Teaser Tuesday: Unmade by Sarah Rees Brennan

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.
To 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!

Unmade by Sarah Rees Brennan.

Unmade – Random House Books
for Young Readers

Kami saw why so many teenagers who had adventures in books were interestingly tragic orphans. Parents were a real buzzkill, adventure-wise.
— Chapter 13

She wanted to be the person she was, and not the person anyone, including herself, had ever thought she should be.
— Chapter  24

There are not enough adjectives in this language to encompass how much I adore Sarah Rees Brennan ... and not just because she’s a seriously cool lady who gives out totally confusing spoilers (still a bit shaken after I reached a certain number and kept thinking that there would not be another occurrence of that phrase and that was just so!wrong!). Right, were was I? Final book in this amazing trilogy that I especially love because of its wonderful, spunky, witty, funny, independent, brave, clever (insert more adjectives here) heroine. And secondary characters who are not secondary at all. I’d probably be scared to death by Angela, but I’d give a lot to have her on my side. I love how Kami is the one who initiates action, who cannot and will not accept things as they are, and who will go to Cambridge because she is not only clever but also knows how to apply this cleverness. Even if due to loyalty reasons I still think Oxford is much better ... Perfect conclusion to Kami’s story with just the right amount of pain, sadness, and joy (if there is more I’d still be first in line to read it).
I have so many quotes bookmarked because they’re incredibly true and fitting. Especially regarding what happens to another certain someone. And about identity and self-consciousness. “Why be broken, when you can be gold?” ... This certainly is gold.

What are qualities you admire in a strong literary heroine? Share examples and teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: The Boy in the Smoke by Maureen Johnson

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.
To 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!

The Boy in the Smoke by Maureen Johnson.

The Boy in the Smoke –
Hot Key Books

Was this actually happening? Was his father threatening him, physically, here on the Eton parking grounds?
— Chapter 2

Things change. Never act as if situations won’t change.
— Chapter 2

You don’t need to have read the Shades of London series (but seriously why haven’t you?) to enjoy this short story. And if you have read them (and currently suffer from the really mean cliffhanger) then you get some neat additional information about a certain character. And the best part? You can read this story online for free if you click here.

Teaser Tuesday: Rain by Amanda Sun

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.
To 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!

Rain by Amanda Sun.

Rain – Harlequin Teen

So the goal of the creepy goth cult was to save the world, feed the hungry, clothe the poor? That didn’t sound so bad.
“That’s it? You don’t want to take over the world or something?”
Jun grinned. “Do I look like some crazy dictator?”
“Looks can be deceiving.”
— Chapter 3

“Hey,” he panted.
“‘Hey’?” I repeated. “You collapse at my door and you say ‘hey’?”
— Chapter 14

How many countries have you travelled to (in books)? You can easily add Japan to that list with this series, learn a ton of vocabulary, and get a highly enjoyable story to boot. This is the second book in the series and contrary to quite a few series with second book syndrome this one really picks up the pace. Sure, there are some aspects of second book syndrome related to the love-interest situation, but I actually think that this is utilised in a way that makes sense. Such an interesting story universe; I’m already curious about the next book ... fingers crossed that the last chapter won’t throw me for a loop (too badly, a little might be okay ... maybe).

What’s your favourite read from a culture that is completely foreign to yours? Share recommendations and teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: Life by Committee by Corey Ann Haydu

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.
To 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!

Life by Committee by Corey Ann Haydu.

Life by Committee –
Katherine Tegen Books

But we don’t share that special history of hot chocolate stands, snowball fights, pig Latin conversations, chocolate chip cookie baking competitions.
That said, she has also never told me I am going in the wrong direction as a person, so she wins.
— Chapter 2

I love her for it. For the words she chooses and the secret way she whispers them into my ear. But she’s looking at me like she gets me, and there’s nothing lonelier than the fact that she doesn’t.
— Chapter 6

By now, everyone on the Internet has heard of someone who fell victim to it in some way. Or they have heard the warnings to consider what they share and so on. But (there’s always a but) then there are people who think those rules don’t apply to them, who think they’ll be careful, that the place they’re frequenting is safe ... only to find out that that’s definitely not the case. At least I suspect that the main character of this book will discover this in her not too distant future. I don’t know if I would have been similarly naïve when I was sixteen. I’d like to think not. At the moment the set-up feels very much like it’s rearing up to be a cautionary tale in terms of Internet safety ... to be perfectly honest I’m not too much invested in Tabitha’s fate as I think she’s got it coming for her. Yes, I pitied her at the beginning for losing friends over a non-issue, but then things went downhill rather quickly. Might have a happy-end, might not ... both would be fine and fit the purpose.

How do you feel about books that have a very vocal moral as their base? Share your thoughts and teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: The Glass Sentence by S.E. Grove

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.
To 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!

The Glass Sentence by S.E. Grove.

The Glass Sentence –
Viking Juvenile

He was imprisoned in a cage, and he was made a spectacle to everyone around him. And yet, for all that, he surveyed the crowd as if they and not he were the spectacle.
— Chapter 2

Immense love is almost always enough to sustain a child. But it does not always provide the logistical and practical necessities, including a steady supply of clean clothes and an understanding that toddlers can become bored with certain aspects of adult life, such as two-hour university lectures on the glaciation of the Eerie Sea.
— Chapter 3

I’m almost definitely not far enough into the story to have a grasp on what is going on ... and that is even before the main plot gets going. On a certain level I understand that different parts of the world have been thrown back in time. However, I don’t quite get why the parts that are more advanced (and by advanced I mean end of 19th century) don’t support the other parts and allow them to catch up faster. Granted, that way Shakespeare and friends might never be (have been?) born, but their texts already exist ... it's slightly confusing. I’m also not sure what this losing track of time means exactly, but I’m certain there will be an explanation. At the very least it is a very interesting concept in a historical setting and I hope that there is more to come.

Are you currently reading something that hasn’t quite opened up to you? Share your experience and teasers in the comments!