Waiting on Wednesday #101

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Don't You Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn

June 10th 2014

Welcome to Gardnerville.
A place where no one gets sick. And no one ever dies.
Except...There’s a price to pay for paradise. Every fourth year, the strange power that fuels the town exacts its payment by infecting teens with deadly urges. In a normal year in Gardnerville, teens might stop talking to their best friends. In a fourth year, they’d kill them.
Four years ago, Skylar’s sister, Piper, was locked away after leading sixteen of her classmates to a watery grave. Since then, Skylar has lived in a numb haze, struggling to forget her past and dull the pain of losing her sister. But the secrets and memories Piper left behind keep taunting Skylar—whispering that the only way to get her sister back is to stop Gardnerville’s murderous cycle once and for all.

Teaser Tuesday #97 and Top Ten Tuesday #87

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Should Be Reading. Bloggers choose two

sentences out of our current read to peak others' curiosity.

Phoenix by Elizabeth Richards

                                 

Ash and Natalie are just starting to build a life together when things in the United Sentry States go from bad to worse. Ash and Natalie find themselves at the center of turmoil when dictator Purian Rose threatens Natalie’s life unless Ash votes in favor of Rose’s Law—a law that will send Darklings and other dissenters to a deadly concentration camp known as the Tenth.

When Ash can’t bring himself to trade Natalie’s life for those of millions of Darklings, her fate is sealed. Enter Elijah Theroux, the handsome Bastet boy Natalie once saved from her mother’s labs, where he’d been experimented on and tortured. It was his venom the Sentry used to create the lethal Golden Haze, the heart of the government conspiracy that led to Black City’s uprising and Ash’s rebirth as the Phoenix, the face of the rebellion. Elijah is back and Ash doesn’t like him; it’s clear he’s taken with Natalie, and Ash fears she may have feelings for him as well.

But Elijah also may have the answer to taking down Purian Rose for good—a powerful weapon called the Ora. Ash, Natalie and Elijah just have to escape Black City undetected to find it. But fleeing the city and finding this weapon (if it even exists) are easier said than done, and the quest could tear Ash and Natalie apart, even pushing them into the arms of others.

This enthralling sequel to Black City is just as absorbing, delicious and steamy as the first book, leaving readers hungry for the series conclusion.

Teaser:

I give her a quick peck on the cheek, and her face flushes bright red. 

Top Ten is an original feature/weekly meme created here at

The Broke and the Bookish that features a great bookish top ten every week.

Top Ten Authors I have Not Read : but they are on my list to read....

1.Deb Caletti

2.Sarah Ockler 

3.Jennifer L. Armentrout

4. Kasie West

5. Tahereh Mafi 

6. Marie Lu

7. Sara Zarr 

8. Brandon Sanderson

9. Jodi Picoult

10. Tamora Pierce

Genre Definition and Recommendation #55

Genre Definition and Recommendation is a feature where I will define a genre and a sub-genre definition and the make some recommendations.  

Science Fiction - Definition found on Wikipedia

Science Fiction- is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible (or at least non-supernatural) content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities. 

Suspense/Thriller- Definition found on Wikipedia

Suspense is a feeling of pleasurable fascination and excitement mixed with apprehension, tension, and anxiety developed from an unpredictable, mysterious, and rousing source of entertainment. The term most often refers to an audience's perceptions in a dramatic work. 

This week I have a couple Science FictionThrillers to recommend 

My Recommendations: 

Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

A modern day thrill ride, where a teen girl and her animal companion must participate in a breathtaking race to save her brother's life—and her own. 

Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.

Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.

The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?

Altered by Jennifer Rush

  

When you can’t trust yourself, who can you believe?

Everything about Anna’s life is a secret. Her father works for the Branch at the helm of its latest project: monitoring and administering treatments to the four genetically altered boys in the lab below their farmhouse. There’s Nick, Cas, Trev . . . and Sam, who’s stolen Anna’s heart. When the Branch decides it’s time to take the boys, Sam stages an escape, killing the agents sent to retrieve them. 

Anna is torn between following Sam or staying behind in the safety of her everyday life. But her father pushes her to flee, making Sam promise to keep her away from the Branch, at all costs. There’s just one problem. Sam and the boys don’t remember anything before living in the lab—not even their true identities.

Now on the run, Anna soon discovers that she and Sam are connected in more ways than either of them expected. And if they’re both going to survive, they must piece together the clues of their past before the Branch catches up to them and steals it all away.

What Do you Recommend? 

Review: Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

Title: Fire & Flood 

Author: Victoria Scott

Publisher:  Scholastic Press 
Publishing Date: February 14th 2014

Pages: 304
Genre:  YA Science-Fiction Thriller/Adventure

Series:  Fire & Flood #1
Source: Hardcover

  

A modern day thrill ride, where a teen girl and her animal companion must participate in a breathtaking race to save her brother's life—and her own.

Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.
Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.
The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?

I was so excited for this book. The cover is so gorgeous. The story sounds intense. I couldn't wait to read the book. I nabbed it to read as soon as I cold. I absolutely, positively, emphatically loved this book. There was just a tad bit of a problem with pacing at the beginning, but once it picked up it truly was a page turner. I couldn't read the pages fast enough, I couldn't gobble it up fast enough, It was truly wonderful, just brilliant. 

Tella has a very sick brother, and older brother she just adores. She feels helpless until she receives a creepy message on a strange device, enter the race, win the race, get the cure. For her brother, there isn't a choice. She finds a way to enter and race. Now she must find a way to win. The race isn't a normal race. Its full of danger, extreme circumstances, and evil creators. Of course the best part, each contender has a Pandora, and animal friend, protector, helper with extreme abilities.  Tella and her Pandora meet many others contending for the cure. Other contenders and Pandoras. Some friendly, other not so much. 

The book started off a little slow for me. It wasn't until all the characters showed up on the book before it took off for me. It was about 10 percent through or so. Once it took off, it took off. I was a bit worried in the beginning, I didn't think I would get into the story. I was wrong. The story kept getting more intense with every page turn. I normally read a multiple of books and shift back and forth depending on my mood. This book took precedence over all the rest. 

Everything pretty much rocked for me in this book. The setting, the story, the tone, and the character building. I loved them all. The story did have some similarities to Hunger Games, but not enough to deter me from really enjoying the book. The main similarity I came across was the creators being much luck like the game makers and it was pretty much a dog eat dog world in the race. The object isn't to kill other contenders, but they creators don't frown upon it either. The contenders came in all ages.... young as 10 or so up to older adults. The only thing the contenders had in common was a a sick loved one, someone they were racing for. The story never goes into what kind of sickness all the family members have, but we do find out how they got sick to begin with. The origin of the race isn't explained until the very end of the book, but the origin didn't seem to matter to me. The only thing that really stood out for me and led the story, was the actual race. Getting to the next leg, possibly the end. It was a very exciting read. Even though the race was my main focus and it is the main focus of this book, the series is going to be about so much more. I am really happy that the storyline will have a bigger world to explore. 

The setting was pretty cool, first the jungle, then the desert. Both settings were well written, The details were just enough to put me there with the characters and hold the visuals in my mind, but didn't take over the story.  Each setting had their own problems, traps, and things to work through, set backs. Both were agonizing and murderous. I wouldn't want to be a part of either for sure. The settings and the intensity of the race set the tone for the story. Very extreme, very dangerous, very time sensitive. It was quite a nerve-racking experience. 

The characters were of course my favorite part. I was a bit concerned at first. I wasn't sure I would connect or like Tella. I couldn't have been more wrong. I didn't connect to her first, but it didn't take long to find her personality, who she was, and what she stood for. She was a sensitive girl. One I liked very much. She was strong, but her strength took second string to her heart. She cared intensely. She didn't go mediocre or half way. She gave her entire heart to everyone who deserved it. She was loyal, trustworthy, and driven. In the end I considered her a true friend. 

There was romance, and the heart throb that was attached to that storyline, Guy, Oh he was so wonderful. I admit I like the stand offish boy characters, as long as they do it right. Guy did it right. He was a loner, stand offish, but he also couldn't help but caring, protecting, helping... not just Tella but all that he considered part of his world. He was pretty amazing. 

The romance was slow but fast. It was fast because only a month passes in the book, it was slow because it didn't go from nothing to romance. The attraction was there, but they weren't concerned about relationships, they were concerned with staying alive and winning the race. So over the month of the race, the romance built and it was good. I loved the romance int he book. 

So yes there was tons of goodness that worked together perfectly to create an outstanding journey for me and I am in awe of this book....my only complaint... the ending..... Ugh I hate non existent endings. No cliff hanger but no conclusion either. Now all I can do is wait in agony. 

Amazing, incredible, marvelous extraordinary. The next one can't come out soon enough. 

Victoria Scott is a teen fiction writer represented by Sara Crowe. She's the author of the FIRE & FLOOD series published by Scholastic, and the DANTE WALKER trilogy published by Entangled Teen. Her books have been bought and translated in eleven foreign markets including the UK, Turkey, China, Poland, Germany, Australia, Israel, Taiwan, Brazil, New Zealand, and the Netherlands.
Victoria lives in Dallas with her husband and hearts cotton candy something fierce.

Stacking the Shelves #68

Stacking The Shelves is a hosted by Tynga's Reviews. Come join the fun and share all the book you received this week. 

Bought:

Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oaks

         

Not every fairytale has a happy ending.

This is the story of a princess who became a villain.

***

A Father’s Betrayal. A Kingdom with a Black Secret. A Princess Slowly Unraveling. 

As Princess of Wonderland Palace and the future Queen of Hearts, Dinah’s days are an endless monotony of tea, tarts, and a stream of vicious humiliations at the hands of her father, the King of Hearts. The only highlight of her days is visiting Wardley, her childhood best friend, the future Knave of Hearts — and the love of her life.

When an enchanting stranger arrives at the Palace, Dinah watches as everything she’s ever wanted threatens to crumble. As her coronation date approaches, a series of suspicious and bloody events suggests that something sinister stirs in the whimsical halls of Wonderland. It’s up to Dinah to unravel the mysteries that lurk both inside and under the Palace before she loses her own head to a clever and faceless foe.

Part epic fantasy, part twisted fairy tale, this dazzling saga will have readers shivering as Dinahs furious nature sweeps Wonderland up in the maelstrom of her wrath. 

Familiar characters such as Cheshire, the White Rabbit, and the Mad Hatter make their appearance, enchanting readers with this new, dark take on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

     

A modern day thrill ride, where a teen girl and her animal companion must participate in a breathtaking race to save her brother's life—and her own. 

Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.

Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.

The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place? 

Classic Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen

                            

A collection of eighteen fairy tales, taken from Erick Haugaard's acclaimed translation of The Complete Fairy Tales and Stories of Hans Anderson.

This collection is superbly illustrated in full colour and black and white by Michael Foreman. The book contains eighteen colour paintings and twenty-one black and white drawings.