Shadow and Bone

By Leigh Bardugo   

Shadow and Bone readers are taken into a whole new world, surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee. Our main character, Alina Starkov, has never been good at anything but when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life. This power could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart. 
I enjoyed the similarities to Game of Thrones and I really liked the strength that Alina demonstrates; very inspiring.
Like book trailers, check out this one for Shadow and Bone.

Afterworlds

By Scott Westerfeld

This book takes place in parallel universes. Our main character Darcy Patel has put college and everything else on hold to publish her novel, "Afterworlds." Darcy drops everything she knows and heads to New York. Once she gets to New York she has no apartment or friends and she wonders whether she's made the right decision until she falls in with a crowd of other seasoned and fledgling writers who take her under their wing. This story is told in alternating chapters flipping between Darcy's life and her novel, a suspenseful thriller about Lizzie, a teen who slips into the 'Afterworld' to survive a terrorist attack. But the Afterworld is a place between the living and the dead and as Lizzie drifts between our world and that of the Afterworld, she discovers that many unsolved - and terrifying - stories need to be reconciled. And when a new threat resurfaces, Lizzie learns her special gifts may not be enough to protect those she loves and cares about most.
Check out the book trailer here and check this book out today.

Book of the Month - March: Salvage

By Alexandra Duncan

Seventeen year old Ava was born and raised in deep space, on a merchant ship called the Parastrata. The culture of her ship is conservative and patriarchal. Women have babies, cook, clean, and work with textiles and animals. Men are leaders who take multiple wives, act as guards, fixers and flyers and are allowed to travel between the space ship and Earth.  Ava has never known anything beyond the Parastrata and as the captain’s daughter, or “so girl”, she is obedient and accepting of the rules – usually.

When she is sent to a neighbouring ship to be married, she makes a huge mistake the night before her wedding and is sentenced to death in the Void. Utilizing her natural aptitude for “fixes” and problem solving, she narrowly escapes to the Earth below, leaving behind everyone and everything she has ever loved.

Landing on Gyre, a floating trash pile on Earth, she is astounded to learn that women are capable of more than she ever imagined. Ava learns both figuratively and literally how to stand on her own two feet. Her new found freedom ignites her brave and adventurous spirit, brings forth unexpected friends, a secret family…and maybe even love again.

This unique feminist science fiction story was right up my alley, and the character development was great. Check it out!