Letters in Cardboard Boxes Giveaway!

The Fabulous Miss Slovin has been generous enough to offer up two Ebook copies of her book, Letters in Cardboard  Boxes! 


Here is a synopsis about the book:

Experience what advanced reviews are proclaiming, "An absolute must read...this is a novel you will want to keep with you for the rest of your life" and "A poignant and moving story...a true work of art." 

Letters In Cardboard Boxes tells the story of an eccentric grandmother and her granddaughter alongside a series of fantastical letters they once exchanged. Their letters once traversed the East River to help Parker escape the loneliness of a childhood without her globe-trekking parents and communicate during her turbulent teenage years. Now, nearly a decade later, Parker begins to rediscover the evidence of this letter writing tradition, as well as the family’s untold stories and, unexpectedly, letters from her grandmother’s own youth that paint a very different portrait of the woman who raised her. 
Letters carries us through the universally-shared experience of loss and the process of coping with life’s unexpected twists and turns. Through unusual and bold characters, the story moves through some of its heavier themes with honesty and humor. 


And, if you would like to read my review, go ahead!
Good Luck, and "May the odds be ever in your favor!" (Sorry I couldn't resist!)

Pandemonium

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

Pages: 375
I'M PUSHING ASIDE
  the memory of my
            NIGHTMARE,
pushing aside thoughts of Alex,
pushing aside thoughts of Hana
              and my old school,
PUSH,
  PUSH,
      PUSH,
      like Raven taught
          me to do.
The old LIFE is dead.
             But the old Lena 
          is dead too.
I BURIED her,
           I left her beyond a fence,
behind a wall of 
              SMOKE and FLAME.
Lauren Oliver delivers an electrifying follow-up to her acclaimed New York Times bestseller, DELIRIUM. This riveting, brilliant novel crackles with the fire of fierce defiance, forbidden romance, and the sparks of a revolution about to ignite.

Ramblings: I waited so long for this book to come out! Delirium was one of my favorite books from last year and I was so excited to continue the series! I don't feel like that gives a good explanation of the book though, and I really went into this novel with no idea what to expect. Here is an excerpt from the back of the book:
  "SO WHAT was your name before?"
I say, and she freezes, her back to me.
"Before you came to the WILDS, I mean."
For a moment she stands there.
                        Then she turns around.
           "You might as well get used to it now,"
                  She says with quiet
INTENSITY.
                     "Everything you were,
         The life you had,
the people you knew . . . DUST."
She shakes her head
       and says, a little more firmly,
"There is no before. There is only NOW,
   and what comes
                    NEXT."

Really cool right? So from this I got a little bit more, I know that it's in the Wilds and there is someone name Raven involved.

Characters: So, yes, there is a character named Raven. She is this really awesome, strong and fierce leader of this group of Invalids that take Lena in. She shows Lena what to do and makes her stronger. I really admired Raven, even in the end, because of her toughness and will to survive. Besides this tough exterior shell she has surrounding her, throughout the story it slowly breaks down until one scene, it shatters. It was amazing to see this other side of her, and my heart broke right along with hers.
As for Lena, she is super weak at the beginning of the book! It was weird to see her so vulnerable, and I kind of liked it. She grew stronger though and got back to herself, and then tougher.
There is one other character, Julian, who I surprisingly liked, but I can't say any more about without spoilers!

Plot: Alright.. I'm not sure yet as to how I'm going to try and explain this plot. It's really about Lena struggling to survive, but then Invalids are looking for a cure, and Scavengers get involved, and there's the whole team who is pro cure. I hope I kept them straight while reading the book! At times it got difficult.
What I didn't like about this book though, was the way it was written. It starts off with the first chapter saying "now" and the second chapter "then", and it alternates throughout the book. It's an interesting way to write the story, but only if it's done right and I don't feel like it was this time. It would have been fine for maybe half the book, but I expected the "then" section to meet up with the beginning of the "now" section at least half way through the book, but it didn't. I felt like I was reading two books at once and it made reading the story a little less enjoyable. Does that make sense?

Overall: I love the series, the characters, and all of the amazing plot twists! I'm going to continue reading the series, especially after the way that this book ended! I wanted to scream and I couldn't sit still! I had to get up and move around. The only thing I didn't like was the way the book was written. Hopefully the third book will be written better.

Overall Rating: 4 stars 

Letters in Cardboard Boxes

Letters in Cardboard Boxes by Abby Slovin

Ebook

Experience what advanced reviews are proclaiming, "An absolute must read...this is a novel you will want to keep with you for the rest of your life" and "A poignant and moving story...a true work of art." 

Letters In Cardboard Boxes tells the story of an eccentric grandmother and her granddaughter alongside a series of fantastical letters they once exchanged. Their letters once traversed the East River to help Parker escape the loneliness of a childhood without her globe-trekking parents and communicate during her turbulent teenage years. Now, nearly a decade later, Parker begins to rediscover the evidence of this letter writing tradition, as well as the family’s untold stories and, unexpectedly, letters from her grandmother’s own youth that paint a very different portrait of the woman who raised her. 
Letters carries us through the universally-shared experience of loss and the process of coping with life’s unexpected twists and turns. Through unusual and bold characters, the story moves through some of its heavier themes with honesty and humor. 


Ramblings: I loved this book from the very first chapter! This is one of the best ways to start out a story that I've ever read. At first I was really sad, but then I was laughing! It was just such a spectacular twist at the very beginning! I haven't read a good first chapter like this in a while.


Characters: Parker is a great main characters. She is quiet and somewhat shy, and she really doesn't like change. At points in the story I became frustrated with her though, just because of her lack of decision making skills, but I was so happy to watch her evolve and grow stronger and more confident. Parker's grandmother also played a big role in the story--the emotional role. As her grandmother slipped further away my heart just melted for her! She tugged on my heart strings numerous times and I really loved her character.


Plot: This was certainly an interesting book! Slovin's writing style just flowed and I found that I couldn't put it down! The story is one that could just make you cry and cry, but Slovin does a terrific job of balancing the good and the bad, creating a lighter emotional book. I don't really know how to word this right, I hope you are understanding!


Overall: This is such a spectacular read, I don't know of anyone who wouldn't enjoy this. It has so many beautiful qualities to it, and for such an emotional plot, she keeps the book very uplifting! A fantastic read, don't pass this one up. I don't know why I waited so long to read it!


Overall Rating: 4 Stars

Technical Difficulties...

Hello folks!
Unfortunately I am having some technical difficulties with my back ground and layouts and what not.. ): So, I'm going to be taking the next couple of days off to try and solve this problem and get Magic is in Words back to normal!
Don't forget to vote in the poll for what book you'd like to discuss though!

Looking for Alaska

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Pages: 221
BEFORE. Miles "Pudge" Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole existence has been one big nonevent, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave the "Great Perhaps" (Francois Rabelais, poet) even more. He heads off to the sometimes crazy, possible unstable, and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed-up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young, who is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Greta Perhaps, and steals his heart.
AFTER. Nothing is ever the same.

Ramblings: John Green has yet amazed me. Filled with joy, laughter, amazing pranks, sorrow, deep pasts, and heart crushing twists, Looking for Alaska has affected me like no other.

Characters: There are quite a few main characters, but my favorite being Alaska. She brings such life to this story, and I fell in love with her personality and vibrant love for life from the moment she entered the scene. I also love that she has a huge library! She has so much that she looks forward to in life, it was so inspirational. As for Pudge, I loved watching his transformation from this lanky, nervous, self-conscious boy to this (still lanky) fun-loving, confident boy. Moving to the boarding school was the best thing for him and I was rooting for him every step of the way.

Plot: There is this huge question throughout the book: how to get out of this labyrinth that we are all supposedly stuck in, and there are a few different ways that we look at it through the book. It was so eye opening, and that's one of the reasons that I love John Green's books. They always have this deep, life lesson that is brought up at the beginning of the story and resolved as the story progresses. It was super interesting and days later, I'm still thinking about it!

Overall: Looking for Alaska certainly surpassed by expectations (which were set very high from his other book I read, The Fault in Our Stars) and that just amazes me. I guess I'm going to have to read Paper Towns pretty soon also! I seriously wouldn't pass up this book, read it in one sitting this past Saturday. It is a magnificent read that will capture every readers heart.

Overall Rating: 5 Stars

Musing Monday, March 12

Musing Monday is hosted by Should Be Reading.
This week's Musing asks...
What book do you wish you were reading right now? Where would you take it to, if you could go anywhere to read for a while?

My Answer: I would be reading The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. This is a book I recently finished (and read within 23 hours!) and I know that this is going to be a book that I read over and over for the rest of my life. And, I would be in Greece, sitting outside a little restaurant in a quaint little village enjoying the sunshine!

What book do you wish you were reading, and where??
Have a great Monday everyone! :)

The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in our Stars by John Green



Pages: 313
Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Caner Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.
Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is an award-winning-author John Green's most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.

Upon finishing this book I was literally balling--for numerous reasons such as 1. I was sad 2. I didn't want this book to ever end and 3. my heart was pulled, dragged, filled with hope, squished, crushed, brought alive again, and about to burst. I've been contemplating as to how I am going to write this review and I honestly don't know how to proceed. I know that no matter what I write will give this book justice. I can talk about the characters: Hazel Grace's strong will power and Augustus's dashing good looks, charming humor, and his amazing battle to win over Hazel's heart, but no matter what I say, it won't be right. I know that this plot will touch the lives of many people and that it has affected me personally also, but I am just in awe. Being the first book I've ever read by John Green, I must say that I am in shock and I know that nothing I read after this will ever live up to my expectations.

So, instead of writing a review, I'm just going to tell you this: I have never been more moved by a book in my entire life.

Nothing that I write here matters except for that sentence, and honestly, I don't know how to rate this book because it surpasses everything that I've ever read. A spectacular read, and worthy of everyone willing to learn a little bit about life, love, and what comes next.

Rae of Hope Swag Giveaway

Hello, Hola, Aloha, Howdy everybody, long time no see! I know, I know, I've been away from the blog for WAAAY to long, but good news is: I'm back! :)

So to celebrate, I have a really cool giveaway!
The author of Rae of Hope, this really fabulous lady named W.J. May, was so sweet she sent me a boatload of REALLY COOL STUFF that I want to share with you! Look at all of it!

Really Awesome right?? So I broke it up into a bunch of giveaways so a lot of you can win some fun Rae Swag! 

THE GRAND PRIZE:

2nd PLACE WINNER:

3rd PLACE WINNER:

4TH & 4.5TH PLACE WINNERS:

5th PLACE WINNER:

Are you totally as excited as I am?? Have a wonderful day everyone! :)

Thanks again Miss May, you are just fantastic! :)