“Glitter” by Aprilynne Pike

★★★★☆ New release Tuesday!

Glitter has a tough premise and setting to describe, but I’m going to give it a go. In the future, there is an entire palace full of people who live like they are in Victorian Versailles. They wear corsets and fancy clothes every day, all day. Yet it’s also futuristic — there are robot maids, the people communicate through specialized contact lenses, and more. So it’s a futuristic sci fi historical fiction novel. The blurb for this book labels it as Breaking Bad meets Marie Antoinette. I’d say that’s pretty accurate. (Also, *swoon* that cover though!)

With all that being said, let’s get into it. The main character, Danica, is set to marry the ruthless king of Sonoman-Versailles. He’s done some pretty horrendous things (read: a murder and subsequent coverup), and she’d rather escape and leave her family and friends behind than marry him. So Danica finds a way to sneak a new drug called “Glitter” (seemed like an upper/hallucinogen-type drug) into the palace and sells it to make money to fund her escape.

Despite this book being a complete conundrum to describe, it’s un-put-down-able. I flew through it. It’s got a super interesting premise, love triangles, bad guys you hate, bad guys you love, awesome technology, a queen-to-be drug dealer, twists galore, and so much more.

This is the first book in the series, and I honestly would place the sequel on my to-be-released highly anticipated reads list.

Take one hit of Glitter — I promise you’ll be hooked and begging for more.

Purchase the book here.

I was given a copy of this book by the publisher for my honest review.

“The Graces” by Laure Eve

★★★★☆ Out on Tuesday (9/6)! There are two gorgeous covers for this book, so I’m including both in this post! The red cover is the US cover and the purple cover is in the UK!

“Everyone said they were witches. I desperately wanted to believe it. I’d only been at this school a couple of months, but I saw how it was. They moved through the corridors like sleek fish, ripples in their wake, stares following their backs and their hair.”

River recently moved to a new city and a new school, and just like the rest of the town, she quickly becomes obsessed with the Grace family. They’re rumored to be powerful witches and to gain their friendship is rumored to be near impossible.

But River becomes friends with Summer Grace, and she has a huge crush on her older brother, Fenrin (along with every other girl on the planet). She quickly becomes a feature in their house, hanging out with Summer, Fenrin, and Thalia, and their close family friend Wolf. They do different spells and incantations together and call themselves witches. But then something goes extremely wrong. And no one remembers what happened.

This is the story of magic (or not?), friendship, popularity, mystery, and danger. Some reviewers are comparing this to Twilight, but I would argue that that is just the first few chapters that you could draw serious comparisons. I think this is a great story, compelling and fascinating. It definitely put a spell on me.

Purchase the book here. (Out 9/6/16)

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

“Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel

★★★★☆

Station Eleven is the story of the post-apocalyptic world after the “Georgia Flu” wipes out a massive amount of people. The story flashes back and forth from before the flu, to years after the flu devastated the world. There are also many different storylines woven through the book, which I absolutely love–seeing how the characters are all related or came together eventually.

Another thing that I was really excited about in Station Eleven is that most of the post-apocalyptic world stuff happens in Michigan, which is one of my favorite places. It was easy to relate to the places, the weather and the general atmosphere being described because I’ve been there.

The audiobook was especially awesome, the narrator was engaging and easy to listen to. I really did not enjoy parts of this book, but others I absolutely adored. No wonder this book is so popular. I just wish I had picked it up earlier! So here’s my recommendation for you: Pick this one up–before the world ends!

Purchase the book here.

August Wrap-Up!

So last month, I thought I’d outdone myself by reading 20 books. In August, I read 22 books!

That’s 1 book for every 1.4 days. I’m currently standing at 113 books read in 2016. (That’s a full 33 books over my goal!)

1. Labyrinth Lost  by Zoraida Córdova
2. The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien
3. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff (Review)
4. The Invisible Life of Ivan Isaenko by Scott Stambach (Review)
5. 100 Days by Nicole McInnes (Review)*
6. The Memory of Things by Gae Polisner (Review)*
7. The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo by Amy Schumer*
8. The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien
9. The Assassin Game by Kirsty McKay*
10. The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee (Review)
11. A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir (Review)
12. The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer*
13. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
14. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
15. The Graces by Laure Eve* (Review)
16. Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty*
17. And the Trees Crept In by Dawn Kurtagich*
18. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie*
19. The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin*
20. Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow (Review)
21. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel* (Review)

*Audiobook or eARC, not pictured
(Plus 1 book proofread for my work, not pictured and not within my blog’s scope of genre)

Some of these books have yet to be reviewed on my blog, but I will add the links as I add the reviews! September is going to rock! So many good books are coming out!

Have you read any of these books? Which ones are you looking forward to reading?

“The Thousandth Floor” by Katharine McGee

★★★★☆ Out tomorrow!

The Thousandth Floor takes futuristic YA to another level. In the tower, the higher you live, the richer you are, the better clothes and school you have. The story follows many different characters, bouncing from person to person each chapter. Rylin, a lower-floor girl who is really struggling, just like Watt, a hacker extraordinaire, who is hired by Leda, the popular girl fresh from rehab, who is friends with Eris, whose life is ripped apart, who is also good friends with Avery, who is bored with her perfect life and lives on the thousandth floor with Atlas, her mysterious adopted brother.

This world is so fun to be thrown into. All the highlier kids have contacts that effectively act as phones, using them to text and look things up and take pictures with. The kids take all sorts of fancy drugs that do weird things, like one that connects the “high” of all in the same room, and another that is specially made for whatever problems you’re having (depression, grief, insomnia, etc. all rolled into one pill). There is just so much cool stuff built into this world that I really can’t wait to read the second book in the series! It definitely helps that this book ends on a massive cliffhanger.

The Thousandth Floor is a towering novel filled with gossip, scandal, love triangles, fancy technology, and *dun dun dun* a death. This is a must-read for anyone who likes Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars. You don’t want to miss this stunning debut novel from Katharine McGee.

Preorder the book here. (Releases August 30th!)

I was given a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Waiting on Wednesday – LABYRINTH LOST by Zoraida Cordova

Waiting on Wednesday is a fun new post I’m going to be using occasionally to highlight books that aren’t out yet that I am either 1) super excited to read, or 2) I have read an advance copy and I want to tell you how much you’re going to love it!

LABYRINTH LOST is amazing. I read it a few weeks ago and I am just so excited for you all to read it and talk with me about it! It comes out on September 6, 2016, so there are only 3 weeks left to wait!

It’s also got a gorgeous cover! See for yourself!

Here’s the official blurb:

Alex is a Bruja, the most powerful witch in a generation…and she hates magic. At her Deathday celebration, Alex performs a spell to rid herself of her power. But it backfires. Her whole family vanishes into thin air, leaving her alone with Nova, a brujo boy she can’t trust. A boy whose intentions are as dark as the strange marks on his skin.

The only way to get her family back is to travel with Nova to Los Lagos, a land in-between, as dark as Limbo and as strange as Wonderland…

Are you intrigued yet? Of course you are!

You can buy the book on Amazon, or you can pre-order through Books of Wonder and get it signed and personalized by the author!

Look out for my official review closer to the pub date!

“Nevernight” by Jay Kristoff

★★★★★ New release Tuesday!

OKAY YOU GUYS. I’m so excited. Let’s talk about Nevernight. This is one of my favorite books that I’ve read this year. It’s dark, violent, steamy, exciting, mind-bending, intense, funny, and so much more. This book made me have feels. So many feels. And I hardly ever have feels this intense for a book.

Mia Corvere’s dad was hung and her mom and brother imprisoned, so naturally she wants revenge more than life itself. She decides that the best way to do this is to join the Red Church, a school for assassins, to compete to become a Blade (essentially an elite assassin) so that she can get her revenge on the Administratii officials that are responsible.

This book has an amazing world built that is so intricate and fascinating that I could not put this book down. There are awesome supporting characters–Tric, the Dweymeri boy who Mia teams up with, the Shahiids at the Red Church, the other assassins-in-training…the list goes on and on.

I do have a disclaimer here–that at the beginning of this book you may be confused about what is going on, and that’s because there is so much to build. And here, I’ll just have to tell you to trust me (and the legion of other reviewers that love this book). Get through the first section in Nevernight and you’ll be SO hooked and happy you persevered. Definitely pick this one up, preferably in Hardcover as there are many footnotes that (I personally think) read better in a physical format.

Now go! Go buy it! Go buy it now!

Purchase the book here.

I was given a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

“It Ends With Us” by Colleen Hoover

★★★★☆ New release Tuesday!

This was my first Colleen Hoover book, and I have to say, I can see why she appeals to so many readers.

Lily Bloom is a twenty-something living in Boston, working at a marketing job. By complete chance, she meets Ryle Kincaid, a neurosurgeon who tries to convince her to follow her dreams, her instincts — and to have a one-night-stand (which sounds sleazy in this context, but in the story it has some background to it). She declines and moves on with her life.

Six months later, she is following her dream of finally opening her own flower shop. A woman enters the space the day Lily buys it and offers to help her set it up and run it, for something to do. It just so happens that this woman, Alyssa Kincaid (you can see where this is going), is Ryle’s sister and temporary roommate!

So Lily and Ryle are pursuing the possibilities of a relationship (monogamous or otherwise), and meanwhile, we are getting flashbacks via Lily’s diaries from when she was a teenager. They mainly feature two things: (1) her budding friendship with the homeless boy that lives in the abandoned house behind hers, Atlas Corrigan, and (2) her parents’ abusive marriage. One day, Lily and Ryle run into Atlas, whom Lily hasn’t seen in about a decade. Thus begins a scary, confusing part of all three characters’ lives.

This book covers an important topic: abusive relationships. This is such a great look at these relationships, how they affect all in and around the relationship, and what can be done about them. Relationships (whether romantic, friendly, or familial) are almost always not black and white, but instead very gray. It Ends With Us shows how real, raw, and confusing life and relationships can truly be. Even if new adult, contemporary romance isn’t your thing, I think this book would still be enjoyable and informative for all to read.

Purchase the book here.

I was given a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

“Everything, Everything” by Nicola Yoon

★★★★☆ — Maddie has SCID, also known as bubble baby syndrome. She has lived her entire life up to now in her home, taking school over the internet, for the last 18 years. But when a cute and interesting boy moves in next door, her life changes drastically.

This book holds a special place in my heart as I suffer from lots of different allergies (but nowhere near SCID). I like to tell people about my allergy test to explain: I was tested for allergies to 64 things, and I was NOT allergic to FOUR of them.

A coming-of-age, coming-out-of-the-house YA contemporary, you’ll find yourself holding your breath, laughing, and crying. Told through internal dialogue and online chats, this book is a breezy read that you’ll definitely have a reaction to.

Purchase the book here.

Nicola Yoon has a new book coming out this November, too: The Sun is Also a Star. I snagged an ARC at BEA — be on the lookout for my review!

“Dark Matter” by Blake Crouch

★★★★☆ New release Tuesday!

Dark Matter hooked me from the first page. I had been highly anticipating this title for a while and was excited to meet Blake Crouch at BEA and have my book signed. But boy, was I in for a ride! I devoured this book in 4 hours. Didn’t move, didn’t think about anything else.

Look how happy I am. I’ve only been stalking the Penguin booth for 2 days waiting for this!

Jason Dessen was on his way to becoming a world-renowned scientist, and his girlfriend Daniela was an up-and-coming artist. But when Daniela finds out she is pregnant, both she and Jason decide to put their careers aside to have a family. They are both happy with their home, their son, Charlie, and their simple lives.

One day after walking home from the grocery store, Jason is kidnapped at gun-point by a man in a mask. He is forced to strip and go into an abandoned warehouse where he is drugged and passes out. When he wakes up on a gurney, surrounded by people he doesn’t know who are congratulating him on a job well done, he knows something bad has happened.

I don’t want to spoil anything for you, because you need to go read this for yourselves. It’s a sci-fi thriller, but it was just within the realms of my grasp, science-wise. Dark Matter is just near impossible to put down — you need to know what happens to Jason. Why is the world different after his kidnapping? Was his life all a dream? You can speculate and speculate on what is going on, and I’m 99% sure you wouldn’t guess all the twists in this book. JUST STOP READING THIS REVIEW AND GO READ IT ALREADY!

Purchase the book here.

I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.