Wednesday, 29 February 2012

Emily's House by Natalie Wright Book Tour & Giveaway


 Title: Emily's House
Author: Natalie Wright
Genre: YA Fantasy
Rating: * * * *
Publishers Date: Nov 7, 2011
Paperback: 320 pages
ISBN:0615560628

Fourteen-year-old Emily Adams is flunking math - and life. But Emily has a secret, one that she has kept even from her best friends. Soon the ancient legacy coursing through her veins will force her secret to be revealed. Dormant for over a thousand years, an evil has arisen and this time, it will destroy anyone - or anything - that stands in its way.
 Three teens embark on a dangerous journey and risk everything. For Emily, the fate of her friends - and her world - lies in her hands.
 In a place where anything is possible, will Emily finds the skills - and courage -she needs to save the world from darkness?
Emily's House is a tale that blends Celtic mysticism, spirituality and ancient secrets with science and modern technology. Travel with Emily as she unlocks the secrets of her Celtic ancestors on a mystical journey to the inner house and beyond.

I spent my formative years on a farm in Ohio, a fertile place for an inquisitive mind and active imagination. I have always enjoyed writing, drawing and creating and in my earliest years I wanted to be a book writer and illustrator. I have an undergraduate degree in Art Education but chose to go to law school rather than teach. I spent almost 20 years in the legal field but never lost my thirst to create. I believe that having worked in the field of Family Law and Divorce Mediation has provided valuable inspiration for my character development and dialogue.
My first novel, "Emily's House," was over three years in the making and I enjoyed the process every step of the way! What started out as a vision of a gold arm bracelet hovering over a green field became a story about two generations of magical women, born a thousand years apart.
"Emily's House" is the first in a series of three. Book 2, "Emily's Trial," should be available in the Fall of 2012 and Book 3, "Emily's Heart," will follow in 2013.
In the meantime, look for Natalie's foray into Science Fiction with her debut Sci Fi novel, "The Deep Beneath," due out late Spring, 2012.
While I grew up on a farm in the midwest, I now live in the high Sonoran desert of Tucson, Arizona with my husband, young daughter and dog, Molly. I enjoy traveling and had the great fortune to win a trip to Ireland in 2010 - a trip that I greatly needed to do research for Emily's House. I gather inspiration from nature and from observation of the human experience.
I enjoy interaction with readers and welcome your questions and comments on my blog, NatalieWrightsYA.blogspot.com or on Facebook, Facebook.com/NatalieWright.Author or on Twitter, @NatalieWright_



If you like time travel, Celtic references, mysteries, and a kick butt red head, you're going to love this book. I just love the stance of Emily on the cover. You can see her courage and slight cockiness in those crossed arms and determined stance. Emily's had a tough life since her mom died at the age of seven and she's been raised by her evil aunt and totally oblivious dad. Travel with her on her adventures to save her friends and her world.
I guarantee you won't regret it.


OPEN TO US ONLY

Click on the "Read More" to take you to Rafflecopter--
If you have any problem getting 
Rafflecopter to come up,
generally refreshing the page will fix it.
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a Rafflecopter giveaway

Int'l giveaway + No internet for 4 weeks :(

Hi guys(giveaway can be found further down in this post),

We moved on Saturday and I completely forgot to order the company who delivers our broadband connection to move our line. That means, worst case scenario, I'm offline for 4 weeks. One positive thing about it, I can spend all my available time packing out of boxes and sorting through all our stuff.

I will be keeping up the Memorable Monday meme but sadly I cannot visit until I have a Internt connection. That being said I will make up for it when I get back, I promise! I will visit all of your previous MM posts then. Nina has a few posts scheduled for you guys so there will be a couple of reviews up. I hope you'll stay with us till we're back in business. To keep you warm I've decided to do a little giveaway so that no one forgets me completely ;)


a Rafflecopter giveaway





 

Tuesday, 28 February 2012

WELLLLL - WE'RE WAITING WEDNESDAY # 29





What's your WELLLL- WE'RE WAITING book for this week?



Title: A Want So Wicked
Author: Suzanne Young
Genre: YA Paranormal
Paperback: 252 pages 
Publisher: Signet (6/26/12) 
ISBN-10: 0062008269


Elise is a normal seventeen-year-old girl until the day she wakes up in a desert park, with no idea who she is.

After that episode, her life takes a bizarre turn. She’s experiencing unexpected flashes of insight into people’s lives—people she’s never met before. Strangers frighten her with warnings about the approaching Shadows. And although Elise has never had a boyfriend, she suddenly finds herself torn between two handsome but very different young men: Abe, the charming bad boy whose affect on her both seduces and frightens her, and the mysterious Harlin, who’s new to town but with whom Elise feels an urgent, elemental connection—almost as if they are soul mates.

Now Elise begins to question everything about her life. Why do these guys both want her so desperately? What are the Shadows? Why does the name Charlotte inspire a terrifying familiarity? And who is Elise, really?




Title: Shine  (Shade, #3)
Author:  Jeri Smith-Ready 
Genre: YA
Publishers:  Simon Pulse (May 1st, 2012 )
Hardback: 384 pages
ISBN: 1442439459



 No other love has burned so bright

Life can change in an instant, and no one understands that better than Aura. It’s been almost a year since her boyfriend tragically died. She’s finally letting go of Logan’s violet-hued ghost, but not her search to uncover the truth about her past.As the first in a generation that can see ghosts, Aura is convinced that she has a connection to the Shift. She’s trusted Zachary, ever patient and ever by her side, with all that she knows. But when the government threatens his life in an attempt to learn Aura’s secrets, she will stop at nothing to protect herself and the one she loves...even if that means betraying her own heart.
 





GIVEAWAY—INVISIBLE SUN BY DAVID MACINNIS GILL



Now for your chance to win an ARC of this amazing book! It's easy! Two things to note...

1) This giveaway is open until 11:59 on March 10, 2012
2) Contest is US and Canada only!

To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter form here.











Spirited Trailer.mov



Second Skin by Judith Graves

Second Skin is now available online via Amazon and
 here’s the Second Skin trailer for your enjoyment!











Book Review: Partials by Dan Wells

The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials--engineered organic beings identical to humans--has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out.

Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic-in-training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws have pushed what's left of humanity to the brink of civil war, and she's not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will find that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them--connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.
My thoughts:
Let me start off by saying that I am very picky when it comes to dystopian settings. I am usually the first to call out "Oh come, that's way unrealistic!" when something bothers me (*cough* that setting where the rest of the world is flooded, but the story is set in Florida *cough*), so I was a little skeptical to reading Partials. Then I read it anyway. And WHOA!

The setting is utterly believable. I have no problem imagining that the US would as some point in the future come up with robots as complicated as the Partials to win a war, then have them turn on us afterwards. And with the way biological warfare is developing, the RM virus is such a realistic possibility that it's almost scary. The surviving humans have gathered together in a society where everyone's main purpose is to find a cure for RM, and I love that we are introduced to this society only eleven years after the war against the Partials.

Kira is an amazing main character. She's got such a strong sense of what's right and wrong, and she is not the type to sit back and let everyone else deal with the problems mankind is facing. There are times when she comes across as much older than her sixteen years, but in a society where children are taught to shoot a gun at eight years old to protect themselves I don't find her behavior unlikely. It was very refreshing that Kira has a boyfriend, Marcus, from the very start. Sure, they have their problems and fights like all couples do, but their relationship always takes the backseat to what's important - finding a cure for RM.

I absolutely loved the way Partials was written. First of all the information presents itself naturally as the story progresses instead of being written out as one long explanation at the beginning. This means I often found myself curious as to the whys and hows of certain things, but I never had to wait long for an explanation. Secondly the action never stops. I did not want to put this book down (as my hubby could witness when I almost dropped my Kindle into a pot of boiling water because I kept reading while making dinner), and every time I thought I had gotten to a "quiet" place where I could stop, something new happened and I just had to keep going. I also liked all the medical terms used in Kira's research work, as well as the political plotting behind the scenes, but this might make the book a little heavy for the youngest readers.

Partials really impressed me, with amazing world building, characters I could connect to, and a level of action rarely seen in YA, and I can not wait to read the sequel, Failsafe, when it is released next year. And if that's not enough reason for you to read it; Partials jumped right on to my top three favorite dystopian novels along with Unwind by Neal Shusterman and Divergent by Veronica Roth. Yep, it's that good!

Cover:
Perfect. One of the best covers for a dystopian novel I've ever seen.

My rating of this book:



Want to know more?
Add Partials to your Goodreads wish list
Visit Dan Wells' website
Follow Roxanne on Twitter

Full disclosure:
ARC received from NetGalley


This book can be purchased from a number of local retailers and online book stores like Amazon and The Book Depository (I'm not an affiliate of either). The latter store has free shipping to about 100 countries.

Brought to you by ROBERT--How Old Is Grandma?


How Old Is Grandma? 
[] 
Stay with this -- the answer is at the end. It will blow you away. 

One evening a grandson was talking to his grandmother about current events. 
The grandson asked his grandmother what she thought about the shootings at schools, the computer age, and just things in general. 

The Grandmother replied, "Well, let me think a minute, I was born before: 
' television 
' penicillin 
' polio shots 
' frozen foods 
' Xerox 
' contact lenses 
' Frisbees and 
' the pill

There were no:
' credit cards 
' laser beams or 
' ball-point pens 
Man had not yet invented: 
' pantyhose 
' air conditioners 
' dishwashers 
' clothes dryers 
' and the clothes were hung out to dry in the fresh air and 
' man hadn't yet walked on the moon 
[] 
Your Grandfather and I got married first, and then lived together. Every family had a father and a mother. 
Until I was 25, I called every man older than me, "Sir." 
And after I turned 25, I still called policemen and every man with a title, "Sir." 
We were before gay-rights, computer-dating, dual careers, daycare centers, and group therapy. 
Our lives were governed by the Ten Commandments, good judgment, and common sense. 
We were taught to know the difference between right and wrong and to stand up and take responsibility for our actions. 
Serving your country was a privilege; living in this country was a bigger privilege. 
We thought fast food was what people ate during Lent. 
Having a meaningful relationship meant getting along with your cousins. 
Draft dodgers were those who closed front doors as the evening breeze started. 
Time-sharing meant time the family spent together in the evenings and weekends -not purchasing condominiums. 
[] 
We never heard of FM radios, tape decks, CD's, electric typewriters, yogurt, or guys wearing earrings. 
We listened to Big Bands, Jack Benny, and the President's speeches on our radios. 
And I don't ever remember any kid blowing his brains out listening to Tommy Dorsey. 
If you saw anything with 'Made in Japan ' on it, it was junk. 
The term 'making out' referred to how you did on your school exam. 
Pizza Hut, McDonald's, and instant coffee were unheard of. 
We had 5 &10-cent stores where you could actually buy things for 5 and 10 cents. 
Ice-cream cones, phone calls, rides on a streetcar, and a Pepsi were all a nickel. 
And if you didn't want to splurge, you could spend your nickel on enough stamps to mail 1 letter and 2 postcards. 
You could buy a new Ford Coupe for $600, but who could afford one? 
Too bad, because gas was 11 cents a gallon. 
In my day: 
' "grass" was mowed, 
' "coke" was a cold drink, 
' "pot" was something your mother cooked in and 
' "rock music" was your grandmother's lullaby. 
' "Aids" were helpers in the Principal's office,
' "chip" meant a piece of wood,
' "hardware" was found in a hardware store and.
' "software" wasn't even a word.
[] 
And we were the last generation to actually believe that a lady needed a husband to have a baby. 
No wonder people call us "old and confused" and say there is a generation gap. 
How old do you think I am? 
I bet you have this old lady in mind. You are in for a shock! 
Read on to see -- pretty scary if you think about it and pretty sad at the same time.

Are you ready????? 











This woman would be only 59 years old, Born in 1952.



GIVES YOU SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT. 
PASS THIS ON TO THE OLD ONES. 
THE YOUNG ONES WOULDN'T BELIEVE IT.

Mad Men Season 5 Poster Revealed



Now tell me this poster doesn't 
have you wondering what
 MAD MEN 
have in store for us this season!

Brought to you by ROBERT-WHAT CAUSES ARTHRITIS????





WHAT CAUSES ARTHRITIS????

A drunk man, who smelled of liquor, sat down on a subway next to a priest.  The man's tie was stained, his face was plastered with red lipstick,
And a half-empty bottle of gin was sticking
out of his coat pocket.

He opened his newspaper and began reading.

 After a few minutes the man turned to the priest and asked, 'Say Father, do you know what causes arthritis?'

The priest replies, 'My Son, it's caused by loose living, being with cheap, wicked women, too much alcohol, contempt for your fellow man, sleeping around with prostitutes and lack of a bath.'

 The drunk muttered in response, 'Well, I'll be damned, '  Then returned to his paper.

 The priest, thinking about what he had said, nudged the man and apologized. 'I'm very sorry.
I didn't mean to come on so strong. How long have you had arthritis?'

 The drunk answered, 'I don't have it, Father.
I was just reading here that the Pope does.'



MORAL: Make sure you understand the question before offering the answer.

Sunday, 26 February 2012

Memorable Monday #4 - Nice Girls Don't Have Fangs




Come and join in on this new weekly meme :) Want to know more about the meme just read this post. The short and easy guidelines can be found below my quote of the week. It's a pleasure to read all kinds of wonderful quotes on a Monday.

Last week I was inspired by Shewolfreads when she shared a quote from Nice Girls Don't Have Fangs by Molly Harper. I read that book last year and remembered that I wrote down a quote that made me smile so here it is:


Jettie was the one who undid some of the damage from my mother's "birds and bees" talk, entitled "Nice Girls Don't Do That. Ever.""
Knock yourself out and share those quotes! Remember to leave a link below.








Saturday, 25 February 2012

Friday, 24 February 2012

Mini review: Blood Song by Rihannon Hart

It has been awhile since I read Australian author Rhiannon Hart's debut fantasy novel; Blood Song(Larmell #1). I owe this book a review, it is long overdue but hey as they say better late then never.

A queen without economy to take proper care of her country and castle.

The oldest daughter have to marry a prince, preferably a very rich one.

The youngest daughter is struggling, in secret, with blood lust and hearing almost hypnotic voices in the night telling her to travel north.

Read it for:
A great female protagonist.
Archery!!
Awesome animal companions; a golden eagle and a faithful cat.
A different take on bloodsucking creatures.

Check out Rhiannon's blog!

Source: Bought.
This book can be purchased from a number of local retailers and on-line book stores such as Amazon or The Book Depository (I'm not an affiliate of either). The latter store does by the way have free shipping to about 100 countries.
  

Wednesday, 22 February 2012

Waiting on Wednesday: Hemlock by Kathleen Peacock

Hemlock by Kathleen Peacock is one of the 2012 urban fantasy YA debut novels that I'm most eagerly anticipating!  I mean hello a lupine(=werewolves) syndrome on the rise?! I'm sooo in! Add murder, love and lies into the mix, stir and it might just make an excellent story.



Synopsis borrowed from Goodreads:
Mackenzie and Amy were best friends. Until Amy was brutally murdered.

Since then, Mac’s life has been turned upside down. She is being haunted by Amy in her dreams, and an extremist group called the Trackers has come to Mac’s hometown of Hemlock to hunt down Amy’s killer: A white werewolf.

Lupine syndrome—also known as the werewolf virus—is on the rise across the country. Many of the infected try to hide their symptoms, but bloodlust is not easy to control.

Wanting desperately to put an end to her nightmares, Mac decides to investigate Amy’s murder herself. She discovers secrets lurking in the shadows of Hemlock, secrets about Amy’s boyfriend, Jason, her good pal Kyle, and especially her late best friend. Mac is thrown into a maelstrom of violence and betrayal that puts her life at risk.

Kathleen Peacock’s thrilling novel is the first in the Hemlock trilogy, a spellbinding urban fantasy series filled with provocative questions about prejudice, trust, lies, and love.
Add Hemlock to your Goodreads shelf
Check out Kathleen's homepage, it is soo pretty. I'm in love with that header.

Published by: HarperCollins.
Release date: May 2012.

What are you waiting for this week?

"Waiting On" Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. This event spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. Please visit Jill's blog to find out what other book bloggers are waiting for.


Tuesday, 21 February 2012

PRIVATE BY JAMES PATTERSON


Title: Private
Author: James Patterson
Genre: Crime Drama
Rating: * * * 1/2
Publishers: Little, Brown and Co (6/28/10 )
Hardback: 400 pages
ISBN: 0316096156
FTC Disclosure: Paperbackswap


Former Marine and CIA agent Jack Morgan inherits his father's renowned security and detective business--along with a case load that tests him to the breaking point. Getting to the bottom of an NFL gambling scandal and an unsolved LAPD investigation into 18 school girl slayings would be enough. On top of all that, Morgan takes on solving the horrific murder of his best friend's wife.

As Morgan fights the urge to exact brutal revenge on that killer, he has to navigate a workplace imbroglio that could blow the roof off his elite agency. And it's an especially explosive situation . . . because the love affair is his own.



 While admittedly I've been a little disappointed in the last few Patterson books I've read and while this wasn't one of those that I rambled on and on about how great or how crappy it was to my friends, I did enjoy it. It was a good read just not awesome. It wasn't one of those that you read from start to finish in one seating but I did enjoy the fast paced action and the multiple cases going on,  though they did seem to wrap up rather effortlessly. Not much in the way of a twisted surprise ending either.  
I try not to  get hung up on the fact that it is a JAMES PATTERSON book but admittedly I  do enjoy his older Alex Cross books, that weren't co-authored much better. I've been wanting to read his Women's Murder Club series but as I loved the TV show and these are co-authored books, I thought I'd leave it till the show fades a bit more from my memory. Once reading a series I kinda have a picture in my mind of the characters and don't want to mess with the Lindsey Boxer image. Alex Cross will always be Morgan Freeman to me which probably ramps up the expectations on any of the books in this series.
That said, one thing about Patterson, he sells a hella of a lot of books, so I'll continue to pick them up used on a swap site rather than buying new at over $20 a pop. 
Series Info
Jack Morgan (with Maxine Paetro)
1. Private (2010)
2. Private: #1 Suspect (2012)

WELLLLL - WE'RE WAITING WEDNESDAY #28










What's your WELLLL- WE'RE WAITING book for this week?





Title: The Temptation
Author: Alisa Valdes
Genre: YA Paranormal
Paperback: 340 pages 
Publisher: HarperTeen (April 24, 2012) 
ISBN-10: 0062024205


His touch was electric. 
His eyes were magnetic. 
His lips were a temptation.... 
But was he real? 
After crashing her car on an empty highway, Shane is miraculously saved by Travis, a mysterious cowboy who walks out of nowhere. She is instantly attracted to him, and for the first time, she believes in “soul mates.” But Shane soon discovers that Travis is dead and that strict rules from the Underworld govern kindred spirits of different dimensions. Breaking these rules could destroy both their souls. And while Travis is almost impossible to resist, temptation proves to be the kindest enemy they encounter.
Can true love surpass the power of pure evil?






Title: Black Dawn
Author: Rachel Caine
Genre: YA Paranormal
Hardback: 384 pages 
Publisher: NAL Hardcover (May 1, 2012) 
ISBN-10: 0451236718




Last Breath, the eleventh installment in The Morganville Vampire series, did not end well (and that's the understatement of the century). Morganville is in chaos; the once-indestructible vampires are now prey of a new mighty enemy that plans to leave nothing of the strange town Claire has come to think of as home, and that includes the people she loves. The hotly-anticipated twelfth instalment in the Morganville Vampires series In Last Breath, the rain brought a new and dire threat to Morganville and its vampires...their ancient enemies, the draug. Now, the vampires are fighting a losing war, and it will fall to the residents of the Glass House: Michael, Eve, Shane and Claire, to take the fight to an enemy who threatens to destroy the town, forever. Lovers of Morganville, rejoice: Black Dawn takes the intrigue, romance and nail-biting suspense of the series to its highest level yet.

Book review: Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

As much as I loved First Drop of Crimson by Jeaniene Frost the first book in The Night Huntress series was a let down for me. Why you might say?


Cat is a rare crossbreed between a human and a vampire. For some years now she has been hunting vampires in her spare time, ridding the world of supernatural monsters.

One day Cat encounters a vampire called Bones, her plan was to end his days but soon tables are turned. Bones is a vampire and a vampire bounty hunter, he gives Cat an offer she cannot refuse. 

My thoughts:
Ok, so some might think I'm a prude now but that's fine by me. I don't mind sex scenes in books but they have to be exceptionally well written not to feel like cliches. I do not appreciate it when it feels like the sex have been added because there was a hole in the plot. It felt like the author might have been unsure as to what was going to happen next so then sex between the characters seemed like a great idea. This book might as well have been titled All the way to the bed, a bit too much for my taste as you might have understood by now.

I wanted to enjoy this first book in the Night Huntress series, I really did. I mean I LOVED Jeaniene Frost's first novel, First Drop of Crimson - check out my review here, in the spin-off series Night Huntress World. There was, of course, sex in that novel as well but it felt more like a natural part of the story. It might have been because Frost now is a more experience writer? I'm not sure, but I can say that I will give Cat and Bones another try.

I liked the characters in the story, they were all likable. So I have to ask you guys does the series get better or should I just continue on with the Night Huntress World instead?


My rating of this book:


/


This book can be purchased from a number of local retailers and on-line book stores such as Amazon or The Book Depository (I'm not an affiliate of either). The latter store does by the way have free shipping to about 100 countries.


I purchased the audiobook from Audible.

Sunday, 19 February 2012

Divergent By Veronica Roth--FREE READ


  • Divergent By Veronica Roth

    Reading level:
     Ages 14 and up
  • Hardcover: 496 pages
  • Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (May 3, 2011)
  • ISBN-10: 0062024027
In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.
Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the literary scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.

If like me you are one of the few who haven't read this book, Harper/Teen is offering it free on their site.
Click HERE to read it free