Countdown: New Series (2)

Since I managed to find so many great new reads the other day while I was exploring and searching for new authors, new titles and most especially new series....I couldn't fit them all onto one list without a doubt. So I'm back with another batch of great new books that I'm too excited to get the chance to read and hopefully will find myself falling in love with a few more series that I can follow for a good time to come. As always, if you've got any titles or authors that have caught your eye and you haven't seen me mention them here I'd love to hear about them. I can't even count how many of your recommendations have been the reason I've added to my collection and I'm always grateful for the points in the right direction.

Countdown Pick #1: Incarnate (New Soul, #1) by Jodi Meadows (1/31/2012)

NEWSOUL

Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

NOSOUL

Even Ana’s own mother thinks she’s a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she’ll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are suspicious and afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

HEART

Sam believes Ana’s new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana’s enemies—human and creature alike—let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else’s life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

This is one that I just came upon but wish it was already out on the shelves. I would have downloaded it to my kindle instantly to start reading it if I could have. The idea of reincarnation is not one I ponder very often, but Meadows has me enthralled. What would it be like to be like one of these characters knowing that you'll always come back (with all your previous memories no less) and be able to reunite with previous family members and people you loved? Like I said...I'm enthralled.

Countdown Pick #2: Born Wicked (The Cahill Witch Chronicles, #1) by Jessica Spotswood (2/7/2012)

Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they're witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave.

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word . . . especially after she finds her mother's diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family's destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren't safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other.

I love anything witch related lately. I'm thinking 2012 will be their year in books. And Spotswood's tale seems like one I could really dig in to. I'm curious to learn more about the sisterhood the synopsis refers to, not to mention this deep, dark, family secret. As if a family of witches wouldn't be a big enough secret. So Spotswood has me intrigued and I'm so glad that she has more installments in the works, because if this series opener is as good as it sounds, I'm going to want more.

Countdown Pick #3: Hemlock (Hemlock, #1) by Kathleen Peacock (2012)

Mackenzie and Amy were best friends. Until Amy was brutally murdered.

Since then, Mac’s life has been turned upside down. She is being haunted by Amy in her dreams, and an extremist group called the Trackers has come to Mac’s hometown of Hemlock to hunt down Amy’s killer: A white werewolf.

Lupine syndrome—also known as the werewolf virus—is on the rise across the country. Many of the infected try to hide their symptoms, but bloodlust is not easy to control.

Wanting desperately to put an end to her nightmares, Mac decides to investigate Amy’s murder herself. She discovers secrets lurking in the shadows of Hemlock, secrets about Amy’s boyfriend, Jason, her good pal Kyle, and especially her late best friend. Mac is thrown into a maelstrom of violence and betrayal that puts her life at risk.

Lupine syndrome...now there's one I've never heard before. HarperCollins is teasing readers with buzzwords like spellbinding, and questions revolving around love and lies, etc... It's totally working for me. I'm eager to see how the main character Mac treks her way through murder, nightmares, werewolves and violence. I so don't envy the girl her predicament. Author Kimberly Derting said she was, "biting [her] nails with anticipation." That's a good enough endorsement for me.
Countdown Pick #4: Scent of a White Rose (The Rose Trilogy, #1) by Tish Thawer (1/10/2012)

A vampire's love...

An innocent's guilt...

A secret no one could've imagined...

A YA paranormal romance that entices with a heroine that isn't quite what she seems, a vampire whose love story is filled with dark surprises, and a vampire clan whose Sire has lost the ability to inflict "the change".

~ ROSE ~
I'm Rose Reynolds. I have recently lost my Mom in a "freak accident".
Now everyone sees me as an innocent girl.... a “white Rose”.
But I have a secret that no one can imagine.
I'm not as innocent as everyone thinks…

~ CHRISTIAN ~
I'm Christian and I’m in love with Rose. I also have a secret as old as time.
I’m a vampire.
No, she doesn’t know…yet.
But when our new Sire is revealed, I'll petition them to change her.
Because truly, I can't live without her...

I'm wondering what Rose will think about Christian's vampire revelation? Is it that easy for vampires in Thawer's world to change people over? Do those people get a say in it? I'm also wondering what Rose's secret is? Did she kill her mother? Lots of questions rolling around in my head over this series. I'll be on the lookout for this title in 2012 and hopefully Thawer will provide me with a lot of answers.

Countdown Pick #5: Halflings (Halflings, #1) by Heather Burch (January 2012)

After being inexplicably targeted by an evil intent on harming her at any cost, seventeen-year-old Nikki finds herself under the watchful guardianship of three mysterious young men who call themselves halflings. Sworn to defend her, misfits Mace, Raven, and Vine battle to keep Nikki safe while hiding their deepest secret—and the wings that come with.

A growing attraction between Nikki and two of her protectors presents a whole other danger. While she risks a broken heart, Mace and Raven could lose everything, including their souls. As the mysteries behind the boys’ powers, as well as her role in a scientist’s dark plan, unfold, Nikki is faced with choices that will affect the future of an entire race of heavenly beings, as well as the precarious equilibrium of the earthly world.

Give me a story involving angels (or at least I think it's about angels) and I'm on the band wagon. With no real concrete details about what kind of trouble our heroine is in or why she's the focal point for such malice, my imagination is running away from me. But the girl gets three gorgeous, hulking me to protect and look out for her! A little danger might be worth their company, you just never know. It looks like January might turn out to be a busy month of reading for this girl.