Fantastic Five: 2013 Sequels

Fantastic Five is a new-ish feature at The Hiding Spot! These posts will always feature five of something - whether it be forthcoming novels, favorite authors, books with a common theme, or newly released covers. 

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Sky on Fire by Emmy Laybourne (Monument 14 #2)
Feiwel & Friends/5.28.2013 

The world hasn't ended...yet.

In this sequel to MONUMENT 14, the group of survivors, originally trapped together in a superstore by a series of escalating disasters, has split in two. Most of the kids are making a desperate run on their recently repaired school bus for the Denver airport where they hope to reunite with their parents, be evacuated to safety, and save their dying friend. 

But the world outside is dark and filled with dangerous chemicals that turn people into bloodthirsty monsters, and not all the kids were willing to get on the bus. Left behind in a sanctuary that has already been disturbed once, the remaining kids try to rebuild the community they lost. But when the issues are life and death, love and hate, who can you really trust?

A Darkness Strange and Lovely by Susan Dennard
HarperTeen/7.23.13

Following an all-out battle with the walking Dead, the Spirit Hunters have fled Philadelphia, leaving Eleanor alone to cope with the devastating aftermath. But there’s more trouble ahead—the evil necromancer Marcus has returned, and his diabolical advances have Eleanor escaping to Paris to seek the help of Joseph, Jie, and the infuriatingly handsome Daniel once again. When she arrives, however, she finds a whole new darkness lurking in this City of Light. As harrowing events unfold, Eleanor is forced to make a deadly decision that will mean life or death for everyone.

Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris (Unraveling #2)
Balzer + Bray/4.23.13

Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?

Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
Henry Holt & Company/6.4.13

Darkness never dies.

Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land, all while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. But she can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long.

The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her–or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.

Curtsies and Conspiracies by Gail Carriger
Little, Brown BFYR/11.5.13

Does one need four fully grown foxgloves for decorating a dinner table for six guests? Or is it six foxgloves to kill four fully grown guests?

Sophronia's first year at Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality has certainly been rousing! For one thing, finishing school is training her to be a spy (won't Mumsy be surprised?). Furthermore, Sophronia got mixed up in an intrigue over a stolen device and had a cheese pie thrown at her in a most horrid display of poor manners.

Now, as she sneaks around the dirigible school, eavesdropping on the teachers' quarters and making clandestine climbs to the ship's boiler room, she learns that there may be more to a school trip to London than is apparent at first. A conspiracy is afoot--one with dire implications for both supernaturals and humans. Sophronia must rely on her training to discover who is behind the dangerous plot-and survive the London Season with a full dance card.

In this sequel to bestselling author Gail Carriger's YA debut Etiquette & Espionage, class is back in session with more petticoats and poison, tea trays and treason. Gail's distinctive voice, signature humor, and lush steampunk setting are sure to be the height of fashion this season

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There are so many great sequels releasing in the upcoming weeks and months! What sequels and series continuations are you waiting for??

Review: Unraveling by Elizabeth Norris + Giveaway

Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she's opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn't possible, she knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life.  

But her revival, and Ben's possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI agent father's files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what's right in front of her: Everything that's happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben's sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she's going to need to uncover Ben's secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process.  

From debut author Elizabeth Norris comes this shattering novel of one girl's fight to save herself, her world, and the boy she never saw coming.

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The cover and description of Unraveling are interesting enough that I had Elizabeth Norris' debut on my to-read list, but it was the book trailer released by Harper Teen that elicited the most excitement (and the undeniable need to read it). I was, understandably, pumped to find a copy of Unraveling in my mailbox, but I had no idea how seriously badass it would be.

I thought this novel was primarily a thriller and hadn't realized that it would have some solid  science fiction elements as well. I can't really tell you what I specifically loved about this book without some major spoilers, but holy macaroni is it fantastic. For now, I suppose you'll just have to take my word for it, but I seriously can't wait to see how people react to the twists and unique elements.

I will say, I'm not sure this idea is wholly original... There were a couple popular television shows with definite similarities that came to mind as I read. But, then again, many stories have similar plots. I would only have had a real issue with this if the rest of the novel (characters, dialogue, setting, etc) fell short, which wasn't the case.

The only aspect of the novel that I sometimes struggled with was the romance. I actually quite liked Ben and Janelle together, but I felt like Janelle fell for Ben a bit too quickly. Norris clearly explains Ben's feelings for Janelle, but sometimes I wondered if Janelle's main attraction for Ben was inspired by his strong feelings for her. Basically, he likes me so I like him. Not that Ben didn't deserve her attention... he so did.

I expected Unraveling to be good, but it exceeded my expectations by far. I can't wait to read more from Norris!

Balzer+Bray, HarperTeen, April 2012, Hardcover, ISBN: 9780062103733, 445 pages

Check out the book trailer: