It was a super quiet week at the mailbox this week, though I did receive an eARC for review so it wasn’t entirely quiet. But I am kind of glad that I didn’t receive any physical books as it has been really rainy and the packages that have been delivered to me this week were kind of soggy. Rain and books don’t mix.
[Credit for mailbox sharing goes to The Story Siren]
And while I haven’t put any new requests in to NetGalley or Edelweiss lately, I was pre-approved for one title. And it was…
I received THE HERE AND NOW by Ann Brashares thanks to the folks at Delacorte via NetGalley. I haven’t yet read anything by this author but I’m super curious given the recent chatter.
And while I don’t have much reading time this week to take a peek, I’m hoping to be able to add it to the pile in the next couple of weeks. But for now…
Here are the books I have in my reading pile this week.
(March 2, 2014 – March 8, 2014)
First up on the pile is HALF BAD by Sally Green. I received an ARC for review from the publisher Viking Juvenile and I’ve been dying to get it on the pile ever since it arrived. The cover is awesome and the description even more so.
I love that this has an international setting. I love that this is a story about both good and bad witches. I can’t wait to meet Nathan and find out whether he’ll be able to escape and come into his powers or whether he’ll die.
The description promises a story that is gripping, with a strong main character who must rely on that strength to survive. And I’m so curious to discover this author’s writing and see what her story’s outcome will be.
As I am still trying to catch up on last week’s reads, I hope to get this on the pile on Tuesday.
The Description…
A stunning, magical debut. An international sensation.
In modern-day England, witches live alongside humans: White witches, who are good; Black witches, who are evil; and fifteen-year-old Nathan, who is both. Nathan’s father is the world’s most powerful and cruel Black witch, and his mother is dead. He is hunted from all sides. Trapped in a cage, beaten and handcuffed, Nathan must escape before his sixteenth birthday, at which point he will receive three gifts from his father and come into his own as a witch—or else he will die. But how can Nathan find his father when his every action is tracked, when there is no one safe to trust—not even family, not even the girl he loves?
In the tradition of Patrick Ness and Markus Zusak, Half Bad is a gripping tale of alienation and the indomitable will to survive, a story that will grab hold of you and not let go until the very last page.
Next up on the pile is THE RING AND THE CROWN by Melissa de la Cruz. Since the moment I was approved on NetGalley I’ve been dying to get this book on the pile.
I love this author’s writing and this story sounds absolutely amazing. Magicians, monarchy, deception, betrayal and the desire to rule. How awesome is that? Totally awesome.
I can’t wait to see what happens with Princess Marie-Victoria and Aelwyn Myrddn and who will end up being ruler of the Franco-British Empire. I can’t wait to find out whether Marie’s desire to live a quiet life is enough for her to abdicate the throne. I can’t wait to learn who can be trusted and who can’t.
And I hope to be able to sneak this one in on Friday.
The Description…
Princess Marie-Victoria, heir to the Lily Throne, and Aelwyn Myrddn, bastard daughter of the Mage of England, grew up together. But who will rule, and who will serve?
Quiet and gentle, Marie has never lived up to the ambitions of her mother, Queen Eleanor the Second, Supreme Ruler of the Franco-British Empire. With the help of her Head Merlin, Emrys, Eleanor has maintained her stranglehold on the world’s only source of magic. She rules the most powerful empire the world has ever seen.
But even with the aid of Emrys’ magic, Eleanor’s extended lifespan is nearing its end. The princess must marry and produce an heir or the Empire will be vulnerable to its greatest enemy, Prussia. The two kingdoms must unite to end the war, and the only solution is a match between Marie and Prince Leopold VII, heir to the Prussian throne. But Marie has always loved Gill, her childhood friend and soldier of the Queen’s Guard.
Together, Marie and Aelwyn, a powerful magician in her own right, come up with a plan. Aelwyn will take on Marie’s face, allowing the princess to escape with Gill and live the quiet life she’s always wanted. And Aelwyn will get what she’s always dreamed of–the chance to rule. But the court intrigue and hunger for power in Lenoran England run deeper than anyone could imagine. In the end, there is only rule that matters in Eleanor’s court: trust no one.
Wishful Thinking Reads
My wishful thinking read this week is RUINS by Dan Wells. It releases on Tuesday and I can’t wait to get my hands on it. I went off-pile this past week and read PARTIALS and am currently reading FRAGMENTS, so I know I’m desperately going to want to take this series to its conclusion. But as I have two review books I must read this week, diving immediately into RUINS is merely just a wish.
Those Left Behind
I kind of went off-pile this past week and didn’t end up reading either of the books on last week’s pile. I had opted to re-read SPELLCASTER by Claudia Gray before I dove right into STEADFAST. I then read a few of the short stories in GRIM, two of which I wrote micro reviews for.
And then I got sidetracked by THE WINNER’S CURSE by Marie Rutkoski, which was one of those reads that I just couldn’t put down. And as I really want to be able to share my thoughts, I didn’t want to read another review book until I did. So I decided to start reading PARTIALS by Dan Wells which was a mistake only in that I then had to pick up FRAGMENTS, which I am probably reading at the very moment this post goes live.
But I definitely plan on reading ELUSION before I start on this week’s reads. And since THE KISS OF DECEPTION won’t be out for awhile, I may hold off on starting it until next week. Though I really need to read at least one book this month for my Don’t Let It End Reading Challenge.
I finished my review for DEATH SWORN, but had almost no time to catch up on any of those older reviews. Though I still plan on posting a review for either SOMETHING REAL, CRUEL BEAUTY or LANDRY PARK on Sunday and a review that I will definitely be writing for THE WINNER’S CURSE on Monday.
And if all goes well I’ll be able to write and post my review for STEADFAST on Wednesday. Beyond that, I fail to speculate. But maybe I’ll finally be over my review writing slump. We shall see…
NetGalley Pile Adds & Finds
For sanity’s sake I’ve stayed away from NetGalley this past week. Well, aside from clicking to download that one pre-approved title I received an email about on Friday.
And while I haven’t put in a request for any other titles – though there is a rather interesting non-YA title put out by Harlequin that I just might grab – there are quite a few new YA titles from Scholastic that posted this week, which I’ve included below.
Here are this week’s finds…
CATCH A FALLING STAR by Kim Culbertson (Scholastic, Apr 29 2014)
THE DROWNING by Rachel Ward (Scholastic, Apr 29 2014)
THE HERE AND NOW by Ann Brashares (Random House Children’s, Apr 8 2014)
IN THE SHADOWS by Kiersten White and Jim DiBartolo (Scholastic, Apr 29 2014)
GORGEOUS by Paul Rudnick (Scholastic, Apr 29 2014)
THE FREEDOM SUMMER MURDERS by Don Mitchell (Scholastic, Apr 29 2014)
I’ve given in to temptation and added THE RING AND THE CROWN and HALF BAD to the pile this week. But I really want to get THE LOVELY AND THE LOST and SPLIT SECOND on the pile in the next couple of weeks.
And I really want to be able to find some more time to write reviews. There just never seems to be enough.
I’m not entirely sure I’ll be able to resist the urge to start reading RUINS when it downloads to my Kindle on Tuesday. I’ve fallen in love with this series, and breaking away from it to read something else is not something I’m sure I’m capable of.
Anyway… as it’s dark and cold and rainy, it makes me want to curl up with a good book. And as I just so happen to be reading a great one – FRAGMENTS – which is calling my name, I’m going to cut this short so I can go read.
If the weather in your area is keeping you indoors, then I hope you have a good book (or a few) on the pile.
As ever… Happy reading!
Do you create a reading pile?
If so, what’s in your reading pile this week?