Cover Image: Buzz Books 2018: Young Adult Fall/Winter

Buzz Books 2018: Young Adult Fall/Winter

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Member Reviews

I love Buzz Books! My favorite excepts were for Shadow of the Fox and The Gilded Wolves. Both books are immediately going on my to-read list!

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I will definitely recommend some of these novels to my high school seniors. I am excited about what is coming from the literary world in the upcoming season.

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There were a lot of promising-looking titles in this collection! I am particularly interested in The House of One Thousand Eyes...it sounds like something a dystopian-lover would appreciate, especially since it's based on something that really happened.

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Love love YA so being able to read excerpts of new releases is awesome so thank you Buzz Books fo these

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Such a great preview of what's to come. I love how you give small excepts so that I may plan and prepare for upcoming titles.

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I do like how Buzz Books provides short excerpts of new and upcoming books that I will inevitable end up wanting to read. This one held some nice titles, as I've come to expect from the Buzz Books.

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Thank you for sharing this sampler. I found several stories that I am interested in. I will definitely be reading several of these novels!

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This was such a wonderful resource to find out more information on upcoming books and getting a sneak peak at them!

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Had already read two of the books featured (Sadie and Girls of Paper and Fire), and had two others on my TBR (The Gilded Wolves and Grim Lovelies), and this book made me more excited for those two. Also it introduced me to three more books that didn't sound like they would be my cup of tea, but I absolutely loved the excerpts and can't wait to read more. They were House of One Thousand Eyes, The Similars and When Elephants Fly.

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I use these to help find new books to add to my TBR list and to add to my classroom. Very helpful and easy to use!

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I thought that this was a good collection of interesting starts to books that I would like. A fair representation of authors I was curious about.

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Book Review
Title: Buzz Books 2018: Young Adult Fall/Winter
Author: Publishers Lunch
Genre: Compilation
Rating: ****
Review: As this is a compilation of previews and excerpts, I will be reviewing it in the same style I have for all the other Buzz Book collections I have reviewed.
Jill Baguchinksy - Mammoth
Mammoth seems to be about palaeontology geek Natalie Page who is also a plus-sized fashion blogger and one summer of self-discovery. I loved Natalie’s voice from the offset, but she does seem to have some issues with her weight. However, Natalie is standoffish when it comes to palaeontology and she even gets into an argument with a little boy when he called mammoths dinosaurs. I liked the direction in which the book was going so I will definitely keep my eyes open to pick this up as soon as I can.
Michelle Barker - The House of One Thousand Eyes
I actually have received a full ARC of this book from NetGalley. All the synopsis about The House of One Thousand eyes tells us is “the devastating effects of a totalitarian regime are brought to light in this story of Lena, a young woman who must survive the repressive society of East Germany in the 1980s and find her uncle––at any cost.” I didn’t really get much from this excerpt other than it seems like a character driven novel and it to get a proper sense of what it is about I’d have to read the whole thing so stayed tuned for updates.
Roshani Chokshi - The Gilded Wolves
Now this is a book I have heard so much about especially on booktube. All I can gather from this excerpt is that this book centres around the Babel fragments and the Houses guarded with protecting them. 3 of these houses are Kore, Nyx and Vanth. All the Vanth house was declared dead, the Order was wrong as one heir survives; Séverin Montagnet-Alarie. I can definitely tell why there is so much hype around this book from the excerpt and it is heading straight onto my TBR list.
Alessandro D’Avenia - White as Silence, Red as Song
White as Silence, Red as Song was an interesting excerpt while I did really into it, it does seem like something I would enjoy given the time to sit down and process the information slowly. I might buy this one or I just might wait for it to be donated my way.
Nancy Richardson Fischer - When Elephants Fly
The synopsis for When Elephants Fly is beautiful: “T. Lily Decker is a high school senior with a twelve-year plan: avoid stress, drugs, alcohol and boyfriends, and take regular psych quizzes administered by her best friend, Sawyer, to make sure she’s not developing schizophrenia. Genetics are not on Lily’s side. When she was seven, her mother, who had paranoid schizophrenia, tried to kill her. And a secret has revealed that Lily’s odds are even worse than she thought. Still, there’s a chance to avoid triggering the mental health condition, if Lily can live a careful life from ages eighteen to thirty, when schizophrenia most commonly manifests. But when a newspaper internship results in Lily witnessing a mother elephant try to kill her three-week-old calf, Swifty, Lily can’t abandon the story or the calf. With Swifty in danger of dying from grief, Lily must choose whether to risk everything, including her sanity and a first love, on a desperate road trip to save the calf’s life, perhaps finding her own version of freedom along the way.”
I loved Lily from the offset she is worried and paranoid about everything but is still a teenage girls and seeing her not give a damn about the elephants other than because it is part of internship is great especially knowing that she will grow and develop as a character. I will definitely be picking this up soon.
Mary Downing Hahn - The Girl in the Locked Room
“A family moves into an old, abandoned house. Jules’s parents love the house, but Jules is frightened and feels a sense of foreboding. When she sees a pale face in an upstairs window, though, she can’t stop wondering about the eerie presence on the top floor—in a room with a locked door. Could it be someone who lived in the house a century earlier? Her fear replaced by fascination, Jules is determined to make contact with the mysterious figure and help unlock the door. Past and present intersect as she and her ghostly friend discover—and change—the fate of the family who lived in the house all those many years ago.”
This sounds like a good old-fashioned ghost thriller designed to give you chills. I really loved learning about the girl and how she can to be trapped in the room. The most interesting part of this excerpt was knowing that the girl died in that room, yet she doesn’t seem to be aware of it herself and that Jules is the only one that has a bad feeling about the house from the beginning.
Rebecca Hanover - The Similars
I also have an ARC of this, and I have mentioned it in previous Buzz Books reviews I have done so I won’t be talking about it here.
Julie Kagawa - Shadow of the Fox
Shadow of the Fox is another book I have heard so many things about and the excerpt definitely lived up to that. We follow Suki, a maid to the emperor’s concubine and her new mistress is terrible. Eventually we learn why Suki is being targeted and how her mistress has orchestrated her death in order to gain a piece of the Dragon Scroll.
This book sounds amazing and I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy as soon as I can.
Kody Keplinger - That’s Not What Happened
The last thing I read by Kody Keplinger was DUFF but this synopsis for That’s Not What Happened sounds amazing: “It’s been three years since the Virgil County High School Massacre, when my best friend, Sarah, was killed in a mass shooting. Everyone knows Sarah’s story—that she died proclaiming her faith. But it’s not true. And I don’t know what will be worse: the guilt of staying silent or the consequences of speaking up…”
We are introduced to Leanne Bauer who is one of only 6 surviving witnesses to the Virgil County Massacre and her friend’s Sarah’s death but what has been reported isn’t the truth and Sarah is determined to come clean about what she knows. That’s Not What Happened seems like an intriguing mystery that I will definitely be picking up when I have the time.
Sangu Mandanna - A Spark of White Fire
So I haven’t heard anything about A Spark of White Fire, but the synopsis sounds intriguing: “The first book in a sci-fi retelling of the Mahabrahata. When Esmae wins a contest of skill, she sets off events that trigger an inevitable and unwinnable war that pits her against the family she would give anything to return to.”
A Spark of White Fire was great, Esmae entering the competition and winning it which no one expected really reminded me of The Diabolic and The Empress by S.J. Kincaid which is one of my all-time favourite series and I will be reading this as soon as I can.
Maura Milan - Ignite the Stars
Another sci-fi entry with an intriguing synopsis: “A criminal mastermind and unrivaled pilot, Ia has spent her life terrorizing the Olympus Commonwealth, the imperialist nation that destroyed her home. When the Commonwealth captures her, and her true identity is exposed, they see Ia’s age and talent as an opportunity: by forcing her to serve them, they will prove that no one is beyond their control. Soon, Ia is trapped at the Commonwealth’s military academy, desperately plotting her escape. But new acquaintances—including Brinn, a seemingly average student with a closely held secret, and their charming flight master, Knives—cause Ia to question her own alliances. Can she find a way to escape the Commonwealth’s clutches before these bonds deepen?”
Ignite the Stars was an intriguing story however, it wasn’t my favourite sci-fi instalment of the year but I might give it a go if I have enough time and enough space on my TBR.
Kate Milford - Bluecrowne
Bluecrowne by Kate Milford has been recommended to me previously and it isn’t my cup of tea, so I won’t be reading this excerpt.
Natasha Ngan - Girls of Paper and Fire
The synopsis of Girls of Paper and Fire sounds brilliant: “Lei is of the Paper caste, the lowest and most oppressed class in Ikhara. Even so, rumours of her golden eyes have piqued the king’s interest, and she is ripped from her home and taken to the opulent but oppressive palace, her life now beholden to his every whim. But Lei, dreaming of escape, does the unthinkable: she falls in love. Her forbidden romance, enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens the king’s reign, will force Lei to decide just how far she’s willing to go for her freedom.”
Another good thing about this book is that it is coming from James Patterson books which published Stalking Jack the Ripper which is one of my all-time favourites. Learning about Lei and the caste system of the world she lives in was interesting as it means there is going to be a dynamic and diverse cast of characters in this book and it is one, I will be ordered as soon as I can.
Gary Schmidt - Pay Attention, Carter Jones
Like Bluecrowne I just had no desire to read this book, so I am giving it a pass.
Megan Shepherd – Grim Lovelies
Grim Lovelies is another book that has so much hype and I was eager to see what it was about. The synopsis does give us some hints to world, but it doesn’t give much else away: “Seventeen-year-old Anouk envies the human world, where people known as Pretties lavish themselves in fast cars, high fashion, and have the freedom to fall in love. But Anouk can never have those things, because she is not really human. Enchanted from animal to human girl and forbidden to venture beyond her familiar Parisian prison, Anouk is a Beastie: destined for a life surrounded by dust bunnies and cinders serving Mada Vittora, the evil witch who spelled her into existence. That is, until one day she finds her mistress murdered in a pool of blood—and Anouk is accused of the crime. Now, the world she always dreamed of is rife with danger. Pursued through Paris by the underground magical society known as the Haute, Anouk and her fellow Beasties only have three days to find the real killer before the spell keeping them human fades away. If they fail, they will lose the only lives they’ve ever known…but if they succeed, they could be more powerful than anyone ever bargained for.”
Learning about the animals turned human and how they react to basically being imprisoned under the whims of a witch. While Anouk wants to live in the world outside the witch’s home, she sees everyone around her as family, but the others don’t and there are whispers of discontent everywhere. Grim Lovelies was intriguing, dark and beautifully written and I will be reading the novel soon.
Courtney Summers – Sadie
Much like Grim Lovelies Sadie is also an extremely hyped book, the synopsis: “Nineteen-year-old Sadie has no idea that her story will soon become the subject of a major podcast. She’s bought a car off of Craigslist and fled her hometown to follow clues that she hopes will lead to the man who killed her sister. Her journey will take her from one small town to another, each step taking her closer to the killer; each step more dangerous than the previous; each step only strengthening her vigilante’s resolve.”
Sadie is a classic tale of revenge and it is something I will be picking up in the near future.

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An interesting book for people who want to get to know the upcoming releases. Good for book reviewers, bookshop owners, library workers, teachers, etc.

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I'm so excited for those books! The samples were amazing and I hope there will be more preview books like this one.

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I really loved getting to read these snippets from new to me authors! It got me excited to pick up some new titles from my local library. I hope you’ll find some new reads to add to your TBR shelf. Please come let me know on Instagram at Lindsey_reads !!!

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Good previews. There’s not much to say about this, as it’s just a preview volume. I wish there were more direct links to the new titles.

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As always, this is a wonderful resource for upcoming YA titles. I love being able to see the books slated to be published. Thank you for the previews!

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I always love getting a sneak peek of upcoming books. As always this book did not disappoint! I have new books added to my tbr list!

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Such amazing books!!! This was an amazing year for YA books, and these excerpts truly showcase the talent on display.

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Thank you Netgalley and Buzzbooks for another great list of YA books to add to my TBR list.

I thoroughly enjoy reading these catalogues.

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