2013 in Review

I wasn't going to do a year-in-review post since it's already halfway through January, but then I thought about how quickly 2013 flew by and how much happened. It was a crazy, wonderful year.

Two of my long-time friends got married, and I was a bridesmaid in one, which meant some of the best times ever with some of the coolest people I know. The Sister and I went to our first Comic Con in San Diego, and it was everything we didn't dare hope it would be (better to go in with no expectations & just enjoy). I finally met and got to geek out with an online fangirl friend; I met more online friends IRL this year too; and I found and made friends with lots of new people. I did a 5K of my own free will, though really it was just because it was the Color Run and I just wanted to be covered in colored powder.

So yeah, lots happened, and here's the recap!


JANUARY

Instead of making New Year's resolutions, I made a One Word Resolution to be PRESENT.

I reviewed an e-ARC of Elsie Chapman's debut DUALED and finally got include blog/Twitter friend Lydia Kang's book cover in a Waiting on Wednesday post!

The Sister & I got sucked into Downton Abbey, and I helped throw a gorgeous (if I do say so myself) Tuscany-themed bridal shower for one of my best friends!

[Photo: Gennia]

FEBRUARY

Alz showed off her skills in both jewelry-making/soldering and book title poetry writing, while I revealed my (not-so-secret) origin story: how I got my nickname Krispy.

Plot twist, I willingly did a 5K run. Not so surprisingly, it was the Color Run & I did it for colors. [Photos from Gennia]


The Bad B*tches Bachelorette Weekend happened, and it was straight-up magical. Fireside board games and snow in the red-rock desert.

[Photo: Gennia]

Alz revealed her impressive unicorn herd.

The blog got a clean new look courtesy of the sweet and super-talented Caroline Richmond.


MARCH

We (re)discovered Theo James & finally had a new album from Justin Timberlake.

I met Mindee Arnett, with whom I later had a Dream Thieves ARC-sharing pact, and got a signed copy of her debut The Nightmare Affair.

Alz did a fascinating analysis of YA Dystopian first lines.

Then, we + the sister had a magical weekend in Palm Springs, where we imitated dinosaurs and attended our good friend's fabulous wedding. It was probably one of the most fun things of 2013 and/or ever. I mean, confetti cannons, c'mon!

[Photo: Docuvitae]

[Photo: Sister]

I actually managed to participate in the YA Book Club for Gayle Forman's JUST ONE DAY.

Loki celebrated his first birthday!

APRIL

April was National Poetry Month, and by some stroke of fate Lydia Kang & April Tucholke start tweeting poems based on medical terms. I joined in, and eventually we started #twtpoem for our Twitter poetry. Our first prompt was "atropine."

Loki & Sadie had play dates & they were nuts.

[Photo: Sister]

I reviewed an e-ARC of the vibrant YA dystopian THE SUMMER PRINCE.

Another childhood friend of Alz and mine had her wedding in April. We weren't part of the bridal party, so it was a lot more relaxing. It was a lovely ceremony and fun party!

(And shhh, Cake Club was accidentally formed.)


MAY

Alz dazzled us with more hand-made crafts, while I began my collection of "galaxy"-themed clothing.

We saw a bunch of movies; Lydia sent us a bunch of cool Control swag; and I finally met IRL a fellow fangirl, lady geek whom I've been chatting with for a year - Nicole!

We also hit up the Arrested Development Netflix tour stops and then finally watched the new season!


Double good news: the Sister and I found out that we were in fact going to Comic Con! And Mindee Arnett was a doll and promised to share her The Dream Thieves ARC.

Sis, cousin, and I saw Imagine Dragons.

[Photo: Sister]

JUNE

We presented to you the (still unsolved) mystery of Loki's disappearing poo.



The Sister hooked me up with a free pass to the Capital Cities show at the El Rey, and I signed up to do Ready.Set.Write!

We watched a bunch of movies & I got my signed copy of Neil Gaiman's THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE.

Oh, and we made an impulsive, late night decision to buy tickets to see Coriolanus in London (which is happening in less than a month!!) because of REASONS, ahem.

Loki swam to keep cool.


JULY

Thanks to Mindee Arnett and the ARC she sent me, I got to read THE DREAM THIEVES months in advance!

Geeked out (& roped the Sis in too) over 4th of July with my US Revolutionary History gear; I got my "unicorn" (purple, pink, red) hair; Loki maybe killed a bird, but he's not sayin'.

Knowing this, I'm sure NO ONE is surprised I LOVE the show Sleepy Hollow.

The Sister discovered the Terrifying Mr. Darcy, and unrelated, Alz taught her to make Jellybean Prongs!

Then, we had the geekiest weekend of our lives at SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON!!! (And I got to meet Twitter friend Lauren.)


Hugh Dancy! And Loki (Tom Hiddleston)!!


Here's a post with all the SDCC recaps (scroll to the bottom).

Ended the month with a Justin Timberlake & Jay-Z concert at the Rose Bowl.

AUGUST

Girl's trip to Las Vegas! Of course, we were silly. We imitated One Direction (who were also in town that weekend, so our hotel was overrun with teenie boppers [do we still use that term? clearly, I am old now]) and took a pic with a Backstreet Boys poster.

Discovered a most delicious food place in J-Town with the Sis and Alz. Also, was lent an ARC of Lydia Kang's debut CONTROL from April Tucholke!

Celebrated my birthday in various ways: a post from Alz, seeing The Neighborhood, eating a hamburger-shaped birthday cake, receiving bedazzled e-cards of Tom Hiddleston from a bestie.

Also of note, N*SYNC briefly reunited (whut), Ready.Set.Write! ended, and I got really into poetry again.


SEPTEMBER

Alz wrote another interesting post, a brief analysis of the color spectrum of her read books and her reading habits, and I reviewed Stephanie Kuehn's debut CHARM & STRANGE.

Also, she and the Sister did another craft project: this epic Loki dog jacket (for Loki).

[Photo: Sister]

We had some epic sky, met Markus Zusak, and the Sister did a Fall Music Recs post.

This was also her birthday month. We went to a kids science museum to see dinosaurs and to Lego joust!

[Photo: Sister]

The Sister got me in to the sold out Bastille show, and later in the month, we went with our cousin to see M83 at the Hollywood Bowl. We also saw LORDE at some point.

But the best concert we saw this month (maybe all year) was THE BACKSTREET BOYS at the Gibson Amphitheater! Went with my besties/ fellow fangirls. Best time ever! I wish this happened every year.

[Photo: Gennia]

OCTOBER

Family trip to the San Diego Safari Park ended up with us making friends with giraffes and rhinos!

My pic is in the SD Zoo magazine for Jan 2014!

Halloween-wise: carved pumpkins with friends, and Loki and the Sister were really excited for costumes!

[Photo: Sister]

[Photo: Sister]

Oh, and I met Twitter friends Corrie and Cat!

[Photo: Cat York]

NOVEMBER

You mean, Nerdvember? The Sister & I did a challenge to incorporate geekiness into our every-day wardrobe. I think we did pretty well.


Also, there was NaNoWriMo, the release of the THOR: THE DARK WORLD & the sister wrote a Buzzfeed article about it.

We got to see the THE BOOK THIEF and CATCHING FIRE movies early because the Sister was super lucky and won advanced screening tickets to both.

Alz shared the Button Quail Murder mystery, and it was also her birthday month!

Our other friend celebrated her birthday too with karaoke and Disneyland....where we met Thor.

[Photo: Sister]

And speaking of, back in September when the Sister took a pic of me by 3 Loki cardboard stand-ups at the movie theater...

[Photo: Sister]

we didn't think we'd actually get Loki'd and end up winning one of those giant things in November!

There was, of course, Thanksgiving and a Michael Bublé concert too.


DECEMBER

Our post-Thanksgiving sales purchases arrived (Blackmilk and ShadowplayNYC) and Loki got a stuffed dragon toy that we named Benedict Cumbersmaug.

The Sister and I built a book tree.

Alz and I participated in the always-fun YA SUPERLATIVES BLOGFEST before we took a blogging break for the holidays.

We baked cookies and played board games with friends. The Sister and I spent a day off with our mom, and we went to an art gallery and photobombed Sauron.


Even Loki(s) got into the Christmas spirit!

(And we had the last Cake Club meeting of the year.)

[Photo: Gennia]

So that was 2013! What a year!

Q4U: What are some of your fondest memories of 2013?

What's Up Wednesday (23) & Giveaway Winner

First thing's first: the winner of the ROOMIES giveaway is...

JESSICA B.!

Yay! I'll email you to confirm your info and then will forward that to the publisher, and they will send out the book! Thanks everyone else for entering!

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, so we can check in with each other. To join, just check out Jaime Morrow or Erin Funk's blogs for the link widget and sign up!

First What's Up Wednesday of 2014! Woohoo!


WHAT I'M READING
Uh, everything I said I was last reading. My reading slump is on-going, so I've been making very slow progress. There are a few books I'm excited to get to though! Hopefully, that'll push me back on track.


WHAT I'M WRITING
Also, nothing. But my word for the year is FOCUS, so I need to get back to this soon. I just need 2014 to settle down already!


WHAT INSPIRES ME RIGHT NOW
My friends! I kind of freaked out last week and the support I received from friends (new and old) was inspiring and humbling. Hugs all around!


WHAT ELSE I'VE BEEN UP TO

Quite a few things, actually! We took a break at the end of the year, so we didn't do a year-end review. But to summarize it, 2013 was pretty awesome for me (not sure what the level of awesomeness for Alz was - probably pretty good?). It was overwhelming at times, but a lot of that had to do with the cool things that happened: weddings and concerts and geekery! But I'll save that for Friday's 2013 in Review. For now, have this flipagram.



Since the new year, things have been busy and kind of stressful (not always in a bad way), and I kind of wish it would slow down a little. As I mentioned above, I had a bit of a freakout last week because I let myself get overwhelmed by drama llamas in various aspects of my life. So there's that, which I didn't expect thanks to my optimistic spirits from January 1st.

Though one of the drama llamas was trip-planning, which will ultimately be a fun thing. The Sister and I are going to the UK in February, and it is SO SOON and we are SO EXCITED! It's even more exciting because we'll be meeting up with my old Cal roomie, M (yes, the one from my Roomie Story post) over the weekend and going to the Harry Potter Studio tour! After that, we're going with her back to Paris and staying there for a couple days. I CAN. NOT. WAIT. even though I know I will likely also be freezing. Literally.

Also, after 2 years of waiting (I watched S2 when it originally aired), we finally got Series 3 of BBC's SHERLOCK. I'm sorry; I was going to wait for the PBS air date (this weekend), but to quote Sirius Black...

I was actually at the point where I wasn't even excited until I was about to watch the darn episode because the long wait had basically numbed me to the anticipation (if that makes sense). Anyway, Series 3 just ended and my friends and I are once again lamenting the fact that there are only 3 EPISODES A SEASON. But it was fun while it lasted.

Continuing some of the geek chic outfits.

Took my sister to my company's annual New Year's Party. I won a raffle prize, and there was a photo booth, which needless to say is like crack to the Sister and me. We took more than we should have, but these 2 were our best.

And we were reminded of the movie DRIVE when we walked out on to this blue-neon-lit terrace.


Also, this past weekend and adding to the drama of the week was Loki became scar-faced Loki! Friday night, he heard a noise in the backyard, went charging into the darkness, and basically ran into a wheel barrow. We heard a yelp and a clang, and then Loki ran back to us sneezing blood!

We rushed him to the pet hospital, where the nurses told us he was actually okay- just a bad scrape. He had a huge red gash on his forehead and a smaller one on the side of his face, but he was no longer sneezing blood. We realized later it was because he had a bloody nose (like a person), and it had stopped by the time we got him to the vet.


In happier news though, puppy!Loki now has his own Tumblr: Dog Days of Loki. It's life from Loki's particular point of view. He'd love for you to give him a follow!


And if you are so inclined, vote for Loki in our local Animal Hospital's photo contest playoffs! All the winners of the months of 2013 are now in the running, so Loki's in since he won for November 2013 (thanks if you voted then)! Here is the page with all the contestants: TC Pet Photo Contest "Playoff".

This is Loki's entry!

To vote, send an email with subject "Pet Photo Contest Vote" to templecityanimalhospital[at]gmail[dot]com and say you're voting for Loki!

OR if you are on facebook, go to the post linked below and comment with Loki's name to vote for him there!

Post by Temple City Animal Hospital.

Thanks, everyone! Come back Friday for 2013 in Review!

What's up with you?

ROOMIES Story & Giveaway

Right before Christmas 2013, a book about two girls who form a friendship over the summer when they find out their going to be freshmen roommates at the University of California, Berkeley had its book birthday. That book was ROOMIES by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando.

Unfortunately, since I've been in a reading funk I haven't read the book yet, but I was intrigued by the premise, the cute cover, and the fact that the two MCs were headed to my Real Life alma mater: UC Berkeley (Cal). On top of that, I was fortunate enough to have had incredible roommates for my entire college experience. So when I received an email asking bloggers to share a "roomie story" to help launch Sara and Tara's book tour for ROOMIES, I felt I had to participate!

AND at the end of this post, there's a chance for you, dear readers, to win a copy of the book!

But first, see if Sara and Tara are stopping by in your town and go out and see them if they are! Here are their tour dates:

January 12, 2014 – New York, NY: McNally Jackson
January 15, 2014 – Salt Lake City, UT: The King's English
January 16, 2014 – Provo, UT: Provo Library
February 4, 2014 – San Francisco, CA: Books Inc, Opera Plaza
February 5, 2015 – Petaluma, CA: Copperfield's Books


As I mentioned, I was super lucky when it came to my college roommates. I essentially lived with the same girls the 4 years I was there. Let's call my roommates M, S, and R. (There was a 5th roomie and she was wonderful too, but she only lived with us for the year that S was studying abroad.) I went to high school with M, my first roommate (the one I dorm-ed with), and after freshmen year, we moved out together to an apartment, which we shared with S & R.

Sure there were moments of frustration- undone dishes, trash that wasn't taken out before it started smelling up the place, pretty sure I hogged the TV (and that one corner of the couch)- but overall any roommate drama anxieties we might have had remained thankfully and mercifully in our heads. (At least, I thought so?)

We had so many fun and odd times that I don't know which one to pick - from living room picnics to late night cram sessions helped along by late-night sushi deliveries to seeing the newest Harry Potter movie at midnight! So instead of ONE story, I'm just going to share 3 incidents I recorded in my journal from our years living together at Cal.


From sophomore year of college: Toilet Troubles

This afternoon as I sat around doing whatever it is I do in the living room, I heard a cry for help. Literally. It went something along the lines of "HELP! BRING THE MOP!"

And then the phone rang, and I had a split-second moment of being torn between getting the mop and getting the phone. Then S said, "Believe me. THIS IS MORE IMPORTANT."

But I managed to get the phone (telemarketers) and the mop and ran to the bathroom, where there was a full blown Situation. It's not as nasty as it sounds. It was just toilet water, but it had overflowed and spilled out onto the tiles and was creeping its way across the tiled sink area. Luckily, our floor mats were unharmed.

So S and I spent a good hour (or so...or more) mopping it up and then Pinesol-ing that shizz, and the reason it took so long was because we tried to flush the toilet again. Bad idea.


From sophomore year of college: Finals Week

R went off to the library to study. She IMed me around midnight. The following ensued:

R: naked people!
Me: what?! where are you?!
R: did you know every semester during finals, naked people run through the library?
Me: i think i've heard that before...
Me: IT'S TRUE?!
R: LOL
Me: It's not even safe in the libraries!
R: it's sooo funny
R: embrace the berkeley culture.


From sophomore year of college: RE: Finishing a final

S: We went and we conquered.
M: Um, I don't know about conquered.
S: No, we vanquished that final. Destroyed it.
M: Annihilated.


From our senior year: A Momentous Occasion

November 28, 2007: We finally ran out of trash bags.

[Context for this is that at the end of freshman year, I had a ton of meal points left over. But at the time, meal points were basically like money at campus restaurants, cafes, convenience stores. So I used my considerable meal points to help furnish our new apartment. Basically, I bought a ton of trash bags - so much that we didn't need to by any until mid-way through our senior year!]

Over the course of 4 years, I lived with a bunch of smart, funny girls with minimal drama. I am so, so lucky to have had them as my roomies and to have them for friends.


GIVEAWAY Details: To enter to win a copy of ROOMIES from Little & Brown Books, please fill in the rafflecopter info below. Name and mailing address are required. Sorry international peeps, this is US only. Winner will be announced next Wednesday, 1/15.

a Rafflecopter giveaway



Q4U: What's your Roomie Story? Everyone's got one.

2014: One Word Resolution

Hello dear readers and friends! Bit of a late start this year with the blogging, but I was making good over the holidays on my 2013 One Word Resolution: Present by being around for my friends and family and just soaking in the good vibes at the end of the year.

That said, it is now 2014! Happy New Year!

This also means it's time to pick a new word for 2014.

For those of you new to this concept, it's basically a New Year's Resolution compacted down into 1 word. That word is your guide, your attitude, your touchstone for the year, and from there, you can make more specific goals. I heard about this from blog friends, who had read about the One Word Resolution from Jessica Cora. I've linked her name to the post where she explains the concept.

So, my word for 2014 is...

FOCUS

I knew going into 2013 that things were going to be hectic on the personal side of life. I had two weddings for two of my oldest friends (I was a bridesmaid in one), and the Sister and I were planning on going to San Diego Comic-Con (which worked out after a lot of stress and angst). Those things pretty much guaranteed the first part of 2013 would speed by, so I chose PRESENT as my word. I wanted to enjoy all these amazing events, as well as anything else 2013 threw my way, and my word served me well. I had a fantastic year I think in large part due to this attitude.

For 2014, I'd like to be a bit more active with my energies. 2013 was about going with the flow (so as not to be overwhelmed), but I want 2014 to be about making things happen. For someone who is a chronic procrastinator and self-proclaimed lazy-face, I know it's easy for me to get distracted and discouraged. I want to have the focus to make better on my goals this year and to have focus be the reason for not getting overwhelmed.

Of course, I will be keeping my 2013 word near because being present is always helpful for balance. And I will also be keeping a few more things in mind.

The sister had this necklace custom-made for me for Christmas. She asked me to write her a word or phrase that inspired me or that I lived by or was my motto. I'm not one of those people who has these types of things in mind, so I had to think about it. The above is what I came up with because I was thinking about being present and living fully and bravely - things that I constantly struggle with (especially since I'm lazy and introverted and kind of shy- yes, really), and I thought if you're going to do something, you might as well do it spectacularly.

(Although, let's be real, I was tempted to use my favorite word/sometimes life-motto schneizeleffort.)

In relation to the necklace and to living bravely, I'm also reminded of this quote that I posted as part of a What's Up Wednesday post that I also find incredibly inspiring.

Ah, this was kind of a heavy post for the first one of 2014, but an important one I think. New year, new opportunities, new chances! What's your word for the year?

P.S. I found these One Word Resolutions inspiring too.
Katy Upperman: Stoicism
Erin Bowman: Focus (we're brain twins)
Sarah Enni: Create
Tracey Neithercott: Persistence

YA Superlative Blogfest 2013: Best in Show

We're on to the final day of the YA Superlatives Blogfest! I'm kind of sad, but my TBR list is brimming!

About the blogfest: The Class of 2013: YA Superlative Blogfest will run Monday, December 16th – Thursday, December 19th and will highlight our favorite books of 2013. This year, the lovely hosts Jessica Love, Tracey Neithercott, Alison Miller, and Katy Upperman will also be giving away books to bloggers who participate in all 4 days of the fest. Click the banner for more info!

If you join in, don't forget to link up at one of the host blogs! There's a prize for participating every day!

*Disclaimer: We tried to choose books published in 2013, but as we didn't read that many 2013 releases some of these might not be from 2013. Also, some books had their last book in the series pubbed in 2013.

The topic is Best in Show!


Favorite Cover

Krispy's Pick: Because I love the type-dominated design and the perfectly moody imagery.

Type by Simon Alander / Designed by Nancy R. Leo-Kelly

Alz's Pick: Because I do love me some winged things, and the colors and arrangement combined with the title make for a gorgeously ethereal and evocative whole.

Jacket art by Chiara Fersini / Jacket design by Kristin Smith

Honorable Mention (Krispy's): I didn't get around to reading TAKEN, but I freaking love the cover design. Like the combination of bright colors and sleek sci-fi-y imagery somehow works, and goodness that raised K in the title!

Photography by Alisdair Miller & Howard Huang /
Designed by Alison Donalty and Erin Fitzsimmons

Cutest Couple

Alz's Pick:  Frenenqer and Sangris from The Girl with Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti because the book is all about her, and them, and how they are.  She's been bound up in so many psychological and social restrictions her entire life and he teaches her to shake free her shackles and grow.  Also, they're just super cute together.

Krispy's multi-picks: I actually couldn't really pick so here we are.

Honorable Mention: From The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater, Blue and Noah not as like an actual couple but because of their cute friendship, but specifically A SCENE from this book. Also,  The Gray Man and Blue's mom Maura had an unexpectedly sweet relationship.


Most Likely to Succeed (Or, pick a Printz Winner.)


Krispy's Pick: The Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta because they are amazing (and Marchetta has already won a Printz, though not for these books)

OR

Charm & Strange by Stephanie Kuehn, which has already been nominated for a number of awards including being chosen as a finalist for YALSA's 2014 William C. Morris award.

Alz's Pick: The Girl with Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti because it's just poetically striking and moves worlds with the rhythm of its words.  Really, I love it a lot.  Which is why it's showing up all over Superlatives.


Most Likely to Make You Miss Your Bedtime (Book you just couldn’t put down!)

Krispy's Pick: I read a lot of page-turners this year, but for some reason I just could not put down Kendare Blake's Antigoddess.

Maybe it's because Blake writes a good plot (remember Anna Dressed in Blood?)  or maybe I just really love Greek Mythology (I do), but I blasted through this book in 2 days and then wished I had the next.


Alz's Pick: The Girl with Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti - I tore through this sucker in one sitting, which is pretty amazing since usually "plotless" books tend to be not that gripping for me.  But this, this was gripping.  I wanted it to never end.



Best Repeat Performance (Your favorite sequel or follow-up.) 

Krispy & Alz's pick:

Krispy's Pick 2: As a runner-up, I actually really enjoyed Siege & Storm, which was pleasant because I hadn't been that enamored of Shadow & Bone.


Alz's Pick 2: Dandelion Fire by N.D. Wilson - So technically this book is MG, not YA, nor was it published this year, but it really was a great book that didn't suffer at all from midquel-itis.  Although it is a fairly chunky book at nearly 500 pages and some parts were a bit slow, everything built up and the momentum in the end meant the story was a fireball hurtling forward.  I found the first book to be a lot slower, though it was worth it in the end; this sequel was much better overall.


Favorite Finale or End of Series Novel

Krispy's pick: ALL THE FEELS. Perfect ending to an extraordinary fantasy trilogy.

[Fan art by Cassandra Jean]

Romance Most Worthy of an Ice Bath
(Krispy only)

1) I wouldn't characterize the whole romance of the main couple this way, but in soon-to-be-released Control, there's this scene at a nightclub that is just... it is something else and all kinds of, uh, delirium-making.

2) Tana and Gavriel in The Coldest Girl in Coldtown - again, not exactly on fire the whole time, but there is definitely a delectable kind of tension between these two and when that finally bubbles over? Well, it's "as dangerous as daybreak."



Breakout Novel (Your favorite book by a debut author.)

Krispy's Pick(s): Tie - Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea (for its voice and beautiful writing) and Charm & Strange (for its taut craft and unflinching depth).

Alz's Pick: You'll never guess that I'm picking The Girl with Borrowed Wings for this category because reasons.  I just hope Rinsai Rossetti is working on another breathtakingly beautiful book as I type this.

Honorable Mention: All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill because I (Krispy) did really enjoy it and I think I haven't given it enough props. Time travel that is not crazy-making is hard to do, and the premise of this book is amazing.


Best Old-Timer (Your favorite read of the year, published BEFORE 2013.)

Krispy's Pick: The Lumatere Chronicles - Quintana was the only book published this year and that was only in the U.S.!

Alz's Pick: The Girl with Borrowed Wings was technically published July 2012.  I wish I had read it then so I could've known how awesome it was all the sooner.


Book Most Likely to Make a Grown Man Cry
(Krispy only)

The Lumatere Chronicles gave me all the feels. I probably got a little sniffly at points.


Most Pleasant Surprise (Best book you didn’t think you’d like, but totally did.)

Krispy's Pick: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand. It's a pre-2013 book, I know, but I finally read it this year despite years of wariness and disinterest. I'd been burned by far too many angel books and this one had a love triangle (always tricky)! Surprisingly, I liked it and I want to continue the series!

Alz's Pick: The Girl with Borrowed Wings has a book blurb that was only kind of interesting to me, mostly because of the mention of winged shapeshifters and not so much the blurb-bits about a girl searching for her identity and struggling to free herself from etc.  It basically sounded like the type of book that I don't really go out of my way to read.  But it had an intriguing title and a beautiful cover and, as is my wont, I skimmed the first few pages to see how the writing was.  The writing was fascinating and beautiful, so I took the book home from the library and never regretted it.


Most Creative Use of a Love Triangle

The Dream Thieves because there are a lot of compelling boys and one complex girl with a heavy prophecy hanging over her when it comes to her love life. What will happen with this ever changing polygon of love?

Honorable Mention (Krispy's): The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson. There's a love triangle, sort of, and it's also not what you think. A fascinating look at different kinds of love - between friends, lovers, artists, and between people and places.


Sleeper Hit (Book you found so awesome you wish it had been hyped more.)

Krispy's Pick: Antigoddess by Kendare Blake! With all the love for her horror books featuring the ghostly Anna Dressed in Blood, I was surprised there didn't seem to be as much buzz/excitement for her newest series The Goddess Wars. Maybe the Greek myth retelling thing was not so popular?

Athena by Cassandra Jean (though not specifically
as fan art for Antigoddess).

In any case, Blake brings her horror chops to this mythological adventure, and she reinvents the gods in interesting ways. I loved it! And I loved Hermes and Athena, and that Kendare Blake wrote some of my other Classical favorites in too (but I won't ruin which of them for you)!

Alz's Pick: The Girl with Borrowed Wings. I'm not going to cheapen this any by admitting that I read far fewer books this year than last--oh wait, I just did.  But even if I had read more, this book still would have taken the cake, hell, the entire dessert buffet, because it was just that awesome.  I'm running out of gushy things to say.


Favorite Outlier (Your favorite middle grade or adult 2013 book)

Krispy's Pick: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (Adult book) because it was a page-turner. I could not stop reading about these dysfunctional people and their psychological games, even though they were such terrible people.

Alz's Pick: Dandelion Fire by N.D. Wilson (MG book) was, as I mentioned previously, pretty dang riveting with many more good and interesting and terrible things happening than in the first book.


Pick Your Own Superlative: (Real) Oldie but Goodie

Krispy's Pick: Dragon's Bait by Vivian Vande Velde. Loved this as a tween because it had dragons and revenge and a sort-of romance? Also, Selendrile was a total babe. Upon my re-read this year, I found I still loved all these things...and that Selendrile is still a total babe.

Alz's Pick: The Boxcar Children #1 by Gertrude Chandler.  Loved this as a child.  Read it again as an adult and still loved it.  I've read quite a few in this quintessential children's series, but the first book has always been my favorite.


Q4U: What are your picks for these categories?


And that's it for this year's YA Superlative blogfest! Thanks for joining us, and we hope you found some new books to put on your TBR piles!

We probably won't be blogging again until after Christmas. So until then, have happy and safe holidays! EAT ALL THE FOOD! Here's a bonus majestic!Loki.



YA Superlative Blogfest recap:
Head Of Class
Popularity Contest
Elements of Fiction

YA Superlative Blogfest 2013: Elements of Fiction

There's no What's Up Wednesday today because we're on to Day 3 of the YA Superlatives Blogfest!

About the blogfest: The Class of 2013: YA Superlative Blogfest will run Monday, December 16th – Thursday, December 19th and will highlight our favorite books of 2013. This year, the lovely hosts Jessica Love, Tracey Neithercott, Alison Miller, and Katy Upperman will also be giving away books to bloggers who participate in all 4 days of the fest. Click the banner for more info!

If you join in, don't forget to link up at one of the host blogs! There's a prize for participating every day!

*Disclaimer: We tried to choose books published in 2013, but as we didn't read that many 2013 releases some of these might not be from 2013. Also, some books had their last book in the series pubbed in 2013.

The topic is Elements of Fiction!


Most Envy-Inducing Plot (Or, the plot you wish you’d thought of yourself.)

Krispy's pick: The Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta basically makes me never want to write fantasy again because they're just so darn good. The plots are riveting, the characters compelling, and the world of Skuldenore is just so well-realized. Don't even get me started on the complex themes!

Alz's pick: The Girl with Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti doesn't have a plot as such--it's more of a character-development-and-exploration piece.  In fact, it almost goes out of its way to not have a plot, which is why it works--the narrator's psychological issues, relationships, and personal growth shine all the more for not being mired in plot.


Most Formidable World (Or, the setting you definitely would NOT want to visit.)

Krispy's pick: In the world of Dualed, if you live in the city of Kersh (like the MC does), you have to kill your Alt before your Alt kills you. So while daily life seems like it's okay overall, you'd have to kill or be killed, and you might get accidentally killed by Alt-vs-Alt crossfire. The motto of the city is "Be the one. Be worthy." Nope, count me out.

Cover art from DIVIDED, upcoming sequel to DUALED. [Source: MTV Geek First Look]

Alz's pick: Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve takes place in a far, far future version of our world where cities are mobile and scuttle across the land, devouring weaker cities to fuel themselves.  It takes survival of the fittest to a whole new level, and really, you're screwed either way--seems like the cities (and towns and villages) are getting scarcer after centuries of predation so even if you're in a pretty big city like London, you still have to live with the worry that someday soon a bigger, hungrier city is going to eat you whole.  Also, if you live on the ground, you're pretty much screwed too because all the mobile cityfolk hate you.  Thank you, I'll take living in the comparatively far, far past over that eat-or-run lifestyle.


Wanderlust-Inducing (Or, the setting you’d happily travel to.)

[Source: April Tucholke's pinterest]

Krispy's pick: The small seaside town and crumbling mansion in April Tucholke's Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is straight out of a gothic novel and thus equal parts creepy and dreamy. But even with the creep factor, there's something so beautiful and romantic about the windswept cliffs and Violet's nook-filled home, the Citizen. I would love to spend an afternoon with Violet playing dress-up and listening to old records while sipping espresso in the Citizen's attic.

Alz's pick: The Girl with Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti is just all over my Superlatives this year, ain't it?  And it's because everything about this book was so gorgeous.  The desert is beautiful and the worlds that Frenenqer (yes, that's her name) travels to are strange and beautiful too.  I'd love to borrow her borrowed wings sometime.

Honorable Mentions: Henrietta from The Dream Thieves is, as ever and always, an atmospheric place, with lush magical forests and not-quite-as-picturesque-as-it-seems small-town life.   Just One Day was actual wanderlust-inducing because of all the traveling and romance in the real world. Paris! Amsterdam!


Loveliest Prose

The Dream Thieves because it's Maggie Stiefvater and she strings words together in wondrous and beautiful ways. Every book seems to bring new descriptions and turns of phrase for us to ponder and admire.

Krispy's pick 2: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea gets a shout-out here because the writing really is lovely. The settings are characters themselves, and Violet's voice is what carries the whole tale.

Alz's pick 2: The Girl with Borrowed Wings because I JUST REALLY LOVED IT OKAY SO UNEXPECTEDLY BEAUTIFUL IN SO MANY WAYS.

Best First Line

Krispy's Pick: From Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea:

You stop fearing the Devil when you're holding his hand.

Alz's Pick: From The Girl with Borrowed Wings:

I am unlike most other people because I began, not in the body of my mother, but in the brain of my father.

Most Dynamic Main Character

Krispy's pick: Quintana from Quintana of Charyn - There are a number of characters I could put here just from The Lumatere Chronicles, but I picked Quintana because she is one of the most unusual characters I've come across. I didn't always like her and like the other characters in the book, I didn't always know what to make of her. But in Marchetta's skilled hands, Quintana comes across as a multifaceted character. She is damaged, wild, selfless, violent, strong, vulnerable, and maybe half-mad, but she also turns out to be one of the most dynamic and heroic characters of the trilogy.


Alz's pick: Cassie from The 5th Wave - I'll be honest, I couldn't even remember Cassie's name when Krispy and I were discussing our picks for this category.  But what stuck with me was the fact that Cassie was a typical teen girl with her whims and high school woes, who was then forced to become a lone survivor in an apocalyptic alien-invaded world.  It's been hard on her and hardened her, and yet she still retains her teenagery-ness and some truly admirable spirit despite the pretty damn awful turns her life has taken.

Most Jaw-Dropping Ending (Krispy's only, because Alz hasn't read anything this year where the ending totally blew her away)

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson- I pretty much can't say anything except that while this ending wasn't wholly unexpected, it was so beautifully and movingly done. It was triumph and tragedy and magnificently symbolic. It gave me chills.

Honorable Mention: The Lumatere Chronicles because it gave me ALL THE FEELS, and though Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn isn't YA, I needed to mention this here because that book was all kinds of W-T-F. But in a good way!


Best Performance in a Supporting Role

Krispy's pick: The Lumatere Chronicles - I just love everyone, okay? Can we give an award for best ensemble cast? Because they're great. Main characters become supporting characters and vice versa, but they all work together to create this amazing patchwork whole.

Alz's pick (Krispy agrees too): Sturmhond from Siege & Storm by Leigh Bardugo - He's handsome and blond and piratey and charming and all those good things that make him instantly likable, but beneath that roguish exterior there are some hidden depths.


Best Use of Theme

Krispy's pick: Charm & Strange by Stephanie Kuehn is a finely focused novel. Everything is about character and theme, so it was a no-brainer pick for this category. From the imagery to the metaphors and motifs used, everything serves Win's story and explores the idea of survival and grief.

Seriously, just read my full review of Charm & Strange to see all the THEME flailing I did over this (because I love themes).


Alz's pick: The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater is all about family.  And love.  And secrets.  Like, what happens when you keep them even when you shouldn't, or don't understand them.  And what happens when you don't keep them.  And especially what happens when said secrets involve family and love.  They all weave together into one complex and intriguing thematic tapestry.

Honorable mentions: 1) The Lumatere Chronicles because one of the reasons these books stand out is the incredibly mature themes -about diaspora, national & cultural identity, faith, feminism, and sacrifice just to name a few. 2) The Coldest Girl in Coldtown because there are vampires and the vampirism is used to explore themes of love, mortality, identity, humanity, and monstrosity.


Who would you put in these categories?  Join us again tomorrow!

YA Superlative Blogfest recap:
Head Of Class
Popularity Contest

YA Superlative Blogfest 2013: Popularity Contest

Welcome to Day 2 of the 2013 YA Superlatives Blogfest!

About the blogfest: The Class of 2013: YA Superlative Blogfest will run Monday, December 16th – Thursday, December 19th and will highlight our favorite books of 2013. This year, the lovely hosts Jessica Love, Tracey Neithercott, Alison Miller, and Katy Upperman will also be giving away books to bloggers who participate in all 4 days of the fest. Click the banner for more info!

If you join in, don't forget to link up at one of the host blogs! There's a prize for participating every day!

*Disclaimer: We tried to choose books published in 2013, but as we didn't read that many 2013 releases and today's topic allows us to pick characters from ANY YA book we read this year.

The topic is Popularity Contest!


Most Likely to Become a Rock Star

Krispy's Pick: June from The Summer Prince. She's not a musician, but she's a budding artist who wants to make a difference, and in the course of her journey, she does become something of a Palmares Três celebrity for her activist art.

Alz's Pick: Lena Mattacascar from The Peculiars. Lena's not exactly what you'd immediately think of as a rock star, figuratively or literally, but this girl has the willpower, the brains, and a certain Victorian drama that enable her to get a great many things accomplished and figured out, when push comes to shove.


Most Likely to Start a Riot: Ronan from The Dream Thieves / Alina from Siege & Storm

We always knew Ronan was the troublemaker in the Raven Boys, and with the increased focus on him in The Dream Thieves, we definitely saw more of that reckless streak in him. Though he has much hidden depth, his devil-may-care badass exterior certainly suggests he's capable of starting a riot.

Alina by Ardawling [Source: ardawling.deviantart.com]

Alina from Siege & Storm (Book 2 of the Grisha Trilogy) has always been a controversial figure, but she is more so in this book than in the former. Her actions in Shadow & Bone have made her into something of a national idol, complete with a fanatic following. In fact, at one point in Siege & Storm, we think she does (accidentally) start a riot!


Biggest Flirt: Willem De Ruiter from Just One Day

I think anyone who has read the Just One Day and Just One Year duology would agree with this - Willem is a lady's man. Even when he's not purposefully flirting, he's flirting. That's just his thing. He's freaking charming.

Back cover art for CoM.
[Source: Sarah Maas' LJ]

Fashion King and/or Queen: Celaena from Crown of Midnight

We're pretty sure Celaena took the crown for this category last year too. So it's no surprise she is still reigning fashion queen, especially in this follow-up book to Throne of Glass. Since then, Celaena has been out shopping, and we are spared no detail when it comes to some of her more fabulous frocks.

But seriously, this girl should probably have a couture fashion runway installed in her closet.

Honorable mention: Violet from Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea because she's an artsy, cool, vintage-dressing girl. It also helps that she had a cool, socialite grandmother who left an attic full of chic clothes.


Girl You’d Most Want For Your BFF: Tana from The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

I admire Tana because she is a normal girl thrust into the worst circumstances (and I mean, the worst) and not only does she manage to make the best of it, she sort of kicks those circumstances in the teeth. She is arguably the least powerful character in the main cast, but she is tough as nails and smart. She cares about her friends and family and has empathy for even those society has deemed monstrous.

Basically, if I were infected and in danger of going Cold, I'd want her to be by my side because with her, I'd have a chance of coming out of it alive.

Honorable Mention: Vera from Lydia Kang's upcoming Control. Control will be out later this month, but we were lucky enough to borrow an ARC to read. We don't want to give anything away, but Vera is kind of great, though she comes off prickly in the beginning. Confident, loyal girls, ftw!


Boy You Wish You’d Dated in High School:

Krispy's pick: Sturmhond from Siege & Storm, and I really can't say much more than that because of spoilers. As much as I love the Darkling, I'm not sure I would want to date him, especially since he seems pre-occupied with his grandiose political plans and um, more volatile than usual in this book. Sturmhond has ambitions too, but he seems much more, uh, emotionally stable. Plus, it helps that he's charming and handsome as well.

Alz's pick: Liam from The Darkest Minds - I've said it before and I'll say it again.  This boy is a nice boy, decent and trusting and conscientious and courteous and caring.  Like, for real, if I were going to be facing a dystopian apocalypse, I'd rather have Liam as my love interest than 90% of the other YA love interests in his genre--I mean, he's such a great guy, I'd choose him apocalypse or not.

ALSO: Sangris from The Girl with Borrowed Wings ties in this category because he's just such a delightfully different and free guy who incidentally is a shapeshifting world traveler and can be quite devoted and quite mischievous at the same time.  Gotta love 'im.

Honorable Mention: The Raven Boys from The Dream Thieves for obvious reasons.

Fanart of The Raven Boys by Cassandra Jean [Source: Cassandra Jean's tumblr]

• River from Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea because he is soooooo swoon-worthy but sooooo shady. Like Violet, I know I should stay away, but I just can't.

• Gavriel from The Coldest Girl in Coldtown needs to be mentioned here too because I just loved him, even though he's not exactly someone you can or should trust. He's a monster, and he knows it. It's just hard to keep that in mind because he's so endearing too.

Most Likely to Become President:

Krispy's pick: The Darkling from The Grisha Trilogy - political ambitions, charisma, and crazy powers? He's got them.

Also, I have a secondary pick of Evanjalin from The Lumatere Chronicles. I won't say more in case there's anyone new to the trilogy, but this is a girl with a will of steel and a clear sense of purpose. She is one of my favorite heroines.

Alz's pick: June from Prodigy because, well, I think we chose her last year too, because this girl is on a fast-track to political power with with her prodigy-ness, family background, and government/rebel ties.  No matter which side she's on, it's more than likely that she'll end up in a seat of power, though honestly speaking I see her more as the power behind the throne.


Villain You Love to Hate:

Krispy's pick: The Darkling from the Grisha Trilogy - and actually, it's more like I love to love him. I think I said this last year too... Darkness never dies (and neither does my Team Darkling allegiance)!

Fan-favorite casting of Sean O'Pry as the Darkling.
[Source: The Fashionisto /Armani Jeans FW 2012]

Alz's pick (and Krispy agrees): A certain guy from Control.  Can't say because of spoilers, but this guy is really bastard-level evil and manipulative.  Like, it's not even like "love" to hate, it's I fricking hate this guy.  He's not the type of antagonist whose appearance you relish and hope continues to pop up throughout the story; he's the type of antagonist you want killed utterly, permanently dead forever.

Honorable Mention: (Krispy's pick) I had to include Gillian Flynn's characters, even though her books are not YA, because Flynn has managed to make me invested in the outcome of characters I almost entirely dislike. I read both Sharp Objects and Gone Girl this year, and I can honestly say, I didn't really like any of the people populating those pages. But were they complex and compelling? YES. I couldn't put these books down.


Favorite Parental Figure:

Krispy's pick (and Alz agrees): Blue's family in The Dream Thieves. We love the psychic women of Henrietta and were glad to see them take a bigger role in this 2nd Raven Cycle book. They're weird and quirky, but they obviously care deeply about each other and about Blue.

Alz's pick: Canny's mom in Mortal Fire.  I had a lot of issues and mixed feelings about Mortal Fire as a novel, but Canny's mom (whose name escapes me at the moment) is extremely badass.  In her youth, she was a civilian war hero; currently she is a very grand and rather haughty woman who loves her daughter very much and knows her extremely well, even if her methods of expression occasionally leave something to be desired.  Theirs is a somewhat unconventional mother-daughter relationship, but it was well-done and heartfelt.

Honorable mention: (Krispy's pick) There are so many characters in The Lumatere Chronicles that I want to tell you about, but you should just read this amazing trilogy. Of the many parental figures, I loved Trevanion & his Guard because not only were they parental figures to Finnikin (Trevanion's actual son), they acted as guardians to so many of the trilogy's main characters. They were a part of one of many created families.


Coolest Nerd: Gansey from The Dream Thieves.

His loft and his journal is what we hope our nerding out would look like if we had a ginormous fortune, a flock of similarly-minded cohorts, and all the time in the world.

Who would you put in these categories?  Join us again for Day 3!

YA Superlative Blogfest recap:
Head Of Class