Waiting on Wednesday (157)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

There's this series. It's one of my absolute favorites and I love it so dearly. I love the stories and the characters (insert heart emoji here) and just everything about it. I feel like I know these characters, like when they're doing something I can nod along and think, "That's such a Shane thing to do," or "Yep, that's Myrnin." The characters feel so real to me; I can picture them walking down the street (it would have to be dark because of Reasons) like they're actually there. When I read these books, I'm not immersing myself into a fangtastical fictional world: it's like a second home to me. The sign to this fictional town says "You'll never want to leave," and it is totally, utterly, one-hundred percent correct. After over two years--and a web series in between--this fifteen-book series is getting a little longer and coming back. And I am SUPER FUCKING EXCITED. I'm going home.

Top Ten Tuesday (157)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

Review: This Raging Light by Estelle Laure

Title: This Raging Light

Author: Estelle Laure

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers

Publishing Date: December 22, 2015

Pages/Format: 288, ARC
Add on Goodreads!

Can the best thing happen at the worst time? Her dad went crazy. Her mom left town. She has bills to pay and a little sister to look after. Now is not the time for level-headed seventeen-year-old Lucille to fall in love. But love—messy, inconvenient love—is what she’s about to experience when she falls for Digby Jones, her best friend’s brother. With blazing longing that builds to a fever pitch, Estelle Laure’s soulful debut will keep readers hooked and hoping until the very last page.

Book in One Word: Meh.

Waiting on Wednesday (156)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

I've been waiting years for this book. (And that's really not much of an exaggeration, I swear.) It all started when I saw a book on Barnes and Noble's website with a bonobo on the cover. Then there was the chimpanzee. Now, it is time for the orangutan. As a big fan of primates (and the way this author writes about them and tells their fantastic and heartwrenching stories), I am ridiculously excited for the next installment in this quartet of realistic fiction focusing on real parts of the world and our magnificent great apes. (They are NOT monkeys.) Oh, book. I need you. I need you now. I love orangutans; they might be my favorite of the great apes. And next--and last--will be the gorillas, and ahh! These books are hideously underrated, but if you read them I promise you will not be disappointed. I promise. So please, read them.

Top Ten Tuesday (156)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

Review: Damage Done by Amanda Panitch

Title: Damage Done

Author: Amanda Panitch

Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers

Publishing Date: July 21, 2015

Pages/Format: 304, Hardcover
Add on Goodreads!

22 minutes separate Julia Vann’s before and after.

Before: Julia had a twin brother, a boyfriend, and a best friend.

After: She has a new identity, a new hometown, and memories of those twenty-two minutes that refuse to come into focus. At least, that’s what she tells the police.

Now that she’s Lucy Black, she's able to begin again. She's even getting used to the empty bedroom where her brother should be. And her fresh start has attracted the attention of one of the hottest guys in school, a boy who will do anything to protect her. But when someone much more dangerous also takes notice, Lucy's forced to confront the dark secrets she thought were safely left behind.

One thing is clear: The damage done can never be erased. It’s only just beginning. . . . 

Book in One Word: OhmyGOSH.

Waiting on Wednesday (155)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

I really liked this author's debut novel. I was a fan of the unique way it was told and it had an excellent scare factor. But her latest novel looks super creepy and that cover and I want to read it. (Especially in public. People's eyes would bulge at this cover because creepy.)

Top Ten Tuesday (155)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

The Author from Everywhere: An Interview with Heidi Heilig

Hello, readerlies of time and space and parallel universes! I am super excited to share today's post with you, because I'm interviewing Heidi Heilig! Her debut novel hits shelves early next year and it's one of my most anticipated novels of 2016. Perhaps you've heard of it? The Girl from Everywhere features a time traveling ship and maps and thieves and fantastical creatures and MAPS. In case you weren't already willing to sacrifice a lamb to get this book--and even if you already were--Heidi is here to make you want it a million times more and want it now.

Recap: November to December

School took away all my reading and blogging time. I got like nothing done. Buuut the quarter ends in December, which means THREE WEEKS OF READING TIME. (Also, please excuse a few formatting errors in this post. Blogger's being a bitch and absolutely refuses to let me fix it.)

Waiting on Wednesday (154)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

OH LOOK, ANOTHER PETER PAN RETELLING. I MUST HAVE IT. GIVE IT TO ME NOW. (But I feel like it will never ever fall into my hands because that release date is forever away. I bet people in Neverland never have to wait for books to release; they just get them.)

Top Ten Tuesday (154)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

Review: Not If I See You First by Eric Lindstrom

Title: Not If I See You First

Author: Eric Lindstrom

Publisher: Poppy

Publishing Date: December 1, 2015

Pages/Format: 320, Hardcover
Add on Goodreads!

The Rules: 

Don't deceive me. Ever. Especially using my blindness. Especially in public.

Don't help me unless I ask. Otherwise you're just getting in my way or bothering me.

Don't be weird. Seriously, other than having my eyes closed all the time, I'm just like you only smarter. 

Parker Grant doesn't need 20/20 vision to see right through you. That's why she created the Rules: Don't treat her any differently just because she's blind, and never take advantage. There will be no second chances. Just ask Scott Kilpatrick, the boy who broke her heart.

When Scott suddenly reappears in her life after being gone for years, Parker knows there's only one way to react-shun him so hard it hurts. She has enough on her mind already, like trying out for the track team (that's right, her eyes don't work but her legs still do), doling out tough-love advice to her painfully naive classmates, and giving herself gold stars for every day she hasn't cried since her dad's death three months ago. But avoiding her past quickly proves impossible, and the more Parker learns about what really happened--both with Scott, and her dad--the more she starts to question if things are always as they seem. Maybe, just maybe, some Rules are meant to be broken.

Book in One Word: Hm.

Waiting on Wednesday (153)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

I'm pretty obsessed with thriller novels, but the problem is that I've only read like five when I need to read at least five million and one. The following is a thriller novel that I recently heard about (and will be on the blog tour for!) and that I think sounds super excellent and thrillery. Unfortunately, unlike what the title suggests, this book will not be in my hands in zero days, and that's a shame.

Top Ten Tuesday (153)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

Waiting on Wednesday (152)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

The thriller genre is addicting and fantastic. Books like The Rules for Disappearing, The Naturals series, The Masked Truth, and, most recently (for me at least), Damage Done have done a stellar job of representing the genre. For adult novels, Gone Girl was fucking insane, and I absolutely loved In the Woods. This genre is one I want to devour, gut, and take all the pieces from, and this book sounds like no exception. I bloody want it, and I want it now.

Top Ten Tuesday (152)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

The Shelfie Hop

Do you ever go to someone's house, see a shelf (or two or three) filled with books, and make a beeline for it so you can see what books they have? I always love perusing books--books are, after all, kind of my thing. So when Kristen of My Friends Are Fiction and Crystal of Bookiemoji set up The Shelfie Hop, I was immediately excited. Not only would I get to see so many cool shelves from my fellow bookworms, but I would also be able to show you my shelves. This post is rather long (and messy, oh my gosh) because I'm literally showing you like all my books, but...sorry not sorry? And so, without further adieu: my bookshelves. (And a giveaway!)

Ninety Second Novel: Blackhearts

Hello, my fellow bookworms! Welcome to a new feature on Beauty and the Bookshelf called Ninety Second Novel! With this sporadic feature, I'll be using booktube as a way to review a book before I can actually review it. In other words, if I happen to read a book earlier than I can post my review for it, then I'll be using this feature to tell you about it. Look at it as a preview review, perhaps? For the feature, I'll be talking about whatever book(s) I read, but in ninety seconds or less!

Review: All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Title: All In

Authors: Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Publishing Date: November 3, 2015

Pages/Format: 378, Hardcover
Add on Goodreads!

Three casinos. Three bodies. Three days.

After a string of brutal murders in Las Vegas, Cassie Hobbes and the Naturals are called in to investigate. But even with the team's unique profiling talents, these murders seem baffling: unlike many serial killers, this one uses different methods every time. All of the victims were killed in public, yet the killer does not show up on any tape. And each victim has a string of numbers tattooed on their wrist. Hidden in the numbers is a code—and the closer the Naturals come to unraveling the mystery, the more perilous the case becomes.

Meanwhile, Cassie is dealing with an equally dangerous and much more painful mystery. For the first time in years, there's been a break in her mother's case. As personal issues and tensions between the team mount, Cassie and the Naturals will be faced with impossible odds—and impossible choices. 

Book in One Word: WWWWWHHHHHHAAAAA?

The Muse Behind Da Vinci's Tiger

Hello, bookish muses! Every once in a while I'll hear about a book and immediately go need. When I saw the cover reveal for L.M. Elliott's Da Vinci's Tiger many months ago, I had that need. The cover was gorgeous, and the synopsis--a romance with Leonardo da Vinci? NEED. I was so excited for the book that I asked Laura if she'd be up for an interview, and she so kindly agreed. I hope you're just as excited for this book as I am--and fortunately for you, the wait won't be long. It hits shelves very soon. But while you're eagerly waiting, here's some fun stuff about the book!

Recap: October to November

School totally kicked my ass in October. It took up a lot of reading time, and blogging time, so I didn't get much done. Hopefully I can get ahead and get more reading and blogging done in November!

Waiting on Wednesday (151)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

I heart fairy tale retellings. There's something about them that's just so fun and magical, and it's always interesting to see how an author will twist a tale you already knew. So it totally makes sense that I'm waiting on this Alice's Adventures in Wonderland retelling this week. I've already read this author's Peter Pan retelling, and oh my gosh, it was so good. So this book with a stunning cover, I want it.

Top Ten Tuesday (151)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

Review: Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch

Title: Ice Like Fire

Author: Sara Raasch

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Publishing Date: October 13, 2015

Pages/Format: 479, eARC
Add on Goodreads!

It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Januari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect them from new threats?

As the web of power and deception weaves tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter, but for the world.

Book in One Word: WHAAAAAT.

Waiting on Wednesday (150)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

It's always nice when an author whose book(s) you've previously read and adored (and who you'd consider as one of your author friends!) releases a new book. This author's debut was a Middle Grade novel, and it was so, so magical and fantasmical, and you absolutely must read it (and oh my gosh, that cover). Her second novel is a YA--and a contemporary! And it's apparent that the Cover Gods are a fan of this author. I'm just hoping to be one of the lucky few to get their hands on a copy of this book sooner rather than later.

Top Ten Tuesday (150)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

Blog Tour: How to Outfox Your Friends When You Don't Have a Clue by Jess Keating

Hello, my foxy friends! I'm very excited for today's post, because Jess Keating has stopped by again! She's the author of the very adorkable My Life Is a Zoo series, which is one of my favorite Middle Grade series. It includes How to Outrun a Crocodile When Your Shoes Are Untied, How to Outswim a Shark Without a Snorkel, and the latest installment, How to Outfox Your Friends When You Don't Have a Clue. (Say all of those five times fast.) To celebrate the release of her latest funtastic book, Jess is here to talk about voice, which is something she does spectacularly well. I'll tell you about all three books--because you want them, trust me--and there's a giveaway of all three books, which you should so totally enter, and I promise you won't regret it.

Blog Tour: Daughters unto Devils by Amy Lukavics

Hello, bookish monsters! Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Daughters unto Devils by Amy Lukavics! This book, which I've seen called "Little Hell House on the Prairie," looks hella creepy, which is grotesquely, fantastically excellent. And with Halloween around the corner, this is probably a terrifyingly perfect read. Amy is here talking about horror, and there's a giveaway for your very own copy of Daughters unto Devils! It's not haunted. I'm 99.9% positive.

For the Tote: Songs on Repeat

Hello, readerlies! Welcome to a new--and revised--feature here on Beauty and the Bookshelf. Every once in a while (and over a year ago, whoops!), I would recommend music in random posts called Song as Old as Rhyme. But that just seemed like a mouthful and not very discernible, so I decided to rename it. I was completely stumped as to what the new title should be, especially since I wanted to recommend more than just music: movies, online shops, Instagram accounts, and so on. And what's something that you fill up with things that you like (and that's somewhat bookish)? Totes! And so For the Tote, a sporadic feature filled with recommendations just for you, was created. I hope you like it!

Review: The Masked Truth by Kelley Armstrong

Title: The Masked Truth

Author: Kelley Armstrong

Publisher: Doubleday Canada

Publishing Date: October 13, 2015

Pages/Format: 320, ARC
Add on Goodreads!

In this heart-stopping suspense thriller, #1 New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong proves herself to be a master of terror and suspense.

Riley Vasquez is haunted by the brutal murder of the couple she was babysitting for.

Max Cross is suffering under the shadow of a life-altering diagnosis he doesn’t dare reveal.

The last thing either of them wants is to spend a weekend away at a therapy camp alongside five other teens with “issues.” But that’s exactly where they are when three masked men burst in to take the group hostage.

The building has no windows. The exits are sealed shut. Their phones are gone. And their captors are on a killing spree.

Riley and Max know that if they can’t get out, they’ll be next—but they’re about to discover that even escape doesn’t equal freedom.

Book in One Word: THRILLFECTION.

Review: Wendy Darling: Stars by Colleen Oakes

Title: Wendy Darling: Stars

Author: Colleen Oakes

Publisher: SparkPress

Publishing Date: October 13, 2015

Pages/Format: 256, eARC
Add on Goodreads!

From the best-selling author of Queen of Hearts comes a dark and mesmerizing twist on the beloved children's classic, Peter Pan.

Wendy Darling has a perfectly agreeable life with her parents and brothers in wealthy London, as well as a budding romance with Booth, the neighborhood bookseller’s son. But while their parents are at a ball, the charmingly beautiful Peter Pan comes to the Darling children’s nursery and—dazzled by this flying boy with god-like powers—they follow him out of the window and straight on to morning, to Neverland, a intoxicating island of feral freedom.

As time passes in Neverland, Wendy realizes that this Lost Boy’s paradise of turquoise seas, mermaids, and pirates holds terrible secrets rooted in blood and greed. As Peter’s grasp on her heart tightens, she struggles to remember where she came from—and begins to suspect that this island of dreams, and the boy who desires her—have the potential to transform into an everlasting nightmare. 

Book in One Word: Entrancing.

Recap: August and September to October

I had technical difficulties when I tried to post my August book haul, so that recap is late! (But better late than never, right?) And I'm quite proud of myself because I read quite a few books over the past couple months!

Review: How to Outfox Your Friends When You Don't Have a Clue by Jess Keating

Title: How to Outfox Your Friends When You Don't Have a Clue

Author: Jess Keating

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Publishing Date: October 6, 2015

Pages/Format: 320, eARC
Add on Goodreads!

What would middle school be like if you lived in a zoo? Just ask Ana Wright, star of the hilarious, award-nominated My Life is A Zoo series that combines first crushes, friendship fails...and pack dynamics.

Surprise! Ana's long distance BFF is finally coming back to visit. But with her purple hair and new attitude, Liv is barely the girl Ana remembers. This new Liv probably thinks a birthday party at the zoo is lame. Maybe if Ana has a super-secret sleepover instead, she'd never have to introduce Liv to Ashley, former enemy and now Ana's best-ish friend. What could go wrong?

Creature File for Liv:
Species Name: Best Frendicus
Kingdom: New Zealand
Phylum: girl who used to be Ana Wright's best friend, girl who used to like getting milkshakes at Shaken, Not Stirred
Feeds on: video chats with Leilani, attention from boys
Life span: undetermined, but if things keep going the way they are, the lifespan of Ana and Liv, BFFs isn't going to be the "forever" they thought...

Jess Keating combines the quirky humor and animal-centric plots of Carl Hiaasen with the awkward adolescent antics of Lauren Myracle in this fresh new middle grade series!

Book in One Word: Foxtastic!

Blog Tour: Minotaur by Phillip W. Simpson

Hello, creatures of the book world! Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Minotaur by Phillip W. Simpson. I've been looking forward to this book because it's about, well, a Minotaur! And I don't know about you, but that seems awfully interesting. Phillip is here today talking about myth and fiction, and you can enter to win a copy of his book, so be sure to check it all out!

Waiting on Wednesday (149)

is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that 
showcases upcoming releases people are very much anticipating.

I still haven't read this author's most recent contemporary novel (for shame, dishonor on my cow), but I absolutely adored her first one (my review is here, if you're interested), and you bet your arse I'm waiting on her next one.

Top Ten Tuesday (149)

is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Tuesday's theme is...

Review: The Pirate Code by Heidi Schulz

Title: The Pirate Code

Author: Heidi Schulz

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Publishing Date: September 15, 2015

Pages/Format: 352, Hardcover
Add on Goodreads!

Fresh off a fearsome encounter with the Neverland crocodile, Jocelyn Hook decides the most practical plan is to hunt down her father's famous fortune. After all, she'll need the gold to fund her adventuring in the future. (And luckily, Hook left her the map.)

But the map proves to be a bit harder to crack than Jocelyn had hoped, and she's convinced that the horrible Peter Pan might be the only one with the answers. Of course, he doesn't really feel like helping her, so Jocelyn takes the only reasonable course of action left to her: she kidnaps his mother. Evie, though, is absolutely thrilled to be taken prisoner, so Jocelyn's daring ploy doesn't have quite the effect she'd planned for.

Along with the problem of her all-too-willing captive, Jocelyn must also contend with Captain Krueger, whose general policy is that no deed is too dastardly when it comes to stealing Hook's treasure. And with the ever-shifting Whens of the Neverland working against her as well, Jocelyn, Evie, Roger, and the rest of the Hook's Revenge crew have their work cut out for them. 

In this rambunctious showdown between characters new and old, Jocelyn puts her own brand of pirating to the test in a quest to save her future and those she loves.

Book in One Word: Arrgghhhtastic!

A Very Bookish Auction

Hello, readerlies! As you most certainly know, I am a fan of books. I like to read them and anticipate them and own them and hold them with the utmost fragility (and occasionally throw them with no fragility at all). I have new books and upcoming books and old books, but I don't really have old books. Enter Invaluable.

Blog Tour: Never Never by Brianna Shrum

Hello, lost boys, girls, and scallywag pirates! I am very excited about today's post, for I have Brianna Shrum here to talk about her debut novel Never Never, a retelling of Peter Pan told from the point of view of the one and only Captain Hook. I've already read the book (spoiler alert: I loved it), and I very much want to shove it in all your faces or else make you all walk the plank. But for now, I've got a interview with Brianna that will hopefully hook you (pun intended) into Never Never, and there's also a giveaway for the book that you'll definitely want to enter. So don't be a codfish--check it out!

Review: Legacy of Kings by Eleanor Herman

Title: Legacy of Kings

Author: Eleanor Herman

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Publishing Date: August 18, 2015

Pages/Format: 384, ARC
Add on Goodreads!

Imagine a time when the gods turn a blind eye to the agony of men, when the last of the hellions roam the plains and evil stirs beyond the edges of the map. A time when cities burn, and in their ashes, empires rise.

Alexander, Macedonia’s sixteen-year-old heir, is on the brink of discovering his fated role in conquering the known world but finds himself drawn to newcomer Katerina, who must navigate the dark secrets of court life while hiding her own mission: kill the Queen. But Kat’s first love, Jacob, will go to unthinkable lengths to win her, even if it means competing for her heart with Hephaestion, a murderer sheltered by the prince. And far across the sea, Zofia, a Persian princess and Alexander’s unmet fiancée, wants to alter her destiny by seeking the famed and deadly Spirit Eaters.

Weaving fantasy with the salacious and fascinating details of real history, New York Times bestselling author Eleanor Herman reimagines the greatest emperor the world has ever known: Alexander the Great, in the first book of the Blood of Gods and Royals series.

Book in One Word: Dethroned