Waiting on Wednesday (5)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine where we all feature upcoming books we're eagerly anticipating. 

The cute WoW button comes from Bewitched Bookworms.

Enclave (Razorland #1), by Ann Aguirre
Release Date: April 12, 2011
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Pages: 272

(Above publication information from Goodreads)
Author's Page 
Amazon Page
Goodreads Page

From Goodreads:

WELCOME TO THE APOCALYPSE

In Deuce's world, people earn the right to a name only if they survive their first fifteen years. By that point, each unnamed 'brat' has trained into one of three groups-Breeders, Builders, or Hunters, identifiable by the number of scars they bear on their arms.

Deuce has wanted to be a Huntress for as long as she can remember. As a Huntress, her purpose is clear--to brave the dangerous tunnels outside the enclave and bring back meat to feed the group while evading ferocious monsters known as Freaks. She's worked toward this goal her whole life, and nothing's going to stop her, not even a beautiful, brooding Hunter named Fade.

When the mysterious boy becomes her partner, Deuce's troubles are just beginning. Down below, deviation from the rules is punished swiftly and harshly, and Fade doesn't like following orders. At first she thinks he's crazy, but as death stalks their sanctuary, and it becomes clear the elders don't always know best, Deuce wonders if Fade might be telling the truth.

Her partner confuses her; she's never known a boy like him before, as prone to touching her gently as using his knives with feral grace. As Deuce's perception shifts, so does the balance in the constant battle for survival. The mindless Freaks, once considered a threat only due to their sheer numbers, show signs of cunning and strategy... but the elders refuse to heed any warnings. Despite imminent disaster, the enclave puts their faith in strictures and sacrifice instead. No matter how she tries, Deuce cannot stem the dark tide that carries her far from the only world she's ever known.

I'm all for a good dystopian, especially when we get kick-butt characters with impressive fighting skills. I much prefer this type of female dystopian character to the one that takes the entire story to come to her senses. I want a girl with guts ready to kick butt and chew bubblegum, and I want her to be all out of bubblegum.

Honestly, though, a big draw for me is Fade. "As prone to touching her gently as using his knives with feral grace"? Ok, I'm so there. That's really all I needed to read. I don't like it when we only get one strong character. Either the guy is strong and the girl is a damsel or the girl is awesome and the guy is a weenie. Enclave sounds like both leads will be more than able to hold their own. Yay!

Strange Fate (Night World #10), by L. J. Smith
Release Date: July 16, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages:528

(Above publication information from Goodreads)
Author's Page
Goodreads Page

From Goodreads:

Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters -- they live among uswithout our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

Sarah Strange's life was what you might call ordinary. Then her mother died.

Now Sarah has visions -- visions of a place where dragons darken the sky and a young girl is fighting to survive.

When Sarah confides in her best friends, Mal and Kierlan, about the devastation in her dreams, she discovers that her friends are not what they seem. They are part of the Night World -- and they believe Sarah has a special role in their world. And if Sarah's visions are any indication of the impending danger and destruction, there is no time to lose...

Forget Vampire Diaries (yes, I love the show, but no, I don't love all the books). Night World is where it's at. Go back in time all the way to the mid to late 1990s when this series was first published and I actually was a YA myself. This was one of the first paranormal romance series I ever read and I fell in love. In-freaking-love. I was obsessed. I love it so much I even included the series in my Spotlight post Books to Bring on a Deserted Island.

At the time, we were just getting into this whole newfangled internet thingy and the idea of connecting with fellow readers or buying books online only existed in our fantasies (actually, there was this one Night World site that looks almost the same now as it did back then. I love it!). If you wanted a book back then, it had better be in your local library or your local bookstores.

Only some L. J. Smith books were in my library and none were in my new book stores. I trolled every used book store within an hour radius of my home and eventually tracked down used copies of almost all of L. J. Smith's books. Every time I found one it was like I just discovered buried treasure, furtive looks around myself and frantic clutching of the book to my chest included. It was gold, I tell you, GOLD.

I was so into this series, but, alas, tragedy struck and Ms. Smith took a decade long hiatus from writing. Leaving me hanging with books 1-9 published and nothing but a cover (look to the right), a blurb, and nine freaking books of building up to a world shattering climax with the coming of the millennium to hold me over.

I'm ok, really, I swear. I actually found a really awesome fan fiction book 10 replacement (part I, part II) to give me closure until the real deal came along. Which, it hasn't yet. It was supposed to come in 2010 but was pushed off. So, I'm still waiting. And I'll keep waiting because gosh darnnit I need my fix of sexy paranormal guys and kick butt paranormal chicks. Plus, the world might be ending with the millennium....or not.
 
Previous books I've been waiting for.

While you're waiting for all of these great upcoming books, you can check out my review posted today for:

The Adoration of Jenna Fox, by Mary E. Pearson

You can also come check out my event, Busting the Newbie Blues, open to both new and established bloggers! We're having a ton of fun and would love it if you joined in!

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