INK EXCHANGE by Melissa Marr

Welcome back to the world first created by Melissa Marr for Wicked Lovely. A world where faeries exist and roam among humans without their knowledge. In this companion novel to Wicked Lovely, we get to know Leslie, one of Ash's best friends. Since Ash and Keenan defeated the Winter Queen and gained power, peace has reigned between the Summer and Winter Courts. Ash doesn't go anywhere without guards and her closest friends are guarded too.

Leslie has had a rough home life ever since her mother left. Her dad is usually drunk and rarely comes home. Her brother is high all the time on a variety of drugs and brings dangerous people around the house. Leslie learned that the hard way and has the scars to prove it. Leslie enjoyed the time she isn't at home whether that means she is at work or at school.

Niall is Keenan's, the Summer King's, right hand. He often guards Leslie and feels his desire for her growing each time he sees her. He doesn't realize she feels the same way about him. If he knew, it would only make it harder on him to not be able to have contact with her. Niall can't physically touch humans. His touch is as addictive as a drug. It leaves humans begging for his constant embrace until they eventually go mad.

Keeping his distance from Leslie becomes impossible when Irial sets his sites on her. Irial is the King of the Dark Court and feeds himself and those connected to him by taking the emotions of fear, lust, anger, greed, and jealousy from other fey as well as humans. Since the peace between the Summer and Winter Courts there hasn't been enough of the dark emotions to sustain the entire Dark Court.

Irial has developed a way to feed through a human. His blood and the tears from the Dark Court Faeries are mixed with ink used to tattoo the person he'll use to feed. Leslie has decided getting a tattoo is a way she can reclaim some control over her life and decides on the symbol that will link her to Irial and eventually lead to her death. Niall must break his rule about human contact in order to keep Leslie safe and ends up falling in love with her.

The battle between the Dark Court and the Summer Court revolves around Leslie. Unfortunately, she doesn't know what is going on since Ash doesn't want her to know about the Faery world. Ash thinks if Leslie doesn't know, she'll be safe. Instead, Leslie gets the tattoo and feels the immediate draw to Irial where she is used to feed the Dark Court.

Niall is willing to do everything he can to ensure Leslie's safety once she is under Irial's control even if means breaking his ties to the Summer Court. Can Niall get Leslie's life back? Can he win her love? Will she be any better with him than with Irial? Read INK EXCHANGE to find out. You won't be disappointed. INK EXCHANGE is just as captivating as Wicked Lovely. I can't wait for the third book.

I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME by Lisa Schroeder

Ava loves Jackson and Jackson loves Ava. Her life has improved greatly since she met him and they started dating. So when Jackson dies unexpectedly at a school party she is devastated. Even the simplest things like getting out of bed and eating seem beyond her abilities. Her feeling of guilt over his death weigh heavily on her and prevent her from beginning the healing process.

During one of her darkest moments she feels a brush of coldness against her skin. Hope fills her up as she thinks it could possibly be Jackson. Thinking there is a chance that he hasn't completely left her makes her happy, but it also causes her concern because she thinks she might be going crazy. Soon after the first encounter though, she receives proof that Jackson is, indeed, still with her.

After some time with Jackson around, Ava begins to think about everything that happened and how she completely lost the sense of herself while she was with him. When asked what makes Ava special, her reply is, "Being Jackson's girlfriend." She experiences the love of her friends and family which allows her to gain perspective and be able to start the process of healing, even if that means giving up the thing she loves the most.

Lisa Schroeder has written a thoughtful story about love and loss, but with an interesting supernatural twist. Its free verse style makes this such a fast-paced story. You will not be able to stop yourself from turning the page to see what happens next and with it being a book of poems you won't have an excuse not to keep reading until you finish.

SLAM by Nick Hornby

Sam's life is pretty planned out. He intends to go to University to study graphic design based on a teacher's recommendation. His mother has high hopes that he will attend University and have a successful life and not follow in her footsteps. His main concern besides school is skating. Sam doesn't like the term skateboarding and feels like he has to constantly educate people on the proper way to refer to the sport. His hero is Tony Hawk and he relies on him for advice in all aspects of his life via a poster he has on his wall.

Sam was born when his mother was sixteen and had to grow up seeing first hand what a challenge it was for his mother to put aside her future in order to raise him. When Sam meets Alicia and their relationship begins to get physical they are sure to use protection except for one encounter. This encounter ends up changing both Sam and Alicia's life forever.

Sam's quirky narration makes this a great book. I listened to the audiobook and found it very enjoyable. There is one part of the story that left me a little angry at Sam. I was saying to myself, "What a jerk," but he ended up being a really great guy. I totally recommend this book to anyone who enjoys humor mixed with a little seriousness.

The Midnight Twins by Jacqueline Mitchard

Meredith and Mallory Brynn are identical twins - born on different days. Meredith was born at 11:59 P.M. on December 31st and Mallory was born at 12:01 A.M. on January 1st of the next year. Merry and Mally share many of the things that other twins do like a special language, sympathy pains, and telepathy. No matter how much they share with each other and how identical they look, they do have differences. Merry is the head cheerleader and Miss Popularity whereas Mally is all business. She is a jock and prefers to spend time alone.

The Brynn twins are known and loved all throughout town but even more so after a New Year's Eve disaster. While babysitting their little brother and cousins, a mysterious fire breaks out that nearly takes the twins' lives. The physical devastation is nothing compared to the emotional damage they endure. Merry and Mally notice they don't dream the same dreams after the fire and begin seeing visions. Mally sees things that are going to happen and Merry sees what has already happened.

The girls begin to get disturbing visions of a long time family friend which end up putting them in an extremely dangerous situation. They must rely on their special "gifts" to survive.

THE MIDNIGHT TWINS is a fascinating novel. The first two chapters were hard to get into because of the detailed explanation of the twins and their "gifts" but once you get to the night of the fire, the story really takes the reader on an emotional ride.

Upcoming Releases I CAN'T Wait To Read!

Here are some of the books that I can’t wait to read when they come out. Leave a comment and tell me what you are waiting for.

Cindy Ella by Robin Palmer
Feb. 7th



Circle of Blood by Alane Ferguson
Feb. 28th



Moby Clique: A Bard Academy Novel by Cara Lockwood
March 4th



Final Warning: A Maximum Ride Novel by James Patterson
March 17th



City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
March 25th



Frostbite: Vampire Academy 2 by Richelle Mead
April 10th



Unbelievable: Pretty Little Liars #4 by Sara Shepard
May 27th



The Dead and the Gone by Susan Pfeffer
June 1st



Feast of Fools: Morganville Vampires #4 by Rachel Caine
June 3rd



Well, I’m sure there are more, but this is all I can think of right now. There are always new books coming out so sometimes I forget. Maybe writing these down will help me remember. Remember to leave me a comment to tell me what you are waiting for.

The Declaration by Gemma Malley

Would you make the choice to live forever even if it meant you wouldn't be allowed to have children? In the year 2140 most people do. In order to take Longevity, people have to sign the Declaration. People that choose to have children anyway are arrested and put in prison and the children are taken and put into something that resembles an orphanage. The children are referred to as Surplus.

Surplus Anna is one of the most promising occupants of Grange Hall, a bleak and cold housing unit for illegal children. She is proud of her accomplishments as a housekeeper. She will soon reach the age where she leaves Grange Hall and is placed in a permanent job. Anna is happy she has been able to pay back society for exisiting. She feels anger toward her parents for even putting her in this situation and adding to the drain on the world's resources. Anna doesn't think much about a life of freedom until Peter shows up at Grange Hall and tells her things that only her parents could know.

Together, Anna and Peter set out on an adventure that changes their lives forever. They both find family they didn't know existed and Anna learns just how much she can care for another person.

THE DECLARATION is a frightening look at what can happen when the government takes control over the life itself. As appealing as living forever may seem, it is clear the consequences far outweigh the benefits.

the dead and the gone by Susan Pfeffer

Companion Novel to Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer. Release date: June 1, 2008

As is the problem in Life As We Knew It, the moon has been hit by a meteor and is knocked off of its axis. The moon is now closer to the Earth which sets off a chain reaction of natural disasters throughout the world. Alex Morales lives in New York City which is devastated right from the start. The Statue of Liberty has been wiped out and many people were washed out to sea by huge tidal waves caused because of the change in the location of the moon. Water is slowly seeping its way farther and farther into New York and closer and closer to where Alex lives with his family on 88th Street.

Alex is working at a pizza place the night of the event that changes his life forever. When he gets home from his shift, he finds out that his mother has been called into work at the hospital in Queens, leaving his two sisters by themselves. Their father had already left for Puerto Rico to attend a family funeral so it is left to Alex to take care of his sisters until they return.

Alex and his sisters must deal with food shortages, random electricity outages, and extreme weather changes. They attempt to keep their hopes up even though their parents never make contact, information is hard to come by, and they are forced to do gruesome things just to survive. Alex and his sisters learn how important family is and that tragedy can sometimes bring people closer together than ever before.

While the dead and the gone covers the same event as Life As We Knew It, it is told in a different way. Where LAWKI is told in first person, tdatg is told in third person. The third person perspective gives the reader a broader look at the story, but was hard to get used to after reading LAWKI. All in all, the dead and the gone is a gripping tale of love, faith, and survival. It is a page-turner and will consume you when you start the book.