Stacking the Shelves: The Yearly Edition 2015

Tags

A Court of Thorns and Roses, Alexandra Bracken, Alienated, All Fall Down, All the Rage, Ally Carter, Ambelin Kwaymullina, Amie Kaufman, Amy Ewing, An Ember in the Ashes, Barry Jonsberg, Because You'll Never Meet Me, Bright Before Sunrise, Brigid Kemmerer, Champion, Cloudwish, Courtney Summers, Cynthia Hand, Dawn Kurtagich, Dead of Winter, Demon Road, Derek Landy, Dreams of Gods and Monsters, Ellie Marney, Every Move, Every Word, Far From You, Fiona Wood, Fleur Ferris, Frostbite, Half Wild, Happily Ever After, Harry Potter, Harry Potter Illustrated Edition, Hold Me Like a Breath, Holly Black, Illuminae, Illusions of Fate, In the Afterlight, In The Skin of a Monster, J.K. Rowling, James Smythe, Jane Austen, Jay Kristoff, John Flanagan, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, Julie Kagawa, Justine Larbalestier, Kady Cross, Kathryn Barker, Kerstin Gier, Kiera Cass, Kiersten White, Kresley Cole, Laini Taylor, Lair of Dreams, Lauren James, Lauren Oliver, Leah Thomas, Legend, Leslye Walton, Libba Bray, Lisa M. Stasse, Maggie Stiefvater, Magnus Chase, Magonia, Margo Lanagan, Maria Dahvana Headley, Marie Lu, Meagan Spooner, Megan Miranda, Melinda Salisbury, Melissa Grey, Melissa Landers, Miss Mayhem, Pandora Jones, Panic, Percy Jackson, Pittacus Lore, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Prodigy, Queen of Shadows, Rachael Craw, Rachel Hawkins, Ranger's Apprentice, Razorhurst, Rebel Belle, Red Queen, Renee Ahdieh, Richelle Mead, Rick Riordan, Risk, Rogue, Ruby Red, Sabaa Tahir, Sally Green, Sarah J. Maas, Sea Hearts, Shadow Kiss, Shiver, Sisters of Blood and Spirit, Skulduggery Pleasant, Soman Chainani, Sophie Jordan, Soulprint, Spark, Star Wars, Stephanie Oakes, Stray, Susanna Clarke, Tess Sharpe, The Darkest Part of the Forest, The Dead House, The Diviners, The Dream Thieves, The Fate of Ten, The Foretelling of Georgie Spider, The Forsaken, The Girl at Midnight, The Heir, The Iron Warrior, The Jewel, The Last Time We Say Goodbye, The Next Together, The Raven Boys, The Ruby Circle, The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly, The School of Good and Evil, The Scorpio Races, The Sin Eater's Daughter, The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender, The Wrath and the Dawn, These Broken Stars, Thicker Than Water, Tiffany Schmidt, Trish Doller, Uninvited, Vampire Academy, Vanishing Girls, Victoria Aveyard, Way Down Dark, Where the Stars Still Shine

Stacking the Shelves is a thing where we talk about the books we’ve collected in the past week. These can be bought, delivered, ARCs, ebooks, etc.. Pretty self-explanatory.
Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tygna’s Reviews

When I did this last year, it was so much fun I just had to do it again.

So, here are ALL the books I obtained throughout the year 2015.

Books Bought:

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender, by Leslye Walton
Illusions of Fate, by Kiersten White
Hold Me Like a Breath, by Tiffany Schmidt
An Ember in the Ashes, by Sabaa Tahir
Illuminae, by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Magonia, by Maria Dahvana Headley
Red Queen, by Victoria Aveyard
The Ruby Circle, by Richelle Mead
The Diviners, by Libba Bray
Lair of Dreams, by Libba Bray
Way Down Dark, by James Smythe
The Darkest Part of the Forest, by Holly Black
Pandora Jones: Admission, by Barry Jonsberg
The Last Time We Say Goodbye, by Cynthia Hand
Razorhurst, by Justine Larbalestier
Alienated, by Melissa Landers
Sea Hearts, by Margo Lanagan
The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly, by Stephanie Oakes
These Broken Stars, by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
The Wrath and the Dawn, by Renee Ahdieh
The Dead House, by Dawn Kurtagich
Vanishing Girls, by Lauren Oliver
Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes, by Rick Riordan
All Fall Down, by Ally Carter
Ruby Red, by  Kerstin Gier
The Sword of Summer, by Rick Riordan
Rebel Belle, by Rachel Hawkins
Miss Mayhem, by Rachel Hawkins
The Fate of Ten, by Pittacus Lore
In the Afterlight, by Alexandra Bracken
Every Word, by Ellie Marney
Every Move, by Ellie Marney
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, by J.K. Rowling (new edition)
Star Wars: Verily, a New Hope, by Ian Doesher
Vampire Academy: Graphic Novel
Frostbite: Graphic Novel
Shadow Kiss: Graphic Novel
Legend: Graphic Novel
Sisters of Blood and Spirit, by Kady Cross
Far From You, by Tess Sharpe
The Sin Eater’s Daughter, by Melinda Salisbury
Uninvited, by Sophie Jordan
Soulprint, by Megan Miranda
In The Skin of a Monster, by Kathryn Barker
The Girl At Midnight, by Melissa Grey
The Raven Boys, by Maggie Stiefvater
The Dream Thieves, by Maggie Stiefvater
Risk, by Fleur Ferris
Ranger’s Apprentice #1, by John Flanagan
Because You’ll Never Meet Me, by Leah Thomas
Skulduggery Pleasant books, by Derek Landy
The School of Good and Evil, by Soman Chainani
Dreams of Gods and Monsters, by Laini Taylor
Rogue, by Julie Kagawa
Happily Ever After, by Kiera Cass
The Heir, by Kiera Cass
Half Wild, by Sally Green
Prodigy, by Marie Lu
The Foretelling of Georgie Spider, by Ambelin Kwaymullina
Queen of Shadows, by Sarah J. Maas
Box Set of Puffin Classics, various authors
Harry Potter Illustrated edition

The Shiver Trilogy, by Maggie Stiefvater
The Scorpio races, by Maggie Stiefvater
Champion, by Marie Lu

Books Won:

The Jewel*, by Amy Ewing
Spark*, by Rachel Craw
The Iron Warrior, by Julie Kagawa
Demon Road (signed ARC), by Derek Landy
Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke
Cloudwish, by Fiona Wood
In the Afterlight (signed), by Alexandra Bracken

I also somehow ended up getting a bowling ball.

*Won in 2014, received in 2015

Miscellaneous:

ARCs and Review Copies (requested and surprise):

Bright Before Sunrise, by Tiffany Schmidt
Where the Stars Still Shine, by Trish Doller
Stray, by Rachael Craw
The Next Together, by Lauren James
Thicker Than Water, by Brigid Kemmerer
A Court of Thorns and Roses, by Sarah J. Maas
The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly, by Stephanie Oakes
The Sword of Summer, by Rick Riordan

Books I got through BooksForTradeAU:

Pandora Jones: Deception, by Barry Johansberg
Pandora Jones: Reckoning, by Barry Johansberg
The Forsaken, by Lisa M. Stasse
Cinder (ARC), by Marissa Meyer (Not pictured)

Presents (Birthdays, Christmas, etc.):

Panic, by Lauren Oliver
Dead of Winter, by Kresley Cole
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, by Seth Grahame-Smith (and Jane Austen)

Books I got for free (through various means):

White Time, by Margo Lanagan
All The Rage, by Courtney Summers
The Lost and the Found, by Cat Clarke
This Raging Light, by Estelle Laure
Pompidou Posse, by Sarah Lotz
Dumplin’, by Julie Murphy
Running Like China, by Sophie Hardcastle
We All Looked Up, by Tommy Wallach
Hidden, by Marianne Curley
The Astrologer’s Daughter, by Rebecca Lim
Lifespan of Starlight, by Thalia Kalkipsakis
State of Grace, by Hilary Badger
Cooper Bartholomew is Dead, by Rebecca James

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So…that was all the books I got my hands on 2015.

How was every one else’s year?

TTT: New-To-Me Favourite Authors I Read For The First Time In 2015

Tags

Alexandra Bracken, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Derek Landy, Ellie Marney, Every Breath, Holly Black, Jodi Meadows, Laini Taylor, Orphan Queen, Rachael Craw, Skulduggery Pleasant, Spark, The Darkest Minds, The Darkest Part of the Forest

Top Ten Tuesday is a thing where we get given a topic, and we have to list our ‘top ten’ things for the topic. Pretty self-explanatory.
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This Week’s Topic: Top Ten New-To-Me Favourite Authors I Read For The First Time In 2015

1. Rachael Craw
Guys, can you believe that I only read Spark THIS YEAR??
THIS YEAR, GUYS!!

 2. Alexandra Bracken
And same with The Darkest Minds! Only this year? Seriously?

3. Derek Landy
Ahh, yes. If you’ve been following me for a while, you may have noticed that I read the entire Skulduggery Pleasant series this year. (And I talk about the experience here)

4. Ellie Marney
OH MY GOSH WHY DID I WAIT SO LONG TO READ EVERY BREATH???
Actually, I figured out why…it’s because NOBODY TOLD ME it was a Sherlock retelling.
You’re all fired.

5. Holly Black
Ok, not technically new to me this year…I tried reading Tithe last year, but I didn’t make it past the first couple of chapters. However, when Holly Black came to Aus, it was recommended to me that I try The Darkest Part of the Forest.
Which I did, and I loved it!

6. Laini Taylor
Daughter of Smoke and Bone was fabulous. I have no idea why I haven’t read the rest of the series yet…I own them all.

7. Jodi Meadows
Orphan Queen was FANTASTIC!! Seriously, absolutely loved it.

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 So, there’s only 7 authors on this list…there would have been more, except I specifically did not include authors who debuted this year.

Who was on your list?

Winter is Ending!

Tags

Cat Clarke, Demon Road, Derek Landy, Estelle Laure, Fallen, Holly Black, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, Kathryn Barker, Lair of Dreams, Lauren Kate, Libba Bray, Lisa M. Stasse, Magnus Chase, Passion, Percy Jackson and the Greek Heroes, Rapture, Rick Riordan, Running Like China, Skulduggery Pleasant, Sophie Hardcastle, Susanna Clarke, Sweet Evil, The Darkest Part of the Forest, The Diviners, The Forsaken, The Lost and the Found, The Skin of a Monster, This Raging Light, Torment, Wendy Higgins

So, it is the end of August, which means that Spring is upon us.

This makes me happy.

So…What Happened in August:

Books were bought:

I know…only four…I’m concerned, too.

Books were received:

MAGNUS CHASE ARC! Excuse me while I continue to flail in excitement.
(It was just as good as I hoped it would be).

And my Date A Book YA night Book Haul…The pile on the right (i.e. all the black books), came from Keely, Sweet Evil (which I got for my sister) came from Jaz, and the rest came in the goody-bag.

Books were won:

So, Dymocks did a twitter giveaway for a signed ARC of Demon Road…which I managed to win 😀
I haven’t read it (yet), but I am SO EXCITED!!!

I had also forgotten that I’d entered a BBC-Aus giveaway for Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, and so when I got an email telling me I’d won, I was pleasantly surprised. (And also super excited, because my good friend Elspeth adores this book).

Books were read:

Only 6, but they were a fabulous six. Also, I spent a long time on The Dying of The Light, because it is 600 pages of very intense emotions and the only time I had to read it was on the train.

Authors were met, books were signed:

At the blogger night I got to meet Holly Black, and get my copy of The Darkest Part of the Forest signed. So that was awesome.

And my dogs were cute:

I mean, they’re always cute, but still…look at them.

Tomorrow it will be September

Where has the year gone? I would seriously like to know.

I mean, I’m thrilled winter is over, but still…

Anyway, this September, I have a plan:

For September, in honour of my sister’s birthday, I shall be attempting to read all the books she has been begging me to read for years.

These books will likely include:

– The Gallagher Girls books
– The Heist Society books
– The last two Kane Chronicles

And while reading as many of these as I can, I also hope to catch up on some review-copy reading and reviews…

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So, how was your August? Any plans for September? Let me know.

July: A Summary

Tags

Aimee Carter, Alienated, Ambelin Kwaymullina, Blood Of Olympus, Captive, Dark Days, Dead of Winter, Debra Driza, Derek Landy, Dreams of Gods and Monsters, Frostbite, Holly Black, Illusions of Fate, James Smythe, Julie Kagawa, Kiera Cass, Kiersten White, Kresley Cole, Laini Taylor, Legend, Marie Lu, Melissa Landers, Mila 2.0, Mortal Coil, Pittacus Lore, Rachael Craw, Renegade, Richelle Mead, Rick Riordan, Rogue, Skulduggery Pleasant, Stray, The Darkest Part of the Forest, The Fortelling of Georgie Spider, The Heir, The Revenge Of Seven, Way Down Dark

I’m back at uni and with the return to uni comes what can only be described as a need for procrastination. As some of you may have noticed, I disappeared around the middle of July, but it’s ok. I’m back now.

So, why did I disappear?

Well, some of you may recall this post where I talk about my plans for July: namely, much reading during the uni holidays.

And I quite succeeded in this challenge: I read 11 books! And while that doesn’t really feel like much (especially since I had a 5 week break from uni), it does sound rather impressive when I say that 7 of those books were read within a 6 day period.

I’m actually really proud of that.

Of course, in order to do that, I decided it was best to disappear from the internet (almost) completely. I went a whole week without twitter (*shock horror gasp*), and only went on goodreads to update the books I was reading. Though I did continue to check instagram.

And did I miss twitter? Well, yes and no. I did miss talking to people, and generally shouting random things into the void, but I spent practically an entire week doing nothing but reading.

The last time I was able to do that, I was probably 13 and the only thing I would read back then was Harry Potter.

But then I returned, just in time to find out something very exciting

THIS BEAUTY WAS RELEASED INTO THE MAIL!

And it was glorious!

My review is coming…I just need time to get over all THE EMOTIONS!

And what I find hilarious about all this, is that if I’d stayed away from twitter for one more day, I would have never known it was coming…which meant there would have been much less running around screaming with excitement as I grabbed my keys and jumped into my car to race to the post office to get the package.

And where’s the fun in that?

Despite returning to twitter, I remained absent from the blog

Like, seriously, as of the time when I am writing this, I have done zero blogging for 2 weeks…at least.

And, honestly, I didn’t really miss it.

I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love blogging, but to just read/do nothing for 2 weeks without writing a single word has just been so relaxing. I’ve actually missed not blogging.

But that does not mean I’m planning on quitting any time soon.

Ok, musings over, what have I been reading?

Frostbite Graphic Novel
Legend Graphic Novel
Blood of Olympus, by Rick Riordan
Rogue, by Julie Kagawa
Captive, by Aimee Carter
The Heir, by Kiera Cass
Dead of Winter, by Kresley Cole
Renegade, by Debra Driza
The Revenge of Seven, by Pittacus Lore
Illusions of Fate, by Kiersten White
Stray, by Rachael Craw
Dark Days, by Derek Landy
Mortal Coil, by Derek Landy

And what books did I buy/receive?

Bought:

Frostbite Graphic Novel
Legend Graphic Novel
Dreams of Gods and Monsters, by Laini Taylor
Alienated, by Melissa Landers
Way Down Dark, by James Smythe
The Darkest Part of the Forest, by Holly Black
The Foretelling of Georgie Spider, by Ambellin Kwaymullina

Received:

Stray, by Rachael Craw

What can you expect in August?

Due to time constraints, because of various stuff happening, I probably won’t be posting much variety (unless I can come up with and write a brilliant discussion post within, like, an hour), but there are several reviews I’ve been meaning to write, so expect those.

Review: The Iron Trial

Tags

Book Review, Cassandra Clare, Holly Black, Magisterium, The Iron Trial

Author: Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

Series: Magisterium (Book 1)

Release Date: 11th September, 2014

How I got this book: Netgalley

Synopsis:

From NEW YORK TIMES bestselling authors Holly Black and Cassandra Clare comes a riveting new series that defies what you think you know about the world of magic.

From two bestselling superstars, a dazzling and magical middle-grade collaboration centering on the students of the Magisterium, an academy for those with a propensity toward magic. In this first book, a new student comes to the Magisterium against his will — is it because he is destined to be a powerful magician, or is the truth more twisted than that? It’s a journey that will thrill you, surprise you, and make you wonder about the clear-cut distinction usually made between good and evil.

WARNING: THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS MINOR SPOILERS (and also gets a bit ranty).

This Week in Books

Tags

Afterworlds, Are You Seeing Me?, Cassandra Clare, Darren Groth, Heir of Fire, Holly Black, Illusions of Fate, Kiersten White, Mockingjay, Rick Yancey, Sarah J. Maas, Scott Westerfeld, The Infinite Sea, The Iron Trial, This Week's Adventures

So, it’s been a while…

I realise I haven’t done this post in a couple of weeks…anyone following me on twitter will be aware that I had several tests/assignments, etc., and as such went on a ‘hiatus from life’ (that’s what I’m calling it, because it is the most accurate way I can think of to describe it).

But I’m on holidays now. YAY! (Only for one more week, though).

So, this post is going to contain things from the past few weeks.

Books released:

Illusions of Fate, by Kiersten White

The Infinite Sea, by Rick Yancey

Afterworlds, by Scott Westerfield

Mockingjay trailer:

Books Read:

Heir of Fire, by Sarah J. Maas
*Incoherent noises*

The Iron Trial, by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare
I wanted to like this one…I really did. The review is still under construction, but it won’t be an overly positive one.

Are You Seeing Me?, by Darren Groth
Definitely not my usual type of novel, but enjoyable nonetheless.

This week in blog posts:

Kirsty @ Studio Reads posted the first chapter of Half Wild

Emily @ The Loony Teen Writer started a link up for Loony Blurbs

Cait @ The Notebook Sisters talked about 10 Ways to make a Book Blogger Furious

Maddie @ The Girly Geek did an infographic on eBooks vs Physical Books