Waiting on Wednesday - March 21, 2012

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event from Jill at Breaking the Spine. To participate, simply share that book(s) you are eagerly awaiting the release of and report back to Breaking the Spine with the link to your post. Clicking the link above will take you straight to her post and widget.

I've been having trouble keeping up with WoW visits lately, so I'm going to start putting posts together every 2 weeks.  I'll be posting 2-3 books each time, so hopefully I can still get all of my wish list books in.  :-D

The Raven Boys (Raven Cycle #1) by Maggie Stiefvater
coming September 18, 2012 from Scholastic

Filled with mystery, romance, and the supernatural, The Raven Boys introduces readers to Richard “Dick” Campbell Gansey, III and Blue Sargent. Gansey has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on the hunt to find Glendower, a vanished Welsh king. Legend has it that the first person to find him will be granted a wish—either by seeing him open his eyes, or by cutting out his heart.

Blue Sargent, the daughter of the town psychic in Henrietta, Virginia, has been told for as long as she can remember that if she ever kisses her true love, he will die. But she is too practical to believe in things like true love. Her policy is to stay away from the rich boys at the prestigious Aglionby Academy. The boys there—known as Raven Boys—can only mean trouble. When Gansey and his Raven Boy friends come into her life, Blue realizes how true this is. She never thought her fortune would be a problem. But she was wrong.

Why I'm Waiting: It's Maggie Stiefvater!  Need I say more?  She hasn't let me down with her books yet, so I'm pretty sure that this new series won't disappoint.

 Venom (Dark Waters #1) by Fiona Paul

coming October 3, 2012 from Philomel

Cassandra Caravello is one of Renaissance Venice’s lucky elite: with elegant gowns, sparkling jewels, access to the best balls, her own lady’s maid, and a wealthy fiancé, she has everything a girl could desire. Yet ever since her parents’ death, Cassandra has felt trapped, alone in a city of water, where the dark and labyrinthine canals whisper of escape.

But when Cass stumbles upon a murdered woman—practically in her own backyard—she’s drawn into a dangerous world of secret societies, courtesans, and killers. Soon, she finds herself falling for Falco, a mysterious artist with a mischievous grin. . .and a spectacular skill for trouble. Can Cassandra find the murderer, before he finds her? And will she stay true to her fiancé, or succumb to her uncontrollable feelings for Falco?

Beauty, love, romance, and mystery weave together in a stunning novel that’s as seductive and surprising as the city of Venice itself.

Why I'm Waiting: I love a good historical fiction.  I find Venice so very fascinating, so a YA mystery set there sounds really, really good.

Velveteen by Daniel Marks
coming October 9, 2012 from Random House Children's Books

Velveteen Monroe is dead. At 16, she was kidnapped and murdered by a madman named Bonesaw. But that's not the problem.

The problem is she landed in purgatory. And while it's not a fiery inferno, it's certainly no heaven. It's gray, ashen, and crumbling more and more by the day, and everyone has a job to do. Which doesn't leave Velveteen much time to do anything about what's really on her mind.

Bonesaw.

Velveteen aches to deliver the bloody punishment her killer deserves. And she's figured out just how to do it. She'll haunt him for the rest of his days.
It'll be brutal . . . and awesome.

But crossing the divide between the living and the dead has devastating consequences. Velveteen's obsessive haunting cracks the foundations of purgatory and jeopardizes her very soul. A risk she's willing to take—except fate has just given her reason to stick around: an unreasonably hot and completely off-limits coworker.

Velveteen can't help herself when it comes to breaking rules . . . or getting revenge. And she just might be angry enough to take everyone down with her.

Why I'm Waiting: There is just so much about this book that screams "awesome."  I'm a huge fan of ghost stories, so a story surrounding the ghost of a murder victim haunting her killer sounds so very intriguing.

Review: The Scorpio Races

by Maggie Stiefvater
publisher: Scholastic
date of publication: October 18, 2011
format: ARC
pages: 416
source: from the publisher for review
Amazon / Goodreads / B&N

From Goodreads:

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

What I Thought

I thought that everything I had previously read from Maggie Stiefvater was fantastic, astounding, and hard to beat. However, I was in no way prepared for The Scorpio Races. This is Maggie Stiefvater at her best and I can not even begin to know how to best write this review. However, I will give it my best shot, because I want you all to know just how great it is so that you will go out and read a copy, yourselves. This book is simply the best thing she has ever written, hands down, and that is saying something given how much I loved The Wolves of Mercy Falls and Books of Faerie.

The Scorpio Races is a take on a bit of mythology that I have always found fascinating: kelpies, shape-shifting water horses that lie in wait to drag their victims into the bodies of water they live in to be eaten. The carnivorous horse aspect is as far as similarities go, however, as Stiefvater has taken a new direction and created a fearsome, challenging creature that is to be ridden... if you can avoid its teeth, that is. The capaill uisce are the stars of the annual Scorpio Races in this stories, but they are also otherworldly beings with strong magic and voracious appetites. The descriptions of these animals are chilling yet vivid. They take on personalities of their own and are as any other character in the book. This is an especially appealing characteristic of this book, one which I could not get enough of and became thoroughly engrossed in.

This book is written in Stiefvater's multiple p.o.v. style, much like The Wolves of Mercy Falls and Books of Faerie. There are two characters through whose eyes we see that action that takes place in this story: Sean Kendrick, orphan and premier horse & capaill uisce trainer on the island, who also happens to be a four time winner of the races; and Kate "Puck" Connelly, herself and orphan, who sets out to race in this dangerous event for reasons of her own. The interplay between these characters is absolutely breath-taking. It comes across as very well thought-out and is conveyed beautifully. Their back stories are moving and lend further evidence to their individual personalities and reasons for racing. Their shared interests also play well together and make for a moving story overall, one that made me smile, gasp, and sit up straight at several points. Further more, their love for their horses is tangible and make them all the more lovable. I absolutely loved these characters.

The island on which this story takes place makes for a breathtaking backdrop. It reminded me very much of Ireland and Scotland in its terrain and situation in the middle of the sea. In addition to that, hazards such as fierce storms and the hungry capaill uisce that threaten its citizens and livestock add some definite punch to the story. It was all at once picturesque and foreboding, a combination that I thought to be very well done and much needed for this story. I doubt that there could have been a better setting to be had for a story such as this.

To go any farther with praising this book would be to risk giving away too much, so here is where I leave off. Suffice it to say that I adored The Scorpio Races and that it is a contender for one of the best books of the year in my eyes. You simply can't go wrong with this book and I urge you to give it a read, yourself, when it hits the shelves. I, probably unsurprisingly, give The Scorpio Races 5 hoots.






Obligatory legal statement: This ARC was provided to me free of charge by the publisher. No monetary compensation was received in exchange for this fair and unbiased review.

Review: Ballad

by Maggie Stiefvater
publisher: Flux
date published: October 1, 2009
format: paperback
pages: 352
source: gift
Amazon / Goodreads / B&N

From Goodreads:

In this mesmerizing sequel to Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception, music prodigy James Morgan and his best friend, Deirdre, join a private conservatory for musicians. James' musical talent attracts Nuala, a soul-snatching faerie muse who fosters and feeds on the creative energies of exceptional humans until they die. Composing beautiful music together unexpectedly leads to mutual admiration and love. Haunted by fiery visions of death, James realizes that Deirdre and Nuala are being hunted by the Fey and plunges into a soul-scorching battle with the Queen of the Fey to save their lives.

What I Thought

Much like Lament, Ballad is a harrowing glimpse of the dangerous world of the fey, this time as experienced by James, Deirdre's best friend. Things have changed since the events of Lament. James and Deirdre, while attending the same prestigious music school, have drifted apart. Their friendship is strained and James finds himself the victim of unrequited love. James continues along with his same carefree attitude on the surface, all the while wondering about Deirdre and her increasing absence. It isn't until the mysterious Nuala hits the scene that James begins to see the bigger picture, one with new love and grave danger.

I will start by saying that I grew to enjoy James as a character even more in this book. He was a great narrator and made for an interesting individual to get to know. The same can not be said of Deirdre, however. I found that I disliked her as a character a lot more, which is as it should be considering the things she has done that classify her as a crappy friend to James. Her pain in the light of the end of Lament entitles her to sympathy. However, she was also a very selfish character in many respects. She is a girl that has let herself, her friends, and her future fall by the wayside. It was a very sad sight to behold after the way in which I enjoyed her character in Lament. Nuala was the big surprise for me. At first, I didn't think I would like her at all. She is abrasive, arrogant, and comes off as cold. However, she definitely surprised me as the book went on and she began to soften around the edges ever so slightly. What first came off as jealousy of Deirdre soon became apparent as being genuine dislike based upon Deirdre's behavior. I knew Nuala had become a new favorite once I stopped to think, "You know, she's right!"

I very much enjoyed the Horned King aspect of the story. It is a brilliant adaptation of Celtic myth that I loved reading. His role in this story was intricate, intriguing, and, at times, frightening. The threat posed by this figure was both mysterious and compelling in its severity. Stiefvater did and excellent job in emphasizing that this figure is not evil, nor is he good. He is a law unto himself that should not be underestimated. To take him lightly is to put yourself at risk, which is later found out, though I will not say how or by whom.

The setting was as interesting as the rest of the story. I think this story will be very appealing for those of you who are fans to books that take place at boarding schools. Thornking Ash is a school unlike any other. Its purpose as a school for the musically gifted is one thing, but when you add in its true purpose that underlies that aspect, you have a winner. Everything from the countryside surrounding the school to the school itself make for a great backdrop to the rest of the story. I especially found the hills where the Horned King roams at dusk to be well-described and foreboding. Kudos to Stiefvater for her detailed descriptions and for making the school so easy to imagine.

I couldn't have been more pleased with Ballad. There was no second book slump present here. If the third book is as good as the first two, I will be even more pleased. I can not wait to see what is coming up next in the world of James and Deirdre. I give Ballad 5 hoots for spectacular characters and picturesque settings.

Have you seen the trailer for The Scorpio Races?

Maggie has completed her stop-motion trailer for The Scorpio Races. Check it out!

Waiting on Wednesday: August 3, 2011

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event from Jill at Breaking the Spine. To participate, simply share that book(s) you are eagerly awaiting the release of and report back to Breaking the Spine with the link to your post. Clicking the image above will take you straight to her post and widget. (Special note: The nifty button above comes from Lindsay at The Violet Hour. Isn't it pretty?)

This week I am waiting on The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater.  It will hit stores on October 18th and comes from Scholastic.  This picked this book for WoW this week due to the discussion I attended on Sunday.  Hearing Maggie talk about this book elevated my interest even further and has left me feeling anxious for the release date.  October is my favorite month as it is, but with such awesome books coming out during that month this year, it's going to be even better.

From Goodreads:

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

Maggie Stiefvater's Nashville Stop & a Giveaway!

Yesterday, Nikki and I made the 1 hour 20 minute trip to Nashville to attend the Maggie Stiefvater signing at Nashville Public Library. This was our first visit to this library and we were greeted by a very cool statue.

Somehow, we missed the fact that the library didn't open until 2:00 PM. We got there at 12:30 PM. Yeah, not so great considering how hot and humid it was. Luckily for us, there just so happens to be a cute little coffee shop two doors down, where Nikki and I had the best iced mochas we've had in quite a long time. After getting thoroughly caffed up, we heard that people were beginning to gather at the doors, so we made our way back to the sidewalk to wait for the doors to open. We managed to get inside and down the right corridor in such a good amount of time that we were fairly close to the front of the line for tickets. They fed us pizza while we waited for the doors to open, which was awesome since I hadn't had lunch yet. The tardy B&N rep finally arrived with the books, we bought our copies of Forever, and then the moment we had all been waiting for came about when the doors were opened.

We snagged seats in third row on the side of the auditorium immediately below the podium, so we were very happy with our seating arrangement. We chatted, took a couple of pictures, and waited for the discussion to start.

Maggie came onstage after being introduced, and from there I laughed and smiled throughout the entire talk and Q&A session. She is a very expressive, funny speaker and I had a great time. I even got up the nerve to ask a question, myself (I asked her what regional folklore influenced her the most, to which her response was Celtic lore; a woman after my own heart!). I got some great pictures and, because I promised, even filmed a short clip for you all to see.

This video is just a small sample of the talk Maggie entertained us with today. In it, she discusses what several hours of watching wolf documentaries leads to.

After the discussion, it was time to get our books signed. We made our way down the hall and queued up outside a set of gallery doors. We weren't too far away from the doors, so we didn't have to wait long to meet Maggie face-to-face.

And now, dear readers, it is time to unveil the big surprise. One of my lucky readers will win this:

my beloved Forever ARC. I trust that whoever the lucky winner is will give it a good home and treat it well, especially considering that Maggie was kind enough to sign it for you.

Now, wasn't that worth the wait? This giveaway will run from August 1 through August 30. Unfortunately, I can only offer this one to US followers, but never fear. I haven't forgotten my international followers. I will have a little something for you next month. As I'm sure you've had enough of my gushing and rambling, I'll leave you to fill out the form. Good luck, everyone!

The Giveaway is Now Closed

A Heck of a First Book Signing!

On Sunday, my awesome friend Nikki from Books Most Wanted and I will be headed to Nashville to attend our first book signing.  We will be listening in on a Q&A session and having our books signed by none other than the magnificent Maggie Stiefvater!  Maggie is, of course, the author of the Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy, the Books of Faerie series, and a new forthcoming novel, The Scorpio Races.  If you haven't checked out her books yet, I strongly urge you to do so.  She has a way with prose that will leave you speechless.

She will be stopping by Nashville Public Library on her Forever tour and you can bet that we'll be there with bells on.  Stay tuned next week, as both Nikki and I are bound to have some awesome pictures to share, signed books to show off, possibly a video or two from the road, and maybe, just maybe, a sighting of Blue Loki, which would rock Nikki's socks off.  Also, so long as no issues arise, I will have a very special announcement on Monday!  Trust me, you won't want to miss it.  

Review: Lament

by Maggie Stiefvater
publisher: Flux
date published: October 1, 2008
format: paperback
pages: 325
source: library
Amazon / Goodreads / B&N

From Goodreads:

Sixteen-year-old Deirdre Monaghan is a painfully shy but prodigiously gifted musician. She's about to find out she's also a cloverhand - one who can see faeries. Deirdre finds herself infatuated with a mysterious boy who enters her ordinary suburban life, seemingly out of thin air. Trouble is, the enigmatic and gorgeous Luke turns out to be a gallowglass - a soulless faerie assassin. An equally hunky - and equally dangerous - dark faerie soldier named Aodhan is also stalking Deirdre. Sworn enemies, Luke and Aodhan each have a deadly assignment from the Faerie Queen. Namely, kill Deirdre before her music captures the attention of the Fae and threatens the Queen's sovereignty. Caught in the crossfire with Deirdre is James, her wisecracking but loyal best friend. Deirdre had been wishing her life weren't so dull, but getting trapped in the middle of a centuries-old faerie war isn't exactly what she had in mind . . .

What I Thought

Once again, Maggie Stiefvater has completely blown me away. I was curious as to the angle that would be taken as I opened the cover and began to read, only to be absorbed into the world of a painfully shy sixteen year old girl. Deirdre is a paradox. She is enormously talented and is said to sing like an angel. Her performances are known to bring crowds to their feet. However, she is also skittish and tends to blend into the background (at least, to her own reckoning). I immediately felt a kinship for Deirdre and could easily connect with her on the level of personality. As she meets Luke and begins to find out that her world is not as it has always seemed, she embarks on a journey of self-discovery, danger, and heartbreak. For all of her shyness, however, Deirdre has an impeccable b.s. radar and she does stand up for herself when she needs to.

The characters that make up Lament are incredibly well-written and I didn't find it difficult at all to see them in my mind's eye. I was especially impressed with the way in which the faeries came to life on the page. It was very easy to reconcile them with those found in the Irish myths and legends I read with so much fervor while growing up. They are every bit as strange and menacing as lore portrays them. Even those that play an extremely minor role stuck with me as I made my way through the book.

Aside from the faeries, there is an interesting mix of human characters. Deirdre's mother, aunt, and grandmother are each a unique kind of woman with their own distinct personality. As their family history comes to light, the strength each exhibits (though it is not always a kind type of strength) sets them apart and adds to the story. The male cast of characters is developed just as well, with the possible exception of Deirdre's father, who doesn't actually play a very big role in the plot. Deirdre's best friend, James, is a charming and funny sort, who also hides some surprising secrets. I appreciated the glimpses I was given and actually wished he could have appeared more in this book. Luke, on the other hand, is a heart-breaking character that you can't help but feel sadness for as you learn more about him. His past is tragic, dark, and full of pain. He was all the more compelling for it and I can't wait to find out more about him.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story line and absorbed all of the nuances that made up the danger sequences and the queen's motives. The plot twists were truly unexpected and I had a great appreciation for how things were wrapped up at the end. This isn't your happily-ever-after type of faerie story. Instead, it is intense, raw, and engrossing. The choices that must be made are not easy ones, nor are the consequences easy. The outcome was a poignant reminder of the tradition that comes with Irish mythology and folklore, and I am truly grateful for not being disappointed in that aspect of the story.

This is a very well-written faerie novel that I had a lot of trouble putting down. The utilization of Irish fairy lore and the vivid character descriptions completely sold this book. This is a library book, but you can be sure that I will be buying a copy of my own at the next available opportunity. Lament has received a well-earned 5 hoots. I believe that this is going to be a much-loved series in my personal library.

Review: Forever

by Maggie Stiefvater
publisher: Scholastic
date of publication: July 12, 2011
format: ARC
pages: 386
source: from the publisher
Amazon / Goodreads / B&N
challenges: Goodreads 2011 Reading Challenge; 2011 YA Reading Challenge

From Goodreads:

In Maggie Stiefvater's SHIVER, Grace and Sam found each other. In LINGER, they fought to be together. Now, in FOREVER, the stakes are even higher than before. Wolves are being hunted. Lives are being threatened. And love is harder and harder to hold on to as death comes closing in.

What I Thought

What a whirlwind trip it has been. Having only discovered The Wolves of Mercy Falls this year, I have feverishly worked my way through the entire trilogy in a matter of two months in my enthusiasm. Now it is time to say goodbye to Mercy Falls. There is a certain bitter-sweetness in seeing this series come to an end. This is one of the series that helped to reignite my interest in YA. That re-kindled interest also helped to point me in the direction of what I want to do after undergrad school. For this, I will be forever grateful.

Before sitting down to write this review, I took a couple of days to mull over what I had just read. I closed the book feeling a little shell-shocked and unsure as to how I felt about the conclusion. At first glance, it appears to be very abrupt and inconclusive. I was wowed by the beautiful prose that made up the rest of the book, but felt indecisive as to my opinion on the final chapter. It was only after reading the chapter once more that I was able to settle my feelings on it. I hope I have come to the correct conclusion as to what Ms. Stiefvater was aiming for when she wrote the conclusion to Forever.

In any case, I feel a better understanding for it and will vehemently encourage everyone to read that chapter twice if necessary, especially if you begin wondering if you've missed something. It is a very different animal from the rest of the book, as it shifts gears considerably. A certain cooling off period is needed after the tumult and danger inherent in the rest of the book before the last chapter can be fully appreciated. When you read it, you may be a bit disappointed. I know I was, at first. However, after re-assessing the chapter and reading the author's note again, as well, I have some conjectures. First, I feel that the final chapter conveys a certain serenity in its construct. It is time for the characters to move on with their lives, so we are left with a hint as to what they will be doing in the near future without seeing them actually start out on those journeys. I feel that if the book had gone on longer, there would have been an even steeper cliff hanger. The way it ended was as it should be, in the grand scheme of things. Secondly, I noticed a certain wording in the author's note that left me wondering if this is, indeed, the last we will see of these characters. She specifically says that it is time to say good bye to Mercy Falls. However, there isn't a specific mention of saying goodbye to the characters. May we be seeing more books in the future with these characters, only in a different setting? Am I simply being too hopeful and resistant of the series ending? I suppose only time will tell, but I will say that the contemplation of where the characters may go is an interesting one.

Now, it is time to talk a little about the characters that make up this fantastic tale. I won't go too in-depth since There is still a little less than a month left until the official release date of Forever. However, I can say that there is great emphasis put upon the relationships between the characters. Each and every character is tested in some way in this book. Some fail, some succeed spectacularly, and others simply survive to fight another day. The result is a greater scrutinizing of the characters (including a certain former rock star) that leaves them revealed in new ways. I really enjoyed the character interaction and the ways in which old hurts were hashed out between them. All was accomplished with Stiefvater's signature style of prose that manages to be both breath-taking and frank.

To say that I was blown away by Forever is an understatement. Rarely do I feel the need to take entire days to contemplate a book before writing a review. The fact that the book managed to draw such a reaction speaks very highly of it, in my opinion, and bumps up the rating I was originally going to assign to it. I am very glad that I took the time to mull it over and re-read the final chapters. Based upon its beautiful prose, engaging plot, and thought-provoking finale, I give Forever 5 hoots.





Obligatory legal statement: This advance reading copy was provided to me free of charge by the publisher in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.