Stacking The Shelves: January Edition

Hello my favorite book nerds!  

Stacking The Shelves is a weekly meme put on by Tynga's Reviews.  It's a chance to shine some book lovin' on new additions to our bookshelves.  I don't always get new books every week so instead of posting randomly I've decided I will just post a monthly STS, aiming for the last Saturday of each month.  If you follow me on Instagram though, you will actually see new books as I get them since I post pictures shamelessly.

STS: January Edition

Review: Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer L. Armentrout

STONE COLD TOUCH

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout

Publication Date: 10/21/2014

Audience: Young Adult, New Adult

Genre: Paranormal, Romance

Friday Flicks

Goodreads Archive Review: Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

I knew going into this that I would probably love it, I mean Colleen Hoover IS AMAZING. At least, the two books I had read by her prior to this were amazing. What Ugly Love cemented for me was the fact that Colleen Hoover belongs on my insta-buy list. The lady can do no wrong. Ugly Love is beautifully tragic. The secret that Miles has locked down deep inside broke my heart into a million pieces it was revealed. I'm not even kidding. I started hyperventilating because it was way too easy to imaUGLY LOVE Author: Colleen Hoover Publication Date: 08/05/2014 Audience: New Adult Genre: Contemporary Romance

Review: Entwined by Heather Dixon

ENTWINED Author: Heather Dixon Publication Date: 03/29/2011 Audience: Young Adult Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Fairy Tales, Retellings  

Goodreads Archive Review: Split Second by Kasie West

SPLIT SECOND

PIVOT POINT #2

Author: Kasie West

Publication Date: 02/11/2014

Audience: Young Adult

Genre: Science Fiction, Paranormal

Friday Flicks

Friday Flicks is a new weekly post I'm going to be trying out.
Every week I will choose a new release movie, watch it, then share what I thought about it with you guys!
THIS WEEK'S FRIDAY FLICK:  

Goodreads Archive Review: White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout

WHITE HOT KISS

THE DARK ELEMENTS #1

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout

Publication Date: 02/25/2014

Audience: Young Adult

Genre: Paranormal, Romance

Goodreads Archive Review: Dont Look Back by Jennifer L. Armentrout

DON'T LOOK BACK

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout

Publication Date: 04/15/2014

Audience: Young Adult

Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Romance

Goodreads Archive Review: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

VAMPIRE ACADEMY

VAMPIRE ACADEMY #1

Author: Richelle Mead

Publication Date: 08/16/2007

Audience: Young Adult

Genre: Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance

 

St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger. . . .

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever.

 

Picture and Summary from Goodreads

 

 

REVIEW

 

I'm very 'Meh' about this one. I don't really hate it but I don't really feel the pull to read the next book. I don't know if it is because I didn't read it when it first came out so by this point vampires are way over done or if I never would have liked it.

 

The writing. Average.

The characters. Average.

The romance. Lacking.

In a word this book was boring.

 

Sorry to all the VA fans out there but I just wasn't feeling it. I'll probably just wait and *gasp* watch the movies. Lame.

 



Friday Flicks

Friday Flicks is a new weekly post I'm going to be trying out.
Every week I will choose a new release movie, watch it, then share what I thought about it with you guys!
THIS WEEK'S FRIDAY FLICK:  

Gone Girl

In Carthage, Mo., former New York-based writer Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) and his glamorous wife Amy (Rosamund Pike) present a portrait of a blissful marriage to the public. However, when Amy goes missing on the couple's fifth wedding anniversary, Nick becomes the prime suspect in her disappearance. The resulting police pressure and media frenzy cause the Dunnes' image of a happy union to crumble, leading to tantalizing questions about who Nick and Amy truly are.

Official Movie Trailer

Alright, so anyone who is anyone knows this movie is based on the bestselling novel Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.

I have not read the book.

I tried to read it .... for about three chapters. 

But I decided we weren't going to get along so I broke up with it.

That being said I was still really looking forward to watching the movie. But my experience with it has left me wishing I hadn't wasted my time.  There are long movies and then there are looong movies.  Gone Girl falls in the latter category.  As the movie started out I was pretty into it, then I started hating Nick, then I thought Amy was an evil mastermind and became her cheerleader. Up to the last quarter of the movie I thought it was a brilliant psychological thriller, but then it took a turn for the worst.  At this point the movie should have just ended but what followed resulted in me being disappointed in the whole thing.  I literally spent the last of the movie begging for it to end, it seemed so dragged out to me. I breathed a sigh of relief and happily reached for the remote when the end credits started rolling.

My movie rating: C+

I would love to hear about movies that you have watched and what you thought about them, I'm always on the lookout for good ones (or warnings about bad ones)!

   

Goodreads Archive Review: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

WE WERE LIARS

Author: E. Lockhart

Publication Date: 05/13/2014

Audience: Young Adult

Genre: Contemporary, Mystery

 

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

 

Picture and Summary From Goodreads

 

 REVIEW 

 

This book was one heck of a ride.  There isn't a lot I can say about it without giving away spoilers so I'm going to stick to the basics.

 

The logistics:

The writing was crazy good, almost lyrical.  I actually had a little bit of a hard time getting into the rhythm of it but I'm glad I didn't let that deter me because before long I found myself captivated. 

 

We Were Liars is told from the POV of 18yo Cadence who has grown up in the lap of luxury where things aren't as shiny and happy as they appear.  For most of the story Cadence is trying to piece together what happened the summer she turned 15.  All she knows is that it was bad enough to cause her to suffer from amnesia.  There were a few times that I thought I was on to something only to turn the page and be left completely stumped again. I had no problems staying focused on the story but at the same time I couldn't wait to get to the end, just so I would know what happened.

 

It was a small book compared to some of the monsters on my shelf but I found that it took a little bit longer for me to get through.  I chalk this up to the fact that I found myself stopping and thinking about the story as I was reading it.  Not that I don't think about stories as I read them normally but there were parts of this book that required me to put more thought into it.

 

 

Bottom Line:

You really need to go into this book knowing nothing about it.  Give it a chance when you first start it, don't be scared off by the different (beautiful) writing.  And just enjoy it.

 

 



Goodreads Archive Review: Open Road Summer by Emery Lord

OPEN ROAD SUMMER Author: Emery Lord Publication Date: 04/15/2014 Audience: Young Adult Genre: Contemporary, Romance

 

After breaking up with her bad-news boyfriend, Reagan O’Neill is ready to leave her rebellious ways behind. . . and her best friend, country superstar Lilah Montgomery, is nursing a broken heart of her own. Fortunately, Lilah’s 24-city tour is about to kick off, offering a perfect opportunity for a girls-only summer of break-up ballads and healing hearts. But when Matt Finch joins the tour as its opening act, his boy-next-door charm proves difficult for Reagan to resist, despite her vow to live a drama-free existence. This summer, Reagan and Lilah will navigate the ups and downs of fame and friendship as they come to see that giving your heart to the right person is always a risk worth taking. A fresh new voice in contemporary romance, Emery Lord’s gorgeous writing hits all the right notes.

 

Picture and Summary from Goodreads

 

REVIEW

 

Loved this one!!  I seriously need my BFF to become a country superstar...or infiltrate T. Swift's circle of peeps!

 

The Logistics:

Open Road Summer is told from the POV of Reagan O'Neill.  Reagan's BFF just happens to be country singer Lilah Montgomery, AKA Dee to her friends.  Reagan tags along on Dee's concert tour which is lucky for us readers because we get to live vicariously through Reagan as she becomes fast friends with hunky Matt Finch and has a grand time being Dee's VIP.

 

I absolutely adored Dee and Reagan's friendship.  It came across as so real and genuine and deep.  They had history and I could feel it.  I can't help but think how awkward I would feel to tag along with a rich and famous friend, feeling like I'm living off of their fame, but I could tell that Dee made sure Reagan felt comfortable, that she knew she was wanted and not a burden.

 

And Hello Matt Finch!  With his own battle wounds and swoontastic voice it's no wonder Reagan couldn't keep herself from falling for him.  Their relationship is not always easy but it wouldn't feel real if it was.

 

Bottom Line:

With easy to love characters and a fun setting (who doesn't think a tour bus would be fun?!) Open Road Summer is a perfect summer read.  The friendship and romance will have you smiling, laughing out loud, and sighing like an idiot.  I highly suggest reading it in the warm shade on a hammock with an ice cold sweet tea in your hand.

 

 



 

Something Bloggy This Way Comes

JUNE? What have I been doing with my life since JUNE?!    Reading, always reading.  But being lazy about it!   Well, no more!   Buckle down the hatches book people because there is change in the air, stick around if you dare...