Book Mail Pics & Sneak Peek of the Ever-Growing TBR Pile

I’ve gotten some cool stuff in the mail lately so I really wanted to do a post to share some of it!

This first one I am so excited about! I actually WON a giveaway contest. Crazy, right? I rarely enter these (I already have more books than I need) but this one was special. I remember thinking “I’m going to win this for my future kids.” And bam! Power of positive thinking? I’m really looking forward to reading these! The kind of books I would have loved as a kid, and if I’m honest I never really grew up when it comes to books and movies.

So, here is what I won exactly: signed copies of, Click’d by Tamara Ireland Stone, The Great Shelby Holmes Meets Her Match by Elizabeth Eulberg, and The Dreadful Tale of Prosper Redding by Alexandra Bracken. I won this amazing collection of books from the fabulous Ya & Wine through a contest on Twitter hosted by @KrystiYAandWine and #BooksBindUs creator, @SKVetterWrites.

Also in these photos you can see the gourmet teas I recently received from Adagio.com. If you haven’t heard of Adagio Teas, they have the coolest thing for bookworms who also like tea: FANDOM TEA BLENDS! The teas in the photo above are a couple that I got that I think pair well with these books. Loyal and True (Harry Potter Tea) and Badger’s Blend (inspired by Narnia). Even though I’m really more of a Ravenclaw, I chose the Hufflepuff tea because the flavor sounded good (“A playful blend of Citron Green, White Strawberry, a refreshing hint of Spearmint, and a dash of rose hips.”) and one of the reviewers said it tastes like fruity pebbles, so I had to try it!

Here is my entire haul from Adagio Teas! It includes teas from the following Fandoms: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Harry Potter, Supernatural, Pokemon, Chronicles of Narnia, Fire Emblem, Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Who and Alice in Wonderland. It also came with a great little book with tons of info about teas. (If you are interested the links will take you to the fandom groups I found each of these in.)

 

Now for some books on my TBR Pile. Let me know if you are going to read or have read any of these!

 

The Fatness by Mark A. Rayner

A satire about concentration camps for fat people and bureaucracy gone mad. (A love story.)

I added this to my TBR after I read an excerpt of this book on Mark A. Rayner’s official site. It was so outrageous, I was hooked. You can find that excerpt here.

Blurb:

Keelan Cavanaugh is fat. That’s why the government put him in prison.

They placed him in a Calorie Reduction Centre (CRC), where trained staff work to help him and many others slim down. Well, that was the intention, anyway. The powers that be had decided chubby citizens must either go there or lose their health care coverage.

When he meets Jacinda Williams, an activist lawyer researching this new system, Keelan is more determined than ever to slim down. But Keelan discovers losing weight is more difficult than it seems, especially when he also has to fight against a ridiculous bureaucracy and policy wonks with hidden agendas. Can he succeed, and will the CRC-crossed lovers ever sit at love’s banquet together?

From award-winning author Mark A. Rayner, The Fatness is a contemporary satire of socialism, capitalism, and the so-called “obesity epidemic”. This is Catch-22 for a new generation, with a distinctly tender undertone, even as it mercilessly spoofs the establishment.

Beverage Pairing:

I’m sure you are dying to know what tea to pair with this book. Ok, probably not. But I’ll tell you anyway, it’s not a tea this time. This book calls for a milkshake with some fries to dip in it. Amirite?

 

My Name is Shybo by Teresa Marotta

This is one I will have a review up soon for! I chose the narnia tea to accompany this book because like the children who went into the wardrobe and discovered a new world Shybo also goes on an adventure to a new world. Unlike the danger they face in Narnia Shybo instead gets to spend his time making friends, helping others and in essence immersing himself into various ‘cultures.’ It’s a very sweet illustrated children’s book. Stay tuned for my review!

 

Elemental Affinity by JC Steel

This was absolutely awesome book mail that came with a cute bracelet and codes for free books! If you don’t already follow me on Twitter, you should, because soon I will be doing a giveaway for a hardback (choice of 3 surprise books) and I will include one of these cards in the package!

Blurb:

The Cortii are mercenaries, for hire to anyone who can afford their services. Every government uses them; no single government can destroy them.

A newly discovered world. An opportunity for the Cortiian rebels. And a mission for Wildcat Cortia…

The Federated Planets Alliance scouts have discovered a new human civilisation; a civilisation not suited to their usual contact protocol. They want a Cortiian to test the waters, and the rebel faction has a very specific commander in mind for the mission — Ilan of Wildcat.

To Ilan, the orders are a convenient pretext. To an ancient feudal culture about to join an intergalactic civilisation, the leaping wildcat and a rider all in black are symbols long foretold — heralding cataclysmic change.

Beverage Pairing:

For all my fellow Whovians this sci-fi novel goes with “Tardis” (White Tea, Green Tea, Blueberries, Natural Blueberry Flavor, Apricots, Natural Peach Flavor, Natural Vanilla Flavor, Marigold Flowers). Intergalactically yummy.

 

ZOMBIES!

I’m so psyched for this one!

States of Emergency by Mary Hallberg

Blurb:

17-year-old Dallas Langdon is fighting off zombies with a pizza cutter.

Dallas has always loved zombie movies. But when she catches a real live (erm, dead) musician eating a man’s intestines backstage after the show, she knows her movies have become a reality. And what do characters in zombie movies do? Seek shelter. Fortunately, Dallas’s eccentric uncle owns a farmhouse in Chattanooga, an eight hour drive from New Orleans. It’s on top of a steep mountain, surrounded by electric fences, and cut off from the worlds of the living and the dead.

Dallas’s parents, still safe at home, laugh at her idea over the phone. Her friends only agree to join her because it’s fall break and they could use a mini vacation anyway.

But then Dallas’s best friend is killed by a zombie horde when they’re attracted to her ringing cell phone. Civilians think their reanimated loved ones simply have the flu, leaving them alive (well, undead) and rapidly increasing the zombies ranks. And since minors can’t buy guns, Dallas’s only weapon is a giant industrial pizza cutter she swipes from a gas station. George A. Romero never mentioned anything like this. With one friend dead and no zombie survival guides to help her, Dallas and her friends must get to Chattanooga before joining the ranks of the undead themselves.

 

This is unlike anything I have read and I am really looking forward to seeing how this world unfolds! I’m afraid my photo doesn’t do this beautiful cover justice.

Afterdeath by Benoit Chartier

Death is a country we see through the tiny keyhole of an immovable door.
Raised by their grandmother after their parents’ death, Chloe and Olivia Borders are now in mourning for Rose. The Alzheimer’s that forced them to be split into separate foster homes has taken their last living family member. As a way to rekindle their friendship, the twins commit to a road trip— which spells their demise. Now the question is: What comes after, and how will they get back to life?

Beverage Pairing:

For both Afterdeath and State of Emergency I think I’d have to go with “Off With Her Head” a sweet and sour blood orange tea.

 

An Abduction Revelation by Thomas L. Hay

This is the first book. THE ABDUCTION CHRONICLES is an abridged version of two books, An Abduction Revelation and its sequel, Abduction Revelation II.

Blurb:

A blend of Close Encounters of the Third Kind with Total Recall. Imagination gone wild or insane reality?

Mysterious and compelling life events of a man who experienced some unusual phenomenon in his life. His ex-wife claimed they were abducted, on several occasions, by beings who were not of this world. He was unaware of them until he melted their instilled memory blocks.

Who are the abductors? Where are they from? What do they want? His search for the answers will question his reality.

An intriguing adventure packed with action, drama, mystery, romance, comedy, time travel, clones, and a few exhilarating plot twists that will surely knock your socks off.

Join ‘The Kid’ on his journey as he unravels the secrets behind his abductions and comes face to face with his abductors.

 

This one should be a hoot and a half.

In the Glow of the Lavalamp by Lily Wilson

Blurb:

As Lord Byron, who no doubt survived many an awkward situation himself, said, “Always laugh whenever you can. It is cheap medicine.”
In the Glow of the Lavalamp delivers ten stories of sex gone hilariously wrong, set in the bathtubs, back seats, battlegrounds, and bedrooms of America. These tales confirm that bizarre is indeed the nature of the universe and humor may be the best path through it.
A grad student rappels down the side of a building on a bed sheet in an attempt to escape shame. An unlikely couple destroys a family heirloom when desire careens out of control. A bumbling lothario nearly beheads his lover when his seduction plans go awry. A middle-aged woman finds herself entwined in a passionate embrace at a Civil War battlefield. Earnest people, hell-bent on believing that reality lies at the surface of things, scramble toward acceptance of their humanity as they stumble over the unspoken and unacknowledged.
You’ll laugh, grimace, maybe even shriek with recognition. Odd as it may seem, tales of bad sex and other misfortunes can restore your faith in humankind, in your ability to weather the chaos of life, and in the healing power of laughter. Light and redemption glitter among the catastrophes within these pages.

Beverage Pairing:

I had to go with the strawberry flavored “Red” from the Buffy Fandom. Buffy always did bring us a healthy blend of sexy and awkward so I couldn’t think of a better pairing.

 

Jake and the Dragons of Asheville by Brian Kacica

Blurb:

In a small, sleepy town in North Carolina, thirteen-year-old Jake Winston has discovered he carries a unique genetic trait; one that a covert government agency will stop at nothing to obtain. After the tragic death of his father, a local firefighting hero, Jake’s absent grandfather returns and sends him on a journey into the gated forest at the edge of town, bringing Jake face-to-face with a family of ancient dragons thought long extinct.

Determined to grasp the power of the blood flowing through Jake’s veins, the agent from the secret ONX facility begins killing every dragon in his path. This forces Jake in the middle of a battle between the government and the dragons of Asheville, where the true potential of his power is revealed.

Beverage Pairing:

I’m really torn between the Harry Potter fandom’s “Treacle Tart” and “Charmander Orange.” On the one hand the sweet Treacle Tart is a great compliment to any fantasy book, but Charmander Orange might just be the best compliment for dragons.

 

That’s all for now folks. Let me know what you are currently reading!

 

Link Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links to Amazon. Links to Adagio.com do not generate revenue for me.