Thursday, March 31, 2016

Twitter Chat and Giveaway with 10 YA Authors!

Join 10 YA authors from AW Teen on Wednesday, April 6th at 8 pm CST for a Twitter chat and giveaway! You can tweet your questions and follow along using the hashtag #AWTeen.
Authors:
Susan Moger (@SusanMoger), Of Better Blood (2/1) 
Anne Greenwood Brown (@AnneGBrown), Girl Last Seen (3/1)
Heather Anastasiu (@h_anastasiu), Girl Last Seen (3/1)
Laura Hurwitz (@hurwitzlaura), Disappear Home (paperback 3/1) 
Amy Allgeyer (@amy7a), Dig Too Deep (4/1)
Elizabeth Briggs (@lizwrites), Future Shock (4/1)
Dana Elmendorf (@DanaElmendorf), South of Sunshine (4/1)
S.A. Harazin (@SAHarazin), Painless (paperback 5/1)
Derek E. Sullivan (@DerekESullivan), Biggi e (paperback 5/1)
Deborah Blumenthal (@deborahblu), Hurricane Kiss (5/1)
Prize: 5 participants will be randomly selected to receive an AW Teen book of their choice!
Hope to see you there!

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Waiting on Wednesday #45


"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week, I'm waiting on A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas


Release Date: 5/3/2016
Synopsis:
Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to the Spring Court--but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can't forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people.

Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms--and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future--and the future of a world cleaved in two.

With more than a million copies sold of her beloved Throne of Glass series, Sarah J. Maas's masterful storytelling brings this second book in her seductive and action-packed series to new heights.

Why I'm Waiting?
I absolutely adored the first book in this series, and I can't wait to see what Maas has in store for us next. 

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

BOUND by Donnielle Tyler Book Blitz!


Bound
Release Date: 10/19/15

Summary from Goodreads:
Bound by Vengeance.

Sadie has found the resolve to fight the man who caused so much pain in her life. Her tentative alliance with the HCA underground gives her the resources to train both her body and Talent for when she comes face to face with her grandfather.

Bound by Loss.

Being separated from her friends at St Vincent’s is harder than she could have ever realized and it doesn’t help that Kian has withdrawn from her as well. With help from a new friend, Sadie uncovers more about her past and that someone close to her has been keeping secrets from Sadie her entire life.

Bound by Fear.

Tragedy strikes close to home, giving a longstanding enemy, one desperate and willing to do anything to have Sadie on their side, an opportunity to arise. Allies and friends come together to stand against evil, but at a terrible cost. Sadie’s history and future collide while the world is thrown into chaos.

Sadie must overcome or forever be Bound. 


Buy Links:
AmazonBarnes & Noble

Book One:
(cover linked to Goodreads)


About the Author
Hello! Donnielle here. I’m a new indie young adult author. When I’m not writing, I spend my time reading, binge watching Netflix, homeschooling my two children, and hanging out with my husband.

Author Links:
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Saturday, March 26, 2016

Stacking the Shelves #29



Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by  Tynga's Reviews! This meme showcases the books received, bought, or checked out from the library over the past week. 

I have been on a book hiatus for a long time due to health, job, life, and family issues. I am so glad to be back in the blogosphere and back to reading. I've missed books so much! Anyway, I went to B&N this week and bought myself a few treats. 

Truthwitch
By: Susan Dennard
Synopsis:
In a continent on the edge of war, two witches hold its fate in their hands.

Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. After clashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs as she's a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden - lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult's true powers are hidden even from herself.


In a chance encounter at Court, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls' heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike. For some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.

The Keeper of the Mist
By: Rachel Neumeier:
Synopsis:
Keri has been struggling to run her family bakery since her mother passed away.  Now the father she barely knew—the Lord of Nimmira—has died, and ancient magic has decreed that she will take his place as the new Lady. The position has never been so dangerous: the mists that hide Nimmira from its vicious, land-hungry neighbors have failed, and Keri's people are visible to strangers for the first time since the mists were put in place generations ago. 


At the same time, three half-brothers with their own eyes on the crown make life within the House just as dangerous as the world outside. But Keri has three people to guide her: her mysterious Timekeeper, clever Bookkeeper, and steadfast Doorkeeper. Together they must find a way to repair the boundary before her neighbors realize just how vulnerable Nimmira is.

Firstlife
By: Gena Showalter
Synopsis:
ONE CHOICE.
TWO REALMS.
NO SECOND CHANCE.

Tenley “Ten” Lockwood is an average seventeen-year-old girl…who has spent the past thirteen months locked inside the Prynne Asylum. The reason? Not her obsession with numbers, but her refusal to let her parents choose where she’ll live—after she dies.

There is an eternal truth most of the world has come to accept: Firstlife is merely a dress rehearsal, and real life begins after death.

In the Everlife, two realms are in power: Troika and Myriad, longtime enemies and deadly rivals. Both will do anything to recruit Ten, including sending their top Laborers to lure her to their side. Soon, Ten finds herself on the run, caught in a wild tug-of-war between the two realms who will do anything to win the right to her soul. Who can she trust? And what if the realm she’s drawn to isn’t home to the boy she’s falling for? She just has to stay alive long enough to make a decision…


That's it for me. What'd you guys add to your shelf this week?

FIRE TOUCHED by Patricia Briggs

Rating: B+
Synopsis:
Mercy Thompson has been hailed as “a heroine who continues to grow and yet always remains true to herself.”* Now she’s back, and she’ll soon discover that when the fae stalk the human world, it’s the children who suffer...

Tensions between the fae and humans are coming to a head. And when coyote shapeshifter Mercy and her Alpha werewolf mate, Adam, are called upon to stop a rampaging troll, they find themselves with something that could be used to make the fae back down and forestall out-and-out war: a human child stolen long ago by the fae.

Defying the most powerful werewolf in the country, the humans, and the fae, Mercy, Adam, and their pack choose to protect the boy no matter what the cost. But who will protect them from a boy who is fire touched?


My thoughts on the book:
When I saw this novel on NetGalley, I was so excited. Patricia Briggs is one of my favorite authors, and this is one of my favorite series, even though a couple of the most recent efforts in Mercy's world have fallen flat for me. However, this novel was a refreshing change from the past few books. The action starts in the first couple of chapters and doesn't end until the very last page. Some of the new characters introduced were extremely interesting, and aside from Mercy randomly throwing in ridiculous words in an effort to prove she's intelligent, the writing was top notch. Fans of the series are going to devour this book.

Mercy is one of my favorite Fantasy heroines. She's tough, smart, and able to take care of herself. She has a man in her life because she loves him, not because she needs him to be fulfilled. She continues to grow throughout the series, but she doesn't change so much that the growth seems out of character for her. She has issues and PTSD and a bit of anxiety, but she overcomes that to help others. She's a great example of a flawed, but still wonderful and strong, heroine. Adam is a fantastic complement to her, and the way he's evolved over the series is also organic. I really like who he's becoming, and I love how Mercy has challenged him, and his whole pack, to open their minds and accept people for who they are instead of trying to change them. This novel illustrates more of that kind of pack growth, and I feel that it's much needed and really added to the tapestry of the pack and their bonds. 

The world-building and descriptions were beautifully done in this book, but Briggs seemed so hung up on showing that Mercy wasn't an idiot that she used some really random, what I like to call "GRE words" to prove it... words that no one uses because you can express things in a much simpler manner. This hasn't happened in the past, and I'm not sure why it happened now. Those words really broke up the flow of writing, though, because even though I knew what they meant, as many readers will, they just didn't come across naturally. That was my main pet peeve with this novel and why it got a B+ instead of an A. The pacing was super fast, but not rushed, the story itself was well-told and interesting, and the alternating of action scenes vs. emotional scenes kept me emotionally engaged. The ending tied things up nicely, and after this book, I can't help but think that Mercy's story is about to come to an end. I feel like she's about to get things squared away enough that she can have her happily ever after. We'll see if I'm right or not, but that's the feeling that I got. 

Overall, I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoys this series. I'd also recommend this series to anyone  who loves Urban Fantasy with strong female characters. Briggs is an amazing author, and she will not disappoint. 

BEA 2016 Press Releases

You guys heard right, I'm going to BEA 2016 I've been waiting on it to come to Chicago for years, and even though I don't live there anymore, I'm going back to cover the show! Super excited. Here are some updates that I've gotten so far:

Bloomsbury Author Events:
Don't miss these Bloomsbury authors at BEA! Christine Sneed on the “Hot Fall Fiction” panel Fri. 5/13, 12:15pm, on the Downtown stage for The Virginity of Famous Men Autographing Area signings: 5/12, 2:00pm, Table 3: Elizabeth Eulberg, The Great Shelby Holmes; 5/13, 10:00am, Table 6: Danielle Paige, Stealing Snow; 5/13, 11:00am, Table 6: Jeff Giles, The Edge of Everything

Bloomsbury BEA Galley Giveaways:
-Adult titles: Mad Enchantment, The Secrets of Wishtide, The Blind Astronomer’s Daughter, and The Virginity of Famous Men 
-Children's/YA titles: The Great Shelby Holmes, The Peculiar Night of the Blue Heart, Stealing Snow, and The Edge of Everything


Saturday, March 19, 2016

MARKED IN FLESH by Anne Bishop

Rating: A+
Synopsis:
For centuries, the Others and humans have lived side by side in uneasy peace. But when humankind oversteps its bounds, the Others will have to decide how much humanity they’re willing to tolerate—both within themselves and within their community...

Since the Others allied themselves with the cassandra sangue, the fragile yet powerful human blood prophets who were being exploited by their own kind, the delicate dynamic between humans and Others changed. Some, like Simon Wolfgard, wolf shifter and leader of the Lakeside Courtyard, and blood prophet Meg Corbyn, see the new, closer companionship as beneficial—both personally and practically.

But not everyone is convinced. A group of radical humans is seeking to usurp land through a series of violent attacks on the Others. What they don’t realize is that there are older and more dangerous forces than shifters and vampires protecting the land that belongs to the Others—and those forces are willing to do whatever is necessary to protect what is theirs…


My thoughts on the book:
This book is amazing! Marked in Flesh is by far my favorite Others novel yet. I absolutely adored the relationships formed as well as the new characters introduced. The plot was multi-faceted and completely engrossing. I was not bored for a single sentence while reading this novel. Bishop's descriptions were beautifully done, and I could fully picture this alternate reality of the world we know. Also, I felt that this book was telling the story of what's going on in our world as well as what's going on in the world of the Others. The bigotry and ethnocentrism are pretty much in line with what we're experiencing now, and I felt that these issues were addressed from both sides and really showed the problems with wanting to eliminate those who are different. I loved the first novel in this series, and liked the second and third books okay, but Marked in Flesh really stands out in the series and in Fantasy literature in general. 

The new characters introduced in this book were so interesting. I can't wait to get to know more about Twyla, especially. She was so fun. Jesse and Tobias weren't new, but we got to know more about them. Tolya was another character who really grabbed me, along with Barb, and I hope we see more of them in the future. Each character, including secondary characters, had his or her own personality and was very unique. I love that about Bishop. She always lets her characters be themselves instead of trying to force them into boxes. Simon and Meg, of course, were fantastic, and they both grew so much in this novel, as did Vlad. I liked seeing more from the Sanguinatis' perspective because they're different from the vampires we know. Sam was present and adorably wonderful, and Hope and Jackson's challenges were sometimes heartbreaking and sometimes comical. It was interesting watching them learn to deal with each other. 

The plot was fast-paced and full of suspense. The book started with a sense of foreboding, and that carried on throughout the entire story. Bishop did such a great job describing the different parts of the world. I could picture all of the different areas on the continent. Her descriptions of the Elders were fuzzy, but from my understanding, they were so horrifying that no one's brain could really register them fully, so I felt that the lack of description fit well with that. A lot of terrible things happened in this book, and there were parts that simply broke my heart. Other times, I wanted to cheer because of what happened, so this was definitely an emotional rollercoaster. The ending tied things up very nicely and opened things up for the next part of Meg's story. I can't wait to see how things change for her now. 

Overall, I'd recommend this book and series to anyone who loves Fantasy and Urban Fantasy novels, but is tired of the same old types of stories. Bishop really goes outside of the box with her characters, places, and plots in a way that's both refreshing and captivating. Well done, Ms. Bishop. Well done.

Saturday, March 12, 2016

Finally going to get back into blogging

To all of my wonderful readers,

I am so sorry that I haven't blogged anything in months. My life was in a downward spiral for awhile, and between my health problems, family emergencies and health problems, and moving across the country I simply haven't had the time or energy to devote to reading, let alone reviewing. However, I'm going to try to get back in the game now that everything is unpacked and my life is settled some. I really appreciate those of you who have stood by me through all of the ups and downs, and I promise that I will get some awesome giveaways and tours going here soon.

Amber