Stacking the Shelves (58)

I may have been a little trigger happy with buying books this past month but I have no regrets! So many amazing books came out since my last book haul – ACOFAS, Sky in the Deep, 9 Days & 9 Nights and The Way You Make Me Feel aka all my recent 5 star reads. Not to mention all the talk of classics (ones I need to read and old favorites) with my dad and friends inspired me to literally add them to my bookshelves. But another wonderful and completely unplanned purchase were these old but new-to-me editions of Dragonsong and Dragonsinger by Anne McCaffrey. I technically don't collect them. I just have my original set and a new edition of Dragonsinger (which is my fave in the series) but I could not resist these! In fact, after they arrived I ended up rereading Dragonsinger again.

It makes me so happy to these books on my shelves and I can't wait to get to the ones I haven't read yet.

So, onto the books!

Cover Reveal | Imprison the Sky by A.C. Gaughen

The last book I read in 2017 was Reign the Earth by A.C. Gaughen and what a book to end the year on. It was a five star read for me that quite frankly blew me away. The storytelling, the characters, the feels. In January, I couldn't wait to get my hands on a finished copy and to meet the author face-to-face at Books of Wonder, where I totally fangirled about how much I loved it. (Also, she was just super nice!)

So when Bloomsbury asked if I wanted to be a part of the cover reveal for the next book in the series ... I couldn't say yes fast enough!

Imprison the Sky (I mean, that title!) is the sequel to Reign the Earth but can also be read as a standalone. It introduces us to Aspasia, a new inspiring female protagonist who is a rebel wind Elementae and here is the cover of her book:

Stolen from her family as a child, Aspasia has clawed her way up the ranks of Cyrus's black market empire to captain her own trading vessel--and she risks it all every time she uses her powerful magic to free as many women, children, and Elementae from slavery as she can. But Cyrus is close to uncovering her secrets--not only that Aspasia is a wind Elementa with the ability to sail her ship through the sky, but that she is also searching for her lost family. And if Aspasia can’t find her younger siblings before Cyrus does, she will never be able to break free. Armed with her loyal crew full of Elementae and a new recruit who controls an intriguing power, Aspasia finds herself in the center of a brewing war that spans every inch of the ocean, and her power alone may not be enough to save her friends, family, and freedom.

The cover is beautiful and fits so well with its predecessor. If you haven't started the series yet, catch up now so you'll be ready to pick this up when it comes out on January 22, 2019!

Add to Goodreads | Follow A.C. Gaughen on Twitter and Instagram | Follow Bloomsbury on Twitter and Instagram

Mini-reviews: The Way You Make Me Feel + From Twinkle, with Love

The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo

pub 5/8/18 by Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Young Adult - Contemporary
Received ARC from pub for review

I've read all of Maurene Goo's books and while I enjoyed them and recognized how fun her writing was, there was always something missing for me. But with The Way You Make Me Feel? 100% not the case. It was funny, endearing, moving (yes I cried) and combined all these elements in a way that made love this book so much. Basically Clara Shin is known for being a prankster. When her latest joke goes too far and clashes with her classmate Rose Carver (uptight and kind of her enemy), her normally chill dad decides it's time to her act together. And that means both she and Rose will spend the entire summer working at his food truck, the KoBra. But what at first seems like a nightmare turns out to be something unexpectedly great. And the greatness of this book can be summed up into these four words: food, family, friendship and love. There's an incredible level of detail about the diverse food scene in LA (and huge Asian community!). You just can't read this book without feeling hungry afterwards. Not to mention, it made me miss LA so much. Then family is another huge part of Clara's story and I loved the dynamic between her and her dad. They're likened to an Asian Gilmore Girls and I mean, how awesome does that sound?! Next, there's Clara and Rose. Watching their relationship evolve reminded me of important positive female friendships are and Goo approached it in her usual humorous style without taking away what a big deal it was for both girls. And lastly, there's an adorable guy named Hamlet and while he seems like Clara's anti-guy, there's something about him that she can't help but like (you and me both girl).

Do I recommend? Yes! This book took me completely by surprise and makes me even more excited for what this author will come up with next . You definitely need to put this on your TBR.

To Twinkle, with Love by Sandhya Menon

pub 5/22/18 by Simon Pulse
Young Adult - Contemporary
Received from pub via Netgalley

Yet another winner from Sandhya Menon! And I’m doubly impressed because I’m usually not into the whole epistolary format thing but I really liked this (Dimple is still my fave though). The beginning was a bit touch and go, at least for me, as we're thrown headfirst in Twinkle Mehra's life through her first journal entry. Twinkle is an aspiring filmmaker and journals the ongoings of her day-to-day through letters to her favorite female filmmakers. We find out that she sees herself as an unpopular wallflower, is struggling to hold onto her best friend who is popular, and she's crushing on Neil Roy. But it’s his twin brother Sahil who approaches her to collaborate on a movie to submit to the Summer Festival. Of course Twinkle says yes and that’s when it really starts to pick up. The story starts to unfold rather predictably as Twinkle falls for Sahil (I mean, who wouldn’t? I loved him!) and she begins to truly look at herself and who and what she wants. But Menon also explores balancing new and old friends, growing up, family struggles, identity and first love in such an honest and earnest way. And it was the latter – not to mention the fun filmmaking stuff – that I enjoyed the most!

Do I recommend? I do! So far I’ve enjoyed both of Menon’s books and I can’t wait for her next one!