Zero by Tom Leeven

 For aspiring artist Amanda Walsh, who only half-jokingly goes by the nickname Zero, the summer before college was supposed to be fun—plain and simple. Hanging out with her best friend Jenn, going to clubs, painting, and counting down the days until her escape. But when must-have scholarship money doesn't materialize, and she has a falling out with Jenn that can only be described as majorly awkward, and Zero's parents relationship goes from tense to relentless fighting, her prospects start looking as bleak and surreal as a painting by her idol Salvador Dali. Will life truly imitate art? Will her new, unexpected relationship with a punk skater boy who seems too good to be real and support from the unlikeliest of sources show Zero that she's so much more than a name.

I'm not much of an artist myself. I like art, and the yearly trips to the musems in elementary school didn't bother me much, but I haven't been much of an artiste. I left that to my sister.

So I found this ARC on NetGalley. I had read Tom Leeven's first book Party about a year ago. Both books dealt with the artisty, gritty scene of Los Angeles and the surrounding area. And what did I think?

I'm still unsure, and I finished this book three days ago. But I guess if I had to rate it, say how I felt in more cohesive terms, well, I'd say it was okay.

Party is the story of Amanda. She just graduated from high school, and plans to go into a career as an artist. She's got everything down pat, is ready to go to SAIC, the art college of her dreams. And then her scholarship money -- the only thing getting her to the expensive college -- falls through, and she falls into a whirlwind.

Her parents are fighting constantly and on the rocks of divorce; she has a horrible relationship with her best friend; and she has no idea what to do in the fall. To keep her busy, Amanda's parents make her enroll in community college to take a few art courses and she decides to attend some late-night concerts to feel connected to the "art scene".

I never really connected with Amanda. She has a strong voice which I'll mention later, and sounds like a teenage girl, but she seems disconnected. I symapthized with her, but it was hard at times to read the narrative since it was disconnected. She was so disconnected from the reader, in both grief and anger, that it was hard to read.

I did like her voice, though. She sounded like a raw, gritty teenage girl living, essentially, on the edge of her world.

I do think that Leeven populated his story with some cliches. The angry, on-the-brink parents; the girl seperated from her best friend due to a secret that I found easy to guess; and the girl redempted by love. It didn't affect the story a ton, but at times it seemed painfully obvious like he was running through a checklist:

1. Artsy girl with a secret.
2. Meets boy, fall in love.
3. She discovers big secret that shatters her world...

The climax was...okay. The major secret was revealed, a few "ohmygod" scenes occured where Amanda freaked out, but the majority of the climax was a chapter in a half. By the next chapter Amanda had realized oh, everything's going to be okay, without any reason why she had changed so quickly. She simply woke up, saw the self-portrait she had done, and then realized that everything was fine.

It was an interesting look into the art scene, how everything is so free. I learned some, I guess, considering I'm not in that crowd at all.

I would recommend it more to "artsy" people and those who might be interested in a more "angsty" narrative. A solid read.

Three stars.

Teaser, Teaser, Teaser

Another teaser. This one is also from CHASING GRAVITY...which I already renamed. It is now called SURVEYING THE WORLD.

Start of 2nd chapter.

---

The shows on TV at five thirty in the morning suck, but there’s no way I’m going back to bed. My legs cross tighter and I lean closer to the TV. On the screen is some old-fashioned war movie. A man crouches behind a rock, raising his gun to shoot.

War movies aren’t something I usually watch, but they’re better than the craptastic kids’ shows on in the morning.

I pause, close my eyes. The darkness is inviting. Calming.

Here we go.

Now or never – that sounds horrible.

My hands slip onto the phone. I squeeze hard against the ON button, willing with all my power. The phone buzzes. Beeps. A loud noise comes from the speakers and then the screen turns on. My desktop is a picture of the beach, palm trees swaying.

I scroll down to my contacts. Her name is at the bottom. The bottom is where the horrible people go. The ones you never want to contact, always want to avoid, erasing their phone numbers and street addresses and all their personal information from your mind. She certainly fits in that group. I find her name. It’s long.

She’d always complain about spelling it.

My finger pushes hard.

A new screen appears. She stares down at me in a self-portrait. James sent the photo to me in an email, enclosed the picture with lots of smiley faces and gigantic blue exclamation marks that were so bright they made me dizzy. In the picture, her hair is curled in fuzzy, her fingers are extended in a peace sign. I click the cell phone button.

Texting won’t work now.

I want to see what she thinks, how she responds when I ask. Because she sure as hell isn’t going to like the question.

The phone beeps.

I hate the waiting. Can’t the people just respond faster? My heart pounds. She might not answer. She might hang up in anger or sadness. She might make James come on the line and talk for her. She might not even be awake.  So many maybes, too many whys.

The phone beeps again.

One, two, three, four times.

I’m about to give up. She doesn’t care, she just…

She answers on the sixth ring. The last ring my phone makes before it gives up.

“I’m busy,” she snaps.

“You can’t be busy, Noel, if you’re talking to me,” I snap back. She wants to be snappish? Fine. I’ll be snappish too.

Teaser

I haven't posted in a while. But I figure a good way to get started is to post a teaser. This is from a new novel,

CHASING GRAVITY

This is the middle of the first chapter.

-----

The wind blows in my eyes as I lean out the window. Usually I would say something stupid about the fact that the wind is in my eyes – complain about it, or say something  lame like “what a fucking good day”, letting the swear roll off my tongue. But not today.

Bianca leans forward in her seat. She insisted on shotgun as always. As I drive, she pages through laminated maps of far-off places. “Do you think he’ll be there?”

“I hope so.” Otherwise this will all be a waste, and so will the $18.73 I spent on gas money.

She leans over, squeezes my hand. I love the feeling I get when she does that: pure exhilaration. “We’ll bring him and Noel home,” Bianca promises. Her feet slide up onto the window. I shoot her a look – scratched windows aren’t in my foreseeable future – and she slides them back down with an annoyed smile.

Noel. Oh frick, Noel. My hands ball into fists at the mention of her name. Fucking goddamn Noel Elaine McCartney. The one who rose my brother in the air and sent him crashing down just as fast, the one who made him smile and laugh and sob. The one who tore him apart.

“Whoa, boy, calm down.” Bianca laughs, but she sounds afraid.

I pound the wheel as we reach a stoplight. “Stupid fucking girl.”

Bianca sighs. “Listen, this’ll be over soon, right? We’ll get Noel and James and bring them home. Then it’s over.”

No it isn’t. Breakups are horrible – every TV show, movie, and miniseries will show you that. They’ll show you the tears and the anger and the fights.        And coming back to your exes is always worse. They never meet your eye, always turn their back to you, and awkwardness reigns. James shouldn’t have to go through that.

“Do you think they went out to eat?” I ask, changing the subject for the sake of my sanity. “They left early enough to need to eat lunch now. James likes Burger King. Noel likes Arby’s.” It’s weird that I know so much about my brother’s girlfriend, down to her favorite fast food restaurant, but I guess it can be expected. Noel used to always run around our house, screaming about her favorite colors (purple and black) and where she liked to eat and blabbing every detail about her the second that someone asked.

“There’s an Arby’s in the town, and a Burger King too. They’re pretty close to each other.” Bianca’s put the laminated maps away, replaced them with her phone. On the screen a virtual map of Hinton is displayed.

I wheel the car into the city limits. At least the limits that the map tells us is Hinton, South Carolina. There’s no sign. No recognition that this town is nothing more than forest. The only proof to show that there’s a town is a wooden board shoved in the ground. It’s falling over, the board tilting to the side at a ninety-degree angle.

My hands start to fall down the wheel, and I quickly slide them back up. A car crash would make this adventure much worse.

My eyes stay focused on the sign.

One letter is etched across the top. The letter is faded, looking like someone wrote it in a pencil. A big H.

H for Hinton. H for a city of a thousand people, H for home and heart and H for hope. And the one that sticks in my mind:

H for hate.

H for the hate I feel for Noel McCartney.

***

“It says to go straight for three miles,” Bianca says. She’s driving now, hands drumming against the wheel. I didn’t want to switch, but she insisted. Not by logic or force but by her own Bianca-method: shoving me off the seat, climbing over me, and sliding into the driver’s seat. Somehow she can drive and look at the phone at the same time. Dangerous but she does it. “There should be a place called the General Store on the right.”

She’s not talking to me anymore; she’s looking down, eyes on the screen.

Bianca drives. Straight. Driver’s ed tactics fly through my head as I look at her. Eyes on the road, hands on the wheel, look at the gas periodically, stay steady…all the rules they gave and all the rules she’s ignoring.

Soon enough, the road flattens out and becomes a town. Houses appear periodically, shadowed and hidden behind pines. A few buildings appear – Bill’s Bait & Tackle, Hamilton’s Family Restaurant, A, L& F Taxes, the Boutique – but no General Store. Bianca wields the car around a corner and there it is.

The General Store.

The place where my brother and his girlfriend supposedly are.

The car glides easily into the parking lot. Bianca pushes hard on the brakes as she approaches. I can see her eyes searching the lot, trying to determine the best spot to park. My eyes squint as I look at the building. The General Store is a barn, really. A barn not much bigger than my garage. A brown barn with a thatched roof and wide windows. There’s a wide counter attached to the front of the barn advertising sales.

FIFTY PERCENT OFF LIVE BAIT.

CALL ED IF YOU NEED HELP

A phone number is written below Ed’s name, but the paint has faded. All that remains is a sickly yellow smudge.

“Live bait?” Bianca lets out a snicker.

I shrug. “Everybody needs it.”

She snorts again and flips her hair over her shoulders. “Apparently up here they do.” Bianca slides into the lot and powers the car off. She opens her door and I open mine.

Cinder

(First off, apologies. I've been busy -- I was just elected to my 4-H board, and as I get back into the swing of things life gets busier. So I decided to reward you by posting a review of an online ARC I got.)

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.






So I have never been a fan of science fiction. I don't know why; just never been partial.

And then I found an online ARC of Cinder. It had gotten great reviews, and the premise is amazing. Cyborg Cinderella? Now that sounds impressive to me.

And so I read it.

And what is my response?

Let's start with the first sentence:

The screw through Cinder's arm had rusted, the engraved cross marks worn to a mangled circle.

That, in a nutshell, tells you how amazing the book is. The writing is goregous, constantly full of lyricsm and beauty. Meyer had a tendency to make her characters too formal, however. Their language seemed more attached to the past than the future, though -- full of long sentences and no contractions at all. It drove me batty for a while, but I got used to it eventually.

I was unsure about the fairytale retelling aspect. When I read these kinds of books, I'll admit that one of the first things I do is try and figure out what characters are what in the fairy tale (etc, who's Cinderella, Prince Charming, stepsisters).

While some were obvious, most of the characters defied roles. The stepsisters were kinder, more bossy than mean; there was no true stepmother, and the prince was an all around good guy.

The characters were all adorable and cute, and at times the story seemed more mature than a middle grade -- more of a young adult novel. I'd say that the book is more young adult, with harder words and more complex reasoning.

The world-building is elegant, carefully drawn through names of buisnesses and more. There is never much of an info dump, more of a quick description through dialogue and more (though it never became an info dump either). The streets are filled with robotics; the booth next to Cinder's sells computers that can float in midair.

I've read several ARCs lately, and one of the questions I have asked is "Would I buy this?"

And the answer for Cinder:

HECK YES.

I plan to buy this book when it comes out. I might have read it already, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't read it again (and I won't before it's published; my ARC expires online in a week :P).

So if you want a fun, cute, funny, adorable, sci-fi retelling that defies retellings, read Cinder.

If you don't....um, well then.

(Shorter review than usual, but I promise to get back to posting more often. Thanks a ton.)

Pretty Crooked

I have not done a review in a while (at least it seems), so I've decided to review the second ARC I recieved: Elisa Ludwig's Pretty Crooked.

Willa’s secret plan seems all too simple: take from the rich kids at Valley Prep and give to the poor ones.

Yet Willa’s turn as Robin Hood at her ultra-exclusive high school is anything but. Bilking her “friends”—known to everyone as the Glitterati—without them suspecting a thing is far from easy. Learning how to pick pockets and break into lockers is as difficult as she’d thought it’d be. Delivering care packages to the scholarship girls, who are ostracized just for being from the “wrong” side of town, is way more fun than she’d expected.

The complication Willa didn’t expect, though, is Aidan Murphy, Valley Prep’s most notorious (and gorgeous) ace-degenerate. His mere existence is distracting Willa from what matters most to her: evening the social playing field between the haves and have-nots. There’s no time for crushes and flirting with boys, especially conceited and obnoxious trust-funders like Aidan.

But when the cops start investigating the string of thefts at Valley Prep and the Glitterati begin to seek revenge, could Aidan wind up being the person that Willa trusts most?

Pretty Crooked was the second ARC I recieved. I love mysteries and retellings, but was less eager to read this one. I'm not quite sure why, and I think after reading that there was one reason. I don't really like romance, and the paragraph about Aidan threw me off. The romance aspect wasn't the greatest, and I had some nitpicks, but Pretty Crooked was pretty cute (haha, bad pun).

The basic story reads like a Cinderella story: Willa's struggling artist mother's paintings sell for a large sum of money, and Willa and her mother move to Paradise Valley, Ariz. so that Willa can attend the posh Valley Prep (nicknamed VP) high school. Right away, Willa attracts the attention of the Glitterati, the most popular girls in school. Aidan Murphy, Mr. Hottie Pants, also finds some interest in her.

So yes. The story is cliche in some aspects. And to be truthful, I'd regard this more as MG than YA. It's marketed as YA, but I think a lot of the aspects would work better with younger readers. The only true YA aspect is the high school; everything else seems like it would be more MG, and some of the aspects (BFFs who shop a lot, fancy school) are used more in MG to me.

Onto the characters. Willa's character is bubbly, cute, funny, and smart. She's nice, but a little naive. (Her mom specifically mentions that Willa is attending VP to get into a good college, a fact that Willa doesn't realize until later.) Willa is a sweet character, with enough development and backstory to be realistic. She could be annoying sometimes -- hello? Dump your popular girl friends? Duh. But overall she was sweet, but a tad naive.

Cherise was the best of the mean girls. She actually seemed realistic, annoyed with her friends often and disliking the gossip blog that they ran. She constantly was trying to get the girls to stop their petty ways, and had a great background, dreaming of becoming a doctor like her parents. Sometimes she was more interesting/realistic than Willa, and more likable. Sometimes I also wished the story was in her POV; she seemed more likely to do the "Robin Hood" thing than Willa. Willa had known the girls for such a short time before BAM! the idea appeared; Cherise had known them longer and I think that it would have been more realistic for her to go Robin Hood on them (especially with her constant frusturation over Kelly and Nikki's antics).

Kelly and Nikki....ugh. They were basically every element of popular mean girls mixed together. Rich, loved by everyone, cruel, taunting everyone they meet, and (unsurprisingly) doing cruel things to scholarship girls. They had almost no dimension, just the classic rich and mean girls, and no backstory. The story ends on a cliffhanger, so I assume they'll be more developed in the sequel....I hope. They were my least favorite characters, and their big surprise (the fact that they taunted the scholarship girls online) was predictable and lame. They had almost no difference as characters, not distinguishable as characters in any way. They were just the same walking cliches.

The scholarship girls I liked. Mary, Alicia, and Savannah were good. They broke down usual "scholarship" girl cliches, and had understandable pasts. (Savannah's father was out of a job; Alicia's mother was pregnant and searching for a job; and Mary's father couldn't make enough money to support his family.) They also had understandable emotions, surprised but not greedy when they recieved their items, and angry sometimes over their disappointing lives. They also responded well to their teasing, after being called "Busteds" and racist names, responding nicely but still with anger.

The online bullying was a huge aspect. I appluad Ludwig for bringing that in -- it was a very interesting examination of that, which is huge now. The blog was realistic: a gossip blog where people posted awful pictures and posts anyonomusly, just like anyone can do now on popular gossip blogs or trash websites. But there was another issue I had: the name-dropping. Gosh, they name dropped everywhere. It would be fine if it was just clothes, but nope it was everywhere. Look at that Wii and that Pizza John's pizza, that show about Martha Stewart and the Barefoot Contessa is amazing, and this schoool is for the future Steve Jobs and I want the new iPhone and god, why can't I have that new iPad?

It. Was. Annoying. Ludwig, I think was trying to make her story "current", but it was ridicolous how much name dropping there was. Like, every three pages some character would remark on something current.

And now onto the plot. The Robin Hood aspect could have been developed more, I think. It could have been really interesting, seeing the parallels between Willa and Robin Hood. But it was hardly developed, with Willa absentmindely remarking once that "[I] was kind of like Robin Hood, just better dressed".

And Aidan. Okay, Ludwig pulled out every stop on the "cute hot guy" here. He's mega rich, snobby, dashing, and everyone adores him. Willa thinks he's HOTTTT the second she sees him, but hates him (of course) since he's so snobby (of course). But wait! Now I understand his true emotions and we're in love and kissing in Porsches. :P He was just annoying at the beginning, but I grew to like him more as the story continued. He still kind of fit the hot rich boy, even though he was nicer (big shocker) but still portrayed well (there are too many parentheses in this paragraph).

The ending isn't a big surprise, but it was cute and fun to read. The book is set up for a sequel, with a cliffhanger at the end. I found out that Pretty Crooked was first in a trilogy as well.

And the truth is, even with all of my nitpicks, I liked it. It was a fun, cute romp with quite a few problems but still a fun read. The book was far from perfect but a good escape from reality. I might read it again, but it wasn't one of my favorites. It was cute, fun, and charming, and a good way to spend my time.

It wasn't brilliant or awe-inspiring, but it was cute and that's all that matters. So if you're looking for a fun, cute mystery, this is for you.

3 stars.

Big, Huge, Fantastic, Amazing New Books Hype

So I was browsing GoodReads. GoodReads is a great website where users can review, rate, recommend, and talk about books they're reading. Most of my friends on that website have similar tastes to mine, so I was eager when one of my friends posted about Gayle Forman's new duology.

Gayle Forman wrote the amazing If I Stay:

and

Where She Went

Both are amazing books -- I read them this past summer and enjoyed both. One of my friends on GoodReads posted about Forman's new books, a duology. On GoodReads, books are often released onto the website as soon as they are announced (usually without a pitch or cover).

However, Forman's new books already had pitches, despite being released 2(!) years from now. Here are the summaries:

Just One Day (Just One Day, #1)
JUST ONE DAY is in Allyson's (also known as Lulu) POV. The companion is JUST ONE YEAR.

"Can you fall in love in just one day? Can you become a new person? How about in just one year? In JUST ONE DAY and its companion novel JUST ONE YEAR, sheltered American good girl Allyson “LuLu” Healey and easygoing actor Willem De Ruiter are about to find out against a guidebook-worthy array of foreign backdrops. Equal parts romance, coming-of-age-tale, mystery and travel romp (with settings that span from England’s Stratford upon Avon to Paris to Amsterdam to India’s Bollywood) JUST ONE DAY and JUST ONE YEAR show how in looking for someone else, you just might wind up finding yourself."

Expected publication: 2013 by Dutton Juvenile

as well as

Just One Year (Just One Day #2)
Companion to JUST ONE DAY. It will be in Willem's POV.

"Can you fall in love in just one day? Can you become a new person? How about in just one year? In JUST ONE DAY and its companion novel JUST ONE YEAR, sheltered American good girl Allyson “LuLu” Healey and easygoing actor Willem De Ruiter are about to find out against a guidebook-worthy array of foreign backdrops. Equal parts romance, coming-of-age-tale, mystery and travel romp (with settings that span from England’s Stratford upon Avon to Paris to Amsterdam to India’s Bollywood) JUST ONE DAY and JUST ONE YEAR show how in looking for someone else, you just might wind up finding yourself."

Expected publication: 2014 by Dutton Juvenile

 

Both the books sound great, and two years from now I will be picking up the books. But there was something else that amazes me about these books. Already people have rated the book four stars (this isn't a surprise on GoodReads; books are usually high ranked before they're published since readers are eager), and 30 people put the book on their shelf.

 

30 people.

 

It's been two days since Dutton announced the books.

 

30 people have already chosen the book to read, and there are several gushing reviews. Here's one (name omitted):

 

GAYLE FORMAN!!!!!'

 

Loved If I Stay and Where She Went, this one sounds even more adorable and charming. Oh my god, Gayle Forman!!!

 

Too bad we have to wait two years for it :(

 

Despite the amount of exclamation marks in that comment, this user had a good point. They got excited about the book, but for one reason. Gayle Forman wrote it.

 

And I like Gayle Forman, I do.

 

But that brings me to my point. Hype.

 

This user only wants to read it because Gayle Forman wrote it. S/he has read Forman's previous other books, and knows that her newest should be just as amazing and remarkable.

 

But that's hype. SO AND SO WROTE AMAZING BOOK, NOW LET'S READ ALL OF HER BOOKS.

 

And hype isn't bad; it can help authors and publishers and make everyone excited for the books. But it can be bad, too.

 

Authors don't always churn out amazing books. They can write a stellar novel and fail in their next. Some people can be uneasy about hype, especially when they're nervous about the book. It can lead to disappointment instead.

 

So really there are two sides to hype. Sometimes hype becomes dramatic, with the publisher plunging it everywhere and readers getting more and more excited. I've seen good and bad hype, especially at confrences like BookExpo America.

 

I read an article about one of the most hyped books at the show,

 

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

 

People were eagerly waiting for the novel at BEA. The author's signing line was long, and bloggers were excited like crazy, reviewers fought for a copy.  The book was featured at a panel for new YA, and there was a massive line. But then the reviews started to pour in. Quite a few people were disappointed, and many people said that they preferred other YA debuts to Hodkin's. This is a quote from a blogger:

 

It just didn't live up to the hype. People were parading it everywhere as the next great YA, and it fell short of every expectation I had. I wanted to love this book, but I just couldn't. Disappointed.

 

See what I mean about disappointment? I haven't read the book, but it fell short of all the hype people had.

 

Another issue with hype is the big-name author. The author everyone knows. James Patterson. Lauren Oliver. Stephenie Meyer.

 

People jump on everything they write, just like that commenter did with Gayle Forman. And why? Because the author's well known. And often times, they'll buy and read the book just because of the author. And they might like it, even though it's terrible, for one reason only.

 

__________ (Big Name Author) wrote it.

 

So hype can go any which way.

 

GoodReads, blogs, and reviewers are good ways to know about the hype. There are really only certain authors I get hyped about, but the truth is we all get hyped.

 

The thing to remember is that you never know which way it'll go, plain and simple.

 

Because who knows about hype?

 

That's the big question.

 

You never know.

Upcoming YA Books

-SPECIAL POST-

So, I decided to add a special post. This one is mostly just pictures and words, though. I was browsing GoodReads, and through their amazing Listopia feature I found some interesting books I plan to read in 2012. The following are the covers and pitches, along with some small commentary.

The Disenchantments-Nina LaCour

Colby and Bev have a long-standing pact: graduate, hit the road with Bev’s band, and then spend the year wandering around Europe. But moments after the tour kicks off, Bev makes a shocking announcement: she’s abandoning their plans—and Colby—to start college in the fall.

But the show must go on and The Disenchantments weave through the Pacific Northwest, playing in small towns and dingy venues, while roadie-Colby struggles to deal with Bev’s already-growing distance and the most important question of all: what’s next?

Morris Award–finalist Nina LaCour draws together the beauty and influences of music and art to brilliantly capture a group of friends on the brink of the rest of their lives.

Why I Want to Read It: LaCour's first novel, Hold Still, was amazing, and ARC readers have said that this is great. I loved Hold Still and it seems like LaCour is a promising author. Also? Bad girl band? Wandering around Europe? I'm so in.

The Fault in Our Stars - John Green

This one only has a cover (that isn't final, mind you)

Why I Want to Read It:  All of John Green's books are amazing, and he's a wonderful vlogger as well. I respect him both as a person and a writer, and I'm excited to see what he comes up with next (having enjoyed all of his books). Also, female narrator=JG first? I'm in.

Wanderlove - Kirsten Hubbard

It all begins with a stupid question:

Are you a Global Vagabond?

No, but 18-year-old Bria Sandoval wants to be. In a quest for independence, her neglected art, and no-strings-attached hookups, she signs up for a guided tour of Central America—the wrong one. Middle-aged tourists with fanny packs are hardly the key to self-rediscovery. When Bria meets Rowan, devoted backpacker and dive instructor, and his outspokenly humanitarian sister Starling, she seizes the chance to ditch her group and join them off the beaten path.

Bria's a good girl trying to go bad. Rowan's a bad boy trying to stay good. As they travel across a panorama of Mayan villages, remote Belizean islands, and hostels plagued with jungle beasties, they discover what they've got in common: both seek to leave behind the old versions of themselves. And the secret to escaping the past, Rowan’s found, is to keep moving forward.

But Bria comes to realize she can't run forever, no matter what Rowan says. If she ever wants the courage to fall for someone worthwhile, she has to start looking back.

Kirsten Hubbard lends her artistry into this ultimate backpacker novel, weaving her drawings into the text. Her career as a travel writer and her experiences as a real-life vagabond backpacking Central America are deeply seeded in this inspiring story.

Why I Wanna Read It: Parts of it sound cliche, but it still seems fun. I have an ARC of this I need to read, and it sounds like an interesting read. Hubbard's first novel was well recieved and she is an elegant writer.

Second Chance Summer - Morgan Matson

Taylor's family might not be the closest-knit – everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled – but for the most part, they get along fine. Then they get news that changes everything: Her father has pancreatic cancer, and it's stage four – meaning that there is basically nothing to be done. Her parents decide that the family will spend his last months together at their old summerhouse in the Pocono Mountains.

Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven't actually gone anywhere. Her former summer best friend is suddenly around, as is her first boyfriend. . . and he's much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve.

As the summer progresses, the Edwards become more of a family, and closer than they've ever been before. But all of them very aware that they're battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance – with family, with friends, and with love.

Why I Want to Read It: Matson's first book, Amy & Roger's Epic Detour was a detour of amazingness, and this one sounds like Matson: beautiful, touching, and tinged with first love. I adored her first novel and will be looking for this one.

Irises-Francisco X. Stork



Two sisters discover what's truly worth living for in the new novel by the author of MARCELO IN THE REAL WORLD.
TWO SISTERS: Kate is bound for Stanford and an M.D. -- if her family will let her go. Mary wants only to stay home and paint. When their loving but repressive father dies, they must figure out how to support themselves and their mother, who is in a permanent vegetative state, and how to get along in all their uneasy sisterhood.
THREE YOUNG MEN: Then three men sway their lives: Kate's boyfriend Simon offers to marry her, providing much-needed stability. Mary is drawn to Marcos, though she fears his violent past. And Andy tempts Kate with more than romance, recognizing her ambition because it matches his own.
ONE AGONIZING CHOICE: Kate and Mary each find new possibilities and darknesses in their sudden freedom. But it's Mama's life that might divide them for good -- the question of *if* she lives, and what's worth living for.
IRISES is Francisco X. Stork's most provocative and courageous novel yet.

Why I Want To Read It: Loved all of Stork's other novels (recongizing a pattern?) and he always has interesting, thought provoking books. Should be an interesting read.

Boy21-Matthew Quick

Basketball has always been an escape for Finley. He lives in broken-down Bellmont, a town ruled by the Irish mob, drugs, violence, and racially charged rivalries. At home, his dad works nights and Finley is left alone to take care of his disabled grandfather. He's always dreamed of somehow getting out, but until he can, putting on that number 21 jersey makes everything seem okay.

Russ has just moved to the neighborhood. The life of this teen basketball phenom has been turned upside down by tragedy. Cut off from everyone he knows, he won't pick up a basketball, and yet answers only to the name Boy21—taken from his former jersey number.

As their final year of high school brings these two boys together, "Boy21" may turn out to be the answer they both need. Matthew Quick, the acclaimed author of Sorta Like a Rock Star, brings readers a moving novel about hope, recovery, and redemption.

Why I Wanna Read It: Matthew Quick had an azming first novel...okay, fine, that's what I've said for every one. :P Great plot, sounds like a tearjerker.

Insurgent-Veronica Roth

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth's much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

Why I Wanna Read It: Divergent took me by surprise, and while it had it flaws, it was just a fun romp of a dystopia. I'm interested to find what will happen next, and Roth is a promising new author. (Again: I've called everyone that, but they all are. :P)

Slide-Jill Hathaway

Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth—her sister’s friend Sophie didn’t kill herself. She was murdered.

Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn’t actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else’s mind and experiences the world through that person’s eyes. She’s slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed “friend” when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie’s slashed body.

Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can’t bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting off lately, more distant, especially now that she’s been spending more time with Zane.

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

"Jill Hathaway provides a fresh, vibrant voice to young adult literature. Skillfully filled with drama and tension, SLIDE is part mystery, part romance, and wholly engaging with its strong heroine and tornado-worthy twists. I simply could not put this book down." ~Laurie Stolarz, DEADLY LITTLE SECRET

"Heartbreaking and heart-pounding at the same time! A wonderful, intense story, SLIDE had me hooked from the first moment Vee slid into someone else's mind. I stayed up way too late because I had to see how it ended." ~Cynthia Hand, UNEARTHLY(less)

 

Why I Wanna Read It: I know nothing about Hathaway, but this is a really interesting and unique concept and I'm curious where the author will take it.

 

Above-Leah Bobet

Matthew has loved Ariel from the moment he found her in the tunnels, her bee's wings falling away. They live in Safe, an underground refuge for those fleeing the city Above--like Whisper, who speaks to ghosts, and Jack Flash, who can shoot lightning from his fingers.

But one terrifying night, an old enemy invades Safe with an army of shadows, and only Matthew, Ariel, and a few friends escape Above. As Matthew unravels the mystery of Safe's history and the shadows' attack, he realizes he must find a way to remake his home--not just for himself, but for Ariel, who needs him more than ever before.

ABOVE is the debut of an amazing new voice.

Why I Wanna Read This: Amazing concept 101, anyone? This sounds very unique and different, and the MCs don't usually posess bee's wings.

Winterling-Sarah Prineas

"What a wonderful, imaginative alternate world Prineas has created for this book!" --Kristin Cashore, author of the New York Times bestsellers Graceling and Fire.

"Filled with wonder and with characters both devious and charming, Winterling is a mischievous delight!" --Ingrid Law, New York Times bestselling author of Scumble and the Newbery honor book Savvy.


With her boundless curiosity and wild spirit, Fer has always felt that she doesn’t belong. Not when the forest is calling to her, when the rush of wind through branches feels more real than school or the quiet farms near her house. Then she saves an injured creature—he looks like a boy, but he’s really something else. He knows who Fer truly is, and invites her through the Way, a passage to a strange, dangerous land.

Fer feels an instant attachment to this realm, where magic is real and oaths forge bonds stronger than iron. But a powerful huntress named the Mor rules here, and Fer can sense that the land is perilously out of balance. Fer must unlock the secrets about the parents she never knew and claim her true place before the worlds on both sides of the Way descend into endless winter.

Sarah Prineas captivates in this fantasy-adventure about a girl who must find within herself the power to set right a terrible evil.

Why I Wanna Read It: This kinda violates the YA genre, but Prineas is one of my favorite MG fantasy novelists. She's succeeded over and over again and I think Winterling will be no exception.

The Gathering Storm - Robin Bridges

St. Petersburg, Russia, 1888. As she attends a whirl of glittering balls, royal debutante Katerina Alexandrovna, Duchess of Oldenburg, tries to hide a dark secret: she can raise the dead. No one knows. Not her family. Not the girls at her finishing school. Not the tsar or anyone in her aristocratic circle. Katerina considers her talent a curse, not a gift. But when she uses her special skill to protect a member of the Imperial Family, she finds herself caught in a web of intrigue.

An evil presence is growing within Europe's royal bloodlines—and those aligned with the darkness threaten to topple the tsar. Suddenly Katerina's strength as a necromancer attracts attention from unwelcome sources . . . including two young men—George Alexandrovich, the tsar's standoffish middle son, who needs Katerina's help to safeguard Russia, even if he's repelled by her secret, and the dashing Prince Danilo, heir to the throne of Montenegro, to whom Katerina feels inexplicably drawn.

The time has come for Katerina to embrace her power, but which side will she choose—and to whom will she give her heart?

Why I Wanna read It: Historical romance/fantasy? Sounds interesting! Plus, Russian history always sounds good. Getting an ARC of this soon, so we'll see.

The Drowned Cities - Paolo Bacigalupi

Again, no pitch, just this:

Why I Wanna Read This: SQUEE! A sequel to Ship Breaker, one of my favorite sci-fi novels? SO. IN. Bacigalupi is one of my favorite authors, for his goregous prose and characters, and I cannot wait to enter Nailer's world again in May 2012 (such a long time D:).

 

May B - Caroline Starr Rose

 

Mavis Elizabeth Betterly, or May B. as she is known, is helping out on a neighbor's Kansas prairie homestead, “Just until Christmas,” says her Pa. Twelve-year-old May wants to contribute, but it's hard to be separated from her family by fifteen long, unfamiliar miles.

Then the unthinkable happens: May is abandoned to the oncoming winter, trapped all alone in a tiny snow-covered sod house without any way to let her family know and no neighbors to turn to. In her solitude, she wavers between relishing her freedom and succumbing to utter despair, while trying to survive in the harshest conditions. Her physical struggle to first withstand and then to escape her prison is matched by tormenting memories of her failures at school. Only a very strong girl will be able to stand up to both and emerge alive and well.

In this debut novel written in gripping verse, Caroline Starr Rose has given readers a new heroine to root for, one who never, ever gives up.

Why I Want to Read This: Ooh, historical fiction MG is always one of my favorites. Slightly predictable, maybe, but sounds interesting nontheless.

LAST ONE, I PROMISE:

The Vanishing Game - Kate Kae Myers

Jocelyn's twin brother Jack was the only family she had growing up in a world of foster homes-and now he's dead, and she has nothing. Then she gets a cryptic letter from "Jason December"-the code name her brother used to use when they were children at Seale House, a terrifying foster home that they believed had dark powers. Only one other person knows about Jason December: Noah, Jocelyn's childhood crush and their only real friend among the troubled children at Seale House.

But when Jocelyn returns to Seale House and the city where she last saw Noah, she gets more than she bargained for. Turns out the house's powers weren't just a figment of a childish imagination. And someone is following Jocelyn. Is Jack still alive? And if he is, what kind of trouble is he in? The answer is revealed in a shocking twist that turns this story on its head and will send readers straight back to page 1 to read the book in a whole new light.

Why I Wanna Read It: It sounds interesting and cryptic, and the cover is spooky but so amazing O_O

So there you have it, the 14 books I found and instantly wanted to read. I'll probably do another post like this soon, since there are so many books I want to read. 2012 sure has a heck of a lot of a good books coming.