January Wrap Up | Giveaway!

Wow, has January been a busy month! I don't think I've been this prolific in the entire year of 2015, if I were honest. Dozen original posts, old reviews and new reviews in abundance, it's no wonder you could barely keep up!

To help you make sure you didn't miss a thing, here is a roundup of January!

MY READING MONTH

My reading month absolutely sucked, if I were honest. I kind of lost my reading mojo, which is the worst thing that could happen to me on the first month of the blog being active, but there you go. I just... didn't read. And when I did, I wasn't feeling any of it--even one of my greatest anticipations of 2016 didn't manage to get me out of the funk! 

I ended up dnfing two of the books above (which are not in my reading challenge, don't fret. They were there just to remind me to properly write their reviews lol)

However, you can expect reviews for all of the books above, so at least I'm not behind on the reviewing aspect of things, right? 

Currently Reading

Haha, I know - two heavy lifters! Hoping these two will bring back the mojo!

POSTS

         

REVIEWS

                  

 

GIVEAWAY! 

As promised in this post, after a month long extravaganza showcasing all the 2015 reads I adored, you can now enter for a chance to win one of my 2015 favorites: 

The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Of Beast and Beauty, Shadow Study, Written in Red, Vicious, The Book Thief, Doing it For Love, Deerskin, The Duff, Heart Shaped Hack, Uprooted, Shadow and Bone, Unearthly, A Rusk University book, Scarlet (not reviewed this month), Blue Lily Lily blue (not reviewed this month)

OR another book in the series if you've already read the book above. 

Giveaway rules:

1. This giveaway is international, as long as The Book Depository ships to your country. 

2. If you're under 18, you need to have parental permission to enter this giveaway. 

3. If you follow by mail, you must confirm the subscription for the option to count! 

4. The winner will have 48 hours to answer my winning email. If he/she fails to do so, another winner will be chosen. 

5. Don't cheat, I check entries.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Series Review: The Rusk University Series by Cora Carmack (Favorites Extravaganza: Day #14)

So, if you've been following this month long extravaganza filled with favorite books all leading up to an awesome giveaway, you know I've been posting reviews for my 2015 favorites all month long.

What you don't know is that adding to those thirteen books are three other books you could chose from at the end of the month. and because I never actually wrote reviews for them, here is a sort-of-kinda series review ;)

The Rusk University Series

All Lines Up // All Broke Down // All Played Out by Cora Carmack 

Rusk University #1 - #3 

First Published: 2014 / 2014 / 2015 

Own Kindle

New Adult, Romance

I love Cora Carmack. She is seriously one of my favorite contemporary writers, possible the favorite when it comes to the budding new adult genre. She write sweet, cute, believable romances that value the story and the characters more than it does steamy scenes and physical attraction, which is something I appreciate when so many in the NA genre relay on sex to carry their novels.

And her newest series of companion novels surrounding the players and people connected to a Texas college football team is trademark Carmack.

To say I devoured these books would be an understatement. It took me barely a day to finish each book in the series, and I immediately wanted the next. They're just good.

They don't need excessive drama or over the top circumstances to fuel the plot, they just need their two leads--be it Dallas & Carson, Dylan & Silas or Nell & Mateo and the cast of characters surrounding them.

The stories are different, but the chemistry, journey and addictive-ness is all the same, no matter which book you chosen to read.

Honestly, when people are looking for contemporary novels, Carmack and her books are at the top of my list, every time.

How To Name a Blog

I don't know about you, but I have a really hard time naming things. I tend to go toward names that are really long and I love them because they're like sentences, which was how I came up with the name of my first blog - Drugs Called Books.

But these type of names also tend to be clumsy and a bit tedious after time. For this blog, I wanted something simpler. Something that will have this punch and would convey everything I want to say about the blog in one simple word.

And for the longest time, I actually wanted to call it THE UNDERWORD. 

You know, like what's under the words? A world for what you can find between the words, of my opinions, of what I truly think. And this just stuck with me. So when I started working with Amanda, the amazing designer for the blog, I told her about this name.

I was really excited for it, too.

But then Amanda asked me some questions. Really important ones.

"If you've got a Pinterest account, making a private board that you can store inspiration onto would be fantastic. When I say inspiration, I mean just anything you like the look of, pin it and collect images that make you feel the things you want to feel about your blog - happy, positive, motivated - just images that you like really...

Choose 7-10 words you want to use to describe your new blog. They could be anything, like: personal, comforting, delicate, bold, powerful, inspiring - just words that you feel would fit your future blog.

Other small things (although important) would be a name [it might be worth brainstorming what you want this new blog to be, thinking of the type of content you want it to have and working that way, I can help with that if you want/need it] so I can practice and play around with different looks.... 

Those things ended up making me understand The Underword was just not the right name for this blog.

First, I started with a Pinterest board for it because, let's be honest, it's just great fun so why the heck not?

As you can see, most of the images I added to this board were dark and going toward the deep blue. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, expect that I realized that this type of feel was, essentially, fantasy. Same as The Underword, with it's obvious Underworld connotation, is very darkly fantastical. 

And I love fantasy... but thinking about the words I wanted to represent my blog, and what I wanted it to be, Amanda's two other requests from me, it just didn't match. Because the words I came up with were personal, versified, inspiring, positive, free style and safe harbor.

I want this blog to be my home away from home, my place to talk about everything and nothing at all - ordinary things that have nothing to do with books, opinions I can't let out anywhere else, inspirations and aggravations and yes, books. Because that's just one of my favorite things in the world. But I don't read just fantasy, either.

I didn't want to limit my blog to something fantastical. And while I loved my original idea of it - of the Underword as this magical place underneath seemingly ordinary stuff, hiding underneath the regular world, no none can deny The Underworld (and by associations The Underword) is dark and gritty, even if what's underneath words and what words create is everything and anything at all.

That's not what this blog is about.

This blog is something open and free and real. 

You can ask Amanda how truly hard it was for me to discard this name. I literally told her I was set on the Underword about a dozen different times, told her this was the name I saw my future blog having in my head, that this is what stuck.

And then one day, I came to her and told her I was going with Afterwords instead.

Simple as that.

Afterwords has a very definitive connotation to reading. But it doesn't have to be - Afterwords are literally words that come after something, which is exactly what I'm doing in this blog. After I read something, watch a show, be in a certain situation, I come here to talk about it.

So those are my words, after the fact. 

Book Review: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand (Favorites Extravaganza: Day #13)

2015 Favorites Extravaganza: Day #13

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
Unearthly #1
First Published: 2011
Kindle Edition
Young Adult, Fantasy
Rating:

In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees . . .
Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.
Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.
As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she'd have to make between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?
Unearthly is a moving tale of love and fate, and the struggle between following the rules and following your heart.

I wrote and re-wrote this review about three times. Maybe more. It took me about a month to finally post it at all, and I wasn't sure I was ever going to get there. For once, it's not because I don't have what to say. It's because I have too much and I just don't know how to put it down in writing or what to focus on and it's driving me nuts.

It's been a long, long time since I've read such a solid and well balanced contemporary YA fantasy. Especially one that's an angel book. And, to be honest, I really wasn't expecting this to be this good; this well rounded; to have all the elements I'm looking for in a story.

First of all, the whole concept here is refreshing and well thought out. It's obvious the author knew exactly what she was going for and not only that - knew what she wanted to develop it into. We don't learn everything in this book. Far from it. We're given enough so we understand everything that's happening, while making it clear a lot of vital information is still missing from this puzzle and will be unraveled in the future. I love that.

I loved Clara, the main character. Geez, when was the last time I read of a YA heroine who is level headed, logical, rational and real. Who fights for what she wants and for her life. Who is willing to listen. Who doesn't give up. Who is actively working on her life and not just... waiting for something to happen--Especially when the whole plot actually revolves around waiting for a certain event to happen?

This was so precious to me. I was 100% behind Clara and with her.

And then, the romance? My god. I was so afraid of the romance because the synopsis seems to tease Insta love and I am happy to inform the synopsis is lying! No insta love for this book, thank god. Just a case of insta attraction which is a-okay with me. Instead, we've got delicious, slow burn built up between two people who I think are meant to be together and asdfghjkl so many feels.

Is there a love triangle? Kinda. We do have two boys.

The first is Christian, the guy who Clara uprooted her whole family for. He's sweet, nice, kind of removed... but I didn't feel much towards him. He's, to me, not appealing. There isn't too much to him, and even when he was nice to Clara it never felt like he was really invested in her.

The second? Love of my life, light of my soul, what else could a girl want when she's got the sweet and layered rancher Tucker Avery in her life (romantically wise, anyways)? He starts off as the guy who teases and makes fun of Clara, in a rather fun manner. Then he grows to be more, showing her around the place and being sweet af and just... I can't with this guy.

Don't need to tell you which team shirt I'm gonna buy, is there?

Then we've got the surrounding relationships in the book which were all wonderful. The siblings in this novel love each other. They are also a pain in each other's butts, but when they need each other they are there for them. It's so realistic and heartwarming and I loved it.

Then we have the parental relationship between Clara and her Mom which was a big part of the story. I loved their relationship, even as we watched it begin to fracture underneath the weight of secrets and lies and destiny. But their love was never in question. 

And everyone in this story are such good friends to one another. Good, real, healthy friendships. You've no idea how much I miss those in literature sometimes. 

I highly recommend this novel to everyone who love YA and fantasy, and I will most definitely read the sequels! 

2016 TBR!

As any Book Lover can testify, our tbr list tend to be longer than The Great Wall of China. I hold no illusions I can ever finish it, but... I do believe I can clean my physical selves of the pesky un-read books.

This post is dedicated to all of the books I own as of January 1st that I vow to read in 2016. So, you know, these are some of the reviews you can expect *Wink*

NEXT IN SERIES PILE

Not pictured: Beautiful Darkness, World After. I'm actually doing fairly well with this TBR! :3

Those are really my top priority as they are seconds and more in series that I've already started, and I'd like to continue with them before starting new series (#IAlreadyKnowThisIsGoingToFail).

STANDALONE PILE

This is my second priority, because reading these books is not a commitment to another series and extra books, so I feel like I'm actually cleaning my tbr when I'm reading them. Which is why it's also the smallest lol

THE NEW SERIES PILE

Not Pictured: The Circle, Defiance, Breathe, Born Wicked, The Eternal Ones, Confessions of a Murder Suspect, Prophecy of the Sisters, Partials, Delirium, The Madman's Daughter, Wicked, Tunnels, The Gift, Clockwork Scarab, Crewel, Deviants. Doing less well with this one lol

We all have this tbr. The series that blow up or we suddenly find that we have to get even though we have three dozen series we're already reading. This one is my last priority, as I want to finish the series I'm currently reading first (or at least some of them) & because they guarantee that I'll just expend my tbr with their sequels ;) 

You can come back to this post throughout the year and watch as slowly (but hopefully surely) books are crossed off as I read them! 

Book Review: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (Favorites Extravaganza: Day #12)

2015 Favorites Extravaganza: Day #12

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
The Grisha #1
First Published: 2012
Kindle Edition
YA, High Fantasy
Rating:

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.
Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.
Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.
Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy.

Look who's really really late to join the bandwagon! Me! I've been itching to read this book for a really long while, but something was holding me back. The right mood finally came upon me and I started it.

“I'm sorry it took me so long to see you, Alina. But I see you now.”

From page one, I was in love with the writing style of this book. There is just something so... beautiful about it. I can't really put my finger on it (plus it took me so long to write this review that it's not as fresh in my head as I'd like), but I was addicted to it. 

We're already off to a good start, aren't we?

Then there's Alina, the main character of the story. I loved her voice. I loved her character. I loved that she was brave yet scared. Toughed yet so weak. That she had such a good heart in a world that doesn't often appreciated it. That she was human enough to sometimes break her own heart with the actions she had to take. 

Now we have the supporting characters. All were great in my opinion, all added something--whether if to the story or the layers of the world or whatever.

But, can we just say-- I FEEL SO BETRAYED RIGHT NOW. Seriously, I did not see that twist coming. I was having fun, strolling down the plot when BAM I AM UNDER ATTACK MAYDAY MAYDAY *explosion*. 

Seriously, what? why? who thought this was okay? I don't know how to deal with this! My shipper heart is flailing around in distress. 

I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING.

Which, I guess, is what makes this book interesting. It's what makes it different than the rest of the books in the genre that work on the same vibe. It surprises you and makes you want to continue with the books so you could see where it goes--and what surprise does Bardugo has prepared for you next?

But... still. I was not prepared to hate a character that I've learned to love! 

DNF Review: Keep Me Safe by Maya Banks

Keep Me Safe by Maya Banks

Slow Burn #1

First Published: 2014

Kindle Edition

Adult, Contemporary Fantasy

Rating:

A sizzling story of a woman who risks her life and her heart to find a wealthy man’s missing sister — the first novel in a sexy new romantic suspense series from #1 New York Timesbestselling author Maya Banks
When Caleb Devereaux's younger sister is kidnapped, this scion of a powerful and wealthy family turns to an unlikely source for help: a beautiful and sensitive woman with a gift for finding answers others cannot.
While Ramie can connect to victims and locate them by feeling their pain, her ability comes with a price. Every time she uses it, it costs her a piece of herself. Helping the infuriatingly attractive and impatient Caleb successfully find his sister nearly destroys her. Even though his sexual intensity draws her like a magnet, she needs to get as far away from him as she can.
Deeply remorseful for the pain he’s caused, Caleb is determined to make things right. But just when he thinks Ramie's vanished forever, she reappears. She’s in trouble and she needs his help. Now, Caleb will risk everything to protect her — including his heart....

DNF at 25% 

By this point, I ought to learn my lesson and just stick to Maya Banks's historicals, because whereas her historicals are some of my top favorite, her contemporaries leave a lot to be desired. It's almost like she has a split writer personality disorder. 

I wonder if it's because contemporary romance nowadays seems to be (ridiculously) conditioned toward fast, quick, instantaneous relationships while in historicals it's acceptable to take your time--with the physical and emotional build up--because of the times, when you couldn't just hop into someone's bed without consequences (such as marriage). 

Regardless of the reason, I am just so damned disappointed. 

Keep Me Safe takes it's title quite seriously from what I could gather from the 25% (roughly 81 pages) I forced myself through, as this entire novel seems to center around Caleb keeping Ramie safe from a stalker and from her abilities.

Yes, stalker and abilities. Ramie can psychically link herself to kidnap victims in order to find them, but by doing so she experiences what they are going through (such as rape). But she's so goodhearted that despite this horrific ramifications, she would endure it to save others. Until a psychopath sets his eyes on her, and instead of reporting it she decides to disappear. And then he finds her, and she phones the one man she thinks can help her. Caleb. 

The premise of Keep Me Safe is somewhat unique, albeit uncomfortable, I'll admit. But it's executed very, very poorly.

Firstly, it feels like this novel haven't been edited. At all. Characters contradict themselves constantly - one minute Character A says one thing, then in another scene Character B says the same but Character A argues against it and then says she hasn't thought of it before. Or Character A would repeatedly mention something, then in another scene would "just figure out" exactly what she's been saying all along as if it never occurred to her before. And more weird things like this. 

And then, there's is the repetition. This book could be bearable, maybe even good, if the excessive repetition was taken out of it. Sure, it would be half the length it is now, but filling the pages with the same information hardly counts as plot. It just makes me want to scream WE GET IT. 

But actually, maybe it wouldn't be good even then. It might take more than just technical cleaning to make this something I could enjoy, because the plot was a complete mess as well. 

Because Ramie's abilities were just all over the place. Aside to the whole psychic link, she can sense "the worst" in people. But never any of the good (which we are told over and over and over and over and over and over again). Okay. But then... she feels nothing of Caleb because (even though he entertains violent thoughts), he is essentially good? 

So... you don't sense "the worst in people", as you've said, do you? You sense their inclination. A person who is bad inside can't hide it from you, but an absence of feeling means good, doesn't it? The book basically wants you to believe Ramie can do all that & have never encountered good people before to balance it out.

But okay, I guess I could stomach that improbability and inconsistency? after all, her abilities are really not important in the grand scheme of things. They are just a plot device to get the two together.... as is the rape. Yes, I just said it. The rape in this book feels like something broached for impact and nothing else. A far cry from the tasteful, careful handle of the same subject in Highlander Most Wanted, a book of hers I highly recommend. 

While Keep Me Safe takes it's title seriously, it laughs at the chosen series name as this is the farthest thing away from "slow burn". This is so insta love it hurts. 

P.80
"There's something between us, something beyond a passing acquaintance" 

This gem is told by Caleb to Ramie on their second meeting. The first time they never even properly talked and the second has been focusing on the imminent danger to Ramie. So, insta-love. Or insta something-beyond-a-passing-acquaintance. 

Luckily, I never really got past this ridiculous sentence to actually endure the insta-love. Who knows, maybe it would've surprised me. 

And finally... the writing. Maya Banks is a considerable writer, but you couldn't tell based on her contemporaries, where the writing seems to become more choppy, wooden and scripted with every new one that pops. Seriously what is going on?

P.1
"He and his brothers, Beau and Quinn, had always been extremely overprotective of their baby sister. With good reason. Caleb was the head of a veritable empire. Security was always top priority"

Am I the only one who thinks this barely flows?? 

Buy Now 

N/A as that would be slightly hypocritical lol 

Book Review: Uprooted by Naomi Novik (Favorites Extravaganza: Day #11)

2015 Favorites Extravaganza: Day #11

Uprooted  by Naomi Novik
N/A
First Published: 2015
Hardcover
Mature YA, High-Fantasy
Rating:

Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life.
Her people rely on the cold, ambitious wizard, known only as the Dragon, to keep the wood's powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman must be handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as being lost to the wood.
The next choosing is fast approaching, and Agnieszka is afraid. She knows - everyone knows - that the Dragon will take Kasia: beautiful, graceful, brave Kasia - all the things Agnieszka isn't - and her dearest friend in the world. And there is no way to save her.
But no one can predict how or why the Dragon chooses a girl. And when he comes, it is not Kasia he will take with him.
From the author of the Temeraire series comes this hugely imaginative, engrossing and vivid fantasy novel, inspired by folk and fairy tales. It is perfect reading for fans of Robin Hobb and Trudi Canavan.

Initially, Uprooted caught my eyes when pictures of its beautiful cover surfaced tumblr (with very favorable reviews). So just like that, it was bumped to the top of my list. Sometimes, this method of book-chosing yields unfortunate results. And sometimes, it doesn't. Sometimes, it turns out to be the best of choices.

I wasn't even two pages in when I knew I would adore this book. I was absolutely correct. 

Every ten years, a 17 years old girl is chosen to live with the valley's wizard, the Dragon. And when her 10 years end, she leaves - never to come back. Agnieszka, our protagonist, is such a girl. But neither she nor her family are really worried, because the Dragon always takes the most beautiful and talented girl, and Agnieszka's best friend Kasia is the sure choice.

So everyone are shocked when she is chosen. Now she has to deal with being uprooted (see what I did there??) and worse -- living with a surly, neat-freak, perfectionist wizard who won't even try to make the transition somewhat bearable. 

From that point on, things get real interesting.

First of all, let me say this - the bromance (is there a female term for bromance??) between Nieshka and Kasia is life. I was worried that Uprooted will follow in Cruel Beauty's steps with more hate than friendship, but it totally didn't. Nieshka and Kasia are real, honest to god, best friends. They're practically sisters. It was beautiful, seriously. 

Then there is the Dragon. I was shipping him and Nieshka from pretty much the first time they met. They just clashed so beautifully - she with her spontaneous, outdoorsy, clumsy manner and him with his straight laced, dignified order. It made for some hilarious interactions, and you could see from the get-go that those interaction rattled both of them. In the best way possible.

I mean, it's sort of a hate to love relationship, and it is executed perfectly. You fall in love together with these two characters, and the best part is that neither of them need to voice their feelings to know they are there. 

Oh, and they are hot. Sometimes in an explicit sort of way. However, don't expect a NA level of things. The mature content in Uprooted is very tasteful and doesn't go overboard, staying true to the mood, story and characters. Novik isn't afraid to go past PG-13, because it's right for her story. And not for any other reason. 

Now lets talk a little about the world because it was beautiful and horrifying and magical. Novik did a wonderful job flashing out the world without info-dumping it on you, letting you learn the ins and outs through the characters and their experiences. In this world, some rare people have magic. And the biggest threat to all the kingdom's people is not the war always brewing on the horizon, it is the Wood.

Yes. When was the last time you read a book where a Wood was the main antagonist? And not just any antagonist - a manipulative, cruel, mind controlling one who will do anything in his power to devour all the land and kill everyone in it. 

What, you're scared now? You should be. 

Alongside Nieshka, Dragon and Kasia, there are many side characters, such as the other magicians, the (kind of hateful) prince, the king, and the villagers. They were all, even when they were kind of awful, charming in their own ways. Mostly because no one in this book is really evil. 

Oh, and you should know - this book doesn't pull any punches. There are deaths. From a certain point there is a death almost every page. And some of it is hella gory. But even so, it's still so damn charming.

GAh, I don't know. This book does stuff to me. 

Uprooted is everything. I just want more of this world and characters so damned much that I can't deal with this being the end!

2016 Books I Am asdfghjkl Excited For

2016 is an exciting year for me. SO MANY BOOKS I NEED TO READ ARE COMING OUT, HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO DEAL!? Easy. By showcasing all of them here in this post and gushing about them and being all around a loyal fangirl. As one does.

Get ready. We're starting.

Night Study by Maria V. Snyder
Dude. DUDE. If you've read the Poison Study series, and specifically if you read Shadow Study, you know why I'm excited for this. Maria V. Snyder caught my heart with Poison Study and has refused to let it go since. I love the world, the characters, the writing. It is life.
And this installment will include; Valek. Yelena. Finding out where they go from that ending (that was all I ever dreamed of, btw). More Janco. Commandor and Valek dynamics. Plots and schemes maybe? Valek. Yelena. Wait, did I say that already?... 

Marked in Flesh by Anne Bishop

Give it to me. Give it to me now. My body is ready. My shipper heart is prepared. I will survive whatever you throw at me. So, you know, feel safe to publish it early. I won't mind.

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
THE FINAL RAVEN CYCLE NOVEL. My heart is not ready for this. Why is it coming so quickly? What will happen to Gansey and Blue, Ronan and Adam, Noah?? By god, Maggie Stiefvater, if you kill Gansey I will... I will... Well, I'll forgive you, eventually, because I love you, but I will be very upset! I want all my babies in one piece by the end of this novel or else I shall be a sobbing, incoherent mess! 

Remembrance by Meg Cabot

Where is the lie though?

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab
I've only read one Victoria Schwab novel so far. Yes, yes, I know. WHAAT and HOOW and other sounds of exclamation. Don't worry, I plan to read them, okay? It just takes me some time. But the cover and title of this one just instantly puts it at the top of my tbr.
Like, I have this thing with titles that has something to do with songs. And a savage song? And is that a VIOLIN?! Do I even need to read the synopsis or do I just buy it when the time comes?...

P.S. I Like You by Kasie West
(And The Sun, The Moon and the Truth, though currently the publication that was supposed to publish it has closed so I'm unclear on whether it will really publish in 2016)
So, I love Kasie West. She's one of those authors I automatically buy, regardless of synopsis. Be it contemporary or fantasy, she is goals and I just can't have enough of her books. So I'll be honest - I don't know much about this book. But, KASIE WEST people. 'nough said.

Heartless / Untitled first book by Marissa Meyer
2016 is going to be huge for the Meyer fan. Which I most certainly am, even if I'm waiting with the final two book in the Lunar Chronicles for my copy of Winter to arrive.
So, we get a standalone about the Queen of Hearts - which just sounds amazing.
And then we get the start of a new trilogy about superpowers? whaaat? SIGN ME UP!

Untitled Horror by Stephanie Perkins
Huh? What is this sorcery? Queen of Fluff is writing a horror story? a HORROR story? What is life at the moment? And more to the point - when does it come out so I can experience it? Am I hesitant? Sure. But am I also beyond psyched for this? HECK YEAH! 

THAT'S IT. WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR MOST ANTICIPATED READS OF 2016?