Monday, May 3, 2010

(Awesome) Book Bundle

Kiss of Death by Rachel Caine

Vampire musician Michael Glass has attracted the attention of a big- time producer who wants to cut a demo and play some gigs-which means Michael will have to enter the human world. For this, he's been assigned escorts that include both a dangerous immortal as well as Michael's all-too-human friends. And with that mix of personalities, this is going to be a road trip from hell... -goodreads.com

Sunshine by Robin McKinley

Rae Seddon, nicknamed Sunshine, lives a quiet life working at her stepfather's bakery. One night, she goes out to the lake for some peace and quiet. Big mistake. She is set upon by vampires, who take her to an old mansion. They chain her to the wall and leave her with another vampire, who is also chained. But the vampire, Constantine, doesn't try to eat her. Instead, he implores her to tell him stories to keep them both sane. Realizing she will have to save herself, Sunshine calls on the long-forgotten powers her grandmother began to cultivate in her when she was a child. She transforms her pocketknife into a key and unchains herself--and Constantine. Surprised, he agrees to flee with her when she offers to protect him from the sun with magic. They escape back to town, but Constantine knows his enemies won't be far behind, which means that he and Sunshine will have to face them together. A luminous, entrancing novel with an enthralling pair of characters at its heart. -goodreads.com


The Alchemy of Stone by Ekaterina Sedia

Mattie, an intelligent automaton skilled in the use of alchemy, finds herself caught in the middle of a conflict between gargoyles, the Mechanics, and the Alchemists. With the old order quickly giving way to the new, Mattie discovers powerful and dangerous secrets - secrets that can completely alter the balance of power in the city of Ayona. However, this doesn't sit well with Loharri, the Mechanic who created Mattie and still has the key to her heart - literally! -goodreads.com


White Cat (The Curse Workers #1) by HollyBlack

Cassel comes from a family of curse workers -- people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they're all mobsters, or con artists. Except for Cassel. He hasn't got the magic touch, so he's an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family. You just have to ignore one small detail -- he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.
Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a facade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his facade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something. He's noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two brothers. They are keeping secrets from him, caught up in a mysterious plot. As Cassel begins to suspect he's part of a huge con game, he also wonders what really happened to Lila. Could she still be alive? To find that out, Cassel will have to out-con the con-men. -goodreads.com

Voices of Dragons by Carrie Vaughn

On one side of the border lies the modern world: the internet, homecoming dances, cell phones. On the other side dwell the ancient monsters who spark humanity's deepest fears: dragons.

Seventeen-year-old Kay Wyatt knows she's breaking the law by rock climbing near the border, but she'd rather have an adventure than follow the rules. When the dragon Artegal unexpectedly saves her life, the rules are abruptly shattered, and a secret friendship grows between them.

But suspicion and terror are the legacy of human and dragon inter­actions, and the fragile truce that has maintained peace between the species is unraveling. As tensions mount and battles begin, Kay and Artegal are caught in the middle. Can their friendship change the course of a war? -goodreads.com


Morpheus Road: The Light by D. J. MacHale

Marshall Seaver is being haunted. In the first installment of this chillingly compelling trilogy, sixteen-year-old Marshall discovers that something beyond our world is after him. The eerie clues pile up quickly, and when people start dying, it's clear whatever this is - it's huge.

Marshall has no idea what's happening to him, but he's soon convinced that it has something to do with his best friend Cooper, who's been missing for over a week. Together with Coop's sister, Marsh searches for the truth about what happened to his friend, ultimately uncovering something bigger than he could ever have imagined. -goodreads.com


Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Set initially in a future shanty town in America's Gulf Coast region, where grounded oil tankers are being dissembled for parts by a rag tag group of workers, we meet Nailer, a teenage boy working the light crew, searching for copper wiring to make quota and live another day. The harsh realities of this life, from his abusive father, to his hand to mouth existence, echo the worst poverty in the present day third world. When an accident leads Nailer to discover an exquisite clipper ship beached during a recent hurricane, and the lone survivor, a beautiful and wealthy girl, Nailer finds himself at a crossroads. Should he strip the ship and live a life of relative wealth, or rescue the girl, Nita, at great risk to himself and hope she'll lead him to a better life. This is a novel that illuminates a world where oil has been replaced by necessity, and where the gap between the haves and have-nots is now an abyss. Yet amidst the shadows of degradation, hope lies ahead. -goodreads.com


Whisper by Phoebe Kitanidis

Joy is used to hearing Whispers. She’s used to walking down the street and instantly knowing people’s deepest, darkest desires. She uses this talent for good, to make people happy and give them what they want. But for her older sister, Jessica, the family gift is a curse, and she uses it to make people’s lives—especially Joy’s—miserable. Still, when Joy Hears a frightening whisper from Jessica's own mind, she knows she has to save her sister, even if it means deserting her friends, stealing a car and running away with a boy she barely knows—a boy who may have a dark secret of his own. -goodreads.com


Source:

The Alchemy of Stone was bought at B&N at a discounted price. The rest were purchased at my local indie bookstore! :)

Most Anticipated:
Well...of course I am looking forward to Caine's Kiss of Death! That's a given! :P I bought the majority of these based on book reviews I've read! :D I did purchase Sunshine and Whisper solely based on the author reviews on their covers. Neil Gaiman recommended Sunshine and Kim Harrison recommended Whisper. So we shall see how those rec's pan out! Overall, I am really happy with this particular bundle! (I did use a portion of my tax refund money to purchase them.) Besides Kiss of Death, I am looking forward to The Alchemy of Stone, White Cat, Voices of Dragons, and Ship Breaker. So....pretty much the entire bundle! :P


7 comments:

  1. I'm curious to see what you think of Alchemy of Stone - I've been thinking about getting that book too..

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  2. A great selection of books, Lily! I see you're already preparing for Calico-reaction's June book club? :)

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  3. yay, Alchemy of Stone. i think you'll enjoy it.

    are you going to be reading along at Calico Reaction for Sunshine? i still have to get my copy...

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  4. Sunshine and Whisper, cool! I'am looking forward to your reviews of both of them. Indeed that's an awesome bundle you bought!

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  5. @Heather
    Me too! A bunch of other bloggers just read it for a book club, and their reviews were outstanding. I am very much looking forward to reading it!

    @Erika @Little Reader
    I totally didn't even realize Sunshine was June's pick for Calico_reactions book club! I just picked it up b/c of the rec. on the cover from Neil Gaiman. Now I am double excited to read it! :)

    @Nina
    Thanks! I am really looking forward to reading this whole stack! :)

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  6. A VERY nice list! A ton of stuff in here that I'm considering, too, so I can't wait for the reviews!

    Particularly: Vaughn, Bacigalupi, Alchemy of Stone, Sunshine...

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  7. Great bunch! I'm looking forward to reading Kiss of Death too! :)

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