Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Waiting on...

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It lets us all gush about what soon-to-be released books we are jumping-up-and-down excited for.
by Catherine Egan

hitting shelves June 7th, 2016
from Knopf Books for Young Readers
Julia has the unusual ability to be . . . unseen. Not invisible, exactly. Just beyond most people's senses. 

It's a dangerous trait in a city that has banned all forms of magic and drowns witches in public Cleansings. But it's a useful trait for a thief and a spy. And Julia has learned--crime pays.


Her latest job is paying very well indeed. Julia is posing as a housemaid in the grand house of Mrs. Och, where an odd assortment of characters live and work: A disgraced professor who sends her to fetch parcels containing bullets, spiders, and poison. An aristocratic houseguest who is locked in the basement each night. And a mysterious young woman who is clearly in hiding--though from what or whom?


Worse, Julia suspects that there's a connection between these people and the killer leaving a trail of bodies across the frozen city.


The more she learns, the more she wants to be done with this unnatural job. To go back to the safety of her friends and fellow thieves. But Julia is entangled in a struggle between forces more powerful than she'd ever imagined. Escape will come at a terrible price.
 

My thoughts: Lots of things catching my attention here: unusual abilities, odd assortment of characters, forbidden magic and a clever-sounding spy. This definitely has me curious!

Monday, November 9, 2015

Cover Story


Okay, who else loves how incredibly varied the YA 2016 books covers are proving to be! So many different styles and designs and lovely fonts, and after a few years of nearly every other book being about pretty dresses and intense gazes, these are all so refreshing!! Check out these few that have been revealed recently!  All links lead to Goodreads so you can add these to your every-growing TBRs!






Awww. Poor sad cake.
Atheneum BYR, May 17th, 2016













BLOWN AWAY by this design. 
Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
Penguin, March 8th, 2016






One of my faves. SO cute. 
Sounrcebooks, April 1st, 2016









Love this, perfect tie-in to the story 
Clean Teen Publishing, April 18th, 2016









Love the creative font use!
Farrar, Strauss, & Giroux, June 28th, 2016









Absolutely love the whimsical window view!
Sourcebooks, March 1st, 2016









Not sure I love this one, but it's certainly unique!
Simon & Schuster, June 4th, 2016







This cover sets the perfect tone for a crazy heist story!
Smash & Grab by Amy Christine Parker
Random House BYR, July 19th, 2016








Okay, fine. One pretty dress doesn't hurt. :)
It's all the rest of the exotic details that makes this one a stunner!
The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi
St. Martins Griffin, May 3rd, 2016





So what do you think? Any new favorites among these?



Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Waiting on...

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It lets us all gush about what soon-to-be released books we are jumping-up-and-down excited for.

by Lindsay Ribar

hitting shelves June 7th, 2016
from Kathy Dawson Books
Twin Peaks meets Stars Hollow in this paranormal suspense novel about a boy who can reach inside people and steal their innermost things—fears, memories, scars, even love—and his family’s secret ritual that for centuries has kept the cliff above their small town from collapsing.

Aspen Quick has never really worried about how he’s affecting people when he steals from them. But this summer he’ll discover just how strong the Quick family magic is—and how far they’ll go to keep their secrets safe.

With a smart, arrogant protagonist, a sinister family tradition, and an ending you won’t see coming, this is a fast-paced, twisty story about power, addiction, and deciding what kind of person you want to be, in a family that has the ability to control everything you are.
 

My thoughts: UM...Twin Peaks meets Stars Hollow??? I'm gonna needs this right this very moment. Sounds like lots of wierd quirky things going on in this story and I'm hoping the Stars Hollow comp refers to interesting and irresistable relationships and characters! I read Art of Wishing by this author, which was super cute. Can't help but have high hopes for this one!

Sweet Madness by Trisha Leaver & Lindsay Currie {review}


Sweet Madness 
by Trisha Leaver & Lindsay Currie
♦publisher: Merit Press
♦release date: September 15th, 2015
♦hardcover, 224 pages
♦intended audience: Young adult
♦stand-alone
♦source: from publisher for honest review 
Seventeen-year-old Bridget Sullivan is alone in Fall River, a city that sees Irish immigrants as nothing more than a drunken drain on society. To make matters worse, she's taken employment with the city’s most peculiar and gossip-laden family—the Bordens. 

However, what seemed like a straightforward situation soon turns into one that is untenable. Of course Bridget has heard the gossip around town about the Bordens, but what she encounters is far more unsettling. The erratic, paranoid behavior of Mr. Borden, the fearful silence of his wife, and worse still…the nightly whisperings Bridget hears that seem to come from the walls themselves.

But when Bridget makes a horrifying discovery in the home, all that she thought she knew about the Bordens is called into question…including if Lizzie is dangerous. And the choice she must make about Lizzie’s character could mean Bridget’s life or death.

(I abridged the description from goodreads--IMO they gave way too much away!)

Review: This was dark, dark stuff, my friends! I mean, if you know anything about Lizzie Borden, even if it's just the rhyme, you know this story is going to be the very furthest thing from sunshine and rainbows.  But it did still surprise me just how gruesome and gorily detailed this was.  

There is something about historical fiction where you know what's going to happen at the end.  It's not the same as when a story is just predictable---I found myself completely draw into this fictional account just to see how exactly that inevitable end would be reached. It was interesting seeing it from the maid's point of view, as someone who is not part of the family, but still completely entwined in all the madness. I did find it a little off-putting how one second she was so annoyed that Lizzie was following her and she was fearful of her, then the next turn she was going on about Lizzie was her best friend and she would never leave her. It felt inconsisent, but in some ways I suppose it fed into the feeling of quiet chaos that threaded through this whole story. Lizzie's friendliness toward her straddled the line between extreme concern to  full-on obsession. As the story moves along, she divulges secrets about the house and family that get creepier and creepier. But Bridget's need to stick with this job if she wants to eventually bring her sister from Ireland, mixed with her confused devotion to Lizzie, her fear of Mr. Borden, and her worry about the voices she hears in the house all make for a tightly strung intensity that felt like the turning of a screw, like I was just waiting for everything to explode. 

Which of course, it did. As I mentioned above, there are no holds barred in the vivid and blood imagery use to describe the historically rumored "40 whacks".  So be prepared if you take this one on! 


Find Trisha Leaver online: Website  •  Twitter  •  Instagram
Find Lindsay Currie online:  Website  •  Twitter  •  Instagram

Purchase Sweet Madness:  Indiebound  •  BookDepository  •  Amazon

Sunday, November 1, 2015

What's New: November YA Release List & Giveaway!

So it's November guys! AKA, the month that Lunar Chronicles finale WINTER comes out!! Hurray!! :D November also kicks off the holiday season and a bit of a slow-down in the publishing world. The list of new releases is significantly smaller in November & December, but some really awesome releases to look forward to nonetheless!  This month I also plan to resurrect a fun event I did way back in 2012---the Stories & Sweeties Thanksgiving-Away! Tons of cool giveaways to show my lovely blog readers just how grateful I am for all of you! Keep an eye out for that around mid-month! 

So if you're new to Stories & Sweeties, here's a little run-down of this feature: at the start of each month, I do a little thing called the "What's New List & Giveaway" where you'll find a full list of the new releases in YA for the month, and entry to the international giveaway. At the end of each month, one lucky winner will get to choose any new release as their prize!

First things first! The winner of October's giveaway is Katie ! Congrats!
November 2015 Releases:
Just like previous months, I've put a little lve by those books that I am really anticipating!

{1}
Infinity Lost by S. Harrison
See No Color by Shannon Gibney

{3}
All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
The Anatomical Shape of a Heart by Jenn Bennett
The Conjurer's Riddle by Andrea Cremer
Fearless by Marianne Curley
Forget Tomorrow by Pintip Dunn 
Hollowgirl by  Sean Williams
Hotel Ruby by Suzanne Young 
How to Be Brave by E. Katherine Kottaras
The Lies about Truth by Courteny C. Stevens
Manners & Mutiny by Gail Carriger 
Need by Joelle Charbonneau
One of Us by Jeannie Waudby
The Revolution of Ivy by Amy Engel
The Sister Pact by Stacie 
Ten Thousand Skies Above You by Claudia Gray 
Traffick by Ellen Hopkins
Until We Meet Again by Renee Collins 

{4}
Dangerous Deceptions by Sarah Zettel 

{8}
The Last Faerie Queen by Chelsea Pitcher

{10}
All the Major Constellations by Pratima Cranse
The August 5 by Jenna Helland
Autumn's Kiss by Bella Thorne
Consent by Nancy Ohlin
Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick
Darkness Hidden by Zoe Marriott
Da Vinci's Tiger by L.M. Elliot & Elizabeth Wiley 
Hello? by Liza Wiemer
If Only by Richard Paul Evans
Serendipity's Footsteps by Suzanne Nelson
Soundless by Richelle Mead 
Sugar Skulls by Lisa Mantchev & Glenn Dallas
This Way Home by Wes Moore & Shawn Goodman
Triple Moon by Melissa de la Cruz
Unforgiven by Lauren Kate 
Winter by Marissa Meyer ♥!!
Young Widows Club by Alexandra Coutts

{15}
The Yearbook by Carol Masciola 

{17}
Calvin by Martine Leavitt 
The Casquette Girls by Alys Arden 
Dragon Marked by Jaymin Eve
The Game of Lives by James Dashner
The Golden Braid by Melanie Dickerson
Just Visiting by Dahlia Adler
Strange Girl by Christopher Pike

{24}
Light of Day by Allison van Diepen
Promises I Made by Michelle Zink
Queen by Aimee Carter
Queen of Always by Sherry Ficklin
Reckless Hearts by Sean Olin
Rules for 50/50 Chances by Kate McGovern 

(All links go to Goodreads)
Please feel free to email me if you notice any YA titles missing! :)


Giveaway Details: 
One winner will win a YA November release of their choice! *see note below
• Contest ends 
November 30th, 2015 at 11:59 PM
• Must be 13 or older.
• Open internationally. *International winners will be required to choose a book that is available through BookDepository.com up to $20 value.
•Extra entries can be earned by commenting on 
October or November reviews, and can be done once per review. Come back throughout November whenever you comment on my reviews and get your extra points!    
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New Shelf Goodies & A Trick-or-Treat Giveaway!

For New Shelf Goodies, I'll be showing you what lovely books I acquired this week, whether from publishers, or the library, or from whatever half-crazed book-buying binge I happened to go on. :D (Inspired by Tynga's Stacking the Shelves) The Weekly Nutshell will be just that...my week here at Stories & Sweeties, in a nutshell. (inspired by Ginger @ GReads and her recaps at the end of the TGIF posts)
The new books on my shelf this week:
For review:
 Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick
I've only read Becca's Hush Hush series (most of it lol) so I'm interested to see how this is!
The Forbidden Orchid by Sharon Biggs Waller
Aaaaa, so excited for this one. Looks like an amazing, historical adventure.
The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury
I haven't read this author before but this one about jinni looks so good!

Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and Penguin for these!


The Weekly Nutshell:

Also I guest posted with the fabulous Alyssa of Books Take You Places for Fortnight of Fright! 
Check it out for my review of 

I hope you all had a fantastic Halloween! It's always a busy time around here, finishing up costumes, getting the house fully decked out, plus my family all congregates at my house to trick or treat.  We had tons of trick or treaters this year, which I love. 
This week I read Wink Poppy Midnight. GUYS O_O  I loved this so much. I will likely hold off my full review until closer to the pub date, but it is quite deserving in my eyes of all the lovely hype it's been getting. It's bizarre and magical and April Tuckolke just absolutely blows me away with her way with words.  SOOO, I think after that I must have book hangover because I've tried to start two since them and I'm just having a hard time with them. I tried Tell the Story to It's End and have put it aside. Then I'm about 80 pages into Madly, and it's okay, so I'm pressing on. We'll see. It's a bit..weird. And sorta cheesy.   
Anyone reading anything they are just loving right now? 


So to usher out Halloween 2015, I want to end the night with a 
Trick or  Treat Giveaway!! 

I'm giving away these two spooky reads so the spirit of Halloween can last just a little longer! :D
•ends 11/10/15
•US mailing addresses only please
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Friday, October 30, 2015

Rebel Mechanics by Shanna Swendson {review}

Rebel Mechanics 
by Shanna Swendson
♦publisher: Farrar, Strauss, & Giroux
♦release date: July 14th, 2015
♦hardcover, 310 pages
♦intended audience: Young adult
♦series: Rebel Mechanics, book 1
♦source: from publisher for honest review
A sixteen-year-old governess becomes a spy in this alternative U.S. history where the British control with magic and the colonists rebel by inventing.

It’s 1888, and sixteen-year-old Verity Newton lands a job in New York as a governess to a wealthy leading family—but she quickly learns that the family has big secrets. Magisters have always ruled the colonies, but now an underground society of mechanics and engineers are developing non-magical sources of power via steam engines that they hope will help them gain freedom from British rule. The family Verity works for is magister—but it seems like the children's young guardian uncle is sympathetic to the rebel cause. As Verity falls for a charming rebel inventor and agrees to become a spy, she also becomes more and more enmeshed in the magister family’s life. She soon realizes she’s uniquely positioned to advance the cause—but to do so, she’ll have to reveal her own dangerous secret.

Review: Despite a rough start (I had actually started this one, set it aside for a while, then decided to give it another go!), Rebel Mechanics  turned out to be a fun romp of a steampunk story that I absolutely enjoyed to bits! 

 In an alternate history where Magisters hold all the power in government and military, a revolution is brewing among magic-free folk. They’re determined to show that machinery and ingenuity is just as valuable and should not be held back. Verity, finds herself mixed up with the rebels on her very first time in a new city, charmed by their determination, their clever mechanical creations, and of course, by a handsome smile and first taste of attraction. I found her a bit frustratingly naïve at first, but Verity grew on me and grew as a character. She gets coerced into spying for the Rebels and takes the excitement on with zeal, bravery, and no small amount of gutsiness! Her new official job as governess to the wards of an enigmatic Magister proves a challenge with both dealing with the kids and dealing with her own closely held secret.

I loved the development of her relationship with Henry. I though he was absolutely charming in that bumbling, distracted sort of way. There is a bit of a triangle going on here, but never really felt like one to me, because the other “option” was never appealing to me! There are a slew of great characters running through this riotous story, most of them complex enough make readers both like them and doubt them at the same time. Including Verity herself. 

With the creativity and vivid detail of the steampunk machinery, a clever girl with one foot in both sides of a revolution, and a story full of romance, friendships, and ulterior motives, Rebel Mechanics is the start of a series that I will definitely be returning to for future adventures!

Find Shanna Swendson online:  Website  •  Twitter  •  Facebook

Purchase the book:  Indiebound  •  BookDepository   •  Amazon