In My Mailbox 33

Hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren

Monster High T-Shirt
Unrequired Reading Water Bottle

The Liar Society by Lisa and Laura Roeckler
THE LIAR SOCIETY TWIZZLERS
The Liar Society J-Crew Bracelet

Happy Reading!
What did YOU get?
-Harmony

Interview with Hannah Moskowitz; Break & Invincible Summer

Today on the blog, I have Hannah Moskowitz who's upcoming novel Invincible Summer (Noah’s happier than I’ve seen him in months. So I’d be an awful brother to get in the way of that. It’s not like I have some relationship with Melinda. It was just a kiss. Am I going to ruin Noah’s happiness because of a kiss? ) is coming out April 19th from Simon Pulse. Here we go!

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Across four sun-kissed, drama-drenched summers at his family’s beach house, Chase is falling in love, falling in lust, and trying to keep his life from falling apart. But some girls are addictive.... )

Tell us something unusual about yourself.

I eat pizza crust-end first.

If you could live with three YA characters, who would they be? (Your own don’t count!) Oh, good, because I would never ever live with mine. Frankie from THE DISREPUTABLE HISTORY OF FRANKIE LANDAU-BANKS, and Seb and Lydia from THE YEAR OF SECRET ASSIGNMENTS.

Which character in Invincible Summer do you think is more like you? Least? Noah, the older brother, is the most like me. I got to feed a lot of my frustrations about college into him, and that was immensely comforting.

Chase, the main character, is definitely the least like me.

If you could say something to your younger writing self, what would it be?

Read more. Calm down and shut up and read more.

What’s coming up next for you?

More books! Always more books! I have my first middle grade novel, Zombie Tag, coming this December. It’s about a boy who wakes up the zombies because he wants to see his dead brother again. After that I have my next YA, GONE, GONE, GONE, about a year from now. That’s a story about two boys during the Washington D.C. sniper shootings. It’s about love and guns and other dirty things.

I hope you guys enjoyed the interview and go check out Hannah's upcoming release, Invincible Summer!

Happy Reading!

Harmony

Enclave by Ann Aguirre

Who: Ann Aguirre
What: Enclave (Razorland #1)
When: April 12th, 2011
Where: Macmillan
Why: Hype
How: For Review

New York City has been decimated by war and plague, and most of civilization has migrated to underground enclaves, where life expectancy is no more than the early 20's. When Deuce turns 15, she takes on her role as a Huntress, and is paired with Fade, a teenage Hunter who lived Topside as a young boy. When she and Fade discover that the neighboring enclave has been decimated by the tunnel monsters—or Freaks—who seem to be growing more organized, the elders refuse to listen to warnings. And when Deuce and Fade are exiled from the enclave, the girl born in darkness must survive in daylight, in the ruins of a city whose population has dwindled to a few dangerous gangs. As the two are guided by Fade’s long-ago memories, they face dangers, and feelings, unlike any they’ve ever known.

Enclave was definitely not what I expected. It was dark, gritty, and absolutely fantastic.

Enclave is the story of a girl named Deuce, who lives in this underground Enclave where, when she turns sixteen, will become a Hunter and go into the tunnels to find food and kill freaks. Freaks are like zombies, but so much freakier. Then she's paired up with a boy from outside named Fade, and together, they're exiled a couple of pages in. This is the kind of story that pulls you in from the start with it's amazing world-building. The fact of total underground towns and tunnel systems connecting each one was original and imaginative, especially how they would make journeys through them to hunt and gather. I like what there was different pieces of the puzzle that is their society and you don't get them all at once, but you have to piece them together and guess what exactly is going on here.

Deuce was a kickass heroine. She knew what she wanted, and she knew what she had to do. But, she was loyal, and while not always, she stood up for what was right. At the same time though, she wasn't one of those crazy, "revolution" style heroines, which I thought was refreshing. Growing up in that society, you start to feel like it's right. That that's how things are supposed to go. It takes something from the outside to really make you see that not everything is like that. That thing was Fade.

Fade and Deuce had a dynamic that I think worked perfectly for the book, though after they meet up and start traveling with some other characters, I think their connection was totally lost. I could see it, but they just stopped talking a lot to each other and it seriously frusterated me to see how well they worked together, and watch it fizzle. On the other hand, I liked that the romance came second to the plot (I know, shocker coming from me, right?), because it was that that was the main focus. Besides, I'm pretty sure we'll be getting into their relationship a lot more in book 2.

Happy Reading!
-Harmony

In My Mailbox 32

For Review:
Die For Me by Amy Plum
Hereafter by Tara Hudson

Traded:
Bumped by Megan McCafferty

Happy Reading!
-Harmony

A Touch Mortal by Leah Clifford

Who: Leah Clifford

What: A Touch Mortal

When: March 22nd, 2011

Where: HarperTeen Why: Hype

How: Traded

Eden didn't expect Az. Not his saunter down the beach toward her. Not his unbelievable pick-up line. Not the instant, undeniable connection. And not his wings. So long, happily-ever-after. Now trapped between life and death, cursed to spread chaos with her every touch, Eden could be the key in the eternal struggle between heaven and hell. All because she gave her heart to one of the Fallen, an angel cast out of heaven. She may lose everything she ever had. She may be betrayed by those she loves most. But Eden will not be a pawn in anyone else's game. Her heart is her own. And that's only the beginning of the end.

I definitely didn't expect A Touch Mortal to be as freaking badass, intense, and absolutely stunning as it was! If you were expecting your typical angel love story, you're gonna be mega wrong.

A Touch Mortal is the story about a girl named Eden, who falls in love with a fallen angel, and then has to pay the consequences. I was surprised and elated to find that her entanglement with Az might have caused the whole story to happen, but it was never the ultimate focus. A Touch Mortal was 100% Eden's story, and her dealing with the (unwanted, may I add) consequences of loving an angel. Eden in the beginning and Eden after the incident are two completely different people, and I'm glad for that. Eden was kickass, independent, and knew what she had to do, even if she didn't like it. She handled her situation with Az perfectly, and I admired her sense of right and wrong which made her choose what she did.

Character's are big in A Touch Mortal, and they each compliment the plot differently. Adam was not my favorite person in the world, but I liked that he was there for Eden when she needed him and that was the most important thing. Jarrod and Gabe were definitely my favorite of the entire cast, and very well-crafted characters on Leah's part. Libby? I knew it is all I have to say. Kristine was fantastic, and I loved her, though I'm not entirely sure why. Plus, she conveys emotions in poetry, how epic is that?

Finally, we have Az. I love to hate this boy. There were times where I wanted to hit him, hug him, or just read until he went away. What he did was downright wrong, even though in the end, it's where Eden would've ended up anyway. Well, what both he and Gabe did. That ending, I had not been expecting. I love that we find out just where everyone's loyalties lie, and that it's obvious this battle with Luke is far from over.

My rating? AMAZINGNESS

Happy Reading!

-Harmony