Tag Archives: EM Castellan

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Waiting On Wednesday – 35

Hello gentle reader,

this week I’m waiting on Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige (expected publication: 1st April 2014 by HarperTeen). It’s a YA Fantasy Retelling (based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, as you might have guessed). I find the cover very eye-catching and the fact that this book sounds very Wicked-like doesn’t hurt either… I’ll definitely read it when it comes out!

Dorothy Must Die

From Goodreads:

I didn’t ask for any of this. I didn’t ask to be some kind of hero.
But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know?

Sure, I’ve read the books. I’ve seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little blue birds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can’t be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There’s still the yellow brick road, though—but even that’s crumbling.

What happened? Dorothy. They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.

My name is Amy Gumm—and I’m the other girl from Kansas.
I’ve been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked.
I’ve been trained to fight.
And I have a mission:
Remove the Tin Woodman’s heart.
Steal the Scarecrow’s brain.
Take the Lion’s courage.
Then and only then—Dorothy must die!

There is a prequel to this story: an e-novella published on 12th November 2013 by HarperCollins. It’s called No Place Like Oz.

No Place Like Oz

In this digital original novella, Dorothy travels back to Oz to reunite with old friends, but her story may not have a happy ending. No Place Like Oz is a prequel to the forthcoming novel Dorothy Must Die. Perfect for fans of Alex Flinn, Marissa Meyer, and Gregory Maguire, No Place Like Oz is a dark reimagining of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. Building off of its rich mythology, Danielle Paige creates an edgy, thrilling story for teens that chronicles the rise and fall of one of the literature’s most beloved characters.

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by book blogger Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Have you heard of Dorothy Must Die? Is it on your TBR list? Have you read No Place Like Oz yet? What are you waiting on this week?

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Waiting On Wednesday – 34

Hello gentle reader,

this week I’m waiting on Curses and Smoke: A Novel of Pompeii by Vicky Alvear Shecter (expected publication: 27th May 2014 by Arthur A. Levine Book). It’s a YA Historical novel set in Ancient Rome and it sounds awesome!

Cursesandsmoke

From Goodreads:

When your world blows apart, what will you hold onto?

TAG is a medical slave, doomed to spend his life healing his master’s injured gladiators. But his warrior’s heart yearns to fight in the gladiator ring himself and earn enough money to win his freedom.

LUCIA is the daughter of Tag’s owner, doomed by her father’s greed to marry a much older Roman man. But she loves studying the natural world around her home in Pompeii, and lately she’s been noticing some odd occurrences in the landscape: small lakes disappearing; a sulfurous smell in the air. . . .

When the two childhood friends reconnect, each with their own longings, they fall passionately in love. But as they plot their escape from the city, a patrician fighter reveals his own plans for them — to Lucia’s father, who imprisons Tag as punishment. Then an earthquake shakes Pompeii, in the first sign of the chaos to come. Will they be able to find each other again before the volcano destroys their whole world?

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by book blogger Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Have you heard of Curses and Smoke? Is it on your TBR list? What are you waiting on this week?

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Waiting On Wednesday – 33

Hello gentle reader,

this week, I’m waiting on Hexed by Michelle Krys (expected publication: 10th June 2014 by Delacorte Press/Random House Children’s Books). It’s a YA Fantasy about witches. I’ve been following Michelle Krys online for a very long time, and I can’t wait to finally read her book!

Hexed

From Goodreads:

If high school is all about social status, Indigo Blackwood has it made. Sure, her quirky mom owns an occult shop, and a nerd just won’t stop trying to be her friend, but Indie is a popular cheerleader with a football-star boyfriend and a social circle powerful enough to ruin everyone at school. Who wouldn’t want to be her?

Then a guy dies right before her eyes. And the dusty old family Bible her mom is freakishly possessive of is stolen. But it’s when a frustratingly sexy stranger named Bishop enters Indie’s world that she learns her destiny involves a lot more than pom-poms and parties. If she doesn’t get the Bible back, every witch on the planet will die. And that’s seriously bad news for Indie, because according to Bishop, she’s a witch too.

Suddenly forced into a centuries-old war between witches and sorcerers, Indie’s about to uncover the many dark truths about her life—and a future unlike any she ever imagined on top of the cheer pyramid.

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by book blogger Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Have you heard of Hexed? Is it on your TBR list? What are you waiting on this week?

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Waiting On Wednesday – 32

Hello gentle reader,

If you’re here for my Gratitude Giveaway 2013, please click on the image below:

gratitude 2013

This week, I’m waiting on The Madness by Alison Rattle (expected publication: 6th March 2014). It’s a YA Historical novel set in Victorian England. I really enjoyed reading The Quietness by the same author: her books always portray teenage girls in late 19th Century England, in a very realistic way.

The Madness Alison Rattle

From Goodreads:

Sixteen-year-old Marnie lives in the idyllic coastal village of Clevedon. Despite being crippled by a childhood exposure to polio, she seems set to follow in her mother’s footsteps, and become a ‘dipper’, escorting fragile female bathers into the sea. Her life is simple and safe. But then she meets Noah. Charming, handsome, son-of-the-local-Lord, Noah. She quickly develops a passion for him – a passion which consumes her.

As Marnie’s infatuation turns to fixation she starts to lose her grip on reality, and a harrowing and dangerous obsession develops that seems certain to end in tragedy.

Set in the early Victorian era when propriety, modesty and repression were the rule, this is a taut psychological drama in which the breakdown of a young woman’s emotional state will have a devastating impact on all those around her.

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by book blogger Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Have you heard of The Quietness? Is The Madness on your TBR list? What are you waiting on this week?

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Waiting On Wednesday – 31

Hello gentle reader,

this week I’m waiting on Guardian (Proxy #2) by Alex London (expected publication: 29th May 2014 by Philomel). It’s a YA Science-Fiction sequel to Proxy, which came out in July 2013. It’s no secret that I loved Proxy (one of the best YA books of 2013, in my opinion) and I can’t wait to find out what happens in the second book.

Guardian

Since I don’t want to post any spoilers in case you haven’t read the first book, I’m pasting below the blurb from Proxy (from Goodreads):

Knox was born into one of the City’s wealthiest families. A Patron, he has everything a boy could possibly want—the latest tech, the coolest clothes, and a Proxy to take all his punishments. When Knox breaks a vase, Syd is beaten. When Knox plays a practical joke, Syd is forced to haul rocks. And when Knox crashes a car, killing one of his friends, Syd is branded and sentenced to death.

Syd is a Proxy. His life is not his own.

Then again, neither is Knox’s. Knox and Syd have more in common than either would guess. So when Knox and Syd realize that the only way to beat the system is to save each other, they flee. Yet Knox’s father is no ordinary Patron, and Syd is no ordinary Proxy. The ensuing cross-country chase will uncover a secret society of rebels, test both boys’ resolve, and shine a blinding light onto a world of those who owe and those who pay. Some debts, it turns out, cannot be repaid.

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by book blogger Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Have you heard about Proxy and Guardian? Are they on your TBR list? What are you waiting on this week?

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YA New Releases – November Edition

Hello gentle reader,

There are A LOT of YA books coming out this month! Here are the ones I’m most eagerly anticipating… they’re all coming out on 5th November 2013 (blurbs are from Goodreads).

palace of spies

Palace of Spies by Sarah Zettel (HMH Books for Young Readers)

Historical Mystery

A warning to all young ladies of delicate breeding who wish to embark upon lives of adventure: Don’t.

Sixteen-year-old Peggy is a well-bred orphan who is coerced into posing as a lady in waiting at the palace of King George I. Life is grand, until Peggy starts to suspect that the girl she’s impersonating might have been murdered. Unless Peggy can discover the truth, she might be doomed to the same terrible fate. But in a court of shadows and intrigue, anyone could be a spy—perhaps even the handsome young artist with whom Peggy is falling in love…

 

Cold Spell

Cold Spell by Jackson Pearce (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

Fairytale retelling

Kai and Ginny grew up together–best friends since they could toddle around their building’s rooftop rose garden. Now they’re seventeen, and their relationship has developed into something sweeter, complete with stolen kisses and plans to someday run away together.

But one night, Kai disappears with a mysterious stranger named Mora–a beautiful girl with a dark past and a heart of ice. Refusing to be cast aside, Ginny goes after them and is thrust into a world she never imagined, one filled with monsters and thieves and the idea that love is not enough.

If Ginny and Kai survive the journey, will she still be the girl he loved–and moreover, will she still be the girl who loved him?

Jackson Pearce, author of the acclaimed SISTERS RED and FATHOMLESS, returns with a unique vision of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen”.

Daylighters

Daylighters (The Morganville Vampires #15) by Rachel Caine (Allison & Busby)

Paranormal (vampires)

Something drastic has happened in Morganville while Claire and her friends were away. The town looks cleaner and happier than they’ve ever seen it before, but when their incoming group is arrested and separated—vampires from humans—they realize that the changes definitely aren’t for the better.

It seems that an organization called the Daylight Foundation has offered the population of Morganville something they’ve never had: hope of a vampire-free future. And while it sounds like salvation—even for the vampires themselves—the truth is far more sinister and deadly.

Now, Claire, Shane and Eve need to find a way to break their friends out of Daylighter custody, before the vampires of Morganville meet their untimely end…

(NB: this is the last book in the series!)

Which books are you looking forward to reading this month? Let me know below!

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All Hallow’s Read Giveaway (closed)

Hello gentle reader,

this year again I’ve decided to join the initiative called All Hallow’s Read. The idea? Give someone a scary book for Halloween.

AHR13_WebBanner

Fantasy author Neil Gaiman made a lovely (!) video to explain this Halloween tradition:

So I’ve chosen to join this initiative by giving away a copy of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman himself (YA Fantasy, UK paperback).

TheGraveyardBook

From Goodreads:

After the grisly murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own.

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod’s family . . .

Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his New York Times bestselling modern classic Coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, The Graveyard Book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages.

Giveaway information:

The giveaway is open until Friday 1st November 2013 at 9am (BST time).

To enter please fill in the contact form below with your name and email. If you follow my blog by email or WordPress, if you are a Twitter follower, if you like my page on Facebook, if you follow me on Pinterest or Tumblr, or if you tweet about the giveaway, this will grant you an extra entry. Mention it below.

Entrants must be at least 13 years of age.

This giveaway is open Internationally, as long as the Book Depository ships to your country.

The winner will be chosen randomly, notified by email and will have 72 hours to reply or a new winner will be chosen.

I hold the right to end the giveaway before its original deadline without any prior notice.

I hold the right to disqualify any entry as I see fit.

Privacy information: no information given for this giveaway will be used for other purpose than this giveaway. All information provided (names, emails and mail addresses) will be deleted after the giveaway.

Good luck and feel free to leave me a comment below!

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Book of the Week – 23

Hello gentle reader,

this week I’m reading Insatiable and its sequel Overbite by Meg Cabot (published in June 2010 and June 2011 by Harper Collins). It’s an Adult Urban Fantasy with vampires and romance.

Meg-Cabot-Overbite-and-Insatiable

I enjoy Meg Cabot’s books and I love vampire stories, so the only reason I waited this long to read this series is that Insatiable received bad reviews when it came out. I now wish I hadn’t paid attention to those reviews, because I really loved these books!

Meg Cabot cleverly re-tells Bram Stoker’s Dracula and sets her story in modern-day New York City. Her heroine, Meena Harper (!) is tired of fictional vampires invading her bookstore, her TV screen and her day job (she’s a writer for a soap-opera). She meets a Romanian prince and falls in love with him, until she realises he harbours dark secrets, like the fact he’s on the run from Vatican vampire-hunters…

Obviously, this isn’t your usual paranormal romance. Meg Cabot references the entire vampire mythology, from Vlad The Impaler to Sookie Stackhouse and Twilight. She mixes elements of a thriller (dead girls turn up in Central Park) with fun comedy moments.

It’s a truly enjoyable read, and I recommend it if you like well-written vampire stories.

What are you reading this week?

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YA Halloween Reads 2013

Hello gentle reader,

Halloween is coming up! Last year I shared with you my October reads and I thought it could be interesting to do it again this year. So if you’re looking for Halloween books suitable for Young Adults readers, here are a few suggestions…

Ghosts: The Shades of London series

(The Name of the Star and The Madness Underneath) by Maureen Johnson

nameofthestarseries

Vampires: The Blood of Eden series

(The Immortal Rules and The Eternity Cure) by Julie Kagawa

julie-kagawa-immortal-rules-eternity-cure-book-covers-2

Steampunk supernatural extravaganza: The Parasol Protectorate series

(Soulless, Changeless, Blameless, Heartless and Timeless) by Gail Carriger

Soulless

Gothic / Post-apocalyptic Fantasy: The Masque of the Red Death series

(Masque of the Red Death and Dance of the Red Death) by Bethany Griffin

Masque of the Red Death

What are you reading this Halloween? Feel free to share your recommendations below!

And stay tuned for an ALL HALLOWS’ READS giveaway, coming up next week…

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Waiting On Wednesday – 29

Hello gentle reader,

this week I’m waiting on Strange And Ever After (Something Strange And Deadly # 3) by Susan Dennard (expected publication: 22d July 2014 by HarperTeen). It’s a YA Historical Fantasy and the last book in a trilogy. I have loved the first two books in this series (Something Strange and Deadly -set in Philadelphia – and A Darkness Strange and Lovely – set in Paris) and I can’t wait to find out how it all ends – in Egypt!

Strange Ever After

From Goodreads:

In the conclusion to the trilogy that Publishers Weekly called “a roaring—and addictive—gothic world,” Eleanor Fitt must control her growing power, face her feelings for Daniel, and confront the evil necromancer Marcus…all before it’s too late. Susan Dennard will leave readers breathless and forever changed in the concluding pages of this riveting ride.

You can read my interview with Susan Dennard here.

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly event, hosted by book blogger Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

What are you waiting on this week? Is Strange and Ever After on your TBR list? Have you read Something Strange and Deadly?

Feel free to leave me a comment below!