In My Mailbox (60)

In My Mailbox was started by Kristi of The Story Siren and inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie. Sadly the only books I order are those that are hard to find. The following books are from the library and bookstores.

Contest:

Matched ARC by Ally Condie, Nov. 30, 2010.

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

I’ve been absolutely dying to read this one. Can’t wait to start it.

NoMansland ARC by Lesley Hauge, July 2010.

Sometime in the future, after devastating wars and fires, a lonely, windswept island in the north is populated solely by women. Among these women is a group of teenaged Trackers—expert equestrians and archers—whose job is to protect their shores from the enemy. The enemy, they’ve been told, is men.

When these girls come upon a partially buried home from the distant past, they are fascinated by the strange objects—high-heeled shoes, teen magazines, make-up—found there. What are they to make of these mysterious things, which introduce a world they have never known? And what does it mean for their strict society where friendship is forbidden and rules must be obeyed—at all costs?

I actually haven’t heard to much about NoMansland, but the synopsis and first chapter sound pretty good. I’m definitely looking forward to reading this one.

I’d like to thank Trisha of Eclectic-Eccentric, I won both ARCs from a contest on her blog.

Semicolon Earrings from Debbie's Etsy Shop Nerd Goddess. I won them during Enna Isilee's (Squeaky Books)  birthday bash. Aren't they awesome! Thanks Enna and Debbie.

Review:

The Lucifer Code () by Charles Brokaw, 2010.

AN ANCIENT MANUSCRIPT HAS REMAINED CONCEALED FOR CENTURIES — WITHIN ITS PAGES LIES THE KEY TO THE MOST UNHOLY SECRET KNOWN TO MANKIND.

A sacred brotherhood has sworn, generation after generation, to protect this terrifying truth from those who would use it to unleash doomsday upon mankind.
When the unthinkable happens, and the holy scroll is uncovered, the race is on to reveal the true meaning of the cryptic language. Only one man, Dr. Thomas Lourds, the world's foremost scholar of ancient languages, who we first met in the bestselling novel The Atlantis Code, can safely decipher this most deadly scripture.
Lourds soon becomes the bait in the most lethal manhunt — knowing he must confront the true face of evil if the world is to be saved...

I’m so excited about getting to read and giveaway a copy of The Lucifer Code, it sounds like a captivating read.

The Half-Made World by Felix Gilman, Oct. 12, 2010.

A fantastical reimagining of the American West which draws its influence from steampunk, the American western tradition, and magical realism

The world is only half made. What exists has been carved out amidst a war between two rival factions: the Line, paving the world with industry and claiming its residents as slaves; and the Gun, a cult of terror and violence that cripples the population with fear. The only hope at stopping them has seemingly disappeared—the Red Republic that once battled the Gun and the Line, and almost won. Now they’re just a myth, a bedtime story parents tell their children, of hope.

To the west lies a vast, uncharted world, inhabited only by the legends of the immortal and powerful Hill People, who live at one with the earth and its elements. Liv Alverhyusen, a doctor of the new science of psychology, travels to the edge of the

made world to a spiritually protected mental institution in order to study the minds of those broken by the Gun and the Line. In its rooms lies an old general of the Red Republic, a man whose shattered mind just may hold the secret to stopping the Gun and the Line. And either side will do anything to understand how.

I cannot wait to read this book (I've recently gotten hooked on dystopian-ish books and this one sounds incredible). And guess what? I have two copies of The Half-Made World, which means I'm having another contest and one lucky person will win my extra copy of the book.
I'd like to thank Tolly of PR by the Book for both review copies.

Library:

The Demon’s Covenant (Demon’s Lexicon, 2) by Sarah Rees Brennan, 2010.

Mae Crawford’s always thought of herself as in control, but in the last few weeks her life has changed. Her younger brother, Jamie, suddenly has magical powers, and she’s even more unsettled when she realizes that Gerald, the new leader of the Obsidian Circle, is trying to persuade Jamie to join the magicians. Even worse… Jamie hasn’t told Mae a thing about any of it. Mae turns to brothers Nick and Alan to help her rescue Jamie, but they are in danger from Gerald themselves because he wants to steal Nick's powers. Will Mae be able to find a way to save everyone she cares about from the power-hungry magician's carefully laid trap?

You have no idea how excited I was when I found out my, awesome, library finally had The Demon’s Covenant. Alas I had to wait till I had read down my last stack from the library to check it out, but now nothing can prevent me from reading it.