Mailbox Monday and It's Monday, What Are You Reading? April 1st Edition

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia who now blogs at To Be Continued. It is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Mari at MariReads is hosting for the month of April. You can also view the touring blog list here for the upcoming months.

I have one giveaway currently running on my blog:

3-Book Giveaway by Vikki VanSickle - Middle grade series (Open to Canada only)

Review Books:

The Runaway King (The Ascendance Trilogy Book Two) by Jennifer A. Nielsen (from Scholastic)

Just weeks after Jaron has taken the throne, an assassination attempt forces him into a deadly situation. Rumors of a coming war are winding their way between the castle walls, and Jaron feels the pressure quietly mounting within Carthya. Soon, it becomes clear that deserting the kingdom may be his only hope of saving it. But the further Jaron is forced to run from his identity, the more he wonders if it is possible to go too far. Will he ever be able to return home again? Or will he have to sacrifice his own life in order to save his kingdom?

The stunning second installment of The Ascendance Trilogy takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of treason and murder, thrills and peril, as they journey with the Runaway King!

Family Tree #1: Better to Wish by Ann M. Martin (from Scholastic)

Four generations. Four girls. One family. An amazing new four-book series from Ann M. Martin.

In 1930, Abby Nichols is eight, and can't imagine what her future holds. The best things today would be having a dime for the fair, keeping her Pops from being angry, and saving up eightyseven cents to surprise her little sister with a tea set for Christmas.

But Abby's world is changing fast. Soon there will be new siblings to take care of, a new house to move into, and new friends to meet. But there will also be good-byes to say and hard choices to make. As Abby grows older, how will she decide what sort of life will fit her best?

In this incredible new series, bestselling author Ann M. Martin brings the past and the present together one girlhood at a time and shows readers the way a family grows.

Truths and Roses by Inglath Cooper (from author)

When Will Kincaid’s professional football career comes to an abrupt end in a single night, he’s left to figure out what he’s going to do with the rest of his life. He heads home to the small Virginia town where he grew up and crosses paths with Hannah Jacobs, the only girl in high school who had ever rejected him. It’s Hannah who once made him question the choices he had made, and it’s Hannah who’s making him question them all over again. But with the weight of a secret he’s managed to hide from the world his entire adult life hanging over him, he can’t afford to question his choices. Hannah Jacobs had once made the choice to deny her feelings for Will Kincaid, at the time finding it the only possible option for a young girl intent on burying a nightmare she only wanted to forget. The life she’s made for herself as a librarian in Lake Perdue is a quiet one, and she’s hardly prepared for the day when Will rams his fancy Ferrari into her dependable old clunker. But for Hannah, Will Kincaid can only stir up memories she had long ago put away forever. And there’s nothing at all good that can come from bringing them back to life again.

Good Guys Love Dogs by Inglath Cooper (from author)

Desperate father Ian McKinley moves his delinquent teenage son to the small Virginia town of Keeling Creek, a place very unlike the New York City life he has been leading. Love takes him by surprise when he falls for Colby Williams, a woman unlike anyone he has ever been drawn to, a small town vet with a heart for animals and a fierce love for a teenage daughter she is also struggling to raise.

But Colby has a secret in her past, a secret she's not sure her daughter will ever forgive her for. And as for Ian McKinley, he seems too good to be true. If she had learned anything from the one time she had thrown her heart fully into love, it was that it didn't last.

Harvest of Gold by Tessa Afshar (from Netgalley)

The scribe Sarah married Darius, and at times she feels as if she has married the Persian aristocracy, too. There is another point she did not count on in her marriage-Sarah has grown to love her husband. Sarah has wealth, property, honor, and power, but her husband's love still seems unattainable.

Although his mother was an Israelite, Darius remains skeptical that his Jewish wife is the right choice for him, particularly when she conspires with her cousin Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Ordered to assist in the effort, the couple begins a journey to the homeland of his mother's people. Will the road filled with danger, conflict, and surprising memories, help Darius to see the hand of God at work in his life-and even in his marriage? A hidden message, treachery, opposition, and a God-given success, will lead to an unlikely bounty.

Bought:

Perception by Lee Strauss ($0.99 Kindle book)

Seventeen year old Zoe Vanderveen is a GAP--a genetically altered person. She lives in the security of a walled city on prime water-front property along side other equally beautiful people with extended life spans.

Her brother Liam is missing.

Noah Brody is a natural who lives on the outside. He leads protests against the GAPs and detests the widening chasm they've created between those who have and those who don't. He doesn't like girls like Zoe and he has good reason not to like her specifically.

Zoe's carefree life takes a traumatic turn. She's in trouble and it turns out that Noah, the last guy on earth she should trust, is the only one who can help her.

I just discovered Downpour.com, an audiobook membership club much like Audible. They had a promotion where you could choose any audiobook for $6.95 just for opening an account (no membership required). So I got Pandemonium. Then I was given a free copy of the audiobook Robinson Crusoe as a thank you.

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver (audiobook)

The old life is dead.

But the old Lena is dead too.

I buried her.

I left her beyond a fence, behind a wall of smoke and ﬂame.

In this electrifying follow-up to her acclaimed New York Times bestseller Delirium, Lauren Oliver sets Lena on a dangerous course that hurtles through the unregulated Wilds and into the heart of a growing resistance movement. This riveting, brilliant novel crackles with the fire of fierce defiance, forbidden romance, and the sparks of a revolution about to ignite.

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

Robinson Crusoe is one of the most famous literary characters in history, and his story has spawned hundreds of retellings. Inspired by the life of Alexander Selkirk, a sailor who lived for several years on a Pacific island, the novel tells the story of Crusoe's survival after shipwreck on an island, interaction with the mainland's native inhabitants, and eventual rescue. Read variously as economic fable, religious allegory, or imperialist fantasy, Crusoe has never lost its appeal as one of the most compelling adventure stories of all time.

Free Kindle Books:

The Last Pleas Bargain by Randy Singer

Plea bargains may grease the rails of justice, but for Jamie Brock, prosecuting criminals is not about cutting deals. In her three years as assistant DA, she’s never plea-bargained a case and vows she never will. But when a powerful defense attorney is indicted for murder and devises a way to bring the entire justice system to a screeching halt, Jamie finds herself at a crossroads. One by one, prisoners begin rejecting deals. Prosecutors are overwhelmed, and felons start walking free on technicalities. To break the logjam and convict her nemesis, Jamie must violate every principle that has guided her young career. But she has little choice. To convict the devil, sometimes you have to cut a deal with one of his demons.

Forsaken Dreams by MaryLu Tyndall

Embark on a seafaring adventure in a brand-new series from bestselling author MaryLu Tyndall....They left everything behind to build a new Southern utopia. . ..After witnessing the death and destruction caused by the Civil War, Colonel Blake Wallace is eager to leave his once precious Southern homeland for the pristine shores of Brazil and the prospect of a new utopian community. Widow Eliza Crawford seeks passage on Wallace’s ship harboring a dirty secret—and a blossoming hope for a fresh start. But once the voyage begins, troubles abound. Dangers at sea and enemies from within threaten to keep Blake and Eliza from the new life—and love—they long for.

This meme is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. This is where we keep track of what we are currently reading and plan to read. The kidlit version is hosted by Jen at Teach Mentor Texts.

Read and reviewed:
The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen (awesome!)
Days That End in Y by Vikki Vansickle (3-book giveaway)
Keeping Our Cool by Andrew Weaver (audiobook)
Gragbridge Hall: The Inventor's Secret by Chad Morris (great debut to the series)

Currently Reading:
The Journey by John A. Heldt
Mira's Diary: Home Sweet Rome by Marissa Moss (with my daughter)

Finished Reading: (reviews coming up)
From the Kitchen of Half Truth by Maria Goodin (absolutely wonderful!)
Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale

Hope you all have a great reading week!

Sunday, March 31, 2013