In My Mailbox (31)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren, and inspired by her friend, Alea of Pop Culture Junkie. It's a way to share the books that you've received over the past week. They could come from the bookstore, the library, a friend, your mailbox or wherever. It gives us all a chance to showcase the books that we've gotten, and maybe give others an idea for the book they want to read or buy next. :)

For Review:

Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1) by Robin LaFevers (NetGalley)

I got an email from Netgalley about this one this week, and I was thrilled! I've been wanting to read this one so bad! :D I can't wait to start it!

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 Won:

The Catastrophic History of You and Me by Jess Rothenberg (Won from Seeing Night Reviews)
Anew (The Archers of Avalon #1) by Chelsea Fine (Won from Seeing Night Reviews)

I won Seeing Night Reviews' Blogaversary Giveaway, and these were the two awesome titles that I got. :D I can't wait to read both of them! :D

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Bought: 

 Quiver by Holly Luhning (Book Cellar - U of A Campus)
Angel Burn (Angel #1) by L.A. Weatherly (Amazon Kindle Store)

I found Quiver on campus this week....and I'll admit the shiny cover tempted me, and once I read the blurb I was sold. :) Angel Burn is one of the books that Amazon has on sale this month, and I couldn't resist it since I've been wanting to read it for awhile. :D

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Libary:

Breakaway (New York Blades #11) by Deirdre Martin
Icebreaker (New York Blades #10) by Deirdre Martin
As I Wake  by Elizabeth Scott

I had a few library books turn up this week, and I'm excited for them. I read Icebreaker already, and it was alright. It didn't wow me, but it was a nice quick story. The reviews for Breakaway aren't great on Goodreads, but I'm hoping I'll like it more than others did. :P

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That's my mailbox for the week, what's in yours?
Feel free to leave a link in the comments, and I'll try and check it out. :)

Instinct Giveaway Winner!

The winner of the ebook giveaway of Instinct is:

alicia marie

Congratulations! I'll be contacting you shortly about your prize, I hope you enjoy it!

There weren't very many entries for this giveaway, so I'd like to thank the ones that entered even more! 

Thank you! :)

Long Night Moon Releases Today!

 Today is the day! Long Night Moon, the third book in the Seasons of the Moon series, releases today! :D I've been anxiously awaiting this one ever since I finished All Hallows' Moon, and today it's finally out! You can get yourself a copy from: 

Amazon | Barnes and Noble

 And also, for today only (March 2nd) Six Moon Summer and All Hallows' Moon are available for FREE on Amazon!

Here are some links so that you can go straight to getting yourself a free copy if you don't have a copy yet. :)

Six Moon Summer | All Hallows' Moon

Who else is super excited for Long Night Moon? And who's just starting the series and is gonna take the opportunity to snag copies of SMS and AHM today? :D

Razorbill Giveaway!

Today, I have an awesome giveaway for you all!

I was recently sent some amazing Razorbill titles, and I've decided to give you all the chance to win one of the three! Since I'll be shipping these, the books I have will be going to Canadian residents. However, I want everyone to get the chance to win some books, so I'm going to foot the bill for one lucky International (non-Canadian) to win their choice of one of the three! (Note: If you select Across the Universe you will be getting the paperback.) 

In total that will mean 4 winners! 

So, what do you have to do to enter...that's easy, just fill out the Rafflecopter below! :D

Here's what you can win! 

(Click on the links below to go their Goodreads pages.)

Across the Universe by Beth Revis | Playground by 50 Cent | Half World by Hiromi Goto

Here are all of the giveaway details:
-  International
- 4 Winners (3 Canadian, 1 International)
- Ends April 1st (12:01 AM EST)
- Winners will be chosen using Rafflecopter, and will have 48 hours to claim their prizes before new winner(s) are drawn.

***You also have plenty of chances for extra entries, but don't worry, the only mandatory entry is the first one. :)

ENTER USING RAFFLECOPTER:

Review: Dark of the Moon by Tracy Barrett

Source: Received an ARC from Thomas Allen and Sons for an honest review.

Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books

Release Date: Already Released.
Number of Pages: 320 (Hardcover)

(Goodreads Link.)

Blurb from Goodreads:

Ariadne is destined to become a goddess of the moon. She leads a lonely life, filled with hours of rigorous training by stern priestesses. Her former friends no longer dare to look at her, much less speak to her. All that she has left are her mother and her beloved, misshapen brother Asterion, who must be held captive below the palace for his own safety.

So when a ship arrives one spring day, bearing a tribute of slaves from Athens, Ariadne sneaks out to meet it. These newcomers don’t know the ways of Krete; perhaps they won’t be afraid of a girl who will someday be a powerful goddess. And indeed she meets Theseus, the son of the king of Athens. Ariadne finds herself drawn to the newcomer, and soon they form a friendship—one that could perhaps become something more.

Yet Theseus is doomed to die as an offering to the Minotaur, that monster beneath the palace—unless he can kill the beast first. And that "monster" is Ariadne’s brother . . .

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The minotaur is probably one of the most well-known figures in mythology, and in Dark of the Moon, Tracy Barrett the myth of the minotaur and makes it her own. Knowing the myth, I expected it to go in certain ways, but Tracy kept me surprised throughout the book and I really enjoyed that. I also loved her little hints towards the original myth and the jokes that she made about them. The black sails in particular made me chuckle. :P

I really liked Ariadne and Theseus, but I could not stand Prokris...then again, I don't think I was supposed to. :P I expected there to be more of a romance angle in the story, but it focused more on the characters' striving for their freedom and survival, which I was okay with...although I do love me some romance. So, just a heads up...if you're looking for a romance, this isn't one, but it's still an interesting story. :)

My favourite aspect of the book was the way that things were misinterpreted, which kind of gave you the idea of how the myth could have evolved. For example, on his journey to Athens Theseus supposedly (in the myth) did all of these great feats, and in Dark of the Moon, nothing at all happened on his journey, at least nothing eventful. However, when he arrives in Athens he embellishes what happens and tells these incredible and pretty much impossible encounters, encounters that match up with the actual myth. This is just one example, and I loved that Tracy incorporated details of the myth into the story this way, it added an element of realism that you don't often see with mythological retellings.

Overall, I really liked Dark of the Moon. I would've liked more romance, but other than that everything was fantastic. I think that fans of mythology will like this one, especially if you enjoy thoughtful retellings that add a realistic feel to traditional myths. :)

Have you heard of the Minotaur myth??
Has anyone else read Dark of the Moon? Thoughts?
If you haven't, do retellings of myths, or even fairy tales, interest you? (I personally love 'em! :D)