In My Mailbox + Poll Results

Here's my In My Mailbox vlog this week, and it's probably the shortest it's ever been, lol. I go through like 12 books in less than 5 minutes. There's also some exciting news in there too!:



Books Mentioned:
Behind the Bit by Jessica Burkhart
The Oracles of Delphi Keep by Victoria Laurie
The Debs: Love, Lies and Texas Dips by Susan McBride
It's Not You, It's Me by Kerry Cohen Hoffmann
Red Carpet Riot: A Likely Story Novel by David Van Etten
Tempo Change by Barbara Hall
Guinevere's Gamble by Nancy Mackenzie
Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog
The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams
For Better or Worse by Jill Amy Rosenblatt


And here's the poll results!:
1) Love You, Hate You, Miss You by Elizabeth Scott- 3
2) Being Nikki by Meg Cabot- 1
3) Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon- 5
4) The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong- 6
5) You Are Here by Jennifer E. Smith- 2
6) Waiting for You by Susane Colasanti- 1
7) Hottie by Jonathan Bernstein- 2
8) Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas- 2
9) Chasing Blue by Jessica Burkhart- 1
10) Wings by Aprilynne Pike- 4

So it looks like I'll be reading The Awakening and Silver Phoenix next, and then just go down in descending order from there. Thanks for the help, everyone!!


New info on Book Signings- My signing that I'll go to August is now covered- Maggie Stiefvater is holding her book launch for Shiver on Friday, August 7 in Williamsburg, VA. I'm gonna do my best to go to it. Hey, maybe I can make it a habit to go to all of Maggie's launch parties. I was there for Lament's and now will be there for Shiver's. Since she lives in VA, it shouldn't be a problem at all. I'll be your launch party buddy, Maggie! LOL. :)

GLBT Month News + What Should I Read Next?

First off, some GLBT Month news. Go over to the myspace blog to find a guest blog from author Josh Aterovis as well as my review of his first book Bleeding Hearts and a contest in which you can win a signed copy!!

Tomorrow night, I hope to post reviews of Vast Fields of Ordinary by Nick Burd as well as Without Sin by J. Tomas!

And now, another installment of What Should I Read Next? I do have my GLBT month books and one or two library books, but let me know what I should read next for review on here. The choices are:

1) Love You, Hate You, Miss You by Elizabeth Scott
2) Being Nikki by Meg Cabot
3) Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon
4) The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong
5) You Are Here by Jennifer E. Smith
6) Waiting for You by Susane Colasanti
7) Hottie by Jonathan Bernstein
8) Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas
9) Chasing Blue by Jessica Burkhart
10) Wings by Aprilynne Pike

Now, since I have 10 choices, you can suggest two recommendations. Results will be tallied this Friday, May 22 at some point in the evening, lol.

Oh, and also, I'm going to a book signing on Thursday down in Durham, North Carolina. It's for the book Breathing by Cheryl Renee Herbsman! I'm so excited to be able to go, and will take lots of photos. And I may be meeting up with a fellow blogger, which will be very exciting!

By the way, I noticed that I seem to be going to at least one book signing a month. Here's what I have so far:

February- Ann Brashares (Annapolis, MD)
March- Maggie Stiefvater (Alexandria, VA) and Susan Rebecca White (Charlottesville, VA)
April- Kevin Roose (Lynchburg, VA)
May- Cheryl Renee Herbsman (Durham, NC)
June- Sarah Dessen (Durham, NC)
July- Melissa Marr and Kelley Armstrong (Richmond, VA)

Any authors gonna be in the MD/VA/NC area in August and beyond? If not, work on it. I need more signings to go to! :)

ETA- Another signing added for late June (the 27th, to be exact) where Claudia Gray and Elizabeth Scott will be signing at a B&N in Tysons Corner, VA! :) I'm so excited for it!

Seven Book Babes Post featuring JOB NEWS!

So here's some exciting job news in this vlog!:




Yay, isn't that awesome!?!? I'm so excited. It means that I'll start getting money and can go places (like book signings- already planning on one for Cheryl Renee Herbsman in NC and one for Melissa Marr in MD/VA!) and can send out packages of books for fellow bloggers to borrow and YAY!!! :)

Also, I apologize for not really keeping up with posting my BEDA blogs here. I suck at cross-posting. Would links help? If so, here's a few:

1) My Stances on Issues of Importance
2) In the Nick of Time
3) My Friday Five post that was nonexistent due to problems with LJ!
4) My quick Saturday post from my roomie's bf's computer while I was in Richmond (more on that day to come in a blog post soon!)
5) My Friday Five typed up again and posted on Monday!

By clicking on the links, it'll take you straight to the entry itself so hopefully that will be ok with people for now. Feel free to comment too, either here or there!

Quick Update

Hey everyone!

Go here for my slightly expanded review of The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan that I did for GuysLitWire.

And for all my BEDA (Blog Every Day April) posts in one place, go check out the Ning here!!

Or you can always comment here, or on myspace, or on my Livejournal (first entry there will be posted tomorrow and I'll provide a link too!).

If you're on the Ning as well, please add me as a friend!! I love getting friends. Plus, I'll read your blog! Which I may do anyway, if you're already my friend through here, lol.

Eyes Like Stars Scavenger Hunt!

So, in a convergence of awesomeness, at least 10 different book bloggers who have received extra copies of Eyes Like Stars will be participating in a "Collect the Shakespeare Quotes" scavenger hunt giveaway. This will occur tomorrow, Wednesday, February 18.

Rules for that:

The Rules:
1) Contest limited to those in the USA. Apologies to our friends abroad, but these ARCs are being mailed out by the generous souls on the blogroll, and there will be other contests which will be eligible to readers overseas.
2) All entrants must be the age of 13 or older. Entrants 12 and under (if any) can be entered by their parents.
3) No family members of anyone connected with the Scavenger Hunt, please.

How To Play:
1) Players should start at Lisa's Blog (lisamantchev.livejournal.com) to get the Official Blogroll and List of Clues
2) Players then need to visit the blogs, collect the quotes, AND leave a comment (like a trail of bread crumbs... we want to know you actually did the leg work!)
3) E-mail Lisa with your list of quotes: lisa@lisamantchev.com
4) Prizes will awarded thusly: to those who collect the most quotes. Should more people remit the complete quote list than we have ARCs to give away, Lisa shall award the prizes by lottery/random drawing. She shall also retain the right to add extra ARCs to the prize pool at her discretion.


So I hope you all participate and I wish you the best of luck with it! :) And even though I'm posting this tonight, check out the entry below this for vlogs of me reading excerpts from The September Sisters by Jillian Cantor and Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell! And leave comments- otherwise, I get self-conscious and think I suck at reading excerpts (ok, I may think this anyway, comments or not, but it's good to at least try). :)

OMFG GUESS WHAT?!?!?!

So I was in the bookstore today and saw a display of Wake and Fade by Lisa McMann, and I moseyed on over to take a look at the Fade hardcover since I just have the advanced copy. I flipped through it and looked at the acknowledgements, and GUESS WHAT?!

I'M IN THERE!!!!

My whole name too, so if anyone has bought a Fade hardcover, I'm about 3/4 down the page in the section starting with "My invisible friends..." I'm the last name mentioned in the list of names.

I'm going back tomorrow with friends to take pictures of it (along with other books too).

YAY!!! :D

Good + Bad News and Blog News

Good News: I had a fantastic date the other day. I went to the Ann Brashares signing and met up with someone. He was a bit out of place (well, so was I, I guess) with all the pre-teen girls around, but he took it all in stride. His name's Davin and he is so adorable and quite the hottie. He took a picture of me with Ann Brashares, which I'll be posting tomorrow or Saturday. Anyway, we went to Red Robin afterward for dinner, which was SO GOOD. I'd never been there before and it was great. I then followed him back to his place, did some stuff online, watched Mythbusters and spent the night. He had to leave for work early in the morning, but he let me sleep in as long as I wanted. Had IHOP for breakfast with a friend and then drove all the way back to my apartment. Hopefully, this will turn into something more. I really like him a lot.

Bad News: I got a call today from my temp agency. There's no more data entry jobs, but I am now on the list for a 3rd shift position doing document prep for the same company. However, it doesn't start until February 23. So now, I'm looking for a more steady job. But at least I've got a job lined up now. This sucks.

Although, on the plus side, I can get lots of reading done. I just won't have any income coming in.

Ugh.

Blog News: Over at the Myspace blog, I've got A.S. King there as part of a Feature Week. Check out the interview with her and my review of Dust of 100 Dogs. The guest blog will be up Saturday.

I also have a vlog up on Jocelyn's Teen Book Review site. Go check it out here! It's all about how I got into blogging.

And check out my review of The Navigator and City of Time by Eoin McNamee over on GuysLitWire!

As for this blog, another picture post will be up either tomorrow or Saturday. In My Mailbox vlog will be up on Sunday. Still no idea when the final part of the VCA Vlog Trilogy will be up- I still need to figure out how to split the video into two parts. Does anyone know how to do that?

In My Mailbox- Week of Jan. 19 Part 2

So it's late and Youtube FINALLY decided to upload my video successfully. Here it is:



More to come- I've got a meme to do which Just Blinded Book Reviews tagged me for, and then I took some pictures of books in my bookstore (including some featuring early copies of stuff! YAY!) back in the area where my parents live as well as a pic of all the audio books I checked out (it's A LOT). And of course the conclusion to the VC Andrews vlog trilogy, in which I show off my collection of VC Andrews books. YAY! :)

Oh and also, go check out the newest He Said, She Said on GuysLitWire, which Little Willow posted yesterday, all about Thirteen Reasons Why! Please leave a comment cuz we love getting them! Plus, my comment's lonely right now. :(

PS As I'm talking about the male cat (black one), you can hear him meowing from outside my door, lol. It's like he knew I was talking about him!!! :O

Random News

So I went to the bookstore today (Borders) and they actually had copies of Invisible Touch by Kelly Parra (three of them, to be exact)! Yes, the book that has a small excerpt from my review of Graffiti Girl in it! My dad bought it for me, along with Breathe My Name by R.A. Nelson and Velvet Rope Diaries by some lady (I don't remember the name). Those books were part of their Bargain priced Buy 1, Get 1 Free event. I'll be showing them off when I do Part 2 of my In My Mailbox vlog.

Also, took a couple pictures of books on the shelves, though I think the only people who may be excited about those would be the authors themselves. I found What Would Emma Do and Bones of Faerie. I also found Absolutely Maybe, Adios to All the Drama, and one or two others but my dad was ready to go, so I wasn't able to get photos of those. But I'll get them before I head back to Lynchburg, lol.

In reading news, I finished up Dust of 100 Dogs by AS King and started up 11 Birthdays by Wendy Mass last night, and finished that just a little bit ago. Up next is Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers and also to finish In Too Deep by Jennifer Banash.

In audiobook news, I checked out 10 audiobooks from my library here near my parents' place with two more available on hold and I may grab one or two more from the shelves. I will take a picture once I'm back at the apartment and can't check out anymore books from that library, lol, so you can see what I got.

OK, that's about it. :) What have you all been reading lately?

Good/Bad News and VC Andrews Vlog Trilogy Part 2

So, some good/bad news- I found out yesterday that a shipment didn't come in on time at my workplace, and so therefore they have nothing for me and my co-data entriers to do. And so we've been given a temporary break until Feb. 9 while they work everything out, and then we'll be back at full force. Now, it's bad news because I won't be getting paid for another month (after next Thursday's paycheck for the 3 days I work this week, I won't have any more until Feb. 19) and so need to keep an eye on my budget, though luckily I have enough to last me. The good news though is that I've got a break and that I will now have lots of time to read books, so I'll be stocking up on reviews so that I can keep posting on the myspace blog when work starts up again. And I may also be going to the Ann Brashares signing in Bethesda, MD or Annapolis, MD in early Feb since I've got the time off now! That should be fun if it happens. I'm heading home this weekend for my uncle's birthday and am staying there for a few days to get my car serviced at the dealership and have a dental appt (ugh).

Anyway, earlier today, I posted reviews for What Would Emma Do? and Take The Reins on the myspace blog as well as posted a contest! Click here to read the entry!

And now, the second part of the VC Andrews vlog trilogy!:

Vlog Update

So I completely forgot to post the first part to the VCA Vlog Trilogy this week, so you guys will be getting lots of vlogs this weekend, lol.

Saturday- VCA Vlog Trilogy Part 1
Sunday- In My Mailbox Part 1
Monday- In My Mailbox Part 2

I had to divide it up because I got so many books this week. Plus, I tend to ramble when I talk so yeah.

Anyway, gotta get to work! Just wanted to keep you guys posted!!

Waiting on Wednesday (4) + Computer Update

So I'm stealing this from a couple of people, but it is still something I TOTALLY want.


The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong
Book II in the Darkest Powers trilogy takes us deeper into a world where the supernatural intrudes on the everyday with riveting effect.

If you had met me a few weeks ago, you probably would have described me as an average teenage girl – someone normal. Now my life has changed forever and I’m as far away from normal as it gets. A living science experiment – not only can I see ghosts, but I was genetically altered by a group of people who call themselves The Edison Group. What does that mean? For starters, I’m a teenage necromancer whose powers are out of control: I raise the dead without even trying. Trust me, that is not a power you want to have. Ever.

I’m running for my life with three of my supernatural friends – a charming sorcerer, a cynical werewolf, and a disgruntled witch – and we have to find someone who can help us gain our freedom back before The Edison Group finds us first. Or die trying.

My Thoughts: I absolutely loved the first book of this series and have been DYING to read the sequel since I finished the first book last summer when I reviewed it for HarperTeen FirstLook. I'm gonna try and get an ARC, though I'm sure it's futile to try.


And now, computer update! My sister put in the order on Monday night and it was shipped out last night (Tuesday) and should be at my apartment anytime between this Friday and next Tuesday. So hopefully, if I get it this weekend, there'll be some vlogs posted!! :) I'm so excited!!

News!

There's gonna be no official In My Mailbox post this week, only because I took the time to do a vlog about it! However, since I have no computer to upload it to, it shall have to wait, lol. But that doesn't mean you won't get to know what I got cuz I'm gonna provide a list:

Canterwood Crest: Take the Reins by Jessica Burkhart (from Jessica herself)
There's No Such Thing as the Real World by Various (an anthology I randomly got from HarperTeen)
and The Secret Rites of Social Butterflies by Lizabeth Zindel (ARC that Steph so kindly sent me)

So anyway, my computer can't be fixed unless I give it to Dell, and I have no idea how much it would cost since it's a major part that needs to be taken care of. So I'm basically getting a new laptop- my sister found me one on delloutlet.com and is buying it for me (I'll be reimbursing her- she's not that kind, lol) later today, so hopefully in a couple of weeks, I'll be back online and can post things like vlogs and also post regular entries on here like I used to.

Once that's all taken care of, I can start posting vlogs. I will probably do In My Mailbox and Booking Through Thursday posts as vlogs (and Ask Book Chic over at the myspace blog), but I'd also like to do other vlogs too about a variety of things, so here's where you all come in!

What would you like to see me talk about and/or do in a future vlog?

Oh, and I've already decided to talk about VC Andrews in a vlog, so no need to mention that in case any of you thought of it, lol.

Hm, I think that's all the news I've got. Check out my latest myspace blog entry for a fun contest!!

I Haz Job YAY!

Woo! Yes, you read that entry title correctly- I FINALLY have a job! It's not exactly exciting but it pays and that's really all that matters.

I had an interview with a temp agency for a position they were trying to fill, and got the job!! :) I also found out that I can type 69 words per minute! How exciting is that?! Anyway, the position is this data entry job (or, as the info sheet they gave me says, Production Technician) for a company called DataBank IMX that is just opening a branch here (they originated in DC and are branching out to other major cities now because of how well the DC one is doing). Right now, it's just a long-term temp job, but it could turn into an actual job if things go well with opening the branch here in Lynchburg, VA, which, according to the person who interviewed me, it seems to be doing already.

So yes, I'm quite excited and I start later today! I was so surprised when the woman who interviewed me was like "We can have you start tomorrow."

Oh, and I get a badge too!!! HOW EXCITING IS THAT?!?!? (There are lots of exciting things about this whole situation, as you can see.) The only sorta kinda problem is that it's 2nd shift, so I work 3:30pm- 12am (with two 15 min breaks and one 30 unpaid dinner break), which means long hours and late nights. And also, my roomie is starting her training soon for her new job, which goes from 8am-5pm so we're never gonna see each other anymore except on weekends.

Blah.

But oh well- I've got a real, live job!!! WOOHOO!