Top Ten Tuesday - #13

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week there is a new topic and we all share our thoughts on that topic! I decided it was finally time to jump on board with this wicked fun meme!

For this week on Top Ten Tuesday, the topic is:

Top Ten favourite book covers, of books I've read!

As you'll be able to tell, books with pretty dresses and hot boys are my fave!

| The Boys of Summer | Falling Kingdoms | Dance of Shadows | Poison Princess |

| Alice in Zombieland | Spark | Something Strange and Deadly | Clockwork Princess|

| The Night Circus | Boundless |

- - -

That's all folks! Come back next week for another top ten and make sure you put your own list in the comments!

Dare You To - Katie McGarry

Dare You To - 

Katie McGarry
Released: June 1, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin Teen Aus

Synopsis: If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's home life, they'd send her mother to jail and seventeen-year-old Beth who knows where. So she protects her mom at all costs. Until the day her uncle swoops in and forces Beth to choose between her mom's freedom and her own happiness. That's how Beth finds herself living with an aunt who doesn't want her and going to a school that doesn't understand her. At all. Except for the one guy who shouldn't get her, but does....

Ryan Stone is the town golden boy, a popular baseball star jock-with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even the friends he shares everything with, including the constant dares to do crazy things. The craziest? Asking out the Skater girl who couldn't be less interested in him.

But what begins as a dare becomes an intense attraction neither Ryan nor Beth expected. Suddenly, the boy with the flawless image risks his dreams-and his life-for the girl he loves, and the girl who won't let anyone get too close is daring herself to want it all....

What it's about: Beth is back and this story the story is hers. After a stint with her mum and her mums boyfriend lands her in the guardianship of her uncle, Beth's life is turned upside down. Her uncle Scott has all these rules, not to mention she can't see her mum, Isaiah or Noah, and Scott's wife clearly hates her, she also has to start out at a different school. There she meets Ryan - a jock baseball player who loves nothing more than to win a challenge, and that dare is directed at her.

What I thought: I was a bit worried at how this book was going to go - don't get me wrong, I was super excited because I loved Pushing the Limits, but Beth is such a moody character, I wasn't sure I would be able to read a whole book from her point of view. Turns out I had nothing to worry about, because Katie McGarry is such a wicked writer. Sure, Beth is still moody and likes to swear and chuck a tantrum, but we get to see the other side of her, the vulnerable side. We also have Ryan's point of view to even it out, but Ryan has problems of his own, including falling for Beth. It should be easy - he likes her, she seems to like him, but Beth only knows about keeping people at arms length - she's been burned before and doesn't intend to let it happen again.

Ryan is a soft, well-meaning character and I couldn't help but fall for him instantly. Sure, he loves a good dare and he's a jock and all that jazz, but when he realised his feelings for Beth, it was game over for him. His friends give the story some extra bang, pulling him in all different directions. We get to learn more about Beth, and all her little secrets about her old home life and who she used to be. We watch her struggle with herself and her choices, proving to us all that there is a lot more beneath the surface. This is another wonderful romantic story, with it's issues just like in Pushing the Limits.

If you loved Pushing the Limits then I definitely suggest picking this one up - or even if you love a good contemporary story. Go on, I Dare You To.

The Good: Another fast paced, action packed love story to lose your heart to.

The Bad: That feeling you get when you realise you won't have any more Ryan!

Rating:

5 bookstacks

Spirit - Brigid Kemmerer

Spirit - 

Brigid Kemmerer
Released: May 28, 2013
Publisher: K-Teen

Synopsis: Hunter Garrity just wants to be left alone. He’s learned the hard way that his unusual abilities come at a price. And he can’t seem to afford any allies.

He’s up to his neck in hostiles. His grandfather, spoiling for a fight. The Merrick brothers, who think he ratted them out. Calla, the scheming psycho who wants to use him as bait.

Then there’s Kate Sullivan, the new girl at school. She’s not hostile. She’s bold. Funny. Hot. But she’s got an agenda, too.

With supposedly secret powers rippling to the surface everywhere around him, Hunter knows something ugly is about to go down. But finding out what means he’ll have to find someone he can trust…

What it's about: Book three in the Elementals series, this time the story centres around Hunter. We pick up not long after we left off in Spark - the Merrick boys don't trust him, his family aren't happy with him and Calla is causing more trouble. Then Hunter meets Kate, and he realises how amazing she is, but she has a secret too. Can Hunter learn who to trust before everything crumbles around him?

What I thought: As many of my readers may know, I am in love with Brigid Kemmerer's writing. After debuting on the YA scene last year, she quickly became one of my favourite authors, so I came in with high expectations. And as per usual, she did not disappoint. She even exceeding my expectations by the big sad twist in the end - remember to have some tissues on hand!

All our favourite characters are back, and we are also introduced to Kate and Silver. Hunter is a cranky boy for most of the book, and we see a few new sides to him that were hidden from us before. He fights with his grandfather, he crashes with the Merrick boys (despite everything), he meets and falls for a gorgeous new girl, he gets himself into a whole lot more trouble - and you won't be able to put this book down!

Because this book is more about Hunter and his own journey of self-discovery, the Merrick boys don't play a prominent part, but don't be discouraged! We needed Spirit to be from Hunter's point of view as he is the best person to have told the story. Plus we still get to see Michael playing big brother, Gabriel getting into a fight (a couple times) and Nick and Chris are around too.

If you loved Storm and Spark, then you will love Spirit just as much! If you haven't gotten around to reading them yet, I suggest you hop to it because you are seriously missing out!  Now bring on book 4!!

The Good: Brigid Kemmerer is truly amazing. She has this ability to pull you into her stories, make you get emotionally involved and even crush your poor little hearts - her writing is one in it's own right.

The Bad: I don't think I could ever find a negative word to say!

Rating:

5 bookstacks

Pivot Point - Kasie West

Pivot Point - 

Kasie West
Released: February 12, 2013
Publisher: HarperTeen

Synopsis: Knowing the outcome doesn’t always make a choice easier . . .

Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not.

In one potential future, Addie is adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live without.

What it's about: Addison lives in a compound where each person uses one hundred percent of their brains, and each has a kind of mind-power. Addie can search into her own future if faced with a choice, and see both outcomes - which is what she does when her parent's tell her they're getting a divorce. Her mother is staying inside the compound, but her father is leaving, to live with the norms, and Addie has to choose.

What I thought: When I started this book, I went in not really remembering what it was about. I knew it was a paranormal/dystopian type book, but I couldn't read the synopsis I'd read previously. All I knew was that everyone was talking about how amazing it was, and now I know why. I literally could not put this book down. Despite how late it was and how tired I was, I refused to succumb to sleep - I needed to see how the story ended. In one life, Addie chooses her father and moves out of the compound, meeting Trevor and making new friends with the norms, keeping her old life a secret. Trevor is cute, fun and he understands her. In her other life, she stays in the compound with her mother and begins dating the hottest boy in her school, Duke, despite the fact that they have nothing in common. But something big is looming at the end, and it'll hit you like a truck.

Throughout the book, I had to keep reminding myself that at the end of the search, she was going to have to pick a life, and through the whole book I thought I knew which one it would be... Until the big twist at the end. I felt connected to Addie and her emotions, giving me the feeling that I was there the whole time. This is definitely one book to put at the top of your to-be-read pile! I don't why I hadn't started it sooner!

I have to say to everyone, this is a huge contender for my favourite book of 2013!

The Good: Finding out unexpectedly that Pivot Point is going to have a sequel and my love-fest for Kasie West's beautiful writing, and of course Trevor can continue!!

The Bad: Realising said sequel has no cover, no synopsis and no official release date yet, only a looming '2014'. WANT NOW!

Rating:

5 bookstacks