In My Mailbox (20)

In My Mailbox is a meme inspired by Alea and memefied by Kristi! Check out Kristi's post to see what others got in their mailboxes this week.

I haven't done one for several weeks, so these are the books I've received for review. Forgive me if I've forgotten anything!

Ghost Huntress, Book 2: The Guidance by Marley Gibson
(Graphia / Sept. 7, 2009)

Kendall and her ghost hunting team is the talk of Radisson, Georgia, but one person isn’t so pleased. Courtney Langdon doesn’t appreciate Kendall’s new popularity or her relationship with Jason, Courtney’s ex.

So Courtney begins dabbling in the paranormal world. At first it’s all a game to draw attention away from Kendall. But Courtney doesn’t know what she’s getting into—or what it wants in her. This is one game that’s about to turn deadly serious.

The Other Side: A Teen's Guide to Ghost Hunting and the Paranormal by Marley Gibson, Patrick Burns, & Dave Schrader
(Graphia / Sept. 1, 2009)

It used to be you needed a crystal, a psychic, or a Oijia board to make contact with the spirit world. So who would think science would make it possible for just about anyone to experience a ghostly connection? Cameras, recorders, computers, magnetic field readers and other scientific means are now the tools of the trade. But there’s so much available, how does the average teen weed through it all to create the best possible ghost hunting team? Here to help sort it all out are three of today’s leading investigators of the field.

Together, Patrick Burns, Dave Schrader, and Marley Gibson have more than fifty years of experience. They’ve put together this guide to impart their knowledge and wisdom on to the next generation of ghost hunters.

Moon Rise by Marilee Brothers
(BelleBooks, Inc. / July 22, 2009)

Her mom's still dating losers. Her boyfriend's gone back to Mexico. Dad still hasn't told his wife and kids that she exists. At school, the drama queens and bullies still rule. But worst of all for Allie Emerson--aka the Star Seeker of an old Gypsy prophecy--is that her powers have taken a hike. She can't read minds anymore. She can't move stuff just by looking at it. The other Star Seekers are counting on her psychic gifts more than ever, and the evil Tri-marks are closing in, eager to snatch her magic moonstone necklace while she's helpless. The hot new guy at school is ready and willing to fight her battles, but he comes with some wicked baggage. Dear Diary: I'm a little worried. My new BF is a demon. Welcome again to Allie Emerson's funny, scary, amazing, and always unpredictable life, as the girl voted least likely to save the world from evil.

Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern
(Feiwel & Friends / Sept. 29, 2009)

It's Jessie's sophomore year of high school. A self-professed "mathlete," she isn't sure where she belongs. Her two best friends have transformed themselves into punks and one of them is going after her longtime crush. Her beloved older brother will soon leave for college (and in the meantime has shaved off his mohawk and started dating...the prom Princess!)...

Things are changing fast. Jessie needs new friends. And her quest is a hilarious tour through high school clique-dom, with a surprising stop along the way--the Dungeons and Dragons crowd, who out-nerd everyone. Will hanging out with them make her a nerd, too? And could she really be crushing on a guy with too-short pants and too-white gym shoes?

If you go into the wild nerd yonder, can you ever come back?

The Day of the Pelican by Katherine Paterson
(Clarion / Oct. 19, 2009)

Meli Lleshi is positive that her drawing of her teacher with his pelican nose started it all. The Lleshis are Albanians living in Kosovo, a country trying to fight off Serbian oppressors, and suddenly they are homeless refugees. Old and young alike, they find their courage tested by hunger, illness, the long, arduous journey, and danger on every side. Then, unexpectedly, they are brought to America by a church group and begin a new life in a small Vermont town. The events of 9/11 bring more challenges for this Muslim family--but this country is their home now and there can be no turning back.A compassionate, powerful novel by a master storyteller.

Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor
(Arthur A. Levine / Oct. 1, 2009)

Three tales of supernatural love, each pivoting on a kiss that is no mere kiss, but an action with profound consequences for the kissers' souls:

Goblin Fruit: In Victorian times, goblin men had only to offer young girls sumptuous fruits to tempt them to sell their souls. But what does it take to tempt today's savvy girls?

Spicy Little Curses: A demon and the ambassador to Hell tussle over the soul of a beautiful English girl in India. Matters become complicated when she falls in love and decides to test her curse.

Hatchling: Six days before Esme's fourteenth birthday, her left eye turns from brown to blue. She little suspects what the change heralds, but her small safe life begins to unravel at once. What does the beautiful, fanged man want with her, and how is her fate connected to a mysterious race of demons?

The Natural Beauty Book by Anne Akers Johnson
(Klutz / Sept. 1, 2009)

A celebration of beauty without artifice, The Natural Beauty Book is filled with wonderful ways to treat your skin, hair and nails. Think of it as a complete home spa experience in a book. It features more than 60 simple recipes, for everything from bath salts and facial masks to tub infusions and hair rinses, all made using easy-to-find ingredients from your kitchen cupboard. Attached to the book is a complete personal home spa kit, including a facial loofah, a nail brush, a pumice stone and vials of fragrant essential oils. The book clearly explains exactly how to use everything you get. With its ""if you feel good, you look good"" philosophy, The Natural Beauty Book is an ideal title for tweens on up. Step-by-step directions — for treatments like the natural manicure, the complete facial, the ""I’ve-had-such-a-day"" foot massage — make it simple to treat yourself or share with friends.

Spellbinder by Helen Stringer
(Feiwel & Friends / Sept. 29, 2009)

Belladonna Johnson can see ghosts. It’s a trait she’s inherited from her mother’s side of the family, like blue eyes or straight hair. And it’s a trait she could do without, because what twelve-year-old wants to be caught talking to someone invisible?

It is convenient, though, after Belladonna’s parents are killed in a car accident. They can live with her the same as always, watching the same old TV shows in their same old house. Nothing has changed . . . until everything changes.

One night, with no warning, they vanish into thin air—along with every other ghost in the world. It’s what some people think ghosts are supposed to do, but Belladonna knows it’s all wrong. They may not be living, but they’re not supposed to be gone.

With the help of her classmate Steve, a master of sneaking and spying, Belladonna is left to uncover what’s become of the spirits and to navigate a whole world her parents have kept well-hidden. If she can’t find her way, she’ll lose them again—this time for good.

Children of Dust by Ali Eteraz
(HarperOne / Oct. 1, 2009)

Ali Eteraz's Children of Dust is a spellbinding portrayal of a life that few Americans can imagine. From his schooling in a madrassa in Pakistan to his teenage years as a Muslim American in the Bible Belt, and back to Pakistan to find a pious Muslim wife, this lyrical, penetrating saga from a brilliant new literary voice captures the heart of our universal quest for identity.

Dawn by Kevin Brooks
No cover available
(Chicken House / Dec. 1, 2009)

Dawn's dad is a recovering substance abuser, a one-time child molester, and...a born-again Christian. Religion: That's his latest addiction. But as far as Dawn is concerned, the Man Upstairs has robbed her of the father she once loved--drugs, drinks, and all.

Which is why Dawn's gone shopping for Bibles. For research. To know her enemy. Because, to get her old dad back, she's going to have to do away with this God guy.

She'd just better pray that the fallout from her father's past life of crime doesn't catch up to her first.

Fallen by Lauren Kate
(Delacorte / Dec. 8, 2009)

There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.

Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page turning thriller and the ultimate love story.

Invisible Lines by Mary Amato
(EgmontUSA / Nov. 24, 2009)

Trevor is used to hardship: his dad is in jail, and his mom relies on him to watch his younger siblings while she goes from job to job. But when the family moves to a shabby housing project, it's hard for the seventh grader to keep his trademark sense of humor. Things seem to be looking up, however, when he hits it off with some wealthy guys on the soccer team. As he tries unsuccessfully to convince his mom that he can juggle soccer, homework, and babysitting, his one saving grace comes from an unlikely source. Accidentally enrolled in a "gifted" science course, he meets Mr. Ferguson. The teacher's knowledge of fungi is surpassed only by his skill at sparking curiosity. Trevor is soon placed in the "correct" class, but Mr. Ferguson, recognizing his disappointment, encourages him to challenge the rules.

Bound to Shadows by Keri Arthur
(Dell / Oct. 27, 2009)

In the darkness, demons come out to play . . .
and someone must bring their sins to light.

Part vampire, part werewolf, Riley Jenson knows what can happen when vamps don’t play well with others. But she’s never seen anything like this: a series of brutal murders surrounding the latest hot spot for vampire-human hookups—and the victims aren’t just killed, they’re beheaded. Now Riley is launching into action, toying with a seductive—and highly suspicious—club owner, and finding herself in the middle of another mystery: women being killed one by one, without a trace of violence.

For Riley, solving multiple cases—in a world going mad with human and vampire passions—would have been tough enough. Instead she has two jealous lovers on her hands: Kye Murphy, the amber-eyed werewolf who makes Riley’s wolf blood howl—and Quinn, the cool, elegant vamp who has over a thousand years’ experience at fulfilling women’s desires. While she’s busy juggling these two sexy beasts, Riley’s detective work takes a stunningly violent turn. Finding a murderer is now a matter of life and death. Especially since the killer has long since found her . . .