Top Ten Tuesday: Scariest Cover Images

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created over at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they're particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish (and who isn't?). They're all about creating new lists including a little bit of everything and I've been meaning to participate for so long but always seemed to get behind. So here we are and hopefully you'll head over to their page and check out what everyone else put up for this week's Top Ten.

I wasn't sure how this week's top ten list would come together, because to be perfectly honest, if I see a cover that scares me, most likely it's a book that I won't have the courage to pick up and read.  But I went looking through my shelves and managed to find and put together a list for this week, that had me worried I wouldn't be able to sleep after staring at these covers for too long.

Scary Cover #1:  The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

Mackie Doyle is not one of us. Though he lives in the small town of Gentry, he comes from a world of tunnels and black murky water, a world of living dead girls ruled by a little tattooed princess. He is a Replacement, left in the crib of a human baby sixteen years ago. Now, because of fatal allergies to iron, blood, and consecrated ground, Mackie is fighting to survive in the human world.

Mackie would give anything to live among us, to practice on his bass or spend time with his crush, Tate. But when Tate's baby sister goes missing, Mackie is drawn irrevocably into the underworld of Gentry, known as Mayhem. He must face the dark creatures of the Slag Heaps and find his rightful place, in our world, or theirs.

Scary Cover #2:  The Screaming Season (Possessions, #3) by Nancy Holder

 

The third novel in the bone-chilling Possessions series by New York Times bestselling author Nancy Holder.

The gutsy heroine of Possessions and The Evil Within returns for another year of boarding school at the haunted Marlwood Academy. Lindsay wakes to find herself strapped down in the infirmary. She had a breakdown and might have tried to kill her nemesis Mandy or Mandy's boyfriend, Troy—or both. The details are hazy, but one thing is certain: she is possessed by a spirit she cannot trust.
Lindsay soon realizes that nowhere on campus is safe. Then, she finds a surprising ally in her former rival. Together, Lindsay and Mandy must figure out who can be trusted—and who wants them dead. But when Lindsay's ex-boyfriend shows up at Marlwood, she is given a chance to get away and be free of the curse. Will she take Riley's hand and run, or team up with a new love to save Marlwood from the evil spirits forever?

 

Scary Cover #3:  Revived by Cat Patrick

 

It started with a bus crash.
Daisy Appleby was a little girl when it happened, and she barely remembers the accident or being brought back to life. At that moment, though, she became one of the first subjects in a covert government program that tests a drug called Revive.
Now fifteen, Daisy has died and been Revived five times. Each death means a new name, a new city, a new identity. The only constant in Daisy's life is constant change.
Then Daisy meets Matt and Audrey McKean, charismatic siblings who quickly become her first real friends. But if she's ever to have a normal life, Daisy must escape from an experiment that's much larger--and more sinister--than she ever imagined.
From its striking first chapter to its emotionally charged ending, Cat Patrick's Revived is a riveting story about what happens when life and death collide.

Scary Cover #4:  Unwind (Unwind Dystology, #1) by Neal Shusterman

 

Connor, Risa, and Lev are running for their lives.

The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.

Scary Cover #5:  The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden, #1) by Julie Kagawa

 

To survive in a ruined world, she must embrace the darkness…

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a walled-in city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten. Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them—the vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself dies and becomes one of the monsters.

Forced to flee her city, Allie must pass for human as she joins a ragged group of pilgrims seeking a legend—a place that might have a cure for the disease that killed off most of civilization and created the rabids, the bloodthirsty creatures who threaten human and vampire alike. And soon Allie will have to decide what and who is worth dying for… again.

Enter Julie Kagawa's dark and twisted world as an unforgettable journey begins.

 

Scary Cover #6:  The House of Dead Maids by Clare B. Dunkle

 

Young Tabby Aykroyd has been brought to the dusty mansion of Seldom House to be nursemaid to a foundling boy. He is a savage little creature, but the Yorkshire moors harbor far worse, as Tabby soon discovers. The ghost of the last maid will not leave Tabby in peace, yet this spirit is only one of many. Why do scores of dead maids and masters haunt Seldom House with a jealous devotion that extends beyond the grave?

As Tabby struggles to escape the evil forces rising out of the land, she watches her young charge choose a different path. He is determined to keep Seldom House as his own. Though Tabby tries to befriend the uncouth urchin, her kindness cannot alter his fate. Long before he reaches the old farmhouse of Wuthering Heights, the boy who will become Heathcliff has doomed himself and any who try to befriend him.

Scary Cover #7:  Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, #1) by Seth Grahame-Smith

 

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.”

So begins Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, an expanded edition of the beloved Jane Austen novel featuring all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem. As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton—and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she’s soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers—and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield. Can Elizabeth vanquish the spawn of Satan? And overcome the social prejudices of the class-conscious landed gentry? Complete with romance, heartbreak, swordfights, cannibalism, and thousands of rotting corpses, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies transforms a masterpiece of world literature into something you’d actually want to read.

 

Scary Cover #8:  Revolution 19 (Revolution 19, #1) by Gregg Rossenblum

 

Twenty years ago, the robots designed to fight our wars abandoned the battlefields. Then they turned their weapons on us.

Only a few escaped the robot revolution of 2071. Kevin, Nick, and Cass are lucky —they live with their parents in a secret human community in the woods. Then their village is detected and wiped out. Hopeful that other survivors have been captured by bots, the teens risk everything to save the only people they have left in the world—by infiltrating a city controlled by their greatest enemies.

Revolution 19 is a cinematic thriller unlike anything else. With a dynamic cast of characters, this surefire blockbuster has everything teen readers want—action, drama, mystery, and romance. Written by debut novelist Gregg Rosenblum, this gripping story shouldn’t be missed.

Scary Cover #9:  Witch Eyes (Witch Eyes, #1) by Scott Tracey

 

Braden was born with witch eyes: the ability to see the world as it truly is: a blinding explosion of memories, darkness, and magic. The power enables Braden to see through spells and lies, but at the cost of horrible pain.

After a terrifying vision reveals imminent danger for the uncle who raised and instructed him, Braden retreats to Belle Dam, an old city divided by two feuding witch dynasties. As rival family heads Catherine Lansing and Jason Thorpe desperately try to use Braden's powers to unlock Belle Dam's secrets, Braden vows never to become their sacrificial pawn. But everything changes when Braden learns that Jason is his father--and Trey, the enigmatic guy he's falling for, is Catherine's son.

To stop an insidious dark magic from consuming the town, Braden must master his gift—and risk losing the one he loves.

 

Scary Cover #10:  Demon Eyes (Witch Eyes, #2) by Scott Tracey

 

Demons don't die without a fight...

After destroying the demon Lucien, Braden—son of Belle Dam’s most powerful warlock, Jason Thorpe—doesn’t need the power of his witch eyes to see that everything in his life is turning against him: friends, family, and even his visions. When disturbing nightmares of Lucien’s return haunt him, Braden discovers that the simmering feud between the city’s two witch dynasties is fast approaching its explosive boiling point.

While struggling to come to terms with his attraction to Trey, Catherine Lansing’s son who should be his mortal enemy, a diabolical plan starts to unveil before Braden’s eyes. Young women are disappearing from Belle Dam, and as he investigates, Braden is forced to explore the dangerous unknown power within himself. But when the truth about his family is revealed, Braden must pay a terrible price.

Countdown: 2012 Releases (11)

Can you guys believe that there's only a few more days until The Hunger Games comes out in theaters? Are you guys excited? Nervous? Anxious? I'm all of the above and just crossing my fingers desperately that the movie turns out to be all that I hoped it would. At the very least I'm hoping they don't completely disregard the book and all the Collins' greatness. I know the movies are never as good as the books, I mean how can they be between the authors' incredible writing and our own imaginations creating pictures and images that go along with the words, but a girl can still hope.

I have been checking out the sites on the Internet, reading all the entertainment magazines and early reviews and it's only increased my anxiety level over the whole thing. Luckily with me moving last weekend and finishing that process up this weekend has kept me busy, but not nearly enough to distract me from keeping the countdown in the back of my mind the entire time. How are you guys keeping yourselves busy? Does everyone have their movie tickets already? For me, these countdowns have been a nice way to pass the time and check out other things to look forward to beyond this weekend.

Countdown Pick #1: This Is Not A Test by Courtney Summers (06/19/2012)

It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self. To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually want to live. But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

So like I said I'm trying to branch out a little bit more in 2012 with the types of books I'm reading. I'm still going to read all my favorite genres and authors, etc...but I want to make sure I throw in some other books that fall outside of my normal, every day go to types so I can see what else is out there for me. Zombies have NEVER been my cup of tea, but this one didn't seem like the others I've come across in the past. While they're still at large and the reason for the end of the world, it sounds to me like it's what is going on in this high school hideout that will be the central focus and not necessarily what is banging down their doors. Make sure to stop by Goodreads and enter yourself in their giveaway for a chance to win your own copy.

Countdown Pick #2: Defiance (Defiance, #1) by C.J. Redwine (08/28/2012)

Within the walls of Baalboden, beneath the shadow of the city’s brutal leader, Rachel Adams has a secret. While other girls sew dresses, host dinner parties, and obey their male Protectors, Rachel knows how to survive in the wilderness and deftly wield a sword. When her father, Jared, fails to return from a courier mission and is declared dead, the Commander assigns Rachel a new Protector, her father’s apprentice, Logan—the same boy Rachel declared her love for two years ago, and the same boy who handed her heart right back to her. Left with nothing but fierce belief in her father’s survival, Rachel decides to escape and find him herself. But treason against the Commander carries a heavy price, and what awaits her in the Wasteland could destroy her.

At nineteen, Logan McEntire is many things. Orphan. Outcast. Inventor. As apprentice to the city’s top courier, Logan is focused on learning his trade so he can escape the tyranny of Baalboden. But his plan never included being responsible for his mentor’s impulsive daughter. Logan is determined to protect her, but when his escape plan goes wrong and Rachel pays the price, he realizes he has more at stake than disappointing Jared.

As Rachel and Logan battle their way through the Wasteland, stalked by a monster that can’t be killed and an army of assassins out for blood, they discover romance, heartbreak, and a truth that will incite a war decades in the making.

Yes! There are some books that I get excited about on a normal level, and then there are others that I create a craziness in me that I can't contain. This sounds like one of those very books. There's nothing about this book that doesn't sound exciting. We've got good vs. evil in the case of the servants vs. the man in control. We've got romance and forbidden or unrequited love as it would have it, and we've got adventure galore. I'm going to be anxiously awaiting this release for sure and the fact that it's the first installment in a series is icing on the cake. More books to come, and hopefully I'll be just as excited for those release dates as well. It's look likely. Check out the Goodreads giveaway to possibly win yourself a copy.

Countdown Pick #3: What's Left of Me (Hybrid, #1) by Kat Zhang (09/18/2012)

NEVER LET ME GO meets HIS DARK MATERIALS in a beautiful, haunting YA debut, the first book in The Hybrid Trilogy.

Eva and Addie live in a world where everyone is born with two souls, but where only the dominant one is allowed to survive childhood. Fifteen years old, and closer even than twins, the girls are keeping Eva, the ‘second soul’, a secret. They know that it’s forbidden to be hybrid, but how could they ever be apart?

When a dramatic event reveals what really happens to hybrids if they are discovered, Eva and Addie face a dangerous fight for survival, neither wanting to be the one left behind…

This one definitely gets the award for most unique so far for the countdown today. Dual souls that share one body, and that's not allowed? I drive myself crazy sometimes because when I hear about a book like this, I catch myself trying to figure out what will happen and how things came to be the way they are in a book that hasn't even hit the shelves yet. Why I think I'll be able to solve mysteries and figure out clues before I've even gotten the chance to get myself a copy is beyond me, but here I am again. Doing the exact same thing. I wonder....

Countdown Pick #4: Revived by Cat Patrick (05/08/2012)

As a little girl, Daisy Appleby was killed in a school bus crash. Moments after the accident, she was brought back to life.

A secret government agency has developed a drug called Revive that can bring people back from the dead, and Daisy Appleby, a test subject, has been Revived five times in fifteen years. Daisy takes extraordinary risks, knowing that she can beat death, but each new death also means a new name, a new city, and a new life. When she meets Matt McKean, Daisy begins to question the moral implications of Revive, and as she discovers the agency’s true goals, she realizes she’s at the center of something much larger — and more sinister — than she ever imagined.

I wasn't sure how I felt about this one the first time I came across it and decided to hold off on adding it to my list originally. But now I've seen and heard about this one several times since then and the idea behind the novel has grown on me. So I've added it to my list and the more I think about it, the more curious and excited I'm getting over the whole idea. I can't really imagine knowing full well that no matter what happened, I'd be able to be brought back to life as if nothing took place. What kind of darker conspiracy is at work here I'm not sure, but I've got plenty of time to think on it before the book comes out this summer.

Countdown Pick # 5: Silver by Talia Vance (09/08/2012)

Beauty is pointless when no one's looking.

Brianna Paxton has been invisible to guys since the eighth grade. She’s pretty enough, it’s just that no one bothers to look. There’s almost nothing that can’t be explained with science, and Brianna has a theory: she’s missing the pheromone that attracts people to one another. Brianna’s theory is shot to hell in one frozen, silver moment, when time stops and Blake Williams not only sees her, he recognizes something inside her that she’s been hiding from even herself.

Before Brianna fully understands who and what she is, she accidentally binds her soul to Blake. Forced to find a way to reconcile forbidden love and her bloody heritage, Brianna discovers that there's nothing pointless about her, and Blake may be in the most danger of all.

I'm already on Brianna's side, aren't you? I think it's plain to see that she's been given a bad break as far as being practically invisible to anyone else and now she's thinking its so bad that it could be genetics...ouch. So I'm not sure how crazy this tale will get with her being able to bind souls together and their being a "heritage" that she's worried about, but I'm sure excited to find out.