Tuesday, 27 January 2015

Teaser Tuesday: Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

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!

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry.

Pushing the Limits –
Harlequin Teen

Sometimes when you see the line, you think it’s a good idea to cross it – until you do.
— Noah

You can live life to please everyone else or please yourself. Come next fall, I’ll be living large at the University of Florida and forgetting that I ever made friends with people like Grace. I’ve made my decision. What’s yours?
— Echo




In an attempt to reduce the towering Mt. TBR (don’t judge, I’m proudly below 300 books right now) I picked up this recommendation from Summer 2012. Not at all a light summer read, but still swoon-worthy and actually quite gripping. I’ll admit to surprised glances at the clock and to almost missing my bus stop. Sorry boss, I needed to finish one more chapter and public transport didn’t want to wait ... that would have worked out perfectly I’m sure.
There are a few factors in this book that are in serious danger of inducing heavy eye-rolls, but maybe I’m too mellow right now or it’s handled really well. But we’ll see what those two sort-of crazy birds will get into in the last quarter of the book.

How is you TBR faring? Mine is a presence in my life who should contribute to paying the bills. Or at least take out the trash. Let’s hear from you in the comments.

Tuesday, 20 January 2015

Teaser Tuesday: Poison Princess by Kresley Cole

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!

Poison Princess by Kresley Cole.

Poison Princess –
Simon & Schuster

I didn’t remember all I needed to know. If I believed in Gran, then that meant I wouldn’t do just fine.
Nothing would be just fine. Unless I remembered.
— Chapter 6

This morning Jackson had told Matthew, “You mention death one more time, and I’ll knock you into next week. Comprends?”
“Already been there,” Matthew had answered.
— Chapter 33



Would you like some game to the death and Tarot magic to go with your apocalypse? Maybe also a dash of not completely plausible, but hey end of the world, opposites attract romance? If the answer is yes, then have a look at this series ... I’m fashionably late to the party but that means that I get to read three books without the wait. And there are supposed to be four with a cliff-hanger ending after book three. Of course, why not add a little reader torture? But until then I’m enjoying the scenario and the banter. And the protagonist growing into her power. The sympathy level was quite low at the beginning with the rich, slightly racist, goody two shoes, clueless, and a bit whiny cheerleader, but she’s grown on me. I look forward to meeting the other character whom I suppose will be the potentially awkward second angle in that love-interest structure.

I’m considering picking up a few notes on Tarot as it seems that there are quite a few books featuring the cards ... which book has last challenged you to acquire some extra knowledge to gain a better understanding? Let’s hear from you in the comments!

Tuesday, 13 January 2015

Teaser Tuesday: Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers

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!

Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers.

Mortal Heart –
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
“... I propose an exchange. A trade, if you will. I will answer one of your questions, and you will answer one of mine.”
Before I can respond, Balthazaar butts in. “Or we could play the game my way: If you do not simply answer her question, I will run you through with my sword.”
— Chapter 34

“Thank you,” I whisper, unable to stop the tears that spring to my eyes.
“Oh no. Do not start leaking. Ismae, come over here and hug her so we can all pretend it never happened and get on with our lives.”
— Chapter 52


The assassins of the order of Mortain have taken a firm residence inside my reader-heart since the arrival of Ismae in book one. I find that I rather like series that are interconnected through the characters, even if the protagonist changes, if this connection is utilised to the effect that the former protagonists turned secondary characters add a special depth to the story. This third book executes this wonderfully even if there was not enough Duval for my taste. I like my men tall, handsome, and with a touch of mystery, true enough, but the dark and haunted part is not paramount. And I’ve possibly watched too many detective films in the past couple of weeks as I had more than founded suspicions quite early on ... definitely more than the not-damsel-not-in-distress. I also have open questions and I hope that this isn’t the absolute last we get to read about 15th century Brittany ... the author’s note does that something to the effect of story for another day!

Do you have a series where you hope for more books, even if the main part is concluded? Share them with your teasers in the comments.

Tuesday, 6 January 2015

Teaser Tuesday: Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

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!

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater.

Blue Lily, Lily Blue –
Scholastic Press

Her father had always been a stranger to her, and whether or not he also turned out to be a six-hundred-year-old crazy person didn’t change that.
— Chapter 30

Blue was more afraid than before. It was easier to be unafraid when you were the one doing the fearful things.
— Chapter 46




Happy New Year, readers! I hope all of you had a good celebration of this slightly arbitrary date to change the numbers in counting what day it is. I finished book two in the Raven Cycle and swiftly moved on to book three ... still in the believe that this would finish the series ... before I realised that it’s called cycle and not trilogy. Oh well, the more the merrier and the fourth book will hopefully released soon-ish. With just as much beautiful twisted prose ... and more heartbreak (maybe, because I don’t know if my heart can take it and I’m rather fond of my heart).

How did you start off your reading year? Brand new series or “legacy reads”?

Tuesday, 30 December 2014

Teaser Tuesday: The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

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 Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater.

The Dream Thieves –
Scholastic Press

All of us have secrets in our lives. We’re keepers or keptfrom, players or played. Secrets and cockroaches — that’s what will be left at the end of it all.
— Prologue

“So what you’re saying is you can’t explain it.”
“I did explain it.”
“No, you used nouns and verbs together in a pleasing but illogical format.”
— Chapter 5




Since most of you are not from the same part of the world as I am ... at least that’s what statistics tell me ... most of you won’t understand the quote “Well, here we are again, old lovely ...”. It’s from a sketch that Germans traditionally watch on New Year’s Eve (called Dinner for One – ignore the man at the beginning and start at about 2:24). Anyway, end of the year and probably my last book this year is playing catch up to a series I must confess I slightly lost sight of. Despite reading trackers and publication lists, there were just too many other things I also wanted to read. So many books, so little time. I’m not too far into this yet, so I can’t say very much about it apart from that I really should start taking notes for books in a series to remember the details. But I’m certain that more will come to me while I read. And the plus side of not getting to this book immediately is that the next is also already available.

What is your final read of the year? Share teasers and New Year’s resolutions in the comments. Have a very good turn of the year and I’ll see you on the flipside.