Countdown: Winter Wishlist (2)

Now that I've gotten myself back on track regarding the blog, I can't seem to stop myself from searching high and low for more titles that will be releasing in the future.  Let's face it...this is a regular obsession of mine that I don't think will ever go away.  So now that I've marked my calendar for all the fall titles that I've come across that I've wanted to add to my TBR list I went searching for any books that would hit the stores' shelves in the month of December.  It's always a good idea for me to create a Winter Wishlist for my friends and family so that when the holidays come around and anyone may need some ideas or inspiration in the gift department they're all set.  It also helps me out when it comes to my friends and family.  I of course like to get people gifts that I know they will love, and while I might try to keep that person's wish lists in the back of my mind, I usually like to throw a book in as a gift as well.  It never hurts to help someone increase their library and with so many wonderful titles to choose from, no one can possibly hope to get all of them on their shelves on their own right?  So I've found some great titles that I'll be counting down towards to make sure are added to my lists for myself and for possible gifts I'll be giving out!

Countdown Pick #1:  Blood-Kissed Sky (Darkness Before Dawn, #2) by J.A. London (12/26/2012)

So here's the downside to including this title on my countdown...there's no description for the book as of right now.  Or at least none that I could find on line.  This mother son team, that Rachel Hawthorn and Alex London have created is dynamite!  They're first installment in this series, Darkness Before Dawn quickly became one of my favorites, and had me eagerly anticipating the next two installments in the trilogy.  While this book won't be out in time for the holidays, I without a doubt, will be picking myself up a copy the day of it's release!  I can't wait to see what happens next for Dawn and the other characters this writing team has created, in this fabulous new supernatural world.  And while the book's description might not be out yet (as soon as I find one I'll be sure to update the blog) in the meantime we can all admire the cover art and get excited all over again for this fabulous future read!

Countdown Pick #2:  Scattered Ashes by Maria Rachel Hooley (12/30/2012)

Twenty-two-year-old Jordan Carroway has a plan--marry his best friend, Alyssa and start a family. A month before the wedding, he meets Nicole O'Roarke during a physical education class. Nicole--the woman who tips his canoe, steps on a cactus, and makes him laugh. They fall madly in love, though neither confess it as they both feel the weight of responsibility. Jordan ultimately keeps his promise and marries Alyssa. Nicole also returns to her life, not realizing that love left its mark, and it's not through with either of them.

Doesn't this one sound intriguing?  I wonder what all is in store for these characters.  I'm also liking the fact that it won't focus soley on a female protagonist but on a male lead instead.  It's always nice to have a new change of pace don't you think?  After visiting Hooley's site I found a quote she posted, saying "You can't just sit around and compare every guy to Jordan.  Your date will lose every time to somebody you can't have."  After reading that quote, all I can think about is how great this character must be and how amazing the writing must be by Hooley for someone to make such a statement.

Countdown Pick #3:  Black and White by Tiffany Madison (December 2012)

Despite being jaded and disillusioned by the horrors of war, Jason Keller is profoundly grateful to be alive. After being gravely injured in the city of Ramadi, Iraq under circumstances he cannot fully remember, he is discharged from the United States Marine Corps with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. 
Upon leaving the military hospital, Jason isolates himself in his ancestral home in Pandora, Tennessee. Far from family and friends, he undertakes recovery on his own, wanting nothing more than to be worthy of the life he has retained, working to “get right” by living a regimented routine. But his methods aren’t working, and the best he can seem to achieve is a state of numbness. 

Enter Ava Taylor, a Vanderbilt college student on summer break. Born the oldest daughter to a Southern Baptist minister, she was raised in a strict religious household. Away from the academic life and close family she loves, Ava is humbly enjoying her independence. In her own way, Ava is as isolated as Jason, living as she does through her studies, with few real-life friends around. 

But Pandora is a small town, and it isn’t long before Ava and Jason meet. Despite his initial attraction to her, he is determined to remain alone, and forces himself to stay away from her. She cannot stop thinking about him, but her shyness and inexperience keep her from doing anything more than that. Thrown together once more under dangerous circumstances, Jason helps Ava, to the detriment of his own resolve. She is different from anyone he has ever known and he can no longer resist or avoid her. The tentative friendship they form eases their mutual loneliness, and soon they are spending most of their free time together. 

Wanting to protect Ava from the darker aspects of his past and his PTSD, Jason still keeps her at a distance; especially once he knows that what he feels for her surpasses mere friendship. Their relationship begins a path that both must equally decide to follow.

I think this book's description says it all.  While the description may not be short, I almost wanted it to tell me more.  I want to dive right into this one and see how these two characters evolve and hopefully work through everything together.

Countdown Pick #4:  Adapting Eden (Save the Pearls, #2) by Victoria Foyt (01/25/2013)

In the sequel to the award-winning, dystopian novel, Revealing Eden, Eden Newman must adapt into a hybrid human beast if she hopes to become Ronson Bramford’s mate. She has no choice but to undergo her father’s adaptation experiment at his makeshift laboratory in the last patch of rainforest. But when the past rears its ugly head, Eden and Bramford must abandon camp along with their family and friends. Luckily, an Aztec tribe that has survived with the aid of a healing plant provides them with sanctuary—or is it? Too late, Eden realizes she is at the center of an epic spiritual battle between love and war. To survive, she must face her deepest fears or lose everything, including the beastly man she loves.

As we get into the new year there will be a ton of great titles hitting the shelves, and hopefully a lot of them will be series continuations.  After reading the first installment in the Save the Pearls series, I was truly curious to see what would happen next for Foyt's characters.  She created a world and packed it full of characters that have multiple layers and mysteries attached to them.  It was a wonderful start to a series that I'm sure will have equally interesting follow ups.

Countdown Pick #5:  Catherine by April Lindner (01/02/2013)

A forbidden romance. A modern mystery. Wuthering Heights as you've never seen it before.

Catherine is tired of struggling musicians befriending her just so they can get a gig at her Dad's famous Manhattan club, The Underground. Then she meets mysterious Hence, an unbelievably passionate and talented musician on the brink of success. As their relationship grows, both are swept away in a fiery romance. But when their love is tested by a cruel whim of fate, will pride keep them apart?
Chelsea has always believed that her mom died of a sudden illness, until she finds a letter her dad has kept from her for years -- a letter from her mom, Catherine, who didn't die: She disappeared. Driven by unanswered questions, Chelsea sets out to look for her -- starting with the return address on the letter: The Underground.

Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery.

I'm one of those people that love a good retelling.  It can be one that stays close to the storyline, a crazy off beat title that only uses similar character names and traits, etc...  Either way, for me when it comes to a story where the author has taken a classic book and used their own spin on it to make it new and different I'm likely to want to check it out.  While Wuthering Heights was not one of my all time favorite classics, I appreciate the writing and style that goes hand in hand with this piece of literature.  I'm curious to see where Lindner will take this story and how everything will turn out in her version.