tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35671111892764632622024-03-13T11:29:27.377-04:00Reading Until DawnDaphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.comBlogger355125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-24878300901580902872015-01-25T15:12:00.001-05:002015-01-25T15:15:34.909-05:00Book Blitz: The Queen's Gift by T.R. Allardice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSQltX11RoUkcRuq15fBv-amrqc_Gub04fjM4odNdBU7YPA458XtFVuxTgM3QrOyDR31IIFtFFe8wuymnCVV60papdzjxB0F9GHxjfBTBYBflrJ2UD_kcfLu5UD2wiXF_R4A8DrGWHFQ/s1600/QueensGiftBlitzBanner6.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Queen's Gift by T.R. Allardice" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSQltX11RoUkcRuq15fBv-amrqc_Gub04fjM4odNdBU7YPA458XtFVuxTgM3QrOyDR31IIFtFFe8wuymnCVV60papdzjxB0F9GHxjfBTBYBflrJ2UD_kcfLu5UD2wiXF_R4A8DrGWHFQ/s1600/QueensGiftBlitzBanner6.png" height="236" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23625405-the-queen-s-gift?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: December 15, 2014<br />
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuQ4krlwmnlSKIHwrRq2xPCxdai6GaDW_Wo0Rtt8J3crUxHBrf_hHVGPP8ZUzpLjuwz6u5RJFmC4pfXyrTkcog9wl_BJBEe1rGen3Oc4qU842LoxGz5ykXZoDEajOMSuwXZzY1tB38gA/s1600/QueensGift.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="The Queen's Gift by T.R. Allardice" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuQ4krlwmnlSKIHwrRq2xPCxdai6GaDW_Wo0Rtt8J3crUxHBrf_hHVGPP8ZUzpLjuwz6u5RJFmC4pfXyrTkcog9wl_BJBEe1rGen3Oc4qU842LoxGz5ykXZoDEajOMSuwXZzY1tB38gA/s1600/QueensGift.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Fifteen-year-old, late-bloomer Jean Elliott dreams of becoming a Genie like her mom. When her family relocates to Tokyo, Jean is forced to use sleight-of-hand tricks to fool everyone at school into believing that she’s a normal Preternatural or risk expulsion. When her power finally appears, it comes in the form of the Queen’s Gift–an unspeakable magic that strips power from all Preternaturals and heralds the arrival of the new queen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">After an absence of two hundred years, not everyone wants the monarchy to return and they’re willing to go to great lengths to keep the status quo. When buried secrets rip Jean’s family apart, she has a choice to make: Walk away and hope for the best or embrace the power that’s known to lead to madness in order to save her family.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Jean’s greatest dream has turned into her biggest nightmare and no matter how hard she tries, there’ll be no wishing the Queen’s Gift away.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Queens-Gift-T-R-Allardice/dp/1942237049/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421420373&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Queen%27s+Gift+T.R.+Allardice" target="_blank">Amazon</a> ! <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-queens-gift-tr-allardice/1120915082?ean=9781942237044" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">T.R. Allardice writes young adult, new adult, and humorous horror stories. Most of what she writes incorporates several genres. The content won't always be 'safe'. What's the fun in that? She is a member of the Horror Writer's Association, Novelist Inc. and the Author's Guild. She has thirty-one books published under another pen name. To find out more about her upcoming work, go to: www.trallardice.com</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="http://www.trallardice.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/trallardice" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/trallardice" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Excerpt:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Everything I know about Tokyo can be found on page two hundred and fifty-seven of the Preternatural’s Travel Guide to Japan. It consists of three paragraphs—a whopping one hundred and fifty words—and in no way prepares anyone for the crushing size of the city or the cultural whiplash.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Despite the upheaval that a move from Chicago to the other side of the world created, my first day at Tokyo International Preternatural School wasn’t much different from any other school day. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was late.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">To add to my humiliation, Mom personally dropped me off outside the administration office.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Jean, I know you don’t want to be here.” My mom, Queen of the Understatement, Ruler of the Obvious. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">There was no good way to respond, so I kept my mouth shut. When I’d begged my parents to let me attend a Preternatural school, Tokyo wasn’t what I had in mind. I thought we’d stay in Chicago. Near my friends. Near my old school. In case things didn’t work out.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">She brushed my long hair back to get it out of my face. “Do you have everything you need?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Mom didn’t mean lunch money or school supplies. She was referring to my magical contraband. The items I use to trick Preters into believing that I am just like them. I’m not. Not yet anyway. It’s my hope that being around other Preters will jumpstart my powers. Until then, I’d have to fake it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When pressed, Mom says I’m a late-bloomer. I had my doubts...but I was ready. I’m always ready. It was one of the stipulations for attending this school. To prove it, I patted the hidden compartments sewn into my shirtsleeves. “Good to go.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“That’s my girl.” She gave me a peck on the cheek, then rushed off to her classroom.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Did I forget to mention that my mom’s a teacher here?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I know. Lucky me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Mom glanced back, when she reached the elevators, and said, “Make a wish,” then snapped her fingers and disappeared. A plume of glitter-like substance appeared in the air where she’d stood, then quickly dissolved.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Make a wish. Same principle as ‘break a leg’. Three simple words that when combined seemed harmless enough. Most people associated them with birthdays or falling stars. Happy moments. Special moments. Magical moments.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Not me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I hate those three little words. All they do is remind me of just how common I am. No offense to humans. They’re born as Commons. They don’t know any differently. I do. And I’m reminded every night when I sit down for dinner with my Preternatural family just how much being common sucks.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My backpack slipped. I shifted it higher onto my shoulder and glared at the heavy wooden doors that stood between the admin office and me, wishing I could snap my fingers and disappear, too. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The red dragon handles on the doors were warm to the touch, as if the dragons recently breathed fire. Maybe they had. Or maybe the school cast a truth charm on the doors. Wouldn’t be the first school office that used one. Wouldn’t be the last. Not that it mattered. The spell wouldn’t work on me. One of the few perks of being powerless.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The doors were intimidating, but not half as much as the administrative office itself. Located on the fiftieth floor of a high-rise, the office had floor-to-ceiling windows that framed Tokyo and made it look as if the city floated amongst the clouds.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Elliott-san, we’ve been expecting you,” a woman said as I stepped into the room. Small, with delicate features, her dainty bones seemed at odds with the inch-thick glasses perched on her tiny nose. The lenses magnified her eyes until they looked three times their normal size.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Not Elliott-chan?” Chan was often used to address young girls, or so I’d read.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Her lips curved into a smile. “Are you a child?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“No,” I said.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“My name is Ieto-san.” She gave me a bow. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Mom told me on the flight that bowing was another way to say hello and show respect, but I didn’t understand how deep or shallow I was supposed to bow. The whole thing made me feel uncomfortable. I gave Ieto a quick nod.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Her nose crinkled and she sneezed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">With a flourish of my hand, I produced a tissue and handed it to her. It looked like it appeared out of thin air, but actually it had come from my shirtsleeve.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Doumo arigatou,” she said.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“You’re welcome.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Sorry, but your transcripts have been delayed.” I expected this. “Should be finished with temporary schedule in moment.” Ieto’s imperfect English trumped my knowledge of the Japanese language.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Transcript mix-ups came anytime you magically doctored school records. Mom hadn’t finished working on them yet. Of course this school didn’t know that, and I wasn’t about to volunteer the information. The last thing my family wanted was for anyone to know I’d transferred in from a Common school. Preters didn’t go to Common schools—ever. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It was too dangerous…for the Commons. Preters didn’t have total control of their powers until they reached adulthood. I hadn’t attended a Preter school since the fifth grade, not since the…incident.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">That was also the year that Mom and Dad finally acknowledged that the powers—my powers—they’d been insisting were simply slow to develop were in fact totally nonexistent. Coincidence? I think not.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Ieto stared at me, her nose twitching, as she waited to see if I had any questions. I didn't. As the perpetual new kid, I never had any questions. Her nose twitched again and she blinked several times. I wondered if she was a mole Shifter, but that question was impolite to ask in any country.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">After an uncomfortable silence, she pointed to an empty chair. “Your Gakusei escort should be here soon.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Obviously nobody trusted me to get to class on my own today. I parked myself in the chair.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The language may have changed, but despite the fact that this was my first Preter school in five years, it would be like all the others. I'd do my homework. Keep my head down. Kill time until we moved. It wouldn’t be long. Never was. I’d learned a long time ago not to get too comfortable. It only made moving harder.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This was what you wanted, so suck it up.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I opened my backpack and pulled out a notebook. The orange binder had the names of my two best friends from Chicago carved into its battered face. Three other sets of names had already been crossed out, marking the other cities that we’d lived in over the past couple of years. I ran my thumb over the newest names and swallowed the bitter taste of homesickness that welled in my mouth.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Ieto went back to typing, my presence already a footnote in her memory. The rhythmic clack, clack, clack poked holes in the silence. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My phone flashed the time. Least it was good for something here in Japan. I’d missed most of first period, but it hardly mattered. Today was orientation. I wouldn’t be attending any real classes until tomorrow, so I put in my ear-buds and cranked the music.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A girl walked into the office and stopped in front of me. Before I could put my notebook down, she plucked an ear-bud out of my left ear and said, “Cell phones aren’t allowed in school. Neither are mp3 players or headphones of any kind. You must be Jean Elliott.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Yay, my student escort had arrived.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My gaze locked onto a pair of greenish-purple knees the size of giant doorknobs that poked out from beneath a pleated black uniform skirt. The boney joints undulated beneath her skin as she shifted her weight.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I’d worn my favorite pair of low-rider blue jeans and an over-sized gray Chicago sweatshirt. No one had said anything about having to wear a uniform. Mom conveniently forgot to mention it. This school just kept getting better and better.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The girl cleared her throat. “You are Jean Elliott, the spell-casting, wish-granting Sensei’s daughter, right?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sensei was Japanese for teacher. Why couldn’t she just say that?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“That’s me.” My gaze rose and rose until it latched onto a Ghoul’s beaming face.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I shrieked and pushed off with my feet. My shoulders slammed against the back of the chair, knocking it into the wall. It clanged so loud that Ieto jumped. The move didn’t put me out of reach of the Ghoul, but at least I had a chance of escaping if she attacked. I tried not to stare, but I’d never been this close to a Ghoul. Like ever!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">You would’ve stared, too.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">All Ghouls are big. This girl was no exception. At six feet and counting, her shoulders were wide enough to shame an American football player in full uniform. Her earth brown hair hung in two fat braids next to her ears. Dark blue-framed glasses bisected her flared nose. Her smile revealed a mouth full of razor sharp teeth encased in shiny silver braces. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“You look like her.” She sniffed. “You smell a little like her, too. But I guess all Genies carry that flowery jasmine scent.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Did I forget to mention that my mom is a Genie? And not just any Genie, she’s one of the best wish-granters and spell-casters in the world.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As I watched, the Ghoul pushed her eyeglass frames up with a thick finger and smiled wider. Visions of being swallowed whole flashed through my mind. I’m not very big. I had no doubt she could unhinge her jaw and polish me off in three or four bites without breaking a sweat.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“My name is Karen Kim. Most people call me Kim-gakusei or Kim-san, but you can call me Karen.” The Ghoul stuck out her hand.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I stared at the meaty catcher’s mitt with fingers and thought about the story of a poor shark that had, had the misfortune of attacking a Ghoul off the coast of Australia. By the time the thrashing finished and the blood cleared, all that was left of the Great White was a lone fin bobbing on the surface of the water.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Was it safe to shake her hand? Ghouls weren’t known to eat other Preters, but they would if they were hungry enough and I wasn’t exactly what you’d call a normal Preternatural.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As if on cue, Karen’s stomach growled...and growled...and growled.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Please don’t eat me.” Had I just said that aloud? My eyes closed and I groaned.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Karen laughed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Not the reaction I expected.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Relax,” she said. “I’m not going to eat you.” She tapped the fashion magazine under her arm. “I can’t go around eating random Preters. Not if I want to be a supermodel.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It took me a moment to tear my gaze away from her stomach. Did she say model? I blinked. Was that supposed to be some kind of joke? I gave her a small smile and continued to stare. No way would I comment on Karen’s declaration. Let somebody else break it to her that there weren’t any size eighteen Korean Ghoul supermodels. And if there were, they’d never graced the cover of Magical Vague or any other fashion magazine. Ghouls only came in two sizes, big and gigantic.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Before anyone thinks I’m being harsh, they should know that at five foot two I won’t be a model any time soon either.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Karen's brow furrowed. “Am I your first Ghoul?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I grunted noncommittally. It was either that or lie. Did Ghouls attack if you insulted them? Didn't know. Didn't want to find out. I looked to Ieto for help, but she steadfastly ignored my silent pleas. What kind of sadistic school was this?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Karen snorted. “You look like you're going to be sick.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Sorry." Nice Ghoul. Easy Ghoul. Stay calm. I pulled the other ear-bud out slowly and shoved the phone into my book bag. I’d heard that sudden movements might accidentally trigger an attack response.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">She shrugged. “I’m used to it." Karen’s gaze dropped away and her cheeks turned Granny Smith apple green, a Ghoul’s version of a blush. "Most people aren’t so honest about their feelings. I think we’re going to get along just fine.” She glanced over at Ieto, probably to see if she’d noticed, but the woman was immersed in her work. Karen cleared her throat and got back to business. “The school has assigned me to be your student guide for at least a week. I’ll show you where everything is, help you find your classes, and introduce you to some people. If you—”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A bewitched radio roared to life on Ieto’s desk, interrupting Karen’s spiel. The broadcast started out in Japanese, then automatically switched to whatever language the listener spoke.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“The Common news reported another sighting of the white monster. This brings the total number of sightings to seven. It was spotted last night near the electronics’ district of Akihabara. This is the latest in a rash of strange creature sightings from around the world. An emergency meeting of the Assembly has been called. Steps are being taken to detain the creature. A reward has been offered for any information on its current whereabouts. No further details are available at this time.” The broadcast ended abruptly.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I rolled my eyes. “Some Common probably caught sight of a were-lion, were-dragon or were-something in mid-change.” Surprising, sure. Shocking, maybe, but hardly what you’d call news in the Preter world. “Must be a slow news week.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“No.” Karen shook her head, making her braids flop. “It’s not a Preter. That’s already been confirmed. And it’s not the same creature showing up all over the world. The descriptions vary from location to location.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Contrary to what she thought, I still believed the creature was a Preter having a good laugh at everyone’s expense. “If it’s not a Preter, then what is it?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Nobody knows.” Karen’s dark brown eyes glowed with excitement. “That’s why a bunch of us are going monster hunting tonight. Want to come with?” All that was missing from the question was I dare you.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I’ve been the new kid more times than I could count. I have had several self-appointed “friends”. Some even became real friends. Most resented the job and took pleasure in hazing me every chance they got. The question was, what type was Karen?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Sure, I’ll go.” I didn’t have a clue what I’d agreed to, since technically we were the monsters. No doubt tonight would turn out to be a pointless snipe hunt and I’d be the one left holding the butterfly net.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Great!” Karen flashed a frightening smile. “We could really use someone with your powers.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Yeah.” I laughed nervously. “My powers are fierce.” They were so fierce they hadn’t bothered to show up yet. Was it too late to bow out? If Karen’s grin was any indication, then I already had my answer. I sighed. Some girls dream of having big boobs. I dream of being a Genie. Until that day happens...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sucks to be me.</span></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-81876150292218020412014-12-16T00:00:00.000-05:002014-12-16T00:00:02.976-05:00Book Blitz + Giveaway: Insanity 2 by Cameron Jace<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_UJv-a4J9qWdkQo7qFfkUwhLjKVM3uQvWBp5YMOm-jVUzqxmH9FJaFLtg9g67r8UWpAyyHhTYWBX8SDWRpurOczDpVibVVxjRSKm5P4OMG0zCYYaMPb9y2gZAPZIMVd3n7EKv3CDt2A/s1600/Insanity2BlitzBanner.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Insanity 2 by Cameron Jace" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_UJv-a4J9qWdkQo7qFfkUwhLjKVM3uQvWBp5YMOm-jVUzqxmH9FJaFLtg9g67r8UWpAyyHhTYWBX8SDWRpurOczDpVibVVxjRSKm5P4OMG0zCYYaMPb9y2gZAPZIMVd3n7EKv3CDt2A/s1600/Insanity2BlitzBanner.png" height="236" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15698596-insanity-2?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: December 2014<br />
Genre: Fantasy, Retelling, Young Adult<br />
Series: Mad In Wonderland Series<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">After her encounter with the Cheshire Cat, Alice Wonder can hardly tell reality from imagination. But when kids have their head chopped off and stuffed in watermelons all over the city, it’s clear that another Wonderland Monster has arrived, possibly scarier than the Cheshire. Alice, along with Professor Pillar, have to solve the killer’s puzzles before a catalytic event threatens the death of millions. Then Jack Diamonds appears again. This time, Alice must know who he really is.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Figment-Insanity-Book-Mad-Wonderland/dp/1505256739/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418412798&sr=8-1&keywords=Figment%3A+Insanity+2+by+Cameron+Jace" target="_blank">Amazon</a> ! <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/figment-cameron-jace/1120864031?ean=2940046438888" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyYzXoQckzzqVQxZ5AVmxzN1nBsoRhhzr_8fm7NQy2rpPdtA2sBjjljT8lenBgrtmV_CUD6W1MjQFgB_a8PSibtcjQgbvJOijpZyrSMjzg4L1-Bg2QZfW8lLHadZN02kOpBJF5a24d4g/s1600/Cameron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Cameron Jace" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyYzXoQckzzqVQxZ5AVmxzN1nBsoRhhzr_8fm7NQy2rpPdtA2sBjjljT8lenBgrtmV_CUD6W1MjQFgB_a8PSibtcjQgbvJOijpZyrSMjzg4L1-Bg2QZfW8lLHadZN02kOpBJF5a24d4g/s1600/Cameron.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Wonderlander, Neverlander, Unicorn-chaser, enchanter, musician, survived a coma, & totally awesome. Sometimes I tell stories. Always luv the little monsters I write young adult paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and science fiction mostly. The Grimm Diaries series is a seven book saga that deals with retellings of fairy tales from a young adult POV - it connects most of the fairy tales together and claims to be the truth about fairy tales. I live in San Fransisco and seriously think circles are way cooler than triangles.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Along with CARRIER, Anne is also the author of the young adult fantasy novella, THE BEAST CALL and the young adult contemporary, SHUT UP.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Anne divides her time between writing, her family, and three furry creatures that she secretly believes are plotting her assassination.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/995289.Cameron_Jace" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://cameronjace.blogspot.ca/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/cameronjace" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/camjace" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I open my eyes to an endless darkness. A blinding kind of darkness I haven't experienced before. Many times have I slept in pitch black in my cell in the asylum. This present darkness is different. It seems as if it has a soul, a substance. It feels too close and invasive to my privacy. It's as if I am wrapped between its octopus arms. A claustrophobic kind of darkness.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">No explanation comes to my semi-numb mind right now.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Where am I?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My body is numb, enough to chain me in temporary paralysis. Each of my limbs is heavy enough that I don't bother lifting any.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Somehow, I am sure this will subside.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A slow train of memories arrives. It's slow but noisy and heavy, like a locomotive breath.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Finally, I remember. I know who did this to me."</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Giveaway:</span></div>
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<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="d0425123644" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d0425123644/" id="rcwidget_t9cc0w94" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-50469089408041870822014-12-14T15:28:00.002-05:002014-12-14T15:31:43.261-05:00Book Blitz: The Token by Natasha Rogue<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgtr0MhF56olcj3wY2rN_5T9gAG-fNcjW7gmdaeUFtV__o0kP9RHaoSh1gom0etrup3QPBJs73-lAj3hzHu8NK63pnZwPSQKZHepoUGlPHOfZtx575jQhBolPLWL84WLUbICYktBwdyw/s1600/TokenBlitzBanner.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Token by Natasha Rogue" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgtr0MhF56olcj3wY2rN_5T9gAG-fNcjW7gmdaeUFtV__o0kP9RHaoSh1gom0etrup3QPBJs73-lAj3hzHu8NK63pnZwPSQKZHepoUGlPHOfZtx575jQhBolPLWL84WLUbICYktBwdyw/s1600/TokenBlitzBanner.png" height="236" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23596236-the-token" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: December 2, 2014<br />
Genre: Paranormal, Young Adult<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBtwDLEdjzLKUQW7IaZfC0E0Q9KjV5r1MtGzWmeToNLooqRztRDz1fLxrjAdmr_guceZZrbpikQZn9gv4_w9AWtW2O09FZAWUSSl_Vw5k9q6pS3uc1Hn3beW5DrzWLHrw12mcJtjVXwA/s1600/Token.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBtwDLEdjzLKUQW7IaZfC0E0Q9KjV5r1MtGzWmeToNLooqRztRDz1fLxrjAdmr_guceZZrbpikQZn9gv4_w9AWtW2O09FZAWUSSl_Vw5k9q6pS3uc1Hn3beW5DrzWLHrw12mcJtjVXwA/s1600/Token.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Callie Michaels isn’t pretty or popular, but her singing more than makes up for all she lacks. And as long as she focuses on what’s really important, she can survive high school. But how can she focus with all the drama? Between her best friend’s odd issues and a daily dose of weirdness from the social elite, she’s starting to wonder if she’s the only normal one around.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">He pulled the front door open. “That’s how it’s done.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I rolled my eyes and made my way through the crowd that had spilled into the hall, muttering. “That’s how it’s done. Yeah? Where? In the jungle?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“Yeah.” James’ breath on my nape sent a chill down my spine. “Something like that.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Just as her life begins spiraling out of control, the answer comes to her in a dream. In exchange for a token of blood, a demon will give her everything she desires. She says “yes.” From that point on, she finds herself changing, becoming something far from normal. Something dangerous.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">No one is what they seem—least of all her. While the supernatural creatures around her struggle to maintain their humanity, Callie slowly loses hers. She doesn’t even know what’s important anymore. Friendship, the future, love? And is there anyone who can make her care?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://amzn.to/152rko0" target="_blank">Amazon</a> ! <a href="http://bit.ly/1rTuXSl" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> ! <a href="http://bit.ly/1zdj1iz" target="_blank">iTunes</a> ! <a href="http://bit.ly/1HUE2o8" target="_blank">Kobo</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Natasha Rogue is a Canadian author who's been writing for most of her life. After penning novels behind math textbooks all through high school, she attended Dawson College in Creative Arts with dreams of becoming a screenwriter. The best teacher she ever had took her aside and told her to go back where she belonged. To her roots with the books she loved to write.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Eternal Neverland (Steps Before the Fall) was one of her first complete novels. There are seven books in draft form completed in the series, but they gathered dust until experience and contacts with the right editors and crit partners gave them what they needed to be shared. However, A Breed Apart: The Token, was released through a small press in 2012. The book will be rereleased shortly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">You may find Natasha at several signings throughout the year as she writes multiple genres. Don't worry, she doesn't bite. But she will happily chat with you about the hotties who do. And shamelessly admit to liking Charlie way more than she should.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5167471.Natasha_Rogue" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://www.natasharogue.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/NatashaRogue" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Natasha-Rogue/1484838058449750?sk=timeline" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A long soak in a bubble bath, hot enough to give me a head rush when I first submerged my whole body under the steaming water, did wonders for stiff muscles and stiffer resentment. James had been with me for days. He was entitled to a break. I was not going to be a pathetic, needy girlfriend. I was a strong, independent young woman, perfectly capable of fending for myself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">That conviction lasted the whole ten steps between the bathroom and my room. When I opened my bedroom door, I became someone who needed and was needed. And nothing could make that wrong.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A large, black cat stretched across my bed. James had come back at some point during my bath. While waiting, he'd fallen asleep. All I could do was stare. The beauty of him left me in awe.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Careful not to wake him I inched past the door, pulled it closed behind me, and turned the lock slowly to muffle the click. Every sound amplified in my ears as I tried to make my way across the room without waking him. My socks were like sandpaper on the carpet. My shallow breaths like heavy gasps. I heard it all, as I was sure he would. Humans were noisy things.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">One black ear twitched, and I stopped and bit back a curse. The velvet of his fur glistened in the dim light as he stirred, but his eyes stayed closed. His huge form covered my bed, draped from one corner to the other, a piece of the exotic laid out in stark contrast to my very ordinary room. So alien to the surroundings, yet somehow so right.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I didn't want to wake him up, but at the same time I couldn't fight the need to get closer. Instinct flared up in warning, demanding I stay where I was. There was no denying the potential danger. Claws the size of my fingers peeked past his huge paws, little black daggers hooked into the delicate threads of my comforter. Without meaning to, he'd torn little holes in the cloth. Those claws would pass just as easily through flesh.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">One step and then another, each one a struggle not to turn and run the other way. Again and again I reminded myself that this was James. He would never hurt me, not even in this form. He had control I couldn't match, and truthfully, I was the more dangerous of the two of us. All his life his family had taught him how to deal with what he was. There was no one to teach me how to deal with what I'd become.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Not seeing myself as a frail, helpless thing got me past the last few steps. Careful to avoid his tail dangling over the side, I eased myself onto the bed and curled up beside him. The warmth of his big body seeped over me, his familiar presence stealing away the fear of having sharp fangs inches from my face. I laid my hand over one massive paw and placed my head on my arm so I was facing him. Lids still closed, James shifted his head and rested it over my hand. Enveloped in perfect comfort, I prepared to surrender to the night.</span></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-91207833961272301652014-12-05T16:08:00.004-05:002014-12-14T15:30:05.235-05:00Book Blitz: Walled by Anne Tibbets<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6g2bjCVWInQpgsAk3wKxAg7KB_C5wE0Uw0W0hrN4RjocbIv0INWHvK_zJiiuypKYPisByxgSDIHbzfBnPmsnl2TnFLx8C6f-Z-nJwCpJbh76eTWBxL93KbqMoAgbtVmOl2jlU431c1Q/s1600/WalledBlitzBanner.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Walled by Anne Tibbets" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6g2bjCVWInQpgsAk3wKxAg7KB_C5wE0Uw0W0hrN4RjocbIv0INWHvK_zJiiuypKYPisByxgSDIHbzfBnPmsnl2TnFLx8C6f-Z-nJwCpJbh76eTWBxL93KbqMoAgbtVmOl2jlU431c1Q/s1600/WalledBlitzBanner.png" height="236" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23010077-walled?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: December 1, 2014<br />
Genre: Dystopia, New Adult<br />
Series: The Line #2<br />
Publisher: Carina Press (HQN)<br />
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Freedom means making brutal choices.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPeMbsWr_2Xvepi0Sc8mW8utqFERYjirTkWqFRoEIsCiVhdVhNTkyL97bsGFPSUcWuchcca9UQYsJWdDIgVgv_Ea7GmslgFVb0UtsN8AvGi1QGfq43CJy9eoG5nuHFvFHNbgsc2fuWkg/s1600/Walled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Walled by Anne Tibbets" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPeMbsWr_2Xvepi0Sc8mW8utqFERYjirTkWqFRoEIsCiVhdVhNTkyL97bsGFPSUcWuchcca9UQYsJWdDIgVgv_Ea7GmslgFVb0UtsN8AvGi1QGfq43CJy9eoG5nuHFvFHNbgsc2fuWkg/s1600/Walled.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Rebel lovers Naya and Ric have survived one year in hiding, raising Naya’s twins from infants to toddlers in the shadow of the brutal Auberge dictatorship. They’re alive, and they’re together, but the city is crumbling around them and the haunting memory of Naya’s dark days on The Line have never fully left them. Living in isolation won’t be an option forever.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When a mysterious revolutionary seeks their help to infiltrate Auberge’s electronic heart and shut it down, it’s an opportunity—it’s risky, yes, but if it works they’ll get out of the city and taste freedom for the first time. Naya needs this. They need this.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Beyond the broken walls of Auberge, Naya and Ric find the paradise they’ve always longed for. But with anarchy reigning and Naya’s children lost amidst the chaos, they’ll need to forfeit their post-apocalyptic Eden…or commit an unspeakable act.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Book two of two.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M6G8N1Y/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=httpwwwgoodco-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00M6G8N1Y&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2" target="_blank">Amazon</a> ! <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-line-book-two-anne-tibbets/1120019167?ean=9781426899294" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJ4F9meB34a24uv0VV3z0-hUtwNPpH82b6WTfJVAPpO9kmpLa9hnYh0CJ5f934Aks6XqXPtJFanDxnvHCvq42aoHeqfgQu0xupmf4l2p4-kzscrXrqPHRJ5xIc-0H_vDETiBOtBY2Bg/s1600/Anne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJ4F9meB34a24uv0VV3z0-hUtwNPpH82b6WTfJVAPpO9kmpLa9hnYh0CJ5f934Aks6XqXPtJFanDxnvHCvq42aoHeqfgQu0xupmf4l2p4-kzscrXrqPHRJ5xIc-0H_vDETiBOtBY2Bg/s1600/Anne.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Anne Tibbets is an SCBWI award-winning and Smashwords.com Best Selling author. After writing for Children’s television, Anne found her way to young/new adult fiction by following what she loves: books, strong female characters, twisted family dynamics, magic, sword fights, quick moving plots, and ferocious and cuddly animals.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Along with CARRIER, Anne is also the author of the young adult fantasy novella, THE BEAST CALL and the young adult contemporary, SHUT UP.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Anne divides her time between writing, her family, and three furry creatures that she secretly believes are plotting her assassination.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4839392.Anne_Tibbets" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://www.annetibbets.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/WriteforCoffee" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AnneTibbetsAuthor" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">Author Blog Post: I Love “Good” Bad Reviews</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Crazy, right?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Who is their right mind would love bad reviews?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Honestly, I love the “good” bad reviews – the what? I mean the ones that have actual issue with the book itself and not the ones that just hate the author, or hate the main character’s life choices, or hate the concept as a whole, and you wonder why they read the book to begin with? I’m talking the “good” bad reviews that find plot holes, don’t buy the character arcs, or have issue with world-building, structure, and style. An actual critique, even if the reviewer hates my work?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Love those!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Now, this is not an invitation.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I’m not asking for you to go on GoodReads and rip apart my writing line by line. That would probably devastate me, let’s me honest. But, done well, a “good” bad review challenges and creates a fire within me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It burns. It hurts. It even leaves scars. But the fire also teaches me something and I can’t not appreciate a good learning experience, even if it leaves a mark.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So critique away. Go for it! I welcome it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Just do me one favor: make it a “good” one.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ub02g5OfdUr6cYli_G1od3MfyGZuy8Q82MfFA4xsGHExFip9us-j9Ut3_vrav-A1NFunhI4qr6-seO3ZLtywEbSmYIr_UJ9JPI7uVHjv-QgFnbsv2HpErD_Dp7HQcSCEvQqq7qpIGg/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ub02g5OfdUr6cYli_G1od3MfyGZuy8Q82MfFA4xsGHExFip9us-j9Ut3_vrav-A1NFunhI4qr6-seO3ZLtywEbSmYIr_UJ9JPI7uVHjv-QgFnbsv2HpErD_Dp7HQcSCEvQqq7qpIGg/s320/Signature+3.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-55752964273756476932014-11-26T16:25:00.000-05:002014-11-26T16:26:29.127-05:00Rites of Passage by Joy Hensley<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibmVcsd5amCzbC1hjROWI3h_YDFlUAdMfXHvlOKYqorxgQ8zVh7fXXVWvD9SbfsuD3mD2DEmDqxAWudb_rg9RZqbtW08A_8tU3qIQdnDFazvf91p6c6c0yobC-sCBWMC8bt-OsQ84qcQ/s1600/18285437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Rites of Passage by Joy Hensley" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibmVcsd5amCzbC1hjROWI3h_YDFlUAdMfXHvlOKYqorxgQ8zVh7fXXVWvD9SbfsuD3mD2DEmDqxAWudb_rg9RZqbtW08A_8tU3qIQdnDFazvf91p6c6c0yobC-sCBWMC8bt-OsQ84qcQ/s1600/18285437.jpg" title="" /></a>Appropriate For: Ages 13 and up<br />
Hardcover: 416 Pages<br />
Release Date: September 9, 2014<br />
Publisher: HarperTeen<br />
Narration: First Person: Sam<br />
Genre: Military/Contemporary<br />
Series: Stand-Alone<br />
<span id="goog_75451373"></span><span id="goog_75451374"></span>Book Trailer: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRF9ByzH6V4" target="_blank">Here</a><br />
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Order On Amazon: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rites-Passage-Joy-N-Hensley/dp/0062295195/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417033738&sr=8-1&keywords=rites+of+passage&pebp=1417033739071" target="_blank">Hardcover</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rites-Passage-Joy-N-Hensley-ebook/dp/B00H7LYM2M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-1&qid=1417033738" target="_blank">Kindle</a><br />
Order On Barnes and Noble:<br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rites-of-passage-joy-hensley/1117657314?ean=9780062295194" target="_blank">Hardcover and Nook</a><br />
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Author's<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7536047.Joy_N_Hensley" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://www.joynhensley.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> <a href="http://www.twitter.com/joynhensley" target="_blank">Twitter</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Goodreads Synopsis:</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sam McKenna’s never turned down a dare. And she's not going to start with the last one her brother gave her before he died.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So Sam joins the first-ever class of girls at the prestigious Denmark Military Academy. She’s expecting push-ups and long runs, rope climbing and mud-crawling. As a military brat, she can handle an obstacle course just as well as the boys. She's even expecting the hostility she gets from some of the cadets who don’t think girls belong there. What she’s not expecting is her fiery attraction to her drill sergeant. But dating is strictly forbidden and Sam won't risk her future, or the dare, on something so petty...no matter how much she wants him.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As Sam struggles to prove herself, she discovers that some of the boys don’t just want her gone—they will stop at nothing to drive her out. When their petty threats turn to brutal hazing, bleeding into every corner of her life, she realizes they are not acting alone. A decades-old secret society is alive and active… and determined to force her out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">At any cost.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Now time's running short. Sam must decide who she can trust...and choosing the wrong person could have deadly consequences.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>My Review:</u></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Boot camp full of dudes. First girls ever to enroll. Now this...this had entertaining written all over it. I was very close to squealing after I read the synopsis. It was a little out of my usual range of genres, but how exactly do you say no to a synopsis like that? Heck, I was about to grab a bag of popcorn to top it off.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So in the beginning of the story, we're introduced to a girl named Sam. Sam was raised in a military family with a dad who lived and breathed military. He was the type of guy to think that girls were weak and dependent, and because of this, Sam was determined to prove him wrong. Did she ever. I cannot even begin to explain the the utter crap that this girl had to put up with. *Insert nonsensical rambling here* There were an infinite amount of times when I just wanted to knock heads together. Especially Matthews. How I hated, how I excreted disgust from my very pores for this boy. I had to get up and kick air for a few moments, because this guy flipped my bitch switch.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Back to Sam. I had to give her props. I'm used to leading female roles who are strong and fierce because of their magic superpowers, but Sam was relentless through sheer force of will. Like I said, the absolute crap she had to deal with...it was enough to drive any person insane. On top of that, she fought back without ever really fighting back. This is the military. You can't yell at your higher ups because things are unfair or you don't agree with what they're doing. Yet she stood up for herself in the simple fashion of not letting anything phase her. They yelled at her. She nonchalantly did what was asked. But at the same time, she wasn't some unfeeling robot who always triumphed. She had feelings. She had emotions. She endured failures. She almost caved a couple of times under the pressure, but she kept herself together.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">However, despite how much I loved her, I also felt like she thought the world revolved around her. When everyone else had issues, she gave it 2 seconds of thought and got over it. These are your supposed friends. They've made mistakes, yeah, but there might be reasons or circumstances why they did. She just jumped to the conclusion that everyone was evil and out to get her. Admittedly, there were an awful amount of people out to get her, but still. Towards the middle to end, very rarely did I see her ask about other people instead of being wrapped up in her own issues. In the beginning, she looked out for her friends, but that sort of just disappeared. I know she had a lot on her plate, but it struck the wrong chord with me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The romance between Drill and Sam was unique. Unlike many YA stories, it didn't happen straight off the bat. They saw each other a bit; there was that initial physical attraction, but it didn't go anywhere. The romance sparks around the middle of the book. This rushed it to an extent, but it was still nice to see something new. Drill was definitely drool-worthy. I think I fell in love with him myself. Throughout the book, he seems so much older than he actually is. It was nuts. They mention that he's 17 often, but you can't help thinking that he's at least 21 or something. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When the story started, I literally had my eyes glued to every page. I think that was mostly because I was so excited to see everything go down. It was intriguing to learn about all the military rankings (Kind of got mixed up on those) and all of the traditions and various uniforms. However, the pace started to slow for me around 65%. There were still tons of things going on, but it wasn't as heart-racing as it was in the beginning.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In conclusion, this is a must read. So far, I believe it's still a stand-alone, but Rites of Passage is definitely set up for a series. There are so many things unresolved, relationships open ended, and people who still have karma coming for them. The writing was excellent, the theme unique, the protagonist diverse. Plus, who can skip out on a book with a synopsis like that? Grab the popcorn. This is going to be a good one.</span></div>
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Heroine- 4/5<br />
Romance- 4.5/5<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a>Action- 3.5/5 Tapered off in the middle<br />
World-Building- 4.5/5<br />
Loved learning about the military world<br />
Writing- 4/5<br />
Overall- 4/5Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-13908612826624436652014-11-23T00:06:00.000-05:002014-11-23T00:06:41.106-05:00Book Blitz + Giveaway: The Expatriates by Corinne O'Flynn<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrzkQV2jEvtMGmafBKGtTwmW2oMQutz6mm6A4CYRK41P7BLnwoGvpur8VDPeqyN3aZjsJHzQS_afpCkRZYfrbSP3ud0RxLgBfnibdM4DTrsj0ASgT664vmEkyVoEPzm8scd_xcZ_wyLw/s1600/ExpatriatesBlitzBanner.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Expatriates by Corinne O'Flynn" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrzkQV2jEvtMGmafBKGtTwmW2oMQutz6mm6A4CYRK41P7BLnwoGvpur8VDPeqyN3aZjsJHzQS_afpCkRZYfrbSP3ud0RxLgBfnibdM4DTrsj0ASgT664vmEkyVoEPzm8scd_xcZ_wyLw/s1600/ExpatriatesBlitzBanner.png" height="236" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22917879-the-expatriates" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: October 15, 2014<br />
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult<br />
Series: The Expatriates #1<br />
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They told him his world was destroyed.</div>
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And they were the last to escape.</div>
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They thought he was safe.</div>
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They were wrong.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Jim Wales can communicate with animals, but that’s not why he lives with a traveling carnival. Turns out his family’s been hiding him there since he was little, since someone started hunting all the scholars. Jim is a scholar—someone who can manipulate energy using magic—and he has no idea.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When a message arrives from Jim’s father—who supposedly died twelve years ago—Jim’s whereabouts are discovered, their carnival is attacked, and his mother is kidnapped. On the run with a strange glass map and a single coin, Jim finds himself racing to reclaim the father he thought he’d lost, plotting to save his mother, and discovering the truth about who he is.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But going home isn’t the same as being safe, and trust is everything.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What readers are saying:</span></div>
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"Told in a beautiful, flowing style full of colorful images and adrenaline-pumping action."</div>
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"Pop some popcorn, sit back ... and enjoy the thrill ride, right up to the end, which leaves you begging for more."</div>
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"Captures your attention from the start and then guides you through a roller coaster of adventure, drama, mystery, magic and young love."</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Expatriates-Book-Song-Sending-ebook/dp/B00OLDLOBQ" target="_blank">Amazon</a> ! <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-expatriates-book-one-corinne-oflynn/1120628321?ean=2940150751088" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYnBru-jp4ho9mJ3RnxoZkUH4-wFqzfyV62yCy0BFWM9hK4utwAvVLJZLE3E1Shm_xDOaEmnhrHDAfFLgXNTG0d70bJDwhx_9hrg4qvQ4DBdOeYS6LQ84AbZJWLVxcgSZKyIP6FDEvJg/s1600/headshop500x_lowres.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Corinne O'Flynn" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYnBru-jp4ho9mJ3RnxoZkUH4-wFqzfyV62yCy0BFWM9hK4utwAvVLJZLE3E1Shm_xDOaEmnhrHDAfFLgXNTG0d70bJDwhx_9hrg4qvQ4DBdOeYS6LQ84AbZJWLVxcgSZKyIP6FDEvJg/s1600/headshop500x_lowres.jpg" height="320" title="" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Corinne O'Flynn is a native New Yorker who now lives in Colorado and wouldn't trade life in the Rockies for anything. She loves writing flash and experimenting with short fiction. Her novel, THE EXPATRIATES (Oct. 2014) is a YA fantasy adventure with magic and creatures and lots of creepy stuff. She is a scone aficionado, has an entire section of her kitchen devoted to tea, and is always on the lookout for the elusive Peanut Chews candy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When she isn’t writing or hanging with her family, Corinne works as the executive director of a nonprofit. She is a member of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, Mystery Writers of America, and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. You can find her online at her website, Facebook, or Twitter @CorinneOFlynn.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22917879-the-expatriates" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://www.corinneoflynn.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="http://www.twitter.com/CorinneOFlynn" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="http://www.facebook.com/oflynnbooks" target="_blank">Facebook</a> ! <a href="http://eepurl.com/YNic5" target="_blank">Newsletter</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Tell us about your book.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">THE EXPATRIATES is the first book in a new YA fantasy series about a teenage boy, Jim Wales, who discovers his family’s been hiding him in a traveling carnival because he’s being hunted for his powers. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I’ve been told my writing is quite visual, and I like to think that’s true. I’m a very visual person and that comes through while I’m at my desk writing because as I build the worlds of my story, I tend to start with visuals in an attempt to bring you into my world, fully in that moment, in that scene. I think all writers want readers to have that immersive experience while reading. And for me, that begins with visuals.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Do you have to plan to write </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">or are you constantly jotting ideas and lines down?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A little of both. The only way for me to get work done is to schedule the time on my calendar. My biggest challenge in my daily life is time-competition. We’ve got a lot of balls in the air at our house, and even though I work from home, it’s difficult to stay on task and on schedule with things that can be pushed back. So, while I am always jotting things down and making voice memos for myself as ideas and lines come to me, I won’t get anything done unless I make a plan to write. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I write because I love to read. I love reading a story that makes my world disappear, or makes my heart race, or makes my soul ache. I love reading the kind of stories that stick with me, that make me think, and even the ones that are just plain thrilling. I write in an attempt to do that. I have stories inside my own head that transport me in that way, and I think it’s awesome to be able to share that with readers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">Giveaway:</span><br />
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-66864714713782175282014-11-07T23:20:00.000-05:002014-11-07T23:22:21.681-05:00Book Blitz + Giveaway: Dust by Sarah Daltry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijupTu4vxwlIechJy23t64cQiFrWMTif3Esiwj_YnqQTWSLT5CV4NgqbmW0Q7YhT_ZnSSGQeskx_MGsty0UMA7lYRTT-3cB7UPWnHH3KD2Bq8ny72jneuQFUBOntOfrBvLSdS8g6EMRw/s1600/DustBlitzBanner1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Dust by Sarah Daltry" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijupTu4vxwlIechJy23t64cQiFrWMTif3Esiwj_YnqQTWSLT5CV4NgqbmW0Q7YhT_ZnSSGQeskx_MGsty0UMA7lYRTT-3cB7UPWnHH3KD2Bq8ny72jneuQFUBOntOfrBvLSdS8g6EMRw/s1600/DustBlitzBanner1.png" height="235" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23271178-dust?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: November 7, 2014<br />
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult<br />
Series: The Frost Chronicles #1<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Who makes YOUR choices?</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiijFqyGzaJa7vOaTDqL3HQrhoM8uC5NldfkElZs4SdrMgMaOIZXPrpkbolK7Y5sqIcvynJKl5SAizwmDK74k5WkYxjnO59K6ZyoLm-FmoSw_J4p3SmkhZsraNdWNvJiM8vvxPjdoF0pw/s1600/Dust.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Dust by Sarah Daltry" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiijFqyGzaJa7vOaTDqL3HQrhoM8uC5NldfkElZs4SdrMgMaOIZXPrpkbolK7Y5sqIcvynJKl5SAizwmDK74k5WkYxjnO59K6ZyoLm-FmoSw_J4p3SmkhZsraNdWNvJiM8vvxPjdoF0pw/s1600/Dust.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I was once the type of person who was impressed by starlight; the type of person who would dance beneath glass ceilings and let the world swim in its loveliness. The sky reminds me of the parties we used to throw – parties like the one last night. The memories bring back the trill of harps and endless ripples of satisfied laughter. Now, though, when I try to recall what I felt, all I hear is screaming.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In a world ravaged by war and oppressive forces of evil, a princess must fight to claim her bloodright and save her people.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When the princess, Alondra, falls for the beautiful, blue eyes of a hooded stranger, it awakens in her a taste for freedom and an escape from her duty.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But her parents have other plans; they have a kingdom to protect and Alondra must marry to ensure the peace between nations. Only what happens when your parents choose a cold-hearted assassin as your betrothed?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As lies, illusions, and long hidden vendettas surface, the princess has to confront a very secret history. One that makes her realize that she not only risks losing her liberty, but also everything she has known and loved.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dust-Sarah-Daltry-ebook/dp/B00NFTEDGK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1415126896&sr=8-1&keywords=Dust+by+Sarah+Daltry" target="_blank">Amazon</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgUqQdF_teNEEZk40kzooQmc0B7QG4DPMEOXPB0HKl3Mbfsqqb5xyRC0H_J186MgT_naqC9sPDzJb388U881gnh_TS4rmKtxAH-HNQIeLAQrUtOGzvdB1fC2uTvTdDzt0Jbo73CysoOw/s1600/SarahAuthorPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgUqQdF_teNEEZk40kzooQmc0B7QG4DPMEOXPB0HKl3Mbfsqqb5xyRC0H_J186MgT_naqC9sPDzJb388U881gnh_TS4rmKtxAH-HNQIeLAQrUtOGzvdB1fC2uTvTdDzt0Jbo73CysoOw/s1600/SarahAuthorPhoto.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sarah Daltry is a varied author, known best for the contemporary New Adult series, 'Flowering', a six-title series that explores the complexities of relationships, including how we survive the damage from our pasts with the support of those who love us. Although the books are no longer in print, they are being rewritten and redeveloped for future publication. Please visit Sarah's website for more details.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As a former English teacher and YA library coordinator, Sarah has always loved Young Adult literature and 'Dust', an epic fantasy novel where romance blends with the blood and grit of war, is her second official foray into YA, following the gamer geek romantic comedy, 'Backward Compatible'. Most of Sarah's work is about teens and college students, as it's what she knows well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sarah's passion in life is writing - weaving tales of magic and beauty. The modern and vast social networking world is an alternative universe that she makes infrequent trips to, but when she does, readers will find her attentive, friendly and happy to discuss the magic of stories and reading. Please stop by and say hello anywhere Sarah is online! You can find these places at http://sarahdaltry.com</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sarah has moved back and forth between independent and traditional publishing. Her first novel, 'Bitter Fruits', is with Escape, an imprint of Harlequin Australia, and she signed with Little Bird Publishing in the spring of 2014.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sarah has also written 'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,' a reimagining of one of her favorite poems in a contemporary setting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">She is an obsessive Anglophile who spends more time watching BBC TV than any human being should, as well as a hardcore gamer and sarcastic nerd.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7012679.Sarah_Daltry" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://sarahdaltry.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/SarahDaltry" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sarahdaltrybooks" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Excerpt:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Curiosity echoes through the room. No one goes to Challar. We live in a world that does not need history books; stories that we need to know are preserved through the bards and everything else... Well, some things are better left in the past. I know there is much of Anara that has been kept from me, but I always believed my parents and elders when they said the past was buried to save us. Now, though, I feel like a marionette, and I want to know who’s holding the strings. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Something’s bothering me,” I tell Seamus. “I can’t explain it, and please don’t ask. But I want to go to see if I can get some questions answered. I planned on going without telling anyone and being back for dinner. Still,” I pause, “I would be happy to have your company.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Sure,” he says. The truce is unspoken, but it’s there. As he said yesterday, I cannot fight my destiny; now at least I have someone to go alongside me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Thank you. I’m sorry I can’t say more, but I hope you take comfort in knowing that my asking is…”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He nods. “I understand. Actually, there was something I wanted to say to you before you left, and I suppose now is as good a time as any. You see, Alondra, I… Well, I know that this is challenging for you. I know that our parents strive to think for the future, to establish an alliance that will better both of our kingdoms and Anara as a whole. However, I don’t want to hurt you.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Seamus,” I start, but he brushes his fingers across my lips and continues.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I never anticipated that you would love me, but I don’t want to be hated. Not by my wife. I see the way you look at me. I see what you see, and I know what I am. I am prepared to offer you a choice, Alondra. After you depart Demoria, I will not contact you until we return to your kingdom for the engagement ball. When I return to Kooram, I ask that you tell me how you feel then. If you still feel that our marriage would never be more than a punishment, I will publicly ask for a dissolution of the agreement.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Your kingdom will blame me,” I argue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Although I am an assassin, Alondra, I am also a prince. I know how to affect change with words as well as with a blade.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I want to reply, to say something, even though I don’t know what words would bubble to the surface. Choices swim in my mind and I try to pull the threads of them apart to see the future lying at the end of each. As I contemplate, Seamus leans over. He gets closer and I realize he is going to kiss me. I don’t have time to decide if that’s okay before a scream rings out from the party below. </span><br />
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-17123688606575685482014-11-02T12:47:00.003-05:002014-11-02T12:52:07.133-05:00Honey Queen by Christina Mercer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYTHX_qD-ypwixDwsrmKjrNdU-0ijrrjPRLS4sBcsoSAy6c89mAWxQ8GojfVq8vTpK-Jz9l67PT_zQkKtri_SZJk498U62nB5R_X8PCmNdB8bgCqEVMj4F477d_3rmTsXXcB5WGCN8GQ/s1600/22387563.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Honey Queen by Christina Mercer" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYTHX_qD-ypwixDwsrmKjrNdU-0ijrrjPRLS4sBcsoSAy6c89mAWxQ8GojfVq8vTpK-Jz9l67PT_zQkKtri_SZJk498U62nB5R_X8PCmNdB8bgCqEVMj4F477d_3rmTsXXcB5WGCN8GQ/s1600/22387563.jpg" title="" /></a>Appropriate For: Ages 13 and up<br />
Kindle: 270 Pages<br />
Release Date: May 31, 2014<br />
Publisher: Self-Published<br />
Narration: First Person: Melaina<br />
Genre: Mythology/<br />
Contemporary Setting<br />
Series: Stand-Alone<br />
<span id="goog_75451373"></span><span id="goog_75451374"></span><br />
Order On Amazon: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Honey-Queen-Christina-Mercer/dp/069222484X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414949297&sr=8-1&keywords=honey+queen" target="_blank">Paperback</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Honey-Queen-Christina-Mercer-ebook/dp/B00KP3TLX4/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-1&qid=1414949297" target="_blank">Kindle</a><br />
Order On Barnes and Noble:<br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/honey-queen-christina-mercer/1119661177?ean=9780692224847" target="_blank">Paperback and Nook</a><br />
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Author's<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6980508.Christina_Mercer" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://christinamercer.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> <a href="http://www.twitter.com/cwritebuzz" target="_blank">Twitter</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22387563-honey-queen" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Goodreads Synopsis:</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Love is honey sweet, but it comes with a fatal sting . . .</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Melaina Maris needs wings to fly the gap between loving Sam and her family’s ancient curse that forces carnal love and then kills the male lovers. She won’t let the same fate that killed her father befall another. She refuses to allow her goddess-created bloodline to continue. But there’s no easy way out, especially after the curse turns her into the Honey Queen—savior to honey bees—intensifying her charms.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">To help her fulfill the curse’s demands in the least harmful way, her grandmother takes her to mate with terminally ill Boyd. But Boyd’s gay. And an expert in mythology. Instead of having sex, Melaina learns how she might summon the goddess who created the first ancestor bee-charmer and cursed her bloodline. Melaina's magic—tears to save honey bees from endangerment—could be enough to persuade the goddess to end the curse. But an unexpected discovery soon changes that hope, spinning Melaina into a swarm of love, friendship and death. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>My Review:</u></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When I first read the synopsis, I was skeptical. Honey bees? Honey Queen? Authors really have to dig deep now to find any YA ideas that haven't already been bled dry. To be honest, I found the idea laughable at first, kind of like the theme of Hungry by Swain, though admittedly not to that extent. </span><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Who's ready to get hungry?</span></i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> However, there was also a part of me that was intrigued, so I decided to give it a try.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Melaina's power over bees stems in Greek Mythology, from a goddess named Aera whose domain lies over honey bees and virginity. In order to shirk her duties as a goddess, Aera created a line of female descendants whose main purpose in life was to tend her honey bees and live out a life of chastity. However, things go awry when the first of her line falls in love with a demigod. They have a daughter, but not without consequences. Angered by the act of love, Aera curses the family. From that day on, the mothers are cursed to have carnal urges for men until they get pregnant and continue the long line of daughters. To make matters worse, the men fall ill soon after and die as soon as the baby is born.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Aera always needs someone to care for her honeybees. For Melaina, that isn't a problem, since it's her passion in life, as it was for her mother, grandmother, and so on. However, another downside of the curse is that if she leaves the honey bees for a long period of time, she eventually withers and dies. Uplifting, isn't it? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As for Melaina's character, I could never connect with her. She showed compassion and thought of others, but it was all on the surface. I never felt it. Throughout the entire book, her thought processes consisted of, </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">"<span style="font-family: inherit;">I hate this goddess,"</span> "I really, really like Sam, but I can't be with him, because it'll kill him," "I must seclude myself in misery," "What am I going to do? What am I going to do? What am I going to do?"</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> It was irritating to hear the same thoughts over and over again. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">One time, she sees a really hot guy and tries to restrain herself. But then, she thinks, You know what? I can prove to this goddess bitch that I'm above this curse. I'll just kiss him..just a little bit. Then I'll back off, I promise. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">*Insert eye roll*</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> Like that's gonna happen. You already know that you're raging hormonal, yet you decide to tempt fate anyways? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The romance wasn't much of a romance. There were some flashbacks of when Melaina and Sam were kids, but that wasn't enough for me to want them to be together. If there were more, perhaps I would've understood their friendship better. The lust curse hit Melaina pretty early into the story, so the conversations between Melaina and Sam consisted of more making out than anything. When they weren't making out, Sam was knocking on the door or basically stalking her, trying to get her to talk to him, which eventually led to more of the aforementioned making out. The depth in their relationship was nonexistent.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Overall, Honey Queen was a superficial story. Things were happening on the surface, but they all felt fake and unreal. I can't even explain it. I give props to the author for the honey bee theme though. It's definitely a breath of fresh air, and Greek mythology is always a good thing. The writing wasn't bad, but the explanations were confusing at times. Perhaps this just wasn't my cup of tea.</span></div>
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Heroine- 2/5<br />
Romance- 2/5<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a>Action- 3/5<br />
World-Building- 3.5/5<br />
Writing- 3/5<br />
Overall- 2.5/5Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-81628742926737067172014-10-29T00:00:00.000-04:002014-10-29T00:00:06.111-04:00Book Blitz + Author Interview: Escape from Witchwood Hollow by Jordan Elizabeth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFBRqOL4sPx5c1DTa1zUl96RifS_5gxvt8nniK3VXWpI8cpHuxG34kqJ4MRNtYYOHgLbZ1aNKhcokQKBB3RqMvqoTej3MUYZfOD9mhyphenhyphenJB3ElUr5rbg_mygUd9za3EKrC_jY706HCevBA/s1600/Tour+Dates.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFBRqOL4sPx5c1DTa1zUl96RifS_5gxvt8nniK3VXWpI8cpHuxG34kqJ4MRNtYYOHgLbZ1aNKhcokQKBB3RqMvqoTej3MUYZfOD9mhyphenhyphenJB3ElUr5rbg_mygUd9za3EKrC_jY706HCevBA/s1600/Tour+Dates.jpg" height="236" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">How far into the hollow would you go?</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm25rBnjyYZRd6P7gKnCnwzZkoklVRUfI7YeHI25HjCkIgm4snh2eRIypbgRhbqnOLurHOtFP-qDQC5RHli7t42v0Lj1k8xdwwv9IWjz_GNoIl7jkJeOnz6TjsWbDl5Ej_Q9inqY-gew/s1600/Witchwood-Hollow---Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Escape from Witchwood Hollow by Jordan Elizabeth" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm25rBnjyYZRd6P7gKnCnwzZkoklVRUfI7YeHI25HjCkIgm4snh2eRIypbgRhbqnOLurHOtFP-qDQC5RHli7t42v0Lj1k8xdwwv9IWjz_GNoIl7jkJeOnz6TjsWbDl5Ej_Q9inqY-gew/s1600/Witchwood-Hollow---Cover.jpg" height="400" title="" width="266" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">After losing her parents in a terrorist attack on the Twin Towers, fifteen-year-old Honoria escapes New York City to Arnn—a farming town with more legends than residents, and a history of witchcraft and secrets best left buried.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Everyone in Arnn knows the story of Witchwood Hollow: if you venture into the whispering forest, the witch will trap your soul among the shadowed trees. In the lure of that perpetual darkness, Honoria finds hope when she should be afraid, and a past of missing children and broken promises. To save the citizens of Arnn from becoming the witch’s next victims, she must find the truth behind the woman’s madness. How deep into Witchwood Hollow does Honoria dare venture?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW is Jordan Elizabeth’s first novel. This young adult fantasy, published through Curiosity Quills Press, is now available for purchase. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="https://curiosityquills.com/books/escape-witchwood-hollow/" target="_blank">Curiosity Quills</a> )<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidvJ_i1feK0Lg9Yg7UQBRF2OZk_o-DB8qG6uwyk_REFJalZTDtXecvO9ITRJZAZA0xbMFaL1FZXiHClqZmb6NBApqiOMVFB3OwbIqoDw3Q-LsM90VEl6lBRAxCXqiPFE_ucyLO-2PQsg/s1600/Author.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidvJ_i1feK0Lg9Yg7UQBRF2OZk_o-DB8qG6uwyk_REFJalZTDtXecvO9ITRJZAZA0xbMFaL1FZXiHClqZmb6NBApqiOMVFB3OwbIqoDw3Q-LsM90VEl6lBRAxCXqiPFE_ucyLO-2PQsg/s1600/Author.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a><span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Jordan Elizabeth, formally Jordan Elizabeth Mierek, can’t get enough of the woods, be it splashing through a stream, sitting beneath an ancient oak, or following a path up a hill. Some of those adventures have led to abandoned foundations. Exploring the rocks and crumbling bricks sparked Jordan to imagine who might have lived there before, and that train of thought carried her to a wicked legend and an enchanted hollow. You can contact Jordan via her website, JordanElizabethMierek.com.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Author Interview with Jordan Elizabeth</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Question: </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Have you always dreamed of becoming an author? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">If not, what inspired you to become one?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Answer:</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> I did always dream of becoming an author. My mother read to me since the moment I could lift my head and it just took off from there. I used to make up stories and my grandmother would record them on a tape-player. To me, authors were even greater than movie stars.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Question:</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Did you enjoy reading books as a child?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">If yes, what books were your all time favorites?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Answer:</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> Every time I went somewhere with my grandmother, be it grocery store or mall, she would buy me a book. My favorites were the Berenstein Bears when I was really little, and as I got older, novels by Bruce Coville and Tamora Pierce. I feel honored to have been able to meet them in real life. They actually live near me. If I’d known that as a child, I probably would have swooned or squealed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Question:</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Are any of your characters based off of people in real life? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like yourself or friends?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Answer: </span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">There is always one character who reflects bits of me. As for my friends, definitely! There is no one character who is strictly so-and-so; I take pieces of my friends and family, and I sprinkle them across. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Question: </span>When you’re writing a novel, do you ever get distracted by sparkly things on the Internet and end up doing something else?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Answer:</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> I wouldn’t say “distracted.” It is more like life gets in the way. I work a full-time job and then I go to the nursing home to visit my grandmother. I’m also president of the Utica Writers Club and I teach writing workshops at a local library. Throw in time I spend with my fiancé. Oh yeah, don’t forget housework and yard work. I can usually only squeeze in an hour – two hours if I’m lucky – of writing a night. My biggest hindrance in that hour is exhaustion. I’ll write it a little bit, feel too tired, and kind of collapse on my bed. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgspLrKzUVVIrtkL3jCu8ajCS-Ihccs2pG9DlzNtAWcfn_-2FCEXVTCFgw6kqHeBZ3NrXwfpQT72uTOUstiZQ00KJLDEXID9W5kfghpUw5t0ABfQo2v3eAoxdVUZuHKlgtjlWKPoJfMdA/s1600/60510.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgspLrKzUVVIrtkL3jCu8ajCS-Ihccs2pG9DlzNtAWcfn_-2FCEXVTCFgw6kqHeBZ3NrXwfpQT72uTOUstiZQ00KJLDEXID9W5kfghpUw5t0ABfQo2v3eAoxdVUZuHKlgtjlWKPoJfMdA/s1600/60510.jpg" height="320" width="205" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Question: </span>If you had to recommend a book, or series, what would it be?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Answer:</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> POISON STUDY by Maria V. Snyder. I haven’t heard from anyone that they hated it. I’ve read it so many times and each reading is amazing. Plus, Maria is an incredible person. She’s helped me so much on my journey to becoming an author. I’ll write to any author I can – they usually have an email address on their website – to let them know what I thought of their book. She actually wrote back all those years ago.</span>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Question: </span>What are some of your hobbies? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Answer:</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> Jewelry making, photography, and painting. Currently I’m painting my front deck, but my true calling in that regard involves painting pictures on canvas. My specialty is orange-and-blue. The person is in shades of blue and the background is orange.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Question:</span> If you were to one day wake up with magical powers, what powers would they be and what would be the first thing you’d do with them?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Answer:</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span>Fly! I would feel so safe. My first thing to do? Jump off my balcony and soar to the floor!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Speed Run:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Question: Rain or Sun?</span><br />
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<a href="http://images.sodahead.com/polls/000537785/polls_rain_dance_3813_791713_poll_xlarge.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://images.sodahead.com/polls/000537785/polls_rain_dance_3813_791713_poll_xlarge.jpeg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Answer: Rain. There is something soothing about falling asleep to rain on the roof and windows. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Question: Coke or Sprite?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Answer: Coke. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Sprite has sodium benzoate in it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Question: Hardcover or Ereader?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Answer: Hardcover. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I need to feel it in my hands and be able to flip the pages.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Question: Vanilla or Chocolate?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Answer: Vanilla. Chocolate sometimes hurts my teeth.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Question: Cat or Dog?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Answer: Dog for me. My mom is allergic to cats, so I grew up with a dog. My fiancé loves cats and wants a whole house of them, sooo….</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Jordan Elizabeth is offering up a free eArc of ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW. To enter for your chance to win a copy of ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW, you will need to share the cover. This can be on your blog, Facebook, Twitter… Each time you share the cover image, log it into Rafflecoper to record it. It will give you more chances to win. There are other ways to enter. You’ll have to take a look to see what those are! The drawing for the winner will be held on November 16.</span></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-86084223252176933192014-10-28T00:00:00.000-04:002014-10-28T00:00:05.137-04:00Book Blast + Giveaway: Catalyst by S.J. Kincaid<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguwdha4KxCX3XEmomhWN1u7qV5HWENeY8DYqL2ck-p5lZhPXzKZ-laYljxByOUDhdvB2EGjToXHfXPHWH1f95JmVa_y_3W90dhNQlPbtj6yJd7-VmLSD_Dv7td84Sff6Kj6ovmM9up6g/s1600/Catalyst+Banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Catalyst by S.J. Kincaid" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguwdha4KxCX3XEmomhWN1u7qV5HWENeY8DYqL2ck-p5lZhPXzKZ-laYljxByOUDhdvB2EGjToXHfXPHWH1f95JmVa_y_3W90dhNQlPbtj6yJd7-VmLSD_Dv7td84Sff6Kj6ovmM9up6g/s1600/Catalyst+Banner.jpg" title="" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18054017-catalyst?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: October 28, 2014<br />
Genre: Dystopia, Young Adult<br />
Series: Insignia #3<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The explosive conclusion to the series reviewers </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">have likened to Ender’s Game and “Hogwarts-in-Space”</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgudgy3uO2WvjHTukouhK65ojYl7Y4HcL5nq3fZjagCWjpGSeUFR-9AMXLH99UsUun5SOoyNcSOI5g75ur0zKEXdEs0kNAO2Nx5N9oyWIs1M4PIynCguLlzf-9UIWTDnX0e7_v1JD723Q/s1600/Catalyst.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Catalyst by S.J. Kincaid" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgudgy3uO2WvjHTukouhK65ojYl7Y4HcL5nq3fZjagCWjpGSeUFR-9AMXLH99UsUun5SOoyNcSOI5g75ur0zKEXdEs0kNAO2Nx5N9oyWIs1M4PIynCguLlzf-9UIWTDnX0e7_v1JD723Q/s1600/Catalyst.jpg" height="400" title="" width="264" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This exhilarating, explosive, and heartrending conclusion to the Insignia trilogy brings Tom and his intelligent, passionate, and brave young friends stunning tests and dangerous confrontations and through to an impossible future they could never have predicted.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Tom Raines and his friends are eager to return to the Pentagonal Spire to continue training for the elite Intrasolar Forces, but they soon discover troubling changes: strict new regulations and the revelation that the Spire is under new military control. What begins as an irritating adjustment soon reveals a dangerous shift in reality. Those now in control are aligned with corporate sponsors and their ruthless agendas. And when the military academy begins welcoming new cadets with suspicious neural processors, the first step in a plan with horrifying worldwide ramifications, Tom is desperate to stop it, even if that means keeping secrets from his closest allies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Then a mysterious figure, the other ghost in the machine, begins fighting against the corporations, but with methods even Tom finds shocking. And when the enemy comes for Tom, how much can Tom endure in the battle to save himself? He must decide if he can still fight when the odds of success seem to be sliding from his grip.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Catalyst-Insignia-S-J-Kincaid/dp/0062093053/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=jamesval-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=Y27R5LXEC7KCKCOV&creativeASIN=0062093053" target="_blank">Amazon</a> ! <a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/link?id=OSM9yXwjjU4&offerid=239662.9780062093059&type=2&murl=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.barnesandnoble.com%2FCatalyst%2FS-J-Kincaid%2Fe%2F9780062093059" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> ! <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Catalyst-Kincaid/9780062093059" target="_blank">Book Depository</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCQ8mfonms2fu6rtnpTQ5-cStZ_n00bhSL_tT2DIrBZQ9Ia2BREF61iJE_wRClp91LXfAoLDPZFfwJESTsWc-sr2fKtHBXiXkk3VYRB72wZH8fIi5Q6VXH0-g24F515A9iwpYbOQctIQ/s1600/Giveaway+Banner.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="S.J. Kincaid" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCQ8mfonms2fu6rtnpTQ5-cStZ_n00bhSL_tT2DIrBZQ9Ia2BREF61iJE_wRClp91LXfAoLDPZFfwJESTsWc-sr2fKtHBXiXkk3VYRB72wZH8fIi5Q6VXH0-g24F515A9iwpYbOQctIQ/s1600/Giveaway+Banner.JPG" height="269" title="" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">S.J. Kincaid was born in Alabama, grew up in California, and attended high school in New Hampshire, but it was while living beside a haunted graveyard in Scotland, that she realized that she wanted to be a writer. Her debut, Insignia, came out in July of 2012. The second book in the series, Vortex came out in July of 2013. The final book in the INSIGNIA trilogy will come out in Fall of 2014.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4792223.S_J_Kincaid" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://sjkincaid.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/SJKincaidBooks" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SJKincaidBooks" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<br />Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-57096735144419776002014-10-26T16:35:00.001-04:002014-10-26T16:40:37.499-04:00Cinder by Marissa Meyer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9Z-IvF6yTO8QN4xgdqe2xd9e5i9IBCe1Xm6UBB_9bJ3vcRK_mmgfx_7uqAbsUZiDRjJDrNaQ7v3GPe5OYkw7cnX0M3ghVm8WW27FAC8ESCT68z0LC5vXs8x-HMukVSGGHIBrOBpVlw/s1600/11235712.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Cinder by Marissa Meyer" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9Z-IvF6yTO8QN4xgdqe2xd9e5i9IBCe1Xm6UBB_9bJ3vcRK_mmgfx_7uqAbsUZiDRjJDrNaQ7v3GPe5OYkw7cnX0M3ghVm8WW27FAC8ESCT68z0LC5vXs8x-HMukVSGGHIBrOBpVlw/s1600/11235712.jpg" title="" /></a>Appropriate For: Ages 12 and up<br />
Hardcover: 390 Pages<br />
Release Date: January 3, 2012<br />
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends<br />
Narration: Third Person: Cinder<br />
Genre: Fairytale Retelling/Futuristic<br />
Trailer: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXrMAFGWyuE" target="_blank">Click Here</a><br />
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The Lunar Chronicles<br />
Book One: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11235712-cinder" target="_blank">Cinder</a><br />
Book Two: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13206760-scarlet" target="_blank">Scarlet</a><br />
Book Three: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13206828-cress" target="_blank">Cress</a><br />
Book Four: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13206900-winter" target="_blank">Winter</a> (2015)<br />
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Order On Amazon: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cinder-Book-One-Lunar-Chronicles/dp/1250007208/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414353665&sr=8-1&keywords=cinder" target="_blank">Paperback</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cinder-Book-One-Lunar-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B005KJJ4F8/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-1&qid=1414353665" target="_blank">Kindle</a><br />
Order On Barnes and Noble:<br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cinder-marissa-meyer/1100649238?ean=9781250007209" target="_blank">Paperback and Nook</a><br />
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Author's<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4684322.Marissa_Meyer" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://www.marissameyer.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> <a href="http://www.twitter.com/marissa_meyer" target="_blank">Twitter</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11235712-cinder" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Goodreads Synopsis:</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>My Review:</u></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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I can't freaking believe that I gave up on this a year ago.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">At the time, when I was still horrifically naive to the world, I decided that Cinder wasn't worth my time because it sported a very creepy picture of a metal leg on its cover. Cyborgs have never interested me before, and quite frankly, they scare me. Never has a book changed my opinion so fast. After I got over my initial cringe at the robotic part of things, this book was smooth sailing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I absolutely loved Cinder's character. She had such a strong, courageous personality, and despite her machinery, she was undeniably human. She had her doubts, she over thought things, yet in the end, she followed her heart. It was so fun and great watching her be a fumbling, awkward teenager. Her entrance at the ball almost killed me. I literally tossed my Kindle on the couch and started jumping around, waving my hands in the air while simultaneously hitting myself in the face because of the inevitable mortification to come. I felt for her. She was real and full of depth.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Another strike for my initial repulsion for this book was that it was a fairy tale retelling. I've never read one and enjoyed it. In fact, I have some less than savory experiences with that particular genre of books. However, Cinder threw all those reservations to the wind. This was an AWESOME retelling. It had a huge amount of references and events from the original Cinderella story, yet I never felt bored, as if I was reading an old, worn out tale. It had its parallels, yet it also stood out in stark contrast with it's fairytale counterpart. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The romance was nicely written. Although the attraction sparked quickly, it was definitely not insta-love in the slightest. In the beginning, it was really only Cinder's infatuation with the prince. I mean, come on, if a prince arrived at my shop, I would definitely be making googly eyes at him. However, as their interactions became more commonplace, their relationship grew as well. I fell in love with Kai every time he made an attempt to court Cinder in his own cutesy way, and I laughed obnoxiously whenever Cinder answered with sarcasm and jabs to get him to leave her alone. I'm really looking forward to seeing how their relationship develops. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">If you're new to this series, you might be wondering how Cinder and Kai's relationship might develop since each book is focused on a different fairytale. Although each book does introduce a new person, all of the books in the series are told in alternating third person perspectives from everyone. In the end, all of the stories will intertwine into one package of awesomeness. Slightly like Game of Thrones, though not nearly as messy with all the backstories and whatnot.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In conclusion, I'm ecstatic that I decided to pick Cinder up, despite my initial cringe reaction. The writing style was beautiful, and I absolutely adored Cinder's dialogue and inner commentary. It was action packed, so much so that I read it in one sitting, never allowing my attention to wander. Filled with an familiar yet unique storyline, a sarcastic mechanic, an adorable romance, and a fast-paced adventure, Cinder is definitely a book you want to check out.</span></div>
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Heroine- 5/5<br />
Romance- 6/5 ADORABLE! Another plus was that it was there, but it wasn't overpowering.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a>Action- 5/5 Couldn't stop reading!<br />
Humor- 5/5<br />
World-Building- 5/5 She made a futuristic, robotic world that didn't terrify me. That in itself is a huge feat.<br />
Writing- 5/5<br />
Overall- 5/5Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-79746398629385660472014-10-17T21:24:00.000-04:002014-10-17T21:49:10.215-04:00The Young Elites by Marie Lu<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUqMCdriNJ97Y503nnLC8k47cBa4_2OAJEd-S3BWq7w1NKhASdnBTYNMEdwOgTyz3iQs5hNeziM1fts8O1ggCMIpHZottNxHWJauAU9T_w_QcvBUqYsPEBYt_Gn1ErcSAxa_pBUSynDw/s1600/20821111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="The Young Elites by Marie Lu" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUqMCdriNJ97Y503nnLC8k47cBa4_2OAJEd-S3BWq7w1NKhASdnBTYNMEdwOgTyz3iQs5hNeziM1fts8O1ggCMIpHZottNxHWJauAU9T_w_QcvBUqYsPEBYt_Gn1ErcSAxa_pBUSynDw/s1600/20821111.jpg" title="" /></a>Appropriate For: Ages 13 and up<br />
Hardcover: 368 Pages<br />
Release Date: October 7, 2014<br />
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile<br />
Narration: First Person: Adelina<br />
Third Person: Raffaele, Teren<br />
Genre: High Fantasy<br />
Trailer: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trryPsxOZyg" target="_blank">Click Here</a><br />
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The Young Elites Trilogy<br />
Book One: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20821111-the-young-elites?ac=1" target="_blank">The Young Elites</a><br />
Book Two: Untitled (2015)<br />
Book Three: Untitled (2016)<br />
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Order On Amazon: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Young-Elites-Marie-Lu/dp/0399167838/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413590615&sr=8-1&keywords=the+young+elites" target="_blank">Hardcover</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Young-Elites-Marie-Lu-ebook/dp/B00INIXPVW/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-1&qid=1413590615" target="_blank">Kindle</a><br />
Order On Barnes and Noble:<br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-young-elites-marie-lu/1118663092?ean=9780399167836" target="_blank">Hardcover and Nook</a><br />
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Author's<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4342215.Marie_Lu" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://www.marielu.org/" target="_blank">Website</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Marie_Lu" target="_blank">Twitter</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20821111-the-young-elites" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Goodreads Synopsis:</u></b></span></div>
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I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.</span></div>
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It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>My Review:</u></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I finished this book mere minutes ago, and I am flabbergasted, cowed, stunned, and any other synonym that comes to mind. My feelings are in such a form of disarray that John Green is the only man who could describe them. The fantasy, the characters, the worldbuilding, it all tied together to produce this wonderful package of epicness. Marie Lu is a talented dytopian writer, undoubtedly, but she is a phenomenal fantasy writer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So if you didn't already know, The Young Elites takes place in a fantastical world where kids with paranormal abilities run rampant. Where did these powers come from? Actually, the process is pretty similar to that of The Darkest Minds. An epidemic, called blood fever, spread across the land leaving a death count in its wake. However, this disease affected children differently from how it affected adults. Some kids survived with no marks, some with marks, and others with marks and abilities. The latter category was dubbed, "The Young Elites." In Kenettra, the Young Elites are considered abominations by the majority, because the public fears them as much as they are awed by them. They have powers like control over the elements, affinity to animals, invincible skin, things like that. In the next book, I think we'll see an even bigger variety.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This book definitely had a much darker theme than Lu's Legend series. So much so that I felt like, "Woah, this is some deep stuff man." There was so much pain and suffering and Adelina couldn't exactly be described as a ray of sunshine either. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">We're used to our heroines being all about helping others, self-sacrifice, and fighting for what's right. Adelina does have that to an extent, but she also has another side to her. In fact, her dark side is far more dominant than her light counterpart. She dwells on fear and hatred, revels from it really. It is only when she is brought to her lowest that she can accomplish her greatest feats. She loves her sister, but at the same time, despises her because of all the love she received when Adelina herself was isolated and abandoned. She's not a Mary Sue. Like all humans, this protagonist has her flawed moments, her dark thoughts, thoughts that we ourselves might shame-facedly have. Adelina embodies a true heroine. Someone who has suffered through abuse and hasn't emerged perfectly from it. Someone who understands that she has darkness in her, tries to fight against it, but doesn't always succeed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The supporting characters were very well written and played much stronger roles than they usually have in YA novels. All of them differed in personalities, which was nice to see as well. None of the Dagger Society were quite so eager to trust Adelina completely when she first joined. They weren't hostile, at least not most of them, but they still kept everything under wraps and stayed cautious. As she continued to train with them, they opened up to her a little bit and tentative friendships grew. I'm hoping to see more developments in the friendship area in the next two novels. Adelina certainly needs it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I'm thrilled that Marie decided to take a different route with her books. Some authors are too nervous to go out of their genre or comfort zone, but Marie took a leap, and pardon my corniness, she definitely soared. The Young Elites had a dark atmosphere, yet she still kept it afloat from the depressing feels even without the help of humor, which is quite a feat. Adelina wasn't a picture perfect heroine. Her thoughts weren't always good, yet she tried her best to fight against them and remind herself what was right. The romance was there, but it was underlying and didn't overpower the plot itself. Action was nonstop, and I read it in one sitting. Overall, The Young Elites was an awesome read, and it's definitely a series to look out for. If the wait for the sequel doesn't kill you first.</span></div>
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Heroine- 5/5<br />
Romance- 5/5<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a>Action- 5/5<br />
Humor- None<br />
Very dark themes<br />
World-Building- 4.5/5<br />
Writing- 4.5/5<br />
Overall- 4.5/5Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-41267967881849821062014-10-15T00:00:00.000-04:002014-10-15T00:00:01.737-04:00Trailer Reveal: Invisible Wings by Janell Rhiannon<div style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20505547-invisible-wings?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: January 8, 2014</div>
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Genre: Paranormal, Young Adult</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR8ulbMUdHgj-1cEkKVgfA7HoGPaioMAD1xusjHPX1wWmQA-fPigkidu6aK3YwpkYv_Fn51HRcaTQYyk82t_xOiYMYv3uFBErQWFr3fq8tdYDJoyw6hzK-DCNcxLa8OH2Js5ftaIv0lQ/s1600/InvisibleWings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Invisible Wings by Janell Rhiannon" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR8ulbMUdHgj-1cEkKVgfA7HoGPaioMAD1xusjHPX1wWmQA-fPigkidu6aK3YwpkYv_Fn51HRcaTQYyk82t_xOiYMYv3uFBErQWFr3fq8tdYDJoyw6hzK-DCNcxLa8OH2Js5ftaIv0lQ/s1600/InvisibleWings.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Life seldom unfolds the way you expect. Despite our best efforts, it can wind up in a tangled mess. We lose hope. Faith fades. And then suddenly, in the midst of despair, a door opens, an answer is given, or a new path is cleared because we’re not alone…sometimes angels walk among us.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Arabella’s mother already thinks she’s a little crazy, so when a mysterious Presence fills her with a blinding light, she keeps it to herself. She’s given a heartbreaking mission. She spends her days among her fellow classmates, listening to their secret prayers and waiting for the moment of intervention.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Arabella understands that life is messy, complicated, and beautiful. The way she guides her fellow classmates will ultimately surprise you.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Love emerges from the mess. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Hope emerges from the chaos. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Faith emerges from the strength to endure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">12 destinies</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">12 twilights</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">12 lives that will never be the same</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Invisible-Wings-Janell-Rhiannon-ebook/dp/B00HSCBVWY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413293718&sr=8-1&keywords=Janell+Rhiannon" target="_blank">Amazon</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwTHFfblk35B7aCpLL5FLdW8GaHxdGub_ctuYk6oWUk-G5vWADdH1IMCXM8fw9pBMZk5ve9rfjx18IFN8ToBzq3yQRgKP6FCqhLVoygrwbt24aYhRr7kv8C8PTe90gbF7igcV6n_3POw/s1600/Janell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Janell Rhiannon" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwTHFfblk35B7aCpLL5FLdW8GaHxdGub_ctuYk6oWUk-G5vWADdH1IMCXM8fw9pBMZk5ve9rfjx18IFN8ToBzq3yQRgKP6FCqhLVoygrwbt24aYhRr7kv8C8PTe90gbF7igcV6n_3POw/s1600/Janell.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Janell has been writing since she was in grade school. In high school, her 9th grade English teacher suggested she consider a career in writing. After a decade in college and a Master's degree in history, she settled into teaching.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Writing never stopped. Stories never stopped. READING fiction never stopped. Now, she writes and publishes on-line. Invisible Wings is her first YA novel, a compilation of short stories centered on teenage life triumphs and tragedies. She believes being a teenager is difficult and wrote Invisible Wings to let teens know they aren't alone. That they matter. That even though life is rough, they can still find beauty and love. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Beside the YA stories close to her heart, she adores Mythology and Fairy tales. Anything magical and mystical. And dragons. And gargoyles. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">She currently lives in CA. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Visit her at Facebook @Janell Rhiannon Author. If you want to see what projects are in the works or find out more about the her, visit</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="http://www.janellrhiannon.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5414689.Janell_Rhiannon" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/theravenangel" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Janell-Rhiannon/1540075102889479?ref=hl" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-82871636340489693172014-10-14T00:00:00.000-04:002014-10-14T00:00:05.617-04:00Book Blitz: Frost by Kate Avery Ellison<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNnOQzCDekqqmyaewbNVzVOSTOFkKe8rUp4MNMUtnvxD_85pJFXZfV1gDoWXrZrAFttbbMDawug6Yjq5_1wiIa-LvW-A_iR2Xx9BtwvFkqkYDMe94V8PSxkJghUUBmn5QvDaJjKhTCvA/s1600/FrostBlitzBanner1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Frost by Kate Avery Ellison" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNnOQzCDekqqmyaewbNVzVOSTOFkKe8rUp4MNMUtnvxD_85pJFXZfV1gDoWXrZrAFttbbMDawug6Yjq5_1wiIa-LvW-A_iR2Xx9BtwvFkqkYDMe94V8PSxkJghUUBmn5QvDaJjKhTCvA/s1600/FrostBlitzBanner1.png" height="236" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13555538-frost?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: March 28, 2012<br />
Genre: Dystopia, Young Adult<br />
Series: The Frost Chronicles #1<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9skqcXlNbNeYYpdY6OxEZXOJhMRfYXa3F9SFQNSM1xyVggdiU9wVyk0r7eRYSzzmkzqR_VJoh1oa86jtxiGBw4PBLHZ5eplsuikDXiho1FpgTRB07VL7vBCwWjxLN59AwyQJCCBarnA/s1600/Frost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Frost by Kate Avery Ellison" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9skqcXlNbNeYYpdY6OxEZXOJhMRfYXa3F9SFQNSM1xyVggdiU9wVyk0r7eRYSzzmkzqR_VJoh1oa86jtxiGBw4PBLHZ5eplsuikDXiho1FpgTRB07VL7vBCwWjxLN59AwyQJCCBarnA/s1600/Frost.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In the icy, monster-plagued world of the Frost, one wrong move and a person could end up dead—and Lia Weaver knows this better than anyone.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">After monsters kill her parents, Lia must keep the family farm running despite the freezing cold and threat of monster attacks or risk losing her siblings to reassignment by the village Elders. With dangers on all sides and failure just one wrong step away, she can’t afford to let her emotions lead her astray. So when her sister finds a fugitive bleeding to death in the forest—a young stranger named Gabe—Lia surprises herself and does the unthinkable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">She saves his life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Giving shelter to the fugitive could get her in trouble. The Elders have always described the advanced society of people beyond the Frost, the “Farthers,” as ruthless and cruel. But Lia is startled to find that Gabe is empathetic and intelligent…and handsome. She might even be falling in love with him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But time is running out. The monsters from the forest circle the farm at night. The village leader is starting to ask questions. Farther soldiers are searching for Gabe. Lia must locate a secret organization called the Thorns to help Gabe escape to safety, but every move she makes puts her in more danger.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Is compassion—and love—worth the risk?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Frost-Chronicles-Book-1-ebook/dp/B007Q4LLWE" target="_blank">Amazon</a> ! <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/frost-kate-avery-ellison/1109825221?ean=9781475005875" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx3sHb84fliBrf10CfzIozKADPzf6ntJ-muE5_Xu81Bc5wPvVA89Vm4nd_TpoAm8zL5mGqXfFcxLlXvt-_VgAXGV9UQ-gcW88g17g7_rPkVE-qFpLrG-n_Yv01fsj3VMs3d3ZP43LQow/s1600/Kate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx3sHb84fliBrf10CfzIozKADPzf6ntJ-muE5_Xu81Bc5wPvVA89Vm4nd_TpoAm8zL5mGqXfFcxLlXvt-_VgAXGV9UQ-gcW88g17g7_rPkVE-qFpLrG-n_Yv01fsj3VMs3d3ZP43LQow/s1600/Kate.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I live in Georgia with my wonderful husband and two spoiled cats. When I'm not writing, I'm usually catching up on my extensive Netflix queue, reading a book, giggling at something funny online, or trying to convince my husband to give me just ONE bite of whatever he's eating.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Learn more about my writing and books at my blog (http://thesouthernscrawl.blogspot.com/), find teasers for upcoming works on my Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/kateaveryellison), and subscribe to my new releases newsletter to be notified of new novels as soon as they hit stores (https://tinyletter.com/kateaveryellison)!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="http://thesouthernscrawl.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://tinyletter.com/kateaveryellison" target="_blank">Newsletter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/kateaveryellison" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He came out of nowhere, hitting me hard from one side and knocking me over. We rolled together across the floor and he came out on top, his hands on either side of my head, holding my wrists down against the stones. His burning eyes bored into mine. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I couldn’t seem to find my breath. The whole world slowed down, and I realized with perfect clarity that he might kill me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Don’t scream,” he hissed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I shook my head.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“How far is the village?” He whispered it, the words harsh and raspy in the air between us. I could see his mind working behind his eyes—was he calculating how long it would take him to try to struggle away on his own, how long before they found my lifeless body?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was neither brave nor stupid. I told him what he wanted to know. “The village is less than a mile.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He grimaced, and I realized he must be half-mad with the pain. Maybe if I moved suddenly, I could throw him off and get to the door...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He must have sensed my plan, for he pressed down harder on my wrists, keeping me pinned. “And the gate?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“What gate? You mean the village gate?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He didn’t explain. “The mountains, then.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“The farm sits in its shadow,” I gasped. His hands were cutting off my circulation. “But killing me does nothing to help you. You are too weak to get far, and the Watchers fill the woods.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">His eyebrows drew together sharply, and he coughed. He was weakening—I could see it. “Kill you?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">His grip on my wrists slackened. I saw my chance, and I took advantage of it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I slammed my elbow into his face. The Farther cried out, falling sideways like a puppet with its strings cut. I scrambled up for the door and yanked it open.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Stop—wait—”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I turned. He was crumpled on the ground, his limbs shaking. I could see that he had no strength left.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I’m sorry if I hurt you,” he gasped. “I just needed answers.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I lingered, not running but not relaxing, either. “You would kill me for information, then?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He pressed a hand against his side and wheezed a bewildered laugh. “I’m not a murderer of farm girls. Not even those who plan to harm me.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Harm you?” My words were sharp. “I’m sticking my neck out for you. I’m putting my family in danger for you. I’m sheltering and feeding you—and for what? It’s you who just tried to harm me.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I just needed information about my location,” he said, wincing at my words. He struggled up into a kneeling position and raised his dazzling blue eyes to mine. Blood colored his lip red. “I won’t try anything again, I promise, even though I know you want me dead.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It was my turn to laugh, breathlessly. “You make no sense.” I grabbed the herbs from my pocket and brandished them at him. “I came to bring you these for your wound. I’m not going to kill you. I just want you gone before you can cause any more trouble.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">His expression turned inside out—the planes of his face softened in surprise, and his eyes widened slightly. But then they slitted shut, and I could tell he didn’t believe me. “You’re lying.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Why would I lie?” I snapped. “If I wanted to kill you, I’d have done it by now. I could have simply left you in the snow, or refused to clean your wounds, or refused to feed you.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He was silent, considering this. Some of the wild terror on his face eased at the logic of what I’d said. “Why haven’t you? Left me to die, I mean?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I didn’t answer that, because I didn’t know how to put my reasons into words. I didn’t even quite know what the reasons were.</span></div>
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<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-18427145376954018152014-10-11T22:21:00.000-04:002014-10-12T01:55:25.499-04:00Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfJ4YuJYhgSv5LpGmz2Y88PshQoHg6HjfjsYcFvLGlyTpoRBp9w_exhsIoo9Mgz03hDk9AgjIOeuU1zplZn3pDYslwe4MZRpvJ1MEU0H-lT07GrrR2n8BV9LI41kvL6XdVSNJSj4jL9Q/s1600/17399160.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfJ4YuJYhgSv5LpGmz2Y88PshQoHg6HjfjsYcFvLGlyTpoRBp9w_exhsIoo9Mgz03hDk9AgjIOeuU1zplZn3pDYslwe4MZRpvJ1MEU0H-lT07GrrR2n8BV9LI41kvL6XdVSNJSj4jL9Q/s1600/17399160.jpg" title="" /></a>Appropriate For: Ages 12 and up<br />
Paperback: 432 Pages<br />
Release Date: October 14, 2014<br />
Publisher: Balzer + Bray<br />
Narration: First Person: Meira<br />
Genre: High Fantasy<br />
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The Snow Like Ashes Trilogy<br />
Book .1: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23304663-icicles-like-kindling" target="_blank">Icicles Like Kindling</a><br />
Book One: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17399160-snow-like-ashes?ac=1" target="_blank">Snow Like Ashes</a><br />
Book Two: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17404295-untitled" target="_blank">Untitled</a> (2015)<br />
Book Three: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17404297-untitled" target="_blank">Untitled</a> (2016)<br />
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Order On Amazon: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Snow-Like-Ashes-Sara-Raasch/dp/0062286927/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1413079024&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Hardcover</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Snow-Like-Ashes-Sara-Raasch-ebook/dp/B00HYMBNUS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413079024&sr=8-1&keywords=snow+like+ashes" target="_blank">Kindle</a><br />
Order On Barnes and Noble:<br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/snow-like-ashes-sara-raasch/1118145950?ean=9780062286925" target="_blank">Hardcover and Nook</a><br />
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Author's<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6947727.Sara_Raasch" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://sararaasch.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Tumblr</a> <a href="http://www.twitter.com/seesarawrite" target="_blank">Twitter</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17399160-snow-like-ashes" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a></div>
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A heartbroken girl. A fierce warrior. A hero in the making.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, and serving her kingdom just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics – and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>My Review:</u></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The concept was super interesting. I loved how Snow Like Ashes focused on a mythical land centered on the seasons themselves. I mean, how can you get cooler than that? Winter 24/7? Sign me up. I've always had a bit of Elsa</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> in me. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">(Frozen reference if you didn't catch that. xD)</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> Plus, it's not an idea that's been overused, which is saying something in this YA era. I have to admit, I was a bit confused at first by the explanations and world-building, but after awhile it clicked.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I wasn't too big a fan of Meira. I found her whiny, irritating, immature, and reckless. 16 is definitely old enough to stop throwing foot-stomping, arm-waving tantrums, especially when those tantrums are completely idiotic and have no merit. For example, one time, Meira's little refugee group was discovered by a couple of scouts and one escaped to tell the bad guys of their position. What's her first reaction? I AIN'T GOING, MAN! I'VE HAD ENOUGH RUNNING FOR A LIFE TIME. Common sense impaired thought. Even she realized it later, telling herself that the scout could easily send back enough numbers to overwhelm them. Well gee, I wonder why you wasted the time at all to hiss about it when you were in possession of a smidge of common sense after all. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">She also loves yelling the word <i>No </i>and <i>Stop</i>, as if those words alone had the power to stop whatever horrific event was happening. A couple of times, I even felt like she was surprised that her order wasn't obeyed. Another thing that irked me was how she needed so badly to be needed. I have no issues with protagonists having insecurity. In fact, I find it gives a character more depth. If she basked in the glow of praise or if she felt disappointed when she was ignored, understandable. However, when you're sole need is to be wanted and when you put that need over the lives of other people....we've got a problem.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Snow Like Ashes also sports a love triangle that is or is not a love triangle? I was a little confused by Meira's sudden change in emotions for a certain someone. I felt like certain things were rather abrupt and unrealistic, but since I'm still not sure where Sara is going with that relationship, I'll keep my mouth shut. Not going to delve deeper than that for fear of spoilers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Overall, this wasn't a bad read; it just didn't meet my overly high expectations. I try hard to not get too excited for a first book in series, because I'm scared of how it's going to turn out. Unfortunately, with a cover as epic as that, I had no choice in the matter. The writing style was smooth, transitioned nicely, albeit some ideas were explained weirdly. Although many events happened throughout the span of this book, I never felt truly involved or gripped by the story. It was alright; nothing more nothing less.</span></div>
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Heroine- 2/5<br />
Romance- 2.5/5<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz0ZIbYY_EF7zV9iZ5kt70rtQmAoyLfG8QCulVZULa1GRGiKLRjMQHRk9mkzhWNd0-vIYi3kCoQFJUCXNU92NgUaLnPtd2yqux0Zu2nI9byCheupNIptK-Qlo9mmTuPuK7C8lAvmgvTA/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a>Left me a tad confused...<br />
Action- 2.5/5<br />
World-Building- 3.5/5<br />
I adored the theme! Worldbuilding was average.<br />
Writing- 3.5/5<br />
Overall- 3/5Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-9100458544578698902014-10-10T00:00:00.000-04:002014-10-10T00:00:09.302-04:00Book Blitz + Giveaway: Bound By Duty by Stormy Smith<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFIeVFA-eHRfJHNGcHyHtmIcXey5Kww6GUuwq1hKqcdqT7Wetyf8AyRe5m6saKowfcPhuR8567WtM11sld8nub0OO_kvhJPuuNbYmcGHyD11v6I8Ak_LZ0Etf1XtcAG8r6RcIhuHQFMw/s1600/BoundByDutyBlitzBanner.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Bound By Duty by Stormy Smith" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFIeVFA-eHRfJHNGcHyHtmIcXey5Kww6GUuwq1hKqcdqT7Wetyf8AyRe5m6saKowfcPhuR8567WtM11sld8nub0OO_kvhJPuuNbYmcGHyD11v6I8Ak_LZ0Etf1XtcAG8r6RcIhuHQFMw/s1600/BoundByDutyBlitzBanner.png" height="236" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21957948-bound-by-duty?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: July 24, 2014<br />
Genre: Fantasy, New Adult<br />
Series: Bound #1<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgndwBBYe0Ikb_vwnEm4EQiTG9e4oOVF1BSlkW3vOWe_Rp97CylG2Qxz2wdU2_8A_A4Y-MihZiNi3vddA5EVvtB9xOhPRi1BVQl9-GOEqtFyAuNFCzdQ1XzZXULHxGZK-8e0ItmL_pl3w/s1600/Bound+by+Duty+Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Bound By Duty by Stormy Smith" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgndwBBYe0Ikb_vwnEm4EQiTG9e4oOVF1BSlkW3vOWe_Rp97CylG2Qxz2wdU2_8A_A4Y-MihZiNi3vddA5EVvtB9xOhPRi1BVQl9-GOEqtFyAuNFCzdQ1XzZXULHxGZK-8e0ItmL_pl3w/s1600/Bound+by+Duty+Cover.jpg" height="400" title="" width="266" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Amelia grew up in a world of half-truths. She knows she’s an Elder but has no idea what that means. Her father reminds her daily that she must maintain control but he refuses to explain why. Even worse, she’s betrothed to the prince of the Immortals and she doesn’t even know his name.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Finally breaking free to live a few normal years at a community college, the last thing Amelia expects is to find her best friend in a cheeky Southern girl and to fall for a self-assured human who sees her for who she is and not what she’ll be.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As she learns more about herself, Amelia realizes the line between love and duty is a thin one. As her power continues to increase exponentially and her questions are slowly answered, Amelia must make the ultimate choice. The question is, will her head or her heart win the battle?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-CfaoleEIIC34_1SdFiOJoYGkRrdMXy4QhBg1mtEz6Zk8H5aK-_xRm2RfT8L2UqZGHwuTXqLkuSLXdnQuv5pqTJS26oJMBXTWtMPRtoxC36Wz7m6KpVEaGGYFw_2Ssk6oF9LTtEfJw/s1600/Sale+Ad+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-CfaoleEIIC34_1SdFiOJoYGkRrdMXy4QhBg1mtEz6Zk8H5aK-_xRm2RfT8L2UqZGHwuTXqLkuSLXdnQuv5pqTJS26oJMBXTWtMPRtoxC36Wz7m6KpVEaGGYFw_2Ssk6oF9LTtEfJw/s1600/Sale+Ad+2.jpg" height="191" width="320" /></a></span></div>
( <a href="http://amzn.to/1lxz3Mg" target="_blank">Amazon</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjga5TpZdn4QFdKp0GLoRbVi9FDTtUCBE21sckrQndQAFBf1XQxv-1AvwWrjwZ1yWatAJvwoXol5E2zAQnuiQ211u-asOEYrsQxNXtp7wmf7phILyu3Tjn_MCjwL1eAjWHclpR5uwpxEA/s1600/Stormy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Stormy Smith" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjga5TpZdn4QFdKp0GLoRbVi9FDTtUCBE21sckrQndQAFBf1XQxv-1AvwWrjwZ1yWatAJvwoXol5E2zAQnuiQ211u-asOEYrsQxNXtp7wmf7phILyu3Tjn_MCjwL1eAjWHclpR5uwpxEA/s1600/Stormy.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Stormy Smith calls Iowa’s capital home now, but was raised in a tiny town in the Southeast corner of the state. She grew to love books honestly, having a mom that read voraciously and instilled that same love in her. She knew quickly that stories of fantasy were her favorite, and even as an adult gravitates toward paranormal stories in any form. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Writing a book had never been an aspiration, but suddenly the story was there and couldn’t be stopped. When she isn’t working on, or thinking about, her books, Stormy’s favorite places include bar patios, live music shows, her yoga mat or anywhere she can relax with her husband or girlfriends.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8159417.Stormy_Smith" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://www.stormysmith.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/stormysmith" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ! <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AuthorStormySmith" target="_blank">Facebook</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Guest Post: Meet the Cast of Bound By Duty</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I’ve had a very strange relationship with the cast of Bound by Duty. I had no idea I even wanted to write a book and then BOOM, one day there four people were living inside my head. (Yep, authors are a crazy breed…)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">They started out looking a lot like people I knew in my real life, but as I kept writing and I started trusting both myself – and them – more, I saw them for who they really were. They frustrate me to no end when they refuse to play by my outline but they surprise me constantly as they grow and change before my eyes. I’m already well into Bound by Spells (book two in the Bound series) and I’m so proud of who they are becoming. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Each of these characters have so much backstory that I can’t give you right now. But know that if you decide to dig into Bound by Duty, you’ll learn a lot about how family impacts the person you become – like it or not – and how friends have the ability to change your entire outlook on life. And love…well, it makes you do crazy things. But, we all knew that.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-oKmDkq6Wsb-UkAtHx-RKcm_l2R481XqHGKMNi2Hyqvw59053ZRbIAZ98Qlnd08Cflo_nrw4X7LvbvWXqHhc_GYTCYRGibfPFf4Jtkev8DgctGJ-yvf55GyCJY842NvFs0cChfDQ4w/s1600/Cast1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-oKmDkq6Wsb-UkAtHx-RKcm_l2R481XqHGKMNi2Hyqvw59053ZRbIAZ98Qlnd08Cflo_nrw4X7LvbvWXqHhc_GYTCYRGibfPFf4Jtkev8DgctGJ-yvf55GyCJY842NvFs0cChfDQ4w/s1600/Cast1.png" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This is Amelia Bradbury. She grew up in Gualala, California but currently calls Brighton, California home. She’s got an older brother, Cole, who treats her too much like the ten-year-old she was when he left home, and her dad, Nathaniel, who’s a little bit nutcakes. She likes Cherry Pepsi, caramel lattes, The Civil Wars, Florence and the Machine and a certain smokey-eyed mysterious boy who just won’t leave her alone. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioVr228V0vwLKOX_Rv1vKR4OIiidTjnkLlfXBV9DGQivQT8Im68Bbhc1-fEhwepU1UrN3fQ7t_96fnCy-zU4Phtm_AXONM3VyzKYoU9ZYJ0S-E85GeSRb8sxhCKJ7jkoPH4WuR8KCrDg/s1600/Cast2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioVr228V0vwLKOX_Rv1vKR4OIiidTjnkLlfXBV9DGQivQT8Im68Bbhc1-fEhwepU1UrN3fQ7t_96fnCy-zU4Phtm_AXONM3VyzKYoU9ZYJ0S-E85GeSRb8sxhCKJ7jkoPH4WuR8KCrDg/s1600/Cast2.png" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This is Aidan Montgomery. He’s a little quiet, a little cocky and lot persistent. He loves alternative, hates country and has an affinity for local restaurants and his own space. He’s a foster kid, but that hasn’t stopped him from trying to get an education, from spending time in the local MMA gym or setting his sights on one Amelia Bradbury.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyEkPSONXC5m2u7Tx2guOEraHKBQCBAvSYQNtFGMXgAxtL_AeX2airrOPerY668vKnA2MApq3fUA6vWBDnRspZKMTIAFNpHNkujgy0unGfj1ewMDVtuTLITGwbWb0wq1bcubHRu9VU7A/s1600/Cast3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyEkPSONXC5m2u7Tx2guOEraHKBQCBAvSYQNtFGMXgAxtL_AeX2airrOPerY668vKnA2MApq3fUA6vWBDnRspZKMTIAFNpHNkujgy0unGfj1ewMDVtuTLITGwbWb0wq1bcubHRu9VU7A/s1600/Cast3.png" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Meet Bethany Jackson. Formerly a pageant queen and barrel racer. Currently a connoisseur of frozen yogurt, collegiate California surfers, DIY decorating her first apartment with her new bestie and watching romantic comedies. She wants everyone to know that no matter what life hands her, she'll choose to be happy and make the best of it. She doesn't need anything but good friends and killer pair of heels to make it through. That said, she'd take Prince Charming as long as she had control of the white horse. <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Micah tends to be the odd man out. His speech is oddly formal, he doesn’t get America pop culture and his accent is a bit hard to place, while still being utterly adorable. He always seems to be a step ahead, but a certain blonde still keeps him on his toes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">Giveaway:</span></div>
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<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-90850346528460701612014-10-07T00:00:00.000-04:002014-10-07T00:00:01.076-04:00Cover Reveal + Giveaway: Gears of Brass<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Gear up for GEARS OF BRASS! </span></div>
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A world like ours, but filled with gears of brass, where the beating heart is fueled by steam and the simplest creation is a complex clockwork device. </div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Within this tome, you’ll find steampunk fairy tale re-tellings, as well as original stories that will send your gears turning. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Welcome to the steampunk realm, with eleven authors guiding your path.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">GEARS OF BRASS is a steampunk anthology published through Curiosity Quills. It will be available for purchase on November 10, 2014. Within the pages, you’ll come across clockwork inventions and steampunk-ified fairy tale retellings. Eleven authors will guide you through worlds filled with airships, top hats, and corsets. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Meet the authors:</span><br />
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Jordan Elizabeth <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">writes young adult fantasy for Curiosity Quills, including ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW which was published in October and the upcoming TREASURE DARKLY; she’s represented by the Belcastro Agency.</span><br />
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J. Million <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">is the author of Last of the Giants and can always be found reading or writing. </span><br />
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Lorna MacDonald Czarnota <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">is a professional storyteller and author of several books including, Medieval Tales That Kids Can Read and Tell, Breadline Blue, Legends Lore and Secrets of Western New York, Wicked Niagara, Native American and Pioneer Sites of Upstate New York, and Dancing at the Crossroads: Stories and Activities for At-Risk Youth Programming.</span><br />
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SA Larsen<i> </i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">is represented by Paula Munier of Talcott Notch Literary and is the author of published short stories, community-interest stories, and magazine articles focused on children. </span><br />
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Grant Eagar <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">is an Engineer who would take the tales he told his children at bed time, and transform them into fantasy stories. </span><br />
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Clare Weze <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">is the author of The House of Ash (forthcoming) and the co-author and editor of Cloudscapes over the Lune.</span><br />
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Eliza Tilton: <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">gamer, writer and lover of dark chocolate; author of the YA Fantasy, BROKEN FOREST, published by Curiosity Quills Press.</span><br />
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Heather Talty's <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">stories have been featured in Enchanted Conversation, as well as her own fractured fairy tale site, Mythopoetical </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">(www.Beatrixcottonpants.com).</span><br />
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W.K. Pomeroy <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">is a third generation writer who has published more than 70 short stories/articles/poems across many genres and styles, which now includes Steampunk.</span><br />
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Christine Baker <span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">is the author of Lana's End, The Guild of Dagda, and many more. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Natalia Darcy: a bookilicious reader, tea drinker and Zumba aficionado who enjoys playing cards against humanity and washing her hair with ice cold water. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Giveaway:</span><br />
You can get your steampunk fix before GEARS OF BRASS is released in November. To enter for your chance to win a copy of GEARS OF BRASS, you will need to share the cover. This can be on your blog, Facebook, Twitter… Each time you share the cover image, log it into Rafflecoper to record it. It will give you more chances to win. The drawing for the winner will be held on October 27th.<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/dcedff6d3/" id="rc-dcedff6d3" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
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<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.com/load.js"></script>Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-50931994319895809902014-10-01T00:00:00.000-04:002014-10-01T00:00:03.378-04:00Book Blitz + Giveaway: Ice Massacre by Tiana Warner<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Book:</span><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22718724-ice-massacre?ac=1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a>Release Date: September 18, 2014<br />
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult<br />
Series: First in a Trilogy<br />
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A mermaid’s supernatural beauty serves one purpose: to lure a sailor to his death.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpW0coevQ80M5F-X7dIvL2EwFVPuM5QT6Hgj0iVG9rtvvTktcz5Yb8EBaBQDFYMQ1JK7kLswIM7UA86F1knGnrV4Hte8zpRkqpuWO08sDmnbHsUZpGap22bVQcL8kItloPi4cyBCwE5A/s1600/IceCover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Ice Massacre by Tiana Warner" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpW0coevQ80M5F-X7dIvL2EwFVPuM5QT6Hgj0iVG9rtvvTktcz5Yb8EBaBQDFYMQ1JK7kLswIM7UA86F1knGnrV4Hte8zpRkqpuWO08sDmnbHsUZpGap22bVQcL8kItloPi4cyBCwE5A/s1600/IceCover.jpg" title="" /></a><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The Massacre is supposed to bring peace to Eriana Kwai. Every year, the island sends its warriors to battle these hostile sea demons. Every year, the warriors fail to return. Desperate for survival, the island must decide on a new strategy. Now, the fate of Eriana Kwai lies in the hands of twenty battle-trained girls and their resistance to a mermaid’s allure.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Eighteen-year-old Meela has already lost her brother to the Massacre, and she has lived with a secret that’s haunted her since childhood. For any hope of survival, she must overcome the demons of her past and become a ruthless mermaid killer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">For the first time, Eriana Kwai’s Massacre warriors are female, and Meela must fight for her people’s freedom on the Pacific Ocean’s deadliest battleground.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Find The Book: </span>(Free during Blitz!)<br />
( <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ice-Massacre-Tiana-Warner-ebook/dp/B00NHCF4CM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411652270&sr=8-1&keywords=ice+massacre" target="_blank">Amazon</a> )<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">About The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Tiana Warner was born and raised in British Columbia, Canada. She enjoys riding her horse, Bailey, and collecting tea cups.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find The Author:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">( <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5825979.Tiana_Warner" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ! <a href="http://www.tianawarner.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> ! <a href="https://twitter.com/tianawarner" target="_blank">Twitter</a> )</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Guest Post:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Finish your story: 3 Tips for Getting that Book Done</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">To make a ridiculous understatement, writing a book is hard. Few people actually finish the task—whether because they can’t find the time, or they get stuck in a story rut, or they lose inspiration once they realize how difficult it is. Let me tell you, there is nothing more rewarding than a finished and published book! Here are three tips to help you get that story done.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">1. Write down your dream and look at it daily</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Writing down a goal is a magical thing. When you make it tangible, it’s like you’ve transformed your dream into a prophecy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Write “I am a bestselling author” (or whatever your goal is) on an index card. Look at it every day. Live it and believe it. Work at that dream every single day, even if only for twenty minutes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Because I have a full-time job and hobbies, the only time I had to write Ice Massacre was between 6am and 7am. I’m not a morning person, but by putting that index card over my alarm clock, I gave myself the motivation to leap out of bed and get to work on my dream. I promise you, it’s effective.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">2. Understand that your first draft will suck</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">All right, I’m going to be honest with you. The first draft of anything I write is like, the worst thing ever. It’s like someone gave a chimpanzee a dictionary and a pen and wouldn’t feed him until he scribbled out enough words to form a full-length novel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The second draft, however, is better. The third and fourth are pretty darn good. My point is, don’t be discouraged when your novel sucks after the first go-around. You can’t possibly make a fantastic story in only one draft—you need time to get to know the characters, to identify plot holes, to fix the fact that you used the word “sighed” eighty times in one chapter. Personally, it takes me at least seven drafts to get a novel right.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">3. Study the craft of writing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">A common reason why writers get stuck is that they hit a roadblock in their story. They’ve dug themselves into a plot hole, or they don’t know where to go next. I’ve probably read a thousand blog posts about writing over the last few years. There are endless resources to help you learn the craft, and I recommend that you subscribe to a few writing blogs and read at least one post every day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Here are a few of my favourites:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">•<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ (She also has a podcast, which makes it easy to study writing while you're doing other things!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">•<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>http://terribleminds.com/ramble/blog/</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">•<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>http://thewritepractice.com/</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">•<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>http://writershelpingwriters.net/</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">•<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>http://moodywriting.blogspot.com/</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Finishing your book comes down to working hard and believing in yourself. You don’t need to be the best writer in the world in order to write a good book—you just need to have a story to share and the drive to write it!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Do you ever find it hard to finish a story? What tips and inspiration can you share?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">Giveaway:</span></div>
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<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-875604954869590852014-09-30T17:29:00.001-04:002014-09-30T17:29:16.350-04:00Waiting On Wednesday (39)<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Waiting On Wednesday</span> is a weekly meme hosted by Jill over at <a href="http://www.breakingthespine.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Breaking The Spine</a>, that spotlights upcoming releases that we can't wait to get our hands on!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2R1IvVRzUbYkF_H6Ej6tiIQoE85vokIN-4t8ckW_6mhM0syMStM6bsGpIFMjEsKq_2U6Fg-P9uLbmWRYNkZqCuP_cSTuM8cgpKw76gn-5PTRouFDjHJEj0ogUNSMJ1oTrKBo7cnQV3w/s1600/Waiting+On+Wednesday+Final.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Waiting On Wednesday, The Oathbreaker's Shadow" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2R1IvVRzUbYkF_H6Ej6tiIQoE85vokIN-4t8ckW_6mhM0syMStM6bsGpIFMjEsKq_2U6Fg-P9uLbmWRYNkZqCuP_cSTuM8cgpKw76gn-5PTRouFDjHJEj0ogUNSMJ1oTrKBo7cnQV3w/s1600/Waiting+On+Wednesday+Final.jpg" title="" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This week's WoW is <u>The Young Elites</u> by Marie Lu.</span></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20821111-the-young-elites?ac=1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">My Thoughts:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I loved the Champion series by Marie Lu, but The Young Elites definitely sounds more like my type of book. For me, paranormal/fantasy trumps everything. Can't wait! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Extra Information:</span></div>
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Release Date: October 7, 2014</div>
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Hardcover: 368 Pages</div>
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Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers</div>
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Genre: Fantasy/Superpowers</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Young Elites:</span></div>
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Book One: The Young Elites</div>
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Book Two: Unknown</div>
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Book Three: Unknown</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQv7yEFHPn6_kiYcUdOKMA4KL-FE-iO696oAJZdbVIU9cPDP2L_QvX8shwLmfW5LBbsfPK5ze2D9PsnzomG7laNXDDLAZTyaKMY3mS2cQbLZw9qmmi6VHXTVvFjTWdwpkKj1qo76Q37A/s1600/Signature+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQv7yEFHPn6_kiYcUdOKMA4KL-FE-iO696oAJZdbVIU9cPDP2L_QvX8shwLmfW5LBbsfPK5ze2D9PsnzomG7laNXDDLAZTyaKMY3mS2cQbLZw9qmmi6VHXTVvFjTWdwpkKj1qo76Q37A/s320/Signature+3.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">How about you? What book are you waiting on this Wednesday?</span></div>
Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-32030069123644788702014-09-28T11:23:00.001-04:002014-09-28T11:25:46.909-04:00Talon by Julie Kagawa<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9USlreShgb31HlP2cx1mra3qYhpxR4YYNACIowPex62ygrFJQ35EoemfBgxZSa3fkMUT9bV8iAWGnTtTmAbca8HCOZuVpfuv0Yck9TgytL3PDBEYLMpYg8Ck2BZZ_bqNIEDO26OTvbA/s1600/17331828.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Talon by Julie Kagawa" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9USlreShgb31HlP2cx1mra3qYhpxR4YYNACIowPex62ygrFJQ35EoemfBgxZSa3fkMUT9bV8iAWGnTtTmAbca8HCOZuVpfuv0Yck9TgytL3PDBEYLMpYg8Ck2BZZ_bqNIEDO26OTvbA/s1600/17331828.jpg" title="" /></a>Reading Level: Ages 12 and up<br />
Paperback: 400 Pages<br />
Release Date: October 28, 2014<br />
Publisher: Harlequin Teen<br />
Narration: First Person:<br />
Ember, Garrett, Riley<br />
Genre: Dragons/Paranormal<br />
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The Talon Series:<br />
Book One: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17331828-talon" target="_blank">Talon</a><br />
Book Two: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17342749-rogue" target="_blank">Rouge</a><br />
Book Three: Unknown<br />
Book Four: Unknown<br />
Book Five: Unknown<br />
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Order On Amazon: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Talon-The-Saga-Julie-Kagawa/dp/0373211392/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1408120670&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Hardcover</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Talon-Saga-Book-1-ebook/dp/B00IPDVGJI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408120670&sr=8-1&keywords=talon" target="_blank">Kindle</a><br />
Order On Barnes and Noble:<br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/talon-julie-kagawa/1118656157?ean=9780373211395" target="_blank">Hardcover and Nook</a><br />
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Author's<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2995873.Julie_Kagawa" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> <a href="http://www.juliekagawa.com/" target="_blank">Website</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Jkagawa" target="_blank">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Julie-Kagawa-author/252661891438654" target="_blank">Facebook</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17331828-talon" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Add To Goodreads" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWuCf8nZHnBBoaNDOjsiujWnP22UupN9KKSdtLNBLbnBQxiMwdnWsELLhrtUHMMJ0TDb3Ue0-vlEhlLZKoa36nWBZSKkZnGxLNLJ0Lg6P5eLqsFc9sjhmHKhJjZzahnjDpyqqZ_B1oay8/s1600/Add+to+Goodreads.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon's newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember's bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>My Review:</u></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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Talon reminded me a lot of Sophie Jordan's Firelight.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Obviously the most prominent similarity being that they both revolve around dragons, but it went much deeper than that. Like Firelight, this book sported a star-crossed romance between a dragon and a dragon slayer. Adding to that, the third person in the love triangle was another dragon. There were more parallels than that, but for the sake of spoilers, I'm going to keep them out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Talon was a very entertaining, action-packed, humor filled read. I had high expectations for Julie Kagawa after reading her Iron Fey series, and she definitely met them. I have to admit; I'm always quite wary when it comes to having expectations before starting a book, but I should've never doubted Julie's utter epicness. She always writes books filled to the brim with seat-gripping action, swoony romance, and sarcastic humor. What else could you possibly want? Ember was a headstrong, fiery (pardon the pun), and loyal character. She had a temper and was impulsive, but not overly so. Lately, I've been having issues with reading about characters who are too set on getting their way, ignoring advice from everyone else just because they don't want to be told what to do. There's a fine line between strength and stupidity. Ember made mistakes and raged a few times, but she grounded herself with the help of her loved ones.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The love triangle wasn't technically a love triangle....but it sorta was at the same time. We have two contenders at the moment, Garrett and Cobalt. However, despite Ember's attraction to both, it's obvious that her human side has stronger feelings for Garrett. He's the one always on her mind. They gradually fell in love through surfing lessons, carnival rides, and all the other cutesy things they did. With Cobalt, it was more primal instinct than anything else. Their dragons called to each other and when they were in dragon form, they could barely resist each other. What I'm thinking right now is that she'll end up with Garrett. However, there are two major problems standing in their way. One being the obvious "He's the enemy" sort of thing, but really, what's stopped two star-crossed lovers before? In fact, in most YA novels that seems to be the key factor. Impossible lovers = Definite relationship. Though there's also the issue that he's a human...and she's a dragon, a creature that lives for hundreds of years. This isn't Twilight. She can't bite him and turn him into a dragon so they can have a happily ever after. Unless some new secret about Garrett is revealed in the upcoming books, I can't see how they can be together in the long run.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Despite the fun I had reading this, the plot wasn't exactly original. Two radical societies hell bent on the destruction of the other. Two people from each society realizing that the world isn't as black and white as it had originally seemed. Later on in the series other people probably begin to realize the same thing, which leads to some sort of revolution and ends in either the abolishment of the old systems or the epiphany that things must change in order for both sides to survive. It's a storyline we've seen thousands of times before, but that didn't lessen my enjoyment of it. It still had me gripping my seat, wondering what was going to happen next.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Overall, I enjoyed Talon very much. It was fast-paced, fun, and full of humor. The writing was amazing, as Julie Kagawa's writing always is and the dragon lore that was introduced was explained well. I was never left wondering about what something meant or how something worked, but I'm looking forward to delving deeper into the history of dragons in the next novel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cover- 6/5 Simple, yet undeniably gorgeous!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Heroine- 4.5/5</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Romance- 4.5/5</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Action- 5/5</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Writing- 5/5</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Overall- 4.5/5</span></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-64113970357596195122014-09-26T20:15:00.002-04:002014-09-26T21:19:33.844-04:00Funny Quotes<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">Funny:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"Beautiful face. Beautiful body. Horrible attitude. It was the holy trinity of hot boys."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Why are you such an ass?" The words came out before I could think twice.<br />"Everyone has to excel at something, right?"<br />"Well, you're doing a great job.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“I don't think he meant to kiss me," I said finally.<br />"What? Did he slip and fall on your mouth? Those things are known to happen.”</span></div>
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-Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Doesn’t he own a shirt?” I asked, grabbing a spade. “Unfortunately, I don’t think so. Not even in the winter. He’s always running around half-dressed.” She groaned. “Its disturbing that I have to see so much of his…skin. Yuck.” Yuck for her. And hot damn for me.”</span></div>
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-Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“The Darkling will hunt you for the rest of your days."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Then you and I will have something in common, won't we? Besides, I like to have powerful enemies. Makes me feel important."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Mal crossed his arms and considered the privateer. "I can't decide if you're crazy or stupid."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"I have so many good qualities," Sturmhond said. "It can be hard to choose.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I'm perfectly capable of being stupid on my own.” </span>-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I saw the prince when I was in Os Alta,” said Ekaterina. “He’s not bad looking.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Not bad looking?” said another voice. “He’s damnably handsome.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Luchenko scowled. “Since when—”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Brave in battle, smart as a whip.” Now the voice seemed to be coming from above us. Luchenko craned his neck, peering into the trees. “An excellent dancer,” said the voice. “Oh, and an even better shot.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Who—” Luchenko never got to finish. A blast rang out, and a tiny black hole appeared between his eyes.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I gasped. “Imposs—”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Don’t say it,” muttered Mal.” </span><br />
-Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"What's up with hotness? I wonder. He looks like someone definitely broke his crayons."</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Inescapable by Amy A Bartol</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Dear God!<br />I screamed and buried my face in my pillow.<br />"What?!" I heard him ask. "Did you see a roach?"<br />"Why are you naked?!" I did not dare to lift my red face.<br />"Huh. Is that all?" he asked. "I always sleep in the buff. I don't know how you can stand all that clothing."<br />"Unbelievable." I said, and without looking at him I pulled myself up and stomped to the bathroom.”</span><br />
-Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“We are far too screwed up for a goddamned love triangle.” </span><br />
-The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Touch her, and I'll freeze your testicles off and put them in a jar. Understand?” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Iron King by Julie Kagawa </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Good idea,” Puck echoed from the back of the cave. “Why don’t you take first watch, prince? You could actually be doing something that doesn’t make me want to gouge my eyes out with a spork.”<br />Ash’s lips curled in a smirk. “I would think you’re better suited to the task, Goodfellow,” he said without turning around. “After all, that’s what you’re best at isn’t it? Watching?”<br />“Oh, keep it up, ice-boy. You’re gonna have to sleep sometime.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“How long was I asleep?" she whispered. He didn't respond.<br />"How long was I asleep?" she asked again, and noticed a hint of red in his cheeks.<br />"You were asleep, too?"<br />"Until you began drooling on my shoulder.” </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Why do you call her 'love'?" James asks. "I've heard you say that before, too. A lot. Are you in love with her? I think Adam's in love with her. Kenji's not in love with her, though. I already asked him." </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Warner blinks at him. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Well?" James asks. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Well what?" </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Are you in love with her?" </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Are you in love with her?" </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"What?" James blushes. "No. She's like a million years older than me." </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Would anyone else like to take over this conversation?" Warner asks, looking around the group.” </span><br />
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Are you out of your goddamn mind? You think we can take on two hundred soldiers? I know I am an extremely attractive man, J, but I am not Bruce Lee.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Who’s Bruce Lee?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Who’s Bruce Lee?” Kenji asks, horrified. “Oh my God. We can’t even be friends anymore.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Why? Was he a friend of yours?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“You know what,” he says, “just stop. Just—I can’t even talk to you right now.” </span><br />
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Hey, um, I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm looking for a friend of mine," he says. "Have you seen her? She's a tiny little thing, cries a lot, spends too much time with her feelings-"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Shut up, Kenji!"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Oh wait!" he says. "It is you.” </span><br />
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I am going to MURDER YOU—”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“No,” he says, pointing at me as he shifts backward again. “Bad Juliette. You don’t like to kill people, remember? You’re against that, remember? You like to talk about feelings and rainbows—” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"I have a ninja sitting shotgun. Of course I'm tense."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"On the bright side," Percy said, "both Jason and I outrank you, Octavian. So we can both tell you to shut up." </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“You really need to work on intonation when you use sarcasm. That way people will know when you’re being an asshole.”</span></div>
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-Smokeless Fire by Samantha Young</div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-43142848513040410332014-09-26T20:14:00.003-04:002014-09-26T21:19:13.162-04:00Inspiring/Truthful Quotes<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">Inspiring/Truthful:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">A</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">B</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“What is infinite? The universe and the greed of men.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Weakness is a guise. Wear it when they need to know you're human, but never when you feel it.” </span><br />
-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Beauty was your armor. Fragile stuff, all show. But what's inside you? That's steel. It's brave and unbreakable. And it doesn't need fixing.”</span><br />
-Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Na razrusha'ya. I am not ruined. E'ya razrushost. I am ruination.” </span></div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
-Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">C</span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"Look not at the greatness of the evil past, but the greatness of the good to follow."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">-</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"Defiance of the way things are is the only way to embrace what's coming."</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Defiance by Shelly Crane</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">D</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"Dying isn't the hardest thing you'll ever do-it's living. There are many choices that determine the direction of your life, but death only has one outcome."</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Sterling by Dannika Dark</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"I think you know better than anyone that it is not the easy road that makes us capable of great things. It is the hard journey that leads to a greater destiny, You can never rise if you never have anything to rise above."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Sterling by Dannika Dark</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">"Fate brought us together for a reason; there are no accidents. Everything that happens in our lives lead us to a greater destiny, even if we don't always understand the purpose."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">-</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Twist by Dannika Dark</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"But you've got to learn how to live your own life and don't worry about what the Clann thinks, or what the vampire council thinks, or what anybody says about you. None of this changes who you are inside. That's only up to you and what you choose."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Crave by Melissa Darnell</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">E</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">F</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations.” </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Sometimes, you read a book and it fills you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together unless and until all living humans read the book.” </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“That’s part of what I like about the book in some ways. It portrays death truthfully. You die in the middle of your life, in the middle of a sentence”</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green</div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">H</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“We have to face difficulties to find out what our true strengths are. How we come back from failure is a very valuable test.”</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">-</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“It doesn't matter what we are. It matters what we do.”</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
-The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Regrets are only felt by those who do not understand life's purpose.”</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Tiger's Voyage by Colleen Houck</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">J</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">K</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">L</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">"The only limits of tomorrow are the doubts we have today."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"Never lose faith in yourself, and never lose hope; remember even when this world throws its worst and then turns its back, there is still always hope."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">-</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">"Every day means a new 24 hours. Each day means everything's possible again. You live in the moment , you die in the moment, you take it all one day at a time."<em></em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><em>-</em></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Legend by Marie Lu</span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">M</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Libraries were full of ideas–perhaps the most dangerous and powerful of all weapons.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Sometimes, the wicked will tell us things just to confuse us–to haunt our thoughts long after we've faced them.”</span> </div>
<div style="text-align: start;">
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“You could rattle the stars," she whispered. "You could do anything, if only you dared. And deep down, you know it, too. That’s what scares you most.” </span><br />
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“We all bear scars,... Mine just happen to be more visible than most.” </span><br />
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Still, the image haunted his dreams throughout the night: a lovely girl gazing at the stars, and the stars who gazed back.” </span><br />
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I spent my life folded between the pages of books.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In the absence of human relationships I formed bonds with paper characters. I lived love and loss through stories threaded in history; I experienced adolescence by association. My world is one interwoven web of words, stringing limb to limb, bone to sinew, thoughts and images all together. I am a being comprised of letters, a character created by sentences, a figment of imagination formed through fiction.” </span><br />
-Tahereh Mafi, Shatter Me<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Books are easily destroyed. But words will live as long as people can remember them.” </span><br />
-Tahereh Mafi, Unravel Me<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Words, I think, are such unpredictable creatures.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">No gun, no sword, no army or king will ever be more powerful than a sentence. Swords may cut and kill, but words will stab and stay, burying themselves in our bones to become corpses we carry into the future, all the time digging and failing to rip their skeletons from our flesh.” </span><br />
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me<br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I’m not sure. But there’s something about the darkness, the stillness of this hour, I think, that creates a language of its own. There’s a strange kind of freedom in the dark; a terrifying vulnerability we allow ourselves at exactly the wrong moment, tricked by the darkness into thinking it will keep our secrets. We forget that the blackness is not a blanket; we forget that the sun will soon rise. But in the moment, at least, we feel brave enough to say things we’d never say in the light.” </span><br />
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">"Sometimes the greatest tests of our strength are situations that don't seem so obviously dangerous. Sometimes surviving is the hardest thing of all."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead</span></div>
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"<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Don't worry now about what you can't change. Rest when you can so you'll be ready for tomorrow's battles."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">"The brave may not live forever, but the cautious never live at all."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"Everyone gets scared at times. It's only the fools who won't admit it."</span></div>
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-The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“A person can be educated and still be stupid, and a wise man can have no education at all.” </span>-The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I suppose a fire that burns that bright is not meant to last.” </span></div>
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-Allegiant by Veronica Roth</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“She taught me all about real sacrifice. That it should be done from love... That it should be done from necessity, not without exhausting all other options. That it should be done for people who need your strength because they don't have enough of their own.” </span></div>
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-Allegiant by Veronica Roth</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I wonder if fears ever really go away, or if they just lose their power over us.” </span></div>
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-Allegiant by Veronica Roth</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” </span></div>
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-Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">"But we've all done things we're not proud of. And we just have to live with it and move on. Our mistakes don't define us, it's what we do afterward how we grow that makes us who we are."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">-</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Promise by Jessica Sorensen</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">"Because people fear those who are different. And fear can make people do stupid things." </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Darkness Falls by Jessica Sorensen</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Hope can be a powerful force. Maybe there's no actual magic in it, but when you know what you hope for most and hold it like a light within you, you can make things happen, almost like magic.”</span></div>
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-Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“Brimstone once told me that to stay true in the face of evil is a feat of strength.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor</span></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-70555659527319038792014-09-26T20:13:00.002-04:002014-09-29T20:01:41.486-04:00Romantic Quotes<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">Romantic:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“A moment later the boy whispered, "I don't think you're ugly."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"Shhhh!" the girl hissed. But hidden by the deep shadows of the cupboard, she smiled” </span></div>
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-Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“The problem with wanting," he whispered, his mouth trailing along my jaw until it hovered over my lips, "is that it makes us weak.” </span></div>
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-Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“I have loved you all my life, Mal," I whispered through my tears. "There is no end to our story.” </span>-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo</div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“There are infinite numbers between 0 and 1. There's .1 and .12 and .112 and an infinite collection of others. Of course, there is a bigger infinite set of numbers between 0 and 2, or between 0 and a million. Some infinities are bigger than other infinities. A writer we used to like taught us that. There are days, many of them, when I resent the size of my unbounded set. I want more numbers than I'm likely to get, and God, I want more numbers for Augustus Waters than he got. But, Gus, my love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn't trade it for the world. You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I'm grateful.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“You realize that trying to keep your distance from me will not lessen my affection for you. All efforts to save me from you will fail.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“You're forgetting something <em>iadala</em>. Love is not a consequence. Love is not a choice. Love is a <em>thirst</em> --- a need as vital to the soul as water is to the body.”</span></div>
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-Tiger's Voyage by Colleen Houck</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“My name is Ashallyn'darkmyr Tallyn, third son of the Unseelie Court...Let it be known--from this day forth, I vow to protect Meghan Chase, daughter of the Summer King, with my sword, my honor, and my life. Her desires are mine. Her wishes are mine. Should even the world stand against her, my blade will be at her side. And should it fail to protect her, let my own existence be forfeit. This I swear, on my honor, my True Name, and my life. From this day on..." His voice went even softer, but I still heard it as though he whispered it into my ear. "I am yours.”</span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Iron King by Julie Kagawa</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“His forehead bumped softly against mine, his brilliant silver gaze searing into me. “I plan to keep you, from everyone, for as long as I’m alive. That includes Puck, the false king, and anyone else who would take you away.” One corner of his mouth quirked, as I struggled to catch my breath under his powerful scrutiny. “I guess I should’ve warned you that I have a slight possessive streak.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">“You are my heart, my life, my entire existence."</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">-The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">“Ignite, my love. Ignite.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me</span></div>
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Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-19437835042227253172014-09-26T00:00:00.000-04:002014-09-26T00:03:09.306-04:00Guilt: The Blog Killer<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I've been feeling this unrelenting guilt for the past few months.</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">To be honest, it's been happening for close to a year. Eleventh grade man.....it was absolutely <i>brutal</i>. For all of you Juniors out there, I feel for you. My one bit of advice to you is to get to those SATs early; Don't procrastinate. Although it's fun to put it off at first, it bites you in the end. Of course if you're not in America, I guess you won't even know what SATs are. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">xD</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> So onto the guilt portion of my post. If you've been following my blog for awhile, you might have noticed that my posts have become depressingly scarce. In 2013, I was able to write about 160 posts. In 2014, a measly 28 posts. The shame is real. In fact, I've been berating myself. I really, really don't want to let this blog run down into shambles. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">However, I now realize that the majority of bloggers go through this phase. After a period of producing an abundant amount of book reviews, blogging begins to feel more forced than the fun it used to be. But let me impart some of my meager knowledge. Blogging is supposed to be <i>fun</i>. It's supposed to be a way for us lovers of books to <strike>combine forces and take over the world </strike>share our thoughts and feels about everything and anything book related. It's <i>not</i> a contest to see who can make the prettiest designs or receive the most ARCs. It's definitely not a job. It's not something we should have to push ourselves to do. If you feel like you're indebted to your blog because your readers are expecting things from you; don't. Your readers are human too and won't banish you just because you leave for a week or a month (</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">this being what I was afraid of)</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">. So if you're run-down, tired, irritated, or the seldom correct answer on my Calculus tests, all of the above, <i>TAKE A BREAK</i>! Don't make the same mistake I did. Trying to stay as active as possible by posting reviews I really wasn't feeling was one of the biggest mistakes of my blogging life. It dragged on the inevitable. It made me want to run away from my computer in terror. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In a nutshell, I guess all I'm trying to say is don't let your guilt force you to do something you don't want to do. If you have any book reviews that you're in the middle of, finish them, give yourself a pat on the back, and take a step away from the computer. Write a little note explaining your hiatus and take a stroll through the park, enjoy a cold glass of lemonade, plant a garden, or do whatever suits your fancy. I guarantee that when you get back, you'll feel refreshed and ready to start anew. If you're in high school or college; it'll be more of a challenge. But if blogging is something you truly love doing, it'll happen either way. I am now back from my very long, unscheduled break, and hopefully now I'll be able to get more than 2 posts up a month. Not a very high expectation level; I know, but baby steps, baby steps.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3567111189276463262.post-88596862798693176222014-09-25T00:00:00.000-04:002014-09-25T00:00:00.196-04:00Cover Reveal + Giveaway: Rebellion by J.A. SoudersToday J.A. Souders and Rockstar Book Tours are revealing the cover for REBELLION, book 3 in the Elysium Chronicles releasing in June 5, 2015! Check out the gorgeous cover and enter to win the books!<br />
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Title: REBELLION</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Author: J.A. Souders<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Publisher: TOR Teen<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Pub. Date: June 9, 2015<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Find it: </span><span style="line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22550320-rebelion">Goodreads</a></span></span><br />
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The Elysium Chronicles<br />
Book One: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11468074-renegade?ac=1" target="_blank">Renegade</a><br />
Book Two: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17332261-revelations" target="_blank">Revelations</a><br />
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">About J.A. Souders </span><b style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">J.A. SOUDERS is the author of the
Elysium Chronicles and lives in the land of sunshine and palm trees with her
husband and two children where she spends her time writing about the monsters
under the bed, day dreaming about living in an underwater colony, and failing
miserably at playing video games.</span><br />
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( <a href="http://jasouders.com/" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Website</a> I <a href="http://jasouders.com/blog/" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Blog</a> I <a href="https://twitter.com/jasouders" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Twitter</a>I <a href="https://www.facebook.com/JASouders" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Facebook</a> I <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4880398.J_A_Souders" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Goodreads</a> I <a href="http://pinterest.com/jasouders2012/" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Pinterest</a> )</div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Giveaway Details:</span><span style="font-size: small; font-weight: bold;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">1 winner will receive physical copies of RENEGADE AND REVELATIONS plus the eNovellas. And ASK AGAIN LATER by Liz Czukas. If you have J.A.s books already, she will do an amazon or book depository gift card of the same value. International.</span></span></div>
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e2389ba2220/" id="rc-e2389ba2220" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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<br />Daphnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17725253354355731464noreply@blogger.com0