Stacking the Shelves: October!

What is Stacking The Shelves all about?

Stacking The Shelves is hosted by Tynga all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

 

Welcome to my monthly round up! October was quite a good month for my shelves not so much for my blogging :/

Borrowed Shelf!

 

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater~ I had to pick this one up from the library when I saw it!

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore~ On hand as I think I Am Number Four is a bit of a cliff-hanger ending.

 

Actual Shelf!

 I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore~ I had to pick this up after seeing the film!
All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill~ I loved this one and got it on offer.
Crown of Midnight by Sarra Maas~ I had to get a hard copy and it has an extra novella included!

 

Virtual Shelf!

 The Legend of Ellie Quinn by Alex Scarrow ~ The series caught my eye on my hunt for I Am Number Four but I couldn't find the first one! Spotted it on kindle for a bargain 99p.
Finding Cinderella by Colleen Hoover~ A free novella about Six and Daniel!

 

Review Shelf!

NetGalley

The Summer I Found You by Jolene Perry~ I love Jolene's books so I'm looking forward to this one.

The Temptation of Lila and Ethan by Jessica Sorensen~ I've wanted more on Lila and Ethan since I read The Secret of Ella and Micha!

Three Broken Promises by Monica Murphy~ I love this series and Monica Murphy.

Finding It by Cora Carmack~ I don't remember requesting this one but it turned up on my dashboard!

I Heart Christmas by Lindsey Kelk~  I love the 'I Heart' series!

Playing Dirty by Jennifer Echols~ Hopefully I love this as much Dirty Little Secret!

 

Blog Tours etc.

Racing Savannah by Miranda Kenneally~ So excited for this 2014 blog tour!
For Real by Chelsea M. Cameron~ Such a cute easy read!.
Christmas Catch by Chelsea M. Cameron~ One of the Christmas Novellas!
Keep Me Still by Caisey Quinn~ Love the blurb!
Snowed Over by Angie Stanton~ Looking forward to another Christmassy read.

I've got a lot of reading for November!

What joined your shelves in October?

Much Love!

Lettie

Xxx

Riptides by Steph Campbell and Liz Reinhardt.

 Enzo Rodriguez doesn't take much seriously--unless it involves waves, boards, or good beer.
When too-hot-to-handle Jessica Mills strolls into his life, Enzo is willing to forego all of those things for every second he can spend with her.
But Jessica has a huge secret--and when it’s revealed, it not only crushes Enzo, but has the last person he wants to ask a favour of--his brother-in-law Adam--bailing him out of jail.
Enzo is convinced that the only way to mend his bruised ego and heart, is to pack his bags and leave the turbulent waters of Silver Strand...for good.
Why?
 I have been a massive Lengths fan for over a year now so I eagerly snatch up every tour opportunity or book as quick as possible! :)

What I loved:
Enzo- I loved his honesty and how witty he was. He reminded me of Deo more than any of the other leads which I think is what makes him my second favourite lead! I really liked how he interacted with the all the existing characters such as, treating Ryan much nicer than any of the others, teasing Adam and Cohen and how well he got on with Deo. I  loved reading their surfing sessions. I liked how he was so charming and intuitive he was with Whit, Maren, Gen and Hattie, especially advising Hattie on Ryan. Enzo really grew emotionally as the novella progressed which was clear in his approach to Jessica, unfortunately he growth wasn't recognised!  
Plot- I loved that the plot revolved around Cohen and Maren's wedding as it  meant that the novella had less of  narrow focus and all the characters were present.
Sliver Strand- I love love love this community. I enjoyed seeing Ryan and Hattie again and how they had developed as a couple. I love how Whit and Deo are now the solid long term couple, such a gradual change from their messy beginnings! Gen and Adam are still struggling to balance their ideals of marriage roles and life, I'm looking forward seeing how it all plays out. It was great to see more of the rest of the Rodriguezs. As usual Marigold's advice was poignant and necessary!

What I didn't love as much:
Jess- I didn't warm to her as she obviously had a lots of secrets. I found her highly unreliable and I didn't like how she treated Enzo although it was clear why as her secrets unravelled.
Ending- I can't stand ambiguous endings! So glad Enzo's getting a spin off!

Rating!

Once again loved the characterisation and community of Silver Strand but the ending is so bittersweet!
 
Is Enzo one of your favourite Silver Strand character?Much Love!
Lettie!
Xxx

Sweet by Erin McCarthy.

Jessica Sweet thought going away to college would finally make her free of her parents’ constant judgments and insistence she play chastity club role model for their church events, but if anything, the freedom has made her realize she can’t go home and be a hypocrite anymore. Tired of dodging their questions, she stays at school over the summer and lands in an unexpected crash pad: Riley Mann’s house.
Sarcastic, cocky, and full of opinions, Riley is also sexy personified with tattoos and biceps earned from working as a roofer all day. Not the right guy for her even if Jessica was looking for a relationship, which she is definitely not. But Jessica knows that Riley hides the burden of having to raise his younger brothers behind that grin and as she helps him get his house in order for a custody hearing, they begin to fall hard for each other, and she is forced to question what she’s hiding herself. 
Jessica has never had a problem getting naked with a guy, but when it comes to showing Riley how she truly feels inside, her fear of rejection may just ruin the best thing—the best guy—to ever happen to her…
Why?
I really liked Jess and Riley in True so I was hoping they would hold up in Sweet!

 Thoughts.

I loved the dynamic between Jess and Riley especially how they adjusted to living together with compromises and little arguments.
I liked Jess even more in Sweet, I loved her flair for design and her independent streak. I would have loved more with her family as there was a lot of drama and tension there.  I liked how self aware she was although she did sometimes cross over into overly critical. For example Jess knew she'd have to bond with the True boys in her own way and actively tried to. Jess really developed as a multi-layered character and I'm looking forward to this next book so I can see where Jess' career is developing!
Riley surprised me, he was a lot different than I expected, much more witty and thoughtful. I liked how he slowly warmed to most of Jess' ideas and how he treated her. Riley

I was glad to read more about the True family and to see how they have adjusted to their new family situation and especially to see how their family had developed. Easton, in particular, seemed to be progressing well under his brothers' parenting. I loved how Easton and 'U' responded to Jess who is a much more abrasive person than Rory and how she won them over.

Unfortunately because Jess hid so much from Kylie and Rory they didn't have so much of a role but we did get 'Rachel' who I definitely found interesting and I'm pretty sure she crossed a few friendship lines. I have a feeling she may be the next lead character!

Rating!

So far Jess and Riley are my favourite couple in this series!

Have you read the True series?
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx

Faking It by Cora Carmack

Every girl likes a bad boy...
And Max's current boyfriend is as bad as they come. She knows her family would freak if they saw his tattoos and piercings.
So when her parents turn up unannounced Max grabs the most wholesome guy she can to play her boyfriend.
But Cade Winston is so perfect that Max needs him to keep playing the part. And the more they have to fake their relationship, the harder it gets to just pretend.

Why?
I liked Losing It and the way Cora Carmack wrote Cade, I knew I wanted to read more of his story especially after the way Losing It ended for him.

First Impressions!
I didn't warm to Bliss very quickly in Losing It so I was prepared for a slow start but I loved Max and Cade instantly!

What I loved:
Cade- I loved him in Losing It and I was so pleased that he really came into his own in Faking It. I found him realistic and very charming! He did start out as a bit weak but he definitely regained his confidence as the book went on. I liked how encouraging he was of Max and how incredibly charming he was with Max and her family. Definitely one of my favourite male leads.

Max- I absolutely loved Max! I loved her character growth and her surprisingly haunted backstory. I found her vibrant and her devotion to her musical ambitions despite resistance from her family very inspiring.
Plot- I wasn't too sold on the idea of a fake boyfriend but I really liked the way Cora approached the plot idea. The way they met was so unique and really fitted both their personalities and their personas. I liked the way they were both unsure of themselves in their own way and the fake boyfriend idea evolved and grew out of that.
 
What I didn't love as much:
More- I would have loved to read more about Cade's family and just more in general about their relationship. 

Bliss- It was realistic that things between Bliss and Cade could never be the way they were but it was still sad!
Rating!

I really enjoyed Faking It from beginning to end, I loved the characters and the plot surprised me!

 

So what's your opinion? Bliss or Max?

Finding It review coming soon!

Much Love!

Lettie

Xxxx

 

Friday Favourites: September

My top five Bookish things from September! This month was hard to pick five because I read a more diverse selection of books.

 

First Impression

Among the Nameless Stars by Diana Peterfreund.

I downloaded Among the Nameless Stars to see if I should buy For the Darkness Shows Stars and I barely got a chapter in before I put in an order for it! The world building and characterisation pulled me in.

 

Plot

All Our Yesterdays by Cristina Terrill.

I loved the all the twists and suspense in All Our Yesterdays. I'm not normally a fan of time travel but I really enjoyed how it was explained and incorporated in the book.

 

Character

Celaena Sardothien from Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas.

I didn't think I could love Celaena anymore but she really grew in Crown of Midnight and so much more was revealed of her background!

 

Guy

Enzo from Riptides by Steph Campbell and Liz Reinhardt.

Enzo really broke my heart in Riptides! I loved his laidback nature and how funny he was, looking forward to more of him.

 

Genre

Dystopia with a twist!

All Our Yesterdays and Among the Nameless Stars are both irregular dystopia books. I'm not entirely sure All Our Yesterdays is definitely dystopia but it has a lot of elements! I liked that the plots were full of twists and surprises and felt very unique! 

 

What were some of your September favourites?

Much Love!

Lettie

Xxx

Cover Reveal: For Real by Chelsea M. Cameron

Two people. One fake relationship. What could go wrong?
When virgin Shannon Travers gets fed up with her friends demanding that she find a boyfriend, she enlists the help of tattooed, mohawk-rocking graphic design student Jett. He’s more than happy to play along with their Fake Relationship, including the Ten Rules of Fake Dating that control-freak Shannon comes up with. Even if he likes to violate them. Repeatedly.
But what happens when Fake Dating starts to feel… not fake anymore? Will Shannon be willing to let go and embrace the first thing in her life that’s ever felt REAL?

 

Teaser!

About Chelsea M. Cameron!

Chelsea M. Cameron is a YA/NA New York Times/USA Today Best Selling author from Maine. Lover of things random and ridiculous, Jane Austen/Charlotte and Emily Bronte Fangirl, red velvet cake enthusiast, obsessive tea drinker, vegetarian, former cheerleader and world's worst video gamer. When not writing, she enjoys watching infomercials, singing in the car and tweeting (this one time, she was tweeted by Neil Gaiman). She has a degree in journalism from the University of Maine, Orono that she promptly abandoned to write about the people in her own head. More often than not, these people turn out to be just as weird as she is.

Her New Adult Contemporary Romance titles include My Favorite Mistake, which has been bought by Harlequin along with a...moChelsea M. Cameron is a YA/NA New York Times/USA Today Best Selling author from Maine. Lover of things random and ridiculous, Jane Austen/Charlotte and Emily Bronte Fangirl, red velvet cake enthusiast, obsessive tea drinker, vegetarian, former cheerleader and world's worst video gamer. When not writing, she enjoys watching infomercials, singing in the car and tweeting (this one time, she was tweeted by Neil Gaiman). She has a degree in journalism from the University of Maine, Orono that she promptly abandoned to write about the people in her own head. More often than not, these people turn out to be just as weird as she is.
Her New Adult Contemporary Romance titles include My Favorite Mistake, which has been bought by Harlequin along with a sequel, Deeper We Fall and Faster We Burn.
Her Young Adult books include Nocturnal, Nightmare and Neither, the first three books in The Noctalis Chronicles. The fourth and final book, Neverend will be out in 2013. Whisper, the first in The Whisper Trilogy is also available, with the second book in the series, Silence and the final book, Listen coming out in 2014.

Giveaway!

aRafflecopter giveaway  

I really enjoy Chelsea's Fall and Rise series so I'm looking forward to For Real!
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx

September~ A Review

Monthly Feature- rounds up all the books I've read, progress on challenges and monthly blogging goals!

September's been a hectic month of holidays, extra work and preparing for my best friend's visit! I've managed to keep my blogging fairly regular though so fingers crossed I can maintain it throughout busy October.

September in Numbers!

Total posts= 15

Books read= 7

Reviews Posted= 3

What I read in September!

What I reviewed!

Unspoken by Jen Frederick.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas.
Earth Girl by Janet Edwards.
 

What I posted!

Stacking The Shelves: September
Confessions: Reviewing Middle books
Blog Tour: Left by T.R Graves
Behind the Blog: New Rating!
Top Ten Tuesday: Summer TBR Update
Bloggiesta Finish Line!
Bloggiesta To Do List!
Blog Tour: Unspoken by Jen Frederick.
Cover Reveal: Drift by Steph Campbell and Liz Reinhardt.
Top Ten Tuesday: Autumn TBR!
August~ A Review!
Currently....
Friday Favourites: August!

Did I achieve my goals?
Diversity
I think I achieved this one! I posted a mix of memes, blog tours, discussions and reviews in September. Just need to keep it up!

Reviews
Whoops! No here near 8 this month.... At least I did some older reviews.
 

What I hope to achieve in October!

• Reviews- I want to post a more realistic four in October. One a week.
• Update Pages- I need to update my rating page with my new rating and all of my pages need a bit of updating anyway!

How was your September ?
Much Love!
Lettie
Xxx