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Top Ten Goals / Resolutions For 2015

30 Dec 2014

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

Today I am sharing ten of my goals / resolutions for 2015. The first five are reading and blogging specific goals and then the last five are general life goals.
 
 
  1. To give my blog much more attention in the current months.
  2. To write reviews for more of the books I read.
  3. To challenge myself by reading a few books outside of my comfort zone.
  4. To concentrate more on new releases instead of worrying too much about an ancient tbr pile I will never get caught up with.
  5. To get more blog posts scheduled in advance.
  1. To continue working hard in my Publishing MA to learn as much as I possibly can.
  2. To try to have a fitter and healthier lifestyle.
  3. Work on my flexibility for dance and cheer to gain new moves.
  4. Reconnect and meet up with a few friends I have not seen in a while
  5. And finally (though this isn't something I can control) - get a kick-ass job in publishing when I finish my degree in August!
Have you set yourself some New Years resolutions or goals for 2015? Feel free to share your own Top Ten Tuesday links in the comments :)
 


The New (and Possibly Better!) Alternative to Facebook

26 Dec 2014
Hi Guys!

I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas. I wanted to let you know about a fantastic new social media site I have discovered called Tsu. Tsu acts as an alternative to Facebook and at first glance it appears very similar. The reason why authors and bloggers are loving it so far is that unlike Facebook it doesn't hide posts from you so if you choose to follow or friend someone you will get to see everything they post not just what Facebook deems most important (which is always just silly viral videos of no interest).

I have only just joined Tsu but I am enjoying it so far and I think it has incredible potential. Those who have been using it for a long time keep on saying how amazing it is - especially the fact that ALL followers and friends see posts.

At the moment this site is obviously quieter than facebook but once more people have joined I think it will be amazing. You need an invite to join so if you aren't on it already click HERE. If you enjoy following my blog please follow or friend me on Tsu at it appears to be the best way for me to share sales, free reads and exciting news with you. Other bloggers and authors - consider trying it for yourself!

Merry Christmas!

25 Dec 2014
Merry Christmas from all of us here at Bookish Treasures!
 
I hope you have a great Christmas and a wonderful New Year.

Neo in the Christmas tree

Lily in her Santa costume

Hot New Releases: December 17th - 23rd

24 Dec 2014
There wasn't loads of new releases this week but there are still a few absolute gems!

We can only include books that we are aware of! If you have an upcoming release please let us know over email, facebook or twitter for the chance to see it included in the weekly round up. We are also always happy to hear about any free or discounted books :D


Jubilee Chase and Flynn Cormac should never have met.

Lee is captain of the forces sent to Avon to crush the terraformed planet's rebellious colonists, but she has her own reasons for hating the insurgents.

Rebellion is in Flynn's blood. Terraforming corporations make their fortune by recruiting colonists to make the inhospitable planets livable, with the promise of a better life for their children. But they never fulfilled their promise on Avon, and decades later, Flynn is leading the rebellion.

Desperate for any advantage in a bloody and unrelentingly war, Flynn does the only thing that makes sense when he and Lee cross paths: he returns to base with her as prisoner. But as his fellow rebels prepare to execute this tough-talking girl with nerves of steel, Flynn makes another choice that will change him forever. He and Lee escape the rebel base together, caught between two sides of a senseless war.

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


There’s two sides to every story...
And ours? Isn't pretty...
Then again, what's pretty about the mafia?
Trace Rooks, that’s what.
But she only wants one of us, and I'll kill him before I let him have her.
The only problem?
We're cousins.
And she may just be our long lost enemy.
Whoever said college was hard, clearly didn't attend Eagle Elite University.
Welcome to hell also known as the Mafia where blood is thicker than life, and to keep yours? Well, keep your friends close, and your enemies?
Even closer...


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


Emery

You want to know my secrets? What lies beneath the pretty? The scars I can’t let anyone see? The scars tied to my secrets?
On the outside I appear normal. Some might even say perfect.
They say that I’m a pretty girl. They say I should be happy. They say that I have nothing to be angry about. That I’m popular. A cheerleader. That I’m perfect.
Perfect. Perfect. Perfect.
But all they see is what’s on the outside.
On the inside I’m raw, open, bleeding. Scars that can’t seem to heal the wounds.
Carrying dark secrets about who I really am.
How afraid I am to tell the truth.
And it’s slowly killing me.

Ryler

Tattoos. Piercing. Scars. The guy who can’t speak.
Gothic freak. Mute. Punk. I’ve heard it all.
They say that I’m probably dangerous. They say people should stay away from me.
They say. They say. They say.
But who are they anyway?
To decide what I am.
They don’t know what’s hidden beneath the scars. Beneath the piercings and tattoos.
The secrets I keep hidden beneath the silence.
Maybe if they knew, they wouldn’t fear me so much.
Then again, maybe they’d fear me more.


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


When Cassie Taylor met Ethan Holt at acting school, sparks flew. She was the good girl actress. He was the bad boy about campus. But one fated casting choice for Romeo and Juliet changed it all. Like the characters they were playing, Cassie and Ethan's romance seemed destined. Until he broke her heart and betrayed her trust. Now the A-list heartthrob is back in her life and turning her world around. One touch at a time.

Cast as romantic leads once again, they're forced to confront raw memories of the heartbreaking lows and pulse-pounding highs of their secret college affair. But they'll also discover that people who rub each other the wrong way often make the best sparks.


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK


Edwin presses for travel to his home clan of Cape Cod where The Rite of the Select must be performed for Calia. Philip reluctantly travels with the siblings, though his future with Calia is uncertain.

Adahy is part-Band but in his heart he is Iroquois. He must accept the horrible sins of necessity in his past and also a passion for a broken female he cannot deny. The legacy of war, protection and survival are all he knows. When Elise finds the only tender part of him, he leaves the sphere before those feelings have a chance to deepen.

King Otto has found fertile ground within the Fragment to germinate like the poisonous spore he is, and plots to ruin the last whole sphere.

Can Calia and Philip be together? Or will the rules which have governed the clans imprison her within a regime not of her choosing? Is Adahy strong enough to overcome his perceived guilt to embrace a chance at happiness with someone as fractured as himself....

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

Stacking The Shelves #52

21 Dec 2014
Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and it gives bloggers the opportunity to share the books they have received in the past week.
 
It has been MONTHS since I last did a stacking the shelves post but I miss sharing what books I have got and receiving your suggestions on what I should read first. I am not going to share all of the books I have got over the past few months or we would be here forever so I am just going to go with the last 2 weeks. As usual if you click on the book cover you will be taken to the books Amazon page.

For Review

Paperbacks
 
Some of these are slightly outside what I usually read but I am looking forwards to giving them a chance! Empire sounds fantastic and I need to dive into book 1 so that I can then read it.
 
Thank you to Piatkus Books and Headline for these fantastic titles.
 
 
Ebooks

Thank you to Kate Corcino, Janeal Falor and Xpresso Book Tours.
 
 
NetGalley

Walled is the sequel to a fantastic book so I can't wait to read it. One Last Song has been one of my most eagerly anticipated reads for a very long time as I was lucky enough to read it 1 1/2 years ago in its original incarnation and I really want to see what has changed.
 
 
Bought
 
Ebooks

I have read all these and they are amazing! I already have a review up of Amour Amour and one will be coming soon for Inspire.
 
 
Freebies
 
Blemished I recently read and I 100% recommend it, the other 2 also sound great. To my knowledge all are still free!
 

Review of Spark Rising

20 Dec 2014

Synopsis

All that’s required to ignite a revolution is a single spark rising.

Two hundred years after the cataclysm that annihilated fossil fuels, Sparks keep electricity flowing through their control of energy-giving Dust. The Council of Nine rebuilt civilization on the backs of Sparks, offering citizens a comfortable life in a relo-city in exchange for power, particularly over the children able to fuel the future. The strongest of the boys are taken as Wards and raised to become elite agents, the Council’s enforcers and spies. Strong girls—those who could advance the rapidly-evolving matrilineal power—don’t exist. Not according to the Council.

Lena Gracey died as a child, mourned publicly by parents desperate to keep her from the Council. She was raised in hiding until she fled the relo-city for solitary freedom in the desert. Lena lives off the grid, selling her power on the black market.

Agent Alex Reyes was honed into a calculating weapon at the Ward School to do the Council’s dirty work. But Alex lives a double life. He’s leading the next generation of agents in a secret revolution to destroy those in power from within.

The life Lena built to escape her past ends the day Alex arrives looking for a renegade Spark.

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

Review

Spark Rising by Kate Corcino is brilliant because it is so unique and fresh, I have honestly never read anything like it before! It has a post-apocalyptic / dystopian feel as it features an imperfect society that recently rebuild itself after a disaster that wiped out large numbers of the population. The “Sparks” then mix together both paranormal and sci-fi elements. Finally to top it off, there are very strong romance elements and the character ages and content make it a New Adult novel.

I loved that this NA novel brought something a little different to the table. It still features a lot of romance and the sexiness that many NA readers enjoy but rather than being too similar to other already available NA novels it has ditched a traditional contemporary storyline and instead gone in the dystopian direction.
One of my favourite elements to dystopian novels is that they generally have “strong” female characters and I’m not talking strong in a physical sense (though they often are) but more in their morality, sense of self and the fact that they can take care of themselves. Lena is no exception to this trend but she also seems more real than many of those in other books.

This book does have romance, though the romantic development felt to me more like a secondary plotline with the dystopic action taking the forefront. However, if you are a romance lover through and through this book still lots of it as well as a few steamy scenes. Alex is also quite good book boyfriend material, especially if you like the thought of a double agent rebelling against a corrupt government (I know I did!).
Whilst this doesn’t have a cliff-hanger ending, Spark Rising seemed to set the scene for what will be a longer series. I am looking forwards to the next book as I think there is much more about the world of Dust and the Sparks that is still to be explored and I cannot wait to see what else this author can bring to the table.

If you love both YA dystopian novels like the Hunger Games and Divergent and also NA contemporary romances then this will be perfect for you.
*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, this has not affected my opinions or ratings in any way*

Try it for yourself! Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK


Laura

Review of Amour Amour

18 Dec 2014

Synopsis

"Every day,” he says lowly, “I hold a person’s life in my hands. The circus is based one-hundred percent off trust. I give it all to someone, and they give it all to me.”The best aerial technique won’t land 21-year-old Thora James her dream role in Amour—a sexy new acrobatic show on the Vegas strip. Thora knows she’s out of her element the second she meets Amour’s leading performer. Confident, charming and devilishly captivating, 26-year-old Nikolai Kotova lives up to his nickname as the “God of Russia.”

When Thora unknowingly walks into the crosshairs of Nikolai’s after-show, her audition process begins way too soon. Unprofessional. That’s what Nik calls their “non-existent” relationship. It’s not like Thora can avoid him. For one, they may be partners in the future--acrobatic partners, that is. But getting closer to Nik means diving deeper into sin city and into his dizzying world.

Thora wants to perform with him, but when someone like Nikolai attracts the spotlight wherever he goes—Thora fears that she’s destined to be just background to his spellbinding show.

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

Review

Amour Amour by Becca and Krista Ritchie is a sexy, absorbing and stunning New Adult romance novel. I loved the circus element to the storyline; I like how refreshing it is to see an acrobat as the male lead and the strength and intensity of Nikolai will have readers wanting more male characters like him.

The opening of Amour Amour makes it seem like the book will be incredibly raunchy but sex scenes don’t actually have the largest of roles. There is still steaminess, a few light sex scenes and incredible sexual tension. I loved the balance in this book as the storyline and character development didn’t get lost in the sex as I am starting to see happen more and more in NA romance nowadays.
For me the circus element was incredible as I love dance, acrobatics and aerial arts and so know a lot of the terminology and about how prestigious circuses like the fictional one here generally work. However you don’t need to know any of that stuff to enjoy the book, the romance is the main element of this book and everything that you need to know about the acrobatics is well described.

The chemistry between Thora and Nikolai is electric and passion practically sizzles off the page. The romance develops fantastically too, it has the perfect amount of tension and the pacing is on point. My favourite thing about Amour Amour was the character development, both Thora and Nikolai grow so much and overcome fears and insecurities’ to be better people by the end of the book. I also love Thora’s dedication and passion to her art, she is willing to do whatever it takes to achieve her dream. This makes her the type of “strong” female character that I love (though she can be a bit whiney at times).
Amour Amour also has a cast of fantastic secondary characters, my favourites being Luka and Daniel but I don’t want to give too much away so you can learn more about them by reading the book :P

I wasn’t the biggest fan of how this book resolved itself as I thought it detracted from Thora’s strength, commitment and dedication to her art. However there are still worse ways it could have ended and it wasn’t terrible. In fact I liked the very end, just not how it got to that point.
Highlight for spoiler explanation I really wanted her to make it on her own, not fail and only get to be a part of Cirque Ethereal because of Nikolai basically pulling strings.

Overall this is a wonderful, unique read that I 100% recommend. There were a few elements, such as the aforementioned ending, that perfected it from being a 5 star read in my mind but I still really loved it.
Just for a bit of fun, I have embedded below an example of one of the circus acts briefly mentioned in Amour Amour - Wheel Of Death. I wanted to share an aerial silks duet but couldn't find one I liked enough. I think knowing what the acts are will make you understand the characters a little more as to what type of person they are so do google as you read!



Try it for yourself! Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

Laura

Hot New Releases: December 3rd - 16th

17 Dec 2014
The last 2 weeks have had some incredible new releases and here is my round up of some of the best.

We can only include books that we are aware of! If you have an upcoming release please let us know over email, facebook or twitter for the chance to see it included in the weekly round up. We are also always happy to hear about any free or discounted books :D

Contemporary YA


For new high school graduate Echo Emerson, a summer road trip out west with her boyfriend means getting away and forgetting what makes her so... different. It means seeing cool sights while selling her art at galleries along the way. And most of all, it means almost three months alone with Noah Hutchins, the hot, smart, soul-battered guy who’s never judged her. Echo and Noah share everything — except the one thing Echo’s just not ready for.

But when the source of Echo’s constant nightmares comes back into her life, she has to make some tough decisions about what she really wants — even as foster kid Noah’s search for his last remaining relatives forces them both to confront some serious truths about life, love, and themselves.

Now, with one week left before college orientation, jobs and real life, Echo must decide if Noah's more than the bad-boy fling everyone warned her he'd be. And the last leg of an amazing road trip will turn... seriously epic.  

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***

Non-contemporary YA


Game of Thrones meets the Grimm's fairy tales in this twisted, fast-paced romantic fantasy-adventure about Sleeping Beauty's daughter, a warrior princess who must fight to reclaim her throne.

Though she looks like a mere mortal, Princess Aurora is a fairy blessed with enhanced strength, bravery, and mercy yet cursed to destroy the free will of any male who kisses her. Disguised as a boy, she enlists the help of the handsome but also cursed Prince Niklaas to fight legions of evil and free her brother from the ogre queen who stole Aurora's throne ten years ago.

Will Aurora triumph over evil and reach her brother before it's too late? Can Aurora and Niklaas break the curses that will otherwise forever keep them from finding their one true love?


Goodreads | Amazon

***


Sixteen-year-old Mya Jones is cursed.

She is, hands down, the most beautiful creature on earth. But beauty can wound, and Mya finds herself reviled and shunned by her peers. If there is even a chance that she could start over, Mya longs to take it, no matter the risks.

So when the strange Mr. Merk offers her a new life away from home, Mya is hesitant but hopeful. Only she didn't count on the mysterious Ross, or her feelings for him.

BEAUTIFUL CURSE is a contemporary retelling of the myth of Psyche and Cupid.

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK


“There’s something hidden in the maze.”

Seventeen-year-old Imogen Rockford has never forgotten the last words her father said to her, before the blazing fire that consumed him, her mother, and the gardens of her family’s English country manor.

For seven years, images of her parents’ death have haunted Imogen’s dreams. In an effort to escape the past, she leaves Rockford Manor and moves to New York City with her new guardians. But some attachments prove impossible to shake—including her love for her handsome neighbor Sebastian Stanhope.

Then a life-altering letter arrives that forces Imogen to return to the manor in England, where she quickly learns that dark secrets lurk behind Rockford’s aristocratic exterior. At their center is Imogen herself—and Sebastian, the boy she never stopped loving.

Combining spine-tingling mystery, romance, and unforgettable characters, Suspicion is an action-packed thrill ride.

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***

Contemporary NA / Adult


The best aerial technique won’t land 21-year-old Thora James her dream role in Amour—a sexy new acrobatic show on the Vegas strip. Thora knows she’s out of her element the second she meets Amour’s leading performer. Confident, charming and devilishly captivating, 26-year-old Nikolai Kotova lives up to his nickname as the “God of Russia.”

When Thora unknowingly walks into the crosshairs of Nikolai’s after-show, her audition process begins way too soon. Unprofessional. That’s what Nik calls their “non-existent” relationship. It’s not like Thora can avoid him. For one, they may be partners in the future--acrobatic partners, that is. But getting closer to Nik means diving deeper into sin city and into his dizzying world.

Thora wants to perform with him, but when someone like Nikolai attracts the spotlight wherever he goes—Thora fears that she’s destined to be just background to his spellbinding show.
Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


The fifth book in the New York Times new adult series that began with Real. When an angry, heartbroken girl is forced to be near her rocker ex-boyfriend, only time will tell if the fire between them will consume them both.

Pandora, the gothic friend of Brooke (Real, Mine, Remy) and Melanie, thought that getting her heart broken by her bad boy rocker ex could only happen once. But now, he's back in town with the biggest concert of the year. Pandora hates him so much that she gets Melanie to come with her and play a prank on him at his gig. But when they are caught by security, and her ex himself is summoned, he decides not to press charges if she'll follow certain conditions. Pandora likes none of his rules, or that he's in charge of her, especially since they seem designed to make sure she's in close contact with him again. But the closeness reignites the passion they once shared, and soon no matter how much she wants to hate him, it's clear she's still hung up on him. And worse: he knows it too.


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK


Lizzie Brandt was valedictorian of her high school class, but at Radleigh University, all she's acing are partying and hooking up with the wrong guys. But all that changes when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, making her guardian to her two younger brothers. To keep them out of foster care, she'll have to fix up her image, her life, and her GPA—fast. Too bad the only person on campus she can go to for help is her humorless, pedantic Byzantine History TA, Connor Lawson, who isn't exactly Lizzie's biggest fan.

But Connor surprises her. Not only is he a great tutor, but he’s also a pretty great babysitter. And chauffeur. And listener. And he understands exactly what it’s like to be on your own before you're ready. Before long, Lizzie realizes having a responsible-adult type around has its perks... and that she'd like to do some rather irresponsible (but considerably adult) things with him as well. Good thing he's not the kind of guy who'd ever reciprocate.

Until he does.

Until they turn into far more than teacher and student.

Until the relationship that helped put their lives back together threatens everything they both have left.
  

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


I tried hard not to fall for the bad guy.

My new roommate, Blake, is a jerk—an unemployed artist with a chip on his shoulder. I can’t stand him unless his hands are on me. He makes me desperate for him, and everything he makes me feel.

And then there’s my new boss, Pierce--successful, charming, and extremely good-looking. He goes after what he wants, but what does he see in me?

I try to stay away, but I end up in the arms of exactly who I was hiding from. And when I find out what’s being hidden from me, my heart twists in ways it never should.

I thought I knew him.
I didn't.
The way he kissed me.
The way his hands traveled every inch of my skin.
I thought it meant something, but as it turns out, it was all lies unspoken.


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


After the first sighting, he’s fascinated.

After the first smile, he’s infatuated.

By the first kiss, he’s obsessed.

Nolan sees Chloe through a window of a bakery in downtown Manhattan. At first sight, something about her calls to a piece of him he thought was lost. Without thinking, he begins watching her, and when the moment presents itself, he strikes, claiming Chloe for himself. For a man who is used to getting what he wants Nolan wont let anyone or anything stand in his way.


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***

Non-contemporary NA / Adult


Twenty-two year old Ivy Morgan isn’t your average college student. She, and others like her, know humans aren’t the only thing trolling the French Quarter for fun… and for food. Her duty to the Order is her life. After all, four years ago, she lost everything at the hands of the creatures she’d sworn to hunt, tearing her world and her heart apart.

Ren Owens is the last person Ivy expected to enter her rigidly controlled life. He’s six feet and three inches of temptation and swoon-inducing charm. With forest-green eyes and a smile that’s surely left a stream of broken hearts in its wake, he has an uncanny, almost unnatural ability to make her yearn for everything he has to offer. But letting him in is as dangerous as hunting the cold-blooded killers stalking the streets. Losing the boy she loved once before had nearly destroyed her, but the sparking tension that grows between them becomes impossible for Ivy to deny. Deep down, she wants… she needs more than what her duty demands of her, what her past has shaped for her.

But as Ivy grows closer to Ren, she realizes she’s not the only one carrying secrets that could shatter the frail bond between them. There’s something he’s not telling her, and one thing is for certain. She’s no longer sure what is more dangerous to her—the ancient beings threatening to take over the town or the man demanding to lay claim to her heart and her soul.

Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


Kalliope lives with one purpose.

To inspire.

As an immortal muse, she doesn’t have any other choice. It’s part of how she was made. Musicians, artists, actors—they use her to advance their art, and she uses them to survive. She moves from one artist to the next, never staying long enough to get attached. But all she wants is a different life— a normal one. She’s spent thousands of years living lie after lie, and now she’s ready for something real.

Sweet, sexy, and steady, Wilder Bell feels more real than anything else in her long existence. And most importantly… he’s not an artist. He doesn’t want her for her ability. But she can’t turn off the way she influences people, not even to save a man she might love. Because in small doses, she can help make something beautiful, but her ability has just as much capacity to destroy as it does to create. The longer she stays, the more obsessed Wilder will become. It’s happened before, and it never turns out well for the mortal.

Her presence may inspire genius.

But it breeds madness, too.


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***


All that’s required to ignite a revolution is a single spark rising.

Two hundred years after the cataclysm that annihilated fossil fuels, Sparks keep electricity flowing through their control of energy-giving Dust. The Council of Nine rebuilt civilization on the backs of Sparks, offering citizens a comfortable life in a relo-city in exchange for power, particularly over the children able to fuel the future. The strongest of the boys are taken as Wards and raised to become elite agents, the Council’s enforcers and spies. Strong girls—those who could advance the rapidly-evolving matrilineal power—don’t exist. Not according to the Council.

Lena Gracey died as a child, mourned publicly by parents desperate to keep her from the Council. She was raised in hiding until she fled the relo-city for solitary freedom in the desert. Lena lives off the grid, selling her power on the black market.

Agent Alex Reyes was honed into a calculating weapon at the Ward School to do the Council’s dirty work. But Alex lives a double life. He’s leading the next generation of agents in a secret revolution to destroy those in power from within.

The life Lena built to escape her past ends the day Alex arrives looking for a renegade Spark.


Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK

***

Book Bargains This Week!

Make It Right by Megan Erickson
Black Box by Cassia Leo
Flat-Out Celeste by Jessica Park
Kiro's Emily by Abbi Glines - FREE
Suspending Reality by Chrissy Peebles - FREE