Waiting on Wednesday 265



Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it is a way to show off the books you can't wait to be released!!

This week I chose: 

"The Hired Girl"
by Laura Amy Schlitz
Candlewick
Release Date:  Sep. 9, 2015


Newbery Medalist Laura Amy Schlitz brings her delicious wit and keen eye to early twentieth-century America in a moving yet comedic tour de force.

Fourteen-year-old Joan Skraggs, just like the heroines in her beloved novels, yearns for real life and true love. But what hope is there for adventure, beauty, or art on a hardscrabble farm in Pennsylvania where the work never ends? Over the summer of 1911, Joan pours her heart out into her diary as she seeks a new, better life for herself—because maybe, just maybe, a hired girl cleaning and cooking for six dollars a week can become what a farm girl could only dream of—a woman with a future. Newbery Medalist Laura Amy Schlitz relates Joan’s journey from the muck of the chicken coop to the comforts of a society household in Baltimore (Electricity! Carpet sweepers! Sending out the laundry!), taking readers on an exploration of feminism and housework; religion and literature; love and loyalty; cats, hats, and bunions.
Is anyone else feeling a Downton Abbey vibe here? I think it's so interesting to see history from the point of view of the working class.

What are you waiting for this week???

"New Suicide Squad Vol. 1: Pure Insanity" Review

"New Suicide Squad Vol. 1: Pure Insanity"
by Sean Ryan, Illustrated by Jeremy Roberts
Publisher: DC Comics
Release Date: July 21, 2015
Source: sent by publisher

My Rating: 4 of 5 Stars

Summary from goodreads.com:

Setting the world’s most dangerous super-criminals against the most insidious threats to national security: that’s the idea behind the elite black-ops unit officially designated as Task Force X. It’s perfect…on paper.

But the real world rarely goes according to plan. Threats evolve. Teammates turn on each other. Blood and betrayals flow like rivers. And that’s why Task Force X is better known as the Suicide Squad.

Vic Sage aims to change the equation. Replacing Amanda Waller as the puppet-master of Suicide Squad’s motley crew, he’s introducing wild cards like Deathstroke and the Joker’s Daughter to whip the existing team-Deadshot, Harley Quinn, and Black Manta-into shape. But the world’s deadliest assassin and the Clown Princess of Crime have ideas of their own…and no explosive implants to keep them in line.

Can this new Suicide Squad survive-or will it implode before it even begins?

Collects issues #1-8
My Review:

I think I was the same as a lot of people, and I wanted to read this graphic novel out of curiosity for the new movie, Suicide Squad, coming out next year. This book, which includes comic books #1-8, was a great way to get a feel for the characters and set up of the film, but I didn't think it all tied together extremely well. I definitely still got caught up in the action, and I became invested in some of the characters so I had to see how it ended. But there were still some holes and disjointedness in the overall story.

I would have loved to have gotten to know the characters a little better. Especially the actual Suicide Squad instead of having so much of the narrative devoted to those who pull the strings in the office. I became especially attached to Manta, Harley, and Reverse Flash. I was really pulling for them, and I would have loved seeing more fleshing out of their characters. Joker's Daughter, Deathstroke, and Deadshot were all in and out so fast my head was spinning. They weren't able to add much to the story.

I'm sure I will continue this series, because I became invested in the characters. The action was great and kept me turning the pages as fast as I could. But I think I will try to read some of the other incarnations of the Suicide Squad, just to see the story from a different angle. I really liked the idea of the team up of villains, and all of the characters have an interesting story to tell. This one focused just a bit too much on the red tape of the missions instead of the motivation of the characters for me.


Main Characters: 4/5
Supporting Characters: 2/5
Setting: 4/5

Art: 4/5

Uniqueness: 4/5
Cover: 4/5
Writing: 4/5


Bottom Line: This graphic novel is a great primer for the upcoming Suicide Squad film. It's a nice step-off for some interesting characters and a unique premise.



Disclosure: I received an e-copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Waiting on Wednesday 264



Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it is a way to show off the books you can't wait to be released!!

This week I chose: 

"The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall"
by Katie Alender
Point
Release Date:  Aug 25, 2015


Asylum meets Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, in this riveting tale of ghosts, secrets, and family, from master of suspense Katie Alender.

Delia's new house isn't just a house. It used to be an insane asylum, a place to lock up "troubled" young women long ago. And a restless, wicked spirit is still at play--and it doesn't want defiant girls like Delia to go anywhere.

So the house kills her.

Now Delia is a ghost, trapped in her creepy home forever. As she meets the other ghost girls who haunt the narrow hallways, as well as the handsome ghost boy on the grounds, she learns shocking truths about the house's history. Delia also realizes that her alive and grieving sister might be the house's next target. Can Delia unlock the mystery of the old asylum, save her sister, and free herself?
I love these creepy, spooky books! I loved Miss Peregrine, and Asylum was really good too, so if it's anything like those two books, I'm in!!

What are you waiting for this week???

Waiting on Wednesday (on Thursday) 263

Better late than never!!

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it is a way to show off the books you can't wait to be released!!

This week I chose: 

"Persuasion"
by Martina Boone
Simon Pulse
Release Date:  Oct. 27 2015


Romeo and Juliet meets Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil in the spellbinding second novel in the Heirs of Watson Island trilogy that “skillfully blends rich magic and folklore with adventure, sweeping romance, and hidden treasure” (Publishers Weekly, on Compulsion).

Grieving the death of her godfather and haunted by her cousin Cassie’s betrayal, Barrie returns from a trip to San Francisco to find the Watson plantation under siege. Ghost-hunters hope to glimpse the ancient spirit who sets the river on fire each night, and reporters chase rumors of a stolen shipment of Civil War gold that may be hidden at Colesworth Place. The chaos turns dangerous as Cassie hires a team of archeologists to excavate beneath the mansion ruins. Because more is buried there than treasure.

A stranger filled with magic arrives at Watson’s Landing claiming that the key to the Watson and Beaufort gifts—and the Colesworth curse—also lies beneath the mansion. With a mix of threats and promises, the man convinces Barrie and Cassie to cast a spell there at midnight. But what he conjures may have deadly consequences.

While Barrie struggles to make sense of the escalating peril and her growing and forbidden feelings for Eight Beaufort, it’s impossible to know whom to trust and what to fight for—Eight or herself. Millions of dollars and the fate of the founding families is at stake. Now Barrie must choose between what she feels deep in her heart and what will keep Watson’s Landing safe in this stunning addition to a series filled with “decadent settings, mysterious magic, and family histories rife with debauchery” (Kirkus Reviews, on Compulsion).
Ooooh, sounds so spooky!! And it will be released just in time for Halloween! I can't wait!!

What are you waiting for this week???