In My Mailbox

Okay. I gave up today. This new feature is just too tempting.

For "In My Mailbox", bloggers share about which books they got in the mail the past week.
So far, the feature has made me crazy jealous of other bloggers. IMM started with The Story Siren here: www.thestorysiren.com

The NSCGs only just recently started getting books in the mail, so I've decided to start documenting them.

In from this week:

Undone by Rachel Caine (Release: February)

A brand new series from the author of the weather warden NOVEL S, WHO’S AS “Swift, sassy, and sexy as Laurell K. Hamilton.” (Mary Jo Putney)Once she was Cassiel, a Djinn of limitless power. Now, she has been reshaped in human flesh as punishment for defying her master—and living among the Weather Wardens, whose power she must tap into regularly or she will die. And as she copes with the emotions and frailties of her human condition, a malevolent entity threatens her new existence...

This was a really good book. I'll be writing a review once I catch up with school work.

The Elite by Jennifer Banash

From the top, you can see everything…except yourself.

When Casey McCloy steps into the elegant Bramford building, she’s overwhelmed. Fresh from the Midwest, she’s moved to New York’s Upper East Side to live with her grandmother and attend the prestigious Meadowlark Academy. Here all that matters is who you know. The girl to know is Madison Macallister: popular, pretty, platinumblond. She’s not just Casey’s new classmate and neighbor; she’s an icon. So Casey aims to get in with Madison and her gorgeous gal-pals from the start. As the reigning queen of coolness, Madison is capable of destroying reputations with one welltimed whisper. Better to be on her good side.

But after a city-haute makeover from her new frenemy Madison, Casey is wearing the right clothes, saying the right things, and meeting the right people—including Drew, the boy-about-town who Madison thinks belongs to her and her alone.

I read this earlier this week, and I thought it was pretty good. But this isn't really my usual type of book, so I'll pass it on to Angela. She might write a review of it in the future.

Lessons From a Courtesan by Jenna Petersen

Lesson #1: Every man loves a mystery.
A scandalous siren called "Ria" has electrified the ton. Every gentleman in London desires her; every woman envies her. And they are all desperate to know the secrets of the tantalizing, seductively beautiful courtesan. All except Justin, the Earl of Baybary. He knows all about Ria. He learned every inch of her tender skin, every taste of her luscious lips . . . on their wedding night.

Lesson #2: No man can make you lose control . . . unless you let him.
Though theirs was an arranged marrige, still Victoria surrendered to passion and gave herself to Justin completely. When he left her alone the next morning, she swore she would never again let him into her bed. Now, though she has other reasons for returning to the city, she enjoys tormenting Justin, letting him see the way other men lust for her. But keeping herself from him is such exquisite torture . . . and forgiveness will lead to an ecstasy unbelievably divine.

I'm so excited the NSCGs get to review a scandalous book! Halley, our aspiring romance writer, nabbed this one the minute she laid eyes on it, so she'll probably be the reviewer. But I'm definitely reading this when she's done.

Brutal by Michael Harmon (Release: March)

With her martyr-doctor mother gone to save lives in some South American country, Poe Holly suddenly finds herself on the suburban doorstep of the father she never knew, who also happens to be a counselor at her new high school. She misses Los Angeles. She misses the guys in her punk band. Weirdly, she even misses the shouting matches she used to have with her mom.

But Poe manages to find a few friends: Theo, the cute guy in the anarchy Tshirt, and Velveeta, her oddly likeable neighbor—and a born victim who’s the butt of every prank at Benders High. But when the pranks turn deadly at the hands of invincible football star Colby Morris, Poe knows she’s got to fix the system and take down the hero.

With insightfulness, spot-on dialogue, and a swiftly paced plot, Michael Harmon tells the story of a displaced girl grappling with a truly dangerous bully.

I gave this one to Nora to read, but after a day or two, she admitted she had too much catching up to do in school. So now it's in the hands of Liesel, who is currently working on her review of Need by Carrie Jones.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman (Release: April)

In a single moment, everything changes. Seventeenyear- old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall riding along the snow-wet Oregon road with her family. Then, in a blink, she finds herself watching as her own damaged body is taken from the wreck...
A sophisticated, layered, and heartachingly beautiful story about the power of family and friends, the choices we all make—and the ultimate choice Mia commands.

This was an incredible book. Loveloveloved it. If it doesn't become huge, there is something wrong with the world. When you see it in bookstores in April: MAKE SURE TO BUY IT. Or, better yet, preorder it now. My review should be up sometime next week.

always,

~bella aire~