Jan 6, 2011

                                               
          Cassandra Clare: The Mortal Instrument Series
        The Shadowhunters—touched by angels and charged with protecting innocents— battle demons and other evil in the bestselling Mortal Instruments series.




City of Bones
When Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder. Much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with odd markings. This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons—and keeping the odd werewolves and vampires in line. It's also her first meeting with gorgeous, golden-haired Jace. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in an ordinary mundane like Clary?


And how did she suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . .

City of Ashes

Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? Clary would love to spend more time with her best friend, Simon. But the Shadowhunters won't let her go—especially handsome, infuriating Jace. Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil—and also Jace's father. When the second of the Mortal Instruments is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor suspects Jace. Could Jace really be willing to betray everything he believes in to help his father?

City of Glass

To save her mother's life, Clary travels to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters—never mind that by doing so she is breaking the Law, which could mean death. Even worse, Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by Shadowhunters who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight. Luckily, Clary finds an ally in the mysterious Sebastian, who holds a strange attraction for her. As Valentine musters a demon army, can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their ancient hatred and work together? And can Clary harness her newfound powers to help save them all—whatever the cost?

                                               Cassandra Clare: The Mortal Instrument Series




Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
Ages; 14 and up
 
Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length . . . everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world. . . . and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

                                       Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, Book 1)

E-Book Sales

Welcome 2011,   I expect many changes in the coming year in the publishing industry.  The most notable being in the e-book field and the book reader market.  That said on to some of the things going on right now.

The New York Times will launch  a Bestseller list for E-Books.  Two lists; fiction and nonfiction.  Just shows how important this medium is to the industry. Also acknowledging that what sells best in paperback and hardcover isn't necessarily selling the same in e-book form.

On Dec. 25-26 Random House saw record e-book sales.  With a rise of more than 300% over last year's sales for the same two days.  Bestsellers included;  The Confession by John Grisham,  Decison Points by George Bush, Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson, Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Random House also saw signfcant sales in it's childrens's picture book section.

USA reports about 3 million to 5 million e-readers were activated during the last week of the 2010 year.  With price points dropping during the 2010 year, millions of iPads, Kindles, Nooks and other digital reading devices having been received as presents.

Many bestsellers saw record e-book sales, over and above the print copies.  Whether that trend will continue, only time will tell.

Jan 4, 2011

Faeriewalker Series by Jenna Black

Shadowspell (Faeriewalker)

Shadowspell by Jenna Black
Book 2 in the Faeriewalker series
Ages; 12 and up

On top of spending most of her time in a bunkerlike safe house and having her dates hijacked by a formidable Fae bodyguard, Faeriewalker Dana Hathaway is in for some more bad news: the Erlking and his pack of murderous minions known as the Wild Hunt have descended upon Avalon. With his homicidal appetite and immortal powers, the Erlking has long been the nightmare of the Fae realm. A fragile treaty with the Faerie Queen, sealed with a mysterious spell, is the one thing that keeps him from hunting unchecked in Avalon, the only place on Earth where humans and Fae live together. Which means Dana’s in trouble, since it’s common knowledge that the Faerie Queen wants her – and her rare Faeriewalker powers – dead. The smoldering, sexy Erlking’s got his sights set on Dana, but does he only seek to kill her, or does he have something much darker in mind?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Glimmerglass (Faeriewalker, Book 1)
 
Glimmer Glass by Jenna Black
Book 1 in the Faeriewalker series
Ages; 12 and up
 
It’s all she’s ever wanted to be, but it couldn’t be further from her grasp…
Dana Hathaway doesn’t know it yet, but she’s in big trouble. When her alcoholic mom shows up at her voice recital drunk, again, Dana decides she’s had enough and runs away to find her mysterious father in Avalon: the only place on Earth where the regular, everyday world and the captivating, magical world of Faerie intersect. But from the moment Dana sets foot in Avalon, everything goes wrong, for it turns out she isn't just an ordinary teenage girl—she's a Faeriewalker, a rare individual who can travel between both worlds, and the only person who can bring magic into the human world and technology into Faerie.
Soon, Dana finds herself tangled up in a cutthroat game of Fae politics. Someone's trying to kill her, and everyone seems to want something from her, from her newfound friends and family to Ethan, the hot Fae guy Dana figures she’ll never have a chance with… until she does. Caught between two worlds, Dana isn’t sure where she’ll ever fit in and who can be trusted, not to mention if her world will ever be normal again…

Some Books With Big Laydowns




Shadowspell by Jenna Black.  On-sale Jan. 4,  100,000 copies

Unearthly by Cyntha Hand.  On-sale Jan 4,   100,000 copies

Across the Universe by Beth Revis.  On-sale Jan 11,  200,000 copies

You Can Be a Friend by Tony and Lauren Dungy.  On-sale Jan. 11, 100,000 copies

The Lo-Down by Lo Bosworth.  On-sale Jan 11,  125,000 copies

Blessed by Cynthia Leitich Smith.  On-sale Jan. 25,  100,000 copies