Tuesday 12 March 2013

Teaser Tuesday: Just One Day by Gayle Forman

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!  

Just One Day by Gayle Forman.

Just One Day - Dutton Children’s


When the sun shines, you let it shine on you. Snow is always waiting.
-- Chapter 5

And the people we pretend at, they’re already in us. That’s why we pretend them in the first place.
-- Chapter 24




I was recently wondering how people in general, myself included, meet new stories. Not in the sense of how you discover them and decide that you want to read them, but more considering how much you know about a book already before you even start it. This one for example, I had close to no information about beforehand. Apart from (and here it starts) that many of my friends like the author and that the book itself had received quite a bit of praise. Does that influence how I read (and like) it? And how does that compare to a book by an author I know quite well or a story that I have theorised about for ages before the publication date? I don’t think I’ll spoil you if I say that Gayle Foreman has a beautiful style of writing and that I would have literally read this in just one day if it weren’t for that pesky thing called outside world.

How much information do you collect about a book before you read it?

Wednesday 6 March 2013

Waiting on Wednesday: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke


Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

This week’s can’t wait to read selection is
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke.
Publication Date: August 15th 2013


Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
- Penguin / Dial
You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand…

Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town…until River West comes along. River rents the guesthouse behind Violet’s crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard. Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more? Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery...who makes you want to kiss back. Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it.
Synopsis from goodreads.com.

This last sentence sounds eerie. I imagine River with a wicked grin and a mischievous glint in his pretty eyes. But what do I expect from the Devil himself? An ulterior motive - definitely! Moreover, I expect some chills and an exceptional love story. What is so special about Violet that the Devil himself singled her out for his attention? And can you go back from loving the Devil?
I have a thing for bad boys in general and since reading books about blood-dripping ghosts and Poe-inspired parallel worlds, the more sinister storylines fascinate me even more. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea fits right in with my current reading mood, but maybe it is safer to read this book with sunshine pouring in the window. ;)

Which books are you (im)patiently waiting on this Wednesday? Tell us in the comments!

Tuesday 5 March 2013

Teaser Tuesday: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

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!  

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein.

Code Name Verity – Egmont

I am no longer afraid of getting old. Indeed I can’t believe I ever said anything so stupid. So childish. So offensive and arrogant. But mainly, so very, very stupid. I desperately want to grow old.
– Part 1 Chapter 7

... if anyone should drop a match or cigarette the whole place would go up like Vesuvius. There’s no way I’d ever be able to get out. I try not to think about it.
– Part 2 Chapter 2


If you had told me a week ago that I was going to be raving about a story set in WW II, I’d probably said that you don’t know me very well. Right, I take everything back and claim the opposite. At least in this case. I know that this book has already received great reviews singing its praises and I won’t tell you anything new I suppose. If I was asked to describe this book in just one word, I’d fold. There is just no way. I caught myself smiling and had to ask myself if one should be able to find humour in this, but there is ... a silent, desperate, and incredibly brave humour amidst all the sadness and horror. There are also great acts of courage, selflessness, and devotion. I’m usually not much of a crier when I read and even though certain things can be suspected from the beginning, I had to put the book down several times because I couldn’t see the pages anymore. I really hope that everyone gets to experience a friendship such as the one evident throughout the book – if hopefully under happier circumstances.

Which book has you glued to the pages this week? Tell us in the comments.

Wednesday 27 February 2013

Waiting on Wednesday: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

This week’s can’t wait to read selection is
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey.
Publication Date: May 7th 2013.

The 5th Wave - Putnam Juvenile

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.
Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.
Synopsis from goodreads.com

I’ve seen a lot of remarks about this book starting with something along the lines “It’s Sci-Fi, but you might like it.” As a matter of fact, I don’t like these caveats. Either you recommend books wholeheartedly or you don’t, but don’t use its supposed genre as an excuse. Doesn’t a sentence like that rather sound like “It’s strawberry, but unlike all the other strawberry you are deadly allergic to this will only give you a minor itch.” Similar thing goes for “It’s Sci-Fi, but for girls as well.” I’ll step off my soapbox now and say this: Yay, it has Sci-Fi elements and it sounds really great and I’m quite excited for this.

Anyone else allergic to strawberries and/or genre-but(t)s? Which book are you waiting for this week?

Tuesday 26 February 2013

Teaser Tuesday: Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake

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!  

Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake.

Girl of Nightmares -
Tor Teen


There is no dead thing haunting the mall.
It’s too busy, too bright, and too lotion-y.
-- Page 42

When my shoes crunch against the gravel the sound brings a flash of nostalgia, a jolt that takes me back six months, when the Victorian still stood and I used to come at night to talk to the dead girl inside it.
Warm, fuzzy memories.
-- Page 108


When you are a ghost hunter, isn't it a bit contradictory to fall in love with the ghost you should be killing? 
Ghost hunter (and not ghostbuster!) Cas Lowood doesn't think so. He is on a mission to get his love back from Hell and it seems that nothing can stop him.  
Girl of Nightmares is the sequel to Anna Dressed in Blood, which it took quite some time for me to pick up, because I thought the topic might be too scary for me. It isn't. If anything, it's fascinating. Girl of Nightmares is full of action and even more suspenseful than the first book has been, but I also like it so much more. Cas is more active and takes things into his own hands without relying on others to do it for him. He is driven by purpose and I wonder if his love will be able to conquer death in the end.

Which book are you reading right now? Anything scary? :) Tell us in the comments!