Monday, May 6, 2013

New Release Round-Up: May 6-12, 2013

Young Adult


The 5th Wave
by Rick Yancey

Release date: May 7, 2013
Available as: hardcover, Kindle edition, ebook
Pages: 480
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Suggested tags: young adult, dystopia, science fiction



First in The 5th Wave series. From Goodreads:
"The Passage meets Ender’s Game in an epic new series from award-winning author Rick Yancey.

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.
"


Reboot
by Amy Tintera

Release date: May 7, 2013
Available as: hardcover, Kindle edition, ebook
Pages: 352
Publisher: HarperTeen
Suggested tags: young adult, science fiction



First in the Reboot series. From Goodreads:
"Five years ago, Wren Connolly was shot three times in the chest. After 178 minutes she came back as a Reboot: stronger, faster, able to heal, and less emotional. The longer Reboots are dead, the less human they are when they return. Wren 178 is the deadliest Reboot in the Republic of Texas. Now seventeen years old, she serves as a soldier for HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation).

Wren’s favorite part of the job is training new Reboots, but her latest newbie is the worst she’s ever seen. As a 22, Callum Reyes is practically human. His reflexes are too slow, he’s always asking questions, and his ever-present smile is freaking her out. Yet there’s something about him she can’t ignore. When Callum refuses to follow an order, Wren is given one last chance to get him in line—or she’ll have to eliminate him. Wren has never disobeyed before and knows if she does, she’ll be eliminated, too. But she has also never felt as alive as she does around Callum.

The perfect soldier is done taking orders.
"

Other YA new releases for this week:



Middle Grade


Loki's Wolves
by K.L. Armstrong, M.A. Marr

Release date: May 7, 2013
Available as: hardcover, Kindle edition, ebook
Pages: 368
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Suggested tags: middle grade, fantasy, mythology



Part of the The Blackwell Pages series. From Goodreads:
"In Viking times, Norse myths predicted the end of the world, an event called Ragnarok, that only the gods can stop. When this apocalypse happens, the gods must battle the monsters--wolves the size of the sun, serpents that span the seabeds, all bent on destroying the world.

The gods died a long time ago.

Matt Thorsen knows every Norse myth, saga, and god as if it was family history--because it is family history. Most people in the modern-day town of Blackwell, South Dakota, in fact, are direct descendants of either Thor or Loki, including Matt's classmates Fen and Laurie Brekke.

However, knowing the legends and completely believing them are two different things. When the rune readers reveal that Ragnarok is coming and kids--led by Matt--will stand in for the gods in the final battle, he can hardly believe it. Matt, Laurie, and Fen's lives will never be the same as they race to put together an unstoppable team to prevent the end of the world.
"


The Reluctant Assassin
by Eoin Colfer

Release date: May 7, 2013
Available as: hardcover, Kindle edition, ebook
Pages: 304
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Suggested tags: middle grade, science fiction, time travel



First in the W.A.R.P. series. From Goodreads:
"Riley, a teen orphan boy living in Victorian London, has had the misfortune of being apprenticed to Albert Garrick, an illusionist who has fallen on difficult times and now uses his unique conjuring skills to gain access to victims' dwellings. On one such escapade, Garrick brings his reluctant apprentice along and urges him to commit his first killing. Riley is saved from having to commit the grisly act when the intended victim turns out to be a scientist from the future, part of the FBI's Witness Anonymous Relocation Program (WARP) Riley is unwittingly transported via wormhole to modern day London, followed closely by Garrick.

In modern London, Riley is helped by Chevron Savano, a seventeen-year-old FBI agent sent to London as punishment after a disastrous undercover, anti-terrorist operation in Los Angeles. Together Riley and Chevie must evade Garrick, who has been fundamentally altered by his trip through the wormhole. Garrick is now not only evil, but he also possesses all of the scientist's knowledge. He is determined to track Riley down and use the timekey in Chevie's possession to make his way back to Victorian London where he can literally change the world.
"

Other Middle Grade new releases for this week:

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Review: The Slither Sisters by Charles Gilman


The Slither Sisters
by Charles Gilman

Available as: hardcover, Kindle edition, ebook
Pages: 174
Publication date: January 15, 2013
Publisher: Quirk Books
Suggested tags: middle grade, paranormal



Second in the Tales from Lovecraft Middle School series. From Goodreads:
"This second novel in the Tales from Lovecraft Middle School series begins right where Professor Gargoyle ended. Seventh-grader Robert Arthur has discovered that two of his classmates are actually sinister snake-women in disguise. Even worse, his new middle school is full of “gates” to a terrifying alternate dimension – a haunted mansion full of strange spirits and monstrous beasts. For Robert to protect his teachers and classmates, he'll need to return to this haunted dimension with his best friends Glenn and Karina. Can they uncover the secrets of Lovecraft Middle School before it's too late?

The Slither Sisters features more bizarre beasts, more strange mysteries, and more adventure. It's perfect for readers ages 10 and up. Best of all, the cover features a state-of-the-art “morphing” photo portrait – so you can personally witness the sisters transforming into their slithering alter egos. You won't believe your eyes!"

{ I received an ARC for free through Early Reviewers on LibraryThing. }


I am such a fan of the Tales from Lovecraft Middle School series! I was hooked by Professor Gargoyle (read my review here) and The Slither Sisters is just as creepy and exciting! If you're a fan of paranormal middle grade reads and you haven't started this series yet, YOU MUST.

At the end of Professor Gargoyle, Sylvia and Sarah Price had returned to the school after a mysterious disappearance, and it seemed that something was a bit...off. In The Slither Sisters, Robert and his friends Glenn and Karina find out that something is indeed off - Sylvia and Sarah are running for class president, but they certainly don't have the other students' best interests in mind. They're working for Crawford Tillinghast, the mastermind behind the monsters and gates that have invaded Lovecraft Middle School.

I thought The Slither Sisters was even better than Professor Gargoyle because it brought us a little deeper into the story behind the school and Crawford Tillinghast, and it really seemed to take advantage of the "haunted dimension" aspect mentioned in the synopsis. There were some really creepy scenes that had me glued to the book to find out how Robert, Glenn, and Karina would escape. Just like the first book in the series, the second is dark and spooky, but with plenty of fun and adventure to balance it out. It's the perfect amount of creepy - it sets the mood, wraps you up in it and makes you feel like you're there with Robert and his friends, but it's not too scary.

Just like the first book in the series, The Slither Sisters wraps up with a hint that, despite all Robert's hard work, all is still not well at Lovecraft Middle School. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book, Teacher's Pest. I really hope we get to learn more about Mrs. Lavinia and that we get to go back into the Tillinghast mansion!


Final verdict: 4 out of 5 stars

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

{ bon voYAge! } May 2013


The destination for April 2013 was

{ Russia }


And here are the YA & MG books we found...




The destination for May 2013 is...

{ California, USA }


Some examples of YA & MG books set in California:



Please send me links to your posts and reviews by Thursday, May 30 so I can add them to the next { bon voYAge! } post!


Want to play? Here's how it works...

{ } At the beginning of each month, I'll post the name of a destination: a city, state, region, province, country, etc.
{ } Throughout the month, you can:
       1. look for a YA or MG book (or books) set in that destination to share.
       2. read a YA or MG book (or books) set in that destination and write a review.
{ } You can post the books you found or the reviews you wrote any time during that month. Just send me a link so I can link back to your post!
{ } At the beginning of the next month, I'll share everyone's books and reviews. Then I'll post another destination and we can start again! :)

Want to check out the books we've already discovered? Browse all the locations that we've explored on the { bon voYAge! } tab above!

Have a location you'd like to explore? Let me know in the comments here or on the { bon voYAge! } tab above, or email me at pidginpea (at) yahoo (dot) com!

Want to put a { bon voYAge! } button on your blog? I'd love that! I made it using deviantART stock resources from SneakyTomato and artist00 and fonts from kevinandamanda.com.

"Waiting On" Wednesdays: May 1, 2013



"Waiting On" Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. Each Wednesday, you share upcoming releases that you're eagerly anticipating.





Absent
by Katie Williams

Expected release date: May 21, 2013
Available as: hardcover, Kindle edition, ebook
Pages: 184
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Suggested tags: young adult, paranormal, ghosts



From Goodreads:
"Forever is a long time to be stuck in high school.

Seventeen-year-old Paige is dead, the victim of a freak fall from the roof during Physics class. Now she’s a ghost, permanently bound to the grounds of her high school. It isn’t all bad, she can find out everyone’s secrets, which can be amusing—for a while. But then Paige hears something that isn’t amusing at all: the rumor spread by the most popular girl at school that her death wasn’t an accident—that she supposedly jumped on purpose. Paige is desperate to stop the gossip, but what can a ghost do? Then Paige discovers something amazing. She can possess living people when they think of her, and she can make them do almost anything. Maybe, just maybe, she can get inside the girl who’s responsible for the stories. . . and have a little fun turning the tables while she’s at it.

Katie Williams’s second novel is a suspenseful page-turner full of eerie wit and a touch of the otherworldly.
"