Follow Friday (31)

It's been a long time since I last made a Follow Friday post, but I'm breaking my silence and posting today because it's Thanksgiving! Though we don't celebrate it here in my country, I have a lot to be thankful for, and I thought it's a fitting time to post about it.

If you are new to the #FF fun, Feature & Follow Friday is a blog hop that expands your blog following by a joint effort between bloggers. Feature & Follow Friday is now hosted by TWO hosts, myself of course and Alison of Alison Can Read. Each host will have their own Feature Blog and this way it’ll allow us to show off more new blogs!

How does this work? First you leave your name here on this post, then you create a post on your own blog that links back and then you visit as many blogs as you can and tell them “hi” in their comments (on the post that has the #FF image). You follow them, they follow you. Win. Win. Just make sure to follow back if someone follows you!

The question for this week:

It’s Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. so we want to know what you are Thankful for – blogging related of course! Who has helped you out along the way? What books are you thankful for reading?

Book blogging has really helped me expand my horizons, as people would say, and I wouldn't have done that were it not for a few people who offered a lending hand along the way. I'm very thankful to Precious at Fragments of Life, my book blogging sister who also became a one of a kind friend. Tina of One More Page, who's been a great friend even before I became a book blogger. (I share my book obsessions with her even at the office). Mia of Girl about Books & MJ of Palm Books Journal, a few of the first Filipino friends I made through book blogging. And Jay of We Fancy Books as well, who, I can tell will be a great book blogger someday. Giota of A Story Untold, for all the Gchat talks and bookish exchanges via e-mail. I also made great Aussie/UK friends like Brodie of Eleusinian Mysteries, Braiden of Book Probe Reviews, Lisa of Badass Bookie, Liyana ... my twitter friends as well... the list is too long to mention every single one of these great people who've made book blogging worthwhile for me, and I'm thankful to all of them.

It's hard mentioning books that I'm thankful for, but there are quite a lot I assure you, and right now I'm just thankful for the fact that I was able to read every single one of them. And thankful to all the authors for crafting great worlds through words. Every single journey through them is worthwhile and were it not for the power of their words, it would never be possible.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

So what are you guys thankful for?

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (30)

So how's Friday for all of you? I still have a long day ahead of me, and all the books I'm expecting to get (for tours & blog events) haven't arrived in time. I have a feeling next week is procrastination week for me so.. :)



To join the fun and make now book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:

1. (Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Host { Parajunkee.com } and any one else you want to follow on the list
2. (Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - http://magnet4books.blogspot.com
3. Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
4. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
5. Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"
6. If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
7. If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

The question for this week: What character in a book would you most like to be, what character in a book would you most like to date?

My answer: Difficult question. But if I had to choose, I'd want to be a combination of Ari (Darkness Becomes Her) and Deuce (Enclave), a kick-ass heroine w/ a dash of sass and knows how to defend herself. Oh, and smart too. And I think I'd like to date the Archangel Raphael. Who can resist a winged bad boy? :)

The question for this week: Which book blogger would you most like to meet in real life?

My answer: I have tons I want to meet! But the one I want to meet the most right now is Brodie of Eleusinian Mysteries. Dude, were you really surprised I picked you? *cough* Anyway, I "met" Brodie through a fellow book blogger, Precious of Fragments of Life and we'd hit it off instantly. She's super fun to talk to, we have similar taste in books, she's funny and she's just a continent away. Brodie, you should totally swim to Manila. Then we can fight in real life over Luke and Tobias! :)

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Oh and would you look at that! 1 follower short of 500! A few days ago I tweeted that I'd do something totally awesome and amazing once I reach 500 followers (and giveaway stuff. great stuff. like books. you want that right?). *winks*

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (29)

Wow, I haven't done this in a while! :)

This week's dragged on a bit slower than I wanted it to, but hey, still an awesome week in terms of the blog and life, so I'm not really complaining. I have two reviews I'll be posting in a while so watch out for that!


Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee's View.

To join the fun and make now book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:

1. (Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Host { Parajunkee.com } and any one else you want to follow on the list
2. (Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - http://romance-around-the-corner.blogspot.com/
3. Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
4. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
5. Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"
6. If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
7. If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!
   

The question for this week: Do you have anyone that you can discuss books with IRL? Tell us about him/her

Yes I do, and she's just one cubicle away! I'm talking about Tina of One More Page! She's not just a friend but a fellow book lover as well, oh, and she's my team mate too! I borrow books from her most of the time and we talk about books everyday! I don't think a week passes when we don't drop by the bookstore near our workplace to check out some new releases and tell each other which ones we plan to buy and read. Plus she's a great reviewer and she's got good taste in books so if I want some recommendations, I'll just walk a few paces and she's there already!

The question for this week: Outside of books, what is your guilty pleasure?

Chocolates like Meiji's Galbo (ガルボ). I absolutely worship Meiji chocolates! So good and it doesn't fail to cheer me up when I eat 'cause I'm depressed. Also, late night CSI marathons with my mom. I absolutely love CSI Miami. I think Horacio Caine's the coolest Crime Lab head. I think I like the spin-offs (Miami & New York) better than the original, CSI LV.

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (28)

I haven't done this in a while, wow. How are you all doing? It's finally Friday, and I feel so tired, I want this day to just end so I can go home and sleep myself away. *sigh*


Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee's View.

To join the fun and make now book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:

1. (Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Host { Parajunkee.com } and any one else you want to follow on the list
2. (Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - http://bookaholicdoesblogging.blogspot.com
3. Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
4. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
5. Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"
6. If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
7. If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

The question for this week: How did you come up with your blog name?

Let's see. Before book blogging I was addicted to all things Japanese, so when I was trying to think of a name for my blog, I was thinking of something that would immediately make people think that I like Japanese stuff AND reading. So I picked a Japanese Deity/Goddess' name and put the word "reads" next to it. Silly, right? I do think Amaterasu is a very interesting Goddess. And hey, the Japanese Imperial Family claims they're a descendant of this Goddess too. Cool, huh?

The question for this week: Do you read only one book at a time, or do you have several going at once?

I read several at once! I know a lot of people thinks it's confusing, but it works for me. Usually when I can't get into one book (which I really need to read) I tend to switch books/genre so I can take a break, and then shift back, whichever I can finish first. It's rare for me to drop everything else I'm reading for one book, I usually do that when the book I've picked up is really good and I don't want to be distracted by another book.

I promise to reply to every comment I'll get! :) Happy Friday, everyone!

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (27)

Oh thank goodness its Friday! YAY!
I don't know what else to tell you all, except that this week has been a bit quiet for me in terms of getting books. The post office officially hates me. I might be skipping IMM this weekend. Bummer.


Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee's View.

The question for this week is: Share your current fav television show! Tell us a bit about it...

I am absolutely hooked watching Outsourced and The Big Bang Theory!

Outsourced is a TV series set in an Indian workplace, a call center. I think you might be familiar with this since it has been made into a movie before the TV series.

I just finished watching the latest episode for Outsourced and its hilarious! You get to hear Manmeet speak w/ a British accent (his real voice!) & the manager, Rajiv w/ American accent (I'm guessing its his real voice too).

And who doesn't love The Big Bang Theory? I love love Jim Parsons and Simon Helberg! They're my most beloved nerds (though Moss of The IT crowd comes in a close second)

The question for this week: Do you ever wish you would have named your blog something different?

When I first started my blog, yes. Especially after seeing a lot of blogs with names like mine *inserts random word here* + Reads. But as I go through blogging everyday, I've learned to love the name I've given my blog, and it best represents me. The Japanese reference and my love of books is best described by my blog's name. :)

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This week on the blog we have the following:

Reviews
Prom and Prejudice by Elizabeth Eulberg
Darkness Becomes Her by Kelly Keaton

Memes:
Teaser Tuesdays featuring Darkness Becomes Her
Waiting on Wednesday featuring Cross My Heart by Sasha Gould, Shadows on the Moon by Zoë Marriott and Scored by Lauren McLaughlin

Don't forget to check out my stop on the ILLEGAL BLOG TOUR!

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

Win 1 of 5 SIGNED copies of ILLEGAL!

To enter the contest, all you need to do is to answer this question: Would you break the law to find your family across a foreign border?

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (26)

At last, its Friday! Let's rejoice for the last day of the (working) week!

I just got a wonderful package in the mail, a great thing to end my week, which is just awesome. I needed that since today's been a really bad day.



Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee's View.

The question for this week is: If you are a fan of Science Fiction what is your favorite book? If you haven't read Science Fiction before...any inkling to? Anything catch your eye?

I have to admit, I'm not a really big fan of Science Fiction. I don't know much Sci-Fi books at all. Or maybe I do but I can't think of a favorite as of the moment. But I have read Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game. I'm pretty excited to read The Lost Gate. Oh, and Across the Universe, which I heard is made of awesome, but I haven't gotten the time to read it.

No question yet.

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Reviews for this week:
Falling Under by Gwen Hayes
Babe in Boyland by Jody Gehrman

Features:
Top Ten list why you HAVE to read JAZZ IN LOVE

Memes:
Teaser Tuesdays featuring Tammar Stein's Kindred
Waiting on Wednesday featuring Mette Ivie Harrison's Tris & Izzie, Vicious Little Darlings by Katherine Easer and The Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (25)

HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE!

Ahh, finally its the end of the week. At least on my side of the world it is. I'm in a reading slump, and I've only finished one book this week. Help?

The question for this week: What is the book you are currently 'pushing'? (Pushing mean trying to get people to read it)

How do I answer this? Everyone seems to be reading all the books I'm currently reading. But I have to say, everyone, read Cheryl Rainfield's Scars and though its not out yet, you all should be looking forward to reading Gwen Hayes' Falling Under. Both books are in the opposite side of the book spectrum as far as themes are concerned but I love both of them. You guys should definitely grab a copy of these books whenever you can!

The question for this week: What are you reading now and why are you reading it?

I'm reading two books, Lauren Oliver's Delirium, which was released this week, and Gwen Hayes' Falling Under, which I got from the lovely people from NAL (thanks Kayleigh!). Hopefully one of these two books will get me out of my reading slump, although I'm doubting my choices a bit because both are not really easy reads. I'm enjoying though, especially with Falling Under because its one of my most anticipated reads for 2011 and I can't really believe I'm reading it!

Reviews for this week:
Crossed Out by Kim Baccelia

Memes:
Teaser Tuesday featuring Lauren DeStefano's Wither
Waiting on Wednesday featuring Mist by Kathryn James, The Death Catchers by Jennifer Anne Kogler and Behind the Gates (Tomorrow Girls #1) by Eva Gray

*waves*

Again, I hope you guys are having an awesome Friday!

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (24)

Because I feel productive today, I'm snatching a few minutes to blog. :)
My review for The Iron Queen will be posted later today and I hope to finish Entangled tonight so... wow, I AM PRODUCTIVE! XD

The question for this week: What is/was your favorite subject in school?

I'm a history buff back in high school. I loved it! Its one of the subjects I never had problems studying for. My whole class would probably be dosing off and I'm there wide-eyed listening to every word my teacher says. Asian History's probably my most favorite to study. In College, Business Law was my favorite, probably because my professor was a lawyer and I loved debating with him and proving my answer was right. I know, I love boring subjects. XD

Share your answers everyone! And I promise to be good this week and follow back. I have lots of time in my hands this weekend ^^

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (23)

Greetings from someone who is extremely busy and procrastinating today. I'm actually snatching a few minutes off work to do this so... let's get it started! XD

The question for this week is: Who do you cheer for?

I've been contemplating how to answer this question. If you've read a bit about me (HERE!) you'll know I'm a fan of sports. And right now football is one of the biggest sport here (aside from Boxing and Billiards and... oh well, a lot!) so TEAM AZKALS! I mean who can resist those HOT soccer players? They might only be Half Filipino, but hey, THEY CAN PLAY! That feat they did against Vietnam was impressive ^^

P.S. I am lusting over Neil Etheridge (HOT GOALKEEPER!) and Phil Younghusband (GORGEOUS STRIKER!). :)

Before I drool over myself, you might want to check our guest post from the author of the AMAZING YA NOVEL, OTHER WORDS FOR LOVE, Lorraine Zago Rosenthal. Just click on the cover below:

Happy Friday everyone!

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (22)

A pretty late hop post, since I just got home. I'm too excited to ignore all seven packages I received from the post office so I opened them all before I started posting. Haha. My IMM this week will be pretty good~

The question for this week: What makes up your non-human family??

Sadly, none. We don't have pets in our house right now. Not that we're not allowed to since we live in a condo. I used to have one a long time ago though, a cute dog named Thunder. When we moved from the South to Manila, we left him to our neighbors, but we heard a few years ago that he died. I dunno how, but it must be because he bit a kid. Poor Thunder.. T_T

The question for this week: Why do you read the genre that you do? What draws you to it?

I used to be a huge fan of Paranormal adult romance, but I've switched to YA and I love it to so much I don't see myself switching back to Paranormal adult. Why do I read books from the YA genre? Mostly because I can relate to them. I think we all do, since at some point we've all been teenagers, and I just love reading stories about that particular time because that's when I enjoyed my life the most. It kind of makes me look back and reading helps me reminisce the days when I was a teen.

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I hope my answers make sense. I'm off to do a scheduled post for my IMM this weekend since I'll spend most of my time reading, again. Happy Friday, everyone! Please share your answers for this week's hop! Would love to read them! :)

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (21)

I'm not doing any reading today, I think my eyes just gave up on me last night, and I had to sleep for 12 hours. It still hurts a little bit. I'm supposed to stay away from the computer as well, but I had a few posts to make today.

And its the day before Christmas! How are you guys preparing for it? I'm busy helping my mom prepare the ingredients for the salad later, doing the caramel for the Leche Flan, and helping her out with the cooking. ^^

ON WITH THE HOP!

MERRY
CHRISTMAS!

Question of the week: What are you plans for this fabulous day?

Spending it with my family of course! And I think I've answered this question in my intro for this post. :) We'll be preparing and cooking all day! I might do last minute gift wrapping as well. And of course, going to mass later with my lovely family.

Christmas Eve is spent with my family, its the only quiet time we'll get because tomorrow'll be CHAOS! Our relatives will be here for a visit and the kids will ask for their "aguinaldo" (gifts or money) from their "ninongs" and "ninangs" (godmother & godfather). Christmas in the Philippines is just awesome!

So what will you guys be doing tonight and tomorrow? XD SHARE!!!

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We're up to the 2nd to the last day of our CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN! I'm posting for day 12 later! Thank you all for participating! We're still not done yet, so if you want to enter our contests, just click on the image below:


Tomorrow is PRIZE PACK GIVEAWAY DAY! You can earn entries on our prize pack by leaving a comment on every interview and review we've done for the last 11 days, so keep on commenting! We're also giving away another prize pack on the 26th! TWO PRIZE PACKS IN TWO DAYS!

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (20)

Oh my gosh, I just finished The Body Finder and it's good! I love it! :)

Oh, and in case you don't know, our CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN BLOG EVENT is still ongoing for the next few days until the 26th. Just follow the links on top of my blog, or the icon on the right side of the page. WIN AWESOME BOOKS! (To list a few: The Lipstick Laws, Personal Demons, Deadly, Misguided Angel and a few FABULOUS local Chick-list novels!)

TO THE HOP!

The question for this week is: What did you study in college, or are currently studying and did it lead to your current 9 to 5 or are you doing something totally different?

This will sound very geeky, but for some reason, my school combined Computer Science and Information Technology in one course. That's what I took up, and my major is Systems Software Engineering. I'm a Web Content Specialist, so yeah, it kind of lead to my 9 to 5 job. ;)

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The question for this week: What do you consider the most important in a story: the plot or the characters?

Can I say both? For a book to be really good, the plot has to be intriguing and catchy enough for people to want to read that book, and the characters have to feel "alive" or they have to be someone interesting enough, or powerful enough, dynamic enough, to sustain a reader's attention all throughout the reading process.

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Check out my review for The Espressologist! Finally! I think I've finally broke through my reading slump because I've finished 2 books this week, which I haven't done for quite a while now.

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (19)

A very late follow Friday meme greeting to everyone! I might not be in the right state of mind, since I just got home a few minutes ago, gave my gifts to my mom, changed clothes, opened my packages, and now I'm typing away using my laptop. How are you all?



This week's question is: Do you have an under-noticed author that you think we should all know about?

A bunch! But my most favorite under-noticed author is, and will always be, Linda Kage. I've been saying over and over how The Stillburrow Crush is one of my most favorite YA books, and I think she deserves more love than what she is currently getting!

The question for this week is: What is the thing you like most about reading book blogs? Is it the reviews, author guest posts, articles, giveaways, or something else entirely?

I will not deny it, I'm a contest addict. I usually do my hops because of contests (it's also where I get most of my books) but in most blogs I follow, I follow because of the reviews. I often try to compare my reviews and see what I can improve on by reading other people's reviews. The Waiting on Wednesday meme is what I look forward to the most because that's where I get to find/discover new books I'd want to read. :)

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I still need to do a vlog for my IMM this Sunday, but I am so tired, I might end up just blurting out random nonsense, so I'll do that tomorrow. In the meantime, I'll be hitting my bed and have a nice sleep. *waves*

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (18)

I have a crazy crazy week! And it's finally December! Can you believe that? Time to prepare my wishlist and buy gifts~

For the hop!


The question for this week: What do you do besides reading / reviewing as a hobby?

Hobby? This is my hobby! LOL. Reading has always been a passion of mine. Of course it started out as a hobby at first, but these days I haven't had time to pick up any other hobby besides reading. But hey, I'm enjoying a lot!


The question: What very popular and hyped book in the blogosphere did you NOT enjoy and how did you feel about posting your review?

This question couldn't have come at a better time. I just posted my review of Elixir (which you can read below). I'm a bit disappointed with the book, I know a lot of people wanted to read it, but I didn't enjoy reading it too much.

I was very unsure of how I will approach the review without sounding too negative, so it was difficult to write. I try to be honest in all the reviews I post. What I like others might not, and in the end it all comes down to the fact that we all don't have the same tastes in books.

And for this week, I will be pimping our UPCOMING BLOG EVENT: 13 DAYS TO CHRISTMAS!!! So we're basically giving away 13 books as we countdown to Christmas. We have interviews from a lot of upcoming and awesome YA authors you might want to check out. AND WE HAVE A HUGE PRIZE PACK TO GIVEAWAY TOO!

Click on the button below for more information.

Follow Friday / Book Blogger Hop (17)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE CELEBRATING! Enjoy the holidays!!! :3

It's a crazy week for me, and I'm having a lot of problems about a lot of things. There's that issue again with the post office with holding my packages until I pay an exorbitant amount, and its getting complicated. I have to see what'll happen, but I hope it doesn't come to the point where I have to close the blog. Hopefully NOT.

On a not so depressing news, I've just finished The Iron Daughter, and IT IS AWESOME! I'll have the review posted later, and I'll start with The Iron Queen right away!

For the hop!


No question for this week because of Thanksgiving!

The question for this week is: What is your favorite book cover?

It's so hard to pick one! There's a lot of 2011 debut/ book covers that are really really gorgeous, but if I have to pick from the ones I've read (and yet to read) this year, my pick would be:

Rebecca Lim's MERCY.

I love how simple the cover looks. Or maybe because I'm just VERY partial to blue but I just love how simplistic it is, yet its so beautiful. It also gives you a general idea of what the book is about!

Notice the swirls in the text for Mercy? Pretty, right?

Covers are what attracts me to a book first. I have to admit that I had no idea what Mercy is about but I was sold when I saw the cover, and then the equally amazing summary!

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What's on our blog this week:

My review for Joanna Karaplis' FRACTURED is up on the blog. If you're a big fan of fairy tale re-tellings, you should definitely check out the book!

Also, my Teaser Tuesday post features THE IRON DAUGHTER by Julie Kagawa (still part of my The Iron Fey series marathon)

And if you're looking for new books to pine for next year, you might want to see our Waiting on Wednesday post, featuring three books we can't wait to get our hands on!

Follow Friday (16)

Hi again, my lovely readers, how's Friday for all of you? There's a huge book sale starting today so my inner bookworm is rejoicing, I might go there later! Plus I've just finished reading an awesome book *cough*The Iron King *cough* so my week's turning out pretty okay.

And for the weekly Friday hop!


The question for this week is: How long have you been book blogging??

4 months! I've been a reader longer, but I'm really enjoying book blogging so far. :) Getting e-mails for advices, insightful comments from everyone and just plain sharing my thoughts on the books I've read is fantastic, and I'm sure it's gonna be awesome as it goes. I know I still have a lot to learn in terms of book blogging, but for now I'm just enjoying doing this. It's what's important, right? I can't wait for my blogoversary though. :)

The question for this week is: What are you most thankful for and what your holiday traditions are!

A lot. It might sound cheesy but I guess I have to be thankful that I have this year to live. That I'm healthy and well. And of course, book blogging. I found lots of new friends, met new people, fellow bloggers, readers and authors who I wouldn't have met if I didn't have Amaterasu.

And the tradition? My mom never fails to make the most awesome LECHE FLAN dessert EVER. It's not Christmas or New Year without it as our dessert. I swear, everyone who eats it falls in love with my mom's recipe!

What's on our blog this week:

My review for the second book in our Indie / Self-Published Book challenge is up here: Hush Money by Susan Bischoff

Our Cover reveal featuring Chain Reaction, the final installment in Simone Elkeles' Perfect Chemistry series. (And if you want to react to the comments posted, feel free to do so. I'll reply later!)

You might want to check out or Waiting on Wednesday Picks featuring the fabulous Imaginary Girls and Texas Gothic!

And our Teaser Tuesday post featuring the deliriously awesome Iron King by Julie Kagawa!

My review for Iron King will be up later, so please watch out for that! Do tell me if you follow so I can follow all of you back, I swear I'm following everyone that follows me back~