In My Mailbox 146

This meme was started by Kristi of The Story Siren who was inspired by Alea from Pop Culture Junkie. Check out their blogs for more information. All summaries are from the book jackets unless otherwise stated.

This is for the last few weeks as there have been THINGS going on that got in the way of posting IMM and I also came home to a mound of packages so there are a lot of books this time! Here you go!

Review:

Warm Bodies – Isaac Marion

R is a zombie.

He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he is a little different from his fellow Dead.

And then he meets a girl.

First as his prisoner, then as his reluctant guest, Julie is a blast of colour in R’s grey landscape, and something inside him begins to bloom.

He doesn’t want to eat her, he wants to protect her. He wants to breathe again. He wants to live.

This unlikely bond will cause transformations they can’t imagine, but their hopeless world won’t change without a fight.

Can’t wait to read this. Thanks Random House!

The Disgrace of Kitty Grey – Mary Hooper

England, 1813. Kitty Grey has a happy, carefree life as a dairymaid. She loves her trade, caring for the herd and working in the cool, calm dairy. And then, of course, there is Will, the handsome river man who she thinks is very fond of her, and indeed she is fond of him. Surely he will ask her to marry him soon?

Then disaster strikes: Will disappears. Kitty is first worried then furious, convinced Will has gone to London to make his fortune, forgetting about her completely. So when she is asked to go to London to pick up a copy of the latest novel by the fashionable Jane Austen, she leaps at the chance to track down Will. But within moments, eagle-eyed pickpockets have spotted country-born-and-bred Kitty and relieved her of her money and belongings. Kitty must face the terrifying prospect of stealing in order to survive...

I loved Mary Hooper’s last novel, Velvet, so I’m really looking forward to this. Thanks Bloomsbury!

Burn for Burn – Jenny Hand and Siobhan Vivian

Bad things can happen, even to good girls, and sometimes the only way to make things right is to do something wrong.

Lillia used to trust boys, but not after what happened this summer. And she’ll do anything to stop the same thing happening to her sister.

Kat’s over the rumours, the insults, the cruel jokes made at her expense. It all goes back to one person – her ex best friend – and now it’s payback time.

Four years ago, Mary left town because of a boy. Now that she’s back, she’s going after him and she’s going to make him pay.

Three very different girls who want the same thing: revenge, sweet revenge. And they won’t stop until they’ve each had a taste.

SO exicted for this! Thanks S&S!

This is What Happy Looks Like – Jennifer E Smith

(Description from the press release) In This is What Happy Looks Like, perfect strangers Graham Larkin and Ellie O’Neill meet – albeit virtually – when Graham accidentally sends Ellie an email about his pet pig, Wilbur. In the tradition of romantic comedies You’ve Got Mail and Sleepless in Seattle, the two 17-year-olds strike up an email relationship, even though they live on opposite sides of the country and don’t even know each other’s first names.

Through a series of funny and poignant messages, Graham and Ellie make a true connection, sharing intimate details about their lives, hopes and fears. But they don’t tell each other everything; Graham doesn’t know the major secret hidden in Ellie’s family tree, and Ellie is innocently unaware that Graham is actually a world-famous teen actor living in LA.

When the location for a the shoot of Graham’s new film falls through, he sees an opportunity to take their relationship from online to in-person, managing to get the production relocated to picturesque Henley, Maine where Ellie lives. But can a star as famous as Graham have a real relationship with an ordinary girl like Ellie? And why does Ellie’s mom want her to avoid the media’s spotlight at all costs?

Can’t wait to read this! Thanks Headline!

I went to the Chicken House Little Breakfast and picked up proofs of these two lovelies and managed to get them signed too!

The Drowning – Rachel Ward

When Carl opens his eyes on the bank of a cold lake, his brother is being zipped into a body bag. And a shivering wet girl is being helped nearby. What happened in the water? He can’t remember. All he knows is that he must find out – before the truth comes back to drown him...

You Don’t Know Me – Sophia Bennett

It was all so good. Sasha and Rose. Best friends in a band, singing together. Right up to the finals of Killer Act when the judges tell them one of them must go.

Suddenly their friendship is put to the ultimate test. On TV in front of millions...

Two girls. One huge mistake. Can they ever forgive each other?

Prodigy – Marie Lu

Missing

June Iparis

Agent, Los Angeles City Patrol, 15, female, 5 ft 4 in.

350,000 Republic Notes reward

If seen, report immediately to your local official

That’s what The Republic wants their people to think. That I’m ‘missing’.

What they don’t say is that they want me dead.

I helped Day, the country’s most notorious criminal, escape his executionaided the rebel  patriots in  staged uprising and turned my back on The Republic.

But I won’t turn my back on Day...

Thanks Puffin!

Hunger – Melvin Burgess

When Beth wakes up one morning covered in dirt, she puts it down to an extreme case of sleepwalking.

But when reports of a desecrated grave start to circulate, her night-time wanderings take on a sinister air.

Soon the city is being plagued by strange sightings and sudden disappearances.

Beth knows that something is changing within her.

Something that’s filling her with an urgent, desperate hunger that demands to be satisfied – at any cost...

I love Melvin Burgess! Thanks Random House!

Drowning Instinct – Ilsa J Bick

Falling for a teacher breaks all the rules...

...what if he wants to break them too?

Jenna’s parents say they love her.

So why do they ignore her?

Jenna’s brother says he loves her.

So why hasn’t he visited her in years?

Jenna’s teacher says he loves her.

He treats her well, he protects her and tells her she’s beautiful.

Mr Anderson is the only one she can trust.

So why is Jenna telling her story to a detective?

CAN’T WAIT to read this! Thanks Quercus!

The Hit – Melvin Burgess

A new drug is out.

Everyone is talking about it. The hit.

Take it, and you have one amazing week to live. It’s the ultimate high. At the ultimate price.

Adam is tempted. Life is rubbish: his girlfriend’s over him, his brother’s gone. So what’s he got to lose? Everything, as it turns out. It’s up to his girlfriend, Lizzie, to show him...

Yay, a new Melvin Burgess! I love his novels and this one sounds fantastic. Thanks Chicken House!

One Crow Alone – SD Crockett

‘They say it’s going to get worse. That it’s not going to end.’

The cold, bitter winters are getting longer, and a state of emergency has been declared across Europe. After the death of her grandmother and the evacuation of her small Polish village, sixteen-year-old Magda is running out of options. Joining forces with the arrogant yet resourceful Ivan, she smuggles her way on to a truck bound for London. But London, when they reach it, is a nightmarish world, and far from welcoming. The pair will need all the cunning and know-how they possess to survive – if they can trust each other.

A darkly thrilling adventure by the author of After the Snow.

I haven’t got around to After the Snow yet, but I am looking forward to reading both books. Thanks Macmillan!

I also got an incredible package from MiraINk as a thank you for taking part in round two of BlogInk. I feel sorry for the postman having to lug them round with him!

I also got copies of:

The Day I Met Suzie, Chris Higgins (Hodder)

While the Others Sleep, Tom Becker (Scholastic)

Parallel, Lauren Miller (Scholastic)

Dead to You, Lisa McMann (Scholastic)

Beautiful Creatures: The Official Illustrated Movie Companion, Mark Cotta Vaz (Penguin)

Rat Runners, Oisin McGann (Random House)

Bought:

Devil’s Due – Rachel Caine

The psychic world will never be the same again.

Lucia Garza is trapped in a supernatural power struggle. To save a friend she agreed to work for sinister psychic organisation The Cross Society. But after a death threat that almost succeeds, she’s starting to think they want her out of the way. Forever.

Worse, as Lucia uncovers the society’s most dangerous secrets, she discovers that she’s being used as a pawn between two warring paranormal factions. Caught in a battle no one can win, Lucia’s only choice could be to go against long-told prophecy to destroy both The Cross Society and its sworn enemies.

 But what are the consequences of defying destiny?

Yay! I love Rachel Caine!

Library Haul:

In one of my English seminars we read two of Atwood’s short stories, The Female Body and Making a Man, and I feel in love with them. After a tweet to see which of her novels I should read first, I headed off the library and picked up the two with the most recommendations.

The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood

The Republic of Gilead allows Offred only one function: to breed. If she deviates, she will, like all dissenters, be hanged at the wall or sent out to die slowly of radiation sickness. But even a repressive state cannot obliterate desire – neither Offred’s nor that of the two men on whom her future hangs...

Firstly, I’ve been meaning to read this for years so it’s great to finally cross it off the list, secondly, this cover is hideous. Ergh.

Cat’s Eye – Margaret Atwood

‘If I were to meet Cordelia again, what would I tell her about myself? The truth, or whatever would make me look good? Probably the latter. I still have that need.’

Elaine RIsley, a painter, returns to Toronto to find herself overwhelmed by her past. Memories of childhood – unbearable betrayals and cruelties – surface relentlessly, forcing her to confront the spectre of Cordelia, once her best friend and tormentor, who has haunted her for forty years.

This was the one that was recommended the most. I’d actually never heard of it, but I’m looking forward to giving it a shot.

Sophie