Giveaway & Guest Post - Zoraida Cordova Top 10 Books To Read When Stranded on a Desert Island

Zoraida Cordova, author of the novel, Vicious Deep is our guest blogger today!  Zoraida was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador.   Vicious Deep is Zoraida's debut novel, which features some very beautiful and very terrifying mermaids.  Today she is telling us what ten books she would want with her to read if she was stranded on a desert island.  Take it away Zoraida:

Top Ten Books to Read when Stranded on a Desert Island: If you are going to be stranded, may as well find something to pass the time. Just make sure you plan ahead…

#1 would have to be HOW TO SURVIVE ON A DESERT ISLAND. Because, really, if I don't survive, I won't get to read #2-10. 

#2 Beauty Queens by Libba Bray, obvi. 

#3 A collection of fairy tales from around the world.

#4 The Harry Potter series, because I'll need a little hope to keep me going. 

#5 Montana Sky by Nora Roberts. Don't you roll your eyes at me. Deserted islands get lonely.

#6 Still Life With Woodpecker by Tom Robbins because every word is beauty. 

#7 Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown. Partly because I'd like the company of merpeople. Partly because I'd like to read it before I get stranded. But also because I can't say I want to get stranded with my own mermaids ;) 

#8 Buffy the Vampire Slayer, season 8 graphic novels. When facing the forces of darkness (strike that), nature, I'd ask myself, What Would Buffy Do? 

#9 The Essential Neruda. Pablo Neruda was exiled to an island where he fell in love and wrote poetry. Maybe I'd get the same inspiration. 

#10 A blank notebook, to write my own stories.

To celebrate the release of Vicious Deep, Sourcebooks Fire has graciously donated a copy for a giveaway!  Enter using the rafflecopter form below.  The giveaway will run from 5/15/12 through 5/19/12.  See the fineprint in the rafflecopter form for the legal mumbo-jumbo.  Thanks for stopping by and a huge thank you to Zoraida Cordova and Sourcebooks Fire!  

~Shel

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Peek in the Biblio-Bin (25)

We are now taking part in Stacking the Shelves! Stacking the Shelves (or as we like to call it, A Peek in the Biblio-Bin) has been created by the lovely ladies at Tynga Reviews.

Stacking the Shelves is a way for bloggers to share what books they have won, received for review, bought from the bookstore, borrowed from the library or friend, etc.

Here is what The Bibliojunkies picked up this week:

City of Souls by Cassandra Clare

Darkness Becomes Her by Kelly Keaton

Hot Item by Carly Phillips


Embrace by Jessica Shrivington


What did you add to your Biblio-Bin this week?

Dreamless by Jospehine Angelini

***1/2

From HarperTeen:

Can true love be forgotten?

As the only scion who can descend into the Underworld, Helen Hamilton has been given a nearly impossible task. By night she wanders through Hades, trying to stop the endless cycle of revenge that has cursed her family. By day she struggles to overcome the fatigue that is rapidly eroding her sanity. Without Lucas by her side, Helen is not sure she has the strength to go on.

Just as Helen is pushed to her breaking point, a mysterious new Scion comes to her rescue. Funny and brave, Orion shields her from the dangers of the Underworld. But time is running out—a ruthless foe plots against them, and the Furies' cry for blood is growing louder.

As the ancient Greek world collides with the mortal one, Helen's sheltered life on Nantucket descends into chaos. But the hardest task of all will be forgetting Lucas Delos.

Josephine Angelini's compelling saga becomes ever more intricate and spellbinding as an unforgettable love triangle emerges and the eternal cycle of revenge intensifies. Eagerly awaited, this sequel to the internationally bestselling Starcrossed delivers a gritty, action-packed love story that exceeds all expectations.

If you have been following the blog, you know that Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini was one of my top 10 of 2011.  I LOVED Starcrossed.  I could not read another book until I read it for a second time.  Given this, you can imagine how much I have been anticipating Dreamless.  I was thrilled when we got the ARC.  So, enough gushing, let's get to the review.

The Bad:

I was hoping we would get further into the story in Dreamless.  Don't get me wrong, there is a ton of action in Dreamless, but for such a long book (a whopping 496 pages), I was hoping to get further.  I was also really hoping for more Helen and Hector time, because they are definitely the comic relief in the series.  Hector is there, but not nearly enough.  In fact, most of the Delos family are only peripherally in Dreamless.  Their roles were small and mostly they were all angry at Helen, but I am not entirely sure why.  I also found Helen's father's obliviousness unbelievable, especially given how close the two were in Starcrossed. 

The Good:

Dreamless is lyrical and poetic.  Despite the length, I did not want the story to end.  I was completely enthralled.  So involved that there were a number of times I wanted to yell at Helen "Don't do it, it's a trap you idiot!" - Of course, I didn't because somewhere in the far reaches of my mind I actually realized she is a fictional character and could not hear me...

Setting the stage for the war to come the final installment of the trilogy, Dreamless moves more slowly than Starcrossed, but introduced us to many new characters, including some of the gods.  The mythology of this world portrays some of the gods as horrible creatures, which I never thought I would like, but the evil, ugly gods have grown on me (though I am hoping Apollo will still be beautiful if he is ever introduced).  The portrayal of Ares was creepy, disturbing and fascinating.  I enjoyed Dreamless and cannot wait to read what happens next and hopefully all of my questions will be answered!  Oh, and definitely more Hector and Lucas time.

~Shel

Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson (Memoir, 18+)

* * * *

For fans of Tina Fey and David Sedaris-Internet star Jenny Lawson, aka The Bloggess, makes her literary debut.

When Jenny Lawson was little, all she ever wanted was to fit in. That dream was cut short by her fantastically unbalanced father (a professional taxidermist who created dead-animal hand puppets) and a childhood of wearing winter shoes made out of used bread sacks. It did, however, open up an opportunity for Lawson to find the humor in the strange shame spiral that is her life, and we are all the better for it.

Lawson's long-suffering husband and sweet daughter are the perfect comedic foils to her absurdities, and help her to uncover the surprising discovery that the most terribly human moments-the ones we want to pretend never happened-are the very same moments that make us the people we are today.

Let's Pretend This Never Happened is a poignantly disturbing, yet darkly hysterical tome for every intellectual misfit who thought they were the only ones to think the things that Lawson dares to say out loud. Like laughing at a funeral, this book is both irreverent and impossible to hold back once you get started (from GoodReads) 

Oh geez.  Although the above description from GoodReads is technically correct it does not truly prepare you for the hilarity that you will find in this book.  I laughed at almost every page.  Even when Jenny is describing some of the most awful blows life can deal you she is finding the humor in it as well.  Because really, sometimes all we can do is laugh until we cry.  Or in some cases, cry until we laugh.     

I first discovered Jenny Lawson the way many people did – when her blog post, “And That’s Why You Should Learn To Pick Your Battles”, went viral.  I laughed until I cried.  The entire fiasco described was something I could see me and Shel being involved in.  I would be Jenny, eyeing the giant overpriced chicken and Shel would be Laura, instigating trouble by encouraging me to buy said chicken.  And the Executive Officer would be the one shutting the door in the poor chicken’s face.  After reading that post, I was smitten.  

Jenny (we are totally on a first name basis) has a wonderfully random, bizarre and inappropriate sense of humor.  The way she chooses to remember her life experiences is a talent we should all strive for.  Or if that isn’t a talent you are interested in having (what idiot doesn’t want that talent?), you can at least look at her life experiences and be grateful that you fortunately never had it that bad.  Which I admit to doing at points.  For example, I was really sad when my dog died but at least MY dog didn’t try to RISE FROM THE DEAD!  And although I have inadvertently interrupted the Executive Officer’s conference calls before, I can honestly say that his co-workers have never heard this gem of impropriety during a conference call: “guess who just found the dead bodies I’ve been searching for? ME, MOTHER*@#$%&.  I found the dead bodies.”  These are the types of daily occurrences that define Jenny Lawson’s life.  And we thank her for it everyday. 

I think you can already guess that I am going to tell you to READ THIS BOOK.  I can say with certainty that in December, when I choose my top ten reads of 2012, Let’s Pretend This Never happened will be on it.  Thank you Jenny Lawson for quite literally making me laugh out loud for hours. 

Nat

The Summer My Life Began by Shannon Greenland

* * ½  

Elizabeth Margaret—better known as Em—has always known what life would contain: an internship at her father’s firm, a degree from Harvard and a career as a lawyer. The only problem is that it’s not what she wants. When she gets the opportunity to get away from it all and spend a month with the aunt she never knew, she jumps at the chance. While there, Em pursues her secret dream of being a chef, and she also learns that her family has kept some significant secrets from her, too. And then there’s Cade, the laid-back local surfer boy who seems to be everything Em isn't. Naturally, she can’t resist him, and as their romance blossoms, Em feels she is living on her own terms for the first time

The Good: 

I love books about inns and Bed & Breakfasts.  When you add in a young girl who wants to be a chef and a hot boy with great hair then I am guaranteed to read it.  The Summer My Life Began promised me the hustle and bustle of a beautiful B&B, a well loved kitchen and a summer romance.  In some aspects this book delivered.  After reading this story I couldn’t wait to book my trip to the Outer Banks.  I say that like I DID book it.  I didn’t.  But not because I didn’t want to.  And the description of the B&B…oh my.  If that isn’t the B&B the XO and I own in our retirement (yes that is our plan for our old age) I’ll die.  Simply die.  OK, that might be a bit dramatic.  But you get the picture.

The Bad: 

Unfortunately, the dialogue was flat and lacked emotion.  For someone who thrives off of the emotion in stories, this was frustrating.  The lack of emotion lead to most of the relationships appearing superficial.  This in turn made them almost impossible to root for. The relationship between Em and her sister seemed forced and the romance between Em and Cade came across as completely implausible.  I wanted so badly to get behind the characters in this book but found it impossible.

I really wanted to love this story but unfortunately it fell at a Meh (or 2 stars) in our rating system.

Nat

A Peek in the Biblio-Bin (24)

Why wouldn't you put mail in the bicyclists bum?

We are now taking part in Stacking the Shelves! Stacking the Shelves (or as we like to call it, A Peek in the Biblio-Bin) has been created by the lovely ladies at Tynga Reviews.

Mailbox Monday is a way for bloggers to share what books they have won, received for review, bought from the bookstore, borrowed from the library or friend, etc.

It's been a slow week after the craziness in last week's bin.  This week Bel received the following:

What I Didn't Say

Throne of Glass

Boys of Summer

* * * * 

Walt Whitman referred to a "Mad, naked, Summer Night!" In the pages of Boys of Summer, acclaimed editor Steve Berman's latest anthology, talented authors and fresh voices reveal the allure and excitement of the season for gay teens. June always promises romance. July entices with its raw heat, and August offers a languid fire that will burn out before autumn's approach. These are stories of young love and adventure, when the sky's ceiling is a bright blue marvel, when another boy's laughter at the beach can distract from dull summer jobs.

I am usually wishy-washy on short stories. Particularly romantic short stories. They tend to lack the character development necessary to make the romance believable.  But I am huge fan of m/m romance and was intrigued by a collection of short m/m romantic stories written for teens.   

You need to know is that I ended up loving this book.  Truly loving it.  But it took me a few stories to get there.  I was very put off by the very first story – Portrait of the Artist as a Young Swamp Thing by Ann Zeddies.  Our two heroes (15 and 16 years old) know each other for less than a weekend.  This was a perfect example of why I don’t like romantic short stories.  But the bigger reason this particular story put me off was the fact that they didn’t really know each other.  They knew of each other but they didn’t know each other.    And at the end of the story, before the weekend was over, they were hitching it to Hero #2’s empty house to have sex.   I was buying the budding romance but I was not buying that it developed enough that they would jump immediately to sex.  I do get it.  All teens are interested in sex.  Teen boys are especially interested in having sex.  And most of the time they are being ruled by their hormones and aren’t thinking logically about it.  But just because they aren’t thinking about the importance of it doesn’t mean it’s NOT important and that it’s NOT a big deal.  It’s both of those things.  And I think as adults we have a responsibility to remind teens of this.  I am not going to tell teens to not have sex.  But I am going to tell them that it is a huge decision and they need to be sure that they are truly ready when they finally make that leap.  Because that’s a pretty big leap that requires a significant amount of trust that you are just handing over to another person.  I always think of the “sex talk” Kurt and his dad had on Glee (I seriously need to save that entire speech and save it for why my kids are older).  The talk where Kurt’s dad tells him that sex is important and that Kurt MATTERS.  Teens to know that they MATTER and because they matter they need to be sure they are ready to trust another person with something that is so very precious. 

“You’ve got to know that it means something. It’s doing something to you, to your heart, to your self-esteem, even though it feels like you’re just having fun…. When you’re ready, I want you to be able to do everything, but when you’re ready, I want you to use it as a way to connect to another person. Don’t throw yourself around like you don’t matter. Because you matter, Kurt.”  - Burt Hummel in Glee

Wow, I just went on a tangent about teen sex.  Sorry about that.  That’s what I get for being overly opinionated, I guess. Please keep reading though.  There is a reason I gave this book a 4 Star review.  I promise.  And to put any possible parent fears to rest, this is not a graphic book by any means.  Like all YA romance, each character has their level of experience but that experience is never the highlight as it would be in an adult romance.   

So now you know I didn’t like the first story and why.  But let me tell you about some of my favorites.   

Breakwater in the Summer Dark by L. Lark is a romance between two boys that have attended summer camp together since they were eight. Their relationship in this story is strained because of an unexpected kiss that happened between them the summer before. The appearance of a mysterious creature in the lake brings them together and forces them to face their feelings for each other.  I loved this story.  This is one that I would love to be either novel or novella size in length.  I think it would be an even more amazing read. 

Brass by Marguerite Croft and Christopher Reynaga is a romance after my own heart.  Two band geeks that are both out and they are friends and they both have a thing for each other.  But, of course, neither of them realizes it.  Finally our narrator decides to make his move and I am not going to lie.  It was probably one of the sweetest kisses I have ever read in the numerous YA books I have read this past year and a half.   

Leap by ‘Nathan Burgoine was an absolutely lovely summer romance.  Ryan has been spending 3 weeks a summer in a cabin with his parents.  Two other cabins are inhabited by family friends.  Ryan, Angie and Barb (daughters of the family friends) get along great and love spending the summer together.  Then Will and his parents show up for their first summer at the lake and the three-some becomes a four-some.  This was a perfectly paced story with a perfectly paced romance.  I had a mile-wide smile reading this story that ended with a wonderful amount of hope. 

Wheat, Barley, Lettuce, Fennel, Salt for Sorrow, Blood for Joy by Alex Jeffers was pure magic.  Who doesn’t love a story set on a boat in the Mediterranean?  Add some magic, sexual tension and a loving family and you have a serious winner of a story. 

Those were my favorites but they aren’t the only good stories in this book.  If you are a fan of romance and/or are interested in reading something that gives gay teens a voice, I highly recommend this collection.  It was truly wonderful.

Nat