In My Mailbox (9): October

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren  where we share what books we've bought, received, or borrowed over the last week or, in my case, month. I don't get enough books over the week to cover a weekly IMM but I always do one every month.Here's September's! (Some of these books I've already read, so if you click on the links they should bring you to the review)

Bought:

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Borrowed:

Stork by Wendy Delsol

Library Finds:

Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

Happy Halloween!

Have a great Halloween everyone!

Cover Reveals: As Dead As It Gets and Timepiece

Here's the newly revealed cover of As Dead As It Gets, new in the Bad Girls Don't Die Series: 

I love this cover. Soooo creepy! I have yet to read Bad Girls Don't Die, but it sounds awesome.

And there's also the ARC cover of Timepiece by Myra McEntire. I loved Hourglass, the prequel, and I can't wait to read the next installment. Look at the pretty cover!

A great companion to Hourglass's cover. 

Releases That I Missed and a Note from your Blogger

Hello, everyone. Please excuse my absence from the blog lately. My life has been so hectic but now that it's calming down, hopefully I'll be able to focus and read. Thanks for your patience!

October 19

On the Fringe by Courtney King Walker

Claire is struggling to overcome the murder of her childhood friend and secret crush, Daniel. Everyone else seems to be moving on with their lives, but she's still trying to cope. The fact that she finds herself alone and drowning on her 16th birthday isn't helping.

Neither is thinking she sees Daniel's face in murky water as she mysteriously resurfaces. But something happened during those four and a half minutes that will make her realize it was not just her imagination.

As Claire and Daniel try to grasp a possible reconnection, other grudge-holding beings have plans of their own. Now, the two of them have to decide if their fleeting relationship is worth the possibility of Claire being trapped on the fringe forever.
---------

Sounds a lot like The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, but it also sounds like it has an interesting spin. I'll read it if I find it on the shelf.

October 25

The Iron Knight (The Iron Fey #4) by Julie Kagawa

My name—my True Name—is Ashallayn'darkmyr Tallyn.

I am the last remaining son of Mab, Queen of the Unseelie Court. And I am dead to her.

My fall began, as many stories do, with a girl…

--------

Admittedly, I have yet to read the others in this series. But this sounds so good!

Between the Sea and Sky by Jaclyn Dolamore

For as long as Esmerine can remember, she has longed to join her older sister, Dosinia, as a siren—the highest calling a mermaid can have. When Dosinia runs away to the mainland, Esmerine is sent to retrieve her. Using magic to transform her tail into legs, she makes her way unsteadily to the capital city. There she comes upon a friend she hasn't seen since childhood—a dashing young man named Alandare, who belongs to a winged race of people. As Esmerine and Alandare band together to search for Dosinia, they rekindle a friendship . . . and ignite the emotions for a love so great, it cannot be bound by sea, land, or air.
--------
Mermaids, winged-people, humans, OH MY!


Nightshade (Poison Diaries #2) by Maryrose Wood and the Duchess of Northumberland

Sixteen-year-old Jessamine Luxton is heartbroken. Her true love, Weed, the strange but intriguing young man who came into her life so suddenly, has disappeared. How could he have left her with no farewell, and no word since?

Jessamine may not know why Weed vanished, but she does suspect that her own father, Thomas, may have had something to do with it. Thomas, who was so obsessed with Weed’s secret knowledge of dangerous plants that he would do anything to learn it. This suspicion—and her experiences with poisons—has changed her. She is no longer innocent, and now she has her own intimate knowledge of the power of the plants.

So when Jessamine learns that Weed is alive, she will do whatever it takes to be reunited with him.

She is, after all, her father’s daughter. . . .

---------

I've heard great things about this series but I haven't read the first book, The Poison Diaries.

Releases: Beautiful Chaos, The Scorpio Races, & Seizure

Beautiful Chaos (Caster Chronicles #3) by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Ethan Wate thought he was getting used to the strange, impossible events happening in Gatlin, his small Southern town. But now that Ethan and Lena have returned home, strange and impossible have taken on new meanings. Swarms of locusts, record-breaking heat, and devastating storms ravage Gatlin as Ethan and Lena struggle to understand the impact of Lena's Claiming. Even Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals is affected - and their abilities begin to dangerously misfire. As time passes, one question becomes clear: What - or who - will need to be sacrificed to save Gatlin?

For Ethan, the chaos is a frightening but welcome distraction. He's being haunted in his dreams again, but this time it isn't by Lena - and whatever is haunting him is following him out of his dreams and into his everyday life. Even worse, Ethan is gradually losing pieces of himself - forgetting names, phone numbers, even memories. He doesn't know why, and most days he's too afraid to ask.

Sometimes there isn't just one answer or one choice. Sometimes there's no going back. And this time there won't be a happy ending.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

With her trademark lyricism, Maggie Stiefvater turns to a new world, where a pair are swept up in a daring, dangerous race across a cliff--with more than just their lives at stake should they lose.

Seizure (Virals #2) by Kathy Reichs

Ever since Tory Brennan and her friends rescued Cooper, a kidnapped wolf pup with a rare strain of canine parvovirus, they've turned from regular kids into a crime-solving pack! But now the very place that brought them together - the Loggerhead Island Research Institute - is out of funding and will have to shut down. That is, unless the Virals can figure out a way to save it!

So when Tory learns of an old Charleston legend about a famous she-pirate, Anne Bonney, whose fortune was never found, she can't believe her luck - buried treasure is exactly what she needs to save the Institute on Loggerhead! Trouble is, she and her friends aren't the only ones looking for it. And this time, the Virals' special powers may not be enough to dig them out of trouble . . .

Stork (Stork #1) by Wendy Delsol

Genre: fantasy
Series and Book #: Stork #1
Pages: 357
Synopsis:

Moving from LA to nowhere Minnesota, sixteen-year-old Katla Leblanc expected the local fashion scene to be frozen in time. What she didn’t expect was induction into the Icelandic Stork Society, an ancient order of women charged with a unique mystical duty. Not only is Katla the youngest member, but Hulda, the society’s omen-guided leader, immediately bestows the coveted Second Chair on her—a decision that ruffles a few feathers.

As if that weren’t enough, Katla also has to deal with her parents’ divorce and the social aftermath of a bad date with popular but creepy Wade. Katla, however, isn’t one to sit on her designer-jean-clad behind, and soon she’s assigned the fashion column for the school paper and making new friends.

Things would be looking up if it weren’t for editor in chief Jack. Even though they argue every time they meet, Katla is inexplicably drawn to him. Juggling her home life, school, and Stork duties, will Katla be able to unravel the mystery surrounding Jack? More importantly, will she find a dress for Homecoming?

--------

Stork was a wonderfully created mix of a modern day girl clashing with tradition and myth. Coming from a person who has lived in Minnesota most of her life, I love the Nordic stories that Fru Hulda tells Katla, and I sympathize with her love/hate relationship with the rapidly changing weather.

At first, I thought this would be a typical book of a girl who has a very narrow mind for all things old and comfortable. It seemed that way for awhile, but soon Katla won me over. She was a very kind character who loved being herself, and although it took her some time to get used to the thick traditions in Norse Falls, she accepted them and let them mingle with her love of the modern world.

Overall, this was an incredibly original novel. I loved the concept of storks "delivering" child souls to "vessels", or potential mothers. Also the mythology Delsol added to make it all the more believable. Katla and the other Storks were very interesting characters. I loved Fru Hulda and her cryptic messages and stories. I'm looking forward to more in Frost.

The Cover: Completely depicts the freezing temperature and the girl looks a lot like Delsol described Katla in the novel.

Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon

Genre: fantasy
Series and Book #: unknown
Pages: 342
Synopsis:

Their love was meant to be.

When Megan Rosenberg moves to Ireland, everything in her life seems to fall into place. After growing up in America, she’s surprised to find herself feeling at home in her new school. She connects with a group of friends, and she is instantly drawn to darkly handsome Adam DeRís.

But Megan is about to discover that her feelings for Adam are tied to a fate that was sealed long ago—and that the passion and power that brought them together could be their ultimate destruction.

--------

Great Irish connections. Throughout the entire novel, Fallon connected Megan and Adam's powers with traditional mythology. Also, the places Megan went (example: Trinity College in Dublin) Fallon explained really well and made me even more excited if I one day go to Ireland.

I have a problem with something. If you look in the summary, you'll see the opening line is "Their love was meant to be." LIAR! Forbidden love is a main theme in this novel. Megan and Adam's elements do not mix and if they were to get married and have children, the world would implode and the universe would be destroyed, life as we know it would end etc. etc. You know, the usual.

Megan and Adam were a sweet couple, and I think Fallon made them very realistic, but...they just jumped into the "I think we're meant to be" thing. But once that's settled, Adam and she become a lovable couple that you will root for. They have their fights and their worries, and I really liked them together. They balanced each other nicely.

Overall, I loved the back-myths that Fallon included, and I loved the characters she included in Megan's life. Caitlin (Megan's first friend at her new school) reminded me a bit of myself, always going after something, always worried about someone, and always bubbly and enthusiastic. The DeRís's were a wonderful family whom Fallon put together nicely. Their connection to Megan was supurbly plotted, and everything had a purpose. Not one thing was unnecessary to the story, and I love when that happens!

The Cover: Gorgeous. Just...wow. Her dress, her hair, the font...beautiful. 

Releases: Tris & Izzie, Death Cure, and Frost

Tris & Izzie by Mette Ivie Harrison
Publisher: EgmontUSA

“I don’t want him to love me because of a potion,” she said. 
 
Izzie loves Mark, and why shouldn’t she? As the captain of the basketball team, he is kind and loving and he’s everything she’s ever wanted in a boyfriend. Her BFF loves . . . somebody, but she won’t say who. So when a hot new guy, Tristan, shows up at school, who better for Izzie to fix up her friend with? And what better way to do it than with a love philtre? 

But even the best of magic has a way of going awry—and Izzie finds she’s accidentally fallen in love with Tristan herself. And that’s a problem. First of all, there’s Mark. Second, Tristan comes with baggage—like the supernatural creatures that keep attacking whenever he’s with Izzie, and the fact that he comes from the place where Izzie’s father was killed, years ago, by an enormous, evil serpent that’s still around—and it knows Izzie is out there.

The Death Cure (Maze Runner #3) by James Dashner
Publisher: Random House Children's Books

Thomas knows that Wicked can't be trusted, but they say the time for lies is over, that they've collected all they can from the Trials and now must rely on the Gladers, with full memories restored, to help them with their ultimate mission. It's up to the Gladers to complete the blueprint for the cure to the Flare with a final voluntary test. What Wicked doesn't know is that something's happened that no Trial or Variable could have foreseen. Thomas has remembered far more than they think. And he knows that he can't believe a word of what Wicked says.

The time for lies is over. But the truth is more dangerous than Thomas could ever imagine.
Will anyone survive the Death Cure?



Frost (Stork #2) by Wendy Delsol
Publisher: Candlewick Press


Katla Leblanc has to employ her grit, spirit, and special gifts to rescue the boy she loves. After the drama of finding out that she's a Stork, a member of an ancient and mystical order of women, and that her boyfriend, Jack, is a descendent of the Winter People able to control the weather, Katla Leblanc is delighted when all signs point to a busy and peaceful Christmas. That is, until the snowstorm Jack summons as a gift to Katla turns into the storm of the century, attracting Brigid, a gorgeous scientist who, in turn, attracts Jack. Between the school play, a bedridden, pregnant mother's to-do lists, and keeping an eye on her aging grandfather, Katla doesn't have time to question Brigid's motives or deal with Jack's increasingly cold behavior. But Katla's suspicions mount when Jack joins Brigid on a research expedition to Greenland, and when the two of them go missing, it becomes clear that Katla is the only one who can save her beloved Jack from the Snow Queen who holds him prisoner. Adventure, romance, and myth combine in this winter escapade for teens who like a bit of fire with their ice.

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

Genre: social issues
Series and Book #: none
Pages: 215
Synopsis:

Katherine V thought boys were gross. Katherine X just wanted to be friends. Katherine XVIII dumped him in an e-mail. K-19 broke his heart.

When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton’s type is girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact.

On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy-loving best friend riding shotgun—but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove the Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl.

--------

That smile could end wars and cure cancer.

-An Abundance of Katherines by John Green, pg 32

To start off on an off note, I hated the beginning of this novel. It was just like, BOOM, let's on a road trip, and Colin and Hassan (his best friend) went on said road trip and then stopped the road trip when they made it to Gutshot, Tennessee, home to the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Lindsey Lee Wells. It was just a quick little chapter of Colin reminiscing about K-19. That was another thing that bugged me. I loved how John went into the different Katherine's that Colin had dated, but I hated that Colin would start the story and a couple chapters later finish it. It just made no sense to me.

Despite some of my *ahem* dislikes, An Abundance of Katherines was everything that I'd expect from John Green. Humor, meaningful passages, and a nerdy-ish boy and a girl. Really, it was the perfect John Green novel. Colin is my favorite of all of John's MCs because he wasn't obsessed with Lindsey, not even in the end. He liked her, sure, but unlike in Paper Towns and Looking for Alaska, he wasn't completely in love with her. Mostly Katherine XIX held his heart and the Theorem took up most of his time.

Overall, what a wonderful novel. I especially liked the little passages under the text that gave meaning to what Colin was saying and what he meant. It was fun to read the story of a prodigy longing to be a genius, and not realizing that you don't have to be an extraordinary person to make others lives better. Lindsey, Hassan, and Gutshot were all great to him in realizing that life wasn't all about him being a genius, but about others taking care of each other.

The Cover: Love it! I find it very hard to believe that there are nineteen different Katherines for Colin to date, but whatever.

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

Genre: romance
Series and Book #: Starcrossed #1
Pages: 487
Synopsis:

How do you defy destiny?

Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it’s getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she’s haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood…and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they’re destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeated throughout history.

As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.

--------

Originally, I wasn't going to read this book. I thought that there were too many Greek mythology spin-offs, and I really thought this was going to be just like the rest. But it was so different. The mythology and how it connected to Helen and the Delos family went deeper than the surface that I've seen in others.

Helen was a good MC. She wasn't my favorite. I always love MC's that are brave and proud of themselves, but Helen was just...blah. At the beginning of the novel, she's self-conscious and she doesn't put out her full potential. Understandably, she was under a curse that her mother placed on her when she was young, but she could have stood up straighter and at least be seen. When the Delos' comes to Nantucket, you see a change with her. When she sees how they act, and compares it to how she acts, she stands up straight, doesn't let the bullies at school get to her, and starts to recognize her talents and potential. I loved Helen much more at the end of the book.

I am a hopeless romantic. It's true--and it's ridiculous. I hate, hate, HATE when romances go awry. This was just crawling with little opportunities to split Helen and Lucas up. **CAUTION: SPOILER ALERT!** For those of you who've read City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, it was just like what happened between Clary and Jace. For those of you who haven't, well...sorry, but no spoilers!

Overall, amazing romance. Just amazing. I wish Helen was more confident than she was, and the characters a bit more in touch with what had happened. I found that I'd realize so many things before the characters, and it started to grate on my nerves. More often than not, I'd yell at the book: "OH MY GODS, REMEMBER...???" I can't wait for the sequel, just to see what happens with Helen and Lucas, and to find out what the prophecy means... :)

The Cover: Beautiful. You can't see it in the picture, but the sky and water changes colors if you move it in and out of the light. Pretty, shiny cover!

Releases: Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick, Eve by Anna Carey

Silence (Hush, Hush #3) by Becca Fitzpatrick

The noise between Patch and Nora is gone. They’ve overcome the secrets riddled in Patch’s dark past…bridged two irreconcilable worlds…faced heart-wrenching tests of betrayal, loyalty, and trust…and all for a love that will transcend the boundary between heaven and earth. Armed with nothing but their absolute faith in each other, Patch and Nora enter a desperate fight to stop a villain who holds the power to shatter everything they’ve worked for—and their love—forever..


Eve by Anna Carey

Where do you go when nowhere is safe?

Sixteen years after a deadly virus wiped out most of Earth’s population, the world is a perilous place. Eighteen-year-old Eve has never been beyond the heavily guarded perimeter of her school, where she and two hundred other orphaned girls have been promised a future as the teachers and artists of the New America. But the night before graduation, Eve learns the shocking truth about her school’s real purpose—and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Arden, her former rival from school, and Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust . . . and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

--------

I still haven't read any of the Hush, Hush Trilogy, but I'm going to get on that! I've heard they're amazing novels, and I have Hush, Hush, so I can't wait to read it soon.

Eve has gotten some amazing reviews. It sounds like an interesting new novel. I'll be sure to pick it up if I'm able.

In My Mailbox (8): September

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren where we share what books we've bought, received, or borrowed over the last week or, in my case, month. I don't get enough books over the week to cover a weekly IMM but I always do one every month.Here's August's! (Some of these books I've already read, so if you click on the links they should bring you to the review)

Library Finds:

Looking for Alaska by John Green

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini
Divergent by Veronica Roth

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon

Borrowed:
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
The Power of Six (Lorien Legacies #2) by Pittacus Lore

Bought:
Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor