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Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Waiting On Wednesday (12): Psychological Thrillers

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking The Spine in which an upcoming, eagerly anticipated release is highlighted on the blog.

This week, I'm waiting on Psychological Thrillers:

Title: Frost
Author: Marianna Baer
Publisher: Balzer & Bray (HarperCollins)
Date: September 13, 2011

Leena Thomas’s senior year at boarding school begins with a shock: Frost House, her cozy dorm of close friends, has been assigned an unexpected roommate: confrontational, eccentric Celeste Lazar. But while Leena’s anxiety about a threat to her sanctuary proves valid, it becomes less and less clear whether the threat lies with her new roommate, within Leena’s own mind, or within the very nature of Frost House itself. Mysterious happenings in the dorm, an intense triangle between Leena, Celeste, and Celeste’s brother, and the reawakening of childhood fears, all push Leena to take increasingly desperate measures to feel safe. Frost is the story of a haunting. As to whether the demons are supernatural or psychological . . . well, which answer would let you sleep at night?


Title: As I Wake
Author: Elizabeth Scott
Publisher: Dutton (Penguin)
Date: September 15, 2011

Ava is welcomed home from the hospital by a doting mother, lively friends, and a crush finally beginning to show interest. There's only one problem: Ava can't remember any of them - and can't shake the eerie feeling that she's not who they say she is.
Ava struggles to break through her amnesiac haze as she goes through the motions of high-school life, but the memories that surface take place in a very different world, where Ava and familiar-faced friends are under constant scrutiny and no one can be trusted. Ava doesn't know what to make of these visions, or of the boy who is at the center of them all, until he reappears in her life and offers answers . . . but only in exchange for her trust.


Title: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
Author: Michelle Hodkin
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Date: September 27, 2011

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.
It can.
She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.
There is.
She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.
She's wrong.




Title: Glimmer
Author: Phoebe Kitandis
Publisher: Balzer & Bray (HarperCollins)
Date: April 17, 2012

When Marshall and Elyse wake up in each other’s arms with zero memory of how they got there or who they are, it’s the start of a long journey through their separate pasts and shared future. 
Terrified by their amnesia, the two make a pact to work together to find the answers that could jog their missing memories. As they piece together clues, they discover they’re in the idyllic mountain resort town of Summer Falls, where everyone seems mysteriously happy, but as Marshall and Elyse quickly learn, darkness lurks beneath the town’s perfect facade. Not only is the town haunted by sinister ghosts, but none of its living inhabitants retain bad memories of anything—not the death of Marshall’s mom, not the hidden shame in Elyse’s family, not even the day-to-day anguish of high school. 
Lonely in this world of happy zombies, Marsh and Elyse fall into an intense relationship...but the secrets they uncover could be the death of this growing love—and the death of everyone, and everything, they love in Summer Falls.


Is it just me, or does anyone else love being confused when reading? Not super confused mind you, but I love not knowing exactly what the heck is going on and I find that psychological thrillers, like the ones above, are perfect for that. I love stumbling through the story with a character who is also just as confused, trying to figure out the mystery, and the big reveal at the end. That is my idea of fun!

How about you? Are you waiting on any of these Psychological Thrillers? Are there any upcoming Psychological Thrillers that aren't included here that you feel I should know about?

38 comments :

  1. YES! I LOVE being confused while reading. It's kind of disappointing when you can guess things really early on and then you're just waiting for the characters to figure it out. I love the unpredictability and frustration of not knowing. I'm SO excited for all of these books (especially Mara Dyer!!) plus they all have amazing covers. Love your picks!

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  2. Frost and As I Wake have such gorgeous covers!

    And yeah, I like to be a little confused, that will keep me reading until I figure things out.

    I love when I can't see the plot twist coming, but when, after it happens, I start to remember the clues through out.

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  3. I am definitely looking forward to reading those novels as well! I just love it when a book keeps you on your toes until the very end as you try to guess what is going to happen next. Great picks! :)

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  4. So glad you guys understand me!

    Brodie: Unpredictability is key, definitely. It is no fun when the character is confused when they have no need to be because it's so obvious what's going on.

    Alex: I love rereading these types of books too. Reading over the clues again. It is the mark of a brilliant author if they can lay there clues out well and subtly.

    Liz: Yes! Though preferably not the very end. It's nice to have a period of explanation before the book is completely done.

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  5. Ooohhh! Lots of amnesia and lost memories!

    (That last line in the Frost blurb about demons and which believe would let you sleep easier is going to give me nightmares!)

    Shelley

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  6. Whoever wrote the Frost blurb is brilliant! The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer blurb too.

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  7. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer was SO GOOD!!

    Check out Em's WoW!

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  8. Great picks! I am really looking forward to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer and As I Wake as well.

    My WoW, http://obsessionwithbooks.blogspot.com

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  9. You have the best picks I've seen so far! Like you, I love psychological thrillers as well, I love that they keep me guessing to the very end. Great picks! I can't really choose which of the four I loved because they all sound great :)

    Check out my WoW picks!

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  10. All of these are on my list, they all sounds amazing. I'm especially excited for As I Wake. I love that cover! =D

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  11. I have Frost waiting for me on my TBR pile. And Glimmer looks so pretty, I've never heard of it before. Awesome themed picks, Aylee :)

    Stop by my WoW

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  12. new follower :)

    I am really looking forward to reading Frost! It seems awesome!
    check out my waiting on Wednesday!
    http://sarahcatchingbooks.blogspot.com/2011/08/waiting-on-wednesday-6-wings-of-wicked.html

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  13. The new addition for me is Glimmer, the book looks really good, thanks for sharing!

    This is My WoW. Feel free to pass by and have a look^^

    Hugs,

    Alaiel

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  14. Oh my gosh you have some great ones on this list Aylee!!!I just finished Mara Dyer and absolutely adored it, can't wait to see what you think! And Glimmer looks amazing, I'm really excited for that one too:)

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  15. Four great choices! I love how psychological thrillers are more common now in YA lit. Love being spooked and taken along for a ride!

    Here's my WoW: http://bit.ly/prl4Jk

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  16. Yep, I LOVE psychological thrillers. Being constantly in doubt of what's really happening is fun! :P
    Great picks--I can vouch for Frost; it's really good! :)

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  17. Great covers, enjoy!

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  18. I have not heard of most of these! Thanks for the heads up. :)

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  19. Frost and As I Wake sound really good!! :0)

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  20. Ooooh! Great category.

    I'm afraid The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer is becoming too epic/over hyped for me and I'll pass on reading it like I did with Divergent and Anna and the FK. :(

    Hopefully I'll still be excited about it when it releases.

    P.S. I'd be hiding my face too if I were having a bad hair day like the girl on the cover of as i wake.

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  21. I'm sorry to hear that, Missie. Hype never has that effect on me, thankfully. And LOL! the girl on the As I Wake cover looks like she's in immense pain, agreed.

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  22. Those books look really good. =]
    Also just wanted to say your blog is awesome. I love its name and the picture of Harry saying his story is coming to an end and the fan says Never. So awesome. =]
    Anyway here is my WoW.
    http://thebookshelfreview.blogspot.com/2011/08/waiting-on-wednesday4-son-of.html

    -Michael

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  23. These all sound great. I love psychological thrillers! The cover for As I Wake is stunning, I really like it.

    Thanks for stopping by! :)
    Books of Amber

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  24. I hadn't heard of Glimmer or Frost, but they both sound fabulous. Definitely adding them to my TBR. Thanks for sharing!

    New Follower.

    http://yalitwit.blogspot.com/2011/08/www-10-and-waiting-on-wednesday-august.html

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  25. As I Wake looks incredible. It's hard to go wrong with Elizabeth Scott. She writes chick lit and hard hitting novels.

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  26. I've got all of these on my wishlist too except Glimmer which I haven't heard of. I'll be adding that one too my wishlist now. I've only seen good reviews for Mara Dyer and Elizabeth Scott is one of my favourite authors.

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  27. Oh I do love Psychological Thrillers! The twistier they get, the better! I have not heard much about these books, but just reading their summaries is making me excited about them. I will definitely look out for these titles when they're out.

    Would you recommend any Psych Thrillers that you've already read and liked?

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  28. Ooh I'm looking forward to all of these! Especially Frost and Mara Dyer - Mara Dyer especially because the whole amnesia thing intrigues me - it's so weird how your memory works! Great picks :).

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  29. Great WoW picks!! =D I can't wait to read Mara Dyer. Why must my review pile be so big??

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  30. Jillian: I'm drawing a blank at the moment, but I can think of a few in French that I've read. I also love movies like Memento.

    Liz: It is. I've only ever taken one psychology class so I don't know much but yeah, it is weird.

    Bailey: Heh, mine too!

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  31. Wow, I love the sound of all of these, especially Frost. Psychological thrillers seem to be a new trend in the YA genre lately, and I've been seeing a lot of them on NetGalley as well. I'm not complaining though :)

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  32. Yes, I definitely love being confused and surprised by my books. These all look really good, but that As I Wake cover is just stunning! I can't stop staring at it!

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  33. These are all on my tbr list and they all sound ah-ma-zing! Not knowing what to expect is totally fun, every little thing is exciting!

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  34. I've heard Frost is super, super scary! I'm looking forward to reading though. OMG....the covers for As I Wake and Glimmer are gorgeous! I'm totally in love! Thanks for sharing :)

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  35. I'm so excited for The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer and Frost! The other two sound wonderful as well,

    Psychological thrillers are definitely amazing - I love how they manage to keep me curious and suprised about what's happening/going to happen :)

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  36. These books sound fantastic! More books to add to my list as well. I see you're currently reading Mara Dyer. I can't wait to hear what you think of it. :)

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  37. OH, Yes! Lots of really interesting books you've featured. Some of the covers are creative and alluring too. Nice job spotlighting some really great upcoming reads.

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