tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70639743607892705612024-03-19T19:03:12.027+08:00Always a BookloverThe magic of books just enchants me. I love reading, what more can I say?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.comBlogger345125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-52744660874969402302015-08-10T04:04:00.002+08:002015-08-10T04:04:16.171+08:00The Time Of My Life by Cecelia Ahern<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4UHFY-qzHoJJyDxFhsbSGxlEtVjUHX8uAcXuoB2e93-o6_BuYp0VR13eRiu0RLY-KXL43sWoBo1Tw9lNY8qmB9yomi_F9CHgsh_O3wD3xG6g-x4s7fz-QKtT9UukeLYkgvXsKw1ysLrYN/s1600/11984093.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4UHFY-qzHoJJyDxFhsbSGxlEtVjUHX8uAcXuoB2e93-o6_BuYp0VR13eRiu0RLY-KXL43sWoBo1Tw9lNY8qmB9yomi_F9CHgsh_O3wD3xG6g-x4s7fz-QKtT9UukeLYkgvXsKw1ysLrYN/s320/11984093.jpg" /></a></div>
First Published: 10 May 2012<br />
Publisher: HarperCollins<br />
Pages: 484<br />
Format: Paperback<br />
Finished Date: 8 August 2015<br />
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px inset crimson; padding: 5px;">
<u>Synopsis</u><br />
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Lucy Silchester has an appointment with her life – and she’s going to have to keep it.<br />
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Lying on Lucy Silchester’s carpet one day when she returns from work is a gold envelope. Inside is an invitation – to a meeting with Life. Her life. It turns out she's been ignoring itand it needs to meet with her face to face.<br />
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It sounds peculiar, but Lucy’s read about this in a magazine. Anyway, she can’t make the date: she’s much too busy despising her job, skipping out on her friends and avoiding her family.<br />
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But Lucy’s life isn’t what it seems. Some of the choices she’s made – and stories she’s told – aren’t what they seem either. From the moment she meets the man who introduces himself as her life, her stubborn half-truths are going to be revealed in all their glory – unless Lucy learns to tell the truth about what really matters to her.<br />
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</blockquote>
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<div style="border: 5px outset dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Rating</u> </div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a></div>
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<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Review</u> </div>
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This book was was pretty good! I liked the messages in this book. Like, its just that sometimes we get caught up in things and we neglect our own life. And sometimes we just stay comfortably in our own little rut, and I think this reminds us to step out.<br />
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I loved seeing how when Lucy started to tell the truth about things, her life started to slowly fall back into place. Of course, real life isn't that perfect. But I think it was heartwarming to see her slowly fix her life and get things back where they should be. <br />
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I enjoyed the different characters in this book, but I did want more of certain people. I felt that many characters were there as fillers and I would have appreciated more character development for the secondary characters. Perhaps one reason was that there were simply too many characters. Still, I liked Lucy's friends, and I loved Riley (her brother). Their interactions were really cute and it was lovely to see how they really loved each other, despite growing up in the type of household they did.<br />
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One thing I would have liked was more of the romance. I mean I totally wanted them to get together, its just I feel like there wasn't enough about him (not saying the name so I don't give any spoilers accidentally!). And yeah, I wanted to see how they would really work together. <br />
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But I guess eventually the message of this book was about how Lucy put her life back on track. Perhaps she didn't have a direction or a passion, but maybe we don't always need that. Maybe the first step is just getting your life back in order.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-45808926503363547342015-08-06T02:01:00.000+08:002015-08-06T02:01:00.602+08:00How To Fall In Love by Cecelia Ahern<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3feiHYkSvP5FW1Ter5jCrOofhztTncvpuM-eYHKfqVn-ozdXqYGN9j0dVHb1uiBcU8rxcouoISQWtsiKDSxZufnixCuyrihkeMx7ZbWIpMTz3WYPThcsgHftM-19SnG0RofFD3Qxdcs7e/s1600/18161265.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3feiHYkSvP5FW1Ter5jCrOofhztTncvpuM-eYHKfqVn-ozdXqYGN9j0dVHb1uiBcU8rxcouoISQWtsiKDSxZufnixCuyrihkeMx7ZbWIpMTz3WYPThcsgHftM-19SnG0RofFD3Qxdcs7e/s400/18161265.jpg" width="262" /></a></div>
First Published: 24 Oct 2013<br />
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd<br />
Pages: 327<br />
Format: Paperback<br />
Finished Date: 6 Aug 2015<br />
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px inset crimson; padding: 5px;">
<u>Synopsis</u><br />
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She has just two weeks. Two weeks to teach him how to fall in love – with his own life.<br />
<br />
Adam Basil and Christine Rose are thrown together late one night, when Christine is crossing the Halfpenny Bridge in Dublin. Adam is there, poised, threatening to jump. Adam is desperate – but Christine makes a crazy deal with him. His 35th birthday is looming and she bets him she can show him that life is worth living before then. <br />
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Despite her determination, Christine knows what a dangerous promise she’s made. Against the ticking of the clock, the two of them embark on wild escapades, grand romantic gestures and some unlikely late-night outings. Slowly, Christine thinks Adam is starting to fall back in love with his life. <br />
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But has she done enough to change his mind for good? And is that all that’s starting to happen?<br />
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</blockquote>
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<div style="border: 5px outset dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Rating</u> </div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a></div>
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<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Review</u> </div>
<br />
I don’t know what to say. But Cecelia Ahern has written a book that just touches my very heart. I can’t exactly say why or how, but I love how she dealt with such a big issue. I loved how she didn’t try to sugarcoat it, but just gave it to us plainly and simply. I can’t really say how much I love this book; I can’t even point out my favorite scenes. It’s like every scene in the book (at least, those involving Adam and Christine) was written in a way that it was amazing on its own but it had to all be put together because they all fit like a jigsaw.<br />
<br />
Christine’s determination was impressive. I saw how she wasn’t happy, but she chose to live on and keep trying to fix the problems. And then we see Adam, who is so different from her. It was a very interesting pairing, but it just worked. I loved seeing how Christine was always so positive and trying her best to feel alive, that it just changes the people around her. Some people are just born with a sense of happiness emanating from them, and I think Christine was one of them. She might not have been happy herself, perhaps even depressed, but the way she always looked for the best in things makes one inspired to find that little spark of positivity too.<br />
<br />
Sure, there were some story arcs that weren’t fully explored, or that seemingly made no sense. But life is like that, isn’t it? Sometimes it makes no sense. I think that’s the beauty in life sometimes. Its just so random and random things just happen, but you have to find the joy in them.<br />
<br />
This story was truly heartwarming. I really enjoyed seeing how they both slowly fell in love – with each other, and with life. It was beautiful how as she tried to heal him, she got healed too. That through the imperfections and the brokenness, they healed each other along the way. And I loved how in this book, love wasn’t a crutch that they leant upon to somehow magically fix themselves, but love here healed and subtly showed them the way to fix things. <br />
<br />
This was truly an amazing read, and I’m honored to have the chance to read it.<br />
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<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-84125679930504808562014-07-24T18:27:00.001+08:002014-07-24T18:30:16.419+08:00Blog Tour: Extraction by Stephanie Diaz<div class=""><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbCwpPuGxvsId_xmMcaoHsaq_R3l2UA5qg5kLFfHY3E2Iux-d4xcqBoLM4Zu8K1TuHac9PpctPs-LTowCxWSwvtV9sGKgA_ISDHq1g9SeUwkDk77guaAjI4Ry6XdudVtJ-ee9N5V56pNJt/s640/blogger-image--1511045521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbCwpPuGxvsId_xmMcaoHsaq_R3l2UA5qg5kLFfHY3E2Iux-d4xcqBoLM4Zu8K1TuHac9PpctPs-LTowCxWSwvtV9sGKgA_ISDHq1g9SeUwkDk77guaAjI4Ry6XdudVtJ-ee9N5V56pNJt/s640/blogger-image--1511045521.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class=""><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnHtNkxf1T-cCUpVOLor7MS1RrtwnucBSNbadkwWC7_QjIMzETJlt3zoHcp6DGP424G61KfQPvaQfSk4bujEnjWNYnZhsdtlrQ5R8H278dygsPUAAYkZVeBz_j0oXLNRvLCezW7F-WaihR/s640/blogger-image--560828091.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnHtNkxf1T-cCUpVOLor7MS1RrtwnucBSNbadkwWC7_QjIMzETJlt3zoHcp6DGP424G61KfQPvaQfSk4bujEnjWNYnZhsdtlrQ5R8H278dygsPUAAYkZVeBz_j0oXLNRvLCezW7F-WaihR/s640/blogger-image--560828091.jpg" /></a></div><div class=""><br />
</div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b class="">Series:</b> Extraction #1</span></div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b class="">Release date:</b> July 22nd 2014</span></div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b class="">Publisher:</b> St. Martin's Griffin</span></div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b class="">Purchase:</b> <a class="" data-blogger-escaped-target="_blank" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1250041171/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=httpwwwgoodco-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1250041171&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2">Amazon</a></span></div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br class="" /></span></div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span class=""><a class="" href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16210411-extraction">https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16210411-extraction</a></span></span></div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br class="" /></span></div><div class="" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-weight: bold;">BOOK DESCRIPTION:</span></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"Welcome to Extraction testing."</span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br class="" /></span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Clementine has spent her whole life preparing for her sixteenth birthday, when she’ll be tested for Extraction in the hopes of being sent from the planet Kiel’s toxic Surface to the much safer Core, where people live without fear or starvation. When she proves promising enough to be “Extracted,” she must leave without Logan, the boy she loves. Torn apart from her only sense of family, Clem promises to come back and save him from brutal Surface life.</span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br class="" /></span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">What she finds initially in the Core is a utopia compared to the Surface—it’s free of hard labor, gun-wielding officials, and the moon's lethal acid. But life is anything but safe, and Clementine learns that the planet's leaders are planning to exterminate Surface dwellers—and that means Logan, too. </span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br class="" /></span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Trapped by the steel walls of the underground and the lies that keep her safe, Clementine must find a way to escape and rescue Logan and the rest of the planet. But the planet leaders don't want her running—they want her subdued.</span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br class="" /></span></div></div><div class="" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">With intense action scenes and a cast of unforgettable characters,Extraction is a page-turning, gripping read, sure to entertain lovers of Hunger Games and Ender's Game and leave them breathless for more.</span></div><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br class="" /></span></div><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEionqnrcXlDyZz-SZmO4lzmfiINJhUPY7ZzuB8nuwMWE_Ht0dijm-jwH7r3awMV_YZfd7zMwzPR1WrKfoLMZkUyFxvAMzsiodAhHYn45p4WW2R1jZPltuf49LvisWfl4E0xGKba7e-v2GDe/s640/blogger-image--741723335.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEionqnrcXlDyZz-SZmO4lzmfiINJhUPY7ZzuB8nuwMWE_Ht0dijm-jwH7r3awMV_YZfd7zMwzPR1WrKfoLMZkUyFxvAMzsiodAhHYn45p4WW2R1jZPltuf49LvisWfl4E0xGKba7e-v2GDe/s640/blogger-image--741723335.jpg" /></a></span></div><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br />
</span></div><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-weight: bold;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR</span></div><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class=""></span><br />
<div class="" style="font-weight: 300; text-align: justify;"><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class=""><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span class="">Twenty-one-year-old Stephanie Diaz wrote her debut novel, Extraction, when she should've been making short films and listening to college lectures at San Diego State University. When she isn't lost in books, she can be found singing, marveling at the night sky, or fan-girling over TV shows.</span></span></span></div><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><span class=""><span style="color: black;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><a class="" data-blogger-escaped-target="_blank" href="http://stephaniediazbooks.com/">WEBSITE</a><span class=""> | </span><a class="" data-blogger-escaped-target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/StephanieEDiaz">TWITTER</a><span class=""> | </span><a class="" data-blogger-escaped-target="_blank" href="https://www.facebook.com/stephaniediazbooks">FACEBOOK</a></span></span></span></div><div class="" style="text-align: start;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class=""><br />
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<div class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: none; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-weight: bold;"><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span class="" style="font-weight: bold;">TOUR SCHEDULE:</span> <a class="" href="http://www.itchingforbooks.com/2014/05/blog-tour-sign-upextraction-by.html">http://www.itchingforbooks.com/2014/05/blog-tour-sign-upextraction-by.html</a></span></span></div><div><span class="" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-weight: bold;"><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-79929543914368520482014-07-17T21:45:00.000+08:002014-07-17T21:45:34.029+08:00Blog Tour: Revolutionary (Anomaly #3) by Krista McGee<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Revolutionary</b></div>
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<b>All her life Thalli thought she was an anomaly. Now she must use her gifts to fulfill the role she was called to play: Revolutionary.</b><br />
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Back in the underground State against her will, Thalli is no longer the anomaly she was before. She has proven herself to be a powerful leader aboveground and returns with information that Dr. Loudin needs to complete his plan of uniting the world under one leader: himself. But he, too, has information. A secret he has kept from Thalli her entire life. A secret that, once revealed, changes everything about the person Thalli thought she was.<br />
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Hoping to help Thalli rise up against the Scientists, both Berk and Alex join her underground, but their presence only brings more trouble for her. Now Dr. Loudin knows just the leverage to use on his captive, and she is forced to choose between the two of them. Is her first love her true love? Or does Alex ultimately claim her heart?<br />
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Unsure of everything around her, including her own identity, Thalli doesn’t know where to turn. She knows she needs the Designer, but he seems further away than ever. What she does know, though, is that if she doesn’t do something to stop Loudin, the fragile world aboveground will be lost once and for all.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Revolutionary-Anomaly-Book-Krista-McGee-ebook/dp/B00I5QX15W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405210993&sr=8-1&keywords=revolutionary+krista+mcgee">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/revolutionary-krista-mcgee/1117260782?ean=9781401688769">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/revolutionary-2">Kobo</a> | <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Revolutionary-Krista-Mcgee/9781401688769">Book Depository</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18806299-revolutionary?from_search=true">Goodreads</a></div>
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Check out the first two books in the series!<br />
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<b>Krista McGee</b></div>
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Krista writes for teens, teaches teens, and more often than not, acts like a teen. She and her family have lived and ministered in Texas, Costa Rica, and Spain. Her current hometown is Tampa, FL.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://kristamcgeebooks.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/krista.a.mcgee">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/KristaMcGeeYA">Twitter</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5015496.Krista_McGee">Goodreads</a></div>
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Blog Tour hosted by:<br />
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<a href="http://yaboundbooktours.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1GUsplweQ3rqdHfJO1wxChQXF2f0je_pkN3LgxFBBskXyfkC1MKZVZ2Y8yO6E23QIQdgBhqPQn_aq24wZg4PW9gXmS2pChWVmulHXQSiG7PrTeaK0xgl2qGjF5JeRcGspQEs4zdJLLxRs/s1600/YA+Bounk+Tour+Button.png" /></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-7881170643556820392014-07-09T00:39:00.003+08:002014-07-09T00:39:38.578+08:00Blog Tour: Into The Blind by Helen Rena - Excerpt + Giveaway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLAFLUrz1cL3TtdxYoU82TUd0ZrYKpZs6mC2yaNEt0KyUnaKbr5llCxncaMAzrdX-mgr8nGJ84je7nZih1VmNMEqxYVn0LVteHL18dKAgLEzGKGQqnfjCGHHKKgg0zFD8CPhkqirBJl_ha/s1600/Into-the-Blind-Banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLAFLUrz1cL3TtdxYoU82TUd0ZrYKpZs6mC2yaNEt0KyUnaKbr5llCxncaMAzrdX-mgr8nGJ84je7nZih1VmNMEqxYVn0LVteHL18dKAgLEzGKGQqnfjCGHHKKgg0zFD8CPhkqirBJl_ha/s320/Into-the-Blind-Banner.jpg" height="146" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5bmioectsg6FC7lTv8FQD-fm9GKiZgCpyatlhFKlSvpfE4HE0o5BSvxbMghKTdaFnFHCXs42X2SLiD1CruK4a6Je19hIDfkehc2Inb45c2o7Kebr9fMNVuICcFYKs5WSyF5zxq4_cVAo/s1600/Into+the+Blind+by+Helen+Rena.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5bmioectsg6FC7lTv8FQD-fm9GKiZgCpyatlhFKlSvpfE4HE0o5BSvxbMghKTdaFnFHCXs42X2SLiD1CruK4a6Je19hIDfkehc2Inb45c2o7Kebr9fMNVuICcFYKs5WSyF5zxq4_cVAo/s320/Into+the+Blind+by+Helen+Rena.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a><br />
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<b>Into The Blind</b></div>
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In a world where everyone is gifted, be it in dancing, lightning-bringing, or death-giving, Ever is born…all-powerful.<br />
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For this gift, she is kidnapped and trafficked at birth. Fifteen years later, Ever still hasn’t seen even a glimmer of her powerful gift. Locked in an abandoned mall in New York City, she’s fighting to survive her captivity, her brutal guards, and the other gifted kids in her cell. She would do anything to escape.<br />
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Fox is gifted with time manipulation. Like Ever, he hasn’t come into his gift yet; like Ever, he hates the mall; and like Ever, he longs to be free. But there’s one thing he values above his freedom—it’s Ever’s love…<br />
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…yet, when the two make a desperate attempt to escape, this attempt proves so dark and twisted that it just might destroy Ever’s love for Fox.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Into-Blind-Helen-Rena-ebook/dp/B00L87WBLK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404597567&sr=8-1&keywords=into+the+blind">Amazon</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21523811-into-the-blind?ac=1">Goodreads</a></div>
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<b>Praise for Into the Blind:</b><br />
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“A thrilling story…a must-read for the adventurous of heart!” —Gina Henning, <i>author of Going Pecans</i><br />
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“…genuinely original and engaging…” —Jeanne Dallman, author of <i>The Hour of Separation</i><br />
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“…unique voice…unique world…unique premise…” —Jon VanZile, editor of <i>Dragon Tree Press</i><br />
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</i> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKF8yIp5-Qz_20D0rvgBWk0XC1yVuu2xX5Eg4LLhP6-vIsLjPxEwkaKEL980lSuQDY5T9CsIzDA1yrul6GeB9P-1-wYcKDfAlSkSO47mHK-bM5p6USXJyy2Zx965EvaaaPwkqe2p-9IWW/s1600/Helen+Rena+Picture+4-25-14.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/AVvXsEigKF8yIp5-Qz_20D0rvgBWk0XC1yVuu2xX5Eg4LLhP6-vIsLjPxEwkaKEL980lSuQDY5T9CsIzDA1yrul6GeB9P-1-wYcKDfAlSkSO47mHK-bM5p6USXJyy2Zx965EvaaaPwkqe2p-9IWW/s320/Helen+Rena+Picture+4-25-14.jpg" height="200" width="155" /></a><br />
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<b>Helen Rena</b></div>
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Helen Rena loves reading and writing novels. And short stories. And flash fiction. She has a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature, and a vast collection of books and green bottles. She is still not sure why green bottles. She lives in Southern Oregon with her husband and two children. Please visit her at <a href="http://helenrena.com/">helenrena.com</a>.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.helenrena.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/helen.rena.1">Facebook</a> | <a href="http://www.twitter.com/helenrena123">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8074080.Helen_Rena">Goodreads</a></div>
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<br />
Time for a short excerpt!<br />
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<b><u>Chapter 1</u></b></div>
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The green cement floor under my feet wasn’t doing anything. I mean, I wasn’t sure what exactly was supposed to happen, but Sinna was looking down at the floor with so much focus. Presently, he raised his eyes at me, and since I’m blind but have this highly fortunate ability to see what the people around me are looking at, I saw the object of his gaze: myself. Together, Sin and I surveyed my short figure, my pale, heart-shaped face, and my hopelessly tangled white hair. Sinna sighed as if I were somehow wrong for what we were doing.<br />
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“Ever, I can’t,” he said finally. “It’s too dangerous.”<br />
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I made a funny pleading face. I wanted to joke, to ask him how a nightmare could be dangerous. It was just a hallucination. A waking vision that temporarily blocked out one’s reality. And if Sin succeeded in making it for me now, he’d be able to make one for our guards later. We could be free in half an hour! But I suddenly choked up. The room around me—the cold cement walls the color of gangrene, the ugly kidney-shaped wooden counter, and the piles of books, magazines, newspapers, and journals (for this room used to be a mall bookstore)—all of it began to suffocate me. I had to get out of here. I had to be free. How I wished I could make Sinna feel this crushing need!<br />
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He squeezed my shoulder: he understood. Then, sounding like the Collegiate Thesaurus he’d used for a pillow for the last several years, he said, “Very well, Ever-Jezebel. Do you recall what I have imparted to you not three minutes ago?”<br />
I nodded and made my voice sound deeper to show Sinna that I was quoting him, “Ever, you ought to remember three things. First, if you notice that something, even the tiniest and most insignificant detail, deviates from the nightmare we have agreed upon, please stop me. Second, even if everything does go according to the plan, but you feel that you wish to be released from the nightmare, please stop me. Third, once in a nightmare, you will not be able to see through my eyes, and fourth, knowing that it’s not real is not going to help you in there.” I switched to my own voice, “Did I get it right?”<br />
The sounds of steps and whacks came from the back room, where Sinna’s girlfriend was teaching my boyfriend a new method of killing people. By breaking their necks with the edge of a palm. I only hoped Demi wouldn’t kill Fox because that girl was freakishly strong. <br />
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Sinna chuckled. “Yes, it was all correct, although I do not believe I sounded even fractionally this excited. However, let’s proceed. An ocean. Blue and warm. With a school of fish that looks like the one on the cover of the Marine Atlas.” The last words he muttered quietly under his nose, clearly to remind himself of what I’d requested to see in a nightmare.<br />
He backed away from me…a few steps…then a few more…then all the way to the massive steel door that stood between us and freedom. He stopped there, and again, we watched the dusty green floor by my feet. <br />
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Suddenly it quaked. <br />
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Yes, right under my feet. <br />
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The snapshots I was getting through Sinna’s eyes vanished, but somehow, impossibly, improbably, I was still seeing the floor by my feet. It quaked once again.<br />
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On its third quake, a coffin-sized segment of the green floor in front of me ballooned up. In perfect silence, it wriggled and jerked from side to side, as if something large was pushing our floor from beneath.<br />
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My heart sang with excitement: it was happening, it was here, the miracle that would set us free. <br />
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The bulge gave one last shuddering twitch and then, still silently, cracked open. A gush of clear, cold liquid shot straight up out of the hole, wetting my chin, my nose, and a lock of hair that had slipped out of my ponytail. As I wiped my face, wondering why the liquid smelled of rubbing alcohol, the water spurt hit the ceiling and came back down, this time soaking me head to toe, and I couldn’t believe it was just a vision. My skin felt wet. My hair and dress clung to me as if they were truly soaked, and the only word I could use to describe this fluid was “real.”<br />
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More water came through the crack in the floor, and then more still. Only it didn’t spread—it stayed around me in a large circular puddle. I hopped up and down in it. <br />
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“I’m loving this!” I told Sinna, not sure if I would get a response—he hadn’t specified if we’d be able to talk while I was inside a nightmare. But I did hear from him: he chortled and said, “Just don’t attempt to swim in this reservoir, Ever. It’s not real.”<br />
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The water kept on rising. Soon it touched my chin, and I hastened to press my lips together, which wasn’t easy because I was grinning so hard. Then I had to pinch my nose shut. Since I was a bit late on that, a little water trickled down my throat, and it tasted exactly like the tap stuff I drank every day. So…not a salty ocean after all? But no matter, it was still a fun nightmare. <br />
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A small, paper-white ghost flitted past me...</div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-43762679110678224782014-07-07T18:15:00.003+08:002014-07-07T18:15:57.007+08:00Blog Tour: Fires of Man by Dan Levinson - Excerpt + Giveaway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://sites.google.com/a/myaddictionisreading.com/summer-2014/dan-levinson" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/hh501/myreadingaddiction/new-216_zps3f770515.jpg" height="164" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>Fires of Man</b></div>
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In a world where a gifted few can manipulate reality with their minds, two great nations—Calchis and Orion—employ these psionic powers in a covert war for global superiority.<br />
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In the heart of Calchis, a powerful young psion named Aaron Waverly is kidnapped, and forcibly conscripted. To the north, in the capital, a plan is hatched to decimate Orion, to be carried out by the ruthless operative known only as “Agent.”<br />
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In Orion, fresh recruit Stockton Finn comes to terms with his incredible new powers, and learns firsthand how dangerous they can be. Meanwhile, officers Nyne Allen and Kay Barrett navigate the aftermath of their shattered love affair, oblivious to the fact that Calchis draws ever closer to destroying the tenuous peace.<br />
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Finally, in the arctic land of Zenith, Calchan archaeologist Faith Santia unearths a millennia-old ruin. This lost temple might just hold the hidden history of psionic powers, as well as hints of a deeper mystery . . . that could shake the foundations of all mankind.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fires-Man-Psionic-Earth-Levinson/dp/1939967325/">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-fires-of-man-dan-levinson/1117389212">Barnes & Noble</a></div>
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<b>Dan Levinson</b></div>
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Born and raised on Long Island, NY, Dan grew up immersing himself in fantastical worlds. While other kids dreamed of being astronauts and cowboys, all he ever wanted was to be a novelist. Now, he’s living his dream.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.danlevinsonwriting.com/">Website</a> | <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ReadDanLevinson">Facebook</a> | <a href="http://www.twitter.com/ReadDanLevinson">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18755001-fires-of-man">Goodreads</a></div>
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</blockquote>
<br />
Time for a short excerpt!<br />
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1.<br />
AGENT<br />
<br />
He ran toward the edge of the cliff.<br />
The sun beat down upon him as his limbs pumped. Earth crunched beneath his feet, and a breeze blew across his black-stubbled scalp. His breathing was calm, meticulously measured.<br />
When the ground slipped away, he felt only anticipation.<br />
Plummeting, the man inhaled. Power flooded into him, thrilling, delicious. He reached out with that power, warping reality with an energy born from the depths of his being. Suddenly . . .<br />
He winked out of existence . . .<br />
And then reappeared at the base of the cliff.<br />
Ahead lay a farmstead, awash in noontime light. Past its assorted buildings—barns and silos, stables and chicken coops—a field of wheat swayed like the hair of some sleeping giant.<br />
It would burn soon.<br />
Through his years of service, he’d been called many things: “raven;” “hellhound;” “black-hearted bastard.” There was but only one epithet that mattered—the one he’d earned with blood and devotion.<br />
He was “Agent.”<br />
A man with no name. A man who owed his nation everything.<br />
Just then, he spotted his quarry—a teenage farmhand named Aaron Waverly. The boy had power—strong power, according to the readings.<br />
Agent dashed toward the farm; dry winds kicked dirt and debris over his steel-toed boots. The expanse of greenery blurred past. He moved swift as a shooting star, his power saturating him with speed and strength.<br />
When Waverly turned and saw, it was too late.<br />
Agent teleported behind Waverly, and struck once, at the base of the farmhand’s skull. The young man collapsed, and Agent caught him, slung him over his shoulder.<br />
“Stop!”<br />
A frown split the crags of Agent’s face.<br />
Before him stood a girl, no more than sixteen, a pitchfork clutched in her fingers. She was a pretty thing, her blonde tresses tied back in a ponytail, her face darkened by hours in the field. She was an innocent. Agent did not relish the thought of ending her.<br />
“Run,” he said.<br />
“I’ll scream,” she said, her eyes flitting to the silenced pistol at his side. She hesitated.<br />
He laid a hand on the gun. “Run,” he repeated.<br />
She ran.<br />
He drew his weapon and shot her in the back of the head.<br />
She pitched forward, hit the ground, dead. Blood spread in a widening pool around her. Waverly groaned, eyelids flickering. Agent holstered the gun and looked at the girl. Killing civilians was distasteful, but she had seen him. He’d had no choice.<br />
Now, time to go.<br />
Agent stepped toward the nearby barn, and pressed his palm against the red-painted planks. He sent his power into it, and a ripple spread through the wood, like a pebble striking the surface of a pond. Furrows of heat fanned out from his fingertips, crackling furiously.<br />
He turned away and teleported to safety.<br />
Back atop the cliff, he paused to watch his handiwork.<br />
The barn exploded. Eruptive force flattened surrounding buildings and rocked the landscape. Screams broke out below, the sound carried on the wind. Again, Waverly stirred on Agent’s shoulder.<br />
Agent smiled, and was gone.<br />
<br /></div>
<br />
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So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7063974360789270561">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :D<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-67664917395749593442014-07-02T22:27:00.001+08:002014-07-03T18:34:05.126+08:00Blog Tour: Division Zero by Matthew S. Cox - Giveaway + Excerpt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Division Zero <br />
(Division Zero #1)</b></div>
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Most cops get to deal with living criminals, but Agent Kirsten Wren is not most cops.<br />
<br />
A gifted psionic with a troubled past, Kirsten possesses a rare combination of abilities that give her a powerful weapon against spirits. In 2418, rampant violence and corporate warfare have left no shortage of angry wraiths in West City. Most exist as little more than fleeting shadows and eerie whispers in the darkness.<br />
<br />
Kirsten is shunned by a society that does not understand psionics, feared by those who know what she can do, and alone in a city of millions. Every so often, when a wraith gathers enough strength to become a threat to the living, these same people rely on her to stop it.<br />
<br />
Unexplained killings by human-like androids known as dolls leave the Division One police baffled, causing them to punt the case to Division Zero. Kirsten, along with her partner Dorian, wind up in the crosshairs of corporate assassins as they attempt to find out who – or what – is behind the random murders before more people die.<br />
<br />
She tries to hold on to the belief that no one is beyond redemption as she pursues a killer desperate to claim at least one more innocent soul – that might just be hers.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Division-Zero-Matthew-S-Cox/dp/1620074796/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396543620&sr=8-1&keywords=Division+Zero+cox">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/division-zero-matthew-s-cox/1118876112?ean=9781620074794">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/division-zero/book--ExQmy4GtkO_jhT912r3YA/page1.html">Kobo</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20359946-division-zero?ac=1">Goodreads</a></div>
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Matthew S. Cox</b></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times;">Born in a little town known as South Amboy NJ in 1973, Matthew has been creating science fiction and fantasy worlds for most of his reasoning life. Somewhere between fifteen to eighteen of them spent developing the world in which Division Zero, Virtual Immortality, and The Awakened Series take place. He has several other projects in the works as well as a collaborative science fiction endeavor with author Tony Healey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times;">Hobbies and Interests:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times;">Matthew is an avid gamer, a recovered WoW addict, Gamemaster for two custom systems (Chronicles of Eldrinaath [Fantasy] and Divergent Fates [Sci Fi], and a fan of anime, British humour (<- deliberate), and intellectual science fiction that questions the nature of reality, life, and what happens after it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times;">He is also fond of cats.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times;">Awards: Prophet of the Badlands (excerpt) – Honorable Mention – Writers of the Future<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.matthewcoxbooks.com/wordpress/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MatthewSCoxAuthor">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/mscox_fiction">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7712730.Matthew_S_Cox">Goodreads</a></div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<br />
Time for a short excerpt!<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 2px dashed mediumvioletred; padding: 5px;">
“Nice kid, that Samir.” Dorian glanced at the boy. “They should at least let him grow up before they put him to work.” <br />
<br />
“He’s learning mechanic skills; it’s more like tech school.” Kirsten shrugged. “You remember Heather?” <br />
<br />
“That other astral sensate? Yeah I think I saw her once; didn’t she move to the East coast?” <br />
<br />
“Yeah… They sent her out into the field when she was thirteen. They said they had no one else strong enough. So stupid, they wouldn’t let her carry a weapon either.” <br />
<br />
“Would you let a thirteen year old have an E90?” Dorian clucked his tongue. “Still, they shouldn’t have put her out there. I’m surprised command gambled with lives like that. Why didn’t they send you?” <br />
<br />
“That was Burckhardt’s call.” Kirsten frowned. “I was only six then. They had no idea who I was.” Her gaze fell off to the side. “I wish they did…”<br />
<br />
He laughed, trying to cheer her up. “I bet they’d have sent you instead of her if they did.” <br />
<br />
The absurdity of it carried with it a nugget of doubt. If they needed a ghost destroyed, Deputy Director Burckhardt just might have considered a six-year-old Kirsten to do it. Her combination of psionic gifts created a rare and dangerous weapon against astral beings. <br />
<br />
I’m not sure he would have cared, even if I didn’t know how to use the lash back then. <br />
<br />
Her words rode upon a fake chuckle. “Yeah, I guess they would have.” <br />
<br />
The car banked around the side of a gleaming skyscraper, coating the building with a flickering shimmer of blue from the emergency lights. Faces appeared in the windows as people looked over, curious at the sight of an all-black police vehicle. <br />
<br />
The coffee slid out of the cup holder during the turn, but floated up into the air and leveled off before it could burst open in her lap. She grabbed it as fast as she could move her hand, but Dorian had already levitated it out of harm’s way. <br />
<br />
“Thanks for that.” <br />
<br />
“Hey, we’re still cops. Wasting coffee is a class-A felony.” <br />
<br />
They exchanged a laugh, and soon she came in for a landing in the parking lot of the hotel.<br />
<br />
Division 1 patrol cars dotted the area around two immense armored assault vehicles pulled right up to the steps. On the roof of each A3V, a Division 5 trooper kept a hatch-mounted 30mm cannon trained on the door. They looked quite disappointed at not having been given a chance to use them.<br />
<br />
Kirsten killed the bar lights and hopped out, letting the door sink closed behind her as she walked up the steps through the crowd of police. Most of them moved with haste out of her path or looked away to avoid eye contact. Where someone else might have gotten a power trip, she felt a stab in her chest as the label of “outcast” sunk in deeper. Terrified faces turning away sent her gaze to the ground and made her feel alone in a swarm of people, wondering if mother had been right.<br />
<br />
<br />
Kirsten fed the destination to the autopilot and hit the bar lights. From the air, the starport area resembled a square valley in the city. Zoning laws prevented the construction of anything over five stories for several miles in all directions to minimize loss of life in the event of a crash. The main terminal had the shape of a twenty-story chocolate chip made of white plastisteel and studded with millions of little lights. <br />
<br />
Square fire containment walls sectioned off landing pads capable of handling everything from small inter-coastal craft to large shuttles used to carry passengers up to hulking interstellar vessels too ponderous to breach the atmosphere. Between the landing pad walls ran thousands of pipes and wire conduits. <br />
<br />
21-47 meant a hostile manifestation. For it to be called in implied a non-psionic saw an apparition. Flashing lights littered a pad cordoned off by the starport security team and a few Division 1 cops who arrived seconds ahead of her. She circled around to bleed off altitude and came in low over the wall. <br />
<br />
Her car cleared the barrier and settled onto a pad near a Mars shuttle. Two hundred feet long, the craft’s bell-like silhouette turned crimson from a coating of Martian dust, and the vapors of recent use still wafted from the engines. Near the right rear landing strut, a dark-skinned man in a grey jumpsuit hung suspended in a coil of silver fueling hose, screaming. The nozzle dripped luminous blue liquid that boiled upon contact with the ground. <br />
<br />
Kirsten scrambled out of the car and ran over to him. Dorian paused to hold up a hand at the Division 1 cops by the entryway, warning them to stay back―but they ran past him as if he did not exist. Kirsten sensed spiritual energy in the hose, but saw no entity holding it. Her eyes found only a pair of shadows gliding along through the darkest point of the yard. <br />
<br />
Oh, shit. If they are checking him out this could be dangerous. <br />
<br />
Kirsten looked around. “Ok, where are you?” <br />
<br />
“I’m right here,” shouted the suspended man. “Get me the hell down.” <br />
<br />
“Sir, please stay calm. I’m trying to do that.” <br />
<br />
“I’m held up in the bloody air by a bloody hose full of Cryomil, and she tells me to be calm. One little spark and I’m a samosa.” <br />
<br />
“I’m surprised you even bother telling them to stay calm.” Dorian pointed. “I got this guy, check the splat by the nose gear.” <br />
<br />
She trotted to the front while Dorian wrestled with the hose. The man wailed at her as he swayed back and forth, slipping free as Dorian strained against the force imbued in the serpentine line. The man slapped to the ground on his chest, shot Kirsten a terrified look, and ran off. <br />
<br />
At the nose end, a wide pattern of blood spattered out from under the front landing cushion. A crumpled glove peeked out from beneath. <br />
<br />
Kirsten cringed. “Damn. It landed on someone. He’s probably angry.” <br />
<br />
“Damn right I’m pissed.” The sound folded in on itself like speech through a metal tube. <br />
<br />
Kirsten crept forward. “Who’s there?” <br />
<br />
A thirty-something man with scruffy brown hair sat up out of the landing gear, clad in a formerly-dark grey jumpsuit now black with blood. His helmet hung around his neck in a mass of cracked material like a stepped-on egg. <br />
<br />
“What the hell are those?” He flailed at the drifting shadows. <br />
<br />
“They are just watching, but I don’t think they have much interest. Of course, you might have changed their mind if you killed him.” <br />
<br />
“Sanjay did this. He did not follow the safety protocols.” <br />
<br />
“Do you think Sanjay wanted to kill you?” <br />
<br />
The man fidgeted, his face a flurry of emotions. Speech started and stopped several times.<br />
<br />
“You’re angry, and that’s perfectly understandable given the situation, but it looks like an accident.” <br />
<br />
“W… What do those things want?” <br />
<br />
“Well, if you were a bastard in life they take you where you belong. If not, they sensed your rage and came to see what they smelled.” Her voice softened. “Do you have any family or any friends you want me to pass any messages on to?” <br />
<br />
He looked down at the tarmac, fury faded to sadness. “No.” <br />
<br />
Dorian slipped behind, putting her between him and the Harbingers. <br />
<br />
After a few minutes of reassuring talk, the ghost trudged off with his head down, muttering about the importance of the safety checklist. Halfway to the gate terminal, he vanished in a grey-silver cloud of light. Audible murmurs regarding procedure lingered for several seconds. <br />
<br />
“Another lost soul ferried into the light. Nice job.” </div>
<br />
<br />
Tour wide giveaway<br />
Open internationally - Ends July 14th<br />
<br />
--Signed copy of Division Zero + 25$ Amazon gift card<br />
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So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="http://xpressobooktours.com/2014/04/03/tour-sign-up-division-zero-by-matthew-s-cox/">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :DAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-51936985289759949622014-07-01T22:07:00.003+08:002014-07-01T22:07:54.640+08:00Blog Tour: A Moral Dilemma by Zara Kingsley - Giveaway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div style="background-color: #ffff66; border: 6px ridge sienna; color: #660066; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 16em; margin-right: 6em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>A Moral Dilemma</b></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">
<br />
Think you would never date a married man? ... Think again! <br />
<br />
Rebecca Hardy isn't a naturally deceptive person, but it seems her boyfriend might be—and when she theatrically catches him cheating, she decides she’s had it with these modern-day men who can’t commit. She has even less regard for these immoral modern day women, who don’t hesitate to prey on men in committed relationships. What is wrong with them?! Don't they care that they're breaking hearts and destroying lives?! Rebecca, with her high morals and family values, would never even consider dating a married man. Which is why her friends are so shocked when Rebecca finds herself doing exactly that—albeit at the fervent request of that man’s very own wife, the notorious Isabella Coombs. <br />
<br />
At first, Rebecca likes to think of it as helping someone out—female camaraderie, and all that. But she doesn't expect Isabella’s husband to be quite so charming…or for things to go quite so far. <br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J23I0S0">Amazon USA</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00J23I0S0">Amazon UK</a></div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Zara Kingsley</b></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<br />
Luckily I was born and raised in a City I love living in: London, UK. And it’s just as well, as I can barely afford to go on a camping holiday much less move. I have a gorgeous 9yr old daughter, yeah, I’m a single mom, (judge me later), and I like to think of myself as a yummy mummy, when in reality I’m still working on shifting this damn cellulite of my ass. I do actually make it into the gym from time to time, but mainly to appreciate the…ahem …view :)<br />
<br />
So what kinda stuff do I write?<br />
<br />
Well, I write what I love reading, Romantic Comedy and the original kinda British ChickLit. I don’t do vampires, werewolves, or horror, because sheesh, I wanna sleep at night. In my bed. Not underneath it. So if you like Bridget Jones or Shopaholic, then you might dig my stuff.<br />
<br />
My heroines are women in their late twenties / early thirties. My heroes are hot, cute and not too hunky. My stories are about life, love and friendship, with a few twists and turns and tons of fun. They’re not particularly deep, nor meaningful, they’re a lighthearted, easy read, that go well with a glass of wine and a few chocs, and just might make you laugh out loud<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/ZaraKingsley">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/ZaraKingsley">Twitter</a></div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
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So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="http://www.clpblogtours.com/2014/05/a-moral-dilemma-by-zara-kingsley.html">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :D<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-12244847157061877142014-06-30T21:30:00.000+08:002014-07-01T22:08:12.855+08:00Blog Tour: Mirror X by Karri Thompson - Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="color: #660066;">Mirror X </span><br />
<i><span style="color: blue;">(The Van Winkle Project #1)</span></i></b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">
Cassie Dannacher wakes up in a hospital over 1,000 years into the future after her space capsule is retrieved from space. She soon learns that 600 years prior to her arrival, the earth was struck by a plague, killing over half of the world’s population. Naïve and desperate, Cassie, who longs for home and is having trouble adjusting to the new, dictatorial 31st century government, is comforted by Michael Bennett, the 20-year old lead geneticist at the hospital where she was revived.<br />
<br />
But why is Cassie in genetics’ hospital in the first place, and why do several of the people around her seem so familiar, including Travel Carson, the hot and edgy boy she is fated to meet? Soon she discovers there is a sinister answer to all of her questions – and that they want something from Cassie that only she can give.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KP8FDL8/ref=s9_simh_gw_p351_d0_i2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1FT602M2KSZS4HRKE7R4&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1688200382&pf_rd_i=507846">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mirror-x-karri-thompson/1119641090?ean=9781622660582">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/mirror-x">Kobo</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18652641-mirror-x?ac=1">Goodreads</a></div>
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Karri Thompson</b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
My debut YA novel, Amateur Angel, was released May 1, 2012. The next book in that series, Hollywood Angels, comes out September 1. The first book in my upcoming dystopian trilogy, The Van Winkle Chronicles, will be released by Entangled Publishing Summer 2013.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.karrithompson.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Karri-Thompson/197577710292829?ref=hl">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/KarriThompson">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5841442.Karri_Thompson">Goodreads</a></div>
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</blockquote>
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<br />
Check out my review! <br />
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<div style="border: 5px outset dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
Finished reading: 29 June 2014<br />
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<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Rating</u> </div>
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<br />
<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Review</u> </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">Mirror X was a pretty good read. Overall, I
did enjoy the concept and do think I would continue with the series. Still, I
did have some issues that prevented me from fully enjoying the book.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">But let’s start with the good shall we?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">Firstly, I think its beyond cool how Cassie
was revived from cryogenics. Straightaway, I realized that the book was set in
a very futuristic world. Even Cassie’s own time is set a few years into the
future for us. We are not told much of the world then, but it does seem
somewhat similar to what is happening now. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">The concept of the story is pretty
interesting, with the problem of infertility being central to the plot. The
whole idea of the lack of privacy is also really cool to read about. To Cassie,
and to the reader, the idea of the L Bands are a terrible invasion of privacy.
To Michael, and the rest of the world, its perfectly fine. Because they don’t
know anything else. I guess it just gets me thinking about stuff like that. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">And the science in this book was super
cool. I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but I just wish I could see all
this science in real life. I do think that Cassie’s world before she was
revived was rather interesting, I would sure like to read more about it. Its
nice that not everyone in power here is unreasonable, which was refreshing. I
am interested in how things will work out in future books. The plot twists here
kept coming and I must say, I didn’t foresee a lot of them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">Still, I wish I could have liked this more
than I did. I mean, the blurb really sounded fascinating. But I felt the
execution wasn’t as good as I had hoped for. It was a little bit draggy at
times, and it was difficult for me to get into the book because I really didn’t
like Cassie. Or Michael. But I especially don’t like them together. Hence, in
many of their conversations (practically most of the book), I found myself
rolling my eyes. On their own, they’re kinda annoying, but acceptable. I just
couldn’t believe the romance. Cassie was rather narrow-minded and even though
she eventually opened up towards the end, and I could understand her rationale
for things, I just couldn’t like her. Michael felt a little bit flat to me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">I guess I would liked <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mirror X</i> more if I had enjoyed the characters more? I still think
the concept is really cool, and the ideas raised here, such as the L Bands, the
regions, the problems they face, and the technology is very fascinating.
However, I couldn’t fully immerse myself into the story because there just
seemed to be several holes here and there that was only merely coloured over,
but not filled in properly. Perhaps all my unanswered questions will be
answered in the next few books. I do think I will continue this series, because
it has intrigued me and well, I just have to know what happens next.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">Overall it’s a 3/5 star read for me. Wasn’t
fantastic, but it was good enough to keep me reading and to read the next books
in the series.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2348b9284/" id="rc-2348b9284" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.com/load.js"></script><br />
<br />
So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="http://yaboundbooktours.blogspot.com/2014/05/blog-tour-sign-up-mirror-x-by-karri.html">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :DAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-78916131070556876072014-06-27T11:30:00.003+08:002014-06-27T11:30:20.603+08:00Blog Tour: The Pirate Princess (Reign of Light #1) by Kary Rader<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXqCLaZ_eao49d_jXS9R_mYBkP1OpRq9NzrD5fNJM7dT7oblwrKfvAulpEPV6N3cbtggO0mbK7qYYfhY0IMGl7x-79x2QaHTF_dVnjdlhec1cHAcAbct4wcS4UymugBdniCqasR46Y3umb/s1600/The+Pirate+Princess+Banner+450+x+169.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXqCLaZ_eao49d_jXS9R_mYBkP1OpRq9NzrD5fNJM7dT7oblwrKfvAulpEPV6N3cbtggO0mbK7qYYfhY0IMGl7x-79x2QaHTF_dVnjdlhec1cHAcAbct4wcS4UymugBdniCqasR46Y3umb/s320/The+Pirate+Princess+Banner+450+x+169.png" height="148" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0ACgDBQTxyFVZZgUctrtGap-coF5X7FMzCgHROhnX3xMA53BeOF1j09pfvzPtXoQ3Y1XifGrROdK8ObmDqeAWobd_KGP2Hzo-WMrXOrQbz13GJewSk8A417j6IT5hFkrAP_BedS24sW82/s1600/cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0ACgDBQTxyFVZZgUctrtGap-coF5X7FMzCgHROhnX3xMA53BeOF1j09pfvzPtXoQ3Y1XifGrROdK8ObmDqeAWobd_KGP2Hzo-WMrXOrQbz13GJewSk8A417j6IT5hFkrAP_BedS24sW82/s320/cover.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>The Pirate Princess</b></div>
Genre: Fantasy – Supernatural – Paranormal - Romance<br />
Publisher: Boroughs Publishing Group<br />
Date of Publication: May 27th 2014<br />
Word Count: 64,400<br />
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Series: Reign of Light #1<br />
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<i>For a pirate, nothing is forbidden...except love. To gain her freedom, Charlee must seduce the prince. To save the pirate, Prince Petra must win her heart. </i><br />
<br />
BY HONOR ALONE<br />
<br />
A handsome war hero, Prince Petra can have his pick of any lady in the kingdom. A man of virtue, he's saved himself for just the right one. But when the corrupt emperor of Isa Vis kidnaps a duke's daughter to force her into an alliance, Petra sacrifices himself—and his dreams of love—to save her. Betrothing himself to the distant captive, he leads a daring rescue across the stormy South Sea.<br />
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But The Light has other plans. On the voyage, Petra runs afoul of Charlee. Once a prisoner, now a pirate captain, the sultry siren holds him captive with more than just her sword. And when she offers a seductive wager—if he takes her body before they reach the City of Light, she wins absolution for her crimes—it is all he can do to hold firm. While he has every reason to bring Charlee to justice, he’s also finally found a woman he wants more than honor. And he can no more trust her than he can trust himself.<br />
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<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pirate-Princess-Reign-Light-ebook/dp/B00KLEGYCS/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1401239661&sr=1-2&keywords=The+Pirate+Princess">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-pirate-princess-kary-rader/1119459609?ean=2940045921923">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-thepirateprincess-1522707-153.html">All Romance Ebooks</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22024247-the-pirate-princess?from_search=true">Goodreads</a></div>
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<b>Kary Rader</b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<br />
Kary Rader is a part-time Twitter sage, stay-at-home mother of three, and slave to the characters and worlds inside her head. Always creative, she's drawn to stories with fantastical worlds and creatures. <br />
<br />
With a little bit of magic and divine guidance, there isn't anything that can't be accomplished with words. It's the power of words that creates and destroys. <br />
<br />
Vanquishing evil and injustice while finding eternal love in the process is all in a day's work. With the help of her critique partners and master cartographer imaginary places come to life.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.karyrader.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.karyrader.com/blog-3/">Blog</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KaryRaderauthor">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.twitter.com/KaryRader">Twitter</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6998567.Kary_Rader">Goodreads</a></div>
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</blockquote>
<br />
Time for a short excerpt!<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 2px dashed mediumvioletred; padding: 5px;">
LOVE & WAR<br />
<br />
“I’ll race you there.”<br />
<br />
Charlee’s mind spun in a whirl. She’d never been one to resist a challenge, which Petra well knew. She’d also never been one to play fair.<br />
<br />
She softly took his hand and allowed him to pull her up. As soon as he released her, she leaned toward him. His eyes widened and filled with desire. She let a playful smile touch her lips and licked the bottom one with her tongue. Petra sucked in a breath, but before he could make a move, she shoved him back in the sand and took off running as fast as she could, more laughter spilling from her lips—laughter conspicuously sounding like giggles.<br />
<br />
She reached the west side of the pool at nearly the same time Petra crested the cliff of the falls. That sneaky prince had found an alternate route.<br />
<br />
Their eyes met and locked. She took one step into the water as he dove from the cliff. Her breath caught in her throat. She froze for several heartbeats, the ripples from his splash washing over her toes. Then, out of nowhere, a strong arm rose in front of her, grabbed her leg and pulled her in. She screamed and tried to pull away.<br />
<br />
He surfaced in front of her, his arms securely wrapped around her waist. She tried to push and wiggle free, but his arms locked around her more tightly. She tried to splash him, slap him and even butt him with her head, but he captured her hands. Their eyes met unguarded and full of passion. His warm body pressed against hers….<br />
<br /></div>
<br />
Enter the giveaway here!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihVOpoaMv1KtheNcvf2kILnDFRD4TbyUDh0ovTFTS_JUhCiIc0MrxIftuTc8Ejx6V3wPz5eLeg62uTnlX2Rp-GjOjPw37VNm0-0LJgz5KEXyMKyiE-IWmaHRxKX4I-3WlkcJq2Kl52W15b/s1600/Blog+Tour+Prizes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihVOpoaMv1KtheNcvf2kILnDFRD4TbyUDh0ovTFTS_JUhCiIc0MrxIftuTc8Ejx6V3wPz5eLeg62uTnlX2Rp-GjOjPw37VNm0-0LJgz5KEXyMKyiE-IWmaHRxKX4I-3WlkcJq2Kl52W15b/s320/Blog+Tour+Prizes.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
A ten-book subscription to Boroughs Publishing’s Lunchbox Romance line sponsored by the publisher<br />
<br />
1 Prize Pack US Only:<br />
A Sword Pendant Necklace<br />
Signed Copy of <br />
"Queen of Jastain"<br />
<br />
1 $25 Gift Card to either Amazon or B&N Gift Card (Winner's Choice open Internationally)<br />
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ba112f672/" id="rc-ba112f672" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.com/load.js"></script><br />
<br />
So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="http://www.bewitchingbooktours.com/2014/06/now-on-tour-pirate-princess-by-kary.html">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :DAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-83658862456621073162014-06-25T10:48:00.000+08:002014-06-25T10:48:11.695+08:00Blog Tour: Isolation by Denise Stephenson - Guest Post<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCZo0gbr49sDv11Lbfnbm-Gr0G9SNGg7wKzMc7zo8IvIuPSikfXbdWD-eLqVHguo5uoon82Ol7skWDPup6f55s5A51eK0k2UGP-r9zmv29yA7SULhc06xa3iSqjftxXP35MZ3eAwSVay-u/s1600/isolation+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCZo0gbr49sDv11Lbfnbm-Gr0G9SNGg7wKzMc7zo8IvIuPSikfXbdWD-eLqVHguo5uoon82Ol7skWDPup6f55s5A51eK0k2UGP-r9zmv29yA7SULhc06xa3iSqjftxXP35MZ3eAwSVay-u/s320/isolation+cover.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Isolation</b></div>
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<i>Isolation</i> depicts a bleak but recognizable future in which the fear of contagion reaches a fever pitch as a bacterial epidemic catapults the US into an apocalyptic crisis.<br />
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Touch is outlawed. Mothers like Maggie bind their infants’ hands, terrified they might slip fingers into mouths. Gary, a Sterilizer, uses robots to scour the infected, avoiding all contact with human flesh. Trevor, the Chief Enforcer, watches, eager to report any and all infractions.<br />
<br />
One inadvertent touch will change all of their lives.<br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Isolation-Denise-R-Stephenson/dp/1626527601/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1401652440&sr=8-1&keywords=Denise+R.+Stephenson">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/isolation-denise-r-stephenson/1119211019?ean=9781626527607">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Isolation-Denise-Stephenson/9781626527607">Book Depository</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21930041-isolation">Goodreads</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghPWKi3c3ShJ0q6dpwCQkPM_eF6moztXaf95GAYUzghJo2UiGPtU1j4yFExhHFHxPO2Vtyghk4RK9JZrA6bb9L0X2xeAAj5DbqQwk_9CCSix2j2oHuUnBQnZ-SU9YC4Sk8D0VnKYb0esSt/s1600/Denise+R+Stephenson.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/AVvXsEghPWKi3c3ShJ0q6dpwCQkPM_eF6moztXaf95GAYUzghJo2UiGPtU1j4yFExhHFHxPO2Vtyghk4RK9JZrA6bb9L0X2xeAAj5DbqQwk_9CCSix2j2oHuUnBQnZ-SU9YC4Sk8D0VnKYb0esSt/s320/Denise+R+Stephenson.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></div>
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<b>Denise Stephenson</b></div>
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<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<br />
DENISE R. STEPHENSON resides in Oceanside, CA, but she has lived in all the isolated locales of this novel at one time or another. Her publishing history is primarily academic, though as a member of Attention Deficit Drama, she has written and produced monologs and short plays. This is her first novel.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://denisestephenson.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DeniseStephensonIsolation">Facebook</a></div>
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</blockquote>
<br />
And now, let's welcome Denise to the blog!<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
<b><u>Inspiration for Isolation</u></b> </div>
<br />
In my youth I was an idealist. Maybe that’s not that uncommon, but I lived out my idealism as an activist. When the United Farm Workers sought better conditions, I boycotted grapes. When I was in college, I wrote letters to Congress in church-related efforts to feed the hungry. When a friend ran away from an abusive home, I began volunteering at a women’s shelter. In the 80s, when the US and USSR were poised for anhiliation, I organized peace protests against nuclear weapons. Then I went to grad school and found I needed to focus my limited time. I didn’t stop caring, but I read little news, wrote few letters, rarely stood in protest. My values didn’t change, even though I wasn’t acting on them outwardly. <br />
<br />
The germs of my novel Isolation came from the fear of a swine flu epidemic in the fall of 2009, changes in behavior that swept through the country, my concerns about the overuse of 99% bacterial killing soaps and sanitizers, and a line that came into my head: “laying a finger aside of his nose.” <br />
<br />
The flu that year went pandemic, around the world, but not epidemic; it didn’t wipe out humanity. Though it killed tens of thousands world-wide, that’s a tiny, tiny fraction of the population. The fear, however, was palpable. The Centers for Disease Control in the US and the World Health Organization, among others, mounted campaigns to reduce the spread of the virus by teaching us to sleeve the sneeze and catch the cough. They produced posters about the importance of hand-washing which were bright yellow and still adorn the classroom walls on my campus.<br />
<br />
Simultaneously, access to hand sanitizers became ubiquitous in many public places, like grocery stores. Though I’m not a scientist, I worried that we didn’t want to kill all of our bacteria because I knew that we needed it for digestion and to build a healthy immune system. Personally I wondered if we should use all of the 99% bacteria-killing soaps. But I was clearly in the minority. <br />
<br />
One day while walking, I heard the line “laying a finger aside his nose” from the “Night Before Christmas” echoing in my head. I imagined a boy who found the children’s story in a box of old things from his mother’s childhood. Seeing Santa touch his nose, the boy recognized the book as contraband, since face-touching was not allowed in his world. He secreted the page under his mattress like the pornography it was until he could show it to a friend. Suddenly I was thinking about a world in which face-touching was prohibited; that reality didn’t seem far off. <br />
<br />
Along the way I realized how much our food supply had already been contaminated by sudden and frequent outbreaks of E. Coli and other dangerous bacteria. I worried about the dangers of GMOs, though I knew little of the science. Given that I’d never lost sight of the farm workers I’d supported in my youth and given that I’d been a vegetarian more than once over the years due to concerns about Alar in apples, the way chicken is processed, or the dangers of raw spinach, it wasn’t a difficult leap to make Agri-Biz into the evil backdrop to the dystopia I imagined.<br />
<br />
These ideas stayed with me for a couple of years. I read news about the various threads and occasionally wrote short vignettes that I shared with my writing group, but I didn’t imagine I was preparing for a novel until I had the opportunity for a sabbatical. <br />
<br />
And even then, I was intent on not saying a novel was my goal. It was too frightening. As a writing center director I created a project which required me to write more than 100 pages of fiction. The intent was to recreate for myself the conditions college students face when they have to write a longer paper than they experience writing in a genre or discipline they have little experience in. <br />
<br />
At that point, the stage was set for me to write Isolation. Though at the time, I kept emphasizing that I wasn’t writing a novel, just a long piece of fiction. Secretly I hoped for a novel, but I denied it to everyone outwardly. I didn’t want to fail. <br />
<br />
Oh, and the activism of my youth, oddly, writing this dystopian novel has led me back to it—a bit. Promoting my book through social media has led me to follow several bacteria-related entities as well as anti-GMO and food safety advocates. They’re a good source of news as well as marketing oportunities—how life changes.</div>
<br />
Enter the giveaway here!<br />
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e23ee7411/" id="rc-e23ee7411" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
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So yep, that's about it for today! Thanks for visiting!<br />
<br />
This tour is presented by:<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-64883610069173398672014-06-23T18:00:00.000+08:002014-06-23T18:00:05.549+08:00Review Tour: Queen & Commander and Hive & Heist by Janine A. Southard - Review + Giveaway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSlrGhCKM0X1gkUm6NixFAXx5MRwzpwNX7RcYFox0L3oF5oVV10LROyobpTJ2-bW8-L0qEX1gdaImQvmvpwTQ1BbfxYGh8Ni9-sJ2IaNC8PYMDrwrNpc_jKmq48n2CPr-c3Ok_ou9lD-q5/s1600/HiveandHeistTourBanner.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSlrGhCKM0X1gkUm6NixFAXx5MRwzpwNX7RcYFox0L3oF5oVV10LROyobpTJ2-bW8-L0qEX1gdaImQvmvpwTQ1BbfxYGh8Ni9-sJ2IaNC8PYMDrwrNpc_jKmq48n2CPr-c3Ok_ou9lD-q5/s320/HiveandHeistTourBanner.png" height="148" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Hey guys! Welcome to Janine A. Southard's review tour of Queen & Commander and Hive & Heist, books 1 and 2 of the Hive Queen Saga. This is certainly a very different series than what I have read before and I must say, I like it a lot! And I hope you do too:) So without further ado, let's get started.<br />
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Janine A. Southard</b></div>
<blockquote>
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<br />
Janine A. Southard writes and edits speculative fiction in between working on videogame projects. She’s attended more than the average number of universities, which she claims is a FEATURE. (“Oxford educated, but Californian at heart.”) She’s also lived and traveled in Europe, the United States, and Japan. Currently, she lives in Seattle with a husband (and a cat) and sings with a Celtic band.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.janinesouthard.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/jani_s">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6935843.Janine_A_Southard">Goodreads</a></div>
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<div style="background-color: #ffff66; border: 6px ridge sienna; color: #660066; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 16em; margin-right: 6em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Queen & Commander</b></div>
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">
<br />
**WINNER 2013 IPPY AWARD -- Silver Medal for Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror E-Book**<br />
<br />
On a world where high school test scores determine your future, six students rebel. They’ll outrun society as fast as their questionably obtained spaceship will take them.<br />
<br />
Rhiannon doesn’t technically cheat the Test. She’s smarter than the computers that administer it, and she uses that to her advantage. She emerges from Test Day with the most prestigious future career possible: Hive Queen.<br />
<br />
Gwyn & Victor are madly in love, but their Test results will tear them apart. Good thing Rhiannon is Gwyn’s best friend. Rhiannon can fix this. Queens can do anything.<br />
<br />
Gavin is the wild card. Raised off-planet, he can’t wait to leave again... and he’s heard of an empty ship in orbit. The Ceridwen’s Cauldron.<br />
<br />
Both Luciano and Alan fit in the system. They don’t need to leave. Only their devotion to Rhiannon spurs them to join the Cauldron’s crew.<br />
<br />
Spaceships. Blackmail. Anywhere but here.<br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Queen-Commander-Hive-Saga/dp/0988646854/ref=la_B00BROXYKQ_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1402934600&sr=1-1">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/queen-commander-janine-a-southard/1114792229?ean=9780988646858">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17379469-queen-commander">Goodreads</a></div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
And here is my review of Queen & Commander.<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 2px dashed mediumvioletred; padding: 5px;">
<u>My Rating</u><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>My Review</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u><br /></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Queen & Commander was an alright read. When I first saw
the blurb for the book, I just knew I had to read it. The first time I saw it,
I forgot the name, which killed me because I spent ages trying to find the book
but to no avail. However, one day I saw an email saying blog tour signups for
this and Hive & Heist, the second book, was open. I may have freaked out a
little heh. Still, after reading the book, while it was very good, I fear it
may have been slightly short of the high standards in my head. It could be just
me though.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The concept of the world, with Dyfed, its Hives is
fascinating, albeit a little confusing. I would have appreciated a little bit
more backstory about how all these worlds came about, rather than just trying
to infer from the bits and snippets that I got. Why was space travel necessary?
Why did it seem like everyone was living on space stations of some sort? But I
must say, I’m thoroughly intrigued by how everything functions in society. The
ideas behind the story is very interesting to read about.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
As for the characters, they were interesting enough. It was
nice seeing how 6 people came together as a whole Hive and got through some
problems together. Though they had many issues, you see how they learn to live
with each other. Though there is not much teamwork here, I do like how it’s
realistic and not the instant bond that a lot of other teams seem to have.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I really respect Rhiannon. She is so smart and I don’t know,
I like that she isn’t cocky about it. Its like, she knows she’s good, but she also acknowledges
that she has weaknesses and finds people to counter the weaknesses she has. I
don’t know, I just really like her. She didn’t really want to go on the whole
journey, but for Gwyn, she did it, and in so doing, I loved her dedication,
even though at first it was a little reluctant.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
One thing that I didn’t like a lot was the writing style. It
was alright, but sometimes something just felt a little bit off, perhaps it
seemed more like I was being told rather than showed. Still, this is my
personal preference. Somehow, there always seemed to be a wall between the
characters and me which prevented me from being fully engaged with the story. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Still, I really did enjoy the book and I really like reading
about the characters. I just really want to see how things play out, whether
they will eventually come together as a Hive or will it all just fall apart. I
think this book has a very unique concept. I am curious though, why Hives, what
made them that way? Who made them that way? Oh, I have many questions
certainly, but I think I can wait patiently (somewhat, okay no I don’t think I
can!) for the answers in the following books.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i>Disclaimer: I was
provided with a free copy of this book for an honest review. All views
expressed here are mine alone.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<br /></div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHbBWqKe16PStmvn0fdL8Kay97i5j2dDAFO38qTQeOLYsMqjRlz2oF3RDo_fGX_j1ZzrlhG6cuekxqutpZ2_MZ9sESzvk5vacqPNSKAZudZhwvK4NBK45eiM09rTCHmzuLfgg_G2ytFQSF/s1600/HH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHbBWqKe16PStmvn0fdL8Kay97i5j2dDAFO38qTQeOLYsMqjRlz2oF3RDo_fGX_j1ZzrlhG6cuekxqutpZ2_MZ9sESzvk5vacqPNSKAZudZhwvK4NBK45eiM09rTCHmzuLfgg_G2ytFQSF/s320/HH.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="background-color: #ffff66; border: 6px ridge sienna; color: #660066; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 16em; margin-right: 6em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Hive & Heist</b></div>
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">
<br />
Queen Rhiannon and her Hive have found safety on John Wayne Station, but with no way to pay their docking fees or Victor’s medical bills, their debts are racking up quickly. Thankfully, Gavin gets a job with American Space Ranger M3L-15-A, who’s hot on the trail of dangerous criminals.<br />
<br />
The teens move in with their Ranger benefactor, but when they revisit their ship to pick up personal belongings, they realize their Alcubierre tensor jet has been stolen!<br />
<br />
If Rhiannon and her Hivemates ever hope to leave, they must find and steal back what’s theirs. But far from home and among strangers, who can they trust? Will they be stuck on John Wayne for the rest of their lives?<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hive-Heist-Queen-Saga/dp/1633270025/ref=la_B00BROXYKQ_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1402934600&sr=1-2">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hive-heist-janine-a-southard/1119365513?ean=9781633270022">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21566567-hive-heist">Goodreads</a></div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
And now, my review for Hive & Heist.<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 2px dotted mediumslateblue; padding: 5px;">
<u>My Rating</u><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a></div>
<br />
<u>My Review</u><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Hive & Heist took place almost entirely on John Wayne
station, and picks up rather soon after the end of Queen & Commander. I
liked Hive & Heist a little more than Queen & Commander, perhaps
because we got to see more of each individual character, some new characters
were shown and there was way more action than in the first book.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Here, we see more of characters such as Gavin, Victor and
Alex, and definitely Rhiannon. Here, Gwyn/Lois is still not talked about much
and suddenly, Luciano seems to have disappeared off the face of the book for
most of it. Still, I think I can understand why, I guess maybe its like a way
of showing how he has gotten more isolated from the Hive? There is also a new
character, Melissa. It took me a while to get used to her, but when I did, I
found that I really liked her a lot. I think she will prove to be a great
addition to the story, but in what capacity? You’ll have to read to find out ;)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
There were some parts of the story that didn’t seem to have
much link to anything. I guess it was stuff in the beginning and here and there
that just felt like it was prolonging the story, instead of getting to the
point.. The story was a little draggy at the beginning because it seemed like
there was no direction. But around the middle of the book, the pace began to
pick up and you could see why things were starting to happen or why they had
already happened.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
One thing that I really like in this series is that the
characters are very deep. Even though the character development isn’t explicit,
it does make sense and at the end of the book, you do actually realize how far
the characters have come emotionally and as a Hive. I found the ending to be
especially sweet. Also, the side characters really added some entertainment to
the story. I don’t know, it was just really nice seeing their solidarity and
how they were all loyal to each other. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I would have liked to see more of why Luciano changed his
mind at the end though. I felt it wasn’t really explained well and I guess
because he hardly appeared in this book, it would have been nice to see some of
his thoughts about it. A lot of his scenes seemed to be cut short and there
wasn’t much that I could gather from him. He’s still kinda annoying to me
though haha. Victor was a true hero here. I think he really grew up from the
needy, selfish boy we see in Queen & Commander. Here, he actually began to
take responsibility for himself. Gavin stepped up to his position pretty well
and it was really nice seeing how he started working well with Alex to do some
pretty cool things. Especially good, given that they didn’t really like each
other from the start. I love Alex, I’m not saying anything more about that
haha. But he’s really cool and I feel he is the most mature out of all of them.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
There is a subplot here involving other Queens, which I don’t
want to say too much about, because I think it would be a spoiler. But through
it, I think a little light is being shed on the whole Hive structure. I am
certainly very interested to see how that plays out eventually! Alright so it
might involve a little bit about science and biology which I am actually quite
interested in haha. And I think it could actually be key to figuring out how
Hives work!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
All in all, Hive & Heist was pretty good. Though a
little slow initially, when it got started, it became really good. I am looking
forward to seeing more of their adventures in the future, though I’m still
trying to find where all this ties into the grand scheme of things. I will
definitely be reading the next few books. The concept is simply too intriguing
to not continue.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i>Disclaimer: I was provided with a free copy of this book for
an honest review. All views expressed here are mine alone.</i></div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
Enter the giveaway! It's open internationally:)<br />
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d04251455/" id="rc-d04251455" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
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<br />
So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="http://xpressobooktours.com/2014/03/26/tour-sign-up-hive-heist-by-janine-a-southard/">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :D<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-63657506948472364492014-06-19T16:00:00.000+08:002014-06-19T16:00:05.715+08:00Blog Tour: The Seduction of Sarah Marks by Kathleen Bittner Roth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSCS2DtCWKz5swaTISrhIH_c0YsbeSmvPSSUrIErVz80KpaCH-w-AE0arm4s8bdn6qVb8ynGMD29w_M0F4khbTTM9G1YiGIkAcLsMw8J3j_Hrg-9WPoe6zyGXQnT4-QmrxyR3KPHuYvwev/s1600/TSoSM_500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSCS2DtCWKz5swaTISrhIH_c0YsbeSmvPSSUrIErVz80KpaCH-w-AE0arm4s8bdn6qVb8ynGMD29w_M0F4khbTTM9G1YiGIkAcLsMw8J3j_Hrg-9WPoe6zyGXQnT4-QmrxyR3KPHuYvwev/s320/TSoSM_500.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="background-color: #ffff66; border: 6px ridge sienna; color: #660066; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 16em; margin-right: 6em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>The Seduction of Sarah Marks</b></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">
<br />
<i>He may be her savior... or what she needs most.</i><br />
<br />
England 1857<br />
<br />
After a blow to her head, Sarah Marks awakens in a strange bed with a strange man and no memory of how she got there. Her handsome bedmate, Lord Eastleigh, tells her she’s suffering from amnesia and the best course of action is to travel home with him until she recovers her memory.<br />
<br />
Lord Eastleigh has his own reasons for helping Sarah and keeping her close. Reasons he cannot tell her. As they struggle to restore her memory, their undeniable, inadvisable attraction grows—until Sarah finally remembers the one thing that could keep them apart forever.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://amzn.to/1kAG8yS">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://bit.ly/1iQh02G">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="http://bit.ly/1oT3bbd">Entangled Page</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22181601-the-seduction-of-sarah-marks?ac=1">Goodreads</a></div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Kathleen Bittner Roth</b></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<br />
Kathleen Bittner Roth creates passionate stories featuring characters faced with difficult choices, and who are forced to draw on their strength of spirit to overcome adversity and find unending love.<br />
Her own fairy tale wedding in a Scottish castle led her to her current residence in Budapest, Hungary, considered one of Europe’s most romantic cities. However, she still keeps one boot firmly in Texas and the other in her home state of Minnesota.<br />
A member of Romance Writers of America®, she was a 2012 Golden Heart® finalist. You can find Kathleen on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and her website at <a href="https://www.kathleenbittnerroth.com/">www.kathleenbittnerroth.com</a>.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.kathleenbittnerroth.com/">Website</a> | <a href="http://kathleenbittnerroth.com/blog/">Blog</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kathleen-Bittner-Roth-Historical-Romance-Writer/263294594586">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/K_BittnerRoth">Twitter</a></div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
Time for an excerpt!<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 2px dashed mediumvioletred; padding: 5px;">
Chapter One<br />
<br />
Hampshire, England, 1857<br />
<br />
Sarah was in bed with a stranger.<br />
<br />
In a room bordering on the objectionable.<br />
<br />
She lay on her side, her trembling fingers tucked beneath her cheek. If the galloping of her heart grew any louder, she was certain to awaken whoever he was before she could make her escape.<br />
<br />
Who was this man?<br />
<br />
Where was she?<br />
<br />
Her befuddled mind tried to sort things out. Nothing came. Nothing at all.<br />
<br />
Why can I not remember?<br />
<br />
She had to get out of here, get out the door at least. Door? Where was it? There had to be one, but since she couldn’t locate it by simply moving her eyes, it must be behind her. If only she could manage to slip out of bed without waking him. She moved a bare inch.<br />
<br />
He flopped onto his back with a small groan.<br />
<br />
Oh, Heaven help me! She lay rigid for what seemed an eternity. Whoever he was, he appeared to be fully dressed, in clothing befitting a gentleman—at least based on what she could see from the shoulders up, for his shirt was white and he wore a gray pin-striped waistcoat. She was fairly certain she was clothed as well since the blue sleeve on her bent arm looked like a day gown, not a nightrail, but at the moment, she dared not move anything but her eyes.<br />
<br />
He shifted again, facing her, and she held her breath until his returned to soft, rhythmic whiffles. She studied his face, so close as to be nearly blurred. Rich brown hair curled over his forehead and around his ears while a fringe of dark lashes lay against chiseled cheeks. An aristocratic, aquiline nose rested above a set of full lips, slightly parted. Still no recognition.<br />
<br />
She eased backward again, shifting her weight ever so carefully. Pressing one foot against the cold floor, she slid from the bed and backed away.<br />
<br />
A board squeaked, sounding like cannon shot in the quiet room.<br />
<br />
His eyes opened.<br />
<br />
“Oh!” A quick glance at the door, and she scrambled backward, one hand flailing behind her.<br />
<br />
He rose on an elbow. “What are you up to?” Despite the sleep in his voice, authority rumbled through it.<br />
<br />
Afraid to take her eyes off him, she felt around for the door’s latch. “Who are you?”<br />
<br />
He cocked a brow, and his expression grew quizzical. “Are you quite serious?”<br />
<br />
She nodded.<br />
<br />
“Last I knew, I was Augustus Malvern, Lord Eastleigh.” Remarkably clear brown eyes studied her. “Door’s locked. Key’s in my pocket.”<br />
<br />
“Where am I?” she croaked. “How did I get here?”<br />
<br />
He scowled. “At the Golden Hen, near Hampshire. You don’t recall?” When she shook her head, he threw back the covers and stood. His height and the breadth of his shoulders nearly swallowed the small room.<br />
<br />
The room swayed—or was it her doing the wavering? She braced her shoulders against the door.<br />
<br />
His booted feet pounded the floor, closing the distance between them. He wore his boots to bed? He paused before her and canted his head, puzzlement reigning in his regard of her. Reaching to her temple, he gently fingered a bump.<br />
<br />
She gasped at both the pain and his touch, and craned her head away from him. Whatever had occurred, she feared him.<br />
<br />
“Dear God,” he muttered, and turning on his heel, strode to the window. Flinging the faded curtains aside, he backed off as a cloud of dust motes swirled about. He brushed at his shoulders, stepped again to the window, and clasped his hands behind him.<br />
<br />
Despite the grime on the bubble-filled glass, the morning sun, still pink and fresh from its rising, shone through bright and clear. Off to the right, a rooster crowed. Lord Eastleigh turned an ear in that direction. “Let me get this straight. You do not recall where you are, or how you got here?”<br />
<br />
“No…no, I do not.” Despite her faltering voice, she stiffened her spine and gathered courage.<br />
<br />
“Have no fear, madam. I won’t harm you.” His voice had gentled, and for whatever reason, she wanted to trust his word. “And except for that nasty lump, which I did not inflict, none has come to you.”<br />
<br />
When she said nothing in response, he asked, “By any chance, do you know your name?”<br />
<br />
She took in a breath and managed a strong voice. “Yes. Sarah Marks.”<br />
<br />
He whipped around, a deep frown furrowing his brow.<br />
<br />
She touched the nasty bump on her head and hissed. “How…how did I get here?”<br />
<br />
“We rode in a hired carriage, which was overtaken by thieves. We walked here—or rather, I carried you a good deal of the way.” His voice softened measurably. “Do you recall any of those events?”<br />
<br />
Her mouth formed a silent, “No.”<br />
<br />
Fighting the panic trying to take root again, she perused the room. A dingy space, this. One window, an iron bed with a small, raw-wood table alongside, a few hooks on the wall—one holding a man’s dark jacket and what looked to be a white cravat draped over its shoulder. A robin’s egg blue cape hung over the back of the single chair in the room. A matching hat rested on its seat, while black kid gloves were stacked beside the bonnet. Tucked neatly beneath was a pair of black walking boots. Everything appeared well-made. The dress she wore matched the blue-sprigged muslin lining the cloak.<br />
<br />
His scowl faded. “You suffered a blow when you stepped between me and the thieves—”<br />
<br />
“Good heavens, why would I have done such a foolish thing?” She fingered her wound again.<br />
<br />
“Folly, I would suspect.” He lifted a brow. “Or perhaps you are so adamant regarding right and wrong, you could not stand to see someone’s life threatened?”<br />
<br />
She stared boldly at him while she fought to keep her chin from trembling. “I do not have the slightest idea how I would react, sir. In fact, I do not know if I am adamant about much of anything at all.” Oh, her heart wouldn’t hold out much longer—neither would her knees. “Please, sir. What can you tell me about me?”<br />
<br />
Closing the distance between them, he reached out and swept back a tendril of hair that had caught at one corner of her mouth, grazing her cheek with his thumb as he went.<br />
<br />
Lord, his touch was gentle, soothing in fact. And his scent. So clean. But an odd tremble moved through her. Any desire to lean into his hand dissipated. Instead, she stiffened and stepped away, her heartbeat kicking up. Something told her that it was not just this man, but all men she feared. Could that be why she’d left her home? “Please, do not touch me.”<br />
<br />
“Beg your pardon. I’m not much good at this sort of thing. Not that I’ve ever been in such an odd predicament before.” The crease between his eyes deepened. “As I said, I mean you no harm. You are obviously suffering amnesia from the knock on your head.”<br />
<br />
“Me? Amnesia?” Dear blessed Mary!<br />
<br />
He nodded. “You seemed in possession of all your faculties when you nodded off for the night, but now—” He shrugged a shoulder and made his way back to the window. “You’re likely feeling as though pieces of your mind have been scattered to the four winds, but I caution you not to panic or things could very well worsen.”<br />
<br />
“How could you possibly know how I might feel?” Her words sounded like ice cracking.<br />
<br />
He glanced over his shoulder, perused the length of her with those fathomless brown eyes, and turned back to the window. “I suffered from amnesia following an injury in the Crimean War, so I recognize the same in you. My own experience taught me to tread lightly while recovering, so as not to suffer setbacks. Or worse, lose the past entirely. There are chunks of my memory still missing.”<br />
<br />
Her mind a blank, Sarah nonetheless managed to maintain her dignity. “Tell me whatever you know. How we came to be traveling together. Where I am from.”<br />
<br />
She studied him for a moment and then said, “How did a man such as you, a lord, come to be traveling on a public coach?”<br />
<br />
He turned and leaned a shoulder against the window’s sash, making it impossible for her to see him clearly with the halo of sunlight surrounding him. “I rode in a hired coach because I was on my way to a ship for…ah…an extended holiday on the Continent.”<br />
<br />
“How did I come to be in the same conveyance? Was I on my way to the sea as well?”<br />
<br />
“You were traveling by way of one of those over-crowded public coaches. You, and what I assumed was your companion, were bemoaning the dire conditions, and since we were headed in the same direction, I offered both of you my carriage. While you were an innocent, I’m afraid the other woman was not. She used being amidst your proper company to soundly dupe me.”<br />
<br />
“Was she the thief who injured me?”<br />
<br />
He shook his head. “Her thieving friends lay in wait down the road a measure. Suffice it to say, you and I lost everything, including the hired carriage since the coachman teamed up with the filthy lot. He exchanged transportation for a cut of the bounty, the blackguard.”<br />
<br />
Her teeth slid over her bottom lip. “Did we turn back to the coaching stop from whence we came, or did we travel forward? Was where we came from my home?”<br />
<br />
“Insightful questions.” Eastleigh sketched a slight bow in deference, his curly locks tumbling over his forehead. “I overheard you tell the other woman that the stop where we encountered one another was your third, but you did not disclose to her your starting point.” He scoured the small room with disapproving eyes. “And as for this rather questionable inn, we were nearer here than turning back.”<br />
<br />
“Then what?” She brushed her hands down her hips in an attempt to cease their quaking.<br />
<br />
He eyed her movement. “Then we stumbled in here after dark. With a crowded inn, we were fortunate to capture the only room available.” He looked around the sparsely furnished space with a look of distaste. “You are known below as Lady Eastleigh, by the by.”<br />
<br />
She glanced at the bed and her lips pursed. “You should have slept on the floor.”<br />
<br />
“Bloody hell on the hard floor!” He winced. “Beg pardon, a slip of the tongue.”<br />
<br />
Her hand crept to her throat. “But we are perfect strangers.”<br />
<br />
He paused as if in thought while regarding her through narrowed eyes. “You were not opposed to sharing a bed in order to get the rest we needed. We were both fully clothed, and it’s not as if such an undertaking is an uncommon practice.” He raked his hair back from his brow and heaved a sigh. “God knows if I’ll be able to hire something out of here today that will give either of us a modicum of comfort. We have a long road ahead, so I thank you for not insisting I take to the floor.”<br />
<br />
“To where do you intend this carriage take us?” Renewed panic hammered her heart in her chest.<br />
<br />
He rubbed the back of his neck. “To my home in Kent.”<br />
<br />
She gasped and fought to regain her composure. Perhaps parts of her memory had been misplaced, but her instincts told her that traveling alone with a man to his residence was highly inappropriate. “I could not go there with you, sir. It isn’t done.”<br />
<br />
His regard of her intensified until her skin felt seared. “Then tell me, madam,” he said in little more than a murmur, “where else am I to take you?<br />
<br />
Chapter Two<br />
<br />
From inside the carriage, Eastleigh scanned plowed fields bursting with the promise of spring. A dull beat at the base of his skull told him another megrim was about to roll through his head like a thundering herd of horses. He took in a long, slow breath and counted down from ten on the exhale, as he’d been taught.<br />
<br />
What the devil had he been thinking leaving Easton Park? He had no business traveling even five miles from home, let alone trying to tour the Continent for three months with the idea of bringing home a bride. And painful as it was to admit, he was not ready to take on a wife, after all. Blast it all, Doctor Hemphill had been right. He rubbed at the back of his neck. Now he had to return home as quickly as possible and deliver the doctor yet another patient. “I am fully aware this might well be the worst day of your life—”<br />
<br />
“That, sir, I would hardly know,” she interrupted softly.<br />
<br />
“Your pardon.” He ran a sweaty palm down the side of his leg. Damn the headache. Another breath, another count of ten. No, he should never have left home. But he had to hold himself together at all costs. The responsibility sitting before him wouldn’t know the first thing about getting them to Kent if he sickened. “Madam, I know what it is to awaken not knowing anything with regard to one’s self. If you wish for no conversation, we shall have none, and I shall leave you to yourself for the duration, or we can muddle through this together. Lord knows, I’m giving it my best.”<br />
<br />
Fringed lids closed over those great blue eyes, and her head fell back against the squabs. A tear trickled from one eye and trailed into her hair. He checked an urge to reach over and wipe it away—along with her pain. Instead, he fished inside his coat pocket, retrieved a handkerchief, and gently tucked it in her hand.<br />
<br />
She pressed the square of cloth to her temple and looked again out the window. “Do you know the road from here?”<br />
<br />
“Not as yet, but I’m told we’ll turn onto a main highway near noon. I know that particular route well.”<br />
<br />
“Will we reach your home today?”<br />
<br />
“Hardly,” he responded. “We’ve a two-day ride, but there are far better inns ahead.”<br />
<br />
“I refuse to be Lady Eastleigh tonight.”<br />
<br />
He couldn’t help the chuckle. “You’ll become my youngest sister, Rose.”<br />
<br />
“We shan’t share the same room.”<br />
<br />
He lifted a brow. “And if there is only one available?”<br />
<br />
She said nothing but overtly perused the interior of the carriage.<br />
<br />
He patted the hard seat. “Indeed. This will serve, if necessary.”<br />
<br />
“Rose lives with you?”<br />
<br />
“No.”<br />
<br />
Her chin lifted. “Is there a Lady Eastleigh at home?”<br />
<br />
“God, no!” He nearly laughed. “Mum will act as chaperone.”<br />
<br />
She went back to staring out the window.<br />
<br />
Lord, but even under duress, she was a lovely sight. “I should warn you of my family before we arrive.”<br />
<br />
“Warn me?”<br />
<br />
Good, he’d managed to distract her from her predicament. He grinned. “Everyone should have fair warning of the Malverns.”<br />
<br />
She tilted her pretty head. “Tell me of your parents.”<br />
<br />
Oh, wouldn’t he like to pull her onto his lap and murmur his response in her ear? “Father’s illness confines him and my mother to their estate, which lies an hour north of mine. Mum, who lives with me, is actually my grandmother. Mum is…that is—” Devil take it, he sounded like a schoolboy.<br />
<br />
“She raised you?”<br />
<br />
He laughed outright. “Isn’t that a rich thought, but no. Mum is a bit…shall we say…” He scratched his head. “We aren’t quite sure whether it’s her age or the gin she tipples, but suffice it to say, her memory isn’t much better than yours.”<br />
<br />
When her cheeks flushed, he could have kicked himself. “Sorry, ghastly turn of words.” Bloody hell, where was her sense of humor? She’d likely not had much to begin with, since an amnesiac’s personality rarely changed. “She’s called Mum, by the by, because she fancies herself the Queen Mother and thinks my mother to be the Queen. Whenever Mother visits, we refer to her as Your Majesty. Pacifies Mum, it does.”<br />
<br />
He swallowed another chuckle. “When I sent a messenger to alert Doctor Hemphill, I also sent word to Mum. Hard to tell how you’ll be greeted.”<br />
<br />
Slowly, she turned her head his way. “What an odd way of putting things.”<br />
<br />
A corner of his mouth curled. “Isn’t it though, madam?”<br />
<br />
She turned back to looking out the window.<br />
<br />
They grew quiet for a long while, with only the rattle of chains and the grind of the wheels on the hard-packed road to keep them company.<br />
<br />
Despite the dire circumstances under which they traveled, Eastleigh found himself once again occupied with the exquisite profile of the woman who called herself Sarah Marks.<br />
<br />
Uncommonly refined for a country girl, she was. And prettier than anyone had a right to be, given the circumstances. Loose tendrils of flaxen hair framed a heart-shaped face one would expect to appear drawn. But she looked refreshed—and fragile as spun glass, yet pugnaciously strong.<br />
<br />
“You stare at me, sir,” she said, without turning his way.<br />
<br />
“My apologies.” Fighting an impulse to squirm, he rested his elbow against the window’s ledge and thumbed the edge of his broken tooth—an old habit he’d long ago given up trying to break. How could he not help but look at her? Bloody hell, despite her prim and perfunctory manner, she captivated him.<br />
<br />
A thought struck him that there hadn’t been a mirror back at the inn. “Your eyes match your cape. Are you aware of their color, madam?”<br />
<br />
She shrugged, her cornflower blue eyes reflecting the sunlight passing through the carriage. “I should care little about my looks, my lord, when I have more dire things to ponder.”<br />
<br />
Blast his stupidity. “Of course, but since your eyes are striking enough to comment on, I thought you might like to know.”<br />
<br />
“Oh.”<br />
<br />
His gaze drifted to her pink mouth that formed a plump circle and had yet to return to its natural shape. Pure lust shot up from nowhere. Had they come together this morning under other circumstances, he would have found her kissable-looking lips irresistible. And in all likelihood, he’d have found a way to entice her into settling on his lap, where he would have entertained the both of them on this tedious journey.<br />
<br />
Another turn of her head, and she spied where he stared. She let out a small gasp.<br />
<br />
The wave of pleasure that had run through him at the sight of her sensuous lips evaporated like morning mist off a sunlit pond.<br />
<br />
Bugger! He took to watching the spring flowers along the roadside and unobtrusively managed his breathing exercises. “Once again, my apologies. Although I have experience with amnesia, I’m finding it exceedingly difficult to deal with it in another.”<br />
<br />
Thoughts of what he’d endured over his many months of recovery swept through him like an angry gale. He didn’t want those particular memories, thought he’d brushed them aside, but he found they only lay in hiding for as quickly as they could descend upon him. Damnation! He couldn’t get home soon enough. And blast it all, he’d even left his powders behind.<br />
<br />
He searched for words to alleviate the uncomfortable silence. “Do not dwell on your situation or try to think beyond this moment or you’ll only buy yourself trouble.”<br />
<br />
Pain washed across her countenance. He was right—she had been trying to make sense of things.<br />
<br />
Her chin quivered until she set her mouth against it, but she said nothing. “You’ve been trying to imagine your future and you cannot.”<br />
<br />
She gave a slight nod. “So it would seem.”<br />
<br />
“Which is normal.” Good God, what had he got himself into?<br />
<br />
“Normal?”<br />
<br />
“You cannot project into the future because you have no memory of your past.”<br />
<br />
She let out a burdened sigh and tucked a stray lock behind her ear with gloved fingers that had a tremble to them. “I do not understand.”<br />
<br />
He had to keep her talking, keep her mind off her dilemma lest she panic. He leaned forward. “It’s impossible to imagine a future without using your past as reference, so you must live in the present until your memory returns. Actually, in the whole of my recovery, learning to exist in the moment turned out to be the most valuable thing I gleaned from my experience.”<br />
<br />
He resisted a terrible urge to rest a comforting hand over hers. “Think on it—what do we really ever have but this moment?”<br />
<br />
Her shoulders visibly relaxed. He offered her a small grin, pleased she made sense of what he tried to convey. “The physician who saw to my recovery has retired on a parcel of my land. I sent a courier ahead, so Doctor Hemphill awaits your arrival.” And so does Mum, with whatever opinions she’ll have in the matter.<br />
<br />
Sarah rubbed the back of her neck. “Perhaps I should be thanking the good Lord someone with knowledge of this condition rescued me, but I am too angry with Him at the moment.”<br />
<br />
Guilt wound its way through Eastleigh. Had he never left home, this wouldn’t have happened—to him or to her. “Does that mean we might enjoy a truce?”<br />
<br />
Her refined features took on even more softness. “Between you and me, at least.”<br />
<br />
Something hitched low in his belly. He managed a smile, “Good,” and realized he’d also managed to dispense with the headache. He was pain free at the moment—except for the constant throbbing in his right leg, which he’d learned to live with—bloody swords. They should be outlawed in battle.<br />
<br />
…<br />
<br />
She studied him for a long moment. “You may call me Miss Marks.” She clasped her gloved hands tightly together. “I presume I’m unmarried since I wear no ring.” Oh, dear, she was back to thinking of her predicament. “Or was one taken from me in the robbery?”<br />
<br />
He shook his head. “They took a pair of ear bobs from you is all.”<br />
<br />
“Of any worth, could you tell?”<br />
<br />
“Not much, I would suspect.” He offered her a bit of a smile and then propped his elbow on the window sill.<br />
<br />
My, but he was handsome—and growing more so with every passing hour. His upper teeth were white and even, except for a small triangular chip where a front tooth butted against the other. A small scar ran alongside his upper cheek. She regarded his supple fingers while his thumb fiddled at that broken tooth, something she’d seen him do often during the ride.<br />
<br />
When he caught her staring, he dropped his hand. “For what it’s worth, madam—”<br />
<br />
“Miss Marks.”<br />
<br />
He shifted in his seat and frowned. “I shall call you madam until I have grown used to the other.”<br />
<br />
Her heart went to galloping again. Lord, she had to take her mind off her predicament if her sanity was to remain intact. She took in a slow breath and exhaled just as slowly. “Tell me of your siblings.”<br />
<br />
He nodded, seeming more at ease with this question. “I’m the first of four sons and four daughters.”<br />
<br />
“Your rank? Certainly not a duke if your father remains alive.”<br />
<br />
His eyes sparkled whenever he smiled. “Ah, a knowledge of ranking. You see? Your memory will trickle in as it chooses. I am merely a viscount. My father is an earl.”<br />
<br />
“Tell me of your four sisters.”<br />
<br />
He was playing with that broken tooth again. “Perhaps there are only three. We aren’t certain at times.” When her brow rose, he laughed. “Willamette came along smack in the middle of a raucous bunch of boys. Being profoundly stubborn, she insisted on dressing and acting like her brothers and does so to this day.”<br />
<br />
“Oh, my.”<br />
<br />
“Mother claimed the name Willamette, shortened to Will by her brothers, did the deed, so my other sisters were named after flowers—Rose, Iris, and Violet.”<br />
<br />
Sarah fought to recall if she had any siblings.<br />
<br />
Frustrated, she heaved a sigh.<br />
<br />
Eastleigh leaned forward. She caught his scent. Familiar, but of what, she couldn’t put to tangible thought. His hand covered hers. The heat emanating from his fingers went right through her. She tried to pull away, but he held her steady.<br />
<br />
And as if in defiance, he leaned even closer. “You are here, as am I, as is John Coachman,” he said in a low, commanding voice. “As are the flowers beside the road, the blue sky overhead.”<br />
<br />
His scent and the intimacy of his hands upon hers sent another shockwave through her.<br />
<br />
“Here and now is truly your only world, madam, as much as it is my only world, with or without our memories intact. Will you send yourself to Bedlam trying to recollect your past and worry over your future? Perhaps you might try trusting that I know of what I speak and force your thoughts to remain in the present.”<br />
<br />
“You’re right, of course.” Oh, she had to exercise a little faith that somehow this would all be set to rights, or she would surely fall apart. Her hand beneath his relaxed. “Thank heavens it was you that I ended up with in this miserable condition.”<br />
<br />
He let go of her and leaned back, regarding her through heavy lids. “Pray, tell me more.”<br />
<br />
Those velvet-edged words may as well have been his fingers trailing over her tingling breasts and settling beneath her skirts. God help her if keeping her mind in the moment meant focusing on him</div>
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<b>Tore: Divided Love</b></div>
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A future set in stone.<br />
<br />
For eighteen year old Krissa Channing a government ruled pairing with Braiden Connor and a move to Headquarters were her set fate. Until Braiden's sudden disappearance threatens Krissa’s entire future.<br />
<br />
After months of endless worry, Krissa has an unexpected meeting with Duke, a perfect suitor that could offer her the future she’s always dreamed of. Just when she begins to regain hope, Braiden returns.<br />
<br />
Now, Krissa must find where her heart truly lies. Torn between two loves, she must decide which of their worlds she belongs in. But is such a decision even possible when the choice rests between freedom and love?<br />
<br />
<br />
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Check it out at <a dp="" href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7063974360789270561" http:="" ore-divided-love-k-d-ferguson-ebook="" ref="sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402265299&sr=8-1&keywords=K.D.+Ferguson" www.amazon.com="">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tore-kd-ferguson/1119693612?ean=2940045992671">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22285187-tore-divided-love">Goodreads</a></div>
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Book 1 (click image to be taken to Goodreads):<br />
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<b>KD Ferguson</b></div>
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I have recently released my first book, Torn-True Love, published by Rebel Ink Press. I am thrilled to be a part of the family!<br />
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7063974360789270561">Website</a> | <a href="http://adayinthelifeofkferg.blogspot.com/">Blog</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/KD-Ferguson/545452455478363">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/kristend732">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7034642.K_D_Ferguson">Goodreads</a></div>
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<br />
Time for a short excerpt!<br />
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“I wasn’t ready.”<br />
“Ready for what?” The enforcement was stern with his questions, simple and to the point. He was certainly not trying to make small talk.<br />
“To be paired. I freaked out a little. I needed to see what a Single’s life was like.” Braiden’s responses flowed out of his mouth with such fluidity.<br />
“And you thought the best option was to run away to find your answer? We would have granted you access.”<br />
Braiden made no reply, and instead remained eerily quiet.<br />
“Well, what did you find, Mr. Connor? That the Sweeper life isn’t a desirable one? That one is much better off following our rules and regulations?”<br />
“A Sweeper’s life is not what I want.”<br />
Although he was saying everything I’d always wanted him to say, something about it was off. He responses seemed so, rehearsed.<br />
“I wasn’t thinking clearly. I’m sorry for any trouble I caused. It won’t happen again.”<br />
“It better not. You’ve been assigned to this district, and you have been paired with Krissa. You’ll be on probation for the next year, which means one slip up and you’ll be in the Sweeper unit permanently, or worse. Understood?”<br />
“Yes Sir.” This time he wasn’t mocking the officer. He looked ashamed.<br />
“Krissa, do you agree to these terms?” Did I really have another option? If I didn’t agree, I could end up single, but would a life with Braiden make me happy? Yes, I still loved him, but how was I to let him ease back into my life after all the hurt he caused?</div>
<br />
Enter the giveaway now!<br />
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2348b9274/" id="rc-2348b9274" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.com/load.js"></script><br />
<br />
Doesn't the book look good? I really need to read it now haha.<br />
<br />
So yep, that's about it for today! Thanks for visiting! <br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Book Blitz Organized by:<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-92151816268654658872014-06-12T16:00:00.000+08:002014-06-12T16:00:00.838+08:00Blog Tour: Engaging the Earl by Diana Quincy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDRRfJiqOn-4QEC_GxwwScwP_oc9EaqsKUeGxvL-Q4jxpveCPoi_Bexqmv1QwTBEEdNlp79HmJjbqE2ls50ZDmHC-B_IgKcZX52ZYGGRi1vROzO2NQJGGgPQ_g0w5iPDgxKkg1JCcIEj8/s1600/EtE_500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDRRfJiqOn-4QEC_GxwwScwP_oc9EaqsKUeGxvL-Q4jxpveCPoi_Bexqmv1QwTBEEdNlp79HmJjbqE2ls50ZDmHC-B_IgKcZX52ZYGGRi1vROzO2NQJGGgPQ_g0w5iPDgxKkg1JCcIEj8/s320/EtE_500.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Engaging the Earl</b></div>
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<i>He is a master strategist, but she’s laying siege to his heart...</i><br />
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<span style="color: #333333;">Vivacious Lady Katherine Granville is the toast of the ton, but society's most eligible miss secretly yearns for her childhood love, an untitled loner who vanished long ago after her father forbade their marriage.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 14.25pt;">
<span style="color: #333333;">After years abroad, the dark and brooding Edward Stanhope returns to England a changed man. No longer a second son with no prospects, his battlefield strategies have won him an earldom. His return should be a victorious one, but the new Earl of Randolph is battling secret demons that no one can discover. Least of all, Kat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 14.25pt;">
<span style="color: #333333;">When the man she can't forget reappears at her betrothal ball, Kat's perfectly arranged future is thrown into tumult. Edward remains cold and distant, hoping she'll marry a man worthy of her. But nothing is settled when Kat sets out to win back her first love. Can the new Earl of Randolph resist the woman he's loved for so many years?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Check it out at <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18454101-engaging-the-earl">Goodreads</a></div>
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<b>Diana Quincy</b></div>
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Diana Quincy is an award-winning television journalist who decided she’d rather make up stories where a happy ending is always guaranteed.<br />
Growing up as a foreign service brat, Diana explored many countries before settling down in Virginia with her husband and two sons. When not bent over her laptop or trying to keep up with laundry, she enjoys reading, spending time with her family and dreams of traveling much more than her current schedule (and budget) allows.<br />
Diana loves to hear from readers. You can follow her on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/Diana_Quincy">@Diana_Quincy</a> or visit her website at <a href="https://www.dianaquincy.com/">www.dianaquincy.com</a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.dianaquincy.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/diana.quincy.10">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/Diana_Quincy">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7045151.Diana_Quincy">Goodreads</a></div>
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<br />
So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7063974360789270561">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :D<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-17416218680669728112014-06-10T18:02:00.000+08:002014-06-10T18:02:54.258+08:00Shattered Veil by Tracy E. Banghart (The Diatous Wars #1)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pwwaMfGNrrb4SE9-6_0SotiVx5xondaeGFbckHDyCjnkMPKSF2sPyBa5hhZL7HbBINAyBEhlEgT-lV6O1XQViYysWhNbm7-rJn-WmMc3DiuJ_iEnK4y8ol6CAoDW-T1tHGD-4Wkg51ZX/s1600/19194602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pwwaMfGNrrb4SE9-6_0SotiVx5xondaeGFbckHDyCjnkMPKSF2sPyBa5hhZL7HbBINAyBEhlEgT-lV6O1XQViYysWhNbm7-rJn-WmMc3DiuJ_iEnK4y8ol6CAoDW-T1tHGD-4Wkg51ZX/s320/19194602.jpg" /></a></div>
First Published: 24 February 2014<br />
Series: The Diatous Wars #1<br />
Pages: 377<br />
Format: Ebook<br />
Finished Date: 4 June 2014<br />
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<u>Synopsis</u><br />
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<i>When everything that defines you is stripped away, who do you become?</i><br />
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War has invaded Atalanta’s quiet villages and lush woodlands, igniting whispered worries in its glittering capitol. Far from the front lines, 18-year-old Aris Haan, a talented wingjet flyer, has little cause for concern. Until her beloved Calix is thrust into the fray, and a stranger makes her an impossible offer: the chance to join a secret army of women embedded within the all-male military. <br />
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Aris’s choice to follow Calix to war will do more than put her in physical danger; it will make her question everything she believes about herself. When she and her enigmatic commander uncover a deadly conspiracy, her expert flying may be the only hope for her dominion’s survival…and her own.<br />
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It’s <i>Mulan</i> meets <i>Battlestar Galactica</i>, with a heroine who is strong enough to save a nation…but only if she’s willing to sacrifice everything, even the one promise she swore she’d never break.<br />
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<b>**WINNER** 2014 IndieReader Discovery Awards: 2nd Place, Fiction</b></div>
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<u>My Rating</u> </div>
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<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Review</u> </div>
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Shattered Veil was fantastic. It was extremely well-written, with an awesome cast of characters, great character building, a solid plot and an interesting concept. To top all that off? It has a really pretty cover too. Oh and before I get started? 1 disclaimer. I absolutely cannot spell veil and keep spelling it as ‘viel’ instead. So forgive me in advance if there’s any spelling errors over veil haha:)<br />
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I feel the need to spaz over character development first. I mean, like seriously. Shattered Veil has one of the best character developments I have ever read. It is so real and appropriate to everything that Aris, our female lead, goes through. Never once was I skeptical over her conclusions and reactions to an event that took place. In this aspect, I think the writing is flawless. <br />
<br />
Aris may have started out with selfish reasons, ie wanting to be with Calix, the guy she loves. But it’s the journey that she is taken on, a journey of self-discovery, of strength, of growing up. She is extremely relatable and all her actions make sense. I loved the decisions she made towards the end, when she realized it wasn’t about herself, it wasn’t even about Calix anymore and hadn’t been for a long time. I think I especially loved how she wasn’t all perfect. Even though she could very well have been the best Flyer, this was counterbalanced by her slight walking disability and that she was physically not very strong. And the way she powered through that and overcame her challenges? That was inspiring. I don’t care that it was done for Calix, because I believe in love. I believe in love that pushes someone through all his or her difficulties, just to be with the other person. Maybe it wasn’t the most noble thing she could have done. I mean, it’s a war after all, people should be concerned more about saving lives and ending the war, than about a single other person or themselves. I don’t like perfect heroines, I love heroines that have flaws, that have to fight for their place in life, but also not arrogant with what they have. In Aris, I found all these qualities I love in a heroine.<br />
<br />
The plot, too, was fantastic. It was very well laid out and engaging. I couldn’t put the book down, and all I could think about was when I would be able to read again, when I had no choice but to put it down. I love Ms. Tracy Banghart’s writing style. It’s simple, yet it doesn’t talk down to you. You feel like you’re actually there, beside Aris as she experiences it. Oh, how I wish I could fly like Aris. Maybe the action wasn’t very long but that didn’t bother me. I loved seeing how the experiences shaped Aris. And that confrontation with Calix? Alright, not confrontation exactly. Conversation, more like. That was one of the best parts of the book in my opinion.<br />
<br />
Even the world building was fantastic. I really want to know more about the world and every little glimpse I’m given into it makes it more interesting. I think it was just enough to sate my curiosity, yet not overwhelming. This isn’t exactly a dystopian, even though choices can get taken away from you. Still, it is a fair system in my opinion. And the wards of each dominion changes things a little. Reminds me a bit of a game where you have to choose what best to do with your country. Like the game Civilizations haha. I love that game!<br />
<br />
If I have one complaint, its that the thing with Major Milek was a little abrupt. Actually, I’m not surprised or even unhappy about it. I mean, its kinda sweet how such things happen I feel. Perhaps I just wanted a little more. But I have no doubts I’ll get it in the next book:)<br />
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You know that feeling you get when you finish an excellent book and you’re left smiling after it? Then a few days later, you think about the book again and you’re like, oh wow that was fantastic, I need that again!! And the whole host of emotions that you experience that I have no idea how to put into words. Yep, I got all that with Shattered Veil. Its been quite a while since I read such a good book and I cannot thank the author enough for writing such a good story and giving me the chance to read it. I am so excited to read the next book now, and it couldn’t come sooner. Now, time to go check out Ms. Banghart’s backlist:)<br />
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<i>Disclaimer: A free copy of this book was given to me in exchange for an honest review. All views posted here are mine alone.</i><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-36435243197031439642014-06-10T15:00:00.000+08:002014-06-10T15:00:09.631+08:00Review Blitz: Reveal by Brina Courtney (Cryptid Tales #1)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyqZ9yrP9mfUk2tmcmH71ZEKndC-HRgZUl30SyF1JO0ViT8PtVmE4pQdfBXsNt3oO6GQWiXrhBd19cSLHzlCgYPF22oCWv3kd0RIIRodauERN-RhaN5w-aRWfxw3ZJ4FRdq5k53cHXx2jK/s1600/13065962.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyqZ9yrP9mfUk2tmcmH71ZEKndC-HRgZUl30SyF1JO0ViT8PtVmE4pQdfBXsNt3oO6GQWiXrhBd19cSLHzlCgYPF22oCWv3kd0RIIRodauERN-RhaN5w-aRWfxw3ZJ4FRdq5k53cHXx2jK/s1600/13065962.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
First Published: 16 December 2011<br />
Series: Cryptid Tales #1<br />
Pages: 220<br />
Format: Ebook<br />
Finished Date: 2 June 2014<br />
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<blockquote>
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<u>Synopsis</u><br />
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Shay could be the key to ending a war that humans don't know exist. Of a race of beings that aren't real, or are they?<br />
<br />
Shay Tafford's childhood has been fatherless, filled instead with memories of speaking to the dead. She is forced to hide her unique ability from those living around her. That's why it's been comforting to have Jeremy, a child ghost, as her confidante. But recently he's been absent, perhaps lost as her father is. When Shay meets Hugh, the guy she's had a crush on for weeks, and finds he can speak to ghosts too she's just starting to find a normalcy in her life.<br />
But as Hugh reveals the truth to Shay, about who she really is and about what it is she can do, he erases all chances she had at a normal existence. Turns out talking to ghosts is just scratching the surface of her genetically engineered gifts. Shay learns she may be part of an age old prophecy that could save the entire race of cryptids. But can she?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUK4ijCVwFcUPMYuq6RCQO0vlgMqHNtrm45kt8Qe8lY7Y4Lqy7QRuPqzfPFgh-m9kaLdMDK4iHQc0nMLTEjXQU16s6wLthanXMUj0IY9dcmnO1ZleBvGa5vJ9hqE-hXBcY1Ug7zf8cJpTi/s1600/Reveal+Teaser+1+(1).png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUK4ijCVwFcUPMYuq6RCQO0vlgMqHNtrm45kt8Qe8lY7Y4Lqy7QRuPqzfPFgh-m9kaLdMDK4iHQc0nMLTEjXQU16s6wLthanXMUj0IY9dcmnO1ZleBvGa5vJ9hqE-hXBcY1Ug7zf8cJpTi/s320/Reveal+Teaser+1+(1).png" height="148" width="400" /></a></div>
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<u>My Rating</u> </div>
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<u>My Review</u> </div>
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So. Revealed. I don’t really know what to say about this one. It didn’t blow me out of the water, but at the same time, I must say I am rather interested in the concept and what is going to happen next. The last speaking to ghosts book I read was I think the Mediator series by Meg Cabot years ago. So this was something different from the usual books that I read.<br />
<br />
So what I liked about this book was the unique plot, that’s for certain. I liked seeing how Shay slowly came in touch with her powers and got stronger. And she is so strong gosh. So maybe I envied her powers a little, but I think it was pretty cool how she took in everything without completely freaking out most of the time. I probably would have and would think that I was going crazy! The action was a little bit short, but this <i>is</i> the first book, meaning there would have been more backstory, so I was okay with that. And even though it was short, I did like how it was written because it was nice seeing their powers get unlocked.<br />
<br />
Okay so without giving away too much (I hope), I thought the whole cat thing was pretty cool. Granted I don’t like cats, but I loved seeing how all these things were linked to create a cryptid. And I really really need to know what happened to her dad. The whole genetic thing (again, you’ll have to read to know what I’m talking about) is pretty fascinating too. Perhaps not entirely accurate, but its still interesting to see where Ms. Courtney intends to take it. Oops sorry science nerd in me haha.<br />
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Okay, the thing I didn’t like about the book was that the writing felt a bit flat to me. It’s not bad, definitely not. It just didn’t draw me in, perhaps because it was more of telling than showing. It made the story a bit difficult to get into, even though I was genuinely interested in the concept of the story, which seems very unique to me. <br />
<br />
Shay, the main character, well, she just doesn’t appeal to me. I personally find her annoying and immature. Hugh was a pretty good character though, if a little bit predictable. I think I like Olivia and I hope I’ll get to see her more in the next few books. On that note though, I feel like more character development could be done. Shay did undergo some character development, but it was just a little bit. Still, there are 2 more books after this, and I do hope to see her grow more, into someone more mature. Actually, I like the ghosts (Jeremy!) the most. There’s so much mystery there and I am so curious about their whole role on earth. <br />
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And I’m sorry, but I cannot believe in their love yet. It seems a bit immature and rushed for my liking. I’m sure they hold each other in deep regard and truly care for each other. But I feel, the way they ‘fell in love’ read more like a deep infatuation with each other. At the same time, they <i>are</i> fated to be, and thus perhaps that is the reason as to why they fell in love so quickly. I do want to know more about the prophecy though.<br />
<br />
I think I will be reading the next few books in the series, I think there are 3 in total? Even though I can’t say I loved this book, I did enjoy the world that Brina Courtney created, and I am interested to see where all this goes eventually. That cliffhanger though… That was torturous. I simply cannot stand not knowing what is going to happen next. Good thing for me, all the books are out already. So yay, once I’m done with other reviews I have to do, I can get started on the sequels! :) <br />
<br />
In conclusion, <i>Revealed</i> is a good book, and it does seem like a good start to the series. I think it’s definitely worth the try and is quite a good read to pick up.<br />
<br />
<i>Disclaimer: This book was provided free to me in exchange for an honest review. All views stated here are mine alone.</i><br />
<br />
P.S. Isn't the cover really pretty? I think it is haha.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-43020324014457728922014-06-05T18:04:00.000+08:002014-06-06T10:05:18.325+08:00Banded by Logan Byrne<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw7NW7W-nC43YeruK2VV5hyphenhyphenXce4FXQ2ErA9wO1XNvWSLT5oZTukzVvhABdzEAgKUEEO7oDk80pDBPLkhQz8bydpHt8-jIuScwPfNQcNlV5JCyz_uMBgNRsGbUK2dSB_nhaldt6w__KIUmJ/s1600/banded2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw7NW7W-nC43YeruK2VV5hyphenhyphenXce4FXQ2ErA9wO1XNvWSLT5oZTukzVvhABdzEAgKUEEO7oDk80pDBPLkhQz8bydpHt8-jIuScwPfNQcNlV5JCyz_uMBgNRsGbUK2dSB_nhaldt6w__KIUmJ/s320/banded2.jpg" /></a></div>
First Published: 8 April 2014<br />
Pages: 342<br />
Format: Ebook<br />
Finished Date: 28 May 2014<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px inset crimson; padding: 5px;">
<u>Synopsis</u><br />
<br />
In dystopian Manhattan, society is divided into six zones, with each one representing a citizen’s benefit to society: Stalwart (strength), Astute (intelligence), Collusive (greed), Radiant (beauty), Quixotic (no life direction), and the Altruistic (willingness to help others). On a citizen’s sixteenth birthday, a computer suggests a new zone for them based on their inherent benefit to society. When Kalenna Slater is sorted out of her home zone Quixotic and into Altruistic, she thinks things can’t get worse. Life looks dismal until she meets Gavin, a boy also just sorted into Altruistic who becomes the light needed on her cloudy days.<br />
<br />
During sorting she receives a device known as ‘The Band’. It’s a large watch-like device that never comes off, and it measures a citizen’s karma on a scale from one to one hundred. If a citizen does good, they gain points. If a citizen does bad, including breaking laws, they lose points. When your number reaches zero, the band acts as judge, jury, and executioner, and you are injected with toxins that kill you within minutes.<br />
<br />
After sorting, recruits are taken to a three month long mandatory school named HQ. It’s at HQ she meets new friends from different zones, and finally begins to feel at ease. Everything goes well until a rare trip home makes her discover that her father, who has been missing for a decade, may have taken part in a terrible program that stands to shake the fabric of society.<br />
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<div style="border: 5px outset dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Rating</u> </div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Review</u> </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Banded was an alright read. From the blurb, its pretty
obvious that it has clear similarities to Divergent. Still, there was an
additional twist to this. In <i>Banded</i>
society, teens weren’t given the option to choose which zone they wanted to be
in. Its kinda like the Sorting Hat in Harry Potter, except with a lot more
serious consequences. I can’t say I loved reading Banded, but I definitely do
not dislike it. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Firstly, I like dystopians, so naturally, this appealed to
me. Even though there may be similarities to other books, the main plot line is
still different. I really like the whole band idea, and how it serves as a
continual reminder that you could die at any time, if you did something bad
enough.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But the thing that stopped me from really getting into the
book was the main character, Kalenna. Okay, so there’s nothing exactly wrong
with her. She is perhaps a little immature for her age, a little naïve, but
other than that she’s alright, I guess. But the thing that really irked me was
how cocky she was getting. Example. She has never touched a staff before but
assumes that she can win the whole competition somehow. After going through like a day or so of training, she
somehow thinks she’s really strong and all. It wasn’t even self-confidence, but
it is pure pride. I guess I did find her a bit immature sometimes, given that
she is already 16. She isn’t a bad character, just very predictable. And yes, I
don’t like her, but that’s my personal opinion!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In terms of pacing, it was rather good. The story wasn’t
draggy, even though there were phrases here and there which I felt were
unnecessary. Like how she looked at her hands before sleeping. I don’t know, a
little bit is fine, but sometimes I felt it was overdone.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The characters were a little flat here. Not to say they
weren’t interesting, because they were. They aren’t difficult to connect with,
they’re just forgettable because they haven’t been properly developed. Yet, I
hope. I think I like Ivan the most. He is a little bit more than just another
smart kid I feel. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m not sure if this is a good thing or bad thing, but there
seemed to be a lot happening in this book. Right now, they don’t seem very
connected, like every event is separate. Oh sure, there is a connection in terms
of I guess, rebellion. But nothing concrete yet. I do hope that the plot points
in this book would be talked about more in the series. Like, her roommate, that
annoying Trace guy (I honestly can’t decide who I would rather see win in a
duel, Trace or Kalenna), the romance side.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
All in all, while I can’t say I loved this book, I do think I’m intrigued
enough to keep reading on. I am interested as to what they will find, and I
felt the book ended just as it got good. This is a 3 stars book for me.</div>
<br />
<i>Disclaimer: I received this book in exchange for an honest review. All views expressed here are mine alone.</i></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-71440857636392605402014-06-03T16:00:00.000+08:002014-06-06T10:05:18.331+08:00Blog Tour: Gypsy by Trisha Leigh - Review + Excerpt + Giveaway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><br />
<img src="http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/hh501/myreadingaddiction/new-221_zps55826ad4.jpg" height="164" width="640" /><br />
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZacCqswE20prfFlMIhdwlYf4Gl0itOH-5I0h9qGEpQdfDWgNtI73cVPu8mRQOMXmuXWWeEiXpixrZUr2hwHEgoe4p2zEtmAEAln46-FUuUsv1Sc8wAZWH76f2t1ibLA06KYrB-lxkgFd/s1600/GypsyFront.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZacCqswE20prfFlMIhdwlYf4Gl0itOH-5I0h9qGEpQdfDWgNtI73cVPu8mRQOMXmuXWWeEiXpixrZUr2hwHEgoe4p2zEtmAEAln46-FUuUsv1Sc8wAZWH76f2t1ibLA06KYrB-lxkgFd/s320/GypsyFront.jpg" /></a></div><div style="background-color: #ffff66; border: 6px ridge sienna; color: #660066; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 16em; margin-right: 6em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;"><b>Gypsy</b></div><br />
<blockquote><div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;"><br />
Inconsequential: not important or significant.<br />
<br />
Synonyms: insignificant, unimportant, nonessential, irrelevant<br />
<br />
In the world of genetic mutation, Gypsy’s talent of knowing a person’s age of death is considered a failure. Her peers, the other Cavies, have powers that range from curdling a blood still in the vein to being able to overhear a conversation taking place three miles away, but when they’re taken from the sanctuary where they grew up and forced into the real world, Gypsy, with her all-but-invisible gift, is the one with the advantage.<br />
<br />
The only one who’s safe, if the world finds out what they can do.<br />
<br />
When the Cavies are attacked and inoculated with an unidentified virus, that illusion is shattered. Whatever was attached to the virus causes their abilities to change. Grow. In some cases, to escape their control.<br />
<br />
Gypsy dreamed of normal high school, normal friends, a normal life, for years. Instead, the Cavies are sucked under a sea of government intrigue, weaponized genetic mutation, and crushing secrets that will reframe everything they’ve ever been told about how their "talents" came to be in the first place.<br />
<br />
When they find out one of their own has been appropriated by the government, mistreated and forced to run dangerous missions, their desire for information becomes a pressing need. With only a series of guesses about their origins, the path to the truth becomes quickly littered with friends, enemies, and in the end, the Cavies ability to trust anyone at all.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gypsy-Cavy-Files-Trisha-Leigh-ebook/dp/B00K7IVN38/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1400984556&sr=8-3&keywords=trisha+leigh">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/gypsy-trisha-leigh/1119446808?ean=9781499201062">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/gypsy-the-cavy-files-1/id876006179?mt=11">iBooks</a> | <a href="http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/gypsy-the-cavy-files-1">Kobo</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21519379-gypsy?from_search=true">Goodreads</a></div><br />
</div></blockquote><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioL7TdEAc6Jwi4IeVkcbtnMdGCYo85pJeeYMrUbDKxgcYYrPrGnlxCXGFiYENSSAQOZWql75iCxNvVRi7Ie4YsRHtzf7hDgfraGnEMr-0Qh5l3wvCThGl4ko9e7Ei6fsVTbYSGji4cymqM/s1600/5828387.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/AVvXsEioL7TdEAc6Jwi4IeVkcbtnMdGCYo85pJeeYMrUbDKxgcYYrPrGnlxCXGFiYENSSAQOZWql75iCxNvVRi7Ie4YsRHtzf7hDgfraGnEMr-0Qh5l3wvCThGl4ko9e7Ei6fsVTbYSGji4cymqM/s320/5828387.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a></div><div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;"><b>Trisha Leigh</b></div><br />
<blockquote><div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;"><br />
Trisha Leigh is a product of the Midwest, which means it’s pop, not soda, garage sales, not tag sales, and you guys as opposed to y’all. Most of the time. She’s been writing seriously for five years now, and has published 4 young adult novels and 4 new adult novels (under her pen name Lyla Payne). Her favorite things, in no particular order, include: reading, Game of Thrones, Hershey’s kisses, reading, her dogs (Yoda and Jilly), summer, movies, reading, Jude Law, coffee, and rewatching WB series from the 90’s-00’s.<br />
<br />
Her family is made up of farmers and/or almost rock stars from Iowa, people who numerous, loud, full of love, and the kind of people that make the world better. Trisha tries her best to honor them, and the lessons they’ve taught, through characters and stories—made up, of course, but true enough in their way.<br />
<br />
Trisha is the author of THE LAST YEAR series and the WHITMAN UNIVERSITY books. She’s represented by Kathleen Rushall at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.trishaleigh.com/">Website</a> | <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/trishaleighkc/">Pinterest</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Trisha-Leigh/463838867020091">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/trishaleighKC">Twitter</a> </div><br />
</div></blockquote><br />
Time for a short excerpt!<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 2px dashed mediumvioletred; padding: 5px;">“Oh, Lordy, I am so sorry! My mom's always sayin' I'm so clumsy I could trip over a cordless phone.” <br />
<br />
A breathless, sweet, female voice chatters the apology as hands try, with little success, to drag me back to my feet using the straps of my backpack. She's behind me, so not the person whose age of death I just saw in my first two minutes here. <br />
<br />
Fail, Gypsy.<br />
<br />
“Are you okay?” A second voice, male and with a smooth, local drawl, mingles with the first.<br />
<br />
The dead kid is a boy.<br />
<br />
I jerk my hands into my chest, trying not to be obvious about it. Wishing with all my might I could take it back. Forget. Turn away without seeing the attached face. Of course there isn't, and when my body remembers how to breathe again, I open my eyes. <br />
<br />
He's tall, a few inches over six feet, with hair the color of sand and eyes that shift between gold and brown, like maple syrup in the sunlight. More than the intriguing shade, it's the genuine kindness in them that stands out to me. My heart flutters, then seizes.<br />
<br />
Dead. He’s dead.<br />
<br />
“It's okay, I'll live.” I wince at my choice of words and busy myself with brushing imaginary dust off the skirt of my uniform.<br />
<br />
The clumsy girl stands as high as my shoulders, and the upturned nose and smattering of freckles combine with her chin-length white-blond hair to remind me of Tinkerbell. At least she seems to have a better attitude than the jealous, spiteful fairy. <br />
<br />
Her pale eyes fling more apologies my direction, but I hold up my hand. “Really. No big deal.”<br />
<br />
“Oh my gosh, thank you for being cool.” She grins, and it lights up her entire body. “I'm Maya.”<br />
<br />
“Norah.”<br />
<br />
“You're new?”<br />
<br />
“How could you guess?”<br />
<br />
“Because they rest of us learned to avoid Maya while she's double-fisting coffee and a cell phone back in the seventh grade.” Oh, goodnight nurse. The boy who’s going to die before he graduates from high school would have eyes that make my stomach attempt to fly.<br />
<br />
I imagine literal, iron plates of armor clicking into place over my face, my skin, my heart, then flick a glance his direction. I snatch my cell phone from his palm. “Thanks.”<br />
<br />
“I'm Jude.” He sticks out his hand.<br />
<br />
Even though my aversion remains, even though I don't want to confirm what I saw, there's no point in keeping to my hands off rule. Not touching him now won't change anything.<br />
<br />
“Norah,” I say again, laughing a little at the absurdity of repeating my name. Our hands touch, his skin soft and electric at the same time, like he scooted his feet across a shag carpet. The little hairs on my arms, at the back of my neck, stand up.<br />
<br />
<b>18. 18. 18.</b><br />
<br />
I pull my hand away, fixing my smile and swinging back toward Maya. “You caught me, I'm new. And I'm supposed to be in the office but I have no idea where that is, so this is at least half my fault, stopping in the middle of the hall like that.”<br />
<br />
“I'll walk you. It's right on my way,” the boy offers.<br />
<br />
Maya rolls her eyes at me in a manner that suggests we've been sharing nonverbal cues for more than two minutes. “If you don't want to be alone with Jude, I understand. But if you don't care, I'm going to let him take you because I'm supposed to meet with the yearbook sponsor...” She glances at her phone. “Five minutes ago.”<br />
<br />
“No, it's fine. He's fine.” Lord in heaven, did I just say that?<br />
<br />
Maya snorts, and the heat in my face promises she didn't miss my unintentional comment.<br />
<br />
I grew up around boys, so snorts at double entendre isn’t exactly new to me, which only makes the fire in my cheeks all the more vexing. It's surprising to learn that things can still embarrass me.<br />
<br />
“You know, it's not the first time I've heard that,” Jude jokes, his smile catching my attention.<br />
<br />
My lips return it without permission, even though my face is about to melt off. <br />
<br />
“Yes, it is,” Maya chirps. “It so is the first time he's heard that. Norah, we'll have lunch instead, okay?”<br />
I nod, but she doesn't see me because she's already halfway down the hall, waving over her shoulder.<br />
<br />
</div><br />
<br />
Here is my review of this amazing book. Excellent first start to a series, I must say, one of the better first books that I've read.<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 5px outset dodgerblue; padding: 5px;"><div style="font-size: 14px;"><u>My Rating</u> </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/?action=view&current=Book-2.gif" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/Book-2.gif" /></a><a href="http://s1112.beta.photobucket.com/user/flame_2712/library/" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k496/flame_2712/HalfBook-2.gif" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-size: 14px;"><u>My Review</u> </div><br />
Gypsy was really really good. I wasn’t expecting that when I started it. I mean the blurb sounded interesting, but I must say I didn’t have very high hopes. Still, from the start to the end, Gypsy had me hooked. I simply cannot wait to read more in this series. <br />
<br />
So firstly, the plot was very well laid out. It, to me, was a great first book as it set up the world very well, explaining things as the story went along, when appropriate. There was no sudden influx of information and I liked that. The year isn’t clearly stated here, but its somewhere in the near future. Genetic testing is automatically done for everyone and I think its pretty cool how they can check who your parents are so quickly through the whole genetic thing. The plot wasn’t rushed through but instead brought me on a journey that got better and better until it reached its climax. Which was good too. Even though there wasn’t much action, I enjoyed learning about the world and having this buildup which only made me more excited to read the rest of the books.<br />
<br />
I loved the whole mutant concept of this. I especially liked how the main character, Gypsy aka Norah, wasn’t the strongest character, and in fact, is considered to have a power that is near useless. Still, I am interested in how this power of hers can develop into something greater and useful. She may not have been the most fiery or outgoing character, but I loved her steadiness and her commitment. I really liked her, especially because she seems very real. <br />
<br />
Character-wise, I loved how the Cavies stuck by each other mostly, it was really heart-warming to see how they all got together as a family. The characters weren’t annoying, at least to me, and I actually found Gypsy’s ignorance rather endearing. <br />
<br />
The book kinda ends on a cliffhanger. I simply need to know what happens next and I don’t know how I’m going to be able to wait an undetermined amount of time for the next book! Still, this is definitely an excellent start to a series that I can only hope will get even better. And the cover is gorgeous. I noticed that Ms. Leigh normally has really pretty covers (well done, cover artist!) and well, even though we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, it just makes me want to pick up her books all the more.<br />
<br />
All in all, I really enjoyed this book, and I was hooked. Trisha Leigh has a very easy to read writing style that kept me turning pages and now, I’m eager to read her other books as well as wait patiently (somewhat!) for the next book in the Cavy Files.<br />
<br />
<i>Disclaimer: I received this book in exchange for an honest review. All views expressed here are mine alone.</i></div><br />
Enter the giveaway here!<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/408264275/" id="rc-408264275" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
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<br />
So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="http://www.readingaddictionvbt.com/2014/05/tour-kick-off-gypsy-by-trishaleighkc.html">here</a> to check out the other tour stops! You'll find loads of awesome stuff on the other tour sites too! :D<br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-14790777729705734422014-05-30T16:00:00.000+08:002014-05-30T16:00:01.040+08:00Blog Tour: The Sales Crime Policeman by David J. Rollins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://sites.google.com/a/myaddictionisreading.com/spring-2014/da" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
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<br />
Hey guys! Today I want to welcome to the blog David J. Rollins and his book, The Sales Crime Policeman. This is a science fiction/humor/romance novel and the setup is really interesting. Furthermore, this isn't the only book set in this world, so you may want to consider checking out his other books too:) This was first published on November 19, 2013.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHqcC-YoIhriM9977Pvc3hNz7vPW4aPH4K10gO1dyBTA474n9JMyfipZLQBcsKN8Jj151y-AdUUrBdXD49-Rjuzi-z0NR_PeaGvNYpv5ZRv66tuXcRIrZkD0ZG0vF2rDPuhsedIdWo4wy/s1600/Sales+Crime+Policeman++Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHqcC-YoIhriM9977Pvc3hNz7vPW4aPH4K10gO1dyBTA474n9JMyfipZLQBcsKN8Jj151y-AdUUrBdXD49-Rjuzi-z0NR_PeaGvNYpv5ZRv66tuXcRIrZkD0ZG0vF2rDPuhsedIdWo4wy/s320/Sales+Crime+Policeman++Cover.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>The Sales Crime Policeman</b></div>
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<blockquote>
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The future is no place to fall in love. <br />
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Amazing advances in technology have all but replaced relationships. People can purchase spouses programmed to their individual tastes and desires, anything from an aversion to expensive guilt gifts to perfumed flatulence. Attachments are even available for the more discriminating customers. Anyone can have anyone they want, as long as they don’t want someone who looks like someone else. That’s against the law. It could also make things a little awkward at social events.<br />
<br />
For one man, technology is not enough. He is a Telepathic Vacuum Cleaner Salesperson Policeman, and he wants to fall in love with a real woman. Like most men, he is not perfect. He has no name. He had to give up that up when he became a policeman. He is terribly afraid of roller coasters. And he doesn’t have any attachments.<br />
<br />
When he finds the woman of his dreams, she is not what he expected. Like most women, she doesn’t feel the same way about him. She has a spouse certified to be her perfect mate. And she is in prison. The policeman had her arrested, because she is one of the most wanted criminals in his world.<br />
<br />
Now, the policeman has to choose between everything he is and everything he wants.<br />
<br />
The future is no place to fall in love.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sales-Crime-Policeman-David-Rollins-ebook/dp/B00CUJ3GE6/">Amazon</a></div>
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<b>David J. Rollins</b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<br />
David J. Rollins is a paralegal by day, husband by night, and sometimes finds time to write. As a young man, he had had different plans, but that’s the way life works out most of the time.<br />
<br />
David has been writing since Seventh Grade. He started with the adventures of Super Pimp and his sidekick Squirt. His hero was Philip K. Dick, who strangely enough did not write about things like Pimps and Squirts. Like any fan, David wanted to follow in his hero’s footsteps. Unlike most fans, he wanted to follow them even after finding out that his hero, at one point in his life, was so poor that he resorted to eating dog food. What David lacked in aspirations, he made up for in determination.<br />
<br />
From those humble beginnings, David became the man he is today. He is happier than he ever thought he would be and is living a life he never imagined in his wildest dreams. And that’s the way David’s life worked out. He was and is very lucky.<br />
<br />
As further proof of his luck, David has lost every one of the stories about Super Pimp and his sidekick Squirt. He has also never had to eat dog food. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.davidjrollins.com/">Website</a> | <a href="http://www.davidjrollins.com/mailing-list/">Mailing list</a></div>
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</blockquote>
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Time for 2 excerpts!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><u>Excerpt 1</u></b></div>
<div class="Body-TVAC2">
“Well, I wouldn’t exactly call it a marriage.” She shrugged and looked away through a door leading further back into her house. “I wouldn’t exactly consider the baby in the other room my child.”</div>
<div class="Body-TVAC2">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body-TVAC2">
Only now, did he remember the baby from the other day. “You wouldn’t?”</div>
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<br /></div>
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“No,” she said, “They’re not human. They’re machines. They seem to have become quite popular over the past year or two. Don’t you have one? You certainly dress fashionable.”</div>
<div class="Body-TVAC2">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body-TVAC2">
“No,” he said quickly, “I want something a little more real in my life.” He was trying to be suggestive but didn’t realize he was being critical until after he saw her expression. “Are you happy? You’ve been married for...” His sentence trailed into a blank for her to fill in.</div>
<div class="Body-TVAC2">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body-TVAC2">
“Please,” she shook her head and smiled softly. “I’m not married. It’s not really marriage. I think of it more as having a spouse. I have a spouse. I have a child. I have a house. They’re all not really that much different, if you think about it.”</div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
“Shouldn’t they be?” he couldn’t help asking her.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><u><br /></u></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><u>Excerpt 2</u></b></div>
<br />
“You wanted to see me?” she asked, catching the implication and pushing it further, “Why?”<br />
<br />
He looked away and then back at her. He knew she was playing with him, but that didn’t make it any less terrifying. He would have much rather been trapped on a public coaster with his eyes wide open at that moment than answer her question. “I wanted to see you today...” he struggled, and she let him. He stared at the slight grin on her face and wanted so bad to reach out and kiss those lips. “...because I wanted to ask you if I could see you tonight.”<br />
<br />
“Are you asking me out on a date?” Her eyes stared directly at his.<br />
<br />
He couldn’t avoid her, and part of him didn’t want to. She had truly beautiful eyes, eyes that sparkled with a little badness. He swallowed and tried to meet her stare, though the rest of him was quivering. “Yes. I’m asking you out...on a date.” He licked his lips and swallowed again. He wondered why he was doing this.<br />
She was married. Though he wondered why, he knew the answer, because she was beautiful, because she hadn’t asked for his name.<br />
<br />
She grinned and looked away. “You know, I don’t even know your name. I’m Nulla.”<br />
<br />
‘She had to ask!’ he cried inside. He met her without quiver, with a reluctant fear masked as strength. “Nulla, there are some questions I will admit that I won’t want to answer, and those, I promise you, I will try my best to answer. But there are some things I simply can’t tell you. My name is one of them.”<br />
<br />
“You can’t tell me your name? You’re like a man of mystery then, huh?” she grinned.<br />
<br />
He said nothing. He was too busy hoping she could get past this.<br />
<br />
“That’s one thing I haven’t had in my life for a long long time. So I’ll see you sometime tonight?” She smiled, and only two of the fourteen nipples that covered her breasts glowed.<br />
<br />
His breath fell out of his mouth like a brick. “Yes. Tonight.”</div>
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So yep, that's about it for today! Thanks for visiting!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-62021504718702698832014-05-12T09:09:00.002+08:002014-05-12T09:09:24.967+08:00Blog Tour: I, Kwan by K. Hippolite<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://sites.google.com/a/myaddictionisreading.com/spring-2014/k-hippolite" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
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<b>I, Kwan</b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">
<br />
For over a thousand years, a powerful oligarchy known as the Worldwide Order of Lightnings has oppressed us. With the help of the prying eyes of the chronomancers, the Lightnings have torn us from our homes; have forced us to do their bidding; have stripped us of our rights, even our names. <br />
<br />
I have spent my life in hiding. Please understand that an unrated telepath like me is a commodity, not a person. If it s not the thought-police come to call on me, it s the Lightnings, or worse, a suitor who won t accept no as an answer. <br />
<br />
Peace. Security. Love. They all elude me. When I manage to grasp a little of them in my shaking hands, they are all but snatched away by outside powers beyond my control. My heart groans with black tears from all this folly. <br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
<br />
Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/I-Kwan-K-Hippolite/dp/1927569087">Amazon</a></div>
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</blockquote>
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>K. Hippolite</b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Love heroes and heroines who can either kick serious butt or think on their feet. Main influences: Anne McCaffrey, Frank Herbert.</span></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.skyfire.ca/kwan">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/chroniclesofkwan">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://plus.google.com/103592622979344357153?prsrc=5">Blog</a></div>
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</blockquote>
<br />
Time for 2 short excerpts!<br />
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<div style="border: 2px dashed mediumvioletred; padding: 5px;">
“No need for the lord thing when we’re alone, Kwan.” He shuffles my arm so that we’re hand in hand as he turns to look at me. “You’re better than them, you know. I spoke to Tiller. He said you’re far stronger a telepath than anyone lets on.”<br />
“I am of Hillvale. I am inseparable from its people, and I’m certainly not better than anyone.”<br />
“You speak with youth and naivety. How old are you again?”<br />
He holds up my hand and studies my ring finger.<br />
“Old enough to no longer make amorous decisions based on the flavour of ice cream I’ve been given. And the mark you see roiling over my head would make life with a Lightning difficult.”<br />
Stradin gives a throaty laugh. “Well-played, but you’re far beneath my station, so no fear of me pursuing you. I merely ask for politeness-sake.”<br />
“Good news to my ears, milord.” I snap my arm free of his grasp and step away from the protective wall. Even though I can sense nothing of his thoughts through his electrokinetic field, I have a sudden feeling of dread about being shoved off. A plunge to my death at the whim of an angry Elika is far from how I’d like to spend the evening of Kim’s appointment ceremony.<br />
A shoot of some plant catches my eye. Growing in between the cracks of the stone, the little sprig of green seems incongruous here. A scream of defiance from nature. I bend down before it to touch one of its tiny round leaves.<br />
“What interests you in that weed?” asks Stradin.<br />
“If all weeds should die, where would we be?”<br />
“Better off, I should think.”<br />
“A world in which plants only grew where invited would soon lose all appeal. We’d be locked in a jail limited of our own imaginations.”<br />
This evokes another laugh from Stradin.<br />
“Lords, Kwan. Where do you get all these words?”<br />
“From my soul. Look in yours and you will read such things there yourself.”<br />
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</div>
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He’s a giant of a man, perhaps just clear of the two-metre mark. He wears leathers and a fur overcoat that gives him a feral, bear-like look. To make matters worse, he wears giant-sized boots. The thick type that he could probably use to stomp through a steel animal trap and emerge unscathed. His horse is bigger than any horse I’ve seen before. Black, with hooves as thick as the rider’s legs. I bet its eyes glow red in the dark to match the clouds of frothy air jetting from its flaring nostrils.<br />
I park and walk ahead of the motorcycle, blocking off the road. This could get ugly, so I unwrap Kwan’s scarf from around my neck. I set my rifle down on the road and remove my helmet.<br />
Minutes until the hunter arrives. Minutes to show life what I’m made of.<br />
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So yep, that's about it for today! Thanks for visiting!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-34789754551113205972014-05-10T21:00:00.000+08:002014-06-06T10:05:18.320+08:00Monster In His Eyes by J.M. Darhower<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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First Published: 27 April 2014<br />
Publisher: Self<br />
Pages: 350<br />
Format: Ebook<br />
Finished Date: 9 May 2014<br />
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px inset crimson; padding: 5px;">
<u>Synopsis</u><br />
<br />
Ignazio Vitale is not a good man.<br />
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I suspect it, the first time I see him, sense the air of danger that surrounds the man. He has a way of commanding attention, of taking control, of knowing what I'm thinking before I even do.<br />
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It's alarming and alluring. It's dark and deadly. It's everything I've ever wanted but the last thing I truly need. Obsession.<br />
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It doesn't take him long to draw me into his web, charming me into his bed and trapping me in his life, a life I know nothing about until it's too late. He has secrets, secrets I can't fathom, secrets that make it so I can't walk away, no matter how much I beg him to let me go. I see it sometimes in his eyes, a darkness that's both terrifying and thrilling. He's a monster, wrapped up in a pretty package, and what I find when I unmask him changes everything.<br />
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I want to hate him.<br />
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Sometimes, I do.<br />
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But it doesn't stop me from loving him, too.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Rating</u> </div>
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<div style="font-size: 14px;">
<u>My Review</u> </div>
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I don't really understand why this book got so many 5 star reviews. It was alright, but there were some things that I just couldn't bring myself to look past.<br />
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Firstly, the writing is really good. Even though I didn't like this much, I do want to read other books by her, because I think her writing style is very engaging and interesting. I couldn't put the book down.. Literally. And the blurb is amazing, isn't it? I don't know. Somehow in this book, it had everything right and at the same time, everything I couldn't agree with. I'm torn honestly. I don't know if I like this book or not. I like the writing, but I hated Karissa, was alright with Naz and completely disagreed with the entire romance.<br />
<br />
At the same time, what I read in here wasn't love. It's just not. That's actually my biggest issue. Its like some of the quotes that was used about love was so beautiful. And then the next second, Karissa, the annoyingly huge pushover, just decides that she loves him for I have no idea what reason. And she doesn't care about the person underneath. Like hello, she has questions about him but she refuses to ask them because sometimes she's 'too afraid to know the answer' and I'm just.. what. I mean, how do you really love someone if you don't know the darkest side of the person and still love that? She said something beautiful about how love is seeing the beauty in the ugly. But she doesn't even want to think about the ugly. It was annoying reading it from her POV because its just impossible for me to understand why she went on all about her loving him, but never once really showed me that she even had the slightest comprehension of love. <br />
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And as for Naz, oh he's hot and sexy and all that. But possession is not love. Needing to possess someone isn't being in love with the person. I don't know, I just feel love should set someone free, not keep a person with you, whether or not the person wants to stay. I'm just.. I don't know. Still, Naz is an interesting character. He's murky, but I like murky. Don't agree with his actions though, but he has the most depth out of all the other characters. And yes, he's insane. <i>*Little bimbo moment here where I say, still, he's hot and sexy though and that does make up for some things.*</i><br />
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Okay sorry, rant over. <br />
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With that being said, I'm still going to read the next book. <i>*I know, I know, I'm confusing. But the writing is good and I just need to see how it ends and whether this weird lust/hate/like/possession thing turns into love eventually.*</i><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-59521060612622105902014-05-09T15:40:00.002+08:002014-05-09T15:40:33.061+08:00Blog Tour: Bastard's Brew by Gillian Felix<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivqT2xrLKqjA5T5BQLLuV7-bjWOYt7OSI2GvvPen-Yqjq9ri_bmQPDRDG0QiAYgkST1uV8Xpx9SDIY4XvA0ky-wFSf9m6ApVncLzeURwQUHRduSvRBNvCE4buTvlcl7hycY4IOhnIWaILu/s1600/BrewTour+banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivqT2xrLKqjA5T5BQLLuV7-bjWOYt7OSI2GvvPen-Yqjq9ri_bmQPDRDG0QiAYgkST1uV8Xpx9SDIY4XvA0ky-wFSf9m6ApVncLzeURwQUHRduSvRBNvCE4buTvlcl7hycY4IOhnIWaILu/s320/BrewTour+banner.jpg" height="147" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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<div style="background-color: #ffff66; border: 6px ridge sienna; color: #660066; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 16em; margin-right: 6em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;"><b>Bastard's Brew</b></div><br />
<blockquote><div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">When L'Wren's ex-boyfriend Jeff suddenly disappears, she turns to Kevin to help her find him. With one phone call, Kevin makes sure that Jeff stays hidden and that L'Wren's heart is broken, leaving the door open for Kevin to pursue her. But Kevin is not as free as L'Wren thinks; she is in the dark about his affair with her stepmother, Savi. Savi constantly reminds Kevin of his devious ways and uses their secret to keep him as her toyfriend. <br />
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<i>“You don’t deserve to be loved, and you don’t deserve to be happy. You and I are the same … we’re broken inside. Everything we touch, we destroy. We don’t get happily ever after … we don’t get to ride off into the sunset. You know who gets that? L’Wren … she gets it, she gets the guy, and she deserves a decent guy.”- Savi</i><br />
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Kevin desires to be the man that L'Wren deserves, but before he can assume the role of white knight, he brews one last plan to get rid of Savi for good. Will L'Wren, the innocent victim in their twisted game, become a casualty?<br />
<br />
Kevin may have sold his body to the devil in stilettos, but he'd be damned if he let her have his heart. <br />
<br />
<b>Suitable for adults 18+</b><br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">Check it out at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00EAUDZM6">Amazon</a></div>| <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bastards-brew-gillian-felix/1118904076?ean=2940045756297">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/417024">Smashwords</a> | <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/bastards-brew-family-portrait/id838347170?mt=11">iTunes</a><br />
<br />
</div></blockquote><br />
On Smashwords,<br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: red;">Enter coupon code: RS54B for 50% discount</span></b><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: blue;">Enter coupon code: FX48M for 10% discount off <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/415280">The Banovic Siblings</a></span></b> <br />
<br />
<span style="color: purple;">Want to give the series a try? Changes, the first novel in the series is FREE on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EADYMCA">Amazon</a> or <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/405028">Smashwords</a></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;"><b>Gillian Felix</b></div><br />
<blockquote><div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;"><br />
Gillian Felix has been writing since she was old enough to hold a pencil. She enjoys creating characters that could be your next-door neighbor, but would you want them as your neighbor is another story.<br />
<br />
Originally from the island republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Miss Felix moved to the United States in 1998. Since then she has been involved in the entertainment industry for over ten years. Her experience ranges from script supervisor to production manager on many independent features. She is trained in the Meisner and Stanislavski technique of acting, which she credits as an asset to her character development and writing.<br />
<br />
Miss Felix is also an entrepreneur and advocate for children's and women's rights.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.plaintalkbm.com/">Plain Talk Book Marketing</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/FamilyPortraitNovels">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/Gillianfx">Twitter</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00EAUDZM6">Amazon</a></div><br />
</div></blockquote><br />
This is her dream cast for the characters:) <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwFPIMr15Ape4CUn8kN9weFAFI2wjsBdlFSUMhUyl-Bq2ehKF5bXcoI9TyQWGDTVS8INk0UGXFQT3GB5S8eAsMnZ9VNirG7ov0AoXWMGceA5QqQLhCfT-EKjSbbsPubS9iddsixABpgxAj/s1600/Dream-cast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwFPIMr15Ape4CUn8kN9weFAFI2wjsBdlFSUMhUyl-Bq2ehKF5bXcoI9TyQWGDTVS8INk0UGXFQT3GB5S8eAsMnZ9VNirG7ov0AoXWMGceA5QqQLhCfT-EKjSbbsPubS9iddsixABpgxAj/s400/Dream-cast.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Enter the giveaway here!<br />
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2531925/" id="rc-2531925" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script><br />
<br />
<br />
So yep, that's about it for today! Thanks for visiting!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-7733664615728887012014-05-07T13:00:00.000+08:002014-05-07T16:05:25.069+08:00Project Reveal - Harlequin Presents: The ChatsfieldHey guys! So today I'm so excited to be part of this event! Its really interesting and a lot different from other book blasts! So without further ado, let me present to you...<br />
<br />
The Chatsfield!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit-4QgEAI-7RuZ-cIFqTs7UuNORs-HUMbw7bIX5l8GDqO2cXxMRTaj4LMFKJ6Uw7CFtPwg231cMg4vJRu0TmjhjV2ESbqCG7c6nMlYSqendkb6aqlFhlsVgdiBzBksJ6rnUPfYjEwIPfbu/s1600/The+Chatsfield.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit-4QgEAI-7RuZ-cIFqTs7UuNORs-HUMbw7bIX5l8GDqO2cXxMRTaj4LMFKJ6Uw7CFtPwg231cMg4vJRu0TmjhjV2ESbqCG7c6nMlYSqendkb6aqlFhlsVgdiBzBksJ6rnUPfYjEwIPfbu/s320/The+Chatsfield.jpg" height="207" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
So.. What is this all about?<br />
<br />
Harlequin, has launched The Chatsfield, a “first of its kind” digital series from Mills & Boon on 6th May.<br />
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Set in the luxury hotel “The Chatsfield”, this digital series provides an extra journey for the reader to continue engaging with the characters of a book and series beyond what is just on the page, thereby extending the life of the story.<br />
<br />
The Chatsfield is a digital journey that blends fiction and reality and comes across multiple mediums including print (The Chatsfield Presents books), video (YouTube), digital (blogs and the main Chatsfield website) and social (twitter, Facebook). <br />
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<i>I must admit, I was immediately intrigued when I first saw this.</i><br />
<br />
To be a part of the digital journey, you can explore here:<br />
The Chatsfield opened its doors on 6th May at <a href="https://www.blogger.com/www.thechatsfield.com">www.thechatsfield.com</a><br />
<br />
<i>The site is really really cool haha I was honestly stunned when I saw it! It really looks good, do check it out:) I checked in with them, have you? ;)</i><br />
<br />
Want to find out more or get connected to all things Chatsfield? Check out these sites!<br />
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/thechatsfield">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/TheChatsfield">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://plus.google.com/u/2/b/113143776951997975430/113143776951997975430/about">Google+</a> | <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/thechatsfield">YouTube</a> | <a href="http://www.millsandboon.co.uk/thechatsfield">Mills & Boon website</a><br />
<br />
And look out for the hashtag <span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 20px;">#TheChatsfield</span> wherever possible!<br />
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Also, do check out the trailer for the Chatsfield webisodes <a href="http://youtu.be/1AEBSteF1Mc">here</a>!<br />
<br />
Now, take a little peek into the Chatsfield:)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6qnowGlIohhPMCnLyJPpBne3Ww-SGdJmFNaUk5_wr8YjeLTi9jKIKDHPaIFbtxeGgx7qpE2aVPJ8SLBms-0FR5WiW6xgHoU_HeFW4qBMlW5RLVX0rCN7q6sNxVfSMRKht7P1b4jZlM-RI/s1600/Room.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6qnowGlIohhPMCnLyJPpBne3Ww-SGdJmFNaUk5_wr8YjeLTi9jKIKDHPaIFbtxeGgx7qpE2aVPJ8SLBms-0FR5WiW6xgHoU_HeFW4qBMlW5RLVX0rCN7q6sNxVfSMRKht7P1b4jZlM-RI/s200/Room.jpg" height="166" width="320" /></a></span><span class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifBm-GeuxdFKU9zoB8LpeAesgqC-y9C71C6QqIniX1sBYYBXmQbH1fHUrt_dJ4BIc7zT5dmmDD9Zap_qDduZfWhFdCfrnXVKftJmt5uaK0oDNj11-eJQaYUp0k_wtxn4T2PArd_MdfU0qZ/s1600/Homepage.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/AVvXsEifBm-GeuxdFKU9zoB8LpeAesgqC-y9C71C6QqIniX1sBYYBXmQbH1fHUrt_dJ4BIc7zT5dmmDD9Zap_qDduZfWhFdCfrnXVKftJmt5uaK0oDNj11-eJQaYUp0k_wtxn4T2PArd_MdfU0qZ/s200/Homepage.jpg" height="164" width="300" /></a></span><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">And now, here are the books in The Chatsfield series.</span></b><br />
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In <b><i><u><span style="color: red;">May</span></u></i></b>, we have...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxftCTfH-e7au4uje_JQoJbW5hR7yumv4yI36mnG2_Ze-OK3HJPYQ0hPrRnRQFaDyzCVwbz9Lntk3T66Dci2fkGuPZ935L7Ko9uuMwRB9kZE4q2t7pQyxSvDbHTmXB2Rh3EIok16noeEUU/s1600/Sheikh's+Scandal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxftCTfH-e7au4uje_JQoJbW5hR7yumv4yI36mnG2_Ze-OK3HJPYQ0hPrRnRQFaDyzCVwbz9Lntk3T66Dci2fkGuPZ935L7Ko9uuMwRB9kZE4q2t7pQyxSvDbHTmXB2Rh3EIok16noeEUU/s320/Sheikh's+Scandal.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Sheikh's Scandal by Lucy Monroe</b></div>
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Sheikh Sayed of Zeena Sarha and his harem of beautiful women are staying at the exclusive, opulent Chatsfield Hotel, London, for the last stop on his worldwide tour before his wedding. But when his engagement is unceremoniously broken, Sayed sets his sights on his sexy chambermaid!<br />
<br />
Liyah Amari only took the position as chambermaid to find the truth about her birth father. But her search ends in heartache, leaving Liyah vulnerable to this powerful Sheikh's desires. Now their one night of passion could result in a scandalous consequence for the proud Sheikh! <br />
<br />
Welcome to The Chatsfield, London!<br />
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</blockquote>
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 3em; margin-right: 16em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Lucy Monroe</b></div>
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<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
Award-winning and bestselling author Lucy Monroe lives in the gorgeous Pacific Northwest, surrounded by a plethora of pets and children (her own, the neighbors, her sisters…). She finds inspiration for her stories everywhere as she is an avid people-watcher. So much so that she disconcerted her husband upon first meeting him when she watched the other dancers as much as she watched him. He thought she wasn't interested…silly man.<br />
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She believes there is no stronger emotion than love; that it truly can overcome pain, past rejection and the challenge of finding happiness despite the hardest things life has to offer. She believes in the victorious conclusions found in today's romance. To her, the passionately sensual romance novel is a beautiful expression of the reality of love, packaged in a fantasy readers can enjoy.<br />
When she's not writing, Lucy likes to read—big surprise, that. She can't tell you the latest show going on television, but she loves romantic movies, action adventure and the theater. She adores her family, and is a smatterer when it comes to hobbies…a little of this, a little of that.<br />
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Since selling her first book to the Harlequin Presents line in September of 2002, she has sold more than thirty books to three publishers and shows no signs of slowing down in the near future.<br />
Visit her web site to read about all of her books and see flash movies for select releases, including her Harlequin Presents title. She truly loves to hear from readers, and can be reached at <a href="mailto:lucymonroe@lucymonroe.com">lucymonroe@lucymonroe.com</a>.<br />
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
In <b><i><u><span style="color: red;">June</span></u></i></b>, we have...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXrPI3CmJrsf76ia0Ozrm02HPRreen4XUnxxismgGtMS3VpVbuzj4SohQ_2p7F8aJV1lXH775pgUwYkrLx1RHtBz1Xliin1LC7n6xdndvKDSZsps4d2rh-N-gmuBrUYiQ5cOSNyAWc3sXm/s1600/Playboy's+Lesson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXrPI3CmJrsf76ia0Ozrm02HPRreen4XUnxxismgGtMS3VpVbuzj4SohQ_2p7F8aJV1lXH775pgUwYkrLx1RHtBz1Xliin1LC7n6xdndvKDSZsps4d2rh-N-gmuBrUYiQ5cOSNyAWc3sXm/s320/Playboy's+Lesson.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Playboy’s Lesson by Melanie Milburne</b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px groove forestgreen; padding: 5px;">
Lucca Chatsfield has one simple motto: no rings, no strings. Adored wherever he goes, he has yet to meet a woman who can resist him. Until he's sent to the small principality of Preitalle and meets his greatest challenge ever… <br />
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Poised and polished, princess Charlotte does not do drama. The very last person she needs interfering in her life is this reckless playboy! Lottie is determined to resist Lucca's seduction, but his charm is potent, and practically perfect Lottie finds herself risking everything for just one more touch….<br />
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 3em; margin-right: 16em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Melanie Milburne</b></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
It was while she was supposed to be studying for her final high school exams that Melanie Milburne read her first Mills & Boon novel. She was 17 and decided right then and there she would continue reading romance novels, and not only that, she would settle for no less than a tall dark handsome hero as her future husband. Well, she's not only still reading romance but writing it as well! And the tall dark handsome hero, you ask? She fell in love with him on the second date and was secretly engaged to him within six weeks.<br />
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They moved to Scotland so he could work and study for his M.D. in surgery, and two sons later, arrived in Hobart, Tasmania—the jewel in the Australian crown. Once their boys were safely at school, Melanie went back to university and upgraded her teaching qualifications to a bachelor's and then master's degree.<br />
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As part of her final assessment she conducted a tutorial in literary theory concentrating on the romance genre. She had the tutorial room decked out with hearts and champagne and roses and was standing at the front of the room reading a paragraph from the novel of a prominent Harlequin Mills & Boon author when the door suddenly burst open. The husband that she thought was safely tucked away in an operating theater doing what surgeons are supposed to do was actually standing there dressed in a tuxedo, his dark brown compelling gaze centered on her startled blue one. He strode purposefully across the room, hauled Melanie into his arms and kissed her deeply and passionately before setting her back down and leaving without a single word. The lecturer gave Melanie a High Distinction and her fellow students gave her jealous glares! You can see by now her pilgrimage into romance writing was more or less set!<br />
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As well as writing full-time, Melanie is also a keen athlete. She enjoys long-distance running and is a nationally ranked top-10 master's swimmer in Australia, holding several individual state records. She learned to swim as an adult, so for anyone out there who thinks they can't do something—you can! Her motto is "Don't say I can't; say I CAN TRY."<br />
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Melanie loves the pace and passion of the Harlequin Mills & Boon Presents series and hopes fans enjoy reading her stories as much as she loves writing them.<br />
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
In <b><i><u><span style="color: red;">July</span></u></i></b>, we have...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeML3VxupDo69wGP31gSdl_0PIRmY6bYYbY3LoQWphMyT7FT5yqoS5IvhNA1lp8FiVXHUdBl8kqRJba0j7h97bhY-VZ6mNo6MrRs1HSfnlaKBeKj5vFJmiNfxAHsG5PZvDgt1tDU6gttZA/s1600/Socialite's+Gamble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeML3VxupDo69wGP31gSdl_0PIRmY6bYYbY3LoQWphMyT7FT5yqoS5IvhNA1lp8FiVXHUdBl8kqRJba0j7h97bhY-VZ6mNo6MrRs1HSfnlaKBeKj5vFJmiNfxAHsG5PZvDgt1tDU6gttZA/s320/Socialite's+Gamble.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Socialite’s Gamble by Michelle Conder</b></div>
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As the darling of London's party scene, Cara Chatsfield isn't surprised when her father's CEO sends her to Las Vegas to host The Chatsfield's world-famous poker tournament. And if behind the glitz and glamour there's a girl hurt by her past? She'll never tell.<br />
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Aidan Kelly detests women like Cara, but when his biggest rival includes Cara in the stakes, Aidan must win—and not just for her protection! But getting to know the stunning socialite, he discovers a beautiful, vulnerable young woman awoken by his own personal brand of passion! <br />
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Welcome to The Chatsfield, Las Vegas!<br />
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 3em; margin-right: 16em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Michelle Conder</b></div>
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<div style="border: 5px ridge dodgerblue; padding: 5px;">
After graduating from the University of Melbourne, Michelle Conder took a variety of jobs before packing her bags and traveling and working overseas. When none of the career opportunities she encountered grabbed her she returned to Australia, and after more study decided to follow her lifelong dream of becoming a writer.<br />
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Michelle now lives in Melbourne with her husband and three children; when she isn't writing, she loves to visit faraway places and spend time with her family and friends.<br />
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</blockquote>
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So yep, that's about it for today! Hope you enjoyed this post and this really novel idea for a series that can actually be continued on multiple platforms! Oh yeah! Enter the giveaway here:)<br />
<br />
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d04251421/" id="rc-d04251421" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.com/load.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7063974360789270561.post-62340121074458417392014-05-06T10:21:00.002+08:002014-05-06T10:22:05.176+08:00Blog Tour: Trusting an Angel by Missy Jane<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii2h_5K-48No_PMG75eQZzLHQArlbAJnogWi48WCOAJm24nj33xuVmdTmGZB1dSh-fhf2LaE1D9IhL29SW8YYe2c9n6YnNEt0Yv_WFgABFBt2LdDi4BOgn2VwYv9wBlQeiqz4aAevove3F/s1600/TrustingAnAngel_500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii2h_5K-48No_PMG75eQZzLHQArlbAJnogWi48WCOAJm24nj33xuVmdTmGZB1dSh-fhf2LaE1D9IhL29SW8YYe2c9n6YnNEt0Yv_WFgABFBt2LdDi4BOgn2VwYv9wBlQeiqz4aAevove3F/s320/TrustingAnAngel_500.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Trusting an Angel</b></div>
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As the owner of a string of successful nightclubs all over the world, Zerach can have any woman--except for his assistant Isadora O’Donnell. First off, Isadora isn't a one-night-stand kind of girl, and second, her dominating godparents don't approve of him. There's also the fact that he is an archangel with a mission to protect humans from demons, something Isadora can never find out about.<br />
Isadora secretly longs for Zerach’s attention but her scarred body and his playboy ways keep her from acting on her feelings. With her only family on the brink of bankruptcy, she’s determined to help them, even if it means trying to forget Zerach and marrying the womanizing Jake, a man she’ll never love.<br />
Zerach tries to keep Isadora at arm's length, but when a demon starts stalking her, Zerach will stop at nothing to protect the woman he loves. But protecting her could cost him his wings.<br />
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<div style="font-size: 18px; text-align: center;">
Check it out at <a href="http://amzn.to/QoluWP">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://bit.ly/1pjABQQ">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21854407-trusting-an-angel">Goodreads</a> | <a href="http://bit.ly/1ni66ZH">Entangled Page</a></div>
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</blockquote>
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<div style="background-color: firebrick; border: 5px inset darkviolet; color: aquamarine; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10em; margin-right: 12em; padding: 5px; text-align: center;">
<b>Missy Jane</b></div>
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<br />
Ms. Missy Jane is the alter ego of a Texas mother of four who has been married to the same wonderful man for over sixteen years. A few years ago Missy finished reading a book by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory, titled The Outstretched Shadow, and thought -Now, what if? -and a monster was created. Missy now spends most of her time lost in worlds of her own making alternately loving and hating such creatures as vampires, shape-shifters and gargoyles (to name a few). When not writing, she spends her time reading, taking photos of her four beautiful daughters and training her husband to believe she's always right.<br />
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I'm currently reading the book now so my review isn't ready.. Yet. But I'll update here once I have reviewed it:)<br />
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Enter the giveaway here!<br />
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/1cb554345/" id="rc-1cb554345" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script><br />
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So yep, that's about it for today! Go <a href="http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2014/04/16/pump-up-your-book-presents-trusting-an-angel-virtual-book-publicity-tour-win-a-25-amazon-gift-card/">here</a> to see the other tour stops too! Thanks for visiting!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10178025292157191657noreply@blogger.com1