artsy musings of a bibliophile

Monthly Recap: September

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September was pretty eventful. I came to Lahore in mid-September to finish my thesis and I’m still working on it. I’m staying at my sister’s and everyday I pray for nicer, less humid weather. It hasn’t happened yet. Hopefully, it’ll be over soon and I can go back to my cave (read: bedroom at home) to read books and watch all the fall TV shows.

LIST OF NEWSWORTHY

Cue the awesomeness (and the un-awesomeness)!
Recaptain-ed!
Y’know the awesome website by Judith and Amber where all the cool people post recaps of series so that we remember stuff before we pick up the next book in the series? I’m one of those cool people now. So is Maggie Stiefvater ’cause she wrote the recap of The Raven Boys herself. Still freaking out here!

Do yourself a favor and read Vampire Academy
I’ve been contemplating reading Vampire Academy series for a few years now and I finally did. I just didn’t know that it’d wreak an emotional havoc on me. Vampire Academy thrilled me, Frostbite stunned me and Shadow Kiss ruined me. I may never recover. But oh, the last three books in the series say otherwise.

Le Horror October
A little (fun?) fact about me: I cannot watch horror movies. My imagination goes into overdrive and it takes me weeks to finally stop thinking about all that gore, creepy stuff that happening to me. I mean I jumped in fright watching Final Destination (I was thirteen). Then I watched Paranormal Activity and kept imagining that I’d be dragged away at night by something invisible (I was nineteen). But give me a good creepy, horror-inducing book and I’ll be up reading it all night. Thanks to Leanne from Literary Excursion, this will be possible next month which is tomorrow. Woot!

Goodreads gone bad
First someone, in a desperate need for attention, declared that negative reviews are bullying which spurred a lot of drama. Then Goodreads took author behavior way too seriously and it went downhill from there. I wasn’t personally affected but it appalls me to no end. It’s just not done. But it is changing the blogging world which is so sad. I do not support this decision at all, Goodreads.

80s Music Will Save Your Life
I totally decided to listen to some of the songs mentioned in This Song Will Save Your Life while reading it because I was a stranger to the 80s music (I’m aware that I seriously suck sometimes). Dancing in the Dark, Blue Monday, Wonderwall and so much more awesomeness!

New Harry Potter Movie!
The Potterhead inside me is still overjoyed at the news. I admit I’ve yet to read the book because I want to delay my farewell to the world of Harry Potter and then the actual world delayed it itself. Awesome, isn’t it? If you were living under a rock you might’ve missed the big news, but I’m sure you haven’t. And oh, there’s also going to be The Casual Vacancy TV show next year.

City of Bones
I went to watch City of Bones with my BFF and I don’t know what I think about it. I enjoyed it but it wasn’t awesome. It wasn’t bad either. I need more time think about it.

Gayle Forman and T-shirts
Seriously, look at all the prettiness. Now say thank you.

The End of (93) Days of Summer
At the beginning of summer, I challenged myself to read as many books as I can from my (93) days of summer list. It officially ended on 21st September and I read 14 out of the 36 books. It’s quite an accomplishment for me.

TV WATCH

I caught up to all the episodes of Suits and it’s all going so, so good.
I watched Jane by Design because some ship was driving Debby insane with all the feels. So while Nick Roux is the best thing that ever happened to that show, the rest of it was pretty much meh.
New Girl is definitely my favorite show at the moment because I love each and every character on the show and that is very rare. Also, someone please steal Ferguson for me.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine is a perfect show for me. Cue the ridiculousness and laughter.
Sleepy Hollow is a show that I’m willing to watch in hopes it’ll get better with each new episode.
As much as it makes me sad that it’s the last season of How I Met Your Mother, the first two episodes definitely made up for that fact.
The Big Bang Theory premiered and everything was alright in the world again. “Who died and made you king of moments?” *hugs Raj*
I’ve been anticipating the premiere of Revenge for so long now. It’s finally here and it’s so good i can’t even.

MOVIE WATCH

Mulan (thumbs up) – This was my first time watching it (shocking, I know) and I was so glad that it was unexpectedly so good.
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (thumbs not decided) – Yeah, about that…

LIST OF READS

I read 9 books this month, that’s two up from August. I also realized that there’s no way I’d be able to read 110 books this year (who was I kidding) so I brought it down to 75 books. I’m still 10 books behind on my schedule but  I know I’d be reading a lot ahead due to Le October Horror and Sci-Fi November. 
Golden by Jessi Kirby
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales
In Honor by Jessi Kirby
Frostbite by Richelle Mead
Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead
Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles
Escape from Eden by Elisa Nader
All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill

LIST OF BLOGPOSTS

I’ve been a bad blogger this month but I am working on my thesis so I didn’t post as much as I normally do. 
I posted my review of Golden by Jessi Kirby. Such a beautiful, beautiful book.
I waited on The Here and Now by Ann Brashares. The cover is mesmerizing.
I posted Top Ten Tuesday lists of TV shows set in a perfect world and my fall to-read list.
I posted my review of My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick and discovered that I’m not the only one who wasn’t that impressed by it.
I posted my review of Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles. As much as I was anticipating the title, it didn’t turn out to be as good.
I participated in the blog tour by posting my review of Escape from Eden by Elisa Nader. Definitely a very exciting and unique debut. 

LIST OF BOOK BUYS

Well, half of my books arrived today so I’ve been jumping around mentally. So excited! 
Golden by Jessi Kirby
In Honor by Jessi Kirby
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

PLAYLIST

Most played tunes in September. Pretty unique but my taste is music is always evolving so…

How was your September?

Review: Escape from Eden by Elisa Nader Blog Tour + Giveaway

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Escape from Eden | Elisa Nader | YA Mystery Thriller | Merit Press | 18 August 2013 | 272 (eBook)
ABOUT THE BOOK
Since the age of ten, Mia has lived under the iron fist of the fundamentalist preacher who lured her mother away to join his fanatical family of followers. In Edenton, a supposed “Garden of Eden” deep in the South American jungle, everyone follows the Reverend’s strict but arbitrary rules—even the mandate of whom they can marry. Now sixteen, Mia dreams of slipping away from the armed guards who keep the faithful in, and the curious out. When the rebellious and sexy Gabriel, a new boy, arrives with his family, Mia sees a chance to escape. 
But the scandalous secrets the two discover beyond the compound’s façade are more shocking than anything they ever imagined. While Gabriel has his own terrible secrets, he and Mia bond together, more than friends and freedom fighters. But is there time to think of each other as they race to stop the Reverend’s paranoid plan to free his flock from the corrupt world? Can two teenagers crush a criminal mastermind? And who will die in the fight to save the ones they love from a madman who’s only concerned about his own secrets?

THE RATING


THE REVIEW
Wow. I’m still reeling from the thrilling ride Escape from Eden turned out to be. Anticipation kept me glued to the book until the very end. I’ve always been fascinated with brainwashing practices, cults and conspiracy theories so I knew I wanted to read this book as soon as I read the words fundamentalist preacher. But what I didn’t know is how adrenaline packed, engrossing and action-filled Escape from Eden would turn out to be.

Escape from Eden is so much more than just a thriller mystery. It’s exhilarating and controversial to read about humans being brainwashed willingly in the name of faith. Taking advantage of their adversary when, in their minds, they’ve no one to turn to except God. On the surface, Edenton is believed to be a self-sustaining utopian community located somewhere in the South American jungles. The people in the community work hard all day to serve each other doing whatever they’re assigned to do silently. Shrouded in secrets, Edenton is far from perfect.

Mia works in the kitchen along with her peers. Tired of doing the same thing over and over, she secretly yearns to escape Edenton. Mia remembers life before Edenton and questions her mother on why it’s better to give up freedom and exist on the Reverend’s commands. She secretly writes and sketches in her journal in order to keep herself sane and escape the controlling environment of Edenton for a few moments every day.

Gabrielle is new to Edenton and his unflinching, defiant attitude has Mia intrigued. Running into trouble with the guards ever since his arrival, he notices Mia as well. He reveals the true purpose of Edenton and his plan of escaping to Mia who agrees to escape with him. But escape doesn’t come easily and soon both of them find themselves into the heart of the Reverend’s sickening plans for the unsuspecting community of Edenton.

Mia is such a headstrong, brave character who is willing to get to the bottom of every doubt she has. She has some pretty admirable qualities and I couldn’t help but be in awe of her. Gabriele is such a risque character. I honestly don’t have a better word to describe him. Always on the verge of uttering a quip, he has crashed and burned through life. Their relationship dynamic is portrayed brilliantly with sizzling moments, and disagreements in between.

Straight up violence, twisted preachings, illicit discoveries and damaging secrets, Escape from Eden is a truly compelling read which kept me on the edge throughout. Despite the underlying suspicions about the truth about Edenton, the story balanced perfectly between chilling, dark suspense to witty, evocative moments at every turn. I can’t recommend this unique and captivating debut by Elisa Nader enough.

THE QUOTES

“I noticed the swirls of a dark tattoo peeking beneath his sleeve. The lines were beautiful and mysterious. Some of the older people in Edenton had tattoos, reminders of a life left behind, but the kids who’d grown up in Edenton didn’t even have pierced ears, let alone something as exotic, and daring, as a tattoo.”

“What is the matter with you?”
“You want an alphabetical list?” 

Click the banner for the tour schedule.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hi. I’m Elisa. I like cheese and reading and TV show marathons. Writing is scary, but not as scary as, say, Civil War amputations. I’m an Aquarius. Uh… let’s see… I’m not very good at writing my own biography. Or autobiography. I guess this is reading more like a slightly incoherent personal ad.

Elisa Nader can be found at


THE GIVEAWAY
Elisa Nader has offered so many awesome stuff in the giveaway and it’s international. Enter away!
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Thanks to Merit Press and YA Bound for providing me an eBook copy of Escape from Eden for review. 

Review: Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

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Wild Cards | #1 | Simone Elkeles | YA Contemporary Romance | Walker | 1 October 2013 | 353 (eARC)
ABOUT THE BOOK
After getting kicked out of boarding school, bad boy Derek Fitzpatrick has no choice but to live with his ditzy stepmother while his military dad is deployed. Things quickly go from bad to worse when he finds out she plans to move them back to her childhood home in Illinois. Derek’s counting the days before he can be on his own, and the last thing he needs is to get involved with someone else’s family drama.
Ashtyn Parker knows one thing for certain–people you care about leave without a backward glance. A football scholarship would finally give her the chance to leave. So she pours everything into winning a state championship, until her boyfriend and star quarterback betrays them all by joining their rival team. Ashtyn needs a new game plan, but it requires trusting Derek—someone she barely knows, someone born to break the rules. Is she willing to put her heart on the line to try and win it all?

THE RATING

THE REVIEW
Ah, where do I start with this book? I had been crazy excited for Simone Elkeles brand new series because I loved her Perfect Chemistry and Leaving Paradise series. She’s basically on my auto-buy list and rightly so. I squealed with joy when I got approved for Wild Cards on NetGalley. All I knew abou Wild Cards is that it’s a sports book where the girl plays football and there’re going to be snarky dialogues and hot scenes. I was so sure I’d love it but alas.

Derek Fitzpatrick is a former football star player and a self-acclaimed bad boy who loves to pull off pranks. He has perfected his I-couldn’t-care-less attitude to a tee. Nothing gets under his skin. I was really surprised to see him as unfazed as he was when he got expelled. His priorities are definitely messed up. The guy is more concerned about the unruly backyard than he was of getting kicked out.

Ashtyn Parker is a newly elected football captain with a body that begs for attention and an attitude that bites. She’s equally tough and girly though I did like her tomboy side more than her insecure, crying-into-the-pillows side. Oh yes, the book is heavy on emotions. However, due to the uneven pace, I found it hard to fully connect with what was happening with the characters.

Stuck together due to unusual circumstances, Derek and Ashtyn feel instant love-hate attraction towards each other. While one is too blatant about it, the other does her best to hide it for fear of being laughed at. The hot makeout scenes are definitely intense and oh-so-good. All the drama due to miscommunication and witty dialogue exchanges are interesting to read about. However, because of the alternating viewpoints, the story lacked in build-up.

Wild Cards turned out to be an enjoyable read for me. Where it lacked in depth and emotion it made up for it with all the crazy attraction between the main characters. Some of the scenes are definitely swoon-worthy, I enjoyed the non-date-date scene a lot. Humorous at times, Wild Cards is a predictable book that one can finish in a few hours. I’d recommend it to readers of Simone Elkeles and anyone looking for a quick read.

THE QUOTES

“Just because you can deal with bullshit on your own doesn’t mean you should.” 

“I know he wants to fight for something. . . deep down he’s got a basic, intense desire to compete. It’s killing him that he’s ignoring his instincts and instead is determined to keep himself a ghost of who he can be.”

Top Ten Tuesday: Fall To-Read List

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I suck at committing myself to read beforehand. Not always but usually. But if I’m doing a list of top ten, I’d be getting to at least half of these before fall’s over. Right? Right.

i. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Mass

Well, where do I begin? I was supposed to read it last year. I waited for my copy to arrive, which I’d won, but got lost in the mail. Then I came across The Starkillers Cycle by Sarah J. Maas and Susan Dennard which is so freaking amazing. I also happen to read Something Strange and Deadly last month and now, I’m dying to read Throne of Glass. 

ii. These Broken Stars (Starbound, #1) by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

I loved the cover, the sci-fi-ness of the story and I was so happy dancing when I got approved for this. It sounds like a perfect fall read so yes to These Broken Stars.

iii. The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle, #1) by Maggie Stiefvater
Do I even need a reason? Of course not. Moving on.

iv. Wild Cards (Wild Cards, #1) by Simone Elkeles

One of the first YA books I came across was Perfect Chemistry and I’ve been waiting for this series to take shape for more than a year now. Eek!

v. Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy, #3) by Richelle Mead
I’m currently reading Frostbite and I’m loving this series like anything so yes, yes and yes.

vi. Just One Year (Just One Day, #2) by Gayle Forman
I need this like yesterday.

vii. Crash into You (Pushing the Limits, #3) by Katie McGarry
Isaiah. ‘Nuff said.

viii. The Promise of Amazing by Robin Constantine

This looks like a perfect light read so I’m really looking forward to reading this.

ix. Wild Awake Hilary T. Smith

Wild Awake is more towards heavy emotions so yes to all the feels.
x. Relativity by Cristin Bishara

I just want to read this now.

xi. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
I feel like such an embarrassment to have not read this book yet. But fear not for Wendy, Tonya and K are having a The Book Thief readalong in October over at The Midnight Garden which I totally approve of.

xii. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Well, of course this would be make the list.

xiii. Allegiant (Divergent, 3#) by Veronica Roth
I should get to Insurgent so that I can get to this. I’m nervous and sickeningly excited. *pouts*

What’s on your fall to-read list? Do we have any of the same titles? Leave a link!

Review: My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

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ABOUT THE BOOK

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
young adult contemporary published by Dial on 14 June 2012

first book in My Life Next Door companion duology


‘One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time.’

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, messy, affectionate. And every day from her rooftop perch, Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs up next to her and changes everything.

As the two fall fiercely for each other, stumbling through the awkwardness and awesomeness of first love, Jase’s family embraces Samantha – even as she keeps him a secret from her own. Then something unthinkable happens, and the bottom drops out of Samantha’s world. She’s suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A transporting debut about family, friendship, first romance, and how to be true to one person you love without betraying another.

THE RATING

THE REVIEW

My Life Next Door is one-of-a-kind read of 2013 for me. No, not because it’s outstanding or extraordinary but because I went through the phase commonly known as everyone-loves-the-book-I-just-can’t-see-why. There were just too many factors at play and I was irked by almost all of them. I went into My Life Next Door thinking that I’d be awed by the characters, their story and of course, the Garretts. I wanted to admire Samantha and swoon over Jase. But as it turned out, for me, the story lacked the punch to blow my mind away. 
Samantha Reed is a not-so-typical girl living in a not-so-typical neighborhood which could only be because of the loud and large family of Garretts. Having always been lived in a small family consisting of a mother who’s too busy trying to advance her career in politics and an elder sister Tracy, who’s too busy with her life. Samantha feels alone. Yes, she had Tim as a best friend once but his habit and an uncaring attitude towards her drowned that friendship. Samantha did almost nothing to save it despite feeling as if she should have at least tried. Then she found a best friend in Tim’s sister, Nana. Nana the ambitious one. It always comes back to bite you, doesn’t it? 
Samantha’s summer days are going to be more dull than ever because of her mother’s constant lectures on how to fill her days working, Tracy leaving for her last-summer-before-college experience, Nana being too busy with her boyfriend and finally, the new man in her mother’s life, Clay Tucker. The name begs for some attention and instant suspicions sprout in her mind. Samantha accepts all this because she lacks courage to stand up and speak for herself to the point of being a pushover. Sometimes it seemed that she used to watch the Garretts just to spite her mother secretly. There had to be some solid issues than a parent just driving you to work harder for her to actually speak up on the said issues. So she continues her habit of watching the Garretts from the trellis outside her bedroom window. But this is the summer everything changes. 
Jase Garrett is literally the boy next door; he’s gorgeous, caring and loving. But I wasn’t blown away by his words and I couldn’t figure out why he was interested in ‘a girl with a trust fund.’ You know there’s going to be some serious complications. I was honestly more interested in the eldest Garrett, biker Joel. What I did like about Jase though, was the way he really cared for his family. Alice always found a reason to whine about babysitting and what not but Jase’s feelings about his siblings are genuine. The guy really has no flaws and I admired the way Huntley Fitzpatrick portrayed the budding relationship of Jase and Samantha. 
Out of the Garretts, George Garrett is the best part of My Life Next Door. His curious questions is what made me enjoy this book as much as I did. Honestly, he’d be the sole reason for me reading the sequel. But there is another reason: Tim. He’s raw and actually tries to improve himself. These two are the reason I liked My Life Next Door as much as I did. Nana seemed like a bad news to me early on and I hated how that dealt with. Alice had quite a spunky attitude which I liked a lot. Mrs. Garrett is another character that I admired. 
However, the involvement of her mother and Clay Tucker with the Garretts just seemed fake to me. The whole thing could be realistic but the way they were handled is most certainly not. It bothered me to see how Samantha reacted to a very grave situation, I so wanted to shake some sense into her. Yeah, I understand her desire for love and attention which were so easily attained when the Garretts were around. She clearly suffered under her disguise of being the responsible and sensible child and I could see the appeal of living life the Garretts way. They didn’t stop their children from pursuing whatever they wanted to, they gave their children the freedom. So yes, she belonged more in the Garretts household than she ever did in her home. I liked that part, it’s the drama that really put me off. In the end, all the characters made up for the conveniently dramatic storyline in the book. Sometimes it’s just hard to genuinely connect with a book and sadly, this was one of those times.

THE QUOTES

‘Maybe if I can just sleep for a hundred years, I’ll wake up in a better story.’

‘It’s as though I don’t make a ripple as I drop off the face of the earth.’