Giveaway: Wherever Nina Lies

This giveaway is over.

Whaaat? Another giveaway? It's true!

Nina was beautiful, wild, and adored by her younger sister, Ellie. But, one day, Nina disappeared. Two years later, everyone has given up home that Nina will return, but Ellie knows her sister is out there. If only Ellie had a clue where to look. Then she gets one, in the form of a mysterious drawing. Determined to find Nina, Ellie takes off on a crazy, sexy, cross-country road trip with the only person who believes she’s got a chance—her hot, adventurous new crush. Along the way, Ellie finds a few things she wasn’t planning on. Like love. Lies. And the most shocking thing of all: the truth.

Wherever Nina Lies has just been released in paperback, and I've snagged three copies for you lucky WORD readers! All you have to do is comment with your email and the answer to the question - see below - and you have a shot at winning! Lucky WORD followers get a whole bunch of extra entries. =3

I mean, come on. You want to enter. It's a pretty good book!

Recap:
[3] copies of Wherever Nina Lies up for giveaway
[3] winners in the U.S. only
[3] winners announced March 15

How To Win:
[mandatory] Answer this: Where would you go if you had to hide?
[+1] comment on this post with your email
[+2] relink this giveaway (include location of link in comment)
[+2] relink to WORD (include location of link in comment)
[+2] tweet this contest (include location of link in comment)
[+6] follow WORD

What are you waiting for? Let me see those comments!

Final Fridays - Julie Kagawa

Anybody who reads WORD knows how much I absolutely adored The Iron King when I snagged an ARC of it back in January. It's came out at the beginning of Februrary - and now, author Julie Kagawa has stopped by to talk about it!

N: Welcome, J! Your debut novel, The Iron King, just came out. I absolutely adored it, and I know everybody else will, too. Why don't you give us a quick summary, in your words, on what it's about? (Bonus points if you do it in the form of a poem.)

J: How about a limerick?

On Meghan’s sixteenth birthday
She begins seeing glimpses of fey.
Her brother they steal,
And she must make a deal
With The Iron King to save the day.

N: Bonus points awarded! *applause* Now... ya gotta love faeries. Which faerie is your favorite? *cough*Puckofcourse.*cough*

J: Ah, sorry. But I’d have to say Ash is my favorite, because I’ve always had a soft spot for Bad Boys who can wield pointy objects. Puck was more fun to write, though.

N: More Puck for me! IT'S RAINING _____.

J: *Sings* “Men! Hallelujah, it’s raining me-en, uh huh!”

N: Hmm. I was going to go with jello bits, but that works, too. On the mention of awesome songs - your Iron King playlist is pretty awesome. Which artists is your favorite of all of those listed? You have quite a variety.

J: Thank you! My favorite artists are Within Temptation; I like pretty much all of their albums. But, my favorite song would have to be Fall For You, by SecondHand Serenade. It’s Ash and Meghan’s theme, and I’m a sucker for love songs.


N: Love songs are lovely. If you could play any musical instrument, what would it be?

J: I used to play the flute, long looooooong ago, back before high school. I’ve completely forgotten everything, but it would be nice to get back into it.


N: Anybody wanna send Julie a flute? Just joking! What are some of your writing techniques?

J: Normally, I try for 1,000 to 1,200 words a day when working on a novel. Except when I’m doing NaNo Wrimo, and the quota jumps to 1,700. At that point, I’m pretty much just typing whatever comes to mind without stopping to think about it. The Iron King was written as a NaNo project, so I’m pretty sure it works. :)

N: Quick! Bring one person back from the dead. Stick them in a scenario where it would be exceptionally awkward.

J: Um … Elvis at an Elvis lookalike convention.

N: Ooo. That is awkward. Hey, it's worth a shot - willing to give us any hints as to what may happen in the sequel?

J: Well, for all of you Puck admirers, the second book will be for you. Not giving away what happens, but you’ll definitely want to watch out for it. ;-)

Thanks for stopping by, Julie!


Sweet! Since she's so pro-Ash, I'm betting it's either told through Puck's point of view or Meghan starts realizing how epically awesome Puck is. Or something else I don't know. Don't forget to check your local stores for The Iron King - go buy it! It rocks!

Or order it online: Barnes and Noble | Amazon | Borders

Fade

Fade
Author: Lisa McMann
Series: Wake trilogy
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
How Received: library

Summary from Barnes & Noble's website

For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They’re just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.
Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody’s talking. When Janie taps into a classmate’s violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open – but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie’s in way over her head, and Cabel’s shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.

Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability – and it’s bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what’s to come is way darker than she’d feared…

I enjoy the Wake trilogy - I enjoy Janie as a character; she manages to be both real and kick a little bit of ass. In fact, all of the characters are rather fleshed out - even the creepy ones.

Are they the best written? Not necessarily; though quick and easy reads, there isn't a necessary eloquence to the words. Like me, though, McMann uses fragments. Unlike me, every third sentence seems to be a fragment.

The story, however, is excellent; the plot line is well thought out; and the characters are great.

Overall Rating & Final Comments: 8/10 - a quick read with great characters.

Happy reading!

Movies

So, if y'all haven't noticed, I've been catching up on my movie watching lately.

I mean, I'm getting really into period dramas - I'm going back to some of the classic BBC book-to-film adaptions and watching new films, like Bright Star - but I'm watching other things, too.

But...

Do you guys want to hear about what I'm watching? Or should I stick only to books? Or should I mention the movies if they tie in?

Your call, oh loyal readers.

PS: Hopefully, by the time you read this, I will have finished The Gathering Storm in ALL of it's giantness.

Guess What

Guess what I'm watching today?



Yup. I'm - for the first time ever - watching Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. I've never read the books; I've never seen the movies; until today, I hadn't even watched the trailer.

What thinks you?

Prada and Prejudice

Prada and Prejudice
Author: Mandy Hubbard
Series: ---
Publisher: Penguin Group
How Received: library

Callie wants nothing more than to fit in on this stupid trip. And what better way to fit in then to get a pair of Prada pumps!? Not even the nastiest girl can touch her if she has a pair of those amazing shoes.

Of course, nobody can quite touch her if she's transported back to the times of corsets and carriages, either. And with a stuck up, handsome duke named Alex and an engaged-against-her-will girl named Emily thrown into the mix - well, things can get interesting.

I adore Pride and Prejudice and was rather looking forward to this. And I enjoyed it - mostly.

Prada and Prejudice takes the basic elements of the original P&P and condenses it into a much shorter book with just as much (if not more!) crammed in. I rather wish each part had been explored further, because it made the characters, which would have sparkled, fall a little bit flat. Alex fell for Callie just a bit too quickly; Emily was just a little too airheaded - it just didn't play out as well as it could have.

And on the mention of Callie...

I don't know. I couldn't connect to her until the very end, and even then, I lost that connection as soon as she was transported back to the 21st century. I didn't see her grow as a character at all - she was transported back in time after intending to show the girls she could fit in and kind of one-up them, and when she came back? The first thing she did was show the girls she could fit in and one-uped them. It made me sad.

Also, Ms. Hubbard? Mandy? I love you, but the first time you're in a corset, you're not going to be wanting to eat dinner. The second time, you're not going to be able to dance for several hours. I loved the scenes, but... sorry. It irked me.

Overall Rating & Final Reviews: 7/10. Despite it's flaws, I did enjoy it - it's quirky and cute, but essentially just fluff.
Cover Notes: I. Love. Those. Shoes.(The Prada pumps, obviously.)

~ N

Friday Fronts - Mockingjay

*le sigh*

Gorgeous. Just like the other two. So simplistic, yet so meaningful. (And just, you know, pretty.)

And mad props to MTV for analyzing the covers - they noticed the same things I did.

Also: How did I never notice the Mockingjay website!?

What do you think of the cover? Are you looking forward to it?

Wherever Nina Lies

Wherever Nina Lies
Author: Lynn Weingarten
Series: ---
Publisher: Scholastic
How Received: publisher

Stay tuned - giveaway coming soon!

Nina Wrigley has been gone for two years.

She was beautiful. Wild. Everybody loved her. Including her younger sister, Ellie - and Ellie is the only one who still clings onto the hope that her sister is out there. All she needs is one little clue. And one little clue is what she finds - followed quickly by a road trip, a new crush, and so much more. And along the way, Ellie finds a few things she wasn't planning on. Like love. Lies. And the most shocking thing of all: the truth.

Wherever Nina Lies had probably one of the most original concepts for a book in a long time. I loved the plot - it was interesting to follow along, and I kept trying to figure out what would happen next.

The characters, however, I didn't care for so much. Amanda was an awfully pushy best friend, but that didn't mean Ellie shouldn't listen to her. After all, she's been her best friend for how many years - and you choose a random guy over her? And Ellie was both weakwilled and strongwilled, and the other characters... they just didn't seem consistent to me.

However, it is an interesting book to read if you have the time. Besides, it's got quotes like these! Quotes are from my old ARC version; they may have been edited slightly. I hope not.

"Ellie, I once drove to Canada for pancakes in the middle of the night because I didn't like the syrup they gave me at IHOP."

"Being jealous of Nina for being loved would be like being jealous of a skyscraper for being tall."

Overall Rating: 8/10

Beastly

Beastly
Author: Alex Flinn
Series: ---
Publisher: HarperCollins
How Received: library

Ten out of ten shallow girls would call Kyle Kingsbury perfect. He agrees.

Until, one night, a witch shows him otherwise - and casts a spell on him that transforms him into a beast, a spell only true love can break...

I adore the tale of Beauty and the Beast. I think, though, that I'm more of a Disney princess girl - Belle comes along to save her father, the Beast is quite beastly, and their falling in love seems more of an accident than the major plot point.

I won't lie; Beastly was a fun read. For some reason, though, despite the modern day Belle loving books and our lovable Beast being my age, I couldn't connect to the characters. The book was enjoyable enough in itself, but I'm not sure if I would read anything else by the author. I just don't dig her style.

I do, however, dig the following quote:

I wondered how it would be to get a pet, maybe a cat because they didn't need to be walked.
Of course, maybe I'd end up like one of those crazy old people with, like, sixty cats. And one day, the neighbors would complain about the smell, and it would turn out I'd died and the cats had eaten me.
Still, it might be nice to have a cat. As long as it didn't dig in my roses.

Overall Rating & Final Comments: 7/10. Not bad if you're looking for a quick read.
Cover Comments: I adored the fact that the font they use for 'Beastly' is used for every chapter number. Epic win of a font.

~ N

Half Moon Books

Yesterday I went through a list of places I love to shop - and I forgot used bookstores! Eek! How dare I!

Add them to the list, and that leads me to today's post - about yesterday, of course.

I headed up to Kingston yesterday to pick out fabric (at right) for my corset. (For those of you who don't know, I'm wearing a corset to prom. Not like this crazy lady - and thank you Sarah Maclean for this link, I'm still horrified by it - but like a normal person.) If you guys are in NY and want a Renaissance outfit, head on over to Knightly Endeavors. It's a tiny shoppe, but the people are nice and their stuff is excellent.

Anyway, on the way back to the car, I spied an adorable little used book store. Being the bibliophile I am, I grabbed my mother, changed the direction she was walking - and into the bookstore we went.

I love regular bookstores, I do. But there's something about walking into a store that's stacked floor to ceiling with books, with boxes of books lying about, classical music playing in the background... *sigh* I could have stayed for hours.

Especially since the sale this month is two-for-one on fiction books. Yay sales!

The place is called Half Moon Books - just click the link for information on it. I LOVED it, and it's a cute little place. (Crappy cell phone picture!)


The first edition wall and a small magazine rack.

The man behind the counter was one of those cute little old men you always picture hunched over a book - he was really sweet. And they had a HUGE section of first editions that I didn't bother exploring because I knew I would get uber excited over things I couldn't afford.

As it was, I made off with four books for less than twenty bucks -



Not bad, eh? T'was a good day yesterday, it was. Books and corsets... and then pizza and skating.

Life is good.

What cute little bookstores do you go to?

Book Shopping

I... am a book-o-holic.

This is not news to anybody who's ever met me. Or looked at me. Or heard of me. Or knows I exist.

Therefore, when it comes to bookshopping, I'm rather obsessive. I know where to get books.

I figured I'd go over some of my favorite shopping places with you guys. Who knows? Maybe you might find someplace new...

Barnes and Noble
I don't like shopping online, so I don't mean the Barnes & Noble website. I mean the literal Barnes & Noble - the big store you walk into. I wander around the fantasy, general fiction, YA fiction and children's fiction for a good three hours, looking at whatever I find interesting, before receding with my chosen books to the cafe - though, granted, their hot chocolate leaves something to be desired.

B&N is also my friend's default hang-out spot of choice.

TJ Maxx, Marshalls, etc.
Random discount stores ALWAYS have books. I don't know why. They just do.

The Marshalls up here has a tiny book section - the books are either in uber good condition or really beat up. TJ Maxx has a small section as well, but I don't go in there often enough to check. I know there are other discount stores that I go to that have books, but I can't remember right now...

Goodwill
It has MANY used things.
But sometimes you can find awesome used books there.

Bookworm
If you live in the Dutchess County area like I do, there's a family owned store called Bookworm. It's about the size of a small one story house and is - literally - stacked floor to ceiling with almost new and used books. You can bring your books for store credit and buy books from there. They have a HUGE collection, and I love finding amazing books among them.

Wal*Mart
Okay, they're an evil corporation. But they've sucked me in. After all, I need SOMEPLACE to go while my mom shops for groceries.

Tiny Random Indie Bookstores
'nuff said.

My Local Library
This is a big one for those of you who haven't thought of it - go to your library!

My library has a small (and by that, I mean it takes up the entire basement) for-sale section. I went through the other day and found a nearly brand new fantasy book for .25 because it was a paperback. I mean, yes - they'll have a blacked out bar code and the library's address on it, and sometimes the plastic stickers if you can't get them off. However, if you're looking for good cheap books, go buy! And it's also an excellent way to support your library.

BookDepository.com
I don't like buying online. But how else am I going to get free international shipping on books!? Besides, it lets me be a coverwhore. I need to get those new Shiver covers somehow...

Where do you shop?

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day, everybody!

Normally, I'd launch into a 'This is a commercial holiday!' speech. Except, as I sit here writing this, I'm in a deliriously happy mood. When I'm happy, I'm lovey.

So I figure, why not write an uber long post - because I love many things - about things I love? (Family and friends aside, of course, because we all already know I adore them. And you followers/readers. Because you ROCK, and I love you.)

Be it characters, books, announcements, songs, movies, people - if I absolutely love it, it'll be in here.

Let the lovin' begin!
PS: Comments are also LOVE! Tell me things you love! Tell me if you hate something I love, or love something I love! But it's all about the love.

Mr. Darcy

"If your feelings are still what they were last April, tell me so at once. My affections and wishes have not changed, but one word from you will silence me forever. If, however, your feelings have changed, I will have to tell you: you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you. I never wish to be parted from you from this day on. "

I have loved many characters, and my interpretations of characters. Never has every interpretation made me squee. So my first love goes to Mr. Darcy - for being the ideal man, no matter who portrays him. The picture is Colin Firth, from the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice - which leads me to my next love.

BBC Films
They're just so bloody accurate! And pretty! And well done! I've loved every one I've seen.

The Hunger Games Book Covers
I'm a cover whore and I am proud. I'm a cover whore and I am proud. I am a cover whore and I am proud!

But who can't love these covers? With the cover (and name!) to Mockinjay unveiled, I can't help but squee. They're so pretty. I adore them.



Johnny Depp
I love this man.

That is all.

(Favorite role? Cap'n Jack Sparrow.)


Kristin Chenoweth
Who wouldn't love her!? She's a 4'11" bundle of fun - and she's uber talented. She was the original Glinda in Wicked; she's guest starred on Glee; she's recorded three fantastic albums. Some of you might know her as Olive from Pushing Daisies.

She's just generally amazing. Take a listen - looooooove.

Ridiculous Quotes
I adore quotes. Most any quotes, really. I quote things all the time.
But funny, ridiculous quotes are my favorite - like some of the following.

"When writing a novel, that's pretty much entirely what life turns into: 'House burned down. Car stolen. Cat exploded. Did 1500 easy words, so all in all it was a pretty good day.'" - Neil Gaiman

"Ah. Well. You can also have a lot of warning with hurricanes. Although they're becoming more frequent with global warming. Tsunamis are just like - oh look big wa AHHH!" - my friend Megan

"Now I'm going to be emo. -starts stabbing self with rubber spoon- IT'S NOT WORKING." - Megan (again)

"I can't think of a job in which this wouldn't be useful! ... except gravedigging. " - my theater teacher

My Bookcase
You've seen it. You understand why I adore it.

Various Book Characters
Jacky Faber & Alexia Tarrabotti & Lord Maccon & Puck & Mr. Rochester & Jane Eyre & Bertie & the faeries & Dustfinger & Rhiannon & Rose & Dimitri & Katniss & Robinton & Lessa &...

Should I keep going? I do love so very many things...

Q&A with Louise Rennison

Today, I have the honor of hosting Louise Rennison as part of the 28 Days of Winter Escapes! The last in her (excellent!) Georgia Nicholson series, Are These My Basoomas I See Before Me?, came out this past October.

And without further ado, Louise!

Georgia has had a tough time when it comes to luuurve... are her experiences based on your own?
LR: I know it would be more flattering to me to say, "How dare you! I am the height of sophiticositisnosity when it comes to matters of the luuurve and snogging." However, Georgia’s experiences are entirely based on my life. Sadly. So yes I did go and learn how to snog at a boy’s house. And there was a small queue of girls waiting to go after me. So he had a little clock to time our “session” and it was like kissing a bag of whelks. If you know what those are. And even if you don’t, please don’t kiss them under any circumstances.

How much do you really know about Viking weddings?
LR: How much do you need to know about Viking weddings??? I am from Yorkshire and this is where the Vikings came so I know A LOT about them. In fact, I am descended from Vikings. Some of my family have the huge big fat red legs that the Vikings were renowned for. Let’s face facts: The Vikings are known for their horns and drinking vats of mead. So God alone knows what the weddings would have been like.
Rufty tufty.
That is le fact.

Tell us about the funniest date you’ve ever had!
LR: I was with a boy and I had the feeling that he was about to hone in for the snog and I said something like: "Look I don’t know if this is, you know, it’s a bit soon and..."
And I was sort of looking away from him. And there was a bit of a silence and I thought, oh blimey, I've really upset him, and I was still looking away. Then he said: "Well, there's something I really need to tell you... I think I have fallen in love with you." And I was so shocked I looked around at him and when I looked at him he had put a clown’s nose on.

Who’s your celebrity crush and why?
LR: It’s sort of three people in one, none of whom you will know because they are not big stars yet! There was a series here called “Dangerous Romantics” about the Pre-Raphealite Brotherhood (you see, I told you... go look it up you lazy minxes)... and the three boy actors in it (Dante Gabriel who played Rossetti, William Holman Hunt and John Everett Millais) were soooooo bad! But I loved them.

LR: Otherwise I always like funny boys. I used to quite like Russell Crowe until his head became a beard.

What are winters like in Brighton? If you could fly south for the winter, what would be your warm weather destination?
LR: Please don’t ask me about winter in Brighton when I am snowed in. Also, it’s a bit of a mean question to ask me where I would go if I could fly south, as I don't fly. And the last time I did fly they had to abort the takeoff and I was taken off and put in a wheelchair and wheeled through Heathrow.

LR: It takes me most of my life to get to Hamburgeragogo land by sea but nevertheless I would love to go back to Georgia. Honestly, I am not just saying that because of Georgia (if you know what I mean and I think you do).

Do you believe the saying, “the couple that laughs together, stays together”?
LR: Yes, but then I also believe that “she who larfs last larfs the larfingest.” Which is possibly why I am not asked to be an Agony Aunt.

Would you rather a romantic Valentine’s Day card or a humorous one?
LR: I like a combo.

Do you believe in happily ever after?
LR: Yes. Sooner or later

What’s your favorite saying about love?
LR: I believe in three things. Love, love, and love.
Oh and that one from Billy Shakespeare’s Anthony and Cleopatra: "Age shall not wither her infinite...” whatever it is...!!! Variety, I think. Anyway, whatever it was it never withered. Partly because she got an asp to bite her basooma.

Candy, flowers, or a handwritten card? Which would you rather receive from your special someone?
LR: A handwritten card. Preferably not saying "You're dumped.”
Pip pip!


I love her, I really do. Don't forget to enter today's poll for a chance to win big! And keep an eye on the widget to see who else is hosting other awesome authors!

Friday Fronts - Artemis Fowl

Artemis Fowl has two covers - the old one (left) and the new one (right).



The first one has more to do with the book, but the second one is spiffy...

Which do you prefer?

PS: Guess who is hosting Louise Rennison for the 28 Days of Winter Escape tomorrow!?

Shiver Cover Whore-ness

Maggie Stiefvater just posted all the different covers she has so far for the international verions of Shiver.

I pity my poor future library. It's going to have dozens of books in other languages that are never read because I liked the covers.

But come on! They're so PRETTY.







*le sigh*

Quatrain

Quatrain
Author: Sharron Shinn
Series: ---
Publisher: Penguin Group
How Received: library

Flight - Salome's one wish, above everything else, is to never again meet an archangel. But when her niece catches the eye of Raphael, all plans go downhill...

Blood - Kerk Socast never expected to love the city, especially when it hid from him what he most wanted to find. He also never expected to meet women's activist Jalciana Candachi - who may help him find what he was searching for...

Gold - Princess Zara loves her country. But she may love the magically alluring world of Alora more...

Flame - Senneth doesn't want to bother anybody. The fact that she's a Mystic makes enough people hate her as it is. But when an untrained Mystic starts tossing fireballs around, she has to step up to stop it.

I've never read one of Shinn's novels before - I picked it up because each of the worlds sounded interesting. They were.

Quatrain is a nice little peek into each of Shinn's worlds if you're not certain you want to read them. Each of the characters is remarkably fleshed out in a small bit of time, and the stories get better as they move from world to world.

Not a long review - but then again, with short stories, how much can you rant about them? You get a taste, and then it's done.

Final Comments: Pick it up both if you like short stories or want a peek into the fantastic worlds Shinn has created.
Favorite Story: "Flame"

~ Nicole

My Bookcase

So instead of just taking a picture of my teetering TBR pile, I reorganized my entire room. It now has a bookcase of it's own. (What? It needed it.)

Click images to make them larger.

Here's my entire TBR Bookcase:


And the individual shelves:
--- These are all library books.




--- Yes, that IS the little horse thing from Avatar.




My other books/bookcases/areas:


--- These are the ones that weren't on a shelf when I redid my regular bookcase. They're somewhere next to it.




--- My first Harry Potter book is in three pieces, I've read it so often.


--- Two shelves FULL of McCaffrey.




--- My 'nonfiction' section. The playbill, from 9 to 5 The Musical, is autographed. The other thing is a pic. of my dad and I. And a stereo.


--- The shelf of books nobody but I am allowed to touch. (Me? I? Grammar. Hmm.)
--- Anyway, I love these books best of all.


And my current pride and joy:
My ARC of Perchance to Dream and I. (Yesterday's pic was really bad. Also, excuse my hideousness.)


And... there you go.

My To Be Read Pile

I weeded through my bookcase and yanked out all the books I own that I haven't read.

... I have over eighty books in my TBR pile.
Oh sweet Oz.
Shoot me now.

I'll have a picture up for you when I come home from school. They're all crammed on top of two of my cabinets. I'm waiting for them to fall and crush something. (Probably my foot.)

The question is... what to read first?

B&N Marshalls and Mail - Oh My!

B&N Marshalls and mail - oh my!
B&N Marshalls and mail - oh my!
B&N Marshalls and mail - oh my!

Yes. I have been book shopping. And receiving. Mainly shopping.

I went to Barnes and Noble with Kellyn - it's our default place to hang out, for obvious reasons - and picked up my copy of Gail Carriger's Soulless. It has been put on the Shelf Of Nicki's Favorites. There were a whole bunch of other things I wanted, but I managed to resist buying them and left with only that and an apple juice. (I was thirsty...)

We headed over to Marshall's, where we proceeded to locate the book clearance section. Half of the poor books had been treated super badly - covers ripped off, water damage, random pages bent. One of them was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - how could anybody damage that book!?

I ended up snagging a copy of Erin Hunter's The Quest Begins, the first in her Seekers series, for two bucks, and a copy of The Mysterious Benedict Society for five.

Then I ate two donuts at Dunkin' Donuts - chocolate frosted with sprinkles are my weakness - and Kellyn drove us home. We arrived, and I saw I had mail.

I opened it and-

Now, it's not often I talk about what mail I get on here. I don't participate in the weekly meme; I don't announce when I get things; the only time you see when I got something from a publisher is in a review. But this deserved a special mention...



Okay, the picture is really bad - it was taken with my cell phone - but it's me with an ARC of Lisa Mantchev's Perchance to Dream, the sequel to Eyes Like Stars.

SQUEE. (Kellyn and I actually started bouncing up and down. We LOVED ELS.)

And that, my friends, was my Saturday.

How was your week?

The Happy 101 Award

List 10 things that make you happy. Try and do at least one of them today. Tag ten bloggers that brighten your day. Link back to the person that tagged you.

Aw! Donna awarded me this.

Ten things that make me happy are...
- Family
- Friends
- Puppies! And penguins.
- Good books
- Seeing other people read good books
- xkcd
- Mr. Darcy and Jack Sparrow (What!?)
- Charlie the Unicorn
- Ice cream
- Blanket forts

As for bloggers? You ALL make me happy. (Except you, Erica. You're just annoying. 0=) )
So if you're reading this, and you blog, you win.

Friday Fronts - A Great And Terrible Beauty

I didn't love the book, but I ADORE the cover.

First of all, I love corsets and bodices and things like that, so the fact that that's part of her outfit makes me deliriously happy. Second of all, I love how she's looking over her shoulder, and how the focus isn't on her face. The font, which I would normally hate, works well for this cover.

Whatcha think?

Guess what!?

Guess what guess what guess what guess what!?

I now have my own spiffeh DOMAIN NAME. Oh. Yeah. I went there.

You can now get to WORD via http://www.wordforteens.com/ . So update your links and your bookmarks - or just what you tell your friends!

Peace out.

Winter Escapes

Perhaps y'all have noticed the shiny flashy widget above all of my blog posts?

It's there for good reason!

On February 13, I shall be hosting an exclusive Q&A with Louise Rennison, author of the ever hilarious Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging - and if you head over to the website on that day, you can fill in the poll and enter for a chance to win an iPod Touch! (No, not an iPad. *grin*)

So click on the widget every day and check out the other awesome Q&A's and remember to enter the giveaway!

Who knows? You may be the winner.

The Field Guide

The Field Guide
Author: Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black
Series: The Spiderwick Chronicles
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
How Received: library

Jared's parents are divorced and he, his twin brother Simon, his sister and his mother have moved into their creepy old house.

Jared has never been one to believe in faeries. But with all the creepy stuff that's been going on - and the book he found - perhaps they may exist after all...

The Spiderwick Chronicles are children's books - but that doesn't make them any less fun to read. They're quick and easy, full of interesting characters and original ideas.

If you have a few minutes, pick them up - the first one took me less than an hour to go through, but I enjoyed it immensely.

Final Comments: Not worth the buy unless they're for a younger brother/sister, but they are fun if you have a few minutes.
Movie?: I ADORE the movie version. Just saying. *huggles DVD*

~ Nicole

DVDs

We all know I don't just read. (If I just read, I think I may go insane. Eating and sleeping are necessary to life as well.) In the past week, I've been working on catching up on all the movies I've wanted to watch. This includes multiple versions of the same movie. Here is the list of DVDs I am currently enjoying or have enjoyed in the past few days.

Pride and Prejudice
There's a couple versions of this: the most recent version with Keira Knightley


the BBC version


and the OTHER BBC version.

Jane Eyre
Oh, Rochester. Lord knows I have to have as many versions of you as I do Mr. Darcy.
We have one of the BBC versions


the Warner Home version


the classic Fox version


and the Mirimax version.


Other Movies
Because I don't have enough already!
We've got The Brothers Grimm with Heath Ledger and Matt Damon


Miss Pettigrew Lives For The Day with the adorable Amy Adams


the infamous Pan's Labyrinth


and the first season of The Tudors, Silk with Keira Knightley, Once Upon A Mattress, and the amazing Inkheart.

What are you watching?

Don't forget to check out yesterday's post - who doesn't like a giveaway?

Giveaway: My Soul To Save

This giveaway is over.

Happy February! This is a month of chocolates, of Valentines, and of screaming banshees...

When Kaylee Cavanaugh screams, someone dies.
So when teen pop star Eden croaks on stage and Kaylee doesn’t wail, she knows something is dead wrong. She can’t cry for someone who has no soul.
The last thing Kaylee needs right now is to be skipping school, breaking her dad’s ironclad curfew and putting her too-hot-to-be-real boyfriend’s loyalty to the test. But starry-eyed teens are trading their souls for a flickering lifetime of fame and fortune in exchange for eternity in the Netherworld—a consequence they can’t possibly understand.
Kaylee can’t let that happen, even if trying to save their souls means putting her own at risk...
Soul Screamers: The last thing you hear before you die.

Er, did I say that last bit out loud? But it's true! I have three copies of the second book in the Soul Screamers series to give away. I absolutely adored the first one, My Soul To Take, and I'm really stoked that I have this one to offer you guys!



Recap:
[3] copies of My Soul To Save up for giveaway
[3] winners in the U.S. only
[3] winners announced February 15

How To Win:
[+1] comment on this post with your email and who you would call back from the dead
[+2] relink this giveaway (include location of link in comment)
[+2] relink to WORD (include location of link in comment)
[+2] tweet this contest (include location of link in comment)
[+4] follow WORD

Where are those comments?