Waiting on Wednesday (#68) - The Glass Arrow by Kristen Simmons

Waiting on Wednesday is Hosted by Jill @ Breaking The Spine

Goodreads Summary:

Once there was a time when men and women lived as equals, when girl babies were valued, and women could belong only to themselves. But that was ten generations ago. Now women are property, to be sold and owned and bred, while a strict census keeps their numbers manageable and under control. The best any girl can hope for is to end up as some man’s forever wife, but most are simply sold and resold until they’re all used up.

Only in the wilderness, away from the city, can true freedom be found. Aya has spent her whole life in the mountains, looking out for her family and hiding from the world, until the day the Trackers finally catch her.

Stolen from her home, and being groomed for auction, Aya is desperate to escape her fate and return to her family, but her only allies are a loyal wolf she’s raised from a pup and a strange mute boy who may be her best hope for freedom . . . if she can truly trust him.

Glass Arrow: a haunting, yet hopeful, new novel from Kristen Simmons, the author of the popular Article 5 trilogy.

Why I'm Waiting For It: I absolutely love the cover! It's both simple and clean, but it has such a good representation of what the book is about. Plus, I'm digging the green blue cover also!

The book was also blurbed as being The Handmaiden's Tale meets Blood Red Road, so I'm definitely interested and I need to pick up both books soon.
 
I also like the plot and it sounds really intriguing. A loyal wolf and people tracking Aya? Sounds great, I'll definitely be looking forward to reading this one :)

The Glass Arrow by Kristen Simmons hits shelves Feburary 10, 2015!

Find The Glass Arrow On:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads 

Fresh Off The Press (#36) - Jan 26 - Feb 1

 Welcome to Fresh Off The Press! It’s where I'll showcase all the great books hitting shelves in a week. These are all YA titles and hope you get to pick them up soon! These books are releasing from (Jan 5 to Jan 11)

 Hardcover: 

 Paperback:

Those are all the great books releasing this week! Be sure to pick them up at your bookstore or local library!

New & Clever: Made for You - Melissa Marr

Made for You by Melissa Marr
Date Released: September 16, 2014
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 356 pages
Format: Hardcover
Source: For Review (Thanks!)
Rating: Liked (3.5 Stars out of 5 Stars)
Series: Standalone

Goodreads Synopsis: Bestselling author of the Wicked Lovely books Melissa Marr’s first contemporary YA novel is a twisted southern gothic tale of obsession, romance, and murder. A killer is obsessed with Eva Tilling. Can she stop him, or will he claim her?

When Eva Tilling wakes up in the hospital, she’s confused—who in her sleepy little North Carolina town could have hit her with their car? And why? But before she can consider the question, she finds that she’s awoken with a strange new skill: the ability to foresee people’s deaths when they touch her. While she is recovering from the hit-and-run, Nate, an old flame, reappears, and the two must traverse their rocky past as they figure out how to use Eva’s power to keep her friends—and themselves—alive. But while Eva and Nate grow closer, the killer grows increasingly frantic in his attempt to get to Eva.

For the first time, New York Times bestselling author Melissa Marr has applied her extraordinary talent to contemporary realism. Chilling twists, unrequited obsession, and high-stakes romance drive this Gothic, racy thriller—a story of small-town oppression and salvation. Melissa’s fans, and every YA reader, will find its wild ride enthralling.

From Goodreads

Made For You by Melissa Marr was a big "trend" book in 2014. It had all the elements for hype - suspense, a serial killer, and a touch of contemporary it did deliver on some parts. It was a good book, but it wasn't memorable or super thrilling. Overall, I really liked reading the book and it was excited seeing how the whole thing came together. 

Made for You is about a girl named Eva Tilling that was hit intentionally but a mysterious person and she lands in the hospital. As she gets better, the whole town is abuzz about who tried to kill her and Eva soon develops a skill - the ability to foresee people’s deaths when they touch her. It also brings her closer to Nate, an old friend who's feelings for Eva soon spark. I thought the whole book had a very intriguiing and fresh idea. I liked how the book was very fast to start and things wents on a roll. Marr really hit it on point with the story and plot, but her characters failed.

Eva was a good character, but I was expecting so much more out of her. I liked the way she told her flashbacks when she touched an item and it was vivid and clear. I expected Eva to be more colorful and characterized more. She started to be a stale cracker for me towards the end of the book. I liked Nate, he really gave something more to Eva and the story and his relationship was interesting.

I absolutely loved the action and suspense scenes in Made For You! It was clear and action - packed, I loved every second of it! Marr definitely knows how to write killer action scenes and the book showcased them perfectly. In addition, I also loved how the book pieced everything together. The visions with the killings and Eva's ability. The ending was the strongest part of the book and any reader would have not guessed the ending at all!

 

Be sure to pick up Made For You! It was an intriguing and clever book and I hope you guys pick it up!

Find Made For You On:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads

Fascinating & Exciting: Atlantia - Ally Condie

Atlantia by Ally Condie
Date Released: October 28, 2014
Publisher: Dutton Children's
Pages: 368 pages
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars (LOVED IT)
Series: Standalone?

Goodreads Synopsis: Can you hear Atlantia breathing?

For as long as she can remember, Rio has dreamt of the sand and sky Above—of life beyond her underwater city of Atlantia. But in a single moment, all her plans for the future are thwarted when her twin sister, Bay, makes an unexpected decision, stranding Rio Below. Alone, ripped away from the last person who knew Rio’s true self—and the powerful siren voice she has long hidden—she has nothing left to lose.

Guided by a dangerous and unlikely mentor, Rio formulates a plan that leads to increasingly treacherous questions about her mother’s death, her own destiny, and the complex system constructed to govern the divide between land and sea. Her life and her city depend on Rio to listen to the voices of the past and to speak long-hidden truths.

From Goodreads

Atlantia by Alie Condie is the novel I wished she had written before Matched because it was amazing! It was the type of novel Matched wasn't and it exceed my expectations! Atlantia was explosive, racing, and definitely excited. So happy I picked it up and I hope you do too!

Atlantia is about a girl named Rio who always dreams of going to the Above as long as she can remember. Her sister Bay, made the life shattering choice to go Above and now all Rio has left is herself. Ever since their parent's deaths, Bay and Rio have been inseparable, now Rio has to use her instincts to fight her way through a misguided and dangerous world. I really liked reading Rio's story! She was such a easy character to relate too and connect, she brought the story alive. Plus she had such a ease to her that made the book so easy and light to read. While we have no actual scenes with Bay, Condie made her sound interesting and she does give reason to why she goes Above as you move on and on.

The book had great actions scenes also! But Atlantia mainly focused on the deception aspect - whether Rio should trust her aunt, believe her mom and the goodness of her society and trusting a new boy, the book tackled these issues in a good way. As the story went on, Condie did have some type of romance going on. Like with dysoptians, there's bound to be some love triangle right? Well, I'm happy to say there wasn't!

Cheers for Condie

Overall, Atantia was a breathe of fresh air. The concept of Above and Below was intriguing and well thought out. Rio and all the other characters had the perfect amount of characterization and the book had some great action scenes, I was SO surprised on how much a turned out to like the book! Definitely give this a try, especially if you read Condie's Matched series or looking for something new :)

Find Atlantia On:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads

Waiting on Wednesday (#67) - I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

Waiting on Wednesday is Hosted by Jill @ Breaking The Spine

 

Goodreads Summary:

If seventeen-year-old Skylar Evans were a typical Creek View girl, her future would involve a double-wide trailer, a baby on her hip, and the graveyard shift at Taco Bell. But after graduation, the only thing standing between straightedge Skylar and art school are three minimum-wage months of summer. Skylar can taste the freedom—that is, until her mother loses her job and everything starts coming apart. Torn between her dreams and the people she loves, Skylar realizes everything she’s ever worked for is on the line.

Nineteen-year-old Josh Mitchell had a different ticket out of Creek View: the Marines. But after his leg is blown off in Afghanistan, he returns home, a shell of the cocksure boy he used to be.

What brings Skylar and Josh together is working at the Paradise—a quirky motel off California’s dusty Highway 99. Despite their differences, their shared isolation turns into an unexpected friendship and soon, something deeper.

 Why I'm Waiting For It: I love novels like this, I don't know why, but something about them feels so real and touching. Definitely looking forward to this one especially because it has a:

1.) Great cover (Like come on, I'm not gonna lie)
2.) Simple, clean plot
3.) A feel-good story

So count me in!

 I'll Meet You There will be hitting shelves on Feburary 3, 2014 from Henry Holt and Co. 

Find I'll Meet You There On:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads

Bizarre & Rare: Complicit by Stephanie Kuehn

Complicit by Stephanie Kuehn
Date Released: June24, 2014
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Pages: 256 pages
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Stars (Really Liked)
Series: Standalone!

Goodreads Synopsis: Two years ago, sixteen-year-old Jamie Henry breathed a sigh of relief when a judge sentenced his older sister to juvenile detention for burning down their neighbor’s fancy horse barn. The whole town did. Because Crazy Cate Henry used to be a nice girl. Until she did a lot of bad things. Like drinking. And stealing. And lying. Like playing weird mind games in the woods with other children. Like making sure she always got her way. Or else.

But today Cate got out. And now she’s coming back for Jamie.

Because more than anything, Cate Henry needs her little brother to know the truth about their past. A truth she’s kept hidden for years. A truth she’s not supposed to tell.

Trust nothing and no one as you race toward the explosive conclusion of this gripping psychological thriller from the William C. Morris Award-winning author of Charm & Strange.

From Goodreads

Complicit by Stephanie Kuehn was one of those books that totally mess with your brain and your emotions. Simple and straightforward, Complicit was a likeable book that was definitely bizarre and rare, it had a couple surprises throughout the books and it was a good one.

Complicit is about Jamie Henry, a 16 year old boy that had a very unfortunate life. 2 years ago, he was happy that his older sister was sentenced to jail because of all the bad things she did. But now she's back and she's back for Jamie. The whole plot and concept of the book was really interesting. I was intrigued the whole time reading and it was easy to get into Jamie's story, you could definitely feel what he went through. Jamie was a great character and it was interesting seeing him deal with his sister, his girlfriend, and his mom.

The book did suffer lack of characterization and one notedes (does that make sense?) Jamie at times felt one note and stale and so did the plot. Since Complicit was a character driven book and when the characters were not up to standards, the book felt flat.

One thing that Complicit had that set it apart from one of those "mysterious-YA books" was the ending and the piecing of everything. The moment I found out how everything was connected I was like:

It was SO EXPLOSIVE! I did not expect it at all! Kuehn definitely had the element of surprise on her side. 

 Definitely pick up Complicit if your looking for a book that will surprise you! It may not be for everyone, but definitely give it a try!

Find Complicit On:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads

Crisp & Unusual: Belzhar - Meg Wolitzer

Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer
Date Released: September 30, 2014
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile

Pages: 264 pages
Format: ARC
Source: From Jen @ YA Romantics! (Thanks!)
Rating: LOVED IT (4 out of 5 Stars)
Series: Standalone!

Goodreads Synopsis: If life were fair, Jam Gallahue would still be  at home in New Jersey with her sweet British  boyfriend, Reeve Maxfield. She’d be watching  old comedy sketches with him. She’d be kissing  him in the library stacks.

She certainly wouldn’t be at The Wooden Barn, a therapeutic boarding school in rural Vermont, living with a weird roommate, and signed up for an exclusive, mysterious class called Special Topics in English.

But life isn’t fair, and Reeve Maxfield is dead.

Until a journal-writing assignment leads Jam to Belzhar, where the untainted past is restored, and Jam can feel Reeve’s arms around her once again. But there are hidden truths on Jam’s path to reclaim her loss.

From New York Times bestselling author Meg Wolitzer comes a breathtaking and surprising story about first love, deep sorrow, and the power of acceptance.

From Goodreads

First off before my review, I want to thank Jen @ YA Romantics for sending me a copy of Belzhar! Thanks so much! 

 

I was definitely drawn into reading Belzhar because of the book cover, it was so interesting and complex, I knew I had to pick it up ASAP! Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer was fresh, intense, and emotional it is definitely a book you need to read yourself to experience it.

Belzhar begins with Jam Gallahue being sent to The Wooden Barn, a special
therapeutic boarding school in rural Vermont. In The Wooden Barn, she is part of a class called Special Topics were students that come out of the class felt changed and different about themselves. Jam is one of the students in the class and she does not know why she is part of it. As the story moves on, students in the Special Topics class have to read The Bell Jar by Slyvia Plath and write in their journal. The tension and supense kicks up and Wolitzer will stun you with how an amazing book she has written. 

Besides the cover and title, Belzhar drew me in because of it's plot. It was simple, straightforward, and even had flashbacks to Jam's life before the school, it all was so clear to read. Jam was such a opening character and you could definitely feel the emotions she was going through. All the other characters, such as the students in Jam's Special Topics class: Sierra, Matt, etc all had such a complex story it was amazing just reading it. You feel for every character and the experience they went through! So much feels!

Another aspect of Belzhar that appealed to me was its action. While there may not have been guns and stabbing, there was suspense and tension in all of the character's stories. Wolitzer definitely had the perfect writing for this book and she hits everything that appeals to a reader's emotions. 

Definitely pick this one up! Belzhar was unique and unusual and that is what made reading it fun and exciting. Try this one now!

Find Belzhar On:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads