Waiting On Wednesday (51)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: Then You Were Gone Author: Lauren Strasnick Expected Publication Date: January 8, 2013
From Goodreads:
Two years ago, Adrienne’s best friend walked out of her life. One week ago, she left Adrienne a desperate, muffled voicemail. Adrienne never called back.

Now Dakota is missing. She left behind a string of broken hearts, a flurry of rumors, and a suicide note.

Adrienne can’t stop obsessing over what might have happened if she’d answered Dakota’s call. And she’s increasingly convinced that Dakota must still be alive.

Maybe finding and saving Dakota is the only way Adrienne can save herself.

Or maybe it’s too late for them both.
I'll admit it was the cover that first got my attention here. I love it. I also have to admit that I've read one of Strasnick's previous books, Her and Me and You, but was not blown away. I actually didn't like it at all. But I'm hoping that this time around will be different. I'm all for second chances. It is being described as "In the tradition of 13 Reasons Why", which I loved, so I am hopeful. What do you think? Do you give second chances if the first book you read was definitely not for you?
What are you waiting on this week? Leave me a link in the comments and I'll come check it out!

Teaser Tuesday (51)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This Week's Teaser Is From:

Populazzi by Elise Allen

"I shut my eyes for just a second and took a huge breath. This was it. I dove forward to close the gap between my lips and his—" page 78

Showcase Sunday (21)

Welcome to Showcase Sunday, hosted by Books, Biscuits and Tea. The aim of this event is to showcase our newest books or book related swag and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed form the libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto eReaders this week. For more information about how this feature works and to join in, click here.

Gifted:

Burn For Burn by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian

Won:

Crewel by Gennifer Albin - Thank you Farrar Straus Giroux!

Twang by Julie L. Cannon - Thank you Abingdon Press!

If I Lie by Corrine Jackson - Thank you Romancing the Book!

Temptation by Karen Ann Hopkins - Thank you Bittersweet Enchantment and Karen Ann Hopkins!

The Line Between Here and Gone by Andrea Kane - Thank you Bless Their Hearts Mom!

Every Day by David Levithan -Thank you Ex Libris!

I had a pretty decent week this week for wins showing up at my door. I didn't get to buy any books, but  hopefully that will change soon. There are so many books coming out that I want to get my hands on and being a poor girl is not helping lol. Thank you to all the publishers, bloggers and authors who provided me with these awesome books this week!

What came for y this week? Leave me a link in the comments and I'll come check it out!

On My Wish List (50)

On My Wish List is a fun weekly event hosted by Workaday Reads and runs every Saturday. It's where we list all the books we desperately want but haven't actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming.

Title: Survive
Author: Alex Morel
Publication Date: August 2, 2012

From Goodreads:

Jane is on a plane on her way home to Montclair, New Jersey, from a mental hospital. She is about to kill herself. Just before she can swallow a lethal dose of pills, the plane hits turbulence and everything goes black. Jane wakes up amidst piles of wreckage and charred bodies on a snowy mountaintop. There is only one other survivor: a boy named Paul, who inspires Jane to want to fight for her life for the first time.

Jane and Paul scale icy slopes and huddle together for warmth at night, forging an intense emotional bond. But the wilderness is a vast and lethal force, and only one of them will survive.

I saw this one at Barnes & Noble a few weeks back and almost picked it up. I ultimately put it down to get something else higher on my wish list but I'm still anxious to read it. It also seems to be getting mixed reviews on Goodreads so I am curious to see what side my opinion will fall on. Either way, I think it sounds like an interesting and emotional read. Hopefully I will get my hands on it soon.

What about you? What is your heart's desire? Leave me a link in the comments and I'll come check it out!

Review: How Lucky You Are by Kristyn Kusek Lewis

Title: How Lucky You Are
Author: Kristyn Kusek Lewis
Publication Date: September 4, 2012

From Goodreads:

In the tradition of Emily Giffin and Marisa de los Santos, HOW LUCKY YOU ARE is an engaging and moving novel about three women struggling to keep their longstanding friendship alive. Waverly, who's always been the group's anchor, runs a cozy bakery but worries each month about her mounting debt. Kate is married to a man who's on track to be the next governor of Virginia, but the larger questions brewing in their future are unsettling her. Stay-at-home mom Amy has a perfect life on paper, but as the horrific secret she's keeping from her friends threatens to reveal itself, she panics. 

As life's pressures build all around them, Waverly knows she has some big decisions to make. In doing so, she will discover that the lines between loyalty and betrayal can become blurred, happy endings aren't always clear-cut, and sometimes you have to risk everything to gain the life you deserve.

My Thoughts:

Waverly Brown is thirty-five years old and is the proud owner of Maggie's, a bakery. She and boyfriend Larry have been together for ten years, all of which have been very happy. But even so, Waverly is still dealing with many issues. The death of her parents fifteen years before and the dramatic loss in business. In fact, things are getting worse by the day and for some reason she just can't seem to ask for help. Nobody knows that her business is in trouble, not even Larry. At first I wasn't sure what to make of her. I couldn't understand why she didn't just tell Larry what was going on and see if he could help her. But as I learned more and more about her, I began to understand. She felt like a loser not being able to take care of everything in her life on her own, something she thought was a sign of success, and being successful meant being happy. Even so, she was still a very strong character. Loyal and honest in the kind of way we all wish our friends were. She put the needs of her friends before her own, even when they didn't exactly deserve it.

Those friends, Kate and Amy, couldn't be more different from each other. Kate was born to a very wealthy, important family and her husband was the top choice to become the governor of Virginia. She is stunningly gorgeous, and has somewhat of a poor attitude. To be honest, I didn't much care for her. I wasn't even sure how Waverly could be friends with someone who did nothing but complain and constantly treat her like crap. Amy, on the other hand, was everything Kate wasn't. Perky, caring and the kind of person that wakes up in the morning with a smile on their face just because they are happy to be alive. A little irritating, sure, but she was a reliable friend that Waverly could always count on.

The author does an exceptional job of reeling you in from the very beginning. We are immediately shoved into an uncomfortable situation and slowly led through the character's lives to bring out every small secret that had led up to that moment. The pacing is perfect and the character's lives are completely believable and relevant.

I'll be honest and tell you that the events in this book were hard to read at times. But that is the sign of a great story, one that makes you feel many different emotions while reading it and keeps your heart racing. There were times in this book that I wanted to jump into the pages and smack around a few people. But there is also something very important to learn from this story. No matter what may happen to your friendship, if you know someone is in trouble, sometimes going against their wishes and getting help is the only thing you can do to save them. Being a friend means more than being a sympathetic ear. It means being there to help when that person may not even want your help. To never give up on that friendship even though you know they may never want to see you again.

How Lucky You Are is an incredible story about friendship, love and loyalty. I highly recommend it to all lovers of Chick Lit, female or not, and to anyone who has ever risked the loss of a friend in order to help save them.


For more about Kristyn Kusek Lewis or How Lucky You Are, visit her website here.

{Purchase}

{Amazon}{B&N}{The Book Depository}

*I received this book for free in exchange of my honest review. This did not influence my opinion in any way and all views and opinions expressed are 100% my own.

Waiting on Wednesday (50)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: Rootless
Author: Chris Howard
Expected Publication Date: November 1, 2012

From Goodreads:

17-year-old Banyan is a tree builder. Using scrap metal and salvaged junk, he creates forests for rich patrons who seek a reprieve from the desolate landscape. Although Banyan's never seen a real tree—they were destroyed more than a century ago—his father used to tell him stories about the Old World. But that was before his father was taken . . .

Everything changes when Banyan meets a woman with a strange tattoo—a clue to the whereabouts of the last living trees on earth, and he sets off across a wasteland from which few return. Those who make it past the pirates and poachers can't escape the locusts—the locusts that now feed on human flesh.

But Banyan isn't the only one looking for the trees, and he's running out of time. Unsure of whom to trust, he's forced to make an uneasy alliance with Alpha, an alluring, dangerous pirate with an agenda of her own. As they race towards a promised land that might only be a myth, Banyan makes shocking discoveries about his family, his past, and how far people will go to bring back the trees.

Can you imagine living in a world without trees? I can't! I'm not sure how this story is going to work, I'm a little curious to see how they explain the lack of trees yet they have oxygen. Hopefully it will make some sense and not be one of those ideas where you are expected to just ignore everything scientific you know. I'm not a fan of those stories. Either way, I'm anxious to read this one, it still sounds pretty promising.

What are you waiting on this week? Leave me a link in the comments and I'll check it out!

Winners!

Howdy! I have some winners to announce for the last few giveaway hops. Are you ready? Here we go!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Congrats, winners! As always, the winners were chosen via Rafflecopter and all entries verified.

Didn't win? Try again! You can always find the list of current giveaways on the top left sidebar. Good luck!