***The Starry-Eyed Revue***: the well's end

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's WoW selections are...

's Pick:

Title: The Dark Water
Author: Seth Fishman
Series: The Well's End #2
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Publication Date: March 3rd, 2015

To escape Blake Sutton’s army at the end of the enthralling The Well’s End, Mia and her friends jump into the newly gurgling fountain of youth and swim to its very bottom. When they resurface, an astounding world awaits them—an entire underground civilization of humans, the Keepers of the Well.

But instead of finding a safe haven, Mia and her gang are quickly embroiled in a dangerous, high-stakes battle royale. If Mia wants to save everyone she loves and make it back home alive, she’s got to get to the water’s Source before Sutton and his troops, who are still hot on her trail.

With new characters and new threats, Seth Fishman has upped the ante fantastically and delivers another tense, fast-paced adventure in a richly imagined world just below our feet.

I need this book, like yesterday! I listened to the Audio for The Wells End this year and it was awesome. I cannot wait to see what is in store for these characters.

And I want to mention that when I came into this post to add my part... I had full intentions of using Hold Me Like a Breath. That sneaky co blogger of mine beat me to the punch. lol. :) I love that we always want the same books. <3

's Pick:

Title: Hold Me Like a Breath
Author: Tiffany Schmidt
Series: Once Upon a Crime Family, book #1
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: May 19, 2015

Penelope Landlow has grown up with the knowledge that almost anything can be bought or sold—including body parts. She’s the daughter of one of the three crime families that control the black market for organ transplants.

Penelope’s surrounded by all the suffocating privilege and protection her family can provide, but they can't protect her from the autoimmune disorder that causes her to bruise so easily.

And in her family's line of work no one can be safe forever.

All Penelope has ever wanted is freedom and independence. But when she’s caught in the crossfire as rival families scramble for prominence, she learns that her wishes come with casualties, that betrayal hurts worse than bruises, that love is a risk worth taking . . . and maybe she’s not as fragile as everyone thinks.

OMG! I effing love Tiffany Schmidt, and I just saw this cover reveal on Thursday and KNEW I had to feature this book today. First, it's supposed to be a Princess and the Pea retelling. YESH! Also, that cover is beyond gorgeous, even the bits that are supposed to represent blood. And I just LOVE books where the main character lives in a crime family. So, there's no question that this is tops on my wishlist for next year. =)

What are you desperately waiting for this Wednesday? Let us know in the comments or share a link to your own WoW post!

Labels: beautiful covers, bloomsbury, once upon a crime family, retellings, seth fishman, The Dark Water, the well's end, tiffany schmidt, waiting on wednesday (wow)

Title: The Well's End
Author: Seth Fishman
Narrator: Katie Schorr
Series: The Well's End #1
Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks
Publication Date: February 25th, 2014
Source: received for review via Audiobook Jukebox
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

A deadly virus and an impossible discovery unite in one enthralling can’t-miss read...

Sixteen-year-old Mia Kish has always been afraid of the dark. After all, she’s baby Mia, the one who fell down a well. That was years ago, though the darkness still haunts her. But when her classmates and teachers at ritzy Westbrook Academy start dying of old age from a bizarre and frightening virus that ages its victims years in a matter of hours, Mia becomes haunted by a lot more than the dark. Their deaths are gruesome and Mia worries she and her friends may be next. In order to survive, Mia and her small crew must break quarantine and outrun armed soldiers in hazmat suits who shoot first and ask questions later.

And there’s only one place to go—the Cave, aka Fenton Electronics. Mia knows it’s somehow connected and hopes her dad, Director of Fenton Electronics, who has always been strangely secretive about his work, has the answers she needs, and more importantly a cure to save everyone before the whole town succumbs to the mysterious virus. Unfortunately, it’s not answers Mia discovers, but something far more treacherous and impossible than even the virus itself.

A high-stakes, fast-paced adventure with imagination and heart.

I heard about The Wells End through April @ Good Books & Good Wine. Everything about her review told me I would love it and I was right to trust that feeling. This book was pretty freaking awesome. A while ago, Jen told me about a site, Audiobook Jukebox, where you can request Audio books to review. Scrolling through I so The Wells End and remembering Aprils review, I quick requested it. A little risky since I’m new to the Audio scene, but it was a good call. First I’ll mention that the Narrator is perfect. I love her voice, she fit Mia perfectly, and I was sucked in immediately.

Ahhhh the story, let’s talk about the story guys!! It’s so much more than it seems to be! The thing that initially grabbed my attention in the description was the virus. I love that kind of stuff. Crazy spreading virus’s, count me in. A virus breaks out at Mia’s ritzy school. Not just any virus, but this virus is aging the teachers super quickly and killing them.

The whole school has been quarantined, so Mia and her friends are stuck unless they break out. They all have reason to believe there is something more to this virus, and Mia’s father may have the answers, but first they have to get to the cave alive.

The Wells End is full of action. It’s really the first audio book I’ve listened to of this nature, and it was great. I was making up excuses to do mundane things, just so I had more time to listen. I even listened a little last week while I was sick as a dog. Laid out on the couch with my phone by my head. It was serious stuff.

The only lacking thing is the romance, which April @ GB&GW mentions in her review. I have to agree with her on that, so I knew going in to The Wells End, that the swoons would be weak. It’s all good though, because there is a deadly virus running rampant, and they are being chased by soldiers in hazmat suits. I’d be concerned and annoyed if there was tons of kissy face stuff going on, ya know?

I don’t want to get into too much detail for fear of ruining it for everyone, but holy shit balls, there really is more to that virus, and the cave!?! Don’t even get me started on that. I’m still fascinated. The ending leads into the next book perfectly. While it’s a bit of a cliff hanger, it’s a perfect cliff hanger. Not one that pissed me off, but just has me dying for more. My head might explode with the mere thought of how wonderful it will be to finally get that book in my hands.

About the author:

Seth Fishman (me) was born and raised in Midland, Texas (think Friday Night Lights) and received his MFA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England (think cold and rainy and millions of castles). His YA thriller, The Well's End, is the first in a series and the protagonist, Mia Kish, is roughly inspired by a hometown drama that (when I was young) really blew him away: (http://articles.latimes.com.).

When not writing, Seth is a literary agent at The Gernert Company (www.thegernertco.com), and thinks writing and agenting are the two very best jobs in the world. Thanks for checking in!

Find Seth:

Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter