Looking Forward: February

Looking Forward is a regular feature on the blog where I let you know which books I’m looking forward to in the month. I won’t buy all the books featured, but they are all books I’m looking forward to being released and want to know if you’re excited about them too. Also, all dates are the released I can find (unless they’re not available) for the UK because that’s where I live and I like to try and keep to when I can get the books.

Strangely, there are a lot of books coming out this February which I am excited for. Luckily for me, that means more books for me to request for my birthday. I may find myself with a small pile of books, or none at all. We shall see.

Assassin’s Heart – Sarah Ahiers Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy Release Date: 2nd February 2016	Remembrance – Meg Cabot Genre: Paranormal, Romance Release Date: 2nd February 2016
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.	Fifteen years after the release of the first Mediator novel, #1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot returns with a deliciously sexy new entry to a fan-favorite series. Suze Simon—all grown up and engaged to her once-ghostly soulmate—faces a vengeful spirit and an old enemy bent on ending Suze's wedded bliss before it begins. You can take the boy out of the darkness. But you can’t take the darkness out of the boy. All Susannah Simon wants is to make a good impression at her first job since graduating from college (and since becoming engaged to Dr. Jesse de Silva). But when she’s hired as a guidance counselor at her alma mater, she stumbles across a decade-old murder, and soon ancient history isn’t all that’s coming back to haunt her. Old ghosts as well as new ones are coming out of the woodwork, some to test her, some to vex her, and it isn’t only because she’s a mediator, gifted with second sight. From a sophomore haunted by the murderous specter of a child, to ghosts of a very different kind—including Paul Slater, Suze’s ex, who shows up to make a bargain Suze is certain must have come from the Devil himself—Suze isn’t sure she’ll make it through the semester, let alone to her wedding night. Suze is used to striking first and asking questions later. But what happens when ghosts from her past—including one she found nearly impossible to resist—strike first? What happens when old ghosts come back to haunt you? If you’re a mediator, you might have to kick a little ass.
Why Am I Excited? I love books that involve either thieves or assassins, I think it comes from my love of Gambit in X-Men and his whole origins story. This sounds like a really original story as well, or original to me.	Why Am I Excited? I am so excited for this book, I am even going so far as planning to buy the thing, despite it not getting a UK release, because I need to read this. I became friends with my best friends by bonding over these books so I am all over reading this.

A Criminal Magic – Lee Kelly Genre: Fantasy, Historical Release Date: 2nd February 2016	The Sleeping Prince – Melinda Salisbury Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult Release Date: 4th February 2016
THE NIGHT CIRCUS meets PEAKY BLINDERS in Lee Kelly's new magical realism, crossover novel. Magic is powerful, dangerous and addictive - and after passage of the 18th Amendment, it is finally illegal. It's 1926 in Washington, DC, and while Anti-Sorcery activists have achieved the Prohibition of sorcery, the city's magic underworld is booming. Sorcerers cast illusions to aid mobsters' crime sprees. Smugglers funnel magic contraband in from overseas. Gangs have established secret performance venues where patrons can lose themselves in magic, and take a mind-bending, intoxicating elixir known as the sorcerer's shine. Joan Kendrick, a young sorcerer from Norfolk County, Virginia accepts an offer to work for DC's most notorious crime syndicate, the Shaw Gang, when her family's home is repossessed. Alex Danfrey, a first-year Federal Prohibition Unit trainee with a complicated past and talents of his own, becomes tapped to go undercover and infiltrate the Shaws. Through different paths, Joan and Alex tread deep into the violent, dangerous world of criminal magic - and when their paths cross at the Shaws' performance venue, despite their orders, and despite themselves, Joan and Alex become enchanted with one another. But when gang alliances begin to shift, the two sorcerers are forced to question their ultimate allegiances and motivations. And soon, Joan and Alex find themselves pitted against each other in a treacherous, heady game of cat-and-mouse. A CRIMINAL MAGIC casts a spell of magic, high stakes and intrigue against the backdrop of a very different Roaring Twenties.	Return to the darkly beautiful world of The Sin Eater's Daughter with a sequel that will leave you awed, terrified . . . and desperate for more. Ever since her brother Lief disappeared, Errin's life has gone from bad to worse. Not only must she care for her sick mother, she has to scrape together rent money by selling illegal herbal cures. But none of that compares to the threat of the vengeful Sleeping Prince whom the Queen just awoke from his enchanted sleep. When her village is evacuated as part of the war against the Sleeping Prince, Errin is left desperate and homeless. The only person she can turn to is the mysterious Silas, a young man who buys deadly poisons from Errin, but won't reveal why he needs them. Silas promises to help her, but when he vanishes, Errin must journey across a kingdom on the brink of war to seek another way to save her mother and herself. But what she finds shatters everything she believed about her world, and with the Sleeping Prince drawing nearer, Errin must make a heartbreaking choice that could affect the whole kingdom.
Why Am I Excited? It’s referred to as being a cross between The Night Circus and Peaky Blinders, how could I not want to read it from those comparisons alone? I love Peaky Blinders (it’s filmed by me) and I remember really enjoying The Night Circus so a combination of the two sounds awesome. The price puts me off a bit, but this will definitely be read by me sometime soon.	Why Am I Excited? I was not in love with The Sin-Eater’s Daughter, but I definitely enjoyed it. I am willing to give the second book a shot because it sounds intriguing. My issue was the first book was that there wasn’t enough depth to the story, I’m hoping this book won’t make the same mistake.

Rebel Of The Sands – Alwyn Hamilton Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult Release Date: 4th February 2016	The Vicious Masks – Tarun Shanker Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Young Adult Release Date: 9th February 2016
"Tell me that and we'll go. Right now. Save ourselves and leave this place to burn. Tell me that's how you want your story to go and we'll write it straight across the sand." Dustwalk is Amani's home. The desert sand is in her bones. But she wants to escape. More than a want. A need. Then a foreigner with no name turns up to save her life, and with him the chance to run. But to where? The desert plains are full of danger. Sand and blood are swirling, and the Sultan's enemies are on the rise.	Jane Austen meets X-­Men in this gripping and adventure-­filled paranormal romance set in Victorian London. England, 1882. Evelyn is bored with society and its expectations. So when her beloved sister, Rose, mysteriously vanishes, she ignores her parents and travels to London to find her, accompanied by the dashing Mr. Kent. But they’re not the only ones looking for Rose. The reclusive, young gentleman Sebastian Braddock is also searching for her, claiming that both sisters have special healing powers. Evelyn is convinced that Sebastian must be mad, until she discovers that his strange tales of extraordinary people are true—and that her sister is in graver danger than she feared.
Why Am I Excited? It sounds interesting, I want to read more books that aren’t in the typical European/American setting. This sounds like it will have an interesting story although there is no real summary offered for it. I like a bit of mystery to surround a book, though.	Why Am I Excited? Jane Austen meets X-Men! It’s another case of there being no need for any more explanation. I will be buying this book and reading immediately. I really should have preordered, but it is being bought regardless of any book buying ban in place.

Call Me, Maybe – Ellie Cahill Genre: Romance, Contemporary, New Adult Release Date: 9th February 2016	A Gathering of Shadows – V.E. Schwab Genre: Fantasy, Historical, Young Adult Release Date: 23rd February 2016
Clementine Daly knows she’s the black sheep. Her wealthy, powerful family has watched her very closely since she almost got caught in an embarrassing scandal a few years ago. So when Clementine’s sent on a mission to live up to the Daly name, politely declining isn’t an option. Of course, the last thing she does before boarding the plane is to grab a stranger’s phone by mistake—leaving the hunky journalist with her phone. Soon his sexy voice is on the line, but he doesn’t know her real name, or her famous pedigree—which is just the way Clementine likes it. Despite all the hassles, Justin Mueller is intrigued to realize that the beautiful brown-eyed girl he met at the airport is suddenly at his fingertips. They agree to exchange phones when they’re both back in town, but after a week of flirty texts and wonderfully intimate conversations, Justin doesn’t want to let her go. The only problem? It turns out that Clementine has been lying to him about, well, everything. Except for the one thing, two people can’t fake, the only thing that matters: The heat between them is for real.	Four months have passed since the shadow stone fell into Kell’s possession. Four months since his path crossed with Delilah Bard. Four months since Rhy was wounded and the Dane twins fell, and the stone was cast with Holland’s dying body through the rift, and into Black London. In many ways, things have almost returned to normal, though Rhy is more sober, and Kell is now plagued by his guilt. Restless, and having given up smuggling, Kell is visited by dreams of ominous magical events, waking only to think of Lila, who disappeared from the docks like she always meant to do. As Red London finalizes preparations for the Element Games—an extravagant international competition of magic, meant to entertain and keep healthy the ties between neighboring countries—a certain pirate ship draws closer, carrying old friends back into port. But while Red London is caught up in the pageantry and thrills of the Games, another London is coming back to life, and those who were thought to be forever gone have returned. After all, a shadow that was gone in the night reappears in the morning, and so it seems Black London has risen again—meaning that another London must fall.
Why Am I Excited? Look, on Goodreads it mentioned praise from Cora Carmack, I love her books so I am willing to read this. That, and the whole lying text relationship thing sounds intriguing, what has been going on with these two? I am always on the lookout for another good romance and hopefully, this one will be good.	Why Am I Excited? Really? You need me to explain this one to you? It’s the sequel to one of my favourite books of last year. I am all over this book and counting down the days until I can get reading. I’ll probably wait a while to buy, but this year I will be on it.

Those are the main books I’m excited for, but an honourable mention goes out to Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell. It’s a World Book Day book here in the UK and I have already pre-ordered for my Kindle. It will be selling for a £1 in all major bookshops here so I’ll purchase then as well, but World Book Day isn’t until March, and who wants to wait until then to read something by a favourite author?

What books are you excited for in February? Are there any I’ve missed or need to know about?