Showcase Sunday #8

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Vicki at Books, Biscuits and Tea. Its aim is to showcase our newest books or book related swag and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto eReaders this week.

For Review: 
Pawn (The Blackcoat Rebellion, #1) by Aimee Carter
Thanks, Netgalley and HarperCollins! I'm not bored of dystopian fiction just yet. This dystopian YA fiction is about a girl who is given the opportunity to rise in rank and thus live a better life - but only if she's willing to go against the very rebellion she's been in support of. I haven't read Carter's Goddess Test series, but I love the sound of her newest series.


Purchased:
Fractured (Guardians of the Shadowlands, #2) by Sarah Fine
So...I actually haven't read Sanctum yet, despite purchasing it for my Kindle a few months ago. I really shouldn't be buying a sequel to a book I haven't even read, but praise for Sanctum is so unanimous and it was another Kindle deal... Advance praise for Fractured hasn't been quite as glowing, but I'm still hoping to love both books in the series thus far.
Allegiant (Divergent, #3) by Veronica Roth
I'm putting it on the record that this pre-order was a result of bullying from my boss. I enjoyed Divergent (my review) and Insurgent (my review), but had a few reservations about where the conclusion would go. That said, I still did arrange my schedule so that I could fully devote my time to reading this on the day that it released. The verdict? I am pretty disappointed, to be honest. More on my thoughts later this week.
The Winter Prince (The Lion Hunters, #1) by Elizabeth Wein
I am a fan of Wein's historical fiction YA novels Code Name Verity (my review) and Rose Under Fire (my review). I'd heard about her Lion Hunters series and have been considering them for a while now. So when there was a Kindle daily deal, I couldn't pass it up. Another retelling of the King Arthur myth, and a story that sounds more decidedly adult than YA? Count me in!
Bitterblue (Graceling Realm, #3) by Kristin Cashore
I already read and reviewed this one. While I didn't love it quite as much as Graceling or Fire, I still thought it was a great fantasy and I've been waiting for its paperback release for a while now, so my collection could be complete and all paperback.
Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them by Francine Prose
This is the type of nonfiction that I enjoy. As an aspiring author, I try to collect some quality books on writing and this seems to be well-regarded. And the subtitle says it all, really. Looking forward to reading this one!
 

Borrowed:
The Known World by Edward P. Jones
This was my work's book club pick. This is definitely a more literary work than I tend to read these days, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, I had issues with the writing style (too much telling, not enough showing) and just the general chronology of the book (told mostly through little vignettes about characters' lives). 
If I Lie by Corinne Jackson
I've wanted to read this one for a while now. Not my normal type of read, that's for sure, but I have come to realize that I do value a solidly told YA contemporary as a break between all the fantasy, science fiction, and other forms of speculative fiction novels that I read most frequently. Also, I want to know what secret Quinn is hiding that is worse than her cheating on her boyfriend.
The Bone Season (The Bone Season, #1) by Samantha Shannon I debated about reading this for a while (comparisons to J.K. Rowling should never be made lightly). Ultimately, however, I decided that I need to read this one, both to see what all the hype is about, and also because it's a rare occasion when a fantasy book hits mainstream culture and I need to support those instances. 

These almost didn't make my list, but I received a package containing this series on Halloween.

Received:

Fairyland trilogy by Catherynne M. Valente

Thanks to Feiwel & Friends and Liz (Consumed by Books) for these pretties! I have never been one to enter all giveaways out there, but now I'm making even more of a concerted effort to only enter those giveaways featuring books I really want to read (and am pretty sure that I'll love). I've heard wonderful things about this series and author, so I was so, so happy to hear I'd won this giveaway. And I will be starting these books very soon.

Let me know what books you've recently acquired!