Waiting on Wednesday: Hello Girls by Brittany Cavallaro and Emily Henry

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme that highlights pre-publication/upcoming releases that readers cannot wait to get their hands on. It is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Title: Hello Girls
Author: Brittany Cavallaro and Emily Henry
Publication date: August 6, 2019
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary

Synopsis

Best friends are forged by fire. For Winona Olsen and Lucille Pryce, that fire happened the night they met outside the police station—both deciding whether to turn their families in.

Winona has been starving for life in the seemingly perfect home that she shares with her seemingly perfect father, celebrity weatherman Stormy Olsen. No one knows that he locks the pantry door to control her eating and leaves bruises where no one can see them.

Lucille has been suffocating beneath the needs of her mother and her drug-dealing brother, wondering if there’s more out there for her than disappearing waitress tips and generations of barely getting by.

One harrowing night, Winona and Lucille realize they can’t wait until graduation to start their new lives. They need out. Now. All they need is three grand, fast. And really, a stolen convertible to take them from Michigan to Las Vegas can’t hurt.

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Waiting on Wednesday: Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme that highlights pre-publication/upcoming releases that readers cannot wait to get their hands on. It is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Title: Serpent & Dove
Author: Shelby Mahurin
Publication date: September 3, 2019
Publisher: HarperTeen
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis

Bound as one to love, honor, or burn.

Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.

Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou’s, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.

The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou’s most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made.

And love makes fools of us all. 

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Waiting on Wednesday: The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme that highlights pre-publication/upcoming releases that readers cannot wait to get their hands on. It is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Title: The Queen of Nothing
Author: Holly Black 
Publication date: November 19, 2019
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis

He will be destruction of the crown and the ruination of the throne. 

Power is much easier to acquire than it is to hold onto. Jude learned this lesson when she released her control over the wicked king, Cardan, in exchange for immeasurable power. 

Now as the exiled mortal Queen of Faerie, Jude is powerless and left reeling from Cardan’s betrayal. She bides her time determined to reclaim everything he took from her. Opportunity arrives in the form of her deceptive twin sister, Taryn, whose mortal life is in peril.

Jude must risk venturing back into the treacherous Faerie Court, and confront her lingering feelings for Cardan, if she wishes to save her sister. But Elfhame is not as she left it. War is brewing. As Jude slips deep within enemy lines she becomes ensnared in the conflict’s bloody politics. 

And, when a dormant yet powerful curse is unleashed, panic spreads throughout the land, forcing her to choose between her ambition and her humanity… 

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, comes the highly anticipated and jaw-dropping finale to The Folk of the Air trilogy.

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YOU GUYS, THIS IS THE FINALE WE
HAVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR.
IS IT NOVEMBER YET?

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Review & Favorite Quotes of Romanov

Title: Romanov
Author:  Nadine Brandes
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: May 7, 2019
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Retelling

Synopsis:

The history books say I died.

They don’t know the half of it.

Anastasia “Nastya” Romanov was given a single mission: to smuggle an ancient spell into her suitcase on her way to exile in Siberia. It might be her family’s only salvation. But the leader of the Bolshevik army is after them . . . and he’s hunted Romanov before.

Nastya’s only chances of survival are to either release the spell, and deal with the consequences, or enlist help from Zash, the handsome soldier who doesn’t act like the average Bolshevik. Nastya’s never dabbled in magic before, but it doesn’t frighten her as much as her growing attraction for Zash. She likes him. She thinks he might even like her . . .

That is, until she’s on one side of a firing squad . . . and he’s on the other.

---

I have always been fascinated by the history of the Romanov family, and through the narrative of many historical truths with a dash of magic, Nadine Brandes takes her readers on a new journey that explores Anastasia and her family’s lives. From the first page, the main character, Nastya, provides such a captivating voice and point of view that leaves the reader craving more about this mischievous spell caster and her daring trial to survive and save her family.

Romanov hits a lot of the high points of the Romanov history, but this fictional mouthpiece also provides a unique perspective into one of the most sincerest families. While the Romanovs are imprisoned and hidden from society, this tight-knit group longs for justice, peace, and the chance to truly live again. They are often thrown into such uncomfortable situations but their tenacity, along with Nastya’s fierce but playful attitude, create perfect moments of relief. Every page had me emotional invested and yearning to see hope for Nastya and her family.

Overall, Romanov is a very captivating story that portrays strengths in themes of forgiveness and love. I really enjoyed the steady pacing of the book, which allowed the book to smoothly flow and unfold. Plus, adding in a dash of magic and young love to a historically well-known story had me ingrained from beginning to end.

WIN a copy of Romanov by Nadine Brandes (USA only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Nadine once spent four days as a sea cook in the name of book research. She’s the author of FAWKES and of the award-winning The Out of Time Series. Her inner fangirl perks up at the mention of soul-talk, Quidditch, bookstagram, and Oreos. When she’s not busy writing novels about bold living, she’s adventuring through Middle Earth or taste-testing a new chai. Nadine and her Auror husband are building a Tiny House on wheels. Current mission: paint the world in shalom.

TOUR SCHEDULE

Note: Thank you to the The Fantastic Flying Book Club for having me on this blog tour. And a huge thank you to Thomas Nelson for providing me an e-ARC to read and review for free in exchange for an honest review. All statements and opinions are my own. Please note that all quoted material are not final and may change in the final publication of the book.

Waiting on Wednesday: There Will Come A Darkness

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme that highlights pre-publication/upcoming releases that readers cannot wait to get their hands on. It is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Title: There Will Come A Darkness
Author: Katy Rose Pool
Publication date: September 3, 2019
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. 
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis

Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows meets Kristin Cashore’s Graceling, with a dash of Winter is Coming, in this showstopping debut YA fantasy! 

“I dare you not to fall madly in love with these characters.” ―Laura Sebastian, New York Times bestselling author of Ash Princess

The Age of Darkness approaches.
Five lives stand in its way.
Who will stop it… or unleash it? 

For generations, the Seven Prophets guided humanity. Using their visions of the future, they ended wars and united nations―until the day, one hundred years ago, when the Prophets disappeared.

All they left behind was one final, secret prophecy, foretelling an Age of Darkness and the birth of a new Prophet who could be the world’s salvation . . . or the cause of its destruction. As chaos takes hold, five souls are set on a collision course:

A prince exiled from his kingdom.
A ruthless killer known as the Pale Hand.
A once-faithful leader torn between his duty and his heart. 
A reckless gambler with the power to find anything or anyone.
And a dying girl on the verge of giving up.

One of them―or all of them―could break the world. Will they be savior or destroyer? Perfect for fans of Throne of Glass, Children of Blood and Bone, and An Ember in the Ashes.

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