[REVIEW] Code Name Verity

Series: Code Name Verity #1
Author: Elizabeth Wein
Genre: young adult, historical fiction, war
Published: May 7, 2013 (first published February 6, 2012)
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
ISBN: 978-142315288-0

Oct. 11th, 1943-A British spy plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France. Its pilot and passenger are best friends. One of the girls has a chance at survival. The other has lost the game before it's barely begun. 

When "Verity" is arrested by the Gestapo, she's sure she doesn't stand a chance. As a secret agent captured in enemy territory, she's living a spy's worst nightmare. Her Nazi interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution. 

As she intricately weaves her confession, Verity uncovers her past, how she became friends with the pilot Maddie, and why she left Maddie in the wrecked fuselage of their plane. On each new scrap of paper, Verity battles for her life, confronting her views on courage, failure and her desperate hope to make it home. But will trading her secrets be enough to save her from the enemy?

[Waiting on Wednesday] Servants of the Storm

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming can't wait to read.

Series: N/A
Author: Delilah S. Dawson
Genre: young adult, paranormal, fantasy, demons, romance, supernatural, horror, thriller
Expected Publication: August 5, 2014

A year ago Hurricane Josephine swept through Savannah, Georgia, leaving behind nothing but death and destruction — and taking the life of Dovey's best friend, Carly. Since that night, Dovey has been in a medicated haze, numb to everything around her.  

But recently she's started to believe she's seeing things that can't be real ... including Carly at their favorite cafe. Determined to learn the truth, Dovey stops taking her pills. And the world that opens up to her is unlike anything she could have imagined.  

As Dovey slips deeper into the shadowy corners of Savannah — where the dark and horrifying secrets lurk — she learns that the storm that destroyed her city and stole her friend was much more than a force of nature. And now the sinister beings truly responsible are out to finish what they started. 

Dovey's running out of time and torn between two paths. Will she trust her childhood friend Baker, who can't see the threatening darkness but promises to never give up on Dovey and Carly? Or will she plot with the sexy stranger, Isaac, who offers all the answers — for a price? Soon Dovey realizes that the danger closing in has little to do with Carly ... and everything to do with Dovey herself.

[Top Ten Tuesday] Books I Recommend If You Like Anime

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.

This week’s post is a Freebie (means I can write about anything!). So I decided to go with a list that involves both anime and books. Since Top Ten Tuesday is (usually) about books, I thought that I’ll go think of books to recommend to anyone who watches anime. This way I can bring anime fans to enjoy books as much as I do (well at least I hope to do so).

[Flashback Friday] Bakuman.

Flashback Friday is a weekly post where I talk about a book, manga, or anime series which I’ve seen years ago. This is more like me reminiscing on stuff I come across way back then.

Author: Ohba Tsugumi | Illustrator: Obata Takeshi
Manga Publisher: Shueisha (Weekly Shōnen JUMP)
Licensed by: Viz Media
Anime Director: Kasai Kenichi, Akitaya Noriaki
Series Composition: Yoshida Reiko
Animation Production: J.C. Staff

Moritaka Mashiro and Akito Takagi are pretty much foils of each other. Mashiro, an average 9th grade student but talented artist, and Takagi, an overall advanced 9th grader and aspiring writer. After great convincing, Takagi convinces Mashiro to join him in becoming the greatest mangakas Japan has ever seen. Takagi, with his gift of writing, hopes to become a successful mangaka, and Mashiro, with his gift of art, hopes to marry the girl of his dreams, Azuki Miho.

*              *              *

Bakuman. is perhaps one of the few anime (and manga) that I’ll always be fond of watching (and reading) over and over. In fact, Bakuman. 2 will forever be in my fave anime list. It involves JUMP’s core values of friendship, hard work and victory, executes those values well, adds unforgettable characters, and wraps it up in a very inspiring story of 2 boys achieving a dream in 10 years time.

[REVIEW] Pretenders

Series: Pretenders #1
Author: Lisi Harrison
Genre: young adult, contemporary, realistic fiction, romance, drama
Published: October 1, 2013
Publisher: Poppy
ISBN: 978-0-316-22244-0

My picture is on page eighteen of Noble High's Phoenix yearbook. I am one of the PHOENIX FIVE. You nominated me. You thought I was one of the most outstanding students in our freshman class. You were wrong. 

Still, I accepted my award. I acted special. But I couldn't help wondering what it was like to be that way for real. So I broke into Ms. Silver's safe in the faculty lounge and stole all five of our journals. I'm not exposing them out of jealousy or anger. I'm doing this because I am tired of the lies. The bar is too high, and cheating is the only way to reach it. Instagrams are filtered, Facebook profiles are embellished, photos are shopped, Manti T'eo's girlfriend was a fake...is anything real anymore? 

I found the answer in our journals. These are 100 percent real and 100 percent unedited. The proof is in the pages. 

We're all pretenders.

[Waiting on Wednesday] SYMBIONT

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases can't wait to read.

Title: SYMBIONT
Series: Parasitology #2
Author: Mira Grant
Genre: science-fiction, dystopia, horror, zombies
Expected Publication: November 25, 2014

Synopsis: 

THE SECOND BOOK IN MIRA GRANT'S TERRIFYING PARASITOLOGY SERIES. 

THE ENEMY IS INSIDE US. 

The SymboGen designed tapeworms were created to relieve humanity of disease and sickness. But the implants in the majority of the world's population began attacking their hosts turning them into a ravenous horde. 

Now those who do not appear to be afflicted are being gathered for quarantine as panic spreads, but Sal and her companions must discover how the tapeworms are taking over their hosts, what their eventual goal is, and how they can be stopped.

[REVIEW] The Giver

Series: The Giver Quartet #1
Author: Lois Lowry
Genre: young adult, science fiction, dystopia
Published: August 1, 1994 (first published January 1, 1993)
Publisher: Laurel-Leaf Books
ISBN: 978-0-440-23768-6

Synopsis: 

Jonas’s world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear or pain. There are no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the Community. 

When Jonas turns twelve, he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Now it’s time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no turning back.

[Stacking the Shelves] after a month of resisting comes a good set of new books~

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted at Tynga’s Reviews.

This is my first Stacking the Shelves post and I’m quite excited to share my latest hauls after what feels like more than a month.

[Flashback Friday] the Clique series

Flashback Friday is a weekly post where I talk about a book, manga, or anime series which I’ve seen years ago. This is more like me reminiscing on stuff I come across way back then.

Meet The Clique… 

Massie Block: With her glossy hair and laser-whitened smile, Massie is the uncontested ruler of The Clique and the social scene at Octavian Country Day School, an exclusive private girls’ school in Westchester Country, New York. Massie knows you’d give anything to be just like her. 

Dylan Marvil: Massie’s second in command who divides her time between sucking up to Massie and sucking down Atkins Diet shakes. 

Alicia Rivera: As sneaky as she is beautiful, Alicia would love to take Massie’s throne one day. Just might. 

Kristen Gregory: She’s smart, hardworking, and will insult you to tears faster than you can say “my haircut isn’t ugly!” 

Enter Claire Lyons, the new girl from Florida in Keds and two-year-old Gap overalls, who is clearly not Clique material. Unfortunately for her, Claire’s family is staying in the guesthouse on Massie’s family’s huge estate while they look for a new home. Claire’s future looks worse than  a bad Prada knockoff. But with a little luck and a lot of scheming, Claire might just come up smelling like Chanel No. 19… 

The Clique… the only thing harder than getting in is staying in.

*              *              *

The Clique is my first book series which is why Lisi Harrison has a special place in my heart (but sadly I haven’t read all her books)… Actually the Clique isn’t my first book in the series. My first book was Best Friends for Never which is the second book.

[REVIEW] Red Rising

Series: Red Rising #1
Author: Pierce Brown
Genre: young adult, science fiction, dystopia, survival, mythology, war
Published: February 18, 2014 (first published January 28, 2014)
Publisher: Del Rey
ISBN: 978-0-553-84125-1

Synopsis:

Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making surface of Mars livable for the future generations. 

Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. 

But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow – and Reds like him – are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.

Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity’s overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society’s ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies… even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.

[Waiting on Wednesday] The Cure for Dreaming

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases can't wait to read.

Title: The Cure for Dreaming
Author: Cat Winters
Genre: young adult, historical fiction, paranormal, fantasy, urban fantasy
Expected Publication: October 14, 2014

Synopsis: 

Olivia Mead is a headstrong, independent girl—a suffragist—in an age that prefers its girls to be docile. It’s 1900 in Oregon, and Olivia’s father, concerned that she’s headed for trouble, convinces a stage mesmerist to try to hypnotize the rebellion out of her. But the hypnotist, an intriguing young man named Henri Reverie, gives her a terrible gift instead: she’s able to see people’s true natures, manifesting as visions of darkness and goodness, while also unable to speak her true thoughts out loud. These supernatural challenges only make Olivia more determined to speak her mind, and so she’s drawn into a dangerous relationship with the hypnotist and his mysterious motives, all while secretly fighting for the rights of women. Winters breathes new life into history once again with an atmospheric, vividly real story, including archival photos and art from the period throughout.

[Top Ten Tuesday] Books I Almost Put Down But Didn’t

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.

This week’s topic: Books I Almost Put Down but Didn’t.

[REVIEW] JUDGE, vol2

Series: JUDGE | Prequel: vol1
Author: Yoshiki Tonogai
Genre: manga, mystery, thriller
Published: November 26, 2013 (first published January 1, 2012)
Publisher: Yen Press
ISBN: 978-0-316-24032-1

Synopsis:JUDGE, JURY, EXECUTIONER 

Court is now in session for Hiro and the other sinners, who have been herded like cattle into an abandoned courthouse to pass judgment on one another’s crimes. Suspicions whirl after the first trial is held. Were the votes cast by the sinners born of deception or goodwill? As a clearer picture of the courthouse itself is revealed, new doubts arise. What’s to become of the one who has been sentenced to death?

[Flashback Friday] Angel Beats!

Flashback Friday is a weekly post where I’ll talk about a book, manga, or anime series which I’ve seen years ago. This is more like me reminiscing on stuff I come across way back then.

In a world after death, angels fight for their fate and their future. Yuri, the leader of the Shinda Sekai Sensen, rebels against the god who destined her to have an unreasonable life. On the other hand, Tenshi, the chairperson of the student council for the world after death, battles against the SSS members. SSS members utilize armed weaponry to battle it out against the angels harnessing supernatural powers.

*              *              *

If you’ve been following my blog for the last two years, you probably know that Angel Beats! was the anime that brought me back to watching anime. While it’s something I’ve decided to drop down from my fave anime list, it will always have a special place in my heart.

[REVIEW] Before I Fall

Series: N/A
Author: Lauren Oliver
Genre: young adult, contemporary, romance
Published: October 25, 2010 (first published March 2, 2010)
Publisher: Harper
ISBN: 978-0-06-172681-1
Link: goodreads

Synopsis: 

What if you only had one day to live?
What would you do? Who would you kiss?
And how far would you go to save your own life? 

Samantha Kingston has it all: looks, popularity, the perfect boyfriend. Friday, February 12th, should be just another day in her charmed life. Instead, it turns out to be her last. 

The catch: Samantha still wakes up the next morning. Living the last day of her life seven times during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death – and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing.

[Waiting on Wednesday] The Silkworm

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases we can't wait to read.

Title: the Silkworm
Author: Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)
Genre: Contemporary, Crime, Mystery
Expected publication: June 24, 2014
Goodreads

Synopsis: 

Private investigator Cormoran Strike returns in a new mystery from Robert Galbraith, author of the #1 international bestseller The Cuckoo's Calling. 

When novelist Owen Quine goes missing, his wife calls in private detective Cormoran Strike. At first, Mrs. Quine just thinks her husband has gone off by himself for a few days--as he has done before--and she wants Strike to find him and bring him home.But as Strike investigates, it becomes clear that there is more to Quine's disappearance than his wife realizes. The novelist has just completed a manuscript featuring poisonous pen-portraits of almost everyone he knows. If the novel were to be published, it would ruin lives--meaning that there are a lot of people who might want him silenced. 

When Quine is found brutally murdered under bizarre circumstances, it becomes a race against time to understand the motivation of a ruthless killer, a killer unlike any Strike has encountered before... 

A compulsively readable crime novel with twists at every turn, THE SILKWORM is the second in the highly acclaimed series featuring Cormoran Strike and his determined young assistant, Robin Ellacott.

[Top Ten Tuesday] Book Covers I’d Frame as Pieces of Art

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and The Bookish.

This week’s topic: top ten book covers I’d frame as pieces of art.

[REVIEW] Are You Alice?, Vol1

Series: Are You Alice?
Author: Ai Ninomiya | Illustrator: Ikumi Katagiri
Genre: manga, mystery, shoujo

Published: May 28, 2013 (first published December 25, 2009)
Publisher: Yen Press
ISBN: 978-0-316-25279-9
Link: goodreads

Synopsis: 

A disillusioned young man in search of “something” stumbles into the weird and wacky world of Wonderland where, as “Alice,” he is thrust into a murderous game of “Kill the White Rabbit” by command of the ruler of the land, the Queen of Hearts. But while Alice rails against the role that has been forced upon him, he has little choice but to comply. For in Wonderland, not sticking to the script can have deadly consequences…

[REVIEW] Freewill

Series: N/A

Author: Chris Lynch
Genre: young adult, realistic fiction, mystery, death

Published: March 4, 2014 (first published March 1, 2001)
Publisher: Simon & Shuster Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 978-1-4424-8271-5
Link: goodreads

Synopsis: 

WHY ARE YOU HERE?

Will was destined to be a pilot, to skim above surfaces. So why is he in woodshop class? He doesn’t know – or maybe he just doesn’t want to admit the truth.

WHAT DO YOU KNOW?

When local teens begin committing suicide, their deaths all have one thing in common: beautifully carved wooden tributes that appear just before or after their bodies are found.

WHAT WILL YOU DO?

Will is afraid he knows who’s responsible. And lurking just behind that knowledge is another secret so explosive that he might not be able to face it and live…

[REVIEW] The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

Series: N/A
Author: Holly Black
Genre: young adult, vampire, romance
Published: September 17, 2013 (first published September 3, 2013)
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 978-0-316-27755-6
Link: goodreads

Synopsis: 

COLDTOWN WAS DANGEROUS.
TANA KNEW.
A GLAMOROUS CAGE,
A PRISON FOR THE DAMNED
AND ANYONE WHO
WANTED TO PARTY WITH THEM. 

Tana lives in a world where walled cities called Coldtowns exist. In them, quarantined monsters and humans mingle in a decadently bloody ix of predator and prey. And once you pass through Coldtown’s gates, you can never leave.

One morning, after a perfectly ordinary party, Tana wakes up surrounded by corpses. The only other survivors of this massacre are her exasperatingly endearing ex-boyfriend, infected and on the edge, and a mysterious boy burdened with a terrible secret. Shaken and determined, Tana enters a race against the clock to save the three of them the only way she knows how: by going straight to the wicked opulent heart of Coldtown itself.