Tell Me Tuesday #38!!

Tell Me Tuesdays is a meme/feature created by the awesome La La In The Library, where we can share how we choose the book we are currently reading from our TBR pile!

I'm always curious about that, cause as much as I tend to make myself a rough schedule for books to read and the like, I'm quite a mood reader and sometimes I just HAVE to ignore my schedule and read something else!

 Until The Beginning by Amy Plum

Amy Plum, internationally bestselling author of the Die for Me series, delivers a heart-pounding adventure perfect for fans of Michael Grant, Veronica Rossi, and Alexandra Bracken. Until the Beginning is the sequel to After the End, which Marie Lu, New York Times bestselling author of the Legend series and the Young Elites series, called “wonderfully riveting.” In this stunning and exhilarating conclusion to the duology, Juneau has been searching for her people and for answers . . . and she is about to find both.

When Juneau’s clan disappeared, she lost so much more than her friends and family. She soon discovered everything she thought she knew about her life was a lie. Her people’s gifts were actually secret abilities that others wanted, desperately enough to kidnap an entire village.

Juneau set off on a cross-country journey with her new companion, Miles, to find her clan, which led them to a game preserve in New Mexico. Now Juneau’s people are finally within reach, and she will stop at nothing to save them. But she has a target on her back too, because unbeknownst to her she is the key to unlocking everything. To rescue her people—and herself—Juneau must discover what she and her abilities are truly capable of.

 Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong

The empire rests on the edge of a knife, and sisters Ashyn and Moria are the handle and the blade. Desperate to outmaneuver the evil Alvar Kitsune, whose hold on the people grows stronger every day, Emperor Tatsu begs Moria to put aside past grievances and ally with Gavril—at least long enough to make an attempt on Alvar’s life. Meanwhile, reunited with her long-lost grandfather, Ashyn discovers that she is the key to a ritual that could reawaken an ancient dragon and turn the tide of the coming battle in their favor.

But with lies and betrayal lurking around every corner, Ashyn and Moria will have to decide once and for all where their allegiances lie. And it may not be where their hearts would lead them…

 NIL on Fire by Lynne Matson

 Despite Rives and Skye's attempt to destroy Nil, the island remains. And back in this world, Nil won't let Skye go. Haunted by a darkness she can't ignore, Skye wrestles with Nil nightmares that worsen by the day and threaten to tear her apart. As Skye fights to keep her mind intact, she realizes that to finally break free of Nil, she must end Nil's vicious cycle once and for all--and she can't do it alone.

Who will return to Nil, and in the end, who will survive? In this thrilling final installment of the Nil series, the stakes have never been higher: everyone's fate hangs in the balance, including Nil's own--and Nil will fight to the death. When the full force of the island is unleashed, Skye faces an impossible choice, a cruel one she'd never imagined she'd have to make. Soon one Nil truth becomes painfully clear: only one side can win.

Losing isn't an option, but winning will cost Skye everything.

Perfect for fans of Lost and survivalist stories, NIL ON FIRE is a stunning conclusion to the Nil trilogy that will leave readers breathless.


This week seems to be the week of ending series for me! I'm reading all final books to two trilogies and one duology! I'm quite enthralled with all three and I hope to finish them all this week itself on the quiet times of my lil Rome trip, mostly on the flights and bus rides to and fro the airport!

 So what are you all guys reading and how and why did you decide to pick up that book? Shiny new ARC? Comfort read? Scheduled for review? Must have new release? Tell me!!

Friday Reads: ARC Review of In A Handful of Dust by Mindy McGinnis!!

Hello guys! Happy Friday!

This week Friday means the start of 7 days in a row of work, so not exactly as celebratory was when it's the herald of the weekend off, but I am finalizing all my details for my trip to the US next month, so there's always something good to look forward to!

For this week's Friday Reads I have the review of an ARC of a book that was one of my highly awaited ones, releasing this month and that I was very lucky to be approved for by Harper Teen on Edelweiss!

As an ARC it counts towards my 2014 Review Pile Reading Challenge, and I think I'm still doing quite decently on this one!

In a Handful of Dust by Mindy McGinnis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


When I read Not A Drop To Drink last year I absolutely loved it, loved how gritty and plausible it was, and I loved the character growth of Lynn, the main character. So when I heard about In A Handful of Dust, the companion novel to that one, I was very excited to get to read it, and even more when I was approved for an eARC via Edelweiss!

In A Handful of Dust is a companion novel more than a sequel cause it takes place quite a few years after NADTD and although at first most of the characters are familiar to us, things quickly change when illness spreads through the community that they built and it seems like Lucy might be in danger. Lynn decides to go with Lucy and see if the rumours of desalinization plants in California are true.

The main story of the book is about Lynn and Lucy on the road, trying to stay safe in a world that's full of dangers from nature itself and even more from other survivors out there. In a tough world like the one we see here, a lot of those who are left are sticking to the survival of the most ruthless, something Lynn & Lucy have to keep in mind if they want to reach their destination safely.

Despite having Lynn in our story, this is mainly Lucy's story and this is why although I enjoyed the book, with appropriate moments when it made me cringe and fear for the human race, I never found myself really involved and engrossed in it the way I was with NADTD. I guess I never really connected with Lucy's voice the way I connected with Lynn. I'm not sure why it was, given that Lucy's perspective is a lil more similar to ours since she grew in a safe community protected from all the things she has to face on their journey.

I found Lynn to have grown into her older self very believably and very true to the Lynn we met, so she was the one that carried the book for me. It was great to see her shine as a survivor that won't back down and also learning to trust in the good intentions of some of the people she find in their journey.

The ending came as something slightly unexpected, Lynn really surprised me, even if as I think about it, the journey changed her a lot too, and her actions do make a lot of sense, even if it was unexpected if we think of the reason of the journey in the first place.

All in all, despite my lack of connection with Lucy, I managed to enjoy this one and feel like this is a very scary world that Mindy McGinnis has painted, even more when it is so plausible. 3.5 stars to this one.



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Friday Reads: Not A Drop To Drink by Mindy McGinnis!!!

For starters in this week's Friday Reads I have one of my most anticipated books of this year and quite a brilliant debut!


Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Not A Drop To Drink has been one of my most anticipated books of this year and I'm extremely pleased to say that it has not only not dissapointed me but has exceeded my expectations!

This not a dystopian or postapocalytpic book per se, maybe a bit postapocalytpic, but not the big-crash-happened sort, mostly is a very disturbingly-probable-scenario-in-the-future.

I'm gonna be trying my best to not spoil the story in any way, even if I'd love to discuss and dissect the book and share all its wonders, but I still think this is a book better enjoyed with just enough information.

Water is scarce, a very precious resource that must be protected at all costs, that is what Lynn's mother always taught her and that's the only reality that Lynn ever had. Life is harsh, surviving is not easy even less for two women living alone, not even if they are alert, aware and armed.

The world the author builds in here feels so realistic, so possible that it's actually scary. It's a world were people are trying to survive and that doesn't always bring out the best in humanity and Mindy doesn't pull any punches on her story, so be ready to deal with very ugly sides of humanity and very emotional scenes.

The main character, Lynn, has always learnt hard lessons from her mother and she taught her how to survive, how to keep her pond safe and how not to trust anyone coming to the pond. She raised Lynn has a hard character, with very little empathy for other people hardships or situations, focused only on her tasks and the lessons from her mother. After her mother is gone she learns many other lessons, not less hard but that make her character grow and change without changing who she is really. She learns to look further than her pond and her world, learns that there is more to life than just surviving and that other people can help her to learn to live. It is quite a journey and one you totally ride with Lynn, even if you can see what she might be missing even if she isn't.

There's a bit of romance in this book, very understated, very important, very believable and very heartbreaking. I said it before, this is not an easy or fluffy book and they way the story progresses continues to show that.

Harsh but beautiful, this is a book I'd highly recommend to anyone. Highly deserved 5 stars!



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