May TBR

The List
On the Pleasure of Hating by William Hazlitt (The Life of a Book Addict list)
The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler (for review/ebook)
Weightless by Sarah Bannan (for review/ebook)
The Unfortunates: A Novel by Sophie McManus (for review/ebook)
The Tea Rose by Jennifer Donnelly (big book/TBR forever/ book club book)

Stacking the Shelves

For Review 
The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler
Weightless by Sarah Bannan
The Unfortunates: A Novel by Sophie McManus

Borrowed from the Library
Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (audiobook)
I Was Here by Colleen Hoover
At The Water's Edge by Sara Gruen 

What did you get in your mailbox?

Review of Hold Still by Nina LaCour

Title: Hold Still
Author: Nina LaCour
Source:  Borrowed
Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5









Goodreads Summary:
Ingrid left behind a painful farewell in her journal for Caitlin. Now Caitlin is left alone, by loss and by choice, struggling to find renewed hope in the wake of her best friend’s suicide. With the help of family and newfound friends, Caitlin will encounter first love, broaden her horizons, and start to realize that true friendship didn’t die with Ingrid. And the journal which once seemed only to chronicle Ingrid’s descent into depression, becomes the tool by which Caitlin once again reaches out to all those who loved Ingrid—and Caitlin herself.

Caitlin just found out her best friend has committed suicide and left her journal for her to try to understand why she committed suicide while Caitlin is left trying to make her way through high school and answering all of the questions people have about Ingrid. 

I love Nina LaCour. I have read all three of her novels and they are all excellent. She writes realistic characters who may not  always make the best choices but she makes you understand the character and I never felt any frustration with the characters or the story.  I liked seeing Ingrid through her journal and through Caitlin's perspective. Caitlin brushed a lot of little things off that Ingrid did and then when we see Ingrid's side we see the darker side of her having a bad day where she felt so worn down and sad and couldn't put up a good face.

I loved that Caitlin's parents were involved in her life and also that Ingrid's family was also mentioned throughout the book. Once Ingrid was gone, her family did not completely fade from Caitlin's life. They were still there in the background. 

I wish I read it earlier. I discovered Nina when she wrote her second book then I read her most recent release and then this book.  A little out of publication order but all excellent. 

Stacking the Shelves

I did not buy any books this week, but I did borrow a few so my list is not too extensive but I am of course excited to read all of them. 

Borrowed from the Library
Confession by Colleen Hoover
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (audiobook)
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl (audiobook)
The Kitchen Boy: The Last Tsar by Robert Alexander

Won
Sister's Fate by Jessica Spotswood

What did you get in your mailbox?

Review of Skandal by Lindsay Smith

Title: Skandal
Author: Lindsay Smith
Source: ARC from the publisher
Series:  Yes
Rating: 3.5/5









Goodreads Summary:
The dramatic sequel to Sekret, this psychic Cold War espionage thriller follows Yulia to Washington, DC, where she fights to discover the truth about her family without losing control of her mind.

Life in Washington, D.C., is not the safe haven Yulia hoped for when she risked everything to flee communist Russia. Her father is reckless and aloof, and Valentin is distant and haunted by his past. Her mother is being targeted by the CIA and the US government is suspicious of Yulia's allegiance. And when super-psychics start turning up in the US capitol, it seems that even Rostov is still a threat. Ultimately, Yulia must keep control of her own mind to save the people she loves and avoid an international Skandal.

I am a little late to the party on this one since it came out on the 7th and I was still in the middle of reading it but I finished it and I need to get my thoughts down on this one because they are a little all over the place.

The stories continues on from the first book, but our characters are now in America and the cold war is heating up. The author based part of her story around the actual experiments that the CIA did during the cold war involving LSD experiments and attempting to create mind control. 

The story picked up where the last one left off and I was total absorbed until I got to the middle. The story started to drag and Yulia was becoming this soft character who couldn't do anything and seemed to just mope around a lot. I started to really dislike her. Where was the awesome character from the first book then the end picked up and Yulia re-appeared as her kick butt self. 

I think there is going to be a third book, but I could see it being a duology. She ended it on a high note and it would be great to have another book but I do not feel unsatisfied or have any big questions lingering. 

Review of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Title: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Author: Rebecca Skloot
Source: Bought used
Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5









Goodreads Summary:

Henrietta Lacks, as HeLa, is known to present-day scientists for her cells from cervical cancer. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells were taken without her knowledge and still live decades after her death. Cells descended from her may weigh more than 50M metric tons. 

HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. Yet Henrietta Lacks was buried in an unmarked grave.



Henrietta Lacks cells were taken without her permission when she went to John Hopkins to be treated for cervical cancer.  Her family fought with John Hopkins for years saying they should have been compensated for the million dollar industry her cells started.

The author not only went into detail about HeLa cells and what they have done for science, but she also investigated Henrietta's life before she found out she had cancer and after she found out she had cancer and also her children's lives and how her dying at such a young age has affected them.

I thought the book was very thought out and through without being bogged down with information. She made it an interesting story while also including a lot of scientific information.

Henrietta's family has not had an easy time with the media attention brought on by their mothers cells. It also brings up a lot ethical issues such as should doctors be telling their patients they may make money from their cells? And are doctors clear enough on the consent forms?

This book made me think and I loved it. I gave it a 4/5.

Stacking the Shelves

I did a little book shopping this week so I decide to post a haul.

Bought Used
More Than This by Patrick Ness
Heart- Shaped Box by Joe Hill

Borrowed from the Library
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (audiobook)

Bought New
The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

What did you get in your mailbox?

March Wrap Up

The List
Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead (Started this but I did not finish it)
All Lined Up by Cora Carmack (e-book)
Wicked Game by Jeri Smith-Ready (The Life of a Book Addict List)
Fourth Comings by Megan McCafferty 

Books I Own: 12
Borrowed: 6
Audiobooks: 7
E-Books: 2
Total: 18

Fourth Comings by Megan McCafferty 
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
This Shattered World- by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
All Lined up by Cora Carmack 
The First Phone Call from Heaven by Mitch Albom
The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon
Wings by Aprilynne Pike 
Blue is the Warmest Color by Julie Maroh
No Escape by Michelle Gagnon
The Things We Cherished by Pam Jenoff
Forever by Maggie Stiefvater
Fairest by Melissa Meyer
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson
Wicked Game by Jeri Smith-Ready
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater