Here's a few books that I read a few weeks ago and I don't remember a whole lot of details. Hence, mini-reviews! These are a great way to smoosh down that "waiting to be reviewed" list, too! The rating for each book is in (parenthesis) next to the title and author name.

Crewel, Gennifer Albin (2.5)
(Goodreads | Amazon)

I think that the premise for this book is AMAZING. However, the author thinks I'm a little smarter than I really am. Never was the system of magic explained, or what kind of world they lived in that let this work, etc. etc. The world-building just wasn't there. I had no sense for scope or culture or... anything. Sure, these things were MENTIONED, but never explained. It was like the author thought that I already knew everything there was to know. Sometimes I wondered if this was actually a sequel that I had accidentally picked up.

The ending of the book was REALLY cool, and I'm interested to see where the story goes. But I wouldn't say that I'm "eager" to get my hands on the next book because I'm still really, really confused.

Monstrous Beauty, Elizabeth Fama (4)
(Goodreads | Amazon)

Woah. This book was kind of amazing. Beth has an unnatural ability to weave together horror, history, and fantasy. I loved every minute of this book! The main character got on my nerves, but she's supposed to so it didn't take away from the story.Only took it down 1-star because of a few uses of very harsh (and unnecessary) profanity. But if that kind of stuff doesn't bother you, 5-stars.

Sweet Shadows, Tera Lynn Childs (3.5)
(Goodreads | Amazon)

I didn't love this book as much as I did the first. It didn't offer me enough new stuff. I felt like the plot of this book was REALLY interesting, but moving in slow motion. Not a lot happened for a 300 page book. But I totally understand what the purpose of this book is: it "humanized" the "bad guys" and let us see into their world. Although I wasn't super impressed with this book by itself, I think it's done a great job setting us up for a great climax in book 3!

For Darkness Shows the Stars, Diana Peterfreund (5)
(Goodreads | Amazon)

Um... what can I say about this book? Its awesomeness surpasses all words. Seriously. I love how Diana managed to use Persuasion as inspiration, but I didn't feel like I already knew what was going to happen. My ONLY complaint is that I wish I could have seen more of the world. I wanted to spend a day in the lives of the reduced. I wanted to experience the plague! I wanted to see what caused humanity to wipe itself out. Or in other words: I want a prequel! I really really want one. Or more than one. If you like Jane Austen storylines, and you like sci-fi and steampunk, you will be head over heels for this book.

I don't think I've made it a secret how FREAKING excited I was to see Life of Pi, the movie version. However, I also made it clear that I was nervous. And unfortunately... I think I had grounds for being nervous.

I'm not going to say too much about the movie. All I'm going to say is that when I left the theater I felt... not awesome. And it's taken me a while to put the reason into words.

This book made me think. The whole time I was reading it not much was happening in terms of action (I mean, he's just floating on a boat) but my brain was going 300mph. In order for the story to have meaning I had to find and create that meaning.

That isn't true for a movie. You don't have to think much at all for a movie to exist. All you have to do is sit there with your eyes open. Media is passive, while reading is active.

This movie took one of the most mentally stimulating stories I have ever read, and made it passive. Yes, it was visually stimulating and beautiful. And everyone I went with (some of whom have never read the book and some have) said that they loved it. But I didn't have to think at all. And that made me sad.

At the end of the day I think I just went in with too high expectations. I thought if there was 3.5 months in between me re-reading the book and seeing the movie then that would be enough. Apparently it wasn't.

I think they did the best job possible in turning this book into a movie, and that just wasn't enough. I stand by my original thought that this is just one of those books that cannot be translated into film.

The holidays are coming up, and I'm FINALLY shaking off this cold enough to read. I'm planning on making a last-ditch attempt at getting close to my goal (holiday read-a-thon, anyone?). I know I probably won't meet it, but I'm going to try and get closer than 57% at least.

I have a ton of great books to read, but no idea which ones to read first! Luckily, I don't have to choose! The content on Squeaky Books is driven by YOU! This is where you come in. Would you mind taking a look at the books on my review pile below, and then voting for which ones I should read? You can vote for as many books as you'd like! I will read them in the order of votes they get. Good? Hurrah!

Enna Isilee (Squeaky Books)'s favorite books »

Here's the poll! (Psst! You can't see this in feed readers!)
VOTE FOR AS MANY BOOKS AS YOU WANT!

Blah. Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and so OF COURSE I come down with the worst cold ever. AND I realized that I'm behind in taking your best of 2012 votes! That's right, it's that time of year again! At the end of this year I'll post my favorite books that I reviewed in 2012. But before then, I want to hear from YOU!

PLEASE let me know your top 5 books that were released in 2012! If they haven't been released yet (but will still be released in 2012), you're welcome to list them as well. If you can't think of 5, you can list as few as 1, but you can't list more than five. Sorry!

I'm hoping to compile a list, and then use the most nominated titles for some Holiday-giveaway fun times!

Also, to one lucky nominator I'll give away a random prize pack of books and swag! You must be in the US to win the prize pack, but international peeps are more than welcome to list their favorite 2012 US releases (The Holiday giveaway WILL be open internationally, just not this one). Prize pack will have 2-3 books/ARCs and some swag.

Sound good? These nominations will be open until December 15th and I'll put the list together that weekend, and get the BIG holiday giveaway started on the 17th! That'll be after finals, and I should have my brain together.

Fill out the form below, or click here! Be sure your nominations have been/will be released in 2012! And don't just list books you want to own, list your FAVORITES. Remember that 2012 started 11 months ago. People have  a tendency to list only books released in the last 2-3 months.


Curious in seeing the list that Squeakers (that's you!) made last year? CLICK HERE to see it!

Squee! I've always wanted to host one of these, so I'm proud to announce to all of you:


I'm hosting this along with one of my bestest blogging buddies (seriously. This girl is awesome): Emily! You can sign up by clicking here and filling out the form, or by scrolling down and filling it out below. But here are the rules!

CN&WB Holiday Book Swap Rules:

• All interested participants must fill out the form by NOVEMBER 22
• This swap will be secret-Santa style. Participants will be assigned someone to give books to based of the information they provide by NOVEMBER 25.
• THIS IS A SECRET ASSIGNMENT! Don't tell your person you are giving them anything until they have received your package (include a card with your name/e-mail them. etc.) or you can keep it a secret forever!
• All participants must mail their books no later than DECEMBER 10.
• All participants must provide some form of tracking. Either get delivery confirmation through USPS (this only costs $0.80). or if shipping directly from the store, provide tracking/order confirmation from wherever you purchased it from.
• The swap is open INTERNATIONAL (To the TBD countries. you can choose which country/countries you want to ship to)
• After you receive your presents, post about them to show the world!

Sign-ups open 11/14-11/22!

Share the swap button!

<a href="http://www.squeakybooks.com/2012/11/holiday-swap.html"><img src="http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc470/SqueakyBooks/SwapButton-1.gif" width="250"></a>

Release Date: November 13th, 2012
Genre: Romance, Dystopia
Publisher: Dutton Children's Books
Pages: 512
Rating:
Amazon Link*: Click here
Goodreads Page: Click here
Series: Matched #3 (Review of #1, #2)
Summary (Spoilers, highlight to view):

After leaving Society and desperately searching for the Rising—and each other—Cassia and Ky have found what they were looking for, but at the cost of losing each other yet again: Cassia has been assigned to work for the Rising from within Society, while Ky has been stationed outside its borders. But nothing is as predicted, and all too soon the veil lifts and things shift once again.

Blurb: A fantastic book that stays true to the very end.

Review: This book is fantastic. I stays true to what *I* believe is the true purpose of this book, and that is the characters and the way they react to the situations they are put in. This is NOT a plot-driven trilogy. YES, it has an awesome plot, but it comes second to the even more awesome characters. If you don't love the characters, I'm not sure you'll love this book because you aren't on a constant chase across the world with danger at every turn. And if you're expecting answers to all of your questions about the world of the book, you'll probably be disappointed.

Once again, Ally does an amazing job of making me think. We see A LOT more of the Rising in this book, and readers are forced to decide whether or not the Rising is actually good. It's very similar to how the Society looked bad/good (depending on who you are) but wasn't quite so black and white on closer examination. Nothing is handed to you on a silver platter in this book, you have to work for it. And I think that's beyond awesome.

Finally, I loved how the relationships shook out. Did everyone end up with who I wanted them to end up with? No. Certainly not. But was every choice made believable? Absolutely. To the very end Ally stayed true to her characters, her story, and her world. I have nothing but undying respect for authors who do that. And respect turns to adoration since I loved the book she stayed true to.

Thank you, Ally! I can't wait to see what you give us next!

Other Reviews:

• TBA

*I am an amazon affiliate. If you purchase this book using my link, I will get a tiny fraction of the purchase, which goes toward contests.

It's week #2 in the read-along! By now you should have FINISHED Crossed. Participate in the discussion here and at Benji's blog to be entered to win one of the Breathless Reads prize packs! Remember, only if you signed up before today can you participate!

Today's discussion question:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sorry to bug about a holiday swap again, but I have a new question:

Would you rather:


We're just trying to create the most fair way to do this. I know we're all annoyed when WE spend a lot and the person who gives to us doesn't.

Please answer the question here in this google doc. ONE VOTE PER PERSON please!

Of COURSE you do! And there's a few ways you can do it!

1) If you are a local, you should TOTALLY come to the release party for Reached on this coming Tuesday (November 13). It's going to be so much fun! Ally is the best ever, and so is TKE. So you know it's going to be the event of the year, if not the century. ;) You can click here for more event details.

2) Even if you aren't local and can't come to the event, you can still get a signed and personalized copy of Reached if you order before November 13! What are you waiting for?! You can order over the phone or online and they will ship to you. More information about that can be found here.

So whether you come to the event on Tuesday, or preorder a copy from TKE's website, I really hope you take the chance to support this AWESOME author and AWESOME bookstore. They both deserve much love!

It's week #2 in the read-along! By now you should have read to CHAPTER 35 in Crossed. Participate in the discussion here and at Benji's blog to be entered to win one of the Breathless Reads prize packs! Remember, only if you signed up before today can you participate!

Today's discussion question:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Perhaps I shall return and write up my Halloween experience this year, but for now I just want to post this picture. I'm kind of super-proud of this costume. I lost track of how many people took pictures with me yesterday. I felt so famous!