Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Brought to us by The Printed Page.

This was a slowish week for me because I was getting everything for the Bridal Shower that I’m involved in planning.  So, I did end up with 5 copies of Sex and the City by Candace Bushnell and Highballs High Heels: A Girl’s Guide to the Art of Cocktails by Gideon Bosker.  It is a Sex and the City Bridal Shower, so martini’s are going to be everywhere and the prizes for the games are going to be these books and also Highballs High Heels.  So, my mailbox was full of these treats for others and not necessarily for me.

For me, I received the following books:

1)  Leftovers by Laura Wiess

Summary from Amazon:

A devastating novel of desperation and revenge from one of today’s most compelling new voices in fiction. In this follow-up to her heartbreaking debut, Such a Pretty Girl, Laura Wiess once again spins a shattering tale of the tragedies that befall young women who are considered society’s Leftovers.

Blair and Ardith are best friends who have committed an unforgivable act in the name of love and justice. But in order to understand what could drive two young women to such extreme measures, first you’ll have to understand why. You’ll have to listen as they describe parents who are alternately absent and smothering, classmates who mock and shun anyone different, and young men who are allowed to hurt and dominate without consequence. You will have to learn what it’s like to be a teenage girl who locks her bedroom door at night, who has been written off by the adults around her as damaged goods. A girl who has no one to trust except the one person she’s forbidden to see. You’ll have to understand what it’s really like to be forgotten and abandoned in America today.

Are you ready?

2) Succubus in the City by Nina Harper

Summary from Barnes and Noble (Amazon let me down):

“Sleek sexy and fun.”
–Susan Sizemore, author of Primal Desires

AFTER THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF ONE-NIGHT STANDS, A GIRL JUST WANTS A LITTLE MORE.

Working for Satan is a hot gig. The Devil really does wear Prada, and Lily can sport all the dazzling fashion she desires, eat all the fabulous food she craves, and hang for all eternity with her three demon girlfriends. But serving up bad boys to the fiery pits of Hell is just getting . . . lonely.

Lily gives the jerks, the creeps, and the liars the best (and last) night of their lives, but she’s tired of waking up to a pile of ashes. She wants a guy who will stick around.

BUT A MYSTERIOUS MAN IS TURNING UP THE HEAT. . . .

Nathan Coleman is a devilishly handsome, laid-back P.I. who wants to ask Lily a few questions about a missing man. But someone–or something–wants Lily and her friends dead, and Nathan seems to know more than he’ll admit to. Can a sweet-talking mortal and a girl from Hell find true love?

3)  Singer of Souls by Adam Stemple

Summary provided by Barnes and Noble:

At the start of Stemple’s wonderful fantasy debut, his first solo effort (he’s collaborated with his mother, Jane Yolen, on children’s music books), Douglas “Doc” Stewart, a recovering heroin addict and talented street musician, flees Minnesota for Scotland and his Grandma McLaren, who welcomes her grandson with open arms but warns, “I’ve buried three husbands and I’ll bury you, too, if need be.” Doc’s subsequent success as a busker in Edinburgh strengthens his resolve to stay clean. During the Fringe arts festival, he meets a fey young woman, Aine, who gives him the gift of sight distilled in white powder he shoots into his arm. This ability to perceive the faery world puts him in grave danger after Aine is abducted by a strange priest, Father Croser, who uses his own magical sight for evil purposes. A “bogie” (or mischievous spirit) enlists Doc’s assistance in rescuing Aine, but Doc soon finds himself drawn into a faeryland that’s alarmingly similar to the world of addiction he thought he’d escaped forever and an erotic adventure that holds shocking consequences. Fans of Charles de Lint and Clive Barker will find much to like. Agent, Elizabeth Harding at Curtis Brown. (Aug.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

4)  Things Left Unsaid: A Novel in Poems by Stephanie Hemphill

Summary provided by Amazon.com:

Grade 6-8 – Sarah is not unlike other teens; she’s interested in shopping, boys, and her girlfriends. However, she is tired of her predictable life and is “looking for something.” The “something” she finds is Robin – a defiant, tough-talking girl who smokes, vandalizes, and wears nothing but black. Sharing an affinity to buck authority, the two become fast friends. Even Sarah isn’t sure why she has given up her friends and lost herself. She posits, “…I often choose to be the plastic doll on bended knee, throwing other people’s words out my mouth. Why do I surrender my voice like that?” When Robin attempts suicide, Sarah slowly returns to her former self, realizing that she may have wanted to be different, but not that different. Hemphill has her pacing and character development down pat. She takes Sarah from August through the end of her junior year, alternating shorter and longer passages effectively, showing a life peppered with despair, romance, and confusion. The teen’s friendships (both destructive and healthy) shape who she becomes. In the end, she displays not only hope, but growth, as she invites the destructive Robin to “forge new footprints” with her and turn her back on the “skeletons of disappointment and unhappiness.” Readers don’t know what will happen, but they do have a better idea of who Sarah is through this telling final poem. A thought-provoking read.

2010

03/29

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