Vote: Lucas in the NA Crush Tourney

Lucas from Tammara Webber's amazing novel, Easy is up in the NA Crush Tourney and he needs YOUR vote! The lovely ladies at http://www.theromancecover.com/ have put together a street team for Lucas and as a proud member I'm asking y'all to vote (:

To vote for Lucas go here: http://www.naalley.com/2013/07/match-5-lucas-1-vs-trent-17.html

Spread the word: Tweet the link with hashtags #TeamLucas and #NACrushTourney

If you've read Easy, you'll remember how lovable this boy is. If you don't remember then here's a refresher:

Bio

Name: Lucas
Eye Colour: Clear gray - blue
Hair: Dark
Build: Medium but muscly
Height: 6ft 2in
Traits: Sweet, protective, artistic, attentive

Some of the amazing stuff he says/does 

His first memory of Jacqueline

“I noticed you the first week. Not just because of how pretty you are, though of course, that played into it. It was the way you lean onto your elbows when you're listening in class, when something catches your interest. And when you laugh, it's never to get attention, it's just-laughter. The way you obsessively tuck your hair behind your ear on the left side, but let the right side fall down like a screen. And when you're bored, you tap your foot soundlessly and move your fingers on the desktop like you're playing an instrument. I wanted to sketch you.”  

The bedroom/sketch scene

He dropped the pad onto the floor and the pencil followed, his stare never unlocking from mine. As he leaned over me, I felt a heightened sense of awareness of every part of my body that touched a part of his – the edge of his hip pressed to mine, his chest sliding against mine, his fingers tracing from wrists to forearms and then framing my face. He held me in place, lips near my ear. When he kissed the sensitive spot, my breath shuddered. “You’re so beautiful”, he whispered, moving his mouth to mine.

His lips were warm and firm, pressing against mine, and when his tongue began a gentle onslaught against the line of my lips, I opened them. Tongue delving into my mouth, his hands travelled in opposite directions – one to my still crossed wrists, pressing them hard into the mattress above my head, one skimming down my side, digging into my waist. He kissed me harder, claiming the responses he coaxed from me. My head swam, and I was drawing in short bursts of air as if I was surfacing every few seconds before diving deeper. Just when I thought I couldn’t take the intensity, he lessened the pressure and sucked my lower lip softly, brushed his tongue over it, and then repeated the movement. I fidgeted beneath him and his tongue slipped between my lips again and repeated its closer examination – caressing my tongue, my teeth, the roof of my mouth.

 The last line of the book

"Choosing to be with you isn't a difficult decision Jacqueline," he breathed, pulling back one final time to stare into my eyes. "It's Easy. Incredibly easy."

And that gorgeous quote from his tattoo which is my favourite line from the whole book

"Love is not the absence of logic
but logic examined and recalculated
heated and curved to fit
inside the contours of the heart"

So what are you waiting for? GO VOTE FOR LUCAS NOW <3 http://www.naalley.com/2013/07/match-5-lucas-1-vs-trent-17.html and remember to spread the words, if tweeting use hashtags #TeamLucas and #NACrushTourney*gives you hugs and cookies*

2012 End of Year Book Survey

I don't regularly book blog but I thought I'd give this a go since I've read so many great books this year and experience so many feels ;_____; I'm still a newcomer to the book blogging community (not really part of it - yet) but maybe I'll be more active in 2013.

This was something started by Jamie aka The Perpetual Page Turner aka @brokeandbookish 3 years ago and bloggers have taken to using her survey :D I'm hopping on the band wagon! Questions are by Jamie, responses by me c: 

Commence reflection of my 2012 reads!

1. Best Book You Read In 2012? (You can break it down by genre if you want)

Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout and The Gathering Dark by Leigh Bardugo

Contemporary YA: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, Easy by Tammara Webber, My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick, Slammed and Point of Retreat by Colleen Hoover, If I Stay and Where She Went by Gayle Forman (old I know but I only found out about them this year!)
Dystopian YA: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, Insurgent by Veronica Roth, Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Paranormal: Onyx and Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout, Endless by Jessica Shirvington, Losing Lila by Sarah Alderson, My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris
Fantasy: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead - don't get me wrong I loved this but it wasn't as great as all the built up hype made it out to be

Rapture by Lauren Kate - this was the best book in the series and the final one but honestly the series was a real let down and I kept expecting it to get better. It did get better by the final book but it just didn't hit that note I wanted to hear.

Breathe by Abbi Glines - I'd heard such good things about Breathe and so many people recommended it to me. But the writing was pretty bad (so many useless, short sentences that were telling rather than showing) and the two main characters were cheesy and lacked depth :c

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2012?

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi - I always have doubts about dystopians and friends had been bugging me to read this for ages

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman - it sounded a tad weird but it was hella awesome!

My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century - I was worried this was like some Mary-Kate and Ashley book but the reviews were good so I hesitantly bought it and it's been one of my favourite reads this year.

4. Book you recommended to people most in 2012?

Definitely The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

Also The Iron Fey by Julie Kagawa, Slammed and Point of Retreat by Colleen Hoover, Divergent/Insurgent by Veronica Roth

5. Best series you discovered in 2012?

It's a tie between The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo and Covenant by Jennifer L. Armentrout.

Also:

Lux by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Lila by Sarah Alderson

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

6. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2012?

Eep so many:

Leigh Bardugo (The Grisha Trilogy - stunning fantasy world, extremely unique and omg those characters)

Jennifer L. Armentrout (Lux, Covenant, Cursed - how did I only find out about this legend this year?! Everything she writes is AMAZING)

Sarah Alderson (Lila - only just found out about the Lila series this year and it's amazing)

Veronica Roth (Divergent - the world she creates is amazing; I usually don't get sucked into dystopians but I fell right into this one)

Colleen Hoover (Slammed - her debut novel was like she's been writing award winning poetry and prose her whole life)

Veronica Rossi (Under the Never Sky - awesome dystopian world)

Rachel Harris (My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century - I'm a sucker for European history and Rachel painted it in a beautiful and accurate way)

Tammara Webber (Easy) - woah just WOAH. I want me some more Lucas!

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?

My friends and I all know I don't like dystopians/sci-fi - the amount I've picked up and tried to read but put down is quite large: Delirium, Across the Universe, Uglies, Inside Out, The Immortal Rules (I'll hopefully get back into this because I do love Julie's writing).

So when I was recommended Divergent I was EXTREMELY hesitant to read it. I actually put it off for a good 2 months. Then I bought a cheap $5 copy at Basement Books. Then I finished it in 1 sitting in a matter of hours and had to get Insurgent the next day. Divergent definitely made me like dystopians again.

Tahereh Mafi's Shatter Me was also really good too!

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2012?

Hunting Lila by Sarah Alderson (and the sequel Losing Lila) - holy crap this was so action packed it was like Heroes without the fillers. Loved every moment of it!

Also Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout. The things this book did to me. I laughed, cried, screamed and nearly chucked things through my laptop.

9. Book You Read In 2012 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year:

Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout and The Gathering Dark by Leigh Bardugo.

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2012?




Pure by Jennifer L. Armentrout! My favourite colour is blue (I'm biased I know) and the rose just fit so perfectly with the story. It was also so simple yet so elegant - none of those girls-in-dresses or girls-and-half-naked-guys-with-wings-in-the-air covers.

That being said, my favourite Girls in Dresses cover would have to be none other than Kiera Cass's The Selection.




11. Most memorable character in 2012? 

Hands down the Darkling in Leigh Bardugo's The Gathering Dark (The Grisha Trilogy).

She's created a dark, seductive, troubled, damaged, sexy, hot, handsome, eloquent, I-know-there's-more-to-you-deep-inside-than-the-scheming-evil-villain-you're-made-out-to-be secondary love interest for the love triangle <3

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2012?

It's a tie (again) between:

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins - my favourite line “French name, English accent, American school. Anna confused.” The voice Stephanie created for Anna is beautiful, realistic, relatable, paranoid and so like me it was stunning. The way this was written was UGH love.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green - need I explain myself? Anybody who's read this book (any of John Green's books really but ESPECIALLY TFiOS) will vouch for this. Your argument is invalid.

Where She Went by Gayle Forman - Adam's voice and the lyrics used are amazing. The raw emotion conveyed is heartbreaking and bone chilling - utterly captivating.

Slammed by Colleen Hoover - the use of poetry to tell people's back stories and explain their feelings is an amazing technique Colleen used in this book and I just kgd;fkjsdhfsdfsd -squirms excitedly in chair- LOVE

My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris - Rachel's descriptions are so beautiful, her imagery so detailed ; the words she chose were so vibrant and rich I was catapulted back into the 16th Century with Cat.

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick - witty, funny and just plain adorbs I loved the writing style of MLND.

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2012?

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green - having had an immediate family member battle cancer, this book basically hit close to home. Poignant, heart-wrenching, raw, this book had the honour of breaking my heart.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2012 to finally read?

Divergent by Veronica Roth. Fk me dead lol I'm always inwardly bashing myself whenever I think of how much I missed by not reading this earlier.

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2012?

"That's the funny thing about trying to escape. You never really can. Maybe temporarily, but not completely." - Jennifer L. Armentrout, Onyx

"You don't get to choose if you get hurt in this world... but you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices." - John Green, The Fault in Our Stars

"The problem with wanting is that it makes us weak." - Leigh Bardugo, The Gathering Dark

"Love is not the absence of logic

but logic examined and recalculated

heated and curved to fit

inside the contours of the heart" - Tammara Webber, Easy

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2012?

Longest — Hallowed by Cynthia Hand or Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff I think? Endless by Jessica Shirvington looks long (it's the same size as Hallowed and Stormdancer) but I don't think it is...

Shortest — I'm assuming e-novellas and POVs don't count *cackles* so... Everything Left Unsaid by Jessica Davidson and Breathe by Abbi Glines - I'm not sure which is shorer

17. Book That Had A Scene In It That Had You Reeling And Dying To Talk To Somebody About It? (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc. etc.) Be careful of spoilers!

The ending of Endless OMFG THAT ENDING. I NEED BOOK 5 DAMMIT.

When Clara finds out about her father in Hallowed I choked.

18. Favorite Relationship From A Book You Read In 2012 (be it romantic, friendship, etc).

THIS IS SO HARD ERMAGHERD.

Alex/Aiden in Deity are so amazing but but Tris/Four in Divergent AND AND Lila/Alex in Hunting/Losing Lila...

My favourite friendship would be Grace and Tim's from My Life Next Door!

19. Favorite Book You Read in 2012 From An Author You Read Previously

Everything I read this year was either a debut author or an author I'd just discovered *sighs*

So I'm going to cheat and say Endless by Jessica Shirvington coz that's book 4 in The Violet Eden Chapters LOL.

20. Best Book You Read That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else:

THIS IS LIKE 1/2 OF MY 5 STAR RATED BOOKS ON GOODREADS O_O

Divergent by Veronica Roth :3

Review: Easy by Tammara Webber

Date Read: November 15 - 16 2012
Release Date: May 25th 2012
Publisher: Penguin
Source: Bought
Genre: Contemporary
My rating: 
Synopsis:
"A girl who believes trust can be misplaced, promises are made to be broken, and loyalty is an illusion. A boy who believes truth is relative, lies can mask unbearable pain, and guilt is eternal. Will what they find in each other validate their conclusions, or disprove them all?

When Jacqueline follows her longtime boyfriend to the college of his choice, the last thing she expects is a breakup two months into sophomore year. After two weeks in shock, she wakes up to her new reality: she's single, attending a state university instead of a music conservatory, ignored by her former circle of friends, and failing a class for the first time in her life.

Leaving a party alone, Jacqueline is assaulted by her ex's frat brother. Rescued by a stranger who seems to be in the right place at the right time, she wants nothing more than to forget the attack and that night--but her savior, Lucas, sits on the back row of her econ class, sketching in a notebook and staring at her. Her friends nominate him to be the perfect rebound.

When her attacker turns stalker, Jacqueline has a choice: crumple in defeat or learn to fight back. Lucas remains protective, but he's hiding secrets of his own. Suddenly appearances are everything, and knowing who to trust is anything but easy."

---

This really lived up to its expectations so I was extremely pleased.

At first I was going to give this 4 or 4.5 stars, but when I slowly thought about this book and all the things that made it whole, I realised it really was worthy of 5 stars. For me, it wasn't one of those books that kept me going "OMG WOAH WHAT... WHAT EVEN HOW" every time I turned the page. Rather, it was subtle smiles and "oh I see, yes that really makes sense" and everything slowly came together and at the end it's like the book changed and moved something inside me.

Sexual assault is a really touchy subject and I generally shy away from books like those because it's hard to take away the icky (yes icky lol) feeling the issue brings while also concentrating on other things the book is about.

But Easy did it perfectly. The assault wasn't downplayed at all and yet the book managed to focus on the budding romance and college life - it was a really nice balance. Easy dealt with the consequences of somebody not reporting a sexual assault and the effects of that - how assaulter becomes stalker, becomes obsessive and in need of that control that he couldn't get the first time, and also how it could happen to someone else. These events are all weaved throughout the course of the book which I really liked. The assault isn't just something that happens and is left there as a starting point for the novel - it's what this book is about and it keeps it that way while drawing in other themes like friendship, love and trust.

The thing I liked was the pace - the events aren't all happening too slowly or too quickly, it's extremely realistic and I could really relate to Jacqueline. Emotions are conveyed amazingly and my heart just broke for Lucas.

All the characters are really believable and had great personalities. Jacqueline was quick to like, Lucas I was quick to fall for and Erin's support I loved. However, if that's college life in the States, I'm not sure I want to be part of it.

With all the YA sci-fi/fantasies that are out and manage to suck me in completely, it's hard to find a contemporary that lives up to that. Other than The Fault in Our Stars and the Slammed series, there aren't many I'd re-read and give 5 stars to, but Easy did just that!