Friday, January 30, 2015

Cover reveal & #giveaway Gods of Chaos by Jen McConnel #M9BFridayReveals

Here's a great cover reveal from Month9Books. And be sure to scroll down to see the cover reveal for an interactive YA dystopian - awesome fun!

M9B-Friday-Reveal
Welcome to the Cover Reveal for
Gods of Chaos (Daughter of Chaos #2) by Jen McConnel
presented by Month9Books!
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
Gods of Chaos
The gods of chaos cannot be trusted.
When Darlena Agara declared to follow Red Magic last fall, she had no idea what she was getting into. Since then, however, she's had a crash course in danger, deceit, and destruction. In an effort to gain an ally, Darlena heads to Scotland in search of another Red Witch, but she didn't count on the new obstacles (and crazy gods) that await her.
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Title: Gods of Chaos (Daughter of Chaos #2)
Publication date: March 31, 2015
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.
Author: Jen McConnel
Chapter-by-Chapter-header---About-the-Author
Jen McConnelJen McConnel now lives and writes in the beautiful state of North Carolina. When she isn't crafting worlds of fiction, she teaches writing composition at a community college. Once upon a time, she was a middle school teacher, a librarian, and a bookseller, but those are stories for another time.
Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads



Chapter-by-Chapter-header---Giveaway
Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
(Winners will receive their book on release day)

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Cover reveal - Machine Head by T.A. Brock #ya #dystopian #interactive

Now this is a book of a different sort! How much fun!

Where young rule and elders are hunted to extinction... and you decide who's guilty.
MACHINE HEAD
An Interactive Novel Available April 10, 2015
Adults have poisoned the world with their selfishness, jealousy, and deceit. Now it’s up to the young to heal it. First order: eliminate every elder. Second: discover the secret to never growing up. Third: procreate.
Ten Sixty-Four is on trial for treason. The crimes he committed are unforgivable: hiding elders who should be long dead, consorting with illegal untrained young, and purposely botching kill missions. He’s come a long way from the cold, unfeeling, Sleepwalker he began as. He’s still four years from the death age, which means the Hex can’t afford to kill him. If found guilty, he’ll be given to the Machine for reprogramming. But none of that matters because he’s done what no other Sleepwalker has dared to. He’s found love. And he knows something they don’t. Falling in love is the secret to achieving the third order.
Brille has a secret of her own: the elders aren’t extinct. They’re not even endangered. But what the rest of the world doesn’t know can’t hurt them. At least, not anymore than they’re already hurting themselves. There is no more laughter. No more crying. No feelings of any kind. Only in the secret hiding places where the untrained dwell with elders, can emotion be found. Then it’s anger, rage, and hostility. When she finds herself a target of the Sleepwalkers, she realizes she’s not the only one with secrets. Ten Sixty-Four feels. He might even be capable of love. The idea leaves Brille with an emotion she never thought she’d have: hope.
The Hex has convened. A trial will commence. You, a member of the jury, must decide Ten Sixty-Four’s fate, and with it, the future of humanity.
T.A. Brock spends her days gleefully plucking words from the chaos of life and dressing them up so they look pretty. Then she calls them stories and tries to convince people to read them. Paranormal, horror, and contemporary romance rocks her socks, but anything YA makes her feel young again, so she sticks with that mostly. She resides in the great land of mountains and green things (Arkansas) with her husband, two children, and her beloved Keurig machine, which she has built a countertop shrine to.
For more information, visit www.tabrockbooks.com
For updates on new releases and other fun little bits, sign up for T.A. Brock's Newsletter HERE.

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Ah, blogging from #AtoZ thoughts

Blogging from A to Z  is a challenge to post 26 days through the month of April, each day's topic starting with the next letter. More info here, if you haven't seen this before. Or if you're ready to sign up, go here.

Are you participating?

I had so much fun last year and would love to do it again. Buuuut, my life is totally up in the air right now. We are supposed to have moved to Oregon by now, but there is a renter in the property we have a contract in, and she won't leave.

Granted, she has kind of unique requirements as she runs a non-profit and has 25 white buffalo. Check out this site if you're interested - they are awesome animals. Here's the Facebook page and they are looking for donations to help them find the right property for the herd.

What all this means to us is that we will likely be moving during the month of April, instead of January as planned. Not a great time to attempt to come up with 26 awesome posts. I'd originally planned to come up with 26 amazing things we'd found around Bend - trails, mountains, waterfalls etc. Just won't have the same impact to do it without my own pictures and experiences.

And I'm just a little bit grumpy about the delay, so not quite motivated to come up with a new theme and schedule the posts.

So I'm going to live vicariously through you guys. I plan to visit as many blogs (and comment) as I'm able to between final packing, two trips with moving vans and horses, unpacking, and setting the property up.

If you want me to make sure I visit your blog, leave the link in the comments below and I'll be there!

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Book blitz - 18 Thoughts by Jamie Ayres #ya #paranormal #giveaway

18 Thoughts cover
We have another double post today, so don't forget to scroll down and visit a book launch celebration plus giveaway for Megan Shepherd's A Cold Legacy.

18 Thoughts Launch & Giveaway!
Greetings, fellow book nerds! I’m YA author Jamie Ayres, and I’m sooo excited to announce that 18 Thoughts, the final book in the My So-Called Afterlife trilogy, is finally available from Curiosity Quills Press!

Olga Gay Worontzoff left the Underworld for her final year of high school anxious for things to return to normal, but fate has other plans.

Somehow, the new hottie at school reads her thoughts but nobody else’s. And her best friend wakes up from his coma acting like a completely different person. Caught in a world that’s a mix of familiar and supernatural, she must confront what she will—or won’t—do to bring him back and stare down her own perceived inadequacies to face a couple of tenacious demons, figurative and literal.

Everything she thought she knew about reality will change as she walks the line between past and present, fear and faith, love and loyalty.

And by the end of a heartbreaking year, she might be forced to realize “normal” in the conventional sense of the word is the one thing she may never achieve.

Available Jan 27, 2015 - 
For those who buy18 Thoughts on release day, ALL of my sales will be benefiting Caleb's Crusade Against Childhood Cancer. Caleb was the son of someone I ran a marathon with for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Great family, great cause :-)

Toss the virtual confetti, because it’s been three years in the making (and virtual confetti is a lot less messier). If you haven't heard of this series yet, here's the cliffnotes summary of each book:

18 Things: Olga Gay Worontzoff struggles to live again after a lightning strike kills the best friend she was secretly in love with. Her therapist suggests she write a life list of eighteen things to complete the year of her eighteenth birthday, sending her and her friends, including the new hottie in town, on an unexpected journey they’ll never forget. But there’s more to Olga’s quests than meets the eye and when her therapist reveals a terrifying secret, her world is shaken.

18 Truths: With the lessons the 18 Things life list taught her engraved on her heart, Olga spends her summer in the Underworld and embarks on a new adventure as a spirit guide, but nothing prepares her for the chilling truths she’s learning along the way.

18 Thoughts: Olga Gay Worontzoff left the Underworld anxious to return to normal, but fate had other plans; now she’s caught in a world that’s a mix of familiar and supernatural, torn between past and present.

Book Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYpVf1zxrE8

What do others have to say about the series?
"A surprising paranormal tale that explores deep questions concerning love, faith, and friendship that will absolutely resonate with teens." ~Amy Christine Parker, Critically Acclaimed Author of Gated and Astray 
"A haunting tale that had me smiling one moment and on the brink of tears the next." ~ Heather Burch, Critically Acclaimed Author of the Halflings Series and One Lavender Ribbon

"A touching story that will make you cherish each day and the ones you love." ~Jaime Rush, New York Times bestselling author of the Hidden series

"Warning: These characters will move right into your heart, rearrange all the furniture, and never, ever leave. 18 Thoughts will become a part of you--prepare to be changed." ~Teshelle Combs, Amazon Best-Selling Author of the Core Series

"A twisty conclusion to a spiritually charged trilogy that will grip you from book one." ~Eliza Tilton, YA Author of the Daath Chronicles 

"An emotional journey readers won't soon forget--will have readers making their own bucket lists." ~Marisa Cleveland, Author of the South Beach Series, Pushed, and The Valentine Challenge

"An achingly beautiful story of life, loss and hope... a triumph." ~J. Keller Ford, Author of Dragon Flight and The Amulet of Ormisez

Purchase 18 Thoughts (Book 3) on Amazon Purchase 18 Things (Book 1) on Amazon (Free from Jan. 25-27th!) Purchase 18 Truths (Book 2) on Amazon (Special $2.99 price through Jan. 27th!) To celebrate my book birthday, I’m offering one lucky winner a huge swag bag valued at $115! Just enter the Rafflecopter for your chance to win!
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Yes, it's open to all people of the world, not just Americans :-) Best of luck, and happy reading!

Jamie Author PicAmazon bestselling author Jamie Ayres writes young adult love stories by night and teaches young adults as an English teacher by day. When not at home on her laptop or at school, she can often be found at a local book store grabbing random children and reading to them. So far, she has not been arrested for this. She has been praised for featuring strong, appealing heroines and plot twists readers never saw coming.

Visit jamieayres.com for more information or to simply share your thoughts with her.  










Book release, #giveaway & excerpt! A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd



A COLD LEGACY by Megan Shepherd releases today! Join the celebration by reading an excerpt and entering the giveaway for a signed copy of the book and swag courtesy of Megan and Rockstar Book Tours.

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Megan Shepherd, check out all the details below.


Title: A COLD LEGACY
Author: Megan Shepherd
Pub. Date: January 27, 2015
Publisher: Balzer+Bray/HarperCollins
Pages: 400

After killing the men who tried to steal her father’s research, Juliet—along with Montgomery, Lucy, Balthazar, and a deathly ill Edward—has escaped to a remote estate on the Scottish moors. Owned by the enigmatic Elizabeth von Stein, the mansion is full of mysteries and unexplained oddities: dead bodies in the basement, secret passages, and fortune-tellers who seem to know Juliet’s secrets. Though it appears to be a safe haven, Juliet fears new dangers may be present within the manor’s own walls.

Then Juliet uncovers the truth about the manor’s long history of scientific experimentation—and her own intended role in it—forcing her to determine where the line falls between right and wrong, life and death, magic and science, and promises and secrets. And she must decide if she’ll follow her father’s dark footsteps or her mother’s tragic ones, or whether she’ll make her own.

With inspiration from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, this breathless conclusion to the Madman’s Daughter trilogy is about the things we’ll sacrifice to save those we love—even our own humanity. 

Join Megan for a twitter chat!

A COLD LEGACY excerpt
p.21-24

Montgomery stopped the horses outside a tavern. He came to the carriage door, opening it just a crack to keep the rain from drenching us. “I’m going to ask directions. We can’t be far now.”

We watched him saunter over the muddy street as though he didn’t even feel the bite of freezing rain. A face appeared in the tavern window. The door opened and he spoke to a woman in a wool dress for a few moments, then stomped back through the mud. “This village is called Quick,” he told us. “The manor’s only five miles from here.”

“Did you hear that?” Lucy murmured to Edward, still stroking his hair. “We’re almost there. Just hold on. Everything will be all right once we arrive.”

Montgomery’s eyes shifted to me. Neither of us wanted to remind Lucy that the prospect of Edward’s fever breaking—and the Beast’s reappearance—was almost more frightening than the fever itself. Delirious, he was less of a threat.

“Let’s go then,” I whispered to Montgomery. “And quickly.”

He closed the door and in another moment we were moving again, passing through the rest of Quick. Then all too soon the village was nothing but fading lights. The storm grew and the road became rougher, and all the while Edward’s eyes rolled back and forth beneath shuttered lids.

Thunder struck close by, and Lucy shrieked. Montgomery whipped the horses harder, pulling us along the uneven road impossibly fast, trying to outrun the storm. I twisted in the seat to look out the back window at the pelting rain. A stone fence ran alongside us.

“We must be getting close,” I said.

“Not soon enough,” Lucy breathed. “We’re going to crash if he keeps driving like this!”

The road widened, straightening, letting us travel even faster. Lightning struck close by, blinding me. The horses bolted. Lucy screamed and covered her eyes, but I couldn’t tear mine away. The lightning had struck an enormous oak tree, twisted from centuries of wind. The oak took flame, blazing despite the rain. A smoking gash ran down the trunk—the lightning’s death mark. I watched until the rain put out most of the flames, but it still smoldered, billowing hot ash into the night.

The horses pawed the earth, and I grabbed the window to steady myself. At this wild speed, just hitting a single rock at the wrong angle would send the carriage shattering to the ground. It was madness to go so fast. Couldn’t Montgomery calm the horses?

Just when I feared the carriage would careen out of control, it stopped short, throwing me against the opposite wall. I tangled in Lucy’s limbs as the chains around Edward’s body clinked. Balthazar grunted, jerking awake at last. We scrambled in the bottom of the carriage until the door flew open.
Montgomery stood in the pelting rain. I feared he’d say we’d broken another strut or the horses had gone lame or we’d have to spend the night in the harsh storm.

But then I saw the lights behind him, and the night took shape into a turreted stone manor with bright lamps blazing and gargoyles on the roof vomiting rain into a stone courtyard.

Montgomery’s eyes met mine beneath the low brim of his hat.

“We’ve arrived,” he said.



About Megan:

Hello! 

I’ve been many things, like a professional exchange student, park ranger in Montana, and LOST enthusiast, but what I am now is a writer.

I think it’s fair to say I was born into it. I grew up in the mountains of North Carolina, raised behind the counter of my parents’ independent bookstore, Highland Books in Brevard. Ah, so many free books. But I never thought being a writer could be a real career. After college I thought I’d end up as a foreign service officer somewhere dashing and exotic, like Canada. I studied French, Spanish, German, and Russian and still speak a few of those. Then I joined the Peace Corps and spent two years in Senegal, where I learned a few more languages I’ll never speak again and lived in a mud hut with no electricity or running water. You can probably imagine how that experience went, but if you’re curious, here are the dirty details

It wasn't until a chance aquaintance read something I wrote and said, "have you ever considered being a writer?" that something clicked and I realized it was possible. My husband encouraged me, and I quickly fell head-over-heels in love with writing and children's literature in particular. I started out writing articles, which have appeared in Faces, Appleseeds, and Calliope magazines, and stories for younger children. I soon realized I wasn’t sweet enough to write fiction for that age and found myself writing young adult literature instead, which doesn’t require nearly as many tender moments and includes a lot more cursing.

When I'm not writing, I can usually be found horseback riding, day dreaming at coffee shops, or hiking in the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina. I love to hear from readers, so please drop me a line!

I am represented by Josh Adams of Adams Literary.
Author Photo by Kristi Hedberg Photography



Giveaway Details:
1 winner will receive a signed copy of A COLD LEGACY and swag! US Only.
Ends on February 6th at Midnight EST!

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Monday, January 26, 2015

Cover reveal - Shadows Have Gone by Lissa Bryan #NA #apocalyse

Today we have a double post, so after checking out Shadows Have Gone, continue scrolling down for a cover reveal for the thriller Crosstown Kid by Richard Weir and don't forget there's still an active Month9Books giveaway below that! Enjoy!
cool TWCS logo
PRESENTS. . .

A Cover Reveal for

Shadows Have Gone
Book 3 of End of All Things Series
by Lissa Bryan
Shadows-Have-Gone-Hi-Res-Cover
Release Date: March 26 , 2015

~~SUMMARY~~
Carly Daniels knows what it is to suffer loss. She knows what it is to sacrifice. In the two years since a pandemic virus—known only as the Infection—decimated humanity, she’s made choices she never could have imagined. She’s condoned violence in the name of peace and done the unthinkable in the name of mercy. But with Justin at her side, she’s also learned there’s nothing she can’t face and nothing she wouldn’t do to protect those she loves.
But now another threat has arrived in the form of a uniformed man driving an army truck, claiming to represent the remnant of the United States military. Someone has set their sights on their community . . . and on Justin. The struggle to defend their little homeland is far from over, and the visitors may have brought more danger with them than just their weapons.
The shadows are closing in. Carly has to find out whether she has the strength to stand on her own when all of her support has fallen away. What remains when the shadows have gone?
 
~~EXCERPT~~
“There’s other news,” Justin said. “We made contact with a man driving an army truck.”
“The army?”
“Someone with the army?”
“There’s an army?”
“Whose army?” Pete’s voice rang above the excited babble.
“That’s the right question,” Justin said. “Whose army? He might have been wearing a uniform and claiming affiliation, but I have my doubts.”
“He claimed to be from the US Army?”
Claimed,” Justin said, stressing the word hard. “And his claim had a few inconsistencies. I was in the Army, and I know. Whatever this guy is a part of, it’s not the army as we knew it.”
“What did he want?”
“Said he was out scouting and saw the smoke. He agreed to leave a message outside of Clayton if his people want to get in contact with us again. And I would imagine they will.”Shadows-Have-Gone-3D-Paperback-eReader
“Last thing we need is another fight,” Grady said. He took off his hat and wiped the sweat from his forehead. “You think they know where we are?”
“General area. We wouldn’t be that hard to find if someone was really searching for us. If they’re really army, then yes, they know exactly where we are as we speak. But as I said, I have my doubts.”
“Think it will come to a fight?” Pete asked.
Justin scratched his chin. “I really can’t say. What I can say is that we always need to be prepared for it, prepared to defend what is ours.”
“What if they really are the army? Would we be America again?”
“Wait. When did we stop being America?”
“America is dead.” This came from David, his voice as blunt as a dropped stone. “We all saw it die two years ago. I don’t know what we are now, but the Constitution sure ain’t in effect anymore. There’s no government. There’s no social contract holding us together. That’s what America was, you know—a collective agreement of the people. Now we’re just—” He sliced a hand through the air.
“If the army is still active, that would mean there is a government, which would make this still America,” Grady said. “They’d be the government’s representatives, establishing order.”
Justin shook his head. “You’re thinking way too far ahead. Even if they are US Army—and that’s a very big if—they don’t have control of the whole country. There is no centralized government, no law enforcement. They’re not coming to rescue us.”
 
~~ABOUT THE AUTHOR~~
bc1e2-lissabryan2
Lissa Bryan is an astronaut, renowned Kabuki actress, Olympic pole vault gold medalist, Iron Chef champion, and scientist who recently discovered the cure for athlete's foot...though only in her head. Real life isn't so interesting, which is why she spends most of her time writing.
She is the author of four other novels, Ghostwriter, The End of All Things, its sequel, The Land of the Shadows, and Under These Restless Skies.
         
~~CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR~~
 
~~OTHER TITLES IN THE SERIES~~
Ω
After a terrible virus ravages the planet, Carly Daniels, one of the few survivors, hides in her apartment in Juneau trying to survive the best she can with only occasional forays to gather food. With her is Sam, a wolf puppy she found starving on the streets. He becomes her companion and a reason to continue when giving up sometimes seems like the more attractive option. Still dazed with shock and grief, she hopes for the world to go back to normal soon.
She is discovered by Justin, an ex-soldier who is intent on making his way to Florida before the winter sets in. Justin coaxes her out of her hiding place and convinces her to join him on his journey, because a warmer climate will be their best chance against the extremes of Mother Nature.
Together, they begin a perilous journey through a nation laid to waste by the disaster. Challenges abound along the way. The weather, injury, and shortage of supplies all help to slow them down. In time, they discover that they aren’t the only survivors. Some are friendly but some have had their minds destroyed by the high fever. Then there are those who simply take what they want, leaving Carly and Justin with no choice but to defend what is theirs.
But their journey is not without joy and love. Together, they face every struggle, including an unplanned pregnancy. Despite the perils of bringing a child into a world of chaos, their baby is a new beginning for themselves and a symbol of hope for the other survivors they find along the way.
This is the story of their journey to find a place to begin a new life, and a home in each other.
 
Ω
Tales from the End Book 1.5
The Horsemen L.A.'s mayor has declared quarantine to try to halt the spread of the Infection. Pearl sets off across the city to buy supplies, but already the world is changing. Something strange is in the air. The Horsemen are coming ...Veronica When Veronica's mother doesn't come home from work and no one answers the phone when she calls for help, a nine-year-old girl is thrown into the chaos of a world coming to an end. Veronica decides it's up to her to find her family. "Veronica" is the story of a little girl's courage in the face of the end of all things."I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud" They called her Shadowfax-- the mare Carly and Justin found on their travels. But before she was found by Carly, the retired dressage horse was known as Cloud. An unusual tale of the end, told through the eyes of a confused and lonely horse, left in her pasture.Birthday (A previously-published bonus story.) Carly knows Justin has never celebrated his birthday, and after society crumbled, no one knows what date it is, anyway. But she wants to do something special for him. Celebrating the little things helps them keep hope alive, and as a blizzard rages outside, a small gesture of love warms their home.
Tales of courage, tales of survival... Tales from the End.
Ω
The Land of The Shadow Book 2
After surviving the Infection and a perilous journey through the wasteland that was once the United States, Carly and Justin have found a safe home in the isolated town of Colby.Even so, balancing the duties of survival and a growing family isn’t easy. As they emerge as leaders, they face difficult questions about justice in a lawless land, basic human rights, and freedom in a world where strength defines worth. More than ever, they have to rely on one another for strength and support during the darkest of times. The Crisis is far from over. Their fences won’t keep the world out forever, and a new threat is emerging—a gang of predators who see the town as easy pickings. When danger looms over Colby, Carly must decide how far she’ll go to protect those she loves. It’s a journey down the long and broken road through The Land of the Shadow.
  TWCS-Cover-Reveal-Banner

Cover reveal - The Crosstown Kid by Richard Weir #thriller


COVER REVEAL

The Crosstown Kid
by
Richard Weir

About The Crosstown Kid:

In the low-income part of a Florida town, kids get flushed into the gangland sewer every day. So when beat cop Rob spots a kid training on a track—trying, in other words, to actually be something—he’s intrigued.

Against the advice of his partner, he investigates the Kid and his family. What he uncovers unnerves him: the Kid’s father was a cop himself, gunned down by friendly fire. Before he knows it, Rob has uncovered a tale of police corruption and clandestine gang activity that may cost even more officers their lives.

Will helping the Kid mean exposing his own family to the corrupt cops?

Sometimes, extending your hand in help will only drag you down.


Book Details:
Title: The Crosstown Kid
Author Name: Richard Weir
Genre(s): Thriller, Police, Crime
ISBN: 978-1-68009-057-4
Release Date: 02/06/2015

Pre-Order and Read an Excerpt on Musa Publishing, LLC's website:  

About the Author:

You can find out all about Richard at his website:  

Cover Reveal Coordinated By:


Friday, January 23, 2015

Cover reveal: Nobody's Goddess by Amy McNulty #M9BFridayReveals #giveaway


M9B-Friday-Reveal
Welcome to the Cover Reveal for
Nobody's Goddess (The Never Veil #1)
by Amy McNulty
presented by Month9Books!
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
Nobody's Goddess
In a village of masked men, each loves only one woman and must follow the commands of his “goddess” without question. A woman may reject the only man who will love her if she pleases, but she will be alone forever. And a man must stay masked until his goddess returns his love—and if she can’t or won’t, he remains masked forever.
Where the rest of her village celebrates this mystery that binds men and women together, seventeen year old Noll is just done with it. She’s lost all her childhood friends as they’ve paired off, but the worst blow was when her closest companion, Jurij, finds his goddess in Noll’s own sister. Desperate to find a way to break this ancient spell, Noll instead discovers why no man has ever loved her: she is in fact the goddess of the mysterious lord of the village, a Byronic man who refuses to let Noll have her right as a woman to spurn him and who has the power to fight the curse. Thus begins a dangerous game between the two: the choice of woman versus the magic of man. And the stakes are no less than freedom and happiness, life and death—and neither Noll nor the veiled man is willing to lose.
add to goodreads
Title: Nobody's Goddess (The Never Veil #1)
Publication date: April 21, 2015
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.
Author: Amy McNulty
Chapter-by-Chapter-header---About-the-Author
Amy McNultyAmy McNulty is a freelance writer and editor from Wisconsin with an honors degree in English. She was first published in a national scholarly journal (The Concord Review) while in high school and currently spends her days alternatively writing on business and marketing topics and primarily crafting stories with dastardly villains and antiheroes set in fantastical medieval settings.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
Chapter-by-Chapter-header---Giveaway
Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
(Winners will receive their book on release day)
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Thursday, January 22, 2015

Cover reveal - Never Never by Brianna Shrum #ya #fairytale

 Cover reveal for Never Never by Brianna Shrum


Title: Never Never
Author: Brianna Shrum
Release Date: September 2015
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press

Synopsis: James Hook is a child who only wants to grow up.

When he meets Peter Pan, a boy who loves to pretend and is intent on never becoming a man, James decides he could try being a child—at least briefly. James joins Peter Pan on a holiday to Neverland, a place of adventure created by children’s dreams, but Neverland is not for the faint of heart. Soon James finds himself longing for home, determined that he is destined to be a man. But Peter refuses to take him back, leaving James trapped in a world just beyond the one he loves. A world where children are to never grow up.

But grow up he does.       
                      
And thus begins the epic adventure of a Lost Boy and a Pirate.

This story isn’t about Peter Pan; it’s about the boy whose life he stole. It’s about a man in a world that hates men. It’s about the feared Captain James Hook and his passionate quest to kill the Pan, an impossible feat in a magical land where everyone loves Peter Pan.

Except one.





 

Author Bio:

Brianna Shrum lives in Colorado with her high-school-sweetheart-turned-husband, two boys, and two big, floppy hound dogs. She thinks chai tea is proof of magic in the world, and loves all things kissy, magical, and strange. She'd totally love to connect with you. You can find her saying ridiculous things on Twitter @briannashrum

Author Social Media Links:





Wednesday, January 21, 2015

4 Star #bookreview for Larry Brook's The Seventh Thunder

Today I'm reviewing The Seventh Thunder by Larry Brooks.

Book blurb from Amazon:

When committed agnostic Gabriel Stone’s wife dies in an unlikely airline disaster, he pours himself into the writing of a story that has haunted him since his youth—a novel his devout wife had warned him never to finish. Inspired by a visit to the island of Patmos, he is fascinated with the visions beheld there by St. John The Divine while in political exile for his beliefs. Those visions included terrifying events delivered by what John described as “seven thunders,” which he was instructed to withhold, to seal up and “write them not” (Revelation 10:4). As Stone becomes entrenched in his speculative interpretation of what those visions might have been, an embedded code within the Book of Revelation itself reveals startling connections to covert operations that are about to tear the world’s political landscape to shreds, perhaps signaling the beginning of the prophesied end of times.

As Stone’s novel nears publication, he finds himself the pawn in a war between superpowers and supernatural forces, each hoping to control the book, each driven by hidden agendas beyond Stone’s comprehension. Facing choices that are at once spiritual and life-dependent, with global stakes pivoting on his ability to accept the unbelievable and stop the unthinkable, The Seventh Thunder is a secular thriller that stops at nothing short of our very souls hanging in the balance, while ringing frighteningly relevant to today’s headlines. Winner of the 2010 Next Generation Indie Book Award for best novel in the SUSPENSE/THRILLER category.





My Review:
I jumped at the chance to read The Seventh Thunder for several reasons. Larry Brook’s is my hero for his Story Engineering and other books on writing. Plus, this topic is one I enjoy – like Dan Brown’s books - a modern look at religion and the bible.

The Seventh Thunder is certainly akin to Dan Brown’s books. The energy, twists, and insightful looks at biblical history, they’re all there. And quite obviously, Mr. Brooks knows how to craft a story to keep the reader from putting the book down.

So for all of that, the book gets top marks from me. I’m not going to rehash the blurb on the possibility I might accidentally give away spoilers. But I enjoyed getting to know the main character Gabriel Stone, felt the loss of his wife and his excitement that his book would be published for big numbers. Using a computer to pull future information from Revelations and other ancient scrolls might have been a bit farfetched as far as technique, but I loved the concept.

There are some things that pulled me from the story occasionally. There were several statements that felt like author intrusion with regard to a political bias, and even one character who would clearly not be liberal had a thought that felt totally wrong. There are a LOT of characters in this book and I can’t say their voices were unique, nor their motivations clear (some of that was purposeful, I realize), but the result is that it was hard to follow in places and know who to root for. I felt a bit like coming into a Bond flick 20 minutes late sometimes – the action and tension were great, but I felt lost. This was added to by so many of the characters motivated by belief rather than knowledge even as information was accumulated. It all worked out, these were short term confusions - and maybe just me being a dope!

There were several conversations without sufficient dialogue tags or action and given some of the above, it took work to figure out who was speaking from context. There were a couple cases where continuing conversation was not handled correctly with quotation marks, which forced me to reread, and in my kindle version, paragraph tabbing was inconsistent.


But overall it was a wild ride that I enjoyed and would certainly recommend to people who like this genre. Well done, I rate this at 4 stars.

Buy from Amazon here.

Friday, January 16, 2015

Did you miss these #MG #Month9Books ? #Giveaway


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Hey all! Welcome to Tantrum Books and Month9Books Middle Grade Books You May Have Missed Blitz! Check out all of our 2014 titles below and enter for a chance to win 1 of 3 prize packs of eBooks! International.

Click on the cover for book information.



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(3) winners will receive eBook prize packs of 5 Month9Books MG titles of your choice!
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Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Review - Dismantling Evan by Venessa Kimball #ya #bullying #romance


 Blurb (from Goodreads): Life is unstable...
…What will be the trigger to dismantle it? 

When high school senior Evangeline "Evan" Phillips moves half way across the country with her parents to a quaint town in Texas, it should be a chance to start over.
It should be. 
Typical of Evan, she doesn’t share her parents’ optimism. Always the loner, she is prepared to hide behind work at the school newspaper until graduation. That is the seemingly bulletproof plan until she meets her new neighbors, Gavin and Brody Ferguson. 
The more Evan gets to know her neighbors, their band of friends, and frenemies, the more unsettling her new high school and community gets in Braxton Springs, Texas.
As Evan unwittingly digs deeper into the lives of those around her, her own skeletons begin to surface leaving her vulnerable and scrambling to keep her own sanity and reputation. Will Evan be able to get control over her spiraling secrets while discovering friendship and love for the first time?
Or will the issues and pressures of life as a band of not-so-average teens in a very typical high school become too much, resulting in the tragic dismantlement of an entire community and Evan herself? 
Dismantling Evan is a fresh and edgy work of literary fiction that snapshots how life as a teen in modern society can be unstable and the social issues and pressures revolving around them can tip the fleeting stability of society over the edge.

Purchase at Amazon

My review:

Dismantling Evan is a raw look at the realities of teenage life, cruel behavior toward anyone perceived as different or merely an easy target, as well as the tendencies of society to hide real difficulties or throw medication at a problem without truly understanding it.

Evan’s (Evangeline) family moved her from a difficult situation in San Francisco, where she’d broken down when peer pressure became too much. As well as having her see a psychiatrist and take anti-depressants, her parents thought a move to a smaller community would help Evan with a new start. Sadly, small towns are often the cruelest. Everyone knows everything and social bias builds through generations.

In this Texas town, Evan has to deal with her own depression (but is it really clinical?), her mom’s past reaction to similar issues and a generation of gossip and judgment. On top of that, she makes friends with the “wrong” people. One is a slightly disconnected, but brilliant boy that no one understands. Another is his hot brother that just can’t seem to get on the same page with Evan and her desire to help the brother although they are clearly attracted to each other. Another neighbor could have been quite popular until she turned on the snobs, so she’s also on the undesirable list.

This means that Evan has friends and slowly starts building normal relationships, but still, below that lies possible clinical depression or signs of polar disorder. Or is it just normal teenage desire not to be controlled by parent who are naturally suspicious of her behavior or the friends she’s made. Friends that the social ladder tells her parents just aren’t the best examples.

One thing I appreciated in the book is that it is never 100% clear if Evan needs drugs more than just a stable environment with accepting friends. The drugs seem to help in some ways, but the relationships she develops could have been a bigger influence on her confidence to stand up to schoolroom cruelty.

And in the end, that really doesn’t matter. That’s just Evan’s personal battle, which helps her take on a bigger battle. Real cruelty to anyone different and unable to defend themselves. Because what kids (and adults) need to learn is that those identified as weak have a breaking point. And the solution can be those events that make the evening news and twitter feeds fly.

Dismantling Evan covers great subject matter in a real and personal way. For that, the book is well worth reading. From a technical aspect, the writing could be cleaner, smoother, less telling, more showing. But that’s the editor in me and shouldn’t prevent most readers from enjoying the book and hopefully taking some bit of it into their own lives, whether to change their own behavior or take a stand when we see others being attacked.

I give this 3.5 stars – recommended. (On my scale, a book must be near perfect to receive a 5, this book would have been a solid 4 but for the writing nits.) I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Friday, January 9, 2015

5 star Review of UnHappenings by Edward Aubry #timetravel #sci-fi #romance




UnHappenings
Genre: Literary Fiction, Science Fiction, Science Fiction Romance
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Date of Release­­: January 8, 2015
Cover Artist: Andy Garcia


Description:

When Nigel Walden is fourteen, the UNHAPPENINGS begin. His first girlfriend disappears the day after their first kiss with no indication she ever existed. This retroactive change is the first of many only he seems to notice.

Several years later, when Nigel is visited by two people from his future, he hopes they can explain why the past keeps rewriting itself around him. But the enigmatic young guide shares very little, and the haggard, incoherent, elderly version of himself is even less reliable. His search for answers takes him fifty-two years forward in time, where he finds himself stranded and alone.

And then he meets Helen.

Brilliant, hilarious and beautiful, she captivates him. But Nigel’s relationships always unhappen, and if they get close it could be fatal for her. Worse, according to the young guide, just by entering Helen’s life, Nigel has already set into motion events that will have catastrophic consequences. In his efforts to reverse this, and to find a way to remain with Helen, he discovers the disturbing truth about the unhappenings, and the role he and his future self have played all along.

Equal parts time-travel adventure and tragic love story, Unhappenings is a tale of gravely bad choices, and Nigel’s struggle not to become what he sees in the preview of his worst self.



My Review:
Wow. I said that several times reading this book and then several more times after I finished it. Not sure I could have said anything else without sounding like a babbling idiot. 

I rarely give 5 stars to YA or adult books. Five stars is usually reserved for Maggie Stiefvater, an author who writes emotion like no other. But UnHappenings gets 5 stars from me and I'd go higher if Goodreads and Amazon would let me. In case you can't tell, I think this book was spectacular. 

Now, I'm a huge fan of sci-fi and time travel in particular. The first story I every wrote that made me think writing was a thing I could do was a time travel story. And better yet, when a book has complex world rules that I want to follow and tear apart and wonder if they're real, I know I'll want to read over and over.

I will say the rules are a bit complex and I don't think I've got the chops to keep enough in my head to follow it all, but for those who don't appreciate excessively technical books - don't worry. Just take the ride. Because deep down, this is a love story asking the question - if you had unlimited means, just how far would you go to keep the person you love. 

There were times I wanted to pound Nigel for not asking the questions I knew he should, but he knew he wouldn't get an answer. Through 2/3 of the book, he was on as much of a ride as the reader. But when the answers start coming, oh, they're so painful and beautiful.

The style of this book has very short chapters, so it feels like a fast read. I appreciate the how the choppiness contributed to how Nigels life would have felt. There are many books I read and check out the page numbers to see my progress. In this case, I kept checking the page numbers, desperate that it wasn't close to ending. I would have followed this adventure for another couple hundred pages and I very much hope to see more from this author.

A side note to the Whovians out there - this book contains the real Impossible Girl!

Go buy this book now! You won't regret it. Best book I've read in a long time.




About The Author:

 

 

Edward Aubry is a graduate of Wesleyan University, with a degree in music composition. Improbably, this preceded a career as a teacher of high school mathematics and creative writing.

Over the last few years, he has gradually transitioned from being a teacher who writes novels on the side to a novelist who teaches to support his family. He is also a poet, his sole published work in that form being the sixteen stanza “The History of Mathematics.”

He now lives in rural Pennsylvania with his wife and three spectacular daughters, where he fills his non-teaching hours spinning tales of time-travel, wise-cracking pixies, and an assortment of other impossible things.

Find Edward Aubry Online: