Waiting on Wednesday (131)

*Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.*

During my blogging hiatus, I became extremely uninformed about the new and amazing sounding books coming out in the near future. Thankfully, I've been starting to catch-up, and here's some forthcoming books, I'm dying to read...

Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt

When Mallory discovers that her boyfriend, Jeremy, is cheating on her with an online girlfriend, she swears off boys. She also swears off modern technology. Inspired by a list of goals her grandmother made in 1962, Mallory decides to "go vintage" and return to a simpler time (when boyfriends couldn't cheat on you online). She sets out to complete grandma's list: run for pep club secretary, host a dinner party, sew a homecoming dress, find a steady, do something dangerous. But the list is trickier than it looks. And obviously finding a steady is out . . . no matter how good Oliver (Jeremy's cousin) smells. But with the help of her sister, she'll get it done. Somehow. Lindsey Leavitt perfectly pairs heartfelt family moments, laugh-out-loud humor, and a little bit of romance in this delightful contemporary novel.

I loved Lindsey's first foray into YA so I'm hoping I'll enjoy this one as well. The premise sounds great, and as you all know, I'm a huge fan of contemporary novels!

Going Vintage will be released in March 2013.

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd

London, 1894. Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father’s gruesome experiments. But when she learns her father is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations were true.

Juliet is accompanied by the doctor’s handsome young assistant and an enigmatic castaway, who both attract Juliet for very different reasons. They travel to the island only to discover the depths of her father’s madness: he has created animals that have been vivisected to resemble, speak, and behave as humans. Worse, one of the creatures has turned violent and is killing the island’s inhabitants. Juliet knows she must end her father’s dangerous experiments and escape the island, even though her horror is mixed with her own scientific curiosity. As the island falls into chaos, she discovers the extent of her father’s genius—and madness—in her own blood.

Anything with the word Madman in the title has my attention from the get go, and luckily, this one does sound pretty spectacular! Plus I just love the cover...it's simple but stunning!

The Madman's Daughter will be released in January 2013.

The Royal Treatment by Lindsey Leavitt

Summary/Cover Image from Author's Website:

Desi Bascomb’s job as a princess substitute has gotten a whole lot more glamorous now that she’s advanced to Level 2 within the Facade Agency. Magical make-up, roller-skating celebrities, and the chance to see Prince Karl again are just some of the major perks. Not to mention, she’s landed the role of Fairy Queen in her school’s production of Midsummer’s Night Dream (opposite her best friend’s crush. Which is a little weird, but at least he wears a donkey head during their kissing scene). Life should be perfect, but Desi can’t seem to shake the feeling that there is more going on with the agency’s magic than she’s told. Like why is this mind-bending power exclusive to royals? Is it possible that there could be a bigger way to make an impact in both parts of her life?

Review:

After the adorable and Disneyesque Princess for Hire, I couldn't wait to read more about Desi and her future princess shenanigans. Luckily, The Royal Treatment, the action packed sequel, delivered exactly what I wanted: a sweet and quick read for a lazy day.

The Royal Treatment picks up a few months after Princess for Hire left off. In that time, Desi has been quickly  freshening up on details she'll need for her next assignment such as public speaking and European courtly dances. After a few months of this grueling work, she finally lands a new princess gig. However, taking the places of these new princesses won't be nearly as simple as she thought it would. Not only will she run into a certain handsome prince and be caught up in an international scandal but also she will find out some pretty big secrets about the high-ups at the Princess for Hire agency. That's not even adding in the fact that she's sort of crushing on her best friend's crush! Will everything work out in Desi's way in the end, or will everything go down the drain sooner than later?

In The Royal Treatment, Desi's grows greatly as a character. She's quickly maturing, and in the process taking a stand for the things she thinks are right, even when they don't necessarily lead to the easiest ways out. What I liked most about this addition, though, was seeing Desi continue to bloom in her own life. I really enjoyed seeing her friendship with Reed grow, especially when it lead to some pretty dramatic moments, as well as seeing Desi and her mother come to a sort of truce during the book.

Plus, The Royal Treatment provided just a fun and drama filled plot a the first one. From the princess gigs to Desi's rise in the Facade Agency to the surprising new twists she discovers, they're wasn't a moment where I wasn't flipping the pages, eager to find out what would happen next- especially when the said scene involved a certain prince as well as a certain friend. What surprised me post about this book, though, was how it took a somewhat serious turn towards the end. Nothing too serious of course, but still something that brought a bit more substance to the book in a positive kind of way.

The only aspect I wasn't too keen about in this was the lack of development in some plot lines and characters. Sometimes I wished more development was to given to Desi's real life as well as the people in it. However, by the end, it wasn't the biggest of problems, and with at least one more book in the works, I'm sure more will be divulged eventually.

Just as adorable and fun hearted as the the first one, The Royal Treatment is sure to make waves within the tween and early YA spectrum. And with that shocking twist at the end, I'm sure many will be eager to read the next as soon as possible!

Grade: B

The Royal Treatment is now available!

Source: Publisher via Netgalley

To find more about Lindsey and her books, be sure to visit her website. 

Lindsey Leavitt's Sean Griswold's Head (Review and Giveaway!)

Summary/Cover Image from Pubisher's Website:

What if your first love was literally sitting right in front of you?

According to her guidance counselor, fifteen-year-old Payton Gritas needs a focus object-an item to concentrate her emotions on. It's supposed to be something inanimate, but Payton decides to use the thing she stares at during class: Sean Griswold's head. They've been linked since third grade (Griswold-Gritas-it's an alphabetical order thing), but she's never really known him.

The focus object is intended to help Payton deal with her father's newly diagnosed multiple sclerosis. And it's working. With the help of her boy-crazy best friend Jac, Payton starts stalking-er, focusing on-Sean Griswold . . . all of him! He's cute, he shares her Seinfeld obsession (nobody else gets it!) and he may have a secret or two of his own.

In this sweet story of first love, Lindsey Leavitt seamlessly balances heartfelt family moments, spot-on sarcastic humor, and a budding young romance.

Review:

After reading Lindsey Leavitt's bubbly and sparkly Princess for Hire last year, I was eager to read more by her. Thankfully enough Sean Griswold's Head is the perfect sophomore attempt by her, because not only is it sweet and adorable, but it has just the perfect amount of realism to have any fan of contemporary YA begging for more.

Sean Griswold's Head tells the story of Payton Gritas, the star student, friend, and basketball player- she truly is the girl who manages to have it all together repeatedly. That is until she finds out not only that her dad has MS, a crippling and scary disease, but her family has been hiding it from her for the past six months. Payton does not know what to do. Should she be mad at her family for hiding it from her and pretending everything was normal, or should she just go back to living her normal life? Payton picks the first, and after a few weeks of silence to both her parents and brothers, she ends up in the guidance consoler’s office, forced to pick a focus object to focus her emotions on. Surprisingly enough, she picks Sean Griswold, or more exactly his head, but as she begins to learn more about Sean, the more she wants to know him, and with the help of her best friend, Sean and she end up being sort-of-friends and maybe even more... However, what happens when Sean learns about her focus object? Will she loose him once and for all? In addition, why is her best friend acting so strangely lately? Better yet, will she ever mend her problems with her family? Only time and more pages will tell in this fun, fast-paced tale of one girl's path to growing up and dealing with life's many problems and complications.

One of the things I always love most about Lindsey Leavitt's books is that she always has such fun and relatable main characters, and Payton Gritas was no different of course. Payton is a girl who I clicked with automatically, as I am sure many others will, because not only is Payton bubbly and witty but most importantly she is real. For one, her feelings and confusion over her dad's disease will ring true to anyone who has ever been through a similar situation, and secondly, her attempts at first love will have readers laughing as well as reminiscing about why they did to get their first boyfriend. Adding to this, I enjoyed the detail Lindsey put in the relationships between not only Payton and Sean but also Payton and her father because both added yet another fantastic touch of realism to the story.

Another aspect I adored about this book was the premise and thankfully enough the execution of the idea was even better. I loved the idea of a focus object because it leads to so many great moments involving Sean and Payton as well as biking surprisingly enough. Better yet, Sean Griswold's Head even surprised me at times with several twists and turns the story took.

Lastly, Lindsey Leavitt's writing improved greatly in this book because not only did she create such a well-spun story, but also her characters managed to jump of the page and come to life within the first chapter and throughout the rest of the book.

Full of wit, fun, and aw-worthy moments, Sean Griswold's Head as well as its author are sure to become new favorites among readers of YA fiction!

Grade: B+

Sean Griswold's Head is now out!

Source: Kate at Blomsbury

I also have ONE copy of Sean Griswold's Head to giveaway. To enter, please fill out the form below. Also, here are the rules for the giveaway:

~ Must be 13 years or older
~ Must have a US mailing address
~ This giveaway will end on April 1, 2011!

*THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.*

Princess for Hire by Lindsey Leavitt

Summary:

When a well-dressed woman steps out of a bubble and wants to know if you'd like to become a substitute princess, do you


A) run

B) faint

C) say yes?

For Desi Bascomb, who's been longing for some glamour in her Idaho life, the choice is a definite C). Desi has a rare ability: with the help of "Royal Rouge," she can temporarily transform into the exact look-alike of any princess who needs her subbing services. Dream come true, right?


Well, Desi soon discovers that subbing involves a lot more than wearing a tiara and waving at cameras.... In this winning debut, one girl's dream of glamour transforms into the desire to make a positive impact. And an impact Desi makes, one royal fiasco at a time.
 
Review:
 
Princess for Hire was just as sugary sweet and bubbly as the cover it has.
 
Desi was a character that was so hard not to like. She was sweet, funny, real and just someone who was so hard not to root for her. I loved how she would risk getting in trouble with her boss by helping the princesses she was subbing for in more personal and self-esteem building ways then were allowed because it showed what a great person she was along with what a fantastic friend she would be if she was real. Further more, I personally think Desi will especially be loved by the pre-teens and younger teens because a lot of the problems she faces such as friend drama, the feeling of not fitting in and low scale boy drama are ones that those girls tend to deal with.  Along with this, the princesses she deals with are basically the same leaving me to love getting to know them even if it was just for a short time.
 
While I liked the premise ( Seriously, how cool would it be to sub in for real life princess?), I felt the execution failed at times. Since the story had the tendency to drag on and become predictable. Though, usually before I knew it the story would take a new turn and become interesting again. Leaving this to not be the biggest of problems.


Overall, Lindsey Leavitt's Princess For Hire is a great read for pre-teens and younger teens looking for a more innocent and tamer read than some of the other books out there in the YA world. I'm looking forward to seeing how this series develops over time.
 
Grade: B
 
Princess for Hire will be released March 16, 2010!
 
Source: Publisher. Thanks Hallie!