Waiting on Wednesday

"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.

Princess of Thorns 
by Stacey Jay

hitting shelves December 9, 2014 from Delacorte Press

description:  Game of Thrones meets the Grimm's fairy tales in this twisted, fast-paced romantic fantasy-adventure about Sleeping Beauty's daughter, a warrior princess who must fight to reclaim her throne.

Though she looks like a mere mortal, Princess Aurora is a fairy blessed with enhanced strength, bravery, and mercy yet cursed to destroy the free will of any male who kisses her. Disguised as a boy, she enlists the help of the handsome but also cursed Prince Niklaas to fight legions of evil and free her brother from the ogre queen who stole Aurora's throne ten years ago.

Will Aurora triumph over evil and reach her brother before it's too late? Can Aurora and Niklaas break the curses that will otherwise forever keep them from finding their one true love?

My thoughts:  After Stacey Jay penned one of my favorite books of last year, Of Beasts and Beauty, I have full faith in her handling of fairy tales.  This sounds amazing, so many great elements with the fairy powers and the princess disguised as a boy fighting for her throne.  However, I honestly hope this gets a major cover redesign before it hits it's release day.  The storyline has so much potential for a truly amazing cover, and I just don't think this is it.  

Becky's View: Witch Finder by Ruth Warburton

Witch Finder by Ruth Warburton
♦publisher: Hodder Children's
♦release date: January 2nd, 2014
♦paperback 374 pages
♦intended audience: Young adult
♦series: Witch Finder, book 1
♦source: from publisher for honest review

London. 1880. In the slums of Spitalfields apprentice blacksmith Luke is facing initiation into the Malleus Maleficorum, the fearsome brotherhood dedicated to hunting and killing witches.

Luke’s final test is to pick a name at random from the Book of Witches, a name he must track down and kill within a month, or face death himself. Luke knows that tonight will change his life forever. But when he picks out sixteen-year-old Rosa Greenwood, Luke has no idea that his task will be harder than he could ever imagine.

Review: Witch Finder is a beautifully rendered tale of witches and magic, honor, duty, and a love that will go against everything its main characters thought they knew.  It’s a bleak setting in Victorian London that takes us from the dingy streets and factories of the common folk to the posh houses of the rich and their lush countrysides. 

 Luke is a good young man, just beginning his life within the brotherhood of the Malleus Maleficorum, a secret society set on ridding the world of witches. He’s been raised to despise witches and even has his own personal reasons for hating them---he saw his entire family killed by a witch as a young boy. Furthermore, he hides a great secret that any witch would kill him for: he can see a witch’s powers like an aura around their body.  As his final initiation into the Malleus, he must kill his first witch, Rosa Greenwood, whose family is said to be especially dangerous. He must infiltrate their house disguised as a stable hand, and find a way to kill her before the end of the next full moon. 

The story was told in alternating view points between Luke and Rosa.  This style worked perfectly to convey each character’s preconceptions of the other and each of their own emotional dilemmas.  They will both eventually discover that neither the witching world nor the human world is what they thought.  Rosa’s family is struggling after her father’s death and she is hurting the most from the loss. Her brother is abusive and power-hungry and her mother is pretty useless. She was a strong character just to have survived them, but she’ll face her ugliest challenge yet when they force her into a courtship with the handsome but diabolical Knyvet. 

There is really nothing I can pinpoint aside from just good storytelling that made me absolutely love this story. I loved both main characters for their strengths, weaknesses, and loyalties; there are twists and surprises and horrors; there are moments of hopelessness that you just know will have to be overcome or you’ll be devastated for Luke and Rosa.  And, of course, there is the love story: conflicted and forbidden and born out of kindness in the last place that either of them expected to find it.    

Witch Finder has a full and satisfying story arc all on it’s own, but I’m glad to hear that there's more to come from this world and this author in Witch Hunt!

Find Ruth Warburton online:  Website  •  Twitter  •  Facebook

Purchase a Witch in Love:  BookDepository  •   AmazonUK

            

New Shelf Goodies & The Weekly Nutshell {75}

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)

Here's what new goodies are on my shelf this week:

Fates by Lanie Bross

Blog tour for this one stops here soon! Check back for a giveaway!

Don't Even Think About It by Sarah Mlynowski

This looks hilarious! 

Scintillate by Tracy Clark

 Story sounds good and looking forward to the Irish setting.

Sweet Reckoning by Wendy Higgins

The end of one of my favorite series!

After The End by Amy Plum

A new series from Amy Plum!Very excited about that. 

The Secret of Lily Graves by Sarah Strohmeyer

High hopes for this one, sounds really good. 

Autumn Rose by Abigail Gibbs

Sounds very cool and I love the cover--will have to track down book one.

The Weekly Nutshell:

{Monday} Review: All That Glows
{Wednesday}Waiting on Wednesday: Deep Blue

{Thursday} Old Books, New Looks

{Saturday} What's New: February YA Releases & Giveaway

Have a great week, everyone! :)

"What's New": February New Releases & Giveaway!

One month down already in this year.  For me, January already goes by fast, but this year a good portion of my month got sucked down the black hole of a bad cold---first my daughter, then my son, then me.  Fun stuff...NOT.  My poor blogoversary flew by uncelebrated, but I won't let that go for long now that I'm feeling better :D.   Meanwhile, its freaking spring weather already here and I'm feeling a bit robbed of my winter---someone send me just a little rain please!

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 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 January's giveaway was: Holly! Congratulations! :D

February 2014 Releases:
Just like previous months, I've put a little l♥ve by those books that I am really anticipating!

{4}
Alienated by Melissa Landers
Black Dog by Rachel Neumeier
Cress by Marissa Meyer ♥♥!
Destination Unknown by Amy Clipston
Ignite Me by Taherah Mafi ♥
Landry Park by Bethany Hagen
Lessons in Love by A.Destiny and Catherine Hapka
Mistwalker by Saundra Mitchell ♥
Never Too Late by A. Destiny and Rhonda Helms
Prince of Shadows by Rachel Caine
Rise of the Arcane Fire by Kristin Bailey
Scintillate by Tracy Clark ♥
The Seers by Julianna Scott ♥
Something Real by Heather Demetrios
Such Sweet Sorrow by Jenny Trout ♥
Teen Spirit by Francesca Lia Block
Vengeance by Megan Miranda 

{6}
The Sound of Letting Go by Stasia Ward Kehoe

{8}
The Drowned Forest by Kristopher Reisz

{11}
All That Glow by Ryan Graudin
Arcadia Falls by Kai Meyer
Before My Eyes by Caroline Bock
Fates by Lanie Bross ♥
Feral Curse by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Fool's Gold by Philippa Gregory
The Glass Casket by McCormick Templeman ♥
Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith
Lady Thief by A.C. Gaughen ♥
Pieces of Me by Amber Kizer
Porcelain Keys by Sarah Beard
Road Rash by Mark Huntley Parsons
Split Second by Kasie West
Three by Kristen Simmons
The Tinker King by Tiffany Trent
The Tyrant's Daughter by J.C. Carleson
White Space by Isla J. Bick
Willow by Tonya Cherie Hegamin
The Worlds We Make by Megan Crewe

{18}
Bright Before Sunrise by Tiffany Schmidt
Insanity by Susan Vaught ♥
Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor ♥
Perfect Lies by Kiersten White 

{20}
Third Strike by Heather Brewer

{25}
The Academy: Love Match by Monica Seles
Better Off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg
Boy on the Edge by Fridrik Erlings
Burn Bright by Bethany Frenette ♥
Faking Normal by Courtney C. Stevens
Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott
Grandmaster by David Klass
Grim by Ellen Hopkins, Julie Kagawa, etc. (story collection)
Killer Frost by Jennifer Estep
Lych Way by Ari Berk
Season of Fire by Lisa Tawn Bergren
The Secret Diamond Sisters by Michelle Madow
The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Tin Star by Cecil Castellicci ♥
Tremor by Patric Carman
Unforgotten by Jessica Brody
The Well's End by Seth Fishman
Year of Mistaken Discoveries by Eileen Cook

{27}
Tsarina by J. Nelle Patrick ♥


(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 February release of their choice! *see note below
• Contest ends February 28th, 2013 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.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Old Books, New Looks {9}

Time again for another round of Old Books, New Looks, where I feature the covers of books that have already been released and their redesigned paperback counterpart! :) Sometimes I like the new better, sometimes I like the old. Here's a few that I've come across lately:

The OLDIES  vs.  The NEWBIES

Well, nothing that make me truly crazy this time---not like last time LOL.

Introducing, the new and ...improved? What do you think?

Both of these are pretty, but both also looks like adult books. I think I prefer the original with the title banner and the face of the young girl---makes it a little more obvious that it's YA.

I like both, really. I do like the way the original gives you a better hint of the setting.

Original, definitely. New one's a bit too "plain ol' chic-lit". I loved the title work on the original and I wish they'd kept the original tag-line.

Bit undecided on this one. The original definitely makes a statement but I loved the scratched up wash over the city image on the new. 

Original wins.  Could they have gone more generic with the silhouetted image?  Love the flat-iron building in the back on the original, plus Catherine looks like a bad-ass. :)

Neither cover gives me any clue about the story inside, but design-wise I do like the new one better.

Tell me whatcha think!!

*UPDATED TO ADD*
Stop the presses! LOL  just came across one more that went live today.
A new look and title for Melissa Marr's Carnival of Souls:

Same book so be sure not to buy it twice (unless you want to, of course!) :)  Not sure why the change of title, but the new one is pretty.  Though it kind of looks like she's lying in blue pudding. :D

Waiting on Wednesday

"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.

Deep Blue 
by Jennifer Donnelly

hitting shelves May 6, 2014 from Disney Press

description:

Deep in the ocean, in a world not so different from our own, live the merpeople. Their communities are spread throughout the oceans, seas, and freshwaters all over the globe.

When Serafina, a mermaid of the Mediterranean Sea, awakens on the morning of her betrothal, her biggest worry should be winning the love of handsome Prince Mahdi. And yet Sera finds herself haunted by strange dreams that foretell the return of an ancient evil. Her dark premonitions are confirmed when an assassin's arrow poisons Sera's mother. Now, Serafina must embark on a quest to find the assassin's master and prevent a war between the Mer nations. Led only by her shadowy dreams, Sera searches for five other mermaid heroines who are scattered across the six seas. Together, they will form an unbreakable bond of sisterhood and uncover a conspiracy that threatens their world's very existence.

My thoughts:   One gorgeous cover, an epic fantasy storyline, and the author that blew me away with her YA debut Revolution back in 2010...perfect combo.   It's been a long wait for more from this author---I'm ready!

Becky's View: All That Glows by Ryan Graudin

All That Glows by Ryan Graudin
♦publisher: HarperTeen
♦release date: February 11th, 2014
♦hardcover, 480 pages
♦intended audience: Young adult
♦stand-alone
♦source: from publisher for honest review

Emrys—a fiery, red-headed Fae—always embraced her life in the Highlands, far from the city’s draining technology, until she’s sent to London to rejoin the Faery Guard. But this isn’t any normal assignment—she’s sent to guard Prince Richard: Britain’s notorious, partying bad boy and soon-to-be King. The prince’s careless ways and royal blood make him the irresistible for the dark spirits that feed on mortals. Sweet, disheveled, and alive with adventure—Richard is one charge who will put Emrys’s magic and heart to the test.

When an ancient force begins preying on the monarchy, Emrys must hunt through the London’s magical underworld, facing down Banshees, Black Dogs and Green Women to find the one who threatens Richard’s life. In this chaos of dark magic, palace murders and paparazzi, Emrys finds herself facing an impossible choice. For despite all her powers, Emrys has discovered a force that burns brighter than magic: love.

Review: In the world of All That Glows, British royalty dating all the way back to Camelot has been secretly protected by the Frithemaeg, a guard of faeries trained to fight off evil creatures that are after royal blood. The blood of royalty holds power and magic that every Green Woman, Banshee, and Black Dog would happily kill for. The story is set in modern London, a dangerous place for fae, as all modern technology saps them of their powers. Still, they risk it to defend the crown.

Emrys is charged with guarding Richard, the Prince who will soon be king. The danger is high enough, but he makes it worse by being lazy and out of control. I found both main characters a bit unlikable but still intriguing, though in turn that left me disconnected from the love story. While it was sweet, and was explained away as a “soul-tie” between Emrys and Richard, it often felt like a college fling.  Not to mention, he spent most of the time getting stinking drunk and dodging responsibilities where he could, so I was never quite sure what his initial appeal was for Emrys, aside from superficial good looks.  As for Emrys, she is flawed and flighty but shows great heart in her friendship with Breena and her love of being a fae. She was, however, somewhat terrible at her job!  Granted she was thrown off by being so drawn to Richard, but for being his guardian, he often had to come to her rescue or they would have both been lost. However, being unappealing to begin with gave them much room to grow, and they did redeemed themselves quite a bit by the end.

There's a mystery that keeps the reader guessing the identity of the villainous faery through about two-thirds of the book, but one bit of foreshadowing gives it all away a bit too soon. The faery-lore is interesting and the structure of their world works, but I wish there would have been a bit more delving into the history of it, the connection to Arthur Pendragon and Camelot, since that was the very beginning of the Frithemaeg.With that aside, the ending still sparkles with magical excitement as both Richard and Emrys fight for survival and for love. It's a fun, fast and fluffy read, not exactly what I'd hoped for, but entertaining still. 

 

Find Ryan Graudin online: Website  •  Twitter

 Purchase All That Glows:  Amazon  • BookDepository  •  Indiebound