BookAHolics Anonymous (My Name is ____, and I'm a BookAHolic): August 2016

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Bookish Subscription Box: Litcube Unboxing for August 2016

Lit-Cube is a monthly subscription box for readers. We strive to pair hand-picked books with high quality literary themed products to bring you a magical reading experience each and every month.

Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Top Ten Tuesday: Required Reading I Never Read

Hi everybody! How's everyone's week been going?

This week's topic: Back To School Freebie -- anything "back to school" related like 10 favorite books I read in school, books I think should be required reading, Required Reading For All Fantasy Fans, required reading for every college freshman, Books to Pair With Classics or Books To Complement A History Lesson, books that would be on my classroom shelf if I were a teacher

I know how a lot of schools have required reading, but I can't remember ever having to read any books.

Thursday, August 25, 2016

Book Review: Hotel Ruby by Suzanne Young

AUTHOR: Suzanne Young

PUBLISHED: November 3, 2015
PUBLISHER: Simon Pulse

PAGES: 288

SERIES/STAND ALONE: Stand alone

SOURCE: ARC won from WinterHaven
CHALLENGES: None

OUTLINE:
Stay tonight. Stay forever.

When Audrey Casella arrives for an unplanned stay at the grand Hotel Ruby, she’s grateful for the detour. Just months after their mother’s death, Audrey and her brother, Daniel, are on their way to live with their grandmother, dumped on the doorstep of a DNA-matched stranger because their father is drowning in his grief.

Audrey and her family only plan to stay the night, but life in the Ruby can be intoxicating, extending their stay as it provides endless distractions—including handsome guest Elias Lange, who sends Audrey’s pulse racing. However, the hotel proves to be as strange as it is beautiful. Nightly fancy affairs in the ballroom are invitation only, and Audrey seems to be the one guest who doesn’t have an invite. Instead, she joins the hotel staff on the rooftop, catching whispers about the hotel’s dark past.

The more Audrey learns about the new people she’s met, the more her curiosity grows. She’s torn in different directions—the pull of her past with its overwhelming loss, the promise of a future that holds little joy, and an in-between life in a place that is so much more than it seems…

Welcome to the Ruby.

IN A NUTSHELL

When I first saw this book I knew it was something I wanted to read. The cover alone is pretty and enticing. I seem to have a good relationship with the books written by Suzanne Young as well so it was no surprise that I enjoyed it. Before I even started the book I figured out at least some of what was going to happen. What I didn't expect was for the (almost ending.) I don't know if this will be a proper review because so much of the story lies within the twists and the whats of the story.

SETTING

Hotel Ruby is the title so we know from that it's going to mainly take place in the hotel, but The Ruby is so much more than just the setting it's the soul of this book (along with other souls), it's a character in its self, it's a magnet for a special type of person.

A hotel can be an exciting setting because there's always a backstory to the the story. It can be a haunting one, an interesting one, or it can be a plain Jane one. The Ruby has a few stories, and the guests and employees tell it so beautifully if not a little creepy.

CHARACTERS

Despite the crap that Audrey was dealing with I think she showed how strong she was. The hotel was making her a bit crazy, but she more or less kept her shit together. Even when things started taking a turn for the worse she believed. I'm not sure what option I would have chosen had I been her.
Then we have Elias Lange, that mysterious, brooding boy who lives in a hotel.
Catherine who despite being an ice queen throughout the story suddenly warms up a bit.

ENDING

I knew some of the twists that happened, but I wasn't expecting the ending it had. I'm not sure if I was satisfied with it or not. I think it really showed who the characters were in the end.

In a way this story has a similar feel to another contemporary YA. Do you want to know which one? It might be a small spoiler. The book I'm thinking of is If I Stay by Gayle Forman. If you read that then this has that vibe of which would be better life or death?

Readathon: Bout of Books Summer 2016: In the Tabloid

The Bookie Junkie

Now it's your turn!

Think about the book you are reading or one that you finished during Bout of Books 17

Create a "tabloid" type headline. Make it fun, feel free to use sarcasm liberally. :)

"The Blue -Eyed Bandit strikes again. A town in ashes. Is the Rebel Prince backing the bandit?"

I just finished Rebel of the Sand a few days ago, and I enjoyed it more then I thought I would. It started off slow, but soon I was hooked.

"Baseball/ Softball Coach caught: He was stealing more than bases."

Another book I finished recently was Stealing Parker by Miranda Kenneally.

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Bookish Subscription Box: Uppercase Unboxing for August 2016

From the Uppercase Website

"Uppercase is a young adult book subscription box. Simply put: You sign up and receive a YA book and a bookish goody every month! Plus the subscription comes with online access to extras like a live book discussion & recommendations for similar books."

Today I will be revealing what I got in my uppercase box.

Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Readathon: Bout of Books Summer 2016: Mix N Match Sentence

Pick out 10-15 books from your shelf, from your local library, or from a local bookstore. They can be any genre, any language, and any length. In each book, flip to a random page and pick the 1st word (articles such as "the", "and", "an", "or", etc. don't count as the 1st word). Use all these 1st words to try to create an actual sentence. If the books are in different languages, feel free to translate them to all one language or leave them as they are! also, you can add in some articles, such as "the", "and", "an", "or", etc., if you want to make the sentence flow better.

Here's my stack of books I took the words from. (Note these are all books I've read this year and need to review)

Came-Blythewood

David- Rebel Belle

Spot-Sin Eaters Daughter

When- Every other day

Work-Beautiful Disaster

Outside- The Heir and the Spare

Her-Stealing Parker

Jane- My Lady Jane

Checking- Four

whatever- Rebel of the sands

Fountain- Hotel Ruby

When David came to work. He spotted her, Jane outside checking the fountain for whatever reason.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I had before blogging

Hi everybody! How's everyone's week been going?

This week's topic is: Ten Books That Have Been On Your Shelf (Or TBR) From Before You Started Blogging That You STILL Haven't Read Yet

Before I started blogging almost 6 years ago I would buy mystery books written by Mary Higgins Clark, or anything that sounded mysterious. I know I still have most of those, but they are in storage so I can't remember the names, but I'll try my best.

1. Marley and Me by John Grogan

2. The ABC books by Sue Grafton

3. On The Streets Where You Live by Mary Higgins Clark

4. My Gal Sunday by Mary Higgins Clark

5. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

6. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

7. Cell by Stephen King

8. I Heard That Song Before by Mary Higgins Clark

9. I'll Be Seeing You by Mary Higgins Clark*

10. Duma Key by Sephen King

Monday, August 22, 2016