Hello again!

With 2011 quickly coming to a close, we only have a few weeks left to figure out what books to include in this years Top 10 week. I've already started on my lists for the five days and have to say that they are coming along pretty well. How is everyone's list's coming along? Is anyone having trouble keeping your lists to 10? We'd love to hear how you're doing and if anyone's struggling with their choices or if your lists are already done? Leave a comment and let us know!

We thought it was time for a check in and to send out some additional information about our week long event. First off, we're really excited to see how many of you will be joining in with posts for the last week of the year. And if you haven't signed up, not to worry.... there's still plenty of time! The more the Merrier! I know we're just as excited to check out everyone's lists as we are to posting each of ours.

In the first post about the event we mentioned a giveaway. Each person to signs up AND participates will be entered into a giveaway for.......

A $50.00 Amazon Gift Card!

ONE lucky participant will be eligible to win!! Entering is easy. Get your first entry by signing up for the event with the Linky at this post by >>>CLICKING HERE<<< Check out this post for all the details about the event!

To receive additional entries, be sure that you visit one of the 4 co-hosts blogs December 26th through the 30th. Each of these days will have a Linky for that days Top 10 List. All you have to do to get that extra entry is to link YOUR list with the correct topic for the day and your set! Just remember, EACH of the five days will have a NEW Linky for that days Top 10 Topic. We will be checking the winners link to make sure that they have participated.

Here's a quick recap of the dates and topics -


Monday 12/26 – Top 10 Books I’ve read in 2011

Tuesday 12/27 – Top 10 Book Covers of 2011 (can be ANY books released in 2011, doesn't have to be JUST book read in 2011)

Wednesday 12/28 – Top 10 Book Boyfriends in 2011 (based on books read in 2011)

Thursday 12/29 – Top 10 Characters in 2011 (This can be anything you'd like to make it for characters. You can post your favorite Villains, etc. Just be sure that this post is character based.)

Friday 12/30 – Top 10 Books I’m looking forward to in 2012 (also on this day, we'll each be adding something of a recap of the total number of books read, pages read, etc. This part of the post is optional. Feel free to add any stats you'd like to share with everyone. So, if you'd like to also include some end of year stats, feel free to join us!)

How you do these posts/lists is totally up to you. What books, covers and characters you pick are all your own.

The only rules to follow are posting the topics on the dates we've provided.

If you've already signed up, great and if you're just signing up now, were excited to have you! 

Don't forget to >>>CLICK HERE<<< and sign up using the Linky! 

"Waiting On" Wednesday is an event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. The purpose of this weekly event is to spotlight a soon-to-be-released book that you are very much anticipating. "Waiting On" Wednesday will also give bloggers an opportunity to share ideas for our TBR lists.

Title: Pure (Pure, #1)
Author: Julianna Baggott
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 448 Pages (February 8th, 2012)
Preorder here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository

Synopsis: We know you are here, our brothers and sisters . . .
Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run.

Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . .
There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it's his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her.

When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.

Title: Gil Marsh
Author: A.C.E. Bauer
Publisher: Random House, 192 Pages (February 28th, 2012)
Preorder here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository

Synopsis: Good looking, athletic, and smart, Gill Marsh is the most popular kid at Uruk High School, even though he is only a junior. When Enko, a new kid from Montreal, shows up, Gil is wary. Yet Enko is easy going and matches Gil's athletic prowess without being a threat. Soon, the two become inseparable friends, practicing, studying, and double-dating.

Then suddenly, to everyone's shock, Enko succumbs to an aggressive cancer.

When Enko's parents take his body and return to Canada, Gil is unable to even say good bye. He is inconsolable. Determined to find Enko's grave, Gil sneaks away and heads north.

Title: When the Sea is Rising Red
Author: Cat Hellisen
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 288 Pages (February 28th, 2012)
Preorder here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository

Synopsis: After seventeen-year-old Felicita’s dearest friend Ilven kills herself to escape an arranged marriage, Felicita chooses freedom over privilege. She fakes her own death and leaves her sheltered life as one of Pelimburg’s magical elite behind. Living in the slums, scrubbing dishes for a living, she falls for charismatic Dash while also becoming fascinated with vampire Jannik. Then something shocking washes up on the beach: Ilven's death has called out of the sea a dangerous wild magic. Felicita must decide whether her loyalties lie with the family she abandoned . . . or with those who would twist this dark power to destroy Pelimburg's caste system, and the whole city along with it.

How different are these books this week? Dystopian Pure, Heartbreaking Gil Marsh & Supernatural When the Sea is Rising Red. What do you guys think of these three titles? I am really looking forward to these vastly different from one another books.


*covers are always subject to change.
*I am not compensated at all for any of the links within this post.

Hushed is available from Entangled Publishing!

Synopsis: He’s saved her. He’s loved her. He’s killed for her.

Eighteen-year-old Archer couldn’t protect his best friend, Vivian, from what happened when they were kids, so he’s never stopped trying to protect her from everything else. It doesn’t matter that Vivian only uses him when hopping from one toxic relationship to another—Archer is always there, waiting to be noticed.

Then along comes Evan, the only person who’s ever cared about Archer without a single string attached. The harder he falls for Evan, the more Archer sees Vivian for the manipulative hot-mess she really is.

But Viv has her hooks in deep, and when she finds out about the murders Archer’s committed and his relationship with Evan, she threatens to turn him in if she doesn’t get what she wants… And what she wants is Evan’s death, and for Archer to forfeit his last chance at redemption.

Doing guest posts is fun, but it's especially exciting when I'm asked to talk about something I absolutely love—and something I love? Music. HUSHED has its very own play list that inspired various scenes. Some are songs I put on repeat for two, three hours at a time while I hacked away at a chapter, needing it to fuel on the mood I was trying to achieve. I do this with all my stories. My play lists tend to be constant works-in-progress, never really being complete. (Because even now, sometimes I'll hear a song and thing--"Oh, wow, that works for HUSHED." Onto the play list it goes. But I do always keep a list of songs I actually used while writing, because those were the songs that helped me make it through the story. I won't throw my entire play list at you, but I thought I'd share a few of the most important songs that played a huge part in shaping HUSHED and its characters.

Splender - Spin





"You had a hard day of pushing me away, please don't push, I fall easily" This song has been a favorite of mine for many years, so the fact it fit for Archer and Vivian and gave me an excuse (as though I needed one) to listen to it on repeat? Pretty awesome. So much of the lyrics fit them exactly. "You're not there, and I don't want you back."

Safetysuit - Life Left to Go




"Alone as you walk through a crowd and it's awkward like nobody sees, and you can't help but wonder, would anyone come after you if you'd leave?" One of the quieter songs on the play list would naturally be one from Evan's point of view. Everything about Evan is softer, gentler, and calmer than Archer's erratic and often frantic mindset. "And the failures you see, don't seem failures to me here at all" sums up Evan and Archer's relationship so perfectly.


Death Cab for Cutie - What Sarah Said




"Amongst the vending machines and year-old magazines, in a place where we only say goodbye" In HUSHED, there's one very specific moment that I would say is the absolute turning point of everything. Archer's feelings, Evan's, Vivian's. The defining moment takes place in a hospital, a little less than halfway through the book. (If you've read it, you know what one I'm talking about...right?)


Limp Bizkit ft. Chester Bennington - All That Easy (I Wish)




"In the clouds, all the grey, I'll stay if you go away" I know, I know. Limp Bizkit?? I'm not a fan of their stuff (though I do love Chester), but this song, for as short as it is, blows me away. In a minute and a half it captures everything about Archer in melody that I tried to capture with words on a page. Muted, melancholic, disjointed, and haunting. I love my play lists!

Thanks so much for letting me share a few songs. Enjoy the music.

'Kelley York delivers in this impressive debut. I was at the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next! Bottom line, this was unputdownable!!!' --- YA Fantasy Guide ---

Kelley's Bio:

Kelley was born and raised in central California, where she still resides with her lovely wife, daughter, and an abundance of pets. (Although she does fantasize about moving across the globe to Ireland.) She has afascination with bells, adores all things furry - be them squeaky, barky or meow-y - is a lover of video games, manga and anime, and likes to pretend she's a decent photographer. Her life goal is to find a real unicorn. Or maybe a mermaid.

Within young adult, she enjoys writing and reading a variety of genres from contemporary with a unique twist, psychological thrillers, paranormal/urban fantasy and horror. She loves stories where character development takes center stage.

Find Kelley Online:

Website/Blog | Twitter | Facebook

Purchase Hushed Online:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Thank you SO much for stopping by today Kelley! It was great to hear all about some of the music you were inspired by while reading Hushed. I really enjoyed hearing all about it. Also thank you to Stacey at Entangled Publishing for asking me to be part of this tour.

*I am not compensated at all for any of the links within this post.

Title: Kiss Crush Collide
Author: Christina Meredith
Publisher: Greenwillow Books, 336 Pages (December 27th, 2011)
From: the Publisher, Thank You!

Synopsis: Leah has the life most high school girls would kill for—popularity, glowing grades, a rich, athletic boyfriend. So why does she feel like she can’t breathe? And why can’t she stop thinking about the boy from the country club? The one who isn’t her boyfriend, the one that her mother would never, ever approve of, the one that her perfect older sisters would never, ever look at twice. The one who is always looking back at her. Irresistible attraction, smoldering glances, the bad boy and the good girl—Kiss Crush Collide has everything that a steamy forbidden romance should, and then some.

Review: 3 Stars - Kiss Crush Collide By Author Christina Meredith was a must read book based on cover and synopsis. Being touted as a recommendation for Perfect Chemistry fans, put this book even higher on the list of excited and eager to read.  As soon as it arrived I dropped everything and read it cover to cover in one sitting.

Leah works hard at being the perfect daughter. She has two older sisters and struggles to step out and away from their shadows. Her family is high maintenance to the extreme with a mother that seriously would have driven me insane. As I said, Leah works hard at being perfect… but that’s about all I took away from her by the end of the book.

She meets Duffy one night when her family goes to the country club. He’s a car porter and their attraction was instant. Sadly, Duffy’s not in the book enough to get a better idea of who he is. Their relationship was somewhat strange to me. I understand being attracted to someone when you see them, but from the brief interactions these two had together, I wish there was more honesty and real conversation between the two to give me a better idea who they really were. I was left with many questions about both of the characters at the end of the story, and hoped I would have connected with or better understood them.

All in All, I wish I could say that I loved this one from beginning to end. I wanted to love this one from beginning to end and I’ll say it wasn’t horrible… but it wasn’t at all what I was expecting. Meredith does a great job in writing scenes that were easy to visualize, which I always appreciate in a book. Sometimes getting a good idea of settings or surroundings or even events that are taking place within the pages of a book just don’t work, yet that wasn’t the case here. However, I tried right through to the last page to feel connected to the lead characters… and it sadly fell a tad flat. Maybe having such high expatiation's for this novel was part of the trouble I had with the overall read? Who else has read this title? What are your thoughts?

FTC Disclaimer: I did NOT pay for this book, nor have I been compensated at all in any way or means for reading and writing this HONEST review.

Title: Angels of the Night: Discovery
Author: Paula Kennedy
Publisher: Champagne Books, 188 Pages (August 2011)

Synopsis: Some angels DESERVE to die!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Twilight in this hot new Y.A. paranormal romance 'Angels of the Night: Discovery.'

Allison Webber is tired of looking over her shoulder. Stalked by shadows her entire life, she embraces the invitation to join a secret society hiding the existence of vampires. Things heat up quickly in this all male cult when she catches the eyes of two sexy vampire twins, Thane and Darcy Wallace. Amid steamy encounters with the identical twins competing for her attention, Allison learns her mission is to aid a select group of vampires, the Angels of the Night, as they hunt and destroy the females of their species. Completely taken with the brothers and her new role, she fails to see that one of the twins has been using her. Allison must delve deep within herself for the courage to save the brother she loves and destroy the one who betrayed her.

ENTER TO WIN A SIGNED COPY OF ANGELS OF THE NIGHT & BOOKMARK! 

One lucky winner will receive a signed copy and bookmark.

Five runners up will receive a bookmark.

Rules and how to enter:


You MUST be at least 13 years old to enter
To enter, please fill out the simple form below
Giveaway open US & Canadian residents only
Giveaway ends: December 14th, 2011

A HUGE thank you goes out to Paula for the book & bookmarks for this giveaway. 

Good luck to everyone who enters. If you have any questions, please check my policy page or feel free to email.