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. 

________________________________

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

_________________________________

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

Interview & Giveaway with Shadow and Bone Author, Leigh Bardugo!

Today Leigh Bardugo, debut author of the fantastic Shadow and Bone, is here at The Hiding Spot to answer a few questions about her novel, her inspiration, words, and hiding spots. Enjoy!

___________________

Did you have trouble writing any of your characters or specific scenes within the novel? Or, were any characters or scenes particularly easy to write? 

There's a scene a little over halfway through the book that I call the "pivot," where everything changes for my main character. Big revelations. Lots of new information. I rewrote that scene so many times that I actually gave myself hives. I am not exaggerating. I don't know that anything was "easy," but I really enjoyed writing the scenes between Alina and Genya. On the surface, they're so different, but they're both outsiders who have found their own ways to survive. I like the bond that forms between them. 

Has the title changed or stayed relatively the same as your novel journeyed towards publication? 

Oh no, Shadow and Bone has had a few titles. Back when it was a WIP, I called it The Darkling. Then I heard about a little book called Graceling and I knew I had to change it before I queried agents. I wanted something that would stand out and hint at the book's Russian inspiration, so I called it The Grisha (referring to the kingdom's magical elite). Then, after the sale, my publisher felt that particular title would be too hard to pronounce or google, so we put our heads together and came up with Shadow and Bone. I know it's been confusing because of Laini Taylor's and Robin Wasserman's books, but hopefully the cover will help it stand out in people's minds. (On a sidenote, I posted about this on Pub(lishing) Crawl recently and Robin tweeted that she'd been thinking about calling her next book The Gathering Dark-- the UK title of Shadow and Bone!) 

What book or author has most influenced you as a writer or in general? 

Such a hard question. I'm not sure about influences, but I can tell you that Dune was the first book I was truly sorry to finish. I just didn't want to leave Frank Herbert's world behind, and that was a powerful thing. Also, I remember Louise Erdrich's story "Fleur" wrecked me. I read her a lot when I was younger, and she had a big impact on the way I understood myth in relation to narrative and language. 

What jobs did you have on your way to becoming a writer/published author? Is there a certain work experience that has shaped your writing? 

I worked at an ad firm, as a journalist, for a dotcom, for the FOX network, and as a beer girl. (I sat at bars and said, "Brand X beer tastes delicious!" Lies! That beer did not taste delicious.) I wrote movie trailers ("in a land without justice" etc.) and eventually I ended up as a makeup and special effects artist. I've had a few monstrous bosses and I suspect they've all made it into my work, one way or another. 

If you had to pick a favorite word, what would it be and why? 

Oooh, so many! Kerfuffle! Dubloon! Umbrage! Rhombus... Oh how I love to say "Rhombus." Also, "toothsome" makes me laugh for some reason. "Was he hot?" "Oh yes, get this, he had all of his teeth." I really want to bring that back. Who's in? 

My blog is dedicated to my personal hiding spot, books. Who, what, or where can be credited as your personal escape from reality? 

Last year, my friends and I spent July 4th eating pupusas, drinking cocktails in the garden, and marathoning the entire first season of Game of Thrones. Days like that are all the escape from reality I need.

_______________________

You can find out more about Leigh and her novel on at her website. And be sure to check out my review of Shadow and Bone, here! Don't forget to enter to win a copy for yourself below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee. 

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling. 

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha…and the secrets of her heart.

_____________________________________

I was completely taken with Leigh Bardugo's debut. Shadow and Bone is marvelous... seriously. The world is richly detailed, the main and secondary characters are engaging, and the fantasy elements distinctive. I couldn't put it down!


Alina doesn't think she's anything special, until she accidentally taps into previously unrealized power within to save her best friend... power that marks her as Grisha. The Grisha are revered in Ravka and are much above Alina's current station in life. She is taken under the wing of the Darkling, the mysterious and powerful leader of the Grisha, and is forced to leave her best friend behind in order to train among her new found peers in a world she knows nothing about.


The time Alina spends training with her fellow Grisha successfully allowed the reader to observe external and internal changes of the heroine and was a great opportunity to learn more about the culture and world of the Grisha. I love how much depth and detail is present in Shadow and Bone, as it is usually the aspect of YA Fantasy I find lacking.


Bardugo doesn't make things easy for the reader. The reader and Alina are often unsure of who to trust, sharing the same insecurities. Except the reader doesn't have the weight of saving Ravka on their shoulders like the unsuspecting heroine...


And there's romance! And two possible romantic interests! And no love triangle! How is this possible, you ask? I'm not telling... because that would be very spoilery. And who wants that!?


Great YA fantasy doesn't come along every day... do not miss Shadow and Bone!

Henry Holt & Co, Hardcover, June 2012, ISBN: 9780805094598, 368 pages.


Be sure to check out the book trailer too!