Every Hidden Thing by Kenneth Oppel {review + giveaway}

Every Hidden Thing
by Kenneth Oppel
♦publisher: Simon & Schuster
♦release date: October 11th, 2016
♦hardcover, 368 pages
♦intended audience: Young adult
♦stand-alone
♦from publisher for honest review

The hunt for a dinosaur skeleton buried in the Badlands, bitter rivalries, and a forbidden romance come together in this beautifully written new novel that’s Romeo and Juliet meets Indiana Jones.

Somewhere in the Badlands, embedded deep in centuries-buried rock and sand, lies the skeleton of a massive dinosaur, larger than anything the late nineteenth century world has ever seen. Some legends call it the Black Beauty, with its bones as black as ebony, but to seventeen-year-old Samuel Bolt it’s the “rex”, the king dinosaur that could put him and his struggling, temperamental archaeologist father in the history books (and conveniently make his father forget he’s been kicked out of school), if they can just quarry it out.

But Samuel and his father aren’t the only ones after the rex. For Rachel Cartland this find could be her ticket to a different life, one where her loves of science and adventure aren’t just relegated to books and sitting rooms. Because if she can’t prove herself on this expedition with her professor father, the only adventures she may have to look forward to are marriage or spinsterhood.

As their paths cross and the rivalry between their fathers becomes more intense, Samuel and Rachel are pushed closer together. And with both eyeing the same prize, their budding romance seems destined to fail. But as danger looms on the other side of the hills, causing everyone’s secrets to come to light, Samuel and Rachel are forced to make a decision. Can they join forces to find their quarry—and with it a new life together—or will old enmities and prejudices keep them from both the rex and each other?

Review: This story is described as Romeo & Juliet meets Indiana Jones--and that is a perfectly accurate comparison.  I've had a run of good luck with finding fun stories lately, and this was definitely no exception. 

Every Hidden Thing is definitely unique in that it's an archeology story set in the Old West. Both the main characters have ultra-competitive fathers who are trying to out-do each other in their archealogical finds. But Samuel and Rachel have grow to have as much passion for discovering bones as their fathers---and the time setting sets up a particular challenge for Rachel as digging up bones in the wilderness is just not proper for a young lady. But she cleverly finagles her way into the journey. The whole thing becomes a race to find a legendary dinosaur complete with territorial squabbles, accusations of sabotage, and run-ins with the native Sioux tribes that leave Rachel with a very justified doubt in her father's sanity.The audacity and righteousness of both men just leaves you wanting to strangle them most times, but especially Rachel's father.  

The love story was sweet, and despite being a nearly instant attraction, their trust and actual feelings for each other grew gradually. Their secret stolen moments were as romantic as they could be in the middle of a dirty digging site, hiding from fathers and cocky college boys.  I liked the realistic take on their romantic experiences ---it wasn't the "perfect first kiss" and the perfect first..etc. ;) And it was all very kind of bumbling, unsure...real.  I also appreciated that it was not all glossed over and perfect even after they got together, because they were still faced with outside forces, doubts, and hard life-changing decisions to make. 

I had only one big issue with this book. It was not exactly the alternating points of view, but the way the rapidly changing POV was formatted.  This story actually really benefited from being told from both Samuel's and Rachel's sides but the change from one to the other was not marked except for a very subtle font change.  The difference, to me, was not obvious enough and it often left me jumping from one voice to the other without noticing for a few seconds. There were far too many of those "wait..who's talking now?" moments. :) There was also one instance where each of them started talking directly to the other instead of the "audience" (only for a second) and I found that a bit odd. 

Despite that, though, I really loved this one. Such a riveting adventure and a compelling, complicated love story! 

•ABOUT THE AUTHOR•

credit: Mark Raynes Roberts

Kenneth Oppel is the author of numerous books for young readers. His award-winning Silverwing trilogy has sold over a million copies worldwide and been adapted as an animated TV series and stage play. Airborn won a Michael L. Printz Honor Book Award and the Canadian Governor General’s Literary Award for children’s literature; its sequel, Skybreaker, was a New York Times bestseller and was named Children’s Novel of the Year by the London Times. He is also the author of Half Brother, This Dark Endeavor, Such Wicked Intent, and The Boundless. Born on Canada’s Vancouver Island, he has lived in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, Canada; in England and Ireland; and now resides in Toronto with his wife and children.

 WEBSITE   •  TWITTER  •  FACEBOOK 

Purchase the book:  Indiebound  •  BookDepository  •  Amazon

*GIVEAWAY*

I received the finished copy of Every Hidden Thing so I'm passing along my ARC to one lucky winner! Enter below! 

•US mailing addresses only please

•Ends October 28, 2016

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A Shadow Bright and Burning by Jessica Cluess {review}

A Shadow Bright and Burning
by Jessica Cluess
♦publisher: Random House BFYR
♦release date: September 20th, 2016
♦hardcover, 416 pages
♦intended audience: Young adult
♦series: Kingdom of Fire, book 1 
♦source: ARC from publisher for honest review

I am Henrietta Howel.
The first female sorcerer in hundreds of years.
The prophesied one.
Or am I?

Henrietta Howel can burst into flames. 
Forced to reveal her power to save a friend, she's shocked when instead of being executed, she's invited to train as one of Her Majesty's royal sorcerers.

Thrust into the glamour of Victorian London, Henrietta is declared the chosen one, the girl who will defeat the Ancients, bloodthirsty demons terrorizing humanity. She also meets her fellow sorcerer trainees, handsome young men eager to test her power and her heart. One will challenge her. One will fight for her. One will betray her.

But Henrietta Howel is not the chosen one. 
As she plays a dangerous game of deception, she discovers that the sorcerers have their own secrets to protect. With battle looming, what does it mean to not be the one? And how much will she risk to save the city—and the one she loves?

Review: This story is quite literally exciting and fun from start to finish. I really, really enjoyed every moment. There were some fantastic shocking twists, and even a moment I gasped so loud, my daughter came out of her room to check on me. xD  I loved the very non-stuffy alternate-London Victorian setting, I loved the characters (well, some are more of a "love to hate" thing) and I think this is a great start to an exciting new series.

Henrietta is a character to root for. She has this incredible power, but it's Victorian London, so even when she is brought into the school to train, she is constantly having to prove herself among the men. She is feisty and knew what she needed to do---and I loved that when "their way" with magic doesn't quite work for her, she finds a way of her own to still accomplish the same goal, even when she knows the truth could derail everything.

Those who are wary of love triangles or any sort of multiple-option love interests are probably going to have a field day with this romance. I myself really enjoyed it. It's not a huge part of the story---and I loved that Henrietta's focus really stays mostly on becoming a commended sorcerer and getting a better life for her and her friend Rook.  I loved that there were lots of growing and changing friendships among them, some definite up and downs in each relationship, and one..no actually two, that I just wished they had stayed friends and only friends. By the end, there was only one that I personally wanted to see her end up with, if she ends up with anyone at all. But that could all change in the coming installments, of course!

One thing I did want for in this was just a little more "why" and "how" when it came to the Ancients. I felt a lot of details about the lore and why they did what they did and how they worked was kind of skimmed over as we were thrown right into the action of fighting them off. I'm hoping for a little more clarity on that end in the future of this series. I did however, love the history that was given of the sorcerers vs. magicians, and am hoping for a more in-depth look at that, too!

A fantastic and breath-taking debut and one that I will definitely be counting down the days to book 2 for!!

•ABOUT THE AUTHOR•

Jessica Cluess is a writer, a graduate of Northwestern University, and an unapologetic nerd. After college, she moved to Los Angeles, where she served coffee to the rich and famous while working on her first novel. When she’s not writing books, she’s an instructor at Writopia Lab, helping kids and teens tell their own stories.

WEBSITE  •  TWITTER  •   TUMBLR

Purchase the book:  Indiebound  •  BookDepository  •  Amazon

Waiting on...

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It lets us all gush about what soon-to-be released books we are jumping-up-and-down excited for.

The Best Kind of Magic

by Crystal Cestari

hitting shelves May 16th, 2017

from Disney-Hyperion

Amber Sand is not a witch. The Sand family Wicca gene somehow leapfrogged over her. But she did get one highly specific magical talent: she can see true love. As a matchmaker, Amber's pretty far down the sorcery food chain (even birthday party magicians rank higher), but after five seconds of eye contact, she can envision anyone's soul mate.

Amber works at her mother's magic shop--Windy City Magic--in downtown Chicago, and she's confident she's seen every kind of happy ending there is: except for one--her own. (The Fates are tricky jerks that way.) So when Charlie Blitzman, the mayor's son and most-desired boy in school, comes to her for help finding his father's missing girlfriend, she's distressed to find herself falling for him. Because while she can't see her own match, she can see his--and it's not Amber. How can she, an honest peddler of true love, pursue a boy she knows full well isn't her match?

The Best Kind of Magic is set in urban Chicago and will appeal to readers who long for magic in the real world. With a sharp-witted and sassy heroine, a quirky cast of mystical beings, and a heady dose of adventure, this novel will have you laughing out loud and questioning your belief in happy endings.

My thoughts:  "Will appeal to readers who long for magic in the real world"...*raises hand*!! This looks like a fun and humorous take on witches and family and love, plus this cover is super cute! Can't wait!

What book are you eagerly anticipating this week?

New Shelf Goodies & The Weekly Nutshell {173}

For New Shelf Goodies, I'll be showing you what lovely books I acquired this week, whether from publishers, or the library, or from whatever half-crazed book-buying binge I happened to go on. :D (Inspired by Tynga's Stacking the Shelves) The Weekly Nutshell will be just that...my week here at Stories & Sweeties, in a nutshell. (inspired by Ginger @ GReads and her recaps at the end of the TGIF posts)

Here's what has landed on my doorstep recently:

For review: 

The Beast is an Animal by Peternelle Van Arsdale
Sounds a bit like The Glass Casket, which I loved, so I'm excited!

Spindle by Shonna Slayton
Sleeping Beauty retelling..always down for that! :)

Forget Me Always by Sara Wolf
Haven't heard much about this one...anyone recommend?

I'm Not Your Manic Pixie Dream Girl by Gretchen McNeil
This one sounds a bit too straight-forward contemp for me. But cute!

Beast by Brie Spangler

This one is getting some good feedback---might have to give it a try!

From Trade:

The Last Beginning by Lauren James

Thanks to Michelle for the wonderful trade!! :D

Huge thanks to Simon & Schuster, Entangled Teen, Random House, and Harper Teen for the review copies!


The Weekly Nutshell
recent posts:
What's New: October YA Release List & Giveaway
When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore {blog tour}
Waiting on Wednesday: The Wood by Chelsea Bobulski

So it's been a slow-going couple of weeks here and in my day to day life. Health still a bit wobbly but I'm getting there.  It's at least given me lots of reading time, but I am so ridiculously behind on writing my reviews. UGH. I hate being so far behind.
This week I finished off A Shadow Bright and Burning and I'll be reviewing that for the blog tour rolling through this week.  I also started Yesternight and I'm loving it so far, but that's not surprising since it's Cat Winters writing about an idea I've always been fascinating by: past life memories in children.  I'm not sure what's up next---I guess I'll just wait to see what I'm in the mood for when I finish Yesternight! I need a good spooky read for Halloween! What are you reading this week??

Happy reading, everyone!

Waiting on...

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It lets us all gush about what soon-to-be released books we are jumping-up-and-down excited for.

The Wood

by Chelsea Bobulski

hitting shelves August 1st, 2017

from Feiwel & Friends

After her father goes missing in the woods that they protect, Winter tries to seek the truth in what happened, why the wood is changing, and what it all has to do with the arrival of a mysterious stranger in this thrilling YA debut.

When Winter’s dad goes missing during his nightly patrol of the wood, it falls to her to patrol the time portals and protect the travelers who slip through them. Winter can't help but think there's more to her dad's disappearance than she's being told.

She soon finds a young man traveling in the wood named Henry who knows more than he should. He believes if they can work together to find his missing parents, they could discover the truth about Winter’s dad.

The wood is poisoned, changing into something sinister—torturing travelers lost it. Winter must put her trust in Henry in order to find the truth and those they’ve lost.

Bobulski’s eerie debut is filled with friendship, family, and the responsibilities we choose and those we do not.

My thoughts:  Creepy woods, father-daughter stories, time travel??? Say no more...this is for ME. 

What book are you eagerly anticipating this week?

When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie Mclemore {blog tour excerpt}

Today I have the blog tour stop for Anna-Marie McLemore's newest YA novel,

When the Moon Was Ours

Check out below for more info and an excerpt of this gorgeous sounding story, which was just recently longlisted for the
2016 National Book Awards for Young People's Literature!
Congrats to Anna-Marie! 

When the Moon Was Ours follows two characters through a story that has multicultural elements and magical realism, but also has central LGBT themes—a transgender boy, the best friend he’s falling in love with, and both of them deciding how they want to define themselves.

To everyone who knows them, best friends Miel and Sam are as strange as they are inseparable. Roses grow out of Miel’s wrist, and rumors say that she spilled out of a water tower when she was five. Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs in the trees, and for how little anyone knows about his life before he and his mother moved to town. 

But as odd as everyone considers Miel and Sam, even they stay away from the Bonner girls, four beautiful sisters rumored to be witches. Now they want the roses that grow from Miel’s skin, convinced that their scent can make anyone fall in love. And they’re willing to use every secret Miel has fought to protect to make sure she gives them up.

Thomas Dunne Books  •  Hardcover, 288 pages   •  October 4, 2016


*        *        *         *        *
Excerpt

     As far as he knew, she had come from the water. But even about that, he couldn’t be sure.

      It didn’t matter how many nights they’d met on the untilled land between their houses; the last farm didn’t rotate its crops, and stripped the soil until nothing but wild grasses would grow. It didn’t matter how many stories he and Miel had told each other when they could not sleep, him passing on his mother’s fables of moon bears that aided lost travelers, Miel making up tales about his moon lamps falling in love with stars. Sam didn’t know any more than anyone else about where she’d come from before he found her in the brush field. She seemed to have been made of water one minute and the next, became a girl. 

    Someday, he and Miel would be nothing but a fairy tale. When they were gone from this town, no one would remember the exact brown of Miel’s eyes, or the way she spiced recado rojo with cloves, or even that Sam and his mother were Pakistani. At best, they would remember a dark-eyed girl, and a boy whose family had come from somewhere else. They would remember only that Miel and Sam had been called Honey and Moon, a girl and a boy woven into the folklore of this place.

     This is the story that mothers would tell their children:

     There was once a very old water tower. Rust had turned its metal such a deep orange that the whole tank looked like a pumpkin, an enormous copy of the fruit that grew in the fields where it cast its shadow. No one tended this water tower anymore, not since a few strikes from a summer of lightning storms left it leaning to one side as though it were tired and slouching. Years ago, they had fi lled it from the river, but now rust and minerals choked the pipes. When they opened the valve at the base of the tower, nothing more than a few drops trickled out. The bolts and sheeting looked weak enough that one autumn windstorm might crumble the whole thing.

      So the town decided that they would build a new water tower, and that the old one would come down. But the only way to drain it would be to tip it over like a cup. They would have to be ready for the whole tower to crash to the ground, all that rusted metal, those thousands of gallons of dirty, rushing water spilling out over the land.

     For the fall, they chose the side of the tower where a field of brush was so dry, a single spark would catch and light it all. All that water, they thought, might bring a little green. From that fi eld, they dug up wild flowers, chicory and Indian paintbrush and larkspur, replanting them alongside the road, so they would not be drowned or smashed. They feared that if they were not kind to the beautiful things that grew wild, their own farms would wither and die.

      Children ran through the brush fields, chasing away squirrels and young deer so that when the water tower came down, they would not be crushed. Among these children was a boy called Moon because he was always painting lunar seas and shadows onto glass and paper and anything he could make glow. Moon knew to keep his steps and his voice gentle, so he would not startle the rabbits, but would stir them to bound back toward their burrows.

     When the animals and the wild flowers were gone from the brush fi eld, the men of the town took their axes and hammers and mallets to the base of the water tower, until it fell like a tree. It arced toward the ground, its fall slow, as though it were leaning forward to touch its own shadow. When it hit, the rusted top broke off, and all that water rushed out.

     For a minute the water, brown as a forgotten cup of tea, hid the brush that looked like pale wheat stubble. But when it slid and spread out over the field, flattening the brittle stalks, soaking into the dry ground, every one watching made out the shape of a small body.

     A girl huddled in the wet brush, her hair stuck to her face, her eyes wide and round as amber marbles. She had on a thin nightgown, which must have once been white, now stained cream by the water. But she covered herself with her arms, cowering like she was naked and looking at every one like they were all baring their teeth.

     At first a few of the mothers shrieked, wondering whose child had been left in the water tower’s path. But then they realized that they did not know this girl. She was not their daughter, or the daughter of any of the mothers in town.

     No one would come near her. The ring of those who had come to see the tower taken down widened a little more the longer they watched her. Each minute they put a little more space between her and them, more afraid of this small girl than of so much falling water and rusted metal. And she stared at them, seeming to meet all their eyes at once, her look both vicious and frightened.

     But the boy called Moon came forward and knelt in front of her. He took off his jacket and put it on her. Talked to her in a voice soft enough that no one else could hear it.

     Every one drew back, expecting her to bite him or to slash her fingernails across his face. But she looked at him, and listened to him, his words stripping the feral look out of her eyes.

      After that day, anyone who had not been at the water tower thought she was the same as any other child, little different from the boy she was always with. But if they looked closely, they could see the hem of her skirt, always a little damp, never quite drying no matter how much the sun warmed it.

     This would be the story, a neat distillation of what had happened. It would weed out all the things that did not fi t. It would not mention how Miel, soaking wet and smelling of rust, screamed into her hands with every one watching. Because every one was watching, and she wanted to soak into the ground like the spilled water and vanish. How Sam crouched in front of her saying, “Okay, okay,” keeping his words slow and level so she would know what he meant. You can stop screaming; I hear you, I understand. And because she believed him, that he heard her, and understood, she did stop.

*        *        *         *        *

Lovely stuff, right? I can't wait to read this one. 

Let me know what you think and why you can't wait to read it! 

•ABOUT THE AUTHOR•

Anna-Marie McLemore was born in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, raised in the same town as the world's largest wisteria vine, and taught by her family to hear la llorona in the Santa Ana winds. Her debut novel THE WEIGHT OF FEATHERS was a Junior Library Guild Selection, a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults book, and a finalist for the William C. Morris Debut Award. Her second novel, WHEN THE MOON WAS OURS, will be released on October 4, 2016, and WILD BEAUTY is forthcoming in 2017.     

WEBSITE  •  TWITTER  •  FACEBOOK

Purchase the book:  Indiebound  •  Bookdepository  •  Amazon

What's New: October 2016 YA Releases & Giveaway!

Welcome, October!! A.K.A. the best month of the year!!♥ When the weather is fiiiiinally starting to cool a bit here, the leaves are turning and collecting on the ground, the Pumpkin Spice Lattes are flowing, and my son is asking on a daily basis for me to start making his costume---which I will procrastinate on and pull together last minute as always. xD  Best of all, it's time to break out the spooky reads & face out all my creepiest bookcovers on my shelves to go with the Halloween decor in the house. *sigh* I love Halloween. Can you tell? :D

So if you're new to Stories & Sweeties, here's a little run-down of this feature: at the start of each month, I do a little thing called the "What's New List & Giveaway" where you'll find a full list of the new releases in YA for the month, and entry to the international giveaway. At the end of each month, one lucky winner will get to choose any new release as their prize!

First things first! The winner of September's giveaway is Mat'a! Congrats!! :D

October 2016 Releases:
Just like previous months, I've put a little l♥ve by those books that I am really anticipating!

{1}

The Immortal Throne by Bree Despain

Incognita by Kristen Lippert-Martin

Ressurecting Sunshine by Lisa A. Koosis

The Stand-In by Steve Bloom

Unlocked by Margo Kelly ♥

{4}

Aerie by Maria Dahvana Headley

Ashes by Laurie Halse Anderson

Black Flowers, White Lies by Yvonne Ventresca ♥

The Black Key by Amy Ewing

Children of Eden by Joey Graceffa

Clanless by Jennifer Jenkins

Disruption by Jessica Shirvington

Everyone We've Been by Sarah Everett ♥

Girls Like Me by Lola St. Vil

Goldenhand by Garth Nix

Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig

Look Past by Eric Devine

Lost Stars by Lisa Selin Davis

The Lovely Reckless by Kami Garcia

Nemesis by Anna Banks

One Was Lost by Natalie Richards

Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland ♥

Remember Yesterday by Pintip Dunn

Replica by Lauren Oliver

Secrets in the Snow by Michaela MacColl ♥

Something in Between by Melissa de la Cruz

Spare and Found Parts by Sarah Maria Griffin ♥

Spindle by Shonna Slayton ♥

This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills ♥

Transcendent by Katelyn Detweiler ♥

We Know It Was You by Maggie Thrash

When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore ♥

Wrecked by Maria Padian

{11}

Amy Chelsea Stacie Dee by Mary G. Thompson

Be Good Be Real Be Crazy by Chelsey Philpot

Beast by Brie Spangler

Black Widow Red Vengeance by Margaret Stohl

Bound by Blood and Sand by Becky Allen

The Catalyst by Helena Coggan

Darkness Savage by Rachel A. Marks

The Delphi Effect by Rysa Walker

Every Hidden Thing by Kenneth Oppel ♥

Fear the Drowning Deep by Sarah Glenn Marsh ♥

Frost by M.P. Kozlowsky

In Case You Missed It by Sarah Darer Littman

Iron Cast by Destiny Soria ♥

The Midnight Star by Marie Lu

The Movie Version by Emma Wunsch

My Unscripted Life by Lauren Morrill

Riding Chance by Christine Kendall

The Row by J. R. Johansson

Speed of Life by J.M. Kelly

Star Wars Ahsoka by E.K. Johnston & Jason P. Wojtowicz

Still Life with Tornado by A.S. King ♥

To Stay Alive by Skila Brown

Unblemished by Sara Ella

The Weight of Zero by Karen Fortunati

{18}

Cloudwish by Fiona Wood

Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff  

I'm Not Your Manic Pixie Dream Girl by Gretchen McNeil

Kiss Cam by Kiara London

Life Uploaded by Sierra Furtado

Messenger by Carol Lynch Williams

Moon Chosen by P.C. Cast

No Holding Back by Kate Evangelista

The Rains by Gregg Hurwitz

Rose & Thorn by Sarah Prineas ♥

Royal Tour by Amy Alward

Saving Red by Sonya Sones

Shutter by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Tattoo Atlas by Tim Floreen

The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

Useless Bay by M.J. Beaufrand

What Light by Jay Asher ♥

{25}

Bionic by Suzanne Weyn

Blood Red, Snow White by Marcus Sedgwick

Boy Robot by Simon Curtis

A Darkly Beating Heart by Lindsay Smith ♥

Empire Decayed (Zebulon Finch) by Daniel Kraus

Glitter by Aprilynne Pike ♥

How To Keep a Boy from Kissing You by Tara Eglington

If I Fix You by Abigail Johnson

Illusion by Martina Boone ♥

It's Not Me, It's You by Stephanie Kate Strohm

Midnight Hour by C.C. Hunter

Pushing Perfect by Michelle Falkoff

The Secret Diary of Lydia Bennett by Natasha Farrant

The Stranger Game by Cylin Busby

{27}

Castle of Sighs by Jennifer Murgia

{31}

Afterlife by Sandy Goldsworthy

(All links go to Goodreads)
Please feel free to email me if you notice any YA titles missing! :)

Giveaway Details: 
One winner will win a YA October release of their choice! *see note below
• Contest ends October 31th, 2016 at 11:59 PM
• Must be 13 or older.
• Open internationally. *International winners will be required to choose a book that is available through BookDepository.com or Fishpond.com up to $20 value.
•Extra entries can be earned by commenting on September or October reviews, and can be done once per review. Come back throughout October whenever you comment on my reviews and get your extra points! 

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