Sunday Selection

New Release

The Rise of Nine
Pittacus Lore

Good Reads Summary:

Until the day I met John Smith, Number Four, I'd been on the run alone, hiding and fighting to stay alive.

Together, we are much more powerful. But it could only last so long before we had to separate to find the others. . . .

I went to Spain to find Seven, and I found even more, including a tenth member of the Garde who escaped from Lorien alive. Ella is younger than the rest of us, but just as brave. Now we're looking for the others--including John.

But so are they.


Heaven
Alexandra Adornetto

Good Reads Summary:

Only sixteen when she started the series, Ally Adornetto knows how teen hearts beat, and this long-awaited conclusion is certain to be her most popular book yet.

Bethany, an angel sent to Earth, and her mortal boyfriend, Xavier, have been to Hell and back. But now their love will be put to its highest test yet, as they defy Heavenly law and marry. They don’t tell Beth’s archangel siblings, Gabriel and Ivy, but the angels know soon enough, and punishment comes in a terrifying form: the Sevens, who are rogue angels bent on keeping Beth and Xavier apart, destroying Gabriel and Ivy, and darkening angelic power in the heavens.

The only way Bethany and Xavier can elude the Sevens is to hide in the open, and blend in with other mortals their own age. Gabriel and Ivy set them up at college, where they can’t reveal their relationship, and where there is still danger around each corner. Will Bethany be called back to Heaven – forever – and face leaving the love of her life


New in Trade Paper/Reprint


The Girl of Fire and Thorns
Rae Carson

Good Reads Summary:

Elisa is the chosen one.
But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can't see how she ever will.
Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.
And he's not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people's savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.
Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.
Most of the chosen do.


More releases for this week here.

Monument 14

Monument 14
By: Emmy Laybourne
ISBN: 9780312569037
Length: 294 Pages
Reason:Barnes and Noble Book Club

 





Good Reads Summary:

Your mother hollers that you’re going to miss the bus. She can see it coming down the street. You don’t stop and hug her and tell her you love her. You don’t thank her for being a good, kind, patient mother. Of course not—you launch yourself down the stairs and make a run for the corner.Only, if it’s the last time you’ll ever see your mother, you sort of start to wish you’d stopped and did those things. Maybe even missed the bus.But the bus was barreling down our street, so I ran.Fourteen kids. One superstore. A million things that go wrong. 

Review: 

WHAT AN ENDING!!

I was pulled into this book not by it's cover but because of the subject matter. I mean who has not dreamed of being stuck in a superstore/department store when you were a child? I was shocked at how quickly I was pulled into this book. I never wanted to set it down. The book opens up on a sunny day in Monument, Colorado. However, that soon changes with the on set of a hailstorm, bus explosion, earthquake, and chemical warfare. All within the first four chapters!

Stuck inside Greenway(basically a Wal-mart/Target), 14 children from the age of 5-18 are fighting for survival. Though the characters tend to fall into stereotypes (Alex the brain, Astrid the popular girl, Dean the recluse, Jake the Jock, Braydon the Jerk, etc.) it is not extremely noticeable and very helpful for the reader. If it was not for there stereotypical traits I would have soon lost all sense of the children amongst the chaos and destruction. Each character reacts to the destruction in a different manner. Emmy did a fantastic job demonstrating how people in real life react in similar situations.

Emmy portrays fear in a very unique way for a young adult novel. She does not only make you afraid for the characters but for yourself as well. She does this by playing on those small everyday fears we all have. 

Sadly though no book is perfect, however I did only have a small issue with the book and I really only noticed it at after I finished. The children seemed almost to smart for their age. They always seemed to be on top of the trouble and ready for action, which lets face it any of us would be, but they seemed to have it way to under control. 

All the summaries I have read for this book say basically the same thing and sadly I can not talk much more about the book with out giving away it's secrets. I love this book and I cannot wait for the next one. Emmy did a fantastic job and has me as a fan for all of her writing!

GO GET THIS BOOK!!!!!!
Go NOW why are you still here?!?!?
Let me help you out Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne

I give this a 5 out of 5

Recommendations:

Sunday Weekly Selection

New Release

The Kill Order
James Dashner

Good Reads Summary:

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.
 


Reprint/Paperback
  
The Dark Side of Nowhere
Neal Shusterman

Good Reads Summary:
 
Jason is having a bad day. The kind of day when you just don't feel like yourself. Only for Jason, it's not just a feeling. He really isn't himself.

Not any more.

Who is he? That's the problem. Jason isn't sure. And it's not just him. Everyone in town is acting weird. His friends. His parents. Everyone. Billington is usually such a normal town. As Jason is about to discover, nothing will ever be normal again.
 


Week of August 14th releases

Book Connections

Have you ever noticed when you start a new book the worlds seem to link together some how? I have decide to start writing down these links and making a web. This will include items like character names, locations, themes, and so on. I will try to only like items that are important, however, at time I might recall details and include those as well.

I will keep you posted on my findings. I may even post updates when I post a new review.

Free Four, what a amazing day!

In May of 2011 Veronica Roth published her first book, Divergent. It was amazing, I could barely hold my tongue as I awaited my friends and book club to finish. I quickly began selling this book at work telling everyone it was better than Hunger Games by Susan Collins. I wait a very slow year till the release date of Insurgent. I dove in head first turning the pages quickly and finished it to fast. Left only wanting more. Then, will online I saw that the third book would not be released until fall if 2013, I was devistated.

However, today is the official release date of Free Four. This is a chapter from Divergent told from Four perspective rather than from Tris.  It is available on E-book for 99 cents.

Free Four Ebook

Verconia Roth you did not let me down. That little taste will hopefully get me through till the third book.

Sunday Weekly Selection

I have decided to post about upcoming young adult books for each week. I will do this every Sunday evening. I will post information about select books that I find interesting. I will also post the Link to Barnes and Nobles teen coming soon as well for more information of books to come.

Week of August 7th releases 

Rift
Andrea Cremer
Good Reads Rating: 4.3
Good Reads Summary: 

Chronicling the rise of the Keepers, this is the stunning prequel to Andrea Cremer's internationally bestselling Nightshade trilogy!

Sixteen-year-old Ember Morrow is promised to a group called Conatus after one of their healers saves her mother's life. Once she arrives, Ember finds joy in wielding swords, learning magic, and fighting the encroaching darkness loose in the world. She also finds herself falling in love with her mentor, the dashing, brooding, and powerful Barrow Hess. When the knights realize Eira, one of their leaders, is dabbling in dark magic, Ember and Barrow must choose whether to follow Eira into the nether realm or to pledge their lives to destroying her and her kind.

With action, adventure, magic, and tantalizing sensuality, this book is as fast-paced and breathtaking as the Nightshade novels.

Sweetly

Jackson Pearce

Good Reads Rating: 3.8

Good Reads Summary:

As a child, Gretchen's twin sister was taken by a witch in the woods. Ever since, Gretchen and her brother, Ansel, have felt the long branches of the witch's forest threatening to make them disappear, too.

Years later, when their stepmother casts Gretchen and Ansel out, they find themselves in sleepy Live Oak, South Carolina. They're invited to stay with Sophia Kelly, a beautiful candy maker who molds sugary magic: coveted treats that create confidence, bravery, and passion.

Life seems idyllic and Gretchen and Ansel gradually forget their haunted past -- until Gretchen meets handsome local outcast Samuel. He tells her the witch isn't gone -- it's lurking in the forest, preying on girls every year after Live Oak's infamous chocolate festival, and looking to make Gretchen its next victim. Gretchen is determined to stop running and start fighting back. Yet the further she investigates the mystery of what the witch is and how it chooses its victims, the more she wonders who the real monster is.

Gretchen is certain of only one thing: a monster is coming, and it will never go away hungry.

Perks of Being a Wallflower (Book)

 

Perks of Being a Wallflower
By: Stephen Chbosky
ISBN: 9780671027346
Length: 213 Pages
Reason: Movie is coming out

I just finished Perks of Being a Wallflower, and let me tell you I loved it. I have always been a fan of books that have been compared to Catcher in the Rye. I guess part of me just loves a good coming of age story. I have been wanting to read this book for some time now, and because of the movie’s release date is slowly creeping up on us I thought now would be a better time than any.

Good Reads Summary:

Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor.This haunting novel about the dilemma of passivity vs. passion marks the stunning debut of a provocative voice in contemporary fiction: The Perks of Being a Wallflower. This is the story of what it’s like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie's letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates and mixed tapes, family dramas and new friends. The world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. Through Charlie, Stephen Chbosky has created a deeply affecting coming-of-age story, a powerful novel that will spirit you back to those wild and poignant roller coaster days known as growing up.

Review:

Dear Friend,

I just finished reading Perks of Being a Wallflower. I loved it, even though I am always weary on books that are written in letter format. I loved how the author really developed Charlie, the protagonist, throughout the novel. At the beginning Charlie decides to write letters to a stranger, that he has randomly selected from the phone book. He expects nothing in return but for them to read each letter. I really enjoyed this idea, mostly because it allowed my inner voyeur to surface a bit. Each letter is written about the major events that happen throughout Charlie freshman year of high school.

Charlie is socially awkward and he often finds himself slipping into a dark place. Sam, the main love interest, provides amazing conflict with Charlie. She is that fun free spirited girl from high school; she just wants everyone to be happy. Then there is her brother, Patrick, I was really happy with how the author portray him. Patrick is gay, not flamboyant, just your regular relaxed high schooler waiting to escape small town life.

The main focus of the book is around their interaction together. One of my favorite events that occur weekly in the book is the Rocky Horror Picture Show performances that Patrick (Franken Furter) and Sam (Janet) are in. That is defiantly something original.

The book takes you through almost every possible conflict a teenager could have in high school in one school year. Sex, drugs, violence, abuse, and crying are no stranger in this book. The author had a fantastic way of addressing these items without much detail but still driving the message home.
I really like how the author also progressed Charlie’s writing style to reflect that Charlie was gain knowledge and experience with writing himself. In the beginning i found the book to more like reading someone’s train of thought and towards the end I found it a bit more pieced together, this was a very nice touch.
 

Love Always,

YA Bookends

I rate this book at 4 out of 5

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Recommendations: