New Releases: September 2016

Sept. 6

Empire of Storms (Throne of Glass #5) by Sarah J. Maas

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

The Throne of Glass Coloring Book by Sarah J. Maas

Genre: Fantasy Coloring Book

Leave Me by Gayle Forman

Genre: Contemporary Adult Fiction

Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

As Old As Time (Twisted Tales #3) by Liz Braswell

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

And the Trees Crept In by Dawn Kurtagich

Genre: Horror

Bad Girls Throughout History: 100 Remarkable Women Who Changed the World  by Ann Shen

Genre: Non Fiction-History

Hitler: Ascent, 1889-1939

Genre: Non Fiction-Biography

How This Book was Made by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Adam Rex

Genre: Children's Picture Books/Humor

Sept. 13

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

Genre: Historical Fiction

The Reader (Sea of Ink and Gold #1) by Traci Chee

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Every Falling Star: The True Story of How I Survived and Escaped North Korea by Sungju Lee, Susan Elizabeth McClelland

Genre: Memoir

Sept. 20

Three Dark Crowns (Untitled #1) by Kendare Blake

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Frost Like Night (Snow Like Ashes #3) by Sara Raasch

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

A Shadow Bright and Burning (Kingdom on Fire #1) by Jessica Cluess

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Stealing Snow (Stealing Snow #1) by Danielle Paige

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Vassa in the Night by Sarah Porter

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd (Flavia de Luce #8) by Alan Bradley

Genre: Mystery

The Queen of Blood (The Queens of Renthia #1) by Sarah Beth Durst

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Death's End (Remembrance of Earth's Past #3) by Liu Cixin

Genre: Science Fiction

Every Hidden Thing by Kenneth Oppel

Genre: Young Adult Historical Fiction

Sept. 27

Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows #2) by Leigh Bardugo

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

The Fever Code (The Maze Runner #0.6) by James Dashner

Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction

Bright Smoke, Cold Fire (Untitled #1) by Rosamund Hodge

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Like a River Glorious (The Gold Seer Trilogy #2) by Rae Carson

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Time Travel: A History by James Gleick


Genre: Science

Suicide Reviews: The Last Star (The 5th Wave #3) by Rick Yancey

 

Summary: The enemy is Other. The enemy is us. They're down here, they're up there, they're nowhere. They want the Earth, they want us to have it. They came to wipe us out, they came to save us. 

But beneath these riddles lies one truth: Cassie has been betrayed. So has Ringer. Zombie. Nugget. And all 7.5 billion people who used to live on our planet. Betrayed first by the Others, and now by ourselves. In these last days, Earth's remaining survivors will need to decide what's more important: saving themselves...or saving what makes us human.

Date Published: May 24, 2016

Published By: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Number of Pages: 338

Rating: 5/5

I'm not sure what I would have done if the conclusion to Rick Yancey's 5TH Wave trilogy was disappointing. The first two books were just so spectacularly mind-blowing that I kind of really needed the final book to be nothing short of transcendent. 

(SPOILER ALERT! It was.)

Something I've loved throughout this series is that each main character has their own agenda and this really comes into play in the final book. It's not as simplistic as 'good guys' versus 'bad guys'. Or rather 'humans' versus 'aliens.' It's a lot more nuanced than that - characters who think they are on the same side have competing interests or goals which makes for some great conflict. 

Along with delivering an epic, action-packed sci-fi series, Yancey provides some astonishing insight into the human condition. There were some lines that gave me goosebumps, they were so accurate and profound. This isn't a book that you forget about the moment you finish reading it - this is a story that will stay with you. Which is a good thing because it's a story that touches on so many important topics - humanity, love, faith, hope, violence, war, religion, education, and environmentalism. (Just to name a few.) This isn't your average alien invasion yarn. 

And, oh my God, the writing is so gorgeous that I want to have the entire text of all three books tattooed on my body. Rick Yancey is a master of evoking an emotion in the reader with just a few well-chosen phrases. 

I'm sure there are some who would disagree with me but, in my opinion, Yancey made a bold choice in how he ended the series and it paid off. It's an ending that won't please everyone, particularly those inclined towards happy endings that tie everything up in a perfect little bow and make you feel all warm and squishy inside. But I've always argued that a fitting ending is better than a happy one, and I think the ending fit perfectly. 

New Releases: June 2016

June 2

The Wheel of Osheim (The Red Queen's War #3) by Mark Lawrence

Genre: Fantasy
The third and final book in the Red Queen's War series.

June 7

End of Watch (Bill Hodges Trilogy #3) by Stephen King

 

Genre: Horror
The third and final book in the Bill Hodges trilogy.

Ivory and Bone (Ivory and Bone #1) by Julie Eshbaugh

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
A prehistoric YA retelling of Pride and Prejudice. 

Ink and Bone by Lisa Unger

Genre: Mystery

The Ringmaster's Wife by Kristy Cambron

Genre: Historical Fiction

A Green and Ancient Light by Frederic S. Durbin

Genre: Fantasy

Six Four by Hideo Yokoyama

Genre: Mystery

June 14

I'm Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid

Genre: Mystery

Cure for the Common Universe by Christian McKay Heidicker

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

False Hearts (False Hearts #1) by Laura Lam

Genre: Science Fiction

Ninefox Gambit (The Machineries of Empire #1) by Yoon Ha Lee

June 21

Zenith (The Adroma Saga #1) by Sasha Alsberg and Lindsay Cummings

Genre: Science Fiction

June 28

Age of Myth (The Legends of the First Empire #1) by Michael J. Sullivan

Genre: Fantasy

All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda

Genre: Thriller

And I Darken (The Conquerors Saga #1) by Kiersten White

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by Charlie N. Holmberg

Genre: Fantasy

Top 5 Wednesday: Fictional Items I Want

 

This week's Top 5 Wednesday is all about the fictional items we would love to own. I anticipate seeing a lot of Harry Potter items on other people's lists and not just because I have two on mine. 

5) A Babel fish from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

After Arthur gets a Babel fish shoved into his ear, he's able to understand every language in the entire universe. My own personal Babel fish would certainly come in handy when traveling abroad. 

4) A Firebird from A Thousand Pieces of You 

A Firebird is a device that allows its wearer to jump to alternate dimensions. How cool would it be to travel to infinite alternative realities?

3) OASIS from Ready Player One

OASIS is an ultra-realistic virtual reality console. Not only does it allow the player to explore multiple worlds and go on quests, it also stores every book, movie, television show, and song ever made. Like the majority of the characters in the book, I'd probably spend the majority of my life in OASIS. (Which is probably not healthy.)

2) A Firebolt from the Harry Potter series

I almost decided to put the Invisibility Cloak on this list but then I thought about it some more and realized I would rather have the ability to fly than become invisible.

1) A wand from the Harry Potter series

What kid, after reading Harry Potter, did not wish for their own Ollivander wand? Hell, I'm an adult now and I still wish I had a magic wand - if nothing else I could use it to organize my bookshelf.

Top 5 Wednesday is an original bookish meme created by Lainey at gingerreadslainey.

You can find the Top 5 Wednesday Goodreads Group here.