Waiting on Wednesday: The Diviners

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is The Diviners by Libba Bray. This will be released in September 2012. I've read other books by Libba Bray and I have liked them, but the description of this one sounds just like something I would love. I love the name of the museum, "The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult." Can't wait!

Summary (from Goodreads): Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."
When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.

Waiting on Wednesday: Poltergeeks

 Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is Poltergeek by Sean Cummings. This will be released in October 2012. This is from the new Young Adult imprint by Angry Robots, Strange Chemistry. Ever since I read Zoo City, I have been enamored by Angry Robots and I'm glad they will be publishing Young Adult novels soon. I also think they do a great job with their covers! Of all the YA books coming out from Strange Chemistry, I think this is the one I'm most excited about. 

Summary from Goodreads: 15-year-old Julie Richardson is about to learn that being the daughter of a witch isn't all it's cracked up to be. When she and her best friend, Marcus, witness an elderly lady jettisoned out the front door of her home, it's pretty obvious to Julie there's a supernatural connection.

In fact, there's a whisper of menace behind increasing levels of poltergeist activity all over town. After a large-scale paranormal assault on Julie's high school, her mother falls victim to the spell Endless Night. Now it's a race against time to find out who is responsible or Julie won't just lose her mother's soul, she'll lose her mother's life.

Waiting on Wednesday: The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls by Claire Legrand and illustrated by Sarah Watts. I want to read this book for the same reasons I want to read the book I picked last week, The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy. The books seem similar with the creepy schools and the mysteries, but this one seems more old fashioned, especially the cover. Honestly, I can't wait to read both. 

Summary from Goodreads: Victoria hates nonsense. There is no need for it when your life is perfect. The only smudge on her pristine life is her best friend Lawrence. He is a disaster—lazy and dreamy, shirt always untucked, obsessed with his silly piano. Victoria often wonders why she ever bothered being his friend. (Lawrence does, too.)

But then Lawrence goes missing. And he’s not the only one. Victoria soon discovers that Mrs. Cavendish’s children’s home is not what it appears to be. Kids go in but come out . . . different, or they don’t come out at all.

If anyone can sort this out, it’s Victoria, even if it means getting a little messy.

Waiting on Wednesday: The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy by Nikki Loftin. This will be published on August 21, 2012. I love the description and the cover. They both hint at a creepy mystery. I don't really have much else to write about this as I think the cover says it all. 

Summary from Goodreads: When Lorelei's old school mysteriously burns down, a new one appears practically overnight: Splendid Academy. Rock-climbing walls on the playground and golden bowls of candy on every desk? Gourmet meals in the cafeteria, served by waiters? Optional homework and two recess periods a day? It's every kids's dream.

But Lorelei and her new friend Andrew are pretty sure it's too good to be true. Together they uncover a sinister mystery, one with their teacher, the beautiful Ms. Morrigan, at the very center.

Then Andrew disappears. Lorelei has to save him, even if that means facing a past she'd like to forget – and taking on a teacher who's a real witch.

What Lorelei and Andrew discover chills their bones – and might even pick them clean!

Waiting on Wednesday: Will Sparrow's Road

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is Will Sparrow's Road by Karen Cushman. This will be coming out November 6, 2012, which seems so far away now! Cushman wrote one of my favorite books, Catherine Called Birdy and I'm so excited about this new book and it will be a graphic novel as well! Unfortunately, the cover is a little weird, which is disappointing, considering that I love the cover of Catherine Called Birdy. 

Summary from Goodreads: In his thirteenth year, Will Sparrow, liar and thief, becomes a runaway. On the road, he encounters a series of con artists—a pickpocket, a tooth puller, a pig trainer, a conjurer—and learns that others are more adept than he at lying and thieving. Then he reluctantly joins a traveling troupe of "oddities," including a dwarf and a cat-faced girl, holding himself apart from the "monsters" and resolving to be on guard against further deceptions. At last Will is forced to understand that appearances are misleading and that  he has been his own worst deceiver. The rowdy world of market fairs in Elizabethan England is the colorful backdrop for Newbery medalist Cushman's new comic masterpiece.

Waiting on Wednesday: Worldsoul

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is Worldsoul by Liz Williams. This will be published on June 6, 2012 by Prime Books. What grabbed me was this, "What if being a librarian was the most dangerous job in the world?" Any book that starts with that will draw me in, of course!

Summary from Goodreads:  What if being a librarian was the most dangerous job in the world?

Worldsoul, a great city that forms a nexus point between Earth and the many dimensions known as the Liminality, is a place where old stories gather, where forgotten legends come to fade and die—or to flourish and rise again. Until recently, Worldsoul has been governed by the Skein, but they have gone missing and no one knows why. The city is also being attacked with lethal flower-bombs from unknown enemy. Mercy Fane and her fellow Librarians are doing their best to maintain the Library, but... things... keep breaking out of ancient texts and legends and escaping into the city. Mercy must pursue one such dangerous creature. She turns to Shadow, an alchemist, for aid, but Shadow—inadvertently possessed by an ifrit—has a perilous quest of her own to undertake.

Waiting on Wednesday: Gifts of the Crow

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is Gifts of the Crow: How Perception, Emotion, and Thought Allow Smart Birds to Behave Like Humans by John Marzluff and Tony Angell. This will be published on June 5, 2012 by Simon and Schuster. While the focus of my blog is on genre fiction, I love non-fiction books such as this. I am fascinated by crows/ravens and have been reading quite a bit recently about how they are more intelligence than people give them credit for. I love reading anything that redefines intelligence and/or shows the intelligence of animals. However, I don't love the latter half of the title, because I think there is more to intelligence than human intelligence.

Summary from Goodreads: Stan Coren’s groundbreaking The Intelligence of Dogs meets Bernd Heinrich’s classic Mind of the Raven in this astonishing, beautifully illustrated look at the uncanny intelligence and emotions of crows.New research indicates that crows are among the brightest animals in the world. And professor of Wildlife Science at the University of Washington John Marzluff has done some of the most extraordinary research on crows, which has been featured in The New York Times, National Geographic, and the Chicago Tribune, as well as on NPR and PBS. Now he teams up with artist and fellow naturalist Tony Angell to offer an in-depth look at these incredible creatures—in a book that is brimming with surprises.     Redefining the notion of “bird brain,” crows and ravens are often called feathered apes because of their clever tool-making and their ability to respond to environmental challenges, including those posed by humans. Indeed, their long lives, social habits, and large complex brains allow them to observe and learn from us and our social gatherings. Their marvelous brains allow crows to think, plan, and reconsider their actions. In these and other enthralling revelations, Marzluff and Angell portray creatures that are nothing short of amazing: they play, bestow gifts on people who help or feed them, use cars as nutcrackers, seek revenge on animals that harass them, are tricksters that lure birds to their deaths, and dream. The authors marvel at crows’ behavior that we humans would find strangely familiar, from delinquency and risk taking to passion and frolic. A testament to years of painstaking research, this fully illustrated, riveting work is a thrilling look at one of nature’s most wondrous creatures.

Waiting on Wednesday: For Darkness Shows the Stars

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund. This will be published on June 12, 2012 by Balzer and Bray. I will admit I have been sucked into the hype over this book. I've never read any Jane Austen, but I do like retellings. I hope it's good!

 Summary from Goodreads: Generations ago, a genetic experiment gone wrong—the Reduction—decimated humanity, giving rise to a Luddite nobility who outlawed most technology.

Elliot North has always known her place in this world. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family’s estate over love. Since then the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress, and Elliot’s estate is foundering, forcing her to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth—an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliot wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she let him go.

But Elliot soon discovers her old friend carries a secret—one that could change their society . . . or bring it to its knees. And again, she’s faced with a choice: cling to what she’s been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she’s ever loved, even if she’s lost him forever.

Inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion, For Darkness Shows the Stars is a breathtaking romance about opening your mind to the future and your heart to the one person you know can break it.

Waiting On Wednesday: Lies, Knives and Girls in Red Dresses

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is the upcoming book Lies, Knives and Girls in Red Dresses by Ron Koertge

 
Summary:

Writing in free verse honed to a wicked edge, the incomparable Ron Koertge brings dark and contemporary humor to twenty iconic fairy tales.

Once upon a time, there was a strung-out match girl who sold CDs to stoners. Twelve impetuous sisters escaped King Daddy's clutches to jiggle and cavort and wear out their shoes. A fickle Thumbelina searched for a tiny husband, leaving bodies in her wake. And Little Red Riding Hood confessed that she kind of wanted to know what it's like to be swallowed whole. From bloodied and blinded stepsisters (they were duped) to a chopped-off finger flying into a heroine's cleavage, this is fairy tale world turned upside down. Ron Koertge knows what really happened to all those wolves and maidens, ogres and orphans, kings and piglets, and he knows about the Ever After. So come closer - he wants to whisper in your ear.

Why I picked it: I love, LOVE updates on fairy tales. I also like the cover. I hope this is a good one!

Waiting on Wednesday: Nightshifted

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is the upcoming book Nightshifted by Cassie Alexander. This will be released on May 22, 2012.

Summary: Nursing school prepared Edie Spence for a lot of things. Burn victims? No problem. Severed limbs? Piece of cake. Vampires? No way in hell. But as the newest nurse on Y4, the secret ward hidden in the bowels of County Hospital, Edie has her hands full with every paranormal patient you can imagine--from vamps and were-things to zombies and beyond...

Edie's just trying to learn the ropes so she can get through her latest shift unscathed. But when a vampire servant turns to dust under her watch, all hell breaks loose. Now she's haunted by the man's dying words--"Save Anna"--and before she knows it, she's on a mission to rescue some poor girl from the undead. Which involves crashing a vampire den, falling for a zombie, and fighting for her soul. "Grey's Anatomy" was never like this...

Why I picked it: I've never read any Urban Fantasy, but I've wanted to get into it for a while. This one seems a little cheesy, but I'm intrigued by the idea!

Waiting on Wednesday: Blackbirds

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is the upcoming book Blackbirds by Chuck Wendig. This will be released on April 24, 2012.

Summary: Miriam Black knows when you will die. She’s foreseen hundreds of car crashes, heart attacks, strokes, and suicides.

But when Miriam hitches a ride with Louis Darling and shakes his hand, she sees that in thirty days Louis will be murdered while he calls her name. Louis will die because he met her, and she will be the next victim.

No matter what she does she can’t save Louis. But if she wants to stay alive, she’ll have to try.

Why I picked it: Wow, what can I say, I LOVE the cover. And the description is pretty compelling, too, but that cover! WOW!

Waiting on Wednesday: Scarlet

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen. This will be released on Valentine's Day, 2012!

Summary: Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance.

Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in. It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.

Why I'm waiting: I love the story of Robin Hood and I love retellings, so I hope this one is good!

Waiting on Wednesday: Dust Girl

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

The book I'm "waiting on" is Dust Girl by Sarah Zettel. It will be published June 26, 2012.

Summary from GoodReads: This new trilogy will capture the hearts of readers who adore Libba Bray's Gemma Doyle series. Callie LeRoux lives in Slow Run, Kansas, helping her mother run their small hotel and trying not to think about the father she's never met. Lately all of her energy is spent battling the constant storms plaguing the Dust Bowl and their effects on her health. Callie is left alone, when her mother goes missing in a dust storm. Her only hope comes from a mysterious man offering a few clues about her destiny and the path she must take to find her parents in "the golden hills of the west" (California). Along the way she meets Jack a young hobo boy who is happy to keep her company—there are dangerous, desperate people at every turn. And there's also an otherworldly threat to Callie. Warring fae factions, attached to the creative communities of American society, are very aware of the role this half-mortal, half-fae teenage girl plays in their fate.

Why I'm waiting: I love the idea of an American fairytale. I also like the setting, the Dust Bowl. It reminds me of the films of Tom Davenport, who has made several fairy tale films based in the American South. I hope it's as good as those films!

Waiting on Wednesday: Ripper

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature at Breaking the Spine.

The book I'm "waiting on" is Ripper by Stefan Petrucha. It will be published March 1, 2012.

Summary from Goodreads: You thought you knew him. You were dead wrong.

Carver Young dreams of becoming a detective, despite growing up in an orphanage with only crime novels to encourage him. But when he is adopted by Detective Hawking of the world famous Pinkerton Agency, Carver is given not only the chance to find his biological father, he finds himself smack in the middle of a real life investigation: tracking down a vicious serial killer who has thrown New York City into utter panic. When the case begins to unfold, however, it’s worse than he could have ever imagined, and his loyalty to Mr. Hawking and the Pinkertons comes into question. As the body count rises and the investigation becomes dire, Carver must decide where his true loyalty lies.

Full of whip-smart dialogue, kid-friendly gadgets, and featuring a then New York City Police Commisioner Teddy Roosevelt, Ripper challenges everything you thought you knew about the world’s most famous serial killer.

Why I'm waiting: When I was younger, I loved to read True Crime books or peruse Crime Library. While I don't do this as much anymore, I'm still interested in these topics, and a retelling of Jack the Ripper intrigues me.