Featuring books that I really want to read but haven't actually made it to my embarrassingly large TBR pile yet.
I do enjoy retellings, and I have high hopes for this twist on the Anastasia story. And the cover image is so cool. It's dynamic, sparkly, and a little dangerous. Unfortunately, Last of Her Name will have to wait for the summer when I have more time for a 400 page book.
Author: Jessica Khoury
Release Date: February 26, 2019
Sixteen years ago, rebellion swept the galaxy known as the Belt of Jewels. Every member of the royal family was murdered--down to their youngest child, Princess Anya--and the Union government rose in its place. But Stacia doesn't think much about politics. She spends her days half-wild, rambling her father's vineyard with her closest friends, Clio and Pol.
That all changes the day a Union ship appears in town, carrying the leader of the Belt himself, the Direktor Eminent. The Direktor claims that Princess Anya is alive, and that Stacia's sleepy village is a den of empire loyalists, intent on hiding her. When Stacia is identified as the lost princess, her provincial home explodes into a nightmare.
Pol smuggles her away to a hidden escape ship in the chaos, leaving Clio in the hands of the Union. With everything she knows threading away into stars, Stacia sets her heart on a single mission. She will find and rescue Clio, even with the whole galaxy on her trail.
Oooh, this is so pink and pretty, and the full title, Dangerous Alliance: An Austentacious Romance totally has me. I'm not a Jane Austin super fan, mostly I've been burned out by reading a million Jane Austin extended essays. But I love the play on her last name and the premise seems so delightfully romance-y.
Author: Jennieke Cohen
Release Date: December 3, 2019
Lady Victoria Aston has always been just as comfortable in a pair of breeches stolen from her father as she has in satin ballgowns decked in lace. And though she is perfectly capable of minding her manners in polite society, she doesn’t much see the point. With an older sister happily wed and the future of her family estate secure, she is quite content to while her time away in the fields around her home.
However, Vicky’s comfortable, idyllic life is overturned in the course of one night. Her sister’s husband is a terrible cad and now Vicky must marry, or find herself and her family destitute. Armed only with the wisdom she has gained from her beloved novels by Jane Austen, she enters society’s season in a flutter of silks, dances, and pretty words.
But Miss Austen has little to say about Vicky’s particular circumstances: whether the gorgeous and roguish Mr. Carmichael is indeed a scoundrel, if her former best friend—the much-grown and very handsome Tom Sherborne—is out for her dowry or for her heart, or even how to fend off the attentions of the foppish Mr. Silby, he of the bright-orange waistcoat.
Most unfortunately of all, Vicky’s books are silent on the topic of the mysterious accidents cropping up around her. Accidents that have her wondering if there’s someone trying to prevent a match from being made…or prevent her from surviving until her wedding day.
There is a lot going on with this cover, the explosion of color and chaos seems to reflect the story pretty well. Boy Swallows Universe is an intriguing title and the fact that it's inspired by some of the author's experiences make it even more so. But it's 464 pages long! Yet another book that must wait when I'm not dealing with inventory, exams, Juniors panicking over their Extended Essays, and hunting down overdue books.
Author: Trent Dalton
Release Date: April 2, 2019
An utterly wonderful debut novel of love, crime, magic, fate and a boy’s coming of age, set in 1980s Australia and infused with the originality, charm, pathos, and heart of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
The mind can take you anywhere you want to go
Eli Bell’s life is complicated. His father is lost, his mother is in jail, and his stepdad is a heroin dealer. The most steadfast adult in Eli’s life is Slim—a notorious felon and national record-holder for successful prison escapes—who watches over Eli and August, his silent genius of an older brother.
Exiled far from the rest of the world in Darra, a seedy suburb populated by Polish and Vietnamese refugees, this twelve-year-old boy with an old soul and an adult mind is just trying to follow his heart, learn what it takes to be a good man, and train for a glamorous career in journalism. Life, however, insists on throwing obstacles in Eli’s path—most notably Tytus Broz, Brisbane’s legendary drug dealer.
But the real trouble lies ahead. Eli is about to fall in love, face off against truly bad guys, and fight to save his mother from a certain doom—all before starting high school.
A story of brotherhood, true love, family, and the most unlikely of friendships, Boy Swallows Universe is the tale of an adolescent boy on the cusp of discovering the man he will be. Powerful and kinetic, Trent Dalton’s debut is sure to be one of the most heartbreaking, joyous and exhilarating novels you will experience.
The Fever King's title and the vibrant colors initially caught my eye. I was intrigued by the synopsis and definitely wanted to read it after reading why Lee wrote the story. I do worry that the story might be heavy handed, but I hope it's not. If anyone has read it, please link your review in the comments below, I'd love to see what you thought.
Author: Victoria Lee
Release Date: March 1, 2019
In the former United States, sixteen-year-old Noam Álvaro wakes up in a hospital bed, the sole survivor of the viral magic that killed his family and made him a technopath. His ability to control technology attracts the attention of the minister of defense and thrusts him into the magical elite of the nation of Carolinia.
The son of undocumented immigrants, Noam has spent his life fighting for the rights of refugees fleeing magical outbreaks—refugees Carolinia routinely deports with vicious efficiency. Sensing a way to make change, Noam accepts the minister’s offer to teach him the science behind his magic, secretly planning to use it against the government. But then he meets the minister’s son—cruel, dangerous, and achingly beautiful—and the way forward becomes less clear.
Caught between his purpose and his heart, Noam must decide who he can trust and how far he’s willing to go in pursuit of the greater good.
What have you had your eye on but just haven't picked up yet? I've been creating chalkboard style signs for different library promotions and typography is very much on the forefront of my mind. And it is so much easier to create chalkboard signs in photoshop than giant real life bulletin boards. I will never do that again. It was exhausting and then all of the students and teachers would touch it to see if it was real. Yes, it's real! Quit smearing my chalk!
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Author: Jessica Khoury
Release Date: February 26, 2019
Sixteen years ago, rebellion swept the galaxy known as the Belt of Jewels. Every member of the royal family was murdered--down to their youngest child, Princess Anya--and the Union government rose in its place. But Stacia doesn't think much about politics. She spends her days half-wild, rambling her father's vineyard with her closest friends, Clio and Pol.
That all changes the day a Union ship appears in town, carrying the leader of the Belt himself, the Direktor Eminent. The Direktor claims that Princess Anya is alive, and that Stacia's sleepy village is a den of empire loyalists, intent on hiding her. When Stacia is identified as the lost princess, her provincial home explodes into a nightmare.
Pol smuggles her away to a hidden escape ship in the chaos, leaving Clio in the hands of the Union. With everything she knows threading away into stars, Stacia sets her heart on a single mission. She will find and rescue Clio, even with the whole galaxy on her trail.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Author: Jennieke Cohen
Release Date: December 3, 2019
Lady Victoria Aston has always been just as comfortable in a pair of breeches stolen from her father as she has in satin ballgowns decked in lace. And though she is perfectly capable of minding her manners in polite society, she doesn’t much see the point. With an older sister happily wed and the future of her family estate secure, she is quite content to while her time away in the fields around her home.
However, Vicky’s comfortable, idyllic life is overturned in the course of one night. Her sister’s husband is a terrible cad and now Vicky must marry, or find herself and her family destitute. Armed only with the wisdom she has gained from her beloved novels by Jane Austen, she enters society’s season in a flutter of silks, dances, and pretty words.
But Miss Austen has little to say about Vicky’s particular circumstances: whether the gorgeous and roguish Mr. Carmichael is indeed a scoundrel, if her former best friend—the much-grown and very handsome Tom Sherborne—is out for her dowry or for her heart, or even how to fend off the attentions of the foppish Mr. Silby, he of the bright-orange waistcoat.
Most unfortunately of all, Vicky’s books are silent on the topic of the mysterious accidents cropping up around her. Accidents that have her wondering if there’s someone trying to prevent a match from being made…or prevent her from surviving until her wedding day.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Author: Trent Dalton
Release Date: April 2, 2019
An utterly wonderful debut novel of love, crime, magic, fate and a boy’s coming of age, set in 1980s Australia and infused with the originality, charm, pathos, and heart of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
The mind can take you anywhere you want to go
Eli Bell’s life is complicated. His father is lost, his mother is in jail, and his stepdad is a heroin dealer. The most steadfast adult in Eli’s life is Slim—a notorious felon and national record-holder for successful prison escapes—who watches over Eli and August, his silent genius of an older brother.
Exiled far from the rest of the world in Darra, a seedy suburb populated by Polish and Vietnamese refugees, this twelve-year-old boy with an old soul and an adult mind is just trying to follow his heart, learn what it takes to be a good man, and train for a glamorous career in journalism. Life, however, insists on throwing obstacles in Eli’s path—most notably Tytus Broz, Brisbane’s legendary drug dealer.
But the real trouble lies ahead. Eli is about to fall in love, face off against truly bad guys, and fight to save his mother from a certain doom—all before starting high school.
A story of brotherhood, true love, family, and the most unlikely of friendships, Boy Swallows Universe is the tale of an adolescent boy on the cusp of discovering the man he will be. Powerful and kinetic, Trent Dalton’s debut is sure to be one of the most heartbreaking, joyous and exhilarating novels you will experience.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Author: Victoria Lee
Release Date: March 1, 2019
In the former United States, sixteen-year-old Noam Álvaro wakes up in a hospital bed, the sole survivor of the viral magic that killed his family and made him a technopath. His ability to control technology attracts the attention of the minister of defense and thrusts him into the magical elite of the nation of Carolinia.
The son of undocumented immigrants, Noam has spent his life fighting for the rights of refugees fleeing magical outbreaks—refugees Carolinia routinely deports with vicious efficiency. Sensing a way to make change, Noam accepts the minister’s offer to teach him the science behind his magic, secretly planning to use it against the government. But then he meets the minister’s son—cruel, dangerous, and achingly beautiful—and the way forward becomes less clear.
Caught between his purpose and his heart, Noam must decide who he can trust and how far he’s willing to go in pursuit of the greater good.
_________________________________________________________________________________
What have you had your eye on but just haven't picked up yet? I've been creating chalkboard style signs for different library promotions and typography is very much on the forefront of my mind. And it is so much easier to create chalkboard signs in photoshop than giant real life bulletin boards. I will never do that again. It was exhausting and then all of the students and teachers would touch it to see if it was real. Yes, it's real! Quit smearing my chalk!
Last of Her Name was really good! I have struck out with every Anastasia retelling I tried- until this one! So I hope you have the same luck! As for your other picks, YEP want them all, need them all! I have Fever King, but like you I need to get to it hah. And Dangerous Alliance is too far awayyyy, sobs! Hope you love these when you get to them!
ReplyDeleteI've been seeing a lot of positive reviews for LAST OF HER NAME. I think I'll definitely pick that one up for our summer road trip.
DeleteDANGEROUS ALLIANCE - I keep thinking "Ooh, doesn't that come out soon?" And then I check and I am CRUSHED. Waiting until December just seems unnecessarily cruel.