Real Neat Blog Award!

I was nominated by Lauren @ Always Me for the Real Neat Blog award. She's the best; thank you again Lauren! If you don't follow her, I highly recommend her blog! I was actually nominated twice, and I apologize that I never got around to it! You might see a part two of this so I can answer the other questions. :D

Rules:

1. Thank and link back to the blogger who nominated you.

2. Answer the seven questions set to you.

3. Create seven questions for your nominees.

4. Nominate seven other bloggers.

1) What is your favorite food?
I don't really have one! But I do love anything with pesto though! Give me a tomato mozzarella sandwich with pesto, and I will love you forever. 

2) How many languages do you know?
Technically, I am only fluent in one - English. However, I have taken up to Spanish three in my high school year. I want to be fluent in it, but I would have to restart from the beginning. I don't have a good foundation to go higher, and I know I would struggle if I could.

3) Describe the last book you read using one word.
Dry.

4) What books are you currently reading?
I am currently reading Intertwined by Gena Showalter, and I am currently listening to Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly. Both are the first books in a series, and I am enjoying both! I'm actually almost done with Deep Blue. I really appreciate how the female friendships are accurately represented!

5) Of all the unread books on your shelf, what has been there the longest?

I think I've owned Dissonance for two years now. I bought it through Book Outlet, and I've just never gotten around to it. 

6) What is the last dream you recall?
Okay, I have weird dreams; you've been warned. As a predecessor, I have this stain in my car from the previous owner that I tried getting out the other day, and it smells SO bad whenever I try to clean it. Last night I had a dream where I was cleaning it again, but my friends from my school's feminist club were also cleaning their cars as well. The stain then passed to each car, like an infectious disease. Told you it was strange! 

7) How long have you been blogging?
I've been blogging for a year and a couple months now! 

My Nominees:
Laura @ Blue Eye Books
Anna @ Enchanted by YA

Bookish Realm 
Ann & Clare @ Dual Reads
Shon, Tina, and Wendy and Tangled 'N' Books  
Greg @ Book Haven 
Angel Erin @ Angel Erin's Book Obsession
  
My Questions:

I'm going to keep the same questions just as Lauren did because I'd like to see the responses as well! 

Once again, a huge thank you to Lauren for nominating me! Make sure you follow her as well!

If I didn't tag you, feel free to consider yourself tagged or answer some of the questions in the comments!

Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!    

T5W: Gateway Books to YA Contemporary

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be participating in Top 5 Wedensday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam from Thoughts on Tomes. Lainey from Gingerreadslainey is the founder of Top 5 Wednesday. This week's topic is Gateway Books to Your Favorite Genre. To be honest, I don't have a favorite genre. I try to read an array of genres, so I just decided to pick one and roll with it. 

I'm going to be focusing on YA contemporary, but ones that have darker themes. While I adore the happy go lucky contemporaries, I tend to enjoy contemporaries that deal with heavier subjects more. Here are five gateway books to YA contemporary:

5.) Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles
Leaving Paradise is one of the first YA contemporaries I read that dealt with darker material. Maggie now permanently walks with a limp after she was hit by a car by her next door neighbor Caleb. Both teenagers are outcasts, and they eventually find solace in each other, but their past is very messy and leads to heightened tensions. 
 
4.) Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
Twenty Boy Summer wrecked me when I first read it. The novel follows Anna and her friend Frankie. They dare each other to see who can kiss 20 boys within the summer. What makes this different from a light contemporary is the fact that Anna was secretly dating Frankie's older brother, Matt, before his death a year ago. Frankie never knew, and seeing Anna dealing with her grief, lying to her friend, and coming to terms with Matt's death is heartbreaking and bittersweet and ugh SO. GOOD. 
 
3.) The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
Nelson is known for her hard-hitting contemporaries (I'll Give You the Sun is extremely popular). When I read The Sky is Everywhere a few years back, I was a mess. The novel focuses Lennie and how she deals with the untimely death of her older sister. This book hit me so hard because the relationship between Lennie and her sister is much like that of my own. If you've only read I'll Give You the Sun, I urge you to pick this one up!!
 
2.) The Running Dream  by Wendelin Van Draanen
Jessica's dreams are seemingly shattered when she loses one of her legs due to a car crash. She struggles with accepting that her future is changed, as well as being a social outcast. Jessica's character growth is great here; she befriends Rosa, a girl with CP that Jessica dismissed before her accident. I loved the ending, and writing about it is making me want to read the book again!
 
1.) Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
Yoon's debut novel Everything, Everything was one of my favorite books of last year. Maddie has a rare disease that is commonly known as the 'bubble disease'; she needs to live in a sterile environment and has no interaction with any humans besides her mother and her caregiver, Carla. The latter changes when she meets Olly, her new next door neighbor. Everything spirals out of control, and the plot twist was fantastic.

Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

Meeting Alwyn Hamilton!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! So I just found this post in the drafts of my blog and realized that I never posted it. Unfortunately, I can't find the pictures I had of me and Alwyn. So here is my post, months late! Sorry!


Just an hour ago I was talking to Alwyn Hamilton, the author of Rebel of the Sands, which just came out on the first of March! Rebel of the Sands was one of my most anticipated reads, and I had such an amazing experience.

BOOK REVIEW | November 9 by Colleen Hoover

Title: November 9
Author: Colleen Hoover
Pages: 310
Source: I won this through a giveaway on my friend Poulami's blog!
Synopsis:

This is a love story between a guy (me) and a girl (Fallon).
I think.
Can it even be considered a love story if it doesn’t end with love?
Mysteries end when the mystery is solved.
Biographies end when the life story has been told.
Love stories should end with love, right?
Maybe I’m wrong, then. Maybe this isn’t a love story. If you ask me…I’d say this might even be considered a tragedy.
Whatever it is—however it ends—I promised I would tell it. So without further ado.

Once upon a time…I met a girl.
THE girl

Most Anticipated Fall Releases!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be showing what books I am most excited about this fall. There are a lot of great books coming out the remainder of this year, and I know I won't be getting to all of them! A girl can hope, though!

A Shadow Bright and Burning by Jessica Cluess
Publication Date: Sept. 20th
Why? I haven't read a book about witches in such a long time, and I want to get back into it! Henrietta is the first female sorcerer, and I love some female power. Hopefully the male sorcerers won't be too bigoted and ignorant!

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake
Publication Date: Sept. 20th
Why? Three kickass sister witches that are supposed to fight to the death? Yes, please! Add in the fact that two of the three sisters don't have powers, and I'm sold. I'm interested to see what Kendare Blake has in store. Her Anna duology wasn't one of my favorites, and I'm hoping that this will pique my interest more.

BOOK REVIEW | Losing It by Cora Carmack

Title: Losing It (Losing It #1)
Author: Cora Carmack
Publication Date: February 26, 2013
Pages: 259
Source: I bought this at a second hand bookstore!

Virginity.

Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible-- a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if that weren’t embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognizes her new theatre professor. She’d left him naked in her bed about 8 hours earlier.

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Goodreads 

TTT: My Favorite Book to TV Adaptions!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I am participating in Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Broke and Bookish. This week's topic is honoring fall TV, but we were able to put our own twist on it. In order to stay book-related, I'm showcasing my favorite book to TV adaptions! Also, I realize it's a Thursday. Let's ignore how late I am, shall we?

This list is from my least favorite to my most favorite!

7.) Shadowhunters
This series, which is based off of The Mortal Instruments, needs a lot of fine tuning. The narrative of the first season was shaky, and it went places that didn't make sense. However, there were a couple episodes that did stand out. I'm looking forward to seeing how the second season will improve.

6.) Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl is a guilty pleasure.  I think of it like candy: it leaves you satisfied for a little bit, but it has no substance. The characters is what saves the series, not the plots. However, I can't say whether or not it is a good adaption, since I haven't read the source material. If you have, let me know!

5.) Pretty Little Liars
While I've never read the books that this show is based off of, I can say one thing: the television show is entertaining. I don't think the past two seasons have been good by any means, but they've kept my attention. I'm excited to see how the series will end this fall!

4.) Shannara Chronicles
The Shannara Chronicles debuted last year on MTV. While I didn't love the show by any means, it was entertaining and I think this upcoming season will exceed the first. The series has a great balance between romance and adventure, and I'm liking it a lot more than I am Shadowhunters right now.

3.) Roswell
To be honest, I forgot that Roswell is a book adaption! The television series has such a strong sense of self that it is hard to remember that is started out as a book series. If you haven't watched Roswell, I strongly encourage you to! The alien teen drama isn't as cheesy as you might think it is. 

2.) Vampire Diaries
A couple years ago, Vampire Diaries would have no doubt made the top of my list. Unfortunately, the last couple of seasons have just fallen short of the magic that was in the third and fourth seasons. The eighth season is its last, and I'm not ready yet to say goodbye.

1.) The 100
The 100 blew my mind away! I wasn't necessarily interested in the series at first, but I was convinced to watch it and my expectations were met and surpassed. Out of the three seasons that have been released, the second is my favorite. I love the television show so much that I actually read the source material! The show and the book series are so different, so I can't easily compare the two.  

Anticipated Book to TV Adaptions

1.) A Darker Shade of Magic
If you didn't know, I read A Darker Shade of Magic over the summer. I didn't love it, but I did find it entertaining! I think the book would be excellent as a television series, and possibly answer the questions I have. Of course, the sequels can do that as well!

2.) Shatter Me
This better come out in the next two years! It's been over a year since I've finished the Shatter Me trilogy, and I'd love to revisit the world! I think the television show would be great, and I think all the characters would translate well to screen, especially Kenji!


3.) A Series of Unfortunate Events
Last but certainly not least, A Series of Unfortunate Events! I actually have only read the first two books of the series, but I plan of fixing that problem. A Series of Unfortunate Events was adapted into a movie, but I think it would be better as a television series. Plus, Netflix is doing it, and they always produce excellent tv.  

What are some of your favorite book to TV adaptions? If you participated in TTT, feel free to link it down below! I'd love to check out your posts. 

Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ ready, Set, Read!

AUGUST WRAP UP!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I got a bit better at reading this last month, and I was able to get through 8 books. I'm still seven books behind schedule, but I am planning on reading some graphic novels (and possibly children's books) to help me out.

Here are the 8 books I read, from worst to best!