That Time I Met Cassie Clare...

Way back in November 2012, I took a bus and a train and went to visit a dear friend of mine, Keen, in Toronto.  We had planned this to line up with a signing by Cassandra Clare.  I'm a huge fan of hers, to the point that I force feed The Mortal Instruments books to virtually everyone, Keen being no exception to the rule.

This was also our first book signing!  Ever!

Meet Keen, who is re-reading the scene where we meet Magnus.

From Keen's place, we hopped on the subway and made it to the bookstore by 1:15 for a 2 PM signing.  In retrospect, we should have left A LOT earlier.  There was a ton of people (it's like Toronto is a big city or something?).  They gave everyone in line a number, putting us into groups of 20.  Keen and I were in group 30.  They stopped giving out numbers after group 35.

I documented our adventure using the note app on my iPod.  And now I present our wild day to all of you.

1:30 PM: We finally found the end of the line.  We're in front of the cookbooks.  Not good.
2:30 PM: We still haven't moved, and can hear yelling upstairs.  No clue what is going on right now.
3:30 PM: Still haven't moved and the cookbooks are getting the best of us.  Where can we find grilled cheese around here?

4:44 PM: We have left the line.  A nice Chapters lady told us just to come back later, but that there was a chance our group may not even get our books signed.  The mall was "cray-cray" and we were craving carbs and water.  Entering survival mode.
5:17 PM: Finally found a food court!  Time to refuel with a Canadian classic: the Poutine!
5:32 PM: Food done.  Now, to find somewhere to crash for a while.
6:03 PM: Returned to Chapters to find about 200 people still in line ahead of us.
6:30 PM: Someone brought an adorable puppy into Chapters and Keen is in love with the thing.  We are crashed out in front of audiobooks now and have some Ke$ha stuck in our heads?  At least we have music while we wait.
7:08 PM: The line is moving...
7:15 PM: We can see her now...

7:33 PM: So close now...

7:38 PM: Six hours later, we have made it.  Books are signed and we are tired, but it was all worth it.

Cassie Clare is an awesome person and just as funny in person.  I wish we could have heard some of the Q&A, but such is life.  If you get the chance to got to one of her signings, jump on it.  Just make sure you bring water and an energy bar.  You may need it.

Much love, Samantha

Book Review: The Girl Of Fire And Thorns by Rae Carson

Published September 1st, 2011
Greenwillow Books
448 pages (Paperback)

Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.

Elisa has always felt powerless, useless. Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king--a king who needs her to be the chosen one, not a failure of a princess. And he's not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies, seething with dark magic, are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could save his people. And he looks at her in a way no man has ever looked at her before. Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn't die young.
Most of the chosen do. (From Goodreads)

Talk about a roller coaster of a book.  just when I thought I was going to DNF it, this book sent me reeling and didn't let up until the very end!

Fantasy generally isn't my genre.  I have a hard time getting into it, and this book is no exception.  It took a long time for me to understand the world.  The world develops slowly, and what we learn morphs throughout.  This is why I almost gave up on the book.  It was taking simply too long for the story to really get going.  If you can get through the first half of the book though, it does pick up the pace and become more enjoyable.  My paperback copy also included a map, which I love with these sort of novels.  It makes the story feel more grounded and real, in my opinion.

I'm not going to say much about the characters, because I really don't want to get too spoiler-y here.  Elisa is a nice change from your typical YA protagonist.  Her struggles with food become an interesting theme within the book, and she develops and grows so much.  It was nice to see her grow into her role.

Be warned, Rae Carson is not afraid to kill characters.  NO ONE IS FAIR GAME!  The second half of this book begins to become a bit of a bloodbath.  It's not gory, but no one is safe.  I was quite attached to one character in particular, who gets their throat slit.  Not cool.

I honestly have no idea where the next book, The Crown of Embers, will go, but I will be checking it out in the near future.  So, if you feel up for some fantasy and adventure, pick up The Girl of Fire and Thorns!

Much love, Samantha

Waiting On Sever

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating!

This week I am excited for...

With the clock ticking until the virus takes its toll, Rhine is desperate for answers. After enduring Vaughn’s worst, Rhine finds an unlikely ally in his brother, an eccentric inventor named Reed. She takes refuge in his dilapidated house, though the people she left behind refuse to stay in the past. While Gabriel haunts Rhine’s memories, Cecily is determined to be at Rhine’s side, even if Linden’s feelings are still caught between them.

Meanwhile, Rowan’s growing involvement in an underground resistance compels Rhine to reach him before he does something that cannot be undone. But what she discovers along the way has alarming implications for her future—and about the past her parents never had the chance to explain.In this breathtaking conclusion to Lauren DeStefano’s Chemical Garden trilogy, everything Rhine knows to be true will be irrevocably shattered. (From Goodreads)

I didn't really love either of the previous two books in this trilogy, but I have desire to finish this series.  It's probably because I have strong feelings about who Rhine should end up with (GABRIEL!).  This is also one of those few cases where I was wishing for a cover re-vamp.  I have high hopes for Sever though, which is to be released February 12th, 2013.

So, what are YOU waiting on?

Much love, Samantha

Top Ten Tuesday: 2013 Debuts

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the wonderful ladies over at

The Broke And The Bookish!

This week, the topic is...
Top Ten 2013 Debuts I'm Looking Forward To

I love finding new authours.  Last year I discovered some new favourites in Jennifer L. Armentrout, Julie Kagawa, Veronica Rossi and Wendy Higgins.  New authours are one of my favourite things.  I enjoy spreading the love, and making those around me discover new authours too!  Today, that would be you guys.  So, I present to you a list of ten books that I have heard of recently and cannot wait to devour myself!

Titles all link to their Goodreads page!

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepard

Let The Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger

Pivot Point by Kasie West

Prophecy by Ellen Oh

Nobody But Us by Kristen Halbrook

Unremembered by Jessica Brody

The Rules for Disappearing by Ashley Elsten

Ink by Amanda Sun

Altered by Jennifer Rush

City of a Thousand Dolls by Miriam Forster

Any books I should add to the list?  Or have you read any of these already and have thoughts?

Much love, Samantha

Book Review: Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Published April 3rd, 2012
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
484 pages (Paperback Ed.)

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?
Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart? (From Goodreads)

When I first heard about this book, I was sold with these two words: "assassin nuns".  I mean, that idea has epic written all over it.  Ultimately, I would not call Grave Mercy epic, but it did prove to be a great read.

The story starts quite slow, as they are establishing the convent and how Ismae got involved.  I started to get worried that our main character was going to be 14 years old for the whole thing.  Quickly though, we flash ahead three years to the present day, and Ismae's first kill.  If that's not a scrapbook worthy moment, I don't know what is.  The plot slowly starts to pick up from there, but really didn't get going until about half way through.  From that point on, I had a hard time putting the book down.

The characters were well written, while being not overly complicated.  They foster a lot of secrets, that are revealed throughout the book.  Not going to lie, I may have had some serious "insta-love" for Duval.  His dedication and perseverance to what he believes in were extremely attractive, but I am glad Ismae does not experience the same "insta-love" I do.  Their relationship develops throughout the book, which makes a much, much better story.

While I have no clue how historically accurate any of the world is, I feel like having of an explanation of Brittany, or perhaps a map, would have been a benefit.  Eventually, I had to ask my history major roommate where Brittany was, and she had to google it.  I did enjoy the historical nature though, and was able to kind of picture myself in the 1400s.  Again, who knows how historically accurate my vision was, but it worked for me.

I really enjoyed Grave Mercy, which played out in my head like a movie.  The next in the series, Dark Triumph, is about Sybella, another of the assassins, and is due for release April 2nd, 2013.  While I'm upset that there is the potential for less Duval, I am excited for the story to continue!

Much love, Samantha

Coffeeshop Soundtrack (1)

Between walking to my hospital placement, taking the bus, waiting around between classes,  working out, and those awkward moments here and there, I listen to a lot of music.  Since I also read a lot of books, they start to overlap.  These are my thoughts...

Vampire Academy reminds me of If You Only Knew by Shinedown

If you only knew
I still hold onto the letters
You returned
You help me live and learn

It's 4:03 and I can't sleep
Without you next to me I
Toss and turn like the sea
If I drown tonight, bring me
Back to life
Breathe your breath in me
The only thing that I still believe
In is you, believe in is you
I still believe in you
Oh, if you only knew

Much love, Samantha

Book Review: Through The Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

Published January 8th, 2013
HarperCollins
352 pages (Hardcover)

It's been months since Aria last saw Perry. Months since Perry was named Blood Lord of the Tides, and Aria was charged with an impossible mission. Now, finally, they are about to be reunited. But their reunion is far from perfect. The Tides don't take kindly to Aria, a former Dweller. And with the worsening Aether storms threatening the tribe's precarious existence, Aria begins to fear that leaving Perry behind might be the only way to save them both.

Threatened by false friends, hidden enemies, and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, Can their love survive through the ever night?In this second book in her spellbinding Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi combines fantasy and dystopian elements to create a captivating love story as perilous as it is unforgettable. (From Goodreads)

This isn't so much a review, as it is a DECLARATION OF LOVE!

Let me tell you a story.  I woke up on this books release day, got dressed, made coffee, and bought an eBook copy (I plan to cut the hardcover in the near future).  I put it on my outdated eReader, and none of the text showed up.  I ended up reading the entire book on my laptop.

I laughed.  I cried.  I cried and laughed some more.  I swooned (no leather this time and I'm not even mad).  I died a little inside and questioned my existence and wound up eating my dinner in a complete haze.

Veronica Rossi, all I can say is thank you for yet another amazing book.  The wait for Into The Still Blue will be pure torture.

Much love, Samantha