Waiting on Wednesday #15

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine where you can spotlight an upcoming release that you're eagerly anticipating.
This week I'm waiting on:


Darkness Before Dawn by J.A. London......
Released on: May 29th.
Add it: On Goodreads.
This electrifying new trilogy blends the best of paranormal and dystopian storytelling in a world where the war is over. And the vampires won.

Humans huddle in their walled cities, supplying blood in exchange for safety. But not even that is guaranteed. Dawn has lost her entire family and now reluctantly serves as the delegate to Lord Valentine, the most powerful vampire for miles. It isn’t until she meets Victor, Valentine’s son, that she realizes not all vampires are monsters....

Darkness Before Dawn is a fresh new story with captivating characters, unexpected plot twists, a fascinating setting, and a compelling voice. Written under the name J. A. London by a talented mother-son team, the trilogy is perfect for fans of True Blood and the House of Night and Morganville Vampires series.

Thoughts:
Most people seem to think the vampire craze is over and while I admit I don't go ape over them as much as I used to, I do still enjoy an engaging vampire story! Darkness Before Dawn looks like it's going to be a fantastic read. Vampire and Dystopian? Hello awesome! Written by a mother and son duo, I cannot wait to read this one.

Oh and doesn't the cover remind you of a Fallen by Lauren Kate book? All the covers in that series have a similar look and I think this could be easily mistaken as a Fallen book. Good thing I love the Fallen covers; this is beautiful!


What are you waiting on this week?

Let me know!

In My Mailbox #26

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi over at The Story Siren where can share the books they bought, borrowed or received throughout the week. For more info on just what it is and how to participate, head here.

Hello everyone!!
Welcome to my first In My Mailbox of 2012! Phew! I cannot believe it's 2012. It really doens't feel like it.
It's been a while since I've done an IMM--over a month I think. Life seems so busy right now, that I haven't been reading as much as I'd like. And I'm trying not to buy that many books, lol, but I recently stumbled onto the site Basement Books and they have some really great (and cheap) titles--I couldn't help myself. Here's what I got lately....


I Bought:
~Divergent by Veronica Roth: I've been meaning to read this one for a really long time and when I saw it at Basement Books for only $3.50 brand new I thought, "What the hell?" and bought it. I'm actually looking forward to reading this one!

~Eona by Alison Goodman: This is another Basement Book buy, and is the 2nd book in the Eon series by Goodman. I haven't read the first, nor do I own it (lol) but I saw it for $2.40 and ca-ching I bought it as I've been meaning to read the series and couldn't miss the deal.

~Damien by Jacquelyn Frank: This is the 4th Nightwalkers book and I'm really enjoying this series so far. I've read this, and the previous ones, although i haven't posted reviews yet and I look forward to reading the rest of them.

Chrissy Presents:
My parents swore no books this year, but caved and got me these two. Pffft. No books for Christmas--whatever were they thinking?
~Reckoning by Lili St. Crow: I love, love LOVE the Strange Angels books and this is the 5th and final book and between some things I've heard and knowing it's the last one, I'm a little apprehensive to read this book, but still dying to do so.

~Destined by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast: Ahhh, this is the 9TH House of Night book...9!! And however much this series gates on me at times I keep coming back.


For Review:
From Simon & Schuster:
~Fated by Sarah Alderson: This is Sarah's first Fated novel, but she's already proving to be one of my new fave authors with her Hunting Lila series and now this. I've already read this and LOVED it (review to come) and can't wait for more!
(Thank-you so much to Caroline and Simon & Schuster Australia for this one!!)

From The Black Hand Ball
~The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler: It seems like Black Hand Ball was yonks ago, but I forgot to share what I got in my goodie bag! I received this and Smoulder by Brenna Yovanoff (which I already have and so donated it to You Give=We Give) and I've already read this and actually liked it. Proved to be an interesting read (review to come)!

I Won:
~Equinox by Lara Morgan: I was lucky enough to win a copy of the 2nd The Rosie Black Chronicles book thanks to the lovely Jess of The Tales Compendium! I actually haven't read the first book yet, but I've heard soooo many great things about this series--this is a fantastic incentive to pick the first book up. Jess also threw in one of her blog's awesome bookmarks! I wanted to say THANK-YOU to Jess!

That's it for me!
What did you get in your mailbox this week? I'd love to know!

Free Ebooks!

Hello lovelies!

Right now there a number of FREE ebooks available from Amazon US and UK for your kindle and today I thought I'd share with you some of the ones I've found. There's nothing I love more than a freebie--who doesn't?
Check some of these out!


The Emerald Talisman by Brenda Pandos....
Get it here!

To be normal, sixteen-year-old Julia Parker would shed her empathic gift in a second. Life has been difficult since her mother's mysterious disappearance ten years earlier - an event she witnessed, but can't remember. Julia's situation becomes more complicated after a near death experience from a blood thirsty stalker. As high school students go missing it is clear there is a connection to her own experience--past and present. Someone has to stop the madness and a chance encounter with a creepy psychic foretells that only Julia is the key to stopping the madness, but it may require the life of the one she loves.



Smokeless Fire by Samantha Young.....
Get it here!

Fear the Heat...

For the last two years Ari’s life has been anything but normal and on her 18th birthday, when her friends surprise her with a gimmick genie claiming to grant wishes, Ari discovers the truth. The tragic and strange occurrences surrounding her 16th birthday were not coincidental and her life is never going to be the same again.

Ari’s real parents are not normal. They are not loving. They are not human.

They are myth.

They are Smokeless Fire.

They are Jinn.


Blood Will Tell by Samantha Young.....
Get it here!

Eden is a Soul Eater. While that hasn’t meant much to her in the past, she’s pretty sure any minute now she’s going to go all "Carrie" on her eleventh grade class.

Noah is an Ankh. As an immortal Warrior, his purpose in life is to hunt down and kill Soul Eaters.

Eden is Noah’s next assignment. Problem is… this is an assignment with a difference. Eden’s not your average, run of the mill, Soul Eater. Noah’s job? To test Eden for possible redemption.

It’s a risky business.

Especially if Noah awakens Eden’s inner monster.

It would be kind of hard for Eden to listen to the angel on her shoulder when the devil on the other is telling her, her new best friend is a lying, scheming, immortal enemy...

....betrayal is such a bitch.

So is Eden when you get on her bad side.



Sojourner by Maria Rachel Hooley......
Get it here!

Seventeen-year-old Elizabeth Moon has been dreaming of her murder her entire life, and in those dreams, a dark presence is there, watching. When she returns home to Hauser's Landing, the very place her father disappeared, she comes in contact with a gorgeous boy named Lev Walker, and it's not long before she's falling in love. But there's something wrong with Lev. When she realizes he's the eerie watcher in her dreams, she'll have to discover the truth. Is he a guardian angel or a sojourner, an angel of death who has come to collect her soul?



Slumber by Samantha Young....
Get it here!

A sleeping beauty may be the damsel in distress, but her White Knight? Why her rather un-knightish best friend of course. And the White Knight’s White Knight? Well… none other than her reluctant mortal enemy…

When Haydyn falls victim to the mysterious Sleeping Disease, the world of Phaedra is thrown into Chaos.

Rogan, Haydyn’s best friend and handmaiden, is the only one who can save her. Together, with the Royal Guard and their young Captain, Wolfe Stovia, Rogan must set off across the provinces to find the Somna Plant that will wake Haydyn from her dying sleep.

Beset on all sides by the chaos, Rogan tumbles into a dark world of kidnapping, prejudice, betrayal and love… a journey that will change her forever, and a journey that will change their world forever, if she does not retrieve the cure.


Cassidy Jones and the Secret Formula by Elise Stokes......
Get it here!

Fourteen-year-old Cassidy Jones wakes up the morning after a minor accident in the laboratory of a world-renowned geneticist to discover that her body has undergone some bizarre physical changes. Her senses, strength, and speed have been radically enhanced.

After exploring her newfound abilities, Cassidy learns that the geneticist, Professor Serena Phillips, is missing and that foul play is suspected. Terrified that her physical changes and Professor Phillips' disappearance are somehow connected, Cassidy decides to keep her strange transformation a secret. That is, until she meets the professor's brilliant and mysterious fifteen-year-old son, Emery. An unlikely duo, they set out to find Emery's mother, who is key in explaining Cassidy's newly acquired superpowers.

Their lives are put at risk when they find themselves embroiled in a dangerous, action-packed adventure. Soon they are forced to confront a maniacal villain willing to do anything - including murder — to reach his own ambitious goals.



What do you think?

Are you going to get any of these?
Personally, I downloaded them all, but The Emerald Talisman and Smokeless Fire caught my attention the most though. They all sound interesting!
Happy reading!

Book Shelf: Unearthly (Unearthly #1) by Cynthia Hand

In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees . . . .

Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.

Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.

As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she'd have to make—between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?

Unearthly is a moving tale of love and fate, and the struggle between following the rules and following your heart.

Blurb from Goodreads......


Review:

Unearthly, Cynthia Hand’s debut novel is a spell-binding tale of beauty and wonder that will captivate you and take your breath away!

I’ve heard a lot of things about Unearthly, both positive and negative, so when I picked it up I initially planned to only read a couple of chapters, you know, to get a feel of it. Fast forward the rest of the day and I’m finished and wondering when I can get my hands on the next book! It’s taken me a while to actually pick this book up (and I’m truly wondering why right now) but Unearthly is without a doubt one of the best angel tales I’ve ever read!
Cynthia Hand has written a complete gem here, full of incredible angel lore and mystery and chock-full of amazing characters that you can’t help but adore. She writes beautifully, the words a perfect companion to the story she weaves together. Hands words flow together stunningly to paint a picture of the vast mountain setting that houses Unearthly and to bring the story to life.

There’s such an aura of mystery surrounding this book as Clara begins her search to fulfil her “purpose”. Having found out she’s a part angel only a few months before, Clara soon finds herself packing up and moving with her family in search of the mysterious boy that haunts her dreams and is essentially her mission. I was captivated the entire time I was reading. From the very moment I picked up the book I found it near impossible to put it down as I had to know what would happen to Clara next.

Every single one of the characters within this book are well rounded and well throughout out. Hand's characterisation is impeccable, from our leading lady Clara, to our love interests, family and friendships that develop throughout the book. They’re all such wonderful editions to the story. One shining aspect of this book for me (besides the obvious love interest) is the fantastic relationship Clara has with her family. The bond she shares with both her mother Maggie and brother Jeffery constantly caught me. There’s a true sense of realness to it with the constant sibling banter and natural interactions and the mother and daughter relationship that, however strained it becomes at times due to some certain choices Clara makes, never seems to waver. And of course fantastic friendships Clara forms with the very different, however equally awesome, Wendy and Angela. Every character in this book shone and there wasn’t a single one I didn’t like.

Clara is one of the best heroines I’ve read about in recent fiction. She didn’t hold a lot of those character traits you seem to find in the martyr heroines that litter YA fiction and she actually had a back bone, while still begin very believable and emphasisable as a character. Despite begin half angel, Clara is very much a normal teenager. She experiences the same things everyone else does. She has insecurities and fears, and faced some tough choices throughout this book that saw her decide between love and destiny.

There’s a lot of speculation about the two male leads within the story and their relationships with Clara and while I adored one, I found it hard to like the other.
To begin with Tucker is simply amazing. Pure amazing, with a capital A! Hand certainly has me whistling country songs and considering visiting a rodeo with this sexy cowboy. Despite being Clara’s friend Wendy’s twin brother, Tucker and Clara didn’t exactly have an easy relationship form the beginning. He teased her, she sputtered and despised him and all along you knew (hoped) it was going to lead to one thing....luuurve! I really dug the way Hand has played their relationship. For the beginning of the novel I really wished Clara would stop gawking over Christian so much, and when she finally stopped and began to take notice of Tucker, Hand took their new friendship a tad further into a romance that I found to be endearingly sweet and incredible real at the same time.

As for Christian, well I’m not quite sure how I feel about him. Now, I know he’s the golden boy; the ever popular, overall nice guy that Clara is expected to save, but for some reason I just don’t like him. And I don’t exactly know why. Towards the end of this book we learned some startling things about Christian, and I know those revelations are going to have an impact on future storylines, but there’s something I can’t put my finger on about Christian that I dislike. Perhaps it’s because Hand has hinted that she may play with the lingering emotions and relationship between Clara and Christian in the next book and I’m definitely a Tucker girl, I’m not quite sure.

The ending is very much a shock to the system and not one that I saw coming. It proves to be an interesting progression to the story and I’m certainly dying to see what it all means. Personally, I believe Hand has a lot up her sleeve. While her world wasn’t overly elaborated on it Unearthly I can see her expanding on it and building on it in the next book and I cannot wait to get my greedy little hands on it!

Rating:
Source: Sent for review from Harper Collins Australia (Thank-you Lara!)
Format: Paperback
AU Release Date: Already available!
Expected AU Price: $24.99
Recommend: Yes!
Recommend borrow or buy: Buy it!
Cover: It's very etherical and fits Clara.
Read sequel/continue with series: Yes! Yes, yes, yes.....

YOU GIVE= WE GIVE Winners and Thank-you's!

I know I'm extremely late with this post due to my absence, but better late than never. I just wanted to take this time to thank EACH AND EVERY single person who helped this incredible cause in one way shape, or form.

To those who donated books or cash to go towards gifts that were placed under the Kmart Wishing Tree--THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! It was so amazing to see how many of you wanted to help make someones day this passed Christmas and your endless generosity was outstanding. I was so touched that so many of you wanted to contribute! I know I speak for myself, Jess and Brodie when I say none of this would have been possible if you all weren't so eager to help out!

To all the authors and publishers who donated to the prize packs or sent books to be placed under the tree, Jess, Brodie and I are so grateful for all your support and generosity towards the You Give=We Give event. Thank-you for sharing with someone less fortunate!

And here they are, the winners, who I'm sure are all very aware of their win thanks to Jess and Brodie--sorry it's taken me so long announce you guys here, lol.



Aussie Prize Packs:
Prize Pack 1 - Sheree D
Prize Pack 2 - Amie K
Prize Pack 3 - Shelleyrae C
Prize Pack 4 - Alison S
Prize Pack 5 - Skye H
Prize Pack 6 - Rebecca A
Prize Pack 7 - Erin W
Prize Pack 8 - Sharon C
Prize Pack 9 - Skye H

INTERNATIONAL:
Prize Pack 1 - Shirley G
Prize Pack 2 - Rebecca A
Prize Pack 2 - Michelle A
Prize Pack 4 - Jana R
Prize Pack 5 - Braiden A
Prize Pack 6 - Kathy C

US:
Prize Pack 1 - Taneesha F
Prize Pack 2 - Erin B
Prize Pack 3 - Taneesha F
Prize Pack 4 - Rachel C
Prize Pack 5 - Taneesha F
Prize Pack 6 - Jena F
Prize Pack 7 - Erin B
Prize Pack 8 - Taneesha F
Prize Pack 9 - Erin B
Prize Pack 10 - Jena F
Prize Pack 11 - Rachel C

UK:
We only had one UK entrant, so Donna R... you won them all! :)

Congradulations! Every single one of you derserves your prize/s for being so giving and generous! Thank-you for taking part and enjoy your goodies.

And one last time....THANK YOU! From the bottom of my heart to everyone who made this event such a success and for lending their time, donations and love into making You Give=We Give such nice event to be a part of. Jess, Brodie and I wanted to do something to give back, but it was YOU who made it all possible. We thank you more than I can ever say.

To Jess and Brodie: You girls are so amazing! I was so honoured to be asked to be a part of this and you both made this an incredible experience with your good natures, fantastic sense of humour and desire to give back! Thank-you for making this experience so amazing! I've loved every minute of being a part of this with you! It's through You Give=We Give that I've forged friendships with you beautiful ladies. Those emails, Facebook conversations and random humor have left me giggling and laughing my ass off so many times. Brodie's one liners and Jess's random comments never fail to put a smile on my face. I'm so thrilled to call you friends!
And a special shout out goes to Jess, for coming up with this idea and for being the driving machine behind so much of this. It was your kind heart and beautiful soul that set this all in motion---thank-you for being you!

2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge Sign Up!

This year I've decided to participate in the 2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge hosted by Evie from Bookish and a range of other hosts in the hope that I'll read some of the many books already sitting on my shelf or that have been clogging up my TRB list for a loooong time. Those books that are already out there, waiting to be discovered that I just haven't gotten around to reading yet. You know....the, "I'll read them eventually," books. The ones all your friends have been raving about or that you've heard nothing but good things about.


Welcome to 2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge!!!
We all have those books. We buy them, win them, they're gifted to us.. Then we put them up on a bookshelf and there they stay, collecting dust, waiting for the time when we'll finally decide to pick them up..
Join us on a quest to dust off your TBR Pile and read all the books you've been telling yourself you'll read next time you'll get a chance.. This is your chance! And we've got PRIZES!!! :D


Challenge guidelines:
1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012.
2. As we would like to see quality reviews linked up to our monthly wrap-ups, only bloggers can enter. Sorry about that!
3. Any genre, length or format of book counts, as long as it is a book that's been sitting on your shelf for some time now. Only books released in 2011 and earlier! NO ARCs and 2012 fresh-off-the-press releases allowed!
4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the 2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge (You need to include the info + host list + challenge button. You can also grab the button code and add it to your sidebar!)
6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2012, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.
8. At the end of each month one of the hosts will post a wrap-up. Every wrap-up will have it's unique theme, a mini-challenge, a giveaway and place for you to link up your reviews from this month. For each review you link up, you will get one entry in a drawing of one book of choice from Book Depository. It's open to INTERNATIONALS. For participating in the mini-challenge you will get +1 entry.
9. If you miss a wrap-up post + giveaway, you can link up your reviews next month. Do not, however, try to link up one review twice - we will be checking ;)
10. December is a wrap-up for the whole year. All the book reviews you linked up January-November + the ones you'll link up in December will be entered into a HUGE giveaway - 12 books, 12 winners, INTERNATIONAL.
11. You don't have to follow all the hosts to join the challenge, but you do have to follow all of us to be entered in giveaways!


Levels:
1-10 - A Firm Handshake
11-20 - A Friendly Hug
21-30 - A Sweet Kiss
31-40 - Love At First Sight
41-50 - Married With Children


Hosts:
Evie from Bookish - http://www.evie-bookish.blogspot.com @SeoEvie
Nicole from All I Ever Read - http://www.nicoleabouttown.com/ @Nicoleabouttown
Bonnie from Hands and Home - http://www.handsandhome.ca/ @HandsHomeBlog
Donna from Book Passion For Life - http://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.com/ @BookPforLife
Caitlin from WatchYA Reading - http://whatchyareading.net @caitlingss
Rie from Mission To Read - http://missiontoread.com/ @missiontoread
Vicky from Books, Biscuits & Tea -http://booksbiscuitsandtea.blogspot.com/ @alouetteuette
Christa from Hooked On Books - http://christashookedonbooks.blogspot.com @ChristasBooks
Jenna from Fans Of Fiction - http://fansoffiction.blogspot.com/ @fansoffiction
Angel from Mermaids Vision - http://mermaidvision.wordpress.com @mermaidvisions


Wrap-up POST Schedule:
January - Donna (Theme: Let It Snow + Book Cover Challenge)
February - Nicole (Theme: Un-requited Love/Love Gone Wrong + Advice Column Challenge)
March - Rie (Theme: Green or Pinched + Green Cover Challenge)
April - Bonnie (Theme: Easter + Mini Challenge)
May - Christa (Theme: MayDay - Disaster Books! + Cover Disaster Challenge)
June - Jenna ( Theme: Camping + Sentence Challenge)
July - Rie (Theme: International Day + Cover Comparison Challenge)
August - Angel (Theme: Summer Memories + Send Your Fav Character On Vacation Challenge)
September - Nicole (Theme: Life Changing Books + Mini Challenge)
October - Caitlin (Theme: Thanksgiving Theme + Share-A-Book Challenge)
November - Vicky (Theme: Spooky Halloween + Book Puzzle Challenge)
December - Evie (Theme: Xmas Bliss + Book Bachelor Challenge)


What I'm doing:

I've chosen......A Friendly Hug (but I might go up)

Some of the books I'm planning to read are:
1. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
2. Divergent by Veronica Roth
3. Saving June Hannah Harrington
4. Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
5. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
6. Mokingjay by Suzanne Collins
7. Fury by Elizabeth Miles
8. Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep
9. Reckoning by Lili St. Crow
10. Entice by Carrie Jones
11. Chime by Franny Billingsley
12. Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton
13. Noah by Jacquelyn Frank
14. Adam Noah by Jacquelyn Frank

This looks to be an awesome challenge--be sure to head on over sign up yourself here!

500 Followers Giveaway Winners + Update

Hello my lovelies!

It's been quite a while since I've been on the blog. Unfortunately, I've had a lot of family emergencies and lack of Internet. Really when things are wrong with the people you love, your priorities go in a whole new direction and blogging doesn't seem quite as important. *Gasp* I know, I can't believe I said that.
I hope you've all had a safe and happy holiday season. I'd wanted to post my wishes for Christmas and New Years, but wasn't able to. Hope you all had blasts regardless!

Now, I'd like to announce the winners of my 500 Followers Giveaway.
First, I'd like to thank each and everyone who entered. I had over 142 entries with almost 1000 individual entries once they were all counted up. I was so pleased with the response and want to take this time to thank each and everyone of you for following me here at The Rest Is Still Unwritten! I was so happy to thank you guys for reading my reviews, interviews and anything else I blog about.

So, without further ado....

The winner of Prize #1 and a pre-ordered book was:

Blogger Name: Krystal Larson with entry number 148!

The winner of Prize #2 and an already released book was:

BookStacksOnDeck with entry number 848!

and
The winner of Prize #3 and a book of their choice $10 or under was:

Amy with entry number 526!

I'm sorry it's taken me so long to make this announcement, but I emailed all the winners about a month ago and all prizes have been ordered or are on their way.
Thank-you so much again to everyone who entered and congrats to the winners!



UPDATE:
It's going to be a busy few days for me--I have quite a few emails to go through and sort out due to my absence. I'll be announcing the winners of the various other contest I've had going on too, once I've email some authors and have that all sorted out. I'll be (hopefully) catching up on some reviews, weekly meme's, sorting out my challenges for 2012 and I'll be back for IMM this week. Yay! Also, as a head up, I'll be holding a giveaway this February to celebrate Valentines Day so don't forget to check back. I'll be open internationally too ^_^

I hope you're all already having a great 2012!