Book Review (115). Working Stiff - Rachel Caine

Working Stiff (Revivalist #1)

by Rachel Caine

Publication: 2nd April 2011
Publisher: Penguin Australia
Pages: 306
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Age Appropriate: 16+
Bryn Davis knows working at Fairview Mortuary isn't the most glamorous career choice, but at least it offers stable employment--until she discovers her bosses using a drug that resurrects the clientele as part of an extortion racket. Now, Bryn faces being terminated--literally, and with extreme prejudice.

Wit the help of corporate double-agent Patrick McCallister, Bryn has a chance to take down the bigger problem--pharmaceutical company Pharmadene, which treats death as the ultimate corporate loyalty program. She'd better do it fast, before she becomes a zombie slave--a real working stiff. She'd be better off dead...

My Thoughts.

I am a huge fan of Caine's Morganville Vampire series, I was extremely excited to start this series being very interested in the concept of  the dead being brought back to life, but not being Zombies as such but acting like normal, everyday people, and as long as they keep taking the drug Returne daily it will stop them from decomposing.
Bryn's first embalming instructor had told her, straight up, that two kinds of people entered the death business: freaks and true believers.
Bryn starts her first day at Fairview Mortuary learning the ropes from her boss, everything seems to be going smoothly until she overhears a conversation about her boss charging money to bring people back from the dead and then proceeding to charge for the injection of Returne each day to keep a person alive, of course Bryn gets caught and is subsequently killed, and then wakes up after being given the drug by a couple of guys Patrick and Joe, who brought her back so she can help them find the person responsible for illegally obtaining the drug from it's manufacturer Pharmadene and selling it.
Bryn of course doesn't really know anything so she is told that for her to continually recieve the drug she is to continue her work at the mortuary in hopes that the person selling the drugs gets in contact with her.
Joe becomes her bodyguard and also comes to work with her at the mortuary while Patrick who is head of security at Pharmadene helps her while also running hot and cold with his feelings for Bryn.
"Bryn, my job is to make sure that you don't do anything stupid. So yeah. I followed you. When you leave your house in the middle-class version of ninja clothes, I pay attention.
I loved the interaction between Bryn and Patrick and I had my fingers crossed that something would happen between these two with his dry sense of humour.
Joe was another character that I adored, inside he's just a big softie, none more so than with his wife and kids.
You spend a lot of time while reading this book trying to guess who's really the good and bad guys and trying to figure out what the next plot twist will be
I loved Caine's foray into Urban Fantasy and I can't wait to see what's next for Bryn and the gang in the next book.
I give this 4/5.

Cover Reveal: Override - Heather Anastasiu

Override (Glitch #2)

by Heather Anastasiu

Expected publication: February 19th 2013 by St. Martin's Griffin

Waiting On Wednesday.

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine where you can spotlight an upcoming release that you're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm waiting on....

Spellbinding

by Maya Gold

Salem is the bewitching backdrop to this lush, fast-paced tale of one girl discovering the source of her powers.

It is during a routine school project that Abby Silva--sixteen and nearly friendless--makes a startling discovery: She is descended from women who were accused of witchcraft back in 1600s Salem. And when Abby visits nearby Salem, strange, inexplicable events start to unfold. Objects move when she wills them to. Candles burst into sudden flame. And an ancient spellbook somehow winds up in her possession.

Trying to harness her newfound power, Abby concocts a love potion to win over her longtime crush--and exact revenge upon his cruel, bullying girlfriend. But old magic is not to be trifled with. Soon, Abby is thrust headlong into a world of hexes, secrets, and danger. And then there's Rem Anders, the beautiful, mysterious Salem boy who seems to know more about Abby than he first lets on. 

A reckoning is coming, and Abby will have to make sense of her history--and her heart--before she can face the powerful truth.

Expected publication: April 2013 by Scholastic Point

Wasteland

by Susan Kim, Laurence Klavan

Welcome to the Wasteland. Where all the adults are long gone, and now no one lives past the age of nineteen. Susan Kim and Laurence Klavan’s post-apocalyptic debut is the first of a trilogy in which everyone is forced to live under the looming threat of rampant disesase and brutal attacks by the Variants—hermaphroditic outcasts that live on the outskirts of Prin. 

Esther thinks there’s more to life than toiling at harvesting, gleaning, and excavating, day after day under the relentless sun, just hoping to make it to the next day. But then Caleb, a mysterious stranger, arrives in town, and Esther begins to question who she can trust.

As shady pasts unravel into the present and new romances develop, Caleb and Esther realize that they must team together to fight for their lives and for the freedom of Prin.

Expected publication: March 26th 2013 by HarperTeen

Hidden (Hidden #1)

by Marianne Curley

When baby Ebony is snatched from the midwife, she is rent not only from her parents but also her betrothed. In her world, a special bond is formed with one other being - for eternity. But Ebony is no longer in her world; she has been hidden in ours. An angel on earth. Earth was the best place to conceal Ebony, to keep her from her kin who desperately seek her, and to keep Ebony from discovering for herself who she really is. But Ebony is coming of age, and then no one will be able to hide her true origins. She will be 'visible', and the one who stole her away will come back to claim her. But who will reach her first?

Expected publication: March 2013 by Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

The Art of Wishing

by Lindsay Ribar

Margo McKenna has a plan of attack for everything, from landing the part she wants in her high school musical to dealing with her increasingly absent parents. But when she finds herself in possession of a genie’s ring and the opportunity to make three wishes, she doesn’t know what to do. Especially since Oliver – not blue-skinned, not bottle-dwelling, but a genie nonetheless – can see more than what she’s willing to show him. With one peek into her mind, he can see the wishes that even Margo herself doesn’t know she wants.

But Oliver comes with more than just mind-reading abilities, a flair for magic, and the prettiest eyes Margo’s ever seen. Someone from his past is hunting him – someone bent on killing him, along with all the other genies in the world, for the sake of honor. And as Margo soon discovers, it will take more than three wishes to save him.

A whole lot more.

Expected publication: March 21st 2013 by Dial Books For Young Readers

The Disappeared

by C.J. Harper

In a future where children are segregated into institutions that range from comfortable "Learning Communities" to prison-like "Local Academies", seventeen-year-old Jackson is an academic high flyer, living in a top Learning Community and destined for a position in the Leadership. But when he is sent with his best friend Wilson to deliver a package to a factory block, the two boys are attacked leaving Jackson badly beaten and Wilson dead. Confused and upset, Jackson returns to his Learning Community only to be dismissed by his teachers who claim not to know him. Sent to an Academy, an institute set up to train factory workers, Jackson finds himself immersed in a world that couldn't be further removed than the comfortable life he's used to; a harsh, violent, semi-articulate society where the students have created their own hierarchy based on fighting ability. Using his wits to survive, Jackson starts to realise that his whole life has been based on half-truths. And in order to survive he needs to expose the lies that surround the Academy and find out the truth about who he really is. As he builds alliances and begins to educate those closest to him, a plan for rebellion and escape gradually comes into shape...

Fast-paced, page-turning, moving, yet with a streak of dark humour, The Disappeared is a very British dystopia, with shades of Orwell and Huxley. 

Expected publication: February 1st 2013 by Simon & Schuster Childrens Books

Cover Reveal: Natural Born Angel - Scott Speer

Natural Born Angel (Immortal City #2)

by Scott Speer

Maddy explores her Angel heritage—and struggles to get her wings—as the Angels and the humans head for a showdown.

Life turned upside down for Maddy Montgomery when she found out she was half-Angel and was catapulted into the scene of flashbulbs, paparazzi, and fervent adulation that comes with 
being in the celebrity Angel world.

And now Maddy must face the most difficult choice of her life. She’s been offered the chance to become a Guardian. This means dangerous and high-stakes training, with no guarantee that she can succeed. But more than that, it would mean leaving her mortal life behind—forever— and allying with the Angels at a time when their relationship with humans is heading for war...

Expected publication: April 2013 by Razorbill

Cover Reveal: Unremembered - Jessica Brody

The only thing worse than forgetting her past... is remembering it.

When Freedom Airlines flight 121 went down over the Pacific Ocean, no one ever expected to find survivors. Which is why the sixteen-year-old girl discovered floating among the wreckage—alive—is making headlines across the globe.

Even more strange is that her body is miraculously unharmed and she has no memories of boarding the plane. She has no memories of her life before the crash. She has no memories period. No one knows how she survived. No one knows why she wasn’t on the passenger manifest. And no one can explain why her DNA and fingerprints can’t be found in a single database in the world.

Crippled by a world she doesn’t know, plagued by abilities she doesn’t understand, and haunted by a looming threat she can’t remember, Seraphina struggles to piece together her forgotten past and discover who she really is. But with every clue only comes more questions. And she’s running out of time to answer them.

Her only hope is a strangely alluring boy who claims to know her from before the crash. Who claims they were in love. But can she really trust him? And will he be able to protect her from the people who have been making her forget?

Expected publication: March 3rd 2013 by Farrar, Straus, & Giroux (BYR)

Quick Q&A With Katie McGarry, Author Of Pushing The Limits.

Today I have the pleasure of  posting a few Q&A from Katie McGarry, author of the fantastic beyond words 'Pushing The Limits'.
Everybody needs to read this book!

1. I absolutely loved this book, have you always had this kind of a storyline in mind for your first book?

First off, thank you for the kind words about Pushing the Limits and to answer your question, I always knew that I wanted to write a love story. I adore writing those moments that make my heart flutter.

2. I loved all the characters in this book, were any of them based on anybody you know?

No, but I will say that I put a piece of myself, no matter how small, into each of my characters. Echo has my sarcasm, Beth encompasses my fears, Isaiah and Lila share my loyalty, and Noah has my passion to love.

3. You touch on a lot of topics in this book mental illness, abuse, memory-loss, death and love. I ended up in tears a few times, how emotionally involved did you get while writing it?

When I write, I “become” my characters. Their highs are my highs. Their hurts become my hurts. I cried several times while writing Pushing the Limits, but I also laughed quite a bit too.

A Big Thanks To Katie For Her Time.

Pushing The Limits Synopsis.

SO WRONG FOR EACH OTHER...AND YET SO RIGHT.

No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with “freaky” scars on her arms. Even Echo can’t remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.

But when Noah Hutchins--the smoking hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket--explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo’s world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.

Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she’ll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.

My Review Of Pushing The Limits
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Katie's Blog

(ARC) Book Review (114). Minder - Kate Kaynak

Minder (Ganzfield #1)

by Kate Kaynak 

Publication: 21st May 2012

Publisher: Spencer Hill Press

Pages: 224

Genre: Paranormal

Age Appropriate: Young Adult

Sixteen-year-old Maddie Dunn is special, but she needs to figure out how to use her new abilities before somebody else gets hurt. Ganzfield is a secret training facility full of people like her, but it's not exactly a nurturing place. Every social interaction carries the threat of mind-control. A stray thought can burn a building to the ground. And people's nightmares don't always stay in their own heads. But it's still better than New Jersey--especially once she meets the man of her dreams...

My Thoughts...

You know when you pick up a book and you don't know exactly what to expect, but you start reading it and realise you've stumbled across something fantastic and wonder why you'd never read it before?.Well this is definitely one of those books.

This is a re-release of this book and I can't believe I've never picked it up before, maybe this story will have people wanting to go to Ganzfield instead of Hogwarts!

I didn't want to put this book down, I was so involved in the story I just needed to know what was going to happen next, and not for a minute was I bored.

My reflection in the one-way glass of the police interrogation room stared back at me, pale and hollow-eyed.

I loved that line as the very first sentence of the book, I was instantly intrigued as to why Maddie was in an interrogation room in the first place and how she was going to get out of whatever it was she had done to end up there.

After being attacked Maddie finds in her terrified state that she has a powerful ability, she's a telepath and she can use her ability to incapacitate people, she's what Ganzfield calls a "Minder".

Oh, God. What happened - what did I do? 

WHAT AM I?

Maddie is taken to Ganzfield, a school for kids with special abilities, we have the Charms (the ability to get people to do anything you want them to), Sparks (the power of pyrokinises), RV (the ability to find anyone, anywhere), Minders (telepaths) and then there's the power of telekinises (the ability to move something with your mind), there is only one student in the whole of Ganzfield with this ability and that's Trevor.

And for those of you not fans of the insta-love, well I'm sorry to say that it occurs here between Maddie and Trevor, although they do make quite a cute couple.

I felt a primal thrill at his strength, and then smirked at myself. Geez! Why didn't I just put my hair in a ponytail so he'd have a convenient handle to drag me back to his cave.

Maddie helps restore the balance to Ganzfield after standing up to the Charms and realising that they can't control her, and so she looks out for all the other groups.

She also brings Trevor out of his shell, he was so afraid that with his ability he would hurt somebody and so would sleep in a deserted church on the property that had no electric, heat or bathroom amenities, and it's there that Maddie escapes to one night after sending everyone her nightmare that she starts to develop a friendship and relationship with Trevor.

But as with all stories there is a enemy lurking around the corner, and they are trying to capture G-positives (what the students with abilities have in their DNA) and experiment on them, but what happens when one is captured?

I'm dying to know what happens in the next book, Kaynak has built a world that has me fascinated and wanting to know more.

I give this 4.5/5.