Reading Rainbow: Vanish by Sophie Jordan

Last year I read and recommended Firelight by Sophie Jordan (you can read the rec here). I ended the post by saying that I wanted to learn MORE about the draki. I was completely mystified by the idea of a dragon-ish species living as human. Well, I'm very happy to say that Sophie Jordan must have read my rec (hah!) because she delivered in Vanish, the sequel to Firelight.

From Goodreads:

To save the life of the boy she loves, Jacinda did the unthinkable: She betrayed the most closely-guarded secret of her kind. Now she must return to the protection of her pride knowing she might never see Will again—and worse, that because his mind has been shaded, Will’s memories of that fateful night and why she had to flee are gone.

Back home, Jacinda is greeted with hostility and must work to prove her loyalty for both her sake and her family’s. Among the few who will even talk to her are Cassian, the pride’s heir apparent who has always wanted her, and her sister, Tamra, who has been forever changed by a twist of fate. Jacinda knows that she should forget Will and move on—that if he managed to remember and keep his promise to find her, it would only endanger them both. Yet she clings to the hope that someday they will be together again. When the chance arrives to follow her heart, will she risk everything for love?

In bestselling author Sophie Jordan’s dramatic follow-up to Firelight, forbidden love burns brighter than ever

*SPOILER ALERT* If you haven't read Firelight yet, this post might have spoilers! I won't spoil anything from Vanish, but I can't promise to be spoiler-free for Firelight!

Okay, I'm jut going to go ahead and say it: I liked this book BETTER than it's predecessor! Perhaps that is because I loved the world-building in this book - rather than being set in a typical town, this is mainly set in the home of the pride. I loved learning about the details of each draki and how they all added something to the pride. And the flying! Hello, that was awesome. It was so great to see Jacinda letting herself be who she truly is inside. I loved that.

And, if that all wasn't enough, you'll find a ton of action and suspense in this book. There are beautiful moments (KISSY SCENES!), but there are also moments that will have have your heart pumping in anticipation or, in my case, worry. Jacinda takes huge risks as she begins to figure out what is most important to her, and although I wanted to yell, "NO! It's too dangerous," it does make for an excellent story.

So, if you liked Firelight and are ready for more, definitely pick up Vanish. You might even find yourself liking it better!

Reading Rainbow: Ally Carter!

I have to apologize for taking another one of our unscheduled blog-cations. I was off on a real-life vacation, which included a visit to the best bookstore ever - Powell's City of Books! Leigh was in LA hobnobbing with famous authors during the SCBWI Summer Conference. (Even our vacations are literary-minded!) To make up for our absence, I am not just rec'ing one book today, but a whole slew of books! Two series by Ally Carter that I am in love with: The Heist Society and The Gallagher Girls.

First, I must thank Sophie for the recommendations on both of these series. I must also curse her for giving me two more book-boyfriends to think about! Honestly, these books are so well-written and perfectly timed - it's hard not to sink into them. In fact, I found it hard to put each one of them down once I had started!

One thing I love about Ally Carter's writing is the voice of her main characters. Both Katarina (Heist Society) and Cameron (Gallagher Girls) are extremely smart, confident (in very unconventional ways), and funny. Aside from the knowledge gained by either growing up in a family of high-class criminals, or growing up in a school for spies, both girls are somewhat naive about boys, and how to decipher their own feelings while they live life undercover.

I also loved reading about the details of heists and spy school. Honestly, it was so much fun to read along while Katarina pulled off the perfect crime, or while Cameron and her friends pulled off their Covert Operations projects - especially those not sanctioned by her school. And Ally Carter doesn't miss a beat. These books never felt boring or drawn out. I wanted more, of course, but she does such a great job of wrapping things up (no Everest-high cliffs here!) that I always felt satisfied when finishing one of these books.

The only downside? Now I'm completely hooked and cannot wait for the fifth book in the GG series: Out of Sight, Out of Time. I can blame Sophie for that too, right? :)

Goodreads for Heist Society #1
Goodreads for Gallagher Girls #1
Sophie's reviews at Mundie Moms

The Near Witch Winner!

We have a winner for our give-away of The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab! Random Integer picked lucky #7 so... congratulations to Mindee Arnett! And while I was checking out Mindee's blog this morning, I saw that she has another reason for congrats - a book deal! Maybe we'll be giving away Mindee's book here someday too! :)

I must add that I really wish ALL of you had won (if only we had more give-away copies!). I'm in the middle of reading The Near Witch and it is GORGEOUS. Seriously, you all need to read it!

Thanks to all who played along in the give-away! Congratulations again to Mindee!

Giveaway! Reading Rainbow: The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab

You may have heard of a quiet little book that debuts today called The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab. I say "quiet little book" with a smirk because it has gotten rave reviews from everyone I know who's read it, and has generated the buzz to match.

Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:

The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.

And there are no strangers in the town of Near.

These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life.
But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.
The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.

As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.

Part fairy tale, part love story, Victoria Schwab’s debut novel is entirely original yet achingly familiar: a song you heard long ago, a whisper carried by the wind, and a dream you won’t soon forget.

I took my ARC on a beach vacation and couldn't put it down. Totally engrossed by the mysterious disappearances in the town of Near, I completely ignored my own kids as they built sand castles and ran through the waves. (I know, the irony.)

Parenting at it's best... reading about missing kids while ignoring your own.

Instead, I was searching for a sweater in the middle of the tropics. When Victoria writes of misty, rainy moors you feel the rain and the cold, the type that sinks deep into your bones and doesn't want to let go. That's what this story does, grabs you someplace deep inside and digs in, and it doesn't let you go even after you've read it. I loved everything about it - the quiet strength of the characters, the twisty mystery, the magic, and the romance. It's poetic, lyrical writing at its best, and you'd be crazy not to get a copy as soon as you can. Otherwise, I might send the wind after you. And it's always lonely. *winks*

So, Leigh mentioned that she has a copy of The Near Witch, yes? She had offered to send it to me, but I said, "No, I'll wait and instead LET'S GIVE IT AWAY TO ONE OF OUR BLOG READERS!" (Read: Leigh is FAIL at the post office, but I love her anyway, and we really love you all so we came up with a give-away instead!)

So here is the deal - it's super easy if you are on twitter or Facebook! You can either tweet or post the following on Facebook, then link back in a comment to be eligible for an entry. If you do both, and comment twice with two separate links (1 twitter, and 1 facebook), that will be 2 entries! (I love give-away math.)

So, simply tweet or FB the following, then leave a comment with a link (or two) here and you'll be entered to win The Near Witch! Be sure to tag the WhimFic page in your Facebook post.

I want to win a copy of #THENEARWITCH from Whimsical Ficery! http://bit.ly/ort98W

We will pick a winner at 5pm EST on Wednesday, August 3rd. Good luck!!

P.S. You should definitely follow Victoria on twitter here! You will adore her. We are certain of this because she is adorable.

Reading Rainbow: Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

I hope I'm not one of the last people to read Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson, because I really want to share this great book with you all! After I read it (and quickly followed it with The Last Little Blue Envelope), I couldn't help but wonder how I had missed out on reading these books earlier. Thank goodness Leigh read them and forced me to do the same.

From Goodreads:

When Ginny receives thirteen little blue envelopes and instructions to buy a plane ticket to London, she knows something exciting is going to happen. What Ginny doesn't know is that she will have the adventure of her life and it will change her in more ways than one. Life and love are waiting for her across the Atlantic, and the thirteen little blue envelopes are the key to finding them in this funny, romantic, heartbreaking novel.

I hate to admit this, but I definitely judged this book by its cover. I thought it would be too cutesy for me. You all know I like books about shadowhunters, vampires, werewolves and the like, but I also enjoy real-life books as long as they have some depth to them. Well, I was completely wrong about this book (and the sequel). Granted, they are cute, in a way that makes them fun to read and made me laugh out loud at times, but there is plenty of real-life depth here too. Maureen Johnson doesn't let her characters off easy, and she doesn't wrap everything up in a pretty, Happily-Ever-After bow, and I loved her for that.

So, if you're looking for some real-life, get past the cute covers and get ready for an eventful, fun, and sometimes heartbreaking journey. Seriously, you are missing out if you haven't read these books!

Reading Rainbow: Forgotten by Cat Patrick

Holy WOW, ya'll. I just devoured Forgotten by Cat Patrick. Literally in less than 24 hours! I even picked it up in the middle of the night when the babe woke me and needed to be rocked back to sleep. I never do that (because I love to sleep), but this book was calling to me.

From Goodreads:

Each night when 16 year-old London Lane goes to sleep, her whole world disappears. In the morning, all that's left is a note telling her about a day she can't remember. The whole scenario doesn't exactly make high school or dating that hot guy whose name she can't seem to recall any easier. But when London starts experiencing disturbing visions she can't make sense of, she realizes it's time to learn a little more about the past she keeps forgetting-before it destroys her future.

Part psychological drama, part romance, and part mystery, this thought-provoking novel will inspire readers to consider the what-if's in their own lives and recognize the power they have to control their destinies.

Okay, so based on the synopsis, I was a little worried that the whole "no memory" thing might be confusing in a book, but I wanted to give it a try. Not only was it not overly confusing, but it was also just the perfect amount of a supernatural twist to make this whole story fascinating. In addition to forgetting her past each day at 4:33 am, London can "remember" the future. It is such a great concept and really makes for a suck-you-in story.

There are so many twists and turns within this book, and many that I was not expecting at all! I loved it and was happily surprised throughout. I am not going to say much more for fear of revealing too much, but I will say that YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK! I've been telling everyone I know about it since I finished. Even non-YA readers. It's that good. So, trust me and go read Forgotten by Cat Patrick. Just be ready to stay up late at night if it sucks you in like it did me!

Harry Potter: The Memories!

Good Morning! Happy Harry Potter 7.2 Day! I'm assuming some of you are sleepy today after braving the midnight showing! If so, I'm a little bit jealous. But, I'm also excited because I'm seeing it this weekend with my husband. This is one of the things that we always do together, so I have to wait for him. And I'm okay with that because it's fun that he actually gets into Harry Potter with me.

Since this is The End *sob*, we thought it would be fun to share our favorite Harry Potter memories. And this includes you all as well! We definitely want to hear yours.

I know I've already shared my favorite here - reading the 7th book on the way to meet my son in Ethiopia. And then holding his tiny, sleeping hand while I finished the book. But, I now have a second favorite Harry Potter memory to go with that! Just in the past two weeks, I have allowed that baby, now 4 years old, to start watching the movies. Just the first two, mind you, but it has been such fun. I got all misty-eyed seeing him engrossed by the magic of Harry Potter. He and his owl Hedwig (yes, I helped him with the owl-naming :) sat and watched the whole thing. And since then, there have been chopsticks turned into wands and bats turned into broomsticks around my house. I cannot wait to share the books with him! Thank you, JK Rowling, for giving us Harry Potter to discover magic ourselves, and again through our children.

This is where I got misty-eyed. He loved it.

I have a confession to make: I'm not upset about this being the last Harry Potter movie. Not because I'm a heartless wench (well, okay, probably a little bit because of that) but because I went through my stages of grief after the last book. The movie is more like reminiscing about how much you loved that crazy uncle who died in the rock climbing incident. It's been long enough that you can enjoy the stories of his life without tearing up.

To increase my heart-of-stone reputation, I have another confession: unlike Stacie, and probably a lot of you, I don't have any specific warm-fuzzy-moments from Harry Potter. This probably has something to do with the fact that as each book would come out I would grab it, ignore everything else, and devour it as quickly as possible. It's hard to pick out particular moments when your day went "feed those responsible for you, read, dress, read, more food, read, say goodnight, stay up and read." That being said, I'm looking forward to seeing the books through my kids eyes. Reading them together will force me to slow down and savor them. But I can't promise special moments. I may not be a special moments kinda girl.

And that, my friends, is why I love Leigh. And why we balance each other out. I'm getting all teary writing this post, and she's all, "Whatever, last movie, what?"

Okay, your turn to share with us! Whether you're a raging sentimentalist like me, or a cold-hearted-bitch like Leigh (she likes it when I call her that), we want to hear your thoughts on The End. Your favorite memories of reading or seeing Harry Potter, or even your favorite moments from the books, we want to hear them!