New Releases Tuesday!

ALL MERMAIDS ALL THE TIME.

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown--Delacorte Books for YR

Barnes & Noble     Powell's

That's right, folks, it's summer, and that means mermaids. You thought we covered mermaids two weeks ago? Ohhhh, no. These are murderous mermaids that seduce land-walking folk and live in freshwater lakes. Take that, peaceful sea creatures. 

This is the story of Calder White, who is a merman, and whose family kills people in order to absorb their energy. They also hate Jason Hancock who has a fear of water. (Please don't go into M. Night Shyamalan territory again, books. I just can't right now.) 

There seems to be a fair amount of swimming, intrigue, star-crossed lovey-dovey ness, and fish/humans that murder people, which is really all I look for in a book.

Reunited by Hilary Weisman Graham--Simon & Schuster Books for YR

Barnes & Noble     Powell's

As someone who has read/watched The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants more than anyone should ever admit to, I can say I am pretty excited for this book. It follows three friends who have had a falling-out after their favorite band, Level3 (for the love of God, could we get authors to vet these names with actual teens?) broke up. The band is getting back together for a reunion tour, and it might be the perfect time for these three friends to find their way back to each other.

Aside from the awful band name, this sounds like a fun story of friendship, growing up, and moving past differences. (I wonder if they are going to realize that their friendship is more important than the band?)

Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson--Delacorte Books for YR

Barnes & Noble     Powell's

This books has a one-line description: "Four girls. One magical, and possibly dangerous Italian summer. Family mysteries, ancient castles, long hot nights of dancing under the stars...and of course, plenty of gorgeous Italian boys!" 

True story: when I was in Italy three years ago, I had a waiter try to kiss me when I really just wanted the check, and then the man selling train tickets from Venice to Paris gave me a free upgrade because "your eyes. Oh, your eyes." I found it more creepy than gorgeous, but to each his own. I still kind of want to read this in a "I hope it's a B&N special of the day" kind of way. 

New Releases Tuesday (In which pretty girls ride on boats.)

It's time for another round of New Releases Tuesday. This week brings us psychological intrigue and girls riding on boats--a perfect summer combination.

Shift, by Em Bailey--Egmont USA
Barnes & Noble     Powell's Books

I know what you're thinking: "This girl isn't on a boat!" No, she's not, but hold your horses (horses really shouldn't be on boats, either). This is the story of Olive Corbett, a once "crazy" girl who got back on her meds and stopped being "crazy" right around the time that "creepy" Miranda Vail rolls into town. Miranda takes over the popular crowd, despite being somewhat mousy and kinda icky and gets a little Single White Female on the queen bee of the high school.

Can Olive break her normalcy-enduced silence to bring Miranda's deceit to light? Will Miranda go after Olive next? Will anyone in this book's intended audience get my Single White Female reference? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Alice on Board, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor--Atheneum Books
Barnes and Noble     Powell's Books

Now THIS girl is on a boat! And she's feeling pretty nautical in her J.Crew sweater standing next to her l.l. bean tote bag. This is an Alice McKinley book--the 24th in the series, actually. (If you want to see something hilarious, go here and look at the evolution of YA book covers. We've come so far, and yet...) The book follows the popular character for the summer between high school and college when she gets a job on, you guessed it, a BOAT. There's drama, there are friends and enemies and that other word that combines those two words, there's T-Pain.* How can you go wrong, really? Summer reading funtime go!

*There is no T-Pain.

Unbreak My Heart, by Melissa Walker--Bloomsbury USA
Barnes & Noble     Powell's Books

More boats! More hair blowing in wind! Let me be alone with my sadness and the sea! Ok, no but seriously. This is all I can think of. I can't write. I can't get it out of my head.

Something about a girl who has her heart broken in sophomore year and then goes sailing with her parents, alternating chapters, blah blah blah Toni Braxton. I'll never be able to read this without breaking into song and no one wants to hear that.

Of Poseidon, by Anna Banks--Feiwel & Friends
Barnes & Noble     Powell's Books

Ok, so she's not on a boat, but she can talk to fish, so that's something, right? Of Poseidon is the story of Galen, a Syrena prince and someone who really needs to talk to fish but can't, and Emma, a girl who can talk to fish.

The description doesn't give you much of an idea why Galen needs to talk to fish in order to save his kingdom, but it doesn't really matter because mermaids.




And just in case it wasn't already in your head, here you go:

New Releases Tuesday! (In which the Dawson Crying gif is far too representative.)

Sorry for the radio silence last week. I've been busy writing things that make money (what?) and reading Insurgent (disappointing) and Bitterblue (Ahhhhh! So good so far!), both of which will be getting their own posts soon. Here are some highlights from last week's and this week's new releases:

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Hyperion


Set in WWII, this historical novel tells the story of "Verity" a young British spy who is captured and interrogated by the Nazis after her plane crashes in enemy territory.


This book has been getting amazing reviews, and I've been looking forward to it for a while. I always find it interesting how enthralled with Nazi Germany teenagers are, and how much YA literature is devoted to the Nazis and the Holocaust. I've maintained the interest, and I will be very glad to see a war story told from a female perspective, especially since the major themes here seem to be friendship, trust, and bravery.


You can pick it up here and here.

See You at Harry's by Jo Knowles
Candlewick Press


This book trends a bit younger, with the main character being only 12 and the appropriate reading age listed as 5th grade an up. Sometimes, that would make me discount a book, but this is what Kirkus has to say about it: "Sit back in a comfortable chair, bring on the Kleenex and cry your heart out... Prescient writing, fully developed characters and completely, tragically believable situations elevate this sad, gripping tale to a must-read level." 


Ok, Kirkus, maybe I will. Maybe I will.

Buy it and cry. 

37 Things I Love (in No Particular Order) by Kekla Magoon

Henry Holt and Co.

Ahhhhh, summer. Doesn't this cover just scream popsicles and pools and swimming and carefree days under the sun? You may be surprised, then, to find that this is a coming-of-age novel in which the main character's dad is in a coma. Yup. 

Check it out if you want to look like you're reading a book about pool parties but you're actually reading a bildungsroman about dealing with family tragedy! Summer fun for all!

Buy it? And...