Precommendations: Volume 2, Issue 7

6/30/2018

July is an excellent time for book buying. It’s the middle of summer, and it's the middle of a season when we can read whatever we want whenever we want. I was so happy to see the eclectic bunch of new releases coming out this month. Usually, during this time of year, I’m in a full-on contemporary mode, but this group of books has gotten me excited to read a bunch of different genres! If there are any that I missed, let me know in the comments!

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The Loneliest Girl in the Universe, by: Lauren James

July 3rd
The daughter of two astronauts, Romy Silvers is no stranger to life in space. But she never knew how isolating the universe could be until her parents’ tragic deaths left her alone on the Infinity, a spaceship speeding away from Earth.
Romy tries to make the best of her lonely situation, but with only brief messages from her therapist on Earth to keep her company, she can’t help but feel like something is missing. It seems like a dream come true when NASA alerts her that another ship, the Eternity, will be joining the Infinity.
Romy begins exchanging messages with J, the captain of the Eternity, and their friendship breathes new life into her world. But as the Eternity gets closer,

Romy learns there’s more to J’s mission than she could have imagined. And suddenly, there are worse things than being alone….

I have always loved stories set in space, so when I saw that this book was coming out, I was very excited. Most books that take place in outer space are centered around entirely different universes or very far into the future. While I enjoy those books immensely, it will be neat to read a novel set in a time and location close to today. I also don’t read many thrillers, so I think this book will be perfect to shake up my reading list and expand my horizons a little bit. (If you have any thriller/mystery recommendations for me, please leave them in the comments.)

Fawkes, by: Nadine Brandes

July 10th
Thomas Fawkes is turning to stone, and the only cure to the Stone Plague is to join his father’s plot to assassinate the king of England.
Silent wars leave the most carnage. The wars that are never declared, but are carried out in dark alleys with masks and hidden knives. Wars where color power alters the natural rhythm of 17th century London. And when the king calls for peace, no one listens until he finally calls for death.
But what if death finds him first?
Keepers think the Igniters caused the plague. Igniters think the Keepers did it. But all Thomas knows is that the Stone Plague infecting his eye is spreading. And if he doesn’t do something soon, he’ll be a lifeless

statue. So when his Keeper father, Guy Fawkes, invites him to join the Gunpowder Plot—claiming it will put an end to the plague—Thomas is in.
The plan: use 36 barrels of gunpowder to blow up the Igniter King.
The problem: Doing so will destroy the family of the girl Thomas loves. But backing out of the plot will send his father and the other plotters to the gallows. To save one, Thomas will lose the other.
No matter Thomas’s choice, one thing is clear: once the decision is made and the color masks have been put on, there’s no turning back.

This book has been all over the internet recently, and because of this post, I have actually taken the time to read the synopsis. Good news; I am so excited to read this book! At first, all I had heard was that it was historical fiction, which I’m usually not a fan of. But it has so much more to offer! The plotline has a lot of fantasy elements, and I can’t wait to explore the world of 17th century London that the author has recreated! Not only does the book sound fantastic, but I also love Nadine’s social media, and will be sure to keep up with her updates regarding the novel.

Beast: A Tale of Love and Revenge, by: Lisa Jensen

July 10th
They say Château Beaumont is cursed. But servant-girl Lucie can’t believe such foolishness about handsome Jean-Loup Christian Henri LeNoir, Chevalier de Beaumont, master of the estate. But when the chevalier's cruelty is revealed, Lucie vows to see him suffer. A wisewoman grants her wish, with a spell that transforms Jean-Loup into monstrous-looking Beast, reflecting the monster he is inside. But Beast is nothing like the chevalier. Jean-Loup would never patiently tend his roses; Jean-Loup would never attempt poetry; Jean-Loup would never express remorse for the wrong done to Lucie. Gradually, Lucie realizes that Beast is an entirely different creature from the handsome chevalier, with a heart more human than Jean-Loup’s ever was.

Lucie dares to hope that noble Beast has permanently replaced the cruel Jean-Loup — until an innocent beauty arrives at Beast’s château with the power to break the spell.

Beauty and the Beast is my ALL TIME favorite fairy tale, so when I saw that a retelling of it is coming out, I was immediately intrigued. I like that this book has taken a different approach from the classic “Belle” story, and has focused on how the Beast is a much better person than the prince he once was. I’d never thought that it might be better for him to live his life out as the Beast rather than the prince. I can’t wait to see how Lucie fits into the classic tale and whether she succeeds in her goal!

Things Jolie Needs to Do Before She Bites It,
by: Kerry Winfrey

July 10th
Jolie's a lot of things, but she knows that pretty isn't one of them. She has mandibular prognathism, which is the medical term for underbite. Chewing is a pain, headaches are a common occurrence, and she’s never been kissed. She’s months out from having a procedure to correct her underbite, and she cannot wait to be fixed.
While her family watches worst-case scenario TV shows, Jolie becomes paralyzed with the fear that she could die under the knife. She and her best friends Evelyn and Derek decide to make a Things Jolie Needs To Do Before She Bites It (Which Is Super Unlikely But Still, It Could Happen) list. Things like: eat every appetizer on the Applebee’s menu and kiss her crush,

Noah Reed. Their plan helps Jolie discover what beauty truly means to her.

If you have been poking around my little corner of the internet for awhile, you’ll know that I love the particular subgenre of “Contemporary Books featuring Bucket Lists.” I don’t know why, but I LOVE these types of books. (Just to prove they’re a thing, some of my favorites are Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson and Everything All At Once by Katrina Leno.) I’m not sure if it’s because I enjoy creating my own bucket lists, but they have a lot of appeal to me. As I go through life and especially in the last year, I’ve been trying to push myself out of my comfort zone as much as possible. Most of the time, the things I have refused to try are the things I enjoy the most. I think these types of books appeal to that side of me. This book sounds like it is going to be a lighthearted and funny summer read.

Sea Witch, by: Sarah Henning

July 31st
Everyone knows what happens in the end.
A mermaid, a prince, a true love’s kiss.
But before that young siren’s tale, there were three friends.
One feared, one royal, and one already dead.
~~~~~~~~~~
Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch.
A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two

charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after.
But her new friend has secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad, or on two legs, unless Evie finds a way to help her. Now Evie will do anything to save her friend’s humanity, along with her prince’s heart—harnessing the power of her magic, her ocean, and her love until she discovers, too late, the truth of her bargain.
The rise of Hans Christian Andersen’s iconic villainess is a heart-wrenching story of friendship, betrayal, and a girl pushed beyond her limits—to become a monster.

Villain stories are the best, and I think this book is going to be amazing. If you have read (or even heard about) the Lunar Chronicles, this books reminds me a lot of Fairest. I think that villain tales are so much fun to read because you get both an origin story, and you get to root for the bad guy for once. The readers get to see the motives behind the antagonist in their favorite story, and I think they make for excellent character development. They reinforce the saying that “nobody is the villain in their own story,” and that every person has their own side and motives.

What books are you looking forward to this month? Let me know in the comments; I’d love to discuss them with you!

A book-craving teenager,
Ashton

'Have you really read all those books in your room?'
Alaska laughing, 'Oh God no. I’ve maybe read a third of ‘em. But I’m going to read them all. I call it my Life’s Library. Every summer since I was little, I’ve gone to garage sales and bought all the books that looked interesting. So I always have something to read.'

— John Green, Looking for Alaska

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