Oooh, Pretty!: Seraphina

Jan 5

Seraphina

by Rachel Hartman

So, when did THIS happen?! I’m SO STOKED about Rachel Hartman’s debut, and this cover is so old-school gorgeous that it’s turning my excitement up to 11. PLUS, according to Rachel herself, the cover is actually a FOR REAL woodblock print. Like, someone carved this awesome into a piece of wood LIKE A CHAMP and then the cover geniuses made a print of it. WORD. I’m done talking now.

Aaaaaaaannnnnnd…BOOM.

SERAPHINA is coming out on July 10, 2012 from Random House Books for Young Readers.

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Waiting on Wednesday (7)

Dec 28

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. I love it because it is basically a squee-fest where book lovers can choose one book that they are DYING to get their hands on. Check it out!

The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1)

by Julie Kagawa

 You will kill. The only question is when.

In the dark days since the insidious Red Lung virus decimated the human population, vampires have risen to rule the crumbling cities and suburbs. Uncontested Princes hold sway over diminished ranks of humans: their “pets.” In exchange for their labor, loyalty and of course, their blood, these pets are registered, given food and shelter, permitted to survive.
Unregistered humans cling to fringes, scavenging for survival. Allison Sekemoto and her fellow Unregistereds are hunted, not only by vampires, but by rabids, the unholy result of Red Lung-infected vampires feeding on unwary humans. One night, Allie is attacked by a pack of rabids, saved by an unlikely hero…and turned vampire.
Uncomfortable in her undead skin, Allie falls in with a ragtag crew of humans seeking a cure, or cures: for Rabidism and for Vampirism. She’s passing for human…for now. But the hunger is growing and will not be denied. Not for friendship—not even for love.

It almost never happens anymore that I get excited about vampire books. In truth, I’ve read very few, but they’re kind of all over the place and I LOVE them, so I have a tendency to follow them wherever they lead: Twilight, The Vampire Diaries, True Blood. I get my fill of them, and because there are so many other great things to read, I feel like reading about vampires is not something that’s usually on the top of my to-read list. EXCEPT. Except that this new series, Blood of Eden, which is about vampires and all other kinds of juicy stuff, has sprung from the awesome mind of Julie Kagawa, author of the Iron Fey series. I will read ALL OF HER WORDS. And I’m intrigued by the premise: humans as a race have been decimated by illness and vampires have risen to rule and power, keeping the humans as blood slaves. Obviously there are rogue humans and a young girl turned against her will. DRAMA, Y’ALL. We can has it! Seriously, though, this book sounds and looks fab, and I just know that it’s going to be so great because Julia Kagawa is such an excellent weaver of stories.

THE IMMORTAL RULES is coming out April 24, 2012 from Harlequin Teen.

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Waiting on Wednesday (6)

Dec 21

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. I love it because it is basically a squee-fest where book lovers can choose one book that they are DYING to get their hands on. Check it out!

The False Prince (The Ascendance Trilogy #1)

by Jennifer A. Nielsen

THE FALSE PRINCE is the thrilling first book in a brand-new trilogy filled with danger and deceit and hidden identities that will have readers rushing breathlessly to the end.

In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king’s long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner’s motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword’s point — he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage’s rivals have their own agendas as well.

As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner’s sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.

An extraordinary adventure filled with danger and action, lies and deadly truths that will have readers clinging to the edge of their seats.

My fingers are literally itchy with anticipation for this book. I’m jittery over it. It makes me fidgety and crazy. IT SOUNDS SO GOOD! Civil war, royal impersonators, a high-stakes competition that could mean life or death to the winners or losers. Plus, treachery! Lies! Deceit! Danger! DEADLY TRUTHS! AHHHH! *dies*

I’m a big fan of all fantasies in general, and sometimes I like a good magical fantasy, creepy and unpredictable and dark. Other times I am jonesing to devour a fantasy that leans on the sneaky, twisty, and dangerous workings of political scheming, like THE FALSE PRINCE. It sounds almost like a retelling of sorts of The Prince and the Pauper story, which is just chock full of dramatic arcs and tropes. I could NERD OUT over these books, I can feel it!

THE FALSE PRINCE is coming out April 1, 2012 from Scholastic.

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Waiting on Wednesday (5)

Dec 14

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. I love it because it is basically a squee-fest where book lovers can choose one book that they are DYING to get their hands on. Check it out!

Embrace

by Jessica Shirvington

Violet Eden is dreading her seventeenth birthday dinner. After all, it’s hard to get too excited about the day that marks the anniversary of your mother’s death. The one bright spot is that Lincoln will be there. Sexy, mature and aloof, he is Violet’s idea of perfection. But why does he seem so reluctant to be anything more than a friend?
After he gives her the world’s most incredible kiss – and then abandons her on her front doorstep – Violet is determined to get some answers. But nothing could have prepared her for Lincoln’s explanation: he is Grigori – part angel and part human – and Violet is his eternal partner.
Without warning, Violet’s world is turned upside down. She never believed in God, let alone angels. But there’s no denying the strange changes in her body … and her feelings for Lincoln. Suddenly, she can’t stand to be around him. Luckily, Phoenix, an exiled angel, has come into her life. He’s intense and enigmatic, but at least he never lied to her.
As Violet gets caught up in an ancient battle between dark and light, she must choose her path. The wrong choice could cost not only her life, but her eternity…

I have been itching and wishing and DYING to get my hands on this book, the first in The Violet Eden Chapters series, already published in Australia. (HOORAY, AUSSIE YA!) The story is about Violet, a 17-year-old girl who gets caught up in some NASTY good-and-evil angel-business. The buzz and outstanding reviews for this one are all over the place, and since I’m a little bit late to angel books (I was busy reading other things, you understand), I’m kind of on the lookout for GREAT ones to help me get all caught up. EMBRACE is right at the top of that list. It sounds hot and complicated and FABULOUS. I can’t WAIT to read this one! The whole series sounds EPIC.

EMBRACE is coming out March 1, 2012 from Sourcebooks Fire.

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Waiting on Wednesday (4)

Dec 7

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. I love it because it is basically a squee-fest where book lovers can choose one book that they are DYING to get their hands on. Check it out!

Scarlet

by A.C. Gaughen

Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance.

Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in. It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.

So, Robin Hood is one of my weaknesses, in any medium. The Robin Hood Disney movie? OWN IT. Jennifer Roberson’s Sherwood books Or even Robin McKinley’s THE OUTLAWS OF SHERWOOD? I’m obsessed with reading them (they’re out of my library right now). I even love Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves! I just love the setting and the characters and how the whole premise, to me, revolves around the moral ambiguity of Robin Hood’s thievery. It’s so gray! Yes, he steals, but hey look, he gives what he steals to people in his community who are destitute because of the mistreatment of THE MAN. #OccupySherwood! It’s no wonder at all that he was a folk hero.

This retelling of the story sounds particularly amazing, though, because usually the only women in the Robin Hood tale are Maid Marion, maybe Little John’s wife, Lady Cluck. In SCARLET though, one of the members of Robin’s band of thieves–borrowing the name of Robin’s brother/friend/squire, Will Scarlet–is, secretly to outsiders, a girl (that would be Scarlet), who robs the rich as a member of the Merry Men while trying to elude capture by the evil Lord Gisbourne (Sheriff of Nottingham-ish baddie) and come to grips with her growing feelings for the leader of the pack, Robin. I just sighed out loud, it sounds so great! I am waiting for this one VERY impatiently!

SCARLET is coming out February 14, 2012 from Walker.

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Waiting on Wednesday (3)

Nov 30

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. I love it because it is basically a squee-fest where book lovers can choose one book that they are DYING to get their hands on. Check it out!

The Disenchantments

by Nina LaCour

Colby and Bev have a long-standing pact: graduate, hit the road with Bev’s band, and then spend the year wandering around Europe. But moments after the tour kicks off, Bev makes a shocking announcement: she’s abandoning their plans–and Colby–to start college in the fall.

But the show must go on and The Disenchantments weave through the Pacific Northwest, playing in small towns and dingy venues, while roadie-Colby struggles to deal with Bev’s already-growing distance and the most important question of all: what’s next?

This book has been all over the interwebs lately, and it’s been on my TBR for a while. I’m looking forward to this one HARD. Band? Check. Road trip (Hello! ROAD TRIP?!)? Check. Also, I would like those sunglasses and that t-shirt, k? Awesome. 

THE DISENCHANTMENTS is coming out February 16, 2012 from Dutton Juvenile.

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Waiting on Wednesday (2)

Nov 22

Bitterblue (The Seven Kingdoms #3)

by Kristin Cashore

Eight years after Graceling, Bitterblue is now queen of Monsea. But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisors, who have run things since Leck died, believe in a forward-thinking plan: Pardon all who committed terrible acts under Leck’s reign, and forget anything bad ever happened. But when Bitterblue begins sneaking outside the castle—disguised and alone—to walk the streets of her own city, she starts realizing that the kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year spell of a madman, and the only way to move forward is to revisit the past. Two thieves, who only steal what has already been stolen, change her life forever. They hold a key to the truth of Leck’s reign. And one of them, with an extreme skill called a Grace that he hasn’t yet identified, holds a key to her heart.

How did I not have THIS as my very first Waiting on Wednesday?! I have been drooling with anticipation for this book since FIRE, book 2 in this trilogy, came out waaaaaaaaaaay back in 2009 (us YA folks are spoiled with those “book a year” schedules lots of series are on, huh?). In all seriousness, though, GRACELING was one of the very first YA books I ever read and is largely responsible for sucking me into this wonderful world, so I have a particular soft spot for that book, and this series, and Kristin Cashore. I’m so excited for this book I could…I don’t know. Do something super-crazy! Plus, did you see that synopsis from the publisher? Oh baby! It sounds GREAT! I will read every word Kristin Cashore writes, and BITTERBLUE is up next!

BITTERBLUE is coming out May 1, 2012 from Dial.

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Waiting on Wednesday (1)

Nov 16

Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1)

by Robin LaFevers

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

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Wowza. This book sounds so amazing, I almost don’t even know how to put my excitement into words. The God of Death? A convent of pagan nuns? Intrigue and treason? An assassin and HANDMAIDEN OF DEATH?!?! Bananas. Plus, look at that ridiculous crossbow on the cover! It’s huge! She looks like such a bad ass.  I can. Not. Wait to get my hands on this one. Ahh, I just got the shivers of anticipation! Love it!

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