In My Mailbox (131)

In My Mailbox is a weekly post created by The Story Siren.

For Review:

A Lion in America by Robert Mwangi

Bought:

N/a

What did you get in your mailbox??

Traced by Megan Squires Book Trailer

Looking forward to reading this book!

Waiting on Wednesday (133)

Waiting On Wednesday was created by Jill over at Breaking The Spine. It's a weekly post for you to share what upcoming books you can't wait for!

Looking forward to reading Sylo by D.J. Machale which will be out in 2nd July 2013.  Preorder it at Book Depository!

Synopsis

Does Tucker Pierce have what it takes to be a hero when the U.S. military quarantines his island?

Fourteen-year-old Tucker Pierce prefers to fly under the radar. He’s used to navigating around summer tourists in his hometown on idyllic Pemberwick Island, Maine. He’s content to sit on the sidelines as a backup player on the high school football team. And though his best friend Quinn tells him to “go for it,” he’s too chicken to ask Tori Sleeper on a date. There’s always tomorrow, he figures. Then Pemberwick Island is invaded by a mysterious branch of the U.S. military called SYLO. And sitting on the sidelines is no longer an option for Tucker, because tomorrow may never come.

 It’s up to Tucker, Quinn, and Tori to uncover the truth about the singing aircraft that appears only at night—and the stranger named Feit who’s pushing a red crystal he calls the Ruby that brings unique powers to all who take it. Tucker and his friends must rescue not just Pemberwick Island, but the fate of the world—and all before tomorrow is too late. #1 New York Times bestselling author D.J. MacHale brings his brilliant plotting and breathless pacing to SYLO, the first in this ultimate end-of-the-world adventure trilogy.

What are you waiting on?

Waiting on Wednesday (132)

Waiting On Wednesday was created by Jill over at Breaking The Spine. It's a weekly post for you to share what upcoming books you can't wait for!

I'm looking forward to reading The Originals by Cat Patrick which will 7th May 2013.  Pre-order at Book Depository.

Synopsis

A riveting new story from Cat Patrick, author of Forgotten and Revived. 17-year-olds Lizzie, Ella, and Betsey Best grew up as identical triplets... until they discovered a shocking family secret. They're actually closer than sisters, they're clones. Hiding from a government agency that would expose them, the Best family appears to consist of a single mother with one daughter named Elizabeth. Lizzie, Ella, and Betsey take turns going to school, attending social engagements, and a group mindset has always been a de facto part of life...

Then Lizzie meets Sean Kelly, a guy who seems to see into her very soul. As their relationship develops, Lizzie realizes that she's not a carbon copy of her sisters; she's an individual with unique dreams and desires, and digging deeper into her background, Lizzie begins to dismantle the delicate balance of an unusual family that only science could have created.

What are you waiting on?

Drowning Instinct by Ilsa J. Bick

Title:  Drowning Instinct

Author:  Ilsa J. Bick

Genre:  Young Adult/Contemporary

Publisher:  Pan Macmillan (Imprint: Quercus)

Publication Date:  20th February 2013

ISBN:  978170870434

Stand alone or series:   Stand Alone

Pages:  368 pages

Book Received from:  Pan Macmillan (Publisher)

First Lines:  "Look," says the detective.  He stares down at the girl huddled on the gurney.

Synopsis:
Jenna is sweet sixteen, the age when a girl is supposed to find her prince. Instead she finds Mr Anderson – intelligent, handsome, married Mr Anderson, who just happens to be her chemistry teacher. With a dark past and a difficult family, Jenna is just happy to have someone to protect her, to worry about her, to love her.

But should she be suspicious of Mr Anderson's reputation for helping "damaged" students? Why is the most popular girl in school suddenly jealous of her? And where is Mr Anderson's wife? This is a love story that breaks all the rules, but that won't stop it breaking your heart.

My Thoughts:
The books I'm most hesitant reading are ones that I love the most.  I've read Ashes and Shadows by Ilsa J. Bick and absolutely fell in love with her writing so I was stoked that Pan Macmillan sent me a review copy to review.  I'll admit right now I was very hesitant in reading this with the whole "Teacher/Student" scenario.  But when I began reading the very beginning of Jenna's story I knew this was going to be a whole lot different to what I thought.

Jenna is... she's hard to explain because while she does these unthinkable things to herself she is also one of the bravest characters I've come across.  She seems vulnerable in that first chapter but also quite hard.

I'm struggling here to write what I want to say.  Drowning Instinct isn't about right or wrong or anything like that because the main character knew what she was doing was wrong.  So did the Teacher.  But I couldn't help but feel for both Jenna and Mr Anderson.  Jenna has been through the ringer and doesn't have anyone except for herself and when Mr Anderson comes along at the right time, he seems to be the only person she feels that she can trust and the only one looking out for her.

I really like the way the story is told too.  Jenna is given a voice recorder in the beginning because she won't talk to the Detective, so the very start is broken up in parts eg. 1a, 1b, 1c... and it draws you in with its shorter paragraphs until they get progressively larger and more like chapters.  It edges you in, draws you in and once you're there you can't put it down.  Admittedly there a slow spots throughout the book but they didn't slow me down I was just drawn more and more into Jenna's story.

Don't get me wrong, Jenna is a broken girl.  But her strength lies in the way she tells her story and doesn't want anyone's pity.  She's not as naive as a girl her age should be what with the experiences she's dealt with and what not.

This is definitely one very thought provoking read, and the way its told, makes you sit back and think about what you perceive as right and wrong.  Ilsa J. Bick's background as a Child Psychiatrist sure pays off when reading something this complex.  The characters and the story felt real.

I won't say too much more because you need to pick this book up for yourself but be prepared.  It's a story with an edge and touches upon issues that are probably best suited to a mature teen.

You can read an extract on Pan Macmillan's Website!

Fave Line:  Yet many others search their entire lives for something - or someone - worth dying for and this is very different.  These are the lonely and the desperate,  fearful that their lives no meaning.  They yearn for the bullet, if only someone else will pull the trigger. - Page 307

In My Mailbox (130)

In My Mailbox is a weekly post created by The Story Siren.

For Review:

Nameless by Lili St. Crow
(Tales of Beauty and Madness #1)

Thanks Penguin Australia for sending this book to me!

Bought:

N/a

What did you get in your mailbox?

Waiting on Wednesday (131)

Waiting On Wednesday was created by Jill over at Breaking The Spine. It's a weekly post for you to share what upcoming books you can't wait for!

I love love love  the Morganville Vampire series and pretty excited about Fall of Night by Rachel Caine.  Book fourteen in this awesome series is out in 7th May 2013! Pre-order this at Book Depository!

Synopsis

Thanks to its unique combination of human and vampire residents, Morganville, Texas, is a small college town with big-time problems. When student Claire Danvers gets the chance to experience life on the outside, she takes it. But Morganville isn't the only town with vampire trouble...

Claire never thought she’d leave Morganville, but when she gets accepted into the graduate program at MIT, she can’t pass up the opportunity. Saying good-bye to her friends is bittersweet, especially since things are still raw and unsettled between Claire and her boyfriend, Shane.

Her new life at MIT is scary and exciting, but Morganville is never really far from Claire’s mind. Enrolled in a special advanced study program with Professor Irene Anderson, a former Morganville native, Claire is able to work on her machine, which is designed to cancel the mental abilities of vampires.

But when she begins testing her machine on live subjects, things quickly spiral out of control, and Claire starts to wonder whether leaving Morganville was the last mistake she'll ever make...

What are you waiting on??

Girl Defective by Simmone Howell

Title:  Girl Defective

Author:  Simmone Howell

Genre:  Young Adult

Publisher:  Pan Macmillan

Publication Date:  1st March 2013

ISBN:  9780330426176

Stand alone or series:   Stand Alone

Pages:  312 pages

Book Received from:  Pan Macmillan (Publisher)

First Lines:  My dad named his record shop after an old song by a band called the Millionaires.

Synopsis:
We, the Martin family, were like inverse superheroes, marked by our defects. Dad was addicted to beer and bootlegs. Gully had "social difficulties" that manifested in his wearing a pig snout mask 24-7. I was surface clean but underneath a weird hormonal stew was simmering...
 It's summer in St Kilda. Fifteen-year-old Sky is looking forward to great records and nefarious activities with Nancy, her older, wilder friend. Her brother – Super Agent Gully – is on a mission to unmask the degenerate who bricked the shop window. Bill the Patriarch seems content to drink while the shop slides into bankruptcy. A poster of a mysterious girl and her connection to Luke, the tragi-hot new employee sends Sky on an exploration into the dark heart of the suburb. What begins as a toe-dip into wilder waters will end up changing the frames of Sky's existence. Love is strange. Family Rules. In between there are teenage messes, rock star spawn, violent fangirls, creepy old guys and accidents waiting to happen. If the world truly is going to hell in a hand-basket then at least the soundtrack is kicking. Sky Martin is Girl Defective: funny, real and dark at the edges.

My Thoughts:
I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up this book.  I was asked if I'd like to review this book and after reading the synopsis I thought, "This isn't the sort of book I'm reading these days, I should give it a go." The Synopsis seemed promising enough but I didn't realise how much I would enjoy reading this until I started with chapter one.

Sky the main character lives with her family consisting of her father who runs the record shop and likes to drink, and her brother Gully (Seagull) who strangely enough wears a pig snout mask wherever he goes and likes to think of himself as a detective.  Sky's doesn't have any friends at school, and apart from Nancy whose a little older and more extrovert than herself, she sticks by herself.  

The story is based in St Kilda and while I have never been to the place, after reading Girl Defective it feels like I have.  The writing itself is easy reading and as strange as it sounds, I could hear Sky telling me her story in a very aussie accent.

The parts I loved the most and feel I need to point out are Gully's memos. While for me they seemed to be written above an eight year olds level of comprehension the content itself does seem genuinely like what a child of his age would note down.  

There are references to drugs and drinking but for an older teen I think this would make a great read.  I sure enjoyed it and I really fell in love with Luke.

Favourite lines:  .  "It's also the story of a wild girl and a ghost girl, a boy who knew nothing and a boy who thought he knew everything; and it's about life and death and grief and romance.  All the good stuff." - Page 2 - This little bit hooked me. It's written on the back of the book also but when reading the first chapter  and this pops up it makes you want to keep reading. And how true this line is once you finish reading!

In My Mailbox (129)

In My Mailbox is a weekly post created by The Story Siren.

For Review:

Girl Defective by Simmone Howel
Drowning Instinct by Ilsa J. Bick

Thank you to Pan Macmillan for these~

Bought:

N/A This week