Saturday, June 2, 2018

Book Haul: Retail Therapy






Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga’s Reviews. I get to show off all the books I’ve gotten recently. If you’ve been around this blog in the last few months, then you’ll know that I haven’t been having the greatest time in life. Luckily, I know how to make myself feel slightly better: acquire new books!


Retail Therapy







Vivian Apple at the End of the World – Katie Coyle (Vivian Apple #1)



Seventeen-year-old Vivian Apple never believed in the evangelical Church of America, unlike her recently devout parents. But when Vivian returns home the night after the supposed "Rapture," all that’s left of her parents are two holes in the roof. Suddenly, she doesn't know who or what to believe. With her best friend Harp and a mysterious ally, Peter, Vivian embarks on a desperate cross-country roadtrip through a paranoid and panic-stricken America to find answers. Because at the end of the world, Vivan Apple isn't looking for a savior. She's looking for the truth.


















Vivian Apple Needs a Miracle – Katie Coyle (Vivian Apple #2)


 The predicted Rapture by Pastor Frick’s Church of America has come and gone, and three thousand Believers are now missing or dead. Seventeen-year-old Vivian Apple and her best friend, Harpreet, are revolutionaries, determined to expose the Church’s diabolical power grab . . . and to locate Viv’s missing heartthrob, Peter Ivey.






















A Storm of Swords – George R.R. Martin (A Song of Ice and Fire #3)


Of the five contenders for power, one is dead, another in disfavor, and still the wars rage as violently as ever, as alliances are made and broken. Joffrey, of House Lannister, sits on the Iron Throne, the uneasy ruler of the land of the Seven Kingdoms. His most bitter rival, Lord Stannis, stands defeated and disgraced, the victim of the jealous sorceress who holds him in her evil thrall. But young Robb, of House Stark, still rules the North from the fortress of Riverrun. Robb plots against his despised Lannister enemies, even as they hold his sister hostage at King’s Landing, the seat of the Iron Throne. Meanwhile, making her way across a blood-drenched continent is the exiled queen, Daenerys, mistress of the only three dragons still left in the world.

But as opposing forces maneuver for the final titanic showdown, an army of barbaric wildlings arrives from the outermost line of civilization. In their vanguard is a horde of mythical Others—a supernatural army of the living dead whose animated corpses are unstoppable. As the future of the land hangs in the balance, no one will rest until the Seven Kingdoms have exploded in a veritable storm of swords. . . .


















The Elephant Vanishes – Haruki Murakami


When a man's favorite elephant vanishes, the balance of his whole life is subtly upset; a couple's midnight hunger pangs drive them to hold up a McDonald's; a woman finds she is irresistible to a small green monster that burrows through her front garden, an insomniac wife wakes up to a twilight world of semi-consciousness in which anything seems possible—even death. In every one of these stories Murakami makes a determined assault on the normal.





















Refugee – Alan Gratz


Josef is a Jewish boy in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world.

Isabel is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety and freedom in America.

Mahmoud is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe.

All three young people will go on harrowing journeys in search of refuge. All will face unimaginable dangers–from drownings to bombings to betrayals. But for each of them, there is always the hope of tomorrow.









Have you read any of these? What did you think?








46 comments:

  1. Wow they all look good, I hope you have a good June!!

    https://justmeandmyblogreviews.blogspot.com/2018/06/stacking-shelves.html

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  2. Looks like a lovely selection of books to get stuck into! Enjoy! :-) My haul

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  3. Awesome haul of books. I hope you love all of them. They look great.

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  4. I need to check out those Vivian Apple books. Enjoy all of these!

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    1. I’ve seen mixed reviews of them, but I’m curious. I read one of the author’s short stories and really liked it.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  5. I've always wanted to read the A Song of Ice and Fire series but never got around to getting the book. Lovely haul! Happy reading!

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    1. I put them off for years, but I want to finish them before the show ends.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  6. Pretty much all the Game of Thrones books are good. The Vivian Apple books look really cool!

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  7. I may just want The Elephant Vanishes. You've intrigued me. If anyone deserves any retail therapy - it's you!

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    1. Yes, I badly needed retail therapy. Or any kind of therapy, really.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  8. I remember wanting to read Vivian Apple. That one intrigued me. And oh my gosh A Storm of Swords is a TRIP. All the things happening in that one- gah!

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    1. I’ve read around 500 pages of it, and it’s so good. I know that bad things are coming, and I can’t handle it.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  9. I'm a bit late into the game with The Game of Thrones, yet to read the books but have just started the series. We just got to season 2 but I'm yet to finish season 1.

    How are the books? Someone said it's hard to understand, I'm waiting till the series is complete as I want to buy the box set.

    Angelica @ Paperback Princess

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    1. I doubt that the author will ever finish the books. He doesn’t seem interested in the series anymore. The books are extremely complex and detailed. I think I only like them because I’ve seen the show. If I hadn’t seen the show multiple times, I’d be confused by the books. There are too many names!

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  10. Oh Lord yes, retail therapy is always helpful - I used to buy clothes and shoes when I was in my early 20s, now I buy books, books, books!

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  11. I have Refugee but I've honestly been too afraid to crack it open.

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  12. I am intrigued (but not enough to read) the Vivian Apple books about the rapture (which is often portrayed in books like the Left Behind Series in a silly manner in the lives of those who believe it--it's not really a Biblical doctrine and is generally based on a heretical theology). So, since I am not reading these books, make sure I see your review of them, okay? :) The Refuge book sounds interesting (when you're done, could you donate your used copied to a particular house on Pennsylvania Ave in Washington DC?

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    1. Haha, I’m not convinced that the inhabitants of Pennsylvania Ave know how to read.

      My friend in middle school was obsessed with the Left Behind books, but I thought they were shallow and silly. One of my Christian friends read Vivian Apple and didn’t like it. I’ll have to see what I think.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  13. I have the first Vivian Apple audiobook but haven't read it yet. Refugee looks really good. I hope you enjoy these, Aj!

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  14. I'm curious about these books. Enjoy them all, and thanks for sharing. Thanks for visiting my blog.

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  15. Ah, yes the GEORGE R.R. MARTIN!!! This is a great haul.
    Hope you have a great weekend. 💋 xoxo
    Part thriller, part superhero fantasy, the Renegades

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    1. I’m very into the GoT books right now. I just want to sit around all day and read them.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  16. There is nothing like a little bit of retail therapy book style. Looks like you got some great sounding books here. I am not familiar with the Vivian Apple books, but they sound like fun. I love the sound of Refuge. I hadn't heard of The Elephant Vanishes, but it sounds intriguing. I really need to give Murakami a try one of these days. I have a couple of his books on my shelf, but I haven't read them yet. He intimidates me for some reason, and I just need to get past that.

    I hope you have a great week!

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    1. I’ve read two Murakami books now, including the one in this post. Honestly, I don’t really “get” him. He has hordes of adoring fans, but I’ve just found his books to be okay.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  17. Haven't read these, and I actually haven't even heard of that story collection by Murakami :) enjoy!

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    1. It was a pretty okay collection, but I think I’m done with Murakami. I haven’t been blown away by the books of his that I’ve read.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  18. I do love some bookish retail therapy! These sound fun and I'm especially intrigued by the Vivian Apple books.

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  19. I haven't read any of those but they do sound interesting. I had Refugee on my wishlist for quite some time now. You got some great books and cheers to retail therapy

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  20. Great haul! Good luck with A Storm Of Swords... I remember it took me ages to finish that one. And I need to read the Vivian Apple series some time soon as well! Happy reading. :)

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    1. I’m reading A Storm of Swords right now. It’s been 10 days, and I’m slightly less than halfway through.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  21. A Song of Ice and Fire is a series I really want to get to. I'm thinking I'll wait until the TV show is off, just so I can revisit the world again.

    I hope you enjoy all of your new books, and thanks for visiting Shell's Stories!

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    1. The show’s hiatus was too long for me. I’m hoping to finish the books before the final season starts.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  22. I'm not familiar with most of these accept of course the GoT book speaking of is the new/final series ready yet????

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    1. I think the show has finished filming? It takes so much editing and special effects that it won’t be on TV until next year. I think.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  23. oh I'm dying to read Refugee too! Can't wait to hear what you thought of it! and yes to book shopping therapy! I've been doing some of that too sine I'm so stressed in RL :)

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    1. I hope your stress goes away soon. Refugee is amazing. I read it last month and loved it.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  24. Yay for retail therapy! I read A Storm of Swords last year and really enjoyed it. I love the whole series actually, but the books are so mammoth that I only read one a year, lol, A Feast of Crows is sitting on my nightstand waiting for me now.

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  25. This is a wonderfully diverse bunch of books for June! I hope you enjoy them!

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  26. A Storm of Swords is my favorite of the ASOIAF books. I hope you'll enjoy it too. The Vivian Apple books sound interesting.

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