Archives for May 2015

MONTHLY RECAP | May 2015 – Best Month of The Year

May 31, 2015 Comments : 12

may

MAY IS THE BEST MONTH OF THE YEAR. WHY? BECAUSE IT’S JUST FABULOUS. And no, I’m totally not biased because it’s also the month I was born in. Not at all. ;D

WHAT’S UP?

My birthday is the best.

IT WAS GLORIOUS.

It was really chill, which is how I prefer to spend my birthday. I didn’t really do anything special; I just hung out with a couple of friends, and it was the best! (I don’t usually get to see my friends on my birthday in the previous years because my birthday always fell on graduation weekend, so I was incredibly excited to have actually seen them this year.) I got a few presents from friends—graphic novels (YESSSSSSSSSSSSS), romance books, gift cards, and gag gifts about my age—y’know, the usual.

My blog design got a face-lift.

I unveiled my blog design’s “new” look on my birthday. You can tell I’m getting read for SUMMERRRRR. No more teal or the crab. Bright colors, planets, and stars. Different and fabulous social media. You can read more about the changes over here! 😍

I got the business cards I ordered last month!

WHEEEEEEEE.

Isn’t it frickin’ gorgeous? Look at those topographical lines + the hermit crab + the coords. 😍🙌 (I do wish my current blog coloring is on the business cards to match, but it’s okay since my blog design’s changes were created after I ordered it.)

Events

ARMCHAIR BEA 2015 | Giveaway – The Elemental series by Brigid Kemmerer

May 30, 2015 Comments : 6

[quote]BookExpo America (BEA) is the big book convention held in New York where authors, bloggers, and publishers get together and makes every book lover cry – either in joy (because they were able to attend and get to meet authors and get ARCs) or in sadness (because those who are unable to attend have prior engagements).

Since I get go to BEA, I’ve decided to take part in Armchair BEA, which is basically a virtual conference for people who cannot attend the actual convention. Let’s get this started, shall we?[/quote]

To end Armchair BEA, I wanted to host a giveaway to treat all of you who cannot make it to BEA. Although I don’t have any upcoming 2015 books that I am able to give away, I do have a series that I think you all should really check out! I’ll be giving away the first three books of The Elemental series by Brigid Kemmerer. (The first two books are signed!)

Events

ARMCHAIR BEA 2015 | Blogging 101 – Favorite Blog Designs

May 29, 2015 Comments : 10

#1 tip: You need a gorgeous website design.

Lots of people judge something by how it looks, and the web design is the first impression that readers get when they visit your blog.

Say I visit a blog that has a black background with neon green color in a Comic Sans font or narrow content area or extremely cluttered everything, will I want to stick around to read the content? No. I’m more inclined to close the tab and go somewhere else. Your web design can essentially make your readers stick around or drive them away. (You want the former!)

I love when blogs I read have a fabulous designs. It makes me want to twirl in its awesomeness. I have listed the blogs/websites with designs that I love. (None of which include my blog design, which is an automatic “duh, this is a fabulous design, but no ego boosting for me.” Most of the designs I showcase here don’t use too much, but they have great illustrations, colors, and lettering that makes them stand out.

THESE PAPER HEARTS

[note note_color=”#BFD1D1″ text_color=”#ffffff”]Design by These Paper Hearts · Illustrations by Julianna Swaney[/note]

When I saw These Paper Hearts‘s current blog design, I’m pretty sure my eyes turned into hearts. I am a fan of Julianna Swaney’s work; her illustrations have a whimsicalness that just works. The design does a beautiful job of accommodating the header illustration, which I love because I’ve seen many designs that have illustrations that just doesn’t work with the layout. The colors are great because it complements well with each other and it’s not too muted. (And did I talk about that header already? ;D)

Comics

ARMCHAIR BEA 2015 | Visual Expressions: My First-ish Comic Books!

May 28, 2015 Comments : 9

DAY TWO: VISUAL EXPRESSIONS

My First-ish Comic Books!

Okay, I have to confess: I don’t quite remember my first comic book. You know what I do remember? The re-introductory to that genre.

Events

ARMCHAIR BEA 2015 | Introduction

May 27, 2015 Comments : 12

This is my third year doing Armchair BEA, and although I yearn to be where the excitement is in New York with friends, I’m equally excited to partake in this event and get to know people!

Tell us a bit about yourself: How long have you been blogging? Where are you from? How did you get into blogging?

I am the fabulous Cee! I run this awesome blog, The Novel Hermit, where I’ve been book blogging for two and a half years! Things I love: books (YA, general, romance, alllllll of them!), typography awesomeness, cover design, heists/thieves, found families, comic books/graphic novels, lady superheroes, and the one and only Eyebrow King Lee Pace.

Reviews

(ARC) REVIEW | Thoughts You Will Have When You Read Tiny Pretty Things

May 26, 2015 Comments : 3

Black Swan meets Pretty Little Liars in this soapy, drama-packed novel featuring diverse characters who will do anything to be the prima at their elite ballet school.

Gigi, Bette, and June, three top students at an exclusive Manhattan ballet school, have seen their fair share of drama. Free-spirited new girl Gigi just wants to dance—but the very act might kill her. Privileged New Yorker Bette’s desire to escape the shadow of her ballet star sister brings out a dangerous edge in her. And perfectionist June needs to land a lead role this year or her controlling mother will put an end to her dancing dreams forever. When every dancer is both friend and foe, the girls will sacrifice, manipulate, and backstab to be the best of the best.

myreview

[note note_color=”#BFD1D1″ text_color=”#ffffff”]I received this book for free from Edelweiss + HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.[/note]

First sentence: “It always feels like death.”

Two words that describe Tiny Pretty Things perfectly: Exhausting and addicting.

Tiny Pretty Thing follows three top ballet dancers—Gigi, Bette,and June—who are all competing to be the prima ballerina. Gigi is the California-born new girl who becomes the main target of harassment when she is cast as a leading role in The Nutcracker; Bette is the Queen Bee and ultimate mean girl who wants to get from under her older sister’s shadow and will do just about everything that shake up the competition; and June is always casted in the understudy role, and wants the spotlight to shine her to stop her mother from ending her dreams. These girls will stop at nothing to reach their goals even if it means bullying, backstabbing, and the like.