In Our Mailbox - 6/27/10

  

Thanks to The Story Siren for hosting IMM.

A great week for books!

Alex Van Helsing: Vampire Rising

by Jason Henderson

Fourteen-year-old Alex has no idea that he's descended from the worlds's most famous vampire hunter, but that changes fast when he arrives a Glenarvon Academy and confronts two vampires in his first three days. 

Turns out Glenarvon isn't the only school near Lake Geneva. Hidden deep underground lies an ancient university for vampires called the Scholomnace. And the deadly vampire clan lord known as Icemaker? You might say he's a visiting professor.

When two of Alex's friends are kidnapped by Icemaker, it's up to Alex to infiltrate the Scholomance and get them back - alive. Assisted by Polidorium, a top-secret vampire-hunting organization with buried ties to the Van Helsings, Alex dodges zombies, bullets, and lots of lots of fangs on his way to thwarting Icemakers' plans and fulfilling his family destiny. 

Sure Fire

by Jack Higgins

For fifteen-year-old twins Rich and Jade, their lives have just been turned upside down. When their mother is tragically killed in a car crash, their long-lost father John Chance appears to collect them at the funeral. He's a bachelor who lives on his own, and it's clear that Rich and Jade aren't welcome. 


But when Chance suddenly disappears, Rich and Jade uncover the truth: He's a spy. And now, whoever kidnapped their father is after them, too. 

The Prince of Mist
by Carlos Ruiz Zafon


It's wartime, and the Carver family decides to leave the capital where the live and move to a small coastal village where they've recently bought a home. but from the minute they cross the threshold, strange things begin to happen. In that mysterious house still lurks the spirit of Jacob, the previous owners' son who died by drowning. 


With the help of their new friend Roland, Max and Alicia Carver begin to explore the strange circumstances of that death and discover the existence of a mysterious being called the Prince ofr MIst - a diabolical characer who has returned from the shadows to collect on a debt from the past. Soon the three friends frind themselves caufht up in an adventure of sunken ships and an enchanted stone gareden - an adventure that will change their lives forever. 

The Reckoning 
by Kelley Armstrong


Only two weeks ago, life was all too predictable. But that was before I saw my first ghost. Now, along with my supernatural friends Tori, Derek, and Simon, I’m on the run from the Edison Group, which genetically altered us as part of their sinister experiment. We’re hiding in a safe house that might not be as safe as it seems. We’ll be gone soon anyway, back to rescue those we’d left behind and to take out the Edison Group . . . or so we hope.

Frenzy

by Robert Liparulo

It's time to enter the last story of the house.

There were things that seemed odd when the Kings first moved into their new house--but things got really strange when they realized the rooms upstairs were portals to other worlds. Even though the rooms were dangerous, it still seemed fun until people starting coming into the house and Mom was kidnapped. They've been desperately searching for her, but they risk their lives every time they enter a world.

Xander has traveled back to visit Uncle Jesse as a boy, but that turns out to be the last place Xander wants to be. Jesse tells him David died. But Xander's not about to let that happen--even if it already did. It doesn't matter how many worlds he has to go to or what it takes, he is going to find a way to change the future.

Whisper 

by Phoebe Kitanidis

I’d love a cup of coffee. I wish she knew how pretty she was. I wish I could drop this kid in the dryer sometimes. I just want her to be happy. I hope she didn’t find out what Ben said about her. I wish I knew how many calories were in a bite of muffin…

Joy is used to hearing Whispers. She’s used to walking down the street and instantly knowing people’s deepest, darkest desires. She uses this talent for good, to make people happy and give them what they want. But for her older sister, Jessica, the family gift is a curse, and she uses it to make people’s lives—especially Joy’s—miserable. Still, when Joy Hears a frightening whisper from Jessica's own mind, she knows she has to save her sister, even if it means deserting her friends, stealing a car and running away with a boy she barely knows—a boy who may have a dark secret of his own.

What treasures were in your mailbox?