My Week in a Wrapped #7

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog, showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead.

I still can’t get over the fact that one of my closest friend at work will no longer be working with me. Her contract ended last week. Sigh. Though we promised to still get in touch through text or Facebook, hang-out sometimes and did that pinky swear thing, I know it will never be the same again. I know it’s not “Goodbye”, but more of  “See you around”. Still. I feel so different without her. This week felt weird. Awkward really. It’s like I’m in this bubble alone. Sorry. I tend to be sentimental and possessive in a good way when it comes to friends or generally people I love. Sigh.

On a lighter note, I’ve met a new friend. An FBF. Fellow Bookworm Friend. I made that up and I know it sucks. LOL. Most of you knew her, I think. She’s Claudia of This is My Soul Called Life. We’ve exchanged a couple of (long) emails and I must admit that I’m loving her. She’s up to friends and not just followers. I’m surprised that she asked for us to talk outside the blogsphere since some bloggers don’t tend to be “real” friends with their followers and likers right? Don’t me give me that face. I said some, not all. 😀 I think a lot would agree with this. So there goes my week. Someone left. Someone turned up. See how life works? How’s your week? 😀

Last Week On The Blog

• My Week in a Wrapped #6
• Book Review: Crown of Ice by Vicki L. Weavil
• November Random Reads
• Fusion: Currently Reading│Teaser Tuesday: Stone Cold Touch
• Waiting on Wednesday #23: Suspicion by Alexandra Monir
• The Return (Titan #1) by Jennifer Armentrout: Interview with Seth + Giveaway
• Book Beginning #5: The Beautiful Ashes
• Book Blogger Hop: November 7th-13th
• Book Review: Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2)

Book Review: Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2)

Name: Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2)
Author: Jennifer Armentrout
Number of Pages: 464 in Kindle
Published: October 21st, 2014
by Harlequin Teen
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance

“Every touch has its price
Layla Shaw is trying to pick up the pieces of her shattered life—no easy task for a seventeen-year-old who’s pretty sure things can’t get worse. Her impossibly gorgeous best friend, Zayne, is forever off-limits thanks to the mysterious powers of her soul-stealing kiss. The Warden clan that has always protected her is suddenly keeping dangerous secrets. And she can barely think about Roth, the wickedly hot demon prince who understood her in ways no one else could.
But sometimes rock bottom is only the beginning. Because suddenly Layla’s powers begin to evolve, and she’s offered a tantalizing taste of what has always been forbidden. Then, when she least expects it, Roth returns, bringing news that could change her world forever. She’s finally getting what she always wanted, but with hell literally breaking loose and the body count adding up, the price may be higher than Layla is willing to pay… .”

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you would have known by now that I’m torn about this series from the very start. I have issues and whatnot, but still I’ve eagerly waited for Stone Cold Touch to come out. I’m excited to know if I would finally love the series (Not that I hate it in general).

Since White Hot Kiss ended on a depressing note, I started reading this in a hopeful mood. The writing is still in a semi-fast pace. There are parts that have slow down a bit, but I can’t say it’s dull. If you’ve noticed, the book is 400+ pages and I’m surprised that I was actually wanting more after staying up until one in the morning last night to finish it. Stone Cold Touch is more action-packed and oozing with sexiness compared with White Hot Kiss. More thrilling and amazing if I may say. So much FEELS.

The Return (Titan #1) by Jennifer Armentrout: Interview with Seth + Giveaway

Name: The Return (Titan #1)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Number of Pages: 335 in Paperback
Published: February 17th 2015
by Spencer Hill Press
Genre: Fantasy, New Adult, Romance, Mythology

The Fates are cackling their bony asses off…
It’s been a year since Seth made the deal with the gods that pledged his life to them. And so far, the jobs they’ve given him have been violent and bloody–which is kind of all right with him. But now Apollo has something else in mind for Seth. He’s got to play protector while keeping his hands and fingers off, and for someone who really has a problem with restraint, this new assignment might be the most challenging yet. Josie has no idea what this crazy hot guy’s deal might be, but it’s a good bet that his arrival means the new life she started after leaving home is about to be thrown into an Olympian-sized blender turned up to puree. Either Josie is going insane or a nightmare straight out of ancient myth is gunning for her.
But it might be the unlikely attraction simmering between her and the golden-eyed, secret-keeping Seth that may prove to be the most dangerous thing of all.
Because history has once again been flipped to repeat.

HELLO COVENANT SERIES FANATICS!
LOOK WHO’S HERE?

If you’ve noticed the use of caps lock, well you need to
picture out that while I’m typing this post, I’m practically doing this at the same time..

LOL. I know Waiting on Wednesday is done, but then I’ve stumbled upon iHeartBigBooks‘ blog and found an interview with model Drew Leighty. Wondering who he is? He’s the face of Seth (Oh God! He’s super hot!) on the cover of the The Titan series which is the spin-off of the Covenant.

Here’s some snippets of the interview:

Currently Reading│Teaser Tuesday : Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer Armentrout

Currently Reading #27

Name: Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2)
Author: Jennifer Armentrout
Number of Pages: 464 in Kindle
Published: October 21st, 2014
by Harlequin Teen
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance

“Every touch has its price
Layla Shaw is trying to pick up the pieces of her shattered life—no easy task for a seventeen-year-old who’s pretty sure things can’t get worse. Her impossibly gorgeous best friend, Zayne, is forever off-limits thanks to the mysterious powers of her soul-stealing kiss. The Warden clan that has always protected her is suddenly keeping dangerous secrets. And she can barely think about Roth, the wickedly hot demon prince who understood her in ways no one else could.
But sometimes rock bottom is only the beginning. Because suddenly Layla’s powers begin to evolve, and she’s offered a tantalizing taste of what has always been forbidden. Then, when she least expects it, Roth returns, bringing news that could change her world forever. She’s finally getting what she always wanted, but with hell literally breaking loose and the body count adding up, the price may be higher than Layla is willing to pay… .”

Out of habit before reading a book, I’ve checked reviews and picked out one who loves it and the other who didn’t like it at least.

JLA did a great job keeping the reader in suspense throughout the whole book, and her writing style was superb as always. Her balance of humor and sadness, love and hate, fear and happiness… all great! A nice mix of both.
And I honestly love what she does with Zayne in this book. We see a lot more of Roth in the other book, so I was already in love with him. Now I’m in love with Zayne, too!
Book three is going to be interesting… I can already feel the tension about to arise. A lot of bad stuff is gonna go down! And hopefully nothing too heartbreaking happens. I have a bad feeling about that one though…
— J of The Romance Review

This next review is somehow torn..

My Week in a Wrapped #6

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog, showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead.

Nothing share worthy this past week. It has been dull. I have been on a routine (my daily routine really) like wake up, eat breakfast, go to work, come home from work, read a couple of chapters (current read), check notifications on my blog (and/or social networking accounts), do little house chores/mommy duties, try to read again and then finally go to sleep. Geez. That sucks right? LOL. No Halloween parties for me since I (still) need to work during the holidays. I only wish that I could have Christmas and New Year off from work (fingers crossed). How have you been this past week? 😀

Last Week On The Blog

• My Week in a Wrapped #5
• Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award!
• The Beauty of Books Tag!
• Last Hour for the SCT Journal Giveaway: Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer Armentrout
• Teaser Tuesday #16: The Iron Trial (Magisterium #1)
• Waiting on Wednesday #22: Anomaly (Schrodinger’s Consortium #1)
• Book Review: The Iron Trial (Magisterium #1)
• Book Beginning #4: Crown of Ice
• Book Blogger Hop: Halloween Edition

Last Hour for the SCT Journal Giveaway: Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer Armentrout

Here’s your last chance to win this:

Contest Rules:
International
Author is not responsible for lost or damaged prize package
Prizes cannot be swapped for any other prize

Click here for the Rafflecopter

You could also vote on which guy you want to see Layla end up with!

Excerpt: Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2)

I remember having issues on the first book of this series, but still I’m eagerly waiting for the second book to come out. I even included this on a Waiting on Wednesday post back in July because I still have faith on the book. I’m looking for recent updates, since the released date is fast approaching, when I’ve stumbled upon this excerpt. Yipeeeee! 😀

Name: Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2)
Author: Jennifer Armentrout
Number of Pages: 446 in Kindle Edition
Published: October 21st 2014 by Harlequin Teen
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance, Paranormal, Supernatural

He traced the delicate scales around Bambi’s nostrils, and when I shivered, his gaze lifted, snaring mine. There was so much heat and intensity in those cobald eyes that there was no mistaking how he was looking at me.
Like he had the night he’d seen me in my bra.
One side of his lips tipped up, and my heart jumped in my chest. His gaze returned to where Bambi rested, to where his finger was idly tracing her scales in smooth strokes. “It doesn’t feel like I thought it would. The skin is just slightly raised, but it’s really like a tattoo.”
Mouth dry, I closed my eyes as his finger moved over her head, nearing the tiny lace that decorated the hem of my tank top. I wasn’t wearing anything under the tank and he was so, so close.
“Does she like it?” he asked, breath warm in the space between our lips.
I nodded, assuming she did, because she wasn’t trying to kill him.
“Do you?”
The question whipped through me with the force of a destructive hurricane. My eyes snapped open and my breath came in short little pants. He was still so close, his hair tickling my cheeks and his finger trailing farther south, following the curve of Bambi, under the lace of my tank top.
His lashes swept up again and his gaze collided with mine. I had no idea how we’d ended up here. His hand stilled and he waited, and there was no denying the driving force behind the question. If I said no, he would move away. And if I said yes, then… I couldn’t even wrap my head around those possibilities.
If I said yes, everything would change—change in ways I couldn’t even fathom, ways I never truly believed could happen between us. My heart was beating too fast, and a strange kind of heat pooled deep in my body.

Book Review: Don’t Look Back

Samantha is a stranger in her own life. Until the night she disappeared with her best friend, Cassie, everyone said Sam had it all-popularity, wealth, and a dream boyfriend.

Sam has resurfaced, but she has no recollection of who she was or what happened to her that night. As she tries to piece together her life from before, she realizes it’s one she no longer wants any part of. The old Sam took “mean girl” to a whole new level, and it’s clear she and Cassie were more like best enemies. Sam is pretty sure that losing her memories is like winning the lottery. She’s getting a second chance at being a better daughter, sister, and friend, and she’s falling hard for Carson Ortiz, a boy who has always looked out for her-even if the old Sam treated him like trash.

But Cassie is still missing, and the facts about what happened to her that night isn’t just buried deep inside of Sam’s memory-someone else knows, someone who wants to make sure Sam stays quiet. All Sam wants is the truth, and if she can unlock her clouded memories of that fateful night, she can finally move on. But what if not remembering is the only thing keeping Sam alive?’

This is not anywhere on my Waiting on Wednesday list, but I got it and I’m pretty excited about this. I literally devoured it. Like I stuck my nose on it the whole day since I can’t, totally can’t afford to put it down. I practically stayed until two in the morning to finish it, though I need to be at work at 8am sharp. That’s how intense it is. I rarely read contemporary books since I’m a fantasy reader, but I really enjoyed this one that I totally forgot to include it on my list of Currently Reading. I’ve read this along The Winner’s Curse since sad to say, that book bored the hell out of me. Sorry.

Newly Owned to Read! #1

I’m a super super happy kid! My most awaited books just arrived! Yahooo!

 That’s one bunch of awesomeness there. Who would not be excited?

Yeah. I’m literally doing this happy dance or is this Hula? Ha! Ha!

I only have one major problem. Which one to read first? You can help me by casting your vote. 😀

Linking this up with Stacking the Shelves and The Sunday Post

Book Review: Opposition (Lux #5)

Katy knows the world changed the night the Luxen came.

She can’t believe Daemon welcomed his race or stood by as his kind threatened to obliterate every last human and hybrid on Earth. But the lines between good and bad have blurred, and love has become an emotion that could destroy her—could destroy them all.

Daemon will do anything to save those he loves, even if it means betrayal.

They must team with an unlikely enemy if there is any chance of surviving the invasion. But when it quickly becomes impossible to tell friend from foe, and the world is crumbling around them, they may lose everything— even what they cherish most—to ensure the survival of their friends…and mankind.

War has come to Earth. And no matter the outcome, the future will never be the same for those left standing.

Now you can see them all together.

We last left Katy and Daemon as they just escaped from the research center in Arizona and after they revealed to the world that they are aliens in Las Vegas. Now, they are on the run and looking to not get caught and taken in.

+++

Reading a series’ finale is bittersweet. Especially if it’s something you love. Especially if the book is about Daemon Black. Sigh. I’ve waited for this for a year, I believe, and I’ve read it for I think three days more or less. I really took my time. I don’t want to say goodbye to the series. Just yet. Sniff. Anyway, I was quite surprised how the story turned out. When I’ve finished Origin, I was thinking how Jennifer would pull off the finale. I’m scared for her actually. In most cases, alien invasion is not something that you could easily throw in without thinking on how you can come back to that. Surprisingly, Jennifer did a great job! This is one epic series! I can’t think of any other way this series could have ended. This is just so perfect. In everything. The writing. The twists. The resolution. The romance. The friendship. The villains. The epilogue. Oh the epilogue. Did I already mention THE Romance? Ha! Ha! This never failed to surprise me all the freaking time.