Bargains and Betrayals Mini-Review and the Reason I Didn't Post on Sunday

Hey Blogger Buds,
Sorry for the late post today. I'm going to start with a mini-review for Bargains and Betrayals, the third 13 to Life book by Shannon Delany. Add it on Goodreads.  I'm calling this a mini-review, because I didn't write it in order to put it up here. I wrote down my thoughts on Goodreads, and I'm sharing them for you here.

This review is spoilery from 13 to Life, the first book, and slightly spoilery (I did my best to be vague) from the second book, Secrets and Shadows.
It's a strange thing when you find a second book that is better than the first. But while 13 To Life was good, Secrets and Shadows was amazing. And I therefore had high expectations for Bargains and Betrayals. I was bored with Jessie throughout the beginning. She was sitting there, away from everyone else, doing stuff that, although it moved the plot forward, was dull.
For this reason, Shannon Delany decided to write from Alexi's point of view as well; so we can see what else is going on. It was interesting to see how Alexi thought, he's a tragic figure. He has a sense of humor though, and it was enjoyable.
What bothered me was Pietr. He changed a lot while Jessie was gone, and when they were reunited, he was just so...weird. I'd seen him through Alexi's eyes a bit, but I don't understand how he changed so much in such a short amount of time.
All this aside, the book was amazing and brilliant. I feel like Shannon Delany could easily have wrapped up the entire series with this book, and it both excites me and annoys me that there's a sequel. I'm going to read it, of course, because I love these books, but it would be fine if there were just a few changes, and the books ended here.

I give Bargains and Betrayals 5 stars.

Now that that's over, this is the reason I didn't post on Sunday:

You don't want to know how long it took me to get this shot.

And:

Or this one. This one was really hard to do. Notice my thumb holding a book up. (I  think it's my thumb...)

I was at the last Borders books left open in Manhattan. I was very excited. All YA titles were 80% off. My sister had to restrain me. (Trust me, there were at least three or four more books that I would have gladly taken, if I'd had a little less [more?] sense.) I've read one of these, and I can't wait to get to the rest!

Linkage leads to Borders, so you can buy your own, full-priced, copy. I got:

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey (read, and LOVE the ending.)

A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young

Clarity by Kim Harrington

Wildefire by Karsten Knight

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

I got a sick deal. And I don't use the word "sick" so often unless I'm, well, sick. I spent $17. $17 is the price of Wildefire, A Need So Beautiful, and Clarity. These books are worth more than $75, plus tax.
Be jealous.
And go to any Borders still open in your area.
Trust me, it's worth the trip. I was actually insanely lucky that there were a handful of YA books left. (My sister told me, before we left "don't bother printing out a list of books you want. You'll probably just grab whatever's there." I didn't need to just grab. I had a slight selection.)
It's tragic about the Borders bankruptcy, and all the lost jobs, but can I ask you guys a question:
Do these books have gorgeous covers, or what?

What do you think of Borders closing down? Sad to lose the chain-store/indie? Happy to "finally get rid of that wannabe"?

Peace and sick deals,
Riv