Mundie Moms

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Clockwork Prince is on the NYT Best Seller List!!


HUGE CONGRATULATIONS to Cassie! Clockwork Prince is on the NYT Best Seller List (right were it belongs)!

Book Review: Bloodrose (Nightshade #3) by Andrea Cremer

**spoiler free** review

Published by: Philomel/Penguin Teen
To Be Released on: January 3rd, 2012
Source: ARC from publisher
5 stars: I Loved It
Pre-Order from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound
Read my reviews for: Nightshade & Wolfsbane

The Ultimate Sacrifice.

Calla has always welcomed war. But now that the final battle is upon her, there’s more at stake than fighting. There’s saving Ren, even if it incurs Shay’s wrath. There’s keeping Ansel safe, even if he’s been branded a traitor. There’s proving herself as the pack’s alpha, facing unnamable horrors, and ridding the world of the Keepers’ magic once and for all. And then there’s deciding what to do when the war ends. If Calla makes it out alive, that is.

In the final installment of the Nightshade trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Andrea Cremer creates a novel with twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat until its final pages. A dynamic end to this breathtaking trilogy- quoted from Goodreads

WOW! This is one of the harder reviews I've had to write. For one, I am not going to give anything away, which really limits what I'm going to say and two, I don't even know where to begin. This book is an entire package of awesomeness. Andrea Cremer gave this book everything and in turn I walked with a feeling I've not felt in a long time. Aside from Cassie's books, I've only felt this way over one other series and that was the Twilight series.

I'll be honest I had major anxiety before sitting down to read BLOODROSE and it wasn't only due to the fact I knew it was the last in the series (sobs), but I knew Andrea was going to make me cry, hope, yearn for characters who weren't going to make it to the end of this book, make me sigh with her romance scenes, make me laugh with the comedic lines from a few of her characters and she made me a little scared of what Calla's choice would be. In the end I was shocked, but I felt this book exceeded every expectation I had for it, which is one of the huge reasons I absolutely love Andrea's books. Andrea's proven she isn't afraid to make her characters suffer, and she definitely ups that in BLOODROSE. She's not afraid to give them obstacles and have them take journeys that will push them past the brink of what they can take.

This book is full of heart pounding action, sob worthy heart break, love, loss, pain, grief, new friendships/relationships formed, romance, humor, anxiety, and moments of total elation. This book made me feel every emotion I possibly could and then some. I felt like I was completely invested and emotionally connected to each character. This story isn't one that I could easily predict, although there were some things that happened that I hoped would be in this book and plenty of things that completely blind sided me and made me want to yell at the book, or maybe throw it and then pick up again and hug it.

Andrea's writing is brilliant. It's emotionally gripping, her series is addicting, thrilling and it's one that fans of YA, paranormal books and of course wolves will enjoy. My favorite aspect of this book and the entire series is how Andrea's wolves mirror those of actual wolves, and not Hollywood's rendition of werewolves. If you loved NIGHTSHADE & WOLFSBANE, just wait till you read BLOODROSE. This series and the characters have each found a place in my all time favorite's spot. I'll definitely be reading these books again. I HIGHLY recommend picking this book up when it's out next month.

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When it gets closer to the release day I'll post more about BLOODROSE. In the mean time, go pre-order your SPECIAL EDITION of BLOODROSE from Barnes & Noble.


Be sure to down load the Nightshade series, TREACHERY novella (e-book) from Amazon | Barnes & Noble. Don't miss Andrea on tour!

#BIR2011 Day 4: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi



Published by: Harper Teen
Released on: November 15th, 2011

Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior. -quoted fromGoodreads

If you're looking to get addicted to a debut book, this would be the one! I seriously could not stop reading this book. SHATTER ME is one of those books that hooked me from the get go and had me wishing I already had the next two book in this trilogy. Talk about incredible writing. I'm shocked this is Tahereh's debut book! I'm thrilled to be able to spotlight this intoxicating story with you guys today!


I LOVED reading Shatter Me. I enjoyed getting so wrapped up with the story, the setting and the world building. What was your favorite element to create?

I think my favorite parts of any book are the characters. I love the people I meet when I read; if I can't connect with characters in even a small way, the adventure is somehow less exciting for me. I love exploring human nature, seeing what it is that makes us who we are and how our choices shape who we become. I like to imagine that the characters in SHATTER ME aren't very black or white; there's so much inner-conflict and turmoil that each of them face, and for various reasons. I like testing them, pushing them too far sometimes. You'll learn a ton more about Juliette and Warner and Adam and Kenji — and even many of the minor characters — in the second book. Their motivations and fears and doubts will propel the story in, what I hope are, unexpected directions.

You have a cast of fascinating characters. Which of your characters did you most relate to?

I think there's a little of me in all of the characters, actually. Juliette's concern for the world and what's happening to it, Adam's protectiveness of his brother, Warner's preoccupation with very nice clothes and Kenji's wry sense of humor. Though, I should probably point out that Kenji's character is actually an amalgamation of my older brothers. Some of the things he says are lines I've stolen directly from conversations I've had with them.

I love a strong, relatable, butt kicking heroine, which I think Juliette is. What's something you've come to admire about your lead character?

More than anything else, I love her sense of compassion; her determination to still see good in people despite how they've treated her all her life. She has this hope that she's clung to for 17 years — hope that there's something better, that maybe she can be more than what she's been branded, that she doesn't have to be a monster. I admire her for that. I wish I could've been that strong at 17.

We here on Mundie Moms are fans of swoon worthy romances. What's one of your favorite literary couples?

Oh goodness, I love this question. I'm also a huge, huge fan of swoon-worthy romances, so it's hard for me to choose! There are so many good ones that I think I'll have to narrow it down to YA couples, otherwise I'll go on forever. But first, I definitely have to recognize the Jace & Clary combo (hello Mundie Moms! haha), because they are fabulous and because Cassie Clare definitely knows how to write the swoons. But if I had to choose just one couple from all the YA novels I've read recently, I'd absolutely have to say Clara & Tucker from UNEARTHLY (Cynthia Hand). Basically, Tucker Avery is perfect. I can't wait to get my hands on the sequel, HALLOWED.

If you could give one piece of advice to an aspiring author, what would you say?

Read a lot and write a lot and keep doing that forever.

Is there one book you've read lately that you wish you had read as a teen?

Yes! In fact, there are many, many books I wish I'd read as a teenager, especially now that my world has been blown wide open by all the amazing YA books in the market; I realize now just how much I was missing as a teenager. One book I know my teen-self would've really appreciated is THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE by Jandy Nelson. It's a beautiful, beautiful story that I'm so in love with it's actually a little embarrassing.

If you could spend the day with one of your favorite authors (past or present) who would that be? Why?

I think I'd be happy to just sit within 5 feet of J.K. Rowling. The Harry Potter books brought me back to fiction even when middle school and high school and college told me I had no time for it. It didn't matter if I was too young to drive myself to a bookstore or if I was too broke to afford paying $20 for the hardcover. I found a way. I made time for Harry Potter. He's been my friend since I was 11 years old and his adventures will stay with me forever. I'd love to be able to thank J.K. Rowling for that.

Are you able to tells us a little bit about what we can expect in Shatter Me's sequel?

Yes — I can tell you that you'll learn a lot more about the characters and the world in the second book. There are a lot of intentionally unanswered questions at the end of SHATTER ME that are answered in the sequel. Expect a lot of drama. A lot of kissing. A lot of fighting. That sort of thing.

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Thank you Tahereh for stopping by to visit with us today!

Order From: Amazon | Barnes & Noble |IndieBound

Follow Tahereh on her Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr


Be sure to check out another one of my 2011 favorites Andrea Cremer's WOLFBANE, being featured on the Best I've Read Blog Today!

Waiting On Wednesday: Black Heart by Holly Black


Published by: Margaret K. McElderry/ Simon & Schuster
To Be Released on: April 3rd, 2012

Cassel Sharpe knows he’s been used as an assassin, but he’s trying to put all that behind him. He’s trying to be good, even though he grew up in a family of con artists and cheating comes as easily as breathing to him. He’s trying to do the right thing, even though the girl he loves is inextricably connected with crime. And he’s trying to convince himself that working for the Feds is smart, even though he’s been raised to believe the government is the enemy.

But with a mother on the lam, the girl he loves about to take her place in the Mob, and new secrets coming to light, the line between what’s right and what’s wrong becomes increasingly blurred. When the Feds ask Cassel to do the one thing he said he would never do again, he needs to sort out what’s a con and what’s truth. In a dangerous game and with his life on the line, Cassel may have to make his biggest gamble yet—this time on love -quoted from Goodreads

Oh Cassel! We adore Cassel almost as much as we do Jace. How can we not? This fabulously written broken boy can't seem to catch a break and I'm really holding out hope he might get his break in Black Heart. Seriously, I can not wait to get my hands on this book!! I need to know what happens to Cassel.

Just look at this AWESOME cover! I love it! If I was going to buy a book based on the cover, I would totally pick this one up.

What book are you waiting to get your hands on?

The ID Movie News & Other Things


FabLife posted another great interview with Cassie yesterday talking about the ID setting and movie news.

Here's what Cassie said about the Victorian era:

“The Victorians were much less hung up and repressed than we think of them as,” Clare told TheFABlife of what she discovered while researching the book. “I had always thought of them with these apocryphal stories that they couldn’t say ‘arm’ or ‘leg’ in public and that they covered their piano legs because they were supposed to be naughty. This was all total crap apparently. None of that stuff ever happened. The books of the time period that were really popular are shocking. They were full of sex and violence and betrayal and adultery and sin.”

Fans will be excited to here the Infernal Devices movie is currently with a screenwriter:

Clare says Screen Gems (the same studio that optioned TMI) is beginning to move forward on bringing the prequel series to the big screen too. “We’ve only gotten as far as the screenwriter,” she said. “They’re very enthusiastic about it. They were like, ‘What would you feel if we … released them the same way you released the books, alternating?’ I was like, ‘If you think that will work … you know about movies and I don’t!’ That would be really interesting. I don’t know if they would do one in the spring and one in the fall or what.”

You can read the entire interview here. I'm thrilled they're making the Inferal Devices books into a movie. I can not wait to see some of those swoonworthy Clockwork Prince scenes on the big screen.

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