January 28, 2014

Teaser Tuesday/First Chapter, First Paragraph Tuesday Intros/Top Ten Tuesday


There are so many awesome memes happening on Tuesdays that I couldn't pick just one. This post is a combination of Teaser Tuesday hosted by Should Be Reading, First Chapter, First Paragraph intro hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea, and Top Ten Tuesday hosted by Broke and Bookish



First is Teaser Tuesday hosted by Should Be Reading. For this meme simply grab your current read, flip to a random page, and share 2 non-spoiler teaser sentences from that page! For my Teaser Tuesday, I'll be posting from a book that I got from the library yesterday- Between Shades of Gray by Ruda Sepetys.

Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously--and at great risk--documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.

I flipped to page 92 to see:
"Lina," said Mother. "This is serious. The Soviets could arrest you if they saw your drawing."
and
"Is that what you want?" he finally asked. "To blow up the Soviets?" 

For my First Chapter, First Paragraph where you share the first paragraph of a book you're reading or will be reading soon, I picked Crewel by Gennifer Albin.

Incapable. Awkward. Artless.

That’s what the other girls whisper behind her back. But sixteen-year-old Adelice Lewys has a secret: She wants to fail.

Gifted with the ability to weave time with matter, she’s exactly what the Guild is looking for, and in the world of Arras, being chosen to work the looms is everything a girl could want. It means privilege, eternal beauty, and being something other than a secretary. It also means the power to manipulate the very fabric of reality. But if controlling what people eat, where they live, and how many children they have is the price of having it all, Adelice isn’t interested.

Not that her feelings matter, because she slipped and used her hidden talent for a moment. Now she has one hour to eat her mom’s overcooked pot roast. One hour to listen to her sister’s academy gossip and laugh at her dad’s jokes. One hour to pretend everything’s okay. And one hour to escape.

Because tonight, they’ll come for her.

The first paragraph of the intro is:
They came in the night. Once, families fought them, neighbors coming to their aid. But now that peace has been established, and the looms proven, girls pray to be retrieved. They still come at night, but now it's to avoid the masses with eager hands. It's a blessing to touch a Spinster as she passes. That's what they tell us. 

The question for this week's Top Ten Tuesday is:
"Top Ten Worlds I'd Never Want To Live In" 
This is an interesting question because usually when we read books we want to pretend we're in that world. But there are some books that I'm just grateful I'm not in their shoes! In no particular order, the worlds I'd hate to live in are:




  • Panem from the Hunger Games series
  • America from Steelheart
  • America from Delirium
  • America from Maze Runner series
  • America from The Selection
  • America from The Chemical Garden series
  • America from All These Things I've Done
  • America from The Razorland
  • America from The Partials Sequence
  • The Uglies Trilogy
  • All of my top ten feature a future that leaves something to be desired. They are all awesome reads but a horrible way to live.
    That's the end of my teaser, first chapter intro, and top tens list. Do you participate in any memes? Do you like reading about them? What do you think about the teasers I posted? Do you prefer reading a random page in a book or the first paragraph when you're looking at a book to read? Would you keep reading based off that intro? What book world would you hate to live in? Leave me a comment and let me know!

    44 comments:

    1. I really want to read Shades of Gray. I've heard so many good things about it and it sounds like something I would really like. I haven't heard of Crewel, but I really like the cover.

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      1. When I heard the title I was afraid it was going to be something like Shades of Grey and I wasn't interested in reading it. Then I read the summary on the South Carolina YA Book Award Nominees and it sounded good. As for Crewel, isn't that a beautiful cover?? That's what made me pick it up. Thanks for stopping by!

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    2. Wow, Shades of Gray gives the impression of a pretty intense read - I hope you are enjoying it! Thank you for stopping by my teasers!

      Keely @ Realms of an Open Mind

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      1. It does sound intense and I don't think it'll be an easy read. But hopefully it'll be a good one. Thanks for stopping by!

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    3. I'm just worried about all those women who would buy Between Shades of Gray hoping for 50 Shades of Gray. Very different kind of book, from what I've heard. Good teasers. Here's Mine

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      1. That's what I was afraid of when I saw it in the library! I saw it and thought it was a 50 Shades of Gray for teens and I wanted nothing to do with it. It wasn't until I read a summary that I realized it sounded like an interesting read. Thanks for stopping by!

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    4. Hope you enjoy Between Shades of Gray as much as I did.

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      1. I haven't started it yet but if you enjoyed it so much it'll definitely be my next read! Thanks for stopping by!

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    5. Great teaser! I read another book by Ruth Sepetys and loved it. I need to bump Between Shades of Gray up my TBR pile :)

      My TT: http://thefictionenthusiast.blogspot.com/2014/01/red-rising-release-day-blast-giveaway.html

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      1. I haven't read anything by her so this will be my first taste of her. If this book is as good as everyone says it is, it probably won't be my last. Thanks for stopping by!

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    6. Great teaser! Shades of Gray has my interest.

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      1. I've heard great things about it! I'll be sure to post my review as soon as I'm done to tell you what I thought of it. Thanks for stopping by!

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    7. I had heard of Shades of Grey but not thought much of it but that teaser almost makes me wonder about it. :) Crewel sounds cool as well. I opted out of the Top Ten today as I could only think of one world that I have read that I wouldn't like and that was from The fever series. :)

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      1. Between Shades of Gray sounds like a great book set during the Soviet's height in power. I haven't started it so I can't recommend it but I've heard good things about it. I thought Crewel had such a beautiful cover and interesting plot. I had to pick it up. This Top Ten was fun for me since I'm such a fan of dystopian novels. I love reading about dystopias but I couldn't imagine living in a place where children were forced to fight to the death for entertainment like in Hunger Games. I did include Chemical Gardens in my list- Wither and Fever are part of the series. I especially couldn't imagine living in a place where love was considered a disease and people looked forward to the cure.

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    8. Those are great! Thanks for sharing and coming by my blog today!

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    9. Between Shades of Gray sounds like a good read.

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      1. I've heard good things about it. I can't wait to start it.

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    10. The world of Steelheart made my list too. I LOVED that book. I remembered the world of Uglies after I finished and published my list. Thanks for sharing! ~Megan
      http://wp.me/pzUn5-1PV

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      1. Steelheart was a great book! I think we all long for superpowers and real life heros but this took that and turned it on its head. It was such an interesting read. It popped in my head when I was thinking of worlds I'd hate to live in. It was a great topic for a list.

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    11. I really really REALLY want to read Between shades of Grey, what a great teaser!

      Thanks for stopping by my blog, I thought I'd return the favor :)

      Happy reading!
      AmandaEmma @ Little Miss Reader

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      1. It's supposed to be an great read! I've heard great things about it. Thanks for stopping by!

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    12. I like the tease from the first book. that's great! has my attention!
      trish - my teaser

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      1. It seems like a really interesting read so far. It's a nominee for the SC YA Book Award.

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    13. Crewel sounds interesting. I enjoy fantasy/paranormal sometimes. I'd keep reading.

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      1. It has such a beautiful cover and interesting plot! I enjoy young adult fantasies. Thanks for stopping by!

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    14. Between Shades of Gray: As someone who grew up in a communist country (though not in the war years and not under such terrible conditions) this would be a very very interesting read for me. we were taught a very skewed view of history in school, and isn't it the case that historical fiction teaches us so wonderfully about a certain era? (rather than reading a school history book I mean).

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      1. That's one reason I picked it up. Not because I have a background in such a country- but to read more about this culture and time in history. I've heard good things about this book and I can't wait to start it. The thing is, we're taught a skewed view of history in every culture. History is written by the winner I suppose. Thanks for stopping by and leaving your input!

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    15. Yes, I definitely wouldn't want to live in the world where Scott Westerfield's Uglies is set. *shivers* Also, really nice teasers!
      Ninja Girl

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      1. Uglies is such an interesting world! It's definitely scary. Thanks for stopping by!

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    16. I think Between Shades of Gray would make me cry. It sounds like an amazing book!
      Oh I've been meaning to read Crewel for a while. Hope you're enjoying your reads! Thanks for sharing & stopping by Book Munchies.

      ps. I wouldn't want to live in Panem either haha. (And I really want to read Steelheart!)

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      1. I'm sure it'll make me cry before the end. But the books that make you cry are always the best books.
        I love Crewel's cover! The plot sounds so interesting too.
        Panem would be an awful place to live. So would the world of Steelheart! Steelheart is an awesome book but a scary world!

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    17. Great intro, I'd keep reading. thanks so much for joining us this week. Hope you become a regular weekly participant.

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      1. I had to remind myself that I had things to do yesterday I didn't just have time to keep reading after that intro caught my attention haha. I really enjoy First Chapter First Paragraph. I hope I'll be able to a part of it more often. Thanks for stopping by!

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    18. Great teaser! It different caught my attention! Thank you for stopping by my TT @ Addicted Readers today!

      New GFC & Linky Follower! :)

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      1. Thanks for the follow! :)
        Its supposed to be an interesting book and I've heard good things about it. Thanks for stopping by!

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    19. I've wanted to read Between Shades of Grey for forever, but never have! That teaser is awesome, though, so I might have to change that. :)

      Rachel @ Paper Cuts

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      1. It seems like a great book and I've heard great things about it. Thanks for stopping by!

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    20. Sounds like an intense read with a powerful opening. Hope you enjoy your books!
      :)

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      1. I expect to cry at least once to Between Shades of Gray because it does sound intense but in a good way. Thanks for stopping by!

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    21. both books sound great and your lists is bad--very bad (as in places to live). kelley—the road goes ever ever on

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      1. I love dystopians so it was easy to think of places I WOULDN'T want to live. Hahaha thanks for stopping by!

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    22. Good list, I agree that the worlds of The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner and the Uglies are ones that I never want to live in.

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      1. It's funny that I enjoy books with worlds I'd hate to live in so much because usually when I read I feel like I'm part of the book and I'm fighting alongside the hero but I love dystopians. Maybe it was easy for me to put together this list because in a way I've already been to these worlds. Thanks for stopping by!

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