Possession Series Scavenger Hunt!

Today we're here to celebrate the completion of the Possession series by Elana Johnson! ABANDON came out on June 4, and I hope you've been participating in the series scavenger hunt! Today I'm bringing you one of the stops!

Once you know what city in the Association we're visiting today, GO HERE to fill out the form to enter to win today's prize (a series swag package), as well as an overall scavenger hunt prize: signed paperbacks of the entire series, as well as digital copies of the two short stories (REGRET and RESIST) that round out the Possession series + a $50 Amazon gift card.

“Emotion pumps through every scene of this thriller. Given all the urgency and action, the novel’s ending may surprise readers as the heroic adventure turns into a tragic love story.” –School Library Journal

“The end is satisfying in a full-circle way and is set up for a third novel in this world. Some recent dystopian novels with a similar them are the Matched series by Ally Condie and the Delirium series by Lauren Oliver.” –VOYA

“A thrilling, fan-pleasing sequel.” –The Deseret News

Available now!



The fight for independent thought becomes a matter of life or death in this sizzling and intense conclusion to the Possession trilogy.








Your clue for the scavenger hunt today: This city is in the Midwest Region.

And go Supernatural Snark to read a guest post by Elana and discover which city in the Association we're visiting! Then be sure to ENTER TO WIN the grand prize signed paperback giveaway + Amazon gift card.

To enter the daily swag package giveaway, fill out the Rafflecopter below

a Rafflecopter giveaway


If you get lost, you can always go to Elana's blog to find your place. Happy hunting!

Big Warm Welcome.

Introductions posts are always weird. It’s a little similar the beginning of a book. How should you start it? A cliché is to introduce yourself with your name. Hi! My name is… but that’s a bit boring. Of course, there’s no other way around it, is there? I have to tell you my name at some point, otherwise, what is the purpose of the post? So, please excuse my major cliché moment.

Hello! My name is Brianna. I’m a senior at Sarah Lawrence. I’ll be working with the lovely Nicole and Amy on the blog. I couldn’t be more excited. I absolutely love book reviews and think they are a great way for readers to test out a book before they actually start it. Book reviewing is a total art and I think a favorable review can really bolster the book to stardom, especially if the review is by the right person. Look at The Hunger Games trilogy. The books exploded after Stephenie Meyer gave her endorsement and then also when Stephen King recommended it. So, book reviewing, recommending and blogging are something I am very excited to be a part of. Especially since one day, I hope to receive many great reviews.

A quick little history of moi: In addition to being an avid reader and aspiring YA novelist, I am a Senior Associate Editor at a literary magazine called First Inkling. I’m one of the submissions managers, which means that I read a lot. However, a lot of what I read are mostly short stories and poems written by undergrad and grad college students. I love it and the magazine has definitely helped widen my reader palate. I went from reading primarily YA fiction-and mostly paranormal-to reading literary fiction, memoir, non-fiction. I realized that as an editor I needed to become well read and as a young woman right out of high school only reading things that resembled the Hunger Games or Harry Potter really wasn’t going to help me. I’m so glad that I became less picky, although I am still just a bit. I suppose the only way to really get over that is to keep reading.

I’ll try to bring a variety of books to the blog. Currently I am in the middle of The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers, an excellent literary fiction novel about two young soldiers serving in Iraq at the beginning of the war. After that I’ll try to move onto some YA books because I’ve got a lot of catching up to do. I haven’t read Divergent yet! Gasp!

I’m a big fan of dystopian stories, but who isn’t currently? I’ve always enjoyed the paranormal romance a la Meg Cabot as well. However, writers like Gayle Forman and Lauren Oliver have done an excellent job in creating this sub genre of real life/magical realism novels such as If I Stay and Before I Fall that I find really fascinating. I also love discovering new writers, no matter the genre. A lot of my job at First Inkling is discovering the great writers before they’ve been published and still in school. So I’m very interested in reading first novels or books by writers who haven’t hit that buzz yet. That being said, I’m pretty much down for reading anything as long as the story interests me. I’m willing to get over my picky.

As far as introductions go, I think that’s about it. I really want to thank Nicole for allowing me to co-blog with her. To commemorate the start of the blog, I went to BEA for the first time. I met some pretty amazing people. I can't wait to tell you about it. I gathered books to review for Paperback Princess but I also worked with the Young Adult Review Network. I live tweeted them updates from the expo and shared my amazement and excitement. I'll tell you more about it in my next post! Until then, happy reading!

The Pilgrims of Rayne (Pendragon #8)

Author: D.J. MacHale
Goodreads Rating: 4.15
Pages: 560
Reviewed By: Amy

When Bobby Pendragon first arrives on the tropical world of Ibara, he finds paradise. There is beauty all around and the people of Ibara are blissfully happy. It's not long before Bobby discovers, however, that they are also blissfully...oblivious.

The leaders of Ibara are keeping a devastating secret from their people, one that gives Saint Dane all the opportunity he needs to launch his final assault on Halla.

While Bobby struggles to learn the truth in time to thwart Saint Dane, Courtney Chetwynde desperately searches for Mark Diamond. On the heels of a shocking tragedy, Mark has disappeared. Worse, he seems to be under Saint Dane's influence. It's up to Courtney to find Mark and stop him from making a grave mistake that could change the future of all existence.

Beautiful Child

Author: Torey Hayden
Goodreads Rating: 4.16
Pages: 385
Reviewed by: Amy

In the tradition of David Pelzer's A Child Called 'It' comes the unsettling story of a mute, almost catatonic seven-year-old and the special education teacher who tries to save her from the silence and abuse of her world.

Hayden has chronicled experiences from her long career as a special education teacher in several books, including One Child and The Tiger's Child. Successes in this difficult and often frustrating field can be few and hard won, a fact which Hayden deftly illustrates while simultaneously offering hope and joy in small victories. This time she brings to life the story of a scruffy seven-year-old, Venus, who is so unresponsive that Hayden searches for signs of deafness, brain damage or mental retardation. The author is relentless in her attempt to diagnose the cause of Venus's 'almost catatonic' state, which is punctuated by occasional violent outbursts. In this first-person narrative, Hayden also shares her own thoughts, worries and reflections on the strained relationship with a mismatched classroom aide, creating a rich tapestry of the dynamics of a group of special needs youngsters and the adults who try to help them.

Her Highness The Traitor

Author: Susan Higginbotham
Goodreads Rating: 3.81
Pages: 323
Format: Finished Copy from Publisher at BEA12

As Henry VIII draws his last breath, two very different women, Jane Dudley, Viscountess Lisle, and Frances Grey, Marchioness of Dorset, face the prospect of a boy king, Edward VI.
For Jane Dudley, basking in the affection of her large family, the coming of a new king means another step upward for her ambitious, able husband, John. For Frances Grey, increasingly alienated from her husband and her brilliant but arrogant daughter Lady Jane, it means that she—and the Lady Jane—are one step closer to the throne of England.
Then the young king falls deathly ill. Determined to keep England under Protestant rule, he concocts an audacious scheme that subverts his own father’s will. Suddenly, Jane Dudley and Frances Grey are reluctantly bound together in a common cause—one that will test their loyalties, their strength, and their faith, and that will change their lives beyond measure.