Rick Riordan in Toronto!

Rick Riordan was at the Yorkdale Indigo today!
The line was HUGE and everywhere. Really, everywhere. In and around book shelves, down stairs, around stairs...everywhere.So luckily, my cousin and I somehow got confused and cut in line much closer than we should have got but we aren`t complaining ;)

He was very quick and efficient with the signing process and although I left before it had concluded, with the way things were going, I`m certain everyone would have had the oppertunity to have their copies of The Red Pyramid and Percy Jackson books signed.

He is truly a hero of mine and it was great to meet him!
Oh, and guess who likes my book mark?

Mr. Riordan. =)

And The Winner of The Smudge Contest Is....

Maggie!
A huge congratulations goes out to her for being the winner of The Novel Emporium's very first contest! As the winner, she will be recieving a signed copy of Smudge's Mark!



For those of you who entered but did not win this time around, thank you for your entries and you'll be happy to know that new contests are in the works.

And lastly, my fellow readers, if you haven't done so already, pick up a copy of Smudge's Mark by Claudia Osmond at your nearest bookstore! You will not be disappointed!

Last Day to Enter The Make Your Mark With Some Sort of Mark Contest

Hello everyone,
Just a reminder that today is the last day you can enter The Make Your Mark With Some Sort of Mark Contest to win a signed copy of Claudia Osmond's Smudge's Mark!

All entries must be in before 12:00 am (est) time tonight!
Winner to be announced Saturday, April 3, 2010

Good luck to everyone!

Cheryl Rainfield's SCARS Book Trailer!

Also, check out the awesome contest going on at her website !

The Make Your Mark With Some Sort of Mark Contest

I am very excited to announce The Novel Emporium's very first contest!
The Make Your Mark With Some Sort of Mark Contest, to be exact(or the ever more simple,The Smudge Giveaway,for short).

The prize for this first TNE contest is rather fitting as Claudia Osmond is the first author I met in person.
And what is the prize, you ask?
A signed copy of her debut novel Smudge's Mark!



Last December,Claudia Osmond was named my favourite 2009 Debut Author and her novel is an exceptional and original story that I believe both children and adults will enjoy. For more information on the novel,check out http://smudgesmark.com/.

 

Contest Rules & Details

Deadline: Friday, April 2nd, 2010
Open to: All residents (International)
How to enter:
In the comments section, name something that leaves a mark.(for example crayons or lipstick)Please include your name and email address in the comment,so that I can contact you if you win.

That will grant you one entry into the draw.

To better your chances,you can do one or all of the following and receive one extra entry for each:
1)Post your own photograph or drawing of the mark you name(+1)(If we are sticking with the crayon example, a photograph of your two year old sister's drawing on the wall would be fab. Perhaps not so much for the house but for the contest it would work wonders!)
2)Subscribe to The Novel Emporium (+1)
-Tell others about the Make Your Mark With Some Sort of Mark contest,
via 3)Twitter(+1)(please provide username)
4)Facebook Status(+1) (please provide link)
and/or 5)Blog Entry(+1) (please provide link)

So there you have it! Everyone who comments and names something that makes a mark, is guaranteed at least one entry.

Good luck to everyone!

Goodies from Carrie Ryan!

I recieved goodies from Carrie Ryan, author of The Forest of Hands and Teeth and the newly released The Dead-Tossed Waves, in the mail today!
I love it all!"Eat. Prey. Love"... That is fantastic!

Also, just a reminder, Kimberly Derting's debut novel The Body Finder hits shelves tomorrow!

TBF Street Team

Guess who has just landed a spot (and unexpectedly so)on The Body Finder Street Team? I'm so excited!

The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting first caught my attention when I was compiling a list of 2010 debut novels for thestorysiren's challenge. I have been eagerly awaiting the book's release since then and I can not express how excited I am to be given the oppertunity to promote the book in my area!

The Body Finder is officially released March 16, 2010.

I posted the book trailer about a month and a half ago but for those who haven't seen it yet, click here to be redirected to The Body Finder book trailer post.

Lisa McMann & Becca Fitzpatrick in Toronto!

Today, authors Lisa McMann (Wake, Fade, Gone) and Becca Fitzpatrick (Hush, Hush) were in Toronto to meet their Canadian fans who much adore them. (Myself among them)



It took an hour to get downtown and my parking ticket expired about half way through the signing but we took our chances! (Just a quick thought....why do the book signing events that I attend always involve complications with my car?) Everything was okay though, I did not recieve a ticket!



I'm so glad I got to meet them as I have been anticipating the event for quite some time!
They were both lovely and very funny.

I hope they visit again soon!

For those of you who haven't heard of these authors....
1st- Where have you been??
2nd- Check out Lisa McMann at her blog or on facebook and Becca Fitzpatrick at her website or on facebook

Blog News & McMann/Fitzpatrick Signing in Toronto

Hello all,

I hope the new year has been treating you well! It has been some time since my last update.

First, I have some blog related news. Due to the intensity of school work and other commitments that are overwhelming me at this time, I will not be posting book reviews until the school year comes to highly anticipated end. HOWEVER, book and book signing news and contest related content will still be updated regularly, so stay tuned! =)

As always, my goodreads account will be updated often and though complete book reviews are not available at this time, my rating will still be posted.Clickhere to visit my profile.

Second, authors Lisa McMann(Wake,Fade and Gone) and Becca Fitzpatrick (Hush,Hush) will be in Toronto- Wednesday, March 3rd. The details are as follows:
Date:Wednesday, 03 March 2010
Time:19:00 - 21:00
Location: Yonge & Eglinton Indigo Bookstore
Street: 2300 Yonge Street
Town/City: Toronto, ON

Hope to see you all there!

The Body Finder Trailer

The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting
will be released in March of this year!

For your viewing enjoyment, I give you the new splendid book trailer =)

Triple Book Launch @ Yorkdale Indigo

January has certainly been a month for book signings and book launches!

Today was the triple book launch of:
Deborah Kerbel's Girl on The Other Side
Marina Cohen's Ghost Ride
and Mahtab Narsimhan's The Silver Anklet


The ladies introduced their stories, cut amazing bookcover cakes and signed copies of their novels. I believe I recognized other authors in attandance but seeing as how I know them on a "I-follow-you-on-twitter" basis, I wasn't quite sure how to introduce myself haha! It is really wonderful to see how they support each other. I'm very much in favour of supporting local talent and I believe that without it, many authors would not get the recognition and encouragment that they deserve.

I have read both Deb's and Marina's books and really enjoyed them. I can not wait to start Mahtab's books because I am already captivated by the summary. For more information about the three authors and their novels, check out Dundurn.com

Darklight Book Launch

Darklight by Lesley Livingston (The sequel to Wondrous Strange and second book in the trilogy)is available for purchase and as I am a huge fan of havoc causing fair folk, 'through-the-depths-of-hell-and-we'll-still-survive' romance, and New York, New York- I can't simply praise this series enough.

As the title of the post suggests, today was the book launch party for Darklight.


The event was held at the Dominion on Queen in Toronto. Lesley read an excerpt from the novel, revealed the new book trailer for Darklight and signed many many books. (The line went from one end of the room to the other and it became the means for cake transportation. Cake? Yep, for it was also Lesley's birthday!)


Such a pretty cake!

I was very fortunate to attend the event because I not only had the oppertunity to meet the clever woman behind the beautiful books but I also got to see what an awesome person she is. She was exceptionally funny!

There was one such incident that had me laughing out loud.


Hahaha, yes that is an 'H' crossed out! I thought it was hilarious and didn't really mind that she forgot about the no 'H' but she adjusted the signature in her own way, which made me laugh even more. And though she most certainly is -not- an idiot (as her little comment reads), it really does show her lovely sense of humour and I now have a story to go with a very unique Lesley Livingston signature =)

It was a fantastic event and I can not wait for the third installment in the series!

Holidaze with the Debs @ the Eaton Centre

Today was the much anticipated Holidaze with the Debs event in Toronto!



I drove straight from work (in Mississauga) to the Eaton Centre. I had less than a quarter tank of gas, took the non-highway route because I'm still not entirely comfortable with them (even after 5 years...) and handed my keys to the odd man at the parking lot who requested them. Odd? Perhaps. I figured that maybe that is how parking worked in the big city. I mean...they had legit enough signs posted. Luckily, no one took off with my car and I met with my friend Amena just outside the Indigo in the mall.

The authors are all lovely! They are a very merry bunch =). The ladies were so friendly and it was great to meet new faces, as well as see a familar one (Hi Megan!)

The authors in attendance were Megan Crewe, Neesha Meminger, Rhonda Stapleton, and Lara Zielin and in spirit, Sarah Ockler.

Here are my goodies from the event!


Give up the Ghost by Megan Crewe -This is the third time I have bought this book. Once for myself, once for my cousin and this time for my friend, hence why this one is addressed to "Michelle". Amazing book!

Stupid Cupid by Rhonda Stapleton - This book sounds hilarious, I can't wait to read this!

Donut Days by Lara Zielin - Another one I'm eager to read and yes, I got donut seeds, Jealoouuss?

Shine, Coconut Moon by Neesha Meminger - This sounds like a really great novel- I've heard great things and I can't wait to start.

Smudge's Mark Book Trailer

So I may have been stuck in a shuttle bus from University of Toronto to the Mississauga campus for an hour and forty minutes and then left my favourite pair of mittens in said bus but things are a bit brighter now that I happened by special treat.

A new Smudge's Mark book trailer!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year's Day everyone =)

I apologize that I've been missing in action over the holidays. I thought I'd have plenty of spare time and I was wrong.However, I did get quite a fair bit of reading done and I hope to post new reviews soon!

I have mixed feelings about the year 2009 but when it comes to books I've read, it was by far one of the best. In total I read about 45 books. It was short of my 50 book goal but the goal was made late in the year, so I believe I can forgive myself.

2009 Highlights
Favourite YA Book of the Year : Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Favourite YA Author of the Year: Maggie Stiefvater
Favourite Children's 2009 Debut Author: Claudia Osmond - Smudge's Mark
Favourite YA 2009 Debut Author: Megan Crewe - Give Up the Ghost
Favourite Children's Series of 2009: Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
Favourite YA Series of 2009: Tie between The Immortal Instruments Trilogy by Cassandra Clare and The Hunger Games books by Suzanne Collins


And finally, what new year post would be complete without some goals?

So here are mine for 2010!

Blog Related
1) Post more reviews!
2) Host a contest soon

Book Related
1)Read at least 75 books this year
2)At least 30 of those being debut titles- more about that in my 2010 Debut Author Challenge Post
3)Read and Spotlight more Torkidlit authors

Personal
1)Write more. Much much more.
2)Be healthier
3)Reduce slackage in my last year at University of Toronto(Woot!). I'd eliminate it...but then leisure reading would suffer ;)

Wishing you all the best in the new year!
Cheers,
Miss Dormer at The Novel Emporium