"Waiting On" Wednesday: Crewel

Crewel (The Crewel World, #1)
Gennifer Albin
October 16, 2012

Incapable. Awkward. Artless.

That’s what the other girls whisper behind her back. But sixteen year-old Adelice Lewys has a secret: she wants to fail.

Gifted with the ability to weave time with matter, she’s exactly what the Guild is looking for, and in the world of Arras, being chosen as a Spinster is everything a girl could want. It means privilege, eternal beauty, and being something other than a secretary. It also means the power to embroider the very fabric of life. But if controlling what people eat, where they live and how many children they have is the price of having it all, Adelice isn’t interested.

Not that her feelings matter, because she slipped and wove a moment at testing, and they’re coming for her—tonight.

Now she has one hour to eat her mom’s overcooked pot roast. One hour to listen to her sister’s academy gossip and laugh at her Dad’s stupid jokes. One hour to pretend everything’s okay. And one hour to escape.

Because once you become a Spinster, there’s no turning back.

Sci-fi is totally underrated.

Really.

I think the main reason why I find it so hard to reconcile myself with dystopia is because...well, it's the end of the world. Everyone seems locked in a dog-eat-dog, smother-or-be-smothered chain that doesn't stop, even if the hero breaks out of the mold and starts a rebellion.

Does a dystopian really end happy? Well, I guess it depends on who you ask.

Well, I'm not saying that a sci-fi couldn't turn out the same way (example: Across the Universe, one of my favorite stories but...well, very dark) - but there's more going on than just setting it in the middle of a war-torn United States and adding in a bunch of statutes that no one can break, or some epic nuclear blast that has everyone scrambling for a safe haven.

And again, that can totally be done. Just sometimes, it feels like we aren't getting titles who do it the right way.

The original way.

In any case, YA is long overdue for a new makeover, and a new sci-fi - especially one that sounds as alluring as this one (really, have you looked at that cover? That is what you call a siren in book form) -  is exactly what I need.

What do you think? Too much dystopian and too little talent? How about sci-fi - yay or nay?

Do I make any sense in my posts at all?

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. For more information on participating, please check out the host blog.

Teaser Tuesday: Unwind by Neal Shusterman

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

  

Grab your current read. 

Open to a random page. 

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page. 

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) 

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

..."Change," repeated the social worker, "that's all. The way ice becomes water, the way water becomes clouds. You will live, Risa. Only in a different form."

"Don't I have a choice in this?" But when she looks behind her, the answer is clear...And as they lead her away, she thinks of Mr. Durkin....He may get his wish after all. Someday he may see her hands playing in Carnegie Hall. Unfortunately, the rest of Risa won't be there. 

Unwind (Unwind, #1) by Neal Shusterman

Connor, Risa, and Lev are running for their lives.

The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.

Sharp, Anthea: Feyland: The Dark Realm

Expected publication: December 16, 2011
Self-published
YA Sci-Fi/Futuristic Fantasy, 270 pages
Acquired and read: Sent by the author (thanks Anthea!) in return for an unbiased, fair review; I read it all in one go between last night and this morning - the bags under my eyes are SO worth it

WHEN A GAME…

Feyland is the most immersive computer game ever designed, and fifteen-year-old Jennet Carter is the first to play the prototype. But she doesn’t suspect the virtual world is close enough to touch — or that she’ll be battling for her life against the Dark Queen of the faeries.

TURNS REAL…

Tam Linn is the perfect hero — in-game. Too bad the rest of his life is seriously flawed. The last thing he needs is rich-girl Jennet prying into his secrets, insisting he’s the only one who can help her.

WINNING IS EVERYTHING…

Together, Jennet and Tam enter the Dark Realm of Feyland, only to discover that the entire human world is in danger. Pushed to the limit of their abilities, they must defeat the Dark Queen… before it’s too late. 

So remember how the other day I was bemoaning the fact that I can't find any more good renditions of the legend of Tam Lin? This little gem totally fits the bill.

Meet Jennet Carter. Fifteen years old and living the good life as an addicted sim gamer - and as the daughter of one of the top developers in the market, she gets the new stuff right when it comes out. But with the new game her dad and his friend Thomas have developed - Feyland, the most adaptable, immersive game to date - she might have gotten in over her head. The lines between reality and old legends is fading, and when she crosses paths with the Dark Queen, she finds exactly how much is at stake.

And then there's Tam Linn. An earthly knight, to be sure, but not one with a charmed life. Balancing his gaming with a messed-up home isn't easy, especially when he can't help but want to get closer to the new, rich girl who keeps poking her nose into his business.

I'm not a gamer - well, not as much as I'd like to be (does Nancy Drew PC mysteries count? Seems like I can't cut myself off from the literature) - but the concept of being pulled completely into a game, raising the stakes so that the life you have is the only one you've got, is a compelling one. I couldn't help but tense up right along with Jennet and Tam as they got deeper into Feyland, and closer to each other. There were a few moments where I felt like, "COME ON! Communicate with each other!" but for the most part, their partnership fits as seamlessly as the plot.

Feyland proves that being published away from the general market doesn't mean low quality. There is a good amount of structure from the original legend and at the end, I definitely felt relieved that this wasn't going to be the last of Feyland (and you know how I feel about sequels recently). If you like faeries, a touch of sci-fi and old ballads, this is definitely the story for you.

Warnings: A bit of profanity. That's all.

Final verdict: Yes. But you can't have my copy. IT'S MINE.

Gier, Kerstin: Ruby Red

April 28, 2011
336 pages, Henry Holt and Co.

Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!

Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

Gwenyth Shepherd has always known that her cousin Charlotte will be the one who inherits their family's time-traveling gene - an important role for the sake of society and the past, and one that Gwenyth, who prefers watching movies with her best friend Lesley and shunning the center of attention, hardly envies.

However, when it is Gwen who goes back in time three times in the matter of one day, the entire family is turned on its ear. Charlotte, the one who got the language, fencing and ettiquette lessons, now is obsolete - and a destined line of time travelers predicted in part by Sir Issac Newton himself is now in question.

Gwen is now compelled to be her family's new champion, alongside the infuriating and devilishly handsome Gideon de Villiers, but it is hardly going to be easy. A hidden family scandal, outfits straight out of Marie Antoinette's wardrobe, and a count who isn't quite on the same scale of Dracula, but bad enough, are all waiting in the wings to make this teenager's ride through time one she'll never forget.

It is easy to see how this story would be an international bestseller. Gier definitely knows her modern-day teenager, from Lesley and Gwen using period dramas to research the Virgin Queen, to Charlotte's sulking about no longer being the one in the limelight. Gideon, obviously identified as the love interest, is snarky and yet understanding as the story unwinds and you get to know him more.

This story is an excellent medley of both the past and the present, and, from an author who is German, writing about England, and just recently translated into English, it is a pleasant surprise that definitely should be expected.

And let's tally up the rating points!

Points for:

Originality

Supporting cast

World

Believable, likeable heroine

Likeable (not at all Edward Cullen-esque) love interest

Final notes:

I'm a bit peeved with myself for not saving this book until the next has been translated; now I really have a long wait ahead of me. 

"Waiting On" Wednesday: The Power of Six

The Power of Six (Lorien Legacies #2)
Pittacus Lore
August 23, 2011

I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.

Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?

They caught Number One in Malaysia.

Number Two in England. 

And Number Three in Kenya. 

They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed.

I am Number Seven. One of six still alive. 


I never thought a novel series about teenage aliens could turn out so cool. I'm really looking forward to finding out what happens to "John", especially after the tragic turn of events at the end of I Am Number Four (not that I'm trying to spoil it for anyone), and being able to hear from another of the Legacies is going to be pretty awesome.


On a side note, I still haven't been able to make myself watch the movie. I'll probably end up being depressed because of how much they changed the storyline/added more kissy-kissy Alex Pettyfer scenes for the sake of catering to squealing teenage girls/made the high school look like Forks, complete with blue lockers and drab scenery - yes, I did force myself to see the trailer, and believe me, I was quite disappointed.


I'll probably get around to seeing it. Someday. When I can control my gag reflex.