Books I'm squeeing about in March

February has been mixed. I’ve spent a lot of time hiding in book world, and made some amazing discoveries – new authors, new series, and sequels galore. But I’ve had one eye on March, because there are some amazing books scheduled to come out throughout. I’ve been waiting for some of these for a long time – and I’m not a patient person, so this is a big deal.
Ok, so the four I’m going to throw at you are two new books, and two that are continuations of series’ that have already been published.

The Return: Midnight (The Vampire Diaries) by L. J. Smith

Release Date: 3^rd March 2011 (Paperback)

The vampire love triangle that spawned hundreds of thousands of fans-and inspired a major new dramatisation shown on ITV2 concludes in this powerful final volume of The Vampire Diaries. In Midnight, golden girl Elena Gilbert is back from the Dark Dimension, having successfully freed her vampire boyfriend Stefan Salvatore from imprisonment. Saving Stefan had an unlikely consequence: his vampire brother Damon Salvatore has become a mortal. While the trio reels from this latest twist, they must still deal with the demons that have taken over Elena’s hometown, Fell’s Church. MIDNIGHT takes Elena, Stefan, and Damon to their darkest moments yet...   Danger, romance, and paranormal mystery will keep readers fascinated with this captivating finale to the New York Times bestselling series.

I literally cannot wait for this book. The series has been incredible, and if you haven’t found them yet, go out and catch up before this final instalment. However, the release of this will be bittersweet. Anyone who has kept up to date with news surrounding this series will know that this will be the final book that L. J. Smith writes for the series. She has been effectively ‘fired’ from the series, so whilst there will probably be more books, they won’t be written by Smith herself. Readers are furious, and it will be interesting to see what happens. Will people keep reading the series? The company will be using a ghost writer to continue the series, and given the standard of Stefan’s Diaries, also written by a ghost writer, the potential is that the series will go downhill with the loss of L. J. Smith. So will readers continue to follow the events of the characters? Or will they stop with the release of ‘Midnight’? Regardless, there is still one chance to read the brilliance of Smith’s story, and that makes ‘Midnight’ all the more precious.

Click to pre-order: http://tiny.cc/vtyoi

Darkest Mercy (The fifth book in The Wicked Lovely series) by Melissa Marr

Release Date: 3^rd March 2011 (Paperback)

The Summer King is missing; the Dark Court is bleeding; and a stranger walks the streets of Huntsdale, his presence signifying the deaths of powerful fey.
Torn between his new queen and his old love, Keenan left Huntsdale to wander aimlessly but after centuries of leading his court it was not long before the reality of being Summer King became too pressing. Violence seemed more inevitable by the day and the Summer Court was not yet strong enough to face conflict, so Keenan made a dangerous deal with the water fey. It is a desperate bargain he makes to strengthen his court against the coming war. Aislinn tends the Summer Court, searching for her absent king and yearning for Seth. She knows she must be a powerful queen to hold her court together, while Bananach becomes more and more dangerous, and she is losing faeries to her. Donia longs for fiery passion even as she coolly readies the Winter Court for battle. Her court is still powerful, but she must remain focused on keeping them that way and not get distracted by Keenan when he shows up at her door again. The Dark Court is thrown into chaos when they are rocked by tragedy. And Seth, sworn brother of the Dark King and heir to the High Queen, is about to make a mistake that could cost his life. They all know what Bananach seeks – the raven-faery is the embodiment of war and discord. She and her growing number of allies want mutiny and murder. Love, despair and betrayal ignite the Faeries Courts, and in the final conflict, some will win… and some will lose everything. The thrilling conclusion to Melissa Marr’s bestselling Wicked Lovely series will leave readers breathless.

This series is brilliant. Melissa Marr is a genius with urban fantasy fiction, and her ‘Wicked Lovely’ series is utterly mind boggling. Instead of being focused solely on one person or one couple, there are an entire cast of characters who feature in some or all of the books, and each play a part in the intriguing ins and outs of faery court politics. If you enjoyed Holly Black’s series of books Tithe, Valiant and Ironside, you’ll love this series.
A truly staggering work of imagination, if you haven’t yet discovered Melissa Marr, start with the first of the series ‘Wicked Lovely’, followed by ‘Ink Exchange’ ‘Fragile Eternity’ and ‘Radiant Shadows’.

Pre-order the paperback here: http://tiny.cc/az7b3
However, the kindle edition is being released ahead of the paperback, and will be available from 22^nd February 2011. http://tiny.cc/gtdyv

The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell

Release Date: 7^th March 2011 (Hardback & Kindle)

Baltimore, 1889. Seventeen-year-old Amelia van den Broek has been sent from Maine to live with her cousin's family for the summer. She's been sent there by her older brother for one reason, and one reason alone: to find a husband.
For a girl who's in the city for the first time, though, Baltimore offers up a slew of distractions. Including the fact that she's started having visions of the future. As the people of Baltimore -- and everywhere else -- are currently fascinated with Spiritualism, her visions serve to catapult Amelia from Outsider to In Demand.
The most distracting distraction of all, though, is Nathaniel Witherspoon, a mysterious artist Amelia finds herself irresistibly drawn to, though she knows that he is, in no way, an eligible suitor. But drawn to him she is, even before she learns that they have more in common than their mutual attraction...

I came across this through an early review which can be found here at ‘The Bookshelves Of Doom’ blog http://tiny.cc/86p8m
After reading the review I immediately went to buy the book, and was thwarted by the fact that it wasn’t out for like TWO MORE MONTHS. So I sent the link to my best friend so that I wasn’t dying of impatience alone. I like to share frustration. Stir it around with a nice big spoon. I’m nice like that.
It’s been likened to ‘A Great and Terrible Beauty’ by Libba Bray, which is on my list of awesome books I wish I could eat so they stay with me forever. And I’ve been searching for something similar to those ever since I read them. That and the fact that I love historical fiction, young adult romance, and the really pretty cover. I am a sucker for pretty covers.
So I’m going to continue to get over excited until the book arrives and I can review it and share the excitement.

Go and pre-order it now: http://tiny.cc/b3ubq

Entwined by Heather DixonRelease Date: 29^th March (Hardcover)

Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her . . . beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing . . . it's taken away. All of it.
The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation.
Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest.
But there is a cost.
The Keeper likes to keep things.
Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late.

This looks to be another retelling of the twelve dancing princesses, which is fine be me. I love that story, it was one of my favourites as a child, and I’ve only just discovered some of the retellings. I read and reviewed “Princess of the Midnight Ball” and it was through that I found “Entwined.” I don’t know much about it other than the blurb, and haven’t found any reviews yet. So I’m going into this fairly open, and am looking forward to seeing what happens.


Pre-Order here: http://tiny.cc/rtlcp