Google Play Samples: May

Because my HTC kept telling me I didn't have enough room to download the Overdrive app to read books from the library and I overcompensated by downloading just about every free sample book I could get my hands on.

That was a really long sentence.

Google Play has a good selection of books that you can download samples of. (I'm not sure if you can download one for every book they offer.) The samples are usually at least two chapters.

Now, I'm kind of cheating because I'm sampling them to get them from the library instead of buying them, but I'm figuring I'll buy at least a few over the summer. Ebooks are cheaper than physical ones, after all, and I already have enough physical books as it is. And ebooks are much more portable.

Books that are starred after their TBR number means that I added them after reading the sample. Ones that are carroted (what is ^ supposed to be called?) were on my TBR and I didn't realize it until I typed this post up.

These also aren't in order of how I read them.

Frostfire by Amanda Hocking, TBR #1114^

A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray, TBR #983

Dream On by Kerstin Gier, TBR #1565*

The Rose and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh, TBR #1551

The Siren by Kiera Cass, TBR #1502^

The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson, TBR #1562*

Saving Montgomery Sole by Mariko Tamaki, TBR #1566*

The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan, TBR #1472

I also downloaded the sample to The Improbable Theory of Ana and Zak, but I got my hands on a library copy before I ever touched the sample. (Here's my review.) I also checked out Saving Montgomery Sole from the library as a result of reading the sample, so I'd say this has been a success so far!

I liked all of the samples, so I'd definitely recommend trying these books out. I have more samples downloaded that I haven't gotten to yet, so I'm hoping to do that in June. I'm also hoping to get more of these books from the library so I can report back on them. (Also, The Hidden Oracle is $11.99 from Amazon Prime. I'm waiting to pass on a few books to friends before I go ahead and buy it.)

All in all I think the Google Play samples have done their job of making me more interested in the books, and it'll most likely be my source for any ebooks I buy over the summer. (But I'm also an Android user, so I'm biased. I definitely like being able to read my Google Play books on my laptop, though, something I never figured out how to do with iBooks.)

If you guys have read any of these or find some good Google Play samples, I'd love to hear about them!

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

TL;DR Simon can't really get a break

TBR #1164, added Jan 7 2015

finished 5/12/16

I managed to kill most of Simon Vs on my second day of exams, much like I killed The Geography of You and Me the day before. Both books were a great format for it: compelling but light-hearted, just distracting enough that I didn't fret over my exams. 

I've been waiting for Simon Vs for a while now and I finally got my hands on it! I've heard lots of good things about it from various bloggers and I was excited. I can definitely say it lives up to the hype. 

Unfortunately, I waited too long to write this review, and I forgot most of what I wanted to say. You think I would've learned by now. smh

(I apologize for this non-review in advance)

I enjoyed the story and the journey of the different characters. It wasn't just about Simon, but I do wish there was more attention on some of the other characters' conflicts. The plotline of finding Blue's identity was fun, but I'd have to go back and re-read it to see if there were enough clues to be able to guess who he was. I made a couple of different predictions and was way off the mark lol

I think the aspect of the school's tumblr was interesting, and I think it's accurate that some of the students used it to harass others. My high school had a confessions twitter, which surprisingly was mostly used to compare the popular students against each other. I've never modded a tumblr run by submissions but I think that the concept was used idealistically in order to make the story function -- if nothing else, I have no idea why the tumblr's mods would have allowed the Important Post to be posted. 

Also, if there's ever any doubt about Abby's driving skills, she is exactly on point for a kid out of the DC area. Our traffic sucks. Atlanta's gotta be a breeze compared to our driving. I'm super excited to get my hands on her book in 2017. All the books I've encountered that are set in DC seem to center around politics. (Except Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, I guess, but I last read that series in elementary school.) 

The cameos of The Varsity and Junkman's Daughter made me super happy, because those are two of the places we went in Atlanta on our trip through the south in 2011. (My mother apparently doesn't remember Junkman's Daughter lol. I bought a Vampire Knight t-shirt there. I've worn it like maybe four times. I still own it.)

I stole a glorious #gpoy from my mom's Facebook photo album from the trip. Somehow this is the only picture she has from The Varsity. (I'm the one on the right. I think I still own that shirt, too. Good lord.) 

Anyway, I realize this review probably isn't much help, so here's a Pinterest board for the book by a wonderful Pinterest user I follow. They also have a bunch for other YA books! They do a great job of capturing the aesthetic and important details of the books and the characters in them. I'm amazed by their collection skills. 

TL;DR Simon Vs a great LGBT+ book that isn't all sorts of dark angst.  I enjoyed the experience of reading it but my chaotic May has written over my memory of most details. I need a better memory than a tape deck. 

Stitching Snow by R.C. Lewis

TL;DR sci-fi Snow White retelling

TBR #1146, added Nov 25 2014

finished 5/20/16

You like The Lunar Chronicles? Read Stitching Snow.   /end review

Just kidding, I have more to say than that. But seriously, if you like the aesthetic of TLC but are a little scared about the size of the series, Stitching Snow is a perfect alternative. It has a much more streamlined plot, focusing on one girl instead of four, but it still has the whole sci-fi-revolution thing going on. 

And Essie is just as mechanic-savvy as Cinder! The two stories and characters are very unique despite the aforementioned similarities. Essie was a very endearing character and I liked her from the beginning. Her narration was engaging and I was invested in her story the entire time. 

I liked that the story was clearly a Snow White retelling but that it added onto the story. I never really liked Snow White's story before (maybe I found the Disney movie boring, idk), but Stitching Snow was engaging and developed the story much more than I was anticipating. 

I initially thought this book and Spinning Starlight were in a numbered series, but it looks like they're only loose companions (meaning you can read either first). I know my library has a copy of Spinning Starlight, so I'll try to get my hands on it and report back. 

CWs for the book: abuse from parental figures, attempted sexual assault

TL;DR I really liked finding a new book with the same aesthetic of TLC, and I'm excited to see more of R.C. Lewis' writing. 

The Improbable Theory of Ana and Zak by Brian Katcher

TL;DR

TBR #1167, added Jan 8 2015

finished 5/17/16

I really liked the premise of this book, and I'm ashamed to admit I almost quit it to return to some other time. We've had really terrible weather recently (ironically, what I imagine Seattle weather is like), and I've been really listless because of it. I didn't find Ana or Zak endearing at first and I wasn't in the mood to read 300 pages of them. 

Thankfully, I followed the "read til page 50" rule, and by then I'd built up enough curiosity that I got through the whole book by the evening. (So I can tell you for a fact this can be read in an afternoon.) I'll readily admit that my feelings about Ana and Zak were probably influenced by this gray weather we've had these past three weeks. 

(Seriously, you know all those stereotypes about Seattle? About how it's always gray and kinda rainy and it's never sunny? We've had, like, two sunny days in May so far. It's miserable.) 

I'm really not sure the premise of the plot is plausible, but it sure as hell ended up interesting. These kids get into more shenanigans in 12 hours than I have in my five-year history of con-going. Like, good lord. Kinda makes me feel like I gotta step up my game a little bit. 

A ton of plot and character development happens over that period of 12 hours. Some things felt too sudden for anything to actually have changed, but I'm amazed by how much happened over the course of the book. There was so much more depth than I expected and I really did enjoy the journey. 

I completely enjoyed reading something set in a convention. I honestly never expected to get my hands on something like this, since con-going and reading YA don't exactly go hand-in-hand. At least, they're nowhere near the same audience. Washingcon was a little different than my experiences going to anime conventions, but it still felt familiar. I think it managed to capture a convention's vibe, especially when you're there for a mission. It's a pain in the ass to try and find a single person in a convention center. 

(Although, honestly, why didn't they ever call Clayton's phone? You gotta at least start there. Zak should've known trying to find him would've been a literal needle in a haystack search.) 

TL;DR I'm really glad I didn't try to put off reading this. It's a really good shenanigans book. After writing this review I'm definitely making "shenanigans" a category just like contemp or dystopian. I definitely think this deserves its own classification. 

Nameless by Lili St. Crow

TL;DR alternate-history Snow White retelling

TBR #332, added Apr 7 2013

finished 5/16/16

Nameless took me a couple days to get through, unlike the two books I'd read before it. I'd plowed through two books in two days and Nameless felt so much longer in comparison after that. 

The book has a really good aesthetic, creating a world with new concepts like jacks and Twists and Family. The Family got the most attention in the book, but the other concepts got enough attention that they added depth to the rest of their universe outside of Cami's story. The aesthetic was also dark and gloomy, which most likely contributed to how slow my reading pace was. 

Cami's backstory felt a little out of place. It was pretty late in the story by the time you learn anything about her outside of the Voltusino family, and at that it wrapped up fairly quickly and a little too nicely. I thought it was kind of disappointing since the blurb made it sound like there would be more focus on her origin. 

It didn't really feel like much of a retelling, either. Ellie and Ruby's retelling origins were a lot clearer than Cami's. It felt more like it was inspired by Snow White than a retelling of it. (I'm only familiar with the Disney version of Snow White, so I could be wrong with this.) The execution of the original story aspects was unique, but there wasn't enough of it for it to be all that interesting. 

I liked the trio of girls and the variety of secondary characters, especially Marya. I didn't like Cami and Nico's relationship, and I don't think any of the characters really changed over the course of the story. Well--Nico changed a little bit, but I'm not really sure it's growth. 

TL;DR it's not a super impressive or compelling book, but I'm interested enough in the universe (and Ellie and Ruby) to add the next book to my TBR. I don't think I'll have a complete opinion of Nameless until I read Wayfarer.

Summer Book Recs

I associate a lot of books with specific seasons. A lot of fluffy contemps are very summer-y, but I have a feeling that might be due to most of them being set during the summer ...

Anyway, I figured I would compile some of my favorite summer-y books! These are perfect for sitting outside underneath a tree to read (or hiding somewhere with AC, same thing). Most of these are contemps, but I've tried to find at least a few that aren't. Which is harder than I expected! I learned I associate most fantasy or sci-fi books with winter.

I'm also hoping to make more of these kinds of posts throughout the year! It's been fun examining my associations with all the books on my Read shelf. I also might come back and update this post as the summer goes on and I read more books, but we'll see.

I've also made a Goodreads shelf of these books if you'd rather browse that way!

Anatomical Shape of a Heart by Jenn Bennett -- contemp about two kids in San Francisco, with a focus on their relationships with their families. Takes place the summer following the narrator's junior year. (my review)

Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler -- contemp about a girl recovering after an accident takes away her plan in life. Lots of stuff about friendships and family relationships and is very body- and sex-positive. Takes place during the summer on the Oregon coast. (my review)

Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson -- contemp about a girl making new friendships in the wake of her best friend dropping off the face of the earth. Lots of shenanigans. Takes place during the summer somewhere in New England (maybe?). (my review)

Along For the Ride by Sarah Dessen -- contemp about a girl navigating life post-parental divorce and pre-college. Also lots of shenanigans. Take place during the summer in an unidentified beach town.

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick -- contemp about the relationship between a girl and the boy next door. Also has a focus on their family relationships. Takes place during the summer.

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson -- sci-fi / dystopian about a rebellious artist and the "Summer King" of her city for that year. Takes place in Brazil.

Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund -- sci-fi / dystopian retelling of The Scarlet Pimpernel (the same one that inspired Rook by Sharon Cameron). Takes place on two islands reminiscent of Hawaii.


So that's all I have so far! Hopefully some of these will be new and enjoyable for you guys :)

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

TL;DR two kids trying to keep in contact while traveling the world

TBR #829, added Apr 29 2014

finished 5/11/16

I managed to kill this book within about 24 hours. It's addictive. (I also read 90% while waiting for my exams, which might make me a little biased, but it also made me less stressed about my tests, so...)

I have to admit that I was excited about this book because of the word "geography". I'm not going to make any excuses about it. It definitely didn't disappoint! I was completely absorbed in it and I felt worlds away from the bench in the geography department hallway where I was camped out to read. (God, that's really ironic. I am a giant nerd.)

Lucy and Owen were pretty standard for contemp characters, but I was surprised by how the narration followed them. Most of the story is their time apart from each other, which is pretty unique for a fluffy book. I appreciated how the narration focused on the two of them as individuals and their experiences in life.

Actually, I was surprised by how little romantic-related stuff there was between Lucy and Owen compared to other contemps. The romance aspect was actually really chill. And I loved that. They cared for each other a lot, but there was never any lust. The story was more about how they wanted to be near each other and less about how much they wanted to make out. (I am really jaded. Honestly, though, I'd kill for more books like this.)

I was expecting this to be pretty standard fluffy-romance, so I appreciated how it was more about Lucy and Owen's lives than about their relationship. I loved the exploration of how their lives intersected and paralleled each other.

As for if their experiences throughout the book are realistic, I'd have to say probably not. I don't have any experience living in other places, but I do know that the logistics of their travels would be kind of hard to pull off. As in expensive. And some events are a little too convenient for the plot, but I didn't think any of it was detrimental to the story. Their experiences function within the book and I didn't mind it being potentially unrealistic.

The reviews I looked at on Goodreads seem pretty divided about the book.  I'll agree, the book doesn't really defy any norms of contemp books, but it was really good as a fluffy book. (In all honesty, I expect that most contemps are going to be similar, which is probably why I like a lot of them. There's only so much variety you can really get while trying to stay within the bounds of real life.) And I'll admit that I'm biased, between the geography aspect of the book and using it as a distraction from my exams.

I could've technically made a really cool map out of everywhere the two of them went, but I didn't sticky-note anything past the third chapter. I was honestly too wrapped up in reading to break my concentration and fish my pencil bag out of my backpack. I think it would've detracted some from the journey the two of them went through, too, because it's so much more intricate and nuanced than the blurb suggests. I think it's something you have to experience for yourself as it unfolds.

TL;DR the plausibility of the premise and subsequent plot might be a little questionable, but I really enjoyed the exploration of the "home is a person, not a place" concept. If you don't like the uniformity of the contemp genre, you're probably not going to enjoy it, though.

The Young Elites by Marie Lu

TL;DR fighting against the (Italian) Inquisition using actual magic

TBR #745, added Jan 9 2014

finished 5/8/16

That was definitely a wild ride. 

I really enjoyed Marie Lu's Legend series, but for some reason I didn't get my hands on The Young Elites until very recently. I was lucky enough to find a copy of it at the thrift store one day and I jumped at the chance. 

The setting was unique and I appreciated both the map at the beginning and the apparent Italian influence on Kenettra. (Mainly since I took an Italian class this semester, but y'know.) There was also a clear diversity of people, both from Kenettra and from Tamoura and Beldain. The Young Elites had a mix of the different cultures, and I'm excited to explore their world beyond Dalia and Estenzia. 

There was a nice variety of important characters. I wish the female secondary characters got more attention than they did, though. Adelina had limited interactions with the two other female Daggers and is cut off from her sister for almost the whole book. Most of Adelina's interactions were with the male Daggers or Teren. 

Adelina herself was a very interesting and complex character. Her narration had a much different style than what I remembered from the Legend series, but I've ultimately decided that I like that differentiation. Adelina definitely had her flaws but she made her decisions and I'm curious what she'll do in the future after the end of The Young Elites.

And holy crap, that ending. The plot continually defied my expectations and I was completely blown away by how Marie Lu went all-out. Like, damn. The last hundred pages or so were intense. I feel like I'm going to be hopped up on adrenaline for the next couple of hours.

(I'm writing this right after I finished the book for once. Can you tell? Look at all this detail I can include!!) 

The setup of the last final chapters and the epilogue have definitely made me anxious to get my hands on The Rose Society. Hopefully the library will have a copy of it when I go back next.

TL;DR The Young Elites took unexpected directions in a couple different ways and is such a great foundation for a trilogy. I'm honestly in awe of Marie Lu's writing skills. 

CWs for the book: abuse (parental and physical, and maybe other forms as well), injuries, blood, death, and unreality. Some of these can be hard to stomach. 

My Writing Process

I was procrastinating last night on both my daily writing and making this post, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone. I spend a lot of the evening in my room saying that I'm "writing", but what does that actually entail?

Doing anything but writing, basically.

So this is how my night went yesterday.

1. Noticed that the clock said it was after 10pm
2. Decided that it's probably time to start writing
3. Cleared out my inbox instead
          ("cleared" is relative since I still have 700 emails)
4. Noticed the email reminder about my Italian homework and ignored it
5. Checked twitter
6. Finally opened a blank Word document
7. Checked pinterest and facebook instead
8. Opened last night's writing to see if it would give me any better motivation
9. Finally stopped listening to "La Vie Boheme" and switched to Amazon Music
10. Got about 100 words written
11. Checked twitter again
12. Actually tried to focus on writing
13. Got about 700 more words written
14. Decided that I'm tired and that ~800 word was sufficient


So yeah. Not actually all that productive. I managed to finish writing by about 10:50, so this whole thing took less than hour. Which is actually a pretty productive night! Usually I drag it out across a couple hours, but usually the internet is a lot more interesting than it was last night.

Yesterday was also a really long day. My school went into lockdown during my Italian oral exam, like that wasn't stressful enough already. Luckily I already had plans to hang out with friends after class, so after a little miscommunication issues we got to eat some really good food! I think that definitely made up for the stress of the day.

(I also ate way too much yesterday lol)

So far in May I've only written for Aperture so far, but I've been meaning to write for some other projects I have, too. I'm hoping to spend today building up some of the background details I need. I generally need to have a lot of inconsequential info built up about the characters and their world before I feel comfortable writing.

(Maybe I'll make a post about that soon?)

Anyway, I hope this shed some light on what I do when I say I'm writing! I do actually get things done, I promise c:

What I'm Reading: May 2016

I haven't actually finished any books since Mechanica on April 15th OTL I've been meaning to go back to the library, but I've been feeling worn out now that the semester is coming to an end. I've had a lot of work these past two weeks. (And not enough sleep.)

But I'm still reading, so I figured I'd talk some about what I've been picking at recently.

Also!! I just learned last night that my friend Jessica started her booktube channel!! She has two videos so far and I'm so proud of her ♥ Here's to lots of videos in the future!! (And lots of fame ;) )

*ahem*

Marked by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast

I read the first few books in this series back in late elementary / early middle school and bought Marked from a yard sale for, like, a dollar. I wasn't too impressed with the series and didn't care enough to continue with the rest of them.

Marked was published in 2007 and it's a pretty good example of pre-2011 books. (I still haven't written that post like I talked about.) It feels too much like the authors were trying to be ~edgy~ and appeal to the kind of kids that would boast about shopping at Hot Topic before it became pop culture-oriented. There's a lot of petty judgement between the characters and none of them feel realistic. (Even Zoey's grandma, I hate to admit. Also, Zoey and her grandmother feel a lot like Daire and her grandmother from Fated. And I despised that series.)

I've only been reading this while my computer is loading or is taking too long to think, and since I've already read it, I don't know that I'll actually get around to finishing it again.

Neverwas by Kelly Moore, Tucker Reed, and Larkin Reed

This is also another book I've already read. I bought a paperback copy from a Friends of the Library sale. (Also for a dollar, I think.) In all honesty, I didn't expect I'd touch it again since I liked Amber House more.

I've been carrying this around in my backpack and haven't been touching it as much as I do library books. I only decided to pick it up because I remembered a scene from a book I read and I couldn't remember if it was from Neverwas or All Our Yesterdays, and I at least had Neverwas to check it. I think I was right about it being Neverwas, but I really doubt I'm going to finish the book before finals are over and I have no need for my backpack for another couple months.

Ready Player One by Ernest Kline

I downloaded the sample of this book from Google Play and have been reading it to one of the kids I babysit as his bedtime story. Not the best idea, tbh, but he's liked it so far and brought it up the last time I watched him. I'm definitely not gonna read the whole thing to him, but I've become really interested in the premise now that I've read the first two chapters. I think there's still another chapter in the sample, which I'll probably read to the kid the next time I watch him in the evening.

The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

I noticed the sample up on Google Play the day it came out and I jumped on the chance, since I probably can't buy the book until after exams are over. (Mainly so I don't spend all my time reading instead of studying. Which is a poor excuse when I read the entire sample during my Weather class on Tuesday instead of paying attention.)

The sample is really good and I'm even more excited about reading the book. Apollo isn't a very sympathetic narrator, but I appreciate how Riordan is exploring his point of view. I really want to see how Apollo and Meg fit into the established stories; there's been mentions of Blood of Olympus and The Sword of Summer events just in the first couple chapters.

Disney After Dark by Ridley Pearson

One of the later books in the series came up on a Bookbub email, and I decided to check out the first book. My friend is moving to Orlando for the Disney College Program for the fall semester and I thought I'd see if it was a good recommendation for him.

I think it's a little more MG than my friend would like, though. (I don't know why I was expecting anything else.) The narration and story setup was a little weird as far as I got, but I don't remember if I finished the sample or not. I'm curious about the series but I'm not going to go out of my way to buy it.


So that's it so far! I'm hoping to go back to the library on Monday since my books are due then. (Hopefully I won't renew them again. I need new books.)

Books I downloaded samples of but haven't touched yet: Deep Blue, Wake, Bloodlines, Pure, The Heir, and Soundless. I also downloaded the sample of Sisters of the Sword but I'm almost certain that I read it and its sequel in late elementary / early middle school.

If you guys have read any of these books, I'd love to hear about them!

Camp NaNo Results Apr 2016

April and Camp NaNo are officially over! (And I'm a week out from finals, crying forever.) I didn't make an update post because of how my post schedule worked out, so here's just the final wrap up!

I chose Casanova like I did for the November NaNo in 2015. My word count goal for this month was 15k, but I also set a stretch goal of 18k. Which I then upped to 20k.

My final word count was 22,539! This averages out to 777 words a day.

I really like line graphs ... Anyway, I had a couple days this month where I was busy or pretty uninspired, but I managed to meet the minimum word count goal of 500 words each day! I'm really proud of how I did. 

This is the bar graph combined with the rest of the writing I did this month. I worked on Aperture some, but it only adds up to 6.5k. I wanted to work more on it the past couple days but couldn't find the inspiration to write anything. 

I wrote 29k total this month between the two stories, which met the goal I'd set of 25k total. I'd totally forgotten about this goal until now and I'm surprised that I still beat it nonetheless ;; 

I made a chart of my Camp average word count over the course of the month. This was completely unnecessary in all honesty but I think it's cool to see how it changed over the course of the month. (I also should've made it orange tbh)

I did a lot of story development this month! I finally named two main characters and I found a better reasoning for source of the main conflict. I also succeeded in using Casanova over Aperture in terms of writing out my experiences and feelings of the day. Most of them were scenes of Carter procrastinating on various homework assignments.

(Not hard to guess what I did a lot of this month.) 

I think I burned myself out this month, though, and I still need to do some fine-tuning before I can fill in all the scenes I keep skipping in favor of Toni yelling at Carter to do his work. (Toni was the voice of my conscious this month ngl.) 

May is looking to be pretty busy and chaotic so far, so I'm going to let back on my goals for this month and just keep it at 500 words a day in general. I'm going to give Casanova a break and hopefully give Aperture the attention it didn't get in April. I'd also like to poke at a couple ideas I haven't done much with.

All in all I'm really happy with how I did this month! ♥