Introduce Yourselves Please!

Oh, hello there! Do we know each other? No?

Well, I'd like to!

One of my favorite parts about blogging is getting to know the community. Recently, I've been combing through my Google Reader and getting rid of blogs that no longer update on it. I realized that a lot of the bloggers I started out blogging with are no longer in the game. A lot of my "friends" have stopped. I feel like I've met a lot of wonderful people on here and Twitter (Shannon from Stalking The Bookshelves, Lori from Pure Imagination, KM from One Page At A Time YA Reviews, Angela from Reading Angel and many more) but I also feel like there are a lot of new blogs out there that I don't know.

So I'd like to get to know you. Please feel free to add your blog to the list below.

I'm not guaranteeing a follow or even a comment but I will visit your blog. I like getting to know other bloggers and the best way for me to do this is to see what you're all about. So introduce yourselves to me by leaving a link to your blog and maybe saying something in the comments. How about telling me your top five favorite books in the comments? I used to do stuff like this all the time but haven't in a while.

And while you are at it, maybe try to visit a blog on the list yourself? Why not spread some love?

Top Ten Books To Read on a Desert Island from Zoraida Cordova, author of The Vicious Deep

Today, as part of the Teen Book Scene tour, I have the pleasure of having Zoraida Cordova on my blog to talk about her top ten must have books when stranded on a deserted island. Ms. Cordova's novel The Vicious Deep will be out soon and is one I certianly can't wait for! So without further ado, here is Zoraida's guide:

Top Ten Books to Read when Stranded on a Desert Island: If you are going to be stranded, may as well find something to pass the time. Just make sure you plan ahead…

#1 would have to be HOW TO SURVIVE ON A DESERT ISLAND. Because, really, if I don't survive, I won't get to read #2-10.

#2 Beauty Queens by Libba Bray, obvi.

#3 A collection of fairy tales from around the world.

#4 The Harry Potter series, because I'll need a little hope to keep me going.

#5 Montana Sky by Nora Roberts. Don't you roll your eyes at me. Deserted islands get lonely.

#6 Still Life With Woodpecker by Tom Robbins because every word is beauty.

#7 Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown. Partly because I'd like the company of merpeople. Partly because I'd like to read it before I get stranded. But also because I can't say I want to get stranded with my own mermaids ;)

#8 Buffy the Vampire Slayer, season 8 graphic novels. When facing the forces of darkness (strike that), nature, I'd ask myself, What Would Buffy Do?

#9 The Essential Neruda. Pablo Neruda was exiled to an island where he fell in love and wrote poetry. Maybe I'd get the same inspiration.

#10 A blank notebook, to write my own stories.

As I often ask myself "what would Buffy do" and love the Harry Potter series, I think I'm definitely going to use Ms. Cordova's list as a guideline.
 
Make sure to check out The Vicious Deep when it comes out May 1, 2012:

For Tristan Hart, everything changes with one crashing wave. 

He was gone for three days. Sucked out to sea in a tidal wave and spit back ashore at Coney Island with no memory of what happened. 

Now his dreams are haunted by a terrifying silver mermaid with razor-sharp teeth. 

His best friend Layla is convinced something is wrong. But how can he explain he can sense emotion like never before? How can he explain he's heir to a kingdom he never knew existed? That he's suddenly a pawn in a battle as ancient as the gods. 

Something happened to him in those three days. He was claimed by the sea...and now it wants him back.

Thanks to The Teen Book Scene for setting up this tour:

Waiting on Wednesday: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where you can post about upcoming books you're looking forward to. This is a wonderful chance for blogger to show off what's coming out soon that they are excited about! Every week my wishlist balloons thanks to this awesome meme.

The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Two days after Mara walks into a police station in Miami at the close of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, she is committed for psychiatric treatment for what her parents believe is a mental breakdown. But what seems like a hallucination to everyone else is a chilling reality for Mara. Someone from her past has discovered her strange, disturbing secret and that someone wants her to pay. But she’s about to discover that the price is more than she can bear.


Dark and thrilling, suspenseful and passionate, The Evolution of Mara Dyer will have readers breathlessly turning pages to find out what will become of Mara Dyer next.

How can I not choose this book? The first novel rocked my world last year and I have every confidence that this one is going to be just as good. How can it not be with Mara's snarky attitude and the oh-so-sexy Noah? This is very high up on my must-have-or-I'll-pass-out-of-anticipation list.

The Evolution of Mara Dyer is out October 23, 2012 and October can't get here soon enough.

What are you waiting on?



Teaser Tuesday 81 and Top Ten Tuesday 24

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page

Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that pageBe careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others!Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles!

The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting

Nua held a knife, a switchblade with a polished steel blade for her to see. His lips twisted into a menacing snarl as he touched the tip of it to Violet's neck, just below her left ear, and traced a fiery path along her jawline. 

--Pg. 231 of an ARC of "The Last Echo" by Kimberly Derting

Yeah, I know what you guys are thinking. It's super lame that I left you on SUCH a cliffhanger. I mean, Violet's life is on the line at this point. I'm freaking out and I know what happens. But such is the way of this novel! I'm almost through with it and I love it. Hope everyone picks it up and that you all do too!

What's your teaser?

Top Ten Tuesday is a 10's list meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. There is a different question every week and all you have to do is answer their question with your top ten results!

Top Ten Favorite Literary Characters

I don't think I could pick just ten if my life depended on it so I'm not going to think about this one too hard and I'm going to note that I'll probably miss a lot of my favorites too. So in no particular order, here is a representation of some of my favorite characters.

1) Katniss Everdeen of The Hunger Games by Collins

2) Bellatrix LeStrange of Harry Potter by Rowling

3) Tris from Divergent by Roth

4) Noah from The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Hodkin

5) Gemma Doyle from A Great and Terrible Beauty by Bray

6) Violet from The Body Finder by Derting

7) Riley Blackthorne from The Demon Trapper's Daughter by Oliver

8) Adam from Shatter Me by Mafi

9) Aria from Under the Never Sky by Rossi

10) Sam from Incarnate by Meadows

Honorable mentions- Four from Divergent, Hermione Granger from Harry Potter, Peeta from The Hunger Games, President Snow from The Hunger Games, Professor Umbridge from Harry Potter, Professor Snape from Harry Potter, Neville Longbottom from Harry Potter, Mara from The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, Miss Moore from A Great and Terrible Beauty, Vee from Slide and Delaney from Fracture...too name a few.

A Comment on the Recent Plagiarism Scandal

As a book blogger and aspiring author, there are few things I can think of that are worse than someone robbing me of my words. Plagiarism is one of the most dirty words in my mind and it's really hard for me to think of something much scarier.

Then I started reading the reactions to The Story Siren plagiarism scandal that quite literally rocked the blogosphere. I'm not saying that I agree or accept with what she did. Plagiarism is always wrong. I don't know Kristi personally but as a long time follower of her blog, I don't think she was doing this to intentionally be malicious. But she was plagiarizing and that is a problem. We each have to decide whether we can accept that as her audience and move on accordingly. Whether she is able to move on from this incident and learn something is up to her.

But I plan to take something away from this.

I could go on about how awful plagiarism is and how it affects those who are plagiarize and those doing the plagiarizing. But that's something we all know.

What I want to take from this is the reaction to the scandal. I've been following people's reactions on Twitter and reading comments on blog posts and I have to say that I am stunned. As YA readers, we read about the mean girls and the bullies. We each cheer when the mean girl gets what's coming to her and feel the triumph when the main character is able to be the bigger person.

So why are we acting like the mean girls that we love to hate? Why are we saying rude, hateful things about someone who made a mistake?

Not only does this make us look bad as an online community but it makes us look bad as people. I know that at least here, there is flesh and blood behind each in every one of the words I type. I'm human. I screw up daily and screw up royally some times too. And I know that everyone else has too. That's part of life. Sure, The Story Siren screwed up big time and very publicly but that doesn't give anyone the right to bully her about it.

We can discuss it, we can learn from it and we can grow from it but the snarky comments have to stop. Drawing lines in the pavement and sticking out our tongues at anyone on the other side has got to stop or we will never be respected. I'm oftentimes shocked by how people look down on the YA community because I'm immersed in it and I know the good it creates. But when we start calling each other names and being rude; when we start acting like our stereotypes then we are just reinforcing this thought process.

Again, we all know that robbing someone of their words and ideas and passing them off as your own is not right. Knowing the sacred power of the written word and the magnificence of my own thoughts, I would never condone someone plagiarizing. I don't care how big or small their blog is, whether they are black, white, Hispanic, any other color in between, old, young, from the US or Europe, it isn't right. But all of that goes for the people who are throwing stones and feel they have the right to be downright cruel too.

Stop being the mean girls and start being the heroines.

Learn something while you're at it too.

The wonderful thing about the blogosphere community is that we make it what it is. We literally have the power at the tips of our fingers. I want to make it into a utopia, not the middle school playground. I hope everyone else decides to as well.

Cover Alert: The Evolution of Mara Dyer

I feel in love with everything about The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer but before I had the book in my hands, it was all about the cover. I thought it was one of the most interesting covers I'd ever seen.

Well the cover for Mara Dyer's sequel, The Evolution of Mara Dyer, was just released. Here it is:

When I first saw this cover, something about it didn't wow me. It might just be that I had such high hopes for it. But the more I look at it, the more I really like it. Having read the last one, I know that mara and Noah reached a breaking point by the end so I like how this cover represents them trying to reach back for each other. I also like the contrast of the blue water from the murky green looking water of the first cover. I have to say, I'm actually liking this more by the second. The blurb for the book was also realeased too.

Two days after Mara walks into a police station in Miami at the close of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, she is committed for psychiatric treatment for what her parents believe is a mental breakdown. But what seems like a hallucination to everyone else is a chilling reality for Mara. Someone from her past has discovered her strange, disturbing secret and that someone wants her to pay. But she’s about to discover that the price is more than she can bear.



Dark and thrilling, suspenseful and passionate, The Evolution of Mara Dyer will have readers breathlessly turning pages to find out what will become of Mara Dyer next.

Seeing as The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer was one of my favorite books last year, I can't wait to get my hands on The Evolution of Mara Dyer!

Shelfmates #2

Some covers just work together...and some, not so much. I've decided to start up a semi-regular feature called Shelfmates to showcase series covers. I love getting the sequel to a novel and putting it up next to the first book so I thought this might be a fun way to do that on my blog! So here are some series covers and my opinions on how they look as a couple (or series...)!

Fury series by Elizabeth Miles

Envy's cover was recently released and I have to say, I was a little confused. Then I stumbled upon the new paperback cover for Fury. I like these covers and the way they blend but I have to admit that I liked the old Fury cover better. I also found a picture of what the UK cover might look like on the author's blog and it would match the old cover which I like better.

Aren't these so much prettier together? I love the mysterious feeling of the redhead in the hardback cover and the blonde in Envy captures that same ethereal look. If that Envy cover is released in the UK, I'll definitely be ordering that version!

Gods and Monsters series by Kelly Keaton

This series also got a cover makeover for the second novel coming out. I actually really like the redo even though there have been several other covers that are similar to A Beautiful Evil. Together, I feel like they feel sophisticated and are telling a cohesive story. It does seem like the colors of the photos are a bit off. Darkness Becomes Her has a very blue tone whereas A Beautiful Evil has a red tone. I think they should have stuck to a similar lightening for both to make them seem to fit together better.

Paranormalcy series by Kiersten White

For me, this is the perfect example of a series of covers done right. They took the "pretty dress" trend and made it their own by playing with colors. Each cover gets better and I like how they all have their own unique feel while being similar to each other. I just want to keep looking at them! I'm in love with this series and the covers!



Sky Chasers series by Amy Kathleen Ryan

This is another series that just got a makeover in time for the second novel's release. I did like the old cover but I really like the new one. As I mentioned in the last feature, I'm a huge fan of "color" series and this is another perfect example of that. Glow has a pink theme and Spark has a blue one. I really love how they look separately and even better together!

Divergent series by Veronica Roth

I've admitted before that I'm not wild about the Divergent cover. It just wouldn't grab me on a shelf but I do like that it is gender friendly and genre friendly as well. When Harper released Insurgent, I think I finally "got" it. These covers together are killer good. Seeing the symbols of the different factions together really works and I love how the taglines echo each other. I'm a huge fan of these covers together and can't wait to get Insurgent on my shelf!

The Body Finder series by Kimberly Derting

Before I read The Body Finder, I didn't really get what the blue flower-like thing was. After, I understand that is an "echo" and it makes the cover more interesting for me. Since I'm a fan of "color" covers, you know I love how these look together. The only thing I worry for (yup, I'm a freak) is that I'm not sure what other color is going to look with these covers. Maybe green? But then I think it will be missing a yellow cover... But to get to the point, I like these covers.

The Pledge series by Kimberly Derting

It seems like I've picked a lot of covers I like tis week because this is another set I feel work well together. I like the cover of The Pledge better than The Essence but I like that The Essence keeps with the same feeling as the first. It's funny but it's the bright pink cheek that bothers me about The Essence cover. I like the muted color of the girl's lips and skin color of The Pledge.

What do you think of these covers together? Do you have a favorite set? It's pretty hard for me to pick but I'm leaning towards the Paranormalcy covers.