Looking Forward: June

Sometimes it's really hard for me to keep track of what comes out what month, especially while juggling early reviews and publisher catalogues and all the other confusing bookish things bloggers deal with. It's just a LOT OF BOOKS ALL THE TIME. How do you ever keep them straight?! So on the last day of the month, I post a guide to what books I'm most looking forward to in the following month and that you should keep an eye on. So, since it's the last day in May, here are the June releases most tempting me:

The number one book I'm looking forward to:



June 17th
Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

Gimme. Gimme. GIMME THE PRECIOUS.

June 3rd



Take Back the Skies by Lucy Saxon 
Girl disguised as boy? Check. Skyships? Check. NEED.

Vivian Divine is Dead by Lauren Sabel
This sounds like just the kind of zany contemporary that could be tons of fun.

June 10th



Born of Deception (sequel to Born of Illusion) by Teri Brown 
I really enjoyed Born of Illusion. I haz much curious to see what comes next.

Don't You Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn
I say LA! LA LA LA LA-AAA! La la la la-aaa! La la la la la la laaaaa

June 17th




Dark Metropolis by Jaclyn Dolamore
Original sounding world-building and an LGBT sub-plot!

Fan Art by Sarah Tregay
Possible adorable contemporary LGBT romantical cuteness!

Otherbound by Corinne Duyvis
MORE  LGBT! And this time it's high fantasy!

17 First Kisses by Rachael Allen
As of writing this post, I'm about 40% in and I'm quite enjoying this contemporary.

June 24th



Rain (sequel to Ink) by Amanda Sun
Ink was one of those reads I quite enjoyed against my better judgment, and while this cover isn't as pretty as the first, I'm still excited to pick up where the story left off.

Behind the Scenes by Dahlia Adler
IT'S DAHLIA'S BOOK! YAY DAHLIA! Friendship, movie stars, diversity, Los Angeles, romance, and cuteness!

What books are you most looking forward to this month?

BEA-Yootiful!

Book Expo America is upon us! And I am more excited than a puppy with a big bag of treats surrounded by a bunch of other puppies, which is basically what is happening if you turn puppies in to bloggers and books into treats. THERE IS  MUCH AWESOME OCCURRING. My brain is so completely overloaded that I've barely read at all this week, let alone blogged. So I'll be going on sort of hiatus, BUT I'll still be around the interwebs and maybe doing a few things to share the BEA goodness.



I'll be tweeting here and instagramming here all sorts of #BEA14-related pictures and tidbits.

I'll be posting haul vlogs (most likely, unless I collapse from over-stimulation and decide my face is not fit to be seen by the world, which is likely)

THINGS will be given away! (Book-shaped THINGS.)

And for the people who will be at BEA... come say hi! Here are pictures of my face so you can recognize me! The books are great, but honestly, meeting all the internet tweeps is the best part of BEA.

Here is a group picture taken last night at dinner with blogger and authory peeps:



I am the doofus in the front in the bright blue dress who decided to stick her arm out like she was doing the chicken dance for some ungodly reason. The adorable girl next to me is Rachel from As Told by Rachel. And then in the back, from left to right, is Christina from A Reader of Fictions, Debby from Snuggly Oranges, Lili from Lili's Reflections, Gaby from Queen Ella Bee Reads, Lindsay Ribar, author of The Art of Wishing and the upcoming The Fourth Wish, author Marieke Nijkamp, and Dahlia Adler, author of the upcoming Behind the Scenes, rocking the sassy hot pink pants. Much fun, very madness, good times was had.

And this is what my face looks like on its own! If you see this face (most likely wrought in an expression of joy, stress, or exhaustion), say hi to it! It won't bite.



Wow, that is so much of my face. Anyway. I HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

Book Haul, or the One Where I'm in New York, New York!

I AM HERE! I'm in New York with Christina from A Reader of Fictions, gearing up for BEA! We survived thunder storms, 4 am wake up calls, delayed flights, redirected flights, and celebrity sightings (KEN JEONG WAS ON MY FLIGHT, Y'ALL) and finally made it safe and sound.

Books received for review:

From Macmillan:

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry

From Disney Hyperion:



Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne
Dark Metropolis by Jaclyn Dolamore

This delightful package arrived at my house the day I left for the airport, aka after I had left for the airport, but c'est la vie. I shall stroke them once I arrive home with my BEA haul in tow. These were two of my MUST HAVESSS books and I'm so so thrill to now haves them.

BEA Top Priority books

TYPO UNINTENTIONAL BECAUSE OF COURSE I ONLY NOTICED THAT NOW

BEA IS NEXT WEEK! BEAAAAAA! BOOK EXPO AMERICA, the biggest bookish even in the country, the center of the publishing world, and the place where ALL THE PEOPLE ARE! I am so excited I might explode. I fly out on Friday so I get to hang out with friends and see my mom before the madness of the convention begins, but you can bet your bottom I've already planned out my schedule and my book list (to the best of my lower than average organizational abilities).

Here are the books I will go full Celaena Sardothien to obtain. DO NOT STAND BETWEEN ME AND THE PRETTIES. This is the Cornucopia, and only one of us is getting the bow. (Celaena would kick ass in the Hunger Games).

Top BEA Priority Books



HEIR OF FIRE HEIR OF FIRE HEIR OF FIRE. Number one must-have, will-die, GIMMEEEE book.











And that's just the tip of the iceberg. There will be SO MUCH AMAZINGNESS at BEA. I LEAVE SO SOON AND IT'S SO SOON AND AHHHHH #dailyobligatoryBEAfreakout

Are you going to BEA? Will I see you there? What books do you want? If you were to go, but can't, what books would you want?

Top Ten Books About Friendship

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

I love books about friendships, which is why it's weird that I don't read that many. Well, that's not entirely accurate. I love to read books that feature strong friendships, but I don't usually reach for the contemporaries that are centered solely around friendship. Anyway, here are some of my favorite books about or featuring strong friendships.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
Anne Shirley and Diana Barry, bosom friends for life!

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Code Name Sobbity.

Dark Star by Bethany Frenette
This such such a great under the radar book. The friendship between Audrey, Gideon, and Tink is so strong and real.

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
The call them the Golden Trio for a reason. In the end, friendship and love are the only way to trump evil. And then there's the Marauders, which omg I'm already in tears.

The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
I LOVE THE FRIENDSHIPS IN THIS SERIES SO MUCH. The way they all come through for each other, and every single thing about Percabeth, and Tyson, and Grover, and feeeeels.

Team Human by Sarah Rees Brennan and Justine Larbaliester
Sisters before vampire misters! Mel will do whatever it takes to help her friend Anna and keep her friend Cat from falling in love with a vampire.

The DUFF by Kody Keplinger
Bianca wouldn't be where she is without her sweet, supportive best friends Casey and Jessica.

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
Feeeeels. I get such feeeeeels from Blue and her Aglionby boys, and from the friendships between Gansey and Adam and Ronan and Noah. Right to the chest. And oh, how The Dream Thieves destroyed me.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
The ultimate BFF book of my youth! My friend and I spent a long time deciding which of us was Lena, Bridget, Carmen, or Tibby. (I think I ended up being a Lena/Carmen mix, which doesn't make much sense.)

The Year of Secret Assignments by Jaclyn Moriarty
LOVE THIS BOOK. It's funny and it's all about the bond between best friends Cassie, Emily, and Lydia, and how the girls will go down to the wire for each other... and maybe even bend a few rules.

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
I've only read the first book in this series, but I loved how much of it was centered around Rose and Lissa's friendship.

Ask Again Later by Liz Czukas
I want to be part of the No Drama Prom-a Crew.

Honorable mentions: Aria and Roar from Through the Ever Night, Juliette and Kenji from Unravel Me and Ignite Me, Lainey and Bianca from The Art of Lainey, Addie and Laila from Pivot Point, the Georgia Nicolson series, Scar, Rob, Much, and John from Scarlet.

DNF Review: Biggest Flirts by Jennifer Echols

Review: Biggest Flirts by Jennifer Echols
Goodreads 
Release date: May 20th, 2014
Publisher: Simon Pulse (Simon & Schuster)
Series: Yes, #1 in the Superlatives series
Source: e-ARC via Edelweiss
Length: 336 pages
Rating: Whomp whomppppp



Tia and Will’s lives get flipped upside down when they’re voted Yearbook’s Biggest Flirts in this sassy novel from the author of Endless Summer and The One That I Want.

Tia just wants to have fun. She’s worked hard to earn her reputation as the life of the party, and she’s ready for a carefree senior year of hanging out with friends and hooking up with cute boys. And her first order of business? New guy Will. She can’t get enough of his Midwestern accent and laidback swagger.

As the sparks start to fly, Will wants to get serious. Tia’s seen how caring too much has left her sisters heartbroken, and she isn’t interested in commitment. But pushing Will away drives him into the arms of another girl. Tia tells herself it’s no big deal…until the yearbook elections are announced. Getting voted Biggest Flirts with Will is, well, awkward. They may just be friends, but their chemistry is beginning to jeopardize Will’s new relationship—and causing Tia to reconsider her true feelings. What started as a lighthearted fling is about to get very complicated…


So... that didn't last long. Usually when I DNF a book as early as this, I don't review it, but I wanted to do a little review of Biggest Flirts because it's definitely an "it's not you, it's me" situation. For the right person at the right time, this book could work. With a little bit more patience, I might have broken through the rough beginning and partially enjoyed this, but we just didn't connect, and so I couldn't.

Book Haul, or the One With the Pleasantly Packed Penguin Parcel

It's alliteration day all up in here today. I didn't post a haul last week for busy life/new computer reasons. However, I did FILM one last week, so that particular (tipsy) book haul vlog will be sprung upon you when you least expect it. Not today, though. Today you just get a pretty picture of the pretty books I got this week from Penguin!

Review: The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes

Review: The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes
Goodreads 
Release date: May 20th, 2014
Publisher: HarperTeen
Series: No
Source: e-ARC via Edelweiss
Length: 384 pages
Rating: SQUEEEEEE



Perfect for fans of Stephanie Perkins, Sarah Dessen, and Susane Colasanti, The Art of Lainey tells the story of how, with the help of The Art of War, Lainey plots the perfect plan to get her boyfriend back. But is getting him back really what she wants?

Soccer star Lainey Mitchell is gearing up to spend an epic summer with her amazing boyfriend, Jason, when he suddenly breaks up with her—no reasons, no warnings, and in public no less! Lainey is more than crushed, but with help from her friend Bianca, she resolves to do whatever it takes to get Jason back.

And that's when Lainey and Bianca stumble across a copy of The Art of War. With just one glance, the girls are sure they can use the book to lure Jason back into Lainey's arms. So Lainey channels her inner warlord, recruiting spies to gather intel and persuading her coworker Micah to pose as her new boyfriend to make Jason jealous.

After a few "dates," it looks like her plan is going to work! But now her relationship with Micah is starting to feel like more than just a game. Can fighting for what she wants help Lainey figure out what she really needs?


Sometimes, the universe gets its act together and delivers precisely the sort of read you want the most. I'd been feeling pretty "meh" about my current reads, and my "meh" mood continued through a little bit of the beginning of Lainey. I love me some unlikable heroines, and while Lainey is not a hideous evil witch, or anything, you can see she's got some things to work out. She's popular, sporty, and a bit shallow, but as you read this book, you (and she) find out there's a lot more too her. I ended up adoring her and her transformation, but what really got me to fall in total, flaily fangirl love with this book was... you guessed it... THE SHIP.