Teaser Tuesday: 15th August 2017

August 15, 2017August 14, 2017 Ali@abookishlife14 Comments

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by The Purple Booker. If you want to join in grab your current read, flick to a random page, select two sentences (without spoilers) and share them in a blog post or in the comments of The Purple Booker.

This week my teaser comes from Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy. I’m hoping to go see Landy at the Edinburgh Book Festival this week so thought I really should read one of his books and this seemed like a great place to start. It’s probably aimed more at middle grade or young, young adults but I’ve been absolutely loving it.

My Teaser

“Think of it as an adventure,” he said brightly.

“Why should I do that?”

“Because if you don’t you’ll just become really really depressed. Trust me.

~ 36% Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy

Blurb

Meet Skulduggery Pleasant. Sure, he may lose his head now and again (in fact, he won his current skull in a poker match), but he is much more than he appears to be—which is good, considering that he is, basically, a skeleton. Skulduggery may be long dead, but he is also a mage who dodged the grave so that he could save the world from an ancient evil. But to defeat it, he’ll need the help of a new partner: a not so innocent twelve-year-old girl named Stephanie. That’s right, they’re the heroes.

Stephanie and Skulduggery are quickly caught up in a battle to stop evil forces from acquiring her recently deceased uncle’s most prized possession—the Sceptre of the Ancients. The Ancients were the good guys, an extinct race of uber-magicians from the early days of the earth, and the scepter is their most dangerous weapon, one capable of killing anyone and destroying anything. Back in the day, they used it to banish the bad guys, the evil Faceless Ones. Unfortunately, in the way of bad guys everywhere, the Faceless Ones are staging a comeback and no one besides our two heroes believes in the Faceless Ones, or even that the Sceptre is real.

So Stephanie and Skulduggery set off to find the Sceptre, fend off the minions of the bad guys, beat down vampires and the undead, prove the existence of the Ancients and the Faceless Ones, all while trading snappy, snippy banter worthy of the best screwball comedies.

WWW Wednesday: 9th August 2017

August 9, 2017August 8, 2017 Ali@abookishlife17 Comments

The WWW Wednesday meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I took a major detour from my reading plan last week (more below) but I’m back on track and currently reading Yesterday by Felicia Yap. This popped up on NetGalley and as soon as I heard it was about memory I couldn’t resist requesting. I’m not sure why but I find stories about amnesia and anything to do with memories absolutely fascinating.

At the moment I’m around 20% through and have to admit I’m not entirely convinced about the combination of murder mystery and alternate reality.

Recently Finished

Artemis

So it’s safe to say I went a little bit off track with my reading last week and decided to just read whatever I felt like (it was bound to happen eventually). I seem to have been reading a lot of thrillers and YA fantasy so I needed something completely different. It was also way too tempting having Artemis by Andy Weir sitting on my NetGalley shelf.

I haven’t read The Martian but it’s definitely one of my favourite films. I get the feeling that Artemis is another book that would work incredibly well as a film. The story is set in a city on the moon (Artemis) and follows smuggler Jazz as she attempts to pull off a major heist. It’s a very clever book with a main character who may not be wholly likeable (she’s rude, morally grey and alienates everyone) but is brilliant fun to read. It’s too early for a review but I’d definitely recommend.

Burn for Me (Hidden Legacy, #1) After Artemis, which did require a bit of concentration (it’s kind of techie), I felt the need for a bit of romance and a story that would let me more or less just turn my brain off. I’ve been participating in a group challenge on GoodReads and a few of my teammates recommended Ilona Andrews so as I already had Burn for Me it seemed like a good idea. Unfortunately it was possibly too good an idea as I blasted my way through both it and the second book in the trilogy White Hot. I do have a tendency to get addicted to paranormal romances.

Reading Next

I’ve really got to get back on track with my NetGalley reads and I have a few more book signings coming up so next up will probably be The Scandal by Fredrik Backman or Maresi by Maria Turtschaninoff. I’ve also been very tempted to finally pick up Now I Rise by Kiersten White. I bought it a few weeks ago but haven’t had a chance to read it yet and I really, really want to.

Maresi (The Red Abbey Chronicles, #1) The Scandal Now I Rise (The Conqueror's Saga, #2)

Have you read any of the books on my list this week? Any others you’d recommend? As always please feel free to leave comments and links below.

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!!

Teaser Tuesday: 8th August 2017

August 8, 2017August 6, 2017 Ali@abookishlife12 Comments

This week my teaser comes from Artemis by Andy Weir. I received this from NetGalley and just couldn’t resist reading more or less immediately. The story is pretty much about a heist in a city on the moon, and it’s sooo good. I haven’t read the Martian so can’t compare but it’s very clever, funny and has just the right amount of science and techie stuff.

My Teaser

It’s a simple idiot-proofing scheme that’s very effective. But no idiot-proofing can overcome a determined idiot.

~ 23% Artemis by Andy Weir

Blurb

The bestselling author of The Martian returns with an irresistible new near-future thriller—a heist story set on the moon

Jazz Bashara is a criminal.

Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you’re not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you’ve got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent.

Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she’s stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.

WWW Wednesday: 2nd August 2017

August 2, 2017August 2, 2017 Ali@abookishlife22 Comments

The WWW Wednesday meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I started reading Artemis by Andy Weir at the weekend. I received an ARC of this from NetGalley and it’s not due for release for a couple of months but despite having a big list of other books I should be reading I just couldn’t resist.

I haven’t read The Martian (although I love the film) so I can’t compare but I’m really enjoying this story of a smuggler who lives in a city on the moon. It has a really good mix of science and humour and methinks there’s going to be a heist.

Recently Finished

We Were Liars

I’ve been making great progress with my reading this week and managed to finish three books. The first of these was We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. I think I read this from cover to cover in more or less a day. It was just so addictive that once I started I couldn’t put it down. It felt very unique to me and was completely different from what I was expecting. I know a lot of people haven’t liked it but I think it’s just one of those Marmite books (you’ll love it or hate it). It is a book you’re best going in blind to so I’m not reviewing it but I did rate 4.5 stars.

The second book finished was psychological thriller Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker. I read and really enjoyed the authors previous book All Is Not Forgotten so couldn’t resist requesting this when it popped up on NetGalley. This time the story is about two sisters who go missing and then three years later one of them returns. It’s up to psychiatrist Dr Abby Winter to figure out why both girls disappeared and find the missing girl. Like the author’s previous book this is an intelligent thriller which feels like there is some real research behind it. I did think it lost a little bit of the tension in the middle but definitely an interesting read.

The third and final book finished this week was Wing Jones by Katherine Webber. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from this as based on the reviews and blurb I wasn’t sure whether it was a contemporary or fantasy. I can confirm now that I’ve read it however that it is mostly contemporary with a little bit of fantasy. Mostly it’s a coming of age story which is really strong on family relationships and has some very diverse characters. Definitely one I’d recommend.

Reading Next

I posted an update on my progress with the Summer TBR Wipeout challenge hosted by Candid Cover on Monday which included my August TBR so my reads will almost definitely be coming from there.

Have you read any of the books on my list this week? Any others you’d recommend? As always please feel free to leave comments and links below. I’m going to see E. Lockhart and Katherine Webber this evening straight from work so may be a little slow in replying or visiting blogs so apologies in advance. I will get there eventually.

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!!

Teaser Tuesday: 1st August 2017

August 1, 2017July 28, 2017 Ali@abookishlife11 Comments

This week my teaser comes from We Were Liars by E Lockhart. I read this last week and absolutely loved it so I had to share a teaser. It’s one of those books that’s best to go into blind so I won’t say much other than if you’re one of the few people who haven’t read it, go read it now.

My Teaser

Someone once wrote that a novel should deliver a series of small astonishments. I get the same thing spending an hour with you.

Also, here is a green toothbrush tied in a ribbon.

It expresses my feelings inadequately.

~ 15% We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Blurb

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from New York Times bestselling author, National Book Award finalist, and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.

And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

WWW Wednesday: 26th July 2017

July 26, 2017July 25, 2017 Ali@abookishlife27 Comments

The WWW Wednesday meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I started reading We Were Liars by e. lockhart yesterday and it’s so addictive I’m already around 70% of the way through. I feel like this is one of those books that everyone has read but me. I don’t know why I haven’t picked it up before now. It’s been sitting on my kindle for ages but I just don’t think I’ve been in the right mood. I am however going to see the author in Glasgow next week so I kind of felt like I should read at least one of her books 🙂

Recently Finished

It was a super busy week at work for me unfortunately (everyone bar me is on holiday) so only two books finished, This Savage Song and Our Dark Duet by V.E. Schwab. Schwab also has an author event next week in Edinburgh so it gave me the excuse I needed to just sit and binge read both books in her Monsters of Verity Duology.

It’s been a while since I’ve sat down and just read a whole series so it was great to be able to do that with these. I do kind of wish I’d picked them up a little bit sooner as I stumbled across some spoilers for the ending (why do people do this???) which put a bit of a dent in my enjoyment. I have to say therefore that while I do think Schwab has created a wonderful world and some memorable characters I preferred her Shades of Magic series.

This Savage Song (Monsters of Verity, #1) Our Dark Duet (Monsters of Verity, #2)

Reading Next

As well as Victoria Schwab and E. Lockhart I’m also going to see Katherine Webber (she’s interviewing E. Lockhart) so I plan on reading Wing Jones over the weekend. I’ve heard some really great things about this book (mostly from one particular blogger) so I’m very excited to finally be reading it.

I suspect after that I’ll be totally YA’d out so I plan on flipping back to my NetGalley shelf and picking up either Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker or Yesterday by Felicia Yap. I do also have How to Stop Time by Matt Haig though and it’s proving very difficult to resist. I’m kind of hoping it’s an instruction manual so that I can actually make it through my TBR 🙂

Wing Jones Emma in the Night Yesterday How to Stop Time

Have you read any of the books on my list this week? Any others you’d recommend? As always please feel free to leave comments and links below.

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!!

Teaser Tuesday: 25th July 2017

July 25, 2017July 23, 2017 Ali@abookishlife9 Comments

This week my teaser comes from Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab (yep I’m finally reading it). As I’m writing this I’m around halfway through and absolutely loving it.

Note: this is the second book in the duology so while my teaser is spoiler free you may want to avoid the blurb at the bottom if you haven’t read Our Savage Song.

My Teaser

He’d always loved Newton’s law of gravity, the part about things falling at the same speed, no matter what they were made of. A steel bearing. A book. A human. A monster.

~ Pg 67 Our Dark Duet by V.E. Schwab

Blurb

Kate Harker is a girl who isn’t afraid of the dark. She’s a girl who hunts monsters. And she’s good at it. August Flynn is a monster who can never be human, no matter how much he once yearned for it. He’s a monster with a part to play. And he will play it, no matter the cost.

Nearly six months after Kate and August were first thrown together, the war between the monsters and the humans is terrifying reality. In Verity, August has become the leader he never wished to be, and in Prosperity, Kate has become the ruthless hunter she knew she could be. When a new monster emerges from the shadows—one who feeds on chaos and brings out its victim’s inner demons—it lures Kate home, where she finds more than she bargained for. She’ll face a monster she thought she killed, a boy she thought she knew, and a demon all her own.

WWW Wednesday: 19th July 2017

July 19, 2017July 18, 2017 Ali@abookishlife19 Comments

The WWW Wednesday meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I started reading This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab yesterday and while I’m only around 15% in I am absolutely loving it. This is one of those books I’ve had lurking on my Kindle forever (ok probably around a year) so it’s good to be finally starting it, although I had reached the stage where I was a little bit scared to read it in case it didn’t live up to expectations. It’s Schwab though so I’m sure I’ll be fine (and pretty much all I’ve heard has been good).

Recently Finished

Daughter of the Burning City

Three books finished this week, the first of which was Daughter of the Burning City by Amanda Foody. This was one of my most anticipated reads of the Summer so I was very lucky to receive an ARC from NetGalley. It’s a murder mystery set in a magical carnival. It’s quite dark which I loved and the author has truly created a wonderful world with some very diverse characters. There are however some pacing issues and I did feel like maybe there was too much crammed in but I did enjoy it. You can read my full review here.

I wandered off my reading plan with my second book this week. I’ve been a big fan of Kirsty Greenwood for a while so when I saw she had a new book out, Big Sexy Love I couldn’t resist. I was also in the mood for a rom com as I’ve been reading a lot of fantasy, horror and thrillers recently and this was perfect. It was just so funny, sweet and heartbreaking. I laughed a lot, I ugly cried and it just made me feel so good. Greenwood is a seriously under-rated author and I’d definitely recommend all rom com fans read this (and all of her other books). Reminded me a bit of Sophie Kinsella’s best works (Shopaholic, Got Your Number).

The Marriage Pact

The third and final book finished was The Marriage Pact by Michelle Richmond. I started it on Sunday morning and found it very difficult to put down. It’s about a newly married couple who are offered the chance to join an exclusive and mysterious group known as the pact. The goal of the pact is to keep marriages happy and intact and all members are required to follow a set of rules. A lot of the rules seem sensible but the penalties for even relatively minor infringements are fairly severe.

I found this a totally addictive read. It’s all told from the point of view of the husband and his voice is instantly likable which definitely helps. The tension really builds throughout and I did find myself reading it at 3am one morning. Hopefully my review will be up later this week.

Reading Next

Next up I think I’ll continue with Schwab’s Monsters of Verity duology with Our Dark Duet. If I manage to read it before coming across any spoilers it will be a miracle. Honestly I wandered onto a GoodReads thread “Chat to Victoria Schwab” and it was littered with spoilers (why do people do this???). Anyway I also got my hands on There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins and Artemis by Andy Weir last week so despite having a whole reading plan I may pick one of them up.

Our Dark Duet (Monsters of Verity, #2) There's Someone Inside Your House Artemis

Have you read any of the books on my list this week? Any others you’d recommend? As always please feel free to leave comments and links below.

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!!

Teaser Tuesday: 18th July 2017

July 18, 2017July 16, 2017 Ali@abookishlife2 Comments

This week my teaser comes from the absolutely brilliant Big Sexy Love by Kirsty Greenwood. I love Kirsty Greenwood and despite a title you probably don’t want to type into Google, this is an incredibly sweet and funny rom com about a scaredy cat who travels to New York on her own at the request of a dying friend. Honestly I can’t remember the last time I laughed so much at a book and there were more than a few tears too. I can’t recommend this book enough.

My Teaser

I did used to be a lot braver when I was younger. I was the girl who, at the park, ran up the slide rather than slide down it. Badass.

~ Pg 8 Big Sexy Love by Kirsty Greenwood

Blurb

Olive Brewster is a scaredy cat. She doesn’t do new or risky. She’s happy enough with her job at the local market, it’s cool that she has no boyfriend to fret over, she even likes that she still lives in her childhood home. No drama, no fuss, no problems. Everything is fine. Super duper fine.

Except … Olive’s best friend in the world, Birdie, is dying.

Birdie has one final wish. She wants to track down her first love, Chuck, and because she’s stuck in the hospital she needs Olive’s help to do it. But there’s a teeny problem: Chuck is somewhere in New York and Olive has never even left her home town, let alone roamed the crazy streets of Manhattan.

As if the big city isn’t scary enough, Olive has to contend with Seth, a cocky comedy TV writer who thinks she’s a joke; Anders, a bored socialite who’s taken a shine to her; and the fact that no matter how hard she tries to track down Chuck, he doesn’t seem to want to be found.

Can Olive learn to overcome her fears, abandon her old safe routine and fulfil her best friend’s last wish? It’s going to take extra bravery, one badass attitude and a whole lot of big sexy love to make this happen …

WWW Wednesday: 12th July 2017

July 12, 2017July 11, 2017 Ali@abookishlife17 Comments

The WWW Wednesday meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned.

To take part all you have to do is answer the following three questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I started reading Daughter of the Burning City by Amanda Foody late on Monday night but I’ve been trying to catch up on a lot of other stuff so only really made it to chapter 3 despite loving what I’ve read so far. It’s a YA fantasy about a girl who works in a travelling circus/city as an illusion worker. She can create illusions that others can see, feel and touch and uses this ability to create something of a family for herself, and then one of her family is murdered.

It is early days but the writing so far has been brilliant and it’s a lot darker than I was expecting.

Recently Finished

Close Enough to Touch

I’ve had another really great reading week with three books finished, the first of which was Close Enough to Touch by Colleen Oakley. I really enjoyed this story about a woman who is allergic to other people and a man who’s struggling to connect with his children. As you can probably tell it’s quite a quirky story but it’s very sweet, funny and occasionally heartbreaking. Jubilee was a wonderful character and, with her love of books and knowledge of random facts, was a joy to read. My only slight niggle was that the ending felt a little bit rushed. Other than that would definitely recommend.

Roar (Stormheart, #1) The second book finished was Roar by Cora Carmack, a YA fantasy about a world where storms are the enemy and only the Stormlings can control them. With her lineage main character Princess Aurora is supposed to be one of the most powerful Stormlings but in reality has absolutely no abilities. To avoid an arranged marriage she fakes her own kidnapping and runs off with a group of stormhunters to try and find some powers of her own.

This was an easy and quick read and I loved the idea of the storm magic and even the world the author created but unfortunately there wasn’t enough to make it stand out from all of the other YA fantasies. Not helped by the fact it has all the usual tropes, journey/training, love triangle, insta love etc.

The final book read this week was The Rome Affair by Karen Swan which I received from NetGalley. I like Karen Swan’s books but have to admit was a little worried initially that it was going to be a rehash of her previous book The Paris Secret. However while there are some similarities, European city setting, secrets from the past being revealed while there’s a romance brewing in the present, I found it a very compelling read. I think I sat for about 6 hours straight unable to put it down. I loved the Rome setting but it also has flashbacks to the life of an American socialite in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s which made for some truly addictive reading. I should have a proper review up this week but would definitely recommend.

Reading Next

By some miracle I’m still sticking to the list I posted for Candid Cover’s Summer TBR Wipeout challenge (here) so based on release dates, author events etc I think my next reads will be one or more of the following:

The Marriage Pact Now I Rise (The Conqueror's Saga, #2) This Savage Song (Monsters of Verity, #1)

My list is feeling a little YA fantasy heavy though so I may sneak a wee horror in there somewhere.

As always please feel free to leave comments and links below.

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!!