Thursday, February 28, 2019

RECENT COVER REVEALS: February 2019 Round-Up

Hello! It's been a while since I have done one of these but it used to be something I loved doing! Basically, when a month ends, I like to do a round-up of recent cover reveals (mostly YA). In February many of the big publishers revealed covers for their titles, so it is a big round-up for my first cover reveal post since I returned to blogging!
Here are the covers! (Click on the cover to see the book on Goodreads!)






Do you have a favorite?

Cover vs Cover: The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

This week's pick is...

The Darkest Minds (The Darkest Minds, #1)VS.  The Darkest Minds (The Darkest Minds, #1)
Original                        Redesign
I understand why they redesigned the book, since the movie come out last year, but they really didn't try very hard. I wasn't a fan of the original cover, it's just a plain background with a symbol on it. The only reason why you know it's dystopian is because that was the dystopian cover trend at the time. You would think that they would do something different with the redesign, as there are new cover trends, but no. It's just a symbol floating in the sky with a random street view. You can't even tell it's a dystopian street view. I guess there are some tilted telephone poles way back there and maybe some of those cars are beat-up? I can't really tell. Mostly we just get a nice view of a van. Also, why is the D a different color? It's been a while since I read the book, is that important for some reason? Anyway, even though the original is not eye-catching, I like it better than the redesign.
  Final Verdict: Original
What do you think? Give me your thoughts on which cover is the best!

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Waiting on Wednesday: Defy the Fates by Claudia Gray

Waiting on Wednesday (or Can't Wait Wednesday) is a weekly meme, hosted by Wishful Endings, where you talk about whatever book you are IMPATIENTLY WAITING for!

This week I am waiting for...

39841372Hunted and desperate.

Abel only has one mission left that matters: save the life of Noemi Vidal. To do that, he not only has to escape the Genesis authorities, he also must face the one person in the galaxy who still has the means to destroy him. Burton Mansfield's consciousness lives on, desperate for a home, and Abel's own body is his last bargaining chip.

Alone in the universe.

Brought back from the brink of death, Noemi Vidal finds Abel has not only saved her life, but he's made her into something else, something more. Not quite mech, yet not quite human any longer, Noemi must find her place in a universe where she is utterly unique, all while trying to create a world where anyone--even a mech--can be free.

The final battle between Earth and the colony planets is here, and there's no lengths to which Earth won't go to preserve its domination over all humanity. But together, the universe's most advanced mech and its first human-mech hybrid might have the power to change the galaxy for good. 
Release Date: April 2nd, 2019






Why am I waiting?
This is the third and final book in the Constellation series, which I have really enjoyed so far! Since it is the last book I have my fingers crossed that I'll be satisfied with the ending.
What book are you waiting for this week?

Monday, February 25, 2019

REVIEW: The Girl in Between by Sarah Carroll



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I'm invisible. Ma says I'm supposed to be so the Authorities don't get me. She goes out into the streets almost every day but I'm not allowed. I've got to stay inside the mill so they don't see me. 

In an old, abandoned mill, a girl and her ma take shelter from their memories of life on the streets, and watch the busy world go by. The girl calls it the Castle because it's the biggest place they've ever stayed, a home of her own like no other. The windows are boarded up and the floorboards are falling in but for her neither of those things matter.

Then developers show up, and it's clear that their lives are about to change forever. Desperate to save their refuge from the Authorities and her mother from her own personal demons, the girl seeks out the ghosts of the mill. And with only Caretaker the old man who's slept outside the mill for decades around to answer her questions, she begins to wonder what kind of ghosts are haunting both the mill and her mother






MY THOUGHTS
This was a very interesting read and even now, weeks after finishing it, I am finding a hard time collecting my thoughts.

The book centers around a young girl and her mother, who are homeless. They live within an abandoned mill which the girl sees as her own castle. She explores the Castle, building her own areas, drawing on the walls, and spying on the people from the roof. But she can't leave the Castle, or let anyone but the Caretaker see her, lest the Authorities take her away. Now, the Authorities have come to the Castle, but not for her. They have come to take her Castle. With her Ma going back to her previous problems and a ghost maybe taking a tour of the Castle, the girl doesn't know what to do.

It took a while to get into this book. Not only is the story a bit slow at first, but the writing style is a bit different. We occasionally get flashbacks immersed in the present and it takes some getting used to. Once I got used to it, I was deeply invested in the story. The story is terribly sad and it hurt my heart seeing her living like this, especially since she is happy with this life and expects them to go back to Grandma soon. Part of what also invested me was to see how things connected together. The flashbacks go in sequential order, with the present story in between, so I was flipping through the pages to find out what made them live in the mill and I really wanted to see her get a happy ending.

One of the biggest factors of this book, though, was the ending. I did not expect that ending! Maybe I should have. There was a moment when I guessed something similar, but I did not guess correctly. I am torn about this book because of the twist. It's a great twist, but some things don't completely add up. Maybe if I reread the book it might make more sense, but I feel like there are a few things that aren't really clarified, so while the twist was interesting and surprising, it made me confused.
IN CONCLUSION
Overall, I did like this book. Though, "like" is a weird description for how this book made me feel. This book hurt my heart and surprised the heck out of me, whilst making me deeply invested in the storyline. This is a really sad book, of course, so if you want a sad realistic story, with a twist, pick this one up. I think I will be picking up future books by this author.

I hereby give this book
3.5 Stars
Meaning: I liked it, but it wasn't quite amazing.