In My Mailbox (November 29)

In my mailbox was created by Kristi of The Story Siren, who was inspired by Pop Culture Junkie. Here are the books I got this week...

I actually didn't get any books this week! I did, however, buy Series 2 of Doctor Who.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'll be posting a review tomorrow, but today I'm spending time with my family, and attempting to keep the cats from running off with the turkey.

Waiting on Wednesday (November 25)

This was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. Basically, these are books that haven't been released yet, but that I can't wait for.

Forget-Her-Nots by Amy Brecount White

When someone leaves three mystery flowers outside her dorm door, Laurel thinks that maybe the Avondale School isn't so awful after all — until her own body starts to freak out. In the middle of her English presentation on the Victorian Language of Flowers, strange words pop into her head, and her body seems to tingle and hum. Impulsively, Laurel gives the love bouquet she made to demonstrate the language to her spinster English teacher. When that teacher unexpectedly and immediately finds romance, Laurel suspects that something — something magical — is up. With her new friend, Kate, she sets out to discover the origins and breadth of her powers by experimenting on herself and others. But she can’t seem to find any living experts in the field of flower powers to guide her. And her bouquets don't always do her bidding, especially when it comes to her own crush, Justin. Rumors about Laurel and her flowers fly across campus, and she's soon besieged by requests from girls — both friends and enemies — who want their lives magically transformed — just in time for prom.

Published by Greenwillow Books
Release Date: March 2, 2010

Teaser Tuesday (November 24)

What is teaser tuesday?
It's a meme hosted by Should Be Reading and here are the rules:
Grab your current read...
Open to a random page
Share two teaser sentences from somewhere on the page
Don't include spoilers

"You see it don't you?" It was barely a question.
I wanted to go to her, but I was afraid to get closer, to touch the luminous haze."

The Mark (ARC edition),Page 29, by Jen Nadol

In My Mailbox

In my mailbox was created by Kristi of The Story Siren, who was inspired by Pop Culture Junkie. Here are the books I got this week...

I actually didn't get any books this week, but I forgot to mention one that I got a few weeks ago. I picked it up as part of the Everything Austen Challenge.

Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange

Mr. Darcy, Vampyre starts where Pride and Prejudice ends and introduces a dark family curse so perfectly that the result is a delightfully thrilling, spine-chilling, breathtaking read. A dark, poignant and visionary continuation of Austen's beloved story, this tale is full of danger, darkness and immortal love.

What's On My TBR Shelf

I thought I'd do a post where I discussed what exactly is in my TBR pile. Currently, it's taking up my entire desk...

Here's my list:
The Trouble with Magic by Madelyn Alt
The Cinderella Society by Kay Cassidy
Being Nikki by Meg Cabot
Ransom My Heart by Meg Cabot
Soulless by Gail Carriger
Accidentally Engaged by Mary Carter
Devil's Kiss by Sarwat Chadda
Fifteen Minutes of Shame by Lisa Daily
Fortune's Folly by Deva Fagan
The Guidance by Marley Gibson
Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange
Violet Wings by Victoria Hanley
Shoe Addicts Anonymous by Beth Harbison
North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley
The Cupcake Queen by Heather Hepler
Need by Carrie Jones
The Monster Variations by Daniel Kraus
Abby Cooper, Psychic Eye by Victoria Laurie
Oracles of Delphi Keep by Victoria Laurie
What's A Ghoul to Do by Victoria Lauria
The Mark by Jen Nadol
Another Faust by Daniel and Dina Nayeri
Blue Moon by Alyson Noel
Geek Charming by Robin Palmer
The Dashwood Sisters' Secrets of Love by Rosie Rushton
Perfect You by Elizabeth Scott
Fire Study by Maria V Snyder
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
The Cinderella Pact by Sarah Strohmeyer
Castration Celebration by Jake Wizner
Donut Days by Lara Zielin

So, you can see why I've been trying to stop myself from buying more books. I have read a few in the past week, so at least I'm making some progress. I'm also expecting to get a few done over Thanksgiving break...Thank goodness for vacations!

Book Review: Psych Major Syndrome by Alicia Thompson

Patient Name: Leigh Nolan Age: 18 years Presenting Concerns: Leigh Nolan has just started her first year at Stiles College. She has decided to major in psychology (even though her parents would rather she study Tarot cards than Rorschach blots), despite reporting that she thinks, "Psychology is a load of crap." Patient has always been very good at helping her friends with their problems, but when it comes to solving her own...not so much. Patient has a tendency to overanalyze things, particularly when the opposite sex is involved. Like why doesn't Andrew, her boyfriend of over a year, ever invite her to spend the night? Or why can't she commit to taking the next step in their relationship? And why does his roommate Nathan dislike her so much? More importantly, why did Nathan have a starring role in a much-more-than-friendly dream? Aggravating factors include hyper-competitive fellow psych majors, a professor who's badly in need of her own psychoanalysis, and mentoring a middle-school-aged girl who thinks Patient is, in a word, nave. Preliminary treatment will include Introduction to Psychology, but may require more if she's going to answer these questions and make it through her freshman year. Diagnosis: Psych Major Syndrome

I actually picked this up after reading some reviews on Goodreads, and I really enjoyed it. Of course, I'm a psychology major who over analyzes everything.

Characters: Leigh (real name: Tuesday), is stuck in a dead-end relationship, analyzes everything that happens around her, and is feeling immense pressure to decide what she plans to do for her senior project. Of course, she's only a freshman. To make things worse, she ends up spending time with younger girls, as part of a mentoring program. While there wasn't a lot of school work mentioned (apparently Leigh can whip out an "A" paper hours after it's due), I did feel like the pressures of college were very present in the book. Over the course of the book, Leigh was able to actually learn from the people around her, particularly the girls that she spent time mentoring. The girls ended up having a reciprocal relationship, with Leigh getting as much advice as she was giving.

Plot: Overall, I really enjoyed the plot. It was fairly obvious how it was going to end, and I didn't really mind. In fact, without giving away any spoilers, that was exactly how I wanted it to end. There were a few times that I was screaming at Leigh in my head, but psych majors are infamous for ignoring what's right in front of them (I should know, haha). I also really enjoyed the humor throughout the book. I've noticed that some of the humor in YA books, and all genres, seems to forced. Maybe it's because slang is constantly being updated, and pop culture references get outdated just as quickly. This book never felt forced to me, which is always a plus. It was a bit fluffy toward the end, just as a warning.

As an added bonus, I got some review on some Intro to Psych theories

I can't wait to read more from Thompson!

Psych Major Syndrome
By Alicia Thomspon
Published by Hyperion
336 Pages
Rating: A-