Cleaning Up My TBR With a Giveaway (US Only) - Down the TBR Hole #19

This meme was started by Lost in a Story.  Here is how it works:

• Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
• Order on ascending date added.
• Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
• Read the synopses of the books
• Decide: keep it or should it go?

Because I have so many to do, I'm going to try to do this weekly, and do 10 at a time.


1.   After Obsession by Carrie Jones:

ALAN
There she is. The dream rushes back to me. We were falling, clutching at each other, with twisting darkness all around us... The girl looks up at me and I realize I've stopped walking and am staring at her. I see something in her eyes, something like recognition.

AIMEE
And in that second I know, absolutely know, that something in my life has changed irrevocably. This is the guy from my dreams. Right here. And we are going to have to do something, save something, together. I just don't know what.

TOGETHER
Alan and Aimee have just met, but already they are bound to each other by something they can't quite name. Something that rattles the windows, haunts the waters... and threatens to tear them apart before they get a chance to find out what their connection means.  

My thoughts:
This was probably thrown in during my paranormal romance obsession phase.  Now, don't know that I am that excited by it.

Verdict:  Toss



2.  The Fall (The Rift #1) by Robert J. Duperre:

The World Will Never Be The Same...

An ancient evil, trapped in the ruins of a lost Mayan temple for centuries, has been unleashed. It takes the form of a deadly virus, one that causes violent insanity in the living and the recently departed to rise and walk. It spreads around the globe, throwing the world into chaos and war.

As it progresses, those in the States who find themselves far away from the epicenter watch it unfold with unbelieving eyes. From Washington D.C. to Dover, New Hampshire, regular people are hurled into an existence outside their control, left to deal with catastrophic situations that they are unprepared to handle. Life becomes a nightmare, and that nightmare is spreading.

First time author Robert J. Duperre presents this scenario with The Fall: The Rift Book I, the first of a four-part series. In this book, he throws his characters into a gambit; when the alternatives are life or death, self-preservation or the protection of others, what path will they choose? Is there a darkness that resides in everyone, from every walk of life, that is screaming for release? When society falls apart and we are left to our own devices, will we make the right decisions, or let the tide take us where it may? There is horror, there is death, there are the walking dead, and all around are choices.

The novel is illustrated by Jesse David Young, whose drawings capture the intense feel of the events happening within. There are twenty illustrations in all, as well as the cover art he provided. These add to the reading experience and help to throw you, the reader, head-first into the world they have created.  

My thoughts:  Eh, probably  not my type of read anymore.

Verdict:  Toss



3.  Damned (Crusade #2) by Nancy Holder:

There is a fine line between love and sacrifice….
Antonio would do anything for his beloved fighting partner Jenn. He protects her, even suppresses his vampire cravings to be with her. Together, they defend humanity against the Cursed Ones. But tensions threaten to fracture their hunting team and his loyalty—his love—is called into question.

Jenn, the newly appointed Hunter, aches for revenge against the Cursed One who converted her sister. And with an even more sinister power on the rise, she must overcome her personal vendettas to lead her team into battle.

Antonio and Jenn need each other to survive, but evil lurks at every turn. With humanity’s fate hanging in the balance, they must face down the darkness…or die trying.  

My thoughts:  
I love this author, but not sure why I have this second book in a series on my list.  I don't think I've read the first one.  

Verdict:  Toss



4.  This Dark Endeavour (The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein) by Kenneth Oppel:

The purest intentions can stir up the darkest obsessions.

In this prequel to Mary Shelley’s gothic classic, Frankenstein, 16-year-old Victor Frankenstein begins a dark journey that will change his life forever. Victor’s twin, Konrad, has fallen ill, and no doctor is able to cure him. Unwilling to give up on his brother, Victor enlists his beautiful cousin Elizabeth and best friend Henry on a treacherous search for the ingredients to create the forbidden Elixir of Life. Impossible odds, dangerous alchemy and a bitter love triangle threaten their quest at every turn.

Victor knows he must not fail. But his success depends on how far he is willing to push the boundaries of nature, science, and love—and how much he is willing to sacrifice.  

My thoughts:
If you know me, you know I love a good retelling or new prequel to kind of retell a story. This is one that still sounds good to me.

Verdict:  Keep



5.   The Fox Inheritance (Jenna Fox Chronicles #2) by Mary E. Pearson:

Once there were three. Three friends who loved each other—Jenna, Locke, and Kara. And after a terrible accident destroyed their bodies, their three minds were kept alive, spinning in a digital netherworld. Even in that disembodied nightmare, they were still together. At least at first. When Jenna disappeared, Locke and Kara had to go on without her. Decades passed, and then centuries.

Two-hundred-and-sixty years later, they have been released at last. Given new, perfect bodies, Locke and Kara awaken to a world they know nothing about, where everyone they once knew and loved is long dead.

Everyone except Jenna Fox.

  
My thoughts:
I liked the first one.  It's been a while since I read it, but I feel like I'm still interested enough to go on with the story.

Verdict:  Keep



6.  A Breath of Eyre (Unbound #1) by Eve Marie Mont:

In this stunning, imaginative novel, Eve Marie Mont transports her modern-day heroine into the life of Jane Eyre to create a mesmerizing story of love, longing, and finding your place in the world. . .

Emma Townsend has always believed in stories--the ones she reads voraciously, and the ones she creates. Perhaps it's because she feels like an outsider at her exclusive prep school, or because her stepmother doesn't come close to filling the void left by her mother's death. And her only romantic prospect--apart from a crush on her English teacher--is Gray Newman, a long-time friend who just adds to Emma's confusion. But escape soon arrives in an old leather-bound copy of Jane Eyre. . .

Reading of Jane's isolation sparks a deep sense of kinship. Then fate takes things a leap further when a lightning storm catapults Emma right into Jane's body and her nineteenth-century world. As governess at Thornfield, Emma has a sense of belonging she's never known--and an attraction to the brooding Mr. Rochester. Now, moving between her two realities and uncovering secrets in both, Emma must decide whether her destiny lies in the pages of Jane's story, or in the unwritten chapters of her own. . . 

My thoughts:
I do like retellings like this.  I still think this one sounds good too.

Verdict:  Keep



7.  Starstruck by Cyn Balog:

Gwendolyn "Dough" X doesn't think she has much going for her—she carries a few extra pounds, her family struggles with their small bakery in a town full of millionaires, and the other kids at her New Jersey high school don't seem to know that she exists. Thank the stars for her longtime boyfriend, Philip P. Wishman—or "Wish." He moved away to California three years ago, when they were 13, but then professed his love for her via e-mail, and he's been her long-distance BF ever since.
At the beginning of her junior year, though, Wish e-mails that he's moving back to Jersey. Great, right? Well, except that Dough has gained about 70 pounds since the last time Wish saw her, while Wish—according to his Facebook photos—has morphed into a blonde god. Convinced that she'll be headed for Dumpsville the minute Wish lays eyes on her, Dough delays their meeting as long as she possibly can.
But when she sees Wish at school, something amazing happens. He looks at Dough like she's just as gorgeous as he is. But Wish is acting a little weird, obsessed with the sun and freaked out by rain. And the creepy new guy working at the bakery, Christian, is convinced that there's more to Wish's good looks than just healthy eating and lots of sun. He tells Dough that a mark on Wish's neck marks him as a member of the Luminati—an ancient cult of astrologers who can manipulate the stars to improve their lives. Is Wish and Dough's love meant to be—or are they star-crossed?

My thoughts:  
I don't remember adding this one, but it sounds like it is good.  I need to keep it.

Verdict:  Keep



 8.  Before Ever After by Samantha Sotto:

Three years after her husband Max's death, Shelley feels no more adjusted to being a widow than she did that first terrible day. That is, until the doorbell rings. Standing on her front step is a young man who looks so much like Max; same smile, same eyes, same age, same adorable bump in his nose; he could be Max's long-lost relation. He introduces himself as Paolo, an Italian editor of American coffee table books, and shows Shelley some childhood photos. Paolo tells her that the man in the photos, the bearded man who Paolo says is his grandfather though he never seems to age, is Max. Her Max. And he is alive and well.

As outrageous as Paolo's claims seem; how could her husband be alive? And if he is, why hasn't he looked her up? Shelley desperately wants to know the truth. She and Paolo jet across the globe to track Max down; if it is really Max and along the way, Shelley recounts the European package tour where they had met. As she relives Max's stories of bloody Parisian barricades, medieval Austrian kitchens, and buried Roman boathouses, Shelley begins to piece together the story of who her husband was and what these new revelations mean for her "happily ever after." And as she and Paolo get closer to the truth, Shelley discovers that not all stories end where they are supposed to. 

My thoughts:
Yeah, this is so not my type of book.

Verdict: Toss



9.  The Princess of Westfalin Trilogy #1 and #2 by Jessica Day George:

A tale of twelve princesses doomed to dance until dawn…

Galen is a young soldier returning from war; Rose is one of twelve princesses condemned to dance each night for the King Under Stone. Together Galen and Rose will search for a way to break the curse that forces the princesses to dance at the midnight balls. All they need is one invisibility cloak, a black wool chain knit with enchanted silver needles, and that most critical ingredient of all—true love—to conquer their foes in the dark halls below. But malevolent forces are working against them above ground as well, and as cruel as the King Under Stone has seemed, his wrath is mere irritation compared to the evil that awaits Galen and Rose in the brighter world above.

Captivating from start to finish, Jessica Day George’s take on the Grimms’ tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses demonstrates yet again her mastery at spinning something entirely fresh out of a story you thought you knew.      

Hoping to escape the troubles in her kingdom, Princess Poppy reluctantly agrees to take part in a royal exchange program, whereby young princes and princesses travel to each other's countries in the name of better political alliances--and potential marriages. It's got the makings of a fairy tale--until a hapless servant named Eleanor is tricked by a vengeful fairy godmother into competing with Poppy for the eligible prince. Ballgowns, cinders, and enchanted glass slippers fly in this romantic and action-packed happily-ever-after quest from an author with a flair for embroidering tales in her own delightful way. 








My thoughts:
So, both are fairy tale retellings. But as much as I want to keep and read all of these, I just don't know when I would get to them. The Twelve Dancing Princesses that the first book is based on is one of my all time favorite tales, but oh well.  

Verdict:  Keep the first, toss the second for now



10.  Exes and Ohs:  A Downtown Girl's (Mostly Awkward) Tales of Love, Lust, Revenge, and a Little Facebook Stalking by Shallon Lester:

Think you’ve have some outrageous dating horror stories? You don't have anything on Shallon Lester.

 Spunky Shallon Lester has accumulated more than her fair share of embarrassing stories. In this collection of hilarious essays, she chronicles her dorky, daring, and awkward journey from waitress at the ninth circle of hell known as Houston's Time Square restaurant, to columnist at one of New York's leading gossip magazines, to MTV reality star, gleefully weaving in stories of all boys she's loved, lost, and avenged along the way.

Complete with cringe-worthy tales of:

-The time a new boyfriend found the stockpile of Magnum condoms hidden under her bed
-Getting caught stealing (borrowing?) bacon from her local supermarket
-Unwittingly getting romantically involved with the leader of a mafia ring
-Being dumped on Valentines Day (for the second year in a row), just minutes before being forced to attend El Concierto Del Amor con Marc Anthony y Jennifer Lopez. Alone. Did I mention on Valentine's day?
-An unfortunate sholess, sweaty, shoe-less run in with Ed Westwick and Chace Crawford on an East Village Street Corner

With a fresh and irresistible voice that makes you want to sit down and rehash last night's misadventures over martinis, Lester speaks volumes to anyone who's even been young, ambitious, and a little bit slutty.   

My thoughts:
This again during my phase of lots of single girl or diet memoirs. And at first when I saw this on the list, I was like, eh, I don't know if I'll ever date again, so why bother. But reading it, well, I think I might still want to actually read this some day.

Verdict:  Keep


Final Thoughts:
Only tossing half of them this week, but I'm still happy to be doing that.  Have you read any of these?  Would you suggest I keep any I'm tossing?  And if you're inspired to do this on your blog, please feel free to join in and share a link in the comments, since it's not really catching on, I'm not going to waste time with the link up this week.  It will also get you an extra entry into my giveaway at the bottom of this post.      
 

Giveaway:
Once again this is a US only giveaway, unless you are International and see a book here you really want and would be willing to pay for the difference in the shipping through Paypal or some other way.  This week I'm upping the prize, you get to pick any two books from the pictures below, as long as they don't get traded away, or picked by last week's winner, and I will pick a surprise book from the piles to add to your choice.  Here are your choices:   

2018 ARCs;

2017 ARCs:

2014-2016ARCs:

 

Once again I'm going to let you pick two, along with me throwing in a surprise third book!  Just enter the Rafflecopter below. 

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A to Z April: Q Reviews - Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot/Queen of the Slayers by Nancy Holder

You would think book titles starting with the letter Q would be few and far between. And really, that is true for the most part. But I had two that started with the word queen, so that worked perfectly for the first post this week.  One is a chick lit book, another by that popular author Meg Cabot.  The other is a story from the last season of one of my most favorite tv series ever, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


So, as I said, the first is by Meg Cabot, it is the first in the Queen of Babble series, and that is its title.  It's kind of an American girl in Europe story.  The main character Lizzie just cannot keep her mouth shut.  And she is always opening up and letting the wrong things slip in front of the wrong people.  Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

What's an American girl with a big mouth, but an equally big heart, to do?

Lizzie Nichols has a problem, and it isn't that she doesn't have the slightest idea what she's going to do with her life, or that she's blowing what should be her down payment on a cute little Manhattan apartment on a trip to London to visit her long-distance boyfriend, Andrew. But what's the point of planning for the future when she's done it again? See, Lizzie can't keep her mouth shut. And it's not just that she can't keep her own secrets, she can't keep anything to herself.

This time when she opens her big mouth, her good intentions get Andrew in major hot water. So now Lizzie's stuck in London with no boyfriend and no place to stay until the departure date written on her non-refundable airline ticket.

Fortunately, there's Shari, Lizzie's best friend and college roommate, who's spending her summer in southern France, catering weddings with her boyfriend, Chaz, in a sixteenth-century château. One call and Lizzie's on a train to Souillac. Who cares if she's never traveled alone in her life and only speaks rudimentary French? One glimpse of gorgeous Château Mirac - not to mention gorgeous Luke, the son of Château Mirac's owner - and she's smitten.

But while most caterers can be trusted to keep a secret, Lizzie's the exception. And no sooner has the first cork been popped than Luke hates her, the bride is in tears, and it looks like Château Mirac is in danger of becoming a lipo-recovery spa. As if things aren't bad enough, her ex-boyfriend Andrew shows up looking for "closure" (or at least a loan), threatening to ruin everything, especially Lizzie's chance at ever finding real love...

Unless she can figure out a way to use that big mouth of hers to save the day.

The 2nd one is from the last season when the only way for the Scooby gang to win was to get all the slayers in training up to full slayer power.  Of course it takes magic, and Willow is there to do that. Even with the misgivings of the last time she did big magic and what it turned her into.  After they've saved the world, what does it man to have all of those slayers now, instead of just the Chosen ONE.  Here is the blurb from Goodreads.com:

No vacation. No benefits. And the only retirement is an early death. 

With the closing of the Hellmouth and the awakening of hundreds of potential slayers, Buffy Summers thought she had overturned the Slayer's self-sacrifice and earned herself a much-deserved break. But the thrill of victory is short-lived. The Forces of Darkness are not ones to graciously accept defeat, and the collective rage unites disparate and powerful parties more eager than ever to reclaim dominance.
Willow's magickal distribution of the slayer essence left girls across the world discovering their latent power. Giles races to reorganize the now much-needed Watchers Council, and the Scoobies relocate to Europe. And there in Rome, Buffy is drawn to the Immortal -- a charismatic, if inscrutable, figure. But then comes word that a number of the fresh slayers are being coerced to join an army of slayers -- governed by the mysterious "Queen of the Slayers," an awesome evil determined to claim the intoxicating slayer essence for herself.
Xander is sent to Africa to learn more about the origin of the slayer essence. Instead, he returns to report that, alarmingly, there's not enough good in the world to counteract the overabundance of evil, and that the deciding apocalypse is drawing much too near. Alliances are formed and loyalties betrayed as it comes down to slayer versus slayer, leading to an ultimate battle of champions -- from Buffy's past and present. And then an unimaginable gift arrives...

If you are a Meg Cabot fan, have you read this book, or this series?  I believe I need to finish the series.  Are you a Buffy fan?  If so, have you read any of the books or graphic novels based after the tv series ended?

While you're here, don't forget to enter my giveaway below!

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On Fire: A Teen Wolf Novel by Nancy Holder

On Fire by Nancy Holder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was so excited when I saw that I could email the author and get a copy of this book for review. So I immediately did that, and very soon it came in the mail! So I put it on my next to read list since it had already been published. The reason I wanted to read this book is because I was first introduced to the writing of Nancy Holder from her Buffy the Vampire Slayer novelizations. And I always loved the ones that she had written. She has a way of capturing the characters' personalities and making it feel as if you are actually watching an episode of the show. And to be able to do this with such a well crafted show like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, well, you know what a great author that makes her. Teen Wolf is one of my new favorite shows. While I still love the original movie, and the tv show departs quite a bit from that, I love the characters in the show. Especially Stiles. I actually like him much more on the tv show than I did in the movie. Nancy Holder did not disappoint with this tv show tie-in novel.
Now I'm a bit embarrassed to admit that as I watched Teen Wolf during the 1st season, I would often be playing on the computer, so I'm sure there are a few storylines I missed. But I think this was one of those stories that didn't actually happen on the show, something that could have happened during the times we didn't see. And I liked getting the back story. What the relationship between Derek and Allison's aunt Kate was before. More information about Jackson. And I even like towards the end when Derek's memories gave us a little glimpse into the lives of both Scott and Stiles when big events were occurring in their families.
I have been more careful about what books I give 5 stars to lately. But since I feel this book captures the essence of the tv show so well, like the Buffy books I read by this author, I had to give this a 5 as well. And I really hope there will be more tie-in novelizations, especially done by her!
Oooh, and I just realized, I still need an "N" book for my A-Z Reading Challenge, and since this author's first name is Nancy, I'll use this to fill that in!!

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