Blitz: The Earthbound Series, by Aprilynne Pike

Quick note to remind you I won't be scheduling any posts for a while - only posting already-scheduled posts (i have one or two more but that's it after those) and reviews.

The Earthbound Series by Aprilynne Pike

In 2013 the Earthbound Series kicked off, introducing Tavia and her amazing abilities to the world. Now that the last book in the series is here, it's a great time to start if you haven't already – and with the release of EARTHRISE we bring you the chance to WIN the whole set!  

Nothing is better than no wait time in between books! The super charged, heart-pounding Young Adult Fantasy series will have you on the edge of your seat!

ABOUT EARTHRISE

EARTHRISE

Earthbound #3

Release Date: September 1st 2015

Even with the power to create and destroy at will, Tavia Michaels couldn't save her parents. She couldn't save the boy she's loved for countless lifetimes. She barely managed to save herself from the treachery of supposed friends. So how can she save the world from a deadly plague--and the immortals spreading it? As the events of EARTHBOUND and EARTHQUAKE reach their thrilling conclusion, no one is safe--Tavia least of all!

READ THE FIRST 8 CHAPTERS OF EARTHRISE NOW! (link to: https://www.wattpad.com/story/48209986-earthrise-chapter-previews/parts)

BOOK LINKS

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/series/105170-earthbound

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_ebooks_1?ie=UTF8&text=Aprilynne+Pike&search-alias=digital-text&field-author=Aprilynne+Pike&sort=relevancerank

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Aprilynne%20Pike%22?Ntk=P_key_Contributor_List&Ns=P_Sales_Rank&Ntx=mode+matchall

IndieBound: http://www.indiebound.org/search/book?searchfor=Pike%2C+Aprilynne

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/search?query=Earthbound&fcsearchfield=Series&seriesId=30362c63-9e1f-589e-b73d-acdc61b0caa3

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Critically acclaimed, #1 New York Times best-selling author Aprilynne Pike has been spinning tales since she was a child with a hyper-active imagination. At the age of twenty she received her BA in Creative Writing from Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. When not writing, Aprilynne can usually be found out running; she also enjoys singing, acting, reading, and working with pregnant moms as a childbirth educator and doula. Aprilynne lives in Arizona with her husband and four kids; she is enjoying the sunshine.

GIVEAWAY

- One winner will get a full set of signed books in the EARTHBOUND series from Aprilynne Pike. (Books are a combo of HC and PB due to how they were released)

- Four winners will each get a signed paperback of  EARTHBOUND

Must be 13+ To Enter |Open internationally | Please see terms and conditions for full contest rules.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Reading Round Up (75)

Reading round up is a weekly journal where I record my daily reading progress, my thoughts on each book as I read it, and any books I've acquired during the week. There was a major gap of these, because my laptop wrecked itself and I couldn't commit to a regular update, but I'm back now to give you my thoughts on each book as I read it!!!

Books I read 20th April - 10th May:

 

11th May

So this week I'm reading Sleep No More by Aprilynne Pike and Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway. I'm liking both, but the characters in Sleep No More are ANNOYING as hell. Today I read 32 pages of SNM and 25% of Emmy & Oliver, bringing me to 33%.

12th May

Focused on Sleep No More today, reading 109 pages. The more I read the more I want to dropkick every single character. Can't wait to be done with this book. I also read 11% of Emmy and Oliver, which I'm really liking.

13th May

Finished the last 30 or so pages of Sleep No More, which stayed true to itself and pissed me off right to the end. I also read 48% of Emmy and Oliver, which I REALLY love. So glad I took a chance on this. AND I read 49 pages of Pip Bartlett's Guide To Magical Creatures by Maggie Stiefvater and Jackson Pearce because I couldn't help myself (or wait!)

14th May

I flew through Pip Bartlett, reading 132 pages, and I also read the last 8% of Emmy and Oliver. I loved both, to be honest, and would recommend them a whole bunch!!

15th May

Today I started Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield (44 pages), a book on my physical TBR that I've been wanting to get to for some time. The book itself is shiny and pink and I'm aesthetically in love with it.

I also began reading The Girl At Midnight by Melissa Grey (16% read), which I was really reserved about because I read a slew of negative reviews, but I'm actually really enjoying it. If you could just remove Caius's parts, I'd love it.

16th May

Read neither of my current novels today, but I never read much on Saturdays. I finished Two Lines by Melissa Marr, though, (56%) and it was alright. Nothing fantastic.

17th May

Read 28% of The Girl At Midnight, which I really like. I'm still shocked that I liked it so much. I also read 51 pages of Chantress.

Books finished this week: 4
Books DNF'd this week: 0

For review:

Inherit The Stars | Tessa Elwood

Fire & Chasm | Chelsea M. Campbell 

A History of Glitter and Blood | Hannah Moskowitz

In The Air Tonight | Lori Handeland 
Heat Of The Moment | Lori Handeland 

Smoke On The Water | Lori Handeland 

LOOK AT THOSE COVERS! THEY ALL FLOW!!!!! HOW PRETTY? AND THE TITLES ARE SONGS! (I keep thinking of Supernatural, with Heat Of The Moment.) I'm really looking forward to this series!

Actually, it's Reviewed Since The Last Time I Updated, but that's a bit wordy :)

Omega City - 3 STARS

Crimson Bound - 5 STARS

A Magic Dark & Bright - 5 STARS

Cold Burn of Magic - 3.5 STARS

Ferals - 2.5 STARS

Nimona - 5 STARS

Dragons Are People, Too - 4.5 STARS

The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest (DNF)

Illusionarium - 4.5 STARS
Rat Queens, vol 1 & 2 -  5 STARS & 5 STARS
Sleep No More - 2.5 STARS
A School For Unusual Girls - 5 STARS

Sleep No More (Review)

Charlotte Westing Chronicles: Sleep No More | Aprilnne Pike

Published by: HarperTeen, April 19th 2014

Genre: YA, Thriller, Paranormal, Mythology

Pages: 340

Format: Paperback

Source: Purchased

The blockbuster film Inception meets Lisa McMann's Wake trilogy in this dark paranormal thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Aprilynne Pike. This novel is also perfect for fans of Kelley Armstrong, Alyson Noel, and Kimberly Derting.

Charlotte Westing has a gift. She is an Oracle and has the ability to tell the future. But it doesn't do her much good. Instead of using their miraculous power, modern-day Oracles are told to fight their visions—to refrain from interfering. And Charlotte knows the price of breaking the rules. She sees it every day in her wheelchair-bound mother and the absence of her father. But when a premonition of a classmate's death is too strong for her to ignore, Charlotte is forced to make an impossible decision: continue following the rules or risk everything—even her sanity—to stop the serial killer who is stalking her town.

Reading this book was an exercise in patience, and if you know me at all, you'll know I have none. 0% patience. I wanted to slap every single character in their annoying face with every chapter I read.

First off I wanna say I liked the thriller aspects of the book, and the Oracle stuff was cool at first, though got really repetitive and I got a little tired with it. But THE CHARACTERS. First we have Charlotte, who meets a super creepy guy a good ten years older than her who says, basically, 'sup, I've been stalking you since you were a kid, and now I'm here to help with this super ominious piece of jewellery you should 100% wear when you sleep.' And she goes, essentially 'k, seems legit.' ????????? That's where I started losing interest. After that she goes on a supernatural quest to save every waif and stray in her town from being murdered (now this may just be me, but I just could not understand why she was so desperate to save a kid she'd spoken to in music class one time.) So my patience with her was at -100.

And then we have the creepy older dude, who I summed up best on Goodreads:

click to enlarge!

And the dishwater-dull love interest. Who, in any other book, might have been sweet. I'd just lost so much faith in this book by the time he came around.

But with all that said, I did really enjoy certain parts. The serial killer mystery was as thrilling as it promised, even if the killer was a flashing neon sign instead of a plot twist, and 'Shelby' wasn't a glaring shock either. And I did enjoy some Oracle parts. I just got so disillusioned with the characters that I started picking apart the rest of the book.

To sum: A good thriller with an interesting supernatural touch but the characters drove me mad.

Characters ★★☆☆☆

Setting/world building ★★★★☆

Writing ★★★☆☆

To be fair to Sleep No More, my rating would be more like 2.75 but 3 seems too high.