Merry Christmas!

In this crazy holiday season, we should try to remember what's really important: friends and family that have been there for us over the years. I don't think that there's a better present than that. I know that I'm feeling extremely lucky this year for all of the loved ones that I have been gifted with - and I'm including all of you as well. There's not enough words to express my gratitude for you all in supporting this little blog of mine.

Let's also keep in mind those that aren't lucky enough to get to spend the holidays with their families. If you pray, maybe send a little prayer that way. If you don't, then you can always do like my non-Christian friends and send good vibes. Either way, keep them in your thoughts as you're spending time with the ones you love. And if you see someone that looks like they're having a less than spectacular holiday, then take the time to offer them a smile and a "Merry Christmas." You never know what something as simple as that can do for people during this stressful time.

I'll be pretty scarce for the next week, but I'll be back in full-force very soon. Until then, enjoy the holidays ... and be safe!

Much love.

In My Mailbox (6)

Hosted By: The Story Siren
Inspired By: Pop Culture Junkie

I haven't done an In My Mailbox post in over three weeks, so I hope you guys are ready for some craziness!

Banished, by Sophie Littlefield
Confessions of A Vampire's Girlfriend, by Katie MacAlister
The Demon Trapper's Daughter, by Jana Oliver



Devil's Kiss, by Sarwat Chadda
Five Flavors of Dumb, by Antony John
The Fortune of Carmen Navarro, by Jen Bryant



The Long Weekend, by Savita Kalhan
Memento Nora, by Angie Smibert
Night Star (The Immortals, #5), by Alyson Noel



Origins (The Vampire Diaries: Stefan's Diaries #1), by L.J. Smith
The Radleys, by Matt Haig
Shadow of the Sun (Timeless #1), by Laura Kreitzer



Trickster's Girl, by Hilari Bell
The Water Wars, by Cameron Stracher
XVI, by Julia Karr



Wish Stealer: A Dangerously Uncommon Tale, by Barbara Kolberg






Vampire Academy series (books 1-6), by Richelle Mead
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]




The Body Finder, by Kimberly Derting
The Candidates (Delcroix Academy #1), by Inara Scott
Crescendo (Hush, Hush #2), by Becca Fitzpatrick




Matched, by Ally Condie
Suck It, Wonder Woman!, by Olivia Munn

I seriously feel so overwhelmed right now, but I know my review books are a challenge that I can live up to. Also, because of said reviews and their deadlines ... I'm having to put the Vampire Academy series off for a few weeks, which makes me sad because I've so been looking forward to re-reading the first five and finally reading Last Sacrifice! Oh well, it'll just give me more motivation to read faster!! =)

New 2011 Feature Needs Your Help!

New feature, peoples! I was trying to figure out something to do on occasion to make a post more personal, yet still book-related in some way. My brainchild would be this: Thoughts On Thursday. Each Thursday, I'll select a topic and write out a post with my two cents on said topic. If you would like, you can join in as well by either commenting or making your own post and letting me know about it so I can read it.

I have a few topics already gathered from my book review journal (yes, I am that big of a book nerd) and various places, but I don't have as many as I'd like. So if you could take a moment out of your time, I'd like to know what you guys think. Below is a link to a form where you can enter your own topics. I like keeping these forms because it's easier for me to keep up with, especially with the amount of paperwork that I keep otherwise. Also, if you'd like credit and recognition for your own blog, I added a place where you can put that as well. If you don't want to get credit, just leave it blank.

Thanks so much for your help!!

!! FORM HERE !!

Edit: If you need help, an example of a topic that I have is: "Do other bloggers' reviews influence you to add more books to your TBR list?" or "What's your blogging schedule like?"

New 2011 Features!

I am interrupting Monday's typical posting of "Monday Readings" for some very exciting news. I have two reasons for doing this: (1) My reading schedule this week is based on review books I've yet to receive, so it's a little up in the air, and (2) I'm bouncing in my seat to share this information with you guys!

It's that time, guys! I told you all that I would share what I have in store for 2011 on this blog as soon as I knew more. Well, I know more!

Here are some of the confirmed features that I will have active on Missy's Reads & Reviews for the year 2011.


After Hours

I read a lot of books, which is no secret. The part that may amaze you is that I read about as many non-YA books as I do YA books. However, my blog has pretty much been YA-based – so all you see is the couple of reviews I do per week for Young Adult books. I still want this blog to be more about YA, but I think it's doing an injustice to all of the other books I read to not review them as well. So, one of my ideas was After Hours, which will be what I call for non-YA books that I read. However, they'll be scheduled differently than YA. Where YA is scheduled to post in the mornings, After Hours book reviews will be posted after 8pm EST.

There will also be reviews for more adult-oriented books that I read (Lords of the Underworld being the first one off the top of my head), so they'll be posted with an "Mature" warning as well - along with scheduled posts more on the weekends.

Before & After

I'm exceptionally excited about this because it will be a feature including a nice number of 2011 debut authors! This feature is a more personal look at the authors behind our most anticipated debut books for the year. Before & After is a showcase of how an author feels before and after their big debut release. I have been researching and e-mailing like crazy … and so far, the response has been wonderful.

First Line Fridays

This one is pretty much self-explanatory. On Fridays, I'll be starting a meme where I post the first lines to some random reads – whether they are some of my favorite reads, current reads, anticipated reads, or whatever I may feel like posting.

Self-Published Saturdays

I get requests from authors that are self-published every now and then. Since I don't post much on Saturdays, I've decided to reserve these reviews for these days.

Then & Now

This is a companion feature to Before & After, though it will feature 2010 debut authors. The point of this is about the same as Before & After – but authors will share how they felt THEN (last year before they were published) and what they're working on NOW. I'm still working out the kinks on this one, so it may make it's debut in February or March.

So, there they are. Some of the new 2011 features for my blog. What do you think?

Edit: You'll also notice an increase in random posts on policies and other things within the next few days. Please excuse them. I'm prepping for a better 2011 - and part of that is the nitty, gritty posts that are a necessity!