Waiting on Wednesday: A Darkness Strange and Lovely by Susan Dennard

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. It spotlights books that have not yet been released, but ones that you should pre-order today! This week's book that we are anxiously awaiting is A DARKNESS STRANGE AND LOVELY by Susan Dennard.   It releases on July 23, 2013 from Harper Teen.

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Following an all-out battle with the walking Dead, the Spirit Hunters have fled Philadelphia, leaving Eleanor alone to cope with the devastating aftermath. But there’s more trouble ahead—the evil necromancer Marcus has returned, and his diabolical advances have Eleanor escaping to Paris to seek the help of Joseph, Jie, and the infuriatingly handsome Daniel once again. When she arrives, however, she finds a whole new darkness lurking in this City of Light. As harrowing events unfold, Eleanor is forced to make a deadly decision that will mean life or death for everyone.

 

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I am just loving the covers for this series.  The dresses and the colors are gorgeous!  Something Strange and Deadly was my first zombie book, and it was my first brush with steampunk.  I was saddened a bit by the ending of the first book, so I am very excited to see what happens next and if things get better!

Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard

Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard
ARC received by Harper Collins via Edelweiss
Release Date: 7-24-2012
Reviewed by: Middle Sis Jenn
The Sisters Say: Macabre, Menacing, and Magical

The year is 1876, and there’s something strange and deadly loose in Philadelphia…

Eleanor Fitt has a lot to worry about. Her brother has gone missing, her family has fallen on hard times, and her mother is determined to marry her off to any rich young man who walks by. But this is nothing compared to what she’s just read in the newspaper—

The Dead are rising in Philadelphia.

And then, in a frightening attack, a zombie delivers a letter to Eleanor…from her brother.

Whoever is controlling the Dead army has taken her brother as well. If Eleanor is going to find him, she’ll have to venture into the lab of the notorious Spirit-Hunters, who protect the city from supernatural forces. But as Eleanor spends more time with the Spirit-Hunters, including their maddeningly stubborn yet handsome inventor, Daniel, the situation becomes dire. And now, not only is her reputation on the line, but her very life may hang in the balance.


I had no idea what to expect when I started reading this book because I had never read any other zombie book.

I really enjoyed most of the book--it was refreshing and dramatic. Susan's world leapt off the page, and her stunning prose made me feel like I was right there with Eleanor as she worried for her brother, fought her incorrigible mother, and distressed over her feelings for Daniel and Clarence. Eleanor is snarky (even though its 1896) and she doesn't back down from a fight. She struggles to find her place in society and amongst her friends, and I really felt for her as she dug herself deeper and deeper into the macabre world of the spirit hunters. Eleanor was a great heroine--strong and capable, but not stupid. There were times when you could feel her terror, and I respected her because she tried to overcomes her fears. I really admired how Susan presented Eleanor's strengths and weaknesses--all of which built a great heroine.

Now...the 2 guys: Daniel and Clarence. They are complete opposites. Clarence is the smart, handsome, and rich family friend that is exactly the kind of man Eleanor should want to marry--only Clarence has a few secrets that Eleanor is determined to unmask before she believes any of his affections. Clarence is veiled in a mask of secrecy and learning his past is one of the most interesting parts of the book. And then there's Daniel, the ruggedly handsome lower class spirit hunter that is considered to be "filthy" by Eleanor's mother--only Eleanor finds herself dismissing her mother's concerns and developing some sort of feelings for the rugged man. However, just like Clarence, he is harboring secrets of his own. Who can Eleanor trust? Can she trust either of these two handsome devils?

Susan creates dynamic and irresitible characters that you just can help but feel tied to.

I hate to say this, but I wasn't a huge fan of the ending. I'm not going to say any more because it would be way too spoilery. I think many people will enjoy the ending, and maybe this is just the way zombie books are--but I just found myself saying, "What? Why???" Then, I might have shed a tear.  I am looking forward to the next one to see what happens with Eleanor and Daniel!

Now with that...let me answer a few questions:

Am I glad I read it? Yes. I needed to be introduced to the zombie sub-genre, and I really did enjoy the book right up until the end.

Would I recommend it to anyone? Yes because I think quite a few people will enjoy that Susan Dennard has no hesitations in smacking your expectations in the face.

What would I change? Even though it's 1896 and there are reasons for it--I wanted more romance!!!!! Eleanor thrusts her fist as society in every other way--why not add a little more steam?

So...I will leave you with this. Read it and see for yourself--if anything, you will see a world that's new and different. And I'm hoping the sequel will end with me saying, "Yeah!" instead of "What?"

Dearly, Departed

Dearly, Departed
By: Lia Habel
Release Date: October 18, 2011
Reviewed by: Marylee
This Sister Says: Suspenseful, Romantic, Un-put-down-able, AMAZING

Love can never die... Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?


The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune, and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.


But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.


In Dearly, Departed, steampunk meets romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love. (-Goodreads)


This is gonna be like a Waiting on Wednesday, Covers to Die For, and a gushing review of what may very well be my favorite book of the year all rolled into one. There is so much to love about this book I hardly know where to begin. I mean, where do I start? The gorgeous cover (ain’t it purty!)? The amazing characters? Brilliant writing? The comedy and the macabre? … Maybe the original and fascinating take on zombies? Captivating setting? The complete and mesmerizing world-building? – This book contains all of that and more, and the worst part about it was having to put it down to do basic things like bathe, use the restroom, eat, and go to work (the most torturous work day ever). I (already) cannot wait to reread it and I hope the author doesn’t get tired of my (what I’m sure will be incessant) “Are you done with the sequel yet” tweets.

The world-building in this book was so in-depth and absorbing, I felt like I could actually walk out of my house, onto the street and go down to Nora’s house or down to Pam’s father’s bakery. The vivid description just made me feel like I was right there and the backstory and history of why the people chose to revert to Victorian dress and mannerisms is actually very compelling and believable. But they also developed very advanced technology that they also use! So we get a Victorian setting with technological “improvements” such as holographs as the backdrop of this amazing epic!

Characters are usually what make or break a book for me, and Nora, Bram, and Pamela are some of the most intriguing characters I’ve read recently. And one of the things I love most about this book is that we get to see the story through several points of view. It’s always written in first person but alternates between these three and a couple of others. It’s a brilliant way to flesh these characters out and give us perspective to all sides of the story. I cannot count the amount of times I literally laughed out loud at their wittiness, and I fell in love with them so deeply that their triumphs and heartbreak became mine as well.

I just finished reading The Forest of Hands and Teeth trilogy (very good!) so I thought I might be zombie-d out when I started reading this book, but Habel’s take on them was so fresh it was like I was reading about different creatures than Ryan’s zombies. The Laz (as in Lazarus… brilliant name for the disease) reanimates the dead so they come back, but some of them don’t automatically go the limb-ripping, brain-eating route. Some of them (like Bram) retain their humanity after death… for a while. The disease always eventually progresses into your typical zombie nightmare, but with the proper help from doctors and meds, the Laz is slowed down a great deal and can actually be put at bay for a few years and give the undead a relatively normal (after)life. The ones we meet are in a company that is devoted to the take-down of the “bad” zombies, the ones who couldn’t or didn’t maintain their sanity and became the flesh-eating monsters we all have nightmares about. And I love them. I can’t go into to much detail about it because I do not want to be spoilery, but they are simply fascinating and amazing and I am completely captivated by them. The history and science of the disease is explained thoroughly and makes the Laz seem like a scarily realistic problem. I loved (and was terrified by) that so much, because in no other book or movie I’ve seen or read about zombies have they explained exactly how the disease works. I feel like I understand it better and that connected me to the world of the story even more than I already was.

I think what I love most about this novel is that it’s not one that is just about star-crossed lovers and zombies. Sprinkled among the romance (which will make you squee) and the intense action (which will make you feel like fist-pumping) is an often hilarious story that gently asks questions about real bravery, true love, and what it means to live. I love stories with meaning and Dearly, Departed is full of it. As corny as it makes me sound, it made me think on what a treasure life truly is and makes me want to really LIVE every minute of it and not take it for granted. And love. Habel shows us that no matter how scary or potentially heart-breaking it can be, love is always worth the risk.

If I haven’t convinced you yet, the book's prologue is available to read on Amazon.  I hope that you read it and fall for it as hard as I did, then order the book and be even more blown away by its amazingness!  I have never read anything classified as steampunk before, but if they’re all similar to this I have a new favorite genre.  I clearly loved it and am planning on encouraging (by force if necessary) my other book-loving friends to read it as well.

Enclave by Ann Aguirre

Enclave by Ann Aguirre

Reviewed by: Baby Sister Brittany

Release Date: Already on the Shelves! Get it now!

Guys! Guys!

We’re still alive.

I know we’ve been MIA for almost two weeks which is forever in the world of the interwebs. It’s the end of the school year (for me as a teacher and Amy as a mother), and time just got away from us.

Here’s the good news! Even though we haven’t been blogging, we have been reading! And boy, do I have a review for you today!

ENCLAVE. OH DEAR LORD. ENCLAVE.

I loved this book!!!!! I ended up making my final exam for one of my classes in the wee hours of the morning because I couldn’t make myself stop reading this book.  Let me set it up for your right quick:

New York City has been decimated by war and plague, and most of civilization has migrated to underground enclaves, where life expectancy is no more than the early 20's. When Deuce turns 15, she takes on her role as a Huntress, and is paired with Fade, a teenage Hunter who lived Topside as a young boy. When she and Fade discover that the neighboring enclave has been decimated by the tunnel monsters—or Freaks—who seem to be growing more organized, the elders refuse to listen to warnings. And when Deuce and Fade are exiled from the enclave, the girl born in darkness must survive in daylight, in the ruins of a city whose population has dwindled to a few dangerous gangs. As the two are guided by Fade’s long-ago memories, they face dangers, and feelings, unlike any they’ve ever known.

That’s right, kiddos. I’ve got another awesome dystopian for you! The world building in this book is so strong that I never questioned for a second that this time and place could actually exist. Life is hard in what appears to be a post-apocalyptic society that has moved into subway tunnels to survive. Life is so hard in fact, that you aren’t even named until you make it to 15-years-old, because so few make it that long. There are three types of people in this society—Hunters who find the food and protect the enclave, builders who build needed supplies and maintain their compound, and breeders who attempt to keep the population steady.

Deuce is a strong, interesting heroine, and Fade—her partner—is mysterious and damaged and tough. Parents are sort of a foreign concept because no one lives very long. Everything is done for the good of society. But Deuce and Fade soon learn that “the good of the society” is a little more complicated than originally thought.

This book has a lot of elements that at first made me think it was going to be just another run of the mill teen book. Dystopian is everywhere now days, and the “freaks” that the hunters are fighting against are most definitely zombie like in nature. HOWEVER—Aguirre has somehow managed to get a fresh outlook on all of these things, and I think it goes back to her world building. There are so many layers of this world (metaphorically and literally). There are societies that have managed to survive in the tunnels, above ground, and outside of what used to be NYC, and each of them has had to adapt to survive, and it’s so COOL to see how drastically different each society became over the years. There are details that are so unique and fresh—like the blood ritual used to give every person who reaches fifteen their name.

This book is packed with imagination, adventure, and excitement!

And unlike some books, it doesn’t excel just in the action. It has great characters that give the story more depth! Fade is the only person in the enclave who wasn’t born there, and as such is an outsider. Deuce comes from a long line of breeders, but she’s determined to be a huntress. You’ll fall in love with these characters, and then when they start to fall in love it gets even better.

Now—here’s the one thing that some might have an issue with. It is not an easy romance between Deuce and Fade (as it rightly shouldn’t be, HELLO, APOCALYPSE!). They’re both inexperienced, afraid, and terrible at communicating what they want. If you’re looking for an easy romantic pay-off, look elsewhere. If you’re looking for a slow-building, realistic relationship that has ups and downs and will most likely have an EVEN BETTER pay-off when it finally works out in future books (at least I hope it works out in future books)—buy this book now! I, for one, thought it was so refreshing! It was great to see two incredibly brave characters lose all their courage in the face of love.

Read this book! It’s definitely made my list of favorites of the year so far!