TAGGED: 10 Books That Affected Me in Some Way

I was tagged by Joel of Lord Humungosaur's Library (go check out his blog and see his list HERE) and Hazel on Facebook to do this tag.

Rules: Don't take more than a few minutes and do not think too hard. They don't have to be the "right" books or great works of literature, just ones that have affected you in some way.

The list I came up with are in no particular order. I wouldn't say they are my best books of all time but they are part of it and they sure did left a mark in my life. How else am I gonna make a list this fast and without thinking too hard? That's because when I read the phrase "affected you in some way", these are the first things that came to mind. Obviously, they are all favorites. And not just because they are good or entertaining or awesome or hilarious or romantic but I got something more than the feeling of being so happy every time I read books.

Scarlet vs Scarlet: A Book Discussion

I honestly have no idea what I want to post today. Right now, I am thinking about what I usually post on Saturdays which is my monthly book haul but it isn't the end of the month yet. Then I remembered what my sister told me a few days back and decided to write something random.. not really. It's still book related but nothing important.

So. My sister asks me for book-to-read-next recommendations 98% of the time. And when she asked me that recently, I told her to read Cinder by Marissa Meyer which is the first book I read this year and that I really loved it. She loved it too, of course, so she recommended it to her friend who loved it as well. Anyone who read and loved Cinder would immediately look for the sequel Scarlet which was what she did. Lucky her, I have it in paperback and e-book. And while she prefers to read it in physical copy, she opted to lend her friend the one in e-book form when her friend asked if she have a copy she could borrow. Thing is, I have two books in my reader with the title Scarlet and the one by A.C. Gaughen would be first on the list which my sister didn't know so I guess that's the one she let her friend read without checking out the details.

Both books are so good so no regrets, but what happened was.. according to my sister, she and her friend were hanging out together; she was done reading, her friend is ALMOST done.. and then they're talking.

FRIEND: This is really good. It's like Robin Hood.
MY SISTER: *confused* You mean.. Red Riding Hood, right?
F: *confused* No. It's really Robin Hood.

*discussing their fave parts in the book - which doesn't make sense until..*

MS: I don't remember that part but I really loved Scarlet and Wolf's parts..
F: Why haven't I met Wolf yet?
MS: What? But you're almost finished..

dun-duh-duh-duuuuun...

MS: What book are you reading?!

dun-dun-dun-duuun..

No harm done, since her friend was now obsessed with Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen, its beautiful cover and later discovered her love for GIFs in reviews. Now my sister is the one reading it, obsessing with the cover and endlessly gushing about it to me. It's exhausting :)

Review: Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris

Unbreakable (Unraveling #2)
by Elizabeth Norris
Published: April 23, 2013




Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge: UPDATE

We are well past the first half of this year and I think it's time I update my entries to some of my reading challenges. As you already know, I joined several this 2013. You can see all of them here: 2013 Reading Challenges as well as my progress which really needs updating. Anyway, I've completed one of those challenges so yay! For my TBR Pile Reading Challenge I chose the A Friendly Hug Level (11-20 books). I already read more than 20 books that can qualify for the challenge but some of them have no reviews yet and some I don't plan on reviewing so they're not counted. Officially, I have read and reviewed 19 books for this challenge. And they are:

Review: Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins

Spell Bound (Hex Hall #3)
by Rachel Hawkins
Published: March 13, 2012



Hailed as “impossible to put down,” the Hex Hall series has both critics and teens cheering. With a winning combination of romance, action, magic and humor, this third volume will leave readers enchanted.

Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident.

Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?

Review: Aberrant by Ruth Silver

Aberrant (Aberrant #1)
by Ruth Silver
Published: April 28, 2013



In the future Dystopian society of Cabal, the government instills equality for all and offers its citizens the perfect system. There is food, shelter and jobs for everyone. The one requirement is to follow the rules without question, including the government's match in marriage and "The Day of the Chosen", a lottery that randomly selects families to conceive children as natural means hasn't existed in generations. Following her eighteenth birthday, Olivia Parker accepts her requirement to marry her childhood best friend, Joshua Warren, and is eager to start her work assignment and new life when it all comes abruptly to an end as she's arrested and thrown in prison. The only crime committed, her existence. Olivia is unlike the rest of the world born not from "The Day of the Chosen." The truth haunts the government and puts her life in grave danger as one simple fact would destroy the perfect system.

With Joshua's help, Olivia breaks free of prison and is forced on the run. Together they set out to find the promised rebel town in search of a new home and new life together. Their situation seems less than promising as they reach the town of Haven. New rules and customs must be adhered to in order to stay. Leaving would mean most certain death in the large expanse of the Gravelands. Time is running out as the government mounts an attack to destroy Olivia and bury her secret with her. Thrown into a world unlike their own, they must quickly adapt to survive.

Review: Reboot by Amy Tintera

Reboot (Reboot #1)
by Amy Tintera
Published: May 7, 2013




Five years ago, Wren Connolly was shot three times in the chest. After 178 minutes she came back as a Reboot: stronger, faster, able to heal, and less emotional. The longer Reboots are dead, the less human they are when they return. Wren 178 is the deadliest Reboot in the Republic of Texas. Now seventeen years old, she serves as a soldier for HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation).

Wren’s favorite part of the job is training new Reboots, but her latest newbie is the worst she’s ever seen. As a 22, Callum Reyes is practically human. His reflexes are too slow, he’s always asking questions, and his ever-present smile is freaking her out. Yet there’s something about him she can’t ignore. When Callum refuses to follow an order, Wren is given one last chance to get him in line—or she’ll have to eliminate him. Wren has never disobeyed before and knows if she does, she’ll be eliminated, too. But she has also never felt as alive as she does around Callum.

The perfect soldier is done taking orders.

Review: Rouge by Leigh Talbert Moore

Rouge (Cheveux Roux #1)
by Leigh Talbert Moore
Published: November 11, 2012



QUARTER FINALIST---Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award, 2013

Romance, velvet, sequins, and murder...

Hale Ferrer is the rising star of the hottest cabaret in New Orleans. And her one goal is escape. Escape from the lies, from the crime, and from her growing fear that one day she'll have to earn her living in the secret back rooms, where the dancers do more than dance.

But she won't leave behind Teeny, the orphan-girl she promised to protect.

Freddie Lovel is rich, handsome, and in love with Hale, and he's ready to sweep her away with him to Paris. But her heart is captured by Beau, the poor stagehand with eyes as blue as Louisiana iris flowers.

Denying her fears, Hale is ready to choose love and a life with Beau, until a predator hidden in the wings launches a chain of events that could cost her everything--Teeny, their one hope of escape, and possibly even her life.

Review: The Perfect Game by J. Sterling

The Perfect Game
(The Perfect Game #1)
by J. Sterling
Published: October 11, 2012




He's a game she never intended to play.
And she's the game changer he never knew he needed.

The Perfect Game tells the story of college juniors, Cassie Andrews & Jack Carter. When Cassie meets rising baseball hopeful Jack, she is determined to steer clear of him and his typical cocky attitude. But Jack has other things on his mind... like getting Cassie to give him the time of day.

They're both damaged, filled with mistrust and guarded before they find one another (and themselves) in this emotional journey about love and forgiveness. Strap yourselves for a ride that will not only break your heart, but put it back together.

Sometimes life gets ugly before it gets beautiful...

This is a MATURE YOUNG ADULT/NEW ADULT novel
Suitable for ages 17+
Contains strong language, sexual situations and references

Review: Splintered by A.G. Howard

Splintered (Splintered #1)
by A.G. Howard
Published: January 1, 2013




This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.

When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

[BLOG TOUR] Review: The Faerie Prince by Rachel Morgan

Hello everyone! Welcome to my stop for The Faerie Prince Blog Tour! TFP is the second book in one of my most favorite series ever. Check out the rest of the tour schedule HERE.

The Faerie Prince
(Creepy Hollow #2)
by Rachel Morgan
Published: May 30, 2013



Guardian trainee Violet Fairdale is just weeks away from one of the most important occasions of her life: graduation. After messing up big time by bringing a human into the fae realm, Vi needs to step up her game and forget about Nate if she hopes to graduate as the top guardian of her year. Everything would be fine if she wasn’t forced to partner with Ryn, her ex-friend, ex-enemy, current ‘sort of friend’. They might be trying to patch up their relationship, but does she really want to spend a week undercover with him for their final assignment? On top of that, the possibly insane Unseelie Prince is still on the loose, free to ‘collect’ as many specially talented faeries as he can find—and Vi is still at the top of his list. Add in faerie queens, enchanted storms, complicated not-just-friends feelings, and a murder within the Guild itself, and graduation is about to become the least of Vi’s problems.

May Reads + Monthly Recap

If you've noticed, I kind of disappeared and it got pretty quiet here in my blog for more than a week. Between final exams and tons of activities at school, I got very little time for anything else. And I'm extremely sad to say this but in that span of time I was away from blogging, that's also how long I wasn't able to pick ANY books to read. You'd think now that summer classes were over, I'd be having the time of my life diving in books but as soon as school let out, club meetings here, trainings and seminars there, blah, blah, blah. I spent three days at our school's Eco Park out of town after exams for our school's Leadership Training Seminar and we were not allowed to bring any gadgets with us. I also did not bring any books which I wouldn't be able to read anyway since our activities end really late (our socials and last night ended at around 2AM) and I'm already exhausted by the time I hit our dorm room. I slept like a log when I finally got back home. I planned to catch up but last Friday I was once again out of town for our club's team building activity. I'm still pretty beat so I only did a quick post when I got back yesterday. Anyway, here's a quick recap of my monthly posts and reads.

Review: If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch

If You Find Me
by Emily Murdoch
Published: March 26, 2013




There are some things you can’t leave behind…

A broken-down camper hidden deep in a national forest is the only home fifteen year-old Carey can remember. The trees keep guard over her threadbare existence, with the one bright spot being Carey’s younger sister, Jenessa, who depends on Carey for her very survival. All they have is each other, as their mentally ill mother comes and goes with greater frequency. Until that one fateful day their mother disappears for good, and two strangers arrive. Suddenly, the girls are taken from the woods and thrust into a bright and perplexing new world of high school, clothes and boys.

Now, Carey must face the truth of why her mother abducted her ten years ago, while haunted by a past that won’t let her go… a dark past that hides many a secret, including the reason Jenessa hasn’t spoken a word in over a year. Carey knows she must keep her sister close, and her secrets even closer, or risk watching her new life come crashing down.

Review: Losing It by Cora Carmack

Losing It (Losing It #1)
by Cora Carmack
Published: October 5, 2012




Virginity.

Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible-- a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if that weren't embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognizes her new theatre professor. She'd left him naked in her bed about 8 hours earlier.

Review: Shadows in the Silence by Courtney Allison Moulton

Shadows in the Silence
(Angelfire #3)
by Courntney Allison Moulton
Published: January 29, 2013




Your strength in heart and hand will fall. . . .
Ellie knows that the darkest moments are still to come, and she has everything to fight for:

She must fight for Will.
The demonic have resorted to their cruelest weapons to put Will in mortal danger, and Ellie makes an unlikely alliance to save him and to stop Lilith and Sammael, who seek to drown the world in blood and tear a hole into Heaven.

She must fight for humanity.
As the armies of Hell rise and gather for the looming End of Days, Ellie and her band of allies travel to the world’s darkest and most ancient regions in her quest to come into her full glory as the archangel Gabriel.

And Ellie must save herself.
Her humanity withers beneath the weight of her cold archangel power, but Ellie must hold tight to who she is and who she loves as she prepares for the ultimate battle for Heaven and Earth.

In this final installment in the Angelfire trilogy, Courtney Allison Moulton brings her dark world of epic battles and blistering romance to a blazing bright conclusion.

April Reads + Monthly Recap

We're already starting the fifth month of 2013! Oh, how time flies so fast especially if you're scrambling to get as much as you can and get things done. My first week of April was dedicated to a lot of reading (5 books and 4 novellas!) but then summer classes started and I was caught up with a lot of school and extracurricular works that I wasn't able to pick another read for more than a week. No matter, by the end of the month I was able to re-read Soul Screamers 1-5, finished Before I Wake then finally said my goodbyes to the whole series that ended with With All My Soul. And to break all that paranormal high, I had 3 quick contemporary reads. To sum it all up, this month is a win!

Here are the books I read this April: (Book cover links to Goodreads)

Review: Hidden Among Us by Katy Moran

Hidden Among Us by Katy Moran
Published: March 7, 2013



When Lissy meets a mysterious and strangely beautiful boy on her way to Hopesay Edge, she is deeply unsettled by their encounter.

She discovers that the boy, Larkspur, is a member of the Hidden, an ancient group of elven people, whose secrets lie buried at Hopesay Reach. Before long, Lissy and her brother Rafe find themselves caught by a powerful magic and fighting to escape a bargain that can never be broken.

*ARC copy provided by The Book Depository

Review: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices #3)
by Cassandra Clare
Published: March 19, 2013



Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy.

Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?
Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.
A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.

Review: With All My Soul by Rachel Vincent

With All My Soul (Soul Screamers #7)
by Rachel Vincent
Published: March 26, 2013



What does it mean when your school is voted the most dangerous in America? It's time to kick some hellion butt...

After not really surviving her junior year (does "undead" count as survival?), Kaylee Cavanaugh has vowed to take back her school from the hellions causing all the trouble. She's going to find a way to turn the incarnations of Avarice, Envy and Vanity against one another in order to protect her friends and finish this war, once and forever.

But then she meets Wrath and understands that she's closer to the edge than she's ever been. And when one more person close to her is taken, Kaylee realizes she can't save everyone she loves without risking everything she has...

Review: Before I Wake by Rachel Vincent

Before I Wake (Soul Screamers #6)
by Rachel Vincent
Published: June 26, 2012



I died on a Thursday—killed by a monster intent on stealing my soul. The good news? He didn't get it.

The bad news? Turns out not even death will get you out of high school…

Covering up her own murder was one thing, but faking life is much harder than Kaylee Cavanaugh expected. After weeks spent "recovering," she's back in school, fighting to stay visible to the human world, struggling to fit in with her friends and planning time alone with her new reaper boyfriend.

But to earn her keep in the human world, Kaylee must reclaim stolen souls, and when her first assignment brings her face-to-face with an old foe, she knows the game has changed. Her immortal status won't keep her safe. And this time Kaylee isn't just gambling with her own life….