Give-away - As You Wish by Jackson Pearce

Ever since Viola's boyfriend broke up with her, she has spent her days silently wishing—to have someone love her again and, more importantly, to belong again—until one day she inadvertently summons a young genie out of his world and into her own. He will remain until she makes three wishes.

Jinn is anxious to return home, but Viola is terrified of wishing, afraid she will not wish for the right thing, the thing that will make her truly happy. 

As the two spend time together, the lines between master and servant begin to blur, and soon Jinn can't deny that he's falling for Viola. But it's only after Viola makes her first wish that she realizes she's in love with Jinn as well . . . and that if she wishes twice more, he will disappear from her life—and her world—forever.

Jackson Pearce spins a magical tale about star-crossed lovers, what it means to belong . . . and how important it is to be careful what you wish for.

Blurbed by Lisa McMann: “As You Wish is compelling, funny, thrilling and sexy, and Jinn is positively swoony. When you get to the end, you’ll wish for more.”


I haven't read it yet, but how cute and fun and romance-y does this book look? And it's told from alternating POV's which I love :) 

• Check out what others think on goodreads and amazon 

24 hour Comp - winner announced tomorrow - Sat 14th

Open internationally

This is a pre-order of the paperback - release date is set for September 15

Enter below

And keep reading the post for some big news @ the bottom :)

Other cool happenings:

Eating YA Books is having a give-away. Win a $25 Amazon gift voucher (US) or $25 to spend @ The Book Depository (international). Eating YA Books is one of my fave blogs for thoughtful, articulate reviews and for being awesome in general. Plus Jan visits inkcrush (yay!) and is ever so lovely :)




Choco (from AW) runs one of the funkiest blogs around - In Which a Girl Reads - and is hosting a giveaway that will leave you feeling pumped and hanging out to be a winner...

some of the stash choco has up for grabs...

And the topic for this weekends Hi5 is: first chapters that hooked you. I've already picked a few...

One of my favourite reads this year (I re-read it again last week) was reviewed by Bee. She is such a fab reviewer, trust me when i say you will love this book. Bee is also my Jaclyn Moriarty BFF for life :)

Author Kara Mustafa :)

And, finally, the biggest news... Kara Mustafa (Moost) is now agented by the awesome Suzie Townsend!!!

 I had the honour of BETA reading her MS, Plan B, earlier in the year and it is going to be hot! So so pumped! I have a huge crush on Logan (her Aussie character!) who I need to see between the covers of a book and Maggie who will work her way into your heart and have you grinning @ her cool cool self. Fingers crossed for when it goes out on sub!

Covers of The Book Thief - Markus Zusac (35 Editions)

Australian

UK Adult

UK Teen hard cover

UK Teen Paperback

US

Portuguese

Japanese

Chinese

Chinese Paperback

Spanish

Russian Paperback

Russian Hardcover

Norwegian

Italian

Catalan

French

French Paperback

Turkish

German

German #2

Thailand

The most common cover art themes used around the world:

US Printz Edition

Spanish Paperback

German paperback

Finnish

Dutch

Spanish

French

Croatian

Norwegian

Polish

Portugese paperback

Bulgarian

German

Not going to comment on them all (it was tiring enough tracking them down and translating the correct book to country)

I have a clear favourite: The Australian edition :)

It's a beautiful cover, the blues and whites are stunning, the black figure of death facing away is somehow evocative. I love the trees and the splatters of blood are startling against the wintery image, but artisticly done. Plus, I kind of like how it is unique to us (aside from a similar French edition). I didn't realise it was an Aussie only cover. I guess looking at it also makes me feel how I felt when I read it (so I'm predisposed to like that one) but I'm still going with it for my favourite.

I'm also fond of the Italian.

And, oddly, the Turkish one moves me.

Um, how freaky are the Russian editions? That teddy bear in the snow gives me chills and Death on the Hardcover, OooOooh...

Ahhh, that German one? You know the one I mean. LOL. But, for real? Hmm...

And, the most common covers used internationally? I don't really like the girl reading on the stage or Death dancing with the girl. Neither of them appeal to me, but obviously publishing houses are into them.

Which Cover is your favourite? 

Any that freak you out? 

Do you have international cover envy?

Oh - and how brilliant is the actual book? 

It transcends what you think a book can be or do.

And, it's not just me who thinks so.

On goodreads there's over 58, 300 ratings (!)

And, the average rating? 4.35

Which is astounding when you think of all those tens of thousands of people all rating it so brillantly. 

Over half of the ratings are 5 stars

On LibraryThing: over 10, 000 ratings and 2/3's give it 5 stars. Averaging 4.42

If you haven't read it yet...

Hush Hush - Ha Ha

This completely amuses me.

On the streets of Sydney, this is how Simon and Schuster Australia are promoting Becca Fitzpatrick's upcoming release Crescendo...

Um, what do you think of their strategy? Haha. Good times.

(the boys kick in @ 23 seconds)

Joel and Cat Set the Story Straight - Nick Earls and Rebecca Sparrow

Joel and Cat Set the Story Straight is two weeks in the life of Joel Hedges and Cat Davis. 


Everyone knows that Joel and Cat hate each other. Then they end up partners in a writing assignment. By the second paragraph they’re in the thick of an all-out tandem story war.


Then Cat’s dad and Joel’s mum start dating, and they can finally agree on something – it’s got to stop. But will sparks fly between Joel and Cat for all the right reasons as they go about setting a few things straight? 


What ensues reveals a lot about how smug teenage boys are and what teenage girls really think. No, wait – it's about a sane female and an insane male. It's about revenge and mistaken identity. (synopsis from jacket cover and goodreads)


I spent one lazily delicious afternoon grinning my way through this.

And then. 

About half way through, everything kicked up a notch and I couldn't put it down. The build up to the climax was perfectly done, raising the stakes and the level of hilarity.

It was a completely fun book that felt like high school and had me grinning stupidly and occasionally snorting. One of the scenes (where Joel "takes one for the team") had me laughing so much my tummy started to hurt - how do they think up that stuff? Even thinking about the book right now, I have a ridiculous smile on my face - it genuinely cracked me up.

I also loved the spoofy Jane Austin and Matthew Reilly style writing that Joel and Cat wrote to each other, for an assignment, in the story (they emailed a paragraph per chapter, and used it to vent - killing/torturing each others characters, etc). So cleverly done. Classic!

It felt like Nick and Rebecca had a blast writing this and the chapters flowed so smoothly - one of the best collaborative efforts I've come across.

My only criticism is: at the beginning the build-up of some of the subplots dragged a little and I would have preferred to see more of Joel and Cat antagonising each other (in those initial chapters) as they had the whole sharp, eloquent insult thing down pat in the most entertaining of ways.


Praise for Joel & Cat Set The Story Straight

• "Nick and Rebecca are a match made in heaven." The Age
• "One of the funniest and most memorable reads of the year (2007) in YA fiction" Sydney Morning Herald.

I choose this book from Penguin's site - after winning a comp where the prize was $100 to spend (!) Whoo Hoo! If you're an Aussie you should definitely keep an eye out @ your library/book shops for this. Such a fun feisty funny read. Loved it, my mateys. How cool is the premise too? And I <3 Joel.

Cool interview about the book with Nick Earls and Rebecca Sparrow

And Then Everything Unraveled - Jennifer Sturman

paperback

hard cover

Delia Truesdale has no idea her life's about to change forever. She's too busy enjoying the California summer. Her internet tycoon mother, T.K. Truesdale, is out of town, and that means Delia can spend all her time at the beach, surfing. That is, until everything unravels.  

Her mother suddenly goes missing, and everyone thinks she's dead - except Delia, who knows T.K.'s way too organized to simply disappear. But Delia's still sent to New York to live with her two aunts - a downtown bohemian and an uptown ice queen.   

And in case that's not bad enough, she also has to deal with a snooty new school and trying not to fall for the wrong guy. Oh, and finding her mother.  

As she delves deeper into the tangle of conspiracies and lies surrounding T.K.'s disappearance, Delia begins to suspect that the wrong guy may be the right guy...and that some secrets - especially the dangerous ones - were never meant to be unraveled (synopsis: goodreads)

I'm crushing on this book hard.

Mainly because of the voice which is exactly my kind of thing. Clever and funny and quirky, I was grinning my way through this and nodding along at Delia's wry observations. Also, its written in a slight stream of consciousness style, which is just so wonderfully done.

I'm envious of the way Sturman captures the essence of a character and just breathes life into them in a few sentences and mate, you know these people. And you'll love them and laugh at them and will amuse yourself to no end.

I love Delia. Who wouldn't? Even if there was no mystery here, I'd just read pages of her voice. Anyway, the mystery helped drive the plot, but it wasn't overly in-your-face Nancy drew style, more just Delia trying to figure out what happened to her mum and there's some lovely foreshadowing of who could be the bad dude which I couldn't figure out - despite being 30 and highly intelligent ;) - and I liked that mysteriousness about it all.

Delia's Aunt, Charley. I want to be her. Anyway, I want my adult characters to shine this hard and work their way into my heart in just a few paragraphs like Charley did.

And, helloooooo Quinn. Here's a YA dude that can make you swoon with no cringe-y details of hotness (but trust me, he is hot). He is awesome and I wish there had been more of him so thank God there is a sequel. Because I am so there. (Ahh, when it comes in paperback that is, a painful wait, but hard covers aren't in my budget...and they hurt my hand more).

And, I also love that this book has a fresh and innocent feel about it. No swearing or drugs, etc. Very sweet and I wish I could go back in time and give it to my teen self who craved books exactly like this. And craved boys exactly like Quinn :)

I read this book in one day. Good times.

I give it 4 stars of brilliance. 

This cover was made for me. I love the funky illustrated stuff and the girl on the paperback makes me think of Delia (who is half Indian). The colours are awesome.

• And a shout out to the ever-so-cool Mary of Sparkling Reviews who is holding her first international comp and giving away books from this  selection (2 separate posts, 12 books in total) Here to enter  She's a new blogger looking for some <3

xx Nomes

Hi5 - Favourite MG/YA Books to Movies

A meme hosted by Cara @Chasing Words, Anne @Potter, Percy and I and me...

The topic for this weeks Hi5 was chosen by Anne and I love it - but it was HARD. I brainstormed a short list of faves (ah, slashed it down to 32 choices...)

So here's my top 5 picks for MG/YA books made into movies:

#5 The Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
(2007 adaption)


I showed this in class and almost every student cried.
Even the eleven year old boys (which the girls thought was totally sweet)
It's a powerful adaption that brings the book to life.
The scenes of Terabithia are stunning and the acting is convincing in a way that will make you remember the magic of make believe and also make your heart ache.

#4 Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss
(Disney 1960 adaption)


Has it all: shipwreck, pirates, wild animals, a girl disguised as a boy and brothers in love with the same girl and the coolest tree house you always wanted to live in, plus how funny is Francis? I like the movie better than the book (it's a very boyish-type book, I think).

It also has Fritz... (dude in the middle)

#3 Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren
(1988 US film adaption: The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking)

The books rock hard and the movie rocks even harder.
One of my fave literary characters ever.
I wanted to be her.
Well, who didn't? :)




#2 Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta
(film released in 2000)

Melina wrote the screen play (so, you know, it's beautiful and funny) and Pia Miranda (as Josie) is spirited and generally awesome and Anthony Lapaglia is a fave actor of mine. It's full of energy and emotion and you can't help but root for Josie and her complicated life. Plus, its shot around Sydney in places I have haunted and it feels so Australian that me & my mates just connected with it. It's ten years old now, so it feels a touch dated, but I've chucked up the trailer if you're interested :) Has anyone seen it?


#1 Anne of Green Gables by L M Montgomery
(1985 Television movie and sequel)
No contest for my number one pick.

"Carrots!"

Gilbert and Anne FTW

I don't even know what to say. First off, Anne is just awesome, literary and day-dreamy and wild and stubborn with such a huge heart. And Gil <3 One of my top literary couples ever soo perfectly cast. Anne is just brilliant and Prince Edward Island is stunning. Perfect rainy day comfort viewing and no matter how many times I watch it, I still swoon :) I want Diana Barry as my BFF and still get teary when you-know-who dies... Plus, it's funny, clever, touching, charming, full of soul and have you heard Gil say: "I'm sorry"? LOL!

Some of my Runner-ups:

• I Capture the Castle - I blogged about the book verse the movie earlier Also Henry Cavill is in the movie...
• Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers - the 1960 adaption starring Jodie Foster - just a whole heap of fun (and the screen play was written by the author)
• Nim's Island - so so good (and the book's written by an Australian author)
• Girl, Interrupted - loved this hard when it came out, also love the book (which is a memoir) 
• Whip It  - it's pretty cool, but I haven't read the book...
• Bend It Like Beckham - actually just thought of this and could probably rearrange things, but cant be bothered. Love the book, love the movie
• The Narnia movies. Love Prince Caspian, but not a fan of how Peter got treated in the movie. He is not like that in the book! Disturbed me a little b/c Pete's a good guy :)
• and yeah, I liked Romeo and Juliet with DiCaprio and Danes when it came out - 1997. Is that uncool? Who cares :)

Also, fairytale retellings: I love Ever After with Drew Barrymore and Amanda Bynes in Sydney White, but they're not really based on a book so I didn't include them in my options.

And I bet there's heaps I haven't thought of, so these are just my picks for now.

Okay, I'm stopping before I get carried away...

Have you got favourite book to movie adaptions? You can do your own post any time this weekend, link it up using Mister Linky and we'll come and check it out.

Also, so many of my mates haven't watched Anne of Green Gables (!) Tell me you have and that you love the movies hard.