The Here and Now by Ann Brashares 
Published by Delacorte Press
Date: April 8, 2014
Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Pages: 242
Format: eBook
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.

This is the story of seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins.

Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth.

But everything changes when Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves.

From Ann Brashares, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is thrilling, exhilarating, haunting, and heartbreaking—and a must-read novel of the year.

- Goodreads

Prenna immigrated to New York when she was twelve, but she didn't come from a different country; she came from the future. Faced with the harsh reality that humanity can no longer survive in their time, Prenna, her family, and other members of the community traveled back in time to safety. Once settled in their new home Prenna and her family must follow a strict set of rules in order to stay secure. However, Prenna begins to question everything--the leaders in her community, the rules she's been told to follow for years, and the real purpose she traveled through time in the first place--when she gets to know Ethan, a boy from her school who has the uncanny ability to recognize travelers on sight. With Ethan at her side, Prenna attempts to solve the mystery surrounding the future of humanity, tearing down everything she's ever known along the way.

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Divergent by Veronica Roth
Director: Neil Burger
Cast: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Kate Winslet
Production Company: Summit Entertainment
Release Date: March 21, 2014
Genre: Science Fiction

DIVERGENT is a thrilling action-adventure film set in a world where people are divided into distinct factions based on human virtues. Tris Prior (Shailene Woodley is warned she is Diverent and will never fit into any one group. When she discovers a conspiracy by a faction leader (Kate Winslet) to destroy all Divergents, Tris must learn to trust in the mysterious Four (Theo James) and together they must find out what makes being Divergent so dangerous before it's too late. Based on the best-selling book series by Veronica Roth. (C) Summit

- Rotten Tomatoes

This past weekend I saw Divergent starring Shailene Woodley and Theo James, and I have to say that I absolutely loved it. Like the book, the society in the film is broken into five factions: Abnegation (Selflessness), Erudite (Intelligence), Candor (Honesty), Amity (Kindness), and Dauntless (Bravery). Tris, the main character, takes her aptitude test, which is supposed to tell her which faction to choose during the Choosing Ceremony, which is a kind of right of passage when the young people in the society choose which faction they want to be a part of. Tris' test results, however, are inconclusive, and she discovers that she is Divergent--she doesn't fit into any single category determined by the leaders of the society. As the story progress, Tris has to discover what it truly means to be Divergent and what she needs to do to survive in the society.

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Happy March, people! My new book for March isn't one that's available for purchase yet. It's The Here and Now by Ann Brashares, which will be released on April 8th.

Check out the synopsis from Goodreads below.

An unforgettable epic romantic thriller about a girl from the future who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.

This is the story of seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins.

Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth.

But everything changes when Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves.

From Ann Brashares, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is thrilling, exhilarating, haunting, and heartbreaking—and a must-read novel of the year.

- Goodreads

I first discovered The Here and Now on NetGalley, my newfound favorite book site. If you haven't checked out NetGalley yet, you are missing out! Anyway, I'm always on the look out for new science fiction and fantasy, the two best genres in the universe! So, when I read the description for The Here and Now on NetGalley, I immediately sent a request to the publisher. It sounds super interesting and unique. One of my favorite things about reading is discovering books that do something new within a genre; they're not just repeating what's already been done. I think The Here and Now could be one of those books.

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Alienated by Melissa Landers
Published by Disney Hyperion
Date: February 4, 2014
Series: Alienated #1
Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Pages: 352
Format: eBook
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Two years ago, the aliens made contact. Now Cara Sweeney is going to be sharing a bathroom with one of them.
Handpicked to host the first-ever L’eihr exchange student, Cara thinks her future is set. Not only does she get a free ride to her dream college, she’ll have inside information about the mysterious L’eihrs that every journalist would kill for. Cara’s blog following is about to skyrocket.

Still, Cara isn’t sure what to think when she meets Aelyx. Humans and L’eihrs have nearly identical DNA, but cold, infuriatingly brilliant Aelyx couldn’t seem more alien. She’s certain about one thing, though: no human boy is this good-looking.

But when Cara's classmates get swept up by anti-L'eihr paranoia, Midtown High School suddenly isn't safe anymore. Threatening notes appear in Cara's locker, and a police officer has to escort her and Aelyx to class.

Cara finds support in the last person she expected. She realizes that Aelyx isn’t just her only friend; she's fallen hard for him. But Aelyx has been hiding the truth about the purpose of his exchange, and its potentially deadly consequences. Soon Cara will be in for the fight of her life—not just for herself and the boy she loves, but for the future of her planet.

--Goodreads

When Cara Sweeney is selected to host one of the first exchange students from the planet L'eihr, she thinks her future is set. She'll host Aelyx for a year on Earth, take her turn on L'eihr, and then return to Earth where she can attend the university of her dreams, courtesy of the hefty scholarship she'll receive as a student in the first intergalactic student exchange program. Piece of cake. Never mind the fact that Aelyx has plans of his own. He and his friends want nothing to do with Earth or humanity. Equipped with a secret plot to sabotage the potential alliance between Earth and L'eihr, Aelyx plans to return to his home planet as soon as possible, never to return to Earth again. When the exchange finally starts, neither Cara nor Aelyx is prepared for torrent of events and emotions that will change both their lives, and even their planets, forever.

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These Broken Stars 
by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
Published by Disney Hyperion
Date: December 10, 2013
Series: Starbound #1
Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Romance
Pages: 374
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased

It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone.

Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they’re worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help.

Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy that has thrown them into each other’s arms. Without the hope of a future together in their own world, they begin to wonder—would they be better off staying here forever?

Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet. But they won’t be the same people who landed on it.

---

A timeless love story, THESE BROKEN STARS sets into motion a sweeping science fiction series of companion novels. The Starbound Trilogy: Three worlds. Three love stories. One enemy.

- Goodreads

Lilac and Tarver live in completely different worlds. Lilac, the beautiful, young heiress of the richest, most powerful man in the galaxy, is used to being the center of attention and having the world at her fingertips. Tarver, on the other hand, is a war hero from humble beginnings who can't help but feel like he doesn't fit in with the members of high society and their world of fancy parties and ridiculous social niceties. Lilac and Tarver couldn't be more different. But, when the starship their traveling on, the Icarus, falls out of hyperspace and crash-lands on an unknown planet, Lilac and Tarver suddenly find themselves bound to one another as they fight to survive and await a rescue mission they aren't entirely sure is coming. These Broken Stars is a gripping story about survival, love, and strength that takes the genre of science fiction and turns it into something new.

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