Our very first trip to Yallfest was a success. We met some of our favorite authors, explored and fell in love with the beautiful city of Charleston, met some wonderful people and wore ourselves out!
Day 1
The first signing we planned to attend didn't begin until 2 pm which allowed us the chance to sleep in and take our time exploring the town. We wandered around, checked out the little shops, picked up some souvenirs and simply enjoyed ourselves.
The first author we met, and managed to be first in line for, was Ally Condie. We each had our complete set of the Matched trilogy signed. This was our second time meeting Ally. We first bumped into her at SDCC back in 2013. She told us that we were very dedicated and asked if we'd be attending YallWest next year. Don't ask us twice, we are always looking for an excuse to visit California.
Next we hopped over to meet Lauren Oliver, who is sweet, funny and an awesome writer! She was surprised that I had already managed to finish reading Replica, which I loved, and signed both Lyra and Gemma's sides of the book. My copy was already pre-signed when I purchased it so it now sports three wonderful signatures.
Day 2
We made it just in time for First In Line's Biscuit Brunch where we met Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff the writers of Illuminae. We were even given a free copy of Illuminae! Right before we made it to her table, Amie was being whisked away for her panel. I was so disappointed that I wouldn't be able to meet her when suddenly she stopped beside our line, snatched our books and signed them for us, apologizing and promising that Jay would finish personalizing them, which was incredibly kind of her and we were thrilled.
Jay was also very nice and did personalize our books. We were given free First In Line tote bags, bookmarks, buttons, biscuits and we scored an ARC of the Whole Thing Together by Ann Brashares which I will be reviewing shortly.
We met Maggie Stiefvater, who was incredibly friendly and asked if we had read and enjoyed her books. We made an attempt to meet the amazing Leigh Bardugo but her line was insane! After waiting on the sidewalk for what seemed like ages, we realized the line wasn't moving, we were cold, tired and still had a 7 hour trip home looming before us, sadly we decided to leave the line and run over to our final signing of the day, Kendare Blake.
The Three Dark Crown's author was lovely to meet. She personalized our books, and took pictures with us. We are both huge fans and were thrilled that our trip ended on a great note. The only regret I have is that I didn't get into Leigh Bardugo's line super early. Maybe if I had set up camp there a week earlier, I would have made it in to meet her. Next time, Leigh, next time!
Overall, Yallfest was a great experience and we will definitely be back.
Replica (Replica #1) by Lauren Oliver
Published By: HarperCollins
Published By: HarperCollins
Publication Date: October 4, 2016
Genre: YA, Sci-fi
Frozen Tides (Falling Kingdoms 4) by Morgan Rhodes
Published By: Razorbill
Published By: Razorbill
Publication Date: December 15, 2015
Genre: YA, High Fantasy
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Publisher: Ember (February 10, 2010)
Mary lives in a small village that is surrounded by the Forest of Hands and Teeth. There is only a fence keeping the village safe from the Unconsecrated (zombies). One day that fence is breached and her world is completely shattered.
The village is run by the Sisterhood, very religious and very controlling. After Mary is sent to live with them she learns they are hiding some very dark secrets. One night a girl named Gabrielle shows up in the village but the Sisterhood hides her away in the Cathedral. They do not want the villagers to know that there are others out there beyond the fence. The book wasn't very clear on how it happened, although we know the sisters are behind it, but Gabrielle has become one of the Unconsecrated. A super strong and fast one. She breaks through the fence and unleashes all the Unconsecrated into the village. Only Mary and a few others were able to make it out. This is where the story really kicks off!
Mary isn't your typical heroine. She is very self centered, stubborn, and a bit immature. But unlike most people in her village she also has a dream to one day leave the village and see the ocean from her mothers stories that have been passed down for generations. It is this dream that keeps her going when everyone else has lost hope. Although there were times when I wish she would just shut up about seeing the ocean! We do see her grow a bit throughout the book. She has to make some horribly sad decisions and this definitely changes her and motivates her to live, to make it to that damn ocean.
There is a love triangle of course! Or maybe this would be more of a love...square? Mary is in love with Travis. Travis is betrothed to her best friend, Cass. Mary has become (a little unwillingly) betrothed to Travis's brother, Harry, who has been in love with her since they were young.. But Cass is in love with Harry. Let me tell you, it is a MESS. Ah, young love.
This isn't a very action packed or gorey zombie story, but it is very intriguing and I couldn't put it down. It doesn't end with what I would call a cliffhanger, but it does seem to just END. I can't wait to start reading the second book, The Dead-Tossed Waves, and find out the fate of Mary and the others!
-BW
The village is run by the Sisterhood, very religious and very controlling. After Mary is sent to live with them she learns they are hiding some very dark secrets. One night a girl named Gabrielle shows up in the village but the Sisterhood hides her away in the Cathedral. They do not want the villagers to know that there are others out there beyond the fence. The book wasn't very clear on how it happened, although we know the sisters are behind it, but Gabrielle has become one of the Unconsecrated. A super strong and fast one. She breaks through the fence and unleashes all the Unconsecrated into the village. Only Mary and a few others were able to make it out. This is where the story really kicks off!
Mary isn't your typical heroine. She is very self centered, stubborn, and a bit immature. But unlike most people in her village she also has a dream to one day leave the village and see the ocean from her mothers stories that have been passed down for generations. It is this dream that keeps her going when everyone else has lost hope. Although there were times when I wish she would just shut up about seeing the ocean! We do see her grow a bit throughout the book. She has to make some horribly sad decisions and this definitely changes her and motivates her to live, to make it to that damn ocean.
There is a love triangle of course! Or maybe this would be more of a love...square? Mary is in love with Travis. Travis is betrothed to her best friend, Cass. Mary has become (a little unwillingly) betrothed to Travis's brother, Harry, who has been in love with her since they were young.. But Cass is in love with Harry. Let me tell you, it is a MESS. Ah, young love.
This isn't a very action packed or gorey zombie story, but it is very intriguing and I couldn't put it down. It doesn't end with what I would call a cliffhanger, but it does seem to just END. I can't wait to start reading the second book, The Dead-Tossed Waves, and find out the fate of Mary and the others!
-BW
Stealing Snow (Stealing Snow #1) by Danielle Paige
Published By: Bloomsbury USA Children's
Published By: Bloomsbury USA Children's
Publication Date: September 20, 2016
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Retelling
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| Just look at those gorgeous red stained pages! |
