How are you Book Lovers everywhere in the world? What have you been up to last week? Anything exciting to share with us?

This Sunday our Cravings post will be a little short I’m afraid. It seems that publishers are taking a short summer vacation for this week because I can’t explain any other way the few titles that are scheduled for release 😛 Even so, we have a couple of exciting releases we’d like to share with you, so let’s start!

Marlene: Carniepunk (Anthology) with stories by Rachel Caine, Jennifer Estep, Kevin Hearne, Seanan McGuire, Rob Thurman, Delilah S. Dawson, Allison Pang, Jackie Kessler, Kelly Gay, Kelly Meding, Hillary Jaques, Mark Henry, Nicole D. Peeler, Jaye Wells

A star-studded urban fantasy anthology featuring bestselling authors Rachel Caine, Rob Thurman, Seanan McGuire, Jennifer Estep, and Kevin Hearne, whose stories explore the creepy, mysterious, and, yes, sometimes magical world of traveling carnivals.

The traveling carnival is a leftover of a bygone era, a curiosity lurking on the outskirts of town. It is a place of contradictions—the bright lights mask the peeling paint; a carnie in greasy overalls slinks away from the direction of the Barker’s seductive call. It is a place of illusion—is that woman’s beard real? How can she live locked in that watery box?

And while many are tricked by sleight of hand, there are hints of something truly magical going on. One must remain alert and learn quickly the unwritten rules of this dark show. To beat the carnival, one had better have either a whole lot of luck or a whole lot of guns—or maybe some magic of one’s own.

Featuring stories grotesque and comical, outrageous and action-packed, Carniepunk is the first anthology to channel the energy and attitude of urban fantasy into the bizarre world of creaking machinery, twisted myths, and vivid new magic.

All the stories are urban fantasies set in the world of magic carnivals, and they look like deliciously decadent fare, if the Delilah S. Dawson entry is anything to go by. I love her Blud series, so I’d be interested for that one all by its ownsome.

Cass: Contaminated by Em Garner

After the Contamination—an epidemic caused by the super-trendy diet drink ThinPro that turned ordinary citizens into violent, uncontrollable creatures—the government rounded up the “Connies” to protect the remaining population. Now, two years later, the rehabilitated are being allowed home, complete with shock collars that will either control, or kill, them.

Velvet Ellis has struggled to care for her ten-year-old sister since her parents were taken in the round up. When she finds her mother in one of the “Kennels,” Velvet resolves to do whatever it takes to put her family back together. But the danger isn’t over. It’s beginning all over again…

Gritty and grabbing, Velvet is a harrowing, emotionally charged novel for fans of Carrie Ryan and The Walking Dead.

Apparently all the Diet Coke I drink is going to turn me into a zombie. I need to see my future in order to make an informed choice about my Diet Coke intake levels.

What about your Sunday Cravings for this week?

About Anna

Anna is a psychologist from Greece.You can almost always find her with a book stuck under her nose,so it's no wonder that all her friends make a joke of her.Apart from reading she dreams of the day she'll be able to travel around the world!Anna also blogs at Books to Brighten your Mood.

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