New to Our Shelves Review

 Belles by Jen Calonita

Put yourself in the position of a teenage girl who is just like your ordinary teen. Life is good, you’re meeting your close friends at the typical Friday hangout and having to explain to your parent or guardian why you were home past your curfew. The only concerns you may face is the homework that was due last Tuesday or if the special someone you like feels the same way. Well, for Izzie Scott, life is quite different. Author Jen Calonita brings you Belles, a novel you truly don’t want to miss.

Belles is a realistic fiction novel that shares a story about a girl named Isabelle  “Izzie” Scott, that experiences a drastic change in her life. Growing up, Izzie lived with her grandmother in the not so nice part of South Carolina: Harborside. Gradually, Izzie sees her grandmother is starting to lose her battle to Alzheimer's Disease and a surprising visit comes from her social worker announcing that her grandmother is giving her custody to her long lost uncle who lives in Emerald Cove. It’s all in the name, Emerald Cove is the elite town of South Carolina, where the wealthiest of the wealthiest live. Izzie has never once heard of her Uncle and his family, so when she first moves in with them her whole life begins to change.

On the flip side of things, Mira Monroe is Izzie’s long lost uncle’s daughter. Having some girl she never heard about become her adopted sister is quite a change. Lots of responsibility is held upon her to introduce Izzie to the new privileged private school and show her through Emerald Cove. As easy as it may seem, drama stirs up and the book begins.

One key thing that really kept me reading Belles, was the main message of the story. It really showed me to always be there for my family and to never change myself for someone or something else. Izzie is one of the characters really resembles the theme. With all that is thrown upon her, she really handles everything really well, that any ordinary person couldn’t. It really gives personal motivation for yourself.

Besides all that, Jen Calonita really brings humor throughout the book. From the family struggles that are totally relatable to the funny remarks of Mira’s little brother, you can’t prevent a smile to appear on your face. This book is more directed towards readers through grades 7th grade and up. If you really enjoy a feel good,coming of age story, you can’t miss Belles by Jen Calonita.

Susan Dennard Skype Chat

After reading the Something Strange and Deadly series, chatting with Susan Dennard was an exciting experience! Our Academic 2 ELA class talked to Susan on November 12, 2015, during the month of NaNoWriMo, and she gave us some helpful tips for our writing. After asking what inspired her books, Susan said that music inspired her writing and some of her characters. Other words of advice included ways to conquer writer's block, and how to kill off a character. Her advice helped me write, and helped others as well. I decided to use the music advice because I am a music lover myself. Definitely listening to different genres and artists help you find ideas because of lyrics and sound.

Talking to an author also inspired me to write more. It showed me that someone could be successful with the career and made me want to maybe head down that path in the future.

Susan Dennard is the author of a best-selling book, so chatting with her is everyone's dream! Talking to the bestselling author was the experience of a lifetime because not a lot of people get to experience something like that.  I would like to thank Susan Dennard and Mrs. Kelly for giving our class such an amazing experience!  

By: Natalie S.

ARC Review of The Possibility of Now

Just imagine, one day you’re the valedictorian of your top tier high school, and the next there is a video on YouTube with over 600,000 views of you and scraps of your old life. The Possibility of Now features Mara, an over-achiever who attends a prestigious private school in San Diego. But one day, a full-blown panic attacks complete with shredding papers and screaming before a test sends her whole world plummeting down. Mara travels up to Tahoe to live with her life-absent father, Trick, and everything she’s ever believed and worked for is put to the ultimate test.

Mara faces many difficulties upon reaching Tahoe. From boys to school, she’s neck deep in adventure. Mara is an absolute favorite character because I can easily relate to her and she is very similar to who I strive to be. Both major perfectionists, I believe that her going to Tahoe has inspired me to expand and live out of my control.

Kim Cultberson sets a beautiful vision for Mara’s world. She writes every character spectacularly, and doesn’t make up any cliches to help to move her plot along.  Her own story is enough. The Possibility of Now teaches readers to live in the now, and that life should be embraced, not clutched at trying to survive. The person that you grew up as is not always your true self, as evident with Mara - there is “San Diego Mara”, “Tahoe Mara”, and my personal favorite, just Mara.

Finally, I would highly, highly recommend this book. It stands apart from any other realistic fiction novels on the radar, and I would recommend it for people looking for a way to escape from their own reality. Every character written is relatable in their own way. It gives a glimpse of what living outside of your comfort zone really has to offer.

5/5 stars.                                                                     

The Possibility of Now comes to shelves January 26th, 2016.      

By: Devon K.

Erin Bowman Skype

“Revise,Revise.Polish,Polish,” is just one of the many writing tips author Erin Bowman shared with Woodstown Middle School students. On Friday, January 8th, Woodstown Middle students held a skype session with author  Erin Bowman. Erin Bowman is the author of the Taken series and Vengeance Road. Both books are fairly different with one leading you back into the “Wild West” and the other giving you a dystopian vibe. Just as a young girl, Erin always loved to read or write. Having her mother as a librarian, she always got a head start on new books and had a wide variety for a choice selection.  Her biggest influence as a writer is the Harry Potter Series. Just like Hogwarts, Erin wanted to be able to create a world where readers wanted to live in through her writing. Not only that, “Inspiration comes from many things,” she said. A tiny voice in her head about an 18 year old boy, sparked the idea of the Taken series. It just goes to show, that amazing stories can be created through the simplest ways. Along with that some of Erin’s favorite books include the Book Thief by Markus Zusak and The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly.

During the skype session we asked many questions and one happened to be, “If you could be one of the characters you created, who would you want to be?” Out of all the character’s Erin created, she would want to be Kate from Vengeance Road. Kate is a very strong-willed girl, who doesn’t struggle with confrontation or let anyone hold her back. Erin really admires her traits and hopes to let them have an impact on herself. Speaking of characters, Erin currently is working on two different books. One is a companion novel to Vengeance Road, which takes place in the west but has a completely different story. Then she started working on a sci-fi novel about a mission that goes terribly wrong! One thing I found interesting was that Erin really is amazing at writing different types of genres. Not all her books are the same. Lastly as Erin advises, pick up a fresh notebook, brainstorm ideas, and then move to a computer to begin creating a story of your own.  

By Julia L.

Welcome! Today we’re celebrating the release of BRAZEN by Christina Farley! We are SO excited to have Christina here with us to share the TOP 5 PLACES TO VISIT BASED ON BRAZEN AND we also have a GIVEAWAY! BRAZEN is the third and final book in the Gilded series about a sixteen-year old girl who must use her martial art skills and wits to save her family, friends, and country from an evil Korean god.

To learn more about this series, visit the Gilded Series website.

Be sure to pick up the letter for this stop at the end of this post to earn extra points in the Kindle Fire and $50 Amazon gift card giveaway! Collect all the letters during the blog tour to spell out the secret message to earn more points.

About the Book:

Find it: Amazon | B&N | Goodreads | Indie

Top 5 Places to Visit Based on BRAZEN:

1. Excavation Site of the Terracotta Army

The first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang (210–209 BC), created an army of soldiers to protect his tomb and him in his afterlife. These soldiers are life-sized and the amazing feature about them is that every solider is different. Archeologists believe that perhaps these soldiers were based off of real soldiers in the emperor’s army.

Theses sculptures were buried not far from the emperor’s tomb (about a mile) and have recently been excavated after a farmer discovered some clay shards in his field. I got to go visit these warriors and it was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve had.

2. The Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang

Photos curtesy of China.org

Like the ancient Egyptians, China’s first emperor built a massive square pyramid-shaped tomb. It’s located at the base of Mt. Li and was buried under a mouth of earth to keep it hidden.

There have been no excavations of the tomb as of yet, but visitors may walk up the long stairs to the top for a great view or to experience a Chinese performance.

Even though no one has been inside the hidden palace since it was built thousands of years ago, it’s believed to be riddled with booby traps and mercury rivers that will poison those who enter the sacred corridors.

3. City of Xian

This ancient city is a fascinating place to visit. We stayed at the Shangri-La (the very same hotel in the book) and were able to take a day to tour the area. One of the prominent features of this city is the bell tower, which once climbed offers an amazing view of the city.

4. Blue House

This is the living quarters of the President of Korea. I had the privilege of taking my students here on a field trip (see pic above). The building was constructed in 1991 and though it is a modern building, it reflects Korea’s beautiful cultural architecture and history. It’s located on the historical royal gardens of the Joseon Dynasty and within walking distance of Gyeongbok Palace. Check the website here.

5. Seoraksan Mountains

This is one of my favorite places to hike in Korea, not only for its stunning majestic peaks but also because of the rigor and feeling that you have left the modern world behind. There are temples, fortresses, caves, waterfalls, and beautiful views scattered all around the park. I knew that the climax to the Gilded series had to be held in this national park because in many ways it’s the epitome of Korea. The climbs are quite rigorous, but so fun. Though I was five months pregnant, I am proud to say I conquered Ulsan Bawi Rock and I've got pics to prove it!

About the Author:

CHRISTINA FARLEY is the author of the Gilded series, a YA contemporary fantasy series set in Korea. GILDED was nominated for Korea's 2014 Morning Calm, Ohio's 2015 Buckeye award, and the Tome’s It List. As a child, she loved to explore, which later inspired her to jump on a plane and travel the world. Christina's adventures sparked her to write stories, infusing the real world with fantasy. Currently she writes from home in Clermont, FL with her husband and two sons—that is until the travel itch whisks her off to a new unknown.

Find Christina Here:

Website

Twitter

YouTube

Facebook

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Goodreads

Instagram

BE SURE TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY BELOW!!!

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To celebrate the release of BRAZEN, Christina is giving away a Kindle Fire (US only) and a $50 Amazon gift card (international). 
The letter for this stop is ..... 

Collect all the letters from the blog tour to earn more points!

Where will Christina be tomorrow?? Click here for more blog tour information!

Truthwitch ARC Review

Truthwitch ARC Review

by Riley M.

Susan Dennard has done it once again! If you guys thought that the Something Strange And Deadly series was amazing, then you're definitely going to want to go read her new book entitled, Truthwitch which comes out January 2016. Instead having zombies like in her last series, Truthwitch has witches in it. You will meet different types of witches: earth, water, fire, air, thread, and of course, a truthwitch. Thread witches can see the emotions that a person is feeling by the color of the thread that is inside them. For the other powers, the witches can control the element that they possess. Some of the powers that witches possess, are uncommon, and even not believed in since they're so rare. These powers belong to the legendary truthwitch, which is being able to tell if someone is telling the truth, and the void witch, which is being able to control and smell everyone else's blood.

Unlike most books, Truthwitch isn't in just one of the main character's perspective, but is in four of the main characters’ perspectives. These four characters are Safiya, Iseult, Merik, Aeduan. Safiya and Iseult are thread sisters who are traveling together to get back into the city, when they encounter an army blocking their way. Knowing that it was going to be hard to get through the soldiers, the girls disguised themselves as peasants and tried to get to safety without getting caught. However, before they could get to safety, a monk named Aeudan figures out a really big secret about one of the girls which could put them into a lot of danger.

Look forward to meeting a prince/captain named Merik, who is trying to help save his starving kingdom. All of these characters end up colliding and make a whole new story of their own. Susan definitely makes sure that there was lots of action throughout the book, from karate kicks and punches, to epic power brawls! It definitely will keep you up reading until the late hours of the night, and will keep you at the edge of your seat wanting to find out what happens next. You won't want to leave the magical world that she created. You should definitely go pick this book up when it comes into stores. It is really worth it if you want a amazing book to read!! Be one of the first to own it!! Click below to preorder Truthwitch now!!

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Sneak peak at the map!

Thank you, Susan for sharing Truthwitch with us!!! 

My Adventures at BOOKCON 2015

So recently, last weekend, I traveled to NYC to attend Bookcon. Bookcon is a convention following the week of BEA (Book Expo of America) where authors promote new books as well as host panels about certain topics for readers. I had an amazing time there and would now like to take the opportunity to share them all with you.

On Saturday morning, we dropped off my two younger brothers off at my grandmother’s house and traveled to New York. There my father left to go explore on his own leaving my mother and I to travel around an entire city block around the convention center searching for the end of the line outside eagerly waiting to get in. Free bags and lanyards were everywhere when we went inside, so we grabbed a few for family and friends and immediately got wristbands for a certain special events panel I will talk about later.

From there we went up to the third floor, where most of the booths were located, and waited an hour for a Patrick Ness signing (which was totally incredible by the way). He had a Coke bottle with the name Manchee on it and everyone just gave it the dirtiest look ever. Still, I got my friend and I signed copies of Knife Of Never Letting Go and A Monster Calls!

Next we went to go see the wonderful Rainbow Rowell in conversation about her new novel, Carry On where she discussed her new book along with other topics such as Tumblr and her writing and outlining process in general.  Rainbow Rowell is such a relatable and down-to-earth person; everything she said sounded genuine. This was one of my favorite panels as it was very funny and everyone in the audience just had a very good time. After this,we went to Marie Lu and Richelle Mead's panel. This panel was more about fantasy world building and they compared how they creatively structured their writings and thought processes. Overall, this was a very great experience and definitely opened my mind up to more ideas. I also learned that somehow Marie has no outline to any of her stories at all and Richelle Mead loves to kill off characters at the end of all her books (but who didn’t know that already).

Finally, our evening ended with the crowed Paper Towns panel in the Special Events Hall. We were lucky enough to get our wristbands early, but we still had to wait for a little over an hour to get inside. Apparently, the wristbands were worth my weight in gold. The panel consisted of the wonderful John Green, the director, screenwriter, and 2 actors.  They allowed us under intense security to preview multiple exclusive never-before-seen trailers and talked to the audience about the book to movie adaptation and process. It was incredible seeing John Green in person and is certainly a night I will never forget as half the time I was hunched over in my seat laughing.

The next day we woke up at 5 a.m. and got to BookCon at 6:45 a.m. as we had a long walk. Approximately 150 people had the same idea and got there before us! Eventually they started letting people in for the Word bookstore around 8 am and that is when the chaos happened. About ⅓ of the people that day were of the ages 11-14 years old and they were there solely to meet the Youtubers that day.  Teensagers were running and screaming in line to get their book and ticket before the bookstore ran out of supplies.  That said, crowds of screaming girls repeatedly just all the sudden ripped through the doors pushing to get in line for a book. Thankfully, when I got there, I got to buy all four of the YouTuber’s books, along with Sarah J. Maas’s new book,  A Court Of Thorns And Roses (which was AMAZING but that’s a review for another blog post). Then we waited about 2 hours to get ACOTAR signed (and she recognized me!) and then went to go see her panel, Fierce Is My Middle Name, about strong female leads. It was breathtaking and hilarious as well as empowering and uplifting. It now inspires me to write about heroines who aren’t perfect and have flaws that don’t just go away at the end of the book, but helps to shape them into a better person. Real people do not have cookie cutter waistlines nor good judgement and real people do get depressed, and that was the idea the panel insinuated.

Afterwards I chickened out meeting Shane Dawson (afterall, its Shane Dawso!) so we explored the booths for another hour or so before a thousand girls and I lines up to meet the most inspiration author I have ever had the privilege to read: Connor Franta. I will not show the picture of the two of us as I was so overwhelmed by the heavenly glow surrounding him I didn’t exactly pose for the picture but no matter. After the photo was taken,  I had a mini-meltdown phone call with my best friend as well… you just have to read his book to understand.

And that concludes my amazing BOOKCON extravaganza! Onto Chicago and Y’all Fest next year!