Tuesday, January 31, 2012

winners announced : friendship on fire by danielle weiler giveaway

Congratulations
to
Cindy and Molli

Who have won Danielle Weiler's debut contemporary YA novel, 
Friendship on Fire!

Email notifications have been sent out to the winners, if I receive no replies after seven days, new winners will be chosen. Special thanks to Danielle for letting me host this giveaway, and everyone who entered, I hope you see you all back soon for another one! 

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Day 24: Two Books I Wish More People Had Read

Day 11 – A book you hated
*Day 24 – A book that you wish more people would’ve read*


What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty
This one I think I featured on Day 1 of the 30 Day Book Meme, as the best book I read in 2010. I haven't really read any other amnesia-based stories other than this one, but I know that it's worth the read! Liane's writing is effortlessly funny and the witty humour flows smoothly through the novel. 

How to Live Forever by Colin Thompson
I picked this up from the school library because I wanted to read another standalone book by this author after Pepper Dreams had such an effect on me. How to Live Forever is definitely much darker, there are scary creatures and characters and some interesting issues that I never really saw too much of in the books I read as a kid. Definitely an intriguing one to check out. But I wouldn't give this to my kid to read if they were younger than 9 years old. 

Day 25 – A character who you can relate to the most
Day 26 – A book that changed your opinion about something
Day 27 – The most surprising plot twist or ending
Day 28 – Favourite title(s)
Day 29 – A book everyone hated but you liked
Day 30 – Your favourite book of all time

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

update: new look + last chance to enter my international giveaway!

So guess what! 
Chimneys and Magic has a new look! Do you like it?
I was getting so incredibly tired of the old way it looked, so yesterday I changed a lot of things. 
The colour scheme is better, and so are the fonts, I think. What do you think? 
Do you remember the ugly pink hues and the weird ass fonts I had? 
Anyway, now I have social network buttons down the sidebar too! I'm really excited about those. There are also more pages across the top. 

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In case you haven't been around, please remember to enter my giveaway for Friendship on Fire by Danielle Weiler!! The link to it is at the top of the left sidebar. It's not just Australia wide but international too! The giveaway closes in less than a week, all you have to do is leave a comment on that particular post. :) 

Hope you're having a great week so far. 
Stay tuned for the rest of my 30 Day Book Meme posts and some mini reviews for several classics I've been reading. 

Here's a random old photo I dug up from Andy at style scrapbook.



Friday, January 20, 2012

New on my bookshelf


Received this in the mail the other day - PAN'S WHISPER by SUE LAWSON. 
I won it in a giveaway, yay! The giveaway was hosted on the blog Perth YA Fans Unite! which you should sign the petition for if you haven't already. ;)
I don't understand the tagline for this book: If you're fighting to forget, what would make you remember?
Apparently it's something to do with a brash, loud and damaged girl named Pan who has a problem with her memories. Sounds fun. 
On the back below the blurb it says (in big bold text): Never. Trust. Anyone. 
That's a bit alarming. Now it sounds like a spy novel. 


Anyway, if I'm sounding stupid I blame it on delirium. I just watched three episodes of Mad Men back-to-back and have been up since 6.30am (I've been waking up at 11 everyday these past couple of weeks).
ENOUGH RAMBLING!!!
Goodbye. :)


Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Follower of the Month *DECEMBER*



Follower of the Month is a little award I present to a Chimneys and Magic follower, to show my appreciation and to get to know my blog readers a little better by doing a fun little quiz with them!
Click on the banner or link above for more details and info on how YOU could be nominated for Follower of the Month.
Ok this one is a tad late... please forgive me! 
So without further ado, the Follower of the Month for the month of December 2011 is... NOMES from inkcrush!

Monday, January 16, 2012

GIVEAWAY: Friendship on Fire by Danielle Weiler (AU+INTL) - *closed*


Danielle has kindly allowed me to hold a giveaway for her debut YA novel Friendship on Fire! Yay!
For more info on the book, check it out on Danielle Weiler's website or on Goodreads

Giveaway is open worldwide! 
Two winners: Australian + international. 
HOW TO WIN
Just leave a comment below! (Remember to include your name, email and country)
For extra entries (totally optional!!)
Be a follower of Chimneys and Magic!
Tweet/blog about the giveaway (please provide direct links). 
The winners will be chosen randomly on Monday 30th January 2012. 
Winners will be notified by email/twitter.


Check out my review of Friendship on Fire and my interview with the author. 


MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN YOUR FAVOUR!

Friday, January 13, 2012

Danielle Weiler interview! (author of Friendship on Fire)



Today I have the pleasure of sharing with you my interview with Aussie author (from Perth!), Danielle Weiler. Her debut YA novel Friendship on Fire came out in March last year, and I was given the wonderful opportunity to ask her some questions! 
I hope you like. 

Remember to come back next week for a giveaway (Aussie AND worldwide) of Friendship on Fire, courtesy of Danielle!


How did the idea for Friendship on Fire come about? 

I was very bored when I lived in Melbourne. We didn’t have a lot of money so I couldn’t shop at fun places like Chadstone. I woke up one Sunday morning with Daisy in my head and I knew I just had to write it down. It came in such a hurry I had to plot point straight away and I could have sworn I’d be able to write the story in a week.



Were you like Daisy when you were in highschool, or was her character inspired by your students?

My students have never really inspired my writing which is strange because you’d think they would to a certain extent. I was very much like Daisy – perpetual nice girl, I did hit a letterbox when I was on my L plates, had a huge heart but a weakness for boys who charmingly said the right thing. I never understood the whole bitchy-girl thing (Skye) and it baffled me to think girls could threaten other girls just by being. I have a very supportive family and five older brothers. So even though Daisy isn’t me, there are similarities that I could bring to the table.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

New on my bookshelf



I ordered a tonne of books the other month, to prepare myself for some of my English units for next semester, one of which is on American Literature. 
I was going to make this 'New on my bookshelf' post an American Lit edition, but not all of these are American classics as you will see. I've also been doing way too many NOMB's recently, but this one is warranted coz it's my hugest book haul since the beginning of this blog. 

Monday, January 9, 2012

Review: Friendship on Fire by Danielle Weiler


Title: "Friendship on Fire"
Author: Danielle Weiler
CLICK HERE FOR SYNOPSIS
Genre: YA Contemporary
First Published: March 1, 2011
Format: Paperback, 471pg
Publisher: Sid Harta
Source: Author
Other details: Author Interview and Giveaway (AUS+INTL)
My Rating: 3.5 stars







Danielle Weiler did a pretty great job in her debut YA novel, Friendship on Fire. The writing was clever, the characters were refreshingly real and I loved the pop culture references to movies and music alike. (I absolutely ADORE Brooke Fraser's music! For a slightly more obscure artist, I was pleasantly surprised to read that Daisy listened to Brooke Fraser too :D.) The local references about our Aussie culture were spot on and so relatable, I was constantly thinking back to my time in highschool, comparing my memories to Daisy's story. 


I actually disliked Daisy in the beginning. She was a hot-headed mess, incapable of colouring her hair properly and she had a volatile temper to boot. By the end of the novel though... I loved her! For me, Daisy turned out to be a great role model for teenage girls today. (Apart from her intense weakness for the physically blessed, mysterious guys like Nate). Despite her slight anger management issues, Daisy has a huge heart. Huge. 


It might sound bad, but I'm jealous of Daisy's family and friends - they were incredibly supportive and loving, it's a rare and irreplaceable blessing that isn't seen too often in society today. Daisy is so lucky to have such amazing parents, loving brothers, as well as her best friends Roman, Shana and Sarah. 


Friendship on Fire is a story of life and love. Friendship, family, romance, relationships, heartbreak, and self identity. It was a pleasure to witness Daisy's growth through her last year of highschool (and kinda live vicariously through her too) - getting her driver's licence, weekend house parties, school events, and all that. This 400 and something page novel is quite a long one for contemporary YA. It took me a little time to get into the story, but I was rewarded once I got to the end because there is something special that everyone can find in Friendship on Fire.


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COMING UP

Stay tuned in for my first author interview with Perth author Danielle Weiler!!! 
And keep your eyes peeled shortly after the interview, for TWO GIVEAWAYS of Friendship on Fire! That's right, TWO! One for Aussie residents only and one worldwide/international. :D

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Review: Miss Pettigrew Lives for A Day

Title: "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day"
Author: Winifred Watson
Genre: Historical Chick Lit, Modern Classic
First Published: 1938
Format: Paperback, 234pg
Publisher: Persephone
Source: Bought (The Book Depository)
Other details: featured in 'New on my Bookshelf'
My Rating: 5 STARS!






I thought I would do something different with this review... I'm gonna present it through dot points! FUN FUN FUN. (It's really weird, that I subconsciously say that stupid phrase, only on Fridays - technically today was Friday - darn you, Rebecca Black!)


Anyway, these are my favourite things/what I love about Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day: 

  • the illustrations
  • the settings
  • the characters
  • the writing
  • the dialogue
These are not just things I like about the book, but things I PASSIONATELY LOVE about it. 

Friday, January 6, 2012

Day 23: *A DESIRED BUT DUSTY BOOK*



Day 11 – A book you hated
Day 22 – Favourite book you own
*Day 23 – A book you wanted to read for a long time but still haven’t*


This is pretty much exactly the same objective of the feature "The Time Will Come", where I pick a book that's been sitting on my shelf for some time, one that I still haven't gotten around to reading yet. 
One book that I have wanted to read for a long time but still haven't is.... 

Monday, January 2, 2012

Mini Reviews - YA style! (Finding Cassie Crazy, LA Candy, ITYILY, Wicked Lovely)


This is a little mini review series I'm starting, just to recap on books I've read in the past, and give you guys a very brief little review of them, with pictures of course. ;)
Tonight is in with the theme of YOUNG ADULT! Hurray!
-Finding Cassie Crazy by Jaclyn Moriarty
-L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad
-I'd Tell You I Love You, but then I'd have to Kill You by Ally Carter
-Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
Finding Cassie Crazy (2003)
One of the best books a girl could read in highschool. One of my friends in Year 9 rec-ed this to me - I read it in ONE DAY. This is pretty much a 400 page novel, and it is probably the most reading I've ever done in a day. 
Moriarty's writing is utterly and hysterically brilliant, fabulous and funny - the characters are charming, I could ask for nothing more in a contemp YA.
L.A. Candy (2009)
I love Lauren Conrad. As a reality TV star alum, she has an organic beauty about her that is so refreshing. I think she had a fair amount of help with writing this debut novel, but the idea was new, even though the characters, writing technique and storyline were not very gripping or outstanding. The second instalment (Sweet Little Lies) in the trilogy was a little better I thought. 
I'd Tell you I Love you, but then I'd have to Kill you (2008)
This is a book I read later in highschool that really got me hooked into YA, reading, stories and all that magical stuff that goes along with books. I love the teen spy world Ally Carter created, and I not-so-secretly wish I was genius enough to attend the Gallagher academy and train to be a kick-ass spy. I SO can't wait for the 5th book to come out already!
Wicked Lovely (2007)
The tagline on this book is 'Enter a world of faerie romance' - sounds SO lame. It is true though, but I wouldn't call this story lame at all. The writing is brilliantly descriptive, the world that Marr created is beautifully seductive and alluring, the character relationships are very well developed, so I don't know why I haven't yet read the rest of the series! 

Sunday, January 1, 2012

New on my bookshelf

Happy New Year! 
I thought I would, for the first time, actually put up a New on My Bookshelf post on IMM (In My Mailbox) day.
Hope you all have a fantastic Two Thousand & Twelve. 

Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day
by Winifred Watson
1938



The chapters proceed with corresponding time increments, which is fabulous (and also informative). I love the illustrations, it gives you an extra little push into the story and into the realm of pre-war London in the 30's. I have already started the book because I couldn't resist - it's delightful and funny and lovely, just like the film.