Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs… for now.

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.

Expected Publication Date: January 10th 2012 by Dutton Juvenile

I know I’ve only read one John Green book ever, and I’m really not the biggest nerdfighter out there, but there has just been so much excitement building up for this book. I’ve already got this one pre-ordered so I’m to receive it ANY DAY NOW.

A Rogue by Any Other Name by Sarah MacLean

What a scoundrel wants, a scoundrel gets . . .

A decade ago, the Marquess of Bourne was cast from society with nothing but his title. Now a partner in London’s most exclusive gaming hell, the cold, ruthless Bourne will do whatever it takes to regain his inheritance—including marrying perfect, proper Lady Penelope Marbury.

A broken engagement and years of disappointing courtships have left Penelope with little interest in a quiet, comfortable marriage, and a longing for something more. How lucky that her new husband has access to such unexplored pleasures.

Bourne may be a prince of London’s underworld, but he vows to keep Penelope untouched by its wickedness—a challenge indeed as the lady discovers her own desires, and her willingness to wager anything for them . . . even her heart
Expected Publication Date: February 28th 2012 by Avon

Sarah MacLean easily won me over with her Love by Numbers series. I’m excited to read more of her stuff! I hope I enjoy this series just as much.

Thumped by Megan McCafferty

It’s been thirty-five weeks since twin sisters Harmony and Melody went their separate ways. And now their story has become irresistible: twins separated at birth, each due to deliver twins…on the same day!

Married to Ram and living in Goodside, Harmony spends her time trying to fit back into the community she once believed in. But she can’t forget about Jondoe, the guy she fell for under the strangest of circumstances.

To her adoring fans, Melody has achieved everything: a major contract and a coupling with the hottest bump prospect around. But this image is costing her the one guy she really wants.

The girls’ every move is analyzed by millions of fans eagerly counting down to “Double Double Due Date.” They’re two of the most powerful teen girls on the planet, and they could do only one thing to make them even more famous:

Tell the truth.

Expected Publication Date: April 24th 2012 by Balzer + Bray

I was a bit hesitant about reading something new by Megan McCafferty but I was anxious for no reason. I love Bumped and now I eagerly await for its sequel.

The Traitor in the Tunnel by YS Lee

I Queen Victoria has a little problem: there’s a petty thief at work in Buckingham Palace. Charged with discretion, the Agency puts quickwitted Mary Quinn on the case, where she must pose as a domestic while fending off the attentions of a feckless Prince of Wales. But when the prince witnesses the murder of one of his friends in an opium den, the potential for scandal looms large. And Mary faces an even more unsettling possibility: the accused killer, a Chinese sailor imprisoned in the Tower of London, shares a name with her long-lost father. Meanwhile, engineer James Easton, Mary’s onetime paramour, is at work shoring up the sewers beneath the palace, where an unexpected tunnel seems to be very much in use. Can Mary and James trust each other (and put their simmering feelings aside) long enough to solve the mystery and protect the Royal Family? Hoist on your waders for Mary’s most personal case yet, where the stakes couldn’t be higher – and she has everything to lose.

Expected Publication Date: February 28th 2012 by Candlewick Press

I’ve already read this one but it’s one of those books that I need to have a final copy of!

Other Notable Titles

These are some that I am extremely looking forward to, but it is still early for them to have covers and/or descriptions:

1. Written with My Own Heart’s Blood (Outlander, #8) by Diana Gabaldon – You know this means that I have to do an epic reread of the entire series in 2012 but it will be SO WORTH IT. Oh my god, I am so excited just writing about it.
   
2. Shadows (Ashes, #2) by Ilsa J. Bick – Ashes left off with me wanting more. It was probably one of my favorite books this year and I can’t wait to get back into the world Bick has created!
   
3. Untitled (Daughter of Smoke and Bone, #2) by Laini Taylor – Again, another series that I started and loved.
   
4. Rebel Heart (Dustlands, #2) by Moira Young – Yet another sequel that I’m on the look out for in 2012. I started so many series in 2011, and this is one of the few that I plan on continuing. More Saba and Jack please!
   
5. The Thing About the Truth by Lauren Barnholdt – Huge Barnholdt fan so I’m excited for anything that she puts out. This one has a cover, but no description yet. Whatever it’s about, I’ll probably read it regardless.
   
6. Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins – Do I really need to explain this one?
   

Post written by Muggle-Born.net

1. Etienne St. Clair from Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins: Well duh. No one can do better than this English American Masterpiece. Swoon.
2. Dimitri Belikov from the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead: Okay, I like older guys. Specifically, this brooding, forbidden older guy. This good guy turned bad turned good again. A Russian accent has never been any sexier.
3. Jack from Blood Red Road by Moira Young: my review of the book summed up everything I love about Jack – “arrogant, charming, overly-confident, but also more than meets the eye.”
4. Cricket Bell from Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins: Cricket Bell is almost way too good to be true. He’s intelligent, super polite and nice, and very very stylish. Do guys like this really exist in real life? Well if they do, I haven’t met my real-life Cricket yet.
5. Aiden from Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout: Are you seeing a trend right now? Another broody, mysterious book boyfriend made it on the list. Aiden gets super plus points for having gray/silver eyes (yes, that’s because of my Draco Malfoy obsession. PSH. ANOTHER BROODY CHARACTER!!! :P)
6. Cole St. Clair from the Wolves of Mercy Falls series by Maggie Stiefvater: Broody and mysterious BUT also highly intelligent. Sam always gets the attention in this series, but for me Cole gets the prize as one of the top ten hunky fictional men because he’s such an underdog.
7. James Easton from the Agency series by YS Lee: Not your typical hero in a historical novel. James is quite witty and he’s a talented civil engineer. He’s also quite charming.
8. Nico Rathburn from Jane by April Lindner: Um, modern day Mr. Rochester? YES PLEASE. Did I mention he’s a rockstar? Extra points to Nico.

Post written by Muggle-Born.net

BLOOD RED ROAD

Summary: Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That’s fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba’s world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she’s a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction.

Review Overview:

• Once I got sucked into the story, I had a hard time putting it down. There’s no such thing as “one more chapter before bed”.
• Epic love story? You bet. I cannot get enough of Jack and Saba!
• Dystopian / post-apocalyptic perfection – best of the genre that I have read this year!

Getting into this book is tough, I’m not going to lie. There’s loads of development and the story starts out somewhat slow, but the challenge is Saba’s thick accent. Moira Young writes like Saba is directly speaking to us readers – accent and all. But overcoming Moira Young’s unique writing style is just one of the many things that makes BLOOD RED ROAD stand out from the overwhelming amount of dystopian and post-apocalyptic releases in the YA market this year.

Other Lies I’m Not Going to Tell:

1. BLOOD RED ROAD is an easy read – this book is long. Over 500 pages, it is quite an intimidating length. Saba’s voice is initially difficult to get into and it took me a couple of chapters to get used to her. Prepare yourself for her accent and incorrect grammar.
2. There is fast-paced action all the way through – For me, the first third dragged on. The story didn’t really pick up for me until Saba meets the Pinches. After that, I could not put the book down (yes, I stayed up until 2 AM to finish this book).
3. OMG CLIFFHANGER – Nope, not at all, actually. One thing I love about BLOOD RED ROAD? The fact that Moira Young can actually write a decent first book that’s part of a series. I think a problem I have with most dystopian / post-apocalyptic releases this year is that the first book is just an excuse to have a lot of character and setting development without anything happening in 400 or so pages and the book ends up unresolved. Which is why Moira Young’s BLOOD RED ROAD stood out so much for me. Because Young actually writes a full novel with a beginning, middle, and – yes! – end while leaving the reader craving for more afterwards. There is no awful cliffhanger. The story gets resolved. Character development ensued. The end … but to be continued.

Have I sold the book to you yet? No? Well, if the “epic love story” part in the summary did not grab your attention, let me bring it to you again: THIS WAS AN EPIC LOVE STORY! But not in the way that our main girl, Saba, was hopelessly pining for “hot guy”. Romance is no way near close to being what this novel is about, but it’s a very entertaining and enjoyable component of it. If I could write a love interest in a novel, it would probably be similar to Jack: arrogant, charming, overly-confident, but also more than meets the eye. There is no denying that he and Saba have chemistry the moment they meet.

BLOOD RED ROAD is so far the best dystopian / post-apocalyptic novel I have read this year. I felt so satisfied as reader when I finished the book, but at the same time, I cannot wait until the next installment. Trust me, once Moira Young sucks you into her story, best of luck in trying to put the book down to get some sleep.

Post written by Muggle-Born.net