Waiting On Wednesday (#2)

Waiting On Wednesday is hosted by Breaking The Spine! For now, I may do this once or twice a month. I really like the idea of featuring a book that I'm looking forward to but I don't want to overdo it either.

Title: City of a Thousand Dolls
Author: Miriam Forster
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 320
Release Date: February 5, 2013

Book Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):
The girl with no past, and no future, may be the only one who can save their lives.

Nisha was abandoned at the gates of the City of a Thousand Dolls when she was just a child. Now sixteen, she lives on the grounds of the isolated estate, where orphan girls apprentice as musicians, healers, courtesans, and, if the rumors are true, assassins. Nisha makes her way as Matron’s assistant, her closest companions the mysterious cats that trail her shadow. Only when she begins a forbidden flirtation with the city’s handsome young courier does she let herself imagine a life outside the walls. Until one by one, girls around her start to die.

Before she becomes the next victim, Nisha decides to uncover the secrets that surround the girls’ deaths. But by getting involved, Nisha jeopardizes not only her own future in the City of a Thousand Dolls—but her own life.

Why I'm Stoked:
Somehow the first I heard of this was during the ARC party that Epic Reads hosted. I actually watched the video of it afterward.

This book sounds SO good. I have a feeling that this is going to be action packed and Nisha sounds like a total badass!! I am very excited, I'll keep my fingers crossed for an ARC but I sincerely doubt it. Looks like I will be at B&N on February 5th!! One thing I know for sure, I'm glad I don't live in that city!

REVIEW: "Something Strange and Deadly" by Susan Dennard

Book Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):
The years is 1876, and there’s something strange and deadly loose in Philadelphia…

Eleanor Fitt has a lot to worry about. Her brother has gone missing, her family has fallen on hard times, and her mother is determined to marry her off to any rich young man who walks by. But this is nothing compared to what she’s just read in the newspaper—

The Dead are rising in Philadelphia.

And then, in a frightening attack, a zombie delivers a letter to Eleanor…from her brother.

Whoever is controlling the Dead army has taken her brother as well. If Eleanor is going to find him, she’ll have to venture into the lab of the notorious Spirit-Hunters, who protect the city from supernatural forces. But as Eleanor spends more time with the Spirit-Hunters, including their maddeningly stubborn yet handsome inventor, Daniel, the situation becomes dire. And now, not only is her reputation on the line, but her very life may hang in the balance.

My Thoughts:
Let me start by saying, DO NOT JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER!!! The cover screams "goth girl from the 19th century" but that is NOT the case.

Now that I've gotten that out of the way, let me tell you that the beauty of this cover is continued into the story. I received an ARC copy of SS&D from the publisher and words cannot begin to tell them how thankful I am. I am completely head over heels with steampunk now.

Eleanor is such a great character. She is ladylike when she has to be but she knows how to "let her hair down" and do what needs to be done. She is quite loyal and is on a mission after the Dead deliver her a letter from her brother.

Zombie books are great but the story that Susan Dennard writes is new and original and it is really quite beautiful. I really like that the entire book isn't focused on the zombies, the relationships within the story play a huge role and I am pretty sure that is what makes this SS&D so wonderful. We see the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to relationships and you really won't know what to think.

If you like action, you have to read this. There is action right up to the end, you won't regret reading it. I am already patiently waiting for the release of A Darkness Strange and Lovely and sadly, I have t wait a very long time.

4 out of 5 stars!