Teaser Tuesday: Witch's Pyre by Josephine Angelini

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Witch’s Pyre by Josephine Angelini.

Witch’s Pyre – Feiwel & Friends

I’ve made one or two girls angry enough to throw things at me. Never had a girl try to throw a whole ballroom at me before, though.
— Chapter 3

“Is that the person you want to be?” Juliet asked gently.
“No. But I haven’t figured out how to be anyone else yet.”
— Chapter 4

A very quick and very emphatic shout-out to this final book in a definitely-not-dusty-stuffy witch trilogy which promises to culminate in a great wonderful showdown. I’m not quite there yet, but the preparations are running at full speed. I also already had one big character shock moment and I don’t know if I’ll be able to stomach another one. Just saying.
I don’t even know how the definition for a this-ended-well-certificate would be in this case, but I’m certainly looking forward to finding out. I have a feeling that there is another twist headed my way.

I’m headed for the Frankfurt Bookfair this week. Have you ever been or are you attending? And if Frankfurt is too far, have you maybe been to another book fair? Let me know about your experiences and teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas.

Empire of Storms – Bloomsbury

Rolfe let out a low laugh. “The talk of young idealists and dreamers.”
“The world,” Aelin said, “will be saved and remade by the dreamers, Rolfe.”
— Chapter 28

Because she made a bad choice, trying to heal a wound she couldn’t ever mend. Trying to avenge the people she loved.
— Chapter 60

The best kind of books are those that leave you gasping for breath, clutching your poor shredded heart, and wondering how on earth black markings on paper are able to affect you so much. I thought I was prepared. I thought I had girded my metaphorical loins. I thought I could read this and emerge relatively unscathed. I was wrong. I had been warned and I had an inkling, but this book looked at my expectations and tore them to shreds like a wyvern (or seadragon) would a flimsy dinghy.
I don’t usually drop books and whisper “no, no, no” even if I figure out a heavy piece of foreshadowing in advance. Especially not in public. Yet Sarah J. Maas has already made me do this twice. Once I actually threw the book across the reading nook because it really ripped into me ... the writing is so immediate and gripping that you can almost feel and smell the place in addition to seeing it in your head.
Yes, there are issues, but show me the book that doesn’t have a single flaw and is perfect on every account of political correctness, representation, gender, plot holes, you name it ... and I will be probably half asleep by the second page because of it. There is such a thing as analysing a book to death and no book with such an impact deserves that. Critical reading yes, but slaughtering it for the sake of finding flaws no.
What does deserve analysis and praise are the development and direction this series has taken. With the first and second book it started out as a nice, well-written story about an easy to handle cast of characters that I cared for in varying degrees, but from the third and especially fourth book onwards the scope has become so much broader, the cast so much bigger and the overall impression so much deeper. You can clearly see how the author has grown with these books and at the same time (and that is something I truly admire) the foundation for all of this has always been present in the back-stories. I absolutely love how all of it is coming together and adding up. I love this series. Period. And I absolutely hate that it sure as daylight is going to break my heart in one way or another. Or in many ways actually.

Which author have you been following long enough to notice and appreciate their learning curve? Share them and your teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig.

Last Seen Leaving – Feiwel & Friends

It was the last time I saw her. They were the last words she spoke to me.
— Chapter 2

My thoughts splintered as I stumbled up the slope, abject fear making an icy slush of my bloodstream, certainty and denial kicking in simultaneously. I told myself no, no it isn’t, it can’t be, no, but I knew.
— Chapter 9

This is one of the books where saying just one word too many can ruin the whole surprise so I’ll tread very carefully. I’ll just say that I’m usually not a big fan of crime and thrill books. Not for any particular reason I just don’t really like reading them. And as for everything there has to be an exception and I made mine for this book.
Ask yourself this: How well do you know your partner? Do you really know everything about them? How well do you know them really?
Pretty well one wants to say since you have been together for a while and not without reason. Flynn probably would have said something similar about his girlfriend January ... Until he comes home one evening before Halloween and the police are waiting for him, accusing him to be involved in January’s disappearance.
That he hasn’t seen her for almost a week must be kept secret, because Flynn has a secret of himself that he wants to keep hidden from the police, his parents, and most of all from himself.
But then the search for January comes to an abrupt dead end and evidence appears that January wasn’t exactly the girl Flynn believed her to be. Flynn is determined to find out what happened. Because he feels guilty and because he has to prove that he isn’t the culprit.
I love how fitting one of my favourite Sherlock Holmes quotes is for this book: There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact. Because here nothing is as it seems, everyone has an agenda, and no one can be more mysterious than the person you think you know best.
I have seen comparisons to Gone Girl and Thirteen Reasons Why. They aren’t wrong, but I think this debut can very well stand on its own, too, and shine quite brilliantly.

Which is your no-go genre and have you made an exception for any particular book? Let me know about them and share your teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir.

A Torch Against the Night – Razorbill

“Always so afraid of the darkness within.” Mamie takes my hands. “Don’t you see? So long as you fight the darkness, you stand in the light.”
— Chapter 18

Failure doesn’t define you. It’s what you do after you fail that determines whether you are a leader or a waste of perfectly good air.
— Chapter 48

This book nearly killed me ... multiple times actually. First because of the wait. Or to be precise because it wasn’t even sure that there would be a second book, but thankfully that was cleared up pretty fast after the first book came out (more power to the readers). Then the actual wait with hints and teasers and speculation. Reading the book almost made me walk into traffic, too. And then the book itself ... skies and ten hells, my poor poor heart. At least there are now two more books announced (no idea how I’m supposed to survive those, but let’s be optimistic).
Sabaa Tahir is a masterful storyteller who knows how to grip her readers by the throat and lead them on a journey of hope and loss and love and betrayal so delicately interwoven that at times I forgot to be wary of things to come but still felt that underlying threat. And it’s so full of suspense that sometimes I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to find out how a particular scene would play out. My cry-pillow also got a good work out ... just a fair warning. What a punch to the gut, very mean author is very mean.
The book doesn’t really end in a cliffhanger per se yet there are some things unresolved and hanging in the balance that I would like to know more about sooner rather than later. But apparently book three is at the moment scheduled for a 2018 release? Say it ain’t so! Not complaining about more books though.

I have no idea how they could have let the story end after the first book, but I suspect the publisher wanted to wait and see if signing up more books would be viable ... not sure if I like that tactic. What do you think? Share your thoughts and teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi.

Furthermore –
Dutton Children’s Books

Humility had gotten lost on its journey to his ego, but the two had finally been reunited, and the meeting appeared to be painful.
— Chapter 23

Love had made her fearless, and wasn’t it strange? It was so much easier to fight for another than it was to fight for oneself.
— Chapter 24

This book is so so very wonderful! I am aware that more than others it might really come down to liking this particular way of writing, but for me the author spun a tale of language and plot in a pretty, whimsical, and engaging narrative. Language is such a mighty tool in this book and I loved the way it is used to paint incredible scenes and scenarios. I have no idea how rainlight might look like in reality, but the words are so powerful that after a while you accept the world created in this book with its wondrous and to our mind strange proceedings.
The story itself is as simple as it is extraordinary and that makes this book so precious in my opinion, because it brings a special kind of magic to a journey of self-discovery, rescue, and towards understanding and friendship. Language appreciation will most certainly add to the reading experience yet you can also read it for the adventure and friendship element alone and be thoroughly entertained.

Another YA author writing Middle Grade and transitioning well I think. I’m sad that this seems to be a stand-alone as I’d have liked to see more of this fascinating story universe ... maybe one can hope. Which stand-alone would you want to be expanded into more than one book? Share thoughts and teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: The Bronze Key by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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 Bronze Key by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare.

The Bronze Key –
Scholastic Press

“Someone spent their summer rereading all their Nancy Drew mysteries,” Jasper said.
Tamara gave him a toothy grin. “Someone is going to get a punch in their face.”
— Chapter 6

One of its eyes opened, its pupil large and black, the iris around it a bright purple and star-shaped.
“Children,” it whispered. “I like children.”
The “for breakfast” went unsaid, but seemed clear to Call.
— Chapter 10

This is a harmless middle grade series written by two serene and light-hearted authors ... said no one ever about The Magisterium series. Don’t get me wrong the plot and language are (in my opinion) totally age-appropriate, but if you know the authors from their YA background you also know that they are part of that lovely writer group who thrive on reader angst and tears. And I mean that in the most lovingly, while slightly emotionally tortured, way.
This third book in the series was again a wild roller coaster of high stakes, adventure, and emotion written in that wonderful smooth and blended voice of two masters. I pretend that I can in some passages see who wrote a particular expression or comeback, but overall you’d never guess that there was more than one person writing this. Apart from the part where the story wouldn’t be as dense and the characters maybe lacking a certain layer of depth, but it’s completely impossible to say how this story would have turned out on its own.
That end though ... I have no idea where this will go from here, but rest assured that I’m barely able to contain myself ... yep another year long wait ahead. But some things are worth waiting for and here that’s definitely the case.

Do you know authors who successfully write for more than one age group? Share your thoughts and teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: The Boy Most Likely To by Huntley Fitzpatrick

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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 Most Likely To by Huntley Fitzpatrick.

The Boy Most Likely To –
Dial Books

“Mmm,” Jase says, opening the refrigerator and staring into it in that guy way. Like all the answers to any question I’d ask him are in the crisper or pasted onto the label of the orange juice.
— Chapter 18

“Always asking for trouble, Tim.”
“You started it. Trouble pretty much finds me without having to ask directions.”
— Chapter 23

It almost shames me to admit how long I’ve put off reading this book. Not because I dreaded it, but because I didn’t want it to end. If that makes any sense? I capital L Loved My Life Next Door and didn’t want to let go of the Garretts then and I sure as hell don’t want to let go of them now. Dear Huntley Fitzpatrick: There are enough Garretts left, pretty please with lost of cherries on top write more about them?
But on a very serious note this book was at the same time all I expected it to be in terms of the writing and emotions and managed to throw me completely for a loop in terms of plot. It’s hard to say anything about it without any spoilers just know this: Whatever you’re expecting is going to happen based on you assumptions after a certain revelation, think again ... and then think again.

You can totally read this book and its prequel independently, which is a feature I really love as it enhances the characters if you know them from the other book but doesn’t distract you if you don’t. What is you opinion on interlocking yet stand-alone books? Let’s hear from you in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: The Potion Diaries by Amy Alward

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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 Potion Diaries by Amy Alward.

The Potion Diaries –
Simon & Schuster UK

It takes more than a key to open a door, little girl. You have to know where the lock is too.
— Chapter 13

‘Eat, first. Finish your dinner. Then you can start making the world’s most sought after potion, okay, honey?’
I grin; my parents’ excitement is almost matching my own.
‘But, Sam – if you ever potion your grandfather again, you will be grounded for life, got it?’
I’m not going to argue with that.
— Chapter 19

To be completely honest with you I’ll have to confess that chemistry was among the first subjects in school that I gladly got rid of as soon as possible. Not because I didn’t find it fascinating to learn about all the parts that combine to make up other stuff, but because my teacher was incredibly uninspired (and in constant danger of putting us all to permanent sleep). This book is the complete opposite of sleep-inducing chemistry. Yes, there is the aspect of alchemy and mixing ingredients, yet there is also adventure, a fantastic treasure hunt, love, friendship, and not to forget the touch of crime/mystery. A really great and captivating mix. And in perfect timing on my part, the second book is already out (coming out 18th October if you’re in the US).

Which subject did you ditch in school as soon as possible? And have you since found a book reminding you of said subject and enjoyed it? Share thoughts and teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo.

Six of Crows –
Henry Holt & Co.

“You can’t spend his money if you’re dead.”
“I’ll acquire expensive habits in the afterlife.”
“There’s a difference between confidence and arrogance.”
— Chapter 10

“Fine. But if Pekka Rollins kills us all, I’m going to get Wylan’s ghost to teach my ghost how to play the flute just so that I can annoy the hell out of your ghost.”
Brekker’s lips quirked. “I’ll just hire Matthias’ ghost to kick your ghost’s ass.”
“My ghost won’t associate with your ghost,” Matthias said primly, and then wondered if the sea air was rotting his brain.
— Chapter 15

Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha universe is one of the most fascinating fantasy worlds that I’ve had the honour to be allowed to visit on my reading adventures and now being allowed back is one of the best gifts I never knew to ask for. (Obviously, as I waited until the second book is almost out ... or was that tactic because I just knew there would be that really mean cliffhanger at the end ... let’s go with that explanation.)
Multiple points of few can easily grow tedious or even confusing yet this story is so much richer for them. The characters are so very different from each other yet also closely connected in their aims. And even though one gets to spend quite some time in their heads they remain mysterious enough to surprise and confound you. Just when you think you have puzzled out a motivation for one action you can almost be sure to be taken for a spin. Yet it always makes sense what the characters are doing as they act true to themselves.
Don’t get me wrong they are all dark figures in the night I’d rather not meet, but at the same time I can’t help but care for all of them. Good thing they’re fictional, because feeling affection for six criminals of their calibre would certainly get me locked up otherwise.
Highly recommended if you enjoyed Leigh Bardugo’s first series and want to return to the Grisha world though you don’t have to have read them to understand this one. Also recommended if Ocean’s Eleven ranks among your favourite movies thrown in with a little Inception or Now You See Me.

There are movie rumours surrounding almost every YA book these days and I can see the appeal for this one as it is already quite cinematic yet at the same time I think that the nuances of the internal observations would get lost in the process and actually deduct from the overall story. Do you have books you feel ambiguous about getting a movie treatment? Share your opinions and teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Goodbye Strager by Rebecca Stead.

Goodbye Stranger –
Wendy Lamb Books

My grandfather used to say that everyone alive has already beaten the craziest odds, just being born. Like one in a trillion. Your parents could have had a million different kids, but they had you. And before that could happen, your parents had to be born themselves, and their parents had to be born.
— Part 2

People act like riddles are hard, but real life is harder. In real life, there are always more than two doors.
I guess I know what I’m going to do.
— Part 3

Here’s a cute feel-good book at first glance that turned out pack quite an emotional punch looking back at it. Not in the sense, that it made me ugly cry, but rather that I find myself still thinking about it. The quick summary sounds almost dull: The plot covers a few months of the lives of three eight grade girls, one boy, and one other initially not defined person. But yikes, if the characters don’t have an interesting few months! High School looms and they don’t yet know, who they are or who they’re going to be or whom they might like. Maybe. Or maybe not. And in addition there are family incidents and other growing up navigating problems.
One very special feature of this book is the narrative style. The arc of the three girls is shown in third person with one of the girls as focal point, then there is the letter format for the boy (which are surprisingly plot advancing), and the mysterious person is narrated in second person (which took me some getting used to, but then it became an act of pride for me to find out who this you sitting in a café is). Very cleverly executed and while it sounds pretentious if not over-ambitious to write three narrative perspectives this book seriously profited from this method. Kudos to Rebecca Stead for that feat!

Do you have a book in mind that is narrated in second person? Share them and your teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: Let the Wind Rise by Shannon Messenger

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Let the Wind Rise by Shannon Messenger.

Let the Wind Rise – Simon Pulse

I definitely hate myself.
But I’m going to fix this—all of it.
I have a plan.
— Chapter 1

Change is in the air—I can feel it as clearly as I can hear the brave melodies of the untainted drafts slipping through the cracks of Raiden’s supposedly impenetrable fortress.
A hum building to a crescendo.
The wind starting to rise.
— Chapter 2

Final book in the Sky Fall trilogy where I’ll admit to not being blown away (forgive the pun) by the second book. It was nice enough and held my interest until the end so that I’m now reading the last book, but the first was infinitely better. I’m not too far into the third book right now, but the beginning is very promising and it seems that the language melody I loved so much in book one and missed in book two is back. Even if all alarms are ringing at the notion of the main guy character fixing all of it by having a plan.

Are there any phrases a main character in a book has to say to make you simultaneously roll your eyes and anticipate a worthwhile book? Share your trigger sentences and teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: The Shadow Hour by Melissa Grey

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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 Shadow Hour by Melissa Grey.

The Shadow Hour – Delacorte Press

“There’s no sense in lying to you with sugarcoated promises that everything will be fine. You’re entirely too clever for that.”
— Chapter 6

“I am your captive audience,” said Caius, with a pointed glance at his newly assigned guards. “Emphasis on captive.”
— Chapter 15

This sequel showed up on my reader and I was starting to believe in the book magic fairy before I remembered that I pre-ordered it almost immediately after I finished the first book ... or rather: my account reminded me. I’d have preferred the fairy, but I’m still very glad about the existence of this book. In the interest of full disclosure: It took me a while to get back into the story, especially since it starts right back in the middle of things with the stakes higher than ever before and the light at the end of the tunnel more likely than not an oncoming train rather than a true source of hope. And so far, this sounds like the standard procedure for a second-in-a-trilogy-book. And this book is all that but it is also so much more. The writing is truly beautiful and can at the same time convey so much humour as well as be truly captivating, emotional, and intense.
I still have a few chapters left to go and I’m very curious where this is going. I have (of course) a few hopes and fears ... it can’t be sunshine and rainbows, because second book and all that, but maybe I won’t need the anxiety blanket for this? Right, whom am I kidding? As long as the “Cry Here When A Fictional Character Dies” pillow can stay out of it.

When you really enjoy a first book, do you immediately order the sequel (if possible), do you pre-order it at some later point, or do you wait for it to publish? Share your method and teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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 Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan.

The Hidden Oracle –
Disney Hyperion

“You know, I keep thinking, I have now killed every single thing in Greek mythology. But the list never seems to end.”
“You haven’t killed me yet,” I noted.
“Don’t tempt me.”
— Chapter 7

Bad news: I died. Good news: I got better!
— Chapter 12

There is a haiku stuck in my head ... or actually more than one and I totally blame Apollo. But don’t tell him, he’s probably vain enough to fancy himself important or something. And also don’t tell him that I’ve already laughed several times during the first few chapters. Or maybe you can tell him that, because it was definitely at his expense. Just imagine the golden boy of vanity and ego-centrism stuffed into a pile of garbage, discovering that he has acne (the horror!), and at the beck and call of a teenage girl.
Or rather you don’t need to imagine it, you could just read this book, which is Rick Riordan at his very best doing what he does so perfectly: writing snarky, funny, enjoyable adventures mixed with ancient history and clever subtext. I suppose that you don’t have to have read the other books, but it is immeasurably more fun if you can discover all the intertextual references. Just calling what was the plot of the complete previous five books “a few minor hardships” had me snort-giggling for a while. I have a sneaking suspicion in terms of quests (and further cross over potential with other characters) and I’m quite certain that I’ll enjoy this series tremendously as it progresses. But let’s be honest, unless the author suffers from a severe personality and talent change I will happily read whatever he decides to write. I’m so very lucky to have a quite sizable number of favourite authors whom I can trust to write consistently and to a reliable standard.

Tell me about one of your “blind-buy-authors” whom you trust implicitly. Share them and your teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: The Iron Warrior by Julie Kagawa

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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 Iron Warrior by Julie Kagawa.

The Iron Warrior –
Harlequin Teen

I meet those icy blue eyes. He smiles sadly.
“I’m sorry, Ethan,” he whispers, always the same.
— Chapter 2

This wasn’t going well. We’d escaped one dragon’s nest only to land in an even bigger, nastier one. The Exile Queen stopped staring at Kenzie and smiled at me again, and I felt my insides shrink.
— Chapter 11

Faeries are always a good backup read, especially when they are written by Julie Kagawa. And I mean backup read if you need your reading soul put through the wringer ... in the most loving way with respect to the author. This is the final book in the second Iron Fey cycle and as far as I’m aware there aren’t going to me more in the foreseeable future. I’ll be sad to say goodbye to characters that have been with me for quite a while and also a few of the newer ones. But knowing the author she’ll have something up her sleeve ... apart from the next books in her dragon centred series.

I’m currently alternating between books that have been on my TBR for a while and brand new books and I must admit that quite a few of the older TBRs don’t actually stand the test of time as they were apparently published (and added to the pile) during a trend that now doesn’t quite capture me anymore. Are you making similar observations (or do you cull your pile more regularly than I do)? Share your thoughts and teasers in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner.

These Broken Stars –
Disney Hyperion

Somehow, unimaginably, we’ve landed. Right now I couldn’t give a damn where. I’m alive.
Or else I’m dead, and I’ve ended up in hell after all, and it’s an escape pod with Lilac LaRoux.
— Chapter 5

“Who cares about after? You could die tomorrow, you don’t think you should kiss her today?”
Perhaps I shouldn’t kiss her today because I could die tomorrow.
“Boring. Also, illogical.”
I’m delirious and hallucinating, now you want logic?
— Chapter 25

This book (and subsequent sequels) is hands down the perfect mixture of everything that shouldn’t work thrown together and because of that turning out to be utterly perfect. Sci-Fi, space travel,  survival, snark, star-crossed lovers, swooning, spying ... and now there is no s-word for conspiracy, dang it all. (Edited to add: Scheming, as suggested by Meagan Spooner herself). I’m sort of congratulating myself for only reading this now without the wait between books because I hope that I’ll catch more subtle hints and references than I would have otherwise. I’m a good portion into the second of the three books already and the third is right there waiting for me to finish. So far, I liked the first book a little better than the second, but that might be due to my preferences regarding the male lead. And I have already caught a glimpse of the one of the main characters of the third book, and I’m very certain that I’ll like her a lot.
The writing is absolutely wonderful and almost seamless. If the cover didn’t name two authors you’d never guess it. And while I usually like a little world-building in my books I didn’t actually miss it here that much, because the story itself captured me in a way that I only realised at the end that I still don’t quite understand, how all of this works. But maybe that’s part of it, because none of the characters do as well or they know only parts and are just now beginning to piece it all together.
And now I’ll have another guy I like who is a) taken, b) way beyond reach, and c) ... err ... fictional. Tarver is secretly a poet at heart and how can anyone resist that? And let’s not forget Lilac who is everything you expect of a spoilt rich brat, but then turns out to be the exact opposite and you can’t help but admire her. Books, they ruin your standards and prejudices, but what else is new?

Let me know if you have a word that means conspiracy that starts with S. I was close to heartbroken about having to give up the alliteration. Tell me if you’ve read this wonderful trilogy and share your teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: Summer Days and Summer Nights edited by Stephanie Perkins

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Summer Days and Summer Nights edited by Stephanie Perkins.

Summer Days and Summer Nights –
St. Martin’s Press

“I didn’t want to break up with you.”
“But … but you did.”
His shoulders drooped miserably. “I know.”
“Oh.” It was a whisper..
— In Ninety Minutes, Turn North by Stephanie Perkins

My smile fell away. Some habits of friendship were like muscle memory, rising up even when everything else had changed. I knew our jokes, our rhythms, the choreography of our friendship. But that didn’t take away what we were now.
— Inertia by Veronica Roth

More summer reads! Anyone else suspecting a theme here? Stephanie Perkins has again assembled an impressive collection of authors, some of my very favourites and some new to me in what I’d like to describe as delicious, lovely reading morsels. I’m very used to hearing that anthologies are difficult and no one here want to read them and therefore no one is eager to publish them (where I live anyway). And I get it. Sort of. The short story reader is different from the novel reader, but who says that you can’t be both? I love it when my authors write long, elaborate stories ... but at the same time it is a pretty amazing quality to paint a quick sketch of a story and infuse it with and evoke just as much emotion as in a novel. That’s real talent.
As with almost every compilation there will be those parts that you like more than others. And that’s okay, I don’t like all songs on every album of my favourite bands, but I’m still very happy to have them. And who knows maybe in this selection of authors you’ll find one you didn’t know before, enjoy their story, and want to read more from them. I know I’ll be looking into a few, just like I did with the winter companion of this.

How is you summer (reading) shaping up so far? The weather is sort of improving (and now I totally jinxed it, didn’t I?) and my reading is currently very pleasing (one of them is not summery at all, but I can’t tell you about that one yet ... will have to wait until Autumn for that one). Share your summer impressions and teasers in the comments!

Teaser Tuesday: Two Summers by Aimee Friedman

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Two Summers by Aimee Friedman.

Two Summers – Point

I know it’s silly, my belief in signs and harbingers. But superstition can be helpful for indecisive people; it lets us off the hook. Takes the choice out of our hands.
— Prologue

“It’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” she replies. “And why should you care what people think?”
— Part Four

While I’ll be lucky if there will be one summer here, this book and lovely story will offer you two along with some French flair and US summer specials. I thoroughly enjoyed this love story with a more than clever twist, because depending on one decision the protagonist experiences two very different summers either at home or in France. In both she will grow into her own and make some life-altering discoveries. I especially liked every moment Summer thinks that had she decided differently she would be happier and only the reader knows that the alternative would have its fair share of turbulence as well. In this case the journey is not necessarily the destination, but even if many roads lead to Rome you should enjoy the scenery on the one you travel.
Big recommendation for this sweet summer read with surprising depth. If you like the movie/book Sliding Doors or the books by Huntley Fitzpatrick, you should definitely give this a try.

I find the idea fascinating that every time we make a decision reality actually divides into separate possibilities ... even if I also find the idea of multiple universes hard to wrap my head around. I would like to see some of the alternate paths caused by some of my decisions. Not because I regret them, but because I’d like to see what might have been. Would that be something you’d be interested in? Let’s hear from you in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout.

White Hot Kiss –
Harlequin Teen

“Hey look, Bambi likes you.”
I pried one eye open. “And if she didn’t?”
“Oh, you’d know, ’cause she would’ve eaten you by now.”
— Chapter 17

“No elevator?” I asked
“None that you’d want to get on.” At the look on my face, he smiled. “The elevators here only go down.”
— Chapter 17

Some supernatural YA romance from one of my go to feel good authors. And when I say romance I mean cool, snarky, hot, and possibly forbidden. The holy four-fold if you ask me. And the plot is not something to be scoffed at either. I’m incredibly glad that this series is already available in its entirety, because if the previous series are any indication, there are going to be major cliffhangers and emotional turmoil ahead.
It’s not the new, mould-breaking story to end all others, but if you liked the author’s previous books you’ll also like this series, I dare say.

You possibly have a favourite fantasy species and I bet that gargoyles are not necessarily on the top of the list. I can’t say that they are going to be after this book, but demons might move up a few spots. Who is on your list? Let’s hear from you in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: Circle of Jinn by Lori Goldstein

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Circle of Jinn by Lori Goldstein.

Circle of Jinn –
Feiwel and Friends

I guess logic and reason are no match for desire. Wanting something to be true can make it so. At least in one’s own mind.
— Chapter 16

“You tried harder than anyone else would have.”
“But I’m not anyone else. I’m your best friend. And best friends don’t give up.”
— Chapter 22

I don’t know how summer is coming along for you but at my end it’s leaving a lot to be desired. I can fully empathise with the Jinn of this book who light a fire in September in New England, because it’s too darn cold. Apart from that sympathy, this book feels like a slightly typical second book in a trilogy but then again not completely as it is the final book in a dulogy and thus clearly pushes the overall plot along without being too messy in its internal plot. I can’t really say much more without giving anything away. But if you’ve read the first book and where left with a lot of questions, quite a few of them get answered ... and then you get a set of brand new ones.
One aspect I really enjoy about this Jinn universe is that the wisher is kept unaware and that the Jinn has to fulfil the honest to goodness deepest wish a person has instead of three wishes that might be made for personal gain, but don’t actually help.

The prognosis for summer here is mixed at best, which would have a nice reading touch to it, but I actually enjoy sitting in the sun to read so maybe someone can wish for that. Do you have an outside reading spot? Let’s hear from you in the comments.

Teaser Tuesday: The Last Star by Rick Yancey

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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 Last Star by Rick Yancey.

The Last Star – G.P. Putnam’s Sons

And she would leap, a fearless launch into empty space, because he wasn’t just her father—he was Daddy. He would catch her; he would not let her fall.
— Prologue

I should have known he was going to save me by betraying me: He’d been doing it from the beginning.
— Chapter 4

It is quite possible that literature has taught me to be a cautious pessimist. Or maybe a high-functioning pessimist. I no longer just open a book and start a new story (or continue it), but rather I’m approaching it with an underlying question along the lines of “okay, how are you going to blow everything up in my face?”. This is not a bad thing, because if I wanted to, I’m certain I could find books that go straight from A to B without so much as trying to mess with me. Big if I wanted to.
So I got this book final book in the trilogy and if you’ve read the previous two, you remember that everything is already pretty glum and how will this ever be nearing something that can be described as sort of okay. And I think I’m still in the part where everything it is pretty much going downhill fast, possibly backwards. At the moment I’m not sure how this is supposed to be turned around. Maybe it isn’t and this is headed towards a big finale of apocalyptic destruction. Which in itself is from a certain point of view the only happy end possible.
And this is also where I realised that I’m not as pessimistic as I thought, because I’m still trying to figure out how this could be turned around to a somewhat positive outcome. At what point is post-apocalyptic so far gone that the previous state cannot be restored and the only feasible way is forward to begin from scratch rather than backward to rebuild?

Are you a literary optimist or pessimist. Or something else altogether? Let’s hear from you in the comments along with your teasers.

Teaser Tuesday: Soldier by Julie Kagawa

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
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!

Soldier by Julie Kagawa.

Soldier – HarlequinTeen

I was sore, confused, overwhelmed and felt I could bite something with very little provocation. “I’ll be fine. I’m going to lie down and growl at anything that asks me questions.”
— Chapter 21

“You’re injured.” She shook her head. “Why are you standing here talking to me? Go tell the monks to take care of that. I did not come all this way, across two oceans, to watch you die of blood loss.”
— Chapter 23

I started this book under the impression that this would be the final book in a trilogy, but when I was about halfway through I began to realise that there were way to many loose ends to be even remotely done in the number of pages I had ahead of me. With a new to me author that might have been the case, but as this is my third (fourth, if you count the Iron Fey parts separately) series from Julia Kagawa, I felt confident in my assessment that there was more to come. I just hadn’t gotten the memo. And luckily I was right and there are two more books planned as of now.
I’ll be honest and say there there are parts in this book that I didn’t care about as much as others. But I think that is to be expected from a book with multiple narrators, especially if all of them are a first person narration, which is quite challenging to write I imagine. However, Julie Kagawa manages to give all her narrators a distinct feel so that the reader never forgets who is talking at the moment. And even the non narrating characters. Can I just say that I love Jade and can I please get more of that?
When I looked up if there are going to be more books in the series I was also made aware that there would be a major cliffhanger at the end of this book (then I quickly clicked away because the only thing worse than spoilers are spoilers you caused for yourself). And ... I feel that the term cliffhanger needs to be adjusted for certain authors or that there needs to be a word that more accurately describes the situation. Like when a good author lets you dangle from a moderate cliff then these authors leave you clinging to the cliffs of Kalaupapa ... or something like that.

So while I’m cliff clinging for dear life let me ask you if you had instances of surprise not-final-books in the past. If so, were they pleasant or not so pleasant surprises? Share thoughts and teasers in the comments!