Waiting On Wednesday #34 - Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken, Champion by Marie Lu, & Allegiant by Veronica Roth

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I have 3 this week again that I can't wait to read as they are continuations of series that I have started. 

Title: Never Fade

Author: Alexandra Bracken

Series: The Darkest Minds, #2

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Dystopian

Ruby never asked for the abilities that almost cost her her life. Now she must call upon them on a daily basis, leading dangerous missions to bring down a corrupt government and breaking into the minds of her enemies. Other kids in the Children’s League call Ruby “Leader”, but she knows what she really is: a monster. 

When Ruby is entrusted with an explosive secret, she must embark on her most dangerous mission yet: leaving the Children’s League behind. Crucial information about the disease that killed most of America’s children—and turned Ruby and the others who lived into feared and hated outcasts—has survived every attempt to destroy it. But the truth is only saved in one place: a flashdrive in the hands of Liam Stewart, the boy Ruby once believed was her future—and who now wouldn’t recognize her. 

As Ruby sets out across a desperate, lawless country to find Liam—and answers about the catastrophe that has ripped both her life and America apart—she is torn between old friends and the promise she made to serve the League. Ruby will do anything to protect the people she loves. But what if winning the war means losing herself?

Title: Champion

Author: Marie Lu

Series: Legend, #3

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian

The explosive finale to Marie Lu’s New York Times bestselling LEGEND trilogy—perfect for fans of THE HUNGER GAMES and DIVERGENT!

He is a Legend.
She is a Prodigy.
Who will be Champion? 

June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic—and each other—and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government’s elite circles as Princeps Elect while Day has been assigned a high level military position. But neither could have predicted the circumstances that will reunite them once again. Just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic’s border cities. This new strain of plague is deadlier than ever, and June is the only one who knows the key to her country’s defense. But saving the lives of thousands will mean asking the one she loves to give up everything he has. With heart-pounding action and suspense, Marie Lu’s bestselling trilogy draws to a stunning conclusion.

Title: Allegiant

Author: Veronica Roth

Series: Devergent, #3

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian

One choice will define you.

What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

The explosive conclusion to Veronica Roth’s #1 New York Times bestselling Divergent trilogy reveals the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.

Are you looking forward to any of these? What's your Waiting on Wednesday pick this week?

Top Ten Favorite New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2012

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic discusses what Favorite New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2012

This is actually kind of hard as nearly every book I've read this year was a new author to me and there were very few books out of those that I didn't like. 

This is the first ten that come to mind, though I know there are others that I loved.

Honourable mentions: Suzanne Young, Hannah Harrington, Kat Zhang, Sarah J. Mass, Lissa Price, Rebecca Lim and Meagan Spooner.

What is your top ten this week? Leave me a comment so I can visit yours. =) 


** All book covers link to their goodreads page if you would like more information on them**

Review: The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

Author: Alexandra Bracken
Publisher:  Disney Hyperion
Published: 18th December 2012
Series: Yes (Book 2 expected Fall 2013)
Genre: Young Adult - Dystopia, Paranormal 
Obtained From: HarperCollins Australia via Netgalley


Read from September 13 to September 19, 2012

When Ruby wakes up on her tenth birthday, something about her has changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government "rehabilitation camp." She might have survived the mysterious disease that's killed most of America's children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control. 

Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones. 
When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she's on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her--East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can't risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents. 
When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living. - Goodreads

I was looking through Netgalley's offerings when I came across this one. The premise sounded fantastic so I requested it. I was so excited when I was approved and started reading it straight away. 

 I don't know if I can properly express how much I love this book. I have no idea how to put it into words, let alone be able to do it justice. This book is exciting, unique and well-written.

The world building was awesome.  The camps were cruel and the whole atmosphere throughout the story is of uneasiness, darkness and violence. Alexandra Bracken is talented in the way she created the world, you don't get told nor do you see it all at once, instead it gets built up through the story. This just adds to the overall atmosphere. Throughout the whole book you learn how the adults dealt with (deal with) the new abilities that the children developed. Let's not overlook these abilities either, with all the children falling into one of the colour categories being: green or blue - which are seen as a lesser of a threat, and yellow, orange or red being classified as the dangerous abilities. 

The story is told from Ruby's point of view, who pretends that she is a green, and you don't get to know what happened to her straight away. Instead you learn it through as the story progresses. Ruby is a strong character and selfless, and you'll see right at the end just how selfless she really is. Though she does develop through the story as in the beginning she starts of worrying about her abilities and how people would feel if they knew the truth, but as the story progresses so does she. 

As with Ruby you don't learn about Liam straight away, he is left to develop along with the story. Liam is sweet, caring but in no way prefect. 

Romance is not the forefront in this story. The development that happened between Ruby and Liam was slow and I really enjoy watching their relationship grow over the course of the novel. 

The villain (who shall remain nameless here for spoiler reasons) was subtle. I didn't trust him and found him creepy at times. However there were occasions when I wondered if he was really genuine. While I sort of guest what and why with him I was still unsure because of the occasions I  thought he was being genuine. 

The characters are complexed and we get glimpses into their past which allows you to develop an understanding of them. You also get to see some great secondary characters such as Chubs and Zu (let me add that she was a favourite secondary character, she was so cute). 

Now don't get me wrong, this story isn't prefect. There are a few holes and unexplainable aspects. There's no clear definition on what each colours ability is. It's not clear how these kids got there powers either, as some died from the disease and others developed the powers. Though for me they don't detract from the story as there is enough information to follow. I can only assume that more details will be provided in the next book. 

The Darkest Minds was a fantastic well paced read that captivated me from start to finish. I found it extremely difficult to put it down, and tried to force myself to stay awake just to see what would happen next. This is definitely a favourite for this year. You really should read it yourself. =)

★★★★★

It Was Amazing

Thank you to HarperCollins Australia and netgalley for the eARC.

Spotlight: The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

The Darkest Minds

By Alexandra Bracken

Expected publication: December 18th 2012 by Disney Hyperion

Source: eARC received from HarperCollins Australia via Netgalley

Genre: Young Adult - Dystopian, Paranormal

When Ruby wakes up on her tenth birthday, something about her has changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government "rehabilitation camp." She might have survived the mysterious disease that's killed most of America's children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control. 
Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones. 
When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she's on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her--East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can't risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents. 
When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living. - Goodreads

HarperCollins requested that reviews don't go up until month from publication, so I can't give you my review on this. 

However, I loved this and thought I'd at least put it up on here for some extra publicity. 
I hadn't seen nor heard of this one around and only came to requesting it as I saw it on netgalley and the premise sounded awesome. I was so excited when I was accepted and started reading it straight away. I wasn't disappointed. 

If the premise sounds interesting to you, or sounds like something you might enjoy - add it to your TBR lists now. This is one to keep an eye out for. 


Look out for my review which will go live in November 2012. 

Want a glimpse - check out my teasers from last week.