Ruby Red Giveaway!

Thanks to the Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, I am giving away one copy of Kerstin Gier's upcoming book, Ruby Red.  

Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!

Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

Sounds awesome right!?  Just fill out the form.  Giveaway ends June 15, 2011.  US or Canada only.  Winner will be chosen randomly and e-mailed for mailing address.

And here is the awesome book trailer as well!

Weekly Round-Up 6/6 + Hiatus!

In other news, I'll be on a hiatus of sorts for a little bit. We have a big wedding in the family this week and I have a feeling that I won't have time this week or next to write too many reviews. See ya soon!

Weekly Round-Up is my wrap-up of last week's activities and includes what I'm reading this week, reviews I've posted, books in the mail and anything else of interest plus From the Library, my weekly listing of what I've checked out from the library.

This week I'm reading Spoiled (Cocks and Morgan) and Imaginary Girls (Suma) and listening to Glee: The Beginning (Lowell).

Last week I read Ultraviolet (Anderson) and listened to In the Belly of the Bloodhound (Meyer).  I started Blood Red Road (Young) but wasn't in the mood so it was abandoned.  I'll try again another time.
Other reviews: Under the Jolly Roger (Meyer)

On my Nook
Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

16-year-old Molly Dix loves her ordinary life in suburban Indiana, so when her single mother passes away, she is shocked to discover that her biological father is Brick Berlin, world famous movie star and red carpet regular.
Equally intrigued and terrified by her Hollywood lineage, Molly moves to Southern California and plunges head-first into the deep end of Beverly Hills celebrity life. Just as Molly thinks her new life and family couldn't get any stranger, she meets Brooke Berlin, her gorgeous and spoiled half-sister whom welcomes Molly to la-la land with a healthy dose of passive-aggressive "sisterly love."
Set against the backdrop of a sparkling and fashion-filled Los Angeles, this deliciously dysfunctional family soap opera will satisfy every reader looking for their next lifestyles-of-the-rich-and-famous beach read. 

Ultraviolet by R.J. Anderson

Alison wakes up in a mental institution with no memory of how she got there.  As she begins to remember what happened, she also remembers confessing to killing a classmate.  But how she remembers that event doesn't make any sense because people just don't disintegrate. Do they?  As Alison struggles to make sense of that event, she always begins unraveling the mysteries of her own mind and her special abilities.

Dark chocolate, poured over velvet: that was how his voice tasted.  I wanted him to follow me around and narrate the rest of my life.  e-ARC

So this was different.  It starts Girl, Interrupted and then sharply detours into science fiction.  Alison wakes up in the psych ward of a hospital covered in scratches and bruises with no memory of what happened.  She is then moved to a mental health institution for young adults to recover and maybe tell what happened to her classmate, Tori, who disappeared the same day that Alison went crazy.  The description of Pine Hills, the place that Alison goes, is really well written and very realistic.  I could picture the place in my mind perfectly and it had a nice mix of patients that really illustrated the story the author was trying to tell. 

Another aspect of Alison's story is her synesthesia.  I've read a few books about this condition before and was interested to see it employed in this book.  I liked how it was made integral part of the story but was not the point of the story.  Alison didn't even realize that her extrasensory abilities had a name until part way through the story.  It gave the story some interesting depth and played nicely into the climax of the story. 

Provided by NetGalley
Publish date: September 1, 2011
Hogwarts: Astronomy

Under the Jolly Roger: Being an Account of the Further Nautical Adventures of Jacky Faber by L.A. Meyer

From Goodreads:
After leaving the Lawson Peabody School for Young Girls in Boston--under dire circumstances, of course--Jacky Faber boards a whaling ship bound for London, where she hopes to find her beloved Jaimy. But things don't go as planned, and soon Jacky is off on a wild misadventure at sea. She thwarts the lecherous advances of a crazy captain, rallies sailors to her side, and ultimately gains command of a ship in His Majesty's Royal Navy. But Jacky's adventures don't end there. . . 

It's funny that this book feels like two separate adventures because it all comes full circle in the end.  Jacky winds up on the Wolverine, pressed into service after being mistaken for a boy.  Once on ship she reveals herself as a girl but the lecherous captain has ideas about her and keeps her aboard.  Since she is Jacky Faber, she makes herself useful begins training the men.  Later she escapes after a particular incident with the captain and commanders the Emerald for herself, beginning a life of profiteering until her letter of mark is revoked, marking her as a pirate instead.  But Jacky shows herself true and always manages to come out of this situations alright.  


I wonder if her relationship with Jamey is going to succeed.  I don't think he has it in him to hold her for long and I cannot see Jacky settling down and being the good wife.  Jamey seems to be alright and he cares for her but I feel like she might outgrow him 

15 hours

I'm not sure what more I can say about Katherine Kellgren the narrator of these books.  She is awesome and certainly the voice of Jacky and the rest of her friends.  I love her singing voice and how much emotion she puts into her readings.

Hogwarts: Fight or Flight
Bloody Jack
Whisper in my Ear