Down the TBR Hole #2 + Giveaway

Source: ♥

Down the TBR Hole is a meme/feature hosted by Lia (Lost in a Story). Hopefully this will remind me to read some of these long-lost, woeful books that have been sitting untouched, forgotten on these bookshelves of mine.

Rules

• Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
• Order on ascending date added.
• Take the first 5 books
• Read the synopses of the books
• Decide: keep it or should it go?

I've added a twist: if there are any books that I do decide to let go, I'm going to host a giveaway. First person who says they want it, gets it! Aussie only. (After one month, I will put them up for donation/sale.)

Let's get started!

Current TBR count: 441

Down the TBR Hole #1 + Giveaway

Source: ♥

Down the TBR Hole is a meme/feature hosted by Lia (Lost in a Story). Hopefully this will remind me to read some of these long-lost, woeful books that have been sitting untouched, forgotten on these bookshelves of mine.

Rules

• Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
• Order on ascending date added.
• Take the first 5 books
• Read the synopses of the books
• Decide: keep it or should it go?

I've added a twist: if there are any books that I do decide to let go, I'm going to host a giveaway. First person who says they want it, gets it! Aussie only.

Let's get started!

[News] Giveaway winners

Source: ♥

So the time has finally come! My 5 year blogoversary giveaway has just come to an end, and the winners have been declared! Without further ado...

• Rebecca from Reading Wishes! (Yay! Another Aussie blogger! :D)
• Dea (I did a bit of Google stalking, I think this is her blog? Correct me if I'm wrong!)

Both of these lovely chickadees will be receiving a preorder of their choice from the list I gave in my previous post. :) Don't worry if you didn't win - as long as I keep up with this blogging business there shall be more giveaways to come in the future!

Until next time!

 

[Giveaway] 5 Year Blogoversary // Post-night shift rant

Warning:
I've just come from a night shift, so things are going to get rambly and emotional and maybe a bit personal. If you're only here for the giveaway, scroll down until you hit gold! Don't worry, no hard feelings. I probably wouldn't read this either because, come on, who cares?

Gah! I made this graphic for my first blogoversary, and as much as that cut-off 'y' is bugging me, I'm not going to change it or fix it or make a new graphic. Because I'm kind of fond of it. Because in the past I'm sure I was very proud of my efforts. (Okay, I'm also a tiny bit lazy too.)

I've been horribly, despicably, inexcusably MIA--hang on, life just got in the way. A lot, a lot, a lot of life. Full-time work. Family stuff. Friends stuff. Relationship stuff. Basically everything in my life has been a constant whirlwind of change and uncertainty and confusion and emotions have been blaring every which way that I just didn't have the mental capacity to even open up Blogger most days. There were many many times I contemplated, "I really should write this review today," and then almost instantaneously turned my mind to other matters.

But. I think I'm finally at a place where my mind has cleared a bit. I have a tendency to over-think things and let it all get the best of me, and all the while my lovely blog has been patiently waiting for me, waiting for me to give it the attention, love and *ahem* traffic it so rightly deserves. *gets out the feather duster* I've sorely neglected it for way too long, and I don't even know if I can truly keep this up (I have a bad track record with consistency here--but hey! I always seem to come back, don't I?) but I'm going to try my hardest.

[Review + Giveaway] The Infinite Sea (#2) by Rick Yancey

Add to Goodreads

(#2, The 5th Wave)

The 5th Wave | The Infinite Sea | Untitled

Publication (dd/mm/yyyy): 16/09/2014

Publisher: Penguin Australia
Pages: 336

Source: Publisher for review + Bought
Genre: YA (14+) - Dystopian

Violence | Sexual Content | Profanity

Book Tunes
♪ x ♪

My Rating: 

Mindblowing

My thoughts

Warning! Spoilers if you have not read The 5th Wave!

THAT ENDING.

WHAT EVEN HAPPENED IN THIS BOOK?!?!?! I STILL HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS. I finished this book whilst on night shift at the hospital and I was just gaping from ear to ear, thinking that there must be more, that Yancey couldn't have ended the book like that. But he did, and now I--we--have to wait for the next installment... it's going to be excruciatingly painful and long. I hope it will be more than worth it.

[Recap] YA Book Buzz @ Kinokuniya - National Bookshop Day 2014

I normally never get the opportunity to attend a book event--it's either work or school, too early or too late or too far or just somehow otherwise inconvenient to get out there to meet the authors. But not this time! Stroke of luck: my boss told me to take the day off work, so I quickly RSVP'd and ended up going with a couple of fellow book-loving friends.

We entered Kinokuniya at roughly 11:30 am, drinks from the Starbucks downstairs in hand, only to be faced with a panel of authors overlooking about five rows of chairs. Luckily we got to sit down (a few people had to stand along the sidelines) and enjoy our drinks while the crew set up the mics and the authors talked amongst themselves. They looked quite excited to be there, the audience, ditto.

A couple of minutes passed before the host hopped up on stage and started things up. The authors bantered about who should speak first: Garth Nix eagerly nominated Wanda Wiltshire, who admits that this is her second book event, but her first with a considerable crowd. She passionately described her novel, Betrothed, which is about not just romantic love (it is NOT just a romance novel!), but love of all kinds. I had never even heard of her book before, but it was a treat to listen to her talk about her book, as well as her sequel, Allegiance. She finished up with some book recommendations--anything by Melina Marchetta and the Shiver trilogy by Maggie Stiefvater.

Garth Nix took the mic next, much to Wanda Wiltshire's relief (Garth: don't worry, we'll get back to you). He was a bit sick but still very charismatic and funny. Unfortunately I only remember his recommendation of Rogues, a collection of short stories about rogues written by the likes of George R.R. Martin, Gillian Flynn, himself (Garth Nix) and Neil Gaiman, and Howl's Moving Castle and all other works by Diana Wynn Jones.

Next up, Margo Lanagan, who I was pretty excited to meet since her books probably interested me the most. She describes her books as 'dark fantasy' and mentions that her next book will also be a selkie novel, but even darker and more messed up than Sea Hearts (The Brides of Rollrock Island). She makes light of the fact that her previous books have run into trouble in the past for being filth (Them: Is this the kind of filth that kids should be reading these days? Margo: Yes!). Her biggest recommendation was Joyce Carol Oates.

Last to speak was Justine Larbalestier, who was wearing an incredibly snazzy coat. Her new release, Razorhurst, sounds so good, it was pretty hard for me not to get a copy of it for myself (both my friends did, so I will have to borrow later on). I can't remember what she recommended, but she did add on to one of Margo's (Careful, He Might Hear You by Sumner Locke Elliott). (Apparently the dialogue is amazing; Justine wrote Razorhurst from her reading of that book to better understand the period and how to write good dialogue.)


Then it was time for questions!

I had intended to get a copy of Tender Morsels for the longest time, so I finally got it and it's mine and she signed it and she was lovely. I'm kind of really really frugal and money-conscious, so I did not end up buying a book from every author on the panel (I did feel bad about it when I only went up to get a signature from Margo!). If I had prepared a little more and KNEW that there would be author signings I would have brought my copy of Zombies vs. Unicorns, Team Human and Sea Hearts. My friends made up for it though since they went nuts.

Anyway, I had an awesome time and I was extremely glad that I was able to attend. Let me know if any of you guys attended too! I would love to have more reading buddies for Tender Morsels... and also for Garth Nix's Abhorsen series (I've preordered the pretty new cover editions! :D)!


PS. I know I'm super late with posting my recap of this book event. I'm going to try and be more up to date with the goings-on with bookish stuff, including book events.

PPS. I will be having a giveaway in the near-ish future. Something Garth Nix related! :D <3

PPPS. I am EXTREMELY sorry for the lack of posts and presence lately! Blogging is, and always will be strictly a hobby for me, so in the grand scheme of things it'll never be up there on my priority list. Work's been crazy, life's been crazy, you know how it can be. I'll be flitting from one full-time job to another very soon, so I have no idea what's to come in the future (as usual).
 



[Guest Post + Giveway] S.M. Bjarnson, author of Tangled Tears

Hey fellow bookworms!

It's been a long while since my last post. I have a whole lot of review-writing to catch up on! Times are busy with uni (final year -> headache!), work and personal issues... But enough about that. A lovely new author, S.M. Bjarnson, contacted me about her new YA book. The premise sounds promising; even though I have not read it yet I am excited to have an electronic copy to read in the future.

Here's what she had to say about growing up and overcoming challenges in life...

GIVEAWAY, YOU ALL EVERYBODY!

I don't own this image or these actors (Yes Man) or anything.

 Just a reminder... I've got two giveaways happening RIGHT NOW! I can't remember what day I said it ends but anyway I'm going to officially close it when I wake up on Monday. Go enter now. No hoops to jump through, just fill in the form. :)

Do it. Do it do it do it do it do it! 

It's 1 am. My brain is turning to mush. Both Aussie and International giveaways are open. Odds are pretty good for both. ;) Your loss if you miss out.

So... did you enter?

Go enter.

I think you should enter.

Yeah okay, I'm going to bed. Isn't Jim Carey a hunk? Lol. Psych!

[Giveaway] I turned 20, let's celebrate!

Source: How I Met Your Mother; Tumblr

Hooray! Today is my birthday, though most people generally focus on that other thing that happens on this date (which gives me nothing but inconvenience... no, I don't believe in Valentine's Day). And on my birthday, today--that is, Feb 14 2013, I officially am a teenager no more. Yep. 20 years old.

And while I've been starting to gain a real interest in more books with an adult target audience, YA will always be for me. This giveaway is two-fold. =) One for Aussies and the other for everyone. Since this is a way for me to thank all my followers entry will be simple. No need for rafflecopter then. Just fill in the form with your details and hit enter! Hey, even if you're not a follower, you can enter. (I'm too lazy to check.)

Giveaway #1

2x sets of Touch of Power and Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder

Australian residents only.

Thanks to Emma of Morey Media who graciously offered me this opportunity to give away the first two books of this outstanding and unique fantasy trilogy.



Direct link to form

------------------------------------------

Giveaway #2

1x winner gets their choice of any one of the listed books (pb) below:

 

Just One Day by Gayle Forman

Don't Breathe A Word by Holly Cupala

A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper

Daughter of Xanadu by Dori Jones Yang

Shadows on the Moon by Zoë Marriott

Plain Kate by Erin Bow

Legend by Marie Lu

Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien

* I wanted to feature lesser known in their genre favourite books I've read.

International by The Book Depository or Fishpond.

Direct link to form

Both giveaways will end 24/02/2013 and winners will be announced shortly after.




 

[Giveaway] Gratitude Giveaway Blog Hop

Click on the banner to go to the host. ;)

This giveaway has ended. Check here (*link soon) to see who won!

Thanks all you super awesome readers! I know I haven't been too active this year, and I completely missed my blogoversary (which also means a giveaway for that blogoversary) so I thought I'd participate in this blog hop this time around. I'm on exam period right now, but expect to see me come back around late-Nov/early-Dec. I can't wait to be done with this uni year! :D

The details:

• 2 winners will receive a book of their choice!
• International via either Fishpond or The Book Depository.
• Giveaway runs from 15/11-25/11. Winners will be announced soon afterward.

All you have to do is fill in the form below. I'll contact the winners to ask their top 3 book choices (I'll pick one to send!), and to provide their mailing address within 48 hours.

a Rafflecopter giveaway




PS. If the form is not working, you can send me a tweet (@cc9309) instead. [I'll then just manually insert an entry for you]

Good luck!

Giveaways Catch-up

Balloons, for what ever reason. Source

This has been a long time coming, and I'm kind of sorry for leaving this so long.

So here it is.

Part One -- the winners of giveaways past  

1. Wispy Hair Giveaway, ended 02/06. That is a long time ago. I have no excuses. But. I'll be sending this out to the winner on Tuesday, so better extremely, ridiculously, horrendously late than never.

• *** Because only a few people entered there's only one winner. Since the winner only wanted Fated, I'll be giving her a list of other books to choose from! And...Rapture is up for swaps. Let me know on Goodreads. ;)
• The winner is Alice! (@alice__xox)

2. Happy Birthday to Me Giveaway, ended 31/12/2011! OHMIGOD. Only three entries and because I need to get rid of more books, the winner will also get to pick a book from my list! :D

• The winner is Kylie! (The Talking Teacup)

Now, onto part 2.


Part Two -- giveaways of the future

• I've already worked up a giveaway in November as a thank you for my readers. That, and I never hosted a giveaway for my blogoversary so it's kind of a make-up as well. And that one will be international.
  
• There will be another giveaway in December, probably as a join-in with a Christmas giveaway blog hop. I don't know what my *theme* for the giveaway should be. Let me know what you want so I can get some idea of what I'll do for it.

Alright, I'm done. Now shoo, I'm going to go back to reading my book. =P

Bloomsbury's Throne of Glass kick-off giveaway!

One lucky AU/NZ resident will be the lucky lucky person to win BIG!

Bloomsbury has got this contest going on on Facebook (CLICK) - just answer the question and fill in your details, and you've got the chance to win a $150 ASOS GC and a free Bloomsbury title each month for a year.

I swear if the giveaway was just for the ASOS GC I'd bite, but since there are books up for grabs, as a blogger I feel obligated to just get the word out there. So enter up, share with your friends . . . there are also a couple other giveaways. You'll have to like the Throne of Glass page, but why wouldn't you want to? It is simply spectacular.

And I am so excited for this book. I'm currently on the third book of the prequel novellas and will get right to the beautiful novel shortly after I've gotten through the fourth.

Sarah J. Maas books

The Assassin and the Pirate Lord (#0.1) || goodreads ~ review

The Assassin and the Desert (#0.2) || goodreads ~ review

The Assassin and the Underworld (#0.3) || goodreads ~ review

The Assassin and the Empire (#0.4) || goodreads ~ review

Throne of Glass (#1) || goodreads ~ review

[Giveaway] Wispy Hair books ~ Rapture by Lauren Kate & Fated by Alyson Noël

Hey there!

Just a quick post/giveaway for you all.

Let's get this out of the way first: Australia only or pay for international shipping. If you're unsure, let me know what country you live in and I'll give you a quote so you can decide whether you want to enter or not. I can guarantee though it would cost AU$15+... I will definitely have another Book Depository giveaway in the near future, and I'm also saving for an Amazon gift card (courtesy of Swagbucks)!!!

Graphic made because I felt like it. Bg source: aeiryn; I own nothing.

The details:

• Up for grabs ~ 1x Rapture, 2x Fated (runner up receives ARC)
• 3 winners
• Aussie only unless you are willing to pay for shipping. Let me know if you want a quote before you decide. You MUST have a Paypal account.
• Giveaway ends Saturday 2nd of June, winners will be announced.

If you want to enter for "Rapture", comment on what you are most excited about for the conclusion to the series.

If you want to enter for "Fated", comment and tell me whether you've read any of Alyson Noel's previous books.

As simple as that! You can enter both or just one. One entry per person and if you already commented on my Book Haul post you've already got an entry. ;)

Good luck all! Also if you can't comment for ANY reason, shoot me a tweet (@cc9309)!

Trailers:

~Rapture~



Teaser #1
Teaser #2

~Fated~

[Giveaway] The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

About the book:

Cover; Source: YA Reads

The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa {goodreads}

IN A FUTURE WORLD, VAMPIRES REIGN.
HUMANS ARE BLOOD CATTLE.
AND ONE GIRL WILL SEARCH FOR THE KEY TO SAVE HUMANITY.

(For full synopsis and information, visit either the Blood of Eden official website or Goodreads, linked above)

Julie's Inspired Playlist

Julie Kagawa's official site :)

...and the movie

Palomar Pictures Options The Immortal Rules and Blood of Eden Series 

by New York Times Bestselling Author Julie Kagawa

Share your excitement and use the #theimmortalrulesmovie Twitter tag. ;)

Also, follow @Jkagawa for updates.

The Giveaway:

• Aussie only (thanks to Harlequin Teen Australia!)
• 1x winner will receive: A finished copy of The Immortal Rules
• Giveaway will run until April 30th 2012.

[Review + Giveaway] Happy Birthday To Me by Brian Rowe

Title: Happy Birthday To Me {goodreads}

Authors: Brian Rowe

Publication (dd/mm/yy): 25/10/11

Publisher: CreateSpace

Source: For review (thanks to the author!)
Age: 15+ Sexual references, mild swearing?

Pages: 315

My Rating:

Satisfying read

Summary:

Seventeen-year-old Cameron Martin has a huge problem: he’s aging a whole year of his life with each passing day!

High school is hard enough; imagine rapidly aging from seventeen to seventy in a matter of weeks, with no logical explanation, and with prom, graduation, and the state championship basketball game on the horizon. That’s what happens to Cameron, a mischievous pretty boy who has never had to face a day looking anything but perfect.

All Cameron wants to do is go back to normal, but no one, not even the best doctors, can diagnose his condition. When he falls for a mysterious young woman, however, he realizes that the only hope for his survival might be with the one person who started his condition in the first place...

My thoughts: 

I was initially intrigued when it was pitched to me, but I'm always just that bit more cautious with indie/self-published novels. The idea that someone could start aging a year of their life with each passing day is a fun concept, and Brian Rowe executed it well enough. An entertaining read all around, not without its moments of pure laugh-out-loud hilarity.

In Happy Birthday To Me, seventeen-year-old Cameron is the popular guy everyone wants to be or be with. He and his friends, exhilerated after a great basketball game, visit their favourite cafe/restaurant, where Cameron has a running joke: wherein everyone pretends it's his birthday and they receive birthday cake. It's just a harmless prank. Until it actually happens -- Cameron begins to age at a rapid rate, and no doctor can diagnose this hideous nightmare.

He's got the state championship basketball game, graduation and the prom! Unsatisfied with the prospect of living out the rest of his days as a research project at some lab, he takes it upon himself to finish high school, no matter what. Even if he becomes an 80 year old man on the outside and can barely walk.

I liked the outline of the book - every chapter denounces a new age that Cameron has stepped into. They really helped keep structure; it was also great to find out that something new had changed with him as he aged. That was without a doubt one of my favourite aspects of this book - imagining, for instance, a 50 year old man, creaking joints and all, playing on the high school basketball team.

Cameron himself, is, well, a pretty boy. Which equates to mean that I did not like him. Ha! He's cocky and selfish and stubborn and ignorant to everything that does not revolve around him. Tell me how that's supposed to be attractive, in any world? As he does age, we see some character progression, which was a bit cliche, but I did end up liking him more by the end of it all. He grows as a person, and sees the truth to his once-perfect life, which comes to light when he starts to age and is no longer the golden boy everyone loved.


Even worse than Cameron himself, is Charisma. His girlfriend. But then, all things considered, they're a match made in heaven then. Since the popular crowd are obviously so shallow, she ends up sneaking off with Cameron's best friend, who just doesn't get it. Everyone at the school annoyed me, and it just magnified everything I don't miss about high school (not that my grade had anyone NEARLY so shallow). The one character who had the potential to at least stay on my good side, was Liesl.

Liesl is harmless enough, and she ends up coming off okay with me. I didn't like her either, granted, but I didn't despise her and that's something. She remains such a mystery for the majority of the book, and maybe that's why I didn't dislike her. What did irk me is what she did, which I won't spoil here. Let's just say she does something really immature, which felt so out of character for her, if I ever knew her at all. Overall I thought she was a sweet character, whose emotions were sincere, true intentions.

The real standout for me is the writing. It's nowhere near polished. But. It's in the humor of it all. I enjoyed myself so much, despite the fact that I couldn't stand most of the characters. I was somehow able to dismiss that, because they did not matter to me. In the end it's about Cameron and his journey of self-discovery, and him finding out that his perfect life wasn't all that perfect.

Happy Birthday To Me happily sits with other good, fun paranormal YA novels on the market - if you're not too picky with characters, or cliche school cliques, you'll find much to like in the humorous antics, as you follow Cameron's fall from grace, day by day. Recommended for 15+ boys and fans of basketball . . . and birthdays.

Buy:

* cheapest Australian e-store price

AUSTRALIAN RESIDENTS

Fishpond * | Readings | Dymocks | Angus & Robertson | Borders | The Nile

INTERNATIONAL READERS

Amazon | The Book Depository

All links from Booko, because I'm too lazy to search each individual store anymore.

I have received this review copy in return for an honest review.

Challenge: ---

~Giveaway~

Sorry guys. Aussie only!

1x winner to receive: Paranormal pack

• Happy Birthday To Me by Brian Rowe
• 1 other paranormal YA book on my "giveaway" list (I'll email you the options)
• Assorted paranormal YA swag, including Clockwork Angel notebook
• Signed by Cassandra Clare, Clockwork Angel mini-poster

So what do you have to do to be in the draw?

Just comment and answer the question: 

WHY is Cameron aging a year with every passing day? 

Be as crazy as you want to be

You HAVE to include your email with your comment, or else your entry will not count.

Following is not required.
If you do follow, let me know under what GFC name you follow my blog for an extra entry.

Giveaway ends 31/12. Spread the word, if you want to! I won't mind. ;)

[Giveaway] Inside Out & Outside In by Maria V. Snyder + swag!!

Guess what? It's a giveaway!

Thanks to the lovely, generous people at Harlequin Teen, ONE lucky reader will be receiving:

- Brand new copies of Inside Out AND Outside In, the sequel!

- A poster signed by Maria V. Snyder! (pictured below)

- Assorted swag (bookmarks and the like)

I tried to keep it vertical, but it just wouldn't listen to me...

Also, "This month, Harlequin and SpineOut are giving you the chance to interview Maria V. Snyder, and have your article published.
Plus win an iPad2!" {click here to enter!}

But back to my giveaway...

Synopsis:
Keep Your Head Down.
Don't Get Noticed.
Or Else.

I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? The only neck at risk is my own…until I accidentally start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution.

Rules

- Australia only (provided by Harlequin Teen)

- Ends 31/07
- Extra entries when you "like" the Harlequin Teen Facebook page.

ENTER BY FILLING IN THE FORM

Good luck! :D

Publisher Giveaways! (Australia only)

 

I remember really enjoying Winter Flings last year, and actually winning a book! The fun thing about this giveaway month is that you don't know if you win, until it arrives on your doorstep!

This is for Aussies only, and is provided by Hachette Australia.

Hachette publishes some great titles, so I'm excited to see what'll be up for grabs. Remember fellow Aussies, to enter every day you want to win the book that's on offer.

We know that the first book, on offer TOMORROW (01/07), is Heist Society.

Check with the Date A Book Facebook page for more details as they come, and good luck! ♥

LINK

Over at BTL, an Alaska prize pack is being given away!

 Includes the book, a poster, and a cute brooch!

To enter email with your details and tell them in 25 words or less why you would like to read Alaska.

For more details, click HERE.

WIN A BOOK PACK!

"Tell us in 25 words or less which jacket from our June teen newsletter you prefer and why."


The contest ends at midnight, so hurry up!

LINK

Also, every week on Friday, is a giveaway on their FACEBOOK page.