Rewind & Review: May 17 - June 15

Hosted by Shae Has Left the Room

As you can see, it's been a while since a recap, a little less than a month. I took about a week off since I was already aloof on social media anyways. That was my FIRST break since I started in October of 2012. I needed that. I'm still not posting much, but it's just the right amount for me. There's no competition so *I* am the one that matters when it comes to my blog, right? Right. But man, I've gotten  BOOKS!

Books You Received:

• The Jewel by Amy Ewing
• Falling into Place by Amy Zhang
• Rites of Passage by Joy N. Hensley
• Summer of Yesterday by Gaby Triana
• Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid

Books I Read: 4

What I'm Reading Now/Next: 

• Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid
• The Mediator by Meg Cabot

Upcoming Blog Posts:

• Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Summer TBR
• Waiting on Wednesday #8
• DNF Review: Tease by Amanda Maciel
• Then and Now: What Do You Want to Be?
• Review: Summer of Yesterday by Gaby Triana
• Top Ten Tuesday: Cover Trends
• Review: Since You've Been Gone

Bookish (and not-so-bookish) Happenings: 

• My future sister-in-law had her bridal shower...her FIRST one. There'll be a second in July. It's starting to feel a little weird that my brother will be married.
• As you can see up top, I like being whitelisted by Harper Teen.
• I interviewed Livia Blackburne and hosted a giveaway for her debut. The WINNER is Meghan Hawk! Congrats, Meghan, check your email! 
• I saw The Fault in Our Stars. Oh my.
• I switched from Feedburner to MailChimp (and loving it!) so follow on the righthand side (up at the top).
• My dad showed me a really cool app called Gif Wrapped. It's FREE and is oh-so great for a gif-user/lover like myself.

How's your week been?

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to all the great dads out there.
Love you, Daddy.

Waiting on Wednesday #4

Hosted by Breaking the Spine

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly blog hop hosted by Breaking the Spine in which we tell what book we're desperately waiting for. This week I'm pining for...

Title: Ruin and Rising
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publication date: June 17, 2014
Publisher: Henry Holt (Macmillan)

The capital has fallen. The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.

Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.

Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.

Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she’s fighting for.

Why I'm waiting: 

 The real question is: Why would I NOT be excited for this? The answer: Choice E - not applicable/no reason.

But if you must know why I'm excited...

• I loved the previous two books in the series.
• Bardugo is awesome.
• That cover is gorgeous. 
• Although awesome, Bardugo has also showed an evil side by teasing us with shocking twists coming ahead.
• Mal, the Darkling, and Sturmhond. 
• STURMHOND
• Alina
• The fabulous world Bardugo created
• It's from Macmillan. Macmillan produces amazing books. 
• Have I mentioned how much I loved the cover, this series, and Bardugo? 

The great or maybe even sad? thing is that I limited myself with this list. 

What are you waiting for? 

June Rewind & Review

Hosted by Bookshelvers Anonymous

After May, I think June was designated "chill time" in the blogosphere for me. Excluding the awesome book event I went to, I really cut back on blogging related things since life kicked up a notch with work and school and so much other stuff that it's been a blur. Leaving from where I left off last Rewind & Review (remember, I extended May's a little into June), here's what has been happening.

My Reviews

• The Good, the Meh, and the DNF (three mini reviews with different reactions to them)
• ...as you can see, I didn't review a lot in June (but don't forget that I did have another that was attached to May's!), but I'm determined to make that up in July. 

My Meme Posts

• Wishlist Wednesday #17 - Tandem by Anna Jarzab
• Top Ten Tuesday - Books at the Top of My Summer TBR List
• Cover Love #18 - Premeditated by Josin McQuein
• Top Ten Tuesday - Books That I've Read So Far in 2013 

                                                      Other Fun Posts 

• Fierce Reads 2013 Tour Recap
• Presenting a Blogger...Roberta @ Offbeat YA 

Stuff I Was Given

• OCD Love Story by Corey Ann Hydu (Simon Pulse via Edelweiss)
• Gift card from Jen because although I was doing it as a gift, she still wanted to pay me back for getting her a signed Siege & Storm at the Fierce Reads tour. She is SO incredibly sweet, you have no idea. If you have never talked to her or read her blog, you are missing out in life, my friend.

Stuff I Bought 

• Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo (Got it SIGNED with its predecessor) 
• 52 Reasons to Hate My Father by Jessica Brody (Got that SIGNED too)

A Few of My Favorite Blog Moments

• Author Jessica Brody and I talked quite a bit before I met her at the Fierce Reads event...
• ...where we hugged, chatted, and became absolute best friends...
• ...and it's where I met LEIGH BARDUGO and got signed copies and took pictures with all the authors and I got to squeal about it all in my recap. 
• Once again, really sweet bloggers on Twitter
• And my not so favorite: being overwhelmingly busy, but that will hopefully change soon!

~*~

I've had better Junes, but this one wasn't exactly horrible...just more of a frustrating blur. I'm expecting big things with July, especially with it holding my birthday! 

Hope you all have a lovely July!

Rewind and Review - May and a little more

Hosted by Bookshelvers Anonymous

Hello, lovelies! So I haven't done one in a while since for whatever reason, I didn't see that Shelver was switching to a weekly thing so I was taken aback and didn't have time to prepare anything. This post will be longer than usual, adding a couple June items in there. I have been extremely excited to squeal over May! 

My Reviews

• The Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone (a time traveling contemporary that I loved)
• The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler (a good familial contemporary)
• Unravel Me by Taherah Mafi (an annoying heroine, but great sequel overall)
• The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg (a cute contemporary read)
• Mini reviews: P&P versions (two cute Pride and Prejudice retellings)

My Meme Posts

• Top Ten Tuesday - When You Need Something Light & Fun
• Cover Love #13 - The Cutting Room Floor by Dawn Klehr
• Wishlist Wednesday #16 - Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
• Cover Love #14 - United We Spy by Ally Carter
• Top Ten Tuesday - Nicest Authors
• Wishlist Wednesday #17 - The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey 
• Cover Love #15 - Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Other Fun Posts

• Bunch O' Giveaways #2 
• Author Interview with Marissa Meyer, author of The Lunar Chronicles
• Presenting a Blogger...Lauren @ Love is not a triangle

Stuff I Won

• A BRAND NEW CAAAR! Okay, not really. I won nothing...again. 

 

Stuff I Was Given

• Awaken by Meg Cabot
• Heaven Is Paved by Oreos by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
• Enchanted and Hero by Alethea Kontis
• Gallagher Girl notebook (these previous items were all given by Shelver from BEA)
• The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (from Disney-Hyperion)
• Gilt by Katherine Longshore (ARCycling)

Traded

• Five Summers by Una LaMarche (Morgan via YA Book Exchange
• The Elite by Keira Cass (Skye via YA Book Exchange)

Bought

• Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock ($1)
• That Summer by Sarah Dessen ($2)
• Dreamland by Sarah Dessen ($2)
• Scarlet by AC Gaughen (Montana at Book Belles, $6)
• Sleepaway Girls by Jen Calonita
• Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway
• Forever Princess by Meg Cabot
• All's Fair in Love War and High School by Janette Rallison
• Just One Wish by Janette Rallison
• How to Take the Ex Out of the Ex-Boyfriend by Janette Rallison (the last 6 books were on sale at Better World Books for a TOTAL of $11, all HCs!)

Adult books:

• The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin ($2)
• That Certain Spark by Cathy Marie Hake ($2)
• Serendipity by Cathy Marie Hake ($2)
• Cassidy by Lori Wick (2 of them for $2.50. One for me, one for my little sister)
• Sabrina by Lori Wick ($.50)
• An Amish Christmas by Cynthia Keller ($1)
• The Long Road Home & A Gathering of Memories 2-in-1 by Lori Wick ($1)
• Maid to Match by Deanne Gist ($.50)

A Few of My Favorite Blog Moments

• Getting another author to agree to do an interview, which resulted in me learning more about the series!
• Having a favorite blogger of mine on here. I love interviews, if you can't tell. And she is the absolute sweetest!
• Meeting some more fantastic and great bloggers through the internet. You guys are so nice.
• My Nicest Authors list which resulted in the sweetest tweets by the authors on the list. THAT is why they are on there. I couldn't stop smiling all day. 
• All the BEA tweets on Twitter AND getting things from BEA, thanks to my sister.
• Finding out about Better World Books...although that might be a bad thing for my self-control.
• Realization that I had more comments wishing me luck on my ACT than the actual review because that's how sweet everyone is. 
• Update: I took my ACTs yesterday and no matter how I do, I know I literally did EVERYTHING (6 hours each Saturday for a month and major prepping during the week) I could to prepare. I don't exactly feel confident that I got the score I wanted (where I live, if I get a 29, I get 100% of tuition paid for in my choice of school if it's in my state. Right now, I have 75%from last time).

~*~

After this fantastic month and beginning of June, I feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Bloggers, without a doubt, are some of the nicest people I have ever been in contact with. Authors, at least the ones I have had Twitter conversations with, are as well. I'll be laying off the thrift store, but I do know the rest of June will be fantastic as well (I see a second author event in my future!). However, I am immensely grateful for everything that I have received this month and experienced and for the people I have talked to. 

I hope the rest of your June is lovely and you have a marvelous summer!

*Due to all the books that I have accumulated this month and hectic schedule I have, I didn't post pictures or include links. Sorry!*