Through the Ever Night (Under the Never Sky #2) by Veronica Rossi

Release Date: January 8, 2013
Author Info: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 352
Format: Hardcover
Source: Purchased
Buy the Book: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | The Book Depository

It's been months since Aria last saw Perry. Months since Perry was named Blood Lord of the Tides, and Aria was charged with an impossible mission. Now, finally, they are about to be reunited. But their reunion is far from perfect. The Tides don't take kindly to Aria, a former Dweller. And with the worsening Aether storms threatening the tribe's precarious existence, Aria begins to fear that leaving Perry behind might be the only way to save them both.

Threatened by false friends, hidden enemies, and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, Can their love survive through the ever night?

Just like Aria was dying to see Perry, I've been DYING to read Through the Ever Night. Like salivating at the cover every week and just itching to get my hands on it. Really, it's a sickness. With great excitement comes great expectations. Luckily, I was in no way disappointed.

Obviously, Veronica Rossi has grown quite a bit as an author and it's just lovely to behold. It was a joy to read about Aria and Perry's remarkably healthy relationship and their efforts to take care of the ones they love. Never did I doubt either's sincerity in anything they did and I can't help but admire them as characters. (Real life, Rachel, you have one of those...)

In following Aria and Perry's exploits, Rossi's created world is expanded and my only regret is that we haven't seen more of it before. Emotionally, I was exhausted at the end, but it was completely worth it. We meet quite a few all-new characters, see more of some side characters, and get to know our old favorites even more (ROAR.)

My only complaint is that Through the Ever Night is not longer! And that I have to wait at least a year for the next one! If you felt anything akin to liking when you read Under the Never Sky, you're sure to enjoy Through the Ever Night even more, and if you were hesitant, I think you should give this series another try. I think you'll be surprised. :)

Teaser Tuesday: Strands of Bronze and Gold {11}

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. I haven't actually started this one yet, but I will be in the next couple of days, so I'm teasing myself too! :)

Title: Strands of Bronze and Gold
Author: Jane Nickerson
Release date: March 12, 2013
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Pages: 352
Buy the book: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | The Book Depository

The Bluebeard fairy tale retold. . . .

When seventeen-year-old Sophia Petheram’s beloved father dies, she receives an unexpected letter. An invitation—on fine ivory paper, in bold black handwriting—from the mysterious Monsieur Bernard de Cressac, her godfather. With no money and fewer options, Sophie accepts, leaving her humble childhood home for the astonishingly lavish Wyndriven Abbey, in the heart of Mississippi.

Sophie has always longed for a comfortable life, and she finds herself both attracted to and shocked by the charm and easy manners of her overgenerous guardian. But as she begins to piece together the mystery of his past, it’s as if, thread by thread, a silken net is tightening around her. And as she gathers stories and catches whispers of his former wives—all with hair as red as her own—in the forgotten corners of the abbey, Sophie knows she’s trapped in the passion and danger of de Cressac’s intoxicating world.

My teaser, from page 145 in the ARC:

The door flew open and I jumped. Charles jumped as well. We both grinned sheepishly.

"Sorry, Miss," he said. "Thought I heard a mouse."

"That was me. Squeaking mousily because of a centipede."

He stooped to help me gather up the scattered papers.

"I have permission to be in here," I said. "Monsieur Bernard gave me his keys."

"Congratulations, Miss," he said.

Well I'm intrigued! Who is Charles? Where's she sneaking about? And what's she looking for? :) I'd love to see what everyone is teasing this week, so leave me links! Have a happy Tuesday all!

A Whole New Batch - This Week's New Releases

Here's a rundown of some of the young adult books releasing this week! Click on the images to go to the book's Goodreads page. Buy links are provided below the descriptions! Books are in alphabetical order.

Hit the jump to see the books! :)

Stacking the Shelves (1)

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! I've never taken part in Stacking the Shelves, but I'm excited to start.

I didn't buy anything, but I received a few ebooks for review, so I'm nonetheless excited. :)

For review:

The Sweetest Dark by Shana Abé, to be released April 2, 2013 by Bantam
The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnett, to be released March 5, 2013 by Tor Teen
The Goddess Inheritance (Goddess Test #3) by Aimee Carter, to be released February 26, 2013 by Harlequin Teen

A big, gigantic, huge thanks to Bantam, Tor, and Harlequin! I am so pumped to read all three of these! :) I hope you all have a lovely week, and I'd love love love to see what you all got this week!

The Selection (The Selection #1) by Kiera Cass

Release Date: April 24, 2012
Author Info: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 327
Format: Ebook
Source: Purchased
Buy the Book: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | The Book Depository

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself--and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

As a prelude to this, I am completely aware of the drama surrounding this book. It is why I took so long to get to reading this, but it is going to hold no sway over my review. This is solely based on my enjoyment of the book, and I will not be addressing the debacle after this...

As a consummate dirty secret lover of The Bachelor, I knew I'd need to read this. I somehow have no shame in watching shallow women compete to be picked for five minutes of fame with a handsome, mostly lacking in personality man. It's a spectacle, and you just can't look away. That was The Selection in a nutshell!

There are certain elements of the book I could've done without or think needed expansion, but at the heart of this, I really enjoyed myself reading The Selection. Somehow, I was interested in the other girls and their motivations, generally liked America's love interests, and was quite invested in the outcome.

Problem is, there was so much potential for some really good social commentary that was just glossed over. Where The Hunger Games makes you acutely aware of the problems with our desensitized culture and the falseness of reality tv, The Selection really just glamorizes it. There's talk of rebels, but why are they rebelling? What do they hope to accomplish? It's meant to look like a mystery, but it just looks like poor plotting.

My hope for the coming books is that Kiera Cass can maximize on the potential she's created, that she can give the reader a reason to root for America's happy ending and a reason to care about the fate of Illea. All the same, if taken lightly, The Selection can be enjoyable and worth your time.

Warm Bodies: A "Staggering" Success? The Book vs the Movie

I've made it no secret here that I'm insanely in love with Isaac Marion's book Warm Bodies. I've reviewed it, mentioned it in several other posts, and given away a couple of copies. I just can't get over it. So, needless to say, I was pumped for the movie adaptation. I reread the book in preparation and went to the first showing I could, which was at 10:15 pm last night. Now I'd like to give y'all a little comparison/movie review, hopefully to aid you in your decision to read the book and/or see the movie. Please ignore the serious part if you'd like, and scroll down to the fun part. :)

First, my general opinion of the movie:

Warm Bodies as a film has a clear demographic it's appealing to. I think it's easy to see through the trailers they desperately want the same girls that froth at the mouth over a new Twilight book and hope that the book's slightly higher literary roots will appeal to everyone else. I'm perfectly fine with this. Making a movie completely faithful to the book would be next to impossible.

With all of that in consideration, as a general movie-goer, I thought the movie was pretty great. They use humor to get the audience to accept a very tough idea to swallow: a human and a zombie falling in love and somehow changing the world. This was never a problem for me, and I don't think it will be a problem for the audience. R comes across as almost painfully endearing; one can't help but love and root for him. My roommate--who has no experience with the book--sat next to me and spazzed the whole time. She loved it.

As a deep lover of the book, I was a little less satisfied. Because the movie has to appeal to a much more varied audience than the book does, it loses some of its grit and its poignancy. This was expected, and I caught a glimpse of what I had so loved a couple of minutes in, but seeing the movie is not the same raw experience as I thought reading the book was.

Now, I'm going to be a bit less serious:

You should head on over to see Warm Bodies if:

You think this kid is SEXY. (And, really, who doesn't?)

You think zombies deserve a little bit o' lovin' too!

Your best friend says the darndest things (For reals, just you wait.)

You think John Malkovich is awesome. And who doesn't? Look at that face!

And just this. Really, I needed no other reasons.

There you have it! This is why you should see Warm Bodies. I think it's a great movie and that you'll come out of the theater a happier person for it. And please let me know what you think of this! I'd love to do more movie based on book reviews. It gives me the excuse to go see them... Hehehe. Have a happy Friday!

*drumroll* And I'm Back!

So, today is February 1st, my heralded return date! Doesn't that feel momentous? No? Oh, well it's momentous to me. :) I'm so happy to be back to blogging today! It's something I grew so fond of over the course of the year and a half or so I was consistent and it's felt weird not having a real connection to the world of books!

I think the problem was that I had so much to do for school that it was taking over my life, so when I had free time I couldn't bring myself to do any more work. Work included blogging. For me, it takes effort and a whole lot of thought to construct a blog post of any sort. I don't like to do something halfway for anyone on the internet to read, so it can sometimes take hours for me to write a post. I didn't have hours, let alone the effort to spend those hours working on the blog. Soon, just reading became a burden. I couldn't find books that appealed to me, even if they sounded good, if they were YA I was miserable reading them, because it felt like pressure.

I'm not saying this to complain at all, I just thought a little clarification could be interesting. Should you be interested. :) But this semester is proving to be a little more relaxed, and I'm really happy to be devouring books again, and with great joy.

Well, I've not got much else to say here! I'm approaching blogging a little differently now. The goal is post every day, though I'm sure there will be a lapse here and there. Like I said before, I really want my blog to become something for me to be really proud of. I'm going to have a post up in a little while I hope will prove to be interesting to you. It's not a review but something a little different--though not terribly different, I wish I were more creative! I'd love to know what you guys think about it; if you like it I'd be PUMPED to write more of the same.

Have a lovely Friday and a lovely February!