Sunday 2 October 2011

My Book Haul/ In My Mailbox

The Story Siren hosts a weekly meme where bloggers can share what goodies they've purchased/received this week. If you get a chance head over to The Story Siren and check out what everyone is up to!
So this week was my birthday (more about which on Wednesday!) and my lovely friends got me a whole assortment of goodies including a total of £45 in Amazon gift vouchers. I haven't spent them yet but expect my kindle to be bombarded with lots of yummy new books over the next week - as long as I can narrow my choices down to must get now!

Black Dust Mambo - Adrian Phoenix
Publisher: Pocket Books
Kallie Riviere, a fiery Cajun hoodoo apprentice with a talent for trouble, finds herself smack-dab in the middle of one of those times her mentor warned her about when she visits New Orleans to attend the Hecatean Alliance's annual carnival: her hard-bodied conjurer hookup ends up dead in her blood-drenched bed. And he was killed by something that Kallie would never dream of touching -- the darkest of dark juju, soul-eating juju -- a black dust hex that may have been meant to kill her. Now Kallie has to use every bit of hoodoo knowledge and bayou-bred mojo she possesses to clear her own name and find the killer -- even as that dark sorcerer hunts Kallie and her friends. But Kallie's search for the truth soon leads her in a direction she never anticipated -- back home to Bayou Cypres Noir, and to Gabrielle LaRue, Kallie's aunt, protector, and hoodoo mentor . . . who is looking more and more like she just might be the one who wants Kallie dead.

This was a birthday present from a couple of my friends who know to check my Amazon wishlist for books I want! I do like my UF fantasy and I haven't read any Adrian Phoenix books yet...but I will now!

The Good Faires Of New York - Martin Miller
Publisher: US - Soft Skull Press
When a pair of fugitive Scottish thistle fairies end up transplanted to Manhattan by mistake, both the Big Apple and the Little People have a lot of adjusting to do. Heather and Morag just want to start the first radical fairy punk rock band, but first they’ll have make a match between two highly unlikely sweethearts, start a street brawl between rival gangs of Italian, Chinese, and African fairies, help the ghost of a dead rocker track down his lost guitar, reclaim a rare triple-bloomed Welsh poppy from a bag lady with delusions of grandeur, disrupt a local community performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and somehow manage to stay sober enough to save all of New York from an invasion of evil Cornish fairies. If they can stop feuding with each other, that is.

This is another birthday present from sometime guest reviewer, Sarah. She was recently over in New York and got my this book (which looks fab!) plus gorgeous goodies from Strand Books - have a look: -
A notebook and tote bag from Strand books in New York - I so want to go myself!
Brightest Kind of Darkness - P.T. Michelle
Publisher:
Nara Collins is an average sixteen-year-old, with one exception: every night she dreams the events of the following day. Due to an incident in her past, Nara avoids using her special gift to change fate…until she dreams a future she can’t ignore. After Nara prevents a bombing at Blue Ridge High, her ability to see the future starts to fade, while people at school are suddenly being injured at an unusually high rate. Grappling with her diminishing powers and the need to prevent another disaster, Nara meets Ethan Harris, a mysterious loner who seems to understand her better than anyone. Ethan and Nara forge an irresistible connection, but as their relationship heats up, so do her questions about his dark past.

I couldn't resist buying this after I read Donna from Book Passion for Life's glowing review - it sounds fantastic. Plus Amazon has it for 86p for the kindle - worth an investment! :-)

Open Minds - Susan Kaye Quinn
When everyone reads minds, a secret is a dangerous thing to keep.
Sixteen-year-old Kira Moore is a zero, someone who can’t read thoughts or be read by others. Zeros are outcasts who can’t be trusted, leaving her no chance with Raf, a regular mindreader and the best friend she secretly loves. When she accidentally controls Raf’s mind and nearly kills him, Kira tries to hide her frightening new ability from her family and an increasingly suspicious Raf. But lies tangle around her, and she’s dragged deep into a hidden world of mindjackers, where having to mind control everyone she loves is just the beginning of the deadly choices before her.
I read Susan's Life, Liberty & Pursuit while on holiday earlier this year and enjoyed it. So when Susan asked to have a look at her new YA series which will be released in November, how could I resist? :)

Crippen - John Boyne
Publisher: UK - Black Swan
July 1910: A gruesome discovery has been made at 39 Hilldrop Crescent, Camden.
Chief Inspector Walter Dew of Scotland Yard did not expect the house to be empty. Nor did he expect to find a body in the cellar. Buried under the flagstones are the remains of Cora Crippen, former music-hall singer and wife of Dr. Hawley Crippen. No one would have thought the quiet, unassuming Dr. Crippen capable of murder, yet the doctor and his mistress have disappeared from London, and now a full-scale hunt for them has begun. Across the Channel in Antwerp, the S.S. Montrose has just set off on its two-week voyage to North America. Slipping in among the first-class passengers is a Mr. John Robinson, accompanied by his teenage son, Edmund. The pair may be hoping for a quiet, private voyage, but in the close confines of a luxury ocean liner, anonymity is rare. And with others aboard looking for romance, or violence, or escape from their past in Europe, it will take more than just luck for the Robinsons to survive the voyage unnoticed.

This is the final book for my Transworld Book group challenge which I've been enjoying over the last couple of months. This time it's historical crime/thriller so I've had a real mix of genres - which has been great! :-)

So what have you picked up this week?

16 comments:

  1. Open Minds sounds really good and I'm looking forward to seeing what you think of it. You very nearly tempted me to buy Brightest Kind of Darkness, but NO! I'm on a book buying ban which includes ebooks even if they are only 86p! Now I'm wondering if I'll be able to resist once I've read your review of it lol.

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  2. Happy belated birthday Mel, love the strand goodies they look fab, I really like the sound of The Good Fairies of New York can't wait for your review of that one.

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  3. Happy belated birthday, Mel! Very eclectic IMM and very interesting. I really hope you like Adrian Phoenix, she is fantastic! Enjoy your books :)

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  4. Black Dust Mambo is a great book I do hope you'll like it too, I've the sequel in my TBR pile.

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  5. I hope you had a fab Birthday - it sounds like you got spoiled :D

    As always a great selection of books, I'm off to have a look at Open minds, it sounds like a fab idea for a book.

    Happy reading

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  6. brilliant books this week, I hope you enjoy them all and happy birthday! :D

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  7. i gave in and bought Brightest Kind of Darkness :)

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  8. I love the sound of The Good Fairies of New York, that description just made me smile!

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  9. Brightest Kind of Darkness has a beautiful cover and sounds really good, can't wait to find out what you think!

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  10. Oh Adrian Phoenix... I think that is the author I have been told to read in order. :)

    I still need to get to the Brightest Kind of Darkness. It's on my review pile!

    Can I go with you to the Strand next time? I mean it's just a small boat ride to get me... ;D

    Hope you had a wonderful b-day (week, month...)!!!

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  11. Awesome books as always :)

    Left you something at my blog ;)

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  12. i haven't heard of these titles but they sound awesome. enjoy and happy reading :)

    Check out our IMM this week.

    -Michelle

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  13. Oh Open Minds sounds awesome! I've never actually seen it before! Another add on my TBR list! :D

    Giselle
    Xpresso Reads
    P.S. I've also got a new giveaway on my blog for Remembrance if you want to enter.

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  14. A few new books here for me, but I know I do want Black Dust Mambo. :) Hope you enjoy them all and have a wonderful week!

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  15. The cover of Brightest Kind of Darkness is gorgeous! And I definitely love the sound of it. I'm intrigued! Looks like a great week for you. :) Hope you enjoy!

    My IMM!

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  16. ooooh! I got Brightest Kind of Darkness, too. I just love the cover and can't wait to read it.

    Great haul, Mel. Enjoy.

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