Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Cover Reveal: Blood Stitches by Erin Fanning

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Title: Blood Stitches
Author:
Erin Fanning
Publisher: Lyrical Press (Kensington)
Cover Reveal Organizer: Pump Up Your Book!
Release Date: May 12, 2015

It’s called El Toque de la Luna–The Touch of the Moon. At least that’s how nineteen-year-old Gabby’s older sister, Esperanza, refers to the magical powers she inherited from their Mayan ancestors. Esperanza says women with El Toque weave magic into their knitting, creating tapestries capable of saving–or devastating–the world. Gabby thinks Esperanza is more like touched in the head–until a man dressed like a candy corn arrives at their Seattle home on Halloween. But “Mr. C” is far from sweet..

Soon, Gabby and her almost-more-than-friend, Frank, find themselves spirited away to a demon ball, complete with shape shifters–and on a mission to destroy Esperanza’s tapestries before they cause an apocalyptic disaster… And before it’s too late to confess their true feelings for each other.


Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Kobo



About the Author

Waiting on Wednesday (95): Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch

2 comments:

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



Title: Ice Like Fire (Snow Like Ashes #2)
Author:
Sara Raasch
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (HarperCollins)
Release Date: October 13, 2015

It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Januari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect them from new threats?

As the web of power and deception weaves tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter, but for the world.



Kayla and I both loved Snow Like Ashes so I did a little happy dance when I saw the cover revel for Ice Like Fire. I cannot wait to read more about Meira and Primoria. Also, aren't these some of the most awesome covers?? You can read my review of Snow Like Ashes here and Kayla's review here.

What are you waiting on this week?

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Blog Tour (Review): Haunted by Lynn Carthage #Giveaway

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Title: Haunted (The Arnaud Legacy #1)
Author:
Lynn Carthage
Publisher: Kensington
Release Date: February 24, 2015
Acquired Via:
Publisher

"Remarkable. . .a twist you'll never see coming." - Michelle Gagnon, author of Don't Look Now

Moving to my stepfather's English country mansion sounded so promising. But the Arnaud Manor is neglected and unwelcoming, and I get the feeling it isn't exactly uninhabited. Something wants to hurt us--especially my little sister, Tabby.

Okay, so I might be a little sensitive lately. My parents act oblivious to me, my old life is far away in San Francisco, and the gorgeous guy I just met tells me terrible stories about the infamous Madame Arnaud who lived here long ago, and about missing children and vengeful spirits. The kind of stories that are impossible to believe--until you're living in one of them, fighting to protect everyone you love...


My Review

Haunted by Lynn Carthage is just the kind of young adult novel that I like to read. My only experience with YA as a young person was reading R.L. Stine, Lois Duncan, and Christopher Pike, and Haunted is definitely in their league. It was a very nostalgic read.

Monday, February 23, 2015

Blog Tour (Review & Giveaway): Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran by Marion Grace Woolley

4 comments:


Title: Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran
Author:
Marion Grace Woolley
Publisher: Ghostwood Books
Release Date: February 14, 2015
Acquired Via: TLC Book Tours

It begins with a rumour, an exciting whisper. Anything to break the tedium of the harem for the Shah’s eldest daughter. People speak of a man with a face so vile it would make a hangman faint, but a voice as sweet as an angel’s kiss. A master of illusion and stealth. A masked performer, known only as Vachon. For once, the truth will outshine the tales.

On her eleventh birthday, Afsar’s uncle tries to molest her, and her father, the Shah, gifts her a circus. With the circus comes a man who will change everything. Inspired by Gaston LeRoux’s The Phantom of the Opera, Marion Grace Woolley takes us on forbidden adventures through a time that has been written out of history books.


Praise

“A sumptuous dark treat of a novel, will keep you shocked and enthralled until the very last page.” – Will Davis, author of The Trapeze Artist

“Rising from the cracks and hints in Gaston Leroux’s classic, Those Rosy Hours delivers a striking and glorious original historical fantasy that sings across time from the heart of a lost empire.” – David Southwell, author of The Phoenix Guide to Strange England: Hookland

“…evocative and gripping. I missed several tube stops thanks to my immersion in [Those Rosy Hours]…” – Kate Harrad, author of All Lies and Jest

“Disquieting and enchanting.” – Peter Dawes, USA Today best-selling author of Pandora

My Review

I haven't written a negative review in a really long time, and, unfortunately, this is going to to be one. Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran was rife with gratuitous violenc and demented individuals, but lacking in characters that I cared anything about. The writing was not awful, but neither did it pull me into the story.

Book Blast: Letters to Kezia by Peni Jo Renner #LetterstoKeziaBookBlast #HistoricalFiction

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Title: Letters to Kezia (The Puritan Chronicles #2)
Author:
Peni Jo Renner
Publisher: iUniverse
Release Date: January 14, 2014

It is 1693 in Hereford, Connecticut, when Mary Case, the spinster daughter of a Puritan minister, finds herself hopelessly smitten by the roguish thief, Daniel Eames. Betrothed to a man she does not like or love, she is soon compelled to help Daniel escape from jail. Suddenly, she finds herself on the run, not only accused of being Daniel’s accomplice, but also of murder.

The fugitive pair soon finds solace-and a mutual attraction-among the escapee’s Algonquin friends until two men from Daniel’s dark past hunt them down. After Mary is captured and returned home to await trial, a tragedy takes the life of her younger sister, revealing a dark secret Mary’s father has kept for months. But just as Mary learns she is pregnant, she makes a horrifying discovery about Daniel that changes everything and prompts her to develop an unlikely bond with his mother, Rebecca, who soon saves Mary from a shocking fate. It is not until years later that her daughter, Kezia, finally learns the truth about her biological father and family.

Letters to Kezia shares a courageous woman’s journey through a Puritan life and beyond as she struggles with adversity and betrayal, and discovers that loyalty can sometimes mean the difference between life and death.


Praise for Letters to Kezia

“In the tradition of author Peni Jo Renner’s gripping debut novel, Puritan Witch: The Redemption of Rebecca Eames, Letters to Kezia recounts the tale of courageous, compassionate, and relatable Mary, whose connection to Rebecca and her family is unforeseen and profound. The reader is captivated at the very first page, as Letters to Kezia is a story of forbidden love, deep family secrets, intrigue, murder, and atonement. Another beautifully written triumph for this author, whose immense gift for story-telling transports the reader into each scene so deftly, one can almost smell the wood smoke and hear the crackling of the fire in the hearth.” – Kelly Z. Conrad, award-winning author of Shaman

Friday, February 20, 2015

Cover Reveal: Consent by Nancy Olin

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Title: Consent
Author:
Nancy Ohlin
Cover Reveal Organizer: Xpresso Book Tours
Release Date: November 10, 2015

Bea has a secret.

Actually, she has more than one. There’s her dreams for the future that she can’t tell anyone—not her father and not even her best friend, Plum.

And now there’s Dane Rossi. Dane is hot, he shares Bea’s love of piano, and he believes in her.

He’s also Bea’s teacher.

When their passion for music crosses into passion for each other, Bea finds herself falling completely for Dane. She’s never felt so wanted, so understood, so known to her core. But the risk of discovery carries unexpected surprises that could shake Bea entirely. Bea must piece together what is and isn’t true about Dane, herself, and the most intense relationship she’s ever experienced, in this absorbing novel from Nancy Ohlin.



About Nancy Ohlin

I am the author of Beauty, a YA retelling of the Snow White tale, and always, forever, a YA retelling of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca. Always, Forever was originally published in hardcover as Thorn Abbey.

I've also contributed to several celebrity novels, including a New York Times-bestselling YA trilogy.

I'm currently hard at work on my next YA novel, which will be as mind-bending as Always, Forever (I hope!).

My favorite cures for writers' block are long walks, long showers, popcorn, chocolate, and really expensive coffee. I talk to myself a lot while I write (you know, to make sure the dialogue zings).



Cover Reveal: One Last Time by Denise Daisy #Giveaway

6 comments:


Title: One Last Time
Author:
Denise Daisy
Publisher: Lyrical Press (Kensington)
Cover Reveal Organizer: Pump Up Your Book!
Release Date: August 4, 2015

When it comes to love, time is all they need...

Averie is terrified of anything remotely scary, but when she finds herself short of cash, she has no choice but to work on the catering staff at the creepy historic Faulkner mansion. The Faulkner Plantation was the site of a bloody massacre in the 1800s, and the event is an attempt to change its reputation. There’s just one catch: the host has more in store than dinner. Soon Avery, along with a handsome guest named Quillan, is transported—back in time...

It’s one month before the massacre and Averie and Quillan must find the courage to do more than survive. Together, they must uncover the truth about the Faulkner family and try and stop the murders. But as Averie and Quillan grow closer, the stakes are higher than they expected. Will they be able to put their feelings aside to change the past—and find life, and love, in the place Averie fears the most?


Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Kobo



About the Author

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith Now Available in Paperback! #Giveaway

5 comments:
Last February, I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing Andrew Smith's Grasshopper Jungle. Here's a excerpt from my review:
"Grasshopper Jungle ... is pretty gross, but definitely unique. How it began was most certainly strange, and the taking over of the bugs was a little more graphic than what I've seen in YA before. (Not a bad thing.) It made me think of a really campy B movie, which is a compliment. I was never tense or scared, but it was a fun ickfest.

Grasshopper Jungle is gross, weird, unique, and something that I think both teens and adults will love. I enjoyed the book thoroughly, and I will be reading Andrew Winger's past works.

In celebration of Grasshopper Jungle's paperback release yesterday (and in anticipation of their really fun upcoming campaign), our friends at Penguin has provided me with a copy to give away. You can read more about the book below, and be sure to come back next month for more giveaways and a review of Smith's newest novel, The Alex Crow!

About the Book



Title: Grasshopper Jungle
Author:
Andrew Smith
Publisher: Speak (Penguin)
Paperback Release Date: February 17, 2015

“Raunchy, bizarre, smart and compelling.” –Rolling Stone

Grasshopper Jungle is simultaneously creepy and hilarious. Reminds me of Kurt Vonnegut’s in 'Slaughterhouse Five,' in the best sense.” –New York Times Book Review


In the small town of Ealing, Iowa, Austin and his best friend, Robby, have accidentally unleashed an unstoppable army. An army of horny, hungry, six-foot-tall praying mantises that only want to do two things.

This is the truth. This is history.
It’s the end of the world. And nobody knows anything about it.
You know what I mean.


Funny, intense, complex, and brave, Grasshopper Jungle brilliantly weaves together everything from testicle-dissolving genetically modified corn to the struggles of recession-era, small-town America in this groundbreaking coming-of-age stunner.


Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BAM | Book Depository | Indiebound



About the Author

Blog Tour (Review & Giveaway): Miramont's Ghost by Elizabeth Hall

5 comments:


Title: Miramont's Ghost
Author:
Elizabeth Hall
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing (Amazon Publishing)
Release Date: February 1, 2015
Acquired Via: TLC Book Tours

Miramont Castle, built in 1897 and mysteriously abandoned three years later, is home to many secrets. Only one person knows the truth: Adrienne Beauvier, granddaughter of the Comte de Challembelles and cousin to the man who built the castle.

Clairvoyant from the time she could talk, Adrienne’s visions show her the secrets of those around her. When her visions begin to reveal dark mysteries of her own aristocratic French family, Adrienne is confronted by her formidable Aunt Marie, who is determined to keep the young woman silent at any cost. Marie wrenches Adrienne from her home in France and takes her to America, to Miramont Castle, where she keeps the girl isolated and imprisoned. Surrounded by eerie premonitions, Adrienne is locked in a life-or-death struggle to learn the truth and escape her torment.

Reminiscent of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, this hauntingly atmospheric tale is inspired by historical research into the real-life Miramont Castle in Manitou Springs, Colorado.


My Review

I'll be honest with you - I'm disappointed. Miramont's Ghost started off as a fascinating and addictive novel, and I am very unhappy how everything turned out. (Though not as much as the characters were, I'm sure.) There are a lot of themes in the book that would normally scare me away, but I was already hooked on Miramont's Ghost and kept reading.

Cover Reveal: Wicked Ride by Rebecca Zanetti #Giveaway

9 comments:


Title: Wicked Ride (Realm Enforcers #1)
Author:
Rebecca Zanetti
Publisher: Lyrical Press (Kensington)
Cover Reveal Organizer: Pump Up Your Book!
Release Date: June 23, 2015

“Non-stop action and a hero to die for!” — Alexandra Ivy

If you love the Dark Protectors, these wicked hot Realm Enforcers are for you!

Alexandra Monzelle is a hard-fighting, heat-packing Seattle vice cop, and she’s not much interested in being protected. Her short skirt and sex-kitten heels are tools to lure her suspects into talking about the deadly new drug hitting the streets. She can take care of herself and then some. Unfortunately, she can’t seem to get that through to Kellach Dunne.

Kellach is a fresh import from Dublin, and he’s landed at the heart of a vicious motorcycle club that deals in guns, narcotics, and mayhem. He’s all male, all rough power—and all interference in her damn investigation. Maybe he’s one of the good guys. Maybe not. Lex knows an affair with an immortal like him would risk everything. No matter how delicious he looks…


Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Kobo



About the Author

Waiting on Wednesday (94): Dark Heir by Faith Hunter

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Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



Title: Dark Heir (Jane Yellowrock #9)
Author:
Faith Hunter
Publisher: Roc
Release Date: April 7, 2015

Shapeshifting skinwalker Jane Yellowrock is the best in the business when it comes to slaying vampires. But her latest fanged foe may be above her pay grade...

For centuries, the extremely powerful and ruthless vampire witches of the European Council have wandered the Earth, controlling governments, fostering war, creating political conflict, and often leaving absolute destruction in their wake. One of the strongest of them is set to create some havoc in the city of New Orleans, and it’s definitely personal.

Jane is tasked with tracking him down. With the help of a tech wiz and an ex-Army ranger, her partners in Yellowrock Securities, she’ll have to put everything on the line, and hope it’s enough. Things are about to get real hard in the Big Easy.


Jane Yellowrock is one of my favorite urban fantasy series, and there's a lot of story threads coming to a head in this installment so I can't wait to read it. Plus, the rest of the series has been narrated by one of my favorite narrators, Khristine Hvam.

What are you waiting on this week?

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Cover Reveal: Deception by A.S. Fenichel #Giveaway

8 comments:


Title: Deception (The Demon Hunters #2)
Author:
A.S. Fenichel
Publisher: Lyrical Press (Kensington)
Cover Reveal Organizer: Pump Up Your Book!
Release Date: July 7, 2015

When Demons threaten Regency London, only a Lady can stop them.

Lillian Dellacourt is beautiful, refined and absolutely lethal. She’s also the most feared and merciless demon hunter in The Company. She’s come a long way from the penniless seamstress’s daughter sold to the highest bidder, and it wasn’t by trusting a man, let alone an exiled Marquis with more on his mind than slaying the hellspawn...

For Dorian Lambert, Marquis de Montalembert, being sent to keep track of Lillian is no mean task. He’s wanted the fiery vixen since he first heard of her five years ago. But wooing the lady while fighting the demon uprising is no easy feat, especially when the lady’s tongue is as sharp as the Japanese sai blades she favors for eviscerating the spawn of hell.

These two will have to learn to trust each other fast, because the demon master is back, and he’s planning to turn Edinburgh into a living hell...


Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Kobo



About the Author

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Related Problems I Have

3 comments:

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created and hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten (OK, Eight) Book-Related Problems That Plague Kayla



1. Replacing My Collection

This is the biggest problem I'm dealing with, as the majority of my book collection was lost when my house flooded last fall. I didn't lose many of my "prizes" (signed books, rare first editions, etc.), but I lost several thousand dollars worth of books. I can't even start solving this problem because of...



2. Space (And I Don't Mean Outer)

I think almost all readers deal with the space issue, in some manner or another. Right now, we're living with the mother-in-law, so I try to be kind and only keep my books in the bedroom I share with Mister. The wall by my bed is filled nearly to the window, upwise, so I guess my pile is six feet long and two and a half feet wide.

Monday, February 16, 2015

Blog Tour (Review & Giveaway): The Thing About Great White Sharks by Rebecca Adams Wright

4 comments:


Title: The Thing About Great White Sharks
Author:
Rebecca Adams Wright
Publisher: Little A (Amazon Publishing)
Release Date: February 10, 2015
Acquired Via: TLC Book Tours

In this collection’s richly imagined title story, our brutal and resourceful protagonist is determined to protect her family from a murderous, shark-ridden world—at any cost. Elsewhere, an old woman uncovers a sinister plot while looking after a friend’s plants (“Orchids”), and a girl in the war-torn countryside befriends an unlikely creature (“Keeper of the Glass”). In “Barnstormers,” a futuristic flying circus tries to forestall bankruptcy with one last memorable show. At the heart of “Sheila” is the terrible choice a retired judge must make when faced with the destruction of his beloved robotic dog, and “Yuri, in a Blue Dress” follows one of the last survivors of an alien invasion as she seeks help.

Extending from World War II to the far future, these fifteen stories offer a gorgeously observed perspective on our desire for connection and what it means to have compassion—for ourselves, for one another, for our past…and for whatever lies beyond.


My Review

I really enjoy short story anthologies, but I had no idea what a fucking treat The Thing About Great White Sharks would be. (I'm using coarse language to convey feeling, not my trashiness, by the way.) This is literary fiction just the way I like it - with a little bit of magical realism, a touch of sci-fi, and a mix of something else. It's shocking, horrible, and wonderful, all rolled into one.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Promo Blitz: Whipped by Kelly Collins

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Title: Whipped (Decadent #3)
Author:
Kelly Collins
Publisher: Self
Release Date: February 13, 2015

For a limited time, Whipped will be $0.99

Roxy Somerville grew up with everything. Sports cars and designer clothes were commonplace in her life. Love, affection and autonomy were not. She left her life of luxury, and traded her riches for freedom, a freedom that would lead her back to her first love.

Bobby Anderson had very little in the way of wealth as a child. He had a supportive family and it made him the richest of men. For a time, he had Roxy, then she was gone. Now she’s back in his life, and he will stop at nothing to keep her.

Travel through past mistakes to second chances. Take a journey straight to the heart of love. Whipped is dipped in intrigue and suspense and immersed in sizzling hot passion. Once you find yourself Whipped, there is no turning back.



Excerpt

Wrapped in his warm embrace, Roxy refuses to move. This is where she wants to be. She pretends they are a couple. In her mind they have been together for years. Lying in his arms is how she wakes up every morning. They are inseparable. Even in sleep he hangs on tight. His grip on her is one of unbreakable possession. In her fantasy, he never lets her go.

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Blog Tour (Guest Post): Rebellion by @StephanieEDiaz #Giveaway @GriffinTeen

4 comments:


Title: Rebellion (Extraction #2)
Author:
Stephanie Diaz
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (Macmillan)
Release Date: February 10, 2015

THE UPRISING HAS BEGUN.

It's been seven days since Clementine and Logan, along with their allies, retreated into hiding on the Surface. The rebels may have won one battle against Commander Charlie, but the fight is far from finished. He has vowed to find a way to win—no matter the cost. Do the rebels have what it takes to defeat him...and put an end to this war?

As Clementine and Logan enter a desperate race against time to defeat Commander Charlie—and attempt to weaken his power within his own ranks—they find themselves in a terrifying endgame that pits them against a brutal enemy, and each other. With every step, Clementine draws closer to losing Logan...and losing control of herself.

Continuing with the mesmerizing saga that started with Extraction, Stephanie Diaz blends science fiction, epic romance, and heart-stopping adventure to create a world that no reader will soon forget.


Guest Post

The Easiest & Most Difficult Scenes to Write in Rebellion
Stephanie Diaz

There were quite a few scenes in Rebellion that had been brewing in my head for a while, and I was really excited to finally put them down on paper. Some of them were easier to write than others. Chapter 22, for example, was one of the easier scenes, because I had such a vivid picture of it in my head before I started writing it.

The last chapter of the book was one of the scenes closer to the “difficult” scale, though I also had a lot of fun with it. I’d been planning Rebellion’s ending ever since I figured out the arc of the trilogy. The ending is a cliffhanger, and I have a feeling some people might hate me for it. But I wanted it to be a really big moment. It’s a moment where Clementine realizes all the things she’s been dealing with—all the trials and hardships and difficult decisions she’s had to make—are nothing compared to what’s coming. Her world is about to get flipped on its head, and she isn’t ready for it but there’s nothing she can do to slow things down.

It was a difficult ending to write because there were a lot of things hanging in balance and a lot of feelings characters were dealing with. I had trouble choosing the exact moment to call “cut.” But I’m really proud with the way it played out, and I hope it will leave people feeling mostly satisfied and also really excited for what’s coming in the third book.

Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-A-Million | Indiebound



About the Author

Waiting on Wednesday (93): Waterborne Blade by Susan Murray

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Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



Title: The Waterborne Blade
Author:
Susan Murray
Publisher: Angry Robot
Release Date: May 5, 2015

The citadel has long been the stronghold of Highkell. All that is about to change because the traitor, Vasic, is marching on the capital. Against her better judgement, Queen Alwenna allows herself to be spirited away by one of the Crown's most trusted servants, safe from the clutches of the throne's would-be usurper.

Fleeing across country, she quickly comes to learn that her pampered existence has ill-equipped her for survival away from the comforts of the court. Alwenna must toughen up, and fast, if she is even to make it to a place of safety. But she has an even loftier aim - for after dreaming of her husband's impending death, Alwenna knows she must turn around and head back to Highkell to save the land she loves, and the husband who adores her, or die in the attempt.

But Vasic the traitor is waiting. And this was all just as he planned.



Doesn't this just sound amazing? A pampered queen who must grow up and a fight for a kingdom? Sign me up now!

What are you waiting on this week?

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Review: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

2 comments:


Title: Gone Girl
Author:
Gillian Flynn
Publisher: Crown (Random House)
Release Date: June 5, 2012
Acquired Via:
Personal Collection

Marriage can be a real killer. One of the most critically acclaimed suspense writers of our time, New York Times bestseller Gillian Flynn takes that statement to its darkest place in this unputdownable masterpiece about a marriage gone terribly, terribly wrong. The Chicago Tribune proclaimed that her work “draws you in and keeps you reading with the force of a pure but nasty addiction.” Gone Girl’s toxic mix of sharp-edged wit and deliciously chilling prose creates a nerve-fraying thriller that confounds you at every turn.

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet? With her razor-sharp writing and trademark psychological insight, Gillian Flynn delivers a fast-paced, devilishly dark, and ingeniously plotted thriller that confirms her status as one of the hottest writers around.


My Review

On the day of his fifth wedding anniversary, Nick Dunne discovers that his wife Amy is missing. Told in alternating points of view, a stressed and frazzled Nick depicts quite the different story about his marriage than Amy’s telling diary entries. While Nick’s story is told mostly in the present (flashing back to explain bits and pieces of his wife’s relationship with his dying mother and woman-hating father), Amy’s diary starts in the past and moves to catch up to the present day action. As the story unfolds, the reader learns quite a bit of history about the less-than-perfect marriage through both unreliable narrators. When the police get involved and find evidence of foul play, it is up to the reader to discover what happened to Amy and decide whether or not Nick is involved.

Top Ten Tuesday: Things I Dislike About Romances in Books

4 comments:

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created and hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Things I Dislike About Romances in Books

1. Cheating

This is probably the one thing I could never forgive, so I can't deal with it in romance novels. The only possible situation I find maybe acceptable is if the hero/heroine thinks the significant over is dead and there's been an appropriate grieving period. Not REALLY cheating, but it's close.

Guilty party - An Arranged Marriage (Company of Rogues #1) by Jo Beverley

2. Love Triangle/Square/etc.

Just stop already. We don't want the angst anymore.

Monday, February 9, 2015

Book News: Lauren Oliver to Adapt 'Panic' for Universal

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I know we don't do book news for Bibliophilia, Please very often, but I thought this was particularly exciting as Panic is a novel that I've read and reviewed here. The story broke on The Hollywood Reporter.
Sometimes the best screenwriter to adapt a novel is the novel's author herself.

Universal has followed this logic, as it just hired Lauren Oliver to pen the screenplay of the studio's adaptation of her YA novel Panic.

Universal picked up the rights in a bidding war in 2013 in advance of the book's spring 2014 release from Harper Teen, an imprint of HarperCollins. The book was a hot property due to the success of Oliver's previous novels, the New York Times best-selling Delirium trilogy and the 2010 hit Before I Fall, which was set up at Fox 2000.

-via The Hollywood Reporter

You can read the full story HERE.

About Panic

Review: Senior Year Bites by J.A. Campbell

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Title: Senior Year Bites (The Clanless #1)
Author:
J.A. Campbell
Publisher: Untold Press
Release Date: July 7, 2014
Acquired Via:
Author

Senior year is supposed to be fun: boys, dances and graduation. It’s significantly harder to enjoy it when you’re dead.

Thanks to an innocent game of Truth or Dare, I wound up sleeping in a graveyard. Probably not the brightest thing I’ve ever done, but thanks to a couple of well-placed fangs, I’m here to tell the tale.

Vampires might stalk pop culture, but they’re just myths, right? Yeah. Not so much...

Everything seems a lot more difficult when you’re a nocturnal creature of the night, especially school. I was managing, but couldn’t keep it hidden from my friends. Steph decided that we should be cool, like superheroes, and fight crime.

I’m a vampire, not a hero. Living in a sleepy New England town, crime is a little harder to come by. At least it is until a serial killer moves into the area. He’s got the authorities stumped, but then again, the cops don’t have a teenage, blood-sucking, non-hero on their team. It doesn’t take long for me to discover the world is full of monsters. I may be one of them…but will I turn out to be the hero, or the killer everyone is looking for.


My Review

I wanted to read Senior Year Bites because I thought it would be similar to a YA version of Chloe Neill's Chicagoland Vampires series, especially since it seemed like play on the second book, Friday Night Bites.

Cover Reveal: Elemental series by Elana Johnson #Giveaway

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Title: Elemental Rush (Elemental #0.5)
Author:
Elana Johnson
Publisher: AEJ Creative Works
Cover Reveal Organizer: Blog Tours by Elana
Release Date: May 19, 2014

Eighteen-year-old Adam Gillman has trained for twelve years to earn a coveted spot on the Supreme Elemental’s elite sentry squad. His brother, Felix, is the commander, but Adam is still thrilled when his official assignment to serve Alexander Pederson comes.

He moves into nicer quarters and can stop getting up at four a.m. to complete his mandated work out time. He still rises early though, because he needs the solitude of early morning to practice his airmaking Element—something that Adam has kept secret from everyone, even Felix, because he can’t be both an Airmaker and a sentry.

When Alex assigns him to kill a group of rogue Elementals, he balks at completing his mission for the first time. See, his only friend is Isaiah Hawking, and he’s the Earthmover on the accused Council. When faced with the prospect of killing him, Adam finds he can’t do it.

He’s well trained in assassination, but he thought he’d be murdering bad guys—not innocents.

When Alex buries the Elemental Academy—and kills over one thousand Elementals—in a fit of rage, Adam’s loyalty cracks. When he discovers that Alex is really a woman, and his brother’s lover, he defects. He hops from city to city, from Elemental school to Elemental school, always escaping only minutes before Felix can embed a knife in his heart or a tsunami can make a classroom his watery grave.

He tries to fight back, but he’s just one Airmaster with exceptional tracking skills. He does his best to warn those in danger, but as the last Elemental school goes up in flames, he knows he needs to get some real firepower on his side.

Elemental Rush is a prequel novella to the full-length futuristic fantasy novel, Elemental Hunger.


Sunday, February 8, 2015

Blog Tour (Guest Post): Teaser by Burt Weissbourd

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Title: Teaser: A Corey Logan Thriller
Author:
Burt Weissbourd
Publisher: Rare Bird Books
Release Date: February 24, 2015

Teaser, the sequel to Inside Passage, takes Corey and Abe into the interconnected worlds of private school kids and the runaways who roam Seattle's streets. Billy attends the Olympic Academy, where two friends, Maisie and Aaron, are experimenting with sex and drugs. They've become close to Star, a streetwise seductress who leads them down a treacherous path. Despite the best efforts of Abe and Corey, Maisie is abducted by the diabolical “Teaser,” a man determined to take revenge on her father, his former cellmate. Teaser is a mystery to everyone except Abe and Corey, who alone realize what they must do to rescue Maisie. They contrive a plan that shocks even them.

Guest Post

Inside Passage is the first thriller in the Corey Logan Trilogy. Corey is just coming home from prison, and all she wants is to be with her son.To get him back from foster care, she has to make a good impression on the psychiatrist evaluating her. But Dr. Abe Stein doesn’t believe she was framed—until his well-heeled mother falls for the charming candidate for state attorney general, Nick Season, the man, Abe discovers, who framed Corey.

Friday, February 6, 2015

We Gonna Party Like It's My Birthday #Giveaway

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Because it IS my birthday!

Since I can't have all of you guys over at my house this weekend (I'll being doing my annual Mardi Gras business), I'm bringing the party to you. And you'll be getting the present!

Well, one of you will.

Giveaway

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Audiobook Review: The Martian by Andy Weir

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Title: The Martian
Author:
Andy Weir
Narrator: R.C. Bray
Publisher: Crown Publishing (Random House)
Release Date: February 11, 2014
Acquired Via:
Personal Collection

Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.

Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there.

After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.

Chances are, though, he won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first.

But Mark isn't ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills—and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit—he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?


My Review

The Martian had been on my radar since its release last year, but I never felt too strong of an inclination to read it. It winning the Goodreads Choice Award for Science Fiction didn't really affect me either. It was not until The Martian stayed checked out for so long from my library that I was concerned it was lost did I finally decide to give it a shot. I already had a Kindle copy because I have no self control when it comes to Daily Deals, but per my Goodreads friend Damili's recommendation, I went for the audiobook.

I am telling you all of this because my review could be nothing but GIFs and/or emoticons otherwise.