The Best Books Ever

Another Sunday, another giveaway!   This week, we're giving away a copy of the paranormal YA book Poltergeeks . Poltergeeks (ARC from publisher) By Sean Cummings Published on October 2, 2012 Published by Strange Chemistry 15-year-old Julie Richardson is about to learn that being the daughter of a witch isn't all it's cracked up to be. When she and her best friend, Marcus, witness an elderly lady jettisoned out the front door of her home, it's pretty obvious to Julie there's a supernatural connection.  In fact, there's a whisper of menace behind increasing levels of poltergeist activity all over town. After a large-scale paranormal assault on Julie's high school, her mother falls victim to the spell Endless Night. Now it's a race against time to find out who is responsible or Julie won't just lose her mother's soul, she'll lose her mother's life. Fill out the Raffelcopter below for your chance to win!  You ha

  Harper Collins has some great choices for your little Halloween readers!  I wanted to take a minute to share a few of the adorable Halloween books that Harper shared with me! It's Pumpkin Day, Mouse! By Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond Published July 24 by Baltzer + Bray Toddlers will love this adorable board book with bright simple pictures and short phrases on each page.  They will be able to see different facial expressions as Mouse paints them on his pumpkins.  A fun Halloween treat for your youngest readers! Just Say Boo! By Susan Hood Illustrated by Jed Henry Published on July 24 by Harper Collins My two year old loved the interactive nature of this book!  Just Say Boo would be great for read alongs with a parent or read alouds in a preschool or Kindergarten class.  The words are very repetitive and rhyming- great for young readers.  This will undoubtedly be a new favorite in our house! (This was the best picture I could fi

A Madness of Angels By Kate Griffin Published on April 6, 2009 Published by Orbit Source: Purchased Summary from Goodreads : For Matthew Swift, today is not like any other day. It is the day on which he returns to life.  Two years after his untimely death, Matthew Swift finds himself breathing once again, lying in bed in his London home. Except that it's no longer his bed, or his home. And the last time this sorcerer was seen alive, an unknown assailant had gouged a hole so deep in his chest that his death was irrefutable...despite his body never being found. He doesn't have long to mull over his resurrection though, or the changes that have been wrought upon him. His only concern now is vengeance. Vengeance upon his monstrous killer and vengeance upon the one who brought him back. My thoughts.... I have a bit of a backwards relationship with Kate Griffin's Matthew Swift novels.  I inadvertently started reading the series with the fourth b

Summer's pretty much over, so we're looking back on that magical time of road trips and vacations on Best Book Ever.  We've got some great picks this week, check them out! This is another tough choice for me to just decided on one. So I'll mention a YA and Adult book. As far as YA goes, The latest road trip book to seriously win me over big time is Jessi Kirby's IN HONOR . This story is just so moving and inspirational. The fact that a sister wants to complete her brothers last wish to her while traveling cross country with the brother's pain in the butt friend is a treat to read for all those who love a sweet, romantic story. Then when it comes to my adult choice, I have to go with Tracey Garvis-Graves ON THE ISLAND . What a powerhouse of a story. It starts off like a vacation, but ends in tragedy. So to read how these two people survive day after day without hope to be found and what blossoms from all the struggles, just took my breath away. It teaches

Friends, I've been in a bit of a reading rut lately. So many good books, so many choices! It's time to call on all of you to help me pick the next book to read! Broken By  A.E. Rought A string of suspicious deaths near a small Michigan town ends with a fall that claims the life of Emma Gentry's boyfriend, Daniel. Emma is broken, a hollow shell mechanically moving through her days. She and Daniel had been made for each other, complete only when they were together. Now she restlessly wanders the town in the late Fall gloom, haunting the cemetery and its white-marbled tombs, feeling Daniel everywhere, his spectre in the moonlight and the fog. When she encounters newcomer Alex Franks, only son of a renowned widowed surgeon, she's intrigued despite herself. He's an enigma, melting into shadows, preferring to keep to himself. But he is as drawn to her as she is to him. He is strangely... familiar. From the way he knows how to open her locker when it sticks

Shadowfell  By Juliet Marillier Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers Published on September 11, 2011 Source: Net Galley Summary taken from Goodreads : Sixteen-year-old Neryn is alone in the land of Alban, where the oppressive king has ordered anyone with magical strengths captured and brought before him. Eager to hide her own canny skill—a uniquely powerful ability to communicate with the fairy-like Good Folk—Neryn sets out for the legendary Shadowfell, a home and training ground for a secret rebel group determined to overthrow the evil King Keldec. During her dangerous journey, she receives aid from the Good Folk, who tell her she must pass a series of tests in order to recognize her full potential. She also finds help from a handsome young man, Flint, who rescues her from certain death—but whose motives in doing so remain unclear. Neryn struggles to trust her only allies. They both hint that she alone may be the key to Alban’s release from Keldec’s ru

Vanish (Firelight #2) By Sophie Jordan Published by Harper Teen Published on September 6, 2011 Source: Won ARC from another blogger Summary taken from Goodreads : To save the life of the boy she loves, Jacinda did the unthinkable: She betrayed the most closely-guarded secret of her kind. Now she must return to the protection of her pride knowing she might never see Will again—and worse, that because his mind has been shaded, Will’s memories of that fateful night and why she had to flee are gone. Back home, Jacinda is greeted with hostility and must work to prove her loyalty for both her sake and her family’s. Among the few who will even talk to her are Cassian, the pride’s heir apparent who has always wanted her, and her sister, Tamra, who has been forever changed by a twist of fate. Jacinda knows that she should forget Will and move on—that if he managed to remember and keep his promise to find her, it would only endanger them both. Yet she clings to the hope tha

Today we've got an extra special post for you, a bit of a bonus track to the Crown of Embers blog tour.  Keep reading for an awesome interview with Rae Carson!   Hi everyone! My name is Amanda, formerly of Hippies, Beauty, and Books Oh My! which was a young adult book blog that I ran with my husband. Unfortunately, we had to close up shop due to some personal reasons before we were able to post our interview with Rae Carson. However, my blogging buddy here agreed to share the interview with y'all. It was such a fun interview that we didn't want it to go to waste. Rae did an awesome job answering our questions, so we hope that you will enjoy it! And definitely check out her books,  The Girl of Fire and Thorns  and  The Crown of Embers . Both books are incredibly well-done and I personally cannot wait until the 3rd book in the series arrives. Guys will like them, too! My hubby actually stole them from me before I could even read them and he isn't a big rea

Poltergeeks By Sean Cummings Published on October 2, 2012 Published by Strange Chemistry Source: ARC from publisher Summary from Goodreads : 15-year-old Julie Richardson is about to learn that being the daughter of a witch isn't all it's cracked up to be. When she and her best friend, Marcus, witness an elderly lady jettisoned out the front door of her home, it's pretty obvious to Julie there's a supernatural connection. In fact, there's a whisper of menace behind increasing levels of poltergeist activity all over town. After a large-scale paranormal assault on Julie's high school, her mother falls victim to the spell Endless Night. Now it's a race against time to find out who is responsible or Julie won't just lose her mother's soul, she'll lose her mother's life. My thoughts...  I'm having a bit of a writing block today, so here, in list form, are some of my thoughts.  (I like lists.) Here are some things I liked:

 Please welcome to the blog Marissa Moss- author of Mira's Diary: Lost in Paris !  Today Marissa is talking with us about her main characters- Mira and Amelia!                                                                                                                                The Me I Wish I Could Be  by Marissa Moss     There's a little bit of myself in every character I create.  Partly, that's how I get to know my characters, by drawing on my own quirks and those of people I know (one of the dangers of being friends with a writer!).  For main characters, like Amelia and Mira, these characters also become stand-ins for how I'd like to be, showing traits I wish I had.       Amelia is heavily based on me as a kid and the notebook I used to keep.  Except where I was gawky and awkward, Amelia uses her sense of humor to define herself.  She embraces the weirdness that I tried to hide.  When I get fan mail from girls saying the

This week on Best Book Ever, we're talking about classic retellings! From stories like Wicked , which take us deeper into a world we already know, to Pride & Prejudice & Zombies , which gives us something familiar mixed with something new, we're looking at anything that puts a new spin on something we already know and love.  We've got some great picks this week, check them out! My favorite classic relaunched is THIS DARK ENDEAVOR by Kenneth Oppel, which is about a teenage Viktor Frankenstein. Teen Viktor is every bit as wound up in the idea of his own intelligence and glory as Mary Shelley's adult Dr. Frankenstein, but with the added drive and self-centered worldview of a teenage boy... oh and lust, too. Beautiful distant cousin Elizabeth is living with the Frankensteins - Viktor and his twin brother Konrad, who Elizabeth is in love with. When Konrad dies from an illness, there's a lovely dark question of whether Viktor wants to bring Konrad back fro

Welcome to our stop  on the hop!  We are giving away one Advanced Readers Copy of the Raven Boys!  (Plus some swag) To enter- fill out the rafflecopter below and then hop on to the next stop! a Rafflecopter giveaway  

To Love and Cherish By Tracie Peterson and Judith Miller Published by Bethany House Published on August 2012 Source: Finished Copy from Publisher Summary taken from Goodreads : A Story of Romance and Intrigue on a Beautiful Island Resort, From Two Bestselling Authors When Melinda Colson's employer announces they'll be leaving Bridal Veil Island to return to their home in Cleveland, Melinda hopes her beau, Evan, will propose. But Evan isn't prepared to make an offer of marriage until he knows he can support a wife and family. Evan works as the assistant gamekeeper on Bridal Veil but hopes to be promoted soon. Letters strengthen their love, but Melinda remains frustrated at being apart from the man she wants to spend the rest of her life with. Then she learns of a devastating hurricane in Bridal Veil and knows she must give up her position as a lady's maid and make her way back to Evan. The destruction on Bridal Veil is extensive, meaning ever

The Bridesmaid By Beverly Lewis Published by Bethany House Published on September 11, 2012 Source: ARC from Publisher Summary taken from Goodreads : The Latest in Chart-Topping Amish Fiction from Beverly Lewis Twenty-seven-year-old Joanna Kurtz has made several trips to the altar, but never as a bride. The single young Amishwoman is a closet writer with a longing to be published--something practically unheard of in her Lancaster County community. Yet Joanna's stories aren't her only secret. She also has a beau who is courting her from afar, unbeknownst even to her sister, Cora, who, though younger, seems to have suitors to spare. Eben Troyer is a responsible young Amishman who hopes to make Joanna Kurtz his bride--if he can ever leave his parents' farm in Shipshewana, Indiana. Yet with his only brother off in the English world, intent on a military career, Eben's hopes for building a life with his dear Joanna are dimming, and patience is weari

Rae Carson is stopping by Short and Sweet Reviews today to share one of the funniest guest posts I have ever read! Please take the time to read this post and laugh as much as I did! ~ Coran ne The Girlfriend Test, Kangaroo Private Parts, and Other Perils of Online Dating Waaaay back in 2004, I decided to get serious about writing. So I joined the Online Writing Workshop for Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror and began submitting my work. The site administrator was award-winning author Charles Coleman Finlay. Charlie was smart, warm, poetic, well-dressed, and hot. Naturally, I assumed he was gay. For the next few years, Charlie and I were vaguely aware of each other, but we rarely interacted. Neither of us was interested in dating anyone, due to various personal reasons. In fact, Charlie went so far as to publicly declare a Dating Moratorium. Then, Charlie began blogging at the same site where I was blogging. We started commenting on each others'