The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Life Beyond Books 

So we got back from our overnight escape and since then we haven't done much as the weather took a turn for the worse...but we are in a major draught and our Farmers and farm animals are really struggling so I didn't mind it so much.

We had my Hubby's 2 kids for a few days as it's school holidays, and due to the bad weather we really didn't take them anywhere. We did have an All-you-can-eat dinner at Pizza Hut, and the last day they were here we braved it out to Katoomba Scenic Railway which is a Sydney tourist spot that kids and Hubby has never gone to, despite being born and bred in Sydney!!! 

We rode these rides...

This is so steep and goes between 2 mountains, it's kind of like a roller coaster without the speed. I don't recall it being that steep and I nearly lost my grip on my 3 year old, suffice to say the little dare devil loved it.

On this Cable car they had the middle section where you can stand on see-through perspex, which was nice, had it not been foggy and rainy we would have seen so much, but alas we didn't see much, apart from the tree tops below us, but I figured it's a nice experience. We are hoping to go back again another time when it is sunny, so we can see the 3 sisters, which you can all see behind this cableway, those 3 rock formations.

Here was the other ride. The difference is that one just goes across (top) and the other goes up the mountain and back down the mountain. There's a national park connected where you can also go bushwalking. We are wanting to go to this castle ruin, but it's 4 hours trek and we just didn't come prepared...maybe one day soon.

Last weekend I also went to my girlfriend's birthday party. That was great fun catching up with the girls I haven't seen in over a year! We just stay connected on social media, we vow to meet together more often, as the birthday girl only lives about 15 mins drive from me.

So that was my week! My girlfriend sadly lost her furbaby of 8 years, and it's brought up alot of sadness loosing my 14 year old furbaby end of March...it still brings me to tears. 

Around The Blogosphere

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!  Will also be linking up to Mailbox Monday. All books are linked to Goodreads, if you want to add to your shelf.

I rarely buy books as I've got so many unread on my shelves, but on Thursday I was soooo excited to have found a pop-up store in a shopping centre located near me, and they are here till Christmas...which, whilst exciting is a BAD thing for my finance. 

So if you've been checking out my Weekly Wrap Up you might remember that I've been slowly purchasing all my paperback books of The Throne of Glass series, but I've been eyeing the hardcover out for AGES, but at nearly $30 EACH at my local bookstore I have decided that it was simply not worth it, so when I found it for $9 each I was beyond and excited and got a bit carried away and bought the entire series. I will be selling my paperback, unread copies soon, I'm just waiting on the release of Kingdom of Ash so I can complete the set. 

I also bought The Cruel Prince by Holly Black, which was also $9 and Stolen by Melissa de la Cruz, which was $7. I love how the latter series has sprayed edges!  

I know my American readers would be thinking, why the excitement as $9 maybe the norm there, but here in Australia the cheapest you can get a paperback for is $12 at places like Target when first released, but in bookstores you have to pay at least $20 for a paperback, and even more for hardback, so $9 is a steal! 

For example QBD bookstore currently has the hardback for sale at $20, and so I've still saved HALF PRICE on their sale price. Full RRP $30.

I also received the Illumicrate box that Mum bought me for my birthday and I am so excited to review it all for you! 

The box is the VE Schwab special edition, and it certainly DID NOT disappoint. It came with a copy of Vengeful; Illumicrate exclusive edition cover, numbered...stay tuned for my review.

Not books but bookish I also received my Ink & Wonder Designs, All Hallows Crate, and this was one of the items. Whilst I won't be playing with spirit boards, I loved the contents and the design are, as per usual perfection. I think I'll be reselling this one though, as I don't really have a use for it, apart from decoration. If you got one, let me know how you'll be using yours?

Thank you Pan MacMillan Australia for sending me the conclusion of The Tales of a New World, Wind Rider by PC Cast! Excited to delve into this series, and stay tuned as this series is part of an upcoming blog tour.

Recently Finished 

One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake 

Currently Reading

Girls of Paper & Fire by Natasha Ngan
Moon Chosen by PC Cast

Up Next

Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor

Passengers

by Alexandra Bracken

Passage, n. i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes.
ii. A journey by water; a voyage.
iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time.

In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of. Until now.

Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not.

Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not only from Nicholas but from her path home... forever.

Passengers by Alexandra Bracken is a young adult adventure, time travel and historical novel. It follows our main characters; Henrietta (Etta) Spencer and Nicholas (Nick) Carter as they go on a scavenger hunt forced upon them by an evil, world domineering tycoon, and Nicholas' grandfather, Cyrus Ironwood. Etta is thrust into a world of time-travel (that she had no previous knowledge of), deceit, lies and family drama that spans centuries and lifetimes. Can she find this antique relic and family heirloom in time to save her Mother from Ironwood's evil grasp? 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted at Breaking the Spine.

Nowhere but Here

by Katie McGarry

Seventeen-year-old Emily likes her life the way it is: doting parents, good friends, good school in a safe neighbourhood. Sure, she's curious about her biological father—the one who chose life in a motorcycle club, the Reign of Terror, over being a parent—but that doesn't mean she wants to be a part of his world. But when a reluctant visit turns to an extended summer vacation among relatives she never knew she had, one thing becomes clear: nothing is what it seems. Not the club, not her secret-keeping father and not Oz, a guy with suck-me-in blue eyes who can help her understand them both.

Oz wants one thing: to join the Reign of Terror. They're the good guys. They protect people. They're…family. And while Emily—the gorgeous and sheltered daughter of the club's most respected member—is in town, he's gonna prove it to her. So when her father asks him to keep her safe from a rival club with a score to settle, Oz knows it's his shot at his dream. What he doesn't count on is that Emily just might turn that dream upside down.

No one wants them to be together. But sometimes the right person is the one you least expect, and the road you fear the most is the one that leads you home.

~ Review ~  

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted at Breaking the Spine.

Impostors

by Scott Westerfeld

Frey and Rafi are inseparable . . . but very few people have ever seen them together. This is because Frey is Rafi’s double, raised in the shadows of their rich father’s fortress. While Rafi has been taught to charm, Frey has been taught to kill. Frey only exists to protect her sister. There is no other part of her life. Frey has never been out in the world on her own – until her father sends her in Rafi’s place to act as collateral for a dangerous deal. Everyone thinks she’s her sister – but Col, the son of a rival leader, is starting to get close enough to tell the difference. As the stakes grow higher and higher, Frey must decide whether she can trust him – or anyone in her life.

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted at Breaking the Spine.

Born Scared

by Kevin Brooks

Elliot is terrified of almost everything.

From the moment he was born, his life has been governed by acute fear. The only thing that keeps his terrors in check are the pills that he takes every day.

It's Christmas Eve, there's a snowstorm and Elliot's medication is almost gone. His mum nips out to collect his prescription. She'll only be 10 minutes - but when she doesn't come back, Elliot must face his fears and try to find her. She should only be 400 meters away. It might as well be 400 miles...

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Fawkes

by Nadine Brandes

Thomas Fawkes is turning to stone, and the only cure to the Stone Plague is to join his father’s plot to assassinate the king of England.

Silent wars leave the most carnage. The wars that are never declared, but are carried out in dark alleys with masks and hidden knives. Wars where color power alters the natural rhythm of 17th century London. And when the king calls for peace, no one listens until he finally calls for death.

But what if death finds him first?

Keepers think the Igniters caused the plague. Igniters think the Keepers did. But all Thomas knows is that the Stone Plague infecting his eye is spreading. And if he doesn’t do something soon, he’ll be a lifeless statue. So when his Keeper father, Guy Fawkes, invites him to join the Gunpowder Plot—claiming it will put an end to the plague—Thomas is in.

The plan: use 36 barrels of gunpowder to blow up the Igniter King.

The problem: Doing so will destroy the family of the girl Thomas loves. But backing out of the plot will send his father and the other plotters to the gallows. To save one, Thomas will lose the other.

No matter Thomas’s choice, one thing is clear: once the decision is made and the color masks have been put on, there’s no turning back.

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted at Breaking the Spine.

Tour Schedule

About The Book

Mirage

by Somaiya Daud

In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, eighteen-year-old Amani is a dreamer. She dreams of what life was like before the occupation; she dreams of writing poetry like the old-world poems she adores; she dreams of receiving a sign from Dihya that one day, she, too, will have adventure, and travel beyond her isolated moon.

But when adventure comes for Amani, it is not what she expects: she is kidnapped by the regime and taken in secret to the royal palace, where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place.

As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris. But the glitter of the royal court belies a world of violence and fear. If Amani ever wishes to see her family again, she must play the princess to perfec-tion...because one wrong move could lead to her death.

~ Paperback Princess Blurb ~ 

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted at Breaking the Spine.

Jinxed

by Amy McCulloch

A little bit Golden Compass, a little bit Hunger Games, and all adventure' - Amie Kaufman, NYT bestselling author of ILLUMINAE

The brand-new series from Amy Alward, author of the magical POTION DIARIES adventures!

Lacey Chu has big dreams of becoming a companioneer for MONCHA, the largest tech firm in North America and the company behind the "baku" - a customisable smart pet that functions as a phone but makes the perfect companion too. When Lacey finds out she hasn't been accepted into Profectus - the elite academy for cutting edge tech - it seems her dreams are over. Worst of all, rather than getting to choose one of the advanced bakus, she’s stuck with a rubbish insect one.

Then, one night, Lacey comes across the remains of an advanced baku. Once it might’ve been in the shape of a cat but it’s now mangled and broken, no sign of electronic life behind its eyes. Days of work later and the baku opens its eyes. Lacey calls him Jinx – and Jinx opens up a world for her that she never even knew existed, including entry to the hallowed halls of Profecus. Slowly but surely, Jinx becomes more than just a baku to Lacey – he becomes her perfect companion. But what is Jinx, really? His abilities far surpass anything written into his code or built into his motherboard. He seems to be more than just a robotic pet. He seems ... real.

~ Paperback Princess Blurb ~

Jinxed by Amy McCulloch is a wonderfully creative YA sci-fi focusing on technological advancement, that, truth be told, doesn't seem so far into the future. An innovative, fast-paced plot, with just enough mystery, will have you devouring this book, like your dog devours a bone. A great introduction to Amy's work, and I'm eagerly awaiting the sequel.

Jinxed by Amy McCulloch is a unique YA Sci-Fi. The concept and foundation of it's plot is as innovative as the characters within it's pages. It's an addictive read, and from the moment you open the book, you are hooked, glued to it till the very end. It's a fantastic and enjoyable introduction to Amy's work, I can't wait to read more of McCulloch's work AND of course the sequel to Jinxed.

Set in the near future where bakus are needed to live life conveniently, like our smart phones of today. Bakus is the lovechild of tamagotchis and smart phones. It's used as a higher-tech smart phone AND made in the image of insects/animals/birds that also serves as a companion for it's owner.

Accompanying you to your happiest life ever

When Lacey Chu finds and restores a high level baku she finds herself wrongly accepted to the prestigious school Profectus Academy, the next step to securing her dream job as companioneer at Moncha, the creators of bakus. However, she soon finds out that her new baku, Jinx is unlike other bakus, he thinks for himself. Will she get to keep her Profectus Academy placement if they knew that her baku is actually not the one issued to her AND that he has a mind of his own? 

A fairytale, but not of princes and frogs, ballgowns and pumpkins, but of makers and metal, of wire and ingenuity and inspiration and creativity and invention. 

The world is so realistic, and to be honest, it doesn't seem that much further into the future from where we are in technology. The world creation was fantastic, I loved the different elements and explanation of how they got to where they are; it speaks of our world today, which is definitely interesting.

The characters were well written. Lacey along with Zora, her long-time best friend were definitely my favourite characters. I also loved how Amy allowed females to be the tech geeks. In this novel, the women was at the forefront of technological advancement! 

I want a career that sets my soul on fire, that fans the flames of passion that smoulder deep in my belly - that I guard with my hardness and intellect.

Lacey Chu is a strong protagonist who's swimming against the tide of not being born "privileged", yet she's smarter than most at Profectus, and despite all the things she had to endure to keep her place in the Academy, she didn't give up! Zora was the perfect backup, they are Batman and Robyn in the "tech" world; Lacey built and Zora coded. A match made in Moncha heaven. 

The crew that Lacey befriends at Profectus was also a great bunch of kids, and I love how they still did the right thing at the end, although they were somewhat unhappy with Lacey. I especially liked Ashley and Tobias, and can't wait to see where Tobias and Lacey's relationship goes.

It's a fast-paced novel without compromising the story. It read like a standalone novel, characters and world building had great foundations. I did not feel like it was an introduction to a new series...which is a good thing! It takes a good Author to satisfy readers, and still have them eagerly anticipating it's sequel. 

Amy's innovative plot, fast-paced and exciting writing, strong, likeable characters, a creative world with an equally creative history make this book a must read for lovers of futuristic and realistic technological sci-fi; with a hint of conspiracy theory and mystery added in for good measure.

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted at Breaking the Spine.

Tour Schedule

About The Book

Echoes

by Alice Reeds

"Fast-paced and thrilling. ECHOES is a heart-pounding and addictive love story."—Mia Siegert, author of Jerkbait.

They wake on a deserted island. Fiona and Miles, high school enemies now stranded together. No memory of how they got there. No plan to follow, no hope to hold on to. Each step forward reveals the mystery behind the forces that brought them here. And soon, the most chilling discovery: something else is on the island with them. Something that won't let them leave alive.

Echoes is a thrilling adventure about confronting the impossible, discovering love in the most unexpected places, and, above all, finding hope in the face of the unknown.

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted at Breaking the Spine.

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kim @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Tour Schedule

About The Book

Grace & Fury

by Tracy Banghart

In a world where women have no rights, sisters Serina and Nomi Tessaro face two very different fates: one in the palace, the other in prison.

Serina has been groomed her whole life to become a Grace--someone to stand by the heir to the throne as a shining, subjugated example of the perfect woman. But when her headstrong and rebellious younger sister, Nomi, catches the heir's eye, it's Serina who takes the fall for the dangerous secret that Nomi has been hiding.

Now trapped in a life she never wanted, Nomi has only one way to save Serina: surrender to her role as a Grace until she can use her position to release her sister. This is easier said than done. A traitor walks the halls of the palace, and deception lurks in every corner. But Serina is running out of time, imprisoned on an island where she must fight to the death to survive and one wrong move could cost her everything.

~ Paperback Princess Blurb ~