Waiting on Wednesday (13) Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine, in which we share the book that we are anxiously waiting to be released.

The sure to be fabulous sequel to Hex Hall has finally gotten its cover and it's gorgeous! Hex Hall was such a fun book and we were left with a major cliffhanger. I must know what happens next! Demonglass will be published March 1st 2011 by Hyperion.

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins
From Goodreads:

Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.

That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.

But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

Monday Mini (2)

It's Monday morning, the alarm clock just went off and everything is rush rush rush to get ready for the work week. Unfortunately there's limited time for book talk, and even less for blogging, but we still MUST share some book thoughts before we dive into the day. A Monday Mini is a quick little review typed with one hand, while coffee is made, makeup is applied and car keys are found with the other. Have a great Monday morning!


Beauty by Robin McKinley

Published August 1st 2005 by Eos (first published 1978)

More at: Goodreads

From Goodreads: This much-loved retelling of the classic French tale Beauty and the Beast elicits the familiar magical charm, but is more believable and complex than the traditional story. In this version, Beauty is not as beautiful as her older sisters, who are both lovely and kind. Here, in fact, Beauty has no confidence in her appearance but takes pride in her own intelligence, her love of learning and books, and her talent in riding. She is the most competent of the three sisters, which proves essential when they are forced to retire to the country because of their father's financial ruin.
The plot follows that of the renowned legend: Beauty selflessly agrees to inhabit the Beast's castle to spare her father's life. Beauty's gradual acceptance of the Beast and the couple's deepening trust and affection are amplified in novel form. Robin McKinley's writing has the flavor of another century, and Beauty heightens the authenticity as a reliable and competent narrator.

This is and has always been one of my favorite fairytales. McKinley's retelling completely captured the magic and wonder of the original story whilst gifting it with a rather real world air that makes it nearly impossible to not get thoroughly lost in the story.

McKinley's Beauty lacks the good looks that our classic heroine possessed. Instead her selflessness, kindness and intelligence make for an inwardly beautiful leading lady that's a bit easier to relate to than the usual run of the mill "breathtaking" beauty. Her character is such that all but Beauty are able to see how very lovely she really is. At her insistence, she agrees to enter the Beast's enchanted house in exchange for her father's life and once there befriends and falls in love with the one person to whom she has ever felt truly beautiful.

The castle and it's servants are charming and endearing as they welcome and care for Beauty who is understandably both terrified and homesick. I want invisible people to pick out my clothes and bring me breakfast :( Beauty is able to catch bits and pieces of their conversations and begins to understand that something really devastating will happen if she chooses to leave.

Bonus: The Beast possesses a great library filled with books that aren't yet written. THAT right there is enough reason to read this book if falling in love with a fairytale all over again isn't.

In My Mailbox (25)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren in which we share the books we received for the week.

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
From Goodreads:
Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that had been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena's family of powerful supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.

Sometimes life-ending.

Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering a tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.

Jane by April Lindner
From Goodreads:
Forced to drop out of an esteemed East Coast college after the sudden death of her parents, Jane Moore takes a nanny job at Thornfield Park, the estate of Nico Rathburn, an iconic rock star on the brink of a huge comeback. Practical and independent, Jane reluctantly becomes entranced by her magnetic and brooding employer, and finds herself in the midst of a forbidden romance. But there's a mystery at Thornfield, and Jane's much-envied relationship with Nico is tested by a torturous secret from his past.

Part irresistible romance and part darkly engrossing mystery, this contemporary retelling of the beloved classic Jane Eyre promises to enchant a new generation of readers.

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
From Goodreads:
Incarceron -- a futuristic prison, sealed from view, where the descendants of the original prisoners live in a dark world torn by rivalry and savagery. It is a terrifying mix of high technology -- a living building which pervades the novel as an ever-watchful, ever-vengeful character, and a typical medieval torture chamber -- chains, great halls, dungeons. A young prisoner, Finn, has haunting visions of an earlier life, and cannot believe he was born here and has always been here. In the outer world, Claudia, daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, is trapped in her own form of prison -- a futuristic world constructed beautifully to look like a past era, an imminent marriage she dreads. She knows nothing of Incarceron, except that it exists. But there comes a moment when Finn, inside Incarceron, and Claudia, outside, simultaneously find a device -- a crystal key, through which they can talk to each other. And so the plan for Finn's escape is born ...

Mercury Falls
From Goodreads:
Years of covering the antics of End Times cults for The Banner, a religious news magazine, have left Christine Temetri not only jaded but seriously questioning her career choice. That is, until she meets Mercury, an anti-establishment angel who's frittering his time away whipping up batches of Rice Krispy Treats and perfecting his ping-pong backhand instead of doing his job: helping to orchestrate Armageddon. With the end near and angels and demons debating the finer political points of the Apocalypse, Christine and Mercury accidentally foil an attempt to assassinate one Karl Grissom, a thirty-seven-year-old film school dropout about to make his big break as the Antichrist. Now, to save the world, she must negotiate the byzantine bureaucracies of Heaven and Hell and convince the apathetic Mercury to take a stand, all the while putting up with the obnoxious mouth-breathing Antichrist.

Bloody Jack by L.A. Meyer
From Goodreads:
Life as a ship's boy aboard HMS Dolphin is a dream come true for Jacky Faber. Gone are the days of scavenging for food and fighting for survival on the streets of eighteenth-century London. Instead, Jacky is becoming a skilled and respected sailor as the crew pursues pirates on the high seas.

There's only one problem: Jacky is a girl. And she will have to use every bit of her spirit, wit, and courage to keep the crew from discovering her secret. This could be the adventure of her life -- if only she doesn't get caught....

Follow Friday (2)

Happy Follow Friday! I'm actually off of work today and I'm probably more excited than I should be! I hope you have a wonderful day and thanks for stopping by!

Before you run off, here are the two books I'm enjoying RIGHT NOW:

Mercury Falls by Rob Kroese
From Goodreads:
Years of covering the antics of End Times cults for The Banner, a religious news magazine, have left Christine Temetri not only jaded but seriously questioning her career choice. That is, until she meets Mercury, an anti-establishment angel who's frittering his time away whipping up batches of Rice Krispy Treats and perfecting his ping-pong backhand instead of doing his job: helping to orchestrate Armageddon. With the end near and angels and demons debating the finer political points of the Apocalypse, Christine and Mercury accidentally foil an attempt to assassinate one Karl Grissom, a thirty-seven-year-old film school dropout about to make his big break as the Antichrist. Now, to save the world, she must negotiate the byzantine bureaucracies of Heaven and Hell and convince the apathetic Mercury to take a stand, all the while putting up with the obnoxious mouth-breathing Antichrist.

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
From Goodreads:
Centuries ago, when magic still existed in England, the greatest magician of them all was the Raven King. A human child brought up by fairies, the Raven King blended fairy wisdom and human reason to create English magic. Now, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, he is barely more than a legend, and England, with its mad King and its dashing poets, no longer believes in practical magic.

Then the reclusive Mr Norrell of Hurtfew Abbey appears and causes the statues of York Cathedral to speak and move. News spreads of the return of magic to England and, persuaded that he must help the government in the war against Napoleon, Mr Norrell goes to London. There he meets a brilliant young magician and takes him as a pupil. Jonathan Strange is charming, rich and arrogant. Together, they dazzle the country with their feats.

But the partnership soon turns to rivalry. Mr Norrell has never conquered his lifelong habits of secrecy, while Strange will always be attracted to the wildest, most perilous magic. He becomes fascinated by the shadowy figure of the Raven King, and his heedless pursuit of long-forgotten magic threatens, not only his partnership with Norrell, but everything that he holds dear.

This is proving to be the most remarkable of stories. I'm listening to it on audio and constantly having to stop and write down passages and chapters to look up. It's wonderful.

Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas

Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas

Published November 1st 2004 by Avon

More at: Goodreads





     For those privileged enough to count themselves amongst the members of high society, the London Season is one of the most anticipated events of the year. Several months of lavish parties, decadent dinners and balls the likes of which inspire fairy tales, bring out the decorated favored that is the British ton to take in the delights of the season, and of each other. For young, unmarried ladies and debutantes, it is a period of great suspense and excitement where every evening and every party could mean catching the eye of an eligible man and the hope upon hope of his making her a wife.
     Annabelle Peyton is embarking on her fourth season. Her final season. Three previous, uneventful forays amongst the husband seeking peerage have left her in danger of being branded a failure, or worse, a spinster. In gowns and slippers almost beyond mending, and jewelry who's stones have long since been replaced with paste, her family's poverty is becoming increasingly difficult to disguise and her desperate need of a husband even more so.
     With the clock steadily ticking away, and a deadline fast approaching, Annabelle can no longer afford to spurn the advances of any eligible bachelor. If the season closes with no success, she may have to consider the advances of some not so eligible men. To become a man's mistress would mean money and food for her family, tuition for her brother, but scorn and disgrace for Annabelle. To become the mistress of Simon Hunt, the common, upstart son of a butcher made monstrously successful by his cunning rush on the railroad industry, would forever remove her from the society she has her whole life struggled to embrace.
     Mr Hunt is very wealthy, strangely attractive and unused to being told no and he wouldn't be described as the marrying kind. In playing a precarious game with her family's future, Annabelle will have to take an even greater gamble with her own heart.

I thought Evie's story warranted the most pity until I read Annabelle's. Her father has passed leaving the family nearly destitute, and every day bringing them closer and closer to abject poverty. Here we have a young lady who has spent her whole life with the elevated members of London society only now to find herself and her family a step away from being scorned by them. Why would a man propose marriage to a penniless girl who's just about past the prime of her youth when he can bide his time and enjoy all she has to offer for much less than a marriage would entail. Though Annabelle is considered to be quite beautiful, beauty still has little to recommend it when there is no exchange of title or dowry to take place.

Simon Hunt is allowed to socialize amidst the English peerage because most of them owe him money. He is the very enterprising son of a plain everyday butcher, and though the elite quite resent his parentage, they can't snub the powerful man to whom so many of them are deeply indebted. Simon doesn't want or need a wife, but he can't deny his strong attraction to Annabelle and he has wanted her for, well, years. When his money fails to procure her, his heart might just demand that he pay any price to have her.

Secrets of a Summer Night marks the beginning of the friendship between Annabelle and the three other women she's sat next to all season. They never really speak, just sit there in companionable silence, each secretly taking comfort in the fact that if they have to be sitting forgotten and dejected at a dance, at least they aren't sitting alone. I've read The Wallflowers series, albeit back to front instead of in order and I've been delighted with each and every character I've encountered. All the Wallflowers are suitably married and settled and I can't help but feeling a tiny bit sad, like I've had a dear friend move far away and though I'll get to talk to her occasionally, we can't have lunch as often as we use to.

I can now unabashedly admit to being a romance reader and no longer blame Lisa Kleypas for it, but thank her.

Teaser Tuesday (9)

"Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!"

Ten Things I Love About You by Julia Quinn
Annabel had heard the hearts-dropping-to-the-stomach expression before, and she'd said it, too, but this was the first time she actually understood it. Her entire body felt wrong, as if her heart was in her stomach and her lungs were in her ears, and her brain was somewhere east of France.

Monday Mini (1)

It's Monday morning, the alarm clock just went off and everything is rush rush rush to get ready for the work week. Unfortunately there's limited time for book talk, and even less for blogging, but we still MUST share some book thoughts before we dive into the day. A Monday Mini is a quick little review typed with one hand, while coffee is made, makeup is applied and car keys are found with the other. Have a great Monday morning!


Radiance by Alyson Noel

Published August 31st 2010 by Square Fish

More at: Goodreads

From Goodreads:Riley Bloom left her sister, Ever, in the world of the living and crossed the bridge into the afterlife—a place called Here, where time is always Now. Riley and her dog, Buttercup, have been reunited with her parents and are just settling into a nice, relaxing death when she's summoned before The Council. They let her in on a secret—the afterlife isn't just an eternity of leisure; Riley has to work. She's been assigned a job, Soul Catcher, and a teacher, Bodhi, a curious boy she can't quite figure out.

Riley, Bodhi, and Buttercup return to earth for her first assignment, a Radiant Boy who's been haunting a castle in England for centuries. Many Soul Catchers have tried to get him to cross the bridge and failed. But he's never met Riley...

I read this because I really thought the concept would make for an interesting spin off from The Immortals series, and admittedly, I was hoping it would help bring me back into the main series. It didn't. It is a very rushed 183 pages about what happened to Riley Bloom after she finally accepted her part in the afterlife. She's basically given a job, and a mentor, with it vaguely implied that doing her job will bring enlightenment. With so little time, and all of it devoted to one main event, in which Riley completes her first assignment, there was very little left for characterization. I couldn't tell you who Riley or anyone else really was and the glimpses that were given didn't inspire me to want to find out.

I did enjoy the feel of it being a child's fantasy novel. Riley got to do silly things that a little girl would dream about doing. Her reward for finishing the job was to get to learn how to fly. I probably would have chosen that one too.

I'm not sure if fans of The Immortals series will enjoy this or not since it is very young middle grade fiction. Worth a shot if you just have to know what Riley's been up to. It features a gorgeous cover and yes, a bit with a dog. Bonus. :)


ARC sent from the publisher. Thank you very much!

Booklovers Secret Santa 2010 @ The Neverending Shelf

This is a fabulous event hosted by Kate @ The Never Ending Shelf. It is open to all (international). It's simple, you sign up to be a bookblogger's secret Santa and in turn you get a secret Santa as well! Kate and her little elves will pair up bloggers who will send their assigned partner a bookish holiday gift! If you are only able to ship in the US/CAN, you will be paired accordingly. You'll receive your secret Santa's wish list making it simple to pick out the perfect gift! This is such a fun event! Who doesn't love getting books as gifts?

To sign up: Visit Booklovers Secret Santa 2010 and fill out the appropriate form.

For more information, visit Kate's Secret Santa FAQs

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Published October 19th 2010 by Philomel (Penguin)

More at: Goodreads





     In our world, Halloween is a playful holiday, marked by costumes, candy and revels. In others, it is Samhain, a sacred night, and a time for darker, less inviting magic.
     For Calla, the alpha female of the Nightshade pack, it marks her union with the Bane pack's alpha, Renier and the joining of their two packs to form a new one. Calla is a Guardian, a nonhuman gifted with the ability to shift into wolf form in order to serve the Keepers and protect their sacred sites. A recent increase in attacks by the Searchers, the enemy of the Keepers has placed the sacred sites in jeopardy and a new pack of young Guardians are needed to safeguard their ways.
Duty and honor have been ingrained in Calla since her birth. She must lead her pack, obey her Keeper and fulfill her obligation to join with her chosen mate. With the union drawing near, Calla has become anxious about her impending partnership with Renier. As her pack's alpha she is a leader, independent and proud. As the alpha male's mate, she will become his second, his lesser, his to own.
     When a chance encounter with an injured hiker leaves Calla torn between saving him and betraying the rules that dictate that she mustn't interfere and should let him die, Calla does something that an obedient Guardian should never think to do. She defies her laws and saves his life. Hoping to hide what she did from the Keepers, who would surely punish her for it, Calla is terrified when the hiker appears at her school.
     Now, to protect her secret, she is forced to get closer to its source and in keeping it, she begins to question if she should follow the path that has been chosen for her, or follow her heart.

I picked this up the other night, feeling rather nonchalant about the whole thing, anticipating that this would be an OK reading experience, and something to indulge in for a few minutes before I fell asleep....SEVERAL HOURS LATER, wide-eyed, and completely engrossed, I found I COULD NOT put this book down. Wow. Wow. Wow! I tore through this book so fast I swear you could smell smoke. It's just that good.

We have so many things going on in this story. Calla struggling with her fate. Calla fending off advances from her soon to be mate, who she actually really cares for, but who she must not touch before the union because alpha females must remain pure. Calla having to contend with the dynamics of merging two packs, who up until now have almost been rivals. Then we have the addition of Shay, the hiker who throws a curve ball in an already complex game making her question love and loyalty. All of it fits seamlessly, step by step as the days count down before Calla's union. It's very fast paced, with a definite timeline and central focus. I was quite impressed with the juggling that was done in order to fit it all in. You know the union is going to happen, it can't be prevented, but what will take place there, and what the outcome will be is completely left up to chance.

Calla is such a strong female lead. No whimpering or whining. No looking to anyone to get her out of her situation or save her. It's interesting that she so fixedly accepts her fate up until the point where it starts to sink in that she will have to relinquish control and that being what makes her question if she could in fact choose another path. I also LOVED the fact that in this love triangle, both of the men are GOOD choices. There's no bad boy. Either of them would love her and both of them are worthy. They both just represent two very different lives, both of which have equal perks and value if you think about it.

The entire story takes place in the month of October, ending on Halloween. The book will be published on October 19th, so that you're reading it almost as it is taking place. An excellent little addition to keep you totally locked in the story. Publishing win right there, with a gorgeous cover to complete the package.

And of course I loved the Guardian's society being loosely based on pagan believes and witchcraft. I like a little heathenism in my lit. :)

     "Sorry." I shrugged. "I read novels."
     "Works for me." He grinned. "What's your favorite?"
     I watched a cab pass us on the street. I really should just get out of here.
     "Ah. Too personal." He raised his eyebrows. "The relationship of a girl and her favorite novel can be complex indeed."

*Quotes taken from an ARC of Nightshade and may differ in the finished copy.
A big thanks to the publisher for sending me this little lovely.

Waiting on Wednesday (12) Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine, in which we share the book that we are anxiously waiting to be released.

I'm so very excited about this book. I keep doing double takes when I'm looking through shelves at the bookstore because I think I see it. Even though I know it's not out yet, some how the wish section of my brain refuses to believe it. One day it will be there!

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
From Goodreads:
Anna was looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. So she's less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris — until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all . . . including a serious girlfriend.

Teaser Tuesday (8) Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

"Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!"

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer
"Calla!" Shay shouted, but I'd heard the buzz of the crossbow bolt and tipped over my chair. The bolt lodged in a book spine on the shelf that had been level with my chest a moment earlier.

In My Mailbox (24)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren in which we share the books we received for the week.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver
From Goodreads:
Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -the deliria- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the governments demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.

But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.

For review from NetGalley, and next on my TBR. This sounds amazing.

First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones
From Goodreads:
A smashing, award-winning debut novel that introduces Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper.

Charley sees dead people. That’s right, she sees dead people. And it’s her job to convince them to“go into the light. But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e. murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she’s been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life...and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely.

This is a thrilling debut novel from an exciting newcomer to the world of paranormal romantic suspense.

This little treasure came from a friendly bookfairy. The cover is gorgeous!

Afterlife by Claudia Gray
From Goodreads:
The fourth book in this electrifying vampire series has all the romance, suspense, and page-turning drama that have made Claudia Gray’s Evernight books runaway successes.

Having become what they feared most, Bianca and Lucas face a terrifying new reality. They must return to Evernight Academy, Lucas as a vampire and Bianca as a wraith. But Lucas is haunted by demons, both personal and supernatural. Bianca must help him fight the evil inside him, combat the forces determined to drive them apart—and find the power to claim her destiny at last.

Readers have fallen in love with Bianca and Lucas, and they will be thrilled to read this exciting conclusion to their romantic adventure.

For review from NetGalley. Why am I not on vacation so that I can read all these NOW.

Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George
From Goodreads:The Brothers Grimm tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses is vibrantly retold and set in a fictionalized nineteenth-century Europe. Galen, a soldier (and knitter) returning home from war, encounters an old woman who gives him an invisibility cloak and yarn possessing magical powers. While working as a gardener at the palace, he encounters the princess, Rose, and her 11 younger sisters. Because of a secret bargain their mother made with the evil King Under Stone, the princesses are cursed to dance each night till their shoes are worn ragged. Aided by the good magic held in his yarn, Galen solves the puzzle that has stumped many a prince and earns Rose’s love and hand in marriage. Though cursed and in need of rescue, the sisters are feisty and cunning—not passive victims of their fate. Galen’s magical knitting patterns will appeal to teens fond of this trendy hobby. This is a well-realized and fast-paced fantasy-romance that will find favor among fans of fairy tales, feisty heroines, and dashing young men with strength, cunning, and sensitivity.

I know that I just put this On My Wishlist but I took Mum to Lemuria Books today and they had a copy. It was fate.

On My Wishlist (2)

"On My Wishlist is a fun weekly event hosted by Book Chick City and runs every Saturday. It's where I list all the books I desperately want but haven't actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. It's also an event that you can join in with too - Mr Linky is always at the ready for you to link your own 'On My Wishlist' post. If you want to know more click here."

This is such a fun meme. We're all wishing away for books, why not share what we pine for with other! Unfortunately, sharing your wishlists ends up increasing mine and thus keeping me locked in a never ending cycle of bookwant but it's still fun!

A Wallflower Christmas by Lisa Kleypas
Published:October 14th 2008 by St. Martin's Press
From Goodreads:The Wallflowers are four young ladies in London who banded together in their wild and wickedly wonderful searches for true love. Now happily married, they join together once again to help one of the world’s most notorious rogues realize that happiness might be right under the mistletoe.…It’s Christmastime in London and Rafe Bowman has arrived from America for his arranged meeting with Natalie Blandford, the very proper and beautiful daughter of Lady and Lord Blandford. His chiseled good looks and imposing physique are sure to impress the lady in waiting and, if it weren’t for his shocking American ways and wild reputation, her hand would already be guaranteed. Before the courtship can begin, Rafe realizes he must learn the rules of London society. But when four former Wallflowers try their hand at matchmaking, no one knows what will happen. And winning a bride turns out to be more complicated than Rafe Bowman anticipated, especially for a man accustomed to getting anything he wants. However, Christmas works in the most unexpected ways, changing a cynic to a romantic and inspiring passion in the most timid of hearts. A Wallflower Christmas takes a trip to Victorian London, under the mistletoe, and on a journey of the heart. With her trademark charm, sensuality, and unforgettable characters, there’s no one like Lisa Kleypas to make you believe in the magic of Christmas.

I only have a handful of pages left in Secrets of a Summer Night (which is the first Wallflowers book but I read them out of order) and I don't want the stories to end! I adore these books. A goodreads search revealed this little treasure so I'm happy to discover that I'll get one more visit with my Wallflower friends! If you haven't read this series you are really missing out!

Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George
Published:April 27th 2010 by Bloomsbury USA Children's Books (first published January 20th 2009)
From Goodreads:The Brothers Grimm tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses is vibrantly retold and set in a fictionalized nineteenth-century Europe. Galen, a soldier (and knitter) returning home from war, encounters an old woman who gives him an invisibility cloak and yarn possessing magical powers. While working as a gardener at the palace, he encounters the princess, Rose, and her 11 younger sisters. Because of a secret bargain their mother made with the evil King Under Stone, the princesses are cursed to dance each night till their shoes are worn ragged. Aided by the good magic held in his yarn, Galen solves the puzzle that has stumped many a prince and earns Rose’s love and hand in marriage. Though cursed and in need of rescue, the sisters are feisty and cunning—not passive victims of their fate. Galen’s magical knitting patterns will appeal to teens fond of this trendy hobby. This is a well-realized and fast-paced fantasy-romance that will find favor among fans of fairy tales, feisty heroines, and dashing young men with strength, cunning, and sensitivity.

I think someone had this on there OMW last week and now I wantz it. I just love fairytale retellings!

Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes
Published:July 8th 2010 by Hodder & Stoughton
From Goodreads:
When journalist Ellie looks through her newspaper's archives for a story, she doesn’t think she'll find anything of interest. Instead she discovers a letter from 1960, written by a man asking his lover to leave her husband – and Ellie is caught up in the intrigue of a past love affair. Despite, or perhaps because of her own romantic entanglements with a married man.

In 1960, Jennifer wakes up in hospital after a car accident. She can't remember anything – her husband, her friends, who she used to be. And then, when she returns home, she uncovers a hidden letter, and begins to remember the lover she was willing to risk everything for. Ellie and Jennifer's stories of passion, adultery and loss are wound together in this richly emotive novel – interspersed with real 'last letters'.

I first saw this featured at Bookalicious Ramblings and it has been on my wishlist for awhile. Unless I am mistaken, it is only available in the UK so I may have to break down and oh wait bookdepository says it'll be in US February 2011. I can wait. Breathe. Can wait. Can.

How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

Published April 11th 2006 by Wendy Lamb Books (first published 2004)

More at: Goodreads

"Things Happen and once they start happening you pretty much just to hold on for dear life and see where they drop you when they stop."

     It's funny how a war can sneak up on you. At first, it's something that happens to other people, someplace else and it can't possibly have anything to do with you because you're still going about as you always have. Then, as you see more and more of it on the television and you hear more and more about it on the radio and it becomes something to play at, Being-at-War. War is just another game you play and in it, you play at spy, you play at refugee, you play at hiding, until somehow you're playing at survival- only the game isn't fun anymore and you can't make it stop.
     There was only rumor of an enemy when Daisy was sent to England to visit her cousins and the rumor came a distant second to the excitement of meeting such unique and colorful new friends and family. And who can think on war when one is thinking about love for the first time, with all its strange and unknown wonders? With her Aunt suddenly called away to assist with the war effort, Daisy and her cousins are left alone in their house in the countryside, to play at grownup in their new war game. When she doesn't return and they are cut off from power, food, and one by one, from each other, it's no longer unsupervised fun and games. The war is real, and they may never see each other again.

This is a very unique and interesting read. A very dark story, but told in the youthful light of innocence reflected in the eyes of, at first, a very immature Daisy, and by the end, someone who has aged countless years. I loved the young Daisy's voice. I loved the random capitals, placing enthusiastic inflection on things that mean so very much to her at a time when a different set of priorities governs what is most important. The change in her voice as she was forced to rather quickly grow up, was interesting, but I rather missed my girl.

We are introduced to several little odd ducks, these cousins that Daisy goes to live with. Each possess some unique ability, nothing blatantly supernatural, but just the hint of something psychic, leaving you to wonder if they really are or if it's just Daisy being in awe of finally having family, and people that care and listen. Having grown up without a mother and been shipped off by her father when his new wife is expecting a baby, Daisy claims to be unfamiliar with the kind of family bond that her cousins share. We, the readers, are given a gift, in the diminutive form of Piper, the youngest of the cousins, and by far the most wonderful. You can't help but love and adore Piper, who even as the baby of the family, takes care of them all, cares for the animals, and keeps them, and later Daisy, going. She's an adorable little bright spark in all the gloom and secretly I was rooting for her to survive even if it meant losing the others.

I didn't love this book, because truthfully, I didn't get why the author made such an abrupt change with the storyline. It was going along JUST FINE, then suddenly we switch from book one to book two and I'm thinking hell, it's only 194 pages where can she possibly want to go with this? So excuse my incomprehensive blank stare but I totally don't understand the change. I even reread that part after the phone rings trying to get to the place that the author seemed to want me to be at and I'm still sitting here hmmmming over it. I get what "happened" or what was implied to have happened but for the life of me I can't get why. We have build up, build up, build up and then splat. Even with that, I can't not recommend it because,my dislike of how the time change was handled aside, it's still a very good book.

I sometimes wished someone would just fill me in on the simple boring things like did she have big feet or wear makeup and what was her favorite song and did she like dogs or have a nice voice and what books did she read etc. I made up my mind to ask Aunt Penn some of these questions when she came back from Oslo but I guess what you really want to know are the things you can't ask like Did she have eyes like yours and When you pushed my hair back was that what it feels like to have your mother do it and Did her hands look serious and quiet like yours and Did she ever have a chance to look at me with a complicated expression like the one on your face, and by the way Was she scared to die.

Now let's talk about Edmond. And here is where you jump off if you don't want to read any *SPOILERS*.

As I was reading through the responses to this book I came across so many posts of near protest of distaste for it that I was shocked. Edmond is her cousin and they fall in love. It's kind of a nice little love, all youthful and innocent, while they explore a new emotion. It then becomes needy, but in a good way as their need to get back to each other helps keep them going. They share what is either a psychic connection, or the product of Daisy's overactive imagination and are still able to communicate with each other despite their separation. Whether or not it's true doesn't really matter. What does is Daisy's need to believe in it in order to keep going. Yesssss, while they're hold up in the house, unsupervised, it's implied that they are most likely having sex, which seemed to elicit many shocked cries of disgust. And while it's not ideal or all that appealing now, remember that it is only in our recent history that dating a first cousin has become taboo. Marrying a cousin was actually standard practice, back in the day when keeping wealth and property in the family was important. So this concept isn't new or shocking, just different from, ha, how we live now.

Waiting on Wednesday (11) Wither by Lauren DeStefano

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine, in which we share the book that we are anxiously waiting to be released.

This synopsis possesses a ridiculous amount of awesome. Wither sounds amazing and I can't wait. It will be published March 22nd 2011 by Simon & Schuster. Write this down.

Wither (Chemical Garden #1) by Lauren DeStefano
From Goodreads:
What if you knew exactly when you would die?

Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home.

But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden's eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant she trusts, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limited time she has left.

It Happened One Autumn by Lisa Kleypas

It Happened One Autumn by Lisa Kleypas

Published October 1st 2005 by Avon

More at: Goodreads

"Don't be saucy, or I won't tell you the lurid details later."
     "I don't need to hear them from you," Daisy said airily. "I've been reading the novels that Lady Olivia recommended...and now I daresay I know more than you and Annabelle put together."
     Lillian couldn't help laughing. "Dear, I'm not certain that those novels are entirely accurate in their depiction of men, or of...of that."
     Daisy frowned. "In what way are they not accurate?"
     "Well, there's not really any sort of...you know, lavender mist and the swooning, and all the flowery speeches."
     Daisy regarded her with sincere disgruntlement. "Not even a little swooning?"
     "For heaven's sake, you wouldn't want to swoon, or you might miss something."

     Lillian Bowman has many disagreeable qualities. First, she's American, something that the staunch English peerage find amusing but not to be considered for matrimony. She's crass, verbally abrasive, fiercely independent and unyieldingly stubborn- yet more traits that tend to discourage the suit of eligible English lords. But even with her penchant for enjoying a rousing game of rounders in her knickers, a lady of sizable fortune, regardless of breeding and disposition, never goes unconsidered. However, Lillian will be damned if she's going to marry some arrogant, self-important, domineering English bastard, no matter what his title may be.
     Lord Marcus, Earl of Westcliff wouldn't describe himself as an arrogant, self-important, domineering English bastard. With one of the oldest, purest bloodlines in England, his breeding is unquestionable, and his affections and title largely sought after by many husband hunting young ladies. He has a vast array of businesses, properties, estates and fortunes to oversee, meaning he simply is important and people naturally do what he says because he'd never entertain the notion that they'd do otherwise. So no, he wouldn't say he was any of the offensive things that Miss Bowman just happened to accuse him of. He is, however, firm in his opinion that Lillian Bowman is a crass, verbally abrasive, unyieldingly stubborn, incorrigible, American upstart and Lord help the man who is finally shackled with that insufferable girl.
     In short- they're perfect for each other.

Here's where I gush endlessly about the absolute joy and delight that is this series. I've gushed for two books now and here's number 3. Rather this is book 2 in The Wallflowers series and each one is just as good as the last. I've read them out of order and can assure you that it doesn't matter.

The Wallflowers are a group of friends who band together to support and help each other during what can be the very trying and cutthroat ordeal of husband hunting in a London Season. Each book tells a different wallflower's story and this one gives us Lillian Bowman, daughter of a rich, American businessman. Having failed miserably at finding a husband amongst the high society in New York, her parents have carted her and her younger sister Daisy off to England in hopes of catching a lord. Lillian is unapologetically outspoken and can't stomach the idea of having a husband to rule over her. Her smart mouth continuously lands her in trouble throughout the book and that trouble somehow always involves the Earl of Westcliff, who can't help himself when it comes to finding ways to provoke her. Of course their misdeeds land them in love, but not until after a thoroughly tumultuous and unconventional courtship.

We are gifted with the inclusion of Sebastian, Lord St. Vincent from Devil in Winter, quite possibly the best villain/hero in a romance novel ever. If you haven't read this series, you want to just to meet St. Vincent. I adore him, even with the purely dastardly thing he does in this book. I love him all the more for doing it. He's so wonderfully evil.

Kleypas writes leading ladies that are very easy to relate to, and heros that any girl would find it impossible to resist, complete with all the saucy bits. If you're a romance lover, you have to read this series, and if you're not, this will sway you.

For more proclamations of my love for Miz Kleypas, read my book thoughts on:
Devil in Winter
Scandal in Spring

Grace by Elizabeth Scott

Grace by Elizabeth Scott

Published September 16th 2010 by Dutton

More at: Goodreads

     If I get up now and run, I may be able to throw myself off the train before anyone can stop me. Death would be quick. Maybe.
     And even if it wasn't, even if I somehow landed safely and ended up slowly dying in the desert, it would be better than whatever Jerusha has planned for me.
     "Stay sill before you get us both killed," Jerusha hisses, and he is holding my hand again, his grip surprisingly strong. His voice is so cold.
     He is Death, and he is here. He has come for me.
     I stay still.
     I wait for what I've always been told is my fate.

     The People believe they represent freedom. They patrol and defend the Hills against the ever encroaching rule of the tyrant Keran Berj. For the People, there is no greater glory than to die for their cause and if their death can also mean the silencing of any of those who take direction from Keran Berj, then their death will bring great honor for the People.
     Grace is an anomaly. She should have never happened. A cross-breed from a father who possessed the pure blood of the People and an outcast mother, a refugee from the rule of Keran Berj, she is the result of consorting with the enemy and for her sire's mistake, she is shunned. For his atonement, and hers, she is placed in the Angel House where she will be taught to honor the People in a way glorious enough to atone for her sins- with her death. She will be trained to walk amongst the enemy where she will be strategically placed to intercept one of their most public of servants. With her target in sight, there in a crowd of the enemy, she will ignite her bomb's fuse, giving her life and taking other's for the glory of the People.
     For Grace, whose life has been a penance for other people's choices, an emblem for other people's beliefs and one limited existence governed by fanatical expectation, standing now, fuse in hand, in a crowd of those she has been conditioned to see as enemies, it dawns on Grace that at that moment, she finally has a choice. And she doesn't want to die.

The premise for this story is quite remarkable. We have a girl on the run from people on both sides. She can't go home, a place she was never wanted to begin with, because she has failed and she can't go with the enemy because to them, she is the enemy. So she finds herself allied with the most unlikely of co-conspirators, someone who is himself an enemy to both factions, someone she can't trust, and who's very name is synonymous with evil. When you are only taught to hate an enemy, firm in your belief that how they live is wrong, you never stop and give pause to consider the possibility that they may feel the same way about you and with good reason.

Thus the central theme of the story. We all have different beliefs, and we all feel that our believes are the righteous ones, thus we believe the same thing. And the development of the whole "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" undertone would have flowed nicely if it hadn't been beat to death with a brick. This concept was repeated so often as to almost appear in every other paragraph. In the end I felt like I was being preached to, which seemed counterproductive because the mindset of being relentlessly blasted with only one school of thought is the very thing Grace was struggling against to begin with. Let your story teach the lesson, not your lesson be the story.

So yeah, while the concept was intriguing and the writing poetic, I was underwhelmed with the end result. However, much praise goes to whoever designed the cover. It's Grace's face in the clouds and they could be clouds of smoke, and sparks from her bomb, or symbolic of the heaven she will ascend to for her service to the People or they could symbolize her own freedom. This is awesome.