Mundie Moms

Saturday, February 4, 2012

In My Mailbox #109 & Weekly Feature

Happy Weekend! Welcome to this week's edition of In My Mailbox/Weekly Feature.

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren were bloggers share what they received this past week in the mail to review, what they bought, traded, shared etc. Here's the goodies that arrived this week:


So apparently when I'm sleep deprived I have issues with pausing, and not forming words correctly. Please forgive my issues with speaking today lol

For Review:

* BITTERBLUE (along with a set of paperback copies of both Graceling and Fire) by Kristin Cashore, published by Penguin Teen/ Dial, to be released on 5/1/2

* Take A Bow by Elizabeth Eulberg, published by Scholastic/Point, to be released on 4/1/12

* Where it Began by Ann Redisch Stampler, published by Simon Pulse, to be released on 3/6/12

* Starters by Lissa Price, published by Delacorte Books for Young Readers, to be released on 3/13/12

* The Hunger Games by Susan Collins, published by Scholastic, paperback edition,


Mundie Kids:

* Fairy Lies by E.D. Baker, published by Bloomsbury Children's, to be released on 2/14/12, I gave this away to a friend as this was the second copy of the book I received

* Daughters of the Sea, Lucy by Kathryn Lasky, to be released on 3/1/12


Gifted:
Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi, signed (Thank you to Sophie!), already reviewed here
Between by Mary Ting, signed, already reviewed here
Tell Me A Secret by Holly Cupala, audiobook/booklet, signed
An Amazon gift card- Thank you to B!


Thank you to:
Penguin Teen, Simon & Schuster, Scholastic, Elizabeth Eulberg, Sophie, Delacorte Press, Mary Ting, Bloomsbury, Holly Cupala and Beth R. for this week's awesome goodies!

Please let me a link so I can come check out what awesome goodies you received this week.


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WEEKLY FEATURE: This past week has been crazy fun. Aside from our weekly memes, here's a list of some of the reviews, giveaways, blog tour stops and other news you'll find posted this past week on the blog:


Reviews:

Dead in Norvelt by Jack Gantos
Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale
Wings of the Wicked by Courtney Allison Moulton
Harbinger by Sara Wilson Etienne
Darkness Falls by Cate Tiernan
Born Wicked by Jessica Spotsman

Blog Tours:

Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally
Darkness Falls by Cate Tiernan

Giveaways:

Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale
Darkness Falls by Cate Tiernan
KINDLE loaded with Coliloquy's latest YA releases & platform


Don't forget, Mundie Moms is turning 3 on 2/14 and we'll be celebrating with some awesome giveaways!! Stay tuned for more info.

Book Review: Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood


Published by: G. P. Putnam's Sons / Penguin Teen
To Be Released on: February 7th, 2012
Source: ARC from publisher to review
4.5 stars: I Really Enjoyed It
Pre-Order from: Penguin | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound

"Blessed with a gift..."cursed" with a secret."

Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they're witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship - or an early grave.

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word . . . especially after she finds her mother's diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family's destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren't safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood - not even from each other -quoted from Goodreads

What an enchanting debut! I love being swept away in a well written historical that has magic, romance, and paranormal elements in it, all of which Born Wicked has. Jessica's solid world building, well written characters and flawless plot line also added to my love of this book. Not to mention a strong protagonist, her forbidden romance (sold), and the dangers of living in a society that fear witches. Sounds intriguing right? I was totally addicted to Cate's story.

I really liked Cate and the relationship she has with her sisters. It felt real and genuine, and to me that goes a long way in a book. I felt like I was able to understand and being an older sister, connect with her on some level. With her mother's passing, everything Cate does revolves around her ability to take care of her sisters like her mother asked her to do. It's why she's overly protective about who knows the secrets she and her sister's harbor, why she and her sister's can't openly practice their magic, and why she must carefully choose who she can trust. In her quest for more answers from her mother's cryptic journal entries to her, Cate is also faced with a tough choice, follow her heart, follow the easier path, or join the Sisterhood.

No matter what Cate does, her every movement is being watched. It's like she's being hunted by the Brotherhood who are out to cleanse their society of Witches. Despite a society that frowns upon well educated women, I loved that, that doesn't deter Cate from being a strong, independent and knowledgeable women. Though I give her kudos for acting other wise when she needs to, to protect herself and her sisters. I liked that she thinks before she acts, and often times as hard as it is, she puts her sister's before herself. The one thing I loved that the did for herself, was who she choose to give her heart to. I have to say I loved both romantic interests- Paul the guy she grew up with and is able to have so much fun with, or Finn, the guy who's accepting of her no matter how proper or improper she may act at times.

A lot is at stake for Cate who only has a few weeks to declare who she's going to marry, or give herself over to the Sisterhood, who also harbor their own secrets. Her decision at the end totally surprised me, and I can't wait to the sequel. I really enjoyed Born Wicked. It's a wonderful, clean cut debut to sit and spend the afternoon reading. It's a book that has a timeless feel to it and one I'm looking forward to reading again. I think this is the first book in what's going to be a fabulous series. If you're a fan of magic, witches, forbidden romance and historical settings I highly recommend picking this one up.


Don't miss Jessica when she hits the road with the Breathless Reads Tour with Andrea Cremer, Beth Revis and Marie Lu.

Bookish News & More

This has been one exciting week in the the YA book world! Here's a few of this past week's announcements:

Maggie Stievfater announced her NEWEST series (YAY!!!!) which is The Raven Boys. I can not tell you how excited I am for this. I am a HUGE MAGGIE FAN and I'm thrilled she has a new series coming out. The first book will be released on September 18th by Scholastic.

In other book news, Shannon Messenger not only has a Middle Grade series coming out this year called Keeper of the Lost Cities, but it was recently announced she has a YA series coming out next also from Simon & Schuster! YAY!!!! The first book in the series is called Let The Sky Fall and you can ADD IT to your Goodreads list. You can read more about it via Shannon's site here.

The last book in The Curse Workers series by Holly Black is set to be released, and with that Black Heart has a new book trailer!





Thank you to my lovelies at The Hob for sharing the link w/ me. I will be the first to admit I wasn't a fan of the cast, but wow, just from this small clip I can tell I was wrong. They've really brought the characters to life. I can't wait to see the movie.

Speaking of The Hunter Games, my good friend Sara Grundell from Novel Novice has a comic book bi of Suzanne Collin's coming out next month! FAME: Suzanne Collins will be released on March 23rd from Bluewater Productions. You can find out more about it via MTV's exclusive post for it HERE

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