Wednesday, February 26, 2014

YA Books Out This Week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After a slow week, we've got some awesome books out! You wanna hear about them? We've got: the return of a bestselling author, debut authors, and more!

Better Off Friends

Better Off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18222542-better-off-friends
WHEN HARRY MET SALLY . . . for teens, from romantic comedy star Elizabeth Eulberg.

For Macallan and Levi, it was friends at first sight. Everyone says guys and girls can't be just friends, but these two are. They hang out after school, share tons of inside jokes, their families are super close, and Levi even starts dating one of Macallan's friends. They are platonic and happy that way.

Eventually they realize they're best friends -- which wouldn't be so bad if they didn't keep getting in each other's way. Guys won't ask Macallan out because they think she's with Levi, and Levi spends too much time joking around with Macallan, and maybe not enough time with his date. They can't help but wonder . . . are they more than friends or are they better off without making it even more complicated?

From romantic comedy superstar Elizabeth Eulberg comes a fresh, fun examination of a question for the ages: Can guys and girls ever really be just friends? Or are they always one fight away from not speaking again -- and one kiss away from true love?


Fire & Flood (Fire & Flood, #1)

Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16069167-fire-flood?ac=1
A modern day thrill ride, where a teen girl and her animal companion must participate in a breathtaking race to save her brother's life—and her own.

Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.

Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.

The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?


The Hit

The Hit by Melvin Burgess
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18222538-the-hit
Live the ultimate high. Pay the ultimate price. The shocking return to YA by the author of SMACK.

A new drug is on the street. Everyone's buzzing about it. Take the hit. Live the most intense week of your life. Then die. It's the ultimate high at the ultimate price. Adam thinks it over. He's poor, and doesn't see that changing. Lizzie, his girlfriend, can't make up her mind about sleeping with him, so he can't get laid. His brother Jess is missing. And Manchester is in chaos, controlled by drug dealers and besieged by a group of homegrown terrorists who call themselves the Zealots. Wouldn't one amazing week be better than this endless, penniless misery? After Adam downs one of the Death pills, he's about to find out.


Threatened

Threatened by Eliot Schrefer
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18222541-threatened?ac=1
Into the jungle. Into the wild. Into harm's way.


When he was a boy, Luc's mother would warn him about the "mock men" living in the trees by their home -- chimpanzees whose cries would fill the night.

Luc is older now, his mother gone. He lives in a house of mistreated orphans, barely getting by. Then a man calling himself Prof comes to town with a mysterious mission. When Luc tries to rob him, the man isn't mad. Instead, he offers Luc a job.

Together, Luc and Prof head into the rough, dangerous jungle in order to study the elusive chimpanzees. There, Luc finally finds a new family -- and must act when that family comes under attack.

As he did in his acclaimed novel Endangered, a finalist for the National Book Award, Eliot Schrefer takes us somewhere fiction rarely goes, introducing us to characters we rarely get to meet. The unforgettable result is the story of a boy fleeing his present, a man fleeing his past, and a trio of chimpanzees who are struggling not to flee at all.

Tremor (Pulse, #2)

Tremor by Patrick Carman
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18050560-tremor?ac=1
WARNING- SEQUEL!
In the year 2051, some people have a second pulse…

Like all who have “the pulse,” Faith Daniels and Dylan Gilmore have telekinetic powers—they can move objects with their minds. But there are five “second pulses” in the world who have an even greater power: Almost nothing can harm them. They are virtually indestructible.

Both Faith and Dylan have the second pulse. But the other side has second pulses, too, and they’ve been training for a war that has been brewing their entire lives. As Dylan executes a plan to infiltrate enemy grounds, he’ll have to face his only weakness, and a family secret that will threaten his very existence.

Together, Faith and Dylan are the only hope this world has left, but they must go their separate ways in order to accomplish their plan. Will their love survive?

With richly developed characters and heart-pounding action scenes, the second book in Patrick Carman’s Pulse trilogy continues the electrifying dystopian story of love and revenge.


Faking Normal

Faking Normal by Courtney C. Stevens
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15726915-faking-normal?ac=1
An edgy, realistic, and utterly captivating novel from an exciting new voice in teen fiction.

Alexi Littrell hasn't told anyone what happened to her over the summer. Ashamed and embarrassed, she hides in her closet and compulsively scratches the back of her neck, trying to make the outside hurt more than the inside does.

When Bodee Lennox, the quiet and awkward boy next door, comes to live with the Littrells, Alexi discovers an unlikely friend in "the Kool-Aid Kid," who has secrets of his own. As they lean on each other for support, Alexi gives him the strength to deal with his past, and Bodee helps her find the courage to finally face the truth.

A searing, poignant book, Faking Normal is the extraordinary debut novel from an exciting new author-Courtney C. Stevens.


Grandmaster

Grandmaster by David Klass
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17934426-grandmaster?ac=1
Freshman Daniel Pratzer gets a chance to prove himself when the chess team invites him and his father to a weekend-long parent-child tournament. Daniel, thinking that his father is a novice, can’t understand why his teammates want so badly for them to participate. Then he finds out the truth: as a teen, his father was one of the most promising young players in America, but the pressures of the game pushed him too far, and he had to give up chess to save his own life and sanity. Now, thirty years later, Mr. Pratzer returns to the game to face down an old competitor and the same dark demons that lurk in the corners of a mind stretched by the demands of the game. Daniel was looking for acceptance—but the secrets he uncovers about his father will force him to make some surprising moves himself, in Grandmaster by David Klass.

Unforgotten (Unremembered, #2)

Unforgotten by Jessica Brody
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9791902-unforgotten?ac=1
WARNING- SEQUEL!
Some memories are better left forgotten... After a daring escape from the scientists at Diotech who created her, Seraphina believes she is finally safe from the horrors of her past. But new threats await Sera and her boyfriend, Zen, at every turn as Zen falls prey to a mysterious illness and Sera’s extraordinary abilities make it more and more difficult to stay hidden. Meanwhile, Diotech has developed a dangerous new weapon designed to apprehend her. A weapon that even Sera will be powerless to stop. Her only hope of saving Zen’s life and defeating the company that made her is a secret buried deep within her mind. A secret that Diotech will kill to protect. And it won’t stay forgotten for long.

Packed with mystery, suspense, and romance, this riveting second installment of Jessica Brody’s Unremembered trilogy delivers more heart-pounding action as loyalties are tested, love becomes a weapon, and no one’s memories are safe.


Tin Star

Tin Star by Cecil Castelucci
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17255996-tin-star?ac=1
On their way to start a new life, Tula and her family travel on the Prairie Rose, a colony ship headed to a planet in the outer reaches of the galaxy. All is going well until the ship makes a stop at a remote space station, the Yertina Feray, and the colonist's leader, Brother Blue, beats Tula within an inch of her life. An alien, Heckleck, saves her and teaches her the ways of life on the space station.

When three humans crash land onto the station, Tula's desire for escape becomes irresistible, and her desire for companionship becomes unavoidable. But just as Tula begins to concoct a plan to get off the space station and kill Brother Blue, everything goes awry, and suddenly romance is the farthest thing from her mind. 


Boy on the Edge

Boy on the Edge by Fridrik Erlings
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18166941-boy-on-the-edge?ac=1
Can a boy on the edge find his way back? From award-winning Icelandic author Fridrik Erlings comes a novel as cruel as it is tender.

Henry has a clubfoot and he is the target of relentless bullying. One day, in a violent fit of anger, Henry lashes out at the only family he has — his mother. Sent to live with other troubled boys at the Home of Lesser Brethren, an isolated farm perched in the craggy lava fields along the unforgiving Icelandic coast, Henry finds a precarious contentment among the cows. But it is the people, including the manic preacher who runs the home, who fuel Henry’s frustration and sometimes rage as he yearns for a life and a home. Author Fridrik Erlings offers a young adult novel that explores cruelty and desperation, tenderness and remorse, but most importantly, kindness and friendship.


The Well's End

The Well's End by Seth Fishman
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16101138-the-well-s-end?ac=1
A deadly virus and an impossible discovery unite in one enthralling can’t-miss read...

Sixteen-year-old Mia Kish has always been afraid of the dark. After all, she’s baby Mia, the one who fell down a well. That was years ago, though the darkness still haunts her. But when her classmates and teachers at ritzy Westbrook Academy start dying of old age from a bizarre and frightening virus that ages its victims years in a matter of hours, Mia becomes haunted by a lot more than the dark. Their deaths are gruesome and Mia worries she and her friends may be next. In order to survive, Mia and her small crew must break quarantine and outrun armed soldiers in hazmat suits who shoot first and ask questions later.

And there’s only one place to go—the Cave, aka Fenton Electronics. Mia knows it’s somehow connected and hopes her dad, Director of Fenton Electronics, who has always been strangely secretive about his work, has the answers she needs, and more importantly a cure to save everyone before the whole town succumbs to the mysterious virus. Unfortunately, it’s not answers Mia discovers, but something far more treacherous and impossible than even the virus itself.

A high-stakes, fast-paced adventure with imagination and heart.


Tsarina

Tsarina by J. Nelle Patrick
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17382389-tsarina?ac=1
Natalya knows a secret.
A magical Faberge egg glows within the walls of Russia's Winter Palace.
It holds a power rooted in the land and stolen from the mystics.
A power that promises a life of love for her and Alexei Romanov.
Power, that, in the right hands, can save her way of life.
But it's not in the right hands.
    


The Secret Diamond Sisters (The Secret Diamond Sisters, #1)

The Secret Diamond Sisters by Michelle Madow
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17160608-the-secret-diamond-sisters?ac=1
Savannah. Courtney. Peyton.

The three sisters grew up not knowing their father and not quite catching a break. But it looks like their luck is about to change when they find out the secret identity of their long-lost dad—a billionaire Las Vegas hotel owner who wants them to come live in a gorgeous penthouse hotel suite. Suddenly the Strip's most exclusive clubs are all-access, and with an unlimited credit card each, it should be easier than ever to fit right in. But in a town full of secrets and illusion, fitting in is nothing compared to finding out the truth about their past.


Season of Wonder (The Remnants #1)

Remnants: Season of Wonder by Lisa Tawn Bergren
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13645229-season-of-wonder?ac=1
In the first book of the new futuristic dystopian series from author Lisa T. Bergren, the chosen remnants must work to redirect humanity’s course.

The year is 2095. Gifted teens known as Remnants have been chosen and trained to act as humanity’s last hope to rectify the horrors that are now part of everyday life.

The Community has trained these teens as warriors and assigned them Knights of the Last Order as protectors. Together, they are a force that will be difficult to bring down.

But the Sons of Sheol, of course, are determined to do just that. As the Remnants begin their mission to course-correct humanity by saving and protecting key individuals, their enemies move to stop them, placing the entire world in peril.

Bestselling author Lisa T. Bergren presents the first book in her new YA futuristic dystopian series—The Remnants Novels—fitting in with the current dystopian trend in the marketplace.


The Other Way Around

The Other Way Around by Sashi Kaufman
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18331971-the-other-way-around?ac=1
Andrew West goes to an all-girls school and he still can’t get a date. If that’s not bad enough, his Mom is the headmaster. Everyone seems to have the wrong idea about Andrew. His teachers think he’s a good student who doesn’t apply himself -he really is trying. The kids at his old school thought he was a goth. His cousin Barry thinks he’s gay.

When his Thanksgiving break goes tragically awry he decides to run away. He catches a ride with a strange group of older teenagers. The Freegans are street performers and dumpster divers. As Andrew travels the country with his new friends he leaves behind the expectations of others and discovers what he expects of himself.


Mafia Girl

Mafia Girl by Deborah Blumenthal
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18378826-mafia-girl?ac=1
What's in a name? Everything if you have my name." At her exclusive Manhattan high school, seventeen-year-old Gia is the most hated/loved girl in school. Why? Her father doesn't have a boss. He is the boss--the capo di tutti cappi, boss of all bosses. Not that Gia cares. But life gets complicated when she meets a cop she calls "Officer Hottie" and feels a suprising chemistry. Then Vogue magazine wants to feature Gia in a fashion spread about real-life bad girls. On top of this, she's running for class president. Can Gia step out from under her dad's shadow and show everyone there's more to her than "Mafia Girl?

The Story of Owen

The Story of Owen: Dragon Slayer of Trondheim by E.K. Johnston
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16068956-the-story-of-owen?ac=1
Listen! For I sing of Owen Thorskard: valiant of heart, hopeless at algebra, last in a long line of legendary dragon slayers. Though he had few years and was not built for football, he stood between the town of Trondheim and creatures that threatened its survival. There have always been dragons. As far back as history is told, men and women have fought them, loyally defending their villages. Dragon slaying was a proud tradition. But dragons and humans have one thing in common: an insatiable appetite for fossil fuels. From the moment Henry Ford hired his first dragon slayer, no small town was safe. Dragon slayers flocked to cities, leaving more remote areas unprotected. Such was Trondheim's fate until Owen Thorskard arrived. At sixteen, with dragons advancing and his grades plummeting, Owen faced impossible odds armed only with a sword, his legacy, and the classmate who agreed to be his bard. Listen! I am Siobhan McQuaid. I alone know the story of Owen, the story that changes everything. Listen!

Returning to Shore

Returning to Shore by Corinne Demas
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18353970-returning-to-shore?ac=1
Her mother's third marriage is only hours old when all hope for Clare's fifteenth summer fades. Before she knows it, Clare is whisked away to some ancient cottage on a tiny marsh island on Cape Cod to spend the summer with her father - a man she hasn't seen since she was three. Clare's biological father barely talks, and when he does, he obsesses about endangered turtles. The first teenager Clare meets on the Cape confirms that her father is known as the town crazy person. But there's something undeniably magical about the marsh and the islanda connection to Clares past that runs deeper than memory. Even her father's beloved turtles hold unexpected surprises. As Clare's father begins to reveal more about himself and his own struggle, Clare's summer becomes less of an exile and more of a return home.

Gilded (Gilded, #1)

Gilded by Christina Farley
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16173250-gilded?ac=1
Sixteen-year-old Jae Hwa Lee is a Korean-American girl with a black belt, a deadly proclivity with steel-tipped arrows, and a chip on her shoulder the size of Korea itself. When her widowed dad uproots her to Seoul from her home in L.A., Jae thinks her biggest challenges will be fitting in to a new school and dealing with her dismissive Korean grandfather. Then she discovers that a Korean demi-god, Haemosu, has been stealing the soul of the oldest daughter of each generation in her family for centuries. And she's next.

But that’s not Jae’s only problem.

There's also Marc. Irresistible and charming, Marc threatens to break the barriers around Jae's heart. As the two grow closer, Jae must decide if she can trust him. But Marc has a secret of his own—one that could help Jae overturn the curse on her family for good. It turns out that Jae's been wrong about a lot of things: her grandfather is her greatest ally, even the tough girl can fall in love, and Korea might just be the home she's always been looking for.


I Have a Bad Feeling about This

I Have a Bad Feeling About This by Jeff Strand
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17586473-i-have-a-bad-feeling-about-this?ac=1
Wilderness Survival Tip #1
Drinking your own sweat will not save your life. Somebody might have told you that, but they were trying to find out if you'd really do it.

Henry Lambert would rather play video games than spend time in the great outdoors--but that doesn't make him a wuss. Skinny nerd? Fine. But wuss is a little harsh. Sadly, his dad doesn't agree. Which is why Henry is being shipped off to Strongwoods Survival Camp.

Strongwoods isn't exactly as advertised. It looks like the victim of a zombie apocalypse, the "camp director" is a psycho drill sergeant, and Henry's sure he saw a sign written in blood...

Wilderness Survival Tip #2
In case of an avalanche, don't despair. You're doomed, but that's a wicked cool death.

Wilderness Survival Tip #3
If you're relying on this book for actual survival tips, you're dead already.


The Summer I Found You

The Summer I Found You by Jolene Perry
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16094953-the-summer-i-found-you?ac=1
All they have in common is that they're less than perfect. And all they're looking for is the perfect distraction.

Kate's dream boyfriend has just broken up with her and she's still reeling from her diagnosis of type 1 diabetes. Aidan planned on being a lifer in the army and went to Afghanistan straight out of high school. Now he's a disabled young veteran struggling to embrace his new life. When Kate and Aidan find each other neither one wants to get attached. But could they be right for each other after all?


Any of these you want to read? Are there any I don't know about? Tell me!!!


Sunday, February 23, 2014

In My Mailbox Take 18!!!!!!!!!!


Hello my lovelies! How has your week been? For me, the snow has finally started to melt and I can actually see the grass! It's a miracle! But I didn't write this post to talk about the weather. How boring would that be? No, I've written this post to tell you all the fabulous books I got this week. Maybe if you see what books I got, it'll make you want to read a few of them. Maybe you'll recommend some great books. Who knows? Let's find out right now!

Pulse (Pulse, #1)

Pulse by Patrick Carman
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14760527-pulse?ac=1

Insanity

Insanity by Susan Vaught
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17978095-insanity?ac=1

The Lure

The Lure by Lynne Ewing
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18052928-the-lure?ac=1

Split Second (Pivot Point, #2)

Split Second by Kasie West
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15792316-split-second?ac=1

Heartbeat Heartbeat Heartbeat

Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17258743-heartbeat

Feral Curse (Feral, #2)

Feral Curse by Cynthia Leitich Smith
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18240235-feral-curse?ac=1

The Tinker King (The Unnaturalists, #2)

The Tinker King by Tiffany Trent
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17900119-the-tinker-king?ac=1

Before My Eyes

Before My Eyes by Caroline Bock
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17934644-before-my-eyes?ac=1

Pieces of Me

Pieces of Me by Amber Kizer
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17842039-pieces-of-me?ac=1

All That Glows

All That Glows by Ryan Graudin
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12711662-all-that-glows?ac=1

Teen Spirit

Teen Spirit by Francesca Lia Block
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18054018-teen-spirit?ac=1

Every Day Every Day Cada dĂ­a
Elke dag Letztendlich sind wir dem Universum egal (Every Day, #1) A comme Aujourd'hui

Every Day by David Levithan
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13262783-every-day

Otherkin (Otherkin, #1)

Otherkin by Nina Berry
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12879875-otherkin

Tiger Lily

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12924326-tiger-lily

So, what did you all get in your mailbox?

Friday, February 21, 2014

Review on I Kill the Mockingbird

Who has ever gotten a dreaded summer reading list in school? Books that you have to read over the summer. Most students just read the SparkNotes and never read the books. Some watch the movie versions. Only a few students actually read the books and fewer actually enjoy the books. I read To Kill a Mockingbird when I was a freshman and I didn't particularly enjoy it. Maybe it was because I had to read it for school or maybe it was because it's a classic book. But now, I want to read it again. Now it sounds interesting and awesome. I mean, who enjoys a book when you're forced to read it?
Well, in I Kill the Mockingbird by Paul Acampora, three students try to spread the word of how awesome To Kill a Mockingbird is by starting a revolution.

I Kill the Mockingbird

Format: Hardcover/ e-book
Pub. Date: May 20th, 2014
Summary:
When Lucy, Elena, and Michael receive their summer reading list, they are excited to see To Kill A Mockingbird included. But not everyone in their class shares the same enthusiasm. So they hatch a plot to get the entire town talking about the well-known Harper Lee classic. They plan controversial ways to get people to read the book, including re-shelving copies of the book in bookstores so that people think they are missing and starting a website committed to “destroying the mockingbird.” Their efforts are successful when all of the hullabaloo starts to direct more people to the book. But soon, their exploits start to spin out of control and they unwittingly start a mini revolution in the name of books.
My rating: 5 out of 5 mockingbirds!
My recommendation: Anyone who likes To Kill a Mockingbird
My review:
My copy was provided by Netgalley.
Lucy is a girl about to start high school who has a mother that just defeated cancer. Her life should be filled with joy, but she stills worries about her mother who she fears will relapse from not taking care of herself properly. Lucy doesn't want to lose the mother she just got.
As well as dealing with family problems, Lucy is starting to have feelings for her best friend Michael who she has been friends with for years. How can you risk a friendship that has been around for years all on some feelings that may or may not disappear?
But the main focus of this book is on the summer reading list Lucy, Michael, and Lucy's friend Elena receive to read over the summer. Their old English teacher, Fat Bob, died awhile ago and it was always his goal to make only To Kill a Mockingbird be on his summer reading list. He thought that when you read this book, it will truly teach you how to read and comprehend fully.
Yet when Fat Bob died, Lucy's new teacher put numerous books on the list and to most of the students, To Kill a Mockingbird is just another book to watch the movie it's based on. Lucy wants to honor Fat Bob by encouraging students to read To Kill a Mockingbird and that is where the I Kill the Mockingbird Revolution began.
To get people to read the books, Lucy and her friends travel all over the state to hide copies of the books and they leave a calling card at each site. They want to create popularity of the book. If the book is missing, more and more people will want to read it. Soon, others are doing their own book terrorism and it all gets out of hand for Lucy. All she wanted was to help Fat Bob's dream, but the Revolution had taken over.
This book was definitely original. As well as dealing with the summer reading list, Lucy has to deal with much more than a regular eighth grader has to deal with. Even when everything was hard for Lucy, she never gave up and she focused on her mission throughout it all.
The book was alive with emotion, from Lucy's determination to her confusion over her feelings. She wants her mother to be safe while her mother wants to live. She might or might not like Michael who might just think of her as a friend.
I can't describe in words how I felt about this book. It was just empowering and amazing. I love how Lucy inspired people to read, inspired people to get out of their comfort zone and try something new. This book was funny and sweet, filled with emotions and jam packed with action.
What I love more than reading is books about people who love reading. I love how the author made characters who care so much about books that they don't care about the trouble they'll be in. They just want to spread their love over books to people all over the world. They want to share the worlds create, the joy that books bring to everyone who dares to read.

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Review on The See-Through Leopard

How many of you have a pet? It could be a cat, a dog, even a little goldfish. Personally, my favorite animal is a cat and that's part of the reason I picked up a specific book to read. The book I read talked about cats. But they weren't your regular cats. No, they were the big cats. The lions. The leopards. The cats that can injure you severly all while being extremely cute. This book helps raise awareness on poaching and endangered species so I hope you read this book!
I read... The See-Through Leopard by Sibel Hodge

The See-Through Leopard

Format: Paperback/ e-book
Pub. Date: August 29th, 2013
Summary:
From bestselling and award winning author, Sibel Hodge, comes a inspirational coming of age novel...

Most sixteen-year-old girls are obsessed with their looks, but Jazz Hooper's obsessed for a different reason. After a car accident that kills her mum, Jazz is left with severe facial scars and retreats into a dark depression.

Fearing what will happen if Jazz doesn't recover, her dad makes a drastic decision to move them from England to a game reserve in Kenya for a new start. And when Jazz finds an orphaned leopard cub, it sets off a chain of events that lead her on a two year journey of discovery, healing, and love.

“A percentage of the royalties from the sale of this book will be contributed to Panthera, a leading international conservation organization dedicated to protecting and preserving the world’s big cats, plus other wildlife conservation groups.” -- Sibel Hodge, Author.

My rating: 5 out of 5 leopards!
My recommendation: Anyone who loves animals or the adventure of growing up.
My review:
My copy was provided to me by Netgalley.
Jazz was a regular teenage girl who cared only about her looks and guys, but after a terrible car accident that killer her mother, all Jazz cares about is hiding herself. This accident left her with terrible facial scars and she had to suffer through the humiliation of people talking about her openly. She withdrew in herself, regarding herself as a freak, ashamed of herself and her appearance. Her father decided to move to Kenya, hoping the move would help Jazz realize her self-worth.
Yet the move seemed to do the opposite effect by making Jazz withdraw even further. But one fateful day, Jazz found a starving leopard cub whose mother was just killed by poachers. Jazz sees herself in the cub and decides to attempt the two-year struggle of raising a leopard while realizing what she looks like isn't important with the help of her friends and the cub she considers her best friend.
I loved this book. It was so heartfelt and amazing. I felt so bad for Jazz who got picked up unstop for her appearance. She tried to hide from her troubles by concealing her face and avoiding people, but Jazz just needed to find a way to life again, to live a worthwhile life.
This book was all about raising the cub, Asha, while helping Jazz learn to grow. An important message was broadcasted throughout the whole book. This message helped me realize the chaos poaching causes. The author included so much information that really helped me understand the issue and it made me want to help the animals that are captured and murdered, some even alive when parts of their body are removed.
Jazz had to realize how hard it is to be a mother, to love something so much that you had to let it go. While realizing this, Jazz finally accepted her mother's death and began to move on.
I really liked the relationship between Jazz and the cub. They felt a connection between each other and the author was excellent in describing how to re-wild a wild cat and how both Jazz and Asha loved each other very much.
The ending made me cry, especially the speech Jazz made at the end. It was so empowering, so full of emotion that tied in with poaching and with Jazz's own life. It just filled me with emotion and made me cry.
This book was a heartfelt, amazing story that tugs on the heart. Jazz dealt with overcoming her fears, accepting herself, growing up, and coming of age all while trying to help a cub grow up without a mom, just like Jazz had to do. Jazz was so strong and confident. I loved her and this book so much.
If you're an animal lover or someone who wants to know more about the terrible deeds poachers have done and are still doing today, read this book!

Monday, February 17, 2014

YA Books That Come Out This Week

Alas, another week has gone by. Spring is slowly coming our way and soon we're going to be dripping with sweat. I don't know if I'm dreading that or not.
Anyway, not a lot of books come out this week, but it doesn't mean they're bad. Oh no, these are awesome!

Perfect Lies (Mind Games, #2)

Perfect Lies by Kiersten White
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12578370-perfect-lies?ac=1
WARNING- SEQUEL!
Annie and Fia are ready to fight back.

The sisters have been manipulated and controlled by the Keane Foundation for years, trapped in a never ending battle for survival. Now they have found allies who can help them truly escape. After faking her own death, Annie has joined a group that is plotting to destroy the Foundation. And Fia is working with James Keane to bring his father down from the inside.

But Annie's visions of the future can't show her who to trust in the present. And though James is Fia's first love, Fia knows he's hiding something. The sisters can rely only on each other - but that may not be enough to save them.


Maybe One Day

Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18053047-maybe-one-day?ac=1
Critically acclaimed author Melissa Kantor masterfully captures the joy of friendship, the agony of loss, and the unique experience of being a teenager in this poignant new novel about a girl grappling with her best friend's life-threatening illness.

Zoe and her best friend, Olivia, have always had big plans for the future, none of which included Olivia getting sick. Still, Zoe is determined to put on a brave face and be positive for her friend.

Even when she isn't sure what to say.

Even when Olivia misses months of school.

Even when Zoe starts falling for Calvin, Olivia's crush.

The one thing that keeps Zoe moving forward is knowing that Olivia will beat this, and everything will go back to the way it was before. It has to. Because the alternative is too terrifying for her to even imagine.

In this incandescent page-turner, which follows in the tradition of The Fault in Our Stars, Melissa Kantor artfully explores the idea that the worst thing to happen to you might not be something that is actually happening to you. Raw, irreverent, and honest, Zoe's unforgettable voice and story will stay with readers long after the last page is turned.


Bright Before Sunrise

Bright Before Sunrise by Tiffany Schmidt
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13634097-bright-before-sunrise?ac=1
When Jonah is forced to move from Hamilton to Cross Pointe for the second half of his senior year, "miserable" doesn't even begin to cover it. He feels like the doggy-bag from his mother's first marriage and everything else about her new life—with a new husband, new home and a new baby—is an upgrade. The people at Cross Pointe High School are pretentious and privileged—and worst of all is Brighton Waterford, the embodiment of all things superficial and popular. Jonah’s girlfriend, Carly, is his last tie to what feels real... until she breaks up with him.

For Brighton, every day is a gauntlet of demands and expectations. Since her father died, she’s relied on one coping method: smile big and pretend to be fine. It may have kept her family together, but she has no clue how to handle how she's really feeling. Today is the anniversary of his death and cracks are beginning to show. The last thing she needs is the new kid telling her how much he dislikes her for no reason she can understand. She's determined to change his mind, and when they're stuck together for the night, she finally gets her chance.

Jonah hates her at 3p.m., but how will he feel at 3 a.m.?

One night can change how you see the world. One night can change how you see yourself.


Insanity

Insanity by Susan Vaught
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17978095-insanity?ac=1
Never, Kentucky is not your average scenic small town. It is a crossways, a place where the dead and the living can find no peace. Not that Forest, an 18-year-old foster kid who works the graveyard shift at Lincoln Hospital, knew this when she applied for the job. Lincoln is a huge state mental institution, a good place for Forest to make some money to pay for college. But along with hundreds of very unstable patients, it also has underground tunnels, bell towers that ring unexpectedly, and a closet that holds more than just donated clothing....When the dead husband of one of Forest's patients makes an appearance late one night, seemingly accompanied by an agent of the Devil, Forest loses all sense of reality and all sense of time. Terrified, she knows she has a part to play, and when she does so, she finds a heritage that she never expected.

With her deep knowledge of mental illness and mental institutions, Susan Vaught brings readers a fascinating and completely creepy new book intertwining the stories of three young people who find themselves haunted beyond imagining in the depths of Lincoln Hospital.


Only four books that I know of come out this week. Well, at least you can catch up with your reading!

Sunday, February 16, 2014

In My Mailbox Take 17!!!



What'd you get in your mailbox this week?

So, this week included the day of love! How's was everyone's Valentine's Day? I spent mine watching Netflix with my cat. Good times, good times. My parents had more romance than I did. But being forever alone did give me plenty of time to read and receive some books. Wanna know what I got? Here we go!

Grasshopper Jungle

Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18079719-grasshopper-jungle?ac=1

Pretty Girl-13 Pretty Girl Thirteen Berövad Angie, 13 ans, disparue...

Pretty Girl-13 by Liz Coley
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13450398-pretty-girl-13

Fates (Fates, #1)

Fates by Lanie Bross
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17080266-fates?ac=1

Storm

Storm by Donna Jo Napoli
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18051213-storm?ac=1

The Unseemly Education of Anne Merchant (V, #1)

The Unseemly Education of Anne Merchant by Joanna Wiebe
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17675434-the-unseemly-education-of-anne-merchant?ac=1

Starstruck (Starstruck, #1)

Starstruck by Rachel Shukert
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13721335-starstruck?ac=1

Feral Nights (Feral, #1)

Feral Nights by Cynthia Leitich Smith
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15754484-feral-nights

Anything to Have You Anything to Have You Anything To Have You

Anything to Have You by Paige Harbison
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18168638-anything-to-have-you

17 & Gone Seventeen & Gone

17 & Gone by Nova Ren Suma
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13132403-17-gone

The Almost Girl

The Almost Girl by Amalie Howard
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17397481-the-almost-girl?ac=1

Feral Curse (Feral, #2)

Feral Curse by Cynthia Leitich Smith
WARNING- SEQUEL!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18240235-feral-curse?ac=1

The Tyrant's Daughter

The Tyrant's Daughter by J.C. Carleson
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17910573-the-tyrant-s-daughter?ac=1

Three (Article 5, #3)

Three by Kristen Simmons
WARNING- THIRD BOOK!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17559899-three?ac=1

This Saturday was my birthday so I got a load of books from my parents. That's basically all I asked for: books.

Cruel Beauty

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15839984-cruel-beauty?ac=1

The Glass Casket

The Glass Casket by McCormick Templeman
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13600701-the-glass-casket?ac=1

Alienated (Alienated, #1)

Alienated by Melissa Landers
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13574417-alienated?ac=1

The Impossible Knife of Memory

The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18079527-the-impossible-knife-of-memory?ac=1

Uninvited (Uninvited, #1)

Uninvited by Sophie Jordan
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13645645-uninvited?ac=1

The Real Prom Queens of Westfield High

The Real Prom Queens of Westfield High by Laurie Boyle Crompton
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17683782-the-real-prom-queens-of-westfield-high?ac=1

Minders

Minders by Michelle Jaffe
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18079614-minders?bf=2000&from_search=true

No One Else Can Have You

No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18052934-no-one-else-can-have-you?ac=1

I definitely have awesome parents.
So, what'd ya'll get this week?