Speaking of John Green Week...

If you're tapped into the Book Blogging community, you've probably been seeing this banner quite a bit:

Hosted over at i.eat.words!

To celebrate the upcoming release of The Fault In Our Stars, several bloggers are dedicated this week to John Green and his brilliance!  I am linked up to it, but have quietly been honoring the amazing author by re-reading all his books. I figured I'd do one or two blog posts with all my favourites from his novels as it gets closer to the release date, but had to share this now.

Since I don't own all his books (yet!) I reserved the missing ones at my local library. When I picked up my library copy of An Abundance of Katherines, look what wonderful little note fell out!

(La Mesa is a suburb of San Diego)

How AWESOME is that note?! I love the power of nerdfighters and how amazing it is to be a part of a community bound by writing and books. I really wish I knew who this person was, because I want to hug him/her.

I might leave my own little response note when it gets returned into the book drop...

Happy John Green week everyone, and DFTBA!!

City of Lost Souls Cover Revealed!

Check out the cover of City of Lost Souls, revealed this morning by Brian Truitt at USA Today!

OH MY GOODNESS I AM SO EXCITED!!

Can it just be May 8 yet?!

(Also, click here to go to the article and read the exclusive Prologue!)

Top Ten Tuesday! 2012 Books

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, this week we're talking about the 

Top 10 Books I'm Excited to Read in 2012!

1. A Million Suns by Beth Revis. Release Date: January 10. OH MY GOSH I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS. Across the Universe is one of my favourite books ever, and I am so impatient to find out how Elder and Amy continue.

2. Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare. Release Date: November 2012.  I've yet to read Clockwork Prince (in the queue for next week!), but Cassandra Clare really does no wrong in my eyes.

3. City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare. Release Date: May 8. All of the Mortal Instruments books are absolutely amazing, and once again: Cassandra Clare can do no wrong in my eyes.

4. The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. Release Date: January 10.  John Green is one of the most poignant and brilliant writers of today, in my opinion. I've read literally every single one of his books (even Zombicorns, his NaNo Novel!) and the only way he could ever disappoint me is if he chooses to not write ever again.  This book is destined to be great.

5. The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus, Book 3) by Rick Riordan. Release Date: Fall 2012. As can be seen by my review of The Son of Neptune, I can't wait to see the next installment of the Roman/Greek Mythology mix.  It's going to be funny and action-packed and can it seriously just be released now?! (No cover art released yet.)

6.  The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith. Release Date: January 2 (and yes, I'm still counting this on the list because as I type, I don't have it in my hands!).  I've heard such good things about this book, it's making me want it more!  It sounds like something right up my alley. Chance meeting? British boys? England? Second chances? Love it. So excited.

7.  Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins. Release Date: Fall 2012.  Because Lola and the Boy Next Door is possibly my most favourite YA book ever, Stephanie Perkins knows how to yank my heart so horrifically well.  (No cover art released.)

8. Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley. Release Date: February 14.  Also another book I've heard great things about, I've had a ridiculous obsession with street art since one of my student's opened my eyes to its potential and value a few years ago. I also recently watched Exit Through the Gift Shop, a documentary by Banksy, perhaps one of the most famous street artists ever, and this book sounds like it combines this interest with the perfect amount of Young Adult themes.

9. The Diviners by Libba Bray. Release Date: November 1. As soon as I heard the premise of this book, I knew it was going to go to the top of my queue. If anyone can do historical fiction, it's Libba Bray. Her writing is some of the most original I've ever had the pleasure to read, and I've loved all her books so far. (No cover art released.)

10. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, Book 2 by Michelle Hodkin. Release Date: Christmas 2012 (I think?) I might ostracize myself in the Book Blog world with this, but I am seriously not sure how I feel about the first Mara Dyer book. I got annoyed quite a bit, I was frustrated and impatient and kind of wanted to hit Mara over the top of her head a lot. BUT...even now, 2 months after I read it, I'm still thinking about it and what's going to happen! Which is why I cannot wait for Book 2: not because I loved the first, but because I. HAVE. TO. KNOW.

What books are you excited for this year?

Review: The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

The Last Little Blue Envelope (Little Blue Envelope #2)

Maureen Johnson

HarperTeen, 288 Pages
Released April 26, 2011

Ginny Blackstone thought that the biggest adventure of her life was behind her. She spent last summer traveling around Europe, following the tasks her aunt Peg laid out in a series of letters before she died. When someone stole Ginny's backpack—and the last little blue envelope inside—she resigned herself to never knowing how it was supposed to end.

Months later, a mysterious boy contacts Ginny from London, saying he's found her bag. Finally, Ginny can finish what she started. But instead of ending her journey, the last letter starts a new adventure—one filled with old friends, new loves, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Ginny finds she must hold on to her wits . . . and her heart. This time, there are no instructions.

-----------Amazon.com Summary

Notable Quote

"She probably tripped because she'd been warned and was telling herself not to trip over the bike. She did that sometimes. It was often easier not to know what obstacles were in the way."

Even though I was really happy how the first book ended, I was excited to hear that the second one would finally reveal what Aunt Peg had written!  ...and then you find out that bastard Oliver won't tell us.  I was crushed.

But I was also hooked. Even from the beginning, I didn't hate Oliver. It could be because I have an old longtime friend named Oliver who I absolutely adore, so it's hard for me to hate the name when it calls up some wonderful memories - but really, there was something about the framing of the character that made me give him a chance. That made me keep going to figure out who the hell he was and why the hell he was torturing Ginny like this!

I've also never quite liked Keith. Sure, he's that artsy, whimsy boy we all secretly dream about being whisked away with, but that also means he's flaky and flighty and VERY likely to break a heart.

I love this book. It took me right along on the whirlwind ride of one last adventure, and I was heartbroken and waiting with baited breathe as I went through each situation. I was constantly trying to work out what would happen, and it felt like I lost Aunt Peg right along with them - again.

Perhaps the only drawback is that it's...minorly predictable. There were a few tiny twists that made me go, "OH! Wow..." but most of it I could figure out.  I wasn't at all disappointed it worked out the way I thought it would though! I was quite happy about that, really.  If you've read the first one, definitely read this one, too - it ruins nothing.

4/5

The Son of Neptune (Heroes of Olympus #2) by Rick Riordan

The Son of Neptune (The Heroes of Olympus, Book 2)

by Rick Riordan

Hyperion, 544 pages
Released October 4, 2011

Percy is confused. When he awoke after his long sleep, he didn’t know much more than his name. His brain-fuzz is lingering, even after the wolf Lupa told him he is a demigod and trained him to fight. Somehow Percy managed to make it to the camp for half-bloods, despite the fact that he had to continually kill monsters that, annoyingly, would not stay dead. But the camp doesn't ring any bells with him.

Hazel is supposed to be dead. When she lived before, she didn’t do a very good job of it. When the Voice took over her mother and commanded Hazel to use her “gift” for an evil purpose, Hazel couldn’t say no. Now, because of her mistake, the future of the world is at risk.

Frank is a klutz. His grandmother claims he is descended from ancient heroes and can be anything he wants to be, but he doesn’t see it. He doesn’t even know who his father is. He keeps hoping Apollo will claim him, because the only thing he is good at is archery—although not good enough to help the Fifth Cohort win at war games. His big and bulky physique makes him feel like a clumsy ox, especially in front of Hazel, his closest friend at camp. He trusts her completely—enough, even, to share the secret he holds close to his heart.

Beginning at the “other” camp for half-bloods and extending as far north as the land beyond the gods, this breathtaking second installment in the Heroes of Olympus series introduces new demigods, revives fearsome monsters, and features other remarkable creatures, all of whom are destined to play a part in the most important quest of all: the Prophecy of Seven.

-------Amazon.com Summary

Notable Quote

"Life is only precious because it ends, kid." - Mars

This is my favourite Rick Riordan YA/MG novel so far - and I have read literally every single one of his and loved all of them, so that's a pretty big statement.  This is signature everything we love: adventure, suspense, mythology lessons cleverly masked, humor, and just the right smidgen of romance.

I particularly enjoyed the bits we got from the other novels, as well as the small tidbits of prophecy that allude to the future novels - I can't be the only one whose breathe caught when she realized the "Wisdom's daughter" who would struggle in Rome was Annabeth!

The characters in this book are also so well developed. Obviously Percy Jackson is, because he's a beloved Half-Blood who's got 5 previous books to his development (6, if we want to count The Lost Hero), and this book did not disappoint in the Percy we love and adore.  But Hazel, Frank, Mars, Frank's curmudgeon old grandmother, Reyna, Arion, even Sammy and Hazel's mother felt very real to me. There was a distinct-ness in each one that really stuck out. My favourite new one is Ella the Harpy (and her romance!), who is valuable and wise.

And, as always, the humor in this book is absolutely spot on. The jokes, the dry humor, the puns and sarcasm, absolutely all of it is fantastic. None of it is forced or uncalled for or even out of place.  When I'm laughing out loud in the middle of a coffee shop, it's good.

Highly recommend! It is a bit necessary to read this in order, but if you haven't been reading Rick Riordan's YA Fantasies anyway, now's a good time to get started! You won't regret it.

4.5/5

In My Mailbox (1)

Time for In My Mailbox, a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. Normally it's about the new books you acquired for the week (via purchase, gift, review, etc), but since this is the first for me AND the first of the year, I thought I'd share the books I'm starting the year off with in my queue :)

From Christmas-time (gifts or purchased with gift money)

George R. Martin - Game of Thrones

Ransom Riggs - Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children

Veronica Roth - Divergent

Tina Fey - Bossypants (SO excited for this one!)

From My Library

Sorry for the weird lighting, my nightstand is hard to photograph

Fade - Lisa McMann

The Romantics - Galt Niederhoffer

Call Me Irresistible - Susan Elizabeth Phillips

The Truth About Forever - Sarah Dessen

Stand Tall - Joan Bauer

Close To Famous - Joan Bauer

Jerk, California - Jonathan Friesen

How To Be Bad - E. Lockhart, Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle

Keeping the Moon - Sarah Dessen