In My Mailbox (12)

For Review

Hush, Hush (ARC) by Becca Fitzpatrick
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Pub. Date: October 13, 2009
Age Range: Young Adult
400pp

Synopsis
For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along.

With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.
For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

Sleepless (ARC) by Thomas Fahy
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Pub. Date: August 11, 2009
Age Range: Young Adult
224pp

Synopsis (From Author’s website)
Emma Montgomery has been having trouble sleeping. Whenever she closes her eyes, all she can see are horrible nightmares ... nightmares of gruesome murder. And she's not alone. All of the students in Dr. Beecher's secret society have been having terrible dreams and sleepwalking. Now, as their classmates start turning up dead, Emma and her friends race against the clock to keep themselves awake and find out what is causing them to kill in their sleep--before the next victim dies.

Ice Song by Kirsten Imani Kasai
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Pub. Date: May 2009
384pp

Synopsis
There are secrets beneath her skin.

Sorykah Minuit is a scholar, an engineer, and the sole woman aboard an ice-drilling submarine in the frozen land of the Sigue. What no one knows is that she is also a Trader: one who can switch genders suddenly, a rare corporeal deviance universally met with fascination and superstition and all too often punished by harassment or death.

Sorykah’s infant twins, Leander and Ayeda, have inherited their mother’s Trader genes. When a wealthy, reclusive madman known as the Collector abducts the babies to use in his dreadful experiments, Sorykah and her male alter-ego, Soryk, must cross icy wastes and a primeval forest to get them back. Complicating the dangerous journey is the fact that Sorykah and Soryk do not share memories: Each disorienting transformation is like awakening with a jolt from a deep and dreamless sleep.

The world through which the alternating lives of Sorykah and Soryk travel is both familiar and surreal. Environmental degradation and genetic mutation run amok; humans have been distorted into animals and animal bodies cloak a wild humanity. But it is also a world of unexpected beauty and wonder, where kindness and love endure amid the ruins. Alluring, intense, and gorgeously rendered, Ice Song is a remarkable debut by a fiercely original new writer.

Water Signs by Daria DiGiovanni
Publisher: Daria DiGiovanni
Pub. Date: July 2008
436pp

Synopsis
Madeline Rose is a beautiful woman of 25-the daughter of a prominent Philadelphia neurosurgeon. Despite her family's support, she battles formidable insecurities, thanks to a recent, bitter break-up and a turbulent adolescence. Unsure of her future, she struggles to live up to her potential and her highly educated pedigree. Adjusting to civilian life after four years in the United States Navy, handsome, affable and ambitious Ken Lockheart has two major goals: to rise above his blue-collar, Shore town roots and to marry his true love. Though the epitome of the all-American male, he retains a basic humility borne of a relentless work ethic and an inner drive to succeed. When a chance encounter in a Somers Point nightclub initiates an unexpected relationship, neither one of them is prepared for the ensuing odyssey of heartbreak, personal growth and spiritual development that leads them full-circle to a Divinely guided conclusion.

Until We Meet Again by Stephanie Campbell
Publisher: Outskirts Press, Inc.
Pub. Date: May 2009
540pp

Synopsis
Eden Schmidt had almost always lived under the rule of her parents. Her father was vindictive and cruel, her mother gorgeous and vain. Even during the happiest moments of her life she felt as if something was missing.

Then, when Eden falls down the stairs after a particularly large blowout with her mother, everything changes. She is immersed in the world of the dead. Zemiothstai--or purgatory--is a place where demons, angels, and beasts run free.

Satan, using the power of a deadly gem called the Blood Stone, forces the gates of heaven shut. Under the calling of destiny, Eden must save the afterlife from the Devil's hands--or else.

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Lock & Key by Sarah Dessen – Guys this is my 1st Sarah Dessen book – I usually read fantasy/paranormal books.
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: April 2008
Age Range: Young Adult
432pp

Synopsis
Ruby is used to taking care of herself. But now she's living in a fancy new house with her sister Cora—a sister she hasn't seen in ten years—and her husband Jamie—creator of one of the most popular online networking sites. She's attending private school, wearing new clothes, and for the first time, feels the promise of a future that include college and her family. So why is she so wary? And what is Nate— the adorable and good-hearted boy next door— hiding behind his genial nature? As Ruby starts to see, there's a big difference between being given help, and being able to accept it. And sometimes, in order to save yourself, you've got to reach out to someone else.