Waiting on Wednesday (11)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

This week, I'm waiting for Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. (I'm also waiting for my pre-ordered copy of Mockingjay to come in tomorrow's mail. *jumps up and down*)

Cover image from Fantastic Fiction

 Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that had been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.

Sometimes life-ending.


Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering a tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems. (From Amazon.com)

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Beautiful Darkness comes out on October 12th, and it sounds like a wonderful (and at 512 pages, deliciously lengthy) October read. I enjoyed Beautiful Creatures, and it sounds like this sequel will be good, too.

Waiting on Wednesday (10)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

This week, I'm waiting for Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins.

Directly between my feet is a coppery-bronze octagon with a star. Words are engraved in the stone around it: POINT ZÉRO DES ROUTES DE FRANCE.

"Mademoiselle Oliphant. It translates to 'Point zero of the roads of France.' In other words, it's the point from which all other distances in France are measured." St. Clair clears his throat. "It's the beginning of everything."


I look back up. He's smiling.


"Welcome to Paris, Anna. I'm glad you've come . . . Now make a wish."

Anna was looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. So she's less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris — until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all . . . including a serious girlfriend.


But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss? Stephanie Perkins keeps the romantic tension crackling and the attraction high in a debut guaranteed to make toes tingle and hearts melt.  (From the author's website)

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I've been waiting for this one for awhile, and (sob) it doesn't come out until December 2nd. In light of that, I was thinking of featuring it closer to that date because it's nice to post about drool-worthy books when they'll be available soon so we can all spend less time drooling.

BUT.

Stephanie Perkins is holding a contest for her last ARC of Anna right now. (Hooray!) The deadline is August 30th. Roundabout links to details HERE.

Ready, set, go!

Waiting on Wednesday (9)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

This week, I'm waiting for Nevermore by Kelly Creagh.

Cheerleader Isobel Lanley is horrified when she is paired with Varen Nethers for an English project, which is due—so unfair—on the day of the rival game. Cold and aloof, sardonic and sharp-tongued, Varen makes it clear he’d rather not have anything to do with her either. But when Isobel discovers strange writing in his journal, she can’t help but give this enigmatic boy with piercing eyes another look.

Soon, Isobel finds herself making excuses to be with Varen. Steadily pulled away from her friends and her possessive boyfriend, Isobel ventures deeper and deeper into the dream world Varen has created through the pages of his notebook, a realm where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life.

As her world begins to unravel around her, Isobel discovers that dreams, like words, hold more power than she ever imagined and that the most frightening realities are those of the mind. Now she must find a way to reach Varen before he is consumed by the shadows of his own nightmares.

His life depends on it. (From the author's website)
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"Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary..."

I like a little Poe every now and then. I really like the cover, and I am intrigued by the summary. Also, it's 560 pages--a nice, long read.

Nevermore debuts August 31, 2010.

Waiting on Wednesday (8)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

It's August, a month I want to go by slowly since school and homework madness return in September, although I am looking forward to the last day of the month because of this book:

Evie’s always thought of herself as a normal teenager, even though she works for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, her ex-boyfriend is a faerie, she’s falling for a shape-shifter, and she’s the only person who can see through paranormals’ glamours.


But Evie’s about to realize that she may very well be at the center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to all paranormal creatures.

So much for normal. (From the author's website)
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Evie makes her debut on August 31, 2010.

I know I'm not the only one waiting for this book, so I don't think I need to say anymore, except for, "Hey, look! A book trailer below!"

Waiting on Wednesday (7)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

I haven't been much of a weekly participant, but once again a soon-to-be released book has caught my attention:

Betrayal, by Gillian Shields, which is the sequel to Shields's Immortal. I really liked Immortal, and I'm curious how the story will continue to play out in Betrayal.

It's set to release on August 3rd, 2010--next week! More info from HarperTeen, the publisher.  

Waiting on Wednesday (6)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

I haven't participated in awhile, but The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff was recently brought to my attentnion...and now I reallyreally want to read it.

The eerie and intriguing book trailer:

More details from the author's website:

Though he lives in the small town of Gentry, Mackie comes from a world of tunnels and black murky water, a world of living dead girls ruled by a little tattooed princess. He is a Replacement—left in the crib of a human baby sixteen years ago. Now, because of fatal allergies to iron, blood, and consecrated ground, Mackie is slowly dying in the human world.

Mackie would give anything to live among us, to practice on his bass or spend time with an oddly intriguing girl named Tate. But when Tate’s baby sister goes missing, Mackie is drawn irrevocably into the underworld of Gentry, known as Mayhem. He must face the dark creatures of the Slag Heaps and find his rightful place, in our world, or theirs.

Coming from Razorbill/Penguin Group September 21, 2010.

Waiting on Wednesday (5): Going Bovine by Libba Bray

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

This Wednesday I am waiting for Going Bovine by Libba Bray.

Release Date: September 22, 2009
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 496

Summary:

Can Cameron find what he’s looking for?
All 16-year-old Cameron wants is to get through high school—and life in general—with a minimum of effort. It’s not a lot to ask. But that’s before he’s given some bad news: he’s sick and he’s going to die. Which totally sucks. Hope arrives in the winged form of Dulcie, a loopy punk angel/possible hallucination with a bad sugar habit. She tells Cam there is a cure—if he’s willing to go in search of it. With the help of a death-obsessed, video-gaming dwarf and a yard gnome, Cam sets off on the mother of all road trips through a twisted America into the heart of what matters most. (From Amazon.com)
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Doesn't that sound awesome? I really enjoyed Libba Bray's A Great and Terrible Beauty (I haven't gotten around to reading its two sequels yet, but they're on the To Be Read list!), and I can't imagine that her writing something with a yard gnome, a video-gaming dwarf, a punk angel/possible hallucination, and a character as intriguing as Cam could lead to a bad book. Rather, I think it probably leads to a very good book, and I'm excited to read it.
What book are you waiting for this week?

Waiting on Wednesday (4): Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

This Wednesday I am waiting for Catching Fire (the Second Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins.

Release Date: September 1, 2009
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 400
Summary:

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. (From Amazon.com)

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I've been waiting for this one ever since I finished The Hunger Games in May. Now that the wait is almost over--SIX DAYS!!!--I'm growing impatient. I really really want to read Catching Fire. Like, right now. But I can wait. (Because I have to.) The happy thing about the release date--which would be happier if it was, you know, yesterday--is that I should have time to race through it before the craziness of move-in day and the start of fall semester the following week.

What are you waiting on this week?

Waiting on Wednesday (3): Lips Touch by Laini Taylor

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the unreleased books they're most excited for.

This Wednesday I am waiting for Lips Touch by Laini Taylor.

Release Date: October 1, 2009
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 272
Summary:

Three tales of supernatural love, each pivoting on a kiss that is no mere kiss, but an action with profound consequences for the kissers' souls:

Goblin Fruit: In Victorian times, goblin men had only to offer young girls sumptuous fruits to tempt them to sell their souls. But what does it take to tempt today's savvy girls?

Spicy Little Curses: A demon and the ambassador to Hell tussle over the soul of a beautiful English girl in India. Matters become complicated when she falls in love and decides to test her curse. (NEXT->)

Hatchling: Six days before Esme's fourteenth birthday, her left eye turns from brown to blue. She little suspects what the change heralds, but her small safe life begins to unravel at once. What does the beautiful, fanged man want with her, and how is her fate connected to a mysterious race of demons? (From barnesandnoble.com--I don't know what the (NEXT->) is about, but I've never seen an arrow made with those characters, so it gets to stay.)
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I've been pining for this one ever since Laini started talking about it on her blog--which I love reading. The cover art (done by her husband, Jim Di Bartolo) is BEAUTIFUL, and I'm sure the stories inside it are, too.

Waiting on Wednesday (2): Beautiful Creatures

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the books they're anticipating.

This Wednesday I am waiting for Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl.

Release Date: December 1, 2009
Publisher: Little, Brown for Young Readers
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 576

Summary:

SOME LOVES ARE MEANT TO BE... OTHERS ARE CURSED.

There were no surprises
in Gatlin County.
At least, that’s what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn’t have
been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end,
there was a grave.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin
has ever seen, and she’s struggling to conceal her power and a curse
that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the
overgrown gardens, murky swamps, and crumbling graveyards
of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape
from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never
met. When Lena moves into the town’s oldest and most infamous
plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to
uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

(From beautifulcreaturesthebook.com)

Find out more at somelovesarecursed.com
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Doesn't that look fabulous? The setting alone has me itching to turn the pages. I don't know about you, but I know what I'm reading over Christmas break. Well, more like what I'll be reading when I'm supposed to be studying for finals and wrapping up end of semester projects.

December seems so far away...

"Waiting On" Wednesday: As You Wish (1)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that invites readers to share the books they're anticipating. And I've decided to join the party!

This Wednesday, I am waiting for As You Wish by Jackson Pearce.

Release Date: August 25, 2009

Publisher: HarperTeen

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 304

Summary:
Ever since Viola's boyfriend broke up with her, she has spent her days silently wishing—to have someone love her again and, more importantly, to belong again—until one day she inadvertently summons a young genie out of his world and into her own. He will remain until she makes three wishes.

Jinn is anxious to return home, but Viola is terrified of wishing, afraid she will not wish for the right thing, the thing that will make her truly happy. As the two spend time together, the lines between master and servant begin to blur, and soon Jinn can't deny that he's falling for Viola. But it's only after Viola makes her first wish that she realizes she's in love with Jinn as well . . . and that if she wishes twice more, he will disappear from her life—and her world—forever.

Jackson Pearce spins a magical tale about star-crossed lovers, what it means to belong . . . and how important it is to be careful what you wish for. (From harpercollinschildrens.com)
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I am so intrigued by that summary.

And now for a video from Jackson Pearce, who has a fantastic blog. This shows her reaction to receiving copies of her book, As You Wish.