Waiting on Wednesday (48)--Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

Release Date: July 20, 2010 from Scholastic

Synopsis:

In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other. Now, in Linger, they must fight to be together. For Grace, this means defying her parents and keeping a very dangerous secret about her own well-being. For Sam, this means grappling with his werewolf past . . . and figuring out a way to survive into the future. Add into the mix a new wolf named Cole, whose own past has the potential to destroy the whole pack. And Isabelle, who already lost her brother to the wolves . . . and is nonetheless drawn to Cole.

At turns harrowing and euphoric, Linger is a spellbinding love story that explores both sides of love -- the light and the dark, the warm and the cold -- in a way you will never forget.

I reviewed Shiver last night, so I thought that Linger was the obvious choice for today's Waiting on Wednesday. I can't wait for this book. It looks awesome and I know it'll be a fantastic read. I also love, love, love the cover. The color scheme is brilliant. Unfortunately, July is a long, long way away. Luckily I have Stiefvater's other two books Lament and Ballad to keep me occupied for awhile.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Release Date: Available Now from Scholastic




Source: Personal Copy



Synopsis:



For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf--her wolf--is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human . . . until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human--or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

Brilliant!! I wasn't sure that this book would live up to the hype for me. I heard lots of things both glowing reviews and sorta meh reviews, so I didn't quite know where I would fall within that spectrum. I needn't have worried; Maggie Stiefvater has delivered a beautiful and moving love story that could capture anyone's heart.

I know, I know, the werewolf thing has been done, but Stiefvater truly did put a unique spin on it and the characters are so amazing, that creature of choice really was besides the point. I enjoyed hanging out with Grace and Sam. I loved watching them discover each other and become integral parts of one anothers' worlds.

Stiefvater's writing is just amazing. She created this amazing winter-filled world that was so comfortable, that I just wanted to hang out in its pages indefinitely. She created magic out of the ordinary, so much so, that it seemed completely normal that werewolves would be wandering the woods of Minnesota. In fact, I'd be amazed at this point to travel up there and not see some werewolves.

I cannot, I repeat cannot wait for Linger. I am oh so excited to find out what happens next. I wasn't ready to leave Grace and Sam, not to mention the rest of the interesting cast of characters. The sooner I can get back to the woods, the better.

Forgive my fangirly gushing, but Shiver really was as good as everyone said. I can't help but gush.

Holiday Break Reading Challenge Wrap Up

So, I didn't post many reviews for the books I read over Holiday Break, but I did read a crapload of books. It was nice to catch up on some titles I've been wanting to read. Not that I don't love reading books for review, but sometimes it means I have to set those other must reads aside for a later time. It was nice to do some no pressure reading.

Here's what I read:

By The Time You Read This, I'll Be Dead by Julie Anne Peters
Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers
Get Well Soon by Julie Halpern
Rampant by Diana Peterfreund
Firespell by Chloe Neill
Devil's Kiss by Sarwat Chadda
Numbers by Rachel Ward
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore
Dream Girl by Lauren Mechling
Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon and Dean Hale


I'm also halfway through Dream Life by Lauren Mechling now.

11 books in 16 days. Not bad. My eyes are most definitely burning though. I actually loved all of these books, too. I couldn't have asked for a better line up.

So thank you Karin the Librarian for hosting the challenge and for making my Holiday Break reading and fun filled.

In My Mailbox (43)--Or Nothing Actually In My Mailbox

So nothing in the mail this week...well, except for Glee: The Road to Sectionals, which is awesome!! I did however buy a bunch of books the list of which is forthcoming.

Purchased:

By The Time You Read This, I'll Be Dead by Julie Anne Peters
Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers
Get Well Soon by Julie Halpern
Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves
My Soul To Save by Rachel Vincent
Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern
The King's Rose by Alisa M. Libby
A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck

So that's it. A lot of books purchased, but none in the mail.

As always, In My Mailbox is brought to you by Krisi, AKA The Story Siren.

Raiders' Ransom by Emily Diamand

Release Date: Available Now from Chicken House

Source: Personal Collection

Synopsis:

It's the 22nd century and, because of climate change, much of England is underwater. Poor Lilly is out fishing with her trusty sea-cat when greedy raiders pillage the town--and kidnap the prime minister's daughter. Her village blamed, Lilly decides to find the girl. Off she sails, in secret. And with a ransom: a mysterious talking jewel. "If I save his daughter," Lilly reasons, "the prime minister's sure to reward me." Little does Lilly know that it will take more than grit to outwit the tricky, treacherous piratical tribes!

This is such a fantastic book. It has it all, action, adventure, a post-apocalyptic society. Yay!! I love the setting which is an England almost completely underwater. The Scottish are the only ones who still embrace and treasure technology, while everyone else has warded it off as evil. There are pirates and raids and spies. Oooo...so good!

Lilly is from a small fishing village and has only her sea-cat to rely on to survive not only the seas, but also those rocky paths that life is sending her on. Lilly is an incredibly heroic little girl who's trying to save her village and her friends in any way she knows how.

Although the book takes place well into the future, the storyline and characterizations give it the feel of an old swashbuckling adventure story. At times it's easy to forget that the characters ships are sailing over the ruins of England. Luckily, Diamand finds a way to keep that timeless feel, while still reminding us of the lost civilization beneath the sea. She seamlessly incorporates the culture that has sworn of tech, with the hidden wonders of technology left in Lilly's world. It's a great juxtaposition that kept me craving more.

This is an incredible first book. It's categorized for younger or at least MG readers, but I think anyone would enjoy it. With the popularity of dystopias and post-apocalyptic fiction, this is one not to be missed. Zeph, Lexy, and Lilly are great fun to follow through their trials and tribulations and I can't wait to see what happens to them next.

Diamand's second book, Flood and Fire, comes out in the UK on March 1st. I don't know when the US release date is, but I will most likely be ordering it from AmazonUK as I just can't wait. Another winning title from Scholastic's Chicken House.

Other 2009 Faves!!

So, since I posted my earlier faves of 2009, all these other awesome books keep popping into my brain. Here's the follow up for others that I love and that rocked my world.



The Hate List by Jennifer Brown



The Stolen One by Suzanne Crowley



Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins



Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey



Zombie Queen of Newbury High by Amanda Ashby



Molly Fyde and the Parsona Rescue by Hugh Howey

There...I think that'll do it, although I still feel like I'm leaving some out. See what I mean about loving most things I read?! It's a problem.

Carrie's 2009 Top Books

These are in no particular order and it's actually really hard to choose just a few, because I tend to love most things that I read. I'll give it a try though.



Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl



Ballads of Suburbia by Stephenie Kuehnert



The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan



Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta



Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater



Numbers by Rachel Ward



Devil's Kiss by Sarwat Chadda



The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima



Academy 7 by Anne Osterlund

A couple of these I just read this last week and Rampant would totally be on this list, but I haven't finised it yet. There were so many more books I loved, but these are the stand outs. I think 2010 is going to be an even more excellent year in YA and I for one can't wait!!