Bookanista Review: Panic by Lauren Oliver

Every year in Carp, the graduating HS seniors play the dangerous game of Panic. This year, it's Heather and Dodge's turn to try for the winner's purse of over $60,000.

Some reasons I loved Panic:

-- a fantastical situation grounded by gritty realism. Is it crazy unbelievable that seniors play a game every year where people often end up dying and getting paralyzed by doing stunts like breaking and entering, running across a busy interstate and walking a tightrope without a net and the police don't/can't do anything about it? Yes. But Oliver sells the hell out of it with down-on-their-luck characters that have heartbreakingly believable motivations.

-- the games. I would never, ever join Panic (way too wimpy), but I don't have to because Oliver described the feeling of participating so well, I felt like I was there. Heart pumping thrills.

-- the writing. I love the way Oliver crafts her sentences. Her prose is always atmospheric and fitting of the situation. A pure joy to read. Here's a quote I like:

PANIC will be out March 4th, but you can already go and read the first chapters on iTunes.

FTC disclosure: eGalley from Edelweiss. Also, Lauren Oliver is a friend.

What the other Bookanistas are talking about this week:

Christine Fonseca is captivated by SHINOBI by Cole Gibson

Jessica Love raves about WHEN AUDREY MET ALICE by Bookanista Rebecca Behrens

Katy Upperman swoons for THE SUMMER I FOUND YOU by Jolene Perry

I Have A Serious Series Problem

One of my reading goals for 2014 is to complete some of the many, many series I've started. With the help of my Goodreads shelves, I've sorted my series books into:

Completed Series (currently at 25)
Series To Finish (currently at 72)
Series Graveyard (currently at 62)

And this not even taking into account the series I still need to start - where I own the first book but haven't read it yet.

I'm drowning in series! How about you?

Top Ten Tuesday: The Books That Made Me Weep

I actually covered this "books that make you weep" topic on the blog back in 2008 (is that 6 years ago? OMG) and those books still stand. I've reread DOOMSDAY BOOK by Connie Willis again since then, and yep, still made me cry. There are not that many books since then that have me reaching for the tissues, but I did manage to rustle up three more to add to the list (four if you count THE HUNGER GAMES).

IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS by Cat Winters (my review)

CRACKED by K.M. Walton (my review)

NOT A DROP TO DRINK by Mindy McGinnis (my review)


And ... I cried while writing CHASING BEFORE ... does that count? ;)

The Debut Author Challenge 2014

This will be my fourth year doing the Debut Author Challenge (unofficially). In 2013, I read 22 2013 debuts, which was down from 52 2012 debuts I read in 2012. This year I'm aiming for 15.

I've already read 3 2014 debuts (and can highly recommend all three):

Burn Out by Kristi Helvig
Loop by Karen Akins
Fake ID by Lamar Giles

Already in my TBR pile:

Landry Park by Bethany Hagen
Alienated by Melissa Landers

The Fifty-Seven Lives of Alex Wayfare by MG Buehrlen 

Liv, Forever by Amy Talkington 

Here are some others I have my eye on:

The Falconer by Elizabeth May

Gilded by Christina Farley

Stitching Snow by RC Lewis
Nearly Gone by Elle Cosimano

Otherbound by Corinne Duyvis

Extraction by Stephanie Diaz
Pointe by Brandy Colbert

Let’s Get Lost by Adi Alsaid

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton

Check out this list for more suggestions!

Any others I should be on the lookout for?

Book Review: Fake ID by Lamar Giles

On his first day at a new school, Nick already catches the attention of the biggest bullies, the hottest girl (Reya) and the editor of the school paper (Eli) - which is not good when you're meant to keep a low profile. See, Nick's family is in the Witness Protection Program, and Nick isn't really his name.

Eli convinces Nick to work on the paper with him, confides in him that he's working on a HUGE story, and then winds up dead. Meanwhile, Nick starts to suspect that his father, a former accountant for the mob, is somehow involved.

This is just the kind of thriller I like - a juicy central mystery, lots of great twists, and characters that feel real. There's a palpable sense of danger throughout, but also bits of comic relief and a side of sizzling romance.

Nick isn't someone who trusts easily and he's never had many friends, so it's both rewarding and heartbreaking to follow the developing relationships between him and his classmates. It was also fascinating to see Nick's inner turmoil as he tries to come to terms with his father's past and what that means for his future.

FAKE ID is available now! Find out more about it at the author's website.

FTC disclosure: Edelweiss

Books Read/Reviewed in 2014

Total so far:

73

YA Fiction

Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
Panic by Lauren Oliver
Fake ID by Lamar Giles
Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi
Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi
In the Age of Love and Chocolate by Gabrielle Zevin
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
Landry Park by Bethany Hagen
The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare by MG Buehrlen
Plus One by Elizabeth Fama

Bright Before Sunrise by Tiffany Schmidt
Cured by Bethany Wiggins
(secret beta read)
Don't Turn Around by Michelle Gagnon
Minders by Michelle Jaffe
Liv, Forever by Amy Talkington
Don't Look Now by Michelle Gagnon
The Glass Casket by McCormick Templeman
Nearly Gone by Elle Cosimano
This Side of Salvation by Jeri-Smith Ready

Noggin by John Corey Whaley
She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick
Enders by Lissa Price
Dissonance by Erica O'Rourke
The Fearless by Emma Pass
The Aftermath by Jen Alexander
The Falconer by Elizabeth May
Rebel by Amy Tintera
The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes
Chorus by Emma Trevayne

Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld
Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins
Killer Instinct by SE Green
Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater
Defector by Susanne Winnacker
The Haven by Carol Lynch Williams
Divided by Elsie Chapman
On the Fence by Kasie West
Glory O'Brien's History of the Future by AS King
Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina

The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone by Adele Griffin
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
Blackfin Sky by Kat Ellis
Falls the Shadow by Stephanie Gaither
The Jewel by Amy Ewing
One Death, Nine Stories (Anthology)
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne-Jones
Ask Again Later by Liz Czukas
The Cure for Dreaming by Cat Winters
Famous in Love by Rebecca Serle

Far Far Away by Tom McNeal
The Goats by Brock Cole
The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton
Entangled by Amy Rose Capetta
Complicit by Stephanie Kuehn
Pointe by Brandy Colbert
Zig Zag by Ellen Wittlinger
Sisters Fate by Jessica Spotswood
Repossessed by AM Jenkins
Latitude Zero by Diana Renn

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Ann Peters


Fiction

Come See About Me by CK Kelly Martin
Dare Me by Megan Abbott
Precious Thing by Colette McBeth
Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight
That Night by Chevy Stevens

MG Fiction

Screaming at the Ump by Audrey Vernick
Jessica Darling's It List #1 by Megan McCafferty
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Non-Fiction

The Art of Subtext: Beyond Plot by Charles Baxter
From Where You Dream: The Process of Writing Fiction by Robert Olen Butler
Reading Like A Writer by Francine Prose
Save the Cat by Blake Snyder

...

Best/Most Memorable Reads in 2013

2013 was meant to be my year of more balance. More classics, more backlist, more variety. That's why I reduced my goal to 75 instead of 100. I ended up at 72 (see my list of books read in 2013) including a couple of eNovellas and rereads. Not too shabby for a year in which I spent a lot of time traveling for my books (THE MEMORY OF AFTER/LEVEL 2 and CHICK-O-SAURUS REX), majorly revising CHASING BEFORE and also being in the hospital and recovering from major surgery.  

Here are some of the most memorable aspects of what I read:

Memorable Dystopian Moments
I'm still reading a bunch of dystopian. The publishing industry might be tired of, but I'm not! My top six dystopian reads were: IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS by Cat Winters, STUNG by Bethany Wiggins, NOT A DROP TO DRINK by Mindy McGinnis, REQUIEM by Lauren Oliver, SHADES OF EARTH by Beth Revis and CONTROL by Lydia Kang.

Memorable Debuts
Last year I read over 50 debut novels by the Apocalypsies. This year I read 24 YA and MG debuts from 2013 + 2 from 2014.

Most memorable first line
'I have a dead girl's name.' From Stacey Kade's THE RULES: PROJECT PAPER DOLL. It's an immediate hook that makes me want to know more.

Most quotable overall
SEPTEMBER GIRLS by Bennett Madison. I pulled a bunch of quotes from this, but my favorite is probably: 'I felt life unfurling itself in lazy and salty spirals in the water below my feet, revealing itself as something I would never have guessed.'

Most memorable first chapter
I'm going to say ALL OUR YESTERDAYS by Cristin Terrill. The first chapter with Em in the prison and finding the note she wrote to herself - so tense! When I got to the line 'You have to kill him', I actually gasped out loud.

Most memorable laughs
It doesn't come out until next year, but LOOP by Karen Akins was so witty and fun. And I just started reading it, but SINCE YOU ASKED by Maurene Goo is hilarious so far.

Most memorable cry
IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS by Cat Winters. Oh so sad.

Most traumatic endings
NOT A DROP TO DRINK by Mindy McGinnis. STAR CURSED by Jessica Spotswood. IN TIME by Alexandra Bracken.

Most dramatic character arcs
Elise in THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE. Terra in STARGLASS by Phoebe North. Knox in PROXY by Alex London.

Most memorable male leads
Tarver in THESE BROKEN STARS by Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufmann, Alex in WHERE THE STARS STILL SHINE by Trish Dollar, Anthem in CODA by Emma Trevayne.

Most memorable couples
Zuzana and Mik in NIGHT OF CAKE AND PUPPETS by Laini Taylor. Caymen and Xander in THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US by Kasie West. Fiona and Bowen in STUNG by Bethany Wiggins. Anna and Bennett in TIME AFTER TIME by Tamara Ireland Stone.

Most swoony (almost) kiss
I loved the angry dancing scene in REBOOT by Amy Tintera.

Most badass characters
Amelie in VENGEANCE BOUND by Justina Ireland. Mila in MILA 2.0 by Debra Driza.

Most memorable supporting characters
Baby in IN THE AFTER by Demetria Lunetta, Chris in SHADES OF EARTH by Beth Revis, Alice in ELEMENTAL by Antony John.

Most memorable father/daughter bond
HOOKED by Liz Fichera.

Most memorable locations
The mystical oak tree in RELATIVITY by Cristin Bishara, post-apocalyptic Antarctica in CHAMPION by Marie Lu, the town of Claysoot in TAKEN by Erin Bowman.

Most memorable WTF
Okay WTF was up with the ending of DANGEROUS GIRLS by Abigail Haas? Did. Not. See. That. Coming. Also CHARM & STRANGE by Stephanie Kuehn.

Most memorable animals
The dolphins in THE NEPTUNE PROJECT by Polly Holyoke. (bonus!) The sloths in A LITTLE BOOK OF SLOTH by Lucy Cooke.

Most memorable outfit
Lilac's dress in THESE BROKEN STARS by Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufmann.

Most memorable scenes that gave me chills
When the missing girl first appears in the car in 17 & GONE by Nova Ren Suma. Pretty much every scene in BLACK HELICOPTERS by Blythe Woolston.

Most memorable scene that gave me chills (in a good way)
The conjuring of peacock footprints in NIGHT OF CAKE AND PUPPETS by Laini Taylor.

Most memorable scare
NIGHT FILM by Marisha Pessl was the creepiest novel I read all year.

Most memorable villain
Johnny in THE COLOR OF RAIN by Cori McCarthy. Dude is messed up.

Most memorable cover

Though I wasn't all that taken with the novel, I adore this cover so much. I think it's the pop of yellow.

Most memorable unexpected reveals
Hands down the twisty twists in THE MADMAN'S DAUGHTER by Megan Sheperd. She knows how to set up shocking reveals.

Most memorable backlist reads
This was the year I finally met Marcus Flutie! (SLOPPY FIRSTS by Megan McCafferty)



Check out my memorable 2012 reads.

Tell me - what were some of your memorable reading moments in 2013?

2013 in Review: Music

I bought 180 songs in 2013 (same amount as last year!!), including four complete albums (last year I only bought one). The albums were all from bands I also saw in concert:

Tegan and Sara - Heartthrob More poppy than their earlier albums, this is one I can listen to start to finish. The beats are great for cleaning house ;)

The National - Trouble Will Find Me  The National is showing up in all my favorite things lately. They were on The Mindy Project. They had a song on the Catching Fire soundtrack. And they sang The Rains of Castamere on Game of Thrones. They are amazing and I love this entire album.

MS MR - Secondhand Rapture At first I was only into a couple of the songs, but upon repeated listens, I really fell in love with the catchy lyrics, melodic hooks, and sultry pop atmosphere.

Bastille - Bad Blood My pick for best album of 2013. Of course that might have something to do with the fact that I am certain Dan and I have the same muse. So many of the themes he explores are present in my forthcoming novel CHASING BEFORE. So much so that I am gobsmacked. See especially Bad Blood, Flaws, and Things We Lost in the Fire.

2013 songs on heavy rotation (indicates top 5)

*Things We Lost in the Fire – Bastille

*Hurricane – MS MR

Fireproof – The National

Love They Say – Tegan and Sara
*Midnight Drive – Still Corners

*Overdose – Little Daylight

*Lies - Chvrches
Beauty Queen – Foxes

Youth – Daughter

The One That Got Away – The Civil Wars

Get Lucky – Daft Punk

Safe and Sound – Capitol Cities

Troublemaker – Camera Obscura

Lilies – Bat for Lashes

If So – Atlas Genius

Sweater Weather – The Neighborhood

Drift – RZA (from Pacific Rim soundtrack)
Mirror - Ellie Goulding (from Catching Fire soundtrack)
Dream - The Boxer Rebellion
Waiting for Something to Happen - Veronica Falls

Favorite finds from previous years (indicates top 5)

*Deadlines and Commitments – The Killers (2012)

*Harbor Lights – A Silent Film (2012)
Youth Without Youth – Metric (2012)

Myth – Beach House (2012)

Let Her Go – Passenger (2012)

No Rest - Dry the River (2012)
Afternoon - Youth Lagoon (2011)
*A Little Piece - The Jezabels (2010)

*On The Surface – Civil Twilight (2010)

Girls Like You – The Naked and the Famous (2010)

Sweet Disposition – The Temper Trap (2009)

No Direction – Longwave (2008)

Lights Out – Santigold (2008)

*Satellite – Guster (2006)

Le vent nous portera – Noir Desir (2001)

Live Music in 2013

+ Mumford & Sons - Dusseldorf, Germany - April (Highlight: none. I absolutely hated the venue, Mitsubishi Halle, and will never attend a concert there again. The terrible venue affected my overall enjoyment of the concert)
+ Tegan and Sara - Frankfurt, Germany - June (highlight: Call it Off)
+ The National - Luxembourg - November (highlight: Bloodbuzz, Ohio)
+ MS MR - Frankfurt, Germany - November (highlight: how excited they were to be on stage. Loved it!)
+ Bastille - Luxembourg - November (highlight: umm... during Flaws, Dan came into the audience, touched me on the shoulder and said hello. Note that I was the only person sitting (in a bar stool) in the whole place due to my recent surgery. It was pretty surreal.)
+ I had tickets to see The Light Princess in London, but couldn't go due to my hospitalization. Major Bummer. Glad that Tori Amos is embarking on a tour in 2014 and I already have tickets to five shows.



Have any recommendations for me based on my taste? Would love to hear them!!

2013 in Review: Movies and TV

Even though I don't usually blog about movies or tv, I do like my year end list summaries.

2013 Movies I saw this year (top 5 marked with an *)

Warm Bodies
The Place Beyond the Pines
Oblivion
Side Effects (plane)
Beautiful Creatures (plane)
Star Trek: Into Darkness
The Host (plane)
*Pacific Rim
World War Z
*Catching Fire
*Inside Llewyn Davis
Wolverine 2 (DVD)
*Captain Phillips
*Gravity

Total of 14 (1 more than last year)

Catching Fire was probably my top favorite and I enjoyed it even more than the Hunger Games. Inside Llewyn Davis is a great film, but hard to watch for struggling creative types like us.

Notable movies I saw in 2013 that were released before 2013 (top 5 marked with an *)

*Les Miserables (theater)

*Perks of Being a Wallflower

Pitch Perfect

*Silver Linings Playbook (theater)

The Fighter

Django Unchained (theater)
Lincoln
*Argo
Zero Dark Thirty (theater)
Ruby Sparks

My Week with Marilyn

The Bourne Legacy

Taken 2
*Cloud Atlas
This is 40
The Campaign
Byzantium
Snow White and the Seven Dwarves 

2013 movies I still want to see

Frozen
American Hustle
Her
The Book Thief
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Before Midnight
The Spectacular Now
Stories We Tell

TV series I watched in 2013 (favorites marked with an *)

Game of Thrones Seasons 2, 3
Parks and Recreation Season 1
*Breaking Bad Complete Series
Gilmore Girls Season 1
Mad Men Season 6
Person of Interest Seasons 2, 3
*Orphan Black Season 1
Jericho (part of) Season 1
*The Mindy Project Season 2 (Favorite episode: Christmas Party Sex Trap)
Sleepy Hollow Season 1 (Favorite episode: Pilot)
Sherlock (BBC) Seasons 1, 2
*The Returned (French) Season 1 (Favorite episode: Camille)
The Bates Motel Season 1
The Walking Dead Season 4
Dexter Season 8
*It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Season 1 (Favorite episode: Underage Drinking)
The Big Bang Theory Season 7 (Favorite episode: The Thanksgiving Decoupling)

So much great TV available lately, and we're always looking for more recommendations. Shows we tried out but gave up on: Reign, Dracula, The Americans, and Almost Human. Stopped watching Revenge, The Vampire Diaries and Jericho. Looking forward to checking out the third season of Homeland, Orange is the New Black and of course new seasons of Game of Thrones, Mad Men, Orphan Black, The Returned, Sherlock and The Bates Motel. 

How was your year in movies and TV?

Series Review: Letters to Nowhere by Julie Cross

The Letters to Nowhere series revolves around Karen, an elite gymnast whose parents have just died. The first installment is novel length while the following installments are shorter and take an episodic approach. While I think this an interesting approach that gets the story out more quickly, I'd prefer to wait for full length novels with some meat on their bones.

In Letters to Nowhere, Karen writes letters to her dead parents about her life - everything from what it's like to live with her coach to dating the coach's son (whose bedroom is right next door). The novel starts out slow and I wasn't sold on the grief element, but I loved the elite gymnastics focus and the authentically slow-burn relationship between Karen and Jordan. Obviously I had to have more. (FTC disclosure: Review copy from author)

In Return to Sender, Karen participates in the Pan-Am Championships and attends a gymnastics training camp with US team coach Nina to prepare for Nationals. While this strikes a good balance between sport and romance, it feels too short. (FTC disclosure: Bought)

Return to You continues with the gymnastics training camp. Karen has a problem with the dismount of her bars routine and Jordan might need surgery which leads to a fight. There's a nice story arc here, but not that much happens other than a lot of falling off bars and pouty arguments. (FTC disclosure: Bought)

Find out more about the whole series at Julie's blog. (Note: More installments to come in 2014)