[Meme] Gwenyth's Goodies (Stacking The Shelves) - January 28th 2013

Stacking The Shelves started at Tynag's Reviews, is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

Just a few awesome goodies this week, but exciting none-the-less!

I have been part of every review tour for this series since Sourcebooks first released it. I was contacted by them directly asking if I would be interested in participating in this third, and final installment. What a silly question! I of course agreed and literally received this beauty by courier the very next day. Stunning! Cannot wait to see how this ends! Look for my review tour post February 15th!

Edit: I just discovered this is not the last book and that there will be at least 2 more! Oh my!

This spicy read comes courtesy from RandomHouse Canada. It was waiting for me on my desk when I can in this snowy morning. Just the right read to heat things up!

Back in August I did a cover reveal post for a very intriguing book. I was recently approached by the author to participate in the review tour, so of course I said yes. Received this as an ebook. My review tour post will go live March 18th!

Lastly was an ebook I received for participation of an upcoming Kismet tour. My review tour post will go live February 28th!

What goodies did you receive this week?

[Guest Post] Moira Young on Rebel Heart

Movie Influences
by Moira Young

The first female hero I ever met was six inches tall, lived inside our tiny black and white TV, and danced and sang her way along the yellow brick road with her friends. It was, of course, Judy Garland as Dorothy in the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz. I was four years old. There it was, the hero’s journey with its archetypal elements – the call to adventure, the road of trials with its allies and enemies, the ordeal, seizing the sword (in Dorothy’s case, the broomstick of the Wicked Witch) and the hero’s return – all to a catchy musical score. Little wonder that female heroes and the hero’s journey sank deep into my psyche. 

As a wide-eyed four year old - stomach twisted in knots of fearful anticipation from title to end credits - I had no idea that this was a seminal experience. That this most magical of movies would become, not just my touchstone, but my most important literary influence. That one day I, too, would write a hero’s journey starring a strong-willed girl, and sneak in a few songs and dances along the way.

All I knew was that I loved movies. My dad had been a cinema manager in Glasgow before emigrating to Canada. He loved Westerns, epics, high dramas and sweeping romances and I inherited his passion for big stories. The first time he took me to the cinema - just him and me - we went to see Gone With The Wind. I was eight years old. The red velvet curtains, the plush seats, the grown ups, the smell of buttered popcorn, oh, it was all just unimaginably glamorous. It was shown with an interval. As Scarlett O'Hara stood silhouetted against the sky, fist raised and cried, 'As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again' and the curtains swept shut, I was so overcome with emotion and excitement that I was sick into my popcorn bucket.

From there, Dad and I moved on to Dr Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia and the die was cast. My love for visual storytelling on an epic scale stems was born. High romance. Great drama. Big canvas. Adventure. Courage. Danger. Passion. True Love. Betrayal. Death.

As I began to write Blood Red Road, I knew that, although it gives a nod to many genres, it would essentially be a Western set in the future. The film that it references most strongly is The Searchers, John Ford’s 1956 masterpiece starring John Wayne as Ethan Edwards, a deeply flawed hero. Many people classify the Dust Lands trilogy as dystopian, but I do not. Westerns used to be called horse operas and the Star Wars movies are often referred to as space operas or space Westerns, so I’ll have to start calling my books something similar; maybe post-apoc op?

Films have gifted me a rich visual imagination, so perhaps it’s no wonder that I write in a cinematic way. When my writing is going well, it's like there's a movie playing in my head and I just write down what I see and hear. I've ended up with a larger than life hero, epic adventure, danger, death, passion and betrayal, all played out on the big screen of a Western landscape. Fingers crossed for Blood Red Road, The Movie!

About Blood Red Road

Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.

Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

About Rebel Heart

It seemed so simple: Defeat the Tonton, rescue her kidnapped brother, Lugh, and then order would be restored to Saba’s world. Simplicity, however, has proved to be elusive. Now, Saba and her family travel west, headed for a better life and a longed-for reunion with Jack. But the fight for Lugh’s freedom has unleashed a new power in the dust lands, and a formidable new enemy is on the rise.

What is the truth about Jack? And how far will Saba go to get what she wants? In this much-anticipated follow-up to the riveting Blood Red Road, a fierce heroine finds herself at the crossroads of danger and destiny, betrayal and passion.

About Moira Young

Moira Young has been by turns an actress, dancer, and opera singer, but her first loves are books and writing. A native Canadian, she now lives in the UK with her husband. Blood Red Road is her first novel.

[Meme] Teaser Tuesday - The Kill Order by James Dashner

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read.
2. Open to a random page.
3. Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
4. Share the title and author too so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers!

The floor vibrates below his feet and the rumbling sound gets louder, becomes an outright roar. His eyes fall upon the stairs that lead up from the subtrans concourse just as the screams erupt - countless, countless screams and the blur of panicked movement in the crowd. A monstrous wall of filthy water is pouring down the wide steps.

This teaser is from The Kill Order by James Dashner and is the prequel to The Maze Runner trilogy. This highly anticipated book releases Tuesday, August 18th. I want to personally thank RandomHouse Canada for allowing both my son and I early review copies of this story.

The prequel to the New York Times bestselling Maze Runner series.

Before WICKED was formed, before the Glade was built, before Thomas entered the Maze, sun flares hit the earth and mankind fell to disease.

Mark and Trina were there when it happened, and they survived. But surviving the sun flares was easy compared to what came next. Now a disease of rage and lunacy races across the eastern United States, and there’s something suspicious about its origin. Worse yet, it’s mutating, and all evidence suggests that it will bring humanity to its knees.

Mark and Trina are convinced there’s a way to save those left living from descending into madness. And they’re determined to find it—if they can stay alive. Because in this new, devastated world, every life has a price. And to some, you’re worth more dead than alive.

Share your teaser with me!

[Meme] Waiting On Wednesday: The Kill Order by James Dashner

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I am SUPER excited about this book! Although it's release date isn't until August 14th (which is still way too far away for my liking) but EW shared a trailer and a teaser with the public so I started re-obsessing over it. So to get it out of my system I decided to share it all with you!

Title: The Kill Order
Author: James Dashner
Publisher: Random House Canada
Publication Date: August 14, 2012

The prequel to the New York Times bestselling Maze Runner series.

Before WICKED was formed, before the Glade was built, before Thomas entered the Maze, sun flares hit the earth and mankind fell to disease.

Mark and Trina were there when it happened, and they survived. But surviving the sun flares was easy compared to what came next. Now a disease of rage and lunacy races across the eastern United States, and there’s something suspicious about its origin. Worse yet, it’s mutating, and all evidence suggests that it will bring humanity to its knees.

Mark and Trina are convinced there’s a way to save those left living from descending into madness. And they’re determined to find it—if they can stay alive. Because in this new, devastated world, every life has a price. And to some, you’re worth more dead than alive.

You can read the first 34 pages on the EW site!

What book(s) are you waiting for right now?

[Review] Thirteen by Kelley Armstrong

Title: Thirteen (13)
Series: Women of the Otherworld (Book 13)
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Genre: Adult, fantasy, angels, demons, werewolves, vampires, etc.
Format: Hardcover, 444 pages
Publication Date: July 24, 2012
Published By: Random House Canada
Source: Received from publisher

Synopsis from Goodreads

The exciting, page-turning LAST episode of Kelley Armstrong's acclaimed, bestselling Women of the Otherworld series!

Savannah Levine, a young witch of remarkable power and a dangerous pedigree, staggers away from a bomb blast in New Orleans, glad that she's managed to rescue her half-brother Bryce from the supernatural revolutionaries who'd held him captive. But everyone and everything she holds dear is still at risk. The reveal movement has shaken the Otherworld to its core and the resulting chaos has thinned the boundaries between dimensions, allowing creatures of the deeper realms to break through and wreak havoc on supernaturals but also on innocent humans.

Although she's been temporarily stripped her of her powers, Savannah knows she has a crucial part to play in this war of survival. In fact the fate of her loved ones--of Adam, the friend she hopes will become a lover; of Paige and Lucas, her guardians; of the werewolf Pack and Jaime Vegas; of a pregnant Hope; of her brothers Sean and Bryce--and of the human world rests on her shoulders. If she can find the way and the will to defend them.

Only in the final battle will Savannah find out her true capacities, and what love will drive her to do. In 13, Kelley Armstrong brings her powerful and unique saga to a deeply satisfying end: thrilling, surprising and harrowing.


My Thoughts

This is going to be a tough review for me to write. I have been reading this series since the first book, Bitten, was published in 2001. I was immediately drawn in by Kelley Armstrong's strong writing and unique voice, specifically how it related to shifters and the whole shifting process. I have always been very fond of strong female writers in the horror industry, and specifically it they are Canadian. Kelley Armstrong not only fit this bill, but she also lived in Toronto, which was almost like being my neighbor at that time (I lived in Hamilton). I felt an immediate kindred with her before even reading her books, but her writing hooked me from the first page.

My skin stretches. The sensation deepens and I try to block the pain. Pain. What a trivial word - agony is better. One doesn't call the sensation of being flayed alive "painful".

...and that's just a taste of her descriptive and engaging writing style.

The physical appeal of this new release is amazing! The cover is a stunning black and red artistic offering with a vellum type dust jacket overlay that I couldn't keep myself from stoking continuously once it was finally in my eager hands.

I have to be honest, when I first started reading 13 I was highly disappointed...it was clear very early on (from comments direct from the author) that 13 would not be told from Elena's point of view. I was really hoping the story would return to Elena, obviously so were many others. I thought for sure I was going to hate this final book and that the whole series was going to be ruined for me. I am one of "those fans" who was annoyed early on by the swapping of character viewpoints in books 3 and 4 and so on. It took me a long time to get to know these new characters and enjoy their stories, but eventually I got used to the way it was going and I think in the future a re-read of the series will help me enjoy everything in a more fulfilling way.

But I digress...

Upon seeing Savannah was going to be the star narrator I almost didn't read the book. Of all the characters I have had a hard time getting to know Savannah. To be fair...I haven't read the last 2 books in the series because they were Savannah books. I am going to have to rectify that soon.

13 is a FABULOUS ending to this wonderful series that has been such a big part of my life for just over a decade. Even though Savannah was the main narrator in the book, almost every important character (in my opinion) made some kind of appearance, and it was more than enough to keep me happy. And I actually enjoyed reading from Savannah's perspective. It is abundantly clear that she has grown and matured and takes things much more seriously than she did when she first appeared on the scene. And in usual Kelley Armstrong fashion, this book is a complete treat to read as her writing style is just as descriptive (maybe too descriptive) and witty as ever.

It was a little overwhelming in spots, so much going on, so many characters, I sometimes felt a little lost...but i guess that is to be expected when you are trying to tie all things together.

It's been a while since I read some of Kelley's adult fiction, so I forgot how brutal and gory her scenes came sometimes be. It was shocking at first, but then I started to remember how it often goes, and as is common in final installments, blood has to be spilled, and people need to die. It's just how it goes.

If you haven't read Kelley's Women of the Otherworld books yet your are truly missing out. I suggest you dig in now, and if you do, let me know. I would love a re-reading buddy! 

Check out this informative link on reading order.

My rating?