Waiting on Wednesday: The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead

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 pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:

The Glittering Court

by Richelle Mead

Publisher:  Razorbill

Release date: April 5, 2016

From Goodreads:

A dazzling new fantasy series set in a mix of Elizabethan and frontier worlds that’s dripping with romance from Richelle Mead, #1 internationally bestselling author of Vampire Academy.

Big and sweeping, spanning the refined palaces of Osfrid to the gold dust and untamed forests of Adoria, The Glittering Court tells the story of Adelaide, an Osfridian countess who poses as her servant to escape an arranged marriage and start a new life in Adoria, the New World. But to do that, she must join the Glittering Court.

Both a school and a business venture, the Glittering Court is designed to transform impoverished girls into upper-class ladies capable of arranging powerful and wealthy marriages in the New World. Adelaide naturally excels in her training and even makes a few friends: the fiery former laundress Tamsin and the beautiful Sirminican refugee Mira. She manages to keep her true identity hidden from all but one: the intriguing Cedric Thorn, son of the wealthy proprietor of the Glittering Court.

When Adelaide discovers that Cedric is hiding a dangerous secret of his own, together, they hatch a scheme to make the best of Adelaide’s deception. Complications soon arise—first, as they cross the treacherous seas from Osfrid to Adoria, and later, when Adelaide catches the attention of a powerful governor.

But no complication will prove quite as daunting as the potent attraction simmering between Adelaide and Cedric. An attraction that, if acted on, would scandalize the Glittering Court and make them both outcasts in wild, vastly uncharted lands. . . .

Why I am waiting:

Richelle Mead is an auto-buy author for me. I feel in love with her writing in Vampire Academy, which to this day is one of my favorite series. The Glittering Court promises to be an amazing start to a new fantasy series and with that alone I am hooked. I’ve always loved fantasy, but lately it seems like it’s all I crave to read. The premise of this books seems to have it all: secrets, adventures, mysteries, romance, and action. From the book description I feel like Adelaide will be a character that will be easy to fall in love with and root for throughout the story. The early reviews for The Glittering Court seem to be great. My friend Eve at Functioning Insanity managed to get an ARC of this book and she absolutely loved it. With us having similar reading tastes, I believe without a doubt that I will adore Richelle Mead’s start to this new fantasy series.

What is your “can’t wait to read” selection for this week?

You Were Here by Cori McCarthy

From Amazon:

Cori McCarthy delivers an emotionally taut page-turner from multiple points of view – combined with stunning illustrations.

Jaycee is about to accomplish what her older brother Jake couldn't: live past graduation.

Jaycee is dealing with her brother's death the only way she can – by re-creating Jake's daredevil stunts. The ones that got him killed. She's not crazy, okay? She just doesn't have a whole lot of respect for staying alive.

Jaycee doesn't expect to have help on her insane quest to remember Jake. But she's joined by a group of unlikely friends – all with their own reasons for completing the dares and their own brand of dysfunction: the uptight, ex-best friend, the heartbroken poet, the slacker with Peter Pan syndrome, and... Mik. He doesn't talk, but somehow still challenges Jayce to do the unthinkable-reveal the parts of herself that she buried with her brother.

Cori McCarthy's gripping narrative defies expectation, moving seamlessly from prose to graphic novel panels and word art poetry, perfect for fans of E. Lockhart, Jennier Niven, and Jandy Nelson. From the petrifying ruins of an insane asylum to the skeletal remains of the world's largest amusement park, You Were Here takes you on an unforgettable journey of friendship, heartbreak and inevitable change.

"You Were Here is wrenchingly beautiful in its honest and achingly accurate portrayal of grief and how it breaks us-and the way unconditional friendship puts us back together."-Jo Knowles, award-winning author of See You At Harry's and Read Between the Lines

"The urban explorers of You Were Here dive deep into the forgotten man-made spaces all around them―and their own feelings of loss, love, and fear. McCarthy deftly intertwines the characters' stories, filling them with authentic pain and heartache as well as soaring moments of grace and humor. I dare you to read it!" ―Maggie Lehrman, author of The Cost of All Things

Rating: 5 Stars

I received an Arc of this book in exchange for an honest opinion. To be honest I didn’t know much about the novel going in. I received an email from NetGalley recommending this book to me and decided to give it a try. I am so happy I did because this instantly became a favorite contemporary.

I was completely blown away by how much I adored this book. The story is told in multiple POVs. McCarthy gave each character a unique and distinct voice, switching between first person to third person, to graffiti art and graphic novel form of expressions, allowed the reader to deeply and intimately get to know each of the characters. The book deals with a very heavy subject matter: grief following the death of Jake, Jaycee’s brother, a daredevil starved for an adrenaline rush, who on the day of his high school graduation tragically dies while performing a daredevilish dare. The story shows how grief affects everyone differently and how each individual copes with it in their own way. While the subject matter is heavy, as we follow our characters on their journey of healing, the overall feeling throughout is uplifting and sweet.

The story starts on the fifth anniversary of Jake’s death with Jaycee revisiting one of Jake’s favorite places, an abandoned mental institution where she knows she will meet with Mik, Jake’s childhood friend, whom she meets every year on the anniversary of Jake’s death.

Even though it’s been five years since Jake’s passing, Jaycee hasn’t been able to overcome his death and is now wearing his clothes, sleeping in his bed, recreating some of his stunts, and visiting his old stomping grounds all in an effort to still feel him  as a part of her life. On his death’s anniversary when she is on her way to the abandoned mental institution she ends up being joined, despite her loud objections, by her ex-best friend Natalie, Natalie’s boyfriend Zach, and Zach’s best friend Bishop.

The story is built around different relationships the characters share, such as Jaycee and her ex-best friend Natalie. Natalie abandoned Jaycee after Jake’s death and since then their friendship has been completely ruined. I don’t want to spoil the story, but there are so many different facets to this novel. We have Jaycee and Jake, Natalie and Zach, Zach and Bishop, Mik and Natalie, Jaycee and Natalie, Bishop and Natalie, and so much more. The intricate relationships built in the story were absolutely astounding. I was rooting so much for my favorite ships, for broken friendships to be fixed and just for overall healing.

Cori McCarthy is an amazing writer with an astonishing ability to create beautifully developed characters with relatable flaws and issues that will forever stay with me. I will most definitely re-read this book over and over again and will recommend it to pretty much everyone I know. You Were Here is a captivating beautifully written story, full of depth, and an overall fantastic read. 

Dragon's Loyalty Award

A few months ago I was nominated by the lovely Rebekah at Wordsmithing and Worldbuilding to participate in this tag, but life was quite busy at that time and I didn’t get a chance to write a post. However, now that things slowed down, I am finally able to participate. If you don't follow Rebekah's blog, you should change that immediately, as it is quite amazing! Thank you so much for the nomination!

Here are the rules for the Dragon's Loyalty Award:

1. Announce your win with a post, and link to whomever presented your award

2. Post 7 interesting things about yourself.

3. Present 15 awards to deserving bloggers

4. Drop them a comment to tip them off after you've linked them in the post.

5. Display the award certificate on your website.

And now on to the "interesting" things about myself. This was rather hard as I think I am quite open and shared quite a bit in my "About Me" section. So after lots of thinking and digging, here's what I came up with.

1. I am originally from Romania, and my hometown is in Transylvania.

2. I love going to Disney World and Universal Studios in Orlando, FL. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is pretty much my favorite place on earth!

3. I am obsessed with Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios. I go every year multiple times during the months of September and October.

4. I love all things nerdy. I've attended Dragon Con for a few years and San Diego Comic Con is on my bucket list. Last year was my first time cosplaying and I hope to do it more often.

5. I have a library in my house. It's a room dedicated to just my books and all my nerdy collections (funkos, figurines, etc). It is without a doubt my happy place :)

6. I love swimming. From a very young age I started training and now I find it very calming and peaceful.

7. I love owls. They are absolutely the cutest and most fascinating birds.

This was a super fun tag and I hope you guys will enjoy participating. I nominate not only the bloggers listed below, but everyone reading this and wanting to participate. If you decide to participate, please make sure to leave me a link in the comments so that I can go see your posts and get to know you a bit better.

1. Eve at FunctioningInsanity

2. Xan at Diversityin YA

3. Bean at Bean'sBookshelf and Coffee Break

4. Krystianna at Downright Dystopian

5. Sabrina at Beyond the Book Reviews

6. Lucy at TheReading Date

7. Barb at Booker T's Farm - Books and Nails and Puppy Dog Tales

8. Sandy at Somewhere Only We Know

9. Allysa at The Eater of Books!

10. Helena, Becky, and Stacie at Book Nerd Addict

11. Nicole at Boundless Bookaholic

12. Brittany at The Book Addict's Guide

13. Amy at  Tripping Over Books

14. Allysa at Books Take You Places

15. Lucy at Books With Lucy 

Waiting on Wednesday: The Rose & The Dagger

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 pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:

The Rose & The Dagger

by Renee Ahdieh

Publisher:  G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Release date: May 3, 2016

From Goodreads:

The much anticipated sequel to the breathtaking The Wrath and the Dawn, lauded by Publishers Weekly as "a potent page-turner of intrigue and romance."

I am surrounded on all sides by a desert. A guest, in a prison of sand and sun. My family is here. And I do not know whom I can trust.

In a land on the brink of war, Shahrzad has been torn from the love of her husband Khalid, the Caliph of Khorasan. She once believed him a monster, but his secrets revealed a man tormented by guilt and a powerful curse—one that might keep them apart forever. Reunited with her family, who have taken refuge with enemies of Khalid, and Tariq, her childhood sweetheart, she should be happy. But Tariq now commands forces set on destroying Khalid's empire. Shahrzad is almost a prisoner caught between loyalties to people she loves. But she refuses to be a pawn and devises a plan.

While her father, Jahandar, continues to play with magical forces he doesn't yet understand, Shahrzad tries to uncover powers that may lie dormant within her. With the help of a tattered old carpet and a tempestuous but sage young man, Shahrzad will attempt to break the curse and reunite with her one true love.

My Thoughts:

The Wrath & The Dawn was one of my favorite reads of 2015 and I have been eagerly anticipating its sequel, The Rose & The Dagger. I actually pre-ordered this book as soon as that option became available online because I am dying to get my hands on it. If you want to read about my love for the world Ahdieh created, you can check out my full review of The Wrath & The Dawn here.

I also had the extreme pleasure of meeting Renee Ahdieh last year right after her book was published and she is such a nice fun person. Even with just one book published so far, she has become an auto-buy author for me because she convinced me what a remarkable story teller she is and I am convinced that her writing style alone would always draw me in.

I would also like to mention that are two novellas associated with the series:

1. The Crown & The Arrow which is available now for FREE and it is Khalid’s perspective on meeting Sharzi for the first time, and

2. The Moth & The Flame that will be released on March 22 which will give more insight to Jalal and Despina.

These two novellas are sure to get me even more excited, if that’s even possible, for the release of The Rose & The Dagger.

I cannot wait to get back to the amazing world created by Renee Ahdieh and see what becomes of the characters that have captured my heart!

February Reading Challenges Wrap-up

Another month is gone and I don’t even know where my time went. I had a great reading month overall, so I can’t complain there, however, I didn’t write any book reviews and that makes me very sad :( I need to do better in the upcoming months!

Goodreads Challenge:

Like I mentioned in my January wrap-up post, I finally committed to reading 100 books in 2016 and so far I am doing pretty well. Since I am writing this post before the month is over, there will always be some books listed that I actually finished in the previous month but after the monthly wrap-up blog post, but as long as I keep a good record I should be good to go. On my Goodreads challenge I read a total of 19 books so far and I am 5 books ahead of schedule. YAY!!! So here are my February reads:

Anatomy of a Misfit by Andrea Portes

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

A Dawn Most Wicked (A Something Strange and Deadly Novella) by Susan Dennard

You Were Here by Cori McCarthy

Hemlock and Thornhill by Kathleen Peacock

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider

Wait for You by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Life and Death by Stephenie Meyer

Rock My TBR challenge:

For February, the books I am counting towards this challenge are all the books listed above with the exception of You Were Here by Cori McCarthy because that was an ARC that was provided by NetGalley and it is not yet published (it was an amazing read so you should definitely pick it up March 1, 2016). So I have ten books counting towards this challenge this month, bringing up my total for the year to seventeen.

Series Ender Challenge:

For this challenge I set a Level 4 goal of reading more than 15 series ender books in 2016 and during the month of February I didn’t finish reading any series enders. I am currently reading Willowgrove by Kathleen Peacock and Time’s Divide by Rysa Walker, so I would think that in my March wrap-up I will have at least three books counting towards this challenge. With no books counting towards this challenge this month, I am still at 2 books overall.

Even though I didn’t have anything counting towards my Series Ender Challenge this month, I am still very happy with how things are moving along in all of my challenges. I hope you all had a very successful month! Let me know in the comments below how you are doing with your challenges. 

Waiting on Wednesday: Burning Glass by Kathryn Purdie

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 pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:

Burning Glass

by Kathryn Purdie

 

Publisher:  Katherine Tegen Books

Release date: March 1, 2016

From Goodreads:

Sonya was born with the rare gift to feel what those around her feel—both physically and emotionally—a gift she’s kept hidden from the empire for seventeen long years. After a reckless mistake wipes out all the other girls with similar abilities, Sonya is hauled off to the palace and forced to serve the emperor as his sovereign Auraseer.

Tasked with sensing the intentions of would-be assassins, Sonya is under constant pressure to protect the emperor. One mistake, one small failure, will cost her own life and the lives of the few people left in the world who still trust her.

But Sonya’s power is untamed and reckless, her feelings easily usurped, and she sometimes can’t decipher when other people’s impulses end and her own begin. In a palace full of warring emotions and looming darkness, Sonya fears that the biggest danger to the empire may be herself.

As she struggles to wrangle her abilities, Sonya seeks refuge in her tenuous alliances with the volatile Emperor Valko and his idealistic younger brother, Anton, the crown prince. But when threats of revolution pit the two brothers against each other, Sonya must choose which brother to trust—and which to betray.

BURNING GLASS is debut author Kathryn Purdie’s stunning tale of dangerous magic, heart-rending romance, and the hard-won courage it takes to let go.

My Thoughts:

The pitch for this book is Red Queen meets Shadow and Bone and that alone is enough to grab my attention. Burning Glass promises to be an epic fantasy debut and an intriguing start to a trilogy. Based on early reviews it would appear that this book has it all: mystery, betrayal, magic, romance, and action.

The premise of this book sounds incredibly interesting; Sonya has a rare gift of sensing other people’s feeling and I am very curious to see how that affects how she feels. The story seems to have a lot of Russian influences and that is a high selling point for me as well.

The cover for Burning Glass is also visually striking and captured my attention. All in all, I am super excited to read Kathryn Purdie’s debut, and I have a feeling I won’t be disappointed. 

Waiting on Wednesday: The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine

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 pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:

The Shadow Queem

by C.J. Redwine

Publisher:  Balzer + Bray

Release date: February 16, 2016

From Goodreads:

Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen.

In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman…and bring her Lorelai’s heart.

But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn’t going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose.

My Thoughts:

I cannot wait for this book! I adore fairytale retellings and I am a huge fan of C.J. Redwine’s work. The Shadow Queen is an epic fantasy retelling of Snow White. The novel promises an action packed story filled with romance and horror. I’ve had my eyes out for this book for a while and so far all the early reviews seem to be great. I’ve read the Defiance trilogy recently and was blown away writing style and wolrd building as well as by the perfect balance that Redwine found between action and romance.

And then there’s the cover. It’s absolutely stunning! This is by far one of the most amazing covers ever. It’s so dark and intriguing; I think that even if I wasn’t familiar with C.J. Redwine’s work and what this novel was about, I would have picked up the book based on the cover alone.

In the comments below, please let me know if The Shadow Queen is on your TBR or if you’ve been lucky enough to score an ARC and reviewed it. What book are you waiting on this week? 

January Reading Challenges Wrap-up

Yay! January is almost over and I seem to be on track for all my reading challenges. This month has been a bit crazy for me because a pipe broke in my house and it flooded the majority of my home. Luckily things are under control and while it will be a couple of months before everything will get repaired, things are finally starting to settle down some. I am very happy to say that despite all the setbacks I was still able to keep on track. So here is a recap of my reading month:

Goodreads Challenge:

I finally committed to it: 100 Books. For years I’ve been wanting to do this, but I always felt like it might be too much, but I want to go for it at least once, so this year is the year. As of today I read 8 and I have a couple that are started (some past the half way mark), but I still need to finish; I have a really bad habit of reading multiple books at once.

Rock My TBR challenge:

For this reading challenge I didn’t have a specific number of books I wanted to read, I just wanted to be able to put a good dent in my TBR pile. For January, the books I am counting towards this challenge are:

Deliverance by C.J. Redwine (review)

Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard (review)

The Rose Society by Marie Lu

A Darkness Strange and Lovely by Susan Dennard

Time’s Edge by Rysa Walker

Time’s Mirror by Rysa Walker

Strange and Ever After by Susan Dennard

Series Ender Challenge:

For this challenge I set a Level 4 goal of reading more than 15 series ender books and during the month of January I managed to read 2 books towards that goal: 

Deliverance by C.J. Redwine (review)

Strange and Ever After by Susan Dennard

All in all I am super happy with how things are moving along in all of my challenges. I hope you all had an equally successful month! Let me know in the comments below how you are doing with your challenges. 

Waiting on Wednesday: Assassin’s Heart by Sarah Ahiers

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 pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:

Assassin’s Heart

by Sarah Ahiers

Publisher:  Harper Teen

Release date: February 2, 2016

From Goodreads:

In the kingdom of Lovero, nine rival Families of assassins lawfully kill people for a price. As a highly skilled member of one of these powerful clans, seventeen-year-old Lea Saldana has always trusted in the strength of her Family. Until she awakens to find them murdered and her home in flames. The Da Vias, the Saldanas’ biggest enemy, must be responsible—and Lea should have seen it coming. But her secret relationship with the Da Vias’ son, Val, has clouded her otherwise killer instinct—and given the Da Vias more reason than ever to take her Family down.

Racked with guilt and shattered over Val’s probable betrayal, Lea sets out to even the score, with her heart set on retaliation and only one thought clear in her mind: make the Da Vias pay.

With shades of The Godfather and Romeo and Juliet, this richly imagined fantasy from debut author Sarah Ahiers is a story of love, lies, and the ultimate vengeance. 

My Thoughts:

This book came out of nowhere for me. It wasn’t originally on my radar and I stumbled across it by accident, and I am so happy I did. The description promises a fantasy of epic proportions. I’ve always been a fan of the paranormal but over the last couple of years it would appear that my tastes have shifted more towards fantasy. Assassin’s Heart seems to have it all; fantasy elements, adventure, action, and romance. Ahiers’ debut novel takes the classic Romeo and Juliet and adds a new unique twist set in a fantasy worlds and with that she managed to capture my attention. I cannot wait to get my hands on this very promising debut.

What book are you most excited about this week?

Something Strange & Deadly by Susan Dennard

From Goodreads:

There's something strange and deadly loose in Philadelphia. . . .

Eleanor Fitt has a lot to worry about.

Her brother has gone missing, her family has fallen on hard times, and her mother is determined to marry her off to any rich young man who walks by. But this is nothing compared to what she's just read in the newspaper:

The Dead are rising in Philadelphia.

And then, in a frightening attack, a zombie delivers a letter to Eleanor . . . from her brother.

Whoever is controlling the Dead army has taken her brother as well. If Eleanor is going to find him, she'll have to venture into the lab of the notorious Spirit-Hunters, who protect the city from supernatural forces. But as Eleanor spends more time with the Spirit-Hunters, including the maddeningly stubborn yet handsome Daniel, the situation becomes dire. And now, not only is her reputation on the line, but her very life may hang in the balance.

Rating: 4 Stars

Something Strange and Deadly is Susan Dennard’s debut and I can’t for the life of me figure out why I waited so long to read this. To be completely honest I didn’t know much about the author until whispers for Truthwitch came along. I had seen the Something Strange & Deadly trilogy around and was curious about it but things always seemed to get in the way. Then, last year, I had the pleasure of meeting Susan Dennard and I knew, based on her personality alone, that I would read anything she writes. She is by far one of the coolest, nicest people I have ever met and I really hope I will get to meet her again.

The distinctive concept presented in Something Strange and Deadly was something that grabbed my attention from the very first page and held it until the very last page. The book is very unique in its composition, an excellent blend of Victorian era, steampunk elements, zombies, spirits, necromancers, and voodoo. Dennard is a remarkable storyteller, with a remarkable ability to create rich, vivid, and visually stunning scenes and an impressive ability to develop unforgettable, easy to love characters. Dennard portrayed several ethnicities in her characters which was a pleasant surprise as I am a huge supporter of diversity in YA.

Eleanor is a very well developed, easy to love character from the beginning; she is smarty, witty, snarky, and sassy, all traits that will endear her to the reader. With her brother missing, her family is almost penniless, and her mother trying to marry her off to any rich young man, Eleanor seems to have her plate full. But when all hell breaks loose in Philadelphia, she must find a way to get her brother back before it’s too late. So she enlists the help of the Spirit Hunters who are entrusted to protect the city from supernatural forces. I adored the Sprit Hunters: Joseph, Jie, and Daniel were all charming in their own way and I quickly became attached to all of them. I particularly liked the time Dennard took to develop individual relationships between Eleanor and each of the Sprit Hunters; each relationship was beautifully crafted. The Spirit Hunters introduce Eleanor to a whole new world she didn’t know existed and it’s plain to see that she truly belongs to it, even more so than the proper cookie cutter world she is forced to live in.

The plot, while a bit predictable at times, still allowed for surprises. Dennard introduced me to a genre I didn’t know I was missing out on: steampunk, and for that I am grateful. I particularly enjoyed Dennard’s original take on zombies. She did not make them the main ‘baddie’ of the book, but rather tools used by a mastermind necromancer. There is a lot of mystery surrounding the necromancer that had me guessing and second-guessing everything. There are magic elements used woven with science to create a perfect blend that is sure to satisfy fans of both paranormal and steampunk as there are many unique, creative, and original inventions that are presented and explained throughout the book.

Overall, Something Strange and Deadly was a fast-paced, exciting read that kept me captivated until the very last sentence. This book had it all: adventure, action, magic, romance, and mystery. It was an outstanding read, unique in its composition, with amazing characters that I am fully invested in and cannot wait to learn more about. The first book created the perfect setting for the sequels giving the reader vague glimpses and clues on future locations and what’s to come. Something Strange and Deadly ended on a very interesting note, to say the least, and I cannot wait to see what adventures Eleanor embarks on in A Darkness Strange and Lovely.