In Our Mailbox #1 + Stacking the Shelves #13

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme first initiated by Tynga. This weekly segment will showcase the books/galleys/ARCs we've acquired/purchased/borrowed within the week.

Purchased Books:

Nicole:

Shades of Earth by Beth Revis

Just One Day - Gayle Forman

Michelle


(from top to bottom, left to right)

1. Anything But Ordinary by Lara Avery
2. Black Juice by Margo Lanagan
3. Lucid by Adrienne Stoltz, Ron Bass
4. The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron


eARC



The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnett
(Thanks to Tor/Forge via Netgalley!)

In Our Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren. This features all the things that we have received in our literal mailbox.



Touching the Surface swag + signed hardcover for review sent to us by the sweet Ms. Kimberly Sabatini.



Here's a close up of the lovely note and the personalized bookmarks we got.
It's nice to know that all our efforts are appreciated. :')

What awesome things did you guys get during the week? We'd love to know!

MICHELLE'S REVIEW: The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen

Title: The False Prince
Author: Jennifer Nielsen
Format Acquired: Hardcover

Publication Date: April 1, 2012

Publishing House: Scholastic

ISBN: 9780545284134
Source of Copy: Purchased from National Bookstore

Summary:

Four boys.
One treacherous plan.
An entire kingdom to fool.

In a faraway land, civil war is brewing. To unify his kingdom's divided people, a nobleman named Conner devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him on the throne. Four orphans are forced to compete for the role, including a defiant and clever boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword's point - he must be chosen to play the prince or he certainly will be killed. His rivals will be devising their own plots devising their own plots as well, so Sage must trust no one and keep his thoughts hidden.

As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner's sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of deceit unfolds, until finally, a truth is revealed that may very well prove more than dangerous than all of the lies taken together.

Jennifer A. Nielsen has woven a heart-racing tale full of danger and bold adventure, lies and deadly truths that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

Review:

Truth be told, I bought this one on a whim. I know, I know. I did say that I would kick that habit to the curb but I just couldn't resist! The blurb, "A bold plot leads an orphan on a terrible journey... to the brink of treason.", totally caught my attention and if there's anything that I find utterly fascinating (amongst millions of other things), it's a.) historical fiction, b.) cruelly brilliant manipulation, and c.) treachery. 

But you know what? I'm glad I was feeling particularly spontaneous that day, because this one is absolutely phenomenal. (And you guys know how rare I rave about books.)

The False Prince kicks off with Sage, a delightfully cheeky young orphan, who has been turned over to the possession of Bevin Conner, a minor nobleman of the land of Carthya, for a quick coin. Sage soon finds that he is not alone, however; three other boys have also been "recruited" by Conner to play the part as the long-lost prince. To be chosen as Conner's prince, these boys must learn all they can to trick the entire kingdom of Carthya, all the while outsmarting each other in order to ascend to the throne. But Sage has other plans, and they may not exactly coincide with the ones of those around him. It will then take an orphaned young boy more than his cunning to make sure that he stays alive.

Mott sighed and left the room. He returned several minutes later with a larger chair in each hand. Master Graves was incensed and said, as punishment for my disruption, I would have to write my letters an extra ten times that day. 

"Ten times the better I'll know them, then," I said. "How strange that you should punish me by ensuring I come out more educated than Roden, who has tried to obey you." p. 80 

Sage is a clever, clever protagonist and I must say that he could just very well be my favorite main character of all time! Goodness knows that I never will quite know what to expect with this boy. Sage's every step always has me thinking of what purpose it could serve him, as he really is quite the strategist. His shrewdness is mind-blowing and the more I got into the book, the faster my fingers turned pages. His transition from the unfeeling, detached adolescent to a thoughtful, responsible one is quite breathtaking, and I have never read anything like it. Sometimes, I do find myself forgetting that he's just what, 15 years-old?

"They look angry," Tobias said to me. "What did you do?" 

"Is it always something I've done?" I asked. "Don't you and Roden ever do anything worth their attention?" 

"It's always something you've done," Roden agreed. 

Nielsen has not only created a witty hero, but has also churned out a wide spectrum of characters ranging from the insanely brilliant, to the power-hungry, and to the abused. 

This book also allows the reader to delve into questions with regards to identities, as they are questioned not only as the shallow physical limitations would allow per se, but the identity of the human being at his/her core. Can an orphan be a prince as long as he chooses to see that he is one? Likewise, can an orphan not be a prince because he simply cannot be, then? Being a prince, being an orphan... does it make the person any more or less different than one already is? Cannot one just simply be?

Another brilliant thing I found about this book would be the symbolisms. They are rife throughout the novel and I just couldn't help but grin every time I found one. I would like to think that even their names are symbolisms. Aside from Sage being fitting for the main protagonist, I found Conner's amusing although I have no way to discern if it was indeed intended by the author (Conner the con man, get it? No?). I also scoured the internet for the other names. Interestingly enough, goody-goody Tobias, being the most self-righteous of the boys, means *the divine being is good, and that Jaron, the name of lost prince, means *descent in Hebrew, and *brave with the spear in Germanic. If you have read this book, you might find these definitions fascinating.

The characterization is highly commendable, the pacing is perfect. (I could even swear that this book has a live, thrumming heartbeat.), and the political intrigue is simple yet singlehandedly delivers a solid punch. Nielsen's ability to weave a simple, seamless storyline that sends its readers into a frenzy of page-turning is something that I would gladly go through again and again.

It then goes without saying that I highly, highly recommend you to pick this one up. Once the second book comes out, you can be assured that I will not hesitate to brandish my sword just to get a copy.

The sequel, The Runaway King, comes out on March 1, 2013.

Rating:

    

              

*reference: www.babynamespedia.com

The Twins on Thursday: The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke

"The Twins on Thursday" is reserved for the Twins' joint reviews. It is a special feature of our blog that discusses books that we either both like, dislike, or have mixed feelings about. This is also the day where we post reviews for books (and ARCs/Galleys) that have been sent to us by authors/galley sites/publishing houses. And because we don't believe much in uniformity, we'll be trying to mix things up a bit by adding random stuff in relation to our review (well, mostly for books we purchased anyway).

Title: The Assassin's Curse
Author: Cassandra Rose Clarke
Format Acquired: Paperback

Publication Date: October 2, 2012

Publishing House: Strange Chemistry

ISBN: 97801908844019
Source of Copy: Purchased from Fully Booked

Summary:

Ananna of the Tanara abandons ship when her parents try to marry her off to another pirate clan. But that only prompts the scorned clan to send an assassin after her. When Ananna faces him down one night, armed with magic she doesn't know how to use, she accidentally  activates a curse binding them together.

To break the spell, Ananna and the assassin must complete three impossible tasks - all while grappling with evil wizards, floating islands, haughty manticores, runaway nobility, strange magic... and the growing romantic tension between them.

(Image and information courtesy of Goodreads; Summary lifted from actual book)

Review:

As soon as we spotted this one, we knew we had to feature it on a Thursday. There're promises of pirates, curses, assassins... C'mon. The book was practically begging to be read!

The whole mess started because Ananna's parents were marrying her off to another pirate and that was something that she could not take. What does she do? She steals a camel, rides off into the sunset and tries to find out her next course of action. But of course things aren't as easy as they seem and soon Ananna finds herself stalked by an assassin sent by the scorned pirate clan. Then in a strange twist of fate, she saves said assassin then finds herself bound to him because of his curse. This prompts them to go on a journey - across the desert, past the men set out to take Ananna back, down a river to an annoying river witch then aboard a ship - to find a cure for their curse.

Ananna and Naji - the assassin - make an adorable pair, she, the undaunted yet kind pirate girl, and he, the cursed assassin. Ananna is a delightful heroine, she's brash and brave and spirited. We particularly liked how protective she was of Naji and it was charming to see her develop feelings for Naji, feelings which she studiously hides from him. Naji on the other hand is brooding, quiet, mysterious and desperate to lift the curse that burdens him. We found it quite enjoyable watching their friendship grow and reading their interactions with each other. 

The best thing about this one is that Clarke does a good job with the pacing and doesn't force any weird or awkward romantic interaction, and the love depicted here is very pure and innocent. It was like watching your younger sibling finally have his/her first crush, and you can't help but go, "Aww...".

Truth be told, we found the premise of another book kind of disappointing. The ending of the first book was a bit anticlimactic for us as we were expecting something that we would be eagerly looking forward to in the next book, like say, something really unexpected maybe? We just thought that if the author finished the whole story in one book, it would have fared better for us. We're still getting the next book though, because Ananna and Naji are just too cute for words. 

Pick this one up if you're in for a light, delightful read, or if you're into the whole pirate thing. 'til we meet again then, Naji and Ananna.

The sequel, The Pirate's Wish, comes out on June 4, 2013.

Rating: