The Books For Which We Are Thankful

I've enjoyed books for as long as I can remember.  Story time in grade school was my favorite part of the week.  The Scholastic Book Fair was the best day/night of the year.  I would return from my weekly trip to the library with a stack of books a mile high.  I would finish each and every one of them before my mom and I would head back to the library a week later.  There are so many books for which I am grateful.  Books that have made me think, books that have challenged my imagination, books that have taught me to do something I love and books that have helped me take care of a sick infant.  So many that I find it hard to narrow it down to just one.  The book I decided to share with you today will seem odd.  That book is Twilight by Stephanie Meyer.  I know!  Right?  You are thinking "What is this lady talking about?" Here is the thing.  I read Harry Potter and Percy Jackson.  But that was the extent of my foray into the YA/MG categories.  Then long story short, Shel gave me Twilight to read.  I read it.  I loved it.  To quote Bel's husband, "Edward is so dreamy!"  In the end it's a great story if not necessarily a well written one.  And why am I thankful for it?  Because after reading the Twilight saga, my love of YA literature was born.  I can't get enough of it. And a few months after that, Shel, Bel (both who discovered YA long before I did) and I started our blog.  A blog which has been a ton of work and even more fun. A blog that has allowed me to spend even more time with my friends.  A blog that has allowed us to meet other bloggers as well as some of our favorite authors. A blog that has definitely been one of the many highlights of what has been a very amazing year.   ~ Nat

I am thankful for City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. This is the book that really started it all for me. It has everything – romance, action, humor, mythology, drama and dirty sexy scenes that I love to re-read over and over. But most importantly, it manifested my profound love of snarky bad boys and their snarky dry wit via the ever-awesome Jace. The phenomenal writing and detail just captured me. And the myriad of colorful characters has become dear to me. Until City of Bones, I’d never considered YA novels as being of any relevance to me. I mean I’d read the Twilight series and enjoyed it but City of Bones just had something magical that literally opened up an entire genre for me. Honestly, it blew apart the freaking door! Getting lost in a fantasy world whether it is paranormal or ordinary has been one of the highlights of the past year. I cannot get enough of it. From City of Bones I moved on to other authors, books and characters I’ve since discovered and enjoyed (like that other snarky bad boy Patch). I’ve grown to appreciate the depth of creativity and variety there is out there. The fact that it’s such an open field means that there’ll always be something unexpected around the corner. And because of City of Bones, I am now a part of BiblioJunkies where I get to share my love of this fantastic, imaginative genre with my fellow BiblioJunkies Nat and Shel and other enthusiastic, likeminded readers – all thanks to City of Bones!  ~ Bel

So why are we sharing this with you?  This is part of an entry to an amazing contest YA author Beth Revis is having on her blog.  Check out her post and read about what she is thankful for this year.  And then check out the amazing list of books and swag she is giving away.  And after you do that, add a like-minded post to your blog or FB page to enter.  And once you do THAT, let us know what book you are most thanful for.  We love to hear how books have changed others lives.




The Bibliojunkies

Spooktacular Giveaway Hop!

It's that time again folks.  We are having another contest (I know, I know, Nat & Bel are going to kill me if I keep signing up for all these giveaways!)!  So, here's the deal, I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and Diary of a Bookworm are hosting this awesome Hop.  There are a ton of blogs participating (see linky below) and tons of prizes to be won.  

The BiblioJunkies recently had the opportunity to meet the fabulous and fun Becca FitzPatrick, author of the Hush, Hush series.  She was gracious enough to sign a bunch of books for us to giveaway here on the blog, so we thought we would start now!  This giveaway includes:

A SIGNED copy of Hush, Hush (paperback)

A SIGNED poster from the Silence Tour!

(Who can resist a poster of the beautiful Drew Doyon & Becca FitzPatrick's autograph?!?!?)

Tantalize by Cynthia Lietich Smith (hardcover)

AND because Halloween is never complete without Vampires and Werewolves vying for our love, a paperback copy of New Moon by Stephanie Meyer.

To enter, follow the instructions in Rafflecopter.  This one is simple, leave a comment (be sure to include your email address) telling us what your favorite Halloween read is - that's the mandatory one.  You can get extra entries for following us on GFC & Twitter.  Neither are mandatory, but we would love it if you would follow our silliness.  The contest will run from 12:01 a.m. on October 24, 2011 to 12:01 a.m. on November 1, 2011.  See the terms & conditions in the Rafflecopter for details on notifying the winner, etc. 

Last time I looked there were over 400 blogs participating, so follow the linky below and check out the other giveaways!  Thanks for stopping by and good luck!

~Shel

Misfit by Jon Skovron

 

**** From Amulet Books, an imprint of ABRAMS:

Jael has always felt like a freak. She’s never kissed a boy, she never knew her mom, and her dad’s always been superstrict—but that’s probably because her mom was a demon, which makes Jael half demon and most definitely not a normal sophomore girl. On her sixteenth birthday, a mysterious present unlocks her family’s dangerous history and Jael’s untapped potential. What was merely an embarrassing secret before becomes a terrifying reality. Jael must learn to master her demon side in order to take on a vindictive Duke of Hell while also dealing with a twisted priest, best-friend drama, and a spacey blond skater boy who may have hidden depths.

I thoroughly enjoyed Misfit. Jon Skovron created a fantastic world of magic, demons and other mysterious beings. More than just action-packed fun, Misfit explores the very complex and complicated relationship between Jael, her father Paul and her Uncle Dagon, a scaley-fish looking demon.

Plus, the magic described by Skovron was just cool. Most magic is described as the practitioner controlling or commanding the elements, in Skovron’s world, magic works when the practitioner and the elements work together and cooperate with one another. One of my favorite scenes in the book takes place in the last couple of pages during a thunderstorm - read it and let me know if you loved it as much as I did!

I recommend Misfit for anyone that enjoyed Twilight by Stephanie Meyer, Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton, Falling Under by Gwen Hayes and the Hex Hall books by Rachel Hawkins. Definitely worth 4 stars!

~Shel