Hi everyone! Here are the books that I have added to my shelves over the past few weeks! Life has been crazy for me lately, and while I cannot do as much blogging as I like, I am trying to do as much as I can (which sadly isn’t much).

Stacking the Shelves is bought to you by Tynga from Tynga’s Reviews. Stacking the Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

 

In Kristy’s mailbox:

 

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (The Tales of Dunk and Egg #1-3) by George R.R. Martin

Thank you to the wonderful HarperVoyager Australia for a copy of this beautiful book! I haven’t read the A Song of Ice and Fire series, as my plan is to once the series is nearing completion (yes, I watch the show), but I am excited to read these prequel stories!

A century before A GAME OF THRONES, two unlikely heroes wandered Westeros…

A KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS compiles the first three official prequel novellas to George R.R. Martin’s ongoing masterwork, A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE.

Before Tyrion Lannister and Podrick Payne there was Dunk and Egg.

A young, naïve but courageous hedge knight, Ser Duncan the Tall towers above his rivals – in stature if not experience. Tagging along with him is his diminutive squire, a boy called Egg – whose true identity must be hidden from all he and Dunk encounter: for in reality he is Aegon Targaryen, and one day he will be king. Improbable heroes though they be, great destinies lie ahead for Dunk and Egg; as do powerful foes, royal intrigue, and outrageous exploits.

A KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS brings together for the first time the first three official prequel novellas to George R.R. Martin’s ongoing masterwork, A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE, set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne, and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory.

Featuring more than 160 illustrations by Gary Gianni, one of the finest fantasy artists of our time, this beautiful volume will transport readers to the world of the Seven Kingdoms in an age of bygone chivalry.

 

 

Ice Like Fire (Snow Like Ashes, #2) by Sara Raasch

My pre-order of the ever-so-pretty hardcover of Ice Like Fire finally arrived :) My review can be found here.

It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Januari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect them from new threats?

As the web of power and deception weaves tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter, but for the world.

 

 

Madame Tussaud’s Apprentice by Kathleen Benner Duble

Thank you Bloomsbury Australia for sending me a copy of this book! (how pretty is that cover??)

Célie Rosseau is a talented young artist who, along with her partner Algernon, resorts to petty thieving on the streets of Paris to survive. It is 1789: rumours of rebellion against the monarchy are starting to spread in the capital, and the two of them get involved in the idealistic revolutionary fervour. But when she is caught stealing from the brother of the King himself, Célie is saved only thanks to her drawing skills and the intercession of Marie Tussaud, the famous waxworks artist and a favourite at the French court, who decides to employ her.

Suddenly Célie finds herself whisked away from the tumult of Paris to the safety and opulence of Versailles. This raises a difficult moral dilemma for the young lady who had until recently dreamt of overthrowing the very people who now treat her with kindness: should she compromise her ideals and risk losing Algernon – the man she loves – or should she stay true to the cause of the poor and the revolution?

 

 

This Raging Light by Estelle Laure

Thank you to Hachette Australia for sending me a copy of this book! To make it even more special, they also sent me a gift-wrapped copy to give to a friend (so sweet, and so much love for this idea).

How is it that you suddenly notice a person? How is it that one day Digby was my best friend’s admittedly cute twin brother, and then the next he stole air, gave jitters, twisted my insides up?

Lucille has bigger problems than falling for her best friend’s unavailable brother. Her mom has gone, leaving her to look after her sister, Wren. With bills mounting up and appearances to keep, Lucille is raging against her life but holding it together - just.

A stunning debut to devour in one sitting, Laure captures completely the agony and ecstasy of first love.

 

 

Night Owls by Jenn Bennett

I won a finished copy of Night Owls thanks to Simon & Schuster Australia and #AusYABloggers. Thank you!! This book is SO pretty, and such a lovely story! My review can be found here.

Feeling alive is always worth the risk.

Meeting Jack on the Owl—San Francisco’s night bus—turns Beatrix’s world upside down. Jack is charming, wildly attractive…and possibly one of San Francisco’s most notorious graffiti artists.

But Jack is hiding a piece of himself. On midnight rides and city rooftops, Beatrix begins to see who this enigmatic boy really is.

 

 

Illuminae (The Illuminae Files, #1) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

The ever so lovely Tonile got me a signed copy of Illuminae at the book launch in Sydney. THANK YOU SO, SO MUCH!!

The mind-bending conclusion to the Twinmaker trilogy.

Clair’s world has been destroyed – again. The only remaining hope of survival is for her and Q to enter the Yard, a simulation as detailed – and as real – as the home they have lost. But in the Yard there are two Clair Hills. The other Clair is headstrong, impulsive, suspicious – just like Clair herself used to be, and their very existence is causing cracks.

As Clair searches for a solution, a surprising new ally emerges from the ashes. Together they fight their way through the digital and political minefield in the hope of saving Jesse, her friends and the whole of humanity.

 

 

The Marvels by Brian Selznick

Thank you to Scholastic Australia for a copy of this book! It is so pretty!! It is hardcover, with gold-edged pages… and illustrations!!! Although middle-grade, I love the concept (and the prettiness) of this book!

Caldecott Award winner and bookmaking trailblazer Brian Selznick once again plays with the form he invented and takes readers on a voyage!

Two seemingly unrelated stories-one in words, the other in pictures-come together. The illustrated story begins in 1766 with Billy Marvel, the lone survivor of a shipwreck, and charts the adventures of his family of actors over five generations. The prose story opens in 1990 and follows Joseph, who has run away from school to an estranged uncle’s puzzling house in London, where he, along with the reader, must piece together many mysteries.

 

 

Unbecoming by Jenny Downham

Scholastic Australia also surprised me with this book! I really enjoyed Jenny Downham’s “Before I Die“.so I am keen to read more of her work.

Three women - three secrets - one heart-stopping story.Katie, seventeen, in love with someone whose identity she can’t reveal.Her mother Caroline, uptight, worn out and about to find the past catching up with her.Katie’s grandmother, Mary, back with the family after years of mysterious absence and ‘capable of anything’, despite suffering from Alzheimers.As Katie cares for an elderly woman who brings daily chaos to her life, she finds herself drawn to her. Rules get broken as allegiances shift. Is Mary contagious? Is ‘badness’ genetic?In confronting the past, Katie is forced to seize the present. As Mary slowly unravels and family secrets are revealed, Katie learns to live and finally dares to love.Funny, sad, honest and wise, Unbecoming is a celebration of life, and learning to honour your own stories.

 

 

Signs Point to Yes by Sandy Hall

Thank you to PanMacmillan Australia for this surprise book! Surely I am going to love a book that contains the words “adorkable” “superstitious fangirl” and “Magic 8 ball” in the synopsis!

The author of A Little Something Different brings you the most adorkable romance ever.

Jane, a superstitious fangirl, takes an anonymous babysitting job to avoid an unpaid internship with her college-obsessed mom. The only problem? She’s babysitting the siblings of her childhood friend and new crush, Teo.

Teo doesn’t dislike Jane, but his best friend Ravi hates her, and is determined to keep them apart. So Teo’s pretty sure his plans for a peaceful summer are shot. His only hope is that his intermittent search for his birth father will finally pan out and he’ll find a new, less awkward home. Meanwhile, at Jane’s house, her sister Margo wants to come out as bisexual, but she’s terrified of how her parents will react.

In a summer filled with secrets and questions, even Jane’s Magic 8 ball can’t give them clear answers, but Signs Point to Yes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

That is all from me this week. What did you receive in your mailboxes? Let me know - leave your links in the comments section below!