Adding to Your TBR -March 2019
TBR – To Be Read tower/list
A list of March 2019’s most anticipated books.
The Fever King by Victoria Lee
The Fever King is the first book in the futuristic fantasy series Feverwake by début author Victoria Lee, An uninspiring cover and not one I would be drawn to, but this book is popular with early reviewers who describe it as a rollercoaster ride with well-developed characters. #fantasy #YA
Expected 1 March 2019
The son of undocumented immigrants, Noam has spent his life fighting for the rights of refugees fleeing magical outbreaks—refugees Carolinia routinely deports with vicious efficiency. Sensing a way to make change, Noam accepts the minister’s offer to teach him the science behind his magic, secretly planning to use it against the government. But then he meets the minister’s son—cruel, dangerous, and achingly beautiful—and the way forward becomes less clear.
In the former United States, sixteen-year-old Noam Álvaro wakes up in a hospital bed, the sole survivor of the viral magic that killed his family and made him a technopath. His ability to control technology attracts the attention of the minister of defense and thrusts him into the magical elite of the nation of Carolinia.
Caught between his purpose and his heart, Noam must decide who he can trust and how far he’s willing to go in pursuit of the greater good. – G
The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See
Written by the well-known author of The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, this historical fiction set on
Jeju Island, South Korea. It focuses on friendship and family secrets of the independent and courageous Haenyeo (female divers) I am looking forward to this book and it reminds me of White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht, which I loved, #historicalfiction #WWII #Haenyeo
Expected 5 March 2019
Mi-ja and Young-sook, two girls living on the Korean island of Jeju, are best friends that come from very different backgrounds. When they are old enough, they begin working in the sea with their village’s all-female diving collective, led by Young-sook’s mother. As the girls take up their positions as baby divers, they know they are beginning a life of excitement and responsibility but also danger.
Despite their love for each other, Mi-ja and Young-sook’s differences are impossible to ignore. The Island of Sea Women is an epoch set over many decades, beginning during a period of Japanese colonialism in the 1930s and 1940s, followed by World War II, the Korean War and its aftermath, through the era of cell phones and wetsuits for the women divers. Throughout this time, the residents of Jeju find themselves caught between warring empires. Mi-ja is the daughter of a Japanese collaborator, and she will forever be marked by this association. Young-sook was born into a long line of Haenyeo and will inherit her mother’s position leading the divers in their village. Little do the two friends know that after surviving hundreds of dives and developing the closest of bonds, forces outside their control will push their friendship to the breaking point. – Goodreads
Within These Lines by Stephanie Morrill
An historical fiction focusing on the segregation and appalling conditions Japanese American citizens were subjected to after Pearl Harbour. #historicalfiction #WWII #YA
Expected 5 March 2019
Evalina Cassano’s life in an Italian-American family in 1941 is everything it “should be” until she falls in love with Taichi Hamasaki, the son of Japanese immigrants. Despite the scandal it would cause and that inter-racial marriage is illegal in California, Evalina and Taichi vow they will find a way to be together. But anti-Japanese feelings erupt across the country after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and Taichi and his family are forced to give up their farm and move to an internment camp.
Degrading treatment make life at Manzanar Relocation Center difficult. Taichi’s only connection to the outside world are treasured letters from Evalina. Feeling that the only action she can take to help Taichi is to speak out on behalf of all Japanese Americans, Evalina becomes increasingly vocal at school and at home. Meanwhile, inside Manzanar, fighting between different Japanese-American factions arises. Taichi begins to doubt he will ever leave the camp alive.
With tensions running high and their freedom on the line, Evalina and Taichi must hold true to their values and believe in their love to make a way back to each other against unbelievable odds.
Bloodleaf by Crystal Smith
A fantasy retelling of the Grimm’s Brother’s The Goose Girl, by début author Crystal Smith.
Just look at that beautiful cover! #fantasy #retelling #YA #coverlove
Expected 5 March 2019
Aurelia is the first princess born to the Renalten crown in two hundred years, destined to
When an assassination attempt forces Aurelia to use forbidden magic to save a stranger, she is driven from Renalt by the witch-hunting Tribunal and a mob out for blood. But before she can claim asylum in the court of her betrothed, her travel party turns on her, forcing her to trade places with her treacherous lady-in-waiting, Lisette.
Now penniless in Achleva and bereft of her identity, Aurelia must decide if she wants to surrender to her new life or fight for her old one, all while navigating the complicated ties binding her to the enigmatic prince, the unquiet ghost of an ancient queen, and a poisonous plant called bloodleaf.
Aurelia is a pawn in a centuries-long game of love, power, and war— and if she can’t extricate herself from it before Lisette marries Valentin in her stead, she may face losses far more devastating than her crown. – Goodreads
House on Fire by Bonnie Kistler
Described as a contemporary mystery with a complex, convoluted plot written by a début author. #contemporary #debutauthor
Expected 12 March 2019
A tightly wound and suspenseful novel about a blended family in crisis after a drunk driving accident leaves the daughter of one parent dead—and the son of the other parent charged with manslaughter.
Divorce lawyer Leigh Huyett knows all too well that most second marriages are doomed to fail. But five years in, she and Pete Conley have a perfectly blended family of her children and his. To celebrate their anniversary, they grab some precious moments of alone time and leave Pete’s son Kip, a high school senior, in charge of Leigh’s fourteen-year-old daughter Chrissy at their home.
Driving back on a rainy Friday night, their cell phones start ringing. After a raucous party celebrating his college acceptance to Duke and his upcoming birthday, Kip was arrested for drunk driving after his truck crashed into a tree. And he wasn’t alone—Chrissy was with him. – Goodreads
The Sect of Angels by Andrea Camilleri
This historical fiction book, based on a true story, written by the prolific author Andrea Camilleri was translated from Italian by Stephen Sartarelli. I am not sure exactly why (could be the controversial topic!) but I am drawn to this story. I could find very little about the true story it was based on but early reviewers have indicated the author has addressed this in a note at the end of the book,
Expected 12 March 2019
Based on a true story and told with the pacing,
The lawyer and journalist Matteo Teresi discovers the existence of a secret sect whose members include priests, politicians, and regional VIPs. During the early morning hours, when the town’s churches are closed, the “Sect of the Angels” meets in the sacristy to carry out their holy office: initiating devout virgins into the rites of married life. Preying on their victims’ naivete, the hooded “elect” commit ignominious acts while promising the young women divine grace.
In 1901, at a time of immense changes in Sicilian society, the scandal breaks nationwide. But far from being hailed as a hero, Teresi is accused of disrupting the status quo and irrationally blamed for an outbreak of disease and a series of calamities. From the salons, churches and social clubs of Sicily to the country’s highest courts, Camilleri’s novel is a fast-paced, at times funny, passionately rendered portrait of the machinations of power and the difficult destiny of a local hero.
The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer
A historical fiction story told in alternating POV’s (Point of View’s), with a young Alina Sziak narrating the past ( Poland during WWII ) and her granddaughter narrating the present. #historicalfiction #WWII
19 March 2019
In 1942, Europe remains in the relentless grip of war. Just beyond the tents of the Russian refugee camp she calls home, a young woman speaks her wedding vows. It’s a decision that will alter her destiny…and it’s a lie that will remain buried until the next century.
Since she was nine years old, Alina Dziak knew she would marry her best friend, Tomasz. Now fifteen and engaged, Alina is unconcerned by reports of Nazi soldiers at the Polish border, believing her neighbors that they pose no real threat, and dreams instead of the day Tomasz returns from college in Warsaw so they can be married. But little by little, injustice by brutal injustice, the Nazi occupation takes hold, and Alina’s tiny rural village, its families, are divided by fear and hate. Then, as the fabric of their lives is slowly picked apart, Tomasz disappears. Where Alina used to measure time between visits from her beloved, now she measures the spaces between hope and despair, waiting for word from Tomasz and avoiding the attentions of the soldiers who patrol her parents’ farm. But for now, even deafening silence is preferable to grief.
Slipping between Nazi-occupied Poland and the frenetic pace of modern life, Kelly Rimmer creates an emotional and finely wrought narrative that weaves together two women’s stories into a tapestry of perseverance, loyalty, love and
The Weight of the Stars by K. Ancrum
A sci-fi story, described as emotional by early reviewers, from the author of the very popular book – The Wicker King.
Expected 19 March 2019
Ryann Bird dreams of travelling across the stars. But a career in space isn’t an option for a girl who lives in a trailer park on the wrong side of town. So Ryann becomes her circumstances and settles for acting out and skipping school to hang out with her delinquent friends.
One day she meets Alexandria: a furious loner who spurns Ryann’s offer of friendship. After a horrific accident leaves Alexandria with a broken arm, the two misfits are brought together despite themselves—and Ryann learns her secret: Alexandria’s mother is an astronaut who volunteered for a one-way trip to the edge of the solar system.
Every night without fail, Alexandria waits to catch radio signals from her mother. And its up to Ryann to lift her onto the roof day after day until the silence between them grows into friendship, and eventually something more . . .
Once & Future by Amy Rose Capetta & Cori McCarthy
A sci-fi retelling of the King Arthur legend. #sciencefiction #scifi #fantasy #YA
Expected 26 March 2019
I’ve been chased my whole life. As a fugitive refugee in the territory controlled by the tyrannical Mercer corporation, I’ve always had to hide who I am. Until I found Excalibur.
Now I’m done hiding
When Ari crash-lands on Old Earth and pulls a magic sword from its ancient resting place, she is revealed to be the newest reincarnation of King Arthur. Then she meets Merlin, who has aged backward over the centuries into a teenager, and together they must break the curse that keeps Arthur coming back. Their quest? Defeat the cruel, oppressive government and bring peace and equality to all humankind.
No pressure. – Goodreads
I Am Watching by Emma Kavanagh
A particularly gruesome sounding crime/mystery thriller that seems to have escaped the hype usually related to new releases… Curious, especially as the author, a police and military psychologist, has several previously published books including Falling. #thriller
Expected 26 March 2019
From a distance, they seem to be sleeping. Three bodies, sitting propped up against the ancient stones of Hadrian’s Wall. A closer look reveals the horror of their too-white faces, and the ring of vivid red bruises around each neck.
The victims were found by schoolgirl Isla Bell, out on an early morning run along the historic site. That day changed the small, close-knit community of Briganton forever, and it also shaped the course of Isla’s life. Twenty years later, she’s a professor of criminal psychology at the University of Northumberland. She specializes in studying the brain function of psychopaths and serial killers, wrestling with the question that still haunts her: why? Why did Heath McGowan kill those people–and two more besides–before he was finally caught by Isla’s police detective father?
At last, Isla has a chance to get answers. Heath, previously unforthcoming about the murders, agrees to take part in her research. Isla’s husband, Ramsey–the only one of Heath’s victims to survive–cautions her against the meeting. But no matter how ready Isla feels to peer within a killer’s mind, there is no way to prepare for the fresh horror about to engulf Briganton. Another body is found, displayed just as
before . . . and then another. Is this a copycat, someone inspired by or receiving help from the serial killer behind bars? Or could the truth be darker still?
A brilliantly twisted thriller–gripping, atmospheric, and skillfully layered, I Am Watching will keep readers guessing until the very end
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