libri

Teaser Tuesday #37

Buongiorno!
Oggi è una giornata importante un po’ per tutte, ma soprattutto per Anna, quindi probabilmente se ci seguite su Facebook vedrete spuntare delle foto riguardanti questo particolare evento.

Nell’attesa di iniziare la giornata, vi lascio con il Teaser di questa settimana, preso da un libro che ho letto in un pomeriggio da quanto scorre bene.
teaser tuesday

I’m left with George. He sucks on his Popsicle meditatively for a few minutes, then asks, “Did you know that in space it’s very, very cold? And there’s no oxygen? And if an astronaut fell out of a shuttle without his suit he’d die right away?”
I’m a fast learner. “But that would never happen. Because astronauts are really, really careful.”
George gives me a smile, the same dazzling sweet smile as his big brother, although, at this point, with green teeth. “I might marry you,” he allows. “Do you want a big family?”
I start to cough and feel a hand pat my back.
“George, it’s usually better to discuss this kind of thing with your pants on.” Jase drops boxer shorts at George’s feet, then sets Patsy on the ground next to him.
She’s wearing a pink sunsuit and has one of those little ponytails that make one sprout of hair stick straight up on top, all chubby arms and bowed legs. She’s, what, one now?
“Dat?” she demands, pointing to me a bit belligerently.
“Dat is Samantha,” Jase says. “Apparently soon to be your sister-in-law.” He cocks an eyebrow. “You and George move fast.”
“We talked astronauts,” I explain, just as the door opens and in comes Mrs. Garrett, staggering under the weight of about fifty grocery bags.
“Gotcha.” He winks, then turns to his mother.

Chapter 5 – MY LIFE NEXT DOOR di Huntley Fitzpatrick

divisore dx

my life next door
“One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time.”

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, messy, affectionate. And every day from her rooftop perch, Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs up next to her and changes everything.

As the two fall fiercely for each other, stumbling through the awkwardness and awesomeness of first love, Jase’s family embraces Samantha – even as she keeps him a secret from her own. Then something unthinkable happens, and the bottom drops out of Samantha’s world. She’s suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A transporting debut about family, friendship, first romance, and how to be true to one person you love without betraying another.

mon firma

Teaser Tuesday #36

Buon pomeriggio!

Kia è partita per una mini vacanza e non è riuscita a pubblicare il Teaser quindi questa settimana tocca di nuovo a me. Siccome ho un solo libro in lettura e sono tipo a pagina 20, non ho tirato fuori il teaser da lì (anche perché mi sarei sicuramente spoilerata), ma dal libro che sta leggendo Kia e che io ho letto l’anno scorso: Wallbanger.
Se ricordo giusto l’hanno tradotto in italiano con il titolo (orribile) “Mr Sbatticuore”. L’avete letto?
teaser tuesday

“I’m not listening to this.”
“Like hell. It’s my car. Driver picks music.”
“Actually, you’re wrong about that. The passenger always picks music. It’s what you get when you give up driving privileges.”
“Caroline, you don’t even own a car, so how could you ever have driving privileges?”
“Exactly, so we listen to what I pick,” I chided, sitting back after changing the radio station for the hundredth time. I hit the iPod and scrolled until I found something that I thought would please us both.
“Good song,” he admitted, and we hummed along.
The trip had been great so far. When I first met him— heard him—I never would have predicted it, but Simon was quickly turning into one of my favorite people. I’d been wrong about him.
I glanced at him: humming along to the song, drumming his thumbs along the steering wheel. As he was concentrating on the road, I took the opportunity to catalogue some of his more swoon-worthy features.
Jaw? Strong.
Hair? Dark and messy.
Stubble? About two days’ worth and nice.
Lips? Lickable, but lonely looking. Maybe I could check them out, do my own little tongue inspection…
I sat on my hands to stop myself from launching over the console. He continued to hum and drum.
“What’s going on over there, Nightie Girl? You look a little flushed. Need some more air?” He started for the air conditioner.
“Nope, I’m good,” I answered, my voice sounding ridiculous.

Chapter 11 – WALLBANGER di Alice Clayton

divisore dx

wallbanger
The first night after Caroline moves into her fantastic new San Francisco apartment, she realizes she’s gaining an intimate knowledge of her new neighbor’s nocturnal adventures. Thanks to paper-thin walls and the guy’s athletic prowess, she can hear not just his bed banging against the wall but the ecstatic response of what seems (as loud night after loud night goes by) like an endless parade of women. And since Caroline is currently on a self-imposed dating hiatus, and her neighbor is clearly lethally attractive to women, she finds her fantasies keep her awake even longer than the noise. So when the wallbanging threatens to literally bounce her out of bed, Caroline, clad in sexual frustration and a pink baby-doll nightie, confronts Simon Parker, her heard-but-never-seen neighbor. The tension between them is as thick as the walls are thin, and the results just as mixed. Suddenly, Caroline is finding she may have discovered a whole new definition of neighborly…In a delicious mix of silly and steamy, Alice Clayton dishes out a hot and hilarious tale of exasperation at first sight…

mon firma

Book Blitz: The Secrets We Kept by Lily Velez

The secrets we kept BannerCiao a tutti, è passato un po’ di tempo dall’ultimo Book Blitz, semplicemente perché non trovavo nulla che mi stuzzicasse particolarmente.
Di questo libro, però, avevamo già ospitato il
Cover Reveal. La copertina è davvero bella, la trama mi attira e, mentre aspetto di leggerlo, approfitto dell’occasione data da XPresso Book Tours. Quindi eccovi ben due estratti dal libro. Vi ispira?

Hi to you all! It has been quite a long time since the last Book Blitz because I couldn’t find anything that captured my interest. A while ago, we hosted the Cover Reveal of this book and now I leave you two excerpts. The synopsis intrigues me, and I’ll read it soon. And you? What do you think?

The secrets we kept
Title: The Secrets We Kept
Author: Lily Velez
Publication date: November 8th 2015
Add to Goodreads

One year. That’s how long it’s been since childhood sweethearts Sully Graham and Cadence Gilbertson broke up, since one adoption and one out-of-state move turned their worlds upside down.

Suddenly, Cadence is back in New York City, but something’s different about her. The light in her eyes, the music in her laughter, the warmth in her smile—all of those things have entirely vanished. In their place stand the makings of a girl Sully can’t even begin to recognize, much less understand.

Still, despite the collective history of heartbreak between them, he’s convinced he can win her trust again, and he’s committed to proving the invincibility of their love no matter what it takes.

But Cadence is quietly harboring secrets of her own. Dark secrets. Ugly secrets. Secrets that could break a person. And though broken herself and unbearably lonely, she’s determined to protect Sully from her terrible, biting truths. Even if it means locking him out of her life forever.

The only problem is it seems her heart hasn’t quite received the memo. One glimpse of him is all it takes for her to trip into familiar (and, she’ll admit, addictive) feelings that threaten to all but consume her. Now her biggest fear is that her secrets will begin to slowly unravel one by one…long before Sully’s resolve ever does.

The Secrets We Kept is a moving story about first love, friendship, and forgiveness, and the enduring bonds that forever connect us and give us our strength.

 

excerpt1

“Have you ever had a leaf fight?” He asked, dropping his empty yogurt cup into a waste bin.
Cadence did the same. “A what?” She took in her surroundings and placed herself at Prospect Park. Sully strayed from the sidewalk, and she followed him over a carpet of crisp foliage, the leaves crunching under their steps.
“Like a snowball fight,” he explained. “But with leaves.” To demonstrate, he gathered leaves into his arms and hurled them at her.
She froze in the shower of spades, blinking.
“You try it now,” he said. She didn’t move at first, but his smile never faltered. “Come on. Give it a try. It’s fun.”
She obliged him, only a stowaway pinecone had snuck into her armful of leaves, and it struck Sully on the head. “I’m so sorry,” she said, pressing her hands to her mouth with wide eyes.
He laughed. “You don’t have to apologize. Spencer’s done worse. That’s ten points for you, by the way. But don’t get too confident.” Then he launched another attack against her, followed by another laugh. “Don’t just stand there. Gather your ammunition. Let’s go.”
Cadence quickly learned that failure to participate wouldn’t stop Sully from chucking leaves in her direction, and it was the only reason she relented and moved into action. For the next ten minutes, as Sully provided commentary fit for the trenches of war, they darted around, assembling mounds of leaves to throw at each other. When Cadence wasn’t slipping across the leaves, making them hiss like a thousand snakes, she was shielding herself against flying acorns or taking refuge behind massive oaks.
Then it happened. She hadn’t even meant to do it. It came of its own volition. She laughed. She actually laughed. It rose out of her organically. Tender and soft. Raw and free. When she heard it, when she felt it humming in her throat, she stopped mid-attack as if dumbfounded, wondering where such a thing had come from. She hadn’t thought it possible that she’d ever laugh again. Sully had proven her wrong.

excerpt2

The rooftop memory revisited her. Sully had first brought her there on their six-month anniversary, where they celebrated their romance with an afternoon picnic of peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches and barbecue-flavored potato chips. Dessert was a melting sundae pie from Burger King.
She remembered the way the sun felt on her skin, like it was painting her with fire. She remembered the way the light reflected off the metal steamers, making them glow like pillars of white. She remembered the look in Sully’s eyes. So gentle, so soft. His fingertips ghosted down the length of her arm to her wrist, and then he raised their hands and pressed their palms together before interlocking their fingers. He held her eyes for a long time, saying nothing. There came a point when they didn’t really need words anymore. They could read each other so easily, say so much simply by being in each other’s presence.
He touched a lingering kiss to the back of her hand, the one he held, and then smiled at her in a dreamy way as he said, “I think I’m in love with you, Cadence Livingston.”
It was the first time he’d used the L-word, and her heart had beat as rapidly as a hummingbird’s wings, so rapidly in fact that for a moment, she wondered if it was possible to die from happiness. She remembered smiling so hard that her cheeks hurt, but it was worth it. So was reciprocating his sentiment and watching his eyes light up like twin fireflies in response. Drunk on their love for each other, they’d spent the rest of the afternoon pointing out the shapes in the clouds, laughing, making heart shapes with their hands and holding them up against the sunlight.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Twitter | Site | Goodreads

Lily Velez has been writing stories since she was six years old. Not much has changed since then. She still prefers the written word and her overactive imagination over the ‘real world’ (though to be fair, her stories no longer feature talking dinosaurs). A graduate of Rollins College and a Florida native, when she’s not reading or writing, she spends most of her days wrangling up her pit bulls Noah and Luna, planning exciting travel adventures, and nursing her addiction to cheese. All this when she isn’t participating in the extreme sport known as napping. You can learn more about Lily and her books at http://www.lilyvelezbooks.com.

Thanks to XPresso Book Tours for giving us the opportunity to promote this book.

kia firma

Recensione: L’Ultimo Elfo di Silvana De Mari

Visto che settimana scorsa sono riuscita magicamente a scrivere qualcosa che somigliasse a una recensione, questa settimana, finito un altro libro, ho deciso di riprovare. Il libro di cui vi parlo oggi è ‘L’ultimo elfo’ di Silvana De Mari.

l'ultimo elfo
Titolo: L’ultimo elfo
Autore: Silvana De Mari
Editore: Salani
Disponibile in italiano:
Goodreads

In una landa desolata, annegata da una pioggia torrenziale, l’ultimo Elfo trascina la propria disperazione per la sua gente. Lo salveranno due umani che nulla sanno dei movimenti degli astri e della storia, però conoscono la misecordia, e salvando lui salveranno il mondo. L’elfo capirà che solo unendosi a esseri diversi da sé – meno magici ma più resistenti alla vita – non solo sopravviverà, ma diffonderà sulla Terra la luce della fantasia.

 

Quella di oggi, comunque, non sarà tanto una recensione obiettiva ma un elogio al libro in questione. Penso che sia questo il libro che più degli altri mi ha legata in maniera assoluta alla lettura. Fin da quando mi è stato letto, da piccola, l’ho adorato. E da allora, almeno una volta all’anno, puntualmente lo rileggo. Ogni volta scopro nuove sfaccettature, nuove emozioni. Ogni volta che lo leggo mi ritrovo a ridere, emozionarmi, commuovermi, piangere e chiudere il libro con un sorriso ebete in faccia. Un misto di soddisfazione e pace interiore insomma.

‘L’ultimo elfo’ è il primo libro dell’omonima serie che si compone di 4 libri: ‘L’ultimo orco’, ‘Gli ultimi incantesimi’ e ‘L’ultima profezia del mondo degli uomini’. Devo dire la verità, tutta la serie è molto molto bella, ma questo primo volume in particolare trovo sia davvero un capolavoro.

Fin dai primi capitoli scopriamo che ciò che è dentro la testa dell’elfo – Yorshkrunsquarkljolnerstrink – è anche fuori. I suoi sentimenti vanno quindi a condizionare ciò, ma soprattutto chi, gli sta intorno. E in un certo senso, secondo me, condiziona anche chi sta leggendo il libro, facendo immedesimare ulteriormente il lettore nella sua storia.

«Qualcuno può spiegarmi cosa è successo e perché siamo ancora vivi e in buona salute?» chiese il cacciatore.
Sajra aveva il sorriso saggio della persona che ha capito: «Quello che è dentro la testa del piccolo viene fuori ed entra nella testa di chi lo ascolta» spiegò. «Quando Yorsh è disperato per noi è insopportabile, e quando ha paura comincia a venirci il panico, ma comunque continuiamo a pensare. Con le menti… semplici quello che il piccolo dice è una specie di inondazione: gli riempie la testa. Lui ha detto ‘bello’ e
‘buoni’ e loro si sono… come dire… adattati alla definizione».
«Menti semplici?» chiese Monser.
«Menti semplici» confermò lei.

Conosciamo l’elfo quando è ancora un bambino, un cucciolo, uno nato da poco e sta per morire di fame e freddo in una landa desolata dalla pioggia e ricoperta di fango. In un mondo dove gli elfi sono odiati da tutti perché ritenuti pericolosi e malvagi. Per fortuna Yorsh incontra un uomo e una donna che, nonostante le sue origini non-umane, decidono di aiutarlo e salvarlo dal mondo che lo circonda. Della trama non vi dico altro altrimenti vi rovino la sorpresa.

Quello che vi posso dire è però che l’autrice, in questo libro, riesce a inserire di tutto. Ci sono parti divertenti, che fanno proprio ridere, parti che fanno pensare molto e parti che invece commuovono proprio. La descrizione dei luoghi viene intrecciata ai sentimenti e all’azione in modo da essere dettagliata ma senza diventare noiosa.

Il drago sembrava seccato.
Era veramente vecchio e non è facile decifrare l’espressione di un drago, soprattutto se è un drago molto vecchio e se è la prima volta che se ne incontra uno, però era evidente quanto fosse seccato.

È un libro per bambini, d’accordo, ma sono dell’idea che, se letto da – o ad – un bambino, sia semplicemente una bellissima storia con un giusto tocco di magia e azione e un bel finale. Ma per una persona più adulta si fa molto più profondo ed è in grado anche, nel suo piccolo, di far pensare.

«Sai accendere un fuoco senza esca?»
«Sìiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii».
«Perché non me lo hai detto?»
«Tu non chiestuto».
«Ti ho chiesto se avevi dei poteri!»
«Sì. Io risponduto: parlato grandi poteri: respirare, mangiare, stare vivo. Il fuoco accenduto è un piccolo potere. Basta alzare temperatura e fuoco nasce. Tutti sapere fare questo».

Consiglio questo libro a tutti, anche a chi non ama il fantasy, perché comunque la componente non è esagerata. È un libro piacevole, dolce e profondo allo stesso tempo. Io lo adoro, spero sia così anche per voi.

rating 5
kia firma