Waiting on Wednesday (6): The Collector

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It's a feature designed to spotlight upcoming novels we can't wait to get our hands on. Click the link for more!

The Collector

by Victoria Scott
Release Date: March 12th, 2013
Series: Dante Walker #1
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Genre: Paranormal
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He makes good girls...bad.

Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence has made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple, weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.
Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal opportunity collector and doesn’t want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within 10 days.
Dante doesn’t know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky, Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect—he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector, and uncover emotions deeply buried.

I am SO in the mood for a bad-boy paranormal! By the sounds of it, that part of Dante's character won't be watered down like a lot of "bad boys" in YA, and I'm excited to see the character growth. Plus!! I don't know if you guys have read Breaking Lauren by Jordan Deen before, but I absolutely loved it and The Collector sounds like a similar title only with paranormal elements. Hopefully in March when it's released I'll still be in this mood. :P

What were your picks this week? Have you read The Collector or Breaking Lauren? - Alysson

Waiting on Wednesday (4): Belle Epoque

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It's a feature designed to spotlight upcoming novels we can't wait to get our hands on. Click the link for more!

Belle Epoque
by Elizabeth Ross
Release Date: June 11, 2013
Publisher: Delacorte BFYR
Genre: Historical
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When Maude Pichon runs away from provincial Brittany to Paris, her romantic dreams vanish as quickly as her savings. Desperate for work, she answers an unusual ad. The Durandeau Agency provides its clients with a unique service—the beauty foil. Hire a plain friend and become instantly more attractive.

Monsieur Durandeau has made a fortune from wealthy socialites, and when the Countess Dubern needs a companion for her headstrong daughter, Isabelle, Maude is deemed the perfect foil.

But Isabelle has no idea her new "friend" is the hired help, and Maude's very existence among the aristocracy hinges on her keeping the truth a secret. Yet the more she learns about Isabelle, the more her loyalty is tested. And the longer her deception continues, the more she has to lose.

First thing's first: COVER LOVE. Gahh it's just so beautiful! The girl looks so dejected, and I just love how her emotion contrasts with how pretty she and the cover are... Wait though, she's supposed to be the plain friend... so then Isabelle must be already be gorgeous? O_o  I love reading about foreign countries, and the fact that Maude ran away in search of a better and more fulfilling life makes me instantly like her. Chick's got balls in my opinion. Too bad I have to wait until freaking JUNE of next year to figure out if she and I will in fact be besties. Sad day.

What are you waiting on? Leave a link! :)

- Alysson

Waiting on Wednesday (3): Falling Kingdoms

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It's a feature designed to spotlight upcoming novels we can't wait to get our hands on. Click the link for more!

Falling Kingdoms
by Morgan Rhodes
Series: Falling Kingdoms, #1
Release Date: December 11th, 2012
Publisher: Razorbill
Genre: Fantasy
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In a land where magic has been forgotten but peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest is simmering. Three kingdoms grapple for power--brutally transforming their subjects' lives in the process. Amidst betrayals, bargains, and battles, four young people find their fates forever intertwined:

Cleo: A princess raised in luxury must embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of a magic long thought extinct.

Jonas: Enraged at injustice, a rebel lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country impoverished--and finds himself the leader of a people's revolution centuries in the making.

Lucia: A girl adopted at birth into a royal family discovers the truth about her past--and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.

Magnus: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, a firstborn son begins to realize that the heart can be more lethal than the sword...

The only outcome that's certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?

I've been on a high fantasy kick after reading Sarah J. Maas' Throne of Glass. It used to be my favorite genre, thanks to Tamora Pierce, but I've let these books fall to the wayside in recent years and am struggling to catch back up. Falling Kingdoms sounds like it's filled with political intrigue, magic, and interesting characters - everything I love about the genre. However, I have a feeling this one will be written from multiple viewpoints, so even though it is 412 pages long, I'm worried about character development.

What are you looking forward to this week? Do you enjoy high fantasy as much as I do? Let me know!
- Alysson :)

Waiting on Wednesday (2): The Madness Underneath

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It's a feature designed to spotlight upcoming novels we can't wait to get our hands on. Click the link for more!

The Madness Underneath
by Maureen Johnson
Series: Shades of London, #2
Release Date: February 26th, 2013
Publisher: Putnam Juvenille
Genre: Paranormal
Goodreads 

After her near-fatal run-in with the Jack the Ripper copycat, Rory Devereaux has been living in Bristol under the close watch of her parents. So when her therapist suddenly suggests she return to Wexford, Rory jumps at the chance. But Rory's brush with the Ripper touched her more than she thought possible: she's become a human terminus, with the power to eliminate ghosts on contact.

She soon finds out that the Shades— the city's secret ghost-fighting police—are responsible for her return. The Ripper may be gone, but now there is a string of new inexplicable deaths threatening London. Rory has evidence that the deaths are no coincidence. Something much more sinister is going on, and now she must convince the squad to listen to her before it's too late.

I love Maureen Johnson. Love her. She's one of the few authors on my auto-buy list actually. I have to admit though, it took me two tries to read The Name of the Star. But after finally finishing it, I can easily say I am hooked on this series. I love their concept, and I need to know what happens with Rory and Stephan... I just - I cannot stand Jerome. Honestly /SPOILER I wanted Jerome to be killer so Rory and Stephan would get together. /END So yes, The Madness Underneath, can't wait. :} I have to say though, I don't like any of the 3 cover designs.

The Shades of London series so far:

Have you read The Name of the Star or even The Madness Underneath yet? If yes, I'm mad jealous >_> What are you looking forward to this week? Leave us a link in the comments!

Waiting on Wednesday (1): Quantum Coin

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It's a feature designed to spotlight upcoming novels we can't wait to get our hands on. Click the link for more!

Quantum Coin
by E.C. Myers
Series: Coin, #2
Release Date: October 23rd, 2012
Publisher: Pyr
Genre: Science Fiction
Goodreads 

Ephraim thought his universe-hopping days were over. He's done wishing for magic solutions to his problems; his quantum coin has been powerless for almost a year, and he's settled into a normal life with his girlfriend, Jena. But then an old friend crashes their senior prom: Jena's identical twin from a parallel world, Zoe.

Zoe's timing couldn't be worse. It turns out that Ephraim's problems have just begun, and they're much more complicated than his love life: The multiverse is at stake—and it might just be Ephraim's fault.

Ephraim, Jena, and Zoe embark on a mission across multiple worlds to learn what's going wrong and how to stop it. They will have to draw on every resource available and trust in alternate versions of themselves and their friends, before it's too late for all of them.

If Ephraim and his companions can put their many differences aside and learn to work together, they might have a chance to save the multiverse. But ultimately, the solution may depend on how much they're willing to sacrifice for the sake of humanity...and each other.

I read Fair Coin earlier this year and I thought the concept was pretty awesome. But I didn't realize it was part of a series! I'm excited to learn more about all the different worlds introduced in the first book. Luckily this comes out next week. :P

- Bill