September 2015 Wrap-Up

My Life

During the past couple of weeks, I have not really had a life to talk about. I have just been submerged with work, work, and more work. Even my weekends, which I promised myself would be dedicated to blogging, are filling up with leftover work that I was too tired (lazy) to do during the week. It is safe to say that my time management skills have not gotten any better, but I have gotten pretty good at staying up way past my bedtime to finish everything. 

In the rare times when I do not have work, I have been trying to work equally on blog commenting/reading, post writing, and updating social media. I think that I have been doing a pretty decent job (at least in comparison to this time of last year). I promise that I am working my best to still be present in the blogging community despite my massive workload.

Review | Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Ready Player One

Author: Ernest Cline
Release Date: August 16, 2011
Pages: 374
Review by: Tessa

The world is a mess. Between global warming, economic devastation, world-wide poverty, energy famine, literal famine, pollution, and all of the world's other problems, no one wants to live in the real world anymore. Luckily, they do not have to.
Thanks to the genius, James Halliday, everyone has access to a free, virtual world. OASIS, like its name suggests, is mankind's refuge from itself. The intricately designed world is the most elaborate videogame ever created. People are fully emerged in whatever world they choose, everything from the classics like Pacman and Dungeons and Dragons to futuristic simulations. All you have to do is plug yourself in. 
Needless to say, Halliday made a fortune by creating his own world. And now that fortune is up for grabs since the old genius has experienced his final game-over. 
Staying true to his unorthodox roots, Halliday does not have a normal will. His multi-billion fortune, ownership of his company, and the rights to all of OASIS are not given to one person. Instead, the entire world has the chance to fight for it. Halliday has hidden clues in his vast virtual universe guarded by countless obscure 80's pop culture references and puzzles that would fool Einstein himself, and the first person to follow the trail and find the treasure gets to keep it. And one geeky, impoverished kid named Wade is willing to do anything to get it. 

Classic Conversations | What exactly is a classic?

After a lot of thought and mental arguments with myself, I have decided to start yet another new feature on Crazy for YA (hopefully I will actually be able to keep up with this one). 

I am proud to introduce... Classic Conversations. (Yes, the alliteration was necessary.)

For the past couple of years, my blog has focused on young adult books, like the title suggests. But, I would like to branch out a little and explore some of the other amazingness that the literary world has to offer. And, of course, my first segment of this adventure is a little foray into the world of classics.

*Cue the collective groans*

I understand that many people do not have the best experiences with classics. There are truly some terrifying stories about English teachers and their various torture methods, most of which include these victimized books.

I am not an English teacher and my intent is far from boring you to death. I want to try to show you that classics are actually worth reading. I want to ignite some awesome conversations about books and life. And most of all, I want to show you that these seemingly dull novels are really teeming with life if you take the time to appreciate them.

I know that those are some pretty high ambitions. Some might even call it impossible. But I am willing to give it a shot and I hope you are too.

So, to start this first of hopefully many conversations about the classics, I want to delve into some background knowledge about classics. Specifically, what even is a classic? Is it a dusty old tome that some dead person wrote a billion years ago? Or can it be something more modern?

Giveaway | Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne

I do not announce book deals very often, but today I have a couple of announcement for you, my wonderful readers. 1. Midnight Thief, Livia Blackburne's haunting debut novel, is on sale for 99 cents  as an ebook. 2. Daughter of Dusk, the second installment of the series, has recently been released. 3. I have a giveaway for you to win some of these amazing goodies.

Growing up on Forge’s streets has taught Kyra how to stretch a coin. And when that’s not enough, her uncanny ability to scale walls and bypass guards helps her take what she needs.
But when the leader of the Assassins Guild offers Kyra a lucrative job, she hesitates. She knows how to get by on her own, and she’s not sure she wants to play by his rules. But he’s persistent—and darkly attractive—and Kyra can’t quite resist his pull.
Tristam of Brancel is a young Palace knight on a mission. After his best friend is brutally murdered by Demon Riders, a clan of vicious warriors who ride bloodthirsty wildcats, Tristam vows to take them down. But as his investigation deepens, he finds his efforts thwarted by a talented thief, one who sneaks past Palace defenses with uncanny ease.
When a fateful raid throws Kyra and Tristam together, the two enemies realize that their best chance at survival—and vengeance—might be to join forces. And as their loyalties are tested to the breaking point, they learn a startling secret about Kyra’s past that threatens to reshape both their lives.
In her arresting debut novel, Livia Blackburne creates a captivating world where intrigue prowls around every corner—and danger is a way of life.

Until September 13th, The Midnight Thief ebook is only 99 cents!

Review | All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

All The Bright Places

Author: Jennifer Niven
Release Date: January 6th, 2015
Pages: 388
Review By: Max

After her sister died in a tragic accident, Violet Markey attempts to return to her normal life. She soon realizes nothing can ever be the same, so Violet spends her time counting down the days until she can leave her small Indiana town and the haunting grief.

Theodore Finch (or Theodore Freak, as his classmates are known to call him) tries on different versions of himself in order to forget about the bullies and his troubled home life, but it's becoming harder and harder to stay awake.

One fateful school day, the two find themselves on the top of a bell tower, contemplating jumping. Even though the two have never spoken before, they manage to talk each other out of any sort of reckless decision, and despite their popularity differences, Violet and Finch slowly become friends. The friendship quickly becomes something more, and Violet and Finch discover who they are and what life can be when you're not focused on death. As they become more focused on life, however, Finch starts to lose the strength he needs to stay awake.

Top Ten Tuesday | Finished Series I Haven't Finished Yet

This is a weekly list meme hosted by the wonderful bloggers at The Broke and the Bookish. 

Both Max and I are well versed in today's topic. I actually have a whole post dedicated to my series procrastination tendencies. This is the easiest TTT we have done for a while. 

So, here is a list of finished series (series that have all of the books published already) that we have not read yet.

Sunday Street Team | Never, Never by Brianna Shrum

Welcome to the Sunday Street Team! This is my first post as a part of this amazing group and I am excited to say that it is not going to be my last!

Today, I am hosting a guest post from the wonderful Brianna Shrum. Her debut novel, Never, Never, will be released on September 22. Her book caught my eye because it is a retelling of Peter Pan (which I have never read before) from the perspective of Captain Hook! As we all know, everyone has a story, even the villains. 

Never, Never
By Brianna R. Shrum
Release Date: September 22, 2015
Pages: 368

James Hook is a child who only wants to grow up.
When he meets Peter Pan, a boy who loves to pretend and is intent on never becoming a man, James decides he could try being a child—at least briefly. James joins Peter Pan on a holiday to Neverland, a place of adventure created by children’s dreams, but Neverland is not for the faint of heart. Soon James finds himself longing for home, determined that he is destined to be a man. But Peter refuses to take him back, leaving James trapped in a world just beyond the one he loves. A world where children are to never grow up.
But grow up he does.
And thus begins the epic adventure of a Lost Boy and a Pirate.
This story isn’t about Peter Pan; it’s about the boy whose life he stole. It’s about a man in a world that hates men. It’s about the feared Captain James Hook and his passionate quest to kill the Pan, an impossible feat in a magical land where everyone loves Peter Pan.

Except one.

Blog Tour + Review | The Way to Never by O. E. Boroni

Today, I am happy to announce my stop on The Way to Never blog tour. A couple of months ago, I also participated in The Beginning of Never blog tour. If you want to see my review of the first installment of this series, then click here.

The Way to Never
By O. E. Boroni
Published July 25, 2015



*I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review, but this ndoes not affect my opinion of the book in ANY way.*

When falling out of love, refuses to become an option… 

Nathan Roque first met Lenora Baker, a beautiful, exasperating, and bitter girl when she was just fifteen years old. He fell so deeply in love with her that he suspected that in his lifetime, nothing else could ever mirror the kind of commitment that she drew out of him. But she is left heartbroken when an unfortunate incident drives them apart. 

Thirteen years later, he sets out to reach out to her when he can no longer resist the consuming thoughts of her that have haunted him for so long. However, the same demons that caused him to let go of her in the first place are still holding him back. But when he is thrust into a situation where he has no choice but to become professionally involved with her, a Pandora’s Box of angst, resentment, and passion is unleashed. 

Now they are forced to make the decision on how to proceed. But will it justify the one that they made in the past, or will it mock it? 

August 2015 Wrapup

My Life

I am starting to feel as if I am writing the same thing every month. I guess my life is just not my interesting. But, I am going to try to spice it up this month.

Have you ever had one of those days where it seems like life has a personal vendetta against you and your free time? Well, I had one of those months. Whenever I finished working on one thing, something else popped up in its place. So, instead of enjoying what I had left of summer, I ended up working through the last rays of freedom.

With the end of summer, my life has just gotten back into the swing of real life. Schoolwork, homework, extra activities, headaches, procrastination, and somewhere between that all, reading. The stress has been piling on and I have not been able to find time for the one thing that always calms me down, which we all know is reading. 

If you have not read it already, I wrote an announcement about an update of my priorities. It basically says that I have decided to organize my time a little bit more, so that means less time for blogging and perusing social media and more time for work. Not fun, but necessary.