Waiting on Wednesday (292) Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust

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

This week I'm waiting on:

Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer

In this young adult contemporary romance, a girl is suddenly gifted with the ability to cast instant karma on those around her—both good and bad.

Chronic overachiever Prudence Daniels is always quick to cast judgment on the lazy, rude, and arrogant residents of her coastal town. Her dreams of karmic justice are fulfilled when, after a night out with her friends, she wakes up with the sudden ability to cast instant karma on those around her. Pru giddily makes use of the power, punishing everyone from public vandals to karaoke hecklers, but there is one person on whom her powers consistently backfire: Quint Erickson, her slacker of a lab partner and all-around mortal enemy. Soon, Pru begins to uncover truths about Quint, her peers, and even herself that reveal how thin the line is between virtue and vanity, generosity and greed . . . love and hate. (Blurb via Goodreads)

Release Date: November 3, 2020

What are you waiting on?

Waiting on Wednesday (182) Renegades (Renegades #1) by Marissa Meyer

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

This week I'm waiting on:

Renegades (Renegades #1) by Marissa Meyer

From #1 New York Times-bestselling author Marissa Meyer, comes a high-stakes world of adventure, passion, danger, and betrayal.

Secret Identities.
Extraordinary Powers.
She wants vengeance. He wants justice.

The Renegades are a syndicate of prodigies—humans with extraordinary abilities—who emerged from the ruins of a crumbled society and established peace and order where chaos reigned. As champions of justice, they remain a symbol of hope and courage to everyone...except the villains they once overthrew.

Nova has a reason to hate the Renegades, and she is on a mission for vengeance. As she gets closer to her target, she meets Adrian, a Renegade boy who believes in justice—and in Nova. But Nova's allegiance is to a villain who has the power to end them both. (Blurb via Goodreads)

Expected publication: November 7, 2017

What are you waiting on?

{YA Review} Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer

{YA Review} Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer

The fates of Cinder and Scarlet collide as a Lunar threat spreads across the Earth...

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner. (Blurb via Goodreads)

{Details} Hardcover, 454 pages. Published February 5th 2013 by Feiwel and Friend. Source: library

{Rating} 4/5

{Review} If you haven't read Cinder be warned there are some spoilers ahead. Still here? Good. Let's talk about Scarlet.

In Cinder we had Cinderella, in Scarlet we have Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf. I liked the twist Meyer put on the Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf fairytale. Scarlet is a great heroine, strong, independent, driven. Wolf is a complicated character. He's got layers. He's a street fighter who has never tasted tomatoes, who says unbelievably sweet things, who has secrets.

When we see Cinder again she's still in jail, dealing with the revelations about her past, her destiny, knowing her time is limited unless she escapes. Of course she does, there are two more books after all, and she picks up a new comrade, Captain Thorne. I thought the addition of Captain Thorne was fantastic, he's so unlike any of the other characters, bringing a sense of humor and irreverence. He's exactly what we need when the tale turns dark.

As Cinder searches for answers we find out a bit more about her, her past, her abilities, who she can be. When Cinder's path collides with Scarlet and Wolf it's time for her to make a choice, to decide who she's going to be.

We also continue to follow Kai. Ugh. Kai loses the 'charming' moniker here. He's less charming and more idiot. I wanted to knock him upside the head and tell him to grow a backbone. Or a brain. Well, both really. He'd better redeem himself sometime soon.

There are three separate groups and the alternating focuses annoyed me at times. I found myself wanting to hurry through them to find out what happened in the other storylines, but mostly that's just me being impatient and unable to handle suspense.

And now here's the part I whine about the 4 books over 4 years publishing schedule. Cress doesn't come out until February 2014. That's 6+ months. And then we have to wait again. Winter doesn't come out for another YEAR after that. Seriously. If I didn't like this world so much I'd be furious instead of just impatient.

And because I can't resist, some mushy Wolf quotes: (be warned again, spoilers ahead)

"I think I realized that I would rather die because I betrayed them, than live because I betrayed you." (Meyer, 444)

"I know. We met less than a week ago and in that time I've done nothing but lie and cheat and betray you. I know. But if you give me a chance ... all I want is to protect you. To be near you. For as long as I'm able." (Meyer, 446)

{YA Review} Cinder by Marissa Meyer

{YA Review} Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future. (Blurb via Goodreads)

{Details} Hardcover, 1st Edition, 387 pages. Published January 3rd 2012 by Feiwel & Friends. Source: library

{Rating} 4/5

{Review} When Cinder first came out in January of 2012 I saw bloggers going ga-ga over it and now that I've read it I definitely agree, it has lived up to all the hype. Meyer has written a clever series, it's original while being one of the best known fairytales.

It's also awesome. Cinderella is a cyborg. And then it gets even weirder. Read it to find out the weirder, that's a major spoiler. Cinder is a great heroine, she's strong, smart, loyal, selfless, kind. I wanted to be friends with her, I wanted to give her a hug, I wanted to follow her on her quest.

And because this is Cinderella (but better because Cinderella is a cyborg!) there's a Prince Charming, Prince Kai. The 'charming' element is debatable at several points but he's a good guy. A good but imperfect guy. Even when I wasn't too happy with his choices I empathized with Prince Kai, he's trying to do the best, weighing his needs against the needs of the rest of the world. He saw the Cinder no one else saw. He saw past the grease and the grime and her job as a mechanic to see the girl beneath.

It's an absorbing tale. There are moments of humor, of fairytale love, of family and moments of heartbreak, of loss and grief and the devastating truth.

The Lunar Chronicles is a four book series, yay because I love the world and the characters, but over four years? Really? We have to wait that long? That's torture. The only advantage of being so late to jump on the bandwagon is that Scarlet has already been published. I managed to wait a whole week before diving into that one. Now if only it was February 2014 when Cress comes out.