Waiting on Wednesday (17): Hallowed


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

My WoW:

Hallowed (Unearthly #2)
by Cynthia Hand
Hardcover, 320 pages
Expected publication: January 24th 2012 by HarperCollins Publishers

Summary:

For months part-angel Clara Gardner trained to face the raging forest fire from her visions and rescue the alluring and mysterious Christian Prescott from the blaze. But nothing could prepare her for the fateful decisions she would be forced to make that day, or the startling revelation that her purpose—the task she was put on earth to accomplish—is not as straightforward as she thought. Now, torn between her increasingly complicated feelings for Christian and her love for her boyfriend, Tucker, Clara struggles to make sense of what she was supposed to do the day of the fire. And, as she is drawn further into the world of part angels and the growing conflict between White Wings and Black Wings, Clara learns of the terrifying new reality that she must face: Someone close to her will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.

Described by Richelle Mead as “utterly captivating,” Unearthly received outstanding reviews, garnered accolades from New York Times bestselling authors, and was named an Indie Next Pick. In this heart-wrenching sequel, Cynthia Hand expertly captures the all-consuming joy of first love—and the agony of loss. This beautifully woven tale will appeal to fans of Lauren Kate, Becca Fitzpatrick, and Aprilynne Pike.

Why I'm waiting for Hallowed:

Why? I've got two words for you.






TEAM TUCKER.




Nuff said.

Sweet Venom 2 Title Hunt!



SWEET VENOM 2 TITLE HUNT IS ON!

How it's done:
  • You must head over to TLC's blog for details about the hunt.
Here's what you can win:
  • Five signed copies of Sweet Venom
  • A grand prize $50 bookstore gift card
**Giveaways are open to everyone, including participating bloggers, wherever you are in the world.

Now, are you ready? 
My letter is hidden in the summary of Sweet Venom below. 


Grace just moved to San Francisco and is excited to start over at a new school. The change is full of fresh possibilities, but it’s also a tiny bit scary. It gets scarier when a minotaur walks in the door. And even more shocking when a girl who looks just like her shows up to fight the monster.

Gretchen is tired of monsters pulling her out into the wee hours, especially on a school night, but what can she do? Sending the minotaur back to his bleak home is just another notch on her combat belt. She never expected to run into this girl who could be her double, though.

Greer has her life pretty well put together, thank you very much. But that all tilts sideways when two girls who look eerily like her appear on her doorstep and claim they're triplets, supernatural descendants of some hideous creature from Greek myth, destined to spend their lives hunting monsters.

These three teenage descendants of Medusa, the once-beautiful gorgon maligned by myth, must reunite and embrace their fates in this unique paranormal world where monsters lurk in plain sight.

Now once you have my letter, go back to TLC's blog for the full list of participating blogs and go collect all those letters. Good luck!:)

In My Mailbox (18)

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.

BloodlinesChain Reaction (Perfect Chemistry Novels)Past PerfectPrized (The Birthmarked Trilogy)
From NetGalley

Book Review: Graffiti Moon

Graffiti Moon
by Cath Crowley
Hardcover, 224 pages
Expected publication: February 14th 2012 by Knopf Books for Young Readers (first published August 1st 2010)
Source: NetGalley

Summary:

"Let me make it in time. Let me meet Shadow. The guy who paints in the dark. Paints birds trapped on brick walls and people lost in ghost forests. Paints guys with grass growing from their hearts and girls with buzzing lawn mowers."

It’s the end of Year 12. Lucy’s looking for Shadow, the graffiti artist everyone talks about.

His work is all over the city, but he is nowhere.

Ed, the last guy she wants to see at the moment, says he knows where to find him. He takes Lucy on an all-night search to places where Shadow’s thoughts about heartbreak and escape echo around the city walls.

But the one thing Lucy can’t see is the one thing that’s right before her eyes.


Review:

I've been looking forward to reading Graffiti Moon ever since it was published in Australia last year. That's why I just about died when I found out that this was made available on NetGalley by the awesome Knopf Books for Young Readers. And what's even more awesome than that is, this book lived up to my super high expectations!

The summary absolutely doesn't do justice to how awesome this book is. It sounds cliched, predictable and bland. But wait! There's actually more to Graffiti Moon than those. What I like about this book is that the readers know from the start that Ed and Shadow are the same person, unlike what the summary seems to imply.

This is told in alternating POV's of Lucy and Ed with Leo's poems (those beautiful, beautiful poems) before some chapters. Ed dropped out of school in year 10 and has been working at a paint store until the owner who he view as his own father died and he was left jobless. Lucy has been obsessing over meeting the elusive graffiti artist, Shadow, feeling as if an artist like him is the only one who could understand what the artist in her truly feels. Leo is Ed's best friend and works with Ed on writing poems on his graffitis. Jazz is the resident psychic. Daisy is Dylan's girlfriend, and he is the only one who knows who Shadow and Poet are.

Crowley's characters are distinctive and very well-crafted. They are very fun to read and are extremely likable. Though there were also times that I'd find myself tearing up at some parts of the story. Most of which are from Ed's flashbacks. His father left his mom when she got pregnant at 16. His mom is still attending nursing school and also, he couldn't read.

Crowley's Graffiti Moon is one beautiful story I would love to read a hundred more times. Crowley's writing is eloquent. The dialogues, descriptions and poems were simply divine! I absolutely, totally, highly recommend  this book to all readers out there! Believe me, you will not be disappointed!

Rating: 5/5 stars!

Disclosure: This e-galley was received from the publisher (Knopf Books for Young Readers via NetGalley) for free in exchange for an honest review.

In My Mailbox (17)

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.

Bought these from Book Sale. All for less than 5 USD! (200php!)

Palms to the Ground - Amy Stolls - Have started on this one already. So far so good. :)
Carter Finally Gets It - Brent Crawford - Finished this yesterday. One of the most hilarious books I have ever read!
ARC of XVI - Julia Karr - I have a finished copy of this one already, which I left at home in the US. I was actually surprised when I saw this at the store since ARCs aren't supposed to be for sale... I guess the law is different here in the Phil?
Fly on the Wall: How One Girl Saw Everything - E. Lockhart - Also finished with this one. Funny, bizarre, cute and a very short read. 

From NetGalley:

Graffiti MoonThe Juliet Spell (Harlequin Teen)This Girl Is DifferentWanderlove
Graffiti Moon - Cath Crowley (Feb 14 2012 - Random House Children's Books)
Juliet Spell - Douglas Rees (Sep 27 2011 - Harlequin)
This Girl is Different - JJ Johnson (Apr 1 2011 - Peachtree Publishers)
Wanderlove - Kirsten Hubbard (Mar 13 2012 - Random House Children's Books)

What's in your mailbox?
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
 

Blog Template by BloggerCandy.com