Friday, January 31, 2014

Hedgie's Must Reads: January 2014


It's the end of the first month of the new year! Hard to believe it, but it's true! And with a new year comes new things! So I decided to try something a little different with this monthly feature. In the past, Hedgie's Must Reads has only listed the best reads of the month, but I've decided to turn this into a monthly reading wrap-up, as well as a way to share what Hedgie and I enjoyed most out of the monthly reads. So, sit back and enjoy.

Thursday, January 30, 2014

January 2014 Book Haul


Like Stacking the Shelves (featured every Sunday), my monthly book hauls list the books I bought this month - and bought books only (whereas Stacking the Shelves features books I borrowed or bought). I was better this month as opposed to December; I stuck to my buying plan! More or less . . . . Okay, kinda sorta less. Though a lot of these books are actually belated Christmas presents. My parents gave me $100+ to spend on books, and I got a lot with that. I also thought I was going to have some movies to go see in theaters this month and a few other non-book related things to buy, and that ended up not happening, so I did have extra money in my budget to buy more books (though I might've gone a tad overboard . . .).

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Top Ten Tuesday #29

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish 
Today's Top Ten Tuesday topic: Top 10 Characters I Would NEVER Want to Trade Places With/Top 10 Worlds I Would Never Want to Visit. So I'm splitting this in two, with top 5 worlds and top 5 characters. Call it cheating, but it will make it easier for me. ;-)

Monday, January 27, 2014

Review: Poison Dance - Livia Blackburne

A copy was provided by the Author
in exchange for
an honest review.
Poison Dance by Livia Blackburne
Series: Midnight Thief 0.1
Genre: YA, fantasy
Published on September 24, 2013
Published by Lion's Quill Press
Pages: 86
Read From: 1.18.14 - 1.18.14













SYNOPSIS
James is skilled, efficient, and deadly, a hired blade navigating the shifting alliances of a deteriorating Assassin's Guild. Then he meets Thalia, an

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Guest Post: What To Read When You're In a Mood

Most Readers have a wide variety of books they read - not all, but most. And usually we just pick up what's next on our TBR pile without too much thought (at least, I do). But sometimes we Readers get into moods - doesn't matter what kind. And when we're in these moods, we can't read just anything. There's a particular type of book that demands to be read. You're depressed and therefore have a hankering to pick up a Holocaust novel. Or maybe you're in a particularly happy mood and want to find that next great adventure novel. Or maybe you need some old friends; books you've read hundreds and hundreds of times. Feeling a bit whimsy? Take a trip down memory lane with old classics from your childhood! Everyone's different moods demand different tastes. My good book friends Kel, Katherine, and Hazel have joined me on The Reading Hedgehog to share what they like to read when they're in certain moods.

Friday, January 24, 2014

ARC Review: Cruel Beauty - Rosamund Hodge

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
Genre: YA, fairytale retelling
Published on January 28, 2014
Published by Balzer + Bray
Pages: 342
Read From: 1.17.14 - 1.18.14











SYNOPSIS
Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom - all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him. 

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Sherlock Season 3 Launch Party

On January 20, 2014, the first episode of Sherlock: Season 3 aired on PBS - The Empty Hearse. Anyone who knows anything about the absolutely brilliant BBC show Sherlock will understand what a big deal this is. Fans have had to wait 2 years (2 years and 19 days for the Americans) for Season 3, and we only get 3 episodes (not that I'm exactly complaining. I mean, I do prefer quality over quantity, and they are 90 minutes each).

Sherlock cake; design found on Pinterest. You can't see it, but there's a little yellow smiley face on the side.
To celebrate Season 3 finally airing, I threw a Sherlock party! There were yellow and white streamers, yellow balloons with smiley faces, traditional British fish 'n' chips, and . . . . cake! Custom made by Cupcake Rhapsody, this four-layer devil's chocolate (with caramel mousse filling) was to die for. I can't even begin to describe how awesome this cake was - or the fish 'n' chips (but especially the cake).

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Top Ten Tuesday #28

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish 

This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic: Top 10 Things (Themes) On My Reading Wishlist. In other words, what things do I wish Authors would write about? I'm sure there is an author out there who has written at least one book one all of my choices, but for me, there needs to be more!

Monday, January 20, 2014

Review: Ashfall - Mike Mullin

Ashfall by Mike Mullin
Series: Ashfall Trilogy #1
Genre: YA, post-apocalyptic
Published on October 11, 2011
Published by Tanglewood Press
Pages: 466
Read From: 1.11.14 - 1.17.14










SYNOPSIS
Many visitors to Yellowstone National Park don't realize that the boiling hot springs and spraying geysers are caused by an underlying supervolcano, so large that the caldera can only be seen by plane or satellite. And by some scientific measurements, it could be overdue for an eruption. 

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Weekend Recommendations #30


This is a weekly feature, where I get to go all fannish about two randomly-picked favvies (which may not actually be favorites, but got a rating of 3 or more strawberries) that I would recommend to friends!

Friday, January 17, 2014

ARC Review: The Forbidden Stone - Tony Abbott

The Forbidden Stone by Tony Abbott
Series: The Copernicus Legacy #1
Genre: Middle Grade, adventure
Published on January 7, 2014
Published by Katherine Tegen Books
Pages: 423
Read From: 1.10.14 - 1.11.14











SYNOPSIS
It all began when four friends - Wade, Lily, Darrell, and Becca - received a strange, coded email from Wade's uncle Henry shortly before the old man's sudden death. They set off for Germany to attend the funeral with Wade's father, Roald, and discover that Uncle Henry left them yet another baffling message that they suspect is the key to figuring out how and why he died.

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Review: The Interrupted Tale - Maryrose Wood

The Interrupted Tale by Maryrose Wood
Series: The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place #4
Genre: Middle Grade, comedy, msytery
Published on December 17, 2013
Published by Balzer + Bray
Pages: 320
Read From: 1.4.14 - 1.10.14










SYNOPSIS
Turning sixteen is a bittersweet occasion for Miss Penelope Lumley. Her parents remain disappointingly absent, and her perfectly nice young playwright friend, Simon Harley-Dickinson, has not been heard from since her went to visit his ailing great-uncle Pudge in the old sailors' home in Brighton. 

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Monday, January 13, 2014

ARC Review: Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy - Karen Foxlee

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee
Genre: Middle Grade, whimsy
Published on January 28, 2014
Published by Knopf Books
Pages: 240
Read From: 1.3.14 - 1.4.14












SYNOPSIS
Ophelia Jane Worthington-Whittard doesn't believe in anything that can't be proven by science. She and her sister, Alice, are still grieving for their mother when their father takes a job in a strange museum in a city where it never stops snowing. On her very first day exploring the museum, Ophelia discovers a boy locked away in a forgotten room. He is a prisoner of Her Majesty, the Snow Queen. And he has been waiting a long time for Ophelia's help.

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Weekend Recommendations #29


This is a weekly feature, where I get to go all fannish about two randomly-picked favvies (which may not actually be favorites, but got a rating of 3 or more strawberries) that I would recommend to friends!

Friday, January 10, 2014

Review: Rebel Spring - Morgan Rhodes

Rebel Spring by Morgan Rhodes
Series: Falling Kingdoms #2
Genre: YA, fantasy
Published on December 3, 2013
Published by Razorbill
Pages: 416
Read From: 12.29.13 - 1.3.14










SYNOPSIS
After a bloody siege, Auranos has been defeated, its young queen orphaned and dethroned. The three kingdoms - Auranos, Limeros, and Paelsia - are now unwillingly united as one country called Mytica. But the allure of ancient, dangerous magic beckons still, and with it the chance to rule not just Mytica, but the whole world over. . . . 

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Top Ten Tuesday #27

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish 

Today's Top Ten Tuesday topic: Top 10 2014 Debuts I'm Looking Forward To! Oh, this was a hard one, because I don't actually pay attention to what books are debuts and which ones are new works by old Authors. If a book sounds good, I pick it up. But . . . I'll do my best.

Monday, January 6, 2014

Review: Champion - Marie Lu

Champion by Marie Lu
Series: Legend Trilogy #3
Genre: YA, action, futuristic
Published on November 5, 2013
Published by Putnam
Pages: 369
Read From: 12.28.13 - 12.29.13











SYNOPSIS
June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic - and each other - and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government's elite circles as Princeps-Elect, while Day has been assigned a high-level military position. 

Friday, January 3, 2014

Review: The Deception of Tara Magee - Kathy J. Scott

A copy was provided by the Author
in exchange for
an honest review.
The Deception of Tara Magee by Kathy J. Scott
Series: Tara Magee #1
Genre: Middle Grade, mystery
Published on July 11, 2013
Published by Little Becky Press
Pages: 260
Read From: 12.22.13 - 12.27.13













SYNOPSIS
The Deception of Tara Magee is the first in a series of five books. Book One is about a 14-year-old girl named Tara Magee from the East Coast who finds herself on the West Coast and she has no idea how she got there. 

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Review: The Fault in Our Stars - John Green

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Genre: YA, contemporary
Published on January 10, 2012
Published by Dutton Books
Pages: 318
Read From: 12.21.13 - 12.21.13












SYNOPSIS
Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

2014 New Year's Resolutions + TBR

It's the new year! Hard to believe that it is actually 2014, though I can't say I'm sorry to say goodbye to 2013. It wasn't the best of years - both personally and in terms of books to read. There were a lot of good new releases, but it just overall seemed like a bad year for reading.