Cover Reveal & Giveaway: Of Silver and Beasts by Trisha Wolfe

Of Silver and Beasts (A Goddess Wars Novel)

Release Date: June 1, 2013
Genre: New Adult Dark Fantasy
Cover Reveal Organized by: YA Bound
Cover Designed by: Steven Novak

Summary
from Goodreads:


In the sand-covered queendom of Cavan, the goddess once
saved a young Kaliope’s life, preventing the mercury her father attempted to
hide in her blood from reaching her heart. Now, a cybernetic clamp filters it,
but the silver streaks swirling faintly beneath her skin are a constant
reminder that she’s different.

When nineteen-year-old Kaliope is chosen as head of the Nactue Guard, she
becomes the sworn protector to her empress. In the midst of an invasion on a
neighboring land, Kaliope is placed in charge of guarding Prince Caben, the
last heir to his kingdom. But when they’re attacked by the feared
Otherworlders, Caben and Kaliope are abducted and taken below to a realm where
they must fight for their life in a caged arena.

Kaliope struggles to protect her princely charge, keeping him and herself alive
while battling inhumanly opponents, and trying to save the stolen, sacred relic
that will restore her empress’s life force and all of Cavan. And if she can
somehow awaken the goddess within her, she may save what’s most important.




***Excerpt***


I open my mouth to say something comforting, but I’m unsure of what. In this moment, I’m reminded that I know little about him. Other than the sarcasm and desire to understand nothing of my queendom, he hasn’t allowed me past the surface.
But then, I have my own walls, hiding things I’d never want him or any other to know. And I understand that need to hide them. You can’t trust anyone.
“Caben…” I start, but still can’t find the right words.
He lowers his hand from his face, never taking his eyes off the glinting water top. “You’re right,” he finally says. “Let’s find the access to Lilly’s section.”
A hollow pang hits my chest, and I’m not sure why. Something in his voice sounds lost, broken. I imagine the gears around my heart spinning faster, trying to keep up with my racing heart.
When he sidesteps me, I reach out and grab his arm. “Caben, I didn’t mean—”
“It’s fine, Kal,” he snaps. “We have work to do.”
“No, I’ve said something to offend you.” I drop my hand, but keep close to him, not allowing him to leave my side. Goddess, trying to understand the male brain is harder than anything in protector training. I’ve heard people say that you have to tip-toe around a woman’s emotions, but a man’s ego is every bit as fragile, if not more so.
He releases a heavy breath through his nose and walks back to the pool. He sits down along the edge and rolls up his pants, then slips off his boots. “I honestly don’t think Bax or his goons will be returning tonight.” He sinks his bare feet into the water and sighs.
Glancing at the back of the cave, I plant my hands on my hips. We don’t have time for indulgencies, but the prince is still my charge. If it were my empress, I’d give her anything she’d ask for. Allow her as much time as she needed to collect herself. I have to watch over his mental state as well as protect him, so I try to push the pending need to find Lilly aside and sit down next to him.
“Here,” he says, turning his hand out near my crossed feet. “You have to feel this.”
A smile tugs at the corner of my mouth. “I can remove my own—”
“Have you never been pampered a day in your life?” he asks, lifting an eyebrow. “I know that the Nactue are fierce and will put a hurt on any man for touching them. But try to relax.”
“Is that the rumor in Perinya?”
“What?”
I bite my lip, suddenly regretting my blurt. “Nothing. Never mind.”
From the corner of my eye, I see his lips pucker into a pinched smile, as if he’s trying not to. “Ah,” he says, like he’s made some great universal connection. “Well, there are many whisperings about the Nactue. Some I dare not repeat for fear I’d leave here missing a limb, but that’s one, yes.” He takes my booted foot and begins to unlace it. “I’ve heard that the empress’s protectors are untouchable—forbidden to give themselves to men. And that they’ll snap a man’s neck just for making an advance.”
My mouth drops open. Appalled, I counter, “That’s not true.”
“All right,” he says, as if he hasn’t just insulted my very existence. “It’s only rumors. Things men jaw about in pubs. The unattainable woman is a fantasy, Kal. Don’t be offended.”
“Unattainable?” I grit my teeth, trying to maintain my composure. “Tell me, prince. Do men in your country just go around bedding every woman they can in order to keep them compliant?” I shake my head. “If their fantasy is a woman that would have nothing to do with them, it seems to me it’s their way of feeding their egos after being rejected.”
His eyes widen. “No! How does your brain come up with these—” He bites off his words, his lips thin as he presses them together. “Look, it was a joke.”
I nod, many times. “Another joke. I’m glad that our hard work and sacrifice is amusing to the men of Perinya.”
Caben lets out another sigh and slowly pulls off my boot. His warm fingers skim my calf as he inches up my pant leg. “Just stick your foot in,” he says, then adds lower, “while I stick mine in my mouth.”
Unexpectedly, I laugh. “At least it’s now clean,” I say. “Would you like some help getting it to your face?”


***GIVEAWAY***
a Rafflecopter giveaway



Feature and Follow

Feature and Follow Friday is a blog hop that is designed to provide some much-appreciated exposure to the bloggers participating, and to expand their following. Hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read, each of whom feature a chosen blog for the week, it's an interesting way to get to know one another.

If you would like to follow me, you can do so by GFC, Twitter or Linky .

I also make sure to go back and follow everyone that comments and I try to always follow twitter along with GFC/Linky. So if you have a twitter that is not on your page for some reason leave it in the comments and I will follow you that way too!

Q: Tell us about the most emotional scene you've ever read in a book - and how did you react?

I don't really cry for movie and books. There have only been a few that have done that and it was when I was younger so I can't remember exact scenes.
I can say though that I get really emotional if anything happens to children. It will upset me for days. 

 

Cover Reveal: Frigid by Jennifer L. Armentrout


For twenty-one-year-old Sydney, being in love with Kyler isn't anything new. They'd been best friends ever since he pushed her down on the playground and she made him eat a mud pie. Somewhere over the years, she fell for him and fell hard. The big problem with that? Kyler puts the 'man' in man-whore. He's never stayed with a girl longer than a few nights, and with it being their last year in college, Syd doesn't want to risk their friendship by declaring her love.

Kyler has always put Syd on a pedestal that was too high for him to reach. To him, she's perfect and she's everything. But the feelings he has for her, he's always hidden away or focused on any other female. After all, Kyler will always be the poor boy from the wrong side of tracks, and Syd will always be the one girl he can never have.

But when they're stranded together at a posh ski resort due to a massive Nor'easter, there's nothing stopping their red-hot feelings for each other from coming to the surface. Can their friendship survive the attraction? Better yet, can they survive at all? Because as the snow falls, someone is stalking them, and this ski trip may be a life-changer in more ways than one.

Frigid will be available in digital formats from Spencer Hill Press on July 30th 2013
Print release of Frigid will be November 5th 2012




About the Author:


J. Lynn, also known as Jennifer L. Armentrout, is a # 1 New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author. She lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russel Loki.
 
Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen.
She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

Author Links: Twitter * Facebook * Website


Blog Tour and Giveaway: Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter by Nikki Jefford


Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter by Nikki Jefford
Series: Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter #1
Publication: December 9th 2012
Genre: YA Paranormal
Purchase: Amazon * Barnes and Noble

Synopsis:

If there is one thing eighteen-year-old Aurora Sky wants, it’s to get off the iceberg she calls home. Being kissed before she graduates wouldn’t hurt either.

Then a near-fatal car wreck changes everything. Government agents step in and save Aurora’s life in exchange for her services as a vampire hunter. In Alaska. Basically she’s a glorified chew toy. All thanks to her rare blood type, which sends a vampire into temporary paralysis right before she has to finish the job… by hand.

Now Aurora’s only friends are groupies of the undead and the only boy she can think about may very well be a vampire. And if he’s a vampire, will she be forced to kill him?



Review:

Auora Sky: Vampire Hunter is a different twist of the traditional vampire story. The plot was pretty interesting, a secret world of Vampire Hunters that all have AB negative blood (like me!) that when combined with a virus can be toxic to a vampire. It’s a hidden government project, people might suspect things but it’s not something for public consumption. Even though vampires don’t burn up in the sunlight they seem to prefer the cold and dark climate of Alaska. I found myself speeding through the pages intoxicated with curiosity and did finish this one in a day.

Now normally in a YA book you have an MC that learns they have some superpower of sorts, whether it is moving things with their minds or turning out to be a different species altogether. Then usually the MC freaks out for maybe a day or two and the next thing you know they are up for the challenge taking life by storm. The thing that made Aurora herself so interesting was this was not the case for her. She wakes up to this new reality after a near death experience and is told she is now working for the government as a Vampire Hunter. She had been timid and just trying to make it through each day so that she can get the hell out of dodge and start her life over as far from Alaska as possible. Suddenly it’s all taken away from her and rather than embrace her new role she ends up on a downward spiral and I mean really downward. Aurora completely changes and does not give two cents about what anyone thinks of her. She skips school, she hangs with an interesting crowd, and she even takes on a new slutty persona. I couldn’t keep my eyes away from the pages. She makes a lot of bad decisions but those bad decisions kind of cover up the good changes that are happening. Aurora is no longer the easy going push over; she becomes more charismatic and daring. She finally evens out when she gets involved with Fane and even though the reason she gets involved with him is kind of bad. He turns out to be the grounding that she needs for her life. I just found it easy to imagine Aurora as someone actually going through the experience. I thought she was strong main character.

At first I didn’t like Fane; I was like oh geez please don’t tell me she gets involved with this guy. As I got to him in the book, I couldn’t help but find a soft spot for him. Although he might seem outwardly like a jerk it’s really only others perception that make him that way. You never really think about the fact that she doesn’t actually talk to him and he never really does anything really mean to her. Mostly she just thinks he’s kind of scuzzy. Really just the girl he chooses to associate with at first is scuzzy.

There are lot of different characters and personalities to keep you entertained. We are introduced to the world of Aurora before near life and death experience and then after. Which surprisingly gives the world a whole new look. Much like high school sometimes the people you think are your friends are really not the ones going to stick with you until the end.

The ending left me hanging and wanting more. I can’t wait to see where the story goes and what happens to Aurora. You can tell there is a lot more to the vampire society and the government agency that needs to be explored and I’m definitely curious to learn about it myself.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


AUTHOR BIO

Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan who loves fictional bad boys and heroines who kick butt. She is the author of the Spellbound Trilogy and upcoming Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter series. Nikki married Sebastien, the love of her life, while working as a teaching assistant in France. They now reside in the not-so-tropical San Juan Islands, 70 miles northeast of Forks, Washington.

Author Links:
Website * Goodreads * Facebook * Twitter





Trailer Reveal and Giveaway: The Fallen Stars by Stephanie Keyes

The Fallen Stars by Stephanie Keyes
Series: The Star Child #2
Publication date: April 12th 2013
by Inkspell Publishing
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
 
Synopsis:

Kellen St. James was just your average seventeen-year-old prodigy, until he eighty-sixed the Lord of Faerie and proposed to the Celtic Goddess, Calienta. But then everything in Kellen’s life gets turned upside-down when he and Cali end up on the run from a seriously irritated group of faeries. The worst part? They have zero idea why they’re being hunted.

Suddenly, Kellen is stuck in the middle of another prophecy that foresees him turning away from Calienta and embracing the dark. He’ll be forced to take sides in a struggle to claim his birthright, while discovering secrets about his father’s past. Meanwhile, his passion for Cali grows stronger, even as the prophecy threatens to tear them apart.

In the end, will Kellen and Cali survive the fates? When the ultimate power is within reach, which side will he choose?




Trailer


 
 
Giveaway
 
There is a great giveaway happening for this event! Check out what you can win.
Giveaway3
 


AUTHOR BIO

Stephanie Keyes has been addicted to Fantasy since she discovered T.H. White as a child and started drumming up incredible journeys in her head. Today, she's still doing the same thing, except now she gets to share those ideas with readers!

When she's not writing, Stephanie is also a graphic designer, international speaker, teacher, musician, avid reader, and Mom to two little boys who constantly keep her on her toes. In addition, she's best friend to her incredible husband of eleven years.

Mrs. Keyes holds an undergraduate degree in Business and Management Information Systems from Robert Morris University and a M.Ed. from Duquesne University. She is a member of the Society For Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), as well as a featured author in the global group of writers, Love a Happy Ending.com.

Keyes is the author of the YA Fantasy series, The Star Child, which currently includes The Star Child (September 2012) and The Fallen Stars (April 2013), both released by Inkspell Publishing. She is currently hard at work on the third book in the trilogy, The Star Catcher.

Author links:

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter




Feature and Follow

Feature and Follow Friday is a blog hop that is designed to provide some much-appreciated exposure to the bloggers participating, and to expand their following. Hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read, each of whom feature a chosen blog for the week, it's an interesting way to get to know one another.

If you would like to follow me, you can do so by GFC, Twitter or Linky .

I also make sure to go back and follow everyone that comments and I try to always follow twitter along with GFC/Linky. So if you have a twitter that is not on your page for some reason leave it in the comments and I will follow you that way too!

Q: What is your guilty pleasure as far as reading? Is it a genre, or is it a certain type of book?

I can't imagine feeling guilty about reading anything. I feel like things are more widely excepted nowadays too. If I tell someone I like to read Romance, which I do, I don't get the face like I'm weird like I used to.

So I don't know, sometimes I will reread my kids books like Cinderella or different fairy tales

YA Book Review: Gravity by Melissa West

Title: Gravity
Series: The Taking #1
Author: Melissa West
Author Info: Website / Twitter / Goodreads / Facebook
Pub Date: December 18 2012
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Format: Paperback
Pages: 284
Purchase: Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Book Depository

Summary:

In the future, only one rule will matter:

Don’t. Ever. Peek.

Seventeen-year-old Ari Alexander just broke that rule and saw the last person she expected hovering above her bed — arrogant Jackson Locke, the most popular boy in her school. She expects instant execution or some kind of freak alien punishment, but instead, Jackson issues a challenge: help him, or everyone on Earth will die.

Ari knows she should report him, but everything about Jackson makes her question what she’s been taught about his kind. And against her instincts, she’s falling for him. But Ari isn’t just any girl, and Jackson wants more than her attention. She’s a military legacy who’s been trained by her father and exposed to war strategies and societal information no one can know — especially an alien spy, like Jackson. Giving Jackson the information he needs will betray her father and her country, but keeping silent will start a war.




Review:

This is one of those books that I had looked at a few times, added it to my tbr both physically and on goodreads. I finally picked it up and it was one of those moments where I thought why didn’t read Gravity right when I got it. Melissa West had me sucked in at the epilogue when we first learn of the process of the Taking.

I loved the plot; the idea is that we have ravaged our planet with nuclear war. We are barely surviving when the Aliens come to offer us aide but in exchange they want to be able to co-exist with us at some point and in order for that to happen they need to do a process referred to as the Taking. Each night an alien crawls into your room once you reach the age of 10 and sucks up some of your nutrients. Not enough to kill you or even make you weak. Just enough for them to be able to acclimate their bodies to our world. Sounds creepy right? I’m not sure I wouldn’t be afraid of it myself. Of course this is where the fear originates. Who are these Ancients to come in and sort of feed off us, is their aid really worth it. It’s these questions I think that spur different trains of thought in the book and puts the planet Earth on the brink of war. The real question is whose side will you choose?

Ari is such a great character!! I loved her; she is strong and can most certainly take care of herself. She is trained fighter since birth since her role is someday to be the commander of the country (under the President, there is still one of those). Even though her dad has trained her to be hard and analytical she is still very empathetic. Where some see this as a weakness, this is definitely one of her greatest strengths. She is able to step back and look at a situation from multiple perspectives.
Jackson is the arrogant jerk that ends up being the Ancient assigned to Ari. He comes across as hard and difficult but it’s easy to see he has a softer side. I would definitely consider him someone you can swoon over. He has that silent strength that is really attractive. He protects Ari even when she doesn’t need or want it. He has is secrets though and they are revealed slowly throughout the book.
I liked the romance between Ari and Jackson. I think it developed naturally and did not feel forced at all. I wouldn’t really consider it a main focus of the book or at least there was so many interesting things going on I didn’t think of it that way.

Gretchen and Lawrence were great supporting characters. They are true friends to Ari and even though at times it seems like there is a love square there really isn’t. It’s handled nicely the way the characters interact with one another and their lives weave together. I really liked Gretchen toward the end of the book. Maybe because they remind me so much of my own friends.

Plus there were parents! Two of them at that and I loved the relationship Ari has with her mom. It’s nice to see the closeness in a family. Sometimes that seems to be missing in books and I understand that it gives the characters more reign to get away with stuff but it’s nice to see some family time.

The book really shows human nature and our need for power and control of situations. I’m not saying that every human is the same because that is not true but I think it takes history lessons of how wars start and incorporates it into the book. I think some of the main causes are often freedom of choices, need for power and of course fear. It kind of made think about the fact that if someone came and knocked on my door and said “hey would you mind if an alien was your neighbor, even though they have to power to annihilate you. It’s okay they are peaceful so don’t worry about it.”, what would I think or say to this. It was so interesting to see the different reactions of different sets of people.

I really enjoyed this book and I think if you are looking for a good YA Sci-Fi this is definitely would recommend. I can’t wait for Hover to be released!

Book Haul: Sunday Post


Hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer
 

This has been a pretty crazy past couple of weeks for me at work. Plus my dad's whole cancer battle gets tiring, even though I'm not the one going through it. He had a blood transfusion this week which I think helped him with his energy a little bit. I find myself reading more to keep my mind off things but not on the computer itself as much. I actually though I lost my hard drive which has a ton of reviews I haven't posted yet. I don't know why posted them yet, I think it's because i have to format the post or something. So basically I need to sit and give myself time to just do that.

Things Happening on the Blog;

Cover Reveal and Giveaway: Stripped by Booklyn Skye
Blog Tour and Giveaway: The Crimson Hunt by Victoria H. Smith
Transcend Time Blitz and Giveaway


These are two books that I have from the library right now. Dark Triumph is an ARC obviously since it's not out yet. The reason that it's at the library (not for normal checkout) is because the authors are  coming to visit. So making sure to have all the books read before they come. It's kind of fun actually. C.C. Hunter and Alyson Noel are also coming but I have read their books. Well most of them, I have to catch up on the newest ones.


I also bought the newest Lauren Oliver book


and then Amanda from my book club Geeks who Read sent me Dualed

So I'm excited to read all these.

Cover Reveal & Giveaway: Stripped by Brooklyn Skye

Stripped

Release
Date: 05/14/13
Cover
designed by: Lisa Poff
Photography
Cover
reveal organized by: YA Bound

Summary
from Goodreads:
“I
like you.” His voice is low and soft, which I don’t deserve. I look away, down
the rutted parking lot.
“Don’t…waste
those words on me.”
He
touches my cheek. “You just need someone to show you.”
“No.”
I ease back again. “I don’t. So please, Torrin, stop trying to swoop in and
save me. I don’t need saving.”

College
freshman Quinn Montgomery will do anything to avoid the mistake her sister
made—killing herself over a boy. But when she is forced into nude modeling at a
local college to support her family after a bankruptcy, she begins to crack,
just enough to let Torrin, the university’s top varsity oarsman, see that the
real Quinn is not as feisty and unapproachable as she wants everyone to think.
But letting someone in comes at a steep cost and, it turns out, Torrin is
connected to Quinn’s family in more ways than she could ever imagine.

About
the Author
Brooklyn
Skye is an author, editorial intern, and just your average awkward girl
(especially on the phone!). Her new adult debut, STRIPPED, releases May 2013!

Follow
Brooklyn at:


Click
HERE
to sign up to participate in the blog tour for Stripped.

***GIVEAWAY***
Enter
below to win a signed hardcopy of STRIPPED (if U.S. winner) or an e-copy
with Authorgraph (if international winner)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Feature and Follow

Feature and Follow Friday is a blog hop that is designed to provide some much-appreciated exposure to the bloggers participating, and to expand their following. Hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read, each of whom feature a chosen blog for the week, it's an interesting way to get to know one another.

If you would like to follow me, you can do so by GFC, Twitter or Linky .

I also make sure to go back and follow everyone that comments and I try to always follow twitter along with GFC/Linky. So if you have a twitter that is not on your page for some reason leave it in the comments and I will follow you that way too!
Q: Activity! Hopefully warm weather for most of us is here soon…so tell us about your favorite outdoor reading spot. Or take a picture.

My favorite reading spot is the Morton Arboretum, unfortunately I don't go there that often without my kids. I'm hoping when they get older though I will be able to read while the run away. It's a really fun place in general and the grounds are gigantic. You got a favorite tree? They've got there for you to sit under and read.

I know I have pictures of cool trees there but I can't find them.

Blog Tour and Giveaway: The Crimson Hunt by Victoria H. Smith

I'm happy to be a part of the Blog Tour for Victoria H. Smith's The Crimson Hunt, hosted by Xpresso Book Tours. You can get the full details and schedule of the tour Here
 

The Crimson Hunt by Victoria H. Smith
Series: Eldaen Light Chronicles, #1
Publication date: November 8th 2012

Purchase:
Amazon / Barnes and Noble / The Book Depository

Synopsis:

College junior Ariel Richmond is working on year three of Project Normalcy.

Her house reeks of keggers past and her bestie is just a slight bit vulgar. But the thing is—they both aid in making life refreshingly uneventful.

So much for hard-earned mediocrity when Luca Grinaldi appears on the scene.

Luca’s sudden presence on campus is hard to ignore. Those bright eyes act like a beacon to unsuspecting females, and with features like his, he’s got to be moonlighting for GQ. Luca hopelessly captivates Ariel with his confidence and charisma, but the mysteries surrounding him make him nearly untouchable. And just when Ariel grows close enough to unlock his secrets, a tragic event sends her life in a downward spiral.

That steady life is no longer an option and allies quickly become scarce. The mysterious Luca seems to be the only one willing to help her—but with that trust comes the burden of his secrets. He has a dark mission of otherworldly proportions, and is willing to sacrifice as many lives as it takes to see it completed.

Gone are the days of simply maintaining normalcy, and if Ariel isn’t cautious with her trust, so soon may be her future.



Review:

The Crimson Hunt starts off in a shroud of mystery with the prologue. We know that there might be something otherworldly involved, but what. We experience Ariel’s somewhat normal life in the first part of the book. She is a college student trying to make it into the big Art show but thwarted by her mean girl arch nemesis. Then enters Luca the mystery boy crush who is a jerk one minute and then charming the next. The next thing you know the book takes a turn for the dark and sinister as people start showing up dead, including ones close to Ariel.

As far as the book tempo it did start off slightly slow, but it was appropriate for setting the scene and keeping you in suspense. I found myself anxious to find out what was going to happen so it kept my attention. Once it picked up, it hit the ground running and there was action around every corner. What a great concept for the book, I loved the sci-fi mix with a dash of paranormal. I also loved the idea of why there are these beings here and that as humans we are almost just unfortunate causalities in the bigger picture.

Ariel was a strong self-reliant character. I liked the way she interacts with her friends and other characters. I also like that she has a history of relationship failure, I’m not even sure why but it made it seem more real. She is a little more reserved when she meets Luca, even though she is attracted to him she tries to keep her head on straight and not fall to hard. Even though she ends up doing just that of course who wouldn’t.

I’m not all together sure how I felt about Luca; I didn’t feel like Ariel needed him which was kind of nice change. He liked to run hot and cold but once he warmed up it was hard not to be at least fond of him. He had trained himself to not feel so when he really starts opening up to Ariel we see a different side of him. He is sweet, kind and of course gorgeous. He might be the next great love my life but I thought he was a good character and also a good match for Ariel.

At first I did not like Piper, Ariel’s best friend; I was like why is she friends with this girl. I don’t understand this relationship. As we get to know Piper we find out how she truly is loyal to Ariel and actually a really good friend. There were other side characters involved all that I found some kind of fondness for. Even the villains were interesting and very evil at times.

I really enjoyed this book and I loved the fact that it’s New Adult. The College Campus setting is perfect for this type of story and it really gave the characters more leeway with things. I really don’t want to give away too much of the mystery because that’s the best part about it. It mixes in a little mystery as we learn about the characters roles, which makes it intriguing to the last page. I will definitely pick up book two because I’m curious about how everything will end up resolved.

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway



About the Author:

Victoria H. Smith has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. She puts it to good use writing romance all day. She resides in the Midwest with her Macbook on her lap and a cornfield to her right. She often draws inspiration for her stories from her own life experiences, and the twenty-something characters she writes give her an earful about it.

In her free time, she enjoys extreme couponing, blogging, reading, and sending off a few tweets on Twitter when she can. She writes new adult fiction romance in the sub-genres of science fiction, urban fantasy, and contemporary, but really, anywhere her pen takes her she goes.

Victoria H. Smith Links: Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads



Feature and Follow

Feature and Follow Friday is a blog hop that is designed to provide some much-appreciated exposure to the bloggers participating, and to expand their following. Hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read, each of whom feature a chosen blog for the week, it's an interesting way to get to know one another.

If you would like to follow me, you can do so by GFC, Twitter or Linky .

I also make sure to go back and follow everyone that comments and I try to always follow twitter along with GFC/Linky. So if you have a twitter that is not on your page for some reason leave it in the comments and I will follow you that way too!

 Q: What is a book you didn't like that all your friends raved about or what book did you love that wasn't popular?

This is actually an easy question for me....Beautiful Creatures.....it's not even that I didn't like it I just felt very blah about it. The writing was good but I just didn't like Ethan a whole lot so it fell a little flat. I did even go see the movie, which also super unimpressed me because they changed the things I had actually liked in the book.

Transcend Time Blitz and Giveaway!




Remembrance
Michelle Madow
Series: Transcend Time Saga #1
Publication date: July 27th 2011
Genre:YA Time Travel
Goodreads

Lizzie Davenport has been reincarnated from Regency Era, England ... but she doesn't know it yet.

Then Drew Carmichael transfers into Lizzie's high school at the beginning of the year, and she feels a connection to him, almost like she knows him. She can't stop thinking about him, but whenever she tries talking with him about the mysteries behind her feelings, he makes it clear that he wants nothing to do with her. Reaching him is even more difficult because she has a boyfriend, Jeremy, who has started to become full of himself after being elected co-captain of the varsity soccer team, and her flirtatious best friend Chelsea starts dating Drew soon after his arrival. So why can't she get him out of her mind?

Even though Lizzie knows she should let go of her fascination with Drew, fighting fate isn't going to be easy.
 
 
Vengeance
Michelle Madow
Series: Transcend Time Saga #2
Publication date: December 8th 2011
Genre:YA Time Travel
Goodreads

How far would you go to get revenge?

When Chelsea Givens discovered that her ex-boyfriend Drew dumped her to be with her former best friend Lizzie, she'd never felt so betrayed in her life. Then her new friend Shannon tells her she can help set things right. Chelsea's willing to listen, but what Shannon wants her to believe -- that she shared a past life with Drew -- is impossible. And what she wants her to do to get him back … well, it's downright crazy.

Could Shannon be telling the truth? And if she is, what lengths will Chelsea go if it means making Lizzie pay?

Find out in Vengeance, the second part of the Transcend Time Saga.

*Vengeance is the short story that bridges the events in Remembrance and the final novel in the Saga.

 
 
 
Timeless
Michelle Madow
Series: Transcend Time Saga #3
Publication date: November 14th 2012
Genre:YA Time Travel
Goodreads

IT'S A RACE AGAINST TIME.

In Remembrance, Lizzie and Drew changed the course of fate so they could be together.

In Vengeance, Chelsea set fate back on its original, deadly path.

 
Now, strange things keep happening to Lizzie. Things that are omens of darkness to come. A curse has doomed her to die an early death, just as she did in her past life. To make matters worse, even if she can figure out who cast the curse, it's irreversible. There's only one option left for her to save herself. It's crazier than anything she's heard yet, and to do it, she'll need Drew and Chelsea's help.

Because to make things right, they must go back to when it all began ... and Lizzie discovers that the final events in her past life were more sinister than she ever imagined.

_______
Where to Buy 
 

Remembrance
Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Kobo / iBookstore

Vengeance
Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Kobo / iBookstore

Timeless
Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Kobo / iBookstore

Transcendence
Available for free download! Smashwords

 
 
 REINCARNATION IN THE TRANSCEND TIME SAGA
Michelle Madow

An explanation of how reincarnation works in the series

To write the Transcend Time Saga, I had to create my own version of reincarnation. The first thing I did was research reincarnation on the Internet. Even though I don’t personally believe in reincarnation, I had fun learning about it. There are tons of websites on the topic—from ancient Buddhist beliefs to people who claim there are scientific ways to prove reincarnation. It was interesting doing the research, but I came across a problem: Nothing was fitting into the story I had started to create about Lizzie and Drew.

Then I realized something: Remembrance was going to be a work of FICTION, so I was free to create my own version of reincarnation!

The main thing I knew about Lizzie’s story was that she had a dramatic early death in her first life that made it so she couldn’t be with her soul mate, Drew. She and the people close to her who were negatively impacted by her death had been reincarnated to set things right. I decided to create my own version of reincarnation that revolved around that idea.

I created a Word document with bullet points describing the important aspects of reincarnation in the Transcend Time Saga. This document is called “Reincarnation Rules,” and this is the first time I am sharing it with readers.

Here are some of the basic Reincarnation Rules in the Transcend Time Saga:

1) The only reason a person will be reincarnated is if they have to change something dramatic that left them unfulfilled in their past life. They continue being reincarnated until they do this.

2) Most people are not reincarnated. Once they live one life, they go to Nirvana. Most people living on Earth are “New Souls.”

3) Major events in present day lives parallel past lives, so people will be thrown into situations with other reincarnated souls from their past.

4) Their physical features are similar to those they had in their past lives, although not so similar that they look the exact same.

5) A big part of initially remembering a past life is a recognition of the soul of a person they had a positive deep connection to, usually a soul mate. (In Lizzie’s case, this person was Drew.) If you were friends with someone in a past life (like Lizzie/Chelsea and Elizabeth/Catherine), you will feel very close to that person, but they will not trigger memories of the past to return.

6) Objects from the past will also serve as triggers. (Lizzie loved Pride and Prejudice in her past life, so reading the book for her English class triggered her memories. Drew built the music box for Lizzie in his past life, so seeing the music box again triggered his memories.) However, people usually believe their memories to be figments of their imaginations until they meet the person who is their “big trigger.”

7) A soul can only reincarnate into the same species it started in. (You cannot be a human in one life and a dog in the next.)

8) People remember images and scenes—they very rarely remember full conversations. They can, however, remember their feelings from those conversations.

9) People don't reincarnate immediately. They reincarnate during a good time for them to complete whatever it is they need to do to sort out the issues they had in their past life. Plus, if a spirit went through something traumatic in their life (usually resulting in death), they need time to recover.

10) Reincarnees have Memory Guides that help them remember their past life so they can make changes in their current life. These Memory Guides have been reincarnated, and successfully fixed what they needed to. They go through training, and then come into the Reincarnee’s life when they are ready to remember their past life.

After I had those basic ideas, Lizzie and Drew’s story pieced together as I wrote. I outlined the book before writing the draft, but it was still fun to see their story unfold.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

In the fall of 2008, Michelle saw Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” music video for the first time. She thought up a story to go along with the video, and wrote the first chapter as a homework assignment for class. Her classmates and teacher loved it so much that they wanted to know what happened next, so Michelle continued writing, and that story eventually became Remembrance, the first novel in the Transcend Time Saga. She’s so happy to be able to share this series with you, and hopes you enjoy reading it as much as she loved writing it!

Check out her website, www.michellemadow.com, to add her on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and her many other social networking sites.

Michelle lives in Florida, and is hard at work writing more novels for young adults.



Cover Reveal: The Liberator by Victoria Scott

#VMafia @VictoriaScottya
Dante Walker #2
September 3, 2013


Bad boy, meet bad girl.

Dante has a shiny new cuff wrapped around his ankle, and he doesn't like that mess one bit. His new accessory comes straight from Big Guy himself and marks the former demon as a liberator. Despite his gritty past and bad boy ways, Dante Walker has been granted a second chance.

When Dante is given his first mission as a liberator to save the soul of seventeen-year-old Aspen, he knows he’s got this. But Aspen reminds him of the rebellious life he used to live and is making it difficult to resist sinful temptations. Though Dante is committed to living clean for his girlfriend Charlie, this dude’s been a playboy for far too long…and old demons die hard.

With Charlie becoming the girl she was never able to be pre-makeover and Aspen showing him how delicious it feels to embrace his inner beast, Dante will have to go somewhere he never thought he’d return to in order to accomplish the impossible: save the girl he’s been assigned to, and keep the girl he loves.

Check out some past Dante Walker fun

  
The Collector: A Dante Walker Novel
Dante Walker #1
Victoria Scott
April 2, 2013
Amazon / Barnes and Noble

He makes good girls...bad.
Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal-opportunity collector and doesn't want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within ten days.

Dante doesn't know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector…and uncover emotions deeply buried.




About the Author:

Victoria Scott is a YA writer with a die-hard affection for dark and humorous books. Her work is represented by the fabulous Laurie McLean of Larsen-Pomada literary agency. She has a master’s degree in marketing, and is a member of the Writers’ League of Texas and Teen Shiver.

Her first YA book, THE COLLECTOR, will be published by Entangled Teen in 2013. And her short story, FOUR HOUSES, is available now through Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

She currently lives in Dallas with her husband, Ryan.

Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads / Youtube


Book Haul: Sunday Post


Hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer
 
I wish there was a weekend I could say it hasn't been a crazy week, but once again it was. More people in and out of the hospital and doctor visits. Seriously someone at work jokes that there is black cloud over my house and I'm starting to think it's true. Besides that it's been a good week for books and I admit the more stressed I get the more I spend time in the bookstore......
 
On the Blog this week:
 
Cover Reveal: Wait for You by J. Lynn (Jennifer Armentrout)
 
Cover Reveal: Emancipating Andie by Priscilla Glenn
 
YA Review: Apollyon by Jennifer L. Armentrout
 
 
I've been changing my layout on and off too. I'm not sure why but I can't seem to get it to just how I like it. I just never have the time to really put into making it awesome. One of these days....
 


The end has come Chosen at Nightfall by C. C. Hunter. I think this is my favorite cover in the series. I really like the colors. It's release date is April 23, 2013 by St. Martin's Press. Pretty exciting. They are actually coming out with an edition that includes both books 1 & 2 together. I got pens with a cover of each book on them but my kids for some reason really like them and keep stealing them. I can't pry them away to even take a picture.

 
I was having a bad day and then this came in the mail from Pitch Dark Reads which made me feel better. Pulse by Patrick Carman
 
 
I'm going to the Stephanie Meyer book signing so I picked up the paperback version of The Host to get my ticket. The two guys on the cover are also going to be at the signing and I will be able to get a movie poster signed and then one other book.
 

 
The Triple Threat authors came to town but I wasn't able to go to the signing. Just not in the cards this week, plus it was crazy snowy weather. I did get my book signed though. Yeah! Hysteria by Megan Miranda


A couple weeks ago I went to another signing for Julie Cross, Jennifer Rush and Erica O'Rourke. They were all sweet and funny. I've already read Altered and I can tell you that it's full of cute boys galore. Besides my I love Trev and I love Nick pins. I also got a few signed poster of the cover of Altered.


I have an egalley of this to read. I'm such a Julie Kagawa fan girl!


I also got an ebook of Wait For You by J. Lynn (aka Jennifer L. Armentrout) which was addictive and I couldn't stop reading it when I tried. I love this cover too. The only part that confused me is why do they put Jennifer Armentrout writing as J. Lynn. Doesn't that defeat the purpose of a pen name. She has the pen name to seperate her YA stuff from her Adult novels. (which are also great reads) So maybe since this is New Adult it's blending...