Monday, January 30, 2017

Book Trailer: The Fate of Ten

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The Fate of Ten (Lorien Legacies, #6)Synopsis:

 The sixth book in the thrilling, action-packed, New York Times bestselling I Am Number Four series! For years the Garde have fought the Mogadorians in secret. Now all of that has changed. The invasion has begun. If the Garde can't find a way to stop the Mogs, humanity will suffer the same fate as the Lorien: annihilation.

There is still hope. When the Elders sent the Garde to Earth, they had a plan—one which the Garde are finally starting to understand. In the climax of The Revenge of Seven, a group of the Garde traveled to an ancient pyramid in Mexico known to their people as the Sanctuary. There they awoke a power that had been hidden within our planet for generations. Now this power can save the world . . . or destroy it. It will all depend on who wields it.


Thursday, January 26, 2017

Happy Australia Day 2017

Wishing you all a Happy Australia Day.  Whether it be playing cricket, going to the beach with family and friends or having a BBQ and drinks!  Whatever you get up to, have a safe one !

Monday, January 23, 2017

Reading Ruts: Why They Happen and Tips on Getting Through Them


Reading Ruts or Reading Slumps.  They're horrible things.  They sneak up on you when you least expect it, and no matter how many books you pick up and try and read, they stop you at every instance.  I know.  I've just come out of one.  This one lasted for a good few months.  I'd almost say a year if i'm going to be totally honest. 
I'm a big reader, always have been, but there is a cycle all readers go through where books just aren't the centre of their world.  At least for a while.  It could last just days, or even weeks.  I've had a dry spell that lasted a few years before I came back around to reading again.  (Admittedly clubbing and all that jazz with turning 18 didn't help)


So why does this happen?

It could be a number of things.  You may have other things that take priority and reading gets pushed to the bottom of your to do list and then by the end of the day you don't "feel" like reading. 

Or
You have too many tv shows to watch/catch up on to sit and read.  This is a big one.  I love my reading, I do.  But if given the choice (especially lately because of the awesome tv shows out there) to sit and watch mind numbing tv or pick up a book and read.... I'm choosing the easy option. 

Or
Maybe you are just all read out.  The year before you might have read so many great books that you are burnt out and need a break.   

Whatever the reason, reading ruts suck.  But there are a few things you could try that might help break out this.

  1. Swap out the way you read.  If you read books the old fashioned way with a real book, try a kindle or an audio book or vice versa.  You might find this will spark the love for reading once more.
  2. Pick up your favourite book and reread.  I don't tend to reread books too often because there are so many on my TBR list, but there are a handful that I have read more than once.  (I am Messanger by Marcus Zusak to name at least one)  Picking up a book that you know you'll enjoy could be the kick in the arse you need to get back into reading.  
  3. Go to the Library or Bookshop.  Sometimes browsing books could spark a want for reading.  At the very least you could pick up some books you would normally read, and then when you break out of the rut, they'll be there waiting!
  4. Read something different.  Be it a new Genre / author or a shorter or longer piece of work.  You may find the change refreshing!
  5. Watch movies based on books.  Doing the complete opposite of reading could be the change needed.  If you are stuck on ideas you could check out some of the ones I've blogged about here!
  6. Check out Book Blogs.  This is a big one.  Another reader's enthusiam about a book could trigger your own love of books again.  If a book blogger highly recommends a book, maybe give it a go.  It might or might not be up your ally but stepping outside the box might be needed.  A tip within a tip - Look for reviews that mention books that a quick paced and step right into the action from the word go.  If you can find a recommendation for something that holds your attention easily, it could make it easier to stick with the book until the end.
  7. Stop trying to read.  Yeah, yeah!  I get it.  But sometimes when you force yourself to read to get back into things, it can have the reverse effect and make that reading rut go for longer.  Try doing something else and not think about reading.  Come back to a book you had looked forward to reading every now and then to see if it holds your attention.  
Just remember, reading ruts are temporary.  Once a reader always a reader!  So if you find yourself in a rut with no end in sight, try the above tips.  It will pass.  And when it does, look out :)

Enjoy

Monday, January 16, 2017

7 Upcoming YA Books of 2017


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I love lists.  I hope you do.  So here is a collection of YA books coming out with their release dates!  If there are any that are part of a series, I'll let you know :)  Enjoy

Dreamfall (Dreamfall #1)Release Date: 2nd May 2017
Synopsis: Cata Cordova suffers from such debilitating insomnia that she agreed to take part in an experimental new procedure. She thought things couldn’t get any worse...but she was terribly wrong. 
 Soon after the experiment begins, there’s a malfunction with the lab equipment, and Cata and six other teen patients are plunged into a shared dreamworld with no memory of how they got there. Even worse, they come to the chilling realization that they are trapped in a place where their worst nightmares have come to life. Hunted by creatures from their darkest imaginations and tormented by secrets they’d rather keep buried, Cata and the others will be forced to band together to face their biggest fears. And if they can’t find a way to defeat their dreams, they will never wake up.


Defy the StarsRelease Date: 4th April 2017
Synopsis:  Noemi Vidal is a teen soldier from the planet Genesis, once a colony of Earth that's now at war for its independence. The humans of Genesis have fought Earth's robotic "mech" armies for decades with no end in sight.

After a surprise attack, Noemi finds herself stranded in space on an abandoned ship where she meets Abel, the most sophisticated mech prototype ever made. One who should be her enemy. But Abel's programming forces him to obey Noemi as his commander, which means he has to help her save Genesis--even though her plan to win the war will kill him.

Together they embark on a daring voyage through the galaxy. Before long, Noemi begins to realize Abel may be more than a machine, and, for his part, Abel's devotion to Noemi is no longer just a matter of programming.

Strange the Dreamer (Strange the Dreamer, #1)Release Date: 28th March 2017 
Synopsis:   The aftermath of a war between gods and men.
A mysterious city stripped of its name.
A mythic hero with blood on his hands.
A young librarian with a singular dream.
A girl every bit as perilous as she is imperiled.

Alchemy and blood candy, nightmares and godspawn, moths and monsters, friendship and treachery, love and carnage.

Welcome to Weep.
 Add to your Goodreads List. // Buy at Book Depository


The Edge of EverythingRelease Date: 31st January 2017 
Synopsis:  It's been a shattering year for seventeen-year-old Zoe, who's still reeling from her father's shockingly sudden death in a caving accident and her neighbors' mysterious disappearance from their own home. Then on a terrifying sub-zero, blizzardy night in Montana, she and her brother are brutally attacked in a cabin in the woods--only to be rescued by a mysterious bounty hunter they call X.

X is no ordinary bounty hunter. He is from a hell called the Lowlands, sent to claim the soul of Zoe's evil attacker and others like him. Forbidden to reveal himself to anyone other than his victims, X casts aside the Lowlands' rules for Zoe. As X and Zoe learn more about their different worlds, they begin to question the past, their fate, and their future. But escaping t
he Lowlands and the ties that bind X might mean the ultimate sacrifice for both of them.


The Suffering Tree Release Date: 13th June 2017
Synopsis:  “It’s dark magic brings him back.”

Tori Burns and her family left D.C. for claustrophobic Chaptico, Maryland, after suddenly inheriting a house under mysterious circumstances. That inheritance puts her at odds with the entire town, especially Jesse Slaughter and his family—it’s their generations-old land the Burns have “stolen.” But none of that seems to matter after Tori witnesses a young man claw his way out of a grave under the gnarled oak in her new backyard.

Nathaniel Bishop may not understand what brought him back, but it’s clear to Tori that he hates the Slaughters for what they did to him centuries ago. Wary yet drawn to him by a shared sense of loss, she gives him shelter. But in the wake of his arrival comes a string of troubling events—including the disappearance of Jesse Slaughter’s cousin—that seem to point back to Nathaniel.

As Tori digs for the truth—and slowly begins to fall for Nathaniel—she uncovers something much darker in the tangled branches of the Slaughter family tree. In order to break the centuries-old curse that binds Nathaniel there and discover the true nature of her inheritance, Tori must unravel the Slaughter family’s oldest and most guarded secrets. But the Slaughters want to keep them buried… at any cost.

From award-winning author Elle Cosimano comes a haunting, atmospheric thriller perfect to hand to readers of the Mara Dyer trilogy and Bone Gap.


One of Us Is Lying Release Date: 30th May 2017
Synopsis:  One of Us Is Lying is the story of what happens when five strangers walk into detention and only four walk out alive. Everyone is a suspect, and everyone has something to hide.

Pay close attention and you might solve this.
On Monday afternoon, five students at Bayview High walk into detention.
    Bronwyn, the brain, is Yale-bound and never breaks a rule.
    Addy, the beauty, is the picture-perfect homecoming princess.
    Nate, the criminal, is already on probation for dealing.
    Cooper, the athlete, is the all-star baseball pitcher.
    And Simon, the outcast, is the creator of Bayview High’s notorious gossip app.

Only, Simon never makes it out of that classroom. Before the end of detention Simon's dead. And according to investigators, his death wasn’t an accident. On Monday, he died. But on Tuesday, he’d planned to post juicy reveals about all four of his high-profile classmates, which makes all four of them suspects in his murder. Or are they the perfect patsies for a killer who’s still on the loose?

Everyone has secrets, right? What really matters is how far you would go to protect them.


Traveler (Traveler #1)Release Date: 7th February 2017
Synopsis: Jessa has spent her life dreaming of other worlds and writing down stories more interesting than her own, until the day her favorite character, Finn, suddenly shows up and invites her out for coffee. After the requisite nervous breakdown, Jessa learns that she and Finn are Travelers, born with the ability to slide through reflections and dreams into alternate realities. But it’s not all steampunk pirates and fantasy lifestyles…Jessa is dying over and over again, in every reality, and Finn is determined that this time, he’s going to stop it… this Jessa is going to live.

Feel free to add your picks in the comments below.  I'd love to see what you are looking forward to readin this year!

Monday, January 9, 2017

MBOB: A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

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A Monster Calls
At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting-- he's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. The monster in his backyard is different. It's ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth. From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd-- whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself-- Patrick Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined.

Certainly can't wait to see this movie!! Release date for Australia is: 9th March 2017
Add to Goodreads // Buy at Book Depository

Monday, January 2, 2017

MBOB: In The Pipeline

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I've noticed a large amount of YA books rumoured to be in production for this year and onward but there aren't too many details for the moment on these.  I don't know about anyone else but I'm super excited about this list.  So here goes:

Looking for AlaskaLooking for Alaska by John Green
Release Date: 2017
Cast:  TBA
Notes:   This one seems to be up in the air from some of the things I've read.  Paramount bought the rights back in 2005 and while it lists on IMDB.com I'm not sure when we can really expect this.  Time will tell.
Buy the book at Book Depository

All the Bright PlacesAll The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
Release Date: 2018
Cast:  Elle Fanning - who plays Violet Markey
Notes:  I cannot wait to see this!  I came across a short clip of this though I can't guarantee it's legitmacy, it certainly looks interesting.  Spoiler alert thought so be aware!  Watch Here.
Buy at Book Depository
  
The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking, #1)The Knife of Never Letting Go By Patrick Ness 
Movie Name: Chaos Walking
Release Date: 2018
Cast:  Tom Holland as Todd, Daisy Ridley as Viola
Notes:   Looking forward to this one!  Fingers crossed they do this book justice!
See my review here
Buy at Book Depository

Eleanor & Park Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
Release Date:   TBA
Cast:  TBA
Notes:   It's very early days it seems for this movie.  I hope they don't take too much time in deciding who to cast and when release date will be.  Dreamworks has optioned the rights.
Buy at Book Depository




Sunday, January 1, 2017

Happy New Year 2017

I hope you all have an awesome New Year!  May the coming months be filled with fun and laughter and everything you wish it could be.

From Melissa at Spellbound By Books!

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