BIG NEWS: Life in the Pages is moving!

Hey all! Excuse the lack of posting over the past week. Life in the Pages has been undergoing some major changes and I'll just come right out and say it:

Life in the Pages is now BooksyDaisy Reviews!

What?! But why a new blog? Why a new name? Well, for a while I've been trying little ways to tweak the current blog to make it prettier, crisper, and more "professional" looking, while still keeping it fun, but none of the changes were making me particularly happy. Also, I've been wanting a more creative, unique blog now for a while and last week as I was brainstorming different blog names, BooksyDaisy somehow popped into my head! I was so excited about it and knew I finally had the right new name. So, after some frantic searching through Twitter and Blogger to make sure the name hadn't already been taken, I jumped the gun and started setting up the new site. Today, I'm so excited to be able to share it with you all:

http://booksydaisyreviews.blogspot.com

To make the transition a bit easier, here's an updated list of my social media links: 

Twitter: @booksydaisy 

Tumblr: booksydaisyreviews

Bloglovin': BooksyDaisy Reviews

(Note: My e-mail, Goodreads, Instagram, and Pinterest accounts are still the same. No need to re-add me if you're already following!)

Man, it feels good to be able to share this with you all! I'm so excited!!  I will temporarily keep Life in the Pages open to avoid confusion and direct people to BooksyDaisy, but from now on all new posts will be at the new blog. I hope you'll all join me on there! :)

Reading Rambles {3}: Are You A Reading Procrastinator?

Reading Rambles is a sporadic feature in which I ramble about all things bookish and ask you to join in on the discussion.

Today's Ramble:

After nearly two weeks of putting off reading Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor, despite the fact that I was dying to know what would happen next, I've discovered something about myself: I am a horrible reading procrastinator. It's a real problem! As much as I want to read this book, I just keep finding excuses to put it off. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I do this more often than I originally thought. I'm curious to see if this is just me, or if you all struggle with reading procrastination too. 

Not sure if you're a reading procrastinator? Here's a short list to help you figure it out.

• Do you ever get to a point in a book when you know something horrible is going to happen and you're just not mentally or emotionally prepared to deal with it, so you have to stop, put the book down, and take a breather (which can last anywhere from a few days to a few months)?

• Do you put off reading a series of books until you have time to read them all in one go (even though this will probably never happen)?

• Do you tell yourself you'll read before bed but then end up going right to sleep because you're either too exhausted or know that if you start reading now you'll be up until the break of dawn with the phrase "Just one more chapter..." repeating in your head like a mantra?

• Do you ever feel like your TBR pile is staring at you? Do you find excuses to ignore it, such as, "Oh, my room is a mess! I can't possibly start reading until I've cleaned it up a bit!" Or, "Now feels like a good time to check the 50+ unread e-mails in my inbox." Or, "I think I'll go change the layout of my blog for the hundredth time this month."

• Do you find yourself reading reviews, watching YouTube videos, or scrolling through Pinterest and Tumblr looking for posts about the very book you're not reading, when you could be spending that time actually reading it?

• Have you ever checked out and/or bought books despite your already overflowing TBR pile?

If you said yes to any of the above, you, my friend, may be a reading procrastinator. But don't worry, I'm sure you'll get around to reading all those books.

Eventually.

Mini Review: Night of Cake and Puppets by Laini Taylor

Night of Cake and Puppets by Laini Taylor
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company BFYR
Pub date: November 2013
Source/Format: Bought/E-book

In Night of Cake & Puppets, Taylor brings to life a night only hinted at in the Daughter of Smoke & Bone trilogy—the magical first date of fan-favorites Zuzana and Mik. Told in alternating perspectives, it’s the perfect love story for fans of the series and new readers alike. Petite though she may be, Zuzana is not known for timidity. Her best friend, Karou, calls her “rabid fairy,” her “voodoo eyes” are said to freeze blood, and even her older brother fears her wrath. But when it comes to the simple matter of talking to Mik, or “Violin Boy,” her courage deserts her. Now, enough is enough. Zuzana is determined to meet him, and she has a fistful of magic and a plan. It’s a wonderfully elaborate treasure hunt of a plan that will take Mik all over Prague on a cold winter’s night before finally leading him to the treasure: herself! Violin Boy’s not going to know what hit him.

As much as I loved Zuzana in Daughter of Smoke and Bone, I wasn't quite sure how I'd feel about a whole novella dedicated to her. After all, the lifeblood of DoSaB was its dealings with magic and Karou's travels around the world (both our own and Elsewhere)--so how could a story about two ordinary humans hold up? I should have known that Laini wouldn't let us down. Night of Cake and Puppets is written in the same kind of wondrous, magical prose that first drew me into DoSaB, but with loads of wry humor courtesy of Zuzana, whose feisty voice quickly became my favorite thing about the novella. Actually, both Zuzana's and Mik's voices are fantastic: hilarious and unique and slightly weird, and their personalities shine through. The weaving together of Zuzana's and Mik's narratives is absolutely adorable, showing how they are both completely enamored with each other but too shy to admit it (until now, of course). Even in this story where there is no mention of chimaera or seraphim, Laini still creates a world full of wonder and magic, though in a slightly more lighthearted fashion. It feels, as Mik says, "like something out of a fairy tale." In short, Zuzana and Mik's story is a perfect little break from the angst left over at the end of Daughter of Smoke and Bone.

Favorite Quotes

My Rating:

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Book Covers I'd Frame As Pieces of Art

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic:

Top Ten Book Covers I'd Frame As Pieces of Art

You know how some people have their own personal movie theater rooms with a giant TV, comfy chairs, a popcorn maker, and movie posters covering the walls? Well, someday I'm going to have my own personal reading room filled with bookshelves, comfy chairs, a Keurig (because for the full cozy reading experience you need tea and coffee), and giant, framed book posters on the walls. These are some of the covers I'd frame:

1. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender: I know you're all probably sick of hearing me talk about this book, but LOOK AT THAT COVER! Just look at it! It's gorgeous!

2. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell: I love that Gingerhaze did the artwork for Fangirl--it's so unique!

3. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling: Having grown up with the American editions of the Harry Potter books, I absolutely love Mary GrandPré's art. All the covers are fantastic but I love OotP the most for its blue tones and the wispy letters.

4.  Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë: Behold, the most beautiful cover of Jane Eyre ever created!

5. Black Spring by Alison Croggon: In keeping with the Jane Eyre theme is this spooky cover of Black Spring, a retelling of Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë.

6. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer: Oh, look. It's that other book I talk about all the time (sorry, not sorry). I'm a bit obsessive when it comes to hunting down different editions of my favorite books, and I've been drooling over the beautiful manga-esque Korean editions of Twilight for years but MAN, are they expensive! (Also, there's the tiny little detail of me not being able to read Korean, but whatever...)

7. The Diviners by Libba Bray: It's purple, it's got creepy-cool designs and awesome typography. Need I say more?

8. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern: This cover art is perfection! It's the main reason I wanted to read the book in the first place (although the book would be amazing even without the beautiful cover art. Seriously, go read it if you haven't already).

So tell me, do we share any of the same favorite covers? Which ones would you have framed?

Blog Event: Book Blogger Summer Reading Challenge

Remember those summer reading programs at the library that you used to participate in as a kid? Well, Katie of Katie's Book Blog is bringing back the fun of those days with the 2014 Book Blogger Summer Reading Challenge. It runs from May through the beginning of September and, in addition to the fun of seeing just how much you can read this summer, Katie will also be hosting various giveaways on her blog. You can find all the details and the official sign-up here.

Since my year-long reading challenge goal for 2014 is to read 100 books, and because I'm miserably behind so far, I'm challenging myself to read 30 books this summer. To keep track, I've made a Goodreads shelf and this fun little cross-off worksheet:

Since I'm a mood reader, I don't have a specific TBR list for this challenge. I'm just gonna go with the flow and read whatever strikes me as interesting. :) Let me know if you'll be participating and what your goal is!

That's A Wrap {1}: April

Oh, hi there, May! You snuck up on me! Seriously, you guys, where did April go and how did I end  up in such a terrible reading slump the whole month? I can't even look at my Goodreads challenge stats anymore because the number of "books behind" just keeps getting larger. Ugh! 
Anyway, I decided to write my first monthly recap post. It's pretty short this time around but I hope to remedy that in May. I will get back on track with the reading challenge!

On the Blog

• I gave the Life in the Pages tumblr a fresh look for spring/summer!
• I created a new feature, Bookish Imaginings, where I share playlists and Pinterest boards I've made for my favorite books. You can link up your own posts, too, so be sure to check it out!

 
Books Read in April

• Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor (review)
• Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
• Persepolis 2 by Marjane Satrapi

Curse you, reading slump!


Life Outside the Pages

At the beginning of April, I got some very exciting news: I was accepted to a publishing grad program taking place later this summer! I was absolutely ecstatic when I received the letter, and I am so excited for this experience and where it might lead me.

I also became a bit obsessed with Pinterest this month, especially after starting my Daughter of Smoke and Bone board for Bookish Imaginings. It's so addicting to make boards for everything--what clothes I'd like to buy, what I'd like my future house to look like, heck, even what I'd like my future wedding to be like. While looking at pictures home decor, I came across some artwork by PAPAYA!, Nicolas Gouny, and Katie Daisy, all of which I absolutely love because it's so bright, colorful, and whimsical. I just want my own place already so I can go crazy decorating it! Pinterest, look what you've done to me!


Favorite Posts from Other Blogs

• Charlotte of Gyspy Reviews had a thought-provoking discussion about "The Abundance of Gender-Neutral Covers."
• Alex Bracken, author of The Darkest Minds and writer for Publishing Crawl, interviewed Anna Jarzab about working in Digital Marketing at Penguin. 
• Brittany of The Book Addict's Guide posted the results from her Book Review Survey.
• Jenny of Supernatural Snark posted this gorgeous fan art in honor of the release of Dreams of Gods and Monsters.
• Publishing Crawl talks about the editing process.
• Alyssa of Books Take You Places wrote a review of Fairytales for Wilde Girls, which I totally want to read now!

Let me know what your favorite book was in April and what you plan on reading this month!