Waiting on Wednesday #54

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

The Archived by Victoria Schwab

Summary via Goodreads:
Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.

Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive.

Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often-violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive.

Being a Keeper isn't just dangerous—it's a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da's death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberately altering Histories, erasing essential chapters. Unless Mac can piece together what remains, the Archive itself might crumble and fall.

In this haunting, richly imagined novel, Victoria Schwab reveals the thin lines between past and present, love and pain, trust and deceit, unbearable loss and hard-won redemption.

-----

Why am I waiting on The Archived? Because look at that plot and that cover! But if I'm being completely honest, I mean that I'm waiting to buy a finished copy. As in, I've recently read an ARC and honestly? I freaking loved it. It's one of those books that is really lingering in my mind and thank goodness it's not a standalone! If you use NetGalley, you might want to check out the hundred page sampler of The Archived that they have up (as a Read Now file). 

The Archived by Victoria Schwab is published by Hyperion and its expected publication date is January 22, 2013. 

So, what are you waiting on this week? 
.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Without going into too much depth, I'll tell you that Code Name Verity is about two girls brought together by a war and tossed into a Nazi controlled France. The Gestapo have Verity, also known as Queenie or Julie, and she knows that she's not making it out of her situation. On the other hand, there's Maddie--who Queenie believes was killed bringing her into France--who--without a plane--is stuck in the same country as Queenie and more than anything, she wants to help her friend.

Code Name Verity is a book told in two parts; initially you meet Verity, who is being held by the Gestapo and she's being forced to reveal everything. But when you reach the second half, you'll see things from Maddie's point of view--the pilot who brought Verity to her assignment. For the record, they're both good friends and that definitely went a long way towards making Code Name Verity fun to read. Having said that, I will admit that the level of detail and back story in Code Name Verity was difficult for me to deal with--although I understand why it was done. It really made the book feel like it was longer than it actually was and at times, that meant that I had to set it down and come back to it--for the sake of being able to read all of it.

However, if you can get past that, the writing style is definitely fun to read and it's what kept me interested in Code Name Verity. Well, that and the fact that I really loved Verity as a character--I wish I could tell you why that was, but telling you would mean some serious spoilers! Maddie on the other hand, I didn't love at first; she seemed to spend a lot of time crying although, asides from that, she definitely wasn't a weak character--just one that didn't care to be shot at or have to do any shooting. To be fair to her, she was a civilian and I don't think being tossed into that sort of situation would be easy on anyone. Maddie does definitely come into her own and again, I can't say anymore than that because of spoilers! There are other characters present and you'll definitely see a great deal of them in Code Name Verity, but I honestly can't say that I took an interest in any of them in particular and as such, feel that it'd be best if you read about them on your own.

As for the plot itself, I definitely didn't expect some of it! I loved how inventive Verity was and how she could completely embody a role when she was given one. So if you like girl spies and pilots as well as World War II, then I'd recommend that you look into picking up a copy of Code Name Verity! I honestly enjoyed it more than I thought that I would and in all, it was definitely an interesting read.

Overall Rating: ★★★★

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Publisher: Hyperion Books CH, a part of Disney Hyperion
Release Date: May 15, 2012
Edition: e-ARC
* Received for review via publisher and NetGalley.

Ditched by Robin Mellom

It's been eight months and thirteen days since Justina has kissed a boy and she fully intended to find out what sort of kisser Ian Clark is, until she finds herself ditched in a ditch the day after prom. Things, did not go according to plan.

Ditched begins the morning after prom as Justina finds herself in a ditch on Hollister Road and wanders into the nearby 7-Eleven. That, is where she'll ultimately reveal the details of the previous night to Gilda, the woman working at the 7-Eleven. Let's just say that Justina's dress has been through hell and each stain and rip tells of events throughout the night--also, I couldn't help but wince a bit when I thought about completely matching like that. Maybe that's just my personal nightmare, but I'm happy I wasn't coerced into a single shade like that for my prom.

Ditched by her date and very close friend, Ian, Justina can't help but feel terrible and it definitely shows. However, let's be honest here, he sounds like a great guy and whenever Justina would assume that he'd left her to be an ass... well, let's just say that I'd like to shake some sense into her. Justina is pretty hard headed throughout most of Ditched and I think this definitely affected my reading experience because she really doesn't want to believe that someone like Allyson Moore could want to help her or well, just be nice. That's not to say that Justina isn't nice, only that she doesn't seem to understand when (or why) certain people are trying to help her. After all, she befriends Serenity and Bliss--the girls that Mike and Mike bring to their prom. Oh! Did I mention that there's a three-legged Chihuahua named Chompers McGee? That's probably the cutest name for a tiny dog that likes to be toothy! 

If I'm honest, I wish that Ditched would've included the minor characters a bit more and that maybe we would've seen a bit past prom (although I can understand why it ended where it did). It wasn't that I didn't like the ending, but I just feel like it would've felt more complete--at least to me--if it had continued until graduation or something. Having said that, if you're up for a wild ride and ready to shake your head at some of Justina's antics, I'd recommend Ditched to you.

Overall Rating: ★★★ and a half.

Ditched by Robin Mellom

Publisher: Hyperion (Children's), a part of Disney-Hyperion. 

Release Date: January 10, 2012

Edition: e-ARC

* Received for review via publisher and NetGalley.

The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab

The Near Witch
Author: Victoria Schwab
Publisher: Hyperion (Children's)
Release Date: August 2, 2011
Edition: ARC
* Received for review from publisher.

When a stranger appears one night on the edge of town, Lexi can't help but be surprised. After all, Near is an incredibly small town and as such, strangers are practically unheard of. But to make matters worse, the following night the children from Near begin to disappear. Everyone believes that the stranger is responsible for their disappearance, except Lexi. Together, with the help of the stranger, she'll discover things about Near that seem to be more myth than fact.

I think it's going to be impossible for me to explain or capture just how gorgeously written The Near Witch is. The best two word phrase that I can use to describe it would be: hauntingly beautiful. Honestly, I could almost just summarize my review at that. As promised, it was part fairytale and part romance. In no way, shape, or form does the romance dominate or trample on the storyline--just in case you were worried about that. And the magic? It's definitely present, but it's subtle in a sneaky sort of way.

You've got Lexi, our main character, who goes hunting for answers in an effort to keep her younger sister, Wren, safe. The Council, which is hiding secrets from the townspeople. Cole, the boy with an extremely mysterious past. And of course, witches. Or perhaps more importantly, the Near Witch. The children's tale plays a very large part in The Near Witch and oh my goodness is the witch creepy!

If you like books with a fairytale feel to them, definitely read The Near Witch if you haven't already!

Overall Rating: ★★★★★

Mercy by Rebecca Lim

Mercy
Author: Rebecca Lim
Publisher: Hyperion Book CH
Release Date: May 17, 2011
Edition: ARC
* Picked up from ALA Midwinter.

Summary from GoodReads:
A fallen angel haunted by her past. Yearning for her immortal beloved. Forever searching for answers. Who will show her Mercy?

Mercy has lost herself. She can’t count how many times she’s “woken up” in a new body, and assumed a new life, only to move on again and again. During the day she survives in the human world on instinct and at night her dreams are haunted by him. Mercy’s heart would know him anywhere. But her memory refuses to cooperate.

But this time is different. When Mercy wakes up she meets Ryan, an eighteen year old reeling from the loss of his twin sister who was kidnapped two years ago. Everyone else has given up hope, but Ryan believes his sister is still alive. Using a power she doesn’t fully comprehend, Mercy realizes that Ryan is right. His sister is alive and together they can find her. For the first time since she can remember, Mercy has a purpose; she can help. So she doesn’t understand why the man in her dreams cautions her not to interfere. But as Ryan and Mercy come closer to solving the dark mystery of his sister’s disappearance, danger looms just one step behind.

Will Mercy be able to harness her true self and extraordinary power in time?

The first in a dazzling new series, Mercy masterfully weaves romance, mystery and the supernatural into a spell-binding tale.

My Thoughts: 

Mercy never stays in one place for very long--and by place, I mean body. She goes from body to body, fixing the lives of the girls she inhabits before moving on to the next. After a while, she can't even remember their names or what was wrong with their lives. All she knows is that she's not them and that she's been moving from body to body for as long as she can remember. Then there's Luc, who haunts her dreams, urging her onwards to find him. But for once, Luc has a bit of competition as this time Mercy comes across Ryan, a boy whose family has been torn apart by the disappearance of his sister, Lauren. His mother and father have finally come to terms with the fact that Lauren must be dead by now, but is she? 


At the beginning, I'll admit that I didn't really "get" that Mercy was a fallen angel and to be honest, it's never really mentioned straight out in Mercy--or maybe I'm just forgetting exactly where that was mentioned at. However, as things progress, you do get to learn a bit more about Mercy's past and it certainly is interesting. For the duration of Mercy, Mercy is Carmen Zappacosta, a girl from St. Joseph's Girls' School's choir (a soprano) taking part in a concert in Paradise (yes, that's the name of the city). Carmen's biggest problem--asides from self-confidence--is Tiffany, another soprano from her school who is a real pain and hates that Carmen can out-sing her. 


Singing is a terribly important thing in Mercy. Not quite as important as the case of the missing girls--for yes, another girl goes missing--but it plays a terribly large role none the less. On top of that, Ryan was pretty darn interesting (as he believes his sister is still alive while his parents do not) and I did think that it was cute that Mercy grew on him although not exactly tiny, adorable puppy cute. He's pretty much hellbent on either finding his sister alive or dead and well, Mercy intends to help him out. Luc is less than pleased about this, but as he only visits Mercy in her dreams, there's not much that he can do about it. And yes, Luc is literally the man of her dreams and the Eight are doing their best to keep the two apart. 


What else can I say? I love how things left off at the end, the plot flowed along nicely, and although it wasn't a huge shock, I was surprised to find out who had been kidnapping the girls (as well as why). It didn't particularly wow me, but it was a pleasant read. I'd recommend this to you if you're liking the sound of the plot or if you generally enjoy novels involving fallen angels. 


With that, I'll tell you that I'm looking forward to Exile, the next book in the series--and I'm not too sure exactly when it's coming out in the States, although I can tell you that it appears to be coming out in the UK on June 9th of this year. 


Overall Rating: ★★★★

Love, Inc. by Yvonne Collins and Sandy Rideout

Love, Inc.
Author: Yvonne Collins and Sandy Rideout
Publisher: Hyperion (Children's)
Release Date: January 4, 2011
Edition: ARC
* Picked up from ALA Midwinter.

Summary from GoodReads: Zahra, Kali, and Syd would never have met if their parents' marriages hadn't fallen apart. But when the three girls collide in group counseling, they discover they have something else in common: they've each been triple-timed by the same nefarious charmer, Eric, aka Rico, aka Rick. Talk about eye-opening therapy.Cheerful, diplomatic Zahra is devastated. Rico had been her rock and sole confidant. How could she have missed the signs? Folksy, flirtatious Kali feels almost as bad. She and Rick had only been on a few dates, but they'd felt so promising. Hardened vintage-vixen Syd is beyond tears. She and Eric had real history... Or so she'd thought. Now all three girls have one mission: to show that cheater the folly of his ways.
Project Payback is such a success, the girls soon have clients lining up for their consulting services. Is your boyfriend acting shady? Dying to know if your crush is into you? Need match-making expertise? Look no further than Love, Inc.


My Thoughts:
Zahara Ahmed-MacDuff's parents are separated and Rico has been the one thing--well, guy--holding her together. When she's sentenced to do group therapy with other teens that are in her situation (parents divorced or separated), she meets Kali and Syd, two girls who share one thing in common with Zahara--Rico who is also known as Rick although his real name is Eric. Yes, he's been playing all three of them along and once they find out, they decide to get revenge. Although originally intended to just teach Eric a lesson, they decide to make a business out of it. Want to know if your boyfriend or girlfriend has been cheating on you? Need someone to negotiate a break-up? Look no further than Love, Inc. However, the real question is whether or not the girls will be able to move on after the whole Rico/Rick/Eric fiasco.

I love that Zahara is a baker and dreams of having her own television show--she's already planned to entitle it as "The Sweet Tooth"--and that both Kali and Syd are also very unique characters. More importantly, if it hadn't been for group therapy, they wouldn't have met and thus wouldn't have become such an amazing trio. I think that my favorite part about Love, Inc. would have to be not knowing who Zahara would end up with until--roughly--the last fifth of the book. Was it going to be Andrew? Riaz? Brody? The book really builds and in my opinion, everything that was mentioned in the book as well as the minor characters played an important role in bringing the storyline together. Although I will force myself to admit that I didn't care too much for Riaz and that I felt that Andrew's reaction was a little strong. I won't tell you more than that though as it could be considered spoilers--and well, you know how I feel about those. However, I really did enjoy reading Love, Inc. and if you're looking for a light read, this might be it.


Overall Rating: ★★★★