Friday Finds and New Reads

  Friday Finds and New Reads

I thought I'd try to post something on a weekly basis that would be fun for my followers and any newcomers that join the group. And I don't know about you, but I'm always looking for really interesting story lines and new books to read.  So how about each week I post about an interesting book/s I've discovered as well as the new books that I've gotten to review? How does that sound?

Well, this week I have quite a few interesting finds I've found on Goodreads. *rubs hands together excitedly* Let's get started.

First off I'd like to mention Queen in Exile by Donna Hatch:

Summary: Rumors of war hang over Princess Jeniah's peaceful country of Arden, a land that shuns both magic and warfare. Following a lifelong dream, Jeniah forms a telpathic bond with a revered creature called a chayim, who is prophesied to save her kingdom. But when a Darborian knight comes upon Jeniah with her chayim, he sees only a vicious monster about to devour a maiden, and he slays the beast.

Devastated by the loss of her chayim, and fearing that her own magic is evil, Jeniah doubts her destiny. When an enemy invades Arden City, they slaughter the people, storm the castle, and execute the entire royal family except the princess. Rescued by the knight who slew her chayim, Jeniah is now heir to the throne of Arden and the only hope for freeing her people from tyranny.

On the run and hunted by enemy soldiers, Jeniah must place her life and the fate of her kingdom in the hands of this trained killer. Torn between embracing her destiny as queen of Arden, and her love for a mere knight, she must ultimately rely on her magic to save herself and her people from death and tyranny.

I've really taken to the historical, science-fictiony type stories (such as Eragon) and found that this one sounded fascinating. Mythical creatures, magic, princesses, who wouldn't want to read about that. The description pulled me in and I definitely want to get my hands on this book.

Next on the list I thought I'd point out is The Pledge by Kimberly Derting.

 Summary: Words are the most dangerous weapon of all.

In the violent country of Ludania, the classes are strictly divided by the language they speak. The smallest transgression, like looking a member of a higher class in the eye while they are speaking their native tongue, results in immediate execution. Seventeen-year-old Charlaina has always been able to understand the languages of all classes, and she’s spent her life trying to hide her secret. The only place she can really be free is the drug-fueled underground clubs where people go to shake off the oppressive rules of the world they live in. It's there that she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy named Max who speaks a language she's never heard before . . . and her secret is almost exposed.

Charlie is intensely attracted to Max, even though she can’t be sure where his real loyalties lie. As the emergency drills give way to real crisis and the violence escalates, it becomes clear that Charlie is the key to something much bigger: her country’s only chance for freedom from the terrible power of a deadly regime.

Now, it is no secret at all that I absolutely fell in love with The Body Finder Series that Kim Derting has written. Her descriptions and characters were beautiful and really made Violet's gift seem plausible. So when I found out she was writing a new series that would be published by Simon and Schuster, I jumped at the chance to find out just what it would be about. And from this description alone I have a feeling that I'm going to love her new series just as much. A dystopian world using different languages as the divider... yeah I'm definitely there.




And lastly, I thought I'd talk about Shattered Souls by Mary Lindsey and Hourglass by Myra McEntire.

Summary: Lenzi hears voices. She also sees visions--gravestones, floods, a gorgeous guy with steel gray eyes. She knows she must be going crazy, just like her dad did. Her boyfriend, Zak, can't do anything to help, and the voices just keep getting louder, the visions more intense. But when Lenzi meets Alden, the boy from her dreams, everything makes sense.

Sort of.

He tells Lenzi that she's a reincarnated Speaker--someone who can talk to lost souls and help them move on--and that he has been her Protector for centuries. But instead of embracing her abilities, Lenzi struggles between her life as the girlfriend of a sexy musician and the life she is destined to lead with Alden. Yet time is running out; a malevolent spirit has been trying to destroy Lenzi for ages, and he will surely kill her if she doesn't make a decision soon.

Her choices are clear: Destiny or normalcy. Alden or Zak. Life or death.

Summary: One hour to rewrite the past . . .
 
For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn’t there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She’s tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.

So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson’s willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he’s around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?

Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut.
I mentioned these together because they sort of deal with the same topics, but are obviously two completely different stories. Not only are the covers for both beautiful, but they also both have intriguing descriptions. I for one can't wait to read either one.


And now, for the last part of this post. New reads that I've gotten in this week for review:

These are both ARCs that will be released later this year and I am so excited for the chance to be able to review them. So keep your eyes open for them. In the mean time, what are you reading now? Or what has caught your eye that you'd like to read. Let me know.


Until next time! Oh, and don't forget to enter the Hereafter giveaway that I have on this blog. You have until midnight tonight!