Crazy crazy news alert!

This is Rapunzel from the Disney movie Tangled. Her hair glows. FYI.

Usually, I don't do book news posts since my good buds Steph and Kat over at Cuddlebuggery already round up all the info you need to know so fantastically well. But there were a few things that popped up this afternoon that I am SO excited about that I just had to share it with y'all if you didn't hear about it yet!

1) ALLY CARTER HAS A NOVELLA CROSSOVER OF HEIST SOCIETY AND GALLAGHER GIRLS COMING OUT! See more (and the cover--it's exclusive to MTV Crush for the day so I can't post it on my blog) here! It's SO EXCITING. Basically, Ally has a novella called Double Crossed that's about Macey, Hale, Kat, Aunt Abby, and ALL THE AWESOMENESS, releasing January 22nd FOR FREE as an e-book. Ally said on Twitter that Cammie and Zach won't be in the novella since it takes place between GG5 & GG6, but hey, it's way better than I could've hoped for! :D

2) CASSANDRA CLARE, MAUREEN JOHNSON, and SARAH REES BRENNAN ARE COLLABORATING TO CREATE The Bane Chronicles! Do you love Magnus Bane? Do you want to know all the secret stories he's stashed beneath his ridiculously glamorous self? Well well well, looks like my personal favorite, Sarah Rees Brennan (SQUEE!) and the fabulous Maureen Johnson, as well as of course, Ms. Clare herself, will be working together to create an e-series of these chronicles, ten of them, starting February 2013 and all the way up until the City of Bones theatrical release! Read more on Sarah's Tumblr here!

3) CARRIE RYAN AND HER HUSBAND JUST SOLD A FOUR-BOOK MIDDLE GRADE SERIES! The news isn't bombarding the web yet, but Carrie announced it on Twitter, and can you just say EXCITED?!? I can't wait to read The Map to Everywhere, even if that means I have to wait until Fall of 2014! *cries* Arghhh the wait! I can't stand it! It's going to kill me someday, just you watch.


And that's all for now! Go check out Cuddlebuggery's post for last week's shenanigans here, and leave a comment below letting me know whether you are excited or excited about all this shiny new stuff in the works!


P.S. If you're looking for some kick-butt YA books as a holiday gift or just for your own reading pleasure, I created this graphic to help you out! I was humbly selected as one of Paper Lantern Lit's Trendsetters, so if you'd like, you can check up on my own book shenanigans by following PLL's Tumblr!

Top 10 Settings in 2011

Today's topic was characters, and I chose settings. Though some people might say that a setting isn't a real, animate thing, it can't be a character (and you're right), here is the definition for character (from dictionary.com):

Character: Noun. One of the attributes or features that make up and distinguish the individual.

A setting is an attribute that distinguish the characters in a story, and it usually plays a major role as well. Without the claustrophobic environment of Godspeed, would Across the Universe be as horrifying as it is? Without the Shifted world of Shade, Aura's story would have been exponentially different. So, here it is, my top 10 settings of 2011 (in no particular order):

The Last Little Brilliant Adventure

The Last Little Blue Envelope
By: Maureen Johnson
Reported by: Julianna Helms

Ginny Blackstone thought that the biggest adventure of her life was behind her. She spent last summer traveling around Europe, following the tasks her aunt Peg laid out in a series of letters before she died. When someone stole Ginny's backpack—and the last little blue envelope inside—she resigned herself to never knowing how it was supposed to end.

Months later, a mysterious boy contacts Ginny from London, saying he's found her bag. Finally, Ginny can finish what she started. But instead of ending her journey, the last letter starts a new adventure—one filled with old friends, new loves, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Ginny finds she must hold on to her wits . . . and her heart. This time, there are no instructions. 

-Summary from Goodreads
Barnes & Noble||Amazon||The Book Depository

A wonderful journey full of startling discoveries, heartbreaking truths, and a gorgeously interwoven fairytale-ish ending, The Last Little Blue Envelope does not disappoint fans of 13 Little Blue Envelopes.

My favorite thing about Maureen Johnson is her realistic, wonderful sense of humor. Ginny is a likable character who I've come to love through her mistakes and encounters, journeys and findings. With a cast of characters full of both old and new loves, Ginny's last adventure made me smile and laugh, shout with outrage, and smile all over again. 

I had a few confusions with this book, mostly circulating around the plot. There were twists and extraordinary experiences, but there was also times when someone seemed out of character. Their actions felt abnormal, and there wasn't really anything important enough to keep me hooked to the story. This is a very character-driven book. Without Ginny, I don't know if I would have kept reading. Some plot holes could've been easily avoided, and there was a few times when I couldn't help shake my head at the thoughtless behaviors. I would have liked more character development on some of the secondary characters, but truly, it's the ambition and ferocity in Ginny--not the story itself--that kept me turning the pages and devouring this book.


Maureen Johnson sets a high bar of expectations each time, and she has yet to let me down. With simplistic and thoughtful prose, she delivers another novel that won't leave an impression of wow, but will certainly leave an impression of jubilation.

1 Little Adventurist Book

13 Little Blue Envelopes
By: Maureen Johnson
Reported by: Julianna Helms
  

When Ginny receives thirteen little blue envelopes and instructions to buy a plane ticket to London, she knows something exciting is going to happen. What Ginny doesn't know is that she will have the adventure of her life and it will change her in more ways than one. Life and love are waiting for her across the Atlantic, and the thirteen little blue envelopes are the key to finding them in this funny, romantic, heartbreaking novel. 

-Summary from Goodreads

To sum up my feelings for this book: I am now stalking watching Maureen's twitter feed more than before (and the amount I was um, stalking her before was already quite alarming, truth to be told).

13 Little Blue Envelopes is a hilarious journey that travels with heart and ambition. Ginny is a realistic teen protagonist who I related to instantly, and her struggles to find her way in foreign countries gripped me on to her story. The amazing past she discovers of her Aunt Peg is truly fascinating as well, and I know that I will definitely be reading The Last Little Blue Envelope.

Maureen portrays angst, determination, and fear brilliantly. I plunged into the book with no expectations, but if I had any expectations at all, this book surpassed it. I loved the beautiful, wonderful and exotic locations this book took place at. While I wish the romantic side of this novel was expressed more, this is a novel about finding yourself at its core, and spice isn't a necessary ingredient to make this novel shine.


Candidly, I usually gravitate more toward darker books. But even though this book didn't leave me with a feeling of absolute amazement, it drew me to lighter books with heart as well, and that's what's the most important thing of all.