Waiting on Wednesday #46

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

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Summary via Goodreads:
“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

From Maggie Stiefvater, the bestselling and acclaimed author of the Shiver trilogy and The Scorpio Races, comes a spellbinding new series where the inevitability of death and the nature of love lead us to a place we’ve never been before.

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Why am I looking forward to The Raven Boys? Well, to start, there's the fact that it's written by Maggie Stiefvater--whose books I really enjoy--and the fact that the plot sounds pretty darn amazing. (But what can I say? I'm a sucker for romance.)

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater is published by Scholastic Press, a part of Scholastic Inc., and its expected publication date is September 18, 2012. 

So, what are you waiting on this week? 
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Waiting On Wednesday (25)

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

Perception by Kim Harrington

Summary via Goodreads:
When you can see things others can't, what do you do when someone's watching you?

Everybody knows about Clarity "Clare" Fern. She's the psychic girl in school, the one who can place her hands on something and see hidden visions from the past.

Only Clare would rather not be a celebrity. She prefers hanging back, observing. Her gift is not a game to her.

But then someone starts playing with her head . . . and heart. Messages and gifts from a secret admirer crop up everywhere Clare turns. Could they be from Gabriel, the gorgeous boy who gets Clare's pulse racing? Or from Justin, Clare's hopeful ex-boyfriend who'd do anything to win her back?

One thing is certain. Clare needs to solve this mystery, and soon. Because the messages are becoming sinister, and a girl in town has suddenly disappeared.

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Why am I waiting on Perception? Because I absolutely loved Clarity! And on the off chance that you haven't read Clarity just yet, I'd say that it's definitely a book to check out!


Perception by Kim Harrington is published by Scholastic Point, a part of Scholastic Inc, and its expected publication date is March 1, 2012.


So, what are you waiting on this week? :)

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Beauty Queens
Author: Libba Bray
Publisher: Scholastic Press (an imprint of Scholastic Inc.)
Release Date: May 24, 2011
Edition: ARC
* Picked up at ALA Midwinter.

Summary from Goodreads:
From bestselling, Printz Award-winning author Libba Bray, the story of a plane of beauty pageant contestants that crashes on a desert island.
Teen beauty queens. A "Lost"-like island. Mysteries and dangers. No access to email. And the spirit of fierce, feral competition that lives underground in girls, a savage brutality that can only be revealed by a journey into the heart of non-exfoliated darkness. Oh, the horror, the horror! Only funnier. With evening gowns. And a body count.

My Thoughts: 


It'll take a lot more than pageant skills for our beauty queens to survive on the deserted island that they crashed on. And yes, I just gave you a summary in a sentence. In Beauty Queens, our girls will face pirates, a dictator, snakes, and exploding jars of 'Stache Off; but more importantly, they'll learn to accept themselves for who they are--and as such, will also learn to accept one another. Seriously though, I'm afraid that this is going to be a short review simply because if I get into characters, I'd be giving away bits of what makes Beauty Queens so much fun to read. I really did adore Shanti though--and not just because she's Miss California. She starts off as a highly competitive person, someone who definitely does not intend to make friends and well, like all of the girls, she'll change for the better. I also adored Petra, but I'm afraid that anything that I say about her would indeed fall under the category of "spoiler." If you've read Beauty Queens then you know what I mean. Wait, maybe I shouldn't say that they all change for the better, because that's not exactly true--although they're definitely happier than they were at the beginning of Beauty Queens. 


There's drama, romance, and adventure in Beauty Queens as it's much more than just being stuck on the island and well, yes, it's a satire. I had to laugh when I read the bit about a certain song called "Let Me Shave Your Legs Tonight, Girl." Yes, it's funny at times too--also, I think they'd win for "most unique way to catch and remove scales from fish." To say the least, it's highly inventive.

There is no single narrator for Beauty Queens as it's written in third person and jumps from girl to girl. There's also some "commercial breaks" and chapters that are "classified" due to the information/location/plans being hatched within them. Beauty Queens hits on a ton of issues that teenaged girls can face when it comes to looks, sexuality, etc. and because of that, I would highly recommend this. If there was one thing that I thought you should take away from reading Beauty Queens, it would be to embrace yourself--at least, that's what I took away from it.


Overall Rating: ★★★★★

Strings Attached by Judy Blundell

Strings Attached
Author: Judy Blundell
Publisher: Scholastic Press (an imprint of Scholastic Inc.)
Release Date: March 1, 2011
Edition: ARC
* Picked up from ALA Midwinter.

Summary from GoodReads:
When Kit Corrigan arrives in New York City, she doesn't have much. She's fled from her family in Providence, Rhode Island, and she's broken off her tempestuous relationship with a boy named Billy, who's enlisted in the army.

The city doesn't exactly welcome her with open arms. She gets a bit part as a chorus girl in a Broadway show, but she knows that's not going to last very long. She needs help--and then it comes, from an unexpected source.

Nate Benedict is Billy's father. He's also a lawyer involved in the mob. He makes Kit a deal--he'll give her an apartment and introduce her to a new crowd. All she has to do is keep him informed about Billy . . . and maybe do him a favor every now and then.

My Thoughts:

Never make deals with the devil. Someone should have told Kit Corrigan this when Nate (Billy's father) offers her an apartment. There's one small catch though, if she wants the apartment, she'll have to get back in contact with Billy and do a couple small favors for Nate. Having lived on someone's couch up until this point, Kit jumps on the offer. However, things don't go nearly as smoothly as she'd like. 


Set in 1950, seventeen year old Kit Corrigan works as a chorus girl in a Broadway show that's so tiny that well, she's barely clinging onto her dream and she's pretty much a nobody in New York. When Nate re-enters her life, suddenly she becomes a somebody. She gets a job as a Lido girl (working at a nightclub and dancing), has her own apartment, and gets a brand new wardrobe. Finally, Billy comes back on leave and feelings inevitably resurface. 

I'm really not sure how much I can say without giving some rather serious spoilers--which I'm trying not to do. Kit's life takes a series of twists and turns; but more importantly, she doesn't understand how close her family was/is to the Benedicts. I will say that Kit does end up doing some serious growing up within Strings Attached and that the romance--to me--felt like a sub-plot. Well, Kit's romance anyways. 


With that said, if the plot intrigues you or you happen to like novels set during the 1950's, I'd recommend you give this book a go. Admittedly the cover doesn't scream 1950's to me although the black dress that she wears on the cover is symbolic and well, mentioned in the book. Kit isn't precisely the most dynamic character I've ever read about, but the normality is a nice change--every now and again. I know, I know, I should be mentioning--vaguely--the ending as well. Pretty much all that I can and will tell you is that it does wrap things up nicely. 


Overall Rating: ★★★ and a half.

Clarity by Kim Harrington

Clarity
Author: Kim Harrington
Publisher: Point (an imprint of Scholastic Inc.)
Release Date: March 1, 2011
Edition: ARC
* Picked up at ALA Midwinter.

Summary from GoodReads:
When you can see things others can't, where do you look for the truth?
This paranormal murder mystery will have teens reading on the edge of their seats.
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:

The murder of a teenage girl at King's Courtyard is big news in the town of Eastport and when Clare is called upon to help out with the investigation by her ex-boyfriend Justin (the mayor's son), she couldn't imagine just how involved she would end up being.

I loved the "voice" that Kim Harrington gave Clare; it made everything easy to read and had me chuckling quietly to myself --in particular when Clare reveals how Perry (her brother) got his scar. Asides from this, I think my favorite minor character had to be Madame Maslov, the new mystic in town who, apparently, can see into the future. Although her role was minor, it could be argued that her role was terribly important and I'm secretly hoping to see her again in Perception (book two, which should come out in March of 2012).

And then, there are the boys. First off, we have Perry, Clare's brother, who is quite popular amongst the ladies and a suspect in the murder case. He starts off strong, gets a bit weak in the middle of Clarity and then finishes off rather nicely. Then there's Justin Spellman, the mayor's son. He's Clarity's ex-boyfriend and someone that she's not terribly keen to be around after a certain incident. More importantly, he still has feelings for Clare and perhaps, she has some for him as well. Lastly, there's Gabriel Toscano who has recently moved to Eastport from New York with his father, the town's new detective. He's a skeptic and Clare can't help but find him interesting. On top of this, he has a rather interesting tattoo--not for its design, but for what it says. My personal pick for Clare? I'm rooting for Justin because he does seem genuinely sorry and well, he seems like a really sweet guy!

Although the supernatural/paranormal elements help push the story along, the mystery of the murder is what really propels the story along. I won't tell you who the murderer is, although I will say that the person responsible for the murder would not have been my first guess--nor my second. With that said, I'd definitely recommend Clarity to you if you like mysteries with a paranormal flair!

Overall Rating: ★★★★