Valentine's Day - Books with Love Giveaway!

Happy Valentine's Day and thanks for stopping by to check out our Books with Love giveaway!  Be sure to check out the Books with Love blog hop links at the bottom of this post for a chance to enter lots of awesome bookish giveaways.  :)

Are you Team Jem or Team Will?

Because we love all things Victorian and steampunkish and because we can't resist a tantalizing love triangle, we are giving away a copy of Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel as well as a hand-beaded Clockwork Angel-inspired bookthong from Stupid Shiny Designs' fabulous etsy shop!  

To see more gorgeous novel-inspired bookthongs, be sure to visit Stupid Shiny Designs' Etsy shop!

Contest details:

The prize:  Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel and a "Will" or "Jem" bookthong from Stupid Shiny Designs

Contest deadline:  February 16 at 11:59 pm PST.

How to Enter:  Fill out the form below to let us know which book thong you would like to win. *required* (This contest is INTERNATIONAL so long as The Book Depository ships to your location.)

Extra Entries:

+1 if you "Favorite" Stupid Shiny Designs on Etsy

+1 if you "Like" Stupid Shiny Designs' facebook page

Many thanks to Good Choice Reading and Once Upon a Twilight for organizing this fun Books with Love giveaway hop!  Be sure to check out the contest links below:

Fragment Friday + Book Blogger Hop + Follow Friday

This is our first time participating in Book Chic Club's Fragment Friday meme which involves sharing an excerpt of the book you are currently reading (or a favorite book) with your followers.  My 'fragment' is from Margaret Mahy's The Tricksters.  Earlier this year, I fell in love with Margaret Mahy's The Changeover (my review), and when I noticed that Kristin Cashore's blog title ("This is My Secret") was inspired by Margaret Mahy's The Tricksters, I couldn't wait to read it.  

I'd hoped to record this fragment outside in our backyard, but the birds noisily chirped about what a foolish idea that had been the second I set foot outside.  So instead, I brought a little bit of the outside inside, and since the sound seems to be terrible on my webcam, I recorded this on my regular camera (which is just as well, since I am camera shy when it comes to posting photos or videos on the blog anyway).  If we participate in this meme again next week, I promise to choose a shorter passage to read since I may have bored you all to tears with this longish excerpt.  *Sorry!*  If you would like to participate in Fragment Friday, please head over to Book Chic Club to share your fragment.  :-)

Buy The Tricksters:  The Book Depository | IndieBound | Amazon 

Add The Tricksters to your:  Goodreads | Shelfari | LibraryThing | Visual Bookshelf

 

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, and it is a terrific way to connect with other book bloggers and readers. You can join the Hop by clicking on the image above. This week's question is:

1.  How many blogs do you follow?

I haven't checked the exact number recently, but I follow between two and three hundred.  Do I check each one daily?  Sadly, no.  But I wish there were more hours in the day to devote to catching up on my Google Reader because I love checking in with all the fun blogs!  I am thankful for memes like the Book Blogger Hop, Teaser Tuesdays, and Waiting on Wednesday that remind me to stop by and see what everyone has been up to lately.  :)

This is our first time participating in Follow Friday hosted by Parajunkee's View.  If you'd like to participate, please stop by her site and share your blog link. 

If you found The Eager Readers through one of these memes today, hello and welcome!  *waves*  :-)  Thank you for stopping by and be sure to enter our Richelle Mead & Stupid Shiny Designs contests while you are here!

Happy Reading!  :-)

Friday's Fab Five + Book Blogger Hop

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, and it is a terrific way to connect with other book bloggers and readers. You can join the Hop by clicking on the image to the left. This week's question is:

1.  How many books do you have on your 'to be read' shelf?

On my actual shelves, I have around 50 books waiting to be read.  On my virtual shelves, I have around 200.  I don't imagine my TBR shelf will ever be empty, but that just means there are always lots of fabulous worlds waiting to be explored & I wouldn't want it any other way.  :)

This fun meme is hosted by Froggarita's Bookcase.  Every Friday Froggarita asks five questions so we can all get to know each other better.  The only rule is that you can't use the same answer twice within your five!   Ready to play?  Leave your answers in the comments or leave us a link to your own Friday's Fab Five post. 

1. What new TV shows starting this fall are you excited to watch?

I'm curious to check out Running Wilde.

2. Which returning shows are you excited to see?

Glee, Castle, Modern Family, How I Met Your Mother, and Project Runway

3. Do you ever look for spoilers for your favorite TV shows? If so where?

I've listened to a few Glee songs on YouTube before the episodes air. 

4. Has one of your favorite shows been cancelled? If so which one?

Not this year, but several of my favorites have been cancelled in past years.  Pushing Daisies is the most recent show that I was sad to see cancelled.

5. Is there a character on one of your favorite shows that you just wish they would kill off the show? If so which one?  

Hmm... I'm not sure if this counts because she is technically not a character.  But So You Think You Can Dance is one of my favorite shows, and I would enjoy seeing Mia Michaels leave the judging panel (where she annoys me) and return to choreography (where I was impressed by her work).

Friday's Fab Five + Book Blogger Hop + Contest Updates

1. Do you have any hidden talents?

.sdrawkcab gnitirw ta doog ytterp m'I  (I'm pretty good at writing backwards.)

2. Name one thing not many people know about you.

I own a lamp from the Crashdown Cafe set of the old WB show Roswell.  My husband and I both loved that show and purchased one of the props from 20th Century Fox when it was cancelled.

3. Do you have any phobias?

Spiders frighten me more than they probably should.

4. Whats your favorite cartoon?

Avatar: The Last Airbender!  I love that show and have seen every episode several times.  I was excited to hear about the upcoming Avatar spinoff series, The Legend of Korra.  Can't wait to check it out! 

If we are talking about cartoon movies rather than television shows, Beauty and The Beast has been a favorite since I was a kid.  Seriously, have you seen the size of the Beast's library?!  Wowzas!  I will move into his castle any time.  ;-)

5. Do you have any nicknames?

Violet has been my nickname for so long that I answer to it just as readily as my actual name.  :-)

This fun meme is hosted by Froggarita's Bookcase.  Every Friday Froggarita asks five questions so we can all get to know each other better.  The only rule is that you can't use the same answer twice within your five!   Ready to play?  Leave your answers in the comments or leave us a link to your own Friday's Fab Five post. 

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, and it is a terrific way to connect with other book bloggers and readers.  You can join the Hop by clicking on the image to the left.  This week's question is:

Do you listen to music when you read?  If so, what are your favorite reading tunes?

I do not generally listen to music while I read.  But I love checking out book playlists, and I have one playlist filled with songs that I associate with my favorite books and characters.

Contest Updates:  
Be sure to enter our Stupid Shiny Designs giveaway!  Mandy has set aside one of each of her designs in order to fulfill the winner's request,  so don't worry if you see the design you requested disappear from her Etsy shop.  A few designs that may be removed from her shop this week (but are still available to the contest winner) include:

Crystal Heart, House of Night, and Black Dragon

The results of our Richelle Mead poll are in and Vampire Academy (VA#1) won by a large margin!  So we will be picking up an extra copy of that book to take with us to the Richelle Mead signing on Monday.  Keep an eye out for that contest next week!

Happy Reading!  :-)

Friday's Fab Five + Book Blogger Hop + Contest Poll

1. What book is in your purse/car?
My purse is too small to carry books, but Everlasting by Angie Frazier is in the bag I've been carrying back and forth to my daughters' classes all week.  We always have a stack of children's picture books in the car.

2. What book is in your bathroom?
The bathrooms are the only rooms in our house that do NOT have books in them.  Water + books = my nightmare.

3. What book is nearest to your favorite chair?
I don't have a favorite chair, but I often sit in one of our dining chairs to read aloud to my husband while he fixes dinner.  The Agency 2: The Body at the Tower by Y.S. Lee is on our kitchen counter near where I was reading last night.

4. What book is nearest to your couch?
There is always a stack of books on the end table next to our couch (a combination of library books, recently-finished books, and books that are up next on my TBR list).  Right now that stack includes:  The Tricksters by Margaret Mahy, Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith, The Agency: A Spy in the House by Y.S. Lee, Swoon by Nina Malkin, and Willow by Julia Hoban.

5. What book is nearest to your bed?
I guess my laptop counts as the book nearest to my bed.  The book I have queued up in my Adobe reader right now is Voices of Dragons by Carrie Vaughn.


This fun meme is hosted by Froggarita's Bookcase.  Every Friday Froggarita asks five questions so we can all get to know each other better.  The only rule is that you can't use the same answer twice within your five!   Ready to play?  Leave your answers in the comments or leave us a link to your own Friday's Fab Five post.  :)

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, and it is a terrific way to connect with other book bloggers and readers.  You can join the Hop by clicking on the image to the left.  This week's question is:

Who is your favorite new-to-you author so far this year?

It's impossible to pick just one, but maybe I could narrow it down to five:  Richelle Mead, Kimberly Derting, Julie Kagawa, Leah Cypess, and Margaret Mahy.

Thanks for hopping by!  Stop by next week to enter our August contests!  We will be giving away a beautiful bookthong of your choice from Stupid Shiny Designs' awesome etsy shop!  Check out this fabulous Hunger Games one we absolutely love ---->>

We will also be attending a Richelle Mead book signing event in August & will be giving a signed book to one of our readers.  To help us choose which book to have signed for our contest, please let us know which Richelle Mead book you would most love to have signed:  

Friday's Fab Five + Book Blogger Hop

This fun meme is hosted by Froggarita's Bookcase.  Every Friday Froggarita asks five questions so we can all get to know each other better.  The only rule is that you can't use the same answer twice within your five!   Ready to play?  Leave your answers in the comments or leave us a link to your own Friday's Fab Five post.  :)

1. What new author have you discovered this year that is now on your auto buy list?

Julie Kagawa (The Iron King), Kimberly Derting (The Body Finder), and Leah Cypess (Mistwood) are all debut authors who found their way onto my auto buy list this year. 

2. What author do you have yet to read although you have most of their books in your TBR?

Diana Gabaldon.  Someday I must find time to read her Outlander series.

3. What book do you regret giving/loaning to a friend that you never got back or got back in a bad condition?

My copies of Suzanne Collins' Catching Fire and Cassandra Clare's City of Bones are in fairly poor condition after loaning them out more than once, but I'm still glad to have shared them. 

4. A favorite author that you read no matter what genre she/he writes?

I will read anything Cassandra Clare, Kristin Cashore, Tamora Pierce, or J.K. Rowling writes.

5. A favorite book you go back to time and again and won't get rid of?

Get rid of books?!  *scratches head at this strange concept*  ;-)  I am a pack rat when it comes to  books and only very rarely get rid of them.  One favorite that I return to again and again is Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice.  I have probably reread that book more times than any other (aside from much-loved picture books).

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, and it is a terrific way to connect with other book bloggers and readers.  You can join the Hop by clicking on the image above.  This week's question is:

1. Tell us about the book you are currently reading!
I just started Y.S. Lee's The Agency: A Spy in the House this afternoon. It is the first book in her series about a young woman who works for a secret investigative agency in Victorian London. I am only two chapters into the story at this point, but I'm am enjoying it so far.  What are you reading today?

Summary from Goodreads:

Introducing an exciting new series! Steeped in Victorian atmosphere and intrigue, this diverting mystery trails a feisty heroine as she takes on a precarious secret assignment.

Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn is surprised to be offered a singular education, instruction in fine manners — and an unusual vocation. Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls is a cover for an all-female investigative unit called The Agency, and at seventeen, Mary is about to put her training to the test. Assuming the guise of a lady’s companion, she must infiltrate a rich merchant’s home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships. But the household is full of dangerous deceptions, and there is no one to trust — or is there? Packed with action and suspense, banter and romance, and evoking the gritty backstreets of Victorian London, this breezy mystery debuts a daring young detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets — including those of her own past.

Friday's Fab Five + Book Blogger Hop

The whole family decided to participate in this week's Friday's Fab Five.  :-)
1. If you could be an animal which would you be and why?Violet -  A sea turtle.  They have a long lifespan and get to explore the coral reefs.Forest-  Marine Iguana.  They hang out in the Galapagos Islands swimming in the ocean and lounging on the shore.  Sounds pretty good to me.Primrose -  Panda.  Because I love to eat bamboo and they do too.Amethyst-  Zebra.  They can run fast, and I like their stripes.
2. If you could have any super power which would you chose?Violet-  I would like the power to control time.  Pulling a Hermione-esque time-turner move and stopping time to give myself a few extra hours for reading each day would be my first priority.  ;-)Forest-  The ability to manipulate molecules telepathically - creating shock waves, melting metal, repairing wounds, etc.Primrose-  I would be able to turn invisible and put a force field around myself like Violet in The Incredibles.Amethyst-  My power would turn baddies into goodies!  :)  
3. If you were a character in a book who would you chose to be?Violet-  Elizabeth BennetForest-  Fitzwilliam DarcyPrimrose-  Anne ShirleyAmethyst-  Cinderella
4. What is one food you could never give up?Violet-  PotatoesForest-  Soybeans (tofu, soymilk, tempeh, etc.)Primrose-  PizzaAmethyst-  Vanilla soy yogurt
5. What is one food you never want to eat again?Violet-  Okra!Forest-  Coleslaw.Primrose-  Green peppersAmethyst-  Spanish rice

This fun meme is hosted by Froggarita's Bookcase.  Every Friday Froggarita asks five questions so we can all get to know each other better.  The only rule is that you can't use the same answer twice within your five!   Ready to play?  Leave your answers in the comments or leave us a link to your own Friday's Fab Five post.  :)

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, and it is a terrific way to connect with other book bloggers and readers.  You can join the Hop by clicking on the image above.  This week's question is:

1.  Right this instant, what book are you dying to get your hands on (past, present, or future)?

I can't wait to read Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel!  It is definitely my most eagerly anticipated book of the year, and I am so excited to have won an ARC in a contest at WORD for Teens.  Thank you, Nicole!  :-)  The moment that book appears in my mailbox, everything else can officially consider itself on hold as I lock myself in a quiet room to read.  Haha!  If only real life worked that way.  In actuality, I will still need to run the kids around town to their art, swimming, ballet, and Ki Aikido classes before trying to talk them into playing in the sprinkler or watching a DVD so I can steal away to spend the afternoon reading.  :-)  So what book are YOU most excited to read right now?

Book Blogger Hop!

Hi, Blog Hoppers!  Hope you are all having a fabulous Friday!  :-)

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy-for-Books each Friday, and you can join in this week's hop by clicking here.

Thank you for stopping by.  We'd love to hear what you are looking forward to reading this weekend.  Richelle Mead's Spirit Bound is next up in our TBR pile.  What is next in your pile of books?  :-)

Friday's Fab Five & the Book Blogger Hop

It has been awhile since we've participated in a Friday meme or blog hop, so today we've decided to do both!  :-)    

This fun meme is hosted by Froggarita's Bookcase.  Every Friday Froggarita asks five questions, which may or may not be book-related, so we can all get to know each other better.  The only rule is that you can't use the same answer twice within your five!   Ready to play?  Leave your answers in the comments or leave us a link to your own Friday's Fab Five post.  :)


1.  Name 5 books coming out you want to read BADLY:
Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare, City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare, Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, Matched by Ally Condie, & Shadow Hills by Anastasia Hopcus

2.  Name 5 up and coming authors to watch:
Julie Kagawa (The Iron King), Kimberley Derting (The Body Finder), Kiersten White (Paranormalcy), Andrea Cremer (Nightshade), & Leah Cypess (Mistwood)

3.  Name 5 authors you have recently found yourself: 
Catherine Fisher (Incarceron), Margaret Mahy (The Changeover), Frances Hardinge (Fly By Night), Richelle Mead (Vampire Academy), & Jackson Pearce (Sisters Red)

4.  Name 5 characters you would love to date:
Hmm... I have so many fictional crushes, it is hard to list just five!  ;-)   Jace (The Mortal Instruments), Peeta (The Hunger Games), Gilbert (Anne of Green Gables), George (Alanna), & Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice)

5.  What are your 5 favorite places to read?
couch, rocking chair, porch swing, car, & bed

Thanks for hopping by The Eager Readers!  While you are here, please feel free to enter our contests!  We are giving away a signed copy of Lisa Schroeder's Chasing Brooklyn and a signed copy of Lisa Schroeder's It's Raining Cupcakes!  :-)

 The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Crazy-for-Books each Friday, and you can join in this week's hop by clicking here.