Waiting on Wednesday: Fury

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that bloggers are eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Fury by Elizabeth Miles
Publication Date: 1st September 2011
From Amazon UK
In book one of the Fury trilogy, Em Winters and Chase Singer discover that a little guilt isn't the only consequence of doing wrong. After Em hooks up with her best friend's boyfriend and Chase's secret harassment of a social outcast spirals out of control, three mysterious Furies-paranormal creatures that often assume the form of beautiful women-come to town to make sure that Em and Chase get what they deserve. Not everyone will survive-and those who do will discover there are worse punishments than death. But when Em befriends outcast Drea and learns more about who and what the Furies really are, she becomes resolved above all to take them down and stop their plans. Little does Em know that, by confronting the Furies, she could become inextricably bound to them for life.

This Wednesday I am waiting on yet another Greek Mythology book. I love the Greek Mythology trend in YA at the moment and am hugely excited because Fury merges together Contemporary YA and Greek Myth which are two genres I absolutely love. I’ve heard some mixed early reviews from my blogger friends who were lucky enough to receive it early but because it ticks all of my boxes I’m more than willing to give this one a try! With it out in just over a week here in the UK I haven’t got long to wait but regardless I’m counting down the days!

What's your "waiting on" pick this week?

Bookish News! Featuring Pandemonium Giveaway, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Velvet and Tesco’s Book Blog...

What better way to start the weekend than by telling you guys about some exciting book news! All info was emailed to me from reliable sources so big thank you’s to the publishers who email me giving me juicy info to share with my readers!

So first up is something I myself am hugely excited about. With Delirium by Lauren Oliver now out in paperback the lovely people at Hodder are celebrating by running a competition exclusive to the UK where you can win one of the first five UK proofs of Lauren’s upcoming novel, Pandemonium, the follow on from Delirium. Exciting much!? Anyone can enter as long as you live in the UK for more info follow the link to enter here.

Also from Hodder we have the final cover reveal for the highly anticipated Daughter of Smoke and Bone. I love this cover almost as much as I loved the book itself and can’t wait for it to be released into the wild on September 29th. Here is also the new stunning UK trailer, for more information on Daughter of Smoke and Bone check out my review here.

Click on image to enlarge

For more September news Mary Hooper is releasing her new book Velvet a creepy sounding historical fiction from this much loved author. She’s planning on making some public appearances in September to promote the new book. Here are the details below. If you’re around the area you really should stop by!

6pm, Tuesday 20th September
Just Imagine Story Centre, 64-68 New London Road, Chelmsford, CM2 0PD
Tel 01245 267748
Tickets: £5
info@justimaginestorycentre.co.uk
http://www.justimaginestorycentre.co.uk/content/writing-children-group-mary-hooper

2pm, Sunday 25th September
Guildhall, High Street, Bath BA1 4BX
Tel: 01225 463 362
Tickets: £5
bathboxoffice@bathfestivals.org.uk
http://www.bathkidslitfest.org.uk/celiareesandmaryhooper.aspx

And for my last piece of gossip Tesco have launched a fabulous book blog! I tend to get a lot of my books from Tesco thanks to their amazing offers and Tesco Books are sure to offer up some really exciting posts with sneak previews, author interviews, giveaways and competitions. I and some fellow UK book bloggers are also set to participate in some posts so keep your eyes peeled for those! Click on this link to take you to the blog and you can follow them on twitter @TescoBooks

That’s all from me for now, have a fabulous weekend!

Jess x

Review for Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Synopsis
"Errand requiring immediate attention. Come.

The note was on vellum, pierced by the talons of the almost-crow that delivered it. Karou read the message. 'He never says please', she sighed, but she gathered up her things.

When Brimstone called, she always came.

In general, Karou has managed to keep her two lives in balance. On the one hand, she's a seventeen-year-old art student in Prague; on the other, errand-girl to a monstrous creature who is the closest thing she has to family. Raised half in our world, half in 'Elsewhere', she has never understood Brimstone's dark work - buying teeth from hunters and murderers - nor how she came into his keeping. She is a secret even to herself, plagued by the sensation that she isn't whole.

Now the doors to Elsewhere are closing, and Karou must choose between the safety of her human life and the dangers of a war-ravaged world that may hold the answers she has always sought."

Critical acclaim for Daughter of Smoke and Bone has been building steadily over the past few months in anticipation for its release and I am pleased to say that I concur with all of the early high praise. Due to all the hype I had pretty high expectations for this book before starting it but even still I wasn’t prepared for how awesome this book truly is and how fiercely I would love it.

This review is going to be one of those terribly hard ones to write simply because the books too good to put into words. You can’t explain how amazing it is it’s something people have to experience for themselves. To put it simply this book blew my mind.

Laini Taylor is a remarkable storyteller and has created a rich and absorbing new world that’s completely different to anything else out there. Daughter of Smoke and Bone has a little bit of everything and therefore something to offer any reader, of any age, gender and preference in genre. Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a story of war and magic, beasts with hearts of gold and sadistic blood thirsty angels but at the centre of it all is an epic love story that has the power to change everything. Daughter of Smoke and Bone isn’t the kind of book that I would recommend to just fans of young adult fiction but to anybody, anyone who can appreciate a good story.

Our main character Karou is a strong and quirky heroine who enthrals those around her with her art and stories about demons and beast like creatures. Her friends just presume she has a vivid imagination but despite her teasing smile Karou has never told her friends a lie. The stories she tells are her life, her life bought up by monsters in a place called Elsewhere running strange and dangerous errands for her guardian and father figure Brimstone who grants wishes in exchange for teeth. Karou knows little about her past and the world where Brimstone is from but now the portals to Elsewhere are closing. Cut off from the only family she’s ever known Karou must at last unlock the secrets of her past in order to understand her fate.

Karou is such a kooky, interesting character who I found so easy to like. Like the world of Elsewhere there are many secrets and layers to Karou. For instance she has blue hair that grows out of her head that colour, tattoos that she’s had for as long as she can remember and bullet scars on her stomach. Why I hear you ask? That’s something you’re going to have to read and find out for yourself but it’s almost as if you unlock Karou as you read on and discover more about Elsewhere and I loved how the intrigue and mystery not only focused on the plot but on Karou also.

Laini Taylor’s writing is exquisite. Her descriptions of a dark and wintery Prague engross and captivate the reader from the start. Laini’s a genius at atmospheric writing and creates a gothic and haunting backdrop for her story of monsters and demons.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a magical and engrossing book that is still going through my mind days later. Laini Taylor has created something different and exciting and I predict that it’s going to be HUGE. It certainly deserves to be. Daughter of Smoke and Bone is easily the best book I’ve read all year and I’m sure it will remain a favourite for years to come.
My Rating 5/5 stars

Synopsis taken from Amazon

Thanks go to Hodder for sending me this book to review

Review for Outside the Ordinary World by Dori Ostermiller

Synopsis
"A wife. A husband. A lover. A chance to leave her ordinary life? There had been no rain for weeks; the air crackled, the brushfires burned, her childhood ended. The summer of 1970 – a whisper from her mother’s lips told a secret that would destroy her family – a burden too heavy for a young girl to carry. Sylvia Sandon swore then and there she would never become her mother. Now Sylvia is walking the same illicit path towards temptation – into an affair she feels powerless to resist. The man she married, the father of her children, lies next to her in bed. The breathing that once lulled her to sleep now grating on her nerves. Sylvia has a chance to leave this ordinary life. Behind her are the ravaged remains of her childhood, in front the bittersweet safety of family life…or the exquisite torment of infidelity. One woman. Two paths. A forbidden moment of happiness or a lifetime of quiet regret."

Dori Ostermiller’s debut novel Outside the Ordinary World has already been received with high critical acclaim in the US, that, along with the beautiful cover and intriguing family drama described in the synopsis had me very excited to read this one and straight from the beginning I could see what all the fuss was about. Dori’s writing grips you from the start, the beautiful imagery wrapping itself around you like a blanket. Despite Outside the Ordinary World being a debut it’s clear that Ostermiller is already a fine storyteller.

The book is told in alternate chapters flitting from present to past. Both time periods are told from our main character Sylvia’s perspective in 1970 as a child and 2004 as an adult. The alternate chapters each tell their own separate story of adultery. In the summer of 1970 Sylvia is a witness and accomplice in her own mother’s affair, carrying the burden of a secret that could destroy her family. And in present day 2004 Sylvia has grown into a troubled adult haunted by her mother’s mistakes and her own guilt for her part in them, now Sylvia is heading down the same illicit path of destruction despite swearing that she would never make her mother’s mistakes. The alternate chapters are essential to understanding Sylvia as a person and why she makes the choices she does and whilst both Sylvia and her mother’s stories mirror one another both women have very different reasons behind their adultery. Outside the Ordinary World explores the different reasons why somebody might be tempted into the arms of another and the what ifs and maybe the grass really is greener that comes along with stepping out of your day to day life.

Outside the Ordinary World is a very honest, moving account on secrets, family, marriage and the ultimate question can one ever truly escape their past? Many of the characters –especially Sylvia- are very raw and not always the easiest characters to like. But in a strange way I could respect that and thought that it fleshed them out and made them even more believable. Although I didn’t necessarily agree with Sylvia’s actions I could understand her reasoning behind them and ultimately I believe that that’s what Ostermiller wanted to get across in the first place, she wasn’t trying to excuse adultery but explain it.

This book gives the reader plenty of food for thought and delves into the torment and destruction of infidelity holding nothing back. If you’ve ever wondered how someone could so easily risk everything Outside the Ordinary World is a book that will take you through the motions. A stunning debut that I would recommend to anybody who’s ever wondered, what if?
My Rating 4/5 stars

Thanks go to Mira for sending me this book to review

Introducing my new feature: Readers Choice- Where YOU take charge

Hello fellow readers!

Today I’m extremely excited to finally be bringing to you a new feature I’ve been mulling over for some time now Readers Choice. So here’s the deal I wanted to think of a way to interact with you guys more, if your here I take it you’re a book lover and I know a lot of my followers are also fellow book bloggers. Having a book blog is mainly all about recommending to your readers books that you’ve enjoyed. If you follow my blog I take it we have very similar tastes and so once a month I want to turn the tables and have YOU guys recommend a book to ME. On the second week of every month I will do a post similar to this one with a list of 6 books from my to be read pile, sporting a little something from each genre I’m interested in. The books in question will all be books I haven’t picked up yet for whatever reason but want to. I’ll post the title, author, cover and synopsis and you my lovely readers can vote and on the second week of the following month I will announce the winner and read and review it for you. Voting will be open to absolutely anybody whether you’re a follower or not I’d love your input. You can also vote for any reason you want whether that’s because you’ve read and loved the book, are interested in the sound of the book and would like me to review it for you, or even if you simply think it sounds like a good book and I should give it a go.

I really love this idea of interacting with you guys more, reading books I might not have picked up next, finding out my readers opinions on books and most importantly giving you guys the chance to have your input on Jess Hearts Books and reviewing one book a month that your personally interested in. Obviously for this feature to take off its going to need a LOT of reader interaction so if you like this idea I would REALLY appreciate you taking the time to vote and have your say :-)

I think I’ve covered everything and I’m sure you’ll get the general idea more and more as the months go on. If you want to make a request for future Readers Choice Nominees that option will be available in the form and if it sounds like something I’d enjoy and I haven’t read it yet then you never know it may just appear in a vote!

So I’m going to stop rambling and put up the vote for Septembers Readers Choice. Fill out the form bellow to vote and the winning book will be announced, read and reviewed next month with a fresh batch of books to vote for, so without further ado it's over to you! :D

Septembers Readers Choice Nominees


Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore

Amy Goodnight's family are far from normal. She comes from a long line of witches, and grew up surrounded by benevolent spirits and kitchen spells. All fairly harmless, but Amy can't wait to get to college and escape the "family business".

But things take a darker turn when she and her sister Phin spend the summer looking after Aunt Hyacinth's ranch. Amy is visited by a midnight spectre who is clearly trying to send her a message. It seems that the discovery of an old grave on a neighbour's land has been the catalyst for an apparent ghost uprising.

Aided by local friends and Ben, the handsome cowboy who just can't take his eyes off Amy, the sisters investigate. And they soon find that there's something strange and dangerous going on, deep in the heart of Texas...


The Single Girl's To-Do List by Lindsey Kelk

Rachel Summers loves a to-do list:

• Boyfriend
• Flat
• Great job

NOT on the list:

• Being dumped

Best friends Emelie and Matthew ride to her rescue with an entirely new kind of list – The Single Girl’s To-Do List. Rachel doesn’t know it, but it will take her on all kinds of wild adventures – and get her in some romantic pickles too. And then it won't be a case of what but who she decides to tick off…

• Mr. bendy yoga instructor
• Mr. teenage sweetheart
• Mr. persistent ex
• Mr. deeply unsuitable

The Single Girl’s To-Do List gives Rachel the perfect heartbreak cure – and proves love is out there if you’re willing to take a chance.


The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 14:
Debate Club.
Her father’s “bunny rabbit.”
A mildly geeky girl attending a highly competitive boarding school.

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 15:
A knockout figure.
A sharp tongue.
A chip on her shoulder.
And a gorgeous new senior boyfriend: the supremely goofy, word-obsessed Matthew Livingston.

Frankie Laundau-Banks.
No longer the kind of girl to take “no” for an answer.
Especially when “no” means she’s excluded from her boyfriend’s all-male secret society.
Not when her ex boyfriend shows up in the strangest of places.
Not when she knows she’s smarter than any of them.
When she knows Matthew’s lying to her.
And when there are so many, many pranks to be done.

Frankie Landau-Banks, at age 16:
Possibly a criminal mastermind.

This is the story of how she got that way.


Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs

Tempest Maguire wants nothing more than to surf the killer waves near her California home, continue her steady relationship with her boyfriend, Mark, and take care of her brothers and surfer dad. But Tempest is half mermaid, and as her seventeenth birthday approaches, she will have to decide whether to remain on land or give herself to the ocean like her mother. The pull of the water becomes as insistent as her attraction to Kona, a gorgeous surfer whose uncanny abilities hint at an other-worldly identity as well. And when Tempest does finally give in to the water's temptation and enters a fantastical underwater world, she finds that a larger destiny awaits her - and that the entire ocean's future hangs in the balance.



The Woman He Loved Before by Dorothy Koomson

Libby has a good life with a gorgeous husband and a home by the sea. But over time she is becoming more unsure if Jack has ever loved her - and if he is over the death of Eve, his first wife. When fate intervenes in their relationship, Libby decides to find out all she can about the man she hastily married and the seemingly perfect Eve. But in doing so she unearths devastating secrets. Frightened by what she finds and the damage it could cause, Libby starts to worry that she too will end up like the first woman Jack loved ...




Entwined by Heather Dixon

Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing it's taken away. All of it.

The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation.

Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest.

But there is a cost.

The Keeper likes to keep things.

Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late.

This vote is now closed check out the results here!