Review: Ghosts by Raina Telgamier (+giveaway!)

Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier
GRAPHIX, 256 pages
US Release Date: September 13, 2016
Format/Source: purchased via Amazon

Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick. Cat isn't happy about leaving her friends for Bahía de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbor lets them in on a secret: There are ghosts in Bahía de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister's sake -- and her own.

Raina Telgemeier has masterfully created a moving and insightful story about the power of family and friendship, and how it gives us the courage to do what we never thought possible.
--------------------------Goodreads Summary

I've always been a fan of Raina's books, so I didn't even think about it when I saw she had a new one released: I ordered it blindly. Barely even processed the title, to the point where when I opened the package I was kinda like 'oh crap...I don't usually do books with paranormal stuff.'

But it's Raina, so you take a leap of faith and trust she won't let you down.

And man, does she deliver. I was so pleasantly amazed at this graphic novel. I would give this to absolutely anyone who dares to say graphic novels don't have substance, or that they're "kid stuff," or anything like that. Raina so seamlessly blends her amazing illustrations with a storyline that manages to be lighthearted while dealing with heavy topics of sickness and death. I had absolutely no idea how much depth this book would reach.

Also, as a Southern Californian, I loved the "Double Back" burgers. Long live In N Out!

I wish I could say more about this graphic novel, but I also don't want to reveal too much of the story. The characters are wonderful and diverse and I love how you can get an immediate sense of them. I love how Raina worked this amazing reminder of breathing and all it means. The illustrations are lovely and vibrant and really make this world come alive.

I can't recommend this book more, guys. Really. Which is also why I'm going to give away my copy! See below for the Rafflecopter :)

5 Stars

 

Win my paperback of Ghosts by Reina Telgemeier!

Enter below - you must be a follower of my blog.

Please read Terms & Conditions

US only
Ends 9/30 @ 11:59 PM PST

Good luck!

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Giveaway! Ashley Loves Books turned 3! (Like, 12 days ago. But better late than never!) INT, ends 1/31

Guys. Guys guys guys.

My little blog turned 3 this month!!

It was actually back on January 1, but things are just a madhouse at that point. I mean, how in the world did I have time to start a book blog 3 years?! It's unfathomable, but I am grateful to January 1, 2012 Ashley for doing this.

I don't have much to give, but I'll certainly hold a lot of giveaways throughout the next few months -- my stacks and shelves at home need a much-needed cleaning, and my birthday is in March, and if I go to ALA Annual in SF this year (YAY!) I'll need more space, and I am going to Comic-con in July again so I'll need more space for that…really it benefits everyone here.

Back to today. I don't have much, but I do want to say thank you to my followers, both old and new! If you've stuck around for all 3 years, I can't say thank you enough. You mean so, so much to me and my entire life. And if you're new, I hope you like it and say hello! All this time later, this space is about books and bookish love and the utter, impossible love for it all.

So, to celebrate 3 years, I'm giving away any book I mentioned in my 2014 Year In Review! And yes, that means the 2015 releases I mentioned, too. You can check out the post here, but here's a small sampling of the ones I mentioned.

Ends January 31, 2015, and this is open Internationally!

(As long as The Book Depository ships to you. Check here if you're uncertain!)

Because this is about loving all those who are with me, you must be a follower to enter.

My the odds be ever in your favour!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

**image credit: http://unrestrictedstock.com

Holiday Giveaway: A Box of YA Books! (US only)

If you saw this tweet, you know what this is about :) I'm participating in a Secret Santa, and the box I bought for my #TBTBSanta was too small for all the goodies! Solution? Have a giveaway to fill the box, of course!

ONE (1) lucky winner will win a box of YA books!

Most of the books will be ARCs from 2014 or earlier, a few finished copies, and I'll even toss in one or two 2015 ARCs I picked up via Comic-con and/or ALA! The ones I can definitely tell you included are:

 

My True Love Gave To Me, edited by Stephanie Perkins (finished hardcover, pictured)
Great by Sara Benincasa (ARC)
Zodiac by Romina Russell (a 2015 ARC!)

….but that's just the beginning :)

US Only
(sorry INT!)
Ends December 23, 2014

Please do not leave your email in my comment section.

Enter through the rafflecopter below, and all my usual giveaway policy rules apply.

Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
May the odds be ever in your favour!

Clearing the Shelf Giveaway: Three (3) 2014 ARCs! (US Only)

I've got too many books, so you get to help me clear the clutter!

ONE (1) lucky winner will win three 2014 ARCs!

Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater
Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid
Falling Into Place by Amy Zhang

US Only
(sorry INT!)
Ends October 22, 2014

Please do not leave your email in my comment section.

Enter through the rafflecopter below, and all my usual giveaway policy rules apply.

Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
May the odds be ever in your favour!

Flash Giveaway: Goodbye 2013! (US only)

One last giveaway to bid farewell to 2013, shall we?  :)

ONE (1) lucky winner will win three hardcovers!
Something Like Normal by Trish Doller
Every Day by David Levithan
This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

US Only
(sorry INT!)
Ends January 1, 2014

Please do not leave your email in my comment section.

Enter through the rafflecopter below, and all my usual giveaway policy rules apply.

Good luck!

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MASSIVELY HUGE Celebratory Giveaway! (US & INT)

The boring details of this giveaway are that I meant to do a 1000+ GFC Follower giveaway back when I hit that milestone in April. And another when I hit 100000 page views in September. And then things got in the way, and then my house basically collapsed from the weight of all the books in it (an exaggeration, though I'm sure my parents would beg to differ), and...here we are with the giveaway.

Basically, I have an entire overflowing box that's my "giveaway" box. There's a mix of everything in it: mostly YA books, finished copies, adult books (very few, but they are there), ARC copies, signed books, hardcovers, signed hardcovers…it's a pretty fab mix, if I do say so myself. And now it's finally time to share the wealth!

There will be four winners: three (3) from the US, and one (1) international. YOU MAY NOT ENTER BOTH. US is ONLY for the US, the International one is open worldwide EXCLUDING the US. If I find duplicate entries, I will disqualify you from both. No sense in giving Americans a double chance, y'know?

Enter through the rafflecopters at the end of the post, and all my usual giveaway policy rules apply (please read them before entering!). Please do not leave your email in the comments below!

The US giveaway has three separate prizes, and as I pick each one, they'll pick which they'd like -- so if you're winner #3, sorry, but you get stuck with the leftovers. Though I must say, I think any of the "leftovers" could be pretty cool.

The US Prize!

Prize Pack #1

a total of SIX (6) books

Signed paperback of Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi (it is personalised to me, I'm sorry)

Signed hardcover of Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi  (NOT personalized, just signed)

Signed paperback of Shadow & Bone by Leigh Bardugo (NOT personalized, just signed)

+ your choice of 3 books from my giveaway box.

Prize Pack #2

a total of FIVE (5) books

A signed hardcover of Also Known As by Robin Benway (NOT personalized, just signed)

A signed hardcover of Let the Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger (it is personalised to me, I'm sorry)

A signed paperback of Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (NOT personalized, just signed)

+ your choice of 2 books from my giveaway box.

Prize Pack #3

Your choice of any TEN (10) books in the Giveaway Box.

What's in the box, exactly? Well, I can give you small snapshots of some of it:

But I will be adding as time goes on. Red by Alison Cherry is already tossed in, as is The 100 by Kass Morgan and Beautiful Bitch by Christina Lauren and Viral Nation by Shaunta Grimes, and…well, you get the idea. And I do have a few signings coming up...

The International Prize!

I'm sorry to say I won't be shipping these international as that is absurdly expensive and I just can't afford it. So, I'm going to offer up a copy of Champion by Marie Lu. How's that sound? I'll open it worldwide (excluding US) as well, because why not? It's the holiday season! Spread the love!

US a Rafflecopter giveaway Internationala Rafflecopter giveaway

All giveaways end November 29
(American Thanksgiving! Thought that was fitting :))

Good luck!

Review + Giveaway: Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott (ARC)

Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott
Harlequin Teen, 304 Pages
Expected US Release Date: February 2014
Format/Source: ARC via Around the World ARC Tours - thank you!
Challenges: Contemporary Challenge, Stand-alone Challenge

Life. Death. And...Love?

Emma would give anything to talk to her mother one last time. Tell her about her slipping grades, her anger with her stepfather, and the boy with the bad reputation who might be the only one Emma can be herself with.

But Emma can't tell her mother anything. Because her mother is brain-dead and being kept alive by machines for the baby growing inside her.

Meeting bad-boy Caleb Harrison wouldn't have interested Old Emma. But New Emma-the one who exists in a fog of grief, who no longer cares about school, whose only social outlet is her best friend Olivia-New Emma is startled by the connection she and Caleb forge.

Feeling her own heart beat again wakes Emma from the grief that has grayed her existence. Is there hope for life after death-and maybe, for love?
--------------------------Goodreads summary

Notable Quote

And still he pulled the pieces of who he is together. He is who he is because of who he is and nothing more and that makes him so special.

I’m not sure a book has ever broken my heart this badly before. And not in the sense of romance/boys are terrible breaking my heart – I mean in every sense, in every way. I wanted to cry so badly for Emma and I wanted to hug Caleb until he fused back together and I seriously just want to wrap this book in an eternal lovefest.

Here’s the brilliance of this book: everything here makes total sense. Which will really only sell it if you start reading, but what I mean is that this book is filled with fighting people who have different opinions on important, life threatening and heart changing decisions – and somehow, magically, every single person is right and simultaneously wrong. Even though you feel like one of them is overreacting, or being unfair to the other – you can’t argue it. It’s all just so true, and that’s what makes this situation so unbearable and hurtful and such a paradox.

The best part to Heartbeat was definitely the characters. There’s such a great strength to each one. Not just stubbornness or a spine to each (though that is also true), but a real roundness to their personality and who they are. There’s a great core to each person, and it really made me feel like each character was real and alive.

Of course, let’s talk the boy: Oh my God I want to love Caleb so hard for the rest of his life. I want to take him under my arm. I want to mend his heart and make him finally believe that he is not a bad person, that he is someone who deserves love. I’m not sure I’ve ever met a character that just made my heart continually shatter to pieces smaller and smaller each time, and is still somehow so loveable and likeable. He is the perfect example of a character who has done bad shit and seen bad shit, but is still not actually bad.

The other shining character for me was Olivia, Emma’s best friend. She was such a great personification of a best friend. And her entire situation is so amazing, because she is undeniably the best friend a person could ever ask for; and yet, sometimes a best friend just isn’t enough, you know? It’s a truth that’s hard to accept, no matter if you’re that best friend or the lucky one who has the best friend – and I love that it’s in a book.

There’s a saying in the American lexicon that says you can be “stuck between a rock and a hard place,” and I think Heartbeat is the perfect example of this. Nothing in this book is easy for any of the characters, and you can appreciate that as a reader and as a human being. The only easy part for me was loving the characters and writing and this entire book.

5 Stars

And thanks to the generosity of Cindy (The Princess Bookie), I've got an ARC to giveaway!

US/Canada only, ends August 14!

Enter through the rafflecopter below, and all my usual giveaway policy rules apply.

Good luck!

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Happy Book Birthday WHEN YOU WERE HERE by Daisy Whitney!

Happy Release Day to When You Were Here by Daisy Whitney!!

About WHEN YOU WERE HERE.
Filled with humor, raw emotion, a strong voice, and a brilliant dog named Sandy Koufax, When You Were Here explores the two most powerful forces known to man-death and love. Daisy Whitney brings her characters to life with a deft touch and resonating authenticity.

Danny's mother lost her five-year battle with cancer three weeks before his graduation-the one day that she was hanging on to see.

Now Danny is left alone, with only his memories, his dog, and his heart-breaking ex-girlfriend for company. He doesn't know how to figure out what to do with her estate, what to say for his Valedictorian speech, let alone how to live or be happy anymore.

When he gets a letter from his mom's property manager in Tokyo, where she had been going for treatment, it shows a side of his mother he never knew. So, with no other sense of direction, Danny travels to Tokyo to connect with his mother's memory and make sense of her final months, which seemed filled with more joy than Danny ever knew. There, among the cherry blossoms, temples, and crowds, and with the help of an almost-but-definitely-not Harajuku girl, he begins to see how it may not have been ancient magic or mystical treatment that kept his mother going. Perhaps, the secret of how to live lies in how she died.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

About DAISY WHITNEY.

By day, Daisy Whitney is a reporter and ghostwriter. At night, she writes novels for teens and is the author of THE MOCKINGBIRDS and its sequel THE RIVALS (Little, Brown). Her third novel WHEN YOU WERE HERE releases in June 2013 (Little, Brown), and her fourth novel STARRY NIGHTS (Bloomsbury) hits shelves in September 2013. When Daisy's not inventing fictional high school worlds, she can be found somewhere north of San Francisco walking her adorable dog, watching online TV with her fabulous husband or playing with her fantastic kids. A graduate of Brown University, she believes in shoes, chocolate chip cookies and karma. You can follow her writing blog and new media adventures at DaisyWhitney.com.

Visit Daisy:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

You guys, I'm about halfway through this and I can't even...you want to read this. You need to read it. My review will be up early next week, but I sincerely hope by then you already have it on your shelves or sitting on your nightstand by then. If that summary above didn't convince you, check out the excerpt below!

EXCERPT.

     We eat in silence for a minute, then Holland breaks it. “So you’re going to Tokyo?”
     “Your mom told you?”
     “Yes.”
     “Did your mom send you to get info out of me or something?”
     “No. She mentioned it, and now I’m mentioning it. Why? Is there info to get? Are you going with a girl?”
      I scoff. “Yeah, right. I was supposed to go with some- one, but it didn’t work out,” I say, my eyes locked on her the whole time.
     “Well, I wanted to go, okay?”
     “So did I,” I say, so low it’s a whisper. But she hears me, and she inches her hand across the counter, just a little bit closer, and that hand, I want to grab it and hold on.
     “Me too,” she says, barely there, barely painting the space between us with all that has been broken. I glance at our hands, so close all it would take is one of us giving an inch.
     “I bought my ticket an hour ago.”
     “When do you leave?”
     “A couple days from now. I found a good deal.”
     She nods a few times, taps her fingers. I can feel the warmth from her hands. “Cool,” she says, and we stay like that. One stretch is all it would take to be back, so I wait. Wait for her to tell me she’ll miss me, to ask me to stay, to put her hands on my face and press her lips against mine and kiss me like it’s the thing that’s been killing her not to do for all these months. That it’s not cool for me to go. That if I go, she’ll be the one who’s sad.
     But she doesn’t. We just finish our food, and she washes the plates, and the other ones that were in the sink too, and she tosses out the cartons from Captain Wong’s and bags up the garbage, and she’s like a nurse. She’s here as a nurse. To take care of me. To make sure I eat enough food and clean the house and take my vitamins.
     I watch her take my vitals and check my temperature and adjust the tubes, and when she suggests we watch a movie, here on the couch, I just nod because my heart isn’t beating fast enough anymore, blood isn’t pumping smoothly enough anymore for me to find the will to say no like I did last night. Evidently I can buy tickets to fly out of the country, no problem, but I can’t even tell Holland to stop being so near to me all the time but not near enough.
     Because she is supposed to want to go to Tokyo with me now. She is supposed to invite herself, to ask me in that sweet and sexy, that bold and confident voice, to say that I should take her along, that we promised we’d go together, that we even talked about it last summer. As if I needed reminding. As if I were the one who’d forgotten.
     Instead she turns on the TV and finds a film where the hero survives a bridge being blown up. We stay like that through fire and bombs, through fists and blows, through a knife fight in an alley, a foot away from each other, not touching, not moving, not talking, not curled up together, just staring mutely at the screen.
     But faking it becomes too much for me, so when the hero clutches the crumbling concrete from the bridge, scrambling for purchase, I stand up and leave the living room, mumbling, “Be right back.” I walk to the bathroom at the end of the hall. I shut the door. I head straight for the window. I slide it open and pop out the screen. I stand on the toilet seat, then climb the rest of the way out of the window and hop into my front yard. I close the window, and I walk and I walk and I walk.
     When I return an hour later, my greatest hope is she’ll be gone. My most fervent wish is that I will have made my great escape from her, from her hold on me. But instead I find her sound asleep on my couch, Sandy Koufax tucked tightly into a ball at Holland’s bare feet.
     I kneel down on the tiles where the book she was reading has slipped out of her tired hands. It’s a paperback, The Big Sleep. I run a thumb across the cover, wondering when Holland developed a penchant for Raymond Chandler. There was a time when she would have told me her favorite parts. When she would have tried to tell me the ending because she just loved it so much, she had to share, and I’d have held up a hand and told her to stop. Laughing all the time. Then I’d have read it too, and we’d have walked on the beach and talked about the best parts. We’d have done that tonight with the movie too. Imitated the actors’ inflections at their most over-the-top moments, then marveled at the blown-up buildings.
     I shut the book we’re not sharing. The ending we’re not talking about. I place it on the coffee table and walk upstairs, because if I stay near her, I will wake her up, rustle a shoulder, and ask her. Ask her why she left. Ask her why she’s here. Ask her what changed for her.
     When I get into my bed, I am keenly aware of her in my house, as if the rising and falling of her breathing, the fluttering of her sleeping eyelids, can somehow be seen and heard from a floor above. I imagine her waking up, walking up the stairs, heading down the hall, standing in my doorway, a sliver of moonlight through the window sketching her in the dark. I would speak first, telling her the truth—that I’m still totally in love with her. That nothing has changed for me when it comes to her.
     Everything else is so muted, so fuzzy, so frayed around the edges. This—how I feel for Holland—is the only thing in my life that has remained the same. Everyone I have loved is gone. Except her. Holland is the before and the after, and the way I feel for her is both lethal and beautiful. It is like breathing, like a heartbeat. She would say the same words back to me, that she feels the same. Then she would say my name, like she’s been searching for something, like she’s found the thing she’s been looking for.
     Come find me, come find me, come find me.

Win one of 3 personalized signed copies!

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[Blog Tour] Belonging by Karen Ann Hopkins - Interview + Giveaway!

Today I have the extreme honor of having Karen Ann Hopkins back on my blog to discuss the second book in her contemporary romance series as the kickoff to her Blog Tour! I interviewed her shortly after Temptation released (read it here!), and I am so, SO excited to have her back for the release of Belonging, book 2! 

About Belonging, Book 2 in the series.

I left everything I knew behind. 

But it was worth it. He was worth it. 

No one thought an ordinary girl like me would last two minutes living with the Amish, not even me. There are a lot more rules and a lot less freedom, and I miss my family and the life I once had. Worst of all, Noah and I aren't even allowed to see each other. Not until I've proven myself. 

If I can find a way to make it work, we'll be NOAH & ROSE

together forever. 

But not everybody believes this is where I belong.

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Indiebound

What were the challenges you faced writing a sequel/continuing story? 

Overall, writing Belonging was easier than Temptation for me. The characters and setting were already well developed and I was able to jump right into the Meadowview world. The only part that gave me some difficulty was the ending. It was as if Rose and Noah were going in a certain direction, regardless of my feelings on it.

Do you feel your writing changed between books?
Yes, it definitely became grittier. Everyone thinks that the Amish world is cozy and ideal, but as with all societies, there is a darker side, which I explored in Belonging more than I did in Temptation.

What did you learn from Book 1 that influenced how you wrote/approached Book 2? 
Because Temptation was my first published work, I learned much from my editors while going through the process. I was able to take that knowledge and streamline Belonging from the beginning. I had a better feel for what the publisher wanted from the novel straight off.

Book 2 is much more about Rose living amongst the Amish and their lifestyle – how were you able to research?
I’ve been completely immersed in the Amish community I live in for the past five years. Amish teens ride at my riding stable and babysit my children. Local teens come to my home on a regular basis to hang-out with my kids or do chores around the farm. I drive Amish families to town and have spent vacations with them. I’ve attended five Amish weddings and numerous benefit dinners, auctions, school activities and get-togethers. I’m writing the Temptation series strictly from my own experiential knowledge.

If Rose could choose a song as her favourite for Book 2, what would it be? 
Pink~Try 

If Noah could choose a song as his favourite for Book 2, what would it be?
Mumford and Sons~ I Will Wait.

I really love Rose’s brothers and the part they play in her life. Are they based off anyone you know?
Being a horse-back riding instructor, 4H coach and mother of five, I’ve observed interactions between siblings for many years. I drew from those observations to create the family dynamics within the story.

I know it’s a futile question, but I have to ask: any details you can give us on Book 3 yet? I’m dying to know how it will end!
I just recently finished book three, which will be titled, FOREVER. (Ashley's note: !!!!!!)  I can tell you that there will be some dramatic surprises and more tears shed before the end…but Rose and Noah will definitely have closure.

Flash answer section!
Music or quiet? Although I love music any other time, I prefer writing in silence.
Series or Stand-alones? I enjoy writing and reading a series. It gives more time for development of the story and characters. Plus, when you love a book, you don’t want it to end!
Pen or pencil? Pen.
Washing dishes or doing laundry? I hate both. Can cleaning a horse’s stall be added to the list?
Lunch or dinner? Lunch.
Early bird or night owl? Night owl.

And as I always end my interviews now…
Last 3 items purchased? A new skillet, a pair of work boots and 50 bales of hay.
Last 3 websites visited? Chicken hatcheries in northern Kentucky, greater Cincinnati weather and movie show-times for the local cinema.
Last 3 books read? I’m still working on George R. R. Martin’s A Dance With Dragons, field notes about the Lions of Tsavo, and Emily McKay’s, The Farm. 

How awesome is Karen? She's one of my favourite people to have here. 

And now you can win a signed copy of Belonging!
US/CAN only, ends 5/13
Thanks to the generosity of Karen and Harlequin :)
Please read my giveaway policy here before entering.
Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About Temptation, Book 1 of the series.

Your heart misleads you.

That's what my friends and family say.

But I love Noah.

And he loves me.

We met and fell in love in the sleepy farming community of Meadowview, while we rode our horses together through the grassy fields and in those moments in each other's arms.

It should be

ROSE & NOAH 

forever, easy.

But it won't be.

Because he's Amish.

And I'm not.

Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Indiebound

About the Author

A native of New York State, Karen Ann Hopkins now lives with her family on a farm in northern Kentucky, where her neighbors in all directions are members of a strict Amish community. Her unique perspective became the inspiration for the story of star-crossed lovers Rose and Noah. When she’s not homeschooling her kids, giving riding lessons or tending to a menagerie of horses, goats, peacocks, chickens, ducks, rabbits, dogs and cats, she is dreaming up her next romantic novel.
Blog | Facebook | Goodreads

There's some great stuff coming up on the tour, so make sure to follow it!

Monday, April 22th - Ashley Loves Books
Tuesday, April 23th -  A Little Shelf of Heaven
Wednesday, April 24th - One Day YA
Thursday, April 25th - Fic Talk
Friday, April 26th - Bittersweet Enchantment 

Monday, April 29th - Reader Girls
Tuesday, April 30th - Bumbles and Fairy Tales
Wednesday, May 1st - The YA Bookworm
Thursday, May 2nd - The Book Heist 
Friday, May 3rd -  Page Turners

Monday, May 6th -  Books Complete Me 
Tuesday, May 7th -  Bookish Escape
Wednesday, May 8th - Book Sp(l)ot Reviews
Thursday, May 9th - Irish Banana
Friday, May 10th - The Cozy Reader