Stacking the Shelves | So Much Sci-Fi

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

I seem to be accumulating more books but my TBR really isn’t going down. Normally, this is exciting because hey, books! But working full-time means I have nowhere near as much free time to read like I used to.

However, my TBR is looking great, especially with these three new additions.

First up, I finally got my hands on a copy of The Burning World, the sequel to Warm Bodies, and I’m very excited to read it. Warm Bodies is one of my favourite books and I’ve been dying to know what happens next.

I won’t post the synopsis, due to spoilers, but I really recommend Warm Bodies, even if you’re not a zombie fan, because it’s not your usual zombie novel.

Goodreads

Next up, I somehow won another Twitter book giveaway and now have a signed proof copy of one of my most anticipated 2017 releases! The Space Between the Stars sounds right up my street.

All Jamie Allenby ever wanted was space. Even though she wasn’t forced to emigrate from Earth, she willingly left the overpopulated, claustrophobic planet. And when a long relationship devolved into silence and suffocating sadness, she found work on a frontier world on the edges of civilization. Then the virus hit…

Now Jamie finds herself dreadfully alone, with all that’s left of the dead. Until a garbled message from Earth gives her hope that someone from her past might still be alive.

Soon Jamie finds other survivors, and their ragtag group will travel through the vast reaches of space, drawn to the promise of a new beginning on Earth. But their dream will pit them against those desperately clinging to the old ways. And Jamie’s own journey home will help her close the distance between who she has become and who she is meant to be…

Goodreads

And lastly, my Dad treated me to a book from Waterstones. I hadn’t heard of this book before, but it was on offer (as you can see) and it sounded like my kind of thing, so fingers crossed it’s good!

One simple mouth swab is all it takes. A quick DNA test to find your perfect partner – the one you’re genetically made for.
A decade after scientists discover everyone has a gene they share with just one other person, millions have taken the test, desperate to find true love. Now, five more people meet their Match. But even soul mates have secrets. And some are more shocking – and deadlier – than others…

Goodreads

Did you get any books this week? Have you read any of the books I got? What did you think? Do you want to read them? Let me know in the comments below!

Advertisement

Stacking the Shelves | Sci-Fi with a Sprinkle of Fantasy

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

I’ve been on a bit of a book-buying ban since Christmas, mainly because I’m struggling to find the time to read since I started full-time work. However, now that I’m settling into the world of work a bit better, I’ve treated myself to a few more books.

So, first up, we have the much-talked about Caraval, that my friend Vicky @ Hung Up On Books kindly gave to me as she had two copies.

I’m really excited to read Caraval. A small part of me is worried it may be over-hyped, yet I’ve seen nothing but good reviews.

Remember, it’s only a game…

Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.

Welcome, welcome to Caraval…beware of getting swept too far away.

Goodreads

Next up, I’ve finally caved and bought The Maze Runner series. I really enjoyed the first film adaptation; it had great acting (Dylan O’Brien is A+++) and pretty good cinematography. The second film wasn’t quite as good but still entertaining, and I heard it deviated a lot from the book, so I’m keen to find out what really happened. Also, these books get quite mixed reviews. I think the premise is so interesting, but whether the writing and characterisation lives up to it, I’ll just have to wait and see. (Please excuse the blurry photo, it didn’t look blurry on my camera screen).

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone.

Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive.

Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying.

Remember. Survive. Run.

Goodreads

Lastly, I got The Sign of One by Eugene Lambert. I’ve heard good things about this dystopian series and have been wanting to get my hands on a copy for a while.

ONE FOR SORROW, TWO MEANS DEATH.

In the Barrenlands of Wrath, no one dies of old age. Kyle is used to its harsh laws, but the cold-blooded separation of identical twins and execution of the ‘evil twists’ at the Annual Peace Fair shocks him.

When Kyle himself is betrayed, he flees for his life with the reluctant help of Sky, a rebel pilot with a hidden agenda. As the hunt intensifies, Kyle soon realises that he is no ordinary runaway, although he has no idea why. Fighting to learn the hideous truth, their reluctant, conflicted partnership will either save them – or kill them.

Goodreads

Have you read any of these books? What did you think? Do you want to read them? Let me know in the comments below!

 

Stacking the Shelves | Amazing ARCs

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

I’m back!

So, a couple of weeks ago I went on hiatus because I was starting my new job. Well, so far I’m reeeeeally enjoying it. I’m the Communications Officer for Leukaemia CARE, a British charity that supports people suffering from blood cancer. It’s my first full-time grad job and I’m able to make use of my English degree and love for writing. Plus, everyone in the office is really friendly and chill.

After the excitement of starting my job and trying to get my life together, I’ve finally found the time to sit down and write a quick post. My blog-hopping has been pretty much nonexistent for a while now so I’m really going to try and make the effort to catch up on people’s blogs. I’ve definitely missed reading everyone’s reviews and discussions!

Anyway, I suppose I should get started on this Stacking the Shelves post, and please excuse these pretty mediocre photos…

I’ve been lucky enough recently to receive two ARCs from the wonderful team at Books with Bite, as well as win another Maximum Pop! Books competition.

So, from Maximum Pop! Books, I won a signed copy of The Girl With All the Gifts, as well as the blu-ray of the film. I was extremely excited that I won because The Girl With All the Gifts is one of my favourite books, so to get my hands on a signed copy is amazing. I also saw the film at the cinema and it was very true to the book. You can read my review of the film adaptation here.

From Books with Bite, I received ARCs of two very different books that sound equally amazing.

I feel exceedingly lucky to grab a couple of ARCs as I’m not a huge blog, and I never request ARCs on NetGalley as I don’t read e-books. Physical ARCs (the more coveted kind of ARCs) are my only option and I feel really privileged whenever I manage to get one.

The two ARCs I received are The Memory Book by Lara Avery and Ariadnis by Josh Martin. One is YA contemporary, the other YA fantasy, and I’m unbelievably excited to start them.

I’ve heard a lot of good things about The Memory Book and I’m expecting it to make me sob like a baby.

Sammie was always a girl with a plan: graduate at the top of her class and get out of her small town as soon as humanly possible. Nothing will stand in her way–not even a rare genetic disorder the doctors say will slowly start to steal her memories and then her health. What she needs is a new plan.

So the Memory Book is born: Sammie’s notes to her future self, a document of moments great and small. It’s where she’ll record every perfect detail of her first date with longtime crush, Stuart–a brilliant young writer who is home for the summer. And where she’ll admit how much she’s missed her childhood best friend, Cooper, and even take some of the blame for the fight that ended their friendship.

Through a mix of heartfelt journal entries, mementos, and guest posts from friends and family, readers will fall in love with Sammie, a brave and remarkable girl who learns to live and love life fully, even though it’s not the life she planned.

Goodreads

Ariadnis is a YA Fantasy that sounds amazing. By the looks of it, it has a diverse cast too. I can’t wait to get lost in this one and I really hope it lives up to my expectations.

Joomia and Aula are Chosen. They will never be normal. They can never be free.

On the last island on Erthe, Chosen Ones are destined to enter Ariadnis on the day they turn eighteen. There, they must undertake a mysterious and deadly challenge. For Joomia and Aula, this means competing against each other, to end the war that has seethed between their cities for nine generations.

As the day draws nearer, all thoughts are on the trial ahead. There’s no space for friendship. No time for love. However much the girls might crave them.

But how you prepare for a task you know nothing certain about? Nothing, except that you must win, at whatever cost, or lose everything.

Goodreads

And there you have it! Have you read any of these books? Did you love them? Hate them? Do you want to read them? Let me know in the comments below!

Stacking the Shelves | I’m On a Book Winning Streak!

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

I’m sorry that I haven’t updated much again this week. I warned that I was going to be busy, but I’ve been much busier than expected. Mainly because my hamster fell seriously ill on Wednesday night. He was even worse the next morning, with blood covering his nose, so we rushed him to the vets and they saw him immediately. Turns out he’s somehow developed pneumonia, which is actually fatal for a lot of hamsters.

Naturally, I’ve been so stressed and all my time has been devoted to caring for him. He’s been quite up and down, but so far today he seems to be stable. I’m praying he pulls through. It also meant I had to cancel visiting my boyfriend again. It sucks but obviously keeping little Cookie alive is top priority right now and I would be totally devastated if he passed away.

So that’s why I’ve been pretty absent. However, seeing as he’s doing okay so far today, just sleeping off the infection, I have the time to do a little stacking of the shelves.

This week, or rather just this morning, I received another package in the post and turns out I’ve won another competition with Maximum Pop Books! A few weeks ago, I won a copy of Morning Star by Pierce Brown, which I was so excited about as I’ve been desperate to finish the series but wanted to wait until Christmas to buy it. This time around, I won a copy of The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid! I recently featured it in a post of My Most Anticipated November Book Releases, so to find out I had won was a great surprise. However, I didn’t actually know I’d won until it turned up in this post this morning! Something must have gone wrong with communications, but never mind, thanks Maximum Pop Books!

Sci-Fi is my favourite and this sounds like a really great addition to the genre. I’ve heard good things about it so far and it’s been receiving a lot of hype, which makes me even more excited to read it. Hopefully it lives up to all the fanfare around it!

Have you read The Diabolic? Want to read it? Have you bought or received any books this week? Let me know in the comments below!

 

Stacking the Shelves | YA Fantasy

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

This week I finally got my hands on Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo and An Ember In the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir! I’ve seen everyone raving about these books for months now and I’m so excited to finally add them to my TBR.

I’m definitely having a bit of a Fantasy spree at the moment and I’m sure these two won’t disappoint. Seeing as both the sequels are out very soon though, I’m going to have to try hard to avoid any spoilers!

Have you read Six of Crows or An Ember In the Ashes? Did you get any books this week? Let me know in the comments below!

Stacking the Shelves | Fantasy & WW2 Lit | YA & Adult

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

This week, I got four books, including my replacement book from The Willoughby Book Club after they sent me Red Rising which I already have! But they sent this replacement free of charge which is a really nice gesture. Of course I’d be in that 1% that receives a book they already have.

The Girl of Ink and Stars by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Vivian Versus the Apocalypse by Katie Coyle

All For Nothing by Walter Kempowski

Where My Heart Used to Beat by Sebastian Faulks

Vivian Versus the Apocalypse was my replacement from The Willoughby Book Club and it sounds really really good, a very interesting take on the ‘apocalypse’ genre.

I’ve heard a lot of good things about The Girl of Ink and Stars too. It’s meant to be a magical, fantastical read and sits somewhere between MG and YA.

Today my dad bought me WW2 novel All For Nothing and Sebastian Faulks’ new book Where My Heart Used to Beat. All For Nothing sounds like it’s going to be very tense so I’m excited to read it. I’ve also read a couple of Sebastian Faulks’ novels, including the amazing Birdsong, so I’m looking forward to seeing what his new installment is like.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? What books have you got this week? Let me know in the comments below!

Stacking the Shelves | Fantasy and Sci-Fi | YA & Adult

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

This week, I got three books; two YA and one Adult.

Soundless by Richelle Mead

The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent

The Fireman by Joe Hill

The two YA novels, Soundless and The Stars Never Rise, were presents from my boyfriend, so big up Mark! The Fireman is a signed copy I stumbled across yesterday in Waterstones which I’m pretty pleased about. I blogged about The Fireman a little while back for ‘Waiting on Wednesday’ so it’s great to finally have a copy, and a signed one too!

I know Richelle Mead and Rachel Vincent are popular YA authors but this will actually be my first time reading something by either of them! Hopefully they’ll live up to their hype, so fingers crossed!

Have you read any of these novels? Did you love them? Like them? Hate them? What books did you get this week? Let me know in the comments below!

Stacking the Shelves ft. my Hamster

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

This week, I bought three books from Amazon:

The Girls by Emma Cline

Golden Son (Red Rising #2) by Pierce Brown

The Next Together by Lauren James

Both Golden Son and The Girls I’ll be reviewing as guest posts on other blogs, at Ellie Maloney’s excellent Sci-Fi fiction blog and at Tommye’s thoughtful writerly blog respectively. Check both of them out if you can! I’ll also post links on here to the reviews once they’re up.

I’ll be reviewing YA time-travelling romance The Next Together here on my blog.

The Girls was only released this week here in the UK and has been receiving rave reviews so I’m excited to read it. I think the UK cover, pictured above, is much prettier than the American cover; it definitely captures the ethereal yet toxic romance of a cult, as is depicted in the novel. It’ll also be great to dive back into Darrow’s world in Golden Son.

I haven’t had time to set up a nice looking book photo-shoot so I just got my uncooperative hamster to model my purchases instead

And four more from Waterstones book shop today, two YA and two adult, because I can’t resist the ‘Buy one, get one half price’ deal:

Illuminae by Jamie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Nightfall by Jane Halpern & Peter Kujawinski

Nod by Adrian Barnes

The Little Red Chairs by Edna O’Brien

Hamster Model Part Deux

I’ve always hummed and hawed about reading Illuminae but I’m finally giving it a chance. Nightfall and Nod are novels I’ve both had my eye on recently. The Little Red Chairs, however, was set up in a big display in Waterstones. The cover is gorgeous and any novel that gets praise from Philip Roth is a novel worth reading, in my opinion, so I’m excited to see what it’s like.

What have you been stacking your shelves with this week? Have you read Golden Son or The Next Together? Or have you even already devoured The Girls? Let me know in the comments!

And also, here’s an outtake from the “photo-shoot” that makes me giggle. 

No hamsters were harmed in the making of this photo-shoot, he’s just really clumsy

Stacking the Shelves | June TBR

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

However, this isn’t quite the usual Stacking the Shelves because a lot of the books in my TBR pile I’ve had for well over a year. Living half at home and half at my student house, my books have been scattered about and some even forgotten. Now that my final year of uni is finished, all my books are back at home and I’ve been able to properly update my TBR pile.

So, here are the books in my unconventional haul, split by genre:

Apocalyptic

• The New Hunger by Isaac Marion – I adored Warm Bodies when I read it years ago and I’m so excited for the follow-up to be released soon. But for some reason, I’ve just never got round to starting the prequel The New Hunger. It should satisfy my Warm Bodies fix in anticipation for novel number two.
• The Well by Catherine Chanter
  

  

Sci-Fi

• The Peripheral by William Gibson – I confess that I did start this book a few months ago but took an immediate dislike to it after a few pages; there was way too much jargon for my liking. However, I’ll give it another go.

Horror

• The City by Dean Koontz

Fantasy

• Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman – This is the second Neil Gaiman anthology that my mum has bought me and I’m just not sure if I want to read it. I know this collection of short stories has tie-ins to some of his previous novels and, seeing as I’ve never read any Neil Gaiman, it seems silly to read a bunch of tie-in stories. (Sorry Mum). But nevertheless, maybe this is a good excuse to get going on some of his novels and, if I like them, I already have some tie-in stories to accompany them!
• The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro – Never Let Me Go has to be one of my favourite novels of all time, so I’m excited to read another of Ishiguro’s novels. However, I have heard some mixed things about this book, so hopefully it lives up to my expectations.
• To Hold the Bridge by Garth Nix – The Abhorsen series is possibly my all-time favourite series of novels. Whilst Nix’s story of Clariel (readers of the original trilogy will know her as Chlorr of the Mask) perhaps did not excite me as much as the first three novels, along with the novella of The Creature in the Case, I’m really excited for another foray into the Old Kingdom and Ancelstierre; God only knows why I haven’t read this book sooner, it’s been sitting on my shelf for months!

Historical Fiction

• The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton
• The Outcast by Sadie Jones

Young Adult

• Daughter of Deep Silence by Carrie Ryan – I loved The Forest of Hands and Teeth trilogy and, whilst this may not be about my favourite kind of monsters, I’m excited to see what else Ryan can do.

Have you read any of the novels here? Did you love them? Hate them? Let me know in the comments below!

Stacking the Shelves | TBR April

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

This month, I’ve taken advantage of a birthday Amazon voucher and the £10 deals to purchase these bad boys (although Bone Clocks I got for Christmas).

The list is:

• The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge
• Our Endless Numbered Days by Claire Fuller
• Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
• All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders
• Half Way Home by Hugh Howey
• The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell
• The Silence by Tim Lebbon
• Red Rising by Pierce Brown

The Lie Tree, Rebel of the Sands and All the Birds in the Sky are the most recent releases and I’ve seen a lot of hype about the first two especially from other bloggers, so I’m excited to get into them. I was also a big fan of Hugh Howey’s Wool series so I can’t wait to read something else by him. And, obviously, the Red Rising series has garnered a lot of attention too. There are also two more books on the way to me:

I know, I know, I’m pretty late to both series, but I’m finally giving them a chance. I’d originally heard hit and miss things about both books upon their original release so I gave them both a miss. But I’ve had a severe lack of zombies in my life recently and the Rot and Ruin series has seemingly picked up so I’m looking forward to being entirely freaked out. As for Throne of Glass, if you’ve read my review of Starborn by Lucy Hounsom, you’ll know I can be a bit critical of the fantasy genre. I find it often slips into cliches and is just too cheesy sometimes, so I really need something fresh and well thought out to capture me in this genre. Saying that, though, I’ve put my initial hesitation aside about the Throne of Glass series after seeing how much the book blogosphere adores it. So, fingers crossed I like it.

And in terms of zombies, look out for my upcoming ‘A Novel Round-Up’ of my favourite zombie novels.

Read any of these books? Let me know what you thought in the comments below. Happy reading this April!