Top Ten Tuesday: The Top Ten Books on My Summer TBR!

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the Broke and the Bookish! 

There are so many fantastic books that are coming out over the next few Summer and Fall months that I can't wait to get my hands on them so I can READ ALL THE THINGS! 

I even found this meme so I could express my emotions in color. 

The list of mythical summer wonders is... 

Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked . . . until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.
Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Clover City beauty pageant—along with several other unlikely candidates—to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she’ll shock the hell out of Clover City—and maybe herself most of all.
With starry Texas nights, red candy suckers, Dolly Parton songs, and a wildly unforgettable heroine— Dumplin’ is guaranteed to steal your heart.

When the glass slipper just doesn’t fit…
The tale of Cinderella has been retold countless times. But what you know is not the true story.
Pin has no recollection of who she is or how she got to the Godmother’s fortress. She only knows that she is a Seamstress, working day in and out to make ball gowns fit for fairy tales. But she longs to forsake her backbreaking servitude and dares to escape with the brave young Shoemaker.
Pin isn’t free for long before she’s captured again and forced to live the new life the Godmother chooses for her—a fairy tale story, complete with a charming prince—instead of finding her own happily ever after.
Sarah Prineas’s bold fairy tale retelling is a dark and captivating world where swords are more fitting than slippers, young shoemakers are just as striking as princes, and a heroine is more than ready to rescue herself before the clock strikes midnight.

Laia is a slave. 
Elias is a soldier. 
Neither is free.
Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.
It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.
But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.
There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself. 

I know I'm behind on these, but... I WILL get to them this summer. I am determined!

 Winning what you want may cost you everything you love... 
As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. 
One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. 
But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined. 
Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart. 

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.
Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.
Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.
Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy.  

And, the Fall books that I am most eager for... 

What books do you guys need yesterday?

Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella [Book Review]

Confessions of a Shopaholic
Author: Sophie Kinsella
Publisher: Dell
Publication Date: November 4, 2003
ISBN: 0440241413 

MEET BECKY BLOOMWOOD, AN IRRESISTIBLE HEROINE WITH A BIG HEART, BIG DREAMS --- AND JUST ONE LITTLE WEAKNESS ...
Becky Bloomwood has what most twenty-five-year-olds only dream of: a flat in London's trendiest neighborhood, a troupe of glamorous socialite friends, and a closet brimming with the season's must-haves. The only trouble is, she can't actually afford it --- not any of it. Her job writing atSuccessful Saving magazine not only bores her to tears, it doesn't pay much at all. Still, how can she resist that perfect pair of shoes? Or the divine silk blouse in the window of that ultra-trendy boutique? But lately Becky's been chased by dismal letters from Visa and the Endwich Bank --- letters with large red sums she can't bear to read --- and they're getting ever harder to ignore. She tries cutting back; she even tries making moremoney. But none of her efforts succeeds. Her only consolation is to buy herself something ... just a little something ...
Finally, a story arises that Becky actually cares about, and her front-page article catalyzes a chain of events that will transform her life --- and the lives of those around her --- forever. 

This is an older book that I have seen around forever. I  saw the movie once and liked it for what it was, a fun somewhat silly book about a girl who loved to shop. I don't really enjoy shopping for clothes, it's not my thing but BOOKS. Those are my thing, and I could relate due to this form of retail therapy.

I picked this up for fifty cents not too long ago, and found myself wanting something fun... and this book is definitely fun. You begin by meeting Becky Bloomwood, a girl who has a real need for retail therapy to an extreme while being a financial journalist. The irony among ironies. She spends $300 on a scarf. A SCARF. The cheap girl in me cried when this happened, but seeing the over the top lifestyle this woman lives is a true disconnect from the reality we are all probably used to. In this way, this book was a true joy to read.

I sped through the pages with enjoyment, partly because I needed to know what other ridiculous thing Becky was going to do. At times I wanted to walk into the pages and just take her credit card from her and cut it up. The things she chooses to do at times seem so obvious against what is right and good for her it almost drove me crazy. Ultimately though, it was an enjoyable, fun and light read for a weekend.

This is a good New Adult book (before New Adult was a thing) that expresses a woman's life as she struggles to find who she is (and how much money she has.) Becky is a woman in her first real job after college who is wistful and longs for great things... and is a financial journalist. She is unhappy with where she is and spending seems to fill up a void that makes her the person she actually wants to become... if only on the outside.

For any recent college grad, or anyone who has ever questioned what they want to be, this book is worth the read. The book strays very far from the movie in all respects, so coming to it with an open mind is very, very possible.

This is a quick, fun read that will have you laughing out loud... and at times make you long to pull Becky Bloomwood away from all her ridiculous endeavors.

Top Ten Tuesday: Characters I'd Like in My Fictional Family

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish!

1. Jo March: Role-  Big sister

I'm still upset at her for not swiping up Laurie when she had the chance. Jo is a wonderful literary character that I have spent my entire life looking up to her. She is fearless, she goes against the crowd, she's not ashamed of who she is, and she had the courage to completely leave home to try to accomplish her dreams. Not many people can say that, especially a woman in the 1860's. 

2. Anne Shirley: Role - Little sister

She's so pure of heart that I just want to protect her, but she's so stubborn she won't let me. I talk her feelings out with her involving Gilbert and tell her she's stupid for not accepting him sooner, but since she's Anne of course, she has to figure it out in her own time. Anne is another person who you think is absolutely fearless, but in a different way. The way she views the world gives her courage and the life she has lived makes her grounded... with the best imagination I have ever seen.

3. Molly and Arthur Weasley: Role - Parents

They made it through seven kids and two wars. I want parents who are this bad a**. They're fantastic and throughout it all, you know that they just just really want to protect their kids.

4.Holly Golightly: Role - Crazy Aunt

Just look at that picture. Her couch is a bathtub. This is only one of the many reasons why I love Holly Golightly, but I think she would be my crazy Aunt that my parents always are concerned about. I would find her life fascinating and marvelous, and they would lock me in my room or something. The Truman Capote Holly is just a bit different than our movie heiress, but the main points are accurate. She's just looking for love while refusing to belong to anyone... and she wants money.

5. Sherlock and Watson: Role - Uncles

Now, I don't ship the Sherlock and Watson relationship, but you can take this however you want. I do think that you can't have one without the other, so they are my uncles. They can be married, I don't judge, or just brothers who have to coexist, however you see them, they are wonderful and amazing and constantly trying to get Holly in check.

That just about rounds out my fictional family! Who do you have in your family tree?

Princess Ben by Catherine Murdock

Princess Ben

by: Catherine Murdock

From Amazon:

Benevolence is not your typical princess and Princess Ben is certainly not your typical fairy tale. With her parents lost to unknown assassins, Princess Ben ends up under the thumb of the conniving Queen Sophia, who is intent on marrying her off to the first available “specimen of imbecilic manhood.” Starved and miserable, locked in the castle’s highest tower, Ben stumbles upon a mysterious enchanted room. So begins her secret education in the magical arts: mastering an obstinate flying broomstick, furtively emptying the castle pantries, setting her hair on fire . . . But Ben’s private adventures are soon overwhelmed by a mortal threat facing the castle and indeed the entire country. Can Princess Ben save her kingdom from annihilation and herself from permanent enslavement?

From Me:

Okay so I got this book for Christmas and I was uber excited - I mean look at the cover? Plus I am a huge fairy tale enthusiast, you have no idea. So when I finally got to reading I expected to be caught up immediately and be taking my brain on an adventure.



Ummm...



Well...



It was good. I enjoyed it, but I did have a hard time with it, alot of it was just unbelievable...and I know that's weird to say considering it's fantasy aspect but nothing had a good enough explanation for me. Everything just happened - and at the perfect time. It was like all of these things happened too conveniently, and maybe I'm suffering from insanity but that's how it was for me. I think that's partly just my flaw moreso then the stories though - I mean I tend to overthink things, and this was one of those cases.



Ben is a great heroin though. I really liked her. She has her flaws, but yet she's a Princess. She's expected to be all of these things for all of these people, but yet she's just not. I like that about her, she's outspoken, determined, and over all a very interesting main character.



The story seemed to be somewhere between a Sleeping Beauty and a Cinderella as far as Ben goes. But with a twist that involves a delightful pinch of magic.



And the Prince Charming - arrogant at first but then amazing at the end, I just wish we had seen more of him. We don't meet him till halfway through and then the good him barely shows himself.



But It was a good book all in all, it had a good amount of adventure, fantasy, a wee bit of mystery,and some romance all thrown into one hardcover package :]



I give it a hmmm I can't really decide. An 8? Yeah that sounds about right <3




Review by Christina*

Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen. :P

Keeping The Moon
by : Sarah Dessen

This book is one of Sarah Dessen's best, and that is saying something. Sarah Dessen is a very popular writer for Teen's and this one deals with subjects that are no less pressing, or

entertaining then her other's.

Keeping The Moon is the story of Colie, who has a image problem.
She is the daughter of a recent Exercise enthusiast (seriously...she's famous) and is struggling to switch her lifestyle, from that of an overweight girl living with her ecentric overweight mother, to the new thin Colie who's mother is famous for her weight loss.

So what happens? Her mother goes on a tour and she must go live with her Aunt Mira who is just as ecentric as her mom, but is someone totally different as well. She doesn't care what other's think of her and doesn't let rumors bother her.

So Colie gets a job working at the last Chance Cafe where she gets to know Norman, the artist/cook/her aunt's tenant. She comes into herself here, learning how to truly become herself and to live her life without worry of other's oppions.

This book by Sarah Dessen is special. I don't know why but this one was special to me. The story of Colie and her struggle with self-esteem helped me with my own struggle with this very issue.
This is something most teenagers deal with and I couldn't think of any book that sums it up better. 10.

This book can be found at Books-A-Million, Borders, Barnes and Noble, pretty much any book store you can think of, and of course...Amazon.com :]

Reviewed by CHRISTINA :]