Waiting on Wednesday #71 + WWW Wednesday #41

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine.
It's a weekly meme about upcoming books we're excited about!

Ignite

(Defy #2)

by Sara B. Larson

Publication Date: December 30, 2014

From Goodreads:

Alexa continues to harbor a secret love for the newly crowned King Damian, yet she remains by his side as his guard and ever committed to helping him rebuild Antion and reclaim the hope of Antion's people. However, when a new threat to Damian and his kingdom emerges, and blame is cast on the once friendly nation of Blevon, Alexa knows things are not what they seem. Once again the fate of her country hangs in the balance. Will Alexa be able to protect her king and uncover the true enemy - before it's too late?

Why I'm Excited

- This has become a guilty-pleasure trilogy. I know it's not very good and has a lot of flaws, but oddly enough I really like it. Don't know why - I just do.

- I'm also curious to see if maybe it will get better with this next installment!

Hidden

by Donna Jo Napoli

Publication Date: December 30, 2014

From Goodreads:

Lost at sea when her sister is taken captive on a marauding slave ship, Brigid is far removed from the only life she knew as a princess and the pampered daughter of an Irish king.

Now Brigid has few choices. Alone and abandoned, she disguises herself as a boy and vows to find her innocent sister taken into slavery. Through her search many years pass and she grows from being a child to a woman, tough Brigid does not give up. She lives from the land, meets friend and foe along the way, and gains a reputation as a woman thought to be fierce enough to conquer men. It is not fierceness that guides her but the love of her sister and the longing for her family to be united. One day she finds her way, knowing that her only real power comes from within herself.

Why I'm Excited

- It's a new Donna Jo Napoli book, and that's all I need to know!

WWW Wednesday is hosted by Should Be Reading

What are you currently reading?

Elisa is a hero.

She led her people to victory over a terrifying, sorcerous army. Her place as the country's ruler should be secure. But it isn't.

Her enemies come at her like ghosts in a dream, from foreign realms and even from within her own court. And her destiny as the chosen one has not yet been fulfilled.

To conquer the power she bears, once and for all, Elisa must follow a trail of long-forgotten - and forbidden - clues, from the deep, hidden catacombs of her own city to the treacherous seas. With her go a one-eyed spy, a traitor, and the man whom - despite everything - she is falling in love with.

If she's lucky, she will return from this journey. But there will be a cost.

Halfway through and loving it. I liked the first book, but I really like this one. Elisa has grown so much as a character, and she's facing the challenges presented to her with a level head. And I love Hector!!

What did you recently read?

Olivia Mead is a headstrong, independent girl - a suffragist - in an age that prefers its girl to be docile. It's 1900 in Oregon, and Olivia's father, concerned that she's headed for trouble, convinces a stage mesmerist to try to hypnotize the rebellion out of her. But the hypnotist, an intriguing young man named Henri Reverie, gives her a terrible gift instead: she's able to see people's true natures, manifesting as visions of darkness and goodness, while also unable to speak her true thoughts out loud. These supernatural challenges only make Olivia more determined to speak her mind, and so she's drawn into a dangerous relationship with the hypnotist and his mysterious motives, all while secretly fighting for the rights of women.

I gave this book 4/5 strawberries, and am toying with bumping it up to 5/5. It was awesome. Not quite as dark as In the Shadows on Blackbirds, but still very Gothic and thrilling. And Olivia was an amazing protagonist - and Henri! New character crush!!

What do you plan on reading next?

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father's mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. They follow legends and local lore, destroy the murderous dead, and keep pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

Searching for a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas expects the usual: track, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he's never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, not stained red and dripping with blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

She she spares Cas's life.

Time to throw some horror into my Christmas month! Actually, I've been dying to read this book ever since I put it on my TBR back in October, so I'm just going to sit down and read it. Never mind it's not exactly the right season for it. Too bad!