Waiting on Wednesday (#93)

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases.

A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston

Expected publication: October 20th 2015 by Macmillan Children's

LO-MELKHIIN KILLED THREE HUNDRED GIRLS before he came to her village, looking for a wife. When she sees the dust cloud on the horizon, she knows he has arrived. She knows he will want the loveliest girl: her sister. She vows she will not let her be next.

And so she is taken in her sister’s place, and she believes death will soon follow. Lo-Melkhiin’s court is a dangerous palace filled with pretty things: intricate statues with wretched eyes, exquisite threads to weave the most beautiful garments. She sees everything as if for the last time. But the first sun rises and sets, and she is not dead. Night after night, Lo-Melkhiin comes to her and listens to the stories she tells, and day after day she is awoken by the sunrise. Exploring the palace, she begins to unlock years of fear that have tormented and silenced a kingdom. Lo-Melkhiin was not always a cruel ruler. Something went wrong.

Far away, in their village, her sister is mourning. Through her pain, she calls upon the desert winds, conjuring a subtle unseen magic, and something besides death stirs the air.

Back at the palace, the words she speaks to Lo-Melkhiin every night are given a strange life of their own. Little things, at first: a dress from home, a vision of her sister. With each tale she spins, her power grows. Soon she dreams of bigger, more terrible magic: power enough to save a king, if she can put an end to the rule of a monster.

It. Sounds. Awesome. Right?

What're you waiting on? 

Review: The Wicked Will Rise

The Wicked Will Rise
Author: Danielle Paige
Publication Date: May 7th 20105
Publisher: Harper Collins
~A copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review~ 

In this dark, high-octane sequel to the New York Times bestselling Dorothy Must Die, Amy Gumm must do everything in her power to kill Dorothy and free Oz.

To make Oz a free land again, Amy Gumm was given a mission: remove the Tin Woodman’s heart, steal the Scarecrow’s brain, take the Lion’s courage, and then Dorothy must die....

But Dorothy still lives. Now the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked has vanished, and mysterious Princess Ozma might be Amy’s only ally. As Amy learns the truth about her mission, she realizes that she’s only just scratched the surface of Oz’s past—and that Kansas, the home she couldn't wait to leave behind, may also be in danger. In a place where the line between good and evil shifts with just a strong gust of wind, who can Amy trust—and who is really Wicked?

I read Dorothy Must Die last year, and it fell flat for me. Maybe that was because of high expectations or the lack of learning the plot considering what you learn from the whole 452 pages was mostly on the back of the book. But, I did love how twisted Oz had become (or should I say, more twisted?) and it felt more of a companion to The Wizard of Oz in the vein of Splintered, which was the best part of the book. Going into The Wicked Will Rise, I lowered my expectations and I ignored the synopsis and the mission taglines on the back, and you know what? I liked it so much better for it. The Wicked Will Rise was everything I wanted Dorothy Must Die to be, badass, twisted, character development and originality in a world we already know. In short, The Wicked Will Rise brought it's A Game.

Review: The Lie Tree

The Lie Tree
Author: Frances Hardinge
Publication Date: May 7th 2015
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
~A copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review~ 

The leaves were cold and slightly clammy. There was no mistaking them. She had seen their likeness painstakingly sketched in her father's journal. This was his greatest secret, his treasure and his undoing. The Tree of Lies. Now it was hers, and the journey he had never finished stretched out before her.

When Faith's father is found dead under mysterious circumstances, she is determined to untangle the truth from the lies. Searching through his belongings for clues she discovers a strange tree. A tree that feeds off whispered lies and bears fruit that reveals hidden secrets. The bigger the lie, and the more people who believe it, the bigger the truth that is uncovered.

But as Faith's untruths spread like wildfire across her small island community, she discovers that sometimes a single lie is more potent than any truth.

A beguiling tale of mystery and intrigue from the award-winning author of Fly By Night and Cuckoo Song

There are two words to describe The Lie Tree. Masterfully and Done. I don't say that lightly. What I loved about Cuckoo Song was how vivid the writing was, and how it was skilfully created, and even though the plot and pacing was slow, it's pay's off when subtle connections are made. The Lie Tree is no exception. It is completely different than Cuckoo Song, but at its core, the writing, the descriptions, the lyrical feel and flow, is exactly the same and it's brilliant.

Waiting on Wednesday (#92)

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases.

Truthwitch  by Susan Dennard

Expected publication: January 5th 2016 by Tor Teen

On a continent ruled by three empires, some are born with a “witchery”, a magical skill that sets them apart from others.

In the Witchlands, there are almost as many types of magic as there are ways to get in trouble—as two desperate young women know all too well.

Safiya is a Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lie. It’s a powerful magic that many would kill to have on their side, especially amongst the nobility to which Safi was born. So Safi must keep her gift hidden, lest she be used as a pawn in the struggle between empires.

Iseult, a Threadwitch, can see the invisible ties that bind and entangle the lives around her—but she cannot see the bonds that touch her own heart. Her unlikely friendship with Safi has taken her from life as an outcast into one of reckless adventure, where she is a cool, wary balance to Safi’s hotheaded impulsiveness.

Safi and Iseult just want to be free to live their own lives, but war is coming to the Witchlands. With the help of the cunning Prince Merik (a Windwitch and ship’s captain) and the hindrance of a Bloodwitch bent on revenge, the friends must fight emperors, princes, and mercenaries alike, who will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch

January! JANUARY?!


What're you waiting on?

Release Day Blitz: Omega City

  

Coming this April 28th, Diana’s first book for readers eight and up is a thrilling adventure story, perfect for people who like their books with a side of rocketships and hidden treasure. Find out what secrets are hidden beneath the Maryland countryside in…

Omega City

Gillian Seagret doesn’t listen to people who say her father’s a crackpot. His conspiracy theories about the lost technology of Cold War-era rocket scientist Dr. Aloysius Underberg may have cost him his job and forced the family to move to a cottage in the sticks, but Gillian knows he’s right, and plans to prove it. When she discovers a missing page from Dr. Unerberg’s diary in her father’s mess of an office, she thinks she’s found a big piece of the puzzle–a space-themed riddle promising to lead to Dr. Underberg’s greatest invention. Enlisting the help of her skeptical younger brother, Eric, her best friend, Savannah, and Howard, their NASA-obsessed schoolmate, Gillian sets off into the ruins of a vast doomsday bunker, deep within the earth. But they aren’t alone inside its dark and flooded halls. Now Gillian and her friends must race to explore OMEGA CITY and find the answers they need. For while Gillian wants to save her dad’s reputation by bringing Dr. Underberg’s secrets to light, there are others who will stop at nothing to make sure they stay buried…forever.

 

GoodReads | IndieBound | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple iBooks

Find Me Tag

Christy and Erica @ Novel Ink created their own tag! As you can see, it's called the Find Me Tag, and it's awesome (just saying.)

• There are 10 categories and you have to find one book in each category!
• You can either list the titles of the book, or the pictures, really whatever you want to do, it’s totally up to you!
• You can also tag as many people as you want, but those who are tagged are not obligated to do it!
• Link back to Novel Ink. 

Let the fun begin!