2010 Books I Need Yesterday So Help Me &*^&%%^RF

The endings to these books gave me a serious case of blue...brains. (You thought you knew what I was going to say there, didn't you? Ha! Just when you think you know me, BAM.)

In any case. Ahem. If you have an ARC of any of these books in your possession, you have two options:

a) send them to me right now and I will give you one kidney, in VGC, gently used. This is a good deal because even if you already have a kidney, you can never have too many kidneys.

b) never mention who you are because I will find you and pry said ARC from your selfish little fingers Kindly respond in the comments section with your name and address. Thank you.

Ok. Without further ado:

1) You by Charles Benoit. I didn't even know what this book was about until a few weeks ago, but I've been desperate for it ever since the sharkly Janet Reid wrote this review after reading it. That is reason enough. But then I found out what it was about. And what it does. This is #1 on my must-steal acquire list.

2) The Passage by Justin Cronin. A 1.75 film deal for an unfinished manuscript. A "ballpark" bid for 3.75 MILLION DOLLARS by Ballantine for the trilogy. The hype, oh! The hype. Want this book so hard. PS: The editor of this book is going to be at Backspace.

3) The DUFF by Kody Keplinger. I first heard about this book when Kody first signed with Joanna Stampfel Volpe and the news was on Absolute Writer, on Janet Reid's dartboard of envy, and everywhere. I was in the early, early stages of my book and I was awed by Kody's obvious talent and fortitude. The book looks snarky, hilarious, and fun.

4) Linger by Maggie Stiefvater. SAAAAMMMMM!!!! That is all.

5) Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. So maybe this is blasphemous but I don't give a possum's paw whether Katniss chooses Peeta or Gale.* I am Team Katniss. I just HAVE TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT JUST GIVE IT TO ME ALREADY.

6) Lies by Michael Grant. I don't know why these books aren't getting more attention. I have never been so unable to put down a book, especially a 500pg sucker, in the same way as I had been when reading Gone and Hunger. Blew through both of them in 5-6 hours straight. Not one sentence of those books was unnecessary. Not one paragraph dragged. Michael Grant is a first class hooker. You know what I mean. GOSH you have dirty minds.

7) White Cat by Holly Black. Read the first three chapters. Holly Black is one of my favorite authors--loved her since I read her debut novel Tithe, fell even more in love when I read Valiant, and Ironside blew me away. So excited to read her new series, especially after having read the first 3 chapters online. Oh Holly, you tease!

8) Juliette by Anne Fortier. Another big money deal (7 figures, Ballantine). Hooked by the hype.

9) The Scorch Trials by James Dashner. If you happen to be the mother of boys aged 10+, buy The Maze Runner now. If you happen to be the mother of girls aged 10+, buy this book now. Fast paced with one mother of a cliffhanger, I neeeeeeed this book. Wah.

10) Feed by Mira Grant. Viruses. Politics. Zombies. 'Nuff said. I got this book in the mail today and already started it. The first sentence is a work of genius but IDK if I'm allowed to say. But you will love it. Even if you don't think you like horror, or viruses, or zombies, or politics--I think you'll still love it, if you have a sense of humor. It's so fab. And I HAVE IT BEFORE YOU AHAHAHA.

So, gentle readers what books would you kill for?

Start Spreadin' the news.

I'm leaving for a book-centric vacation of sorts to NYC in a month! It starts with BEA, continues with the Backspace Writer's Conference, and ends with my birthday. W00t.

1) I can't wait for BEA. I'm not really sure what goes on there, but I think some ARCs that I want need covet (like The Scorch Trials by James Dashner-- *dying* for this) will be lurking, and in addition to getting some books signed and popping in on the panels/events, I am going to try and get my greedy claws on them. Yessss.

2) Backspace is going to be super fun! I will get to meet MY supah cool agent in real life, hang out with Suzie T, an awesomesauce FinePrint agent, and see some very cool people I met at SCWW in October again. AND get to meet more writers. YAY!

3) My birthday. On second thought...lets not talk about this.

And all the while, I get to hang with one of my besties at her sprawling-but-unfortunately-prone-to-gas-leaks apartment in Brooklyn, with her 3 legged dog of awesome and her boyfriend, who I love picking on. Oh he loves when I come to visit. Poor fellow.

So! Anyone else going to be in NYC for Backspace or BEA? Do you have any fun vacations coming up?

Long, long overdue--my recommendation of Tender Morsels.*

The synopsis: "Tender Morsels is a dark and vivid story, set in two worlds and worrying at the border between them. Liga lives modestly in her own personal heaven, a world given to her in exchange for her earthly life. Her two daughters grow up in this soft place, protected from the violence that once harmed their mother. But the real world cannot be denied forever — magicked men and wild bears break down the borders of Liga's refuge. Now, having known Heaven, how will these three women survive in a world where beauty and brutality lie side by side?"

Look. This is not a book for the squeamish. It is not a "beach book," or a "feel good" book. So if you're looking for something light to take on vacation? Tender Morsels is not it.

But I'll tell you what it is. It is brilliant. It is beautiful. It is brutal. The circumstances that drive Liga to her magical refuge--namely, incest, miscarriage, and rape--are excruciating, but there is absolutely, unequivocally a message of hope in the ending. And the path Lanagan takes to get Liga there is poignant, exquisitely written and incomparably imagined.

So, if you're looking for light and fun, Tender Morsels is not for you. If you are under 12, Tender Morsels is not for you.

But everyone else? Buy it. Even if you read the first page and are shocked by the language. Even if you are horrified by the opening scenes. Even if it disturbs you at first, and you can't figure out why you keep turning the page.

Buy it anyway. You will not be sorry. It will transform you.




*My recommendation for this book is woefully inadequate. Here's why: written by anyone but Margo Lanagan, this book would fail. It's Lanagan's writing, her mastery of voice, that makes this book magical, and that can't be captured in a review or recommendation.

Lovelovelovelovelove this.