Tagged: book news

Books to look Forward to

City of Heavenly FireCity of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

I’m having mixed feelings about this one, mostly because I haven’t read City of Lost Souls yet.  Cassandra Clare’s writing has improved with time, but it will be interesting to see how she can end a series.  The tentative release date for this, according to the official site is September 2014, so I’ll have plenty of time to catch up.

Clockwork PrincessClockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

This is one of the few Cassandra Clare series I’m actually caught up in and I can’t wait for the last book, Clockwork Princess.  After the tragic discovery at the end of Clockwork Prince, it will be interesting to see who Tess chooses and where Cassandra Clare decides to end the series.  This one releases March 19, 2013.

The Dark Artifices by Cassandra Clare

Is this woman human?  Well, obviously not at the rate she writes.  Although it’s very tentative, The Dark Artifices is another series set in the modern day about Shadowhunters.  This time it’s in Los Angeles, but Cassandra Clare dropped hints in a very spoilery interview that City of Heavenly Fire will change the world of Shadowhunting forever.  So far all we know about The Dark Artifices series is that it follows Emma Carstairs, the most skilled Shadowhunter since Jace Wayland, and her partner Julian Blackthorn.  Of course the two will have conflicted feelings, but it will be interesting to see how Cassandra Clare handles a protagonist who is very strong from the start.  Clary herself went through a huge character arc to become a strong protagonist, but it sounds like Emma is already strong.  Interesting, no?

Shattered Secrets by Krystal Wade

Abigail Nichols must decide if she trusts the boy she loves, a book that knows more about her than she does, or her instincts, because if she doesn’t, her world just might shatter.

After such a great finish to her Darkness Falls trilogy, I can’t wait for the latest Krystal Wade book.  Unfortunately, there’s not even a tentative release date, just this awesome word counter on her website.  Knowing how fast she writes, I think we can look forward to another Krystal Wade book in the new year.

The White Princess by Philippa Gregory

Other than a mention on Wikipedia and a page on Goodreads, there’s not much to go on.  We know it’s going to be the fifth book in The Cousin’s War series and it’s going to be about Elizabeth of York, daughter of Elizabeth Woodville.  She was mother of King Henry VIII, which means she was obviously overshadowed by her son.  Who was she?  What were her motivations?  What was her relationship with Henry VII like?  I guess we’ll just have to wait!

What’s New in the World of Books?

A lot, apparently.  So let’s go down the list, shall we?

1.  The Masquerade Crew’s anthology, which you can be a part of!

Mark from The Masquerade Crew is putting together an anthology based on the premise of characters time-travelling to the future.  What do they see?  What’s the world like?  Are they stuck or are they able to return?  You tell us!  Write and submit a short story from 5,000 to 10,000 words to be considered for Mark’s first anthology.  For more information, here is my post ‘Calling all Writers!’ and Mark’s post on his blog.  You can also email him at msl_007@live.com to submit your story or if you have any additional questions.

I will be one of the editors working on the project and to be perfectly frank, other than critiquing short stories in forums, I have no experience editing.  What relevant experience I do have has been obtained by book reviewing, in which I talk about characterization, plot, dialogue, etc.  Therefore, I will be the developmental (content) editor and any changes I make will be subject to Mark and the author’s approval.  This is my first foray into formal editing and Mark’s first foray into publishing, so it will be a learning experience for the whole team.

Note: this is the first of hopefully many anthologies The Masquerade Crew will be publishing.  If you can’t find inspiration for this particular prompt, wait around for the next one!

2.  Sue Grafton makes an ignorant remark about indie authors.

My little circle of followers and people I follow on Twitter almost exclusively includes people who are authors, publishers and book bloggers, so you can imagine that I heard the rage of indie authors when Sue Grafton basically insulted all of their hard work.  I think some people have taken things too far, but on the whole, the posts about her remarks and the aftermath have been relatively level-headed.  For some background about the controversy, here’s a great post by Nobody Asked Me, But…

3.  Clockwork Princess cover art and release date have been announced.

As if you Cassandra Clare fans didn’t know this already!  By internet standards, it’s old news, but for you guys who don’t obsessively check writer’s sites, this is probably new.  But Clockwork Princess, the third book in The Infernal Devices trilogy has a set release date of March 19, 2013 (so long, I know!) and the cover art is now all over the web.  I like the cover art on The Infernal Devices much more than I do on most of The Mortal Instruments books.  There’s less emphasis on the ‘sexy’ aspect of the novels, but that’s to be expected as they are set in the Victorian Era of England.

Personally, I’m apprehensive about the end of the trilogy.  From the way it intertwines with The Mortal Instruments, things don’t bode well for Tessa and the gang (I’m predicting an operatic tragedy, personally) and Cassandra Clare has a lot of loose ends to tie up.  It will be interesting to see how she handles things.

So what have you guys heard in the world of books lately?  Any series you’re eagerly awaiting the next book(s)?