In My Mailbox (14)

Thanks (as always) goes to Kristi at The Story Siren for this little ditty! I had a great time meeting Margaret Stohl, Kami Garcia, Vania and even... Jackson Pearce yesterday! It was magical and I will have more on that tomorrow!!

So, here is what I got this week! Make sure to comment below so I can come see what you got too!!


For Review:
Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey

On Solange’s sixteenth birthday, she is going to wake up dead. As if that’s not bad enough, she also has to outwit her seven overprotective older brothers, avoid the politics involved with being the only daughter born to an ancient vampire dynasty, and elude Kieran Black—agent of an anti-vampire league who is searching for his father’s killer and is intent on staking Solange and her entire family.

Luckily she has her own secret weapon—her human best friend Lucy—who is willing to defend Solange’s right to a normal life, whether she’s being smothered by her well-intentioned brothers or abducted by a power-hungry queen. Two unlikely alliances are formed in a race to save Solange’s eternal life—Lucy and Solange’s brother Nicholas, and Solange and Kieran Black—in a dual romance that is guaranteed to jump start any romance-lover’s heart.

Even fans of the genre who’ve seen it all will find a fresh read with kick-butt characters and family dynamics that ring true for all brothers and sisters—vampire or otherwise.

Dirty Little Secrets by C.J. Omololu
** This is one of my 2010 Debut Challenge books!! Yeah!!

Everyone has secrets. Some are just bigger and dirtier than others.

For sixteen years, Lucy has kept her mother's hoarding a secret. She's had to -- nobody would understand the stacks of newspapers and mounds of garbage so high they touch the ceiling and the rotting smell that she's always worried would follow her out the house. After years of keeping people at a distance, she finally has a best friend and maybe even a boyfriend if she can play it right. As long as she can make them think she's normal.

When Lucy arrives home from a sleepover to find her mother dead under a stack of National Geographics, she starts to dial 911 in a panic, but pauses before she can connect. She barely notices the filth and trash anymore, but she knows the paramedics will. First the fire trucks, and then news cameras that will surely follow. No longer will they be remembered as the nice oncology nurse with the lovely children -- they'll turn into that garbage-hoarding freak family on Collier Avenue.

With a normal life finally within reach, Lucy has only minutes to make a critical decision. How far will she go to keep the family secrets safe?

Captivate by Carrie Jones
** I have to get and read Need first, I know!!

Zara and her friends knew they hadn't solved the pixie problem for good. Far from it. The king's needs grow deeper every day he's stuck in captivity, while his control over his people gets weaker. It's made him vulnerable. And now there's a new king in town.

A turf war is imminent, since the new pixie king, Astley, is moving in quickly. Nick nearly killed him in the woods on day one, but Zara came to his rescue. Astley swears that he and Zara are destined to be together, that he's one of the good guys. Nick isn't buying it, though Zara isn't as sure -- despite herself, she wants to trust the new king. But it's a lot more than her relationship with Nick that is at stake. It's her life -- and his.

Purchased:
The Mark by Jen Nadol

Cassandra Renfield has always seen the mark—a glow around certain people reminiscent of candlelight. But the one time she mentioned it, it was dismissed as a trick of the light. Until the day she watches a man awash in the mark die. After searching her memories, Cassie realizes she can see a person’s imminent death. Not how or where, only when: today.

Armed with a vague understanding of the light, Cassie begins to explore her “gift,” seeking those marked for death and probing the line between decision and destiny. Though she’s careful to hide her secret—even from her new philosophy-obsessed boyfriend—with each impending death comes the temptation to test fate. But so many questions remain. How does the mark work? Why is she the only one who sees it? And finally, the most important of all: If you know today is someone’s last, should you tell them?

Don't forget to let me know what you got this week! Happy reading to all!

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Reading Level: Young Adult

# of Pages: Hardback 576 pages

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (December 1, 2009)

There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that's what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

I began hearing all kinds of wonderful things about this book a few months ago from fellow book bloggers and marked it. Little did I know that when I read it…. I would be completely blown away! This has to be one of the best books I have read in a while. Not only could I completely relate to the southern dialect (being only a few hours from where the book is set in Charleston, SC area) but also to the characters. Lena, Ethan, and even the infamous Link are written so beautifully that readers will find themselves cheering them on, feeling their emotions, and thinking that they could walk right through the door at any moment they are so real. I love books with well developed characters but those books seem to be few and far between these days. Yes, there are many books out there, but very few of them fully develop a character yet leave you wanting to know more and giving you just enough to make guesses about their personalities and create your own idea of who they truly are. This book definitely does that!

The plot is also very original which, in a time of vampires, werewolves, and anything else running rampant, is very refreshing. It is funny to me that I am reading so many paranormal books now yet when I was in middle school and high school these are the very ones I was not interested in. I guess my “tastes” have become more developed! Lena and Ethan have to face obstacles that teens today face but on a whole other level. They are in love but the hurdles that they have to overcome include a mysterious curse, a tarot card reading woman who loves her Red Hots (mmmm… love those), an uncle who is the Boo Radley of the town, and a house I would love to step foot in one day. Throughout the story you are completely drawn in and want to know how Lena and Ethan are going to overcome the obstacle that they are facing now (the perfect little cheerleaders or Link’s crazy mama) and are continuously wondering if one of them is going to do something to mess it all up. What I love about this book is that we are hearing the story from Ethan’s point of view. I love a good female lead like most, but it was refreshing to hear this from Ethan’s perspective. Sometimes female leads are whiny and it drives me nuts… some of you know what I am talking about…. but Ethan was wonderful. I do not in any way think that Lena is whiny and hope that maybe in the future books we can hear more from her!

I loved everything about this book and it is definitely a must read for everyone! I guess it is going to be another one that I won’t be able to keep in my classroom! Not a problem though… that’s what a classroom library is for!

Make sure to visit Kami and Margaret here and come join the Caster Girls when you finish the book and talk about all kind of things, get the inside scoop, and win cool stuff. Make sure to check and see when Kami and Margaret are coming to your area and GO! I know they are going to be in Alpharetta, GA on January 23^rd and I am definitely going! Yeah!! Just for the fun of it, I will post my pal Vania’s book trailer again. Make sure to check out her great stuff too!