Waiting on Wednesday (13)

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It features upcoming releases we can't wait to get our hands on.

This week's pick is...

Clarity

Kim Harrington

Coming March 1, 2011 - Preorder it below

Indiebound | BN | Amazon | Borders

From Goodreads:

When you can see things others can't, where do you look for the truth?

Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.

And a curse.

When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case - but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother - who has supernatural gifts of his own - becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?

My thoughts:

I have to be honest and say that what drew me to this book was its cover. It's beautiful! It also reminds me a little of The Body Finder - really just a contemporary story with a few paranormal elements thrown in and lots of mystery. (And I don't mean to imply I think this novel will be unoriginal. Besides, I loved The Body Finder, so bring on the paranormal murder mysteries!)

Timeless by Alexandra Monir

Timeless
Alexandra Monir
Publisher: Delacourte
Released: January 11, 2011
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 288
Source: Cavalier House Books
Series: Book 1 of Timeless

When tragedy strikes Michele Windsor's world, she is forced to uproot her life and move across the country to New York City, to live with the wealthy, aristocratic grandparents she's never met. In their old Fifth Avenue mansion filled with a century's worth of family secrets, Michele discovers a diary that hurtles her back in time to the year 1910. There, in the midst of the glamorous Gilded Age, Michele meets the young man with striking blue eyes who has haunted her dreams all her life - a man she always wished was real, but never imagined could actually exist. And she finds herself falling for him, into an otherworldly, time-crossed romance.

Michele is soon leading a double life, struggling to balance her contemporary high school world with her escapes into the past. But when she stumbles upon a terrible discovery, she is propelled on a race through history to save the boy she loves - a quest that will determine the fate of both of their lives.

Man, I loved this book. I always forget how much I love historical fiction, and then I pick something up like Timeless, and I'm completely swept away. I don't have much experience with time travel in literature, but I think the author did an incredible job of focusing on the story instead of the science. Too often authors can get themselves in trouble with too many details and confusing technicalities. This was not the case with Alexandra Monir's fantastic debut.

Michele has been haunted by dreams of a mysterious man for as long as she can remember. She doesn't know his name or who he is, but she knows his face and his voice. When she's forced to move across the country to live with her estranged grandparents, the last thing on Michelle's mind is her mystery man. That is until she finds herself thrown back 100 years into history and she comes face to face with him.

Monir's descriptions of 1910 New York bring the city to life - all the hustle and bustle, fancy ball dresses and tuxedos - I could really see it. Good historical fiction makes me want to be in that time period, and Timeless had me searching for keys and old diaries in hopes of hurtling myself back in time. Michele's voice was an authentic one, in that I empathized with her from the start. The loss of her mother, the frustrations that came with being in a strange place with distant people, running into the man from her actual dreams - all these things made me root for Michele and a solution to her problems.

Overall, I was invested in the characters, and I loved the setting. My one criticism is I could have used a little more Philip. He was pretty dreamy. Lucky for me (and you), I think he'll be around in book two ;)

Get your flu shot...

or smack yourself in the head like I've been doing all week when you catch it. But I guess that's what happens when you actually catch up on reviews, have some posts scheduled, and have a little time to breathe. Fate intervenes and hands you the flu. Pity party over. Good news for you is that while I was home from work, in bed, and unable to move I read. I read a lot. And I read some pretty fantastic books for future reviews. You see, I hit the review pile and I hit it hard. Sadly, my reviews won't be up for a while due to future release dates, BUT lucky for you I'm posting some sneak peaks to tide you over. I was blown away by these novels, and frankly I can't be waiting around for publication dates to share them with you. You're welcome ;)

Strings Attached
Judy Blundell
March 1
This book was deliciously dirty - full of mobsters, schemes, and nightclubs all in 1950 New York City. I loved the way the city came to life, and the spunk Kit brought to it. I stayed up way too late finishing this mysterious read, unable to wait until morning for the ending.


Jersey Tomatoes Are the Best
Maria Padian
March 8
I love this book I love this book I love this book! Henry and Eva are the sweetest of friends, and their story is the sweetest of friendships. How lucky are we who have friends to look out for us and take care of us even when we don't realize we need it?


Like Mandarin
Kirsten Hubbard
March 8
Haven't we all wanted to be like someone? Grace longs to be someone, somewhere outside of Washokey, Wyoming. So much that she can feel it in her bones, and I could feel it in mine while reading. Kirsten is so incredibly thoughtful and inspiring on her blog it's really no wonder she can create a novel with the same characteristics.


Between Shades of Gray
Ruta Sepetys
March 22
I don't know what was more heartbreaking - the story or the fact that this part of history is so widely unknown. I studied WWII on a university level and had no idea any of this happened. Read this book. Tell others to read this book. As Elie Wiesel said in his Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, "...I have tried to keep memory alive . . . I have tried to fight those who would forget. Because if we forget, we are guilty, we are accomplices."


Wither
Lauren DeStefano
March 22
Holy dystopia! Just when you think you've read it all, another fabulous addition to the genre comes out. The world Lauren created was brilliant - and all with the main character trapped on a single floor of a mansion for the majority of the novel! Bring on the rest of the trilogy!


Hourglass
Myra McEntire
May 24
This debut is as stunning as its cover. The story found inside is built like a Southern woman - full of class and charm, attitude and strength - something its author knows all about. I will bet this blog when this book comes out, sparks will fly.

In My Bag (27)

In My Bag is my version of the weekly meme, In My Mailbox. IMM was started by Kristi over at The Story Siren, and it explores the contents of my mailbox or shopping bag on a weekly basis.

These are actually from a few weeks ago, but I forgot about posting them until now.

For review:

 The Darlings Are Forever by Melissa Kantor

Red Moon Rising by Peter Moore

(review request accepted - big thanks goes out to Deborah at Disney!!)

Bought:

Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli

Crank by Ellen Hopkins

No Small Thing by Natalie Ghent

Fall for Anything by Courtney Summers

The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan

Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas

 Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

I went on a mini shopping spree at Cavalier House Books, and I went to a library book sale with my mom where I picked up Milkweed, Crank, and No Small Thing for only $1. What'd you guys get this week?

Forgotten Friday (2)

Forgotten Friday is something new here at bookmarked! After researching other memes, I discovered there really weren't any that featured the books we've always wanted to read but keep forgetting about. This is an idea I've had floating around for a while because I am notorious for wanting to read old releases and getting side tracked by the new books constantly coming out.

This week's featured book is . . .

Stargirl

Jerry Spinelli

first published August 2000

I read several of Jerry Spinelli's books when I was a kid including Wringer, Maniac Magee, and Library Card, but I never got around to Stargirl. I probably would have had a happier adolescence if I had. A story of individuality and quirkiness, I wish I hadn't waited so long to read it, but I know I'll enjoy it more when I finally do. What book(s) do you think you've missed out on?

If you'd like to join the fun and share your Forgotten Friday post, please include your name and link below!

Waiting on Wednesday (12)

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It features upcoming releases we can't wait to get our hands on.

This week's pick is...

Exposed

Kimberly Marcus

Coming February 22, 2011 - Preorder it below

Indiebound | BN | Amazon | Borders

From Goodreads:

Sixteen-year-old Liz Grayson is photogirl - sharp, focused and ready to take the world by storm with her camera. But Liz's entire life is called into question when her brother is accused of a crime - and the accuser is Liz's own best friend. As the aftershocks from that accusation rip through Liz's world, everything she thought she knew about photography, family, friendship and herself shifts out of focus. And for the first time in her life, Liz finds herself unable to trust her own point of view. Told in stunning, searingly raw free verse, Exposed is Kimberly Marcus's gut-wrenching, riveting debut and will appeal to fans of Ellen Hopkins, Laurie Halse Anderson, and Virginia Euwer Wolff.

My thoughts:

This is another debut I'm really excited about! It sounds very mysterious - I'm very curious to know what it is her brother's being accused of... I'm also thrilled about the format. I've really come to love novels written in verse, so I'm really looking forward to this one.

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Across the Universe
Beth Revis
Publisher: Razorbill
Released: January 11, 2011
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 398
Source: Cavalier House Books
Series: Book 1 of Across the Universe

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone - one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship - tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

I received this review copy back in October, and ever since it's just been sitting around taunting me. You see, I've been afraid of it. I am not a fan of science fiction, and to me, AtU seemed like hardcore sci-fi - spaceships, distant future, new Earth, frozen people - definitely more than I could handle. And then the reviews started pouring in, really good ones. And then people were naming it their favorite book ever, people whose opinions I trust. And then I read somewhere that it was "science fiction for teens who don't like science fiction", and I thought maybe that could apply to me. And then I still put it off and read two other January releases before this one, and the next thing I knew I had five days before its release to read it.

Someone please tell me I will someday learn.

BECAUSE THIS BOOK WAS SO FREXING AWESOME AND IF I'D ONLY LISTENED TO EVERYBODY I WOULD HAVE EXPERIENCED THE AWESOME SO MUCH SOONER AND I WOULD HAVE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERED DRIVING OVER 700 MILES TO NORTH CAROLINA FOR THE RELEASE PARTY SO THAT I COULD BE SURROUNDED BY THE AWESOME THAT IS BETH REVIS AND STALK ADORE HER IN A COMPLETELY NON-SCARY WAY!!!

You know, I really tried to suppress the crazy, but this book is just too good.

The first chapter is a marathon in that it is an intense, heart-racing account of Amy's last moments on Earth. The reader is then thrown into Elder's world on the Godspeed, the ship traveling to new Earth. The chapters alternate between Amy and Elder throughout this novel, giving the reader ample knowledge of both characters' personalities and worlds so that there is no trouble empathizing with both.

Beth's world building is brilliant - so much so I could see the Godspeed in all its glory. I can't think of any other YA writer whose descriptions are as vivid as those of Beth. (Suzanne Collins, maybe?) The plot and character development are also stunning - again, there are few writers I can think of who deliver such an incredible package. This story is one people dream of dreaming up in that it is one of the most original and spellbinding I've ever heard. And the strong characterization doesn't stop at Amy and Elder: Harley, Doc, and even Eldest are also well fleshed out and integral to the story.

This book was unputdownable from start to finish. It was suspenseful and mysterious, and it kept me on my toes. There were a few clues along the way I was able to pick out, so I had a few theories in mind about halfway though. Some things I guessed correctly, while others nearly knocked me out of my chair. I can't wait to go back through and find all the clues I missed. The ending was satisfying enough, but I'm definitely anticipating book two's release sometime next year.

My only regret when it comes to this novel is that I wasn't outside reading it under the stars.