Review: Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi

I can't believe this series is over. It feels like I just started reading this book and then it was over a moment later. Into the Still Blue is the perfect ending to this amazing series. I loved all three books, but I might have loved this one the most. It was amazing. It shattered my heart so many times. Yet I loved it so.

I don't know how to put words together for this review. I will try my best, though. I won't post spoilers. But I will talk about my love for this book and for all the amazing characters. And I will mention the heartbreak a bit. Because there is a lot of heartbreak in this book. It's awful. I loved every moment.

I've been wanting to read Into the Still Blue ever since I read Under the Never Sky when it came out. Then I read and loved book two even more and I just knew I would love this third book the most. And I did. But oh, I just wish it wasn't over. I cannot wait for the short story to come out, but I really wish for a fourth book. There doesn't need to be one, but yeah, I really want one because I don't want this amazing and evil series to be over.

Into the Still Blue starts where Through the Ever Night ended. With Aria and Perry back in the cave with the Tides. With Roar trying to get Cinder back from Hess and Sable. Won't say more than that about it. But oh. It's all so interesting to read about and so heartbreaking and perfect at the same time. There is something happening on every page and the pages just flew by for me. Felt like I had just started reading it when it finished. But I was happy. I was happy with everything. Even all the pain. Especially.

There is just so much to love in Into the Still Blue. There is so much Aria and Perry together. Apart. They make the best couple ever and I loved them both so much more in this book. They are just amazing. Both so strong and kind and sweet. They both love with all their heart. Aria is just awesome. I love that the story is told from both their point of views, because I loved them both just as much. I loved getting to know a bit more about Aria, and about her past. I loved how much she loved Perry. Sigh. Adored her.

I might, maybe, love Perry a tiny bit more. I'm just like that. He's the best. He is the best leader for their people. He is the best uncle to Talon. Whom I just adore reading about. He's so sweet. And he is the best friend to Roar, though Roar is an asshole in this book for a long time. I understood him somewhat, though. I mean, he's grieving over Liv. But sniffs. She was Perry's sister. Blood means more. Heartbreak. I hated reading about them thinking about Liv. So heartbreaking. And so damn perfect too.

I just adored Perry so much. I loved reading about him. He and Aria are just perfect together. I loved reading about him with all the other characters as well. I also loved reading about Reef and the Six. They were pretty awesome and I loved how they cared for Perry. We also get to see a lot of the other characters from book two, and I loved getting to read about them all. They are just amazing. I even liked Brooke. And Sorren. But oh, my heart just breaks for Cinder. He is the best. But damn it. Sobs.

I don't know how to talk about the plot in this book. I don't want to give anything away, and yet at the same time I wish to talk about all of it. Because it's so perfect. It's a perfect ending to this amazing series. There is just so much happening all the time and we get to know so much yet never enough. Not for me. I loved reading about all of it, though. I loved reading about all the action, all the mystery. I even loved reading about all the torture. Though that broke my heart the most. So very unfair.

That's all I have to say about Into the Still Blue. The writing is gorgeous, like always. The characters are beyond amazing. Yes, there is a lot of heartbreak and doubt and evilness. So many evil characters. Yet I loved how it was written. So perfect. I loved Perry so much and it broke my heart into a million pieces the way he was treated by some people. Yet it was also perfect. Sigh, so confused. Into the Still Blue is a perfect ending to these three books. Veronica is amazing for writing them all. Thank you. <3

Now you all need to read these books. There is so much happiness in them. Amazing romance, the best. There may be more heartbreak, though. Which might be what I loved the most. It messed up my feelings. And I loved every second of it. Into the Still Blue is a must read. If you loved the first two books you will love this one even more. I did. And I know I will re-read all three books when I get my hardcover in January. If you haven't read any of these books, then get started. You will not regret it.

Thank you so, so much to HarperCollins for the auto-approval on Edelweiss that I got yesterday. <3 I started reading Into the Still Blue today when I finally had the time to. Loved it so much. Cannot wait to get my hardcover and paperbacks of it. I need to own all copies of this gorgeous and perfect book :)

Goodreads - Pre-Order

Review: All the Truth That's In Me by Julie Berry

When I got my pre-ordered hardcover in the mail today I didn't truly know what the book was about. I hadn't really read much about it, I just saw that gorgeous cover and read most of the summary. And I knew that I needed it. Then it arrived today, and I peeked at the ending. And it sounded amazing. So I started it right away; and I could not stop reading it.

At first I was a bit worried about the way it is written, the way the story is told. But then I got sucked into the voice of Judith and I couldn't have loved the writing more. It was perfect for the story and I loved it so much. It's written in short parts, some past, most present. All from the point of view of Judith.

This book reminded me a tiny bit of If You Find Me, and that might be a bit reason for why I loved it so much. It's just my kind of book. It's set sometime in the past, I think, though I'm not sure when. But most definitely in the past. Which I really loved. The setting in this book is amazing and I loved reading about it all. The horse. The houses. The sort of crazy church people who didn't really have a big role in the book. Mostly I loved the way people in love got together.

This whole book was amazing. And I don't won't to spoil anything, so I won't write too much about the plot at all. Though I will mention the most important things, which you'll get to know in the first few pages of the book. All the Truth That's In Me is the story of Judith. This broken 18 year old girl who got kidnapped at age 14 and was held captive for 2 years. She got her tongue cut out. And my god. It was awful. We don't get to read too much about what she went through, but we got to know enough.

There is so much in this book. Even though it is short and many pages don't have much words on them. But I felt like the book was long enough. Even though I wanted so much more. I would really love a sequel. But there doesn't need to be. The ending is good. A bit sad, yes, but good. We get to know a lot of people in this book. A couple of kind ones. Mostly we get to know all these awful persons who just hurt others. I hated them. I hated so many of them. Yet I loved reading about all of it. It's interesting.

We get to know Judith a lot. And I loved reading about her. She's amazing. So broken. Yet she is strong and kind and sweet. I loved the love she has for her childhood friend, Lucas. It was real and sweet and heartbreaking at times. But so amazing. There is romance in this book. Not as much as I would have liked, but there is enough and it is perfect. We also get to know Judith family. Her dad is dead. Her brother is a bit of an asshole at first, but I adored him so much. Her mother is pure evil. Sigh.

Okay, fine, she's not that evil. But my god, I hated her. She's so cruel towards Judith. I didn't understand it. Sobs. But oh, it was so amazing to read about and I just adore these heartbreaking stories. Then there is Lucas. Whom I really adored. He's four years older than Judith, which I also kind of loved. He is amazing. He was a bit blind at first. But I forgive him for that. I hurt for him so many times. This town they lived in was so unfair. Sigh. But oh, how I loved reading about Lucas and Judith. They are perfect.

I won't say more about this book. Just that there are so many amazing characters in it. I liked Maria a lot. I hated the teacher so much. Yet I loved reading about all of it. I could say that All the Truth That's In Me is about finding your voice, and standing up for yourself. But it's about so much more than that. It's just perfect. I didn't think I would love it this much, but I did. And I'm so happy that I read it. I just wish to read more books like this one, for All the Truth That's In Me was perfect. Loved it so much.

Goodreads - Buy it

Hero Blog Tour: Interview with Alethea Kontis + Giveaway

I'm so happy to be a part of the Hero by Alethea Kontis blog tour! It's been more than a year since I read Enchanted. But I loved it so much. And I remember most of it. But I will still re-read it before reading Hero, which is coming out on October 1st :) I cannot wait! Alethea has written an amazing fairy tale series. And I cannot wait to read the next books in this series. Since the first was so amazing I'm excited to read how awesome the next ones are ;p Anyway. I'm really happy to be a part of this blog tour. You can see the rest of the tour schedule here. For my tour stop I'm having an interview with the author. Thank you Alethea <3 You are amazing. Hope you all like the interview; awesome US giveaway below :)

Interview with the amazing Alethea Kontis :)

1. What was the first fairy tale you remember falling in love with? And was it a book or movie?

I fell in love with books first. I started reading when I was three and was crazy about reading by the age of five. When I was eight, my French grandmother gave me a giant copy of unexpurgated Grimm and Andersen tales. I mark that date as The Beginning of The End.

My favorite tale in that book was "The Goose Girl." It's still my favorite to this very day.

2. Did something inspire you to name the sisters after the weekdays? Like Saturday in Hero? :)


The inspiration for the naming of the sisters came from the nursery rhyme "Monday's Child." I was born on a Sunday, and I've always thought the whole "blithe, bonny, good, and gay" thing was a load of crap, too.

3. Did you always know you were going to be a writer, and that you would write books about magic?
 

If eight years old counts as "always," then yes. As soon as I began writing poetry, I knew I was destined to be a writer. I only *hoped* that I'd be able to write about magic and fairy tales. Actually DOING SO is a serious dream come true. 

4. What is your all-time favorite fairy tale book? :)
 

The easy answer would be Robin McKinley's Beauty or Deerskin, but it's really Meredith Ann Pierce's Darkangel Trilogy. Pierce took all the greatest elements of fairy tales and incorporated them into a magical setting...that when you step away is *really* science fiction. That whole series pushed all the right buttons for me. Prophecies, true love (or is it?), evil witches, gargoyles, strong young women...it's also very female-centric, like the Oz books, which is something I didn't realize until I was much older. 

5. Do you have a favorite character from the Woodcutter Series?
 

I could no sooner choose a favorite star in the sky. They are all me, and I rather like me. 

6. Is there a scene in Hero that you couldn’t wait to finish writing, a happy one or a hard one?
 

Oh, I loved the scene where Saturday broke the world. I can still see it in my head like a movie, and I hope that translates to the reader. I also love the scene with the dragon. And in the crystal cave. And on the pirate ship. And...and all the spoilery ones I can't mention. 

7. Is there anything you regret not adding into Enchanted or Hero before they got published?
 

"Regret" isn't the right word, but there were 30,000 words cut out of Enchanted before it was published. I would really love to go back one day and do a Director's Cut of Enchanted, preferably an enchanced Immersedition, where I can annotate it with all the inside jokes and fairy tale references. In the meantime, I've recorded a few of those scenes--you can find them on my YouTube channel. 

8. I would love to know your favorite movie, fairy tale movie and “regular” movie :)
 

I actually did a list for USA Today on the 11 Best Fary Tale Movies: http://www.usatoday.com/story/happyeverafter/2013/05/28/alethea-kontis-enchanted-best-fairy-tale-movies/2364455/ 

...and it was hard to stop at 11.
Tough call to what my "favorite" movie would be. Possibly The Princess Bride, The Fall, or The Hunt for Red October. I'm a sucker for submarine movies. 

9. Are you planning on writing other books besides the Woodcutter Series, when you finish with them? :)
 

I have plans for SO MANY OTHER THINGS. Most of those ideas are with my agent. But as none of the projects has officially landed with a publisher yet, I feel like it's jinxing them to talk about them.

I will say that I will soon be releasing a collection of my non-fairy tale short stories called WILD & WONDERFUL, DARK & DREAMING. I also mean to do a Kickstarter to reprint Beauty & Dynamite and finally publish the sequel, Murphy's Girl. And at some point, Janet Lee and I will be printing hard copies of Diary of a Mad Scientist Garden Gnome...but we're both so busy nowadays it's fallen by the wayside. I need to clone myself to get more accomplished!

Where to find Alethea Kontis:
Website - Twitter - Facebook

Where to find the books:
Website - Goodreads - My Old Review

Where to order both books:
Amazon - The Book Depository - Barnes & Noble

Giveaway details:

One winner will get a Fairy Tale Gift Basket.

Which if Signed copy of Enchanted and Hero and swag :)

US winner only. Ends on October 17th.

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

Waiting on Wednesday #102

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

CHAMPION (Legend #3) BY MARIE LU

Goodreads Description:

He is a Legend.
She is a Prodigy.
Who will be Champion?

June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic—and each other—and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government’s elite circles as Princeps Elect while Day has been assigned a high level military position. But neither could have predicted the circumstances that will reunite them once again. Just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic’s border cities. This new strain of plague is deadlier than ever, and June is the only one who knows the key to her country’s defense. But saving the lives of thousands will mean asking the one she loves to give up everything he has. With heart-pounding action and suspense, Marie Lu’s bestselling trilogy draws to a stunning conclusion.

Hardcover, 384 pages

Expected publication: November 5th 2013 by Putnam Juvenile

Pre-Order here.

Been wanting this book for a long time now. I loved Legend and Prodigy so much. And I need to know how it all ends. <3 But already I'm worried, because I read a long teaser, and so much time has passed. And it's already breaking my heart. I HATE when time passes. Especially long time. Sigh. Still, I am excited for Champion, and I cannot wait to read it. <3 I need more of Day :) And June ;p
What are you waiting for?

Title Reveal: The 5th Wave #2 by Rick Yancey

Sharing the title for the sequel to The 5th Wave today :D I loved this book. It was amazing. And oh, I just cannot wait to read the sequel. Think it will be amazing. I just need to know what will happen next to everything and everyone. I love the title. Think it is amazing. And so excited to read what it means :) Just wish it was May 6th already. Also hoping to see the cover soon :D What do you think of the title?

THE INFINITE SEA

The 5th Wave. The Infinite Sea. Rick Yancey. Official Reveal Post.

The Book Depository. My review of The 5th Wave.