Help! Advice about ARCs

I'm pretty good about reading the ARCs I receive on time.  But as more and more of my requests for them get accepted (yay!), I find myself with a few that I haven't read.  So here are some questions.  Is there ever a time that you shouldn't review the ARC?  That it's just too late?  The publication date for some of these have come and gone and for some, it's starting to be six months since the book was published.  Should I still review it?

Also, what if I just don't think I'm going to like the book and that's why I'm not reading it?  Maybe I thought I would at the time, but now I'm just not in the mood or maybe I've read a bunch of negative reviews.  Would it be better to not review it or to review it and write a negative review?  I may be pleasantly surprised, but usually, if I force myself to read a book I don't want to read, at most it's going to be a 3 star read.

Finally, I always wait until 30 days before the book is published before I post my review, even if I read the book super early.  I just schedule it to post months in advance.  But I've noticed on Goodreads, and even some blogs, very early reviews. Is that actually ok?  It seems like all of the ARCs I get explicitly ask you to wait until at least 30 days before publication date.

Anyway, I would really appreciate your advice!

Posted by:  Pam

Help: Recommendations

It's January 1, 2015 and I am committed to being a better co-blogger!  This means I will read at least one YA book each week and write a review.  I have a ton of fantasy, dystopian, and witches, vampires, and zombie books lining my TBR shelf but what I need are some light-hearted, fun books.  If you have read a great light-hearted book recently PLEASE share your recommendation with me.  If you already reviewed the book on your blog feel free to share the link!

Posted by:  Sheri

Help! Which Series Should I Finish Next?

There are a few completed series where I have read the first book, maybe the second, but I really don't remember enough to read the last book in the series.  That means I have to reread.  Which one should I read next?  

1.  Tempest series by Julie Cross.  I read the first book in the series, but it was a LONG time ago.  Now the whole series is out.  I own the first two and I have the third one from the library.

2.  Starglass series by Phoebe North.  I read the first book, but I'll need to reread it before I read the second, which I recently bought.

 3.  The Testing series by Joelle Charbonneau.  I've read the first two, but not the third, and although I think I remember enough about the first one, I definitely need to reread the second one before I can read the third (Sadly, I remember NOTHING from the second book).

 4.  The Farm series by Emily McKay.  I've read the first two, but not the third, and like The Testing series, I think I remember enough about the first one, but I'll need to reread the second one.

Which one should I read next?  If you've read any of these, let me know!

Posted by:  Pam

Help! Which Book Festival To Attend?

Pam and I would like to attend some book festivals in the next year.  Last year we attended YAK Fest 2014 in Keller, TX and had a great time (blog review).  While I hope to attend YAK Fest 2015, I would also like to try a slightly larger festival.  Since we live in Texas it makes perfect sense to try one of the other Texas festivals. For example, I'm thinking about attending the Texas Teen Book Festival (October 18, 2014) in Austin, Texas and possibly the RT Booklovers Convention (May 2015) in Dallas. I'm also interested in learning about festivals further away.  So please share with us your recommendations for festivals you have attended or have heard great things about.  Once I get all the recommendations, I will try to create a list of festivals kind of like the one below.

I am also interested in understanding why the RT booklovers convention is expected to cost almost $500 dollars to register!  What exactly do I get for $500?

Posted by:  Sheri

Help! Library Books: Read or Return?

In the past year, I've read a lot of books from the library, which has really helped to defray book costs.  With library books, I tend to pick up books I wouldn't necessarily buy because I figure if I start reading it and I don't like it, no big deal.  But that also means that I have many library books that I just keep renewing because I don't read them.  There are generally other books that I'm more excited to read and library books tend to get pushed down the TBR list in terms of priority.  So below are five library books that I've had for awhile and I'm wondering:  read or return?  

Timeless by Alexandra Monir

Burn for Burn by Jenny Haan

Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

Hereafter by Tara Hudson

The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnett

If you've read any of these, let me know if it was good or not worth reading.  I need help!

Posted by:  Pam

Help! Should I Read the Last Book?

I recently read the first two books in a series written by an author I love (I've read two of her other series and loved both of them).  For some reason, before I started reading the last book, I looked it up on Goodreads, was scrolling down, and read a spoiler (without any warning, I might add).  This spoiler informed me that the main character ends up with a different guy.  I couldn't believe it.  And now I don't know if I should finish it.

This got me to thinking about love triangles.  Now, to be honest, most love triangles aren't really love triangles.  There's another guy, but usually there's no contest.  The main character is clearly in love with one guy, and this other guy is just there to muck things up.  But recently I have read two other series where the first love interest (not a boyfriend to start with, that's a whole other thing) turns out not to be the guy she ends up with.  And you know how that happens?  By turning the first love interest into a bad guy.  One of these series is very well known and I could mention it, but I'm not mentioning any books or authors so I don't spoil anything for anyone. That one made me crazy.  But then I read another series, and the first guy suddenly turns evil.  I mean, EVIL.  There is some explanation, but I was shocked.  And so she ends up with some guy that was barely in the first two books (to be honest, I don't even know if he was in the first book).  

Part of me thinks this is a good thing.  Shakes things up.  It's unexpected.  But what annoys me is that it's because the first guy changes into someone else.  Versus the girl just realizing that he's not the one.  

So that leads me to my dilemma.  Should I read this last book?  I'm telling you, this guy is amazing.  He is wonderful.  And if the author turns him evil, I will be incredibly angry.  But it's hard for me to know this and not read it and see how it all happens.  This author has never even had a love triangle in any of her other series, so this was different to begin with, and then for this to happen.  Help!  What should I do? 

And have you read many books where the girl ends up with a different guy from the first guy?  Where she ends up with the interfering guy?  

Posted by:  Pam