Don't miss the latest Shelf Byte podcast feature! You'll hear a spoiler-free book or audiobook review in 5 minutes(ish) or less!
​
In this episode I'm sharing my thoughts the audiobook version of Consumed (Firefighters #1), by J.R. Ward!  Have you read (or listened to) it already? If so, let's start a conversation about it. Comment below!

Welcome to another #BuddyReads. What's a Buddy Read? Me and a fellow book nerd select a stand alone title that we'll either read, listen to, or a combination of both, then we chat about it on the podcast! This is a candid and spoiler-filled convo covering women's issues and topics, so you've been warned!

Classy Green, friend, fellow book lover, audiobook listener, and Shelf Addiction reviewer joined me on the podcast to discuss The Poet X written by Elizabeth Acevedo. I listened to the audiobook, and Classy did a read/listen combo with the book and audiobook.

​If you've already read The Poet X, leave a comment and let us know what you thought about it.

Publisher: HarperTeen/HarperAudio 
Release Date: March 6, 2018
Format: Hardcover/MP3 Download
Pages: Hardcover: 368 | Audio Length: 3 hrs 30 mins
Narrator: Elizabeth Acevedo
Source: Audible
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction/Poetry
Rating: 4 bookmarks - Tamara | 5 bookmarks - Classy

​Synopsis: A young girl in Harlem discovers slam poetry as a way to understand her mother’s religion and her own relationship to the world. Debut novel of renowned slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo.

Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.

But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself.

So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out, much less speak her words out loud. But still, she can’t stop thinking about performing her poems.

Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.​

​Today is the first episode of my new podcast feature called #BuddyReads. This is where me and a fellow book nerd either read or listen to or a combination of the both, discuss a stand-alone title.  As this is a book discussion, of course, there is a spoiler alert in effect.

Classy Green, friend, fellow book lover, audiobook listener, and Shelf Addiction reviewer joined me on the podcast to discuss Broken Things written by Lauren Oliver! I read the paperback ARC and Classy listened to the audiobook.

​If you've already read Broken Things, leave a comment and let us know what you thought about it.

Publisher: HarperCollins/HarperAudio 
Release Date: October 2, 2018
Format: Hardcover/MP3 Download
Pages: Hardcover: 408 | Audio Length: 9 hrs 50 mins
Narrators:​ Sarah Drew, Erin Spencer, Saskia Maarleveld
Source: Book Expo/Audible
Genre: YA Mystery/Thriller
Rating: 2 bookmarks (from both Classy and Tamara)

Synopsis: It’s been five years since Summer Marks was brutally murdered in the woods. 

Everyone thinks Mia and Brynn killed their best friend. That driven by their obsession with a novel called The Way into Lovelorn the three girls had imagined themselves into the magical world where their fantasies became twisted, even deadly.

The only thing is: they didn’t do it. 

On the anniversary of Summer’s death, a seemingly insignificant discovery resurrects the mystery and pulls Mia and Brynn back together once again. But as the lines begin to blur between past and present and fiction and reality, the girls must confront what really happened in the woods all those years ago—no matter how monstrous.​

This year, I am pleased to share with you the "Best of" in the Young Adult category from AudioFile Magazine's 2018 Best Audiobooks.  

Have you listened to any of the winners? If so, which were your favorites?

There are some great stories and narrators selected. If they are new to you, click the links to read AudioFile's reviews.

​Be sure to follow Twitter @audiofilemag; Facebook @audiofilemagazine to discover all of the AudioFile Magazine's 2018 Best Audiobooks!

It's that time again! Snow is falling (in some places), holiday shopping is gearing up, and we are getting ready to take planes, trains, and automobiles to visit family and friends. If you're not traveling, no worries, you can listen while cooking that huge holiday meal, or while wrapping gifts. I even listen while I'm out doing my holiday shopping!

Today I'm sharing my favorite audiobooks of 2018 (thus far). Not all of these were published this year, but I have listened to them all this year.  I hope you'll listen to a few of these gems during your holiday season. Also consider gifting any of my recommendations. They great gifts for both your audiobook listening friends and audiobook newbies! 

Be sure to stop by Audio Publishers Association website to see the complete schedule of blogs to visit. Each blogger will have audiobooks to share, recommended audiobooks, holiday listening, gift ideas, and books to travel with this season.

In addition to the audiobook recommendations, you'll also have many opportunities to win audiobooks generously donated by Beacon Press, High Bridge Audio, LA Theatre Words, Macmillan Audio, Penguin Random House Audio, Scholastic, Simon & Schuster Audio, and Tantor Audio.

Enter the Shelf Addiction giveaway for another chance to win!

​Don't miss the latest Shelf Addiction interview! On today's podcast episode I'm interviewing Robin Whitten, she shares the new AudioFile podcast and three audiobook picks!

​Robin currently serves on the board of Directors of the Audio Publishers Association as VP Member Communications. Beyond the field education of starting a magazine, Robin attended Stanford's Publishing Program and is a graduate of Vassar College. She lives in Portland, Maine where AudioFile is based.

Connect with AudioFile
Subscribe to the AudioFile Podcast | Twitter | Facebook

Are any of these books on your "to be read" list? If so, or if you've already read or listened to them, comment below and let me know how much you enjoyed the book(s)!

Publisher: Double Day/Random House Audio
Release Date: June 11, 2013 
Format: Hardcover/MP3 Download
Pages: Hardcover: 403 | Audio Length: 13 hrs 53 mins
Narrator:​ Lynn Chen
Source: Scribd
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 4 bookmarks

​Synopsis:  Crazy Rich Asians is the outrageously funny debut novel about three super-rich, pedigreed Chinese families and the gossip, backbiting, and scheming that occurs when the heir to one of the most massive fortunes in Asia brings home his ABC (American-born Chinese) girlfriend to the wedding of the season.

When Rachel Chu agrees to spend the summer in Singapore with her boyfriend, Nicholas Young, she envisions a humble family home, long drives to explore the island, and quality time with the man she might one day marry. What she doesn't know is that Nick's family home happens to look like a palace, that she'll ride in more private planes than cars, and that with one of Asia's most eligible bachelors on her arm, Rachel might as well have a target on her back. Initiated into a world of dynastic splendor beyond imagination, Rachel meets Astrid, the It Girl of Singapore society; Eddie, whose family practically lives in the pages of the Hong Kong socialite magazines; and Eleanor, Nick's formidable mother, a woman who has very strong feelings about who her son should--and should not--marry. Uproarious, addictive, and filled with jaw-dropping opulence, Crazy Rich Asians is an insider's look at the Asian JetSet; a perfect depiction of the clash between old money and new money; between Overseas Chinese and Mainland Chinese; and a fabulous novel about what it means to be young, in love, and gloriously, crazily rich.

The synopsis is true to the plot of the story. No hidden agenda here, you know going into it what type of book you're going to get. With all of the hoopla from the recent movie release, let's keep it real. You already know this is going to be a mostly light hearted, fun, dramatic, and a bit funny take on the extravagant lives of the "crazy rich" asians of Southeast Asia. If you go in expecting exactly that, you won't be disappointed. Is there vast and memorable character growth and reflection...no, not really. Is there lots of drama, fancy locations, romantic moments, and family drama...YES! Crazy Rich Asians takes you a fun and quick ride through the mega rich lifestyle many of us will never know.

When it comes to the characters, while I liked the main story of Rachel and Nick, I really enjoyed some of the characters that filled the subplot, mostly Astrid. Astrid's character almost steals the show in my opinion. I can't wait to find out what happens with her in the next book.

Publisher: Atria Books/Simon & Schuster Audio
Release Date: June 12, 2018
Format: Hardcover/MP3 Download
Pages: Hardcover: 352 | Audio Length: 13 hrs 6 mins
Narrator:​ Corey Brill, Rebekkah Ross
Source: Booksparks/Audiobook Publisher
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 3 bookmarks

Synopsis: Lucy Albright is far from her Long Island upbringing when she arrives on the campus of her small California college, and happy to be hundreds of miles from her mother, whom she’s never forgiven for an act of betrayal in her early teen years. Quickly grasping at her fresh start, Lucy embraces college life and all it has to offer—new friends, wild parties, stimulating classes. And then she meets Stephen DeMarco. Charming. Attractive. Complicated. Devastating.

Confident and cocksure, Stephen sees something in Lucy that no one else has, and she’s quickly seduced by this vision of herself, and the sense of possibility that his attention brings her. Meanwhile, Stephen is determined to forget an incident buried in his past that, if exposed, could ruin him, and his single-minded drive for success extends to winning, and keeping, Lucy’s heart.

Alternating between Lucy’s and Stephen’s voices, Tell Me Lies follows their connection through college and post-college life in New York City. Deep down, Lucy knows she has to acknowledge the truth about Stephen. But before she can free herself from this addicting entanglement, she must confront and heal her relationship with her mother—or risk losing herself in a delusion about what it truly means to love.

*This audiobook was provided by  the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This is not a love story. This book is not romantic. This is a story about dangerous and obsessive love with a strong statement about mental health. From lack of empathy to low self-esteem and eating disorders, there is a lot of internal conflicts that feed into this unhealthy relationship from both sides. I'm sure the ongoing drug use didn't help things. Consider this story more a cautionary tale of young and dumb love.

The characters are so realistic that when bad things happened, it promoted an audible reaction from me. Lucy and Stephan have the type of relationship that I wouldn't wish on anyone. Very dysfunctional. If you've ever dated even a mild sociopath, then you will be jarred by some of the things that Stephen does and that Lucy accepts.