My Weekly Book Haul: 03/05/2014

Friday Finds is something that was started over on ShouldBeReading and Stacking the Shelves over at TyngaReviews, I am in love with all of these as I love finding other blogs to follow and books to read through these! So check them all out and see what you find, Stacking the Shelves has a lot of participants as well which is great. This is basically a way for me to show what books I have received, borrowed or bought each week. All book covers and their summary come from back of book or Goodreads.

I'm having one of those 'What have I done with my life?!?' moments right now. I can't remember what I did with my week, clearly not a lot. I actually had time off work... YAY! I spent most of it reading, harassing my caterpillars(hurry up and become butterflies, bitches!) and blogging. I think that's what I did, I think I have early onset dementia because I actually can't recall ANYTHING.

I did go see The Other Woman yesterday with my mum, which I can remember because that was literally a few hours ago. It will be my film review this Thursday and I am very excited, I was really surprised by this movie. 

I couldn't sleep the other night and stayed up till 4am, watching YouTube videos. I discovered the Emma Stone Lip Syncing video and it made my night. If you haven't seen it, why not? Watch it. 

Secret Lives by Diane Chamberlain

Disillusioned actress Eden Riley abandons a life of Hollywood glamour, and a broken marriage, to return to her mother's childhood home in rural Virginia. Eden is full of questions about her mother, a famous children's author who died when Eden was very young.

On her search for answers, Eden meets the handsome, yet mysterious, Ben Alexander, an archaeologist and friend of her uncle. But Ben has his own demons, and a secret that threatens to destroy their newfound happiness. Eden must make a heartbreaking decisions, as she struggles to lay the ghosts of the past to rest and come to terms with her own future.

Summer's Child by Diane Chamberlain

Twenty years after 11-year-old Daria Cato found a baby abandoned on a beach in Kill Devil Hills, N.C., she is still very much a part of the child's life. Daria's parent's had adopted the infant, but now they are dead and she has accepted responsibility for Shelly--who has grown into a beautiful, slightly handicapped young woman. Without consulting Daria, Shelly contacts Rory Taylor, host of TV's True Life Stories, to ask his help in finding her birth mother. Rory has a personal interest in Shelly's story since he'd been one of the many teenagers hanging out on the beach the summer the baby was found. Daria, meanwhile, has been keeping to herself the crush she's had on Rory for years--along with Shelly's true story. 

There was a time when I was up to date with all of Diane Chamberlain's books. But, since I have started blogging, I have been reading mostly YA fiction and now have quite a few DC books to get through.

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

A beautifully written and riveting look at anorexia from acclaimed author Laurie Halse Anderson. Cassie and Lia are best friends, and united in their quest to be thin. But when Cassie is found dead in a motel room, Lia must question whether she continues to lose weight, or choose life instead.

The Edge of Falling by Rebecca Serle

Growing up in privileged, Manhattan social circles, Caggie's life should be perfect, and it almost was until the day that her younger sister drowned when Caggie was supposed to be watching her. Stricken by grief, Caggie pulls away from her friends and family, only to have everyone misinterpret a crucial moment when she supposedly saves a fellow classmate from suicide. Now she's famous for something she didn't do and everyone lauds her as a hero. But inside she still blames herself for the death of her sister and continues to pull away from everything in her life, best friend and perfect boyfriend included.
Then Caggie meets Astor, the new boy at school, about whom rumours are swirling and known facts are few. In Astor she finds someone who just might understand her pain, because he has an inner pain of his own. But the more Caggie pulls away from her former life to be with Astor, the more she realises that his pain might be darker, and deeper, than anything she's ever felt. His pain might be enough to end his life…and Caggie's as well.

Tribute by Ellen Renner

What if your greatest enemy was yourself?
Zara is a mage, one of the elite in a world where magic is power, and the non-magic majority live as slaves. When her slave child best friend is killed for the crime of literacy, Zara seeks revenge by spying for the rebel Knowledge Seekers. She finds her bravery and magical skill tested to the limit when a young Maker, Aidan, is taken hostage in a bid for supposed peace. Surprised by first love, she promises to help him. But before Zara can keep her promise, her secret is discovered. Hunted by her own, she seeks refuge with the Knowledge Seekers. But when you can kill with a thought, can you ever be trusted? Pain, romance, defiance and revenge combine in this powerfully written - and breathtakingly envisioned - YA fantasy.

Sweet Damage by Rebecca James

Suicide. That's the official verdict, that's what almost everyone believes. Libby isn't convinced. Cooper might have had some minor problems but they'd been happy together. Why would he kill himself?
Libby has also been having very strange dreams, dreams about Cooper. In her dreams Cooper tells her that he didn't kill himself. He screams of things that terrify her - of drugs, blackmail, murder...

Dandelion Clocks by Rebecca Westcott

Dandelion Clocks by Rebecca Westcott Smith will be loved by fans of Jacqueline Wilson, Cathy Cassidy or Annabel Pitcher. Liv takes us on a journey through her life from "Thirteen Weeks Before" to "Six Months After". We discover Liv's passion for photography, her brother's obsession with sticking to the rules, the stupidity of Moronic Louise at school, and how the family copes as Mum's terminal illness takes hold...Guided by Mum's own childhood diaries, Liv finds a new way to live. This book is real, funny, utterly touching and absolutely heartwarming. Despite the sadness at the heart of the story, every reader will laugh and keep on turning the pages, charmed by Liv and her mum. 

Amy & Matthew by Cammie McGovern

Amy loves Matthew and he loves her back. This is their story.
Amy is unflinchingly honest about her limitations. Born with cerebral palsy, she can’t walk or talk without help. But trapped inside this uncooperative body lies a brilliant mind and a luminous spirit – a girl capable of truly loving and worthy of being loved in return.
Matthew has his own set of challenges – a mind consumed by unwanted repeated thoughts, obsessive rituals and a crippling fear that he can't explain. But underneath all of the anxiety lies a deep seed of hope for someone to come along who believes in him…
This is the story of Amy and Matthew. It may not be a fairy tale romance or set in an imagined world far from our own. But the love they share is real. And yes, there's magic in it.

Mutant City by Steve Feasey

Fifty years ago, the world was almost destroyed by a chemical war. Now the world is divided into the mutants and the pure. Mutants must fight for survival in a scarred landscape, while the privileged pure live out a life of disease-free perfection.
Thirteen years ago, a covert government experimental facility was shut down and its residents killed. The secrets it held died with them. But five extraordinary kids survived.
Today four teenagers are about to discover that their mutant blood brings with it special powers. They are heading straight for Mutant City with rival factions close behind. One by one, they face the enemy. Together, they must stay alive . . .

Aren't Bloomsbury lovely, sending me my second ever ARC and it's another finished copy at that. I am excited because it's got mutant,X-Men style mutants. Or so it says.

Landline by Rainbow Rowell

Georgie McCool knows her marriage is in trouble. That it’s been in trouble for a long time. She still loves her husband, Neal, and Neal still loves her, deeply — but that almost seems besides the point now.

Maybe that was always besides the point.

Two days before they’re supposed to visit Neal’s family in Omaha for Christmas, Georgie tells Neal that she can’t go. She’s a TV writer, and something’s come up on her show; she has to stay in Los Angeles. She knows that Neal will be upset with her — Neal is always a little upset with Georgie — but she doesn’t expect to him to pack up the kids and go home without her.
When her husband and the kids leave for the airport, Georgie wonders if she’s finally done it. If she’s ruined everything.
That night, Georgie discovers a way to communicate with Neal in the past. It’s not time travel, not exactly, but she feels like she’s been given an opportunity to fix her marriage before it starts . . .
Is that what she’s supposed to do?
Or would Georgie and Neal be better off if their marriage never happened?

I love the sound of this. I may just be torturing my self, given the fact I kinda hate Fangirl, but we shall see.

Littler Mercies by Heather Gudenkauf

In her latest ripped-from-the-headlines tour de force, New York Times bestselling author Heather Gudenkauf shows how one small mistake can have life-altering consequences...
Veteran social worker Ellen Moore has seen the worst side of humanity;the vilest acts one person can commit against another. She is a fiercely dedicated children's advocate and a devoted mother and wife. But one blistering summer day, a simple moment of distraction will have repercussions that Ellen could never have imagined, threatening to shatter everything she holds dear, and trapping her between the gears of the system she works for.
Meanwhile, ten-year-old Jenny Briard has been living with her well-meaning but irresponsible father since her mother left them, sleeping on friends' couches and moving in and out of cheap motels. When Jenny suddenly finds herself on her own, she is forced to survive with nothing but a few dollars and her street smarts. The last thing she wants is a social worker, but when Ellen's and Jenny's lives collide, little do they know just how much they can help one another.
A powerful and emotionally charged tale about motherhood and justice, Little Mercies is a searing portrait of the tenuous grasp we have on the things we love the most, and of the ties that unexpectedly bring us together.

I am happy to get approved for this, I adore her books!

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