Waiting On Wednesday #160 - Miranda & Caliban

Waiting On Wednesday, where we put the spotlight on upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating, is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

This week's choice is -

Miranda And Caliban - Jacqueline Carey

ISBN - 9780765386793

Publisher - Tor Books

Release date - February 14 2017

Find - Goodreads | Book Depository

In William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, the action of the entire play unfolds over the course of a single day. But what happened on the island in the twelve years leading up to that day? Why does the magician Prospero keep his daughter Miranda ignorant of her history? Why does he take the supposedly monstrous Caliban under his wing?

Miranda is a lonely child. For as long as she can remember, she and her father have lived in isolation in the abandoned Moorish palace. There are chickens and goats, and a terrible wailing spirit trapped in a pine tree, but the elusive wild boy who spies on her from the crumbling walls and leaves gifts on their doorstep is the isle’s only other human inhabitant. There are other memories, too: vague, dream-like memories of another time and another place. There are questions that Miranda dare not ask her stern and controlling father, who guards his secrets with zealous care: Who am I? Where did I come from? The wild boy Caliban is a lonely child, too; an orphan left to fend for himself at an early age, all language lost to him. When Caliban is summoned and bound into captivity by Miranda’s father as part of a grand experiment, he rages against his confinement; and yet he hungers for kindness and love. This darkly re-imagined vision of Shakespeare’s beloved tale is told in their voices and is rife with issues of power and control, innocence and sexuality. Lovers of the fantastic, the classic, and beautiful writing will fall in love with Carey’s imaginative retelling.

New Jacqueline Carey! And a Tempest retelling at that! I cannot wait, I absolutely love Carey's writing especially in her Kushiel series so this should be a positive feast. Out on February 14 2017 it will be a nice Valentine present to myself!

Nearly That Time Again... Dewey!

Yep, it's nearly time for the 24 hour Dewey read-a-thon! I'm really hoping that taking part will kick-start my energy for reading/blogging/social media as I appear to have fallen into a black hole of lethargy and sheer can't-be-bothered-ness. April 23 also coincides with World Book Night here in the UK -I'm giving out Shadow and Bone, yay! - and the 400th anniversary of the death of Shakespeare so it's an all-round bookish weekend.

I have no idea what I'm going to read, I'll have a new stash of library books by then, but what I really want to do is read my own books off my shelves and try to make a dent into my TBR Pile Challenge. I'll be posting photographic updates on Instagram and status updates here on the blog. If you want to join in there's still plenty of time to sign up.

Waiting On Wednesday #152 - Bright Smoke,Cold Fire

Waiting On Wednesday, where we put the spotlight on upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating, is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

This week's choice is -

Bright Smoke, Cold Fire - Rosamund Hodge

ISBN - 9780062369413

Publisher - Balzer & Bray

Release date - September 27 2016

Find - Goodreads 

When the mysterious fog of the Ruining crept over the world, the living died and the dead rose. Only the walled city of Viyara was left untouched.

The heirs of the city’s most powerful - and warring - families, Mahyanai Romeo and Juliet Catresou share a love deeper than duty, honor, even life itself. But the magic laid on Juliet at birth compels her to punish the enemies of her clan - and Romeo has just killed her cousin Tybalt. Which means he must die.

Paris Catresou has always wanted to serve his family by guarding Juliet. But when his ward tries to escape her fate, magic goes terribly wrong - killing her and leaving Paris bound to Romeo. If he wants to discover the truth of what happened, Paris must delve deep into the city, ally with his worst enemy . . . and perhaps turn against his own clan.

Mahyanai Runajo just wants to protect her city - but she’s the only one who believes it’s in peril. In her desperate hunt for information, she accidentally pulls Juliet from the mouth of death - and finds herself bound to the bitter, angry girl. Runajo quickly discovers Juliet might be the one person who can help her recover the secret to saving Viyara.

Both pairs will find friendship where they least expect it. Both will find that Viyara holds more secrets and dangers than anyone ever expected. And outside the walls, death is waiting..

I was sure I had already picked Bright Smoke as a WoW choice but I hadn't so here it is this week! Having loved Rosamund Hodge's take on fairy tales I'm intrigued to see what she does with Shakespeare and I'll admit to being hugely influenced by that fabulous cover!