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Saturday, 10 August 2013
Canary by Rachele Alpine Guest Post Tour {Giveaway}
Welcome to my tour stop for
Canary by Rachele Alpine
Please click on the event banner above to view the tour schedule
Please welcome Author, Rachele Alpine to Paperback Princess as she tells us what her inspiration is for Canary.
About The Author
Rachele Alpine
Rachele Alpine is a lover of sushi, fake mustaches, and Michael Jackson. One of her first jobs was at a library, but it didn’t last long, because all she did was hide in the third-floor stacks and read. Now she’s a little more careful about when and where she indulges her reading habit. By day she’s a high school English teacher, and by night she writes with the companionship of the world’s cutest dog, Radley, a big cup of coffee, and a full bag of gummy peaches. Rachele lives with her husband in Cleveland, Ohio, but dreams of moving back to Boston, the city she fell in love with while attending graduate school there.
The Inspiration for Canary
by Rachele Alpine
CANARY grew from a project I did in college. It was for an education class, and we had to research a topic that high school students may face. I chose sexual assault. However, instead of presenting our information in a traditional research paper, we wrote multi-genre papers. These consisted of sharing our information through a mixture of poems, stories, and artwork. One of the poems I wrote really spoke to me, and I kept going back to it every once in awhile.
Fast-forward to a few years later, and I became very aware of how our culture was athlete obsessed. Some major controversies involving both professional and college athletes were all over the news, and it got me thinking about the special privileges that athletes got. I began to think about this type of athlete worship in high school and what might happen if it went too far. The poem I had written in college still stuck with me, and I started to create a story around the piece and our celebrity-like treatment of athletes. CANARY was born out of these two ideas and the poem that first sparked everything is included in the book.
About The Book
Canary
by Rachele Alpine
Published: August 1, 2013
Publisher: Medallion Press
Staying quiet will destroy her, but speaking up will destroy everyone.
Kate Franklin’s life changes for the better when her dad lands a job at Beacon Prep, an elite private school with one of the best basketball teams in the state. She begins to date a player on the team and quickly gets caught up in a world of idolatry and entitlement, learning that there are perks to being an athlete.
But those perks also come with a price. Another player takes his power too far and Kate is assaulted at a party. Although she knows she should speak out, her dad’s vehemently against it and so, like a canary sent into a mine to test toxicity levels and protect miners, Kate alone breathes the poisonous secrets to protect her dad and the team. The world that Kate was once welcomed into is now her worst enemy, and she must decide whether to stay silent or expose the corruption, destroying her father’s career and bringing down a town’s heroes.
~ Giveaway ~
This event is presented to you by
Friday, 9 August 2013
Friday Hop ~ Feature & Follow Friday and Book Blogger Hop
Book Blogger Hop hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer
If you don't like a book that you said you would review, do you graciously turn it down and explain why or do you struggle through it and hopefully come up with a half decent review?
Firstly if I've already said yes to reviewing the book then the least I can do is give it a try. If I'm still not getting into the book after awhile despite having tried I'd then email the Author/Publisher and explain to them why I'm just not getting the hang of said book. If the story (plot, characters, writing etc) was still good but I just personally didn't like it, I'd also offer the Author/Publisher a Spotlight with Excerpt post, if however the book was just plain terrible, then I'd offer up the reason as to why I didn't like it and leave it at that.
The Rules:-
- You MUST follow BOTH hosts Rachel @ Parajunkee and Alison @ Alison Can Read
- You MUST follow BOTH Featured Blogs of the week (linked below)
- Do your own Feature & Follow Friday post answering the question of the week and link to it at the bottom of this post
- Follow and comment on other participants Feature & Follow Friday posts!
Thursday, 8 August 2013
Letters To Nowhere by Julie Cross Review {Tour & Giveaway}
Welcome to my tour stop for
Letters To Nowhere by Julie Cross
I'm so excited to be part of a Julie Cross tour! In this stop you'll find my review of Letters To Nowhere and also a fantastic giveaway courtesy of Author, Julie Cross. Please follow the remaining stops for this tour, schedule can be found by clicking on the event banner above.
Letters To Nowhere
by Julie Cross
Published: August 1, 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary
Her family may be shattered, but her dreams aren't...
From the International Bestselling Author of the Tempest series
A Mature YA contemporary set in the tough world of Elite Gymnastics.
Seventeen year old Karen Campbell has just lost both her parents in a tragic car accident. Grief stricken and alone, her gymnastics coach opens his home to Karen, providing her a place to live while she continues to train, working toward a spot on the world championship team.
Coach Bentley’s only child, seventeen year old Jordan is good-looking and charming enough to scare away a girl like Karen—someone who has spent ten times more hours on balance beams and uneven bars than talking or even thinking about boys. But the two teens share a special connection almost immediately. It turns out Jordan has a tragic past of his own, grief buried for years.
As Karen’s gymnastics career soars, her nightmares and visions of the horrible accident grow in strength. She can only avoid facing her grief for so long before it begins to surface and ultimately spin out of control in a very dangerous way. Can discovering love and lust (simultaneously) help with the grieving process or will it only provide a temporary distraction while waiting for reality to hit full force.
Excerpt
“What the hell,” Bentley muttered. “Jordan!”
Jordan’s bedroom door flew open and he stepped into the hallway, grinning at me. “Like it?”
I finally got a glimpse of what Bentley was shouting about. My bedroom furniture had been exchanged for Jordan’s mismatched twin bed and dresser. The twin bed in my new room was covered with the blanket I had been using in the closet. There were no more boxes lying around.
My clothes were hanging in the closet, all of the trophies and various items from my old room were nowhere to be found. I stared at Jordan, my eyes wide. He knew. Something I said the other night must have tipped him off.
“Fix this now,” Bentley boomed. “What were you thinking?”
“It’s all right,” Jordan said. “Karen agreed to this. She lost a bet. I won her furniture fair and square.”
“He’s right.” I stepped into the room inhaling deeply and feeling an overwhelming sense of relief. “A deal’s a deal.”
Bentley shook his head as if to say he had enough to worry about without adding Jordan’s interior design projects to the list. Then he left us to go and chat with Mrs. Garrett downstairs. Jordan came into my room and shut the door behind him.
“How did you know?” I asked immediately. I closed my eyes, breathing in deeply again and smelling something brand new. A new start.
“I came in to tell you something the other night and you were sound asleep in the closet,” he said.
“And then when you told me on the phone, about memories being haunting, I just thought . . . It smells like home to you, right?”
I nodded my answer, afraid to test the steadiness of my voice. I had held so much in since having a panic attack during last night’s workout. Everyone had looked at me like I belonged in the loony bin, so I hadn’t wanted to break down in sobs to add to the rumors.
The fact that Jordan had managed to bring my spirits up after that horrible ending to camp was just amazing. I moved closer and wrapped my arms around him, squeezing him in the middle.
“Thank you,” I whispered. This time I had actually said it out loud rather than in a letter I’d never send.
Royal Commentary by Paperback Princess
Royal Commentary by Paperback Princess
I was ecstatic to be part of a Julie Cross blog tour. I hadn't even read the synopsis for Letters to Nowhere when I accepted to be a stop in the tour, I have just heard so many fantastic things about Julie's Tempest and Vortex novels that I was more fan-girl crazed about being part of her tour. I'm happy to report that Julie Cross did not disappoint with Letters to Nowhere.
Letters to Nowhere is a beautifully written coming of age story. This book deals with a lot of deep and meaningful themes including death, grief, acceptance, coping and of course living. Letters to Nowhere is an engrossing, emotional read and readers will remember this story long after the last page has been read.
17 year old Karen Campbell, elite Gymnast has just lost both her parents in a tragic car accident. An unexpected turn of events has Karen moving in with her gym Coach, Coach Bentley, and unknown to Karen at the time, his teen son, Jordan. Trying to deal with her parents death and all the other trials that are thrown her way, Karen starts to write letters to her parents and everyone else in her life, in a notebook, a coping mechanism, a way for her to feel like her parents are still around, but letters she will never mail, they will never read, but it makes Karen feel better.
Letters to Nowhere has a wonderful cast of characters and the book is so engrossing because of the characters interaction and the way they all dealt with each other. Karen is a strong and likeable character, I love the letters that she was writing to her parents and other characters in the novel, it was enjoyable to read her thoughts and feelings with no boundaries or filter. I felt so emotionally distraught for what Karen was going through, at 17, already dealing with all the normal grief of a teen girl, then the loss of her parents and then on top of that her self expectation along with others expectation regarding her gymnastics career, she's got her plate full. Letters to Nowhere shows us Karen's growth as she tries to work through her grief, pain and then eventually to acceptance and moving on and starting a new fresh life.
…"Go talk to her. You know you want to."
He shrugged. "Maybe I will."
I waited for several seconds and Jordan's feet stayed planted to the same spot. "That was anticlimactic."
Jordan is Coach Bentley's son and I really enjoyed his character, he's a typical teen boy but at the same time he's very perceptive. He's also kind, sweet and I love all the small but wonderful things that he did for Karen to help her with the loss of her parents. I don't think that Karen would have made it out quite so well without Jordan's help.
He looked mildly amused with my obvious distress "The bathroom's all yours, Karen." As I started to turn away, he added, "Just don't mess with those magazines under the sink."
My eyes widened. Jordan laughed and looked down at his notebook again. "Kidding."
I let out a breath before walking away.
"I removed all traces of porn this morning before you got here," he said to my back.
Karen and Jordan's relationship growth is definitely one of the positive aspects of this novel, unlike other YA novels of late there was no instant love here. Karen and Jordan's relationship grew in a steady and realistic pace and being a reader you truly feel the emotions that they were going through and the gradual feelings they felt for each other. I was swooning about this relationship and they're definitely one of my favourite couples, this is the type of relationship I'd love to have, one that is based on friendship.
"Well you were safe and boring. Maybe you aren't anymore," he conceded. "I take it back. Karen Campbell is a wild-ass risk taker. She should be riding a Harley through downtown St Louis."
Letters To Nowhere has such an original concept with Karen's letter writing. I absolutely loved that part, and whilst the entire chapters aren't all letter-based, I really enjoyed the letters, it really showed me Karen's state of mind without any filter, whereas her dialogue between other characters were somewhat filtered to what she wants to tell them. The letters gave me an inner understanding to Karen's current state of mind. I love, love, love the letter aspect of this novel and being such a different concept or way to get the point across this could have gone terribly wrong but Julie incorporated Karen's letters brilliantly. Looking forward to Julie's upcoming novels, she has fast become one of my "default" Authors. "Default" Authors is when I purchase all their books, not even reading book description, just because I love their writing and previous work.
About The Author
Julie Cross
I live in central Illinois with my wonderful husband and three kids currently between the ages of 7 and 12 (the kids not the husband). My writing journey began in May, 2009 with a short story in a notebook.
Within a year, I had written seven (some good some God-awful) young adult novels. Not being a college graduate and having spent the previous fifteen years teaching gymnastics and working as a YMCA Program Director for Recreational Gymnastics, professional writing wasn't in my plans. Not even close. But ever since the day I started that short story, I haven't been able to stop. It was love at first sight.
After about a year of writing, I had a three book deal with St. Martin's Press, and a film option with Summit Entertainment. Crazy, right? I know. It wasn't until August of 2011 that I quit working full time in order to be at home with my kids more and of course, write more. My young adult time travel debut novel, Tempest, released on January 17, 2012. The rest of my personal story remains unwritten.
~ Giveaway ~
This event is presented to you by
Dead & Missing by Chris Myers Blog Tour ~ {Review Date with the Dead + Giveaway}
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In today's tour we are showcasing the newly released
Dead and Missing by Chris Myers
book 2 in the Ripsters Series
Please follow the remaining stops, tour schedule can be found by clicking on the event banner above
Today I'll not only be showcasing Dead & Missing but I'll also be reviewing book 1 in the Ripsters Series, Date with the Dead, so please read on and don't forget to enter the fantastic giveaway, courtesy of Author, Chris Myers.
About The Series
Dead and Missing
by Chris Myers
Series: Ripsters #2
Published: July 13, 2013
Genre: YA Paranormal Mystery/Romance
Sixteen-year-old Brittany Howland only knows one other girl, Jolie Livingston, who can communicate with the dead like herself. When Brittany takes Jolie’s haunt fishing to get him out of Jolie’s hair, he mysteriously disappears. Brittany isn’t sure how she’ll tell Jolie she lost her stupid ghost. Jolie thinks her dead best friend Drew has finally crossed over, but Brittany knows better. Just before Drew went missing, he revealed why he hasn’t hitchhiked to the afterlife, a secret Brittany swore she’d take to the grave.
Date with the Dead
by Chris Myers
Series: Ripsters #1
Published: March 19, 2013
Publisher: Books on the Edge
Sixteen-year-old Jolie Livingston’s closest and only friend Drew is this really hot dead guy, and it bites that the self-absorbed princesses at school cannot even see him. That’s right she can communicate with the dead. It’s the living she has trouble with. She and her mom inherited this awesome crib in Plymouth, MA. It’s quite a step-up from the homeless shelter in New Orleans, but there’s a catch. They can’t afford the past due mortgage, so Jolie’s working on that.She starts a ghost hunting business called Ripsters. Somehow she’s managed to recruit Brittany, a glamour SAP smothered in pink, and a techie allergic to ghosts. Brit actually thinks he resembles the R&B singer Chris Brown. All that pink has clouded her vision. They both have special talents Jolie’s hoping will be useful to their venture. Right now, they’re working for a family in need of major therapy due to a dead guy with a hole in his head.
The Royal Commentary by Paperback Princess
Date with the Dead is a fun murder mystery based novel with loveable characters that make you want so much more. Chris Myers writing is engrossing and the mystery unfolded perfectly, despite the novel revolving around teens the mystery was not easily guessed. There was also several sub-plots which kept the story more interesting. I'd probably say this is somewhat in between the Nancy Drew Series and the mystery-side of Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse series.
Jolie Livingston recently moved with her Mother to Plymouth after inheriting her Aunt Ophelia's home. In Plymouth Jolie starts her own ghost eradicating company, Ripsters (Rest In Peace Sophisticated Technology for Efficient Removal of Spirits), now seriously, how can you not love a writer that creates such an awesome name/slogan? Jolie's first "case" is the ghost plaguing a local family, the Caldwells, this is where she meets one of her co-Ripsters, Reese, who also had his own ghost hunting company, with Reese's fancy equipments and Jolie's expertise they made a fantastic team.
The characters were so fun and their investigative techniques were so entertaining to read about. I really enjoyed the characters and I think that it's definitely one of the strong points of this book. Eventually Ripsters had expanded to include Brit, a local Judge's daughter, then towards the end Hayden, Jolie's crush, and we can't forget Drew, Jolie's best friend and the team's ghost! The Ripsters had a fantastic relationship between them and I just enjoyed the way they interacted.
Despite the Caldwell's ghost being the main mystery plot of this novel, there were other mysteries that the Ripsters had to solve, one being a soldier ghost that's following Brit around, then there's also the Paranormal Guild which wasn't really explained in this book, along with a stalker that followed Jolie and her Mother from New Orleans, and to top it off Jolie has made enemies at her school with a group of girls that can prove to be more dangerous than the ghosts that she's hunting.
Date with the Dead is a fast paced, engrossing mystery novel with loveable characters that have the Readers wanting so much more. I cannot wait to read Dead and Missing. Date with the Dead still had a fantastic conclusive ending despite it being part of a series and I really liked how Myers ended Date with the Dead, it was still rounded off nicely and if Myers left Date with the Dead as a standalone it would have still worked, I would have just been sad that I couldn't enjoy the characters more.
Jolie Livingston recently moved with her Mother to Plymouth after inheriting her Aunt Ophelia's home. In Plymouth Jolie starts her own ghost eradicating company, Ripsters (Rest In Peace Sophisticated Technology for Efficient Removal of Spirits), now seriously, how can you not love a writer that creates such an awesome name/slogan? Jolie's first "case" is the ghost plaguing a local family, the Caldwells, this is where she meets one of her co-Ripsters, Reese, who also had his own ghost hunting company, with Reese's fancy equipments and Jolie's expertise they made a fantastic team.
The characters were so fun and their investigative techniques were so entertaining to read about. I really enjoyed the characters and I think that it's definitely one of the strong points of this book. Eventually Ripsters had expanded to include Brit, a local Judge's daughter, then towards the end Hayden, Jolie's crush, and we can't forget Drew, Jolie's best friend and the team's ghost! The Ripsters had a fantastic relationship between them and I just enjoyed the way they interacted.
Despite the Caldwell's ghost being the main mystery plot of this novel, there were other mysteries that the Ripsters had to solve, one being a soldier ghost that's following Brit around, then there's also the Paranormal Guild which wasn't really explained in this book, along with a stalker that followed Jolie and her Mother from New Orleans, and to top it off Jolie has made enemies at her school with a group of girls that can prove to be more dangerous than the ghosts that she's hunting.
Date with the Dead is a fast paced, engrossing mystery novel with loveable characters that have the Readers wanting so much more. I cannot wait to read Dead and Missing. Date with the Dead still had a fantastic conclusive ending despite it being part of a series and I really liked how Myers ended Date with the Dead, it was still rounded off nicely and if Myers left Date with the Dead as a standalone it would have still worked, I would have just been sad that I couldn't enjoy the characters more.
About The Author
Chris Myers
Chris Myers suffers from an overactive imagination. She spent her high school years writing torch songs for fantasy guys then moved onto writing thrillers and young adult. She has a real job but would love to write full time. Her books have won and placed in the finals and semifinals for several awards including Paul Gillette, Rocky Mountain Gold, and Amazon Breakthrough Novel. Chris lives in Colorado with her daughter, her better half, and BeBe, a rambunctious Bichon.
~ Giveaway ~
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Wednesday, 7 August 2013
Review ~ The Heiresses by Allison Rushby
The Heiresses
by Allison Rushby
Series: Originally was a six ebook episode/serial
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Publisher: Pan MacMillan Australia
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback (344 pages)
Format: Paperback (344 pages)
Synopsis
Money, Intrigue, Secrets and Scandal
The setting is 1926 London, an era of social change and daring fashion.
When Thalia, Erato and Clio, three seventeen year old girls, are mysteriously summoned to this fast-paced world by Hestia, an aunt they never knew they had, they are shocked to learn they are triplets and the rightful heiresses to their deceased mother's fortune.
All they need to do is find a way to claim the fortune from their greedy half-brother, Charles, who refuses to bestow any of their inheritance upon them unless all three leave London and never return.
For as the girls soon discover, everyone is hiding secrets and the truth is tangled…
A thrillingly addictive saga of love and betrayal for all lovers of Downtown Abbey.
Paperback Princess Review
The Heiresses by Allison Rushby is a fantastic book that entertained me right from the beginning to the end. From the start of the novel, Rushby grabs the readers with the astonishing revelation that the characters are in fact triplets; Thalia, Erato (Ro) and Clio have each lived very different lives from each other but have now been brought together by Hestia, their Mother's sister in hope that they can win their Mother's fortune from their half-brother, Charles. With the synopsis above and the setting of London at the roaring 20s who can seriously resist?
Thalia, Ro and Clio were three very distinct characters, they were very different from each other and I enjoyed seeing their personal growth, and the growth of their relationship throughout the book. To live the first seventeen years of life, never having a sibling of your own, then realising overnight that you not only have a sibling but you are a triplet is quite an astonishing moment, and the girls all dealt with this revelation differently. I really enjoyed seeing the growth within their relationship, commencing from surprise, to getting to know each other, to sorting out their differences to eventually loving each other and standing as a united front.
The plot was fantastic, it read like a drama TV series. There was plenty of shocking revelations throughout the book that had me hooked and glued to it's pages. I felt heavily invested in the girls lives and cheered them on to not only solve the mystery that revolved around their late-Mother, but to come to grips with their situation and to grow from it, that they all did wonderfully. The character growth was beautiful and each of the girls learnt many lessons throughout the book. The plot also flowed wonderfully, there wasn't a moment where I was bored. The challenges and the surprising revelations were also perfectly timed. I love the shocking elements, which wouldn't be shocking in this day and age but back then they were quite scandalous.
The Heiresses by Allison Rushby is a well written historical fiction with lots of drama, scandal and secrets that rush up to the surface towards the end of the book. The ending was well written and the story was rounded off very nicely. I'm amazed at how well Rushby transports the readers back to the 20s, a well written, and I'd imagine a well researched novel.
~ Giveaway ~
Tuesday, 6 August 2013
Manic by JA Huss Blog Tour {Tragic Review + Giveaway}
Welcome to my tour stop for
Manic by JA Huss,
the book following Tragic
Please visit the other stops of this tour by clicking on the event banner above for the complete tour schedule
About The Books
Tragic
by JA Huss
Series: Rook & Ronin #1
Published: May 20, 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Rook Walsh is TRAGIC
Because life so far – just sucks. Some girls get parents. Rook got the foster care system. Some girls get Prince Charming. Rook got an abusive frog. Some girls get lucky…
Rook got a second chance.
And she took it. Because when fate throws you a bone – you grab it with both hands and run.
Antoine Chaput knows the minute he spies Rook in his photography studio that she’s got The Look. The dark and desperate look he must have to land the exclusive TRAGIC media contract.
Rook is paired up with top model, Ronin, and he’s everything her abusive ex-boyfriend wasn’t. Patient, gentle, happy, attentive, and sexy! He knows exactly what to do to make Rook blush for Antoine’s portfolio.
Rook’s luck changes in an instant and suddenly she’s the darling of the modeling world. It’s a dream job to go with a dream guy and all she has to do is look pretty and follow directions. But there’s always a price to pay – and Rook is about to get the bill. TRAGIC is a new adult contemporary romance.
Paperback Princess Review
Tragic is a story of Rook, a 19 year old girl, alone in Denver, having just ran away from an abusive relationship and prior to that being raised in the foster care system. She is very much down on her luck, but when she is mourning the loss of a cleaning job after being accused of stealing, she goes to spend her last $10 on a Starbucks coffee. Fate works in strange ways, and as she's having said coffee a group of models come in and literally throws an invitation to a famous photographer's studio, Antoine Chaput, at Rook. Seeing the promise of money at the end of a photo shoot Rook takes her chance and runs to Antoine Chaput's Photography studio where she becomes the chosen girl for the "Tragic" campaign. This is the story of Rook as she tries to run from her past, tries to better her future, fit into the new world she's been thrust into and all the while trying not to fall in love with Ronin.
Rook is a very broken and tragic character. At 19 she had undergone far too many tragedy for her age. Despite all that she had gone through I still enjoyed her character because she was strong, self sufficient but at the same time she was real and I saw her insecurity at times through the book. I really appreciated having a realistic character and it made me more emotionally invested in Rook and I was cheering her on hoping that she got all the good stuff that she finally deserved. The plot itself wasn't amazingly unique but because of Rook and Ronin I was very much invested in the novel that I read it in one sitting.
Speaking of Ronin, Rook's love interest. To be honest I'm still not quite sure about Ronin, he is certainly swoon worthy, good looking and some times I felt his kindness seep through but there were other characteristics of his that I didn't like, most especially his sarcastic, violent and controlling tendencies. However, as we get through the book he becomes more likeable and as his life story unfolds also I understand him a bit more and he becomes more likeable to me.
Elise is one of my favourite secondary characters, she's Ronin's older sister and Antoine's girlfriend. Her character is very straight forward, business-like but at the same time she's very genuine and what she says upfront is exactly what she means. I love how she had Rook's best interest at heart, even against her own brother.
Tragic has an interesting plot with a unique backdrop of a photography studio specialising in erotic artistic photography, so it's certainly not a type of story that you've read before. It's also fast-paced and I read through the entire novel in one sitting. Huss created such fantastic characters that literally lift off the pages that each reader will be emotionally invested in each one that you can't help but keep turning the pages just to know what happens to each of the characters next. There are quite a few heated scenes, and those scenes are certainly not for the young adult age group so be forewarned.
Manic
by JA Huss
Series: Rook & Ronin #2
Published: August 1, 2013
TRAGIC is over and Rook is ready for the future—Spencer Shrike and the STURGIS contract!It’s three months of body art modeling! That means three months of Spencer Shrike’s paintbrush all over her body, three months in front of Antoine’s camera, and three months of twenty-four hour filming for Spencer’s Biker Channel reality show.Wait a minute…what reality show? Maybe she should’ve read that STURGIS contract a little closer? ;)Sure, Rook’s bank account is almost overflowing, but Ronin is angry, Clare is trying to escape rehab, Antoine is a worried mess, and Elise is just trying to hold everyone together. Her new family is about to fall apart before she even gets the chance to enjoy them.Add in a mysterious man from her past, a road trip to the famous Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, and a final show in front of the entire world where all her good are on display, and you’ve Manic—a new adult contemporary romance that will definitely make your summer sizzle!
About The Author
JA Huss
Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter
J. A. Huss likes to write new adult books that make you think and keep you guessing. Her favorite genre to read is space opera, but since practically no one reads those books, she writes new adult science fiction, paranormal romance, contemporary romance, urban fantasy, and books about Junco (who refuses to be saddled with a label).
She has an undergraduate degree in horses, (yes, really–Thank you, Colorado State University) and a master’s degree in forensic toxicology from the University of Florida. She used to have a job driving around Colorado doing pretty much nothing but shooting the breeze with farmers, but now she just writes, runs the New Adult Addiction and Clean Teen Reads Book Blogs, and runs an online science classroom for homeschoolers.
~ Giveaway ~
a Rafflecopter giveawayTop Ten Tuesday #21 ~ Books I Wish Had Sequels
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke & The Bookish
Hi Everyone! I've been really slack with my Top Ten Tuesday post as of late, I would read the topic for the week and struggle to come up with ten so I just wouldn't do the post. This week though, Jen from The Broke & The Bookish only did seven, so I decided that it's ok to not have ten from now on. It's better to participate and come up with less than ten than not participate at all.
I thought that this topic would be slightly difficult because I don't know if anyone else has noticed but most books nowadays are series! There aren't many standalone books anymore, does anyone else agree with me?
Lastly, are there anyone that are clever with the whole HTML coding? I'd like to use threaded comments for my comments, but I'm unable to do so using the Blogger instructions, apparently because of my design, so if someone knows how to to incorporate the threaded comment in my HTML coding I'd love your help!
Top Ten Books I Wish Had Sequels
Next week @ Top Ten Tuesday
Top Ten Books With "X" Setting
Monday, 5 August 2013
Dawn of Apocalypse by ESP Author Interview {Giveaway}
Welcome to my tour stop for
Dawn of Apocalypse by E.S.P
Please follow the remaining stops of this tour, schedule can be found by clicking on the event banner above.
About The Author
E.S.P
Being the daughter of an accomplished author, E.S.P. grew up listening to stories and telling her own to classmates. After writing for several years and even publishing some short works, she finally decided to take the plunge to write (plus finish!)a full length novel. Thus, Dawn of the Apocalypse was born. When she's not writing, she's either reading books, blogging at whoistheserialreader.blogspot.com, or watching eighties movies.
Author Interview
I love the premise behind The Dawn of Apocalypse and I can't wait to read it, I must ask...What was your inspiration for such a story?
The gargoyles aspect came from a dream I had. I kept having these nightmares where I would see these creatures that resembled gargoyles, and decided to turn my fright into a story. As far as the actual characters and plot, I always was into science fiction/fantasy but never wrote anything decent. When I discovered the apocalyptic genre, I just had to jump in and create my own story.
What research did you do for this novel?
The "apocalypse" takes place in the five boroughs of New York City. Thankfully I am a frequent traveler there and I could visit settings in my book and visualise exactly how the scenes would play out. In addition to that, I had to do my own research on laboratory animals, the government, and the military.
Did you find it hard to write a book that you were trying to portray as real or something that can happen in the near future?
Yes I did. I purposely wrote the book to take place on the release day. At one point I was told that the release date might have to be pushed back, and that meant I would have to change all the dates in my book to take place to that day onward. I don't think that makes sense, but in a short, yes.
Also, I was trying to make the book realistic. The worst part was that I can't make people imagine what I did, so when my editor didn't immediately float away in the story like I expected, it kind of stung.
In your bio it states that your a daughter of an accomplished Author, are you able to tell us who your Father is and what he has written?
My father is Moses Miller, an urban fiction writer. And I'm going to do a little gloating in the place of my dad; he's written Once Upon a Time In Harlem for F.E.D.S. magazine, the award winning Trifling Times series, the Barack In Me (a self help book), Infidelity, Things I Wish I Knew When I Was Young Like You (a children's book), and is currently working on his next book which is not urban fiction, called Fairy Tales, They Lie.
So I have a lot to live up to.
What would you say have been, if any, advantages to being a daughter of an Author?
Having someone who has "been there, done that" is awesome because they can help you along the way and steer you from some of their mistakes. Also, my dad cheers me on. So I have a little one person fan club.
You enjoy 80s movies, what's your favourite and why that genre?
The early eighties and even the late seventies seems like such a fun, carefree time, and I know my free-spirit personality would be more accepted there;) So yeah, I kind of wish I could go back and relive the eighties. My favorite movie would have to be the Karate Kid.
What's your Top 3 Favourite Books?
Fatal by T.A. Brock, Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry, and Escape From Furnace by Alexander Gordan Smith.
Top 3 Favourite Authors and why?
I love Jonathan Maberry, because his Rot & Ruin series is very action packed, zombie fun. Michael Grant is also an amazing author, and probably writes the best third person I've ever seen. And I don't think Veronica Roth needs much of an explanation.
The events of the Dawn of Apocalypse takes place, you are able to choose ONE of your characters to be your sidekick at such an event, who would you choose and why?
That's a tough one. I'd probably chose Cliff, because he's the type of person who would sacrifice himself for you, or automatically cares about your well-being.
I had a lot of fun with these questions, thanks for having me!
About The Book
Dawn of Apocalypse
by E.S.P.
Release Date: August 9, 2013
Publisher: Mind Candy Media
Synopsis
January 1, 2000.
May 21, 2011.
December 21, 2012
These are just a few of the days humans prophesied as bringing catastrophic events that would end the world. We predicted nuclear warfare. Drastic climate change. A call from God.
We were wrong.
Cue the gargoyle invasion—laboratory bred mutants designed to slaughter humans. When the government goes AWOL and gargoyles are swarming by the hundreds, it's up to the citizens of the United States to regroup and save themselves.
Meet Cliff Matthews, a teenage boy separated from his entire family with the exception of his younger sister, whom he is desperate to keep alive. Along the quest to save their lives, he encounters people who aren't all that they seem. Everyday's a battle, but if he can't trust his own species, where does that leave his family?
And we can't forget the man who may be willing to sacrifice Cliff's life, if it means world domination.
In terms of doomsday, no one could have seen this coming.
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