Reawakened by Colleen Houck

****

From Delacorte (Random House Children's):

The first book in a new multi-book series from New York Times bestselling author, COLLEEN HOUCK, about a teenage girl entangled in an epic Egyptian quest full of romance, adventure, and mythology! 
  

Author Colleen Houck's first series, The Tigers Curse, was a New York Times Bestseller, a USA Today Bestseller, A Publisher's Weekly Bestseller, and A Parents' Choice Award Winner. The Tigers Curse series is also being made into a movie! Adapted by Julie Plec, creator of The Vampire Diaries, and directed by Shekhar Kapur, who directed the Academy-Award winning, Elizabeth.   

When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification. 
And she really can't imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe.
 
But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world. 
 
From New York Timesbestselling author Colleen Houck comes an epic adventure about two star-crossed teens who must battle mythical forces and ancient curses on a journey with more twists and turns than the Nile itself.
  

I adore books based upon mythology - greek, norse, egyptian - doesn't matter.  I love the myths.  Rick Riordan is the king of mythology (and I'm dying to read his new series based upon Norse myths in the fall!), but I will read just about anything based upon mythology.  Egyptian is a bit more complicated - gods with three parents, chopped up gods, cat gods, sphinxes (is that the plural of sphinx?), but still I love it.  

Houck's take on Egyptian myth is fantastic.  The mythology is great, but also the story and the characters kept me completely enthralled.  The interactions between Lily and Amon are hilarious.  Add in two other roguish demi-gods and I'm in love!  Reawakened is action packed and thoroughly entertaining.  Well done Ms. Houck!

~ Shel

Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon

* * * * *

This innovative, heartfelt debut novel tells the story of a girl who’s literally allergic to the outside world. When a new family moves in next door, she begins a complicated romance that challenges everything she’s ever known. The narrative unfolds via vignettes, diary entries, texts, charts, lists, illustrations, and more.

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

Everything Everything is just one of those gems that I urge everyone to read. Madeline narrates her story with such integrity that it’s hard not to be affected by her words.

Madeline has been isolated from the world for as long as she can remember. The way she explains it is that she’s on “SCID row”. She suffers from Severe Combined Immunodefiency aka “bubble baby disease”. Any contact from outside that bubble could trigger a severe allergic reaction. Her sole interactions with other people are her physician-mother and her nurse, Carla. For someone who is so shut off from the world, Madeline is remarkably accepting of her situation. Sure, she’d like to be able to experience first-hand all the things any one of us takes for granted but I didn’t get the sense that she felt sorry for herself. That isn’t until Olly and his family move in next door.

At first, Madeline just observes her new neighbours, keeping track of their comings and goings. But it’s Olly and his odd habits that intrigue her. Olly eventually extends an invitation of friendship by waiting for her at his bedroom window which is across from hers. Through emails they begin a fun correspondence that soon becomes the highlight of both their days. It’s here that the story sucked me in so completely. Olly is so magnetic and funny. Even though Madeline hasn’t been around kids her own age, she’s able to banter effortlessly with him. But it’s also here that I thought to myself, “this book is going to crush me” because inevitably there is a roadblock and then a crisis that interferes with this burgeoning friendship. Despite those things I still hoped for a happy ending.

There’s so much charm and wit in this story. It’s so beautiful to see Madeline come alive as she feels and senses things she’s never experienced before. And she’s not the only one affected. Olly too, who has his own family drama, finds security and comfort in their companionship. This new connection has opened up a whole new universe for them and in a way brought them some freedom.

I read this book in 4 hours so that tells you how much I adore it! This is an extraordinary story with a lot of heart and told with such tenderness. The many illustrations (courtesy of Yoon's husband) add to the book's appeal. I meant what I said at the beginning that it’s hard not to be affected by Madeleine’s journey or Olly’s calming presence. Everything Everything gives you all the feels and then some.

~ Bel

Update: On August 26th, Nicola Yoon shared some pretty exciting news on Twitter - MGM optioned the film rights to Everything, Everything!  Congrats, Nicola!!

Deep Betrayal (Lies Beneath #2) by Anne Greenwood Brown

* * * 1/2

It's been thirty days, two hours, and seventeen minutes since Calder left Lily standing on the shores of Lake Superior. Not that she's counting. And when Calder does return, it's not quite the reunion Lily hoped for. Especially after she lets her father in on a huge secret: he, like Calder, is a merman. Obsessed with his new identity, Lily's dad monopolizes Calder's time as the two of them spend every day in the water, leaving Lily behind.

Then dead bodies start washing ashore. Calder blames his mermaid sisters, but Lily fears her father has embraced the merman's natural need to kill. As the body count grows, everyone is pointing fingers. Lily doesn't know what to believe—only that whoever's responsible is sure to strike again. . . .

After the impressive debut of Lies Beneath, I was very much hoping its sequel would continue to carry that sinister sense of foreboding.  Deep Betrayal features complicated family dynamics, a menacing threat to the Bayfield community and a deepening mystery of mermaid mythology.

Once Lily exposes the truth to her father, he becomes obsessed with embracing his merman side. His many long absences take a toll on the family. Lily is still concerned for his safety as Calder’s sisters’ whereabouts and motives are unknown. Her mother’s physical condition appears to be getting worse and her younger sister, Sophie seems to be keeping her own secrets.  As these things unfold around her, Lily also begins discovers some startling abilities of her own.

Deep Betrayal has some intense, creepy moments which I appreciated. It has the same dark undertone as Lies Beneath but with more at stake this time.  The dead bodies washing ashore have brought unwanted attention to Bayfield and the publicity could mean danger for Calder, his sisters and Lily’s dad. Lily’s friend Jack, is unstable and is threatening to expose the mermaids and all the events which previously unfolded, Lily and Calder doing plenty of damage control.

If you enjoyed Lies Beneath, Deep Betrayal will be welcome addition to your “to be read” pile – its alluring plot will keep you well hooked!

~ Bel

Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill

* * * 1/2

 

Meant to be or not meant to be . . . that is the question.

It's one thing to fall head over heels into a puddle of hazelnut coffee, and quite another to fall for the—gasp—wrong guy. Straight-A junior Julia may be accident prone, but she's queen of following rules and being prepared. That's why she keeps a pencil sharpener in her purse and a pocket Shakespeare in her, well, pocket. And that's also why she's chosen Mark Bixford, her childhood crush, as her MTB ("meant to be").

But this spring break, Julia's rules are about to get defenestrated (SAT word: to be thrown from a window) when she's partnered with her personal nemesis, class-clown Jason, on a school trip to London. After one wild party, Julia starts receiving romantic texts . . . from an unknown number! Jason promises to help discover the identity of her mysterious new suitor if she agrees to break a few rules along the way. And thus begins a wild goose chase through London, leading Julia closer and closer to the biggest surprise of all: true love.

Because sometimes the things you least expect are the most meant to be.

 

Meant to Be came at a perfect time.  I had just finished a dark (albeit wonderful) story and my past few romance reads have been a bit angsty.  And although I do love me some angst, sometimes I just want a love story that will keep me happy and smiling.  Not sad and crying.  Meant to Be delivered exactly what I needed.  

Julia is the kind of girl that has a plan.  And any deviation from it throws her completely off balance.  She is more than a little OCD in pretty much all aspects of her life.  Then there is Jason.  He is the complete opposite.  He is the king of spontaneity and fun.  And he never plans anything other than making sure he has a spare piece of grape gum in his pocket.   

When Julia and Jason are paired up during a 9 day field trip to London, Julia’s world is turned upside down.  Day 1 finds Julia breaking the rules as her “buddy”, Jason, drags her to a party full of strangers.  Day 2 she is receiving texts from a boy she met at the party but doesn’t remember.  And since she has always had her sights set on her one and only Meant to Be (MTB), Mark, she has no idea what to do about the new boy.  Jason takes pity on her and decides to help her flirt and possibly hook up with her secret admirer.   

Almost from the get go, you know that there is some sort of mix up or intrigue going on.  I personally didn’t figure it out right away which was fun as I kept trying to guess why these two kids were misinterpreting each other’s feelings.  In the end, the mix up and resolution are worthy of some of my favorite romantic comedies – The Shop Around the Corner, French Kiss and 10 Things I Hate About You to name a few. 

What I loved most about this story (other than the romance, of course) is that Lauren Morrill has the teen voice down pat.  Much like Susane Colasanti, Morrill manages to express the everyday thought process and actions of a high school student in a way in which we can all identify, whether we are 16 now or were twenty years ago.  Seriously, reading this was like being in the head of my 15/16 year old self all over again - all those insecurities all the while thinking you owned the world. 

Meant to Be is a fun read and I highly recommend it if you are looking for something light and happy to brighten your day.    

Nat

Velveteen by Daniel Marks

* * * *

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. (Taken from GoodReads)

 

 

It’s no secret that we Bibliojunkies love our fictional boys.  What you may not know is that we also have a number of female characters we love too.  We all adore the loyalty and cutting wit that defines Elizabeth Bennett.  Katniss Everdeen won us all over with her ability to survive.  Two of our favorite young literary heroes wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for their friends Hermione Granger  and Annabeth Chase.   

And now?   

Now we have Velveteen Monroe.  The first class sarcastic goth body snatcher of Purgatory. 

When we first meet Velvet, she is haunting her serial killer, Bonesaw.  Although it is against the rules of Purgatory, Velvet has been haunting her killer for a long time and has rescued a number of new victims from death.  I was immediately captured by Velvet’s combination of fear, anger and strength - as well as her very wicked sense of humor.  I have never read another character quite like Velveteen Monroe.  I didn’t take me long to realize that she is a character worthy of the company mentioned above.   

After Velvet’s death, she arrives in purgatory.  But you don’t get to be lazy in Purgatory.  There are jobs for everyone to do as they wait seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks and years to pass on.  Velvet is given the job of body thief on a salvage team.  What’s a salvage team?  Well, it’s a team of souls that return to the world of the living to rescue other souls that are trapped on earth. 

Velvet and her team are amazing at their jobs.  When Purgatory is under attack, Velvet’s team is sent to stop the power that is causing the quakes that are rocking and destroying sections of Purgatory.  Their mission not only saves their 57^th soul (a huge deal in Purgatory) but also clues Velvet into the revolution that is set to destroy the world she lives in.  

This was a really great story.  Velveteen is a heroine that I will never forget.  And I can honestly say the same for the rest of her salvage team.  Luisa and Logan – a young brother/sister team - have taken on the role of poltergeists on the team.  The wickedly adult humor and vices that you see in the very young Logan is alternately hilarious and disturbing.  Quentin’s shy demeanor is a wonderful contrast to his role on the team as undertaker – possessing dead bodies.  And then there is Nick, their 57^th rescued soul.  The teen jock that Velvet finds herself attracted to regardless of her better judgment.  Together they form a group that you are constantly cheering on.   

The action in this book is fast paced, the world is morbidly fascinating, and there is plenty of humor to enhance the experience.  Kudos to Daniel Marks for giving us an original story and original characters that will keep your attention from the beginning to end.    

 

Nat

Waiting on Wednesday (27)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that highlights future releases that we are excitedly anticipating.

By Pamela Mingle
Publication Date: August 14, 2012

Miranda has Shakespeare in her blood: she hopes one day to become a Shakespearean actor like her famous parents. At least, she does until her disastrous performance in her school's staging of The Taming of the Shrew. Humiliated, Miranda skips the opening-night party. All she wants to do is hide.

Fellow cast member, Stephen Langford, has other plans for Miranda. When he steps out of the backstage shadows and asks if she'd like to meet Shakespeare, Miranda thinks he's a total nutcase. But before she can object, Stephen whisks her back to 16th century England—the world Stephen's really from. He wants Miranda to use her acting talents and modern-day charms on the young Will Shakespeare. Without her help, Stephen claims, the world will lose its greatest playwright.

Miranda isn't convinced she's the girl for the job. Why would Shakespeare care about her? And just who is this infuriating time traveler, Stephen Langford? Reluctantly, she agrees to help, knowing that it's her only chance of getting back to the present and her "real" life. What Miranda doesn't bargain for is finding true love . . . with no acting required

Waiting on Wednesday (26)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that highlights future releases that we are excitedly anticipating.



By James Dashner
Publication Date: August 14, 2012

The prequel to the New York Times bestselling Maze Runner series.

Before WICKED was formed, before the Glade was built, before Thomas entered the Maze, sun flares hit the earth and mankind fell to disease.

Mark and Trina were there when it happened, and they survived. But surviving the sun flares was easy compared to what came next. Now a disease of rage and lunacy races across the eastern United States, and there’s something suspicious about its origin. Worse yet, it’s mutating, and all evidence suggests that it will bring humanity to its knees.

Mark and Trina are convinced there’s a way to save those left living from descending into madness. And they’re determined to find it—if they can stay alive. Because in this new, devastated world, every life has a price. And to some, you’re worth more dead than alive



By Michelle Rowen
Publication Date:  August 7, 2012

An Immortality Bites Mystery #1
 August 7, 2012 - NAL Obsidian
ISBN-10: 0451237641
ISBN-13: 978-0451237644


Sarah Dearly is adjusting to life as a fledgling vampire, satisfying her cravings at vampire-friendly blood banks. But when her fiance Thierry takes a job with the Ring—the secret council in charge of keeping vampires in line—Sarah’s about to get more than a taste of danger…


Being engaged to a centuries-old master vampire can be challenging—especially when he takes a job with the Ring. Thierry’s in for fifty years of nonstop travel and deadly risk. It’s enough to make any woman reconsider the wedding…any woman except Sarah, that is!

Traveling with him to Las Vegas for his first assignment, they encounter a child beauty pageant contestant from hell, as well as a vampire serial killer leaving victims drained of blood, potentially exposing the existence of vampires to the whole world. But when Thierry’s truly ancient history comes back to haunt him, and he’s accused of a crime he didn’t commit, it’s up to Sarah to clear his name before their immortal lives come to an end.

Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson

* * *1/2

Four girls. One magical, and possibly dangerous Italian summer. Family mysteries, ancient castles, long hot nights of dancing under the stars . . . and, of course, plenty of gorgeous Italian boys!

I loved this book.  With the beautiful Italian countryside, gorgeous Italian boys and a drunk ass, what’s not to love?  And when I say drunk ass, I mean a donkey drunk on red wine.  Seriously.  I need to party with the Italians.  Shel, when are we taking your dream trip to Italy? 

Oh boy.  I just realized that we might get crap for the above paragraph so let me just say now that the book does address cruelty to animals and I would NEVER actually condone giving an animal booze in any way shape or form.  *sigh* 

All joking aside, this book was lovely.  The story begins in London where Violet sees an 18^th century painting of an Italian girl that looks just like her.  The resemblance is uncanny which introduces doubts regarding Violet’s parentage.  She begins to research the painting and although unable to learn the name of the girl, she does learn where the girl posed for the painting – Castello di Vesperi.  This knowledge spurs her to enroll in an Italian finishing school that is provided the only private tours of the castle.  What begins as a quest to solve a mystery becomes a summer of discovering new interests, friendships and crushes.   Mind you, the mystery is still there and comes out in full force towards the end. 

Sometimes what makes a love story wonderful is not the ending but the journey.  And this is what I enjoyed most about this book.  So many times I am rushing to see if the girl gets the boy (or vice versa) but this time I found myself sitting back and savoring the descriptions of the day-to-day activities, of the beautiful country, of characters expressions and language.  Some people might say that all of that information is unnecessary but I think that is what makes this book wonderful and stand out from other YA romances.   

My only complaint is that Ms. Henderson ends this book with a romantic cliffhanger that will leave this romance lover pouting for days.  But at the same time, I have something absolutely lovely to look forward to when Following in Love in Italian is released in 2013. 

If you are looking for a fast paced read, this isn’t for you.  But if you are looking for a relaxing story that will make you daydream about Italy, fun friends and cute boys, pick this one up.  You won’t be disappointed. 

Nat

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown

* * *

Available June 12, 2012

Calder White lives in the cold, clear waters of Lake Superior, the only brother in a family of murderous mermaids. To survive, Calder and his sisters must prey on humans and absorb their positive energy. Usually they select their victims at random, but this time around the underwater clan chooses its target for a reason: revenge. They want to kill Jason Hancock, the man they blame for their mother’s death.


It’s going to take the whole family to lure the aquaphobic Hancock onto the water. Calder’s job is to gain Hancock’s trust by getting close to his family. Relying on his irresistible good looks and charm, Calder sets out to seduce Hancock’s daughter Lily. Easy enough, but Calder screws everything up by falling in love – just as Lily starts to suspect that there’s more to the monsters-in-the-lake legends than she ever imagined, and just as the mermaids threaten to take matters into their own hands, forcing Calder to choose between family and the girl he loves. One thing’s for sure, whatever Calder decides, the outcome won’t be pretty.


I picked Lies Beneath simply because the title's double meaning appealed to me. And I can now add mermaids and mermen to my list of paranormal love stories. 


As described above, Calder and his sisters are looking to avenge the death of their mother.  They lay the blame squarely at the feet of the Hancock family and they will not be appeased until they have succeeded. Calder goes along with this out of family loyalty and also because his eldest sister Maris has promised him his freedom should he help them succeed in getting Jason Hancock. Calder does his best to ingratiate himself into the family. And because he's literally a fish out of water, he's often awkward. He decides that Hancock's older daughter, Lily will be the way to get to him. 


Lily, however, is no dainty little thing. She has a pretty strong mind and can’t be easily swayed. She's attracted to Calder but also deeply suspicious and can sense that there's something off about him. So while the story begins with Lily being the prey, it’s Calder who ends up being backed into a corner. Since he's not generally among humans a lot, Calder can be rough around the edges and gets more uncomfortable as he becomes more drawn to Lily. 


Calder’s sisters add a lot of tension to the plot – in particular Maris, who as head of the clan is hell bent on revenge. She’s the loose canon that Calder must always pacify and keep in check. Calder is also facing a crisis of his own. He craves human emotions as much as his body craves the water. But he has refused to feed off humans for months, staying “dry” and pushing himself further just to see how far he can take it. To give in to temptation would draw unwanted attention to him and his sisters and potentially ruin all their plans. Add to that Lily’s growing suspicions, the mounting lies and Calder is caught in one tangled web.


I liked Lies Beneath. I admit that I’m not familiar with mermaid lore but I found this story interesting and well paced. I liked that Lily wasn’t an easy mark for Calder and that he wasn’t this perfect suave guy. Calder’s internal battle to fight his nature was very compelling and provided a sinister undercurrent to the story. There's enough going on that keeps up the suspense delivering a surprising and turbulent climax.


~ Bel


*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing us the ARC.

The Death Cure Book Trailer

Happy Release Day to The Death Cure by James Dashner!

I've raved about the first 2 books - The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials and finally we're here at the end.  Thomas and company are back!  Oh and there's that pesky WICKED too.  Check out the trailer below.

It's a short clip but doesn't it get your adrenaline going? I can't wait to get my hands on it and see what Thomas is up against now!  Excuse me, I'll just hit the replay button on this a few more times ...


~ Bel