The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

Summary:
When Ginny Blackstone lost the last little blue envelope in Greece, along with the twelve other letters, she accepted that she would never find out what her aunt had to tell her in that last letter. But when someone calls to say that he found her backpack with all the letters, Ginny finds herself heading to England again for another adventure. The boy who found the letter, Oliver, wants to help Ginny, but only if he is allowed to accompany her and take away half the profit from one of Aunt Peg's paintings. Ginny relunctantly agrees and she finds herself travelling Europe with not just Oliver, but her old friend Keith and his new girlfriend Ellis. If this trip is like last summer, Ginny is in for the treat of a lifetime.

Review:
I was really excited to read The Last Little Blue Envelope because it is the newly released sequel to a really great book, 13 Little Blue Envelopes. In the first book, Ginny loses the last envelope, and accepts the fact that she might never know what her aunt had to say. But luckily for us, The Last Little Blue Envelope provides some closure with Ginny receiving the last letter in a rather unorthodox manner.

Oliver, the boy who found the letter, seems very manipulative, because he will only give Ginny the letter if she allows him to take away half the profits from one of Aunt Peg's paintings. As the story progresses, we learn more about Oliver and start to like him more. It actually took me to the very end to start liking Oliver, but I did feel bad for him because Keith gives Oliver a really hard time.

I loved seeing Keith again, but I didn't like him as much in this book. One, for teasing Oliver mercilessly and two, for not telling Ginny he had a girlfriend. Another favorite, Richard, Ginny's uncle, was back and I was glad to see him.

All in all, The Last Little Blue Envelope was full of humor, adventure, and even some romance and is the perfect sequel to a great book. There's not much to really say except that I enjoyed the read and was glad to get some closure to Ginny's story.

Rating: 8 out of 10.
FTC: received from Flamingnet Book reviews.

2011/HarperTeen/280 pages.

Waiting on Wednesday - 38

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking The Spine for bloggers and readers to get excited about upcoming books.

Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez
Now is not the time for Carmen to fall in love. And Jeremy is hands-down the wrong guy for her to fall for. He is infuriating, arrogant, and the only person who can stand in the way of Carmen getting the one thing she wants most: to win the prestigious Guarneri competition. Carmen's whole life is violin, and until she met Jeremy, her whole focus was winning. But what if Jeremy isn't just hot...what if Jeremy is better?

Carmen knows that kissing Jeremy can't end well, but she just can't stay away. Nobody else understands her--and riles her up--like he does. Still, she can't trust him with her biggest secret: She is so desperate to win she takes anti-anxiety drugs to perform, and what started as an easy fix has become a hungry addiction. Carmen is sick of not feeling anything on stage and even more sick of always doing what she’s told, doing what's expected.

Sometimes, being on top just means you have a long way to fall....(From GoodReads)

This sounds so good! Romance, music, fierce competition, I hope that Virtuosity lives up to my already-high expectations. Virtuosity will be released October 18, 2011.

Between Here and Forever by Elizabeth Scott

Summary:
Abby long ago accepted that she can't measure up to her beautiful, magnetic sister, Tess, but at least she knows exactly what she is: Second best. Invisible.

Until the accident.

Now Tess is in a coma, and Abby's life is on hold. It may have been hard living with Tess, but it's nothing compared to living without her.

Abby's got a plan to bring Tess back, though, involving the gorgeous and mysterious Eli. But then she learns a shocking secret about Tess. Something that was always right there, but she'd never seen.

Abby is about to find out that truth isn't always what you think it is, and that life holds more than she ever thought it could. (from back cover)

Review:
I really love Elizabeth Scott and all her books, so I was excited to read her latest novel, Between Here and Forever. While it wasn't my favorite book, I still enjoyed the read.

I liked the concept of Between Here and Forever: Abby's perfect and popular older sister is in a coma and Abby will do anything to get her to wake up. When Abby sees a beautiful boy working at the hospital, she enlists him to talk to Tess because who can resist a good-looking boy? Abby is sure Eli will fall for Tess, which is what she's counting on, but when the two forge a relationship, Abby begins to reexamine how she views herself.

I liked Abby, even though she annoyed me a lot. For one, she never seemed to really like or get along with Tess, but still visits her sleeping body every single day. Abby has this skewed view of the world, in that she thinks that no one will ever like her because her sister is so much prettier, nicer, and all around better. As the story progresses, you can see that Tess was nowhere near the perfect child but Abby is still super hard on herself. It's difficult to read about a person with such low self-esteem. Luckily for the reader, Abby realizes that she has a lot to offer the world and that she deserves to be happy.

I really liked Eli, who becomes Abby's potential love interest. I'm not going to give anything away, but the boy has his own secrets and troubles, and it was nice to see Abby and Eli sharing their pasts.

Once we find out Tess's big "secret" that's when Between Here and Forever became really interesting. I had actually predicted something different, so I was surprised to learn what it was. After that point, there's a lot of narration about Tess and what happened to her before the car accident. I liked that Abby was able to realize that Tess, like any other human, is not perfect at all and still makes mistakes. This allows Abby to see her self-worth.

I enjoyed Between Here and Forever; it was a fast-paced and insightufl read. I would have liked it more if Abby wasn't so hard on herself all the time, but I know she had to be that way in the beginning so the audience could see her growth on the page. This was another nicely written book by Elizabeth Scott.

Rating: 8 out of 10.
Release Date: May 24, 2011
FTC: received from publisher.

2011/Simon Pulse/252 pages.

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Margaret Johnson

Summary:
Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and her artist, a playwright/thief/bloke-about-town called Keith, go to Scotland together,with somewhat disastrous - though utterly romantic - results. Ginny isn't sure she'll see Keith again, and definitely doesn't know what to think about him.

Could the answer be in the envelopes?

Ginny doesn't know it, but adventures in Rome and Paris are in envelopes 6 and 8. The rules are that she has to open one at a time, in order, so perhaps it isn't surprising that she discovers things about her life and love one by one. Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes. (from book jacket)

Review:
13 Little Blue Envelopes is a book that I've seen around a lot. I know a lot of people have read it, and I used to see it in the library all the time, but for some reason I never picked it up. But I am so glad I did now, because I really enjoyed 13 Little Blue Envelopes and thought it was a terrifc read.

I love to travel and go on adventures, so I loved the fact that Ginny was following the instructions in letters her aunt wrote, and that these letters were sending her to another continent. I would really love to visit all of Europe, so I felt that I was living vicariously through Ginny when she went to Rome, Paris, Amsterdam and Greece. I have already been to London and Edinburgh, so it was neat to read about Ginny visiting places I have been to also. Ginny is pretty brave, though, to travel everywhere by herself, with only one backpack and no electronics. There is no way I wouldn't bring a cell phone or camera, but Ginny was able to follow all of her aunt's directions.

Along with becoming very worldly, Ginny learns a lot about herself and leaves her comfort zone by doing the things that Aunt Peg asks, like asking a cute boy out for cake in Rome and staying with people she had never met before. I liked to see Ginny become more confident and learn more about her aunt, who was always somewhat of a mystery to Ginny.

So if you like travel, Europe, a little romance, and humor, 13 Little Blue Envelopes will be perfect for you! This is such a cute book and I can't wait to read the sequel.

Rating: 8 out of 10.
FTC: borrowed from my library.

2006/HarperTeen/336 pages.

Desires of the Dead by Kimberly Derting

Summary:
Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered—and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life.

As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger. (from book jacket)

Review:

I really liked The Body Finder, so when I heard that there was going to be a sequel, I was super excited. I thought Desires of the Dead was a great continuation of series, and added a whole new element to Violet's world.

Desires of the Dead follows The Body Finder in that Violet is still finding dead things, animals and humans, alike. However, in this case, she is discovered by the FBI after leaving an anonymous tip about a body. The FBI calls and are interested in her talent, but it's obvious that even they might not know what exactly Violet can do. I liked the addition of this special subdivision of the FBI into Violet's world; I think it sets up nicely for future books and allows Violet to use her ability for good.

Violet and Jay are still dating in Desires of the Dead, and I loved their relationship. Jay is a great guy, and it was nice to see him care for Violet. There were points in this book that their relationship bordered on melodramatic, a specific time occurs after they have a fight. Both Jay and Violet are depressed and Violet misses school, which I thought was slightly ridiculous. Regardless, I still liked reading about them, even if I wished Violet would open up to and talk to Jay more. She's very secretive at times, though I can't blame her because I might be the same way.

In addition to Violet being pulled towards dead things, she also seems to have a stalker, which seems ominous but ends up not being the central conflict. I liked the the parts of the book that dealt with newcomer Mike and his family; there was a nice twist in regards to his mother's disappearance.

Overall, I enjoyed Desires of the Dead and think there's a great set-up for future novels. GoodReads states that there are plans for two more books, which I will definitely be reading.

Rating: 8 out of 10.
FTC: borrowed from library.

2011/HarperTeen/355 pages.

Waiting on Wednesday - 37

Waiting on Wednesday was created by Jill at Breaking the Spine for bloggers and readers to get excited about new books.

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

For budding costume designer Lola Nolan, the more outrageous, the outfit—more sparkly, more fun, more wild—the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins move back into the house next door.

When the family returns and Cricket—a gifted inventor and engineer—steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door. (from GoodReads)

I absolutely loved Stephanie Perkins's first novel, Anna and the French Kiss, so I can't wait to see what she brings to the table in Lola and the Boy Next Door! Too bad I have to wait until September 29, 2011 for this to be available in stores.

Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen

Summary:
Though he may not speak of them, the memories still dwell inside Jacob Jankowski's ninety-something-year-old mind. Memories of himself as a young man, tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. Memories of a world filled with freaks and clowns, with wonder and pain and anger and passion; a world with its own narrow, irrational rules, its own way of life, and its own way of death. The world of the circus: to Jacob it was both salvation and a living hell.

Jacob was there because his luck had run out - orphaned and penniless, he had no direction until he landed on this locomotive 'ship of fools'. It was the early part of the Great Depression, and everyone in this third-rate circus was lucky to have any job at all. Marlena, the star of the equestrian act, was there because she fell in love with the wrong man, a handsome circus boss with a wide mean streak. And Rosie the elephant was there because she was the great gray hope, the new act that was going to be the salvation of the circus; the only problem was, Rosie didn't have an act - in fact, she couldn't even follow instructions. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and ultimately, it was their only hope for survival. (From GoodReads)

Review:

So Water For Elephants, unfortunately, ended up being one of those books that everyone LOVES but I only liked. I usually attribute this to the fact that the most people are (mostly) non-readers in that they don't read as much I as, or other bloggers/reviewers, do. Not to sound elitist or anything, but when you read over a hundred books a year, your standards are usually a little higher than the average person. And that's ok. So I have learned to be wary of books that everyone has read and loved, because they tend not to meet my expectations.

Water For Elephants was that book. I know a lot of people, including critics, really liked this. But it didn't pack the punch that I was expecting. To start out, I absolutely loved the setting. I've never read anything about the circus, and coupled with the fact that the book takesduring the Great Depression, it makes Water For Elephants very intriguing. And the setting was the best part of the book. I loved learning about how the circus worked, and what it entailed. Those parts were my favorite.

As for the characters, there were some I liked and some I didn't. I liked Jacob a lot. I was really surprised at his gutsiness (is that a word?) to join the circus because he seemed like not a risk taker at all. And luckily for him, the Benzini Brothers Show was in desperate need of a veterinarian, and the fact that Jacob went to Cornell made it even better. Jacob is pretty sweet and innocent, in that he can't see any harm come to humans and animals alike. This naturally segues into his attraction for the beautiful, but boring, Marlena. Marlena is married to a charming and sometimes violent man, and it's obvious that Jacob feels compelled to protect her. I didn't dislike Marlena, but she is not interesting at all, and thus the relationship between her and Jacob is dull.

I also loved the elephant that Uncle Al, the circus's owner, buys during Water For Elephants. Rosie (the elephant) provides some comic relief, but turns out to have a personality of her own. For some reason, I was under the impression that Water For Elephants was going to be about the relationship between Jacob and Rosie as he tried to train her. The part where Jacob helps to train her is glossed over and you don't really see them interact that much. I was disappointed that that aspect wasn't fully explored.

I liked that the narrative is split between Jacob in his 20s and then Jacob in his 90s. It was neat to see where Jacob ended up with his life, but I would have rather read more about the circus because that is what I was really interested in.

All in all, I didn't hate nor love Water For Elephants, I merely liked it, which is a little disappointing. I really need to learn to have low expectations when reading a mass marketed book such as this. I still want to see the movie though, and see what the director does with this material.

Rating: 7 out of 10.

FTC: borrowed from library.

2006/Algonquin Books/331 pages.

The DUFF by Kody Keplinger

Summary:
Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “the Duff,” she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn’t such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone. (From GoodReads)

Review:
I loved The DUFF! I heard so many good things about it so I asked for it for Christmas (and yes, I am just getting around to it now). It definitely exceeded my expectations and I couldn't put it down!

Bianca isn't the average YA heroine. She isn't the mousy, quiet, shy, nice girl next door that is found all too often in YA contemporary. Bianca is loud, outgoing, cynical and sometimes a little abrasive. But those things make her real. She's also smart, funny, and totally loyal to her family and two best friends Casey and Jessica. I thought she was a great character.

Bianca is also having some trouble at home. Her mother is never around, and as a motivational speaker, she is always travelling all over the country. When divorce papers are mailed in, both Bianca and her father are blindsided. She will do anything not to think about her home life, so she begins a secret affair with popular playboy Wesley. What I liked about their relationship was that Bianca wasn't just sleeping with him for the fun of it. Well, kind of, but she truly wanted a distraction. Probably not the best reason to have a relationship with someone but I liked that Bianca's motives were clearly stated. And I thought this could be a good lesson about using words like "whore" or "slut" to describe someone. As Bianca learns, it's not fair to put those labels on someone when you truly don't know what their situation is. Bianca was a good person who didn't always make the best decisions, but that's okay.

All in all, I really enjoyed The DUFF. It was witty, funny, and had a good ending. Bianca grew and developed as a character, which is always important. And I must say, I was very impressed to learn that Kody Keplinger is the same age as me! Very cool.

Rating: 9 out of 10.
FTC: Christmas gift.

2010/Poppy/288 pages.

Waiting on Wednesday - 36

Waiting on Wednesday was created by Jill at Breaking the Spine for bloggers and readers to get excited about yet-to-be-published books.

Past Perfect by Leila Sales

A summer job is exactly the distraction that Chelsea needs in order to finally get over Ezra, the boy who dumped her on her a** and broke her heart to pieces just a few weeks before. So when Chelsea's best friend, Fiona, signs them up for roles at Essex Historical Colonial Village, Chelsea doesn't protest too hard, even though it means spending the summer surrounded by drama geeks and history nerds. Chelsea will do anything to forget Ezra.

But when Chelsea and Fiona show up for their new jobs, they find out Ezra's working there too. Maybe Chelsea should have known better than to think a historical reenactment village could help her escape her past. ...or will this turn out to be exactly the summer that Chelsea needed, after all? (from GoodReads)

I absolutely adored Leila Sales's first novel, Mostly Good Girls, so I am super excited to laugh again! Past Perfect will be released on October 4, 2011.

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

Summary:
The Mortal War is over, and Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She's training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And - most important of all - Clary can finally call Jace her boyfriend.

But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering the Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine's Circle, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second bloody war. Clary's best friend, Simon, can't help her. His mother just found out that he's a vampire and now he's homeless. Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side - along with the power of the curse that's wrecking his life. And they're willing to do anything to get what they want. At the same time he's dating two beautiful, dangerous girls - neither of whom knows about the other.

When Jace begins to pull away from Clary without explaining why, she is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare. She herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. The stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels. (from book jacket)

Review:
Whew, that was one long synopsis! But I think the detailed explanation is good, because there's a lot going on in City of Fallen Angels, but this summary doesn't give that much away. When I heard that Cassandra Clare was writing a fourth Mortal Instruments book, I was beyond excited. And then when I heard that she was actually going to add three more, I was ecstatic. While I thought that City of Glass had a great ending, I was ready to read more about Simon, Clary, and Jace.

I liked that in City of Fallen Angels the readers got a lot of different points-of-view. The whole book is written in third person, but we still get to follow around Jace, Clary, Simon, and Isabelle individually and see what happens to them. It makes for a real dynamic story because all these different things are happening at once and you get to witness all of them because you're not stuck with one character. Cassandra Clare, like always, did a great job with storytelling and plot development. Everything moves quickly and before you know it you are neck deep in a pretty compelling mystery.

When I started this, I honestly didn't know what to expect. It seemed that all the villains had been defeated at the end of City of Glass, but fortunately for the readers there was still some evildoing going on. I was surprised by what was happening and I'm really glad that Cassandra Clare brought back a semi-loose end from City of Glass. She used that small detail to make a plot development that I'm sure will last through the next two books and will be interesting to read to boot.

I love Simon and his witty humor, so I'm glad that he played a more central role in City of Fallen Angels. The book is essentially about him and he's a good character to focus on. I did enjoy seeing Clary and Jace again, because I was really rooting for them in the beginning of this series. Jace was starting to annoy me a bit with his moodiness and brooding, but it's later discovered that it's not his fault so I gave him a pass. Other favorites made an appearance like Alec, Magnus and Maia, and it was good to see them again.

All in all, I really enjoyed City of Fallen Angels and cannot wait to see what Cassandra Clare has in store for us in the next two books of the Mortal Instruments series.

Rating: 9 out of 10.
FTC: bought.

2011/Margaret K. McElderry Books/424 pages.

A & L Do Summer by Jan Blazanin

Summary:
There's not much to do in small town Cottonwood Creek, Iowa, which is something best friends Laurel and Aspen are learning the hard way. Laurel is the city slicker from Chicago, who Aspen becomes friends with during their junior year of high school. But when summer comes, the girls are afraid they will be sitting around working on their tan. Things take a hilarious turn when the town bullies set their sights on making Laurel and Aspen miserable, and the two girls find themselves in a heap of trouble, including a few run-ins with the police. Will the girls be able to survive the summer without a criminal record, and will they be able to pick up a few boys along the way?

Review:
So I decided to write my own summary because the one on the back of the book and the one on GoodReads are really short and don't really explain the book that well. The synopsis on the back of my book actually makes is sound like Laurel will be the narrator, but it's actually Aspen. Regardless of the slight confusion I felt at the beginning, I still really enjoyed A & L Do Summer and think it's the perfect summer read.

Laurel and Aspen have a great relationship, which I liked reading about. Laurel is the one who wants to be popular so she comes up with all these crazy schemes to achieve notoriety in their small town. Aspen is the more rational one, but she goes along with Laurel's ideas because she really wants to do something adventurous. The two are convinced that they are going to have a boring summer, but what is hilarious is that these two girls get into so many shenanigans it's unbelievable. Most of their problems stem from these three bullies that attend their high school. For seemingly no apparent reason, they have targeted Laurel and Aspen. I thought it was a tad unrealistic that these boys would pick on and threaten Laurel and Aspen, but since it's such an important part of the story I just let it go.

What was also funny is that Laurel and Aspen get picked up by the police a few times and their parents have to get them at the station. Laurel and Aspen seem like such a good girls that it was almost comical to have them sitting in the station like criminals. Some of the times it wasn't actually their fault (they were covering for the bullies) but other times it was.

Laurel and Aspen were such a joy to read about. They were funny and definitely got themselves into some trouble, but you could tell that the girls were such good friends and would always be there for each other. There were also some cute boys in this story, making A & L Do Summer a great summer read.

Rating: 8 out of 10.
FTC: received from publisher
Release Date: May 10, 2011

2011/Egmont/288 pages.

Matched by Ally Condie

Summary:

In the Society, Officials decide. Who you love. Where you work. When you die.

Cassia has always trusted their choices. It's hardly any price to pay for a long life, the perfect job, the ideal mate. So when her best friend appears on the Matching screen, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is the one... until she sees another face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. Now Cassia is faced with impossible choices: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's ever known and a path no one else has ever dared follow - between perfection and passion.

Matched is a story for right now and storytelling with the resonance of a classic. (from the book jacket)

Review:

I was so excited to read Matched - I love dsytopias, I love love triangles and I heard a lot of good things about this book. However, while I liked Matched, I wasn't totally blown away, which disappointed me.

What I love about dystopias is the superb world-building. I always have to give kudos to an author who can successfully create a new world that feels real. I think it's much harder than writing a book that takes place here and now. I thought Ally Condie did a good job building Cassia's world. I know a lot of people on GoodReads are saying that Matched copied The Giver, but I don't really think so. Many dsytopias are going to be similar and have similar themes, and I don't think Matched was super close to The Giver.

I would hate to live in the Society. You literally have no choice of anything. No choice of clothes, of food (I thought this was really weird), no choice of job, and no choice of husband/wife. Everything is decided for you based on your personality and what the Officials think. What was also really interesting was that the culture was very limited. There were a bunch of "Hundred" lists. So Officials went through history and picked a Hundred Songs, a Hundred Poems, a Hundred Historical Events and that's it. Anything else of literary, historical, artistic or musical importance was tossed away. Can you imagine only having a hundred books to choose from?

Going beyond the set up of Matched, things got weaker. The character development and plot development definitely needed some work, in my opinion. I liked Cassia but she didn't really do anything the whole book. A lot of it is her thinking about some illegal poems she had read, which is nice and all, but can be boring. There were a lot of times that I was annoyed with her character. And one reason why was because of the love triangle. I usually enjoy reading love triangles but this one was not well done at all. Xander and Ky, her two potential choices, were too similar to make such a love triangle plausible. Xander was the nice boy next door who she was Matched with and Ky is the nice boy next door that has some secrets. So pretty similar and it's obvious who Cassia is drawn to. The "relationship" (or lack thereof) between Cassia and Ky did not develop well at all. I didn't really see what the appeal and then suddenly they were in love, which confused me a lot. For a book that moved slowly action-wise you would think there would be a lot of character development.

All in all, I did enjoy reading Matched, if for the world building and nothing else. I still haven't decided if I'm reading the sequel, Crossed. If Cassia and Ky become better developed and the plot picks up I might give it a chance.

Rating: 7 out of 10.

FTC: birthday gift.

2010/Dutton/366 pages.

Waiting on Wednesday - 35

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine for bloggers and readers to get excited about upcoming books.

Sirensong by Jenna Black

When Dana is invited to Faerie to be officially presented at the Seelie Court, it’s no easy decision. After all, everyone knows Titania, the Seelie Queen, wants her dead. But Titania claims not to be the one behind the death threats; and her son, Prince Henry, makes the decision a whole lot easier when he suggests Dana might be arrested for (supposedly) conspiring with her aunt Grace to usurp the Seelie throne. So she and her father better do as they're told…

The journey through Faerie is long – and treacherous. Dana thought it would be a good idea to have friends along, but her sort-of-boyfriend Ethan and her bodyguard’s son, Keane, just can’t seem to get along, and Kimber’s crush on Keane isn’t making things any easier. When a violent attack separates Dana from their caravan, the sexy Erlking saves her just in the nick of time… and makes it clear that he hasn’t given up on making her his own.

Arriving at Titania’s beautiful palace should be a relief. But Dana is soon implicated in an assassination attempt against Titania’s niece, and is suddenly a fugitive, forced to leave her father behind as she and her friends flee for her lives. Will she be able to prove her innocence before the forces of the Seelie Court catch up with her? Or, worse, the Erlking? And will she save her father before he pays the ultimate price in her stead? (from GoodReads)

I absolutely love the Faeriewalker series and the first two books, Glimmerglass and Shadowspell, were awesome. I can't wait to get my hands on the next book! And I only have to wait until July 5, 2011 to read it!