March 2014 EOM Wrap Up

I’ve only read 10 books this month. *These are books that qualify for the March Take Control of Your TBR Pile Challenge hosted by Kimba The Caffeinated Reviewer.
Unraveled (Woodlands, # 3) by Jen Frederick
*Shatter Me (Shatter Me, # 1) by Tahereh Mafi
*The Evolution of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer, # 2) by Michelle Hodkin
*Pivot Point (Pivot Point, # 1) by Kasie West
He Belongs With Me by Sarah Darlington
*Passion (Fallen, # 3) by Lauren Kate
Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover
*Emma by Jane Austen
*Touch of Frost (Mythos Academy, # 1) by Jennifer Estep
*Matched (Matched, # 1) by Ally Condie

I reviewed 13 books this month. **These count toward the 2014 Series Enders Reading Challenge.
**Lila and Ethan: Always and Forever (The Secret, # 4.5) by Jessica Sorensen
Blindness by Ginger Scott
Takedown Twenty (Stephanie Plum, # 20) by Janet Evanovich
Undeclared (Woodlands, # 1) by Jen Frederick
Unspoken (Woodlands, # 2) by Jen Frederick
Unraveled (Woodlands, # 3) by Jen Frederick
The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian
A Feast for Crows (A Song of Ice and Fire, # 4) by George R R Martin
He Belongs With Me by Sarah Darlington
The Power of a Praying Woman by Stormie Omartian
Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover
Almost by Anne Eliot
Wait for You (Wait for You, # 1) by J Lynn

Other Posts:
March TBR Pile Challenge Goals
Happy 3rd Blogoversary – TO ME + Giveaway
Divergent Movie Review
All-Time Favorite Book Boyfriends
Sunday Post - 86
Sunday Post - 87
Sunday Post - 88
Sunday Post - 89 & Stacking the Shelves - 57
Top Ten (Twenty) Popular Authors I’ve Never Read
Top Ten Spring 2014 TBR List
Waiting on Nash (Marked Man, # 4) by Jay Crownover
Waiting on Red at Night by Katie McGarry
Waiting on Nova & Quinton: No Regrets (Nova, # 3) by Jessica Sorensen
Waiting on Shatter (True Believers, # 4) by Erin McCarthy

How was your month? Let me know!

Sunday Post - 90 & Stacking the Shelves - 57

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ The Caffeinated Book Reviewer ~this meme was inspired in part by ~ In My Mailbox~ It's a chance to share News. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

I may or may not have gone to see Divergent again yesterday with Holly.Yep. It's just that good. The rest of the week was pretty low key. I won't say I'm in a reading slump, but I'm having trouble deciding what to pick up next. Anyone want to check out my TBR in my possession shelf and give me some suggestions??? I'd appreciate it. My brother is also working on his second book and so I started proofreading his first draft earlier this week.

THIS PAST WEEK:

Monday: Review of Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover (4 Stars)
Tuesday: All-Time Favorite Book Boyfriends &
2014 Series Enders Reading Challenge - March Wrap Up
Wednesday: Waiting on Shatter (True Believers, # 4) by Erin McCarthy
Thursday: Review of Almost by Anne Eliot (4 Stars)
Friday: Review of Wait for You (Wait for You, # 1) by J Lynn (3.5 Stars)

UPCOMING THIS WEEK:

Monday: March EOM Wrap Up
Tuesday: Top Ten Gateway Books/Authors
Wednesday: Waiting on Wednesday
Thursday: Review of Derailed (Clayton Falls, # 1) by Alyssa Rose Ivy
Friday: Review of Breathe (Sea Breeze, # 1) by Abbi Glines

Don't forget to sign up for the 2014 Series Enders Reading Challenge! Each month there will be a giveaway for those participating with a BIG giveaway at the end of the year! Click on the picture below or the link above to find out more!

I'm also participating in Kimba's March 2014 Take Control of Your TBR Pile Challenge.

My Goals:

1) The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest (Millennium, # 3) by Stieg Larsson
2) Inhuman (Fetch, # 1) by Kat Falls
3) Kiss of Fire (Imdalind, # 1) by Rebecca Ethington
4) The Evolution of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer, # 2) by Michelle Hodkin
5) Something Strange and Deadly (Something Strange and Deadly, # 1) by Susan Dennard
6) Article 5 (Article 5, # 1) by Kristen Simmons
7) Pivot Point (Pivot Point, # 1) by Kasie West
8) Shatter Me (Shatter Me, # 1) by Tahereh Mafi
9) Touch of Frost (Mythos Academy, # 1) by Jennifer Estep
10) A Dance with Dragons (A Song of Ice and Fire, # 5) by George R R Martin (I doubt I’ll finish this one, but a girl can hope, right?)
11) Passion (Fallen, # 3) by Lauren Kate

And I actually finished a couple that weren't on my original goals list but have been on my TBR List for a while.

12) Emma by Jane Austen
13) Matched (Matched, # 1) by Ally Condie

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Push

By: Claire Wallis

Expected Publication: May 1st 2014 by Harlequin MIR

400 pages

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

( Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository )

*Note: The above links to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--I feel like I am wrapped in a cyclone. Everything is whirling around me, drawing the air out of my lungs and filling me with the best kind of turmoil. Every time his tongue slides against mine, a prickle in my gut tells me how right we are together. How much I need David. How much I need us.

I hope the cyclone never stops.

Emma Searfoss has spent a lifetime trying to escape her abusive stepfather. It's why she moved far away from home. It's why she's kept no ties with her remaining family. And it's why she's got a major rage problem. When her neighbor shows up to fix the kitchen in her new apartment, his enigmatic charm calms the fire in her. David is cool and collected, and he makes Emma feel safe for the first time ever. But David has his own chilling past—his six previous girlfriends have all disappeared without a trace. Emma's walking a dangerous line, but David's pull is intoxicating. And impossible to resist…

This is a new adult romance with mature content for readers 17 and up.

Matched (Matched, # 1)

By: Ally Condie

Published: November 30th 2010 by Dutton Juvenile

369 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian, Science Fiction

Source: Borrowed from the Public Library

( Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository )

*Note: The above links to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

Anathema (Casual Enchantment, # 1)

By: KA Tucker

Published: July 15th 2011 by Papoti Books

284 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal

Source: Kindle Freebie Deal

( Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository )

*Note: The above links to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Evangeline has spent her teenage years in obscurity. Her foster parents have the emotional aptitude of robots and her classmates barely acknowledge her existence. About to turn eighteen and feeling like a social pariah, she is desperate to connect with someone. Anyone.

When Evangeline meets Sophie after literally stumbling upon her café, she believes she’s found that connection. Willing to do anything to keep it, she accepts a job as Sofie’s assistant and drops everything to fly to Manhattan, where she is thrust into a luxurious world of Prada, diamonds, and limitless cash.

With such generosity and kindness, it’s easy for Evangeline to dismiss certain oddities... like Sofie’s erratic and sometimes violent behavior, and the monstrous guard dogs. She’s even willing to dismiss her vivid dreams of mob-style murders, beautiful homeless people living in caves, and white-eyed demons that haunt her each night as figments of her imagination—especially when one of those figments is the gorgeous Caden. When she wakes up with bite marks on her neck, the fairy tale quickly turns into a nightmare. She slowly unravels the mystery surrounding Sofie and friends, and the reality of the bites and the “dreams.” What she discovers is far more mysterious and terrible than anything she could have imagined.

In a world where everyone has motive to lie for personal gain, Evangeline must decide which deception is least likely to get her killed.

That's it for my shelves and recaps of my past and upcoming week. What did you add to your shelves this week? Any bookish news you want to talk about? Let me know!

Wait for You - Review

Wait for You (Wait for You, # 1)

By: J. Lynn

Published: February 26th 2013 by J. Lynn

332 pages

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Borrowed from my SNL, Holly @ Words Fueled by Love

( Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository | Booksamillion.com )

*Note: The above links to Amazon, Book Depository, and Booksamillion.com are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Some things are worth waiting for…

Traveling thousands of miles from home to enter college is the only way nineteen-year-old Avery Morgansten can escape what happened at the Halloween party five years ago—an event that forever changed her life. All she needs to do is make it to her classes on time, make sure the bracelet on her left wrist stays in place, not draw any attention to herself, and maybe—please God—make a few friends, because surely that would be a nice change of pace. The one thing she didn’t need and never planned on was capturing the attention of the one guy who could shatter the precarious future she’s building for herself.

Some things are worth experiencing…

Cameron Hamilton is six feet and three inches of swoon-worthy hotness, complete with a pair of striking blue eyes and a remarkable ability to make her want things she believed were irrevocably stolen from her. She knows she needs to stay away from him, but Cam is freaking everywhere, with his charm, his witty banter, and that damn dimple that’s just so… so lickable. Getting involved with him is dangerous, but when ignoring the simmering tension that sparks whenever they are around each other becomes impossible, he brings out a side of her she never knew existed.

Some things should never be kept quiet…

But when Avery starts receiving threatening emails and phone calls forcing her to face a past she wants silenced, she’s has no other choice but to acknowledge that someone is refusing to allow her to let go of that night when everything changed. When the devastating truth comes out, will she resurface this time with one less scar? And can Cam be there to help her or will he be dragged down with her?

And some things are worth fighting for…

Wait for You started out a little on the frustrating side for me. I get tired of seeing the same characters, stories, plot, conflict, etc. repeated over and over again in the books that I read. And Wait for You started it out with me sighing heavily, rolling my eyes, and just generally not being all that excited to keep pressing forward. But this is J. Lynn aka Jennifer L Armentrout. I've really enjoyed most of her other work that I've read, so I kept hoping it would get better. And it did.

The two things that I was getting hung up on was whether Cam would turn out to be the typical male lead from so many other New Adult books and if Avery's back story would be the same as we've seen in so many other books. While Cam may have been the typical New Adult lead at some point in his life, he's not anymore, and it was really refreshing to read about a different kind of leading male from this genre. Avery's back story was fairly predictable but with a slight difference that made me a bit queasy.

I didn't find Wait for You to be life changing or earth shattering, but Wait for You was definitely an enjoyable read. It's the perfect pick for a quick and fun read. J. Lynn threw in some mystery that, though predictable, did add to the story.

Avery frustrated me at times, but not to the point of wanting to shake her or anything like that. She's been through a lot and without any support from friends or family until moving out on her own. She experiences real fear that prompts so many of her actions which felt legit to me considering her past. Cam was just generally a good guy. He has some things in his past that he's not proud of, but I was impressed with how he responds to Avery. I love his persistence. And I really enjoyed how their relationship built slowly over time--even after they were officially together.

I do have to mention that while the grammatical, spelling, etc. errors weren't overwhelming, I did come across "several." I noticed more toward the end where the action was picking up and I felt like maybe J. Lynn was typing her sentences out as fast as they could come to her. That may be an assumption on my part, but I would have liked another editing pass to go over Wait for You with particular focus toward the last portion of the book.

Wait for You gets 3.5 Stars from me. Fans on the New Adult genre will probably enjoy it if they're not sick of the repeating patterns of this genre. However, I do suggest pushing through the beginning because things aren't as typical as they may seem. Have you read Wait for You? What did you think? Let me know!

Almost - Review

Almost

By: Anne Eliot

Published: April 10th 2012 by Createspace

366 pages

Genre: YA, Contemporary

Source: Amazon Prime Lending Library

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*Note: The above links to Amazon, Book Depository, and Booksamillion.com are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--At a freshman party she doesn't remember, Jess Jordan was almost raped.

...Almost. Very nearly. Not quite. Three years later, Jess has managed to make everyone believe she's better. Over it. Because she is.

...Almost. Very nearly. Not quite.

Unfortunately, until Jess proves she's back to normal activities, her parents won't discuss college. So, she lands a summer internship and strikes a deal with hockey jock, Gray Porter: He gets $8,000. She gets a fake boyfriend and a social life.

Jess has no idea Gray signed on for reasons other than money. She also never expects to fall in love. But Gray’s amazingly hot, holds her hand all the time, and makes her forget that he’s simply doing his job. It’s like having a real boyfriend.

...Almost. Very nearly. Not quite.

Gray Porter is hiding secrets of his own. About Jess Jordan. About why he’s driven to protect her, why he won't cash her checks, or deny her anything she asks.

Almost was my 2nd—I think—book that I borrowed from Amazon Prime’s Lending Library. I enjoyed the first book I read from there, Crossing Oceans by Gina Holmes, but truthfully I’ve kind of had a hard time finding titles here that I’m interested in. Most of them are adult romance/erotica—which I don’t read. So I came across Almost by Anne Eliot. Let’s not pull any punches here, the cover for this book SUCKS! It’s awful. I don’t think there is anyone out there who would pick up this book based upon the cover. But, the description pulled me in and so I checked it out—like 2 years ago! Oh my goodness. That was about the time that I started blogging more seriously and so other books just took priority. Almost was literally number 2 on my TBR books in my possession spreadsheet, which means I’ve had it the longest out of all the 90+ books I have in my possession to read. Yikes!

Most of you probably know that I tend to read multiple books at a time. And when there are books that I know I want to read, but I’m not all that excited about them, I’ll tell myself to just read 5 pages or so and then read something else that I am excited about. So that’s how it was with Almost. I picked it up expecting to read 5 pages or so and then put it down to read something else that I WANTED to read, but I ended up not putting it down. I was hooked. From very early on.

The first couple of pages had me rolling my eyes a little bit, but it didn’t take me long to realize that the small details I was slightly annoyed with actually made sense in relation to the overall story of this book. Now I will say, that Almost isn’t really an original concept. There’s the girl who’s emotionally scarred based off of a sexually abusive situation. And there’s also the whole fake relationship deal. We all know that I get so fed up with clichés (see my review of The Bet or The Wager by Rachel Van Dyken), but I’ve also said that this doesn’t bother me when it’s done well (Ten Tiny Breaths by KA Tucker). And the latter was the case with Almost. There might have been clichés, but I felt like they were handled so well and made sense in such a way that it didn’t really bother me that this story has been told time and time again. I was hooked into these characters and into their story.

Jess Jordan, as the description above states, was almost raped. She doesn’t really remember the event in detail due to some suppressed memories and the fact that she was likely drugged. But she has nightmares about the event quite often. She’s been to therapy. And mostly she just wants normal back. She doesn’t want her family worrying about her all the time. She’s tired of the overprotective and overzealous behavior of her parents. She just wants to go to college. So she’s convinced herself that if she can appear normal then her parents will agree to let her move out and go to college when the time comes. Therefore, landing this summer internship and having a boyfriend is about as normal as she thinks she can be. She’s determined to succeed. Truthfully I connected with Jess. I didn’t always agree with her choices, but I rarely agree with any one character on everything. I felt for her. She’s been through so much. And she was literally trying so hard. I really enjoyed how Anne Eliot played up her inability to sleep throughout the whole book. It was believable and cohesive.

Gray is the leading male of our story here. He’s an all-around good guy. He’s made some mistakes in his past and he’s determined to atone for them in whatever way he can by helping Jess in whatever way she needs him. Gray has truly honorable intentions, and I fell for his character big time. Just as much as I felt bad for Jess and all she’s been through, Gray’s been through a lot as well. And I couldn’t help but admire how his actions have motivated him to do better and be better. Truly the kind of leading male I like to read about.

Almost had me tearing up at one section and it’s probably not even the most emotionally charged section of the book. I just felt so deeply what Jess was feeling—how exhausted she must be—and my heart broke for her. Any book that can pull this out of me is one that I can’t recommend enough. Though Almost isn’t a completely original story, Anne Eliot had me right where she wanted me. Please ignore the horrible cover, and check out this book.

Almost gets 4 stars from me. Have you read Almost? What did you think? Let me know!

Waiting on Shatter

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Shatter (True Believers, # 4)

By: Erin McCarthy

Expected Publication: September 1st 2014 by InterMix; September 2nd 2014 by Berkley Trade

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

( Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository )

*Note: The above links to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--From the USA Today bestselling author of True, Sweet, and Believe comes a tantalizing New Adult novel about finding love in the most unexpected ways…

Kylie Warner prides herself on being optimistic, but after finding her best friend in bed with her boyfriend and flunking chemistry, her upbeat attitude has taken a dive. Even an impromptu hook-up with her sexy new chemistry tutor only brightens her mood slightly. After all, it’s not like she’ll ever see the tattooed scholar again…

While he’s a whiz at complex equations, Jonathon Kadisch has trouble when it comes to figuring out women. So when Kylie tells him that she’s pregnant after their night of passion, he’s at a complete loss. He’s prepared to be a good father—unlike his own deadbeat dad—but he’s less prepared to fall for the genuine and alluring blonde bearing his child.

With emotions running high, Kylie wonders if Jonathon’s devotion is out of growing love or looming obligation. And when heartbreak threatens to tear them apart, Jonathon will have to fight for the only girl who’s ever made him feel whole….

I've really enjoyed this series so much more than I expected to. What are you waiting on this week? Let me know!

2014 Series Enders Reading Challenge - March Wrap Up

It's time for our third Monthly Wrap Up for the 2014 Series Enders Reading Challenge hosted by Sandy @ Somewhere Only We Know and Holly @ Words Fueled by Love!

Since posting the February Wrap Up, I (Sandy) haven't finished any series enders, but I did read a couple of books that are next to last in a series so I'm looking forward to knocking some out in the month of April.

Holly finished Finale (Hush, Hush, # 4) by Becca Fitzpatrick.

Which series enders did you finish? Link the up below. Don't forget to include the title, your name, & your blog name (Ex: Requiem - Sandy @ Somewhere Only We Know) Also, the March giveaway runs from March 25th - April 25th. On April 25th we will use random.org and the linky entries to pull a winner.

All-Time Favorite Book Boyfriends

Parajunkee did a Valentines Day Book Blogger Challenge, but I totally missed out on getting to post while it was going on. However, I love a coupe of her topics so much, I wanted to post my answers to those anyway. Today's topic is basically a list of my fictional book boyfriends of all time. Bear with me because this is going to be fairly lengthy.

Parajunkee broke hers down by genre, but I want to break mine down by type...here we go.

The Potential Husband...AKA Top Picks
Dimitri Belikov (Vampire Academy)
Michael Hosea (Redeeming Love)
Fitzwilliam Darcy (Pride and Prejudice)
Captain Wentwroth (Persuasion)
Edward Cullen (Twilight - Yes, you read that right.)
Sam Roth (Wolves of Mercy Falls)
Will Cooper (Slammed)

The All Around Good Guys
Sean Kendrick (The Scorpio Races)
Augustus Waters (The Fault in our Stars)
Park Sheridan (Eleanor & Park)
Lincoln Turner (Crossing the Line)
Xander Spence (The Distance Between Us)
Brigan (Fire)
Alex Sheathes (Delirium)
Evan Matthews (The 5th Wave)
Marcus Hardy (Sea Breeze)
Gray Porter (Almost)
Ryan Stone (Dare You To)
Gavriel Duvall (Grave Mercy)
Eddie Castile (Vampire Academy, Bloodlines)

The Bad Boys
Travis Maddox (Beautiful)
Will Herondale (The Infernal Devices)
Jace Lightwood (The Mortal Instruments)
Daemon Black (Lux)
Adrian Ivashkov (Vampire Academy, Bloodlines)
Four (Divergent)
Peter Townsend (My Blood Approves)
Dean Holder (Hopeless)
Jet (Marked Men)
Rome Archer (Marked Men)
Ze'ev "Wolf" Kelsey (Lunar Chronicles)
Captain Carswell Thorne (Lunar Chronicles)
Patch Cipriano (Hush, Hush)
Noah Hutchins (Pushing the Limits)
Isaiah Walker (Crash Into You)
Ethan Gregory (The Secret)
Ranger (Stephanie Plum)
Preston Drake (Sea Breeze)
Carmine DeMarco (Sempre)

The Especially Talented
Po (Graceling)
Micha Scott (The Secret)
Peregrine (Under the Never Sky)
Will Cooper (Slammed)
Andrew Parrish (The Edge of Never)
Adam Wilde (If I Stay)
Ed Skye "Shadow" (Graffiti Moon)
Aragorn (The Lord of the Rings)
Adrian Ivashkov (Vampire Academy, Bloodlines)

The Survivalists
Dimitri Belikov (Vampire Academy
Beast (Dark Triumph)
Peregrine (Under the Never Sky)
Major Tarver Merendsen (These Broken Stars)
Rhys (This is not a Test)
Elias (The Dead-Tossed Waves)
Peeta Mellark (The Hunger Games)

The Comedians
Daemon Black (Lux)
Daniel (Hopeless)
Strumhond (The Grisha)
Christian Ozera (Vampire Academy)
Adrian Ivashkov (Vampire Academy, Bloodlines)
Jace Lightwood (The Mortal Instruments)
Will Herondale (The Infernal Devices)

The Misunderstood
Phoenix (Believe)
Trent Emerson (Ten Tiny Breaths)
Zan (Deeper We Fall)
Josh Bennett (The Sea of Tranquility)
Adrian Ivashkov (Vampire Academy, Bloodlines)
Isaiah Walker (Crash Into You)

The Supernatural
Edward Cullen (Twilight)
Sam Roth (Wolves of Mercy Falls)
Daemon Black (Lux)
Evan Walker (The 5th Wave)
Adrian Ivashkov (Vampire Academy, Bloodlines)
Peter Townsend (My Blood Approves)
Will Herondale (The Infernal Devices)
Jace Lightwood (The Mortal Instruments)
Ze'ev "Wolf" Kelsey (Lunar Chronicles)
Patch Cipriano (Hush, Hush)

The Potentials
Braden (On the Fence)
Joe Morelli (Stephanie Plum)
Seth Mortensen (Georgina Kincaid)

Who are your all-time favorite book boyfriends? Let me know!

Maybe Someday - Review

Maybe Someday

By: Colleen Hoover

Published: March 18th 2014 by Atria Books

367 pages

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Own/Personal Library

( Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository | Booksamillion.com )

*Note: The above links to Amazon, Book Depository, and Booksamillion.com are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover, a passionate tale of friendship, betrayal, and romance—and the enchanting music that inspires one young woman to put her life back together.

At twenty-two years old, aspiring musician Sydney Blake has a great life: She’s in college, working a steady job, in love with her wonderful boyfriend, Hunter, and rooming with her good friend, Tori. But everything changes when she discovers Hunter cheating on her with Tori—and she is left trying to decide what to do next.

Sydney becomes captivated by her mysterious neighbor, Ridge Lawson. She can’t take her eyes off him or stop listening to the daily guitar playing he does out on his balcony. She can feel the harmony and vibrations in his music. And there’s something about Sydney that Ridge can’t ignore, either: He seems to have finally found his muse. When their inevitable encounter happens, they soon find themselves needing each other in more ways than one…

From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Slammed, Point of Retreat, Hopeless, This Girl, and Losing Hope, Maybe Someday is destined to another bestseller and long-lasting fan favorite.

You guys I’m not even sure this review is going to make any sense, but I’m going to try to sort through my thoughts. First off, let me say that out of all of Colleen Hoover’s books, Maybe Someday is the one I was most excited for and most looking forward to getting. Music was such a big influence in my own developing relationship with my husband even before we started dating and leading all the way up to our wedding. Because of this, the idea of reading a book that even kind of has a similar storyline—two people falling in love over music, being able to say through the lyrics of a song what they can’t bring themselves to say to each other’s faces—was something that I was ecstatic about. But I’ve also discussed a bit in the past about how my expectations can alter how I feel about a book. All of that being said, I think Maybe Someday needs a slightly different process for my review. I’m going to break this down.

Cover: 4/5 – It’s not necessarily the most visually appealing book cover necessarily for me. By that I mean had I just been browsing books by cover and didn’t know anything about the synopsis or about Colleen Hoover, I’m not sure if I would stop on this one to check it out or not. However, this cover definitely covers the span of the book. The way Ridge’s hand covers Sydney's. The sheet music. And the kissing shown through the letters. It all spells out the key things you need to know.

Originality of Overall Concept: 5/5 – While the idea of using song lyrics in a book is not completely original, the idea of having an all original soundtrack, with actual original songs performed and recorded…yeah that’s completely original. And to be honest it’s one of those “I wish I had thought of that” moments.

Music: 4.5/5 – Reading the lyrics within the story made sense, but there was just something missing. Once I scanned my QR Code and listened to the song WHILE reading the lyrics it made so much more sense. The music behind the lyrics does so much to set the tone. I’m not 100% sure that I would seek out every one of these songs were they not connected to this story, but there are definitely several that need to be added to my regular play list. (Sidebar- Griffin Peterson…you need to get your music on Pandora. Thank you very much.)

Characters: 4/5 – How I feel about the main characters, Sydney and Ridge, is so completely tied to how I feel about the story itself. So I’ll discuss that later. The side characters were fleshed out as most of Colleen Hoover’s side characters are. Warren was my favorite as I’m sure most people will agree. Bridgette, Tori, and Brenan didn’t make enough appearances for me to firmly establish much feeling about any of them. Hunter was a huge DB. And Maggie…well…I’m not really sure how I felt about her. Would I be surprise if Maggie gets her own book? Absolutely not. Would I read that book? I most certainly would.

Story: 4/5 – Oh guys. There’s so much I want to say, but where is the line? You know? What’s considered a spoiler and what isn’t? Maybe Someday’s storyline was not what I expected at all. And to be honest that’s not really meant in a good way. We already know from the description above that cheating is involved in this book, but what I didn’t know was how prevalent of a role it would have in the overall story. It sounded like something that happens early on or maybe even before the story begins and is just something that Sydney is dealing with emotionally, but cheating is more of an ongoing topic for this book. While I felt like Colleen Hoover’s portrayal of events was true to real life, I found myself not fully feeling like I could root for these characters like I had hoped to be able to do. And so much of how I feel about this book is wrapped up in the topic of cheating that I feel like I can’t really discuss the book itself without giving too much away or without going on a complete tangent about the evils of unfaithfulness.

I understood Sydney. I could feel what she was feeling, yet I couldn’t fully support her. And I couldn’t fully merge myself with her. I did find that Sydney cried a lot which is another thing that’s difficult for me to relate to. At this point in my life, I’m not an easy crier. And this is actually saying a lot because I think I’ve at least teared up reading every single one of Colleen Hoover’s other books.

Ridge. I both loved and loathed him. I fell in love with his talent for music and a few other characteristics. I always find guys who are talented in the arts some way to be extremely attractive. Ridge was no exception. However, I actually couldn’t understand how he felt and acted and behaved as much as I could Sydney. I felt like he got off easy. What I mean by that is that every time he would have been forced to make a hard decision I felt like the cosmos would give him an easy out. Or maybe he would make a hard choice between two different paths, but then one of the paths would come to a dead end so he was forced to backtrack and then take the other path thus essentially making his decision for him.

At one point toward the ¾ mark, I was really starting to get upset because I felt like there was no path these characters could take that I would be satisfied with. In the end, I was okay with how everything wrapped up except for the pieces that felt “too easy.” While Colleen Hoover definitely made me feel a lot of emotions through this book, I’m not sure they were all emotions that I wanted to feel. Truthfully, there’s so much more that I want to say concerning Maybe Someday, but I feel like it’s too close to being spoilers and I want to review this spoiler free.

Favorite quotes:

Our eyes remain in their silent embrace for several moments, until we both break our gaze, allowing ourselves to take in every last thing about each other. His eyes scroll carefully over my face as if he's committing me to memory. His memory is the last place I want to be.

I would give anything to always be in his present.

I don't want to be someone's second choice.

Beat, beat, pause.
Beatbeat, pause.
Beatbeatpause.
Beatbeatpause.

I thought this one was going to be harder to rate, but once I look at the breakdown of everything I have listed above, 4 Stars seems like the right rating. Have you read Maybe Someday? What did you think? Let me know!

Sunday Post - 89 & Stacking the Shelves - 56

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ The Caffeinated Book Reviewer ~this meme was inspired in part by ~ In My Mailbox~ It's a chance to share News. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

This was a really good week. I was so stoked about receiving and reading Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover that it consumed most of my thoughts for the week. My movie crew went out to eat and went to see Divergent Friday night. Cliffnotes...it was AWESOME! I also broke my three-week no-book streak. Other than that, my grandfather was in and out of the hospital. He has pneumonia right now. I hate that they live about 3 hours away at times like this.

THIS PAST WEEK:

Monday: Review of A Feast for Crows (A Song of Ice and Fire, # 4) by George R R Martin (3.5 Stars)
Tuesday: Top Ten Spring 2014 TBR List
Wednesday: Waiting on Nova and Quinton: No Reqrets (Nova, # 3) by Jessica Sorensen
Thursday: Review of He Belongs With Me by Sarah Darlington (3.5 Stars)
Friday: Upon Further Review: The Power of a Praying Woman by Stormie Omartian (5 Stars)
Saturday: Movie Review of Divergent (Divergent, # 1) by Veronica Roth (4.5 Stars)

UPCOMING THIS WEEK:

Monday: Review of Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover
Tuesday: All-Time Favorite Book Boyfriends
Wednesday: Waiting on Wednesday
Thursday: Review of Almost by Anne Eliot
Friday: Review of Wait for You by J Lynn

Don't forget to sign up for the 2014 Series Enders Reading Challenge! Each month there will be a giveaway for those participating with a BIG giveaway at the end of the year! Click on the picture below or the link above to find out more!

I'm also participating in Kimba's March 2014 Take Control of Your TBR Pile Challenge.

My Goals:

1) The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest (Millennium, # 3) by Stieg Larsson
2) Inhuman (Fetch, # 1) by Kat Falls
3) Kiss of Fire (Imdalind, # 1) by Rebecca Ethington
4) The Evolution of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer, # 2) by Michelle Hodkin
5) Something Strange and Deadly (Something Strange and Deadly, # 1) by Susan Dennard
6) Article 5 (Article 5, # 1) by Kristen Simmons
7) Pivot Point (Pivot Point, # 1) by Kasie West
8) Shatter Me (Shatter Me, # 1) by Tahereh Mafi
9) Touch of Frost (Mythos Academy, # 1) by Jennifer Estep
10) A Dance with Dragons (A Song of Ice and Fire, # 5) by George R R Martin (I doubt I’ll finish this one, but a girl can hope, right?)
11) Passion (Fallen, # 3) by Lauren Kate

I would have tried to knock out at least another one of these this week, but I had to put everything on hold so I could read Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover, and then I promised Husband a reading break over the weekend.

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Maybe Someday

By: Colleen Hoover

Published: March 18th 2014 by Atria Books

367 pages

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Own/Personal Library

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Goodreads description--From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover, a passionate tale of friendship, betrayal, and romance—and the enchanting music that inspires one young woman to put her life back together.

At twenty-two years old, aspiring musician Sydney Blake has a great life: She’s in college, working a steady job, in love with her wonderful boyfriend, Hunter, and rooming with her good friend, Tori. But everything changes when she discovers Hunter cheating on her with Tori—and she is left trying to decide what to do next.

Sydney becomes captivated by her mysterious neighbor, Ridge Lawson. She can’t take her eyes off him or stop listening to the daily guitar playing he does out on his balcony. She can feel the harmony and vibrations in his music. And there’s something about Sydney that Ridge can’t ignore, either: He seems to have finally found his muse. When their inevitable encounter happens, they soon find themselves needing each other in more ways than one…

From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Slammed, Point of Retreat, Hopeless, This Girl, and Losing Hope, Maybe Someday is destined to another bestseller and long-lasting fan favorite.

Undertow (Undertow, # 1)

By: K R Conway

Published: October 11th 2013 by Conway

398 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Fantasy

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

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*Note: The above link to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Luckless Eila is unknowingly the last of her kind: Rare. Gifted. Breakable. Stunning Raef is her kind's historic enemy: Soulless. Lethal. Lost. A legendary death 160 years before would set their lives to collide, forcing a beautiful killer to become a savior, a simple wallflower to become a warrior, and ruthless destiny to become a death sentence.

SUMMARY:

Seventeen-year-old Eila Walker’s new home has defied the brutal Atlantic for over 160 years. Abandoned since her 4th great grandmother Elizabeth vanished, the town legend declares that she drowned . . . or was struck by lightning.

Unbeknownst to the town and Eila, however, is that someone does know what really happened to Elizabeth, and he has returned, determined to protect the last surviving Walker from a history of violence.

But what starts out as a quest for redemption, evolves into something more and soon young guardian, Raef, is forced to reveal the truth to Eila. As hidden secrets about their warring families come to light, Eila begins to realize that she may be their best shot at survival, even if it means following in her grandmother’s fearless footsteps to save her killer bodyguard.

The Word Exchange

By: Alena Graedon

Expected Publication: April 8th 2014 by Bond Street Books

384 pages

Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

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*Note: The above links to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--A fiendishly clever dystopian novel for the digital age, The Word Exchange is a fresh, stylized and decidedly original debut about the dangers of technology and the power of the printed word.

In the not so distant future, the forecasted "death of print" has become a reality. Bookstores, libraries, newspapers and magazines are a thing of the past, as we spend our time glued to handheld devices called Memes that not only keep us in constant communication, but have become so intuitive as to hail us cabs before we leave our offices, order take out at the first growl of a hungry stomach, and even create and sell language itself in a marketplace called The Word Exchange.

Anana Johnson works with her father Doug at the North American Dictionary of the English Language (NADEL), where Doug is hard at work on the final edition that will ever be printed. Doug is a staunchly anti-Meme, anti-tech intellectual who fondly remembers the days when people used email (everything now is text or video-conference) to communicate--or even actually spoke to one another for that matter. One evening, Doug disappears from the NADEL offices leaving a single written clue: ALICE. It's a code word he and Anana devised to signal if one of them ever fell into harm's way. And thus begins Anana's journey down the proverbial rabbit hole. . .

Joined by Bart, her bookish NADEL colleague (who is secretly in love with her), Anana's search for Doug will take her into dark basement incinerator rooms, underground passages of the Mercantile Library, secret meetings of the anonymous "Diachronic Society," the boardrooms of the evil online retailing site Synchronic, and ultimately to the hallowed halls of the Oxford English Dictionary--the spiritual home of the written word. As Ana pieces together what is going on, and Bart gets sicker and sicker with the strange "Word flu" that has spread worldwide causing people to speak in gibberish, Alena Graedon crafts a fresh, cautionary tale that is at once a technological thriller, and a thoughtful meditation on the price of technology and the unforeseen, though very real, dangers of the digital age.

Jane's Melody (Jane's Melody, # 1)

By: Ryan Winfield

Published: June 16th 2013 by Birch Paper Press

336 pages

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

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*Note: The above links to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description----New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller--

What boundaries would you cross for true love?

That's the question a grieving mother must answer when she takes in a young street musician she believes can shed light on her daughter's death—only to find herself falling for him. A sexy but touching love story that will leave you both tantalized and in tears, Jane's Melody follows a forty-year-old woman on a romantic journey of rediscovery after years of struggling alone.

Sometimes our greatest gifts come from our greatest pain. And now Jane must decide if it's too late for her to start over, or if true love really knows no limits.

Pretty When She Dies (Pretty When She Dies, # 1)

By: Rhiannon Frater

Published: November 24th 2008 by CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

238 pages

Genre: Paranormal, Vampires, Horror, Urban Fantasy

Source: Kindle Freebie Deal

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Goodreads description--Amaliya wakes under the forest floor, disoriented, famished and confused. She digs out of the shallow grave and realizes she is hungry...

... in a new, horrific, unimaginable way...

Sating her great hunger, she discovers that she is now a vampire, the bloodthirsty creature of legend. She has no choice but to flee from her old life and travels across Texas. Her new hunger spurs her to leave a wake of death and blood behind her as she struggles with her new nature.

All the while, her creator is watching. He is ancient, he is powerful, and what's worse is that he's a necromancer. He has the power to force the dead to do his bidding. Amaliya realizes she is but a pawn in a twisted game, and her only hope for survival is to seek out one of her own kind.

But if Amaliya finds another vampire, will it mean her salvation... or her death?

The Kiss of Deception (The Remnant Chronicles, # 1)

By: Mary E Pearson

Expected Publication: July 15th 2014 by Henry Holt

492 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

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*Note: The above links to Amazon and Book Depository are affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--In this timeless new trilogy about love and sacrifice, a princess must find her place in a reborn world.

In a society steeped in tradition, Princess Lia’s life follows a preordained course. As First Daughter, she is expected to have the revered gift of sight—but she doesn’t—and she knows her parents are perpetrating a sham when they arrange her marriage to secure an alliance with a neighboring kingdom—to a prince she has never met.

On the morning of her wedding, Lia flees to a distant village. She settles into a new life, hopeful when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assasin sent to kill her. Deception abounds, and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—even as she finds herself falling in love.

That's it for my shelves and recaps of my past and upcoming week. What did you add to your shelves this week? Any bookish news you want to talk about? Let me know!