Stacking the Shelves #1

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

This is my first Stacking the Shelves, so it is going to be a bit messy.

This week I got:

I got all of these books from the library. I am currently working on a reading challenge for March where I'll read books that I checked out. I also plan to check out some ebooks from the library, but I am still deciding on which to check out.

Next week, I hope to make it look better.

Flashback Friday #6

Flashback Friday is hosted by Swoony Boys Podcast and Fic Fare.

This Weeks Book Criteria:

1. Must have been published at least two years ago,

2. Preferably still in print or available to read

My pick is...

Juliet Immortal by Stacy Jay

Published: August 9, 2011

Fans of Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver and Becca Fitzpatrick's Hush will relish this intense paranormal love story featuring Romeo and Juliet, literary history's most tragic couple, who meet again, not as true lovers, but truly as enemies. The most tragic love story in history . . . Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn't anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she's fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she's forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love. "These violent delights have violent ends And in their triumph die, like fire and powder, Which as they kiss consume." —Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

I've seen some mixed reviews, but it still sounds interesting. I haven't read too many Shakespeare retellings, so I'm excited to read this one!

Author Links

Website ~ Blog ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Book Links

GoodReads ~ Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble

Feature and Follow #7

Feature and Follow is hosted by Alison Can Read and Parajunkee's View.

This weeks featured blogger is Bookworm Book Reviews.

This Weeks Question:

Your house is burning down and you have time to select three books you own to take with you. What three books?

~Alison Can Read

OH MY GOD THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!!!!!!

1. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

I absolutely LOVE this book, and the books that have been released! I can't wait for the last three books! I am SO happy that the 4th is coming out this year! Team CHAOL!! (if he gets his head out of his ass and accepts Celaena for who she really is)

2. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

I LOVE this trilogy. It is super interesting and it kept me at the edge of my seat the entire time. I love the character development and all of the twists and turns.

3. The Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges

I really love this trilogy because it incorporates Russia, history, and paranormal. I have been obsessed with Russia since I saw Anastasia as a little kid. And I love history. And I especially love paranormal, so of course it's a winner. I wish more people would read this trilogy, as it is not very popular. It SO deserves more readers.

This was SO hard for me to do, as I have many favorites, and it's hard to remember which books I own and which books I don't. There are probably some that I am forgetting about. However, this is just the books that I OWN.

What books would you take with you?

"A Darkness Strange and Lovely (Something Strange and Deadly, #2)" by Susan Dennard

"A Darkness Strange and Lovely (Something Strange and Deadly, #2)" by Susan Dennard 

Website ~ Blog ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Pinterest ~ Tumblr ~ YouTube 

Published: July 23, 2013

Publisher: HarperTeen
Genres: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance

Pages: 406

Format: Harcover
Source: MeLCat

Read March 21 to 23, 2014 

GoodReads ~ Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble

With her brother dead and her mother on the verge of insanity, Eleanor Fitt is utterly alone. Even the Spirit-Hunters - Joseph, Jie and the handsome, enigmatic Daniel - have fled to Paris. So when Eleanor begins to hear the vicious barking of hounds and see images of haunting yellow eyes, she fears the worst - that the Dead, and the necromancer Marcus, are coming for her. To escape and search out the Spirit-Hunters, Eleanor boards a steamer bound for France. There she meets Oliver, a young man who claims to have known her brother. Though friendly, Oliver entices Eleanor with necromancy and black magic, yet as long as she can resist his powerful temptation, she'll be fine. But when she arrives in Paris, she finds that the Dead have taken over the city...and there's a whole new evil lurking. With the body count rising, Eleanor is forced to make a deadly decision that will go against everything the Spirit-Hunters stand for. In Paris, there's a price for this darkness strange and lovely...and it may have Eleanor paying with her life.

Waiting on Wednesday #2

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine.

This meme spotlights upcoming releases that we can't wait for!

This weeks pick...

"The Winner's Crime (The Winner's Trilogy, #2)" by Marie Rutkoski

Expected Publication: March 3, 2015

Book two of the dazzling Winner's Trilogy is a fight to the death as Kestrel risks betrayal of country for love. The engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement…if she could only trust him. Yet can she even trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran, and close to uncovering a shocking secret. As Arin enlists dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end, it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth. And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their crimes will cost them.

I absolutely loved the first book, and it ended with a HUGE cliffhanger. And I NEED the next book to find out what happens next. I am just so excited to read this book! It also seems fitting to choose this book as it will be released next week. I can't wait!!!

Author Links

Website ~ Blog ~ Twitter ~ Pinterest

Book Links

GoodReads ~ Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble

What are you waiting for?

Challenge: Trilogies and Series Challenge

This challenge is hosted by Ashana Lian.

 

You know when you're so frantic about how many books you have to read that you kind of just read one of everything, for variety, and never get around to more of the authors you really like? Well, maybe it's only me. But this challenge encourages you to not only start, but complete a series, whether it be three books, four books, or forty books.

 

Rules:

• You can start at any time, but you must finish before December 31, 2015.
• Trilogies and series only: must be 3 or more books in the series.
• From the first book to the last OR most recently published book in a series, counts as ONE 'completed' series.
• Spin-off novels or novellas do not count.
• Any length and any genre; for example, mangas count. But comics, because they can span into the hundreds, do not count.
• If you end up disliking the series and stop at any point before the last/most recently published book, it DOES NOT COUNT!
• Your goal: 3 series, but you can also try for the Superhero and Overlord trophy!
• When you finish a series, you must write a short review of it on a blog, Goodreads, or similar.
• Anyone can enter, but to validate your challenge, you must write the Entry post.

 

Oh, By the Way...
If a newer book in the series will be published before December 31, 2015, you still have to read that before the deadline for the WHOLE SERIES to count.

 

Trophies:
Instead of levels, the TAS Challenges uses trophies. If you're really ambitious, you can aim for the highest trophy! When you earn one, leave a comment or tweet with the #trilogiesseries hashtag and go for the next.

• 1 series: Better than None! Costumed Crusader
• 2 series: On a Roll! Saga Sidekick
• 3 series: Hit the Mark! Humble Hero
• 5 series: Superhero I HAVE THE POWER
• 9 series: Overlord of the Trilogy, Quadrilogy, etc

 

What Do I Do Now?

• Write an Entry post that says you're taking part and list the first three series you're going to try. This can change as you go along.
• Grab the Trilogies and Series Challenge banner to put in your Entry post and link back to the blog: Ashana Lian: A Fantasy Writer's Blog.
• When your Entry post goes live, put the TASC button in your blog's sidebar or footer.

Series I Plan to Finish:

1. The Daughter of Smoke and Bone Series
2. The Madman's Daughter trilogy
3. The Splintered trilogy

Series I Have Finished:

1. The Abandon trilogy
2. The Something Strange and Deadly trilogy

What series/trilogies do you plan to finish?

Challenge: TBR Smash Challenge

 

This challenge is hosted by Ashana Lian.

 

TBR = To Be Read. The "TBR Pile" rfers to every book you've looked at and thought "I must/should/will/need to/get around to reading that." Which is why it never ends.

 

Rules:

• You can start anytime, hut the challenge ends on December 31, 2015.
• Track your progress on a blog or other social medial, ex. Goodreads.
• It has to be a book that has been sitting around, ideally for moer that a month, therefore
• Books published in 2015 DO NOT COUNT.
• Any book, any genre, and length, includes ebooks, mangas, and comics.
• Your goal: 15. I'm sure you'll want to read new books too. f you're mainly reading your TBR's this year, go for the gold! (Supreme 'Smashed It' Trophy: 40 books.)
• Anyone can enter but to validate your challenge, you must write the Entry post.

 

Trophies:

TBR Smash doesn't have levels like other challenges, instead it has trophies. All those taking part, try to aim for 15! If you have the time/motivation, aim higher. Don't forget to leave a comment when you reach a goal!

• 5 books: Managed It
• 10 books: Tackled It
• 15 books: Wrecked It
• 25 books: Dismantled It!
• 40 books: SMASHED IT!

 

What Do I Do Now?

• Write an Entry post to declare your participation and list the first five books you'll tackle from the pile. Make yourself excited for it!
• Grab the TBR Smash banner to put in your Entry post, and link back to the blog: Ashana Lian: A Fantasy Writer's Blog.
• When your Entry post goes live/is posted, put the TBR Smash button in your blog's sidebar or footer.

 

Books I Plan to Read:

1. "Ice" by Sarah Beth Durst
2. "Cruel Beauty" by Rosamund Hodge
3. "Half-Blood (Covenant, #1)" by Jennifer L. Armentrout
4. "Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin, #1)" by Robin LaFevers
5. "Origin (The Lux, #4)" by Jennifer L. Armentrout

 

Books I Have Read:

1. "Strange and Ever After (Something Strange and Deadly, #3)" by Susan Dennard
2. "City of Glass (The Mortal Instruments, #3)" by Cassandra Clare
3. "Awaken (Abandon Trilogy, #3)" by Meg Cabot
4. "Snakeroot (Nightshade Legacy, #1)" by Andrea Cremer
5. "Cruel Beauty" by Rosamund Hodge
6. "Ice" by Sarah Beth Durst
7. "Half-Blood (Covenant, #1)" by Jennifer L. Armentrout
8. "Sinner (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, #4)" by Maggie Stiefvater

 

 What books do you plan to read?

Top Ten Tuesday #7

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week features our top 10 favorite book/TV heroines. I'll just let you know before hand that this was super hard and may not be in any particular order.

10.

Cress from The Lunar Chronicles series

9.

Juliette from the Shatter Me trilogy

8.

Scarlet from The Lunar Chronicles series

7.

Nora from the Dearly duology

6.

Kestrel from The Winner's Trilogy

5.

Katerina from the Katerina trilogy

4.

Juliet from The Madman's Daughter trilogy

3.

Eleanor from Something Strange and Deadly trilogy

2.

Celeana (Aelin) from the Throne of Glass series

1.

Cinder from The Lunar Chronicles Series

There are so many others that I thought about including, but it is top TEN, not top bazillion. I chose all of these characters bcause I think that they are very strong and independent. I feel that they are good role models when it comes to characters. There seem to be so many weak female characters, that these girls make up for them. They're not perfect, but no one is, and that's why they are so great!


Who are your top ten?