The Sunday Post

The Sunday Post 

Hosted by:

Kimba the "Caffeinated Book Reviewer"

The Sunday post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer~ It's a chance to share new ~ A post to recap the past week on your blog, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

First week back to school still working on getting into a routine. I know with the holiday this weekend and my hubby getting ready for his upcoming deployment it won't be a routine week. I figure I have two week till he's gone than I can get the kids into a consistent routine.
I'm working on a goal sheet for while the hubby is deployed it's a whole bunch of fun stuff.

What happened last week: 
Shaken Not Stirred by Alyssa Rose Ivy (Review)
Skulk by Rosie Best (Review)
With the hubby home is what relatively quiet. 

My Book Haul this last week
Some eBooks and a lot of kindle freebies.

Shaken Not Stirred by Alyssa Rose Ivy (Goodreads)

On the Rocks by Alyssa Rose Ivy (Goodreads)

London Falling by T.A. Foster (Goodreads)

Full Steam Ahead by Valerie Chase (Goodreads)

Boomerang by Noelle August (Goodreads)

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey (Goodreads)

Blood Red Road by Moira Young (Goodreads)

After the End by Amy Plum (Goodreads)

Upcoming this week
A few reviews with summer I had to kick it back but I'm going to get back into the swing of things.
I have reviews for Omens by Kelley Armstrong & Promise of Shadows by Justina Ireland.
I also have to clear a few of my review books.

Around the blogosphere 
I haven't gotten to spend as much time around the blogosphere this week with the hubby home but I hope to have some awesome stuff to share next week.
Win a kindle Fire @ I Am A Reader Last day!

I hope all of you have a amazing week!!!!!

Book Review: Shaken Not Stirred

Title - Shaken Not Stirred

Author - Alyssa Rose Ivy

Series - Mixology #1

Genre - New Adult

Published - January 7th 2014

Format - Kindle 

(Goodreads)(Amazon)

Synopsis

*New Adult Romance mixed with humor and garnished with a twist* 

Finding the perfect guy is like mixing the perfect drink. It's all about the taste and presentation.

Faced with a pile of med school rejection letters and no plan B, I took a job tending bar in a beach town while living with two male roommates. All of that would have been fine if I'd had a clue what to do with my life or if my love life wasn't just as pathetic as my career path. But in the end I figured one of those things out—and I also discovered his perfect drink.

Review

Maddy may not have the most glamours job as a doctor but she does enjoy her job working as a bartender. Maybe one day she will get into med school but for now she’s enjoying the summer living at the beach with her two friends. Her parents want her to get focus on getting into a program that will help her get into med school but after so many rejection letters she just needs to find herself. Maddy prides herself on being able to figure out everyone’s drink but she can’t seem to figure out Lyle’s drink because he’s hardly said more than a few words to her and she has a little crush on him.

All summer long Colin has been asking her out but she’s not looking for a relationship so she keeps turning him down. Deciding that she will stay a little longer than the summer she decides to give him a shot only to be stuck waiting when he doesn’t show up till later. After two dates Maddy doesn’t hear from Colin and assumes he’s not interested so she decides to take her roommate up on a blind date which turns out terrible her next date happens to turn into a very awkward swingers date. When Colin shows back up busy from working she decides to give him another shot, quickly falling head over heels for him as he her but things aren’t always perfect his job keeps getting in the way and he’s keeping something from her. When Maddy learns the truth will she be able to accept it? What about him leaving for Paris for the next three months for work?

Maddy is my favorite type of New Adult character she’s the nice girl with a good heart who just needs to the right guy. I really liked her roommates as well as Colin’s sister and see a lot of potential for them in future book…hint hint. I loved Colin for Maddy he’s very work driven and she’s the most important thing in his life even if he is a little on the workaholic side. I didn’t care for Lyle he waste of time in my opinion.

I’m a huge fan of Alyssa Rose Ivy books so of course I had to jump at the chance to read shaken Not Stirred. I picked up the book and didn’t stop reading till I finished reading from 1% to 100% in just a few hours. I loved the characters of the book they are easy to connect with and I can’t help wishing I had Maddy as a friend she’s just a sweetheart and I loved her. Shaken Not Stirred is a fast paced New Adult romance with humor mixed in to create an enchanting story. While the story does have a few steamy scenes they don’t overwhelm the novel which I like. We don’t have to worry about any potential love triangles which are another plus. It’s your looking for a quick romance novel that you can really sink your teeth that will make you laugh I highly suggest checking out the series. I already have the next book on my kindle. I loved the cover and the book one of my favorites by one of my favorite authors. 

5 out of 5 stars 

Stacking The Shelves

Stacking The Shelves

Stacking The Shelves August 30th 2014

Stacking the Shelves is a meme by Tyngas Reviews that let's bloggers share their new books and swag, whether they are physical or virtual. I'll include books I've been sent, emailed, purchased, won and for review.

So far doing well only picked up 8 this week plus a bunch of kindle freebies.

Reviews
None this week being good.

Purchased
Physical books

None this week. 

eBooks

Shaken Not Stirred by Alyssa Rose Ivy (Goodreads)

On the Rocks by Alyssa Rose Ivy (Goodreads)

London Falling by T.A. Foster (Goodreads)

Full Steam Ahead by Valerie Chase (Goodreads)

Boomerang by Noelle August (Goodreads)

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey (Goodreads)

Blood Red Road by Moira Young (Goodreads)

After the End by Amy Plum (Goodreads)

What did you get this week?

My Dusty Bookshelf

My Dusty Bookshelf

I've got an addiction for adding books to my bookshelf but never getting around to them. I'm sure I'm not the only one either. It's just so easy with all the new books to forget about the older ones. I'd like to start reading some of the books I've had for years and just haven't read. I thought this would be a good way to share and rekindle some interest in my dusty books. Plus I love giving books a little extra spotlight when I can. 

This week's book I picked up last year. I forgot I had it and attempted to buy another kindle copy. Yup I'm a dork. 

Chime by Franny Billingsley
(Goodreads)

Synopsis
Before Briony's stepmother died, she made sure Briony blamed herself for all the family's hardships. Now Briony has worn her guilt for so long it's become a second skin. She often escapes to the swamp, where she tells stories to the Old Ones, the spirits who haunt the marshes. But only witches can see the Old Ones, and in her village, witches are sentenced to death. Briony lives in fear her secret will be found out, even as she believes she deserves the worst kind of punishment.
Then Eldric comes along with his golden lion eyes and mane of tawny hair. He's as natural as the sun, and treats her as if she's extraordinary. And everything starts to change. As many secrets as Briony has been holding, there are secrets even she doesn't know.

What's on your dusty bookshelf? Do you have books that have been there for years? I do. I can't wait to see what you have to share this week. Be sure to leave a comment with a link so I can check yours out. Happy Reading!!!

Month9Books Friday Reveal: The Artisans

Welcome to the Cover Reveal for

The Artisans by Julie Reece

presented by Month9Books!

Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!

They say death can be beautiful. But after the death of her mother, seventeen-year-old RAVEN WEATHERSBY gives up her dream of becoming a fashion designer, barely surviving life in the South Carolina lowlands.

To make ends meet, Raven works after school as a seamstress creating stunning works of fashion that often rival the great names of the day.

Instead of making things easier on the high school senior, her stepdad's drinking leads to a run in with the highly reclusive heir to the Maddox family fortune, Gideon Maddox.

But Raven's stepdad's drying out and in no condition to attend the meeting with Maddox. So Raven volunteers to take his place and offers to repay the debt in order to keep the only father she's ever known out of jail, or worse.

Gideon Maddox agrees, outlining an outrageous demand: Raven must live in his home for a year while she designs for Maddox Industries' clothing line, signing over her creative rights.

Her handsome young captor is arrogant and infuriating to the nth degree, and Raven can't imagine working for him, let alone sharing the same space for more than five minutes.

But nothing is ever as it seems. Is Gideon Maddox the monster the world believes him to be? And can he stand to let the young seamstress see him as he really is?

The Artisans is a delectably rich, layered and dark YA Southern Gothic inspired by Jeanne Marie Leprince de Beaumont's classic Beauty and the Beast.

"The Artisans has all the elements I love - spooky intrigue, strong friendships, and a romantic tension to be savored." ~ Wendy Higgins, New York Times bestselling author of the Sweet Evil trilogy.

Title: The Artisans
Publication date: May 2015
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.
Author: Julie Reece

Born in Ohio, I lived next to my grandfather’s horse farm until the fourth grade. Summers were about riding, fishing and make-believe, while winter brought sledding and ice-skating on frozen ponds. Most of life was magical, but not all.

I struggled with multiple learning disabilities, did not excel in school. I spent much of my time looking out windows and daydreaming. In the fourth grade (with the help of one very nice teacher) I fought dyslexia for my right to read, like a prince fights a dragon in order to free the princess locked in a tower, and I won.

Afterwards, I read like a fiend. I invented stories where I could be the princess… or a gifted heroine from another world who kicked bad guy butt to win the heart of a charismatic hero. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that? Later, I moved to Florida where I continued to fantasize about superpowers and monsters, fabricating stories (my mother called it lying) and sharing them with my friends.

Then I thought I’d write one down…

Hooked, I’ve been writing ever since. I write historical, contemporary, urban fantasy, adventure, and young adult romances. I love strong heroines, sweeping tales of mystery and epic adventure… which must include a really hot guy. My writing is proof you can work hard to overcome any obstacle. Don’t give up. I say, if you write, write on!

Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!

(Winners will receive their book on release day)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review: Skulk

Title - Skulk

Author - Rosie Best 

Series - #1 Skulk

Genre - YA Paranormal

Published - September 19th 2013

Publisher - Strange Chemistry

Format - Kindle 

(Goodreads)(Amazon)

Synopsis

When Meg witnesses the dying moments of a shapeshifting fox and is given a beautiful and powerful stone, her life changes forever. She is plunged into the dark world of the Skulk, a group of shapeshifting foxes.

As she learns about the other groups of shapeshifters that lurk around London – the Rabble, the Horde, the Cluster and the Conspiracy – she becomes aware of a deadly threat against all the shapeshifters. They must put aside all their enmity and hostility and fight together to defeat it.

Review

Meg is a graffiti artist but she’s kept it a secret from even her best friends but a few know her in the online community but she’s not as famous as E3 her role model. At what should be a simple night of tagging her school she encounters a wounded fox who turns out to be a man who ends up dying not before warning her to run from the fog and leaving her a sapphire stone. Suddenly Meg’s life is tossed upside down as she’s throwing into the world of the Skulk fox shape shifters.

As Meg stumbles through the world of the Skulk she’s learns that she’s one of only six fox shifters and that there are five different shifter who each guard a magical stone that used to be part of a weapon. However the stone she has doesn’t belong to the skulk and their stone is missing. As if Meg doesn’t have enough problems with turning furry her parents have been turned into morbid pigeons that are hunting her for a wealthy woman who wants all the stones. Will Meg be able to stop her and save her parents? What about the story behind the stones and the shifters can they work together before it’s too late?

I liked Meg right from the start she’s not your skinny weak heroine and I found her refreshing. She’s willing to risk her life to save her parents even though her home life was anything but great which I think was honorable. I didn’t care for her before the skulk friends but I did like her fellow skulk members well most of them and the rabble are pretty awesome including her fellow tagger Mo.

I’ve had Skulk on my kindle since it first came out with every intention of getting to it but never seemed to get around to it. I found the concept for Skulk interesting the author has taken the shifter aspect and put her own unique spin creating an exciting new story. I loved the idea for how Meg became a shifter, the fact that the shifts aren’t the typical species spiders, foxes, butterflies, raven, and rats. I think the author did a great job of creating characters who are easy to connect with as well as characters to dislike. Skulk is  fast paced novel that is loaded with action, and suspense that kept me on the edge of my seat dying to know what would happen next to Meg. I honestly really enjoyed the whole story it captured my imagination and Meg stole my heart as my new favorite kick ass shifter. It’s a clean story that teens as well as adults will enjoy. I’m looking forward to reading the next installment because I need to know how it’s all going to play out.  

4 out of 5 stars

What's Next?

What's Next? 

Hosted by IcyBooks

Picking out what to read has always been a struggle for me. I've got lots of review books and even more non-review books. 

This week I've been craving a thriller with a supernatural twists. 

My Choice's for what's next:  


Omens by Kelley Armstrong
(Goodreads)

Synopsis
#1 New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong begins her new series with Omens, featuring a compelling new heroine thrust into a decades-old murder case and the dark mysteries surrounding her strange new home. 

Twenty-four-year-old Olivia Taylor Jones has the perfect life. The only daughter of a wealthy, prominent Chicago family, she has an Ivy League education, pursues volunteerism and philanthropy, and is engaged to a handsome young tech firm CEO with political ambitions.

But Olivia’s world is shattered when she learns that she’s adopted. Her real parents? Todd and Pamela Larsen, notorious serial killers serving a life sentence. When the news brings a maelstrom of unwanted publicity to her adopted family and fiancé, Olivia decides to find out the truth about the Larsens.

Olivia ends up in the small town of Cainsville, Illinois, an old and cloistered community that takes a particular interest in both Olivia and her efforts to uncover her birth parents’ past.

Aided by her mother’s former lawyer, Gabriel Walsh, Olivia focuses on the Larsens’ last crime, the one her birth mother swears will prove their innocence. But as she and Gabriel start investigating the case, Olivia finds herself drawing on abilities that have remained hidden since her childhood, gifts that make her both a valuable addition to Cainsville and deeply vulnerable to unknown enemies. Because there are darker secrets behind her new home and powers lurking in the shadows that have their own plans for her.

or

Fiendish by Brenna Yovanoff 
(Goodreads)

Synopsis
 Clementine DeVore spent ten years trapped in a cellar, pinned down by willow roots, silenced and forgotten.

Now she’s out and determined to uncover who put her in that cellar and why. 
 
When Clementine was a child, dangerous and inexplicable things started happening in New South Bend. The townsfolk blamed the fiendish people out in the Willows and burned their homes to the ground. But magic kept Clementine alive, walled up in the cellar for ten years, until a boy named Fisher sets her free. Back in the world, Clementine sets out to discover what happened all those years ago. But the truth gets muddled in her dangerous attraction to Fisher, the politics of New South Bend, and the Hollow, a fickle and terrifying place that seems increasingly temperamental ever since Clementine reemerged.

Which would you choose?

Wishlist Wednesday

Wishlist Wednesday

Wishlist Wednesday is a book blog hop where we will post about one book per week that has been on our wishlist for some time, or just added (it's entirely up to you), that we can't wait to get off the list and onto our wonderful shelves. 

Hosted by Pen to Paper

I love the dark color's for the cover with the blue text. That's what first drew my attention. The synopsis sounds really good. I've added it to my TBR list. 

My choice this week is:

The Chosen
by Kristin Clark
(Goodreads)

Synopsis

Chloe Caledone is a typical high school senior, counting the days until graduation when she can finally escape her boring small town life and experience the world. She has purposefully managed to go through life unnoticed, and has only seen the world through other’s eyes. On her eighteenth birthday, Chloe awakens to a complete surprise, unaware that she has been Chosen and is the Descendant of the most powerful bloodline in history. Chloe will now embark on her true life’s destiny, turning her world upside down with secrets, lies, danger, and an unanticipated love triangle. Meanwhile, she and five other Descendants of the original Chosen fight to destroy a dark and powerful immortal.

What's on your wishlist?

W...W...W... Wednesdays

W...W...W... Wednesdays August 27th 2014

W...W...W... Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. Be sure to link up to her so others can see what your reading.

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions..
1.What are you currently reading? 

2.What did you recently finish reading? 

3.What do you think you'll read next? 

Books    

1.What are you currently reading? Skulk by Rosie Best (Goodreads)

2.What did you recently finish reading? Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally (Review)

3.What do you think you'll read next? Omens by Kelley Armstrong (Goodreads)
What are you reading this week?

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday August 27th 2014

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases we're eagerly anticipating. In my case not so patiently waiting for the new releases, which I lack.

I'm really on a Dystopia kick. I like the cover for this one and the synopsis sounds good. I've not heard about it before which for me is shocking. 

Radiant
by Karina Sumner-Smith
Expected Publication - September 23rd 2014
(Goodreads)

Synopsis 

Xhea has no magic. Born without the power that everyone else takes for granted, Xhea is an outcast—no way to earn a living, buy food, or change the life that fate has dealt her. Yet she has a unique talent: the ability to see ghosts and the tethers that bind them to the living world, which she uses to scratch out a bare existence in the ruins beneath the City’s floating Towers.

When a rich City man comes to her with a young woman’s ghost tethered to his chest, Xhea has no idea that this ghost will change everything. The ghost, Shai, is a Radiant, a rare person who generates so much power that the Towers use it to fuel their magic, heedless of the pain such use causes. Shai’s home Tower is desperate to get the ghost back and force her into a body—any body—so that it can regain its position, while the Tower’s rivals seek the ghost to use her magic for their own ends. Caught between a multitude of enemies and desperate to save Shai, Xhea thinks herself powerless—until a strange magic wakes within her. Magic dark and slow, like rising smoke, like seeping oil. A magic whose very touch brings death.

With two extremely strong female protagonists, Radiant is a story of fighting for what you believe in and finding strength that you never thought you had.

What are you waiting on?

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday August 27th 2014

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

~Grab your current read

~Open to a random page

~Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on the page

~BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! ( make sure that what you share doesn't give away 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!


I really love the cover for Skulk and so far the book is really good. I'm hoping to finish this morning before the kids wake up. 

Currently I'm reading

Skulk by Rosie Best 
(Goodreads)

Teaser 

I scrambled up and ran, blindly, stumbling over my paws. My vision closed in and the buildings seemed to curl up and around me, a tunnel of brick and concrete with a roof of leaves. The shadows of trees clawed the ground as it passed underneath me. My paws thudded a drumbeat on the hard road. My bones jangled together.
I didn’t know if the fog was following me, if it was falling behind or right on my tail. I couldn’t look back.

A burst of light, a banshee screech and a blur of movement right in front of me. Pure instinct threw me to one side, my left flank coming down hard on the pavement, as the metal monster swerved and hurtled past.

What are you reading today?

Top Ten Tuesday!

Top Ten Tuesday!

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke And The Brookish. Who doesn't love lists. They make life easy! And fun!! It's always a never ending topic.

I'm playing around with my own graphic I'll be trying a few out of the next month. I want one unique to me. 

This week's topic:
Top ten books I want to read but don't own yet. 

I have a never ending to buy wishlist on amazon. I decided to pick the ten I would buy if I was going to buy any at the moment. I think the ones I've selected have beautiful covers as well as captivating synopsis.

1. Key to Conflict by Talia Gryphon

2. The Magnoia League by Katie Crouch

3. Reviving Bloom by Michelle Turner
4. Crimson Moon by J.A. Saare

5. First Born by Tricia Zoeller
6. Anomaly by K.C. King
7. Reaper by L.S. Murphy
8. A Touch of Crimson by Sylvia Day
9. Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron
10. Pride to Pack by Aimie Jennison

What's on your top ten list this week?
I'm curious to see what everyone else wants to read.