31 May 2016

ARC REVIEW: IVORY & BONE by Julie Eshbaugh

31 May 6 Comments

IVORY & BONE

Author: Julie Eshbaugh
Series: Ivory & Bone #1
Source: ARC via the Publisher
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: June 14, 2016
Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary:
A prehistoric fantasy—with allusions to Pride and Prejudice.

Hunting, gathering, and keeping his family safe—that’s the life seventeen-year-old Kol knows. Then bold, enigmatic Mya arrives from the south with her family, and Kol is captivated. He wants her to like and trust him, but any hopes of impressing her are ruined when he makes a careless—and nearly grave—mistake. However, there’s something more to Mya’s cool disdain…a history wrought with loss that comes to light when another clan arrives. With them is Lo, an enemy from Mya’s past who Mya swears has ulterior motives.

As Kol gets to know Lo, tensions between Mya and Lo escalate until violence erupts. Faced with shattering losses, Kol is forced to question every person he’s trusted. One thing is for sure: this was a war that Mya or Lo—Kol doesn’t know which—had been planning all along.
Purchase:
Amazon | Chapters | TBD
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this one. It took a bit to get used to the writing since it's basically a novel of someone telling you a story about yourself that you should know from their perspective but it was really good once you did get used to it. I found myself quite enjoying it and unable to put it down. I was reading in the bath and ended up refilling my water a couple times instead of getting out so I could continue reading.

30 May 2016

ARC REVIEW: TITANS by Victoria Scott

30 May 2 Comments

TITANS

Author: Victoria Scott
Source: Traded for an ARC
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publication Date: February 23, 2016
Rating: 3/5 stars

Summary:
Ever since the Titans first appeared in her Detroit neighborhood, Astrid Sullivan’s world has revolved around the mechanical horses. She and her best friend have spent countless hours watching them and their jockeys practice on the track. It’s not just the thrill of the race. It’s the engineering of the horses and the way they’re programmed to seem so lifelike. The Titans are everything that fascinates Astrid, and nothing she’ll ever touch.

She hates them a little, too. Her dad lost everything betting on the Titans. And the races are a reminder of the gap between the rich jockeys who can afford the expensive machines to ride, and the working class friends and neighbors of Astrid’s who wager on them.

But when Astrid’s offered a chance to enter an early model Titan in this year’s derby, well, she decides to risk it all. Because for a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, it’s more than a chance at fame or money. Betting on herself is the only way she can see to hang on to everyone in the world she cares about.
Purchase:
Disclaimer: I read an ARC of this that I traded with Aly!

Okay so I really enjoyed this one. I thought it was a good mix of action and familial relationships and there was no unnecessary romance which was a huge plus for me. BUT I couldn't help but compare it to The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater and because of that it, it was lacking something for me.

28 May 2016

#ReadProud TBR!

28 May 1 Comments
http://julia-ember.com/readproud-reading-challenge/
Julia Ember, author of UNICORN TRACKS, put together a readalong/reading challenge for June, Pride Month, called #ReadProud. There are different categories and you can win prizes by participating! Check out the initial post here! I have decided to double up and read 16 books: 2 from each category. This starts tomorrow and runs until the end of June, so you have plenty of time to participate!

I'll just be linking them below and you can click on the book cover to learn more about the books! Please note that my books are not in order of challenge week/date and just in order that I have them in a list for myself lol Sorry if there is any confusion!

#ReadProud TBR

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25689042-the-art-of-being-normalhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27220352-jerkbaithttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24790901-the-abyss-surrounds-ushttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25331997-saving-montgomery-sole
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17900792-not-otherwise-specifiedhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23228.Boy_Meets_Boyhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18367581-afterworldshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27158835-you-know-me-well
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18369509-the-second-mangohttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22857416-off-campushttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22701480-the-understatement-of-the-yearhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26156987-if-i-was-your-girl
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12477984-marco-impossiblehttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21521965-starring-kittyhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25223500-out-on-good-behaviorhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14741571-you-set-me-on-fire

25 May 2016

ARC REVIEW: THE WAY TO GAME THE WALK OF SHAME by Jenn P. Nguyen

25 May 5 Comments

THE WAY TO GAME THE WALK OF SHAME

Author: Jenn P. Nguyen
Source: eARC via the Publisher
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Publication Date: June 7, 2016
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Summary:
Taylor Simmons is screwed.

Things were hard enough when her single-minded dedication to her studies earned her the reputation of being an Ice Queen, but after getting drunk at a party and waking up next to bad boy surfer Evan McKinley, the entire school seems intent on tearing Taylor down with mockery and gossip.

Desperate to salvage her reputation, Taylor persuades Evan to pretend they’re in a serious romantic relationship. After all, it’s better to be the girl who tames the wild surfer than just another notch on his surfboard.
Purchase:
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

That was so cute! I love love love the fake relationship trope but I think this one was one of the best I've read. It felt so natural and I liked that neither of them were really stereotypes. Sure, Taylor was a Good Girl but she was also catty and a bit rude to people. But she was driven and determined to succeed. And yes, Evan was a Player but he also had dreams of his own, he just needed a bit of a push to get there. I was rooting for them the whole time and if you read this one you will definitely fall in love with their love.

24 May 2016

BLOG TOUR: THE ONLY THING WORSE THAN ME THAN YOU by Lily Anderson \\ Guest Post

24 May 0 Comments
Hello and welcome to my blog tour stop for

THE ONLY THING WORSE THAN ME IS YOU by Lily Anderson!

I have a Guest Post by the author, Lily Anderson, for you that includes Trixie's Pull List and how she determine her cosplay costumes! Last week, I reviewed the book on Queen of the Bookshelves, which I loved! So let's learn more about the book...


THE ONLY THING WORSE THAN ME IS YOU

Author: Lily Anderson
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: May 17, 2016

Summary:
Trixie Watson has two very important goals for senior year: to finally save enough to buy the set of Doctor Who figurines at the local comic books store, and to place third in her class and knock Ben West--and his horrendous new mustache that he spent all summer growing--down to number four.

Trixie will do anything to get her name ranked over Ben's, including give up sleep and comic books--well, maybe not comic books--but definitely sleep. After all, the war of Watson v. West is as vicious as the Doctor v. Daleks and Browncoats v. Alliance combined, and it goes all the way back to the infamous monkey bars incident in the first grade. Over a decade later, it's time to declare a champion once and for all.

The war is Trixie's for the winning, until her best friend starts dating Ben's best friend and the two are unceremoniously dumped together and told to play nice. Finding common ground is odious and tooth-pullingly-painful, but Trixie and Ben's cautious truce slowly transforms into a fandom-based tentative friendship. When Trixie's best friend gets expelled for cheating and Trixie cries foul play, however, they have to choose who to believe and which side they're on--and they might not pick the same side.
Purchase:

Trixie's Cosplay Guide

Because Trixie attends such a rigorous and competitive school, she really only has one day a year that she can go all out and dress up in costume—the annual Messina Academy Harvest Festival. She spends months digging through Pinterest boards and convention cosplay photos for inspiration before hunting through thrift stores and fabric stores for the perfect building materials.

20 May 2016

#EventRecap: The Raven King Tour with MAGGIE STIEFVATER + #GIVEAWAY

20 May 31 Comments
GUYS! I MET MAGGIE STIEFVATER AND IT WAS GLORIOUS. Also, I like maybe got an extra book signed and an extra book hugger signed for you to have so learn more about what happened at the event for me & then enter to win!!


Pre-Event Jitters: Late-April to Thursday, May 12, 2016



As soon as I found out that Maggie Stiefvater was going on tour, I was excited! I had been to the Barnes & Noble Livonia before for the Tor Authors Event (with Susan Dennard and Victoria Schwab) so I knew where I was going and that I would get to see the Michigan bloggers again which was half the point of the trip! I was super nervous though because HOLY CRAP MAGGIE STIEFVATER. But I had my hotel book right away (like the night I found out, I booked a hotel room) and I made plans to go, so I was very excited.

On the Thursday before the event, I found out it was wristband-ed, which put a damper on my soul because OMG WHAT IF I DON'T GET A WRISTBAND AND DON'T GET TO MEET MAGGIE. The store assured me that everyone would get their book signed but I was taking no chances, so I upped my plans and left Sunday night after work instead of Monday morning so I could get there right for 9am to get my wristband.



The Drive There: Sunday, May 15, 2016

When I went to Michigan in January, it didn't snow, so the karma gods said "LOL NOW IT SHALL SNOW IN MAY!!" Thankfully it wasn't too heavy or bad but I was driving at night time so when we got to Livonia, it was 11pm. And there was construction so the GPS was taking us in circles but we finally found the hotel. We checked in and then went to a 24 hour grocery store and got food to eat because we skipped dinner. I didn't get to bed until 2:00am on what was technically Monday morning.


Morning of The Event: Monday, May 16, 2016

I was up by 5:30am because it was like Christmas morning for me. I got ready and went over to the B&N for 8:00am because OMG WHAT IF PEOPLE HAVE CAMPED OUT OVER NIGHT (no one did). I ended up being second in line (and we lined up at 8:45am) and had wristband #2! Hooray! I felt much better because I knew I would FOR SURE get my priority books signed and that was all that mattered to me. I camped out and had brought 3 books to read while I was at the store because I ALSO WANTED TO SIT FRONT ROW so basically once I got into B&N, I wasn't leaving unless they picked me up and threw me out (which they did not).

I finished LADY RENEGADES by Rachel Hawkins while I was there and started EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR by E.K. Johnston but had to stop because I didn't want to have cry face when taking my picture with Maggie. (I have since finished EXIT and it was GLORIOUS and everyone should read it). As well, I had other people who camped out with me during the day including Amanda and Theresa. The best part about hanging out with book people is you can READ TOGETHER! So I was pretty happy to be able to chill with people and read at the same time.


I was updating the other bloggers I knew were coming on wristband numbers throughout the day because they were only giving out 100 wristbands and then tickets and doing it in numerical order. 


19 May 2016

#BlogTour: SUMMER DAYS AND SUMMER NIGHTS edited by Stephanie Perkins \\ #Review

19 May 0 Comments
Hello and welcome to my blog tour stop for

SUMMER DAYS AND SUMMER NIGHTS edited by Stephanie Perkins!

I have a review of the book, broken down by individual story, for you guys, so I hope you enjoy! But first, let's learn more about the book...


SUMMER DAYS AND SUMMER NIGHTS

Edited by: Stephanie Perkins
Source: eARC via the Publisher
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: May 17, 2016
Rating:4.5/5 stars

Summary:
Maybe it's the long, lazy days, or maybe it's the heat making everyone a little bit crazy. Whatever the reason, summer is the perfect time for love to bloom. Summer Days & Summer Nights: Twelve Love Stories, written by twelve bestselling young adult writers and edited by the international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins, will have you dreaming of sunset strolls by the lake. So set out your beach chair and grab your sunglasses. You have twelve reasons this summer to soak up the sun and fall in love.

Featuring stories by Leigh Bardugo, Francesca Lia Block, Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, Brandy Colbert, Tim Federle, Lev Grossman, Nina LaCour, Stephanie Perkins, Veronica Roth, Jon Skovron, and Jennifer E. Smith.
Purchase:
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories that was edited by Stephanie Perkins so when I saw there was going to be a summer anthology, I squealed with joy. I love beach-y summer reads that have a good aspect of romance so I was ready and willing to take this book in. 

18 May 2016

#BlogTour: WINGING IT by Cate Cameron // #Review

18 May 0 Comments
Hello and welcome to my blog tour stop for

WINGING IT by Cate Cameron!

Today I have a review of the book for you, which I really enjoyed! So let's learn more about the book...


WINGING IT

Author: Cate Cameron
Series: Corrigan Falls Raiders #3
Source: eARC via the Publisher
Publisher: Entangled Teen Crush
Publication Date: May 16, 2016
Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary:
Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains adult language, ice-melting kisses, and a swoon-worthy hero. This fake relationship romance will have you wishing for a hockey player of your own…

Natalie West and Toby Cooper were best friends growing up, on and off the ice. But when Toby’s hockey career took off, their friendship was left behind. Now Natalie has a crazy plan to land her crush—Toby’s biggest rival—and she needs Toby’s help to pull it off. 

When Nat asks Toby to be her fake boyfriend, he can’t say no. Not when it means getting his best friend back. But Natalie is all grown up now, and spending time with her—even when it’s just playing hockey together—stirs up a lot of feelings, old and new. Suddenly pretending to be interested in her isn’t hard at all…if only she wanted him and not his enemy.

Hockey tore them apart. Can it put them back together?
Purchase:
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this one: there were so many good things! I loved that there was a lot of talk of empowerment and saying "no" when you weren't comfortable. I also liked that Nat had a goal she wanted to reach and had Toby help her. I also liked that Nat didn't want to be a part of something just for the sake of being a part of it. I really liked the overall idea and premise and thought the writing and execution really worked well for me.

16 May 2016

#EventRecap: ROCHESTER TEEN BOOK FESTIVAL 2016 + #GIVEAWAY

16 May 97 Comments
On Saturday, May 14th, I attended the Rochester Teen Book Festival for the second time! I had a lot of fun and met some great authors and some awesome bloggers including Emily from Books & Cleverness and Miranda who is the official blogger for the event! I am going to talk you through the day, including LOTS OF DETAILS ABOUT THE PANELS I WENT TO, and at the bottom, you can enter to win a signed copy of THE SERPENT KING by Jeff Zentner so keep scrolling!

And so my day begins...

I started out my day by DROPPING A MUFFIN ON MY COPY OF THE CROWN'S GAME by Evelyn Skye. Which kinda set up how the day would go for me tbh. (The muffin stain will not relent but at least I have a conversation starter? "This one time, I dropped a muffin...") Then when I got to the actual event, I left my purse in the car and had no way of getting a hold of my father who promptly left after dropping me off (he was spending the day record store shopping). THANKFULLY he came back so I had my ID and some money. And that was JUST THE BEGINNING.

The day starts off with a parade of the authors but all my pictures from that are blurry, sadly. Then there was the TRUTH OR TALENT portion so that in case you don't get to see all the authors at their panels or signings, you at least get to learn a little bit about them. Highlights from this include:
  • Jeff Zentner playing the guitar (amazingly, I might add)
  • Jennifer Donnolly writing the first line of her next book, which was FANTASTIC
  • Rachel Hawkins story about lying to meet Maya Angelou (but like #same)
  • Tamora Pierce telling us how she is the most amazing human being ever and keeps every animal as a pet that enters her house *tears* 
  • Kekla Magoon telling us she has a gorilla named after her - AND THAT HER NAME MEANS SUNRISE. HOW CUTE. 

Panel Portion!

My plan for the panel portion was to see Jessica Spotswood/Robin Talley first, then Janet B. Taylor/Harriet Reuter Hapgood/Anna Breslaw, then Jesse Andrews (because they were all in the library and it looked like it was going to rain so I didn't want to jump between buildings and get soaked)! I only got to the first two because I am an "adult" so I got kicked out of Jesse Andrews's panel but I'm okay with this. So let me tell you what I learned at the panels I DID attend...

Jessica Spotswood & Robin Talley!

First of all, both Jessica and Robin are ADORABLE. At the bottom of this section, I'll link to their books Goodreads pages! (Also, if you join in on the #BAMFChat on Sunday, May 22, 2016 at 3pm, you can win a book signed by both Jessica & Robin!)

Jessica talked about how family plays a huge role in her stories because she likes to look at how you (or her main characters, one might say) are in opposition to the rest of your family. She discussed how Ivy (the main character from WILD SWANS) interacts with her family: she wants to be the opposite of her mother and please her grandfather but she also has to become a Big Sister, which is something new to her. She also shared some cute stories about her relationship with her sisters and how you create a space for yourself in your family and have to carve that out in relation to what the other members of your family do. 


Jessica also talked about how April Tucholke (author of BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA and WINK POPPY MIDNIGHT) inspired WILD SWANS in the sense that April's books use the setting as an extra character so she wanted that in WILD SWANS -- and thought about how it would be to grow up in a town where everyone "knew" you based on your last name and what those types of expectations would mean on someone who is growing up. As well, April inspired Jessica to create the anthology A TYRANNY OF PETTICOATS because April told her that she would be good at creating an anthology since she is such a good editor. Jessica gave Robin and the other 13 authors three instructions for writing their stories: 1. 5000-7000 words; 2. Historical time period; 3. Write about how a female would fit into this historical time. (NONE of the authors followed the first rule, but that's okay, those stories are all fantastic)

Robin mentioned that in WILD SWANS, there is a scene where Ivy is confronted by one boy who likes her while she is kissing another boy who likes her (that is the best way for me to explain it without spoilers) and that she was really impressed that instead of Ivy just saying "oh you are right, I shouldn't be making this decision" she says (in different words), "who are you to tell me what I can and cannot do? Just because you think you know what is right for me, doesn't mean that it is actually right for me." Robin thought this scene was really powerful (I did too) and Jessica talked about how this scene was really important to her because so many times in stories (especially YA), girls are expected to just do what people think they should do rather than be assertive and do what they want to do. It was important to get the message across that Ivy can make her own decisions about what she wants to do.

In regards to her own books, Robin discussed that most of her characters tend to be queer (HELL YAS) and that because she was a semi-out teenager, she wanted to write those characters in modern times so that teens like her could have someone to relate to. She tends to write to an older YA audience and the themes tend to be about when you're still living at home but are ready to be independent and on your own. She noted that in her book WHAT WE LEFT BEHIND, the main theme is how you grow and change on your own and what that means for the relationships you have. Because that is something EVERYONE goes through: have you grown together or grown apart? And it is especially important for teens who are transitioning from high school to university!

Robin was asked about how to make a retelling your own story while still sticking to the themes of the original to which she said that it is sometimes a hard balance. For her novel, AS I DESCENDED (which comes out September 6, 2016 and is a QUEER RETELLING OF MACBETH!!!!), she wanted to make the story her own while still following the same beats of Macbeth. However, she also knew that there was no way she would be able to make one of her characters go from Perfect to MURDER in as short of time as it occurs in Macbeth. Therefore she had to expand the story in that sense. (There are also GHOSTS in this one. I'm just like SUPER excited about it tbh. I saw that it was a Macbeth retelling and was like FUCK YAS and then saw it was a QUEER MACBETH RETELLING and shouted to the heavens that they have answered my prayers. Anyway) Robin also discussed the merits of making a retelling of a story your own with a special shoutout to EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR by E.K. Johnston, which is a retelling of THE WINTER'S TALE, by saying that the general theme is there but it is a great contemporary retelling of it. 

Both Robin and Jessica would hate to have to choose one genre to write in because they've written across multiple genres and would like to continue to do so. However, when faced with the choice, Robin would choose Realistic Fiction because there is so much you can do with it; Jessica would choose historical fantasy because she can't imagine a world without magic. Robin said that a recurring theme in Jessica's books is feminism which made Jessica really happy; Jessica said that a recurring theme in Robin's books is identity.

Find Jessica Spotswood Online!

Find Robin Talley Online!

Check out their books below! By clicking on the cover, it will take you to the Goodreads page! 

 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22020592-a-tyranny-of-petticoatshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20579291-lies-we-tell-ourselveshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22082075-what-we-left-behind
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28218948-as-i-descendedhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22082082-our-own-private-universehttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27015393-wild-swans

Lady Debuts: Janet B. Taylor, Harriet Reuter Hapgood, & Anna Breslaw

My next panel choice was the debut ladies that attended this convention! I will link to their books Goodreads pages below! I was pretty excited for this panel because I have heard such good things about all these books and I wanted to learn more (and I have them all on my shelf but didn't bring them which was silly because I totes ended up having enough time to go back and get them signed). So I got there super early and ended up sitting next to Janet McNally, author of GIRLS IN THE MOON, which debuts November 29, 2016 (but I didn't say hi in case it wasn't actually her. Internet can lie sometimes).
 
Photo Credit: Janet McNalley

The main aspect of this panel was about tropes and how they play into stories. Actually, there was also a lot of talk about Buffy the Vampire Slayer which was chill with me. All three discussed how tropes are sometimes useful to use "as-is" and how some of them are useful to subvert. Harriet discussed how she has a "boy next door" in THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER but that the rest of the typical YA coming to age things have already happened to her MC (first love, death, etc. etc.) so it was more about the challenges you face AFTER that because there are constant hurdles in life. Anna discussed how she tried to subvert the typical tropes and deconstruct them in SCARLETT EPSTEIN HATES IT HERE because her MC is sort of an anti-hero until the end when she realizes she is being a villain. Janet discussed that she didn't want to use the typical "Mom Is Dead" YA trope in INTO THE DIM, but instead look at how a teen may react to thinking her mom is dead only to find out she is alive and needs to be saved. As well, Janet said that her publisher really pushed for a love triangle but she was dead set against it.

All three would love to write a book from the villains perspective rather than the heroes, and Janet mentioned that after she completes the Dim Series, her next novel will be told from alternating perspectives of hero and villain (which sounds AWESOME). They all agreed that writing an anti-hero or straight up villain book would be fantastic!

Janet and Harriet both discussed the "science" behind their time travel. For Janet it is about the magic of ley lines combined with the science and expertise of Nikola Tesla who created a device that allows her characters to travel in the past. They have exactly 72 hours and must be in the same spot as where they arrived or else they will be left behind. Harriet discussed that she used a lot of quantum physics (which she researched herself so like INTENSE) and then when it was to it's limit, she added in the pieces that would make it possible. Her version of time travel is to go back in time to memories of the person who is traveling. Anna then told them (and the audience) about a program called THE SCIENCE AND ENTERTAINMENT EXCHANGE which pairs authors/screenwriters/etc with scientist who can answer their science questions so that the authors Get It Right. She has been using this for her new novel! 

Find Janet B. Taylor Online!

Find Harriet Reuter Hapgood Online!

Find Anna Breslaw Online! 

Check out their books below! By clicking on the cover, it will take you to the Goodreads page!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25897792-into-the-dimhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25028285-the-square-root-of-summerhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25982869-scarlett-epstein-hates-it-here

Signing Portion!

I lined up during the fourth time slot (2:15pm) for Scott Westerfeld because I knew his line would be long and I wanted to get to as many authors signing as possible. I ended up getting through the line in 15 minutes and he signed all my UGLIES books and I was shaking and couldn't say anything because I was completely enamored and OMG I MET SCOTT WESTERFELD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 


For those of you who weren't following my tweets yesterday, I talked about how the Uglies series changed my life as a teen. I read those books as they came out (omg 2005. I was so young) and that they are one of the main reasons I want to write my Masters thesis on how the political scheme affects dystopian YA novels. So thank you, Scott Westerfeld even though I couldn't say it yesterday.

I then lined up for Jesscia Spotswood, who I had the most books for because I HAD THEM ALL + two copies of TYRANNY. Jessica was SUPER NICE (and recognized me from Twitter because I have been tweeting excessively about going to this event and WILD SWANS which I will continue to push on people). She gave me one of the fancy art prints for TYRANNY and has super neat hand writing. Right next to Jessica Spotswood was Robin Talley, so I jumped over and got her to sign TYRANNY as well since she contributed (probably my favourite) story in the anthology. I also have AS I DESCENDED pre-ordered but you know, September is not May so I didn't have that to get signed. Robin was SUPER NICE and let me babble about how I was super excited for a Queer Macbeth book because MACBETH IS THE BEST. AND MAKING IT QUEER MAKES IT BETTER!!!


Then I moved over to Jeff Zentner's line which was SUPER LONG. It was SO NICE to meet Jeff in person and I got him to sign my copy of THE SERPENT KING and one for you guys (which you can win below!). He also gave me bookmarks! And a hug! And he's so nice! Thank you to the people in line behind me who not only complimented me on my hair and earrings (which were from Fandom of the Month Club!) but also took the picture of Jeff and me

Because I finished all these authors so quickly, I had time to MEET TAMORA PIERCE. So I scooted over there and waited for almost a full two hours to meet her. Sadly, because time was running out, we could only get one thing signed instead of everything we had, so I got my copy of ALANNA signed since it's the first in that series. I also told her, and I quote, "My friend Nori LOVES YOU. I do too but probably not as much as her. Thank you so much for being here and signing my book. I really appreciate it." But it was really fast because I was REALLY NERVOUS so hopefully she understood. 


Then I drove home...

My drive home was fairly short (2 hours and 15 minutes) but we were at the border for a good 15 minutes even though we ourselves got through really quickly. I put all my signed books away, packed my suitcase and my Maggie Stiefvater books, and I am leaving for that event in Michigan tonight after work! I have a really busy schedule for this past weekend tbh. (Well that has already happened by the time you are reading this. IF YOU'RE READING THIS IT'S TOO LATE)

Thank you so much to Teen Book Festival and all 31 of the authors who came out! I wish I could have met more of you but time, man, time. If you come to Canada I will for sure be there! Until next time, Rochester! (Aka MAY 20, 2017! I already have it planned out since the next week I will be going to BEA 2017!!!!)

And again, if you are still reading, I am hosting a chat on Sunday, May 22, 2016 at 3pm ET and you can WIN a copy of A TYRANNY OF PETTICOATS that has been signed by both Jessica Spotswood and Robin Talley! Come join us at #BAMFChat and discuss AWESOME characters! 


One winner will receive a signed copy of THE SERPENT KING by Jeff Zentner! International. Ends March 31st.