In My Mailbox: Week 12

In My Mailbox was created by Kristi from The Story Siren. Here's what I found in my mailbox, at the bookstore, and at the library these last two weeks. Summaries are taken from Amazon, B&N, and GoodReads.




Slow week this week, but these are great ones that I'm super excited about. :D

Sea Glass by Maria V. Snyder - Student glass magician Opal Cowan's newfound ability to steal a magician's powers makes her too powerful. Ordered to house arrest by the Council, Opal dares defy them, traveling to the Moon Clan's lands in search of Ulrick, the man she thinks she loves. Thinks because she is sure another man—now her prisoner—has switched souls with Ulrick. In hostile territory, without proof or allies, Opal isn't sure whom to trust. She can't forget Kade, the handsome Stormdancer who doesn't want to let her get close. And now everyone is after Opal's special powers for their own deadly gain….

The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon - In an abandoned mansion at the heart of Barcelona, a young man, David Martín, makes his living by writing sensationalist novels under a pseudonym. The survivor of a troubled childhood, he has taken refuge in the world of books and spends his nights spinning baroque tales about the city’s underworld. But perhaps his dark imaginings are not as strange as they seem, for in a locked room deep within the house lie photographs and letters hinting at the mysterious death of the previous owner. Like a slow poison, the history of the place seeps into his bones as he struggles with an impossible love. Close to despair, David receives a letter from a reclusive French editor, Andreas Corelli, who makes him the offer of a lifetime. He is to write a book unlike anything that has ever existed—a book with the power to change hearts and minds. In return, he will receive a fortune, and perhaps more. But as David begins the work, he realizes that there is a connection between his haunting book and the shadows that surround his home.



That's it for me. What did you get this week?

Storm Glass

After selecting Maria V. Snyder's Sea Glass as my pick for this week's Waiting on Wednesday post, I figured it was about time that I post my review for Storm Glass.

Despite being a uniquely talented glassmaker and apprentice to a Master Magician, Opal Cowen is always questioning her magical abilities. When the glass orbs of the Stormdancers begin to explode, killing several clan powerful members, Opal is forced to gain confidence in her own abilities in order to help save these weather-controlling orbs and discover who is behind such sabotage. Before long, Opal realizes that she carries more power than she ever believed. With the help and protection of many others, including Ulrick, a childhood family friend, and Kade, a Stormdancer who lost his sister to a faulty orb, Opal faces her fears in this novel of magic, adventure, and romance.

Maria V. Snyder’s Storm Glass returns to the world(s) of the Study series without the novel feeling repetitive. Though both somehow end up in life-threatening situations, as heroines, Yelena and Opal are nothing alike. I was really intrigued by the importance of weather and the way Maria V. Snyder developed the magic in glassblowing. As much of fantasy nowadays seems dedicated to vampires, this felt refreshing. I also like the way local legend plays into this novel. Though the very beginning is slow, Storm Glass as a whole is packed with action and mystery, so once the story begins the book is hard to put down. There is plenty of violence as well, but it is not written in a gory way that would disgust readers. While the romance is certainly there, I felt that Opal’s connections with Ulrick and Kade are a bit underdeveloped. Unlike Opal’s feelings about her powers, her emotions surrounding these men weren’t explored thoroughly enough. I’m hoping the sequel, Sea Glass, will address this. 9 out of 10.

P.S. If you haven't read Storm Glass yet, you can read chapter 1 right on Maria V. Snyder's site.

Waiting on Wednesday: July 29

Title: Sea Glass

Author: Maria Snyder

Series: Glass series, book #2

US Release date: September 1, 2009

Summary (from Maria Snyder's website): Like the colorful pieces of sea glass washed up on shore, Opal has weathered rough waters and twisting currents. But instead of finding a tranquil eddy, Opal is caught in a riptide. Her unique glass messengers which allow instant communication over vast distances have become a vital part of Sitian society. Once used solely by the Councilors and magicians, other powerful factions are now vying for control. Control of the messengers equals control of Sitia. Unfortunately that also means control of Opal. If that isn’t enough of a problem, Opal’s determination to prove blood magic is still being used is met with strong resistance. The Council doubts her, her mentor doubts her, and even her family is concerned. When her world is turned upside down, she begins to doubt herself. In the end, Opal must decide who to believe, who to trust, and who has control—otherwise she will shatter into a million pieces and be swept out by the tide.

Why I'm interested: Simple: I read Maria Snyder's Study trilogy and loved them all. Then I read Storm Glass and loved it even more (and I didn't think that was possible). And then finally I read the chapter 3 excerpt from Sea Glass and now I don't want to wait a moment longer.

So what are you waiting on today?

In My Mailbox: Week 1

I meant to post this yesterday, but oh well. There was so much going on with the 48 Hour Challenege that I'm going to say it doesn't matter.

Anyway, this meme comes from Kristi at The Story Siren.

Here's what I've found in my mailbox, at the bookstore and at the library this past week (several were read over the weekend):

Summaries are taken from Amazon.com or the book's flap copy:

Going Bovine by Libba Bray (ARC) - All 16-year-old Cameron wants is to get through high school—and life in general—with a minimum of effort. It’s not a lot to ask. But that’s before he’s given some bad news: he’s sick and he’s going to die. Which totally sucks. Hope arrives in the winged form of Dulcie, a loopy punk angel/possible hallucination with a bad sugar habit. She tells Cam there is a cure—if he’s willing to go in search of it. With the help of a death-obsessed, video-gaming dwarf and a yard gnome, Cam sets off on the mother of all road trips through a twisted America into the heart of what matters most.

Secret Society by Tom Dolby (ARC) - An eccentric new girl. A brooding socialite. The scion of one of New York’s wealthiest families. A promising filmmaker. As students at the exclusive Chadwick School, Phoebe, Lauren, Nick, and Patch already live in a world most teenagers only dream about. They didn’t ask to be Society members. But when three of them receive a mysterious text message promising success and fame beyond belief, they say yes to everything. Even to the harrowing initiation ceremony in a gritty warehouse downtown, and to the ankh-shaped tattoo they’re forced to get on the nape of their necks. Once they’re part of the Society, things begin falling into place for them. Week after week, their ambitions are fulfilled. It’s all perfect—until a body is found in Central Park with no distinguishing marks except for an ankh-shaped tattoo. Tom Dolby makes his teen fiction debut with this riveting novel about a dangerous Society so secret that once you get in, you can never get out.

Lovehampton by Sherri Rifkin - In Rifkin's dazzling debut, Manhattanite media pro Tori Miller shares a posh Hamptons summerhouse with five upwardly mobile 30-somethings. Wanting out of the depressing slide her life takes after being dumped by her first love and losing her dream job, Tori starts MillerWorks, her own TV production company. Still, Tori's depressed, bringing about an intervention staged by her loyal employees, Jerry and Jimmy, her best friend Alice and the Transformation Trio—three make-over experts who use Tori as the pilot subject for their new reality TV show. Tori flirts with a glamming lifestyle, and her fling with George, a rich playboy with a publicist, while she's also secretly canoodling with a housemate, banker Andrew Kane, is a recipe for disaster. Tori must think fast on her borrowed Manolos, especially when Cassie Dearborn, her new friend and housemate, needs help with her own disastrous Hampton hijinxs. Hotter than a sand dune in August, cooler than a mojito in South Beach (or Southhampton), this book will appeal to Sex and the City fans and summer beach readers alike.

Wild Orchid by Cameron Dokey - Wielding a sword as deftly as an embroidery needle, Mulan is unlike any other girl in China. When the emperor summons a great army, each family must send a male to fight. Tomboyish Mulan is determined to spare her aging father and bring her family honor, so she disguises herself and answers the call. But Mulan never expects to find a friend, let alone a soul mate, in the commander of her division, Prince Jian. For all of Mulan's courage with a bow and arrow, is she brave enough to share her true identity and feelings with Prince Jian?

Storm Glass by Maria Snyder - Untrained. Untested. Unleashed. With her unique magical abilities, Opal has always felt unsure of her place at Sitia's magic academy. But when the Stormdancer clan needs help, Opal's knowledge makes her the perfect choice - until the mission goes awry. Pulling her powers in unfamiliar directions, Opal finds herself tapping into a new kind of magic as stunningly potent as it is frightening. Now Opal must deal with plotters out to destroy the Stormdancer clan, as well as a traitor in their midst. With danger and deception rising around her, will Opal's untested abilities destroy her - or save them all?