A Tyranny of Petticoats
Editor: Jessica Spotswood
Release date: March 8, 2016

From an impressive sisterhood of YA writers comes an edge-of-your-seat anthology of historical fiction and fantasy featuring a diverse array of daring heroines.

Criss-cross America — on dogsleds and ships, stagecoaches and trains — from pirate ships off the coast of the Carolinas to the peace, love, and protests of 1960s Chicago. Join fifteen of today’s most talented writers of young adult literature on a thrill ride through history with American girls charting their own course. They are monsters and mediums, bodyguards and barkeeps, screenwriters and schoolteachers, heiresses and hobos. They're making their own way in often-hostile lands, using every weapon in their arsenals, facing down murderers and marriage proposals. And they all have a story to tell.

With stories by:
J. Anderson Coats
Andrea Cremer
Y. S. Lee
Katherine Longshore
Marie Lu
Kekla Magoon
Marissa Meyer
Saundra Mitchell
Beth Revis
Caroline Richmond
Lindsay Smith
Jessica Spotswood
Robin Talley
Leslye Walton
Elizabeth Wein

I am not generally a huge fan of anthologies, but who could resist this one? I'm obsessed with the title. I'm obsessed with the cover. I'm obsessed with the time period. I'm obsessed with a majority of the authors featured. So... Yeah, this must be mine. And soon.

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

Distractions - October

Woo, it's November! The end of Halloween practically means it's Christmastime! (I know. Don't hate me--I'm one of those people.) I've seen other bloggers discuss what they watch, listen to, etc. and I always love reading them, so I thought I'd share that myself. I haven't had that much to share since I did this the last time, which is why I haven't done one of these in a while, but I've got some wonderful, fresh obsessions. :D Onward ho!

What I'm Watching:

THIS. SHOW. I'm obsessed. Truly. It's a little bit campy, but a whole lot of fun. And oh my gosh, I don't know how I didn't watch the whole first season. For real. Rafael is so beautiful. I'm watching the next-to-last episode of the first season as I write this. :D

I've always loooooved The Mindy Project, but this season on Hulu is pretty darn amazing. It's funnier--and it's longer, which is, of course, the best. I might have actually died if it truly got canceled.

I used to watch Bones, almost religiously, in high school, but I lost track of the show years ago. I dunno why I got the urge, yet one day in July I decided to watch it from the beginning. Surprisingly enough, I totally did it. I watched all ten seasons between mid-July and sometime in October. I'm really not usually that committed. The first few seasons are still the best, but I can't get over the adorableness that is Booth and Bones actually together. :D :D

What I'm Listening To:

 

It's too hard to pick a favorite from Hamilton! I put off listening to this for a long time, because I didn't want to be a followerrrr, but I'm obsessed. Deeply and completely. It's the best. I picked this track because it's the close of the first act, and it has lots of bits and pieces of songs from the first act. Plus it's just awesome. You all need this musical in your life.

All Ben Rector all the time! This is his new album, and I love love love bunches of songs on it, so that was a hard choice. :) This one is so catchy, though, and hits me hard--like so many of his songs do. He's a good one, y'all.

I had to find this somewhere--Taylor Swift is kind of annoying in how hard it is to find any of her music online. BUT I love this song. I dunno if it's because singing along to it is so fun, or I just like it, but whatever. 

That's it! Aside from reading and working, these are the things that kind of fill my life. (Oh my gosh, it took me so long to write this post Jane is having the baby RIGHT NOW as I write this sentence!)

Stacking the Shelves {137}

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 was good! Different, but good. We did the Christmas reset, where everything in the store was rearranged, basically, so the week got off to a weird start--and I didn't post anything for the rest of the week. Oopsie! It was a funky week, so I was in a funk. This week'll be different. :D

Playing Tyler by T.L. Costa
Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier

Both ARCs! I don't know what to call these, since they were posted on the books for trade hashtag, but I only paid for their shipping and packing costs. But I'm FREAKING OUT about having an ARC of Shadowfell! Juliet Marillier is my favorite. Now to get the rest of the series!

A recap of the week here on Paper Cuts:
Nuttin'!

Books I read this week:
First & Then by Emma Mills
The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

I'm currently reading:
Love, Lies and Spies by Cindy Anstey

So that's been my week! How was everybody's Halloween? Uneventful here. Like I said, funky week, funky Rachel, so I didn't even dress up for work. I'm lame, I know. And there was bad weather, so we had, like, 5 kids trick or treating. :) Have a lovely Sunday and a fabulous week!