Wednesday, August 31, 2011

"Waiting On" Wednesday: Half-Blood



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

This week's "Waiting On" Wednesday selection is:


By Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publish Date October 18th by Spenser Hill Press

From Goodreads.com~
The Hematoi descend from the union of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi-pure-bloods-have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals-well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or becomes servants in the homes of the pures. Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she might end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, but especially rule #1: Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden. Unfortunately, she's crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn't her biggest problem--staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

Yet another awesome school-based book only featuring a new type of half-blood when it comes to gods and mortals.  I'm all for books that involve unique supernatural beings, and Alexandria sounds like a girl who will kick some serious butt!  I'd like to get my hands on the prequel, Daimon, if possible!  If anyone has read Daimon, please tell me your thoughts. ^_^

What are you waiting on this Wednesday? ^_^

Special Side Dish: Be sure to check out the Glow Giveaway over at Books Beside My Bed!

Monday, August 29, 2011

Teaser Tuesday: One Amazing Thing


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

~Grab your current read.
~Open to a random page.
~Share two "teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.
~BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! ~Share the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists!


This is my first time participating in Teaser Tuesday, and my teaser is from Chitra Divakaruni's One Amazing Thing.  As part of the "Gulf Coast Reads" reading initiative, my library system's book clubs are joining many other communities to come together to read and discuss one book.  The author so happens to be a native to this area, which makes it even more exciting for our Book Clubs.  ^_^  I'm enjoying it thoroughly and can't wait to meet the author herself in October at a meeting at my library.  






"When I failed tenth grade for the second time, my parents figured it was no use wasting more money on my school fees and decided to marry me off.  I had no objections; it was not as though I had anything else to do."

~ p. 109, One Amazing Thing by Chitra Divakaruni



Special Side Dish: Be sure to check out the Glow Giveaway over at Books Beside My Bed!

Music Monday

Taking a page from the dear ladies at Reading Lark, I have some great music to share.  Ironically, this is a song that's been stuck in my head over the weekend, so I hope y'all enjoy this one especially you zombie literature lovers.  ^_^


Zombie-Cranberries

Special Side Dish: Be sure to check out the Glow Giveaway over at Books Beside My Bed!

Friday, August 19, 2011

Book Blogger Hop: August 19-21



Book Blogger Hop

As Crazy For Books says:

Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word! This weekly BOOK PARTis an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books!

This week's question is:

“What’s the LONGEST book you’ve ever read?”

My Answer: It's a bit tough to remember the longest out of all the books I've read, but I would have to say L. Ron Hubbard's Battlefield Earth was the longest book I've read at over 1000 pages.  That was back in my serious science fiction days.  It was interesting for the most part but the last 200 or 300 pages dragged. 




What's your Blog Hop answer? ^_^

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

"Waiting On" Wednesday: Fateful by Claudia Gray



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

This week's "Waiting On" Wednesday selection is:


By Claudia Gray
Publish Date: September 13, 2011 by HarperTeen

From Goodreads.com~
In Fateful, eighteen-year-old maid Tess Davies is determined to escape the wealthy, overbearing family she works for.  Once the ship they're sailing on reaches the United States, she'll strike out on her own.  Then she meets Alec, a handsome first-class passenger who captivates her instantly.  But Alec has secrets...

Soon Tess will learn just how dark Alec's past truly is.  The danger they face is no ordinary enemy: werewolves are real and they're stalking him--and now Tess, too.  Her growing love for Alec will put Tess in mortal peril, and fate will do the same before their journey on the Titanic is over.

Werewolves on the Titanic... this definitely has the makings of something fascinating and exciting.  I can only imagine scores of action, intrigue, with a bit of romance, and I'm thrilled about another new werewolf book. ^_^

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?  I'd like to hear it!

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Books I Want to Read Before 2012


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, a state that you don't have to worry about being deprived of more books as long as you're near a library.  This week's Top Ten is:

Top Ten Books I Want to Read Before 2012
(In No Particular Order)
 
1. Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
(This one will definitely be coming up soon on the TBR shelf since a fellow blogger's been nudging me to read it. ^_^)
 
2. Supernaturally by Kiersten White
(This one is sure to be exciting and will hopefully lead to a smashing conclusion in Endlessly.)
 
 
3. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
(It's such a great book from what I've read in the way of reviews, but it's just so long!)
 
4. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
(Although I like the US cover, I'm absolutely in love with the UK cover.)
 
5. Fateful by Claudia Gray
(This one's coming out soon, and I'm so looking forward to werewolves on the Titanic!)
 
6. The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter
(More updated revamps of Greek mythology please!)
 
7. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
(I'm eager yet also a wee bit nervous since I've a feeling I'll be weepy while reading this one.)
 
8. Friendship Bread by Darien Gee
(This sounds like such a cute book, and I'm sure it'll put me in the mood to bake.)
 
9. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa
(This one has me very curious about the fae, and we just got the trilogy at the library.) 
 
10. Chasing the Moon by A. Lee Martinez
(Because every booklist needs a little apocalypse threat humor.)

Monday, August 15, 2011

DJL Dishes Dessert: Fresh Peach Cake

As a librarian, I participate in helping to create programs for my library, and one of the topics that was discussed during this year's meeting was a Cookbook Club.  Everyone in the Adult Service department said I would be the best candidate to mediate such a club.  So now, it has finally become a reality only it is no longer a Cookbook Club but a Culinary Club for all types of Foodies, or people who love food.  I started off the meeting with two different recipes one from each book I had for discussion, and I must say I'm happy with the Fresh Peach Cake from the Barefoot Contessa herself.  The picture below is not of my cake, alas we didn't have a camera to take a picture, but it does look scrumptious. ^_^


Recipe Title:  Fresh Peach Cake
Creator:  Ina Garten
From:  Barefoot Contessa: How Easy is That?

Ingredients:
  • 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 cup sour cream, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 3 large ripe peaches, peeled, pitted and sliced (substituted 16 oz. of frozen peaches)
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Directions:

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch-square baking pan.
2.  In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar for 3 to 5 minutes on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, add the eggs, one at a time, then the sour cream and vanilla, and mix until the batter is smooth. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. (Note: Since I do not have a sifter, I used a colander and gently sifted the dry ingredients through the bottom.) With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the batter and mix just until combined. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and the cinnamon.
3.  Spread half of the batter evenly in the pan. Top with half of the peaches, then sprinkle with two-thirds of the sugar mixture. Spread the remaining batter on top, arrange the remaining peaches on top and sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture and the pecans.
4.  Bake the cake for 45 to 55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm or at room temperature.

The "foodies" of the library's new club did enjoy it, and I will most likely keep this recipe in my arsenal for the future, especially for potlucks. ^_^

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Liebster Award Nomination from a Wonderful Blogger





Kelly at The Bookscape Report was such a peach to nominate my blog for the Liebster Blog Award. Thank you so much, Kelly! ^_^


The goal of this award is to recognize new bloggers who have less than 200 followers and help spread the word about their blogs. Here are the rules for this award:

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you. (Again, thank you, Kelly!)
2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.
5. And most of all - have bloggity-blog fun!


There are so many awesome blogs out there that not everyone has had the chance to visit, so I nominate the following blogs for this award:

1. Books Beside My Bed 
(And I'm proud to welcome a new librarian in Karen! ^_^)
2. Wandering Librarians
3. YA Litwit
4. The Book Garden
5. The Book Gatherer

Keep spreading the blog love! <3

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Book Blogger Hop: August 12-15


Book Blogger Hop

As Crazy For Books says:

Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word! This weekly BOOK PARTis an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books!

This week's question is:

“Let’s talk crazy book titles! Highlight one or two (or as many as you like!) titles in your personal collection that have the most interesting titles! If you can’t find any, feel free to find one on the internet!”

My Answer: Out of my personal collection the most interesting two titles are:


Colors in the Dreamweaver's Loom by Beth Hilgartner (A mouthful of a title)


And Wolfsbane and Mistletoe edited by Charlaine Harris and Tony L.P. Kelner 
(Not just one poisonous plant but two as the title and one of my favorite werewolf anthologies! <3)

What's your answer to this week's question? ^_^

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

"Waiting On" Wednesday: Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick



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

This week's "Waiting On" Wednesday selection is:

By Brian Selznick
Publish Date: September 13, 2011 by Scholastic Press

From Goodreads.com~
Set fifty years apart, two independent stories--Ben’s told in words and Rose’s in pictures--weave back and forth with mesmerizing symmetry. How they unfold and ultimately intertwine will surprise you, challenge you, and leave you breathless with wonder.

Even since his mom died, Ben feels lost. At home with her father, Rose feels alone.

He is searching for someone, but he is not sure who. She is searching for something, but she is not sure what.

When Ben finds a mysterious clue hidden in his mom’s room,
When a tempting opportunity presents itself ot Rose

Both children risk everything to find what’s missing. 

A story from two different points of views told using completely different means.  How cool is that?  With Selznick's beautiful illustrations to bring the story to life, I have no doubt this will be an amazing novel.  September cannot get here soon enough. 

What are you waiting on this Wednesday? ^_^ I'd love to hear about it!
 
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