Book Blitz + Giveaway: Ice Massacre by Tiana Warner

About The Book:
Release Date: September 18, 2014
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: First in a Trilogy

A mermaid’s supernatural beauty serves one purpose: to lure a sailor to his death.

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.

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.

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.

Find The Book: (Free during Blitz!)
( Amazon )

About The Author:

Tiana Warner was born and raised in British Columbia, Canada. She enjoys riding her horse, Bailey, and collecting tea cups.

Find The Author:

( Goodreads ! Website ! Twitter )

Guest Post:

Finish your story: 3 Tips for Getting that Book Done

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.

1. Write down your dream and look at it daily

Writing down a goal is a magical thing. When you make it tangible, it’s like you’ve transformed your dream into a prophecy.

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.

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.

2. Understand that your first draft will suck

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.

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.

3. Study the craft of writing

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.

Here are a few of my favourites:

• http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ (She also has a podcast, which makes it easy to study writing while you're doing other things!)

• http://terribleminds.com/ramble/blog/

• http://thewritepractice.com/

• http://writershelpingwriters.net/

• http://moodywriting.blogspot.com/

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!

Do you ever find it hard to finish a story? What tips and inspiration can you share?

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Waiting On Wednesday (39)

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill over at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we can't wait to get our hands on!

This week's WoW is The Young Elites by Marie Lu.

Goodreads Synopsis:

I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside.

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.

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. 

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. 

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.

It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.

My Thoughts:

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! 

Extra Information:

Release Date: October 7, 2014

Hardcover: 368 Pages

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Genre: Fantasy/Superpowers

The Young Elites:

Book One: The Young Elites

Book Two: Unknown

Book Three: Unknown

How about you? What book are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Talon by Julie Kagawa

Reading Level: Ages 12 and up
Paperback: 400 Pages
Release Date: October 28, 2014
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Narration: First Person:
Ember, Garrett, Riley
Genre: Dragons/Paranormal

The Talon Series:
Book One: Talon
Book Two: Rouge
Book Three: Unknown
Book Four: Unknown
Book Five: Unknown

Order On Amazon: Hardcover
                              Kindle
Order On Barnes and Noble:
Hardcover and Nook

Author's
Goodreads  Website  Twitter  Facebook

Goodreads Synopsis:

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.

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.

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.

My Review:

Talon reminded me a lot of Sophie Jordan's Firelight.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Cover- 6/5 Simple, yet undeniably gorgeous!

Heroine- 4.5/5

Romance- 4.5/5

Action- 5/5

Writing- 5/5

Humor- 5/5

Overall- 4.5/5

Funny Quotes

Funny:

A

"Beautiful face. Beautiful body. Horrible attitude. It was the holy trinity of hot boys."
-Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

“Why are you such an ass?" The words came out before I could think twice.
"Everyone has to excel at something, right?"
"Well, you're doing a great job.”

-Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout

“I don't think he meant to kiss me," I said finally.
"What? Did he slip and fall on your mouth? Those things are known to happen.”

-Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout

“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.”

-Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout

B

“The Darkling will hunt you for the rest of your days."
"Then you and I will have something in common, won't we? Besides, I like to have powerful enemies. Makes me feel important."
Mal crossed his arms and considered the privateer. "I can't decide if you're crazy or stupid."
"I have so many good qualities," Sturmhond said. "It can be hard to choose.” 
-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

“I'm perfectly capable of being stupid on my own.” -Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

“I saw the prince when I was in Os Alta,” said Ekaterina. “He’s not bad looking.”
“Not bad looking?” said another voice. “He’s damnably handsome.”
Luchenko scowled. “Since when—”
“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.”
“Who—” Luchenko never got to finish. A blast rang out, and a tiny black hole appeared between his eyes.
I gasped. “Imposs—”
“Don’t say it,” muttered Mal.” 
-Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

"What's up with hotness? I wonder. He looks like someone definitely broke his crayons."

-Inescapable by Amy A Bartol

C

D

E

F

G

H

“Dear God!
I screamed and buried my face in my pillow.
"What?!" I heard him ask. "Did you see a roach?"
"Why are you naked?!" I did not dare to lift my red face.
"Huh. Is that all?" he asked. "I always sleep in the buff. I don't know how you can stand all that clothing."
"Unbelievable." I said, and without looking at him I pulled myself up and stomped to the bathroom.”
-Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

“We are far too screwed up for a goddamned love triangle.” 
-The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

I

J

K

“Touch her, and I'll freeze your testicles off and put them in a jar. Understand?” 
-The Iron King by Julie Kagawa 

“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.”
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?”
“Oh, keep it up, ice-boy. You’re gonna have to sleep sometime.” 
-The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa

L

M

“How long was I asleep?" she whispered. He didn't respond.
"How long was I asleep?" she asked again, and noticed a hint of red in his cheeks.
"You were asleep, too?"
"Until you began drooling on my shoulder.” 

-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

“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." 
Warner blinks at him. 
"Well?" James asks. 
"Well what?" 
"Are you in love with her?" 
"Are you in love with her?" 
"What?" James blushes. "No. She's like a million years older than me." 
"Would anyone else like to take over this conversation?" Warner asks, looking around the group.” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me

“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.”
“Who’s Bruce Lee?”
“Who’s Bruce Lee?” Kenji asks, horrified. “Oh my God. We can’t even be friends anymore.”
“Why? Was he a friend of yours?”
“You know what,” he says, “just stop. Just—I can’t even talk to you right now.” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me

“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-"
"Shut up, Kenji!"
"Oh wait!" he says. "It is you.” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me

“I am going to MURDER YOU—”
“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—” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me

"I have a ninja sitting shotgun. Of course I'm tense."

-Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

N

O

P

Q

R

"On the bright side," Percy said, "both Jason and I outrank you, Octavian. So we can both tell you to shut up." -The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan

S

T

U

V

W

X

Y

“You really need to work on intonation when you use sarcasm. That way people will know when you’re being an asshole.”

-Smokeless Fire by Samantha Young

Z

Inspiring/Truthful Quotes

Inspiring/Truthful:

A

B

“What is infinite? The universe and the greed of men.” 

-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

“Weakness is a guise. Wear it when they need to know you're human, but never when you feel it.” 
-Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

“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.”
-Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

“Na razrusha'ya. I am not ruined. E'ya razrushost. I am ruination.” 

-Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

C

"Look not at the greatness of the evil past, but the greatness of the good to follow."
-Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer

"Defiance of the way things are is the only way to embrace what's coming."
-Defiance by Shelly Crane

D

"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."

-Sterling by Dannika Dark

"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."

-Sterling by Dannika Dark

"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."

-Twist by Dannika Dark

"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."

-Crave by Melissa Darnell

E

F

G

“My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations.” 

-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

“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.” 

-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

“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”

-The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

H

“We have to face difficulties to find out what our true strengths are. How we come back from failure is a very valuable test.”

-Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

“It doesn't matter what we are. It matters what we do.”

-The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

“Regrets are only felt by those who do not understand life's purpose.”

-Tiger's Voyage by Colleen Houck

I

J

K

L

"The only limits of tomorrow are the doubts we have today."

-The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

"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."

-The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

"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."

-Legend by Marie Lu

M

“Libraries were full of ideas–perhaps the most dangerous and powerful of all weapons.” 
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

“Sometimes, the wicked will tell us things just to confuse us–to haunt our thoughts long after we've faced them.” 

-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

“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.” 
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

“We all bear scars,... Mine just happen to be more visible than most.” 
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

“Still, the image haunted his dreams throughout the night: a lovely girl gazing at the stars, and the stars who gazed back.” 
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

“I spent my life folded between the pages of books.
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.” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Shatter Me

“Books are easily destroyed. But words will live as long as people can remember them.” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Unravel Me

“Words, I think, are such unpredictable creatures.
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.” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me

“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.” 
-Tahereh Mafi, Ignite Me

"Sometimes the greatest tests of our strength are situations that don't seem so obviously dangerous. Sometimes surviving is the hardest thing of all."

-Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

"Don't worry now about what you can't change. Rest when you can so you'll be ready for tomorrow's battles."

-Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

"The brave may not live forever, but the cautious never live at all."

-Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

N

"Everyone gets scared at times. It's only the fools who won't admit it."

-The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen

“A person can be educated and still be stupid, and a wise man can have no education at all.” -The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen

O

P

Q

R

“I suppose a fire that burns that bright is not meant to last.” 

-Allegiant by Veronica Roth

“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.” 

-Allegiant by Veronica Roth

“I wonder if fears ever really go away, or if they just lose their power over us.” 

-Allegiant by Veronica Roth

“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” 

-Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

S

"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."

-The Promise by Jessica Sorensen

"Because people fear those who are different. And fear can make people do stupid things." 

-Darkness Falls by Jessica Sorensen

T

“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.”

-Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

“Brimstone once told me that to stay true in the face of evil is a feat of strength.”

-Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor

U

V

W

X

Y

Z