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Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Waiting On Wednesday: Random House Fall 2013 Catalog

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

This week, I've chosen to feature a few picks from the Random House Fall 2013 Catalog:

The Eye of Minds by James Dashner
Date: October 8, 2013
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Michael is a gamer. And like most gamers, he almost spends more time on the VirtNet than in the actual world. The VirtNet offers total mind and body immersion, and it’s addictive. Thanks to technology, anyone with enough money can experience fantasy worlds, risk their life without the chance of death, or just hang around with Virt-friends. And the more hacking skills you have, the more fun. Why bother following the rules when most of them are dumb, anyway?
But some rules were made for a reason. Some technology is too dangerous to fool with. And recent reports claim that one gamer is going beyond what any gamer has done before: he’s holding players hostage inside the VirtNet. The effects are horrific—the hostages have all been declared brain-dead. Yet the gamer’s motives are a mystery.
The government knows that to catch a hacker, you need a hacker.
And they’ve been watching Michael. They want him on their team.
But the risk is enormous. If he accepts their challenge, Michael will need to go off the VirtNet grid. There are back alleys and corners in the system human eyes have never seen and predators he can’t even fathom—and there’s the possibility that the line between game and reality will be blurred forever.

Though I have never actually read James Dashner's Maze Runner Trilogy, it has been on my TBR for a long time due to positive reviews and the upcoming movie adaptation (coming out this February!). The Eye of Minds is James Dashner's newest book and it sounds seriously cool. No matter what, I'm going to want to try out something of Dashner's work sometime!


Premeditated by Josin McQuein
Date: October 8, 2013
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A week ago, Dinah’s cousin Claire cut her wrists.

Five days ago, Dinah found Claire’s diary and discovered why.

Three days ago, Dinah stopped crying and came up with a plan.

Two days ago, she ditched her piercings and bleached the black dye from her hair.

Yesterday, knee socks and uniform plaid became a predator’s camouflage.

Today, she’ll find the boy who broke Claire.

By tomorrow, he’ll wish he were dead.

I don't know what it is about revenge stories, but I find them positively gripping and satisfying. Does that make me a bad person? I swear, I would never actually do what Dinah is planning to do in Premeditated. But it will sure be fun to read about!


The Midnight Dress by Karen Foxlee
Date: October 8, 2013
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Quiet misfit Rose doesn't expect to fall in love with the sleepy beach town of Leonora. Nor does she expect to become fast friends with beautiful, vivacious Pearl Kelly, organizer of the high school float at the annual Harvest Festival parade. It's better not to get too attached when Rose and her father live on the road, driving their caravan from one place to the next whenever her dad gets itchy feet. But Rose can't resist the mysterious charms of the town or the popular girl, try as she might.
Pearl convinces Rose to visit Edie Baker, once a renowned dressmaker, now a rumored witch. Together Rose and Edie hand-stitch an unforgettable dress of midnight blue for Rose to wear at the Harvest Festival—a dress that will have long-lasting consequences on life in Leonora, a dress that will seal the fate of one of the girls. Karen Foxlee's breathtaking novel weaves friendship, magic, and a murder mystery into something moving, real, and distinctly original.

Any book that includes witches and magic is automatically going to get my attention. Throw in a murder mystery and I'm set. I'm really hoping that The Midnight Dress is everything I wish it to be!


Tandem by Anna Jarzab
Date: October 8, 2013
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Everything repeats.
You. Your best friend. Every person you know.
Many worlds. Many lives--infinite possibilities.
Welcome to the multiverse.
Sixteen-year-old Sasha Lawson has only ever known one small, ordinary life. When she was young, she loved her grandfather's stories of parallel worlds inhabited by girls who looked like her but led totally different lives. Sasha never believed such worlds were real--until now, when she finds herself thrust into one against her will.
To prevent imminent war, Sasha must slip into the life of an alternate version of herself, a princess who has vanished on the eve of her arranged marriage. If Sasha succeeds in fooling everyone, she will be returned home; if she fails, she'll be trapped in another girl's life forever. As time runs out, Sasha finds herself torn between two worlds, two lives, and two young men vying for her love--one who knows her secret, and one who thinks she's someone she's not.

I'm really loving this recent trend in parallel/alternate universe books! It's cool to think about a parallel world in which an alternate you lives a completely different life from your own. I'm really excited for Tandem!


How about you? Are you waiting on any of these Random House Fall 2013 reads? Are there any upcoming books from the Random House Fall 2013 Catalog that I didn't include here that you feel I should add to my list?

28 comments :

  1. I really enjoyed The Maze Runner series so any book James Dashner brings out is pretty appealing. The book up above sounds good too. So do your other picks actually. Nice choice and thanks for sharing. :)

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  2. Wow, the Random House Fall catalogue for the US looks amazing! We're in Australia, and I just received the catalogue which doesn't have a heavy emphasis on YA books unfortunately. It seems like all the publishing houses are exploring the alternate universe thing especially with Tandem!

    Happy Indulgence

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  3. I had The Eye of Minds this week as well. :) It sound so intriguing, and as I liked The Maze Runner trilogy, I can't wait to see what Dashner has come up with this time. Great choices!

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  4. Gosh, I totally can't wait for PREMEDITATED or EYE OF MINDS either! Both of those have been on my radar for a while. In terms of the former, I'm all about a good revenge story, and this one sounds just eerie enough to keep me all wrapped up in a dark lil' maze!

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  5. All of these look great. I want to read Eye of Minds or Tandem.
    Cricket@ Little Library MuseMy Wow

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  6. Premeditated and The Eye of Minds both sound awesome!! I love the cover for The Midnight Dress reminds me of an old Alice in Wonderland cover I once owned.

    My Waiting on Wednesday

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  7. The Midnight Dress sounds fantastic! I'm really excited about it as I've already heard great things and it's being published over here in the UK too. And I LOVE the synopsis for Premeditated. I'm always drawn to revenge stories too, even though I don't always agree with the concept of revenge in real life. I can't wait to give it a read. Fantastic picks, Aylee! :)

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  8. The Eye of Minds sound really cool (I haven't read Maze Runner yet). The Midnight Dress sounds super creepy! Great picks!

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  9. Oh wow, Premeditated sounds fantastic! We might not do what the characters do in these novels, but you're right, they are SO fascinating to read about!

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  10. Premeditated looks great. Hope you get to read it soon!
    Brandi at Blkosiner’s Book Blog

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  11. Oooh - The Midnight Dress looks good!

    Kate @ Ex Libris

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  12. O I like the sound of the first one.

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  13. I'm freaking dying to get my hands on Tandem and Premeditated. Both are on the top of my TBR. The Eye of Minds sounds intriguing. I never got around to reading the Maze Runner series either, although I'll probably pick it up before the movie comes out. Great picks!
    Natflix&Books' WoW

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  14. Intriguing picks, enjoy!

    http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2013/08/waiting-on-wednesday.html

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  15. Premeditated is also in my list of most wanted! I think it could be really awesome :D

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  16. I'm looking forward to Premeditated for a long time now, it just seems like a very interesting read. Also, I agree with you I love reading books set in parallel/alternate universes ever since I read Pivot Point. So yay for Tandem!

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  17. I've never read James Dashner Maze Runner series either but the Eye of Minds sounds interesting.

    I read Arclight by Josin McQuien And Premediated sounds fantastic.

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  18. Awesome picks! Most of these are on my TBR on goodreads too! Thanks for sharing :)
    Waiting on Wednesday
    The Guys are Props Club - 5-star review

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  19. The eye of minds sounds great, being a gamer myself :D
    I can't wait to see what's going to happen in Premeditated.
    And yeay for paranormal universes like Tandem :D

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  20. I'm so glad that I put The Eye of Minds on your radar, and that you're excited about it now! :) I have a morbid curiosity for revenge books as well, so I'm super stoked for Premeditated. I haven't picked up a witch book in a long time, so I kind of miss one! The Midnight Dress sounds great. And I am so obsessed with parallel universe books at the moment, and Tandem sounds amazing!! I love your picks this week, Aylee!

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  21. I'm actually VERY excited for the midnight dress... I've had my eye on that for a while! Love that cover for Tandem!

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  22. I'm really looking forward to Tandem and Premeditated.

    I'm loving the parallel universe trend as well. It's so interesting to see how authors explain the theory behind their worldbuilding as some choose to be more scientific than others.

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  23. Premeditated has a lovely cover and honestly, all the books sound really good! I hope you get to read them soon. Thanks for sharing!

    Sarika @ The Readdicts

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  24. I can't wait for The Eye of the Minds either. I really liked the Maze Runner. Hope you get to read it before the movie comes out :)

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  25. I am so excited for The Eye of Minds - and Tandem! The other two sound great as well.

    Fabulous choices :)

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  26. Eeeep,I'd never seen the Midnight Dress before but I instantly want to read it XD It almost has a magical gypsy feel to it, doesn't it? ♥ And I've seen Tandem around quite a bit but this is the first time I've actually read the blurb haha Anyways it sounds fantastic so I'll be adding that one to the TBR too :D Thanks Aylee, sweet picks!!

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  27. Tandem sounds amazing. Thank you for sharing! ~Sheri

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