In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox explores the contents of my mailbox on a weekly basis. Of course I only mention things like books! As ever with thanks to The Story Siren and Pop Culture Junkie who host and inspired this meme.

And this week I'm feeling very very lucky. Just look at the books I got to see why:

1. Prophecy of Days by Christy Raedeke

Yes, I talked about this in my WoW meme and by the weekend I had a copy. All I can say is thank you. For a product descript, see my WoW this week (click here)

2. The Gardener by SA Bodeen

Since first reading about this, I've had my fingers crossed each time I look in my mailbox.

Mason has never known his father, but longs to. All he has of him is a DVD of a man whose face is never seen, reading a children’s book. One day, on a whim, he plays the DVD for a group of comatose teens at the nursing home where his mother works. One of them, a beautiful girl, responds. Mason learns she is part of a horrible experiment intended to render teenagers into autotrophs—genetically engineered, self-sustaining life-forms who don’t need food or water to survive. And before he knows it, Mason is on the run with the girl, and wanted, dead or alive, by the mysterious mastermind of this gruesome plan, who is simply called the Gardener.

3. Perchance to Dream by Lisa Mantchev

Sequel to Eyes Like Stars, which I loved. This I clutched to my chest in delight when I saw it.

Growing up in the enchanted Thèâtre Illuminata, Beatrice Shakespeare Smith learned everything about every play ever written. She knew the Players and their parts, but she didn’t know that she, too, had magic. Now, she is the Mistress of Revels, ready for the outside world. But the outside world soon proves more topsy-turvy than any stage production. Bertie can make things happen by writing them, but outside the protective walls of the Thèâtre, nothing goes as planned. And her magic cannot help her make a decision between Nate and Ariel. Nate is a prisoner of the Sea Goddess. To save him, Bertie and her fairy sidekicks embark on a journey aboard the Thèâtre’s caravan, using Bertie’s word magic to guide them. Along the way, they collect a sneak-thief and meet Bertie’s father. Bertie’s dreams are haunted by Nate, whose love for Bertie is keeping him alive, but in the daytime, it’s Ariel who is tantalizingly close, and the one she is falling for. Who does Bertie love the most? And will her magic be powerful enough to save her once she enters the Sea Goddess’s lair?

4. Once by Morris Gleitzman

Felix, a Jewish boy in Poland in 1942, is hiding from the Nazis in a Catholic orphanage. The only problem is that he doesn’t know anything about the war, and thinks he’s only in the orphanage while his parents travel and try to salvage their bookselling business. But when he thinks his parents are in danger, Felix sets off to warn them— straight into the heart of Nazi-occupied Poland. To Felix, everything is a story: Why did he get a whole carrot in his soup? It must be a sign that his parents are coming to get him. Why are the Nazis burning books? They must be foreign librarians sent to clean out the orphanage’s outdated library. But as Felix’s journey gets increasingly dangerous, he begins to see horrors that not even stories can explain. Despite his grim surroundings, Felix never loses hope. Gleitzman takes a painful subject and expertly turns it into a story filled with love, friendship, and even humor.

What did you get this week?