Showing posts with label Wendy Higgins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wendy Higgins. Show all posts

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Stacking the Shelves #71

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews in which we feature all the book goodness that we received, borrowed or purchased during the previous week. All links are to Goodreads.

Hi there gorgeous people!  Another incredibly busy week comes to an end.  The Northeast has been with yet another storm and my internet has been a bit unstable.  At this point, the kids might be in school until July!

Only two books this week, but two really good ones:

For Review


Sweet Reckoning by Wendy Higgins - I LOVE this series and I can't wait to read the conclusion. I do love me some Kai! Thanks to HarperTeen 


Only Everything by Kieran Scott  - I received this one in the mail with several postcards too.  I can't wait to read this one! Thanks to Simon & Schuster.

What's stacking your shelves this week?

Friday, December 27, 2013

Top 10 Books We've Looking Forward to in 2014

Top 10 of 2013 is hosted by a group of fabulous bloggers and you can find more information here

Liza’s List
From endings to amazing series to the beginning of new one and promising standalones, 2014 promises to be another incredible year for YA (and MG/NA!).  These are the ones that I’m most eagerly waiting for (of course, not including Arianne’s list too!):

10.  Take Me On by Katie McGarry (no cover)
Crash Into You, the last book in the Pushing the Limits series was absolutely amazing, I can’t wait to see what else is in store for us.
Expected publication: May 20th, 2014


9.   Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater
I adore Stiefvater’s Wolves of Mercy Falls series, and even though I never came to love Isabelle, I’m willing to give her a change (besides I do like Cole!)
Expected publication: July 1st, 2014


8.   Be with Me by J. Lynn
If you read Wait for You, you don’t need further explanation, do you?
Expected publication: February 4th, 2014


7.   The Warrior by Victoria Scott
Dante *sigh*
Expected publication: May 6th, 2014

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Best Book Boyfriends of 2013

Top 10 of 2013 is hosted by a group of fabulous bloggers and you can find more information here

Arianne’s List

There are so many things I could say about the beautiful boys on this list! But I think I may lose all coherency if I do, so I'll just let them speak for themselves using some of my favourite quotes from their books :)

1. Isaiah from Crash Into You by Katie McGarry

“I can’t give you the world, Rachel, but I’ll give you all I got.”

2. Hale from Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter

“I'm too close.”
“You don't get it, do you? Being close is good. Caring is good. I love that you're emotional and passionate and can't turn these things off.”
“It makes me a bad thief.”
“It makes you a good person.”

3. Graham from This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

“He hadn't realized how much it could mean, having someone to talk to like that; he hadn't realized that it could be a kind of lifeline, and that without it, there would be nobody to save you if you started to drown.”

4. Warden from The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

“I do not know what I can do for this world, but I will not let any harm come to you.”

5. Emilio from The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler

“Don't settle, okay? Not for anything. I mean it. You only get this one chance at life, far as I know. Take it. Even if its not with me.”

6. Day from Prodigy by Marie Lu

“You know, sometimes I wonder what things would be like if I just ... met you one day. Like normal people do. If I just walked by you on some street one sunny morning and thought you were cute, stopped, shook your hand, and said, "Hi, I'm Daniel.”

7. Ezra from The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider

“She tasted like buried treasure and swing sets and coffee. She tasted the way fireworks felt, like something you could get close to but never really have just for yourself.”

8. Jesse from Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

“You like me, Josie Moraine. You just don't know it yet.”

9. Lucas from Goddess by Josephine Angelini

"I never expected you to think I was perfect. I know I'm not."
"You are to me."
"That's all I care about," Lucas said quietly. "Not-my-cousin Helen.”

10. Four from Allegiant by Veronica Roth
"I love you, too," he says. "I'll see you soon.”



Liza’s List

Arianne, I hope you don’t mind that I followed your lead and used quotes to let these awesome YA Book Boyfriends talk for themselves!

1.  Dante from The Collector / The Liberator by Victoria Scott

“I will protect this girls with everything I have, because if something happens to her, I will lose myself. I will cease to exist.
And I will take everyone with me.”

2. Hector from The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson

“I love you, too," he whispers in my ear. "Wholly. Madly."
"Does that mean you'll marry me?"
"I suppose.”

3.  Isaiah from Crash into You by Katie McGarry

“I love you, Rachel. So this will work. No matter what or who stands in our way.”

4.  Josh from The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

“I don't know how to say it - after all this time, I'm not even sure that I can - but I have to break her last rule, because if she knows nothing else, I need her to know this one thing.
'I love you, Sunshine,' I tell her, before I lose my nerve. 'And I don't give a shit whether you want me to or not.”

5.  Willem from Just One Year by Gayle Forman

“By that point, it’ll have been more than year since I met Lulu. Any sane person would say it’s too late. It already felt too late that first day, when I woke up in the hospital.
But even so, I’ve kept looking.
I’m still looking.”


6.  Perry from Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi


“It didn't matter if Aria was hundreds of miles away, or whether she'd hurt him, or said goodbye, or anything else. Nothing would change the way he felt. The moment Aria had taken his hand on the roof at Marron's, she'd changed everything. No matter what happened, she'd always be the one.”

7.  Kaidan from Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins

“I was more myself with you during those three days than I’ve ever been with anyone in my life. It’d be easier if I could be fake with you, but you bring out everything in me, little Ann. All of it.”

8.  Cam from Wait for You by J. Lynn

“I want to be here with you, Avery. You don't have to worry about impressing me or wowing me. You've already done that.”

9.  Henry from The Goddess Inheritance by Aimée Carter

“I see the sunrise now," he said. "Because of you, the days have color. Eternity has meaning once more. You found every broken piece of me and put me back together, even though I hurt you too many times for me to deserve it. You are the glue that holds me together. If I lose you, it will be the end of me. The end of everything good in this world.”

10.  Vincent from If I Should Die by Amy Plum

“Whatever happens, remember that I will love you forever,” he says. “Even if my spirit is dispersed and my consciousness released to the universe... whatever is left of me will never stop loving you.”

What do you think about our choices?  Do you have some of the same book boy friends?  Be warned that we will fight for some of these!

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Top Ten Best Sequels Ever

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish

This list (as most Top Ten lists) can be huge, although I am hopelessly behind in so many series that's not even funny!  Well, here it goes:


1.  The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson - It is difficult to decide on just one book of this trilogy, but I'm going with it's conclusion.  Outstanding! 


2.  Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi - I'm about 60% done with this book (just reading it while I walk on the treadmill), but it's even better than Under the Never Sky and that's saying a lot!



3.  Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins - My goodness, this one was SO good!  I love Kai and Anna and the sequel was just plain hot awesomeness.


4.  Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - I liked this book better than Mockingjay, although I'm a big fan of the series, this book was my favorite.  Such an amazing way to continue the goodness of The Hunger Games


5.  Spark by Brigid Kemmerer - Really good sequel to Storm. The Merrick brothers *sigh* need I say more?


6.  The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa - I'm a big fan of the Iron Fey series and this one is my favorite book because it's from Ash's point of view. 



7.  Harry Potter series by J.K.Rowling - Yes, I'm aware that this is more than one book, but honestly, I cannot choose just one.  


8.  The Liberator by Victoria Scott - This one did not suffer from the second book syndrome at all.  So, so good. How could it now if it's about Dante?


9.  Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas - It's incredible to believe, but this book might be even better than Throne of Glass.  So incredibly good!


10. Romancing Mr. Bridgerton by Julia Quinn - This is my favorite (book #3) of the series.  I just love Colin and Penelope :)

What's in your list of Top Ten best sequels?


Thursday, August 8, 2013

Authors are Rockstars: Wendy Higgins


I am so excited to participate in the Authors are RockstarsTour and even more excited to host the always fabulous, author extraordinaire Wendy Higgins!

In April of last year I won an ARC of Sweet Evil from Goodreads, I had the book in my to-be-read list and I couldn't believe my good fortune.  I proceeded to devour the book in no time and it quickly made my list of the top ten books read in 2012.  I impatiently waited for Sweet Peril and I listen to the audio book (which is, by the way, really good) and I loved it even more!  Sweet Peril did not suffer at all from the 2nd book syndrome; overall the Sweet series is SO GOOD! 

Stick around for a great Interview with Wendy and a fabulous Giveaway!  Let's show Wendy some love!

Wendy Higgins is a Rockstar because...

- She created Kaidan.  Sorry, but it had to go first!  Kaidan is one of my favorite male characters in YA because he fights so hard to be what he thinks Anna needs and deserves.  She gave him a British accent too!

- Even though there are many books out there about angels and demons, she made the world of the Sweet Trilogy fresh and unique.

- Wendy is a master of characterization; I really love all the characters in the series.  Good or bad, they all have depth and are distinctive of each other.

- The writing of these books is outstanding.

- Parents are not missing and uncaring for a change!  At least not Anna’s.

- She created some pretty swoon worthy lines.  Exhibit #1:

“A vibrant energy rushed through my body as the pieces slammed into place. Oh, dear Lord. I was in love with him.  And there wasn’t a thing on earth, in heaven, or in hell that could have stopped me.”

And here is Exhibit #2:

“I was more myself with you during those three days than I’ve ever been with anyone in my life. It’d be easier if I could be fake with you, but you bring out everything in me, little Ann. All of it.”

- Her Next book was inspired by leprechauns! (Need I say more?)

About Wendy Higgins

After earning a bachelors in Creative Writing from George Mason University and a masters in Curriculum and Instruction from Radford, Wendy taught high school English until becoming a mommy. Writing Young Adult (YA) stories gives her the opportunity to delve into the ambiguities of those pivotal, daunting, and exciting years before adulthood.

She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband, daughter, and son. Sweet Evil is her debut novel.




Here is the Interview

Q: How did you come up with the idea for the Sweet trilogy?
A. I paid the imagination gods! LOL - just kidding. I don’t really have a good answer for this. It just came out of my crazy brain.  I think all elements of my life led up to it - my own teen experiences, friendships, crushes, heartbreaks, good decisions, bad decisions, the things I think are sexy and creepy, my spirituality, the books I’ve read, the teens I work with - everything!  It just bombarded my mind one summer.  It was awesome.

Q. Your books have a different take on the angel/demon lore.  What type of research did you do to write the series?
A.  I use a lot of traditional Biblical lore about angels and demons.  My research consisted of reading scripture passages which were horribly vague, and then making the rest of the details up to suit my purposes, hahaha.  I also read lots of stuff online about angel/demon mythology, which is fascinating to me.

Q. Kaidan is one of my favorite characters ever! How would Kaidan describe Anna and their relationship? (I can imagine the British accent :))
A. Aw, thank you! Kaidan would say that Anna is maddening, naive, and too adorable for her own good. He’d probably shiver at the word “relationship,” and say, “It’s complicated.” Then he’d grin.

Q. Can you give us a small peek about Sweet Reckoning?  Anything will be awesome!
A. Well, I can tell you that Anna is 18 and Kaidan is 19. The story takes place over the course of two crazy weeks. We see a lot more of Jay and a lot less of Veronica. And my favorite chapter title is “Impatient Freckles.”  :)

Q. Are there any YA books that you are anxiously waiting for?
A. Yes! Endless Knight by Kresley Cole (the sequel to Poison Princess)

Q. Do you listen to music while you work?
A. No. I need to have complete quiet while I write. But music helps my mood between writing sessions and keeps my mind in story mode.

Q. What’s your favorite comfort food?
A. French fries and Coke from McDonalds. Isn’t that gross?? I can’t help it. *sigh*

Q. What’s your favorite drink?
A. Coffee with coconut creamer.  Mmmm.  And water. Coke occasionally.

Q. What’s next for you?
A. Well, I’ve got my self-publication, SEE ME (an Irish YA fantasy) coming out October 1st, and my third book of the trilogy, SWEET RECKONING, coming out April 29th, 2014.  I have no other YA stories stirring around right now, and I’m really, really hoping to feel inspired soon.  I will feel lost without characters chatting loudly in my head.

Q. Anything else that you would like to add?
A. Thank you so much for having me!  *hugs*

About Wendy’s Books:

Embrace the ForbiddenWhat if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She's aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn't until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He's the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

Anna Whitt, the daughter of a guardian angel and a demon, promised herself she’d never do the work of her father—polluting souls. She’d been naive to make such a vow. She’d been naive about a lot of things.
Haunted by demon whisperers, Anna does whatever she can to survive, even if it means embracing her dark side and earning an unwanted reputation as her school’s party girl. Her life has never looked more bleak. And all the while there’s Kaidan Rowe, son of the Duke of Lust, plaguing her heart and mind.When an unexpected lost message from the angels surfaces, Anna finds herself traveling the globe with Kopano, son of Wrath, in an attempt to gain support of fellow Nephilim and give them hope for the first time. It soon becomes clear that whatever freedoms Anna and the rest of the Neph are hoping to win will not be gained without a fight. Until then, Anna and Kaidan must put aside the issues between them, overcome the steamiest of temptations yet, and face the ultimate question: is loving someone worth risking their life?

Giveaway

The giveaway is International, I will send the book from The Book Depository or Amazon, depending on the winner's residence (make sure that one of them delivers to you!)  There will be ONE winner and he or she can select one of the books featured above.

Please see my terms in the Rafflecopter widget of in "My Policies" above. Good luck!

**NOTE: On 9/3 Wendy emailed me to let me know that she will not be publishing See Me as expected, thus I removed it from this post and from the giveaway. Sorry!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Top Ten Books I've Read so Far in 2013

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish

I haven't read nearly as many books this year as I would like and yet, it was really hard to limit myself to ten books :)


1.  Just One Day by Gayle Forman - My goddness is this one good!  Truly an amazing story of growth and self discovery. See my review here



2.  Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi - I adore dystopian and, although it took me forever to read this one (thanks Hannah!), I will make up the lost time in undying love.  See my review here


3.  Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers - I swear that LaFevers can do no wrong.  Even if you have never read historical fiction, you should give this series a try, you will not regret it!  See my review here


4.  Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins - This is one of the best sequels ever!  I adore Kaidan and the story and everything else. So, so good :)  See my review here


5.  Parasol Protectorate by Gail Carriger -  So this is more than one book since I finished books #2 - #5 this year.  Outstanding world building, characterization and writing makes this an amazing (adult) series.  The best of Steampunk!  


6.  The Collector by Victoria Scott - Oh Dante, how I love thee!  A wonderful book with wonderful characters.  See my review here


7.  Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout  - I know, I know... why did it took me so long to start the Lux series!  Another bad boy that I adore, an alien story like no other.  See my review here



8.  Shadow & Bone by Leigh Bardugo - I love to read fantasy and this book is one of the best in the genre.  Amazing story full of magic, incredible characters and an ancient fight of good and evil!  See my review here


9.  Angelfall by Susan Ee - Another unique dystopian mixed with angels and the struggle for survival.  So awesome!  See my review here


10.  Goddess Inheritance by Aimée Carter - A fit conclusion for a beloved series, everything that I wanted and then some. See my review here


11.  Crown of Embers by Rae Carson - This is definitely one of my favorite series of all time!  Eliza is one of the best heroines ever written, I cannot wait for book three!  See my review here

Sorry I went over guys, but I couldn't bring myself to shorten the list!  

What's in your Top Ten this week?



Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Review: Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins (The Sweet Trilogy #2)

Title: Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins
Published: April 30th, 2013 by HarperTeen
Source: Puchased in Audible
Format: Audio book narrated by Erin Mallon
Group age: Young adult
Genre: Paranormal romance
Challenge(s): 2013 Books in a Series
Grade rate: A+

Anna Whitt, the daughter of a guardian angel and a demon, promised herself she’d never do the work of her father—polluting souls. She’d been naive to make such a vow. She’d been naive about a lot of things.
 Haunted by demon whisperers, Anna does whatever she can to survive, even if it means embracing her dark side and earning an unwanted reputation as her school’s party girl. Her life has never looked more bleak. And all the while there’s Kaidan Rowe, son of the Duke of Lust, plaguing her heart and mind. When an unexpected lost message from the angels surfaces, Anna finds herself traveling the globe with Kopano, son of Wrath, in an attempt to gain support of fellow Nephilim and give them hope for the first time. It soon becomes clear that whatever freedoms Anna and the rest of the Neph are hoping to win will not be gained without a fight. Until then, Anna and Kaidan must put aside the issues between them, overcome the steamiest of temptations yet, and face the ultimate question: is loving someone worth risking their life?

My Review

Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness!  I’ll try to get over my incoherent babble and get on with the review, but seriously, Sweet Peril is incredibly good!

Last year, I was lucky enough to win an ARC of Sweet Evil from Goodreads and I devoured it in no time (see my review here), thus I have been impatiently waiting for book two, and boy was it worth it!  I don’t know about you, but I sometimes get an unfounded fear of sequels when I love a book to much; I’m afraid that the next book won’t live up to my expectations and let me down.  I should have known better and never doubted you Ms. Higgins :)

Sweet Peril starts a couple of months after the end of book one and finds Anna starting her senior year of high school.  She is missing Kaidan (who wouldn’t!), and pretending to work on her dad’s trade as a result of increased surveillance by the whisperers; she has gained a rep as a party girl.  Due to an unexpected and old prophesy, Anna and her dad start looking for other Neph that will be willing to ally with them in a fight to banish the demons from Earth.  So our story stars with a quest to find others; Anna and Kopano travel to different places to talk to these Neph.  We get to meet new characters, like Zania and Flynn and visit with old ones like Ginger, Marna and Drake.   I also enjoy to read about Anna’s relationship with Patti (her adoptive mother), and her dad.

I love Anna’s character!  Even though she is a sweet southern girl, she is smart, loyal and has a big helping of common sense.  She knows to look at the final goal and how important that is even if they have to break a few eggs to get there.  Since I was listening to the audio book I can’t tell you for sure, but it seemed to me that Kai is not in the first third of the book.  This is a true testament to Ms. Higgins writing:  first, I didn’t get bored because all the information was relevant and interesting and, second, Kai was present all the time in Anna’s thoughts and conversations with the other Neph. 

Kaidan is, as I stated in my review of Sweet Evil, one of my favorite characters ever!  I can’t get enough of him, and of course neither can’t Anna.  Kai tries to be so tough and do the “right” thing, but it is so plain to see that he is crazy about Anna.  The scenes between Kai and Anna are extremely HOT; like in ‘handle with care’ hot.  That’s all I’m saying about that!

As you can tell, the characterization on this book is amazing.  I adore these characters and even the Dukes are so bad, but distinct from one another. The plot is so good, it varies from slow and steady, to hot, to action. The writing is outstanding, Ms. Higgins as an incredible talent.  Ms. Mallon did a terrific job with the narration and with the English accents! 

Overall, Sweet Peril was a worthy sequel to one of my favorite reads from last year. I cannot wait for Sweet Reckoning due to be published in May of next year (and the wait starts NOW).

Some quotes for you:

“I was more myself with you during those three days than I’ve ever been with anyone in my life. It’d be easier if I could be fake with you, but you bring out everything in me, little Ann. All of it.” – Kaidan

“God, you smell nice," he whispered. "I've missed that smell. I've missed everything about you, little Ann.” - Kaidan

“We had a secret knowledge that demons couldn't fathom. They saw love as a weakness, but they were wrong. Love would keep us going, love was our strength.” - Anne

About the cover: A beautiful and fit companion for the cover of Sweet Evil! I love the contrast in colors and how both Anna and Kai are dressed in black now.




Saturday, May 11, 2013

Stacking the Shelves #44


Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews in which we feature all the book goodness that we received, borrowed or purchased during the previous week. All links are to Goodreads.

Crazy week again.  I had a visit to the emergency room (I'm fine now after some rest), and we had to put our dog of eleven years to sleep, so not a good week...  Anyway, Mother's day is tomorrow and I'm happy and excited about that :)

Library


This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith - I loved Statistical Probability and I can't wait to start this one :)

Dark Triumph by R.L. LaFevers - Ditto about Grave Mercy.

Audible


Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins - Oh my goodness  another book in a series that I'm dying to get into.  Already listed to the first few chapters.

The Rising by Kelley Armstrong - This is the conclusion of the Darkness Rising series, should be good!

Review


Awaken by Meg Cabot - This is the conclusion of the Abandon series and just look at the gorgeous cover *sigh*  Thank you Point and NetGalley!

Won


Goddess Inheritance by Aimeé Carter - I already read and review the last installment of the Goddess Test series.  It was awesome :)  Thanks HarlequinTeen!

That's it for me!  What's stacking your shelves this week?


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