Renee's Book Addiction

September 2011 Releases, part 2

September 20, 2011 at 5:00 am 7 comments

Here are some of the books I’m looking forward to that were released last week and will be released this week:

September 13, 2011:
Black Gold (Takhini Wolves, book 1) by Vivian Arend

I’m always a sucker for a good shifter story, and this one sounds like fun.

Alaskan lone-wolf shifter Shaun never expects to be mated to a southern belle, but when he encounters researcher Gemmita, he is thrown for a loop.

My attention was caught by Gemmita, a woman who is trying to assert her independence and get out from under her sheltered upbringing.

I enjoy fated-mate stories, if I can be sold on the emotional connection (not just the sexual/magical connection). I’m hoping for lots of sparks of chemistry and romance from this one.

September 13, 2011:
Down the Mysterly River by Bill Willingham

A couple of months ago, my book club read the graphic novel, Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall, which I totally loved. Since then, I’ve been reading the rest of Willingham’s Fables series.

So, it was with great interest that I saw he now has written a middle-grade book. From the description, it seems like his wonderful imagination is in top form.

When Boy Scout Max, is lost in the woods, he encounters assorted interesting creatures, and flees for his life from scary hunters, known as the Blue Cutters. Max must solve a mystery in order to save himself, and his new friends.

September 20, 2011:
Tempted by His Target by Jill Sorenson

Excerpt here.

Jill Sorenson has become one of my favorite contemporary romance authors. I love her smart and strong heroines, and her sexy heroes. Also, she has a great way of incorporating gritty realism in a way that meshes perfectly with steamy suspense.

In Tempted by His Target, party-girl Isabel is wanted in a drug-related murder. It’s undercover US Marshal Brandon Knox’s job to bring her to justice. However, he finds himself protecting and fleeing with Isabel after he saves her from a murder attempt.

I find I’m really beginning to enjoy “on the run” plots lately (ala The Pharaoh’s Concubine, about which I posted last week), and Tempted by His Target looks like a fun one.

September 20, 2011:
The Rift Walker (Vampire Empire, book 2) by Clay and Susan Griffith

Book 1 in the series, The Greyfriar was on of my favorite reads so far this year. I loved the swashbuckling romance amid a steampunk world, filled with creepy vampires, mysterious caped heroes, and kidnapped princesses.

Even the kidnapped princess, Adele, was a wonderful surprise, since she is no delicate miss. She was brave, independent, and smart. When the Greyfriar rushes in to rescue her, he’s just as likely to find that she has already rescued herself (or at least gone a long way in the process).  And, the Greyfriar himself is a great romantic and slightly tragic hero.

I don’t want to say too much about the plot of The Rift Walker, since that will give away events in book 1, and I’d hate to spoil it. However, I will say that I can’t wait for more of the Greyfriar and Adele’s adventures in The Rift Walker.

September 20, 2011:
The Girl of Fire and Thorns (The Fire and Thorns trilogy, book 1) by Rae Carson

I found the description of this book really intriguing. Especially, since it’s felt like a lot of YA is sort of blending together for me, and I was struck by The Girl of Fire and Thorns’ original premise.

Underachieving and underestimated, Princess Elisa lives in the shadow of her older sister. She bears the Godstone in her navel, but has never lived up to its heroic destiny.

Married off to an indifferent the king of a land in turmoil, Elisa must take charge of her life and discover her destiny as the bearer of the Godstone.

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So that’s what is on my radar for the rest of September. What’s on yours? Got any new releases you want to share?

Entry filed under: 2011 Book Releases. Tags: Bill Willingham, Black Gold, Clay and Susan Griffith, Down the Mysterly River, Jill Sorenson, Rae Carson, Takhini Wolves, Tempted by His Target, The Girl of Fire and Thorns, The Rift Walker, Vampire Empire, Vivian Arend.