Spring Cleaning! aka Who Wants My Books?

SPRING CLEANING GIVEAWAY IS ON HOLD

I received a ton of emails and I'll be going through them and getting back to people this week.

If there are still books and I still have funds to ship, I'll open it back up.

Thanks everyone for helping me clean my shelves!!

I'll be doing this again at the end of the summer.

So, I cleaned and organized my bookshelves recently and wound up with a large pile of books that I no longer want. I already brought a ton to my local library and I thought about a contest but I really just want them to go to a good home. SO! Here's the deal.

I'm listing them out below. If you live in the US and there are any you want, email me at WilowRaven[at]gmail[dot]com. I would prefer to ship only a box or two so don't be shy! I'll fit as many as I can into whatever boxes I can find. USPS Media Mail only (so it might take a while to get to you).

Don't be greedy and say you want them all so you can sell them or whatnot. If you want to read them or want to give them away yourself, that's cool.

I'm not looking for trades or anything but if you feel the need to balance the universe out you can send me an Amazon gift card ;)  Unless you only want ARCs....I would feel dirty getting money for giving these away.

Seriously though - I want them out of my house and into the hands of another book lover (or two or three ;)

I'll leave this post up for a few days or until I get enough responses to fill up some boxes and I'll probably do this again at the end of the summer.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Book coding:
N: New or very much Like New
U: Used but still in good condition
PB: Paperback
HC: Hardcover
ARC: Advance Review Copy (they are all from 2010)

THE BOOKS!!!
The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey -- N, PB
The Curse of the Wendigo by Rick Yancey - N, HC
Never Slow Dance With A Zombie by E. Van Lowe -- N, PB
Percival's Angel by Anne Eliot Crompton -- N, PB
Jenna and Jonah's Fauxmance by Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin -- N, PB
Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler -- U, HC
Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey -- N, PB
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer -- U, HC
Rebel Angels by Libba Bray -- U, PB
Cirque Du Freak (book 2) The Vampire's Assistant by Darren Shan -- U, PB
Faerie Wars by Herbie Brennan -- U, PB
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer -- N, PB
Dragonspell by Donita K. Paul -- N, PB
The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent -- N, PB
Lady Macbeth's Daughter by Lisa Klein -- N, PB  --- signed 'For Jennifer'
The Name of This Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch -- N, PB
The Named by Marianne Curley -- U, PB
The Den Of Shadows Quartet by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes  -- N, PB
Marked by P.C. and Kristin Cast -- U, PB
Marked by P.C. and Kristin Cast -- N, PB
Betrayed  by P.C. and Kristin Cast -- U, PB
Chosen  by P.C. and Kristin Cast -- U, PB
Untamed  by P.C. and Kristin Cast -- U, PB
Gone by Michael Grant -- N, PB
Hunger by Michael Grant -- U, PB
Ttyl by Lauren Myracle -- U, PB
Blue is for Nightmares by Laurie Faria Stolarz -- U, PB
Red is for Remembrance by Laurie Faria Stolarz -- U, PB
White is for Magic by Laurie Faria Stolarz -- U, PB
Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick -- N, HC --- UK edition
L8r, g8r by Lauren Myracle -- U, HC
The Vampire's Assistant (3 book omnibus) by Darren Smith -- N, PB
Libyrinth by Pearl North -- U, HC
Never Cry Werewolf by Heather Davis -- N, HC

ARCs -- all are from 2010
Cate of the Lost Colony by Lisa Klein -- very used!
Halo by Alezandra Adornetto
Plain Kate by Erin Bow
Hush by Eishes Chayil
The Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logsted
Low Red Moon by Ivy Devlin
Girl Parts by John M. Cusick
The Exiled Queen by Cinda Williams Chima
Secondhand Charm by Julie Berry
Fixing Deliah Hannaford by Sarah Ockler
Along the River by Adeline Yen Mah
Beat The Band by Don Calame
Monster High by Lisi Harrison
Spy Glass by Maria V. Snyder

Again - pick from the list, email me and hopefully some (if not all) of these lovelies will find new homes!

In My Mailbox - June 11, 2011

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren :)

Awesome book week cause I got to meet Angie Frazier and I bought all her books and she signed them and she's awesome and it was good :)

Oh - and this is the vlog in which I am very distracted...but really? What else is new?

Awesomeness mentioned!
The coolest bookstore ever
Angie Frazier

Books I bought:
Everlasting, The Eternal Sea and The Midnight Tunnel: A Suzanna Snow Mystery by Angie Frazier
Maximum Ride The Manga Vol 1 and 2 by James Patterson

For Review:
ARC of Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey
Thanks Bloomsbury!

So, what's in your mailbox?

Audio Book Review: Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Reading Level: Young Adult
Pub Dates: Book-Oct 2008 / Audio-Jan 2009
Length: 471 pages or 12 hours
Narrator: Katsa is voiced by Chelsea Mixon*
Series: 1st in a series
Acquisition: Library

Summary:

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight—she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.

When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po’s friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace—or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away . . . a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone. (from Goodreads)

My thoughts:
Love! Can't believe it took me so long to read this one! I feel in love with every single character - even the disagreeable ones :) I love fantasy and Graceling is pure in that form.  Very epic in it's story telling. Both in words and in the audio features.  I really was drawn into this story fast!

Katsa is one of my new favorite fantasy female characters (say that 5 times fast ;) Even though her world is purely fictional and the circumstances of her life could never be replicated, I still see her as an excellent role model for young girls. She has to overcome so much but she never, EVER gives in. Even her flaws are admirable.

And Po! Oh how I fell for Po!  Such a lovable character. Ever action of his seemed so very genuine and true that even the most critical of readers would find it hard to dislike him.

The story held a very deep mystery that I didn't realize at first. As the layers were uncovered I became even more invested in the story. Really a complete package of fantasy young adult awesomeness!

Audio critique:
Have to say, I didn't much care for the audio of this book. The voice actors were spot on - and there are a lot of them. Each character has his / her own unique actor / voice BUT the musical interludes (chapter endings, dramatic 'ah!' moments) were so cheesy! They really sounded out of place. I was reminded of those read-a-long stories I listened to as a kid - like say the hero is running really fast up a flight of stairs, there would be fast paced tinkling bells after the words "Our hero ran very fast up the stairs". Yeah - really hokey in my opinion and a little distracting to the story.

Final verdict:
Would have to recommend the print version of this book over the audio book. The story is amazing and if you like fantasy you'll love Graceling!

Overall Story Rating:

5 / 5 Stars

Overall Audio Book Rating:

3 / 5 Stars

Books in The Seven Kingdoms Series:
Graceling
Fire
Bitterblue (June 2012)

Linkage Love:
Harcourt
Full Cast Audio
Author's Website
Goodreads

Tidbits:
*Just as the name suggests, Full Cast Audio books feature a full cast of voice actors. For the complete list of cast members in Graceling, visit their website.

2011 Debut Authors Massive List Update PLUS Giveaway!

So, it only took 5 months but I have finally fully updated my 

Massive List of 2011 Debut Authors!

(ok, so June and July are missing their Goodreads links at the moment....will fix this soon!)

My Massive List is a labor of love and I want to share it with the world!! 

Or at least my little corner of it ;)

So, I invite you all to CHECK IT OUT!!

To celebrate the (almost) done-ness of the Massive List,  I'm giving away a debut author prize pack and some lovely swag :)

Follow me, don't follow me, check out the list, don't check out the list -- anyone can enter :)

CONTEST RULES

*One winner from the US, 13 years or older, will win Prize Pack

*One winner from outside the US will win Swag Pack

*One entry per person, contest ends June 28, 2011 at 11:59am EST

*You can gain 1 extra entry for tweeting: "I checked out @WilowRedHouse's 2011 Debut Author MASSIVE LIST. Have you?" AND include the link to THIS post! 

*You can gain 1 extra entry for commenting on my Massive List Page

A comment should say something that leads me to believe you actually looked at the list ;) Or better yet - found an error or omission! 

What can you win? So very glad you asked :)

Prize Pack

(for US residents)

Includes bookmarks, cards, pins and other goodies

ARC of Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs

ARC of OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy

Finished copy of Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach

SIGNED Finished copy of Popular by Alissa Grosso

Swag Pack

(for those outside the US)

Some lovely bookmarks

To enter please fill out the form below

Book Review: The Girl Who Was On Fire: Your Favorite Authors on Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games Trilogy by Leah Wilson

Reading Level: Young Adult
Publication Date: April 5, 2011
Pages: 210
Series: no
Acquisition: received ARC for review

Summary:

Katniss Everdeen’s adventures may have come to an end, but her story continues to blaze in the hearts of millions worldwide.

In The Girl Who Was on Fire, thirteen YA authors take you back to Panem with moving, dark, and funny pieces on Katniss, the Games, Gale and Peeta, reality TV, survival, and more. From the trilogy's darker themes of violence and social control to fashion and weaponry, the collection's exploration of the Hunger Games reveals exactly how rich, and how perilous, protagonist Katniss’ world really is.

• How does the way the Games affect the brain explain Haymitch’s drinking, Annie’s distraction, and Wiress’ speech problems?

• What does the rebellion have in common with the War on Terror?

• Why isn’t the answer to “Peeta or Gale?” as interesting as the question itself?

• What should Panem have learned from the fates of other hedonistic societies throughout history and what can we?

The Girl Who Was On Fire covers all three books in the Hunger Games trilogy. (from Goodreads)

My thoughts:
This book was so very interesting. I know how I feel about the Hunger Games series but it was fascinating to see what authors thought of it. Authors whose brains are fine tuned to pick up on and analyze facts in such a wonderful way.

I thought I had the Hunger Games all figured out, but these great writers took it a step further for me. Made me see past the hype and really look into the books. Pulling out bit and pieces I overlooked or had forgotten.

It reads almost like a documentary would. Like, if the Hunger Games was real, this is how the world would interpret it. The part of me that loves to research and analyze things loved this aspect.

CAUTION: Do NOT read this book if you haven't read all three books in the Hunger Games Series -- EVERYTHING is discussed and there are major spoilers if you haven't finished the entire 3 books.

You might already know the authors but here are the full chapter names as well to give you a taste:

*Why So Hungry for The Hunger Games? Or, The Game of Making Readers Hungry for More, Why Readers' Imaginations Caught Fire, and My Sad Inability to Come Up with a Wordplay for Mockingjay by Sarah Rees Brennan

*Team Katniss by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

*Your Heart Is a Weapon the Size of Your Fist: Love as a Political Act in the Hunger Games by Mary Borsellino

*Smoke and Mirrors: Reality vs. Unreality in the Hunger Games by Elizabeth M. Rees

*Someone to Watch Over Me: Power and Surveillance in The Hunger Games by Lili Wilkinson

*Reality Hunger: Authenticity, Heroism, and Media in The Hunger Games by Ned Vizzini

*Panem et Circenses: The Myth of the Real in Reality TV by Carrie Ryan

*Not So Weird Science: Why Tracker Jackers and Other Mutts Might Be Coming Soon to a Lab Near You by Cara Lockwood

*Crime of Fashion by Terri Clark

*Bent, Shattered, and Mended: Wounded Minds in The Hunger Games by Blythe Woolston

*The Politics of Mockingjay by Sarah Darer Littman

*The Inevitable Decline of Decadence by Adrienne Kress

*Community in the Fact of Tyranny: How a Boy with a Loaf of Bread and a Girl with a Bow Toppled an Entire Nation by Bree Despain

A little heavy at times but, if you're a fan of the Hunger Games series, I highly recommend The Girl Who Was On Fire. An in depth look at this fascinating world that Suzanne Collins has created that might just lead you to re-read the series with a new frame of mind.

Overall Rating:

3.5 / 5 Stars

Linkage Love:
BenBella Books
Goodreads