Can't Wait Wednesday: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

Four Dark Queens by Astrid Scholte 

Release date: February 26, 2019

Publisher: Putnam 

Reading level: Young Adult 

Genre: Fantasy 

Links: Author • Goodreads • Amazon 

A divided nation. Four Queens. A ruthless pickpocket. A noble messenger. And the murders that unite them.
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Get in quick, get out quicker.
These are the words Keralie Corrington lives by as the preeminent dipper in the Concord, the central area uniting the four quadrants of Quadara. She steals under the guidance of her mentor Mackiel, who runs a black market selling their bounty to buyers desperate for what they can’t get in their own quarter. For in the nation of Quadara, each quarter is strictly divided from the other. Four queens rule together, one from each region:
Toria: the intellectual quarter that values education and ambition
Ludia: the pleasure quarter that values celebration, passion, and entertainment
Archia: the agricultural quarter that values simplicity and nature
Eonia: the futurist quarter that values technology, stoicism and harmonious community
When Keralie intercepts a comm disk coming from the House of Concord, what seems like a standard job goes horribly wrong. Upon watching the comm disks, Keralie sees all four queens murdered in four brutal ways. Hoping that discovering the intended recipient will reveal the culprit – information that is bound to be valuable bartering material with the palace – Keralie teams up with Varin Bollt, the Eonist messenger she stole from, to complete Varin’s original job and see where it takes them.

This sounds like a book that will have a ton of different things going on, but I like anything that involves powerful female leaders and a heroine working to save the day. I've been getting more and more into fantasy lately, so this debut looks like it will be right up my alley. Can't wait to check it out! 

Can't Wait Wednesday Is Hosted By: Wishful Endings inspired by Breaking the Spine

Can't Wait Wednesday: The Spellbook of Katrina van Tassel by Alyssa Palombo

THE SPELLBOOK OF KATRINA VAN TASSEL: A STORY OF SLEEP HOLLOW by Alyssa Palombo 

Release date: October 2, 2018

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin 

Reading level: Adult 

Genre: Historical Fantasy 

Links: Author • Goodreads • Amazon 

When Ichabod Crane arrives in the spooky little village of Sleepy Hollow as the new schoolmaster, Katrina Van Tassel is instantly drawn to him. Through their shared love of books and music, they form a friendship that quickly develops into romance. Ichabod knows that as an itinerant schoolteacher of little social standing, he has nothing to offer the wealthy Katrina - unlike her childhood friend-turned-enemy, Brom Van Brunt, who is the suitor Katrina's father favors.
But when romance gives way to passion, Ichabod and Katrina embark on a secret love affair, sneaking away into the woods after dark to be together - all while praying they do not catch sight of Sleepy Hollow's legendary Headless Horseman. That is, until All Hallows's Eve, when Ichabod suddenly disappears, leaving Katrina alone and in a perilous position.
Enlisting the help of her friend - and rumored witch - Charlotte Jansen, Katrina seeks the truth of Ichabod Crane's disappearance, investigating the forest around Sleepy Hollow using unconventional - often magical - means. What they find forces Katrina to question everything she once knew, and to wonder if the Headless Horseman is perhaps more than just a story after all. In Alyssa Palombo's The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel nothing is as it seems, and love is a thing even death won't erase.

This sounds awesome! The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is a classic and this should be an interesting side of the story. Can't wait. 

Can't Wait Wednesday Is Hosted By: Wishful Endings inspired by Breaking the Spine 

Can't Wait Wednesday: The Girl They Left Behind by Roxanne Veletzos

The Girl They Left Behind by Roxanne Veletzos 

Release date: November 13, 2018

Publisher: Atria Books

Reading level: Adult

Genre: Historical fiction 

Links: Author • Goodreads • Amazon 

On a freezing night in January 1941, a little Jewish girl is found on the steps of an apartment building in Bucharest. With Romania recently allied with the Nazis, the Jewish population is in grave danger, undergoing increasingly violent persecution. The girl is placed in an orphanage and eventually adopted by a wealthy childless couple who name her Natalia. As she assimilates into her new life, she all but forgets the parents who were forced to leave her behind. They are even further from her mind when Romania falls under Soviet occupation.
Yet, as Natalia comes of age in a bleak and hopeless world, traces of her identity pierce the surface of her everyday life, leading gradually to a discovery that will change her destiny. She has a secret crush on Victor, an intense young man who as an impoverished student befriended her family long ago. Years later, when Natalia is in her early twenties and working at a warehouse packing fruit, she and Victor, now an important official in the Communist regime, cross paths again. This time they are fatefully drawn into a passionate affair despite the obstacles swirling around them and Victor’s dark secrets.
When Natalia is suddenly offered a one-time chance at freedom, Victor is determined to help her escape, even if it means losing her. Natalia must make an agonizing decision: remain in Bucharest with her beloved adoptive parents and the man she has come to love, or seize the chance to finally live life on her own terms, and to confront the painful enigma of her past.

This was suggested for fans of LILAC GIRLS, which I thought was excellent. I love historical fiction and I am interested in reading about a Romanian's experience during World War II. This is also a debut!

Can't Wait Wednesday Is Hosted By: Wishful Endings inspired by Breaking the Spine