Waiting on Wednesday #70: The Fire Wish

Waiting on Wednesday is a wonderful meme created by Jill from Breaking the Spine where we highlighted an upcoming release that we're eagerly anticipating.

The Fire Wish (The Fire Wish #1) 
by Amber Lough 
Hardcover, 320 pages 
Expected publication: July 22nd 2014 
by Random House Children's

Goodreads | Amazon| B & N | TBD

A jinni. A princess. And the wish that changes everything. . . . Najwa is a jinni, training to be a spy in the war against the humans. Zayele is a human on her way to marry a prince of Baghdad—which she’ll do anything to avoid. So she captures Najwa and makes a wish. With a rush of smoke and fire, they fall apart and re-form—as each other. A jinni and a human, trading lives. Both girls must play their parts among enemies who would kill them if the deception were ever discovered—enemies including the young men Najwa and Zayele are just discovering they might love.

I'm always on the look out for YA fantasy books with an Asian setting. This sounds way amazing and the fact that this is probably the first book that I've found with a jinni as a main character made me want it so bad.

Book Blitz & Giveaway: The Accidental Socialite

Hi, everyone! Today I'm having a Book Blitz for the book The Accidental Socialite by Stephanie Wahlstrom.

The Accidental Socialite

by Stephanie Wahlstrom 

Release Date April 5th 2014
Swoon Romance

Sypnosis:

Quirky and clumsy twenty-two-year-old Paige Crawford arrives in London on a cold Saturday in January. Just when Paige starts to think that moving thousands of miles away from home with no real plan was a bad idea, Jason Frost appears. Confident and classy, Jason is the complete opposite of Paige and just what she needs in her life, or so she thinks.

But before their romance has time to blossom, Paige trips and falls into the arms of a mysterious man on a drunken night out. She’s snapped by paparazzi, and newspaper headlines the next day suggest that she’s having an affair with a married footballer.

Paige finds herself instantly elevated to tabloid celebrity status which isn’t exactly a picnic, particularly when trying to juggle her new job at Fashionista magazine, a catalog of dating disasters and a nagging doubt that she maybe she can’t conquer London after all.

When a trip back to Canada for Christmas reminds Paige why she left her old life behind, she returns to London with renewed vigor realizing that while jobs, flats and men may come and go, friends in London are forever.

Goodreads |  Amazon | 

AUTHOR BIO:
Growing up in Edmonton, Canada, a significant amount of Stephanie’s time was spent making up and acting out stories. She was studying to be an actress when she realized there weren’t any parts for women being written. So, Stephanie wrote herself a short screenplay just to be in it, and quickly realized that writing was her true passion. She graduated from the University of Alberta with an English and Sociology degree and she also has a Bachelor of Motion Picture Arts from Red Deer College. After a fateful trip to Mexico in 2006, Stephanie decided to move to New York City to work in film development. A year later she went back home to write My Green House, a factual TV series. Stephanie moved to London in 2008 and aside from being obsessed with eggs benedict, fruit roll- ups and travelling, she also works in children’s television. The Accidental Socialite is her first novel.

Website |  Twitter | Facebook |  Goodreads

It was 3 A.M. and all I wanted was a cheeseburger.

“Miss, we only sell Big Macs after midnight,” said the McDonalds employee. My stomach grumbled. My diet since I got off the plane had consisted mostly of Champagne, Vodka, and seared tuna.

“Yes, I understand that and I will pay for a Big Mac, but I would like a cheeseburger, so can you, like, remove a patty and mid bun and hold the secret sauce? Please?”

“Miss, I am sorry but we do not have this item.”

Liar. He didn’t look sorry. I immediately wanted to get on the next flight home. It rained cheeseburgers in Canada.

A tall, drunk and incredibly beautiful blonde South African girl appeared at the till next to me.

“I’ll have a hot dog.” That was my new best friend, Lucinda.

We walked out of McDonalds with a small fries to ‘split’, which really meant Lucinda was going to watch me eat them. As I was elegantly shoving eight fries into my mouth at once, not unlike a four-year-old, a swarm of camera wielding hyenas approached. One flash triggered the rest and little white dots burned into my retina. I stumbled, almost dropping my fries.

What was going on? I looked for the celebrity garnering all this attention. I couldn’t believe my luck, I was about to spot someone famous on my first day in London! But when Lucinda slapped the second fist full of fries out of my hand and pulled me towards a taxi, I realized with confusion that the so-called celebrity was me.

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Review: House of Ivy & Sorrow

House of Ivy & Sorrow 
by Natalie Whipple 
ebook,251 pages
Published April 15th 2014 
by HarperTeen
ARC from Edelweiss
Goodreads | Amazon| B & N | TBD

Josephine Hemlock has spent the last 10 years hiding from the Curse that killed her mother. But when a mysterious man arrives at her ivy-covered, magic-fortified home, it’s clear her mother’s killer has finally come to destroy the rest of the Hemlock bloodline. Before Jo can even think about fighting back, she must figure out who she’s fighting in the first place. The more truth Jo uncovers, the deeper she falls into witchcraft darker than she ever imagined. Trapped and running out of time, she begins to wonder if the very Curse that killed her mother is the only way to save everyone she loves.

For those of you have been following my blog for some time, you guys must know how much I like witches  and kick-ass chicks. With that in mind, this book was definitely love at first sight. And for me it is without a doubt one of the best YA fantasy that I've read this year and the fact that it has some cool witches in it just made me love it to bits. And yes! It's a stand alone! Time to celebrate, people!

Let's get to the nitty gritty. Jo who was raised by her witch grandmother was having one of the best year of her high school life. Surrounded by two wonderful friends, she caught the eye of Winn; one of the popular guy in school. But suddenly a strange, mysterious man appeared right in front of her ivy covered, magically fortified house and all hell breaks loose. 

What made me love this book so much aside from the interesting use of witches, curses and magical elements, are the characters. Jo's two best friends; Gwen and Kat are polar opposites. Gwen is the friendly, outgoing one while Kat is the grouchy no nonsense girl. Winn Carter; the love interest in question is a sweet farmboy witch secrets of his own. And I guess, after losing her mother to the curse ten years ago, Jo is kind of desperate to protect those close to her from suffering such fate. And even the Hemlocks' closest family friend; the Crafts are one zany family of witches which make it hard not to smile when I'm reading about them. And the appearance of Levy; the unusual bewitiching boy who seemed to have a thing for our dear Jo just makes this book so exciting.

Wonderfully written, charming characters and an action filled  plot make this book one witchy book that everyone should definitely check out!

Review: The Geography of You and Me

The Geography of You and Me 
by Jennifer E. Smith 
Kindle Edition, 352 pages
Published April 15th 2014 
by Little, Brown for Young Readers 
ARC from Edelweiss
Goodreads | Amazon| B & N | TBD

Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they're rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is restored, so is reality. Lucy soon moves to Edinburgh with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father.

Lucy and Owen's relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and -- finally -- a reunion in the city where they first met. 

A carefully charted map of a long-distance relationship, Jennifer E. Smith's new novel shows that the center of the world isn't necessarily a place. It can be a person, too.

I used to think that YA contemporary did not have real depth and considered it as mere fluff. But after giving this popular genre a go this year, I found so many cute stories that are hard to resist.

The Geography of You and Me is a fine example of that. It's short, sweet and simple plot is not for everyone but for those looking for a light read then this might just be for you. Lucy's and Owen's romance is not instantaneous and while some will dismissed the encounter on their apartment's rooftop as not romantic enough, I really like the chemistry between those two. The way they instantly click and the funny conversations they had with each other is the real attraction here. And it is sad to see two people so made for each other are forced to separate because time and fate are just not on their side.

Because you see after their first meeting, Lucy had to travel all the way to Paris and later to Edinburgh when her father was offered a job there. While Owen's dad who was fired from his job decided to go for a road trip. And Owen being the good son that he is, decided to joined his dad since he's worried that his dad is depressed due to the fact that his mom just died.

And although they were reunited once again in San Francisco, the situations are not ideal and they were forced to part again. Despite the fact that both of them did try to have relationships with other people, consequently in the end fate intertwines them back again. The ending is just so- so sweet in my opinion. Although the characters are far from perfect, they are definitely perfect for each other.