Pubsicle #17
Flavor of the week : Orange Penguin Delight
Pubsicle is a weekly meme that combines our two favorite things – ice cream and books. We hand the reigns over to some of our awesome publishers as they highlight what upcoming releases they’re excited about.
It’s Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han
Can summer be truly summer without Cousins Beach?
It used to be that Belly counted the days until summer, until she was back at Cousins Beach with Conrad and Jeremiah. But not this year. Not after Susannah got sick again and Conrad stopped caring. Everything that was right and good has fallen apart, leaving Belly wishing summer would never come.
But when Jeremiah calls saying Conrad has disappeared, Belly knows what she must do to make things right again. And it can only happen back at the beach house, the three of them together, the way things used to be. If this summer really and truly is the last summer, it should end the way it started–at Cousins Beach.
Release Date: April 27th, 2010
Jenny Han was born in Richmond, Virginia, and later studied at the University of North Carolina. She now lives in New York where she works part-time as a children’s librarian, in between writing her new series for teens.
Website:
Reviews:
Undercurrent by Tricia Rayburn
The sirens are back, but Vanessa may be the biggest threat of all. . . .
Nothing has been normal since Vanessa Sands learned that her sister was murdered by sirens—femme fatales of the watery depths—and that everything she believed about her family was a lie.
Her boyfriend Simon’s been the only person Vanessa feels she can really trust. But now there are some secrets she can’t tell even him. And when Vanessa finds herself in the sights of Parker, Hawthorne Prep’s resident charmer, she needs someone to confide in more than ever. Doubting her relationship with Simon, unsure of Parker’s intentions—and of her own—and terrified by what she’s learned about herself, Vanessa has never felt so alone.
But personal problems must be put aside, because the Winter Harbor sirens are back for revenge. Now, Vanessa must face her past and accept that she is just like her enemies—every bit as alluring, every bit as dangerous.
The eagerly anticipated second novel of the Siren trilogy, Undercurrent is a seductive paranormal romance that will leave you breathless.
Release date: July 12th, 2011
Tricia Rayburn is the author of the Maggie Bean Series, Ruby’s Slippers, both published by Simon & Schuster’s US tween imprint, ‘In The Mix’. Siren is her first project for a young-adult audience.
Website: triciarayburn.blogspot.com
Reviews:
Alaska by Sue Saliba
mia’s heart made a sound that no one heard except for mia
late one night when she woke from dreams into darkness.
ethan was asleep beside her, and em was a forest away.
outside it was night and dark and alaska.the sky was upside down.
When Mia follows her sister halfway across the world to Alaska, she discovers that love can be found in the most unexpected and beautiful of places. But can Mia find the courage to follow her heart in Alaska? And what if the one you love is not all that you wish them to be?
A lyrical new novel from the winner of the 2009 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Young Adult Fiction with something in the world called love.
Release date: June 6th, 2011
Sue Saliba lives on Phillip Island in Victoria with her husband Bruno, her two cats Minou and Charbon, and her dog Sally. She has previously published the young adult novel Watching Seagulls, and the children’s book The Skin of a Star, as well as short stories and poetry. Her second novel something in the world called love won the Victorian Premier’s Award for young adult fiction and the APA Design Awards Best Children’s Cover. Alaska is her third novel.
Website: www.suesaliba.com
Reviews:
Visit Penguin Australia’s online space for Teens at Between the Lines.
Cover of the Week #42
You should never judge a book by its cover.
Sure….but they never said we couldn’t admire them. Cover of the Week pays homage to the beautiful and eye catching graphics that grace the covers of our young adult titles.
This week’s cover of the week goes to The Queen’s Lady by Eve Edwards
Release Date: February 2011
Exile – Rebecca Lim (Mercy, Book 2)
“All Mercy knows is that she is an angel, exiled from heaven for a crime she can’t remember committing.
So when she wakes inside the body and life of Lela Neill Mercy has little recall of her past life, except her memories of Ryan, the mortal boy who’d begun to fall for her – and she for him.
Lela works as a waitress at the Green Lantern, a busy city café frequented by suits, cab drivers, strippers, backpackers and the homeless and Mercy quickly falls into the rhythm of this new life. But when Mercy’s beloved Luc reappears in her dreams, she begins to awaken to glimpses of her true nature. What she does not know is that her attempts to contact Ryan will have explosive consequences.
Meanwhile, ‘the Eight’ – responsible for her banishment – hover near, determined to keep Mercy and Luc apart, forever…”
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Last year we were introduced to Mercy series and it got off to an interesting start. A unique concept plus a killer cover made for a great combination. I, like many, were really looking forward to the second book in the series, Exile.
When we last saw Mercy she was in the small town of Paradise as Carmen Zappacosta. After facing a kidnapping and dolling out punishment to her captor with powers she thought were lost to her, she also started to develop feelings for Ryan, a mortal. Before she could even begin to address those feelings, her time as Carmen was up.
In Exile Mercy finds herself in the body of Lela Neill, which comes complete with a dull waitressing job in a not-so-nice part of town, and a mother who is at the end of a battle with her terminal illness. What does Lela’s life have in store for Mercy and how will she ever make her way back to Luc? Looks like Ryan may be the key.
I was really hoping that the series would start to pick up in book two but it just fell a bit flat for me. Just as Mercy starts over in a new life it feels like the story goes back to square one too. By the end we’re no closer to finding out why Mercy is being punished or what she should do about it.
The main focus of the story was more about Lela’s life and problems rather than Mercy’s. Even though I still found that interesting, and the ending will take you by surprise, it didn’t quite have that wow factor. There was something about Mercy this time that made me like her a little less, some of her actions came across as selfish and careless, and since we see her and Luc together in the middle of their relationship it’s hard to understand their attraction or why they’re together.
I liked many of the secondary characters – Justine, Cecilia even Mr Dymovsky, but the villain was a surprise left till the very end. A surprise but also a bit…random?
If you loved Mercy you’ll probably still like Exile, but if you were only on the fence for the first installment, Exile might be a bit disappointing. Will I continue on with the series? Perhaps.
Pages: 293
Publication Date: April 2011
Publisher: Harper Collins
Challenge: n/a
Rating: : 
Teaser Quote: “I think I’m going to scream. Or throw up. ‘Qualis es tu?’ I think, gritting my teeth. ‘What are you?’
‘Te gnovi’, something growls into the space inside my head. ‘I know you.’”
Cover of the Week #41
You should never judge a book by its cover.
Sure….but they never said we couldn’t admire them. Cover of the Week pays homage to the beautiful and eye catching graphics that grace the covers of our young adult titles.
This week’s cover of the week goes to Undercurrent by Tricia Rayburn
Release Date: July 2011
The Peril of Magnificent Love – Emma Magenta
“A small girl called Magenta seeks love with a three-eared bunny and pursues a course to win him. Much to her chagrin she discovers the path is fraught with illusion and disillusion. Perhaps dancing will help?”
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When I first read this book it was about a year or two ago and I was in the middle of a not very interesting class at college. A girl I knew pulled out this book saying she bought it over the weekend, and soon enough a small group of us gathered around to read what looked like a very cute picture book.
The Peril Of Magnificent Love follows a young girl named Magenta as she tries to get the attention of a three eared bunny she’s in love with. Sounds pretty sweet, no? It’s 100% sweet but it’s also completely surprising.
At just under 100 pages the story is simple but the language is beautiful and lyrical. The illustrations are childlike but completely clever and at times metaphorical. The characters are ADORABLE, in particular Magenta’s favorite tree which she decided to leave behind to pursue her magnificent love. But love, Magenta soon finds out, isn’t always as it seems and sometimes we see people only how we want to not for what they are.
Even though I first read it so long ago, I had to get a copy for myself. The Peril of Magnificent Love will sneak into your heart with its childlike illustrations but it’s very grown up message about the love that’s around you that we don’t always see and the love you need to find within you. If you’ve ever been deceived in love by one too many ‘foxes’ then you’ll definitely appreciate this.
I loved this book more than I can express and I can’t help but smile every time I see it on my shelf.
Pages: 96
Publication Date: October 2004
Publisher: Random House
Challenge: n/a
Rating: :
Teaser quote: “Overcome by these new delights, she made an invocation of gratitude to the supreme deity for creating a situation where her biggest love,
deepest secrets
and superb eccentricities
were soon to be understood by a perfect other.”
*Look out for other books by Emma Magenta which are similar in style – The Gorgeous Sense of Hope (which I bought the other day, loved it) and The Origin of Lament.
Book of the Month
