Guest Post Friday Follow

So because it's Friday (cue classical music and talking animals) and we wanted to showcase some amazing South African Book Bloggers we love to stalk... 

You can take part in the blog hop at Crazy for Books & Parajunkee's Friday Follow. Happy Friday!

 

We posed a question to South African Book Bloggers occupying the blogosphere and not only are the guest posts AMAZING but we have met some pretty awesome local book bloggers, so with out further adeiu we present Shelagh, from The Word Fiend; her bio reads:

 

Writer. Reader. Self-confessed geek.

A blog that will make you salivate and squeal with bookish enthusiasm.  "Oh what a blog" I whisper each time I visit...



The Word Fiend's Question was:

When I walk into a Bookshop...

I feel at home. I love bookshops. Walking into one is like opening the door to old friends and finding that they've brought some new ones along for the party. My behaviour in any particular bookshop depends largely on whether I'm looking for something specific or not.If I am on the hunt for a particular title I will make a beeline straight for the most likely shelves and start searching. I am not easily distracted when in this particular mindset and seldom stop to browse through any other titles. If I find the treasure I'm looking for I bound towards the till, often grinning like a loon. This may explain some of the startled looks I get from shop assistants, now that I stop to think about it...

If my prize has eluded me I don't hang around and leave feeling strangely despondent. This may seem a bit odd I know, but when I have made up my mind to buy a particular book I have to have it then. I don't know where this comes from, but it's one of my many personality quirks.

But most often when I walk into a bookshop it's because I love books. While some ladies may spend hours looking at clothes or shoes, for me it’s books. Always has been, hopefully always will be.

I can spend hours in a bookshop: browsing through the new arrivals; haunting my favourite sections or just exploring. I have also been known to rearrange shelves so that series are together and in the correct order. Another habit is returning lost books to their homes. You know the ones I’m talking about: Dr Phil’s latest offering looking particularly uncomfortable pressed up against historical romance novels equipped with impressively heaving bosoms. But the inability for some people to put books back where they found them will have to be a topic for another day…

Bookshops are glorious places and I look forward to seeing you in one soon!

You can find Shelagh on twitter here

***
The Word Fiend 

 

We have a winner...

All good things must come to an end!  Cupcakes, books, cups of tea and weekends and so with a heavy (but excited) heart we have to close the Alyson Noel Swag Giveaway. 

There are a few people we need to thank...

1. Tammy aka Book Fairy's Haven and power blogger who gave us the amazing opportunity to host this giveaway that goes hand in hand with her Alyson Noel Author Interview (Check it out now!)
2.  Alyson Noel, who put up with all our twitter spam (thanks for the RTs) so follow her on Twitter.
3. Our Followers.  We LOVE you all maybe more than is comfortable to admit.

So now on to our winners...

*Drum roll please*

Monique Bernic 

(who can be found on twitter and check out her super awesome blog)

and

Chris Tsang from Dorcester

Congratulations winners!

Here is what they have won...

(Each) 

1 Evermore t-shirt (Small)
1 Immortals series bookmarks

 Sample chapters of Evermore, book 1 in the Immortals series

 

Thanks again guys! Don't forget to tweet Tarryn & Kelly about anything BOOKS

In My Mailbox...

In my mailbox is meme hosted by Kristi The Story Siren.
Its a chance to brag, and show other bookies the goodies we got, and what we're reading. 

For Review

A Million Miles from Normal by Paige Nick

This Way up by Paige Nick

Tempest by Julie Cross (See our Waiting on Wednesday here)

Tiger's Quest by Colleen Houck (See our Waiting on Wednesday here)

Divergent by Veronica Roth

The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman (See our Waiting on Wednesday here)

Daughters of Fortune by Tara Hyland (See our Waiting on Wednesday here)

Bought 

Miss Peregrine's home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (See the book trailer here)

Tara Road by Maeve Binchey

What Kelly is Reading...

One Day by David Nicholls 

(See the movie trailer here) 

So tell us what you are reading!?

Guest Post Friday Follow

So because it's Friday (Or Wine day as Tarryn says) and we wanted to showcase some amazing South African Book Bloggers we love to stalk...

You can take part in the blog hop at Crazy for Books & Parajunkee's Friday Follow.  Happy Friday!
 

We posed a question to South African Book Bloggers occupying the blogosphere and not only are the guest posts AMAZING but we have met some pretty awesome local book bloggers, so with out further adeiu we present Lu, from A Muggle's Magical Book Blog; her bio reads:

I am a student doing my honours in Archaeology. I love to read and blog! I also have a Archaeology blog. I am still secretly waiting for my Hogwarts letter, I know its going to be here any day now!

A blog for all things Muggles, Books, and Potter - A Muggle's Magical Book Blog is vibrant and bookish blog to have on your blog roll!

 

Lu's Question was:

I joined a Bookclub...

When I got onto goodreads I saw a need for a South African themed book club that would bring fellow South African's together. There was Malaysian, Philippines, tons of countries, but no South African group. So I decided to start one. (Join the South African Book Lovers Book Club here)

At first I tracked down some South Africans on the site and invited them to join the group and before long we had 50, 100, 150 and I no longer had to invite members, as they joined because they saw their friends in it. Today we have 368 members and climbing.

Through this endeavor I have met some amazing people, some I count as my best friends today. We are all over the country but some of us make an effort to meet or even visit each other when we are in the vicinity. The fact that it is online makes it so much more accessible to everyone. You can log on when you have time, and talk about anything and everything, not just books.

What is quite fun is that we all have such different tastes, we have the hard core sci-fi addicts, the fantasy lovers and the guys who read anything and everything, and as you can imagine this leads to numerous discussions!

We have a nomination and poll system which allows us to go beyond our comfort zone when reading the Book of the Month. I myself would never have read my favorites books today if it wasn't for the bookclub.

Since the start of the bookclub I find myself reading much more than I ever thought I would and even getting a little competitive with reading challenges the bookclub offers.

But I must say the best thing about a bookclub is the sense of family. Most of us know each other, we all give advise and share our lives with each other. We also wish each other Happy Birthdays and some of us even send Christmas gifts. Just for an example of our "family": one of our fellow book club members recently moved abroad and we came together and made her a basket of books, travel guides, even some wine. Even one of our members in the Netherlands pitched in.

I think it is safe to say that without this book club my life would be so different and I can't imagine a better way to spend my time!

Find Lu on Facebook

Find Lu on Twitter

Find Lu on Goodreads

***

A Muggle's Magical Book Blog

Waiting on Wednesday (19) Tempest

 

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This weeks "waiting on and harassing bookshop staff" selection is:

Tempest by Julie Cross

About the Book

The year is 2009.  Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. But it’s not like the movies – nothing changes in the present after his jumps, there’s no space-time continuum issues or broken flux capacitors – it’s just harmless fun.

That is… until the day strangers burst in on Jackson and his girlfriend, Holly, and during a struggle with Jackson, Holly is fatally shot. In his panic, Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but this is not like his previous time jumps. Now he’s stuck in 2007 and can’t get back to the future. 

Desperate to somehow return to 2009 to save Holly but unable to return to his rightful year, Jackson settles into 2007 and learns what he can about his abilities. But it’s not long before the people who shot Holly in 2009 come looking for Jackson in the past, and these “Enemies of Time” will stop at nothing to recruit this powerful young time-traveler.  

Recruit… or kill him. Piecing together the clues about his father, the Enemies of Time, and himself, Jackson must decide  how far he’s willing to go to save Holly… and possibly the entire world.

About the Author

Julie Cross lives outside Chicago, where she works at the local YMCA.  This is her first novel.

Why are we waiting for it 

Are you kidding!? An exciting YA novel that is bound to keep us glued to our couches... How can we not be waiting for it! Oh and Gone with the Word gave it a RAVE review here... 

 So, *grabs pen and paper for TBR pile additions*, what books are you waiting for?

You can also talk to us on the "tweeter" Tarryn and Kelly 

Friday Follow & Blog hop (9)

ON THE BLOG

Don't forget to enter our Alyson Noel Swag Giveaway here

Dear Friday,

You make me (Kelly) want to hug you.  The type of hug that squeezes the love right out of you!  I would do this awkward run up, while screaming like a warrior and just leap right into your arms.  I really think you need to have a chat with your brother Monday... He hates me and I try my hardest to stay away from him.

Anyway,  I better be off.  Thanks for the hug (and coffee)
All the Best,

Kelly & Tarryn

Ok so let's get into the crunk of this blog hop...

Crazy for Books

“Let’s talk crazy book titles! Highlight one or two (or as many as you like!) titles in your personal collection that have the most interesting titles! If you can’t find any, feel free to find one on the internet!”

See the full post here

Tarryn: 

The Secret Garden, The Wishing Chair, The Green Mile, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator & What men know about women. (*Laughs at Tarryn's Last one*)

Kelly:

The Minutes Of The Lazarus Club, The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet, Onion Tears & The Empress of Florence.

Parajunkee

“How has your reading habits changed since you were a teen? or If you are still a teen what new genres are you in love with currently?

See the full post here

Tarryn:

I am not reading Catherine Cookson, or Danielle Steele anymore, so I would say 'for the better'. Ha ha.

In my early teens, I read a lot of R L Stine. Perhaps my slow introduction to Stephen King because, from around fourteen onwards, I did not read any YA.

Kelly:

I wouldn't say my reading habits have changed.  I still love the same books, but I could say they have evolved.  I never silo my tastes in book genre and I am constantly surprised when I read a genre that I never would have.  So I guess you could say my reading habits grow as I do...

So leave your answers in the comment field!

You can also talk to us on the "tweeter" Tarryn and Kelly 

Guest Post: Worlds in Ink

We posed a question to South African Book Bloggers occupying the blogosphere and not only are the guest posts AMAZING but we have met some pretty awesome local book bloggers, so with out further adieu we present KJ Mulder, from Worlds in Ink; his bio reads:

I'm a South African based blogger and self-confessed book addict. My main passion is science fiction, but I also enjoy reading fantasy, horror and thrillers.

We love his blog, Worlds in Ink, go check it out!

When I see a pile of books...

Now that’s a question in serious need of context. I need more information. Where is this hypothetical pile of books located? Guess I’ll have to make up some context of my own!

… at a secondhand bookshop…

I rescue them. I can’t stand the thought of books being abandoned by their owners and left to fend for themselves in the cold, dirty, sticky-fingered world. They deserve a good home and as long as I have a cubic centimeter of space available I’m going to provide them with that home! (Being a book rescuer provides a great rationalization for buying more books).

… at a sale…

I can’t resist the temptation to rummage through them looking for bargains. It doesn’t matter that the likelihood of me actually reading the book within the next two years is slim. If the price is right I’ll take them ALL home (provided they are in genres I like of course). Books are an investment in the future. If I buy them now while I can afford it, I can read them when I’m penniless and retired.

… in someone else’s home…

Some serious snooping will ensue. You can tell a lot about a person by looking at what they read. Someone who doesn’t enjoy reading is immediately suspect in my books. No time for reading? Bleh, then you don’t have time for breathing either!  

… at home…

I chortle with glee like a dragon over its hoard of gold. My books are my treasures. I love acquiring them, admiring them and reading them. Since I live 200km from the nearest bookstore I buy most of my books online… and I buy in bulk. Nothing beats that feeling of getting a new book through the post, but the amount of parcels I get have resulted in some strange looks from the post office workers. Now they are so used to it that they get my parcels ready as soon as they spot me walking in.

I’m completely addicted to books in every shape and form. My TBR pile is well over 250 books and growing - and that’s only counting the books I already own. I tried banning myself from buying more books and managed to last for twenty-six days before breaking down. I’ve now given up on fighting my addiction. Except for the miniscule chance of a bookshelf falling on me, it seems to be a healthy enough addiction.

If you guys spot any disadvantaged science fiction or fantasy books in dire need of a good home you know where to send them…

****

Worlds in Ink

Follow Worlds in Ink on twitter

Waiting on Wednesday (18) Next to Love

 

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This weeks "waiting at bookshop, faces pressed against windows" selection is:

Next to Love by Ellen Feldman

Published by Pan Macmillan UK

Cover concepts

Which cover is your favourite?

About the Book

From the Orange Prize Shortlisted author of Scottsboro comes a heartbreaking saga of love and loss in the aftermath of war 

 

Babe, Grace and Millie have been best friends since their first day at their small town’s only kindergarten. Despite their differences, they’ve played together, grown up together, shared each other’s secrets. And when World War Two becomes a reality for America too, the girls begin a new phase of their lives together – each quickly marries her first true love. With the men away, life is difficult for these newly married women, but when no fewer than sixteen telegrams arrive on a single morning in 1944, bearing news of the worst kind from the War Department, the girls know that nothing will ever be the same again...

As each woman struggles to rebuild a life, they face not only the challenges closest to home – the brutal effects of war, the question of remarriage, of how to tell a child about their absent father – but also the wider issues of a country in flux – sexism, racism, anti-Semitism. Tinged with tragedy, yet filled with hope, Next to Love is the story of three women at the heart of the century – a celebration of their friendship across decades of the most unthinkable adversity. It is a remarkable novel you are unlikely to forget. 

About the Author

 

Ellen Feldman, a 2009 Guggenheim Fellow in fiction, is the author of The Boy Who Loved Anne Frank, also published by Picador. She lives in New York City with her husband.

See Ellen's Website here

So, *pours followers coffee*, what books are you waiting for?

GIVEAWAY: Alyson Noel Swag Giveaway

Welcome to It's a Book Thing's very first giveaway!  Tammy aka Book Fairy's Haven and power blogger has given us the amazing opportunity to host this giveaway that goes hand in hand with her Alyson Noel Author Interview!


So hop over to The Book Fairy's Haven to see her post on this giveaway!

All you have to do is fill in the form on the dedicated page here

Tammy's Goodies!

What you can win:

• 2 Evermore t-shirts (Small)
• 2 Immortals series bookmarks
• A few sample chapters of Evermore, book 1 in the Immortals series

Rules of the giveaway are:

• 2 winners will each receive a t-shirt, a bookmark and a sample chapter of Evermore.
• First prize will include a copy of any book in the Immortal series, which Tammy wil then order via Book Depository and have it shipped it off to you.
• Giveaway is open internationally and runs until the 25 August, upon whereby we'll announce the winners on both the blog and contact them via email.

All you need to do now is:   

• Simply fill out the form here, 
• Become a follower of It's a Book Thing's and The Book Fairy's Haven (because she is awesome!)

The new book in the Immortals series is Everlasting

UK & USA covers for Everlasting

Which cover do you like??

We posted the Everlasting book trailer here

Don't forget to tweet Tarryn & Kelly (and Tammy) with your thoughts on this title (or anything bookish)