Waiting on Wednesday - Revenge of the Wild by Michelle Modesto

Welcome to Waiting On Wednesday here at

 Winterhaven Books!

This is a feature created by Jill at Breaking The Spine where we share some books we are anxiously awaiting.

This week's pick...

Revenge and the Wild 
by Michelle Modesto
Expected publication: February 2nd 2016 by Balzer + Bray 

The two-bit town of Rogue City is a lawless place, full of dark magic and saloon brawls, monsters and six-shooters. But it’s perfect for seventeen-year-old Westie, the notorious adopted daughter of local inventor Nigel Butler. Westie was only a child when she lost her arm and her family to cannibals on the wagon trail. Nine years later, Westie may seem fearsome with her foul-mouthed tough exterior and the powerful mechanical arm built for her by Nigel, but the memory of her past still haunts her. She’s determined to make the killers pay for their crimes—and there’s nothing to stop her except her own reckless ways. But Westie’s search ceases when a wealthy family comes to town looking to invest in Nigel’s latest invention, a machine that can harvest magic from gold—which Rogue City desperately needs as the magic wards that surround the city start to fail. There’s only one problem: the investors look exactly like the family who murdered Westie’s kin. With the help of Nigel’s handsome but scarred young assistant, Alistair, Westie sets out to prove their guilt. But if she’s not careful, her desire for revenge could cost her the family she has now. This thrilling novel is a remarkable tale of danger and discovery, from debut author Michelle Modesto.

There is just so much going on in this synopsis I don't even know where to begin! The whole allure of the wild West has really captured me as of late. Factor in the steam punk elements and magical wards and my heart eyes are basically out of control. I also love a good revengle plot and this has all that! This is gonna be an AMAZING winter!! I can feel it already!

Review: Avalon by Mindee Arnett

Avalon by Mindee Arnett
Publisher: Balzar & Bray
Release Date: Jan 21, 2014
Purchase: Amazon / B&N

A ragtag group of teenage mercenaries who crew the spaceship Avalon stumble upon a conspiracy that could threaten the entire galaxy in this fascinating and fast-paced sci-fi adventure from author Mindee Arnett.

Of the various star systems that make up the Confederation, most lie thousands of light-years from First Earth-and out here, no one is free. The agencies that govern the Confederation are as corrupt as the crime bosses who patrol it, and power is held by anyone with enough greed and ruthlessness to claim it. That power is derived from one thing: metatech, the devices that allow people to travel great distances faster than the speed of light.

Jeth Seagrave and his crew of teenage mercenaries have survived in this world by stealing unsecured metatech, and they're damn good at it. Jeth doesn't care about the politics or the law; all he cares about is earning enough money to buy back his parents' ship, Avalon, from his crime-boss employer and getting himself and his sister, Lizzie, the heck out of Dodge. But when Jeth finds himself in possession of information that both the crime bosses and the government are willing to kill for, he is going to have to ask himself how far he'll go to get the freedom he's wanted for so long.

Avalon is the perfect fit for teens new to sci-fi as well as seasoned sci-fi readers looking for more books in the YA space-and a great match for fans of Joss Whedon's cult hit show Firefly

My Thoughts:
Sci-Fi books are always a challenge for me.  I usually like them, but picking them up is never easy for some reason.  I'm guessing it might be due to all the strange tech and worlds that always seem to be in each novel, but usually when I do pick one up I am quite satisfied and surprised at how much I truly do like this genre.  Avalon not only held true to this, but it turned out to be one of my favorites among all the other Sci-Fi books on my shelf.

Jeth is a thief, but he is one of the best thieves out there.  With his crew behind him he knows he can pull off any con.  Problem is that he works for Hammer, the crime lord that nobody every thinks to disobey.  Jeth is has to work for him only long enough to earn back his ship Avalon, which his drunken uncle lost in a card game a long time ago.  If Jeth can pull off enough cons he will have just the amount he needs and take his crew including his 13 year old sister with him far far away from Hammer and his reign of terror.  Unfortunately a huge kink gets thrown into his plans when he gets sent on his last job.  All he has to do is retrieve a spaceship that is lost in the Belgrave, don't board it no matter what, and bring it back to Hammer.  Easy right?  Wrong, when Jeth discovers that this ship isn't exactly empty he decides to disobey Hammer and in doing so he opens up a whole can of worms.

This has to be one of the funnest books I have ever read.  It totally kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time!  I absolutely loved that the author chose to make the tough situations real.  There wasn't any overpowering or eye rolling saves.  It all felt real and things didn't always go the way the characters wanted and I loved it.  Sometimes this genre can get a little too much and the heroines don't feel real at all.  Things just always work out for them, but Jeth and his band of misfits learned that things hardly ever go the way they need them too.  With this though they learned how to create opportunities and it was exciting to see them find a way to escape certain situations.  Like I said I was on the edge of my seat wondering how things would turn out and man was it an exciting ride!

The story is very believable which again I sometimes find not all books can pull off.  I could totally grasp the world that Ms.Arnett created and it all made sense.  I really enjoyed her twist thrown in the middle and even though I did guess what the culprit was behind things it was still thrilling to see the reveal.  I really love seeing the light bulb go off in a characters head and when Jeth learns the truth it was like BAM!  I relearned it too and it made it feel like I had never known to begin with.  Ms. Arnett is one talented author!

I think one of my favorite parts was the way the romance was woven in.  It wasn't in your face and it was a very nice spin on the story especially since this was told in Jeths POV.  I thought it was very sweet and took up enough of the story to where I knew it was there, but not enough to where I thought it took center stage. 

The true story is the why's behind the metatech and why Jeth is in the situation he is in.   I am really hoping that there will be a sequel to this and there definitely is enough unanswered questions to make one.  I have to say one more thing before I close out this review.  I will forever be haunted by the spider thingys that the author uses in this story *shudders* She describes them in such detail even down to the suction sounds that I am forever scared.  ICK!  But I have to say it was a brilliant addition to the story and I want to know more!!

5 Snowflakes

*A copy was provided for review by the publisher*

Review and Giveaway: Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris

Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris

Publisher-Balzer and Bray

Release- April 23rd 2013

Pre-Order- Amazon / B & N / Chapters

Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?

My Thoughts:

It's been four months since Ben Michael's slipped into the portal that sent him back to his home universe, and with the crumbling world that has been swarmed with natural disasters that left earth in catastrophe and the insane amount of missing people disappearing, Janelle has been doing what ever she can to find some kind of normal. That is, till IA Taylor Barclay shows up at her doorstep. He knows what is happening to the missing people. Someone is organizing a massive human trafficking ring and stealing them through the portals. And Ben, is the prime suspect. So when someone she loves also goes missing, Janelle doesn't have a choice but to go with a man she doesn't trust. 

The countdown begins. Five days. Five days to find Ben. Five days to prove him innocent. Five days to find the missing people and Five days to solve this case before all hell breaks loose and Janelle may lose someone else she loves.

Unraveling was one of those books where I simply couldn't get enough. I adored the world Norris creating, it's characters and the riveting plot. So I couldn't wait to get this book in my greedy little hands.

Unbreakable is an unstoppable sequel that will leave you breathless and on the verge of your seats!

I gotta tell ya, x-file kinda stories isn't something that I've ever been really interested in. They tend to really freak me out and give me the hebejebes since they feel so realistic, but the way Norris tells it makes me want to be a fan.

This book felt like one giant roller-coaster. It's constantly moving with suspense and excitement. The pages couldn't turn fast enough I was reading so fast. The story line -human trafficking- did make me feel very anxious and uncomfortable at times, it's not exactly a light topic after all, but Norris didn't make it overly graphic and it made the entire situation feel more desperate and worth fighting for. But during the running and planning and escaping, we also have a really great love story. Ben and Janelle have one of those magical connections that you can't help but want to hug.

I've really missed these characters and was surprised how attached I felt for them.

Janelle is all kinds of awesome. The length in which she'll go to save the ones she loves is inspiring. She may have had a doubting thought here and there but it's only natural, anything else would have felt fake.  Ben wasn't in this book till almost half way. But once we do get him back it's like he never left. His part in this whole plot was shocking but justified and I still love him to bits just as much as the first book.

It was good to see Elijah again, mouthy as ever and rough around the edges, but still good people.

And last but not least, Barclay really surprised me in this book. The man as stepped up and really took the lead in this book. He's earned my respect.

All in all, I had a blast with this book. This is one of the better sci-fi thrillers I ever had the pleasure of reading. It's gripping and entertaining and I loved the rush I felt while reading this. Fans of Unraveling will not be disappointed!

I also heard somewhere that MTV has the film rights to these books with the plans to make them into a TV series and I have to just take a minute and applaud that decision. It's gonna be epic.

A perfect hit for sci-fi and x-file junkies as well as fans who love a romance worth fighting for! I can't wait to see what Elizabeth Norris comes up with next.

Find the author:

Goodreads /Website

                                                                    4.5 Snowflakes

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