Book Haul #96: The I Still Love You, Lois Lane Edition

Good day to you all, fellow bookgeeks!!!

It's been awhile since I've been posting/blogging regularly - I needed to take an impromptu break. Not only from my blog, but from social media altogether (except, it seems, from instagram - I'm addicted, lol!) I just took some "me time" to spend more time with my boys and catch up on books/movies I wanted to read/watch without any distractions or pressures. It's a good way for me to relax and be able to put things back into perspective. 
I'm happy to be able to jump back into a regular schedule again!
I feel re-energized and ready to take on the TBR and review pile again... with the exception that I have decided to take breaks more often. I'm hoping to be able to incorporate one or two week breaks every 6-8 weeks and see if this will help keep things on track. If I find myself not needing to take a break, bonus! But if I find myself looking forward to a break, then I will definitely have to reconsider what I'm doing and make some hard changes... 
BUT, all is good now! And I can't wait to share some reviews I have ready to go! And other fun posts for the summer :)

Hope you are all in a good place! And happily enjoying your reads :)


Here are the books that I've acquired in the last 2 weeks:

I am participating in Stacking the Shelves, 
hosted by Team Tynga's Reviews!!!

*What I received for review...

-  CIRCUS MIRANDUS (HB) by Cassie Beasley (MG) from Penguin
- THE RED CAR (HB) by Tim Hoppey (C) from the author 
- LOVE & PROFANITY (HB) Edited by Nick Healy from Switch Press
- LOIS LANE: FALLOUT (HB) by Gwenda Bond from Switch Press
- THE PERFECTION OF THE PAPER CLIP (HB) by James Ward from Simon & Schuster

*What we won in giveaways...
- THE BIG BOOK OF ANORAK (HB) by Cathy Olmedillas (MG) from The Reading Ninja
- SOPHIA MARTINEZ: MY FAMILY ADVENTURE (PB) by Jacqueline Jules from Capstone

*What I received from my amazing #OTSPSecretSister!...

*What we purchased...
- TITO, THE FIREFIGHTER (TITO, EL BOMBERO) (HB) by Tim Hoppey (C)
- P.S. I STILL LOVE YOU (signed HB) by Jenny Han 
- SIDE EFFECTS (signed PB) by Jen Calonita 

* * * 

A few pics from the past few weeks... 

My June TBR!

I went to a book signing!!! Recap post will go up this upcoming week :)

Oh my, I purchased something that isn't bookish!!!
Getting my nails on... it's been so long, I had no polish left, lol!

My oldest boy showing off his Scholastic book fair purchase!
Good choice, am I right??? ;) 

My #FridayReads and #WeekendReads :)

* * * 

Thank you SOOO much for stopping by!!!

Don't forget to leave a comment with your link so I can visit your hauls too!!!

xoxo

Waiting On Wednesday #130: LOIS LANE: FALLOUT by Gwenda Bond (YA)

"Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine.

This is where we get to 'spotlight' books that we are anxiously waiting to be released!!!

The ones that we are dying to get our hands on and read into the wee hours of the night!!!

And, quite possibly, to make our shelves look pretty too :) 

What I'm currently waiting for... 

LOIS LANE: FALLOUT
by Gwenda Bond
Release date: May 1st, 2015
Published by Switch Press (Capstone) 
Genre: Young Adult 
Format: Hardcover, Paperback, eBook


SUMMARY

Lois Lane is starting a new life in Metropolis.
An Army brat, Lois has lived all over - and seen all kinds of things. (Some of them defy explanation, like the near-disaster she witnessed in Kansas in the middle of one night.) But now her family is putting down roots in the big city, and Lois is determined to fit in. Stay quiet. Fly straight.

As soon as she steps into her new high school, though, she can see it won't be that easy.

A group known as the Warheads is making life miserable for another girl at school. They're messing with her mind, somehow, via the high-tech immersive video game they all play. Not cool. 

Armed with her wit and her snazzy job as a reporter, Lois has her sights set on solving this mystery. But sometimes it's all a bit much. Thank goodness for her maybe-more-than-a friend, a guy she knows only by his screenname, SmallvilleGuy.

Why I'm waiting on LOIS LANE: FALLOUT...

Someone has FINALLY written a book about LOIS LANE!!!

Do I need to say more???

AND! Can "SmallvilleGuy" please be Clark Kent/Superman?!?!?
PUH-leeeeze, I beg... I hope he is!!!

What are you waiting for this week?!?!?!

A "Buzz-Worthy" Review AND GIVEAWAY: Hocus Pocus Hotel by Michael Dahl (MG)

Happy Halloween :)

Hocus Pocus Hotel

by Michael Dahl

Release date: August 1st, 2012

Published by: Stone Arch Books/Capstone

Genre: Middle Grade Mystery

Source read: Hardcopy 

SUMMARY

"Ever since it was built by the great magician Abracadabra, 
the hotel Tyler Yu lives in has had its share of mysterious events. 
Ghosts wandering the halls, 
a magician who vanishes into thin air - 
Ty can't figure these things out on his own. 
But Charlie Hitchcock, with his photographic memory, 
might just be the partner the school bully needs. 
Together, 
they'll solve magical mysteries beyond your wildest imagination."


MY REVIEW

A new favorite series that my kids and I are definitely going to follow! Hocus Pocus Hotel is the first book in a new magical-mystery series created by Michael Dahl for middle graders.

The Hocus Pocus Hotel is actually called The Abracadabra named after the famous magician that built it for magicians to have a place to live, practice and perform their acts. Tyler and his family live and run this hotel - but lately, they have been experiencing some odd disturbances and disappearances and Ty thinks that people are going to stop coming to stay at the hotel because they may think that it is haunted.
Charlie is a smart boy that tries to keep out of trouble. When he receives a note from Ty, he thinks that it is his invitation to finally get a beating of some sort from the school bully. Surprisingly, it was a mandatory invite to meet Ty at the hotel. Ty needs Charlie's smarts and photographic memory to help him figure out the mysterious things that have been happening throughout the hotel. And Charlie is the perfect kid for the job!

There are numerous mysterious to be solved! And with each one, we learn just how magicians do their magic. Charlie and his photographic memory doesn't miss a single clue and it is so much fun to see him unravel the magic tricks through illustrations that he draws to show us exactly how the trick is performed. The perfect read for any kid who loves a little mystery and finally getting to see how magic tricks are really performed!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Michael Dahl 

Michael Dahl is the author of over 100 children's books. Some of his most popular series are Finnegan Zwake, Library of Doom, and Dragonblood. He resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in a haunted house.

He also writes under aliases Chris Carey, Rick Thomas, and Mark Ziegler.

Official Website, Goodreads, Facebook  

GIVEAWAY

You can enter to win a copy of HOCUS POCUS HOTEL and TROLL HUNTERS 
both by Michael Dahl!
- U.S. and Canada only! 
- giveaway ends November 5th, 2012

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