Showcase Sunday #10

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.

Received:

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton

Many thanks to Candlewick Press and Netgalley for this eARC! This is one of the top 2014 releases I'm looking forward to, so I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to read this early! This magical realism story about an ordinary girl who just happens to have the wings of a bird sounds right up my alley. It also reminds me of Garcia Márquez's short story "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings."

Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
Many thanks to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Netgalley for this eARC! This book reminds me a bit of The Sky is Everywhere, at least in its premise that the protagonist writes as a way to help her cope with the untimely death of her sister. It sounds like a potentially strong debut, so I'm hoping that's true.

Plus One by Elizabeth Fama (no cover)

Many thanks to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Netgalley for this eARC! I was intrigued by the premise of Fama's novel Monstrous Beauty but never got around to reading it. But this, this sounds so good. An alternate reality of what life could have been like after the 1918 outbreak of the Spanish Influenza. People divided into "day" and "night" groups. Forbidden love. Count me in.

Parallel by Lauren Miller

I won a Kindle copy from Sana @ Artsy Musings of a Bibliophile. Thank you, Sana! I've been curious about this book for quite a while now. My two experiences with alternate universe/alternate reality books this year (Kasie West's Pivot Point and Cristin Terrill's All Our Yesterdays) were both super positive, so I'm hoping I'll continue to enjoy the trend in this new book.

Harry Potter Boxed Set

Thanks, Mom and Dad! When I first told my parents I wanted a box set of the redesigned paperback Harry Potter books, their initial reaction was one of bemusement. After all, I do own all of the original hardcovers. But the more images that I saw of the new covers, the more I wanted them. So thanks to my parents for indulging me with new editions of books I already own!

Purchased:

Unsticky by Sarra Manning

I've seen quite a few mentions of this book, but it wasn't until I read Keertana's review that I realized this is actually a story that I think I'd enjoy. I haven't actually seen "Pretty Woman," which apparently has contributed to the basic plot of this novel, but I know about the general idea. Also, it should be nice to read a story about a protagonist close in age, undergoing some similar situations to mine. 

The Testing (The Testing, #1) by Joelle Charbonneau

I am pretty much all dystopianed out for now. It'll probably be a while before I want to read this one, therefore, but there was no way I was going to pass by the opportunity to get a copy of this ebook for free on Amazon. Also, I'll admit that I'm intrigued as to what I'll think of this one: reviews seem to be all over the place about this futuristic story where teens undergo tests to see if they're qualified to attend college and help rebuild their broken world.

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke

I've been meaning to read this chunkster for a while now. I mean, magic and wizards and a nineteenth-century world sounds good to me. Obviously I was very happy to learn the eBook was on sale. Also, acquiring so many lengthy books recently has made  me consider a personal chunkster reading challenge for 2014.

Borrowed:

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2) by Marissa Meyer

Despite having loved Cinder when I read it (almost exactly a year ago now!), I delayed reading Scarlet for quite a long time. I think the hype was just a little too over-the-top for me personally. However as the publication date for Cress draws near, I wanted to be caught up with the series. This book was certainly fun, but it felt a bit like one of those popcorn movie flicks. I enjoyed it at the time but closed the final page not feeling particularly moved. I am willing to admit this may be a "me" thing, however. My review will be posted later this month.

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie

Honestly, I hadn't even heard of this before The Book Smugglers posted their glowing review. And since then I've heard nothing but praise for this book. At its most basic level it appears to be a revenge story about an AI being that has lost everything, but it's also apparently so, so much more (and super intelligent). I just started this one.