Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where that spotlights the upcoming books I am currently anticipating. 

~Currently Anticipating~

The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury 

Release Date: February 23rd, 2016 

Publisher: Razorbill 

Goodreads Summary:

She is the most powerful Jinni of all. He is a boy from the streets. Their love will shake the world... 

When Aladdin discovers Zahra's jinni lamp, Zahra is thrust back into a world she hasn't seen in hundreds of years -- a world where magic is forbidden and Zahra's very existence is illegal. She must disguise herself to stay alive, using ancient shape-shifting magic, until her new master has selected his three wishes. 

But when the King of the Jinn offers Zahra a chance to be free of her lamp forever, she seizes the opportunity—only to discover she is falling in love with Aladdin. When saving herself means betraying him, Zahra must decide once and for all: is winning her freedom worth losing her heart?

As time unravels and her enemies close in, Zahra finds herself suspended between danger and desire in this dazzling retelling of Aladdin from acclaimed author Jessica Khoury.

OMG ALADDIN ISH-RETELLING WITH A JINN AS A MAIN CHARACTER.
THIS IS LIFE. *WANT*

What are you waiting on this week?
Link us up! 

Review: Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin

Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin
400 Pages
Release Date: October 20th, 2015
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher via Negalley
Genre: Alternative Historical Fiction/Sci-Fi
Rating: 4 STARS 

Goodreads Summary: 
Code Name Verity meets Inglourious Basterds in this fast-paced novel from the author of The Walled City.

The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule the world. To commemorate their Great Victory over Britain and Russia, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor's ball.

Yael, who escaped from a death camp, has one goal: Win the race and kill Hitler. A survivor of painful human experimentation, Yael has the power to skinshift and must complete her mission by impersonating last year's only female victor, Adele Wolfe. This deception becomes more difficult when Felix, Adele twin's brother, and Luka, her former love interest, enter the race and watch Yael's every move. But as Yael begins to get closer to the other competitors, can she bring herself to be as ruthless as she needs to be to avoid discovery and complete her mission?

Cover Roundup: This Savage Song, Siren's Song, & more!

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab

Release Week Book Blitz: Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin {Promo+Giveaway}

I am so excited that WOLF BY WOLF by Ryan Graudin releases today and that I get to share the news, along with an awesome giveaway! If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Ryan, be sure to check out all the details below.

This blitz also includes a giveaway for a signed finished copy of the book with a special WOLF BY WOLF pin! US only. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

Special intro from the author:

"Once upon a different time, there was a girl who lived in a kingdom of death. Wolves howled up her arm. A whole pack of them--made of tattoo ink and pain, memory and loss. It was the only thing about her that ever stayed the same.

Her story begins on a train."

And so begins the story of Yael, a girl who can change her appearance to mimic any other female. A girl who must win a 20,000 kilometer cross-continental motorcycle race from Germania to Tokyo so that she can have an audience with Adolf Hitler. A girl who has every intention of killing him.

Whenever I describe the premise of WOLF BY WOLF to people, the reactions I get are quite similar. It's the "are-you-insane-or-are-you-onto-something" face: dropped jaw, squiggly eyebrows. I must admit, I felt many of those same feelings when I first started penning Yael's story. Alternate history + sci-fi + epic motorcycle journey felt like a strange recipe for a novel. But I pushed through my fears and kept writing, and I couldn't be happier with the result. I, for one, don't think I'm insane, but I'll let you, dear reader, come up with your own conclusion.

Happy reading!

Ryan Graudin

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where that spotlights the upcoming books I am currently anticipating. 

~Currently Anticipating~

Blackhearts by Nicole Castroman

Release Date: February 9th, 2016 

Publisher: Simon Pulse 

Goodreads Summary:
Blackbeard the pirate was known for striking fear in the hearts of the bravest of sailors. But once he was just a young man who dreamed of leaving his rigid life behind to chase adventure in faraway lands. Nothing could stop him—until he met the one girl who would change everything. This is their story.

Edward "Teach" Drummond, son of one of Bristol's richest merchants, has just returned from a year-long journey on the high seas to find his life in shambles. Betrothed to a girl he doesn’t love and sick of the high society he was born into, Teach dreams only of returning to the vast ocean he’d begun to call home. There's just one problem: convincing his father to let him leave and never come back.

Following her parents' deaths, Anne Barrett is left penniless and soon to be homeless. Though she’s barely worked a day in her life, Anne is forced to take a job as a maid in the home of Master Drummond. Lonely days stretch into weeks, and Anne longs for escape. How will she ever realize her dream of sailing to Curaçao—where her mother was born—when she's stuck in England? 

From the moment Teach and Anne meet, they set the world ablaze. Drawn to each other, they’re trapped by society and their own circumstances. Faced with an impossible choice, they must decide to chase their dreams and go, or follow their hearts and stay.

Love the simple cover and the contrast of the pink against the black :D
ALSO BLACKBEARD. I AM EXCITED.
The characters and the story sounds absolutely amazing!

What are you waiting on this week?
Link us up! 

Release Day Blast: Velvet Undercover by Teri Brown {Promo+Giveaway}

Velvet Undercover
Author: Teri Brown
Release Date: October 20th, 2015
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (HarperCollins)
Pages: 336

SYNOPSIS:

Perfect for fans of Jennifer Donnelly and Libba Bray comes this page-turning historical spy thriller from Teri Brown, author of the Born of Illusion series.

Samantha Donaldson's family has always done its duty for the British Crown. In the midst of World War I, seventeen-year-old Sam follows in their footsteps, serving her country from the homefront as a messenger for the intelligence organization MI5. After her father disappears on a diplomatic mission, she continues their studies of languages, mathematics, and complex puzzles, hoping to make him proud.

When Sam is asked to join the famed women's spy group La Dame Blanche, she's torn—while this could be an unbelievable adventure, how can she abandon her mother, who has already lost a husband? But when her handlers reveal shocking news, Sam realizes she can't refuse the exciting and dangerous opportunity.

Her acceptance leads her straight into the heart of enemy territory on a mission to extract the most valuable British spy embedded in Germany, known only as Velvet. Deep undercover in the court of Kaiser Wilhelm II, Sam must navigate the labyrinthine palace and its many glamorous—and secretive—residents to complete her assignment. To make matters worse she must fight a forbidden attraction to the enemy—a dangerously handsome German guard. In a place where personal politics are treacherously entangled in wartime policy, can Sam find Velvet before it's too late . . . for them both?

A thrilling story of one girl's journey into a deadly world of spy craft and betrayal—with unforgettable consequences.

Add To Goodreads

 

Cover Attack II: Ivory and Bone, Ruined, My Lady Jane, and LOTS MORE!

**Click on the cover to go to its Goodreads page**

Ivory and Bone by Julie Eshbaugh

The Truth About Books: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Hey guys! Hopefully you know the drill but if not here's a recap:

This is a post where Taherah and I talk about and fangirl over books unfiltered after we read them.

This means spoilers. If you haven't read the book yet do yourself a huge favor and leave.

Don't spoil this one for yourself. It's too good.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Release Date: September 29th, 2015

Publisher: Henry Holt and Company

Goodreads Summary:

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone...

A convict with a thirst for revenge.

A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager.

A runaway with a privileged past.

A spy known as the Wraith.

A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums. 

A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes. 


Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don't kill each other first.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where that spotlights the upcoming books I am currently anticipating. 

~Currently Anticipating~

Sword and Verse by Kathy MacMillan 

Release Date: January 19th, 2015 

Publisher: HarperTeen 

Blog Tour: Trust Me, I'm Trouble by Mary Elizabeth Summer {Review+Giveaway}

Trust Me, I'm Trouble (Trust Me #2)
by Mary Elizabeth Summer
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: October 13th 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Mystery, Thriller

Rate: 3 STARS 

Synopsis:

The sequel to TRUST ME, I’M LYING

Staying out of trouble isn’t possible for Julep Dupree. She has managed not to get kicked out of her private school, even though everyone knows she’s responsible for taking down a human-trafficking mob boss—and getting St. Agatha’s golden-boy Tyler killed in the process. Running cons holds her guilty conscience at bay, but unfortunately, someone wants Julep to pay for her mistakes . . . with her life.

Against her better judgment, Julep takes a shady case that requires her to infiltrate a secretive organization that her long-gone mother and the enigmatic blue fairy may be connected to. Her best friend, Sam, isn’t around to stop her, and Dani, her one true confidante, happens to be a nineteen-year-old mob enforcer whose moral compass is as questionable as Julep’s. But there’s not much time to worry about right and wrong—or to save your falling heart—when there’s a contract on your head.

Murders, heists, secrets and lies, hit men and hidden identities . . . If Julep doesn’t watch her back, it’s her funeral. No lie.

Cover Roundup: The Rose and the Dagger, Lady Midnight, Break Me Like a Promise, and MORE

**Click on the cover to go to its Goodreads page**

The Rose and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh

Review: Illuminae by Jay Kristoff & Amie Kaufman

Illuminae by Jay Kristoff & Amie Kaufman
608 Pages
Release Date: Octobber 12th, 2015
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher via Netgalley
Genre: Sci-fi
Rating: 4.5-5 STARS 

Goodreads Summary:
This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.

This afternoon, her planet was invaded.

The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.

But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again.

Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.

Event Recap: Six of Crows Magic and Mayhem Tour {Discussion/Q&A}

I had so a fun time at the Magic and Mayhem tour! Leigh Bardugo was in conversation with Heather Havrilesky. Those two were quite the pair and had the audience laughing for more than half of this discussion/Q&A (not verbatim) 

 Discussion/Q&A

Q: What do you think it will take to last in this euphoria (of being #1 on NYT Bestsellers List)?
A: Cocaine probably...

Q: Do you feel like you have a hangover from basking in your own success?
A: No. She obviously has lots of self doubt and sometimes thinks that "Somebody should write this! It would be amazing!"

Q: Do you feel guilty that you feel happy?
A: Don't feel guilty about it but she believes that something bad is going to happen especially if things are going too well. (Believes in hubris)

Q: There's a theme of thirst for ego driven power in your books. What can you tell us about that?
A: Every character driven by what they want vs. what they need. Characters in her story know what they want but what they need is something different. It what makes a character a character.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where that spotlights the upcoming books I am currently anticipating. 

~Currently Anticipating~

Starflights by Melissa Landers 

Release Date: February 2nd, 2016 

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

October Releases

*Click on the cover to go to its Goodreads page*

Oct. 6th:

Mini Book Thoughts (2)

This new feature is something that I saw Shannon (from It Starts at Midnight) and Holly (from The Fox's Hideaway) mention on Twitter and it was the perfect feature because it's a list of all the books I've read but haven't gotten the chance to review (even though I really did plan on reviewing them), books that a lot of bloggers have already reviewed, and/or books I didn't have many thoughts on. This should hopefuly be an end of the month or beginning of the month feature :) 

Reawakened by Colleen Houck
Release Date: August 11th, 2015
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Rating: 4 STARS 

THOUGHTS: 

I quite enjoyed the way we meet Lilliana and Amon and the general direction this story takes. They basically go on this quest around the world to Egypt to help Amon find his brothers and defeat evil. As one does of course. I can't wait to see how Lilly's and Amon's relationship develops. 

The Thing About Books: Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

So we haven't done this feature in a while now and just to recap to those who are new to the blog: 

The Thing About Books is a feature in which Caitlyn and I talk about (usually fangirl) over books we love and need to talk about them. But this also means there will always be spoilers.

**Please only continue reading this post if you've already read the book for this post**

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas 

Release Date: September 1st, 2015 

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens 

Goodsreads Summary:

The queen has returned.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight.

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.

The fourth volume in the New York Times bestselling series contrinues Celaena's epic journey and builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.