Nearly New Books for You!

I Am a Reader, Not a Writer hosts this awesome feature each Tuesday.  I too love to receive books in the mail, and to buy the books I want to read, then I hoard them!  Muhahahah...uh hem. And while I might not get rid of the books I read (I re-read them all the time), there are some books that don't have a place on my shelves.  I figure giving them away would be nice!  This won't be a feature every Tuesday, it might even be on other days, but it'll pop up now and then.

So without further ado, here's the books I have to giveaway!

OR

Both have never been read, and are in good condition! 

 Click on the covers to read more about each.

To enter just fill out the Rafflecopter below!  Easy Peasy!

Please remember this is U.S. ONLY!

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The Hobbit Trailer Released!

There has been some awesome movies being made based on great new books, BUT a classic everyone should be aware of is The Hobbit.  It is being released next year on December 14, 2012 (which is an awfully long way away...:sad tears:)

Here's the trailer!  It looks so so so great!

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Hunger (Review)

Title: Hunger

Author(s): Jackie Morse Kessler
Edition: Paperback, 117 pages

Publisher: Harcourt Graphia

Publication Date: October 18, 2010

Source: Borrowed from library

Buy: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

The Summary

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“Thou art the Black Rider. Go thee out unto the world.” 

Lisabeth Lewis has a black steed, a set of scales, and a new job: she’s been appointed Famine. How will an anorexic seventeen-year-old girl from the suburbs fare as one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?

Traveling the world on her steed gives Lisa freedom from her troubles at home: her constant battle with hunger, and her struggle to hide it from the people who care about her. But being Famine forces her to go places where hunger is a painful part of everyday life, and to face the horrifying effects of her phenomenal power. Can Lisa find a way to harness that power — and the courage to battle her own inner demons?

(Goodreads)

My Opinion
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I came across Hunger in a random way (the way I love to find books).  When I was in Chicago, I went to an author event at Anderson's Bookshop which had 10 amazing YA authors in attendance.  I went for two people in particular: David Leviathan and Stephanie Perkins.  But many other awesome authors were there, including Jackie Kessler.  Each author gave a book talk, and Kessler was there talking about Rage, the second book in the Riders of the Apocalypse series.  I was so intrigued by it, I picked up Rage, but couldn't find a copy of Hunger.  Luckily, I found it at my library!

Hunger is an intense story; a really intense story.  Revolving around anorexia and bulimia, Kessler does an amazing job delving into the psyche of Lisa, the protagonist.  One of the reasons that it is so true to life is that Kessler herself suffered from an eating disorder.  Then, besides the fact that Hunger could be a fantastic contemporary novel all by itself, she throws in the Riders of the Apocalypse for good measure.  This just adds another fantastical element to the story, which really makes it sing.  This is what I love about fantasy/paranormal books.  The author is able to bring the psyche forward and manifest it in a form, making it become a tangible character.

Not only was the story heartbreaking, it was also very funny!  This is such an important aspect because if it wasn't funny, I'd literally be crying the entire time.  Books should reflect real life, and often heartbreak and humor go hand-in-hand.  Surprisingly, Death himself was the funniest part of the whole book!  Can you even imagine?  I loved that Kessler took these frightening biblical characters and turned each into something more.  Not exactly humanizing them, but giving each personalities which could be related to in some way.

The only problem I had with the book was the ending.  I felt it was too short and rushed.  The readers didn't really get to see any recovery being done by Lisa and I felt her journey as Famine was a little to short.  I would have liked to see more.  But luckily, I will get to read more about this world Kessler has created in Rage!  I urge everyone to go out and read Hunger by Jackie Kessler; I really enjoyed it!  And if possible buy a copy because a portion of proceeds will be donated to the National Eating Disorders Association (all of Kessler's books have this fantastic donation aspect to them.

Extras

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Cool Interviews about Hunger!

• Jackie Kessler is interviewed by Death himself over at The Book Smugglers
• Lisbeth Lewis, the protagonist of Hunger, is interview by Death once again at Jackie Kesseler's website
  

Final Rating

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Book Cover: 5/5

Book Title: 5/5

Plot: 9/10

Characters: 9/10

Writing: 9/10

Ending: 7/10

Overall: 44/50: B+

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Eli to the nth is taking a breather!!

Hey guys! I am on hiatus until after the holidays!  There will still be some posts that I've gotten ready, but nothing every single day!  So look for me in January, when I'll be coming back with a BIG giveaway (especially if I reach 300 subscribers by then!) and some other fun stuff!  Thanks for always being awesome, and have a very happy holiday!!!

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Wither (Review)

Title: Wither 

Author(s): Lauren DeStefano
Edition: Hardcover, 358 pages

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Publication Date: March 22, 2011

Source: Borrowed from library

Buy: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

The Summary

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By age sixteen, Rhine Ellery has four years left to live. She can thank modern science for this genetic time bomb. A botched effort to create a perfect race has left all males with a lifespan of 25 years, and females with a lifespan of 20 years. Geneticists are seeking a miracle antidote to restore the human race, desperate orphans crowd the population, crime and poverty have skyrocketed, and young girls are being kidnapped and sold as polygamous brides to bear more children.

When Rhine is kidnapped and sold as a bride, she vows to do all she can to escape. Her husband, Linden, is hopelessly in love with her, and Rhine can’t bring herself to hate him as much as she’d like to. He opens her to a magical world of wealth and illusion she never thought existed, and it almost makes it possible to ignore the clock ticking away her short life.

But Rhine quickly learns that not everything in her new husband’s strange world is what it seems. Her father-in-law, an eccentric doctor bent on finding the antidote, is hoarding corpses in the basement. Her fellow sister wives are to be trusted one day and feared the next, and Rhine is desperate to communicate to her twin brother that she is safe and alive. Will Rhine be able to escape–before her time runs out?

(Goodreads)

My Opinion
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I am so slow on the bandwagon sometimes!  Wither has been on my To Be Read list since it came out this spring, but I just got to it now.  First let me tell you, if you're in the same situation drop whatever book you're reading and pick Wither up now!!  It was fantastic.  I loved the mix of the horrible and beautiful, the realistic and the fantasy.  It was a great dystopian that didn't need to involve killing zombies or surviving in the middle of nowhere (not that I don't LOVE those dystopians).

Lauren DeStefano hooked me in chapter one with one of the most chilling parts of the whole book.  I mean, there are so many creepy parts throughout, but this was the worst for me because it was executed with a simple sentence.  That's what I loved the most about the book.  DeStefano writes beautifully, which juxtaposes just right with the violence and terror that is underlying everything in the novel.  There was never a part which I felt was dull or extraneous; all the chapters told me something new about the plot, pushing the story along.

Rhine is one of the strongest protagonists I've read in a long time.  I never doubted her decisions or that she would make what she wanted happen.  I believed in her, rooted for her, screamed with her, just as if I was right along side of her.  I also really loved her sister wives, Cecily, Jenna, and for a short time, Rose.  Each girl showed a different facet of feelings towards their predicament.  And each sister wife showed what Rhine could become if she either gave in or gave up.  The sister wives were an interesting aspect of the novel as well.  I love that a part of our world which is hidden away or looked down on has become common practice in the light of extinction.

World building was another thing DeStefano had done pat.  It was just that far from what we knew that it made it dystopic without being completely alien.  It shows that these types of novels don't have to change the society completely to make a dystopian work.  It also makes it a lot scarier to think about that this is a possibility.  The explanation DeStefano gives to how this society evolved is so simple, and that is why the solution to solve the problem turns out to be so horrific.  The result of this "sickness" is hundreds of orphans dying, young girls being plucked from the streets and impregnated, and everyone except first generations are trapped in the endless cycle of life and death in their 20s.

Wither is one book I could not put down, and read it in 2 hours.  I can't wait to read Fever, the second book in The Chemical Garden series, which is sitting on my bookshelf waiting for me.  Overall, it is an amazing dystopia filled with violence and romance, and the pursuit of freedom.  Not to be missed, you should pick it up immediately!

Extras

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Book Trailer for Wither

Final Rating

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Book Cover: 5/5

Book Title: 4/5

Plot: 9/10

Characters: 10/10

Writing: 10/10

Ending: 8.5/10

Overall: 46.5/50: A-

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The Pledge (Review)

Title: The Pledge

Author(s): Kimberly Derting
Edition: Hardcover, 323 pages

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry

Publication Date: November 15, 2011

Source: Borrowed from library

Buy: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

The Summary

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In the violent country of Ludania, the classes are strictly divided by the language they speak. The smallest transgression, like looking a member of a higher class in the eye while they are speaking their native tongue, results in immediate execution.

Seventeen-year-old Charlaina has always been able to understand the languages of all classes, and she's spent her life trying to hide her secret. The only place she can really be free is the drug-fueled underground clubs where people go to shake off the oppressive rules of the world they live in. It's there that she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy named Max who speaks a language she's never heard before . . . and her secret is almost exposed.

Charlie is intensely attracted to Max, even though she can't be sure where his real loyalties lie. As the emergency drills give way to real crisis and the violence escalates, it becomes clear that Charlie is the key to something much bigger: her country's only chance for freedom from the terrible power of a deadly regime.

(Goodreads)

My Opinion
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Kimberly Derting has another fantastic book with The Pledge.  A mix of fantasy and dystopia, the real drive of the story is the mystery behind the protagonist, Charlie.  I really loved the book: the characters, the plot, and especially the cover (it's gorgeous).  This is one of my favorite books of 2011!

Right away the reader is dropped into a world both familiar and foreign.  Living in a kingdom made up of separate classes, Charlie is a part of the Vendor class, working at her parents' restaurant after school; a school that is only for Vendor kids.  Because she is part of this class she can only speak Parshon, Vendor tongue, and Englaise, the universal tongue in the country.  This distinction is important because if Charlie were to look at a higher class person speaking their language, she would be sentenced to death.  For Charlie this is extra hard because she has a special ability: she is able to understand all spoken and written languages.  When you find that out, the book really starts going!  This ability puts Charlie in danger and at so many points in the book you gasp for her.

As the protagonist, Charlie is written really strongly, and just one of the characters that I loved (my next two favorites are Max and her sister, Angelina).  Of course I felt each of the characters were so important to the story.  Derting writes each character in a way that each of them is important to the plot, and you can't really get rid of any of them without changing the story.  This is something I really appreciate in books; I hate when there are superflous characters that have no point to them.

Of course, while the characters were great, the plot was fantastic!.  As I said earlier, the world we visit feels like our America or England, but then there is always something off that reminds you you're in a dystopian world.  Besides the world building, the twists Derting throws every chapter really moves along the book.  Each chapter held something new and kept me interested throughout the book.

The writing is great as well.  The main chapters are told from Charlie's point of view, but occasionally Derting will switch to another character's point of view.  This works well to learn the motivation of some characters without there being "telling".  These sections are often more lyrical in the writing then the main chapters, which I liked a lot.

Overall, Derting did a wonderful job captivating my attention and making me care about the characters in just 323 pages.  The Pledge, much like her Body Finder series, is the 1st book in the series, which I for one am super excited about because she definitely left me wanting more!  I would recommend this to fans of Whiter, Matched, and Across the Universe.  Check out Kimberly Derting's The Pledge; you won't be disappointed!

Extras

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Kimberly Derting talks about THE PLEDGE

Final Rating

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Book Cover: 5/5

Book Title: 4.5/5

Plot: 9/10

Characters: 10/10

Writing: 9.5/10

Ending: 9/10

Overall: 47/50: A

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Cover Reveal: Sleepers by Megg Jensen

Introducing the new artwork for Megg Jensen’s bestselling novel SLEEPERS

To celebrate the re-launch of SLEEPERS in January of 2012, Megg is giving it a new cover with artwork from the incredible PhatPuppy, and I am lucky enough to be a part of the reveal!

I was so happy when Megg contacted me to be a part of this reveal.  I've heard so many good things about the book, and have it waiting for me to read on my Nook.  Also, the new cover is awesome; if any of you have seen PhatPuppy's work, you'll know that it is gorgeous.

So without further ado, click on the cut to see the brand-new cover of Sleepers!!

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In My Mailbox (34)

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by Kristi of The Story Siren and inspired by one of her friends, Alea of Pop Culture Junkie where we get to post about the books we receive each week through publishers/authors, our own purchases, contests won, and libraries.

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Reviews:

Mastiff: http://dft.ba/-tpm

Protector of the Small: http://dft.ba/-small

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Follow Friday (14)

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee at Parajunkee's View and Alison at Alison Can Read.  It is an awesome opportunity to network other book blogs.  

Welcome to Follow Friday! Let me tell you what is going on today.

• First Parajunkee & Alison will be featuring one blogger from this great community each Friday along with having the Follow My Book Blog feature. 

• Each week one blogger will be selected as a feature, so sign up for the Follow Feature. Future features are picked randomly.

This week's question is: When you’ve read a book, what do you do with it? (Keep it, give it away, donate it, sell it, swap it..?)

Oh this is a scary question.  Scary because I am such a horder it is ridiculous!!!  I have been told that this Christmas I am not allowed to get ANY books as presents (which makes me very depressed).  BUT, in my defense, I do give away many of my books.  I do so through Nearly New Books, which is a giveaway feature I do almost every other week here on Eli to the nth, and though donations to my local used bookstore.  Oh and donations to my library (SUPPORT LIBRARIES!!)  This obsession with owning the books I read is a reason why I have a shaky relationship with the returns date on my library books.  :clutches books to chest: I WILL NEVER GIVE YOU BACK!!!!!!!

What about you guys? Any other hoarders out there?

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Trailer Thursday

Wildwing
by Emily Whitman

Released: 09/21/10

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

This is a book that slipped through my radar until a couple days ago.  It reminds me of Waterfall by Lisa T. Bergren, which I adored!  I have been really digging historical fiction lately, and when they have a touch of supernatural to them it adds double points!  I can't wait to get my hands on a copy, especially with this amazing trailer!

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Bookin' It Round the Web

Everything about books intrigues me.  Because of this I'm subscribed to couple magazines, like American Libraries and the Chronicle of Higher Education, as well as a frequent troller of Publishers Weekly, NPR Books, and The New York Times Book section.   

Through these awesome resources, I've gathered a few interesting articles having to do with the book world!  I'm calling this feature Bookin' It Round the Web, and it will be periodically posted when I find some interesting news to share! 

• Are you still in love with books?  Because I know I am, and this article expounds the awesome of print books!
• NPR has an awesome interview with Judy Blume talking about censorship, writing books for kids, and keeping books relevant for the new generation.
• Let's not forget our old favorites in the middle of all these shiny new books; check out this article featuring new books from some loved authors!
• Let's talk about the ironic fact that Fahrenheit 451 is in e-book format.
• Libraries across the country are in desperate straits: Molly Raphael, President of the American Library Association has some interesting things to say on the subject.
• Want to find out what the new trends teens are into after they "stake the vampire", me too!
• Hey publishers, read why you should love the library!  Oh and why everyone else should too!

If you find any interesting, funny, intelligent, or silly book related articles while you're "bookin' it round the web" then drop them in the comments and they might show up in the next edition!

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Waiting on Wednesday (28)

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we seriously can’t wait for.

 Here's my pick for the week, that I seriously can't wait for:

Legacy of Tril: Soulbound by Heather Brewer

Release Date: July 5, 2012

What's worse than being blackmailed to attend a hidden school where you're treated like a second-class citizen? How about nearly getting eaten by a monster when you arrive? Or learning that your soulmate was killed in a centuries-old secret war? And then there's the evil king who's determined to rule the world unless you can stop him... 

Meet Kaya, a young woman with the power to heal and the determination to fight. But struggle as she will, she remains tied to three very different men: a hero who has forsaken glory, a tyrannical ruler who wants to use Kaya, and a warrior who's stolen her heart. Kaya learns the hard way that some ties can't be broken...and blood is the strongest bond of all.

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First of all, look at this awesome cover!!  I really feel it's so strong, but still feminine; definitely captures my attention.  Second, Heather Brewer, the genius behind Vladimir Tod and the Slayer Chronicles, has written this book!  Third, she finally has a female protagonist, which I'm sure is going to be as, if not more, kick-ass as her male protagonists!  I can't wait for next summer; it can't come too soon!

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Teaser Tuesday (27)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following!

• Grab your current read.
• Open to a random page.
• Share a few teaser sentences from somewhere on that page.
• MAKE SURE NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (you don't want to give too much away and ruin the book for other readers)

Share the title and author too, so that other readers can add your book to their TBR list if they like your teaser!

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Hunger by Jackie Morse Kessler

         In her mind, she heard a cold voice whisper from the depths of a nightmare: "Thou art Famine."
         She stared at her plate.
         "Lisa?"
         "Excuse me," she said, then stumbled off to the ladies' room to vomit.  Tammy would have been proud.

(Page 35)

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Hunger is book one in the Riders of the Apocalypse series by Jackie Morse Kessler.  It is one of the most intersting mythologys I've read in a while.  The idea that these teens with problems are tapped by Death himself to become on of the riders is fantastic!  I loved Hunger so much.  Lisa was such an interesting protagonist, and I loved the insight that Kessler created to these scary biblical figures, creating dimensions.  The second book in the series is Rage (can you guess which rider that one is about?), and it is on my shelf waiting for me to read it.

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Top Ten Tuesday (7)

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list complete with one of our bloggers’ answers. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND post a comment on our post with a link to your Top Ten Tuesday post to share with us and all those who are participating. If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment.

The topic this week is: Top Ten Books I Want to Give as Gifts

Reviews
Anna and the French Kiss: http://bit.ly/vw5GiC
Rot & Ruin: http://bit.ly/rOqfQs
Divergent: http://bit.ly/uEnBlA
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children: http://bit.ly/uEc22j

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Protector of the Small Series (Review)

Title: Protector of the Small series - First Test; Page; Squire; Lady Knight

Editors(s): Tamora Pierce
Edition: Mass Market Paperback, 224p; 228p; 432p; 448p

Publisher: Laurel Leaf Publishing

Source: Bought from B & N

Buy: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Overview

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Ten long years have come and gone since the Kingdom of Tortall proclaimed that girls could take on a page's training. At long last, one young girl has come forward: Keladry of Mindelan. 

Kel and her family spent several years in the Yamani Islands, where she received warrior training in the arts of self-control and weaponry. Now her aptitude seems clear, but the training master, Lord Wyldon of Cavall, fears that women are too weak to serve. Since her parents are highly regarded by the court, Lord Wyldon gives in, but on one condition: Kel must serve a one-year probation. 

Kel is furious, but she feels compelled to accept. She longs to become a knight like her heroine, Alanna the Lioness, the King's Champion. Drawing on her Yamani training, Kel braces herself against the hazing of her classmates, who believe that no girl is good enough to serve side by side with a boy. 

But this girl is determine to succeed. Kel refuses to let anyone or anything -- including fearsome Immortal monsters such as the Spidren, Tauros or Hurroks -- prey on the weak or the small. 

And this determination will stand her in good stead, as she readies herself for a future that includes an evil sorcerer who is the greatest monster of all

(Goodreads)

My Opinion
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First Test - This book sets up the world Keladry, or Kel as she's known in the book, lives in.  Tortall resembles the renaissance of our world, full of knights and skirmishes and honor.  In First Test, she is the first noble girl to attempt to her knighthood (only nobles are allowed to be knights).  Because of this she is put through Hell.  Tamora Pierce does a fantastic job showing the strength and intelligence hat girls posses.  Kel is a reliable, funny, kick-butt protagonist, and you cheer for her through the whole book!

Page - When Page opens, Kel has passed into her training as a knight.  Going through the four years of training to become a squire, the reader follows her through even more dangerous trials: fights with bandits, sabotaging by fellow pages, and underestimation by everyone.  But again, Tamora Pierce creates such an intriguing world that you want to keep reading!  I learned a lot about what exactly it took to become a knight, and I wish I could be one (only in my dreams though).

Squire - Kel finally makes squire and goes on the road with the royal procession.  This is the part of the series that the reader sees Kel really growing up.  She experiences her first love, and her first real battle.  She takes command when needed, but also has to learn a couple of hard lessons.  The best thing about this series is that Tamora Pierce does such a fantastic job in "raising" Kel that I feel like I'm right there besides her through everything.

Lady Knight - War has come to Tortal and to Kel.  She is given her first command, and this is where she really learns the value to of the skills she both naturally has and has been taught to her.  Facing a quest set down by the Gods, Kel must defeat her most terrifying enemy.  Through this trial she becomes  the Lady Knight she was meant to be. Kel is a fantastic role model for young girls, and this is one of the reasons I love her.  She is the embodiment of strong female, just like all of Tamora Pierce's female protagonist.  The mix of fantasy and realism makes the series a fantastic read for everyone!

Final Rating for the Series

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Book Cover: 4/5

Book Title: 4/5

Plot: 10/10

Characters: 10/10

Writing: 10/10

Ending: 9/10

Overall: 47/50: A

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