Waiting on Wednesday #2

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly blog post by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights releases we're eagerly awaiting.
My pick this week is:

#1

Title: This is Now
Series: single

Genre: contemporary romance
Audience: NA

Author: Maggie Gilbert

Release date: February 1st, 2014
Publisher:  Escape Publishing (Harlequin Australia)

Summary:

A gritty, urban New Adult Cinderella story where the princess can do her own rescuing — she just needs someone to believe in her.

Sister to car thieves, ex-girlfriend to a drug dealer, high school dropout, no-hoper and loser — Jess is on the sidelines, watching her life become one epic fail. Her dreams of university are fading fast, as the people in her life fight to confine her to their own expectations.  

Then she meets Sebastien, a gifted cellist from a very different walk of life. Sebastien is clean and strong and talented. He likes and respects her, but he too has expectations. Sebastien seems to think she can do anything, and Jess, despite her fears and the secrets she hides, is starting to believe him.

But just as Jess dares to hope, the secrets in her past and the lies in her present catch up with her. All seems lost and she has to make a choice. Between past and future. Between home and hope. Between now and never. And this is now.

 Why I want to read it:

The cover is cute and I think that I'd like to see who this girl is - Jess, the sister, the ex-girlfriend. Sounds pretty awesome :)

#2

Title: The Ring and the Crown
Series: unknown

Genre: historical fantasy
Audience:  YA

Author: Melissa de la Cruz

Release date: April 1st, 2014
Publisher:  Disney Book Group

Summary:

Magic is power, and power is magic...

Once they were inseparable, just two little girls playing games in a mighty castle. Now Princess Marie-Victoria, heir to the mightiest empire in the world, and Aelwyn Myrddyn, a bastard mage, face vastly different futures.

Quiet and gentle, Marie has never lived up to the ambitions of her mother, Queen Eleanor the Second. With the help of her Merlin, Eleanor has maintained a stranglehold on the world's only source of magic. While the enchanters faithfully serve the crown, the sun will never set on the Franco-British Empire.

As the annual London Season begins, the great and noble families across the globe flaunt their wealth and magic at parties, teas, and, of course, the lavish Bal du Drap d'Or, the Ball of the Gold Cloth.

But the talk of the season is Ronan Astor, a social-climbing American with only her dazzling beauty to recommend her. Ronan is determined to make a good match to save her family's position. But when she falls for a handsome rogue on the voyage over, her lofty plans are imperiled by her desires.

Meanwhile, Isabelle of Orleans, daughter of the displaced French royal family, finds herself cast aside by Leopold, heir to the Prussian crown, in favor of a political marriage to Marie-Victoria. Isabelle arrives in the city bent on reclaiming what is hers. But Marie doesn't even want Leopold-she has lost her heart to a boy the future queen would never be allowed to marry.

When Marie comes to Aelwyn, desperate to escape a life without love, the girls form a perilous plan that endangers not only the entire kingdom but the fate of the monarchy.

  Why I want to read it:

The cover is very beautiful, and magic totally bespells me, so I"m totally in!

So how about you? What amazing book are you waiting on this week?  

NOTE: To those of you who haven't noticed, I'm featuring a giveaway of 1 copy of JLA's White Hot Kiss. Yeah, you got it - it's the 1st Dark Elements book. The trick here is, if there are A LOT of entries on it, I'll be choosing TWO WINNERS!!! So, go sign up and tell your friends! TO GIVEAWAY!