Sunday, March 24, 2013

The Verve & Stacking the Shelves (6)

The Verve is our Sunday edition of the weekly memes "The Sunday Post," hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer,
and "Stacking the Shelves," hosted by Tynga's Reviews. We feature the books we bought, borrowed, were gifted and given for review,
as well as share blog news from the past couple weeks and what you might see in the next two.



Hello, LUVs. How is everyone? Are you ready for April? Spring break? Warmer weather? I'm definitely ready for the latter. Wisconsin teased us cheeseheads with it before bringing back the biting cold wind and some snow. As for the blog, nothing new happening. I did, however, suffer through computer death last weekend. Yup, it scared me half to death. I was like Jackie O., trying to put my love back together, with no such luck. Thankfully, I had my posts scheduled beforehand, but I did have a hard decision to make ... and eventually got this:
A MacBook Pro! I'm thrilled ... now. At the time of purchase, not so much. I was afraid to touch it, not only because of the "investment" made but also to avoid disappointment and frustration. I've heard Mac's praises, but I'm not that big a fan of change. The system is different; it does take some getting used to, but I've acclimated and love it. I'm never going back to PC again. How about you? Have you thought about switching to Mac but are afraid to? Mac users, were you hesitant to switch? Any tips or app suggestions for a newb?

Now, here's what you might have missed the past two weeks and what to expect in the next two, as well as what we're stacking on our shelves. Be sure to enter our current giveaways, also found in the sidebar.

Recently reviewed:
Bittersweet Blood (The Order #1) by Nina CroftStrands of Bronze and Gold (Strands of Bronze and Gold @1) by Jane NickersonThere Comes a Prophet by David Litwack
StrengthDesires Unleashed (Knights of Darkness Chronicles #1) by D.N. SimmonsThe Guilty Innocent (Knights of Darkness Chronicles #2) by D.N. SimmonsJThe Boys of Summer (Summer #1) by C.J. Duggan

Excerpts:
Astarte's Wrath  by Trisha Wolfe (NA Fantasy)
Excuse My Fairy  by Kindley Baker (Adult Fantasy/Paranormal Romance)
Shadow of Wrath  by L.W. patricks (YA Dystopia)
After the Ending  by Lindsey Fairleigh & Lindsey Pogue (Dystopian Romance)
Unbroken  by Melody Grace (NA Contemporary Romance)
First Visions  by Heather Topham Wood (NA Paranormal Romance)
Purgatory Reign  by L.M. Preston (YA Urban Fantasy)
The Avery Shaw Experiment  by Kelly Oram (YA Contemporary Romance)
Deadly Deception  by Andrea Johnson Beck (Adult Romantic Suspense)
Silver Hollow  by Jennifer Silverwood (NA Fantasy/Paranormal Romance)

Author Interview:
Viola Ryan, author of The Mark of Abel (Adult Urban Fantasy)

Cover Reveals:
Awakened  by Kriston Johnson
Lash  by L.G. Castillo
The Avery Shaw Experiment  by Kelly Oram



Books Bought:

Clockwork Princess  by Cassandra Clare


eBooks Bought



Freebies*

* Price subject to change without notice. Always check and confirm the price before purchasing *


Won

Muchos gracias to Proserpine from Proserpine Craving Book Blog and to Cecy Robson for a signed copy of her book Sealed with a Curse
and to Penguin Group Inc. and Traci from Mad Hatter Reads for Mating Instinct

Thanks to Jamie at Fic Fare for a pre-order of Plus One
and to Diana Paz for her book Timespell


Received for Review


Much love and gratitude to Trish for her new pretty, Astarte's Wrath
(and for gifting me the original companion novel, Destiny's Fire)

An enormous "Thank you!" to Harlequin Teen, Langdon Street Press, Harper Teen, and Firetrail Publishing for these lovelies!


Received to Review for Blog Tours

Thanks to the authors, I Am A Reader Promotions, Xpresso Tours, and Reading Addiction Tours for these.
Also a huge thank you to Susannah Sandlin and Bewitching Book Tours for these:

Up for Review* & the Reading Queue:
Clockwork Princess  by Cassandra Clare*
Casino Royale  by Ian Fleming*
The Court of Air  by Stephan Hunt*
The Bane  by Keary Taylor*
The Culling  by Steven dos Santos
Taken  by Erin Bowman
Arclight  by Josin L. McQuein



Upcoming Tour Reviews:



Upcoming Excerpts and Other Giveaways:

Scavenger Hunt:


What did you haul in this week?
Link us to your recent Stacking the Shelves or Sunday Post, or share in a comment what you've added to your pile (book or fic).
Is there anything you'd like to see reviewed soon from our pile? Let us know. It's always wonderful hearing from you.
Until next time ...

5 comments:

  1. HOLY COW! What a haul!! I still need to read Kady Cross's book that I received awhile back, but I find myself in a TBR challenge for this last week and I might have to wait awhile! Bad enough I read one new book and will seriously have to read another for a tour, so I need to get to those first.

    Yay for signed copies! I enjoyed Cecy's book! Hoping to meet her pretty soon when I go to RT!

    Happy Reading!

    Here's my STS

    Have a GREAT day!

    Old Follower :)

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  2. What a great haul. Congrats on the new Mac. I bought an iPad not that long ago, and I love it. My next investment is a Mac computer. I have had my laptop for 3 years, it's time. :D Enjoy your haul...

    Jenea @ Books Live Forever's Sunday Post

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  3. Congrats on the Pro and the signed copies.
    Brandi @ Blkosiner’s Book Blog

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  4. Can't wait for your thoughts on Undercurrent, I'm eyeing that one big time!

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  5. Glad to hear you are loving your MAC. I've heard people who convert are thrilled with it once they catch one, which is quick. I'm still a Windows person, and scared to convert. Maybe one day I will. :)

    Wow! The books! Amazing! Congrats on your wins as well.

    Have a great week.

    I have a Sunday Post up this week too, if you'd like to stop by...
    http://melissa-melsworld.blogspot.com/2013/03/sunday-post-4.html?showComment=1364173793146#c4970360393493176322

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