Stacking The Shelves, Bought, Borrowed and Bagged, Coloring Book Updates

Stacking The Shelves is a meme hosted by Team Tynga's Reviews and Bought, Borrowed and Bagged is hosted by Braine over at Talk Supe Blog.

Note:
This was a busy week for me. I finally got a Keuring machine in the house and it makes the most wonderful things like coffee for one. Second, I bought way too many coloring books...LOL...

NetGalley/Edelweiss

E-Books Gotten

Coloring Book Haul

Alice in Wonderland Coloring Book Updates

Daydreams Coloring Book Update

Fae Enchantment by Morgan Fitzsimmons Coloring Book Update

Mermaids by Jade Summer Coloring Book Update

Rhapsody in the Forest Coloring Book Update

Romantic Country Coloring Book Update

Sweet and Simple Whimsy Girls

Mermaids by Jade Summer Coloring Book Review and Flip Through

Shift by Karina Espinosa Review Blitz

Title: SHIFT

Author: Karina Espinosa

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Cover Designer: Laura Hildago

Editor: Daniella Brooks

Publisher: Black Quill Publishing

Hosted by: Lady Amber’s PR

Blurb: It's hard enough being an undergraduate student, an intern at Downtown Manhattan's police station, and a bouncer at a local bar. Add her now ex-boyfriend who recently dumped her for the school's resident bimbo—oh, and she's a werewolf.

Mackenzie Grey meets her match when she is kidnapped by the Brooklyn Pack and tossed between Sebastian and Jonah—the Alpha and the Beta. Being a lone-wolf in the city is dangerous, and now that the Pack has found her, so can every supernatural being in the Tri-State area. And not even her sarcastic, smart mouth can get her out of this.

When a string of kidnappings involves Mackenzie in supernatural politics, she questions her new acquaintances and finds unlikely allies. Can she escape Pack law and keep her freedom—or will she be condemned to an unwanted path?

Karina Espinosa is the Urban Fantasy author of the Sins of the Fallen series and the Mackenzie Grey novels. Infatuated with travel, pop culture, and the need to write everything down, she spends much of her days in front of a computer working on her next book, shopping online, and listening to music. With nomadic tendencies, she is currently resting her head in South Florida until the itch to move strikes again. You can usually catch her on Facebook, Instagram and live-tweeting during episodes of Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, and Orphan Black. Follow her on social media!

 

Author Links:

Web: https://www.karinaespinosa.com/

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2rQFsj2

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7784354.Karina_Espinosa

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKarinaEspinosa/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TweetsByKarina

Buy Links:

SHIFT: http://amzn.to/2rQGs6M

CAGED: http://amzn.to/2r2fR2u

ALPHA: http://amzn.to/2rxim0m

OMEGA: (Releases August 11^th, 2017)

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34737882-omega

YA Book Review: Royal Bastards by Andrew Shvarts

Title: Royal Bastards

Author: Andrew Shvarts

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Pub Date: May 30, 2017

Pages: 352

My Copy: Courtesy of Disney and NetGalley for review

Book Summary:

Being a bastard blows. Tilla would know. Her father, Lord Kent of the Western Province, loved her as a child, but cast her aside as soon as he had trueborn children.

At sixteen, Tilla spends her days exploring long-forgotten tunnels beneath the castle with her stablehand half brother, Jax, and her nights drinking with the servants, passing out on Jax’s floor while her castle bedroom collects dust. Tilla secretly longs to sit by her father’s side, resplendent in a sparkling gown, enjoying feasts with the rest of the family. Instead, she sits with the other bastards, like Miles of House Hampstedt, an awkward scholar who’s been in love with Tilla since they were children.

Then, at a feast honoring the visiting princess Lyriana, the royal shocks everyone by choosing to sit at the Bastards’ Table. Before she knows it, Tilla is leading the sheltered princess on a late-night escapade. Along with Jax, Miles, and fellow bastard Zell, a Zitochi warrior from the north, they stumble upon a crime they were never meant to witness.

Rebellion is brewing in the west, and a brutal coup leaves Lyriana’s uncle, the Royal Archmagus, dead—with Lyriana next on the list. The group flees for their lives, relentlessly pursued by murderous mercenaries; their own parents have put a price on their heads to prevent the king and his powerful Royal Mages from discovering their treachery.

The bastards band together, realizing they alone have the power to prevent a civil war that will tear their kingdom apart—if they can warn the king in time. And if they can survive the journey…

Book Review:

A really fantastic story that definitely was a very wild ride. I definitely found myself loving Tilla and all of her friends as well. Tillandra is definitely a character who goes through a lot of changes as things change in her life and not by her choice. She has to rely on herself and her friends to get through this terrible situation they are in.

One of the things that I like is that we get to see these characters at the start of the book enjoying their lives. We also get to learn why Tilla is a bastard. This history lesson that we learn at the beginning of this book is important as it helps us understand the mentality that these characters have, because they have royal blood, but are out of wedlock, they are royal bastards. Now everything for these bastards is complicated.

You have a lot of other families visiting her father’s castle for something that is going on. Her father tells her that she needs to come to the banquet and that he loves her. Lord Kent, Tilla’s father married his wife because he needed the alliance to protect their borders. So he tells her that things will change after this dinner. Her half brother doesn’t like the formal banquet’s much either as he prefers to stay in the stables. So of course when they see who’s at the banquet things get mighty interesting. 

The banquet has some interesting developments as they meet some more interesting people and meet the Princess Lyriana and her uncle. The princess decides to stay at the Bastards table, not knowing it is that table. When she does, it causes a stir, because some people don’t like the bastards. They find it to be a disrespectful thing in Kent and the princess didn’t know that. The princess’s uncle is an arch-mage, which means he has magical powers and abilities.

One night, the bastards along with Lyriana decided to have a little mischief and instead find themselves in a dire situation. This is a situation that changes everything for all of them. Tillandra’s father decides to kill Lyrianna’s uncle and a bunch of other mages so that the west can be free and rule everything for their freedom. He feels like the west and other small provinces have been under the arch mages rule for too long. Of course their little outgoing gets seen by someone and they are forced all to flee. 

They are fleeing and trying to escape. We also find out that after the princess Lyriana uncle is killed, that she manages to find her magical abilities which do come in handy. Of course they try to find different people to help them through out the book and return Lyriana to her people, but instead realize that trying to stop a war might be pointless. They have a lot of things that come up. Tillandra didn't know that she had been promised to Miles and this causes all kinds of things to happen to that relationship. 

This book takes on so many twists and turns. I felt like there was always a surprise and something you never expected. We also learn a lot more about Zell. He is far more complex, Tillandra thinks than she ever thought. His backstory was something else. Plus everyone realizes that they have to choose a side. So when Miles betrays them it’s a very bad situation.

Miles jealousy is something that no one can see. He wants Tilla and to be a lord himself. Tillandra thinks things through. She doesn’t want Miles in the same way he wants her. She wants Zell and he feels attracted to her as well. Things happen that make things so much worse between all of them. The attraction and then a kiss make Miles so angry as he sees them together and reads too much. Also the fact that these four people learn a lot about each other. Also Lyrianna comes to be much more than what she seems. I like that she has magic and finds how to use it.

I really love how these four individuals change and find that they all have to make decisions, good and bad. Plus the conversations are very well done. I enjoyed the way this book unfolded. I love how there really wasn’t a happy ending but a rather open ended one as some actions can’t ever really ever be undone. You make your choices and live with them. The way this was left opened, I’m hungering for a sequel… A very good book.

Rating:

4.5 Hearts

Stacking The Shelves, Bought Borrowed and Bagged-Book Expo America Edition....I got new pretties....

Stacking The Shelves is a meme hosted by Team Tynga's Reviews and Bought, Borrowed and Bagged is hosted by Braine over at Talk Supe Blog.

The last few days I went to Book Expo America, that's a trade show where we connect with the publishers, other bloggers and pick up some of the upcoming title...

So hence, we got a lot of goodies this week

No Netgalley/Edelweiss books this week

Book Expo America Haul

1.Warcross by Marie Lu-YA

2. Beserker by Emmy Laybourne-YA 

3. Refugee by Alan Gratz-YA

4. Shadowhouse Fall by Daniel Jose Older-YA

5. Beasts Made of Night by Tochi Onyebuchi-YA

6. Orphan Agent Prima Pawn by Elizabeth Kiem-YA

7. The Red Abbey Chronicles-Naondel by Maria Turtschanoff-YA

8.  Everything Must Go by Jenny Fran Davis-YA

9. This is Not A Love Letter by Kim Purcell-YA

10. The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani-YA

11. The Epic Crush of Genie Lo by F.C. Yee-YA

12. Disappeared by Francisco X Stork-YA

13. The Whizbang Machine: Tunney's Curse-YA

14. Bonfire by Kristen Ritter-Adult Thriller, Supsense

15.  The Hearts we Sold by Emily Lloyd-Jones-YA

16. Gunslinger Girl by Lyndasy Ely-YA

17. Mask of Shadwows by Linsey Miller-YA

18. Lies Jane Austen Told Me by Julie Wright-Historical Romance

19. Stay with Me: A Novel by Ayobami Adebayo-Adult Fiction

20. The Devils You Know by M.C. Atwood-YA

21. Reign of the Earth by A.C Gaughen-YA

22. Tool of War by Paolo Bacigalupi-YA

23. Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco-YA

24. My Absolute Darling by Gabriel Tallent-Adult with YA Crossover themes

25.  The Immortalist by Chloe Benjamin-Adult

26. The World of Tommorow by Brendan Matthews-Adult

27. Roar by Cora Carmack-Finished Copy-NA

28. Whichwood by Tahereh Mafi-YA

29. The Address by Fiona Davis-Adult Historical Fiction

30. Jade City by Fonda Lee-Adult Fantasy

31. All Rights Released by Gregory Scott Katsoulis-YA

32. Zenith by Sasha Alsberg and Lindsay Cummings-YA

33. All By Myself, Alone by Mary Higgins Clark-Adult Fiction

34. Life After Juliet by Shannon Alexander-YA

35. Blood Queen by Toi Powell-Adult Fantasy with YA Crossover Fiction

Note: This One I Did Pay for because it was a self published author

36. Invictus by Ryan Graudin-YA

37. A Secret History of Witches-Adult 

38. The Breakdown by B.A. Paris-Adult Mystery

39. Thornhill by Pam Smy-Middle Grade, Upper MG, Possibly light YA

40. Blue Ocean Shift by W. Chan Kim, Renee Mauborgne-Adult

41. Release by Patrick Ness-YA

42. Beneath Copper Falls by Colleen Coble-Adult

43. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black-YA

44. Wild Beauty by Anna Marie McLemore-YA

45. Dream Me by Kathryn Berla-YA

46. The Case of The Green Dressed Ghost by Lucy Banks-YA

47. It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover-NA Finished Copy

48. Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp-YA

49. The Reaction by Helena Coggan-YA

50. Shadow of the Lions by Christopher Swann-Adult

51. Fire Blood by Elly Blake-YA, this is the sequel to Frost Blood

52. Daughter of the Burning City by Amanda Foody

53. Secret of Souls by Aubrie Nixon-YA

54.  There's Someone Inside Your House-YA

55.  Odd & True by Cat Winters-YA 

56. Trell by Dick Lehr-YA

57. No Is a Four Letter Word by Chris Jericho-Wrestling 

58. Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Megan Spooner-YA

59. Brass by Xhenet Aliu-YA

Overall, 59 Books which is my smallest haul ever to come from BEA. I'm extremely happy with everything that I got...

Coloring Book Haul....

Lacy Sunshine's Superhereos Coloring Book

Mermaids by Jade Summer

Romantic Country I  Coloring Book

Sweet and Simple Whimsy Girls

Twilight Garden Coloring Book