Where She Went

Lately, I’ve been feeling kind of iffy about sequels, and series, in particular. It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just that I always feel pressured to get the entire series when I find out that the book I’m reading is a part of a series. I like having more time with fun characters, but I am finding standalone books more and more attractive lately that I’d really rather read those than start reading a series that I’m not even sure I will like. Except maybe for the highly recommended ones.

However, I may make an exception for this one. If I Stay by Gayle Forman is one of my best reads for this year. It’s that kind of book that left me almost wanting for more, but also quite satisfied with how the story ended. I really wouldn’t mind leaving the story that way, but I also won’t think it’s an overkill if there would be some kind of sequel. Imagine my surprise and delight when I found out from Adele of Persnickety Snark that there will be a sequel for this book entitled Where She Went. :) Squee!

First, let’s look at the cover:

Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Gorgeous, isn’t it? It perfectly complements the paperback cover, and Mia looks so different and so…I don’t know, free?

And then the jacket copy (if you haven’t read If I Stay yet, major spoiler warning ahead):

My first impulse is not to grab her or kiss her or yell at her. I simply want to touch her cheek, still flushed from the night’s performance. I want to cut through the space that separates us, measured in feet—not miles, not continents, not years—and to take a callused finger to her face. I want to touch her to make sure it’s really her, not one of those dreams I had so often after she left when I’d see her so clear as day, be ready to kiss her or take her to me only to wake up with Mia just beyond reach.

But I can’t touch her. This is a privilege that’s been revoked.

It’s been three years since Adam’s love saved Mia after the accident that annihilated life as she knew it . . . and three years since Mia walked out of Adam’s life forever.

Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Julliard’s rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia’s home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future—and each other.

Told from Adam’s point of view in the spare, powerful prose that defined If I Stay, Where She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance.

This is absolutely…wow. I’m guessing this will be told in Adam’s POV this time? I wonder what exactly happened that made Mia walk out of Adam’s life? Did she do what Adam told her at the end of If I Stay? What happened in between?

So many questions, and such a long wait until this gets released. Where She Went will be out on April 19, 2011. In the meantime, there was a Where She Went blog tour, which provided teasers for this book. The complete list can be found in Gayle Forman’s blog. This will definitely be one of the books I’ll be looking out for in 2011. :)

Up and Coming: February 2010

Oh boy. More new books coming. I was going through Goodreads last night and saw some books that I was looking forward to getting in the next month. I don’t know when these books will get here, but Fully Booked usually gets them immediately…so yeah, I might be poor in February again. Haha.

Little Miss Red by Robin PalmerLittle Miss Red by Robin Palmer
Release Date: February 9, 2010

Sophie Greene gets good grades, does the right thing, and has a boyfriend that her parents — and her younger brother –just love. (Too bad she doesn’t love him.)

Sophie dreams of being more like Devon Deveraux, star of her favorite romance novels, but, in reality, Sophie isn’t even daring enough to change her nail polish.

All of that changes when Sophie goes to Florida to visit her grandma Roz, and she finds herself seated next to a wolfishly goodlooking guy on the plane. The two hit it off, and before she knows it, Sophie’s living on the edge. But is the drama all it’s cracked up to be?

I loved Robin Palmer‘s first two books, Cindy Ella and Geek Charming, and I was delighted to know that she has another book coming out, this time based on Little Red Riding Hood. Awesome, awesome. :) Fairy tale re-tellings are always fun to read, and Robin Palmer has done great in her first two books. This should be just as interesting, I think. :)

Gone by Lisa McMannGoneby Lisa McMann
Release date: February 8, 2010

Janie thought she knew what her future held. And she thought she’d made her peace with it. But she can’t handle dragging Cabel down with her.

She knows he will stay with her, despite what she sees in his dreams. He’s amazing. And she’s a train wreck. Janie sees only one way to give him the life he deserves–she has to disappear. And it’s going to kill them both.

Then a stranger enters her life–and everything unravels. The future Janie once faced now has an ominous twist, and her choices are more dire than she’d ever thought possible. She alone must decide between the lesser of two evils. And time is running out…

I read the first two books in this series (Wake and Fade), and I liked it very much. I’m the type of person who can’t be silenced until I finish an entire series (which is why I finished reading Breaking Dawn…and totally regretted it), and this is the end for Janie and Cabel. I remember not being able to sleep while reading Wake — not because it was scary but because it was very captivating. Fade was just okay, but I liked what I found out about Janie there. This is the final book, and I can’t wait to learn what will happen to Janie now.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan (paperback)
Release Date: February 9, 2010

In Mary’s world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent. And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

But, slowly, Mary’s truths are failing her. She’s learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future – between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded in so much death?

Okay, I know this has been released, but forgive me, I want the paperback. And the paperback won’t be released until February, so it’s technically an up and coming for me. :P Plus I’ve mentioned this book before, and this is an idea for you why I want this book so bad. Come on: young adult fantasy…with zombies! I want!

And I should write about why I like paperback books better than hardbound ones.

* * *

So it’s only three books for now, and all young adult! I’m still kind of getting the hang of blogging about books and checking out release dates. I’m not sure where else to find a list where the to be released books can be found and easily sorted, so I just relied on searching for the authors and books I want. ^^; There are other books in the list, but I’m not so sure what they are about…so for now just these three books. Maybe next month I’ll have more to write about. :)

Now where to buy these? I can pre-order this at Amazon and get it when my dad gets home, effectively stopping me from reading them immediately so I can work on my to-be-read pile. Hm. Let’s see. But if I spot any of these in the bookstores around me, bet that I’ll get them fast. :P