In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren, which allows bloggers to share what books they’ve received in the past week. They can be from stores, contests, tours or publishers!

• Everneath by Brodi Ashton (thanks to Publishers)
• The Unbecoming Of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (thanks to Publishers)
• Fated by Sarah Alderson (thanks to Publishers)
• Hallowed by Cynthia Hand (purchased)
• Lover Awakened by J.R. Ward (purchased)
• Hero by Perry Moore (purchased)
• Nana: Volume 2 by Ai Yazawa (purchased)

A big thanks to Simon and Schuster who sent me the top three books this week. Everneath is a Harper one in America, so I’m not sure why S&S Australia has it. Anyway, can’t wait to read all of them. For those that haven’t heard, Simon and Schuster are running a comp giving Aussie bloggers the chance to win a $250 voucher for either Dymocks, Westfield or JB HiFi. All you need to do is read Everneath, film a video review and post it to your blog and then head over to www.everneath.com.au and fill out the form before 24th February 2012. Under 18’s need parental permission.

Okay, back to my mailbox… I went shopping during the week and kind of spent more than I’d hoped. Hallowed and Lover Awakened were both $20 each, more than I’d like to pay for a paperback, but self-restraint went out the window and I hurried to the counter and bought them. I’m hoping to read Hero either this week or next, but who knows if that will happen, we’ll see. Lastly, I stopped in at the local anime store and picked up another volume of the Nana manga. I got a heap of them last week during an online stocktake sale, but I needed this one so I could move on to volume three. If you haven’t noticed the Tempest pic at the top of my sidebar, I’m hosting a giveaway for Macmillan Audio for the Tempest Audiobook. It ends next Thursday 19th January. Click on the pic to check it out. There’s a free audio sample on the page, too.

Here are my latest reviews if you want to check them out:
Cross, Julie Tempest #1, Tempest
Dane, Jordan, On A Dark Wing
Hocking, Amanda Trylle Trilogy #1, Switched

Link up to your mailbox and I’ll be sure to check it out!
(Sorry to those I missed getting back to last week, I was feeling sick Sunday/Monday.)

Title: Switched (Trylle Trilogy #1)
Author: Amanda Hocking
Published: January, 2012 by Tor
Thanks: Pan Macmillan, AU
Pages: 328
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

Wendy Everly knew she was different the day her mother tried to kill her and accused her of having been switched at birth. Although certain she’s not the monster her mother claimed she is – she does feel that she doesn’t quite fit in . . .

She’s bored and frustrated by her small town life – and then there’s the secret that she can’t tell anyone. Her mysterious ability – she can influence people’s decisions, without knowing how, or why . . .

When the intense and darkly handsome newcomer Finn suddenly turns up at her bedroom window one night – her world is turned upside down. He holds the key to her past, the answers to her strange powers and is the doorway to a place she never imagined could exist: Fӧrening, the home of the Trylle.

Finally everything makes sense. Among the Trylle, Wendy is not just different, but special. But what marks her out as chosen for greatness in this world also places her in grave danger. With everything around her changing, Finn is the only person she can trust. But dark forces are conspiring – not only to separate them, but to see the downfall everything that Wendy cares about.

The fate of Fӧrening rests in Wendy’s hands, and the decisions she and Finn make could change all their lives forever . . .

Final Thoughts:
I went into this without any expectations, and found myself surprised by how enjoyable the characters were. It’s a paranormal, with trolls, known as Trylle, like you’ve never seen them before—but it didn’t focus so much on the magic as it did on the prospects of being suddenly thrust into a world of royalty. Hocking’s character, Wendy, even likens it to a case of Princess Diaries syndrome. Thinking back, not a lot actually happened throughout the book, but it always felt like Wendy was up to something…make sense? And the romance, it was about right for the situation, playing more on the romantic tension rather than shipping characters at the first possible opportunity. The push/pull nature of it all certainly kept me interested.

Read Full Review?

I just finished reading Julie Cross’ Tempest and loved it, you can check out my review here. It’s a time-travelling romantic action conspiracy. I highly recommend you check it out. Since posting my review, the people at Macmillan Audio have contacted me to host a giveaway for the Audiobook release. I wanted to make it international, so it’s going to be a digital giveaway. Macmillan will send you the audio file for Tempest if you win. Just remember to fill out the form below. Giveaway ends next Thursday 19th January 2011 at 11pm Australian time. And just so you know what you’re entering to win, Macmillan have provided us with an audio teaser. Just click that link and a Quicktime player should appear in your browser.

Giveaway has ended. Winner to be notified.

Title: On A Dark Wing
Author: Jordan Dane
Published: December, 2011 by Harlequin Teen
Thanks: Harlequin Teen, AU
Pages: 312
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

The choices I had made led to the moment when fate took over. I would learn a lesson I wasn’t prepared for. And Death would be my willing teacher.

Five years ago, Abbey Chandler cheated Death. She survived a horrific car accident, but her “lucky” break came at the expense of her mother’s life and changed everything. After she crossed paths with Death—by taking the hand of an ethereal boy made of clouds and sky—she would never be normal again.

Now she’s the target of Death’s ravens and an innocent boy’s life is on the line. When Nate Holden—Abbey’s secret crush—starts to climb Alaska’s Denali, the Angel of Death stalks him because of her.

And Abbey finds out the hard way that Death never forgets.

Final Thoughts:
This one didn’t quite hit the mark for me. On A Dark Wing has an interesting premise, but the turn it took wasn’t quite what I was expecting. While I still enjoyed it, with five points of view, it was harder to form a connection or maintain the mystery. It ended up leaving the reader with more information than the protagonist. Even so, I appreciated the way the romance was handled. The character interactions seemed genuine, playing more on the non-paranormal aspects rather than the winged boy on the cover.

Read Full Review?

Title: Tempest (Tempest #1)
Author: Julie Cross
Published: January, 2012 by St. Martin’s Griffin
Thanks: Macmillan via NetGalley
Pages: 352
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

The year is 2009. Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. But it’s not like the movies – nothing changes in the present after his jumps, there’s no space-time continuum issues or broken flux capacitors – it’s just harmless fun.

That is… until the day strangers burst in on Jackson and his girlfriend, Holly, and during a struggle with Jackson, Holly is fatally shot. In his panic, Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but this is not like his previous time jumps. Now he’s stuck in 2007 and can’t get back to the future.

Final Thoughts:
Seriously…I need the second book now! A year is just too far away. I’m so glad that I loved this book and that it wasn’t just another pretty cover. It managed to bring tears to my eyes not once, but three times. Maybe it’s just me, but when a book can do that to me, it immediately enters my favourites. And if a time travelling 19yo guy wasn’t cool enough, the addition of interwoven conspiracies had me hooked. This is definitely a book to get guys into YA, although it’s still very female friendly. Whereas some books tend to fall to one extreme, this one managed to balance a variety of genres. Easily shifting between action and romance, it incorporates issues such as sex, lies, friendship and family, all while creating an intricately mysterious paranormal world.

Read Full Review?

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren, which allows bloggers to share what books they’ve received in the past week. They can be from stores, contests, tours or publishers!

• Nana (Assorted Manga Volumes) by Ai Yazawa (purchased)
• The Hunters: Phantom by L.J. Smith (gifted)
• Passing Strange by Daniel Waters (purchased)
• On A Dark Wing by Jordan Dane (thanks to Publishers)
• Mortal Kiss by Alice Moss (purchased)
• Entice by Carrie Jones (purchased) – My Review
• Significance by Shelly Crane (purchased – eBook)
• Descended By Blood by Angeline Kace (purchased – eBook)

It’s been three weeks since my last IMM. Christmas came, New Years came, and well, I just didn’t get around to posting. I haven’t actually gotten a lot lately if you exclude my Nana manga. Thanks to Sas from Tea Mouse Book Reviews for the 8th Vampire Diaries book. Also thanks to Harlequin Teen for sending me a copy of On A Dark Wing, I’m hoping to get to that one in the next week. The other three books I managed to pick up for about $2 each at a discount bookstore. I’ve read Entice, but I’ve been needing a copy for a while so I was happy to find it cheap. I also bought a couple eBooks too, but I’ll be moving through my NetGalley reads before I get to them.

Here are my latest reviews since my last IMM if you want to check them out:
Chivers, Nick Witch Hunt #1, Witch Hunt
Cochran, Molly, Legacy
Halle, Karina Experiment In Terror #1, Darkhouse
Halle, Karina Experiment In Terror #2, Red Fox
Lewis, Jon S. C.H.A.O.S. #1, Invasion
Smith, Alexander Gordon Escape From Furnace #2, Solitary
Smith, Alexander Gordon Escape From Furnace #3, Death Sentence
Smith, Cynthia Leitich Tantalize #1, Tantalize
Smith, Cynthia Leitich Tantalize #2, Eternal
Smith, Cynthia Leitich Tantalize #3, Blessed
Tracey, Scott Witch Eyes #1, Witch Eyes

Link up to your mailbox and I’ll be sure to check it out!

Title: Witch Hunt (Witch Hunt #1)
Author: Nick Chivers
Published: October, 2011 by Dreamspinner Press
Thanks: Dreamspinner Press via NetGalley
Pages: 200
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

Mike thought he could escape his past. He renounced his crown as High Mage of The Council, had the Bands of Binding placed on him, and tried to start over as a normal human.

It didn’t work. And now a part of that past wants him dead, and Mike is running for his life.

With his best friend, Andrew, and Andrew’s soulbound partner along for the ride, Mike can’t help but feel lonely until he meets Rick, an all-around gorgeous man who might just be the wrong guy—again—especially since Mike can’t shake an ex-lover who’s hoping for a second chance. It’s a lot to deal with as demonic forces pursue him from Mongolia to Brazil, but Mike has to make it to the safety of The Council if he doesn’t want to be the prize trophy at the end of this witch hunt.

Final Thoughts:
I wanted to like this one, but I just couldn’t get into it. I persevered through it all and made it to the end though. I suppose it follows the title, with the three witches constantly on the run from whoever is chasing them, but personally, I don’t think adventure books are my thing. I did enjoy some of the scenes in the beginning as we were introduced to the boys and their magical heritage, but the second half was a mess with way too many supernatural abilities brought in, sudden (and unbelievable) love proclamations and resolutions that came too easily.

Read Full Review?