Spring Blog Carnival! Welcome to the Parasol Parade! (Challenge+Give@way)

Welcome to start of the Spring Blog Carnival 2012!  This is our second year of hosting this fantastic event and while there have been a few changes I'm sure you'll have just as much fun!  This event is hosted by myself, Lori at Pure Imagination and Angela from Reading Angel.  It's similar to a blog hop but yet totally different.  The similarity is that you can win lots of goodies!  Each booth in the carnival is hosting a fantastic challenge with amazing prizes.  This event runs from May 7th-13th.
This event has ended!  We look forward to seeing you next year!

My booth is the Parasol Parade and I'm featuring all things Steampunk!

Welcome to the Parasol Parade!  Sit back and admire the gorgeous steampunk attire...

 Make sure you scroll all the way to end for the challenge as well as the list of all the other booths.

(All these are taken from pinterest, credits are below the pictures.)

Source: steampunk-beauties.tumblr.com via Candace on Pinterest

Source: browse.deviantart.com via Candace on Pinterest

Source: browse.deviantart.com via Candace on Pinterest

Source: steampunk-beauties.tumblr.com via Candace on Pinterest

Source: gilesbowkett.blogspot.com via Candace on Pinterest

Source: strawberryanarchy.blogspot.com via Candace on Pinterest

What you can win: Giveaway has ended

The fabulous people at Roc (Penguin) are sponsoring this giveaway.  They are giving away 5 sets of the Clockwork Empire books by Steven Harper.  This is The Doomsday Vault (my review) and The Impossible Cube (my review).  This means there will be 5 winners and each winner gets BOTH books.  Pretty awesome, right?  I LOVED these books! (Please note that I am not responsible for the shipping of these items and will not be held responsible if they do not arrive or arrive damaged.  However, please feel free to contact me if you do not receive them and I will look into the matter and do my best to assure they do arrive.)

Rules: Giveaway has ended
This is only open to US addresses.  If you are international but have someone in the US who can provide their address you are welcome to participate.  I apologize that we cannot provide shipping outside the US.

You must be 13 or older to accept these winnings.
This ends on May 13th at 11:29 EST

Challenge:Giveaway has ended

The challenge for you is one of two things.  You pick which one you would like to do.  Or you may do both and get two entries instead of the just one.

Challenge One:Giveaway has ended

The books featured for the prize are The Doomsday Vault and The Impossible Cube.  In the books inventions play a very big part.  When people in this world are infected with the Clockwork Plague they can become crazy smart and invent some insane things.  For this challenge describe something you would like to invent.  It does not have to be steampunk-like.  There are no limits.  (Meaning it doesn't have to be realistic.  It could be a time machine, a way to stop time, a flying contraption... anything.)  In  a comment do your very best to describe this item in the best detail possible.  You may also create a blog post for your entry if you would like.  Remember to leave a way to contact you in the comments!  (Email or twitter)

Challenge Two:

Because I love Steampunk fashion so much I would love to see some items YOU love that are Steampunk themed.  Post pictures on your blog or make a pinboard on pinterest and link me to it in a comment.  Please be sure to have the source listed if you post on your blog.  (If you don't have a blog or pinterest you may post on facebook as long as I can see it.)  Remember to leave a way to contact you in the comments! (Email or twitter)

How the winners are selected:Giveaway has ended

Because I want to see some effort put into the entries I will pick a winner each for the most creative invention from Challenge One and the most creative from Challenge Two.  The other 3 winners will be randomly selected from the remaining entries.  Obviously you can only win once.

Thanks so much for stopping by the Parasol Parade!  Be sure to stop by all the other fantastic booths listed below.  Or by checking out the Carnival Map which makes it even more fun because it'll feel more like a carnival!

Review: The Impossible Cube by Steven Harper

The Impossible Cube (Clockwork Empire #2) by Steven Harper

Mass Market Paperback, 380 pgs.

Published May 1st, 2012 by Roc

Source: Publisher

In an age where fantastic inventions of steam and brass have elevated Britain and China into mighty empires, Alice Michaels faces a future of technological terrors…

Once, Gavin Ennock sailed the skies on airships and enchanted listeners with his fiddle music. Now, the clockwork plague consumes his intellect, enabling him to conceive and construct scientific wonders—while driving him quite mad. Distressed by her beloved’s unfortunate condition, Alice Michaels sought a cure rumored to be inside the Doomsday Vault—and brought the wrath of the British Empire down on them.

Declared enemies of the Crown, Alice and Gavin have little choice but to flee to China in search of a cure. Accompanying them is Dr. Clef, a mad genius driven to find the greatest and most destructive force the world has ever seen: The Impossible Cube. If Dr. Clef gets his hands on it, the entire universe will face extinction.

And Gavin holds the key to its recreation…

This is the second book in a series but the author posted a brief chapter in the beginning about "The Story So Far" so that those who needed a reminder or who hadn't read the first one knew what was going on.  I really liked this because then there wasn't a ton of back story presented through out the book to remind us and cut down on the parts that might bore those that did remember the previous book quite well.  I hope this is something that authors (and publishers) do more of in the future because I thought it worked well.  

I loved the first book in this series and felt like this was an excellent follow-up.  I'm a huge fan of Steampunk but this is definitely one of my most favorite series of the genre.  I feel like it's completely unique and the Steampunk inventions are completely awesome but the characters are also ones I could connect with and enjoyed reading about.  The action was non stop and putting the book down was rather difficult as it felt like they were in constant peril.  But it was such a fun and crazy ride!   

If you're considering giving Steampunk a try I really feel like The Doomsday Vault was a great book for beginners.  It never felt overwhelming like some Steampunk does with all the fabulous and crazy inventions.  The world wasn't so over the top but yet lent a unique perspective of things.  Somehow the author made zombies something that doesn't seem so hard to imagine without making it a plot point that takes over the story.  The Impossible Cube was a bit heavier in the Steampunk aspect (at least that's how I feel) but never was too heavy for my tastes.  I'm not one that has to understand how everything works though and if I was I may have felt a bit confused because I honestly do not understand all the crazy inventions (like the impossible cube) and how they really work.  

I have to point out that this series may have crossover appeal to more mature YA readers as well.  There's some cursing but honestly there's not really anything in the book that I haven't read in YA books.  And adult fans of historical or alternate history historical as well as Steampunk (of course!) should most definitely give this series a try.

5/5 stars!

Disclosure:  I received this book for review purposes.  All opinions expressed are my own and I was not paid or influenced in any way.